Hum ne yazeed-e-waqt se baeyat nahi kari:
Har morh par zamaane ko hum yaad aayenge...
[Manzar Bhopali]
Translation (rough):
No allegiance did we pay to the tyrant of the time:
At every turn will we be remembered by the world...
Manzar invokes the history of a specific period in time with reference to the challenge to a powerful tyrant, but I think his intent is clearly general - tyrants have changed forms from individual despotic rulers to governments to military-industrial complexes, yet their negative impact on human life and the associated desire of a few to challenge hegemony remains part of life...
Did my concurrent reading of Chris Hedge's "Empire of Illusion" have something to do with remembering this verse...
[Siyaah]
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4 comments:
Hi Siyaah,
Good Post and Nice to see you back after a long time.
siyaah ji,
sorry to leave such a strange comment, but who the hell are you?
you seem to be geographically proximate (new york/new jersey), you are interesed in things persian and iranian, you're listening to jalwa ba-qadr zarf e nazar, you do translations... which is to say, you are me!!
apna hi aks, etc.
if you don't find this too strange, do send me a reply. bande ka naam anand hai. radiofreealtair@gmail.com
Siyaah, long time! New translations?
Rizwan:
Thanks! I am around...and will keep coming back.
Anand:
Thanks for the interest. I take your comment as a compliment - but on who I am, I guess all one can say is "Bulleh Shah: Nahin jaana main kaun..."
Arfi:
Yes, it has been long. Haven't given up though - will be back with more just as soon as there's time and the mood...
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