Patras World Poetry Festival 2021

4th “Patras World Poetry Festival 2021

13^th - 19^th of December

LIVE & ON LINE EVENTS

This year, the 4^th “Patras World Poetry Festival” boasts a variety of original literary events taking place between the 13^th and 19^th of December 2021, hosting a total of 70 poets from 20 different countries.

The occasion of a calendar year combining on one hand the memory of the Greek people’s fight for freedom, and on the other hand the contemporary experience of confinement, led us to this year’s thematic center: “CONFINEMENT-FREEDOM-HUMAN REVOLUTIONS”. We bring novel aims and ideas, along with a greater and more essential need for expression, synergy and communication.

For 2021, the festival’s programme will be extended from 4 days to 7, hosting a multitude of events for audiences and participants both Greek and foreign, raising the bar and aiming to establish a tradition of cultural celebration.

This year too, for its most part, the Festival will be held online, a blended programme combining physical and online activities as adjusted to Covid-19 regulations, in a shifting terrain of cultural events during the pandemic.

The events of the week’s programme will take place in three (3) different places in Patras, each one of them a space for hosting cultural events. The events will be broadcasted ONLINE on the website www.culturebook.gr including both main and side events:

Main Events:

15^th-18^th December 2021

Five (5) Online Poetry Meetings including Readings and Roundtables: There will be lecterns where the guest poets will be presented; their works will be read (in 2 languages). The guest poets will also participate in the roundtables and discuss topics revolving around poetry and criticism.

18^th December 2021

Online Award Ceremony for the Greek “Jean Moréas” Poetry Award for 2021: The annual ceremony for the “Jean Moréas” Awards for Greek poetic art and production in its entire spectrum.

16^th December 2021

Newcomer Poet Marathon: A night of presentations and readings of new poets, combining physical and online presence.

Parallel Events: (11^th -19^th of December 2021)

Festival Anthology: Limited trilingual book edition plus eBook.
Online shows:
#meet_the_poets: tributes and interviews online at the culturebook.gr channel.
#videopoetry: presentation of video-poetry online.
Poetry Set to Singing: music radio tributes to poetry set to singing.
Exhibitions:
Poetry exhibition: presenting the works of poetry
Book exhibition of Newcomer Poets: presenting poetry collection books from new poets; participation from established poets and publishing houses.
Art Exhibition: “CONFINEMENT-FREEDOM-HUMAN REVOLUTIONS”
Poetry Alley: Presentation of poets and poems (the ones participating in the festival) on a central pedestrian precinct of Patras.

During both the physical and the online events, there will be participation from internationally acclaimed academics, novelists, critics, and representatives of institutions.

The Patras World Poetry Festival 2021 is organized by the “Grafeion Poiiseos” Poetry Foundation, the literary website Culture Book (culturebook.gr), while it is annually held under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism*. The festival’s events are supported by the Greek Library of London, the University of Western Macedonia, the Hellenic Open University and many other esteemed institutions, since the festival takes place under the aegis of the Hellenic Republic’s President.

The Patras World Poetry Festival is one of the largest literary institutions in Greece, certainly the largest of its whole region, and it has already drawn attention amongst esteemed festivals internationally. Every year, the city of Patras hosts important figures of world literature and offers a richness of events, including poetry readings, seminars and cultural activities. The festival’s vision is to promote Greek literary expression worldwide and turn this capital of Western Greece into a European center for literary studies. Through its actions, the festival communicates with various departments of Greek literary studies all over the world and it chronicles contemporary poetic expression.

A detailed programme will soon be posted on the festival’s website www.culturebook.gr.

