Abai Kunanbaev

Abai is a great poet

Abai Kunanbaev Biography Kazakh writer, poet, lyricist, social philosopher. He was born on August in Semeipalatinsk region on the slopes of chingistau mountains, near the source of the Kaskabulak. Intitally, the poet was given the name Ibrahim. The say that poet of that name was preceded by a prophetic dream of his father – Kunanbaja. In a dream he saw a great representative of the tribe tobikti – thinker and philosopher Annette Baba, who pronounced the name of the Holy son Ibrahim.

Abay was born in what is today the selo of Karauyl, in Abay District, East Kazakhstan Province; the son of Qunanbay and Uljan, Qunanbay’s second wife, they named him Ibrahim, but because of his brightness, he soon was given the nickname «Abay» (meaning «careful»), a name that stuck for the rest of his life. His father’s economic status enabled the boy to attend a Russian school in his youth, but only after he had already spent some years studying at a madrasah under Mullah Ahmet Ryza. At his school in Semipalatinsk, Abay encountered the writings of Mikhail Lermontov and Alexander Pushkin.

Abay’s main contribution to Kazakh culture and folklore lies in his poetry, which expresses great nationalism and grew out of Kazakh folk culture. Before him, most Kazakh poetry was oral, echoing the nomadic habits of the people of the Kazakh steppes. During Abay’s lifetime, however, a number of important socio-political and socio-economic changes occurred. Russian influence continued to grow in Kazakhstan, resulting in greater educational possibilities as well as exposure to a number of different philosophies, whether Russian, Western or Asian. Abay Qunanbayuli steeped himself in the cultural and philosophical history of these newly opened geographies. In this sense, Abay’s creative poetry affected the philosophical thinking of educated Kazakhs.

The leaders of the Alash Orda movement saw him as their inspiration and spiritual predecessor. Contemporary Kazakh images of Abay generally depict him in full traditional dress holding a dombra (the Kazakh national instrument). Today, Kazakhs revere Abay as one of the first folk heroes to enter into the national consciousness of his people. Almaty State University is named after Abay, so is one of the main avenues in the city of Almaty. There also public schools with his name.

Among Abay’s students was his nephew, a historian, philosopher, and poet Shakarim Qudayberdiuli (1858– 1931). Statues of him have been erected in many cities of Kazakhstan, as well as in Moscow. A film on the life of Abay was made by Kazakhfilm in 1995, titled Abai. He is also the subject of two novels and an opera by Mukhtar Auezov, another Kazakhstani writer. Another film describing his father’s life was made in December 2015, titled «Qunanbai».

Abay also translated into Kazakh the works of Russian and European authors, mostly for the first time. Translations made by him include poems by Mikhail Lermontov, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Lord Byron, Ivan Krylov’s Fables and Alexander Pushkin’s Eugene Onegin. Abay’s major work is The Book of Words (Kazakh: ара с здеріқ ө , Qara sözderi ), a philosophic treatise and collection of poems where he encourages his fellow Kazakhs to embrace education, literacy, and good moral character in order to escape poverty, enslavement and corruption. In Word Twenty Five, he discusses the importance of Russian culture, as a way for Kazakhs to be exposed to the world’s cultural treasures.Born into this world, an infant inherits two essential needs. The first is for meat, drink and sleep. These are the requirements of the flesh, without which the body cannot be the house of the soul and will not grow in height and strength. The other is a craving for knowledge. A baby will grasp at brightly colored objects, it will put them in its mouth, taste them and press them against its cheek. It will start at the sound of a pipe. Later, when a child hears the barking of a dog, the noises of animals, the laughter or weeping of people, it gets excited and asks about all that it sees and hears: «What’s that? What’s that for? Why is he doing that? » This is but the natural desire of the soul, the wish to see everything, hear everything and learn everything. Without trying to fathom the mysteries of the universe, visible and invisible, without seeking an explanation for everything, one can never be what one should be — a human being. Otherwise, the spiritual life of a person will not differ from the existence of any other living creature. From the very beginning God separated man from beast by breathing the soul into him. Why then, on growing up and gaining in wisdom, do we not seek to gratify our curiosity, which in childhood made us forget about food and sleep? Why do we not tread in the path of those who seek knowledge?There are more than two thousand million people living on earth now, they say. We, Kazakhs, number more than two million. The Kazakhs are unlike any other people in their desire for wealth and in their quest for knowledge, in their appreciation of art, in showing their friendliness and strength, and in boasting or enmity. We fight with each other, we ruin each other and spy on each other before our neighbor has time to blink. The world has cities with a population above three million. There are people who have traveled three times round the world. Shall we, indeed, continue to live like this, lying in wait for one another, remaining the meanest people on earth? Or shall we see happier days when people forget theft, deception, backbiting and enmity, and turn their minds to knowledge and crafts, when they learn to obtain their wealth in honest ways? I doubt if such days will ever come. Nowadays, two hundred people hanker after a hundred head of livestock.

