Jul 2013
1. The moment my beloved asked me, "How does one lose his mind?"
Being mindful of my selflessness, the wind blow -- "Like this"!
2. It is never more than a single glance- the leisure of existence !
The cheers of the assemblage exist until a dance of the spark!
3. She, having come into my dreams, could at least give comfort to my restlessness!
But, only if the convulsions in my heart could give me an opportunity to sleep!!
4. You asserted that why would there be disgrace in seeing a stranger!
Rightly you remark, truly you speak; do say it again, for why would there be!
5. My heart had made an offering for the appearance I so longed for!
But upon reflection, the strength of my vision weakened and then vanished!
Being mindful of my selflessness, the wind blow -- "Like this"!
2. It is never more than a single glance- the leisure of existence !
The cheers of the assemblage exist until a dance of the spark!
3. She, having come into my dreams, could at least give comfort to my restlessness!
But, only if the convulsions in my heart could give me an opportunity to sleep!!
4. You asserted that why would there be disgrace in seeing a stranger!
Rightly you remark, truly you speak; do say it again, for why would there be!
5. My heart had made an offering for the appearance I so longed for!
But upon reflection, the strength of my vision weakened and then vanished!
Yet another translation of the verses by Mirza Ghalib.
The genre of poetry that achieved its sublimity and artistic brilliance by the creativity of Ghalib is called ghazal, a highly aristocratic, classical and rigid form of poetry that was introduced in the Urdu language through Persian. Ghazal, the voice of a passionate lover, is a set of four to eight or more semantically independent distiches (two-line verses) in the same meter that have varying subject matters, style, and mood. These distiches are aptly described by Sir William Jones as "Oriental pearls at random strung." Ghazal, having close analogies to Arabic poetry, is considered by Christopher Shackle as one of the most striking examples of those “successful cultural artifacts, consisting of a seemingly infinitely adaptable combination of essentially simple elements, which are so characteristic of the Persianate civilization of the eastern Islamic world” (Shackle, para.1). Ghalib’s ghazals are replete with concrete and kinesthetic imagery, majestic rhythm, and diffusion of vital, liberal cultures of Iran and Central Asia.
These couplets are meant to be read as independent units.
The genre of poetry that achieved its sublimity and artistic brilliance by the creativity of Ghalib is called ghazal, a highly aristocratic, classical and rigid form of poetry that was introduced in the Urdu language through Persian. Ghazal, the voice of a passionate lover, is a set of four to eight or more semantically independent distiches (two-line verses) in the same meter that have varying subject matters, style, and mood. These distiches are aptly described by Sir William Jones as "Oriental pearls at random strung." Ghazal, having close analogies to Arabic poetry, is considered by Christopher Shackle as one of the most striking examples of those “successful cultural artifacts, consisting of a seemingly infinitely adaptable combination of essentially simple elements, which are so characteristic of the Persianate civilization of the eastern Islamic world” (Shackle, para.1). Ghalib’s ghazals are replete with concrete and kinesthetic imagery, majestic rhythm, and diffusion of vital, liberal cultures of Iran and Central Asia.
These couplets are meant to be read as independent units.
