The Voice of Truth

THE GUNFIRE AROUND us makes it hard to hear. But the human voice is different from other sounds. It can be heard over noises that bury everything else. Even when it's not shouting. Even when it's just a whisper. Even the lowest whisper can be heard - -over armies... when it's telling the truth.


BAKU TEMBAK SEKITAR kita membuat suara itu sulit untuk terdengar. Namun suara manusia itu berbeda dengan suara-suara yang lain. Suara itu bisa terdengar ditengah suara-suara bising yang menutupi semua suara-suara yang lain. Bahkan ketika suara itu tidak diteriakkan. Bahkan ketika suara itu hanya sebuah bisikan. Bahkan suara bisikan paling lirihpun bisa terdengar oleh batalion tentara ... ketika suara itu menyerukan kebenaran.

(Edmond Zuwanie - The Interpreter)

Love is pain

People who had never suffered for love, never actually knew love. If it never hurt, it was not love.
Love opens the closed, revives the unrealized, brightens the invisible, and glorifies the unappreciated.
Love catapults the hopes into the sky .
But, if it is disappointed, love  Heartbreaks to its deepest.



Orang yang tak pernah menderita karena cinta, sesungguhnya tak pernah mengenal cinta. Jika rasa itu tak pernah melukai, pasti itu bukan cinta.
Cinta membuka yang selama ini tertutup, menyadarkan yang belum pernah disadari, mencemerlangkan yang tak terlihat, dan memuliakan yang tak terhargai.
Cinta melambungkan harapan ke langit.
Tapi, jika ia dikecewakan, cinta menyayat hati sampai ke dasarnya.

Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 2)

Rhyme

Rhyme in poetry refers to the identity of sound at the ends of lines.

l  Perfect rhyme vs. half-rhyme

Perfect rhyme occurs when the stressed vowels following differing consonants sounds are identical.

Half-rhymeoccurs when the final consonant sounds are identical

e.g.

Thou still unravish’d bride of quietness,

Thou foster- child of silence and slow time,

Sylvan historian, who canst thus express

A flowery tale more sweetly then our rhyme:

Note:   The green italic words are the examples of half-rhyme

             The red italic words are the examples of perfect rhyme

 l  Masculine vs. feminine

Masculine: when the final syllables are stressed.

e.g. inquired-desired

Feminine: when the final syllables are unstressed

e.g. flowers – bowers

Internal rhyme: the rhyming words found within the line.

e.g.

the splendor falls on the castle walls

The long light shakes across the lakes

Rhyme scheme: the pattern of rhyme in a poem or stanza

e.g. 

a-b-a-b, b-a-b-a, etc.

At daybreak on the hill they stood
That overlooked the moor,
And thence they saw the bridge of wood,
A furlong from their door.

Alliteration (initial rhyme): The same sound starts several words.

e.g.

Far winter’s rains and ruins are over,

And all day the season of snows and sins;

The day dividing lover and lover,

The light and loses, the night that wins.

l  Assonance vs. consonance

Assonance: the use of identical vowel sounds surrounded by different kinds of consonant sounds

e.g. bird - thirst

Consonance: the use of different vowel sounds surrounded by same kinds of consonant sounds.

e.g. wood-weed

Blank verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter

e.g.

. . . and when I have required
Some heavenly music (which even now I do)
To work mine end upon their senses that
This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff
Bury it certain fathoms in the sea,
And deeper than did ever plummet sound
I'll drown my book.

(William Shakespeare, The Tempest, 1611)

Free verse: Rhymed or unrhymed poetry composed without attention to conventional rules of meter.

e.g.

I love the way I feel today

But how I know the sun will fade

Darker days seem to be

What will always live in me

But still I run

It's hard to walk this path alone

Hard to know which way to go

Will I ever save this day

Will it ever change

Stanzaic Forms

q  Couplet: Two successive lines of verse that form a single unit because they rhyme

q  Triplet/ tercet: stanza composed three lines.

q  Quatrain: stanza composed four lines.

q  Sestet: stanza composed six lines.

q  Rhyme royal: stanza composed seven lines.

q  Octave: stanza composed eight lines.

q  Sonnet: stanza composed fourteen lines.

