By Asghar Vasanwala
Ghalib, his Ghazals, his poems, his genius, and his wits have always fascinated millions of Urdu lovers including myself. Those who want to read my previous work please send me an email request; I will email back my previous explanations just for asking.
This is my 54th installment. I have received excellent response from lot of friends; both Urdu and non-Urdu speakers. Please know that this is my own, Asghar Vasanwala’s, work and not a forwarding of someone else’s work as some of you thought. Please forward this to your friends. Also please send me your comments/complements. I will appreciate if you forward my email addresses of your Urdu/non-Urdu friends.
Here is today’s verse (sh’er) & its explanation in Urdu, Gujarati, and English
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These are 4th & 5th verses of Ghalib’s 17th Ghazal
Moj-e-sarab-e-dasht-e-vafa ka na pooch haal
Do not get me started on dunes of love mirage
Har zarra, misl-e-johar-e-tegh, aab-dar tha
Every grain of its sand was like a spirited, sharp sward
sarab=mirage dasht=desert vafa=faithfulness (to love) Zarra=grain, particle
misl=like johar=sharpness, mettle, shine tegh=sward aab-dar=sharpened, quenched
Meaning 4th verse:
My friend: Do not ask me about the wilderness of love and its mirage. Devotion to love is a mirage that attracts thirsty with its illusion of water and greenery; then kills him of thirst and exhaustion. Know this much: every grain of sand dune of this mirage is like a spirited sward. If so, how could someone putting a foot in the wilderness of love can save himself. It will ultimately take toll of his life
Finer aspects of this verse: Ghalib has likened sand dunes with waves in ocean, which is unique. Words wave, mirage, quenching, and aab-dar, all have connection with water, a terrific selection of words.
Kam jante the hum bhi gham-e-ishq ko, par ab
Inexperienced me had a reduced idea about perils of love
Dekha, to kam hu-e pe gham-e-rozgar tha
I realized: when love sorrows ebb, mundane sorrows surround
Gham-e-ishq=love perils Gham=trouble, sorrow, pain gham-e-rozgar=sorrows of livelihood
Meaning 5th verse:
Having zero inexperience in love, I underestimated its perils. However, when my love ebbed, all other livelihood problems surrounded me. Then only, I realized that no worldly perils came close to love pain; love pain rules supreme. In one other verse Ghalib says, “Gham-e-ishq na hot to ghame-e-rozgar hota,” meaning if love problems had not befallen on me, livelihood problems would have surrounded me. It is better having one sorrow, that is, love, rather than having millions of mundane sorrows.
When one chases his goal with single mindedness, he forgets the world and its problems. However, when one fails, or gives up that goal, he feels the vacuum. He realizes that now he has to face other challenges, i.e., the sorrows of world.
Finer aspects of this verse: Ghalib does not repeat words in a verse. In this verse, Ghalib has repeated Kam and Gham. However, he uses both words as compound words and as phrases. Such usage is permitted.
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Asghar Vasanwala can be reached at asgharf@att.net