ashaar – raat yuun dil mein

ash’aar
raat yuuN dil meN terii khoii huuii yaad aaii
jaise viraane meN chupke se bahaar aa jaae
jaise sahraaoN meN haule se chale baad-e-nasiim
jaise biimaar ko bevajah qaraar aa jaae

–Faiz Ahmed Faiz, with a hat tip to Mirza Ghalib:

un ke dekhe se jo aa jaatī hai muñh par raunaq
vo samajhte haiñ ki bīmār kā haal achchhā hai

By V.G. Kiernan
Poems By Faiz, p.49

Verses
Last night your faded memory so came into the heart
As spring comes in the wilderness quietly,
As the zephyr moves slowly in deserts
As rest comes without cause to a sick man

Last Night
Last night your faded memory filled my heart
Like spring’s calm advent in the wilderness,
Like the soft desert footfalls of the breeze,
Like peace somehow coming to one in sickness.

By Vikram Seth
Mappings, Pg 43
Last night your faded memory came to me
As in the wilderness spring comes quietly,
As, slowly, in the desert, moves the breeze,
As, to a sick man, without cause, comes peace.

By Daud Kamal
The Unicorn and the Dancing Girl, Pg 28
The Curve of Memory
Last night
When
I thought
Of you
All the deserts
Became
Fragrant
With zephyrs.
Spring
Was everywhere
And
My dying heart
Suddenly
Came back
To life.

By Shiv K. Kumar
Faiz Ahmed Faiz: Selected Poems, Pg 3
Quatrain
Last night a fugitive memory of you slid into my heart
as though a wilderness was quietly touched by springtide,
as though some breeze came soughing through a desert,
as someone sick, for no reason, felt reclaimed

By Agha Shahid Ali
Rebel’s Silhouette, Pg 3
Last Night
At night my lost memory of you returned

and I was like the empty field where springtime,
without being noticed, is bringing flowers;

I was like the desert over which
the breeze moves gently, with great care;

I was like the dying patient
who, for no reason, smiles.

guloN meN raNg bhare

gulo.n me.n rang bhare, baad-e-naubahaar chale
chale bhii aao ki gulshan kaa karobaar chale

qafas udaas hai yaaro, sabaa se kuchh to kaho
kahii.n to bahr-e-Khudaa aaj zikr-e-yaar chale

kabhii to subah tere kunj-e-lab se ho aaghaaz
kabhii to shab sar-e-kaakul se mushkbaar chale

ba.Daa hai dard kaa rishtaa, ye dil Gariib sahii
tumhaare naam pe aaye.nge Gam_gusaar chale

jo ham pe guzarii so guzarii magar shab-e-hijraa.N
hamaare ashk terii aaqabat sa.Nwaar chale

huzuur-e-yaar huii daftar-e-junuu.N kii talab
girah me.n leke garebaa.N kaa taar taar chale

maqaam ‘Faiz’ koii raah me.n jachaa hii nahii.n
jo kuu-e-yaar se nikale to suu-e-daar chale

A very hurried, rough draft by Sundeep Dougal – 1990s

The flowers are filled with colour, the fresh spring breeze blows
come on over as well so the garden may carry on with its affairs

The cage is sad, friends, say something at least to the gentle breeze
somewhere at least, for God’s sake, today let there be a mention of the beloved

Sometimes at least let the day begin with the corner of your lip
Sometimes at least let the night be fragrant with the ends of your tresses

The bond with pain is deep, though this heart is poor
They will come for the sake of your name, these departing comforters

What I endured is over but o, the night of separation
My tears leave you prepared for after-life

The account of my madness was called before the beloved
I take along tied in a knot the tattered shreds of my clothes

