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The Taste of Words: An Introduction to Urdu Poetry

Page 10

by Mir


  In his autobiography Yaadon ki Baraat (The Procession of Memories—itself a marvel of embellished anecdote), Josh describes a moment in 1939 when he heard a speech on radio delivered by the British governor of Lucknow, which urged Indians to join the Allied effort against the Axis, for that was the only way ‘to save humanity from that barbarian, Hitler.’ An incensed Josh claims that he wrote a poem (translated below), titled ‘East India Company ke Farzandon se Kalaam’ (‘Address to the Heirs of the East India Company’) in fifteen minutes. He had to suffer the consequences of his action, but escaped jail because the freedom movement was in full swing and had already stretched the incarcerating capacity of the British rulers. Josh was instead placed under house arrest.

  East India Company ke farzandon se kalaam

  Kis zuban se keh rahe ho aaj ai saudagaro

  ‘Dahr mein insaniyat ke naam ko ooncha karo

  Jis ko sab kahte hain Hitler, bhedia hai bhedia

  Bhediye ko mar do goli pa-ye amn-o-baqa

  Baghe insani mein chalne hi ko hai baad-e khizan

  Aadmiyat le rahi hai hichkiyon pe hichkiyan

  Hath Hitlar ka hai rakhsh-e khudsari ki bag par

  Tegh ka pani chidak do Germany ki aag par.’

  Sakht hairan hoon ke mehfil mein tumhari aur ye zikr

  Nau-e insani ke mustaqbil ki ab karte ho fikr!

  Jab yahan aaye thhe tum saudagari ke vaaste

  Nau-e insani ke mustaqbil se kiya vaqif na thhe?

  Hindiyon ke jism mein, kya rooh-e aazadi na thhi?

  Sach batao, kya voh insanon ki aabadi na thhi?

  Apne zulm-e be-nehayat ka fasaana yaad hai?

  Company ka bhi voh daur-e mujrimana yaad hai?

  Loot-te phirte thhe tum, jab karvan dar karvan

  Sar-barhana phir rahi thhi daulat-e Hindustan

  Dast-karon ke angoothey kaat-te phirte thhe tum!

  Sard lashon se gadhon ko paat-te phirte thhe tum!

  Sanat-e Hindustan par, maut thhi chhayi hui

  Maut bhi kaisi? Tumhare haath ki layi hui!

  Allah Allah, kis qadar insaaf ke talib ho aaj

  Mir Jafar ki qasam, kya dushman-e haq thha Siraj?

  Voh Avadh ki begamon ka bhi satana yaad hai?

  Yaad hai, Jhansi ki rani ka zamaana yaad hai?

  Hijrat-e sultan-e Dilli ka samaa bhi yaad hai?

  Sher-dil Tipu ki khooni dastaan bhi yaad hai?

  Teesre faaqe mein ek girte hue ko thaam-ne

  Kin ke sar laaye thhe tum Shah-Zafar ke saamne?

  Yaad to hogi voh Mityaburj ki bhi dastan?

  Ab bhi jis ki khaak se reh-reh ke uthta hai dhuan

  Tum ne Qaisar Bagh ko dekha to hoga bar-ha?

  Aaj bhi aati hai jis se ‘Haay Akhtar’ ki sada

  Such kaho kya hafize mein hai voh zulm-e be-panah

  Aaj tak Rangoon mein ek qabr jis ki hai gavah

  Zehn mein hoga yeh taaza Hindiyon ka Dagh bhi

  Yaad to hoga tumhe Jalianwala Bagh bhi?

  Poochh lo us se tumhara naam kyon ta-banda hai

  Dyer-e garg-e dahan aalood ab bhi zinda hai

  Voh Bhagat Singh, ab bhi jis ke gham mein dil nashaad hai

  Us ki gardan mein jo dala tha voh phanda yaad ha?

  Hind ki rahbar rahaa karte thhe kis sanjaar se

  Poochh lo ye qaidkhanon ke dar-o-deevar se

  Ab bhi hai mahfooz jis me tantana sarkar ka

  Aaj bhi goonji hui hai jin mein kodon ki sada

  Aaj kashti, khulq ke amwaj par khetey ho kyun?

