My noble, dear brother,
let me begin my song saying
(in the name of God)
you were alive just yesterday!
How can I send you away without singing a lament? ...
Oh, my noble, dear brother,
you left your daughters in sorrow.
Oh, dear world,
now, is there anybody in my village
who will be equal to you,
who will listen to my words
my dear brother?
Oh, my dear brother,
human beings are weak before
God’s power....

  --A Kirghiz lament, as translated on CD notes "Music of the World," Paris. If you know the source, could you please send it? Thanks to Thomas E. Jenkins of Trinity University.