Faiz, I did not find any destination suitable on the way
When I left the street of the beloved, I proceeded towards the gallows

subah-e-Azadi

 
August, 1947

ye daG-daG ujaalaa, ye shab-gaziidaa sahar
wo intezaar tha jiskaa, ye wo sahar to nahii.n
ye wo sahar to nahii.n jiskii aarzoo lekar
chale the yaar ke: mil jayegi kahii.n na kahii.n
falak ke dashth me.n taaro.n kii aakhirii manzil
kahi.n to hogaa shab-e-sustmoujh kaa saahil
kahi.n ti jake rukegaa safiin-e-gam-e-dil
jawa.N lahuu kii pur asraar shahraaho.n se
chale jo yaar to daaman pe kitne haath paDe
dayaar-e-husn kii be-sabra khwaabgaaho.n se
pukaarti rahii.n baahe.n, badan bulate rahe
bahut azeez thii lekin ruKh-e-sahar kii lagan
bahut karii.n tha hasiinane noor kaa daaman
subuk-subuk thi tamanna dabi-dabi thi thakan
sunaa hai ho bhi chukaa hai firaaq-e-zulmat-e-noor
sunaa hai ho bhi chukaa hai wisaal-e-manzil-o-gaam
badal chukaa hai bahut ahal-e-dard kaa dastoor
nishaat-e-wasl halaal-o-azaab-e-hijr-e-haraam
jigar kii aag, nazar kii umang, dil kii jalan
kisii pe chaar:e-hijra.N kaa kuchch asar hii nahii.n
kahaa.N se aayii nigaar-e-sabaa kidhhar ko gaii
abhii chiraaG-e-sar-e-rah ko kuchch khabar hii nahii.n
abhii garaanii-e-shab me.n kamii nahi.n aaii
nazaat-e-deed’h-o-dil kii ghadii nahi.n aaii
chale chalo ki wah ma.nzil abhi nahi.n aaii

–Faiz Ahmed Faiz, 14th August 1967

Rough draft by Sundeep Dougal, sometime in the 1980s.

The Dawn of Freedom, 
August 1947

This scarred, marred brightness, this bitten-by-night dawn –
The one that was awaited, surely, this is not that dawn.
This is not the dawn yearning for which
Had we set out, friends, hoping to find sometime, somewhere
The final destination of stars in the wilderness of the sky.
Somewhere, at least, must be a shore for the languid waves of the night,
Somewhere at least must anchor the sad boat of the heart.
On the sensuous, secretive streets of young blood,
When we set out, friends, who knows how many hands tugged at the sleeves
From the impatient dreamlands of beauty’s pleasure-houses,
Arms persistently reached out and bodies beckoned,
But very dear was the longing for mere dawn,
Very near was the hem of beauteous light:
Desires, delicate and light; languor, suppressed and slight.
It’s claimed that darkness and light are already separated,
It’s claimed that the seeking and the sought have already united,
That the lot of those who suffered has already changed a lot:
The pleasure of union is allowed, torment of separation is banished.
Fire in the belly, longing in the eyes, burning in the heart:
None is affected at all by the anguish of separation
From where came that sweet breeze and where it went,
The street lamp has no inkling yet
The heaviness of the night has not lifted yet
The moment of salvation for the heart and the eyes has not arrived yet

Yaad

Dasht-e-tanhaee maiN ai jaan-e-jahaaN larzaaN hai
Teri aavaaz kay saaey, teray hontoN kay saraab
Dasht-e-tanhaee maiN dooree kay khas-o-khaak talay
Khil rahay haiN teray pehloo kay saman or gulaab

Uth rahee hai kaheeN qurbat say teri saaNs kee aanch
Apnee khushboo maiN sulagti hooee madham madham
Door ufaq paar chamaktee hooee qatra qatra
Gir rahee hai teri dildaar nazar kee shabnam

Is qadar payaar say ai jaan-e-jahaaN rakha hai
Dil kay rukhsaar pay is waqt teri yaad naiN haath
YooN gumaaN hota hai gerchay hai abhee subh-e-firaaq
Dhal gaya hijr ka din aa bhi gaee wasl ki raat



All translations are my rough first drafts compiled here for ease of reference.

Memory

In the wilderness of loneliness, O loved one, tremble
Silhouettes of your voice, mirages of your lips
In the wilderness of loneliness, under the straw and ash of distance
Blosssom jasmines and roses of your nearness

From somewhere nearby, rises the warmth of your breath
Smouldering in its scent leisurly, lingeringly
Faraway, across the horizon, shining drop by drop
Falls the dew of your heartmoving glance

So much with love, O loved one, has your memory placed
Its hand, right now, on the face of my heart
It seems, although it’s still the morning of parting,
The day of separation is over, the night of meeting is here.

