A Quick Translation: Roshan Jamaal-e-Yaar..... by Maulana Hasrat Mohani

A very popular ghazal by Maulana Hasrat Mohani, my favourite rendition is by Begum Abida Parveen from her album Raqs-e-Bismil (Dance of the Wounded); a quick, even haphazard, at times careless translation of this masterpiece. Do bear with me!

Urdu Original (English Transliteration):

Roshan jamaal-e-yaar se hai anjuman tamaam,
Dehka hua hai aatish-e-gul se chaman tamaam,

Hairat ghuroor-e-husn se, shokhi se izteraab,
Dil ne bhi tere seekh liye hain chalan tamaam,

Allah re! jism-e-yaar ki khoobi, ke khud ba khud,
Rangeeniyon mein doob gaya pairaahan tamaam,

Dil khoon ho chuka hai, jigar ho chuka hai khaak,
Baaqi hoon mein mujhe bhi kar ai! tegh zan tamaam,

Dekho to chashm-e-yaar ki jaadoo nigaahiyaan,
Behosh ik nazar mein hui anjuman tamaam,

Hai naaz-e-husn se jo firozaan jabeen-e-yaar,
Labreiz aab-e-noor hai chaah-e-zaqan tamaam,

Nash-o-numaa-e-sabza-o-gul se bahaar mein,
Shaadaabiyon ne gher liya hai chaman tamaam,

Is naazneen ne jab se kiya hai wahaan qayaam,
Gulzaar ban gayi hai zameen-e-dakkan tamaam,

Achcha hai ahl-e-jaur kiye jaaein sakhtiyaan,
Phailegi yoon hi shorish-e-habb-e-watan tamaam,

Samjhe hain ahl-e-sharq ko shaayad qareeb-e-marg,
Maghreb ke yoon hain jam'a ye zagh-o-zaghan tamaam,

Sheeriniye 'Naseem' hai, soz-o-gudaaz-e-'Meer',
'Hasrat' tere sukhan pe hai lutf-e-sukhan tamaam!

English Translation:

Illuminates, her graceful beauty, the gathering, aplenty,
A lone fiery bloom, up in flames, the garden aplenty,

Obfuscates, thy beauteous charm, wiles at the wink of an eye,
The heart has too, learnt the ways, of chicanery aplenty,

Hallelujah! Her material form, so wretchedly beautiful,
Flares up, a palette, a million hues, her raiment, aplenty,

My desolate heart lies wasted, my spirits lifeless and cold,
Relieve me, with the sword, like my shackles aplenty,

Behold! The captivating gaze, of her bottomless eyes,
In a moment, knocked out cold, the gathering, aplenty,

Unblemished shines her coquetry, through her lovely brow,
Every dent on her face now, emits radiance aplenty,

Blooms myriad hues of spring, fecund the lush green,
Clothed in verdant hues blooms the garden aplenty,

Since this land, she has made her home, lo behold! the sight,
The Deccan now, a flower-bed, with colours aplenty,

Let the oppressors oppress, it's a blessing in disguise,
Patriotic fires, would only then, be kindled aplenty,

Thinking the people of the Orient, close to mortal death,
In droves, the Occident's birds of prey, encircle aplenty!

Infuses the sweetness in 'Naseem', the passionate intensity of 'Meer',
'Hasrat', in thy verses, play, the nuances of poesy aplenty!

Wishful Thinking

I wish I were a long-lost rhyme, planted on thy luscious lips,
By the percussive raindrops, that set to tune, heartstrings thine,
I wish I were the morning rays, the sun that adorned thy world, Hark!
I would drench in light thy being so, sheer radiance, halo divine!
I wish I were the summer moon, that would thy sun eclipse,
Second fiddle, to thy refrain, to trail thy melody in a flash,
In thy heart, the forest dense, I wish I were a spark,
That would in flames, engulf it all, to leave just smoke and ash!

Sara

I had risen, like the Sun,
In her desolate Autumn,
Shining, hope and warmth abound,
I endeared myself to her,

We frolicked along the icy streets,
Melting the crystal snow,
Unwrapped the brightest hues of life,
From their coffins cold,

And as the air grew warmer,
The colours grew brighter still,
In them she made friends anew,
While haplessly I shone,

And then came her Spring, I saw,
Beauty unmatched, from far,
I was a relic of the past,
Having overstayed my welcome....

A Translation: Faiz Ahmed Faiz Sahab's "Ek Rahguzar Par"...... - "Down Memory Lanes"

The most ambitious of my translations, this is another beautiful nazm of Faiz Sahab's. It's written in 13 rhyming couplets and I have tried to retain the rhyming scheme and maintain the meter of the poem. Again, I have consciously avoided a literal translation; I have instead chosen words and phrases that would, in my humble opinion, capture the essence of the Urdu lines. For a few Urdu words and phrases, there could be no possible translation that would both capture the literal meaning and also produce the intended effect; I've liberally interpreted those into English verse, for example, the last couplet, it contains so much within so less that I'm inclined to believe that certain emotions could only be captured in specific languages and I may be forgiven if the liberties I've taken seem a little too much! I've never seen a woman being described in more flattering terms than these; Faiz Sahab was indeed one of the greatest romantics ever!

