On the occasion of the 51st Anniversary of the Independence day of 26th June

On the occasion of the 51st Anniversary of the Independence day of 26th June

The period of 1960-1969 almost carries 45 of Timacadde’s rich and nationalistic poetry.

 

Lower down that [theirs], rise up this [ours]:

(Kaana siib kanna saar)

The period of 1960-1969 almost carries 45 of Timacadde’s rich and nationalistic poetry. It is one of the richest periods of Timacadde’s poetry. This period mainly carries his foremost nationalist poems. It carries the biggest number of anti-clan poetry. It also carries some of the regional poetry of Timacadde. By the regional poetry we mean the verses Timacadde has composed on regional issues of wide context.

“Kaana siib kanna saar” (Lower down theirs[1] and rise up ours[2]) is a common catch word for most of the Somalis and it almost became a synonym of the name of the poet.

Timacadde chooses That [kaa in Somali] and This [kan in Somali] to describe the two flags that were to be replaced with one another. That stands for the hated British flag while This stood for the beloved Somali flag. Apart from that the poet has chosen Lower to reinforce That and Rise to strengthen This. He playfully weaved the verse and made it highly amusing and artistic.

It was on 25/6/1960 that Timacadde recited this poem for the commemoration of 26^th June 1960, the Independence Day of British Somaliland. It was a Sunday afternoon. Both the authorities and the people were gathered in a football ground situated on the south of Barawe School. It was separated from the school by a narrow road.

Recently I have neglected my lines of poetry,

I have not refined the verses I was endowed with,

Since Ramadan has passed I have not issued any circular,

In every week I used to invent new tones and tunes,

Poetry has handles to carry and take with care,

If you miss it becomes ill-treated and mismanaged,

Let me polish the verse I intend to recite.

While young,

Carrying a bow and an arrow,

Playing with the sand,

Never going far from the settlement,

Not trusted to graze the lambs,

Poetry has been my trade.

I am the most outspoken of all journalists,

If at all I badly stitch the verses,

Or if I did not correctly recite,

Or if I twist and turn the verses,

Or if I quit from the prosperous reserves of poetry,

Oh! Somalis who are listening to me,

Please query me after the recital.

Oh! God whom things never miss,

Whose powers the Quran has recorded,

God who separated hell from the paradise,

On the resurrection and doomsday,

When all the creatures are reborn,

When justice is made for the faithful and the wrongdoers,

Oh! Mighty God purify us of all our sin.

Having said that and left,

I have some more to utter.

Somalis to heave a flag,

Today is the first day,

I doubt whether you feel the same as me,

If for three weeks and days,

I remain without eating anything,

Hunger will never be felt by me,

Nor will it tear apart my body,

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

For eighty years and more,

The flag we have been looking forward to,

The one we have longed to win,

Like the spring rains,

With thunder and lightning,

You have washed away the dust on our body,

We were in blind darkness,

The one that has made the sun overt,

The one that was akin to the blue sky,

Endowed with only one of the stars.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

The one [flag] which Islam’s holy men saw in secrecy,

The flag that has been foretold by,

The Religious saints and Sheikhs,

Who recite the Quran on Fridays,

By the children and the women,

The one presented to us only by the Almighty God,

And not by any of his creatures and subjects.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

For all the creatures,

And for all the people,

The flag that is equal and friendly to all,

The one that refused to be loyal to an individual.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

The one that will lead the path to progress and prosperity,

The one that is the key to development and richness,

The one that is the ladder to freedom and liberty,

The torch and the tower of African independence,

The light that has done away with the darkness,

And has liberated the Somali folk from the yoke of colonialism.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

The Farad and the Sunna,

All that is related to Religion,

The one that is three to the two.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

The one that has liberated us from the oppressors,

The one that has poisoned the colonialists,

And has healed the bleeding wounds,

And has cut the chains and shackles from our ankles.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

Somalis fighting one another,

Fractious and irritated with one another,

Victim of looting and pillaging,

Gun fighting and endless wars,

The One that brought the breeze of peace,

The One that evicted clanism and its vices,

The One that settled the disputes and conflicts,

The One that made them brothers unifying their lines,

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

The ones that have deceived us,

The ones that have divided us into portions,

The ones that have been eating our flesh,

While the belt was falling from our waist,

The ones that has exploited our wealth,

Whom the fatness was obvious and the strap has cut their bellies,

Who had splendid and decorated villas,

With fabulous beds to sleep and rest,

With marvelous cupboards to hang the suits and dress,

With a servant to care and wash the car,

With nine cooks and a boy to serve,

With a baby sitter to mind the kids,

With the servants to rear the horses,

The one that has obligated them to back up and leave.

We split with the devil and the demon,

Oh! The hoisted that will never fall,

I am fervent and excited to see,

Lower down theirs and rise up ours.

Oh! Soldiers who have taken up the arms,

Soldiers who have put the sword on the guns,

Those of you, who are ready to pay the tribute,

And the officers who are giving them the orders,

Please exceed the manners and performance of the colonialists,

The civilians surrounding them,

Ally yourselves to them and stand upright,

Take your hands up,

Start clapping for the joy and happiness,

And every body should loudly say:

“Oh God we are thankful to you.”