Aap Ki Yaad

Much before he acquired fame for Umrao Jaan, Muzaffar Ali had served notice with Gaman, his debut film that here was someone with a deep understanding of poetry and music. The film is a landmark for giving the industry Farooq Sheikh, and perhaps the most-appreciated Suresh Wadkar song ever – Shahryar’s siine meiN jalan. The other haunting song was this, sung by Chhaya Ganguly, singing the poetry of Abu Sayeed Mohammad Makhdoom Mohiuddin Khudri, aka Makhdoom Mohiuddin.

आप की याद आती रही रात भर
चश्म-ए-नम मुस्कुराती रही रात भर 
आप की याद आती रही …

रात भर दर्द की शमा जलती रही
ग़म की लौ थरथराती रही रात भर …

बाँसुरी की सुरीली सुहानी सदा 
याद बनबनके आती रही रात भर …

याद की चाँद दिल में उतरती रही 
चाँदनी डगमगाती रही रात भर …

कोई दीवाना गलियों में फिरता रहा 
कोई आवाज़ आती रही रात भर … 

The song had inspired a tribute when Makhdoom died in 1969, and Faiz wrote the following, appropriately titled, Makhdoom ki Yaad mein.

”aap kī yaad aatī rahī raat bhar”

chāñdnī dil dukhātī rahī raat bhar
gaah jaltī huī gaah bujhtī huī
sham-e-ġham jhilmilātī rahī raat bhar
koī ḳhushbū badaltī rahī pairahan
koī tasvīr gaatī rahī raat bhar
phir sabā sāya-e-shāḳh-e-gul ke tale
koī qissa sunātī rahī raat bhar
jo na aayā use koī zanjīr-e-dar
har sadā par bulātī rahī raat bhar
ek ummīd se dil bahaltā rahā
ik tamannā satātī rahī raat bhar

Bahaar Aayi

bahār aa.ī to jaise yak-bār
lauT aa.e haiñ phir adam se
vo ḳhvāb saare shabāb saare
jo tere hoñToñ pe mar-miTe the
jo miT ke har baar phir jiye the
nikhar ga.e haiñ gulāb saare
jo terī yādoñ se mushkbū haiñ
jo tere ushshāq kā lahū haiñ
ubal paḌe haiñ azaab saare
malāl-e-ahvāl-e-dostāñ bhī
ḳhumār-e-āġhosh-e-mah-vashāñ bhī
ġhubār-e-ḳhātir ke baab saare
tire hamāre
savāl saare javāb saare
bahār aa.ī to khul ga.e haiñ
na.e sire se hisāb saare

बहार आई तो जैसे यकबार
लौट आए हैं फिर अदम से
वो ख़्वाब सारे शबाब सारे
जो तेरे होंटों पे मर मिटे थे
जो मिट के हर बार फिर जिये थे
निखर गए हैं गुलाब सारे
जो तेरी यादों में मुश्कबू हैं
जो तेरे उश्शाक़ का लहू हैं
उबल पड़े हैं अज़ाब सारे
मलाल ए अहवाल दोस्तां भी
ख़ुमार ए आग़ोश ए महवशां भी
ग़ुबार ए ख़ातिर के बाब सारे
तेरे हमारे
सवाल सारे जवाब सारे
बहार आई तो खिल गए हैं
नए सिरे से हिसाब सारे

bahār aa.ī to jaise yak-bār
Spring is here as if suddenly

lauT aa.e haiñ phir adam se
back from nowhere are
 
vo ḳhvāb saare shabāb saare
all those dreams, all those beauties of youth
 
jo tere hoñToñ pe mar-miTe the
those who died longing for your lips
 
jo miT ke har baar phir jiye the
those who came alive every time after being destroyed
 
nikhar ga.e haiñ gulāb saare
all the roses glisten
 
jo terī yādoñ se mushkbū haiñ
those that are fragrant with the musk of your memory
 
jo tere ushshāq kā lahū haiñ
those that are the lifeblood of your lovers
 
ubal paḌe haiñ azaab saare
all the torments have boiled over
 
malāl-e-ahvāl-e-dostāñ bhī
the anguish and apprehensions about friends
 
ḳhumār-e-āġhosh-e-mah-vashāñ bhī
the intoxication of warm embraces
in the beauty of the moon
 
