جالب ترین سخنان رئیس جمهور افغانستان

Some more proverbs from Afghanistan

ضرب المثل های افغانستان

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صلاح مملکت خویش خسروان دانند.

Transliteration: Salaahe mamlakat-e-khesh khusrawan daanand.

                                                                                                 

Translation: Kings know best what is good for their country.

Meaning and usage: This proverb shows the fact that a king can decide best for its territory or country. It shows a non-intervention policy as well as a strategy of neutrality of the people of Afghanistan and their respectful view for the independence of other countries. This proverb is widely used not only in the political sphere but also in the daily language when people want to show another person that the right to make decision in that particular area is theirs. For example if a person asks advice of a friend about his/her family issues or personal choices, the person who wants to give advice would first begin with this proverb to make it clear for that person that this issue is completely personal for you and its your privacy and I don’t want to intervene, but if you want my advice, I think this is better …

افتادی؟ آ (بلی) ، اوگار (افگار) شدی؟ نی

Transliteration: Aftaadi? Aaa. Awghar shudee? Nee.

                                                                                                 

Translation: Did you fall? Yes. Did it it hurt? No.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is made of two different short questions and two short answers which are very relevant to each other. This proverb describes a very critical characteristic of the culture of the people of Afghanistan. It shows how the people of Afghanistan are shy and polite and they don’t want to show to others how much pain they feel. It also expresses the fact that how much they are tolerant towards pain, grief and agony. A nation which suffered 40 years of continuous war due to intervention and invasion of other countries, they lost almost everything, every family lost many members but they are still trying their best to cope with the worst kind of proxy wars and face Taliban rebellion and other sort of casualties, despite the highest level of poverty in that country.

This proverb teaches the children, men and women of Afghanistan to hide their pain and don’t talk about it. This proverb is used when a person faces a tragedy , sorrow , disaster or calamity like losing a a house in plane bombardments, then the relatives would come for the condolences and they use this proverb to mention that we know that you are sad, but you don’t want to show it on your face.

When you use this proverb, you are telling the other person that we know that you have lost something precious, but you are hiding how much pain do you feel because of it and you tell all others that you are fine but we know that you are in pain. Falling in this context is a metaphor and it means having an accident, losing something at once or facing a tragedy while here the word “hurt” represents the aftermath or consequence of that tragedy to that person whatever it is.

بسوز و بساز.

Transliteration: Bosooz wa besaaz.  

                                                                                                 

Translation: Burn (yourself) down and compromise.  

Meaning and usage: This proverb can take you to the depth of human rights crisis and the how the war has affected the people of Afghanistan. This proverb is made up of the two short imperatives “burn yourself down” as a candle and compromise means you have no other choice and options.

When someone uses this proverb, he means that the situation is so bad that it kills me and I still try to be positive and I still try to make myself believe that the situation will get better, and I cooperate despite the fact that I know that this situation will kill me.

It explains the hardship of living in 40 years of war which has no ends and kills people everyday and there is no hope for the future but you can’t do anything to change the situation but to compromise with the situation.

نه از آن شوری شور، نه از آن بی نمکی، نه از آن راستی راست، نه از آن خم خمکی.

Transliteration: Na az aan shooree shoor, na az aan bi namaki, na az aan raasti raast na az aan kham khamaki.

                                                                                                 

Translation: Not so much saltiness of the salt, nor so much of the saltlessness, not so much of a straight person nor so much crook-backed.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is made of two different parts, but each part explains the same idea of moderation and the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one's behavior or political opinions. This proverb is about self-restraint, it advice to learn self-restraint and self-control. It teaches us some basic lessons about self-discipline, moderateness, temperance, leniency and fairness in our daily lives to prevent destructive actions and extremism in ideologies.

از خر پرسیدند که چرا گوش هایت دراز است؟ گفت: هر مقبول یک عیب دارد.

Transliteration: Az khar purseedand ki chiraa gosh hait daraaz ast? Guft har maqbool yak aib darad!

                                                                                                 

Translation: (They) asked the donkey why your ears are so long? “Every beautiful (thing) has got (at least) one defect” he replied.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is made of two different parts, one question and one answer. There are some cultural background and pre-assumptions that you should know, only then you will be able to understand the meaning of this proverb. Donkey is famous for being ugly and stupid in Afghanistan. In the most stories being told to the children by their grandparents, animals can speak to defend and protect themselves. Sometimes they teach you the things that human beings can rarely pay attention to those things. Admiring yourself is not something good culturally because it will be contrary to the modesty, humbleness and courtesy as well as obeisance being encouraged and praised in that culture as the main values for humanity. “No ones is perfect” is another commonly used and accepted proverb but now this proverb criticizes the previous version of the proverb as “No one is perfect” because it says that sometimes those who exaggerate in admiration of themselves, and pretend to be beautiful and perfect while they are not, they also somehow believe that no one is perfect. The most ugly and stupid animal (donkey) believes that he is beautiful and tries to hide his biggest defect (size of ears as ugliness). Here the donkey is being used as symbol but this proverb is used to notify that even the worst stupid people think that they are the best, despite the fact that you can see all bad behavior and ugly manners in every moment you look at them.

