Wine of Love-Persian Ghazals of Ghablin

Wine of Love Persian Ghazals of Ghalib

Translated and Explicated by Sarfaraz Khan Niazi

and Maryam Tawoosi Ghalib Academy of America, Chicago, IL USA and Idara Yadgar-e-Ghalib, Karachi, Pakistan

ISBN: 978-0-9714746-2-8 First published 2022 by Ghalib Academy of America 20 Riverside Drive Deerfield, IL 60015. USA and Idara Yadgar-e-Ghalib Niazi, Sarfaraz K Tawoosi, Maryam Wine of Love Copyright© Ghalib Academy of America All Rights Reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (Digital or otherwise), without prior written permission of the Publisher. Artwork by Mahmoud Farshchian, a master of Persian painting is reproduced with the permission of the copyright owner.

‫بب نق‬ ‫افرسی بين ات ينی ش‌اهی رنگ رنگ‬ ‫بگ مجم‬ ‫ب‬ ‫م‬ ‫س‬ ‫ذر از وهعء اردو هك ی رنگ ن‌ ت‬

See Farsi to see the impression of colors Skip the Urdu collection that is my faded color.

3

This picture is apparently Najm-Uldoleh, Dabir Ulmolk, Asadollah Khan, Bahador Nizam Jang also known as Ghalib. ‫لل‬ ‫هم اسدا هم و هم اسدالهیم‬

‫غالب انم آورم انم و نشانم مپرس‬

I am the renowned Ghalib, don’t ask my name and address; I am Asadullah and also a devotee of Asadullah.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi To the memory of my father, Allama Niaz Fatehpuri, on whose grave this Persian verse of Ghalib is engraved:

‫بیا هب خاک من و آرمیدنم بنگر‬

‫ز من هب رجم تپیدن کناره می‌رکدی‬

You would distance yourself from me for the crime of being restless; Come to my grave and see how peacefully I am lying down under the dust!

Maryam Tawoosi Dedicated to my wonderful children, Ameen, Ali and Aram who have taught me the meaning of unconditional love. To my dear friend, Sam Malhotra, who has taught me how to be patient and to my esteemed teacher, Dr. Sarfaraz Niazi, who throughout this journey, shared his treasure of knowledge and wisdom with me.

Table of Contents Introduction.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Preface by Ghalib to Farsi Divan in Farsi.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Preface by Ghalib to Farsi Divan in English.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Preface by Ghalib to Urdu Divan in Farsi.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Preface by Ghalib to Urdu Divan in English.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Foreword in Farsi.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Foreword in English. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 About Poetry of Ghalib in Farsi.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 About Poetry of Ghalib in English.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 List of Ghazals.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Translations and Explications of 334 Ghazals.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Glossary.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 827

Introduction

T

ranslating poetry from one language to another in a manner that remains true to the writer’s intent while conveying the thoughts, feelings, and emotions that a work evokes is a nuanced art. Capturing the essence of a writer’s poetic work with integrity requires the entirety of a translator’s experience, skills, and cultural understanding for a natural communication evoking the original work. This is the first complete English translation of Mirza Ghalib’s Persian Ghazals by two dedicated collaborators nearly 200 years after this collection was first published. Sarfaraz Niazi published the first complete English translation of Mirza Ghalib’s Urdu Ghazals, Love Sonnets of Ghalib and Wine of Passion, twenty years ago, a translation that has outsold every other book on Ghalib’s work, except his Urdu divan. The translation of this book has taken over decades to compile. A Farsi divan of Ghalib, first published and later republished in India, had numerous mistakes in calligraphy, requiring meticulous corrections reconciling it with all available versions of his Divan, including the divan published in Iran by Mohammad Hassan Haeri and a divan by Mohsen Kiani that was printed in the Naskh font. Ensuring that mistakes were caught, the Ghazals in the Farsi divan were retyped and presented in this book in an artistic font, Shekasteh. This effort required dozens of reviews, proofreading, and corrections that took years to compile a collection of Ghalib’s Persian ghazals, as true to the original as possible. We are calling it a nuskhey-e Sarfaraz-o-Maryam. Ghalib wrote a formidable and thought-provoking preface for his divan, displaying his complex relationship with his literary composition in Persian. Our English translation is presented alongside the Persian preface. To the best of our knowledge, this preface has been translated into English for the first time. Ghalib’s poetry, both Urdu and Persian, is challenging to understand. However, the preface presented many challenges in translating both its vocabulary and the intent, and hopefully, readers will enjoy reading Ghalib’s introduction to his work. A Farsi preface that Ghalib wrote for his Urdu divan (it was a traditional custom to write a preface in Farsi) is also presented here, along with its English translation, to let the readers appreciate Ghalib’s skills of verbosity; these translations may also help understand his poetry better. We are also fortunate to have a foreword written by a well-known Persian scholar, Bahram Sepasgozar, who presents Ghalib’s work from a unique perspective as a native Persian scholar. In over four decades of his career, Mr. Sepasgozar has published extensively and promoted art, literature, and comparative sciences. His more than 50 publications include books, poetry collections, screenwriting, translation of books, research articles on ancient literature, critique of cinema, photography, painting, sculpture, and many other subjects. Mr. Sepasgozar lives in Germany. A collection of Ghazals is incomplete without Persian art, and we are pleased to include several paintings from one of the most renowned Persian artists, Mahmoud Farshchian. Master Mahmoud Farshchian, an octogenarian, was born in the city of Isfahan in Iran. He studied the works of the great Western masters of painting in Europe, developing an innovative and unique artistic style that is just as ethereal as the love poems of Ghalib. His works are globally acknowledged and inspire art aficionados in diverse cultures. Upon returning to Iran, he became the Director of The National Institute of Fine Arts and a professor at the University of Tehran’s School of Fine Arts. His powerful and innovative paintings are vibrant canvases that fuse traditional and modern esthetics, a hallmark of his unique painting style that we are honored to present in this book with his permission and courtesy. We hope you will enjoy this fruit of labor as much as we have enjoyed putting it in for the love of Ghalib.

Sarfaraz and Maryam April 2022

7

8

‫دیباهچ غالب هک رب دیوان افرسی خود ن گاشته است‬ ‫َ‬ ‫َ نم‬ ‫ی گاهن زیدان را هب زبانی هک بخشیدۀ اوست سپاسگزارم و خود رما هچ اپیاب سپاسگزاری اوست هک چون منی را هک رحف از زَخف ی شناسم آن همه نیرو‬ ‫نخس‬ ‫رکامت رکد هک رپده از رخ این شاهد نوخاسته‪ ،‬هک رخد تین دیوانش انمند ربرگفتم و هب هوای جلوۀ دیگر هنوز صفحه‌ی اندیشه بیرنگ آن نپذریفته‪ ،‬آئینه‬

‫یش نن‬ ‫زدائی از رس رگفتم‪ .‬بارخدایا ردد انروائی کاال دل را آنچنان رفو نگرفته هک تن هب زبونی ردندهم و بدین آرزو منت ربخو تن هم هک یا رب پس از من‪ ،‬چون‬

‫سخ‬ ‫واالی ن رد هچ اپهی بلند است و رسرشته‌ی کمند خیالم رد آن رفازستان هب کدامین رذوه‬ ‫من هب رگد رسااپی‌ِگفتار رگدیده‌ای بیآرفینی‪ ،‬ات وا رسد هک دیوار‬ ‫کاخ ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫بند‪.‬‬

‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫ذوقی‌ست همدمی هب فغان‪ ،‬بگذرم ز رکش‬

‫ه‬ ‫اپی زعزیان خلیده باد‬ ‫خار ر ت هب ِ‬

‫پس‬ ‫بنام ازید نخستین نقابی‌ست از روی شاهد ره هفت رکدۀ معنی هب جنبش نسیم ربافتاده‪ ،‬یعن‬ ‫ن‬ ‫نگ کشاکش دست انکشیده‪ ،‬باز ین رچاغی‪‎‬ست از رگمی‬ ‫ی‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫نف‬ ‫رچاغان نیم سوخته پهلو‪ ،‬رخ هب ارفوختن داده‪ ،‬یعنی داغ منت ِخس اندیده‪ ،‬کهن داغهای جنون‪‎‬ست‪ ،‬رسارس هب انخ ِن شوخی س رخاشیده‪ .‬رگمارگم‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫مشع‬ ‫خوانهب‌ی ردون‪‎‬ست هب تف پنهانی دل انهگ ازانسور رتاویده‪ ،‬کاغذی ریپهنانند چون پیکرتصوریاز حی‬ ‫رت واقعه خاموش ل هب کف رگفت گانند چون آرذاز‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫دود دل سیه پوش‪.‬‬

‫نج‬ ‫قلزم‌آشامان نگه را هب دستگیری صالی رفاوانی باده ردیاب‪ ،‬هک این خسروی میکده‌ای‏ست رد هب روی ا من باز رکده‪ ،‬ززمهم سنجان رطب را هب دم‬ ‫سازی‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫نجم‬ ‫خس‬ ‫ن‬ ‫وید انبوهی نغمه بنواز‪ ،‬هک این باربدی رپده ای‌ست ازبال موسیقار ساز رکده‪ ،‬روی شبستانی‪‎‬ست هب صاعقه‌ی رسرگمی ذوق ا ن‌آرا آتش خیز رگدیده‪ ،‬هب‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ِ ِ‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫کس‬ ‫چش ن خش گ‬ ‫ازجای خا تری از اندوه رسآدمن هن گاهم رپده‌گشای‪ .‬قیصری شارستانی‪‎‬ست هب ززلهل‏ی‬ ‫وجد دل کاررفما از هم اپشیده‪ ،‬هب شورافکنی‬ ‫مک‌ز ِی رد ند ِی ِ‬ ‫ِ ِ‬ ‫تّ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫خس‬ ‫شکس‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ردد رب ت ِن بارانهم داستان‌رسای‪ .‬نگویم دود رچاغست یا الهل و داغ‪ ،‬اما سوختگی را رسگذشت است و تگی را رویداد‪ .‬نگویم جلی‬ ‫ات ش رذه‌اهی آفتا ی از ِ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫ح ّ‬ ‫س طلس‬ ‫م‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ق‬ ‫م‬ ‫جن‬ ‫پن‬ ‫ش‬ ‫ش‬ ‫بس‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ش‬ ‫س‬ ‫س‬ ‫خ‬ ‫پ‬ ‫عل‬ ‫عل‬ ‫ت‬ ‫و طوراست یا ت و ور‪ ،‬اما انزش را رو ت و آرا ش را واد‪ .‬م ه و دود ا ت‪ ،‬باز ه‌ی زرد ت یال‪ ،‬ه هان و دود یدا‪ .‬دل وح‬ ‫طلس‬ ‫طلس‬ ‫جادوی فکر‪ .‬ارب گهراپش و باد الماس‌فشان‪ ،‬اندیشه طومار نیرنگ و لب افسون‌خوان‪.‬‬ ‫م و زبان م‌گشا‪ .‬هن گاهم‌ی ارب و باد است‪ ،‬ربانگیخته‏ی‬ ‫ِ‬

‫کم‬ ‫خی‬ ‫جنبش‬ ‫ل زغالی‪‎‬ست‪ ،‬هب سامان ی هک رد ین گاه روی داده است‪ ،‬از دام بدرجسته‪ .‬دود کبابی‪‎‬ست‪ ،‬هب اندازه چیپ و اتبی هک از شعله رد دل افتاده است‪،‬‬

‫ن‬ ‫حقی‬ ‫ربهواتتق بسته‪ .‬جمالی‪‎‬ست رد رپده‏ی نمایش خویش‪ ،‬مشاهط‌ی قی را ستایش ن گار‪ .‬نهالی‪‎‬ست‪ ،‬رد ساهی‌ی ربومندی خویش‪ ،‬خلبند ازل را سپاسگزار‪.‬‬ ‫مثنوی‪:‬‬

‫‪9‬‬

‫بخ‬

‫ای نهان‬

‫ش آش کارنواز‬

‫رشری زک تو رد دل سنگ است‬

‫ای بساط زمین‌نشینان را‬ ‫از‬

‫نوبهار‬

‫رگ‬

‫انهف‌گشای‬

‫ای فکنده هب روی شاهد ذات‬

‫هب رفوغت مهین نیایش جای‬ ‫ای فلک‌اه حباب قلزم تو‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫از رحیق خمت هب دری مغان‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫بودنی ش خوب و زشت توئی‬

‫ای زگین‬

‫نق‬

‫ش‌اه کشیدۀ تو‬

‫دیده را جوی خون گشادۀ توست‬ ‫ّ خس‬ ‫ای رما رف‬

‫روی‬

‫داده‬

‫ت‬ ‫هم هب سلیم جعز تن زده‌ام‬ ‫انتوانی‬

‫قوی‬

‫اساسی‌اهست‬

‫دل هب غم جان هب تن رگامی ساز‬ ‫لع‬ ‫رب رخ ل جلوۀ رنگ‌ست‬ ‫ِ‬

‫وی‬

‫مشام‬

‫ی گاهن‌‌بینان‬

‫را‬

‫صب‬ ‫وز دم باد ح غالیه‌سای‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫عنبرین رطه از نقاب صفات‬ ‫از‬

‫بساط‬

‫کیوازنای‬

‫سیاه‬

‫وی زمین الی بادۀ خم تو‬

‫الی اپالی می‬

‫سهی‬

‫ل‌فشان‬

‫رونق کعبه و کنشت توئی‬

‫ره هک و ره هچ آرفیدۀ تو‬

‫انهل را بال ربق دادۀ تست‬ ‫اپرسی را هب من نوی داده‬

‫یش‬ ‫زک تو رد دمح خو تن زده‌ام‬ ‫خود نمائی خدا شناسی‌اهست‬

‫ضم‬ ‫لع‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫سنج‬ ‫ن آرفین خدای گیتی آرای را ستایم‪ ،‬هک ات نهانخاهن‌ی یرم را از رفاوانی رن گارنگ معنی هب ل و گهر انباشت‪ ،‬بازویم را هب رتازوی رمجان ی‪ ،‬و خاهم‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫تحس‬ ‫ام را هن گاهم‌ی گهراپشی ارزانی داشت‪ .‬این است رای گان دهندۀ منت اننهنده‪ .‬نورنواز داور ریپوزرگ را انزم هک چون تن هب کشاکش ین دادن ننگ‬

‫شم‬ ‫چش‬ ‫رگانمایگی بیانم شناخت‪ ،‬هب انزش واالئی بهین روش‪‎‬اه و ربازش زیبائی زگین ادااه از قبول خلق بی نیازم ساخت‪ .‬آنت‪ ،‬د ن کام آرفیننده هب کوری م‬ ‫هم‬ ‫شم‬ ‫چشم‬ ‫د ن‪ ،‬ربزگینندۀ فطرت‪ ،‬اپکیزگی گورهم را ردخور آالیش داغ ی ندید و پیداست هک یکتائی زج اور را زنیبد‪ .‬الرجم ژمه‌ام را رد خوانهب فشانی با زبانم همداستان‬ ‫غم‬ ‫ن‬ ‫نب‬ ‫رکد‪ .‬زهی ی گاهن داور داان‪ ،‬رحمت حوصله‌ی آرفینش را گنجائی اندوه خواری من خشید و دانست هک رنجور زج هب تیمار او شکیبد‪ .‬ره آینه دلم را ردین جان‌زگائی‬

‫قم‬ ‫نفس‬ ‫رب من هب ردد آورد‪ .‬خهی مهربان خدای تواان هک هب هوایش سینه از بیتابی م آرذن گار‪ ،‬هب ثنایش صفحه از شادابی ر م بهاراندای‪ .‬نهادی رد گداز هفت دوزخ‬

‫بخش‬ ‫غوهط خوار‪ .‬سوادی از راز هشت گلشن رپده گشای‪ .‬رخد آشوب ززمهم‌ای هک هب ذوق ی نشاط سماعش زرهه از آسمان رفود آید‪ ،‬هب زبانم ودیعت نهادۀ‬ ‫ٰ نش‬ ‫جنبش‬ ‫اوست و هوش‌ربا ی هک هب رکشمه‌رزیی انگیز ادایش از حوران طوبی ین ردود آید‪ ،‬هب نی کلکم باز دادۀ او‪.‬‬

‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫‪10‬‬

‫ش‬ ‫ر ح کف جم می ‌چکد از مغز سفالم‬

‫فی‬ ‫نطق‬ ‫سیرابی م ارث ض حکیم است‬

‫یخ‬ ‫تش‬ ‫نعل‬ ‫اتر و پود ریف عقیدت مسلمانیم‪ ،‬و رفزاهن قهرمان قلمرو سخندانی‪ .‬دل هب رشاک ین محمدی آو تن‪ ،‬کیش و آئین من‪ ،‬و طغرای واالی یا اسداهلل الغالب‬

‫نس‬ ‫نق‬ ‫فی‬ ‫ش نگین من‪ .‬الی خم میخاهن‌ی رسدمی بت انچشیدگان س گالند‪ ،‬هک هیچمدانی را این ماهی سیرابی نطق از کجاست‪ ،‬غافل هک نم رشحه‌ی یک ض است‬

‫ش‬ ‫هک سبزه را دمیدن و نهال را رسکشیدن و میوه را رسیدن و لب را ززمهم آرفیدن آموخت‪ .‬و رد رپتو مهتاب ازلی هدایت‪ ،‬بگیر نکردگان اندیشند‬

‫شم‬ ‫هک تیره رسانجامی را این همه روشنائی گفتار رچاست؟ بی خبر هک رفۀ اتبش یک نور است هک ع را هب شعله‪ ،‬و قدح را هب باده‪ ،‬و گل را هب رنگ‪ ،‬و ردون‬

‫شم‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫مج‬ ‫را هب ن ربارفوخت‪ .‬آنکه سیه خیمه‌ی لیلی‌منشان را هب رفوغ ع‌اهی کافوری خاورستان رکد‪ .‬وادی نون‌روشان را از هجوم رکمک شب‌اتب رپداز‬

‫نخ‬ ‫لع‬ ‫گن‬ ‫رچاغان بخشید‪ .‬ریشه‌ی ل آرزو آب از مغز رس اقرون می خورد‪ .‬ماهی‌داری بینوایان ردیاب و خاهم رد ایثار ل و گورهرعض جینه‌ی توانگران‬

‫می‌ربد‪ ،‬رفاوانی دست گاه معنی ن گاران بنگر‪ ،‬باغ از گل‌افشانی نهال‌اهی دست نشان‪ ،‬انهم‌ی اعمال نیکوکاران خدارپست است و راغ از انبوهی گوانگون‬

‫الهل‌اهی خوردو کارگاه خیال هوسناکان شاهد باز‪.‬‬ ‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫رهدلشدهازدوسترداندازسپاس ‌یست‬

‫ماان هک ن گاه غلط انداز ندارد‬

‫نشیم‬ ‫سی‬ ‫سپن‬ ‫ررهو آزرده‌اپی را ساهی‌ی خاربن ن‌رپواز است و رد ج کشاورز اخگر اتفته گوره شب‌رچاغ‪ .‬ل رسشکی هک هب روی ماتمیان می‌دود دیار غم را روائی‬

‫رفمان رد اوست و دامن رب چیده‌ای هک هب دست آزادگان اندراست‪ ،‬ده کیای قلمرو رخسندی را توقیع‪ .‬تنومندان را رخ ربارفوختگی‪ ،‬رفخ رسماهی‪ ،‬همان‬

‫یخ‬ ‫شکس‬ ‫کف خون است هک ارگ هب رشائین دوید‪ ،‬رگمارگم از ژمه ر تیم و ارگ رنگ رگدید‪ ،‬دمادم هب روی تیم‪ .‬خودآرایان را اطلس و سنجاب ارزانی‪ ،‬رفجام زج‬ ‫ن‬ ‫آزردن اندام نیست و ما هب تن از انتوانی اتب رگانی نداریم و هب دل از انزکی ر ج تنگی قبا ربنتابیم‪.‬‬

‫ّ‬ ‫لطافت اتزه بهار رنگ‪‎‬اهی شکسته ردیافتن‪ ،‬هن زرهۀ ره دیده‌ور است و هب زناکت وژیۀ قماش کتانهای مهتابی وارسیدن هن اندازۀ ره اداشناس‪ .‬ارگ رذه از‬

‫شس ّ‬ ‫تف‬ ‫مس‬ ‫ربهنگی‪ ،‬آفتاب پو تی‪ ،‬زرین طیلساانن خودآرای را هچ رکش‪ ،‬و ارگ وریاهن از جگر تگی‪ ،‬ماهتاب آشا تی‪ ،‬شبستانیان آرمیده ردون را هچ خبر‪ .‬داغم‬

‫سخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫از کوهت نظران تنگ‌ م هک دمیدن اتزه گل از گیاه‪ ،‬وردخشیدن ربق هب شبهای سیاه شگفت ندارند و جنبیدن زبانهای گویا هب ن‪‎‬اهی نغز‪ ،‬دشخوار ان گارند‪.‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫بلب سن‬ ‫نف‬ ‫غنچه شکین س است‪ ،‬و باد غالیه سای‪ ،‬و گل گشاده روی‪ ،‬و ل نوا ج‪ ،‬زبان گنه رکده است هک ن رسای نباشد؟ مهر جلوه رباتبد و رذه بیتابی و بحر‬

‫خم‬ ‫ن قط شتل‬ ‫نس‬ ‫ست‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ش‬ ‫گف س‬ ‫ت این رگوه‪ ،‬باده رد خاهن‌ی توفیق همان قدر بود هک رحیفان گذشته را رتدماغ‬ ‫روا ی و ره ا م‪ .‬دل را ته ا ت هک از ورش وه آید؟ ماان هب دا ِ‬

‫نجم‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ساخت‪ .‬حالیا بساط زبم ن ربچیده و جام و سبو ربرس هم شکسته و ازان قلزم قلزم راوق ی رب جای نمانده پندارند‪ .‬کاش هب ا نی هک من رد رفودین رده هب‬

‫َ‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫لع‬ ‫م‬ ‫حلقه‌ی اوباش قدح یگیرم رفارسند ات وارسند‪ ،‬هک می رفاوان است و ساقی بی ردیغ ش‪ .‬پیماهن‌اه رجهع‌رزی است و لبها ا طش گوی‪ّٰ .‬هّٰلل رَدمن اقل‪:‬‬

‫‪11‬‬

‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫هنوز آن ارب رحمت ردفشان‌ست‬

‫می و میخاهن با مهر و نشان‌ست‬

‫ّ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫که‬ ‫آری‪ ،‬صهبای ن هب روزگار من از نگی تند و رپزور است و شب اندیشه را هب رف دمیدن سپیدۀ سحری ربات رفاوانی نور است‪ ،‬ره آئینه رفت گان‬

‫بس‬ ‫بس‬ ‫رسخوش غنوده‌اند و من رخا تم‪ .‬پیشینیان رچاغان بوده‌اند و من آفتا تم‪.‬‬ ‫قطعه‪:‬‬

‫مسن‬ ‫ج شوکت رعفی هک بود شیرازی‬

‫هب سومنات خیالم ردآی ات بینی‬

‫مشو اسیر زاللی هک بود خوانساری‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫روان رفوز ربو دوش‌اهی زاّنری‬

‫سن‬ ‫پیم‬ ‫قلم هک رودبار انپیداکنار اندیشه را هنجارۀ آب ج بوده است‪ ،‬هب روزگار زگیده یابیم لؤلؤ خیزرگدابی وده است هک از بس هک رد آن آدم شد هب انف صدف‌اهی‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫شب‬ ‫بس‬ ‫هب گوره آ تن خلیده‪ ،‬پنداری خط شعاعی مهر است هب مغز نمستان رفو دویده ورق هک میکدۀ ن را کاهس‌ی باده پیمائی است هب دوران پسندیده جوئیم از‬

‫چم‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫طین‬ ‫بادۀ انبی شاداب رشحه‌ی ربائیست هک از بس هک نم آن قدسی زالل کیفیت نشه‌ی خضری هب تش رد آورده‪ ،‬گوئی ن رسماهی‌ی سفالی است دسته دسته‬ ‫پس‬ ‫ریحان از خویش رب آورده دل هب نور دین ارفوخته‌ی باز ین وخشورم؛ ارگ گویم هک گذشتن من هب اپهی‌ی از گذشت گان عجب نیست‪ ،‬هچ عجب؟ رپورش‬

‫سنج‬ ‫نخس‬ ‫هم‬ ‫آموخته‌ی تین دستورم‪ ،‬ارگ م هک رسآدمن من رد شیوه رب فنان شگفت نیست‪ ،‬هچ شگفت؟ خوان ازیدی نیایش هب رتۀ ستایش خویش آراستن‬

‫سع من‬ ‫بخش‬ ‫ت‬ ‫هب شمارۀ شهای داورازفونی ذوق سپاس خواستن است‪ .‬کلف ربرطف یم رد عم رپستی است‪ ،‬هن رد خود رفوشی‪ .‬ززمهم‌ی نعت و منقبت رد یک‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫پی‬ ‫رپده هب یک آهنگ رسودن‪ ،‬دلدادۀ نوای سبز تواّل بودن است‪ .‬تعصب شکش قدمم رد جاده‌پیمائی است‪ ،‬هن رد بیراهه‌روی‪.‬‬ ‫هن چنانم هک رب عقیدۀ خویش‬

‫کس‬ ‫از فسون ی رهاس کنم‬

‫را‬

‫کنم‬

‫نتوانم هک از‬ ‫هن‬

‫هک‬

‫نصی‬

‫حت و وعظ‬

‫اخبار‬

‫باستانی‬

‫مش‬ ‫هن هک ز آاثر ره هچ هور است‬ ‫هن هک از بهر حله‌اهی بهشت‬

‫هن‬

‫هک‬

‫رد‬

‫عالم‬

‫رفاخ‌روی‬ ‫محتس‬

‫چون هن من ساقیم هن‬

‫بم‬

‫دمار‬

‫نهم‬

‫هن هب واجب ز سعی ردمانم‬

‫رب‬

‫دمارا‬

‫ارگ‬

‫لم‬ ‫عا ی‬

‫را‬

‫ارثی‬

‫اتزہ‬

‫دیو‬

‫رتک‬ ‫عار‬

‫خداشناس‬

‫کنم‬

‫اقتباس‬

‫کنم‬

‫افساهن‌اه‬

‫قیاس‬

‫آرایش‬

‫لباس‬

‫از‬

‫ژندۀ‬

‫پالس‬

‫کنم‬ ‫کنم‬

‫هن ربزیم‪ ،‬هن می هب کاس کنم‬ ‫هن هب ره دمّعا م کاس کنم‬

‫کاخ الفت قوی اساس کنم‬

‫‪12‬‬

‫لیک‪ ،‬انید ز من هک رد گفتار‬

‫دمحت‬

‫خوشنوایم‪ ،‬رما رسد هک ز رکش‬

‫زره‬

‫فصلی از دمح خود توانم خواند‬ ‫می‌توان پنجه از نظامی ربد‬

‫توسن طبع من بدان ارزد‬ ‫زمرع خویش را هب گاہ ردو‬

‫هم‬ ‫چو رسو از غم زخان ربهد‬ ‫کورث از موج وا کند آغوش‬ ‫هچ‬

‫ازین‬

‫رفهقء‬

‫ادانشناس‬

‫هب دو بیتی ز گفته‌اهی زحین‬

‫الیق دمح رد زماهن چو نیست‬

‫کس‬

‫زبان‬

‫رما‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌فهمد‬

‫الهل‌سور‬

‫داس‬

‫کنم‬

‫جام‬

‫بونواس‬

‫کنم‬

‫رگ هن لب را ز الف اپس کنم‬ ‫اپرہ‌ای‬

‫رد‬

‫جم‬

‫ع رگ حواس کنم‬

‫هک ز بال رپی قطاس کنم‬

‫انخن حور رصف داس کنم‬ ‫گل‬ ‫بنی را هک من مساس کنم‬ ‫ارگ‬

‫انداز‬

‫صفحه‬

‫را‬

‫ارتماس‬

‫کنم‬

‫یش‬ ‫خو تن را هالک یاس کنم‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫رطهء‬

‫ایاس‬

‫کنم‬

‫یش‬ ‫هم‬ ‫خو تن را ی سپاس کنم‬ ‫هب زعزیان هچ التماس کنم‬

‫بخش‬ ‫رسو ارگ هب هوای تالفی عطیه‌ی نشو و نما رس هب اپی ارب ساید و ارب رد ادای سپاس رسما ‌هی ی گهر رب رفق ردیا افشاند‪ ،‬دیده‌وران شناسند هک نیروی گستاخی‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫سهی‬ ‫گن‬ ‫رسو هم از پهلوی ارب است و رفاخی دست گاه ارب هم از جینه‌ی ردیا‪ .‬ای هب شاردوان ل و زرهه‌فشان معنی بار نیافته و رما از کوتهی ربداشت یا ردازی‬

‫جست‬ ‫می‬ ‫رفوگذاشت هب رتخانی نپذریفته‪ ،‬یکره هب دانش و داد رگای و هب ورزش هنجار ردونی جو و رگدش رپکار آ غی ت کاپو رسااپی چون بوی گل از بساطت منمای‪.‬‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ن را بپیمای و هم از خود رپس هک روان هب شناختن رزم ره گوهن زگارش هچ ماهی داان و بنان هب زگاردن حق ره شیوۀ ن گارش هچ قدر تواان رگدد‪ ،‬ات ادای‬

‫مش‬ ‫هس‬ ‫هم‬ ‫رسه‌روشی و انداز وژیه رخا ی دست هب هم دهد و از عالم ان واری کیش و آئین تی نشاانن آش کارا س گال هچ‌اه رداندیشه رگد آید ات ربخاستن رفجام دوروئی‬

‫یش‬ ‫نشس نق‬ ‫و ردست تن ش یکتا زگینی را دلگشا ان گاره‌ای وجود پذرید‪ .‬هب زبان موجی هک صهبا را هب پیماهن‌ اندرست رسگذشت جوش خو تن‌اپالئی هک رد خلوت خم‬ ‫تپش‬ ‫هس‬ ‫ن‬ ‫م‬ ‫ن‬ ‫رگ ی هک رپواهن را رد بال و رپاست‪ ،‬ربق ذوق تی فشانی هک رد نهاد دل دارد دیدنی‪ ،‬چنان‪‎‬هک انتهائی آرزوی متقدمین و‬ ‫ی‪‎‬زند شنید ی است‪ .‬هب گاه ِ‬

‫شی‬ ‫ابتدای آربوی متأرخین خ علی زحین رساید‪:‬‬ ‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫‪13‬‬

‫شم‬ ‫ع اه ربده‌ام از صدق هب خاک شهدا‬

‫ات دل و دیدۀ خوانهب‌فشانم دادند‬

‫انصاف باالی طاعت است‪ ،‬رد هوائی هک بال باالخوانی زده رد ادائی هک خود را هب شگرفی ستوده‌ام‪ .‬نیمه‌ای از آن شاهد بازی‏ست‪ ،‬یعنی هوارپستی و نیمه‌ی‬

‫خم‬ ‫دیگر توانگرستائی‪ ،‬یعنی باد خوانی‪ .‬بیداد بین هک ره جا هب شاهن‪ ،‬ی از زلف رمغوهل مویان گشوده شود‪ ،‬بال رد من آوزید ات دل هب پیچاک آن شکن بندمی و خواری‬

‫سم‬ ‫پیش‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ک‬ ‫نگر هک ره گاه از خود غافل و از خدا افرغی رب او رنگ رسوری ج نشیند‪ ،‬هوس رما ربانگیزد ات ش بنده وار راست ا تی شادم ازآزادی هک بسا ن هب هن ِجار‬

‫لخ‬ ‫کسیر تی هب چاهم و چنگ رسآدم‬ ‫عشق بازان زگار دستم و داغم از آزمندی هک ورقی چند هب رکدار دنیاطلبان رد دمح اهل جاه سیه رکدستم‪ .‬ردیغا هک عمر سب ‌‬

‫ستخ‬ ‫نش‬ ‫و اپره‌ای هب ردوغ و ردیغ رفت‪ .‬رفجام رگان‌خوابی ربنخاست و آشوب هوسناکی رفو ست‪ ،‬هنوز خون را رد پوست هن گاهم‌ی شورش ر یز این‬

‫آز رگم و رد جیب دل ازخار خار شوق‪ ،‬زبان خواهش این آرزو رداز است هک ره آئینه گفتاراهی رپیشان هب رفاهم آوردن ارزد و خواهی نخواهی اوراق‬ ‫بس‬ ‫پیم‬ ‫رپاکنده هب شیرازه تن زسد‪ ،‬هچ ماهی رشمندگی‏ست رد این جهان باد ودن و رد آن گیتی گسسته دم بودن‪ .‬حسن را نظر رفیبی رنگ و روان‌آسائی‬

‫نش‬ ‫بوی و ست رکشمه و انگیز اندام وردازی ژمه و کوتهی ن گاه و راستی باال و ژکی خوی و دم رسدی واف و خون رگمی جفا و درلبائی التفات و جان زگائی تغافل‬ ‫م ّ سخ‬ ‫مضم‬ ‫و سبک‏خیزی مهر و رگانپائی کین و نکوئی روی و زشتی امگن و تواانئی دل و انزکی میان سلم‪ .‬ن را دوشیزگی نهاد و اپکیزگی گوره و ربشتگی ون و‬ ‫نف‬ ‫گداختگی س و چاشنی سپاس و نمک شکوه و نشاط نغمه و اندوه شیون و روائی کار و رسائی بار رپده گشائی راز و جلوه رفوشی نوید و سازگاری آرفین و دلخراشی‬

‫هم‬ ‫نکوهش و واری صال و ردشتی دورباش و زگارش وعده و سپارش ایپم و بارانهم‌ی زبم و هن گاهم‌ی رزم حاصل‪ .‬اما من و ایمان من هک هب واال دید ی گاهن‌بینان‬ ‫بلب‬ ‫سهی کیش هک سیاه و سپید را وجود و پالس و رپنیان را اترو پود نیافته‌اند‪ ،‬این هب رچاغان دل رپواهن و آن هب بهاران زری بال ل ماند‪ .‬اشیاء صور علمیه‌ی‬

‫نق‬ ‫حق‌اند و الوان ن گار بال عنقا هب ش‏اهی از رگ کلک رفو رنیخته‌ی ‪ ،‬نقاش را صد رنگ رپده ردی‏ست و نوااهی از ساز بدرانجسته‌ی مطرب را زهار رپدۀ‬ ‫جن‬ ‫م‬ ‫را شگری‪ .‬ره هچ ازرپدۀ گفت بال هویدائی زند‪ ،‬بش موج شمال است و ره هچ از آئینه دید جلوه انگیزد‪ ،‬رگدش افنوس خیال‪ .‬سبک مغزانی هک هب باد‬

‫سن‬ ‫هس‬ ‫آویخته‌اند از گفتار زج گفتار هچ ردیافته‪ ،‬و رگانجااننی هک هب تی اشیاء هستو شده اند‪ ،‬از سمراد زج سمراد هچ واش کافته‪ ،‬چنانکه رپده ج این سوز و ساز‪ ،‬خداوند گلشن راز‬

‫رفماید‪:‬‬

‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫نیس‬ ‫ره آنکس را هک اندر دل شکی تی‬

‫هس‬ ‫یقین داند هک تی زج یکی نیست‬

‫هله اهن‪ّٰ ،‬‬ ‫اسداهّٰلل چاهم رگدآور انهم سیاه‪ ،‬ای هب کنش تیره و هب دانش تباه! جاهم گذاشتن دل رد نبرد رگدنکشان هوا و دامن هب دندان رگفتن رخد رد پی کار‬ ‫چش‬ ‫زورآوران هوس هن کم اندوهی و اندک تشوریی‌ست هک هب حلقه‌ی ماتم نشسته‌ی این مصیبت نشاط کار دیگر رد خود آهنجد و م رب پشت اپ دوخته‌ی این‬

‫خ‬ ‫جلت رس از زانو ربداشتن سنجد‪ .‬دین هک اشارت هب کارانهم‌ی مینوست و آن رن گارنگ آرزواهی رهزۀ خون گشته‌ی تن رپورانی ست هک هب گیتی از‬

‫مش‬ ‫حس‬ ‫رسماهی‌ی کارمانی بی ربگ و نوا‪ ،‬تی هب رفمان تهیدستی اپ هب گل و رگوهی هب امید اپداش رس هب هوا بوده‌اند‪ ،‬زمد رتیان دنیا هک عبارت از هن گاهم‌ی جاه‬ ‫محی‬ ‫ه‬ ‫است و آن گوانگون نقشهای هب زگاف انگیخته‌ی بی خبرانی است هک رساب را هب طی و چیه را هب مگی ربرگفته‪ ،‬بی رشاره و خاشاک باهم رد رگفته‌اند‪.‬‬

‫‪14‬‬

‫نگیخ‬ ‫نق بس‬ ‫مفت کثرتیان خیالی‪ ،‬رد نظر خون رکدن و گلستان انمیدن‪ ،‬غباری از رهگذر و هم ربا تن و آسمان ش تن‪.‬‬

‫چشم‬ ‫از معنی هب صورت آیم و هب ذماق آش کارارپستان پوزش زگار‪ ،‬هب بادارفاه این شوخ ی هک هب ستودن خویش رد حاسدآزاری دلیری رکده‪ ،‬خون‏اه رد‬

‫لخ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫پس‬ ‫دل و عقده‌اه رب لب افکنده‌ام‪ .‬ن را رد حق خویش هب تی ردافکنم‪ .‬ات آموزگاراهن فطرت را گوش‌اتبی داده باشم‪ .‬تی زخف رزیه هب ریسمان کشیدن و‬

‫نس‬ ‫مش‬ ‫سلک گوره شاهوار شمردن‪ ،‬تی نی اپره هب دهم‌ی دم ربارفوختن و خود را هیربد آرذکدۀ اپرس دا تن‪ ،‬بوریا بافتن و هب دیبا رطازی انم ربآوردن‪ ،‬سنگ‬

‫نش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫آسیا آژدن و آوازۀ الماس‌رتاشی ردافکندن روا بودۀ کدام دستور و باز ودۀ کدام رفهنگ است؟ ای آزادۀ آز رگفتار و ای رفورفته‌ی یب الخ پندار‪،‬‬ ‫ای مسلمان‌زادۀ کارفمارجا و ای شایسته‌ی نفت و بوریا‪ ،‬ای هب زبان جهان جهان شور و رغیو و ای هب دل یک ارهمنستان رنگ و ریو‪ ،‬دلت از اتب‬

‫لف‬ ‫انروااندیشه‌اه خون‪ ،‬و زبانت هب کیفر بی زمه گفتاراه از قفا بیرون باد‪ .‬رفیبم دهی هک هن گام را گنجائی رخد ا نجیدن نیست و هب پوستین یاران افتی هک هن گاهم‌ی‬

‫روائی هنر سنجیدن ندارد‪ .‬آرخ هن از تست رد هب روی هوس رفاز رکدن و دیده هب دانست خویش باز رکدن راه دانش و داد سپردن و روزگار هب آراستن خواه‬

‫نجم‬ ‫کن‬ ‫بن ش‬ ‫یش‬ ‫و کاستن آرزواه هب رس ربدن‪ ،‬با خو تن رد افت و باخلق میاوزی‪ ،‬هب ج تنهائی ین و از رس ا ن آرائی ربخیز‪.‬‬ ‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫ّ‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ز "ااّل" دم زن و سلیم "ال" شو‬

‫ٰ‬ ‫بگو ّٰ‬ ‫"اهّٰلل" و ربق ماسوی شو‬

‫بس‬ ‫اندیشه نسنجد و امگن نس گالد هک غالب از دانش بی بهره‪ ،‬هب دسته تن این گل‏اهی رخزرهه آهنگ خودآرائی و انداز انگشت‌نمائی دارد‪ ،‬بلکه خون‌رگمی‬

‫ٰ‬ ‫پی‬ ‫خش‬ ‫ک‬ ‫اربام واال ربارد‪ ،‬صد ره از جان رگامی رت‪ ،‬هب مهر ارب گورهبار‪ ،‬و هب م آتش بی زنهار‪ ،‬تقوی پیشه‪ ،‬رسوری دست گاه‪ ،‬راستی اندیشه‪ ،‬ج کاله‪ ،‬هب ورع شگی از‬

‫گ‬ ‫تهم‬ ‫مش‬ ‫ک‬ ‫بهش‬ ‫کیخس‬ ‫جنید و شبلی رخهق یاب و هب ج کلهی روکش رو و ارفاسیاب‪ ،‬رپوزی‏زبم‪ ،‬تن‏رزم‪ ،‬مهرجمال‪ ،‬تری‏خصال‪ ،‬تی‏رو‪ ،‬بهاران‏خوی‪ ،‬جفا سل وافپیوند‪،‬‬ ‫شم‬ ‫دوست‏گشای‪ ،‬د ن‏بند‪.‬‬

‫مثنوی‪:‬‬

‫هب‬

‫هب‬

‫گیتی‬

‫دارایان‬

‫از‬

‫هب‬

‫وافداری‬

‫دارائی‬

‫جهانی‬ ‫نشاهن‬

‫هب نیرو رسکشان را پنجه رباتب‬

‫نظر‬

‫رپواهن‌ی‬

‫شم‬ ‫ع‬

‫جمالش‬

‫ن گاهش سالک رد دل دویدن‬

‫ّ‬ ‫دل و جان تمنا جلوه گاهش‬

‫‪15‬‬

‫خطش‬

‫عنوان‬

‫ن گار‬

‫خوربوئی‬

‫مح‬ ‫بت‬

‫هب‬

‫را‬

‫داانیان‬

‫زمین‬ ‫هب‬

‫و‬

‫داانئی‬

‫آسمانی‬ ‫فساهن‬

‫هب دانش صاحب آاثر رفاتب‬

‫تماشا‬

‫بلب‬

‫ل‬

‫باغ‬

‫خیالش‬

‫هجوم‬

‫آرزواه‬

‫رگد‬

‫راهش‬

‫دلش مجذوب بار دل کشیدن‬ ‫لبش رفهنگ دان بذهل گوئی‬

‫هب همت دره گلش ساز اربی‬

‫هب سطوت سینه روزن کن زهربی‬

‫نهالی‬

‫زغالی‬

‫نهادش را ز واالئی نشان‌اه‬ ‫خیابان‬ ‫هب‬

‫ردیای‬

‫نکوئی‬ ‫مح‬

‫بت‬

‫را‬

‫بی‬

‫بهارد‬

‫زبانش‬

‫بیابان‬

‫را‬

‫ز‬

‫شگرفی‬

‫داانئی‬ ‫را‬

‫بیان‌اه‬

‫امین الدین احمد خان بهارد‬

‫آنکه اپرسائی را رد رسشتش از استواری آن اپهی هک باچون منی عمراه از یک‌دلی یک‌روی بوده و چیه‌گاه رد حلقه‌ی رسوائی من و خلوت ربانئی خویش لب‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫لن ش‬ ‫هم‬ ‫م نپ شتم‬ ‫یستگ ن ی مسل شتم‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ی‬ ‫شت‬ ‫هب می نیالوده‪ ،‬آنکه مهرش از د ینی رد نهادم بدان ماهی هک ارگ هب شا ی رو ما ش م ندا ی‪ ،‬جان را رگا ی ندا ی‪ ،‬رما رب ا ن کار دا ه و م را هب‬

‫خ‬ ‫پنبه‌دوزی این کهن دلق امگشته است‪ .‬رنگهای از جلت این خودنمائی هب رو شکسته را دیدن ربنتابد‪ ،‬و ننگهای از قبول این رسوائی هب خود باز بسته را شنیدن‬

‫کش‬ ‫کش‬ ‫ردنیابد‪ ،‬هن بدان معنی هک از سبک‌مایگی کاال خواری می‏ م‪ ،‬بلکه چون متاعم باب این قلمرو نیست‪ ،‬از رگانی خارط احباب رشمساری می‏ م‪ ،‬آری‪،‬‬

‫شخ‬ ‫تش‬ ‫رچاچنین نباشد هک ص استعداد رما ریپاهی‌ی انزش فضلی و ریف وجود رما رسماهی‌ی ربازش امکلی نیست‪ ،‬هن رتاهن‌ی رصف و اشتقاقم رب لب است و‬

‫نع م س‬ ‫م‬ ‫یب‬ ‫سل‬ ‫ص ئع گ‬ ‫خ‬ ‫س‬ ‫بل‬ ‫آمای رشته‌ی بدائع‪.‬‬ ‫هن ززمهم‌ی ب و ا جا م رب زبان‪ ،‬هن ون رحا م هب رگدن ا ت و هن ش اق و م ربدوش‪ .‬هن آ ه اپی جادۀ نا م و هن وره ِ‬ ‫ن‬ ‫عج‬ ‫تلخ‬ ‫کباب رگمی آتش بی دود اپرسیم و رخاب ی بادۀ رپزور معنی‪ ،‬آتشکدۀ انؤسیان م را سمندرم‪ ،‬سوز من هم از من رپس‪ ،‬گلزار خلبندان اپرس‬

‫بل‬ ‫بس‬ ‫را بلم‪ ،‬شور من هم از من جوی‪ .‬سبزه دماندۀ ارب است و گل فشاندۀ باد‪ .‬چیدن و دسته تن کمینه صنعت است و یاران پیشه وراند‪ .‬آری بی کار نشاید‬

‫نف‬ ‫زیست‪ ،‬س رد رشاره کاشتن است و زبان رد زباهن ردودن‪ .‬رد رگفتن و هم از خود ماهی رب رگفتن‪ ،‬شگرف حالت است وما اندرین هن گاهم‌ایم‪ ،‬یعنی از‬ ‫ذوق می توان رمد‪.‬‬

‫تک بیت‪:‬‬

‫رد هت ره رحف‪ ،‬غالب‪ ،‬چیده ام میخاهن ای‬

‫سخ‬ ‫انز دیوانم هک رسمست ن خواهم شدن؟‬

‫‪16‬‬

I

Preface by Ghalib

venerate the sole creator of the soul with the tongue that he has bestowed me, and how much dignity do I have to be grateful to him? He has given so much power to someoneَ َ like me who cannot distinguish َ between the word (‫ ) ِرِحف‬-“Heraf ” meaning “professions” and the word (‫ )زَخف‬-“Khazaf ” (meaning “beads” if there are no accentuation and the vowel-point, so much power that I can unveil my graceful beloved with my limited wisdom and call it a divan. I unveiled this divan for ostentation, and I polished this mirror of art before my scant consciousness confirmed it. O Almighty Lord! the pain of inadequacy has not engulfed my heart so much so that I do not admit my incapability in creating eloquence and poetry, and be kind to myself for reaching this wish, that you, O mighty creator if after me, you ever create someone like me who loves the words and their meanings the way I do, and someone who is fascinated and passionate about poems the way I am, who worships eloquence like me, someone who realizes that how high the wall of the sublime palace of speech is, and understands that the train of my thought, my aim, and goal in the world of thought has reached which mountain peak? Single verse: Excitement it is the company with criticisms, let alone the envy of me, May the thorn of your path penetrate the feet of the dear ones. Saying “In the name of god” is the first veil that has been removed from the beautiful, adorned makeup face of the truth with the gentle scent of the breeze, which means respecting the struggling hands that cannot carry the weight of life’s hardship. It is the last light of the other lights that only functions partially; it is the one that radiates the light and warmth of wisdom, that has given itself to the visage of enlightenment, meaning, the burning desire of affection that has long been the most burning desire, that is scared with the happiness within and scuffed by the fingernail of shamelessness. And it is the tears mixed with the warm blood inside, which suddenly dropped from the wound due to the hidden heat in the heart like the statues dressed in paper clothes, they are in silence and wandering in this uprising; they are those who have torches in their hands just like Azar, their clothes turned black from the smoke that rises from within. Take heed, oh mighty Lord, of those who drink the wine of beauty in bounty and don’t get drunk, for this kingdom is a tavern that has opened the doors to the circle of devotees. Harmonists play a melody for the good news of the singing storm, for this tune comes from Barbod (the musician) playing their pan flute, which has generated happiness with bolts of lightning around the king’s pavilion. The sunlight has granted passion to our hearts and has ended the coquetry of the stars in the silver sky. The God within is the emperor of this kingdom, that has disbanded the motions that have created excitement in hearts one by one and reduced this poetry collection’s heavyweight by radiating sunrays of happiness around. I am not saying that this is due to gaining wisdom and virtue or being burned with hot silver, or that it is as sweet as kissing the lips of a beloved, but whatever it is, it is a story of a burning heart and a tale of a tired soul. I am not saying that this is an epiphany or Mount Sinai, heaven, or an angel, but it is a kingdom of coquetry and territory of peace and comfort. It is the magical sparks of smoke and the master key to the flames of thought. The flames are hidden up close, and the smoke is visible from afar. The heart is a magical mirror, and the tongue is its master key. The clouds and thunder are excited by the charm of thought. The clouds are raining pearls, and the wind is pouring diamonds. The thought is the scroll of manipulation and lips are spell readers of the herd of gazelles that are hiding calmly since they have successfully survived the gazelle traps. It is the smoke that is dancing in the air from the commotion of the flames in the heart, the reflection of the moonlike face visible in the water. Praise

17

to the mighty lord who knows the true beauty of eternity, a fruitful tree living in its own shadow. Praise to the mighty eternal sculptor of the world. Couplet Poems (Masnavi): O you who art the maker of the hidden and friend to the found Make the heart worthy like the soul by body’s sorrow The flame that you put in the heart of stone Is shining bright in the face of the ruby O you who art the layout of earthlings And you who art the destination of those who seek the One release the musk from the vain of new spring and in the breeze of morn make the sweet-smelling musk O you who art upon the testimony of essence With Amber-tinted hair from the mask of arts The moon is lit with your light That it can be seen easily unlike the black visage of Saturn O you, that all the heavens above are a bobble compared to your ocean And the earth is a gem in your cup of wine The wine of your wisdom is in the Fire-Temple Cleansing all like the Canopus star Thou art the one who gives the beauty and the ugly life Thou art the affluence of Kaaba and synagogue All the elegant designs are thine handiwork Everyone and everything is created by you O, you have given me the splendor of sovereignty; You have given me a new Persian way. I have acquiesced, showing the inability; Because, I have beaten you in praise of myself. Failure is a strong foundation; The ostentation is part of theosophy. I praise the Lord, the greatest poet of all poets, and has decorated the whole universe, who filled the treasure of the hidden secret in my heart with the blessings of the truth of the words, with pearls and rubies. He granted me the scales to distinguish right from wrong and blessed my pen with the ability to write as if from my pen rains little pieces of diamonds, and this is the one who generously gives and never asks for anything in return. I am proud of such a fair judge that does not discriminate among poets. I am proud to have such a conquering judge who does not fail to show kindness to poets because at the height of my fame if I become proud, he considers it unbeautiful to my speech. Thus, his forgiveness in the best ways and his caressing with sublime tenderness made me needless of people’s acceptance. Well-done! Oh, you, who makes the enemy happy, the one who creates souls, did not want the purity of the essence of my soul to be compared with the impurity of the competition wounds, to the enemy’s blindness. It is evident that oneness is only beautifying him. Inevitably, he made my eyelashes accompany my tongue in splattering blood and crying. Praise be upon the only wise and fair judge, who was patient and did not write my destiny in sorrow and pain and was aware that those who suffer will not be comforted by anything other than his attention. He indeed hurts my heart by reducing this pain. Praise to the strong creator that my hope and trust in him put my breath in flames. By praising him, the pages of my divan with joy spread the good news of the spring arrival and told the story of an essence immersed in seven valleys of hell melting from head to toe and manifesting the eight gardens of paradise. It is the whisper which creates chaos in wisdom, and with a display of its enthusiasm Venus descends from the sky, comes from the tongue in my mouth which is his trusteeship, and with the beauty of a dance that takes

18

the consciousness away and with the charming angels from the heaven sends regards as an offering. Whatever comes out of my pen is all for him. Single verse: From my clay goblet, the drippings appear as if coming from Jamshid’s hands; The quenched thirst of my diction is the kindness of Almighty. I am the pillar and foundation of my dignity, faith, and religion, Islam and the sole wise and eloquent poet of the speech realm. My path is tied with the religion of Muhammad’s Islam, and the sublime monogram of “Asadullah Ghalib” is carved on my ring. Those who have not tasted the elixir of this life think to themselves, where is the root of all this eloquence and maturity of speech for someone who knows nothing. They are unaware that this is just one drop of happiness, one drop of the source that grows plants and creates trees, taught fruits to ripen, and lips to sing. And in the light of eternal guidance, those who have not been enlightened think to themselves, how is this unfortunate man capable of creating such eloquence and shining poetry? They are unaware that this glory comes from a glow of light that lightens candles, fills jars with wine, grants color to the face of a flower, ignites the essence of the human soul with speech. It is what brightened up the dark tents of Leili’s tribe with white candles like the sunrise and illuminated the land of lovers like Majnoon with the onslaught of fireflies, the roots of the tree of desire will not be watered by stingy Qarun. So now that you are affluent help the unfortunate ones, the tools that shape pearls and rubies, take the treasures of the rich. Sit and watch the generosity of the world of semantic writers. It is for the generosity of believers in God that trees that have been planted by hand in the garden are fruitful like theist benefactor’s record of deeds, and the meadow is all green and condensed of diverse wildling tulips like a lustful dreamy workshop. Everyone who gives his heart to the beloved is in His obligation; Accepting that there is no obliviousness in His glance. The shadow of thorns is a praying place for a Darvish with tired feet. And in a farmer’s resting place at night, sparks of wood when they burn in a flame look like rubies and turquoises, like tears running down from the eyes of the unfortunate. In the land of sorrow, the sovereignty is his, and a lonely mystic who has chosen solitude to be safe from the trickster and the king of the land of happiness rules with wealth and estate. It is the same foams of blood that if it ran in our veins, we shed them like tears from our eyelashes, and if it changed to color, we wash our face in it every moment. A dress made of silk and fur as a gift is not appropriate for an ostentatious body, and our bodies have suffered from a lot of pain. We cannot endure more, and our broken hearts cannot endure the tightness of the garment. Not everybody is capable of seeing the beauty in nature’s spring, and not everybody can understand the passing of light through the prism. In browsing through fabrics, upstarts do not know the value of linen grown in the moonlight. If particles in the air are nude and face rays of sunlight, why are the ostentatious sheikhs with golden cloaks jealous? And if the ruins from the intensity of thirst drink the moonlight, what do people sleeping in the penetralia know about it? I am suffering from narrow-minded, short-sighted people who are not surprised by the fresh flowers blooming, shining light in dark nights. They are ruminating how some eloquent tongues illustrate innovative speeches. The flower buds are sweet-scented, the wind makes the hair dance, flowers are cheerful, nightingales are singing, is it a sin for the tongue to say poems and pleasant speeches? The sun is radiant and radiates fascination, the particle is restless in the soul, the sea is flowing, a drop of rain is tumultuous and turbulent, and they tell the heart to be upset in such commotion? Indeed, according to the perception of this group, the wine in prosperity tavern is as much as it made the previous opponents vivacious. They assume that at the end of the feast of speech and poems is the land of silence, the goblet and pitcher are broken, and from that ocean remains not a bit of moisture. I wish they would join the congregation of the hoodlum circle that I drink with them in the month of Farvardin to realize that wine is auspicious, and the cupbearer is generous; the wine pours from the goblets slowly into the cups, and the lips are thirsty.

19

Single verse: That cloud of mercy is still raining gem; The wine and tavern have seal and sign. Yes, in my time, the wine of speech and poems are stronger than fine and old wine, and the night of thought leads to the glory of the dawn, which is blessed and full of light. Indeed, the dead are sleeping euphorically, and I am inebriated. The predecessors were as lights, and I am the sun. A verse: The judge the glory of Urfi because he was from Shiraz; Do not be captivated by Zolali because he was from Khansar. Come to my dreamy Sumanat to see; The bright spirit took away shoulders covered with Zonnar. We should make appropriate use of the pen that was a tool to show us the way to the unseen seashore of the city of thoughts. Pearls have long been in the sea and whirlpools that have turned into a valuable stone in the heart of the shell and as if dews and drops of water are like halos of sunlight, shining on trees, flowers, and plants. We must decorate the pages of the speech tavern that are like a bowl of wine. Drinking from that intoxicating wine has led to getting drunk with heavenly joy; it seems that the grass is losing the value that has grown loads of trees and plants in itself. I have devoted my heart to the religion of the last prophet. It is not surprising to say that my way of life is not similar to anyone before. Why wonder if I compare my poetry style with my opponents, and I find that my superiority over them is not surprising to them. This is a rule that I have been taught to accept from the beginning of my upbringing. Setting the table of the livelihood according to the need is like thanking the creator for increasing the blessing. My effort in praising the blessings given to me is to unload the heavy burden off my suffering shoulder, not for flaunting and bragging. Describing goodness and praising the religion’s elders at the same level and creating a melody in composing poetry is a sign of love and respect for the Ahl al-Bayt. A truth hidden in my mind leads me to the right path, not the wrong one. I am not the one who is afraid of anyone’s charming about my opinion I cannot make the universe righteous by my advice and sermon I do not compare the myths demon with the ancient news I do not adapt all the famous works from the new work I do not leave my adorned clothes because of priestly vestment I am not ashamed of the ragged mat in the worldwide I am not a butler and magistrate, I do not shed, and I do not pour wine in the cup I do not reduce my efforts for doing obligatory, and I do not envy for any assertion If I tolerate something but do not get along with it I am not the one to praise the tulip in my speech and then pick it with a sickle If I keep my lips from bragging, I can say a chapter of my praise I am tunable, and I can envyingly pour poison in Bonavas cup I can overtake Nezami if I keep my eyes open My intractable nature worth it to cut the fairy wing I use nymph nails as a sickle when harvesting my inner farm If I touch a shrub, it will get rid of the autumn grief like a cypress Kausar fountain waves will embrace me if I am immersed in it Whether of this faction who do not know gestures, I will perish myself of despair I can turn the sheet by a couplet of sad speeches be alike of Ayaz plait Since no one is competent for the eulogy in this era, I thank myself No one understands my language; so why would I beg the loved ones?

20

If the cypress, to compensate for its growth and stand tall, bows to the cloud, and the cloud, in return for gratitude, sprinkle pearls on the ocean, the knowledgeable ones realize that the power of the recklessness of cypress is due to it embracing the cloud and the cloud’s broadness is from the treasury of the sea. O you, who has not been honored and given value and rank, under the veil of Canopus Star and the radiance of refulgent Venus, you have not considered me worthy of the governance in the palace of the Turks elites due to lack of patience, weakness, and negligence. Try the path of attaining the truth and reaching the level of awareness; in a process mixed with the effort to achieve the rule and law and spread the nice scent of flowers in the air of your assembly. Gauge the extent of your speech, and at the same time ask yourself how intelligent the mind and the soul are in deciphering any verse and how fair and capable are the fingerprints in testifying to any style of composing poetry to interlace the motion of fondness, grace, and dignity in harmony. And what beliefs and assumptions come out of thoughts, from a world full of ups and downs in obedience to religion. Until the hidden moon emerges from behind the cloud and the sequel of hypocrisy is revealed and gives existence to pleasant imagination of the words of the theists. Listening to the drunk’s heartbreaking story is more pleasant than the song of the sobbing throat of the goblet while pouring the fiery red wine disseminated in the tavern. Seeing the pulsating vessel that butterfly carries in its wings, the spark of passion of existence that it has within its heart is spectacular. As the ultimate ideal of the ancients and the commencing of the current prestigious of the religious ones Sheikh Ali Hazin says: Single verse: I have taken lots of candles to the martyrs’ graves with good intention; Until I was granted bloody tears, eyes, and heart. Justice is superior to worship. See the humiliation that if a knot of hair is opened from twisted hair, a twist will fall on my work, so that I will give my heart to that knotted hair, and see the misery that whenever you are unaware of your deeds and needless of God’s mercy, you did not see him as a worthy leader, the need keeps me from negligence, and I arose from this need to stand at his door. I am not saddened in my heart that I am pious, that I have truly testified in the way of the amorists, and my heart burns that I have blackened a few papers in approval of the secularists and praise of the dignitaries. Alas, the period of the fleeting life was spent in song, poetry, chants, music, and a little spared for spectating, regret, escape, and desire. In the end, the profound slumber of unawareness did not end in awakening, and the sedition of selfish desire did not cease. From the excitement of the awakened greed, the blood under the skin is still warm, and the heart is full of lust in the chest. The tongue of this desire is uninhibited; thus, these scattered utterances certainly deserve to be collected. Although the heart has not consented to the binding and publication of this book, these sheets are worth publishing—what a shame for pointless deeds in this world and culminating in gasping chaos during the apocalypse. Being good is simply falling in enchanted love, smelling the delight with Jasmine scent, associating with coquettish beauties, and those with statuesque bodies, and those with gazelle eyelashes, and innocent ones, and tall figures, unfaithfulness in deeds, and breaking the covenant to the habit and instability of the covenant, and unstressed, desiring disloyalty, coquetry by evading glance, suffering through omittance of spectating, easily enthused compassion, avoiding animosity, the visage beauty, the doubt inadequacy, ego power, an empty gold bag on the waist, surely established speech, and, depicted fluency in language and eloquence, and concepts maturity, and the warmth of the pure speech, and sweetness of appreciation, and cute salinity of complaint, and the dancing of the song, and heartbreaking of grief, and rewards for the deed, and the emotional concepts of the word, revealer of secrets and mysteries, and illuminator of the desires and needs, sympathy and companionship, offending with language of unhappiness, and listening to pleasing concordance, and harsh and coarse words, and proclaiming the covenant, and the auspicious blessed herald, and mirth, pride, and glory provisioner, and ready to fight in throe, and me and the belief in my heart about the sages who seek and see the truth that they did not find cosmos with weaving black and white from wool and silk yarns. This resembles the burned butterflies around a flame at night, who did not reach the beloved, and burned, which looks like the blossoms and flowers that missed the nightingale. Objects are forms that existed in the realm

21

of science before the Supreme Being advent, and the colors are the spots and lines of the phoenix’s wing that have not fallen from the little reed between the cavity on the curtain of the soul. The painter has a hundred shades of revelation, and the songs that are not played on the minstrel’s instrument contain thousands of musical chords. Any unrevealing secret that is revealed is inauspicious by nature. Anything that creates attraction within and arises passion is like viewing the octagon lantern of imagination. The fools who talk nonsense do not understand the essence of the words. Those who belong to the insecure world, who are immersed in the circulation of materialism and are far from the truth, have learned anything but an illusion? says the creator of Golshan-e Raaz, who deciphered the magic of the earth and heaven: Anyone who has no doubt in his heart; for sure knows that the universe is one. “Be vigilant Asadullah, a sinful ode-writer,” who has black deeds and corrupted wisdom, death of the heart in the fight against the lustful devotees and being conscious in obeying the intellect in a battle with the strong against the carnal desires, are not a little sadness and a little turmoil and anxiety to enter the circle of mourning and draw the excitement of doing something else to this circle. The one who looks down out of embarrassment better rise and let his sorrow go away. Religion is the confession of the deeds of the higher world is the colorful and wasted desires of the lazy ones. Some have succumbed to poverty, and some are looking to the heavens for a resolution in their life; the remuneration for the wishes of the failed ones is the same as the fuss of dignity and value. It is the hidden conscience of the gullible who are seduced by the role of the imagination lantern. It is a sea for the deceptive mirage, the existence for non-existence and fire without straw and thistle. Let the opinion be under the pantheisms price, who in their worldview take the victim to the slaughterhouse and call it an orchard, stir the dust in the imagination wind and call such tumult the raining starts in the sky. I transform from the essence of reality to an apparent form, displeasing those egotists. For the punishment of such rudeness, I have appreciated myself, and I have shown bravery to harass the envious, I have made the ill-wishers suffer, and I have created grudges in the hearts. In the validity of my theories of punishment, I trample the truth to teach my nature a lesson instinctively. What rules and regulations permit these and what culture and learning nurture these, to string some beads to gather and call them the royal pearl strings, to ignite a bundle of crumbs of straw with the breath of a fan and consider themselves the priest of the Zoroastrian fire temple, to weave fescue and call it Roman silk with ornaments and patterns, to grind the grindstone and call it grinding hard diamonds. O freedman afflicted of greed, O sunk in declivity thoughts, O infidel Muslim, O worthy of oil and fescue, O famous of the roar and reverberation world, O you whose heart is the house of deception, and the chest is garden of the hell, may your heart be sore of unjustified contemplations, and may your tongue be cut off from behind for using offensive speech. It is not fitting you to open the door to the humiliation of wisdom and lust and open your eyes to your virtue and knowledge. The path of knowledge and justice must be followed, and the life must be adorned with good morals and spend the life without lustful desire. Judge your deeds and thoughts, and do not struggle with people in this material world. Do inner meditation in private, and don’t be the flagship of the association. Single verse:

ّ

Speak of nothing else (‫ ااّل‬-Ella) and surrender to naught (‫ ال‬-La); say Allah and be the sparkle of what is other than God.

The thought makes no judgments, and presumption makes no assumptions that Ghalib is deprived of knowledge. Making garlands of bad odor flowers is a desire for arrogance and pride and is the criteria of fault and disdain. May you insist on the kindness, my high-ranking brother, a hundred times dearer to me than my soul, in kindness like turquoise cloud, in anger like fiery rage, God-fearing, with power and dignity, benevolent, graceful, being fearful of God and obeying his command, taking the fur coat from the hands of “Shebli” and “Junaid,” in authenticity like the crown of Keykhosrow and Afrasiab, like Parviz who was a crown of the gatherings, like

22

Rostam in battles, with a face like a sun, divine natured like Ahura Mazda, with a face from heaven, like spring season in nature, avoiding oppression and committed to his word, sociable friend, companion, hunter of the enemy. Couplet poems (Masnavi): His loyalty is ecumenical, and his kindness is spread in the earth and sky He is the sign of possessors possess and the myth of wisdom’ wise He is the force of rebellious ones and owner of magnificent phenomena in the knowledge field The sight is like a butterfly of his beauty candle, and the observation is like a nightingale of his dream garden His look is like a wayfarer running into the heart, and his heart is fascinated to burden the heart Load The desire is his manifest, and the wishes influx is as flour in his way His calligraphy is captioned as a comely picture; his lips are a culture-place for witting To the efforts, make a garden of a cloud, to the reverence swagger of his chest like a lion His essence has sublime signs; his tongue has knowledgeable expressions He is as sapling for a better way and as a gazelle in prodigious desert He has no valiant in the kindness sea; he is Aminuddin Ahmad Khan Bahadur The one whose piety in nature is from the firmness of his foundation and he was such sublime in dignity and magnitude that he was sincere to me for years wholeheartedly, and in the circle of my disgrace and the solitude of his adolescence, he never imbrued his lips with wine, the one whose affection has made such a home in my heart that I would not appreciate my life if I was uncertain of his place within my soul. He has made me undertake this task and has ordered me to try to embroider and mend this old cloak. Eyes cannot endure watching the colors that are broken from the embarrassment of this ostentation, hearing such a disgrace will not release me from humiliation, not that I am humiliated by my destitution, I am ashamed of the sublime value of the beloved since my assets are unwelcomed in this land. Why should I not be like this? I have high self-respect with good initiative and adorned in the presence cloak, not in ode and lyric, and not in Masnavi and couplets. I am looking for a derivative of words and not the language of denial and demand, following the display of denial and proof. My hands are not stained with innocent blood, nor is the burden of betrayal heavy. They do not think that I show off in excursions due to my blisters, and they do not think that I am a studded with jewels in the corrupt world. I am scorched by the flame of the Persian language, and in other words, I am drunk by the strong and heavenly red wine. I am the firedrake in the Persia fire temple. Ask me how to burn in the fire. I am the sculptor of nightingales for their chants on the tulip orchards of the Farsi language; ask me about my excitement. The grass emerges after the rain, and the flowers grow with sown seeds due to the wind flow. Editing and authoring are the least important works in literary terms, and the utmost are people of talent that create art, without a doubt, one must create. Life is like sowing sparkles and leaping flames, in oration and meaning it is like harvesting pearl beads. It is a wonderful state, amazing mode, and we are shackled in such an apocalypse, meaning one can die of excitement. Single verse: Ghalib, at the end of every word I have created a tavern; I am proud of my collection that from its words I become intoxicated.

23

‫دیباهچ غالب هک رب دیوان اردوی خود ن گاشته است‬ ‫شم‬ ‫لخ‬ ‫نجم‬ ‫مج‬ ‫مشام یم آشنایان را صال و نهاد ا ن نشینان را ژمده هک تی از سامان مره رگدانی آماده و دامنی از عود هندی دست بهم داده است‪ ،‬هن چوب‏اهی‬

‫نف‬ ‫جست‬ ‫طبی‬ ‫سنگرخورده بهنجار ان عی شکسته بی‏اندام رتاشیده بلکه تبر ش گافته هب کارد رزیرزی رکده هب سواهن رخاشیده ایدون س گداختگی شوق هب جوی آتش اپرسی‏ست‪ ،‬هن‬

‫م‬ ‫کس‬ ‫شکس‬ ‫تش‬ ‫فس‬ ‫ست‬ ‫آ ی هک رد گلخان‏اهی هند ا رده و خاموش و از کف خا تر هب‏رمگ خودش سیه پوش بینی‪ ،‬هچ ربوی سلم ست از اناپکی هب ا خوان رمده اناهر تن و‬

‫یخ‬ ‫شم‬ ‫از دیوانگی هب رشته ع زمار کشته آو تن‪ .‬ره آیینه هب دل گداختن نیرزد و زبم ارفوختن را نشاید‪ .‬رخ آتش هب صنع ربارفوزنده و آتش رپست را هب بادارفاه هم رد‬

‫نع‬ ‫چش‬ ‫آتش سوزنده نیک می‏داند هک ژپوهنده رد هوای آن رخشنده آرذ ل رد آتش ست هک هب م روشنی هوشنگ از سنگ ربون اتفته و رد ایوان لهراسپ‬

‫سخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫نشو و نما یافته‪ .‬خس را رفوغ‏ست و الهل را رنگ و مغ را م و کده را رچاغ بخشنده زیدان ردون هب ن ربارفوزرا سپاسم هک رشاری را زآن آتش اتبناک‬

‫کس‬ ‫مج‬ ‫نف‬ ‫هب خا تر خویش یافته هب کاوکاو سینه شتافته‏ام و از س و هم رب آن نهاده‪ .‬بو هک رد اندک ماهی‌ی روزگار آن ماهی رفاهم تواند آدم هک مره را رف روشنائی رچاغ و رایحه‬

‫عود را بال شناسایی دماغ تواند بخشید‪ .‬هماان ن گارندۀ این انهم را آن رد رسست هک پس از انتخاب دیوان ریخته هب رگد آوردن رسماهی‌ی دیوان افرسی ربخیزد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫یش‬ ‫و هب استفاهض‌ی امکل این رفیورفن پس زانوی خو تن نشیند‪ .‬امید هک ن رسایان نورستای رپاگنده ابیاتی را هک خارج ازین اوراق یابند از آاثر رتاوش‬ ‫مم‬ ‫رگ کلک این انهم سیاه نشناسند و چاهم‌ی رگدآور را رد ستائش و نکوهش آن اشعار نون و ماخوذ نس گالند‪.‬‬

‫مت‬ ‫نق ضم‬ ‫نیس‬ ‫هس‬ ‫یا رب این باوی تی انشنیده از تی هب پیدائی انرسیدۀ یعنی ش هب یرآدمه نقاش هک هب اسداهلل خان موسوم و هب میرزا نوهش معروف و هب غالب خلص‬

‫نج‬ ‫م‬ ‫ست‪ ،‬چنان‏هک اکبرآبادی مولد و دهلوی سکن ست‪ ،‬رفجام کار فی دمفن نیز باد‪ ،‬فقط ‪ .‬بیست وچهارم شهر ذیقعده سنه ‪ ۱۲۴۸‬هجری‪.‬‬

‫‪24‬‬

Preface by Ghalib to theUrdu Divan

C

alling upon the friends who have fragrance-appreciating palates and offering glad tidings to the honorable society, that a bit of fragranced wood along with a spread of Indian aloeswood (the collection of poems) is prepared for the incense burner to run through the assembly. Stone has not cut this aloeswood, nor has it been broken crudely or carved haphazardly; instead, it has been cut by an ax and adequately separated into pieces by a knife and finely carved by a file. Here and now, my breath is melted with enthusiasm in search of that language which is like the Zoroastrian’s fire and not the Silent and despondent fire that has been extinguished in the Indian furnace, and you see it turned into a fistful of ashes covered in black in its death. Thus, it is certain that neither is it dependent on satisfying hunger from the bones of the dead for its impiety, nor because of the lack of wisdom hanging to the wire of the extinguished lamp on the grave. This fire is neither worth melting the hearts, nor can it brighten the assembly. The Creator who kindled the fire and burned the fire-worshiper as a punishment in the fire knows well that I, as a researcher, am creating this work with the intention of achieving that radiant phenomenon that looks like a horseshoe which has been melted in the oven of fire to be given as a gift to “Houshang” the mythical King whom “Mazda” introduced fire to him, and he grew up in “Lohrasb” Palace. The fire, which is a flare for the blaze of straw, the color for the tulip, and in the hollow of the face, lies the eye and lights have been given to illuminate the fire temple. This humble one is thankful to God who gifted my heart with speech; a spark of that brilliant fire this humble one has found in his ashes; and, so through this, the hammering of the chest has increased and began to billow over this spark with his breath that would turn that the brilliance of the light of the lamp would be in the thurible and would give wings of a fast bird to the fragrance of aloeswood to quickly reach out and perfume the palates. The author of this letter desires that after making this selection of ghazals from the Urdu divan, he would turn his attention to his Persian divan, and after having achieved this feat, he would take advantage of this true skill and rest on his knees. I hope that the litterateurs and those who appreciate my work would not declare my scattered pages, which are not included in this divan, to be the result of the wetness of my quill and would not oblige the collection of my writings with praise of those verses, nor would they carve blame on me for their adaptations. O Lord, this is the smell of a being never heard of, and not coming to existence from non-existence; that is, the carving is bringing out the conscience of the carver that Asadullah Khan is alias Mirza Nosha and of nom de plume Ghalib, born in Akbarabad and resident of Delhi, finally let him be buried in Najaf. (22 Dhu-l-Qa’dah, 1248 AH/11 April, AD 1833).

25

‫پیش‌گفتار‬ ‫غالب دهلوی را باید یکی از شارعان و نویسندگان بلندآوازه‌ی اپرسی‌گوی انمید‪ ،‬هک رد پهنه‌ی رسودن شعر هب سبک هندی رد میان شارعان زبان‌زد‬ ‫نم‬ ‫بوده است‪ .‬غالب‪ ،‬پس از دیگر شارع زبرگ شعر سبک هندی‪ ،‬بیدل دهلوی ظهور رکده است‪ .‬رد این رگوه ی‌باید حضور انم عارف معروف و شارع‬

‫مش‬ ‫خس‬ ‫خس‬ ‫هور‪ ،‬امیر رو دهلوی را از قلم بیندازیم‪ .‬غالب و بیدل و امیر رو‪ ،‬از پیش‌اتزان رسودن شعر هب سبک هندی شمرده می‌شوند‪ .‬غالب را رد این‬

‫سخ‬ ‫تحس‬ ‫میان اما‪ ،‬خداوندگار ن می‌انمیدند‪ .‬و اطالق این انم باشکوه هب این علت بوده‪ ،‬هک با اینکه زبان غالب اردو بوده‪ ،‬چیرگی و ارشاف ین‌ربانگیز رب‬

‫ت‬ ‫رسودن شعر هب زبان اپرسی داشته است‪ .‬رد آن روزگار کلم رکدن و مکتوب نوشتن هب ره دو زبان اردو و اپرسی‪ ،‬رمسوم بوده و گویش هب زبان اپرسی رد‬

‫شبه‌اقره هند رواج داشته است‪ .‬رمیدان و دوست‌داران شعر‪ ،‬از دریباز رد این شبه‌اقره رفاوان بوده‌اند و شبه‌اقره هند رد آن دوره‪ ،‬میدان‌دار چ کاهم و‬

‫شعر و رسود بوده است‪ .‬رمدمان شعر را دوست داشتند و شارعان را رگامی می‌داشتند‪ .‬از رسایندگان انم‌آور رد آن عصر‪ ،‬باید از اقبال الهوری و غنی‬ ‫کشم‬ ‫یری نیز یاد رکد‪ ،‬هک هب نوهب خود از زبرگان راستین شعر هب حساب می‌آدمند و هن تنها رد شبه‌اقره هند‪ ،‬هک رد اپکستان و افغانستان و اریان آاثرشان با اقبال‬

‫رو هب‌رو شده‌اند‪.‬‬

‫تح‬ ‫سم‬ ‫غالب رد ‪ ۲۷‬دسامبر سال ‪ ۱۷۹۷‬میالدی رد شهر آرگه هند هب دنیا آدم‪ .‬غالب صیالت ر ی ردیافت نکرد و از سنت تدریس خصوصی رد موضوعات‬

‫مخ‬ ‫تحص‬ ‫تلف ریپوی رکد‪ .‬غالب آش کارا هب کاستی‌اهی یلی خود اعتراف می رکد‪ .‬با این حال ‪ ،‬او دانش‌ژپوه افرسی زبان بود و زبان رعبی را هب خوبی می‬

‫دانست و هب دبیرالملک ملقب بود‪ .‬او باراه از خود هب عنوان یک شارع افرسی یاد رکده و مشارکت‌اهی خود هب زبان اردو را هب عنوان تالش‌اهی جانبی‬

‫ذرک رکده است‪ .‬با این حال شهرت غالب از اشعار اردوی او رسچشمه می گیرد‪ .‬جد پدری غالب از مهارجان رتک‌ژناد از آسیای میاهن بوده‌اند‪ ،‬هک هب‬

‫هندوستان مهارجت رکده بودند‪ .‬غالب رد باره مهارجت نیاکان خود هب هندوستان چنین می‌نویسد؛‬

‫کس‬ ‫پش‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ن ک ب‬ ‫س‬ ‫نهفت م ن‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ت معین‌الملک را تکیه‌گاه و آرامش جای‬ ‫" ه باد هک یای انهم‌ گار رت ی ود از ژناد ارفا یاب و نگ‪ .‬از رت تان هب ند روی آورد و رد ال ور ِرد دو ِ‬

‫ساخت"‪.‬‬

‫ن‬ ‫وی از اين هك از ژناد ارفاسياب است و از سل سلجوقيان‪ ،‬خوشنود بود و با رغور مي‌گفت‪:‬‬ ‫غالب از خاک اپک تورانی‬

‫و رد جایی دیگر بیان رکده‪:‬‬

‫رتک‌زادیم‬

‫و‬

‫رد‬

‫ژناد‬

‫هم‬

‫ی‬

‫رجم‬

‫هب‬

‫رد‬

‫سترگان‬

‫نسب‬

‫قوم‬

‫رفهمنديم‬ ‫پیوندیم‬

‫‪26‬‬

‫پش‬ ‫ساقی چو من نگی و ارفاسیابيم‬

‫دانی هک اصل گورهم از دوده جم‌ست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫میرزا اسداهلل غالب‪ ،‬ارگهچ از ژناد هند هب شمار می‌آید‪ ،‬اما رد زرمه یکی شارعان ن‌گوی افرسی‌زبان رقار می‌گیرد‪ .‬شیوه و سبک غالب رد رسودن‬

‫شعر‪ ،‬وژیه خود بوده است و تقلید از سبک غالب‪ ،‬هب آسانی مقدور نبوده و از این رو شارعانی‪ ،‬هک از سبک کالسیک غالب اتثیر پذریفته بوده‌اند‪ ،‬ارثی هک رد‬ ‫هم‬ ‫تطبی‬ ‫یک مقایسه قی با آاثر او‪ ،‬هب رباربی هب ارزیابی رقار بگیرد نیارفیده‌اند‪ .‬و ین شیوه و سبک کالسیک غالب است‪ ،‬هک خالقیت‌اهی او را از پیشینیان و‬

‫سخ‬ ‫شارعان هم‌عصرش متمازی ساخته است‪ .‬تنها ن‌گویان هک رد رسودن شعر رد زماهن و دوره‌ی غالب‪ ،‬بلندآوازه شدند و تواانیی رسودن زغل رد سبک‬

‫فی‬ ‫غالب را داشته‌اند و آاثر کم‌نظیر از خود باقی گذاشته‌اند‪ ،‬عبدالقارد بیدل است و علی رسهندی‪ .‬منتقدین اپرسی‌گوی از دو شارع معارص با غالب‪ ،‬نیشابوری و ضی‬ ‫نیز رد تواانیی رسودن هب سبک هندی انم ربده‌اند‪.‬‬

‫تغ‬ ‫روی‌داداهی سیاسی و رشایط اقتصادی و ییرات اجتماعی‪ ،‬اتثیرات خود را کم و زیاد رد ره دوره‌یی‪ ،‬رب اوضاع رفهنگی و رب ادبیات رد جامعه داشته‌اند‪ .‬رد این‬

‫نم‬ ‫میان این اتثیرات رب خلقیات و روحیات شارعان و رگایش آانن هب شیوه و اقلب و سبک رسودن‪ ،‬ی‌تواند بی‌اتثیر بوده باشد‪ .‬گاه رد رد دوره‌یی‬ ‫اقلب مثنوی اپی می‌رگفته است و رد یک دوره‌ی دیگر‪ ،‬دمح اپدشااهن و امیران را گفتن و رسودن شعر رد اقلب رباعی و زغل مقبولیت می‌یافته‬

‫است‪ .‬گاهی از سبک رسودن رعاقی استقبال می‌شده و رد دوره‌یی این اقلب زغل بوده است‪ ،‬هک روح و روان شارعان را هب دل مشغول می‌رگدانیده‬

‫است‪.‬‬

‫گس‬ ‫میدان رسودن رد اقلب زغل‪ ،‬ربای بیان دل‌دادگی و عشق و نمایش مهر و عاطفه‪ ،‬رد تره‌ی اندیشیدگی شارعان پهناوررت بوده است‪ .‬رسودن رد‬

‫اقلب زغل بیش‌رت مناسب حال و احوال ردون و شوریدگی‌اهی عالم عاطفی بوده است‪ .‬زغل‪ ،‬روایت دل‌دادگی و عشق است و از شور و شیفته‌گی‌اه و‬ ‫بس‬ ‫غوغا رباپ شدن‌اه رد دل ح کایت می‌کند‪ .‬رسودن رد اقلب زغل‪ ،‬رب یک وزن و اقفیه است و شمارش ابیات از جنپ ات دوازده بیت‪ ،‬تگی هب حال و‬ ‫هوای دل و انتخاب شارع متفاوت است‪ .‬تعداد ابیات رد اقلب زغل‪ ،‬گاه ات بیست بیت هم می‌کشد‪ .‬كواته‌رتين زغل غالب شش بيت و طوالنی‌رتين‬ ‫زغلش بیست بيت و حد متوسط و متعارف ابيات زغل‌اهی او ده بيت است‪.‬‬

‫جهان شارعانگی و اندیشیدگی غالب‪ ،‬هچ آن‌ شعراه هک رد اقلب زغل رسوده و هچ نوشتارانی هک هب شیوه نثر هب ن گارش ردآورده‪ ،‬همه با ردون‌ماهی‌اهی رعافنی‌اند و‬

‫فلس‬ ‫غالب‪ ،‬روح ادبیات و رفهنگ را با رهگ‌اهی عالم فی آرفیده است‪ .‬جهان فلسفه و رعافن رد همه خالقیت‌اهی ادبیاتی غالب موج می‌زنند‪.‬رد دوره‌یی هک‬ ‫مح‬ ‫ی‬ ‫سبک رسودن رد اقلب رعاقی بوبیت داشته‪ ،‬دل‌‌دار و معشوهق‌ی شارع‪ ،‬موجودی زمینی بوده و رفته‌رفته هب رفشته‌یی آسمانی و یک معبود دست‌نیافتنی تبد ل‬

‫رگدیده‪ .‬رد دوره‌اهیی هک خاک اریان جوالن‌گاه دشمنان شده بوده و رغور و بالندگی ملی آسیب دیده بوده‪ ،‬از شعر هب شیوه‌یی هک آرامش رد دل می‌آرفیده استقبال‬ ‫می‌شده‪ .‬شارعان شعر را هب نیت آرفیدن آرامش رد دل می‌رسوده‌اند‪ .‬بنارباین شیوه‌ی رسودن از یک اقلب هب اقلب دیگر‪ ،‬با آراهی‌اهی زبانی رگزی‬

‫‪27‬‬

‫می‌زده‪ .‬و رد این رگزی مضامین اتزه و مفاهیم متفاوت‪ ،‬رد ردون‌ماهی‌اه و ساختار شعر جای می‌رگفته‪ .‬گاهی شارع مخاطب را هب بهشت و هب روز آرخت و دوری از‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫مع‬ ‫صیت‪ ،‬ارجاع می‌داده و گاه رد عالم تصوف و رعافن‪ ،‬هب رگایش هب سیر و سلوک می‌کشانیده‪ .‬زمانی از بی‌اعتباری دنیا و بی‌وافیی فلک داد ن می‌داده و‬

‫مس‬ ‫هس‬ ‫زمانی تی را‪ ،‬یک هدهی آسمانی می‌پنداریده و خوشی و رس تی را‪ ،‬هب دست‌یابی هب امید نوید می‌داده‪ .‬روزی از رسیدن هب معشوق و رپوای عشق آن‌جهانی‬ ‫گس‬ ‫نف‬ ‫می‌رسوده و روزی‪ ،‬از اپالیش روح و س عنان‌ یخته و بی‌رپوایی این‌جهانی می‌گفته‪ .‬مفاهیم و مضامین رد ساختار و عنارص شعر‪ ،‬متارث از تحوالت سیاسی و‬

‫نق‬ ‫اجتماعی بوده است‪ .‬اندیشه شارعان دست‌خوش درگگوهن‌گی‌اهی اجتماعی و سیاسی می‌رگدیده و این درگگونی‌اهی اندیشه‪ ،‬رب اقلب رسودن شعر ش پیدا‬ ‫می‌رکده‌اند‪.‬‬

‫رد چنین روزگارانی شارعان و از میان شارع اپرسی‌گوی هندی‌ژناد‪ ،‬غالب دهلوی‪ ،‬هب یک نوع رنسانس و بازگشت ادبی روی می‌آورند‪ .‬آانن معتقد‬

‫می‌شوند هک ات آن زمان‪ ،‬همه آن مضامین هک هب یاری اقلب‌اهی شعری رد جهان استعداد و رد چیرگی رد رسودن داشته بوده‌اند را‪ ،‬رد رعهص‌ی رسودن‬

‫گس‬ ‫گف‬ ‫گف‬ ‫یس‬ ‫هب کار رگفته‌اند‪ .‬می‌گویند باید رد مضامین اتزه تنی‌اهی اتزه گفت‪ .‬اما تنی‌اه هب امگن آانن گفته شده بوده‌اند‪ .‬می‌گویند هک با تی مفاهیم اتزه رد تره شعر آرفید‪.‬‬

‫جن‬ ‫و باید هب یک بش نو و رنسانس رد رسودن شعر رسید‪ .‬از این روی هب بازگشت ادبی روی می‌‌آورند‪ .‬هب شیوه‌ی رسودن پیشینیان‪ .‬غالب‪ ،‬ارگهچ سال‌اه‬ ‫تحس‬ ‫با یک چیرگی ین‌ربانگیز‪ ،‬رد نمایش روایی زبان و ادب و زبان اپرسی‪ ،‬عاشقاهن رد انس و الفت بود و با یک وافداری مثال‌زدنی‪ ،‬با رفهنگ واالی‬

‫مهد علم و هنر اریان زندگانی رکد‪ ،‬چیه گاه رفصت دیدار اریان را پیدا نکرد‪ .‬غالب‪ ،‬هب خارط ارادت هب امام شیعیان ‪ ،‬حضرت علی‪ ،‬اسداهلل یا شیر خدا‬

‫ت‬ ‫تش‬ ‫خلص می‌رکد‪ .‬او رد دمح امام شیعیان زغل‌اهی وژیه رسوده است‪ .‬غالب هک گفته اند سنی بوده است ارادت خود هب اسالم و هب یع را رد رسوده‌اه هب تماشا‬ ‫مس مس‬ ‫می‌گذاشت‪ .‬او رد رسودن رب همه‌ی اقلب‌اهی شعری از قطعه و قصیده رتکیب‌بندی و متک بیتات و مط و تزاد و رباعیات و دو بیتی و مثنوی و هب‬

‫وژیه رد اقلب زغل‪ ،‬با استادی چیرگی داشته و شعر رسوده‪ ،‬اما هب رسودن رد اقلب زغل انس و الفت بیش‌رتی رد خالقیت‌اهی شارعاهن‌گی نشان داده‬

‫است‪.‬شيوۀ غالب امککان همانند صائب و رعفی و كليم است هك رد سبك از خيال رپوری‌اهی مولوی‪ ،‬سعدی و حافظ نشان دارد‪.‬‬

‫ت‬ ‫ب‬ ‫نواب الهی‪ ،‬هک شارع بود و رد شعر معروف خلص می‌رکد و رد شهر خوش‌انم و دارای احترام بود‪ ،‬دختری داشت هب انم ارماء یگم‪ .‬رد سال ‪ ۱۸۱۰‬غالب با‬

‫هی‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ارماء یگم ازدواج رکد و هب دهلی مهارجت رکد رد آن زمان غالب فقط سیزده سال داشت‪ .‬ارماء یگم هفت رفزند هب دنیا آورد ولی چکدام زنده نماندند‪.‬‬

‫ارماء هک زنی خوش‌خلق و مهربان بود‪ ،‬از این‌هک همه رفزندان‌اش رمده بودند رد دل اندوهگین بود‪ .‬و از دیگر سو غالب رفزند دوست می‌داشت و‬

‫تصم‬ ‫نداشت‪ .‬ارماء و غالب یم رگفتند هک کودکی را هب رفزندخواندگی بپذریند‪ .‬و چنین رکدند و اسم او را عارف گذاشتند‪ .‬گویند هک عارف نیز رد عنفوان جوانی‬

‫رمد و اندوه بی‌رفزندی‪ ،‬ات اپیان زندگانی رد دل غالب ماند‪ .‬غالب رد یکی از انهم‌اهی خود ازدواج خود را دومین زندان پس از خود زندگی توصیف می کند‪.‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫این ایده هک زندگی یک مبارزه دماوم است‪ ،‬موضوعی تکراری رد شعر او بود‪ .‬وژیگی کالم او غم و اندوه بود هک نتیجه زندگی غالبا غم انگیزش بود‪ .‬او رد سنین‬ ‫مش‬ ‫شغ معم‬ ‫اپیین یتیم شد و ره هفت رفزندش را از دست داد‪ ،‬از نظر مالی کل داشت‪ ،‬رهزگ ل ولی نداشت و وابسته بود هب حمایت مالی خانواده‬

‫سلط‬

‫نتی‪.‬‬

‫‪28‬‬

‫نم‬ ‫ماه‌اه و سال‌اه آدمه و گذشته‌اند و غالب‪ ،‬حاال دیگر از میان‌سالی گذشته بود و هب هفتاد و هس سالگی زندیک شده بود‪ .‬چند روزی می‌شد هک ی‌توانست هب نوشتن‬ ‫قلم رد رسانگشتان بگیرد‪ .‬از نیروی‌ او کاسته شده بود و توان راه‌ رفتن هم دیگر نداشت‪.‬‬

‫نش‬ ‫بیش‌رت رد ااتق می‌خوابید و ارگ بیدار بود‪ ،‬می‌ ست و تکیه رب دیوار هب ردختان خیره می‌شد و رد رویا و اندیشه رفو می‌رفت‪ .‬داشت بوی رمگ می‌آدم‪ .‬از مصاحبی‬

‫هک رد ااتق بود و ندیمه‌اش بود و انجام روزرمگی می‌رکد‪ ،‬خواست ات هک قلم ربدارد و ره آن‌هچ غالب می‌گوید‪ ،‬او خطاب هب اپدشاه رب کاغذ بنویسد‪ .‬غالب ربای‬

‫نخس‬ ‫تین بار بود هک داشت تقاضای کمک مالی می‌رکد‪ .‬می‌خواست هک پیش از این‌هک از دنیا ربود‪ ،‬وام‌دار چیه‌ کس نباشد و بده کاری‌اهی خود را هب یکی دو تن بپردازد‪.‬‬

‫کمک مالی و هدایای اپدشاه زمانی می‌‌‌رسند هک رپنده روح از کالبد شارع انم‌دار اپرسی‌گوی‪ ،‬غالب دهلوی رپ کشیده بود‪ .‬غالب رد سال ‪ ۱۸۶۹‬میالدی از دنیا رفت‬

‫و پیکر او را رد جوار آرام گاه خواهج نظام‌الدین اولیاء رد دهلی هب خاک سپردند‪.‬‬

‫نوشته‌اهی غالب شامل آاثری هب زبان افرسی و اردو است هک رد آن او هم نثر و هم نظم را هب وفور نوشته است‪ .‬آاثر عمده وی شامل هن ارث هب زبان افرسی‬ ‫ش‬ ‫وچهارده ارث هب زبان اردو‪ ،‬از جمله دیوان وی هب زبان افرسی و اردو است‪ .‬شعر اردو رد شبه اقره هند هب گوهن ای هک ارموزه می شناسیم کل نهایی خود را‬

‫پی‬ ‫سم‬ ‫نگرفت ات رقن هفدهم هک هب جای زبان افرسی هب عنوان زبان ر ی ردبار اعالم شد‪ .‬رد سال ‪ ۱۸۳۳‬غالب شگفتاری ربای دیوان اردوی خود نوشت‬ ‫پی‬ ‫پی‬ ‫و طبق سنت نوشتن شگفتار هب زبانی دیگر‪ ،‬غالب افرسی را انتخاب رکد‪ ،‬ردست مانند موالان رومی هک رعبی را ربای شگفتار شعر افرسی خود انتخاب رکد‪ .‬همانند‬

‫معم‬ ‫شعر او‪ ،‬ردک نثر غالب دشوار بود زریا او از کلمات زیادی استفاده می رکد هک حتی رد استفاده ول نیز وجود نداشت‪ .‬این ارم منجر هب اشتبااهت چاپی متعددی رد‬ ‫مش‬ ‫مج‬ ‫تفس‬ ‫ب‬ ‫نسخه خطی افرسی شد و انرشان را بور رکد ات این سهم اق ل توهج غالب را تجدید نظر کنند‪ .‬با توهج هب کالت اجتناب انپذری رد یر اصطالحات انرد‪ ،‬کلمات‬ ‫همچ‬ ‫پی‬ ‫پی‬ ‫ن گلیس‬ ‫رمکب و واژگان خود غالب ‪ ،‬ما تمامی تالش خود را رکده‌ایم هک رتجمه ا ی این شگفتار را هب نحو احسن اراهئ دهیم‪ .‬نین رتجمه این شگفتار طوالنی هک‬

‫غالب ربای دیوان افرسی خود نوشته است‪ ،‬ربای اولین بار رد اینجا اراهئ شده است‪.‬‬

‫بهرام سپاسگزار‬

‫‪ ۱۳‬سپتامبر سال ‪۲۰۲۱‬‬

‫‪29‬‬

Foreword

G

halib Dehlavi is one of the renowned Persian poets and writers famous in Indian versification poetry among the poets. Ghalib emerged after another great poet of the Indian style, Bidel Dehlavi. In mentioning such a group, the name of Amir Khosro Dehlavi, a famous mystic and renowned poet, should not be missed. Ghalib, Bidel, and Amir Khosro are pioneers of Indian style composing poetry. However, in the meantime, Ghalib was titled as the lord of words, predicating such a glorious name was because although his language was Urdu, he had an admirable proficiency over composing Persian poetry. Speaking and writing in both Urdu and Persian were common at that time, and speaking Persian was typical in the Indian subcontinent. The poetry devotees and lovers have long been numerous on this subcontinent, and in that time, the Indian subcontinent was representative for ode and verse and anthem. People liked the poetry and cherished poets. Iqbal Lahori and Ghani Kashmiri are mentioned as the famous poets of that era, who were considered the genuinely great poets whose consequences had the glory to be successful not only in the Indian subcontinent but also in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. Ghalib was born in Agra, India, on December 27th, 1797, and nicknamed Dabir al-Molk. Ghalib received no formal education and followed the tradition of private tutoring in various subjects. Ghalib openly acknowledges his academic shortcomings. He was, however, a scholar of Persian and knew Arabic well. He has repeatedly referred to himself as a Persian poet, listing his Urdu contributions as side efforts. However, the fame of Ghalib stems from his Urdu poetry. His paternal grandfather was a Turkish immigrant of middle Asia who was immigrated to India. He writes about his ancestors’ migration to India as bellow: It is not latent that the ancestor was a Turkish letter writer of Pashang and Afrasiab genealogy. He turned from the Turkestan to India and Lahore; he made the Moein al-Mulk state a refuge and peace support. He was proud of being the Afrasiab pedigree and Seljuk generation and said: I am Ghalib, from the pure territory of Turan, and I have an honorable origin; I am a Turk, and my pedigree refers to mighty dynasty elders. Furthermore, he stated elsewhere: O butler, do you know that my gem origin is of the Jam dynasty; and I am the grandchildren of Pashang and Afrasiab?

30

Although Mirza Asadollah Ghalib is an Indian genealogy, he is one of the Persian poets’ orators. His composing poetry method and style was his own, and imitating his style was not easy, and hence the poets’ results which were influenced by his classical style, could not create an equal evaluation compared to Ghalib’s works. Moreover, his classical style distinguishes his creativity from those of his ancestors and contemporary poets. The only orators who became famous for composing poetry in the Ghalib period and could compose a sonnet in Ghalib style in individual results are Abdul Qader Bidel and Ali Sarhandi. Persian critics have also mentioned Neyshabouri and Feizi as two other contemporary poets of the Ghalib period who could compose poets in Indian style. In each period, the political happenings and economic conditions, and social changes have had their effects on the cultural situation and society literature, such effects impress poets’ ethics and spirits and their tendency to the style and format of composing poetry. Sometimes in a period, there was an established Masnavi template, and in another period, there were accepted poems praising kings and kinglets and quatrains and ode poem forms. Sometimes the Iraq style of composing poetry was welcomed, and in another period, the sonnet form kept poets’ minds and souls devoted to the heart.

Composing poetry is a sonnet for expressing love and affection was broader in the poets’ thought area. Composing in sonnet form has been more appropriate for introspection and emotional turmoil. The sonnet narrates love and tells about the heart’s passions, infatuation, and upheavals. Poetry versification in sonnets is based on the same weight and rhyme, and the number of verses due to the poet’s mood and the choice varies from five to twelve. The verses number of sonnets sometimes reaches up to twenty. Ghalib’s shortest sonnet has six verses, and his longest sonnet has 20 verses, and the average and the typical number of his sonnet verses is 10. The poetry and thought world for Ghalib, whether the poems in sonnet form or writings in prose form, all have mysticism content he has created the spirit of literature and culture with the roots of the philosophical world. The philosophy and mysticism world pervades in Ghalib’s all literary creations. During the era that Iraqi style was famous for composing poetry, the poet’s lover and mistress was an earthly being and gradually became a heavenly angel and an unattainable deity. In periods when Iran had become an arena for enemies and the national pride and prosperity had been damaged, poetry was a way to engender peace in the heart. Poets versified poems to create heart peace. Thus, the way of composing poetry differs from one format to another with linguistic arrays. Moreover, the poem’s theme and structure included new contents and different concepts in this allusion. Sometimes the poet referred the audience to heaven and judgment day and sin avoidance, and sometimes in Sufism and mysticism, the poet leads to a spiritual journey and conduct tendency. At one time, he spoke of the world’s discredit and firmament’s unfaithfulness, and at another time, he considered existence a heavenly gift and promised happiness for attaining hope. One day he composed poems about reaching the beloved and concerning worldly love, and one day he spoke of spiritual refinement and wayward ego related to this world. Political and social developments have influenced concepts and themes in the poem’s structure and elements. The poets’ thoughts were undergoing social and political changes, and these thought transformations manifested in poetry form. In such times, poets and among Indian race but Persian speaking poets, Ghalib Dehlavi, turned to literary renaissance and return. They believed that up to that time, they had used all contents they had with the aid of the poetry formats resulted in a talent world and subtly versification in the composing field. It is said that new content should include new subjects. However, they just considered that they had been told all sayings. New content should be created in the poetry field, and a new movement and renaissance in poetry versification should have happened. Hence, they turn to literary return in the method of their predecessors. Although Ghalib for years was amorously fond with an admirable mastery in presenting Persian language justifiability and Persian literature, he lived for years with Iran’s great culture of art and science provenance. However, he never had the opportunity to visit Iran. Ghalib was sincere to Imam Ali, and so he used pseudonyms such as Asadullah or Sheer-e Khoda (the lion of God). He has composed special sonnets in praise of Shias Imam. Although it is said that Ghalib was Sunni, but he showed devotion to Islam and Shiism in his poems. He was a master of versifying all poetic formats such as ode, ballade, composition, quatrains, couplet, and especially sonnet, but he had more fondness and creativity in composing sonnets. Ghalib’s method is almost the same as Saeb, Urfi, and Kalim, showing Rumi, Sa’adi, and Hafez’s romantic style as well. Navvab Elahi, a poet and highly reputed and respectable in the city, had a daughter named Omra Begum. In 1810 Ghalib married Omra Begum and moved to Delhi; he was only 13 years old. Omra Begum gave birth to seven children and none of the children survived beyond infancy. Omra was a good-tempered and kind woman; she was lugubrious for her children’s death, and on the other hand, Ghalib loved children, but he had none. Omra Begum and Ghalib decided to adopt an orphan child; they did so and named him Aref. It is said that Aref died in his youth, and the childlessness grief prevailed in Ghalib’s heart until his life ended. In one of his letters, he describes his marriage as the second imprisonment after the initial confinement of life itself. The idea that life is one continuous struggle was a recurring theme in his poetry. His verse is characterized by sadness, the result of an often-tragic life. He was orphaned at an early age and lost all seven of his children in their infancy. He struggled financially, never had a regular job, and depending on patronage from royalty. Months and years have passed and gone, and Ghalib was in his middle age, approaching seventy-three. It had been a few days that he could not get a pen with his fingers and write. His strength was exhausted, and he could no longer walk. He slept more in the room, and if he was awake, he sat and leaned to the wall, staring at the

31

trees, and immersed himself in dreams and thoughts. His death was near. He asked the companion in his room, and did his daily chores, to take a pen and write down what he was sayings and send it to the king. It was the first time Ghalib requested financial aid. He did not want to remain obligor to someone after his death and wanted to pay his debt to one or two persons. The king sent donations and gifts, but Ghalib’s soul had abandoned his body when they arrived. Ghalib Dehlavi, died in 1869, and his body was buried near the Khajeh Nizamuddin Oliya in New Delhi. Ghalib’s writings comprise works in Persian and Urdu, wherein he wrote both prose and poetry prolifically. His major works include nine contributions in Persian and 14 in Urdu, including his Divan in Persian and Urdu. Urdu poetry of the Indian subcontinent as we know it today did not take its final form until the 17th century when it was declared the official language of the court in place of Persian. In 1833, Ghalib wrote a preface to his Urdu divan and, keeping with the tradition of writing the preface in a different language, Ghalib chose Persian, just like Rumi chose Arabic for the preface to his Persian poetry. Like his poetry, the prose Ghalib wrote was difficult to understand as he used many words that were not even in common usage; this resulted in numerous typographical mistakes in the Persian manuscript and forced the publishers to redact this significant contribution by Ghalib. We are providing an English translation as best as possible, given the inevitable difficulties of interpreting rare idioms, compound words and Ghalib’s own vocabulary. This preface is presented here with English translation. Also produced here for the first time is the translation of long preface that Ghalib wrote for his Farsi divan. Bahram Sepasgozar 13 September 2021

32

‫رد مورد اشعار غالب‬ ‫فلس‬ ‫بی ش‬ ‫مهم‬ ‫ی‬ ‫شارعانی مانند غالب‪ ،‬می‌توانند حتی احساسات و واقیع پیش‌اپافتاده را رخداداهی ی جلوه دهند‪ .‬غالب تر هب بیان فی متما ل بود و از این جهت او‬

‫نم‬ ‫اولین شارع فیلسوف اردو است‪ .‬دیوان اشعار عاشقاهن‌ی غالب با قصیده آغاز ی‌شود‪ ،‬بلکه با طلب حق از خدا‪ِ ،‬شکوه و ارباز انامیدی از ردماندگی انسان‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫آغاز می‌شود و با دعوت‌ هب راقبت از ن‌سنجان ربای ردک او اپیان می‌یابد‪ .‬شعر غالب اف کار دیچیپه‌ای را اراهئ می‌دهد هک او انتظار دارد خواننده‪ ‌،‬شعر را با‬

‫سیس‬ ‫همان روانی هک هب ذهن او می‌رسد‪ ،‬رگه‌گشایی کند‪ .‬حال آن هک ‪ ،‬او ارث روشنی از تم اعتقادی خود ربجای می‌گذارد‪ .‬رمسوم است هک شارعان‪ ،‬دیوان‬

‫مجم‬ ‫خود را با قصیده‌ای رد دمح خداوند آغاز می‌کنند؛ اما غالب وهع‌ی اردوی خود را با ِشکوه از خدا آغازرکده و می‌گوید‪:‬‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ش رفیادی هی کس کی شوخیء تحرریکا‬ ‫کاغذی هی ریپهن ره پیک ِر تصوری کا‬

‫بخش‬ ‫لباس‌اهی کاغذی هب سنت اریانیان قدیم اشاره دارد‪ :‬زمانی‌هک رمدم پیش از این‏هک ربای ردخواست رحمت و ش هب حضور اپدشااهن ربسند رخهق‌ی‬

‫نج‬ ‫کس‬ ‫کاغذی بپوشند‪ ،‬؛ از این رو غالب می‌رپسد ی هک از ما می‌خواهد ردربارب او سجده کنیم «کیست؟» زمینه‌ی شعر اردو این است هک ر ی هک ردطول زندگی هب‬

‫منتق‬ ‫ن‬ ‫ب‬ ‫انسان ل شده‪ ،‬بی‌مورد بوده است‪ .‬رپوردگار بی‏نیاز‪ ،‬نیازی نداشت هک ما را بیارفیند و این همه ر ج هب ما بدهد‪ .‬کارربد «غوغا»‌ رد شعر باال اق ل‌توهج است؛‬ ‫ن‬ ‫می‌توان آن‌را وریانی‪ ،‬رپیشانی‪ ،‬ر ج و تحولی دانست هک هم جهان و هم انسان‌اه رد زندگانی‌اهی خود با آن روهب‌رو می‌شوند‪ .‬آرخین بیت دیوان‬

‫اردوی غالب‪ ،‬ردست مانند اولین بیت‪ ،‬قصیده نیست بلکه بیان شکوه است‪.‬‬ ‫دیوان افرسی غالب با بیت زری آغاز می‌شود‪:‬‬

‫ای هب خال و مال خوی تو هن گاهم زا‬

‫گف‬ ‫با همه رد تگو‪ ،‬بی همه با مارجا‬

‫َ‬ ‫قب‬ ‫این شعر قصیده‌ای رد ستایش رپوردگار نیست و بسیاری هب‌اشتباه آن‌را ربداشت رکده‌اند‪ .‬خال هب عدم‌وجود (جهان‪ -‬ل‌از خلقت) و مال هب وجود جهان‬ ‫جم‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫حق‬ ‫اشاره دارد‪ .‬رد جهانی هک رپ از عیت است‪ ،‬خداوند با کسانی هک با این جهان مشغول هستند از راه‌اهی بی‌شمار ن می‌گوید ات هب آن‌اه بفهماند هک چقدر یر‬

‫جن‬ ‫هستند‪ .‬بااین‌حال خداوند رخداد امور خلق و فنای جهان را زمانی ایجاد می‌کند هک چیه‌کس حضور ندارد‪ .‬بسیاری از مترجمان ارتباط بین بش(اضطراب) و‬

‫ً‬ ‫غوغای جمله‌ی دوم را اندیده رگفته‏اند‪ .‬ذات رپوردگار این است هک هچ ما باشیم و هچ نباشیم‪ ،‬هیاهو و غوغا هب‌اپ کند‪ .‬وجود ما ربای رپوردگار ذاات رضوری نیست‪ .‬این‬

‫ن بش‬ ‫فهم‪ ،‬بی‌ردنگ سوالی را ایجاد می‌کند هک آیا خلق این جهان هب‌بهای ر ج ریت رضوری بوده است؟‬

‫‪33‬‬

‫نم‬ ‫ميرزا غالب از سن ده سالگی با استعداد خدادادی هک هب او عطا شده بود آغاز هب رسودن اشعاری هب ره دو زبان افرسی و اردو رکد‪ .‬وهن‌اهی ابتدایی اشعار افرسی‬

‫مت‬ ‫بی ش‬ ‫غالب رد نسخه‌ی حميدهي علق هب سال ‪ ۱۸۲۱‬هک ازاعتبار تری ربخورداراست ثبت شده است‪ .‬این نسخه رد سال ‪ ۱۹۱۷‬رد بواپل هندوستان کشف شد‪.‬‬

‫غالب رد کتاب “جنپ آهنگ” خود می گوید‪“ :‬روشن رتک این هک رد ده سالگی آاثر موزونی طبع پیدایی رگفت”‪ .‬حال آنکه رد کتاب احوال و آاثر غالب آدمه‬

‫است هک می گوید‪“ :‬از سن دوازده سالگی کاغذ را مانند انهم اعمال خود از نظم و نثر سیاه می کنم”‪ .‬رد سن بیست و جنپ سالگی دیوان اشعار او کامل می شود‪.‬‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هم بیش‬ ‫غالب رگ هچ هب ره دو زبان افرسی و اردو ن‌ رسایی می‌رکد ولی اشعار افرسی خود را واالرتمی‌دانست و هب آن ا یت تری می‌داد‪ .‬چنان هک می‌گوید‪:‬‬ ‫بب نق‬ ‫افرسی بین ات ینی ش اهی رنگ رنگ‬ ‫مجم‬ ‫بگذر از وهع اردو هک بی‌رنگ من است‬

‫افرسی بین ات بدانی کاندر اقلیم خیال‬ ‫مانی و ارژنگم و آن نسخه ار تنگ من است‬

‫س‬ ‫غالب رد ابتدا هب اردو زغل می رسایید هک رد مقایسه با دیگر شارعان اردو زبان اشعار وی بسیار دیچیپه و نگین‌کالم بودند و ردک اشعارش ربای رمدمان آن‬

‫زمان دشوار بود از این رو غالب هب افرسی رسودن رپداخت‪ .‬آاثر او رد نظم افرسی عبارتند از‪ :‬ميخاهن‌ی آرزو‪ ،‬سبد چين‪ ،‬سبد باغ دو رد ‪ ،‬دعاء الصباح‪ ،‬و‬

‫ی‬ ‫تیم‬ ‫رساهل‌ی فن بانگ‪ .‬رد نثر افرسی آاثر او عبارتند از‪ :‬جنپ آهنگ‪ ،‬مهر نيمروز‪ ،‬دستنبو‪ ،‬اقطع رباهن یا ردفش كاويانی و اتر خ شهریاران وری‪.‬‬

‫بخ‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫جنپ آهنگ ‪ :‬کتابی است هک رد جنپ ش نوشته شده و ره ش را یک آهنگ انمیده اند‪ .‬جنپ آهنگ رمبوط هب زبان و خط و كتابت و ادب افرسی است‬ ‫کم‬ ‫نم‬ ‫و رد آن غالب تالش وده هک از ترين کلمات رعبی استفاده رکده و انهم ن گاری و انشارپدازی کند‪.‬‬

‫ی‬ ‫تيم‬ ‫مهر نيمروز‪ :‬کتابی است هب نثر رد بارۀ اتر خ و داستانهای اپدشااهن‪ .‬بهاردشاه ظفر هک آرخين اپدشاه سلسله وريان يا گورکانيان هند بود غالب را رفمان داد هک‬

‫بخ‬ ‫قس‬ ‫ي تيم‬ ‫اتر خ وری را تدوين نمايد و رد دو مت هب ن گارش ردآورد‪" ،‬مهر نیمروز" و "ماه نیم ماه"‪ .‬غالب تنها ش اول يعنی "مهر نيمروز" را تمام رکد‪ .‬رد این کتاب هک‬ ‫یس‬ ‫غالب هنر نثرنو ی خود را هب تماشا گذاشته از کلمات رعبی کم استفاده شده‪ ،‬ولی کلمات رتکی را با بیان معانی آنها هب کار ربده‪.‬‬

‫ی‬ ‫دستنبو‪ :‬رد این کتاب غالب امکبیش از اتر خ زمان خود و رشح زندگی‌اش و رمدم معارصش می نویسد‪ .‬رد سال ‪ ۱۸۵۷‬شورشی شد ربعليه حکومت‬

‫ن گل‬ ‫قسم‬ ‫همی‬ ‫ی‬ ‫نم‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ا يس و غالب واقيع این شورش را بیان وده و از این جهت تی از اتر خ را ن گاشته است‪ .‬غالب طبق روال شگی خود تالش وده هک رد این‬ ‫کتاب واژگان غیر افرسی را ب کار نبرد و با مهارت غالب گوهن رد این کتاب هک چهارده زهار واژه مورد استفاده رقار رگفته تنها چند کلمه غير افرسی هب کار ربده و‬

‫ارثی زیبا آرفیده است‪.‬‬

‫حس‬ ‫اقطع رباهن‪ :‬این کتاب نوشته‌ای است انتقادی رب کتاب رباهن اقطع (رفهنگ معروف افرسی‪ ،‬تأليف مولوی و محمد ين تبرزيی) غالب رد مطالعه‬

‫ً‬ ‫این کتاب متوهج شد هک اشتبااهت زيادی وجود دارد و رد حاشيه کتاب اش کاالت و اريادات را يادداشت می رکد و بعدا هب صورت کتاب دمون ساخت هک رد‬

‫‪34‬‬

‫سال ‪ ۱۸۶۲‬هب چاپ رسيد‪.‬‬

‫مشت‬ ‫يس‬ ‫ردفش کاویانی‪ :‬کتابی است ردبارۀ رفهنگ نو ی و نيز مل رب اعتراض‏اهيی هب رباهن اقطع‪.‬‬

‫کم‬ ‫بع‬ ‫غالب هک هب افرسی عالهق زیادی داشت رد نثر خود از کلمات رعبي تر استفاده می‌رکد و ضی از کلمات را با امالی دیگری می نوشت ات حال و هوای افرسی هب‬

‫شم‬ ‫خود گیرند‪ " .‬س العلماء حالی" هک حافظ رقآن بود و زبان رعبی را هب خوبی می دانست مي گويد‪ " :‬اغلب رمدم اطالع ندارند هک غالب ربخی از واژه اه را‬

‫ً‬ ‫ربخالف تمام ارفاد اهل زبان و زبان داانن هب صورتی ديگر می نويسد‪ ،‬مثال "صد" را "سد"‪" ،‬شصت" را "شست"‪" ،‬غلطيدن" را "غلتيدن" ‪"،‬طپيدن"‬ ‫صحي نم‬ ‫را " تپيدن"‪" ،‬گذشتن" را زگشتن و "گذاشتن" را " زگاشتن" می نویسد‪ .‬اين امالء باعث رطد انرظين بود و ما نيز اين امالء را ح ي دانيم! البته رب زبان‬

‫داانن راستين معلوم است هک امالی غالب انردست نيست و ربخی اساتيد و دانشمندان را نيز عقيده رب آن است هک چون اين کلمات افرسی است‪،‬‬ ‫زلومی ندارد هک با "صاد" و "طا " و "ذال" نوشته شوند‪.‬‬

‫غالب گاهی ردابیات افرسی خود از کلمات اردو استفاده می‌رکد‪:‬‬

‫مش‬ ‫شمار سبحه رمغوب بت کل پسندآيا‬ ‫تماشايی هب يک کف ربدن صد دل‪ ،‬پسند آيا‬

‫رد اینجا از کلمه “آیا” هک رد زبان اردو هب معنای “آدمن” است استفاده شده‪.‬‬

‫مس‬ ‫تی هب ذوق غفلت ساقی هالک هی‬

‫موج رشاب يک ژمه خوابناک هی‬ ‫و رد اینجا از کلمه “هی” هک رد زبان اردو هب معنای “هست” است استفاده شده‪.‬‬

‫غالب رددیوان اردوی خود از کلمات افرسی زیادی استفاده رکده و گاه تمامی یک بیت شامل کلمات افرسی است‪:‬‬ ‫سنگ آدم و سخت آدم رددرس خودداری‬ ‫معذور‬

‫سبکساری‪،‬‬

‫مج‬

‫بور‬

‫رگانجانی‬

‫وی رد ابیات خود از واژگانی دیچیپه و رد عین حال زیبا هک زاده چیره دستی خودش بود استفاده رکده‪ .‬رد آاثر غالب هچ نظم و هچ نثر‪ ،‬عشق و عالهق او هب زبان‬ ‫افرسی و اريان و عقايد و آداب و سنن اريانی ديده می شود‪.‬‬

‫‪35‬‬

‫مج‬ ‫خس‬ ‫گاه غالب از پهلواانن داستانهای کهن اپرسی چون رستم و سهراب و ارفاسیاب می نوشت و گاه از عشق هب یاد ماندنی لیلی و نون‪ ،‬رو و شیرین وشیرین‬

‫و رفاهد یاد می رکد‪:‬‬

‫بی شمش‬ ‫تن سهراب و رستم رعشه‌دار از م‬

‫یرش‬

‫رس اسکندر و دارا ف گار از چوب ردبانش‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غم‬

‫را‬

‫تن م‬ ‫ندی‬ ‫و ِ‬

‫هب‬

‫رگفتم‬

‫سهراب‬

‫ُ‬ ‫خود موج می از دشنهء رستم هچ‌ کم‌‌‌ستی‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫تهم‬

‫تنی‬

‫ق‬ ‫ت جنگ اقعدۀ‬ ‫ردد رتا هب و ِ‬

‫فک ِر رما هب زری زنگ آئینهء سکندری‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫لیلی هب دشت قیس رسیدست انگهان‬ ‫كاروان‬

