Ek Ashirwad

I had posted this poem long time back, along with an attempted translation (here). However, at that time the unicode support was not great. So sharing again, for the love of reading it in hindi fonts :-) (and with the title).

एक आशीर्वाद

  - दुष्यंत कुमार

जा तेरे स्वप्न बड़े हों।
भावना की गोद से उतर कर
जल्द पृथ्वी पर चलना सीखें।
चाँद तारों सी अप्राप्य ऊचाँइयों के लिये
रूठना मचलना सीखें।
हँसें
मुस्कुराऐं
गाऐं।
हर दीये की रोशनी देखकर ललचायें
उँगली जलायें।
अपने पाँव पर खड़े हों।
जा तेरे स्वप्न बड़े हों।

Saaye mei.n Dhoop - IV

This is my final post on the collection of Ghazals by Dushyant Kumar.
Earlier posts : here, here and here.

In earlier posts, I had selected few ashar that I really loved, from ghazals. I am rounding off the series with two (almost complete) ghazals, each and every sher of which is a true gem!

Mat kaho aakaash mei.n kohra ghana hai
Yeh kisii ki vyaktigat aalochana hai

Raqt varsho.n se naso.n mei.n khaulta hai
Aap kahte hai.n kshanik uttejana hai

Dosto.n! Ab manch par suvidha nahi.n hai
Aajkal nepathya mei.n sambhaavana hai


Do not complain about the dense fog in the sky
It might be construed as a personal criticism of someone

For years, blood has been boiling in the veins
And you call it a momentary excitement

Friends! there is no place available on the stage
There are possibilities in backstage these days

*** *** ***

Ho gayee hai piir parvat sii pighalnii chaahiye
Is himalaya se koii ganga nikalnii chaahiye

Aaj yeh diivaar pardo.n kii tarah hilne lagii
Shart lekin thii ki yeh buniyaad hilnii chaahiye

Har sadak par, har galii mei.n, har nagar, har gaanv mei.n
Haath lehraate hue har laash chalnii chaahiye

Sirf hangama khaDa karna mera maksad nahi.n
Merii koshish hai ki yeh soorat badalnii chaahiye

Mere siine mei.n nahi.n to tere siine mei.n sahii
Ho kahi.n bhi aag, lekin aag jalnii chaahiye


The pain has become mountainous, now it should melt away
Now, a Ganga must emerge from this Himalaya

Today this wall shakes like a curtain
But the condition was to move the very foundation

On every road, on every street, in every town and village
Every corpse should walk waving their hands

My aim is not just to create a disturbance
The whole purpose is to bring about a change

If it is not in my chest, let it be in yours
Wherever the fire is, this fire should keep burning

The imagination and the play of words in the first sher leave me speechless - marvelling at thoughts of the poet. Himalayas - not just the tallest mountains in the world, they protect the Asian subcontinent from harsh northern winds, and are therefore crucial to life here. They are considered sacred by the Hindus, as is Ganga - the most sacred river that emerges from this mountain ranges - and believed to absolve one of all one's since by a single bath in the river!

Another thing that struck me was the comparison of a human being - indifferent to his surroundings, and apathetic to misery around him - to a corpse. This is not unusual, but still the context in which it was used impressed on me - a human being who has no 'chetna' [conciousness/awareness] is no better to the society than a corpse.


And, as rightly suggested by Adi, I must include a reference to where it all started from - how did I get introduced to 'Saye mein dhoop' ...

Saaye Mei.n Dhoop - III

Earlier posts on this collection of ghazals are here and here.
And now time for some more ...

