bas k hooN Ghalib aseeri meN bhi ... some thoughts
Zafar
moo e aatash deeda hai halqa meri zanjeer kaa
Afzal saahib has already provided in another thread a very lucid
interpretation, and even more is available at Fran Pritchett's
excellent website. But since Afzal saahib has himself invited other
ALUPers to comment on this she'r, I'd like to say a few things in this
matter. First, for reference, I'm taking the liberty of pasting Afzal
saahib's explication below:
---
I think "aatish zer-e-pa" here signifies the restless mien or
demeanour of the poet and his rebellious nature even while he is held
in shackles. His passion or "junoon" thinks nothing of the strength
or constraining ability of these shackles. He compares each link
("halqa") of these shackles to a burnt piece of hair.
{If you burn a piece of hair, it gets coiled up, something similar to
a zaNjeer or shackles.}
Moo-e-aatish~deedah = a piece of hair which has 'seen' (i.e. burnt by)
fire. The fire ('aatish') here may refer to his passion or 'junoon'.
It is also to be noted that, after a while, a burnt hair turns into
ash. So the poet seems to be saying that these shackles are powerless
to keep him in a state of confinement. His passion is more than
sufficient to turn them into ashes. Someone being "aatish zer-e-pa"
refers to his restlessness. People cannot remain at ease if placed on
burning coals.
---
a)
In understanding this she'r, two words are of key importance. And the
first is actually a phrase, "aatash zer e paa," which literally means
"fire beneath feet." Similar metaphors in Urdu and Persian are
"chiraaGh-paa," and "seeKh-paa." All these mean essentially the same
thing: being in a state of great distress, sorrow and pain.
Now the amazing thing about this metaphor is that Ghalib has taken it
at face value. If you say, "I'm aastash zer e paa," you are referring
(in a poetic way) to your sufferings and miseries, but you don't
really mean that your feet are literally ablaze (in which case,
instead of whining away, you shoud head for the nearest pond! :)
But Ghalib tells us that the narrator of the she'r is so much aatash
zer e paa, and this aatash is so real, that it has melted away the
links of the chain! So by the dint of his state of agitation, he
can't be shackled (a bona fide case of "blessing in a disguise?!")
b)
And this brings us to the second key word in the she'r:
... aseeri meN *bhi* aatash zer e paa
This little word "bhi" tells us a whole story: The protagonist was
shackled and thrown into a dungeon in the hope that this "treatment"
would somehow alleviate his frenzy (a common practice in lunatic
asylums even today). But instead, this incarceration seems to have
aggravated the malady to the extent that even his chains are now
withered like singed hair.
c)
The last point that I would like to make about this she'r is that
Ghalib has written "halqa: *a* link, and not "halqe," or "links" --
even though a chain is obviously composed of many links.
I don't think it's really a case of majaaz e mursal (synecdoche)
here , but I guess Ghalib being Ghalib, he has left out the word,
"har" before "halqa meri zanjeer kaa." On accout of Hali, we know that
Ghalib sometimes deliberately leaves out a few of the dots in the
picture ("maiN ne ye lafz muqaddar chhoR diyaa hai!").
And the reason for doing this? I think he likes his qaari to burn a
few (more) brain cells ... so much so that while trying to decipher
Ghalib's ash'aar, some times the neurons themselves begin to look like
"moo e aatash deeda"!
aadaab arz hai,
Zafar
Srinage...@gmail.com
Zafar Sahib:
Thanks for your additional insights. My debt to you grows greater
each year. May your bounty be unbounded:-)
Two quick questions.
1. You point out that Ghalib used halqa and not halqe. DId you mean
to suggest that Ghalib meant to refer to the weakest link, and not to
all links in the chain?
2. You said "incarceration seems to have aggravated the malady to the
extent that even his chains are now withered like singed hair." Is
this similar to Ghalib's
"ranj se khugar hua insaan to mit jaata hai ranj"?
Regards,
Nagesh
Zafar
Thanks for your kind words, Nagesh saahib.
> Two quick questions.
