Crux

حاصل عمرم سه سخن بیش نیست

خام بدم ، پخته شدم ، سوختم

مولانا رومی

The summary of my life exceeds naught three sentences:

I was raw. I stewed. I cindered.

Compromised translation: mine.

Of Ruined City And The Architect

Today is 806th birthday of the master we recognize as Rumi.
I, for one, am deeply in love with the Architect for having created a city that had ruins like Rumi.
You're most welcome to explore through seventy other Rumi posts spread across the blog via this link: Rumi posts

To mark the special occasion, sharing with you one of his poems, a personal favourite of mine: بیا بیا که نیابی

بیا بیا که نیابی چو ما دگر یاری

چو ما به هر دو جهان خود کجاست دلداری

 

بیا بیا و به هر سوی روزگار مبر

که نیست نقد تو را پیش غیر بازاری

 

تو همچو وادی خشکی و ما چو بارانی

تو همچو شهر خرابی و ما چو معماری

 

به غیر خدمت ما که مشارق شادیست

ندید خلق و نبیند ز شادی آثاری

 

هزار صورت جنبان به خواب می‌بینی

چو خواب رفت نبینی ز خلق دیاری

 

ببند چشم خر و برگشای چشم خرد

که نفس همچو خر افتاد و حرص افساری

 

ز باغ عشق طلب کن عقیده شیرین

که طبع سرکه فروشست و غوره افشاری

 

بیا به جانب دارالشفای خالق خویش

کز آن طبیب ندارد گریز بیماری

 

جهان مثال تن بی‌سرست بی‌آن شاه

بپیچ گرد چنان سر مثال دستاری

 

اگر سیاه نه‌ای آینه مده از دست

که روح آینه توست و جسم زنگاری

 

کجاست تاجر مسعود مشتری طالع

که گرمدار منش باشم و خریداری

 

بیا و فکرت من کن که فکرتت دادم

چو لعل می‌خری از کان من بخر باری

 

به پای جانب آن کس برو که پایت داد

بدو نگر به دو دیده که داد دیداری

 

دو کف به شادی او زن که کف ز بحر ویست

که نیست شادی او را غمی و تیماری

 

تو بی‌ز گوش شنو بی‌زبان بگو با او

که نیست گفت زبان بی‌خلاف و آزاری


Come, come, for you will not find another friend like Me.
Where indeed is a Beloved like Me in all the world? 

Come, come, and do not spend your life in wandering to and fro,
Since there is no market elsewhere for your money. 

You are as a dry valley and I as the rain,
You are as a ruined city and I as the Architect.

Except My service, which is joy's sunrise,
Man never has felt and never will feel an impression of joy.

You behold in dreams a thousand moving shapes;
When the dream is past you do not see a single one of the kind.

Close the eye that sees falsely and open the intellectual eye,
For the senses resemble an' ass, and evil desire is the halter. 

Seek sweet syrup in the garden of Love,
For Nature is a seller of vinegar and a crusher of unripened grapes. 

Come to the hospital of your own Creator:
No sick man can dispense with that Physician. 

The world without that King is like a headless body:
Fold yourself, turban-wise, round such a head. 

Unless you are black, do not let the mirror go from your hand:
The soul is your mirror, while the body is rust. 

Where is the fortunate merchant, whose destiny Jupiter controls,
That I may eagerly trade with him and buy his wares? 

Come, and think of Me who gave you the faculty of thought,
Since from My mine you may purchase an ass-load of rubies. 

Come, advance towards Him who gave you a foot,
Look with all your eyes on Him who gave you all eye. 

Clap your hands for joy of Him, by whose see the hand (foam) is produced,
For His joy admits no sorrow nor affliction. 

Listen without ears, speak to Him without tongue,
Since the speech of the tongue is not without offence and injury.

- Rumi in Deewan-e Shams

Translation via web.