*** *** ***

Gazab hai sach ko sach kahte nahi.n wo
Kuran-o-upnishad khole hue hai.n

Mazaaro.n se duaaei.n maangte ho
Akiide kis kadar pole hus hai.n

It is surprising that they do not speak the truth
Though they have Koran and Upnishads opened in front

You seek blessings from the tomb
How hollow has the faith become

Koran is the religious book of Muslim
Upnishads are Hindu's religious texts

*** *** ***

Bhookh hai to sabra kar, roTi nahi.n to kya hua
Aajkal Dilli mei.m hai zere-bahas ye mudd'aa

Is shahar mei.n woh koii baaraat ho ya vaardaat
Ab kisi bhi baat par khulti nahi.n hai.n khidkiiyaa.n

Bear your hunger, so what if you don't have any bread
The matter is under discussion these days in Delhi

In this city, whether a procession takes place or an incident
Nothing bothers people to open their windows and look out

Delhi - the national capital - represents the government

*** *** ***

Khade hus the alaavo.n ki aa.nch lene ko
Sab apni hatheli jala kar baith gaye

Yeh soch kar ki darakhto.n mei.n chaa.nv hoti hai
Yahaa.n babool ke saaye mei.n aake baith gaye

Everyone stood to get some heat from the bonfire
And burning their palms, they sat back down

Thinking that trees offer shade in the sun
I sat down under a Babool tree

Babool is thorny tree with few leaves, and doesn't really offer a shade [don't know it's name in english]

*** *** ***

Chale hawaa to kivaaDo.n ko band kar lena
Yeh garm raakh sharaaro.n mei.n dhal na jaaye kahii.n

Tamaam raat tere maikade mei.m mai pi hai
Tamaam umra nashe mei.n nikal na jaaye kahii.n

Yeh log hom-o-havan mei.n yaqiin rakhte hai.n
Chalo yahaa.n se chalei.n haath jal na jaaye kahii.n

Close the doors, if a breeze starts blowing
Else the warm ashes might turn into a spark

Entire night, I drank wine in your tavern
Now my entire life may pass in a drunken stupor

Here people believe in fire-worship
Lets us leave here, else we might burn our hands

I do not know the exact equivalent of hom-o-havan, so used fire-worship. Any better suggestion?

*** *** ***

Mai.n bhi to apni baat likhoo.n apne haath se
Mere safe par chod de thoda sa haashiyaa

Allow me to write my feelings in my own hand
On my page, leave a little margin

*** *** ***

Ab ri.nd bach rahe hai.n zara tej raks ho
Mehfil se uth liye hai.n namaazi to lijiye

Now the true admirers are left, let the pace of dance be faster
Those with religious beliefs are leaving the gathering

Namaazi - people who offer prayers five times a day, according to strict Islamic convention
Dance is considered as something evil by those with strict religious beliefs
Ri.nd - someone who truly appreciates dance [as an art]

*** *** ***

Tumhe bhi is bahaane yaad kar lenge
Idhar do-chaar pathhar phe.nk do tum bhi

I'll have an excuse of remembering you too
You also throw a few stones to my side

*** *** ***

Saaye Mei.n Dhoop - II

Here are some more excerpts from the collection.

The first 'sher' was posted earlier, but adding again for the sake of context for another 'sher' from the same 'ghazal' :-)

*** *** *** ***

Yahaa.n darakhto.n ke saaye mei.n dhoop lagti hai
Chalo yahaa.n se chalei.n umra bhar ke liye

Ve mutmain hai.n ki patthar pighal nahi.n sakta
Mai.n bekaraar hoo.n aawaaz mei.n asar ke liye

Here, the sun scorches in the shade of trees
Let us leave this place for ever

They are convinced that stone cannot melt away
I am seeking an impact in my voice

The second sher here always brings to my mind this line from one of Ghalib's ghazls -
Aah ko chahiye ek umra asar hone tak!

