दिल में अब यूं तेरे भूले हुए (Dilme Ab Yuun Tere Bhoole Huye) -- Faiz Ahmed Faiz

[Urdu Couplet #41]

दिल में अब यूं तेरे भूले हुए ग़म आते हैं 

जैसे बिछड़े हुए काबे में सनम आते हैं 

Dilme ab yuun tere bhoole huye gam aate hain

Jaise bichade huye kaabe me sanam aate hain

Faiz Ahmed Faiz
(1911-1984)

ग़म (gam) = sorrow; काबा (kaabaa) = sacred Muslim pilgrim shrine; सनम (sanam) = beloved, idol (reference from 'the idol in old mecca')

[English Meaning]

In my heart now, your forgotten sorrows return

As a beloved (God) returns to the separated shrine

Notes:
The couplet is derived from a poem published in Faiz Ahmed Faiz's book "Nuskha Hai Wafa". The poet uses metaphorical analogy in the couplet by giving "the beloved" the place of God in a shrine. Metaphorically, the shrine can also be equated to poet's heart. This first couplet sets the tone of the theme covered in the entire poem, that is love, longing, sorrow and spiritual reflection of lost love. The poet builds an imagination so that the readers can understand the depth of the longing by describing the continuous return of the "forgotten sorrows" as if "God" returns in the most sacred shrine (Kaaba). Further, the poet also explains the piousness of his love and emotions by giving his beloved the place equivalent to God, while symbolically mentioning his own heart as shrine. Thus, the poet elevates his personal experience of loss and pain to a profoundly sacred spiritual experience.

तेरे दस्ते-सितम का (Tere Dast-e-Sitam Ka) -- Faiz Ahmed Faiz

[Urdu Couplet #36]

तेरे दस्ते-सितम का अज्ज़ नहीं 

दिल ही काफ़िर था जिसने आह न की 

Tere dast-e-sitam ka ajj nahi

Dil hi kaafir tha jisne aah na ki

Faiz Ahmed Faiz
(1911-1984)

दस्ते-सितम (dast-e-sitam) =  hand of tyranny (or tyrannical hand); अज्ज़ (ajj) = humility, modesty, civility; काफ़िर (kaafir) = unbeliever, non-believer (the word is derived from the reference in Quran for anyone who doesn't believe in Allah or God); आह (aah) = sigh, moan or painful cry

[English Meaning]

Your hand of tyranny (tyrannical hand) knows no humility

(yet my) heart, an ardent lover, didn't let out a sigh

Notes:
In the couplet, the poet highlights that in spite of his lover's immodest tyrannical behaviour towards him, his love-struck heart believed in nothing else but love and bore the torture without letting out a sigh.

Here, the word 'kaafir' is used in a slightly different context where it can mean 'an ardent lover who believes in nothing but the feeling of being in love in spite of the pain'. The regular political or religious usage of the word 'kaafir' is to refer a non-Muslim who doesn't follow Quran or Allah.

हम जानते तो इश्क़ न करते (Hum Jaante To Ishq Na Karte) -- Mir Taqi Mir

[Urdu Couplet #27]

हम जानते तो इश्क़ न करते किसू के साथ 

ले जाते दिल को ख़ाक में इस आरज़ू के साथ 

Hum jaante to ishq na karte kisu ke saath

Le jaate dil ko khak me iss arzoo ke saath 

Mir Taqi Mir
(1723 - 1810)

इश्क़ (ishq) = love; किसू (kisu) = here it means 'anyone' (kisu is the ancient way of writing किसी kisi); ख़ाक (khak) = dust; ख़ाक में (khak me) = in the dust (it is used in relation to death. The usual usage is 'khak me milna'.); आरज़ू (arzoo) = desire

[English Meaning]

Had I known before, I would have not fallen in love with anyone

I would have taken my heart in the dust (died) with this desire (the desire to fall in love)

Note: Here the poet is repenting to have fallen in love because of the pain and longing it must have brought to him. He feels it is better to have the desires unfulfilled rather than making life miserable by falling in love.

About the Poet

मीर तक़ी मीर  Mir Taqi Mir was one of the most prominent Urdu poets of the 18th century. He was one of the pioneers in  building the Urdu language form and style. He was also a mentor of other prominent poets, one of them was the well-known poet Sauda. Read More