A wise crack knows exactly when to use itself
December 17, 2015 1 Comment
कहते हैं बड़ा ग़म है
हम में भी बड़ा दम है
था खौफ कहानी में
पर रूबरू बेदम है
हाथों में सुलेमानी
और रूह में ज़म ज़म है
हम दीखते हैं तनहा
ये इश्क़ तो पाहम है
हर ज़ख्म हरा हो ले
हर अश्क़ में मरहम है
गर छत नहीं तो क्या है
सर साया-इ-मरियम है
निकले हैं बाँध सर पे कफ़न
अब कई दीवाने
होना है जो हो जाए
ये जूनून फ़राहम है
हम में भी बड़ा दम है
January 20, 2012 6 Comments
Here is a ghazal by Makhdoom Mohiuddin and beautifully rendered by Chaya Ganguly.
What follows is my feeble attempt at a literal translation (hoping that I don’t add my interpretation to it)
Aap ki yaad aatee rahee raat bhar
Chashm-e-nam muskaratee rahee raat bhar
The night was haunted by your memories
And my teary eyes smiled all night long
Raat bhar dard ki shamma jaltee rahee
Gham ki lau thartharatee rahee raat bhar
The candles of pain kept the night awake
And the flames of sadness kept flickering all night long
Bansuri ki surilee suhanee sada
Yaad ban ban kay aatee rahi raat bhar
Ah, the sweet soulful yearning of the flute
Kept tugging at my memories all night long
Yaad kay chaand dil mein utartay rahay
Chandni jagmagatee rahi raat bhar
As the moons of a memory would set in my heart
The moonlight kept shining like a beacon all night long
Koee deevana galiyon mein phirta raha
Koee aawaz aati rahi raat bhar
A forelorn lover kept wandering the streets
And a voice could well be heard all night long
*************************************************************
When Makdhoom died, Faiz wrote the following lines in his memory (“Makhdoom ki yaad mein”–Faiz Ahmed Faiz)
“Aap ki yaad aati rahi raat bhar”
chaandni dil dukhaati rahi raat bhar
The night was haunted by your memories
And the moonlights made my heart bleed all night long
gaah jalti hui, gaah bujhti hui
shamm-e-gham jhilmilaati rahi raat bhar
Restlessly, it flickered at times, at times it didn’t
The flame of sadness kept shining all night long
koi khushboo badalti rahi pairahan
koi tasveer gaati rahi raat bhar
A fragrance kept changing its body all night
And a portrait kept singing all night long
phir sabaa saaya-e-shaakh-e-gul ke talay
koi qissa sunaati rahi raat bhar
And again, in the shades of blossomed tree
A gentle breeze narrated some tales all night long
jo na aaya use koi zanjeer-e-dar
har sadaa par bulaati rahi raat bhar
The chains of the courtyard, with every call,
Sought him, who did not turn up, all night long
eik ummeed se dil behalta raha
ik tamanna sataati rahi raat bhar
A hope kept my heart at bay
And a desire kept burning within all night long
(Faiz–Sept 1978, Moscow)
April 20, 2011 Leave a comment
मेरा माजी मेरे चेहरे पे छुपा बैठा है
झुर्रियों से भरी ये शाम बड़ी बोझिल है
میرا ماضی میرے چہرے پی چھپا بیٹھا ہے
جھرریوں سے بھری یہ شام بدی بوجھل ہے
Recently blogged on analytics
