Urdu sher-o-shayari

ajtr

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ras me.n Duuba huaa laharaataa badan kyaa kahanaa
Firaq Gorakhpuri


ras me.n Duuba huaa laharaataa badan kyaa kahanaa
karavaTe.n letii hu_ii subah-e-chaman kyaa kahanaa

baaG-e-jannat me.n ghaTaa jaise baras ke khul jaaye
so.ndhii so.ndhii terii Khushbuu-e-badan kyaa kahanaa

jaise laharaaye ko_ii sholaa kamar kii ye lachak
sar ba-sar aatish-e-sayyaal badan kyaa kahanaa

qaamat-e-naaz lachakatii hu_ii ik qaus-o-e-qazaah
zulf-e-shab ra.ng kaa chhayaa huaa gahan kyaa kahanaa

jis tarah jalvaa-e-firdaus havaao.n se chhiine
pairaahan me.n tere rangiinii-e-tan kyaa kahanaa

jalvaa-o-pardaa kaa ye ra.ng dam-e-nazzaaraa
jis tarah adh-khule ghu.NghaT me.n dulhan kyaa kahanaa

jagamagaahaT ye jabii.n kii hai ke pau phaTatii hai
muskuraahaT hai terii subah-e-chaman kyaa kahanaa

zulf-e-shab_guu.N kii chamak paikar-e-siime.n kii damak
diip maalaa hai sar-e-gang-o-jaman kyaa kahanaa
 

ajtr

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sakuut-e-shaam miTaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai
Firaq Gorakhpuri


sakuut-e-shaam miTaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai
suKhan kii shamaa jalaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

[sakuut=silence]

dayaar-e-Gam me.n dil-e-beqaraar chhuuT gayaa
sambhal ke Dhuu.DHane jaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

ye raat vo ke suujhe jahaa.N na haath ko haath
Khayaalo duur na jaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

laTo.n ko chehare pe Daale vo so rahaa hai kahii.n
zayaa-e-ruKh ko churaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

[zayaa=radiance]

havaaye.N niim shabii ho.n ki chaadar-e-a.njum
naq aab ruKh se uThaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

[niim shabii=midnight; chaadar-e-a.njum=sheet of stars]

shab-e-siyaah me.n gum ho ga_ii hai raah-e-hayaat
qadam sambhal ke uThaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

guzashtaa ahd kii yaado.n ko phir karo taazaa
bujhe chiraaG jalaao nahut a.Ndheraa hai

[gu zashtaa=past]

thii ek uchakatii hu_ii nii.nd zi.ndagii usakii
'Firaq' ko na jagaao bahut a.Ndheraa hai

[uchakatii=disturbed]
 

ajtr

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sar me.n saudaa bhii nahii.n dil me.n tamannaa bhii nahii.n
Firaq Gorakhpuri


sar me.n saudaa bhii nahii.n dil me.n tamannaa bhii nahii.n
lekin is tark-e-mohabbat kaa bharosaa bhii nahii.n

[saudaa=madness; tark-e-mohabbat=giving up of love]

yuu.N to hangaame uThaate nahii.n diivaanaa-e-ishq
magar ai dost kuchh aiso.n kaa Thikaanaa bhii nahii.n

muddate.n guzarii.n terii yaad bhii aaii na hame.n
aur ham bhuul gae ho.n tujhe aisaa bhii nahii.n

ye bhii sach hai ke mohabbat me.n nahii.n mai.n majabuur
ye bhii sach hai ke teraa husn kuchh aisaa bhii nahii.n

dil kii gi.ntii na yagano.n me.n na begaano.n me.n
lekin is jalvaagaah-e-naaz se uThataa bhii nahii.n

[yaganaa=kindred; begaanaa=stranger]
[jalvaagaah=place of manisfestation/gathering]

badagumaa.N ho ke mil aaii dost jo milanaa hai tujhe
ye jhijhakte hue milanaa koi milanaa bhii nahii.n

[badagumaa.N=without doubt/suspicion]

shikvaa-e-jaur kare kyaa koii us shoKh se jo
saaf qaayal bhii nahii.n saaf mukartaa bhii nahii.n

[shikvaa-e-jaur=complain about oppression; qaayal=fond (of)]

meharbaanii ko mohabbat nahii.n kahate ai dost
aah mujhase to merii ra.njish-e-bejaa.N bhii nahii.n

baat ye hai ki sukuun-e-dil-e-vahashii kaa maqaam
ku.nj-e-zi.ndaa.N bhii nahii.n vusa'at-e-seharaa bhi nahii.n

