Read Online Thirst: A Novel of the Iran-Iraq War by Mahmoud Dowlatabadi - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Mahmoud Dowlatabadi
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we’ve run up its flag above that tower. So we can walk along unhurriedly and calmly, and you’ll have time to reflect and I will be able to focus my mind on my responsibilities and my work. Now, what were we talking about?’
‘We were ranging far and wide. From Sistan to Khorasan, from Khorasan to Rey, Sepahan, Ahwaz, and from Ahwaz to Baghdad and back again. We were discussing the downfall of Saman, the Samanid dynasty, the powerand the wisdom of caliphs, the deployment of the men from the Gobi desert, and finally we talked about Baghdad and the empire of our caliphs, which was ultimately defeated by the Ajams with the help of the Turks, after some eight centuries.’
‘I actually meant our discussion from Thursday, after office hours. I didn’t want to interrupt your fine speech … but certainly, if there’s time I’d be interested in hearing those tales from you, in their historical order. So, before we come back to the topic in hand, please make a mental note that you have to tell me about two things. First, the treason of the Ajams, and second, the conquest of Sistan and the conqueror of Sistan and the rise of the coppersmith’s son … and then, those women of Bukhara and that poet laureate … and … ah … well, the whole lot, basically … but let’s go to my office now, drink the coffee the soldier has brewed for us, and talk turkey about what really happened. The murder of a prisoner at the hands of two fellow inmates, and a pamphlet left by the victim and the backgrounds of all those three, paying special attention to the time they spent together in prison. Please, after you!’
* Arabic, meaning ‘Good Morning, author!’
† Arabic, meaning ‘non-Arab’. Historically, the word was often used in a derogatory sense by Arabs to refer to foreigners who could not speak Arabic, much in the same way as the Greeks referred to other peoples as barbarians. The word Ajam, however, was especially used in reference to the Persians; indeed, the Arabs called Persia the ‘Country of Ajams’. In the text, the word Ajam is used to refer to Iranians, in this somewhat derogatory sense.
6
AND NOW … SOMEWHERE a finger presses a button, a hand flicks a switch, and from a gaping metal maw a monster is released, soaring up under the dome of a sky that is blue, or maybe leaden, or perhaps cloudy and a bit rainy. But where is it bound for, this monster that flies yet which has no wings? No one knew the answer to this for sure, not even the owner of that hand or finger. By contrast, there were many who became aware of its sudden descent, but they don’t exist anymore to tell the tale. The wide muzzle of that metal barrel still smells of hell. But you … my son, Jamoo! Now be attentive! Open your mouth, grip my finger with your tongue between your lips and suck! Quick, before this life-giving sustenance goes to waste. It must be a bit salty, but it will save you from being overcome by faintness. Suck well, suck my finger, boy, harder, use more force. Just like a hungry child drinking from his mother’s breast. Drink before you lose consciousness. Drink! I want you to come to your senses and convey a message for me. Drink, with all your might! Whatever’s left over, I’ll give to our captive. I don’t want him to die either. Keep your wits about you! After drinking you must send a message. And if you’re still dumb and dim and dense even after that, I’ll bring you back to your senses with a slap! And if all else fails, then I’ll expend a bullet on you even though I really don’t want you to die. Quite the opposite, I want youto live. You must live. You’re still too young to fade away. So … tell me now, do you feel any better? Can you transmit the message? Now,
anta
!
Tashrab, tashrab!
* See how eagerly he sucks, the rogue! Do you remember now? You couldn’t wait for the lioness to come and find you! She would have come. She will come still. But for the time being just obey the
‘We were ranging far and wide. From Sistan to Khorasan, from Khorasan to Rey, Sepahan, Ahwaz, and from Ahwaz to Baghdad and back again. We were discussing the downfall of Saman, the Samanid dynasty, the powerand the wisdom of caliphs, the deployment of the men from the Gobi desert, and finally we talked about Baghdad and the empire of our caliphs, which was ultimately defeated by the Ajams with the help of the Turks, after some eight centuries.’
‘I actually meant our discussion from Thursday, after office hours. I didn’t want to interrupt your fine speech … but certainly, if there’s time I’d be interested in hearing those tales from you, in their historical order. So, before we come back to the topic in hand, please make a mental note that you have to tell me about two things. First, the treason of the Ajams, and second, the conquest of Sistan and the conqueror of Sistan and the rise of the coppersmith’s son … and then, those women of Bukhara and that poet laureate … and … ah … well, the whole lot, basically … but let’s go to my office now, drink the coffee the soldier has brewed for us, and talk turkey about what really happened. The murder of a prisoner at the hands of two fellow inmates, and a pamphlet left by the victim and the backgrounds of all those three, paying special attention to the time they spent together in prison. Please, after you!’
* Arabic, meaning ‘Good Morning, author!’
† Arabic, meaning ‘non-Arab’. Historically, the word was often used in a derogatory sense by Arabs to refer to foreigners who could not speak Arabic, much in the same way as the Greeks referred to other peoples as barbarians. The word Ajam, however, was especially used in reference to the Persians; indeed, the Arabs called Persia the ‘Country of Ajams’. In the text, the word Ajam is used to refer to Iranians, in this somewhat derogatory sense.
6
AND NOW … SOMEWHERE a finger presses a button, a hand flicks a switch, and from a gaping metal maw a monster is released, soaring up under the dome of a sky that is blue, or maybe leaden, or perhaps cloudy and a bit rainy. But where is it bound for, this monster that flies yet which has no wings? No one knew the answer to this for sure, not even the owner of that hand or finger. By contrast, there were many who became aware of its sudden descent, but they don’t exist anymore to tell the tale. The wide muzzle of that metal barrel still smells of hell. But you … my son, Jamoo! Now be attentive! Open your mouth, grip my finger with your tongue between your lips and suck! Quick, before this life-giving sustenance goes to waste. It must be a bit salty, but it will save you from being overcome by faintness. Suck well, suck my finger, boy, harder, use more force. Just like a hungry child drinking from his mother’s breast. Drink before you lose consciousness. Drink! I want you to come to your senses and convey a message for me. Drink, with all your might! Whatever’s left over, I’ll give to our captive. I don’t want him to die either. Keep your wits about you! After drinking you must send a message. And if you’re still dumb and dim and dense even after that, I’ll bring you back to your senses with a slap! And if all else fails, then I’ll expend a bullet on you even though I really don’t want you to die. Quite the opposite, I want youto live. You must live. You’re still too young to fade away. So … tell me now, do you feel any better? Can you transmit the message? Now,
anta
!
Tashrab, tashrab!
* See how eagerly he sucks, the rogue! Do you remember now? You couldn’t wait for the lioness to come and find you! She would have come. She will come still. But for the time being just obey the
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