Tukai — a gift given to us by God, it is — a clear mirror of ourselves. His spiritual heritage left to us is not limited by any boundaries. His measure — eternity.
Together with the national feeling he had a very big talent. All his short life he served his people using this talent. Everyday of his life he dedicated to his people, living it’s not easy destiny as his own. «Love life, love the people, love it as it is.» This is the motto of his life.
Each poem of the poet is filled with national feeling and spirit. His body and soul are deeply affected by feeling of fate and history of his people. Reading his works, seems as we are plunging into our history, describing together with him the fate of the people.
This is clearly seen in his poem «The National melodies.» This «one», he mentioned about — his friend, room neighbor in «Bulgar» hotel poet Sagit Ramiev — sings, and in the mind of Tukai the hoary history is arising.
The song depicts in his soul a contrast picture between our great period, and «unhappy» three hundred years in the abyss of slavery. The Agidel river and Bulgar city connected with the world by caravan tracks, handicraft trades, aqueducts arise in his mind. Friend’s song awakened in him a longing for his people’s past.
As if his own soul, full of national feeling, gives birth to this song. He sings with a singer, as if confirming with tears the history of the people, together with the singer, «he tells us everything, that the Tatar soul had to live with.»
Indeed, he always knew what the Tatar soul feels, showed people their past and present, in which they live, passing through his heart and mind. He was indeed, as he stated himself, not only a poet, but also a politician, public figure. These qualities of the poet can be seen in many of his works.
We get used to see his «Shurale» only as an adventure of the village guy Byltyr and wood spirit. But here the poet reflected his eyes on the people’s past, to which many did not pay attention. The poet mentioned the army of Genghis Khan, not just as a comparison with the countless trees in the forest, before his eyes appear feats, the ancient grandfathers’ states, as if the history lifts the veil, evoking a sense of regret: «You will say: Oh, why we are so? We’re also the children of the truth! «
Why we are so powerless? Where are those states, where is that glory? None of them exists anymore, «they died off, as if they did not existed and without a trace,» — he wrote (People’s Literature, Volume 2, page 262). Yes, we are not worse than the others. Where are those states, where is that glory? Nothing exists anymore. This is made the poet sad. In one of his works there are the following lines: «Oh, people, when will your spring come? Will the night be gone, awaken us from the sleep? Or came when I went to my grave, just when I be will standing before the trial on the Day of Judgment? «
Tukai worried about the unhappy, slave state of his nation, wants us to wake up as soon as possible. He was burning with the desire to return to our grandeur. In lines: «Oh, people, when will your spring come? Will the night be gone, awaken us from the sleep? Or came when I went down to my grave, just when i will stand before the trial on the Day of Judgment? “ he worried about the slow awakening of his people, and especially — the youth. «People are weak, it stumbles, goes, extinguishes the spark of the youth, still can’t light.» (2. 83).
The poet had great expectations for the revolution 1905. «We woke up one day in the fifth year at the dawn.» At the same time, these his words — hopes for the Tatar people’s forward breakthrough at the border of IXX-XX centuries. Indeed, in those years thousands of copies of books in Tatar language were printed, more than thirty newspapers and magazines, dozens of talented Tatar writers and journalists were appeared, theatrical and musical arts as well. National pride is waking up, the people, according to one newspaper, rises up from the grave and shaking off the soil, proudly stands in the arena of history. The nation no longer stumbles, unquenchable interest wakes up in the youth. Tatar, as Tukai wrote was not dead, not asleep, he just a little lost consciousness. It started in 1552 and, according to the words of Gabdelbari Battal, starts to go out from the Russian hell, oppression. The national feelings are covered the Tatar people.
At the time of these changes, the interest in their past had awakened in the people. As students of Izh-Bubi said, it is time to «open the past and the present, without hiding anything.» It was started by Shigab Marjani. And such historians as Hadi Atlasi, Gaynutdin Ahmarov, Gaziz Gubaidullin continue the studying. Their works evoked national pride of our people.
Tukai observes the activities of historians. Especially he respected Shigab Marjani. Tukai also explores the history, but unlike of the professional historians, describes the past through his works. «In the past”, — he says — no gun fired, nor spears plunged.» So he compares it with a stainless steel mirror, sees it as the source of awakening historical memory of the people.
Also, the poet describes our history through music and songs, which is a jewel of folk art. He is in love with them. Listening to them, «a shiver runs through the body,» he says, and urged «not to lose gold» of our songs. In the childhood, when at the edge of the wood Saifutdin and Gaynutdin were grazing horses, «their songs around the campfire and sad notes coming from their melodic soul, impressed my heart, these singings were intertwining in the most delicate chords of my soul» — the poet wrote.