>
> 1. You point out that Ghalib used halqa and not halqe. DId you mean
> to suggest that Ghalib meant to refer to the weakest link, and not to
> all links in the chain?
I guess he means the whole chain, because if the feet are really on
fire, they would have affected the whole chain -- or a good part of
the chain -- and not a single link.
> 2. You said "incarceration seems to have aggravated the malady to the
> extent that even his chains are now withered like singed hair." Is
> this similar to Ghalib's
> "ranj se khugar hua insaan to mit jaata hai ranj"?
hmmm, I'm not sure. Where "ranj se Khoogar ..." shows a kind of
contentment or even resignation, this she'r's tone is totally
different in intensity and fervor: the mad daze, the feet on fire,
the dark and dank dungeon, the clank and clatter of the fetters, the
image of the scorched hair ... you get the point.
By the way, Ghalib has written a lot about fire. This she'r alone
uses the word "aatash" twice. The late orientalist Annemarie Schimmel
has even written a whole book on the subject: "A Dance of Sparks: The
Imagery of Fire in the Poetry of Ghalib." It'd be interesting to see
what she had to say about this she'r.
Zafar
Afzal A. Khan
>
> By the way, Ghalib has written a lot about fire. This she'r alone
> uses the word "aatash" twice.
> Zafar
A favourite sher of mine :
Yak nazar besh naheeN fursat-e-hasti GHaafil
Garmi-e-baz'm hai ik raqs-e-sharar hone tak
An entire ghazal is based on this theme :
Dil mira soz-e-nihaaN se be~muhaaba jal gaya }
Aatish-e-KHaamosh ke maanaNd goya jal gaya }
}
Dil men zauq-e-was'l-o-yaad-e-yaar tak baaqi naheeN }
Aag is ghar men lagi aisi ke jo tha jal gaya }
}
MaiN 'adam se bhi pare hooN, warna GHaafil, baar~ha }
Meri aah-e-aatisheeN se baal-e-'anqa jal gaya }
}
'Arz keeje jauhar-e-aN'desha ki garmi kahaaN }
Kuchh KHayaal aaya tha wahshat ka, ke sahra jal gaya }
}
Dil naheeN, tujh ko dikhaata warna daaGHoN ki bahaar }
Is chiraaGHaaN ka karooN kya, kar~farma jal gaya }
}
MaiN hooN aur afsurdagi ki aarzoo Ghalib ke dil }
Dekh kar tarz-e-tapaak-e-ahl-e-dun'ya jal gaya }
A few more :
Shab ke barq-e-soz-e-dil se zahra-e-abr aab tha
Sho'la-e-jawwaala har ik halqa-e-gardaab tha
Aatish~parast kehte haiN ahl-e-jahaaN mujhe
Sar~garm-e-naala~haaye~sharar~baar dekh kar
Mujhe ab dekh kar abr-e-shafaq~aalooda, yaad aaya
Ke furqat men tiri, aatish barasti thi gulistaaN par
Yak~qalam kaaGHaz-e-aatish~zada hai saf'ha-e-dasht
Naqsh-e-pa men hai tap-e-garmi-e-raftaar hanooz
Lastly, another favourite of mine :
Shama' bujhti hai to us men se dhuaaN uTh'ta hai
Sho'la-e-'ishq siyah~posh huwa mere b'ad
Afzal
Naseer
Zafar Sahib ne Ghalib kii shaa'irii meN "aag hii aag" kaa zikr kiyaa
hai awr maziid yih bhii farmaayaa hai kih isii aag ne ek kitaab ko
mukammal taur pih apnii lipeT meN le liyaa hai. Afzal Sahib ne is
mauzuu' ko aag dikhaate hu'e apnii pasand ke chand aatishiiN ash'aar
pesh kiye haiN jin meN unhoN ne shaayad jaan-buujh kar us dhamaakaa-
KHez shi'r kaa zikr nahiiN kiyaa jise sab dil-jale aah-i-jigr-soz ke
saath iqtibaas karte haiN.
