Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. mirza asadullah KhaaN Ghalib (1797-1869). I dare not write any introduction. On more than one occasion Ghalib has warned his readers that he needs no introduction or even address. I humbly comply. badri raina, retired professor of English, dehli University, poet, writer, columnist and a dear friend has translated several Ghalib Ghazal and published them as a book. kalidas gupta raza dates this Ghazal to 1852. Also see the many other Ghazal composed by well known and not so well known shu’ara in the same zamin.
1
nukta-chiiN¹ hai Gham-e dil us ko sunaae na bane²
kya bane baat jahaaN baat banaae³ na bane      1.critic, nit-picker 2.na bane – cannot be done, will not succeed 3.baat banaana – construct stories or concoct tales
The beloved is a nit-picker. I can try and tell her the story of the grief of my heart, but she will keep interrupting with criticism. How can I get anywhere, where even artfully constructed stories will not work. Alternatively, nukta-chiiN hai Gham-e dil can be written in prose form as Gham-e dil nukta-chiiN hai i.e., the grief stricken heart itself is a nit picker and it will not be consoled. No matter how many comforting tales I tell it (to the heart), it will have no effect.
2
maiN bulaataa to huN us ko magar aye jazba¹-e dil
us pe ban jaae² kuchh aisii keh bin aaye³ na bane⁴ 1.desire, passion 2.ban jaana – something should happen (to her) 3.without coming 4.cannot happen i.e.she should not be able to succeed
The word play and rhyming is most notable. I do call her, but that does not work. So, O passion of the heart, do something magical so that something should happen to her/come over her, so that she cannot be comfortable without coming.
3
khel samjhaa hai kahiiN chhoR na de, bhuul na jaaye
kaash yuN bhii ho keh bin mere sataae na bane    1.I hope 2.without
She thinks that this is mere play and perhaps she will get tired and drop me and forget the whole thing. I hope that something (mysterious) comes over her such that she cannot be without tormenting me. The lover enjoys being tormented by the beloved.
4
Ghair phirtaa hai liye yuN tere Khat ko keh agar
koii puuchhe keh ye kya hai to chhupaae na bane 1.other, rival 2.if
‘Ghair’ – the ‘other’ is the rival. He is flaunting the letter he has received from the beloved quite openly for everyone to see. If someone asks whose letter it is, he will not be able to hide it. This could either be a statement of jealousy or a statement of caution to the beloved saying that her reputation will suffer.
5
is nazaakat¹ ka buraa ho vo bhale² haiN to kya
haath aaveN to uNheN haath lagaaye na bane 1.delicacy 2.it may be so, it may be good
She is so delicate that it is not possible to even touch her. Woe to this delicacy, of what consequence/use is it that she is so delicate. Even if I am able to get to her, I will not be able to touch her.
6
kah sake kaun keh ye jalva-garii¹ kis kii hai
parda chhoRaa hai vo us ne keh uThaaye na bane 1.glorious manifestation
Whose glorious manifestation is it, who can tell! He has dropped such a veil/curtain, that no one can lift it, if they tried. This reflects our inability to understand god and has reference to a qur’aanic verse too … but then … it could also be the glorious manifestation of the beloved and her playful veil.
7
maut kii raah¹ na dekhuuN? keh bin² aaye na rahe³
tum ko chaahuuN⁴? keh na aao to bulaae na bane⁵    1.raah dekhna – to wait (eagerly) for someone, to watch the path by which they are expected to come 2.without 3.will not be, it is inevitable 4.to love, wish for 5.cannot help but do it
Why should I not wait for/look for/anticipate Death. It cannot not come i.e., it is inevitable that it will come, my waiting will not go to waste. Why should I wish for you to come? You will never come and if/when you don’t there is no way in which I can call you. The parallels and the differences between the two misra are amazing. I can wish for Death to come, and my wish is sure to be fulfilled. It is useless NOT to wish for Death to come, because it will come anyway. I can wish for you come, but my wish is sure to be NOT fulfilled and I cannot call you if you don’t come. I should rather wish for Death than wish for you to come, because the former wish is sure to be fulfilled.
8
bojh¹ vo sar se giraa hai keh uThaaye na uThe
kaam² vo aan paRaa³ hai keh banaae na bane 1.burden/task (of love) 2.task 3.come over (me), (I am) faced with
The poet/lover has given up. The burden/task of love has fallen off his head, and it is so heavy that he (or someone else) cannot possibly pick it back up. This is a task he is faced with to which there is no solution. There is an alternative reading. The heavy burden could either be the task (not unpleasant) or love or of writing verse. The poet/lover has been carrying this task. He is now at the end of the journey of life and the burden has fallen off. It is so heavy that no one is likely to be able to lift it and carry it forward. Says Ghalib in another Ghazal posted here …
mansab-e sheftagi ke koi qaabil nah rahaa
hui m’aazuuli-e andaaz o adaa mere b’aad
and …
kaun hotaa hai harif-e mai-e mard-afgan-e ’ishq
hai mukarrar lab-e saaqi meN salaa mere b’aad
9
ishq par zor¹ nahiiN hai ye vo aatish² Ghalib
keh lagaaye na lage aur bujhaaye na bane 1.force, control 2.flame
Falling in love is not a choice that the poet/lover makes. He cannot fall in love intentionally … it happens. It is a flame that cannot be lit (intentionally) and once lit (of its own will) it cannot be put out.