.......................................................................

See also:

• The Nature of Poetry
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 1)
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 2) 
• The Nature of Literature

Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 1)

Rhythm in poetry refers to the patterns of repeated sounds.

e.g.

Born to a throne, stronger than Rome

But Violent prone, poor people zone

Note: The italic words are the examples of rhythm

Feet: In accentual-syllabic versification the basic unit of measurement is known as the foot. The foot consists of one accented syllable accompanied by one or two unaccented syllables.

How to determine the feet in a line?

1. Determine how many syllables are there in the line;
2. Read naturally the sentence (in reading there must be stressed and unstressed syllables, these will be used to determine the kind of feet possesed by the line).

e.g.

 

Kinds of Feet

•    Iambic: 1 unaccented followed by 1 accented

e.g.

•  Trochaic: 1 accented followed by 1 unaccented

e.g.

• Dactylic: 1 accented followed by 2 unaccented

e.g.

• Anapestic: 2 unaccented followed by 1 accented

e.g. 

• Spondaic: 2 unaccented

e.g.

     

Metrical lines

l  Metric: the art or study of using meter/ syllabic pattern in poetry;

l  After discovering the pattern of the feet, the next step is to determine the meter;

l  To know the meter, just count how many patterns are in the line and put one of the name of line below after the name of the pattern.

e.g.

• The sentence is called iambic, since it has pattern one unstressed followed by one stressed;
• It has four feet, so that the meter is tetrameter;
• So the name of the above line is iambic tetrameter.

..................................................................................

See also:

• The Nature of Poetry
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 1)
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 2) 
• The Nature of Literature

The Nature of Poetry

The nature of poetry is always problematic and mysterious. Poets, readers, critics, and scholars define poetry based on their own definitions. However, the common conception that is used to refer to the poetry is that, form of literature, spoken or written, that emphasizes rhythm, other intricate patterns of sound and imagery, and the many possible ways that words can suggest meaning. The word itself derives from a Greek word, poesis, meaning “making” or “creating.” Whereas ordinary speech and writing, called prose, are organized in sentences and paragraphs, poetry in its simplest definition is organized in units called lines as well as in sentences, and often in stanzas, which are the paragraphs of poetry. The way a line of poetry is structured can be considered a kind of garment that shapes and clothes the thought within it. The oldest and most longstanding genres for classifying poetry are epic, a long narrative poem centered around a national hero, and lyric, a short poem expressing intense emotion.

Poetry is like other literary works such as prose and drama, it also has its own structures, purposes, languages and general characteristics. Commonly, poetry written in verse in which consists of lines and stanza. According to Reaske (1966) at least poetry also contains of sounds devices such as rhyme, rhythm, repetition, meter, and onomatopoeia and speech of language such as simile, metaphor, hyperbole, and personification. All of the elements of parts of poetry can be used to find information or ideas in comprehending and appreciating it. The readers can start to analyze poetry or poem from poetic devices, types, sound devices, structural devices and all aspects of poetry that can be analyzed. 

Based on some definitions above, it cannot be concluded that poetry has particular definition. When readers analyzed or appreciated poetry is not focused on the definition. The essence of poetry remains elusive and open to a range of definitions. The more important things of comprehending and appreciating the poetry are what the contents of poetry. Schakel and Ridl, (1997:12) state that reading poetry differs from reading a newspaper or a memo and a book. Reading poetry is a process of finding particular information, ideas, experiences, message, values and themes for pleasure or serious analysis. Poems also lead the readers feel intensely, to experiences deeply, and often to extend our understanding of experiences different from the readers’ experience or to affirm own ideas and experiences of the readers.

..................................................................................