[vahashii=wild/untamed; zi.ndaa.N=prison; vusa'at=expanse]

muu.Nh se ham apane buraa to nahii.n kahate, ke 'Firaq'
hai teraa dost magar aadamii achchhaa bhii nahii.n
 

ajtr

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shaam-e-Gam kuchh us nigaah-e-naaz kii baate.n karo
Firaq Gorakhpuri


shaam-e-Gam kuchh us nigaah-e-naaz kii baate.n karo
beKhudii ba.Dhatii chalii hai raaz kii baate.n karo

nakhat-e-zulf-e-pareshaa.N, daastaan-e-shaam-e-Gam
subah hone tak isii a.ndaaz kii baate.n karo

[nakhat-e-zulf-e-pareshaa.N=disarrayed fragrant hair]

ye sukuut-e-yaas ye dil kii rago.n kaa TuuTanaa
Khaamoshii me.n kuchh shikast-e-saaz kii baate.n karo

[sukuut=silence; yaas=disappointment]
[shikast-e-saaz=breakdown of musical instruments]

har rag-e-dil vazd me.n aatii rahe dukhatii rahe
yuu.N hii us ke jaa-o-bejaa naaz kii baate.b karo

[vajd=extreme happiness; jaa-o-bejaa=right and wrong]

kuchh qafas kii tiiliyo.n se chhan rahaa hai nuur saa
kuchh fazaa kuchh hasarat-e-paravaaz ki baate.n karo

[qafas=cage/prison; nuur=light; hasarat-e-paravaaz=desire to fly]

jis kii furqat ne palaT dii ishq kii kaayaa "Firaq"
aaj usii isaa-nafas dam-saaz kii baate.n karo

[furqat=separation; isaa-nafas=breath of Christ]
 

ajtr

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sitaaro.n se ulajhataa jaa rahaa huu.N
Firaq Gorakhpuri


sitaaro.n se ulajhataa jaa rahaa huu.N
shab-e-furqat bahut ghabaraa rahaa huu.N

tere Gam ko bhii kuchh bahalaa rahaa huu.N
jahaa.N ko bhii samajhaa rahaa huu.N

yaqii.n ye hai haqiiqat khul rahii hai
gumaa.N ye hai ki dhokhe khaa rahaa huu.N

agar mumkin ho le le apanii aahaT
Khabar do husn ko mai.n aa rahaa huu.N

hade.n husn-o-ishq kii milaakar
qayaamat par qayaamat Dhaa rahaa huu.N

Khabar hai tujhako ai zabt-e-muhabbat
tere haatho.n me.n luTataa jaa rahaa huu.N

asar bhii le rahaa huu.N terii chup kaa
tujhe kaayal bhii karataa jaa rahaa huu.N

bharam tere sitam kaa khul chukaa hai
mai.n tujhase aaj kyo.n sharmaa rahaa huu.N

tere pahaluu me.n kyo.n hotaa hai mahasuus
ki tujhase duur hotaa jaa rahaa huu.N

jo ulajhii thii kabhii aadam ke haatho.n
vo gutthii aaj tak sulajhaa rahaa huu.N

muhabbat ab muhabbat ho chalii hai
tujhe kuchh bhuulataa-saa jaa rahaa huu.N

ye sannaaTaa hai mere paa.Nv kii chaap
"Firaq" apanii kuchh aahaT paa rahaa huu.N
 

ajtr

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thar_tharii sii hai aasamaano.n me.n
Firaq Gorakhpuri


thar_tharii sii hai aasamaano.n me.n
zor kuchh to hai naatavaano.n me.n

[thar_tharii = tremors; naatavaa.N = weak]

kitanaa Khaamosh hai jahaa.N lekin
ik sadaa aa rahii hai kaano.n me.n

ko_ii soche to farq kitanaa hai
husn aur ishq ke fasaano.n me.n

[farq = difference]

maut ke bhii u.De hai.n aksar hosh
zindagii ke sharaab_Khaano.n me.n

jin kii taamiir ishq karataa hai
kaun rahataa hai un makaano.n me.n

[taamiir = construction]

inhii.n tinako.n me.n dekh ai bul_bul
bijaliyaa.N bhii hai.n aashiyaano.n me.n
 

ajtr

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ye maanaa zindagii hai chaar din kii
Firaq Gorakhpuri


ye maanaa zindagii hai chaar din kii
bahut hote hai.n yaaro chaar din bhii

Khudaa ko paa gayaa vaa_iz magar hai
zaruurat aadamii ko aadamii kii

milaa huu.N muskuraa ke us se har baar
magar aa.Nkho.n me.n bhii thii kuchh namii sii thii

