Kurdish Proverb

HAMO SHTE LA BARIKIDA ABRETAWA
TANHA ZULM NABE LA ASTORIA'
which mean "things will end after becoming thin and weak but wrong and aggression will end after becoming thick and strong.”

With all the corruption and accidents we see in this world, all the senseless events happening here and there, still, if we look deeply and study the reasons, we will find out this Universe is running according to rules which will never change. Do not be disappointed when you see fools in high places; illiterates teaching philosophy; ignorant men preaching; racists talking of love; and peaceful, educated, pious family men falsely accused and discriminated against! We are living in a time when things are upside down - this unusual situation will not last because it’s unjust and against the rule of nature.

I know human corruption and pollution will affect our planet, bring disaster upon us and make our lives harder, but no one can change any fundamental natural law of this Universe. Any power, wealth, joy and success which does not fit into the natural law is the fruit of corruption, and the abnormal situation should not deceive us.

We Kurds have been victims for centuries and are paying a high price for corrupt and wrong policies, but we faced all the aggression and genocide by saying, “things will end after becoming thin and weak but wrong and aggression will end after becoming thick and strong."

As "Malik bin Nabi"* says, any civilization will go through three stages as human beings go through life.

The first stage is the beginning which is small and weak like a baby or young child.

The second stage is power and strength like a youth or man in his prime.

The third stage is corruption and disease like an old and sick man. Then will come the end – death.

Look at any civilization - when it started it was small and weak; then it became strong and powerful; finally it became corrupted and came to an end.

Read about any party, group, organization, revolution or school which was built by good people and leaders who wanted to end corruption and make a difference. What happened to them after they achieved success?

Maybe they made some changes, built for awhile and stayed clean. Then they themselves became corrupted and needed to be removed from power by a new revolution!

As hard as it is to reach some goals, keeping them in sight after we reach is even more important, and even harder. We can build and increase things until we complete them, but for how long can we keep them after they are complete? We can improve a situation and correct it until it becomes perfect but then what is going to happen? As Umar bin Khatab said, "there is nothing after completion, only loss…"**

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND IMPORTANT STAGE IN OUR LIVES IS THE STAGE OF BUILDING AND STRUGGLING TO REACH OUR GOALS. Heroes throughout history are those who lived and struggled in the times of building and reform.

This proverb tells us that if anyone understands the rules of nature and follows them, he will have peace in his mind, tranquility in his heart, and he will stay hopeful and patient. He will not be deceived by fools and tyrants; he knows that they will come to a tragic end, and no one will be truly happy and successful in that way. Their power and aggression will only increase the madness and doubt in their hearts, because wrong and aggression will not fit into the beauty of this Universe and will not last under the laws of nature.

You can read history and look around you - you will find out what happened to those who have tricked, cheated, harmed and destroyed people's lives for their own benefit.

Justice and truth can be hidden and delayed but surely no one can end them. They will never die and always they will return and appear once more. When in 1988 Saddam destroyed Halabja* in a chemical attack, I was - like all Kurds - very sad and angry. One day I were sitting by myself and thinking about Halabja and other acts of genocide against my people. My friend Rizgar came and said, "they are going to finish us. Look, now they’ve started using gas and dropping chemicals on us" I told him that we are a nation with a long history, and we have the truth in our hands. And we are the oppressed, not the aggressor. No one can put an end to us. "Halabja" will mean their end rather than ours. I started to mention some examples from history where abuse of power and extreme aggression resulted in the end of the aggressors, not their victims. Look what happened to Pharaoh and his army. What about Hitler? Where is Stalin and his army? But Kak Rizgar was not optimistic at all. He said “we will see.”

After a couple months the Anfal operation started and Saddam's Army destroyed almost all of the Kurdish villages and many small cities. At least 182,000 innocent Kurds were murdered and buried in mass grave - most of them buried alive. When I saw Kak Rizgar I was completely speechless and I was not able to look in his eyes which were full of tears. He said, "look, I told you they are going to end the Kurds." Again I told him Anfal is another big step toward their end not ours, and hopefully it will come soon. Do not forget, I said, "everything will end when it’s weak - only aggression will end when it’s strong." Two and a half years later Halabja was a completely free city and Saddam’s Army had collapsed and fled from all the destroyed areas. I went to see Kak Rizgar and said, “show me, where is the aggressor’s army now? What happened to their power? Who has been ended?”

Kak Rizgar hugged me and asked how I knew this was going to happen. I told him I learned from history and understood it from the natural laws of this Universe. He said, “but it took two and a half years.” I told him that two and a half years is nothing for change like this. The end of tyrants and fascist regimes sometimes will take decades, even centuries, rather than two and a half years.

Whenever any tyrant or bloody regime crosses all the borders; when they go beyond what we can imagine; when they humiliate people and shed their blood; when they became more and more arrogant and believe they own and control everything under the sun, then we know their end is near. Let us never be deceived by aggression and never become arrogant, but remain humble and do what we know to be right. No one can win in the end by doing wrong, and no real successes can be achieved by aggression.

The natural law of this Universe tells us we cannot reach the right solution until we have the right formula - the correct result is the fruit of the perfect means.

 

Previous Proverb * * Proverb Home * * Next Proverb


Updated
February 7, 2009

This site is maintained by Lynne Jackson of Jackson's Computer Services