(Translated by: Bobe Yusuf Duale and edited by: Ahmed Yusuf Duale and Ahmed Ali Sabbeyse.)

Cabdillaahi Suldaan, halkii ayuu ka sii waday gabayadiisii uu Soomaali tilmaan iyo wax-sheeg teed walba ugu dhigayay. Xilligan suugaaneed ee Timacadde waxa ballaysin u ahaa geeraarka caan-baxay ee halhayska u noqday dadka Soomaliyeed meel ay joogaanba, Cabdillaahi Suldaanna lagu suntado ee ah: “Kaa na siib kan na saar”.

Waxa la yaab leh sida uu u adeegsaday labada erey ee kala ah: kaa iyo kan ee uu weliba ugu kala ladhay ereyada siib iyo saar. Calankii Ingiriiska ee la dejinayay iyo calankii Soomaaliyeed ee berigaa la taagayay ayuu ereyadaa kala siiyay. ‘Kaa’, oo wax kaa fog tilmaamaya oo uu ku ladhay ‘siib’ calankii Ingiriiska ayuu qayb u siiyay; calanka Soomaaliyeed oo markii ugu horreysay dalkiisii oo xor ah laga qotominayayna, isaga oo soo dhawaynayay wuxu isugu daray ‘kan’ oo qalbiga aad ugu dhow iyo ‘saar’ oo kor-u- qaadis ah.

25kii Juun 1960kii ayaa reer Hargeysa iyo dad faro badan oo gobolladii kale ka kala yimid isugu soo baxeen garoonkii kubbadda cagta ee ku oolli jiray xagga koonfureed ee malcaamadda Ina Sheekh Ibraahin Baraawe. Waa halka markii danbe laga dhisay xaruntii xaafadda 26ka Juun, immikana Masaajidka laga dhisay.

Dadku waxay tubnaayeen garoonkaa hareerihiisa. Goolkii sare ee garoonkaa oo xigay xagga guryaha laynka bilayska (halka uu immika ka dhisan yahay Hotel Ubax) meel in yar ka soo horreysay midigna ka xigtay, biyo-mareenna ahayd oo burciidi taallay, waxa fadhiyay madaxdii Soomaaliyeed oo uu hor socday Maxamed Xaaji Ibraahin Cigaal iyo tii Ingiriiska oo uu hormmod ka ahaa ninkii la odhan jiray Karal. Kuraasi ayay ku fadhiyeen, waxaana hor yaallay miisas iyo makrifoon. Iyaga oo u jeeday xagga woqooyi, meel hortooda ah oo bidix ka yar xigtay waxa ku qotomay laba birood oo labada calan loogu kala talo galay.

Marka woqooyi loo jeedo, birtii midigta xigtay waxa lahaa calanka Soomaaliyeed, tii bidixda xigtayna calankii Ingiriiska. Garoonka dhexdiisa waxa tubnaa ciidan Ingiriis ah oo kuwa muusigga garaaca ah oo Cadan laga keenay oo dhinaca galbeedka oo badhtanka u dhow tubnaa.

Roob aan sidaa u sii badnayn ayaa galabtaa tiixay. Labadii calan ayaa la is-weydaariyay. Waa markaa, marka uu Timacadde sidii xiisaha iyo xarragadaba lahayd ugu luuqaynayaa geeraarkan halkudhegga iyo halhayskaba noqday ee dadka Soomaaliyeed meel ay joogaanba ku hadaaqaan.

Ereyada ka sokow, Cabdillaahi Suldaan waxa maansooyinkiisa bili jiray oo badh ka ahaa luuqdiisii gaarka ahayd ee aanay cidina la wadaagi jirin sida loo canjilaana ay adkayd, ilaa maantana ay adag tahay. Luuqdaa qudheedu iyada oo baadi-sooc u noqotay maansada qaaliga ah ee Cabdillaahi Suldaan, waxa xusuus gaar ah mudan in halkan lagu tilmaamo in maalmahaa ay doobta Timacadde taagnayd heerarkii ugu sarreeyay uguna macaanaa ee codkiisu gaadho, kolleyba inta aan anigu garanayo.

Markuu geeraarkan ku luuqaynayo run ahaantii waxaad moodaysaa in ay koox jabsan oo isla taqaannaa muusig qalab door ah leh tumayso oo muddo lagu soo carbinayay. Been sheegi maayo, haddii aan idhaahdo waxba xilliyadaa luuqdiisu ka ma ay dhacayn ama kama ay sokeyn “symphony”. Run ahaantii luuqda Cabdillaahi Suldaan waxa kale oo ay heer kaa la mid ah taagan tahay marka uu marinayo gabayga Miimleyda ah ee Murugo, halkudheggiisuna yahay: Madoobaadayeey xalay miyay, murugtay laabtaydu. Qofkii doonaya in uu ku raaxaysto luuqda Timacadde halkaa ha ka doono.

