aafaaq ka ghera kya hai-naresh kumar shaad

For word meanings and explanatory discussion in English click on the “Roman” or “Notes” tab.

آفاق  کا  گھیرا  کیا  ہے  ۔  نریش  کُمار  شادؔ

۱

ایک  دھوکا  ہے  یہ  شب  رنگ  سویرا  کیا  ہے

یہ  اُجالا  ہے  اُجالا  تو  اندھیرا  کیا  ہے

۲

تو  مرے  غم  میں  نہ  ہنستی  ہوئی  آنکھوں  کو  رُلا

میں  تو  مر  مر  کے  بھی  جی  سکتا  ہوں  میرا  کیا  ہے

۳

ذرّے  ذرّے  میں  دھڑکتی  ہے  کوئی  شے  جیسے

تیری  نظروں  نے  فضاؤں  میں  بکھیرا  کیا  ہے

۴

دردِ  دنیا  کی  تڑپ  دل  میں  مرے  رہنے  دے

تو  تو  آنکھوں  میں  بھی  رہ  سکتی  ہے  تیرا  کیا  ہے

۵

تنگ  ہے  شادؔ  مرے  ذوق  کی  وسعت  کے  لیے

حلقۂ  زلف  ہے  آفاق  کا  گھیرا  کیا  ہے

आफ़ाक़ का घेरा क्या है – नरेश कुमार शाद

एक धोका है ये शब-रंग सवेरा क्या है

ये उजाला है उजाला तो अंधेरा क्या है

तू मेरे ग़म में न हँसती हुई आँखों को रुला

मैं तो मर मर के भी जी सकता हूँ मेरा क्या है

ज़र्रे ज़र्रे में धड़कती है कोई शय जैसे

तेरी नज़्रों ने फ़ज़ाओं में बिखेरा क्या है

दर्द-ए-दुनिया की तड़प दिल में मेरे रहने दे

तू तो आँखों में भी रह सकती है तेरा क्या है

तंग है शाद मेरे ज़ौक़ की वुसअत के लिए

हल्क़ा-ए-ज़ुल्फ़ है आफ़ाक़ का घेरा क्या है

 

Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. naresh kumar shaad (1927-1969) prolific poet, writer, translater. Member Progressive Writers’ Association. Socialist/Communist. Educated and worked in rawalpindi and lahore before partition and then moved to India. This is probably a reflection of what the PWA asked poets/writers to do … write less about the beloved and more about social justice. In places here the poet is asking the beloved to take ‘second place’. Of course, it is modeled after Ghalib’s ‘dil-e naadaaN tujhe hua kya hai’. Ghalib’s influence over poets, both renowned and not so well known poets, is profound.
1
ek dhoka hai ye shab-raNg1 savera kya hai
ye ujaala hai ujaala to aNdhera kya hai   
1.colour of night, dark
This dawn is dark, how can it be dawn, it is merely an illusion/deception. I think that this is the same thought that faiz expressed about independence … ye daaGh daaGh ujaala, ye shab gazeda sahr. If this is what you call light, then I wonder what darkness is. Thus the poet/revolutionary is unhappy with whatever is being portrayed as the new dawn (probably independence).

2
tu mere Gham meN na haNsti hui aaNkhoN ko rula
maiN to mar mar ke bhi ji sakta huN mera kya hai    
This is addressed to the beloved … do not cry over me, let your smiling eyes be. I can somehow struggle and keep living my life. Thus the poet bids farewell to the medieval style of writing romantic poetry.

3
zarre1 zarre meN dhaRakti hai koi shai jaise
teri nazroN ne fazaaoN2 meN bikhera kya hai    
1.particle, grain 2.atmosphere, air
At first reading this appears to be addressed to the beloved. In this case, the beloved might well be the coming socialist revolution. The hope of social justice has made everything dynamic, as if every grain of sand is throbbing with something/anticipation. Your eyes have spread/sprinkled something/hope in the air.

4
dard-e-duniya1 ki taRap dil meN mere rahne de
tu to aaNkhoN meN bhi rah sakti hai tera kya hai    
1.pain for the sorrow of the world
The beloved lives in the poet’s heart. Following the call of the Progressive Writers’ Association, the poet wants to reserve his heart for the pain of deprivation of the people. As for the beloved, she can “live in the eyes”, meaning the first call of the heart is for the people.

5
taNg1 hai shaad mere zauq2 ki vus’at3 ke liye
halqa-e-zulf4 hai aafaaq5 ka ghera6 kya hai    
1.narrow 2.taste, desire 3.expanse 4.circle ring of curled hair 5.horizon 6.circle
The expanse of my desire is vast. Even the circle of the horizon is too narrow for my desire. It is narrow like like the ringlet of the beloved’s curls. Thus, the poet expands his desire to cover the workers of the world.

naresh kumar shaad (1927-1969) prolific poet, writer, translater.  Member Progressive Writers’ Association.  Socialist/Communist.  Educated and worked in rawalpindi and lahore before partition and then moved to India.  This is probably a reflection of what the PWA asked poets/writers to do … write less about the beloved and more about social justice.  In places here the poet is asking the beloved to take ‘second place’.  Of course, it is modeled after Ghalib’s ‘dil-e naadaaN tujhe hua kya hai’.  Ghalib’s influence over poets, both renowned and not so well known poets, is profound.
1
ek dhoka hai ye shab-raNg1 savera kya hai
ye ujaala hai ujaala to aNdhera kya hai

1.colour of night, dark

This dawn is dark, how can it be dawn, it is merely an illusion/deception.  I think that this is the same thought that faiz expressed about independence … ye daaGh daaGh ujaala, ye shab gazeda sahr.  If this is what you call light, then I wonder what darkness is.  Thus the poet/revolutionary is unhappy with whatever is being portrayed as the new dawn (probably independence).
2
tu mere Gham meN na haNsti hui aaNkhoN ko rula
maiN to mar mar ke bhi ji sakta huN mera kya hai

This is addressed to the beloved … do not cry over me, let your smiling eyes be.  I can somehow struggle and keep living my life.  Thus, the poet bids farewell to the medieval style of writing romantic poetry.
3
zarre1 zarre meN dhaRakti hai koi shai jaise
teri nazroN ne fazaaoN2 meN bikhera kya hai

1.particle, grain 2.atmosphere, air

At first reading this appears to be addressed to the beloved.  In this case, the beloved might well be the coming socialist revolution.  The hope of social justice has made everything dynamic, as if every grain of sand is throbbing with something/anticipation.  Your eyes have spread/sprinkled something/hope in the air.
4
dard-e-duniya1 ki taRap dil meN mere rahne de
tu to aaNkhoN meN bhi rah sakti hai tera kya hai

1.pain for the sorrow of the world

The beloved lives in the poet’s heart.  Following the call of the Progressive Writers’ Association, the poet wants to reserve his heart for the pain of deprivation of the people.  As for the beloved, she can “live in the eyes”, meaning the first call of the heart is for the people.
5
taNg1 hai shaad mere zauq2 ki vus’at3 ke liye
halqa-e-zulf4 hai aafaaq5 ka ghera6 kya hai

1.narrow 2.taste, desire 3.expanse 4.circle ring of curled hair 5.horizon 6.circle

The expanse of my desire is vast.  Even the circle of the horizon is too narrow for my desire.  It is narrow like like the ringlet of the beloved’s curls.  Thus, the poet expands his desire to cover the workers of the world.

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