yeh hum jo hijr mai deewar-o-dar ko dekhte hain
kabhi saaba ko kabhi nama’bar ko dekhte hain
Line 1/2 - In the times of this separation from you, I keep looking absent minded at the doors and walls of my home. Sometimes I wait in anticipation of the messenger and sometimes for the wind coming from your direction for the winds coming may have some hint of you.
wo aaein ghar mai hamare khuda ki qudrat hai
kabhi hum un ko kabhi apne ghar ko dekhte hain
Line 3/4 - My lover has come to my house; it's a miracle from the God. I sometimes look at her, and sometimes I look at the ruins that are my only abode. Such beauty amid the desolation and ruins! How do I get to deserve this luck? This has to be a miracle from God.
nazar lage na kahin us ke dast-o-bazaboo ko
yeh log kiyu mere zakhm-e-jigar ko dekhte hain
Line 5/6 - May I not cast an evil eye looking at the lovely hand and shoulder of my beloved? Why do people look at my tortured heart (due to this unflinching love) and gossip about it? The poet says that he has been cautious to not stare at his beloved so as not to cast an evil eye and also catch the society's attention. Yet why do people not let me live peacefully?
tere jawahir-e-taraf-e-kala ko kiya dekhen
hum auj-e-talaa-e-laal-o-gohar ko dekhte hain
Line 7/8 - What to see/say about your jewelry and your golden belt and that crown of yours? The poet laments on the stark social differences between them and says that I see my luck and my position (lowly existence) on one hand and your opulent string of pearls and diamonds on the other.
Meaning of difficult words :-
saaba : wind
nama’bar : messenger
hijr : separation
dast-o-baazoo : hands and shoulders
jawahir : jewellery
taraf : golden belt
kala : crown
auj : position
taala : luck
laal-o-gohar : pearls and diamonds
Read more posts on Ghalib.
The last sher basically translates to:
ReplyDeletewhy pay attention to the gems that adorn your crown (headgear to be precise)
we marvel at the elevated status of the gems (coz you decided to use them to add to your beauty)