The Chalice In The Heart

من و اکسير جام و جانِ جنون

تو و بيداری و چشمان افسون

من و مستی و اين پيمانہ ی دل

تو و تکليف اين دنيا ی کردون

حلمی

I, the elixir of drunkenness, and the spirit of craze

You, the wakefulness, and the charming form

I, intoxication, and this chalice in heart

You, and the bounds of this gyrating world

 inapt translation: mine

The Grand Play Field

در فراخ عرصۂ آں پاک جاں

تنگ آید عرصۂ ہفت آسماں

-  مولانا رومیؒ

In the heart of the pure is such extent

Heavens seven, are but pent 

Verse: Rumi

Inapt translation: mine

Deen Shab Ke Mi Rafti ButaaN

Sarmad dard-e ajab shikast'e kardi
Eeman ba fida'ay chashm-e mast'e kardi
Umr'e ke be ayaat o ahadees guzasht
Rafte-o-nisar'e butparast'e kardi


Deen shab ke mi rafti butaaN, rooh karda azma yuk taraf
Afganda kakul yuk taraf zulf'ay jaleefaaN ek taraf

Az chashm-e siyaah-dari toh ab surma burud kardi
kaha zaalim che haan kardi falah andar bala kardi


Sultan-e khoobaaN meerawad har su hujoom-e aashna
Chaabuk sawaraaN yuk taraf miskeeN gadaya yuk taraf

Nausheen sharab e lala o shud majils e ma bekhabar
jaam o suraahi yuk taraf mastaaN o rusva yak taraf

Tabar rukh'e zebaya toh uftada zahid ra nazar
tasbiyeh zohdash yuk taraf, bada musallah yuk taraf


Bechara Khusro khasta ra mashoor-e khutan farmood ast
Khalq'e ba millat yuk tarf, ma'shooq tanha yuk taraf

Translation: 

The unending pain has left me strangely wretched
At one intoxicating glance, I lost my faith to you
My life is now a tale of the past
Spent, sacrificed at the alter of the deity - you!

Spent my night in the company of idols, 
A talk of soul, perhaps some time else.
Beauty of Silken locks is one thing, 
But tresses of the beloved, something else!

From the black of your eyes, 
kohl was rendered black
Of ruthless you, 
so generous your mercilessness is!

Lord of the fair-faced arrives, 
Hordes of lovers on every side
Esteemed sentinels are close by, 
the poor beggars at distance wide

Whilst delirious was I, 
Kept gathering afloat with wine.
Grail and ale at one end, 
But tipsy and drunken on the other!

A glimpse of the beloved's charming form 
afflicts the pious such
the hymns of piety are one thing, 
a drunken's worship an other!

O ye poor wretched Khusro -  
Of Khutan, said so already
An assembly of the folks at one end, 
the beloved alone at the other!

Verse: Ameer Khusro
Inept translation: mine

Ye, Who Choose

Tujh ko manzoor nahin ghalba-e zulmat lekin

Tujh ko manzoor hai yeh haath qalam ho jaen

Aur mashriq ki kameenN-gah main dharakta hua din

Raat ki aahni mayyat ke talay dab jaey

Translation:

Throne of murk you grudge against; yet

Yield to severe these hands,

Surrender to the dawn breathing softly in the womb of East 

Be entombed under the metal carcass of dusk

Verse: Faiz

Inapt Translation: mine.

Rigorous Matters Of Dilbari

Dilbari neest kay dildadah'e deedar tu neest 

Yuk Khudawund nadeedam kay paristar-e tu neest!

The mirth of love games is for the seeker of love; 

How could ye behold God, if ye believe in none!

Verse: Unconfirmed poet

Inapt translation: mine

Forgo The Frivolous

اي ناطقه بر بام ما ور در تاكي روي در خانه پر

  نطق زبان ترك كن بي چانه شو بي چانه شو

 مولانا

Roughly translated to

 (In the company of the Beloved),

Over the roof, under the sky, talk your heart out

Talk, and not beg for words,

Be restless. Embrace craze

Verse: Rumi

Inapt translation: mine

We Shall.

Thou knowest all - I cannot see.

I trust I shall not live in vain,

I know that we shall meet again

In some divine eternity.

