For word meanings and explanatory discussion in English click on the tabs marked “Roman” or “Notes”.
Recitation
زمزمۂ ناشنیدہ ہوں ۔۱۔۱۰ ۔ جوشؔ ملیح آبادی
۱
ممکن ہے اہلِ فکر میں کل برگزیدہ ہوں
اب تک تو ایک زمزمۂ ناشنیدہ ہوں
۲
بخشی ہے آسماں نے مجھے قسمتِ قلم
پا کوبِ راہِ تیرگی و سر بریدہ ہوں
۳
اب تک کہیں فضا پہ نہیں عشوۂ ہما
اک مُدّتِ دراز سے گو دام چیدہ ہوں
۴
ذرّاتِ ناسزا کی ضیافت کے واسطے
شبنم کی طرح برگِ سمن سے چکیدہ ہوں
۵
اہل بہشت کیوں نہ غضبناک ہوں کہ میں
میدان ابلہی کا غزالِ رمیدہ ہوں
۶
دھومیں ہیں میرے کفر کی شہرِ مجاز میں
صرف اِس گناہ پر کہ حقائق رسیدہ ہوں
۷
پوجو تو ذوالجلال جو توڑو تو صِرف بُت
میں اُس خدائے اہلِ جنوں سے کشیدہ ہوں
۸
جس کا لہو حلال ہے وہ رندِ کشتنی
جس کا صلہ حرام ہے میں وہ قصیدہ ہوں
۹
جو بخشتی ہے ذہن کو شمشاد قامتی
میں آج اُس نگاہ کے ہاتھوں خمیدہ ہوں
۱۰
اس جرم میں کہ عشق کو کہتا ہوں ضعفِ عقل
میں خانقہ دریدہ و مسجد گزیدہ ہوں
ज़मज़मा-ए नाशनीदा हूँ -०१-१०- जोश मलिहाबादी
१
मुमकिन है अहल-ए फिक्र में कल बरगुज़ीदा हूँ
अब तक तो एक ज़मज़मा-ए नाशुनीदा हूँ
२
बख़्शी है आसमां ने मुझे क़िस्मत-ए क़लम
पा-कोब-ए राह-ए तीरगी ओ सर बुरीदा हूँ
३
अब तक कहीं फ़ज़ा पे नहीं इश्वा-ए हुमा
एक मुद्दत-ए दराज़ से गो दाम चीदा हूँ
४
ज़र्रात-ए नासज़ा की ज़ियाफ़त के वास्ते
शबनम की तरह बर्ग-ए समन से चकीदा हूँ
५
अहल-ए बेहिश्त क्यूँ न ग़ज़बनाक हों के मैं
मैदान-ए अबलही का ग़ज़ाल-ए रमीदा हूँ
६
धूमें हैं मेरे कुफ़्र की शहर-ए मजाज़ में
सिर्फ़ इस गुनाह पर कि हक़ाएक़ रसीदा हूँ
७
पूजो तो ज़ुल्जलाल जो तोढो तो सिर्फ़ बुत
मैं उस ख़ुदा-ए अहल-ए जुनूँ से कशीदा हूँ
८
जिस का लहू हलाल है वो रिंद-ए कुश्तनी
जिस का सिला हराम है मैं वो क़सीदा हूँ
९
जो बख़्शती है ज़हन को शमशाद-क़ामती
मैं आज उस निगाह के हाथों ख़मीदा हूँ
१०
इस जुर्म में के इश्क़ को कहता हूँ ज़ो’फ़-ए अक़्ल
मैं ख़ानक़ह-दरीदा ओ मस्जिद गज़ीदा हूँ
Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. josh malihabadi (1898-1982) is called shaa’er-e inqelaab, poet of change/revolution. He is very secular and nationalistic in his writings and rebels against orthodoxy. His range of language and vocabulary is simply amazing. This nazm is one of several very poignant nazm that he wrote about his disillusionment with his reception in pakistan. This Ghazal/nazm is linked to ‘ba-diram na-Khariida huN’ under Ghalib naqsh-e qadam.
1
mumkin1 hai ahl2-e fikr3 meN kal barguziida4 huN
ab tak to ek zamzama5-e naashuniida6 huN 1.possible 2.people of 3.rationality 4.chosen, high status 5.music 6.not heard, ignored
It is possible that thoughtful, thinking people will choose me and raise me to a high status in the future. But so far, today, I have been like unheard/ignored music.
2
baKhshi1 hai aasmaaN ne mujhe qismat2-e qalam3
paa-koob4-e raah5-e tiiragi6 o sar-buriida7 huN 1.granted 2.good fortune 3.pen 4.trampled underfoot 5.path 6.darkness 7.head cut off
The sky/fate/god has granted me the fortune of the pen (ability to write verse) although I have been trampled underfoot by those traveling on the path of darkness/ignorance and my head has been cut off.