  Sakht hairan hoon ke ab tum dars-e haq dete ho kyun

  Ahl-e quvvat daam-e haq mein to kabhi aate nahin

  Aadmiyat ko kabhi khatir hi mein latay nahin?

  Lekin aaj akhlaq ki talqeen farmate ho tum

  Ho na ho apne mein ab quvvat nahin pate ho tum

  ‘Ahl-e haq roshan-nazar hain, ahl-e batil kor hain’

  Yeh to hain aqwaal un qaumon ke jo kamzor hain

  Aaj shayad, manzil-e quvvat me tum rahte nahin

  ‘Jis ki lathi us ki bhains’ ab kis liye kahte nahin?

  Der se baithey ho, nakhl-e rasti ki chaoun mein

  Kiya, khuda-na-kardah, kuchh moch aa gayee hai paon mein?

  Goonj tapon ki na aabadi, na veerane mein hai

  Khair to hai? Asp-e taazi kya shifakhane me hai?

  Aaj kal to har nazar mein, rahm ka andaz hai

  Kuchh tabiyat kya naseeb-e dushmanan naa-saaz hai?

  Sans kiya ukhdi, ke haq ke naam par marne lagey!

  Nau-e insan ki hawa khawahi ka dam bharne lagey!

  Zulm bhoole, ragini insaf ki gane lagey

  Lag gayi hai aag kya ghar mein ke chillane lagey?

  Mujrimon ke vaaste zeba nahin yeh shor-o-shain

  Kal Yazid-o-Shimr thhe, aur aaj bante ho Husain

  Khair, ai saudagaro, ab hai to bus is baat mein

  Waqt ke farmaan ke aage jhuka do gardanen

  Ek kahani waqt likhega naye mazmoon ki

  Jis ki surkhi ko zaroorat hai tumhare khoon ki

  Waqt ka farmaan apna rukh badal sakta nahin

  Maut tal sakti hai ye farmaan tal sakta nahin.

  Address to the heirs of the East India Company

  With what tongues can you say this, dear traders?

  ‘Do your bit to exalt the name of humanity in this world

  The one they call Hitler is a wolf, no more than a wolf

  Let us shoot the wolf in the name of peace and sanity

  The garden of humanity is now beset by autumn

  Humanity languishes in thirst and yearning while

  Hitler’s hand grasps the mane of the steed

  Throw the water of the sword on Germany’s fire.’

  Amazed am I at such talk in your gathering

  Now you think of the future of humanity

  When you came here as shopkeepers, to ply your trade

  Were you not aware of the future of humanity then?

  Did the Indians not harbour the soul of freedom in their bodies?

  Speak the truth—was it not a congregation of humans?

  Do you even remember the story of your unparalleled tyranny

  And of the [East India] Company’s reign of terror

  When you went about looting caravan after caravan

  And the wealth of India scurried about bareheaded?

  You used to go about cutting off the hands of weavers

  And filling holes in the ground with cold corpses

  The industry of India had death all over it

  And what a death? One brought about by you!

  Allah Allah! Now you seek justice?

  Tell us in the name of Mir Jafar, was Siraj1 an enemy of truth?

  Remember you, harassing the ladies of Avadh?

  Do you remember that Rani of Jhansi?

  Can you recall the migration of the King of Delhi

  And the bloody history of the lionhearted Tipu?

  And to help the person tottering on his third day of fasting

  Whose heads did you place in front of King Zafar?2

  Do you remember the story of Metiaburj3

  Even now its dust is redolent with smoke

  You must have seen Qaiser Bagh many a time

  Where, even now, a dirge to Akhtar echoes

  Tell me, does your memory encompass that tyranny

  Of which a grave in Rangoon bears witness?

  Recall you, that still raw wound in Indian hearts

  This is called Jalianwala Bagh, remember?

  Ask it why you are so well remembered here

  For Dyer, the bloody fanged, is still alive4

  That Bhagat Singh, in whose memory the heart is still unhappy

  The noose you
put around his neck, do you not remember that?

  The leaders of India lived in such penury

  Ask that of the doors and walls of your dungeons

  Where, even now, your governance is remembered

  And the sound of the whip still echoes.

  Now suddenly, your boat is being docked on the banks of civility

  To my amazement, you have begun to preach about truth

  The folks in power hardly ever speak of who is right

  And bringing humanity into the conversation is not your style

  Yet, now you counsel us to be forgiving

  Sure enough, you must have lost your strength

  ‘Those who are on the right are wise, and those who are ignorant are cruel’

  This is usually the talk of the defeated!

  Perhaps you are no longer in a powerful position

  Hence you do not chant, ‘He who owns the stick owns the cow.’

  For a while now, you have been sitting in the shade of a different path

  Are you okay sir, or is your foot a bit sprained?

  There is no sound of hooves here, nor in the wilderness

  Is your fleet steed ill, at the hospital; is all well?

  Nowadays, every gaze of yours is full of tenderness

  Sure all is well, or is the fortune of mine enemy a bit troubled?

  Your breath seems laboured, and so you have turned moral

  And speak of sojourns into the strange path of humanity

  Now you feel tyranny, so you speak of justice

  Why do you scream so, is your house on fire today?

  It does not behove criminals to be indignant

  Till yesterday, you were Yazid and Shimr, and today, you want to be Husain5?

  Anyway, shopkeepers, this is what needs to be done:

  That you bow down before the verdict of destiny

  Time will write a new story, with a new title

  And this story needs to be reddened with your blood.

  The verdict of time cannot be made to change course

  Death may wait, but this verdict awaits no one.

  Makhdoom Mohiuddin

  Hayaat le ke chalo, kaayenaat le ke chalo

  Chalo to saare zamaane ko saath le ke chalo

  Carry life as you walk, and carry the firmament too

  Walk so, that the entire world should choose to walk with you

  Abu Sayeed Mohammad Makhdoom Mohiuddin Huzri (1908–69)

  lived in the city of the famous Charminar, and is lovingly known as the fifth minar of Hyderabad. Born into poverty, he grew up sweeping mosque courtyards, but soon became a trade union leader. He was a member of the Communist Party of India, and even represented it in the state assembly. He was one of the architects of the 1946–47 Telangana Rebellion against the government of the nizam of Hyderabad. His poem ‘Telangana’ was an anthem for the movement, and continued to be deployed during the struggle for statehood by Telangana in independent India. Much in the fashion of Vladimir Mayakovsky, the Russian poet who had influenced him, Makhdoom struggled against his tendencies to wax metaphysical, choosing to eschew finer verbal constructions in the service of anthems and group songs, which unthinking literary critics often interpret as simplistic.

  I have translated three poems below, the latter two of which are to be read as a series. The first, ‘Intezaar’ (‘The Wait’) is an exposition of Makhdoom’s gentle lyricism.1 The other two poems are much more strident, programmatic, with simple rhythms, reflecting their status as chants and songs. The first, an anti-war piece, was composed by Makhdoom in the early 1930s, when Indians were being forcibly conscripted by the British to fight in the Second World War. It was sung by Kumar Sanu for Ali Sardar Jafri’s TV serial on progressive poets, Kahkashan, and was also featured in the 1960 film Usne Kaha Thha. However, Makhdoom’s attitude to the war became much more positive once the Soviet Union joined it following Hitler’s infamous Operation Barbarossa in 1941. Like many leftists of that time, he saw the war now as a part of a broader struggle against imperialism, rather than a fight between two foreign powers. His song ‘Jang-e Aazadi’ reflected his new sentiments.

