Forough Farokhzad's fathe bagh

Hello and welcome to lesson 71 of Learn Persian with Chai and Conversation! In this lesson we are continuing our exploration of Forough Farrokhzad’s poem, Fatheh Bagh, or Conquest of the Garden.

Let’s begin by hearing what may or may not be Forough Farrokhzad reciting the portion of the poem we learned last week, and continuing to what we will be learning this week:

hamé meetarsand

hamé meetarsand

amā man o tō

bā cherāgh o āb o āyeené payvasteem

va natarseedeem

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshvakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

So last week, we learned that Forough is saying hameh meetarsand, or everyone is afraid. Hameh meetarsand

(hameh meetarsand)

And she defiantly says that you and I are not afraid, because we’ve joined with light and water and mirror, which are symbols of marriage. So hearing just this part, you think, ok, everyone is afraid because of their uncertainty, but through this institution of marriage, we are no longer uncertain. But, lo and behold, this week, she surprises us with what is actually going. Let’s listen to the full portion of the the new section we are going to learn this week

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghdooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshvakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

All right, so it might sound like there’s a lot in here, but there are some easy concepts and repeat words. So let’s go over these now and see what we can learn. So first of all, she begins the section with the word sokhan. Sokhan means a speech or in this concept, topic of conversation. Sokhan

sokhan

So for example, as I’m recording this, the UN general council is taking place, and all the heads of states are having a sokhan on the world stage. A speech. Sokhan

(sokhan)

Here, Forough uses the word as meaning the topic. Sokhan

(sokhan)

So the general idea is ‘What I’m saying is not the joining of two names and embracing in the old pages of a ledger.”

So let’s go over each of these words as we learn them in the poem. So payvande soste do nam, means the numb or lifeless joining of two names. So the word sost means numb or lifeless. So if your leg goes to sleep or something it would be sost. Sost

(sost)

And similarly a person can become numb to the world, sost

(sost)

and the subject here is do nam, meaning two names. Do nam

(do nam)

Do is the number two. Do

(do)

and nam is the word for name. Nam

(nam)

So together, it’s two names. do nam

(do nam)

Another thing that has to be noted here is that in Persian we have the concept of ezafe which we explore in detail in lesson 26, and it’s the way to join words together. So payvand by itself is joining. payvand

payvand

and sost is numb. sost

sost

the sound ezafe is e. So you’ll hear it at the end of these words. payvande

payvande

soste

soste

and it’s the way of joining these words to the subject of do nam, two names. So the poem says payvande soste do nam. The numb joining of two names. Payvande soste do nam. Again, we get into the concept of ezafe and how important it is in great detail in Lesson 26- if you’d like to hear more, refer back to that lesson. But moving on, let’s hear this portion of the poem again

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

So moving on, va we’ve heard several times means and. Va

va

Hamaghooshee is a longer word, and it means embracing. hamaghooshee

hamaghooshee

it could also be translated as going to bed together, literally. So sharing a bed, hamaghooshee

hamaghooshee

The next word is one I’ve never heard in normal conversation, but it’s in the poem, so let’s learn it- it’s oragh

oragh

And this is translated as papers. Oragh

oragh

Kohneh is a very common word, and it means outdated, ragged, scrappy, old. Kohneh

kohneh

So something that is kohneh has become dusty because it’s so old. And it’s discolored and the edges are bent. You get the idea. Kohneh

kohneh

And daftar is the word for notebook, but in this case, its referring to a marriage ledger that is used to legally record a marriage. Daftar

daftar

So putting it altogether, it’s hamaghooshee dar oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar, which means, the joining on the pages of an old ledger. There are two more transitional words to learn here. Dar means in dar

dar

so hamaghooshee dar- the joining in. Hamaghooshee dar

hamaghooshee dar

and then yek daftar- the word yek simply means one, or a. yek

yek

so a ledger, yek daftar

yek daftar

so let’s follow the ezafe’s, or the e sounds, and see what words are linked together in this sentence- oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar. So again, oragh means pages. Oragh

oragh

and kohneh means old and ragged, kohneh

kohneh

so the fact that these two words have the e sound after them, or the ezafe, shows that they are describing the noun that comes after them, and that noun is yek daftar, a notebook. yek daftar

yek daftar

so putting it all together it’s oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar

oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar

So all together is hamaghooshee dar oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar. The joining in the pages of a ragged notebook. Hamaghooshee dar oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar

hamaghooshee dar oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar

and finally the word neest means is not. neest

neest

So let’s listen to this whole sentiment again

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

So sokhan az payvande soste do nam va hamaghooshee dar oragheh kohneyeh yek daftar neest. So to translate it literally she’s saying ‘the topic is not the lifeless joining of two names and linking up in the pages of a ragged ledger.’ Let’s repeat this together line by line. Sokhan az payvande soste do nam

sokhan az payvande soste do nam

va hamaghooshee

va hamaghooshee

dar oragheh kohneye yek daftar neest

So the neest comes at the end of the statement, and it’s talking about sokhan. sokhan neest

sokhan neest

So what is she talking about, what is the joining of two names in a ledger? Well, as we said in the previous lesson, in the Persian wedding tradition, you set up an altar with these symbols of marriage.  At that same table, an old man is seated, reading to you the rites of marriage, after which he asks the man and woman to each say their I do’s, or in the Iranian case, their ‘balehs’. After that’s done, he signs their names in his ledger, making the marriage official.

