SAID’s 99 Psalms are poems of praise and lament, of questioning and wondering. In the tradition of the Hebrew psalmist, they find their voice in exile, in this case one that is both existential and geographical. His decision to include 99 in this collection recalls the ancient Muslim tradition that ascribes 99 names to Allah, though the “lord”whom this psalmist addresses is not bounded by this or any other religious tradition. As psalms that turn to the “lord” with a lover’s vulnerability, they avoid every trace of sentimentality. Rather, they seek to open us to the mystery of human life, warning us of the difficulties we face in our attempts to live peaceably together in the midst of our differences.
Product Preview
| Format: | Paperback book |
|---|---|
| Product code: | PP2942 |
| Dimensions: | 5" x 7½" |
| Length: | 144 pages |
| Publisher: |
Paraclete Press
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| ISBN: | 9781612612942 |
| 1-2 copies | $15.83 each |
|---|---|
| 3-9 copies | $15.11 each |
| 10-49 copies | $14.39 each |
| 50-99 copies | $14.03 each |
| 100+ copies | $13.49 each |
Praise
These are prayers for passionate seekers and confounded believers alike, Muslim, Jewish or Christian. Taut-lined cries to God evoke the Hebrew psalms, yet their voice is from our world – speaking fiercely to what our current world forces upon us: the pierced and anguished heart in exile, wrestling Jacob-like with God while taking human flesh seriously to call our religious clichés into account. I know of no other prayer collection that propels us to such intimacy with the absence and presence of God.
Names for God introduce the 99 Psalms by the Iranian poet SAID which Burrows has also translated from the German: “and I ask you to o lord/ reveal all your names to me/ even the last/ the hidden.” SAID writes as an exile, outside punctuation, and using capital letters only for his name, ambiguous about who the “lord” might be. He is a god “who belongs to us,” who is urged to pray to us, and also to accompany the poet beyond “prayers and precepts.” There are “psalms” for the wanderer and the stranger, seeking to resume “the conversation” with this mysterious “lord.”’
Author
SAID was born in Tehran, and immigrated as a seventeen-year-old student to Germany; since then, he has lived in Munich. A prominent figure in the German literary scene, he’s been honored with the coveted Goethe-Medal as well as the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize. His publications include eight volumes of poetry and five collections of essays, all in German, as well as children’s books and two memoirs. Mark Burrows has worked with SAID since the two met in Munich in 2009.