3
ab tak kahiN faza1 peh nahiN ishva2-e humaa3
ek muddat-e-daraaz4 se go5 daam6 chiida7 huN 1.ambience, surroundings 2.most usually it means-coquetry but it also means distant flame 3.fictional bird that brings luck 4.long time 5.even though 6.net, trap 7.picked, plucked
‘huma’ is a fictional bird that no one can see. Rarely, a flame can be seen issuing in the rear of the path of flight of the huma. If the huma flies over the head of someone, it brings them good fortune. Even though josh has spread his net out, for a long time, there is no sign of the flame of the huma. He has not seen any good fortune.
4
zarraat1-e naasaza2 ki ziyaafat3 ke vaaste4
shabnam5 ki tarah6 barg7-e saman8 se chakiida9 huN 1.particles, grains (of sand) 2.improper 3.feast, entertainment 4.for, with the intent of 5.dew 6.like, similar to 7.leaf, petal 8.jasmine 9.dripped
I have dropped to the ground like a dew drop from a jasmine petal i.e., my status before this was high – on the petal of a beautiful flower. But now, I am down in the dust only to entertain lowly grains of sand. Who are the ‘grains of sand’. Surely not his audience, who continued to offer him much love and admiration. By this he must mean the people who enticed him to come to pakistan.
5
ahl-e-behisht1 kyuN na Ghazabnaak2 hoN keh maiN
maiidaan-e-ablahi3 ka Ghazaal4-e ramiida5 huN 1.people of paradise 2.angry 3.field of ignorance/foolishness 4.gazelle, deer 5.running away in fear
Why would not the orthodoxy curse me. I run away from the field of foolishness like a frightened deer. The implication is that people of orthodoxy nurture this field through their ignorance and superstitions.
6
dhoomeN1 haiN mere kufr2 ki shahr-e-majaaz3 meN
sirf4 is gunaah par keh haqaa’eq5 rasiida6 huN 1.fame, infamy 2.non-belief 3.domain of illusion 4.only 5.truth, facts 6.received
Here ‘shahr-e majaaz’ – the domain of illusion is the orthodox practice of offering followers the illusion of rewards in the afterlife. In that domain there is much talk of the poet’s irreverence only because he knows and speaks the truth.
7
poojo1 to zuljalaal2 jo toRo to sirf3 but4
maiN us Khuda-e ahl-e-junooN5 se kashiida6 huN 1.pray 2.glorious, majestic 3.only 4.idol 5.frenzied people 6.pull away from
The poet points out how each community treats ‘their’ god differently. I pull away/keep my distance from the god of those who consider only their god glorious and pray to him/her. They are ahl-e junooN – mad people. If they break an idol, they consider it ‘only an idol’ (not somebody else’s god).
8
jis ka lahu1 halaal2 hai voh rind3-e kushtani4
jis ka sila5 haraam6 hai maiN voh qasiida7 huN 1.blood 2.allowed, sanctioned 3.wine drinker, bohemian, carefree 4.deserving to be killed 5.reward 6.forbidden 7.ode, panegyric, praise poetry
I am that free thinking, wine drinking bohemian who (orthodoxy thinks) deserves to be killed; spilling of whose blood is sanctioned. I am that panegyric writer/poet who is forbidden from being rewarded.
9
jo baKhshti1 hai zah’n2 ko shamshaad-qaamati3
maiN aaj us nigaah4 ke haathoN Khamiida5 huN 1.grant, bestow 2.mind, intelligence 3.stature of a tall, graceful, upright tree 4.eyes, discerning eyes 5.bent, laid low
I think that ‘baKhshna’ is used here more in the sense of recognize than in the sense of grant/bestow. The discerning eye that used to recognize the tall and graceful stature of intellect has now laid me low.
10
iss jurm1 meN keh ishq2 ko kahta huN zo’f3-e aql4
maiN Khaanqah5 dariida6 o masjid gaziida7 huN 1.crime, accusation 2.love 3.weakness 4.mind 5.sufi retreat/monastery 6.ripped, torn 7.bitten, stung
Here ‘ishq-love’ is used in a symbolic sense, as a symbol of orthodox belief. I stand accused to calling such ‘love’ a weakness of the mind/intellect. As a result the centres of orthodoxy – the Khaanqah and the masjid have him torn him apart and stung him.
josh malihabadi (1898-1982) is called shaa’er-e inqelaab, poet of change/revolution. He is very secular and nationalistic in his writings and rebels against orthodoxy. His range of language and vocabulary is simply amazing. This nazm is one of several very poignant nazm that he wrote about his disillusionment with his reception in pakistan. This Ghazal/nazm is linked to ‘ba-diram na-Khariida huN’ under Ghalib naqsh-e qadam.
1
mumkin1 hai ahl2-e fikr3 meN kal barguziida4 huN
ab tak to ek zamzama5-e naashuniida6 huN
1.possible 2.people of 3.rationality 4.chosen, high status 5.music 6.not heard, ignored
It is possible that thoughtful, thinking people will choose me and raise me to a high status in the future. But so far, today, I have been like unheard/ignored music.