'ishq par zor nahiiN, hai yih vuh aatish Ghalib
kih lagaa'e nah lage awr bujhaa'e nah bane
Ghalib ke nazdiik agar 'ishq aag hai awr 'aashiq "aatish-daan" hai..
puuchhe hai kyaa vujuud-o-'adam ahl-i-shauq kaa
aap apnii aag ke KHas-o-KHaashaak ho ga'e
to us kaa ma'shuuq us se bhii chand darje (haraarat ke) aage hai..
nah shu'le meN yih karishnah nah barq meN yih adaa
ko'ii bataa'o kih vuh shoKH-i-tund-KHuu kyaa hai
yih mazmuun ab thoRaa thoRaa sulagne jo lagaa hai to kyoN nah ise
havaa dii jaa'e? ho saktaa kih koii dabii hu'ii chiNgaarii bhaRak kar
bhabuukaa ban jaae awr saarii bazm ko nah sirf apne josh se
charaaGhaaN kar de balkih us kii Haraarat is KhizaaN ke mausam kii
Khunukii ko mujh jaise naa-tavaaN jism vaale logoN ke liye aaraam-dih
banaa de.
ik sharar dil meN hai, us se ko'ii ghabraa'e gaa kyoN
aag matluub hai ham ko jo havaa kahte haiN
maiN idhar pat-jhaR kii rut kaa gilaa-shikvaa kar rahaa huuN kih ThaND
kuchh ziyaadah hii hai awr aag taapne ko jii chaah rahaa hai udhar
janaab-i-Ghalib garmii ke mausam ko kos rahe haiN..
raat ko aag awr din ko dhuup
bhaaR meN jaa'eN aise lail-o-nahaar
aag taape kahaaN tak insaan
dhuup khaave kahaaN talak jaaN-daar
dhuup kii taabish aag kii garmii
"vaqi-naa rabba-naa 'azaaba_nnaar"*
{ * ai hamaare rab, hameN aag ke 'azaab se bachaa }
lekin yih bhaaR kii garmii bhii hamaare shaa'ir ke andar kii bhaTTii
se ziyaadah nahiiN.
aatish-i-dozaKH meN yih garmii kahaaN
soz-i-Gham-haa-i-nihaanii awr hai
awr agar is shaa'ir kaa tan-man saraapaa aag hai to us ke maHbuub ke
KHamiir meN qiyaamat rachii hu'ii hai.
jalvah-zaar-i-aatish-i-dozaKH hamaaraa dil sahii
fitnah-i-shor-i-qiyaamat kis kii aab-o-gil meN hai
jab us kaa Gham-KHvaar-o-raaz-daaN us kii muHabbat ko faash kar detaa
hai to Ghalib aisii muHabbat se naalaaN ho kar yih kahtaa hai
kiyaa Gham-KHvaar ne rusvaa, lage aag is muHabbat ko
nah laave taab jo Gham kii vuh meraa raaz-daaN kyoN ho
lekin saath hii vuh yih bhii kahe detaa hai
lipaTnaa parniyaaN meN shu'lah-i-aatish kaa aasaaN hai
vale mushkil hai Hikmat dil meN soz-i-Gham chhupaane kii
ab aag bin dhu'aaN kahaaN? duusre lafzoN meN jahaaN aag ho gii vahaaN
dhu'aaN ho gaa hii...
buu-i-gul naalah-i-dil, duud-i-charaaGh-i-maHfil
jo tirii bazm se niklaa so pareshaaN niklaa
saayah meraa mujh se misl-i-duud bhaage hai Asad
paas mujh aatish-ba-jaan ke kis se Thahraa jaa'e hai
vaHshat-i-aatish-i-dil se shab-i-tanhaa'ii meN
suurat-i-duud rahaa saayah gurezaaN mujh se
aag kaa safar kuchh yuuN bayaaN kiyaa jaa saktaa hai..
