Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. daaGh dehlavi (1831-1905), grandson through marriage of his mother to the son of bahadur shah zafar. After 1857, he had to move to rampur and later to hyderabad, where he died. His Ghazal are more earthy and romantic than sufiyaana or philosophical. He was a disciple of zauq, whose rivalry with/jealousy of Ghalib is well known. But daaGh had good relations with Ghalib and wrote this Ghazal in the bahr of Ghalib, using many of the same phrases. It is linked to Ghalib naqsh-e qadam and to Ghalib peshrau-hamasr.
1
chalte nahiN haiN saath mere hamsafar¹ ke paaNv
har gaam² par dabaane paRe raahbar³ ke paaNv    1.fellow traveler 2.step 3.guide
I am interpreting the hamsafar and raahbar to be the same person. The raahbar, instead of leading and showing the way, keeps falling behind and complains of aching feet. The poet/seeker himself has to nurse the raahbar by pressing his feet and coaxing him to continue and show him the way. Said Ghalib …
bhaag’e th’e hum bahut, so usi ki saza hai yeh
ho kar asiir daabt’e haiN raahzan ke paaNv
2
aaNkhoN ke bal¹ chaluNga teri raah²-e shauq³ meN
moo’e⁴ mizsha⁵ baneNge meri chashm⁶-e tar⁷ ke paaNv    1.supported by 2.path 3.desire 4.hair, follicle 5.eyelashes 6.eyes 7.moist, teary
Embedded in this is probably the concept of tapasya-penance. The poet/lover/seeker is on the path of love raah-e shauq. To improve his chances of getting to the destination, he offers penance/tapasya by walking on eyes. The hair of his eyelashes serve as the feet of his tearful eyes as they travel seeking a glimpse of the beloved.
3
aati hai koo¹-e yaar² se mastaana³ kis qadar⁴
kya laRkhRaa’e⁵ jaate haiN baad⁶-e sahar⁷ ke paaNv    1.lane 2.beloved 3.intoxicated 4.so much 5.staggering 6.breeze 7.morning
Normally the baad-e sahar- the morning breeze, blows through the garden, wakes up flower buds, makes them bloom and carries the fragrance to the beloved’s land and her bedchamber. Here it is blowing from the lane of the beloved and having picked up fragrance from the beloved’s hair it gets intoxicated so much that its feet stagger.
4
vaqt¹-e Kharaam²-e naaz³ ta’ajjub⁴ nahiN agar
fitne⁵ bhi uR ke choom leN us fitnagar⁶ ke paaNv    1.at the time of 2.walk 3.coquetry 4.surprise 5.tumult, mischief 6.mischief-maker
The beloved is the fitnagar– mischief maker. She causes havoc by taking a coquettish walk through the garden. Here ‘fitna’ itself is personified. The whole group of them ‘fitne’, are enamoured of her titillating gait and its ability to cause havoc. It is much more than any of them can do. Hence, they are eager to kiss her feet to offer a tribute perhaps in the hope that she will teach them some of her tricks.
5
hai kuchh javaab¹-e sust² muqarrar³ keh jo idhar
uThte haiN der der mere naamaabar⁴ ke paaNv    1.answer, reply 2.weak, slow 3.ascertained, decreed, fated 4.messenger
The poet/lover has sent a letter to the beloved via messenger/naamabar. He sees the messenger returning with a reply in his hand. He surmises that it surely must be a standard pre-ordained reply rejecting him and his overtures, which is why the messenger is picking his feet slowly and grudgingly as he returns.
6
chal kar voh mere saath bataa’eN¹ jo raah²-e dost³
aab-e-baqaa⁴ se dho ke piuN maiN Khizar⁵ ke paaNv    1.show 2.path 3.friend, beloved 4.nectar of immortality 5.legendary old man, Methuselah
‘Khizar’ is a legendary old man mentioned in all the religious texts … torah, Bible and the qur’aan. He lived to be a very old man (over 900 years old), traveled and read a lot and discovered the spring of life and drank of it. Here, the poet/lover values the path to the beloved even more than the nectar of life. If Khizr, who is a guide, who knows all the pathways of the world, were to show him the path to the beloved, he would be so grateful as to wash Khizr’s feet with the nectar of life, rather than drink it himself first.
