Nonius Svinghage

Der er langt fra Danmark til Iran – også med flyver

Men Iran er nu alligevel mindre mærkeligt end man skulle tro.

Iran er et vejkryds i historien

Et knudepunkt for karavaneveje fra øst til vest

En opmarchplads og et ”tag selv bord ”for folk på vandring.

Arierne, tyrkerne, mongolerne, araberne, europæerne, russerne og amerikanere var der

Og måske flere endnu

Og vi var der også!

Med en fortid blandt de første - og en storhed blandt de største.

Jeg så ikke skyggen af ”ondskabens akse” mens vi var der – men den var måske gemt væk fordi de vidste vi kom?

It is far from Denmark to Iran – also by airplane

But Iran is less peculiar than one should think

Iran is a crossroad in history.

A junction for caravans routes from east to west.

A deployment area and a “self service “ table for peoples on the move.

Arians, Turks, Mongols, Arabs, Europeans, Russians , Americans

And maybe more.

We were there to !

With a past among the first – and a pride among the biggest.

I did not see a shadow of “the axis of evil” while I was there –

But maybe it was hidden away  because they knew we were coming ?

Iran er et stort land.

Et land højt hævet over havet.

Med mange mennesker

De planter træer i Iran.

Overalt – med tro på fremtiden

Fortidens bjerge var grønne – nu er de grå – men de bliver grønne igen .

Inshalla – om gud vil.

Højsletten er trøstesløs

Mellem to rækker bjerge

Med en vej i midten

Telefonledninger langs vejen kilometer efter kilometer

Et par huse

Ikke et træ

Men får og geder

The Plateau is dreary

Between two rows of mountains

With a road in the middle

Telephone wires along the road  for miles and miles

A couple of houses

Not a tree

But sheep and goats.

De bygger veje i Iran

Mange har ligget hvor de ligger i 1000 år

Nu får de asfalt på.

Nogle bliver gjort bredere så de moderne karavaner kan komme frem.

Så må de gamle byporte rives ned for at give plads til fremskridtet

Der er sten nok til byggeriet

Grus overalt

Der er vandrender langs vejene i byerne

Pas på du ikke på falder i dem.

De er dybe.

De gamle karavaneserailer ligger hvor de altid har ligget

Åbne for de vejfarende

Aldrig lukkede

They are building roads in Iran

Many a road has been there for a thousand years

Now they get asphalted.

Some are made broader so the the modern caravans can proceed.

The old towns gates are pulled down to make way for progress

There is amply with stones for the construction

Gravel everywhere

There are water ditches along the roads in the towns

Take care not to fall into them

They are deep

The old caravanserais are where they have always been

Open for the traveler

Never closed

Der er får overalt

På vejene

Langs vejene

På landet

Inde i byerne

Med og uden hunde til at passe på dem

Hvad mon det koster at køre et får ned?

Og på menuen

Får under alle former

”far får får får ? nej får får lam!

There is sheep everywhere

On the roads

Along the roads

In the countryside

In the towns

With or without dogs to look after them.

What is the price for running down a sheep ?

And there is sheep on the menu

Sheep in all forms

Med får og geder og en lastbil

Familien ligger i telt som de altid har gjort

Mon de er velkomne blandt de bofaste iranere?

With sheep and goats and a truck

The family is living in a tent as they have always done

Are they welcome among the settled?

Det flyder med plastik alle vegne

Poser - dåser -flasker

Luften er tyk at smog i de store byer.

Vandet er sjældent rent

”Civilisationens” svøbe.

It is littered with plastics everywhere

Bags – cans – bottles

The air is thick with smog in the big cities.

The water is seldom clean

The scourge of “civilization “

Det persiske paradis er en have

Med en mur omkring

Vi ser mange små paradiser i Iran

Men hvor er det ”rigtige” paradis?

Det fra Biblen og Koranen?

Er det noget der kommer eller noget der er her allerede?

Og hvad sker der når den 12 imam vender tilbage?

The Persian paradise is a garden

With a wall around.

We see many small “paradises” in Iran

But where is the real Paradise ?

The paradise from the Bible and the Koran.

