India seems like a world in itself, not a country: Amir Or

Q. You have an abiding interest in the classics – Greek, Latin and Indian epics.
Greek literature inspired me to study ancient Greek and translate Greek poetry into Hebrew. Indian epics and religious poetry such as the Mahabharata and the Rigveda are fascinating. My interest in Indian poetry and philosophy goes a long way back. I lived in Pune for two years in the late seventies, breathing in the colour and life of Indian neighbourhoods. The images that seeped into my consciousness during my stay later found their way into my poetry. I used words like "ghat" and "ghar" in my poems that were alien to my readers in Israel. I also translated poems by modern Indian poets including Rabindranath Tagore and AK Ramanujan into Hebrew. To me, India seems like a world in itself, not a country.

Q: Was it a challenging experience to work on Stories from the Mahabharata?
Like all epics, The Mahabharata has an ethical backbone. It is rich with stories as well as philosophy and deep thought. It is a book that inspires you to be heroic and points out the right way to live. As a poet, I found the task of translating The Mahabharata great fun. It is written in metered prose and I used metered prose in Hebrew as well.

Q: You set up the Hebrew-Arabic Helicon Poetry School in 1993 to encourage Jewish and Arabic poets translate each other's work
To translate someone's writing, you have to hear that person's voice clearly. The Poetry School was a forum to help Jewish and Arabic writers to come together and start a dialogue. When they translate each other's poems, they start to see each other as complete human beings. It was a miracle that it took off, but unfortunately, we have had to shut it down due to lack of funds.

Q: Can art bring about real change and usher in peace to volatile areas like the Middle East?
The regime will not let art take the centre stage. There are many people on both sides who are invested in the conflict and will keep it going. Politicians have a tendency to do terrible things. Art is a kind of healing. It can function as a powerful reminder to all that love has the power to conquer hate.

Q: One of the charges levelled against modern poetry is that it is meant to be understood only by the chosen few. Any truth in this?
Poetry is one of the most ancient of verbal arts. It should not end up being a word puzzle constructed to befuddle readers. All art is essentially a dialogue at heart. You can write poetry of exquisite quality, but make sure that it is communicative. If a poet is not being communicative then she/he is betraying her art.

Q: What place does a contemplative art like poetry have in a world ruled by social media and 24 hour new cycles?
Poetry is concise and this precision works in its favour. You find several online sites and journals dedicated to poetry today and their numbers are growing. In a world where people are being turned into passive consumers of information, poetry is the last pocket of freedom. It helps you to think and feel for yourself. The capitalist system only wants to produce technicians. So state support for poetry and the humanities as a whole is dwindling. But if the state is not stepping up, people should train themselves to enjoy and understand poetry. It is the only vehicle of deliverance for those of us who want to be free.