Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. jamna parshad raahi (1940-2017), aligaRh. Sahitya Akademi, UP, awardee. President, Progressive Writers’ Association. He specialized in composing in the style of Ghalib and traced his literary lineage to daaGh dehlavi. He has a whole collection in the style of Ghalib called ‘baazgasht-e Ghalib’. This Ghazal in the style of Ghalib’s lead Ghazal ‘shooKhi-e tahriir ka’ is linked to ‘Ghalib naqsh-e qadam’.
1
sarf¹-e shikva² KhuuN nahiN fitraak³ meN naKhchiir⁴ ka
phir malaalat⁵ kaun sa ruKh⁶ hai teri tasviir ka   1.used, spent 2.complaint 3.sack in which hunted prey is carried 4.prey 5.sorrow, regret 6.face, facet
The prey has been hunted, bleeding and is being carried away in a sack. But it is not using its blood to complain. Which facet of ‘your’ image shows sorrow/regret. Here are my readings depending on who ‘your’ refers to and whether it is sorrow or regret.
(a) The more powerful interpretation is if we assume that ‘your’ is the beloved who is carrying away the prey (the poet/lover, who does not complain) and she shows no regret at having hunted him down. Why then is there regret on your face. Said Ghalib …
kii mere qatl ke baad us ne jafa se tauba
haaye us zood pashemaaN ka pashemaaN hona
(b) If ‘your’ is the ‘naKhchiir’ – the prey i.e., the poet/lover, then even as he is bleeding to death, he does not show any sorrow. Will any facet of your picture ever show sorrow? Or will you always be stoic.
2
zikr¹ tha mauqoof² paiham³ baa’as⁴-e taa’ziir⁵ ka
lab rahe Khaamosh to muNh khul gaya tahriir⁶ ka    1.talk, speaking 2.cancelled, rejected 3.always, continuously 4.basis, reason 5.punishment 6.writing, composing she’r
The poet/lover speaks to the beloved asking what the reason was for his punishment. She always rejects any mention of this. Alternatively, following the traditions of a wronged lover, he himself does not talk about his (unjustifiable) punishment. Because his lips have been silenced or are voluntarily silent, his writing ‘opens its mouth’ i.e., his feelings find an outlet in composing verse.
3
zaKhm-zaar¹-e siina-e sad-chaak² dekha chaahiye
KhuuN girafta³ go⁴ nahiN daamaaN⁵ kisi shamshiir⁶ ka    1.garden of wounds 2.hundred cuts 3.gripped 4.even though 5.hem, edge 6.sword
The poet/lover’s bosom/heart has received a hundred cuts. The red wounds are like red roses, the whole picture is like a garden of wounds and is worth seeing, even though there are no marks of blood on the edge of the sword. Said Ghalib …
is saadagi pe kaun na mar jaaye aye Khuda
laRte haiN aur haath meN talvaar bhi nahiiN
4
jazba¹-e naa-aashna²-e ishq ki taa’miil³ kar
Khuun-e naahaq⁴ ho to ho is qalb⁵-e aafat-giir⁶ ka    1.feelings, sentiments, may have used it to mean wishes/desires 2.unfamiliar 3.obey, carry out 4.unjustified 5.heart 6.calamity/grief stricken
The beloved is ‘naa-aashna-e ishq’ i.e., she does not appreciate the value of true love, does not understand the traditions of love. But carry out her wishes anyway. Not appreciating the value of true love, she is going to slay you. This ‘killing’ of your grief-stricken heart will be unjustified, but let it be.
5
kya nigaaristaan¹-e hasti² tishna³-e takmiil⁴ hai
naqsh⁵ shikva-sanj⁶ hai har paikar⁷-e tasviir ka     1.world of embellishment/world 2.life 3.thirsty 4.completion, perfection 5.marks, writing 6.weighing/evaluating complaints 7.image, facet
If ‘naqsh’ is interpreted to mean marks/writing/words, then every image/facet of the picture of these words are evaluating the expression and deciding whether to complain. Recall that Ghalib too says …
naqsh faryaadi hai kis ki shooKhi-e tahriir ka
kaaGhazi hai pairahan har paikar-e tasviir ka
Why are these marks/words thinking of complaining? Because the life of the world of beauty is still thirsty for perfection. The poet has not been able to compose the perfect verse.
6
vo meri faryaad¹ par ho maa’el²-e iifa³ magar
be-kamaan⁴-e nutq⁵-e sozaaN⁶ kya karuN is tiir ka   1.appeal, protest 2.inclined towards 3.fulfilling promise 4.without a bow 5.sound, voice 6.burning, painful
The beloved may be inclined to listen/fulfil her promise, if she were to hear the poet/lover’s appeal. But how can he deliver that appeal. The faryaad/appeal is like an arrow, but he has no bow. The bow is supposed to be the ‘nutq-e sozaaN’, without which he cannot shoot the arrow.
7
maiN bhi huN us halqa¹-e daam-e-junuuN² se munsalik³
silsila⁴ hai paauN se paauN ki zanjiir ka    1.circle/group 2.net/web/trap of frenzied passion 3.associated, joined 4.continuation
I too am associated with the group that is caught in the web of frenzied passion. That web is like a chain/zanjiir around his ankles/feet.
8
aarzu¹-e niim-jaaN² hai Khufta³-e dahliiz⁴-e dil
Khaamoshi-e jism⁵ o jaaN⁶ meN shor hai tahsiir⁷ ka   1.desire, longing 2.half-alive 3.hidden 4.threshold 5.body 6.soul 7.grief
The poet/lover is barely alive because of cruelty of the beloved. But he still does not openly speak his ‘aarzu/longing’ for fear of maligning the name of the beloved. But the silence of his body and soul speaks loudly of his grief.
9
vaadi¹-e Khwaab²-e sahr³ meN jaada-paima⁴ gard⁵ hai
sub’h tak dhundla⁶ na jaaye aaiina taa’biir⁷ ka    1.valley 2.dream 3.dawn 4.undertaking travel, blowing 5.dust, fog 6.faded 7.interpretation, fulfilment
The poet/lover is in a trance-like dream late into the night, into the small hours near dawn. His trance is like a dream, but dust/fog blows through the ‘valley of his dreams’. This could be the dust/fog of grief. It might fade away the image in the mirror of his dreams, thus losing all hope of fulfilment.