Krastyo Hadzhiivanov

Krastyo Hadzhiivanov (December 25, 1929-June 27, 1952) was a Bulgarian poet and resistance fighter.

Early life

Hadzhiivanov was born in Kapatovo, in the Petrich district of Bulgaria. He began composing poetry when he was six years old.

During World War II, at age of 14, he joined the resistance against the Nazis. Hadzhiivanov was involved in smuggling weapons to guerillas who had been abandoned at the Metaxas Line in Greek Macedonia, a task which involved navigating a dangerous route through mine fields and around Nazi check points. Meanwhile, the young teenager recited poetry at meetings with villagers all over the Seres region.

After Bulgaria's successful coup on 9 September, 1944, the new communist government offered to send Hadzhiivanov to study literature in Moscow. He refused, with the words, “Moscow is too close to Siberia” (referring to Stalin’s Gulags). Romantic and idealist, he reflected his beliefs in poetry.

Local communist authorities perceived Hadzhiivanov as a threat, and he was persecuted for his democratic and humanistic beliefs.He was mistreated during his studies at secondary school. Later was sent to the uranium mines at Seslavci village, where he was mistreated and beaten. During a strike in the mine, a friend of his was brutally killed.

Hadzhiivanov succeeded in escaping from the mines and fled to the Pirin Mountains, aiming to illegally cross the “Iron Curtain” and escape to Greece. He was killed in an ambush at the border on June 27, 1952, at the age of 22. Bulgarian State Security, at the time, stated that he was presumed to be a Greek diversionist. His body was thrown in the swamps around the Struma River.

Legacy

Hadzhiivanov's poetry is still frequently quoted during local feasts and community meetings in southwestern Bulgaria. Each year, on June 27, local people and admirers of his poetry meet at the modest monument which was built at the place of his murder.

First time his poetry is published officially in “verse and poetry” with the support of Czecho-Slovak activists of velvet revolution in 1990. In 2003 with the support of Slovak government was published in Slovakian language “Fiery Love of Freedom (Plamene lásky k slobode)”. In Bulgaria have been published “Edelweiss on Cross” (Еделвайс на кръста) 1996, “Revived Songs” (Възкръснали песни) 1998, “Unheard Songs” (Нечути песни) 1999, “Eagle’s Songs of Freedom” (Орлови песни за свободата) 2006, “Thoughts Under the Stars” (Подзвездни мисли) 2007. Both foundations – “Spartacus” and “Evenings of poetry in Melnik” had arranged a regular annual international award named after Krastyo Hadzhiivanov, since 2006. In literature collection “Zornitsa” 1999, and in the poetry anthology “Vechermitsa” 2000, Krastyo is named among the 25 greatest Bulgarian poets. In the article of Literature Week Observer (Literárny týždenník), for Czech and Slovak Republics, 25 August 2004, Krastyo is named among the greatest literature authors and thinkers of the Twentieth Century.His poetry reflects the humanistic and freedom promoting traditions of the land of Orpheus, Spartacus, The Saint brothers Cyril and Methodius, Bulgarian poets and freedom fighters Paisii of Hilendar, Hristo Botev, Vasil Levski, Gotse Delchev. His destiny have been predicted by famous Baba Vanga. Krastyo believes in freedom and democracy and in his poetry proclaim the collapse of “every evil”, slavery and dictatorship, including those of Hitler and Stalin. Even as a child he wrote about his belief in “For the People” (За народа) 1940, in the satire “The Victory of Hitler” (Победата на Хитлер) 01.09.1944, as well as in his later “The Mad” (Безумецът) 1948, “Money and Power” (Пари и власт) 1949, “Siberia” (Сибир) 10.01.1950, “We Do Not Want Slavery, Neither War” (Не искаме ни робство ни война), “The Killers” (Убийците), “Against Slavery” (Против робството). In his “Vision at the Grave” (Надгробно видение) also in his “Pirin Legends” (Пирински легенди), he had predicted and foreseen his destiny and death. In his last poem “A Song About Man and Life” (Песен за човека и живота), completed hours before his death, Krastyo convinces the mankind and predicts the victorious strength of “deep trust in Good”, “human wisdom of the thoughts”, “human brotherhood” and high morality and humanism of mankind. His short 22 years life had plenty of heavy manual labour, mental and emotional load been and extreme conditions of political terror. That is the reason to write a sentence after the last line of his verses: “All has been written in a hurry and there are weakness and not corrected mistakes!” But that did not prevent his poetry to be classified as genial by some modern literature critics. No wonder, that his dreams about better human society comply with much later motto of the modern Euro Atlantic Community:

“Without any borders, New World of Love, Justice and Freedom, we will create.” (1949).

“We will demolish the prisons and the war,The Law of human tears will stop,The banners of mourning pressing human breastsWe will pull down!And thus a life for everyone on Earth,With happiness of met dreams,And no homeless souls of those who within the realm of beauty!We will save the nature and the sea,We will be bringing back the youth, We will conquer the stars and sky,We will even touch the eternity!” (26.06.1952)

Inspired in such a way, but balanced and calm, because of light and his trust in the victory of humanity, good and progress, Krastyo met “straight in the eyes”, “the pitiful death”, ordered by the tyrants of Stalinist dictatorship on June 27, 1952.

That is why democratic presidents of post-communist countries like Vaclav Havel (Czecho-Slovakia), Zhelyu Zhelev (Bulgaria) as well as vice-president T. Kavaldzhiev and B. Dimitrova (Bulgaria), professors, critics, poets and journalists like G. Tsankov, Kudlicka, Koska, E. Evtimov, B. Bladikov, Drastich and many others write about high standards by any mean of Krastyo’s poetry and about his morality and ideas: “coming from the future”, “the prophet of humanity”, “survived the time of wars, tyranny and his murderers”, “spiritual giant”, and have written “poetry, more explosive, than the dynamite”, and essence of “poetic philosophy of human dignity”.People from his region still remember his unique modesty and unique sport achievements (jump “above 10 m length”, “over 2 m high”, running “faster than the wind”) as well as the risks related for keeping and preserving his poetry during communist dictatorship in Bulgaria.Affiliated to Krastyo’s poetry and his ideas in Czeho-Slovakia are dissidents, and later some of them prime ministers, ministers, notable public figures as: Yan Chernogursky, M. Knyazhko, F. Gal, Vl. Mechiar, also the Hungarian vice premier Pal Chaki. And prof. Balgavi even at 1989 noticed in Krastyo’s poetry the ideology of the bloodless “Velvet Revolution” and pointed at the similarities of its claims to those in the poetry, like in works as “We Do Not Want Slavery, Neither War”, “Siberia”, “The Mad”, “That’s What Freedom Should Be”, “Against Slavery” etc.We have to name also the people’s artist academic Mikulash Klimchak, the sculptor E. Venkov, people’s artists Eva Kristinova, Bozhidara Tursunova, the prisoner from the concentration camp in Akimovo – Anton Sraholec, d-r D. Dimov, eng. Ivan Todorov and many other poets, journalists etc.Krastyo’s poetry was written before 1950 and hidden by his friends from communist State Security services, later his poetry is sent abroad, where it was published. There had been opened a small memorial at the place of Krastyo’s death in 1999 under auspices of Bulgarian vice-president Mr. Todor Kavaldzhiev. There took place a celebration of the 70th jubilee of the poet. For the 80th jubilee in 2009 there has been established an Initiative Committee under chairmanship of Mr. Evtim Evtimov – a Bulgarian poet and country fellow of Krastyo.