chiNgaarii>>>>dhu'aaN>>>>shu'lah>>dhu'aaN>>>aNgaaraa>>>>raakh
pas az murdan bhii diivaanah ziyaarat-gaah-i-tiflaaN hai
sharaar-i-saNg ne turbat pih mirii gul-fishaanii kii
rag-i-sang se Tapaktaa vuh lahuu kih phir nah thamtaa
jise Gham samajh rahe ho agar sharaar hotaa
hai saa'iqah-o-shu'lah-o-siimaab kaa 'aalam
aanaa hii samajh meN mirii aataa nahiiN go aa'e
shu'le se nah hotii, havas-i-shu'lah ne jo kii
jii kis qadr afsurdagii-i-dil pih jalaa hai
shama' bujhtii hai to us meN se dhu'aaN uThtaa hai
shu'lah-i-'ishq siyah-posh hu'aa mere ba'd
tum apne shikve kii baateN nah khod khod ke puuchho
Hazar karo mire dil se kih dabii hai is meN aag
jalaa hai jism jahaaN dil bhii jal gayaa ho gaa
kuredte ho jo ab raakh, justujuu kyaa hai
uupar maiN zikr kar chukaa huuN kih Ghalib-i-'aashiq ke andar ik
gulKHan saa bhaRak rahaa hai balkih us kaa siinah ek aatish-kadah hai
aatish-kadah hai siinah miraa raaz-i-nihaaN se
ai vaay! agar ma'riz-i-izhaar meN aave
agar yih suurat-i-Haal hai to us kii saaNs,
jii jale zauq-i-fanaa kii naa-tamaamii par kyoN
ham nahiiN jalte nafas harchand aatish-baar hai
maiN 'adam se bhii pare huuN, varnah GHaafil, baar-ha
meri aah-i-aatishiiN se baal-i-'anqaa jal gayaa
aavaaz
aag se paanii meN bujhte vaqt uThtii hai sadaa
har ko'ii dar-maaNdagii meN naale se naa-chaar hai
awr nazar sab-kuchh aatishiiN hai..
nigah-i-garm se ik aag Tapaktii hai Asad
hai charaaGhaaN KHas-o-Khaashaak-i-gulistaaN mujh se
gar nigaah-i-garm farmaatii rahii ta'liim-i-zabt
shu'lah KHas meN jaise KHuuN rag meN nihaaN ho jaa'e gaa
apne maHbuub meN bhii Ghalib "garm saaNs" awr soz-o-gudaaz vaalii
avaaz kaa mutalaashii hai ..
DhuuNDe hai us muGhannii-i-aatish-nafas ko jii
jis kii sadaa ho jalvah-i-barq-i-fanaa mujhe
aaKHir meN is KHuub-suurat shi'r se maiN yih halkaa-phulkaa mazmuun
iKHtitaam ko laataa huuN.
chashm-i-KHuubaaN KHaamushii meN bhii navaa-pardaaz hai
surmah, tuu kahve kih, duud-i-shu'lah-i-aavaaz hai
KHair-KHvaah,
Naseer
Afzal A. Khan
Naseer Saheb,
Zara sochiye, agar aap se in tamaam ash'aar kee tashreeh poochhi
gayee, to aap ka kya jawaab (aur haal) hoga !!
Afzal
deedawar
>
> - Show quoted text -
Afzal Saahib, Adaab
Lagta hai ke aap ke paas mazaaq karne ke liye kuchh ziyaada hii waqt
hai. Kyon na aap hii tashreeh likh dein inn ash'aar kii. Hum aapke
sada shukar guzaar rahen gein.
Ek nacheez kii darkhwaast.
Zafar
hai, so paish e Khidmat hai:
milti hai Khoo e yaar se naar iltihaab* meN
kaafir hooN gar na milti ho raahat 'azaab meN
Naseer saahib: lafz "iltihaab" (= jalan) shaayad Arabi ke maadde "L-H-
B" se niklaa hai (Abu-Lahab = shu'ale waala), lekin ye mujhe Farsi ke
kisi luGhat meN naheeN milaa. aap ke tehqeeq baare is mas'ale ke kyaa
kehti hai?
doosri baat ye aksar gaane waale is matle' ko nazar andaaz kar ke
matla' e saani (kab se hooN kyaa bataa'ooN ...) se Ghazal kaa aaGhaaz
karte haiN. Ghaliban is ki wajh bhi yehi lafz hai?
