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EMHA AINUN NADJIB

Indonesia Raya 1*

When eyes are bright, and all around is dark,
When the light fades, and eyes are blind,
Life has no meaning, I have no home
I drag my feet, I see no horizon

It is dark outside, it is dark inside where there is nothing,
I do not know if I even have a face
I can not see the scratches on my face
I do not Know who is you, me, him, you, me, her
I do not know where I am

I hear feet stamping and bodies colloiding
No one knows where is north, where the south
I hear a low rumble, you moaning, me cursing,
People accusing each other, full of anger

No one knows where we should be led
Whether there is light, what to hope for
We try to be humble, to make room for each other
The dark is in ourselves, not the world

Jakarta 2001

* 'Indonesia Raya' (Greater Indonesia) is the title of the Indonesian national anthem.

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They laugh and they dance

What can you say about a people
who don't know who they are,
who don't understand where they are
and don't realise where they are haeding

Say something about a society
that is utterley blind
that has rejected truth
and affirmed evil
who distrust virtue
and who have a taste for things that are rotten

Their Knowledge is wrong
Their spirit confused
Their schools foolish
Their technology wasteful
Their organization destructive
Their sense of progress is futile
Their ideology rests on an illusion
Their reformation* was a lie

Is there some sort of cruel knife
Which tears at your heart
Makes you weep and feel sorry
I say: No!No!
The people I have told oyu about
They don't feel sorry for themselves
They laugh and they dance.

Jakarta 2001

* 'Reformation' (Reformasi) was the name given to the campaign against President Suharto in 1998.