Şahin Bal
As the title of the book suggests, Mehmet Hakkı Suçin, who has produced many translations in the past, has tried a different approach to translating the Holy Qur’an. When we look at the existing Turkish renderings (meal), we may see some differences in how their authors convey the meanings of words and concepts into Turkish, but it is striking that almost all of them are the same in style and method. The poetic quality of the Qur’an’s expressions – recited melodiously in Arabic on many occasions in our country – can be noticed even by those who do not know Arabic. On the whole, translators of the Qur’an have fallen short in conveying the poetic harmony of its expressions into Turkish.
In this work, prepared as a “Translation of the Juz’ ‘Amma”, Suçin has taken particular care to convey into our language the high poetic tempo and aesthetics of the suras revealed in the Meccan period. It can be said that Suçin, who is well versed in translation theory, is sensitive throughout his work to “equivalent effect”. Equivalent effect is the expectation that a word or structure in one language, when transferred into the target language, will produce a semantic effect similar to the one it has in its own language. To create this semantic effect in the target language, selectivity in expression and style is needed when finding equivalents for the words and phrases to be transferred. We can see this selectivity in Suçin’s work. That Suçin reflects this sensitivity to equivalent effect in his translations of the suras should be regarded as an important call to attention for those working on Qur’an translation. Besides all this, in translating Qur’anic expressions into Turkish, Suçin has in most places achieved a successful performance in equivalent effect through the Turkish equivalents he has chosen. For example, the style of his translation of the opening verses of Surat al-Takwir is quite different and successful:
Güneş karanlığa gömüldüğünde
Işıklarını yitirdiğinde yıldızlar
Hareket halinde olunca dağlar
Gözden düştüğünde
Binmeye kıyılamayan binekler
Toplandığında vahşi hayvanlar
Denizler fokur fokur kaynadığında
(…)
(al-Takwir, 81:1–6)
Another factor that sets the translation apart is that the names of the suras are rendered into Turkish in the book. The aesthetic felt when reading the translations of the suras is both appealing and encouraging for readers curious about the Qur’an.
Another new understanding stands out in Suçin’s work: the translation follows the unity of the sura rather than proceeding verse by verse. Although verse-by-verse or sentence-by-sentence translation, the established method of all classical renderings, is widespread, it carries serious shortcomings and risks. For the Qur’anic text took shape over a process, najm by najm – that is, theme by theme. Verse-by-verse translations scatter the holistic meaning and turn into a series of disconnected sentences. Because all works of exegesis and translation have been done in this way, the Qur’an cannot be internalised in a holistic sense, and weaknesses arise in forming a holistic reason and ethics in its readers. Qur’an translations made by this method open the door to the Qur’an being used more as a tool for proving ideas and for dialectics. In fact, this disease of “fragmentary” reading lies at the root of interpretations that are not merely different but diametrically opposed to one another. It is expected that Suçin’s abandonment of verse-by-verse translation in favour of a holistic approach will make a positive contribution to future work on understanding and explaining the Qur’an and will serve as a methodological source.
In conclusion, we can say that Şiir Şiir Ayetler (The Rhythm of Verses) has brought two new understandings to the field of Qur’an translation. The first is that the poetic quality of the Qur’an must also be taken into account in translations into Turkish. The second is the attention it draws to preserving thematic unity in translation. Şiir Şiir Ayetler is recommended to those seeking aesthetics and musicality in the Qur’anic text they read, and a new approach in method.
Şiir Şiir Ayetler – Amme Cüzü Çevirisi (The Rhythm of Verses – A Translation of the Juz’ ‘Amma),
Mehmet Hakkı Suçin, Opus Yayınları, Istanbul, 2015
Source: İtibar, no. 47, August 2015, p. 75. Translated from the Turkish for this site.