Zafar
Naseer
janaab-i-Zafar Sahib, aadaab 'arz hai.
aap kaa pasandiidah shi'r merii nazar meN thaa lekin maiN ne sochaa
kih "naar" kaa ek hii shi'r kaafii hai.
lafz-i-iltihaab ke ma'KHiz ke baare meN aap bi_lkul ba-jaa farmaa rahe
haiN.
jis tarH jam' se ijtimaa' bantaa hai isii tarH lahab se iltihaab. is
ke ma'nii jalan/burning ke haiN lekiN saa'iNsii maidaan meN ham ise
"inflammation" kah sakte haiN, masalan...iltihaabu_lmafaasil= arther-
itis.
tashriiH
mere liye jahannum kii aag meN jalne kii kaifiyyat mere maHbuub kii
(jalaane kii) tabii'at se miltii hai. isii liye to mujhe is aag se
raaHat miltii hai varnah, agar 'azaab miltaa to maiN yaqiin-an kaafir
hotaa.
KHair-KHvaah,
Naseer
Afzal A. Khan
Naseer Saheb,
Tashreeh ka shukriya. Lekin mere jaise 'aam (aur kam~feh'm) shaKHs
ke liye yeh abhi bhi zara naa~mukammal mehsoos ho rahi hai.
1. JahaaN aap ne "milti" likha hai, maiN chaahooNga ke wahaan
"julti" ka izaafa kar diya jaaye, y'ani "milti~julti".
2. Sher men "tashbeeh" ka ist'emaal kiya gaya hai.
"iltihaab" ko wajh-e-shib'h keh sakte haiN.
3. Aap ka aaKHiri jumla samajh men naheeN aaya --->"agar 'azaab
milta to maiN yaqeenan kaafir hota". Is jumle is yeh nateeja
aKH'z kiya ja sakta hai ke "shaa'ir ya 'aashiq ko 'azaab NAHEEN
mila". Lekin dar~asl aisa hai naheeN. Haqeeqat to yeh hai
ke use 'azaab zaroor mila hai ("naar" ya jahannum ki
aag ka), lekin woh us 'azaab men bhi ek qism ki raahat mehsoos
kar raha hai. Aur woh is liye ke mehboob ke zulm sehte sehte
use ab aisi takleefoN men bhi raahat mehsoos karne ki 'aadat ho
chuki hai. "Iltihaab" men to donoN, y'ani "KHoo-e-yaar" aur
"naar(-e-jahannum)", yaksaaN haiN.
4. Sher men "kaafir hooN' ke alfaaz bhi qaabil-e-GHaur haiN.
Saheeh baat to yeh hai ke jahannum ki aag waaq'eii be~had
KHauf~naak aur dard~naak hoti hai. Aur dun'ya men har shaKHs
ko yehi Dar rehta hai ke roz-e-jaza kaheeN use bhi is 'azaab
ka saam'na na karna paRe. Zaahir hai, jo shaKHs is buniyaadi
haqeeqat ka mun'kir ho, use kaafir hi kaha jaayega. Lekin
Ghalib is ke bil~kul bar~'aks yeh keh rahe haiN ke "mujhe to
naar-e-jahannum men bhi raahat mehsoos ho gi (ya ho rahi hai).
Agar maiN IS (ulTi !) haqeeqat ka iqraar na karooN to, be~shak,
kaafir kehlaane ka mustahiq hooN".
Afzal
UVR
Zafar saahib,
yooN to yeh naacheez aap ki "research"-o-tahqeeq ke hunar kaa kab se
qaa'il haiN. taaham is Khaaksaar kaa ek pesh kardah link mulaahiza
farmaaiye aur is haqeer pur taqseer ki nigaahoN ki bhi kuchh daad
deejiye --
http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.0:1:4423.steingass
-UVR.
