Mikha'il Na'ima
Encyclopedia
Mikha'il Na'ima (b.1889 in Mount Sannine
in modern day Lebanon
, d. 1988) was a Lebanese author and poet
of the New York Pen League.
school, studied at the Russian Teachers' Institute in Nazareth
and the Theological Seminary
in Poltava
, Ukraine. He moved to the United States where he received degrees in Law and Liberal Arts at the University of Washington
and began his writing career in Walla Walla, Washington
in 1919.
After graduation he moved to New York, where along with Khalil Gibran
and eight other writers he formed a movement for the rebirth of Arabic literature, the New York Pen League. He was the Vice President and Khalil Gibran
was President. In 1932, having lived in the States for 21 years, he returned to Baskinta, where he lived for the rest of his life. He died of pneumonia at the age of 98 on March 1, 1988 in East Beirut
.
He wrote 99 books, including drama, essays, poetry, criticism, short stories and biography.
The mystic Osho had this to say about The Book of Mirdad
: "There are millions of books in the world, but The Book of Mirdad stands out far above any book in existence." The book is a parable about a monastery that stood where Noah's ark came to rest after the flood subsided. It describes the very nature of human existence and Man's relation to the God within. It is told through the eyes of the monks as their lives change when a mystical stranger, Mirdad, enters the monastery. Osho says, "It is a small book, but the man who gave birth to this book - and mind my words, I am not saying 'the man who wrote this book', nobody wrote this book - was an unknown, a nobody. And because he was not a novelist, he never wrote again; just that single book contains his whole experience. The name of the man was Mikhail Naimy."
"The whisper of the Eyelids" is Naimy's only book that's a collection of meditative poems written in both languages arabic and english. The fresh style of poetry that Naimy introduced in this book to the Arabic reader became later an influence on modern Arabic poetry and/or poets.
Between the years 1959 and 1960 Naimy published his own biography in three parts under the name "Seventy" referring to the average age a human being would live. Naimy however lived up until he was 99 years old.
Mr. Naimy was a biographer and longtime associate of Khalil Gibran
, the Lebanese writer, artist, poet, and philosopher and he penned the first biography about him (first published in Arabic) in 1934. The biography was later translated into English and reprinted in 1950.
He was fluent in three languages: English, Russian and Arabic.
database, March 2008)
Mount Sannine
Mount Sannine is a mountain in the Mount Lebanon range. Its highest point is 2,628 m above sea level in Lebanon. Mount Sannine, which has a base of limestone, is the source of many mountain springs.- External links :*...
in modern day Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, d. 1988) was a Lebanese author and poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
of the New York Pen League.
Biography
Na'ima completed his secondary education in the BaskintaBaskinta
Baskinta is a Lebanese village situated at an altitude of 1300 meters above sea level. It is renowned for its natural beauty and moderate climate. It is the birth place of Mikhail Naime....
school, studied at the Russian Teachers' Institute in Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...
and the Theological Seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
, Ukraine. He moved to the United States where he received degrees in Law and Liberal Arts at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
and began his writing career in Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...
in 1919.
After graduation he moved to New York, where along with Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...
and eight other writers he formed a movement for the rebirth of Arabic literature, the New York Pen League. He was the Vice President and Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...
was President. In 1932, having lived in the States for 21 years, he returned to Baskinta, where he lived for the rest of his life. He died of pneumonia at the age of 98 on March 1, 1988 in East Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
.
He wrote 99 books, including drama, essays, poetry, criticism, short stories and biography.
Literary output
Among his best known books is the Book of Mirdad, a mystical text first published in Lebanon in 1948, which was translated into English and published in London in 1962.[incorrect - first written in English then translated into Arabic]The mystic Osho had this to say about The Book of Mirdad
The Book of Mirdad
The Book of Mirdad is a mystical parable written by the Lebanese author and mystic Mikha'il Na'ima. It consists of 37 chapters, which oftent describe Na'ima's view of the world. It draws on a variety of philosophies, including that of Leo Tolstoy and Sufi Islam...
: "There are millions of books in the world, but The Book of Mirdad stands out far above any book in existence." The book is a parable about a monastery that stood where Noah's ark came to rest after the flood subsided. It describes the very nature of human existence and Man's relation to the God within. It is told through the eyes of the monks as their lives change when a mystical stranger, Mirdad, enters the monastery. Osho says, "It is a small book, but the man who gave birth to this book - and mind my words, I am not saying 'the man who wrote this book', nobody wrote this book - was an unknown, a nobody. And because he was not a novelist, he never wrote again; just that single book contains his whole experience. The name of the man was Mikhail Naimy."
