Mo(u)rning Couplet

Bahut gumaa tha mujhe apne khuda hone ka
Aaj tehreer-e-ashq mein khuda nihaan paaya

Baad jannat bhi koi duniya hua karti hai
Aaj jaana jab utha sar se khuda ka saaya

बहोत गुमां था मुझे अपने खुदा होने का
आज तहरीर-ए-अश्क में खुदा निहां पाया

बाद जन्नत भी कोई दुनिया हुआ करती है
आज जाना जब उठा सिर से खुदा का साया..

Woh Jiski Deed Mein – Faiz by Abida

Have been meaning to write out this beautiful ghazal – Wo jiski deed mein…Again,a FAIZ-ABIDA combination… companion for a quiet evening.. Here is a feeble attempt at translating it – (with special thanks to DigDownDeep

Woh jiski deed mein laakhoun masarratein pinhaaan
Woh husn jiski tamanna mein jannat pinhaan

Just for a look at her, I have lost a million joys
And its the desire of her beauty, that I let go of my Prophet

Hazaar fitney tah-e-paa-e-naaz khaak-e-nasheen
Har eik nigaah khumar-e-shabaab se rangeen

Shabaab jis se takhaiyul pe bijliyaan barsein
Waqaar jiski rafaqat ko shokhiyaan tarsey

A thousand temptations rise and fall, with every delicate footprint of hers
In every eye, the colored dreams of her youthful beauty lie

The mere thought of her youth, strikes me from the heavens above
Yet my innocent mischievousness seeks the solemnity of her companionship

Ada-e-laghzisheiy paa par qyamatein qurbaan
Bayaz-e-rukh pey sahar ki sabahatein qurbaan

Siyaah zulfoun mein badaaon sa nikhatoun ka hujoom
Taweel raatoun ki khwabeedah raahatoun ka hujoom

In the delicacy of those misplaced feet, I can sacrifice eternities
To read a leaf, off the book of her face, I can let go of the morning wine

From her dark tresses, the intoxicating fragrance of wine lures,
Like the dreamy long nights and the promise of tranquility

Woh aankh jiski banao pe khaliq dey raae
Zabaan-e-shair ko tareef kartey sharmaae

Gudaaz jism qaba jispe sajke naaz karey
Daraaz qad jisey sarw-e-sahi namaz karey

The shape of her eyes is brooded over by the Almighty
And the poets finds themselves inadequate at praising her beauty

Whatever she wears is honored by the fall off her buxom body
Her tall personality is worshipped by the rich and the fakir

Kisi zamaney mein is rah-guzar sey guzraa thaa
Ba-sad guroor-o-tajammul idhar sey guzraa thaa

Aur ab ye raah guzar bhi hai dilfareb-o-haseen
Hai uski khaak mein kaif-e-sharab-e-sair makeen

There was a time, when I had cross these streets
And so full I was of pride and magnificence

But the times have changed, and these very streets allure me
As even your dust carries the exhilaration of wine and intoxication

Hawa mein shokhi-e-raftaar ki adaaein hain
Faza mein narmi-e-guftaar ki sadaen hain

Garaz vo husn is raah ka juzu-e-manzar hai
Niyaz-e-ishq kou eik sajda gaah maiyassar hai

The air is full of the coquettishness of youth and agility
The weather seems full of the warmth of a conversation

And the pursuit of her beauty is what the heart craves to witness
a mosque is never too far for a prayer of love


Some of the key words and their meanings –
Masarrat: Happiness, Joy; Pinhaan: Concealed, Hidden; Tah : Plait, fold, multiplicity, perplexity; Fitnaa: Sedition, Mischief, Quarrel, Revolt, Temptation, Wickedness; Naaz : coquetry, amorous playfulness; Shabaab: Juvenility, Youth ; takhaaiyul : imagination, fancy ; Waqaar : Solemnity ;rafāqat : companionship, society, friendship ; Shokhiyaan : Coquetry, Mischief, Restlessness; Laghzish: Blunder, Lapse, Mistake, Tottering ; Bayaaz: Album, Handbook, Notebook, Vade Mecum; Sahaba : Wine, Esp. Red Wine ; Rukh : Face, Cheek, Side ; Siyaah :Black, Dark ; Baadaa : Booze, Wine ; Nikhat: Fragrance; Hujoom: Assault, Attack, Crowd, Onset, Throng, Tumult ; Taweel: Extended, Lengthy, Long ; Raahat : Quiet, rest, repose, ease, tranquillity; Banaao : Appearance, form, shape, colour, Adornment; Khaliq : The Great Creator, the Originator ;Gudaaz: Well-Mixed, Well-endowed ;Daraaz : Long, tall; Qaba: Gown, Long Coat Like Garment ;Sarw : Affluent, Opulent, Rich, Wealthy; Sahi : A religious mendicant, a Mohammadan faqīr; Tajammul : Dignity, pomp, splendour, magnificence; guroor : pride, vanity, haughtiness; Ba-sad : by a hundred; Dil fareb : Alluring, Beautiful, Charming, Enticing; Sair : Walk, Excursion, Stroll; Makeen : Firmly fixed; well-established;–in a high station; Kaif: exhilaration, Happiness, Intoxication, Joy; Fiza ; Atmosphere, Environment; guftaar : discourse, conversation ; Raftaar: Going, motion, walk, gait, pace; Shokhi : Playfulness, fun, mischief; pertness, sauciness; coquetry, wantonness; Garaz: An object of aim or pursuit, or of desire; aim, end, object, design, view, purpose; Manzar: Aspect, Countenance, Landscape, Scene, Visage ; Niyaz : Petition, supplication, prayer; Mayassar: easy, feasible, practicable; favourable

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