Teri umeed tera intezaar jab se hai...
By Faiz Ahmed Faiz
[Interpretive Translation by Siyaah]
Teri umeed tera intezaar jab se hai,
Na shab ko din se shikaayat, na din ko shab se hai...
This hope, this wait for you - that I now have,
The night and the day no longer complain about each other...[1]
Kisi ka dard ho karte hain tere naam raqam,
Gilaa hai jo bhi kisi se tere sabab se hai...
The pain from one and all - in your name I register,
You are the reason for all my complaints about any other...[2]
Huwaa hai jab se dil-e-naa'saboor be-qaaboo,
Kalaam tujh se nazar ko bare adab se hai...
Ever since this impatient heart has turned unrestrained,
This gaze addresses you with a new respect altogether...[3]
Agar sharar hai to bharke, jo phool hai to khile,
Tarah tarah ki talab tere rang-e-lab se hai...
That which is a spark - turns wild, the blossom - blooms,
Your lips' color arouses desires of one kind or another...[4]
Kahaan gaye shab-e-furqat ke jaagne-waale,
Sitaara-e-sahari hum kalaam kab se hai...
Where are those gone - who would stay awake through the night of separation?
The morning star alone converses - it seems forever...[5]
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Translator's Notes:
Finished a translation after a long time - one that had been growing at the back of my mind for long. My favorite in terms of the uniqueness of Faiz's idea here is couplet [2]. The last couplet was the most difficult to translate - the last line has to be written in a way that it can capture two meanings: the morning star as the only conversation companion left for the poet; but also perhaps the morning star conversing with none but itself (in this sense the poet may identify with the star).
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan has sung this is a way that I really like- lending it a strange and very slight melancholy quality - that is always there in every line but never goes out of control...as if one is resigned to this fate; the singing is an interpretation in itself.
A different style - surprisingly lesser known - is enjoyable in the older rendition by Ustad Amaanat Ali Khan.
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6 comments:
Beautifully translated, as always :)
And some amazingly wonderful shairi by Faiz.
Kahaan gaye shab-e-furqat ke jaagne-waale,
Sitaara-e-sahari hum kalaam kab se hai...
Thank you Tapasya, as always!
Siyaah... I came to you blog to follow the lyrics..... as I found Nusrat sahab singing a ghazal in stead if a Qawwali great.... I really liked this one and another written by Ahmed Faraz.... Yun Toh Pehle bhi huwe... but well done in translating this. Rgds Mrinal
P.S> Why Siyaah..... remind me of.....Shola e Ishq Siyah posh hua mere baad
I have listened this song without understanding the couplets other than the first. Thank you Sir . May god bless you
I'm a great fan of Faiz Sb and can recite from memory about 80% of his work. This translation of a difficult poem is really good. Of course for those who can understand Urdu it is always better to read Faiz Sb in original. But please do continue translating as it helps many who are otherwise deprived of a great treasure that Faiz Sb's poetry is.
To mrinal : There is another line that applies:
Na rahi dasht main khaali koi ja mere baad!
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