muhabbat me.n kahe.n kyaa haal dil kaa
Khushii hii kaam aatii hai na Gam hii

bharii mahafil me.n har ek se bachaakar
terii aa.Nkho.n ne mujh se baat kar lii

la.Dakapan kii adaa hai jaan-levaa
Gazab kii chhokarii hai haath-bhar kii

raqiib-e-Gamazadaa ab sabr kar le
kabhii us se merii bhii dostii thii
 

ajtr

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ye nikhato.n kii narm ravii ye havaa ye raat
Firaq Gorakhpuri


ye nikhato.n kii narm ravii ye havaa ye raat
yaad aa rahe hai.n ishq ke TuuTe ta'alluqaat

maayuusiyo.n kii god me.n dam to.Dataa hai ishq
ab bhii ko_ii banaa le to biga.Dii nahii.n hai baat

ik umr kaT ga_ii hai tere intazaar me.n
aise bhii hai.n ke kaT na sakii jin se ek raat

ham ahal-e-intazaar ke aahaT pe kaan the
Tha.NDii havaa thii Gam thaa teraa Dhal chalii thii raat

har saa_i-o-har amal me.n muhabbat kaa haath hai
taamiir-e-zi.ndagii ke samajh kuchh muharakaat

ahal-e-razaa me.n shaan-e-baGaavat bhii ho zaraa
itanii bhii zi.ndagii na ho paaba.nd-e-rasmiyaat

uTh ba.ndagii se maalik-e-taqadiir ban ke dekh
kyaa vasvasaa azaab kaa kyaa kaavish-e-nijaat

mujh ko to Gam ne fursat-e-Gam bhii na dii "Firaq"
de fursat-e-hayaat na jaise Gam-e-hayaat
 

ajtr

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ye to nahii.n ke Gam nahii.n
Firaq Gorakhpuri


ye to nahii.n ke Gam nahii.n
haa.N merii aa.Nkh nam nahii.n

tum bhii to tum nahii.n ho aaj
ham bhii to aaj ham nahii.n

ab na Khushii kii hai Khushii
Gam kaa bhii ab to Gam nahii.n

maut agarche maut hai
maut se ziist kam nahii.n
 

ajtr

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aisa kiya likhon k tere roh ko taskeen ponchy kiya ye hi kafi nahin k mari duaon main tum ho
 

ajtr

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beniyaaz-e-sahar ho ga_ii
Ganesh Bihari Tarz


beniyaaz-e-sahar ho ga_ii
sham-e-Gam moatabar ho ga_ii

ik nazar kyaa idhar ho ga_ii
ajanabii har nazar ho ga_ii

zindagii kyaa hai aur maut kyaa
shab hu_ii aur sahar ho ga_ii

unkii aa.Nkho.n me.n ashk aa gaye
daastaa.N muKhtasar ho ga_ii

chaar tinake hii rakh paaye the
bijaliyo.n ko Khabar ho ga_ii

chhi.D ga_ii kis kii daaman kii baat
Khud_ba_Khud aa.Nkh tar ho ga_ii

un kii mahafil se uThakar chale
raushanii ham_safar ho ga_ii

'Tarz' jab se chhuuTaa kaaravaa.N
ziist gard-e-safar ho ga_ii
 

ajtr

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duniyaa banii to hamd-o-sunaa ban ga_ii Gazal
Ganesh Bihari Tarz


duniyaa banii to hamd-o-sunaa ban ga_ii Gazal
utaraa jo nuur nuur-e-Khudaa ban ga_ii Gazal

guu.Njaa jo naad_brahm banii raqs-e-mahar-o-maah
zarre jo thar-tharaaye sadaa ban ga_ii Gazal

chamakii kahii.n jo barq to ehasaas ban ga_ii
chhaa_ii kahii.n ghaTaa to adaa ban ga_ii Gazal

aa.Ndhii chalii to qahar ke saa.Nche me.n Dhal ga_ii
baad-e-sabaa chalii to nashaa ban ga_ii Gazal

haivaan bane to bhuuk banii bebasii banii
insaan bane to jazb-e-vafaa ban ga_ii Gazal

uThaa jo dard-e-ishq to ashko.n me.n Dhal ga_ii
bechainiyaa.N ba.Dii to duaa ban ga_ii Gazal

zaahid ne pii to jaam-e-panaah ban ke rah ga_ii
rindo.n ne pii to jaam-e-baqaa ban ga_ii Gazal

arz-e-dakkan me.n jaan to dilli me.n dil banii
aur shahar lakhanau me.n hinaa ban ga_ii Gazal