See also:

• The Nature of Poetry
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 1)
• Basic Versification of Poetry (Part 2) 
• The Nature of Literature

Confessions of a Sinner

Idled around watching the TV
Keeping up with each song and movie
I kept on with each latest style
Forgetting that i will be soon on trial

I had been a good singer and a good dancer
Now Answerable, but unable to answer
Even though my Lord asked me to refrain
I did all that lead me to hell fire and pain
I see those smiling faces, their results in their right hands

Why was i following actors and stupid music bands
Why did I keep non mahrems as my friends
Why did I forget the rules and follow immodest trends
Why did I do stuff forbidden in my religion

I sadly stand now in the disbeliever's legion
Ya Allah I was a muslim yet I rarely did pray
I committed indecency and I went astray
I talked and mingled with the other sex

I lied, betrayed and made my life complex
I was a hypocrite, did good for fame
Ignored your message, when to me it came
The Holy Quran, I rarely did read

To all those warnings, I took no heed
I troubled my parents in their old age
Abused and Yelled at them in my vain rage
I lived for the worlds' luxury and its vain vanity

Late did I understand that it was pure insanity
I was given chances, which i took for granted
Now I have to reap what I have planted
I am responsible for this painful aftermath

I blindly followed on Satan's wrong path
Please don't throw me into the depths of hell
With fiery flames and each horrendous smell
Boiling water and pus to quench ones thirst

The Many Punishments, each worse then the worst
Satan mislead me to each wrongful desire
And lead me closer and closer to Hell fire
I walked on as satan misguided me and grinned

Ya Allah! I beg You for mercy as I have sinned
Forgive me for my sins and for being ungrateful
Forgive me for standing in league with the unfaithful
Forgive me and Make my soul pure and beautiful

Bestow mercy on me, You are the Most Merciful
I am Your creation, Your servant of humility
You are the Lord of the worlds, The One, The Almighty

Spoiler

The Legend Will Live

If they ever tell my story, let them say...

...I walked with giants.

Men rise and fall like the winter wheat...

...but these names will never die.

Let them say I lived

in the time of Hector...

...tamer of horses.

Let them say...

...I lived in the time of Achilles.

Jika mereka menceritakan kisahku, biarlah meraka bercerita

Aku berjalan dengan para raksasa.

Manusia bangkit dan jatuh seperti gandum di musim dingin,

tapi nama-nama ini tidak akan pernah sirna.

Biarlah mereka bercerita, Aku hidup

di masa Hector,

Sang penjinak kuda.

Biarlah mereka  bercerita, 

Aku hidup di masa Achilles

(Troy)

Be The Best of Whatever You Are

If you can’t be a pine on the top of the hill
Be a scrub in the valley–but be
The best little scrub by the side of the rill;
Be a bush if you can’t be a tree.

If you can’t be a bush be a bit of the grass,
And some highway some happier make;
If you can’t be a muskie then just be a bass–
But the liveliest bass in the lake!

We can’t all be captains, we’ve got to be crew,
There’s something for all of us here.
There’s big work to do and there’s lesser to do,
And the task we must do is the near.

If you can’t be a highway then just be a trail,
If you can’t be the sun be a star;
It isn’t by size that you win or you fail–
Be the best of whatever you are!

by: Douglas Malloch

Kesungguhan Seseorang...

Seberapa parah semua kebiasaan burukmu...

Seberapa sulit cara untuk mengerti dirimu...

Seberapa hina akan masa lalumu...
Seberapa banyak akan kekuranganmu...

Seberapa tinggi akan keegoisanmu...

Seberapa besar akan obsesimu...

Ia tetap menginginkanmu dalam hidupnya...

Memperhatikanmu dalam segalanya...

Karena memang dia mencintaimu apa adanya...

Trying to be Somebody

T hough tears almost dry,

R adiance alters to cry,

Y ield's only dropping by,

I nsanity teases with shy,

N ightmare deprives calmness,

G naws conscience leaves mindless,

T ime shows the tamer of horses, Hector,

O r Achilles, the greatest Greek warrior.

B eing remembered for the brave behavior.  

E xemplary figures that never fade forever. 

