Khwaja Mir Dard’s ghazal: “As long as I live, I shall seek you”

A ghazal by Khwaja Mir Dard.

Ghazal

As long as I live, I shall seek youAs long as I have a tongue, this shall be my talk

God knows how it will endI am so impatient, and she is so hot-tempered

If there is any desire, it is desire for youIf there is any longing, it is longing for you

I have toured the whole garden of the worldThe flower of friendship has a strange colour and fragrance

This meeting of friends is a blessingOnce the eyes close, neither I nor you will be there

On whom has the gaze of my heart fallen, Dard?Wherever I look, it is the same one before me

Difficult words

• Ji: life, soul
• Justujoo: search
• Anjaam: result, end
• Tund khoo: harsh-natured, quick to anger
• Tamanna: desire
• Gulzar-e-dunya: the garden of the world
• Gul-e-dosti: the flower of friendship
• Ghaneemat: a great blessing
• Deed o deed: meeting each other, seeing each other
• Yaaran: friends (plural)
• Roo ba roo: face to face

Background

This ghazal, with the radif “hai” and the qafia “justujoo, guftagoo, aarzoo, roo ba roo”, is in simple language. Every couplet revolves around search and desire. The fifth couplet, “This meeting of friends is a blessingOnce the eyes close, neither I nor you will be there”, calls the company of friends the greatest wealth of life. According to Rekhta’s profile, Dard was born in Delhi and died there on 7 January 1785².

Source of text: Text published on Rekhta, word for word¹.