Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. aarzu lakhnavi-syed anvar husain (1874-1951). He was born into a well to do family and was educated at home learning faarsi and urdu. Started composing early. There are several collections of Ghazal and nazm, marsia and masnavi. His inheritance did not last very long and he struggled to make a living. Probably was supported by some of his 140 shaagird and for a while with employment at the raampur court, editing magazines. He wrote some plays that became very popular, and theatre companies employed him to write plays in connection with which he traveled to kalkata, bambaii and lahore. He also wrote dialogue and lyrics for the budding film industry. He was invited to a ‘hind-paak mushaaera’ in Jan 1951 to karaachi where he died in April 1951. This Ghazal is linked to shooKhi-e tahriir ka under Ghalib naqsh-e qadam on the Theme Index page.
1
zaKhm¹-e baazuu² se hai gahra³ zaKhm-e dil naKhchiir⁴ ka
us nigaah⁵-e naaz⁶ se halka hai palla⁷ tiir ka    1.wound 2.side of the bosom 3.deep 4.prey 5.glance 6.coquetry 7.weighing pan of scales
The poet/lover is the target and the beloved is the hunter. She has shot an arrow – a glance of coquetry at the prey naKhchiir. In the literal sense the arrow penetrates the side the breast/chest and makes a wound but the wound in the heart is much deeper. Thus, the effect of the arrow itself is less than the effect of the glance on the feelings of love in the heart. palla halka hai means that weighed on a scales, the arrowhead comes up short compared to the glance itself.
2
tarkash¹-e sayyaad²-e zaalim³ dil hai is naKhchiir⁴ ka
jis ka har naala⁵ bajaa’e-Khud⁶ hai paikaaN⁷ tiir ka     1.quiver 2.hunter 3.cruel 4.prey 5.cry, wail 6.by itself 7.arrowhead
The prey’s (lover’s) heart is like the quiver of the cruel hunter (the beloved); each of its cries (naala) is itself an arrowhead (paikaaN); the heart not only suffers arrows shot at it, but also contains the weapons/arrows of its torment as if it is a quiver for the cruel hunter, suggesting self-inflicted suffering or inescapable pain from love.
3
al-madad¹ aye zor²-e vahshat³! aa chali fasl-e-bahaar⁴
khiinchta hai jaise phir koi siraa⁵ zanjiir ka    1.help! 2.power 3.madness 4.flowering season, spring 5.end
Spring is a season of joy and rejuvenation and of connecting with love. In poetic tradition the lover goes mad because of his yearning. The poet calls for the power of madness to help. With the arrival of spring he feels as if someone is pulling the end of his chain … he is chained to the beloved and it feels as if she is pulling that chain.
4
tiir patthar par laga kar dil meN kya pachtaa’e¹ hum
unn ka uff karna keh jaana aah² se taasiir³ ka    1.regretted 2.sigh 3.effect
The lover has ‘shot an arrow’ – a deep and painful sigh – at the beloved. It is as if he were shooting at a hard rock. The next part can be interpreted in two different ways depending on how sincere the ‘uff’ of the beloved is. (a)say that the ‘uff’ is one of annoyance, like shooing a mosquito away. Then the poet’s heart regrets having shot the arrow because he learns that his sigh has no effect. (b)say that the ‘uff’ is one of pain, however slight. Then the poet says, why should my heart regret shooting an arrow, after all I learnt that it has had some effect.
5
dil safaaii¹ meN hai shiisha², jazb³ meN aaiina⁴ hai
is varaq⁵ par donoN hi jaanib⁶ hai ruKh⁷ tasviir ka    1.clarity, purity 2.clear glass 3.absorption 4.mirror 5.page 6.sides 7.face, image
In clarity and purity the heart is like clear glass and in absorption it is like a mirror. Because of its purity a clear image of the beloved or the divine can enter his heart and because of its absorption, the image gets captured like in a mirror and retained; it shows up on both sides of the heart.