Zafar
Afzal saahib ne hasb e saabiq bahut umda wazaahat ki hai. maiN sirf
aik aadh baat kaa izaafa karnaa chaahooN gaa.
aik to ye k yahaaN aik baar phir Ghalib iste'aare ko haqeeqi ma'ani
meN barat rahe haiN. mehboob ki taraf se 'aashiq ho hijr ki aag meN
jalaanaa 'aam iste'aara hai, lekin Ghalib kehte haiN k ye aag itni
sachi aur asli thi k jab unheN jahannum meN jalaayaa gayaa to wo chonk
gaye aur unheN mehboob ki aag ki yaad aa gayi, aur bajaa'ye 'azaab ke
unheN us aag se jalne meN lutf aane lagaa.
doosri baat ye k kasrat se aik qasam khaayi jaati hai, "agar maiN ne
ye kaam naheeN kiyaa to kaafir hooN gaa!" so Ghalib yahaaN qasam khaa
kar keh rahe haiN k mujhe waaqayi 'azaab se lazzat mil rahi hai.
lekin yeheeN aik zabardast paradox bhi hai jo she'r ko Ghair-ma'amooli
banaa detaa hai aur wo ye k riwaayati tasawwur e kaa'inaat ke teht
kaafiroN hi ko azaab diyaa jaataa hai, lekin Ghalib aik hi fiqre,
"kaafir hooN ... ", se do kaam le rahe haiN:
1
mujhe "sachchi-muchchi" 'azaab mehsoos naheeN ho rahaa.
2
maiN kaafir naheeN hooN bal k mujhe Ghalati se jahannum meN Daalaa
gayaa hai.
Firaq ne Mir ke baare meN likhaa thaa k "ye shaKhs chhoTe choTe lafzoN
meN bijliyaaN bhar detaa hai." Ghalib ke baare meN isi fiqre ko yooN
aage baRhaayaa jaa saktaa hai k "ye shaKhs (Ghalib) 'aam si baatoN meN
bhi ma'aani ke jahaan samo detaa hai."
aadaab arz hai,
Zafar
h.sri...@gmail.com
Zafar Sahib:
The book, written in Urdu, is titled "raqs-e sharar" and the subtitle
reads kalaam-e ghalib mein raqs-e sharar ke paikar". The book is only
160 pages long and has numerous references to French and German
literature. I bought the book in the hope that when I retire I will
be able to get my magnifying glass, dictionaries and spiritual support
(or adult beverage) into a quiet room and read the book. For now, it
graces a bookshelf at home.
I'd be glad to scan and send you a few pages of the book if you are
interested.
Regards,
Nagesh
Zafar
I'd be extremely grateful if you could do that ... andhaa kyaa
chaahe ... neki aur poochh poochh, etc., etc.
Zafar
quratula...@gmail.com
Very nice discussion .
I would like to add something ;
"Moo e aatish" here are not two words its one single term.
When the fire burns we see fire in thread shape at the very top .if you ever noticed that when we burn candle and place our finger finger above it at some distance the candle fire rises up in thread like form to reach our finger tip . Here moo e atish means those fire threads not burned hairs .
So the whole maqta would b :
Even in jail( qaid khana ) fire ( jalan ) is beneath my foot .
Fire threads are eager to burn the chains around me
Naseer
I believe Zafar SaaHib's explanation for this expression is correct since it is not muu-i-aatash, as you are taking it but "muu-i-aatash-diidah" implying a hair that has been exposed to fire.
Naseer
desira...@gmail.com
Just stumbled on to this group as I was searching on-line for the meaning of Ghalib's She'r:
bas k hooN Ghalib aseeri meN bhi aatash zer e paa
moo e aatash deeda hai halqa meri zanjeer kaa
Simply put the summary is something like:
Although imprisoned, my discontent (passionate fire within) and restlessness, will render these shackles to ashes, just as strands of hair reduced to ashes at the mere sight of (the tongues of) flames.
Please correct the above and please keep enlightening us Zafar saheb, Nasser saheb, Nagesh saheb and all others.
regards
DLN Rao