Is it something that is coming or is it here already ?

And what will happen when the 12^th Imam returns ?

Et tivoliland af farver og elektriske lys

Af mennesker der lever tæt og hektisk

Ude i byen og hjemme i deres eget private Iran

Iraneren er ikke det samme menneske ude som inde.

A ”tivoliland” of colors’ and electrical lights

Of people living close together in a hectic way

“On the town” and in their private IRAN.

The Iranian is not the same when out or staying at home.

Der bygges overalt

Veje- huse - broer

I by og på land

Kraner alle vegne

Jordbunker

Grusbunker

Stilladser

They are building everywhere

Roads – houses- bridges

In the city and in the countryside

Building cranes everywhere

Heaps of earth

Heaps of gravel

Scaffolding

De kører i 3 baner hvor der kun er 2

De kører motorcykel og knallert uden styrthjelm

Men den hænger af og til over styret

De holder også stille – kofanger ved kofanger

Bremselængderne er negative når der køres stærkt.

Så siger det BANG

Der gælder om at komme frem

Det gælder om at komme først

Alle mod alle.

En larm uden lige

Men det går forunderligt godt.

Der er ikke mange cykler

Men fodgængerne løber frem og tilbage mellem bilerne og motorcyklerne

Med livet som indsats

Men over gaden kommer de

Som regel.

They are driving in three lanes where there only is two

They are running motorbikes with no crash helmet

Sometimes it is hanging over the handlebars

Sometime they are stopping – bumper to bumper

Braking lengths are negative when they are driving fast

Bang – Crash

It is important to move

It is important to arrive first

Everybody against everybody

A infernal noise

But all goes well

There are not many bikes

But the pedestrians are running in between the cares and the bikes.

They are risking their lives

But they get across the road

Normally

På altaner

På cykler

På bænke

På gulvet

På væggene

Overalt er der tæpper

Røde brune, hvide

Alle farver

Det tager flere år at væve et godt tæppe

Priserne er derefter

Skal man handle tæpper skal man have god tid.

Vi købte ikke noget – denne gang

Men pæne - det var de!

On the balcony

On bikes

On benches

On the floor

On the walls

Carpets everywhere

Red , brown, white.

All colors

It takes several years to knit a carpet

The prices are accordingly

When you are bying a carpet you need plenty of time

We did not by anything – at this time

But they were nice

De står og venter på dem langs vejene

De fleste taxi kører i faste ruter og samler passagerer op på vejen.

Hvad mon det koster og hvordan ved man hvor de kører hen?

Men de er til for alle!

De er mere demokratiske end busserne hvor kvinderne må sidde bag i vognen

I taxien blandes kønnene.

Tænk at det går!

They are waiting for taxis along the road

Most taxis are driving fixed routes and pick passengers up along the road.

What does it cost ,and how do they know where the taxi is going ?

But they are open for all

They are more democratic than the busses where the women must sit in the rear of the car

In the taxi the sexes are mixed

Just consider what might happen?

Iranerne er stolte over at være Iranere.

De er en ung befolkning med en tro på fremtiden

De lider ikke synlig nød

men

De er bekymrede over den måde omverdenen betragter Iran på.

The Iranian are proud to be Iranian.

It is a young population with faith in the future

They are not suffering from any visible economic hardship

But

They are worried about the way the outside world look at the Iranians-

De kører de fleste biler – men ikke dem alle.

De ryger – men det gør kvinderne også

De drikker te og taler sammen i grupper af mænd

De dyrker  varzeš-e bāstanī ” forfædrenes sport ”  så de kan blive dygtige til at kæmpe for landet og til at beskytte de svage.

De er sorthårede og går i cowboybukser som alle andre

De bærer ikke slips

Det gør jeg heller ikke

Men drive most of the cars – but not all the cars

They smoke – but so do women

They drink tea and talk together in groups of men

The exercise varzeš-e bāstanī “  “the sport of the forefathers “

That they can fight for the country and protect the weak.

They have black hair and wear cowboy trouser like everybody else.

They do not wear at tie

But neither do I.

De persiske kvinder er smukke!