dohe rubaa_ii nazme.n sabii 'Tarz' the magar
asnaaf-e-shaayarii kaa Khudaa ban ga_ii Gazal
 

ajtr

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ik zara dil ke qariib aao to kuchh chain pa.De
Ganesh Bihari Tarz


ik zara dil ke qariib aao to kuchh chain pa.De
jaam ko jaam se Takaraao to kuchh chain pa.De

baiThe baiThe to har mauj se dil dahalegaa
ba.Dake tuufaan se Takaraao to kuchh chain pa.De

jii ulajhataa hai naGmaa-e-rangiin sun kar
giit ek dard bharaa gaao to kuchh chain pa.De

daaG ke sher javaanii me.n bhale lagate hai.n
miir kii ko_ii Gazal gaao to kuchh chain pa.De

yaad-e-ayaa.N me.n guzishtaa.N se ijaazat lekar
'Tarz' kuchh der ko so jaao to kuchh chain pa.De
 

ajtr

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ishq kii maar ba.Dii dardiilii ishq me.n jii na pha.Nsaanaa jii
Ganesh Bihari Tarz


ishq kii maar ba.Dii dardiilii ishq me.n jii na pha.Nsaanaa jii
sab kuchh karanaa ishq na karanaa ishq se jaan bachaanaa jii

vaqt na dekhe umar na dekhe jab chaahe majabuur kare
maut aur ishq ke aage to ko_ii chale na bahaanaa jii

ishq kii Thokar maut kii hichakii dono.n kaa hai ek asar
ek kare ghar ghar rusvaa_ii ek kare afsaanaa jii

ishq kii nemat phir bhii yaaro har nemat par bhaarii hai
ishq kii Tiise.n den Khudaa kii ishq se kyaa ghabaraanaa jii

ishq kii nazaro.n me.n yaksaa.N kaabaa kyaa but_Khaanaa kyaa
ishq me.n duniyaa uqbaa kyaa hai kyaa apanaa begaanaa jii

raah kaThin hai pii ke nagar kii aag pe chal ke jaanaa hai
ishq hai sii.Dhii pii ke milan kii jo chaaho to nibhaanaa jii

'Tarz' bahut din jhel chuke tum duniyaa kii zanjiiro.n ko
to.D ke pinjaraa ab to tumhe.n hai des piyaa ke jaanaa jii
 

ajtr

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mujhe deke mai mere saaqiyaa merii tashnagii ko havaa na de
Ganesh Bihari Tarz

mujhe deke mai mere saaqiyaa merii tashnagii ko havaa na de
merii pyaas par bhii to kar nazar mujhe maikashii kii sazaa na de

meraa saath ai mere ham_safar nahii.n chaahataa hai to jaam de
magar is tarah sar-e-rah_guzar mujhe har qadam pe sadaa na de

meraa Gam na kar mere chaaraagar terii chaaraajo_ii bajaa magar
meraa dard hai merii zindagii mujhe dard-e-dil kii davaa na de

mai.n vahaa.N huu.N ab mere naasehaa ki jahaa.N Khushii kii guzar nahii.n
meraa Gam hado.n se guzar gayaa mujhe ab Khushii kii duaa na de

vo giraaye.n shauq se bijaliyaa.N ye sitam karam hai.n sitam nahii.n
ke vo 'Tarz' barq-e-jafaa nahii.n jo chamak ke nuur-e-vafaa na de
 

Ray

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na pina haram
na pilana haram
pi kar hosh men rahna hai haram

N Ansari
 

Ray

The Chairman
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I
Wake! For the Sun, who scatter'd into flight
The Stars before him from the Field of Night,
Drives Night along with them from Heav'n, and strikes
The Sultan's Turret with a Shaft of Light.


II
Before the phantom of False morning died,
Methought a Voice within the Tavern cried,
"When all the Temple is prepared within,
Why nods the drowsy Worshipper outside?"


III
And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before
The Tavern shouted--"Open then the Door!
You know how little while we have to stay,
And, once departed, may return no more."


IV
Now the New Year reviving old Desires,
The thoughtful Soul to Solitude retires,
Where the White Hand Of Moses on the Bough
Puts out, and Jesus from the Ground suspires.


V
Iram indeed is gone with all his Rose,
And Jamshyd's Sev'n-ring'd Cup where no one knows;
But still a Ruby kindles in the Vine,
And many a Garden by the Water blows,


VI
And David's lips are lockt; but in divine
High-piping Pehlevi, with "Wine! Wine! Wine!
Red Wine!"--the Nightingale cries to the Rose
That sallow cheek of hers t' incarnadine.