‫رد‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫جهازه‬

‫مح‬

‫لفکن‬ ‫م ‌‬

‫بس‬

‫‌یست‬

‫گف‬ ‫از عشق و حسن ما و تو با همدرگ رد تگو‬

‫خس مج‬ ‫رو هب نون یک رطف شیرین هب لیلی یک رطف‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫َیم‬ ‫خواهم ز خواب رب رخ لیلی گشا ش‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ح‬ ‫م‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫چشم‬ ‫ی نگه هب رپده مل نسوده‌ای‬

‫همچ‬ ‫غالب نین اشاره ای هب دین زرتشت و عید نوروز اپرسی رکده است‪:‬‬ ‫رشار‬

‫آتش‬

‫زرتشت‬

‫رد‬

‫نهادم‬

‫بود‬

‫هك هم هب داغ مغان شیوه دلبرانم سوخت‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫فی‬

‫ض عیش نوروزی جاوداهن خوش باشد‬

‫روز من ز اتریکی با شبم ربارب کن‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫‪36‬‬

‫عم‬ ‫ساز عیش کن زک ِباد نوروزی‬ ‫منال از ر و ِ‬

‫هب‬

‫گلشن‬

‫نگ‬ ‫ر ینی‬ ‫ِ‬

‫جلوۀ‬

‫بس‬ ‫شبا تی‬

‫هد‬ ‫ع ِ‬

‫سخ‬ ‫غالب از شهراهی اریان ن زیاد می گفت و آرزوی سفر رکدن و ماندن رد اریان را داشت‪:‬‬ ‫بس‬ ‫غالب از آب و هوای هند مل گشت نطق‬ ‫خیز خود را هب اصفااهن و شیراز افکنم‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫ل‬ ‫خاک کدورت خیز ِ هندم دل رگفت‬ ‫فغا ب‪ ،‬از ِ‬ ‫اصفهان هی‪ ،‬زید هی‪ ،‬شیراز هی‪ ،‬تبرزی هی‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫کش‬ ‫غالب ز هند نیست نوایی هک م ‌ی م‬ ‫گویی‬

‫ز‬

‫اصفهان‬

‫و‬

‫قم‬ ‫یم‬

‫ما‬

‫غالب رد اشعار خود از بسیاری شارعان انم آور اریانی تبار و شارعان افرسی‪-‬اردو ن گار انم ربده است؛ رد این میان انم ظهوری دوازده بار‪ ،‬نظيری هن بار‪،‬‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫حس‬ ‫زحين جنپ بار‪ ،‬رعفی جنپ بار‪ ،‬رتی چهار بار‪ ،‬حافظ هس بار‪ ،‬صائب دو بار‪ ،‬نیر دو بار‪ ،‬آزرده یک بار‪ ،‬اسير یک بار‪ ،‬ارشف یک بار‪ ،‬سعدی یک بار‪،‬‬

‫قتي‬ ‫في‬ ‫صهبائی یک بار‪ ،‬طالب یک بار‪ ،‬علوی یک بار‪ ،‬فغانی یک بار‪ ،‬ضی یک بار‪ ،‬ل یک بار‪ ،‬مؤمن یک بارآدمه است‪.‬‬ ‫ظهوری‬

‫هب نظم و نثر موالان ظهوری زنده‌ام غالب‬ ‫رگ جان ركده‌ام شيرازه اوراق كتابش را‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب از صهبای اخالق ظهوری رسخوشيم‬

‫اپره‌ای بيش است از گفتار ما ركدار ما‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫في‬ ‫ما را دمد ز ض ظهوری ‌ست رد‬

‫چون‬

‫‪37‬‬

‫جام‬

‫باده‬

‫راتبه‌خوار‬

‫خم‬

‫یم‬

‫سخ‬

‫ن‬ ‫ما‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫نجم‬ ‫ذوق فكر غالب را ربده زا ن بيرون‬

‫با ظهوری و صائب محو همزبانی‌اهست‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫بيابد هم ز من آنچه از ظهوری يافتم غالب‬ ‫پس‬ ‫ا رگ جادوبياانن را ز من وا تری ـباشد‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫ردين ستيزه ظهوری گواه غالب بس‬

‫من و ز كوی تو زعم سفر ردوغ ردوغ‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب از من شيوۀ نطق ظهوری زنده گشت‬ ‫از نوا جان رد تن ساز بيانش ركده‌ام‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫همزبانم با ظهوری مطلعی كو ات ز شوق‬

‫با رجس رد انهل آوازی رب آواز افگنم‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب از جوش دم ما رتبتش گلپوش باد‬

‫رپده و ساز ظهوری را گل‌افشان ركده‌ايم‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب از اوراق ما‬

‫رسهمءحيرت‬

‫كش‬

‫نق‬ ‫ش ظهوری دميد‬

‫يم ديده هب ديدن دهيم‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب هب شعر كم ز ظهوری نيم ولی‬

‫عادل‌‬

‫هش‬

‫سخ‬ ‫نرس‬

‫رديا‌نوال‬

‫كو؟‬

‫‪38‬‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫ّ‬ ‫زهّل ربدار ظهوری باش غالب بحث چيست؟‬

‫ّ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫یش‬ ‫رد ن ردو ئی بايد هن دکان دارئی‬ ‫نظيری‬

‫يش‬ ‫في‬ ‫ز ض نطق خو م با نظيری هم‌زبان غالب‬

‫رچاغی را هك دودی هست رد رس زود ردگيرد‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب ز تو آن باده هك خود گفت نظيری‬

‫رد كاهس‌ء ما با دۀ رسجوش نكردند‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫ای‬ ‫اه‬

‫ساخته‬

‫غالب‬

‫‪،‬قطره‌ربای‬

‫غالب ذماق ما‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫از‬

‫گوره‬

‫نظيری‬ ‫آور‬

‫نتوان يافتن ز ما‬

‫رو شيوۀ نظيری و رطز زحين شناس‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫كي‬ ‫هب رعض غصه نظيری و ل غالب بس‬

‫ا رگ تو نشنوی از انهل‌اهی زار هچ حظ؟‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب شنيده‌ام ز نظيری هك گفته است‬

‫انلم ز رچخ رگ هن هب افغان خورم رديغ‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب سوخته‌جان را هچ هب گفتار آری‬ ‫هب دياری هك ندانند نظيری ز‬

‫‪39‬‬

‫قتي‬

‫ل‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫جواب‬

‫خطا‬

‫خواهج‬

‫نوشته‌ام‬

‫و‬

‫نظيری‬

‫چش‬ ‫م‬

‫نوشته‌ام‬

‫آرفين‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب‬ ‫دارم‬

‫هله اتزه گشته غالب روش نظيری از تو‬

‫زسد اين‌چنين زغل را هب سفينه انز ركدن‬ ‫زين‬

‫هن گاهم‌ام‬

‫خونچ كان‬

‫اسيری‬

‫زحين‬

‫نوااه‬

‫ردياب‬

‫انديشه‌ام‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫غالبا عين زحين‌ست‬

‫مارجااه‬

‫زحينی‌ست‬

‫هب هنجار ربوز‬

‫موج اين حبر مكرر هب كنار آدم و رفت‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫بعد از زحين هك رحمت حق رب روانش باد‬

‫ما ركده‌ایم رپورش فن ردين هچ بحث؟‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب ذماق ما نتوان يافتن ز ما‬ ‫رو شيوۀ نظيری و رطز زحين شناس‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫اندرين شيوۀ گفتار هك داری غالب‬

‫رگ‬

‫رتقی‬

‫نكنم‬

‫شي‬

‫خ‬

‫رعفی‬

‫علی‬

‫را‬

‫مانی‬

‫مش‬ ‫گشته‌ام غالب رطف با رب رعفی هك گفت‪:‬‬

‫سلسبي‬ ‫ل و قعر رديا آتش‌ست‬ ‫روی رديا‬

‫‪40‬‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫او جسته جسته غالب و من دسته دسته‌ام‬

‫كس‬ ‫رعفی ی‌ست ليک هن چون من ردين هچ بحث؟‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫سخ‬ ‫چون ننازد ن از رمحمت دره هب خويش‬

‫هك ربد رعفی و غالب هب عوض باز دهد‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫كيفيت رعفی طلب از طينت غالب‬

‫جام‬

‫درگان‬

‫شيراز‬

‫بادۀ‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫ندارد‬

‫اقفيه غالب چو نيست رپس ز رعفی‬ ‫رگ من رفهنگ بودمی هچ‬ ‫حس‬

‫رتی‬

‫غمس‬

‫تی؟‬

‫حس‬ ‫گفت هب حكم رتی غالب خسته این زغل‬

‫شاد هب چيه می‌شود طبع وافرسشت ما‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫غالب ارگ هب زبم شعر دري رسيد دور نيست‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫حس‬ ‫كش هب رفاق رتی دل ز نوری رگفت‬ ‫‪g‬‬

‫حس‬ ‫غالب ز رتی هچ رسايی هك رد زغل‬

‫چون او تالش معنی و‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫‪41‬‬

‫مضم‬

‫ون نكرده كس‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫حافظ‬

‫في‬ ‫غالب هب قول حضرت حافظ ز ض عشق‬

‫ثبت است رب رجيدۀ عالم دوام ما‬

‫آن‬

‫غالب‬

‫هك‬

‫پندارند‬

‫بود‬

‫آشفته‬

‫حافظ‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫غالبم تشنه‏ی تلخاب‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ما ل‬

‫نباتم‬

‫شاخ‬

‫آن‬

‫تنه‬

‫هن‬

‫صائب‬

‫بوده‬

‫هم‬

‫نيز‬

‫است‬ ‫هم‬

‫چون حافظ‬

‫اناه‬

‫يا‬

‫هو‬

‫نجم‬ ‫ذوق فكرغالب را ربده زا ن بيرون‬ ‫و صائب محو همزبانی‌اهست‬

‫با ظهوری‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫اين جواب آن زغل غالب هك صائب گفته است‬

‫رد‬

‫نم‬

‫ود‬

‫نق‬

‫ش‌اه‬

‫بی‌اختيار‬

‫ّ‬ ‫نیر‬

‫افتاده‌ام‬

‫مبارک‌ ست رفيق ار چنين بود غالب‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫ضيای نیر‬

‫ما‬

‫‪g‬‬

‫چش‬ ‫م روشنی دارد‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫آزرده‬

‫‪42‬‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫زين‬

‫خون‌چ كان‬

‫هن گاهم‌ام‬

‫اسيری‬

‫اسير‬

‫نوااه‬

‫ردياب‬

‫انديشه‌ام‬

‫ارشف‬

‫مارجااه‬

‫زحينی‌ست‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫سعدی‬

‫حلق غالب نگر و دشنه‌ء سعدی هك رسود‬

‫خوربويان‬

‫پيشه‬

‫جفا‬

‫صهبايی‬

‫واف‬

‫نيز‬

‫كنند‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫طالب‬

‫غالب ز وضع طالبم آيد حيا هك داشت‬

‫چشم‬

‫ی هب سوی‬

‫بلب‬

‫ل و‬

‫علوی‬

‫چشم‬

‫ی هب سوی گل‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬ ‫فغانی‬

‫‪43‬‬

‫رپده‌ای چند هب آهنگ نكيسا‬ ‫زغلی‬

‫چند‬

‫هب‬

‫في‬

‫هنجار‬

‫ضی‬

‫توسن كلک غالبا مصرع‬

‫صب‬

‫فيض‬

‫فغانی‬

‫بس‬

‫رای‬ ‫بشنو‬

‫يش عنان‌ست‬

‫ح چو رتک مست من شيشه گشاد می‌دهد‬ ‫قتي‬

‫ل‬

‫غالب سوخته جان را هچ هب گفتار آری‬ ‫هب دياری هك ندانند نظيری ز‬ ‫مؤمن‬

‫قتي‬

‫ل‬

‫ّ‬ ‫مؤمن و نیر و صهبايی و علوی وان گاه‬

‫حس‬ ‫عظ‬ ‫رتی ارشف و آزرده بود ا مشان‬

‫نح‬ ‫رد سالهای اپیانی عمرغالب بسیار يف و انتوان شده بود و می‌گفت‪:‬‬

‫بهارپيشه جوانی هک غالبش انمند‬

‫او رد پیش بینی از وافت خود نوشت‪:‬‬

‫نفس‬ ‫کنون ببين هک هچ خون می چکد ازره ش‬

‫من هک باشم هک جاودان باشم‬ ‫چون نظيری نماند و طالب رمد‬

‫و زمانی هک دیده از جهان رفو بست ميرمهدی مجروح گفت‪:‬‬

‫ُ‬ ‫رکش رعفی و فخر طالب رُمد‬ ‫اسداهلل‬

‫خان‬

‫غالب‬

‫“آه غالب رمد”‬

‫رمد‬

‫‪44‬‬

About Poetry of Ghalib P

oets like Ghalib can express even mundane feelings and occurrences into momentous events. Ghalib was mostly inclined toward philosophic diction, and thus he is the first poet-philosopher of Urdu. The Divan of Ghalib’s love poems opens with not an ode but a challenge to God, a complaint, and an expression of frustration with the helplessness of man and ends with a challenge to the critics to understand him. The poetry of Ghalib presents complex thoughts that he expects the readers to untangle with the same fluency as they come to his mind. Instead, however, he leaves clear trails of his belief system. It is a tradition for the poets to arrange their divan that begins with an Ode to the Lord, Hamd. In his Urdu collection, Ghalib began with a complaint to God and stated:

‫نق‬ ‫ش رفیادی هی کس کی شوخیء تحرری کا‬

‫کاغذی هی ریپهن ره پیک ِر تصوری کا‬

“To whom are the markings complaining of the trickery of the writing destiny? Made of paper is the clothing in the appearance of every persona.” Paper clothing refers to the Old Persian tradition when folks are pleading for mercy before kings would don a paper robe to seek favors. So Ghalib is questioning, “Who” is that being that demands us to prostrate before Him. And why? He then followed with: “When there was nothing, then God was still there; Had there been nothing, then God would still have been there.” “I was drowned because I had existed; Would it have mattered if I didn’t exist?” The Urdu verse theme is that the suffering (drowned) doled out to humans during their lifetime was unnecessary; God didn’t need to create and give us all this suffering. The use of “tumult” in the Persian verse above is significant. It can be taken as creating havoc, turmoil, suffering, and upheaval that both the Universe and humans in their lives come across. In the end, just like the first verse of Ghalib’s Urdu divan, it is a complaint, not an ode. The Persian divan opens with:

‫ای هب خال و مال خوی تو هن گاهم زا‬

‫گف‬ ‫ بی همه با مارجا‬،‫با همه رد تگو‬

O You whose nature is to create tumult in emptiness or fullness; When with many, you converse, but when there is no one, you are adventurous. This is also not an ode to God, mistakenly suggested by many. Emptiness refers to nonexistence (of Universe—before creation), and fullness refers to the Universe’s existence. Where the Universe is populated, God speaks to those occupying the Universe through myriad ways, making them realize how humble they are. However, God keeps making things happen when there is no one present—creating and destroying Universes. Many interpreters missed the connection to the tumult of commotion with the second line. The nature of God is to create a tumult, whether we are there or not. We are not essential to God. This understanding brings an immedi-

45

ate question, why was it necessary to create the Universe, for it had meant only suffering for humanity? With an innate God-given talent that was gifted to him, Mirza Ghalib began composing poems at the age of ten in both Persian and Urdu. Ghalib’s initial instances of Persian poets have been recorded in the Hamidiyeh version, which belongs to 1821 and it is more credible. This version was discovered in 1917 in Bhopal, India. In his book named “Panj Ahang,” Ghalib says: “a bright Turk whom his symphonious works began to appear at the age of ten.” Whereas it is mentioned in Ghalib’s book of biography and works that: “From the age of twelve, I blacken papers like a letter of my deeds from poetry and prose.” His book of poems “Divan” was completed at the age of twenty-five. Although Ghalib wrote in both Persian and Urdu, he considered his Persian poems more sublime and paid more attention to them. As he says:

‫بب نق‬ ‫افرسی بین ات ینی ش اهی رنگ رنگ‬ ‫مجم‬ ‫بگذر از وهع اردو هک بی‌رنگ من است‬

‫افرسی بین ات بدانی کاندر اقلیم خیال‬ ‫مانی و ارژنگم و آن نسخه ار تنگ من است‬

See my Farsi Divan to see the colorful poems; Skip my Urdu Divan that is my faded color. See Farsi, so you know that in the land of my imagination; I am like Mani and Arzhang, and that is a painted copy of my imagination. Ghalib first composed ghazals in Urdu, which in comparison with other Urdu poets, his poems were so complex and heavy in words, and understanding these poems was difficult for people of that time. Hence Ghalib started composing poetry in Persian. His works in Persian poetry include the Meikhaneye Arezo, Sabad-chin, Sabad-e Bagh-e do dar, Doa’ ul-Sabah, Resaleh Fan Bang. His works of Persian prose are Panj Ahang, Mehr-e Nimrooz, Dastanbu, Ghate’ Borhan or Darafsh-e Kaviani, History of Shahriaran Teimouri. Panj Ahang: It is a book written in five sections, and each section is called an Ahang. Panj Ahang is related to the Persian language, calligraphy, writing, and literature, and Ghalib has tried to utilize the least Arabic words and write letters and phraseology. Since Ghalib had a deep interest in Persian language, he used fewer Arabic words in his prose and wrote some words with different spelling to get a Persian tune. Shams Ul-Ulama Hali, who knew Quran by his heart and knew the Arabic language well, says: “Most people do not know that Ghalib, unlike all the linguists and language scholars, writes some words in another form.” For example, he wrote:

”‫“ زگاشتن‬as ”‫ “گذاشتن‬and ”‫ “زگشتن‬as ”‫ “گذشتن‬,”‫ “ تپيدن‬as ”‫ “طپيدن‬,”‫“غلتيدن‬as ”‫“غلطيدن‬,”‫ “شست‬as ”‫ “شصت‬,”‫ “سد‬as ”‫“صد‬

46

Observers rejected such spelling, and we do not consider this spelling to be correct! But, of course, it is evident for factual linguists that Ghalib’s spelling is not incorrect, and some professors and scholars also believe that because these words are Persian, it is not necessary to be written with letters such as “Saad,” “Ta” and “Zaal.” Mehr-e Nimruz: This book is prose about history and kings’ stories. Bahadur Shah Zafar was India’s last king of the Timurid or Gurkan dynasty, ordered Ghalib to compile the Timurid history and write it in two parts: The Mehr-r Nimruz and Maah Nim Maah. Unfortunately, Ghalib only finished the first part, named Mehr-e Nimruz. Ghalib has presented his artistic talent in writing prose through this book; he rarely used Arabic words but used Turkish words by their meanings. Dastanbu: In this book, Ghalib has written about the history of his time, his biography, and people in his contemporary era. In 1857 there formed an insurgency against the British government, and Ghalib has expressed this insurgency, so he has written a part of history. Ghalib has tried in this book not to use non-Persian words,

and this book has 14000 words that only used a few non-Persian words, resulting in an elegant work. Ghate’ Borhan: This book is critical writing about Borhan-e Ghate’ (Farhang-e Ma’rouf Farsi, written by Molavi and Mohammad Hossein Tabrizi). When reading this book, Ghalib realized it has many mistakes; he wrote these mistakes on the book margins and later wrote it in the form of a book published in 1862. Darafsh-e Kaviani: This book is about lexicography and contains objections to the book Borhan-e Ghate’. Sometimes Ghalib used Urdu words in his Persian poems.

‫مش‬ ‫شمار سبحه رمغوب بت کل پسند آيا‬ ‫تماشايی هب يک کف ربدن صد دل پسند آيا‬

The desirable praise counts towards the idol were fastidious; Such spectacular that approbated by tempted hundred hearts. Here Ghalib used the word “Aya” (‫)آیا‬at the end, which is an Urdu word, and it means “came,” the synonym of this word in Farsi is “Amad.” “pasand aya” means it was desirable.

‫مس‬ ‫تی هب ذوق غفلت ساقی هالک هی‬ ‫موج رشاب يک ژمه خوابناک هی‬

The state of drunkenness is ruined by the Saqi’s negligence; The effect of the wine wave is a sleepy eyelash.

Here Ghalib has used an Urdu word “Hai” (‫ )هی‬which means “is.” The synonym of this word in Farsi is “Hast”. Ghalib has used lots of Persian words in his Urdu Divan, and sometimes the whole verse contains Persian words:

‫سنگ آدم و سخت آدم رددرس خودداری‬ ‫رگانجانی‬

‫بور‬

‫مج‬

،‫سبکساری‬

‫معذور‬

It is complicated to trouble and be abstinence; Being light-headed is excused, and sluggishness is compelled. Ghalib used complicated but beautiful words in his verses which were the result of his mastery. In Ghalib’s works, his passion and affection towards the Persian language and Iran and Iranian beliefs, customs, and traditions can be seen in poetry and prose. At times Ghalib wrote about the legends of Persian epic stories such as Rostam, Sohrab, and Afrasiab, and sometimes he mentioned the memorable love of Laila and Majnoon, Khosro and Shirin, Shirin and Farhad:

‫شمش‬ ‫تن سهراب و رستم رعشه‌دار از بیم یر‬

‫رس اسکندر و دارا ف گار از چوب ردبانش‬

The body of Sohrab and Rustam was trembling from the fear of his sword; The head of Sikandar and Dara were wounded from the wood of his doorway.

‫غ‬ ‫تن م‬ ‫ندی سهراب رگفتم‬ ِ ‫م را هب و‬ ُ ‫کمس‬ ‫خود موج می از دشنهء رستم هچ‌ تی‬

47

I thought of grief having the strength of Sohrab; But this wave of wine is no less than Rostam’s dagger.

‫ق‬ ‫ت جنگ اقعدۀ تهمت‬ ِ ‫ردد رتا هب و‬

‫فک ِر رما هب زری زنگ آئینهء سکندری‬ ِ

Your pain has the power of Tahamtan while fighting the lovers; My poetic thought has the shine of a bright mirror beneath its rust.

‫لیلی هب دشت قیس رسیدست انگهان‬

‫ٔ مح‬ ‫بس‬ ‫رد كاروان جهازه مل‌فکن ی‌ست‬

Leila reached the Qais’s territory and quickly; There are many in the Caravan to unload the palanquin tied to the back of her camel.

‫گف‬ ‫از عشق و حسن ما و تو با همدرگ رد تگو‬

‫خس مج‬ ‫روهب نونیکرطفشیرینهبلیلییکرطف‬

My love and your beauty converse with each other; Khosro with Majnoon on one side and Shirin with Laila on the other.

‫َیم‬ ‫خواهم ز خواب رب رخ لیلی گشا ش‬ ِ ‫ح‬ ‫م‬ ُ ‫چشم‬ ‫ی نگه هب رپده مل نسوده‌ای‬

I desire that upon waking up from my sleep, my glance falls upon the face of Laila; That eye, the sight of which has not ever struck the curtain of Laila’s camel litter. Ghalib also mentioned the religion of Zoroaster and Persian new year called Norouz:

‫رشار آتش زرتشت رد نهادم بود‬

‫هك هم هب داغ مغان شیوه دلبرانم سوخت‬

The sparks of the fire of Zoroaster were in my nature also; As I got burned by the branding from beloved’s fiery disposition.

‫فی‬

‫ض عیش نوروزی جاوداهن خوش باشد‬

‫روز من ز اتریکی با شبم ربارب کن‬

May the grace of Norouz be eternal; Make my day dark the same as my night.

‫عم‬ ‫ساز عیش کن زک ِباد نوروزی‬ ِ ‫منال از ر و‬ ‫بس‬ ‫نگین‬ ‫هد شبا تی‬ ِ ‫ر ِی ع‬

‫هب گلشن جلوۀ‬

Do not bewail past grief; prepare for joy; see how the breeze of Norouz; Brings to the garden all the radiant gaiety of your youth.

48

Ghalib wrote a lot about Iranian cities and wished to travel and stay in Iran:

‫بس‬ ‫غالبازآبوهوایهند ملگشتنطق‬ ‫خیز خود را هب اصفااهن و شیراز افکنم‬

Ghalib, in the India of where my speech is wounded; Get up, let us go towards Isfahan and Shiraz.

‫ل‬ ‫خاککدورتخیز ِهندمدلرگفت‬ ِ ‫از‬،‫غا ب‬

‫ تبرزی هی‬،‫ شیراز هی‬،‫ زید هی‬،‫اصفهان هی‬ Ghalib, my heart has been turned off from the hatred-cultivating land of India; Alas, where are Isfahan and Yazd, Shiraz and Tabriz?

‫کش‬ ‫غالب ز هند نیست نوایی هک م ‌ی م‬ ‫قم‬ ‫گویی ز اصفهان و یم ما‬

Ghalib, this call of my poetry does not come from Hindustan, It seems like we are from the land of Isfahan or Qum. He has mentioned many famous poets in his poems; he mentioned Zohouri 12 times, Naziri 9 times, Hazin 5 times, Urfi 3 times, Hasrati 4 times, Hafez 3 times, Saeb 3 times, Nayyer 3 times, and Azordeh, Asir, Ashraf, Sa’adi, Sahbaei, Taleb, Alavi, Fughani, Feizi, Qatil, and Momin only once. Zohouri O Ghalib, we are brimful with the wine of etiquette of Zohouri; Our actions are a little bit more than our words. (5:12) In our poesy, we are helped by the benevolence of Zohouri; Like the goblet of wine, we are on the stipend of the wine. (21:8) O Ghalib, I am alive because of the prose and poetry of Molana Zohouri; I have sewn the pages of his book with my jugular vein. (27:12) The joy of brainwork has brought Ghalib out of the assembly; He indulged himself in the style of Zohouri and aeb. (66:12) Ghalib, he will get the same bounty from me as I got from Zohouri; If someone from among the spellbinding poets would follow me. (153:12) In this dispute, Zohouri is witness to Ghalib, and this is enough; I and the intention to leave your street, it is a lie, yes, it’s a lie. (227:9) May Ghalib’s grave remains covered with flowers from the ebullience of our breath; We have scattered flowers on Zohouri’s veil of music. (256:12) O Ghalib, in our pages, the picture of Zohouri is displayed; “We apply the antimony of wonderment and then see with our eyes.” (258:10) Because of me, Ghalib, the style of diction of Zohouri has come to life; My melodious poetry has instilled a soul in the means of his expression. (259:12) Same language as Zohouri, where is that first verse so that with passion Create a repeated sound of a bell from my plaint. (273:8) Ghalib, I am no less than Zohouri in my poetry; But where is the righteous poetry appreciating the devotional King? (298:12) O Ghalib, what is the argument? You had better start eating crumbs of Zohouri;

49

For in poesy only dervish style works, not any shop-selling. (322:10) Naziri Ghalib, by keeping the diction, you have the same tone as Naziri does; “A lamp with a little smoke catches the flame quickly.” (167:12) Ghalib, may that wine be yours, the one that Naziri had said himself; Our goblet was not filled with overflowing wine. (185:10) O Ghalib, you have made up with Naziri; Bring a pearl after robbing a drop. (197:12) Ghalib, you cannot discover our taste from our self; Go and distinguish the style of Naziri and the manner of Hazin. (207:12) For the expression of grief, Naziri is enough as the pleader of Ghalib; “What is the joy if you don’t hear the extreme lamentation.” (223:10) Ghalib, I have heard it from Naziri, who said; “If I were not afraid if it is going to waste, I would complain to the calamities of the sky.” (228:10) Why do you speak of the afflicted Ghalib; In a country where they don’t distinguish between Naziri and Qatil? (237:12) Ghalib, I have written this ghazal in response to Naziri; An audacious mistake it is, yet I am expecting praise. (264:13) Praise be, Ghalib, you have rekindled the style of Naziri; Including this type of Ghazal in the divan is worthy of pride. (287:11) Hazin Know from these blood-dripped wailings what have I gone through; I set up sedition and chaos like Asir, while my thoughts are like Hazin. (55:7) Ghalib, following the same path as Hazin every day; The waves of this ocean repeatedly came to the shore and left. (75:10) After Hazin, May God have mercy on his soul; We are the only ones who have raised the art of poetry with no argument about it. (106:9) Ghalib, you cannot discover our taste from our self; Go and distinguish the style of Naziri and the manner of Hazin. (207:12) O Ghalib, this style of your diction; If I do not progress, then it could be like Shaikh Ali. (324:9) Urfi Ghalib, I am contrasting Urfi in his style, who said; The surface of the ocean is a calm brook, and its bottom is fiery. (59:11) He is more or less, but I am the complete Ghalib; Urfi may be a great poet but does not match my caliber, no argument about it! (106:10) Why wouldn’t the words be proud of the destiny’s kindness to them; That takes away Urfi and brings Ghalib in exchange? (154:13) Seek the quality of Urfi’s poetry from Ghalib’s disposition; There is no wine of Shiraz in the goblet of others. (168:12) Ask Urfi if you are not able to find a refrain, Ghalib; If I were in the dictionaries, what would be wrong. (312:13) Hasrati The tired Ghalib said this Ghazal following the style of Hasrati; My loyal, loving nature is pleased with little things. (35:10) It is not improbable if Ghalib arrived late to the poesy assembly;

50

In the separation of Hasrati, his heart has become distraught of poetry. (81:9) Ghalib, what praise you are making for Hasrati, for in Ghazal; No one has tried to find the themes and meanings like him. (208:10) Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Hafez Ghalib, as Hafez says by the grace of love; “Our existence is registered in the book of the world.” (44:8) The one whom they thought was Hafez; Was none but frantic Ghalib. (274:9) I am Ghalib, and I am thirsty for bitterness, like Hafez. I am not interested in sugarplum; my existence belongs to you O God. (300:11) Saeb Tabrizi The Ghazal that I have written is in response to the Ghazal of Saeb; In which he had said that I am uncontrolled in the expression of carvings. (257:15) The joy of brainwork has brought Ghalib out of the assembly; He indulged himself in the style of Zohouri and Saeb. (66:12) Azordeh Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Asir Know from these blood-dripped wailings what have I gone through; I set up sedition and chaos like Asir, while my thoughts are like Hazin. (55:7) Ashraf Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Sa’adi Look at Ghalib’s throat and the knife of Sa’adi that chants The cruel beauties can be faithful too. (160:10) Nayyer Ghalib, congratulations if the friend has a high vision; As our Zia Nayyer has, and this is a gift to us. (162:9) Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Sahbaei Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Taleb Ghalib often felt ashamed of his Taleb-like style that he had One eye after the nightingale and one eye towards the flower. (240:10) Alavi Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9)

51

Fughani Come and sing a few notes of the tune of Nakisa; And listen from me a few Ghazals in the style of Fughani. (294:4) Feizi O Ghalib this line of the verse of Feizi is the rein of the horse of my pen; “In the morning time when my intoxicated Turk uncorks the wine bottle.” (118:10) Qatil Why do you speak of the afflicted Ghalib; In a country where they don’t distinguish between Naziri and Qatil? (237:12) Momin Momin or Nayyer and then Sahbaei and Alavi; Hasrati, Ashraf, and Azordeh were the great ones. (277:9) Ghalib was very weak and emaciated at the end of his life and said: A spring-like young man who is called “Ghalib.” See how blood is dripping from every breath of him now. Ghalib, in anticipation of his death, wrote: Whom am I to be eternal? When “Naziri” didn’t stay alive, and “Taleb” died If they ask what year Ghalib died Just say “Ghalib died” When Ghalib died, “Mir Mehdi Majrouh” wrote: The one who envied “Urfi” and was proud of “Taleb” died, Asadullah Ghalib died. “Alas, Ghalib died”

52

List of Ghazals No.

First Line of the Verse

1

O You whose nature is to create tumult in emptiness or fullness

2

God Almighty, with mercy, makes innocent people happy

3

Our silence gave the wrong impression to the idols

4

My slate of deeds should be just as clean as the beloved’s face

5

Suddenly, if you would enter the gate of our garden, intoxicated

6

I do not see any joy in this world as if the heaven

7

After killing me, she saw me in her dream, how prideful is her misgiving

8

Erase the sign of duality in the pages of my heart

9

The fire of your love remained obvious even after my death

10

O friend, the thorn along your pathway may not catch your skirt

11

We have carved our footprint in every pathway, so that

12

In the dust of exile, we are our own mirror-holder

13

Keeping busy waiting for the moonfaced beauties in the lonely nights

14

After years of wearing out, learning pious lessons

15

O Heart, my life cannot bear the cruelty of your tumultuousness

16

I am not the one whom you can deceive any longer

17

If you don’t believe that I will wait for you, come, and see

18

When I send a message to my beloved through a messenger

19

In separation, the means of happiness intensify my tumultuousness

20

Because of its boiling, the amazement is not coming out of my eyes

21

Imagining ourselves to be a drop, we are lost in ourselves

‫فهرست زغل اه‬

‫ای هب خال و مال خوی تو هن گاهم‌زا‬

‫تعالی اهلل هب رحمت شاد رکدن بی‌گنااهن را‬ ‫خاموشی ما گشت بدآموز بتان را‬

‫چون عذار خویش دارد انهمٔ اعمال ما‬ ‫رگ بیائی مست انگاه از رد گلزار ما‬

‫نم بی‬ ‫ی‌ نیم رد عالم نشاطی کاسمان ما را‬

‫کش‬ ‫پس از تن هب خوابم دید انزم بدامگنی را‬ ‫نق‬ ‫محو کن ش دوئی از ورق سین ٔه ما‬

‫سوز عشق تو پس از رمگ عیان‌ست رما‬

‫آشنایاهن کشد خار رهت دامن ما‬ ‫نقش‬ ‫ی ز خود هب راهگذار بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫رد رگد رغبت آئینه‌دار خودیم ما‬

‫شغ‬ ‫هب ل انتظار مهوشان رد خلوت شب‌اه‬

‫پس از عمری هک رفسودم هب مشق اپرسائی‌اه‬ ‫جان رب نتابد ای دل هن گاهمٔ ستم را‬

‫من آن نیم هک درگ می‌توان رفیفت رما‬ ‫زمن ارگت نبود باور انتظار بیا‬ ‫بس‬ ‫چون هب اقصد پرم پیغام را‬

‫رد هجر رطب بیش کند اتب و تبم را‬

‫چش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫رب ی آید ز م از جوش حیرانی رما‬ ‫گم‬ ‫از وهم قطرگی‌ست هک رد خود یم ما‬

53

54

22

From the style of our hopelessness our tumult is evident to the world

23

At the end of my love affair, I now recall the time

24

It is all due to you, whatever good and evil we are

25

What a good time, enslaved, when out came the lust

26

Faded the color, so it wouldn’t make the impatient ones ashamed

27

I handed over the hell and its chest-burning flames

28

Our bowl always remains intimate with wine

29

The uninhibited coquetry has hidden her outward style of enmity

30

We seek the secret of your nature from your bad habits

31

O you, whose beautiful face has added sparkle to the color

32

The heat of her blazing beauty burns the veil

33

I promised my soul with the protection of kindness from calamity

34

In loneliness, there is this good news of my beloved’s presence by my side

35

Our musk-scented wine, the willow tree, and the edge of the farm fields

36

Our heart can no longer hold laments, O God

37

Until the problem-solver had stitched the liver that was split into four pieces

38

It appears that destiny wants to show the mirror of humility to the royal style

39

Fear itself shivers from the awfulness of our ruins

40

O beloved, from the dust of your feet, your skirt has turned into flower

41

Your sorrow melts the brains of the immature in the oven of knowledge

42

I do not claim that I have kept fresh the style of diction of spell-casting poets

43

O God of the wisdom and the world, a wise judge

44

My desire for wine is nothing but a relief from sorrow

45

Rise and find those who are lost or along the wrong path

ٔ ‫هب گیتی شد عیان از شیوه عجز اضطرار ما‬

‫مح‬ ‫هب اپیان بت یاد می‌آرم زمانی را‬ ‫از تست ارگ ساخته رپداخت ٔه ما‬

‫خوش وقت اسیری هك ربآدم هوس ما‬

‫شكست رنگ ات رسوا نسازد بی‌رقاران را‬ ‫سپردم دوزخ و آن داغ‌اهی سینه‌اتبش را‬ ٔ ‫دمام محرم صهبا بود ایپهل ما‬

‫ج‬ ‫نهفت شوخی بی رپده شور نگش را‬ ‫راز خویت بد آموز تو می‌جوییم ما‬

‫ای روی تو هب جلوه رد آورد رنگ را‬

‫سوزد ز بس‌هك اتب جمالش نقاب را‬

‫نوید التفات شوق دادم از بال جان را‬ ٔ ‫هب خلوت ژمده زندیکی یارست پهلو را‬

ٔ ‫باده مشک‌بوی ما بید و کنار کشت ما‬ ‫دل اتب ضبط انهل ندارد خدای را‬ ‫ات دوخت چاره‌رگ جگر چار اپره را‬

‫قضا آیینه‌دار عجز خواهد انز شاهی را‬ ‫رلزه دارد خطر از هیبت وریاهن ما‬

‫نق‬ ‫ای گل از ش کف اپی تو دامان رتا‬

ٔ ‫غمت رد بوهت دانش گدازد مغ ِز خامان را‬ ٔ ‫نگویم اتزه دارم شیوه جادوبیاانن را‬

‫ای خداوند رخدمند و جهان داور داان‬

‫زج دفع غم ز باده نبودست کام ما‬

‫خیز و بیراهه‌روی را رس راهی ردیاب‬

46

Not surprised, if after the injustice, she inclines towards justice

47

The frenzy of my love is wandering in the desert of amazement tonight

48

Tonight, I sulk in the sorrow for my inability to reach out

49

Dawn has risen, and the flowers are blooming

50

Truth oozes out of the speech of Mohammad

51

The flower garden is not as wide as the meadow of our chest

52

There is so much injustice in this judgment that

53

Whose battleground is in the circle of the lamented land of the heart?

54

I am restless with the thought as to whose glorious manifestation is in her heart

55

The fact that I do not bring the thought of the rival in my heart is a sign of foresight

56

Your sweet lips are the very soul of salt

57

Many disasters are beyond your surmise?

58

You’re saying that sorrow inside the chest is life-giving—yes, it is!

59

We opened our chest, and the world saw that there is a fire in here

60

In her coquetry, it is difficult for her to reach out to herself

61

Since the searing air of this valley of existence is so heart burning

62

She could not tell my breath from the dust in her path

63

Every particle is absorbed viewing the display of that unique beauty

64

Whatever the sky did not want to give, no one asked for it;

65

If the waist of a lover is thin, then we are frail too

66

Tonight, a fiery face of busy reciting the holy book of Zand Avesta

67

Stitch not my collar for it no longer exists

68

O nightingale, your heart is not bound to bloody laments

69

Prohibiting us from drinking wine is nothing but a show of being accountable

‫رگ پس از جور هب انصاف رگاید هچ عجب‬

ّ‫تح‬ ‫مح‬ ‫جنون مل هب صحرای یر رانده است امشب‬ ‫از انده انیافت قلق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫مخ‬ ‫سحر دمیده و گل رد دمیدن‌ست سپ‬ ّ ‫حق جلوه رگ ز رطز بیان محمدست‬ ‫چم‬ ‫گلشن هب فضای ن سین ٔه ما نیست‬

‫بس هک ردین داوری بی‌ارث افتاده است‬

‫وادی دل رزم گاه کیست‬ ِ ‫رد رگد انهل‬

‫رد اتبم از خیال هک دل جلوه‌گاه کیست‬

‫یاد از عدو نیارم و این هم ز دور بینی‌ست‬

‫ن‬ ‫لب شیرین تو جان مکست‬ ِ ٔ ‫ن‬ ‫یس‬ ‫هچ فتنه‌اه هک رد اندازه امگن تو ت‬

‫ هست‬،‫ای هك گفتی غم ردون سینه جانفرساست‬ ‫تش‬ ‫سینه بگشودیم و خلقی دید كاینجا آ ست‬

‫هب خود رسیدنش از انز بس‌هك دشوارست‬

‫سم‬ ‫وم وادی ام كان ز بس جگر اتب‌ست‬ ‫نفس‬ ‫رگد ره خویش از م باز ندانست‬ ٔ ‫ره رذه محو جلوه حسن ی گاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫هی‬ ‫ره هچ فلك نخواست‌ست چكس از فلك نخواست‬ ‫ما الرغیم رگ كمر یار انزك‌ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫امشب آ ین رویی رگم ژندخوانی اهست‬ ِ ‫جیب رما دموز هك بودش نمانده است‬ ‫بلب‬ ٔ ‫ل دلت بناهل خونین هب بند نیست‬

‫منع ما از باده رعض احتسابی بیش نیست‬

55

56

70

The joy of love that I have comes from the blessing of my helplessness

71

It is promised, while it is also forbidden, what is the statement?

72

From the brightness of your sight, the calmness went away

73

The glimpse remains hidden in your eyes, and a scowl is displayed on your forehead

74

If the willow does not bear fruit, at least it does cast a shadow

75

In my prime youth, my beloved came into my arms and left

76

The star of my fate should have been better in this world

77

What comes from Europe is now in abundance in town

78

Alas, the lightning of your respite has burned me in a way

79

I said there are many poets like me in this world

80

When my morning looks like night from darkness

81

Out of sincerity, she befriended and gave up enchanting the rival

82

Stealing my heart with coquettishness is apparent, and then it is not

83

Although she has stolen my heart, one cannot call her heart-ravisher

84

Two to three layers of the topcoat fell out from the heat

85

She wished to show her anger with us but found no occasion to do so

86

Look, between the wine and the flower, which one is more eager to display to you?

87

In a land where Khizr’s stick is asleep

88

One killed envies of the other killed one

89

In India, the poetry professionals live the life of oblivion

90

Your red lips are wounded of the effect of whose beseeching?

91

The one who has burned me with a hundred brandings in the open

92

There is a generous hand in the donation of pearls and writing poems

93

Entrapped by you, there is one whose eyes are shut to both worlds

‫عشق فی‬ ‫لذت م ز ض بینوایی حاصل‌ست‬

‫بخش‬ ‫هم وعده و هم منع ز ش هچ حساب ست‬

‫بس هك از اتب ن گاه تو ز آسودن رفت‬

‫چش‬ ‫نگه هب م نهان و ز جبهه چین پیداست‬

‫رگ بار نیست ساهی خود از بید بوده است‬ ‫یار رد عهد شبابم هب كنار آدم و رفت‬

‫اختری خوشتر ازینم هب جهان می‌بایست‬

‫از رفنگ آدمه رد شهر رفاوان شده است‬ ‫فغان هك ربق عتاب تو آنچنانم سوخت‬

‫سخ‬ ‫بس‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم هب روزگار نور چو من ی‌ست‬

‫صب‬ ‫چو ح من ز سیاهی هب شام مانندست‬

‫ساخت ز راستی هب غیر رتك فسونگری رگفت‬

‫دل ربدن ازین شیوه عیان ست و عیان نیست‬ ‫دل ربد و حق آنست هک دلبر نتوان گفت‬ ‫اندوده هب داغی دو هس رپكاهل رفو ریخت‬

‫خواست زك ما رنجد و تقریب رنجیدن نداشت‬ ‫ببین هك رد گل و مل جلوه رگ ربای تو كیست‬

‫بوادی هك ردآن خضر را عصا خفته ست‬

‫كشته را ركش كشت ٔه درگست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هند را رند ن پیش ٔه گمنامی هست‬

‫لع‬ ‫ل تو خست ٔه ارث التماس كیست‬

‫آن هك بی رپده هب صد داغ نمایانم سوخت‬

‫ل ق س‬ ‫ت ركیم‌ست‬ ِ ‫رد بذل ال ی ور م د‬

‫چش‬ ‫رد بند تو م از دو جهان دوخته ای هست‬

94

I am a lover; why talk to me about fame and disgrace?

95

Catching the flowers deceiving in their claim to scent and color

96

By the side of my grave, the dust is whirling

97

For as long I have the kind gaze of James Thompson

98

My bones are not needlessly free of marrow like the flute

99

You have broken the bond of love; it is difficult now to patch it

100

As long as your sword is carving wound, we are protected from death

101

My eyes shed more tears than clouds

102

God pardons his servants with or without any reason

103

The joys of the path followers are from the wine of Your tavern

104

Why abstain from wine? Is it a life-giver?

105

I am glad that destiny disabled me in your alley

106

Lost in herself but not like me, there is no argument about it

107

What need is there to disclose that my beloved has molded into me

108

Ignoring us that we desire to see your display turn into fire altogether

109

In veil, we complain against you, but there is no expression

110

O you, who does not exist, entangle not in its display

111

The wine of sun rays and the goblet of the morning breeze

112

We let out sighs in the love of the Khaybar conqueror

113

O your beauty is brave in plundering the sight of beholders

114

For the sake of cleansing our body of sins

115

No more would I be deceived by spring to turn into a frenzy

116

If her glance falls on the letter of a compact of faithfulness

117

No need there is to ask about my condition

‫شق سخ‬ ‫با من هك عا م ن از ننگ و انم چیست‬ ‫گل را هب رجم رعبده‌ای رنگ و بو رگفت‬ ‫غبار رطف زمارم هب چیپ و اتبی هست‬

‫ات بسویم نظر لطف 'جیمز اتمسن' ست‬

‫هم‬ ‫ست‬ ‫هن رهزه چو نی از مغزم ا خوان خالی‌ست‬

‫مش‬ ‫گسس‬ ‫ز من تی و پیوند کل افتادست‬

‫یم‬ ‫ا ینم از رمگ ات تیغت رجاحت بار هست‬ ‫م از ارب اشکباررتست‬

‫چشم‬

‫بخش‬ ‫ظهور ش حق را رذیعه بی سببی‌ست‬

ٔ ‫نشاط معنویان از رشاب خاهن تست‬ ‫منع ز صهبا رچا باده روان‌رپور است‬

‫خوشم هک رچخ هب کوی توام ز اپ انداخت‬

‫ لیک هن چون من ردین هچ بحث‬،‫محو خودست‬

‫نقش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫م رگفته دوست ودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫مسن‬ ‫ هوای ما ج‬،‫جلوه می‌خواهیم آتش شو‬ ‫رد رپده ش کایت ز تو داریم و بیان چیه‬

‫مپی‬ ‫ رد تماشایش چ‬،‫ای هک نبوی ره هچ نبود‬ ‫صب‬ ‫بادهء رپتو خورشید و ایاغ دم ح‬

‫ت‬ ‫آهی هب عشق اف ح خیبر کنیم رطح‬

‫ای جمال تو هب اتراج نظراه گستاخ‬

‫س‬ ‫ات بشوید نهاد ما ز و خ‬

‫درگ رفیب بهارم رس جنون ندهد‬

‫ن گاهش ار هب رس انمۀ واف رزید‬ ِ ‫نم‬ ‫هب بند رپسش حالم ی‌توان افتاد‬

57

58

118

When sorrows make you helpless, it does not matter; you will achieve your desire

119

The heart, having lost the means of joy, is chained to the anxiety for bread

120

Facing backward is the branding that appears from the veil of my heart

121

Happy are they who have nothing but grief

122

In my dark nights, I was told the good tidings of the morning

123

For how long will smoke keep rising from my expression

124

I am saying something, but no one is willing to listen

125

My heart keeps dancing with joy all the time

126

Beautiful ones do nothing that will hurt anyone

127

When you tell your lover to leave, he gets going immediately

128

From my martyrdom, she assumed that I went hoping for the houri

129

From the heat of your glance, the blood in your heart began boiling

130

In love, you must become oblivious to the two worlds

131

Dreading your nature, my breath has become like an entangled thread

132

I am happy with your thought that has rid me of impatience

133

Better it is for a hungry man to starve to death and tremble

134

Those who are yearning for union with the beloved

135

How should I tell what happens to my lovesick heart because of you?

136

It is not because of her shyness that her gaze does not get out of her eyes

137

How can I become happy at the promise as I believe it

138

As you walk on the earth, the earth turns into the sky

139

One more weeping woke up the feeling of lament in my heart

140

Yesterday, when I was complaining about the vicissitudes of my fortune before you

141

If your coquetry kept on pillaging like this

‫غم چو هب هم ردافکند رو هک رماد می‌دهد‬

‫دل اسباب رطح گم رکده رد بند غم انن شد‬ ‫داغم از رپدۀ دل رو هب قفا می‌آید‬

‫خوش است آنکه با خویش زج غم ندارد‬ ‫صب‬ ‫ژمدۀ ح ردین شبانم دادند‬

‫ات کیم دود ش کایت ز بیان ربخیزد‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ رگهچ شنیدن نشناسد‬،‫گویم نی‬

‫رهدم ز نشاطم دل آزاد بجنبد‬

‫کس‬ ‫خوبان هن آن کنند هک ی را زیان رسد‬ ‫گفت‬ ‫ زود می‌رود‬،‫عاشق چو یش هک ربو‬ ‫دانست زک شهادتم امید حور بود‬

‫ز رگمی نگهت خون دل هب جوش آدم‬

‫هب عشق از دو جهان بی‌نیاز باید بود‬

‫نف‬ ‫س از بیم خویت رشتهء دیچیپه را ماند‬

‫شادم هب خیالت هک ز اتبم بدر آورد‬

‫رگسنه هب هک ربآید افهق جانش و رلزد‬ ‫هم‬ ‫آانن هک وصل یار ی آرزو کنند‬

‫چون گویم از تو رب دل شیدا هچ می‌رود‬

‫چش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫هن از رشم‌ست زک م وی آسان رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫هچ عیش از وعده چون باور ز عنوانم ی‌آید‬ ‫چون بپوئی هب زمین رچخ زمین تو شود‬ ‫دیگر از رگهی هب دل رسم فغان یاد آدم‬

‫بخ‬ ‫دوش زک رگدش تم گله رب روی تو بود‬ ‫رگ چنین انز تو آمادۀ یغما ماند‬

142

When the beloved got the smell of burnt liver from my shack

143

My simpleton beloved does not have the knack of doing things right

144

Great, it will be if the sky’s ancient dome would collapse and fall

145

If whatever is seen by the eyes doesn’t pierce the heart

146

The coquetry of the beloved’s eyes became seduction of the time

147

There is no instance when the sorrow hurts us any less

148

Freedom is a musical instrument, but it emits no sound

149

My desire knocks the door to plains, when receiving advice

150

They said always to avoid drinking wine

151

It’s the morning time, drinking a goblet filled with wine is delightful

152

The disgrace of Farhad throws me miles away from the path of fidelity

153

My footprint shows the path I take to go to beloved’s alley and out of jealousy

154

Not only my heart cries and laments in your separation

155

Where is extinction to make the entire taint of self-conceit go away?

156

The slit goes from my pocket to my skirt

157

My deep despair knows nothing of the revolution of the times

158

What effect can that speech produce which does not come from the heart?

159

The idols of the city are the sovereign rulers, but they are cruel

160

The beloved beauties are forgiven even if they inflict tyranny

161

The mind of the oblivious ones remains intoxicated and joyful

162

The beloved taking veil has the tradition of plundering

163

My desire to die in love is because of my envy

164

That Kashmiri beauty made me forget the Houris of paradise

165

For how long the capricious ones would keep drinking, and the lovers keep bearing the tyranny

‫رد کلبهء ما از جگر سوخته بو ربد‬

‫اندان صنم من روش کار نداند‬

‫خوشم هک گنبد رچخ کهن رفو رزید‬

‫ارگ هب دل نخلد ره هچ از نظر گذرد‬ ‫چش‬ ‫شوخی م حبیب فتنهء ایام شد‬

‫هش‬ ‫نیست وقتی هک هب ما کا ی از غم رنسد‬

‫آزادگی‌ست سازی اما صدا ندارد‬

‫شوقم ز پند رب رد رفیاد می‌زند‬

‫باید زمی ره آینه رپهیز گفته‌اند‬

‫صب‬ ‫ خوش بود قدحی رپ رشاب زد‬،‫ح‌ست‬

‫ننگ رفاهدم هب رفسنگ از واف دور افکند‬

‫یش‬ ‫نق‬ ‫هب ره با ش اپی خو م از غیرت رسی باشد‬ ‫دل هن تنها ز رفاق تو فغان ساز دهد‬

‫کو فنا ات همه آالیش پندار ربد‬

‫چاک از جیبم هب دامان می‌رود‬

‫نومیدی ما رگدش ایام ندارد‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هچ خیزد از نی زک ردون نبود‬ ‫بتان شهر ستم‌پیشه شهریارانند‬

‫بح‬ ‫دلستاانن ل‌اند ار هچ جفا نیز کنند‬

‫دماغ اهل فنا نشهء بال دارد‬

‫نقابدار هک آئین رزهنی دارد‬

‫ز رشکست این هک رد عشق آرزوی رمدنم باشد‬

‫کشم‬ ‫بهش‬ ‫حور تی ز یاد آن بت یر ربد‬ ‫ات چند بلهوس می وعاشق ستم کشد‬

59

60

166

Whereas my relish for the union has rendered my tongue numb

167

If the branding of your love lays a healing glance over my existence

168

My heart is sad it does not have the strength to hide the secret

169

May my lips do not turn quiet from singing in your remembrance

170

The sky kisses the ground for every dust particle

171

Alas, that the tongue and lips have become useless

172

People say you are enemy of lovers; yes, this must be so

173

Whatever the world has done to me out of envy

174

With a relish in intoxication, the beloved’s tresses follow the path dwellers

175

She has a loving heart and is famous, and my love didn’t make her happy

176

What would he know about the value of lover, and why would he care about our pain

177

They have kept me busy scrambling to disgrace me

178

How can anyone talk to me about religion in the context of idol worship

179

I died on account of my loyalty, while the rival fled away

180

How would my sorrow become less by the advisor’s words

181

She didn’t lose her heart if she gave it to a beloved with sweet-scented tresses

182

When I bring my forehead at her door, she turns the door frame upside down

183

When the beloved taking aim adjusts the arrow on the bow bridge

184

I wish your sword falling on my head reaches to my throat

185

If no attention was paid to the brawl the night before

186

The trader of love doesn’t tread through that path of trading

187

The one who sings " I belong to God” can make a tree talk

188

Surprise that they bring the one who brings good news

189

On a destination that is called the path to God

‫ذوقش هب وصل رگهچ زبانم ز کار ربد‬

‫کس‬ ‫ارگ داغت وجودم را رد ا یر نظر گیرد‬ ‫ حوصلهء راز ندارد‬،‫تنگ‌ست دلم‬

‫لبم از ززممۀ یاد تو خاموش مباد‬

‫ره رذه را فلک هب زمین بوس می‌رسد‬

‫ردیغا هک کام و لب از کار ماند‬

‫شم‬ ‫ آری چنین باشد‬،‫رتا گویند عاشق د نی‬

‫از رکش رکد آنچه هب من روزگار رکد‬

‫مس‬ ‫هب ذوقی رس ز تی رد قفای ره روان دارد‬

‫عشق‬ ‫صاحب‌دل ست و انمور م هب سامان خوش نکرد‬ ‫قدر مشتااقن هچ داند ردد ما چندش بود‬

‫بهر خواری بس هک رسرگم تالشم رکده‌اند‬

‫کس‬ ‫ی با من هچ رد صورت‌رپستی رحف دین گوید‬

ُ ‫من هب واف رُمدم و رقیب هب رد زد‬

‫نف‬ ‫غم من از س پندگو هچ کم رگدد‬

‫ب‬ ‫ب ن‬ ‫ت غالیه مو داد‬ ِ ‫یدل شد ار دل هب‬

‫نهم جبین هب ردش آستا ن بگرداند‬

‫چو زه هب قصد نشان رب امکن بجنباند‬ ‫تیغت ز رفق ات هب گلویم رسیده باد‬

‫رپوا ارگ از رعبدۀ دوش نکردند‬

‫اترج شوق بدان ره هب تجارت رنود‬

‫هم "اان اهلل" خوان ردختی را هب گفتار آورد‬

‫عجب هک ژمده‌داهن را هب سوی ما آرند‬ ‫هب مقصدی هک رم آ ن را ره خدا گویند‬

190

From the broken coil of my pen sifts so much fire on the paper

191

I have a lover with traditional cuteness but also as fresh as spring bloom

192

Good news to the destruction flair that the spring has arrived

193

Come, see the ardor of my desire to gaze at you

194

When I am dead, I conjure you, remember how I died

195

Separated from the friend, we strewed so much dust on our head

196

O heart, bring me a sign from the garden of hope

197

Blow the breath of affliction on my heart

198

O my desire of singing, bring me back to loud lamentation

199

She is very delicate; she rests her face in the dust

200

O God, through madness, lay the foundation of grief in my understanding

201

O desire teach me not to get into a quarrel

202

From our wet eyes, blood is still dripping drop by drop

203

Trust in my love and banish from your head all your misgivings

204

Although I am lost in my consciousness, my empty place awaits me

205

Burned by bitter talkers, ask me about the relish of poison

206

Who to do with those who hide their coquetry in their mansion

207

Recognize a kindness underneath every angry eye

208

No one has taken the sword out of the case for no reason

209

Whoever you see intoxicated with wine write in his praise

210

Last night when I prepared to pray, there came into my ears

211

Even her God is not able to bear her coquetry

212

Don’t ask the condition of a captive that in the curve of her desire

213

How nice is my condition that my body and my bed are on fire

‫ز بس اتب رخام کلکم آرذ رزید از کاغذ‬

‫بتی دارم ز شنگی روزگاران خو بهاران رب‬

‫ژمده‌ای ذوق رخابی هک بهارست بهار‬ ‫بیا و جوش تمنای دیدنم بنگر‬

‫هب رمگ من هک پس از من هب رمگ من یاد آر‬ ‫بس‬ ‫بی دوست ز بس خاک فشاندیم ر رب‬

‫گل‬ ‫ای دل از بن امید نشانی هب‌من آر‬

‫نف غم‬ ‫رب دل س م رس آور‬

‫سنج‬ ‫ای ذوق نوا ی بازم هب رخوش آور‬

‫رد رگهی از بس انزکی مانده رب خاکش نگر‬ ‫غم‬ ‫یارب ز جنون رطح ی رد نظرم رزی‬

‫ای شوق ‌هب ما رعبده سیار میاموز‬

‫چش‬ ‫خون قطره قطره می‌ چکد از م رت هنوز‬

‫یقین عشق کن و از رس امگن رب خیز‬

‫گش‬ ‫با همه گم‌ تگی خالی بود جایم هنوز‬

‫تل‬ ‫داغ خ‌گویانم لذت سم از من رپس‬

‫نش‬ ‫کاشاهن ین عشوه رگی را هچ کند کس‬

‫خش‬ ‫لطفی هب تحت ره نگه مگین شناس‬

‫تیغ از نیام بیهده بیرون نکرده کس‬

‫بی‬ ‫ ثنایش می‌نویس‬،‫رههک را بینی ز می خود‬

‫دوشم آهنگ عشا بود هک آدم رد گوش‬

‫نیست معبودش رحیف اتب انز آوردنش‬ ‫مپرس حال اسیری هک رد خم هوسش‬

‫بس‬ ‫خوشا حالم تن آتش تر آتش‬

61

62

214

The smoke of frenzy created a tent, and I named it the sky

215

From stuttering, the pulse of the beloved’s pearl-raining lips is throbbing

216

Come in the garden and lift the veil of the face of the garden

217

Here I am and that sight of the face which at the time of its display

218

The days and nights of Kolkata and the pleasure, good for its residents

219

Dance in delight at disaster like the reflection of an arched bridge in the torrent

220

Burn your heart in her sorrow for in its exchange you will be endowed with life

221

You said, beware that the provision of fidelity is being a Fidel

222

Reliance on the promise of your tongue was wrong, yes it was wrong

223

For me who has no wine, what joy is there in this world

224

What is the joy in travel if there is no attraction towards homeland?

225

Since the heat of your love has given life to the body of candle

226

I am happy since I reject them both, Brahmin and Sheikh are now together against me

227

I quiver in blood in your pathway It is a lie; yes, it’s a lie

228

While kissing the beloved's lips, I feel sorry

229

My flowers and the candle were wasted on the grave of the martyrs

230

O you’ve drowned me my awareness, so talk not about its evidence

231

Based on color alone, one wine cannot be differentiated from another

232

I am thankful to myself for the complaint of love

233

He is a man who dins is a storm of desires

234

The waves are rising high, and wreckage floats on them. Why be afraid?

235

With a lightened soul, my burden is light

236

In this strange world, you and I have been given

237

I have no worldly wealth, nor I win reward in heaven

‫دود سودائی تتق بست آسمان انمیدمش‬

‫لع‬ ‫نب‬ ‫ز لکنت می‌تپد ض رگ ل گهربارش‬ ‫چم‬ ‫بیا هب باغ و نقاب از رخ ن ربکش‬

‫من و نظارۀ روئی هک وقت جلوه از اتبش‬

‫خوشا روز و شب کلکته و عیش مقیمانش‬

‫پ سی‬ ‫چون عکس ل هب ل هب ذوق بال ربقص‬

‫غم‬ ‫دل رد ش بسوز هک جان می‌دهد عوض‬ ‫گوئی هک اهن واف هک واف بوده است رشط‬ ‫تکیه رب عهد زبان تو غلط بود غلط‬

‫رما هک باده ندارم ز روزگار هچ حظ‬

‫ات رغبت وطن نبود از سفر هچ حظ‬

‫شم‬ ‫ات تف شوق تو انداخته جان رد تن ع‬

‫شی هم‬ ‫جم‬ ‫شادم هک رب ان کار من خ ورب ن گشته ع‬ ‫هب خون تپم هب رس رهگذر ردوغ ردوغ‬

‫هن گام بوهس رب لب جاان ن خورم ردیغ‬ ‫شم‬ ‫گل و عم هب زمار شهدا گشت تلف‬

‫ای رکده رغقم بی‌خبر شو زین نشان‌اه یکطرف‬ ‫هب گوهن می‌نپذرید زهمدرگ تفریق‬

‫شدم سپاسگزار خود از ش کایت شوق‬ ‫رمد آن‌هک رد هجوم تمنا شود هالک‬

‫ از خس و خاشاک هچ باک‬،‫بحر ارگ موج زند‬

‫سبک‌روحم بود بار من اندک‬ ‫ای رتا و رما ردین نیرنگ‬

‫جمی‬ ‫هن رما دولت دنیا هن رما ارج ل‬

238

There is a way to the heart when the blood exits the heart

239

I said, I was so happy that I couldn’t fit in her arms easily

240

In your thoughts, we are intoxicated with the smell of flowers

241

My body was wasted at the shore; my heart was unaware in the middle

242

I went to banish staleness from the scene that lies before us

243

Since I have gone astray, the highway twists and turns by itself

244

On lips that call on Ali’s name we have made the wine to flow

245

Newly enamored by you while for long I was free

246

Remembering that time when I used to have a reputation

247

I saw her tumult and wonder that my fear of doomsday was vain

248

What is this passionate agitation that rages in my head for love of you?

249

In the night of sorrow, having washed our face with bloody tears

250

My fate is asleep I want to wake it up

251

Becoming selfless, we got control of the rein of her glance

252

When we wrote a chapter regarding the reality of the Universe

253

It is morning, get up to bring the breaths in motion

254

I am the unmasking of my dishonor on the Day of Judgment

255

Not only my heart, but the information about me also is lost in your alley

256

We have hidden the display of reality within our collar

257

Here in the world, I am not with the people of the world

258

The heart is burned, so how much longer can one give it the pain of dripping?

259

The ill-talker was so simple, and I have made him speak my tongue

260

I snatch a kiss and then express my regrets

261

The morning has risen, get up so I could show you, my condition

‫راهی‌ست هک رد دل فتد ار خو ن رود از دل‬

‫بغ‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم ز شادی نبودم گنجیدن آسان رد ل‬ ‫مس‬ ‫داریم رد هوای تو تی هب بوی گل‬

‫ دل رد میاهن غافل‬،‫تن رب رکاهن ضایع‬ ‫که‬ ‫رفتم هک نگی ز تماشا رب افکنم‬

‫بس‌هک بپیچد هب خویش جاده ز گمراهیم‬

‫رب لب یا علی رسای باده رواهن رکده‌ایم‬

‫نو رگفتار تو و دریینه آزاد خودم‬

‫یاد باد آن روزگان کاعتباری داشتم‬

‫محش‬ ‫ بیجا خوف ر داشتم‬،‫دیدم آن هن گاهم‬

‫این هچ شور است هک شوق تو رد رس دارم‬ ‫شب‌اهی غم هک چهره هب خوانب شسته‌ایم‬

‫ می‌خواهم هک بیدارش کنم‬،‫بخت رد خواب‌ست‬ ‫یش‬ ‫بی خو تن عنان ن گاهش رگفته‌ایم‬ ‫حق‬ ‫ات فصلی از یقت اشیا نوشته‌ایم‬

‫صب‬ ‫نفس‬ ‫ح است خیز ات ی ردهم افکنم‬

‫یش‬ ‫محش‬ ‫بی‌ رپدگی ر رسوائی خو م‬

‫ بلکه خبر هم‬،‫گم گشته هب کوی تو هن دل‬

‫جلوۀ معنی هب جیب وهم پنهان رکده‌ایم‬ ‫هم هب عالم ز اهل عالم رب کنار افتاده‌ام‬

‫ن‬ ‫سوخت جگر ات کجا ر ج چکیدن دهیم‬

‫ با خود هم‌زبانش رکده‌ام‬،‫بود بدگو ساده‬

‫می‌ربایم بوهس و رعض ندامت می‌کنم‬ ‫ح شد خیز هک رو داد ارث بنمایم‬

‫صب‬

63

64

262

How long must I devote my time to please others?

263

I wish to see your glances again intoxicated with coquetry

264

Don’t you avoid me if I wear the garment of piety

265

Come so that we may change the laws of the heavens

266

Whatever we went through was what we had desired

267

If she does not take pride in stealing my senses

268

We feared from the luggage in our travel;

269

I am making myself famous in the art of painting

270

It becomes a matter of joy to break the commotion with decorating

271

I am the person who has not been given the lips to sing songs

272

I don’t break the heart of my beloved in union

273

At every conclusion of love, I start a new beginning

274

Pain is discordant, and so is the cure

275

I take a journey to the high sky

276

You tied me in chains of love to hear their insane melody

277

How nice, the fairy-style gazelles that escape from people

278

In early spring, When I am drunk and crazy in love, I can be killed

279

Hail, the beauty of the garden and Spring for life-sacrificing lovers

280

My strength all spent in love for you; now I shall give up love

281

Pulling heart suddenly away from those sharp eyelashes

282

Why should my speech be envied? It is not a passionate desire

283

My entire existence is filled up with your grief

284

It is pleasant to live a life with no attachments to disbelief and belief

285

What is this that you wasted the laughter of lips becoming angry

286

Love for a coin turns man lost and scattered

‫ات هب کی رصف رضاجوئی دل‌اه باشم‬ ‫درگ ن گاه رتا مست انز می‌خواهم‬

‫ رگ لباس دین دارم‬،‫ز من حذر نکنی‬

‫بیا هک اقعدۀ آسمان بگردانیم‬

‫رفت رب ما آنچه ما می‌خواستیم‬

‫نم‬ ‫ارگ رب خود ی‌ بالد ز غارت رکدن هوشم‬

‫حش‬ ‫و تی رد سفر از ربگ سفر داشته‌ایم‬

‫هم نق‬ ‫خود را ی هب ش رطازی علم کنم‬

‫نشاط آرد هب آزادی ز آرایش ربیدن هم‬ ‫آنم هک لب ززمهم رفساری ندارم‬

‫رد وصل دل‌آزاری اغیار ندانم‬

‫مح‬ ‫رد ره انجام بت رطح آغاز افکنم‬

‫ردد انساز است و ردمان نیز هم‬ ‫آسمان بلند را می‌رم‬

‫نج‬ ‫ای ز ساز ز یرم رد جنو ن نوارگکن‬

‫اه رپی شیوه زغاالن و ز رمدم رم شان‬

‫مس فص‬ ‫کش‬ ‫جنو ن تم هب ل نو بهارم می‌توان تن‬ ‫زهی باغ و بهار جان‌فشاانن‬

‫طاق شد طاقت ز عشقت رب رکان خواهم شدن‬ ‫دل زان ژمۀ تیز هب یک بار کشیدن‬

‫سخ‬ ‫رکش نم چیست هن شهد هوس‌ست این‬

‫بس‌هک لبرزی است ز اندوه تو رس ات اپی من‬ ‫یس‬ ‫خوش بود افرغ ز بند کفر و ایمان ز تن‬ ‫شکس‬ ‫چیست هب لب خنده از عتاب تن‬

‫خیره کند رمد را مهر ژدم داشتن‬

287

No regret there is if you stayed away from me intentionally

288

Like the candle, the smoke keeps waving over our head all night

289

From our righteousness, we can embarrass those on the crooked path

290

Sad it is to differentiate between the garden and the killing place

291

My beloved has laced her hands and sword with my blood

292

They will be intoxicated with the eloquent speech in the verses of my Divan

293

Look at her wet eyes shedding a tear

294

O you should listen that God, who is indeed a listener

295

She lost her honor so that it will bring disgrace to us

296

You are asking me who has come from the side of the rival

297

I became puffed up with pride in the confinement of your snare

298

We have become presumptuous; where is your pride of beauty?

299

The award of dominion just does not come; be ashamed of your useless endeavors

300

Salute, I love the creator; my existence belongs to you, O God

301

laughing at the wealth of the one who got hit by the spring

302

A beloved of mine runs away from those with heart

303

Sometimes in the eyes of the enemy and at other times in the mirror

304

O King, like the kings, demand wine in your assembly of celebration

305

I have a heart with grief overburdened

306

You have our speech dumb and filled tumult in our impatience

307

You are not under the extreme coldness of the comfortably rested chest

308

Provide means of glad tidings to this going-extinct Universe

309

Who am I? I am a human busy in decorating his soul

310

On my hand and feet, you have thrown a heavy chain

‫ ار هب جد رگفتی ز من احتراز رکدن‬،‫هچ غم‬

‫شم‬ ‫چون ع رود شب همه شب دود ز رسمان‬ ‫خج‬ ‫ل ز راستی خویش می‌توان رکدن‬

‫قت‬ ‫حیف است ل‌هگ ز گلستا ن شناختن‬ ‫هب خونم دست و تیغ‌آلود جاانن‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ات ز دیوانم هک رسمست ن خواهد شدن؟‬ ‫چش‬ ‫رسکش‌افشانی م رتش بین‬

‫سم‬ ‫ فالنی بشنو‬،‫حق هک حق‌ست عی‌ست‬

‫رعض خود ربد هک رسوائی ما خیزد ازو‬

‫شم‬ ‫کس‬ ‫گوئی هب من ی هک ز د ن رسیده کو‬ ‫بالم هب خویش بس‌هک هب بند کمند تو‬

‫ رغور جمال کو‬،‫گستاخ گشته‌ایم‬

‫ از سعی پشیمان شو‬،‫دولت هب غلط نبود‬

‫ تتنااه یاهو‬،‫ من عاشق ذاتم‬،‫هله‬

‫می‌رود خنده هب سامان بهاران زده‌ای‬

‫بتی دارم از اهل دل رم رگفته‬

‫چش شم‬ ‫گاهی هب م د ن و گاهی رد آینه‬

‫شااه هب زبم جشن چو شااهن رشاب خواه‬ ِ ّ ‫دارم دلی ز غصه رگانبار بوده‌ای‬

‫چون زبان‌اه الل و جان‌اه رپ ز غوغا رکده‌ای‬

‫رد زمهرری سینهء آسودگان هن‌ای‬ ِ

‫رم ز فنا رفاغ را ژمدۀ ربگ و ساز ده‬

ّ ‫کیس‬ ‫تم دست هب مشاطگی جان زده‌ای‬

‫رب دست و اپی ب ِند رگانی نهاده‌ای‬

65

66

311

It seems like the purpose of my breath is to keep pleading

312

If I have not sung melodious songs, why worry?

313

When it imagines Your countenance, it turns amazed altogether

314

From the grief of our sign, your heart has become kind towards us

315

With all her virtues, wisdom says, ‘Don’t seek your heart’s desire from her!

316

From the array of a hundred thousand houris, I don't want even one

317

The shock of flight is evident from our faces

318

One her coquetry that has the manners of an infidel robbed my heart of strength

319

Despite the quarrel with the heart, the place that you did hold in it, you still do

320

If you speak your mind about God’s holy law

321

O wave of flowers of whose sight is this good news

322

An infidel I would be if I believed in the sorrow-sharing from you

323

Those days are gone when I would smell your fragrance on the wind

324

You are like the glad tidings of joys uninterrupted

325

Look, I have told you not to praise anyone’s heart, nor would you be able to

326

O home dweller swear upon my life, this calamity

327

You become happy when you find a heart that is devoid of joys

328

Alas, that from my heart to the tongue is a flowing brook of blood

329

The pious, and their mosques and pulpits who need them today?

330

This heart, which is, after all becoming the cause of your disgrace

331

Discerning is he who deploys his heart that it may be captured

332

So aware I am of your style

333

There is a branding on my side because of which my chest is burning in fire

334

How long to veil from the body to the soul?

‫نف‬ ‫س را رب ِرد این خاهن صد غوغاست پنداری‬ ‫م غمس‬ ‫هچ تی‬ ‌ ،‫رگ هن نوااه رسود ی‬

‫بس‬ ‫قمس‬ ‫رد ت ِن تمثال تو حیرت ر تی‬ ِ

‫ای هب صدمۀ آهی رب دلت ز ما باری‬

‫بدین خوبی رخد گوید هک کام دل مخواه از وی‬ ِ ‫نخ ه ص‬ ‫ف حوران ز صد زهار یکی‬ ِ ‫وا م از‬ َ ‫نس‬ ‫اندوه رَپافشانی از چهره عیا تی‬ ِ

ُ ‫اتبم ز دل رُبد کارف ادائی‬

‫هب دل ز رعبده جائی هک داشتی داری‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ارگ هب رشع ن رد بیان بگردانی‬ ُ ‫م گ ن ت کیس‬ ‫ماشای تی‬ ‫وید‬ ،‫ل‬ ‫ای وج‬ ِ ِ

‫غم‬ ‫ از تو باور باشدم خوارئی‬،‫کارفم رگ‬

‫رفت آنکه کس ب‬ ‫وی تو از باد رکدمی‬ ِ ‫ب‬ ِ ّ ‫ژمدۀ رخمی و بی‌خللی را مانی‬

‫گفت ه‬ ‫آری ندهی‬،‫داد دل‬ ِ ‫ای هک م ند ی‬

‫نش‬ ‫ هی‬،‫ین جان من و جان تو این انگیز‬ ِ ِ

‫هم‬

‫ چون دل خشنود نیابی‬،‫خشنود شوی‬ ِ

‫ اهی‬،‫رس چشمهء خون‌ست ز دل ات هب زبان‬ ‫ کجائی‬،‫زاهد هک و مسجد و محراب‬

‫هم‬ ‫دل هک از من رمرتا رفجام ننگ آرد ی‬ ‫ن هک ات نهد دل هب ش ِمار دلبری‬ ‌ ‫دیده ور آ‬ ‫ستم‬ ‫ز بس با تو هب ره شیوه آشنا ی‬

‫بس‬ ‫دلم رد انهل از پهل‬ ‫وی داغ سینه ات تی‬ ِ ِ ‫جس‬ ‫از م هب جان نقاب ات کی‬

1 ‫گف‬ ‫ بی همه با مارجا‬،‫با همه رد تگو‬

‫ای هب خال و مال خوی تو هن گاهم‌زا‬

‫از نگه تیزرو گشته نگه توتیا‬

‫بی‬ ‫دیده‌وران را کند دید تو نش زفون‬

ُ ٔ ‫ موی میان ماسوا‬،‫رطه رُپ خم صفا ت‬ ‫ نقد خضر انروا‬،‫جان نپذریی هب چیه‬

‫ساز رتا زری و بم واقع ٔه رکبال‬ ‫بی‌اشتها‬

‫مائده‬

‫رتا‬

‫نعمتیان‬

‫سوخته رد مغز خاک ریش ٔه داروگیا‬ ‫سبز بود جای من رد دهن اژداه‬

‫بوده رد این جوی آب رگدش هفت آسیا‬ ٔ ‫مس‬ ‫ باده ما انشتا‬،‫تی ما اپیدار‬ ِ

‫ خاهص نو آئین نوا‬،‫نیک بود عندلیب‬

‫شاهد حسن رتا رد روش دلبری‬ ‫ی هب زور خون سکندر هدر‬

‫نبخش‬

‫آب‬

‫شم‬ ‫خس‬ ‫زبم تو را ع و گل تگی بورتاب‬

‫نکبتیان رتا اقفله بی آب و ان ن‬ ‫نب کس‬ ‫رگمی ض ی زک تو هب دل داشت سوز‬

‫مصرف زره ستم داده هب یاد توام‬

‫کم مشمر رگهی‌ام زانکه هب علم ازل‬

‫ع‬ ‫ مهر تو ورزیده‌ام‬،‫ساده ز علم و مل‬ ‫خلد هب غالب سپار زآنکه بدان روهض رد‬

You, whose nature is to create tumult, both in emptiness and fullness; When with many, you converse, but when there is no one, you are still adventurous. (1:1) The opening verse of Ghalib’s Persian ghazal divan is misconstrued by many as an ode. Emptiness refers to nonexistence (of the Universe—before creation), and fullness refers to the existence of Universe. Where the Universe is populated, God speaks to those occupying the Universe through myriad ways, making them realize how humble they are. However, God keeps making things happen when there is no one present—creating and destroying Universes. Many interpreters missed the connection to the commotion with the second line. The nature of God is to create a tumult, whether we are there or not. We are not important to God. This is not a praise, but a complaint.

Your loving beauty, the heart-ravishing style has the attributes; Of the waving ringlets and hair-thin waist of the phenomenal world. (1:2) A beloved has two main attributes—dangling and waving ringlets and a thin waist; from here, Ghalib builds a description of the beauty of his Universe. God’s beauty is evident, but it is like the waving ringlets of the beloved that are difficult to unravel—we can see the display of God’s

67

68

beauty, but we cannot resolve it. And besides God, everything else is like the hair-thin waist of the beloved—meaning it does not exist, a Sufi doctrine stating that everything else is nonexistent except for God. See waist in the glossary.

Your display enhances the vision of those with vision; Like the antimony, their sharp vision has sharpened their vision. (1:3) The display of the beloved has sharpened the vision of those who can appreciate it, as they view the beloved. The vision (ability to see) acts as antimony (traditionally applied to eyes for decoration to sharpen vision—anecdote). The beloved is God, and the displays are the astonishment of the elements of the Universe around us. Those who can see it (appreciate it) learn a lot about themselves (humility), and thus looking around broadens their vision (or understanding) of it. In Quran, it says: “Which, then, of your Lord’s blessings do you both deny?” and, “God has set a seal on their hearts and on their hearing, and on their eyes is a covering, and there awaits them a mighty chastisement.” This is the theme in this verse. Those who had their vision have sharpened it by appreciating the Universe and its magnificence appreciate the wisdom of God.

You did not give water despite his forceful pleading, wasting the blood of Alexander; Now you cannot take away the life of Khizr if offered, making his life a counterfeit coin. (1:4) O God, you did not listen to Alexander to let him get the water of life, wasting his life. But you also do not take away life; what Khizr has left is a counterfeit coin. See Khizr and Alexander in the glossary.

The wounds of Buturab are the roses and candles of your assembly; Karbala’s tragedy is the high and low notes of your instrument. (1:5) Ghalib is addressing God, praising God’s aloofness. Ali’s son was martyred, and He did nothing about it? The wounds of Ali brightened the Assembly of God, showing many styles of God. The tragedy of Karbala is a low note of God’s instrument—meaning a lesser act. The theme of the unfairness of God continues in this verse. See Ali, Buturab and Khizrin the glossary.

The life caravan of your stricken one’s travels without food and water, While your favored ones have no appetite. (1:6) Those who have the favors of God get served with all the luxuries of life; those who get His angry eye keep running distracted. Here Ghalib is being sarcastic. God, Himself, makes the fortunate ones fortunate because He controls who gets favors.

From the heat of the pulse in a heart burning with your love, The roots of the herb of grace inside the ground are burned. (1:7) The herb of grace (Daru gyah) is a proverbial herb considered to have a good omen. Buried in the ground, the heat of pulse of a burnt heart incinerated the roots of the herb of grace. Ghalib has frequently exaggerated the heat of a lover’s heart; this is just one example. Now that the roots of the herb of grace are burned, the herb of grace will no longer be available to anyone; with Ghalib went the hope for the lovers to have good luck on the earth. See Daru gyah in the glossary.

69 69

Thinking of you has filled me with the poison of tyranny; My place would remain green in the mouth of a python. (1:8) “My place would be green” means I would spread poison there as well. Compared to the pain inflicted by the beloved, sitting in the mouth of a python is comforting. The poison in the lover is more potent than the poison in a python’s mouth, which the lover would turn green (skin turns green when snakes bite). The venom of tyranny is more potent than the snake’s poison, and I am filled with it—thanks to the beloved.

Discount not my power of tears; eternal wisdom has known That in this flowing stream, the seven millstones would revolve. (1:9) Seven millstones refer to the proverbial “seven skies” that determine our destiny; the flow of lovers’ tears is so strong that it can make these millstones revolve—which means the lover can control his fate. The point of the description is the gushing flow of tears.

We, devoid of wisdom and deeds, maintain our love for You; Our intoxication is perpetual since we break our fast with wine. (1:10) We start the day with the wine of your intoxication; our love for You is perpetual because we are devoid of wisdom to understand Your reality. Or is it that we do not have the wisdom, and, therefore, we follow you and love you blindly. We stay intoxicated with ignorance.

Entrust paradise to Ghalib since in that garden, it would be Nice to have a nightingale that would sing new songs. (1:11) Paradise is referred to here as the king’s court, and Ghalib says that his poetry will amuse the court. A hint is given to break the monotony of orthodoxy.

2 ‫خج‬ ‫ل نپسندد آزرم رکم بی‌دست گااهن را‬

‫تعالی اهلل هب رحمت شاد رکدن بی‌گنااهن را‬

‫دود رد دل گدایان را و رد رس اپدشااهن را‬

‫زهی رددت هک با یک عالم آشوب جگر‌خائی‬

‫سهی‬ ‫ل و زرهه افشانده ز سیما روسیااهن را‬ ‫هب خوابی مغز رد شورآوری بالین پنااهن را‬ ‫هب زبمت الی‏خواری آربو رپوزیجااهن را‬

‫جح‬ ‫هک رشکم رد یم افگند خلد آرام گااهن را‬

70

‫خوی رشم گنه رد پیش گاه رحم عامت‬ ‫هب رحفی حلقه رد گوش افگنی آزادرمدان را‬ ‫ز شوقت بی‌رقاری آرزو خارا نهادن را‬ ‫هب داغت شادم اما زین خجالت چون ربون آیم‬

‫کج‬ ‫لخ‬ ‫هک تی رب خم زلف و کله زد کالاهن را‬

‫یخ یکس شکس‬ ‫هب دل‌اه ر تی ر تن هم ز زیدان دان‬

‫گذر رب چشمه افتد تشنه لب گم‌رکده رااهن را‬

‫هب می آسایش جان‌اه بدان ماند هک انگااهن‬

‫کندریشازمکیدن‌اهزبانعذرخوااهنرا‬ ‫هک سعی رشکم از خارط ربد انمش گوااهن را‬ ّ ‫هک دام رغبت نظاره شد رسوان گااهن را‬

‫صب‬ ‫رچاغم چون گل آشادم ح گااهن را‬

‫مح‬ ‫مس‬ ‫بنازم خوبی خون‌رگم بوبی هک رد تی‬

‫زجورش داوری ربدم هب دیوان لیک زین غافل‬ ‫گس‬ ٔ ‫ست اتر و پود رپده انموس را انزم‬

‫یم‬ ‫هس‬ ‫نشاط تی حق دارد ازرمگ ا نم غالب‬

God Almighty who with mercy, makes innocent people happy; With His grand kindness does not approve of the poor’s embarrassment. (2:1) The mercy of God goes equally to everyone, and He doesn’t approve of embarrassment of the poor.

The sweat of sin’s embarrassment before the mercy of your audience; Sprinkles the Canopus and Venus stars on guilty ones’ faces. (2:2) The guilty ones (in Persian culture, they are labeled as those with blackened-face) are in the court of God, and their forehead is shining with the sweat of embarrassment. Reference to Canopus and Venus derives from the belief that when these two stars are together, it spells “scandal through an intrigue by which reputation will suffer, public disgrace, bad for gain.” [Vivian Robson, The Fixed Stars and Constellations in Astrology.]

Great is Your pain for the world of turbulence that consumes hearts, and; It runs equally in the hearts of the beggars and the heads of the kings. (2:3) Whether a pauper or a king, all are imbued with the pain (meaning here intense desire, in their own way) that comes from pining for your love. While the first ghazal mainly addressed God, the second included verses as an ode to the Prophet.

With one word spoken, You put the slavery ring in the ear of free men; With one dream, You rapture the mind of those who take refuge in sleep. (2:4) God can make slaves out of the free with one word, meaning one display of His grandeur can make them a lifetime devotee. Also, for those who are leisurely sleeping, meaning satisfied, God disturbs their minds with one dream, the dream of insecurity that can make them lose our sleep, and a word of consolation gives us strength. Whether you are free or satisfied, God can change that quickly.

In the desire of Your love, the arrogant souls are restless; In Your festivity, gulping the wine dregs is a grace to those with Parviz’s dignity. (2:5)

71

Those who are rarely moved by emotions are dying to taste the pleasure of loving you (the Prophet). Those with the dignity of King Khosro Parviz of Persia would consider it an honor if the wine-dregs in your assembly were given to them. In Ghalib’s era, the transparent portion of the red wine was for the rich and the crude in the bottle for the poor. The king will take those precipitates in wine and consider it fortunate; the wine is the love for the Prophet. See Khosro Parviz in the glossary.

I am happy with the branding of your love, but how do I get out of the embarrassment; That my envy throws those resting peacefully in the paradise into hell. (2:6) Those laying peacefully in the paradise were the ones who had good deeds to deserve it while I had nothing but the scar in my heart of your love. I was happy with it, but when those lying peacefully in paradise saw it, they began to burn with envy making them feel like they were in hell. This has caused me great shame and embarrassment.

You have shattered the hearts altogether, a gift of God for making; Those wrinkles and curves in the tresses and the tilt in the cap of the beloved. (2:7) God shattered hearts means filled them with His love; it is a gift of God to give the curls to her tresses and a slant in her cap, the hearts of her lovers are twisting and turning.

Proud I am of the goodness of warm-blooded lover, who in intoxication; Hurts the tongue asking for forgiveness by sucking it. (2:8) The lovers came to ask for forgiveness; the beloved got drunk and began kissing them to a point where the lover’s tongue began hurting. If this is an ode to the Prophet, then it is certainly the most unusual presentation.

Wine brings solace to living souls as if suddenly; Those thirsty lips of lost travelers come across a brook. (2:9) The joy of a lost man in the desert is to find a mirage. The stream is the mirage, what appears to be a moment of solace. The solace from wine drinking is compared to that feeling.

With agitation, I took a request for judgment to court without realizing; That from the impact of my envy, the witnesses would forget her name. (2:10) There were witnesses to support my pleadings in the court in a lawsuit against the beloved’s cruelty. Still, when they realized how beautiful my beloved was, they became intensely envious. In this emotional state, they forget the name of the defendant and thus proved useless for me.

Proud I am of the rupturing of the warp and weft of my reputation’s veil; As that became trapped in the desire of scandalized glances. (2:11) Warp and weft make a cloth; when that ruptured, my veil of respect was exposed (the world found out about my condition). At least I got to be the target of the scandalized glances of the beloved. Scandalized here means those who become happy at others’ misery while creating mischief themselves; very complex use of “scandalized” partly means disgracing.

72

‫;‪The joy of God’s existence protects me from the fear of death, Ghalib‬‬ ‫)‪Like a flower, my life lamp flares instead from the morning breeze. (2:12‬‬ ‫‪The morning breeze is akin to the time of death (having spent all night or life); the poet is not‬‬ ‫‪afraid of it because he believes his God will take care of him. Elsewhere Ghalib writes,‬‬ ‫‪“The time of our youth we spent crying, and at the old age, we shut our eyes‬‬ ‫”‪As if we had been long awake in the night, so we rested as the morning arrived.‬‬

‫‪3‬‬ ‫خاموشی ما گشت بدآموز بتا ن را‬

‫زین پیش ورگ هن ارثی بود فغان را‬

‫شف‬ ‫رد طبع بهار این همه آ تگی از چیست‬

‫گوئی هک دل از بیم تو خو ن گشته زخان را‬

‫طاقت نتوانست هب هن گاهم رطف شد‬

‫دادیم هب دست غمت از انهل عنان را‬

‫منت‌کش‬

‫وافئیم‬

‫اتثیر‬

‫هک‬

‫آرخ‬

‫موئی هک ربون اندمه باشد هچ نماید‬

‫ات شاهد رازت هب‬

‫خم‬

‫وشی شده رسوا‬

‫جس‬ ‫بیهوده رد اندام تو تیم میان را‬ ‫چون رپده هب رخسار رفوهشت بیان را‬

‫مش‬ ‫رد رب بیداد تو خونم می انب است‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫سه‬ ‫عش‬ ‫رب طاعتیان رفخ و رب رتیان ل‬

‫انزم شب آدین ٔه ماه رمضان را‬

‫زین‌سان هک رفو رفته هب دل ریپ و جوان را‬

‫ژمگان تو جوره بود آئین ٔه جان را‬

‫اینک زده‌ام بال تقاضا ز دو مصرع‬ ‫واداشت سگ کوی تو زین حدنشناسی‬

‫نخ‬ ‫رب رتبتم از ل قدت جلوه رفوبار‬

‫جس‬ ‫تیم‬

‫رچاغ‬

‫چم‬

‫ن‬

‫خلد‬

‫هب‬

‫مس‬

‫تی‬

‫ات انم تو شیرینی جان داده هب گفتن‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫رب امت تو دوزخ جاوید رحام است‬ ‫ای خاک ردت قبل ٔه جان و دل غالب‬

‫‪73‬‬

‫این شیوه عیان ساخت عیار درگان را‬

‫زک ذوق هب خمیازه ردافگنده امکن را‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫ات ژمده معراج دهم سعی بیان را‬ ‫رد اپی تو م ‌یخواستم افشاند روان را‬

‫ات خاک کند نورب ازان اپی نشان را‬

‫رد رگد رخام تو ره افتاد امگن را‬

‫رد خویش رفو ربده دل از مهر زبان را‬ ‫حاشا هک شفاعت نکنی سوخت گا ن را‬

‫ٔ هس‬ ‫فی‬ ‫زک ض تو ریپاهی تی‌ست جهان را‬

Our silence gave the wrong impression to the idols; Or else, in the past, our laments used to have quite an effect. (3:1) From our silence, the beloved (called an idol) concludes that we no longer love her, as we are not lamenting. She does not know that we have given up lamenting, realizing these laments no longer work as they used to. The second line is sarcasm, not an assertion.

I am grateful to the effect of my loyalty because in the end; This manner exposed the sincerity of others. (3:2) We loved her steadfastly; others who came by with tall promises fell by the wayside, proving that our love was real love.

Why is there so much agitation in the nature of the spring; As if autumn’s heart has bled out from your fear? (3:3) The spring has taken the red color of autumn as if it has been bled with your fear—the spring looks desolated, not fresh as it should because of the bleeding of hearts in the garden.

What would a hair show that has not yet emerged to display? What a waste to look for your waist in your body? (3:4) A strand of hair is barely visible, especially if it is not there; this exaggeration is compared with a thin waist of the beloved; rhetorically, it is so thin, it is invisible; so, what a waste of time to look for it.

Our patience could not deal with the tumult; So, from the pain, we gave our reins to the hands of your grief. (3:5) We could not keep the promise to bear sorrow and started lamenting and surrendered to the grief that the beloved is doling out. Giving reins to the hands of grief means, we let the grief take control.

As the beloved of your secret has been disgraced because of His silence; Thus, He has covered His face with a veil of expression. (3:6) A secret remains a secret if the silence is maintained; it gets exposed when it comes into the discussion. Here, secret means evidence of God’s existence; what we can see hides what is there to be seen or known. What we know is not the secret, but it is the realization that the secret could not be revealed. It was the quietness of God that brought infamy.

In the style of your tyranny, my blood is like pure wine; That has made the bow stretching arms in hangover. (3:7) Just like the constant tyranny doled out by the beloved, the lover’s blood is like pure wine that stays stout. Stretched arms in a hangover are compared to a bow. I am ready to take more. Often the best treatment for a hangover is to drink more. The beloved is firing arrows but the desire for more remains from the lover.

74

Giving solemnity to the devotees and ease to the pleasure-seekers; I am proud of the Friday nights in the month of Ramadan. (3:8) Both the spiritual ones and the drunkards (luxury dwellers) are busy in paying homage to their passion; they both get their wine of intoxication on Friday nights, particularly during the holy month of Ramadan, when people pray all night to God and the other to the bottle. The way the closing is used, it turns out that the lover is prideful of the Friday nights of the month of Ramadan as the needs of everyone are met.

I have made wings out of the two-line verses to fly; To deliver the good news to my expression of its lofty heights. (3:9) The two lines of verse are like the two wings that allow me to let my thought fly high, thus proving my lofty style. A finer point comes from using the word for “lofty height” (meraaj) that also refers to the flight of Prophet Mohammad to heavens to meet God during the month of Ramadan.

The way they have pierced in the heart of every old and young; Your eyelashes are like the essence of my life’s mirror. (3:10) Polishing the metal mirrors in Ghalib's times would leave many lines; these lines resemble the eyelashes of the beloved; just like the fixed lines in the mirrors, the eyelashes of the beloved have permanently penetrated both young and old hearts. As the polish line gives luster to the mirror, your eyelashes illuminate the heart of the old and the young.

The dog of your alley stopped me for not knowing the limit; As I wanted to offer my life at your feet. (3:11) Alley dogs stop strangers, acting as guard dogs. The lover had wanted to give his life, to be sacrificed at the feet of his beloved, but as the lover proceeded to her abode, her dog did not like it and stopped the lover. The dog is faithful to the dweller of the alley. This verse shows the sense of humor so widely spread in Ghalib’s poetry.

Spread the shadow of your palm tree-like persona on my grave; So my dust could feel the presence of new fruit in your footprints. (3:12) The lover is inviting the beloved to be the first to visit his grave; footprint is the new fruit of the tree (the persona of the beloved) that also casts a cooling shadow on the grave. The verse points to the tradition that many people taste a new fruit as a ritual when it arrives in the market.

In our drunkenness, we were searching for the flower garden of paradise; Our surmise found its way around your graceful gait. (3:13) We were searching for the paradise garden, and then suddenly we came to think of your graceful gait and realized that this is the garden we were searching for. The body movement of the beloved as she walks reminds the poet of the garden's swirling trees.

Your name has given the sweetness of life to my talks; With affection and love, my heart has pulled my tongue inside. (3:14)

75

Taking the name of Prophet gives me a surge of life (the sweetness of life). My heart gets tickled inside. Pulling tongue inside the mouth means it has gone quiet, more like stunned with joy.

To your followers, the hell is always forbidden; You always bless those who burn for you. (3:15) Prophet Mohammad’s followers are declared to be protected from the fire of hell (i.e., from hell), and in the second line, Ghalib talks about the burnt ones; those who “burn” for you always get your blessings. Burn also mean pining.

O you, whose the dust of your door is the Ka’ba of the heart and soul of Ghalib; From your grace stems all adornments of existence in this world. (3:16) The dust of your door is like the Ka’ba to the life and heart of Ghalib. This is because it is your grace that brings beauty to the world—addressing the Prophet.

4 ‫ساده رپ کار رفاوان رشم اندک سال ما‬

‫چون عذار خویش دارد انهمٔ اعمال ما‬

‫ن یس‬ ‫آگهی باری هک آهگ تی از حال ما‬

‫حال ما از غیر می‌رپسی و منت می‌ربیم‬

‫فت‬ ‫آرد از خود ر نش انهگ هب استقبال ما‬

‫باده و خوانهب یکسان‌ست رد رغبال ما‬ ‫بس هک رو رد هم کشید آئینه از تمثال ما‬ ‫خون رگم کوهکن دارد رگ قیفال ما‬ ‫هم‬ ‫ساهی چون دود باال می‌رود از بال ما‬ ‫لغزش اپئی‌ست کش رو داده رد دنبال ما‬

‫بی می اپرینه رب ما رانده‌اند امسال ما‬ ‫حلقه رب رگد دل ما زد زبان الل ما‬ ‫سخت بی‌رددی هک می رپسی ز ما احوال ما‬

‫می‬ ‫م‬ ‫ل ما سوی وی و یلش هب سوی چون خودیست‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ش ما رد خارط یاران ژدم صورت رگفت‬ ‫نی ش‬ ‫تر سازید و بگذارید ره جا تیشه‌ای‌ست‬

‫نم‬ ‫عیش و غم رد دل ی‌استد خوشا آزادگی‬ ‫فی‬

‫ض از ما مجو‬

‫ما همای رگم رپوازیم‬

‫خضر و رد رسچشم ٔه حیوان رفو غلتیدنش‬

ّ ‫خاک را از ارب اردار معین داده‌اند‬ ‫همچ‬

‫نین‬

‫گن‬ ‫با چنین جینه ارزد اژداهی‬

‫جان غالب اتب گفتاری امگن داری هنوز‬

Our slate of deeds should be just as clean as the beloved’s face; Simpleton and cunning, coy, and as young, she is. (4:1)

76

77

Since the beloved is unapproachable, there is no sin I could commit with her, and thus my slate of deeds stays clear, and it is compared to the beloved face that is clean; proverbial sinners have “blackened face.” This description of the beloved has symbolic value in Persian poetry. “Simpleton” can also be translated as pious. Young age is an attribute regardless of the lover's age; coyness is an essential part of the personality, but being cunning is an embedded habit, not by choice but by design. In mysticism and wisdom; mystics and sages (poets of mysticism and wisdom) refrain from using the word "I" to indicate a distance from egoism and pride and say "we" more. In some Ghazals, Ghalib uses “we” and not “I”.

We are attracted to her, and she is in love with another beauty like her; This amore will suddenly bring her to welcome us someday. (4:2) Now that she knows how the lover feels, perhaps that would make her appreciate my feelings and welcome me to her assembly. This theme is also an oft-repeated description in Persian poetry. Of significance is the description is that she (or he) is falling in love with another beauty (that is not a lover); a sense of homosexuality is expressed here!

You inquired the rival about us, yet we are thankful; At least you are aware that you are not aware of our condition. (4:3) Though frustrated that the beloved is discoursing with the rival, the lover is thankful to her for asking about him, perhaps because she may have become aware of the lover's condition—a good sign for the lover.

Neither the joy nor the grief ever settles in the heart; how good is freedom? In our sieve, the wine and the pure blood are just the same. (4:4) Wine is a sign of joy, and blood is a sign of grief; they both flow through our hearts as if it were a sieve with large holes in it. What made the heart like a sieve; perhaps the arrows of the beloved? Or, over time, we have been hurt so severely that our heart has turned into a sieve with the brandings of sorrows. It is this long tenure of sorrow that has made us refractory to both joy and grief.

In the minds of our friends, our image has become skewed; As the mirror scowled, looking at our face. (4:5) Friends have misconceptions about me and have turned away from me. When I gaze into the mirror, it scowls and distorts my image. So, why would not friends have the same view of us? If we have a distorted view of ourselves, why wouldn’t others have the same perception?

Wherever you find any axe, melt it into a lancet; My cephalic vein has the warm blood of the mountain-digger. (4:6) Reference is made to the famed story of the mountain-digger, Farhad, who killed himself with an axe. The axe worked for Farhad; perhaps a lancet made out of it might work for me as well, as we too have the warm blood of Farhad, the lunacy of Farhad. Warmblood refers to a commitment to loving. See Farhad in the glossary.

78

We are a high-flying Huma, expect no mercy from us; The shadow will go up from our wings like the smoke. (4:7) Huma is a legendary bird whose shadow is considered a good omen. He becomes a king on whomsoever the shadow falls. The poet is calling himself an Huma flying high, i.e., a provider of good omen. He then creates an image that the shadow of feathers is not falling on the ground but going up in smoke (see that both are dark). Why would shadow go up in smoke? The only way it can happen is to fly above the light (the sun), which creates a shadow. Reference is therefore made to the extreme loftiness of flight. A comparison to smoke is made to express that we are flying so high that our wings are burning with the sun's heat. Simply, this means that our thoughts are so high that ordinary souls cannot understand these—they are beyond understanding—a declaration of self-aggrandizement. See Huma in the glossary.

Prophet Khizr and his sliding into the fountain of life; Is like the sliding of his foot into a trail behind us. (4:8) Khizr is ridiculed for achieving immortality and not following the footsteps of brave men and facing death. The story given here is as follows: Ghalib and Khizr are traveling together. Ghalib is far ahead of him and Khizr far behind. When they crossed the brook of life, Khizr chose to jump into it and acquired eternal life while Ghalib went on. This is considered a “mistake of feet,” an error, when Khizr was following Ghalib. The description of Khizr is often repeated in Ghalib’s poetry. While Khizr is given a saint-like status in Muslim theology, Ghalib has never spared him and ridiculed him for not facing the reality of life and death by becoming a perpetual life seeker. See Khizrin the glossary.

On the dust, the clouds bring only limited rain; This year has been pushed on to us without the aged wine. (4:9) Little rain means going dry; dust is the desire to imbibe, and the rain is wine. The previous year's wine can have two meanings: the wine of last year or the aged wine. This year we did not get enough wine or good quality wine.

For a treasure like this it is worth of having such a python; our stifled tongue has strangulated around our heart. (4:10) Anecdotes tell that snakes guard buried treasures. Our stifled tongue is like that snake encircling our hearts, keeping us from expressing ourselves (hiding the treasure). How would the world know of the vast treasure of thoughts buried inside our hearts if we would not speak? But why has the tongue gone quiet, and who has stifled it? The poet knows that no one will understand or appreciate his thoughts, so it is better to let this treasure stay where it is. He is beyond approach.

O life of Ghalib, do you still think you have the strength to talk? How cruel of you to inquire about our condition. (4:11) The beloved is cruel as she asks of the state of the lover—what a fortune for a lover; alas, he has no energy left to speak, what a shame!

79

‫‪5‬‬ ‫رگ بیائی مست انگاه از رد گلزار ما‬

‫گل ز بالیدن رسد ات گ ٔ‬ ‫وهش دستار ما‬

‫گوهش گیرانیم و محو اپس انموس خودیم‬

‫آربوی ما گداز جوره رفتار ما‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫حش‬ ‫و تی رد طالع کاشاهن ما دیده است‬ ‫خست ٔه عجزیم و از ما زج گنه مقبول نیست‬

‫سخت جانیم و قماش خارط ما انزکست‬ ‫سخ نج‬ ‫می‌زفاید رد ن ر ی هک رب دل می‌رسد‬ ‫هس‬ ‫از گداز یک جهان تی صبوحی رکده ایم‬

‫رسرگانیم از واف و رشمساریم از جفا‬

‫چاک " ال" اندر رگیبان جهات افکنده‏ایم‬

‫رذه زج رد روزن دیوار نگشودست بار‬ ‫از نم باران نشاط گل بدآموز تو شد‬

‫غالب از صهبای اخالق ظهوری رسخوشیم‬

‫می رپد چون رنگ از رخ ساهی از دیوار ما‬ ‫تکیه دارد رب شکست توهب استغفار ما‬

‫کارگاه شیشه پنداری بود کهسار ما‬ ‫طوطی آئین ٔه ما می‌شود زن گار ما‬

‫صب محش‬ ‫آفتاب ح‬

‫ر سارغ رسشار ما‬

‫آه از انکامی سعی تو رد آزار ما‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫بی‏جهت بیرون رخام از رپده پندار ما‬ ‫جنس بیتابی هب زددی ربده از بازار ما‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫رگهی ارب بهاری رکده آبی کار ما‬

‫اپرۀ بیش است از گفتار ما رکدار ما‬

‫;‪Suddenly, if you would enter the gate of our garden, intoxicated‬‬ ‫)‪The flowers will grow sprightly to reach the edge of our turban. (5:1‬‬ ‫‪Seeing the beloved in the garden, the flowers begin flourishing, hoping to catch her turban's height‬‬ ‫‪to find a place that will truly be honorable for the flowers.‬‬

‫;‪In the fate of our home is present such desolation‬‬ ‫)‪That the shadow of walls runs away like the color from the face. (5:2‬‬ ‫‪How lonely is desolate? How ruinous is his home? When the shadow of the wall runs away from the‬‬ ‫‪wall, this must be an extreme situation. This is then compared with how the face of someone in an‬‬ ‫‪embarrassing situation turns pale (or loses color).‬‬

‫;‪We are isolated and busy safeguarding our reputation‬‬ ‫)‪Our honor lies in the nature of our actions. (5:3‬‬

‫‪80‬‬

Speed is the strength—melting means it has slowed down. We have chosen to go into seclusion to protect our reputation. This is the only way we can maintain our honor. Seclusion refers to taking refuge, in this case, within us and not wandering around.

We are tired of weakness, and no sin is accepted from the weak; Our forgiveness depends on our broken vows. (5:4) Asking the Lord for forgiveness lands us into more sins as we break our vows; it is the same whether we commit sin or ask for forgiveness. He accepts our sins; this is the evidence of His grace.

A hardened soul we are, but delicate; what you assume to be a glass factory is our mountain. (5:5) Whereas we can tolerate much hardship as if our soul were like a mountain, our disposition is compassionate and delicate, like a glass—we get hurt easily.

Words enhance the grief that the heart is bearing; Our rust turns into the parrots of our mirror. (5:6) Mirrors (the metallic ones) rust, leaving green patches that resemble parrots. Parrots also talk. So, our heart is a mirror, and when its parrots (due to the branding of the heart) begin to talk, it begins to hurt more. Lamenting brings more misery. This comparison of parrots, mirrors, rust, the greening of the mirror, etc., forms an unusual theme of Ghalib.

By melting down our entire existence, we have drunk our morning draught; As if the sun of Doomsday’s morning is our brimful goblet. (5:7) A morning drink is expected to overcome a hangover. We have merged our entire existence unto Him, and this has proven to be the morning shot. Reference is made to morning sun (to compare with morning shot) of Doomsday when we would be raised. We could not rise in our hangover. The sun is also compared with a full goblet.

On the spree of fidelity, we are ashamed of your cruelty; Alas, the failure of your attempt to free us. (5:8) We do not care about your fidelity, so being an infidel does not torment us. Your cruelty is not enough to cause us any torment as we enjoy your cruelty. So, on both counts, the beloved is failing. “Failure of your attempt” refers to not enough torture that will break us. However, the lover desires more misery, as this will not bring suffering or “torment” to the lover regardless of the extent.

We have split apart the collar of all directions with “no,” In vain, we walk out of our imagination’s veil. (5:9) In all directions, there is nothing except God. We have split the collar of existence with “no,” meaning there is nothing except God. Walking outside of the realm of our understanding will get us no answers. The poet admonishes us not to waste time understanding what could not be understood because there is nothing except Him everywhere. The use of “no” is a wordplay since, in Persian writing, “no” is written as “la” that is shaped like an open collar.

81

82

83

The particles have not lightened their load anywhere except in the wall’s portholes; They have stolen the commodity of tumultuousness from our market. (5:10) Particles of dust can be seen through the portholes in the walls (casement windows) as reflected in the light. The poet calls this lightning their burden or making it their home since this is the only place they are seen. It is their abode. The poet then tells us that particles’ tumultuousness (as they keep moving—the Brownian movement) is borrowed from our market (our goods). A comparison is made we also do not stay inside the house and keep wandering in our impatience and tumultuousness. Ghalib’s perception that a particle exists when it is seen takes us into the realm of quantum physics. There are many other places where Ghalib has made statements that may be considered bizarre at that time, but the science is now proving.

The freshness of flowers from the spring moisture taught you the wrong lesson; As the rain of the spring washed out all our efforts. (5:11) The arrival of the spring season brought moisture, which caused the flowers to bloom, and the beloved got distracted and began looking at them instead of the lover who had come there as well. This washed out all of his efforts to express his grief. It turned out to be an autumn season for the lover.

O Ghalib, we are brimful with the wine of etiquette of Zohouri; Our actions are a little bit more than our words. (5:12) The second line of this verse is borrowed from Zohouri, a Persian poet whom Ghalib admired. He is one of the famous poets who had gained more fame in India than in Iran. See Zohouri in the glossary.

6 ُ ‫چش‬ ‫چو نور از م انبینا ز سارغ رفت صهبا را‬

‫نم بی‬ ‫ی‌ نیم رد عالم نشاطی کاسمان ما را‬

‫‌رفیب عشقبازی می دهد اهل تماشا را‬

‫شم‬ ‫فس‬ ‫رساب آتش از ا ردگی چون ع تصوریم‬

‫نم‬ ‫‌دماغ انزک من رب ی اتبد تقاضا را‬ ‫جگر رب اتهب چسبید آفتاب عالم‌آرا را‬

‫چو اکش از چهره از روی زمین ربچید ردیا را‬ ‫مس مح‬ ‫پسندیدم هب تی مل خواب زلیخا را‬ ‫هچ امید است آرخ خضر و اردیس و مسیحا را‬

‫نش‬ ‫هب رگ تر زن از موج رخام انز صحرا را‬

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‫مکن انز و ادا چندین دلی بستان و جانی هم‬ ‫کس‬ ‫من و ذوق تماشای ی زک اتب رخسارش‬

‫هچ لب تشنه است خاکم کاستین رگدباد من‬ ‫جس‬ ‫خیالش را بساطی بهر اپ انداز می‌ تم‬

‫ت‬ ‫دل مایوس را سکین هب رمدن می‌توان دادن‬ ٔ ‫بهاران‌ست و خاک از جلوه گل امتال دارد‬

‫نف‬ ‫س رد سینه می‏رلزد ز موج باده مینا را‬

‫رس و کارم بود با ساقیی زک تندی خویش‬

‫م‬ ‫بنم‬ ‫تهی ات یکنی پهلو هب ما وده‌ای جا را‬

‫رد آغوش تغافل رعض یکرنگی توان دادن‬

‫یش‬ ‫ز خود رفتیم و هم با خو تن ربدیم دنیا را‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ی‏دانم هچ پیش آدم ن گاه بی محابا را‬

‫غبارم رد نورد و خود رفو دیچیپ ح‬ ‫صرا را‬ ‫حیا می‌ورزد و رد رپده رسوا می کند ما را‬

‫هچ منت اه هک رب دل نیست جان انشکیبا را‬

‫بس‬ ‫هس‬ ‫خطی رب تی عالم کشیدیم از ژمه تن‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ی‌رنجد هک رد دام تغافل می تپد صیدش‬

‫مج‬ ‫زمین گوئی ست کو نون هک من ربدم ز میدانش‬ ‫آشنائی‌اه‬

‫می‌رتاود‬

‫بی گانگی‌اه‬

‫ازین‬

‫حذر از زمهرری سین ٔه آسودگان غالب‬

I do not see any joy in this world as if the heaven; Has caused it to go away, the sight of a blind, and the wine of the goblet. (6:1) This is an extreme expression of sadness. In a trick wordplay, the eye is often compared to its shape to the wine goblet; both are gone. Our condition is that of a blind man or a goblet without wine.

Not just my heart, but also take the life, but indulge not in amorous dalliance; My sensitive nature cannot bear the thought of your demands. (6:2) The beloved wants to capture her prey (the lover) through her best weapon—her amorous arrows of love. The fact that the beloved is burdened with the inconvenience of trying is disturbing to the lover who is always ready to give his heart and life to the beloved, no efforts are needed.

From depression, I am like a candle in the picture in the mirage of fire; Deceiving the audiences of my act of loving. (6:3) A candle in a picture shows fire, but the picture remains cold, just like a mirage that appears as a flame, yet it is not there. Those who look at me think of me as a great lover, suffering and burning, but the reality is that eternal sorrow has put that fire out. I am no longer the lover I used to be.

I and the excitement of watching someone, whose brightness, and warmth of cheeks; Makes the liver of the hot sun stick to the sizzling platter. (6:4) Comparing the beloved’s face to the sun, the poet says that the sun is ashamed (liver stuck to a hot platter, a Persian idiom).

How thirsty is my dust that the sleeves of its whirlpool; Suck the oceans from the surface of the earth like removing tears from eyes. (6:5) The sleeve often wipes off tears, just like my dust storm sucks up the oceans. The lover is thirsty for love and is ready to imbibe all the love it can get.

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Thinking of what kind of floor would be suitable for her feet; In my intoxication, I selected the velvet of Zulaikha’s bed. (6:6) For my beloved, the velvet is good enough. The rich Zulaikha used velvet. Since the selection was made under intoxication, the lover feels that it was not good enough.

A sad heart can be consoled by giving hope for death; But what hope would finally sustain Khizr, Idrees, and Jesus. (6:7) To mortals, death can mean an end to all suffering, and they can always look forward to it. But what would those do who are to live in perpetuity like Khizr, Idrees, and Jesus? Idrees was a prophet who also got an eternal life like Khizr and Jesus. See Khizr and Idrees in the glossary.

With the arrival of spring, the earth is beautified with flowers; Pierce a lancet in the jugular vein of the desert with your dainty walk. (6:8) The verse refers to the practice of bloodletting to relieve pressure in the vein (to get rid of lunacy). The earth is blooming with flowers as if it is oozing with blood (filled up). The beloved is invited to relieve this pressure by applying the lancet to the vein of the garden as she walks seductively.

I must deal with a cupbearer who has such a strong temper; That in the chest of the decanter, the breath shivers with strong waves of wine. (6:9) The cupbearer is the beloved with a bad temper. How bad is the temper? The decanter’s chest has breath (air) in it, and as she is serving wine, the breath is shivering with fear. The personality of the wine-giver is transferred into wine. Strong temper and strong wine; the chest of decanter and breath; shivering and strong waves are all here for those who want to imbibe an intoxicating thought from this verse.

We scratched the worlds of existence by closing our eyes; Losing out to ourselves, we took away the world with us as well. (6:10) The Universe is not a reality but a figment of our imagination. As we close our eyes, everything disappears. The Universe no longer exists. As we go from this world, so goes the world. Ghalib is presenting an argument that continues to be delated in the modern physics: do we exist? Like the statement by Rene Descartes: I think therefore I am.

In the lap of obliviousness, it is an expression of being the same; As soon as you make space by your side, you are showing us a place. (6:11) Though God may appear aloof, He remembers us because He is within us all the time (being the same); showing aloofness is just a style to make us realize He is within us.

She is not caring that her prey is restless in the snare of indifference; I do not know what is holding back her daring glance. (6:12) The “snare of indifference” is laid out; the prey is caught. The prey will die with one unabashed glance of the beloved; the prey asks, what is holding her back?

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The earth is like playing ball; where is Majnoon to tell him that I have taken it out of the field; As my dust storm has wrapped around and encircled the desert. (6:13) Majnoon (the lover of Laila) is known as an expert desert wanderer. In a ball game, he who ends up grabbing the ball wins the game; tell Majnoon the game is over. In just one whirling motion of my soul, I have wandered the entire desert leaving Majnoon far behind. See Majnoon in the glossary.

From these estrangements, drips friendship; She acts bashful but disgraces us behind the curtain. (6:14) The beloved is acting shy and oblivious, apparently to tell the world that she has nothing to do with us; however, the world finds out from her style that this is just a cover, and we get recognized as lovers in infamy. That is what the lover wants, anyway.

O Ghalib, stay away from those intensely cold chested contended ones; Look at obligations of the heart on this restless soul. (6:15) Cold-chested contended ones are devoid of pain and fire of love; stay away from them. It is a pain that teaches about life. “Cold-chested” refers to an anecdotal, intensely cold planet where the disbelievers will be sent to repent.

7 ‫هب خود دچیپ هک هی هی دی غلط رکدم فالنی را‬

‫کش‬ ‫پس از تن هب خوابم دید انزم بدامگنی را‬

‫شم‬ ‫هک بی رویت هب د ن داده باشم زندگانی را‬

‫ن‬ ‫انربداری رفاهد می‌سوزد‬ ‫دلم رب ر ج‬ ِ ‫حس‬ ‫ردیغ از رت دیدار ورهن جای آ ن دارد‬

‫ انزم مهربانی را‬،‫ز خود می‌داندم بی مهر‬

‫ زهی طالع‬،‫ رنجد از رحفم‬،‫چو خود را رذه گویم‬

‫خداوندا بیارمز آ ن شهید امتحانی را‬

‫رپ رپواهن و منقار رمغ بوستانی را‬ ‫هک داند ارزشی نبود متاع رای گانی را‬

‫گلچ‬ ‫رخاب ذوق ینی هچ داند باغبانی را‬ ‫ردین کشور روائی نیست نقد شادمانی را‬

‫هالک فتنه دارد ذوق رمگ انگهانی را‬ ‫محکم‬ ‫اساس ی باشد بهشت جاودانی را‬

‫رسشتم را بیالودند ات سازند از الیش‬ ‫هب اپیش جان فشاندن رشمسارم رکد می‌دانم‬ ‫ رسم آرایش مپرس از من‬،‫فدایت دیده و دل‬

‫گن‬ ‫هچ خیزد رگ هوس ج امیدم رد دل افشاند‬ ‫مس‬

‫تی‬

‫نشاط لذت آزار را انزم هک رد‬

‫فش‬ ‫مپرسازعیشنومیدیهکدندانرددلا ردن‬

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‫هب معشوقی رپستیدم بالی آسمانی را‬

‫رسارس غمزه‌اهیت الجوردی بود و من عمری‬

‫هب خس یعنی قلم من داده‌ام آرذ ِفشانی را‬

‫دلم معبود زرتشت ست غالب افش می‌گویم‬

‫ ربنتابم مهربانی را‬،‫بدآموز عتابم‬

‫بجز سوزنده اخگر گل نگنجد رد رگیبانم‬

After killing me, she saw me in her dream, how prideful I am from her misgiving; That on her own, she is perturbed that, alas, she made that mistake on someone. (7:1) The beloved is repenting that perhaps she killed the wrong person; the one who is killed is thankful.

I feel bad for the unbearable pain of Farhad; O God, please forgive that martyr of love trial. (7:2) Farhad could not bear the trial given to him to dig the mountain and killed himself with an axe, the story goes. Therefore he is called by Ghalib as a martyr of the trial of love. Ghalib is praying for him. See Farhad in the glossary.

