Oh gobi, my gobi…

How many Mongolian poets do you know? Have you heard about Mongolian renowned poet Yavuukhulan Begz and his famous poem “The Gobi”?

It is my great honour and privilege to translate and make Mr. Yavuukhulan’s famous poem “The Gobi” available in English for Discover Mongolia blog viewers. Mr. Yavuukhulan was one of the most famous contemporary poets of Mongolia. He was born in 1929, was educated both in Mongolia and Russia; and hence, wrote his poems and novels both in Mongolian and Russian. Some of his most famous works include poems like “The Gobi”, “Where was I born?”, plus several well-known books. He was bestowed with “Mongolian State Award” in 1964, among other recognitions and awards for his remarkable achievements and respected works. To me, his works, particularly his poems, portray Mongolia, its culture, landscape and people, so realistically, yet so sumptuously that you cannot get bored of reading his poems. One of such splendid poems of himself, on Mongolia, is “The Gobi” without a doubt. Although the poem was written in 1964, astoundingly, every wording still remains accurate. I have tried my best to relay his messages as clear as I can, yet, I would not be surprised if you could come up with better wording for some of the parts.

[Yavuukhulan] Now, please enjoy Mr.Yavuukhulan’s poem “The Gobi” and please let me know if you would like to get familiar with more poems by Mr.Yavuukhulan or other Mongolian poets, by commenting below.

Oh gobi, my gobi

You are, sometimes, burning like a

Melting pot

Your grasshoppers and crickets are chirping like

Frying grain

Gobi, in fact, has no real rivers

Instead,

Its rivers have been sucked and soaked up

And now,

It is a land of screes

Oh gobi, my gobi.

Once upon a time, though,

On this vast land,

Pure rivers were flowing, wide

Plants and flowers were growing, in variety

Forests and lawns embraced

Full of wild animals

Forming such a wonder land that cannot be

Found elsewhere on our planet

Sadly, saying goes that the sun burned off

Said wonders of the gobi, except its camels

From the above,

From the bottom,

Sandy lands have

Soaked them up.

Oh gobi, my gobi.

Gobi, in fact, is like sea of dust and dirt

Gobi sand dunes are like mighty waves of that sea

Therefore, gobi sometimes, is stormy from

The sky to the ground

Then, suddenly, is

Tranquil all over again.

Yet, oh gobi, my gobi

You contain very vast land --

Existing as

Endless camel caravan under the moon,

Occupying enormous fields --

Owning echoes and legends

Such echoes belong to women of the gobi --

Singing beside their camels

Suntanned and

Sometimes, weeping.

Oh gobi, my gob

Sometimes, gobi cools like

Skimmed milk upon boiling

Surface of the gobi looks like a

Shade of yellow as milk cream.

Singing woman of the gobi,

On this open plain steppe,

Only seldom is befriended by anything, except

Occasionally seen saxaul and camels

Oh gobi, my gobi.

Gobi, in fact, was the very first formation of this planet

Got its sandy surface across its prolonged existence

However, my gobi is long stretched like the sky

Having rich resources hidden under its ground

The oil towers have been built up in the

Turquoise hills of the gobi and

Thus,

Rare scenes have been established with

Roaring sounds of factory chimneys

Oh gobi, my gobi. 

Gobi, in fact, is a mirror screen –

Giving complete view of the sky and the land

Gobi mirage is like a

Gifted painter drawing

Gorgeous cities and villages.

Therefore, my gobi is still a mystery on

The earth

Showcasing magical cities through its

Scenic mirages

Oh gobi, my gobi.

One day, we will build those magical cities

Once seen through gobi mirages

Water will be extracted from the ground

Forming blue rivers

Forests will be grown again

From the northern part of Mongolia

Gobi will be revitalized and

Got young looks

Gobi people will worship it as

Oh gobi, my gobi.

Onto the sky and into the land

Oh gobi, my gobi.