Oscar Wilde

When the brown branches shall bear the red flowers,
Then, my Love,
We shall meet

Then, we shall meet

When the koonj (cranes) shall return from their journey,
Filling the world with a joyous cackle,
Then, my Love,
We shall meet.

Then, we shall meet

When this forlorn cheek of mine has soaked
all tears trailing from my eyes,
Then, my Love,
We shall meet.

Then, we shall meet 

This gulf of separation is a folly of the fool
Hence,
We shall meet.

Then, we shall meet

Artist: Allan Faqir

Sindhi Kalaam: Sheikh Ayaz

Inapt Translation: mine

Manam Mehv-e Khayal

The original kalam of Bu Ali Shah Qalandar (1209- 1324) uses the word "jamal-e oo" instead of "khayal-e oo"

منم محوِ خیال او نمی دانم کُجا رفتم
شُدم غرقِ وصال او  نمی دانم کُجا رفتم

In the thoughts of my Love, I've sunk
Knoweth not I, where I go
In the embrace of my Love I drowned
I lost all clue, where I go!

غلامِ روئے او بودم اسیر روئے او بودم
غبارِ کوئے او بودم نمی دانم کُجا رفتم

Surrendered to a glimpse of Thee O' Love
Caught within those long tresses am I

Turned to dust in Thy path, swirl I
Oh, but knoweth not I, where I go!

بہ عام آشنا گشم زجان و دل فدا گشتم
فنا گشتم فنا گشتم نمی دانم کُجا رفتم

Thee is who they know of, when know of wandering I
Lost my heart and soul to Thou, now wander I
Perished into this wandering... ruined am I
Yet, where do I stray, can not see I

قلندر بو علی ہستم بنام دوست سر مستم
دل اندر عشق او بستم  نمی دانم کُجا رفتم

Bu Ali Qalandar - Ecstatic at the mention of the Beloved

Existing over the intoxication of love
Knoweth not I ... where I go!

Kalam: Bu Ali Shah Qalandar
Inapt translation: mine


Video credits: Sufi Music

Pa Ba-Jolan Chalo

aaj bazaar main pa bajolan chalo

Chashm-e-nam, jaan-e-shoreeda kafi nahin

Tohmat-e-ishq-posheeda kafi nahin

Lets grace the ball shackled in anklets today

A dewy glance, a moiling heart suffice naught

Bearing the charge for unclaimed love counts naught

aaj bazaar main pa-bajolan chalo

Lets grace the ball shackled in anklets today

Dast afshan chalo, mast-o-raqsan chalo

Khak bar sar chalo, khoon badaman chalo

Lets march chanting victory slogans. Ecstatic. Elated...

Dirt ridden, or be blood stained, even then march along

Rah takta hai sub shehr-e-janaan chalo

Hakim-e-shehr bhi, majma-e-aam bhi

To the awaiting city of my darling, my love, lets march along!

Look, there's the monarch, the subject as well

Teer-e-ilzam bhi, sang-e-dushnam bhi

Subh-e-nashaad bhi, roz-e-naakaam bhi

The sting of the pointing finger, the hurt of the hurled insult as well

There's the dull morn, the day of loss as well

Unka dum-saaz apnay siwa kaun hai

Shehr-e-janaan main ab baa-sifa kaun hai

Dast-e-qatil kay shayan raha kaun hai

Who else could be a company, but I?

In the land of beloved, is there any who still holds the turban?

who still supports the head to deserve the axe? 

Rakht-e-dil bandh lo, dil figaro chalo

Phir hameen qatl ho aain yaro chalo

On this saunter of soul, march on ye wounded of the heart 

Let again it be I to paint the gallows red!

Poet: Faiz Ahmed Faiz

Inept translation: Mine.

Blown To Smithereens - Ye Kangna

If you ask me to be honest, I can’t write anything right now. I am totally absolutely blown away by this BEAUTY!

If the sensation of smoking into the skies could be realized, I am sure it wouldn’t be much off the mark!

It’s the feeling of letting Love reducing one to ashes, and from those ashes witnessing the rise of a phoenix- pure Love. Total rapture.

Oh my!

