koī ye kah de gulshan gulshan
laakh balā.eñ ek nasheman
let someone proclaim from garden to garden
there are innumerable calamities but only one nest
qātil rahbar qātil rahzan
dil sā dost na dil sā dushman
expert guide killer highwayman
no friend like heart no enemy like heart
phuul khile haiñ gulshan gulshan
lekin apnā apnā dāman
flowers are blooming in gardens
but each flower has its own fate
ishq hai pyāre khel nahīñ hai
ishq hai kāre-shīsha-o-āhan
it is love dear game it is not
love is a work of glass and iron
ḳhair mizāj-e-husn kī yā-rab
tez bahut hai dil kī dhaḌkan
let the spirit of love bloom O God
very fast is the beat of heart
aa ki na jaane tujh bin kab se
ruuh hai lāsha jism hai madfan
come without you do not know since when
soul is dead body a grave
aaj na jaane raaz ye kyā hai
hijr kī raat aur itnī raushan
today do not know what the mystery is
it is night of separation but yet it is illuminated
umreñ bītīñ sadiyāñ guzrīñ
hai vahī ab tak ishq kā bachpan
lives have been spent centuries have passed
has remained the same till now love’s childlike innocence
tujh sā hasīñ aur ḳhūn-e-mohabbat
vahm hai shāyad surḳhi-e-dāman
as beautiful as you and slayer of love
I have a fear it may turn out to be bloody
barq-e-havādis allāh allāh
jhuum rahī hai shāḳh-e-nasheman
lessening of calamities oh God oh God
dancing is the branch holding the nest
tū ne sulajh kar gesū-e-jānāñ
aur baḌhā dī shauq kī uljhan
by straightening the tresses of beloved
you have increased the tangles of my love
rahmat hogī tālib-e-isyāñ
rashk karegī pākī-e-dāman
it will be merciful for one demanding rebellion
jealous will be your purity of soul
dil ki mujassam ā.īna-sāmāñ
aur vo zālim ā.īna-dushman
heart’s image is being a mirror
and that tyrant is the mirror of the enemy
baiThe ham har bazm meñ lekin
jhaaḌ ke uTThe apnā dāman
sat in every gathering but
got up leaving what transpired
hastī-e-shā.er allāh allāh
husn kī manzil ishq kā maskan
life of a poet at mercy of God
destination of beauty is love’s abode
rañgīñ fitrat saada tabī.at
farsh-nashīñ aur arsh-nasheman
colorful nature simple state
floor sitter and clestial
kaam adhūrā aur āzādī
naam baḌe aur thoḌe darshan
work incomplete but expecting independence
big reputation but low essence
sham.a hai lekin dhuñdlī dhu.dlī
saayā hai lekin raushan raushan
candle yet dim light
shade but illuminating
kāñToñ kā bhī haq hai kuchh āḳhir
kaun chhuḌā.e apnā dāman
even thorns have some rights
who is to save one’s fate
chaltī phirtī chhāñv hai pyāre
kis kā sahrā kaisā gulshan
world is a transient moving shadow
whose desert which garden
Videos:
- Begum Akhtar’s rendering of the ghazal, but it is incomplete. https://youtu.be/gCpVLciXIJg
- Rageshri Das’s rendering, also incomplete.
Suffern, New York, Oct. 10, 2021
maharaj.kaul@yahoo.com