Alas, the desire to see you shall remain, or else the right thing would be; To hand over my life to the rival without looking at you. (7:3) “Giving over my life to rival” means to let the rival taste the pain of loving. Ideally, I should have done it, but then I did not want to lose the chance to keep looking at you.

They soiled my nature so they could use the mud; To mold the wings of the moth and the beak of the garden bird. (7:4) From the mud of my washing would be formed the wings of a moth (meaning high flying ideas and expression of sadness as the moth ends up burning on the flame) and the beak of the garden bird, meaning the colorful songs. In my nature lie the wings of a moth and the beak of the bird. Soil and mud are presented as a wordplay.

When I call myself a speck of dust, she becomes upset. What a luck! That the unloving beloved considers me as hers, and I am proud of her kindness. (7:5) Calling oneself a speck of dust is an expression of extreme humility. The poet expresses that the beloved, though heartless, has some feelings for him. As I degrade myself in front of her (calling myself a speck of dust), she gets upset. This could be an expression of pity, but the lover is ready to accept this as an act of kindness.

I was embarrassed laying down my life at her feet; For I knew that she knows there is no value for free goods. (7:6) Giving up my life at her feet without her asking is like offering something valueless; how can I be respected; I am ashamed of myself.

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I am sacrificing my eyes and heart to you, so, ask me not about the manner of embellishment; What would he know about gardening, the one who is a victim of the relish of plucking flowers? (7:7) Flower picking habit is the antithesis to gardening. Finally, the poet expresses his inability to welcome the beloved because deep frustrations have made him not appreciate the beauty any longer.

So, what if lust puts a treasure of hopes in my heart; For in this land, the coin of happiness does not circulate. (7:8) No matter how much hope I can muster, happiness is not my destiny. We cannot pass on happiness to others—I am unhappy and shall remain so.

Proud, I am of the delight in relishing the intoxication of the anguish; That hopes for an end to the calamity of sudden death. (7:9) Dying suddenly relieves all pains, and the hope of dying brings joy to the frustrated lover. Still, now the lover is comparing this happening to the joy of anguish and concludes that this intoxication's joy makes me forget the joy in hoping for sudden death.

Ask not of the joy and luxury of hopelessness, for biting teeth into the heart; Is like strengthening the foundation of an eternal paradise. (7:10) Biting teeth into the heart mean utter grief arising out of perpetual hopelessness, but this grief is like living in heaven—an eternal paradise, as the grief itself. Strengthening the foundation means making it permanent.

Your coquetry was altogether bluish, and for this reason, my entire life, I worshiped heavenly calamities as if these were beloved. (7:11) Bluish refers to the blue sky revolving around us, bringing newer calamities, as does her disposition. The beloved's coquetry brings catastrophic results as if these were skies (calling the coquetry altogether blue).

No flower except the spark that burns and settles in the slit of my collar is acceptable; The beloved has taught me bad habits; thus, I cannot tolerate kindness. (7:12) The beloved has given so many brandings to my heart that the flower (calling them brandings) is the spark in my heart. Any act of kindness is likely to extinguish this fire, and that is something I cannot tolerate. Continuous burning is desired here.

Ghalib, I am declaring openly that my heart prays to Zartosht; To the straw, meaning my pen, I have assigned the responsibility to rain fire. (7:13) Zartosht is a prophet to Zoroastrians, who pray to fire, and Ghalib’s heart prays to their prophet meaning, the soul loves fire. A straw placed in fire burns suddenly, spreading fire all around, and he compares his pen to this straw exposed to fire. Therefore, since there is nothing but fire in my heart, flames leap out of my pen.

89

8 ‫صیق‬ ‫ای ن گاهت الف ل آئین ٔه ما‬

‫نق‬ ‫محو کن ش دوئی از ورق سین ٔه ما‬

‫صورت ما شده عکس تو رد آئین ٔه ما‬

‫هچ تماشاست ز خود رفت ٔه خویشت بودن‬

‫هم‬ ‫چو رنگ از رخ ما رفت دل از سین ٔه ما‬ ‫خوش رفو رفته هب طبع تو خوشا کین ٔه ما‬ ‫گن‬ ‫گوره از بیض ٔه عنقاست هب جین ٔه ما‬

‫باده مهتاب بود رد شب آدین ٔه ما‬ ٔ ‫خون دل بود مگر باده دوشین ٔه ما‬

‫ هچ پیدا هچ نهان‬،‫وقف اتراج غم تست‬ ‫رعهص رب الفت اغیار هچ تنگ آدمه است‬ ٔ ‫محتش‬ ‫م‌زاده ارطاف بساط عدمیم‬ ٔ ‫نیست مستا ن رتا تفرهق بدر و هالل‬

‫غالب امشب همه از دیده چکیدن دارد‬

Erase the sign of duality in the pages of our heart; O You, whose gaze is the alif of the luster of our mirror. (8:1) In the ancient times, the mirrors were made from polished steel (invented by Alexander the Great), which would get rusted in the rainy season requiring polishing using a small rod with a pointed and sharp end; the use of this sharp object would leave sharp engraved lines in the mirror over time. This straight etching also resembles the first alphabet of the Farsi language, alif. This alphabet is also a sign of unity and the singularity of God. With this background in mind, the poet says that the Your gaze has etched a devotion to singularity, erasing any other marks of etching that may have been there, meaning any belief in duality.

Whether manifest or hidden, it is dedicated to your plundering grief; Like the color of our face, our heart has flown from our chest. (8:2) While it is easy (manifest) to see how the face turns pale (the color flying off the face), it is not obvious (hidden) when the heart flies from the chest. One is apparent. The other is not. The beloved is a plunderer; sometimes, we see what she sees. Other times, we do not. When she steals the heart, no one sees it, but when I look at her, we turn pale, and the world finds out about it.

It is worth observing how one loses one’s identity in love; Your reflection in our mirror has taken the semblance of our face. (8:3) The beloved image in my mirror looks like my image, and thus we found the beloved after losing to ourselves.

How tight has become the space for the stranger’s affection? How good that your hatred against me has eased down. (8:4)

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So full is the beloved’s heart with animosity against the lover that there is no room left for the love of rivals.

We belong to the high and ruling family in the land of nonexistence; In our treasure, the egg of Onqa is our pearl. (8:5) Onqa is a mythical bird that symbolizes nonexistence. The egg of Onqa is compared to the pearl. The poet points to man’s existence's fragility and says that we gloat over treasures that have no reality. See Onqa in the glossary.

To those intoxicated by you, there is no difference between a crescent and full moon; Their goblet is the full moon on Friday night. (8:6) The full moon is compared to a goblet, except that moon recedes into a crescent while the drinking goes on every day, particularly on Friday night. Those intoxicated by you continue drinking.

O Ghalib, tonight it is all dripping out of our eyes; Was the last night’s wine the blood of our heart? (8:7) Last night we drank with joy, but it was a prelude to a sad night. Perhaps we were drinking our blood, and that is why it is now dripping from our eyes. The wine we drank last night turned into blood.

9 ‫شم‬ ‫رشت ٔه ع زمار از رگ جانست رما‬

‫سوز عشق تو پس از رمگ عیانست رما‬

‫رد سپاس دم تیغ تو زبانست رما‬

‫ره رخاشی هک ز رکش تنم افتد رب دل‬

‫چش‬

‫م نگرانست رما‬

‫حلق ٔه زبم هک‬

‫این همه بحث هک رد سود و زیانست رما‬

‫لع‬ ‫لب لتوهماینستوهمآنسترما‬ ‫روی خوبت هب دل از دیده نهانست رما‬ ‫رد رهت رشت ٔه امید عنانست رما‬

‫کوه اندوه رگ خواب رگانست رما‬

‫منتی رب قدم رارهوانست رما‬ ٔ ‫ت‬ ‫وهش رب لب جو مانده نشانست رما‬

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‫نگنج‬ ‫می‏ م ز رطب رد شکن خلوت خویش‬ ‫دلخودازتوستوهمازذوق رخیداریتوست‬

‫ع‬ ‫جوئی از باده و جوئی ز سل دارد خلد‬

‫چون رپی‌زاد هک رد شیشه رفودش آرند‬

‫گسس‬ ‫هب تک و اتز من ازفود تن یک دست‬ ‫بی‬ ‫خودی رکده سبک‌دوش رفاغی دارم‬

‫خاراه از ارث رگمی رفتارم سوخت‬ ‫ررهو تفت ٔه رد رفته هب آبم غالب‬

The fire of your love remained obvious even after my death; The candlewick on my grave comes from my jugular vein. (9:1) The candle lit at the lover's grave is burning as it draws the fire of love from what is buried underneath.

I can’t fit in my lonely abode from joy; Of whose assembly of joy has an attentive eye on me. (9:2) Thinking about the joys of celebration in the assembly of beloved makes me happy in my loneliness.

Every scar in the heart that comes from the envy of my body; Is like a tongue that is thanking the sharp edge of your sword. (9:3) The beloved is carving wounds on the lover's body with her sword; the heart is not feeling it and is getting torn with envy, and thus, these body wounds are thankful for the beloved.

The heart is yours, and it is excited that you are purchasing it; For all these arguments that exist from my profit and loss with you. (9:4) Arguing with the beloved in the bargaining for the heart that she holds is a pure delight as it tells me two things. First, that she has my heart. Secondly, I can talk about it.

Paradise has a stream of wine and a stream of honey; To me, your ruby-like lips have both of those. (9:5) God has promised the streams of wine and honey in paradise. Your lips give me both in this world. Who needs paradise?

Like the fairy that it is brought down into a glass bottle; Your lovely face in my heart remains hidden from my eyes. (9:6) The poet has referred to the beloved as the fairy. Fairies are locked into visible bottles to others except for the master. Your lovely face, like a fairy, remains locked in my heart, and no one can see it. “Brought down a fairy in a glass bottle” also means comforting a hardened soul.

My running around has jumped suddenly out of hand; In your path, the tread of hope is my reign. (9:7) Once the reign breaks, horses go running wild. Despite the turmoil I face, the reign remains intact, controlling me fixed in the path to your love.

Being lost has lightened my load, and now I am free; Now the mountain of sorrow has turned into a deep sleep for me. (9:8) Not knowing who I am, is intoxicating to me. It gives a feeling of freedom. The sorrow was so great that it had brought sleep to me and made me refractory to pain.

The thorns have been burned down by my heated behavior; My footsteps are a great favor to those who will follow me. (9:9)

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I have removed the thorns from the path of those who will follow me in this path. I have removed the difficulties that arise in creating new ways, new thinking.

Ghalib, I am the traveler who drowned in the river because of intense thirst; My trip expense money that is left by the river is my only sign of existence. (9:10) I was thirsty and took the plunge into the river and drowned. Whatever is travel money left on the brink of the river is my only sign of existence. Meaning that I could not bear the heat of love and quenched me with death. My existence is only traceable with what I have left behind—my verses.

10 ‫گوئی این بود ازین پیش هب ریپاهن ما‬

‫آشنایاهن کشد خار رهت دامن ما‬

‫ارگ اندیش ٔه منزل نشود رزهن ما‬

‫عیس‬ ‫ساهی و چشمه هب صحرا دم ی دارد‬

‫نبود آمیزش جان رد تن ما با تن ما‬

‫بخیه رب زخم رپیشان فتد از سوزن ما‬ ‫شم‬ ‫خود ز رکش ست ارگ دل ربد از د ن ما‬ ‫ات هچ ربق ست هک شد انزمد رخمن ما‬ ‫می جهد خون دل ما ز رگ رگدن ما‬

‫نشود رگد نمایان ز رم توسن ما‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫خورده خون جگر از رکش ن گفتن ما‬

‫شعر خود خواهش آ ن رکد هک رگدد فن ما‬

‫بی تو چون باده هک رد شیشه هم از شیشه جداست‬

ٔ ‫ات رود شکوه تیغ ستم آسان از دل‬

‫دوست با کینه‏ی ما مهر نهان می‌ورزد‬ ‫ مگر جان هب سالمت ببرد‬،‫می‌رپد مور‬ ‫دعوی عشق ز ما کیست هک باور نکند‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ن ما ز لطافت نپذرید تحرری‬ ‫طوطیان را نبود رهزه جگرگون منقار‬

‫ما نبودیم بدین رمتبه راضی غالب‬

O friend, the thorn along your pathway pulls our skirt as if its familiar; As one might say that it had all along been hidden in our attire. (10:1) In the path of love, the pain-piercing thorn is nothing new to us. We have been through these experiences, and they have become part of our existence.

Without you, we are like the wine in the bottle but separated from the bottle; Within us, similarly, the soul does not merge with the body. (10:2) In the pain of separation from the beloved, the body is like an entity with the soul. The wine in the bottle does not become part of the bottle, and similarly, our soul does not merge with our body.

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The shade and the water stream in the desert are like the fresh breath of Jesus; If the thought of the destination does not rob us of our comfort. (10:3) The poet refers to the basic insecurity of the human mind in this verse. Even though we come across sudden riches and joys, the thought of something going wrong keeps us from enjoying those moments. The breath of Jesus is supposed to give life to the dead.

To vent the complaint of the sword of tyranny easily from the heart; Our needle will sew the agitated wound loosely. (10:4) When the lover goes on to have the wounds of the sword of tyranny stitched, the needle does a poor job leaving the wound open here and there. This allows the lover's complaint against the beloved to get out of his body and get aired from these half-stitched wounds.

The beloved is holding a grudge against us because of her hidden love for us; It is with jealousy that she tries to usurp the heart of our rival. (10:5) The amorous signs of beloved for the rivals are only to make me more jealous.

It is an ant flying in a vain attempt to save its life; What kind of lightning has been entrusted with the destruction of our gathered harvest? (10:6) An often-repeated theme involves lightning striking when the harvest has been gathered—a sign of misfortune and irony. Here the lightning is compared to an ant; the lightning is floundering around to save its charge. A comparison is provided here, saying it is impossible to destroy my resolve with the lightning struggling to save its life in its own embarrassment.

Who doesn’t believe in our claim of love; The blood of our heart is jumping out of our jugular vein. (10:7) We are fully committed to shedding the last drop of our blood in the path of our love. The blood itself is uncontrolled and coming out. How can then anyone doubt sincerity?

So subtle is our poetry that it cannot be expressed in writing, Like the flight of our steed that is scattering no dust. (10:8) Any discussion of my thoughts is a futile effort to understand them. A steed not stirring up dust refers to the swiftness of the diction.

The beaks of parrots are red, not without a reason; It is from drinking their heart’s blood in envy of our style of conversation. (10:9) Parrots imitate humans. All those who would try to imitate the poet would suffer humiliation. Therefore, other poets are called parrots, regurgitating the original thoughts of the poet.

O Ghalib, we were not content at this high stature; The poetry itself expressed the desire to become our art. (10:10) The poetry is itself demanding to be recognized, and I was just a conduit for it.

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11 ‫رب دوست راه ذوق نظر بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫نقش‬ ‫ی ز خود هب راهگذار بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫طلس‬ ‫کاین خود م دود و رشور بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫م‬ ‫دل شکن و دماغ و دل خود ن گاه دار‬

‫خود را هب زور رب تو مگر بسته‌ایم ما؟‬

‫از بهر خویش جنت رد بسته‌ایم ما‬ ‫صد جا چو نی هب انهل کمر بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‏کنند‬

‫ٔ خ ی هم سخ‬ ‫با بنده ود ا ن ه‬

‫تی‬

‫رب روی حاسدان رد دوزخ گشوده رکش‬ ‫رفمان ردد ات هچ روائی رگفته است‬

‫تهم‬ ‫از داغ تی هب جگر بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫یش‬ ‫سوز رتا روان همه رد خو تن رگفت‬

‫از کوی دوست رخت سفر بسته‌ایم ما‬

‫ات رد وداع خویش هچ خو ن رد جگر کنیم‬

‫زین سادگی هک دل هب ارث بسته‌ایم ما‬ ‫رحزی هب بال رمغ حسر بسته‌ایم ما‬

ّ ‫‌اهی شکر بسته‌ایم ما‬ ‫زهّل‬ ‫کاین ماهی‬ ِ

‫ هم هب ما رگای‬،‫گوئی واف ندارد ارث‬

‫ره جاست انهل همت ما حقگزار اوست‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫از خوان نطق غالب شیرین ن بود‬

We have carved our footprint in every pathway, so that; we prevented the beloved from getting the delights of sightseeing. (11:1) The lover has left his impressions everywhere, and if she sees these imprints, it will embarrass her by reminding her of her cruelty, and thus she would be reluctant to go out. Getting even with the beloved!

Your followers should not be treated with such harshness. Did we force ourselves into attaching to You? (11:2) The poet addresses God and complains, why are You so tyrannical to those who are Your followers? Our connection with You is natural, and we are not imposing ourselves on You.

Break not our heart, instead protect your heart and mind, For we have ourselves raised this sorcery of smoke and sparks. (11:3) Ghalib has presented his heart as sorcery of smoke and sparks and warning the beloved about it. If you break it, then it would upset your mind (the smoke rising and entering the nose), and the sparks would burn your heart (save it). Save your nose and heart and not break my heart is offered in a convoluted threat.

Jealously has opened the pathway to hell for the jealous ones; And for our sake we are a paradise with closed doors. (11:4)

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The rival burns with jealousy, looking at our leisure is like living in hell for him. This way, we have shut the doors of the paradise to the rival.

The declaration of your affliction has reached far and beyond; In a hundred places, we are bent and moan like a flute. (11:5) Wherever we go, we begin lamenting because we find that everyone knows about how you afflict others with pain. A flute is made by bending the reed, and it sounds like a moan. The first verse of the famous long elegy by Masnavis of Maulana Rumi states, “Listen to this reed-flute how it complains; How it tells the tales of long-lasting separations.” Similarly, the famous Indian poet Kabir writes: “Come off my heart are the moans of the reed-flute; The scent of my beloved comes off the reed-flute.”

Our soul has gathered all your burning desires, And we are blaming our hearts undeservedly. (11:6) Love not only produces brandings scars in the liver (liver is a presented as a seat of courage) or wound in the heart (seat of emotions), but it also penetrates our veins and soul. So why should we only hold our liver responsible for not standing up to the challenges of love?

You think that fidelity has no effect; come and join us; Our simplicity is that we have fixed our hearts on getting the favor. (11:7) A simpleton’s heart is acknowledging that there is no recourse yet keeps struggling.

We will see what pain and suffering we bear in parting from ourselves; Having packed up our belongings to leave the alley of the beloved. (11:8) It is indeed the most difficult thing to leave her alley—a catastrophic event it is. It is akin to dying, parting from ourselves.

Wherever there is a wail, our patience to wail rightfully supports it; We have fastened an amulet to the wing of the morning bird. (11:9) We appreciate and salute those who wail, for we know what it takes to do this. The morning bird screeches in the morning, and to keep it from the evil eye, we have tied an amulet to its arms, meaning we pray for the longevity and power of those who wail.

It is from the serving mat of Ghalib’s sweet diction, That we have gathered these sweets to take with us. (11:10) Ghalib’s style of diction is full of sweetness, and all those write poetries merely take out portions of these sweet servings on the serving mat of Ghalib. Ghalib is distributing great thoughts to all.

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‫‪12‬‬ ‫رد رگد رغبت آئینه‌دار خودیم ما‬

‫یعنی ز بی‌کسان دیار خودیم ما‬

‫از بس هک خارط هوس گل زعزی بود‬

‫خون گشته‏ایم و باغ و بهار خودیم ما‬

‫بی‬ ‫دیگر ز ساز خودی ما صدا مجوی‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ما جمله وقف خویش و دل ما ز ما رُپست‬ ‫هم‬ ‫از جوش قطره چو رسکش آب گشته ایم‬ ‫مشت غبار ماست رپاگنده سو هب سو‬ ‫با چون توئی معامله رب خویش منت است‬

‫روی سیاه خویش ز خود هم نهفته‌ایم‬ ‫رد کار ماست انهل و ما رد هوای او‬ ‫خم‬ ‫خاک وجود ماست هب خو ن جگر یر‬ ‫رهکس خبر ز حوصل ٔه خویش می‌دهد‬

‫اتر ن گاه ریپو ما سلک گورهست‬ ‫شخ‬ ‫غالب چو ص و عکس رد آئین ٔه خیال‬

‫گسس‬ ‫آوازی از تن اتر خودیم ما‬ ‫گوئی هجوم‬

‫حس‬

‫رت کار خودیم ما‬

‫اما همان هب جیب و کنار خودیم ما‬

‫یا رب هب دره رد هچ شمار خودیم ما‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫از شکوه تو شکرزگار خودیم ما‬

‫شم خم‬ ‫ع وش کلب ٔه اتر خودیم ما‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫رپواهن‬

‫رچاغ‬

‫زمار‬

‫خودیم‬

‫ما‬

‫نگ‬ ‫ر ینی قماش غبار خودیم ما‬

‫مس‬ ‫بد تی رحیف و خمار خودیم ما‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫رفتار‬

‫اپی‬

‫آبله‌دار‬

‫خودیم‬

‫ما‬

‫یش‬ ‫با خو تن یکی و دوچار خودیم ما‬

‫;‪In the dust of exile, we are our own mirror-holder‬‬ ‫)‪Reminding us that we are just as lonely here as we were in our land. (12:1‬‬ ‫‪The dust of exile serves as a mirror, reminding us of our haplessness, here away from home, of‬‬ ‫‪our haplessness at home.‬‬

‫;‪Expect not any melody from the music of our ecstasy‬‬ ‫)‪We are the sound of the breaking of our own strings. (12:2‬‬ ‫‪“I am the sound of my broken self,” the poet says. Broken strings mean a broken will.‬‬

‫;‪The thought of longing for the rose was so dear to us that‬‬ ‫)‪We became bloodstained and became our own flower garden and the spring. (12:3‬‬

‫‪98‬‬

We loved flowers so much that we bled out waiting for them. Bled out means that our blood decorated the land, making it look like the arrival of the spring (red flowers).

Dedicating us to ourselves, our heart is filled with concern for self; As if the crowding of stifled desires is keeping us occupied. (12:4) We are left with many unfulfilled desires that keep ourselves occupied with them, managing them, thinking about them, lamenting about them, and thus we are engaged with ourselves.

With the zeal of the drop, we too rose and turned into the water, but we are still in our own thoughts and are beside ourselves. (12:5) The waves in the ocean produce water drops that rise and then merge back into the ocean, reaching their destiny. We, too, rose into water drops (tears), but instead of flowing we are still stuck in our own thoughts—we could not reach our destiny.

This is our fistful of dust, scattered in all directions; O Lord, how do we get counted in this world. (12:6) Insignificant like a fistful of dust, we are scattered, making our presence even smaller. A question is asked. “Why were we created if we are so unimportant. Is there any way we can have any significance in this world?” The poet is making a complaint to God. With such insignificance, we have to suffer so much—why? Ghalib has brought this theme elegantly in many places; in his Urdu divan he writes: “if so many sorrows were destined for us, then O Lord, You should have given us many hearts as well.”

Association with You is like getting indebted to self; It is from your complaints that we praise ourselves. (12:7) Association with you makes us thankful to ourselves. The poet addresses God. When we lament and complain, we find it to be a privilege that is praiseworthy.

We have kept our blackened face hidden from ourselves also; We are like a candle put out in our own darkened abode. (12:8) A blackened face means being disgraced. Our dark abode (miserable life) hides our miseries, just like a put-out candle in a dark room.

We keep moaning, yet we are so full of our desire for her that We have turned into a moth around the lamp lighted at our own grave. (12:9) Grave refers to unfulfilled desires. The burning of moth represents going away without getting noticed. A lamp lit at a grave is a sad sight. A moth around that lamp does not get noticed; it just wastes away its life.

Kneaded with liver’s blood is the dust of our existence; We are color of our own dusty garb. (12:10)

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Our existence takes color from our liver’s blood (intense hardship). It is the fierce dedication of our love that makes us whosoever material being we are. Dusty incarnation refers to our connection to the soil we are made of, and we will go back into the soil.

Everyone talks about his own patience; Intoxicating to the rival, we are a hangover for ourselves. (12:11) We all tell the world how courageous and patient we are; however, our opponent is enamored by our devotion, making us proud of ourselves.

The thread of the glance of the followers is like a string of pearls; We are moving on with our own blistered feet. (12:12) Those who follow us are looking at our blistered feet, and these blisters have turned into a string of pearls for those who are behind us, meaning they are envious of my devotion. It is this role model that makes them follow me.

O Ghalib, like the person and his image in the mirror of thought, We are the ones who are entangled with ourselves. (12:13) An object and its image in a mirror are the same things, yet they appear separate; similarly, what we around us is a part of us.

13 ‫تسبی‬ ‫رس اتر نظر شد رشته‏ی ح کوکب‌اه‬

‫شغ‬ ‫هب ل انتظار مهوشان رد خلوت شب‌اه‬

‫ستوه آدم دل از هن گاهمٔ غوغای مطلب‌اه‬

‫هب خلوت‌خاۀن کام نهنگ ال زدم خود را‬

‫حس‬ ‫بهار از رت رفصت هب دندان می‌زگد لب اه‬ ‫مث ست‬ ‫نیاید خشت ل ا خوان بیرون ز اقلب‌اه‬ ‫نم‬ ‫مش‬ ‫ی بالد هب خویش این قطره از طوافن رب‌اه‬ ٔ ‫بود هت‌بندی خط سبزه خط رد هت لب‌اه‬ ‫خ‬ ‫هب لب شکی هچ میری رد رسابستا ن ذمهب‌اه‬ ‫هک آتش رد نهادم آب شد از رگمی تب‌اه‬

‫نف‬ ‫ضعی‬ ‫س با این فی ربنتابد ش ِور یا رب‌اه‬

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ٔ ‫هب روی ربگ گل ات قطره شبنم نپنداری‬ ‫تعم‬ ‫کند رگ فکر یر رخابی‌اهی ما رگدون‬ ‫خوشا بیرنگی دل دست گاه شوق را انزم‬ ‫ندارد حسن رد ره حال از مشاطگی غفلت‬

‫مش‬ ‫خوشا رندی و جوش زنده رود و رب عذبش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫تو خوی پنداری و دانی هک جان ربدم ی دانی‬

‫هم‬ ‫مبادا چو اتر سبحه از هم بگسلد غالب‬

While busy waiting for the moon-faced beauties in the lonely nights, The line of our sight has become the thread for the rosary of stars. (13:1) Moon-faced is considered to be the most beautiful appearance. In Ghalib’s poetry, the eye’s glance is considered a “line of sight,” as if a string is shot out of the eye to the target; this is uniquely Ghalib’s style of thinking. Waiting for the beloved, the lover is counting stars, and as his eyes move from one star to another, it seems like he is stringing a rosary of start. The poet has evoked the “moon-faced” beauty to match the imagery of stringing stars to play on words.

Lest you consider the water drops on the leaf as the dew, The spring is biting its lips from the dejection of its impermanence. (13:2) The dewdrops are compared to teeth that the spring season is using to bite into its lips as it is dejected to know its impermanence. The luxuries of life merely indicate that calamities are just around the corner, bringing a sense of melancholy now.

I have brought myself into the lonely mouth of the crocodile; As the heart got tired of the uproar and tumult of the words. (13:3) I have given up all desires to bring me the calm and quiet of the noise of cruelties of the world around me.

If the heaven is thinking to rebuild our self-destructing, Then, the heaven should know that no bricks will come out of the frame like the bones out of the body. (13:4) It is impossible to take the bones out of a living body, and the same difficulty arises in finding the bricks that would rebuild our broken self.

How nice it is that the heart remained untainted; I take pride in the asset of desire; This drop wouldn’t be proud of being part of a storm. (13:5) The drop is the heart. There are so many ways to search for God that this is like a storm (of liquid); however, the obliviousness of my heart did not bring any haughtiness to my heart. My asset is that I am prideful of my sincere desire for the Creator.

Beauty does not become oblivious to always decorating it; The new down over the lips is the foundation enhancing the beauty of features. (13:6) The poet is admiring the beauty of a young boy who has begun developing a down over his lips; it is called a foundation, often used before dyeing clothes; this foundation enhances the shades of colors. The theme of a male beloved can be unusual for Western readers. However, it was common in the Old Persian Empire to bring young lads as lovers to the King from Turkey.

How lovely are the colorful ways of drinking and the ebullient river; Why are you going with dry lips in the path of the mirage of religion? (13:7) The River is a generic word as well as referring to a particular river near Isfahan, Iran. Life is beautiful and colorful while drinking, and the rivers become ebullient (comparing the two moods). However, those who follow religion are merely running after mirages, wasting their lives.

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You think of it as sweat coming from the fire of my passion; This is the fire that has turned into the water from the heat inside me. (13:8) The sweat you see is the fire of love inside me that cannot bear the heat (desire) inside me and has come out as sweat. Most likely, this is due to embarrassment for not being able to handle my devotion.

Lest it breaks like the thread of rosary, O Ghalib, Such a weak breath cannot express the excitement of calling “O, Lord.” (13:9) Repeating the name of the Lord takes an effort (a breath is required), and we are not prepared for that. Our breath (often compared to a thread) is weak and taking the name of the Lord may break it.

14 ‫گدا گفت و هب من تن رد نداد از خودنمائی‌اه‬

‫پس از عمری هک رفسودم هب مشق اپرسائی‌اه‬

‫بگوییدش هک از عمرست آرخ بی‏وافئی‌اه‬

‫مش‬ ‫بت کل‌پسند از ابتذال شیوه می‌رنجد‬

‫شم‬ ‫رباید رحف و آموزد هب د ن آشنائی‌اه‬ ‫هب دستم چاک‏اه چون شاهن ماند از انرسائی‌اه‬

‫متاعم را هب غارت داده‏اند از انروائی‌اه‬

‫تووزیدانهچسازدکسبدینصبرآزمائی‌اه؟‬ ‫هک پندارم رسآدم روزگار بینوائی‌اه‬

‫نف‬ ‫نگه رد نکته‌زائی اه س رد رسهم‌سائی‌اه‬ ‫ز ننگ زاهد افتادم هب کارف مارجائی‌اه‬ ‫هب دارالملک معنی می‌کنم رفمارنوائی‌اه‬

‫مح‬ ‫فغانزانبلهوسربکش بتپیشهکنزکمن‬ ‫نشد روزی هک سازم رطه ازجای رگیبان را‬ ‫نیرزم التفات زدد و رزهن بی‏نیازی بین‬ ‫بش خاکم ربآشوبی‬

‫جن‬

‫ستخ‬ ‫هب روز ر یز از‬

‫یش‬ ‫کدوئی چون ز می یابم چنان رب خو تن بالم‬

‫هچ خوش باشد دو شاهد را هب بحث انز دیچیپن‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ی‬ ‫ن کوهت رما هم دل هب تقوی ما ل است اما‬

‫نج‬ ‫رن م رگ هب صورت از گدایان بوده‏ام غالب‬

After years of wearing out, practicing the lessons of piety, and She paid no attention to me due to her condescending manner, and called me a beggar. (14:1) A lifetime of devotion to her with righteousness is juxtaposed against her desire to be assertive with her beauty. Ghalib has said elsewhere also, “Look, even she is calling me a pauper. Had I known of it, I would not have burned my home.”

102

103

Alas, leave that pleasure seeker and follow me instead; She steals good words from me and teaches togetherness to rivals. (14:2) The beloved encourages the rival to use the romantic style of the sincere lover and encourages him to make a forward move. All the time, the beloved is pushing away the lover. The poet asserts that his expression is supreme and should work, though it did not work for him.

My picky beloved resents anything that gets destroyed at the end; Tell her that infidelity has the same extinct ending. (14:3) The beloved likes ingenuity, not following the beaten path of expressing love. That being the case, please inform the beloved that being unfaithful to me for this long has become a tiring routine, too—give it up because it is not in your style to practice archaic styles.

The day never came when I could make a turban out of the pieces of my torn collar; This slit in the collar remained like a comb because of my misfortune. (14:4) A shredded collar is compared to a comb (actual teeth of a comb); that is where it all ended in disgrace. I had hoped that my torn collar would show the world my dedication and give me a reason to be proud, but the world did not look at it this way. The turban was meant for the beloved.

Look at the irony that I am not worthy of the attention of the robbers who will Pillage my belongings, thinking of them as worthless. (14:5) The robbers destroyed, not stole, my valuables for these were of no value to them. I am not even worthy of being robbed.

On the Day of the Raising, when my dust began to move, you become angry; What are you and God making out of testing one’s patience? (14:6) On the Day of Judgment, the dead will be raised, but the beloved did not tolerate even that. All my life, I practiced patience, and now even my movement is forbidden. How can one tolerate it?

I will be so proud when I find a pumpkin head full of wine, Making me think that the times of weakness are gone. (14:7) Pumpkin shells are used by beggars to collect alms; even when the poet finds that wine is given to him as alms, he begins to think that the hard times are behind now. An interesting comparison is made here with the bowl of pumpkin and wine. The poet could have said, “Whenever I find my glass filled, it gladdens me,” but the poet is a beggar, the wine is love, and a beggar remains a beggar.

It is such a joy to see two beloveds getting entangled discussing coquetry; Their eyes are making punctilious points, and their breath appears antimony laced. (14:8) “Breath” means to talk, and calling it antimony-laced (antimony makes eyes attractive) means they are seductive. When beloveds discuss how they use their coquetry on the lovers, there is sensuousness and seductiveness.

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To make it short, my heart is also interested in piety; But seeing the ugly traits of the abstainers, I adopted the style of infidels. (14:9) The hypocrisy of pious abstainers is rejected in favor of the practice of infidels.

O Ghalib, least bothered I am with my outward appearance of a beggar; But inside the kingdom of meaning, I am the crown bearer. (14:10) While my poetry may appear simple, the thoughts expressed are deep and often complex. I rule this turf. The kingdom of meaning may also be the spiritual reality in the Sufi doctrine, and thus it would mean that I am connected to God.

15 ‫از سینه رزی بیرون مانند تیغ دم را‬

‫هم ستم را‬ ٔ ‫جان رب نتابد ای دل هن گا‬

‫یا رب شکسته باشد رب انم ما قلم را‬

‫ت‬ ‫گویند می‌نویسد اق ل ربات خیری‬

‫آمیزش رغیبی باشد هب هوش رم را‬ ‫رب دیده می‌نشانم رد ره قدم قدم را‬ ‫قس‬ ‫رکدم ز بی نیازی خو ن رد جگر م را‬

‫از وحشت ربونم بنگر غم ردونم‬

‫بی وهج رد رهت نیست از اپ فتادن من‬

‫کش‬ ‫سوگند تنم خورد از غصه جان سپردم‬

‫رد دل چو جوره تیغ جا داده‌ام رقم را‬

‫نبش‬ ‫رد انهم ات تی رب من نوید قتلی‬

‫دیوار و رد نسازد زندانیان غم را‬

‫ وریاهن دلگشارت‬،‫کاشاهن گشت وریان‬

‫تیغت هب رسم یغما از ما ربوده خم را‬ ‫سوزد ز بیم خویت ازجای انهل هم را‬ ‫بنگر هک چون سکندر آئینه نیست جم را‬

ٔ ‫از جبهه‌ام ندزدد کس سجده صنم را‬

‫سیلی رسید و گوئی از دیده شست غم را‬

‫تواضع‬

ٔ ‫رسماهی‬

‫ندارد‬

‫بیدادرگ‬

‫مانند خارزاری کآتش زنند رد وی‬ ‫مش‬ ‫رد رب رحیفان منع است خودنمائی‬ ‫گسس‬

‫تی‬

ّ ‫زاهد مناز چندین زانرم ار‬

‫اشکی نمانده باقی از رفط رگهی غالب‬

O Heart, my life cannot bear the cruelty of your tumultuousness; Like a sword’s edge, take it out of the chest to give us reprieve. (15:1) Calling the emotional upheaval a sword whose edge should be removed (the sharpness) gives me

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some solace and comfort. The poet is addressing his own heart that keeps him disturbed. He is praying for soothing of his heart.

From my outward fear, you can see my hidden grief; A strange mixture it is of the senses and fearful nature. (15:2) The grief does not show if it remains hidden, but the secret comes out when it appears on the face. There is a good connection between having senses and losing them.

It is said that the murderer is writing a letter of forgiveness; O Lord, may her pen breaks after she writes my name. (15:3) It is a matter of pride for the lover to be killed by the beloved, but she had decided to tell me that she is sorry and giving up the resolve to kill the lover. At this point, the lover wants her pen to break so that letter would not get composed.

It is not without reason that I keep falling, walking in your path; It is because I am putting my eyes on my feet at every step. (15:4) Placing eyes over feet is an expression of extreme reverence and regard. It is indeed a great honor for the lover to follow the path of his beloved. As he falls, his eyes touch the path traversed by the beloved.

She swore to kill me, but I died of sorrow hearing that; From my needlessness, I made her vow bitter for her. (15:5) The beloved wanted to kill the lover. Hearing this, I died without caring about it, and with that, I made her vow to kill me turn bitter and useless for her.

Since you have given me the good news of murdering me in your letter; I have merged this writing in my heart like the edge is the part of the sword. (15:6) The sword and its edge are part of one object. Your letter has found a place in my heart, and it is inseparable from my heart. Her letter is like the edge of the sword, which is working to do what she had intended in the first place, to kill me.

The tyrant remains devoid of the asset of humbleness; The curve in your sword is plundered because of our style. (15:7) The curve of the sword is compared to bending or bowing as the sign of humbleness, and obviously, it could only come from us. The curve of the sword has taken the bent from our style of humbleness.

My house was destroyed, but now it has a more pleasing view; To the prisoners of grief, the walls and doors are not suitable. (15:8) The absence of doors and walls frees the soul of the lover. The wilderness is a better place. A destroyed house remains a house even if it is desolate.

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Like the thorn bushes of the desert set on fire; Every bit of my laments burns from the fear of your fury. (15:9) A dried-out thorn bush, when put on fire, burns to the core almost instantly. Your fiery disposition lights up all my efforts to lament. Afraid of you, I am unable to lament.

Showing off is forbidden in a gathering of adversaries; Watch it like Alexander because you don’t have the mirror of Jamshid. (15:10) Jamshid had the magic bowl to show the future events while Alexander merely had a mirror in which he could see himself and admire, meaning a show-off. See Alexander and Jamshidin the glossary.

O Ascetic! don’t be proud that you have broken my sacred thread; No one can steal the marks of prostrating before my idol from my forehead. (15:11) Hindus wear a black sacred thread around their neck. The poet is challenging the preacher that while you have forced me to remove the black thread, how would you eliminate the marks on my forehead that I developed for a lifetime of prostrating before idols? The black line was just a ritual; the real believer lies inside. Interestingly, the example combining the black sacred thread (Hindus) and the sign of prostration (Muslim) is merely a play on words.

Ghalib, from the intensity of weeping, not a single drop of tear is left in the eyes; As if a storm came and washed away the sorrows from our eyes. (15:12) I wept so hard that there were no tears left. Flood is a metaphor, or else there would be a lot of moisture left.

16 ‫یببم‬ ‫رف ش هک مگر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫من آ ن نیم هک درگ می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫ز شاخ گل هب ثمر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫ز ذرک مل هب امگن می‌توان فکند رما‬

‫هب وهم اتب کمر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬ ‫جن‬ ‫هب نیم بش رس می‌توان رفیفت رما‬ ‫هب یک دو رحف حذر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫ ارگ می‌توان رفیفت رما‬،‫رچا رفیفت‬

‫ازو هب زخم جگر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬ ‫هب آرزوی خبر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫هب رحف ذوق نگه می‌توان ربود رما‬ ‫ز ردد دل هک هب افساهن رد میان آید‬ ‫ز سوز دل هک هب واگوهی رب زبان گذرد‬

‫یف‬ ‫ رهزگ آ ن محال اندیش‬،‫من و رف تگی‬ ‫خدنگ زج هب رگایش گشاد نپذرید‬ ‫ز باز اندمن انهم‏رب خوشم هک هنوز‬

107

‫گف‬ ‫هب تگوی حسر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫ ولی یک چند‬،‫شب رفاق ندارد حسر‬

‫هب کیمیای نظر می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫نیس‬ ‫چش‬ ‫رگسنه م ارث تم هک رد ره دید‬

‫ز رد هب روزن رد می توان رفیفت رما‬ ‫هک از واف هب ارث می‌توان رفیفت رما‬

‫نشان دوست ندانم زج این هک رپده ردست‬ ‫رسشت من بود این ور هن آ ن نیم غالب‬

I am not the one whom you can deceive anymore; I deceive her giving the impression that I can be deceived. (16:1) I am no longer captive to beauty, yet there is a certain joy in being deceived by the beauty. So, I am not letting her know that I am out of her clutches so that she would keep trying and keep bringing me more joy. A highly complex sense of hypocrisy is shown here.

My heart can be stolen with a single loving glance; With the illusion of the waist curve, I can be deceived. (16:2) The qualities of the beloved keep deceiving the imagination of the lover.

I can be intoxicated just by speaking about wine; From the fruit on the branch of flower, I can be deceived. (16:3) With the discussion of wine, I can make believe that I am intoxicated, and looking at any flowering branch can make me think that it is full of fruits, not flowers. The beauty is like the flower branch where there are many flowers of coquetry but no fruits of faithfulness, but I am willing to take those flowers as fruits.

While telling my story of love, if there comes any mention of heart’s pain, Then a slightest notion of your head I can be deceived. (16:4) When at the mention of pain in the heart, the beloved nodded, though barely. This was sufficient for the lover to think that perhaps she understands the word’s meaning and, therefore, she would comprehend his feelings towards her.

From the flames of a burning heart come complaints to the tongue; With one or two simple words, I can be deceived. (16:5) Whether the beloved refrains from deceiving and whether the lover tries not to be gullible, deception is indeed a part of a romantic relationship. The reality of loving hits at the core of tender hearts.

I am being deceived; never; why that illusional thinker, So deceived me; if I can be deceived? (16:6)

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Am I deceived? No way, the lover claims, but wonders why an effort is there if I am so readily deceived. Love and deception are inseparable.

No arrow can get out from her quiver without her intent; Yet, I can be deceived by anyone telling me that I have a wound in my liver. (16:7) If you say that I have a wound in my liver from the arrow, I would be deceived into thinking that perhaps she did launch it. I am ready to be deceived, willingly realizing that it does not happen without her willingness, and she is not likely willing. The liver is a seat of perseverance and heart, the seat of emotion.

The messenger has not returned, and I am happy at this; By the wish for a message, I can be deceived. (16:8) Ghalib has often talked about writing another letter while the messenger returns with a response from the previous letter, for he knows what the answer would be. Ghalib has also been zestful about how lucky is the messenger that he gets to meet the beloved. Ghalib prays that the beloved should not behead the messenger at times, for he is only a messenger. In one instance, he is telling a joint friend that it is not the messenger’s fault that he fell in love with Ghalib’s beloved; after all, he is a human being, and we should forgive him. Here Ghalib is saying that no news can be good news; at least let me think that way.

The night of separation has no dawn, yet for a little while, Talking about the dawn can deceive me. (16:9) So long are the nights of separation that it appears they have no morning; so desperate I am that a talk about the night ending would be good for me. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “How long shall I say I have been living if I take into account the nights of separation as well?”

Nothing more is the sign of the beloved except she is behind the veil; Through the door or window, I can be deceived. (16:10) The beloved will show herself, as she likes to break the veil. Talking about an entry makes me think of a window port through which I can perhaps see her.

I am not hungry for an effective glance in the path of my eyes; With the effectiveness of the eyes, I can be deceived. (16:11) I am not necessarily longing for amorous glances from the beloved coming my way; however, just the mention of how effective these glances are, I can be deceived, meaning to give up my resolve that I do not need those glances.

Ghalib, it is in my disposition; otherwise, I am not the kind, Who could be deceived saying that faithfulness has any value? (16:12) Whether being faithful to her words or not is immaterial. It is my nature to be faithful, and I shall remain so regardless of how it is returned.

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17 ‫بهاهن جوی مباش و ستیزه کار بیا‬

‫زمن ارگت نبود باور انتظار بیا‬

‫یکی هب رغم دل انامیدوار بیا‬

‫بهاهن‌جوست رد ازلام دمعی شوقت‬

‫هب رمگ من هک هب سامان روزگار بیا‬ ‫عنان گسسته‌رت از باد نوبهار بیا‬

‫بیا هک عهد واف نیست استوار بیا‬ ‫ صد زهار بار بیا‬،‫زهار بار ربو‬

‫جنازه رگ نتوان دید رب زمار بیا‬

‫یکی هب رپسش جان امیدوار بیا‬ ‫بیا هک دست و دلم می‌رود ز کار بیا‬ ‫مس‬ ‫ هوشیار بیا‬،‫متاع میکده تی‌ست‬

‫چو ما هب حلق ٔه رندان خاکسار بیا‬

‫نم‬ ‫هب یک دو شیوه ستم دل ی‌شود رخسند‬

‫ٔ ت‬ ‫هالک شیوه مکین مخواه مستان را‬ ‫بس‬ ‫گسس‬ ‫ز ما تی و با دیگران رگو تی‬

‫وداع و وصل جداگاهن لذتی دارد‬ ‫طف‬ ‫همنش‬ ‫تو ل ساده دل و ین بدآموزست‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ی‌خواهم‬

‫چها‬

‫انزم‬

ٔ ‫رفیب‌خورده‬

‫ز خوی تست نهاد شکیب انزک رت‬ ‫هس‬ ‫رواج صومع ٔه تی‌ست زینهار رمو‬ ‫حصار عافیتی رگ هوس کنی غالب‬

If you don’t believe that I would wait for you, come, and see; Do not make empty excuses; come even in the mood to fight. (17:1) The lovers have coined many ways to lure the beloved into coming to see him. Come to me even if you want to fight.

Your heart will not be gladdened with just one or two cruelty methods; Swear upon my death, come with every means of your trade. (17:2) Again, the beloved is called upon to bring all the wares of cruelty, and by swearing upon death, the lover says, I am ready to give up my life. Just show up once—that is the call here.

In your love, my heart keeps thinking of blaming the rival; For once, against the belief of hopeless heart, do come. (17:3) Giving the full benefit of the doubt to the beloved that the only reason you are late is that the rival held you back against your will. Surprise me once, against my firm belief that it is impossible.

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111

Desire not for your lovers to get killed from the pride you have of beauty; Come to me like the spring breeze with broken reins. (17:4) Without reins, the horses run wild; like the spring breeze running wild, come to us. Asking the beloved to give up her pride in her beauty and run wildly towards the lovers.

Having broken the pact of fidelity with us and binding it with rivals; Come to me since the pledge of fidelity is not a firm pact. (17:5) The poet is saying that promises are made only to be broken; do not feel sorry about your commitments to the rival; come to me instead.

Parting and union, each has its own pleasures; Leave me a thousand times and return to me a hundred thousand times. (17:6) The pleasures of the union are greater after separation, and that is why the poet wants it repeated, more returning than leaving, though.

You are a simpleton child, and the rival is teaching you exploitations, So, if you could not see my funeral, then at least come to my grave. (17:7) Coming to see someone’s funeral is the ultimate expression of respect, something the beloved cannot do because the rival has accused her. So, the poet is using reverse psychology, telling the beloved that she has been misled as a child by the conniving rival.

A victim of your coquetry, what is it that I did not desire; For once, my beloved, come and see my hopeful soul? (17:8) Beauty and coquetry create a combination where hundreds more arise if one desire is completed (that is, being duped by coquetry).

The foundation of your tender patience comes from your delicate disposition; Come, because, with this behavior, my heart and hands can’t function. (17:9) Hands are used to tear the collar, and they are held back to show patience and the heart waiting for you have lost all desires.

Do not go to the monastery as pride and ego circulate there; While the commodity of the tavern is intoxication, come while alerting yourself here. (17:10) Be careful as you enter the tavern as it takes a greater capacity to bear the intoxication. Religion only teaches haughtiness.

Ghalib, if you desire a place to seek strong security, Then, come like us and sit among the humble profligates. (17:11) The circle of friends is called fortified, a corner of security where one need not worry about anything worldly.

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18 ‫بس‬

‫رکش نگذارد هک گویم انم را‬

‫را‬

‫زور می رد رگدش آرد جام را‬

‫آ ن می ام باید هک چون رزید هب جام‬

‫کو رچاغی ات بجویم شام را‬ ‫مس‬ ‫من هب تی بسته‌ام ارحام را‬ ‫را‬

‫سخ‬ ‫تی‬

‫ایام‬

‫می‌شناسم‬

‫خوش بود رگ داهن نبود دام را‬ ‫از داهن دوست خواهم کام را‬ ‫را‬

‫آفتاب‌آشام‬

‫رذه‌اهی‬

‫عش‬ ‫رتی خاص است ره دم عام را‬ ‫را‬

‫هن گام‬

‫هم‬

‫ی‬

‫نشناسد‬

‫شوق‬

‫پیغام‬

‫نهان‬ ‫ن‬ ‫رم ج‬

‫پرم‬

‫روزم‬

‫من‬

‫از‬

‫اقصد‬

‫اتریکی‬ ‫دری‬

‫چون‬

‫هب‬

‫گشته‬

‫رد‬

‫ریپ‬

‫بی‌گناهم‬

‫از دل تست آنچه رب من می رود‬ ‫بود‬

‫رپور‬

‫تن‬

‫هک‬

‫ره‬

‫نیفتد‬

‫ات‬

‫بس هک ایمانم هب غیب است استوار‬

‫ هچ سودا رد رسست‬،‫ما کجا و او‬ ‫زحمت عام است دائم خاص را‬

‫خش‬ ‫دلستا ن رد م و غالب بوهس جوی‬

When I send a message to my beloved through a messenger; The envy keeps from taking her name in front of him. (18:1) Fear is expressed that the messenger would fall in love with the beloved.

My evening has gone hiding in the darkness of the day; Where is the lamp to let me find the evening? (18:2) My days were so dark that I could not tell the difference between when the day ended, and the evening began. The darkness of the two-merging requires a lamp to find the difference. Darkness means grief.

I desire that wine, which, when poured out, Would make the goblet flow and go around by its stoutness. (18:3) Asking for full-bodied wine of love, not just wine.

O keeper of the temple, I am innocent, don’t be offended; That in a state of drunkenness, I donned the pilgrim’s garb. (18:4) The temple’s keeper refers to the Zoroastrian temple where wine is freely allowed and is an often-repeated theme in Ghalib’s poetry. Pilgrim’s garb is for Muslim believers who are not sup-

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posed to drink. The poet had walked into the temple looking for more wine and is presenting an excuse that I put on the pilgrim’s garb when I was not drunk—do not think of me as a Muslim and refuse wine to me.

Whatever I go through, is because of your heart, I can very well recognize the hardships of the world. (18:5) The tyrannies of life are compared to beloved’s tyrannies and the hardship from the cold heart of beloved; they both are the same, and I know them both rather well.

So, no lazy one would be caught in the trap; Good, it would be if no bait were thrown in the snare. (18:6) If the snare is laid out with bait, many will get caught getting attracted to the bait: the beauty and coquetry of the beloved. We are true lovers, and we get caught without bait. The poet does not want the company of lusting rivals.

My belief in the unseen is so strong that; I desire fulfillment through the mouth of the beloved. (18:7) Metaphorically, the beloved has such a narrow waist and such smallmouth that they do not exist. Because his belief is firm, the poet hopes that a nonexistent mouth can utter the words he is hoping to hear. The “unseen” is her mouth, meaning minuscule.

What to speak of me, and what to speak of her? From where insanity got into their head? That the dust particles drink up the sun. (18:8) Drinking up the sun means absorbing sunlight. Unless the light shines, the particles in the air remain invisible, and thus their existence is dependent on the sun. The analogy goes towards God, where man’s existence is merely an imagination of mind until He makes it visible.

The special ones are constantly suffering from routine troubles; While the commoners enjoy the special joy all the time. (18:9) Those who can afford many pleasures of life invite desire for more, keeping them unhappy.

The heart-ravisher is in rage while Ghalib is asking for a kiss; The desire does not understand the delicacy of the moment. (18:10) Whether the beloved is enraged or not, Ghalib’s desire will not get fulfilled, so he decided to let go of being reasonable with times and just let it be known.

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19 ‫مهتاب کف مار سیاهست شبم را‬

‫رد جهر رطب بیش کند اتب و تبم را‬

‫یابی ز سمندر ره زبم رطبم را‬

‫ساز و قدح و نغمه و صهبا همه آتش‬

‫رد دامن من ریخته اپی طلبم را‬ ‫شوقت هچ نمک داده ذماق ادبم را‬ ‫ردیاب عیار گل ٔه بی‌سببم را‬

‫قطع نظر از جیب بدوزید لبم را‬

‫ست‬ ‫مانند نی اندر خوان جوی تبم را‬ ‫رب خلد بخندان لب کورث طلبم را‬ ‫نس‬

‫بم را‬

‫پیماهن هب جمشید رساند‬

‫چم جس‬ ‫آوخ هک ن تم و رگدون عوض گل‬ ‫رد دل هب تمنای قدمبوس تو شوری ست‬

‫از لذت بیداد تو افرغ نتوان زیست‬ ‫رتسم هک دهد انهل جگر را هب ردیدن‬ ‫نب‬ ‫از انهل هب ضم بنه ای دوست رس انگشت‬ ‫ی زک قدح باده‌چ کانی‬

‫نم‬

‫ساقی هب‬

‫طبی‬ ‫رد من هوس باده عی‌ست هک غالب‬

In separation, the means of happiness intensify my tumultuousness; This moonlight is like the bed of the black cobra in my nights. (19:1) Generally, the moonlight brings much joy to lovers, but when moonlit nights of separation bring more pain and thus joy. Scores of verses of Ghalib talk about the darkness, the pain, and the suffering that goes on in the night of separation or the night waiting for the beloved to arrive.

Searching for the garden and the heavens, sadly in place of flowers Has filled my lap with the foundation of my desire. (19:2) I was looking for gardens to seek flowers, but instead of collecting flowers (fulfilled desires), I came up with more desires; flowers were not destined for my lap, only their search.

The instrument, the goblet, the melody, and the wine are all fire; You will find the path to my assembly of joy through the Salamander. (19:3) The trio of musical instruments, music, and wine is supposed to enhance pleasure, but they burn me instead, summarizing my existence. My existence is like that of Salamander, a mythical lizard that lives in the fire.

The desire of kissing your feet has stirred up a clamor in my heart; How has your love given such relish to my taste of literature? (19:4) Kissing feet is the expression of extreme respect. The word used for clamor also means taste in

116

Persian, creating a play on words.

Life cannot be spent well without your cruelty; such is its relish; Find out the reason behind my causeless complaints. (19:5) Beloved is asked to use a test to ascertain that the lover is not redundant in his claims. He wants to give the beloved another benefit of the doubt that had there been an objective test, his complaints would have been found worthy, and thus the wrath of beloved for making redundant complaints would be removed.

Afraid I am that wailing might tear my liver asunder; Thus ignore my collar and stitch up my lips. (19:6) Ignore my ripped collar begging for wailing. Just make sure I no longer wail, for if the liver goes, I will lose all my courage to resist. The liver is a seat of courage, heart, and emotions.

O Friend, feel my pulse from my wailing and complaints; Like the flute’s melody find my heat of passion from my bones. (19:7) The heat of the flute’s chest is felt from the melody it exudes. My lamentations are the pulse of my existence, telling you the latent heat of love in my bones, meaning my existence.

O saqi, from the drops you carelessly spill from the bowl of wine; Make my Kausar-desiring lips laugh at the paradise. (19:8) When has the lover received his dose of wine from the hands of saqi? Who cares about the bounties of heaven? This is itself the ultimate paradise. However, the lover is careful in not demanding any quota for him; instead, he suggests that whatever you spill out is enough for me so that it would not be a burden on you to make any special provision for me. See Kausar in the glossary.

Ghalib, in me, the intense desire to drink is natural; The goblet thus connects me to the lineage of Jamshid. (19:9) King Jamshid had a bowl that he used to predict the future by looking into it. I am also from the same lineage of Jamshid, who loved his bowl; the reason for this attachment to the bowl of wine is different, yet the end is the same; we both draw pleasure out of it. See Jamshid in the glossary.

20 ‫تسبی‬ ‫ زانر‬،‫شد نگه‬ ‫ح سلیمانی رما‬

‫چش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫رب ی آید ز م از جوش حیرانی رما‬

ٔ ‫سجده شوق هک می‌بالد هب پیشانی رما‬

‫کس‬ ‫وه!هکپیشازمن هب اپبوس یخواهدرسید‬

‫حش‬ ‫و تی کو ات ربون آرد ز رعیانی رما‬

‫دامن افشاندم هب‌ جیب و مانده رد بند تنم‬

117

‫بدامگن رگدم ارگ دانم هک می‌دانی رما‬

‫همچ‬ ‫کس‬ ‫نین بی گاهن زی با من دل و جان ی‬

‫موج آب گوره من رکده طوافنی رما‬

‫یش‬ ‫ربنیایم با روانی‌اهی طبع خو تن‬

‫ات نداند صید رپسش‌اهی پنهانی رما‬

‫دوزخی رگدیده اندوه پشیمانی رما‬

‫دل رپست از ذوق انداز رپافشانی رما‬

‫رگ هب موج افتد امگن چین پیشانی رما‬

‫ورهنغالب نیستآهنگزغل‌خوانی رما‬

‫هم‬ ‫با همه رخسندی از وی شکوه‌اه دارم ی‬ ‫ات هب راهت رمدم و یک ره هب خاکم اندمی‬ ‫خویش را چون موج گوره رگهچ رگد آورده ام‬

‫ح‬ ‫تشنه لب رب سا ل ردیا ز غیرت جان دهم‬

‫ت‬ ‫با رساج الدین احمد چاره زج سلیم نیست‬

Because of its boiling, the amazement is not coming out of my eyes; As if my sight has become the thread of the praying bead of Solaiman. (20:1) The continuity of amazement is not breaking—continuously amazed I am. The “sight” is described by Ghalib as a string coming out of the eyes that now become the thread of a rosary owned by Solaiman, an ideal type of the divinely guided king; see for example Quran, Surah 34 (Saba’), Ayah 14. See Solaiman in the glossary.

I gathered myself and immersed in deep thoughts the way that now I am a prisoner in my body; Where is the dread that would take me out of my nudity? (20:2) I became so light of the outside world that I went deep in thoughts within myself thus I made my mind unaware of the outside world and prisoner of my body. I need a jolt to shake me and bring me out of this state of unawareness.

That it great! It would reach kissing someone’s feet before I do, My prostration of passion is the springing out of my forehead. (20:3) An expression of intense desire to kiss beloved’s feet; though the lover would never reach the feet of beloved, yet his uncontrollable urge is to kiss her feet, and the lover is hoping that it would get there before he gets to her. The springing out of the forehead refers to the prostration mark that appears on those who pray routinely.

You are heart and soul to someone else, live as you are a stranger to me; I doubted if I know that you know me. (20:4) The lover is telling the beloved “Now that your body and soul is someone else’s, live like you don’t know me. I was wrong if I thought that you know me.”

I am pleased with my beloved, yet I still have complaints against her, Lest she doesn’t consider me as a prey of her hidden questions. (20:5)

118

If the lover is not complaining, the beloved might assume that the lover is in her snare and would thus stop her cruelty.

I cannot go along with the flow of my disposition; The waves of luster in my pearl have inundated me. (20:6) The poet refers to the abundance of thoughts that could not be contained within the verses.

I gave my life in the path of your love, and you never returned to my dust; My repentance has, as if, turned it into hell for me. (20:7) Feeling dejected that the beloved has not visited the grave though he gave his life for her, the grave has turned into hell. Repentance on why did fall in love with such cruel-hearted beloved.

Although I have gathered myself like the waves of luster in the pearl, Still, the heart is filled with desire for the fluttering of wings. (20:8) A fluttering of wings indicates a state of intense tumult inside the heart. I have tried to keep myself composed, contained as the luster stays with a pearl, yet the heart keeps fluttering in desperation.

With parched lips, I would sacrifice my life at the shore to save the honor, If I suspected that the wave of the river frowned looking at me. (20:9) I will not take a drop of water and die rather than let the river frown over me. Now compare the waves and the scowl, the greatness, and the expanse of the river to conclude that I would rather die than be considered a man with low esteem.

There is no way out except to give in to Sirajuddin Ahmad; Or else, Ghalib, I had no intentions of reciting ghazals. (20:10) Sirajuddin was a friend of Ghalib, who lived in Calcutta and at whose insistence Ghalib compiled verses under the title of Gule-Rana. See Sirajuddin Ahmad in the glossary.

21 ‫اما چو وارسیم همان قلزمیم ما‬

‫گم‬ ‫از وهم قطرگی‌ست هک رد خود یم ما‬

‫نجم‬ ‫نجم‬ ‫خوش دست گاه ا ن ا یم ما‬

‫ر هب باد رفت‬

‫نق سم‬ ‫از توسن تو طالب ش یم ما‬

‫خون می خوریم چون هم ازین رمدمیم ما‬ ‫حیران این ردازی یال و دمیم ما‬

‫شم‬ ‫رد خاک از هوای گل و ع افرغیم‬ ‫سبکس‬

‫ت‬ ‫مکین ما ز رچخ‬

‫رمدم هب کینه تشن ٔه خو ن همند و بس‬ ‫شی‬ ‫از حد گذشت شمل ٔه دستار و ریش خ‬

119

‫قم‬ ‫آب از تف نهیب صدای یم ما‬

‫گم‬ ‫چون قطره رد روانی ردیا یم ما‬ ‫خم‬

‫یم ما‬

‫چون جام باده راتبه‌خوار‬

‫قم‬ ‫گویی ز اصفهان و یم ما‬

‫دستت ز ما نشوی مسیحا هک زری خاک‬

‫لم‬ ‫لم‬ ‫پنهان هب عا یم ز بس عین عا یم‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫فی‬ ‫ما را دمد ز ض ظهوری ست رد ن‬ ‫کش‬ ‫غالب ز هند نیست نوایی هک م ‌ی م‬

Imagining ourselves to be a drop, we are lost in ourselves; But, if we come to think of it, we are that same ocean. (21:1) When a drop merges into the ocean, it becomes part of the ocean and loses its identity. It is our illusion that keeps us occupied with ourselves.

In our grave, we are detached from the desire for flowers and candles; We only yearn that the hoof-prints of your horse will fall upon us. (21:2) We are oblivious to things that signify celebrations of life. Humble as we are, we would feel pride if your horse’s hoof fell on us; you came to my grave!

My greatness is destroyed in the hands of the cheap world; Great, it was that we were an excellent asset to an assembly of stars. (21:3) Fate has played cheap tricks with me, destroying any chance of success in my endeavors. Once, we used to be a matter of pride for the stars, outshining them; now are nobody, with no shine left to our existence.

People are thirsty for the blood of others in revenge; Seeing this, we drink our heart’s blood, as we belong to the same people. (21:4) Blood drinking means being heavily grieved.

The beard of the preacher has grown beyond his turban and scarf; We are getting amused looking at his mane of hair and his tail. (21:5) Making fun of the preacher by comparing him to an animal.

O Jesus, take your hand away from us, for in the grave; We melt from the fear of the call to “Rise thou.” (21:6) Jesus is trying to wake us up saying “qum” (rise thou), and nothing is working, causing us to sweat in embarrassment to make him look bad; even Jesus cannot raise us.

We are hidden in the Universe because we are so much like the Universe; Like a drop, we are lost in the flow of the ocean. (21:7) We are a part of the Universe like a drop is part of an ocean.

120

‫;‪In our poesy, we are helped by the benevolence of Zohouri‬‬ ‫)‪Like the goblet of wine, we are on the stipend of the wine. (21:8‬‬ ‫‪Ghalib expresses his admiration of the Persian poet Zohouri. Just like a goblet of wine draws its‬‬ ‫‪importance from wine, so we draw our thoughts from Zohouri. The value of the goblet is in its‬‬ ‫‪ability to hold wine. See Zohouri in the glossary.‬‬

‫‪Ghalib, this call of my poetry does not come from Hindustan,‬‬ ‫)‪It seems like we are from the land of Isfahan or Qum. (21:9‬‬ ‫‪The cities in Iran that produced the greatest ghazal poets are cited; my poetry appears to have come‬‬ ‫‪from the land of Iran.‬‬

‫‪22‬‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫هب گیتی شد عیان از شیوه جعز اضطرار ما‬

‫ز پشت دست ما باشد قماش روی کار ما‬

‫خوشا جانی هک اندوهی رفوگیرد رسااپیش‬

‫ز نومیدی توان رپسید لطف انتظار ما‬

‫ٔ ن‬ ‫هب بیم افکنده می را چاره ر ج خمار ما‬

‫تح‬ ‫نشس‬ ‫لم‬ ‫تن رب رس راه یر عا ی دارد‬ ‫مس‬ ‫چو بوی گل جنون اتزیم از تی هچ می رپسی‬ ‫رفوزد ره قدر رنگ گل ازفاید تب و اتبش‬ ‫رحیفان شورش عشق رتا بی رپده دیدندی‬

‫مس چش‬ ‫هنوز از تی م تو می‌بالد تماشائی‬ ‫ت‬ ‫بدین مکین رحیف دستبرد انهل نتوا ن شد‬ ‫خوشا آوارگی رگ ردنورد شوق‬

‫رببندد‬

‫نم‬ ‫بدین یک آسمان ردداهن می‏بینی ی‏بینی‬ ‫شم‬ ‫نهال ع را بالیدن از کاهیدن ست اینجا‬

‫قدح رب خویش می‌رلزد ز دست رعشه دار ما‬

‫هک رهکس می رود از خویش می رگدد دچار ما‬

‫گسس‬ ‫تن دارد از صد جا عنان اختیار ما‬ ‫کباب آتش خویش ست پنداری بهار ما‬

‫نگش‬ ‫بدامان رگ تی موسم گل رپده‌دار ما‬

‫ت شم‬ ‫هب موج باده ماند رپ و‬

‫ع زمار ما‬

‫بود سنگ فالخن رم صدا را کوهسار ما‬ ‫هب اتر دامنی شیرازه مشت غبار ما‬

‫هک ماه نو شد از سودن کف گوره‌شمار ما‬ ‫هس‬ ‫گداز جوره تی‌ست غالب آبیار ما‬

‫;‪From the style of our hopelessness, our tumult has become evident to the world‬‬ ‫)‪The asset of our efforts is only due to the back of our hand. (22:1‬‬

‫‪121‬‬

Showing the back of the hand is a sign of humility, an old tradition; the world knows our humility as we openly express it.

From the resolution to alleviate the pain of a hangover, The goblet is shaking because of our trembling hands. (22:2) We have decided to drink more to get rid of our hangover. This has caused the wine to be afraid of us, as we would devour it all. The shaking hands (as it happens in hangover) and shaking goblet (as if scared) are an interesting combination.

How fortunate is the soul filled entirely with grief; One can ask despondency, what pleasure there is in our waiting? (22:3) When the pain goes beyond relief, it resolves itself; when we know there is no end to our misery, we stop looking for solutions, and that brings solace of its own. As we become oblivious to the need to rid ourselves of grief, this pleasure can only be derived from ultimate hopelessness.

Our sitting in the path of surprise has a unique pleasure; Thus, whosoever gets lost in himself comes across us. (22:4) It is easy for the lover to find others who are in the same predicament.

Like the smell of flowers, we roam in the frenzy of our ecstasy; The rein of our free will is ready to break at a hundred places. (22:5) An old worn-out rein can break anytime and is thus useless to drive the horse. We are like that in our ecstasy, like the smell of the flower that roams around in the garden; we are going places. It is important to realize that the rein is not broken yet but is ready to break any time. Simply meant, we are free will, and nothing in the traditional value contains us anymore because these values are archaic (old worn-out rein).

As the color of the rose shines forth, the heat of its splendor enhances; As if our spring has burnt out from its own inner fire. (22:6) The heat of our heart is not indebted to any external support to express. The color of the flower exudes its inner burning; we do not need any means to describe it.

The adversaries see the excitement of your unveiled love, If the spring season had not concealed us in its skirt. (22:7) It was a flowering season, and people would associate our frenzy with the spring season, or else they would come to know that the frenzy is because of our love for you. The spring season provided an excuse to divert their attention.

It is still filled with frenzy derived from your eyes; The flicker of the flame of a candle at our grave is like a wave of wine. (22:8) As the beloved arrived at our grave, it brightened the place; the lonely flickering candle at our grave began looking like a wave of wine—meaning expressing joy. In a lonely graveyard, the candle at the grave is an expression of sorrow; the wave of wine is an expression of celebration.

122

Despite our intense humbleness, we could not confront our lamentations; Our mountainous humbleness is like the stone of a catapult thrown far. (22:9) We exercised significant control over ourselves, but our resolve was thrown out far off from us like the stone thrown from a catapult; the resolve is compared to a mountain, for it is also made of stone.

How joyful it is that vagrancy while wandering to satisfy her desire, The fistful of our dust is sewn together by the thread of your skirt. (22:10) When the beloved is strolling, she walks over our dust, shaking her skirt so that the flying dust gets laced to her skirt.

You gaze into the sky is to see your favorite things; It is not to see that our pearl-counting palm has turned into a crescent. (22:11) The beloved likes to see the shiny stars; the beloved is oblivious to the lover, who has a pearl rosary counting (causing his palm to turn into the shape of the moon being rubbed off); stars and pearls are compared in a very complex expression of obliviousness by the beloved.

Here, the candle flame grows as it is cut to size; O Ghalib, we are watered down by the melting of the essence of our being. (22:12) As a candle melts, the flame becomes larger as if the candle’s melting enhances the candle’s life; similarly, as the life passes on, it enhances its growth (in this case, wisdom).

23 ‫هک دل عهد واف انبسته دام دلستانی را‬

‫مح‬ ‫هب اپیان بت یاد می‌آرم زمانی را‬

‫پس از دریی هک رب خود رعهض دادم داستانی را‬

‫پیش‬ ‫گف‬ ‫اجازتداد شیکدورحفازردددل تم‬

‫یش‬ ‫بد‌اند ی هب اندوه زعزیان شادمانی را‬

‫رگفتم زک فغانم دل ز هم اپشد جهانی را‬ ‫مگر جویم ز بهر همزبانی بیزبانی را‬ ‫مگر رب من امگرد آسمان زورین امکنی را‬ ‫ز جوش الهل و گل رد حنا اپی زخانی را‬

‫هب خون آغشته‌اند اندر بن ره موی جانی را‬

‫فسونی کو هک رب حال رغیبی دل هب ردد آید‬

‫جهان چیه است با وی الرجم زینها هچ اندیشد‬ ‫ندارم اتب ضبط راز و می‌رتسم ز رسوایی‬

‫شس‬ ‫لن ش‬ ‫سس‬ ‫گشاد تش از تی ندارد د ین تیری‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫بیا رد گلشن تم هک رد ره گوهش بنمایم‬

‫امکل ردد دل اصل‌ست رد رتکیب انسانی‬

123

‫ارگ شد زرهه آب و ربد ازجای فغانی را‬

‫ز عنوان خطی زک راه دور آدم نشانی را‬

‫ل‬ ‫خورم خوف از تو بی حد یکن از زاری هچ کم رگدد‬

‫هب شهر از دوست بعد از روزگاری یافتم غالب‬

At the end of my love affair, I recall the time, When I gave my heart to a heart-ravisher without entering a pact of fidelity. (23:1) The lover did not ask for any promise made before dedicating himself to her; now the love affair has reached an end, the lover is lamenting (instead ridiculing himself) not entering into any binding agreement with her. There is a sense of irony while providing himself a solace that things would not have come to this stage had he been smart enough to agree.

Where is the spell that would let the hearts feel the pain of the poor Rendered by those who rejoice at the suffering of others? (23:2) The beloved’s character is to rejoice at the suffering of others; is there any way to change it?

She permitted me, and I said a few words about my heartache, After a long time of my telling my story to myself. (23:3) Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “Even if we were allowed to speak, what is it that we would tell?”

The world means nothing to her. Therefore, what is she going to think Even if my heart’s laments break the world apart. (23:4) My laments are so powerful that they can shake the hearts of everyone except her because nothing can affect her; if she does think much of anybody, how can the laments have any effect on her?

With no strength left to keep the secret, I am afraid of being disgraced, Lest I find a fellow who would hear like a dumb person and not say anything. (23:5) I am not very good at keeping secrets, but if I open my mouth, it will bring much disgrace to me because then the world would know of my pathetic condition. Therefore, since I must tell it to someone, the only way out is to find a fellow who does not speak, and there would not say anything and thus spare me the disgrace.

Emaciated, she has no heart-setting arrow to aim at me; If only heaven would find someone with good marksmanship for me. (23:6) The arrows of beloved are not working because she is making an effort to make them work; it is not because she is not capable, but she is not interested; obviously, the lover desires a strong arrow that would go straight through her heart and is hoping that the only way to reach his desire if the heaven would arrange for such a strong marksman archer, in other words, if God would put enough reason in her heart to hurt me.

Just come in the garden of my destiny, so I could show that in its every corner, From the effervescence of tulips and roses, the autumn is sitting with henna on its feet. (23:7)

124

Henna on the feet means sitting idle; autumn is refusing the spring to arrive, indicating how my fate works.

Such is the construction of man that its foundation is the anguish of the heart; Nature has filled the root of every hair of life with blood. (23:8) Bleeding roots of the hair as an expression of intense pain and suffering; life in the root of the hair and that too smeared with blood is caused by the very fundamental element of man’s existence— the anguish of heart.

Extremely afraid of you, to know how my weeping would reduce it, If the spleen melts, it would flow away from the elements of my laments. (23:9) Spleen melting is an expression of extreme fear; the lover is afraid of his beloved and says that in fear, he is unable to air his laments; they just flow out or get wasted.

O Ghalib, after a long time, I found a clue of my friend From the heading of a letter that came from a distant place. (23:10) Beloved’s letter is found, and Ghalib imagines where she would be living.

24 ‫کفری نبود مطلب بی‌ساخت ٔه ما‬

‫رب اپی تو باشد رس ارفاخت ٔه ما‬ ‫ما‬

‫رب‌انداخت ٔه‬

ٔ ‫کاشاهن‬

‫اغیار‬

‫اربوی تو تیغ هب خیال آخت ٔه ما‬

‫نف‬ ‫شد جاده هب کویش س باخت ٔه ما‬ ‫قف‬ ‫رزید رپ و بال از س افخت ٔه ما‬

‫ای دیده نوازش ز تو ننواخت ٔه ما‬

‫چاکی‌ست هب جیب هوس انداخت ٔه ما‬ ‫ما‬

‫ربون‌اتخت ٔه‬

‫بند‬

‫از‬

ٔ ‫دیواهن‬

‫از تست ارگ ساخته رپداخت ٔه ما‬ ‫عجز‬

‫شد‬

ٔ ‫رحمت‌کده‬ ‫بال‬

‫تو‬

‫هب‬

‫انزیم‬

‫سودازدگان‬

ٔ ‫رپورده‬ ‫هم‬

‫طرحی‬

‫رد عشق تو رب ماست دیت اهل نظر را‬ ‫حیرانی ما آئین ٔه شهرت یارست‬ ‫نسیم‬ ‫وقت است هک چون رگد ز تحریک ی‬ ‫بودیم نظرباز و تو رب دل زده‌ای باز‬

‫نق‬ ‫رهجاده هک از ش پی تست هب گلشن‬

‫غالب دمم افسون ااقمت هک بالئی‌ست‬

It is all on you, whatever good and evil we are; If we ask of you for doing the wrong thing, then it is not sinful. (24:1)

125

Shifting the burden of responsibility to Lord that whatever I desire, however sinful it may be, is because of you because whatever good and bad I have inside me is because of you.

We are the beneficiary in the abode of the kindness of Lord’s benevolence, Thus our raised head is lying at your feet. (24:2) The humble ones are the recipients of the Lord’s benevolence. In their humbleness, they place their head at the feet of the Lord, and thus they are exalted. Our pride is in lowering our head to your feet.

Companionship with your fanatics turned into disaster; For our home was dismantled by our rivals. (24:3) Having destroyed the abode of rivals, we have created a new problem for us—it seems like your fanatics always like to be in trouble. The way this verse presents, there are two groups, one of her lovers (plurality) and the other their rivals (plurality); the lovers (identifying self) have gotten together and destroyed the homes of rivals. And that has created a significant tiff. This is an excellent example of Ghalib’s sense of humor.

In your love, the blood money of those looking at you is now obliged to me; In my thought, your brows are like drawn swords. (24:4) I am responsible for the high-strung sword (your brows frowning towards me), which has caused many to die. I am now responsible for these deaths and must pay the blood money.

My amazement is a mirror for the beloved’s fame, as Our broken breath has turned into a footpath towards her alley. (24:5) The mirror in the first line means to cause; just like a footpath leads to a direction, similarly the amazement at the lover’s face is telling the world how beautiful the beloved is. So the look of amazement is acting as a mirror. Also, a footpath is lying still, and that is compared to the stillness of amazing faces. Amazement is often described as a frozen state, and the mirror is often called amazed as it freezes images.

The time has come, like dust with the blowing of the wind; The wings and feathers to fall from the cage of our dove. (24:6) Just like the morning breeze kicks in the dirt, the time has come when the wings and feathers of a dove in a cage would come out of the cave. This is one of the abstract verses of Ghalib that can carry many meanings; first, the wind (of oppression) is so strong that even the caged bird is losing its wings. Second, the color of the dove is like dust, and that is the play on words in this verse.

We were just flirting with our eyes, and you have attacked our hearts. O eye, you have such kindness, but that has not graced us. (24:7) We used to look at the beautiful ones and move on, but when the beloved made an impression on us, we got lost in her. So, our eyes showed us kindness, but it brought us woes.

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Every path in the flower garden that leads to your image Is like a tear in the collar of our yearning desire. (24:8) The carved-out path tells us that beauty has crossed that path; it makes us tear our collar. The slip of collar is compared to the shape of the path, a straight line.

Ghalib, blow not your spell to stop it, for it is a disaster; For this crazy has broken the bondage and has run away. (24:9) Lunatics are chained to keep them bound, but he breaks them off and runs away. He cannot be controlled by any means. If chains cannot contain someone, this is a lost cause, and such a person cannot be brought to senses.

25 ‫نخس‬ ‫قف‬ ‫شد روز تین سبد گل س ما‬

‫ای بی زمه بی روی تو زبم هوس ما‬ ‫س ما‬

‫نف‬

‫آیینه دمارید هب پیش‬

‫عس‬ ‫از شب‏روی ماست شكوه س ما‬

ٔ ‫چندان هك چكد از ژمه داردس ما‬

‫رد ریپهن ما نبود خار و خس ما‬

‫رب قند هن رب شهد نشیند مگس ما‬ ‫چون رگد رفو ریخت صدا از رجس ما‬ ‫س ما‬

‫نف‬

‫رب خویش فشانند گداز‬ ‫نخ‬

‫ل هوس ما‬

‫رد بند ربومندی‬

‫یاران زعزیاند رگوهی ز پس ما‬

‫یک بار بفرمای هك ای چیه‌كس ما‬

‫خوش وقت اسیری هك ربآدم هوس ما‬ ٔ ‫مهتاب نمك‌سار بود باده ما را‬ ‫خیالیم‬

ٔ ‫جلوه‬

‫نیرنگ‬

ٔ ‫حیرت‌زده‬

ٔ ‫آوازه رشع از رس منصور بلندست‬

‫وقت‌ست هك خو ن جگر از ردد بجوشد‬ ‫نیس‬ ‫ای بی‌خبر از تی و ذوق رفاغش‬

‫رد دره رفورفت ٔه لذت نتوان بود‬ ‫هچ رپسی هك ردین راه‬ ‫گالبی‬

‫ندارند‬

‫هك‬

‫طول سفر شوق‬

‫بهش‬ ‫تی‬

‫حوران‬

‫ره جا رم سنگی‌ست رد آورده رس خویش‬

‫باشد هك بدین ساهی و رسچشمه رگایند‬ ‫رخسندی غالب نبود زین همه گفتن‬

What a good time, when enslaved, as our lust came out, On the first day, a basket of flowers became our cage. (25:1)

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A simple story of nightingale, lusting for flowers, caught in the cage found that this was full of flowers as the spring arrived. This verse may also refer to the story of Adam and Eve; when Adam came out of paradise and into this world of color and fragrance, he became enticed with it; man’s lust brought him here.

The moonlight is like salt bearing for our wine; Without your face, our assembly of lust is tasteless. (25:2) Drinking wine on a moonlit night is a lot more pleasurable; since the beloved’s face is like the moon, its absence takes away the pleasures of the assembly.

We are astonished by the glorious deception of our imagination; Do not hold a mirror before our breath. (25:3) He was breathing in front of a mirror, fogging it. The mirror is also called a stage of amazement and appears as if it is looking at us constantly. So the thought coming to his mind amaze the poet, and he is lost in them.

The divine law was elated because of the head of Mansour; Our policeman’s kind grandeur came from our night wanderings. (25:4) Unless someone commits a crime, the law is not tested. Only when crime surfaces will people come to know of law; it happened to both Mansour and I. If we did not wander in the night, the city warden would not have been able to catch us and make a claim of his performance. This verse creates an interesting comparison; Mansour was hanged for declaring divinity; a policeman catches the lover for creating mischief—these two are not comparable. The comparison comes from both knowing what would happen to them, yet they continued with their vigil. See Mansour in the glossary.

It’s time for the liver blood to boil from the pain, The way that it drops from our eyelashes that render justice. (25:5) Such was the expression of pain that the one who inflicted began to drip blood from her eyelashes.

O oblivious of her absence and the excitement of her separation, In our attire, there are no thorns or straws. (25:6) Thorn and straw in the attire mean worldly worries that one can get rid of by giving up the self— means desires.

We cannot remain drowned relishing the pleasures of life, Our fly sits on honey, not on sugar cubes. (25:7) Flies landing on sugar enjoy the sweetness and can fly; the fly that lands on honey gets stuck in it and is thus called drowned in the pleasures—not the right thing to do. So, one meaning is thinking of beloved as a piece of sugar, not honey, with which you would be attached for a long time. Elsewhere Ghalib has talked about this simile about the beloved that we keep moving on to another beloved and not get stuck with one.

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Why are you asking about the length of love’s journey in this path? The sound of the bell settles like scattered dust. (25:8) The journey of love never ends; after each destination, another one comes forward so much so that the sound of the bell is no longer heard.

The houris of paradise, who do not have any rose-like smell, So, they spray themselves with the flame of our breath. (25:9) Our breath in the thought of beloved is like the perfume of the rose.

Wherever stones are falling, we bring our head out; The garden of our desires keeps wishing to become fruit-bearing. (25:10) Stones hitting the head create a scene of flowers (blood splashing).

They shall be attracted to this shadow and the head of brook; They are dear friends who are following us. (25:11) Shadow and head of brook mean the poetry of the poet’s personality, and those who are his followers might find it attractive and thus follow its trend.

The joy of Ghalib is not only in saying all this Just say it once “O my nobody!” (25:12) It does not matter what she said, as long she says it to us.

26 ‫جگر خون‏ست از بیم ن گاهت رازداران را‬

‫شكست رنگ ات رسوا نسازد بی‌رقاران را‬

‫هچ افسون خوانده ای رد گوش دل امیدواران را‬

‫بود پیوسته پشت صبر رب كوه از رگان‌جانی‬

‫هب ریگستا ن هچ جوئی قطره اهی آب باران را‬

‫زفون از رصرصی نبود قیامت خاکساران را‬

‫گلخ‬ ‫هك ن اتب دائم رد نظر دارد بهاران را‬ ‫هب روی شعله رگم مشق جوالن نی‌سواران را‬

‫چنان كارفوخت اتب باده روی باده‌خواران را‬ ‫مس‬ ‫ز تی بهره زج غلفت نباشد هوشیاران را‬

130

‫ز پی كان‌اهی انوک رد دل رگمم نشان نبود‬ ‫نخ‬ ‫كف خاکیم از ما رب یزد زج غبار اینجا‬

‫هب رتک جاه گو ات رگدش ایام ربخیزد‬

‫بی‬ ‫ردآ خود هب بازی گاه اهل حسن ات بینی‬ ‫جبه ٔه زاهد نورانی‬

ٔ ‫نگشت از سجده حق‬

‫فس‬ ‫ردیغ آگاهئی كا ردگی رگدد رس و ربگش‬

‫زبوندیدنهبدستشیشهسازانكوهسارانرا‬ ‫لخ‬ ٔ ‫رما تی شكیب و اپره انصاف یاران را‬

‫ز غیرت می‌گدازد رد خجالت‌گاه اتثیرم‬ ‫نج‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫هب ر م غالب از ذوق ن خوش بودی ار بودی‬

The color faded, so it wouldn’t make the impatient ones ashamed; From the fear of your gaze, the liver of secret keepers is shedding blood. (26:1) The impatient lover turns pale when confronted with the beloved. This gives away the secret of his love and thus brings disgrace to the beloved. This situation has arisen, and the beloved is giving an angry look to the lover, who is distraught and is in pain for causing this inconvenience to the beloved.

There is no sign of the tip of your arrow in my warm heart; Why are you searching for the raindrops in the desert? (26:2) The arrow’s tip is compared to raindrops, and the warm heart is the heart filled with love. I do not see any sign of your arrows because they have been absorbed in my heart, just like what would happen to water drops in the desert. Arrows are the glances of the beloved.

The back of patience always rests against the mountain to bear a heavy soul; What kind of charming song have you been singing in the heart’s ears of the hopeful ones? (26:3) The lover’s patience has the resilience of a mountain, something against which the lover can lean on; such is the power of beloved to change their hearts into hardened souls.

A fistful of dust we are, nothing other than the dust what would rise from us over there; For the humble ones, the Day of Judgment would be merely a windstorm. (26:4) On the Day of Judgment, the dead will be raised, and life is blown into them; but we are just a fistful of dust (humble) that will get blown away. The movement of dust gives it an appearance of life; thus, the Day of Judgment would merely be a strong wind for us.

Talk about giving up pride so the vicissitudes of time would go away For the one who warms the bath, keeps the spring in its sight. (26:5) Vicissitudes of time are the routine of fate, the ups, and downs of life. There is nothing left to worry about how fate treats us when there is no pride to lose. Warm baths are taken on cold days, an inconvenience to heat the bath, but if you keep in mind that the spring is just around, the task will not feel as onerous.

In the state of obliviousness, come into the assembly of coquetry of the beautiful ones And see how the novice rider is dancing on the flame. (26:6) The novice rider is the innocent beauty. From childhood, the style of the beautiful ones is unique, and in their innocent traits, there is extreme coquetry. This is described as playing with flames. One can enjoy the coquetry of innocent beauty when we come to it in obliviousness to the world around us, in other words, when we are captured by it.

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Despite their prostration before God, the foreheads of the devout do not shine, The way the faces of the drunken-one’s glow with the heat of the wine. (26:7) Hypocrite abstainers are ridiculed here, saying that despite your devotion to God, you do not have the radiance from your belief system; however, the wine drinkers do have the brightness on their face that comes from doing what they truly believe in. In Muslim prayers, prostration over time leaves a dark spot on the forehead.

Alas for the awareness whose entire asset is despair! Except for the insensibility, the sober ones receive no benefit from intoxication. (26:8) True knowledge and awareness give the vision and enlighten hearts—this awareness is called illumination. This illumination is an intoxication that opens the doors to the heart. In contrast to this, the intoxication of the knowledgeable ones is merely a loss of sensation, resulting in ignorance.

From self-respect, I melt at the door of my abode of embarrassment, To see those great ones becoming victims in the hands of the glass jugglers. (26:9) Glass is more delicate than the mountain; using this simile, Ghalib talks about glass-jugglers, the sharp talking con-artists. They end up outsmarting the great respectful ones (the mountains), and to see this happening saddens my heart.

Ghalib, I suffer much distress through my taste for poesy; it would be better If I had been blessed with patience and my friends with a piece of justice. (26:10) Ghalib is saddened to know that his taste of poesy is high, and thus it is wasted because his friends do not understand it and do not appreciate it.

27 ‫رسابی بود رد ره تشن ٔه ربق عتابش را‬

‫كف صهباست گویی پنبه مینای رشابش را‬ ‫س‬ ‫تن بند نقابش را‬

‫بگس‬

‫تصور ركده‌ام‬

‫صبا رب مغز دره افشاند ه گویی رخت خوابش را‬ ‫جهان را دیدم و رگدیدم آباد و رخابش را‬

ٔ ‫كمند جذهب ردیا شناسم موج آبش را‬ ‫هب ره یك شیوه انزش باز می خواهد جوابش را‬

132

‫سپردم دوزخ و آ ن داغ‌اهی سینه‌اتبش را‬

‫ز پیدائی حجاب جلوه سامان ركدنش انزم‬ ‫ندانم ات هچ ربق فتنه خواهد ریخت ربهوشم‬

‫صب‬ ‫نم‬ ‫دم ح بهار این ماهی دمهوشی ی ارزد‬ ‫سوادش داغ حیرانی غبارش رعض وریانی‬ ‫بخش‬

‫م‬

‫تش‬ ‫ز اتب نگی جان را نوید آربو‬

‫بی‬ ‫ز من زك خودی رد وصل رنگ از بوی نشناسم‬

‫ببال ای آرزو چندان هك ردیابی ركابش را‬

‫سوار توسن انزست و رب خاکم گذر دارد‬

‫گف‬ ‫ز شادی جان بها تم متاع كم میابش را‬

ٔ ‫ندانم ات چسان از عهده رددش ربون آیم‬

‫همان رد راه اقصد ریخت رشكم چیپ و اتبش را‬ ‫نج‬ ‫رخیدارست ز ا م ات هب شبنم آفتابش را‬ ‫مس‬ ‫من از تی غلط ركدم هب شوخی اضطرابش را‬

‫رگ جان ركده‌ام شیرازه اوراق كتابش را‬

‫گف‬ ‫ش كایت‏انهم تم رد نوردم ات روان رگدد‬ ‫بی‬ ‫ز خوبان جلوه وز ما خودان جان رونما خواهد‬ ‫خیالش صید دام چیپ و اتب شوق بود اما‬

‫هب نظم و نثر موالان ظهوری زنده‌ام غالب‬

I handed over the hell and its chest-burning flames; It was a mirage in the path of those thirsty ones of the lightning of the beloved’s tyranny. (27:1) The fire of hell is nothing compared to the heat of a beloved’s rage.

I take pride that she has taken the veil to show her beauty; Like the foam of wine appearing as a cotton plug on the flagon. (27:2) The foam gives the impression that the flagon is closed, just like the veil protecting a beauty that is willing to be exposed.

I do not know what lightning of calamity will strike my senses, As I have imagined of opening the knot of the veil from her face. (27:3) The thought of opening the veil on her face is enough to knock off the senses of the lover. Now that the lover has fantasized about this, he wonders how the lightning will strike his feelings.

Not worthy it is to be intoxicated at the time of the spring morning, As if the morning breeze has laid its bed on the mind of the world. (27:4) The spring season brings the desire to drink more and get intoxicated looking at the beauty of nature. The poet admonishes that it is not worth getting drunk in the spring since fall will soon come, and this beauty will vanish. However, it seems as if the breeze of the spring morning has spread its effect over the entire world to make everyone intoxicated. The beauty of the spring is irresistible.

Its literacy has the scar of perplexity, and its dust, a mark of devastation; I saw the world and explored both the developed and ruined sides of it. (27:5) When you think of the world’s surroundings, you get surprised, perplexed; it is called a scar of perplexity. On the other hand, the appearance of these environs is a sign of devastation or desolation, as the dust shows; dust means the appearance, not the material dust. When I examined both, I changed them both. I explained what perplexes everyone, and I was able to show the beauty in

133

the existing world rather than its desolation.

From the heat of the thirst, I give the good news of honor to my soul; I recognize the trap of the ocean’s attraction in its waves. (27:6) Intense desire is called heat of thirst; the ocean waves are like the lasso of trap that is pulling me towards it—the trap provides the cooling-off or brings long-term tolerance.

In union, my obliviousness is such that I cannot tell the color from smell; Thus at her every style, the coquetry is demanding an answer from me. (27:7) I am so overwhelmed in union with her that I have lost all sensations of color and smell, meaning I have lost my senses while she continues to demand my impressions of how I liked her beauty.

Riding the steed of coquetry, she goes over my grave; O desire, rise so much to reach up to touch her stirrup. (27:8) I desire to kiss her feet; the desire is challenged to raise enough to reach the stirrup as she has visited my grave riding her horse.

I wrote a complaint letter, folded it to get it ready to be sent; Soon the jealousy threw its twist and turned in the path of the messenger. (27:9) I readied the letter but thinking that the messenger would take this letter to beloved, wherein he might see her or talk to her, I became very perturbed, and this feeling kept me from engaging the messenger, and thus the letter did not get delivered. Folding the letter and twisting and turning are also providing a play on wordplay on words.

I don’t know how to help her get rid of her pain; Joyous, I offered my life as a rare delicacy for her. (27:10) Life is called a commodity that is available freely, in abundance (not available in small quantity); the lover is wondering why he said he is offering his life and now finds a dilemma on how to discharge his promise because the pain of love is enormous. Demanding display of beauty from the good-looking ones, and from us, the oblivious ones, our lives to unveil the face;

From stars to the dew, everything is a buyer of her sun-like face. (27:11) This verse talks about how God is demanding to show His face. The beloved (God) demands the display of other beauties and the life of lovers before she (He) unveils her face, which is compared to the sun. The lovers are also called self-less because they are only devoted to the beloved. Now the poet compares stars and dew to the sun; both disappear when the sun arrives; so, as the beloved appears, everything disappears—the life of lovers. This verse is complex in its imagery but provides a remarkable thesis. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “From the reflection of the sun is the teaching to the dew to vanish too last only as long as your glance of kindness reaching me.”

Her thought was a prey in the snare of my desire’s tumultuousness, but Due to intoxication, mistakenly, I construed this as a trick of my heart’s desire. (27:12)

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The thought of beloved made me lose my senses, and I got confused, thinking that the tumultuousness in my heart was due to my desire, whereas it was because her thought came to my mind.

O Ghalib, I am alive because of the prose and poetry of Molana Zohouri; I have sewn the pages of his book with my jugular vein. (27:13) Expressing extreme respect to Zohouri, who was a famously complex Persian poet, more famous in India than his own country. See Zohouri and Molana in the glossary.

28 ٔ ‫هب رگد مهر تنیدست خط اههل ما‬

ٔ ‫دمام محرم صهبا بود ایپهل ما‬

ٔ ‫هب مهر داغ شقایق بود قباهل ما‬

‫چم‬ ‫ن رطاز جنونیم و دشت و كوه از ماست‬

ٔ ٔ ‫گداز انهل ما آبیاری انهل ما‬ ٔ ‫ست‬ ‫ز ا خوان ارثی نیست رد نواهل ما‬ ٔ ‫رشاب ردكش و پیماهن كن حواهل ما‬

ٔ ‫فدای روی تو عمر زهار ساهل ما‬

ٔ ٔ ‫سواد دیده آهوست داغ الهل ما‬ ٔ ‫چو باد بید پدید آدم از اماهل ما‬ ٔ ‫گهر هچ انز رفوشد هب پیش ژاهل ما‬

‫نف‬ ‫زهی ز رگمی خویت س رگانماهی‬ ‫فش‬ ‫هب دل ز جور تو دندان رده ایم و خوشیم‬

‫مس‬ ‫تو زود تی و ما رازدار خوی توایم‬ ‫ بیا‬، ‫ردازی شب هجران ز حد گذشت‬ ‫جنون هب بادهی رپداز گلستان بخشید‬

‫گش‬ ‫ز سعی رهزه هب بی‌حاصلی علم تیم‬

‫هم‬

‫ین گداختن است آربوی دل غالب‬

Our bowl always remains intimate with wine; Our halo moon-ring is woven around the sun. (28:1) Remaining intimate means, it remains filled with wine, which is called the sun, as it resembles the shape of the sun. The halo around the moon appears to be around the sun (the owl), meaning the wine is shining in the bowl. This verse represents a classic Ghalib visualization. A drunkard sitting with a bowl filled with wine, thinking of it as the sun and the bowl’s rim is the halo around the sun. It takes a lot of drinking to create this imagery.

Well done! From your hot nature, our breath is heavy That melts our laments, watering them down. (28:2) The hot disposition of beloved melts the laments in the heart, leading to the cultivation of other cries as if there were watered by the first plaints. Complaining to beloved about her hot disposition

135

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repeatedly is compared to breath taken in and exhaled, and the poet calls the heaviness of breath.

We are the decorators of the madness, and deserts and mountains belong to us; The stamp of the branding of the tulip is our deed. (28:3) The liveliness of the mountains and fields is from our existence, for we wander there in a frenzy as if nature has vested them unto us. The branding of tulip is called the seal of the deed that entitles us to this property; the lover also has branding in his heart, which he compares with the tulips in the wilderness.

We keep going, biting our heart, and remaining happy at your tyranny; In these bites, there are no signs of bones. (28:4) We are happy to bear the hardship of love. Biting into the heart means not expressing our displeasure. Bones means bitterness here, and thus, while biting into heart, we hold no grudge.

You get drunk fast, and we keep your behavior secret; So, drink wine and pass the goblet to us. (28:5) The beloved gets drunk fast, and we know it, but we are telling this to anyone. The beloved is advised to drink and then pass the goblet to us, meaning to give us a chance to show you how to drink, teaching the art of drinking to the beloved, obviously for the lover’s benefit.

The length of the nights of separation is gone beyond limit; come now; Our life of a thousand years is sacrificed at your face. (28:6) A call to beloved to come to receive the benefit of my sacrifice, an enticement. The use of “life of thousand years” means the wait has been long.

My madness bestowed a garden of flowers to the desert; The black spot in the eye of the dear is the scar of our tulip. (28:7) My madness has turned the desert into a garden; the dark spot in the eye of dear reminds me of a black tulip; generally, the eye of dear is used as a simile for frenzy. In this case, there is calm and beauty in the desert. Both the lover and the deer run in the desert, which carves out the play on words here.

Because of our fruitless efforts, we have become known for misfortunes; In our efforts to go from A to Z, the reed has turned into the wind. (28:8) The play of words comes from the word used for reed plant (beed; that does not bear any fruit) to wind (baad); the letter “a” is exchanged by “z” or “ye,” the last word. The wind itself does not do much either, just an imaginary comparison. There is a Persian proverb, “I am not a (beed) willow tree to tremble by the wind,” meaning a person is stable in the face of hardships and difficulties.

O Ghalib, the melting sorrow of love is our heart’s honor; How can the pearl take pride compared to our hail? (28:9) Both the pearl and hail have a bright luster, but heat does not affect the pearl; conversely, hail melts quickly with little exposure to heat. From burning and melting comes the honor of life.

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29 ‫ز باده تندی این باده ربد رنگش را‬

‫ج‬ ‫نهفت شوخی بی رپده شور نگش را‬

‫ت‬ ‫ردیده رب تن انزك قبای نگش را‬

‫چو غنچه جوش صفای تنش ز بالیدن‬

‫هك بی‌رقاری جوره نبرد زنگش را‬ ‫س‬ ‫رشاره شهپر رپواز گشت نگش را‬

‫ب‬ ‫ز باده نشئه زفون داده‌اند نگش را‬

‫چ‬ ‫كف‬ ‫ز رشت ٔه نم اتر و پود نگش را‬ ‫شتاب من هب رس آرد مگر ردنگش را‬

‫مباد دل هب تپش رد كند خدنگش را‬ ‫هب گوهن گوهن ادا انز رنگ رنگش را‬

‫ه‬ ‫بیازما هب می تند هوش و نگش را‬

‫ب‬ ‫كدام آینه با روی او مقا ل شد‬ ‫نفس‬ ‫ز رگمی ش دل رد اهتزار آدم‬ ‫یش‬ ٔ ‫نظاره خط پشت لبش ز خو م ربد‬

‫هچ نغمه‌اه هب رمگم رسود و پنداری‬

ٔ ‫حش‬ ‫هب ر وعده دیدار ركده بیتابم‬

‫جگر نشاهن نهم رب خود اعتمادم نیست‬ ‫كشیده ایم هب دیوانگی ز شوخی دوست‬

‫ز رظف غالب آشفته رگهن ای آگاه‬

The uninhibited coquetry is hiding her outward style of enmity; From the strong taste of the wine, the color of the wine has faded away. (29:1) The real thing in wine is its headiness and stoutness; color is artificial. The frankness of my beloved tells me that her expression of hostility is artificial, and in reality, she loves me.

Which mirror has come face to face with her That the tumultuousness of its polish didn’t take away its rust? (29:2) Metal mirrors used in the past would often develop rust that had to be scrubbed out to polish it. The beauty of beloved is enough to apply that polish coating; the tumultuousness of the mirror polish is remarkable and refers to the simile used to compare heart to mirror in Sufi tradition; drawing inspiration from the Eternal beauty, this mirror shines. The poet is saying that there is no heart in the world that has not brightened, having received the beauty of God in it.

Like a bud, she takes pride in the pleasantness of her body, Bursting through and tearing the tight dress on her delicate body. (29:3) As a bud matures, it bursts open; a comparison is made of the formation of curves in her body wherein it has torn her delicate dress; yet, the poet asserts that her body is delicate, nevertheless. One of the few verses where the description of the beloved’s beauty goes beyond face and height.

138

From the heat of her breath, the heart started pulsating; Her stone created the spark for the wing of remex. (29:4) When a stone strikes another stone, sparks fly, giving the false impression that fire resides inside the stone, but it does not affect it. The heat of breath is the spark, and beloved are stonehearted. The poet expresses that the heat of his heart has melted a stone. The primary feather of the wing is the largest. Feeling my love for her moved the beloved.

Watching the line of her lips took the senses out of me; As if more intoxication is given to a drug than wine. (29:5) The down (line on his lips) on the beloved’s face (male beloved) is compared to the green plant of marijuana. Poet is finding that more intoxicating than wine. This theme of homosexuality is uncommon in Western poetry.

What great song she played at my death; As if the strings of her Chang were made of the thread from my shroud. (29:6) Chang is a stringed instrument; the poet suggests that the instrument’s strings are borrowed from his shroud—a melancholic expression. See Chang in the glossary.

She promised to show herself to me on the Day of Judgment that made me perturbed; My impatience might end her delay. (29:7) Delay refers to the length of the Day of Judgment; she will show up for me for sure, but it is not happening; perhaps my impatience would cause the day to become short, and thus, the event of her appearance would take place.

I don’t trust myself to let my liver be her target, Lest my heart’s palpitations miss her arrow? (29:8) The lover does not want to miss out on the arrow from his beloved and has prepared both liver and heart; however, he doubts if the heart might prove to be too hot for the arrow. Therefore, he has prepared and readied the liver to receive it instead, just in case. The heart remains the first target desired. It should be iterated that while the heart is the bastion of emotion, the liver remains an expression of resolve and courage.

In our craziness, we have tolerated the playful styles of the beloved; Her numerous styles and countless colors of coquetry. (29:9) Surviving beloved’s coquetry that is so varied required a myriad of resolves to bear it.

If you are not appreciative of the capacity of the turbulent Ghalib Then serve him stout wine and test his senses and awareness. (29:10) Though scattered (perturbed, disoriented, etc.) in his personality, Ghalib can be trusted to remain well-composed, test him out—just offer him some intense wine.

139

30 ‫از تو م ‌یگوییم رگ باغیر می‌گوییم ما‬

‫راز خویت بد آموز تو می جوییم ما‬

‫یش‬ ‫رم ز خاک خو تن چون سبزه می‌روییم ما‬

‫ر مشتااقن همان رب صورت ژمگان بود‬

‫عمراه شد رخ هب خون دیده می‌شوییم ما‬

‫زین بهار آئین ن گااهن گو هك بپزرید یكی‬

‫با وجود سخت‏جانی‌اه تنک روییم ما‬

‫ات هب زانو سوده اپی ما و می‌پوییم ما‬ ‫می رسد بوی تو از ره گل هك می بوییم ما‬ ‫ره هچ می‌گوییم بهر خویش می‌گوییم ما‬

‫حش‬

‫راز عاشق از شکست رنگ رسوا می شود‬ ‫خودیم‬

‫گش‬ ‫رس تگی‏اهی‬

‫عالم‬

‫وهع لطف بهاران بوده‏ای‬

‫مجم‬

‫آفتاب‬

‫ات چها‬

‫زحمت احباب نتوان داد غالب بیش ازین‬

We seek the secret of your nature from your bad habits; We talk about you even when we are talking to others. (30:1) This misleading one is the rival who puts wrong ideas in the beloved’s mind; whenever we speak to a rival, we talk about you to learn about you from him.

The desirous ones end up like what happens to eyelashes; Like the grass, we grow out of our dust. (30:2) Those desiring a glance of beloved raise their lashes to look at her because their heads remain bowed in awe. The raising of eyelashes is compared to greenery sprouting from the dust; we rise from our dust.

The secret of the lover is unveiled when the face fades in color, Despite our strong will, our face changes fast. (30:3) When looking at the beloved, our complexion takes flight, the blood drains out, and the flushed face tells the story of the lover, disgracing the beloved as the world finds it out. We are strong, yet when facing the beloved, we turn vulnerable to our emotions.

One of these spring-looking beauties may accept us; years of life passed; we have been washing our face with our eyes’ blood. (30:4) When the beloved looks at the spring garden, the garden brightens up; we have decorated our face with blood (blooming of flowers in the garden is compared to blood on face); we hope those beautiful eyes will pay heed to us.

We are the sun in the world of our wonderings; Your fragrance comes from every flower that we smell. (30:5)

140 140

So deluged are we in our beloved that whatever we inhale, it smells like her; being the sun of wondering means having gone beyond belief.

You have been the treasury of spring-kindness forever; With feet worn out to our knees, we keep walking. (30:6) The beloved is described as an endless source of delight, and we keep wandering through the garden to a point where our feet are rubbed off to our knees, yet we have not stopped wandering to enjoy the many pleasures of the garden.

O Ghalib, we no longer inconvenience our friends; Now whatever we say, we say it for ourselves. (30:7) We no longer expect friends to offer accolades to us at our poetry; we write it and enjoy it ourselves.

31 ‫نق‬ ‫ش تو اتزه ركده بساط رفنگ را‬

‫ای روی تو هب جلوه رد آورد رنگ را‬

‫رد رعض شوق اتب نیاری ردنگ را‬

‫ رعض ربد انتظار و تو‬،‫از عمر نوح‬

‫م‬ ‫رد عطس ٔه رشر فگن مغز سنگ را‬ ‫رد خو ن من ز انز رفو ربده چنگ را‬

ٔ ‫سنجد هب دشت جلوه داغ پلنگ را‬ ‫م و جنگ را‬

‫ق خش‬ ‫كاندازه آورد ر م‬

‫آ ن چشمه چشمه لذت زخم خدنگ را‬

‫آ ن ربشكسته خلوت دل‌اهی تنگ را‬ ‫رب باد می‌دهد هب واف انم و ننگ را‬

‫انزم شگرف كاری بخت دورنگ را‬

‫از انهل‌خیزی دل سخت تو رد تبم‬

‫كس‬ ‫داغم هك رد هوای رس دامن ی ست‬ ‫رد زبم می هب جام زرمد نخورده‌ای‬

‫جوی گشاد شست رتا ات نمانده آب‬ ‫چون آبگین ٔه هب جگر رد شكسته‌ام‬ ‫بیکس‬

‫ی‬

‫رد گوهش‌ای زخیده ز اندوه‬

‫شوخی هك خود ز انم واف ننگ داشتی‬

‫یم‬ ‫غالب ز عاشقی هب ند ی رسیده‌ام‬

O you, whose beautiful face has added sparkle to the color; Your beautiful figure has freshened the colorful pictures of the Shahr-e Farang entertainment. (31:1) Color means the color of beautiful ones. The face of beloved has brightened the most beautiful things bringing a sparkle to them. Shahr-e Farang is a kind of entertainment in the form of a

142

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square box, mounted on four wheels and portable, through the holes of the wall beautiful pictures are displayed. The beautiful figure of the beloved has given fresh new look to display in this entertainment device.

From the laments of your stone heart, I am burning; Do not throw the stones in the fire to create the sneeze of sparks. (31:2) When carcass stones are exposed to high heat or fire they crack and break, in this process they make sounds which in this verse poet calls it sneeze of the fire spark. It sounds like spark and sound created while firewood burns. The laments of the stone hearted beloved are so heated that burn the lover and the lover is asking the beloved to stop lamenting and not to throw the stone heart of hers in the fire to create sneeze of the fire spark.

Waiting for you, Noah’s life became short while you Didn’t even tolerate a moment of pause in my expression. (31:3) The long life of Noah is referenced here for comparison purpose to waiting for the beloved; however, once she arrives, she wants the lover to keep repeating his feelings without a pause. See Noah in the glossary.

I am excited that in my imagination, is the skirt of the one, Who had drenched her hand in my blood with pride? (31:4) The lover is reaching out to the beloved; the beloved who had put her hand in lover’s blood means having murdered him.

The one who has not drunk out of an emerald goblet at a wine party; Would judge the desert, imagining it a leopard with spots. (31:5) Emerald is sparkling greenstone, but here it means sparkling goblet; he who has not seen this sparkle, how would he know of its delight, he would merely stay lost in useless things that might look similar— the spots on a leopard are compared with emerald.

This wide river washed you so much that no water remained Not enough to evoke anger and create a battle in you. (31:6) Here Ghalib is talking to himself: you shed tears so much that remained no tears in your eyes to evoke emotions to make you angry and create a battle in you.

We are like a crystal that is broken inside the heart; Giving us immense delight from the wound of her arrow. (31:7) We took a glass container used to keep wine or perfume, shattered it in our liver, and let it spread all over. Pieces of glass in the liver would cause intense pain and test the resolve of the lover. The liver is a bastion of perseverance and courage, meaning further that we are trying our courage. The second line talks about the wounds caused by the arrows of the beloved that provide extreme pleasure as these wounds spread throughout the liver, just like the pieces of glass.

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Crawled to a corner from the sorrow of loneliness is The one who used to break the loneliness of lonely hearts. (31:8) The lover has immersed himself in loneliest and hide in a corner unlike the time that he was companion for all the broken hearts. The poet is talking to himself.

That mischievous one who used to despise even the name of fidelity; He is now defaming his name and shaming by showing fidelity. (31:9) The lover has reached to a point that in the name of fidelity becomes infidel.

Ghalib, from being a lover I have become a companion to the lover; I take pride of the wonderful act of my fate of two colors. (31:10) The duality of fate is remarked here, having reached into her assembly; but not as a lover, as a companion.

32 ‫دانم هك رد میان نپسندد حجاب را‬

‫سوزد ز بس‌هك اتب جمالش نقاب را‬

‫چش‬ ‫رد م بخت غیر راه ركد خواب را‬

‫ر ربد‬

‫نفرین كند هب رپده‌ردی ماهتاب را‬ ‫ات رد وصال یاد دهد اضطراب را‬

ٔ ‫دریینه شكوه ستم بی‌حساب را‬ ‫گیرم هب بوهس زان لب انزک‌جواب را‬ ‫فش‬

‫رده‌اند هب جام آفتاب را‬

‫گویی‬

‫رزید ز آبگینه هب سارغ رشاب را‬ ‫نوشد می و ز جام رفو رزید آب را‬ ‫میخ‬ ٔ ‫آ تن هب باده صافی گالب را‬

‫ریپاهن از كتا ن و دمادم ز سادگی‬ ‫بس‬

‫ات خود شبی هب همدمی ما‬

ٔ ‫انرفته دم ز وعده باز آدمن زند‬

‫رد دل زخد هب الهب و از جان بدر كشد‬ ‫رجأت نگر هك رهزه هب پیش آدم سوال‬ ‫انزم رفوغ باده ز عكس جمال دوست‬ ‫هم‬ ‫سوزد ز رگمیش می و او چنان هب لهو‬

‫تم‬ ‫آبش دهم هب باده و او ره دم از یز‬

‫آسوده باد خارط غالب هك خوی اوست‬

The heat of her blazing beauty burns the veil so much; I know she does not like any veil in between. (32:1) Her blazing beauty burns her veil, and she gets exposed; this makes the lover assume that perhaps she does not want anything to come between herself and her lover.

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Her dress is made of Katan, and every second out of simplicity, She keeps cursing the moonlight for exposing her. (32:2) Katan (linen) is a mythical fabric that disintegrates upon exposure to moonlight, an anecdote tells. Now the beloved is wearing the fine Katan fabric and cursing moonlight for exposing her body; how simpleton is she? The poet is pointing towards the body of his beloved beings like moonlight and the explosive nature of her beautiful curvy body. In the times of the Pharaohs, the Egyptians referred to linen as “woven moonlight.” And there’s certainly something quite special about this living, beautiful material: soft and pliable, yet resilient and easy-care. Its durability stems from the extra-long fibers of the linen, which make for a strong fabric that resists wear and tear. The texture of linen also changes throughout its lifespan, growing more beautiful with age.

With the thought of spending the night with us, She has put to sleep the eye of rival’s fate. (32:3) The beloved has put rival’s fate to sleep, his misfortune that my beloved will spend the night with me. Audacious thinking!

Not leaving yet promising to return soon; So that in the union, she teaches the tumult. (32:4) The beloved starts talking about returning and thus brings the thought of her leaving, tormenting a lover.

She crawls in my heart with great persuasion and takes away The countless complaints of tyranny buried in my soul. (32:5) Her style of coquetry is such that when she enters my heart flattering me, I forget all that I have accumulated—the countless complaints.

Look how I dared to ask a useless question, So that I can kiss the lips that are ready to answer. (32:6) The useless question I was going to ask, but before I asked the question, I kissed her lips before she said no, I got what I wanted as an answer.

I take pride in the sparkle from the reflection of the beauty in the wine, As if the sun itself had been squeezed into the goblet. (32:7) So bright is the wine from her reflection that it appears as if it was the sun (round goblet).

Wine boils from her heat, and she playfully continues Pouring the wine from the decanter into the goblet. (32:8) The beloved is pouring wine into goblets of lovers, not realizing that it gets boiled and evaporates before it reaches the goblet; she does not realize how her disposition can change the wine.

I give wine mixed with water, but she can tell the difference; As she spills the water and imbibes the wine. (32:9)

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‫‪The lover does not want her to drink wine, for it will make her drunk, and others might take‬‬ ‫‪advantage of her, so he adds water to her drink o make it less strong, however, she is more cunning‬‬ ‫‪than the lover, she drinks the wine and throws the water.‬‬

‫‪May that Ghalib’s heart remains content, for it is his habit‬‬ ‫)‪To always mix rose water with wine. (32:10‬‬ ‫‪He wishes that the routine of Ghalib’s imbibing would continue to be joyful. Ghalib is known to‬‬ ‫‪mix a bottle of French Rose wine with rose water to make two bottles, one of which he will keep‬‬ ‫;‪locked and would give the key to his servant and instruct not to let Ghalib drink the second bottle‬‬ ‫‪however, every evening, there will be a fight and Ghalib would win.‬‬

‫‪33‬‬ ‫نوید التفات شوق دادم از بال جان را‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫كمند جذهب طوافن شمردم موج طوافن را‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫چنان رگم ست زبم از جلوه ساقی هك پنداری‬

‫گداز جوره نظاره رد جام ست مستا ن را‬

‫رپستارم جگر رد باخت یارب رد دل اندازش‬ ‫ندارم شكوه از غم با هجوم شوق رخسندم‬

‫ز جا ربداشت جوش دل هماان داغ هجران را‬

‫هب تن چسبید بازم از نم خوانهب ریپاهن‬

‫رخاش سینه سطر بخیه شد چاک رگیبان را‬

‫قضا از انهم آهنگ ردیدن ریخت رد گوشم‬

‫هب رجم ات ب ضبط انهل با من داوری دارد‬ ‫هنوز آیین ٔه ما می پذرید عکس صورت‏اه‬ ‫ت‬ ‫کلف رب رطف لب تشن ٔه بوس و كنارستم‬

‫مس‬ ‫هب تی رگ هب جنت بگذری زنهار نفریبی‬ ‫چم‬ ‫ن سامان بتی دارم هك دارد وقت گل چیدن‬ ‫هب انداز صبوحی چون هب گلشن رتكتاز آری‬ ‫كباب نوبهار اندر تنور الهل می‏سوزد‬

‫هس‬ ‫هچ دود دل هچ موج رنگ رد ره رپده از تی‬

‫‪147‬‬

‫خم‬ ‫ز بیتابی هب ز م رسنگون ركدن نمكدان را‬

‫نس نق‬ ‫ز پشت انخنم ترده ش روی عنوان را‬ ‫ز شوخی می شمارد زری لب زددیدن افغان را‬

‫ص‬ ‫فش‬ ‫چو ان ح خنده زد اندر دل ا ردیم دندان را‬ ‫ز راهم باز چین دام نوازش‏اهی پنهان را‬

‫هس‬ ‫رسابی رد ر تی تشن ٔه دیدار جاانن را‬ ‫رخامی زك ادای خویش رپ گل ركده دامان را‬ ‫رپیدن اهی رنگ گل شفق رگدد گلستا ن را‬

‫فی‬ ‫هچ ض از میزبان الابالی ‏پیشه مهمان را‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫خیالم شاهن باشد رطه خواب رپیشان را‬

‫ز شور انهل می رزیم نمك رد دیده ردبان را‬

‫یش‬ ‫هب شبها اپس انموست ز خو م بد امگن دارد‬

‫پس از عمری هب یادم داد رسم و راه پی كان را‬

‫ست‬ ‫رسیدن‏اهی منقار هما رب ا خوان غالب‬

‫رواج خانقاه ست از كف خاکم بیابان را‬

‫مس‬ ‫ز تی محو اپكوبی بود ره رگد‌باد این جا‬

I told the good news of kindness from calamity to my soul; Every wave of a storm of calamities is a lasso in my vision. (33:1) Confronted with calamities and affliction, Ghalib rises to the occasion; the renewed effort to thwart it leads to new ways; so, when I see the beloved rejecting me, I bring good news to my heart of the new effort that are about to come that will surely win her heart. The lover wants to catch the wave of the storm. The shape of the wave and lasso are compared here.

My caregiver has lost her heart; O Lord help her heart; She empties the saltshaker on my wounds because of her restlessness. (33:2) The maid who came to care for the sick became extremely perturbed (lost her heart); she could not stand my condition. The lover is praying that she will have the wisdom to know how to treat me—sprinkle salt on my wounds.