*** *** *** ***

Yeh saaraa jism bojh se jhuk kar dohra hua hoga
Main sajde mei.n nahi.n tha, aapko dhokha hua hoga

My entire being was bent double with heavy load
You must've been mistaken that I bowed in prayer

*** *** *** ***

Is nadi ki dhaar mei.n thandi hawa aati to hai
Naav jarjar hi sahi lehro.n se takrati to hai

Ek chingari kahi.n se dhoondh laao dosto.n
Is diye mei.n tel se bheegi hui baati to hai

Dukh nahi.n koii ki ab upalbdhiyo.n ke naam par
Aur kuch ho ya na ho, aakaash si chhaati to hai

The flow of this river brings a cool breeze with it
The boat though decayed, still struggles against the waves

Friends! find and bring a spark from somewhere
An oil-soaked wick is ready in the lamp

I've no sorrows now, as, for my achievements
If nothing else to show, I have a vast chest like the sky

*** *** *** ***

Mere chaman mei.n koii nasheman nahi.n rahaa
Ya yu.n kaho ki barq ki dahshat nahi.n rahii

Kuch dosto.n se waise maraasim nahi.n rahe
Kuch dushmano.n se waisi adaavat nahin rahii

Himmat se sach kaho to bura maante hai.n log
Ro ro ke baat kahne ki aadat nahi.n rahii

No nest remains in this garden now
Or, you can put it that there is no more fear of lightning

The close relationship no longer exists with some friends
The intense hatred does not exist against some foes

If I dare to speak the truth, people are offended
And I am not used to pleading any more

*** *** *** ***

The translation, as usual, is mine. Though I feel this is my weakest attempt so far - I managed to get an almost literal translation, but it is not able to convey the sensitivities expressed in the original hindi version. I am not able to put into words the feeling of loss, of hope, of helplessness, of determination, that the poet did.

That brings to me a thought - can one individual really understand the feelings and emotion of another? When one says to another, "I understand what you are feeling (or, going through right now)", is he or she actually capable of it? On my part, if I have had a setback, and someone tells me that s/he understands, perhaps my reaction would be that of resentment. I might be more at peace if s/he tells me that s/he is sorry to learn of the loss.
With something as abstract as an emotion, how can you establish an equivalence?

Saaye Mei.n Dhoop - I

It was almost two months back that I expressed my intention to share some excerpts from Dushyant Kumar's ghazal collection 'Saaye Mei.n Dhoop'. Well, better late than never :-)

Here are some of the 'ashaar' I liked ...

Lafz ehsaas se chhaane lage, ye to had hai
Lafz mane bhi chhupaane lage, ye to had hai

Aap diivar giraane ke liya aaye the
Aap diivar uthaane lage, ye to had hai

Khamoshi shor se sunte the ki ghabraati hai
Khamoshi shor machaane lage, ye to had hai

*** *** ***
Sar pe dhoop aayee to darakht ban gaya mai.n
Teri zindagi mei.n aksar mai.n koii wajah raha hoo.n

Kabhi dil mei.n aarzoo sa, kabhi mu.nh mei.n baddua sa
Mujhe jis tarah bhi chaahaa, mai.n us tarah raha hoo.n

*** *** ***
Rehnumaao.n ki adaao.n pe fida hai duniya
Is bahakti huii duniya ko sambhaalo yaaro.n

Kaise aakaash mei.n soorakh nahi.n ho sakta
Ek patthar to tabiyat se uchhaalo yaaro.n

*** *** ***

Well, I doubt that someone is ever going to put them to soft music, and make an album out of these. The sentiments expressed in his words are too stark. They are the words of the common man - who has suffered the sad realities of life, who is pained by the naked truth, yet aspires to bring about a change in the indifferent society. I am really not too aware of the life and times of the great poet, or his political affiliations; but I could sense a distinct socialist inclination here.
It was much later that my hunch about his socialist ideology was confirmed by my father, who was familiar with the poet's name and career, but he did not share my enthusiasm about his poetry - perhaps because he is aware of the social and political scene that existed then, while I am not. I am glad that I "found" Dushyant Kumar through his poetry, his words. And one of the first lines written by him that I read, remain amongst my most favorite poems...

Geet gaakar chetna ko var diya maine
Aa.nso.n ke dard ke aadar diya maine
Preet meri aasthaa ki bhookh thi, sahkar,
Zindagi ka chitra poora kar diya maine.