Magtymguly Pyragy


Magtymguly Pyragy was a Turkmen spiritual leader, philosophical poet, and sufi. He is considered as the father of the Turkmen literature and regarded as the most famous figure in the Turkmen literary history.
In a wider scope, Magtymguly is often placed alongside such giants of the Turkic literary world as Hoja Ahmad Yasawi, Yunus Emre, Ali-Shir Nava'i and Fizuli.

Biography

Early life and education

Magtymguly is widely believed to have been born in the Hajygowshan village near Gonbad-e Qabus city in what is now the Iranian province of Golestan, the northern steppes of which are known as Turkmen Sahra. In his poetry, Magtymguly says "Tell those who enquire about me that I am a Gerkez, I hail from Etrek and my name is Makhtumkuli," identifying his homeland as the banks of the Etrek River and expressing his identity through his tribe.
He received his early education in the Persian and Arabic languages from his father Döwletmämmet Azady, a leading scholar at the time. He went on to study in various madrassahs, including the Idris Baba Madrassah in the village of Gyzyl Ayak, the Madrassah of Shir Gazi Khan in Khiva, and may have also studied in Bukhara for some time.

Later life

Upon his return home, Magtymguly worked as a silversmith while he taught and wrote poetry. He went on to develop a realistic style of writing about 18th century Turkmen that proved very popular and ultimately led to him becoming one of the most cherished Turkmen poets of all time. He was also a devout naqshbandi sufi who was said to have traveled throughout all the lands comprising modern Turkmenistan, teaching and praying for the salvation of his people. His strong religiosity and a deep sense of spirituality are found in a large number of his poems, such as "Gaşy ýaý", "Söýmüşem seni" and etc.
Not much is known about Magtymguly's family life. He was unable to marry Mengli, the woman that he loved, yet it seems he was married to someone else. His elder brothers Abdulla and Mahammetsupa disappeared, and his children died young. Magtymguly was also pained by the loss of his father, with whom he had maintained close scholarly relations throughout his life.
Some of Magtymguly's poetry, along with stories collected from Turkmen oral traditions, suggest that the poet was taken prisoner at some point in his lifetime, likely in Mashad, Iran. It is unknown who took him captive, yet such events were common in 18th century Iran and Turkmenistan. A servant of the ruler, who was also a Turkmen, allegedly aided Magtymguly's escape.
Magtymguly is buried in Aktokay village in north-eastern Iran. The Iranian government has inaugurated a mausoleum on his grave.

Political ideals

Magtymguly promoted the idea of keeping the Turkmen-way sacred, as well as maintaining the unity and integrity of the Turkmen nation. During his lifetime, his efforts had minimal success overcoming the existing tribal loyalties and rivalries.
The Turkmen tribes of the 18th century were torn by internecine strife and the aggressions of powerful neighbors. Much of Magtymguly's poetry depicts the suffering of the common people as caused by the selfish predations of those in power.
Magtymguly also criticized rulers and many religious figures for their exploitation of the poor and their mockery of justice in such stanzas as: “Khans of Gokleng have been spoiled/They think we do not deserve any comfort/They took away all our belongings/ We could not do anything but watch them,” and “Rulers dispense no justice anymore/Muftis issue justice for a farthing.”