From the displays of the saqi, the assembly has become so hot that you would think That it is the pearl of her face melted in their goblets for the intoxicated ones. (33:3) The drunkards are having more fun looking at saqi than the pleasure they draw from wine. There is a discussion of heating up in the first line, which also means being ebullient here; however, that is connected to the melting of pearls in the second line. The pearl of the display indicates the shine of the beloved’s face. Simply, with saqi around, the wine is so much more pleasurable.

No complaint I have against the sorrow, I am happy with crowding of passion, As the boiling heart erased the scar of separation. (33:4) If the passion is high, the lover stays intoxicated with it, and thus, the dread thought of separation does not bother him.

The destiny settled the idea of tearing the letter into my ears; Before I erased the words addressing me at the beginning with the back of my nails. (33:5) The opening lines in the letter from the beloved were harsh, and I began scratching them with my nails. Then as luck would have it, the idea came that I should tear the letter. This saved me the embarrassment of reading more insults.

Sticking to my body with the fresh wet blood is my attire again; The scratch of the chest became the stitching line for the torn collar. (33:6) When my frenzy did not subside, I started scratching my chest, and that proved to be the stitching of the torn collar, meaning it brought me some solace. The fresh blood that is making the clothing

148

stick to the body came from scratching the chest. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “Sticking to my body are my clothes with blood. What need there is now left for my collar to be stitched?” The meaning of this statement is deep; it talks about how we fret about small things and then wonder when we get hit by a bigger calamity and realize our foolishness. At one time, our torn collar wall letting others know of our lunacy for our beloved; now thinking of us like a lunatic, so many have thrown a stone at us, making us bleed all over, that we no longer must think about protecting our reputation by stitching our collars. So don’t sweat the small stuff, Ghalib is saying.

For the crime of enduring the hidden laments, she punishes me Considering it insulting to hold my lamentation under my lips. (33:7) The control I demonstrate in keeping my lamentations within my heart and not letting them slip by my lips is regarded as a crime by the beloved, who is used to seeing the lover in expressing pain.

Still, our mirror is accepting the images of the faces; When the preacher laughed at us, we bit into our hearts with our teeth. (33:8) Biting into the heart means extreme agony and embarrassment; the mirror is our heart, and we are continuing to engage with new beloveds; the preacher made fun of us, which brought great pain. The preacher is laughing at the lover for his stupidity of falling in love and destroying himself repeatedly. Why are we embarrassed—because it brought notoriety to us, and perhaps the beloved found out about this?

I am directed towards her with thirsty lips for a kiss and hug; Just remove the snare of hidden kindnesses from my pathway. (33:9) We want a spontaneous expression of love not disguised; we want to kiss and embrace. The beloved may be showing kindness hideously; we do not care about that. We just want to be upfront with our physical desires.

If you happen to pass by paradise intoxicated, be aware, do not deceive! You are a mirage on the pathway, thirsty to see the beloved. (33:10) It is easy to be deceived when you are intoxicated, and the lover is a warning. Since you are thirsty to see the beloved, pass on the paradise, the divine beloved, God, farther beyond the paradise. Another explanation can be that do not get enamored by paradise, the home of the beloved supersedes paradise.

I have a meadow-like beloved who picks flowers With such swaying style that her skirt gets filled with flowers. (33:11) Meadow-like means bright and attractive; in her every style, there is a heart ravishing of flowers. The way she is approaching the flowers in her dainty gait is that the flowers are jumping into her skirt, meaning that every beloved style is ravishing.

When you stroll fast in the garden after imbibing the morning wine, Then the color of flowers gets drained and shows as the light of dawn in the garden. (33:12) The red morning light (pink), the morning wine (pink), the flowers (pink and red) losing their color

149

looking at her, the fast stroll (wind), the demise of flowers are all put together here to show the beauty of the beloved, a colorful play on words.

The kabob of the new spring is burning in the oven of tulip; What benefit would a guest get from a careless host? (33:13) The heart of tulip is called an oven; the dark spot in it is the kabob; the guest is the spring, but the heart of the tulip is oblivious to it, and the spring is burning seeing it. The spring hosts the tulip, burning (because it shows a dark spot) and bringing color to the spring season.

Whether the smoke from the heart or the wave of color, in every veil of life My thought is the comb for the curly locks of my distracting dream. (33:14) Whether life is full of miseries or glad tidings, the human brain remains to create dreams—often scattered dreams and to satisfy the heart, keeps planning efforts; the thinking process or the thought makes the mind work. It is that comb that straightens out the tresses of scattered dreams.

At night, guarding your reputation makes me distrust myself And from the noise of my wailings I throw salt in the eyes of the guard. (33:15) The word used for salt also means noise, and that is the play of words here. In respecting your prestige and the good name, I become distrustful of myself whether I will be able to withhold my wailing or not; so, to be sure the guard would not hear it, I have dumped salt in his ears to block them. In other words, my wailings are so loud that these have made the guard deaf.

Every windstorm is dancing from intoxication here; My fistful of dust has created an air of monastery in the desert. (33:16) When the lover was alive, he used to wander in the desert, now dead, his dust swirls around in a vortex; now compare this with whirling dervish in the monastery. So, my dust has given a desert the semblance of a monastery.

The intense piercing of the beak of vultures into my bones, Ghalib, Has reminded me of the style of the tip of the arrow after a long time. (33:17) The arrow’s tip is the beloved’s eyelashes; vultures picking on lover’s bone remind him of the pleasure of being wounded by beloved’s eyelashes. The choice of a vulture, as opposed to another bird, signifies that the lover has died; it is only then that vultures arrive.

34 ‫رفیب امتحان اپکبازی داده‌ام او را‬

‫هک می خاید هب ذوق فتنه شاردوان مشکو را‬ ِ

150 150

ٔ ‫هب خلوت ژمده زندیکی یارست پهلو را‬ ‫ٔ مح‬ ‫ رفاهد را میرم‬،‫ز محو رپده مل مگو‬

‫هب دنیا از پس آدم رفستادند مینو را‬

‫جهان از باده و شاهد بدان ماند هک پنداری‬

‫پیچ‬ ‫هب آتش ربدن است از موی اتب ش مو را‬ ِ ِ ‫سن‬ ‫‌چو گوره ج کو پیش از گهر سنجد رتازو را‬

‫هب زور تندخویی خست گان را رام خود رکدن‬

‫هب جنبشهای اربو از رگه رپدازد اربو را‬

‫‌ز من رنجیده با اغیار رد انزست و ‏می‏خواهد‬

‫هک رنجد غیر ازو چون بی سبب رد هم کشد رو را‬

‫ح بی‬ ‫ست‬ ‫ن‬ ‫وری اشکش‬ ِ ‫باشد دیده ان ق ن دمه د‬ ‫م حف‬ ‫ت‬ ‫چو بنشیند هب ل بگذرانم رد دل نگش‬

‫گل از لخت دل عشاق زیبد آن رس کو را‬

ٔ ‫بهاران گو ربو مشاهط کوه و بیابان شو‬

‫کشد رد دیده ره رگدی هک از ره خیزد آهو را‬ ‫بدین زورین امکن می آزمایم دست و بازو را‬

‫نس‬ ‫چشم‬ ‫ارگ داند هک رد بت رما با کیست ه ‌م ی‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫نشان دور است غالب رد ن این شیوه بس نبود‬

In loneliness, there is this good news of my beloved’s presence by my side; I have deceived her by the claim of testing my piety. (34:1) The beloved is arriving to be by the side of a lover. Is this the test of my piety that has been widely publicized, or have I been able to fool her by circulating this news around?

Don’t talk about the disappearance of the carriage curtain; I am like Farhad; He chews the drapes of the royal palace in the frenzy of his love. (34:2) Reference is made here for Farhad (Majnoon) looking out for the palanquin of Laila; Farhad is chewing draperies of Shirin’s palace to catch a glimpse of her. The lover claims his resolve to be of a much higher class. The chewing up of drapes means piercing through them with his passionate eyes. See Farhad, Laila and Majnoon in the glossary.

From the presence of the beloved and wine, the world appears As if after Adam, heaven was sent to the earth. (34:3) God punished Adam by sending him to earth for the sin committed, but then afterward God sent the beloved and wine; with these two things available, it is like God decided to send heavens to Adam as well. Mocking God for making a more significant mistake.

Offended by me and appearing amorous with coquetry to the rival, From the movement of eyebrows, she removes the scowl on her face. (34:4) The rival and lover are present in the assembly at the same time. She is, like always, angry with her lover but shows kindness towards the rival. To do this, she is going through scowling when looking at the lover and then using the movement of eyebrows (another coquettish style) to flatten out the scowl when she turns to rival.

151

151

With the force of the fiery temper, made the tried ones obedient, Is like taking out the twists and curls of her tresses by fire. (34:5) When exposed to heat, the singed hair is often curly itself; taking out curls by burning or heating is frequently practiced. The fiery disposition of the beloved is the fire or heat, and the twists and curls are the resolves of the lover. The broken ones are lovers.

The eyes are not to see the unreasonable, order not for them to shed tears; Like the pearl tester who first examines the scale before weighing the pearls. (34:6) Test the sincerity of heart before ordering the shedding of tears or expression of sympathy. Unless the eye has righteousness, these tears become crocodile tears. Expressing sympathy to others while there is no feeling in the heart is what is referred to here. Since tears resemble pearls, it is said that before weighing the value of pearls, the jeweler makes sure that the scale is working properly, so should we look at the sincerity of the heart first.

When she sits in the assembly, I slide her past through my tight heart; Thus, she would turn her face without reason, making the rivals despondent. (34:7) I show my beloved my broken condition (passing her through my heart). This makes her upset, and she begins to scowl; the rival seeing this on that beautiful face, turns scared and becomes despondent. The lover hopes that this would prevent the rival from making a move for fear of her wrath.

If she finds out that in my semblance, who I have competition with, She pulls in eyes every dust raised from the path of a running deer. (34:8) The eye of the deer is frenzied (appears dazzled), and it wanders in the desert, and the lover has the same look in his eyes as they both wander. Once it is established, there is no need to compare my eyes with those of deer, so throw some dust in the eyes of deer, for they are no longer a standard to test.

Tell the spring to go and become the beautician of the mountains and deserts; The flowers of the lovers’ heart-pieces are suitable for the beloved’s alley. (34:9) The alley of the beloved is studded with broken pieces of the heart of lovers. Decorating the valleys and deserts is advice given to the spring to go and endow freshness to the valley and desert. It is not needed in the alley of beloved, which can only be decorated with broken hearts. Bleeding hearts are red and thus decorating like the spring season in the valleys and deserts. The use of “female beautician” refers to the feminine nature of the spring—both causing bleeding heart displays.

Ghalib, the target is far off; in poetry, mere skill is not enough; With this strong and heavy bow, I am testing my hand and arm. (34:10) The zenith of poetry is high, and this style of expression cannot reach there. I am merely trying out a hard bow that is difficult to shoot with.

152

35 ‫سلسبی‬ ‫ل ما طوبی ما بهشت ما‬ ‫کورث و‬

ٔ ‫باده مشک‏بوی ما بید و کنار کشت ما‬

‫ارب ارگ بایستد رب لب جوست کشت ما‬

‫حس‬ ‫چونهبخیالرسخوشیم‬،‫رتوصلازهچرو‬

‫نسخ ٔه فتنه می ربد رچخ ز رسنوشت ما‬ ‫رصف زقوم دوزخست انمیه رد بهشت ما‬

‫ای هب بدی و انخوشی خوی تو رسنوشت ما‬ ‫بن‬ ‫رگ هی رد آفتاب باده چکد ز خشت ما‬

ٔ ‫شیوه گیر و دار نیست رد کنش کنشت ما‬ ‫نن‬ ‫ طعنه زمن هب زشت ما‬، ‫دل هی هب خوب ما‬

‫شاد هب چیه می شود طبع واف رسشت ما‬

‫بسکه غم تو بوده است تعبیه رد رسشت ما‬

‫نور رخد ز آگهی خواهش تن پدید رکد‬ ‫یم‬ ‫این همه از عتاب تو ا نی عدو رچاست‬

‫ رب رس صد زهار خم‬،‫ربده صد اربعین هب رس‬

‫بیخ‬ ‫طر از خودی ربآ لب هب « اان الصنم » گشا‬

‫ بذهل خالف رشع نیست‬،‫باده ارگ بود رحام‬ ‫حس‬ ‫گفت هب حکم رتی غالب خسته این زغل‬

Our musk-scented wine, the willow tree, and the edge of the farm fields; Our stream and fountain of Kausar, and the tree of paradise and indeed itself paradise. (35:1) The musk-scented wine fulfills many needs; the willow tree is where we sit under to drink in the fields; these are like the streams, fountains, and trees of paradise—describing the joy of drinking.

Your sorrow has been improvised in our nature such that; Heaven takes the recipe of tumult from our written destiny. (35:2) heaven is there to bring misery to others. To do it, heaven draws inspiration from us because sorrow is embedded in our personality because of you (the beloved).

Why envy her union when we are happy with her thoughts; If the cloud doesn’t rain, we grow our field by the stream. (35:3) We can draw satisfaction from within, from the thought of her alone. Desiring for union-only results in desperation. Why bother with it? If the purpose is to be joyful, we can be satisfied with our thoughts. If there is kindness showered on us, we take ourselves to the brook of thought to experience it.

The light of wisdom from awareness created the internal desire; In our paradise, the sprouting instinct helps thrive the hell’s poisonous tree. (35:4) Adam’s sense of self-awareness leads to the physical desires that got him in trouble, and it made his life hell. Our flourishing instinct to procreate can bring a lot of agonies.

153

154

Why is the rival so immune from your reproof, While our destiny is marked by your evil and ill nature? (35:6) Why is the rival saved from your tyranny? Is it because he does not have the courage to accept it as his fate, for he is a weaker soul? An offer is made to the beloved to accept the lover over the rival. Another subtle approach is that since the lover desires the tyranny, seeing that the rival is spared, he consoles his heart that he is the chosen one.

We have spent a life of hundreds of years with thousands of wounds; If you place out brick under the sunshine, the wine will drip from it. (35:7) Brick is dry, and for it to drip wine when placed under the sun shows what strains we have gone through that still we have thought left to share. First line is not clear.

Come out fearless of yourself, open your lips with the words, “I am the idol” In the ways of our temple, there are no rules of conflict. (35:8) Reference is made to the Zoroastrian place of worship; the lover is suggesting the beloved to declare openly that she is the idol and then come to our temple, where idols are prayed and if it is our temple, there are no laws to tell you what you can or cannot say.

Wine may be prohibited, but witticism is not against the divine law; If you don’t appreciate our goodness, don’t taunt our ugliness. (35:9) If you do not like our virtues, then you should also not reject what is an ordinary, humble trait of ours—wittiness.

The tired Ghalib said this ghazal following the style of Hasrati; My loyal, loving nature is pleased with little things. (35:10) Nawab Mustafa Khan “Shefta” (1809–1869) was an Urdu poet and critic, and contemporary Mirza Ghalib. “Shefta” was his Urdu or pen name, and he used the name “Hasrati” for his Farsi writings. Ghalib wrote this ghazal at a poetic oration at the home of Nawab Mustafa Khan Shefta. See Shefta and Hasrati in the glossary.

36 ٔ ‫از ما مجوی رگهی بی اهی‌اهی را‬

‫دل اتب ضبط انهل ندارد خدای را‬

‫از رقب ژمده ده نگ ِه انرسای را‬

ٔ ‫مشتاق رعض جلوه خویش است حسن دوست‬

‫نق‬ ‫رب ره زمین هک رطح کنی ش اپی را‬ ‫ای شعله داغ رگد و نگه دار جای را‬

‫آفتاب‬

‫رذه‬

‫م‏روشنی‬

‫چش‬

‫هب‬

‫آید‬

‫شف‬ ‫آ تگی رب اوج فنا بال می‌زند‬

155

‫شوق تو جاده رکد رگ خواب اپی را‬

‫پ سپ‬ ‫گ س‬ ‫وادی خیال‬ ِ‫واماند ی‏ ت ی ر‬ ِ

‫انگشت زینهار شمر ره لوای را‬

‫از چیپ و اتب آز ستوهند رسکشان‬

‫رد ما گم‏ست جلوه پی رهنمای را‬ ‫بی‬ ‫خود هب بوی باده کشیدیم الی را‬ ‫چش‬ ‫از پشت م می نگرم پشت اپی را‬

‫ن‬

‫نگست دوش رفق بلندی‌رگای را‬

‫با کیست داوری دل رددآزمای را‬

‫یا رب کجا ربم لب خنجرستای را‬

‫کنج‬ ‫ی زگینم و بپرستم خدای را‬

‫خودیم‬

‫اندیش ٔه‬

‫‏رسایی‬

‫رسمنزل‬

ٔ ‫حسن بتا ن ز جلوه انز تو رنگ داشت‬ ٔ ‫گوید تغافل تو هک رد رکده توام‬

‫یا رب هب بال تیغ هک رپواز می کند‬ ‫چش‬ ‫رگ م اکش ازوست و رگ سینه آه ازوست‬

‫ت‬ ‫نم‬ ‫رمدم ز رفط ذوق و سلی ی‌شوم‬ ‫ خواهم هک زین سپس‬،‫غالب ربیدم از همه‬

Our heart can no longer hold laments, O God; Expect not from us to cry without loud noise. (36:1) Telling beloved that if we cried then, you would have to put up with the dragged-out lamentation.

The spark of particles brightens up like the sun, Wherever your footprint is stamped on. (36:2) Beloved’s footprint adds brightness to dust particles as she kicks the dirt.

The beauty of a friend is desirous of displaying its dazzle; Give the good news of closeness to your stifled vision. (36:3) Stifled here means “not able to reach out.” The beloved wants to show off her beauty, so the lover is telling his failed vision (to be able to see her) that after all, there is change—it is good news for his vision.

Tumult is flying to the height of extinction; O flame, heat up and hold the place. (36:4) Flame is tumultuous and rises as if it is trying to fly higher; conversely, a scar is a fire that is put out but stays put; the poet has used craziness in love to a flame that becomes distinct in intense love. He is preaching control and is advising to turn this flame into a scar, which is permanent.

Helplessness is passing through the land of imagination; Your desire has turned the vein of numbed feet into a pathway. (36:5)

156

While walking in the path of love, the feet get tired, and we become exhausted. We start traveling in our thoughts—in imagination as if we are continuing to travel. Feet get numbed when you sit on them for too long. The vein of the feet means the blood flow to the feet is drawn by your desire, thus calling the desire the vein of the numb foot.

We are the destination for our own thoughts’ reach; The display of the feet of our path indicator is merged in us. (36:6) Path indicator (the leader) is merged in us means we are our path leader. The path leader does not know where our thought is taking us.

The rebellious are harassed by the twist and turning of greed and lust; Consider each flag a finger for surrender. (36:7) The finger of surrender is like a white flag raised to declare surrender and protection from rivals. The rebellious sooner or later get tired of their tirades and give up in submission, so when they raise the flag of rebellion, they declare that they will soon be defeated.

The beauty of idols gets its color from the display of your coquetry; Drunk on the smell of wine, we went on drinking the wine sediments. (36:8) If the beauty of my beloved is wine, then the beauty of all others is like the sediment in wine. So enamored was the lover with the smell of this wine that he kept drinking this precipitate, thinking it was the wine.

Your ignorance tells me that I am the one rejected by you; From the back of my eyes, I see the back of my feet. (36:9) I look back instead of looking forward and think about returning, all due to your obliviousness to me.

O God, who flies with the sword’s wing? It is a shame for a raised head to bend to the shoulder. (36:10) The beloved raising her sword is a moment of happiness, for it leads to martyrdom; from this act, the lover’s head is raised (in pride), making it easy for the beloved to strike. The lowered head is a sign of shame.

If the tears are from her and if the sighs of the chest are from her; Then who is going to judge our pain-familiar heart? (36:11) Whatever pain comes from the beloved; whatever we lament is because of her; who could be a judge? She is the accused, and she is the judge.

Dead from the excess of pleasure and won’t be consoled; O God, where should I take these lips praising the dagger of beloved? (36:12) The dagger of beloved brought much pleasure, but it did not give enough satisfaction. What shall I do now? Where do I go now?

157

‫‪Ghalib, I disconnected from everybody, and I now desire‬‬ ‫)‪To pick a corner and pray to God. (36:13‬‬ ‫‪With no friends left, all that is left to do is to pay attention to God.‬‬

‫‪37‬‬ ‫ات دوخت چاره‌رگ جگر چار اپره را‬

‫از بخیه خنده رب دم تیغ است چاره را‬

‫چون شعله هم ز روی تو پیداست خوی تو‬

‫ات کی هب اتب باده رفیبی نظاره را‬

‫با اضطراب دل زره اندیشه افرغم‬ ‫رسرگم مهر شد دل رچخ ستیزه‌خو‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫دانی هک ریگ بادهی غم روان رچاست‬

‫گیتی ز رگهی‌ام هت و باالست بعد ازین‬

‫ای لذت جفای تو رد خاک بعد رمگ‬ ‫جوره دمید ز آینه دل خسته ات کجا‬ ‫خونم ستاده بود هب ردد‬

‫فس‬

‫ردگی‬

‫نجم‬ ‫شم‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫ع از رفوغ چهره ساقی رد ا ن‬

‫نخ‬ ‫بنگر ست ات ستم از جانب هک بود‬ ‫داغم ز بخت رگ همه اوج ارث رگفت‬ ‫غالب رما ز رگهی نوید شهادتی‏ست‬

‫جن‬ ‫یش‬ ‫آسا ی ست بش این گاهواره را‬

‫چندان هک داغ رکده جبین ستاره را‬ ‫اینجا گسسته‌اند عنان شماره را‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫جویند رد میاهن ردیا کناره را‬

‫حس‬ ‫با جان رسشته رت عمر دوباره را‬ ‫زددد هب خود ز بیم ن گاهت اشاره را‬

‫دل داد اپیمردی تیغت گذاره را‬

‫مس‬ ‫چون گل هب رس زدست ز تی نظاره را‬ ‫با شیشه داوری پی داد است خاره را‬

‫آه از سپهر ریخت هب رفقم رشاره را‬ ‫کاین سبحه رنگ داد هب خو ن استخاره را‬

‫‪Until the problem-solver had stitched the liver that was split into four pieces,‬‬ ‫)‪This resolution of stitching was laughing at the edge of the sword. (37:1‬‬ ‫‪Stitching wounds is not what we want. The stitches in place are not bringing us any comfort. They‬‬ ‫‪are just laughing at the ineptness of the sword that made a wound that could be stitched. The lover‬‬ ‫‪wanted a deeper wound that couldn’t be stitched.‬‬

‫‪Despite the restlessness of heart, I am free of all anxiety,‬‬ ‫)‪As if the rocking of this cradle gives repose. (37:2‬‬

‫‪158‬‬

Tumultuousness of the heart is compared to the rocking of cradle comparing the movement of heart and feelings; it relieves restlessness as it does to an infant falling asleep when the cradle is rocked.

Like the blazing flame, your face shows your nature; How long would you keep deceiving the display with the heat of wine? (37:3) Those looking at you think that the luster of your face, the pinkish tinge, is because you have been drinking, whereas it is due to your fiery nature and raging personality.

The heart of the combative heaven is engaged with love; That it has burned down the forehead of stars. (37:4) Heaven is supposed to be creating havoc and misfortunes; so, the same style continues when it loves someone. The burning stars (glowing) are a sign of the love of heaven. Branding the forehead of stars means the stars are in love with heaven. Equating heaven with the beloved, the lover says that the brandings we have received from the beloved are the signs of her love towards us.

Do you know why the sand of the desert of sorrow flows freely In this place, because they have broken your rein. (37:5) There is no holding back in the desert of sorrow as it flows freely in a timeless manner. It goes on forever, with us having no control over it.

The world is turned upside down with my crying, and after this, The shore will be searched in the middle of the ocean. (37:6) The storm of my crying is so intense that it has caused the shore and the ocean to become one. On the side was the ocean, and on the other the flow my tears, and when they merged, the shore was surrounded by water from all around.

Your cruelty brings me such joy that, after death, in my grave, My soul is steeped in longing to return to life again. (37:7) After death, we will desire another life filled with your tyranny.

From the mirror of a tired heart, the luster has burst open; How long can this mirror keep the gesture hidden from the fear of your eye? (37:8) The luster of the mirror comes out of the mirror, not being able to face the beautiful eyes of the beloved. The angry eyes of the beloved can even scare the mirror. The mirror is the lover’s heart.

My blood had stopped flowing in sorrow; Finally, the heart gave to your sword extreme power. (37:9) How strong is the sword that it would make the stifled blood in my heart start flowing out? Stopped blood flow means loss of passion for the beloved, but then the sword of the beloved became strong enough to carve a fresh wound. It is not clear whose heart gave the power to the sword.

159

The candle, from the splendor of the saqi’s face in the assembly Is intoxicated and has thrust itself before us, like a flower. (37:10) The candle was the source of light in the assembly. The candle has become a fan of the beloved’s beauty, meaning the light of the candle is dimmed in front of the brightness of the beloved’s face. A candle is compared to a flower; frequently, a burnt-out candle leaves a rosette of wax, which looks like a flower. The lover is saying that the candle burned down quickly, looking at your face in jealousy.

See, from whose side did the tyranny start first; A hardstone is judging the glass. (37:11) It should be obvious that stone breaks the glass, the beloved breaking our heart.

I was burnt by my fate even though it was elated to be effective; But the sigh poured the sparks on my head from the sky. (37:12) In terms of effectiveness, our fate rode high, but I am so distraught by my fate that it poured sparks on my face—the high fate, dropping fire and burning me. The verse points out the ineffective sighs that went high but returned fire, meaning it made me more desperate, for they were ineffective. Having high effectiveness means that I was able to send out the plaints.

O Ghalib, from crying, I get the good news of martyrdom for me; This rosary has colored the prognosticating from the blood. (37:13) Ghalib is calling the string of tears, beads of the rosary; since the tears are blood tears, the death is imminent, and the prognosticating tells me that the lover would give his life crying and that he will indeed die as a martyr.

38 ‫ک‬ ‫شکس‬ ‫تی رد نهادستی ادای ج‏کال هی را‬

‫قضا آیینه‌دار عجز خواهد انز شاهی را‬

‫صب‬ ‫تبم رد رلزه اکگندست باد ح گاهی را‬

‫خ‬ ‫ت خوابم آتش اپراه رفت است می‌داند‬ ِ ‫زر‬

‫کم از سوزنده آتش نیست آب رگم ماهی را‬ ‫هک داغی رد فضای سینه اندازد سیاهی را‬ ٔ ‫هالکم جلوه ربق رشاب گاه‌گاهی را‬

ٔ ‫گف‬ ‫هب من بگذار تم شیوه حیرت ن گاهی را‬

160

‫طبی‬ ‫عی نیست ره جا اختالط از وی حذر خوشتر‬ ‫نماند از کثرت داغ غمت آن ماهی جا باقی‬

‫نق‬ ‫شبم اتریک و منزل دور و ش جاده انپیدا‬ ‫هچ رومی سازی ای آیینه آه از سادگی ‌اهیت‬

‫جدا از قطره نتوان رکد طوافن دست گاهی را‬

‫ودیعت بوده است اندر نهاد جعز ما انزی‬

‫نخس‬ ‌‫تم بی زبان کن ات هب کار آیم گواهی را‬

‫چش‬ ‫دال رگ داوری داری هب م رسهم‌آلودش‬

‫هب ذوق دعوی از رب رکده بحث بی‌‌گناهی را‬ ‫ک‬ ‫نم‬ ‫و یلش من ی‌داند رطی ِق دادخواهی را‬

‫حم‬

‫هماان زک نوآموزان ردس ر تی زاهد‬ ‫خش‬ ‫رمو رد م رگ دستی هب دامان تو زد غالب‬

It appears that destiny wants to show the mirror of humility to the royal style; Otherwise, based on the style of the slanted cap, there is destruction. (38:1) A slanted cap is supposedly a sign of haughtiness. This leads to destruction. The royalties are warned to be humble.

A combination of two things is always not desirable; better to stay away; The hot water is not less than the burning fire for the fish. (38:2) Fishes live in water, so water should always be good for them; however, thrown in warm water, even a fish would burn. So, it is not always natural to expect that two things can be conducive to each other. Lovers and beloved belong to each other, naturally; a hot-tempered beloved can burn the lover, nevertheless.

Sparks of fire are raised from my bedding, and she knows; My fever has shaken the morning breeze. (38:3) The heat creating currents and finally strong wind that removes the ambers on my bed is what she thinks.

No place remained in my heart from the amount of your sorrows’ burned mark To let another branding leave a black spot in the atmosphere of my chest. (38:4) Our breast has been so frequently branded that we can no longer have any more brandings to it. The only thing that can find a place in our hearts is the branding of the sorrow from the beloved.

My night is dark, destination far, and there is no sign of the road; I am dying for the display of the lightning of the occasionally available wine. (38:5) To a desolate man, a goblet of wine is like lightning brightening the surrounding, albeit as a flash for a moment. Therefore, sacrificing means being greatly thankful and thanking Lord for this benevolence.

O mirror, what face do you make, alas on your naiveté; As I asked you to leave it to me, this style of showing surprising sight. (38:6) Looking at the beauty of beloved, the mirror is surprised (making faces, reacting to the sigh), and the lover is saying that it is my trade, my affliction, leave it to me how to get surprised. The mirror is often used to express a surprising state as well, thus complicating the interpretation.

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There was a pledge in our weakness that we are proud That the power of a storm cannot be separated from the drops. (38:7) A drop has all the characteristics of the storm, for it is these drops that make the storm. A drop has the humbleness, and from this humbleness, it draws its pride.

O pious one, you are one of those new students of the lesson of mercy; Who has learned the discussion of innocence’s lesson by the claim? (38:8) Just because you have memorized the teachings of the Lord, you assume you can be spared the wrath of God and begin thinking that you have committed no sins; such is not the case.

O heart, if you plan to make any claims against those antimony laced eyes, Then first, make me dumb so that I could give testimony against her. (38:9) Antimony is used to decorate eyes; eating antimony gags and prevents talking (making you dumb). If you want to make any claim against those killer eyes (laced with antimony), then make me dumb (by feeding antimony) so that my quietness will bear witness to how effective the beloved is.

Do not be angry if Ghalib has suddenly put his hand on your skirt; I am pleading on his behalf that he does not know how to plead for justice. (38:10) Ghalib suddenly grabbed her skirt, and she got upset. He is telling her not to be upset, for he is still learning how to express his complaints. The poet is becoming his advocate.

39 ٔ ‫سی‬ ‫ل را اپی هب سنگ آدمه رد خاهن ما‬

‫رلزه دارد خطر از هیبت وریاهن‏ی ما‬

ٔ ‫مس‬ ‫رد زخان بیش بود تی دیواهن ما‬

‫چش‬ ‫م رب اتزگی شور جنون دوخته است‬

ٔ ‫دهن خاک کند آبله از داهن ما‬

ٔ ‫ب‬ ‫شیشه خود شکن رب رس پیماهن ما‬

ٔ ‫رد پی مور رفورفتن کاشاهن ما‬ ٔ ‫شم‬ ‫ع خاموش بود طالع رپواهن ما‬ ٔ ‫آرفین رب تو و رب همت رمداهن ما‬

ٔ ‫زلف خیزست زهی دستگه شاهن ما‬

162

‫تفی از ربق بال تعبیه دارد رد خویش‬

‫ ساقی ربخیز‬،‫می هب اندازه رحام آدمه‬

‫تنگ‬ ‫ تماشا دارد‬،‫یش انم ربآورده‬ ‫هب رچاغی رنسیدیم ردین تیره‌رسا‬

‫دمتیغتتنکورگدنماباریکاست‬

‫دود آه از جگر چاک دمیدن دارد‬

ٔ ‫پنب ٔه گوش تو رگدد مگر افساهن ما‬

‫خوش رفو می‌رود افسون رقیبت رد دل‬

ٔ ‫دهن ما هب زبان خط پیماهن ما‬

‫تش‬ ‫داده رب نگی خویش گواهی غالب‬

ٔ ‫م‬ ‫نیست مکن هک کشد ریشه رس از داهن ما‬

‫مو ربآید ز کف دست ارگ دهقان را‬

Fear itself shivers from the awfulness of our ruins; As if the flood has tripped inside our home. (39:1) Seeing the state of our home, fear is shivering, and floods have tripped into falling into our home. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “What desolation is this desolation/looking at the desert remind me of my home.”

In the hand of lightning of calamity, denial is hiding in itself; The blister from our seed is making a mouth of dust. (39:2) This is describing the abundance of calamities faced by the lover. There is a hidden hint towards the lightning falling only when the crop is ready.

His eyes are fixed at the freshness of the excitement of craziness; The ecstasy of our craziness increases in the autumn. (39:3) Generally, the spring brings the frenzy of a lover to great heights; however, the frenzy of Ghalib is not dependent on the spring alone as it remains fresh in autumn as well. We do not need any special reason to keep nurturing our excitement of love.

O saqi, it is a sin to drink in moderation; Get up and smash your flagon on our goblet’s head. (39:4) When desire (or lust) for something goes beyond the limit, and then one loses sight of the capacity to use or imbibe, someone thirsty looking at a river wants to drink it all.

Our home, because of its smallness, has become famous; For the ants sank the house to the ground. (39:5) Ants find their way into the field as they disappear into it; to us, this is a strange sight; our home is so small that one wonders who I can live in it.

We could not afford a lamp in this dark abode; In the fate of my moth, there is an extinguished candle. (39:6) Dark abode means loneliness and hopelessness. Giving life to the material things in this world is like a moth reaching out for an extinguished candle—the moth will not get to his destination.

The edge of your sword is thin, and our neck is delicate; Accolades to you and our manly aspirations. (39:7)

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Ghalib is taunting both the lover and the beloved. We were not that hardy of soul that giving life in the name of love would be considered a big deal, and the beloved taking our life was no big accomplishment either, for it was easy with a sharp sword.

The smoke of sighs is coming out of the ripped heart; How great! Our comb is suitable for her hair. (39:8) The smoke of sighs is compared to tresses and the slit liver to comb—an expression of extreme desperation.

Rival’s false spells sink well in your heart; Our stories reaching your ears turn into cotton wool. (39:9) Cotton wool is used to plug ears to keep out noise; with this simile, Ghalib says that whereas you are eager to hear out the rival, somehow our story reaching you is like the cotton wool stuffed in your ears. It stifles our speech.

Even if hair grows in the palm of the farmer, so be it; It is not possible for the roots to sprout from our grain. (39:10) The poet is expressing his great failures in life. Hair does not grow on the palm, no matter how hard the farmer works; however, that is more likely that anything comes to fruition. Also, as a farmer works with hands, if there were a chance of any hair growing in his palm, which would have been rubbed off anyway.

O, Ghalib has testified of his thirst In his mouth from the tongue of the meniscus mark. (39:11) For a serious drinker, the meniscus mark would be like holding him back, keeping him thirsty. Ghalib says that his mouth, looking at the meniscus mark, is concerned that he will be kept dry.

40 ‫گل‌فشان رکده قبا رسو رخامان رتا‬

‫نق‬ ‫ای گل از ش کف اپی تو دامان رتا‬

‫مس‬ ‫گوی رگدید هب تی خم چوگان رتا‬

‫ره قدر شکوه هک رد حوصله رگد آدمه بود‬

‫صب‬

‫ح بهارست رگیبان رتا‬

‫رونق‬

‫عطسه رغبال کند مغز نمک‌دان رتا‬ ‫می‌شناسم ارث رگمی پنهان رتا‬

164

‫ات ز خون هک ازین رپده شفق باز ددم‬

ٔ ‫ مباد‬،‫جذهب زخم دلم کاررگ افتاد‬

‫نف‬ ‫نددم بوی کباب از س غیر و خوشم‬

‫رگد نمناک بود ساهی بیابان رتا‬

‫ئم‬ ‫ ذوق طلب را انزم‬،‫راحت دا ی‬

‫ات ربایم دل از انز پشیمان رتا‬

‫آیی از زبم رقیب و رس راهت میرم‬

‫اینک ارب شفق آلوده گلستا ن رتا‬ ‫سبزه‌زاری‌ست تنم رطف خیابان رتا‬ ‫آفتاب لب بامیم شبستان رتا‬

ٔ ‫رپده ساز بود ززمهم‌سنجان رتا‬ ‫حق بود رب جگر ریش تو دندان رتا‬ ِ ِ

‫چشم‬ ‫م آغشته هب خون بین و ز خلوت هب رد آی‬ ‫ستم‬ ‫غ‬ ‫سیل‬ ‫نگ ش رکد کبود‬ ِ ‫هچ م ار ِی س‬ ‫رفصتت باد هک رس رد رس کارت رکدیم‬ ‫ره حجابی هک دهد روی هب هن گاهمٔ شوق‬

‫حس‬ ‫افرغش ساخته از رت پی کان غالب‬

O beloved, from the dust of your feet, your skirt has turned into flower; And your gentle gait has made your attire scattering flower. (40:1) Both this verse and the second one describes the beloved’s beauty as the spring season has arrived.

From whose blood will glow twilight from this curtain; Your collar is the brightness of the spring morning. (40:2) The morning of the spring is bright, and so is the brightness of the beloved collar slit showing a crimson morning light. The poet claims that this pink glow derives from the blood of lovers, meaning whose blood it is that has imbued youth in you.

Whatever complaint was gathered in my patience; Has turned into a ball for the curve of your bat. (40:3) As soon as we come to you, all the will we had mustered over time to complain just vanishes as the ball struck in a polo game.

The attraction of my heart’s wound proved effective; Might it not that your sneeze would perforate the nose of the saltshaker. (40:4) The lover has taken a wound on his heart, and the beloved is sprinkling salt with her tyranny. He is afraid that she may sneeze, and that might rip the nose (the strain at the mouth of a saltshaker); this will cause all salt to drop immediately; the poet wants slow sprinkling to make the salt last longer.

From rival’s breath, the smell of kabab does not arise, and I am happy at that; I am familiar with the effect of your hidden warmth. (40:5) The warmth of your heart has not reached the rival, or else he would be burned, and thus he will smell of burnt meat like kabobs. Because I do not smell it, I conclude that your amore was not wasted on him. Warmth and burning are juxtaposed in the two lines.

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I take pride in the constant comfort of desire’s excitement; In your desert, the wet dust serves as a shadow. (40:6) Going around searching for you gives me endless pleasure, and the hardships comfort me. The damp dust does not fly but provides a cool path for the lover.

Look at my blood-drenched eyes and come out of seclusion; For your garden, this is the cloud laced with morning glow. (40:7) Blood-drenched eyes are compared to flowers in the garden, inviting the beloved to take a walk into the garden and see the brightness of the morning glow (red glow and thus the red eyes).

As you come from the rival’s company, I die in your way, so that I may win your heart that is remorseful at its coquetry. (40:8) The lover is hoping she will bring the beloved into remorse by sacrificing his life, knowing that she is returning from the company of a rival; the fact that my love continues shows the true love I offer.

Which sorrow, with its stoning of tyranny, has turned my body blue? My body is like a meadow across from your street. (40:9) The skin turns blue when hit by a stone, so much we have been stoned that we now appear as the grass in your alley.

May you have time now that we have bet our entire being in your love; We are setting the sun off your nightly abode. (40:10) We will be gone soon, and then you will not have to worry about us; I am leaving you with all happiness in this world. The setting sun and us leaving are compared, both bringing joy to the beloved. With the sun setting, the celebrations of the night will begin.

Whatever veil becomes evident in the tumult of desire, It is the melody for the singers of songs. (40:11) Many veils hide the reality of God, though we can see Him expressed through many media. Compare the veil with the curtain (the vibrating surface of musical instruments), the instrument is the love, and melody is the secret revealed that talks about the reality of love. God displays itself through veils; it is up to us what we see coming out of it. If we can only learn to hear the melody, we will know the meaning of love. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “You are the one not knowing the melody of a secret/ or else, the veil here is the curtain of the melody.”

O Ghalib, freed from the pain of desire for the arrow, You deserve that your teeth bite into your ripped heart. (40:12) In the lover’s heart, there was a desire to receive the arrow of love from the beloved. This was not fulfilled, and the desire stayed in the heart and kept hurting. In this pain, the lover has wounded his own heart by biting into it; this resulted in getting rid of the desire to receive the arrow from beloved into the flesh of liver. It is the obligation of teeth that they allow this reprieve. Biting into the heart is also an expression of extreme sorrow.

166

41 ‫تل‬ ‫لبت تنگ شکر سازد داهن خ‌کامان را‬

ٔ ‫غمت رد بوهت دانش گدازد مغ ِز خامان را‬

‫رگانی‌اهست رخت ررهو آلوده‌دامان را‬

‫هس‬ ‫ز تی اپک شو رگ رمد راهی کاندرین وادی‬

‫هب طقع وادی غم می‌امگرد تیزگامان را‬

‫طل نش‬ ‫رگد راه باشد خوش‌رخامان را‬ ِ ‫وع ئه‬

‫ شاهم نیک‌انمان را‬،‫کتان‌اه ماهتابی‌ساز‬ ‫عنان از ربق باشد رد رهش زرین‌ستامان را‬ ‫چش‬ ‫ز م بد نگه دارد خدا ما دوست‏کامان را‬

‫تو دانی ات هب لطف از خاک ربداری گدایان را‬ ‫نشاط‌انگیز باشد بوی خون خونین‌مشامان را‬

‫بیا غالب ز خاصان بگذر و بگذار عامان را‬

ٔ ‫قضا رد کاراه اندازه رهکس نگه دارد‬

‫دماغ فتنه می‌انزد هب سامان رسیدن‏اه‬

‫پی رسوایی ارباب تقوی جلوه‌ای رس کن‬ ‫هب رعض انز خوبان را ز ما بیتاب‌رت دارد‬

‫رخابیم و رضایش رد رخابی‏اهی ما باشد‬

‫بسا افتاده رسمست و بسا افتاده رد طاعت‬ ‫ٔ خم‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ز اق ل ژمده ز ی گلم رد جیب جان رزید‬

‫جهانراخاصیوعامیستآنمغرورواینعازج‬

Your sorrow melts the brains of the immature in the oven of knowledge; Your lips turn the mouths of bitter ones into a sugar decanter. (41:1) Sorrow means the suffering from loving the beloved; it makes the immature lovers wise. From the kiss of your lips, these folks can forget their sorrows and would become joyous. The immature or those lacking wisdom do not know the value of kissing your lips.

Destiny keeps the measure of everything for everybody; The task of scaling the land of sorrow is endowed with fast-paced leaders only. (41:2) The valley of sorrow is not for everyone but the best.

If you are a man of the path, cleanse yourself from the world’s existence; for in this land The clothes are a heavy baggage for travelers with sins. (41:3) Those who lead should lead by example, or else this path to leadership becomes a difficult task—it makes it impossible to lead.

The mind of the troublemaker is proud of having all means of intoxication; But for those with a brisk walk, the state of intoxication is merely the dirt of the path. (41:4)

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The ones who create chaos and trouble are ready with their wares; the wise ones know how to go around the snares spread by these people. The swift walkers are those people who know how to move away fast from troubles. The dirt of the path means it is worthless.

To disgrace the pious friends, show the display of your beauty; My King, make the katan attires moon-like for these respected ones. (41:5) Katan (linen) is a legendary, fine, delicate cloth that rips out in moonlight; the King (referring to beloved) is requested to show her beauty, which would be like the moonlight, and thus remove the attire of hypocrisy from these respected ones; the respected ones are a taunting label. Note the white skin of the beloved, the moonlight, the katan worn by the beloved, and the Katan worn by the hypocrites on their cover. See katan in the glossary.

When the beloved shows coquetry, becoming more tumultuous than us, Then those with gold reins run their horses like lightning in her path. (41:6) Her display of coquetry makes other beloveds more jealous and more tumultuous than us; they simply ride away quickly. These beautiful ones are addressed as the riders whose horses have golden reins, meaning they are of high stature. Facing the beauty of my beloved, all others bite the dust, which is the intent here. The reins of lightning mean they ride out fast. This verse talks about other women getting attracted to the beloved.

We are ruined, and she is satisfied with this situation; May God protect us, who yields to our friend’s desire, from the evil eye. (41:7) Our condition of having lost everything is what she wishes me. I can comply with her desire, and we are the type of people who are considered fortunate; may we be kept from the evil eye, meaning we stay compliant to her wishes and desires.

Many have fallen drunk, and many have gone down in Your worship; You know how to lift the beggars from the dust with your kindness. (41:8) Drunk means intoxicated by their love of God; those who are down in worship mean they are prostrating before You. Notice that both are down; now it is up to God, whom He picks up from the dust—who will be dearest one? This verse deeply describes Ghalib’s theological thoughts. Would God be kind to those who crash their foreheads five times a day praying to God, or those who are truly in love with God—meaning following the dictum of the teachings of God? The choice is obvious, yet there are no predictions possible. Only He knows.

From the murderer, the good news of a wound pours into our collar of the soul with flowers; The smell of blood is bracing for those filled with the smell of blood. (41:9) The beloved has given the good news that she is ready to carve a wound; this was always our desire, fulfilling of which is compared to filling the collar with flowers. Notice that flowers are red and often used to represent bloody appearance. To show that this was a natural response, the poet compares this to the smell of blood for someone whose mind is always filled with this smell (or desire of it). This exciting comparison means that blood was always on our mind (our blood), and the news of it coming is the most desirable smell.

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This world has ordinary people and special ones; one is haughty, the other naïve; O Ghalib, go past the special ones and stay away from the ordinary ones. (41:10) Whether they take pride in them or are the humble ones, Ghalib wants to stay away from all not to be influenced by any of them.

42 ‫ولی رد خویش بینم کاررگ جادوی آانن را‬

ٔ ‫نگویم اتزه دارم شیوه جادوبیاانن را‬

‫عبثردآبوآتشرانده‌ایبازارگااننرا‬

‫لع‬ ‫ندارد حاجت ل و گهر حسن خدادادت‬

‫ستوه آورده‌ام از چاره‌جویی مهرباانن را‬ ‫کس‬ ‫هال تم رفاخی‌اهی عیش سخت‌جاانن را‬ ِ ‫قت‬ ‫هب ل خویش دست و ساعد انزک‌میاانن را‬ ‫نب‬ ‫رگ اندیشه ض کار باشد کارداانن را‬

‫پیش‬ ‫بیاموزید ات ش ربید افساهن‌خواانن را‬ ‫کند اپییز گویی کیمیارگ باغباانن را‬ ‫یش‬ ‫ح کایت‌اه بود با خو تن رم بی‏زباانن را‬

‫محش‬ ‫شفی‬ ‫رست رگدم عی روز ر دلستاانن را‬ ‫مس‬ ‫رت خیزد از تقلید ریپان نوجواانن را‬

‫هماان پیش کار بخت انسازم هب تنهایی‬ ‫خم‬ ‫هچبیربگیستجاندادنهبز یزاندمخنجر‬ ِ ‫می‬ ‫آزار دلم آزرده خواهم‬ ‫عوض دارد رگ‬ ِ ‫یش‬ ‫رساغ فتنه‌اهی زرهه‌سوز از خو تن گیرم‬

‫هب لفظ عشق صد ره کوه و ردیا رد میان گفتن‬

‫نب‬ ‫ینی ربگ رز زر گشت و گل کبریت احمر شد‬ ‫لم‬ ‫ن‬ ‫رم ج از انروایی بی‌نیازی عا ی دارد‬ ‫نگیرد دیگران را حق هب رجمی زک یکی بخشد‬ ‫نداند قدر غم ات ردنماند کس بدان غالب‬

I do not claim that I have kept fresh the style of diction of spell-casting poets; However, I have seen the effect of their magic on me. (42:1) It is a rare admission by Ghalib that he has imbibed from them, though unable to replicate it fully.

I alone am the servant of my defeated fate; As I have made the kind ones tired of my repeated insistence for resolution. (42:2) I used to insist my friends solve my problems so often that they have become tired of me and given up on helping me; now, I am by myself trying to improve my bad luck.

Your divine beauty does not need rubies or pearls; You have pushed traders into fire and water unnecessarily. (42:3)

169

Rubies are red, and pearls are shiny and found in water. The beloved does not need them to improve her appearance or appeal; the traders are looking for pearls and rubies in the fire and water (matching the fire and brilliance of the two) wastefully.

What a low esteem it is giving life from the single wound of the edge of her sword; I am a victim of that boundless joy and happiness handed to hardy souls. (42:4) The hardy souls keep taking wounds and enjoying it, and because they are hardy souls, they do not die lest this stream of pleasure would stop. Those who die are the weak souls.

If there is a dispensation for the causing of distress to my heart, I plead That the hands and arms of the delicate waist beauty should murder me. (42:5) The lover wants to be killed by the tiny waist beloved but with an intensity that would tire her hands and arms.

I trace the Venus-burning troubles from my condition; The thought vessel is the pulse of action for the practical ones. (42:6) Just like you can tell a patient’s condition from his pulse, one can tell how the love melts spleen looking at my condition; Venus burning means spleen melting, which refers to extreme suffering. Whatever suffering has been doled out to me has been given to others as well.

When speaking of love, teach them about the mountains of calamities, hundreds of times; Thus, you would take her story to the readers before her. (42:7) In love, one faces thousands of difficulties, scaling the mountains of adversity, crossing oceans of storms; it is that problematic destination. Therefore, every love story must refer to mountains and rivers to express this reality in a thousand different ways. Tell this to the writers reaching out to their readers, so they can write about the reality of loving a beloved.

Don’t you see that grape leaves turned golden, and roses turned to sulfur; As if autumn has turned gardeners into chemists. (42:8) With the arrival of autumn, the leaves of grape (green) have taken a golden-brown color, and the red rose has taken the bright color of the red sun has turned everything around.

Don’t mind our ignoring, for there is a style in obliviousness; Those unable to talk have tales to tell themselves. (42:9) There is a style of communicating with others; those who stay quiet talk to themselves and discuss thousands of things wit, it is not that they do not know how to talk, but it is their style, consider it did not bid manners.

If God should pardon one’s sins, then the same sins of others would also be pardonable; I sacrifice myself to you since you will be the benefactor for the sweethearts on the Day of Judgment. (42:10) All those beloveds (the sweethearts) who have long been breaking hearts should take solace that

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they will be pardoned on the Day of Judgment; obviously, God will let go of my beloved off, but doing so he would be forced to do the same to other heartbreakers as well.

O Ghalib, no one values sorrow until he gets in its bondage; Taking lessons from the experience of the elderly brings joy to young ones. (42:11) Those who have gone through love may advise the younger ones not to get involved in the business of loving, but, unfortunately, they do not listen until they get it the first hand; however, those young souls who do pay heed to the advice of the elderly live rather happily.

43 ‫وی هب نیروی رخد رب همه رکدار تواان‬

‫ای خداوند رخدمند و جهان داور داان‬

‫هب رکم ارب عطایا هب غضب ربق سناان‬

‫هب ادا اپهی زفایا هب نظر عقده گشایا‬

‫رسو نوخواسته آسا هم انکاسته ماان‬ ‫نف‬ ‫هب قلم غالیه سایا هب س عطر فشاان‬ ‫نبود اثنی و همتای تو رد دره هماان‬ ‫نش‬ ‫ت ازلی رگ هچ ندارد خ ِط خواان‬ ِ ‫رس و‬

‫فی‬ ‫هب عدو صاعقه‌رزیا هب محب ض رساان‬

‫جای تو رفدوس م کاان‬، ‫باد رفدوس ربین‬ ‫با رکیم همه‌دان چیه مگو چیه دماان‬

‫ای هب رفتار و هب دیدار ز زیبایی و خوبی‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫هب نگه خسته نوازا هب ن بذهل رطازا‬

‫هشنشانکلبعلیخانهکتویی یوسفاثنی‬ ‫دانم از حال و مألم خبری داشته باشی‬

‫شم‬ ‫د نم رچخ تو بینی و نسوزی هب عتابش‬

‫نش‬ ‫جا ین تو کند انم رتا زنده هب گیتی‬ ‫خم‬ ‫ هب تو زیباست وشی‬،‫غالب از غم هچ رخوشی‬

O God of the wisdom and the world, a wise judge; Who could control every deed with the power of wisdom? (43:1) God knows better if what we call wisdom is enough to judge our ability to make the right decisions. There is a metaphysical argument presented here; it is the wisdom of humans—does it match the wisdom of God?

O you, who sees the beauty and goodness in behaviors; Like a young cypress tree and the moon not decreased. (43:2) Cypress trees are known for their tall stature, and beloved is often compared to this tree for her beauty; similarly, the full moon is beautiful, but it also decreases; a young cypress tree is not as

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attractive, neither is a half-moon; so if you are there to see the beauty and goodness in the behavior of people, know that they can be showing less or more of them, depending on when you evaluate them.

Raises the pillars of manners, relieves the misting of vision; Grants the clouds with kindness, shows anger with bright sparks. (43:3) Misting of vision means not being able to see clearly; raising your manners means increasing your ability to see the truth (you can see better from a height); the sparks of clouds arise because of their height. Get the bigger picture.

Comforts the exhausted ones with a look, leads the conversation with witty words; His pen is fragranced, and his breath has an aroma. (43:4) Praising the King.

You are Joseph the Third with the sign of a king in Ali Khan’s hovel; Indeed, there is neither a second one nor a match like you in the world. (43:5) The beauty of Joseph is described here.

I know that you are aware of my health and wealth; However, eternal destiny doesn’t have clear handwriting. (43:6) Praise continues.

O, my enemy, you see the turns of destiny and don’t burn in its harshness; Pour lightning on the enemy and blessing to friends. (43:7) Warning the enemies that they do not burn in its harshness means understanding; the right thing to do is to burn the enemy and bless the friend.

Your successor makes your name alive in this world; May the heaven remain, and so your place in heaven. (43:8) The King’s son taking the reins is acknowledged.

Ghalib, why do you get angry from sorrows? Silence is suitable for you; To the greatest who knows everything, don’t say anything, and you don’t pretend you know anything. (43:9) Be patient and bear the sorrows without getting angry. The right thing to do is not say anything. Make no assumption or respond to others.

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44 ‫گویی‬

‫زج دفع غم ز باده نبودست کام ما‬

‫ت‬ ‫سکین ز بوی گل نپذرید مشام ما‬

‫صب‬ ‫ای باد ح ! عطری از آ ن ریپهن بیار‬

‫رچاغ روز سیاه‌ست جام ما‬

‫رصرص هب خاک راه رساند ایپم ما‬

‫آید هب دام و داهن رباید ز دام ما‬ ‫مش‬ ‫کل هک پیش دوست توان ربد انم ما‬ ‫مباد ایپم و سالم ما‬

‫ن‬ ‫ر ج دلی‬

‫یارب هک چیه دوست مبادا هب کام ما‬ ٔ "‫"ثبت است رب رجیده عالم دوام ما‬

‫رد خلوتش گذر نبود باد را مگر‬ ‫فک‬ ‫ره بار داهن بهر هما ا نیم و مور‬ ‫گفتی چو حال دل شنود مهربان شود‬ ‫از ما هب ما ایپم و هم از ما هب ما سالم‬ ‫یین نیس‬ ‫مق‬ ‫صود ما ز دره ره آ ه‬

‫تی‌ست‬

‫فی‬ ‫غالب هب قول حضرت حافظ ز ض عشق‬

My desire for wine is nothing but a relief from sorrow; As if my cup of wine is a light in my dark day. (44:1) Nothing brings more brightness in me than a glass of wine; it relieves me from my sorrows. In my dark day means the day of suffering; wordplay comes from using light and dark together.

In her loneliness, there is no room even for the wind; Unless the windstorm takes my message to her path. (44:2) Waiting for her, my thoughts were so compressed that even the wind couldn’t pass through them; I wish she would see my message, but that cannot happen as there will be no message; now only a storm can do it; the storm also means many unmet wailings.

O morning breeze, bring a fragrance from that dress; There is no sedation from the scent of flowers for our sense of smell. (44:3) We are seduced by the smell of flowers that comes out of her dress. It may refer to the story of Jacob and Joseph.

Every time we spread grains for Huma, We catch ants, and they steal our snare. (44:4) Anyone who gets the shadow of Huma ends up becoming a king of India; we are spreading a net and providing the bait. Unfortunately, the bait and destroying our net. Points out to ironies of life. See Huma in the glossary.

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175

You said she would become kind if she heard about the condition of my heart; The problem is who will take our name in front of the friend. (44:5) The rival is saying that if the lover’s condition is brought up before her, she may turn kind, but the lover is wondering who will bring up his condition before her, hinting it to the rival.

The message is from me to myself; the greeting is also from me to myself; So there will not be any hurt over the message and greeting. (44:6) If I write to her, I know well what the answer will be, so why not just write to yourself?

Our objective of this world is the mirror of nonexistence; O Lord, no friend may be in my favor. (44:7) We want to reach a stage in life when we can understand that the world is nonexistent; we do not want others to follow our path.

Ghalib, as Hafez says by the grace of love: “Our existence is registered in the book of the world.” (44:8) Referring to a verse of the famous poet Hafez, Ghalib says that our destiny is planned on the earth. In a previous verse, he talks about finding the roots of non-existence and her belief that we are destined to be here. See Hafez in the glossary.

45 ‫شورش ازفا نگ ِه حوصله گاهی ردیاب‬

‫خیز و بیراهه‌روی را رس راهی ردیاب‬

‫خم زلف و شکن رطف کالهی ردیاب‬

ٔ ‫‌رگ هب معنی رنسی جلوه صورت هچ کم ست‬

‫اتب اندیشه نداری هب ن گاهی ردیاب‬

‫نفس‬ ‫م را هب رپافشانی آهی ردیاب‬

‫اتب بی جاده هب جذب رپ کاهی د ریاب‬ ‫جلوه رب خود کن و ما را هب ن گاهی ردیاب‬

‫تشنه بی دلو و رسن رب رس چاهی د ریاب‬ ‫شب روشن طلبی روز سیاهی ردیاب‬

176

‫عالم آیین ٔه رازست هچ پیدا هچ نهان‬ ‫فس‬ ‫ کجایی ای شوق‬،‫غم ا ردگیم سوخت‬

‫رب تواانیی انز تو گواهیم ز عجز‬ ‫رت دیدار توایم‬

‫چ ین ٔ حس‬ ‫ات ها آ ه‬

‫تو رد آغوشی و دست و دلم از کار شده‬

‫حس‬ ‫داغ انکامی رت بود آیین ٔه وصل‬

‫صب‬ ‫نیست رگ ح بهاری شب ماهی ردیاب‬ ِ ‫تی‬ ‫یا هب غی بکش و یا هب ن گاهی ردیاب‬

‫غن‬ ‫رفصت از کف دمه و وقت یمت پندار‬ ‫کش‬ ‫غالب و مکش بیم و امیدش هیهات‬

Rise and find those who are lost or going along the wrong path; And see at the courageous eyes in the state of tumult. (45:1) In your love, the lovers are lost, forgetting their destination; their courageous eyes show a violent tumult—a loss of hope. The lover is ordered to find those, learn from their condition, and take a lesson.

This Universe is a mirror of secrets, whether visible or invisible; If you do not have the strength to ponder over it, then catch the secret through your eyes. (45:2) Whatever is visible and hidden shows God’s greatness; if one cannot understand it, just look around, and you will find the answer. Catching through the eyes means looking around.

If you can’t catch the deeper meaning, the superficial image is no less; Discern the beauty of curled tresses and the tilt of the turban. (45:3) If you cannot understand what is behind the display of beauty, never mind. Cherish what you see, for it is no less beautiful than what is behind it. Enjoying the curls of beloved and her slightly titled turban (an expression of style), meaning to take the time to enjoy what appears before eyes.

The grief of dejection has burned me; where art you, O yearning desire; Discern my breath in the fluttering wings of my sighs. (45:4) The intense desire for something gives strength to live, or else sorrow and dejection take over, and as a result, the breath no longer remains. It turns into sighs (breath fluttering). The poet invites a desire to come to him with intensity to remove the sighs from his heart; give him more hope to face the calamities wrought upon him.

Out of weakness, we are aware of the strength of your coquetry; Think of your coquetry like an emerald that is pulling us like a straw. (45:5) Our weakness makes us vulnerable to your coquetry and makes us realize its enormous strength. Note, if we had the strength to bear your coquetry, we might not be as appreciative. A stone that resembles emerald is referred to here that attracts the floating straw; we are drawn towards you; the comparison is made with straw and our weakness.

How have we altogether turned into a mirror of desiring to see you? Show yourself to yourself and then lay one glance at us. (45:6) If you are not willing to manifest yourself before us while we desperately hope for it then, become manifest to yourself; lay one glance at our means, you will then appreciate us.

You are in my arms, and my hands and heart don’t function; Find these thirsty lips sitting by the well with no bucket and rope. (45:7)

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The comparison between bucket-rope and hand-heart is not coincidental; one can pull, and the other can contain. We are thirsty for your love, yet we do not know how to reach you. We do not have the tools to get to you, the tools of devotion and love; we can reach and sustain in this case.

The mirror of union is the scar of the unsatisfied desire; Find a dark day if you seek a bright night. (45:8) The joy of union never ends; one does not get satisfied with union with the beloved but becomes more desirous; greater frustration results. The union (called a mirror of the union because there are two faces in it, the one inside and one outside, representing an amalgamation of the two) is like branding by lost desires. We were hoping for a bright night and now ended up with long days of waiting again.

Do not let the opportunity slip from your hands; seize the moment; Find a moonlit night if there is no morning in the spring. (45:9) Enjoy whatever comes your way instead of waiting for something to come that you want to enjoy.

Ghalib and this struggle between fear and hope, alas; Either slay him with your sword or find him with a glance. (45:10) Ghalib and his struggle and tugs between fear and hope do not go well. Finish him off with your sword or your glance. The positioning of hope and fear are switched; he hopes he will get killed and is afraid he may not be

46 ‫از حیا روی هب ما رگ ننماید هچ عجب‬

‫رگ پس از جور هب انصاف رگاید هچ عجب‬

‫گفته باشد هک ز گفتن هچ گشاید هچ عجب‬

‫رسم پیمان هب میان آدمه خود را انزم‬

‫هب زمارم ارگ از مهر بیاید هچ عجب‬ ‫نج‬ ‫شوقم از ز ش او رگ بفزاید هچ عجب‬ ‫از لب خویش ارگ بوهس رباید هچ عجب‬ ‫ارگ از انز هب خود هم نگراید هچ عجب‬ ‫پی‬ ‫هب واف شگیم رگ بستاید هچ عجب‬

‫رگ لبم انهل هب هنجار رساید هچ عجب‬

178

‫بودش از شکوه خطر ورهن رسی داشت هب من‬ ‫شیوه‌اه دارد و من معتقد خوی ویم‬ ٔ ‫کشدم رکش هک رد رپده جام‬،‌‫چون کشد می‬ ٔ ‫رطه ردهم و ریپاهن چاکش نگرید‬

‫ت‬ ‫رهزه میرم شمرد وز پی علیم رقیب‬ ِ ٔ ‫کار با مطرهب زرهه نهادی دارم‬

‫گله‌اش رد دل ارگ دری نپاید هچ عجب‬ ‫غالب ار رخ هب ره دوست نساید هچ عجب‬

‫آنکه چون ربق هب یک جای نگیرد آرام‬

‫هس یش‬ ‫با چنین رشم هک از تی خو ش باشد‬

No surprised, if after the injustice, she inclines towards justice; No surprise, if from prudence, she doesn’t turn her face to us. (46:1) The beloved is embarrassed remembering her past behavior and now is hiding her face from the lover; this, Ghalib says, is true cruelty. Unable to reach her, Ghalib is concocting reasons she refused to unveil herself; obviously, she is embarrassed for what she did to us in the past.

She was fearful of my complaining; otherwise, she was inclined towards me; No surprise if she comes lovingly to my grave. (46:2) Fear of lover complaining comes from other hearing his wailing, and thus the beloved getting a bad name; now that the lover is dead and unable to wail, perhaps she would come fearlessly.

Proud I am that the beloved has made the ritual of making a promise to me; No surprise if she thinks that there is no harm in making promises. (46:3) Just because she has made a promise does not mean she intends to keep it.

She has different styles, and I believe in her nature; No surprise, if her resentment increases my desire of passion. (46:4) The beloved has many ways to keep the lover entangled in love with her. This includes the style of her getting angry with me.

When she drinks, I fall into envy for behind the veil of her goblet; No surprise if she is kissing herself with her lips. (46:5) Licking the lips after imbibing a sip of a good drink is common; seeing the beloved do this, the lover is wondering if she is kissing herself, and that should be a reason enough to get envious of her tongue; and who would not be?

Look at her disheveled stresses and her ripped dress; No surprise if she doesn’t pay attention to herself out of her coquetry. (46:6) The beloved is in a flirtatious mood; however, in this state, it is doubtful if she would pay attention turn to her, let alone pay attention to us.

She considers me dissolute, and after the rival’s pedagogy; No surprise if she praises my faithfulness. (46:7) When she tells the rival that the lover is ready to give his life for her, it is not a praise of the lover, merely a tactic by the beloved to woo the rival into submission and faithfulness.

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I am engaged with a Venus-like musician; No surprise if a melodious moan comes out of my lips. (46:8) Venus is also labeled as a dancer of the skies. In old times, Greeks associated Venus with dancing and music, and thus the disposition of Venus means someone who loves music and celebrations. The beloved has the disposition of Venus and sees all these happy tunes all the time, and if my wailing gets subdued, it would not be surprising. The poet is not saying that his wailing will turn into songs. The intensity of singing is so loud that he is muted.

The one who, like lightning, doesn’t remain in one place; No surprise if her complaints won’t stay in my heart for too long. (46:9) The fleeting thought of adversity against the beloved in our hearts leaves just as quickly as the passing of a flash of lightning. A comparison is then made with the beloved, who is like a flash of lightning, and thus any ill-feeling about the beloved does not stay in our heart longer than a fraction of a moment.

Because of the embarrassment that he has from his being, No surprise if Ghalib doesn’t prostrate in the path of God. (46:10) We are so humble that we do not even deserve to bow before God; so, if you do not see me bowing to my Lord, it is not out of respect but for an understanding about my worthlessness. They could be the beloved as well.

47 ‫چش‬ ‫نگه رد م و آهم رد جگر وامانده است امشب‬

ّ‫تح‬ ‫مح‬ ‫جنون مل هب صحرای یر رانده است امشب‬

‫بیابان رب نگه دامان انز افشانده است امشب‬

‫نم‬ ‫خیال وحشت از ضعف روان صورت ی‌بندد‬

‫تش‬ ‫ز رفش گل هب روی آ م بنشانده است امشب‬ ‫سمندر این رغیبان را هب دعوت خوانده است امشب‬

‫نس‬ ‫دل از من عارت جستند اهل الف و دا تم‬

‫فلک نیز از کواکب سبحه‌اه رگدانده است امشب‬

‫هب قدر شام هجرانش ردازی باد عمرش را‬

‫خم‬ ‫بس‬ ‫نم ز م تن و تر هب هم چسپانده است امشب‬ ‫ندانمشوقمن ربویهچافسونخواندهاستامشب‬

‫نج مج‬ ‫رس ز یر نون را هک می‌جنبانده است امشب‬

‫محش‬ ‫هب ر می توان گفت آنچه رد دل مانده است امشب‬

180

‫هب ذوق وعده سامان نشاطی رکده پندارم‬

‫چون صورت دیبا‬

‫هم‬

‫زهی آسایش جاوید‬

‫مس‬ ‫هب خوابم می‌رسد بند قبا وارکده از تی‬ ‫هب دست کیست زلفت کاین دل شوریده می‌انلد‬

‫مخ‬ ٔ ‫خوش‏ست افساهن ردد جدایی تصر غالب‬

Tonight, the frenzy of my love is wandering in the desert of amazement; Forlorn in my eye is my sight and the sighs in my heart tonight. (47:1) The extreme state of love is a state of total surprise or amazement; in this state, everything freezes. Ghalib calls this state amazement; we are lost in the abode of amazement.

In the excitement of her promise, my imagination has gathered the arrangements of celebration; It is like I have rolled over into fire from the carpet of flowers tonight. (47:2) The beloved had promised to visit the lover; all arrangements are in place to welcome her and celebrate a night of union; this is like having a flooring of flowers, an expression of extreme joy. However, this impatience and the fear that she may not fulfill the promise; this is like rolling over the fire. Flowers are red, and so is fire.

The panicked thoughts won’t take shape because of the weakness of spirit; It seems that the desert has spread a skirt of coquetry over our eyes. (47:3) So weak is the lover that he cannot even bring the thought of frenzy (something which requires little physical effort). Wilderness is where frenzy takes me, and it feels like the wilderness has become kind to me and kept me from wandering in its lovely style.

The boasters have borrowed my heart, and I knew That the salamander has invited those oblivious ones tonight. (47:4) A salamander lives in a fire; the anecdote goes; the word used for salamander also means ocean, and lover’s heart is like an ocean filled with fire. The promise breakers are opportunistic people who have borrowed my heart because they want to taste the beauty of love. See salamander in the glossary.

What a delight! Eternal comfort is like the appearance of fine silk; The wetness of my wound has glued my body and bed together. (47:5) Once wounds begin to bleed and blood clots, the body becomes immovable or appears glued to bed; Ghalib calls this state as if he were wearing colorful attire and feeling good about it. Notice the color and patches of blood and the fancy attire appearance. Silk clothing generally has colorful arrangements. There is a sense of sarcasm here as well.

May her life become as long as the nights of separation; The sky is rolling the rosary to start praying for it tonight. (47:6) Stars are the beads of the rosary for the sky. The night of waiting is long indeed. The lover wants his beloved to live as long as the night of separation does not end. The simile of rotating sky rosary refers to how the lover counts stars to pass the night.

In my dream, she appears, intoxicated, with the button of her tight attire wide open; I know not what spell my ardent love has cast on her tonight. (47:7) If the beloved is out to expose herself to the lover, something magical must be working for the lover.

181

Whose hands are playing through your tresses that this frantic heart has begun lamenting? Who is it that has been rattling the chains of Majnoon tonight? (47:8) Majnoon is the legendary lover, but his name also means insane; beloved tresses are entwined and compared to a chain that used to contain Majnoon. The lover is in the bondage of beloved’s tresses (they serve as chains), and now that someone else is playing with her tresses, the chained catch is rattling the chain, meaning he is extremely perturbed and showing impatience. Who would tolerate this injustice?

O Ghalib, to make it short, the tale of separation’s grief is good; On the Day of Judgment, you can recite whatever remains untold tonight. (47:9) The Day Judgment will be a long day, and there will be enough time to go into details of the afflictions of your love but keep it brief tonight, meaning in this world. Also, if there were any chance of getting heard, it would be on the Day of Judgment and not in this world.

48 ‫ّ هس‬ ‫رگ رپده تی ست هک شق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫از انده انیافت قلق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫از تب نبود اینکه رعق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫آتش هب نهادم شده آب از تف مغزم‬

ٔ ّ ‫نظاره یکتایی حق می‌کنم امشب‬ ّ ‫از می طلب سد رمق می‌کنم امشب‬ ‫بس‬ ‫آرایش تر ز شفق می‌کنم امشب‬ ‫مش‬ ‫تی ز کواکب هب طبق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫خوش تفرهق رد باطل و حق می‌کنم امشب‬ ‫آموخته را باز سبق می‌کنم امشب‬ ‫ظلم‬ ‫ی ست هک رب کلک و ورق می‌کنم امشب‬

‫م نفریبد‬

‫عکس‬

‫اهن آیینه بگذار هک‬

‫ٔ کش‬ ‫جان رب لبم اندازه ردیا یم نیست‬ ‫از ره بن مو چشم ٔه خون باز گشادم‬

‫نق‬ ‫لع‬ ‫می‬ ‫می چکد از ل لبش رد طلب ل‬

‫سخ‬ ‫انزم نش را و نیابم دهنش را‬

‫عمری‌ست هک اقنون رطب رفته ز یادم‬ ٔ ‫غالب نبود شیوه من اقفیه‌بندی‬

Tonight, I sulk in the sorrow for my inability to reach out; Even if the curtain of my existence comes in between us, I shall tear it tonight. (48:1) The poet wants to reach the reality of existence. He realizes how unfortunate it is that he cannot reach out and touch someone. He is determined tonight to go beyond and ascertain the facts.

182

To make it short, the tale of separation’s grief is good; For I am beholding the vision of the unity of reality tonight. (48:2) Reflection in a mirror is not a reality; what is being reflected is. The poet wants us to give up on knowing the reality through its reflections and instead wants us to focus on the Universal unity— God. Look only towards Him and not on the reflections of His creation that abound all around us.

The heat of my thought has melted the fire of my nature into the water; This drowning into sweat tonight is not the result of any fever. (48:3) The sweating you see on my body is because of the heat melting off my body away.

My patience is not enough to cross oceans; If I get help from wine, I can survive tonight. (48:4) Crossing oceans means drinking to the maximum extent. Life is fleeting away fast, and I am using wine to prolong my life; the next verse says that the poet is “trying,” not necessarily achieving it.

From the root of every hair, I have opened a stream of blood; I am decorating my bed with the sunset light tonight. (48:5) Shedding blood tears to bring comfort (decorating bed) in extreme distress is taught here; if you accept the sorrows of life as part of your life, they no longer remain sorrows but become your life.

Searching for snacks, the red lips are dripping wine; Thus, I gathered a handful of stars on my tray tonight. (48:6) Munchies are the snacks taken to overcome the bitter taste in wine, like cashews, raisins, etc. Beloved’s lips are desperate for these munchies and begin dripping wine from her mouth (what she had drunk), and these drops look like bright stars; the desire for munchies has produced these bright stars. Red wine, red lips, dripping due to bitter taste, sparkling drops of wine are all present here to paint the picture of beloved busy drinking wine and wine showing on her lips.

I take pride in her speech, although I can’t find her mouth; A nice distinction between falsehood and truth, I have established tonight. (48:7) Beloved’s mouth is traditionally so small it is not visible or does not exist. The smallmouth of the beloved is called falsehood, and her words are coming out sinking quickly into the heart. I can hear the sweet words coming out of her mouth but cannot see her mouth.

It has been long since the rules of joy were wiped from my memory; But tonight, I am repeating what I had learned before. (48:8) I had forgotten the rules of entertaining and celebration, but tonight I remember all those days again, how I used to enjoy—the poet remembers those rules and not the state of enjoyment.

O Ghalib, rhyming words are not my style of poesy; I am posting injustice to pen and paper. (48:9)

183

Just making a ghazal rhyme without any creative thinking is not the style of Ghalib, he says; yet for the same of tradition, he is doing it in this ghazal; there is sarcasm here since the rhymes in the ghazal are extremely difficult to replicate.

49 ‫مخ‬ ‫جهان جهان گل نظاره چیدن‏ست سپ‬

‫مخ‬ ‫سحر دمیده و گل رد دمیدن‌ست سپ‬

‫مخ‬ ‫می شباهن ز لب رد چکیدن‏ست سپ‬

‫ز خویش حسن طلب بین و رد صبوحی کوش‬

‫مخ‬ ‫نس‬ ‫یم غالیه‌سا رد وزیدن‏ست سپ‬ ‫مخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫بین هک م فلک رد ربیدن‏ست سپ‬ ‫مخ‬ ‫هب پشت دست هب دندان زگیدن ست سپ‬

‫مخ‬ ‫ز خون دل ژمه رد الهل چیدن‏ست سپ‬ ‫مخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫ایپه م رباه کشیدن‏ست سپ‬

‫مخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫ج‬ ‫الی آین ِه م دیدن‏ست سپ‬ ِ ‫مخ‬ ‫ز دل رماد زعزیان تپیدن‏ست سپ‬ ٔ ‫مخ‬ ‫رگت فساهن غالب شنیدن‏ست سپ‬

‫شم‬

‫یم گلی نوازش کن‬ ‫دیداری‌ست‬

‫سن‬ ‫ژمده‌ ج‬

‫مشام را هب‬

‫سحری‬

ٔ ‫ستاره‬

‫نج‬ ‫تو محو خواب و حسر رد اتسف از ا م‬ ‫سنب‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫نف‬ ‫س ز انهل هب ل ردودن‌‌ست یز‬ ‫قلق‬ ‫نشاط گوش رب آواز ل ست بیا‬ ‫نشان زندگی دل دویدن‌ست مایست‬ ‫ز دیده سود رحیفان گشودن‌ست مبند‬ ‫هب ذرک رمگ شبی زنده داشتن ذوقیست‬

Dawn has risen, and the flowers are blooming; Beauty, like the worlds of flowers in bloom, awaits your eyes. Awake! (49:1) The flowers are in abundance, and it is the time to look at them to our heart’s content; the breaking of the morning and the opening of flowers are compared, as well as the abundance of flowers and expanse of vision suggested here.

Caress your sense of smell with the fragrance of a flower; Awake! The breeze of morning, perfume-laden, is astir. Awake! (49:2) Let a flower bring joy to your mind instead of sleeping; open your eyes and see that the fragrant breeze is wafting around.

Find the beauty of desire in yourself and try to be like a fresh morning; The wine you drank last night is dripping from your lips. Awake! (49:3)

184

185

The wine that you imbibed last night is still dripping from your lips, meaning that you still have the intoxication; this means that you should continue drinking in the morning as well, a beautiful way to beg for more wine.

The morning star is bringing the good news of union; See how the twinkling eye of heaven is beckoning you. Awake! (49:4) Twitching the eye is supposed to be a good omen—the beloved is about to appear before us. The morning star is giving this news as the display of the twitching of the sky’s eye. The twinkling of a star is the twitching motion of the eye of the sky.

As you indulge in deep sleep, the morning is sorry for the stars; In remorse, its teeth are biting the back of the hand. Awake! (49:5) Wringing hands in remorse is expressed here; the morning is grieving, looking at us in the state of slumber or sleep; the stars are the teeth of the morning (shining, twinkling) dug into the back of its hand (meaning expressed extreme remorse). The poet is admonished not to waste time sleeping and dreaming.

From moaning, the breath is as if it is craving for the hyacinth plant. Arise! From the bleeding heart, eyelashes are picking the tulips Awake! (49:6) In the spring season, our breath is out of control (with ecstasy), and it is compared to hyacinth (which is twisted and compared to beloved’s tresses), and our heart’s excitement is compared to the spreading of tulips (they have a dark spot in them).

The ears’ happiness is due to the sound of boiling, come! The wine cup is awaiting you to drink it Awake! (49:7) The goblet is inviting you to drink it. How can you sleep at this moment? As my ears wait to hear the joyful sound of wine being poured out of the decanter, go on.

The mark of every living heart is its movement. Do not stop! The luster of the eye is born of watching. Awake! (49:8) Why have you stopped? The sign of life is motion, which determines life; the human eye is like a mirror whose shines comes because it is investigated. In other words, if there is no one to investigate, there will be no reflection. Keep moving, and do not close your eyes to the moving pageantry of life around you.

Open your eyes to the benefits of competitors; From your heart, the wishes of dear ones beat. Awake! (49:9) It is good that I keep an eye on friends’ interests; for friends, the utility of my heart resides in it staying tumultuous, i.e., keep striving.

One has a longing to keep vigil to talk about death all night; If you wish to hear the story of Ghalib, then stay awake! (49:10)

186

To talk about death all night is heartwarming; Ghalib is telling his story, so do not sleep and listen to him. Sleep and death are compared; talk about death is dear to those wishing for it as the story of Ghalib goes, the poet says.

50 ّ ‫آری کالم حق هب زبان محمدست‬

ّ ‫حق جلوه رگ ز رطز بیان محمدست‬

ّ ‫اما گشاد آن ز امکن محمدست‬

‫تیر قضا ره آیینه رد رتکش حق‌ست‬

ّ ‫شأن حق آش کار ز شأن محمدست‬

ّ ‫خود ره هچ از حقست از آن محمدست‬ ّ ‫سوگند رکدگار هب جان محمدست‬

ّ ‫سخ‬ ‫کاینجا ن ز رسو روان محمدست‬ ّ ‫جنبش‬ ‫کان نیمه ی ز بنان محمدست‬ ّ ‫آن نیز انمور ز نشان محمدست‬ ّ ‫کان ذات اپک رمتبه‌دان محمدست‬

‫آینه‌وار رپتو مهرست ماهتاب‬ ‫دانی ارگ هب معنی لوالک وارسی‬ ‫قس‬ ‫رهکس م بدانچه زعزیست می‌خورد‬

‫واعظ حدیث ساهی‏ی طوبی رفو گذار‬ ‫گش‬ ‫بنگر دو نیمه تن ماه تمام را‬

‫ّ سخ‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ور خود ز ش مهر نبوت ن رود‬ ‫غالب ثنای خواهج هب زیدان گذاشتیم‬

Truth oozes out of the speech of Mohammad; And why would it not, for God’s speech is on his tongue. (50:1) An ode to Prophet Mohammad, this ghazal carries a continuous theme. See Prophet Mohammad in the glossary.

The reflection of the moon is due to the light of the sun; From the grace of Mohammad becomes known the greatness of God. (50:2) Moon itself has no light. It is the light of the sun reflected off the moon that brightens it. God, we cannot see, but through the grace of the Prophet, we get to see the greatness of God.

No doubt that death resides in the quiver of God; But this arrow gets fired from the bow of Mohammad. (50:3) Death is in full control of God, but it is the Prophet whose association with God decides when that time arrives.

187

If you could reach to the meaning of “if this had not existed”; Then you would know that whatever God has is from Mohammad. (50:4) It is not unusual for the ode writers to elevate the prophet above God as done here. What if God had not existed can be determined from the posture of Mohammad. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “When there was nothing, then God existed; if nothing had existed then God would have/ Drowned by my existence/if I didn’t exist, what would have mattered?”

Everybody swears upon what is dear to Him; God swears upon the life of Mohammad. (50:5) I am telling all believers that God believes in Mohammad.

O Preacher, give up the discussion of the shadow of Tuba tree; Here we are talking about the stature of Mohammad. (50:6) The preacher is advised to give up the discussion of the blessings from the shad of Tuba the tree. The height (stature) of Mohammad casts a more blessed shadow. Tall stature is also compared to tree height as a sign of beauty as well. See Tuba.

Look at the splitting of the full moon in two halves; Is a result of the slight movement of Mohammad’s fingers. (50:7) Exaggerating the powers of Mohammad. Moon has special folklore in Islam, including following the lunar calendar.

And if there is talk about the seal of prophecy; It is also famous for the presence of Mohammad. (50:8) The greatness of Mohammad marks the seal of prophecy.

O Ghalib, we have left the praise of the honorable one on God; For He is the only one who can appreciate the status of Mohammad. (50:9) Only God can fully appreciate the value of Mohammad.

51 ‫خم‬ ‫ره دل هک هن ز ی خورد از تیغ تو وا نیست‬ ‫آوخ هک رد آتش ارث آب بقا نیست‬

‫می‌سوزم و می‌رتسم از آسیب ز دانش‬

‫قت‬ ‫رب ل من این رعبده با یار روا نیست‬

ُ ‫هفت اختر و هُن رچخ خود آرخ هب هچ کارند‬

‫رد کشور بیداد تو رفمان قضا نیست‬

188

‫چم‬ ‫گلشن هب فضای ن سین ٔه ما نیست‬

‫عمری‌ست هک می‌میرم و رمدن نتوانم‬

‫گویند بتان را هک واف نیست رچا نیست‬

‫عمری سپری گشت و همان رب رس جورست‬

‫من ضامن اتثیرم ارگ انهل رسا نیست‬

‫با خصم‌زبون غیر رتحم هچ توان رکد‬

‫تعم‬ ٔ ‫یر باندازه وریانی ما نیست‬

‫هن گاهم بیفزای هک رپسش هب زسا نیست‬

‫اندیشه زج آیین ٔه تصورینما نیست‬

‫ی‬ ‫پیغام غمت رد خور تحو ل صبا نیست‬

‫نق‬ ‫کس‬ ‫زک ش کف اپی ی بوهس‌ربا نیست‬

‫دل تنگ شد و گفت ردین خاهن هوا نیست‬ ‫کاندر دلم از تنگی جا یک ژمه جا نیست‬

‫غالب همه تن خست ٔه یارست گدا نیست‬

‫ٔ فس‬ ‫جنت نکند چاره ا ردگی دل‬ ‫خم‬ ‫رفیاد ز ز ی هک نمک سود نباشد‬

‫رگ مهر و رگ کین همه از دوست قبول‌ست‬ ‫مینای می از تندی این می بگدازد‬

‫ره رمحله از دره رساب‌ست لبی را‬ ‫از انز دل بی‌هوس ما نپسندید‬ ‫گش‬ ‫رب تن ژمگان تو از روی عتاب‌ست‬ ٔ ‫ردیوزه راحت نتوان رکد ز رمهم‬

The flower garden is not as wide as the meadow of our chest; The heart that is not wounded by the sword of your love has never opened. (51:1) A lover’s chest is like red flowers spread, all wounded; how can one compare this to any ordinary garden where only the spring shows blooming of flowers; the heart cannot be gladdened by it; only if your sword of love would open it. Notice that an opened, sliced heart would resemble a flower in full bloom.

Though burning in fire but because of wisdom, I’m afraid of its pain; Alas, there is no water of life in a fire. (51:2) My wisdom tells me that the pain of burning in the fire will not last long because the fires do go out; the proverbial water of life gives perpetual life; I wish the fire would burn perpetually.

For long I have been in the throes of death, yet I cannot die; In the realm of your tyranny, the decree of death is withheld. (51:3) I have been trying to die for a long time, meaning passing through moments when I would rather die every day, yet in your rule of tyranny, I cannot. This too is the tyranny; wonder, which one is crueler?

Of what use are the seven planets and the nine skies; At my death, yelling at my beloved was not admissible. (51:4)

189

190

Planets and skies are there to determine our fate; now that my beloved has killed me, why are they fighting with her in this accident. The planets and skies had assumed it was their prerogative to torture me; now that I am gone, they are fighting with the beloved.

A lifetime has passed since the beloved continued with her cruelty and tyranny; As it is said that beloveds are not faithful, but why is that so? (51:5) If the beloved is not steadfast in her love, she is at least steadfast in her tyranny. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “a calamity, a disaster, whoever you are, if only you were only made for me.”

Paradise cannot provide a remedy for the dejection of our heart; The construction is in no way commensurate with our desolation. (51:6) The comforts of paradise, if brought to my desolate place, will not make much difference. That is how deserted it is, the place of my abode.

For the lowly enemy, what else can we do except to pity him; Given that my sighs do not reach there yet, I guarantee their effectiveness. (51:7) The enemy is the rival, and the lover is praying for his wellbeing and saying that whereas my prayers never prove effective, chances are they will work out for the rival, whose condition is pathetic. Though the prayers do not work for, they will work for a rival for, he deserves it. The point is that if a rival gets well, it will be good for the lover—getting well is not what is desired in love. So, the lover is hoping that somehow his sighs will work.

Lament is through the wound that has not been sprinkled with salt; Expound your excitement because questioning me is not appropriate. (51:8) Tyranny of the beloved is like caring for the lover; it produces more pain and thus more pleasure, which the lover is beseeching for; a wound left alone is not enough.

If both love and hate are accepted by the beloved, Then the thought is nothing but only a mirror that reflects a picture. (51:9) My existence is like a mirror wherein you can see the image of a friend, in whatever form she appears, as a friend or a foe; whatever it is, this is acceptable to me. The image is the image of God, and whatever He doles out, the bitterness or sweetness is our fate and should be acceptable to us.

The goblet of wine melts from the heat of this wine; The message of sorrow is not suitable to be handed over to the morning breeze. (51:10) The message of sorrow is love filled with sorrow, which is compared to stout wine; the breeze is compared to the decanter. Stout wine can melt the flagon, so how can breeze carry our sighs? It will melt. Our message is only suitable for the heart of another lover, who will have the strength to bear these sighs. Melting of breeze is what is conjured up here in a dramatic comparison.

Every stage of this eternity is like a mirage for the lips; For those who have not kissed any footprint. (51:11)

191

To a lover, the world is attractive only when he sees the footprint of his beloved on it. Kissing these prints, the lover extinguishes his thirst; without these footprints, the expanse of this world is merely a fistful of dust. Every step (meaning every square inch) of this world is like a mirage to which we run to satisfy our thirst—it is a mirage because it does not quench our thirst.

Out of coquetry, the beloved did not like our desire-less heart; Getting displeased, she said there was no air in this abode. (51:12) The word used to describe desire also means air that is the play on the word here. A heart without desperate desire for the beloved is like a house without air—suffocating!

Turning away from your lashes is because of your tyranny; The tightness of my heart leaves not even room for one eyelash. (51:13) Turning away of lashes means turning away from the lover; the beloved has turned away from the lover because she thinks that the heart of lover is so tight (full of misery and sorrow) that there is no room for her eyelashes (her coquetry); so sad is the heart that even the thought of beloved does not fit it (contrasted with the tightness of heart).

From begging, one cannot find comfort and ease; Ghalib is entirely wounded by the beloved, but he is not a beggar. (51:14) We will never ask for the ointment that heals wounds; we may be wounded and badly in need of it, yet we are not beggars.

52 ‫اکش تو گویی رما از نظر افتاده است‬

‫بس هک ردین داوری بی‌ارث افتاده است‬

‫ره هچ ز دل جسته است رد جگر افتاده است‬

‫انهل نداند هک من شعله زیان می‌کنم‬

‫بیم ن گاه خودش کاررگ افتاده است‬ ‫پس‬ ‫زک ی گوش گل انهل رت افتاده است‬ ِ

‫ره هچ ز اندیشه خاست رد خطر افتاده است‬ ‫آیینه ساده‌دل دیده‌ور افتاده است‬ ‫انهل ما از ن گاه شوخ‌رت افتاده است‬

ٔ ‫تیغ ادا اپره بدگهر افتاده است‬

192

‫دید هک از روی کار رپده ربافتاده است‬

‫عکس تنش را رد آب رلزه بود هم ز موج‬ ‫بلب‬

‫ل بجوی قطره شبنم مگوی‬

‫خارط‬

‫ره هچ ز رسماهی کاست رد هوس ازفوده‌ایم‬ ‫از نگه رسخوشت کام تمنا کند‬ ‫او دلی از ما گداخت وین نفست رگم ساخت‬

‫یخ‬ ‫سپیش گا ن خوش نبود ر تن‬ ‌ ‫خون هو‬ ‫رکش داهنت گذاشت غنچ ٔه گل چون شگفت‬

‫ساهی رد افتادگی وقف ره افتاده است‬

‫رفوماندگان‬

‫بیخ‬ ‫حیف هک غالب ز خویش بر افتاده است‬

‫آن همه آزادگی وین همه دلدادگی‬

‫بی‬ ‫خودی رپده‌دار رپده ردافتاده است‬

‫داد‬ ِ

‫رفوماندگی‬

‫هب‬

‫ده‬ ‫مس‬

‫تی دل دیده را محرم ارسار رکد‬

There is so much injustice in this judgment that My tears have fallen off in value to you. (52:1) The beloved did not get affected by my crying. Injustice in judgment means being fair to me. Now I am wondering how worthless my tears are, and they have lost value in my view or vision; matching tears, vision, and value are used together to create an image of loss of self-respect, blaming self, not the beloved, for the injustice. The wordplay is in tears falling and tears falling off in value to her.

The reflection of her body in the water is trembling from the waves; She is becoming affected by the fear of her own glance! (52:2) A reflection is always shaky because of the movement of waves in the water. The poet calls that a trembling of the reflection being awed by the beloved; on the other hand, she is becoming concerned about her glance in disbelief.

Laments do not know that I create flame; For the fire that leaped out of the heart has fallen instantly on the liver. (52:3) Whether laments work or not, there is no lessening of passion and devotion in the heart. The heart is the seat of love, the liver, of courage; the fire coming out of love has caused me to lose the courage to walk out.

Console the heart of the nightingale, consider them not as the dewdrops That have fallen from behind the wet eardrum of a moaning flower. (52:4) The flowers have dewdrops, and these are called as covering the eardrum of flowers; these drops are not dewdrops but the laments of the nightingale, as she laments in love for the flowers; because of blocking of the eardrum of flowers, they are not able to hear the nightingale out, ignoring her. This is a good example of Ghalib’s imagination.

Equal to the dwindled assets, we have accordingly increased our desires; Know that whatever emanated from thoughts has fallen into danger. (52:5) As our assets decrease, our desires rise proportionally; but this is a sign of danger, making us lose more assets.

From your slightly intoxicated glance, “he” fulfills the desire Of the simple-heart mirror to become endowed with vision. (52:6)

193

A mirror is given life; the “he” is a mirror that has become endowed with vision or having seen the sight as it happened as the beloved looked into the mirror with loving eyes. This deep glance is not to woo the mirror but to appreciate her beauty, but the mirror entranced and became full of the wisdom of beauty.

She has melted our heart, and this has made your breath warm; Our lament is more spirited than her glance. (52:7) She is the glance of the beloved, and he is our laments; while her glance has melted our hearts, our laments have warmed up her heart; our laments warming up her breath is a bigger task because of her coldness; it is no big deal if she melted our hearts, we are always ready.

It is not pleasant to spill the blood of those whimsies; But the beloved’s sword of coquetry is not very holy. (52:8) It is not nice to spill the blood of those holding avarice of you; for us, all we need is that you look at us. It is the ill manner of your sword to use it in vain because they do not count. Ill-manned can also be interpreted as made of poor steel.

The bud envied your mouth when it blossomed into a rose; When it saw that this task was already unveiled. (52:9) The beloved’s mouth is tiny, and so is an unopened bud; when the bud became a flower, it realized that the situation of comparing with the beloved is futile; the bud cannot compete with the smallness of the beloved’s mouth.

Applaud those who have fallen in despair; The fallen shadow is devoted to the fallen. (52:10) Our shadow falls on the ground, and if we fall, it merges with your body, meaning it keeps with us in every condition; those who have fallen; support them like their shadow.

Intoxication of the heart made the eye its trusted confidant; The ecstatic delight of the veil-holder has become the tearer of the veil. (52:11) The condition of the intoxication of the heart remained within our eyes—no one found out about it. Finally, however, our ecstatic delight gave away the secret; it became the tearer of the veil of the secret of our condition.

All those freedoms from attachments, all these attachments of the heart; Alas, despite this, Ghalib is still unaware of himself. (52:12) For a good life, we have complete freedom, yet we have also fallen in love. Life was good when there was no heart attachment, and now it is not the same with these passions for the beloved. However, having experienced both, Ghalib should be thankful—why is he so ignorant of this blessing?

194

53 ‫ئی‬ ‫م‬ ‫ن‬ ‫پاه کیست‬ ِ ‫خو ی هک ی‌دود هب رشا ن س‬

‫وادی دل رزم گاه کیست‬ ‫رد رگد انهل‬ ِ

‫خون رد دل بهار ز اتثیر آه کیست‬

‫مست‌ست و رخ گشاده هب گلزار می‌رود‬

‫جا رب رکشمه تنگ ز جوش ن گاه کیست‬ ‫آرخ تو و خدا هک جهانی گواه کیست‬

‫زلف تو روزانهم‏ی بخت سیاه کیست‬ ‫چم نم‬ ‫رطف ن وهن‏ی رطف کاله کیست‬ ‫نس‬ ‫رگد راه کیست‬ ِ ‫دا ته‌ام هک از ارث‬

‫ات رعهص خیال عدو جلوه‌گاه کیست‬ ‫دانسته دشنه تیز نکردن گناه کیست‬

‫م بگ غم عم‬ ‫کاه کیست‬ ِ ‫جاان هب ن و هک ت ر‬

‫حسن تو رد حجاب ز رشم گناه کیست‬ ‫ما با تو آشنا و تو بی گاهن ز ما‬ ‫مو ربنتابد این همه چیپ و خم و شکن‬

‫سنب‬ ‫بس‬ ‫زین سان هک رس ر گل و ریحان و ل‌ست‬ ‫رکش آیدم هب روشنی دیده‌اهی خلق‬

‫با من هب خواب انز و من از رکش بدامگن‬ ‫ب‬ ‫بی‬ ‫خود هب وقت ذ ح تپیدن گناه من‬ ‫غالب حساب زندگی از رس رگفته است‬

Whose battleground is in the circle of the lamented land of the heart? Whose blood is running in the veins of the soldiers? (53:1) The lover’s heart is tumultuous with love creating havoc, a scene of the battleground; the blood running through our veins is like the soldiers fighting the battle.

Your beauty, veiled, is a whose shame of sin? From whose boiling glance there is little room left for coquetry. (53:2) The beloved looking at the lover with an amorous glance is an insult to those glances; the lover does not want this sin to be committed, and thus the beauty is not showing its act.

Intoxicated, she is going to the garden, her face unveiled; From the effect of whose sigh is there blood in the heart of the spring? (53:3) The beloved is strolling in the garden intoxicated, and her daring display has bloodied the heart of the spring. When the spring blooms, the red flowers fill it, and thus the garden appears bloodied. Here, however, the spring appears jealous. The beloved has come out in response to the lover’s sighs, and thus the lover is holding himself responsible for bloodied the spring.

195

We are friendly with you, and you seem stranger to us; Between you and God, who is the witness and for whom? (53:4) Does the world pay attention to our moves of friendship or your obliviousness and unfaithfulness? The question is asked to intimidate the beloved into being more friendly, for this is noticed more by the world before God.

Tresses cannot take such extensive tangle and twirl; Of whose daily draft is the dark fate are your tresses. (53:5) Dark, twisted tresses of beloved represent the unfortunate (black fate compared to black tresses), tangled tresses tell the story of the tangled life of a lover, and the daily newspaper is the picture of these unfortunate ones.

The edge of the flower garden with the blooming flowers, sweet basil, and the hyacinth; Whose sample of the border of headdress does this resemble? (53:6) A comparison is made with the headdress of the beloved and the garden; this is an oft-repeated theme.

I feel envy at the sparkle in people’s eyes, knowing full well That the dust of whose pathway does bring these effects? (53:7) The dust in the beloved path gives people’s eyes, and the lover is envious of this.

She is sleeping sweetly beside me but even so am I still doubtful out of jealousy; That whose splendor of beauty might be adorning the imagination of rival. (53:8) The highest point of achievement, union with beloved, is achieved; yet the lover is sulking over a “what if.” What if the rival is thinking about her as well? The meaning can be better understood if one looks at the state of the lover’s mind; looking at the beloved in lovemaking, he does not want to know that the rival can even conjure up this thought of beauty.

Sin is to quiver in the state of ecstasy at the time of beheading; But whose fault is it, purposely not to have sharpened the dagger? (53:9) It is taking longer to slay the lover; the ecstasy of being sacrificed is not bearable to be loved and is complaining about it, to which the lover says, “you should have had sharpened your dagger.” This is tantamount to suggesting, and you should have sharpened your wit.

Ghalib is starting the counting of life anew; Tell me how your sorrow shortens one’s life? (53:10) Some die lamenting their beloved’s tyranny, and then there is Ghalib refuses to die and keeps taking on the cruelties; this requires starting many lives. However, Ghalib has a hardened soul that keeps him from discharging the responsibility to death. This metaphor is repeated elsewhere when Ghalib says, “What shall I say how bad is the night of separation/Why did I not die if it were to be for done only once?”

196

54 ‫چشم‬ ‫داغم ز انتظار هک ش هب راه کیست‬

‫رد اتبم از خیال هک دل جلوه‌گاه کیست‬

‫من رد امگن هک از ارث دود آه کیست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫تش‬ ‫از انهل‌خیزی دل تش رد آ م‬ ِ ‫چشم‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ف مهر رپیوشی‌ست‬ ِ ‫ش رپ آب از‬

‫این تیرگی هب طالع مش‬ ‫یاه کیست‬ ِ ‫تگ‬ ِ

‫رد خود گم‌ست جلوه ربق عتاب تو‬

‫کاین سنگ رپرشر ز هجوم ن گاه کیست‬

‫باری هب من بگو هک دلت دادخواه کیست‬

‫ظالم تو و ش کایت عشق این هچ مارجاست‬

‫چش‬ ‫رد طالع تو رگدش م سیاه کیست‬

‫نیرنگ عشق شوکت رعنایی تو ربد‬

‫نم‬ ‫رنگ رخت وهن رطف کاله کیست‬

‫با این همه شکست ردستی ادای اوست‬

‫با چون خودی هک داور گیتی گواه کیست‬ ‫با من هب عشق غلبه هب دعوی گناه کیست‬ ‫کی می‌رسد بدین هک ردش سجدگاه کیست‬

‫گوید ز جعز چون تو خدا انشناس حیف‬ ‫ی گناه من‬

‫تلخ‬

‫با تو هب پند رحف هب‬

‫غالب کنون هک قبلهء او کوی دلبری‌ست‬

I am restless with the thought as to whose glorious manifestation is in her heart; I am anguished from waiting to see who her eyes are eager to see. (54:1) The beloved has someone else in her heart. That is killing the poet. He is dying to know who this person is.

From the ability of her stone-heart moaning; I am burning that crowding of sight is causing sparks to fly from a heart of stone? (54:2) The same theme as the first verse. The beloved is burning in love, and the poet wants to know for whom is her soul burning?

Her eyes are bedewed from the heat of the love of a fairy-like face; I think that this is caused by the smoke of someone’s sigh! (54:3) The beloved’s eyes are wet with tears thinking of a fairy-like face (her beloved); the lover is envious that might it not be the effect of the plaints of rivals; see how the smoke of plaints is matched to wetting of eyes as it happens when exposed.

You are the cruel one, and you are complaining of love; what is the dispute? Anyhow, just tell me in whose love is your heart raising plaints? (54:4)

197

198

Sacrificing myself is a way of giving good omen to someone; the lover just wants to who has taken over the beloved’s thoughts.

Lost in self is the display of your lightning of tyranny; From which destiny’s fistful of straw comes this darkness? (54:5) The tyranny displayed by the beloved has a grandeur beauty striking as lightning; however, now this lightning striking does not burn but merely smolders smoke—the luster is gone, as the beloved, herself is in love with someone; misfortune or blackened destiny as it is stated belongs to the fistful of straw held in the hands of lover meaning, the lightning of beloved’s luster failed to light it up. She is losing her effect. Darkness is used against lightning.

Your love deception has carried away the mysterious grandeur of your graceful beauty; Whose black eyes are rolling in your stars? (54:6) The beloved in love has surprisingly lost her beauteous touch; turning eyes away and the fate turning away is the play on words; whose turning eyes away from you, O beloved, has your fate been turned upside down. In your star means in your fate, not rolling to express sarcasm.

Shame it is that an atheist like you with humility You are saying to another beloved like you, of whose witness is the world a judge? (54:7) Lover’s oft-repeated admonishing did not move the beloved not to be cruel to him in the name of God, but the beloved never paid any attention to it, ignoring as if there were no God. Now that the beloved is herself in love and mumbling if there is a God to bring justice to this world (to her), it is indeed a sad moment.

In your defeat is the aggrandizement of your style; The complexion of your face reflects the crease of someone’s turban. (54:8) Pleats in turban represent a grand status, flight of color (change in complexion) shows that the beloved is in love (getting pale), and both are expressed by the two meanings of the same word. Succumbing to love, the beloved’s face has turned pale, but that too has brought a distinction to her beauty as if it were a turban with a hard crease in it. Understanding the word used to describe flight, crease, and fading of complexion is needed to understand this verse.

It is my fault that I admonish you sternly; But whose fault it is that I get carried away in the frenzy of my love. (54:9) It is difficult for the lover to see the beloved so naïve as falling in love with someone else; so, if the lover uses strong words to admonish whose fault it is, the love makes me get carried away. However, there is a hidden purpose here; the lover wants to tell her that he loves her while she loves someone else.

O Ghalib now that her Qibla is the valley of coquetry; When is she going to reach the stage to think that her door is the prostration’s place? (54:10) Qibla is the direction to which Muslims pray; the beloved is in love with someone and praying towards someone else; now, if I mention my desire to pray at her door is rather useless, why would she care about it anymore?

199

55 ‫همنش‬ ‫کاندر دلم گذشتن با دوست ینی‌ست‬

‫یاد از عدو نیارم و این هم ز دور بینی‌ست‬

‫داندهکجانسپردنازعافیتزگین ‌یست‬

‫می‌رم ولی بترسم زک رفط بدامگنی‬

‫س‬ ‫یلم هب رخت‌شویی ربقم هب خوهش‌چینی‌ست‬ ‫نج‬ ‫رد غمزه زورد ی آری ز انزنینی‌ست‬ ‫مگ‬ ‫او سوی من نبیند دانم ز رش ینی‌ست‬

‫ست‬ ‫رد جیب من بیافشان خلدی هک آ ینی‌ست‬ ‫هن گاهم‌ام اسیری اندیشه‌ام زحینی‌ست‬

‫ساز ش کایت من اترش ز موی چینی‌ست‬

‫چندان هک ارب نیسان رد گوره آرفینی‌ست‬ ‫همنش‬ ‫رد خارطش گذشتن با غیر ینی‌ست‬

‫خی‬ ‫رد عالم رخابی از ل منعمانم‬ ِ

‫مس‬ ‫رد باده دری تم آری ز سخت جانی‌ست‬

‫بب‬ ‫من سوی او ینم داند ز بی حیائی‌ست‬ ‫ذوقی‌ست رد ادایت اقصد تو و خدایت‬

‫زین خونچ کان نوااه ردیاب مارجااه‬

‫ردد شکست دل را رام صدا نخواهم‬ ‫انزم هب زودیابی انزد هب گوش و رگدن‬ ‫سوزم دمی هک یارم یاد آورد هک غالب‬

The fact that I do not bring the thought of the rival in my heart is a sign of foresight; Because in my heart, not remembering the rival is like enjoying a friend’s company. (55:1) Beautiful thought is presented here; when beloved lives in my heart all the time, thinking of rival would be equivalent to bringing her into the same abode as the beloved—that is not possible.

In the world of intoxication, I am one of the rich ones; The flood washes my clothes, and the lightning keeps striking to burn my crop. (55:2) Who would be more misfortunate than me? The flood of love and the lightning of love do the same job, take away all my assets. An oft-repeated theme involves the lightning and the crops wherein it just strikes where the crops are stored, a sign of misfortune. The lightning striking the crop is an often-repeated theme; the lightning comes because there is a crop.

I am dying but afraid that her overly suspicious mind Would make her think that I am dying merely to seek refuge in comfort. (55:3) The lover is ready to lay his life in the name of his beloved, but he is reluctant, afraid that she would not believe that it was a sacrifice of love; instead, she would likely think that dying was one way I sought comfort and that is something she would not like, so I stay alive.

200

It takes a while for me to get drunk because of my tolerance; In coquetry, getting irritated quickly is your elegance. (55:4) The beloved gets upset if the lover is not knocked off from the arrows of her beauty quickly; the beloved getting upset is itself a great display of beauty. The lover can imbibe a lot of wine of beauty, and the beloved wants to give only a little. So, the lover explains that it is due to his hardened soul (drunkards need a lot to get drunk). He just wants more display of beauty.

When I look at her, she thinks that this is from my impudence; But when she doesn’t look at me, I think it’s from her bashfulness. (55:5) Impudence and bashfulness are due to the same act, and it just depends on who is involved. The beloved does not want a lover to look at, her for it is impolite, and the lover is assuring himself that she ignores him because she is bashful.

O messenger, there is a talent in your action, O messenger for God’s sake, Slip it into my pocket, the paradise you are hiding up your sleeves. (55:6) The messenger appears happy bringing back a message from the beloved; he is hiding it in his sleeve, and the lover is impatient to receive it instantly. The anticipation is that there is good news from the beloved.

Know from these blood-dripped wailings what have I gone through; I set up sedition and chaos like Asir, while my thoughts are like Hazin. (55:7) The poet is referring to different styles of the poets, Asir and Hazin. See Asir and Hazinin the glossary.

I don’t want the pain of my broken heart to produce any sound; The strings of my instrument of the complaint are the hairline cracks. (55:8) When it develops a hairline crack, a utensil muffles the sound when struck (like a leaded goblet struck with fingers). My heart is broken, the lines of breakage appear as the hairline cracks in a goblet, and when struck, it no longer produces the resonating sound. The lover is silent and is not complaining; the instrument of the complaint, the strings, the hairline crack, and the goblet are all blended in a beautiful allegory here.

I am proud of early findings, and she is proud of her ear and neck; As if the cloud of the second month of the spring is making pearls. (55:9) Niayasan is the name of the seventh month of the Roman months, and it is the second month of spring according to Persian months. In some Islamic belief it is said that the rain produced from the Nayasan cloud also known as the Nayasan rain has many properties and effects and can be used to cure various diseases.

O Ghalib, I burn at the moment that my beloved thinks of me; For it is like I am sitting with my rival in her heart. (55:10)

201

Rival’s thought always lives in beloved’s heart; so, if beloved were to think of the lover, she would have two persons in her heart, and this company of rival is not acceptable to a lover; a redundant excuse justifies why the beloved does not think of lover often. The style of Ghalib has a fresh expression of jealousy in a remark.

56 ‫ن‬ ‫گف‬ ‫وین هک تم هب زبان مکست‬ ‫ن‬ ‫هست شوری هک فغان مکست‬ ‫مکست‬

‫ن‬

‫مکست‬

‫ن‬

‫انز رد عهد تو کان‬

‫ن‬ ‫نمک خوان تو خوان مکست‬ ‫رتیان‬

‫حس‬

‫از‬

‫نمک‬

‫ن‬ ‫زین سفیدی هک نشان مکست‬ ‫ن‬ ‫خم‬ ‫سود ز ست و زیان مکست‬ ‫مکست‬ ‫مکست‬

‫ن‬ ‫ن‬

‫انزش من هب امگن‬ ِ ِ

‫خود نمک گ‬ ‫وره کان‬ ِ ِ

‫ن‬ ‫لب شیرین تو جان مکست‬ ِ

‫رد نهاد نمک از رکش لبت‬ ‫ای شده لطف و عتابت همه انز‬ ‫انز رسماۀی دیگر ز تو یافت‬ ‫رکدند‬ ‫دارد‬

‫فغانم‬

‫رمهم‬

‫رصف‬

‫پنبه‏ی‬

‫ما‬

‫شوراه‬ ‫زخم‬

‫رگ نمک سود کنی زخم دلم‬ ‫گفتی الماس فشاندم تو و حق‬ ‫نط ِق من ماۀی من بس غالب‬

Your sweet lips are the very soul of the salt; Whatever I say is the salty language. (56:1) Beloved’s lips are sweet, but so is the delight in things salty. Her lips have both tastes. So beautiful is the salt taste that salt itself is calling them the soul of salt. The first line is what the poet is quoting coming from the salt itself.

From the envy of your lips, the salt gets its taste; There is an excitement that is yearning for the salt. (56:2) The word used for salt also means noise or cry, so Ghalib has created a crying salt envious of his beloved’s lips.

O you whose kindness and harshness are forms of coquetry; In your era, the coquetry itself has become a mine of salt. (56:3) Since a mine of salt is made from salt, it does not run out of salt, for if it does, there will remain no mine. So is your coquetry, kindness, and wrath; these will be with you if you are alive. Your coquetry is a mine of salt, and salt is coquetry.

202

The coquetry got another style from you; The salt in your food is the food for your salt. (56:4) Salt spreading itself over the food is compared to the beloved’s pride and style, spreading glory around to the style of the beloved.

So much excitement they used up in my wailing; The salt itself is one of those who envy the salt. (56:5) So much salt has been consumed so effectively (here loudly to use double meaning of the word used for salt) in my wailings that salt finds itself longing to be part of that salt.

Our wound has cotton dressing on it; From this white color, that is the color of the salt. (56:6) Cotton wool is white and salt; it works like salt to heal wounds more painful.

If you were to sprinkle salt over my wound of heart; Then this will be good for the wound, a loss for the salt. (56:7) Lover’s heart feels well when his injuries are sprinkled with salt but using so much salt is a loss of salt and a better for my wounds. Here loss of salt means a reduction in the quantity of salt available in the world.

You said that you had sprinkled diamond dust; in fact, I take pride in thinking that it is salt. (56:8) Diamond dust cuts through wounds; for the lover, this only deepens the wound but does not bring more pain; to the lover, even the diamond dust is working like salt.

My diction is my only asset, O Ghalib; Salt itself is the jewel in the mine of the salt. (56:9) The poet’s asset is his poetry, and he is his own biggest admirer, perhaps because others cannot understand it.

57 ‫ دری مهربان تو نیست‬،‫قیامت‌ست دل‬ ِ

ٔ ‫هچ فتنه‌اه هک رد اندازه امگن تو نیست‬

‫ مترس هک رد سود من زیان تو نیست‬،‫بکش‬

‫ٔ س‬ ‫مگر ز اپره نگم هک رزیدت دم تیغ‬

‫دل ستم‌زده رد بند امتحا ن تو نیست‬ ِ ٔ ‫خوشست وعده تو رگ هچ از زبان تو نیست‬

‫رفیب آشتی ده ظفر مبارک باد‬ ‫دلم هب عهد وافیی رفیفت انهم سپار‬

203

‫نگ‬ ‫بهار دره هب ر ینی زخان تو نیست‬

‫شكسته رنگ تو از عشق خوش تماشائی‌ست‬

‫شسترسموافرگهچردزمانتونیست‬ ‌ ‫خو‬

‫خش‬ ‫ن‬ ‫ز حق رم ج و رد اربو ز م چین مفک‬

‫ورگ هن موی هب باریکی میان تو نیست‬

‫زهی لطافت ذوقی هك رد بیان تو نیست‬ ‫هب چیه رعبده اندیشه رازدان تو نیست‬ ‫هچ گفته‌ای هب زبانی هك رد داهن تو نیست‬

‫بد است رمگ ولی بدرت از امگن تو نیست‬

‫هب سینه‌اتبی داغ غم نهان تو نیست‬ ِ ‫تو و خدای تو غالب ز بندگان تو نیست‬

‫شباهتی‏ست رم آن را هک ربنیادمه است‬

‫ص‬ ‫روان فدای تو انم هك ربده‌ای ان ح‬ ‫عتاب و مهر تماشائیان حوصله‌اند‬

‫خم‬ ‫دل از وشی لعلت امیدوار رچاست‬ ‫امگن زیست بود رب منت ز بیدردی‬ ‫عیار آتش سوزان رگفته‌ام صد بار‬ ‫لی‬ ‫تغافل تو د ل تجاهل افتادست‬

Many disasters are beyond your surmise? It is Doomsday, your late kindness-giving heart. (57:1) The first verse means there are no disasters beyond your reach that you cannot inflict; she knows a million ways how to torture her lovers; however, when she does turn kind, it brings more disaster to the heart of lover who is more used to being ignored. It is a disaster no matter what. It may also mean that while waiting for your kindness (which always comes late), I like a life of doomsday.

Deceive me with love truce, congratulations to you for this success; The oppressed heart is not in the trap of your experiment. (57:2) Beloved is being tyrannical to lover to test his faithfulness, but there is no sincerity in this test, for it was so this too would constitute some connection with the beloved. As a result, the lover has become despondent and telling beloved that she has succeeded in deceiving him; now you should try something else like loving me. Thus, the lover is trying to trap the beloved into doling out true cruelty.

Am I a piece of stone that would dull the edge of your sword? Fear not, kill me, for that is in my benefit, with no loss to you. (57:3) The beloved need not be afraid of losing out the sharp edge by using it on the lover, and the lover is suggesting and enticing the beloved to go on with her swing of the sword.

The promise of fidelity from you made me fall in love with the messenger; Your promise is good even though it is not from your tongue. (57:4) The lover is happy that a good message is delivered, even though indirectly.

204

The flight of your complexion in love is indeed a good spectacle; The spring of the world cannot match the colorfulness of your autumn. (57:5) The beloved is in love with someone and shows it by a flight of her complexion (turning pale), which matches more the season of autumn than the spring, yet this display of autumn is more attractive than any the spring season display. The beloved is attractive no matter what.

The only comparison between your waist and a hair is that it is the hair has not sprouted yet, Or else, there can be no hair as thin as your waist. (57:6) Essentially, the beloved’s waist is so thin that it is invisible; generally, the poet will compare her waist to hair or call it hair-thin. Now he is saying that this is not a good comparison, unless, of course, if we are talking about hair that is about to grow.

Become not distraught with truth and don’t scowl your forehead with anger; The tradition of fidelity is good, but it is not the current trait of your times. (57:7) Faithfulness is a good trait, whether one believes in it or not. The lover is giving the beloved the benefit of the doubt here by telling her that she should take it to heart and become upset if someone taunts her for being unfaithful. Though it is a good thing, yet it is not the currency of time.

O, preacher, I sacrifice my life onto you; whose name have you taken? What delicacy and fineness it brought that is not present in your statement? (57:8) The preacher is advising Ghalib to quit loving, and in doing so, the preacher takes her name though with disdain. However, this too is good enough for the lover for it is so attractive to him.

Your anger and love are spectators of the ambition of us, the lover, Or else, in any of your fights, none of our thoughts could reach the secrets of your disposition. (57:9) It is difficult to figure out the moods of beloved whether she appears in love or anger; one cannot be sure what is behind those displays—this style tests our patience. None of these displays are of any help to us in deciphering your feelings for me. The lover is confused, and for a good reason.

Why is my heart expecting so much from your quiet ruby lips; What have you said from the tongue that does not exist in your mouth? (57:10) A quiet person is called one without a tongue; the beloved is quiet as if she does not have a tongue. Nothing can be more attractive to the lover than her quiet disposition. First, it is a pause in the insults doled out to the lover and, secondly, a thought that perhaps she is thinking about him. Often the quiet tell more than the words spoken.

It is a proof of your cruelty that you have taken me for a living being, Death may be horrible but not worse than this thought of her. (57:11) The tyrannies of beloved have reduced the lover to a dead person. However, the calamity is that she still thinks that her lover is alive, which is more torturous than the death itself.

205

I have felt it for a hundred times, the fire that consumes, Compared to the heat of our chest from brandings of love, it is nothing. (57:12) The lover knows how intense the fire is that burns things quickly; however, if you know how hot our chest with your brandings is, the fire that the world knows about is nothing compared to it.

Your negligence is a proof of your being unaware; For God’s sake, tell if Ghalib is not among your servants. (57:13) The beloved is aloof, and the lover thinks it is because she does not know that he is the lover, her servant, for if she knew, why would she be oblivious to him? Just one of the thousands of ways a lover reassures himself.