7
sayyaad¹ hum qafas² se chhuTe³ bhi to kya chhuTe
kis kaam⁴ ke haiN taa’er⁵-e be-baal-o-par⁶ ke paaNv    1.captor, hunter, birdcatcher 2.cage 3.released 4.use 5.bird 6.without feathers or wings
In urdu poetic convention, the poet is portrayed as a bird, snared by the birdcatcher and put in a cage. The captor/hunter is often, but not always, the beloved. Here, it may not be. In any case, the poet/bird has been in a cage for a long time and has lost its feathers and wings. What if he gets released from the cage; of what use the feet of wingless/featherless bird. He cannot get back to his aashiyaana/home.
8
laakhoN meN mujh ko taaR¹ gaya voh nigaah²-e naaz³
rakkha jo maiN ne mahfil⁴-e aa’daa⁵ meN Dar⁶ ke paaNv    1.recognized 2.eye, glance 3.coquetry 4.gathering 5.rivals 6.apprehensive, fearful
There is a lot that is unsaid and has to be imagined/assumed. The beloved always has a gathering of admirers around her. All the others are characterized as lustful and fawning, while the poet is the only true lover. The beloved knows this and is confident that he will always be faithful. So she practices all her torture on him. She has thrown him out of her gathering. After a while he returns to this gathering of rivals apprehensively and fearfully but the beloved immediately recognizes him among the thousands of admirers around her. This could be a left handed compliment to himself.
9
aata voh dauR¹ kar shab²-e Gham³ aye duaa⁴-e vasl⁵
allaah ne banaa’e nahiN haiN asar⁶ ke paaNv    1.running 2.night of 3.sorrow 4.prayer 5.union 6.effect, fulfillment
The subject in this she’r is ‘asar’-fulfillment of prayers. It is also the ‘voh’ in the first misra. Thus, god did not give feet to ‘fulfillment’ otherwise it would have come running to me during the night of sorrow, O prayer of union. Thus, the poet has been praying during the night of separation/sorrow and is confident that the sincerity and quality of his prayer is impeccable, but god never gave feet to ‘fulfillment’ otherwise it would have come running – his prayer was so moving.
10
thak-thak¹ ke baiTh jaa’e na kyuN teri raah² meN
lohe³ ke to nahiN hai ilaahi⁴ bashar⁵ ke paaNv     1.tired 2.path 3.steel 4.my lord 5.human
Humans being are on a path to the divine. Of course they will bever reach their destination. Why should they not get tired again and again and sit down on the path, O lord; after all they don’t have feet of steel.
11
voh aa’e kis tarah¹ ye gaya kis tariiq² se
haiN mere dil ke paaNv na teri nazar³ ke paaNv    1.which way 2.wich method 3.glance
The beloved has cast a glance at the poet/lover and taken away his heart. How did this happen; neither my heart has feet nor your glance.
12
siine se apne saath uRa kar ye le gaye
goya¹ tumhaare tiir² the mere jigar³ ke paaNv    1.as if 2.arrows 3.liver/heart
The beloved’s glance is often described as an arrow that pierces the heart and the liver (sometimes used synonymously). In this case, the arrow pierces the bosom and goes out the other way, carrying the heart with it as if the arrows are the feet of the heart.
13
pahuNchi¹ hai ek aan² meN baab³-e qubuul⁴ tak
phailaa’e⁵ kya duaa ne mere haath-bhar⁶ ke paaNv    1.reached 2.moment 3.door 4.acceptance, granting 5.spread, stretch 6.figuratively and contextually it can mean long, short or unimportant
This is a play on words haath and paaNv together, one taking the measure of the other. Beyond that I don’t see much. The poet/lover has prayed (perhaps to get access to the beloved) and surprisingly, his prayer has been answered. The prayer stretched its long legs and in a moment reached the door of acceptance.
14
aye daaGh¹ aadmi ki rasaa’ii² to dekhna
sar par dhare³ haiN arsh⁴ ne Khair-ul-bashar⁵ ke paaNv    1.pen-name 2.reach 3.carrying on top of the head 4.sky 5.blessing for humanity-a phrase used as a name/attribute of mohammed
This has reference to the story of ‘me’raaj’ – mohammed’s ascension to heaven to be in the presence of god. In traveling there he stepped on the head of the sky – the sky carried his feet on its head. The poet marvels at the ‘reach’ of the human being – that he should achieve such an exalted postion.