§17. Zindagī se ḍarte ho?

——zindagī se ḍarte ho?
zindagī to tum bhī ho, zindagī to ham bhī haiñ!
ādmī se ḍarte ho?
ādmī to tum bhī ho, ādmī to ham bhī haiñ!
ādmī zabāñ bhī hai, ādmī bayāñ bhī hai,
is se tum nahīñ ḍarte!
ḥarf aur maʿnī ke ristah-hā-e āhan se, ādmī hai vā-bastah
ādmī ke dāman se zindagī hai vā-bastah
is se tum nahīñ ḍarte!
"an-kahī" se ḍarte ho
jo abhī nahīñ āʾī, us ghaṛī se ḍarte ho
us ghaṛī kī āmad kī āgahī se ḍarte ho!

——pahle bhī to guzre haiñ,
daur nā-rasāʾī ke, "be-riyā" ḳhudāʾī ke
phir bhī yih samajhte ho, hech ārzū-mandī
yih shab-e zabāñ-bandī, hai rah-e ḳhudāvandī!
tum magar yih kyā jāno,
lab agar nahīñ hilte, hāth jāg uṭhte haiñ
hāth jāg uṭhte haiñ, rāh kā nishāñ ban-kar
nūr kī zabāñ ban-kar
hāth bol uṭhte haiñ, ṣubḥ kī ażāñ ban-kar
roshnī se ḍarte ho?
roshnī to tum bhī ho, roshnī to ham bhī haiñ,
roshnī se ḍarte ho!

——shahr kī faṣīloñ par
dev kā jo sāyah thā pāk ho gayā āḳhir
rāt kā labādah bhī
chāk ho gayā āḳhir, ḳhāk ho gayā āḳhir
izhdihām-e insāñ se fard kī navā āʾī
żāt kī ṣadā āʾī
rāh-e shauq meñ jaise rāh-rau kā ḳhūñ lapke
ik nayā junūñ lapke!
ādmī chalak uṭṭhe
ādmī hañse dekho, shahr phir base dekho
tum abhī se ḍarte ho?
hāñ, abhī to tum bhī ho, hāñ, abhī to ham bhī haiñ,
tum abhī se ḍarte ho!

arrow_left §16. Vuh ḥarf-e tanhā (jise tamannā-e vaṣl-e maʿnā)

§18. Dil, mire ṣaḥrā-navard-e pīr dil arrow_right

I Too Have Some Dreams: N. M. Rashed and Modernism in Urdu Poetry

A translation of this Urdu poem by N. M. Rashed as well as this transliteration appears in the appendix of I Too Have Some Dreams. The transliteration is intended for people who can understand Urdu/Hindi or related languages. I hope to soon add performances of these poems as well.