ġhubār-e-ḳhātir ke baab saare
in our dust of memories
 
tire hamāre
yours and mine
 
savāl saare javāb saare
all the questions, all the answers
 
bahār aa.ī to khul ga.e haiñ
have opened up again, with spring
 
na.e sire se hisāb saare
all the old accounts anew 


So my literal, almost word-by-word clunky translation with words looked up in the dictionary goes something like this:
 

Spring is here as if suddenly
back from nowhere
are all those dreams, all those beauties of youth
those who died longing for your lips
those who came alive every time after being destroyed
all these roses glisten
fragrant with the musk of your memory
the lifeblood of your lovers
all the torments have boiled over
the anguish and apprehensions about friends
the intoxication of warm embraces
in the beauty of the moon
in this dust of memories
yours and mine
all the questions, all the answers
have opened up again, with spring
all the old accounts anew 

(Hurried translation draft by SD)

Agha Shahid Ali takes liberties and transcreates this as follows:

It Is Spring, Again

It is spring, And the ledger is opened again.
From the abyss where they were frozen,
those days suddenly return, those days
that passed away from your lips, that died
with all our kisses, unaccounted.
The roses return: they are your fragrance;
they are the blood of your lovers.
Sorrow returns. I go through my pain
and the agony of friends still lost in the memory
of moon-silver arms, the caresses of vanished women.
I go through page after page. There are no answers,
and spring has come once again asking
the same questions, reopening account after account.


kis daa dosh hai

kis daa dosh sii kis daa nahin sii
ae galaan hun karan diaan nahin
veley lang gaye hun tauba waaley
raataan hun hokey bharan diaan nahiin
jo hoyaa tey honaa hii sii
tey honiaan rokey rukdiaan nahiin
ik varii jadon shuru ho jaavey
tey gal phir awain mukdii nahin
kujh unjh vii rawaan aukhiaan sii
kujh gal wich gam daa tauq vii sii
kujh  shahar dey loq vii zaalim san
kujh saanuu maran daa shauq vii sii

First rough draft: Sundeep Dougal

Whose fault was it, whose was it not
There’s no point talking about it now
The time to repent is now gone
The nights now are not to sob
What happened had to happen
And what has to happen cannot be stopped
And once it starts
The topic does not end just like that
As it is the path was not easy
As it is the subject was subsumed by sadness
As it is the people of the city were cruel
As it is I had a death wish too.

Apparently there are more verses in this before the last four lines:

kujh shauq sii yaar faqeerii daa
kujh ishq ne dar dar rol ditaa
 
kujh sajan kasar na chhaDii sii
kujh zahar raqeeba’n ghol ditaa
 
kujh hijar firaaq daa rang charhya
kujh dard maahi anmol ditaa
 
kujh saRR gayii qismat bad’qismat dii
kujh payaar wich judaai rol ditaa
 
– Munir Niazi
 
 
 
 
 

Ibteda

Nasadiya Sukta (‘Not the non-existent’)
from the Rigveda

नासदासीन्नोसदासीत्तादानीं नासीद्रजो नो व्योमापरो यत |
किमावरीव: कुहकस्यशर्मन्नम्भ: किमासीद्गहनं गभीरं ||


There was neither non-existence nor existence then;
there was neither the realm of space nor the sky which is beyond.
What stirred? Where? In whose protection?
Was there water, bottomlessly deep?


सृष्टी से पहले सत् नहीं था, असत् भी नहीं
अन्तरिक्ष भी नहीं, आकाश भी नहीं था
छिपा था क्या? कहाँ? किसने ढका था?
उस पल तो, अगम अतल जल भी कहाँ था? 

न मृत्युरासीदमृतं न तर्हि न रात्र्या अह्न आसीत्प्रकेतः ।
आनीदवातं स्वधया तदेकं तस्माद्धान्यन्न परः किञ्चनास ॥२॥

There was neither death nor immortality then.
There was no distinguishing sign of night nor of day.
That one breathed, windless, by its own impulse.
Other than that there was nothing beyond.