S uccess doesn't come freely,

O bstacles will stop your odyssey,

M ourning star covers how far you see,

E nemies' envy will kill you slowly.

B ut always be the best you can be,

O ptimistic and think positively,

D o not surrender your dignity,

Y ou’ll soon be somebody.

                                                                                                                            

                                            Malang, 11 March 2012

..................................................................................................................................................

Life is Life

Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. 
Life is beauty, admire it. 
Life is bliss, taste it. 
Life is a dream, realize it. 
Life is a challenge, meet it. 
Life is a duty, complete it. 
Life is a game, play it. 
Life is a promise, fulfill it. 
Life is sorrow, overcome it. 
Life is a song, sing it. 
Life is a struggle, accept it. 
Life is a tragedy, confront it. 
Life is an adventure, dare it. 
Life is luck, make it. 
Life is too precious, do not destroy it. 
Life is life, fight for it.

Hidup itu kesempatan, manfaatkanlah.

Hidup itu indah, kagumilah.

Hidup itu nikmat, rasakanlah.

Hidup itu mimpi, jadikanlah nyata.

Hidup itu tantangan, hadapilah.

Hidup itu tugas, selesaikanlah.

Hidup itu permainan, mainkanlah.

Hidup itu janji, penuhilah.

Hidup itu duka, atasilah.

Hidup itu nyanyian, nyanyikanlah.

Hidup itu perjuangan, sambutlah.

Hidup itu tragedi, hadapilah.

Hidup itu petualangan, beranilah.

Hidup itu keberuntungan, buatlah.

Hidup itu terlalu berharga, jangan dirusak.

Hidup itu hidup, bejuanglah.

(Mother Teresa)
..............................................................................................................................................

Love is love

“love is always patient and kind, it is never jealous. Love is never boastful nor conceded, it is never rude or selfish, it is not take offense, and it is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people’s sins but delight in the truth. It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes.”

“Cinta selalu sabar dan baik. Cinta tak pernah cemburu. Cinta tak pernah sombong dan angkuh. Cinta tak pernah kasar dan egois. Tak pernah tersinggung dan penuh benci. Cinta tak membutuhkan kesenangan diatas dosa orang lain……tapi senang dalam kebenaran. Cinta selalu siap memaafkan, percaya, berharap……dan menahan……apapun yang terjadi.”


(a walk to remember)




 =============================================================

Kerendahan Hati

Taufik Ismail

Kalau engkau tak mampu menjadi beringin
yang tegak di puncak bukit
Jadilah belukar, tetapi belukar yang baik,
yang tumbuh di tepi danau

Kalau kamu tak sanggup menjadi belukar,
Jadilah saja rumput, tetapi rumput yang
memperkuat tanggul pinggiran jalan

Kalau engkau tak mampu menjadi jalan raya
Jadilah saja jalan kecil,
Tetapi jalan setapak yang
Membawa orang ke mata air

Tidaklah semua menjadi kapten
tentu harus ada awak kapalnya….
Bukan besar kecilnya tugas yang menjadikan tinggi
rendahnya nilai dirimu
Jadilah saja dirimu….
Sebaik-baiknya dari dirimu sendiri

Viking Prayer before Battle

Lo! there do I see my father.

Lo! there do I see my mother, sisters, my brothers.

Lo! there do I see the line of my people back to the beginning.

Lo! they do call to me.

They bid me take my place among them.

In the halls of Valhalla, where the brave may live forever...


(Viking prayer before battle, 13th Warriors)

Perjalanan

Bising jalanan bagai nyanyian mendayu,
Tutupi suara kalbu yang lirih menyeru,
Lemah raga berpacu dengan waktu,
Gelora muda tak terhentikan melaju,
Ditemani ambisi terus ku memburu.


Sejenak ku mabuk dalam indahnya cinta,
Melayang jauh ke suwarga loka asmara.
Bagai Majnun gila mendamba Laila jelita.
Antara semu dan nyata ku kejar bayangnya,
Cinta yang membuat si jahanam tak berdaya.