Smilende, stolte

Og de kæfter op.

De skal helst skjule deres skønhed

De skal helst slukke deres smil

De skal helst bøje deres nakke

Men de kæfter stadigvæk op

Så det skal nok gå

Med tiden.

The Persian women are beautiful

Smiling, proud

And they argue!

They are supposed to hide there beauty.

The must extinguish their smile.

They must bend their neck.

But they continue to argue.

So all will be well

Eventually

De skjuler noget

Sig selv?

Skammer de sig over noget?

Frygter de at noget vil ramme dem?

Jeg tror at der gemmer sig et lystigt sind bag det mørke ydre.

Landsbyens kvinder har brogede kjoler under deres sorte chador

De gemmer sig til deres mænd.

Eller er det til GUD?

They hide something

Themselves ?

Are they ashamed ?

Are they afraid something will happen to them?

I believe that they hide a merry temperament behind the dark outside

The women of the village had colorful dresses underneath their black chador.

They are saving themselves for their menfolk

Or is it for God ?

Kvinder går med tørklæde i Iran

Men der er kvinder og kvinder

Og tørklæder og tørklæder

I farlige festlige farver

I tækkeligt sort

Men med noget skjult underneden

En løssluppen hårlok

Et smil fra en mild mund

Tænder så hvide som sne

Hvem slår øjnene ned?

Ikke dem!

Og tørklædet glider hele tiden tilbage og afslører mere end det skjuler.

Gudinder i særpræget forklædning

Women wear a scarf in Iran

But there are women and women

And scarfs and scarfs

In dangerous ,daring colors

In comely black

But something is hidden underneath

A wild lock of hair

A smile from a mild mouth

Teeth as white as snow

Who are lowering their eyes ?

Not them.

And the scarf is all the time

sliding back and revealing more than it hides

Goddesses in an strange disguise

Glade skolebørn

Nysgerrige

Åbne

Muntre og ikke spor bange for os

Piger for sig og drenge for sig.

Hello – Hello. How are you ?

Where are you from ?

Denmark - Where is Denmark?

May I photograph You ?

Muhammed tegningerne er I hvert fald ikke nået dertil endnu

Til Iran udenfor det officielle Iran

Godt for det

Vi har stadigvæk et godt forhold til hinanden som vi kan gøre bedre

Happy schoolchildren

Inquisitive

Open

Merry and not the least afraid of us.

Girls with girls and boys with boys

Hello – Hello. How are you ?

Where are you from ?

Denmark - Where is Denmark?

May I photograph You ?

News of The Muhammad drawings have not reached there yet

The Iran outside the official Iran.

very good

We have still a good relationship with each other which we can improve.

Noget vi har glemt

Børn og naboer i skøn forening

Aktive kvinder og kloge mænd

Legende børn

I en stor forvirring

Something we have forgotten

Children and Neighbours in one great union

Active women and wise men

Kids that plays

In one great confusion

Iran er hjemme

Bag de 4 vægge

Der hvor tørklædet lægges

Der hvor man (måske) tager ”en lille en”

Der hvor man finder sit andet jeg

Det private.

Med fri snak – også om magtens mennesker

Med musik og sang

Med livlighed og varme

Med godt naboskab

Og god mad

Og kontakt mellem kønnene.

Der også dårlige naboer

Ligesom alle andre steder

Naboer der vil sig selv det godt på andres bekostning.

Iran is home

Behind the 4 walls

Where the scarf is taken off

Where you (just might) taste a little of the grape

Home is where You find your private  self.

With free talk – also about the people in power

With music and singing

With liveliness and warmth

With good neighbourship

And good food

And contact between the sexes

There are also bad neighbours in Iran

Like everywhere else

Neighbours who want to benefit from the misfortune of others

De er ikke præster men de er kloge

De er de klogeste!

De ved hvad GUD vil.

De er der alle vegne

På billeder

Men man ser kun få i virkeligheden.

Det religiøse politi er der i stedet for.

Hvor er de mullaher der styrer samfundet?

Skændes de indbyrdes om hvad GUD mener,

eller prøver de alle på at få ret?