नहीं थी मृत्यू, थी अमरता भी नहीं
नहीं था दिन, रात भी नहीं
हवा भी नहीं, साँस थी स्वयमेव फिर भी
नही था कोई कुछ भी, परमतत्त्व से अलग या परे भी।।

तम आसीत्तमसा गूहळमग्रे प्रकेतं सलिलं सर्वाऽइदम् ।
तुच्छ्येनाभ्वपिहितं यदासीत्तपसस्तन्महिनाजायतैकम् ॥३॥

Darkness was hidden by darkness in the beginning;
with no distinguishing sign, all this was water.
The life force that was covered with emptiness,
that one arose through the power of heat.

अंधेरे में अंधेरा-मुँदा अँधेरा था
जल भी केवल निराकार जल था
परमतत्त्व था सृजन-कामना से भरा, ओछे जल से घिरा, 
वही अपनी तपस्या की महिमा से उभरा ।।

कामस्तदग्रे समवर्तताधि मनसो रेतः प्रथमं यदासीत् |
सतो बन्धुमसति निरविन्दन्हृदि प्रतीष्या कवयो मनीषा ॥४॥

Desire came upon that one in the beginning;
that was the first seed of mind.
Poets seeking in their heart with wisdom
found the bond of existence in non-existence.

परम मन में बीज पहला जो उगा
काम बनकर वह जगा
कवियों ग्यानियों ने जाना
असत् और सत् का निकट संबंध पहचाना ।।

तिरश्चीनो विततो रश्मिरेषामधः स्विदासीदुपरि स्विदासीत् |
रेतोधा आसन्महिमान आसन्त्स्वधा अवस्तात्प्रयतिः परस्तात् ॥५॥

Their cord was extended across.
Was there below? Was there above?
There were seed-placers; there were powers.
There was impulse beneath; there was giving-forth above.

फैले संबंध के किरण धागे तिरछे
परमतत्त्व उस पल ऊपर या नीचे?
वह था बँटा हुआ, पुरुष और स्त्री बना हुआ
ऊपर दाता वही भोक्ता, नीचे वसुधा स्वधा भोग्या ।।

को अद्धा वेद क इह प्र वोचत्कुत आजाता कुत इयं विसृष्टिः |
अर्वाग्देवा अस्य विसर्जनेनाथा को वेद यत आबभूव ॥६॥

Who really knows? Who will here proclaim it?
Whence was it produced? Whence is this creation?
The gods came afterwards, with the creation of this universe.
Who then knows whence it has arisen?

सृष्टी यह बनी कैसे? किससे? आई है कहाँ से?
कोई क्या जानता है? बता सकता है?
देवताओं को नहीं ग्यात, वे आए सृजन के बाद
सृष्टी को रचां है जिसने, उसको जाना किसने? ।।

इयं विसृष्टिर्यत आबभूव यदि वा दधे यदि वा न |
यो अस्याध्यक्षः परमे व्योमन्त्सो अङ्ग वेद यदि वा न वेद ॥७॥

Whence this creation has arisen –
perhaps it formed itself, or perhaps it did not –
the one who looks down on it, in the highest heaven,
only he knows – or perhaps he does not know.

सृष्टी का कौन है कर्ता? कर्ता है वा अकर्ता?
ऊँचे आकाश में रहता, सदा अध्यक्ष बना रहता
वही सचमुच में जानता, या नहीं भी जानता
है किसी को नहीं पता, नहीं पता, नहीं है पता ।।

Bharat Ek Khoj Ending Song
Hiryanagarbha Sukta



हिरण्यगर्भः समवर्तताग्रे भूतस्य जातः पतिरेकासीत ।
स दाधार पृथ्वीं ध्यामुतेमां कस्मै देवायहविषा विधेम ॥

hiraṇyagarbhaḥ samavartatāgre bhūtasya jātaḥ patirekāsīta |
sa dādhāra pṛthvīṃ dhyāmutemāṃ kasmai devāyahaviṣā vidhema ||

HIRANYAGARBHA was present at the beginning;
when born, he was the sole lord of created beings;
he upheld this earth and heaven,
–let us offer worship with an oblation to the divine KA.

