Na Ganvao Navak-e-Neem Kash (your half drawn arrow)- Faiz
Junaid has sent another translation of Faiz rendered by a Toronto based poet - Anis Zuberi. This is a timeless ghazal, Na Ganvao Navak-e-Neem Kash has not only been translated but also explained in detail by Mr Zuberi.
Na ganvao navak-e-neem kash, dil-e-reza reza ganva dia
Jo bachay hain sang samet lo, tan-e-dagh dagh luta dia
Mere charagar ko naveed ho, saf-e-dushmana ko khabar karo
Woh jo qarz rakhtay thay jaan par, woh hisab aaj chuka dia
Karo kaj jabeen pe sar-e-kafan, mere qatilon ko guman na ho
Ke ghuroor-e-ishq ka baankpan, pas-e-marg hum ne bhula dia
Udhar aik harf ki kushtni, yahan laakh uzr thaa guftni
Jo kaha toh sun ke ura dia, jo likha toh parh ke mita dia
Jo rukay toh koh-e-garan thay hum, jo chalay toh jan se guzar gaye
Rah-e-yaar hum ne qadam qadam, tujhay yadgaar bana dia
Translation and explanation:
Na ganvao navak-e-neem kash, dil-e-reza reza ganva dia
Jo bachay hain sang samet lo, tan-e-dagh dagh luta dia
Do not waste (your) half drawn arrow, (I have already) lost (broken pieces of my) heart.
Collect and save the left-over stones, (my) injured or wounded body is (already) wasted
There is a clear sense of despondency as he realizes that his opponents are mighty and he had no physical strength to challenge them. The establishment that is perpetrating injustice on society is much more powerful (think of police, military intelligence and even judiciary in addition to the wealth and political power they have against a wronged man who with nothing except his bare hands; in case of a poet, a hand with a harmless pen). In such a situation he does not see any hope. In a state of despondency he asks his tormentors not to waste their arrows and save the left-over stones —Symbols of the power of the establishment to drown and quiet dissent— as they have already achieved their purpose; the resistance is no more, he has already lost his soul and body.
Mere charagar ko naveed ho, saf-e-dushmana ko khabar karo
Woh jo qarz rakhtay thay jaan par, woh hisab aaj chuka dia
Let my health giver know, let the procession of foes know
He whose soul was indebted, has settled his dues today
In a sense he is repeating what he said in the first two lines. Addressing his well wishers as well as his adversaries, he says “I have paid my dues by sacrificing my life”. Here the most important word is “qarz” (dues). What kind of dues is he talking about? Again in the face of injustice and oppression he does not want to be a bystander. He feels that that it is his obligation to fight on behalf of the weak and downtrodden (that is the qarz he is referring to). For him fight for justice is not a choice but a duty. By equating his supreme sacrifice with repayment of qarz he is reminding that he did what he was supposed to do. For that he does not need to be praised.
Let us not confine his struggle within a geographical boundary. Faiz who writes against exploitation is a citizen of the world. Does it make a difference if the victims are Lebanese, Argentineans, Haitians or Pakistanis?
Karo kaj jabeen pe sar-e-kafan, mere qatilon ko guman na ho
Ke ghuroor-e-ishq ka baankpan, pas-e-marg hum ne bhula dia
Keep the burial shroud atilt on (my) forehead, lest my assassin may have misgivings
(that) Pride of self-importance or arrogance of love, I forgot after death.
This is typical of Faiz’s style. After expressing despondency and defeat he shows defiance. A bent cap or as in Urdu poetry called “kaj kulahi” is a sign of self-importance or in case of a figure of authority a symbol of arrogance (like the kulah of Nawab of Kalabagh). So he asks that his burial shroud be placed atilt on his forehead so that his assassins may not have the comfort or satisfaction of knowing that they have made him humble in death. No, he does not want to surrender even in death. He is as defiant in death as he was in life. They killed his body not his soul.
Udhar aik harf ki kushtni, yahan laakh uzr thaa guftni
Jo kaha toh sun ke ura dia, jo likha toh parh ke mita dia
On that side there was one word ‘kill’, on my side there were hundred thousand reasons (to explain why I behaved the way I did)
What (I) said (you) heard, not paid attention ; what (I) wrote (you) you read and erased
The word ‘udher’ he is referring to the oppressors or the privileged class that uses violence to maintain the status quo and “yahan’ signifies the person who is leading the struggle against injustice and tyranny. People who are blinded by their self interest are not willing to heed any word of logic or reason, whether it is spoken or written. The indirect conclusion is that people can not get justice through dialogue because the other side is bent on using brute force to continue exploitation.