Perjalanan ini sadarkanku akan arah tujuanku,
Melihat lilin pelita itu semakin redup dan layu,
Dibalik diammu terukir jelas akan galau hatimu.
Ku tata hati, nyalakan kobar api, kaulah alasanku
Ku gadaikan bahagiaku demi melihat cahayamu.


Bukanku tak mencintaimu, maafkan ku cinta,
Ku harus penjarakanmu tuk sementara.
Karna dalam hati ku kan slalu percaya,
Jika Dia Sang Maha Segala berkata iya,
Kau kan jadi milikku untuk selamanya.


Air mata dan simpuh dihadapNya
Menjadi pedang di medan laga,
Jadikan usaha sebagai batu bata,
Tuk bangun kerajaanku di surga,
Cahaya kan bersinar dengan bangga.


Kesabaran adalah matahari,
Kesadaran adalah bumi,
Keberanian menjadi cakrawala,
Perjuangan adalah pelaksanaan kata-kata.


Untuk wanita tertangguh yang pernah ku kenal,
Sebuah guratan dari sang putra.


Malang, 11 oktober 2010


Note: the sixth stanza is adopted from Iwan Falls’ lyric (Paman Doblang)

Poor City

Awali hari dengan secangkir kopi dan sebatang rokok adalah rutinitas yang sudah menjadi kebutuhan pokok. Sayang tak ku dengar lagi sapaan ayam jantan berkokok di kota dosa yang bikin orang baik menjadi kapok.

Sejuk hawamu bikin orang kerasan, karena letakmu diapit gunung2 berjejeran. Tapi sayang kota ini besar lantaran imigran, karena banyak pribumimu yang buta akan pendidikan.

Malang namamu moga tak semalang pendudukmu. Kota pendidikan katamu, kota dosa kataku, kota yang merubah orang lugu menjadi beringas seperti hantu.

Transformasi hebat terjadi disini, Agent of Change jadi kurcaci ciut nyali, materialisme dan hedonisme jadi teman sejati, what a fuck they say jadi dalil suci.

Banyak remaja memilih jadi ayam, daripada harus makan nasi garam. Itu dalih untuk halalkan yang haram, bikin paras elok kota ini makin suram.

Gedung2 megah berdiri simbol keangkuhanmu, dimana segala transaksi  iblis terjadi disitu, norma agama dan budaya jadi makin layu, kebebasan dan kemunafikan menjalar seperti benalu.

Aku bukannya bersikap skeptis Bos, tapi prihatin sebelum semua jadi chaos, lihat banyak institusi saling adu jotos, demi mendapatkan wajah2 yang masih polos.

Lihat mal praktek terjadi dimana-mana, bikin orang enek dan mengelus dada. Merpercantik kuantitas mereka berlomba, kualitas jadi kata asing ditelinga.

He! jangan cuman ngomong doang bung! Jangan bikin orang lain tambah bingung! tapi apa yang bisa dilakukan anak seumur jagung? Cuma bisa berkoar kemudian merenung.

                                                                         Malang, 23 September 2010

The Day Has Come

The day has come

 When the name of the Mighty’s echoing in the sky,

When the Winner celebrate the victory of joy.

The day has come

When the Muttaqin harvest the seeds they sow,

When the Forgiver purifies the taints we draw.

The day has come

When the Lucky cry as if the precious’ gone,

When the selfishness statue falls down.

The day has come

When the Pious beg to meet it once again,

When the dirts’ heart’s faded by absolution’s rain.

The day has come

When we re-knit the broken twines, 

When we’re reborn to be a new one.