VII
Come, fill the Cup, and in the fire of Spring
Your Winter-garment of Repentance fling:
The Bird of Time has but a little way
To flutter--and the Bird is on the Wing.


VIII
Whether at Naishapur or Babylon,
Whether the Cup with sweet or bitter run,
The Wine of Life keeps oozing drop by drop,
The Leaves of Life keep falling one by one.


IX
Each Morn a thousand Roses brings, you say;
Yes, but where leaves the Rose of Yesterday?
And this first Summer month that brings the Rose
Shall take Jamshyd and Kaikobad away.


X
Well, let it take them! What have we to do
With Kaikobad the Great, or Kaikhosru?
Let Zal and Rustum bluster as they will,
Or Hatim call to Supper--heed not you


XI
With me along the strip of Herbage strown
That just divides the desert from the sown,
Where name of Slave and Sultan is forgot--
And Peace to Mahmud on his golden Throne!


XII
A Book of Verses underneath the Bough,
A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread--and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness--
Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!


XIII
Some for the Glories of This World; and some
Sigh for the Prophet's Paradise to come;
Ah, take the Cash, and let the Credit go,
Nor heed the rumble of a distant Drum!


XIV
Look to the blowing Rose about us--"Lo,
Laughing," she says, "into the world I blow,
At once the silken tassel of my Purse
Tear, and its Treasure on the Garden throw."


XV
And those who husbanded the Golden grain,
And those who flung it to the winds like Rain,
Alike to no such aureate Earth are turn'd
As, buried once, Men want dug up again.


XVI
The Worldly Hope men set their Hearts upon
Turns Ashes--or it prospers; and anon,
Like Snow upon the Desert's dusty Face,
Lighting a little hour or two--is gone.


XVII
Think, in this batter'd Caravanserai
Whose Portals are alternate Night and Day,
How Sultan after Sultan with his Pomp
Abode his destined Hour, and went his way.


XVIII
They say the Lion and the Lizard keep
The Courts where Jamshyd gloried and drank deep:
And Bahram, that great Hunter--the Wild Ass
Stamps o'er his Head, but cannot break his Sleep.


XIX
I sometimes think that never blows so red
The Rose as where some buried Caesar bled;
That every Hyacinth the Garden wears
Dropt in her Lap from some once lovely Head.


X
And this reviving Herb whose tender Green
Fledges the River-Lip on which we lean--
Ah, lean upon it lightly! for who knows
From what once lovely Lip it springs unseen!


XXI
Ah, my Belov'ed fill the Cup that clears
To-day Past Regrets and Future Fears:
To-morrow!--Why, To-morrow I may be
Myself with Yesterday's Sev'n Thousand Years.


XXII
For some we loved, the loveliest and the best
That from his Vintage rolling Time hath prest,
Have drunk their Cup a Round or two before,
And one by one crept silently to rest.


XXIII
And we, that now make merry in the Room
They left, and Summer dresses in new bloom
Ourselves must we beneath the Couch of Earth
Descend--ourselves to make a Couch--for whom?


XXIV
Ah, make the most of what we yet may spend,
Before we too into the Dust descend;
Dust into Dust, and under Dust to lie
Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer, and--sans End!


XXV
Alike for those who for To-day prepare,
And those that after some To-morrow stare,
A Muezzin from the Tower of Darkness cries
"Fools! your Reward is neither Here nor There."


XXVI
Why, all the Saints and Sages who discuss'd
Of the Two Worlds so wisely--they are thrust
Like foolish Prophets forth; their Words to Scorn
Are scatter'd, and their Mouths are stopt with Dust.


XXVII
Myself when young did eagerly frequent
Doctor and Saint, and heard great argument
About it and about: but evermore
Came out by the same door where in I went.


XXVIII
With them the seed of Wisdom did I sow,
And with mine own hand wrought to make it grow;
And this was all the Harvest that I reap'd--
"I came like Water, and like Wind I go."


XXIX
Into this Universe, and Why not knowing
Nor Whence, like Water willy-nilly flowing;
And out of it, as Wind along the Waste,
I know not Whither, willy-nilly blowing.


XXX
What, without asking, hither hurried Whence?
And, without asking, Whither hurried hence!
Oh, many a Cup of this forbidden Wine
Must drown the memory of that insolence!


XXXI
Up from Earth's Centre through the Seventh Gate
rose, and on the Throne of Saturn sate;
And many a Knot unravel'd by the Road;
But not the Master-knot of Human Fate.


XXXII
There was the Door to which I found no Key;
There was the Veil through which I might not see:
Some little talk awhile of Me and Thee
There was--and then no more of Thee and Me.