So at first, Forough Farrokhzad says that the couple is joined by the light, mirror and water, making it sound like she’s talking about marriage, but in this next section she counteracts that and says she’s not talking about marriage in the way we are thinking, in the traditional sense. She’s not talking about names in a ledger. So let’s listen to those two parts of the poem once again.

hamé meetarsand

hamé meetarsand

amā man o tō

bā cherāgh o āb o āyeené payvasteem

va natarseedeem

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

Great, and hopefully you got all that. Again, on the website, by becoming a member of Chai and Conversation, you can access our bonus materials, where you’ll be able to practice each of these words individually until you’ve learned them completely. And that really is the best way to learn- to practice until each word is clear in your memory and understanding.

So now let’s hear the last part of this stanza

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshbakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

So again we hear sokhan, which means the topic, or the speech. Sokhan

sokhan

Geesoo is a kind of poetic term for hair. Geesoo

geesoo

The more common word for hair hear more often in conversation is moo

moo

I’ve actually only personally heard geesoo in poetry, so it’s a poetic way of saying something like locks of hair, and it brings to mind luscious locks. The word khoshbakht means lucky or happy. Khoshbakht

khoshbakht

So geesooyeh khoshbakht means my happy hair. Geesooyeh khoshbakht

geesooyeh khoshbakht.

And the last word there ‘manast’ is a combination of man which we know means me, and ast which is the word for is. Man

man

and ast

ast

So together it’s manast

manast

So sokhan az geesooyeh khoshbakhteh man ast, meaning what I’m talking about is my happy luscious hair. Or more literally, the topic is of my lucky and happy hair. Sokhan az geesooyeh khoshbakhteh man ast

sokhan az geesoyeh khoshbakhteh man ast

so ast is the opposite of neest, which is what we hear in the first part. So neest means is not, and hast or ast means is. So let’s say this one more time sokhan az geesoyeh khoshbakhteh man ast

sokhan az geesoyeh khoshbakhteh man ast

All right, and the last part

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

So this is some very sensual and beautiful imagery. So we’ve heard the word shaghayegh before, it means the poppy flower, or the anemone. Shaghayegh

shaghayegh

Shaghayeghha is plural, to poppy flowers. Shaghayeghha

And shaghayeghhayeh sookhteyeh booseye to all together means the burnt anemone of your kiss. So sookhteh is the word for burnt. Sookhteh

sookhteh

and boos is the word for kiss

boos

Boose is the way to make a kiss from a verb to a noun. So booseye to means your kiss. Booseyeh to

booseyeh to

Shaghayeghhayeh sookhte means burnt poppy flowers. Shaghayeghhayeh sookhteh

Shaghayeghhayeh sookhteh

And remember this is a double reference to opium here, so the concept of being high off of a burnt kiss. Shaghayeghhayeh sookhteh

shaghayeghhayeh sookhteh

and all together, shaghayeghhayeh sookhteyeh booseye to

shaghayeghhayeh sookhteyeh booseye to

meaning the burnt anemonme of your kisses. And let’s listen to this part once again

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshbakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

So all together she’s saying- ‘I’m talking about my happy luscious hair with the burnt anemone of your kisses’

So, she’s negating that she’s talking about marriage- instead she’s talking about the real physical love between her and him- she’s talking about locks of hair and kisses. So again, all together-

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshvakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

And because there are so many new words here, it might take a few takes to really get it down, but hopefully it won’t be too difficult! And now, let’s listen from the very beginning of the poem to this section we’ve gone over today, and hopefully you’ll understand the whole thing!

hamé meetarsand

hamé meetarsand

amā man o tō

bā cherāgh o āb o āyeené payvasteem

va natarseedeem

sokhan az payvandé sosté dō nām

va hamāghooshee dar orāgheh kohneyé yek daftar neest

sokhan az geesooyeh khoshvakhté manast

bā shaghāyeghhayé sookhteyé booseyé tō

And that’s a wrap for Lesson 71! We’ve covered a lot today, so make sure to jump on the website, check out the transcription of the poem, and learn it word by word in phonetic English. And as always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the poem. Can’t wait to receive videos from you all learning the poem! In the next lesson, we’ll go over the last portion of this poem we’ll be learning, so see you next time on Learn Persian with Chai and Conversation!