» I was a singer since my childhood. Wherever I had heard a song, I could not listen to it with a calm soul. «Because from an early age I loved songs and they lived in my soul, the love to mother tongue was born in me. Long live folk art, long live native language! «. It is evident that through the songs the love for the mother tongue was risen. In the first place Tukai put the cultivation this love to the young generation with the help of folk melodies. He paid special attention to the childhood period of man, acted with understanding that one became the real Tartar from birth. In the poems dedicated to the children, song, melody, mother tongue are arranged in one line.
In the work of Tukai not accidentally lullabies have a special place. The song, its melody, language — mate of Tatar man. «First, in this language, rocking cradle, mother sang, and then — grandmother tried to calm me by fairy tale.» Through the songs mother opens for the child his native language, given to him by God. Grandmother by fascinating tales consolidates it in the boy’s soul, strengthens it in perfect form. In «Lullaby» these words were written: «I will sing Lullaby, will tell my tale, will tell wishes, will show the doors to the happiness.» It described the mother’s intention to pray best wishes for her son through the song and the language.
In the poem of Tukai «Mother’s Prayer» it has the most beautiful reflection. Night, it is quite everywhere, village fell asleep, even the dogs don’t bark. In the sky the moon is swimming out and illuminates the earth by its light. Only in one house the lights are still on. This is the mother prays God for her son’s happiness. «My God!» — She says, — «Let be happiness for my favorite native son!» And crying. «Look — the poet says, — if this pray will not reach God?»
First of all he is convinced of the fact that a child coming to this world must be faithful, compassionate and hard-working. Speaking to his child, he says: «Oh, child work! Know that God give the day for work; night for sleep after the working hard and being tired! «and urges to take an example from the sun. He tells us how it gets up early in the morning, gives us the dawn, swims all day across the sky, lighting the Earth, and being tired it leaves for the mountain. By the words «Take an example from the sun, be diligent as it is. You can shine like a sun, and the way of life can become lighter, «he urges the reader to a bright future. The name of the poem is amazingly colorful and absorbing «Having finished work, you can play» urges to put in the soul of a child respect for the work. In dozens of his works for children, in the first place he puts the absorption of national feeling, love for the people. In particular, for this purpose he uses folk songs and folk art.
He is in love with Tatar melodies, not only because they are «woven into the most delicate chords of the soul», but also because they keep their native language. «It was said many times that folk melodies need special attention. What for is it? The reason is that the real native language and spirit of the folk can be found only in the folk melodies. And where else are they? Nowhere else.
«Do you want to understand the soul of the folk?
To excite delicate chords of the soul?
Better you play sad motives
And don’t dare to play fun.» Volume 2, p. 38.
Of course, this does not mean that in life should not be a place for joy and fun. Tukai gave them an important place in his work as well. But the poet gave preference for melodies which can touch the soul of the people, delicate chords of its soul. For the poet they were the way of strengthening the national spirit. As if Tukai had the gift of penetrating into the melody, ability to understand its magical power.
Tukai also paid attention to the continuous enrichment of folk art. He gives examples from those which he had heard by himself, but also points to the fact that in the people there are those who writes songs by themselves.
Not by accident his story «People’s Literature” the poet finished by the poem «Native language». It is no coincidence that poem became our national hymn.
In the «Notebook of songs» Tukai collected 28 songs. I don’t doubt that, if he had not collected this jewel of folk art in one notebook, many of them would be forgotten. There is a variety of songs! They all keep the history of the people. These are «The high cedar,» «Chain of match, «Singer Fakhri!» All of them — the national wealth.
This huge work he started in the Uralsky city and continued throughout life. In a note, dedicated to one of the literary and musical evenings in this town, such songs as «Tafkilev», «Allyuki», «Waters of Sakmara» he describes with the words: «born in the hearts of our ancestors», «inhaling, like the wind, more new national feelings into the souls of being born and those who will be born. » Volume 3, p. 107.
«The poetic meter in Tatar works is probably very beautiful. One Tatar poem can be put on a great number of melodies and the same melodies can be put even on verses of Russian poets «- he writes. This is, of course, an allusion to the fact that the Tatar melodies are reflected in the Russian songs. No one likes to write about it. How in the songs of the great Russian people the Tatar motives can be seen? It seemed it is impossible.
But the outstanding Russian ethnographer, deceased Evgeny Prokopevich Busygin did not hesitate to talk about it. He emphasized the fact that many of Russian songs are inspired by Tatar melody. There were also those who wrote about the presence of the Tatar songs’ elements in the songs of Chalyapin.