Tag Archives: Urdu to English

Waiting

May 30, 2020Poemsaching, beloved, cruelly, desire, despondent, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, forbearance, Garden of Life, grief, guaranteed, heartache, imagined, loneliness, love, mourning, night, patience, peace of mind, poem, poetry, resides, restricted, Satori Publishing, separation, spring, spring of Beauty, translation, Urdu to English, Waitsatoripublishing2013

Night and day passing by without your arrival
As yet, the Spring has wilted in the Garden of Life
As yet, the world I imagined is in mourning

You guaranteed my desire turned to grief, beloved
Up to now it resides in all my loneliness
The long nights are still as long, beloved

My despondent eyes thirst for a sight of you
The spring of Beauty, cruelly restricted, for how long?
Before escaping, bear this trial of patience, for how long?

On your promise I took a lot of grief upon myself
The claim of patient forbearance was wrong, come to me
I am worn out, my aching mind needs peace.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

Remembrance

May 29, 2020Poemsbeloved, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, fragrance, heartache, higher ground, jasmine, loneliness, love, memory, Mirage, O love of my life, parting, poem, poetry, regret, Remembrance, romantic, rose, Satori Publishing, separation, smouldering, timeless, translation, union, universal, Urdu to English, wildernesssatoripublishing2013

O love of my life, in the wilderness of loneliness, shimmer
The shadows of your voice, the mirage of your lips
In the wilderness of loneliness, under the ashen dust
The jasmine and rose of your bosom are laid bare

Somewhere nearby arises the warmth of your breath
Smouldering in its own fragrance dimly, dimly
Faraway, beyond the horizon, glistening drop by drop
The dew of your beloved image is falling

O love of my life, this time with how much affection
Your memory placed its hand on the cheeks of my heart
The suspicion here, even though this is the morning of separation
The day of parting is over, the night of union has arrived.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz )

Night Music

May 3, 2020Poemsbeautiful, cluster of stars, desire, dream, exotic, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, intoxication, love, midnight, Milky Way, Mirage, moon, Night Music, passion, poem, poetry, romantic, self oblivion, sensual, Silence, timeless, translation, universal, Urdu to Englishsatoripublishing2013

Midnight, moon, self oblivion
The past and present assembled in limbo
Silence, in the form of a prayer
Blesses the cluster of gloomy stars

A cascade of silence flowing
The sense of self crushed from four directions
As if life is part of a dream
As if the whole world is a mirage
Asleep atop of the dense trees
The tired voice of moonlight

The Milky Way, with half-open eyes
Tells of the traditions offered with love
With the silent strings of the heart
I am sizzling in a state of intoxication
Desire, dream, your face beautiful.

(my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz).

Stay Close

April 25, 2020Poemsblack night, darkness, desolate, diamond lancet, discontented, drunk on blood, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for thought, hands hidden inside sleeves, lilac anklets, mournful, murderer, musk balm, poem, poetry, ribcages, Satori Publishing, Stay Close, stay close to me, sweetheart, timeless, translation, universal, Urdu to English, winesatoripublishing2013

Stay close to me, you
my murderer, my sweetheart, stay close to me —

At the hour of nightfall
The night, drunk on the skies blood, falls further into darkness
Musk for a balm, diamond for a lancet
Comes out wailing, and laughing, and singing
Comes out jingling the lilac anklets of pain;
In the hour when hearts, trapped inside ribcages,
Look for the path bringing hands, washed, hidden inside sleeves
Hoped for;

The sob of infants like the gurgle of pouring wine
Discontented, stubborn, persuaded every way but to no avail;
When, no matter what you do, nothing works
When none of your plans move forward —

At the hour of nightfall
At the hour of mournful, desolate, black nightfall
Stay close
My murderer, my sweetheart, stay close to me.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz) .

Sign Of Blood

April 23, 2020Poemsbattlefield, blood-money, dagger, dust, evidence, faith, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for the dust, killer's hand, live in the dust, orphaned, plaintiff, poem, poetry, Satori Publishing, Sign Of Blood, timeless, translation, universal, Urdu to Englishsatoripublishing2013

Nowhere, not anywhere, is there a sign of blood
Not on the killer’s hand or fingernails, nor a mark on his sleeve
No red tip of the dagger, no colour on the point of the spear
No spot in the dust, no stain on the roof
Nowhere, not anywhere, is there a sign of blood

It was not given in the service of kings for blood-money
Nor offered to the faith as a downpayment on future blessings
Nor spilt on the battlefield to be considered trustworthy
To be famous, emblazoned on some flag

The helpless, orphaned blood kept crying out
Nobody, however, had the mind or the time to listen
No plaintiff, no evidence, end of the judgement
This blood of those who live in the dust is food for the dust.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

This Time It Seems

April 23, 2020Poemsbeauty, courageous, creativity, depths of my heart, desolate, dream, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for thought, illusion, imagination, poem, poetry, refuge, Satori Publishing, sorrow, spirit, stranger, This Time It Seems, timeless, translation, universal, Urdu to English, windows of my eyessatoripublishing2013

This time it seems as if there is nothing anywhere
No moon or sun, no darkness, no dawn

No image of any Beauty in the windows of my eyes
No refuge for any pain in the depths of my heart

Perhaps in the dense branches of Imagination’s tree
Some dream will now come and make a home there

Maybe it was an illusion, perhaps I did hear
Footsteps walking the streets one last time

Now, no malice, no love, nor any bond, no relation
None is your own, to me none is a stranger

Agreed that this desolate time is very harsh
But, my heart, this is only one such time
Be courageous, a whole life remains to live.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

Loneliness

April 22, 2020Poemsalone, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for thought, haze of stars, loneliness, poem, poetry, remove the wine, Satori Publishing, sleepy lamps, snuff out the lamps, spirit, timeless, tormented, translation, universal, Urdu to Englishsatoripublishing2013

Again, someone has come, tormented heart! No, it is no one
Probably a passer by, on his way to another place

The night has faded, the haze of stars begin to disperse
In the hallways the sleepy lamps begin to flicker
The street is asleep, worn out by watching every path
Dust, like a stranger, blurs all trace of footsteps

Snuff out the lamps, remove the wine, decanter and goblet
Lock up your dreamless doors
No one here up to now, no one to come!