I feel it resonating in each shred of my being. 

Ye kangna!

The following information has been resourced Externally.

KANGNA – FAREED AYAZ & ABU MUHAMMAD
 Title: Kangna – کنگنا – Bracelet
 Language: Braj, Persian
Poetry: Mirza Qateel (d. 1817), Bedam Shah Warsi (d. 1936) and others

In a probable depiction of the way early qawwali was rendered, Kangna borrows liberally from a variety of sub-continental influences to convey a message of universal love. While the essentially spiritual theme is expressed through the imagery of culturally significant symbolism, in both idiomatic Hindi and in Farsi, the emotional relevance of the raag, Malkauns in combination with musical elements from Hindu devotional music enhances the conceptual basis of Kangna.

اے کنگنا
e kangana
O, bracelet
دے دے ری چھیل میرو
de de ri chail mero
give back, O dandy lover
اے کنگنا دے دے ری چھیل میرو
e kangana de de ri chail mero
give back my bracelet, O dandy lover!
کنگنا دے دے
kangana de de

give back my bracelet

توری بنتی کروں

tori binti karoon
I beg and beseech you
تورے پیّاں پروں
tore payyaan paroon
and fall at your feet in humble entreaty

اے کنگنا
e kangana
O, bracelet

ما را بہ غمزہ کشت و قضا را بہانہ ساخت
ma ra bah ghamzah kusht o qaza ra bahaanah saakht
kill us she did with coquetry and made “fate” the excuse
خود سوئے ما نہ دید و حیا را بہانہ ساخت
khud su-i ma nah deed o haya ra bahaanah saakht
she willfully failed to look our way and made “shyness” the excuse

بر دوشِ غیر دست نہاد از رہِ کرم
bar dosh-i ghair dast nihaad az rah-i karam
out of favour for the stranger (our rival), on his shoulder did she place her hand
ما را چو دید لغزشِ پا را بہانہ ساخت
ma ra chu deed laghzish-i pa ra bahaanah saakht
the moment she sighted us, she made “a slip of the foot” the excuse

اے کنگنا
e kangana
O, bracelet
کنگنا دے دے
kangana de de
give back to me my bracelet
کنگنا
kangana
bracelet
دے دے ری چھیل میرو
de de ri chail mero
give back, O dandy lover
اے کنگنا دے دے
e kangana de de
O, give back my bracelet
اجی چھیل! کنگنا دے دے دے دے
aji chail kangna de de de de
I say, you rake! give back, give back my bracelet
دے دے
de de
give back
ری چھیل میرو
ri chail mero
O dandy lover
ناہیں آؤں میں تورے انگنا
naaheen aaoon main tore angana
I won’t come with you to your courtyard

اے کنگنا
e kangana
O, bracelet

لپک جھپک اور آن اچانک رنگ ڈارو
lapak jhapak aur aan achaanak rang ḍaaro
deftly, in the wink of an eye, he cast his colour on me
موہے مدھوا پلایو
mohe madhawa pilaayo
made me drink such heady wine (that I lost myself in him)
ایسے رنگیلے کے بیدم واری
aise rangeele ke bedam waari
Bedam is sacrificed on such a rakish charmer
جن موہے لال گلال بنایو
jin mohe laal gulaal banaayo
who coloured me ruddy, rapturous red!

اے کنگنا
e kangana
my bracelet

موری سکھیاں سہیلیاں موہے بول مارت ہیں چھیلوا
mori sakhiyaan saheliyaan mohe bol maarat hain chailawa
my friends and boon companions throw taunts at me, dandy lover!

دے دے کنگنا
de de kangana
give back to me my bracelet
کنگنا دے دے ری چھیل میرو
kangana de de ri chail mero
give back to my bracelet, dandy lover
ناہیں آؤں میں تورے انگنا
naaheen aaoon main tore angana
I won’t come with you to your courtyard

دل دادم و
dil daadam o
I gave my heart and
جان دادم و
jaan daadam o
gave up my life and
ایمان دادم
eemaan daadam
gave up my very faith!

اے کنگنا
e kangana
O, bracelet