58 ‫مش‬ ‫ هست‬،‫خا یم اما ارگ دانی هك حق با ماست‬

‫ هست‬،‫ای هك گفتی غم ردون سینه جانفرساست‬

‫نخس‬ ‫ هست‬،‫رگ بگویم كاین تین موج آ ن ردیاست‬

‫دیده ات دل خون شدن زك غم روایت می‌كنی‬

‫هست‬،‫چونتوخودگفتیهكخوبانرا دلازخاراست‬ ‫گف‬ ‫ هست‬،‫آنكه م ‌ی تیم ما كارموز را رفداست‬ ‫ هست‬،‫آنكه م ‌یگفتی هك خواهش رد واف بیجاست‬

‫ هست‬،‫بخت انسازست آری یار بی رپواست‬ ‫ هست‬،‫ دارد عارض زیباست‬،‫زلف عنبر بوست‬

‫ هست‬،‫وین هك می‌گویی هب ظاره رگم استغناست‬

‫بب‬ ‫ هست‬،‫چون ینی كان شكوه دلبری ربجاست‬ ‫ هست‬،‫جلوه‌گاهت را ز جانبازان همان غوغاست‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ هست‬،‫ای هك میپرسی هك غالب رد ن یكتاست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫این ن حق بود و گاهی رب زبان ما رنفت‬

‫دیدی آرخ كانتقام خست گان چون می‌كشند‬ ‫هم واف هم خواهش ما چیه رپسش عیب نیست‬ ‫باری از خود گو هك چونی ور ز من رپسی بپرس‬

‫خوی یارت را تو دانی ورهن از حسن و جمال‬ ‫صبر و آن گاه از تو پندام هن حد آدمی‌ست‬

‫عش‬ ‫با چنین قی هك طوافن بال می‌خوانیش‬ ‫هم‬ ‫اهن‬،‫رهگذارترادلوجان چنانرفشاست‬ ‫نظم و نثر شورش‌انگیزی هك می ‌باید بخواه‬

You’re saying that sorrow inside the chest is life-giving—yes, it is! We are stifled, but if you think it is our right, yes—it is! (58:1) The sorrows of love eat the lovers from the inside out, and they rarely complain, and this remaining quiet talks about their love.

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This was true, but it never ran on our tongue; Because you said it yourself that beloved’s heart is made of stone—yes, it is! (58:2) The lover is saying that he is not the one who brought the subject up, but now that she has said it, he is eager to accept it.

When you talk about sorrows, it bleeds from my eyes to my heart; If I say this is the first wave of that ocean—yes, it is. (58:3) The lover says that bleeding from the eyes and breaking the heart (getting bloodied) is just the beginning of love. Elsewhere, Ghalib says, “Why cry, it is just the beginning of a love/Let us see what’s coming forth?”

You saw how to take revenge from lovers with broken hearts; So when we sued to say there is a tomorrow after today—yes, it is. (58:4) The ability of lovers to bear tyranny will come to fruition one day.

There is no dishonor in questioning our loyalty and desire; As you say that to desire anything in loyalty is wrong—so it is. (58:5) The lover expects loyalty in return, but the beloved says that asking for anything makes the loyalty questionable even if its loyalty is deserved; the lover agrees with her.

Well, talk about yourself and how you are, and if you want to ask me, then ask; If you ask whether my fate is discordant, and my beloved is reckless—yes, it is. (58:6) What can be said more in this situation where the beloved has become oblivious to me? That is my fate.

You do know about the habits of your beloved and for the style of beauty and brightness; She has perfumed tresses and a most beautiful face. (58:7) How can you question why she acts the way she does? She has got the assets to claim this attitude.

Patience and the way you are displaying are beyond human ability to show; And you’re saying that the beloved is merely showing obviousness is true as well. (58:8) What kills a lover is the apparent obliviousness, which is impossible to bear. But, on the other hand, the patience shown by the lover is indeed remarkable, beyond human ability.

With love thriving that you label as a storm of calamity, Will remain if you see the grandeur of her coquetry. (58:9) If there is love, there shall be calamities, and if there are beauties in the world, the love shall never die.

In your path, the heart and soul are being laid, as usual; Here in this world of beauty display, the uproar of the devotees continues. (58:10)

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There is no shortage of lovers offering to lay their lives in the path of their beloved. The lively lovers keep making their presence known.

If you need tumult-creating poetry and prose, ask unhesitatingly; For you to say that Ghalib is unique in his style of diction—yes, he is. (58:11) You are asking if Ghalib’s poetry is unprecedented, and it is.

59 ‫تش‬ ‫بعد ازین گویند آتش را هك گویا آ ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫سینه بگشودیم و خلقی دید كاینجا آ ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫چش‬ ‫اكش رد م تو آب و رد دل ما آ ست‬

‫رگهی‌ات رد عشق از اتثیر دود آه ماست‬

‫تش‬ ‫می هب سارغ آب حیوان و هب مینا آ ست‬ ‫تش‬ ‫مش‬ ‫صبر تی از خس و ذوق تماشا آ ست‬

‫سلسبی‬ ‫تش‬ ‫ل و روی ردیا آ ست‬ ‫قعر ردیا‬

‫تش‬ ‫باده باداست آتش او را و ما را آ ست‬ ‫تش‬ ‫افش گوییم از تو سنگ‌ست آنچه از ما آ ست‬ ‫تش‬ ‫انهل‏ای دارم هك ات اوج رثیا آ ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫رد رشیعت باده ارموز آب و رفدا آ ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫رپده‌دار سوز و ساز ماست ره جا آ ست‬ ‫سلسلبی‬ ‫تش‬ « ‫ل و قعر ردیا آ ست‬ ‫» روی ردیا‬

‫می‌كند‬

‫كبابم‬

‫ساقی‬

‫جلوۀ‬

‫انتظار‬

‫ت‬ ‫ای هك می‌گویی جلی‌گاه انزش دور نیست‬

‫ت‬ ‫بی‌ كلف رد بال بودن هب از بیم بالست‬

‫رپده از رخ ربرگفت و بی‌محابا سوختیم‬ ‫نس‬ ‫هم بدین بت ز شوخی رد دلت جا ركده‌ایم‬ ‫رگهی‌ای دارم هك تحت الثری آب‌ست و بس‬

‫اپك خور ارموز و زنهار از پی رفدا منه‬

‫نه‬ ‫راز بدخویان فتن ربنتابد بیش ازین‬ ‫مش‬ ‫گشته ام غالب رطف با رب رعفی هك گفت‬

We opened our chest, and the world saw that there was a fire in here; Now, having looked at it, people will say what an absolute fire is. (59:1) The intensity of the fire in the lover’s chest has changed the definition of what is real fire; this sets the standard, and everything else burning is just a fire; the actual fire is in the chest of lovers.

Waiting to see the appearance of cupbearer burns me; Wine in the decanter is the fire and, in the goblet, the life-saving water. (59:2) The wine stays in the decanter until the cupbearer arrives, and the drunkards keep sulking for

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their turn. When the cupbearer pours the wine with her own hands into their goblets, it turns into life-giving—makes them alive with joy. The heart of the lover is seeing the wine sitting in a decanter with no effect on anyone. The Arabic is saying, “waiting is worse than death,” is called out here.

Your tears for love are the effect of our sight’s smoke; The tears in your eyes are like water, and in your heart, it is like fire. (59:3) Smoke irritates eyes to make them tear; the beloved is crying in love for someone else, and the lover assumes and suggests it is because of his wailings that appear as smoke from the beloved’s eyes. He then says that her tears are merely water; the real tears reside in his chest full of fire. First, this is because he is holding them, and secondly that they are emerging out of the heart. Blisters are full of water; the blisters produce the water due to the tearing of the heart.

Oh, you who are saying that the place displaying her beauty is not far; The patience is like a fistful of straw, and the desire to see the abode of beauty is like fire. (59:4) The lover has been told that it will be soon that he will get to see her; however, the patience is fleeing away from him, it is like a fistful of straw, and the desire to see her is like fire. He is wondering if he will survive reaching there. The lover is hanging on to a straw of patience, and that is ready to burn.

Jumping unhesitatingly into calamity is better than being afraid of calamity; The bottom of the ocean is like a brook, and it’s surface afire. (59:5) Calling the bottom of the ocean a brook means it is easy to sail through. This verse borrows from the famous poet Urfi; he said, “it is fearful of seeing the waves of the ocean, once you dive into it, the fear goes away.”

She lifted the veil from her face, and we got burned fearlessly; Wine is like the wind for her fire and like fire for us. (59:6) Drinking wine brightens her face as if a flame is leaping; if wine were the wind fanning a flame, and for us looking at it, we get burned as if the wine were flames for us.

There is only one mutual relationship, for which I have settled in your heart; We reveal that what is stone for you is fire for us. (59:7) Beloved’s heart is stone, and lover’s heart has the fire of love; stone, when struck, creates a spark as if stone contains the fire, so there is a connection; with the stone heart, you are holding fire, the fire of our love.

My crying is such that there is water all around the world; The wailing is such that the fire is in space, reaching the top of the Suraiya. (59:8) Suraiya means the cluster of seven brilliant stars in Taurus, commonly known as the seven sisters, a wealthy lady, luster, and chandelier. My wailings are such that a fire has leaped out from earth to the seven-star constellation in the sky; the heat of my laments is immense. From the bottom to the top of the sky can be the lover’s suffering.

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Drink it all today and leave nothing for tomorrow; According to religious teachings, wine is water today and fire tomorrow. (59:9) On the Day of Judgment (the tomorrow), drunkards will burn in a fire, but today it is just like water. It goes easy.

I can no longer bear to keep the secret of bad-tempered people; Wherever there is fire, it is the veil of our endurance. (59:10) The disposition of bad-tempered people is like fire; it is difficult to bear it, and it takes a lot of courage to go through it. We have quietly given room to her in our hearts as if it is a secret fire in our hearts.

Ghalib, I am contrasting Urfi in his style, who said; The surface of the ocean is a calm brook, and its bottom is fiery. (59:11) Ghalib is admitting to using the words of Urfi in another verse in this ghazal. See Urfi in the glossary.

60 ‫چو ما هب دام تمنای خود رگفتارست‬

‫یش‬ ‫جس‬ ‫الرغ خو م هب ریپهن خارست‬ ِ ‫ز م‬ ‫كش‬ ‫ربای تن عشاق وعده بسیارست‬

‫هس‬ ‫حم‬ ‫ از تیم هچ می‌رپسی‬،‫تمام ز تم‬

‫قت‬ ‫صالی ل ده و جانفشانی ما بین‬

‫هنوز فتنه هب ذوق‬

‫یش‬ ‫ستم‌كش رس انموس ج‬ ‫وی خو تنم‬ ِ ‫ق‬ ‫هب شب ح كایت تلم ز غیر می‌شنود‬

‫گشاده روی رتا از شاهدان بازارست‬

‫فص‬ ‫صح چم‬ ‫بیا هك ل بهارست و گل هب ن ن‬

‫هك ات ز جیب ربآدم هب بند دستارست‬ ‫فساهن بیدارست‬

‫هك خار رهگذرش پود و جاده اش اترست‬ ‫خوشا رفیب رتحم هچ ساده رپكارست‬

‫چو نغمه هك هنوزش وجود رد اترست‬ ‫هب رگد نقطه‏ی ما دور هفت رپ كاست‬ ‫تو گویی آیینه‏ی ما رساب دیدارست‬

212

‫هب خود رسیدنش از انز بس‌هك دشوارست‬

‫هب اقمت من از آوارگی‌ست ریپهنی‬

‫لخ‬ ‫غم‬ ‫م شنیدن و تی هب خود رفو رفتن‬ ‫هس‬ ‫فناست تی من رد تصور كمرش‬ ‫ز آرفینش عالم رغض زج آدم نیست‬

‫ن گاه خیره شد از رپتو رخش غالب‬

In her coquetry, it is difficult for her to reach out to herself; Like us, she is a prisoner in the snare of her desire. (60:1) Her coquetry so well entrances the beloved that she has lost control of herself, and like us, she too is a prisoner of her. If she does even think about herself, how can I expect her to think about me?

Why do you ask of my existence? I am all about hardship; I am like a thorn in my clothes because of my emaciated body. (60:2) I am myself trouble for myself; so lean is my body that it is like a thorn-wrapped with clothes, and since this thorn is pricking me, it causes discomfort.

Call upon the lovers to slay them, and then see how I give my life; There are a lot of promises for killing lovers. (60:3) Making promises individually to lovers is something that the beloved has been doing for a long time; these are false promises. She needs to call a meeting and let us all get together in front of each other, and then you will see you are the real lover.

I am suffering from the tyranny of where is my fame and honor buried; That as soon as it came out of the collar, it became the prisoner of a turban. (60:4) A man runs after fame and pride, a desire embedded in his head once the worldly desire seems to be coming to fruition. This desire comes after we fulfill our material needs, the worry about our collar (means appearance); the desire for a turban means the desire to be distinguished. Turban is a sign of outward display of wealth. If it is not one thing, then it is something else that man keeps chasing—an unending race all because of what is buried inside man’s head.

In the nighttime, she hears the story of my slaying from a rival; This troublemaking is still up by the excitement of the story. (60:5) Hearing about my suffering keeps her amused, and her style of troublemaking goes on though it has been some time when I was slain by her (embedded reference).

On my body is the clothing of a vagabond, whose Cross-thread is the thorn in the path and the thread, the beaten pathways. (60:6) Depicting a state of frenzy, the lover is running around with no worry about his clothes; the dust and thorns of the desert are his clothing—hiding his frenzy. A cloth is knitted of thread and cross-thread.

Come, for this is the spring season, and the flowers in the gardens; As your wet face is unveiled to on-lookers. (60:7) Wet face means the fresh face and is intended to call out brazen (uncovered) street ladies. The lover is inviting the beloved, challenging subtly comparing the mistress with flowers; any comparison is likely to evoke jealousy and might force her to accept it—a rare example of how Ghalib arouses female jealousy.

213

Listening to my sorrow and getting lost in the story for a moment; Well done! The deceptive nature of her pettiness, very simple and engaging. (60:8) When she hears about me, she goes into a pondering state as if she is saddened. The lover knows this is just a deception to show that she is kindhearted.

My existence is so deeply lost in the thought of her waist, Like a melody that is yet to come out of strings. (60:9) The thin waist of the beloved is often compared to a string. Melody remains “lost” in the strings until it comes out; this is certainly a remarkable comparison. The melody and thought are compared, one coming out of string, the other out of her waist, both about the same size. A common theme calls the beloved’s waist so small that it does not exist.

The purpose of the creation of the Universe is nothing but the Man; Around us, the focal point revolves the seven heavens around. (60:10) Elevating man to exalting species, repeating what the holy books call, Ghalib asserts that we are the focal point of the Universe. This concept could be carried to many other expressions (like Iqbal) where some have questioned what would have happened to God if we did not exist?

Ghalib, my sight was dazzled by the reflection of her blazing countenance; As if our mirror had become a mirage of our vision. (60:11) It is impossible to see the dazzling beauty of beloved; whatever the lover sees is merely a reflection of beloved and the beloved. Refers to God. What is seen is the world around.

61 ٔ ‫گداز زرهه خاک‌ست ره كجا آبست‬

‫هك پنبه رب رس مینای باده مهتابست‬ ‫خوابست‬

‫هم‬

‫خدا نخواسته باشد هب غیر‬

‫چش‬ ٔ ‫هك م غمكده ما هب راه سیالبست‬ ‫ز رشم بی ارثی‌اه فغان ما آبست‬ ‫چو عنقا هب دره انیابست‬

‫وجود خلق‬

‫چنین هك طاقت ما را هب انز سیمابست‬

214

‫سم‬ ‫وم وادی ام كان ز بس جگر اتب‌ست‬ ‫ن‬ ‫رم ج از شب اتر و بیا هب زبم نشاط‬

‫هب خوابم آدمنش زج ستم رظیفی نیست‬

‫ز وضع روزن دیوار می‏توان دانست‬ ‫ز انهل كار هب اكش اوفتاده دل خون باد‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ز وهم ش خیالی كشیده‌ای ورهن‬ ‫نگ شعل ٔ حس‬ ‫ه ز ه‬

‫نت هچ رطف رببندد‬

‫هم‬ ‫نگه رد آینه چون‬

‫هب رعض دعوی هم‏رطحی تو خوبان را‬

‫ندیده‌ای هك سوی قبله پشت محرابست‬

‫نس‬ ‫قوی فتاده چو بت ادب مجو غالب‬

‫ی هب رگدابست‬

‫خس‬

‫هوا ز رگد رهت شیش ٔه می انبست‬

‫نق‬ ‫زمین ز ش سم توسن تو سارغ زار‬

Since the searing air of this valley of existence is so heart burning; Wherever there is water, it is the melted dust of Venus. (61:1) Venus is also used as a sign of spleen, and melting spleen is extreme pain, as the tradition of poetry goes. Any sign of water is the remnants of the spleen of dust, meaning highly dried out. Since there is nothing but heart-rending in this world, one reaches only after destruction, any patches of water (peace).

Don’t be irritated by the darkness of the night; come to the assembly of joy! The cotton in the mouth of the decanter is playing moonlight here. (61:2) The room is dark, the bottle’s mouth is plugged with cotton, and that is the only white thing visible in the room as if moonlit in a dark sky.

Seeing the beloved in my dreams is no more than a cruel tyranny; God forbid she may not have been sleeping with the rival. (61:3) To us, it is just the dreams of her, and to rival, she is present herself; is this not cruelty? The beloved is sleeping with the rival and coming into our dream just to push us around.

From the openings in the wall, one could say; That the eye of our abode of grief is waiting for the flood. (61:4) The opening in the house walls is like the eyes waiting for the floods to come and destroy the house.

From wailing, our bleeding heart is shedding tears; For our laments were ineffective and had turned into the water with shame. (61:5) Laments were of no use, and the embarrassment started showing as a watered-down heart that came out as our tears. The crying means the helplessness and haplessness of the lover.

From imagination, he has painted a picture; or else; The existence of The Creation in this world is like the existence of Onqa, a bird that doesn’t exist. (61:6) Borrowing from the Sufi concept that what we see is a mere reflection of what does not exist. The nonexistent bird is a simile often used of a fabulous mythical bird.

Why should the direction of my eyes turn from your fiery beauty; Since my tolerance to coquetry is mixed with mercury? (61:7) Mercury keeps moving (our shifting courage); the lover is tumultuous like mercury to see the beloved,

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and the beloved’s beauty is so bright (so is mercury) that it is not possible for the two to meet.

Other beauties when they claim of contemporariness with your beauty; Their view in the mirror turns as they were straws in a whirlpool. (61:8) Others claiming to challenge your beauty are lost like a straw in a whirlpool; when other beauties gaze into the mirror before facing my beloved, then just the thought of my beloved makes them perturbed; they got dizzy. There is a lot of movement in this verse.

The earth with the hoof prints of your horse has turned goblets studded; And the air from the dust of your path appears like the decanter of wine. (61:9) Ghalib has frequently talked about the horse of beloved, and since she passed on her horse, the hoof prints look like goblets (compare the shape), and the dust has the effect of wine. So intoxicating is beloved.

When the connection is strong, there is no need for any formalities, Ghalib; Do you not see that the arch of the altar has its back towards the Ka’ba? (61:10) During the prayers, while people face Ka’ba, the alter faces away from Ka’ba, which is called the connection. Simply telling that the formalities are mere formalities, the strong connection needs it not.

62 ‫نگش ز رخام آدم و رپواز ندانست‬

‫ن‬

‫نفس‬ ‫رگد ره خویش از م باز ندانست‬

‫یك ره هب دلش ركد گذر راز ندانست‬

‫رفیاد هك ات این همه خون خوردنم از غم‬

ٔ ‫خصم از ارث غمزه غماز ندانست‬

‫چش‬ ‫ز انسان هك خود آن م فسون‌ساز ندانست‬

‫من عشوه نپذرفتم و او انز ندانست‬ ‫آئین ٔه ما رد خور رپواز ندانست‬ ‫رد انهل رما دوست ز آواز ندانست‬

‫ندانست‬

‫غلط‌انداز‬

‫ن گاه‬

‫اندوه‬

‫مشتاق عطا شعله ز گل باز ندانست‬ ‫سنگ از گهر و شعبده ز اعجاز ندانست‬

216

‫ز انسان غم ما خورد هك رسوایی ما را‬ ‫انزم نگه رشم هك دل‌اه ز میان ربد‬

‫یك چند بهم ساخته انكام گذشتیم‬ ‫نگی‬ ‫از شاخ گل افشاند و ز خارا گهر ا خت‬

ٔ ‫بگ‬ ‫رگیم هك ربد موهج خون خوا هش را‬ ‫همدم هك ز اقبال نوید ارثم داد‬ ‫مخم‬ ‫ور م كاافت هب خلد و سقر آویخت‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫غالب ن از هند ربون رب هك كس این جا‬

She could not tell my breath from the dust in her path; She was reluctant to stroll and knew not how to fly. (62:1) She treated me like dirt, paying no attention to me. If she knew how to fly, she would have taken off, but at the same time, she preferred not to stroll by me and thus acted as if my breath (sound) is like dirt flying. Wordplay on dust flying and not knowing how to fly and treating me like dirt that moves slowly are intended here.

The rival was so sorrowful for us as if our ill reputation; Is not a result of the coquetry of the beloved. (62:2) The rival did not associate my sorrow and defamation to the kindness of the beloved and became sad thinking about his own to I did not contradict him.

The laments that I raised after enduring so much pain and sorrow; Once passed through her heart, and she couldn’t get to know the secret. (62:3) The lover practiced constraint throughout his life. Only once did the lament got into the beloved’s heart, but it made no impact on the beloved.

I am proud of that bashful glance, which has ravished many hearts; But in such a manner that even her bewitching eye did not know of it. (62:4) The beloved does not realize how she kills others.

A one-time opportunity to be with her proved a failure for both of us; As I could not take note of her coquetry and she forgets how to steal the heart. (62:5) Describing obliviousness of both the lover and the beloved as they are confused at the time of union that was unexpected.

Nature produced flowers on the branches and jewels from stones; Yet, we didn’t consider the mirror of our heart worth polishing. (62:6) Nature does wondrous things but removing the sorrow from my heart, for that was much too difficult. Polishing means cleaning our wounds.

I am crying the way that my bloody tears would flood out to wash away her bedroom; For long, I lamented, yet my beloved could not recognize my voice. (62:7) Laments did not work, but perhaps a flood of tears might work. Hoping to destroy her beloved’s bedroom is almost like cursing her.

My companion who gave me the news of good luck; Didn’t know the sorrow of the look of confusion. (62:8) The beloved looked at the lover, and the rival congratulated the lover. The lover says these glances caused more heartbreak. If the beloved had paid no attention, the lover would have assumed that she did not know about his condition, but giving an ignoring look is more hurtful; she knows and continues to ignore the lover.

217

218

219

Those intoxicated with desire for recompense got entangled with paradise and hell; Those craving for the Lord’s grace does not distinguish between the flame and the rose. (62:9) Those genuinely in love with their Lord do not question whatever is doled out to them; the paradise and hell discussion is for those entangled by material things; notice the comparison of rose (paradise) and hell (fire) in a wordplay.

Ghalib, you should take your poetry outside India, since here no one; Differentiates between a stone and a jewel, or magic and a miracle. (62:10) The poet is lamenting a lack of appreciation in the homeland.

63 ‫گ ی طلس‬ ‫وی‬

‫م شش جهت آیینه خاهن‌ای‌ست‬

ٔ ‫ره رذه محو جلوه حسن ی گاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫پنداشتم هك حلق ٔه دام آشیاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫ساختم‬

‫چون گوره از وجود خودم آب و داهن‌ای‌ست‬ ‫لم‬ ‫ره عا ی ز عالم دیگر فساهن‌ای‌ست‬ ‫گلگون شوق را رگ گل اتزیاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫قف‬ ‫ره ربگ اتك ل رد شیره خاهن‌ای‌ست‬ ‫ره قطره از محیط خیالت ركاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫داغم ز روزگار و رفاقت بهاهن‌ای‌ست‬ ‫رگد ره و هوا رس زلفی و شاهن‌ای‌ست‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم هك جبهه را هوس آستاهن‌ای‌ست‬

‫حیرت هب دره بی رس و اپ می‌ربد رما‬ ‫صیاد‬

‫تغافل‬

‫با‬

‫انچار‬

‫اپ بست ٔه نورد خیالی چو وارسی‬

‫فص‬ ‫گسی‬ ‫خود داریم هب ل بهاران عنان خت‬

‫ره سنگ عین اثبت ٔه آبگینه‌ای‬ ‫ره رذه رد رطیق وافی تو منزلی‬

‫كش‬ ٔ ‫لم‬ ‫رد رپده تو چند م انز عا ی‬ ‫وحشت چو شاهدان هب نظر جلوه می‌كند‬ ‫غالب درگ ز منشاء آوارگی مپرس‬

Every particle is absorbed viewing the display of that unique beauty; As if this is a magical mirror-house with six directions. (63:1) A mirror-house plastered with thousands of mirrors reflects myriad images of beauty, mesmerizing every particle of the Universe at its beauty. The Six Directions means four walls, the floor, and the ceiling. The verse points to the need to understand from what we see around us—every element of nature is around us.

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Amazement is taking me to the state of roguishness; Like the pearl, I get my provisions from my existence. (63:2) A pearl inside an oyster with shining walls produces the concept of being in amazement (which comes from frozen images in a mirror—a simile). I am just as amazed as a pearl appears amazed inside the oyster. The poet is asserting since the pearl grows out of its material (multiplying within), so do I obtain provisions of sustenance from myself. We are both stunned and able to sustain ourselves on our own. A drop entering the pearl is also called roguish by Ghalib elsewhere.

Helplessly I compromised with the negligence of the fowler; I had begun to think that the ring of the snare is a nest. (63:3) Once caught in the snare of her love, I am like a bird caught and left in the net to calm down—I too have settled in accepting this to be my fate.

Wrapped up in your wandering thoughts, when you would reach to the bottom of it; Then you would know that every new world is merely a story of the other world. (63:4) Reaching to the bottom of thought means that when you would be wise enough, you would know that there is continuity among the entire Universe. I am not sure if it also means here and hereafter, but the thought of Ghalib is so far advanced in this expression; connecting the dots of the Universe would tell it all came from one source, a theory that was adduced decades after Ghalib passed away.

With the arrival of the spring season, my self-control has broken its reins; For the clever steed of passion, the vein of the rose is a whip. (63:5) Clever steed was also the name of Shirin’s horse (of Farhad fame); wordplay with Urdu word used for Shirin’s horse rhyming (gulgoon) with “gul” or flower is used; with the blooming of roses, I have given up all pride as I became intoxicated with Spring. Self-control is also meant here, pride in self.

Every particle of stone is proving to be a complete decanter; Every leaf of the grapevine is a lock for the wine house. (63:6) Every stone appears to be decanter—meaning thought of wine everywhere; the leaves of grapevines appear if they are the locks on the door to the house of sweetness, meaning a tavern. Since the grapevine produces wine, its leaves open the way to wine. The shame of leaves also looks like a lock.

Every particle in the path of your fidelity has become destiny; And each drop of the ocean of your thought has come ashore. (63:7) When destiny appears infinitely, it indicates an infinite path; every drop of your thought appears like a shore, giving us hope.

For how long I should bear the world’s coquetry for your sake? Burned by destiny and the sorrow of your separation is merely an excuse. (63:8) The world’s sorrows are almost inevitable, while the sorrows of passion I get from my beloved

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‫‪keep demanding; I must bear both. Elsewhere Ghalib said, “Had there not been the sorrow of‬‬ ‫”‪passion, the sorrow of livelihood would have been there.‬‬

‫;‪Frenzy, like the splendor of lovely fair ones, is visible all around‬‬ ‫)‪The dust of the pathway is like her tresses and the wind its comb. (63:9‬‬ ‫‪Running madly in wildernesses, the lover sees the tracks as her tresses and the wind rearranging her‬‬ ‫‪tresses, wild imagination.‬‬

‫;‪Ghalib, don’t ask again why I wander so restlessly‬‬ ‫)‪I said, my forehead seeks a threshold to bow down upon. (63:10‬‬ ‫‪I am wandering to find out my beloved’s threshold; annoy me not by keep asking what I am doing.‬‬

‫‪64‬‬ ‫هی‬ ‫تست چكسازفلكنخواست‬ ‫رههچفلكنخواس ‌‬

‫نج‬ ‫رظف فقیه می ست باده ما زگک نخواست‬

‫جاه ز علم بی‌خبر علم ز جاه بی‌نیاز‬

‫هم محك تو زر ندید هم زر من محك نخواست‬

‫رغهق هب موهج اتب خورد تشنه ز دجله آب خورد‬

‫شحن ٔه دره رب مال ره هچ رگفت پس نداد‬ ‫مس‬ ‫خون جگر هب جای می تی ما قدح نداشت‬ ‫زاهد و ورزش سجود آه ز دعوی وجود‬

‫بحث و جدل هب جایمان میكده جوی كاندران‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫گشته رد انتظار پور دیده ریپ ره سفید‬ ‫حسن هچ كام دل دهد چون طلب از رحیف نیست‬

‫رخهق خوش‌ست رد ربم رپده چنین خشن خوش‌ست‬

‫رند زهار شیوه را طاعت حق رگان نبود‬

‫سه‬ ‫ل شمرد و رسرسی ات تو ز جعز نشمری‬

‫زحمت چیه یك نداد راحت چیه یك نخواست‬

‫كاتب بخت رد خفا ره هچ نوشت حك نخواست‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫انهل دل‪ ،‬نوای نی رامش ما غچك نخواست‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫ات زند ارهمن رهش بدرهق ملك نخواست‬

‫نف ج‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫كس س از مل زند كس ن از فدك نخواست‬

‫رد ره شوق همرهی دیده ز رمدمك نخواست‬ ‫خست ن گاه رگ جگر خسته ز لب نمك نخواست‬

‫عشق هب خار خار غم ریپهنم تنک نخواست‬

‫مش‬ ‫لیك صنم هب سجده رد انصیه ترك نخواست‬ ‫غالب ارگ بداوری داد خود از فلك نخواست‬

‫;‪Whatever the sky did not want to give, no one asked for it‬‬ ‫)‪The bowl of the canonist didn’t ask for wine, and our wine didn’t ask for any snack. (64:1‬‬

‫‪223‬‬

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Nature provides according to the need; a religious jurist is a devout Muslim (canonist) who does not drink thus gets no wine while we do not need any snacks to change our taste of mouth as drinking continuously. Sweet candy is like treats used while drinking to enhance the flavor of the wine.

Those drowning got whipped by the waves, and those thirsty drank well from the Dejleh river; It didn’t bother the other, and the other didn’t need anyone’s comfort. (64:2) Neither the suffering nor the joys of one can be traded with others.

Status is unaware of knowledge, and knowledge is needless of the status; Neither your touchstone saw my gold, nor my gold needed your touchstone. (64:3) Those with rank are oblivious to the value of knowledge, but one needs to be unique to gain understanding; a touchstone is useless by itself, but gold does not require a touchstone to prove its worth. The gold is knowledge.

The policeman of the world never returned what he openly took; The destiny writer didn’t want to expose whatever he wrote in secret. (64:4) Once the time grabs anything, it never returns like the time bygone. And whatever is meted out to us by fate remains fixed.

Liver’s blood instead of wine, our intoxication did not need a wine goblet; Heart’s lament, a flute’s melody – a song that needs no lute. (64:5) We kept drinking liver’s blood and stayed intoxicated, and there was no need to use a wing goblet for this drink. Our laments were the only melody we could offer, but they did not need a musical implement to play. Laments cannot be turned into musical notes. The heart is the seat of passion, liver, and a core of perseverance. Drinking the liver’s blood means we have given up on any resistance to the beloved.

The devout and their exercises of prostration; alas, his claim of haughtiness; Satan did not mislead him until he stopped seeking the leadership of angels. (64:6) He refers to Adam and the Quranic lore of listening to Satan and eating the forbidden fruit. The devout in this world, who are proud of their prostration and repeated prayers, are like those who gave up the teaching of the angels who show the right path. There is no need to take pride in your prayers to the Lord; it makes you a dear child of Satan. This is a deep verse, challenging the attitude of those who think that once they have discharged the duty to the Lord, praying five times a day, they have the freedom to commit any sin. The prayer ritual is not elaborated in the Quran; it is part of the Hadith or sayings of the prophet Mohammad.

Abandon disputations; seek the tavern; for in there; No one will want to waste his breath on Fadak or Jamal. (64:7) Jamal referred to the battle when the wife of a prophet rode the camel (Jamal) to fight Ali, and Fadak refers to the dispute on the garden of dates that Fatima bint-e-Asad (Fatima, the daughter of Asad) had claimed; these two disputes are the core of the Shia and Sunni conflict in the two sects

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of Islam. Soon after Prophet Mohammad’s death, a feud arose wherein the prophet’s son-in-law, Ali, was side-lined by the successor to prophet Abu Bakar. A fight broke as the prophet’s wife took to fight for her son-in-law; failing to do so, the believers split into those believing that Ali should have been the successor. Over time, this political rift produces the Shia sect that is still fighting with Sunnis, who followed Abu Bakar.

Waiting for his son, the older man in waiting lost his eyesight; In his desire, he did not even demand companionship from the pupil of the eye. (64:8) Referring to the folklore of Joseph and Jacob, Jacob lost his eyesight crying for Joseph; not like the companionship of the pupil probably means he lost it already.

When the opponent doesn’t demand, then how can the beauty fulfill its desire; While the lover got wounded by the sight of the beloved, the wounded lover didn’t ask for salt. (64:9) The opponent is the passion, which is not demanding, so why should the beauty oblige? The beloved wounded the liver, and the lover wanted salt but could not ask for it. He should not expect any for the beloved thought there is no need—that he has been wounded is enough. A tired look is not an expression of obliviousness but the more amorous display of a half-opened eye, which is more attractive to the lover.

Only rags look good as attire on my body, for they are like a curtain, thick and rough; Thus passion did not desire a light attire, while tumultuous, in the hands of sorrow. (64:10) Thick attire like curtain fabric serves as a veil for my sorrow of passion as it can better hide the wounds; skimpy attire might have shown through my brandings.

To dissolute like us to worship God would be no burden; But she, our idol, will not share the tribute due to her. (64:11) There are many faces to a drunkard’s personality—he can be just as happy prostrating before God, but the self-centered and arrogant beloved would not want anyone else to be shown the respect— only she should be treated like a god.

He regarded it as a slight and vain; you should not attribute it to his humility; If Ghalib did not seek justice from the judge of the Heavens. (64:12) If Ghalib did not pay heed to get justice, think not this as his humility; he did it because he considered this an exercise in vain and ridiculous.

65 ‫رفقی‌ست رد میاهن هك بسیار انزك‌ست‬

‫آهسته اپ نهم هك رس خار انزك‌ست‬

226

‫ما الرغیم رگ كمر یار انزك‌ست‬ ‫نهادرت‬

‫انزك‬

‫آبله‬

‫ز‬

‫دلی‬

‫دارم‬

‫نس‬

‫بش‬

‫جن‬

‫ما را چو ربگ گل رد و دیوار انزك‌ست‬

‫یم رفو رزیدی ز هم‬

‫ما سخت جان و لذت آزار انزك‌ست‬

‫هم‬ ‫زحمت كشید و آن ژمه ربگشت چنان‬

‫غافل قماش طاقت كهسار انزك‌ست‬ ٔ ‫گل رپ زمن هك گ‬ ‫وهش دستار انزك‌ست‬ ‫اتب كمند كاكل خمدار انزك‌ست‬

‫آیینه را ببین هك هچ مقدار انزك‌ست‬

‫اهن شكوه‌ای هك خارط دلدار انزك‌ست‬ ‫غالب دل و دماغ تو بسیار انزك‌ست‬

‫از‬

‫با انهل‌ام ز سنگدلی‏اهی خود مناز‬ ‫رتا‬

‫خودآرائی‬

‫رسوائی‬

‫مباد‬

‫رتسم تپش ز بند ربون افکند رما‬

‫از جلوه ان گداختن و رو نساختن‬ ‫مل ما رب جفای خویش‬

‫تح‬

‫می‌رنجد از‬

‫از انتوانی جگر و معده باك نیست‬

If the waist of a lover is thin, then we are frail too; The difference between the two is that her waist is very delicate. (65:1) A thin waist is a sign of beauty; at times, Ghalib talks about a non-existent waist; the reference is to the beauty of the Universe. One of Ghalib’s favorite similes.

My heart is more tender than the blister; I put my foot down gently, for the tip of the thorn is very sharp. (65:2) If my foot comes over a thorn, it will rupture my blisters and relieve the pain; my tender heart (here wordplay compared one emotional tenderness to a physical tenderness) will not tolerate it, as this act might be inconvenient to the thorns; this is an excuse provided to keep thorns away from the blisters in the feet.

In the wafting of the breeze, we fall into pieces; Delicate like the petals of the rose are our doors and walls. (65:3) A description of the delicateness of his home, like the petals of the rose they fall apart. The breeze is beloved’s impression, and the doors and walls are our resistance to it.

Take no pride in your stone heart, hearing my wailings; Beware the endurance of this mountain is weak. (65:4) First, he calls the beloved stone-hearted, then calls it a mountain (made of stone) and calls it fragile.

The eyelashes took the trouble of looking and then turned away; We have hardened souls, and the joy of torture is short. (65:5) There was no need for her to bear the inconvenience of raising her eyelashes; we are a hardened soul; she should not try hard, for she is delicate and the task of giving us the relish of torment tough.

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This is because whatever she gives to us is acceptable, and it cannot fulfill our suffering needs.

There is no disgrace in putting makeup on yourself; Put not too many flowers in your turban’s edge, for it is somewhat fragile. (65:6) The lover does not want the beloved to decorate herself, which might bring the attention of others to make him jealous; If the turban is loaded with flowers, it might fall and bring shame to the beloved.

I am afraid that my heartbeat throws me out of the lasso; The twists and turns of the beloved’s curved tresses are delicate. (65:7) The lasso is made of her tresses; my tumultuousness may be too much for her, and she may look through me out of the lasso; the heat of heart and melting of the binding of the lasso is brought because heat causes hair to become fragile.

It does not melt from her display, nor does it feel ashamed on its face; Look at the mirror how delicate it is? (65:8) Anyone looking at the beloved melts, but it does not melt when the beloved faces the mirror—so calling the delicate mirror means how low or base it is.

It saddens her that we endure her cruelty; Indeed, we should complain, for that beloved’s nature is gentle. (65:9) To ensure she does not get too worked up and suffer, we should complain at least a little bit, even if for a show; otherwise, we can bear all she gives.

If your liver and stomach are weak, then fear not; But Ghalib, your heart and mind are subtle as well. (65:10) One can live with physical ailments but not those of emotions. Even though the liver is often used as a simile for courage as well.

66 ‫زك لبش نوا ره دم رد رشر فشانی‌اهست‬

‫تش‬ ‫امشب آ ین رویی رگم ژندخوانی اهست‬ ِ

‫نم‬ ‫این هك من ی‌میرم هم ز انتوانی‌اهست‬

‫م نگسلد روان از تن‬

‫هم‬ ‫چشمه چو آیینه افرغ از روانی‌اهست‬

‫حس‬ ‫ات چها ردین ریپی رت جوانی‌اهست‬ ‫مهربانی‌اهست‬

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‫گفت‬

‫دلفریبی‌اه‬

‫دید‬

‫ات رد آب افتاده عكس قد دلجویش‬ ‫ضعف‬

‫رد كشاكش‬

‫پش‬ ‫از خمیدن تم روی رب قفا باشد‬ ‫یش ست‬ ‫كشت ٔه دل خو م زك مگران یك رس‬

‫با رگان ركابی‌اه خوش سبك عنانی‌اهست‬

‫سوی من نگه دارد چین فکنده رد اربو‬

‫چش‬ ‫م حسر رپدازش باب نكته‌دانی‌اهست‬

‫شوخیش رد آیینه محو آ ن دهن دارد‬

‫شم‬ ‫اهنواهن!خداد ن!این هچ بدامگنی‌اهست‬ ‫وه هچ دل ربائی‌اه هی هچ جانستانی‌اهست‬

‫مس‬ ‫كار ما ز رس تی آستین فشانی‌اهست‬ ‫رب رسم ز آزادی ساهی را رگانی‌اهست‬

‫با ظهوری و صائب محو همزبانی‌اهست‬

‫دایم از رس خاکم رخ نهفته بگذشتن‬

‫بس‬ ‫بس‬ ‫با عدو عتا تی وز منش حجا تی‬ ‫هس‬ ‫با چنین تهیدستی بهره هچ بود از تی‬

‫ای هك اندرین وادی ژمده از هما دادی‬ ‫نجم‬ ‫ذوق فكر غالب را ربده ز ا ن بیرون‬

Tonight, a fiery face of busy reciting the holy book of Zend Avesta; That the call is arising out of those lips is spewing the fire every moment. (66:1) Zend Avesta is the holy book of Zoroastrians who worship fire. She has a fiery face, and her words appear as spewing fire—all this wordplay is based on Zoroastrians’ practice of worshiping fire.

Since the reflection of her heart-ravishing figure shows in the water; The brook, same as a mirror, has ceased to flow. (66:2) The mirror is called a frozen state, and in surprising form, when the beloved’s shadow of tall stature fell in the flowing water, the brook froze as if this were a mirror.

Even though entangled with my frailty, my soul is unable to leave my body; Not dying away is also because of my lack of strength. (66:3) How weak one has to be to squeeze the soul so badly inside the body that it is unable to leave—a remarkable example of exaggeration.

Because of the bending of my back, I am facing backward; At this old age, there is so much deep desire for the youth! (66:4) When we bend down, we could see between our legs and thus the description of facing backward; looking backward is then related to looking back at our youth and the sorrow of knowing how so many of the desires of youth remain unfulfilled.

I am slain of my own heart for those it loved were ever cruel to it; It saw their sweet deceptions and said, ‘These are kindnesses!’ (66:5) My heart just kept getting convinced of the kindnesses, which were deceptions to kill me.

She has cast a glance towards me, but with a scowl on her brow; With such a heavy stirrup, how light-reined is she? (66:6)

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230

231

She is looking at the lover with a scowl on her face; the shape of a scowl can be like a stirrup. There are two reasons for having a smirk; it is either anger or attention. She is dealing swiftly with me like holding a rein loosely, meaning listening to me attentively while keeping the frown on her face; a complicated harness would signify anger. The poet has made the entire verse around the shape of a scowl and many of his presumptions.

Always hiding the face when passing my grave; Indeed, O the enemy of God, what is this suspicion? (66:7) The beloved passes by the lover’s grave, hiding her face; he is wondering why this grudge is necessary—what is it that I can do now? Calling her enemy of God means that while God forgives, you do not, going against the virtues of God.

She is absorbed in watching her coquetry in the mirror; Her bewitching eye is a door to a world of punctiliousness. (66:8) Punctilious means making a point with many styles; she keeps absorbed in herself at her coquetry using a different style.

There is wrath for the enemy while taking veil against me; How strange is heart-ravishing, and how unusual is heart-killing! (66:9) While she is angry with the rival, at least she is connecting with him; while with me, she is taking the veil—complaining about breaking heart and cruelty getting mixed up. It is cruel that she does not show anger to me.

With all this empty handedness, what is the benefit from existence? The only thing left for us to do is to shake our sleeves in intoxication. (66:10) With all assets gone, what is the purpose of life left? Shaking the sleeve is an idiom used to show there is nothing to offer and doing it in a stage of intoxication is the only way to survive in this state.

O You, who gave us the good news of the existence of Huma in this land; But I am free, and its shade will only be a burden on my head. (66:11) Anecdotal Huma (a mythical bird, ala Phoenix) sheds its shadow on anyone, and he gets the greatest fortunes, including at one place Ghalib says, “Making you a King of India.” In this case, letting the shadow of Huma pass over my head will be an unnecessary obligation to me, as I do not need it.

The joy of brainwork has brought Ghalib out of the assembly; He indulged himself in the style of Zohouri and Sa’eb. (66:12) Sa’eb Tabrizi and Zohouri were Persian poets and their names have found the highest frequency among the names of Iranian poets in Ghalib’s poetry. (See glossary for Zohouri and Sa’eb.)

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67 ‫اترش ز هم گسسته و پودش نمانده است‬

‫است‬°‫جیب رما دموز هك بودش نمانده‬

‫آه از توقعی هك وجودش نمانده است‬

‫نم‬ ‫تظلم‬ ‫داد از ی هك هب گوشت ی‌رسد‬

‫تش‬ ‫دلاپرهآ ‌یستهكدودشنماندهاست‬ ‫گویی درگ هبوط و صعودش نمانده است‬

‫زك چیه رو امید گشودش نمانده است‬

‫انزی هك رب وافی تو بودش نمانده است‬ ‫ردد رس قیام و قعودش نمانده است‬ ‫حم‬ ‫ر ی مگر هب جان حسودش نمانده است‬

‫كار از زیان گذشته و سودش نمانده است‬

‫اما دماغ گفت و شنودش نمانده است‬

‫رسرگمی خیال تو از انهل بازداشت‬ ‫ اخترِ سیه از سیر باز ماند‬،‫چون نقطه‬

‫مكتوب ما هب اتر ن گاه تو عقده‌ای‌ست‬ ‫ٔ ستم‬ ‫دل را هب وعده ی می‌توان رفیفت‬

‫افتادگی نماز دل انتوان ماست‬

‫نجم‬ ‫دل جلوه می‌دهد هنر خود رد ا ن‬ ‫دل رد غم تو ماهی هب رزهن سپرده‌ای‌ست‬ ‫غالب زبان ربیده و آگنده گوش نیست‬

Stitch not my collar for it no longer exists; Its weft is scattered, and its warp is all gone. (67:1) One cannot repair a piece of cloth if it is so severely shattered that both the weft and warp are gone—it has been ripped to pieces.

The amusement of your thought kept me from lamenting; My heart is that piece of fire where the smoke did not remain. (67:2) Since I could not let plaints air, the suffocation caused the elements of fire lit to stop smoking, meaning they no longer burn.

Scream for the grievance that did not reach your ears! Alas for the hope that its existence did not remain. (67:3) As you ignored my wailing, I became hopeless of ever finding a resolution to my hurt. All expectations from the beloved are gone now.

The black star of our fate remained fixed like a dot in one place; It looks like the fall and rise of it did not remain. (67:4)

233

The star of fate is known to revolve to bring us good times and bad times. We are now permanently doomed with that star fixed, as denoted by calling it a black star. There is no shine in a black star— or we can call it a black hole. It is now a permanent black fate.

My letter in the line of your sight is like a knot; For which there is no hope of being undone. (67:5) Ghalib often describes sight as a thread that is coming out of eyes. There is a knot in that line of sight caused by my letter that brought your wrath. It is also challenging to remove a tight knot in a thread or a wire, as we know.

A cruel promise can deceive the heart; For the pride it had in your fidelity did not remain. (67:6) The only way the heart could be satisfied was knowing that I am the target of your cruelty; with your promise to remain went my pride in your fidelity of being cruel.

Self-effacement is like the prayer of my frail heart; The headache of standing and sitting in the prayers did not remain. (67:7) Our falling (when offering prayers, Muslims also prostrate) is like prayers in the state of sadness; if this is considered our prayer, then the rituals of standing and sitting during prayer are gone. A saddened heart point towards God, and He is not interested in our ritualistic prayers. This is a profound verse.

The heart manifests the splendor of its skillful art in the assembly; The compassion for the envious soul did not remain. (67:8) The way the lover is expressing his love in the assembly is causing much grief to rivals.

In your grief, my heart surrendered its wealth to the bandit; Thus the issue of sorrow for loss did not remain. (67:9) When wealth is gone, worries of preserving it also go away with it. Sorrow comes when you lose what you have—so now having given all to the highway robber, that concern is gone; and also, there remains no prospect of any profit, so any efforts to cultivate it are also gone.

It is not that Ghalib’s tongue has been cut, or that his ears have been shut; It is just that his desire for conversation did not remain. (67:10) Ghalib can still know your intention and respond; he is so tired that he would instead not engage. There are times when it is best to stay silent.

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68 ‫مش‬ ‫لپسند نیست‬ ‫آسوده زی هك یار تو ك ‏‬

‫بلب‬ ٔ ‫ل دلت هب انهل خونین هب بند نیست‬

‫بشكس‬ ‫تی و رتا هب‬

‫عهد واف ز سوی تو اناستوار بود‬

‫تلخاب رگهی را نمك زرهخند نیست‬ ‫شكس‬

‫تن زگند نیست‬

‫رگ تیغ رد امكن هب نشاط كمند نیست‬

‫گو رشمسار دعوت انسودمند نیست‬ ‫رب خوان خود «ان ی كاد » هك ما را سپند نیست‬ ‫ش‬

‫بگیر ررهوان تمنا بلند نیست‬

‫بی غ‬ ‫اندیشه ش‌ست نیازم هب پند نیست‬

‫خط ایپهل را رقم چون و چند نیست‬ ‫غیر از رشاب و انبه و ربافب و قند نیست‬

‫م رد ذماق من‬

‫غم‬

‫اندازه‏گیر ذوق‬

‫می‬ ‫كش غن‬ ‫ازدوست لرقبهب تن یمتست‬ ‫رب باد تو كدام رپیخوان بخور سوخت‬ ‫مح‬

‫ل نماند‬ ‫غنوده‌اند‬

‫آن الهب‌اهی مهرزفا را‬

‫طوبی‬

ٔ ‫ساهی‬

‫زبری‬

‫بی‬ ‫خود‬

‫هن گاهم دلکش‏ست نویدم هب خلد چیست‬ ‫می نوش و تكیه رب ركم ركدگار كن‬ ‫غالب من و خدا هك رسانجام ربش گال‬

O nightingale, your heart is not bound to bloody laments; Live in peace, for your lover is not hard to please. (68:1) Lovers come across a variety of cruelties because of the difficult nature of the beloved; the nightingale must deal with a simpleton flower—much easier to live with.

From my taste, you will come to know of my joy for sorrow; In my bitter tears, there is no salt of a sarcastic smile. (68:2) While the lover drowns in sorrow, there is no bitterness of poison on his lips, meaning he is not complaining.

The promise of fidelity from you was not firm; You broke the promise, and there is no loss in it for you. (68:3) Elsewhere Ghalib talks about knowing well how weak the pledge is of beloved because she is so delicate.

Getting killed desiring for closeness with the beloved is priceless; Although, the sword in the bow is not as joyful as the snare. (68:4) If the beloved catches the lover in a trap, she leaves him and gets away from him. If she intends to kill him, then she has no choice but to come close to him.

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Which fairy-seeker has ignited the incense thinking of you; And is not embarrassed at this failed invitation? (68:5) The beloved is like a fairy but not the kind that would get attracted to burning incense—meaning not an ordinary fairy.

There is no room left for pleading more love; Now is the time to recite the “en yakaad “verse, for we do not have the wild rue. (68:6) En Yakaad: Quran 68:52 and 68:53. Those who disbelieve would fain disconcert you with their eyes when they hear the Reminder, and they say, Lo! He is indeed mad;” “When it is naught else than a Reminder to creation.” Rue seed is used to test the luck, an anecdote; to get protected from fire, read those verses, for we are now ready to offer ourselves to the fire.

Lost in self, they have dozed off in Tuba tree’s shade; The call of travel of aspiring wayfarers is not loud. (68:7) During group travel, there are loud calls to move together in a caravan. The members of this caravan are now resting under a Tuba tree, a tree in paradise, and they don’t have the strength left to travel or pursue the beloved. They have become tired. The word used for the call of travel also means nighttime and translates as their desire to travel in the night is not high.

Turmoil attracts me; what is the good news of paradise? My thoughts are flawless, and I don’t need advice. (68:8) The world’s attractions are heart stealing and are like Paradise to me, so I am not interested in any good things in the world.

Drink wine, and rely on the grace of God; The line on the goblet doesn’t mark why and how much? (68:9) The line on the goblet is to measure the wine in it. It is time to break those lines and drink all you want.

Ghalib, I swear by God that the end of the rainy season; It should not be without wine and mangoes, ice water, and sugar cubes. (68:10) There is such weather that makes us inclined to eat tasty things.

69 ‫مح‬ ٔ ‫فش‬ ‫تسب! ا رده انگور آبی بیش نیست‬

‫منع ما از باده رعض احتسابی بیش نیست‬

‫رشت ٔه عمر خضر دم حسابی بیش نیست‬

‫خارج از هن گاهم رس ات رس هب بی كاری گذشت‬

‫دوزخ از رسرگمی انزش عتابی بیش نیست‬

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‫ن‬ ‫ر ج و راحت رب رطف شاهد رپستانیم ما‬

‫این من و مائی هك می بالد حجابی بیش نیست‬

‫جی‬ ‫قطره و موج و كف و رگداب خونست و بس‬

‫پی‬ ‫هس‬ ‫اتر و پود تی ما ج و اتبی بیش نیست‬

‫شوخی اندیش ٔه خویش‌ست رس ات اپی ما‬

‫جلوه می ‌انمند و رد معنی نقابی بیش نیست‬

‫چش‬ ‫این نمكدان‌اه هب م ما رسابی بیش نیست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫اپ ی آورده است اما جوابی بیش نیست‬ ‫حسن با این اتبناكی آفتابی بیش نیست‬ ‫دیده‌ام دیوان غالب انتخابی بیش نیست‬

‫خویش را صورت رپستان رهزه رسوا ركده‌اند‬ ‫تبس‬ ‫زخم دل لب تشن ٔه شور م‌اهی توست‬

‫انهم‏رب از پیش گاه انز مكتوب رما‬ ‫كم نیس‬ ‫جلوه كن منت منه از رذه تر تم‬

‫ت‬ ‫چند رنگین نكت ٔه دلكش كلف رب رطف‬

Prohibiting us from drinking wine is nothing but a show of being accountable; O Sheriff, after all, the juice of the grape is nothing more than water. (69:1) It is the sheriff ’s job to enforce legality; apparently, it is a dry city, and the poet is saying that just for the sake of accounting, do not spoil our fun since it is nothing but water.

What to speak of sorrow and comfort, we are beloved worshippers; The hell is one display of her coquetry that can be called tyranny. (69:2) For a lover’s comfort or sorrow mean nothing. The lover is attentive to the beloved, whether it results in pain or comfort; hell implies the treatment of the beloved towards the lover.

Far from excitement, the whole life passed in idleness; The long life of Prophet Khizr is nothing but keeping numbers. (69:3) While Khizr lived indefinitely, his life was devoid of tumult and excitement—it was a dull life and merely taking account of the days he lived; Ghalib has often ridiculed Khizr for living long and not facing the reality of the end of life that changes your entire disposition. See Khizrin the glossary.

The drop, the wave, the foam, the whirlpool all are aspects of the river; This pride of “I” and “we” is nothing but a veil. (69:4) While individually they appear different when combined, they all take the form of the river; “I” and “we” are similarly one entity; this is a holy verse, where the poet is talking about merging with God.

The worshippers of appearance have in vain brought dishonor to themselves; What they call splendor of appearance is no more than a veil on reality. (69:5) In every appearance of the universe, there is an image of the Creator; those who worship what appears rather than what is behind it end up getting disgraced. This is taken from the thought of Sa’adi, who says that God is visible in every leaf of a tree; Ghalib is calling the display a veil. Sa’adi adopted

237

it by translating a verse in Quran.

The liveliness of my thought is me, from top to tow; My being’s warp and woof is nothing but twists and turns. (69:6) What is the purpose of the creation of man? This entangled question has never been solved; twists and turns of warp and woof are used to dramatize the entangled question.

The wound of our heart is thirsty of the joy of your smile; Whereas the saltshakers in the world are like a mirage to us. (69:7) The lover relishes the wounds of heart given by the beloved; her smile sprinkles salt on these wounds, something ordinary salt can never bring.

The messenger has brought an answer from the assembly of coquetry; But the response is nothing but a blank answer. (69:8) The beloved just returned the letter without any response, but the arrival of something from the beloved raised his hopes.

Display your glory and do not oblige me, I am no less significant than a grain of dust; Beauty with all its dazzling splendor is no more glorious than the sun. (69:9) As the sun rises, the floating grains of dust in the air begin to illuminate, as if they are coming to life; the lover is calling himself a speck of dust and beloved, the sun. If the beloved shows her display, this will infuse a new life into the lover.

How long shall these colorful heart-ravishing points be described; Formalities aside, I have seen Ghalib’s divan, for this is indeed a selection. (69:10) The entire divan of Ghalib appears to be a selection of a larger work, and in reading it, I have found some very heart-ravishing writing. Self-praise.

70 ‫آنچنان تنگ‌ست دست من هك پنداری دل‌ست‬

ّ ‫عشق فی‬ ‫ص‬ ‫بی‬ ‫ن‬ ‫ی‬ ‫س‬ ‫لذت م ز ض وا ی حا ل‌ ت‬

‫مخم‬ ‫میگساران مست و من ور و ساقی غافل‌ست‬

‫تش‬ ‫وای لب رگ دل ز اتب نگی نگدازدم‬

‫مل‌ست‬

‫بس‬

‫تیغ سیراب از روانی‌اهی خون‬

‫چش‬ ٔ ‫ت‬ ‫رپده ساز فغانم پشت م اق ل‌ست‬ ‫مش‬

‫كل‌ست‬

238

‫نه‬

‫فتن‬

‫نشینانم‬

‫هم‬

‫راز دل از‬

‫هم هب قدر جوشش ردیا تنومندست موج‬

‫رد خم بند تغافل انلم از بیداد عمر‬ ‫بس هك ضبط مشق غم رفسود اعضای رما‬

‫چش‬ ‫ئ‬ ‫م اهل دل زباندان ن گاه سا ل‌ست‬

‫حس‬ ‫ رم اینجا از هچ رو‬،‫شهری دل نیست رگ رت‬

‫چیپ و اتب ره نشان دوری رس منزل‌ست‬

‫گف‬ ‫رد نورد تگو از آگهی وامانده‌ایم‬

‫تشن ٔه ما رب كنار آب جو اپ رد گل‌ست‬

‫هس‬ ‫ره هچ زج تی‌ست چیه و ره هچ زج حق باطل‌ست‬ ‫ئ‬ ‫رد میان ما و غالب ما و غالب حا ل‌ست‬

‫با همه زندیكی از وی كام دل نتوان رگفت‬ ‫عق‬ ‫ل رد اثبات وحدت خیره می‌رگدد رچا‬

‫ما همان عین خودیم اما خود از وهم دوئی‬

The joy of love that I have comes from the blessing of my helplessness; My fist is so tight that you would think it is my heart. (70:1) A hand is compared to heart; in helplessness, we use our hand to beg; my heart too is a beggar in helplessness, which is why I am so joyed.

The strength of the wave comes from the turbulence of the sea; The flowing blood of the sacrifice quenches the thirst for the sword. (70:2) The passion of getting murdered in the hands of the beloved gives strength to the sword. The first verse compares it with the tumultuousness of the sea and waves in the shape of a sword.

Alas on those lips, if my heart melts not being able to bear the thirst; The wine drinkers are intoxicated, I am in a hangover, and the cupbearer is inattentive. (70:3) The scene described in the second line leads to the discussion of the thirsty lips. It will be a shame if the lips do not melt with the intensity of the thirst for more wine—here meaning more attention of the cupbearer, the beloved.

Tangled in negligence, I complain of the life’s injustice; The tune of the instrument of my plaint is a result of the murderer’s obliviousness. (70:4) The tune of my plaint is governed by the negligence of the beloved. I will be spared of this tyranny if the beloved stops ignoring me and just murders me.

So much have I been bearing the love lesson that all parts of my body organs have worn out; It is difficult for me to hide my secrets from my cohorts. (70:5) I have been tolerating the sorrows of love for so long that my body parts have worn out, and it is evident to everyone what I went through in my life. Body parts getting rubbed off is an exciting display of being destitute; perhaps the feet have worn out because of running in the desert, the age has taken its toll, and the back has taken a curved shape, etc.

If grief does not reside in the heart, then how would; The eyes of the wise know the language of questioning eyes. (70:6)

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Everyone is a victim of their unfulfilled desires; when two people with the same affliction come across, they can readily understand each other’s dilemma from their eyes; here they are called the questioning ones, but it can also mean beggars.

Though so near to her, we still cannot fulfill our heart’s desire; So thirsty, on the brink of the stream, our feet stuck in the mire. (70:7) Our condition is like the one who is close to the stream, but his feet are stuck in a mire, making it impossible for us to reach the stream and extinguish our thirst. Likewise, we are so close to the beloved yet not able to fulfill our desires with her. Being frozen in the mire is analogous to being so stunned that we couldn’t make use of the closeness to the beloved.

Lost in arguments, we are unable to enlighten ourselves with reality; The twists and turns of the path show how far the destination is? (70:8) If a course has many turns, then the distance becomes longer; an example is that if we get entangled in useless argument, it lengthens our destination of understanding the truth; the moral of the comparison is not to engage in a distorted approach to arguments.

Why is the reasoning dazzled by the affirmation of His unity? Besides His existence, nothing exists, and whatever is besides the truth is false. (70:9) Why are we hesitant in accepting His unitary existence? Besides Him, there is nothing to talk about.

We reflect each other but in the delusion of duality; Between Ghalib and us is the wall of Ghalib and us. (70:10) We see each other as two individuals, yet we are the same; the duality of Ghalib and us is the between us to understand this unitary concept; the wall is our blocked vision.

71 ‫جان نیست مكرر نتوان داد رشاب‌ست‬

‫بخش‬ ‫هم وعده و هم منع ز ش هچ حساب ست‬

‫آتشكده وریاهن و میخاهن رخاب‌ست‬

‫لهراسپ! كجا رفتی و رپوزی كجایی‬

‫ات رپده ربانداخته رد بند حجاب‌ست‬

‫با این همه دشوارپسندی هچ كند كس‬

‫لبس‬ ‫چیزی هك هب د تگی ارزد می انب‌ست‬

‫لب تشن ٔه دیدار رتا خلد رساب‌ست‬ ٔ ‫كارموز هب پیماهن می رد شكر آب‌ست‬

240

‫ع‬ ‫رد ژمده ز جوی سل و كاخ زرمد‬

‫از جلوه هب هن گاهم شكیبا نتوان شد‬

‫مس‬ ‫دوشینه هب تی هك مكیدست لبش را‬

‫چندان هك فتد صاعقه باران رد آب‌ست‬

‫آن قلزم داغیم هك رب ما ز جهنم‬

‫ما را هك ز بیداری دل دیده هب خواب‌ست‬

‫چشم‬ ‫هم‏ ی آیینه فكند از نظر ما‬

‫فی‬ ‫ضی هك من از دل طلبم بوی كباب‌ست‬ ‫ربداشته ای آنچه خود از چهره نقاب ست‬

‫ندارم‬

‫طامات‬

ٔ‫هن گاهم‬

‫رسرگمی‬

‫م‬ ‫تم‬ ‫ات غالب سكین هچ تع ربد از تو‬

It is promised, while it is also forbidden, what is the statement? It is not the life that cannot be given repeatedly—it’s wine. (71:1) Refers to the promised wine of paradise, but the wine on earth is forbidden—what kind of funny statement it is; the poet is questioning lightheartedly.

Glad tidings! There’ll be streams of honey and palaces of emerald; But what is worth the heart’s attachment is pure wine. (71:2) In paradise, we will have streams of honey and palaces made of emerald for our abode, but what turns on the poet is the news that there will make pure wine as well.

Lohrasb, where have you gone? And Parviz, where are you? The fire temples are ruined, and the taverns are desolate. (71:3) Lohrasb, an ancient king of Iran, was a Zoroastrian, praying to fire; without him, the fire temples are desolate. Parviz, the husband of famed Shirin (of Shirin and Farhad story) and famous king of Sassani and known for his drinking; he is addressed that the taverns are desolated with his absence. See Lohrasb and Parviz in the glossary.

Ignoring the glorious manifestation, the tumult of paradise brings no satisfaction; For those thirsty for your vision, even paradise is merely a mirage. (71:4) The glorious manifestation is God’s vision; ignoring it would not bring any satisfaction to you even in paradise with all its tumult and excitement; it is just a mirage for the thirsty. Meaning, you should not be directed to righteousness because of the rewards but for the love of God.

Despite our likeliness for difficulties, what can one do, Since He has lifted the veil yet remained behind the veil. (71:5) Everything in the Universe displays His glory, and thus He has lifted the veil to show who He is, but He is not visible and remains hidden from us. We can only appreciate a mortal being but integrating the display of the Universe into building a concept of Creator is beyond our ability.

Who sucked the lips of the goblet in intoxication last night That today, there is sweetness in the taste of the wine? (71:6) The beloved tasted the wine and thus imparted sweetness to the wine.

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We are that ocean of heat that is coming from hell; The lightning flames fall on us like water on rain. (71:7) Compared to our heat of burning, the fire of hell appears very cool.

I am not busy with the tumult of idle talks; The benefit I get from my heart is the smell of kebobs. (71:8) I am least impressed by the boastings of Sufis (the idle talk); the beneficence I seek is the smell of kebobs, meaning the smell of burning heart in love with the beloved. This is the ultimate pleasure and not the philosophical talks of the saints. Know that in Sufi teachings are lessons given on selfless love and devotion; these are ridiculed.

Becoming like a mirror is devalued in our view; From the awakening of the heart, our eyes have fallen asleep. (71:9) Our eyes do not look into the mirror; our heart is awake and understands everything around us. A mirror provides a view of the world around us, a reflection; the value of a mirror has fallen in our eyes (play of words) because it only shows the apparent details; it takes an enlightened heart to know the reality.

How can poor Ghalib draw pleasure from you; Whatever you take off from your face has itself become a veil. (71:10) Everything in the Universe displays the glory of God as if He has lifted His veil, yet we are unable to see Him.

72 ‫بادهچونرنگخودازشیشههباپلودنرفت‬

‫بس هك از اتب ن گاه تو ز آسودن رفت‬

‫رگ شبت تیره هب داغ ژمه نگشودن رفت‬

‫خیز و رد دامن باد سحرآوزی هب عذر‬

‫شس‬ ‫پیم‬ ‫دست تیم ز صهبا هك هب ودن رفت‬

‫ره هچ از انهل رساندیم هب نشنودن رفت‬

‫ات چها اپی ردین راه هب رفسودن رفت‬ ‫از حیا رب رد زندان هب گل اندودن رفت‬ ‫بخ‬ ‫هم هب اتراج سبك‌دستی شودن رفت‬

‫ره هچ رد رگهی زفودیم رد ازفودن رفت‬

242

‫این سفال از كف خاک جگر رگم هك بود؟‬

‫ره هچ از رگهی فشاندیم هب نشمردن ریخت‬ ٔ ‫ریگ رد بادهی عشق روان‏ست هنوز‬

‫باخت از بس هك زلیخا هب تماشای تو رنگ‬

‫رب تنک مایگی ام رحم هك یك عمر گناه‬ ‫فس‬ ‫داغ رتدستی اشكم هك ز ا ردن دل‬

‫ژدم آ ن رخهق هك با داغ نیالودن رفت‬

‫ره هچ زو بود هب سودای چو من بودن رفت‬

‫شست و شو مشغل ٔه شوخی ارب ركم‌ست‬

‫دمعی خواست رود رب ارث من غالب‬

From the brightness of your sight, the calmness went away; Like its own color, the wine has become pious and clear in the decanter. (72:1) Calmness refers to the state of wine. Once the wine saw the brightness of the beloved’s sight, it lost its composure. As it started shaking in the decanter, the debris from the decanter separated, and the wine began shining. This is a complex thought, and I am not sure I got it right. However, saying that, like its own color, would mean that it was a white wine or a rose wine (red wine would not show the clarity). It is noteworthy that Ghalib was a fan of rose wine. Every evening he will take a bottle of good French Rose and mix it with one bottle of rose water and divide it into two bottles. One bottle he will put in a cabinet, lock it, and give the keys to his orderly with instruction not to let Ghalib get to the second bottle. But like a routine, a fight will ensue, and Ghalib will end up getting the other half of the wine.

Whose fistful of the dust of a warm liver created this clay goblet That we had to wash our hands off the wine poured into it. (72:2) Who is that love, whose dust of warm liver was used to make the goblet? It was so porous that any wine poured into it got absorbed into the goblet. The warmth of the liver made it warm and became extremely dry and when it got burned. It turned into a fistful of dust that was used to make the goblet. Being dry also means being highly desirous. So, who was the unfortunate lover who ended up in this state of being destitute? The poet is pointing to himself.

Get up and embrace the morning breeze, giving the excuse That you spent the night in desire of not opening your eyes. (72:3) The beloved slept all night (the second line), and now she is invited to open her eyes and enjoy the beauty of the morning breeze.

Whatever we have shed in weeping did not count; And whatever we lamented was lost to being unheard. (72:4) No one paid attention to our weeping, and no one heard our weeping.

In the desert of love, the river of sand still flows; How many feet have been worn out in this path! (72:5) How many lovers have vanished wandering in the desert in your love? However, the heat of passion continues as before—the river of sand continues to flow!

Looking at your display, Zolaikha has lost her color; In embarrassment, she has gone to the prison door to paint it with mud. (72:6)

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Zolaikha was a beautiful woman (the legendary story of Joseph and Zolaikha), but when she saw the beloved, her face was flushed with feeling inferior. Now comes the second line, where the poet takes it to the story of Joseph and Zolaikha; Joseph was imprisoned, and Zolaikha arranges to whitewash his prison cell; now she wants to paint it in the color of mud, which is dull, in shame for seeing the beauty of the beloved. This is very difficult to explain.

My meagerness deserves mercy for my entire asset was a life full of sins That has been robbed by the master skills of my Lord. (72:7) God forgave my sins, and My sins went down the drain.

Burned by the dexterity of my tears from the pressure of heat; Whatever more we tried to cry was wasted in increasing the flow. (72:8) The lover is suffering from sadness and weeping profusely and wants to increase the flow of weeping. Unfortunately, whatever tears are left, they have vanished in this effort.

Cleansing is a playful work of the kind clouds; How sad is the ragged cloak that goes away with no stains on it? (72:9) The benevolence of God is called a playful work that the sins get washed—He forgives them. It is sad to see a ragged cloak that does get touched by His benevolence. The cloak is called ragged to show that it is a misfortune to begin with.

My rival wanted to emulate me, Ghalib; But whatever little he had was lost to be like me. (72:10) My rival wanted to follow me in my poesy and my passion; the result was that he be failed miserably and lost whatever respect he had.

73 ‫شگرفی تو ز انداز مهر و كین پیداست‬

‫چش‬ ‫نگه هب م نهان و ز جبهه چین پیداست‬

‫شکف‬ ‫زهی تگی دل هك از جبین پیداست‬

‫رسید تیغ توام رب رس و ز سینه گذشت‬

‫شكوه صاحب رخمن ز خوهش چین پیداست‬ ‫رتا ز دامن و ما را ز آستین پیداست‬

‫هك ره هچ رد دل بادست از زمین پیداست‬ ‫تش‬ ‫ز چیپ و اتب نفسهای آ ین پیداست‬

244

‫نظاره رعض جمالت ز نو بهار رگفت‬ ٔ ‫هب رجم دیده خونبار كشته‏ای ما را‬

‫زهی لطافت رپواز سعی ارب بهار‬

‫فتیل ٔه رگ جان رس هب‏رس گداخته شد‬

‫ز خوی‏فشانی آ ن روی انزنین پیداست‬

‫نف‬ ‫س گداختن جلوه رد هوای قدش‬

‫ز خود ربآدمن صورت آرفین پیداست‬

‫زهی شكوه تو كاندر رطاز صورت تو‬

‫نش‬ ‫صفای باده ازین ردد هت‏ ین پیداست‬ ‫نگ‬ ‫بسان موم ز ازجای ا بین پیداست‬

‫عیار فطرت پیشینیان ز ما خیزد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫نهاد رنم ز شیرینی ن غالب‬

The glimpse remains hidden in your eyes, and a scowl is displayed on your forehead; Your uniqueness becomes evident from the style of your love and enmity. (73:1) The beloved is not Exchanging glances as if there was an expression of love for the lover; at the same time, she has a scowl on her face showing her concern and perhaps anger; this duality of expression is indeed unique, the lover is acknowledging.

The expression of your beauty seen by us comes from the arrival of the spring; The effort of the gleaner displays the greatness of the harvest owner. (73:2) The gleaner is in the sight of the lover, and the harvest owner is beloved. The freshness of the new spring season makes the lover think of his beloved; thus, his sight, which is described as display, benefits from it (picking out the fallen grains).

Your sword hit my head and went through my chest; How pleasant is a blossomed heart that is evident on the forehead? (73:3) The beloved’s sword hit the lover’s head, which made him joyous, and this condition is showing up on his forehead. The wound on the forehead from the sword and the expression of joy appearing on the forehead is used as wordplay.

You killed me for the crime of crying blood from my eyes; This is evident from your skirt and our sleeve. (73:4) The beloved killed the lover because his eyes were shedding blood tears in desperation; this killing caused the blood to be sprayed on her skirt, and since the lover was wiping his tears with his sleeve, the blood appeared there as well.

How delightful is the flight of effort of the spring clouds That whatever is in the heart of the wind is manifest on the earth? (73:5) When the spring rains fall on the planet, it causes flowers to sprout abundantly, decorating the earth.

The wick of our life vein has melted entirely; It is apparent from the twists and turns of the fiery breath. (73:6) The jugular vein is called a wick; the lover’s life has come to nothing by fiery breath and lamenting incessantly.

245

The melting of the breath in longing for the vision of her stature Is apparent in the sweat on the face of that graceful beloved. (73:7) Praising the stature of the beloved, the lover’s breath is melting, and seeing this, the beloved is sweating with embarrassment.

We are measured by the quality of our predecessors; The piety of wine is evident from the pain after the wine is just dregs. (73:8) Ghalib calls the mastery of art the pious wine and the dregs of wine to himself. But, while he tried much, he didn’t reach the status of high pious wine when he compared himself to those passed before him.

How pleasant is your grandeur that is distinguished on your face; It seems like the Creator of the picture has come out Himself. (73:9) From your beauty, we get to know the Creator. Imagine if you are so beautiful, how beautiful He would be.

The soft nature of Ghalib’s sweet diction is Like one telling of the beeswax from the ingredients of honey. (73:10) The softness of our sweet diction is evident to all, just as we can inform the season from the composition of honey—it changes continuously as the season changes.

74 ‫باری بگو هك از تو هچ امید بوده ‌است‬

‫رگ بار نیست ساهی خود از بید بوده است‬

ّ ّ ‫رب رفق اره اره تشدید بوده است‬

‫ظالم هم از نهاد خود آزار می‌كشد‬

‫نومیدی هك راحت جاوید بوده ‌است‬ ٔ ‫هم كاهس گدایی خورشید بوده ‌است‬

‫شادم هك دل ز وصل تو نومید بوده است‬ ‫می خور هك رد زماهن شب عید بوده است‬ ‫مضراب نی ز انخن انهید بوده است‬

ُ ٔ ‫رُدد ِهت ایپهل امید بوده است‬

246

‫شادم ز ردد دل هك هب مغز شكیب ریخت‬ ٔ ‫شب‌اه کند ز روی تو ردیوزه ضیا‬ ‫یش‬ ‫تل‬ ‫تل‬ ‫خ‌ست خ ركش تمنای خو تن‬ ‫رد ماه روزه رطه رپیشان هچ می‌روی‬ ‫از ركش خوشنوایی ساز خیال من‬ ‫‌كش‬ ‫حس‬ ‫ره گوهن رتی هك ز ایام می یم‬

‫آیینه خاهن مكتب توحید بوده است‬ ُ ٔ ‫رُددی‌كش ایپهل جمشید بوده است‬ ِ

‫حق را ز خلق جو هك نوآموز دید را‬ ‫مس‬ ‫اندان! رحیف تی غالب مشو هك او‬

If the willow does not bear fruit, at least it does cast a shadow; You tell me what hope there is from you? (74:1) The willow tree is useless, but at least it provides comfort to others through its shadow. So, what do we get from you?

Happy I am of the pain of my heart that poured deep into my forborne bones Giving me hopelessness that has brought eternal comfort? (74:2) If there was hope, my patient mind kept thinking of the pleasures ahead. Now that a sense of hopelessness has surrounded me, I am living with comfort.

The cruel also suffers from his cruel nature; Like a saw head, there is the accent mark on the word saw as well. (74:3) A saw has tooth-shaped head, as if a saw is sawing off a saw; now Ghalib creates a highly complex metaphor. Saw on the head means extreme pain; the saw gets back what it does to others, just like the cruel ones suffer because of cruelty. This is a classic Ghalib complexity-creating example.

In the nights, the moon begs for light from your face; The moon has been a bowl of begging light from the sun. (74:4) The moon’s shape is compared to a begging bowl; it begs from face to get light, just like it does with the sun, comparing beloved’s face with sun.

It is bitter about being jealous of its passion; I am happy that my heart has lost hope for a reunion with you. (74:5) Our hopelessness has reached a point where our desires are gone, and with that, the bitterness of feeling envious of my passion.

Why are you wandering with disheveled tresses in the month of fasting? Drink wine for at a time it was called the eve of Eid. (74:6) Tresses disheveled means disturbed. “Why do you look like you are destitute in the month of fasting” (Ramadan)? Connecting the month of fasting, at the end of which comes the celebration of Eid, the poet is saying, think of that eve and rejoice.

From the envy of the pleasant sound from the instrument of my thoughts, The nails of Venus are holding the pick for the flute on her nails. (74:7) Venus is also called the singing or dancing star. The poet is comparing his high thoughts to an instrument that creates heart-ravishing tunes, and Venus is envious of these and holding a pick

247

248

(which is used for string instruments) while playing a flute. Incidentally, no pick is required for playing flute, but the poet is relating her nails or fingertips as the finger picks to complicate the nature of the tune played out by Venus.

Every unfulfilled desire that we draw from the days of our life Proved to be the dregs that cling to the bottom of hope’s goblet. (74:8) When our desires are not fulfilled, we are saddened; so, the best thing to do is remove desires and treat them like the worthless dregs that cling to the bottom of the goblet.

Search for The Creator among the people for in the vision of a novice The mirror-house of the world is the school for Unitary existence. (74:9) When you enter a mirror-house, he sees many faces because there are many mirrors—the Creator’s image. It is essential to expound to understand the secret to Him being Unitary. While you see many images, it does not mean many Creators, just many ways He shows his unitary existence.

O ignorant, don’t compete with the intoxication of Ghalib; For he has been drinking from the dregs of Jamshed’s bowl. (74:10) Ghalib does not drink with small drinks; he must have many to be intoxicated. Jamshed, a famous king of Iran, had a goblet wherein one could see the future, but it is used merely to point to a goblet. One who gets drunk with a bit of wine should be kicked out of the tavern. See Jamshed in the glossary.

75 ‫هم‬

‫یار رد عهد شبابم هب كنار آدم و رفت‬

‫ره هچ گل ركد تو گویی هب شمار آدم و رفت‬

‫سبحه‌رگدان ارثاهی وجودست خیال‬

‫چو عیدی هك رد ایام بهار آدم و رفت‬

‫تند بادی هك هب اتراج غبار آدم و رفت‬

‫اپره‏ای رب ارث خو ن ش كار آدم و رفت‬ ‫روز روشن هب وداع شب اتر آدم و رفت‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ای هك رد راه ن چون تو زهار آدم و رفت‬ ‫رطز رفتار رتا آینه‌دار آدم و رفت‬ ‫نگ‬ ‫گیر كامسال هب ر ینی اپر آدم و رفت‬

ٔ ‫نف‬ ‫ات س باخت ٔه ریپوی شیوه كیست‬ ‫بس‬ ‫طالع مل ما بین هك امكندار ز پی‬

‫شادی و غم همه رسگشته‌رت از یكدرگند‬ ‫رهزه مشتاب و پی جاده‌شناسان ربدار‬ ‫ربق تمثال رسااپی تو می‌خواست كشید‬ ‫طم‬ ‫هله غافل ز بهاران هچ ع داشته‌ای‬

249

‫شم‬ ‫جان هب رپوانگی ع زمار آدم و رفت‬

‫موج این بحر مكرر هب كنار آدم و رفت‬

‫ٔ ت‬ ‫هب رفیب ارث جلوه اق ل صد بار‬

‫غالبا عین زحین‌ست هب هنجار ربوز‬

In my prime of youth, my beloved came into my arms and left; Like the Eid that came in the spring season and left. (75:1) Eid coming in the spring is a double pleasure; beloved meeting me when I had youth was a double pleasure. Know that the dates for Eid go back ten days in the solar calendar every year, so it comes in all seasons. The youth is the spring season, and Eid is beloved.

Following whose style, is it losing its breath, The intense storm of wind that came to steal the dust and left? (75:2) The beloved is called the strong wind reflecting her disposition; just like the strong wind blows away the dust, the beloved’s disposition is blowing away her lovers.

The thought of existence is like counting a rosary; As if whatever blossomed was counted and left. (75:3) The existence of the Universe is just a thought. Man considers the signs of the Universe like the beads of a rosary whatever becomes apparent; He begins to add to the count, and then that sign of existence disappears, leading to uncertainty.

Look at our fortune that the archer followed the trail of blood for a short while and left. (75:4) The wounded is the lover; the bow-holder is beloved. She killed us and tracked us from the trail of blood, but before reaching us, she turned around and left—meaning did not find out what happened to us.

The joy and the grief always have the upmanship for their vagabond disposition; The brightness of the day came to bid bleak night away and left. (75:5) A vagabond does not stay in one place, but he keeps moving around. The same is true of joy and grief. Today we may be happy; tomorrow, we may be sad. As the sun rises on a new day, it takes away the bleakness night, and the same happens when the brightness goes away.

Don’t hurry uselessly; follow the footsteps of those who know the path; For in this path of diction, thousands like you came and left. (75:6) You must have a mentor in your poetic efforts; many came and went without expertise, those who did not.

The lightning wanted to paint your full-length portrait; But displayed your style like a mirror and left. (75:7)

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251

The lightning was ready to display all your character in a portrait but like someone holding the mirror for another person applying makeup. It could only show the nature of your speed and left, meaning it could not complete its portrait of you. The beloved’s gait is like lightning. Like lightning appears and disappears, the thought of the gait of the beloved and comes and goes. Elsewhere, Ghalib said, “So what if a bolt of lightning flashed before our eyes/you should have talked, for I was parched lip for hearing you.”

O ignorant, what do you expect from the spring seasons? Just know that this year came as colorful as the last year and left. (75:8) Just like man, the seasons also do not have any permanence; years go by routinely.

A hundred times thinking of it as a display of the slayer; Like a moth, the soul came out to sacrifice itself at the candle on the grave and left. (75:9) A candle is lit on the lover’s grave; the lover’s soul is thinking of it as the display of the beloved and comes out, and sacrifices at the candle like a moth would and return to the grave.

Ghalib, following the same path as Hazin every day; The waves of this ocean repeatedly came to the shore and left. (75:10) Following a rigid mindset leads to sorrow. Look at the ocean waves coming to shore and returning without any change, uselessly. Ghalib’s style is generally like Hazin like ocean waves repeatedly come to the shore and go back. See Hazinin the glossary.

76 ‫رخد ریپ رما بخت جوان می‌بایست‬

‫اختری خوشتر ازینم هب جهان می‌بایست‬

ٔ ‫خاهن من هب رس كوی مغان می‌بایست‬

‫ربنتابم هب سبو باده ز دور آوردن‬

‫خاک گلبوی و هوا مشك فشان می‌بایست‬

‫سش‬ ‫رپ ی چند ز یارم هب زبان می‌بایست‬ ‫روی رگمی ز رفیقان هب میان می‌بایست‬

‫رپس و جویی ز زعزیان هب امگن می‌بایست‬ ‫چشم‬

‫ی نگران می‌بایست‬

‫سویم از روزهن‬

‫هم رد اندیشه خدنگم هب نشان می‌بایست‬

252

‫بن ش‬ ‫هب زمینی هك هب آهنگ زغل ینم‬ ‫هب رگایش خوشم اما هب نمایش خوارم‬ ‫اتب مهرم نكند خسته‌دلی رد ره شوق‬

‫بس‬ ‫رنسد انهم رد اندیشه سبب‏اهست ی‬

‫رهزه دل رب رد و دیوار نهادن نتوان‬ ‫هس‬ ‫ساز تی كنم و دل هب فسوسم گیرد‬

‫یا خود امیدگهی رد خور آ ن می‌بایست‬

‫یا تمنای من از خلد ربین نگذشتی‬

‫رد غم دره ردیغم هب فغان می‌بایست‬

‫قدر انفاس رگم رد نظرستی غالب‬

ٔ ‫رنخ ریپاهی گفتار رگان می‌بایست‬

‫ات تنگ ماهی هب ردیوزه خودآرا نشود‬

The star of my fate should have been better in this world; My ripened wisdom should have a younger destiny. (76:1) While the wisdom has aged, it should have a great destination because it is ripened, and the poet is wiser. But that has not happened.

The ground where I sit to recite my ghazals Should have the fragrance of roses and air filled with musk odor. (76:2) Praising his poesy; however, there is an indirect hint at the ground, which is also used to indicate thematic structure of the poetry—meaning whatever I choose to write about is extremely attractive.

I cannot wait that the wine in my decanter comes from a distance, far away; My house should have been in the alley of the saqi. (76:3) If I had lived in the alley of the wine-bearer (saqi), I would be able to get the wine quickly. The wine is beloved’s display, and the bearer is beloved.

Though happy at her attraction towards me frustrated because of its fallacy; There should be some sort of inquiry from my beloved to ask about me. (76:4) The beloved is showing off that she is attracted to the lover. The lover knows that it is fake, and it makes him frustrated and complaining that the beloved should have asked him about his condition instead of showing a fake inclination towards him.

In the path of desire, no one weak at heart can bear the tumult of my love; In this journey, there should be warm faces of friends. (76:5) Only those companions who are full of passion should be with me in my journey or else, those with a weak heart would make everyone less passionate. Keep the company of winners only.

Not getting a letter back from my beloved is creating suspicious thoughts in my mind; In this condition of thought, there should be an inquiry from my relatives. (76:6) The lover has not received a response from the beloved, and he is having many thoughts about what is happening; the relatives and friends should comment on why the letter is not received to relieve my suspicions. But unfortunately, he wants false hopes that might come from those who just want to ease his angst, and he is ready to believe them.

One cannot put the heart on the wall and the door uselessly; There should be someone looking at me through the opening in the walls. (76:7)

253

Putting heart on the wall and door means keep gazing at the beloved’s gate and walls; what if we were to see the beloved’s eyes peering through a hole in the wall? That would be nice.

When I make provisions for life, I become saddened; In my thought, there should be an arrow that would strike the target. (76:8) Without a particular purpose in my heart, my thinking and my collecting provisions of life are useless.

Either my desire should not have aspired beyond paradise, Or else there should be a high destination worthy of my hopes. (76:9) Beyond paradise means extreme desires, even higher than reaching heaven, which most ordinary people want. Elsewhere he said, “A vantage point at a height we could have built/if only beyond the skies was our home.”

So that those with fewer means may not take it to decorate themselves, The price of the style of diction should be raised high. (76:10) One should have a style such that the ordinary poets would not emulate it—pointing to self.

Ghalib, if there is any value of these warm breaths in my view, I should be lamenting for my breaths of pleading against the sorrows of the world. (76:11) Breaths are more precious (life) than burdening them with the sorrows of life; sadly, we do this to our lives.

77 ‫رجهعرادینعوضآریدمیارزانشدهاست‬

‫از رفنگ آدمه رد شهر رفاوان شده است‬

‫ات هچ رو داد هك رد زاوهی پنهان شده است‬

‫رد دلش جوئی و رد دری و رحم نشناسی‬

‫نف‬ ‫س سوخته رد سینه رپیشا ن شده است‬ ‫ات هچ گفت‌ست هك از گفته پشیمان شده است‬ ‫كش بود پوهی بدان اپی هك ژمگان شده است‬

‫گفتدشوارهكرمدنهبتوآسانشدهاست‬

‫ات خود از شب هچ بجا ماند هك مهمان شده است‬

254

‫چش‬ ‫م بد دور هچ خوش می تپم امشب هك هب روز‬ ‫بی‬ ‫لب زگد خود و با خود شكرآبی دارد‬ ‫داغم از مور و نظر بازی شوقش هب شكر‬

‫گف‬ ‫تم البته ز من شاد هب رمدن رگدی‬ ‫ُ غ‬ ‫كدر می هب ایاغ‬ ِ ‫رُدد رو ن هب رچاغ و‬

‫ِکشته‏ام بید ردین باغ هك وریان شده است‬

‫سخ‬ ‫شاهد و می ز میان رفته و شادم هب ن‬

‫همبدانوحیهكآوردهزغلخوانشدهاست‬

‫مس‬ ‫غالب آزرده رسوشیست هك از تی رقب‬

‫هك رب آ ن مائده خورشید نمكدان شده است‬

‫مث‬ ‫شهرتم رگ هب ل مائده رگدد بینی‬

What comes from Europe is now in abundance in town; In place of a shot, bring your religion, for it has become cheap. (77:1) It is the wine coming from Europe; [Ghalib was a fan of French Rose wines]. Now that wine is in abundance and cheap, it is worth exchanging religion for one shot of wine.

May the evil eye stay away, for I am glad that I am burning tonight with joy, for during the day My burned breath in my chest was perturbed. (77:2) It was the burning in the night that has caused my burnt-out breath to scatter in my chest. Scattering also means perturbed, so the suffering of the night keeps the suffering in the day as well.

You are looking for the beloved in your heart and fail to recognize Him in the temple and mosque; After all, what has happened that He has come to hide in a corner? (77:3) God is present everywhere, let it be the temple or the mosque. Why are you looking for him in your heart?

Intoxicated, the beloved is biting her lips, even though she has sweetness; What did she say that she is repenting at her saying. (77:4) God knows what happened that the beloved is biting her lips in repentance. Sweet water means sweet lips, and the connection between biting lips and having sweet lips comes from suggesting that if you have such sweet lips, you need not bite them or ever be remorseful, for whatever may have come out of your lips will always be sweet. So, you need not repent.

Envious I am at the ant, and it is eyeing towards sugar; Attracted towards its beloved thing, it comes riding on the eyelashes. (77:5) The delicate feet of the ant are compared to eyelashes; the sugar is the beloved; the ant is running towards her beloved riding on its eyelashes, and that is a matter of envy for the poet, for he was not able to do so.

I told my beloved that you would be happy at my dying; She said that you could die so quickly is difficult to believe. (77:6) She is saying that the lover may not die so quickly, keeping from being joyful. The lover is a hardened soul.

The lamp holds only dregs of oil, and the goblet has only wine precipitate; What has remained now from the night that the beloved comes as a guest. (77:7)

255

Our lamp has burned out. Our wine is gone. Why would any guest come to our abode? A bit of self-deception, as if the beloved would have come otherwise.

The beloved and the wine are gone, but I am happy with my poetry; As if I have planted a willow tree in this garden that is desolate now. (77:8) I am practicing poesy in an era where there is no impact; the willow tree has fruit.

If my fame takes the form of a food serving mat; Then on this serving mat, the sun will appear like a saltshaker. (77:9) Praising his poesy, Sun means well-known personalities or poets; a saltshaker has taste but no shine.

Ghalib, a perturbed angel, who, from the intoxication of nearness Has brought divine revelations in the form of his ghazals. (77:10) Calling his poesy as a divine revelation, elsewhere, Ghalib said, “From the unknown do these thoughts come to mind/Ghalib, the scratching sound of the pen is the call of the Angels.”

78 ‫ست‬ ‫هك راز رد دل و مغز اندر ا خوانم سوخت‬

‫فغان هك ربق عتاب تو آنچنانم سوخت‬

‫ببین هك بی رشر و شعله می ‌توانم سوخت‬

‫شنیده‌ای هك هب آتش نسوخت ارباهیم‬

‫چش‬ ‫قضا هب رعبده رد م اپسبانم سوخت‬ ‫هك هم هب داغ مغان شیوه دلبرانم سوخت‬ ‫زهار بار هب تقریب امتحانم سوخت‬

‫هك باز رب رس شاخ گل آشیانم سوخت‬ ‫تپاك رگمی رفتار باغبانم سوخت‬

‫هك شكوه رد دل و پیغاره رب زبانم سوخت‬ ‫ز جوش رگمی بازار من دكانم سوخت‬

‫شم‬ ‫هچ ع‌اه هب رسارپده بیانم سوخت‬ ‫شگفته روئی گل‌اهی بوستانم سوخت‬ ِ

256

‫هب ذوق خلوت انز تو خواب گشت تنم‬

‫رشار آتش زرتشت رد نهادم بود‬

‫عیار جلوه انزش رگفتن ارزانی‬ ‫رما دمیدن گل رد امگن فگند ارموز‬

‫ز گل‏رفوش ننالم زك اهل بازارست‬ ‫هچ ماهی رگم ربون آدمی ز خلوت غیر‬

‫چو وارسید فلك كاب رد متاعم نیست‬ ‫نف‬ ‫س گداختگی‌اهی شوق را انزم‬ ‫نوید آدمنت ركش از قفا دارد‬

‫هچ شد رگ آتش همساهی خانمانم سوخت‬

‫کس‬ ‫كس‬ ‫ی ردین كف خا ترم مباد انباز‬

‫ز ماهتاب هچ منت ربم كتانم سوخت‬

‫ت‬ ‫خبر دهید هب اق ل هك جهر می‌كشدم‬

‫شكسته رنگی یاران رازدانم سوخت‬ ‫هك اتب عطس ٔه اندیشه مغز جانم سوخت‬

‫مگر ایپم عتابی رسیده است از دوست‬ ‫ن هچ عطر رشر رب دماغ زد غالب‬

‫سخ‬

Alas, the lightning of your respite has burned me in a way; That it burned the secret inside my heart and the marrow inside my bones. (78:1) It is displaying extreme respite of the beloved.

From the joy of being in private with your coquetry, my body is numb, But the destiny got burned in my guiding eyes with its tiff. (78:2) My body became numb, so he could keep thinking about private moments with her, but my destiny fighting with me blew my sleep away.

You’ve heard the story that Abraham did not burn in the fire; See, I can burn without the spark and fire. (78:3) Nimrod had thrown Abraham in fire, but God’s protection turned the fire into a garden. The anecdote said the fire did not or could not burn Abraham. Now when it comes to me, I can burn without the presence of sparks and fire.

The sparks of the fire of Zoroaster were in my nature also; As I got burned by the branding from beloved’s fiery disposition. (78:4) The fire in the disposition of the beloved burned me; Zoroastrians pray to fire. This is also my disposition to pray before her disposition, salute her disposition, and pay respect but burn down myself.

I had underestimated the beloved’s display and coquetry; She burned me a thousand times as she tested me. (78:5) Beloved’s display and coquetry cannot be taken lightly; no one can bear this, and anyone facing it gets burned.

Today as the roses blossomed, it put me in doubt; Perhaps, on this branch of the rosebush, my nest has again burnt. (78:6) Rose is red, and it is compared to fire. My nest was on a branch that is now red; perhaps it has burnt my best, and what I am seeing are the flames from the burning of my nest. Elsewhere he said, “In the garden, do not be afraid to tell me about the story of the garden/ why would the home that got burned yesterday would have been mine?”

257

258

I am not maligned by the flower-seller, for it is her profession; From his heated pace of the gardener, I got burned. (78:7) The flower-seller merely practices the trade taking the flowers from the garden to the market, but it is the gardener who plucks the flowers, and his heady pace in removing these flowers from the garden is burning me. It is painful for me to see the garden being devoured.

You came out of the private abode of the rival so ebullient that My complaints burned in my heart and slander on my tongue. (78:8) The beloved seen coming out of the bedroom of the rival is a terrible sorrow state for the lover; in disgust and shame, his complaints burned inside the heart and did not come out; and any taunts he was planning to dole out remained on the tip of his tongue; he as dumbfounded.

When the sky found out that there is no water in my belongings; From the heat of the market, my shop got burned. (78:9) The sky did not like the fame of Ghalib and turned against Ghalib; his fame became a cause of his demise.

Melting of breath in the hands of passion makes me proud; How many candles burned in the partitions around my expression. (78:10) The melting of breath has brightened my poesy.

There is an element of envy in the good news of your arrival; The freshness of the flowers of the garden has burned me. (78:11) The beloved is walking towards the garden. As the news reached the garden, the flowers began blossoming and cause the lover to become jealous of their happiness.

God forbid, I hope no one is claiming a share of the fistful of belongings; So what if the fire from the neighbor’s house burned whatever I had? (78:12) The dust remaining came from my house and that of my neighbor, but I would rather not share it; I would live away from everyone with no neighbors in the future.

Has a message of tyranny arrived from the beloved? That the pale complexion of my secret-keeper friend is burning red. (78:13) My friends learn what I received from the beloved by making them red, knowing how it hurt me.

Tell my slayer that the separation is killing me by itself; Why should I be obligated to the moon since my katan is burned? (78:14) There is no need for the murderer to kill me; the murderer is called the moon and himself, the katan, a fabric that burns when exposed to moonlight. See katan in the glossary.

259

Ghalib, the artistry of poetry has put such fiery perfume in my nose That the heat of the mind’s sneeze burned the marrow of my soul. (78:15) Smelling perfume often makes you sneeze. My thoughts create an upheaval of feelings with the warmth burning me.

79 ‫سخ بس‬ ‫گفتند اندر این هك تو گفتی ن ی‌ست‬

‫عق‬ ‫یم بس‬ ‫ره جا یق انرد و اندر ن ی‌ست‬ ‫بس‬

‫رد رمزغاراهی ختا وختن‬

‫بس‬

‫ٔ مح‬ ‫رد كاروان جهازه مل‌فکن‬

‫بس‬

‫هم‬ ‫اما نظر هب حوصل ٔه رب ن‬

‫ی‌ست‬

‫كم‬ ‫چم بس‬ ‫رد زبم ترست گل و رد ن ی‌ست‬ ‫ی‌ست‬

‫بس‬ ‫آرنا هك دل ربودن و نشناختن ی‌ست‬ ‫ی‌ست‬

‫نجم بس‬ ‫خود انگشوده جای رد آ ن ا ن ی‌ست‬ ‫یش بس‬ ‫ما را هنوز رعبده با خو تن ی‌ست‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫بس‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم هب روزگار نور چون من ی‌ست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫بس‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم هب روزگار نور چو من ی‌ست‬

‫ع‬ ‫معن ی‬ ‫زاد ماست‬ ِ ‫ی رغ ب دم ی و خاهن‬ ‫م‬ ‫نب‬ ‫شكین زغاهل‌اه هك ینی هب چیه دشت‬ ‫رد صفحه نبودم هم ٔه آنچه رد دل‌ست‬

‫لیلی هب دشت قیس رسیدست انگهان‬

‫باید هب غم نخوردن عاشق معاف داشت‬ ٔ ‫زور رشاب جلوه بت كم شمرده‌ایم‬

‫بس‬ ‫ن‬ ‫ رم ج‬،‫رگ رد هوای رقب تو تیم دل‬ ‫م‬ ‫ ولی مترس‬،‫اتثیر آه و انهل سلم‬ ‫ ار زهار بار‬،‫غالب نخورد رچخ رفیب‬

I said that there are many poets like me in this world; They said that there is much more meaning to what you are saying. (79:1) Ghalib made a statement with humility, but it had two meanings; is Ghalib a poet? And if he is, are there others like him, good or bad?

The meaning is foreign to you, but it is home-born to us; Agate is rare everywhere, but it is widely available in Yemen. (79:2) Calling himself Yemen and punctiliousness of friends as emerald, others can’t be critical of Ghalib’s poesy, only he is the expert.

Musky gazelles, which you do not find in any desert, They are found in abundance in the meadows of Khata and Khotan. (79:3)

260

Khata and Khotan are the names of cities known to have a large population of gazelles. If you want to experience the delicate smell of musk, you should go where these are found; do not go to poets whose thoughts are useless. The male gazelles (Ahooye Khotan) live in the deserts of Cyberia and Turkistan, near the border of China (Khata). Khotan is a city in Turkistan.

I cannot bring onto the page all that is in my heart; In the assembly, flowers are few; and in the garden, many. (79:4) What could not be written down is found in my heart; in an assembly, you only see a few flowers if there are more out in the garden; the garden is heart, assembly, the page.

Leila reached the Majnoon’s territory suddenly; Though there were many men ready to help taking the belongings from the caravan. (79:5) Majnoon used to wander in the desert searching for Laila; then, once she came to meet him unannounced. In those days when a caravan stopped to rest, there were men to help women and children get off the camels and also help them with their belongings. See Majnoon and Laila in the glossary.

One who doesn’t feel sadness for the lover’s pain must be forgiven; There are many people who steal hearts and don’t even know it. (79:6) After stealing their hearts, she does not even think that they are worthy of recognition. The only thing you could do to such a beloved is to forgive her—she will not change. Cruelty shall remain.

We underestimated the strength of her beauty’s wine, While many kept an eye on Brahman’s patience. (79:7) Even though the Brahman is not intoxicated, he is still devoted to his passion. Here Ghalib is creating a simile that Brahmans pray to idols. The beloved is an idol. So, even if the wine of her beauty is not stout, the Brahman continues his vigil, which we may not.

Don’t get upset if we express the desire of coming close to you; Many uninvited ones in the assembly have no place. (79:8) That being the case, is it wrong if I too join the assembly?

The effect of sighs and moans is certain but, fear not We still have to deal with screaming at ourselves to a great deal. (79:9) When we can resolve our entanglement, we will come to sending plaints and sighs.

Ghalib, the heavens did not fall for it even if a thousand time I said that there are many poets like me in the world. (79:10) The sky did not buy Ghalib’s claim even though he said a thousand times that there are many more like him; the sky disagrees that others are as good as Ghalib.

261

80 ‫هچ گوئیم هك ز شب چند رفت یا چندست‬

‫صب‬ ‫چو ح من ز سیاهی هب شام مانندست‬

‫ز پیش دلق ورع با زهار پیوندست‬

‫رداز دستی من چاکی ار فکند هچ عیب‬

‫ز حكمت‌ست هك اپی شكسته رد بندست‬ ‫ٔ تل‬ ‫ربو هك باده ما خ رت از این پندست‬ ‫شم‬ ‫هب بخت د ن و اقبال دوست سوگند ست‬

ٔ ‫هنوز عیش هب اندازه شكر خندست‬

‫نگوید ار هچ هب رمگ من آرزومندست‬ ‫ردین نورد ندانم هك آسمان چندست‬

‫هك بنده خوبی او خوبی خداوندست‬ ‫بدین هك رپسد و گویند هست رخسندست‬

‫ن‬ ‫هب ر ج از پی راحت ن گاه داشته‌اند‬

‫تلخ‬ ‫نگفته‌ای هك هب ی بساز و پند پذری‬

‫هس‬ ‫وجود او همه حسن ست و تیم همه عشق‬

‫ن گاه مهر هب دل رس نداده چشم ٔه نوش‬ ‫بم‬ ‫ز بیم آ ن هك مبادا یرم از شادی‬

‫شمار كجروی دوست رد نظر دارم‬

‫ارگ هن بهر من از بهر خود زعزیم دار‬ ‫هن آ ن بود هك واف خواهد از جهان غالب‬

When my morning looks like the night from its darkness; How can I say how much of the night has passed and how much remains. (80:1) My morning is bleak (hopelessness); it is difficult to tell whether the night (calamity) has passed over.

Pain is tolerated for the sake of comfort; There is a reason that a broken leg is in a bandage. (80:2) Putting a bandage is painful, but that fixes the broken bone, so it is normal to feel pain for the sake of comfort.

So what if my extended hand created a tear in the sleeve; The rags of piety already have many patches. (80:3) Piety is merely a show, and for this reason, there are many difficulties and hypocrisies in it.

Didn’t you say, “deal with the bitterness and accept the advice?” Go away, there is more bitterness in our wine than in your advice. (80:4) The bitterness of wine is preferred over the bitterness of advice.

262

Her existence is all beauty, and we are filled with love; I swear at the enemy’s bad luck and the friend’s good fortune. (80:5) The beloved has perfect beauty, and I am entirely perfect in my passion, too bad for the rivals.

The sweet stream of the beloved’s loving glances did not yet fly into our heart; So far, our delight is limited to the effect of her sweet laughter. (80:6) The beloved has not looked at us with a smile while we are hoping for the same.

From the fear that God forbid, I may die of joy, My beloved wouldn’t say anything even though she wished for my death. (80:7) The lover may die if she asks for it, and thus she is abstaining from expressing this, as she does not want him to have the joy of dying for her.

I keep the counts of my lover’s deviations; In this twist, I don’t know how many skies are involved. (80:8) How many times she goes against the desires of the beloved; I am keeping a count. Skies work against lover’s fortune; he wonders if so many digressions of the beloved may not have required many skies to get together to bring this calamity.

If not for my sake, but for your own, you would do well to respect me; The value of the slave adds to the importance of his master. (80:9) Enticing the beloved to show attention, if not to please him but to show that the salve is talented.

It is not that Ghalib expects sincerity from the world; He is happy if when someone asks about him, they say he still exists. (80:10) It will be a matter of joy for folks to realize that he still lives.

81 ‫ٔ مش‬ ‫زرهه هب طالع عدو شیوه تری رگفت‬

‫ساخت ز راستی هب غیر رتك فسونگری رگفت‬

‫رفهب ارگ نیافت صید رخده هب الرغی رگفت‬

‫شغ‬ ‫رتك رما ز گیر و دار ل رغض بود هن سود‬

‫خاتم دست دیو ربد كشور دل رپی رگفت‬ ‫نجم‬ ‫رفت و رد ا ن ز غیر زمد نوارگی رگفت‬ ‫ گیر هك رسرسی رگفت‬، ‫ور زسد آنكه رس كنی‬

‫هش هب گدا كجا رسد زانکه چو فتنه روی داد‬ ‫آدم و از ره رغور بوهس هب خلوتم نداد‬

‫شكوههنردخوروافست‬،‫ایهكدلتزغصهسوخت‬

263

‫منكر ذوق همرهی رخده هب رهبری رگفت‬

‫جاده‌شناس كوی خصم بودم و دوست راه‌جوی‬

‫بستم‬ ‫انهم چو ش هب بال رمغ سبك‌رپی رگفت‬

‫رای زدم هك بار غم هم هب رقم ز دل رود‬

‫رهزه ز رشم باغبان جبه ٔه گل رتی رگفت‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫حس‬ ‫كش هب رفاق رتی دل ز نوری رگفت‬

‫مس‬ ‫تی رمغ صبحدم رب رخ گل هب بوی تست‬

‫غالب ارگ هب زبم شعر دری رسید دور نیست‬

Out of sincerity, she befriended and gave up enchanting the rival; In the enemy’s horoscope, Venus has acted as Jupiter. (81:1) She has stopped enamoring the rival with her coquetry. It is a good fortune of the rival but, at the same time, a significant loss as he is deprived of the beauty of coquetry. Venus and Jupiter are in conjunction, making a person religious, intelligent, learned, rich, and well-liked. Since both planets represent wealth and marriage partners in astrology, there is a strong indication of a wealthy person or possesses much value in life.

Where does the king get the statue of a beggar during a riot? When the demon robs the ring from the royal hand and the fairy rules the heartland. (81:2) Reference is made to Quranic lore wherein the demon robs Solomon’s magic ring, and he was affected by the beauty of queen Saba Bilqees; she later believed in him and married him. See Seal of Solomon in the glossary.

My beloved’s harassing is out of her habit; not for any benefit; If she does not get hold of a plump catch, she becomes critical of its feebleness. (81:3) It is in her nature to harass and complain.

She came to me, in privacy, but from conceited pride gave me no kiss; She went to the party of others and took payment for her singing. (81:4) She did not accept the honor I was giving her and went on to lose her pride in the assembly of the rival. Shame.

O you whose heart burnt from sorrow, a complaint doesn’t suit the style of loyalty; Even if it is worth expressing, assume that she thinks it is worthless. (81:5) Even if the beloved allows you to express it, think of it as just superficial attention. Do not take it seriously; keep your pride.

I was familiar with the path to rivals’ passage, and the beloved was looking for it; While denying my joy of being in her company, she criticized my leadership. (81:6) She asked for it and then became critical of me for taking her to where she had wanted to go.

264

264

The morning bird, close to the face of the rose, is intoxicated because of your scent; Vainly in bashfulness before the gardener, the forehead of the rose is fresh with moisture. (81:7) Fresh with moisture means sweating in embarrassment; the morning dew on the flowers is called their sweat of shame, pointing to the singing of nightingale at the flowers.

I thought that by writing a letter, the burden of my grief would go away; When I tied it to the wing of a bird, it started flying faster. (81:8) Once the bird found out that the letter was going to the beloved, the bird became impatient to see the beloved and began flying fast.

It is not improbable if Ghalib arrived late to the poesy assembly; In the separation of Hasrati, his heart has become distraught of poetry. (81:9) Hasrati was the pen name of Nawab Mustafa Khan, a close associate of Ghalib; Hasrati also means one with unfulfilled, lost desires, so the meaning has been made complex in this wordplay. See Hasrati in the glossary.

82 ‫دانی هك رما رب تو امگن‌ست و امگن نیست‬

‫دلربدنازینشیوهعیانستوعیاننیست‬

‫بی رپده هب ره رپده روان‌ست و روان نیست‬

‫رفمان تو رب جان من و كار من از تو‬

‫اپ ات رسم انداز بیان‌ست و بیان نیست‬ ‫زك بوهس ایپمی هب داهن‌ست و داهن نیست‬

‫گلخ‬ ‫شادیم هب ن هك زخان‌ست و زخان نیست‬ ‫سودی ست هك ماان هب زیان‌ست و زیان نیست‬ ‫نظاره س گالد هك همان‌ست و همان نیست‬

‫چون باده هب مینا هك نهان‌ست و نهان نیست‬ ‫چون سنگ رس زه هك رگان‌ست و رگان نیست‬

‫ات چند بگویم هك چسان‌ست و چسان نیست‬ ‫زین رپده ربون آ هک چنان‌ست و چنان نیست‬

‫اللم‬

‫اندیش ٔه‬

‫پیكر‬

‫غمت‬

‫رعض‬

‫رد‬

‫انزم هب رفیبی هك دهی اهل نظر را‬

‫داغیم ز گلشن هك بهارست و بقا چیه‬ ٔ ‫رسماهی ره قطره هك گم گشت هب ردیا‬

‫رد ره ژمه رب هم زدن این خلق جدیدست‬

‫رد شاخ بود موج گل از جوش بهاران‬ ‫كس‬ ‫را‬

‫نشود‬

‫دلم‬

‫ظاره‬

‫ببینید‬

‫تنومندی‬ ‫و‬

‫ز‬

‫بش كافید‬

‫انكس‬ ‫پهلو‬

‫ هله نظارگی خویش توان بود‬،‫غالب‬

265

Stealing my heart with coquettishness is apparent, and then it is not; You know I believe in you—yet I don’t believe you. (82:1) Beloved’s coquettishness is obvious and hidden simultaneously; changing her mind is nothing new to me; she steals my heart, and then she does not—I don’t know what to believe.

In an expression of my sorrow given by you, I am like a dumb statue; From head to toe, I am full of description—yet not descriptive. (82:2) Though I do not express my thoughts, my entire existence is dripping with the apology, though it is not saying anything.

Following your command is obvious, and also in secret; But nothing has worked out to make you fulfill my desires. (82:3) I bow to every command of yours, yet you are not fulfilling any of my passions.

I am proud that you deceive the knowledgeable; With a kiss comes a message from your mouth, yet there is no mouth. (82:4) Kiss of message means the beautiful mouth of the beloved that excites those watching her come up and kiss her, exaggerating the opening of mouth to be so small that the mouth does not exist—a sign of apparent beauty at the time. Perhaps there was a wound, not a mouth, that has healed.

We are sad for the flower garden that has sprung, but it is short-lived; We are happy with the furnace that is autumn-like, yet there is no autumn. (82:5) The furnace does not go through seasonal changes that make us happy and sad, like the coming of the spring and then the turning of leaves into rubbish. Instead, we are so glad in our desolation, so we do not have to be happy and then sad again; we remain happy.

The wealth of every drop that is lost in the ocean Is a profit that looks like a loss, yet there is no loss? (82:6) When a drop merges with the ocean, it loses its existence, but then it acquires the wholesomeness of the sea. Losing out is a win. Elsewhere Ghalib said, “The luxury of a drop is to be annihilated into the ocean.”

With every blink of the eye, the Universe becomes renewed; Vision thinks that it’s still the same, yet it is not. (82:7) The Universe is in a continuous mode of change; with every blink, many changes, but our eyes cannot discern this difference—we are not wise enough to see this change. Did Ghalib know that the Universe is continuously expanding? In a blink of an eye, it expands millions of miles. Elsewhere, he said, “Round the clock, the seven skies remain revolving/something is about to happen, but why should we worry.”

In the ferment of the spring, the wave of the rose is embedded in the branch; Like wine in the decanter—hidden, yet not hidden. (82:8)

266

The branch is compared to a decanter; the flowers come out of a branch, and the hidden wine comes out of the decanter, though it is not readily seen until poured.

A wicked person doesn’t become noble by having one colossal appearance; Like a stone on the pathway that is heavy but has no value. (82:9) The greatness of man comes from his character, not from his appearance.

Slit my side apart and see the condition of my heart! How long should I tell you how it is, and yet how it is not. (82:10) The only way you would know the condition is to tear it out of my body and see for yourself; my telling does not seem to have an impact.

Ghalib, beware! You can be your spectator; Come out from behind this curtain of logic, where it is like this, yet not like this. (82:11) We can examine ourselves if only we only free ourselves from the bondage of our personality; we can see who we are.

83 ‫ست‬ ‫بیداد توان دید و مگر نتوان گفت‬

‫دل ربد و حق آنست هک دلبر نتوان گفت‬

‫زیبندگی یاره و رپرگ نتوان گفت‬

‫رخشندگی ساعد و رگدن نتوان جست‬

‫رد زبم‏گهش باده و سارغ نتوان گفت‬

‫هم‬ ‫واره رتاشد بت و آزر نتوان گفت‬ ‫ اینجا ز سمندر نتوان گفت‬،‫رپواهن شو‬

‫چ‬ ‫رد رزم‏گهش ان خ و خنجر نتوان ربد‬ ‫پیوسته دهد باده و ساقی نتوان خواند‬

‫ستم‬ ‫محش‬ ‫رگ خود ی رفت هب ر نتوان گفت‬

‫از حوصله یاری مطلب صاعقه تیز است‬ ّ ‫ هچ زنی دم ز تظلم‬، ‫هن گاهم رسآ ‏‏دم‬

‫رب دار توان گفت و هب منبر نتوان گفت‬

‫آن راز هک رد سینه نهان‌ست هن وعظ است‬

‫سخ‬ ‫با ما ن از طوبی و کورث نتوان گفت‬ ‫مومن نبود غالب و کارف نتوان گفت‬

‫رد رگم روی ساهی و رس چشمه نجوییم‬ ‫کاری عجب افتاد بدین شیفته ما را‬

Although she has stolen my heart, one cannot call her heart-ravisher; One can see oppression, yet one cannot call it oppressor. (83:1)

267

Giving the benefit of the doubt to the beloved, so she will not be marked as a heart-ravisher. One reason for this protection is to keep other lovers out of her way.

Her battleground is one wherein you cannot take a dagger; And her assembly is a place wherein you cannot speak of wine. (83:2) You should have any weapon (such as your resilience) to protect from the beloved killing you. When in her assembly, talk not about wine, for that may make you less inhibited and feisty.

The sparkle of the wrist and neck cannot be found; Nothing can be said about the beauty of the bracelet and necklace. (83:3) The beloved is heavily bejeweled, hiding the beauty of her neck and wrist. If these jewels are so sparkly, imagine what her skin would be like.

He gives wine, continuously, yet one cannot call Him saqi; All the time, He is making idols, yet one can’t call Him Azar. (83:4) God dispenses the wine of spirituality, but He is not a bartender. God makes idols (referring to the beloved), but we cannot call him an idol-maker (statues of God). Azar is the name of the father of the Prophet Ibrahim. And he is also called Azar the Idol-maker. Although God makes the idols, one cannot call him Azar. See Azar in the glossary.

Your courage will not help you here; the lightning flashes fast; Here you must be a moth and cannot be called a salamander. (83:5) The beloved’s beauty is to kill you like a moth, be one; not the salamander that lives in the fire and would not be affected by the beauty of the beloved.

The trials of life are over—why complain of cruelty? If you made yourself suffered it cannot be called the Judgment Day? (83:6) Can we complain of life’s cruelties doled out upon us on Judgment Day? The judgment will be entirely fair and transparent, and complaining about them will not help.

We travel fast and do not seek the water and the shade; Don’t speak to us of Tuba’s tree and Kausar’s flowing stream. (83:7) Quranic folklore about the shades of Tuba tree and the cool waters of the Kausar brook in paradise. We do not seek solace; also, it talks about not being baited by paradise. A true effort is when you do not look for any rewards. Ghalib has once said that let us through the paradise into hell and then the mullah if he would still pray to God? See Tuba and Kausar in the glossary.

The words I hide within my chest are not those of a preacher; Words to be spoken at stake, not spoken from the pulpit. (83:8) I speak the truth as if I were at stake; the mullah preaches from his pulpit without any fear and cannot be given any importance.

268

How strange it felt to be involved in dealings with this madman! Ghalib is not a Muslim, nor is he an infidel. (83:9) Calling himself a madman epitomizes the theme of this ghazal; he is not a Muslim, but he is also not infidel to God, defiling the value of religion.

84 ‫چون ربگ شقایق جگر از انهل رفو ریخت‬

‫اندوده هب داغی دو هس رپكاهل رفو ریخت‬

‫بیداد تو آب از رخ دالهل رفو ریخت‬

‫هم‬ ‫رب ساده دالنت هب واف جلوه ی داد‬

ُ ‫رفتم رشر و داغ گل و الهل رفو ریخت‬ ٔ ‫ساقی هب قدح باده ده ساهل رفو ریخت‬ ‫مس‬ ‫خونم هب سیه‏ تی دنباهل رفو ریخت‬ ‫چم‬ ‫گل رد ن و قند هب بن گاهل رفو ریخت‬

‫كآب رخ این جوره سیاهل رفو ریخت‬ ‫شی ٔ جم‬ ‫رازه‬

‫عیت تبخاهل رفو ریخت‬

ٔ ‫بینی هك هم از دارئه اههل رفو ریخت‬ ‫خاکی هك قضا رد تن گوساهل رفو ریخت‬ ‫گوئی رگ ارب قلمت ژاهل رفو ریخت‬

ٔ ‫آتشكده خوی تو انزم هك ز رطفش‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم ز هك رپسم خبر عمر گذشته‬ ‫چش‬ ‫مس‬ ‫بی سعی نگه تی آ ن م فسونگر‬

‫مشاهط هب آرایش آ ن حسن خداداد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫با موج رخامش ن از باده مگویید‬

‫نج‬ ‫چون ا م و خورشید ز ربق دم رگمم‬ ‫فش‬ ‫ركش خط روی تو رگ ا رد بدین رنگ‬

ّ ‫رد اقلب ماّل ارثش رپده‌گشا شد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫زددیده رس اهل ن از بیم تو غالب‬

Two to three layers of the wounds collapsed due to heat Like the leaf of the poppy flower, my liver collapses from my laments. (84:1) Leaves of a red flower are compared to the wounded layers of the liver falling off; liver is a seat of courage; with time, I am losing any courage to withstand your cruelty. In Persian literature, the black heart of the poppy flower is resembled the scar from burning the lover’s heart because of the separation between two lovers.