Anyone who plans on teaching and reforming the Kazakh must possess two advantages. First of all, he must wield great power and immense influence that would enable him to inspire fear in adults and take away their sons to send them to school, where they would be guided along different paths of knowledge, with the parents shouldering the expenses. It would suffice if girls were taught Islam so as to make at least strong in their religion. In that case, when parents, growing feeble with age, abandoned their regular pursuits, the younger generation would embark on the right path. Second, he must possess enormous riches, so as to bribe parents into sending their children to school, as we have just said. Yet no one has sufficient power to inspire fear amongst the people of today. And no one has enough wealth to win over all parents. It is impossible to persuade the Kazakh, convince him of something, unless you frighten or bribe him. The ignorance inherited from his forefathers and imbibed with his mother’s milk has reached his marrow and killed all humanity in him. Such people, when they get together, can think of nothing better to do than make strange grimaces and behave affectedly, whisper and throw out ambiguous hints. Even if they try to think, they are incapable of concentrating on one idea. If you talk to them, they can’t even listen to you attentively; their eyes glance here and their thoughts wander off. However shall we live? What will become of us? Word Forty-One.

Writings Abai devoted many of his works to the violence of Kazakh labour rights e. g. «Oh my Kazakh! My poor people!». Number of works were devoted to youth: «Our children», «Only youth — happy flower of life». And a real treasure is his poems expressing his feelings and love to the nature of his land: «Autumn», «Winter“ , “Fall” and etc. As a gifted interpreter Abai gave Kazakh people to enjoy the pearls of russian classic literature. During 15 years he translated more th a n 50 works of russian writers like Pushkin, Lermontov, Krylov etc. Abai’s literary legacy also includes a number of ballads dedicated to eastern and western themes. Among these fictional pieces like «Mas’ud» (1887) and «Alexander, «

Kunanbaev’s works were influenced by his belief in human reason. He was attracted to Western Enlightenment thinking and wove criticism of Kazakh culture into his works, most notably in his collection of poems called Qarasozder (often translated as the Book of Words). Despite the fact that many years have passed, several generations have changed since Abai times, “Book of Words” is actual today as never before, it is our reference point in life. This book includes different topics – Kazakhstan history, love for fatherland, culture, people’s psychology and philosophy of life.

In his amazing Book of Words the poet expressed his reflections over a period of years, his searching and discoveries, anxiety and despair, sorrows and joy of revelations, anger and humility. His Book of Words is a deeply meaningful way to truth. The poet tirelessly reminds that humans have the greatest value in the world, and that they should be beautiful and harmoniously perfect. Their souls should also be beautiful, as should their mind, body and feelings. Understanding of the real world and the personal responsibility of everyone in the world – this is what the great poet worked for his art and life. Abai explains that the world is eternal, united and harmonious. Discord, anguish, even death cannot destroy the harmony, for they are natural.

Nine years passed before Abay wrote forty-five “Words-talks”, and expressed in them innermost thoughts, aspirations, mournful complaints indifferent to the poet’s voice contemporaries. “Life is lived – I argued, fought, judged, having only troubles and exhausted on them, tired and convinced in aimlessness of everything done”.

Thinker Abai for almost two centuries is admired by different generations of people with the depth of his thoughts and the brightness of the language. Today Abai's works inspire Kazakhstanis to serve their Fatherland, support the desire for education, knowledge, and the development of nations through culture.