Sincerely,

On behalf of the Scholarly Representatives

Kotopoulos H. Triantafyllos

Chair of the “Patras World Poetry Festival”

Skiathas D. Antonis

Chair of the “Grafeion Poiiseos” Poetry Fountation

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EVENT MANAGER

Maria Alaniadi

Communication:

poetryfestival@culturebook.gr

grafeion.poihseos@culturebook.gr

Archival content available on www.culturebook.gr

Hussein Habasch, Kurdistan

Participants PWPF 2021 Patras World Poetry Festival

Κυριακή, 28 Νοεμβρίου 2021

0 Σχόλια

Hussein Habasch, Kurdistan

Tomorrow, You Will Be an Old Man

A Kurd Would Love His Stubbornness!

The Poems

Tomorrow, You Will Be an Old Man
(For me, in a quarter of a century, more or less)

Tomorrow, you will be an old man
The cane, always with you
You will walk alone
You will mutter to yourself like all old geezers do
You will become obstinate, hard of hearing, and slow
You will ask for help when you need it
But no one will respond
You will dream of the past
And the good old days
While your grandson will think of the future
And days to come
You will curse this vapid generation
Repeating itself like a broken record
How wonderful our generation was!
You will be the butt of jokes in the family
They will laugh at you and your positions
Which you think are right on
Your lips will let out a sarcastic smile
Whenever they mention words like "stubbornness",
"Vigor", and "faith in the future"
You might even laugh
Your bones will soften
Illnesses will roam freely in your body
Without permission
All your desires will be extinguished,
Except the desire to die
There will be no friend or a companion
Loneliness will be your support and comrade
You will always be ready to depart
The threshold of the grave will entice you
And keep you company
All the angels will betray you and leave
Only Azrael will approach you as a last friend
Perhaps you will say just as you are about to go:
If I die burry me here in the strangers' cemetery
Perhaps these words
Will be you your final wish.

(Translated by Sinan Anton)

Siba tu yê pîr bibî
Ji bo min, piştî bîst salan, kêmtir yan bêtir.

Siba tu yê pîr bibî
û gopalê te wê herdem bi dest te de bî.
Tu yê bi tenê seyranê bikî
û di ber xwe de weke hemû mirovên pîr, bike pitepit.
Tu yê bi xwe re bipeyivî,
guh û gavên te wê giran bibin.
Tu yê alîkariyê bixwazî lê tukes guhdarî te nake
û ji te re alîkariyê pêşkên nake.
Tu yê rojên berê, ew rojên pir xweş bi bîr xwe bînî!
Lê belê nevîyê te wê bi pêşeroj û rojê nû birame û şad bibe.
Tu yê gotinên kêm û sixêfan bi vî nifşê bêhiş re bikî
û herdem dubare bikî û bibêjî:
Yaw ew çiqas nifşê me baş, çalak û zîrek bû!
Kesên malbatê wê henekên xwe bi te
û bi helwestên te yên kevneperest bikin.
Gava ku li pêşiya te çêra hêz,
serhişkî û baweriya bi pêşerojê bikin,
rûyê te wê li berken bibe
û belkî jî ku tu kenekî bilind û biêş bikî.
Hestiyên te wê tenik bibin
û bibhurin û hemû nexweşî jî wê bê destûr
kêfa xwe di laşê te de bikin.
Hemû daxwazên te,
ji bilî dawaza mirinê wê bên vemirandin.
Ne dost û ne jî heval,
tenê wê tenahî pişgirî û hevalê riya te be.
Herdem tu yê ji bo barkirinê amade bî
û devê gorê wê gazî te bike û bi li benda te be.
Hemû firişte, wê pişta xwe li te yalkin û ji te birevin,
tenê firişteyê mirinê weke hevalekî rasteqîn
wê xwe ji te nêzîk bike!
Lê dibe ku ji berî tu barbikî, tu yê bibêjî:
Ger ez bimirim, min li vir,
li goristana biyaniyan veşêrin
û dibe ku ev jî daxwaza te ya dawî be.

* * *

A Kurd Would Love His Stubbornness!

