Poem: Soliciation

By: Haider Qureshi

Prayer/Solicitation

Dear God!
Throw a favourable glance
Toward my heart
It’s your Ka’aba, your shrine
Facing a terrible attack
From the mighty army
Of Abraha’s elephants.

The master of the elephants
Perceives this shrine
The Ka’aba of my heart
As a thorny obstacle
On the way of his march
To hegemony, grandeur and might.


And here I am
Like my illustrious forefather
The noble Abdul Mutta’lib
Unable to fight, repel aggression
Not even strong enough
To demand the return
Of my very own camels.

Almighty!
These elephants
Hordes of blind aggression
Supporters of oppression and tyranny
Have penetrated
Into the inner sanctums
Of my heart
Lord and master!
My heart is
Your house , your shrine
So guard this house
And let the world see once again
The destruction of big elephants of the aggressor
By tiny stones dropped by flying little birds
In your tradition of old.

Translated By: Izhar Rizvi (Toronto, Canada)