Poetry

Magtymguly was one of the first Turkmen poets to introduce the use of the classical Chagatai, the court language of the Khans of Central Asia, as a literary language, incorporating many Turkmen linguistic features. As such, his poetry exemplifies a trend towards increased usage of Turkic languages, and Magtymguly is revered as the founder of Turkmen poetry, literature, and language. Magtymguly is widely revered as holy among Turkmen communities, and his poems are often quoted as proverbs in Turkmen society.
Magtymguly made wide use of the qoshuk form of poetry, which features prominently in Turkmen folk songs and is easily adapted to Turkmen musical forms. The qoshuk form consists of quatrains with lines consisting of eight or eleven syllables, and follows a rhyming scheme of ABCB for the first stanza and CCCB, DDDB, etc. for the following stanzas. The compatibility of Magtymguly's poems with traditional musical forms allowed them to be easily adopted by bakhshis, traditional singers.
Magtymguly's first poem, “By night when I was asleep... Revelation”, was composed following an incident when Magtymguly was a young boy. His parents were attending a wedding, but Magtymguly was sleeping, and they left him behind. As he slept, he began to foam at the mouth, and his parents were called back to the house. When his father awoke him, Magtymguly recited his first poem. Additionally, one of Magtymguly's poems recounts a dream in which Omar Khayyam bestowed upon him the gift of poetic invention.
His poetry is often highly personal, but also takes up universal themes. His work includes elegies on the deaths of his father and children and the disappearance of his brothers, incitements to Turkmen unity, tirades against unjust mullahs and khans, praises of religious figures, and laments at losing his beloved to another.
On one occasion, Magtymguly's village was raided, and his possessions, including manuscripts of his poetry, were carried away on a camel. The camel slipped, spilling the manuscript into the Etrek River. Upon seeing this, Magtymguly composed the following lines: “Flood took my manuscript, thus leaving me behind with tears in my eyes.” The poem also contains the lines “Making my dear life lost to all that's good, / An evil fate wrought awesome sacrilege / Hurling the books I'd written to the flood, / To leave me bookless with my grief and rage.”
Though Magtymguly apparently recorded much of his poetry, none of the original texts are currently known. A handful of manuscripts' existence is chronicled by scholars working under the Russian Empire. However, following the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, Soviet policy regarding anything written in the Arabic script as religious led to the destruction of many of these manuscripts. Many Turkmen who possessed manuscripts buried them while fleeing the Soviet Union to Iran.

"Türkmeniň"

Magtymguly's most famous poem among the Turkmen people is "Türkmeniň". The poem depicts the beauty of the Turkmen land, praises valiancy and spirit of the Turkmen people, and calls for the unity of all Turkmens.
The following is Magtymguly's "Türkmeniň" poem with the text transliterated into Turkmen letters, whereas the original language is preserved. Second column is the poem's Turkish translation, while the third one is its English translation.

Jeýhun bilen bahry-Hazar arasy,
Çöl üstünden öser ýeli türkmeniň;
Gül-gunçasy – gara gözüm garasy,
Gara dagdan iner sili türkmeniň.
Hak sylamyş bardyr onuň saýasy,
Çyrpynşar çölünde neri, maýasy,
Reňbe-reň gül açar ýaşyl ýaýlasy,
Gark bolmuş reýhana çöli türkmeniň.
Al-ýaşyl bürenip çykar perisi,
Kükeýip bark urar anbaryň ysy,
Beg, töre, aksakal ýurduň eýesi,
Küren tutar gözel ili türkmeniň.
Ol merdiň ogludyr, mertdir pederi,
Görogly gardaşy, serhoşdyr seri,
Dagda, düzde kowsa, saýýatlar, diri
Ala bilmez, ýolbars ogly türkmeniň.
Köňüller, ýürekler bir bolup başlar,
Tartsa ýygyn, erär topraklar-daşlar,
Bir suprada taýýar kylynsa aşlar,
Göteriler ol ykbaly türkmeniň.
Köňül howalanar ata çykanda,
Daglar lagla döner gyýa bakanda,
Bal getirer, joşup derýa akanda,
Bent tutdurmaz, gelse sili türkmeniň.
Gapyl galmaz, döwüş güni har olmaz,
Gargyşa, nazara giriftar olmaz,
Bilbilden aýrylyp, solup, saralmaz,
Daýym anbar saçar güli türkmeniň.
Tireler gardaşdyr, urug ýarydyr,
Ykballar ters gelmez hakyň nurudyr,
Mertler ata çyksa, söweş sarydyr,
Ýow üstüne ýörär ýoly türkmeniň.
Serhoş bolup çykar, jiger daglanmaz,
Daşlary syndyrar, ýoly baglanmaz,
Gözüm gaýra düşmez köňül eglenmez,
Magtymguly – sözlär tili türkmeniň.