XXXIII
Earth could not answer; nor the Seas that mourn
In flowing Purple, of their Lord forlorn;
Nor rolling Heaven, with all his Signs reveal'd
And hidden by the sleeve of Night and Morn.


XXXIV
Then of the Thee in Me works behind
The Veil, I lifted up my hands to find
A Lamp amid the Darkness; and I heard,
As from Without--"The Me Within Thee Blind!"


XXXV
Then to the lip of this poor earthen Urn
I lean'd, the Secret of my Life to learn:
And Lip to Lip it murmur'd--"While you live
Drink!--for, once dead, you never shall return."


XXXVI
I think the Vessel, that with fugitive
Articulation answer'd, once did live,
And drink; and Ah! the passive Lip I kiss'd,
How many Kisses might it take--and give!


XXXVII
For I remember stopping by the way
To watch a Potter thumping his wet Clay:
And with its all-obliterated Tongue
It murmur'd--"Gently, Brother, gently, pray!"


XXXVIII
And has not such a Story from of Old
Down Man's successive generations roll'd
Of such a clod of saturated Earth
Cast by the Maker into Human mould?


XXXIX
And not a drop that from our Cups we throw
For Earth to drink of, but may steal below
To quench the fire of Anguish in some Eye
There hidden--far beneath, and long ago.


XL
As then the Tulip for her morning sup
Of Heav'nly Vintage from the soil looks up,
Do you devoutly do the like, till Heav'n
To Earth invert you--like an empty Cup.


XLI
Perplext no more with Human or Divine,
To-morrow's tangle to the winds resign,
And lose your fingers in the tresses of
The Cypress--slender Minister of Wine.


XLII
And if the Wine you drink, the Lip you press
End in what All begins and ends in--Yes;
Think then you are To-day what Yesterday
You were--To-morrow You shall not be less.


XLIII
So when that Angel of the darker Drink
At last shall find you by the river-brink,
And, offering his Cup, invite your Soul
Forth to your Lips to quaff--you shall not shrink.


XLIV
Why, if the Soul can fling the Dust aside,
And naked on the Air of Heaven ride,
Were't not a Shame--were't not a Shame for him
In this clay carcase crippled to abide?


XLV
'Tis but a Tent where takes his one day's rest
A Sultan to the realm of Death addrest;
The Sultan rises, and the dark Ferrash
Strikes, and prepares it for another Guest.


XLVI
And fear not lest Existence closing your
Account, and mine, should know the like no more;
The Eternal Saki from that Bowl has pour'd
Millions of Bubbles like us, and will pour.


XLVII
When You and I behind the Veil are past,
Oh, but the long, long while the World shall last,
Which of our Coming and Departure heeds
As the Sea's self should heed a pebble-cast.


XLVIII
A Moment's Halt--a momentary taste
Of Being from the Well amid the Waste--
And Lo!--the phantom Caravan has reach'd
The Nothing it set out from--Oh, make haste!


XLIX
Would you that spangle of Existence spend
About the Secret--Quick about it, Friend!
A Hair perhaps divides the False and True--
And upon what, prithee, may life depend?


L
A Hair perhaps divides the False and True;
Yes; and a single Alif were the clue--
Could you but find it--to the Treasure-house,
And peradventure to The Master too;


LI
Whose secret Presence, through Creation's veins
Running Quicksilver-like eludes your pains;
Taking all shapes from Mah to Mahi; and
They change and perish all--but He remains;


LII
A moment guess'd--then back behind the Fold
Immerst of Darkness round the Drama roll'd
Which, for the Pastime of Eternity,
He doth Himself contrive, enact, behold.


LIII
But if in vain, down on the stubborn floor
Of Earth, and up to Heav'n's unopening Door
You gaze To-day, while You are You--how then
To-morrow, You when shall be You no more?


LIV
Waste not your Hour, nor in the vain pursuit
Of This and That endeavour and dispute;
Better be jocund with the fruitful Grape
Than sadden after none, or bitter, Fruit.


LV
You know, my Friends, with what a brave Carouse
I made a Second Marriage in my house;
Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed
And took the Daughter of the Vine to Spouse.


LVI
For "Is" and "Is-not" though with Rule and Line
And "Up" and "Down" by Logic I define,
Of all that one should care to fathom,
Was never deep in anything but--Wine.


LVII
Ah, but my Computations, People say,
Reduced the Year to better reckoning?--Nay
'Twas only striking from the Calendar
Unborn To-morrow, and dead Yesterday.