I take pride in your disposition which is like the fire-temple; For whenever I shook the sparklers and brandings loose, the roses and tulips fell out. (84:2) The fiery disposition of the beloved spewing fire of anger appears like flowers, and I am ready to pick them up.

269

Praising your loyalty before those simple-hearted lovers; Your tyranny made the procuress ashamed with the sweat of embarrassment on her face. (84:3) Procuress praised your loyalty to the simpleton lovers, but when she saw your cruelty and tyranny, she became ashamed.

I said, “Whom should I ask of the news of my life bygone?” The saqi poured out ten-year-old wine into my glass. (84:4) Generally, this verse would mean that the saqi is offering a compliment; however, here, an old wine means a wine no one would like to drink that is why it is left here for ten years. This is one good example of why these explications are needed.

Her fascinating, drunken eyes, without the effort of a glance; I have shed my blood through the intoxicating outer corner of her eye. (84:5) The beloved has adorned her eyes with antimony (an ordinary decoration of the time applied to the corner of the eye); the lover got drunk just by looking at her before he could get taken by her drunken eyes. Drunken eyes and intoxicating antimony are a play on the word here.

The beautician is decorating that God-gifted beauty; In a way, that brings roses in the garden and drops sugar in Bengal. (84:6) The beautician decorates the beloved, who does not need any more beautification—an eternal beauty does not require any jewelry. When the beautician realized this, she threw away the roses in the garden for they were no match, and sugar to Bengal (a region of India distant from Ghalib’s abode), meaning very far, for it did not match the sweetness of the beloved.

Don’t talk about wine with her rippling wave; It has stolen the luster from the essence of this swift-flowing current. (84:7) The swift-flowing current is the wave of wine; the swell of her movement as she walks is compared here; her gait has stolen the beauty of the wave of wine.

From my fiery breath, like the sun and the stars, The collection of the fever blisters has scattered out. (84:8) Fever blisters appear near each other and appear like they are bonded together; their shape is compared to round starts and sun; my fiery breath blew the blisters away, just like stars and sun are separated from each other—scattered.

From the envy of the outline of your face if it is pressed in this color; You will see that the moon fell out from its halo circle. (84:9) The beloved is male beginning to grow facial hair—that is called the halo of the moon (the beloved face); the down has subdued the beloved’s beauty, but the face of the beloved appears (with its beauty) just as the moon seems inside the halo.

270

Its secret displays in the skeleton of the mullah; The soil that destiny had dropped from the body of Gosala. (84:10) Makkhali Gosala was an ascetic teacher of ancient India. See Gosala in the glossary.

Ghalib, from your fear, the knowledgeable are hiding their head; As if it is hailing from the veins of the clouds of your pen. (84:11) Self-praising, the poet is saying that others are afraid to face him.

85 ‫رجم غیر از دوست رپسیدیم و رپسیدن نداشت‬

‫خواستزكمارنجدوتقریبرنجیدننداشت‬

‫انزنین اپیش هب كوی غیر بوسیدن نداشت‬

‫شد ف گار از انزكی چندان هك رفتارش نماند‬

‫رب خود از ذوق قدوم دوست بالیدن نداشت‬

‫خود هب خود پیماهن می رگدید و رگدیدن نداشت‬ ‫بیش ازین اپیم ز رگد راه دیچیپن نداشت‬

‫شم‬ ‫هم نب‬ ‫چو ض رمده دود ع جنبیدن نداشت‬

‫دیده داغم ركد روی دوستان دیدن نداشت‬

‫ چون رد جام گنجیدن نداشت‬، ‫ریخت می رب خاک‬ ‫سود زری كوه دامانی هك رب چیدن نداشت‬ ‫رد هالك خویش كوشیدیم و كوشیدن نداشت‬

ُ ‫آدم و از تنگی جا جبهه رُپ چین ركد و رفت‬ ‫گل رفاوان بود و می رپزور و دوشم رب بساط‬

‫دری خواندی سوی خویش و زود فهمیدم ردیغ‬ ‫حس‬ ‫جوش رت رب رس خاکم ز بس جا تنگ ركد‬

‫تل‬ ‫ ور موافق جهر خ‬،‫رگ منافق وصل انخوش‬ ‫ربد آدم از امانت ره هچ رگدون رب نتافت‬ ‫باختم‬

‫ت‬ ‫رگ نیم آزاد خود را رد علق‬

‫ ردیغ‬،‫انرمادی بود نوعی آربو غالب‬

She wished to show her anger with us but found no occasion to do so; We asked about the faults of the rival, and there was no need to ask. (85:1) The beloved became angry without reason or excuse, and we asked a question about the rival; both were not necessary finding the reason why she was angry

The beloved came into assembly and seeing its tightness, and she left scowling; There was no need to be pompous of her presence when there was no room. (85:2) The beloved came into assembly to visit my rival (his presence), but he was not there, so the be-

271

loved left the assembly in anger. She wanted to be pompous (which also rhymes with expanding the volume in Farsi) to show her friendship with my rival, but the assembly was too tight or filled with lovers that didn’t leave room for her to expand (become pompous).

Being delicate hurt her feet so much, she could not walk; There is no need to kiss her beautiful feet in the rival’s valley. (85:3) To kiss her beautiful feet means impressions of her feet in the rival’s valley; she is so delicate that she began to walk over to the rival, she got tired; good for us. We kissed every imprint of her feet; this would have been very embarrassing for us.

Last night there were a lot of flowers and intense wine in our gathering; The cup on its own began to turn, yet it did not circulate. (85:4) Cup circulating means that the wine is served around, but the strength of the wine made the cup itself start revolving and was unable to reach others; a condition of joy and celebration is displayed; it all happened because the beloved walked into the assembly.

You called me to you late, and I figured your intention quickly, but alas, My feet do not have the strength to twist and turn in the dust of the path. (85:5) The beloved called the lover fully knowing that he was tired; the lover figured out her motive; also, when the lover gave up on her, she began to show interest to make sure that the lover’s suffering continued.

Such is the crowding of lost desire over my grave that it has tightened the space; Like a dead pulse, even the smoke from the candle on my grave is not flickering. (85:6) The lost desired so many that they crowd over my grave and compress the space such that even the flame cannot stay lit; what a great comparison to dead pulse! That is Ghalib.

If friends are false, meeting them is painful; if they are true, parting is bitter; My eyes grieved me; there was no need to see friends’ faces. (85:7) Meeting a friend is always traumatic; if they are authentic, then we grieve if they leave. If they are not faithful to us, then it is a pain to see their face. We shouldn’t see any friends.

The man took up the trust which the heavens declined; He poured the wine on the dust when the cup could hold no more. (85:8) God asked the heavens to keep his trust; they refused to fear their inability; like a wine that spills out of the cup, the confidence was offered to man, and he took it, perhaps foolishly.

If I am not free; it’s because I lost myself in the worldly attachments; The skirt that could not be lifted got caught and grated under the mountain. (85:9) I am bound to worldly affairs taking away my freedom; rubbing the skirt caught under the mountain shows extreme helplessness. We could not get out of our attachments to material words.

272

Alas Ghalib, disappointment was a kind of honor! We tried to kill ourselves, but there was no need to do so. (85:10) Unable to even kill ourselves, we began thinking that our failures were something to take pride in, to make us happy.

86 ‫مپوش دیده ز حق طالب رضای تو كیست‬

‫ببین هك رد گل و مل جلوه رگ ربای تو كیست‬

‫تو رگ چنین نگدازی رگه‏گشای تو كیست‬

‫بس‬ ‫كلید تگی تست غم بجوش ای دل‬

‫هم‬ ‫رپده نوای تو كیست‬

‫نم‬ ‫ی رسی هك ردین‬

‫تو آشنای هك‏ای خواهج و آشنای تو كیست‬

‫هك رغق خون هب رد بوستان رسای تو كیست‬ ‫ب خصم‬ ‫ مبتالی تو كیست‬،‫ی درهیم‬ ‫هب ند‬ ‫خواره آزمای تو كیست‬

‫می‬

ٔ ‫رحیف باده‬

‫قوی‌ست دست قضا كشت ٔه ادای تو كیست‬ ٔ ‫رفیب خورده نیرنگ وعداهی تو كیست‬

‫یكی ببین هك جگر تشن ٔه جفای تو كیست‬

‫ رما هب جای تو كیست‬،‫ شاهم‬،‫تو و خدای تو‬ ‫ خدای تو كیست‬،‫هب من بگوی هك غالب بگو‬

‫مینالی‬

‫نخری‬

‫كس‬ ‫هچ ان ی هك ز ردد رفاق‬

‫عشوه‌ای‬

‫و‬

‫نفروشی‬

‫ش كایتی‬

ٔ ‫رتا هك موهج گل ات كمر بود ردیاب‬

‫بال هب صورت زلف تو رو هب ما آورد‬ ‫رتاست جلوه رفاوان ردین بساط ولی‬

‫ یعنی هچ‬،‫ز واراث ن شهیدان رهاس‬

‫یش‬ ‫هب انتظار تو رد اپس وقت خو تنم‬ ‫زالل لطف تو سیرابی هوسناكان‬ ‫تو را ز اهل هوس ره یكی هب جای من‌ست‬ ‫نم فهم‬ َ ُّ ‫رفشته ! معنی «من ربک» ‏ی م‬

Look, between the wine and the flower, which one is more eager to display to you? Turn not your eyes from righteousness; see who wants your approval. (86:1) Everything in the Universe is displaying God’s virtues; everything seeks God’s approval; you cannot differentiate among all those who are eager to display the virtues of God.

How unfair you are to moan from the pain of separation! Don’t you realize who is your harmony in this music? (86:2) “I am closer than the jugular vein,” states God. Why are you lamenting separation? You sing with God, and in your voice is His voice. Aren’t you thankful enough?

273

Grief is the key to your tranquility; O heart, create a tumult! If you don’t melt like this, then who can unravel your knot? (86:3) The key to removing suffocation of heart is to raise a storm of grief, so much that it will melt you and thus relieve you of your pain; elsewhere, Ghalib writes, “When a man becomes used to grief, grief gets erased/so many difficulties fell upon me that they all became easy to bear.”

You offer no complaint and accept no charm; O Master, whose friend are you and who is your friend? (86:4) You never accepted anyone, nor let anyone accept you—what kind of a life is it?

Find yourself, who is wrapped up in flowers to the waist; Find out who is there drowned in blood at the door of your garden. (86:5) O beloved, you are enjoying the joys, and your life is filled with flowers (these are red) but look at your lovers who are drowning in their blood (also red), pointing to the callousness of the beloved.

Disaster came to us in the form of your tresses; We are caught in the miseries of life; who is your captive? (86:6) We are suffering two ways; first, the calamity wrought upon us by your tresses, and second, the worldly miseries; we want to know who is the lucky one that is only entangled in your tresses.

There is an abundance of your radiance in this assembly; But, who is your strong comate to drink wine with you? (86:7) Who is out there that can bear to see your radiance? We all imbibe the wine of display (the wisdom); who is out there that would understand Your grandeur.

Why fear the beneficiaries of the martyrs of love; Destiny’s hand is strong; who is the martyr of your coquetry? (86:8) If someone dies at your coquetry, then it is not your fault. Fear not the beneficiaries of the murdered to sue you or ask for blood money. This is attributed to their destiny.

In waiting for you, I am a watchful guardian of my time; By the chants of your promises, who has been deceived? (86:9) Your promises do not deceive us; we just enjoy waiting for you. Who are those that are deceived, hoping that you will come and suffer?

The sweet water of your kindness and congratulations quenches the lusting ones; But look into and see who the parched liver of your tyranny is? (86:10) If your kindness gladdens the lusty ones, let them be. We draw our pleasure from your tyranny; thirsty liver means desperately awaiting.

In your view, I am like the lusting ones, counting me among them; For God’s sake, O my king, tell me, who is out there for me? (86:11)

275

You consider me among the lusty ones but see that I am only turning to you, no one else, unlike others.

O, angel! I don’t understand the meaning of “Men Rabbek?” You should ask me, Ghalib, “who is your God?” (86:12) “Men Rabbek” means “Who is your God.” Reference is made to the questioning by two angels Monkar and Nakir or Mobashir and Bashir. These are the names of two angels who enter upon a dead one’s grave at his/her burial night who look into the beliefs and actions of the deceased. If the person died as an unbeliever, the angels would appear with ugly faces, “Monkar” and “Nakir.” If they died a believer, they would greet them with a beautiful face, in which case they are called “Mobashir” and “Bashir.” Ghalib says: “since I do not understand Arabic, perhaps they should ask me in Persian. Having understood the question well, the poet is mocking the angel of death. A pun is created that since I do not understand Arabic, perhaps they should ask me in Persian; having understood the question well, the poet is mocking the angel of death.

87 ‫هب سینه می سپرم ره ارگ هچ اپ خفته‌ست‬

‫هب وادی‏یی هك ردآ ن خضر را عصا خفته ست‬

‫هك رد ش كایت ردد و غم دوا خفته‌ست‬

‫صب حش‬ ‫هب ح ر چنین خست‌ه روسیه خیزد‬

ٔ ‫گدا هب ساهی دیوار اپدشا خفته‌ست‬

‫هك رس هب زانوی زاهد هب بوریا خفته‌ست‬ ‫كش‬ ‫گسسته لنگ ِر تی و انخدا خفته‌ست‬ ‫عس‬ ‫مس‬ ‫س هب خاهن و هش رد رح را خفته‌ست‬

‫هك زدد رمحله بیدار و اپرسا خفته‌ست‬ ‫ز بخت من خبر آرید ات كجا خفته‌ست‬

‫ردیچه باز و هب ردوازه اژداه خفته‌ست‬

‫هك میر اقفله رد كاروان‌رسا خفته‌ست‬ ‫رما هك انهق ز رفتار ماند و اپ خفته‌ست‬

‫هك خسته رغهق هب خون خفته است ات خفته‌ست‬

276

‫بدین نیاز هك با تست انز می‌رسدم‬

‫پس‬ ‫رخوش حلق ٔه رندان ز انزنین ری‌ست‬ ‫هوا مخالف و شب اتر و بحر طوافن خیز‬

‫شبی‬ ‫غمت هب شهر خون زانن هب بنگه خلق‬ ‫دلم هب سبحه و سجاده و ردا رلزد‬

‫ردازی شب و بیداری من این همه نیست‬

‫ببین ز دور و مجو رقب هش هك منظر را‬ ‫هب راه خفتن من ره هك بنگرد داند‬

‫یم‬ ‫درگ ز ا نی راه و رقب كعبه هچ حظ‬ ‫هب خواب چون خودم آسوده دل دمان غالب‬

In a land where Khizr’s stick is asleep, I go on, traveling on my chest, although my feet are asleep. (87:1) Khizr shows the path to those who are lost. Valley is the valley of love wherein only a lover can traverse; Khizr is not apt in going through this valley; traveling on chest means shows the love for the valley, and the sleeping stick of Khizr means it is useless in this valley. See Khizr in the glossary.

I am proud of my expression of humility to you; In the shade of the wall of the royal palace, the beggar is asleep. (87:2) I am continuously expressing my humility to you as if a beggar is resting in the shade of the wall of the king’s palace; shadow means comfort.

In the morning of Doomsday, he will rise tired and disgraced, Who went to sleep complaining of the pain and sorrow of the cure. (87:3) Went to sleep means went to grave; those who died to spend a life complaining of the pain and lost cures for the pain will be disgraced on the Doomsday. They have lived a life of misery that God does not like, and so on the Doomsday, they will rise disgraced.

The drunkards are making a riot since there is a beautiful young lad, Who is asleep with his head on the knee of the Ascetic. (87:4) Gay instincts are commonly expressed in ghazals. Here the Ascetic is taunted for hypocrisy while teaching others abstinence.

The wind blows in the opposite direction, the night is dark, and the sea is lashed by storms; The anchor chain is broken, and the captain is asleep. (87:5) On a political basis, while the people are suffering, the rulers are resting easily. Perhaps it taunts the British Rule’s times when the local kings kept busy luxuries while their people suffered.

Here, your sorrow of love is openly attacking the abode of folks; There, the night watchman in his home and the king in his harem are sleeping. (87:6) The sorrow of your love is robbing peace while those who were supposed to protect us are comfortably sleeping.

My heart trembles for the rosary, the prayer-carpet, and patched cloak; (87:7) The highway robber is awake while the pious and devout ones are asleep. The devout ones are supposed to stay awake and pray all night; instead, the robbers are having a hay day or a night taunting the devout ones.

The length of the night and my wakefulness are not the whole story; Someone should bring the news of my fortune—where has it fallen asleep? (87:8) The wakefulness of the lover is nothing special waiting for union; unfortunately, what is sleeping is his fortune; had it been awake, the lover would have been able to sleep.

277

Look from afar, and do not seek the company of the king; The window is open, and at the gate, a dragon lies asleep. (87:9) King means the king of beauty, the beloved; the dragon is the protector of the king. So, take a look at them from a distance but not dare to come closer, for the approach to the king is well protected. Ghalib may be referring to Kind Bahadur Shah Zafar and may have written this verse when passing by the palace.

Whoever looks at the way I sleep would know That the caravan leader is asleep in the caravan-sara. (87:10) Caravan-sara is the resting place for the caravan, a hotel, perhaps. When the leader is asleep, imagine how the followers will be disconnected; this is a continuation of the theme in several verses above—apparently, a criticism of the king at the time.

What joy could I derive from the safety of the path, and the nearness of the Ka’ba, When my camel is unable to walk, and my own feet are asleep? (87:11) My ride has come to a halt, and I can longer walk on my own; so, what is the joy of knowing that the travels will be safer if the Ka’ba is nearby; we will not be able to traverse anyway.

Think of me not saddened like you, seeing me asleep Ghalib; That a heartbroken one asleep is like someone asleep drowned in blood. (87:12) The poet is sleeping and telling others that do not think I went to sleep because I was saddened; someone whose heart has been broken looks like he is drenched in blood while asleep, I am not.

88 ‫خم‬ ‫من و ز ی هك رب دل از جگر است‬

‫كشته را ركش كشت ٔه درگست‬

‫حیف اپئی هك آفتش ز رس است‬

‫دارد‬

‫روز و شب رد قفای یكدرگ است‬ ‫تش دكان شیشه‏رگ است‬

‫سخ‬

‫دل‬

‫تیغ او تیز و خون ما هدر است‬ ‫نوك كلكم ز دشنه تیزرت است‬ ‫آنچه از ما نبرده‌ای خبر است‬ ‫آنچه من قطع ركده‌ام نظر است‬

278

‫زهم‬

‫روزگار‬

‫لغزشی‬

‫ارث‬

‫ركد‬

‫او‬

ٔ ‫ردیده‬

‫دمام‬

‫ورهن‬

‫ازجای‬

‫مالدار‬

‫انداز‬

‫دشمنند‬

‫جو‬

‫ردم‬

‫مس‬

‫را‬

‫عیب‬

‫تی‬

‫انهل‬

‫دوستان‬

ٔ ‫رپده‬

‫عق‬ ‫ دل و جان نیز‬،‫ل و دین ربده‏ای‬

‫هش رحری و گدا پالس ربید‬

‫شكر ازید هك انهل بی‌ارث است‬

‫نم‬ ‫منت از دل ی‏توان ربداشت‬

‫یخ‬ ‫ر تن رد نهاد بال و رپ است‬

‫قف‬ ‫س و دام را گناهی نیست‬

‫یش‬ ‫قطره از رتك خو تن گهر است‬

‫كم خود گیر و بیش شو غالب‬

‫هم زخان هم بهار ردگذر است‬

‫رزید آ ن ربگ و این گل افشاند‬

One who is killed envies the other one killed; It is me and a heart wound caused by my liver. (88:1) Killed means killed in love for beloved; destroyed. Whereas both the heart and the liver have been wounded, the heart is also envious of the liver, causing the heart to feel more wounded? The liver is the seat of courage, the heart of emotions.

The elements of destiny are running away from each other; Like the day and night run after each other. (88:2) If we see this as Ghalib’s view of the Universe, he is describing a reality of the Universe that would be proven almost a hundred years later.

In drunkenness, the feet stumble; Alas for the foot, whose bane is the head! (88:3) The drunkenness comes from the head and thus the misbalance that falls on the feet; who is at fault, and who is paying for it?

Gaining effect has made the sigh abounding in riches; Her unyielding heart has turned into a glass shop. (88:4) Her heart has turned from stone to glass, which is more expensive, and thus riches are produced; glass breaks easily, so there is a possibility that she will understand how our heartbreaks, which opens many optimistic (getting rich) opportunities for the lover.

Our friends too are our enemies, if not always; The sword of the beloved is sharp, and our blood is ready to waste. (88:5) Our friends are protecting me from getting killed by her sword, which is always prepared, and so am I. This has created good fortune that we live but sulk at not being killed by her, and thus the enemy.

Having torn the curtain of rival’s fault findings, The tip of my pen is sharper than the sword. (88:6) My pen (writing) disclosed the trait of my rivals to find faults in everything, including me.

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You have usurped my faith and my intelligence, also my heart and soul; The only thing you couldn’t take away from me are my secrets. (88:7) Buried in my chest are secrets that no one could take away; the ascetic or the beloved.

The king has torn the silk and the beggar his rags; All that I could cut off was my vision. (88:8) To cut off here means having given up association with it. We can give up only what we have; I had neither silk nor a rag, except my vision, so I gave that up when the time came for everyone to give up what they have. So here, the poet is taunting both the king and the beggar. They only had material things, while I had the gift of vision.

One cannot bear the obligation of the heart; Thank God that the laments have no effect. (88:9) If my laments were effective, then I would have been indebted to her, and this obligation would have been too much to hear; so, in a way, I am happy that my plaints do not have any effect.

It is neither the fault of the cage nor of the net; Shedding of the plumage is in its destiny. (88:10) Caged or not, a bird loses its plumage, not caused by bondage; plumage is our assets; we lose them regardless. No need to blame our servitude to the beloved as a reason for losing what we had.

That will shed leaves, and this will scatter flowers; Autumn and the spring alike will pass away. (88:11) Whether it is weathering away or growing, both are temporary.

Ghalib, take hold of your “less” and become “more”; The drop, by abandoning itself, becomes a pearl. (88:12) The Sufi doctrine of giving up the self is described here; a drop by giving up its identity as it enters the oyster shell turns up as a pearl. If we can become humble, we will become more prominent.

89 ‫اندرین دری كهن میكده آشامی ‌هست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هند را رند ن پیش ٔه گمنامی هست‬

‫اقصد ار دم زند از حوصله پیغامی هست‬

‫انهم از سوز ردونم هب رقم سوخته شد‬

‫پیش ما آی هك هت رجهع‏ای از جامی ‌هست‬ ‫كشش‬ ‫كش بهر سو ی از شكن دامی ‌هست‬

280

‫خس‬ ‫روی باده ردین دور ارگ می‌خواهی‬ ‫جغد و آزادی جاوید هما را انزم‬

‫طم‬ ‫پخته كاری‌ست هك ما را ع خامی ‌هست‬

‫گفته‌اند از تو هك رب ساده‌دالن بخشائی‬

‫بگذر از رمگ هك وابسته هب هن گامی هست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫بسن‬ ‫ تی این ردد ج‬،‫بی تو رگ زیسته‌ام‬

‫یاد انری هك رما تیره رسانجامی هست‬ ‫ جاهمٔ ارحامی هست‬، ‫ور رگوگان طلبد‬

‫ما ندانیم هك بغدادی و بسطامی هست‬

ٔ ‫خواهش ما هك جگر گ‬ ‫وهش اربامی هست‬

‫نتوانگفتهكالهامیهست؟‬،‫تووزیدان‬

‫هگ رخ آرائی و هگ زلف سیه اتب دهی‬

‫كیست رد كعبه هك رطلی زنبیذم بخشد‬ ‫می صافی ز رفنگ آید و شاهد ز تتار‬

‫رب دل انزك دلدار رگانی مكناد‬ ‫ ولی‬،‫شعر غالب نبود وحی و نگوییم‬

In India, the poetry professionals live the life of oblivion; Within this ancient temple, there is one who can drink unceasingly. (89:1) Zoroastrians consider wine to be kosher, which is why a reference is made to an ancient temple. In poesy, Ghalib remains unknown, and his contemporaries did not acknowledge his greatness, and in return, told him that only he would understand what he writes.

Come to me if you want the wine of Khosro in this era; Come to me, for at the bottom of my goblet, there are a few drops left. (89:2) Wine drinking of Khosro Parviz (a king of Persia) is well known; the poet is complaining of the dearth of wine in his times and telling every come to come to him for his goblet is still not finished—he is kinder than ever to share it with those looking for wine (wisdom). See Khosro Parviz in the glossary.

The letter as I began writing got burned from my hidden sorrow; If the messenger claims courage, then I have a verbal message to send. (89:3) I was writing a letter to my beloved, but my writing got burned from the heat of my sorrows; now, if the messenger dares to face the beloved, then I am offering a verbal message to be delivered to her. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “There is no argument with you, but my friend/Say salaam to the messenger if you come across him somewhere.” In this verse, someone had introduced a messenger to Ghalib. The messenger fell in love with the beloved to whom Ghalib had sent the letter. Now Ghalib is conversing with the person who had introduced the messenger. This is a good example of Ghalib’s humor.

The owl is freed of these tribulations, but we take pride in Huma; For there is an effort all around to catch it in the net. (89:4) The anecdote goes that whosoever comes under the shadow of Huma, a mythological bird, becomes the king. So, we are all trying to catch Huma. No one catches an owl, giving owl greater

281

freedom in life. One meaning can be that those who are worthless are spending a carefree life, while the learned ones remain entangled in the religious altercations. See Huma in the glossary.

They have said that you grant favors to the simple-hearted; It is a maturity that we have foolish hopes. (89:5) The beloved is addressed that you grant favors to simpletons; we are mature and intelligent but are hoping that our desires will come to fruition is being simple-hearted; so, do not ignore us, though we look more mature, inside we have a simpleton’s heart.

At times you put makeup on your face, and at other times you put curls on your black hair; You don’t remember that there is a dark destiny for me. (89:6) Watching the beloved decorate her face and putting curls in her tresses brings doom to my life—I am dying to see this; the dark ending of life and black hair constitute the wordplay here.

I have lived my life without you, judge my pain, And forget about my death, for it is destined. (89:7) I am living my life without you, but I am not dying, but that shouldn’t tell you that I am not in pain. For the time of death is destined and fixed, I continue to live, but you should know the pain I am living with.

Who is there in the Ka’ba to fill my cup with the purest wine? If he asks for payment, I can pawn the robes of pilgrimage. (89:8) Never mind where I am; I am ready to pawn whatever I have. In the pilgrimage, the pilgrims wear a single cloth robe, and this means that the drunkard is ready to pawn everything for a cup of beer, which is an unusual description—the brew made from barley and dates.

Purest wine comes from the West, and beauties come from Tatar; Don’t we know if there is any Baghdadi or Bastami? (89:9) Since our two interests are wine and women from the West and Tatar, do we need to know about places like Baghdad (Iraq) or Bastam, a city and capital of the Bastam District of Shahrud County Semnan Province, Iran? See Bastami in the glossary.

I hope it is not a burden to the delicate heart of the beloved; As our desire is so dear to our extremely insistent habit. (89:10) God forbid if it would be cumbersome to the beloved, out practice to stay insistent, which, by the way, happens to be what we love most about us.

Ghalib’s poems are not holy revelations, and we don’t call him a messenger; For God’s sake, can you at least say that my verses are nonetheless God-inspired? (89:11) Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “From unknown do these topics come to the mind/the scratching sound of the pen is the call of angels.” Here he is coming close to saying that his poetry is revealed.

282

90 ‫بخت من از تو شكوه‌زگار سپاس كیست‬

‫لع‬ ‫ل تو خست ٔه ارث التماس كیست‬

‫كاندر امیدواری بوی لباس كیست‬

‫یم‬

‫اینم هن بس بود هك جگر روشناس كیست‬

‫چش‬ ‫آه از امید غیر هك ه ‏م م یأس كیست‬ ‫رهاسكیست‬،‫رستوسالمت‬،‫رگكشتهای‬ ‫چش‬ ‫خار ره تو م هب راه پالس كیست‬ ‫شوقم هب انهل از ستم بی قیاس كیست‬

ٔ ‫ظلم آرفیده دل حق انشناس كیست‬

ٔ ‫باد حسر عالهق ربط حواس كیست‬ ‫ات با منش مضایقه چندین هب اپس كیست‬

‫گیرم ز داغ عشق تو رطفی نبست دل‬ ‫نس‬

‫رلزم هب كوی غیر ز بیتابی‬

‫قت‬ ‫با او هب ساز وصلی و با من هب زعم ل‬

‫از بیكسان شهرم و از انكسان دره‬ ‫نم‬ ‫از رپنیان هب رعبده راضی ی‌شود‬ ‫لطفت هب شكوه از هوس بی‌شمار من‬

‫گیرم هك رسم عشق من آورده‌ام هب دره‬

ٔ ‫صح چم نم‬ ‫ن ن وهن زبم رفاغ تو‬ ‫ بت رما نگه انز قحط نیست‬،‫غالب‬

Your red lips are wounded of the effect of whose beseeching? Is our fortune complaining of the thankfulness of the rival? (90:1) At the insistence of the rival, the beloved gives him a kiss resulting in her lips turning red (either with excitement or the hard kissing of the rival causing them to bleed); the rival is thanking the beloved, and the lover is complaining about this act of thankfulness by the rival.

I assume that from the branding of your love, my heart could not benefit; But isn’t it enough for me that she knows the condition of my liver? (90:2) We got nothing for our fidelity (heart-driven), yet the result turned out that our liver got branded (a site of courage); having lost all courage to resist the beloved, we are happier now.

I tremble in the alley of the rival from the restlessness of the breeze; For whose smell of attire is the breeze hoping to catch? (90:3) The breeze is restless, waiting to receive the perfume of the attire of beloved as she is expected to walk into the alley of the rival to meet him; seeing this restless of the breeze, I am trembling. How would the rival be feeling when the breeze in the alley is going crazy?

You have the song of union with him and plan of murder for me; Alas, the rival is hopeful, and I am a victim of hopelessness. (90:4)

283

The beloved is thinking about union with the rival and planning to murder the lover; her hopefulness is competing with the hopelessness of the lover.

I am one of the lonely ones in the city and one of the ignoble ones in the world; If you kill me, you may live long; you have no one to be afraid of? (90:5) I have no value and have no one to claim head money for my murder, so live happily, my dear killer.

She is screaming in dissatisfaction with the silk cloth, The thorn of your path is looking for whose rags? (90:6) Even the thorns of the beloved path are after the torn clothing of the lover. The beloved doesn’t want to tear smooth silk clothes, the thorns in her path are waiting for woolen and rough clothes that dervishes wear.

Your kindness is complaining of my endless desires; My yearning desire, in the form of laments, is caused by whose infinite oppression? (90:7) The beloved is not paying any attention to the lover’s desires while crying at her cruelty.

Let us assume that I have brought the love tradition to the world; But, cruelty is the creation of whose unfair heart? (90:8) Both the lover and the beloved may be luck trendsetters.

The lawn of the flower garden is a sample of your leisurely company; But the dispersal of the morning breeze has a connection with whose feelings? (90:9) Beloved’s mind is at ease and calms like the garden flowers; however, the morning breeze is jubilant emotionally, like the rival’s mind.

Ghalib, there is no dearth of coquettish gaze with my beloved; She is refraining from me for whose appreciation? (90:10) The beloved is holding back her coquetry towards me, only to please the rival.

91 ‫دیده پوشید و امگن ركد هك پنهانم سوخت‬

‫آن هك بی‏رپده هب صد داغ نمایانم سوخت‬

‫این رگ ارب رشربار رپیشانم سوخت‬

‫ دیده جدا می‌سوزد‬،‫سینه از اكش جدا‬

‫ لیك ندانم هب هچ عنوانم سوخت‬،‫سوختم‬ ‫دل هب بیرونقی مهر ردخشانم سوخت‬

284

‫هن هب رد جسته رشار و هن بجا مانده رماد‬

‫حاجت افتاد هب روزم ز سیاهی هب رچاغ‬

‫چم‬ ‫زك پی پشه توان رد نستانم سوخت‬

‫خس‬ ‫سودم از ارزشم ازفون بود آ ن خار و م‬

‫رد قدم سوختن خار بیابانم سوخت‬

‫نم‬ ‫اپیم از رگمی رفتار ی‌سوخت هب راه‬

‫غیرت رگمی هن گاهمٔ صنعانم سوخت‬

‫خود هب داغ تو دل دری‌پشیمانم سوخت‬ ‫همبدانسنگبههمخوردن پی كانمسوخت‬ ‫من هك رخشندگی جوره ایمانم سوخت‬

‫عشق‬ ‫كارف م و دوزخ نبود رد خور من‬ ‫ات ندانی هب فسون تو رد آتش رفتم‬ ‫ ات نشوم خست ٔه عشق‬،‫ركدم از سنگ جگر‬ ‫دیگر از خاتم ٔه كفر هچ گویم غالب‬

The one who has burned me with a hundred scar wounds in the open Has looked the other way, assuming that it was done hideously. (91:1) While it is known who has brought me these brandings, she has looked the other way from these branding to understand who is responsible for these, thinking that she has been doing this hideously, without letting anyone realize, including the lover.

No sparks have flown, nor does any ash remained; I have been burnt, but I know not how was I burned? (91:2) None of the signs of burning appeared, sparks or ashes; I know I am ignited, but how it happened remains hidden from me. An extended meaning is that the burning of real lovers does not produce any spark or ash; they just burn from inside.

From tears, the chest is burning on one side and the eyes on the other; This fire-raining from the cloud’s vein has burned me scattered. (91:3) Fire raining from the cloud’s vein means a line of tears. Burning tears can explain the burning of eyes, but how they broke me apart; having burned my heart happens because these fiery tears are made in my heart, and thus, their heat burns me.

My day needs a lamp due to darkness; My heart burns with the lackluster shining sun. (91:4) I am burning to see the lackluster bright sun that even during the daytime, the darkness is such that I need to light a lamp. The lover is pointing to the intensity of darkness, not the lackluster sun. Elsewhere Ghalib has said that if the days of my life are so dark that a piece of cotton wool lights up my room, I wonder dark will be my night.

My profit is more than my value, and I am that thorn and hay That is used to burn the mosquitoes in the garden. (91:5) Straw is otherwise useless, but if it burns in the garden, it repels mosquitoes. That is my value. Profit means use.

285

286

I am an infidel of love, and the hell doesn’t suite me; The heat of the San’an’s stormy zeal has burned me (91:6) The poet here refers to the story of Sheikh San’an a very religious Muslim and an old man who fell in love with a young Christian girl and per her request he left his religion and became infidel due to his intense love for the girl. See glossary for San’an.

In walking the path of loyalty my feet did not burn from the heat; It was the heart of the thorns in the desert that burned for me. (91:7) I had so much love and determination in walking the path of loyalty and such a deep belief that from this heat of joy my feet didn’t burn but the heart of the thorns in the desert burned.

You shouldn’t think that I jumped in fire because of your spell; My late-regretting heart burned me in the hands of your love wound. (91:8) The fire of beloved became the cause of the burning of the lover, regardless of its appearance.

I made my liver stone-like hard, so I don’t get burned by love; But I got burned from the striking of this stone with the tip of the arrows. (91:9) My liver was like a stone, the beloved’s gaze the tip of the arrow. When they strike, fire sparks come out.

O Ghalib, what should I say about the end of blasphemy; Me, in whom the brightness of belief’s essence is burned? (91:10) There is no need to speak of blasphemy when my belief is fully endowed with enlightenment.

92 ‫نی نی نی كلكم رگ ژمگان یتیم‌ست‬ ِ ‫فی‬ ‫سی ب نطق‬ ‫م ارث ض حكیم‌ست‬ ‫را ی‬

‫ل‬ ‫ق س‬ ‫ت ركیم‌ست‬ ِ ‫رد بذل ال ی و ر م د‬

‫از روی تو آئینه كف دست كلیم‌ست‬

‫ل‌ست‬

‫سوزی هك هب خاکم ز تو رد عظم رمیم‌ست‬

‫سه‬ ‫كلك و ورقم اتب یلی رب ادیم‌ست‬ ‫عق‬ ‫رد زادن همتای من اندیشه یم‌ست‬

‫نس‬ ‫ش نفس‬ ‫ور‬ ‫م رعش ٔه اعضای یم‌ست‬

‫ش‬ ‫ر ح كفر جم می‌چكد از مغز سفالم‬

‫از آتش لهراسب نشان می‌دهد ارموز‬ ‫خلی‬

‫از رحف من اندیشه گلستان‬

‫چش‬ ‫م و نگهت رگدش جامی ز نبیذست‬

‫جس‬ ‫رد تن مانند تو نظاره زبون‌ست‬ ‫بش ازجای بهارست‬

‫جن‬

‫ذوق طلبت‬

287

‫رد انز ز خود میرمی از غیر هچ بیم‌ست‬

‫رد نطق مسیحا دمم از خصم هچ باك‌ست‬

‫گویی لب یارست هك رد بوهس لئیم‌ست‬

‫تم ندهد كام دل غمزده غالب‬

‫ دلم از غصه دو نیم‌ست‬،‫بی‏رصهف بنالم‬

‫ رخت از باده دو رنگ ست‬، ‫بی رپده ستم كن‬

‫بخ‬

There is a generous hand in the donation of pearls and writing poems; The Ney Ney sound of my pen is like the eyelashes of an orphan. (92:1) First, he is comparing his poetry with shiny pearls, which he is giving away generously in the shape of his poetry; second, he is comparing them with the eyelashes of orphans, meaning they are continuously shedding tears. My verses are like warm tears.

From my clay goblet, the drippings appear as if coming from Jamshid’s hands; The quenched thirst of my diction is the kindness of Almighty. (92:2) In the first line, he is comparing his wine drops as if they were from the hands of Jamshid or extremely valuable. In the second line, he is associating it all with God’s grace towards him. Wine drops and thirst-quenching is the wordplay in this verse. See Jamshid in the glossary.

Today, it is reminding of the fire-temple of King Lohrasb; Such is the fire lit by your love in my decayed bones. (92:3) Lohrasb was a Zoroastrian King in ancient Persian; Zoroastrians have a fire burning all time. The point made here is the perpetuity of the fire from the burning of decayed bones of the lover in the grave. The fire in the bones comes from his love, which is infinite, and the fire keeps on going burning. See Lohrasb in the glossary.

Through my words, my thoughts are like the flower garden of Khalil; From the reflection of your radiant face, the mirror is like the shining hand of Moses. (92:4) Praising the verses that remind him of the Garden of Khalil, the anecdote is that when Prophet Moses would walk with his hands in the air, they will still illuminate to observers. Here is Quranic lore, which is compared to a beloved’s face. See Khalil in the glossary.

Your eyes and gaze are like a wine goblet in circulation; My pen and paper are like the light of Soheil falling on the leather. (92:5) The first line is clear; in the second line, he is referring to a special leather that is perfumed; this is his paper and his verses the light falling from Soheil, referring to several stars typically seen near the southern horizon from Arabia. Thus, Soheil also refers to a bright star. See Soheil in the glossary.

In searching for someone like of you, my sight the sight has vanquished; In producing an equal to me, the imagination is like an infertile woman. (92:6) I could not find anyone like you, and imagination cannot produce anyone with my thoughts.

288

Excited to find you, all the elements of the spring stir into motion; The tumult in my breath makes the limbs of the gentle breeze quiver. (92:7) The struggle of finding you is exciting, like entering the spring season, flowers blooming, breeze blowing, meaning very pleasant. Now he compares his own breath causing the morning breeze to quiver from the essence of his verses.

In my speech that has the power of Jesus’ breath; Why should I fear rivals, for, in your coquetry, you run away from yourself? (92:8) My verses come alive; in the second line, he says that in the intoxication of coquetry, she becomes oblivious to all, including the rival, so I need not hear the rival.

Be cruel openly for on your face has taken two shades from the wine; Fruitlessly I am lamenting as my heart is splitting into two halves with sorrow. (92:9) The beloved is drinking, and it brings color to her face, an angry look. Now, if it is due to the wine, then the lover is disappointed. He wants her to be truly cruel to him—this dilemma is causing his heart to split, meaning feeling the pain. The wordplay is the two halves of heart and two possibilities of the red color on her face—the heart is also red.

Ghalib, my misfortunes keep me from fulfilling the desire of my saddened heart; As if my fortune is like the lips of the beloved who is miserly in giving kisses. (92:10) Beloved’s lips never open to give a kiss, just like the misfortunate keep him from getting the desires of his sad heart fulfilled; the beloved’s mouth is labeled as so small as if it does not exist, so that too is a point made here.

93 ‫هشدار هك شهباز تو آموخته‌ای هست‬

‫چش‬ ‫رد بند تو م از دو جهان دوخته‏ای هست‬

‫رد سینه دو صد رعبده اندوخته‌ای هست‬

‫رد دیده ز رخ رپده ربانداخته‌‌ای نیست‬

‫رد ززمهم‌ بوی جگر سوخته‌ای هست‬ ‫نس‬ ‫زین سو هوس جا پری توخته‌ای هست‬

‫رد زبم عتابش رخ ارفوخته‌ای هست‬ ‫رد كوی تو گوئی سگ اپسوخته‌ای هست‬

‫بیهش‬ ‫افغان رما ی ساخته‌ای نیست‬ ِ

‫زآنسویهبمیدانوافاتخته‌اینیست‬

‫رد راه ثوابش قد ارفاخته‌ای نیست‬ ‫ غالب ارگ بیهده رگدد‬،‫رد اتب رمو‬

Entrapped by you, there is someone whose eyes are shut to both worlds; But, beware, for this falcon has been well-trained. (93:1)

289

290

Falcons are trained to fly and catch while their eyes have been covered; in your love, we have shut our eyes to the world here and hereafter, but we are not oblivious of you; we are ready to catch you like a trained falcon would catch its prey.

My plaint is not just a show-off for my delirium; In this whisper, there is the smell of my burned liver as well. (93:2) The fire is subdued but not put out—it is not a façade. My plaints come from my heart, letting all know the heat of my burning passion.

There is no one we behold who has removed the veil from their face; She is the beloved holding hundreds of plans in her chest to fight with us. (93:3) We cannot find any beloved who would take her veil off yet planning to fight with us in a hundred ways. Hiding and veil are compared for wordplay. Taking the veil off would be enough to make us lose in the first place.

Here in the field of fidelity, there is no one making any effort; There they are sitting, having collected the desire to sacrifice their life. (93:4) The lovers are ready to give their lives, but the beloved is making no discernible effort to show her fidelity.

No one can stand tall in the path of good deeds; And in her assembly of tyranny, there is a face flushed with anger. (93:5) The beloved does not honor anyone to give him or her a chance to walk with pride. In her assembly, her face is flaring with anger against her lovers.

Be not angry if Ghalib turns disrespectful; Just think that a dog with burned feet has entered your alley. (93:6) Consider all inappropriate comments of Ghalib as if a hurt dog is barking.

94 ‫رد ارم خاص حجت دستور عام چیست‬

‫شق سخ‬ ‫با من هك عا م ن از ننگ و انم چیست‬

‫داند هك حور و كورث و دارالسالم چیست‬

‫با دوست ره هك باده هب خلوت خورد دمام‬

‫نب‬ ‫گوئی مخور رشاب و ینی هب جام چیست‬ ‫با خست گا ن حدیث حالل و رحام چیست‬ ‫صب‬ ‫چون ح نیست خود هچ شناسم هك شام چیست‬

ُ ‫چشم‬ ‫مس‬ ‫تمزخوندلهكدو مازآنرُپست‬

‫لخس ٔ غم‬ ‫د ته‬

‫یم و بود می دوای ما‬

‫رد روز تیره از شب اترم نماند بیم‬

291

‫اقصد بگو زك آ ن لب نوشین ایپم چست‬

‫خی‬ ‫با ل مور میرسی از ره خوش‌ست افل‬

‫ات از فلك نصیب ٔه كاس ركام چیست‬

ٔ ‫از كاهس ركام نصیب‌ست خاک را‬

‫تگی بند دام چیست‬

‫خس‬

‫باری عالج‬

‫ور خود بدیم كار توایم انتقام چیست‬ ‫لع‬ ‫رپسد رچا هك رنخ می ل‏افم چیست‬

‫قف‬ ‫گفتی سخوشاستتوانبالورپگشود‬

‫نیكی ز تست از تو نخواهیم زمد كار‬ ‫مص‬ ‫غالب ارگ هن رخهق و حف هب هم رفوخت‬

I am a lover; why talk to me about fame and disgrace? Why bring in common arguments in this special situation? (94:1) The love is oblivious of any fame or disgrace, so when a situation arises, why to bring the argument about the traditions of the time—they mean nothing.

Intoxicated with the blood of my heart that has filled my both eyes, You tell me not to drink, but you do not see what is in my goblet. (94:2) You do not see what is in my goblet, not the wine, but my blood that has made me intoxicated while you think I am inebriated by wine. The red eyes also indicate how the goblet was filled in the first place.

He who drinks wine with the friend, in privacy; Knows full well what is a Houri, what is Kausar, and what is Dar al-Salam? (94:3) The three signs that you are in paradise are the Houris, Kausar, the fountain of abundance, and Dar al-Salam, the abode of peace; he who has the private company of the beloved has experienced them all; he knows what it is like being in paradise. See Dar al-Salam in the glossary.

We are crushed by grief and drink wine to heal the pain of grief; why to talk about the hadith of what is ‘permitted’ and ‘forbidden’ with the tired ones? (94:4) Wine is forbidden in Islam, but the lover is saying that it is merely a medicine to cure our pain, and there is no reason to invoke the discussion of what is forbidden and what is not. He is merely finding a way to avoid getting accused of drinking. See Hadithin the glossary.

In the darkness of the day, I have no fear of night; When there is no dawn, how would I know what is night? (94:5). Life is perpetually filled with sadness, so fear of suffering is gone; it is a continuous plight—no fear of the unknown, it is with me all the time.

Coming along with you is an army of ants; this is indeed a good omen; Messenger, tell me what message from those sweet lips you have brought? (94:6)

292

The ants marching show that they must have been closer to the beloved’s lips and therefore, with a message from her coming from a line of ants—just tell me what the message is?

You say, ‘the cage is good, for one can spread wings and feathers in it’; But tell me, what is the resolve of the breaking of the snare’s noose? (94:7) The lover, like a bird, is caught in the beloved’s cage (noose), and the beloved is saying that this is a good place wherein you can stretch your wings and feathers. However, the lover says that he should ensure he practiced this; the snare might become weak and break, letting the prey go, which he does not want to happen, so the advice is not proper.

“From the goblet of the kind givers, the dust gets its share.” Let us see what the heavens have for the fortune of the goblet of kind givers. (94:8) Famous Arabic poet Motanabbi’s (915-965) verse is quoted as the first line describing the tradition that the friends of a famous personality, Aashi AlKabir, would come to drink at his grave and would dump the dredges on his grave when the goblet empties. Perhaps this ritual is rewarding to the visiting friends, and a question is raised? See Motanabbi in the glossary.

Good conduct is from You; we do not ask to be rewarded; And if we sin, that is Your doing. Why then take revenge? (94:9) It is the kindness of the Lord that we are good, and we do not ask for anything in return for our good deeds; but then, our sins are also because of the will of the Lord, why are we then punished for them? This is a very popular theme in Persian and Urdu poetry; According to Omar Khayyam: If you give us to paradise in return for our prayers, then it is merely quid pro quo; where is your kindness? Elsewhere Khayyam says, “tell me what are the sins not committed; he who did not sin, how did he survive? If I commit a sing, you take equal revenge from me; that be the case, then what is different You and I? Tell me.” See Omar Khayyam in the glossary.

If Ghalib has not sold his cloak and his Quran together; Then why is he asking us, what is the price of ruby wine? (94:10) The religious garb, the cloak, and the Holy Book are the signs of a practicing Muslim; the poet does not believe in this superficial symbolism to show his belief to others. That is one meaning wherein the price of wine is the wine of devotion to God. Another straightforward meaning is that if he has not yet sold his cloak and the Holy book, he should be ready to exchange them for wine without asking for the price of wine. Verses like this make Ghalib’s poetry more interesting to read, wherein one can draw many meanings.

95 ‫آرزم جو رگفت‬

‫ن هب عاشق‬

‫سخ‬

‫راه‬

‫كارفدلی هك با ستم دوست خو رگفت‬

‫گل را هب رجم رعبده‌ای رنگ و بو رگفت‬ ‫ی‌دهد‬

‫نم‬

‫لطف خدای ذوق نشاطش‬

293

‫جو رگفت‬

‫جست‬

‫بیچاره رخده رب روش‬

‫س رد گلو رگفت‬

‫نف‬

‫زك تنگی بساط‬

‫ جاهم هب زمد رفو رگفت‬،‫رگ چاک دوخت‬

‫زك من دل رما هب زهار آرزو رگفت‬ ‫خوش باد حال دوست هك حالم نکو رگفت‬

‫جمشید جام ربد و قلندر كدو رگفت‬ ‫ رتسا رفو رگفت‬،‫رگ رفت مغ ز میكده‬

‫نم‬ ‫اخالص رد ود وافیم دو رو رگفت‬ ‫گویی فلك هب رعبده هنجار او رگفت‬ ‫بیچاره باز داد و می مشك بو رگفت‬

‫نظ همنش‬ ‫چون اصل كار رد ر‬

‫ین نبود‬ ‫دعا‬

‫نمانده‌ام‬

‫ره‬

‫خیالم‬

‫رگدون‬

‫گشود‬

‫نوازش‬

‫خلوتی‬

‫رد‬

ٔ ‫رشمنده‬

‫یش‬ ‫با خو تن هچ ماهی نظرباز بوده است‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم خود از مشاهده بخشایش آورد‬ ‫قس‬ ‫از یك سبوست باده و مت جدا جداست‬ ‫رفمارنوا نگشت مسلمان هب چیه عصر‬

‫ایمان ارگ هب خوف و رجا ركدم استوار‬

‫ره فتنه رد نشاط و سماع آورد رما‬ ‫رضوان چو شهد و شیر هب غالب حواهل ركد‬

Catching the flowers deceiving in their claim to scent and color Started the discussion among the peace-loving lovers. (95:1) The word used for the deception also means fight, and the word used for justice demanding also means conciliation to create a complex verse. The lover challenges the claim of scent and color by flowers compared to the beauty of the beloved. This challenge brought into discussion the lover, who is demanding that justice be done when comparing the flowers and beloved.

God’s kindness does not move my heart to seek enjoyment in it; It is an infidel heart addicted to love’s cruelties. (95:2) My heart has become so used to the cruelty of the beloved that any kindness from God does not bring any joy to it. Calling it infidel is merely to match with the style of the beloved and does not mean that it is an infidel to the beloved.

Since my fellow dweller did not see the reality behind things, The poor fellow started nitpicking my style of curiosity and ways vainly. (95:3) My companion did not know the reality or care; he just started criticizing my curiosity and style of handling life matters. Points to human Nature of being critical without understanding why one is responding in a certain way. It’s likely points to the craziness of the lover, the companion not realizing the power of passion.

My thoughts opened the way for prayer in a place of privacy, Where the tightness of the room kept my breath stuck in my throat. (95:4)

294

I had wanted to pray in privacy, but the abode was not large enough to hold my prayers, and they remained stuck in my throat and could not come out, pointing out that no place is large enough to hold the expanse of his prayers.

Thanks that I did not have to bear the burden of the favors of the sky; Even if it stitched the tear, it took the garb away as the price of darning it. (95:5) Criticizing fate that if it gives anything, it takes back a lot more, but then I am not indebted to my fate.

How rapt she has become in contemplation of her charms! Stealing my heart with all its thousand longings from my chest. (95:6) The beloved wants the lover to fall in love with her thousands of ways of stealing his heart.

I thought that looking at my pathetic condition, she will attend to me; May God keep her happy for seeing me as she thought that my condition is well. (95:7) I was hoping that seeing my condition, she would be moved and come asking for my condition, but she thought I was doing fine. God keep her happy for doing so. There was a subtle reference to the changing condition of the lover when he came across the beloved, making her think he was in good shape. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “The brightness that comes to my face, seeing her and think that the love-sick is doing well.”

Though our wine comes from the same cask, our fate remains different; Jamshid was given his cup; the saint got his begging bowl. (95:8) King Jamshid gets his wine in his emerald studded goblet (folk fame) while the saints get it in their large pumpkin bowl; everyone gets the kindness of God; in whichever way it suits them. No one is deprived. See Jamshid in the glossary.

A Muslim never became a leader in any era; If a fire-worshipper left the temple, a Christian took over the place. (95:9) Here the temple is the tavern, the palace for the drunkards, senior or junior, a place where they rule; the Muslim (mentioned sarcastically as a hypocrite Mullah) does not get to rule anywhere.

If, with the help of fear and hope, I have made my faith strong. In manifesting fidelity, my sincerity has become hypocritically double-faced. (95:10) Fearing hell and hoping to reach paradise are the two motivations that drive us to God; Ghalib strongly denies that.

Every temptation brings joy and music to me; It seems that the sky has learned from her the way to torture me. (95:11) Like the beloved, every trickery of the sky brings me joy, seeing how the sky emulates my beloved.

295

When heaven brought milk and honey and presented them to Ghalib; Poor fellow gave them back and took the fragrant wine. (95:12) Calling himself “helpless” is sarcastic; he took what he wanted and gave up the bounties from paradise.

96 ‫هنوز رد رگ اندیشه اضطرابی هست‬

‫غبار رطف زمارم هب چیپ و اتبی هست‬

‫هك انرسیده ایپم رما جوابی هست‬

‫نف‬ ‫ز رسدی س انهم رب توان دانست‬

‫چش‬ ‫هنوز رد نظرم م نیم‌خوابی هست‬ ‫هك یار دریپسندی و زودیابی هست‬ ‫هب من سپار ارگ داغ سینه‌اتبی هست‬

‫ارگ رما جگر تشن ٔه عتابی هست‬

‫نم‬ ‫هب بانگ صور رس از خاک رب ی دارم‬ ‫نس‬ ‫هب رهزه جان هب غلط دادم و ندا تم‬

‫شم‬ ‫نظر رفوز ادااه هب د ن ارزانی‬ ‫ز شوری نمك رپسش نهانی تست‬

‫ رگ حجابی هست‬،‫هك آرخ از رطف تست‬

‫خود اولین قدح می بنوش و ساقی شو‬

ٔ ‫هك رد رخاهب ما روی آفتابی هست‬

‫ژنند‬

‫ ارگ رسابی هست‬،‫نشان دهید هب راهش‬ ‫ردین زخانكده هم موسم رشابی هست‬

‫مگر دهم جگر تشنه را دلی هب ردوغ‬ ‫نی س‬ ‫تیم‬

‫ایام‬

‫رسدمهری‬

‫ز‬

‫ اهن غالب‬،‫بهار هند بود ربش گال‏‬

By the side of my grave, the dust is whirling; Still, in the vein of my thought, there is restlessness. (96:1) The lover kept wandering in the desert through dust and finally left the world; however, the heart of the lover is still twisting and turning thinking of the beloved, and it is evident from the dust whirling over the grave of the lover—the dust whirling is caused by the tumult of the heart.

I will not raise my head from the grave with the sound of the clarion call; For still in my sight are the sleep-laden eyes of the beloved. (96:2) On the Day of Judgment, a clarion will sound, and the dead will rise from their dust of grave for the call of judgment; however, the lover is still visualizing the half-opened amorous eyes of the beloved that has caused such intoxication that he is unable to rise; a wordplay is intended here with the sleep-laden eyes and the sleep of the lover in the grave.

296

297

From the cold breath of the messenger, the reply to my message Can be understood, even though my message never reached its destination. (96:3) Lover’s message was never delivered to the beloved as she refused to accept it from the messenger; seeing this cruelty, the messenger has cold breath in disappointment and sympathy for the lover— the returned message is obvious to everyone.

I sacrificed my life for the beloved in vain, not realizing That she takes time to like and wants to receive things quickly. (96:4) While she likes to receive everything quickly, she takes time to like them; so, I sacrificed my life to her hurriedly, but she is yet to appreciate this devotion. Elsewhere Ghalib has said, “who lives long enough to win her tresses?” Life is too short to see her appreciate my sacrifices for her.

Let your sight-illuminating blandishments be given to the rival! And bestow on me if you have any chest-inflaming scar. (96:5) I have no issue if you reserve your coquetry for the rival; if I keep receiving the blandishments on my chest, at least there is a connection with you.

There is salt spreading in your hidden question of me. If my liver is parched with desire for your tyranny. (96:6) This is the same theme as the verse before; the tyranny of beloved sprinkles salt on the wounds of the liver, making it more pleasurable. In her hostility, she brings joy.

Drink the first cup of wine, and then become the saqi yourself; Ultimately, if there’s a veil, it is from your side. (96:7) Asking the beloved to drink first and then start serving others; inviting the beloved to drink first lures her to give up her inhibitions.

So, I could deceive my liver into quenching its thirst, Show it, if there is a mirage in the pathway to beloved. (96:8) The liver is thirsty, and the lover is heading towards the beloved, a long way, so if there is a mirage, I can show this to my liver to give it false hope.

We have no grudge from the cold attitude of the times; For the sun shines through our ruined home too. (96:9) Our desolate home does get some sunshine to brighten it taking away the coldness spread by the folks around me; play on words is the cold attribute and warm sun. The home is desolate, perhaps with broken walls and roof allowing the sun to shine through.

O Ghalib, the rainy season of Hindustan, is the true springtime; Even in this abode of autumn, there is a time for drinking wine. (96:10)

298

‫‪The rainy season comes in autumn, but if the drunkards are drinking, it is like the springtime—any‬‬ ‫‪time.‬‬

‫‪97‬‬ ‫ات هب سویم نظر لطف 'جیمز اتمسن' ست‬ ‫ای هك ات انم تو آرایش عنوان بخشید‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫كلكم از اتزگی دمح تو ردباره خویش‬ ‫گهرافشانی دمح تو هب‬

‫جن‬

‫بش آورد‬

‫ره دم از رای منیر تو كند كسب ضیا‬

‫ش‬ ‫هب خیال تو هب مهتاب كیبم هك مگر‬ ‫راست گفتارم و زیدان نپسندد زج راست‬

‫آ ن‌چنان گشته یكی دل هب زبانم هك رما‬

‫راستی اینكه دم مهر و وافی تو هب دل‬ ‫دوری از دیده ارگ روی دهد دور هن‌ای‬ ‫ه ی سخ‬ ‫ن نی‬ ‫داورا! رگ هچ همایم هب ما و ‌‬

‫ن‬ ‫زج هب اندوه دل و ر ج تنم نفزاید‬

‫سینهمیسوزدازآناكشهكرددامننیست‬ ‫بیكس‬ ‫ی‌اهی من از صورت حالم ردیاب‬

‫حیف باشد هك دلم رمده و رپسش نكنی‬ ‫چش‬ ‫م دارم هك رفستی هب جواب زغلم‬

‫غالب خسته هب جان جای رب آ ن رد دارد‬

‫چم‬ ‫گل‬ ‫سبزه‏ام بن و خارم گل و خاکم ن‏ست‬ ‫سم‬

‫صفح ٔه انم هب شادابی ربگ‬ ‫َ​َ‬ ‫َ​َ‬ ‫شارح "انبت ُه ‏اهلل ‏نباات" حسن‌ست‬ ‫ن‌ست‬

‫گن سخ‬ ‫خاهم‏ام را هك كلید رد ج‬

‫ن‌ست‬

‫نجم‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫مهر اتبان هك رفوزنده این ا ن‌ست‬ ‫عكس روی تو ردین آینه رپتوفکن‌ست‬

‫رحف انراست رسودن روش ارهمن‌ست‬ ‫لخ‬ ‫می توان گفت هك تی ز دل اندر دهن‌ست‬

‫با هم آمیخته مانند روان با بدن‏ست‬ ‫زآن هك پیوسته رتا رد دل زارم وطن‌ست‬

‫لیك رد دره رما طالع زاغ و زغن‌ست‬

‫ن‬ ‫انهل ره چند ز اندوه دل و ر ج تن‌ست‬ ‫هب جگر می‌خلد آ ن خار هك رد ریپهن ست‬

‫رمده‏ام رب رس راه و كف خاکم كفن ست‬ ‫هب جهان رپسش ماتم‌زده رسم كهن‌ست‬

‫آ ن رضاانهم هك از لطف تو مطلوب من ست‬

‫رگ هب تن معتکف گ ٔ‬ ‫وهش بیت الحزن‌ست‬

‫‪For as long I have the kind gaze of James Thompson‬‬ ‫)‪My grass is flowered, my thorns are like roses, and my dust is like the garden. (97:1‬‬

‫‪299‬‬

This ghazal is an ode to James Thompson who was the Governor in India; while offering his odes to the Governor, Ghalib is also expressing his woes; with the kindness of the Governor, the life of Ghalib can be changed entirely.

O, you whose name has decorated the title of my writing. The page of the letter is fresh as the Jasmin flower. (97:2) The name of beloved on my letter as I addressed her made the paper begin to smell like the flower of Jasmin.

My pen from the freshness of your praise is repeating about itself; That God has given it a sweet fruit. (97:3) An Arabic expression. “God has given him a sweet fruit” is used by Ghalib to show what his pen is repeating about itself—the fruit is the praise written by the pen for the Governor.

The scattering pearls of your praise, create the movement of My pen which is the key to the treasure of poetry. (97:4) Scattering pearls means the words of praise; the pen is moving fast to scatter these pearls, and my pen is the key to the key to the great treasure of poetry, meaning that I know how to write great poetry and my pen is at work; the praise of James Thompson continues.

Every moment the sparkle of your bright opinion brightens This shining moon that gives light to this gathering. (97:5) Moon is bright because it borrows the shine from your shining words, Mr. Governor.

Thinking of you, I draw satisfaction seeing the moon; Because your reflection is falling into the mirror. (97:6) Seeing the moon and moonlight gives me solace, thinking that it is your face reflection that I am looking at.

I only speak the truth, and God likes nothing but the truth; Telling lies is the working style of the devil. (97:7) Providing support to own credibility.

My heart and my tongue have become so unified that; I can say that a piece of my heart is in my mouth. (97:8) I am not a hypocrite.

In truth, the breath of your love and fidelity and my heart; Have merged, such as if the soul is inextricably imbued with the body. (97:9) Breath of your love and fidelity is what the lover is breathing, and it has taken the form of his soul, meaning it has become the source of his life.

300

If there is any apparent distance between us, yet you are not far; Because you are always residing in my heart. (97:10) Physical distances are overcome easily for you live in my heart; how close is that all the time.

O Master, although I am a Huma, of blessed speech; Yet in this world, I have the fortune of the crows and kites. (97:11) I am Huma, a legendary bird whose shadow brings kingship to whoever receives it because of my great diction, but I like the fortune of crows and kits in this world. See Huma in the glossary.

Whereas my laments are in the hands of the heart’s sorrow and body’s pain; Laments nevertheless increase the grief of the heart and tiredness of the body. (97:12) In the hands means caused by them; what is causing my laments to come out is increasing its intensity and therefore more laments coming out—it is a cycle.

My chest is inflamed by the tears not scattered on the skirt; That thorn, concealed within my tunic, pricks at my liver. (97:13) The tears failing to come out are causing me to burn from inside, and the thorn of the liver in my tunic is pricking me. The tears were supposed to come out and fall in the skirt of my tunic, which did not happen, and now the thorn, which is used as a proverb for embarrassment, is hurting me. Complex verse—many interpretations possible.

The condition of my destitute can be seen from my condition; I am a corpse by the roadside with a fistful of dust as my shroud. (97:14) Describing the pathetic condition of a destitute lover.

Alas, my heart is dead, and you are not even asking about it; This is a custom in this world to enquire after the mourning ones. (97:15) He is reminding the beloved to show kindness to conform to society’s norms.

I am hopeful that in response to this, ghazal; You will send a letter of agreement which I expect from your kindness. (97:16) He is asking the Governor to send a financial reward.

Ghalib, the broken one, in his mind has its place at that door; Even though his body is in solitary prayer in a home of sorrow. (97:17) That door is the door to the house of Governor James, describing his condition.

301

98 ٔ ‫هک جای انهل زاری ردین میان خالی‌ست‬

‫هم‬ ‫ست‬ ‫هن رهزه چو نی از مغزم ا خوان خالی‌ست‬

‫هم‬ ‫هک جا نمانده و جای تو چنان خالی‌ست‬

‫هجوم گل هب گلستان هالک شوقم رکد‬

‫ز سجده جبهه و از پوزشم زبان خالی‌ست‬

‫چش‬ ٔ ‫ز اپره جگرم م خو ن چ کان خالی‌ست‬ ‫بلب‬ ‫گل‬ ‫ز غنچه بن و از ل آشیان خالی‌ست‬ ‫سنج‬ ‫رسم ز باد فسون‏ ی زبان خالی‌ست‬

‫نهاد آتش شوق من از دخان خالی‌ست‬

‫یکس‬ ‫هک ر از رقم رپسش نهان خالی‌ست‬ ‫هن جای من هب نیایشگه مغان خالی‌ست‬

‫هکچونهاللرسااپیمازمیانخالی‌ست‬

‫خ‬ ‫روم هب کعبه ز کوی تو و ز حق جلم‬

‫یس‬ ‫ هب خون تپم کارموز‬،‫ نگرستی‬،‫رگ تم‬ ‫هن شاهدی هب تماشا هن بیدلی هب نوا‬

‫جن‬ ‫کنم هب بش دل شیشه از رپی لبرزی‬

‫رگش هب دیدن من رگهی رو نداد هچ رجم‬ ‫رپ از سپاس ادای تو دفتری دارم‬

‫امام شهر هب مسجد ارگ رهم ندهد‬ ‫کیس‬ ‫رخاب ذوق رب دوش تم غالب‬

My bones are not needlessly free of marrow like the flute; This place has been left hollow for the laments and complaints. (98:1) Bones are compared to a flute, both are hollow inside, and thus, both can produce a sound—in his case, the sound of laments.

Leaving your alley, I am moving towards Ka’ba, but ashamed with the Lord; That free is my forehead of prostration mark and the tongue from excuses. (98:2) The lover is moving from the alley of the beloved and going to Ka’ba but feels ashamed that he has no sign of prostration (marks that appear on those who pray by touching their forehead to the ground, so over time, a mark appears) and, I have no excuses left. Why do I not pray? The reason for this is that I pray to my beloved, and that does not require prostrating. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “With what face, would you go to Ka’ba/Doesn’t the shame ever come to you?

Beholding the crowd of roses in the garden, my desire has killed me Because no room is left, and yet your place is empty. (98:3) While flowers adorn a garden, yet without the presence of the beloved, there is no perfect beauty— it is killing me that you are not here.

302

I cried for you, and you did not even look at me bleeding; Today my blood-scattering eyes have run out of pieces of heart. (98:4) The pool of blood is coming from bleeding eyes that are there to shed the pieces of torn liver, which is considered a bastion of patience—I have lost it all.

Neither is the beloved showing her beauty nor is the lover lamenting; The rose bush is destitute of the rose, and the nest of the nightingale is empty. (98:5) Without the beloved’s beauty, the field of roses appears empty; the nightingale is the lover who is supposed to lament—both show a state of the forlorn garden, a sad depiction of love.

From the movement of my heart, I cast the fairy in the bottle; From the fascinating air of speech, my head is empty. (98:6) Magical chants are used to lock in a fairy in a bottle, but in my case, the sincerity of my heart does the job; I do not need those fancy words, the mantras.

Seeing me, if tears did not flow from the eyes of the beloved, it is not her fault; It is in the Nature of my fire of passion, that there is no smoke. (98:7) Smoke billowing causes those sitting around to start tearing from irritation; it is in the Nature of the beloved; if that smoke does not affect the beloved, then it is entirely the fault of the smoke.

A long list there to thank you for your style and coquetry; But this writing is devoid of any mention of your hidden kindness. (98:8) While I am continuously praising the beloved, there is no mention of her being thankful to me ever.

If the Imam of the city forbids my entry to the mosque, Then my place in the blessing of the tavern-keeper will not be empty. (98:9) Praying before the Lord can be done anywhere; we do not need to go to the mosque for this.

Whose body-pleasing thought is destroying me, Ghalib? That my existence is devoid like the center of the crescent. (98:10) At one time, the beloved was in the embrace of the lover. She is gone now, but my body bent like a crescent, stays, hoping she will return.

99 ‫رما مگیر هب خونی هک رد دل افتادست‬

‫ز خصم داغم و اندیشه باطل افتادست‬

‫مش‬ ‫گسس‬ ‫ز من تی و پیوند کل افتادست‬ ‫کش‬ ‫رسد دمی هک خجالت م ز رگمی دوست‬

303

‫سخ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ن هب حکمه رد کیش اق ل افتادست‬

‫هب قدر ذوق تپیدن هب کشته جا بخشد‬

ٔ ‫ئ‬ ‫میاهن من و او شوق حا ل افتادست‬

‫بس‬ ‫ردین روش هب هچ امید دل توان تن‬

‫هب وادی‌یی هک رما بار رد ِگل افتادست‬

‫هک خود ز شبروی انهل غافل افتادست‬ ‫هب قدر آنکه رگفتند کامل افتادست‬

‫ح‬ ‫کش‬ ‫تنم هب قلزم و تی هب سا ل افتادست‬ ‫مل افتادست‬

‫بس‬

‫هما ز تیزی رپواز‬

‫ز خود بجوی هک ما را هچ رد دل افتادست‬

‫م حف‬ ‫مگر ز خلوت واعظ هب ل افتادست‬

ّ ‫ نم ربون ندهد‬،‫ش کافی از جگر رذه‬

‫هب رتک رگهی ربم دهشت ارث ز دلش‬

ّ ‫هب صبر کم نیم اما عیار ایوبی‬

‫رچد نهنگ و سمندر رد آب و آتش من‬ ‫ست‬ ‫هب روی صید تو از ذوق ا خوان تنش‬

‫چو اندر آینه با خویش الهب‌ساز شوی‬ ‫رحیف ما همه بی بذهل می‌خورد غالب‬

You have broken the bond of love; it is difficult now to patch it; Blame me not for the blood falling into my heart. (99:1) Blood falling into the heart means that the heart has been destroyed and with it the passion for you.

That time will come when I would be embarrassed by the beloved’s warm reception; In the hands of the rival, I am burning as my imagination has disappeared. (99:2) The beloved is ready to receive the lover, but the lover cannot escape the thought that she has been close to the rival, which is destroying the imagination of pleasure and courage in the company of the beloved.

The murdered ones are allotted burial place matching their relish for torment; The religion of the murderer is being inquired about in the court of law. (99:3) The court is asking of the religion of the beloved to ascertain where to assign a burial place to the murdered lover; why is the court doing this when the murdered ones have drawn pleasure in being murdered; the place of burial is not important, and the beloved should not be harassed.

If you tear upon the liver of sand grain, not a drop of water would come out; In the valley of love wherein my feet have become stuck in the mud. (99:4) The heat of my passion has burned off all water in the sand of the valley of love; if you tear sand open, you will find nothing.

In this situation, with what hopes can the heart be bound? Between her and me, my yearning desire has become the partition. (99:5)

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Binding of heart means loving the beloved; here I am dying for her, and she is oblivious.

I want to quit my wailing so that its fear would go away from my beloved; There the beloved is unaware of my night walking and lamenting. (99:6) When she is not aware of the lover’s laments, then the rationale that she will be afraid of my wailing is superfluous, criticizing self for being audacious.

Not less is my patience measured against the patience of Ayyub; Compared to what they measured it with, it is complete. (99:7) Quranic folklore mentions the patience of Ayyub; whenever it was tested or challenged, it always proved resilient; but my patience is no less than the patience of Ayyub; therefore, test me, and you will find me fulfilling just like Ayyub.

Alligators and salamanders are grazing in the fire of my water and ocean; My body is in the sea, and my boat has fallen at the shore. (99:8) The fodder of crocodile is my body that is drowned in the ocean while my boat is docked at the pier. The lover is drowned in the fire of passion and shedding tears and laments, both of which have become the food for ocean animals like a crocodile. See salamander in the glossary.

Towards the catch of arrow, relishing the body bone; Huma flew in fast and fell on it, having become wounded. (99:9) Huma’s arrow was pointed towards the bones of the lover, relishing its marrow, but Huma few fast in impatience and got hurt falling off the sky. Shows the relish in the bones of the lover. Not sure why would Huma be interested?

When you flatter yourself by looking at your reflection in the mirror, You should consider what befalls our heart while you behold it. (99:10) The sight of a beloved relishing at her own sight is a big turn-on for the lover, just reminding her.

Ghalib, our rival is drinking without merriment; It appears as if he has come out of the private assembly of the Preacher. (99:11) Coming out of a preaching event still has the somberness in the rival; it will take a while for these teachings to blow away. Telling this about the rival is sarcastic and derogatory.

100 ٔ ‫روزی انخورده ما رد جهان بسیار هست‬ ٔ ‫گل کسی جوید هک او را گ‬ ‫وهش دستار هست‬

306

‫یم‬ ‫ا ینم از رمگ ات تیغت رجاحت بار هست‬

‫یخ‬ ‫ما و خاک ره گذر رب رفق رعیان ر تن‬

‫با همه بی‌التفاتی رددمندآزار هست‬

ٔ ‫ت‬ ‫اپره امیدوار ستم کلف رب رطف‬

‫ات چها هن گاهمٔ رسرگمی گفتار هست‬

‫خم‬ ‫رد وشی اتبش روی رعقناکش نگر‬

‫این هجوم رذه کاندر روزن دیوار هست‬ ‫بخت را انزم هک با من دولت بیدار هست‬

ٔ ‫اپدهش را بنده کم خدمت رپخوار هست‬ ‫ش‌اه رد خاهم و آهنگ‌اه رد اتر هست‬

‫نق‬

‫ور نشانمندی‌ست دوش خست ٔه زانر هست‬ ‫کاین بساط دعوت رمغان آتش‌خوار هست‬ ‫خاکم ار کاوی هنوزم ریشه رد گلزار هست‬ ‫چش‬ ٔ ‫انهل الماس‏اپش و م گورهبار هست‬

‫هم‬ ‫رب رس کوی تو با مهرم هب جنگ آرد ی‬ ‫بینوایی بین هک رگ رد کلبه‌ام باشد رچاغ‬

‫سس‬ ‫رد رپستش تم و رد کامجویی استوار‬ ‫راز دیدن‌اه مجوی و از شنیدن‌اه مگوی‬ ‫نق‬ ‫نم‬ ‫رگ وداری‌ست ش سجده رب سیما ردیغ‬

‫ست‬ ‫دور باش از رزیه‏اهی ا خوانم ای هما‬ ‫نخ‬ ‫کهنه ل اتزه از رصرص ز اپ افتاده‌ام‬

‫گن‬ ‫باد ربد آ ن ج باد آورد و غالب را هنوز‬

As long as your sword is carving wound, we are protected from death; There are many more unfortunate ones like us in this world. (100:1) The carving of wounds should have brought death, but that is not happening—a regrettable event— mainly because we are so resilient and unfortunate; there are many more like me, your lovers.

It is us and throwing dust off the path on our bare head. The one who owns a corner of the turban seeks a rose. (100:2) The lover is running around madly, and the dust of the path is falling on his head. He cannot afford a turban, wherein a flower is attached to decorate it. Calling his head bare is connected to the desire to have a turban with a flower; a tilted turban is worn as a matter of style. The lover is poor, destitute, and mad.

Frankly, I have a bit of hope from the beloved; Who can, despite her indifference, inflict pain on the hurting ones. (100:3) Pain is desired, so while the beloved is oblivious to the lovers, I hope she will be kind and continue inflicting wounds.

When I go into your alley, it brings me into a quarrel with the sun in envy; This collection of dust particles entering in the porthole of your wall. (100:4) There is a porthole in the beloved’s home (it is there to bring light in); there are dust particles illu-

307

minated by the sun’s rays, and the lover is thinking of these as the eyes of the sun looking at the beloved.

In her silence, look at the brilliance of her sweat-drenched face; To what extent would the tumultuous commotion of her speech remain. (100:5) The sweat on her face speaks a volume of the tumult she can create, though she is silent.

Look at my destituteness that if a lamp is lit in my hovel, I will take pride in my good fortune that brought an enlightened wealth to me. (100:6) Explaining the impoverished state that the light of the lamp is a matter of pride.

Lazy in offering prayers but determined in fulfilling my desires; Like a king’s servant that serves less and eats more. (100:7) Showing the selfishness of fulfilling the desires without taking the task of thanking the supplier of those fulfillments.

Seek not the secret of meeting and speak not about hearings; There are many more pictures in Nature’s pen and melodies hidden in the string. (100:8) Do not ask me about the reality of what you hear and what you see, for we have not seen all, many more pictures remain hidden from us, and many more melodies remain settled in the strings of Nature’s musical instrument. We know so little of what is the Universe, so why bother concluding something from what you see and what you hear. Indeed, a very deep thought.

Regretful it is that the marks of prostration are evident on the forehead; If there is anything worth pointing, it is the shoulder tired of zunnar. (100:9) Having a mark of prostration is a show-off to the world that we pray to God; zunnar is a black thread worn around the neck of over shoulder by Hindus; this too is a burden on the shoulder, for it is a show-off. Criticizing the religious rituals. See zunnar in the glossary.

O Huma, stay away from the pieces of my bones; For this is the serving mat for the dining of fire-eating birds. (100:10) The lover has burned by the fire of passion for the beloved affecting his bones. He points his burnt skeleton to be a serving mat for fire-eating birds, another mythology like Huma that feeds on the bones that have been shattered, and Huma is warned to stay off. See Huma in the glossary.

I am an old palm tree that recently fell by a cold and strong wind; If you dig my dust, you will see that my root is in the garden. (100:11) Whereas I have become old, but my disposition is still very fresh, as it has fallen recently.

The wind blew away the treasure brought by wind, but Ghalib’s; Diamond scattering plaints and pearl shedding eyes remain. (100:12)

308

The treasure brought in by the wind is related to the seven treasures of Khosro Parviz that are referred to here. Diamond scattering plaints are those that melt hearts; the pearls are tears. The style of Ghalib’s diction is still effective. A treasure is referred to match it with diamonds and pearls in the second verse; the wind blowing what wind brought is intended to show easy come easy go, but the real one remains. See Khosro Parviz in the glossary.

101 ‫رتست‬

‫آبداررتست‬

‫جبه ٔه‬

‫بهار‬

‫غمگساررتست‬

‫رعق‬

‫تیغ‬

‫از‬

‫دوست‬

‫انگواررتست‬

‫امیدواررتست‬ ‫مشکباررتست‬

‫استواررتست‬ ‫زگاررتست‬ ‫ف گاررتست‬

‫سازگاررتست‬

‫خاکساررتست‬

‫از‬

‫نگه‬

‫از‬

‫شم‬ ‫د ن‬

‫از‬

‫دیده‬

‫شکرم‬

‫شکوه‬

‫از‬

‫زلف‬

‫از‬

‫خطش‬

‫ره‬

‫زاررت‬

‫دل‬

‫هک‬

‫حق‬

ٔ ‫اپره‬

‫هک‬

‫خویش‬

‫عهدی‬

‫تن‬

‫تند‬

‫از‬

‫آه‬

‫ز‬

‫اپ‬

ٔ ‫باده‬

‫غالب‬

‫اشکباررتست‬

‫ارب‬

‫از‬

‫م‬

‫چش‬

‫رگهی رکد از رفیب و زارم کشت‬ ‫تن من‬

‫کش‬

‫می ربانگیزدش هب‬

‫دی مگر مست بوده‌ای کارموز‬ ‫هم‬ ‫ای هک خوی تو چو روی تو نیست‬ ‫نگرید‬

‫می‌شکنی‬

‫را‬

‫می‌خواهند‬ ‫می‌آیم‬

‫دولت‌رسیده‬

‫دلیر‬

‫رپ‬

‫دور‬

‫راه‬

‫نیاز‬

‫و‬

‫و‬

‫عجز‬

‫از‬

‫هب‬

‫نو‬

‫طفلی‬

‫همه‬

‫خسته‬

‫شکوه از خوی دوست نتوان رکد‬

‫یش‬ ‫می رسد رگ هب خو تن انزد‬

My eyes shed more tears than clouds; The forehead of spring is wet with sweat. (101:1) Seeing the lover’s crying tears, the heart of spring has become ashamed, bringing tears to its forehead.

She shed deceptive tears and thus killed me bitterly; Her gaze is much sharper than the sword. (101:2) Her gaze coming out of tear-laced eyes is sharper due to the presence of the tears. Elsewhere Ghalib says, “It murders me, you’re crying in the affection of me/if one would give sharpness of the sword of your gaze?”

309

The rival is inciting her into murdering me; Thus the enemy proved more sorrow-sharing than the friend. (101:3) The aim of the lover is to be killed by the beloved, while the rival is my enemy, but her incitement to the beloved is helping me more than what the friends did by consoling me.

Was she intoxicated last night that today; My thanking is more intolerable to her than my complaint? (101:4) When the beloved was drunk, she paid attention to the lover. Now the lover is thanking her, making her more upset, feeling embarrassed for showing any kindness to the lover.

O you, whose nature is not quite like her face; My eyes are more hopeful than my heart. (101:5) The lover is giving himself a solace that the angry eyes of the beloved do not reflect her nature; while in his heart, he is hapless, his eyes are telling him otherwise.

Don’t look at the ones who just found wealth; Whose down has more scent than his tresses. (101:6) The beloved is male; the new down on face (facial hair) is making him look more attractive; the richness is in the beauty, not sarcasm. This type of theme is often difficult for Western readers but, the story tells that a male beloved was more desirable than a female one; this is one reason why in the Urdu Ghazal s the beloved is always addressed as male; there is no gender distinction in Persian.

You are young, but alas, also brave in breaking; The very firm promises. (101:7) The beloved is young and unpredictable; he/she breaks them just as many times as he/she breaks them. The promise is for fidelity to the lover. In the Persian courts, young Turkish boys were brought in as company beloveds to the Kings.

Everyone is demanding humility and submissiveness; Thus the dispenser of rights is more miserable. (101:8) Every beloved wants the lover to be humble and submissive; now, the lover is wondering how to handle this feeling miserable.

I am tired of as I am coming from a far distance; Thus my feet are more wounded than my body. (101:9) Wandering in the desert has caused the feet to be wounded, more than his body, which was wounded by the beloved; body means heart.

One cannot complain about the nature of the friend; Better it is for us, the wine that is stouter. (101:10)

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Stronger wine makes us get drunk faster; that works better because it is useless to complain about her behavior; better to live with it.

If I reach out to myself, then I may become prideful; But in fact, Ghalib is humbler than himself. (101:11) I am humbler than I appear; it is good to know.

102 ‫و رگهن رشم گنه رد شمار بی ادبی‌ست‬

‫بخش‬ ‫ظهور ش حق را رذیعه بی سببی‌ست‬

‫عجم‬ ‫نهاد من ی و رطیق من رعبی‌ست‬

‫رموز دین نشناسم ردست و معذورم‬

‫هنوز قصه حالج رحف زری لبی‌ست‬

‫قدح مباش ز یاقوت باده رگ عنبی‌ست‬

‫م‬ ‫نشاط خارط فلس ز کیمیا طلبی‌ست‬ ‫صب‬ ‫رفوغ ح ازل رد رشاب نیمه‌شبی‌ست‬

‫بی غ‬ ‫خوشست رگ می ش خالف رشع نبی‌ست‬ ‫ع بیکس‬ ‫نس‬ ‫ی ما رشافت بی‌ست‬ ‫یار‬

‫دعا هب صیغه ارم است و ارم بی ادبی‌ست‬ ‫لعج‬ ‫هک بی وافیی گل رد شمار بوا بی‌ست‬ ‫بیا هب الهب هک هیجان قوت غضبی‌ست‬

‫لم‬ ‫ز گیر و دار هچ غم چون هب عا ی هک منم‬

‫نشاط جم طلب از آسمان هن شوکت جم‬ ‫هب التفات نیرزم رد آرزو هچ زناع‬

‫بود هب طالع ما آفتاب تحت‌االرض‬

‫هن هم ایپلگی زاهدان بالئی بود‬ ‫ی‬ ‫ره آنچه ردنگری زج هب جنس ما ل نیست‬

‫عبودیت نکند اقتضای خواهش کام‬ ‫کس‬ ‫ی هک از تو رفیب واف خورد داند‬

‫میان غالب و واعظ زناع شد ساقی‬

God pardons his servants with or without any reason; To be ashamed of one’s sins is tantamount to lack of reverence. (102:1) To be sorry in front of the Lord is defiling to the Lord; He can pardon with or without reason, without any expression of motivation from us. He is full of justice.

Why worry from distress, for in the world that I am in; There the story of Hallaj is still being murmured. (102:2) Mansour al-Hallaj was a Persian mystic, revolutionary writer, and teacher of Sufism. He is most famous for saying, “I am the Truth” (Ana Al-Haq), which many saw as a claim to divinity. The poet

311

is saying that the words that made Hallaj lose his life have yet not reached my lips; I am still in the state of understanding my divine powers. See Mansour Al-Hallajin the glossary.

I admit not knowing the principles of religion; thus, I’m pardonable; By birth, I am Ajam, while my religion is Arabic. (102:3) Since I am not fully aware of the dictum of religion, any indiscretions of mine should be excusable. Ajam is the Arabic adjective applied to an Ajam, a Persian or (relative to Arabic speakers) alien. Since Islam started from Arabia, and the language of the Quran in Arabic, he is making an excuse that I am a Persian speaker, so it is plausible that I do not understand what is written in Quran. Arabs often address non-Arabs as Ajam in a derogatory tone.

You should ask for the goblet of Jamshid from Heaven, not the glory of Jamshid; So what if the goblet is not made of emerald? At least the wine is made from grapes. (102:4) Jamshid is a mythological figure of Greater Iranian culture and tradition. King Jamshid is featured prominently in one apocryphal tale associated with the history of wine and its discovery.

If I don’t deserve your attention, then why argue for my longing; Wishing for the elixir is the delight of the pauper’s heart. (102:5) The chemical potion referred to her is keemiya, which is supposed to turn copper into gold. This may also refer to the great book by Ghazal Keemiya-e Sa’adat (Alchemy of Happiness). If the lover says that I do not deserve your attention, then I should be accepting there is no need to argue with the beloved, but nothing can stop me from hoping to get a magical potion to change my fate.

In the writing of our fate, the glass of wine is like the sun went down; The sparkle in our wine drunk in the middle of the night is like the rising sun. (102:6) Sun goes down only to rise again; that is what is in our fate. The wine we are drinking in the middle of the night points out what is about to come in the morning—more wine.

Isn’t drinking in the company of the devout one a curse; Good, it is that wine is against the laws of the prophet. (102:7) What if wine were allowed in the religion? Then, I may end up drinking with the preachers. What a shame this would be.

Whoever you look at is inclined towards nothing but the materials; No match there is of my honor, and thus no one is attentive to me. (102:8) We are all favorably biased towards folks of our kind; since my honor and class are beyond all others, thus no one is attracted towards me.

Worship should not be a desired requirement; Prayer has a tonality of order in it and ordering is rude. (102:9) When a person prays to God, he is asking God to do something or not to do something, in both cases it sounds like ordering and that is impolite.

312

The one who was deceived by your fidelity knows that; The betrayal of the rose is truly astonishing. (102:10) A rose is an infidel, it is here today and gone tomorrow, but that is because of its nature, very much like the nature of the beloved, except it is by intent.

O saqi, a conflict has arisen between Ghalib and the Preacher; Come with adjuration for the power, excitement is enraged. (102:11) The preacher advises not to drink, and the lover asks the saqi (the wine giver) to intervene to resolve the conflict.

103 ٔ ‫فسون بابلیان فصلی از فساهن تست‬

ٔ ‫نشاط معنویان از رشاب‏خاهن تست‬

ٔ ‫ دام و داهن تست‬،‫ارگ خط‏ست و رگ خال‬

‫پی‬ ‫رفیب حسن بتان شکش اسیر توایم‬

ٔ ‫هک ره هچ رفت هب ره عهد رد زماهن تست‬ ٔ ‫قدم هب بتکده و رس رب آستاهن تست‬ ٔ ‫هن ره هچ زدد ز ما ربد رد زخاهن تست‬

ٔ ‫هن تیزگامی توسن ز اتزیاهن تست‬

ٔ ٔ ‫خدنگ خورده این صیدهگ نشاهن تست‬ ٔ ‫ردین رفیضه دو گیتی همان دوگاهن تست‬

ٔ ‫مباش منکر غالب هک رد زماهن تست‬

‫هب جام و آینه رحف جم و سکندر چیست‬ ٔ ‫هم از احاهط تست اینکه رد جهان ما را‬ ‫سپهر را تو هب اتراج ما امگشته‌ای‬ ‫رما هچ رجم رگ اندیشه آسمان‏پیماست‬

َ ‫امکن ز رچخ و خدنگ از بال و رَپ ز قضا‬

‫سپاس جود تو رفض‏ست آرفینش را‬ ‫پی ش‬

‫ینی‬

‫مح سخ گس‬ ‫‏‬ ‫تویی هک و‬ ‫ن تران‬

The joys of the path followers are from the wine of Your tavern; The sorcery of Babylon is also a chapter from Your book. (103:1) Babylonians were famous for their sorcerous acts, which was God’s intention; the path followers to You receive their wine of divinity from God. Good and evil are both from God.

Why talk of Jamshid and Alexander, with their cup and mirror; For whatever has happened in the past was contemporary to You. (103:2) Jamshid’s emerald studded goblet and Alexander’s mirror to see the future, the folklores, happened in different times, but God was always there. There is no past when it comes to God. He is perpetual.

313

He is present in every period of history. See Alexander and Jamshidin the glossary.

In deception of the idols of beauty, we are your prisoner; The beauty spot and the curls are only Your snares. (103:3) We are in love with God; showing our attraction to the beauty of beloved’s beauty spot, and her curls capture us like a snare to Your beauty; all the visible beauty is from Him.

It is because of Your surrounding that we in this world; Have our footsteps in the idol temple and our forehead on Your threshold. (103:4) God is everywhere, so if we pray in the footsteps of the idol, our forehead is at your threshold because the two are the same.

You have set over the sky for robbing us; Whatever the robber has snatched from us, it gets to Your treasury anyway. (103:5) The cruelties are doled out by the seven heavens that steal from us, but then as doesn’t everything belong to you. So why is it necessary for you to deprive us of what we need? With us, these things belong to you as well. So he is complaining of God’s wisdom in hurting us.

It is no fault of mine if my thought measures the height of the heavens; The swiftness of foot of the steed depends not on Your whip. (103:6) Why blame me for my lofty thoughts? These are all driven by Your kindness.

The sky is like a bow and the calamities, an arrow, and death, its feathers; In this hunting place, those hit by Your arrow are in the line of Your aim. (103:7) While the sky doles out calamities upon us, it is Your arrow, and we are always in its aim.

It is the duty of those whom You created to thank You; In this obligation, the two worlds are like two prostrations. (103:8) The two worlds God has created, here and hereafter, are like two optional prayers; our duty is to thank You for Your kindness.

O you who are fascinated by the eloquence of the ancient masters of poetry; Be not a scorner of Ghalib, who is part of your times. (103:9) The past poets were revered, and Ghalib is praising himself that, never mind if I am your contemporary, look at my poetry with justification; it is better than anything you have seen in the past.

315

‫‪104‬‬ ‫منع ز صهبا رچا باده روان‌رپور است‬

‫خوف ز عصیان عبث‪ ،‬خواهج شفاعتگر است‬

‫عهد جوانی گذشت‪ ،‬توهب نکردم هنوز‬

‫باده هب ریپان رسی‪ ،‬نیک هب من رد خور است‬

‫چش‬ ‫رپتو مهر و هم است نور هب م اندرون‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫ای هب من آویخته‪ ،‬اپره از جای رگد‬

‫هند هب هن گام دی خوش بود آب و هواش‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫ای هک ز نظاره حسن بتان مانعی‬

‫خست ٔه یار خودم‪ ،‬باغ و بهار خودم‬ ‫صب‬ ‫ح رسید از هوا رمغ همایون هما‬ ‫گف‬ ‫تم ارگ خوش کنی ور نکنی رحف من‬

‫ور بسوی جاوره می‌روی البته رو‬

‫انهمٔ من سوی دوست‪ ،‬خان جهان خان ببر‬ ‫خود ز کف انهم‏رب انهم ستاند هب مهر‬ ‫ارب بهارش مخوان‪ ،‬حبر روانش دمان‬ ‫فس‬ ‫آن هش خوبان رچا انز ز ا ر کشد‬

‫انهم هک بی انم اوست طاری بی بال و رپ‬ ‫سه‬ ‫هم‬ ‫دمح چنین هش نشان ل شمارد ی‬

‫رگ هچ بود رد قدح‪ ،‬اصل می از کورث است‬

‫ات نفتد رب زمین باده هک رد سارغ است‬ ‫مح‬ ‫ورهن بود گل‪ ،‬ز گل مل گل خوشتر است‬

‫چش‬ ‫م تو رگ بسته‌اند رو هک دو گوشم رک است‬

‫ٔ‬ ‫ره ژمه خونفشان شاخ گل احمر است‬

‫گفت هک مکتوب تو رد خور این شهپر است‬ ‫بال تو از بهر دوست رموهح را رد خور است‬

‫ساهی هب رفقش فکن آنکه همایون‏رف است‬

‫آنکه ز پهلوی دوست انمی و انم‏آور است‬ ‫آنکه مهان را هم است‪ ،‬آنکه رسان را رس است‬ ‫مح‬

‫تش‬ ‫م‏الدوهل را دست و دلی دیگر است‬

‫ّ‬ ‫فس‬ ‫خود کله از رفخی رب رس او ا ر است‬

‫شعر هک بی دمح اوست شاهد بی‏زیور است‬ ‫حش‬ ‫غالب و ی نگر‪،‬کش هچ هوا رد رس است‬

‫?‪Why abstain from wine? Is it a life-giver‬‬ ‫)‪Fear of sin is useless, for the master is forgiving. (104:1‬‬ ‫‪If wine gives pleasures of life, take it; after all, this sin that pleases you cannot be held against you‬‬ ‫‪because the Creator is always forgiving, especially for things that bring pleasure to life.‬‬

‫‪316‬‬

The light inside the eyes is a reflection of the moon and the sun; Although it is in a bowl, the origin of the wine is from Kausar. (104:2) The Quran states, “Indeed, the virtuous will have a drink ‘of pure wine’—flavored with camphor” (76:5). The bowl is compared with eyes, and the brightness of the bowl is attributed to holding wine from Kausar.

My youth years have passed, and I did not give it yet; Wine is too much for the aged, but it is suitable for me. (104:3) Even though I am old, the wine still suits me, leaving no need to repent on the lost days when others would enjoy wine. I am still good.

You hang part of the dome on me so that; The wine in the goblet does not fall on the floor. (104:4) Part of the destiny is endowed upon me to not lose all the wine in my goblet.

The weather in India is good during December; When the carriage of the flower is happy of flowers. (104:5) When the carriage is joyful to carry flowers, one can imagine the atmosphere in December in India.

O You, who is prohibited from looking at the beautiful faces; If they have closed your eyes, let go, for your ears are also deaf. (104:6) If you are told not to look at her, never mind telling her that you are deaf and cannot hear the command.

I am tired of my beloved; I am my garden and my spring; Every bleeding eyelash is a branch of a red rose. (104:7) My garden is made up of the red roses that appear from my blood-laced lashes—and I am happy.

The imperial Huma appeared in the morning and said; What you have written is suitable for this king of the birds. (104:8) Huma is telling me that my poetry is fit for the kings, like Huma. Self-praise. Huma is a mythical bird.

I said, if you do what you want to do, and don’t listen to me; For me, your wings are only suitable like a fan. (104:9) Talking to Huma, if you do not listen to my advice, the grandeur of your wings reduces or a small fan.

If you are going toward Jaora, go for sure; Spread your shade on the head of the royals. (104:10) Jaora is a holy place in India. Talking to Huma telling to spread her wings over the spiritual crowd in Jaora.

317

Take my letter to my friend Khan-Jahan Khan; The one who got me name and fame because of this friend. (104:11) Sending a letter to his mentor who gave him fame.

The one who accepts the letter from the messenger’s hand with kindness; The one who is best of the best, the one who is above the leaders (104:12) Praising Khan-Jahan Khan.

Don’t call him the spring cloud; don’t consider him a flowing river; His magnificent is different in heart and generosity (104:13) Do not use comparisons; he is just different.

Why would the king of kindness need a crown? From his magnificence, his head looks like a crown on his head (104:14) He does not need a crown; his head itself shines like a crown.

A letter without his name is like a bird without wings and feathers; A poem that doesn’t praise him is like a beloved without jewelry (104:15) The poet continues praising Khan.

He accepts traditional praise as a king would as a person; Look at what is in the head of wild Ghalib. (104:16) The praise in his mind is so different from the traditional words.

105 ‫هک هم ز من پی من خلد را بنا انداخت‬

‫خوشم هک رچخ هب کوی توام ز اپ انداخت‬

‫همای رفخ ارگ ساهی رب گدا انداخت‬

‫سواد ساهی همان صورت گلیم رگفت‬

‫ز آسمان گله نبود ارگ رما انداخت‬

‫ز کشت خوهش ردود و ردآسیا انداخت‬

‫ز رفق مهر کالهی هک رب هوا انداخت‬ ‫ز کیش ماست خدنگی هک سوی ما انداخت‬

‫ردیغ رگ هب رس رحف دمعا انداخت‬

318

‫نق‬ ‫هس‬ ‫چو ش اپ همه افتادگی‏ست تی من‬ ‫ز رزق خویش چسان ربخورم هک داس قضا‬ ‫هب زع و انز منه دل هک افتد آرخ کار‬ ‫هب طعن بی‏ارثیهای انهل ما را کشت‬ ‫صحیفه پیش ن گاه و ن گاه زکلک تیز‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ز روز هجر ن رد میان رچا انداخت‬

‫ارگ هن لطف شب وصل کاستن می خواست‬

‫ز دست رفته و داند هک با خدا انداخت‬

‫سس‬ ‫فغان ز غفلت غالب هک کارش از تی‬

‫هب وادی‏یی هک خضر کوزه و عصا انداخت‬

‫منم هک با جگر تشنه می‌نوردم راه‬

I am glad that destiny disabled me in your alley; That from me, He builds the pillars of heaven. (105:1) I am lying down disabled in your alley, and God is using my body to build a heaven.

Like a footprint, my whole life has fallen; There would be no complaining from the sky if it made me fall. (105:2) The footprint is on the ground as if it is fallen; I have fallen too, and there is no complaint against my destiny since God is using my body to build a heaven.

The darkness of shadow covered my muddy face; If the magnificent Huma spread its shadow over a beggar. (105:3) If by luck, Huma spreads its wings over a beggar and brings darkness that would hide his muddy face.

I benefit from my aliment the way that destiny sickle; Reaps the wheat from the plantation and throws it in the mill. (105:4) I get food because the sickle of destiny takes the trouble of converting the wheat from plantation to edible food.

Don’t get attached to eminence and beauty, for at it will end; From the head of the sun will fall the hat that was thrown in the air. (105:5) Whatever is given to you for eminence will fall just like a hat falls from the head of the sun, as it will someday be doomed.

He killed us with the sarcasm of uselessness of the lament; The one who threw an arrow toward us is from our religion. (105:6) Those who are criticizing me are my people.

The book is in front of the eyes, and the eyes are stubble; Alas, if he claims that he has come to understand. (105:7) The eyes cannot read, so if he claims that he understood the words, it will be a shame.

Didn’t he complain the night of togetherness for being short? Why did he bring up the separation days? (105:8) While complaining about the short nights, there is no reason to talk about long days of separation.

319

This is me who is walking down the path with a thirsty liver; In a land that Khizr drops his pitcher and cane. (105:9) So I am walking down the path of Khizr, hoping to find the fountain of life to quench my thirst. See Khizrin the glossary.

Alas from Ghalib’s obliviousness that due to laziness, his world; It is a gone case, and he knows that he is blaming God for it. (105:10) Ghalib is lazy blames God for this laziness.

106 ‫شم‬ ‫ ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫او چون خودی نداشته د ن‬

‫ لیک هن چون من ردین هچ بحث‬،‫محو خودست‬

‫ ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫رگ نیست خون دیده هب دامن‬

‫نی‬ ‫جی‬ ‫ازخدابترس‬،‫دلاست‬،‫حونو لنیست‬

‫ ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫غم ربنتابد این همه گفتن‬

‫ ردین هچ بحث‬،‫خویشانش ار روند هب شیون‬ ‫گف‬ ‫ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫تم هک گل خوش‏ست هب گلشن‬ ‫جن‬ ‫ ردین هچ بحث‬،‫بی‌رشته نیست بش سوزن‬ ‫هم‬ ‫ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫رگ بحث می‌کنم هب رب ن‬

‫ ردین هچ بحث‬،‫رگ انهم‌ام نهاد هب روزن‬

‫ ردین هچ بحث‬، ‫ما رکده‌ایم رپورش فن‬ ‫کس‬ ‫ردینهچبحث‬،‫رعفی ‏یستلیکهنچونمن‬

‫ هچ مهرافکنی رب او‬،‫افساهن‌گوست غیر‬ ‫بیچاره بین هک جان هب شکر خنده داده است‬

‫بی‌رپده شو ز غصه و ازلام ده رما‬ ‫ژمگان هب دل ز ذوق نگه می‏رود رفو‬

‫بت را هب جلوه دیده و رب جای مانده است‬

‫همنش خم‬ ‫ ین وش‬،‫ خوشم‬،‫همساهی انخوش‏ست‬ ‫بعد از زحین هک رحمت حق رب روانش باد‬

‫او جسته جسته غالب و من دسته دسته‌ام‬

Lost in herself but not like me, there is no argument about it; She had never come across an enemy like her, no argument about it. (106:1) She is lost in herself, and so am I, but we have altogether different reasons. She, thinking that there is no one more beautiful than she and I am engrossed in her beauty.

The rival is just a story-maker; why do you shower him with affection? A true lover does not talk, for he remains drowned in the grief of passion, no argument about it! (106:2)

320

The rival is telling stories to attract the beloved, and the beloved is falling for him. The lover is warning her that those in true love with you are so engrossed in their sorrow that they cannot tell any stories, so know the truth from the fake.

O beloved be afraid of God, for my heart is not like a river; If from my eyes, the blood does not reach my skirt, no argument about it! (106:3) The beloved is questioning why didn’t the tears of blood not reach the skirt of the lover? Were there any tears in the first place? The lover says not to compare his heart to a river and be afraid of God for making such a demand.

Look at the helplessness of the love for giving his life at her laughter; His relatives will lament and cry—no argument about it! (106:4) His next of kin will lament the loss of his lover because he killed himself appreciating her laughter; a wordplay is created here; laughing and crying,

Throw away your veil in anger, accusing me! As I said that the rose in the flower garden is fascinating, and there’s no argument about it. (106:5) I told the beloved that the rose in the garden is beautiful. This should cause the beloved to get upset, for she is the only one to receive that title. Now the lover is suggesting to her, better enticing her, into throwing her veil in anger to accuse him of this indiscretion. The goal of the lover is to see her face.

The eyelashes of the beloved, relishing to see, are piercing into lover’s heart; The needle does not come into motion without thread, no argument about it. (106:6) The eyelashes piercing into the heart of the lover are the heart-ravishing gazes of the beloved desirous to get to know the condition of the lover’s heart. The simile of needle and thread is provided wherein the eyelashes are the needles and the thread her gaze.

Facing the idol, yet nothing happens to him; If I argue with Brahman about it, then what’s wrong with it. (106:7) Brahman (the highest cast) are Hindus who pray before idols; nowhere have a Brahman who is not paying any attention to the beloved (called an idol here); obviously, this proves that he is a true lover.

The neighbor is unhappy, and I am happy, so say nothing, O roommate; If the beloved has placed my letter in the window port, then what is wrong with it? (106:8) The beloved has left the lover’s letter in the window porthole so everyone can see, this has made the neighbors unhappy, and the lover is telling his roommate not to talk about it. This is one of those verses where a good meaning is difficult to find. Perhaps it is just a talk.

After Hazin, May God have mercy on his soul; We are the only ones who have raised the art of poetry with no argument about it. (106:9)

321

Giving due Respect to Hazin, the poet is inserting himself as a contributor to poetry as well. See Hazinin the glossary.

He is more or less, but I am the complete Ghalib; Urfi may be a great poet but does not match my caliber, no argument about it! (106:10) Ghalib is comparing himself with Urfi a prominent Persian poet stating that in bits and pieces, Urfi resembles me, but I am the complete Ghalib, much better than him. Note that in the previous verse, he has compared himself with another poet-émigré from Iran.

107 ‫آیینه‏ی رما هب زدودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫نقش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ ودن هچ احتیاج‬،‫م رگفته دوست‬

‫رب خاک راه انصیه سودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫چون می‌توان هب رهگذر دوست خاک شد‬

‫بند قبای دوست گشودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫دیگر ز من فساهن شنودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫چندین زهار رپده رسودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫با روز و شب هب رعبده بودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫بوس لب رتا هب ربودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫غم‏انهمً رما هب گشودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫رب خویش هم ز خویش زفودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫محو رخ رتا هب غنودن هچ احتیاج‬ ‫کشت امید را هب ردودن هچ احتیاج‬

‫با ریپهن ز انز رفو می‌رود هب دل‬ ‫نفس‬

‫م بال می‌زند‬

‫بنگر هک شعله از‬

‫از خود هب ذوق ززمهم‏ای می‌توان گذشت‬ ‫رد دست دیگری‏ست سفید و سیاه ما‬

‫ زمه رد دل دویده است‬،‫ات لب گشوده‌ای‬ ‫ب‬ ‫فکن رد آتش و تب و اتبم نظاره کن‬ ‫محتش‬

‫م شوی‬

‫آن کن هک رد ن گاه کسان‬

‫خواب است وهج همت آواره بینشان‬ ‫سم‬ ‫وم فتنه‏رگ این‏ست غالبا‬ ‫اتب‬

What need is there to disclose that my beloved has molded into me; For my mirror to be polished clean, there is no need. (107:1) In Sufi mysticism, the cleaner the heart, the more evident is the image of God, but when the beloved has already entered the heart entirely, then remains no need to polish the heart. There is no need to mention this.

With her demure attire, she ravishes the heart; To open the knot of the friend’s tunic, there is no need. (107:2)

322

323

When beloved has entered into my heart dressed up, there is no need to undo the knots of her dress.

When the lover can turn to ashes in the path of the beloved; Rubbing the forehead in the dust of the beloved’s pathway, there is no need. (107:3) Rubbing forehead is an expression of total devotion, but when the lover has turned into ashes, rubbing his forehead into the pathway that now contains his ashes is superfluous.

See how the flashing flame flies from my breath! More than this, to listen to my story, there is no need. (107:4) My breath is spewing fire; do you need any other clues about what is going on inside my heart—the story should be self-evident.

When one can go into rapture listening to just one song; Then to sing a thousand notes, there is no need. (107:5) In Sufi mysticism, a variety of music is played to bring the whirling dervishes into a state of rapture; the poet is pointing that one does not need more than just one; there is a need to develop a sense of intensity on hearing.

Our black and white is in the hand of someone else; Entangling with the revolutions of the day and night, there is no need. (107:6) The seven revolving skies are blamed for misfortunes. The poet points his deference to this theory and says that fate is sealed and not affected by these skies. Elsewhere Ghalib writes, “The seven skies are revolving around the clock/Something will inevitably happen, so why should we worry?”

As you parted your lips, their taste penetrated to my heart; To seize a kiss now, from your lips, there is no need. (107:7) Just to see the beloved’s lips brought extreme pleasure to the lover, there is no need to ask for a kiss.

Throw in the fire and behold the spectacle of flaming and twisting! To open my letter of grief, there is no need. (107:8) Asking the beloved to burn the letter full of complaints without reading it, and when it burns, the ashes turn and twist, which will tell you how I feel. There is no need to read the letter.

Show the talent that you become respectful in the eye of others; Just creating an air of your grandiose, there is no need. (107:9) Others should tell you how great you are, not telling others by yourself; your acts should speak and not you.

Dreams hearten those whose gaze wanders from face to face; To one spellbound by the beauty of your face, to drowse, there is no need. (107:10) Lovers chasing many beloved dreams about them, but the one who is really in love with your face

324

need not sleep to dream; the face is always in front of him.

O Ghalib, the heat of the dust-laden hot air is so turbulent; Then to reap the hope-sown field, there is no need. (107:11) The word used for hot air also means poisonous air. If life is not conducive to peace, then understand that there is no reaping of harvest from your field of hopes. Everything hopeless should be understood.

108 ‫مسن‬

‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫ج‬

‫می‏روی از کار ردد بی‌دوای ما‬

‫نش‬ ‫ین دارو ده و دل رد خدای اپک بند‬

‫ج‬

‫ورهن نیروی قضا اندر رضای ما‬

‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫ن‬ ‫ر ج و اندوهی هک دارد از ربای ما‬

‫مسن‬

‫رسگذشت کوهکن با مارجای ما‬

‫مسن‬

‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫ج‬ ‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫ خون‏بهای ما‬،‫دستمزد او هچ داری‬

‫ج‬

ً ‫اپهی مهر و وافی ما‬

‫مسن‬

‫دیده‌اه کور است جنس انروای ما‬

‫مسن‬

‫ج‬ ‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫ج‬

‫مسن‬

‫دست گاه خویش بین و دمّعای ما‬

‫رد تالفی‬

‫شم‬ ‫رمدن د ن ز اتثیر دعای ما‬

‫دمعی هنجار خود گیر و نوای ما‬

‫ هوای ما‬،‫جلوه می‌خواهیم آتش شو‬

‫ کام مشتااقن بده‬،‫رگ خودت مهری بجنبد‬

‫هم‬

‫رمگ ما را ات هک تمهید ش کایت رکده است‬

‫نع‬ ‫ پندارم از ما بوده‌ای‬،‫ای هک ش ما ربی‬ ‫ خصم را رپوزی گیر‬،‫خویش را شیرین شمردی‬ ‫ زود باش‬،‫آه از رشم تو و انکامی ما‬

‫زاری ما رد غم دل دید و شادی رمگ شد‬ ‫ عیب بی زوال ما مپرس‬،‫کام‌اه محو است‬

‫نیس‬ ‫ چون دمساز غالب تی‬،‫رد گذر زین رپده‬

Ignoring us that we desire to see your display turn into fire altogether; Look at the expanse of your beauty and not our need. (108:1) The beloved is asked to enhance the glow of her beauty without thinking that this will burn the lover and that it is what he desires; since the beloved does not want to do anything that the lover wants, he is encouraged to let go of her stubbornness.

If the feeling of love comes to you on its own, then fulfill the desires of your lovers; And think not that the power of fate will help us out regarding our desires. (108:2) The beloved should ignore that ultimately our desires will be fulfilled by our fate; the lover is ques-

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tioning the fate. He is also telling her that she should keep the feeling of love in her heart, and then she should move on and fulfill lovers’ desires, an impossibility in both cases.

O roommate gives me the medicine and attach your heart to holy God; Try not to gauge our incurable pain. (108:3) There is no need for my companion to be kind to me by understanding my pain and trying to cure it; it is better for him to give me any medicine and then trust that God will take care of me. Warning the roommate not to fret about my pain, for it is incurable.

Who has made our death as an excuse for complaint; What pains and sufferings are hidden in it, try not to gauge. (108:4) The lover has died, and his friends are holding the beloved responsible for it. What they do not know is that the death has removed from many pains the lover suffered that had remained hidden from all. No need to complain.

O you who is carrying our bier, I believe you are one of us; So, tell me what wages you have earned; think not of our blood money. (108:5) The lover has died, and his bier is carried to the graveyard for burial. The lover is saying that the pallbearer is from his community and inquiring if he was paid by the beloved as blood money. Tradition says that if you kill someone, you can pay money to his next of kin in return for your act. Since the pallbearer is from the lover’s community, he asked if any blood money was paid. An indirect indication is to ask if the beloved was repentant at the death of the lover, thinking that she killed him.

If you think of yourself as Shireen, then think of our rival as Khosro Parviz; But in the matter of our plaint, do not mix it with the story of Farhad. (108:6) Khosro Parviz was the king of Persia and husband of Shireen, who had fallen in love with Farhad; so the lover has no issue calling himself as the rival of Khosro Parviz but requesting not to be compared with her lover Farhad; the lover considers himself way above the resolve of Farhad. In several places, Ghalib has ridiculed Farhad, saying that he killed himself by hitting his head with a spade; a true lover would have killed himself just by thinking and wouldn’t have needed any implement.

Shameful it is, your embarrassment and our failure, so hurry up; Forget about judging how we have been faithful and loving to you. (108:7) The beloved has become ashamed once she realizes the faithfulness and love of the lover; the lover says that there is no need to analyze the past, his faithfulness, and love for her and just move on with returning his love and faithfulness. The lover’s failure described in the first line is for not being able to convince her sooner.

Died of happiness, the rival looking at my crying in the hands of the heart’s sorry; The death of a rival should not be construed as the effort of our prayers. (108:8) When the rival saw how pathetic my condition is, he became happy and, in fact, so happy that he

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died of happiness. The lover is clarifying that this is not because of his prayers against the rival because if there were any effect in his prayers, he would not have been in such pathetic condition in the first place. Dying of happiness is perhaps a simile here.

Drowning in our aspirations and desire, not about the fun baiting joy of our endeavor; The eyes are blind, so our unsaleable commodity need not be weighed. (108:9) The poetry of Ghalib is not appreciated, and it is called an unsalable commodity. In the second line, he tells you not to judge his poetry if you are not qualified. In the first line, he talks about his unwavering joy at his poetry that drowns him in aspirations and desires to write poetry.

Give up your songs if you cannot sing in unison with Ghalib; O claimant, go on your way and attempt not to judge our songs. (108:10) Not singing in unison means having the same class of poesy; judge, not my poetry, move over; he is arrogant about his writing.

109 ‫زخم دل ما جمله داهن‏ست و زبان چیه‬

‫رد رپده ش کایت ز تو داریم و بیان چیه‬

‫دلتنگ نگردم ز رب افشاندن جان چیه‬

‫رد راه تو ره موج غباری‏ست روانی‬

‫ کمر چیه و داهن چیه‬،‫انز این همه یعنی هچ‬

ً ‫رد عشق بود تفرهق سود و زیان چیه‬

‫زج رگمی افطار ندارد رمضان چیه‬

‫آزادی ما چیه و رگفتاری اتن چیه‬ ‫هس‬ ‫ زخان چیه‬،‫تی همه طوافن بهارست‬

‫چش‬ ‫ محیط‏ست و رکان چیه‬،‫ات کار کند م‬ ‫رازت نشنودیم ازین خلوتیان چیه‬

ّ ‫باهّلل جهان چیه و بد و نیک جهان چیه‬

‫نج سخ‬ ‫ نی هست‬،‫ای حسن رگ از راست هن ر ی‬

‫ ره هچ رفو ریخت‬،‫ ز دل‬،‫رب رگهی بیازفود‬ ‫تن رپوری خلق زفون شد ز ریاضت‬ ‫دنیا طلبان رعبده مفت است بجوشید‬

ً ‫پیماهن رنگی‏ست ردین زبم هب رگدش‬ ‫ عدم چیست‬،‫عالم همه رمآت وجودست‬

ً ‫رد رپده رسوائی منصور نوائی‏ست‬

‫غالب ز رگفتاری اواهم ربون آی‬

In veil, we complain against you, but there is no expression; The wound of our heart is all a mouth, but there is no tongue. (109:1)

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We do not openly complain to you about what could not be described in the world. The wound of our heart is entirely in our mouth, meaning it is an open wound as a mouth, but it does not have a tongue, and it cannot tell.

O beauty, if you are not offended by the truth, then there is something to tell; All this coquetry, this slender waist, and tiny mouth are nothing. (109:2) Beloved’s waist is so thin it is invisible, and her mouth so small it cannot say anything. Praising the traditional beauty of the beloved.

In your way, every wave is a flowing soul; In shedding my life, I shall suffer no distress. (109:3) The dust in her alley are the souls that gave their lives for her, so I never get tired of sacrificing my life to you.

Whatever fell from the heart increased the tears; In love, the distinction between profit and loss is nothing. (109:4) Whatever we lost in loving you, it increased our laments; loving is not a profit and loss game.

Fasting has increased the bodies of the believers; Ramadhan has nothing but the warmness of Iftar. (109:5) More than making up for the day’s fast at the anticipation of the Iftar (fast-breaking) makes the ascetics fat.

O You, the world seekers, what is this fighting about; it is useless! Our freedom is nothing, and your captivity is nothing (109:6) You stay happy in your home and let us stay happy in ours. If you are happy in the material matters, stay that way. If we are happy in a simple life, let us be.

There is a colorful cup in this gathering, and it goes around; Life is all riot of spring, and there is no autumn. (109:7) A colorful cup is a spring that stays and goes around as life goes on; there is no autumn, for it must keep moving.

The entire world is a mirror of existence what is nonexistence; As far as the eye can see, there is only ocean, and there is no shore. (109:8) The universe is a mirror of existence; there is no nonexistence; it is all a continuum.

