Archive for April, 2010

Shade of love…

This is my translation of a poem by my homeboy Makhdoom Mohiuddin. I did this last week, and the translation is still a work in progress — so if you know Urdu and English, and have suggestions, please hit me up in the comments (same goes for transliteration).

The poem itself was collected in his 1944 anthology, Surkh Sawera, or Red Dawn.

محبّت کی چَھاؤں
مخدوم محی الدین

ہم محبت کی چھاؤں میں سوتے تھے جب
خار بھی پُھول معلوم ہوتے تھے جب

ابتدائے جنون کی وہ اک بات تھی!
وہ محبّت کی تاروں بھری رات تھی

دِل کے تاروں سے مِضراب ٹکراگیا
آتشیں لئے اُٹھی کیف ساچھاگیا

حُسن کا وار جو تھا وہ بھر پور تھا
جس کو دیکھا نظر بَھر کے وہ طُور تھا

دِل کو اک بار سَب دھوگئیں بجلیَاں
میری رگ رگ میں حل ہوگئیں بجلیَاں

دردِ دل کا بَہانہ بَنی دِل لگی
آنسوؤں کا فسَانہ بنی دِل لگی

پَل کے پَل میں بدلنے لگی زندگی
غم کے سانچوں میں ڈھلنے لگی زندگی

چاہ کا دِن ڈھلا شام ہونے لگی
دِل دھڑکنے لگا آنکھ رونے لگی

رات اور دن یُوںہی آتے جاتے رہے
حُسن اور عِشق تکمیل پاتے رہے

muhabbat ki chhaoN
makhdoom mohiuddin

hum muhabbat ki chhaoN meiN sote the jab
Khaar bhi phool maloom hote the jab

ibtida-e junooN ki woh ek baat thi
woh muhabbat ki taaroN bhari raat thi

dil ke taaroN se mizrab Takra gaya
aatisheeN lae uThi keif sa chha gaya

husn ka vaar jo tha woh bharpoor tha
jis ko dekha nazar bhar ke woh toor tha

dil ko ek baar sab dho gaeeN bijliyaN
meri rag rag meiN hal ho gaeeN bijliyaN

dard-e dil ka bahaana bani dil lagi
aanso’oN ka fasaana bani dil lagi

pal ke pal meiN badalne lagi zindagi
gham ke saanchoN meiN Dhalne lagi zindagi

chaah ka din Dhala shaam hone lagi
dil dhaRakne laga aankh rone lagi

raat aur din yooNhi aate jaate rahe
husn aur ishq takmeel paate rahe

Shade of Love
Makhdoom Mohiuddin

When I slept in the shade of love
Even thorns seemed to be flowers then

That was a matter of the beginning of passion!
That was a night of love, full of stars

My heart’s strings were struck by the pick
Fires rose up, a kind of intoxication cast over

The one endowed with beauty was endowed abundantly
The one I looked at endlessly was revelation

Once my whole heart was washed over with lightning
Lightning was dissolved in my every vein

My heart’s amusement became the reason for my heart’s pain
My heart’s amusement became the story of my tears

My life began to change in a moment
My life began to be cast in the mould of sorrow

The day of love declined, the evening began
My heart began to throb, my eyes began to cry

Night and day came and went like this
Finding beauty and love finished


Revelation. I’ve translated toor as revelation. toor literally means hill or mountain, but refers to Mount Sinai and to the revelation received by Moses there. On Mount Sinai:

When Moses came to Our appointment and his Lord spoke to him, he said: ‘My Lord, show me Yourself that I may look upon You.’ He said: ‘You shall not see Me, but look instead upon that mountain. If it remains firmly in place you shall see Me.’ When the glory of his Lord appeared upon the mountain, it levelled it to the ground. Moses fell down, unconscious. When he came to, he said: ‘Glory be to You! I have repented before You and I am the first among believers.’ (Qur’an 7:143)

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