I love these rugged mountains
and these slender rivers
with wobbly knees pouring into their charnel house.
I love these stones that defy sunrays
in the midsummer heat
and the frosty cold in midwinter chills.
I love this soil that resembles my body
and this land that foremost means the heart.
I love this dust, a coal for my eyes it is,
and this air, a balm for my lungs it is.
I love this skimpy terebinth
and the fragrant hawthorn.
I love cacti and its thorns,
olives and its yearnings.
I love this thin reed that serenades all the time
on the river bank,
this dark swamp where frogs continuously croak.
I love the daisy flower that resembles the whiteness
of my heart,
and these tulips that fraternize with my blood.
I love these mud houses
and these tents, fluttering on the outskirts of
forgotten villages.
I love this generous vine, the bequeather of grapes
and wine.
I love these yellow grain spikes, the bequeather of food
and bread.
I love these swaggering kite birds,
and these cicadas, continuously singing.
I love my land
from top to bottom
and from bottom to top,
just as a Kurd would love his stubbornness!

(Translated by Azad Akash)

Weke Kurdekî ku ji serhişkiya xwe hez bike!

Ez ji van çiyayên asê
û ji van cemên ku bi çogên sist digihînin dawiya habûna xwe,
hez dikim.

Ez ji van kevirên ku serhişkiyê,
di kela germbûna havînê de,
bi tîna rokê re dikin
û seqem û sermaya zivistana qert hildigrin,
hez dikim.

Ez ji vê axa ku rengê wê weke rengê lasê min e
û vê xaka ku ew ji berî hemû tishtan dilê min e,
hez dikim.

Ez ji vê toza ku ew kila çavên min e
û ji vî bayê ku ew balsama cegera min e,
hez dikim.

Ez ji van kizwanên bejin kin
û ji van guvîjên bêhnxweş, hez dikim.

Ez ji van sorbelanan û stiriyên wan,
û ji van zeytûnan û ji bîranînên wan,
hez dikim.

Ez ji vî qamîşê zirav yê ku herdem li ser kenara çem distire
Û ji vê gola tarî ku têde beq bê vehes diqîrin, hez dikim.

Ez ji van kulîlkên mêst yên spî weke dilê min
û van ganguliyên ku biratiya xwîna min dikin,
hez dikim.

Ez ji van malên axî
û ji van konên ku weke alan li derdorên gundên jibîrkirî liba dibin,
hez dikim.

Ez ji van rezên comerd ku tirî û meyê didin me
û ji van guliyên gênim yên zer ku nan û xwarinê didin me,
hez dikim.

Ez ji van tîtîyên ku bixwe serbilind
û ji van sîsirkên ku bêtebat fît dikin,
hez dikim.

Ez ji welatê xwe
ji binî ta serî
Û ji serî ta binî hez dikim,
hez dikim ku weke Kurdek ji serhishkiya xwe hez bike!

The Poet

Hussein Habasch is a poet from Afrin, Kurdistan. He currently lives in Bonn, Germany. His poems have been translated into English, German, Spanish, French, Chinese, Turkish, Persian, Albanian, Uzbek, Russian, Italian, Bulgarian, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Macedonian, Serbian, Polish and Romanian, and has had his poetry published in a large number of international anthologies. His books include: Drowning in Roses, Fugitives across Evros River, Higher than Desire and more Delicious than the Gazelle's Flank, Delusions to Salim Barakat, A Flying Angel, No pasarán (in Spanish), Copaci Cu Chef (in Romanian), Dos Árboles and Tiempos de Guerra (in Spanish), Fever of Quince (in Kurdish), Peace for Afrin, peace for Kurdistan (in English and Spanish), The Red Snow (in Chinese), Dead arguing in the corridors (in Arabic) Drunken trees (in Kurdish) and Boredom of a tired statue (in Kurdish) and A Rose for the Heart of Life, Selected Poems (in English). He participated in many international festivals of poetry including: Colombia, Nicaragua, France, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Germany, Romania, Lithuania, Morocco, Ecuador, El Salvador, Kosovo, Macedonia, Costa Rica, Slovenia, China, Taiwan, Cuba, Sweden and New York City.

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