Beneath the veil of the Mansour ’s dishonor, a melodious voice is heard; From the solitary, we have heard nothing of your secret. (109:9) Mansour Al-Hallaj was condemned to hang by the neck for shouting in ecstasy Anaˉ al-Haqq, (I am the Truth). So, addressing God that when Mansour declared, “I am the right,” he was hanged, but

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at least he said something that made us understand you better. The rest of the people are lost in show-off praying only. See Mansour Al-Hallajin the glossary.

Ghalib, come out of the illusions’ bonds. I swear to God; This world and the world’s good and bad are nothing. (109:10) There is nothing but the ways God comes into our vision.

110 ‫مپی‬ ‫ هب سودایش چ‬،‫نیست غیر از سیمیا عالم‬

‫مپی‬ ‫ رد تماشایش چ‬،‫ای هک نبوی ره هچ نبود‬

‫مپی‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ش ما چیه است رب پنهان و پیدایش چ‬

‫آسمان وهم است از ربجیس و کیوانش مگوی‬

‫مپی‬ ‫محو اصل دمعا باش و رب ازجایش چ‬ ‫مپی‬

‫چ‬

ً ‫بنده ساقی شو و رگدن ز ایمانش‬

‫مپی‬ ‫گو هب اکسونش مپوش و گو هب دیبایش چ‬ ‫مپی‬ ‫داغ غم دارد سوادش رب رسااپیش چ‬

‫مپی‬ ‫سخت رد هم چون سماط خوان یغمایش چ‬ ‫چ‬

‫مپی‬

‫ هب باالیش‬، ‫انزکی‏اهی میانش بین‬

‫مپی‬

‫ک‬ ‫خیز و رد حلی رپند گورهآمایش‬

‫مپی‬ ‫بیجایش چ‬ ‫چ‬

‫نج‬ ‫اینقدر رب خود ز ر ش‏اهی‬

‫ حیرانی رچاست‬،‫ شعاع از مهر‬،‫موهج از ردیا‬

‫نیس‬ ‫آرخ از مینا هب جاه و اپهی ازفون تی‬

‫ روزگار‬،‫صورتی باید هک باشد نغز و زیبا‬

‫ زان‏رو اتزه است‬،‫انهم عنوانش هب انم تست‬

‫نع‬ ‫دلازآنتستو متاهیالوانشرتاست‬ ‫حم‬ ‫ای هوس کارت ز گستاخی هب بیر ی کشید‬

‫پیش از این کی بود این هم التفاتی بوده است‬ ‫همچ‬ ‫نع‬ ‫ آرخ شبست‬،‫ش غالب نین رب جا گذار‬

O you, who does not exist, entangle not in its display; The Universe is nothing but a display of deception; fall not in love with it. (110:1) Therefore, addressing everyone that you do not exist does not get into an altercation with its appearance, meaning impression of existence. However, since some fall in love with their display in a narcissistic manner, a warning is provided here not to fall in love with what you see, and it is merely a deception, a fallacy of our vision.

The waves come from the ocean, the rays from the sun, why be surprised? Indulge in its reality and not worry about its elements. (110:2) There is only one God, associate with Him and let go of your concerns about the elements of the

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Universe; when we see the source of things that we see, we begin to conjure up the source of the Universe and begin wondering. An admonishment is provided to those who would like to incessantly deconstruct the components of the Universe.

The sky is a myth; talk not about its planets Jupiter and Saturn; Our existence is nothing, so talk not about its visibility and hideousness. (110:3) There is no need to discuss the planets if the sky itself does not exist; the same holds of our existence; why should we talk about what we see and what we do if there isn’t anything in reality.

In your status and position, you’re not more exalted than the flagon; Become a slave of saqi and turn not your neck against her will. (110:4) Not turning neck against means being subservient; wine is poured into a flagon, just like the wisdom is poured inside our being. The saqi is the mighty Lord; stay subservient to Him and take whatever is doled out to you. A Sufi theme.

A beautiful appearance is needed to make life delightful; Wrap it not inexpensive satin or velvet. (110:5) Expensive clothing is not needed if the beauty behind it is truly beautiful and thus attractive. Beholding a true beauty brings delight and presenting it other than in its truest form does not enhance its beauty.

Since in the title of my letter is your name, it is staying fresh; In its writings are the branding of my sorrows so entangle not with its beginning or end. (110:6) The letter begins with the name of beloved, keeping the letter smelling fresh. Still, he is warning that the writing is full of description of his sorrows, so there is no need to get entangled with its beginning and its end, meaning the matter; just see how writing your name makes brings freshness.

My heart is your property, and its colorful blessings are yours too; Wrap it not like the tablecloth of plundering. (110:7) My heart and its blessings are all yours, then why should you loot it; instead, you should keep it with love and care.

O lust, your situation has gone beyond impoliteness to cruelty; Pay attention to the fineness of her waist and not entangle with her stature. (110:8) At first, the lust was impolite, appreciating her fine waist and not it has become cruel to her and getting involved with her stature, meaning body curves. A fine waist is considered a sign of beauty but going beyond that is a mere lust that is criticized here.

In the past as well, this was the sign of kindness and attention for us; Fret not at the unnecessary complaints of the beloved. (110:9) The lover is becoming distraught at beloved’s complaints and taunts that are undeserved, and he

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is reminded that this is how it has always been—you used to enjoy it before, keep enjoying it, for this is your fate.

Leave the bier of Ghalib alone, for it is nighttime; Move over and wrap it not in the pearl-filled black silk sheet. (110:10) A wordplay for nighttime and black silk sheet; the pearls are the stars.

111 ‫صب‬

‫صب‬

‫ح‬

‫مفت آانن هک ردآیند هب باغ دم‬

‫ح‬

‫صب‬

‫آرخ کلفت شب‌اهست رفاغ دم‬

‫بعد آانن هک رقیب‏اند هب ما نوبت ماست‬

‫صب‬

‫ح‬ ‫ح‬

‫ما هالک رس شامیم و تو داغ دم‬

‫صب‬ ‫شب اندیشه ز ما یافت رساغ دم ح‬ ‫صب‬

‫ح‬

‫شبنم ماست هک رت رکده دماغ دم‬

‫صب‬

‫م‬ ‫فکن آواز رب آواز کالغ دم‬

‫صب‬

‫ح‬ ‫ح‬

‫هک رفو ریخته از رطف ایاغ دم‬

‫ح‬

‫صب‬

‫ای هک رد زبم تو مانم هب رچاغ دم‬

‫صب‬

‫چیده‌ام این گل اندیشه ز باغ دم‬

‫صب‬ ‫ای هب شب رکده رفاموش جناغ دم ح‬ ‫ح‬

‫شم‬

‫ع‬

‫بادۀ رپتو خورشید و ایاغ دم‬

‫شم‬ ‫آفتابیم هب هم د ن و همدرد ای‬

‫زین سپس جلوۀ خور جای رچاغان گیرد‬ ‫پیش ازین باد بهار این همه رسمست نبود‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ن ما ز لطافت همه رسجوش می است‬ ‫بلب‬ ‫مس‬ ‫ذوق تی ز هم‌آهنگی ل خیزد‬

‫حق آن رگمی هن گاهم هک دارم بشناس‬

‫بوی گل رگهن نوید رکمت داشت هچ داشت‬ ‫غالب ارموز هب وقتی هک صبوحی زده‌ام‬

The wine of sun rays and the goblet of the morning breeze, Free these are for those who come to the garden early morning. (111:1) Those who come early get to catch the best of Nature.

Like sunshine, we are enemies and consoler to each other O candle; With the arrival of evening, we are killed, and you are burnt down as morning arrives. (111:2) When the sun rises, the candle is put out, and when sunsets and night arrive, the candle is lit. Thus, we are responsible for each other’s demise and understand our mutual pain as the sun sets and brings the night of separation and the candle upon the sun’s rise.

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After those who are close to us, it is our turn; Only with the end of nighttime, the pain gives comfort with a morning arrival. (111:3) Life is compared to a painful night and the arrival of morning, passing away from the world, a perpetual comfort. Elsewhere he writes, “The time of youth we spent crying and then shut our eyes in old age/as if had been awake all night and came to comfort as the morning arrived.”

Now on the display of the sun will replace the lit candles; Our worrisome nights gave us the clue of the breaking of dawn. (111:4) An optimistic expression of “this too shall pass;” the night of woes will soon be over.

Before this, the breeze of the spring was not so intoxicated; It is our dew that has freshened up the brain early morning. (111:5) The morning is taking freshness from our disposition. It is our style that is intoxicating.

Our speech, in its graceful delicacy, is that pure wine That has been dripped out of the cup of the breath of morning. (111:6) The freshness of morning has affected us, and we became engrossed in writing poetry.

The desire for merriment comes from singing with nightingale; Thus respond not to the call of the morning crow. (111:7) Whosoever is not singing with you, stay away with him. Also, the crows produce a screeching sound, and the nightingale, a sweet one, does not stick with the ugly ones.

You should appreciate the reality of my tumultuous being; O you, in whose assembly it is like the breath of the morning lamp. (111:8) The morning lamp in an assembly is ready to die; the assembly is dead. It is my tumultuous Nature that is brightening the assembly; I appreciate it.

If the smell of flowers did not have the good news of your kindness, then what did it have? In the nighttime, you forget the breath coming from the morning chest. (111:9) The smell of fresh flowers spreading in the morning was like the breath of morning and news of your kindness, but when the night fell, you forgot about it. So the lover is reminding her of the times when she was kind to him and wondering why her attitude has changed when the night fell, which is time for meeting the beloved.

Ghalib, today, at the time when I took my morning draught, I picked these flowers of thought from the garden in the morning. (111:10) The morning wine affected me, and I collected the flowers of thought and began writing my poetry.

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112 ‫رد گنبد سپهر مگر رد کنیم رطح‬

‫ت‬ ‫آهی هب عشق اف ح خیبر کنیم رطح‬

‫افساهن‌اهی غیر مکرر کنیم رطح‬

‫ات چند نشنوی تو و ما حسب حال خویش‬

‫بن ش‬ ‫ین هک آب رگدش سارغ کنیم رطح‬ ‫ رگ از رس کنیم رطح‬،‫از ما عجب دمار‬

‫عیش‬ ‫ی هب داغ رکدن اختر کنیم رطح‬

‫رد راه عشق جادۀ دیگر کنیم رطح‬

‫رد زخم رکش روزۀن رد کنیم رطح‬ ‫مع‬ ‫وز دود سینه زلف نبر کنیم رطح‬

‫ریپاهی از رشاره و اخگر کنیم رطح‬ ‫از کوه و دشت حجله و منظر کنیم رطح‬ ‫بس‬ ‫از خار و خاره بالش و تر کنیم رطح‬

‫غالب بیا هک شیوۀ آزر کنیم رطح‬

‫فص‬ ‫رد ل دی هک گشته جهان زمهرری ازو‬ ‫ رگ از اپ رد آدمیم‬،‫ما را زبون مگیر‬ ‫هوئی هب رچخ دادن رگدون ربآوریم‬

‫خود را هب شاهدی بپرستیم زین سپس‬

‫نش‬ ‫از داغ شوق رپده‌ ینی نشان دهیم‬ ‫از اتر و پود انهل نقابی دهیم ساز‬ ‫حل‬ ‫ربگ ل ز شعله و آرذ هب هم نهیم‬

‫کش‬ ‫از زخم و داغ الهل و گل رد نظر یم‬

‫جم‬ ‫از سوز و ساز محرم و مطرب کنیم ع‬ ‫هم‬ ‫آئین رب ن هب نهایت رسانده‌ایم‬

We let out sighs in the love of the Khaybar conqueror; We might create a door in the sky dome. (112:1) Khaybar conqueror is referred to as Imam Ali. The Battle of Khaybar was fought in the year 629 between Muslims and the Jews living in the oasis of Khaybar. According to Muslim sources, the Muslims attacked Jews who had barricaded themselves in a fort. Ghalib, in his ghazals, praised Imam Ali and considered himself his follower. See Imam Ali in the glossary.

In the winter, when the world is exposed to extreme cold, Let us sit together and start a round of wine. (112:2) The coldness of the winter resembles a very cold level of hell where infidels are sent to receive their punishments. Ghalib says when the world gets that cold, let us bring a round of wine and make it warm.

How long will you not listen and to describe our condition We layout others unrepeated stories. (112:3)

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The beloved does not listen to our love story, and we must repeat others’ love stories, or we say unrepeated love stories. Two meanings can be drawn from the second line.

Do not consider us inferior if we are exhausted; Don’t be surprised if we plan to start again. (112:4) Walking to reach you, if my feet have become tired, do not look down upon me. Do not be surprised I can walk on my head too.

We bring out passion by revolving around the sky; We create an assembly of joy to burn the stars. (112:5) I raise such a drunken roar with the passion that the sky will start dancing. I prepare such an assembly of joy that the start will burn out of jealousy. That is, the joy in our gathering is much better than the assembly of stars.

From now on, we worship ourselves for being our beloved; In the path of love, we design a different pathway. (112:6) Changing the rule of love, we love ourselves and create a new way of loving.

From the burning desire we show the veiled beloved; From the wound of jealousy, we create a hole in the door. (112:7) From the burning desire of love that is hidden in our heart appears a veiled beloved, and from our wound of jealousy comes a small hole in the door where the beloved can be seen secretly.

From lamentation’s warp and woof, we weave a veil; From smoke that rises from our heart, we make fragrant tresses. (112:8) Expressing fiery passion for the beloved.

From the fire and flame, we put together the means of her dress; As we plan to decorate her dress with flames and sparks. (112:9) Barg here means both leaf and dress. The lover makes a dress made of fire and flame for the beloved and decorates the beloved with the shiny sparks of the fire.

From wounds and scars, we picture tulips and roses; From mountains and deserts, we make her bridal chamber and its display. (112:10) The poet paints a beautiful picture of flowers with the wounds and scars of love. Difficulties and ups and downs of love are pictured as a bridal chamber.

From pain and passion, we make confidant and minstrel; From thorns and rocks, we make pillows and mattresses. (112:11) The hardship of love, pain, and discomfort is pictured in a joyful and comforting way.

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We have pursued the customs of the Brahmans to the limit; Come, Ghalib, let us design the method of Azar. (112:12) Azar lived in the land of Babylon in Iraq. He was prophet Ibrahim’s father and used to make idols and sell them to the people. Ghalib says: “We have completed the Brahman’s traditions, let us follow the tradition of Azar and worship the idols. See Azar and Brahman in the glossary.

113 ‫وی رخام تو هب اپمالی رساه گستاخ‬

‫ای جمال تو هب اتراج نظراه گستاخ‬

‫هک رساند هب تو این گوهن خبراه گستاخ‬

‫رمدم از ردد تو دور از تو و داغم از غیر‬

‫گل‬ ‫زخم تیغ تو هب گشت جگراه گستاخ‬ ‫انهل را رکد رد اظهار ارثاه گستاخ‬ ‫کاین گدائی‏ست هب ردیوزۀ رداه گستاخ‬

‫بی‬

‫نم‬ ‫ش چون هب تو رد راه گذراه گستاخ‬

‫هب شناورزی سیالب خطراه گستاخ‬

‫بود با دامن اپکت هچ قدراه گستاخ‬ ‫رس زلفی هک بپیچد هب کمراه گستاخ‬

‫لبی از نطق هب اتراج شکراه گستاخ‬

‫داغ شوق تو هب آرایش دل‌اه رسرگم‬ ‫با خبر باش هک رددی هک ز بی‌رددی تست‬

‫مسن‬ ‫خواهش وصل خود از غیر ز اخالص ج‬ ‫شاد رگدم هک هب خلوت رنسیدست رقیب‬ ‫رگهی ارزانی آن دل هک هب نیرو باشد‬

‫اهی این پنجه هک با جیب کشاکش دارد‬ ‫انز دل‌اهی زنارش هچ محابا باشد‬

‫ کاو راست‬،‫طوطیان رد شکر آیند هب غالب‬

O your beauty is brave in plundering the sight of beholders; Your intoxicating stroll is unrestrained in trampling the heads of lovers! (113:1) The beauty and the style of the beloved’s walk are addressed here. One seals the sight of the beholders, meaning attracts them to fixation, and your intoxicating walk is like trampling the heads of lovers. There is wordplay from the walk and walking over the heads of lovers is intended here.

The scar of your desire is busy decorating the hearts of lovers; While the wound of your sword is impudent in roaming the garden of the liver. (113:2) Lovers’ hearts are filled with your love as your sword keeps creating wounds in their liver, which is the bastion of courage, meaning their courage is tested by you. The Garden is brought in to compare the wounds created by the colorful flowers in the garden.

335

336

Away from you, I died of the pain of your love and burning because of the rival, Who is arrogant and brings this type of news to you. (113:3) The lover is totally in love. The rival is feeding false stories to the beloved about the lover, burning because of jealousy that the rival is talking to the beloved, and burning because the rival is creating such distrust against him.

Be aware! The pain that your cruelty has caused; It has made the lamenting sighs impudent in displaying their effect. (113:4) Warning the beloved that her cruelty has groomed the lover wherein his laments have become effective, leading to pain for the beloved.

Do not take the rival’s desire for union seriously; For he is a shameless beggar going door to door. (113:5) Telling the beloved that the rival’s desire is telling many beloveds and that she should not listen to him, for he is not faithful to her.

Glad I am that the rival couldn’t reach your private assembly; Because I see him as disrespectful when talking to you in the street. (113:6) The lover sees the rival getting fresh with the beloved openly, just like what he does privately. So today, the rival couldn’t get into her private assembly, which is a joy for the lover.

Shedding tears is the fortune of the courageous heart; That would swim through the flood of dangers bravely. (113:7) It is not easy for just anyone to shed tears in love. It takes a lot of courage and perseverance— bravery.

How sad that my hand is wrestling with my collar; How bravely, once it held the beloved’s clean skirt. (113:8) My hands used to be disrespectful to the beloved holding her clean (meaning pure or holy) skirt, but now these hands are tearing my collar or skirt in desperation.

Proof of her courage is her taking pride in the weak hearts of the lovers; Her tresses encircle their waist unresistingly. (113:9) Letting her tresses flirt with the waist of lovers is a romantic move, but she is teasing her lovers and drawing pleasure out of it.

The parakeets come to Ghalib for sweetness because his lips, Whose speaking power robs the sweetness bravely. (113:10) Ghalib is praising the sweetness of his poetry.

337

114 ‫دوزخ‬ ‫ربزخ‬ ‫مل‬

‫خ‬

‫از‬

‫ن‬

‫چم‬

‫ربد‬

‫گشت‬

‫رگماهب‏ساز‬ ‫نیز‬

‫رتا‬

‫مور‬

‫کشت گان‬

‫بهرۀ‬

‫مسل‬

‫ردت اشخاص بقعه را‬

‫ن‬

‫نف‬ ‫س ما دوام از یک‬

‫خ‬

‫ی‬ ‫از تو گویم ربات من رب خ‬ ‫خ‬

‫ن‬ ‫هب ش کایت هچ می‌زنیم ز خ‬ ‫مل‬

‫خ‬

‫اپی‬

‫سلیمان‬

‫رسید‬

‫هب‬

‫شک‬ ‫س‬ ‫هچ یبم هب ارزش اپ خ‬ َ ْ ْ ُ​ُ ‫تل تل‬ ‫ خ‬،‫رْتش رگدد رُتش هن خ‬ ‫س‬ ‫رف خ‬

‫شماره‬

‫رد‬

‫هم‌چنان‬

‫خویش را کشت و رهزه کشت آوخ‬

‫س‬ ‫ات بشوید نهاد ما ز و خ‬ ‫ات هچ بخشند رد جهان درگ‬ ‫امیدم‬

‫کش‬

‫تزار‬

‫از‬

‫هک‬

‫وه‬

‫دلم ازجای انهل را دمفن‬ ‫از دل آرم بساط من آتش‬

‫هوس ما و داهن از یک دست‬ ‫ربگ رد خورد همت فلک‌ست‬

‫مور چون ساز میزبانی رکد‬ ‫ایپم‌زگار‬

‫ن‬

‫سخ‬

‫با تو شد هم‬

‫سخ‬ ‫رد ن کار رب قیاس مکن‬

‫اقصد من هب راه رمده و من‬ ‫رمگ غالب دلت هب ردد آورد‬

For the sake of cleansing our body of sins, He has turned the hell into a bathhouse. (114:1) God created hell to cleanse our soul of sins; here, he says our body, perhaps meaning corporeal sins.

See what they would be endowed in the life hereafter, The garden is a place between heaven and hell for the victims of your love. (114:2) Your lovers consider a garden to be the corridor between hell and heaven, meaning they are not appreciative of the garden’s beauty; being in love is like being in a garden. Therefore, the poet is wondering where they would end up in life hereafter even if they had a choice because they are incapable of appreciating the virtues of the garden.

Praise be that from the crop of my hopes, The ant’s share has been taken away by the locust. (114:3)

338

The ant’s share means the smallest of desires; even those have been taken away, leaving me in a hopeless situation.

My heart is a burial place of the scattered pieces of my laments, While your door is a killing place for those who have access to it. (114:4) Whosoever reaches your threshold gets killed, including my laments that ran and ended up becoming buried in my heart.

When I talk about my heart, my abode is on fire; When I talk about you, the ice is in my destiny. (114:5) While I am burning with love, and fire suits my disposition, you say that my destiny is ice, cooling off my emotions with your cold shoulder.

My avarice and wisdom are about the same thing; And my breath and the snare are made from the same thread. (114:6) It is in man’s Nature to bring desires and aspirations in his heart and keep pursuing their fulfillment; it is like getting trapped in a snare.

Whatever is given to man, it is dependent on the capability of the heavens; Why do we strike our chin complaining about it? (114:7) Striking chin means desperately attempting. We get whatever fate is capable to give to us. Two aspects come out: one is what is written in our fate, and the other, the meager means of the heavens to fulfill our needs. In either case, there is no need to complain, and we should accept whatever we are given.

When the ant made preparation to host; The leg of the locust reached Solomon. (114:8) Quranic folklore talked about when an ant was hosting a feast, then the s locust’s leg reached Solomon. See Solomon in the glossary.

My messenger entered in discourse with you; How would your answer bring any consolation to me? (114:9) The lover is jealous that the beloved talked to the messenger. Now whatever the message is, it is not enough to console me. Elsewhere Ghalib has talked about the messenger falling in love with the beloved and going crazy.

In the practice of language, there cannot be guessing; Torsh can be torosh, but talkh cannot be talakh. (114:10) Torsh means sour, and it can be pronounced “Torosh” as well; both words mean “sour,” but talkh meaning bitter, cannot be spoken as talakh because this word doesn’t exist. One has to be careful in our practice of the language.

339

My messenger has died on his way, and I am counting his position in miles. (114:11) Not realizing that the messenger died on his way back to me, I am sitting here how many more miles he is away from me.

The death of Ghalib has saddened your heart; Alas, that his killing himself turned out to be futile. (114:12) When the news of Ghalib’s death reached the beloved, she became sad because she was also in love with Ghalib; finding this out, he is saying that killing himself was not a good idea.

115 ‫گل‌ست و جامۀ آلی هک بوی خون ندهد‬

‫درگ رفیب بهارم رس جنون ندهد‬

‫هب حکم وسوهس زرهاب بی‌شگون ندهد‬

‫ز اقتلی هب عذابم هک تیغ و خ جنر را‬

‫هب زخمه‏ی گله سازم نوا ربون ندهد‬

‫ز مهر دل هب زبان رخصت فسون ندهد‬

‫عق‬ ‫هک تن هب همدمی ل ذوفنون ندهد‬ ‫هب رشط آنکه ز یک قلزمم زفون ندهد‬

‫هب رهزه ذوق دالوزیی سکون ندهد‬ ‫جواب انلۀ ما غیر بیستون ندهد‬

‫ هب غمزه چون ندهد‬،‫هب سنگ ره هک دهد دل‬

‫هک جان هب لذت آوزیش ردون ندهد‬

‫ درگ هب خلوت انس‬،‫گسسته اتر امیدم‬ ‫تسخ‬ ‫بدان رپی‌ست نیازم هک بهر یرش‬

‫یست‬ ‌ ‫بلکهخوددار‬،‫ادبشنیست‬،‫جنونمگو‬ ‫کفی‬

‫ل هوش خودم وقت می هب زبم حبیب‬

‫گن‬ ‫ ورهن جنون‬،‫هب بوی ج زگیدم رخاهب‬ ‫سخ‬

‫تی کار‬

‫رشیک کار نیاورد اتب‬

‫هم‬ ‫هب من رگای و واف جو هک ساده رب نم‬

‫ هن آن بود غالب‬،‫رتا هب رحهب هچ حاجت‬

No more would I be deceived by the spring to turn into a frenzy; For it is such a red flower and red dress that has no smell of blood. (115:1) Lover no longer finds the spring bringing frenzy; one reason for frenzy was that the red colored flowers as well as red-colored dresses used to remind the lover of his bleeding heart (both red); now that he has been bled, there is no association left with the spring and his condition of the heart.

340

The thread of my hope has been broken; now in the intimacy of privacy, No song comes out of my instrument of complaints. (115:2) The lover is so heartbroken that he cannot make any complaint even in private with the beloved.

The murderer wrought calamity upon me as the sword and the dagger She is not dipping in poison because of her superstition. (115:3) Dipping the instrument of murder makes it more effective; she is unsure if this will work and is engaged in performing superstitious calculations to figure it out. In the meantime, the lover is in a disastrous condition, standing between life and death. The lover wants her to kill him sooner. The shape of the eye is often compared with sword and the eyelashes with the dagger, and dipping them in poison would mean decorating them more; a sight of these should be enough to kill the lover, but she is hesitating, wondering if that will work?

I am desirous of that fairy but to subdue her; Because of love, my heart doesn’t allow the tongue to utter the magic incantations. (115:4) I desire to control that fairy, the beloved, to love me and have prepared a magical incantation, but my heart, so much in love with her, is preventing me from saying those words. But why is the heart preventing the lover; the heart is the seat of emotion while the liver is courage. The pleasure of loving you comes from the broken heart; once, the beloved is under control. Then, she will no longer hurt the lover, and that is not what the heart wants.

Call it not that madness is devoid of respect; instead, it is self-respect That is not willing to befriend a pearl of varietal wisdom. (115:5) Varietal wisdom is also the devious wisdom of the beloved; if I am not getting friendly with the lover, it is not out of disrespect but due to my self-respect that I do not wish to be ill-treated by that varietal-wisdom beloved.

I guarantee to stay sober at the time of drinking in friend’s assembly, Provided I am given no more than an ocean full of wine. (115:6) Desiring unlimited imbibing.

The scent of treasure has lured me to choose the wilderness; Or else madness does give the delight of heart-pleasing tranquility frivolously. (115:7) Heading towards wilderness is always desirable and looked forward to, now that there is a treasure there, making it doubly pleasurable.

My companion does not dare to bear hardship; As he responds to my plaints with nothing but mentioning the mountain of Farhad. (115:8) The legendary story of Farhad is quoted here, and the lover is saying that Farhad cut through a mountain as desired by his beloved’s husband and ridiculed this small effort in the eyes of the lover. See Shirin and Farhad in the glossary.

341

‫;‪Pay attention to me and seek fidelity, for I am a simpleton Brahman‬‬ ‫)‪One who is giving heart to stone, why would he not to coquetry and style. (115:9‬‬ ‫‪Brahmans pray to stone deities; he is calling himself a simpleton and advising the beloved that now‬‬ ‫‪that he has adopted the Brahman belief, it is only plausible that he will fall in love with her coquetry‬‬ ‫‪and style—it is time for her to make the decision and become faithful to me. See Brahman in the‬‬ ‫‪glossary.‬‬

‫‪What need is there for an arm? Ghalib is not the one‬‬ ‫)‪Who would hesitate to sacrifice his life for delight in the battle of love? (115:10‬‬ ‫‪The beloved need not take up any arm; the lover is ready to sacrifice his life.‬‬

‫‪116‬‬ ‫ن گاهش ار هب رس انمۀ واف رزید‬ ‫ِ‬

‫سواد صفحه ز کاغذ چو توتیا رزید‬

‫خوشا ربیدن راه واف هک رد ره گام‬

‫نق‬ ‫جبین ز اپی هب انداز ش اپ رزید‬

‫هب رفق ما ارگش انگهان گذار افتد‬

‫ز انهل ریخت جگر اپراهی داغ‌آلود‬

‫تبسم‬

‫ی‌ست هب بالین کشت گان خودت‬

‫دماغ ما ز بال می‌رسد مگر ساقی‬

‫خوش آنکه عج ِز منش رب رس عتاب آرد‬ ‫بهشت خویش توانی شدن‪ ،‬ارگ داری‬ ‫هب روز وصل رد آغوشم آنچنان نفشار‬

‫کس‬ ‫هب چاره ردد تو ا یر بی نیازی‌اهست‬

‫ش‬ ‫هب روی عقدۀ کارم هب کل ربگ زخان‬ ‫غبار شوق‬

‫هب خوانۀب امید رسشت‬

‫هس‬ ‫شباب و زهد هچ انقدردانی تی‌ست‬ ‫هب سجده رب رد یار اوفتیم‪ ،‬ات غالب‬

‫چو رگد ساهی ز بال و رپ هما رزید‬ ‫چو ربگ الهل هک رد گلشن از هوا رزید‬ ‫هک گل هب جیب تمنای خون‌بها رزید‬ ‫گداز زرهۀ ما رد ایاغ ما رزید‬

‫خنک هب ریپهن شعله‏ی جفا رزید‬ ‫دلی هک خون شود و رنگ دمعا رزید‬

‫هک بی من از لب من شکوۀ تو وارزید‬ ‫هک دل گدازد و رد اقلب دوا رزید‬

‫ز رلزه انخن دست رگه‌گشا رزید‬ ‫دمی هک خواست قضا رطح این بنا رزید‬

‫بال هب جان جواانن اپرسا رزید‬

‫خط جبین چو غبار از جبین ما رزید‬

‫‪342‬‬

If her glance falls on the letter of a compact of faithfulness; The ink on the paper will fall off like the tootia. (116:1) Tootia or blue tootia is copper sulfate, a highly poisonous substance. If she reads my letter, her anger will prove poisonous to me, as she will get angry with me and tear up the letter. Some interpreters have translated tootia as the antimony powder used to decorate the eyes, but that is not the case here.

If by chance, the Huma happened to be flying over our head, The shadow from the wing and feather of Huma will fly off like dust. (116:2) The anecdote goes that whosoever comes under the shadow of Huma ends up becoming a king; in our case, the shadow fell on us like dust, meaning it made no difference; show our perpetual misfortunes.

How delightful it is to trek through the path of fidelity; At every step, the impression of the forehead appears like a footprint on the path. (116:3) The lover’s forehead trekking the path of fidelity falls on the ground and leaves impressions as if these were footprints; the faithful are prostrating continuously as he travels means he is thankful for this opportunity.

From lamenting, the branded pieces of liver fell like this, As if in a garden, the leaves of tulip wither away. (116:4) A comparison is provided with red leaves of tulip and pieces of the liver—the cause of lamenting. The liver is a sign of courage, meaning all resolve to resist the beloved is gone.

Smiling with such style at the bedside of those killed by your hand That the lap of the desire of blood money is getting filled. (116:5) Blood money is given to compensate for the life taken; the beloved is given this money in the form of her smiles.

Battling with calamities gladdens my heart, but the saqi, Perhaps pours the melt of my spleen in the goblet. (116:6) The melt of the spleen is the liver blood, and drinking our blood gives us the greatest pleasure as it helps us forget about lesser pains. Melting of the spleen is also used as an idiom to describe extreme hardship and pain.

It is delightful that she gets upset at my humility; And thus, the flames of her tyranny flare up more. (116:7) The beloved cannot stand the lover’s humility and gets upset, which makes the lover happy because there is at least some connection, albeit of hostility.

You can be your own paradise if you possess a heart That has been crushed by grief and bled out, having drained all desires. (116:8)

343

Bear upon your heart whatever calamities are doled out to you, and then if you can give up all desires, it is like living in heaven. Two things are pointed here: bearing hardship and not fanning desires.

On the day of union, hold me not so hard in your embrace That without realizing, all plaints against you will disappear from my lips. (116:9) Telling beloved to treat him so that all complaints would disappear without any effort—essentially make up for the past cruelties.

In the treatment of your pain, obliviousness is the panacea; As it will melt the heart into a mold of medicine. (116:10) Not doing anything about the pain leads to the melting of the heart (destruction of desires), which cures the pain; elsewhere, Ghalib has said that the pain going beyond the limit turns into its own medicine.

In the face of the perplexity of my affairs, while trembling, Like the autumn leaves, the nail of the knot-opening hand falls off. (116:11) The beloved is trying to undo the knots of difficulties for the lover but seeing how complex these situations are, her hand begins to tremble (connecting to opening the knot). Her nails drop off like autumn leaves. A physical description of opening the knot is provided to mean resolving the emotional demands of the lover; nails falling off means she gives up.

It kneaded the dust of desire with fresh blood, When the destiny wanted to pour a foundation. (116:12) It is the foundation of love. To lay this foundation, the dust of desire was mixed with fresh blood to make the material needed to pour the foundation meaning all desires were used up just for the foundation, and nothing else came out of it.

Young and abstemious? What a lack of appreciation of life! To hell with all abstemious youths! Calamity befalls them! (116:13) Being young and not engaging in the sins of life is disrespectful to live, strongly urging the youth to give up the path of piety.

For prostration, this falling of us at the door of the beloved, The line of the fate of our forehead, may it fall like dirt. (116:14) Prostration involves touching the forehead to the ground, and a mark (called line) appears on the forehead after repeating it for a long time; the lover is hoping that this mark will disappear like dirt, meaning he will no longer need to prostrate, and he will find his destiny.

344

117 ‫توان شناخت ز بندی هک رب زبان افتاد‬

‫نم‬ ‫هب بند رپسش حالم ی‌توان افتاد‬

‫خوشم ز بخت هک دلدار بدامگن افتاد‬

‫من آن نیم هک بتانم کنند دلجوئی‬

‫نگفته‌ام هک رما کار با فالن افتاد‬

‫هب خون تپم هک هچ افتاد ات چنان افتاد‬

‫هب چاه یوسف ارگ راه کاروان افتاد‬ ‫شی‬ ‫کنون هک کار هب خ نهفته‌دان افتاد‬

‫زهار بار گذارم رب آشیان افتاد‬ ‫بدان ردیغ هک دانند انگهان افتاد‬ ‫هب روز طشت هم از بام آسمان افتاد‬

‫تش‬ ‫ز رحف خوی هک باز آ م هب جان افتاد‬ ‫نم‬

‫ی‌توان افتاد‬

‫هب بند رپسش حالم‬

‫ ورهن هنوز‬،‫فغان من دل خلق آب رکد‬ ‫ز رکش غیر هب دل خون فتاد انهگ و من‬

ّ ‫هم از تصرف بیتابی زلیخا بود‬ ‫حدیث می هب دف و چنگ رد میان داریم‬ ‫بی‬ ‫ از بس هک خودم هب طلب‬،‫رفو نیادمم‬

‫هب کوی یار ز اپ افتم و کنم رفیاد‬ ‫ نمائی داشت‬،‫شب ار هچ با تو هب دعوی نما‬

‫نف‬ ‫س رشاره‏فشان‌ ست و نطق شعله ردو‬

‫رغیبم و تو زباندان من هن‌ای غالب‬

There is no need to ask about my condition; The knot on my tongue should tell my condition well. (117:1) Not being able to make any statement should tell the beloved the lover’s condition; there is no need to ask. It should be obvious.

My laments and plaints have perturbed the hearts of people; And I have not even told them whom I must deal with now. (117:2) People who saw me became perturbed looking at my condition; once they find out who I am dealing with, their angst will go up.

I am not the one of whose heart the idols will wish to comfort; I am happy with my destiny that the heart-ravisher is suspicious of me. (117:3) Idols mean beloved; the heart-ravisher is suspicious of the lover, and that makes him happy. She is thinking that I am getting involved with others, so she is kind to me, which is very pleasing.

345

From the envy about the rival, my heart has bled away; And now I am tumultuous to know what calamity brought this on me? (117:4) The lover is thinking of the kindness of the beloved to the rival—that is, the calamity that has caused his heart to bleed away—meaning all hopes are gone of making up with the beloved.

This should be credited to the power of Zolaikha’s restlessness; That the pathway of the caravan led to the well where Joseph had been cast. (117:5) The poet is suggesting that it was the power of Zolaikha’s love that caused the caravan to stop by the well thirsty. See Zolaikha in the glossary.

We talk about wine with the roll of drum and harp, Now that I am dealing with the mystic pious sheikh. (117:6) We used to drink in hiding, but now we are dealing with sheikhs who know the unknown secrets, there is no need to hide, and we are now drinking openly.

I didn’t come down being in such incredible selflessness of desires; Although a thousand times I happened to pass by my nest. (117:7) I flew by my nest a thousand times but did not come down to rest; this resulted from my ecstasy of holding the unfulfilled desires—I was not ready to rest and kept struggling to get them fulfilled. I fly high, seeking out the fulfillment of my desires.

In the beloved’s alley, I fall and scream in such pain That people would think that I have fallen by accident. (117:8) The lover is continuously falling in the alley of beloved but does not want anyone to know that this is the alley of the beloved, lest they also get attracted to her; so, to dramatize, he is screaming in pain as if he had fallen as an accident, to distract others.

Whereas in the night the moon was making a claim of equality with you; But during the daytime, it fell from the roof of the sky. (117:9) The moon shines only in the night while the beloved shines always.

My breath is scattering sparks while my tongue is cutting the crop of flames; Whose harsh disposition it is that has again made me play with fire. (117:10) Pointing to the fiery nature of the beloved, the lover has begun to play with fire. Talking about her is like going through a crop of flames that makes my breath fiery.

O Ghalib, I am a foreigner, and you are not familiar with my language; There is no need then to ask about my condition. (117:11) When we do not speak the same language, any discussion of my pathetic condition is a moot point.

346

118 ‫داهن ذخیره می‌کند کاه هب باد می‌دهد‬

‫غم چو هب هم ردافکند رو هک رماد می‌دهد‬

‫انزش غم هک هم ز تست خارط شاد می‌دهد‬

‫ویهکهبسینهغمزتست‬،‫ایهکهبدیدهنمزتست‬

‫اول منزل درگ بوی تو زاد می‌دهد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫تی بی‌واف دلت رزق جماد می‌دهد‬

‫ بس هک زیاد می‌دهد‬،‫داده زیاد می‌ربد‬ ‫رد رهش از زفون رسی مالش باد می‌دهد‬

‫کف‬ ‫ انهم گشاد می‌دهد‬،‫شوخی انهم رد ش‬

‫آب و هوای این فضا کوی هک یاد می دهد؟‬ ‫ورهن بهاهن‌جوی من چیست هک داد می‌دهد‬ ‫صبح چو رتک مس‬ ‫ت من شیشه گشاد می‌دهد‬ ِ ِ

‫نخ‬ ‫آرخ منزل ست خوی تو راه می‌زند‬ ‫شوخی دلگشا تنت ربگ نبات می‌نهد‬ ‫ هن مست می‬،‫مست عطای خود کند ساقی ما‬

‫ لیک غبار ما هنوز‬،‫دوست ز رفته بگذرد‬ ‫ نیست ز انهم‏رب نهان‬،‫آنچه هب من نبشته‌ای‬

‫ رحم کجاست ای خدا‬،‫می‌دهیم هب خلد جا‬

‫خو هب جفا رگفته را اتزه کند رخاش دل‬ ‫فیض‬ ‫توسن کلک غالبا مصرع یش عنان‏ست‬

When sorrows make you helpless, it does not matter; you will achieve your desire; For It stores the grain in the granary and lets the straw fly in the wind. (118:1) Grain means good deeds, and straw means ill deeds. Sorrow makes your good desires come through and forces you into controlling your inner soul. It is good, not bad, the hopelessness.

In the last step of the first stage, your harsh disposition robs us off; At the beginning of the second stage, your smell gives a clue of your path. (118:2) Robbing means hinders; starting love has many challenges that can dissuade us, but when we move on, your desire (smell) makes out traverse through your path more manageable as we better understand the challenges ahead.

You bring the tears into my eyes; you get the grief into my chest; Prideful is the grief that you also bring contentment to my heart. (118:3) Though you make me cry, though you give me grief when I think of how fortunate I am to have this grief, the pride you provided makes my heart contented and joyous.

The heart-rending coquetry of your body brings the means of growing greenery; While the hardness of your unfaithful heart provides the staple to barren things. (118:4)

347

Things that cannot grow are stones. The physical beauty of the beloved is encouragement and energy to the greenery. Still, your stone heart becomes a role model for things that cannot grow, comparing her disposition’s physical beauty and harshness.

Our saqi makes us intoxicated not with wine but with her bestowing; Whatever she has given, she has forgotten and continues to give more. (118:5) We have a forgetful saqi. She forgets that she has given us wine and keeps pouring it; is her style of forgetfulness or the abundance of wine, making us drunk.

Friends let go of what happened before, but our dust is still Twisting the ears of the haughty wind in her pathway. (118:6) The beloved walking was inconvenienced by the wind blowing; the dust of the lover is also blowing in the wind. The wind is called haughty because it causes inconvenience to the beloved. So, our dust is punishing the wind.

Whatever you wished me, it was not hidden from the letter carrier; But the coquetry of your writing is tearing the letter open in his hands. (118:7) Your coquetry of response became apparent to the letter courier without opening the letter. The letter itself showed off the writing inside, and it was easy for the courier to guess.

O Lord, You are giving me a place in paradise, but where is your mercy? See, whose alley does the climate of paradise remind me? (118:8) The good deeds of the lover have brought him into paradise, but he had already experienced paradise as the alley of the beloved. Not seeing the beloved around, he calls it cruelty and says that it reminds him of her alley. Paradise without her presence is not a paradise.

Refreshing the wound of the one used to bear cruelty, Or else, why does the excuse-finder praise me? (118:9) The excuse-finder is the beloved who keeps finding reasons to inflict cruelty on the lover, who is very used to this; in doing so, she praises the perseverance of the lover, only to make him more resilient, but it all results in my heart’s wounds becoming fresh.

O Ghalib this line of the verse of Faizi is the rein of the horse of my pen; “In the morning time when my intoxicated Turk uncorks the wine bottle.” (118:10) This refers to the first line of the verse by the poet Faizi; the second line goes like this, “the sense bites dust and patience end.” See Faizi in the glossary.

348

‫‪119‬‬ ‫دل اسباب رطح گم رکده رد بند غم انن شد‬

‫زراعت‌گاه دهقان می‌شود چون باغ وریان شد‬

‫تو گستردی هب ح‬ ‫صرا دام و از رکش رگفتاری‬

‫بس‬ ‫کف خاکم هب رنگ قمری مل رپافشان شد‬

‫رگفتم زک تغافل طاقت ما باج می‌گیرد‬ ‫گش‬ ‫مج‬ ‫جنون رکدیم و نون شهره تیم از رخدمندی‬ ‫حس‬ ‫گسترگکیفیترمدن‪،‬خوشا رت‬ ‫بدینرن ‌‬ ‫یش‬ ‫هس‬ ‫رسااپ زحمت خو یم‪ ،‬از تی هچ می‌رپسی‬

‫رفاغت ربنتابد همت‬

‫مش‬

‫کل‌پسند من‬

‫هچ رپسی و هچ حیرانی هک هن گام تماشایت‬

‫هس‬ ‫ز ما رگم‌ست این هن گاهم‪ ،‬بنگر شور تی را‬ ‫نشاط‌انگیزی انداز سعی‬

‫شب رغبت هماان شیوۀ‬

‫چاک را انزم‬ ‫غم‬

‫خوارئی دارد‬

‫قضا از ذوق معنی شیره‌ای می‌ریخت رد جان‌اه‬ ‫دلم سوزت نهان دارد ولی رد سینه‌کوبی‌اه‬

‫چو اسکندر ز اندانی هالک آب حیوانی‬ ‫خدا را ای بتان‪ ،‬رگد دلش رگدیدنی دارد‬

‫رحیف یک ن گاه بی‌محابای تو نتوان شد‬ ‫ربون دادیم راز غم هب عنوانی هک پنهان شد‬

‫عش‬ ‫لب از ذوق کف اپی تو رت‌خاۀن جان شد‬ ‫شمش‬ ‫نف‬ ‫س رب دل دم یر و دل رد سینه پی کان شد‬

‫ز دشواری هب جان می افتدم کاری هک آسان شد‬

‫ن گاه از بی‌خودی‌اه دست و اپ گم رکد و ژمگان شد‬ ‫قیامت می‌ددم از رپدۀ خاکی هک انسان شد‬ ‫نم‬ ‫هب ریپاهن ی‌گنجد رگیبانی هک دامان شد‬

‫صب‬ ‫لف‬ ‫هک هم رد ماتم ح وطن ز ش رپیشان شد‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ی از الی اپالیش چکید و آب حیوان شد‬ ‫چشم‬ ‫رچاغی جسته از ش ارگ داغی نمایان شد‬

‫خوشا سوهن هک رهکس غوهط زد رد وی تنش جان شد‬ ‫ردیغا آربوی دری‪ ،‬رگ غالب مسلمان شد‬

‫;‪The heart, having lost the means of joy, is chained to the anxiety for bread‬‬ ‫)‪When the garden is desolate, it becomes a farm for the husbandman to till. (119:1‬‬ ‫‪When we become connected to daily survival, we lose the joys of life. A comparison is provided‬‬ ‫‪between the freshness of the garden and the dustiness of a farm.‬‬

‫‪Admitting that your willful negligence increased our enduring strength,‬‬ ‫)‪Yet, we couldn’t match the unkind indifference of your glance. (119:2‬‬

‫‪349‬‬

The delight from the beloved’s indifference is too strong for us to bear despite our strength that came from putting up with your negligence.

When you spread the net to catch the heart in the wilderness, My fistful of dust began fluttering like a wounded dove. (119:3) Dove is of sandy color and a fistful in size. Reduced to dust, I am like a dove caught in the net, but the thought that you are planning to catch me, I began fluttering with excitement like a caught dove in a net.

Through our frenzied wisdom, we obtained the fame of Majnoon; We disclosed the secret of our grief in such a way that it remained concealed. (119:4) As we became afflicted with the sorrow of love, we began acting like Majnoon, which kept our secret from getting out. Otherwise, they would have found out about my affliction—that was a smart move on my part. Since the traits of Majnoon are well known—torn collar, running in a frenzy in the desert, these are associated with frantic lovers, so people do not pay attention to them and remain oblivious to knowing the truth. See Majnoon and Laila in the glossary.

If it is like this to die, then what to speak of the desire To kiss your feet, my lips have become an abode of ecstasy of life. (119:5) If dying is so pleasurable, then the desire for death is so much more pleasurable. Shifting the subject, he says the same is true of my desire to kiss your feet, so much so that my lips have entirely come into ecstasy. The subject of this verse is the anticipation of a wish coming to fruition.

We are altogether inconvenienced by what you want to ask about our life? Our breath is the edge of a sword on our heart and our heart a tip of an arrow in our chest. (119:6) Life has been rough. Our breath is cutting through our heart (breath is also called desire), and the heart hurts so much that it appears like the tip of an arrow.

My hardship-loving aspiration cares not at all for comfort; If the task is easy, then my soul finds it very difficult to bear. (119:7) Even the simplest things turn out complex and difficult; perhaps this is because I like difficulties.

Why do you ask the reason for my wonderment on beholding you? The sight loses its hand and feet and turns into eyelashes. (119:8) When I look at you, my sight loses its hand and feet meaning it loses its composure in wonderment and turns into eyelashes such that the sight does not go beyond the eyelashes. The sight of the beloved is so shockingly beautiful. The lover is unable to lift his eyes to see her.

Look at the tumult of existence; all this excitement is because of us; The dust of the veil has become a human and created tumultuous appearances. (119:9) Man is responsible for the tumult in the world; made of dust, the material of the veil that keeps reality hidden from us has turned in man and produced all life elements.

350

The pleasure of tearing the collar gives me sheer delight, and I am proud of it That the collar slit reaching the skirt has become difficult to contain in the tunic. (119:10) Collar slit and the skirt are now one; difficulty in containing it comes from the idiom used stating that they are blowing up incessantly with joy.

There is a style of sorrow-sharing even on the night of travel; As its tresses have disheveled, mourning the morning of the homeland. (119:11) The night is dark, and so are the tresses. The night in a foreign land is compared to disheveled tresses waiting for the morning, reaching home; in mourning, the tresses are disheveled intentionally as a matter of expression.

Destiny has put the juice of the taste of reality in the human soul; The sediment of the juice provided the moisture that turned into the water of life. (119:12) Appreciating reality puts life into the construction of the human soul.

My heart is hiding your pain, but when beating the chest; If any branding shows, then it will be a bright lamp springing out of the eyes. (119:13) The heart hides your sorrows and their resulting branding well until we start beating it in desperation or as a matter of expression of grief. Then, the branding becomes apparent through bright lamps coming out of our eyes, meaning the blood drips through our eyes.

Ignorant you are for killing yourself like Alexander for the water of life; Great is the sand that whosoever dived into turned his body into life. (119:14) The real water of life is not what Alexander was looking for but secured by Khizr; the lore goes; real life comes to the body if we dive into sand, meaning face the hardship and control our soul. See Khizr and Alexander in the glossary.

O idols, for God’s sake, treat the heart as something to be circumambulated; Alas, what honor will be left for the temple if Ghalib becomes a Muslim? (119:15) I am challenging the idols to protect the temple’s sanctity and keep Ghalib in it by giving him the respect of circumambulation, something that Muslims do in Ka’ba.

120 ‫رپده چها می‌آید‬

‫بب‬ ‫ات ینم هک از این‬

‫رد بهاران همه بویت ز صبا می‌آید‬

‫داغم از رپدۀ دل رو هب قفا می‌آید‬

‫هم‬ ‫مس‬ ‫چو رازی هک هب تی ز دل آید بیرون‬

351

‫ن‬ ‫ژمده ای ردد هک نگم ز دوا می‌آید‬

‫ ای داغ هک ذوقم ز نمک می‌خیزد‬،‫جلوه‬

‫ میا زک تو حیا می‌آید‬،‫جان فدای تو‬

‫نکش‬ ‫یس‬ ‫ز تم بی تو و زین ننگ تم خود را‬

‫س می‌رود و ِآه رسا می‌آید‬

‫نف‬

‫هک‬

ٔ ‫زک پی مور هب وریاهن ما می‌آید‬ ‫شکس‬

‫تن هب صدا می‌آید‬ ‫هچ نوا می‌آید‬

‫ساز عاشق ز‬

‫بو هک ردیافته باشی‬

‫خنده رب تنگی آغوش قبا می‌آید‬ ‫جاده‏ای را هک هب رسمنزل ما می‌آید‬

‫آنچه از اپی نیادم ز عصا می‌آید‬

‫سود غارزتدگی‌اهی غمت را انزم‬ ‫مح‬

‫ضر رسوائیهاست‬

‫دعوی گمشدگی‬

‫راز از سینه هب مضراب رنزیم بیرون‬ ٔ ‫ربگ گل رپده ساز است تمنای رتا‬

‫فش‬ ‫ردهم ا ردن اندام تو چون ما می خواست‬

‫نق‬ ‫حس‬ ‫رفته رد رت ش قدمی عمر هب رس‬ ‫اتفاق سفر افتاد هب ریپی غالب‬

Facing backward is the love scar that appears from the veil of my heart; So I could see what is revealed from this veil. (120:1) Seeing what is behind the branding tells what more is to come; many more brandings are.

Just as in drunkenness, the secret slips out the heart; In the springtime, all your fragrance exudes riding the morning breeze. (120:2) The freshness of the spring reminds me of your freshness and beauty. The flowers are called drunk in the spring, exuding their aroma, but a reference is also made to an uncontrolled state, such as when drunk.

Show your display O scar, for my desire rises with salt; Glad tidings O pain for I stay away from the medicine. (120:3) The good news for the scar is that I will put salt on it to make it more painful and make the scar grow. Treating branding is a shame.

I am proud of the effectiveness of the pillage of sorrow caused by you; The breath leaves but the sigh, having reached its destination, returns. (120:4) Lives go with the breath, but the sighs return as breath to keep me alive. That is the effect of your pillaging my sorrows.

I lived without you, and it was a cause of shame, and thus I did not kill me; May my life be sacrificed on you, come not, for I am embarrassed. (120:5)

352

It was so embarrassing to keep living without her that he could not kill himself; now, he is more embarrassed and telling her not to visit her as he cannot see her in this ultimate state of embarrassment.

The claim of being lost is in a way a decree of defamation Since a person is coming to our wilderness behind the ants. (120:6) The lover has lost a piece of heart or liver and wandering in the wilderness to find it. Realizing that his liver was shattered into millions of tiny pieces, he is looking for ants that may be stealing it. This is one of the difficult verses to interpret.

I will not divulge the secret of my chest with the help of a plectrum; The instrument of the lover gives a reverberating sound when it breaks. (120:7) The instrument is the heart. When it breaks, it creates a sound; there is no need to strike it with a plectrum.

The scent of the flower is the tune of the musical instrument of your desire; You would perhaps have understood what songs come out of this tune. (120:8) The smell of flowers tells the whereabouts of the beloved.

For it has tried to squeeze you in the embrace, I laugh at the tight-fitting of your dress. (120:9) Beloved has a delicate body and wearing a tight dress that is squeezing her. The lover is amused at how she fits in the tight dress while never embracing. Against the etiquette of ghazals, this may mean that the beloved is pleasingly plump.

It has spent a lifetime desiring a footstep to fall on it, The path which comes to your destination. (120:10) The footstep desired is that of beloved, meaning she never came.

We happened to take travel in old age Ghalib; A walking stick now does the task that feet could not perform. (120:11) Ghalib was referring to his travel to Calcutta in 1826 when he was about 30 years old. That is not an old age by current account but taking a walking stick was more of a tradition and style Ghalib followed.

121 ‫ولی خوشتر است آنکه این هم ندارد‬

‫خم‬ ‫رگان‌ماهی ز ی هک رمهم ندارد‬

‫خوش است آنکه با خویش زج غم ندارد‬ ‫تش‬

‫پش‬

‫انسور‬

‫پیوند‬

‫رکده‬

‫قوی‬

353

‫غم‬

‫چشم‬

‫ز‬

‫رسابی هک رخشد هب وریاهن خوشتر‬

‫تو داری بهاری هک عالم ندارد‬

‫ رنگست را تماشا‬،‫گلت را نوا‬

‫ندارد‬

‫ریپاۀی‬

‫هک‬

‫ی‬

‫گل از انزکی اتب شبنم ندارد‬ ‫تی‬ ‫هب غی هک رتکیب او خم ندارد‬

‫هک هندو بدین گوهن ماتم ندارد‬ ‫ندارد‬ ‫ندارد‬

‫هم‬

‫آدم‬

‫خود‬ ‫هک‬

‫رپوای‬

‫هند‬

‫بود‬

‫تو‬

‫ن گاه‬ ‫بهش‬

‫تی‬

‫هب جوش رعق رنگ ردباخت رویت‬ ‫هچ انکس شمرد آنکه خون ریخت ما را‬ ‫ز ماتم نباشد سیه‏پوش زلفت‬

‫نگهدار خود را و ز آئینه بگذر‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ن نیست رد لطف این قطعه غالب‬

The one who has nothing, but grief is happy. Happier is the one who don’t even have that. (121:1) Grief refers to life’s burdens. Better it is to have none.

A patch of bleeding ulcer provides a strong patch of support; Highly precious is the wound for which there is no salve available. (121:2) To sustain a wound that turns into an ulcer, keep it unhealed; it must become an ulcer, which is a prideful situation.

Better is the mirage shining in the ruins than The eyes that lack the radiance of tears. (121:3) Without grief, the eyes are dry and have little twinkle, even less than the shimmering of a mirage wherein the shine is just a façade.

The intensity of perspiration has caused the color of your face to take flight, As if the rose in its delicacy cannot bear the drops of dew. (121:4) How delicate is a flower that gets perturbed by the weight of dew? The sweat on the beloved’s face is compared to a dew and her face a flower; therefore, the sweat on her face is too burdensome to her—it refers to the emotional bearing.

Your rose has speech, and your narcissus can gaze at the spectacle. You are such a spring that is not in the destiny of the world. (121:5) In the spring, the flowers sing, and the narcissus looks around; the beloved has the lips (rose) and eyes (the narcissus).

How cheap did she consider us shedding my blood? Using a sword that did not have a bend in it. (121:6)

354

Thinking not much of us, she used a cheaper sword, the one without a bend.

The black cloak of your tresses is not a sign of lamenting; For Hindus do not put on black clothes when lamenting. (121:7) The black tresses of beloved are natural and not turned black in lamenting; called her Hindu refers to idols, another name for the beloved. These tresses only make her look more beautiful.

Behold yourself and put aside the mirror. Your glance does not care even for itself. (121:8) Your glance does not care where it falls, so why should it pay attention to the mirror you are holding, meaning your view may not be visible in the mirror; take care of yourself and give up holding the mirror.

Ghalib, there is no doubt about the piquancy of this hemistich. Hindustan is a paradise where no man can be found. (121:9) Hemistich may mean a piece of information also. A paradise devoid of men is indeed an interesting thought.

122 ‫شم‬ ‫ع کشتند و ز خورشید نشانم دادند‬

‫دادند‬

‫ ز انقوس فغانم دادند‬،‫ریخت بتخاهن‬

‫م بخشیدند‬

‫چش‬ ‫دل ربودند و دو م نگرانم دادند‬ ‫دادند‬

‫گن‬ ‫جینه‌فشانم‬

‫خامۀ‬

‫عوض‬

‫هب‬

ّ ‫سخ‬ ‫هب ن انصیه‏ی رف کیانم دادند‬ ‫ هب نهانم دادند‬،‫ره هچ ربدند هب پیدا‬

‫هب شب جمعه‏ی ماه رمضانم دادند‬

‫ هم از آن جمله زبانم دادند‬،‫ات بنالم‬ ‫بود ارزنده هب ماتم هک امانم دادند‬ ‫طالع از قوس و شمار از رسطانم دادند‬

‫شبانم‬

‫ردین‬

‫صب‬ ‫ح‬

‫ژمدۀ‬

‫رخ گشودند و لب رهزه‌رسایم بستند‬ ‫نفس‬

‫ ز آتش‬،‫سوخت آتشکده‬

‫عج‬ ‫گهر از رایت شااهن م ربچیدند‬ ‫پش‬ ‫فس‬ ‫ا ر از اترک رتکان نگی ربدند‬

‫گس‬ ‫گوره از اتج ستند و هب دانش بستند‬ ‫رههچ رد زجهی ز گبران می انب آوردند‬

‫رههچ از دستگه اپرس هب یغما ربدند‬ ‫ هماان این رمگ‬،‫دل ز غم رمده و من زنده‬

‫هم ز آغاز هب خوف و خطرستم غالب‬

355

356

In my dark nights, I was told the good tidings of the morning By putting out the candles and showing me the rising sun. (122:1) Fate tells me that the night of sorrows is over, and the days of joy are coming.

They showed faces, and at once silenced my babbling tongue; They took my heart away from me and gave me two worried eyes. (122:2) God showed himself in many forms and caused me to shut him up from my useless talk about what I used to think about reality. It stole my heart (my desire to see anything more) and gave me eyes (the vision).

The fire temple got burnt, and they gave me a fresh breath form; The idol temple fell apart, and the sound of the horn caused my lamentation. (122:3) This ghazal has a continuous subject: fate and destiny. In this verse, the poet is self-appreciating. The fire temple is used by Zoroastrians and has a perpetual fire; the Hindus have their idol temple where they sound a horn, an animal horn to bring a peculiar sound. He is saying that these peculiarities have been endowed to him.

They plucked the pearls that once had decked the banner of Iran’s kings And in return they gave them to me to scatter these from the treasury of my pen. (122:4) “They” refers in this ghazal to fate and destiny; the theme remains the same.

They have carried away the crown from the head of the Turks, descended from Afrasiab; They have given me a speech which has the bearing of the splendor of the Kayanian kings. (122:5) The reference to descendent of Afrasiab refers to Turks here referred to as Pashang, whose father was Afrasiab. The Kayanians are a dynasty of Iranian tradition and folklore. Considered collectively, the Kayanian kings are the heroes of the Avesta, the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism, and the Shahnameh, Iran’s national epic. The theme of the excellent character of the poet continues. See Afrasiab in the glossary.

Pried from their crown, they set the jewels in my crown of wisdom; Whatever they took openly, they gave them back to me clandestinely. (122:6) It continues the theme of what came out of kings.

The wine they took as protection tax from the fire-worshippers; They gave it to me on Friday in the month of Ramazan. (122:7) Muslims levied protection on non-Muslims (here referring to Zoroastrians); the wine taken as a tax was given on Friday for leisure drinking. Ramadan or Ramazan is the holy month when most Muslims would refrain from drinking, but to Ghalib, that didn’t matter. In one of the many stories about his life, it said that he was pointed out to Ghalib, while drinking in Ramadan, that even the devil is locked up in the month of Ramadan, to which he responded, the devil is indeed imprisoned in his room.

357

Whatever they have plundered from the wealth of Fars, They have given me back in the form of a tongue to moan. (122:8) The reference is made to his Persian language skills.

My heart has died of sorrow, but I am alive as if my death Suited my lament, saving me so it could keep mourning. (122:9) I was saved from dying, so the death would keep mourning the loss of my heart.

O Ghalib, from the very beginning I am in fear and danger; My fate was from Sagittarius, and they have given me reckoning under Cancer. (122:10) Cancer is at a lower level in the sky (fourth compared to seventh); my fate was high, but I kept fearing as I began my life.

123 ‫زبن آتش هک شنیدن ز میان ربخیزد‬

‫ات کیم دود ش کایت ز بیان ربخیزد‬

‫ربخیزد‬

‫شیشه‌رگان‬

‫رگ دهم رشح عتابی هک هب دل‌اه داری‬

‫ربخیزد‬

‫جهان‬

‫بن ش‬

‫ین هک امگن ربخیزد‬

‫بی محابا شو و‬

‫کارهگ‬

‫از‬

‫دود‬

‫بیداد‬

‫رسم‬

‫بی‬ ‫خود از جا ز هجوم خفقان ربخیزد‬ ‫ز‬

‫مبادا‬

‫وای رگ رپده ازین راز نهان ربخیزد‬

‫خوش بهاری‌ست زکو بیم زخان ربخیزد‬ ‫کو شگرفی هک چو ما از رس جان ربخیزد‬ ‫هم‬ ‫چو موئی هک بتان را ز میان ربخیزد‬ ‫چون من از دودۀ آرذنفسان ربخیزد‬ ‫ربخیزد‬

‫جهان‬

‫ز‬

‫هماان‬

‫امید‬

‫رسم‬

‫می رمی از من و خلقی هب امگن‌ست ز تو‬ ‫شخ‬ ‫با قدت رسو چو صی‌ست هک انهگ یک‌بار‬ ‫هب هچ گیرند عیار هوس و عشق درگ‬ ‫همه‬

‫یش‬ ‫خو یم‬

‫پیدائی‬

‫دعوت‬

‫زینهار از تعب دوزخ جاوید مترس‬

‫جس‬ ‫انهل ربخاست دم تن از آتش ز سپند‬ ‫بیش‬

‫م‬

‫لم‬ ‫زجوی از عا م و از همه عالم‬

‫عمراه رچخ بگردد هک جگر سوخته‌ای‬ ‫رگ دهم رشح ستم‌اهی زعزیان غالب‬

For how long will smoke keep rising from my expression; Put it on fire so nobody can hear the complaints. (123:1)

358

‫کشته‏ی‬

Smoldering fire creates smoke; if it is all burned, smoke goes with it.

You are running away from me, and people are misconstruing it; Fearlessly, you should come and sit with me to remove their suspicions. (123:2) He is enticing the beloved to come to him to avoid the suspicion of all those who see her running away from him.

If I start explaining the calamities you bring to our heart, Then smoke will rise from the factories of the glassmakers. (123:3) The heart is as delicate as glass and with reference is brought the discussion of glassblowers or glassmakers, who know the nature of the fragility of their wares. Seeing how ruthlessly you break our heart; the glassmakers begin to burn with the thought. This is one of those amorphous verses where the meaning must be extracted forcefully.

Compared to you, the cypress is like the one that suddenly; Leaps to its feet in the fierce heat of fever. (123:4) Beloved’s stature is compared to the cypress (which is tall), but it is told that the cypress is rising tall as much as possible because of the heat of fever seeing you. When suffering from fever, the pulse rate rises, and the patient often acquires a state of frenzy—that is what the cypress is acting like, standing next to you in embarrassment.

How would men distinguish between what is lust and what is love? May God not grant that the tradition of tyranny vanishes from the world. (123:5) He hopes that the cruelty of the beloved continues, which tests lovers to differentiate their lust from their love.

We are all victims of the claim of our apparent existence; It will be sad if the veil is lifted from the hidden secret. (123:6) If the unknown, whether we exist or not, is revealed, it will take down our claim; Sufis believe there is no individual existence; it is all a manifestation of the Lord. Man indulging in his existence is not a reality.

Aware! Be not afraid of the continuous suffering in the hell; How good is the spring that is free from the fear of fall. (123:7) Religious books teach that for our sins, we will burn perpetually in hell—that is painful. He is saying, do not be fearful, for continuous burning will remove the feeling of pain. In the spring season, think not about the fall; that destroys the pleasure of the spring. So, be not afraid until you get there and know that you will get used to it.

The sepand began lamenting as it rose over fire; How nice it would be if it sacrificed its life like us. (123:8) Spand, is rue seeds and is burned over the fire to dispel evil spirits. See sepand ion the glossary.

359

I am a part of the Universe and bigger than its entirety, Yet I am non-existent, like the hair sprouting out the waist of the lovely ones. (123:9) Comparison is made with the non-existent waist of a beloved and his existence. If the waist is non-existent, how thin will a hair sprouting from the waist be? Saying that I am more than the Universe provides a comparison of what is non-existence. I am non-existent, yet more extensive than the Universe. This verse comes under the heading of rather unpleasant poems because of the simile adduced. However, one should keep in mind that the traditional beloved is a male.

Age upon age, the sky revolves so that one liver-scorched Like me will be born, of the tribe of fire-breathers. (123:10) The sky waits for someone like me to be born who will be able to bear the cruelties doled out by the sky. Fire spewing means that their laments are fiery, yet they survive.

Ghalib, if I were to tell the tale of what my friends have done to me. Then the custom that we call hope would vanish from the earth. (123:11) We are hopeful that those near and dear will take care of us; if you find out they treated me, you will lose your belief in hope.

124 ‫صبح‬ ‫ی‌ست شبم را هک دمیدن نشناسد‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ رگهچ شنیدن نشناسد‬،‫گویم نی‬

‫مائیم و رسشکی هک چکیدن نشناسد‬

‫گوره هچ ش کایت کند از بی رس و اپئی‬

‫مائیم و زغالی هک رمیدن نشناسد‬ ‫خون باد دماغی هک رسیدن نشناسد‬ ‫مشتاق تو دیدن ز شنیدن نشناسد‬ ‫ین چشم‬ ‫چون آ ه‬

‫ی‌ست هک دیدن نشناسد‬

‫دستی هک هب زج جاهم ردیدن نشاسد‬

‫رنگی‌ست رخم را هک رپیدن نشناسد‬ ‫نشناسد‬

‫طلبیدن‬

‫ساقی‬

‫ز‬

‫پیماهن‬

‫گوئی همه دل گشت و تپیدن نشناسد‬

360

‫از بند هچ بگشاید و از دام هچ خیزد‬ ‫ساقی هچ شگرفی کند و باده هچ تندی‬

‫ما لذت دیدار ز پیغام رگفتیم‬ ‫بی‌رپده شو از انز و میندیش هک ما را‬

‫بینم هچ بال رب رس جیب و کفن آرد‬ ‫پیوسته روان از ژمه خون جگرستم‬

‫شوقم می گلگون هب سبو میزند امشب‬

‫با لذت اندوه تو رد ساخته غالب‬

I am saying something, but no one is willing to listen; There is a morning to my night, which knows not how to bring the dawn. (124:1) Addressing the friends that the morning (hope) of his night (suffering) is not ready to crack open. He has perpetual misfortune.

What would come out of an open prison, and what would rise from a snare? The deer we wish to catch does not know how to run. (124:2) There is no need for a prison to hold the prisoner, and there is nothing that would come out a snare spread out; out catch, the beloved, refuses to run, and until she does, she cannot be caught. Run means moves—she is so emotionless that we cannot catch her in a moment when we can beg to her.

The pearl is complaining of being without feathers and wings; Look at us; here we are and our tears that do not know how to drip. (124:3) Tears are matched with pearls, not being able to drip, and not telling the story of sorry. Both cannot fly, as they do not have wings.

What miracles can the saqi show and what stoutness can the wine display? May the mind bleed away that does not know how to be ecstatic. (124:4) Pointing to self that a small amount of wine does not do the job; give more. He wants to be ecstatic, or otherwise, he is wasted.

Your message brings us all the joy that seeing you could give; Your lovers cannot tell the difference between seeing you and hearing from you. (124:5) Receiving a message from her is like seeing her.

With all your coquetry, unveil yourself; be not afraid Since we have the eyes of the mirror that knows not how to see. (124:6) We cannot bear your bright face and are blinded by it, so don’t worry about our gazing at you; being not afraid or concerned means that you should feel free to show off your beauty; no one is watching. The mirrored example comes from a thematic discussion of the mirror as a fixed image, blind eye.

Let us see what trouble lies in store for collar and shroud; In the hand that knows no skill other than tearing the attire. (124:7) Since the only skill the lover has perfected is to tear his attire in a frenzy, it would be obvious that he will also tear his collar and, upon his burial, his shroud.

From my eyelashes, the liver blood is dripping continuously; And the color of my face does not know how to fly away. (124:8) Despite the flow of blood out of the liver, my complexion remains unchanged. There is much more blood than can be wasted.

361

I desire to pour the red wine in the goblet tonight; Since it knows not how to request the cup from the saqi. (124:9) The desire is not prepared to ask for a goblet of wine from saqi, so it has gone ahead and poured in wine by itself.

Ghalib has worked out with the delight of grief caused by you; As said, he has turned entirely into a heart that is not familiar with restlessness. (124:10) I have come to grip with the delight of your grief; I have come to bear it without getting upset about it.

125 ‫ات کیست و ردین رپده هک بی باد بجنبد‬

‫رهدم ز نشاطم دل آزاد بجنبد‬

‫بجنبد‬

‫خواهم ز تو آزردگی غیر و چو بینم‬

‫بجنبد‬

‫شمشاد‬

‫رطۀ‬

‫بجنبد‬

‫صیاد‬

‫مشغولی‬

‫بجنبد‬

‫انشاد‬

‫رپزیاد‬

‫خارط‬

‫بال‬

‫سحر‬

‫حسد‬

‫پی‬

‫نظرت‬

‫باد‬

‫زک‬

‫رعق‬ ‫لخ‬

‫رد‬

‫تی‬

‫ات‬

‫زان دشنه هک اندر کف جالد بجنبد‬ ‫زان تیشه هک رد پ جنهه‏ی رفاهد بجنبد‬

‫چون طبع کجت را رگ بیداد بجنبد‬ ‫ره چاره هک رد خارط استاد بجنبد‬

‫خون باد زبانی هک هب اوراد بجنبد‬

‫چون رب روش رطح خداداد بجنبد‬

‫رب هم زدن کار من آسان رت از آ ن‌ست‬ ‫رمدم هب دم و داغم از آن صید هک رد دام‬

‫شی‬ ‫اهن خ رپیخوان می گلگون هب قدح رزی‬ ‫ربقی هب فشار آرم و اربی هب رتاوش‬ ‫از رکش هب خون غلتم و از ذوق ربقصم‬ ‫ای آنکه رد اصالح تو رهزگ ندهد سود‬

‫ره پوهی هک رگد دل آگاه بگردد‬ ‫وصل تو هب نیروی دعا نیست ازین بعد‬ ‫عیس‬

‫ی‏ست‬

‫غالب قلمت رپده‌گشای دم‬

My heart keeps dancing with joy all the time; Who is behind the veil that makes it move when the air is still? (125:1) The veil is heart, and the one behind it is the beloved that keeps the heart stirred.

Easier it is to disrupt my work than the condition Of the leaves and branches of pine tree ruffled by the morning breeze. (125:2)

362

363

My planning is so easily disrupted and destroyed by the events of life. So easy it is for the force of nature to defeat me.

I wish you would treat the rival in a way to break his heart; And when I see that the sweat of envy appears from my unhappy heart. (125:3) Selfishly suggesting the beloved how to treat the rival reduces the jealousy the lover is feeling, hoping that this rival treatment would cause him to depart from the competition with him.

I died instantly, but I am envious of the catch in the snare, Which keeps wiggling for the merriment of the hunter’s heart. (125:4) The hunter is beloved, and the catch is the lover; I could not give her prolonged pleasure.

Yes, O fairy-desiring sheikh, pour the wine in the goblet, So you could see the moving wings of the fairy kinds. (125:5) Fairy-desiring means someone who could use a spell to bring fairies to sight; the magic the lover suggests is to drink some wine so he could see the fairies in his imagination under inebriation. The waves of wine in the goblet will appear as fairy tresses. The lover ridicules the sheikh for not knowing that the real fairies are the beloveds that cannot be moved through magical spells.

I embrace the lightning and make the clouds rain From the dagger that is moving in the hand of my hangman. (125:6) The hangman is the beloved, holding a dagger to kill the lover to whom the dagger appears more tumultuous than the lightning and more generous than a cloud in letting out blood.

From the envy I roll in my blood, and I dance with joy, To see the axe working in the hands of Farhad, the sculptor. (125:7) Refers to the story of Shirin and Farhad, who killed himself with his axe when falsely told that Shireen has died. See Farhad. See Shirin. See Shirin and Farhad in the glossary.

No benefit there is in correcting your habits Since your crooked vein of cruelty keeps pulsating. (125:8) Vein of cruelty pulsating means you keep practicing cruelty; no way you will change your habits. It is all useless.

Neither from the softly spoken word coming from the heart of a wise one, Nor from the resolve offered by a teacher’s mind and heart. (125:9) This verse continues what is told in the previous verse that advising you in the words of a wise man or teacher too is useless.

Now on, it is not possible to have union with you by the power of prayers; May the tongue bleed out that continues to pray in this regard. (125:10) May the tongue bleed mean to go to waste.

364

‫‪O Ghalib, your pen reveals the breath of Jesus,‬‬ ‫)‪When it moves in a manner that is God-bestowed. (125:11‬‬ ‫‪The poetry of Ghalib is like the breath of Jesus that brings back the dead to life; his poetry infuses‬‬ ‫‪a fresh soul in dead hearts.‬‬

‫‪126‬‬ ‫کس‬ ‫خوبان هن آن کنند هک ی را زیان رسد‬

‫دل ربد ات درگ هچ ازان دلستا ن رسد‬

‫مق‬ ‫صود ما ز دری و رحم زج حبیب نیست‬

‫رهجا کنیم سجده هب آن آستان رسد‬

‫دارد خبر ردیغ و من از سادگی هنوز‬

‫رددی‌کشان میکده رد هم فتاده‌اند‬

‫گن‬ ‫گم شد نشان من چو رسیدم هب ج دری‬ ‫قف‬ ‫نیف‬ ‫رد دام بهر داهن تم‪ ،‬مگر س‬

‫یم‬ ‫راهی هک ات من‏ست هماان هن ا ن‌ست‬ ‫رفتم سوی وی و ژمده اندر جگر خلید‬ ‫نخ‬ ‫تیر ست را غلط‌انداز گفته‌ام‬ ‫امید غلبه نیست هب کیش مغان ردآی‬

‫خوارم هن آنچنان هک درگ ژمدۀ وصال‬ ‫صاحبقران اثنی ارگ رد جهان نماند‬

‫تّ‬ ‫چون نیست اتب ربق جلی کلیم را‬

‫سنج هم‬ ‫م ی هک دوست مگر انگهان رسد‬ ‫انزم هب خوارئی هک هب من زین میان رسد‬

‫مانند آن صدا هک هب گوش رگان رسد‬ ‫چندان کنی بلند هک هب آشیان رسد‬ ‫خونمیخورمهکچونبخورممی چسانرسد‬

‫پی ش‬ ‫زان تر هک سینه هب نوک سنان رسد‬ ‫ای وای رگ هن تیر درگ رب نشان رسد‬

‫می رگ هب زجهی دست نداد ارمغان رسد‬ ‫باور کنم ارگ همه از آسمان رسد‬ ‫گفتار من هب اثنی صاحبقران رسد‬

‫سخ‬ ‫کی رد ن غالب آتش بیان رسد‬

‫;‪Beautiful ones do nothing that will hurt anyone‬‬ ‫)‪She ravished the hearts; let us see what will come from the beloved. (126:1‬‬ ‫‪Beloved is a good person; she is taken my heart, and I am sure something would come back to me‬‬ ‫!‪from her; hope‬‬

‫‪She is unrelenting to send a message, yet I shall, in my simplicity,‬‬ ‫)‪Keep thinking that my friend may come over suddenly. (126:2‬‬

‫‪365‬‬

She is not even replying, and I am hoping that she will show up unexpectedly.

Our objective in the temple and the shrine is nothing but the beloved; Wherever we offer adoring prostration, it reaches that threshold. (126:3) Beloved is God; nowhere we pray, the prayers reach out to Him.

Carrying their pain, they are entangled in a brawl inside a bar; I take pride in the disgrace I get in this connection. (126:4) Drinkers are fighting for the wine residue, a shame, but the more I get it, the more I feel good.

My sign got lost when I reached the corner of the temple; Like the sound reaching the ears of the deaf ones. (126:5) By the time I got to the temple, I was reduced to nothing, as a sound entering the years of deaf ones, it is not noticeable. The Sufi doctrine of denial of self.

I don’t fall in the snare for the bait, Unless you place the cage so high that it will reach my nest. (126:6) If you want to catch me, you must come up to me with respect; bait alone will not work. Expression of pride.

The path that reaches me is undoubtedly not safe; I drink my blood when lamenting, and it tastes like wine to me. (126:7) The path to my destiny is difficult to traverse for someone to bring wine to me, so I just drink my blood, thinking it is wine. Expression his desperation of life.

Her eyelashes pierced into my heart as I approached her, Before the chest reached the tip of the dagger. (126:8) The eyelashes did the job that was anticipated from her dagger; no inconvenience to her.

I said that the first arrow shot had missed the aim; What if another arrow hits the target. (126:9) If it misses the second time, it must be because she wanted to keep me aspiring for it and save me in pain for not getting killed.

There is no hope to rule over Zoroastrians and then adopt their religion; If wine is not received as tax, then it will be given as a gift. (126:10) In Islamic countries, non-Muslims were taxed for their protection; by converting to a religion where wine is allowed, I have a chance of getting it as a gift if no non-Muslim is giving it to me as a tax on them.

I am naive but not to the extent to believe the news of her return; Even if the news comes from heaven. (126:11)

366

I was told of her arrival, and she did not, so I became frustrated; now, even if the news comes from heaven, I will not trust; I am not so naïve.

If Shahjahan remained no more in the world, so what; My poetry has reached his descendant Bahadur Shah Zafar. (126:12) If my words did not reach the emperor of India, Shahjahan, at least it got to his descendant, Zafar.

When Moses does not have the strength to bear the lightning of display, Then in his talk, how can he reach the fiery expressionist Ghalib. (126:13) Moses collapsed when he saw the fire; the anecdote goes; how can he face my fiery poetry? Compared with God’s expression.

127 ‫انزم هب خواجگی غضب‌آلود می‌رود‬

‫گفت‬ ‫ زود می‌رود‬،‫عاشق چو یش هک ربو‬

‫شم خم‬ ‫ع وشم و ز رسم دود می‌رود‬

‫ن‬ ‫از انهل‌ام رم ج هک آرخ شدست کار‬

‫سخ‬ ‫گوئی ن ز طالع مسعود می‌رود‬

‫باری حدیث چنگ و نی وعود می‌رود‬ ‫رسماهی نیز رد هوس سود می‌رود‬

‫رحفی هک رد رپستش معبود می‌رود‬ ‫اندان ز زبم دوست هچ خشنود می‌رود‬ ‫صود می‌رود‬

‫مق‬

‫رهکس چگوهن رد پی‬

‫رگ خود پدر رد آتش نمرود می‌رود‬

‫اتری هک نیست رد رس این پود می‌رود‬

‫کس‬ ‫امشب هب زبم دوست ی انم ما نبرد‬

‫شادم هب زبم وعظ هک رامش ارگهچ نیست‬ ‫رفدوس جوی عمر هب وسواس داده را‬

‫نخوت نگر هک می‌خلد اندر دلش ز رکش‬

‫ت‬ ‫ما هم هب الغ و الهب سلی شویم کاش‬ ‫رکش واف نگر هک هب دعوی‌هگ رضا‬

‫رفزند زری تیغ پدر می‌نهد گلو‬ ‫ خوشت رفصت موهوم و فکر عیش‬،‫غالب‬

When you tell your lover to leave, he goes immediately; Proud I am that he is leaving with haughty anger. (127:1) Despite being rejected, the lover maintains his self-pride—that is me.

Tonight no one mentioned our name in her assembly; It seems like they kept talking about good fortunes. (127:2)

367

368

I am associated with poor luck and bad fortune. That is why my name did not appear in the conversation.

Be not get distressed at my laments, for this has all ended; I am a burnt-out candle, and from my head, the smoke is billowing. (127:3) When a candle is put out, it billows smoke from its wick. He is comparing himself to a candle put out, meaning no longer flaming the laments.

I am happy in the assemble of the preacher, even if there is no music here; At least he is talking about lute, harp, and agarwood fragrance. (127:4) The preacher is telling everyone to listen to music or enjoy the scents, but he is using these words to make the poet happy.

The seeker of paradise spends his life in suspicion; And thus, in the avarice for the interest, he ends up losing the capital investment. (127:5) Pointing towards the Ascetic who spends his entire life hoping for paradise and gives up all luxuries of life—not realizing that there may not be a paradise waiting for him—either he does not qualify, or there is no paradise.

Just look at her arrogance that because of envy, The words said in the prayers of the Lord are offensive to her. (127:6) How arrogant is she that she feels jealous if I say the exact words, I pray to address her? She does not want her praise to be shared even with God.

I wish that I, too, could be appeased by her phony words of praise! How light at heart the fool is as he comes from her assembly! (127:7) The rival gets all excited hearing the phony promises and talks of the beloved not realizing her cunningness; however, this does make him happy at least momentarily—I wish I could have that joy as well. I hope I could be blinder towards her attitude.

See their mutual envy of devotion to seek His approval; See in what ways they set themselves to realize their goal? (127:8) This verse and the next are connected and refer to Quranic lore of Abraham going on to sacrifice his son Ismail when ordered to do so, and then at the time of sacrifice, Ismail was switched with a lamb. Their means Abraham and Ismail. They are trying to outdo each other in fulfilling the order of the Lord.

The son lies down and bares his throat beneath his father’s knife; If the father goes unhesitatingly into Nimrod’s fire. (127:9) Ishmael did not hesitate to put his life online, and the father jumped into the fire of Nimrod to assert the Lord. See Nimrod in the glossary.

Ghalib, how lovely is the thought of the non-existent moments of leisure; It is a non-existent thread leaping for the warp and weft. (127:10)

369

The thought is like a thread trying to weave a tapestry of happiness; the thread does not exist. There is no moment of respite in the life of a lover.

128 ‫بس‬ ‫گش‬ ‫رب تنم ز دین دم مل رضور بود‬

‫دانست زک شهادتم امید حور بود‬

‫معشوهق خودنمای و نگهبان غیور بود‬

‫لح‬ ‫مسن‬ ‫مجرم ج رند اان ق رسای را‬

‫رس رشته رد کف ارنی گوی طور بود‬

‫ ازآن رو هک دور بود‬،‫بی‌جاده ماند راه‬ ‫با دیگران ز عفو و هب ما از رغور بود‬ ‫زان اپهی بازگوی هک پیش از ظهور بود‬

‫خون باد انهل‌ای هک هم‌آهنگ صور بود‬ ‫نخ‬ ‫ربدی ست آنچه ز جنس شعور بود‬ ّ ‫داّلهل خوربوی و دلم انصبور بود‬

‫بخ‬ ‫کو ش آ ن گدا هک ز غوغا نفور بود‬

‫طم‬ ‫رفت آنکه ما ز حسن دمارا ع کنیم‬

‫سالکنگفته‏ایمهکمنزلشناسنیست‬ ‫انزم هب امتیاز هک بگذشتن از گناه‬

‫هیچ نم‬ ‫ای آنکه از رغور هب م ی‌رخی‬ ‫حش‬ ‫ردد دلم ‌هب ر ز شدت نهفته ماند‬

‫دل از تو بود و تو پی ازلام ما ز ما‬ ‫نس‬ ‫قطع ایپم رکدی و دا تم آشتی‌ست‬ ‫دادی صالی جلوه و غالب کناره رکد‬

From my martyrdom, she assumed that I went hoping for the houri; Thus I had to denounce my religion at the time of death. (128:1) When the beloved saw me eager to give my life, she thought it was because I was hoping to reach the houris in the paradise, not realizing that I was giving my life for her sake; therefore, to make her believe, I denounced my religion at the time of my death to remove any doubt about believing in paradise and the houris. In Islamic religious belief, houris are women who will accompany faithful Muslim believers in paradise.

We have given up any hope of courtesy from the beauty; Because it was entirely in the hands of the asker of the display. (128:2) When Moses went to Mount Toor, he asked for the display of God, and God returned that “you cannot bear it.” This lore is referred to here; seeing how God declined to show himself to Moses, I should expect nothing less than my beloved. That is why I am giving up any hope of courtesy from my beloved to yield to my request for her display. It was in the hands of Moses to get disappointed. He should have known better.

370

371

Consider him not culpable-that profligate who says that “I am God”; The Beloved displayed Himself openly, as the guardian was jealous of His honor. (128:3) The Quranic lore of Mansour claiming to be God and then gallows in the hands of the guardian of God’s honor is referred here. See Mansour in the glossary.

We did not say that the traveler did not know the destination correctly; In reality, the path is very long, and it couldn’t be traversed. (128:4) The traveler is someone walking in the direction towards God, the destination. The difficulties in the path (making it appear so long) prevented him from reaching out. Meaning that the way to truth is paved with so many hurdles that failures should not be construed as ignorance about the destination.

I am honored by the distinction shown, that He has overlooked my sins; It was on the plea for mercy with others, but it came despite our pride for us. (128:5) God became pleased at our audacity of taking pride in our sins.

O You are not willing to buy me for free because of my arrogance; Tell us about that place before the appearance. (128:6) Before man appeared or was created, what was there? My arrogance is misunderstood; when I was not there, who was there to pray before you and create God. My arrogance is well deserved.

On the Day of Resurrection, the intensity of my heart’s pain remained concealed; Let that lament go to hell that sounded like the clarion sounding on that day. (128:7) The clarion played on the Day of Resurrection would cause the dead to rise. It is a boisterous call, and the lover is saying that he is frustrated that his laments are sounding like that clarion because of the same intensity. The condition of hearing remained hidden as most thought it was also the sound of the loud clarion. He is not happy with the sound of his laments that God subdued.

Our heart was already yours but for the sake of accusing us, You blew away our awareness in the beginning. (128:8) The first sight of the beloved made us disillusioned—this was her act of stealing my heart; now, she is accusing me of misappropriating her trust.

You stopped sending messages, and I thought it was a sign of friendship; What could I do? Your messenger was beautiful, and my heart impatient. (128:9) The beloved is not sending any messages because the female messenger she chooses is so beautiful that the beloved herself fell in love with her. What started the connection with her (sending me messages) turned into a love affair. Here I was impatient and began thinking that this was an act of kindness not to send a beautiful woman lest I might fall in love with her. This is made me think that you are truly kind to me and are in love with me. What a mistake! [The word [Dalaleh] used for a female messenger means a transferor of secret messages].

372

You gave a public call to display your beauty, and Ghalib has distanced himself; Where is the portion for this beggar who hates boisterous atmosphere? (128:10) Once the beloved declared that she would show herself publicly, it created great tumult and riots; Ghalib does not want to be part of this and asks for a private assembly.

129 ‫ز شادی ستمت سینه رد رخوش آدم‬

‫ز رگمی نگهت خون دل هب جوش آدم‬

‫مش‬ ‫هک رشم ا بم از شکوه‌اهی دوش آدم‬

‫رد‬

‫هب عیش ژمده هک وقت وداع هوش آدم‬ ‫هک جان غبار تن و رس وبال دوش آدم‬

‫هب عذرخواهی رندان باده نوش آدم‬ ‫چش‬ ‫زخان م رسید و بهار گوش آدم‬ ‫هچ رنم شاهن گذشت و هچ سخت کوش آدم‬

‫خم‬ ‫هالک رطز لبم شو هک رپ وش آدم‬ ‫بهار زینت دکان گل‌رفوش آدم‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ن هب رمگ نرس سیاه‏پوش آدم‬

‫هب جان نوید هک رشم از میاۀن هم رفت‬ ‫بفش‬

‫خیال یار رد آغوشم آنچنان‬

‫هب آستین بفشان و هب تیغ خوش ربدار‬ ‫فدای شیوۀ رحمت هک رد لباس بهار‬

‫ز وصل یار قناعت کنون هب پیغامی‌ست‬ ‫زمام حوصله نگرفت و کوهکن جان داد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫چش گش‬ ‫شهید م تو تم هک خوش نگوئی‌ست‬

‫سخ‬ ‫رتا جمال و رما ماۀی ن‏سازی‌ست‬

‫مپرس وهج سواد سفینه‌اه غالب‬

From the heat of your glance, the blood in your heart began boiling; And from the joy of your tyranny, it began buzzing in my chest. (129:1) Everything that comes from the beloved brings joy and ecstasy.

O soul, rejoice! The curtain of shame has been lifted between us; And glad tidings to luxury, the time has come to lose senses. (129:2) Shame means reserved communication. Now that we can connect, it is a matter of joy and losing senses meaning that once he connects with her, he will no longer be able to stay aware of his surroundings.

The thought of the friend has been so constricted in my chest That tonight I felt ashamed of the plaints of yesternight. (129:3)

373

It does not have to be accurate. Just the thought of holding the beloved in my arms is enough, and I feel ashamed why I was insisting on getting close to her physically.

Brush it off with your sleeve, let it fly swiftly with your sword; My soul—my body’s dust; my head—burden to my shoulders. (129:4) My soul has been reduced to dust, and he asks the beloved to brush it off with her sleeve. His head is a burden to his shoulders with the pain of suffering, and he is asking her to cut it off swiftly. Anything turning to dust is meant to show its destruction.

Sacrificing myself over His Kindness, appearing in the garb of the spring; To give an excuse to drunkards to justify the drinking. (129:5) With its delightful weather, the spring season creates an atmosphere conducive to drinking, giving just another reason or excuse to drunkards to start drinking. The kindness of God has appeared as the garb of the spring.

Regarding union with beloved, I have become contended just receiving the message; As if it is autumn for the eyes and spring for the ears. (129:6) Since I cannot see the beloved, it is like autumn for my eyes; but the messages from the beloved gratify my ears and make them happy as if this were the spring for the ears.

Farhad, the sculptor, let fall the reins of courage and so lost his life; How weak when he departed, and how committed when he came! (129:7) Farhad is often ridiculed by Ghalib for killing himself upon hearing the fake news of the death of his beloved, Shirin. See Farhad in the glossary.

I am a martyr to your eye that speaks so sweetly; Become enamored at my lips that speak so quietly. (129:8) The movement of the beloved’s eyes is called the sweet speech of her eyes, and at this tyranny, the lover not saying anything is indeed a class act that you (the beloved) should appreciate.

You are endowed with beauty, and my treasure is the eloquence of poesy; The spring adds decoration to the shop of the flower-seller. (129:9) The arrival of the spring brings more fresh flowers to shop sellers making their shop look more decorated. This is like the beauty of the beloved that is ever enhancing and now praises his poesy that he has the treasure of words to describe and compare her beauty to the wares of the spring.

Ask not of the cause of the ink spread in the poetry register; Just think that the poetry is lamenting at the death of poetry appreciators. (129:10) The dark ink in writing poetry is compared to dark garb worn to mourn death. He is complaining that those who could appreciate his poetry are there no more.

374

130 ‫حق‬ ‫مجاز سوز یقت گداز باید بود‬

‫هب عشق از دو جهان بی‌نیاز باید بود‬

‫چو دل ز رپده‌رسایان راز باید بود‬

‫چو لب ز رهزه‌نوایان شوق نتوان شد‬

‫هب جان شکوه تغافل رطاز باید بود‬

‫شم‬ ‫چو ع خلوتیان جانگداز باید بود‬ ‫م‬ ‫رشیک صلحت سعی انز باید بود‬

‫چو انز جلوه‏رگ آید نیاز باید بود‬ ‫کن‬ ‫هب ج صومعه وقف نماز باید بود‬ ‫شهید آن ژمه‌اهی رداز باید بود‬ ‫هب رگهی طالب رداهی باز باید بود‬

‫رتا هک این همه با ربگ و ساز باید بود‬

‫هب جیب حوصله نقد نشاط باید ریخت‬

‫عش‬ ‫چو زبم رتیان اتزه رو توان جوشید‬

‫کمر نهفته هب اتراج خویش باید جست‬ ‫چو شوق بال گشاید توان هب خود بالید‬

‫صح‬ ‫هب ن میکده رسمست می‌توان رگدید‬ ‫هب خون تپیدۀ ذوق ن گاه نتوان زیست‬

‫ئ‬ ‫نگه ز دیدۀ بیدار جو هک سا ل را‬ ‫هچ رب ز راحت آزادگی خوری غالب‬

In love, you must become oblivious to the two worlds; Burning the unreal should melt the reality. (130:1) In real love, it does not matter what exists and what does not. Sufism is pointed out here where the love of Almighty should bring the question of His existence even when we claim that nothing exists. The burning of the unreal brings the understanding of reality.

Put all the wealth of joy into the pocket of courage; In the soul of complaint, there should be a style of obliviousness. (130:2) Staying happy makes life more pleasurable, and that requires becoming oblivious to the luxuries of others—no complaints if you want to be satisfied.

Be not like the lips impelled by love to babble nonsense; Be like the heart, whose strings hold all its secret melodies. (130:3) Lips adduce nonsensical talk when the mind is not in control, such as when in love, whether these are plaints against the beloved or fate and destiny. Take a lesson from the heart that plays the melody of secrets—a character that should be emulated. The heart has more strength and sensibility than the tongue.

375

Like the assembly of luxuries, one can freshen up with jubilation; And let the soul melt like the candles burning in a hermit’s cell. (130:4) One should adopt both aspects of life; rejoice and be somber at the same time.

One should be prepared to get robbed of himself secretly, And partake in the reasoning of the efforts of coquetry. (130:5) The beloved robs the lover’s heart with her coquetry secretly, and one should be prepared for that. To do this, one should engage in letting the beloved practice her reasoning for stealing the heart— meaning encouraging her to make a move.

When passion spreads its wings, then one can take pride in self; And when there is a display of beauty, the lover should show humility. (130:6) When the lover’s passion grows, the lover can take pride in it, but there is a need to be humble when and if the beloved is ready to display her beauty to you.

Here in the tavern’s yard, rejoice in sheer intoxication; There, in the corner of the mosque, devote yourself to prayer. (130:7) Act according to the etiquette and customs of the assembly wherever you are.

You cannot live writhing in blood in passion for her gaze; Sacrifice your life over those long eyelashes as well. (130:8) Living a frustrating life to come across her gaze is not advised, for there is a need to martyr yourself at her long eyelashes as well. Gazing eyes and long eyelashes are brought together in this discussion.

Seek your sight from the awakened eye; The mendicant prefers to beg at the wide-open doors. (130:9) Awakened and open eyes are compared to open doors; have a sight of wisdom by opening your vision.

O Ghalib, what fruit of the pleasure of freedom do you eat, While you need so many belongings? (130:10) The fruit is the pleasure of freedom that you think you have. The question means you are hardly eating that fruit when you are so entwined with the material things in life.

131 ‫ن گاه از اتب رویت موی آتش‌دیده را ماند‬ ‫هب ژمگان قطرۀ خون غنچهء انچیده را ماند‬

376

‫نف‬ ‫س از بیم خویت رشته‏ی دیچیپه را ماند‬ ‫زجوش دل هنوزش ریشه ردآب‌ست پنداری‬

‫محش‬ ‫خیابان ر دلهای خون‏رگدیده را ماند‬

‫حس‬ ‫ز بس زک الهل و گل رت انز تو می‏جوشد‬

‫ز جوش وحشتم ح‬ ‫صرا دل رنجیده را ماند‬

‫غبار از جاده ات اوج سپهر ساده می‌بالد‬

‫ز رسرگمی نگه صیاد آهو دیده را ماند‬

‫دل از آئینه‌داریهای شوقت دیده را ماند‬ ‫مس‬ ‫تن از تی هب کویت جان آرامیده را ماند‬ ‫گدایان نثار از رهگذر ربچیده را ماند‬ ‫غبار راه او ژمگان ربرگدیده را ماند‬ ‫تو گوئی گنبد رگدون رسشوریده را ماند‬

‫چش‬

‫م خودش بودن رد آئینه‬

‫خوشا دلدارۀ‬

‫هب ره جا می‌رخامی جلوه‌ات رد ماست پنداری‬

‫چونرواناپالستاندوهت‬،‫هچغمزافتادگی‌اه‬

‫بهار از رنگ و بو رد پیش گاه جلوۀ انزش‬ ‫چشم‬

‫م‬

‫قی‬ ‫ر بش ربده از راه واف بنگر هک رد‬

‫جهان دودی‌ست از سودا هک می‌رگداندش غالب‬

Dreading your nature, my breath has become an entangled thread; And my glance is like the singed hair from the brilliance of your fiery face. (131:1) My breath is entangled and cannot come out, and my glance at you is like burnt hair. Ghalib writes of the glance as a string coming out of eyes. Now the strand of hair and the line of gaze are both burned and entangled, unable to come out. I cannot see you because of your brilliance, and my breath is stuck inside with fear thinking of your fiery disposition.

From the zealousness of the heart, its roots are still in the water; On the eyelashes, the drops of blood resemble flower buds not plucked. (131:2) The blood on eyelashes means bloody tears that are not shedding, having come to the tip of the eyelashes because their roots remain in the heart, meaning the heart is still crying blood tears. It is like a root watering the tips of the tree.

The intense longings of the tulip and the rose for your coquetry of beauty are embroiled, Appearing like a flowerbed, crowded with bloodstained hearts. (131:3) Both the tulip and rose are red, and so is the face of the beloved. In jealousy of the brilliance of the beloved’s face, the tulip and rose are bleeding (as they have a red color), crowding the flower beds.

Tulips and roses are burning in the envy of your sweet longing so much; That the street looks like an Armageddon of the bleeding hearts. (131:4) Talking about the intensity of the beloved’s love.

Dust rising from my road is spreading out into the heights of the sky; The heat of my wild frenzy makes the wilderness resemble a tormented heart. (131:5)

377

The lover is running in a frenzy in the wilderness, kicking dust reaching the sky; the dust looks like the smoke from the burning or tormented heart of the wilderness.

Wherever you stroll, your display remains settled in our hearts, as if Our heart was like the eye in the manifestation of your love. (131:6) Wherever she shows up, her impression resides in the lover’s heart. This verse can well be addressing a mortal beloved. Strolling refers to the moving image around.

When your grief is wrapped around my soul, then why be despondent? My body is like a tranquil soul in your alley from intoxication. (131:7) In your alley means that my body is lying in your alley. The coffin is wrapped around, and that is your grief, but being in your alley gives me great satisfaction. So why should I be despondent, for that is that I wanted all my life?

The spring with its color and fragrance, in the abode entrance of her display of coquetry Is like a beggar who is picking up what is discarded to guard her against evil. (131:8) A comparison is provided for the glory of the spring and the glory of the beloved’s coquetry; to how meager is the spring, it is compared to a shameless beggar who would pick up the things (money) thrown out after rotating it around the face to protect against the evil eye, an Eastern tradition.

The rival has misled her from the path; behold my faithfulness that in my eyes The dust of her path is like the fluttering eyelashes. (131:9) Whereas the rival has succeeded in distracting the beloved from me, but my faithfulness to her remains evident that even the dust of her alley coming into my eyes makes me see her grandeur of display.

The world is nothing but the smoke of madness that causes its whirling; You would say that the vault of heaven resembles a distracted head. (131:10) Smoke, coming out, whirls upwards like a mad head moving in a circle, referring to Sufi or whirling Darvish. A simile is provided in the round sky and the revolving head of a Darvish.

132 ‫رت خوابم بدر آورد‬

‫حس‬

‫مکش‬

‫کش‬

‫از‬

‫شادم هب خیالت هک ز اتبم بدر آورد‬

‫دور فلک از زبم رشابم بدر آورد‬

‫رسوائی من خواست مگر کاین‌همه رسمست‬

‫وان گاه پی ربدن آبم بدر آورد‬ ‫زک چیپ و خم موج رسابم بدر آورد‬

378

‫رفیاد هک شوق تو هب کاشاهن زد آتش‬

‫جی‬ ‫افکنده هب حون فلک از وادی و شادم‬

‫از عهدۀ تحرری جوابم بدر آورد‬

‫جان رب رس مکتوب تو از شوق فشاندن‬

‫ رگ از آبم بدر آورد‬،‫افکند رد آتش‬

‫تی اشکسته ز موجم هک تباهی‬

‫از تفرقۀ مهر و عتابم بدر آورد‬ ‫آوراگی از رفد حسابم بدر آورد‬

‫مس‬ ‫انزم هب ن گاهت هک ز رس تی انداز‬ ‫کش‬

‫آن‬

‫غالب ز زعزیان وطن بوده‌ام اما‬

I am happy with your thought that has freed me of my impatience, And freed me from the tug of desire for sleep. (132:1) Not being able to sleep is better than waiting to fall asleep desperately.

Lament that your passion first burnt down my home, And then sent me out to gather water. (132:2) Home means heart, and water means tears.

Perhaps it intended to disgrace me while inebriated, That the destiny kicked me out of the drinking assembly. (132:3) When inebriated, the drunk can turn into an embarrassing soul; perhaps that was the intent.

The destiny has thrown me from my land to Jayhoun and I am happy that It freed me from the twist and turns of the mirage waves (132:4) Freeing from the mirage, destiny will give the lover the whole Jayhoun river. See Jayhoun in the glossary.

Giving life with joy at your written note; Freed me from the obligation of writing a response to you. (132:5) The lover is so happy to die for the beloved and be free of any obligation to her.

I am proud of your gaze that from the intoxication of your moves, Freed me from the division of love and guilt. (132:6) The lover’s gaze is so strong that intoxicated the beloved and freed him from any conflicting feelings.

I am like a boat broken down by the whipping of waves, My pieces are taken out of the water and put into the fire. (132:7) A broken boat is just fuel; I, too, am saved from drowning but put into the fire instead.

O Ghalib, I too was among the respected citizens; But my roguishness has taken me out of the final account entry. (132:8) I am no longer counted as among the respectable citizens because of my wanderings.

379

133 ‫از آنکه رد رسد از راه میهمانش و رلزد‬

‫رگسنه هب هک ربآید افهق جانش و رلزد‬

‫ضم‬ ‫هک رد یر بود بیم اپسبانش و رلزد‬

‫گن‬ ‫منم هب وصل هب جینه راه‌یافته زددی‬

‫چو طارئی هک بسوزانی آشتیانش و رلزد‬ ‫ز ساده‏ای هک زنی بوهس رب داهنش و رلزد‬

‫رچا رسد رس آن رطه رب میانش و رلزد‬ ‫چو رائضی هک ز کف رد رود عنانش و رلزد‬

‫هک بی اراده جهد تیر از امکنش و رلزد‬ ‫مگر هب دل گذرد رمگ انگهانش و رلزد‬ ‫ربآورند زر قلب از دکانش و رلزد‬

‫رچا هب سجده نهد رس رب آستانش و رلزد‬

‫نف‬ ‫س هب رگد دل از مهر میتپد هب رفاقت‬ ‫درگ هب کام خود از دل هچ بهره ربد توانی‬

‫گسس‬ ‫نترسد ار ز تن خدا نخواسته باشد‬ ‫ز شور انلۀ دل دارد و اضطراب روانم‬ ‫مس‬

‫تی‬

‫بش ژمه مانی دم ن گاه هب‬

‫جن‬

‫ز‬

‫شی‬ ‫ز خ وجد هب ذوق نشاط نغمه نیابی‬ ‫خ‬ ‫فغان ز جلت رصاف کم عیار هک انهگ‬

‫رگازفشاندنجانشورنیستردرسغالب‬

Better it is for a hungry man to starve to death and tremble, Rather than tremble if a guest arrives suddenly. (133:1) Guests are supposed to be served meals, but for a hungry one who has no food, it is better that he dies of hunger instead of trembling with embarrassment at the arrival of a guest.

My breath is writhing around my heart in separation with you; Like the bird that sees its nest being burnt and starts trembling. (133:2) The writhing of breath is the tumult of heart compared to a burnt nest, and breath is compared to the bird.

At the time of union, my state is like the thief who has found his way to treasure trove; While in his subconscious, there is fear of the guard, and he trembles. (133:3) The beloved is the treasure, but it does not belong to the lover, so he is afraid that whosoever has ownership rights might show up.

O heart, what can you hope to get from the simple-hearted beloved When you are kissing her lips, and she begins trembling? (133:4)

380

This ghazal rhymes around trembling; here, the simpleton nature of the beloved is described; she is not sure what is going on, or perhaps she is afraid of this closeness. ‘What can you get’ means what more can you get from her when she is so frightened? Don’t expect any more physical closeness.

Not afraid of breaking and may God doesn’t want that, Why does then the tip of tresses pant upon reaching her waist? (133:5) Pointing to the extremely thin waist of the beloved, the tip of her tresses is trembling as they are closer to her waist (she has long hair); the panting of tresses is in jealousy of the thinness of her waist to the thinness of the hair.

From the noise of the plaint in my heart, my soul is perturbed Like the horse rider who has lost the reins and is panting. (133:6) The soul is compared to the horse rider, and the heart is compared to reins.

When you look at me, your eyelashes flutter like An arrow shot inadvertently from the bow of an intoxicated one and trembling. (133:7) The beloved is called an intoxicated one and the movement of eyelashes as the bow and the gaze, an arrow.

The sheikh will not go into a trance from the delight of the ecstasy of music; Perhaps the thought of sudden death came to his heart to make him tremble. (133:8) The pious sheikh considers all celebrations of joy not pleasurable because he thinks of death as a conservative being, and that spoils all of his fun. He is criticizing piety.

Alas, the shame of the naïve jeweler from whose shop, unexpectedly Discovered was the counterfeit gold, and he began trembling. (133:9) The jeweler does not know how to know the real from fake gold; now that his shop is known to carry counterfeit gold, he is trembling with embarrassment. Pointing to our naiveté that brings shame.

If there is no madness in the distracted head of Ghalib to sacrifice his life, Then why is he prostrating over her threshold and trembling? (133:10) If he is not trembling because of fear, it is the honor of prostrating at her threshold that makes him happy.

134 ‫باید هک خویش را بگدازند و او کنند‬ ‫پیماهن را حساب لب آبجو کنند‬

382

‫هم‬ ‫آانن هک وصل یار ی آرزو کنند‬

‫وقت‏ست زک روائی می ساقیان زبم‬

382

‫ انخنی هب دلت رگ رفو کنند‬،‫ای وای‬

‫مینالی از نئی هک هب انخن شکسته‌اند‬

‫آانن هک گفته‌اند نکویان نکو کنند‬

‫خون زهار ساده هب رگدن رگفته‌اند‬

‫اتری کشد ز جیب هک چاکی رفو کنند‬ ‫هس‬ ‫می‌زیبد ار هب تی اشیا غلو کنند‬

‫بوی می‏آید ار دهن غنچه بو کنند‬ ‫ای وای رگ ز خاک وجودم سبو کنند‬ ‫اپک‌ست رخهق‏ای هک هب می شست و شو کنند‬

‫ مگر همان‬،‫دیواهن وهج رشته ندارد‬

‫لب تشنه جوی آب شمارد رساب را‬ ‫از بس هب شوق روی تو مست‌ست نو بهار‬

‫پیماهن را هب ماتم صهبا نشاندست‬ ‫غالبا‬

‫بود‬

‫نتوان‬

‫ریا‬

‫آلودۀ‬

Those who are yearning for union with the beloved, Must melt themselves and so become one with her. (134:1) A drop merging into ocean becomes ocean; melting into beloved, you become part of the beloved from the concept of fana [extinct], a Sufi doctrine.

Time has come for the saqis of the assembly to start the round of wine with such intensity, That their shot glasses will become like bubble sitting at the bank of the river. (134:2) We are encouraging the saqi to start giving out wine in abundance.

If by chance, a splinter gets into your nails, you begin wailing. Sadly, what would you do if nails pierced your heart? (134:3) The severe pain of nails piercing the heart is what the lovers must face and not complain about by ordinary pains.

The mad one does not have a thread, so he pulls out a thread From his collar opening to mend the rent in his garment. (134:4) The made one is the lover, who, to fix the rent in his attire, can only find a piece of thread from his collar, tearing it in return.

The blood of a thousand innocent victims is on the neck Of those who say that the beauties do good. (134:5) Those who preach that beloved are fair and faithful to lovers cause many innocent ones to fall into the trap and give their lives to this myth.

One with parched lips imagines a mirage to be a stream of water; Better it is if the existence of things around us is seen with some exaggeration. (134:6)

383

384

385

The motivation that creates the image of a mirage in his mind is the same when he looks around and makes an appearance of the Universe around him—what is visible is not necessarily the truth. Exaggeration is a mirage, as he comes to know, so if seeing around is considered a mirage, then reality will not deceive us.

In the desire for the sight of your face, the spring is so intoxicated That if one smells the mouth of a flower bud, it will smell like wine. (134:7) The spring is drunk; the breath of the spring and the breeze will hint at the intoxication of the spring—all desiring to see your face.

A shot-glass will be sitting waiting for the wine; Alas, if it is constructed out of the dust of my existence. (134:8) Talking about his misfortunes, he didn’t get much wine when alive, now dead, and if a goblet is made from the dust of his persona, that will remain empty.

Ghalib cannot be stained with the mark of hypocrisy Since the patched robe, washed in wine, is clean. (134:9) Those who do not drink try posing as pious ones. This is hypocrisy. It is better to be a sinner than to be a hypocrite.

135 ‫بنگر رب آبگینه ز خارا هچ می‌رود‬

‫چون گویم از تو رب دل شیدا هچ می‌رود‬

‫دل زان تست از رگه ما هچ می‌رود‬

‫گوئی مباد رد شکن رطه خون شود‬

‫رگ رس رود هب راه تو از اپ هچ می‌رود‬

‫رگ زورقی شکست ز ردیا هچ می‌رود‬ ‫چم‬ ‫او جانب ن هب تماشا هچ می‌رود‬ ‫چندین هب ذوق باده دل از جا هچ می‌رود‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫دیگر ن ز مهر و دمارا هچ می‌رود‬

‫از ساربان انقۀ لیال هچ می‌رود‬ ‫از پشت اپ رب آینه آیا هچ می‌رود‬ ‫غالب درگ مپرس هک رب ما هچ می‌رود‬

386

‫خوابیده است ات هک هب کویت رسیده است‬ ‫پیداست بی‌نیازی عشق از فنای ما‬ ‫آیینه خاهن‌ای‌ست غبارم ز انتظار‬

‫رگ جلوۀ رخ تو هب سارغ ندیده‌ایم‬

‫با ما هک محو لذت بیداد گشته‌ایم‬ ‫مج‬ ‫یک ره ارگ هب وادی نون کند گذار‬ ‫ای رشم بازداشته از جلوه‏سازیت‬ ‫هفت آسمان هب رگدش و ما رد میاهن‌ایم‬

How should I tell what happens to my lovesick heart because of you? Look at the glass and see what the hard stone does to it. (135:1) Looking at you shatters my heart, as a stone would do to glass. Beloved’s heart is made of stone, heartless.

Upon reaching your alley, our feet have become numb. If our head keeps going in the path of your love, then why would it matter to the feet. (135:2) The feet may give up, but the passion in our heads remains. Numb feet are preventing me from moving; the head keeps going towards the beloved. The passion remains, even if feet give up.

You say: God forbid that your heart would bleed out getting entangled in the tresses. This heart is already yours, so what would we lose from our pocket. (135:3) Asking the beloved why she is concerned about the lover, he is already in.

The needlessness of love is apparent as we come to naught, Like a boat breaking in the river matters little to the river. (135:4) The love has no feelings for us as we get destroyed seeking it out; when a boat breaks in a river, does the river care; a comparison is provided.

Waiting for her my dust has created a house of mirror, What is she going to watch, going towards the garden? (135:5) She should watch me who died and became dust waiting for her but instead why is she walking toward the garden? What is she going to watch?

If we have not seen a reflection of you in the goblet, then Why is our heart so passionately attracted to the wine? (135:6) We are running towards the goblet full of wine because we get to see her face in it; otherwise, we have no reason to seek out the wine. Her reflection would be enough of intoxication to attract towards the goblet. A comparison is provided between the effect of wine and the display of the beloved’s face.

With us who are enchanted by the joy of your cruelty, Why to talk about love and tolerance? (135:7) We have been through so much pain caused by you, now we can tolerate anything.

If the rider passes through the land of Majnoon once, Then what would it matter to the rider of the Laila’s caravan? (135:8) An enticing she-camel rider taking Laila around that what would it matter to you if you pass through my valley—I will get to see her once you would not lose anything. See Majnoon in the glossary.

O beloved, your shyness has kept you from displaying yourself. Imagine how the mirror has suffered at your turning about your feet. (135:9)

387

‫‪Mirror loves seeing beloved’s face becomes joyful; now that the beloved has stopped looking into‬‬ ‫‪the mirror because of her shyness, the mirror is shattered.‬‬

‫‪The seven skies are in constant motion, and we are trapped within them.‬‬ ‫)‪O Ghalib, do not ask us how we are bearing out our fate? (135:10‬‬ ‫‪The revolution of skies brings bad luck, and we are stuck in these revolutions; why ask us how we‬‬ ‫‪are bearing the misfortunes doled out to us by these skies.‬‬

‫‪136‬‬ ‫چش‬ ‫نم‬ ‫هن از رشم‌ست زک م وی آسان رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫ن گاهش با ردازی‏اهی ژمگان رب ی‌آید‬

‫رگ از رسوائی انز تو رپوا نیست عاشق را‬

‫نم‬ ‫نم‬ ‫رچا دل خون ی‌رگدد رچا جان رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫ازین رشمندگی زک بند سامان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫هب زبم سوختن دود از رچاغان رب ی‌خیزد‬

‫رست رگدم‪ ،‬زبن تیغ و ردی رب روی دل بگشا‬

‫شگفتنرعضبیتاب ‌یستاهن‪،‬ایغنچهمی‏دانم‬

‫یخ‬ ‫همانخونرکدنوازدیدهبیرونر تندارد‬ ‫نف‬ ‫مگر آتش س دیواۀن رمد از اسیرانت‬ ‫هچ گیرائی‌ست کاین اتر ز مو باریک‏رت دارد‬ ‫مجو آسودگی رگ رمد راهی کاندرین وادی‬

‫لت‬ ‫ربم پیش هک یا رب شکوۀ اندوه د نگی‬ ‫نعش‬ ‫هب دوش خلق م عبرت صاحبدالن باشد‬

‫ربآر از زبم بحث ای جذهب توحید غالب را‬

‫نم‬ ‫رس شوریده‏ی ما از رگیبان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫هب باغ خون شدن بو از گلستان رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫دلم تنگ‌ست کار از زخم پی کان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫دلت با انلۀ رمغ سحرخوان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫دلی زک عهدۀ غم‌اهی پنهان رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫هک دود ز روزن دیوار زندان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫کس‬ ‫ی از دام این انزک‏میاانن رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫چو خار از اپ ربآدم اپ ز دامان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نف‬ ‫نم‬ ‫س‪ ،‬چندان‏هک می‏انلم‪ ،‬رپیشان رب ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫کس‬ ‫هب اپی خود ی از کوی جاانن رب ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫هک رتک سادۀ ما با فقیهان رب ی‌آید‬

‫‪It is not because of her shyness that her gaze does not get out of her eyes.‬‬ ‫)‪The reason for this, lies in her long lashes. (136:1‬‬ ‫‪Gaze is frequently compared to something coming out of the eye. Her eyelashes are so long that‬‬

‫‪388‬‬

they entrapped her gaze, keeping it from coming out of her eyes, not because she is shy to look at us.

This embarrassment is because we cannot get rid of the earthly baggage, That our restless and unstable head does not come out of our collar. (136:2) Your head seems to be going insane because of our passion, but it is hidden in our collar. When passion is intense, it causes us to tear our collar; it is not torn or closed, meaning that we are so concerned about what the world would think of us that we cannot express our love freely.

If your lover is not concerned about the defamation of your coquetry and style, Then why is the heart not bled away and the soul does not depart. (136:3) The lover is not letting his heart bleed and die because of the fear that this will expose the beloved to the world and bring her embarrassment.

In the assembly of burning, smoke does not rise from lamps. In the garden the bled sheds, flower fields do not give off an aroma. (136:4) The assembly of burning and garden bleeding refers to lovers’ assembly; smoke represents lovers’ plaints. In both assemblies, the lovers keep their woes to themselves so that their passion is not widely publicized; and thus save the beloved from embarrassment.

O you whom I give my life for, strike with your sword and lay my heart wide open. I am saddened the arrow’s wound cannot fulfill its need. (136:5) Heart being tight means full of sorrow. It needs a large wound that comes from a sword, not an arrow.

O bud, blooming is like an expression of impatience. Your heart does not hear the call of the morning bird. (136:6) Coming out means blooming of the bud; morning bird giving a call in the morning is a sign of expression of pain; addressing the bud and asking why you are not blooming, perhaps there is a time for it, and until then the bud does not realize any feeling of pain.

In its fate, it is to bleed out and drip out of the eyes, A heart that cannot fulfill the obligations imposed by the hidden sorrow. (136:7) A heart devoid of the feeling of love and hopelessness is a useless thing and wasted (bled out and drip out of eyes). It must fulfill the demands of loving.