Udsteder man fatwaer mod hinanden?

Og hvordan bliver man stor ayatollah?

They are not priests but they are wise.

They are the wisest

They know what God wants.

They are everywhere

On pictures and posters

But you only see a few of them in real life.

The religious police is there in their stead.

Where are the Mullahs who runs the country ?

Are they arguing among themselves about what God wants ?

Are they trying to win the argument?

Are they issuing Fatwas against each other?

How do you get to be a grand ayatollah ?

De er smukke

Med mosaik

Der er mange af dem

Der er folk i dem

Shia muslimer beder anderledes end Sunni muslimer

3 gange om dage i stedet for 5

De har slået to af bønnerne sammen

Effektivitet eller forsømmelighed?

They are beautiful

With mosaic

There are many of them

There are people in them

Shia Muslims pray differently than Sunni

3 times a day instead of 5.

They have joint 2 of the prayers

Efficiency or neglect ?

DE er der!

Vi har set DEM

Men DE har ikke gjort OS noget.

Men DE er der!

Hvis ære er det DE passer på ?

og hvorfor må Muhammed ikke se på damer?’

Er det ”alle familiers ære” DE vogter på hvis den ikke selv kan?

Den unge kærlighed har det svært.

THEY are there

We have seen THEM

But THEY have not done anything bad to us.

But THEY are there

Whose honor are THEY protecting?

And why is Muhammad not allowed to admire the ladies?

Is it all families honor THEY are looking after, in case the family is not capable itself ?

Young love has a difficult time.

Det handler om penge

Det handler om olie

Det handler om magt til at ændre tingene

Hvad vil mullaherne bruge deres magt til ?

Vil de behage GUD?

Vil de berige sig selv?

Vil de frelse verden fra dens fejlopfattelser?

Vil de bygge atombomber eller bare have elektrisk lys til alle?

Forsøger de bare at overleve under et ydre pres?

Hvad vil de?

It is about money

It is about oil

It is about power to be able to change things

What are the Mullahs going to use their power for?

Will they please God?

Will they enrich themselves?

Will they save the world from its misconceptions?

Will they build atomic bombs or just secure electric light for everybody?

What are they up to ?

Der var mere vand i floderne i gamle dage

Der var træer på bjergene

Persien var større

Der var (af og til) plads til flere meninger

Den unge perser på Dareius tid skulle lære at ride, at skyde med bue og at tale sandt.

There was more water in the rivers in the old days

There were trees on the hills

Persia was bigger

There was ( from time to time) room for more than one opinion.

The young Persian in Dareius days should lean to ride, to shoot with bow and arrow ,and to speak the truth.

Der er mange fine museer i Iran med mange fine sager.

Men der mangler noget!

Det findes i Louvre, i British museum, i København og mange andre steder

De vil gerne have deres fortid tilbage

De er stolte af den.

There are many fine museums in Iran with many fine objects

But something is missing

You will find it in The Louvre ,in British museum , in Copenhagen and in many other places.

They would like to have their past back

They are proud of it.

Man har fundet et nyt palads.

Uden for lands lov og ret.

Det vil vi se!

Først kan vi ikke finde det –

Men så viser flinke unge mænd vej.

På knallert – de er tre på en knallert til én.

Med mobiltelefon for øret som alle andre steder i verden

Der er storhed i den lille udgravning.

Vi glemte vist at give de unge mennesker lidt drikkepenge

Men de var nok bare venlige uden bagtanker.

They have found at new palace.

Out in the countryside

We want to see it.

At first we can’t find it

But friendly young boys shows us the way

They ride at small motorbike – 3 on a bike build for one.

Talking on mobile phone as they ride, like everywhere in the world.

There is greatness in the small dig.

I think we forgot the give the young men at tip for their efforts

But sure they were just helpful without any ulterior motivation

25 århundreder skuer ned på os siger Torben

Eller var det Napoleon i Ægypten?

Gammelt er det i hver fald.

Carsten Niebuhr var der omkring 1765 og vi var der i år

Og lige imponerende er det.