LVIII
And lately, by the Tavern Door agape,
Came shining through the Dusk an Angel Shape
Bearing a Vessel on his Shoulder; and
He bid me taste of it; and 'twas--the Grape!


LIX
The Grape that can with Logic absolute
The Two-and-Seventy jarring Sects confute:
The sovereign Alchemist that in a trice
Life's leaden metal into Gold transmute:


LX
The mighty Mahmud, Allah-breathing Lord
That all the misbelieving and black Horde
Of Fears and Sorrows that infest the Soul
Scatters before him with his whirlwind Sword.


LXI
Why, be this Juice the growth of God, who dare
Blaspheme the twisted tendril as a Snare?
A Blessing, we should use it, should we not?
And if a Curse--why, then, Who set it there?


LXII
I must abjure the Balm of Life, I must,
Scared by some After-reckoning ta'en on trust,
Or lured with Hope of some Diviner Drink,
To fill the Cup--when crumbled into Dust!


LXIII
Oh, threats of Hell and Hopes of Paradise!
One thing at least is certain--This Life flies;
One thing is certain and the rest is Lies;
The Flower that once has blown for ever dies.


LXIV
Strange, is it not? that of the myriads who
Before us pass'd the door of Darkness through,
Not one returns to tell us of the Road,
Which to discover we must travel too.


LXV
The Revelations of Devout and Learn'd
Who rose before us, and as Prophets burn'd,
Are all but Stories, which, awoke from Sleep,
They told their comrades, and to Sleep return'd.


LXVI
I sent my Soul through the Invisible,
Some letter of that After-life to spell:
And by and by my Soul return'd to me,
And answer'd "I Myself am Heav'n and Hell:"


LXVII
Heav'n but the Vision of fulfill'd Desire,
And Hell the Shadow from a Soul on fire,
Cast on the Darkness into which Ourselves,
So late emerged from, shall so soon expire.


LXVIII
We are no other than a moving row
Of Magic Shadow-shapes that come and go
Round with the Sun-illumined Lantern held
In Midnight by the Master of the Show;


LXIX
But helpless Pieces of the Game He plays
Upon this Chequer-board of Nights and Days;
Hither and thither moves, and checks, and slays,
And one by one back in the Closet lays.


LXX
The Ball no question makes of Ayes and Noes,
But Here or There as strikes the Player goes;
And He that toss'd you down into the Field,
He knows about it all--He knows--HE knows!


LXXI
The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all your Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all your Tears wash out a Word of it.


LXXII
And that inverted Bowl they call the Sky,
Whereunder crawling coop'd we live and die,
Lift not your hands to It for help--for It
As impotently moves as you or I.


LXXIII
With Earth's first Clay They did the Last Man knead,
And there of the Last Harvest sow'd the Seed:
And the first Morning of Creation wrote
What the Last Dawn of Reckoning shall read.


LXXIV
Yesterday This Day's Madness did prepare;
To-morrow's Silence, Triumph, or Despair:
Drink! for you know not whence you came, nor why:
Drink! for you know not why you go, nor where.


LXXV
I tell you this--When, started from the Goal,
Over the flaming shoulders of the Foal
Of Heav'n Parwin and Mushtari they flung
In my predestined Plot of Dust and Soul.


LXXVI
The Vine had struck a fibre: which about
If clings my being--let the Dervish flout;
Of my Base metal may be filed a Key,
That shall unlock the Door he howls without.


LXXVII
And this I know: whether the one True Light
Kindle to Love, or Wrath-consume me quite,
One Flash of It within the Tavern caught
Better than in the Temple lost outright.


LXXVIII
What! out of senseless Nothing to provoke
A conscious Something to resent the yoke
Of unpermitted Pleasure, under pain
Of Everlasting Penalties, if broke!


LXXIX
What! from his helpless Creature be repaid
Pure Gold for what he lent him dross-allay'd--
Sue for a Debt he never did contract,
And cannot answer--Oh, the sorry trade!


LXXX
Oh, Thou, who didst with pitfall and with gin
Beset the Road I was to wander in,
Thou wilt not with Predestined Evil round
Enmesh, and then impute my Fall to Sin!


LXXXI
Oh, Thou who Man of baser Earth didst make,
And ev'n with Paradise devise the Snake:
For all the Sin wherewith the Face of Man
Is blacken'd--Man's forgiveness give--and take!


LXXXII
As under cover of departing Day
Slunk hunger-stricken Ramazan away,
Once more within the Potter's house alone
I stood, surrounded by the Shapes of Clay.