پیشکه که از گل بسازی، میوشه کی بزنه؟

Transliteration: Peeshaka ki az gail besaazee, meeaw-esha ki bezana?

                                                                                  

Translation: (If) you make a cat out of mud, who will make the meaw noise (on its’ behalf)?

Meaning and usage: This proverb is made of two different parts, one conditional pre-assumptive statement and one question after it. The first statement gives you an assumption, and explains you the situation of creating a none-living statue out of water and soil and pretend it to be a cat and the question after it asks you about how you would compare it to a living one which makes noise and moves itself and walks around and performs all living activities. It is about wrong assumptions and pretending the wrong persons to be what they are not. It is used as a metaphor to explain the unfitting problems at all levels. For example if you make an unqualified person the president of a country, who would work for the people? Because the president himself would not be able help the people of the country and to work because he does not know what to do.

از نظر گرگ ها، سگ ها همان گرگ هایی اند که تن به اسارت و غلامی انسان ها داده اند.

Transliteration: Az nazar gurg haa, sag haa hamaam gurg haaiee and ki tan ba asaarat wa ghullami ensaan haa daada and.

                                                                                  

Translation: From the viewpoint of wolves, the dogs are those wolves who have accepted to be the slaves of human beings.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is about freedom. This proverb uses the similarity of the two animals in race to show the difference in their behavior towards human beings. One of them the dog is very friendly to human beings and lives inside the houses of human beings while the other is living freely in the deserts and sometimes attacks on human beings as a dangerous enemy.

This proverb assumes that both wolves and dogs come from the same origin and what they might think about each other when the dogs were tamed by the human beings. It has used animals to express and idea while the real life today, this proverb is not used for animals. It is used for human beings who are devided in different groups; political parties, races, color of skin and that is why some of them are helping others against some other human beings.

از کلوخ آتش پرید!

Transliteration: Az klokh aatash pareed.

                                                                                  

Translation: Fire sparkled out of the clod.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is about unexpected. Sparks come out of the stones and metallic work instruments but certainly not from the clods. This proverb is used when something unexpected happens.

از خانه هندو قرآن برآمد!

Transliteration: Az khana Hindu Koran baraamad.

                                                                                  

Translation: Koran came out of a Hindu house.

Meaning and usage: This proverb is about unexpected. When something unexpected happens, people use this proverb to show that how come such a good unexpected thing happened. It is about a surprise.  

یک بار دزد، همیشه دزد.

        Transliteration: Yak baar duzd, hamisha duzd.

Translation: Once a thief, always a thief.  

Meaning and usage: This proverb explains how the mentality of people work and how the accusations or crimes create a bad name for a person and how long he would be called by that name. If a person commits a crime, he will be called by the same bad name for the rest of his life even though if he is punished for that crime by a court and goes to prison but the impression he has created in the minds of the people will never be erased. 

خدا مهربان است.

        Transliteration: Khuda mehrabaan ast.

Translation: God is kind.  

Meaning and usage: This proverb is used to give help for those who are suffering and having bad days and you can’t help them. The only help you can do is to give hope for them by this proverb to encourage them not to give up their lives. You use this proverb to mention them that there is an extraordinary power that can change everything in a minute and he will help you to get out of this bad situation. This is partly related to theology, metaphysics and theo-psychology to create hope for the people or a nation who lost everything in the war, just to give them the strength to survive.

نزدیک نیا که بدم میایی، دور نرو که گرگ میخوریت.

        Transliteration: Nazdeek nayaa ki badem meyaee, door naroo ki gurg mekhorait.

Translation: Don’t come close (because) I don’t like you, don’t go away either (because) wolves might eat you.  

Meaning and usage: This proverb explains a very nice situation and relationships between two persons with particular reference to balance between affection and hate. It is a situation of moderate relationship where one does not really feel that he is loved too much and he does not feel to be hated by that particular person. When you use this proverb, you are actually complaining the other party of not being very kind to you and also not being too rude to you. Using this proverb require the other side to respond a question like “please tell me if you love me or you hate me because I am confused”.

This proverb comes from a love story in a village where there are wolves during the night outside the house and people cannot walk outside because of the fear of being attacked and killed by the wolves.

It shows a situation where a lover comes to meet hidden the beloved girl during the night but she refuses to open the door and to let him inside the house because in that culture touching before marriage and having sexual affairs before marriage is not accepted. The girl would ask the boy not to walk far from the house because there are wolves; he cannot come inside because of the father, brother and family of the girl as well as the accountability in that culture.

In that context the boy would use this proverb to complain from the girl and ask do you love me or you hate me? You don’t let me in and you don’t let me go too. 

The Worldview of the People of Afghanistan

The worldview of the People of Afghanistan can only be traced in the books of a man who was born in the Balkh Province and talked about everything in his book.