(Is not true today? West is not prepared to listen to any reasoning though on my side there are hundred thousand reasons to explain why I behaved the way I did )
Jo rukay toh koh-e-garan thay hum, jo chalay toh jan se guzar gaye
Rah-e-yaar hum ne qadam qadam, tujhay yadgaar bana dia
(I am) mountain when I stop; (I am) beyond life when I walk
I have, (turned) every step on the path of the beloved into a memorial
In his usual style in the last two lines the person who fights for the rights of the underprivileged now assumes the mantel of a lover. When he stops his strength and determination is that of a mountain and when he walks (that signifies movement in life as against the stationery position when a person is standing), he is larger then life. While walking he turned every step on the path of his beloved into a memorial or a testament through his determination and sacrifice. Here he is not a traditional lover and the path is not an alleyway leading to the beloved. It is a powerful poetic symbol.
He is fighting for the right of downtrodden with a lover’s determination and the difficult path he is treading on (to get to his objective, the beloved) has become a monument of his strength (standing) and struggle (walking).
(One can listen to the echoes of these lines in the mountains of Afghanistan)
February 29th, 2008
in
Poetry, Urdu, All My Posts, Urdu Literature, South Asian Literature, Faiz |
February 29th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
[…] Content Keyword RSS wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerpt […]
February 29th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
brilliant interpretation & rediscovery of Faiz in the times that we live. Have the people of Pakistan paid the karz by voting overwhelmingly for change, I wonder
February 29th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
what’s the meaning of ‘half drawn arrow’?. I can’t find It on the net, but I have found some Ghazal during the search with that expression…
February 29th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Ignacio: it means while preparing to use an arrow to attack the enemy i.e. stretching the bow half-way..
So here the poet is saying that do nto waste your arrow on my heart as my heart is already shattered into pieces..
hope I am clear?
February 29th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
Oh I was on the wrong path, I supposed that It was any type of special arrow or weapon… LOL
February 29th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
Kisi ka kiya jo qadmoom par jabeen-e-bendagi rekh dee
Hamari cheese dehi jehan cha-hi wahan rekh dee
Jo dil managa tu woo boolay k dehroo yaad karnay du
zara c cheese dehi na janay kehan rekh dee
March 5th, 2008 at 9:07 am
I would suggest a seperate category/section to archive all translations - urdu to english and also eglish to urdu. Ultimately, building up a poetic treasure.
Thanks.
March 5th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
MU Ahmad, many thanks for this suggestion. I will create these categories - will have to do it manually so will take time
I am grateful that you visited and gave such a good suggestion
Aftab: Bohat umda ash’aar - please give me the reference of the full ghazal
Ignacio: thanks
March 6th, 2008 at 7:13 am
Raza, I always interpreted this piece differently. I thought it was about the poet’s concept of ‘khudi’ AND struggle against opression.
Mere charagar ko naveed ho, saf-e-dushmana ko khabar karo
Woh jo qarz rakhtay thay jaan par, woh hisab aaj chuka dia
In the two lines above for example I would venture that he proclaims to the world that weak and physically defeated he may be, he carries no debts. The last debt was to God (of his own life) and with death he even repays that. I thought it was about the ’self’ and struggles within rather anything else. I can see your logic though and it is, for me at least, a new twist on Faiz’s piece.
NN (The Mall, 94)
March 10th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
RR
Here are some more “ash-aar” translated into english. Surely, these will inspire many others to subscribe / share from their collection.
Regards,
M.U.Ahmad.
“Umar bhar ka tooney paiman-e-wafa baandha to kiya
Umar ko bhi tou nahin hai paaedarie, Haai Haai”.
(Mirza Ghalib).
Translation:
As a tribute to our love’s commitment
You vouched to keep the knot of amity tied
‘Till eternity’s dark culmination in a misty bowl.
You must know,
My dear, that the bond of mortality
Between us pervades all others
Making our earthly sojourn
Merely a transitory marvel.
“Main bulata tou hoon usko magar aey jazba-e-dil
Us-peh ban jaey kuch aeysi ki bin aaey na baney”.