"The whisper of the Eyelids" is Naimy's only book that's a collection of meditative poems written in both languages arabic and english. The fresh style of poetry that Naimy introduced in this book to the Arabic reader became later an influence on modern Arabic poetry and/or poets.
Between the years 1959 and 1960 Naimy published his own biography in three parts under the name "Seventy" referring to the average age a human being would live. Naimy however lived up until he was 99 years old.
Mr. Naimy was a biographer and longtime associate of Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran
Khalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...
, the Lebanese writer, artist, poet, and philosopher and he penned the first biography about him (first published in Arabic) in 1934. The biography was later translated into English and reprinted in 1950.
He was fluent in three languages: English, Russian and Arabic.
Selected works
- A'hadith ma al Sihafah أحاديث مع الصحافة
- A'kabar أكابر
- Ab'ad Min Moscow.. ابعد من موسكو و من واشنطن
- Aba' wa al Bnun الآباء والبنون
- Abu Bata أبو بطة
- Al 'Authan الأوثان
- Al Bayader البيادر
- Al Ghirbal الغربال
- Al Marahel المراحل
- Al Nur wa al Dijur النور و الديجور
- Al Youm al 'Akheer اليوم الأخير
- Ayoub ايوب
- Book of Mirdad رداد
- Doroob دروب
- Fi Maheb Al Rih في مهب الريح
- Gibran Khalil Gibran جبران خليل جبران
- Hams Al Jufon همس الجفون
- Hawamish هوامش
- Kan Ma Kan كان ما كان
- Karem Ala Dareb كرم على درب
- Liqae لقاء
- Ma Qall wa Dall
- Min wahi Al Massih من وحي المسيح
- Muzkrat Al Arqash (1949; Memoirs of a Vagrant Soul: Or, The Pitted Face, 1952) مذكرات الأرقش
- Najwa Al Ghuroub نجوى الغروب
- Sab'aoon (Seventy) سبعون
- Sawat al 'Alam صوت العالم
- Wamadat ومضات
- Ya Ibn Adam يا ابن آدم
- Zaad al M'aad
Quotes From The Book Of Mirdad
- "Often you shall think your road impassable, sombre and companionless. Have will and plod along; and round each curve you shall find a new companion."
- "Logic is immaturity weaving its nets of gossamer wherewith it aims to catch the behemoth of knowledge. Logic is a crutch for the cripple, but a burden for the swift of foot and a greater burden still for the wise."
- "So think as if your every thought were to be etched in fire upon the sky for all and everything to see. For so, in truth, it is."
- "Ask not of things to shed their veils. Unveil yourselves, and things will be unveiled."
- "The more elaborate his labyrinths, the further from the Sun his face."
- "How much more infinite a sea is man? Be not so childish as to measure him from head to foot and think you have found his borders."
- "Love is the law of God. You live that you may learn to love. You love that you may learn to live. No other lesson is required of Man"
Critical essays on Na'ima
(from the MLAModern Language Association
The Modern Language Association of America is the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature...
database, March 2008)
- Abbe, Susan. "Word Length Distribution in Arabic Letters." Journal of Quantitative Linguistics 2000 Aug; 7 (2): 121-27.
- Bell, Gregory J. TheosophyTheosophyTheosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
, RomanticismRomanticismRomanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
and Love in the Poetry of Mikhail Naimy. Dissertation Abstracts International, Section A: The Humanities and Social Sciences, 2002 May; 62 (11): 3804. U of Pennsylvania, 2001. - Poeti arabi a New York. Il circolo di Gibran, introduzione e traduzione di F. Medici, prefazione di A. Salem, Palomar, Bari 2009.
- Boullata, Issa J. "Mikhail Naimy: Poet of Meditative Vision." Journal of Arabic Literature 1993 July; 24 (2): 173-84.
- El-Barouki, Foazi. "How Arab Émigré Writers in America Kept Their Cultural Roots." Dialog on Language Instruction 1997; 12 (1-2): 31-36.
- Najjar, Nada. "Mikhael Naimy (1889-1988)." Aljadid: A Review & Record of Arab Culture and Arts 2000 Summer; 6 (32): 27.
- Nijland, Cornelis. "Religious Motifs and Themes in North American Mahjar Poetry." Representations of the Divine in Arabic Poetry. Ed. Gert Borg and Ed De Moor. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Rodopi; 2001. pp. 161–81
See also
- List of Arab American writers
- Lebanon#Arts and literature
- New York Pen League