His ideas represent the major believes and ideology of the majority of the people of Afghanistan. Here he talks about LOVE and the RELIGION:   


I am in love with Love

Because Love is my only salvation.

I am in love only with Love

Someone else is a Muslim!

Your Lover certainly ain't a Muslim

Because in the Religion of Love

There's no such thing as Islam or Infidels!

The Religion of Love is different

From all other Religions.

For true Lovers of Love

God is their only Faith and Creed.

  ~ Balkhi Rumi ~

ما عاشق عشقیم که عشقست نجات

ما عاشق عشقیم و مسلمان دگراست

عاشق تو یقین دار که مسلمان نبود

درمذهب عشق کفرو ایمان نبود

مذهب عشق زمذهب ها جداست

عاشقان را مذهب و ملت خداست

 مولانا جلال الدين بلخی رومی

Who Are We?

This molded figure of Mankind -

so strangely assembled though -

is an image drawn in the stable of sorrows.

First as angels, then as demons,

and now acting as bunch of savages,

what kind of spell is this

being so firmly cast upon us humans?

~ Balkhi Rumi ~ 

این صورت آدمی که درهم بستند

نقشی است که در تویلهٔ غم بستند

گه دیو گهی فرشته گاهی وحشی

این خود چه طلسم است که محکم بستند

رباعی مولانا جلال الدين بلخی رومی

Sarcasm in the Workplace

It is actually a thanksgiving letter as the year 2015 ended, I thought I would better write a thanksgiving letter on behalf of a poor Afghan refugee who was once working in a European country as his first work experience in Europe. So here it begins …

In the first week of the work you expect some people to say welcome and introduce the workplace for you, but instead in the first week of the work a black racist lady whose main central ideology and the only thing which matters for her is the “color of the skin” of the people; comes and says in a very bad accent:

• “Your country produces opium”.
• Yes Madam, it does produce some amount but not as much as you hear by the media. In the media it is exaggerated. By the other hand, opium has different uses, it can be used to produce heroin, and it can also be used to produce medicine. If you get some opium from Afghanistan, make sure that you don’t use it as heroin, because it will kill you, use it as medicine instead so that it can save some lives.
• No, no, no … opium is a bad thing …
• Well, it is not as bad as guns, because guns only kill people, guns can’t be used as medicines … producing opium is the same thing as producing a knife … you can kill yourself with a knife and also you can use it in the kitchen to cook food … the option is yours … what you are going to do with it, that is very important …
• The very next day the other instructor calls the Afghan refugee as a “tourist” but that is not what he means, what he means is a terrorist which rhymes with the tourist and the other colleagues explains that further “tourist” or terrorist” and then they all laugh … the Afghan refugee looks at them and keeps quiet and says nothing back to avoid fights and also because of the famous Afghan proverb which says that “Jawab-e- ablahaan khaamoshist” which means “Silence is the best answer to stupid people” …
• The next day some colleagues call the Afghan refugee “Taliban” and they think it is funny and a good thing to say … some other learnt to say that too …
• The Afghan refugee looks at them and smiles and says do you know what that the Taliban means? And do you know what kind of people they are? I think you have no idea what you are saying … they never come to Europe to look for asylum because they think that European countries are enemies of all Taliban. I think they know European countries much better than those who think that European people are nice and they will save Afghan refugees ..   
• Some other refugee colleagues from other countries ask Afghan refugee “Why don’t you Muslims all go to Saudi Arabia that you all come here in Europe?”
• How come you are a refugee too and say something like that? What makes you better than the Afghan refugee? Is it because you are a Christian refugee and the Afghan refugee is a Muslim refugee? Shame on you with this kind of mentality.
• When they evaluate your work, they say all lies about you and they try their best to underestimate what you are doing … they try to accuse you of the being what you are not … they call you lazy … they tell you that you don’t work properly … all what you have to do is to keep silent and say “Yes sir” you are right …
• Never try to reason back or never say something back, otherwise they get angry and they create lots of extra work for you and make different kinds of problem for you …
• It is a very different and interesting working culture that you have to adopt to it and you have to learn how to cope with it …
• You need to learn to laugh at people who say bad words to you … who might call you terrorist but you have to laugh or try to smile even though if you are angry at the highest level … this is called compromise with the new work environment …
• They may ask someone to steal from your workplace to blame you for stealing, so you have to be very careful …
• They may call you a thief while you have not stolen a single piece of thing  … you have to learn to deal with it and say that you are not a thief, you can’t shout or you can’t get angry because you will be fired, the only way to react is that you have to say politely “Sorry, it is a misunderstanding, I am not a thief and I have not stolen anything”
• They might also blame you for having an affair with a colleague, and you have to learn to say in a nice manner that “Sir, what you think is totally wrong”. I have got no affairs here in the working place …
• You are actually dealing with a number of psychos who hate you for no reason and you have to learn to manage all these issues so that you have a minor physical job to be able to pay your bills.
• This is the real situation of the refugees of Afghanistan in Europe.