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

( c ) Satori Publishing, 2020.poem

A Few Days More

April 14, 2020PoemsA Few Days More, alien hands, beauty, cruelty, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, flames, food for thought, History, hopeless cry, imprisoned, injustice, legacy, moonlit nights, oppression, patch of pain, pauper, poem, poetry, Satori Publishing, spirit, timeless, translation, truth, tyranny, universal, Urdu to English, wildernesssatoripublishing2013

A few days more, my dearest, only a few days
We are forced to draw breath in the shadow of tyranny
Bear this injustice a while longer, and tremble, and weep
By our forefathers’ legacy we have been crippled

Our bodies imprisoned, our feelings enchained
Our thoughts captive, our speech sanctioned
Credit to our courage that we still go on living
Is life but a pauper’s loose cloak, on which
Every hour a patch of pain is stitched?

But now the period of cruelty has few days left
A little more patience, our pleading has few days left
A long time in the scorched wilderness of this world
We have to exist, but this is not how we have to live
Alien hands causing unspeakably heavy oppression
Bear it today, but it will not be borne always

This dust of sorrow flames out from your beauty
This the measure of your defeated two-day youth
The pain of the useless glow from moonlit nights
The heart’s pointless beat, the body’s hopeless cry
A few days more, my dearest, only a few days.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz).

Tonight

April 12, 2020Poemsavatar, chords, destiny, Divinity, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for thought, future past, Godhead, grief, Inspiration, mournful melody, pain, pluck, poem, poetry, Satori Publishing, spirit, suffering, timeless, Tonight, translation, truth, universal, Urdu to Englishsatoripublishing2013

Tonight do not pluck the chords of pain
All the days of suffering are concluded
Who knows the news of tomorrow?
Blurred are the lines between past and future
Who knows if another day will dawn?
Life is nothing! Apart from this night!
Divinity is possible! On this night!

Tonight do not pluck the chords of pain
Do not repeat tales about the cries of grief
Do not be in mourning over your destiny
Remove fear of the future from the heart
Do not be tearful over the life past
Do not ask for stories about the time of sorrow
Do not ask, all the complaining is done
Tonight do not pluck the chords of pain.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

On The Pathway

April 11, 2020Poemsaltar to Love, blessings, cascading, Creator, elegant grace, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, food for thought, naughty, On The Pathway, passion, pleasures, poem, poet, poetry, prayer, Satori Publishing, spirit, teasing, temptation, three springs of heaven, timeless, translation, truth, universal, Urdu to English, wine, wine and songsatoripublishing2013

A hundred thousand pleasures hidden in her looks
Blessings of heaven hidden in her beauty
A thousand temptations like dust under her teasing feet
Every single glance coloured by the intoxication of youth

Youth, the mere thought causes lightning to flash
Modesty, desires the companionship of the naughty
Her offering of a drunken walk causes commotion
The light of dawn pays homage to her radiant face

Tresses of dark hair cascading with multiple fragrances
Long nights spent dreaming of multiple pleasures
Those eyes which even the Creator can boast of
Poets feel ashamed trying to write verse in her praise

Those lips bestow on Spring the red of tulips
Off her shoulders flow the three springs of heaven
The robes on her soft body flatter with elegant grace
The tall, slender cypress prays in homage to her stature

All in all, that beauty is not in need of praise and fame
The beauty which is beyond human imagination
Passed by this pathway some time ago
Passed this way with much pride and splendour

Now this beautiful pathway has become deceitful at heart
Resident in this dust are the pleasures of wine and song
The breeze moves in a playful manner with seductive style
In the gentle atmosphere is the sound of soft voices

Now, on this path, that beauty is a scenic fixture
Available is an altar to bow in homage to Love.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

Beauty Imagined

April 10, 2020Poemsbeautiful, Beauty Imagined, beginning to end, bestow, erased, eternal, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, glance, glance eternal, innocent, luscious, poem, poetry, radiant, safety net, Satori Publishing, spirit, timeless, translation, truth, universal, Urdu to Englishsatoripublishing2013

Bestow on me
Your luscious lips, innocent brow, beautiful eyes
So that I may, once more, drown in those pleasures
With one glance take my life into your embrace

That I may be enclosed in this safety net for ever
That your radiant beauty stops my return to the dark world
That the stains of past desires are washed from my heart
That I am free from the fear of grief to come

That my past and future are erased from beginning to end
Just one glance, bestow on me that one glance eternal.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).

Your Ocean Eyes

April 9, 2020Poemsconstant, dusk, eternal, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, false, flame, passion, poetry, Satori Publishing, secrets, sun drowns, timeless, translation, truth, twilight zone, union, universal, Urdu to English, Your Ocean Eyessatoripublishing2013

On the edge of sunlight, the evening sets
Both meet in the twilight zone
Neither day nor night, neither today nor tomorrow
One moment eternal, the next up in smoke

On the edge of sunlight, for a moment or two
The flame of lips
The ache of arms
This union of ours, neither true nor false

Why keep secrets, the one constant not to blame
Speak falsely for what reason?
When in your ocean eyes
This evening’s sun drowns
People indoors will sleep peacefully …
The traveller will set off on the path.

( my translation of a poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz ).