Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Ye arzoo thi tujhe --- Haider Ali 'Aatish'

Wonderfully sung by both Amanat Ali and Abida Parveen.





Ye arzoo thi tujhe gul ke rubaroo karte
Hum aur bulbul-e-betaab guftgoo karte


I wished that I could make you face a flower
And then try to talk to the flustered nightingale
[In Urdu poetry, Nightangle and Flower are considered lovers. The writer is saying that She's so beautiful that the nightingale will get confused between Her and the flower and that he'll then enjoy talking to the nightingale.]

*Payaambar na *mayassar hua to khoob hua,
Zaabaan-e-*gair se kya *sharh-e-arzoo karte


It's good if a messenger couldn't be afforded
How would I have conveyed my heart through a stranger

Humesha maine *girebaan ko chaak-chaak kiya,
Tamaam umra *rafookar rahe rafoo karte


I always got my collar torn (metaphor for public disgrace)
And the cloth-menders spent their lives mending it
[Meaning that I got myself in trouble constantly and my friends always tried to salvage the situation]

Meri tarah se *mah-o-*mehr bhi hein aawaara,
Kisi *habeeb ki ye bhi hein justjoo karte


The sun and the moon also loiterers like me.
They are also, like me, trying to find a lover
[The relative rotation of the sun and moon around the earth is compared to loitering]

Jo dekhte teri zanjeer-e-zulf ka aalam
*Aseer hone ki aazaad aarzoo karte


If only they witness the charm of being 'fettered' by Your tresses
The Free would wish to be captured

Na pooch *aalam-e-barghashta-taala'i 'Aatish'
Barasti aag jo *baaraan ki arzoo karte


Don't even ask about the ill fortune of "Aatish"
It rained fire when he wished for rain.
[I think there's wordplay in this couplet. Aatish, the writer's nom de plume means fire (a common metaphor for desires), so he's wishing for rain, meaning fulfilling his desires? But instead, the rain Gods rain fire, giving him more desires. We get reminded of Momin's:
Maanga karenge ab se dua hijr-e-yaar ki,
Aakhir ko dushmani hai asar ko dua ke saath

Henceforth I'll pray for separation from my love,
Prayer and dispensation are deep hostile after all
]

--- Haider Ali 'Aatish'

payaambar : messenger
mayassar : afforded
gair : stranger
sharh : describe
rafookar : one who mends torn clothes
mah : moon
mehr : sun
habeeb : lover
aseer : captives
aalam-e-barghashta-taala'i : caprice of ill fortune
baaraan : rain

7 comments:

Unknown said...

what a beautiful explanation of the ghazal --- thanks.

Anonymous said...

Indeed, excellent explanation. I cam upon this by searching for the meaning of this Ghazal in easy Urdu. Thanks !

Anonymous said...

Indeed, excellent explanation. I came upon this by searching for the meaning of this Ghazal in easy Urdu. Thanks !

Unknown said...

Thank you very much. You explained it beautifully

Ann H said...

Wonderful ghazal which I am appreciating fully due to your explanation. Listening to Ustad Amanat Ali sing it is joy beyond words.

Anonymous said...

I’m loving every single word of this poetry and excellent vocals by a legend

Anonymous said...

Commendable explanation. Thanks for adding the couplet in the end.