Shahen ville lade fortidens storhed smitte af på nutiden

Men han viste ikke mådehold, så det gik galt.

25 centuries are looking upon us – says Torben

Or was it Napoleon in Egypt ?

It is old anyway.

Carsten Niebuhr was there around 1765 and we were there this year.

And it I still impressive

The late Shah wanted to let past greatness shine on the present.

But he did not show moderation ,so it turned bad.

Der døde mange i krigen mod Irak.

Over 1 million mennesker.

Vi så ingen krigsinvalider

Hvor er de henne ?

Er det en skam at være invalid i Iran ?

Er der en hævnfølelse mod sunni muslimerne i Irak ?

Er man parat til at betale omkostningerne ved en ny krig ?

Many people died in the war with Iraq

Over 1 million people

We saw no war invalids

Where are they ?

Is it a shame to be an invalid in Iran?

Is there at feeling of hatred against the sunni Muslims in Iraq ?

Are they ready to pay the cost of a new war ?

Maden var god

”så mange fluer kan ikke tage fejl”

Lam, løg, purløg, brød,

Grøntsager, krydderurter og masser af søde sager

Vand, Zam Zam, og dugh

Man gik ikke sulten fra bordet.

Der var dog nogle der fik en dårlig mave

The food was good

”so many flies cannot be wrong” !

Lamb ,onions, leeks, bread

Vegetables, spices, and a lot of sweets

Water , Zam Zam and dough

You were not hungry when you left the table.

A few of us got a bad stomach

Druen fra Shiraz er verdensberømt

Men der er ingen vinmarker tilbage

Hafez digtede om kvinder og vin

Det er måske derfor han er så populær.

Blot ikke i skolevæsnet.

Man skal ikke lære sine børn alt .

Hvor blev de roser af som Hafez gjorde sine?

Hvem drak den vin og fandt den for farlig ?

For folket

The grapes from Shiraz are world famous

But there are no wine yards left.

Hafez wrote about women and wine.

Maybe that is why he is so popular

But not in school.

You should not teach your children everything!

Where are the  roses that Hafez adored?

Who drank the wine and found it dangerous ?

For the people

De laver god te i Iran

Tehuset ligget i paradiset

Omgivet af en larmende stilhed

Fredagbøn for ikke muslimer

Støjen er fjern

Sindet bliver let

Teen er god

Hvor synger nattergalen mon i dag ?

They make good tea in Iran

The teahouse is in paradise

Surrounded by a noisy silence

Friday prayer for non Muslims

The noise is distant

The mind is light and easy

The tea is good

Where does the nightingale sing to day ?

Det lyder (næsten) som dansk

Selvom man ikke forstår et suk.

Men det er det ikke.

Det tales på samme måde.

I sætninger

Ja ja og nej nej

Med samme musik som på dansk

Men man forstår ikke et suk.

Jeg tror man lære det hvis man vil

It sounds (almost)  like Danish

Even if you do not understand a bit.

But it is not Danish.

It is spoken in the same way

In sentences

Yes yes and no no

With the same music as in Danish

But you do not understand a bit

I think you could learn it if you wanted to.

Det var ikke som jeg ventede

Iran var større

Mere moderne

Billigere

Mere øde

Med flere bjerge

Et land med smukke mennesker

Med mange flere biler end jeg troede muligt

Med en frygtelig trafik

Der var megen forurening

En masse rædselsfulde huse

En masse vidunderlige huse

En utrolig hjælpsomhed

Mere effektivt

Mere ærligt

De laver god te

Den alkoholfri øl var også god

Det flade brød var godt

Jeg vender gerne tilbage!

Inshalla – om gud vil

Og de Iranske myndigheder.

It was not the way I expected it to be

Iran was bigger

More modern

Cheaper

Mere deserted

With more mountains.

A country with beautiful people

With at lot more cars than I thought possible

With at terrible traffic

There was at lot of pollution

A lot of dreadfull houses

A lot of wonderfull  houses

An incredible helpfulness

More efficient

More honest

They make a good tea

The beer without alcohol was also good.

The flat bread was good

 I hope I can return some day

Inshalla – if God will it

And the Iranian authorities