I am once again making a valiant effort to paraphrase it as closely as possible and I am sure the effort will ultimately entail an apology to the poet… … Still
mujh se pahalii sii mohabbat merii mahabuub na maa.Ng
mai.n ne samajhaa thaa ki tuu hai to daraKhshaa.N hai hayaat
teraa Gam hai to Gam-e-dahar kaa jhaga.Daa kyaa hai
terii suurat se hai aalam me.n bahaaro.n ko sabaat
terii aa.Nkho.n ke sivaa duniyaa me.n rakkhaa kyaa hai (*)
tuu jo mil jaaye to taqadiir niguu.N ho jaaye
yuu.N na thaa mai.n ne faqat chaahaa thaa yuu.N ho jaaye
aur bhii dukh hai.n zamaane me.n mohabbat ke sivaa
raahate.n aur bhii hai.n vasl kii raahat ke sivaa
mujh se pahalii sii mohabbat merii mahabuub na maa.Ng
anaginat sadiyo.n ke taariik bahimaanaa talism
resham-o-atalas-o-kam_Khvaab me.n bunavaaye huye
jaa-ba-jaa bikate huye kuuchaa-o-baazaar me.n jism
Khaak me.n litha.De huye Khuun me.n nahalaaye huye
jism nikale huye amaraaz ke tannuuro.n se
piip bahatii hu_ii galate huye naasuuro.n se
lauT jaatii hai udhar ko bhii nazar kyaa kiije
ab bhii dil_kash hai teraa husn maGar kyaa kiije
aur bhii dukh hai.n zamaane me.n mohabbat ke sivaa
raahate.n aur bhii hai.n vasl kii raahat ke sivaa
mujh se pahalii sii mohabbat merii mahabuub na maa.Ng
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Don’t ask me to love you as before, my sweetheart!
I had presumed that you will be the light of my life,
Your sorrows fade the sorrows of the world to insignificance,
Your face gives permanence to the blooms in this world,
What more is there to this world than your eyes…
If I get you (your love) the fate will be subservient to me,
Oh! but it was not thus, I had merely wished it to be so,
There is more to pain than the pain of my (unfulfilled) love
There is more to happiness than the happiness of our union
Don’t ask me to love you as before, my sweetheart!
Dark, dreadful sorcery of countless centuries,
Woven into silk and satin lace and brocade.
Bodies sold in markets and alleys, hither-thither,
Encrusted with ashes, bathed in blood.
Bodies taken from the cauldrons of diseases,
pus oozing from their festering ulcers.
I can’t take my eyes off from them, what can I do…
Your beauty is still just as heart-warming, but what can I do…
There is more to pain than the pain of my (unfulfilled) love
There is more to happiness than the happiness of our union
Don’t ask me to love you as before, my sweetheart!
Most of them photographs
Beautiful
It’s very touching, indeed. Nothing touches the soul better than a well-expressed ode. Thankyou for sharing this gem.
However, the significance of an (*) at this line,
terii aa.Nkho.n ke sivaa duniyaa me.n rakkhaa kyaa hai (*)
misses me. If I’m not mistaken there’s an old, hindi song with a haunting tune (playback: M. Rafi) that begins with similar words.
Re: Beautiful
Bingo!! You caught it right
It is from film Chirag, Written by Majrooh Sultanpuri
Teri Aankhon Ke Siva Duniya Mein Rakha Kya Hai
Yeh Uthein Subah Chale
Yeh Jhukein Shaam Dhale
Mera Jeena Mera Marna Inhi Palkon Ke Tale
Teri Aankhon Ke Siva Duniya Mein Rakha Kya Hai…
Palkon Ki Galiyon Mein Chehre Baharon Ke Haste Hue
Hain Mere Khwabon Ke Kya Kya Nagar In Mein Baste Hue
Yeh Uthein Subah Chale
Yeh Jhukein Shaam Dhale
Mera Jeena Mera Marna Inhi Palkon Ke Tale
Teri Aankhon Ke Siva Duniya Mein Rakha Kya Hai…
In Mein Mere Aane Waale Zamaane Ki Tasveer Hai
Chaahat Ke Kaajal Se Likhi Hui Meri Taqdeer Hai
Yeh Uthein Subah Chale
Yeh Jhukein Shaam Dhale
Mera Jeena Mera Marna Inhi Palkon Ke Tale
Teri Aankhon Ke Siva Duniya Mein Rakha Kya Hai…
Mujhse pahali se mohabbat mere mehboob na maang
Don’t ask me for that love again, my love
Nope! I will stick with my version. Your version opens the sentence to too much speculation
that love – Which love, love?
my love – Your love? you are already not ready to give that?
Saw Swati’s post and then came here. Guess, you are following ITRANS for transliteration.
Your post hints that you have attempted translations earlier.
Now would have to dig the archives.
Correct me if I am wrong, I remember it as ‘aur bhii Gam hai.n zamaane me.n’.
Vibhendu
Correct me if I am wrong, I remember it as ‘aur bhii Gam hai.n zamaane me.n’.
Ah! this is one of the most popular mistakes in Urdu poetry
I remember even my father was was surprised when he first discovered this.
Honestly this is my second attempt at translation but have lived amongst Urdu poets and poetry most of my childhood. http://www.aaina-e-ghazal.com might interest you.
‘dukh’ you wrote, and ‘dukh’ it *is*.
My bad………..
Thanks for the pointer. The usenet newsgroup A.L.U.P might interest you.:-)
Looking forward to more Faiz translations from you. And you are assured of at least one regular visitor.
-Vibhendu
ALUP and RIMM are indeed great resources for Urdu poetry lovers. As for more translations, I did them in response to real life situations… …
But do keep visiting, atleast 53 fellow LJ users find my journal mildly interesting
Oops! typo RMIM