था हिरण्य गर्भ सृष्टि से पहले विद्यमान .
वोही तो सारे भूत जाती का स्वामी महान .
जो है अस्तित्वमान धरती आसमान धारण कर.
ऐसे किस देवता की उपासना करे हम हवी देकर?

vah thaa Hiranyagarbh shristi sey pehley vidyamaan
vahi to saarey bhuut jaat ka swami mahaan
jo hai astitvamaan dharti aasmaan dhaaran kar
aisey kis devata ki upaasanaa karen hum havi dekar



– Rig Veda Rig Veda 10.121.1

येन द्यौरुग्रा पृथ्वी च दृढा येन स्वस्तभितं येननाकः ।
यो अन्तरिक्षे रजसो विमानः कस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम ॥

yena dayaurugrā parthivī ca darḻhā yena sava satabhitaṃ yenanākaḥ |
yo antarikṣe rajaso vimānaḥ kasmai devāyahaviṣā vidhema ||

By whom the sky was made profound
and the earth solid,
by Whom heaven and the solar sphere were fixed,
who was the measure of the water in the firmament,-
let us offer worship with an oblation to the divine KA

जिस के बल पर तेजोमय है अम्बर .
पृथ्वी हरी भरी स्थापित स्थिर.
स्वर्ग और सूरज भी स्थिर.
ऐसे किस देवता की उपासना करे हम हवी देकर?

jiskey bal par taejomay hai ambar
prithvi hari-bhari sthaapit-sthir
swarg aur suuraj bhi sthir
aisey kis devata ki upaasanaa karen hum havi dekar

– Rig Veda 10.121.5

आपो ह यद बर्हतीर्विश्वमायन गर्भं दधानाजनयन्तीरग्निम ।
ततो देवानां समवर्ततासुरेकःकस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम ॥


āpo ha yada barhatīrviśvamāyana garbhaṃ dadhānājanayantīragnima |
tato devānāṃ samavartatāsurekaḥkasmai devāya haviṣā vidhema ||

When the vast waters overspread the universe containing the germ and giving birth to AGNI, then was produced the one breath of the gods,
– let us offer worship with an oblation to the divine KA.

गर्भ में अपने अग्नि धारण कर पैदा कर,
व्याप था जल इधर उधर नीचे ऊपर,
जगाचुके वो का एकमेव प्राण बनकर,
ऐसे किस देवता की उपासना करे हम हवी देकर?

garbh mey apney agni dhaaran kar payda kar
vyaapa thaa jal idhar-udhar neechey-ooper
jaga jo devoon ka ekmayv praan ban kar
aisey kis devata ki upaasanaa karen hum havi dekar

– Rig Veda 10.121.7

मा नो हिंसीज्जनिता यः पर्थिव्या यो वा दिवंसत्यधर्मा जजान ।
यश्चापश्चन्द्रा बर्हतीर्जजानकस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम ॥

mā no hiṃsījjanitā yaḥ parthivyā yo vā divaṃsatyadharmā jajāna |
yaścāpaścandrā barhatīrjajānakasmai devāya haviṣā vidhema ||

May he do us no harm who is the parent of the -earth, or who the unerring support (of the world) begat the heaven, and who generated the vast and delightful waters,
– let us offer worship with an oblation to the divine KA.

ॐ ! सृष्टि निर्माता स्वर्ग रचयिता पूर्वज रखस कर.
सत्य धर्म पालक अतुल जल नियामक रक्षा कर.
फैली हैं दिशाएं बहु जैसी उसकी सब में सब पर,
ऐसे ही देवता की उपासना करे हम हवी देकर,
ऐसे ही देवता की उपासना करे हम हवी देकर.”

ho.. srishti nirmaata swarg rachayta poorvaj raksha kar
satya dharm palak atul jal niyaamak raksha kar
phaili hain dishaayen baahu jaisi uski submey subpar
aisey hi devata ki upaasanaa karen hum havi dekar
aisey hi devata ki upaasanaa karen hum havi dekar

– Rig Veda 10.121.9

न था कुछ तो ख़ुदा था कुछ न होता तो ख़ुदा होता
डुबोया मुझ को होने ने न होता मैं तो क्या होता
हुआ जब ग़म से यूँ बे-हिस तो ग़म क्या सर के कटने का
न होता गर जुदा तन से तो ज़ानू पर धरा होता
हुई मुद्दत कि ग़ालिब मर गया पर याद आता है
वो हर इक बात पर कहना कि यूँ होता तो क्या होता