Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. panDit amarnath sahir dehlavi (1863-1962) was deeply affected by the cultural degeneration following the 1857 war. He turned to themes of mysticism in his poetry. A scholar of sanskrit, arabi and faarsi, his father was also a poet and wrote a whole diivaan in the zamin/style of Ghalib. This Ghazal, with a different radeef is nevertheless linked to ‘navaa-e sarosh hai’ in Ghalib naqsh-e qadam on the Theme page.
1
goyaa¹ zabaan-e-haal² thi saahir³ Khamosh tha
ye sa’ii⁴-e zabt⁵ thi vo taqaazaa⁶-e josh⁷ tha    1.speaking 2.tongue of my condition 3.pen-name of the poet 4.effort 5.self-control 6.demand 7.passion, frenzy
The poet/lover/devotee was silent. A lover is not supposed to openly express his love. This is his effort at exercising self-control. But the ‘tongue of his condition’ spoke about how he was feeling. This was the demand of his passion/frenzy.
2
parde¹ meN lan-taraani² thi rag-rag³ meN josh⁴ tha
chamki jo barq⁵-e husn⁶ na maiN tha na hosh⁷ tha    1.veil 2.‘you will not be able to see me’ 3.every vein 4.passion 5.lightning 6.beauty 7.awareness, senses
This has reference to the story of moosa/Moses, who went up mount tuur asking to see god. A divine voice told him that he would not be able to do so. He insisted. There was a flash of lightning and moosa fainted. Thus, the poet/sufi/devotee also wants to experience the divine. His every vein throbs with passion. The one who said ‘you will not be able to see me’ remained behind a veil. When there was a flash of lightning, he (the poet) was rendered senseless and lost himself (perhaps lost his identity and merged with the divine – the sufi concept of ‘fanaa’).
3
mai-Khaana¹-e Khayaal² meN masti³ ka josh⁴ tha
gul⁵ tha charaaGh-e-aql⁶ maiN gum-karda-hosh⁷ tha    1.tavern 2.thought, imagination 3.intoxication 4.passion, frenzy 5.extinguished 6.lamp of the mind, reason 7.unaware of self, lost in a trance
In the tavern of this thoughts, the poet/sufi/devotee is visualizing divine beauty and is in a frenzy of intoxication. His reasoning mind is extinguished (because it is not of much use in understanding the divine) and he is lost in a trance, unaware of himself.
4
be-harf-o-saut¹ tha mera nazzaara-o-kalaam²
raaz-o-niyaaz³ be-asar⁴-e chashm⁵-o-gosh⁶ tha   1.without words or sound 2.sight and speech 3.mystery and devotion 4.not affected by 5.eyes, sight 6.ears, hearing
The poet/sufi/devotee is a state of trance where he has not words or sound to describe what he is seeing/experiencing. Divine mystery and his devotion to it remained unaffected by sight and sound (the senses).
5
kaifiyateN¹ haiN kuchh mujhe josh²-e junooN³ ki yaad
baiTha jo koi niish⁴-e rag-e-jaaN⁵ meN nosh⁶ tha   1.conditions 2.passion 3.mad frenzy 4.sharp point (knife, thorn) 5.jugular vein 6.drinking
The poet/sufi/devotee remembers his state during his mad passionate frenzy. It was as it someone had their sharp teeth sunk into his jugular vein and drinking blood.
6
tere qatiil¹-e Ghamza² ko tan³ tha vabaal⁴-e jaaN
tere shahiid⁵-e naaz⁶ ko sar baar⁷-e dosh⁸ tha   1.killed by 2.coquetry 3.body 4.vexation, irritation 5.martyred by 6.teasing, coquetry 7.burden 8.shoulders
To the victim of your coquetry, this body is a vexation. To the martyr of your teasing, the head is a burden on the shoulders. The divine is cast as the beloved. He is expressing a desire to give up this earthly existence merge with the divine.
7
dil kaan¹-e m’aarefat² ka tha ek jauhar³-e latiif⁴
go⁵ unsuri⁶ vajood⁷ meN ye Khaak-posh⁸ tha    1.mine as in gold mine 2.mystic knowledge 3.jewel 4.pure, refined 5.even though 6.elements, material 7.existence 8.clothed in dust, body of clay
The heart was/is a pure jewel of the mine mystic love even though in this material existence it is clothed in a body of clay.
8
kya mastiyaaN¹ thiiN shab² nigah³-e mast⁴-e naaz⁵ se
saaqi ba-Ghamza⁶ muGhbacha⁷-e mai-farosh⁸ tha   1.intoxication 2.night 3.glance 4.intoxicating 5.coquetry 6.by her amorous glances 7.assistant to the chief wine-maker 8.seller/provider of wine
Here god is ‘mai-farosh’ the supplier of the wine of mystic love. The saaqi in the form of the earthly beloved, serving wine is ‘muGhbacha’, representing the divine here on earth. Thus, last night because of the saaqi’s playful, intoxicating glances (akin to glimpses of the divine) there was much intoxication/trance.
9
miinaa¹ ne gosh²-e jaam³ meN jhuk kar kaha ye raaz⁴
haq-haq⁵ naveed⁶-e vasl⁷ o payaam⁸-e sarosh⁹ tha   1.flask 2.ear 3.cup 4.secret 5.truth-truth, sound of pouring 6.good tidings 7.union 8.message 9.archangel Gabriel/jibriil
The flask bent down and whispered this secret in the ear of the cup – ‘haq-haq’ may be signifying the sound of pouring more often as ‘qul-qul’ and also to emphasize, ‘this is the truth’. The flask said, this is the truth, jibriil brings the message of good tidings of union with the divine. Said Ghalib …
Ghalib sariir-e Khaama navaa-e sarosh hai
10
kya kya thiiN husn¹-o-ishq² meN baaham³ ishaarateN⁴
tha koi saKht-giir⁵ koi saKht-kosh⁶ tha   1.(divine) beauty, beloved 2.love, devotion, lover/devotee 3.mutual 4.signals, love play 5.torturer 6.bearing torture
The classical role of the lover and the beloved is that the one bears the torture meted out by the other without complaining. This is the mutual love-play between them. This could also be applied to the divine beloved – in this case torture is keeping the devotee in the material world and delaying union-fanaa-merger with the divine soul.
11
sarf¹-e nazaara² chashm³ thi vaqf⁴-e kalaam⁵ gosh⁶
dil jalva-mast⁷ aur lab⁸-e saahir⁹ Khamosh tha   1.spent on, used in 2.seeing 3.eye 4.dedicated to 5.words, spoken word 6.ear 7.intoxicated with the glory of vision 8.lips 9.pen-name of the poet
The poet/devotee’s heart is intoxicated (in a trance) because of the glory of the divine vision that he contemplates. His lips are sealed because he is so transfixed. The eyes and ears (senses) are busy merely taking in the sights and sounds of the material world.