Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. raNga chari raNga allahabadi (1931-????) worked as a head clerk, at the Govt Junior Basic Training College, jhaanNsi – a middle level job at best. But he was caught in the love of urdu and I found his diivan to be particularly erudite and was delighted to discover him. He learnt faarsi and urdu at home from his grandfather, munshi nand kishor who clerked for panDit motilal nehru. He names shu’ara sukhdev parshad bismil, and rajeshwar parshad soz as friends of his father with regular recitation sessions at their home. His brother put Ghazal to music and sang them. In 1956 he helped organize a major mushaa’era. zahoor nashtar salonavi, who saw this, encouraged him to compose and ended up being his ustaad. He published his diivaan, navaa-e dair o haram, in 1985.
1
qafas¹ se jaa nahiN sakte ajab² ye kunj³-e zindaaN⁴ hai
nazar⁵ ke saamne kahne ko diivaar-e gulistaaN⁶ hai   1.prison 2.strange 3.corner 4.prison 5.eyes, sight 6.garden
A strange corner of the prison this, we cannot get out of our confinement even though the border of the garden is right in front of our eyes. In a sufiyaana interpretation, the corner of the prison could be this material body. The release of the spirit for union with the divine could be the garden in front of the eyes.
2
haram¹ aur dair² ki tafriiq³ saNg⁴-e raah⁵-e irfaaN⁶ hai
ilaahi⁷ farq⁸ ye kaisa miyaan⁹-e kufr¹⁰ o iimaaN¹¹ hai    1.mosque 2.temple 3.distinction, differences 4.rock, obstacle 5.path 6.mystic knowledge 7.my god 8.difference 9.from darmiyaan – between 10.other/different belief 11.belief
The distinction between temple and mosque has become a roadblock on the path to mystic/gnostic knowledge. O my god, what kind of a difference is this between one faith and another.
3
vahi gul¹ haiN, vahi Ghunche², vahi naGhme³ anaadil⁴ ke
magar⁵ be-kaif⁶ phir bhi jalva⁷-e raNg⁸-e gulistaaN⁹ hai    1.rose 2.buds 3.songs 4.nightingales 5.but 6.without pleasure 7.face, beauty 8.colour, character, atmosphere 9.garden
It is the same rose, the same buds, the same songs of nightingales. But there is no longer any joy in looking at the beauty of the garden. This could mean that we are the same people as we were before but the differences between temple and mosque have created an atmosphere that we can no longer find pleasure in our homeland.
4
bataa’eNge vahi jo vaadi¹-e Ghurbat² meN rahte haiN
kise sub’h-e vatan kahte haiN, kya shaam-e GhariibaaN³ hai   1.valley 2.away from the homeland, exiled 3.those who are exiled
Only those who live in exile will be able to tell you what dawn in the homeland feels like and what nightfall in a foreign land is. This could be a reflection of ‘othering’ and/or of people displaced from their homeland due to partition.
5
siyah-Khaane¹ ko mere kar de raushan² apne jalvoN³ se
azal⁴ se naam tera Ghairat⁵-e mahr⁶-e daraKhshaaN⁷ hai    1.dark house 2.bright 3.beauty, glory, image, manifestation 4.from the beginning of time 5.dignity, honour 6.sun 7.brilliant, shining
Light up my dark house with your image. Since the beginning of time, you are the source of the dignity of the brilliant sun.
6
abhi raNga¹ tujhe kuchh zabt² se hi kaam lena hai
na jaane tere tark³-e zabt² meN kya raaz⁴ pinhaaN⁵ hai   1.pen-name of the poet 2.self-control 3.giving up 4.secret 5.hidden
O raNga, you have to maintain your self-control for a while yet. Who knows what kinds of surprises lurk beyond self-control. He may be wondering what will happen if he speaks out openly – what lies beyond.