  1Intezaar

  Raat bhar deeda-e namnaak mein lehraate rahe

  Saans ki tarah se aap aate rahe, jaate rahe

  Khush thhe ham apni tamannaon ka khwaab aayegaa

  Apna armaan bar-afganda naqaab aayegaa

  Nazarein neechee kiye sharmaaye huwe aayegaa

  Kaakulein chehre pe bikhraaye huwe aayegaa

  Aa gayi thi dil-e muztar mein shakeebaai si

  Baj rahi thi mere gham-khaane mein shehnaai si

  Shab ke jaage huwe taaron ko bhi neend aane lagi

  Aap ke aane ki ik aas thi, ab jaane lagi

  Subah ne sej se uth-te huwe li angdaai

  Ai sabaa, tu bhi jo aayi to akele aayi

  Mere mehboob meri neend udaane vaale

  Mere masjood meri rooh pe chhaane vaale

  Aa bhi jaataa, ke mere sajdon ka armaan nikle

  Aa bhi jaataa, tere qadmon pe meri jaan nikle

  The wait

  All night, in my moist eyes you continued to sway

  Like my breath, you kept coming and going away

  I was happy, that the dream of my desires would come

  My shy lover, encased in a veil, eyes downcast, would come

  Inciting my passion with hair strewn over face, would come

  My impatient heart had achieved contentment and belief

  A shehnai struck up, and sadness gave way to relief

  But soon, the stars, which had stayed awake all night, nodded off

  The hope of your arrival gave way to a cynic’s scoff

  The morning eventually woke up; a new sun shone

  O morning breeze, you did come, but alas, you came alone

  Enchanted lover mine, who stole the sleep from my sad eyes

  I bowed to you, you ruled my dreams, now I’m shamed by those lies

  Would that my prayers would bear fruit, and we would meet

  Would that you’d come and I’d breathe my last at your feet.

  2Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Vo kahaan ja raha hai?

  Ishq hai haasil-e zindagaani

  Khoon se tar hai uski javaani

  Hai maasoom bachpan ki yaaden

  Hai do roz ki nau-javaani

  Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Vo kahaan ja raha hai?

  Kaun dukhiya hai jo gaa rahi hai?

  Bhookhe bachhon ko behla rahi hai

  Lash jalne ki bu aa rahi hai

  Zindagi hai ke chilla rahi hai

  Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Vo kahaan ja raha hai?

  Kitne sehme hue hain nazaare

  Kaisa dar dar ke chalte hain taare

  Kya javaani ka khoon ho raha hai?

  Surkh hai aanchalon ke kinaare

  Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Vo kahaan ja raha hai?

  Hil raha hai siyaahi ka dera

  Ho raha hai meri jaan savera

  O vatan chhod ke jaane waale

  Khul gaya inquilaabi pharera

  Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho

  Vo kahaan ja raha hai?

  Ask that departing soldier

  Ask that departing soldier

  Where he is headed

  A well-spent life leads to love eternal

  But this story’s fate is to be writ in blood

  He harbours memories of an innocent childhood

  But his youth is destined to be ephemeral.

  Ask that departing soldier

  Where he is headed

  Who is that sad woman who is singing?

 
; She is comforting her hungry children

  The air stings and reeks as a corpse burns

  And what of life? It is screaming

  Ask that departing soldier

  Where he is headed

  Why are these vistas so fearful?

  Why do the stars move with such dread?

  Is youth being murdered here?

  The borders of clothing are blood red

  But look now, the darkness is lifting

  My dear, see the colour of dawn

  O departing soldier, hang on

  The revolutionary banner’s unfurling

  Ask that departing soldier

  Where he is headed.

  3Jang-e aazadi

  Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi

  Aazadi ke parcham ke tale

  Hum Hind ke rehne waalon ki

  Mazdooron ka dehqaanon ki

  Aazadi ke matwaalon ki

  Dehqanon ki, mazdooron ki

  Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi

  Aazadi ke parcham ke tale

  Saara sansaar hamaara hai

  Poorab, Pachhim, Uttar Dakshin

  Hum Afrangi, hum Amreeki

  Hum Cheeni jaanbaazaan-e watan

  Hum surkh sipaahi, zulm-shikan

  Aahan paikar, faulaad badan

  Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi

  Aazadi ke parcham ke tale

  Lo surkh savera aata hai

  Aazadi ka, aazadi ka

  Gulnaar taraana gaata hai

  Aazadi ka, aazadi ka

  Dekho parcham lehraata hai

  Aazadi ka, aazadi ka

  Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi

 

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