Original Urdu (English Transliteration):

Ek Rahguzar Par

Wo jiski deed mein laakhon masarratein pinhaan,
Wo husn jiski tamanna mein jannatein pinhaan,

Hazaar fitney, tah-e-paa-e-naaz, khaak nasheen,
Har ik nigaah khumaar-e-shabaab se rangeen,

Shabaab, jis se takhayyul pe bijliyaan barsein,
Waqaar, jiski rafaaqat ko shokhiyaan tarsein,

Ada-e-laghzish-e-paa par qayamatein qurbaan,
Bayaaz-e-rukh pe sahar ki sabaahatein qurbaan,

Siyaah zulfon mein warafta nikhaton ka hujoom,
Taweel raaton ki khwaabeeda raahaton ka hujoom,

Wo aankh jis ke banaao pe Khaaliq itraaye,
Zubaan-e-sh'er ko t'aareef karte sharm aaye,

Woh hont faiz se jin ke bahaar laala farosh,
Bahisht-o-Kauser-o-Tasneem-o-Salsabeel badosh,

Gudaaz jism qaba jis pe saj ke naaz kare,
Daraaz qad jise sarw-e-sahi namaaz kare,

Gharaz, wo husn jo muhtaaj-e-wasf-e-naam nahin,
Wo husn jis ka tasawwur bashar ka kaam nahin,

Kisi zamaane mein is rahguzar se guzra tha,
Basad ghuroor-o-tajammul, idhar se guzra tha,

Aur ab ye raahguzar bhi hai dilfareb-o-haseen,
Hai iski khaak mein kaif-e-sharaab-o-sh'er makeen,

Hawa mein shokhi-e-raftaar ki adaaein hain,
Faza mein narmi-e-guftaar ki sadaaein hain,

Gharaz, wo husn ab is rah ka juzu-e-manzar hai,
Nayaaz-e-ishq ko ik sajda-gah mayassar hai.........

English Translation: 

Down Memory Lanes

The one, beneath whose eyes, a million delights conceal,
Her beauty, the allure, paths to Pearly Gates conceal,

Tempts, her delicate tread, in a thousand ways, my soul,
Fecund, her intoxicating youth, in each glance of hers we stole,

Aah youth! that electrifies, the realm of my senses so,
The companionship, of the solemnity seeks, each gaiety, piningly so,

Sighs, the end of it all, as each caprice of her sashays,
Odes, in bright light, the morning, weaves to caress her face,

Stifled, in her dark tresses, heady fragrances brew,
For longish nights, a respite, as delightful dreams ensue,

The creator himself, proudly exults, at the form of her eyes,
Tongue-tied, lines of verse, in vain, to paint her form, it tries,

The bounteous lips, they lend, a rosy hue to Spring,
Led astray, those who seek, heavenly streams, they bring,

On her ravishing form, meanders, flowing robes, her attire,
Songs of wandering minstrels, her stately build, inspires,

Such beauty, need not on, ministrations it thrive,
Not possibly from mortal thoughts, it may soul derive,

Long ago, through these lanes, I had for a moment, passed,
Held in awe, her enticing frame, vainglorious, as I passed,

Down these memory lanes, enamoured, enticed, I traverse,
Enwraps my being, the very wind, she breathed in wine and verse,

Hangs vaporous, the elegance, over the ground once she tread,
Softly plays in the air, her eloquence, a melody she impressed,

And thus, these lanes shall forever, her immortal beauty retain,
Always would, for seekers true, a refuge they remain.......

Reason and Rhyme

Your poems are obsessively mine, 
I live each metaphor enthusiastically, 
Breathes life into me each allusion, 
And I paint vivid vignettes of my own, 
I yodel and howl and bark and plop, 
To bring to life thy onomatopoeia, 
Sing along to the chorus, iambic pentameter, 
And falsetto to the haunting refrain, 
Mere mention of a breeze ruffles my hair, 
Brings to me thy distant fragrance, 
Drenches me each raindrop and tear, 
And I shiver, helpless and frail, 
Amuses me every limerick and riddle, 
In your voice, the cadence I hear, 
In awe, mouth gaping wide, 
I relive each memory, 
Hand in hand with you, 
And as you end your little adventure, 
I fall to the floor, limp and lifeless, 
Only to rise and live again, 
Through thy verse and rhyme.

The Funeral: Grave Diggers

I was buried not long ago, 

Without much fan or fare, 

Few lips that prayed a requiem low, 

Few anecdotes to share,

I had in mind a different scene, 

Oft in dreams I dreamt, 

Few limericks for what I'd been, 

To inveigle and to tempt,

Shrouded in a regal way, 

And a countenance to match, 

Emotions running high, astray, 

A mournful lovely batch,

But alas! It dawned on me, 

Brought forth a lonely tear, 

The world that we now touch and see, 

Is the very one we fear,

We love those who would never care, 

In earnest bits of heart and soul, 

Sleepless nights, Into darkness stare, 

On fragile hearts, memories toll.

My Masterpiece

On parchments fine, 
In vain I try, 
To build in verse a masterpiece, 
My very own last supper in rhyme, 
A futile attempt to reason, 
With words of mine,tainted, 
Hollow and bare, 
Shamelessly hers to claim, 
That clings to a fond memory, 
That my pinings conjure, 
As blooms to a long lost spring, 
A relic of affluence, 
Still painfully fragrant, 
In acrostics I try to spell her name, 
Only to deceive my own intentions, 
To put to order emotions mine, 
And I get lost amidst, 
Her tresses and my words.