2
baKhshi1 hai aasmaaN ne mujhe qismat2-e qalam3
paa-koob4-e raah5-e tiiragi6 o sar-buriida7 huN
1.granted 2.good fortune 3.pen 4.trampled underfoot 5.path 6.darkness 7.head cut off
The sky/fate/god has granted me the fortune of the pen (ability to write verse) although I have been trampled underfoot by those traveling on the path of darkness/ignorance and my head has been cut off.
3
ab tak kahiN faza1 peh nahiN ishva2-e humaa3
ek muddat-e-daraaz4 se go5 daam6 chiida7 huN
1.ambience, surroundings 2.most usually it means-coquetry but it also means distant flame 3.fictional bird that brings luck 4.long time 5.even though 6.net, trap 7.picked, plucked
‘huma’ is a fictional bird that no one can see. Rarely, a flame can be seen issuing in the rear of the path of flight of the huma. If the huma flies over the head of someone, it brings them good fortune. Even though josh has spread his net out, for a long time, there is no sign of the flame of the huma. He has not seen any good fortune.
4
zarraat1-e naasaza2 ki ziyaafat3 ke vaaste4
shabnam5 ki tarah6 barg7-e saman8 se chakiida9 huN
1.particles, grains (of sand) 2.improper 3.feast, entertainment 4.for, with the intent of 5.dew 6.like, similar to 7.leaf, petal 8.jasmine 9.dripped
I have dropped to the ground like a dew drop from a jasmine petal i.e., my status before this was high – on the petal of a beautiful flower. But now, I am down in the dust only to entertain lowly grains of sand. Who are the ‘grains of sand’. Surely not his audience, who continued to offer him much love and admiration. By this he must mean the people who enticed him to come to pakistan.
5
ahl-e-behisht1 kyuN na Ghazabnaak2 hoN keh maiN
maiidaan-e-ablahi3 ka Ghazaal4-e ramiida5 huN
1.people of paradise 2.angry 3.field of ignorance/foolishness 4.gazelle, deer 5.running away in fear
Why would not the orthodoxy curse me. I run away from the field of foolishness like a frightened deer. The implication is that people of orthodoxy nurture this field through their ignorance and superstitions.
6
dhoomeN1 haiN mere kufr2 ki shahr-e-majaaz3 meN
sirf4 is gunaah par keh haqaa’eq5 rasiida6 huN
1.fame, infamy 2.non-belief 3.domain of illusion 4.only 5.truth, facts 6.received
Here ‘shahr-e majaaz’ – the domain of illusion is the orthodox practice of offering followers the illusion of rewards in the afterlife. In that domain there is much talk of the poet’s irreverence only because he knows and speaks the truth.
7
poojo1 to zuljalaal2 jo toRo to sirf3 but4
maiN us Khuda-e ahl-e-junooN5 se kashiida6 huN
1.pray 2.glorious, majestic 3.only 4.idol 5.frenzied people 6.pull away from
The poet points out how each community treats ‘their’ god differently. I pull away/keep my distance from the god of those who consider only their god glorious and pray to him/her. They are ahl-e junooN – mad people. If they break an idol, they consider it ‘only an idol’ (not somebody else’s god).
8
jis ka lahu1 halaal2 hai voh rind3-e kushtani4
jis ka sila5 haraam6 hai maiN voh qasiida7 huN
1.blood 2.allowed, sanctioned 3.wine drinker, bohemian, carefree 4.deserving to be killed 5.reward 6.forbidden 7.ode, panegyric, praise poetry
I am that free thinking, wine drinking bohemian who (orthodoxy thinks) deserves to be killed; spilling of whose blood is sanctioned. I am that panegyric writer/poet who is forbidden from being rewarded.
9
jo baKhshti1 hai zah’n2 ko shamshaad-qaamati3
maiN aaj us nigaah4 ke haathoN Khamiida5 huN
1.grant, bestow 2.mind, intelligence 3.stature of a tall, graceful, upright tree 4.eyes, discerning eyes 5.bent, laid low
I think that ‘baKhshna’ is used here more in the sense of recognize than in the sense of grant/bestow. The discerning eye that used to recognize the tall and graceful stature of intellect has now laid me low.
10
iss jurm1 meN keh ishq2 ko kahta huN zo’f3-e aql4
maiN Khaanqah5 dariida6 o masjid gaziida7 huN
1.crime, accusation 2.love 3.weakness 4.mind 5.sufi retreat/monastery 6.ripped, torn 7.bitten, stung
Here ‘ishq-love’ is used in a symbolic sense, as a symbol of orthodox belief. I stand accused to calling such ‘love’ a weakness of the mind/intellect. As a result the centres of orthodoxy – the Khaanqah and the masjid have him torn him apart and stung him.