( Mirza Ghalib.)
Translation:
Come hither! Gentle, fleeting feet
Not in response to my prayer
But through the prompting
Of your own dear heart
Riven with infinite desire.
“Go hathoun mein jumbish nahein aankhoun mein to dum hai
Rehney do abhi sagher-o-meena merey aagey”
( Mirza Ghalib.)
Translation:
No life my fluttering hands retain
Say not my love for wine a vain
Before me let the cups remain
Hands can not but eyes can drain
“Hain khamyaazey saroor-e-aarzou key
Nishaat vo gham kahou, namoun mein kiya hai.”
(Shan-ul-Haque Haqqie.)
Translation:
Call them by name whatsoever
Happiness, delight, sorrow or grief
Fully well I know , these are
Consequences of loving pleasantries
Of an anguished love and a riven heart.
“Dil-e-mutrib samajh sakey sha-yed
Ek shikasta rubaab ka aalam.”
(Jigar Muradabadi)
Translation:
May be a loving heart
would understand
Anguished wail of another heart
Riven by loneliness
Born of distance
“” Kuch is-tareh sey bahaar aii hai ki bujhney lagey
Hawa-e lala-ou gul se chiragh-e deida-ou dil. “”
(Jigar Muradabadi)
Translation:
The aura of spring this season
Is not what it used to be
Sunshine and morning breeze
Passing over flower bed
Brightens not petals bedewed
But cast a shadow of gloom
All over lee.
“Talab nay khaii hain woh thokrain rah-e-tmanna mein
Ki aakhir mujh se sharmaane lagi haey aarzoo meri ”
“Bezaar-e- hayat -o- rang-o-boo houn
Mein munkir-e-baad -o- saboo houn
Cherey na mujhey naseem-e-gulshan
Houn dil to magar, lahoo lahoo hou.”
(Raaz Muradabadi)
Translation:
I am averse to the life of glamour and gaiety
In denial of wine, women and beauty
O’ breez ! pass over me gently and softly
I am a wounded soul and a heart
Bleeding profusely.
“Chaman key rang-o-boo ney is-qadar dhokey di-yae mujhko
ke meiney zouq-e-gul-bosii mein katoun per zaban rakh-di”
“Na hum budley, na tum budley, na dil ki aarzoo badlee
Mein kaisey etibar-e-inqilab-e-aasmaan karloon”
(Riyaz Uddin Amjad)
Translation:
Nothing has changed between us
Neither me, nor you, nor our love
How come, can I trust
Things would ever change
To bring us together.
“Bezaar-e- hayat -o- rang-o-boo houn
Mein munkir-e-baad -o- saboo houn
Cherey na mujhey naseem-e-gulshan
Houn dil to magar, lahoo lahoo hou.”
(Raaz Muradabadi)
Translation:
I am averse to the life of glamour and gaiety
In denial of wine, women and beauty
O’ breez ! pass over me gently and softly
I am a wounded soul heart and a
Bleeding profusely.
“Mein who berg-e-khizaan raseedah houn gulzar-e-hastee mein
Bagooley jis ke sha-aeq, aashiq jis kee bad-e-sarsar hai”
( Haffez Jalundhri)
Translation:
I am an autumn leaf in the garden of life
Cherished by whirlwind
Loved by dust storm
“Ek hee shab mein huee yeh khida-haaey aeysh ki soorat
Chaman ka ghuncha ghuncha subh ko ek chashm-e-giryaan tha”
( Haffez Jalundhri)
In one night only a joyful dream came to an end
I the morning each bud in the bloom
Had a tearful eye
“Razzaq-e-Dojahan ke khazaney ko kiya huaa
Milta hai ghum who bhi kisee ka diya huaa”
( Haffez Jalundhri)
Translation:
What has become to the treasure of GOD
One who gives sustenance both the world
I am given only grief
That too by some one else
March 11th, 2008 at 7:49 pm
M.U Ahmad - many thanks for the verses - I will post them in due course.
NN: overall what you say is also correct - the nuances of Urdu and Persian are so complex that myriad meanings flow out of these compositions. Let me think a little more about what you said
thanks for dropping by from the Mall—
March 12th, 2008 at 8:30 am
RR
Thanks for posting verses - in future. Also, invite others to contribute. There is lot of material scattered in magazines, personal papers and memory. Putting these in an archive would be a service par excellence.
Regards.