LXXXIII
Shapes of all Sorts and Sizes, great and small,
That stood along the floor and by the wall;
And some loquacious Vessels were; and some
Listen'd perhaps, but never talk'd at all.


LXXXIV
Said one among them--"Surely not in vain
My substance of the common Earth was ta'en
And to this Figure moulded, to be broke,
Or trampled back to shapeless Earth again."


LXXXV
Then said a Second--"Ne'er a peevish Boy
Would break the Bowl from which he drank in joy,
And He that with his hand the Vessel made
Will surely not in after Wrath destroy."


LXXXVI
After a momentary silence spake
Some Vessel of a more ungainly Make;
"They sneer at me for leaning all awry:
What! did the Hand then of the Potter shake?"


LXXXVII
Whereat some one of the loquacious Lot--
I think a Sufi pipkin-waxing hot--
"All this of Pot and Potter--Tell me then,
Who is the Potter, pray, and who the Pot?"


LXXXVIII
"Why," said another, "Some there are who tell
Of one who threatens he will toss to Hell
The luckless Pots he marr'd in making--Pish!
He's a Good Fellow, and 'twill all be well."


LXXXIX
"Well," Murmur'd one, "Let whoso make or buy,
My Clay with long Oblivion is gone dry:
But fill me with the old familiar juice,
Methinks I might recover by and by."


XC
So while the Vessels one by one were speaking,
The little Moon look'd in that all were seeking:
And then they jogg'd each other, "Brother! Brother!
Now for the Porter's shoulder-knot a-creaking!"


XCI
Ah, with the Grape my fading Life provide,
And wash the Body whence the Life has died,
And lay me, shrouded in the living Leaf,
By some not unfrequented Garden-side.


XCII
That ev'n my buried Ashes such a snare
Of Vintage shall fling up into the Air
As not a True-believer passing by
But shall be overtaken unaware.


XCIII
Indeed the Idols I have loved so long
Have done my credit in this World much wrong:
Have drown'd my Glory in a shallow Cup
And sold my Reputation for a Song.


XCIV
Indeed, indeed, Repentance of before
I swore--but was I sober when I swore?
And then and then came Spring, and Rose-in-hand
My thread-bare Penitence apieces tore.


XCV
And much as Wine has play'd the Infidel,
And robb'd me of my Robe of Honour--Well,
I wonder often what the Vintners buy
One half so precious as the stuff they sell.


XCVI
Yet Ah, that Spring should vanish with the Rose!
That Youth's sweet-scented manuscript should close!
The Nightingale that in the branches sang,
Ah, whence, and whither flown again, who knows!


XCVII
Would but the Desert of the Fountain yield
One glimpse--if dimly, yet indeed, reveal'd,
To which the fainting Traveller might spring,
As springs the trampled herbage of the field!


XCVIII
Would but some wing'ed Angel ere too late
Arrest the yet unfolded Roll of Fate,
And make the stern Recorder otherwise
Enregister, or quite obliterate!


XCIX
Ah, Love! could you and I with Him conspire
To grasp this sorry Scheme of Things entire,
Would not we shatter it to bits--and then
Re-mould it nearer to the Heart's Desire!


C
Yon rising Moon that looks for us again--
How oft hereafter will she wax and wane;
How oft hereafter rising look for us
Through this same Garden--and for one in vain!


CI
And when like her, oh, Saki, you shall pass
Among the Guests Star-scatter'd on the Grass,
And in your joyous errand reach the spot
Where I made One--turn down an empty Glass!


THE END
 

ajtr

Tihar Jail
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duur se duur talak ek bhii daraKht na thaa
Gopaldas Neeraj


duur se duur talak ek bhii daraKht na thaa
tumhaare ghar kaa safar is qadar to saKht na thaa

[daraKht = tree; saKht = difficult/hard]

itane masaruuf the ham jaane kii taiyaarii me.n
kha.De them tum aur tumhe.n dekhane kaa vaqt ka thaa

[masaruuf = busy]

mai.n jis kii khoj me.n Khud kho gayaa thaa mele me.n
kahii.n vo meraa hii ehasaas to kam_baKht na thaa

[kam_baKht = unfortunate]

jo zulm sah ke bhii chup rah gayaa na Khaul uThaa
vo aur kuchh ho magar aadamii kaa rakt na thaa

[Khaul = boil; raqt = blood]

unhii.n faqiiro.n ne itihaas banaayaa hai yahaa.N
jin pe itihaas ko likhane ke liye vaqt na thaa

[itihaas = history]

sharaab kar ke piyaa us ne zahar jiivan bhar
hamaare shahar me.n 'Neeraj'-saa ko_ii mast na thaa
 

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