"عيد مبارك"

تقبل الله منا ومنكم تقبل ياكريم و جعلنا واياكم من العائدين والفائزين 
والمكبولين كل عام وأنتم بخير

                                                                                                            

                                                                                                            Jombang, 1 Syawal 1431 H

Syukurku

SYUKURKU
By: Awin Wijaya

Duduk termenung seorang diri,
Menerawang jauh mengarungi sanubari,
Tertohok karya sufi agung dari Persi,
Terngiang kisah-kisah mistik nan abadi:

Si kakak tua dan penjual minyak wangi,
“matilah sebelum kau mati”
Sang singa dan si kelinci,
“instropeksi diri, sebelum menghakimi”
Ayaz, si pengawal raja yang setia,
“janganlah lupa diri, semua adalah pemberian Illahi”
Ataupun si musikus tua,
yang akhirnya kepada Tuhan dia bernyanyi.

Oh Lord…
Syukurku atas pengetahuan yang Kau tunjukkan
Syukurku atas peringatan yang Kau berikan
Syukurku atas kesadaran yang Kau tanamkan
Syukurku atas air mata yang mengalir hanya untukMu.

Marhaban ya Romadhon…Marhaban ya Syahrus Siam…

Malang, 10 Agustus 2010

Forgive me

Forgive me
By: Awin Wijaya

I thought I was the weakest
I thought I was the hopeless
I thought I was the flawless
I thought I was the greatest

See the children of violence; I feel my matters are nothing
See the moments of the past day, I feel my mind's over thinking
See the great man from the East; I feel my life has no meaning
See the magnificent surrounds, I feel myself is a small thing

For every sorrow is a lesson
For every happening is a present
For every deed has a consequence
For every living being is eminent

Forgive my complaint always flowing from my tongue
Forgive my prejudice always being there in my mind
Forgive my ignorance always coloring every performance
Forgive my arrogance always looking everything down

Malang, August 6, 2010

A CONFESSION

SEBUAH PENGAKUAN
Oh Tuhan aku bukanlah ahli surga
Juga tak mampu menahan siksa neraka
Kabulkan taubat ampuni dosa-dosaku
Hanyalah Engkau pengampun dosa hambaMu
Dosa-dosaku tak terhitung bagai debu
Ya Ilahi terimalah hamba taubatku
Sisa umurku berkurang setiap hari
Dosa-dosaku makin bertambah ya Ilahi
Hamba yang berdosa datang bersimpuh menyembahMu
Mengaku menyeru dan memohon ampunanMu


A CONFESSION
Oh my Lord I’m not deserved to be in Your heaven
Nor I can hold on Your torment in hell
Accepts my false ware and forgives my sins
Coz You're the one who forgives all our sins
My sins are like uncounted dust
Ya Ilahi accepts my false ware
My remaining age decreases day by day
But my sins increase every day
Your sinner servant knees before You
Confessing, hailing, and bagging for Your forgiveness




الاعتراف
اِله لاالست للفردوس اهلا
ولااقوي علي النارالجحيم
فهبل توبة واغفر الذنوبي
فاِنك غافرالذنب العاظيم
ذنوُبي مثل اعدادالرمال
فهبل توبة ياذي الجلال
وعمرنا قص في كل يوم
وذنبي زاِد كيف اختمالي


PENGAKUAN
Duh Gusti ingsun mboten pantes wonten suwargo
Nanging ingsun mboten kiat ngraosaken sikso neroko
Dipun sembadani taubat ingsun lan dipun ngapuro sedoyo duso
Panjenengan Dzat kang ngapunten sedoyo duso
Duso ingsung mboten keitung kados lebu
Duh Gusti terami tobat ingsun
Siso umur ingsun kirang saben dinten
Nanging duso ingsun tambah saben wektu
Kawulo kang hino sujud takdzim ten ngandap Panjenengan
Mengaku menyeru lan memohon pengapunten Panjenengan


UNE CONFESSION
Oh Dieu, je ne suis pas un expert Paradise
Aussi incapable de supporter le châtiment de l'Enfer
Subvention de repentir, pardonne mes péchés
Vous seul le pardon des péchés serviteur
Innombrables comme la poussière Sins
Oui Divine accepter mon serviteur repentance
Time I a été réduit chaque jour
Mes péchés ont augmenté si divine
Sinful serviteurs venus adorer tes talons
Admise appelant et vous demande pardon