Galabtaa Cabdillaahi Suldaan, wuxu yidhi:

In dhaweydba waa taan sahladay, sadarradaydiiye,

Ma sifaynin maansooyinkaan, saayidkaw helaye,

‘Seerkuleer’[3] ayaamahan ma bixin, soon-fur dabadeede,

Subuucii dhammadaba mar baan, saari jiray luuqe,

Sidde la qabsaduu leeyahiyo, subucyo dhaadheere,

Labadaba markuu seego way, kaa surgucantaaye,

An sifeeyo maantana tixday, sihatay laabtaydu,

Anigoo sebiyahoo,

Sita leeb iyo qaanso oo,

Siigadoon isku aasiyo,

Sabad reer ka fogaaninoon,

La ii aaminin soofkiyo,

Saacan maanta an joogno,

Gabaygu waygu sugnaayoo,

Suxufiinta dhawaaqdana,

Anigawgu sarreeya e’,

Haddii aan sarsarriigo,

Ama aan sixi waayo,

Ama aan sarmo-seejo,

Ama aan ka sal-guuro,

Ama laygu saluugo,

Soomaalida I maqleysaay,

I su’aala hadhowto,

Ilaahaan waxba seegine,

Subiciisa Quraankiyo,

Sabbaxooyin ku sheegayoow,

Saciira iyo Naciima,

Rabbigii kala seerayoow,

Markay Suurtu dhawaaqdee,

La soo saaro makhluuqa,

Shaqiga iyo saciidka,

Maalintaad kala soocdo,

Dembigaanu samaynay,

Rabbigayoow naga saamax,

Subciyayoo ka dukeeyaye,

Sowd kaleetona waa,

Soomaalidoo calan taagta,

Saakay noogu horreysoo,

In sidayda tihiin iyo,

In kalaanan saxaynine,

Saddex ‘wiig’ iyo maalmo,

Haddaan soor cuni waayo,

Safrad layga ma yaaboo,

Sarina meyso naftayda e’,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Ka-siddeetan sabaan,

Calankaanu sugeynayeen,

Sahankiisa ahaynow,

Seerma-weydo hillaacdayoow,

Sagal maanta darroorayoo,

Siigadii naga maydhayoow,

Saq-dhexaanu ahayne,

Kii soo saaray cadceeddoow,

Samada kii u ekaayee,

Xiddigaa mid la siiyayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Saalixiinta Islaamku,

Sirta kay ku arkeenoow,

Saahidiinta Quraanka,

Subcisaa Jimcayaashiyo,

Sibyaanta[4] iyo haweenku,

Calankay sahadsheenoow,

Cidina kaanay na siinnine,

Saatir noogu yaboohayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

San-ku-neefle dhammaantii,

Khalqiga kii u sinnaayee,

Mid saaxiib la ahaynee,

‘Singalkii’[5] iska diidayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Kii saaciidada keenayoow,

Sadadu kay ku xidhnaydoow,

Sallaankii istiqlaalkoow,

Seyruuqii Afrikaadoow,

Siraadkii na iftiinshayee,

Soomaaloo dhan xoreeyayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Faradka iyo sunnaa,

Wixii diinta ku saabsan,

Asna kii saddexeeyayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Kii gumeysiga saarayee,

Isticmaarkii sumeeyayee,

Seedihii bogsanaa iyo,

Seetadii naga gooyayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Soomaaloo is-cuneysoo,

Isa seeggan dhammaanoo,

Saqda qaylo dhawaaqdiyo,

Sulub laysu cabbaystiyo,

Hadba soof la xabbaadhiyo,

Saraayaa demi weyday,

Kii laydhiisu na saaqdayoow,

Kii sadqeeyay qabaa’ilee,

Isu saaray gacmaayee,

Saf walaala ka yeelayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma-nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Nimankiina siraayayee,

Waax-waax noo kala saaftayee,

Solanaayay codkeennee,

Innagoo dhexda suunku,

Sabarkeenna qarqooray,

Kii sadkeenna cunaayayee,

Sarartiisa ka muuqdayee,

Surwaalkii ka yaraadayee,

Daaro loo sibidheeyiyo,

Sariiraa lagu seexdiyo,

Kabadh suuf laga buuxshiyo,

Mid baabuurta sifeeyiyo,

Sagaal ‘boy’ iyo ‘kuug’ iyo,

Aayad[6] saarta carruurtiyo,

Weliba seeska[7] lahaa,

Kii saabaanka u laabayoow,

Saaxirkii kala guurraye,

Sarreeyoow ma–nusqaamoow,

Aan siduu yahay eego e’,

Kaana siib kanna saar,

Sowjarkaa hubka qaatayee,

Intuu soodhka ku taagay,

U diyaar ah salaantiyo,

Saraakiisha amraysaay,

Sifihii isticmaarka,

Ka siyaadiya maantoo,

Sibilkeenan[8] ag joogoow,

Sibirtiisa is-taagoo,

Nin walbaan sigib-beeloo,

Sare u taaga gacmaayoo,

Sacabka isku garaacoo,

Nin walbaan saddex goor,

Subxaanoow waa mahaddaa dheh.

(Waxaan ka qoray cajalad uu Timacadde ku duubay)