Perhaps someone from among your prisoners with fiery breath has died As no smoke is billowing out of the port window of the wall of the prison. (136:8) Play on words from fiery breath, and smoke is made here; one burning from his fiery breath passed away.

What a grip there is in that finer than hair-thin wire That no one can be freed from the snare of the delicate-waist beauty. (136:9) The waist of the beloved is compared to a fine wire.

389

If you are a brave wayfarer, do not seek restful comfort. In this valley, if the thorn is removed from the foot, then the foot comes not out from the skirt. (136:10) It is not possible to get out of the entanglements of life. The valley is the life, a thorn the difficulties; ideally, a foot with thorn would cause the foot to stay entangled with the cloak, yet even if a thorn is removed, the foot stays put because there is another waiting for it.

O Lord to whom shall I take the complaint of sorrows of heart’s tightness; No matter how much I wail, my perturbed breath does not come out? (136:11) Wailing causes my breath to become Labored becoming scattered, and thus remains stuck inside me; a description of the tightness (meaning full of sorry) that even catches the breath.

My bier upon the shoulders of men is a warning for the heart possessors. One who goes into the alley of the beloved does not come out of it on his own feet. (136:12) Once you enter her alley, you are stuck there for life, and the only way you come out is on the shoulders of those carrying your bier out of the alley. This should serve as a warning for those who have hearts ready to sacrifice in the alley of the beloved.

O passion for singularity, pull Ghalib from the assembly of the debate. Our simpleton Turk cannot successfully compete with these theologians. (136:13) Ghalib had a Turkish lineage, which is invoked here; singularity refers to God, and the assembly has purported theologians entangled in an argument about God; he wants this simpleton Turk, himself, to be taken out of it and not waste any time with these purported gurus.

137 ‫نم‬ ‫هب نوعی گفت می آیم هک می‏دانم ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫هچ عیش از وعده چون باور ز عنوانم ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬ ‫خود او را خنده رب چاک رگیبانم ی‌آید‬

‫گذشتم زآنکه رب زخم دل صداپره خون رگید‬

‫نم‬ ‫یاد از بیابانم ی‌آید‬

‫ارگ باشم هب چین‬

‫نم‬ ‫هب کویش رکش رب مهر ردخشانم ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ز نفرین بس‌هک می‌رنجد هب لب جانم ی‌آید‬ ‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

390

‫پنهانم‬

‫نوازش‌اهی‬

‫اپی رب خار مغیالنم‬

‫زک‬

‫نویدی‬

‫هب رفتن‬

‫ل‬ ‫هبوریانیخوشم یکنجهانچونبیتووریاناست‬ ‫روش نگسسته و رد ساۀی دیوار نشسته‬

‫دعای خیر شد رد حق من نفرین هب جان رکدن‬ ‫ازان بدخو ندانم چون دهد دالهل رد پیدا‬

‫هب راه کعبه زادم نیست شادم زک سبک‌باری‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

‫نم‬

‫ی‌آید‬

‫رفیب همراهن دانم ز اندانم‬

‫ل‬ ‫دلش خواهد هک تنها سوی من روی آورد یکن‬

‫شبی کاواز انلیدن ز زندانم‬

‫شود ربهم ولی زن مهر پندارد هک رد خوابم‬

‫رگفتم رحم رب رفیاد و افغانم‬

‫بب‬

‫ینی مست دانی زک شبستانم‬

‫یم‬ ‫ ند م شیوه‌اه دارم‬،‫ رندم‬،‫ شارعم‬،‫دبیرم‬ ‫ندارم باده غالب رگ سحرگاهش رس راهی‬

How can I become happy not believing in the promise? From the way she said, “I will come,” I realized that she doesn’t come. (137:1) Perpetual distrust in the promises made by the beloved has made the lover paranoid.

I like desolate places; for me, without you, the world is a desolate place; So even if I am in China, I would not think of wilderness. (137:2) Without you, this world is a desolate place, and it does not matter where I am. It all appears desolate with you. China is just an example of a country far away. Also, a reference is made to Quranic teaching that one should learn even it means going to China, again as an example of a far country.

I forgave the one who shed blood tears at the wounds of my heart shattered into hundred pieces. She does not even laugh at my torn collar. (137:3) My madness of tearing collar does amuse her; I am not expecting her to sympathize with my broken heart.

She did not change her style nor sat in the shadow of the well. In her alley, I am not envious of the bright sun. (137:4) Lover draws pleasure sitting in the shadow of the beloved’s wall; the shining sun has not changed its speed and course, neither has it ever sat in the shadow of beloved’s wall, so I am not envious of the sun; however, as the sun is shining, there is no shadow keeping the lover from sitting in it as well. Pretty convoluted statement.

Her disdain for ill-wishing proved to be a will of well-being for me So offended by the curse that my soul does not leave my body. (137:5) The beloved gets irritated at the talk of ill-wishing anyone, so she did not wish me ill either, and I could not die and kept suffering.

From that bad-mannered one, what message of goodness can her broker bring openly; The good news that never came from her hidden acts of kindness. (137:6) A broker refers to a woman carrier of messages; when the beloved does not even give me any good news in privacy, it is presumptuous to think that she will send any good news to me through her messenger.

391

I am Glad that on the way to the Ka’ba, I have with me no travel belongings. Being unencumbered, my feet do not stumble on the thorns of the mimosa tree. (137:7) Pilgrimage is a journey of piety and detachment. Since I do not have the necessary belongings to travel to Ka’ba, I am not going there; the belongings are the commitment to piety and detachment from the world. Walking to Ka’ba barefoot in respect would also cause the feet to get bloodied. In his Urdu divan, Ghalib says: With what pretense would you go to Ka’ba, don’t you have any shame?” In these verses, Ghalib criticizes the value of traveling to Ka’ba; is that the only place to visit God? And would go to Ka’ba wash off his sins?

The beloved’s heart desire to visit me alone, But I know that my silly lover does not know how to deceive the companions. (137:8) The simpleton is the beloved surrounded by rivals, and she does not know how to trick them into coming and visiting me.

I am a writer and a poet, a profligate, and a good companion; a man of many skills. Despite this, I see that you have no mercy on my lamentations and my sighs. (137:9) Luring the beloved with his multi-talented personality; is not working.

She gets upset, not hearing my crying rising out of prison. It is not because of her kindness but the thought that I am asleep. (137:10) Comfort to a lover is not acceptable to the beloved.

Ghalib, I have no wine; if you run into my beloved in the street, inebriated, Then know that she is not coming from my bedchamber. (137:11) Since I didn’t have any wine, if you run into beloved and she is drunk, know she didn’t spend the night with me but with the rival.

138 ‫نش‬ ‫بهش‬ ‫خوش تی‌ست هک کس راه ین تو شود‬

‫چون بپوئی هب زمین رچخ زمین تو شود‬

‫ماه یک‌چند ببالد هک جبین تو شود‬

‫چون بسنجد هک هن آنست ب کاهد از رشم‬

‫بوهس رب غنچه زنم غنچه نگین تو شود‬

‫خم‬ ‫ات یر دل هن گاهم‏زگین تو شود‬ ‫هچ کنم ات غم جهر تو یقین تو شود‬

‫لبم از انم تو آن ماهی‌رپستی هک ارگ‬

‫صد قیامت بگدازند و بهم آمیزند‬ ‫اتب هن گامۀ ردد آرم و گویم هیهات‬

393

‫ربم از غیر دلی را هک زحین تو شود‬

‫سخ پیچ‬ ‫هب ن م و اندوه گسارش رگدم‬

‫آنکه چون من همه دان و همه بین تو شود‬

‫چش‬ ‫ داد هنر خواهد داد‬،‫م و دل باخته‌ام‬

‫من رد آتش فتم از ره هک رقین تو شود‬ ‫اپک شو اپک هک هم کفر تو دین تو شود‬ ‫پس‬ ‫اه ازان دم هک دم باز ین تو شود‬

‫جلوه زج رد دل آگاه رسایت نکند‬

‫کفر و دین چیست زج آرائش پندار وجود‬ ‫دوزخ اتفته‌ای هست نهادت غالب‬

As you walk on the earth, the earth turns into the sky. A delight of paradise it is for those sitting along your path. (138:1) Her beauty is so attractive that seeing her stroll; the sky falls to her feet in devotion, which brings the paradise, being part of the sky, to her alley; so those who are her alley dwellers get to enjoy the paradise on earth.

My lips are so full of your name that If I kiss a flower bud, it will turn into your jewel seal. (138:2) I keep reciting your name all the time. When kissing a flower bud, my uttering will engrave your name on the bud, and because your name is there, the bud becomes a precious jewel and appears as if it were your signature seal.

When the moon realizes that it cannot be like you, it diminishes in shame. The moon is so proud to become your forehead. (138:3) A full moon becomes a crescent is called a moon diminishing because of shame when it realizes that it cannot face the beauty of her face.

Hundreds of resurrections are melted and mingled together To provide the leaven for the tumultuous heart. (138:4) The cruelty and the torture that the beloved’s heart is harboring against the lover are exaggerated.

I bear the heat of agitation of my anguished heart and say: Alas, what must I do to convince you of my grief at our separation? (138:5) Trying to make the beloved realize what difficulties the lover in convincing her, despite his tremendous patience, faces.

Through my poetry, I twist and turn and feed on sorrow. I should seize the heart from the other if I should find there any grief of you. (138:6) Deceiving the rival by first becoming his friend and then teaching him to give up on his love for the common beloved.

394 394

The glory of beauty settles only in aware hearts. I fall in the fire if I find someone else gets close to you. (138:7) I burn inside when I see anyone holding you in their heart. Your beauty belongs only to enlightened hearts, and only I deserve it.

Losing my eyes and heart so that the excellence of my art is admired; Who is there like me who knows you well and sees you ultimately? (138:8) Only those who are just as understanding and aware of you would appreciate my art of losing my heart and eyes to my beloved; obviously, there is no one that you can compare to me.

What is infidelity, and what is faith, except for the grimace of the conceit of self-pride? Cleanse yourself, cleanse, so that your infidelity may become your religion. (138:9) All differences in religion are man’s creation. Make infidelity your faith to remove these differences.

O Ghalib, your existence is a scorching hot hell. Alas, for the breath, that will be your last breath! (138:10) Every breath Ghalib takes is like the heat of hell; what would be it as his last breath; it should outdo all others.

139 ‫رگ پیماهن زدم شیشه رب رفیاد آدم‬

‫دیگر از رگهی هب دل رسم فغان یاد آدم‬

‫تیشه داند هک چها رب رس رفاهد آدم‬

‫ات ندانی جگر سنگ گشودن هدرست‬

‫شادم از آه هک هم آتش و هم باد آدم‬ ‫هم‬ ‫چنان رب ارث شکوۀ بیداد آدم‬

‫وقت مشاطگی حسن خداداد آدم‬ ‫منت از بخت هک خاموشی ما یاد آدم‬ ‫بنده و آزاد آدم‬

‫عشق یکرنگ‏کن‬

‫رحم رد طینت ظالم ستم ایجاد آدم‬ ‫خون‏بها زمد سبک‏دستی جالد آدم‬ ‫رنگ رب روی من از سیلی استاد آدم‬

‫خت‬ ‫دل رد ارفو نش منت دامن نکشید‬ ‫داغم از رگمی شوق تو هک صد ره هب دلم‬

‫چش‬ ‫خیز و رد ماتم ما رسهم رفو شوی ز م‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫رفته بودی درگ از جا هب ن سازی غیر‬ ‫خشک و رت سوزی این شعله تماشا دارد‬

‫قفس‬ ‫دید رپ ریخته و از م رکد آزاد‬

‫ ربوید‬،‫ زعزیان‬،‫رب رد یار هچ غوغاست‬ ‫خ نی نفس‬ ‫ن ی ردس خیالم غالب‬ ‫داده و ‏‬

395

One more weeping woke up the feeling of lament in my heart, As I struck the vein of shot-glass, the decanter began complaining. (139:1) The sorrow of passion enhanced upon crying. I turned to wine, but that too did not help.

The heart, in setting itself on fire, owed no obligation to the skirt. I am pleased with the sigh, which is both fire and wind. (139:2) Fire flares with the wind that could come from fluttering the skirt, but I did not do that; the lament serves both purposes: starting and spreading the fire inside me. Only a traditional lover would need the help of the skirt.

Think not that ripping the liver of stone is a useless effort. The axe knows well what Farhad went through. (139:3) See Farhad in the glossary.

Burning in the fire of your love, which has a hundred times Kept coming into my heart along with complaints of tyranny. (139:4) The lover complains about the tyranny of the beloved, but the fire or burning keeps bringing more love for the beloved in his heart; now, what should he do?

Get up and wash away the antimony from eyes lamenting on us. Time has come for decorating them with natural beauty. (139:5) Washing away antimony means shed tears for us, for this will improve the appearance of your natural beauty.

You were again taken in by the persuasion of the glib-tongued rival. We are obligated to our fate that you came to remember our silence. (139:6) The rival was trying to deceive the beloved with his fast talk; when she realized how I interact with her quietly, she realized that this was the honest way, and she ditched the rival.

How strange that the conflagration of the flames should burn the dry as well as wet. Love imparts the same color to the slave and the free. (139:7) A flame that burns what is dry and wet equally well; the flame of love treats the slave and the free the same way; dry is called the slave, and free is wet.

When she saw that I had lost my wings, she freed me out of the cage. To that tyrant, kindness is like tyranny as well. (139:8) Now that I cannot fly, I am let go; letting me go from prison is a greater tyranny than keeping me arrested.

O Friends, go and find out what is the noise and clamor at the door of the beloved. My blood money turned out to be the wages of the quick-hand slayer. (139:9)

396

The beloved had wanted me killed slowly with much pain, but the slayer killed me quickly, and now the beloved is upset, and she is making trouble; this way, I lost my life, and any blood money due lost both because of the quickness of the slayer.

O Ghalib, the lessons of thought have endowed me with bloody breath, And the color on the face of the pupil that comes from the slap of the teacher. (139:10) The thought of beloved has brought a red glow on my face, a kind that comes from a teacher’s slap; the thought was the teacher, and the lover is the pupil.

140 ‫سخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫م سوی فلک و روی ن سوی تو بود‬

‫بخ‬ ‫دوش زک رگدش تم گله رب روی تو بود‬

‫نع‬ ‫ل واژون بال حلقه‏ی گیسوی تو بود‬

‫ک‬ ‫رچخ ج باخت هب من رد خم دام تو فکند‬

‫نفس‬ ‫م رپده‏گشای ارث خوی تو بود‬ ‫کاین همان‌ست هک پیوسته رد اربوی تو بود‬

‫کو خود از حیرتیان رخ نیکوی تو بود‬

‫نش‬ ‫خاهص رب صدر ینی هک هب پهلوی تو بود‬ ‫هم ز اندیشه‏ی آزردن بازوی تو بود‬

‫ات ندانند رحیفان هک رس کوی تو بود‬ ‫کاین گل و غنچه بی اقفله‏ی بوی تو بود‬

‫کارخ از رپدگیان شکن موی تو بود‬

‫نق‬ ‫ش ره شیوه رد آئینه‏ی زانوی تو بود‬ ‫ات چها رد دل غالب هوس روی تو بود‬

‫شم‬ ‫آنچه شب ع امگن رکدی و رفتی هب عتاب‬ ‫دوست دارم رگهی را هک هب کارم زده‌اند‬ ‫نق‬ ‫ صانع ارگ ش داهنت گم رکد‬،‫هچ عجب‬

‫زتوردزبمهبخوبانهچگذشت‬،‫شبهچدانی‬ ‫رمدن و جان هب تمنای شهادت دادن‬

‫نف‬ ‫خلد را از س شعله‌فشان می‌سوزم‬ ‫روش باد بهاری هب امگنم افکند‬

‫هب‌کف باد مباد این ‌همه رسوائی دل‬ ‫هم از آن پیش هک مشاهط بدآموز شود‬

‫الهل و گل ددم از رطف زمارش پس رمگ‬

Last night, when I was complaining about the vicissitudes of my fortune before you, My eye was turned towards the sky, but my face was turned towards you. (140:1) What a shame that when addressing you, I was looking towards the sky. This, too, is a cruelty of the skies.

397

398

Last night thinking of it as a candle, you left in anger. It was my breath that had opened the veil of the effect of your temper. (140:2) The beloved’s fiery temper caused the lover’s lament to start burning, and she thought I had lit a candle to welcome her. Naturally, this made her upset, and she left, but at least the effect of her fiery temper became evident.

The sky played a crooked trick on me, getting me caught in your snare, Thus, the twist and curls of your tresses proved to be a bad omen. (140:3) Getting caught in the trap of the beloved, my love, has brought me nothing but ill fortune.

I like the knot which is tied into my affairs. It is the same knot that rests on your eyebrow. (140:4) Getting knots in affairs means that things have become unresolvable; the beloved’s eyebrows are always raised and appear knotty; perhaps it is that knot that has fallen into my affairs of life as well.

No wonder the Creator missed making the impression of your mouth. He Himself was bewildered by the loveliness of your face. (140:5) The sign of beloved’s beauty lies in the smallness of her mouth; God forgot to draw it because your beauty astonished him.

Last night in the gathering, you had no idea how the beautiful ones suffered because of you, Especially the head of the assembly sitting next to you. (140:6) Her beauty enamored everyone in the assembly.

My dying and my giving life in the desire of martyrdom Was because of the concern that lest your arms would hurt. (140:7) Lover wanted to be murdered in the hands of the beloved but thinking that raising her arm would be inconvenient to her, he just died hoping to be killed by her.

With my flame-throwing breath, I am burning paradise so that the rivals may not know That it is situated at the end of your alley. (140:8) Beloved’s alley is compared to paradise.

The coming of the spring breeze made me suspect That those flowers and buds were following the caravan of your scent. (140:9) Flowers cannot match the freshness and brilliance of the beloved, and they follow her, meaning they are in love with her.

God forbid that this breeze would become the cause of heart’s disgrace. For finally, it was among those hiding in the twists and curls of your tresses. (140:10) The breeze spread the smell of her tresses, and this could bring infamy to lover’s heart, for it was hiding in your tresses.

399

Even before the beautician could teach ill-manners, The impression of every blandishment was reflected in the mirror of your knee. (140:11) The waiting-maid is here to teach the beloved how to be coquettish, but the beloved already knew all about it.

After his death, the tulips and the roses are blossoming by his graveside. How great, in the heart of Ghalib, was the desire for your face! (140:12) Even after death, his desires have not remained and show up as colorful flowers to attract her.

141 ‫هب سکندر رنسد ره هچ ز دارا ماند‬

‫رگ چنین انز تو آمادۀ یغما ماند‬

‫مج‬ ‫دل ز نون ربد آهو هک هب لیال ماند‬

‫هم هب سودای تو خورشید رپستم آری‬

‫وام گیر آنچه ز بیعاۀن سودا ماند‬

‫رد گلستان تو طاووس هب عنقا ماند‬ ‫رگ غم جهر چنین حوصله‌رفسا ماند‬

‫آه از آ ن خسته هک از پوهی هب ره واماند‬ ‫نگذارند هک رد بند زلیخا ماند‬

‫رسو گفتند و بدان ماه رسااپ ماند‬

‫کاین چنین مهر ز رسدی هب دمارا ماند‬ ‫ماند‬

‫تنها‬

‫ماتمزده‬

‫هک‬

‫مگذارید‬

‫دل و دینی هب بهای تو رفستم حاشا‬ ‫با وجود تو دم از جلوه‌رگی نتوان زد‬

‫شم‬ ‫شکوۀ دوست ز د ن نتوانم پوشید‬ ‫ساز آوازۀ بدانمی رزهن شدن‏ست‬ ‫بنده‌ای را هک هب رفمان خدا راه رود‬

‫هم هب باغ از افق رسو شبی رکد طلوع‬ ‫ت‬ ‫بعد صد شکوه هب یک عذر سلی نشوم‬ ‫بغ‬ ‫رد ل دشنه نهان ساخته غالب ارموز‬

If your coquetry stays this ready for pillaging, Then Alexander would not get whatever Dara had left behind. (141:1) Alexander was the conqueror, Dara, the conquered one, who destroyed much before Alexander came in; Now, if the beloved’s coquetry keeps looting, then nothing will be left for Alexander. See Alexander and Dara in the glossary.

I gave my heart and faith as the price for you, but, If there remains any balance made in advance, then claim it is as a debt to you. (141:2)

400

I have allowed everything I had to be pillaged by you, but if you think you need more, go ahead.

It is my passion for you that makes me a sunworshipper The deer steals the heart of Majnoon, for it resembles Laila. (141:3) I worship the sun because it looks like your face; the eyes of the deer remind Majnoon of Laila’s eyes, which makes Majnoon fall in love with the deer. Seen Majnoon in the glossary.

In your presence, no one can claim the beauty of their display. In your garden, the peacock is like the Onqa. (141:4) Onqa is a mythical non-existent bird; reference is made to the beauty of the peacock. No one can compare your beauty. See Onqa in the glossary.

I would not be able to hide the complaint of the beloved from the rival, If the sorrow of separation kept diminishing my courage. (141:5) The intensity of the sorrow of separation keeps challenging my courage to withhold my woes to others, but it seems like it is reaching a point where I may end up sharing with the rival in desperation.

For it will become the cause of defamation of the robber; Alas, the tired wayfarer, who lagged. (141:6) The tired wayfarer is left out of the caravan; now alone, he is easy to rob. But doing so will make the robber look weak, for it is so easy to rob a tired wayfarer.

For the man who follows the command of the Lord, The destiny does not let him be caged in the prison of Zolaikha. (141:7) Quranic lore is referred to where Zolaikha imprisoned Joseph, but despite being a slave, he was free to move around. Joseph was an abider of Lord’s directions. See Zolaikha and Joseph in the glossary.

One night, the moon rose behind the cypress tree; Cypress, everyone said, is altogether like the beloved. (141:8) The tall cypress tree is often used as a simile for the beloved’s stature.

After a hundred plaints, a single apology will not satisfy, Since this type of affection is merely mannerism. (141:9) The simple apology of the beloved (this type of affection) is not acceptable to the lover and suggests that it is merely a symbol without any feelings.

Today, Ghalib has kept hiding a dagger in his arms; Today, do not let that victim of sorrow alone. (141:10) Do not leave Ghalib alone, for he might kill himself, as he has a dagger hiding in his arms.

401

142 ‫با ما گله سنجید و شماتت هب عدو ربد‬

‫رد کلبه‏ی ما از جگر سوخته بو ربد‬

‫ذوق می انب و هوس روی نکو ربد‬

‫همره رودش کورث و حواران هک دم رمگ‬

‫چون رگهی تن زار رما زان رس کو ربد‬

‫ردیوزه‏رگ میکده صهبا هب کدو ربد‬ ‫می‌خورد و هم از میکده آبی هب سبو ربد‬ ‫دیواۀن ما را صنم سلسله‏مو ربد‬

‫دستی هک ز ما شست هب خون هک رفو ربد؟‬ ‫رد حلقه واف یک دلم آورد و دو رو ربد‬

‫تلخ‬ ‫ات ی آن زره توانم ز گلو ربد‬ ‫گوئی هب رگو ربد دلی را هک ازو ربد‬

‫خواهم هک ربد انهل غبارم ز دل دوست‬

‫بستند ره رجهع‏ی آبی هب سکندر‬ ‫خج‬ ‫عس‬ ‫دی رند هب هن گاهم ل رکد س را‬

‫رب ما غم تیمار دل زار رسآدم‬ ‫هس‬

‫تی و او را نبود صبر‬

‫ما را نبود‬

‫هم‬ ‫دلدار تو چون تو رفیبنده ن گاری‌ست‬

‫یک رگهی پس از ضبط دو صد رگهی رضا ده‬ ‫انزد هب نکویان ز رگفتاری غالب‬

When the beloved got the smell of burnt liver from my shack, She complained to me and expressed joy when visiting the rival. (142:1) She is a hypocrite. When she smelled burning liver in my abode, she complained that it was unnecessary, but then she went to the rival to rejoice in my destiny. The liver is the site where courage is harbored.

I wish that my laments reaching her would wash off the ill feelings towards me, Now that my flood of tears has washed away my emaciated body from her alley. (142:2) Crying did not help, now let us see if laments would work.

The houris go with him, who, at the time of death Departs with a desire for pure wine and lust for beautiful fairies. (142:3) You get what you aspire to.

They barred Alexander’s path to a draught of water. The beggar at the tavern door has filled his gourd with wine. (142:4) The lore of Alexander and Khizr is cited here in search of the fountain of youth. Khizr leads Alexander to the well, but he drank himself, and Alexander didn’t drink. A hint is made that Kings do not get to have the wealth available to the poor. See Alexander and Khizr in the glossary.

402

Yesterday, a drunkard ended up embarrassing the police chief with his boisterousness, As he drank too and took a goblet filled with water as he left. (142:5) The police chief was supposed to admonish drunkards, but hearing all merriment of drunkards, he joined them and got drunk. When he was leaving, he took one for the road but only water; perhaps he was too embarrassed to ask for wine or couldn’t tell the difference, so drunk he was.

The responsibility of tending to our weeping heart has ended. The beloved with curled tresses has taken the crazy ones like us. (142:6) We are no longer responsible for tending to our heart; she has brought us, prisoner. A play on words comes from comparing curled tresses and chains here.

We have no strength left, and she has no patience, Having washed her hands off me, whose blood has she put her hands into now? (142:7) We can no longer bear her tyranny, but her appetite for cruelty does not end, and now she has turned to others—this is indeed troubling to the lover as he feels jealous.

Your charmer is also a heart-ravishing beloved like you; Coming into your assembly with a single heart, I leave with a divided one. (142:8) The beloved has a beloved—perhaps referring to either homosexuality (if the beloved is a male) or lesbianism; I came into your assembly with a single heart devoted to you. Now I am in love with both of you.

We continued to hold our teras for hundreds of times; permit me, So that I could take out its bitterness from my throat. (142:9) For hundreds of times, we held back our weeping, and now our throat is filled with tears, and this bitterness can be relieved if you let me weep.

In the assembly of the beautiful ones, she takes pride in harassing Ghalib, As if she borrowed the heart that she took away from him. (142:10) Not sure why she had to take pride in what is entirely her own, my heart.

143 ‫رب ره هک کند رحم رس از بار نداند‬ ‫دل‌اهی زعزیان هب غم اف کار نداند‬ ‫نداند‬

‫دیدار‬

‫تشنه‏ی‬

‫جگر‬

‫اندوه‬

‫اندان صنم من روش کار نداند‬

‫بی دشنه و خ جنر نبود معتقد زخم‬

‫رب تشنه لب بادهی سوزد دلش از مهر‬

403

‫نداند‬

‫دیوار‬

‫ساۀی‬

‫سیه‬

‫از‬

‫روز‬

‫دم را هب تف انهل رشربار نداند‬ ‫اغیار‬

‫نداند‬

‫هوسناکی‬

‫اپیان‬

‫آنست هک من میرم و دشوار نداند‬ ‫کم‬ ‫خود تر از آنست هک بسیار نداند‬

‫رد رعبده خوارم کند و خوار نداند‬ ‫صد ره نهدم بند و رگفتار نداند‬ ‫خوار نداند‬ ‫نداند‬

‫غم‬

‫گفتار‬

‫پیچ‬ ‫ات چند هب خود م و‬ ‫اندازۀ‬

‫بی‬ ‫خودی‬

‫رد‬

‫سخ‬ ‫ن‬ ‫گویم ن از ر ج و هب راحت کندش رطح‬

‫دل را هب غم آتشکدۀ راز نسنجد‬ ‫نبیند‬

‫احباب‬

‫هواداری‬

‫عنوان‬

‫دشوار بود رمدن و دشواررت از رمگ‬ ‫دانم هک ندانست و ندانم هک غم من‬

‫کس‬ ‫از ان ی خویش هچ مقدار زعزیم‬

‫رگدم رس آوازۀ آزادگی خویش‬ ‫رائید‬

‫بس‬

‫فصلی ز دل‌آشوبی ردمان‬

‫پیماهن ربان رند رحامست هک غالب‬

My simpleton beloved does not have the knack for doing things right. Whomsoever she becomes kind, she can’t tell between head and the burden on the head. (143:1) When she becomes kind to someone, it should result in relieving the burden. But, instead, she beheads the person.

The beloved believes only in the wounds caused by the knife and the dagger, As she is unaware of the wound of sorrow in the hearts of her lovers. (143:2) How would she know of the wounds caused by grievance—to her, these are what knife and dagger bring out.

Her heart burns in kindness for the thirsty traveler of the desert, As she is not aware of the affliction of those thirsty of her display. (143:3) Those far and distant draw much kindness from her, yet those suffering for her, do not get counted.

I tell her of my suffering, and she takes it easy. She does not distinguish between the dark day and the shadow of the wall. (143:4) Lovers sitting in the shadow of her wall are comforted. Shadow is also dark, compared to the darkness of day or the lover’s sorrows; this play on words is applied in the first distich that as I tell of my sorry, she thinks of it a talk of merriment.

Unable to understand that in the heat of sorrow, the heat turns into a fireplace of secrets; She also does not know that the lover’s heat of plaint makes his breath fiery. (143:5)

404

She is displaying extreme connivance towards the lover.

She neither recognizes the sincere friends Nor is she aware of the result of rival’s lust. (143:6) Complaining about beloved’s naiveté.

Death is brutal, but still, more challenging is the thought That although I die, she does not consider this to be difficult. (143:7) Dying on your own is not easy, but she cannot imagine if it applies to her lovers.

I know that she is not aware of my sorrow, But I do not know if my sorrow has reached that stage. (143:8) The stage is the stage when it can no longer get worse.

Because of my frivolity, how respectful I am That she disgraces me by screaming at me and does not consider it disrespectful. (143:9) Perhaps she has high respect for me in her heart, but she is not disclosing it?

I would sacrifice my life at the fame of my independent ways, She makes me a slave in hundred ways yet does not consider me entrapped. (143:10) Since the beloved keep trying newer methods of capturing me, I have developed fame of being a free-willed lover. He is always ready to surrender, but the reputation makes him feel good.

Write a chapter of the perturbed heart and its treatment; For how long I would keep sulking and she doesn’t consider me her sympathizer. (143:11) Do not detail how getting treatment makes my heart worse; perhaps finding out how the pain cannot be cured would bring some solace to me.

Ghalib, the wine-cup is forbidden for that drinker Who, in his thoughtlessness, knows not the measure of his speech? (143:12) Losing manners under the influence is disrespectful.

144 ‫ارگ هچ خود همه رب رفق من رفو رزید‬

‫بجای رگد روان از بدن رفو رزید‬

‫خوشم هک گنبد رچخ کهن رفو رزید‬ ‫ربیده‌ام ره دوری هک رگ بیفشانم‬

405

‫مباد مهر سکوت از دهن رفو رزید‬

‫ز جوش شکوۀ بیداد دوست می‌رتسم‬

‫نجم‬ ‫هب من نماید و رد ا ن رفو رزید‬

‫م‬ ‫دهد هب جلسیان باده و هب نوبت من‬

‫سم‬ ‫هب رخت خواب گل و یا ن رفو رزید‬

‫لم‬ ‫ز خار خار چنین کس هچ ان ی هک خسک‬

‫غبار بادهی از ریپهن رفو رزید‬ ‫چم‬ ‫کس‬ ‫ی هک گل هب کنار ن رفو رزید‬

‫هک خود ز زخم دم دوختن رفو رزید‬ ‫هک هوشم از رس و اتبم ز تن رفو رزید‬ ‫می نخورده رما از دهن رفو رزید‬

‫دل شکسته‌ام از ره شکن رفو رزید‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هک از لبش ز روانی ن رفو رزید‬

‫رما هچ قدر هب کوئی هک انزنینان را‬ ‫رتا هک عالم انزی هب غمزه بستاید‬

‫سش‬ ‫مکن هب رپ م از شکوه منع کاین خونی‌ست‬ ‫هب من بساز و بدان غمزه می هب جام رمزی‬ ‫هب ذوق باده ز بس آب رد دهن رگدد‬

ّ ‫محش‬ ‫بترس زان هک هب ر ز رطۀ رطار‬

‫رواست غالب ارگ رد اقئلش گوئی‬

Great, it will be if the sky’s ancient dome would collapse and fall, Even if it all collapses and falls on my head. (144:1) The sky has been long blamed for all calamities wrought upon humanity, and so even if it falls upon my head, at least the rest of the world would be saved.

I have traveled such a long path that if I am shaken loose, My soul will off instead of the dust from my body. (144:2) The long path refers to the path of poetic life; when you are working in the field, dust accumulates on the clothes, but the dust on my body are the pieces of my soul that were shattered and reduced to pieces; extremes indicating efforts in creating poetry.

I am afraid of the intensity of my complaint of the beloved’s tyranny. God forbid if the seal of the silence falls off my lips. (144:3) I am full of complaints against the tyranny of the beloved, so much that coming off my mouth, it has sealed my lips—I am stunned. Now the fear is what happens if the seal of my lip breaks, and she comes to hear of my complaint.

She gives wine to all those invited to the banquet, But when it comes to my turn, she points at me and spills the wine. (144:4) How the beloved makes me jealous; there is a sense of teasing and flirtation here.

406

What respect would I have in the alley of the coquettish ones, When the dust of desert falls off from their attire? (144:5) She cannot stand dust on her clothes and brushes them off; here I am of a lesser value than the dust. What is my chance to stick with her?

What complaint can I have of the pricking of thorns That she drops in the bed of roses and jasmine? (144:6) The pricking from thorns comes from her disposition of cruelty, spreading thorns in the bed of flowers to make it difficult for the lover to have any rest; the bed is imaginary, yet the lover is accepting her style of tormenting.

You, whose collection of coquetry is worthy of praise By the one who drops roses in the garden? (144:7) Only the connoisseurs of beauty and coquetry are qualified to offer you, their praise; dropping the rose in the garden perhaps means someone who does consider a rose to be beautiful enough.

Don’t prevent me from complaining about the question, for it is the blood That flows out on its own as the wound is stitched. (144:8) The beloved asks the lover about his condition; blood flowing is the expression of love from the blood and wound stitching taking place because of her attention towards the lover; he says, do not do this, let it flow.

Bear with me and do not pour wine in the goblet with your glances, As senses leave my head, and strength leaves my body. (144:9) Do not look at me with those intoxicating eyes, for I will go my senses and any strength left to resist your beauty.

For the joy of tasting the wine, my mouth waters, Making me think I am yet to drink the wine, and it pours from my mouth. (144:10) The condition of a drunkard is described as his mouth begins watering, making him think he is yet to drink the wine as the water from his mouth begins to drip, well before he tastes the wine.

Be afraid for on the Day of Judgment since from your curly tresses Pieces of my heart will fall off from every curl. (144:11) Warning the beloved that as the pieces of his heart will begin to drop off from her tresses, she will be found guilty and subject to punishment.

It’s appropriate to say in praise of Ghalib That from his lips flow words. (144:12) Some texts of the divan use a different word in the first verse that is taken to mean “talking pearls,” referring to the beloved.

407

145 ‫زهی روانی عمری هک رد سفر گذرد‬

‫ارگ هب دل نخلد ره هچ از نظر گذرد‬

‫دود هب رعبده چندان‏هک از ارث گذرد‬

‫یش‬ ‫هالک انلۀ خو م هک رد دل شب‌اه‬

‫ آب چون ز رس گذرد‬،‫هک رمگ تشنه بود‬ ‫هب ره دلی هک رسد راست از جگر گذرد‬

‫چنانکه رشته رد آمودن از گهر گذرد‬ ‫هک آن ربون جهد و این ز خاره رد گذرد‬

‫رما خود از دل و او را هم از نظر گذرد‬ ‫هک ربق رمغ هوا را ز بال و رپ گذرد‬ ‫هب صورت رس زلفی هک از کمر گذرد‬

‫ددم ز شاخ و ازین سبز کاخ ربگذرد‬ ‫چها هک رب رس خارا ز شیشه‏رگ گذرد‬

‫خوشم هک کار من از سعی چاره‏رگ گذرد‬

‫تح‬ ‫هب وصل لطف هب انداز‏ای مل کن‬

ُ ‫ازین اوریب‏ن گااهن حذر هک انوک‏شان‬ ‫نف‬ ‫س ز آبله‌اهی دلم رب آرد رس‬ ‫رحیف شوخی ازجای انهل نیست رشر‬ ‫کند خدنگ تو قطع خصومت من و غیر‬

‫ز شعله خیزی دل رب زمار ما هچ عجب‬

‫هم‬ ‫شکست ما هب عدم نیز چنان پیداست‬ ‫خوشا گلی هک هب رفق بلند باالئی‌ست‬

‫دماغ محرمی دل رساندن آسان نیست‬ ّ ‫نیس‬ ‫ت‬ ‫من‬ ‫ل‬ ‫رحیف ت احباب م غا ب‬

If whatever is seen by the eyes doesn’t pierce the heart, Then what waste a life would be that is passed traveling. (145:1) Piercing in the heart means taking into the heart; if we do not enjoy what we see around us, then life is wasted.

Endure the enjoyment of the union with the beloved only as much, for The thirsty one is drowned if the water passes over his head. (145:2) Just like a little bit of water quenches the thirst, but, in a deluge, one can drown. So, enjoy the union with the beloved just enough, so you would not lose your life from the shock of enjoyment.

I am a victim of my plaint that runs in the middle of the night, Screaming at me so much that its effect goes away. (145:3) My plaints run fast fighting with me, all of which results in the plaints going to waste.

408

Beware of these side-glance beauties for their arrow Goes straight through any heart that it reaches. (145:4) Warning himself not to look at those eyes; they can pierce through your heart quickly.

My breath comes out of the blister of my heart, As the thread passes through while stringing pearls. (145:5) Blisters are called pearls and the breath, the thread that keeps them together.

Sparks can’t be compared to the bright flames of my lament; Spark leaps out from within the rock, as flames of my laments enter it. (145:6) The friction of stone creates a spark that seems to come out of the stone, but our flame of lament pierces into stone—a comparison of the intensity of heat of the spark and the heat of lament.

The arrow of your glance ends the enmity between me and the rival, As it goes through my heart and passes through the rival’s eyes. (145:7) Passing through a rival’s eye means he does not think much of it; the wordplay here is passing through the eyes and passing through the heart, making us both experience it and thus making us an acquaintance. Complex thought!

No surprise it is if the flames are coming out of my heart at my grave, As their lightning goes through the feathers and wings of the bird of the air. (145:8) The fire from the corpse brightens up the grave as if this were lightning so intense it can burn through the air, here called a third of air.

My failure, even in non-existence, is evident Like the tresses that would pass through her waist. (145:9) The waist of the beloved is so thin that it does not exist, and the beloved’s tresses are so long that they simply pass through her waist; wordplay involves being non-existent and the non-existent waist.

How fortunate is the flower that adorns the head of the tall beloved? For it opens out a branch and then goes on top of this green mansion. (145:10) The green mansion is the sky; how fortunate is the flower that comes from the top of a tree and reaches the heights of the sky by being on top of the beloved’s head; hyperbole and simile are practiced here.

Not easy it is to provide happiness to the heart’s saga; See what happens to a stone in the hands of a glassmaker. (145:11) Melting stone over again converts it into glass. How difficult it is compared to making a lover’s heart happy.

Ghalib, I need not ask for obligations from my friends, and I am happy That my situation is beyond the help of the experts. (145:12)

409

410

411

When there is no solution to my problems, I know friends cannot help, and it makes me happy that I no longer need to seek their obligation.

146 ‫قس‬

‫ش خ چش‬ ‫ی ایام شد و ی‬

‫مت بخت رقیب رگدش صد جام شد‬

‫م حبیب فتنه‬

‫ داۀن ما دام شد‬،‫ریشه چو آدم ربون‬

‫چیپ و خم دست گاه رکد زفون رحص جاه‬

‫کعبه ز رفش سیاه رمدمک ارحام شد‬ ‫لذت دیگر دهد بوهس چو دشنام شد‬

‫خود لبم اندر طلب خسته‏ی اربام شد‬

‫صب‬ ‫ح امید رما روز سیه شام شد‬

‫بوهس شود رد لبم ره هچ ز پیغام شد‬ ‫صورت آغاز ما معنی انجام شد‬

‫انهل رشر اتب شد اکش جگرافم شد‬

‫شم‬ ‫خود صفت د ن‌ست آن‌هچ رما انم شد‬

‫ات تو هب زعم رحم انهق فکندی هب راه‬ ‫بس‬ ‫هست تفاوت ی هم ز رطب ات نبیذ‬

‫ای هک رتا خواستم لب ز مکیدن ف کار‬ ‫چشم بخ‬ ‫ سب‬،‫ ور همه ی‬،‫ ربو‬،‫رگ همه مهری‬

‫خش‬ ‫ م تو گیرم هب مهر‬، ‫ساده دلم رد امید‬

‫هم خس‬ ‫چو ی کش رشر چهره‏گشائی کند‬ ‫دیگرم از روزگار شکوه هچ رد خور بود‬ ‫شم‬ ‫ای شده غالب ستای د نی بخت بین‬

The coquetry of the beloved’s eyes became seduction of the time; The fate of the rival became like a hundred goblets circulating. (146:1) Hundreds of goblets circulating means being in disarray. Her eyes create havoc, and the rival is no exception; the lover seems to be happy.

When you prepared your caravan intending to visit the shrine; The Ka’ba became ready for the Ihram ceremony with a black carpet of the eye’s sclera. (146:2) Here, “you” refers to the Prophet, who is getting ready to visit Ka’ba; the black flooring of the shrine appeared like the sclera of its eye, meaning it laid its eyes in his path to welcome him. A very complex and creative comparison by Ghalib. Ihram is the garb worn during the pilgrimage.

Entanglement with the material world has increased the avarice, Like a root sprouting out of a seed and becoming a trap. (146:3) Avarice spreading is like a tree’s root that spreads out all around the tree, all coming out of a seed, a simple thing.

412

413

There is a difference between dates and the wine made from dates; A kiss has a different kind of pleasure when it becomes a rebuke. (146:4) A date is sweet; its wine is bitter; the same lips that give a kiss also give rebuke, which is bitter. However, even the bitterness is also pleasurable, as is the wine. Beloved’s rebuke is compared to the wine of date.

O beloved, I had wanted to suck your lips into wounding them, But my lips became tired of my insistence. (146:5) Insisting incessantly caused my lips to become wounded.

If you are altogether sun, then go away, if you are altogether eyes then go to sleep, Because my morning of hope has become a night. (146:6) The beauty of the beloved (sun) and the magic of her eyes mean little for someone whose misfortunes turn any ray of hope into darkness—an expression of hopelessness.

I am simple at heart and consider your anger as being your kindness; Any message coming from you gives my lips the pleasure of a kiss. (146:7) No matter what words I get from you, I consider them to be my fortune—whatever comes from your lips is a kiss for me.

Just like a spark exposes the face of a straw, The appearance of our beginning has become the reality of our end. (146:8) The reality of straw becomes evident as it burns to nothing; the same holds for me; how we began shows where we would end.

It will no longer be inappropriate for me to complain of the world; As a fire is raining of my plaint and the heart is dripping blood tears. (146:9) The fire of plaint and blood dripping is a sign of the success of my passion—how can I complain about anything.

O you who is praising Ghalib, look at the hostility of the faith; What became my name is the rival’s attribute? (146:10) The pen name Ghalib means someone who overcomes; that is my rival’s trait; what an irony.

147 ‫نوبت سوختن ما هب جهنم رنسد‬ ‫زک تپیدن دل اف گار هب رمهم رنسد‬

414

‫هش‬ ‫نیست وقتی هک هب ما کا ی از غم رنسد‬

‫ هشدار‬،‫دوری ردد ز ردمان‏نشناسی‬

‫پیش این قوم هب شوراۀب ززمم رنسد‬

‫می هب زاهد مکن رعض هک این جوره انب‬

‫الهل از داغ و گل از چاک هب شبنم رنسد‬

‫صله و زمد میندیش هک رد رزیش عام‬

‫ن‬ ‫وای رگ رد روش سل هب آدم رنسد‬

‫باده رگ خود بود از میکدۀ جم رنسد‬ ‫چیه جا نیست هک این دارئه با هم رنسد‬ ‫هب کسان می‌رسد آنکس هک هب خود هم رنسد‬

‫زج رخاشی هب جگرگوهش‏ی ادهم رنسد‬

‫نسیم‬ ‫زج ی هب رپستشگه رمیم رنسد‬

‫دل رگش اتزگی از اکش دمادم رنسد‬

‫خواهج رفدوس هب میراث تمنا دارد‬ ‫ دماغم عالیست‬،‫بهره از رسخوشیم نیست‬ ‫نج‬ ‫ره هچ بینی هب جهان حلقه‏ی ز یری هست‬

ّ ‫رفخا لذت بیداد زکین راهگذر‬ ‫ره کجا دشنه‏ی شوق تو رجاحت بارد‬ ‫فی‬ ‫طوبی ض تو ره جا گل و بار افشاند‬

‫سم‬ ‫سوزد از اتب وم دم رگمم غالب‬

There is no instance when the sorrow hurts us any less; And our turn of burning in the hell doesn’t come. (147:1) Since we keep burning all the time in our sorrow, and since the only thing the hell can do to us is to burn us, the hell does not get its chance to do so.

You don’t know how long it takes to cure pain by treatment, remember That a wounded heart does not reach a cure by palpitating. (147:2) The only treatment of a wounded heart is to receive the beloved’s kindness, not just by staying alive and hurting.

Don’t offer wine to the ascetic for this pure jewel; This tribe is not equal to the salty water of Zam-Zam. (147:3) Wine is called pure jewel; the ascetic would not know good and valuable it is, for the only enjoys the foul-smelling water of Zam-Zam, well in the holiest mosque in Mecca. See Zam-Zam in the glossary.

The Khwaja desires paradise as his heritage; Alas, if he cannot trace back his ancestry to Adam! (147:4) In Persian, when taunting, a third-person title is used, as used here Khwaja. Your manners and habits are so far from human attributes; perhaps it is because you do not even belong to the human race, in which case, you are also not connected to Adam, one requirement for qualifying for paradise.

Ask not about the wages for any work, for in common bounty, The dew does not fall because of the branding in tulips or slit in the rose. (147:5)

415

Dew does not fall on tulips or rose because of their sacrifice (branding and slit); there is no reward for any labor; it is only the kindness of the Lord; we do not deserve anything.

I don’t get benefited from intoxication; my mind is excellent, Even if the wine is from Jamshid’s tavern, it doesn’t reach me. (147:6) God has given me a great mind in return for keeping me from the luxuries of drunkenness, so it is, for this reason, the fine wine from King Jamshid’s tavern does not reach me. See Jamshid in the glossary. See Jamshid in the glossary.

Whatever you see in this world is a link to a chain; There is no place where these rings do not meet. (147:7) This verse qualifies as a great intellectual thought that describes the entire Universe; a model proposed decades later by the science of astrophysics.

Hail to the joy of her cruelty that she passes through this path, Reaching out to others, yet, who doesn’t reach to herself. (147:8) The beloved doles out her cruelty to everyone and thus reaches out to them, while she remains oblivious to herself.

Wherever your knife of desire rains wounds, From these wounds, Adham’s heart only gets a laceration. (147:9) Wherever the bounty of your tree in heaven hails fruits, No more than a single breeze reaches Mariam’s place of worship. (147:10) These two verses are connected; Adham (meaning here son of Adham, Abraham) is protected from wounded. The breeze from the trees of paradise barely reaches where Mariam prays (meaning here Jesus). These are the signs of your power to elevate an ordinary person into grandeur.

Ghalib will burn from the poison of the hot breath, If the heart does not refresh with the tears flowing continuously. (147:11) Tears coming out of his heart are quenching the heat of the hot breath, or else he would burn out totally.

148 ‫از رههچ ردگذشتیم آواز اپ ندارد‬

‫آزادگی‌ست سازی اما صدا ندارد‬

‫کشت جهان رسارس داروگیا ندارد‬

‫ی‌هک دل را با ردد واگذارد‬

‫جور و جفا نتابم مهر و واف ندارد‬

416

‫عشق‌ست و انتوانی حسن‌ست و رسرگانی‬ ‫کس‬

‫افرغ‬

‫رد زبم ما ز تنگی‬

‫ردهم فشار خود را ات رد رسد دماغی‬

‫رنجور عشق گوئی آه رسا ندارد‬

‫ضم‬ ‫صد ره ردین کشاکش بگذشته رد یرش‬

‫پیماهن جا ندارد‬

‫رد کیش روزگاران گل خون‌بها ندارد‬ ‫مح‬ ‫زج نغمه‏ی بت سازم نوا ندارد‬

‫تن رد بال فکندن بیم بال ندارد‬

‫دارم دلی هک دیگر اتب جفا ندارد‬

‫هی انتمام لطفی زک شکوه وا ندارد‬ ‫یا رب ستم مبادا رب ما روا ندارد‬ ‫ اما هب ما ندارد‬،‫روی چو ماه دارد‬ ‫چش‬ ‫ اما حیا ندارد‬،‫چون م توست رنگس‬

‫دهلی هب رمگ غالب آب و هوا ندارد‬

‫ای سبزۀ رس ره از جور اپ هچ انلی‬

‫ره مطلعی هک رزید از خاهم‌ام فغانی‏ست‬ ‫جان رد غمت فشاندن رمگ از قفا ندارد‬

‫یش‬ ‫گف‬ ‫ درگ تو دانی‬،‫ تم‬،‫رب خو تن ببخشای‬ ‫کش‬ ‫تن چنانکه گوئی نشناخت‌ست ما را‬ ‫مهرش ز بی‌دماغی ماانست با تغافل‬

‫چش‬

‫م‬ ‫ی سیاه دارد یعنی هب ما نبیند‬

‫لع‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫چون ل تست غنچه اما ن نداند‬

‫آبش گداز خاکی بادش تف بخاری‬

Freedom is a musical instrument, but it emits no sound; Over whatever path we passed by, there was no echo of our foot. (148:1) Whatever we do, we do it quietly without making it look big. A life of simplicity and without entrapment is the ultimate freedom.

Here is our love and its weakness; there is her beauty and her arrogance. I cannot endure oppression and cruelty; she has neither kindness nor fidelity. (148:2) My weakness is that I cannot give up loving her, and she cannot give up her arrogance; it is becoming too much to bear. Perhaps if she were kind or had fidelity towards me, this would have been more bearable.

Free is he who leaves his heart to pain. The entire field of the world is not covered with medicine flowers. (148:3) The only way to have solace is to give the heart to pain, meaning accept the pain in the heart because there is no abundance of any medicine to cure it.

Squeeze your being until you reach a level of joy and intoxication, For in our close assembly, there is no room for the goblet. (148:4)

417

A difficult verse to interpret, the poet is telling to squeeze himself to draw any remaining juice in the body. That juice (perhaps wine) may provide some intoxication because the beloved assembly is so crowded that there is no room for a goblet, meaning that wine is all taken and not available. This verse tries to exaggerate the lack of importance given to the lover in the assembly of the beloved.

O grass of the wayside, why do you complain of footsteps’ cruelty? In the creed of this world, there is no blood money for flowers. (148:5) An expression of the worthlessness of things that come into the way of others, let it be flowers, even.

Because of the tumult of my sighs, they have passed through her heart a hundred times. You would say that the one wretched in love doesn’t even have a loud sigh. (148:6) While it appears that my sighs are not loud enough (compelling enough), the fact is that the tumult of my sighs has caused them to go through the heart of the beloved; whether they are effective or not, that is something else.

Every opening verse of my poem is a lament falling from my pen. My musical instrument has no sound except the melody of love. (148:7) The opening verse may also be taken as every verse. It is the melody of love that comes out of my verses.

After I offered my life in love to you, no death will pursue me; One who throws his body to disaster doesn’t have a fear of disaster. (148:8) Sacrificing life for her is not death; suffering pain in her love is not suffering.

Have mercy on yourself, I told you, but you know better That I have a heart that has no more strength to endure cruelty. (148:9) My lamenting causes you discomfort, so do something to stop my laments as I am also losing strength to bear your cruelty.

As you say, no one recognized me after you murdered me. It is an unfinished kindness that doesn’t leave any room for complaint. (148:10) The complainer has been murdered, so your statement that no one recognizes me after I am murdered should be anticipated, for I am the only complainer.

Due to her obliviousness, her kindness looks like negligence. God forbid cruelty that she hasn’t tried on us. (148:11) I hope that her failure towards me is not intentional and that she will keep trying new means to torture me.

She has black eyes means she doesn’t see us. She has a face like a moon, but she doesn’t look at us. (148:12)

418

‫‪Pointing to the obliviousness of the beloved.‬‬

‫‪Your lips are like the flower bud, but that does not speak.‬‬ ‫)‪Your eyes are like the narcissus, but that does not have your modesty. (148:13‬‬ ‫‪A comparison of beloved’s beauty. See Narcissus in the glossary.‬‬

‫;‪Its water is like melting dust; its wind is like a spit of a vapor‬‬ ‫)‪Delhi will not have good weather swearing upon Ghalib’s death. (148:14‬‬ ‫‪The pathetic state of the city of Delhi is described. Ghalib came to Delhi when he was 15 and‬‬ ‫‪spent most of his life in this Capital city of India.‬‬

‫‪149‬‬ ‫شوقم ز پند رب رد رفیاد می‌زند‬

‫رب آتش من آب دم از باد می‌زند‬

‫عش خس‬ ‫از جوی شیر و رت رو نشان نماند‬

‫غیرت هنوز طعنه هب رفاهد می‌زند‬

‫ات افکنی‬

‫هچ ولوهل اندر نهاد ما‬

‫رهزگ ذماق ردد اسیری نبوده است‬

‫نی ش‬ ‫مم‬ ‫نون کاوش ژمه و تر نیم‬ ‫خونی هک دی هب جیبم ازو خارخار بود‬ ‫شم‬ ‫اندر هوای ع هماان ز بال و رپ‬

‫زین بیش نیست اقفله‏ی رنگ را ردنگ‬ ‫ذوقم هب ره رشاره هک از داغ می ‏جهد‬ ‫چون دید زک ش کایت بیداد افرغم‬ ‫ات دستبرد آتش سوزان دهد هب باد‬

‫چش‬ ‫غالب رسکش م تو عالم رفو رگفت‬

‫هک آینه از تو موج رپزیاد می‌زند‬

‫قف‬ ‫با انهل‌ای هک رمغ س زاد می‌زند‬ ‫دل موج خون ز ردد خداداد می‌زند‬ ‫ارموز گل هب دامن جالد می‌زند‬ ‫رپواهن دشنه رد جگر باد می‌زند‬

‫گل یک قدح هب ساهی‏ی شمشاد می‌زند‬

‫دل را نوای دری هب مااند می‌زند‬ ‫رب زخم سینه‌ام نمک داد می‌زند‬ ‫سنگ از رشار خنده هب پوالد می‌زند‬ ‫موجی‌ست دجله را هک هب بغداد می‌زند‬

‫;‪My desire knocks the door to plaints when receiving advice‬‬ ‫)‪The water on my fire claims to be the wind. (149:1‬‬

‫‪419‬‬

When someone advises me then my desire for passion starts plaints, as if the water (the advice given) turns out to be a wind flaring the flames.

What excitement have you created in our soul? That a wave of fairies appears in the mirror from your reflection. (149:2) The mirror starts flying like a fairy upon receiving your image; now imagine, if the mirror gets so tumultuous, how would we be feeling thinking of you.

No sign of the stream of milk and luxury of Khosro remained. The pride is still taunting Farhad. (149:3) Farhad dug a channel of milk to win the wife of Khosro, Shirin; when he did complete the task, he was told that Shirin had died connivingly. Farhad could not take this sorrow and killed himself. While the channel of milk and Khosro are gone, people still keep taunting the lover Farhad for being so weak, leaving all luxuries to Khosro. See Khosro in the glossary.

There is no relish of pain in the plaint of the prisoner, Like the laments that come from a bird in the cage. (149:4) The prisoner is the caged bird born and raised in the cage. How would this bird plaint with pain, for she does not know the meaning of freedom? A deep thought about what we could miss if we never had it.

I am not thankful for the piercing of eyelashes and the lancets; The wave of blood surges from a heart with God-given anguish. (149:5) The pain in my heart is God-given, not caused by the piercing of her eyelashes; an expression of sarcasm towards the beloved, saying, “do you think that God put the hurt in my heart?”

The blood that yesterday was the prick of a thorn in my collar, Today, it is decorating a flower on the skirt of the slayer. (149:6) The blood splattering on the skirt of the slayer is decorating the skirt, the same blood that was too difficult for me to carry on my collar—meaning the infamy is gone, and that brings a presentation of flower to the slayer.

Desiring the candle as if from its wings and feathers, The moth plies a dagger in the heart of the air. (149:7) Wind blowing makes a candle burn faster, but the moth bringing its wings and feather to sacrifice itself makes the candle burn brighter, making the air feel embarrassed.

The caravan of color doesn’t stay long To let the rose sips a cup of wine in the shade of Shamshad. (149:8) The caravan of color in the spring season—it passes quickly; Shamshad is the name of a tree type and rose in its shade does not get a chance to sip a glass of wine, meaning bloom entirely (both are red) before it dies off.

420

With every spark that rises from the wound of my heart, My heart wishes that this condition would stay for long. (149:9) Hoping that the pain does not go away.

When she saw that I was done with complaining about her tyranny, In the wound of my heart, she sprinkled the salt. (149:10) The beloved cannot stop her cruelty.

So that it would end the pillage of the burning fire, The stone, with its sparks, laughs at the steel. (149:11) Steel rubbed on a stone causes a spark that starts fire; “it” is the stone; the sparks do not cause the stone to burn as the stone blows away the sparks in the air, making the steel a laughing matter.

Ghalib, the tears from your eyes have seized the whole world; There is a wave of the river Tigris that strikes Baghdad. (149:12) Comparing the intensity of his tears to the wave of water in a larger river in Baghdad.

150 ‫م‬ ‫آری ردوغ صلحت آمیز گفته‌اند‬

‫باید زمی ره آینه رپهیز گفته‌اند‬

‫رمدم رتا ربای هچ خورنزی گفته‌اند‬

‫یخ‬ ‫چش‬ ‫خون ر تن هب کوی تو رکدار م ماست‬

‫آ ن قصه‏ی شکر هک هب رپوزی گفته‌اند‬ ‫ات خود نگشته آتش دل تیز گفته‌اند‬ ‫از نوبهار آنچه هب اپئیز گفته‌اند‬ ‫نگی‬ ‫ا خت رگد فتنه و انگیز گفته‌اند‬

‫با قیس ره‏نوردی شبدزی گفته‌اند‬ ‫رگ از تو گفته‌اند ز ما نیز گفته‌اند‬

‫م‬ ‫آری ردوغ صلحت‌آمیز گفته‌اند‬

‫فصلی هم از ح کایت شیرین شمرده‌ایم‬

‫گویم ز سوز سینه و گوید هک این همه‬

‫ن‬ ‫شکفت دل ز یاد تو گوئی ردوغ بود‬ ‫انداخت خار رد ره و انداز خوانده‌اند‬

‫سخ‬ ‫گفتا ن ز بی رس و اپیان هن زریکی‌ست‬ ‫انزی هب صد مضایقه عجزی هب صد خوشی‬ ‫ رتا هب دری مسلمان شمرده‌اند‬،‫غالب‬

They said always to avoid drinking wine; Yes, they have told an expedient lie. (150:1)

421

422

Challenging the ascetics, the “they.”

We also considered a chapter of Shirin’s folklore. That sweet story is famous about Parviz. (150:2) The wife of king Khosro Parviz, Shirin had an affair with Farhad; folklore also states that Parviz had a sweet tongue. Now combining all wordplay, the meaning of Shirin is sweet; the chapter of her story is considered a sweet story that connects to a sweet tongue king. See Khosro and Shirin in the glossary.

Shedding blood in your alley is a habit of my eyes. Why do people call you a blood-shedder? (150:3) He is assuring the beloved that she shares no blame for his misfortune and infamy.

I talk about my burning heart, and the beloved responds: Talk about it when the fire in the heart becomes intense. (150:4) The beloved is challenging if the fire burning is intense enough for her to any attention.

The breeze of the spring did not make my heart bloom; Whatever is said about the spring in the fall must be a lie. (150:5) Whatever is said about the goodness of the spring in the fall season is not true, meaning it is not long enough to take away the sadness of fall. Good times are not long enough, as we promise ourselves in the bad times.

She laid thorns in the path and called it the style; Dust of havoc raised, and they called it the impact of beauty. (150:6) The beloved is so attractive that those walking around fall in love with her and call it a beauty no matter what she doles out.

She said talking about useless people is not intelligent; Like mentioning the night traveler to Majnoon. (150:7) Majnoon affairs with Laila are famous, and so are the affairs of Shirin with Farhad. Night traveler was the name of the black horse that Farhad had given to Khosro, the husband of Shirin--another story; bringing unconnected topics is foolish. See Khosro and Majnoon in the glossary.

Your display of coquetry comes with much effort, and I submit with much happiness; If they speak of you, they speak of me too. (150:8) It takes a lot of effort (or intent) for her to display her coquetry, but our thanks come readily and with joy. So, if people talk about your arrogance to show coquetry, they also talk about your humility.

O Ghalib, they regard you as a Muslim in the temple. But truly, they have told a convenient lie. (150:9)

423

Being in a temple, the caretaker calls the poet a Muslim—telling him to get out. Allama Iqbal wrote: “the narrow-minded ascetic considered me a denier while the deniers think I am a Muslim.”

151 ‫یاقوت باده رب قوۀ آفتاب زد‬

‫صب‬ ‫ خوش بود قدحی رپ رشاب زد‬،‫ح‌ست‬

‫آه از فسون دیو هک راهم هب آب زد‬

‫ذوق می مغاهن ز رکدار بازداشت‬

‫امتال ز هجوم سحاب زد‬

‫کاافق‬

‫کاندر زهار رمحله موج رساب زد‬

‫ات جلوه رکد چشمک ربق عتاب زد‬ ‫از جبهه انگشوده هب بند نقاب زد‬ ‫نقش‬ ‫ی توان هب صفحه‏ی دیبای خواب زد‬

‫سنگ از گداز خویش هب رویم گال‌ب زد‬ ‫داغ تو رب دماغ هک بوی کباب زد‬ ‫موجی هک دشنه رد جگر از چیپ و اتب زد‬ ‫نش‬ ‫بی‏دا ی هک طعنه رب اهل کتاب زد‬

‫نش‬ ‫تر هب مغز پنبه‏ی مینا رفو ربید‬

‫ات خاک کشت گا ن رفیب وافی کیست‬ ‫رنگی هک رد خیال خود اندوختم ز دوست‬

‫گف‬ ‫تم رگه ز کار دل و دیده باز کن‬ ‫رگ هوش ما بساط ادای رخام نیست‬

‫نف‬ ‫ات رد هجوم انهل س باختم هب کوه‬ ‫ رب دلی هک سیه رکده‌ای مناز‬،‫ای الهل‬ ‫نم‬ ‫مش‬ ‫غم ربان هب چشمه‏ی حیوان ی‌دهند‬ ‫جه حکیم‬ ‫ خسان ز ل ش رگفته‌اند‬،‫غالب‬

It’s the morning time, drinking a goblet filled with wine is delightful. The emerald of wine will shine on the face of the sun. (151:1) The sun’s face also refers to gold and silver paper placed under jewels to make them shine more. Sun fills the morning with the brightness that can be made brighter with a glass of wine in hand.

Pierce the knife into the cotton plug of the wine decanter, So, the horizon will become filled with the crowding of stars. (151:2) Open the bottle of wine to make it more delightful and romantic, making the skies brighter.

The desire of wine, the wine of fire worshipers, kept me from doing good deeds; Alas, from the spell of the monster that robbed me in the water. (151:3) The wine of worshippers simply means wine; drinking kept me from doing anything worthwhile.

424

The beast is the wine that robbed me in water, referring to mirages that appear like water—the disillusion it created. Since water is mentioned in the second line, the wine is labeled as fire-worshippers, also known as Zoroastrians.

To whose victim of deception does the dust belong. This wave of mirage appears at thousands of stages. (151:4) The wave of water appearing in the mirage is made of the dust of those sacrificed by the beloved. Her deception shows in a mirage made of the dust of those who gave life for her.

The thought that in my mind I imagined about the beloved. As soon as she appeared, it turned into lightning of tyranny. (151:5) I had created an image of the beloved, but when she appeared, I realized that this image was just a glimpse of lightning of her tyranny—meaning my disillusions about her soon disappeared.

I asked my beloved to open the knot of my heart and the eyes, But she did not undo the knot on her forehead and instead put it on the closed veil. (151:6) Play of words on knot; the knot on her face arrived, and she pulled the veil down when I asked her to undo the knot of my heart by showing her face to me.

If the floor of our awareness is not worthy for you to walk on it coquettishly, Then at least a sketch can be drawn on a silken page of a dream. (151:7) If you are willing to appear before me in my consciousness, then at least appear in my dreams.

When the crowding of plaints caused me to lose my breath on the mountain, The stone sprinkled rose water on my face from its melting. (151:8) The heat of my plaints caused the rocks to melt.

O tulip, don’t be proud of a heart that you have charred. Whose nose has gotten the smell of you while burning? (151:9) Tulips have dark spots called the charring of their heart but do not be proud of this sacrifice because whosoever gave you this branding did not even notice you, let alone be affected by it.

The victims of sorrow do not exchange the brook of life. This wave is rising in the heart from the knife of twisting and turning. (151:10) The wave of twisting and turning is what the lover desires and does not run out to get the brook of life—the proverbial fountain of youth or life, meaning he does not run away from it seeking a resolution.

Ghalib, the illiterate ones, due to lack of their knowledge, have accepted him as a philosopher; The ignorant one, who taunts the people of the book. (151:11) The people of the book are Jews, Christians, and Muslims; those who deride them are ignorant.

425

152 ‫شغ‬ ‫عشق کارف ل جان دادن هب زمدور افکند‬

‫ننگ رفاهدم هب رفسنگ از واف دور افکند‬

‫رقهع‏ی افلی هب انم زخم ساطور افکند‬

‫ت ست‬ ‫رقبتی خواهم هب اق ل کا خوان سینه‌ام‬

‫خم‬ ‫نیست ز ی زک چکیدن رطح انسور افکند‬ ‫رلزه رد حور افتد و جام از کف حور افکند‬

‫سخ‬ ‫جم‬ ‫چون رفو ماند ن رد رسم هور افکند‬ ‫ رنجور افکند‬،‫خویش را رب رخت‏خواب انز‬ ‫حلقه‏یرغبتهبگوشخونمنصورافکند‬ ‫آه ازان خوانهب کاندر جام فغفور افکند‬

‫اختالفی رد میان ظلمت و نور افکند‬ ‫لغزش اپئی هک باز از جاده‌ام دور افکند‬

‫شم‬ ‫شادم از د ن هک از رکش گدازم رد دلش‬ ‫از شهیدان ویم زک بیم ربق خنجرش‬

‫ل‬ ‫رشمجورخاصخاصاوست یکن ردجواب‬

‫لخ‬ ‫چون بجوید کام ات تی رپستاری کنم‬ ‫جن‬ ‫وقت کار این بش خلخال کاندر ساق تست‬ ‫عش‬ ‫رگ قضا ساز تالفی رد خور رت کند‬

‫ آنکه او‬،‫ یکی بین زردهشت است‬،‫رگ مسلمانی‬ ‫آدم رب راه و غالب رگد دل می‌رگددم‬

The disgrace of Farhad throws me miles away from the path of fidelity; The infidel’s love hands over the task of sacrificing life to the narrator. (152:1) The infidel assigns the task of sacrificing their lives to laborers (here, meaning Farhad, who had taken the task of digging the mountain to create a ravine), bringing disgrace to me. Giving life in the name of love is not for the commoner. See Farhad in the glossary.

Happy I am with the enemy that from the envy, I melt in his heart; No wound drips blood like an ulcer. (152:2) The rival’s envy is not creating a wound in his heart that would turn out to be like an ulcer, meaning he is not taking the envy seriously. This gives the poet the feeling that the rival is not serious about his love for the common beloved.

I wish to be so close to the murderer that the bones of my chest Would draw a portend in the name of the wound from the knife. (152:3) The beloved is the murderer; the lover is hoping to get closer to her to enable her to pierce a knife in his chest. Drawing a vote here means warning to test out the odds.

I am one of her martyrs and from the fear of her dagger’s spark, The houris begin trembling, and the goblet drops from her hand. (152:4)

426

The life-taking beauty of my beloved is so attractive that the houri trembles looking at her, meaning they are less attractive than my beloved. See houri in the glossary.

Shyness is the exceptional style of the beloved, but If she fails to have an answer, then her style changes to the common folk style. (152:5) Talking like commoners here means she dodges the question and starts acting as if she did not understand the question.

When the beloved desires that I should look after her briefly, Then she lays down in the comfortable bed of coquetry and pretends to be sick. (152:6) The beloved is good at finding new ways to attract the lover; the bed of coquetry here means the many ways she seduces the lover.

While moving around, the bracelet in your ankle rattles with such style That it puts a ring of attraction in the ear of Mansour ’s blood. (152:7) Mansour, the kind of kings, begins to desire to be hanged by the bracelet rings in the beloved’s ankle and wishes to be killed by these bracelets. See Mansour in the glossary.

If destiny were to balance the vengeance and pleasure; Would God know how much fresh blood should be poured in Faghfur’s goblet? (152:8) Faghfur is a Farsi word and refers to Chinese kings, and it could also refer to a king of the Persian Ashkanian or Parthian dynasty; however, in this ghazal, it refers to a China goblet.

If you are a Muslim, then keep the view of singularity, for it was Zartosht Who created the differentiation between darkness and light. (152:9) Zoroaster, also known as Zartosht, was an ancient Iranian spiritual leader who founded what is now known as Zoroastrianism that offers a concept of duality. This religion has a God for good deeds (yazdan) and God for ill deeds (Ahriman), which also refers to light and darkness. See Zartosht in the glossary.

Ghalib has come onto the path and but circling in my heart It is the sliding feet that will take me away from my path again. (152:10) The poet is afraid that his trembling feet may take him back to the misguided path.

153 ‫هکرتسمدوستجویانراهبکویشرهبریباشد‬

‫محش محش‬ ‫تواند بود یا رب بعد ر ری باشد‬

‫یش‬ ‫نق‬ ‫هب ره با ش اپی خو م از غیرت رسی باشد‬ ‫نم‬ ‫ی‌گیری هب خون خلق بی رپوان گااهن را‬

427

‫مثالی وانمایم رگ کباب و اخگری باشد‬

‫مس‬ ‫هچ گویم سوز دل با چون تو غم اندیده بد تی‬

‫رگفتم کشور مهر و واف را داوری باشد‬

‫نخواهد بود رسم آنجا هب دیوان داوری ربدن‬

‫جح‬ ‫بهش‬ ‫یم من رگ از داغ تی پیکری باشد‬ ّ ‫نش‬ ‫ارگ فصاد را رد دره زمد تری باشد‬ ‫ گو با دیگری باشد‬، ‫لب یارست و رحفی چند‬

‫همچ‬ ‫نس بس‬ ‫بنالم نین رگ هم ز رین تری باشد‬ ‫ل‬ ‫چشم‬ ‫هب ی رگ خود از سام است رگد شکری باشد‬ ‫چش‬ ‫دلش با م رپخون و لبش با سارغی باشد‬ ‫ری باشد‬

‫همس‬

‫ستم باشد هک رد بیهوده‌میری‬

‫پس‬ ‫ارگ جادوبیاانن را ز من وا تری باشد‬

‫رسد ره روزم از خلد ربین انخوانده مهمانی‬

‫صیق‬ ‫ت‬ ‫توان ل بهای تیغ اق ل هم ادا رکدن‬

‫مکیدم آنقدر زک بوهس و دشنام خالی شد‬ ‫هب ذوق لذتی زک خاره و خارست پهلو را‬ ‫هب جانی رگ خود از کوه است رد وی رلزه اندازد‬

‫محف‬ ‫مح‬ ‫ستایم حق شناسیهای بوبی هک رد ل‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ یکن‬،‫ رس هب سنگی می زدم‬،‫نبود ار تیشه پیدا‬ ‫ آنچه از ظهوری یافتم غالب‬، ‫بیاید هم ز من‬

My footprint shows the path that I take to go to the beloved’s alley, and out of jealousy, I am afraid that this print may lead the seekers of the beloved to her alley. (153:1) I am ashamed of my footprints formed as I went towards the alley of the beloved. Now others would also know where to find the beloved.

You don’t hold accountable those with careless eyes for the mass bloodshed. It is possible that after Doomsday, there would come another Doomsday. (153:2) Complaining to God for not restraining the beauties that are killing with the beauty of their eyes, he is afraid that these eyes will create a significant turmoil equal to the Doomsday happening if not controlled.

How to talk about my burning heart to you, who is intoxicated and hasn’t felt the sorrow? If there are kabobs and sparks of fire, then I can use them as an example. (153:3) Beloved is the fire, and the beloved’s heart is the kabob; a fire never knows what it is doing to the kabob.

Uninvited guests would arrive every day from the eternal paradise, If my hellfire would turn into countenance with the branding of heaven. (153:4) If my hell takes an image of paradise, it will be so attractive that those in paradise will come over to my hell, meaning it will be a lot more attractive if it is part of my hell. This is because it will have the beauty of paradise and the company of all good people like myself. [Who wants to be in

428

paradise if mullahs occupy it?]

There will be no tradition of taking a lawsuit to the court, Even if I assume that there is a judge in the land of love and fidelity. (153:5) It is not in good taste or tradition to complain about the infidelity of the beloved.

The fee to polish the sword of a slayer can be paid If in the world, there was a fee for a lancet that lets the blood out. (153:6) Bloodletting is a procedure to treat for which the surgeon gets a fee. The slayer should also be paid for the kind act of slaying that brings such joy to the lover.

So hard I sucked the lips of the beloved that they were emptied of rebukes; Remaining in the lips of the beloved were a few words though only for the rival. (153:7) My act of sucking hard on her lips rendered them useless to kiss anyone or even call out a rebuke; a few words she can utter she is rendering to the rival now. Most likely complaining to the rival about my behavior.

From the joy that my body receives from laying in the bed of thorns and stone, I would still raise lament even if my bed was made of jonquil flowers. (153:8) This verse and the next are tied together. The lover is so used to laying down on thorns and stone that a fine bed of flowers will make him complain as it will not remind him of the joy of pain.

A soul that is strong as a mountain will make the soul of the mountain shiver; An eye, even if it is the eye of Shem, it turns out to be the dust of a platoon. (153:9) Continuing from the previous verse, my laments from laying on the bed of flowers are shivering the mountains. Dust of the platoon in the eye means the eye becomes cloudy hearing my lament. It is the eye of Shem, the son of Noah. See Shem and Noah in the glossary.

I praise the beloved for the recognition of the right, for in the assembly Her heart is like an eye filled with blood and lips attached to the goblet. (153:10) While the beloved concentration on being cute and flirtatious, she continues drinking.

If the axe were not available, then I would shatter my head with a stone; It will be futile to have an opponent wasting a life like this. (153:11) Refers to the story of Shirin and Farhad. See Farhad in the glossary.

Ghalib, he will get the same bounty from me as I got from Zohouri; If someone from among the spellbinding poets would follow me. (153:12) Ghalib was a fan of Zohouri. Ghalib wrote many of his ghazals in the same pattern as those used by Zohouri. In his Urdu divan, he said: huˉñ zuhuˉrˉ ke muqaˉbil meñ khafaˉ’ˉ g haˉlib mere da‘ve pah yih hujjat hai kih mashhuˉr nahˉñ

429

‫‪I am, in comparison with Zohouri (which also means manifesting), hidden Ghalib‬‬ ‫‪For my claim, the proof is that I am not famous.‬‬

‫‪154‬‬ ‫دل هن تنها ز رفاق تو فغان ساز دهد‬

‫رفتن عکس تو از آینه آواز دهد‬

‫خاک خون باد هک رد معرض آاثر وجود‬

‫سنب‬ ‫زلف و رخ رد کشد و ل و گل باز دهد‬

‫مغز جان سوخت ز سودا و هب کام تو هنوز‬ ‫داغم از رپورش رچخ هک رد زبم امید‬ ‫دل چو بیند ستم از دوست نشاط آغازد‬

‫اهی رپکاری ساقی هک هب ارباب نظر‬ ‫نس‬ ‫رطه‌ات مشک هب دامان یم افشاند‬ ‫سعی زین بال‏فشانی جگرم سوخت ردیغ‬

‫ای هک رب خوان وصال تو قناعت کفرست‬

‫من رس از اپ نشناسم هب ره سعی و سپهر‬ ‫رپده‌داران هب نی و ساز فشارش دادند‬ ‫نسیم‬ ‫ره ی هک ز کوی تو هب خاکم گذرد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫چون ننازد ن از رمحمت دره هب خویش‬

‫زره رسوائی ما چاشنی راز دهد‬ ‫شم‬ ‫رس عی هک رفوزد هب دم گاز دهد‬ ‫شیشه سازی‌ست هک ات بشکند آواز دهد‬

‫می هب اندازه و پیماهن هب انداز دهد‬ ‫جلوه‌ات گل هب کف آینه رپداز دهد‬

‫خ‬ ‫کاش آبی ز نم جلت رپواز دهد‬ ‫اهن صالتی هک رما حوصله‏ی آز دهد‬ ‫ره دم انجام رما جلوه‏ی آغاز دهد‬

‫انهل می‌خواست هک رشح ستم انز دهد‬

‫یادم از ولول‏ی عمر سبک اتز دهد‬ ‫هک ربد رعفی و غالب هب عوض باز دهد‬

‫‪Not only does my heart cry and lament in your separation,‬‬ ‫)‪It begins to call you when your image goes out of the mirror. (154:1‬‬ ‫‪The mirror starts to cry when your image disappears as you move away from the mirror.‬‬

‫‪The core of the soul has burned, but in your mouth still,‬‬ ‫)‪The poison of disgrace provides the relish of a secret. (154:2‬‬ ‫‪The core of the soul is presented as the brain here. The brain got burned because of my lunacy,‬‬

‫‪430‬‬

but the poison of our disgrace still leaves a taste in your mouth, thinking that this is a secret that only you know of this.

May the dust turn into blood, that is displaying the phenomena of existence, As it takes away the faces and tresses and replaces them with rose and jonquil. (154:3) Dust turns into blood means shame on the dust from where the flowers are springing from the ground where the beautiful ones are buried.

I burn at the upbringing of the sky that in the assembly of hope, It cuts down by a scissor, a candle that lights up. (154:4) I feel sad at how the sky has been brought up that it cuts down a candle of light of hopes.

The heart begins to feel joy when it feels tyranny from the beloved; The glass is a musical instrument, which produces sound when it breaks. (154:5) The glass is the heart; it produces a melody like a musical instrument would when it breaks. There is a simile drawn here between striking an instrument and striking to kill it.

Wow, for the skill of the saqi in handling the men of vision; She gives just enough wine to each and offers the cup with coquettish style. (154:6) I am compensating for shorting on wine with the style of offering.

Your tresses spilled musk in the skirt of breeze; Your display fills the hands of mirror-polisher with flowers. (154:7) Filling hands of mirror polisher with flowers means that the mirror begins to show the freshness of flowers.

Alas that my efforts to flutter wings burned my heart; I wish that the sweat of embarrassment would sprinkle water on it. (154:8) The liver is the organ mentioned that could be a simile for the heart. The sweat of embarrassment is asked to quench the burning of the heart. Embarrassment from not being able to fly, meaning not being able to free me from her net.

It is a sin to abstain at the serving mat at the time of your union; Yes, invite me in such a way to raise my aspirations of avarice. (154:9) It is a sin to hold yourself back at the time of union with beloved, but it will be more suitable with more avarice of union with the beloved.

I am unable to tell my feet from my hands in my efforts to reach the sky, As every end gives the aspect of a new beginning. (154:10) The sky has no limits; so fast I am going that I cannot tell how fast my feet are moving forward. It is because once I reach a milestone, the sky makes it appear as the beginning.

431

The keepers of secrets have pressed it into the tone of the flute and the pipe, Since the lament wishes to disclose the cruelty of her coquetry. (154:11) Our laments come out as the loud melody of the flute and pipe, the laments of her cruelty.

Every breeze from your street that passes by my grave Reminds me of the agitation of the life flying by. (154:12) How I used to pass by your alley with enthusiasm is what I am reminded of by the breeze passing over my grave. Also, it is a simple description of the day’s bygone.

Why wouldn’t the words be proud of the destiny’s kindness to them, That takes away Urfi and brings Ghalib in exchange? (154:13) Urfi was a famous Persian poet, and by connecting with him, Ghalib is self-praising his Persian skills. See Urfi in the glossary.

155 ‫از صور جلوه و از آینه زن گار ربد‬

‫شادم هب خیالت هک ز اتبم بدر آورد‬

‫غیر می‌خواست رما بی تو هب گلزار ربد‬

‫رسوائی من خواست مگر کاین‌همه رسمست‬

‫کو بدآموز هک پیغاره هب دلدار ربد‬ ‫مش‬ ‫رمگ کل هک ز ما لذت گفتار ربد‬

‫یوسف از چاه ربآرد هک هب بازار ربد‬

‫اهن ادائی هک دل و دست من از کار ربد‬ ‫کیست زک سعی نظر پی هب رد یار ربد‬ ‫دیده ذوق نگه از روزن دیوار ربد‬ ‫هب تو از جانب ما ژمدۀ دیدار ربد‬

‫ضم‬ ‫زک یرم گله‏ی رسزنش خار ربد‬ ‫رت آرایش دستار ربد‬

‫حس‬

‫ات ز دل‬

‫بو هک توفیق ز گفتار هب رکدار ربد‬

432

‫رفیاد هک شوق تو هب کاشاهن زد آتش‬

‫جی‬ ‫افکنده هب حون فلک از وادی و شادم‬ ‫جان رب رس مکتوب تو از شوق فشاندن‬

‫مس‬ ‫انزم هب ن گاهت هک ز رس تی انداز‬ ‫کش‬

‫تی اشکسته ز موجم هک تباهی‬

‫آن‬

‫غالب ز زعزیان وطن بوده‌ام اما‬

‫انز را آئینه مائیم بفرما ات شوق‬ ‫ژمه‌ات سفت دل و رفت ن گاه تو رفو‬

‫خاکی از رهگذر دوست هب رفقم رزیند‬ ‫نش نیست‬

‫تسکی‬

‫می‌زند دم ز فنا غالب و‬

Where is the extinction to make the entire taint of self-conceit go away, And take away the display of nature and remove the rust in the mirror? (155:1) Knowing our end should be enough to rid ourselves of pride and ego. Rust of a mirror is the conceit that shows in the mirror of existence. To remove every display is on the line of Sufi teachings that there is no existence of anything; these are all reflections of the Creator, and we should give ourselves into the Creator.

In the night, I lost my senses and opened my arms to the flame; Where is the misguiding rival to go and taunt the beloved? (155:2) The rival used to tell the beloved that her lover was a fake. Now that I am giving my life unto her, where is he, and why isn’t he going to tell her that I was sincere?

Perhaps you may have told him to somehow throw me in the fire; The rival wanted to take me to the garden without you knowing. (155:3) Going to the garden without the beloved is like burning in fire. Perhaps it was the beloved’s idea to my rival to convince me to go with him without her.

Again, our lips are stuck from the tumult of sweetness; Death can’t take away the delight of talking with you from us. (155:4) Even death cannot take away the endless delight that my lips are feeling now.

Do not believe that destiny is kind; this is the deceiver, who Took Joseph from the well to sell him in the marketplace. (155:5) The sky (used as destiny) is meant to talk about fate presented as the ring. Refers to the story of Joseph. See Joseph in the glossary.

Our desire is uninhibited, and you are happy by the disgrace of my face; Wow, to the coquetry that makes my heart and hand unable to function. (155:6) The lover acted out, getting fresh with the beloved leading to him being disgraced. Now the lover is telling the beloved to show an act of coquetry that will cause make his heart and hands unable to repeat this act.

The breeze is shedding blood through the effect of my lament; Who can find the path to the beloved house by trying to envision it? (155:7) Because the atmosphere is filled with blood, it will not be possible for the rivals to locate the beloved’s house.

You don’t come to the edge of the roof and in your alley, always The eyes get excited to look at you from the crack of the wall. (155:8) Even a distant sight of the beloved works well for the lover.

433

We are the mirror for your coquetry, now permit it so that on my behalf The yearning desire would bring you the happy news of seeing you. (155:9) While the lover is deprived of the sight of the beloved, he can imagine her coquetry because of his intense passion for her.

Your eyelashes have ripped open my heart, and your glance penetrated it To remove the complaint of the admonishments of the thorn from my heart. (155:10) The lover’s complaints were gone once she, the beloved, paid attention to the lover removing all complaints.

Pour the dust of my beloved’s path on my head To banish from my heart the wish to wear a flower to decorate the turban. (155:11) Turbans were decorated with flowers that the lover could not afford, bargaining for the dust of the beloved’s alley instead.

Ghalib talks about the annihilation of the self, and there is no relief for him; Let go of the talk and start creating a character to fulfill it. (155:12) Ghalib is talking about the Sufi doctrine of “fana” meaning extinction. Talking about being extinct does not give satisfaction to his heart; quit talking about it and create a character of your own.

156 ‫ات هچ رب چاک از رگیبان می‌رود‬

‫چاک از جیبم هب دامان می‌رود‬

‫چون رود از دست آسان می‌رود‬

‫مش‬ ‫ن‬ ‫رگ بود کل رم ج ای دل هک کار‬

‫روزم اندر ارب پنهان می‌رود‬

‫سخ‬ ‫خود ن رد کفر و ایمان می‌رود‬ ‫بوی ریپاهن هب کنعان می‌رود‬

‫ات رود پنداشتی جان می‌رود‬ ‫می‌رود‬ ‫می‌رود‬

‫رپیشان‬

‫اما‬

‫آتش‏رپستان‬

‫می‌رود‬

‫قبله‏ی‬

‫آرخ شب از شبستان می‌رود‬

434

‫لیک‬

‫ردخشان‌ست‬

‫ب‬ ‫ط عم‬

‫جوره‬

‫سخ‬ ‫زج ن کفری و ایمانی کجاست‬ ‫شم‬

‫یم‬ ‫ی را مشامی رد خور است‬

‫ره‬

‫آید و از ذوق نشناسم هک کیست‬ ‫می‌ربد‬ ‫هم‬

‫ی‬

‫یکجا‬

‫هن‬

‫اما‬

‫می‌ربد‬

‫ره هک بیند رد رهش گوید‬

‫اول ماه است و از رشم تو ماه‬

‫آربوی تیر و پی کان می‌رود‬ ‫آنچه رب غالب ز ردبان می‌رود‬

‫شم‬ ‫بگذر از د ن دلش سخت است سخت‬ ‫نش‬

‫ین‬

‫کیست ات گوید بدان ایوان‬

The slit goes from my pocket to my skirt; Not sure what happened to the collar in the hands of the slit. (156:1) The lover is tearing his clothes in desperation, starting from his pocket and collar to the skirt.

The essence of my nature is bright, but My day passes by hiding in the clouds. (156:2) The intelligence and flavor of my poetry get marred by difficulties in expressing as if the clouds block the light.

O heart be not aggrieved if the work is hard; When it gets out of hand, then it all becomes easy. (156:3) When you lose control, you lose something; you no longer fret or worry about it. Let it be gone.

Except in his poetry, where is infidelity and faith? His poetry permeates both infidelity and faith. (156:4) Poetry is the talk of the day; we talk about the sanctity of faith, yet when we practice, we forget about it.

For every scent, there is a suitable nose; This is the scent of the attire that reaches Cana’an. (156:5) Refers to Biblical and Quranic story about Joseph. It takes the right nose to smell a special smell. See Cana’an and Jacob in the glossary.

She came, but I was so excited that I didn’t recognize her; As she left, it felt as if my life had fled. (156:6) Expressing emotions.

She takes me with her but never to the same place; She goes but in distress. (156:7) Her behavior shows that she has taken many to many different places—doubts building.

Whoever sees her on the way would say That she is going to the temple of fire-worshippers. (156:8) Her face is so shiny it looks like she is the fire in the temple of fire-worshippers; she is being worshipped.

435

‫‪It is the beginning of the month and the moon, embarrassed by you‬‬ ‫)‪Leaves the bedchamber late at night. (156:9‬‬ ‫‪Just to show that the moon is hiding from her.‬‬

‫‪Giving up on the rival for he has a tough heart,‬‬ ‫)‪So hard that the arrow and its tip are embarrassed to enter it. (156:10‬‬ ‫‪I am giving up that the rival will have the pleasure of getting her arrow because the arrow finds it in‬‬‫‪sulting as the rival’s heart is too hard for it to enter; obviously, that leaves only one good choice—me.‬‬

‫‪Who will go and tell the beloved sitting in the assembly,‬‬ ‫)‪What Ghalib goes through in the hands of the gatekeeper? (156:11‬‬ ‫‪The guard beat him up before he sneaked into her assembly.‬‬

‫‪157‬‬ ‫نومیدی‬

‫ما‬

‫رگدش‬

‫ایام‬

‫ندارد‬

‫روزی هک سیه شد حسر و شام ندارد‬

‫ی‬

‫زک نکهت گل جامۀ ارحام ندارد‬

‫بوسم لب دلدار و زگیدن نتوانم‬ ‫مفرست هب طوف رحم دوست‬

‫نسیم‬

‫ره رذۀ خاکم ز تو رقصان هب هوائی‌ست‬ ‫رو‪ ،‬تن هب بال ده هک درگ بیم بال نیست‬ ‫اقصد خبر آورد و همان خشک دماغم‬

‫نق‬ ‫بی ش وجود تو رسااپی من از ضعف‬ ‫رگدید نشان‌اه هدف تیر بالاه‬

‫چم‬ ‫بلب‬ ‫ل هب ن بنگر و رپواهن هب‬

‫محف‬

‫ل‬

‫تل‬ ‫خ‌ست رگ ذوق کبابی هک بسوزد‬

‫آیا هب دلت ولولۀ کسب هوا نیست‬ ‫مس‬ ‫بوسی هک ربایند هب تی ز لب یار‬

‫رنم‌ست دلم حوصله‏ی کام ندارد‬

‫دیوانگی‬ ‫رمغ‬

‫قفس‬

‫شوق‬

‫ی‬

‫کش‬

‫رسانجام‬

‫مکش‬

‫دام‬

‫ندارد‬ ‫ندارد‬

‫رطف قدحش رشحه‏ی پیغام ندارد‬ ‫ِ‬ ‫بس‬ ‫چون تر خواب‌ست هک اندام ندارد‬

‫آسایش عنقا هک هب زج انم ندارد‬ ‫شوق‌ست هک رد وصل هم آرام ندارد‬

‫زان رکش هک سوز جگر خام ندارد‬

‫یا آنکه رسای تو لب بام ندارد‬ ‫نغزست‪ ،‬ولی لذت دشنام ندارد‬

‫‪436‬‬

‫میخاۀن توفیق خم و جام ندارد‬ "‫ندارد‬

‫بادام‬

‫گل‬

‫صفای‬

‫"بادام‬

‫ره رشحه هب اندازۀ ره حوصله رزیند‬

‫غالب هک هب‌ست از زغلم مصرع استاد‬

My deep despair knows nothing of the revolution of the times; A Day is passed in darkness has neither the dawn nor the dusk. (157:1) The life changes do not cause my despair; when a day darkens, then there is no dawn coming for that day. Darkens means when night comes; the past day is gone. The poet has not to hope for the future. He does not see another light coming beyond the darkness of his life.

I kiss the lips of my beloved but dare not to bite them; I am softhearted and don’t have the courage to fulfill this desire. (157:2) Holding back the ultimate desire of the lover because of the softness of his heart to not hurt the beloved.

Don’t send a breeze to circumambulate the beloved’s shrine, That that does not have the scent of this rose in its garb of pilgrimage. (157:3) I am speaking to God, saying that the breeze that should go around the shrine of the Prophet and must have its attire filled with the essence of rose.

Every particle of my dust dances in your desire; The madness of true love has no end. (157:4) Just like particles in the air keep moving randomly, the same is true of my madness of love that has no destiny and keeps getting scattered.

Cast yourself into calamity, so there will be no more fear of calamity; The bird in the cage does not suffer the distress of the snare. (157:5) When you accept your fate, there remains no fear of the future; a bird in the cage has no fear of getting caught.

The messenger has brought a message, yet I am still saddened, As there is not a drop of message in the bowl. (157:6) Disappointed at the outcome.

Without the sign of your existence, my entire being is extremely weak Like a bed that has not been slept in. (157:7) If a bed is slept in, it shows the wrinkles; my existence is a bed like that it does not leave any impression on the bed. Your existence is the address to God and concurs that without God, nothing would have existed.

437

When the existence becomes a target of your arrows, The Onqa bird is calm, for it is nothing but a name. (157:8) Onqa is a mythical bird-like the phoenix. Whatever exists is in a state of turmoil created by God; there is no calm just as the mythical bird appears calm—it does not exist. See Onqa in the glossary.

Look at the nightingales in the garden and the moths in the assembly; They have no peace of mind even in the presence of their beloved. (157:9) Nightingales keep fluttering even though there are flowers everywhere, and the moth keeps flying around the flame what it seeks most. The same is true of the peace of my mind that never comes to me, even in the company of beloved.

Bitter is the pulse of relish at the burned kababs, From the envy of the absence of the fire to make the liver half-done. (157:10) The kabab is well done making it bitter (the wordplay is that a burned kabab tastes burnt) for not having left any relish for more burning. Kabab does not have the relish of half seared liver that brings more pain.

Isn’t there a passion in your heart to take in air Or is there no edge of the roof in your home? (157:11) The lover waits to see the beloved as she shows up at the edge of her home’s roof to catch fresh air. He has not seen her in a while and is making two assumptions: either she no longer cherishes fresh air, and there is no edge of the roof in her home. The reality is that she does not want to see the lover, who is giving himself a futile assurance.

The kiss that is stolen in the state of ecstasy from beloved’s lips Is delightful, but it lacks the pleasure of her rebuke. (157:12) Yes, the lips taste good, but the taste of insult is everlasting.

Wine is given in proportion to the ambition and courage of the drinker; The tavern of charity has no decanters or goblets. (157:13) God gives challenges based on what one can hold; in God’s tavern of charity, wine is provided drop by drop, with no need for a goblet or decanter.

Ghalib, superior to my entire ghazal, is the hemistich of the mentor; Almond does not have the purity of the flower of the almond. (157:14) A verse of my mentor much better than my entire ghazal. The almond flower is more attractive than the almond itself.

438

158 ‫ربیده باد زبانی هک خون‏چ کان نبود‬

‫سخ‬ ‫هچ خیزد از نی زک ردون جان نبود‬

‫خدا هب عهد تو رب خلق مهربان نبود‬

‫نگفته‌ام ستم از جانب خداست ولی‬

‫خش‬ ‫ ار رگان نبود‬،‫ز رطل باده هب م آیم‬ ‫خیال بوهس رب آ ن اپی بی‌نشان نبود‬

‫لیس‬ ‫ز زخم خون هب زبان م ار روان نبود‬ ‫هک بازرگدم و زج دوست ارمغان نبود‬ ‫هب سوی قیس رگایش ز ساربان نبود‬

‫ارگ نشاط عطای تو رد میان نبود‬ ‫ضم‬

‫یردان نبود‬

‫روا دمار هک شاهد‬

‫ازین نوید هک اندوه جاودان نبود‬ ‫دعا کنید هک نوعی ز امتحا ن نبود‬ ‫بس‬ ‫رما هک بالش و تر ز رپنیان نبود‬

‫حکیم ساقی و می تند و من ز بدخوئی‬ ‫ز انزکی نتواند نهفت راز رما‬ ‫تنگ‌ماهی‬ ‫ع دارم‬

‫عش‬ ‫چو رتی هک کند افسق‬

‫صت طم‬ ‫ز خویش رفته‌ام و رف ی‬

‫زمام انهق هب دست تصرف شوق‌ست‬

‫نف‬ ‫رفو ربد س رسد من جهنم را‬ ‫رما هک لب هب طلب آشنا نخواسته‌ای‬

‫حس‬ ‫امید بولهوس و رت من ازفون شد‬

‫هب التفات ن گارم هچ جای تهنیت‌ست‬ ‫ی غالب‬

‫کس‬

‫خوابی‬

‫هم‬

‫عجب بود رس‬

What effect can that speech produce which does not come from the heart? May the tongue be cut which sheds no blood! (158:1) What does not come out from the heart has no impact, and a language that cannot state kind words is useless—shedding blood means having an effect.

The saqi is wise, the wine is intense, but through lousy temper, I became angry if the cup of wine was not heavy enough. (158:2) I always want more, but saqi knows what I can handle, yet I get mad when not getting more wine. I consider it insulting that the saqi does not think I can take more.

I never said God is the source of all our suffering, but The age in which you live, my God, is not kind to humanity. (158:3) We buy some sufferings on our own, but it seems like God is not very kind these days.

439

Because of her being delicate, she cannot hide my secrets; Even the thought of a kiss leaves a mark on her feet. (158:4) How transparent and delicate is she? Just when I think of kissing her feet, a mark appears on her feet.

Like the indulgences of a cheap monger, I licked my wound even if the blood would not flow from it. (158:5) A wound not spilling out blood is not a wound, but I start licking my wound even when there is no blood, a sign of my cheapness.

I am lost in myself but hoping for an opportunity to return to myself; Then I will not bring a souvenir except for a friend to myself. (158:6) When one returns from a trip, gifts and souvenirs are brought for friends. I want to return to myself, but with no souvenirs or gifts, only a sense of righteousness called a friend.

The reins of the camel are in the hands of intense passion, Heading towards Majnoon is from passion, not from the efforts of the ride-master. (158:7) The camel is running to Majnoon, not because of the ride-master driving, but the passion of Laila to see Majnoon; Laila is the rider, not the ride-master.

My cold breath would swallow the hell, If the pleasure of Your benevolence would not come in my way. (158:8) God sent me to hell, and if it wasn’t for your generosity, I could extinguish the fire of hell with my cold breath, but I am joyful for whatever He has bestowed upon me.

If you did not want me to have to desire the lips for the friend, Then it was not appropriate that she did not come to know the secrets of my heart. (158:9) So God decided not to give me the desire to kiss her, but then she should have been made aware of it, thinking that the lover is not asking for a kiss of his own volition.

The expectation of the lustful ones has risen and increased my frustrations; By this good news that grief is not eternal. (158:10) The news that grief does not last has encouraged my rivals, who are lustful, to stick around in the hope of succeeding. I had hope that suffering would not go away, discouraging the rivals from running away.

No need to congratulate me if the beloved has turned her attention towards me; Pray that kindness is not some type of way of testing me. (158:11) Constantly paranoid, the lover says that let us hope for her kindness, not another testing of my will.

Strange it would be for me to desire to sleep with someone, Ghalib; My pillow and mattress are not made of silk. (158:12)

440

Beloved will not come to bed. Unless the pillow and mattress are made of silk, I do not have it; therefore, it would not be appropriate for me to desire that.

159 ‫هک رد ستم روش آموز روزگاران‌اند‬

‫شهریارانند‬

‫رد آشتی نمک زخم دل‏ف گاران‌اند‬

‫هب جنگ ات هچ بود خوی دلبران کاین قوم‬

‫فغان ز رپده نشینان هک رپده‏داران‌اند‬

‫ز بهر باده هواخواه باد و باران‌اند‬ ‫امیدواران‌اند‬

‫رمگ‬

‫هب‬

‫امیدوار‬

‫هب رنگ و بوی جگرگوهش‏ی بهاران‌اند‬

‫مبین هک سحرن گااهن سیاه کاران‌اند‬ ‫من چش‬ ‫هب رگد راه ه‬

‫ نی‌سواران‌اند‬،‫م‬

‫درگ مگو هک چو من رد جهان زهاران‌اند‬

‫ستم‌پیشه‬

‫شهر‬

‫بتان‬

‫ربند دل هب ادائی هک کس امگن نبرد‬ ‫هن زرع و کشت شناسند نی حدیقه و باغ‬

‫ز وعده گشته پشیمان و بهر دفع مالل‬ ‫ز روی خوی و منش نور دیدۀ آتش‬

‫تو رسهم بین و ورق ردنورد و دم ردکش‬ ‫ز دید و داد زمن رحف رخدساالن‌اند‬

‫چش‬ ‫ز م‏زخم بدین حیله کی رهی غالب؟‬

The idols of the city are the sovereign rulers, but they are cruel; They are the instructors of the whole world in the ways of oppression. (159:1) The beloved is cruel and teaches others how to be cruel to me.

They ravish the heart in such a manner that no one can guess; Alas, those ensconced behind the veil, how well they hide their intentions! (159:2) The beloved behind the veil is playing their tricks.

What would be the manner of the lovers at war, When in the states of peace, they are like the salt on the wounded hearts. (159:3) Imagine what they could do at war when they can ignite our wound in peacetime.

They neither know the sowing and crops, nor they know the chard and garden; They wish for wind and rain so that they can drink. (159:4) All these apparent arrangements to promote the garden are to create an atmosphere for drinkers to start drinking.

441

She regrets her promise and banishes her remorse; They wish for the death of the hopeful ones. (159:5) The beloved has promised union, and now comes regret; she is hoping we will die soon.

These beautiful ones are like the sparkle of the eye of fire in their disposition, Whereas in their color and smell, they are pieces of the spring’s heart. (159:6) They can burn, they can hurt, they can kill like a fire. The black color of antimony is a wordplay.

Behold the antimony, turn the page, and hold your breath; Don’t consider that those with bewitching glances have black deeds. (159:7) Antimony is used to brighten the vision as well as make the eyes more attractive. They are cruel in their hidden character also (black character),

Talk not of her glimpse and display, for they are still young; Wait not for the dust in the path, for they are not the riders. (159:8) She has yet to start riding the pony of her beauty.

O Ghalib, how can you escape from the evil eye with this trick? Don’t say again that there are thousands like me in the world. (159:9) Do you still think you are one of a kind in the presence of the evil eye?

160 ‫از‬

‫بح‬ ‫دلستاانن ل‌اند ار هچ جفا نیز کنند‬

‫عشوه خواهند هک رد کار قضا نیز کنند‬

‫خسته ات جان ندهد وعدۀ دیدار دهند‬

‫کنند‬

‫نیز‬

‫حیا‬

‫نکردند‬

‫هک‬

‫وافیی‬

‫رحم خود نیست هک رب حال گدا نیز کنند‬ ‫مهر با ما ارگ از بهر خدا نیز کنند‬

‫سخ‬ ‫حس‬ ‫کاش با ما ن از رت ما نیز کنند‬ ‫انز رب اتزگی ربگ و نوا نیز کنند‬ ‫گفته‏ای کار هب هن گام روا نیز کنند‬ ‫کنند‬

442

‫نیز‬

‫غالیه‌سا‬

‫سحر‬

‫باد‬

‫س‬

‫نف‬

‫ بترسند و هب زیدان رگدند‬، ‫چون ببینند‬ ‫خون انکامی سی ساهل هدر خواهد بود‬ ‫اندران روز هک رپسش رود از رههچ گذشت‬ ‫کاین‌اه‬

‫نباشم‬

‫زخان‏دیده‬

‫ردختان‬

‫از‬

‫ج‬ ‫رگ بود کوتهی از عمر تو دانی و ا ل‬ ‫نشوی رنجه ز رندان هب صبوحی کاین قوم‬

‫این خطائی است هک رد روز زجا نیز کنند‬ ‫کنند‬

‫نیز‬

‫واف‬

‫جفاپیشه‬

‫خوربویان‬

‫گفته باشی هک ز ما خواهش دیدار خطاست‬

‫حلق غالب نگر و دشنه‏ی سعدی هک رسود‬

The beloved beauties are forgiven even if they inflict tyranny; They are embarrassed by the faithfulness that they never practiced. (160:1) The beloveds are cruel, but they also feel embarrassed for not being faithful, so overall, we can forgive them with this balancing act.

When they look closer, they get scared and turn to God; It’s not their kindness that they show towards the beggar. (160:2) They are afraid that they must turn like the beggar, not for the kindness towards the beggar.

Until the tired one gives his life, she keeps promising to meet him; They want to interfere even in the matter of destiny with their coquetry. (160:3) My destiny and life are in the hands of God, but the beloved keep trying to control it.

The blood of the years of failure would be wasted, If she expresses her love even for the sake of God. (160:4) For a long time, we kept facing failures, and she was happy. Now she has become kind but only because of fear of God; this turns out to be the waste of my years of desperation.

On that day, when everybody is questioned about what has passed by, I wish they would talk to us about our stifled desires. (160:5) That day is Doomsday when everyone will be questioned, and I hope they ask about my stifled desires, but what turns out the day I am not asked?

I am not from the trees exposed to the fall, for these Take pride in the freshness of their leaves and fruits. (160:6) Trees going through Fall regrow their leaves, but I am not that lucky; I am perpetually saddened.

If life is short, then it is between you and death; As you said, everything is done at the right moment. (160:7) A statement of fact.

Be not afflicted by the drunkards who drink in the morning time; After all, they bring the scent to the breath of the morning breeze too. (160:8) Credit to drinkers, they make the morning smell good too.

You may have said that it is wrong to harbor the wish to behold you;

443

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But this is not wrong to be committed, even on the Day of Retribution. (160:9) Committed to striving for a glimpse even on the Day of Retribution will also be a mistake as He will not show his face. So, refers to Moses asking God to show his face.

Look at Ghalib’s throat and the knife of Sa’adi that chants The cruel beauties can be faithful too. (160:10) Sa’adi, the famous Persian poet, became mad at the claim of Ghalib that the beautiful ones can be faithful. See Sa’adi in the glossary.

161 ّ ‫هب رفقم اره طلوع رپ هما دارد‬

‫دماغ اهل فنا نشه‏ی بال دارد‬

‫نش‬ ‫ارگ خدنگ تو رد دل ست جا دارد‬

‫لن ش‬ ‫گشاد شست ادای تو د ین من‌ست‬

‫بیا هک شوقم از آوارگی حیا دارد‬ ‫هجوم انهل لبم را ز انهل وادارد‬

‫رچاغ کشته همان شعله خون‌بها دارد‬

‫هک خود ز اتب خود آتش هب زری اپ دارد‬ ‫ هم هب ما دارد‬،‫ش کایتی هک ز ما نیست‬

‫نق‬ ‫ز جلوۀ کف خاکی هک ش اپ دارد‬ ‫نئی هک ربگ ندارد همان نوا دارد‬ ‫ از کجا دارد‬،‫هک دوست تجرهب‌ای دارد‬ ‫چم‬ ‫ن زعای شهیدان رکبال دارد‬ ‫روا نداشت هک رب ما ستم روا دارد‬

‫هب وعده‌گاه رخام تو رکد نمناکم‬ ‫حش‬ ‫زان مترس هک انهگ هب پیش اقضی ر‬

‫فس‬ ‫ بیفزا هب وعده ذوق وصال‬،‫دلم رد‬

‫جست کس‬ ‫ هماان هب جوی ی‌ست‬،‫تپم ز رکش‬ ‫پی عتاب هماان بهاهن می‌طلبد‬

‫خوش‌ست دعوی آرایش رس و دستار‬ ‫ز جور دست تهی انهل از نهادم جست‬

‫ز سادگی ردم از رحف عشق و من هب امگن‬ ‫هب خون تپیدن گلها نشان یکرنگی‌ست‬ ‫فغان هک رحم بدآموز یار شد غالب‬

The mind of the oblivious ones remains intoxicated and joyful; A saw going over my head feels like the shadow of Huma. (161:1) Huma is a mythical bird, a sign of good luck and an omen that whosoever comes under its shadow becomes a king. The saw over my head is the sign of good luck since I am so lost that I do not feel

445

the pain at all—how lucky can one be if he cannot feel pain? See Huma in the glossary.

Your coquettish walk to our meeting place made me sweat; Come, but my love feels ashamed of your vagabonding. (161:2) The beloved is taking a coquettish walk to come to meet the lover, but seeing her style of cheapness, the lover is ashamed and telling her that do come, but this walk of yours is embarrassing.

Heart stealing is your style of coquetry, and it’s a pleasure for me; If your arrow penetrates my heart, it would be totally appropriate. (161:3) How she steals her heart is an immense pleasure, and if it works, then, of course, it will be the right thing to happen.

Fear not on the Doomsday before God because suddenly The mass of laments would stop my lips from lamenting. (161:4) Assuring the beloved that though my mouth is full of complaints on Doomsday, nothing will come out before because the laments are so many that they have stuffed my mouth, preventing me from letting them come out.

My heart is saddened for you not fulfilling the promise of union; The blood money for the extinguished lamp is for the flame to return to it. (161:5) You break the promise, and it has killed my heart (extinguished); the blood money paid for extinguished lamps will be lit again. So, go ahead and make a new promise to me for the union. Blood money is due when you kill someone, and it is retribution.

I am burning with envy seeking out someone, like The sun is tumultuous under its heat. (161:6) My passion burns me to seek out for someone just like the sun is tumultuous under its heat, searching out for relief.

She always finds a pretext to be cruel to me; Resenting at the complaint, which I have never made. (161:7) The beloved likes to blame the lover even for what he has not done. This way, she keeps getting my complaints as she associates someone else’s complaint with mine.

Good, it is to claim it a decoration of our head and turban, From the display of the dust that has your footprint on it. (161:8) The sight of the dust that has our footprint becomes a means of beautifying our head and turban as we bow down over it.

From the cruelty of my empty hand, the lament raised from my soul as This world doesn’t have a flute but has a tune. (161:9)

446

Being forlorn is the cruelty of nature towards me; to protest this, a complaint arose from my soul just like a tune comes out of a flute that too has no assets, just the sound, like the sound of my complaint.

Her innocence makes her perturbed at the talk of passion; I think it is because of her bitter experience. (161:10) The beloved avoids talking about love and passion, which the lover construes due to her experience, and he is depressed about her having an affair. Then he consoles himself and says that it is because of her innocence about such matters.

It is the sign of singularity when all the flowers change color to red; The garden is mourning the battle of Karbala’s martyrs. (161:11) The garden has roses blooming, turning it into a red plain and comparing it with blood, and then inserting the field of Karbala where the blood was spilled. See Karbala in the glossary.

Alas that her kindness wrongly influenced my friend, Ghalib; She didn’t allow the cruelty to be imposed on me. (161:12) The lover wants his beloved to be cruel to him all the time; her kindness taught her not to be cruel, and I am complaining that be kind to me by being cruel.

162 ‫ّ بهم‬ ‫نی دارد‬ ‫جمال یوسفی و رف‬

‫دارد‬

‫یم‬ ‫رمو هب کعبه ارگ راه ا نی دارد‬

‫هچ ذوق ررهوی آرنا هک خارخاری نیست‬

‫شم‬ ‫خوشم ز دوست هک با دوست د نی دارد‬ ‫ن گاه تو هب زبان تو ربرتی دارد‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫ن هچ ننگ ز آلوده‌دامنی دارد‬ ‫هک می نمانده و ساقی رفوتنی دارد‬ ‫دارد‬

‫معدنی‬

‫دارد‬

‫چش‬ ‫م‌روشنی‬

‫گهراهی‬

‫خواهج‬

‫ربو‬

‫سخ‬ ‫گف‬ ‫رغیب شهر ن‌اهی تنی دارد‬ ‫ما‬

‫نیر‬

‫ضیای‬

‫رزهنی‬

‫آئین‬

‫هک‬

‫نقابدار‬

‫لن ش‬ ‫ هچ غم‬،‫وافی غیر رگش د ین شدست‬ ‫هب دلفریبی من رگم بحث و سود من‌ست‬

‫می‬ ‫ شارعم هن فقیه‬،‫هب باده رگ بودم ل‬

‫خوشم هب زبم ز ارکام خویش و زین غافل‬ ‫سخ‬ ‫نباشدش نی کش توان هب کاغذ ربد‬ ‫زباندانی‬

‫بود‬

‫اینجا‬

‫رگ‬

‫بیاورید‬

‫مبارک‌ست رفیق ار چنین بود غالب‬

447

The beloved taking veil has the tradition of plundering, Beholding the beauty of Yousef and the glory of Bahman. (162:1) The beloved is taking her veil off, but she has the style of plundering the lovers. She has the beauty of Joseph and the grace of Bahman. See Bahman and Yousef in the glossary.

So, what if rival’s faithfulness is pleasuring the beloved’s heart; I am happy with the beloved, for she is showing enmity to her real friend. (162:2) I am the real lover or friend, and she continues to be cruel to me while the rival has melted her heart; the lover is hoping that eventually, she will become hostile to the rival. If she can be cruel to a real lover, then the fake lovers will go fast.

What joy there is unless you tread a path beset with thorns? Don’t set out for the Ka’ba if the path is safe. (162:3) The joy comes from treading a difficult path, so if the path to Ka’ba is easy, do not take it even though destiny is so important.

Engaging in hot discussion about capturing my heart is beneficial to me, As your glance is better than your tongue. (162:4) The beloved is engaged in hot discussion with the lover, but he is happy that her sight of sharp eyes and tongue is giving him pleasure.

If I have an interest in wine, it’s because I am a poet, not a clergy; And wine-stained clothes are no disgrace to a poet. (162:5) I have nothing to do with religion. I am a poet, and I do not care about what is kosher or not. [Drinking wine is prohibited in Islam].

Happy I am in the gathering for the honor bestowed, but unaware That the wine had run out in the assembly and the saqi is humbled. (162:6) I was receiving kind words from saqi and began feeling good until I found that the saqi had run out of wine and acted humbly towards me to avoid embarrassment.

He does not have any word that can be written on the paper; Go away as the rich man only has the pearls that came out of mine. (162:7) While that man has many treasures, he has no poetic skills and is inept at writing anything; so, go away.

If there is one who knows my language, then bring him here; This stranger in the city has so many things to say. (162:8) The poet is the stranger in town and asks if anyone in the city will understand him.

Ghalib, congratulations if the friend has a high vision;

448

As our Zia Nayyar has, and this is a gift to us. (162:9) Zia Nayyar was a poet with an excellent flair for music; here, Ghalib plays with Zia, which means light.

163 ‫لم‬ ‫فسترگجانردتنمباشد‬ ‌ ‫حی‬،‫توجانعا ی‬

‫ز رشکست این هک رد عشق آرزوی رمدنم باشد‬

‫کش‬ ‫هک از خود نیز رد تن حقی رب رگدنم باشد‬

‫بیاسا ساعتی ات رب دم تیغت گلو سایم‬

‫شم‬ ‫ارگ خود زجوی از رگدون هب کام د نم باشد‬ ‫ رگ گلی رد دامنم باشد‬،‫بلرزم رب گلستان‬ ‫ هچ باک از رزهنم باشد‬،‫چو نبود توهش‏ی راهی‬ ‫خلد رد اپی من خاری هک رد ریپاهنم باشد‬

‫گلش‬ ‫ اما زبان با نم باشد‬،‫دلم با اوست‬ ‫مگر صور قیامت‏ساز شور شیونم باشد‬

‫نج‬ ‫ارگ چون انلۀ ز یر بند از آهنم باشد‬ ‫سخ پیچ‬ ‫بیا ات رد ن م هک غالب هم فنم باشد‬

‫قس‬ ‫ل عیش‬ ‫زهی مت هک ساز طا ع‬

‫م کنند آرنا‬

‫شناسم سعی بخت خویش رد انمهربانی‌اه‬

‫ بترس از دیو و نیرنگش‬،‫تو داری دین و ایمانی‬ ‫هبذوقعافیتیارانروندازخویشوچونمنهم‬

‫ چو رحف رنگ و بو گوید‬،‫بدان ات با من آوزید‬

‫بدینآهنگ‏اهیپستنتوانغمربوندادن‬ ‫هب سودایت همان انداز از خود رفتنی دارم‬

‫هم‬ ‫هب زر همدوش اقرون خفتن از دون‌ تی خیزد‬

My desire to die in love is because of my envy; You are the soul of the world; it is a waste if my soul stays in my body. (163:1) You are the soul of the world means everyone loves you. I would prefer to see my soul leave my body because of my envy that there are so many others in love with you. So, it is better that I go.

How fortunate it is if the destiny becomes the instrument of my pleasure; If a piece of heaven would be what my enemy desires. (163:2) The piece of heaven that is desired by the rival is also acceptable to me. Piece of heaven means whatever heaven has given to him.

Rest a bit, so that I could rub my throat at the edge of your sword; Even in my murder, I have a right on my neck. (163:3) I prefer that I rub my neck at the sword to kill myself; that will give me more pleasure, and I am

449

saying it because I have a right to say how my neck should be cut.

In the context of unkindness, I recognize the role of my fortune; If I have one rose in my skirt, I tremble from the kindness of the rose garden. (163:4) I know my fate, so if someone drops a rose in my lap, I begin to shiver, thinking that a calamity is not too far off.

You are a person of religion and belief, be fearful of Satan and his spell; I don’t have any provision for the road, so I am not afraid of the highway robber. (163:5) The assets or provisions are a person’s religious beliefs, which Satan can steal from them. But I am not a believer, so I don’t have assets to protect; thus, I have nothing to fear.

For the joy of prosperity, my friends get lost in themselves but for me The thorn in my garment gives piercing to my feet (163:6) Even a thorn in my garb begins to hurt my feet---I am so sensitive to suffering while many tolerate pain to enhance their prosperity that I do not care about.

When the beloved talks about color and fragrance to create a dispute with her, I bring the discussion of the flower garden, though my heart stays with her. (163:7) I go along with the beloved as she talks about color and fragrance, her beauty, but then I start changing the topic to the flower garden to irritate her to seek her cruel punishment. The beloved becomes upset because she does not want anyone to talk about anything but her.

One cannot release grievance with these low tuned songs; Unless it is with the excitement from the sound of the resurrection horn. (163:8) The low tunes don’t create any excitement, the beloved is like the one who creates excitement.

In your love, the style of my frenzy is the same as lost in self, If my bondage is made of iron, like the chain of my lament. (163:9) I may be held in bondage, but that would not remove my frenzy, as I will stay lost in myself.

Becoming a contemporary to Qaroun and sleeping shows inferior dignity; Come, let me engage you with poetry since Ghalib has the art of speech. (163:10) Qaroun was a rich person who got buried (slept) with camels filled with treasures is pointed here. See Qaroun in the glossary.

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