6
chhuTT¹ ga’e qaidi², bandhe baiThe haiN is kuuche³ meN hum
TuuTna mumkin⁴ nahiN is qaid⁵-e be-zanjiir⁶ ka     1.released 2.prisoners 3.lane 4.possible 5.captivity 6.without chains
The lover is a captive without chains, but emotionally tied to the street of the beloved. Even though he has no chains, he cannot leave, while all the other prisoners have been released and have left. The ‘other prisoners’ could be those who are merely lustful and not as sincere as the poet/lover.
7
kis se bedardi¹ ye hoti tujh se² zaalim³ ke sivaa⁴
haath bhi dil par na rakhna khiinch lena tiir ka    1.torture 2.short for ‘jaise’, like 3.cruel 4.except
Who else can torture like this except for a cruel one like you; you pull out the arrow without even placing a hand on the heart i.e., she shoots the arrow of her glance and looks away without a second thought.
8
maiN yahaaN taRpa¹, vahaaN voh karvaTeN² lene lage
haaN, mere dard-e-jigar³, ye hai mazaa⁴ taasiir⁵ ka    1.writhed in pain 2.turn over in sleep 3.aching heart 4.pleasure 5.effect
Yes, my aching heart, the real pleasure of effect is when I writhe in pain, the beloved turns restlessly in her sleep.
9
hai tasavvur¹ ki ravish² vahshat³ meN kya mo’jiz-numa⁴
kaan tak aata nahiN Ghul⁵ paauN ki zanjiir ka    1.imagination 2.path, manner, habit 3.madness 4.miraculous 5.noise, clamour
In classical poetry the lover can be like a madman, chained to restrain him. He might break a link of his chain and run off into the desert with bits of chain still hanging on his feet. But his imagination makes him oblivious of the weight, pain and noise of the chain. How miraculous is the way of imagination, in the madness of passion that the clamour of the chain of the feet does not reach the ears.
10
dard-e-pinhaaN¹ ne diya aashiq ka har paikar² meN saath
raNg uRaa³ jaata hai chehre⁴ se meri tasviir ka    1.hidden pain 2.form, manifestation, aspect 3.going pale/colourless 4.face
The lover’s hidden pain is with him in all his aspects; even his picture/portrait loses its colour and his face becomes pale.
11
kasrat¹-e isyaaN² bachaa’egi³ mujhe roz-e-hisaab⁴
kaatib⁵-e aamaal⁶ ko vaqfa⁷ nahiN tahriir⁸ ka     1.abundance 2.sins 3.save 4.day of reckoning 5.record keeper 6.actions 7.time interval 8.writing
The sheer number of sins will save me on the day of judgment. The record keeper will just have no time to write them all down. The implication is that he will give up in exhaustion and the poet/sinner will get away with a clean sheet.
12
is javaab¹-e dil² ke sadqe³ aur bhi dil phaT gaya
chaak⁴ kar ke bhejna kya farz⁵ tha tahriir⁶ ka    1.reply 2.heart, message of the heart 3.used sarcastically, sacrifice self, pay homage 4.tear 5.necessary 6.writing, letter
The poet/lover sent a letter to the beloved through a messenger. He calls this message his dil suggesting that he poured his heart into the letter. The beloved replied by tearing his letter into pieces and sending them back. He says, I pay homage to the reply of the message of my heart; my heart is torn; was it necessary for the beloved to tear my letter into shreds.
13
DhuunDhte¹ phirte haiN usko dil meN jo maujuud² hai
aarzu³ kuchh bhi nahiN, ye phe’r⁴ hai taqdiir⁵ ka     1.searching 2.present 3.pen-name 4.manipulation, trickery as in heraa-pherii 5.fate
We search everywhere for the one who resides in our hearts; O aarzu, this is nothing but fate’s trickery. The trickery is that you are looking for the divine (or the beloved) outside you, when they are in your heart all the time.