Nehr-i Ceyhun Bahr-ı Hazar arası,
Çöl üstünden eser yeli Türkmen'in.
Gül goncası kara gözüm karası,
Kara dağdan iner seli Türkmen'in.
Hak sılamış vardır onun sayesi,
Çırpınır çölünde neri, mayası.
Rengarenk gül açar yeşil yaylası,
Gark olmuş reyhana çölü Türkmen'in.
Al yeşil bürünüp çıkar perisi
Kükeyip bark urup amberin isi,
Bey, töre, aksakal yurdun iyesi,
Küren tutar gözel ili Türkmen'in.
O merdin oğludur, merttir pederi,
Köroğlu kardeşi, sarhoştur seri,
Dağda, düzde kovsa avcılar diri
Alamaz arslan oğlu Türkmen'in.
Gönüller, yürekler bir olup başlar,
Tartsa yığın erir topraklar, taşlar,
Bir sofrada hazır kılınsa aşlar,
Yücelenir o ikbali Türkmen'in.
Gönül havalanır ata çıkanda,
Dağlar la'le döner dönüp bakanda,
Bal getirir coşup derya akanda,
Bent vurdurmaz, gelse, seli Türkmen'in.
Gafil kalmaz dövüş güni har olmaz,
Kargışa, nazara giriftar olmaz,
Bülbülden ayrılıp, solup zar kalmaz,
Daim amber saçar, gülü Türkmen'in.
Tireler kardeştir, uruk yaridir,
Ikballer ters gelmez, Hakk'ın nurudur,
Mertler ata çıksa savaş yarıdır,
Yov üstüne yürür yolu Türkmen'in.
Sarhoş olup çıkar ciğer dağlanmaz,
Taşları parçalar, yolu bağlanmaz,
Gözüm gayre düşmez, gönül eğlenmez,
Mahtumkulu söyler tili Türkmen'in

Between the Amu-Darya and the Caspian sea,
The wind of the Turkmen expands from the desert.
The bud of a flower- the blackness of my eye
From the dark mountains comes the flood of Turkmen.
The Almighty blessed this land. His shadow is present.
A sandstorm in its desert, a white camel,
Color upon color of blooming flowers on the green plains,
The Turkmen desert has drowned into basil.
Its beautiful woman will come out covered in green,
The smell of Amber will spread,
Bey, Honor, the White-bearded is the owner of the yurt,
The beautiful land of the Turkmen catches the colt.
He is the son of a brave man, his father is valiant,
Görogly is his brother, drunk is his head,
If the hunters chase him in the mountains and valleys,
The lion son of Turkmen cannot be caught alive
Hearts, souls and will unite as one,
If it draws deep, the lands and rocks will melt
If the food is ready on one dinner table
It will raise the fate of the Turkmen
His soul will fly when on horseback,
The mountains will turn to lava upon his glance,
When the river flows, it brings honey,
The dams will not hold the flood of Turkmen.
He will not despair, and will not lose on the battle day,
He will not be swayed by curses or the evil,
Will not separate from its nightingale and fade,
The Turkmen rose will forever blossom.
The clans are brothers, and the tribes are friends,
Their fates are tied, by the light of God
When the brave get on horses, it's for the battle,
The paths of the Turkmen lead to its enemies.
He will come out like drunk, will not despair,
He will move mountains, his path will not be blocked,
My eyes will not gaze away, and the soul will not muse,
Magtymguly speaks the language of the Turkmen.

Legacy

June 27 is celebrated in Turkmenistan as "the Day of Workers of Culture and Arts and the poetry of Magtymguly Fragi".

Monuments

Monuments of Magtymguly Pyragy are installed in various cities of the world. The largest number of sculptures is in the cities of Turkmenistan and the countries of the former USSR, as well as in Iran and Turkey. In particular, a monument to Magtymguly made of concrete and natural stone was erected in the center of Ashgabat in 1971, in the Magtymguly Square on Magtymguly Avenue.

Toponyms

The following are named after Magtymguly:

Cinema

In 1959, the USSR postage stamp dedicated to Magtymguly was issued.
In 1983, the USSR postage stamp dedicated to Magtymguly was issued.

In numismatics