Faiz- aaye kuchh abr…

Explanation of Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s ghazal:

فیض احمد فیض - غزل

آئے کچھ ابر کچھ شراب آئے

اس کے بعد آئے جو عذاب آئے

aa.e kuchh abr kuchh sharāb aa.e

is ke ba.ad aa.e jo azaab aa.e

abr = cloud. cloud represents mercy, respite

sharab is an Arabic word which means drink but usually refers to any alcoholic drink. drinking alcohol is sin for Muslims.

azaab= torment, calamity, divine punishment

Give me some respite, some comfort even if it is in the form of an alcoholic drink. At least give me that moment and I don’t mind if it is followed by punishment or hardship. I just need this moment of comfort (because I had hard life so far or because I need a break… etc. whatever your reason maybe)

بام مینا سے ماہتاب اترے

دست ساقی میں آفتاب آئے

bām-e-mīnā se māhtāb utre

dast-e-sāqī meñ āftāb aa.e

baam = roof, morning.

meena= wine bottle

dast= hand (dastana will be gloves for hands)

saaqi = the one who serves drinks

mahtaab= moon

aaftab= sun

It’s a sher with highly evolved imagery and captures a sense of euphoria where the poet is seeing moon and sun in the tavern (already high :-)). As the moon fades away or descends when it is morning, poet is imagining that the it is as if morning for the wine bottle and the moon (alcohol?) descends/fades (into the goblet?) and the hands of the Saaqi appears as if Sun has reached there (making it illuminated).

ہر رگ خوں میں پھر چراغاں ہو

سامنے پھر وہ بے نقاب آئے

har rag-e-ḳhūñ meñ phir charāġhāñ ho

sāmne phir vo be-naqāb aa.e

rag= veins, arteries

ḳhūñ= is short for khoon. any Urdu word that ends in n can have its full n sound dropped for a half n sound e.g. aasmaa.n for aasmaan, jahaa.n for jahaan.

rag-e-khoon= blood vessels

charāġhāñ: plural of chiragh but also the illumination or lighting

be-niqaab= niqaab means face veil adding “bay” prefix in front of any word makes it without e.g. be-sabab= without reason.

Every blood vessel will be illuminated or lit up as a result of blood flow increasing through them. why? not why but when… when the beloved once again (phir) comes in front of me unveiled.

But that’s a very literal meaning of this sher.. let’s go a bit deeper. You lit a place that is dark so is he saying that without your appearance in front of me unveiled, my life was dark and depressed.

How about a metaphysical interpretation? so here beloved (actually beloved word is not used here at all, it merely hints by saying “vo”) can mean God. so what he is saying that when God appears in front of me unveiled meaning there is no barrier between me and God i.e. reaching the high state of gnosis. Then my whole being starting with my blood vessels goes in your true worship (remember chiragh in Hinduism is a form of worship or reverance).

عمر کے ہر ورق پہ دل کی نظر

تیری مہر و وفا کے باب آئے

umr ke har varaq pe dil kī nazar

terī mehr-o-vafā ke baab aa.e

varq= page of a book, folio e.g. chandi ka varq = silver folio, put on sweets.

mehr= kindness e.g. meharbaan

vafa= fidelity, loyalty

baab= chapters or gates

umr ka varq will mean every page of the book of life when I glance with my heart (dil ki nazar, that is looking honestly or with emotions) I find so much of your kindness and fidelity (towards me) that whole chapters of those can be written on each and every page of my book of life. this can be taken in physical sense or also metaphysical.

کر رہا تھا غم جہاں کا حساب

آج تم یاد بے حساب آئے

kar rahā thā ġham-e-jahāñ kā hisāb

aaj tum yaad be-hisāb aa.e

gham= sorrows

jahaan= word

hisaab= counting, adding, math

Usually you want to not use same word twice in a sher unless you are a ustaad. Here Faiz uses “hisaab” two times but both meanings are actually different.

I was taking into account the sorrows of (or due to) this world, you came to my mind numerous (uncountable) times. You came to mind because you are also part of these sorrows or maybe you were the distraction from the task at hand of counting sorrows… who really wants to do that?

نہ گئی تیرے غم کی سرداری

دل میں یوں روز انقلاب آئے

na ga.ī tere ġham kī sardārī

dil meñ yuuñ roz inqalāb aa.e

sardaari= leadership/controller

inqalaab= revolution

“gham ki sardaari” is very interesting phrase, it may mean that the sadness or sorrows that you have given me still controls/dominates my heart. That brings about revolutions in my heart daily. Revolution as understood by Faiz, being a progressive revolutionary poet, means that the heart is rebelling against the memory of the beloved or fighting against the control that the beloved’s sorrows seems to have on his heart. But obviously he is not succeeding as suggested by “na gayi.”

Interesting aside, Arabic word for dil is “qalb” which is the root word for Inquilab.

جل اٹھے بزم غیر کے در و بام

جب بھی ہم خانماں خراب آئے

jal uThe bazm-e-ġhair ke dar-o-bām

jab bhī ham ḳhānumāñ-ḳharāb aa.e

bazm= gathering

ghair= others, not our own

dar= door

baam= roof

khanuman kharab= barbaad, destroyed

jalna usually suggests burning but jal uthe means that they were lit up.. the door and roof of the place where the gathering of the others (paraayi i.e. not of someones who are dear or close to me) were lit up meaning the place came alive or become beautiful … whenever I came there — destroyed. which suggests that the whole reason that particular bazm exists is to enjoy my destruction or my barbaadi fuels the lamps that lights up that bazm.

اس طرح اپنی خامشی گونجی

گویا ہر سمت سے جواب آئے

is tarah apnī ḳhāmushī gūñjī

goyā har samt se javāb aa.e

khamashi= khamoshi= silence

goonjna= resonating

goya= as if, like, speaking

samt=simt= directions

My silence resonated this way…. “goya” has two meanings and both meaning can be applied here. let’s start with “as if” or “like.” as if from all the directions the answers came back meaning the silence resonated and came back from all the directions. now try the “speak” meaning of goya and it will read from all the directions answers were spoken back to me.

This is standard poetry technique where contrasts/contradictions are used. e.g. khamoshi ka goonjna, and khamoshi in first line contrasts with goya in the second line.

Sometimes silence is enough you don’t have to articulate your questions or say the words, also, to listen you don’t really needs words to be spoken back to you… listen to the language of the silence.

فیضؔ تھی راہ سر بسر منزل

ہم جہاں پہنچے کامیاب آئے

‘faiz’ thī raah sar-ba-sar manzil

ham jahāñ pahuñche kāmyāb aa.e

Faiz= benefit, name of the poet

sar-ba-sar= Whole, in its entirety

manzil= destination

kaamyaab= successful

The path in its entirety was destination which provided me the benefit (faiz). wherever we reached (pahunche) we were successful. Probably what it means is that if the path that you have chosen is the correct one, even just walking on that path is beneficial and path itself is the destination.