Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s poem, Nisaar mein teri galiyo ke, is one of my favorite poems. It has been on my mind a lot lately, for whatever reason. I ended up making my own rather loose translation. Sharing the translation first, then the original Urdu poem.
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A salute and a half to your alleyways, oh gracious land of mine,
Home to the latest fashion, that every head remain bowed!
Any discontent, any seeker who dares to venture about
May only slink through the streets with a tremble in their heart.
Those guilty of honesty soon learn the logic of the insane:
Attack dogs may roam free, only the bones of the earth are chained.
Those who deal out oppression need no more pretext
Than the handful of faithful who still whisper your name.
The lords of the land play both accuser and judge,
So who will defend you, from whom will justice flow?
But, for those who yet persist, the time yet drips away.
I’m absent now but listen, my love: these days will slip away.
When the door of the jail grows dark, it’s the heart that can see
How the stars of the sky are now scattered in your mane.
When the chains that bind me are lit, what I perceive
Is the glow of dawn upon your face.
Prison’s days are but mirages of sun’s rises and its falls.
My life crawls captive to the shadows of the walls.
Oh, this is the way of the war of the tyrants and the people.
There’s nothing novel in their rites, nothing novel in our fight.
We can coax roses to bloom from the very midst of the blaze,
So their loss will come soon, and our successes no surprise.
Why should I complain about a little time in the dark?
In this short moment I’m away, I won’t shadow my heart.
So this day we’re apart, the morrow we’re together.
A parting of but one night is no matter at all.
If the oppressor’s fist is now high, it’s really no bother.
This silly half-week of their might is no matter at all.
Those who remember their truths, who hang fast to their reasons,
Hold the power to halt these petty whirlpools of seasons.
Original:
Nisaar mein teri galiyon ke ai watan ke jahan,
Chali hai rasm ke koi na sar utha ke chale,
Jo koi chahne waala tawaaf ko nikle,
Nazar chura ke chale, jism-o-jaan bacha ke chale,
Hai ahl-e-dil ke liye ab ye nazm-e-bast-o-kushaad,
Ke sang-o-khisht muqayyad hain aur sag aazaad.
Bahut hai zulm ke dast-e-bahaana-joo ke liye,
Jo chand ahl-e-junoon tere naam lewa hain,
Bane hain ahl-e-hawas mudd’ai bhi, munsif bhi,
Kise wakeel karein, kisse munsifi chahein,
Magar guzaarne waalon ke din guzarte hain,
Tere firaaq mein yoon subh-o-shaam karte hain.
Bujha jo rozan-e-zindaan to dil ye samjha hai,
Ke teri maang sitaaron se bhar gayi hogi,
Chamak uthe hain salaasil to hum ne jaana hai,
Ke ab seher tere rukh par bikhar gayi hogi,
Gharaz tasavvur-e-shaam-o-seher mein jeete hain,
Giraft-e-saaya-e-deewaar-o-dar mein jeete hain.
Yoon hi hamesha ulajhti rahi hai zulm se khalq,
Na unki rasm nayi hai, na apni reet nayi,
Yoon hi hamesha khilaaye hain hum ne aag mein phool,
Na unki haar nayi hai, na apni jeet nayi,
Isi sabab se falak ka gila nahi karte,
Tere firaaq mein hum dil bura nahi karte.
Gar aaj tujh se juda hain to kal behem honge,
Ye raat bhar ki judaai to koi baat nahi,
Gar aaj auj pe hai taala’-e-raqeeb to kya,
Ye chaar din ki khudai to koi baat nahi,
Jo tujh se ehd-e-wafa ustuwaar rakhte hain,
Ilaaj-e-gardish-e-lail-o-nihaar rakhte hain!