mere meer!

phirta hai zindagi ke liyen aah! khwar kya
is wahem ki namood ka hai aitbaar kya

to be 'khwar' something is to waste your life and dignity in the pursuit of it...life is a 'wahem' it is an illusion or a misconception and there is no assurance of this labyrinth of falsehood turning into reality...it is therefore better to pursue more lasting truths than this.

some other shairs by another shayar for all:

hai yunhi ghoomte rehne main mazaa hi kuch aur
aisi lazzat na pahunchne mein, na reh jane mein..

mausamon ka koi mehram ho to usse poochcho
kitne patjarh abhi baaqi hain bahar aane mein

this one has a very 'feminine' background, although cryptic and then finally

naye deewanon ko dekho to khushi hoti hai
ham bhi aise hi the jab aaye the weerane mein

the explanations would follow...sooner on request!

dee zai ai ai errr...desire a la U2

consider two writers...one in 16th century England and the other in today's India...one the representative of the western canon and tradition...the other coming from a language as marginalized as Urdu...but the thought is comparable...Irfan Siddiqui says,

tujhko pa kar bhi teri hi talab seene mein rakhta hoon
tamasha kar! ke mein kashkol ganjine mein rakhta hoon!

incredible rendering of the hollowness of desire! Ganjina is a small kitchen cabinet of wire mesh and wood used to keep food items away from flies and insects. Ganjina, etymologically comes from the word Ganj which means treasure, it is the beauty of the language which gives the position of treasure to the food that we have daily. Kashkol is the black kansa, or the traditional begging bowl...you might have seen in the hands of the Faqeers of yore. To keep a Kashkol in a Ganjina is to be a Volpone, or L'Avare a la Moliere. reminds me of Donne's 'presence in absence'
"from (her) absence this good means i gain
that i can catch her
where none can match her
in some close corner of my brain
there, i embrace and kiss her
so i both enjoy and miss her!"

kuch ash'aar tasawwuf ke!

Love is not acquisition, love is not possession of the other, but a submission to the other. In love one has to lose the sense of self, muhabbat mein 'sar' (with all its implications of life, pride, sense of self etc) ka jaana zaroori hai! Agar muhabbat ke baad bhi sar ki fikr hai to woh muhabbat nahin 'mere desire' hai...baam e awwaleen is the first step into the dreary desert of love.
Qadam dasht e muhabbat mein na rakh meer
ke sar jaata hai baam e awwaleen par!

the constant desire for new objects, without satisfaction is the state of man today! there is a natural, essential need in man to love, not in the worldly sense, but to love the Absolute. When one forgets the Absolute, he/she is merely barking up trees, hitting his/her head against so many walls, yet being dissatisfied. All kinds of desire for flesh, wealth, property is only a symptom of the lack of love for the eternal, for God.

ya rab rah e talab mein koi kab talak phire
taskeen de ke baith rahoon paon gaad kar!

The problem lies in seeking for answers, for consummation, for reward in the only realm that we know of...but a true lover does not seek consummation (wisaal) in this world. This is a clever couplet by meer, it is only in death that one can meet the true beloved...na milne, aur hijr mein mar jaane mein hi asal milna hai.

naa milen, go ke hijr mein mar jayen
aashiqon ka wisaal hai kuch aur!

The world is a sea with exciting waves to surf upon, but the excitement is transient as the waves,' Mauj' is used as a pun here, Mauj also means having fun, as also a wave. The ocean of the world might look full, but even this is a mere mirage, a 'saraab'

kuchch nahin behr e jahan ki mauj par, mat bhool meer!
door se darya nazar aata hai, lekin hai saraab!

khuda rakkhe!

khuda rakkhe nasheb e ku e janaan
zamane bhar ka paani mar raha hai!

nasheb ka matlab hota hai slope, aur paani marne ka matlab hai..paani ka jam'aa hona.

the poet means to say that all the bloody suitors are queuing up in front of the beloved's locality. The bugger is being sarcastic.