شکایتیں دل کی –
ہزار ہم نے بیاں کیں حکایتیں دل کی
وہ بے خیال نہ سمجھا نزاکتیں دل کی
اُسے تھا زعم کہ میرے دکھوں سے واقف ہے
جسے خبر نہ تھی کیا ہیں جراحتیں دل کی
میں خود بھی تیز رواںٔ سفر میں شامل تھا
کسے تھا وقت کہ سنتا شکایتیں دل کی
فرازِ بام سے ڈالی تھی بستیوں پہ نظر
امیرِ شہر نے دیکھی نہ حالتیں دل کی
بجھے چراغ بھی لو دے اٹھے ہیں خلوت میں
یہ تیری یاد ہے یا ہیں کراماتیں دل کی
یہ اور بات، سماعت گریز تھا منصف
ہر اک زبان پہ رواں تھیں شہادتیں دل کی
بچھڑ کے مجھ سے ملا وہ جو ایک عمر کے بعد
عیان تھیں اس کی نظر سے ندارتیں دل کی
یوں ہی چراغ رہیں اس کی یاد کے روشن
سجائیں بزمِ تخیل فراغتیں دل کی
یہ تار تار گریباں، بجھی بجھی سی نظر
ہوئی ہیں ہم پر بھی کیا کیا عنایتیں دل کی
– اطہر زیدی
Translation and Deeper Analysis:
1.
ہزار ہم نے بیاں کیں حکایتیں دل کی
وہ بے خیال نہ سمجھا نزاکتیں دل کی
Translation:
A thousand times I spoke the tales of my heart,
But the unmindful one never grasped its subtleties.
Analysis:
This opening couplet sets the tone of the nazm — a lament of emotional disconnect. The speaker has poured their heart out repeatedly, but the intended recipient remains indifferent, not due to malice, but perhaps emotional unawareness. The word “نزاکتیں” (subtleties) implies that matters of the heart are delicate and nuanced, not always expressed in loud grief — and certainly not understood by someone who isn’t emotionally tuned in.
2.
اُسے تھا زعم کہ میرے دکھوں سے واقف ہے
جسے خبر نہ تھی کیا ہیں جراحتیں دل کی
Translation:
He was under the illusion that he knew my sorrows,
Yet he was unaware of the true wounds of my heart.
Analysis:
Here, the poet exposes the false empathy of the other. The word “زعم” implies arrogance or misplaced confidence. This suggests a person who assumes understanding without making the effort. “جراحتیں” (wounds) deepen the emotional gravity — moving from sorrow to trauma. It’s not just sadness being overlooked, but actual emotional scarring.
3.
میں خود بھی تیز رواںٔ سفر میں شامل تھا
کسے تھا وقت کہ سنتا شکایتیں دل کی
Translation:
I too was swept along in the fast-moving journey,
Who had the time to listen to the heart’s complaints?
Analysis:
This is a turning inward. The poet now reflects on his own complicity — “میں خود بھی” (I too…). In the rush of life, even he became deaf to his own emotional needs or perhaps those of others. The couplet critiques modern or worldly life — always rushing, never pausing for inner reflection or emotional depth. A profound comment on how even pain becomes muted in the noise of existence.
4.
فرازِ بام سے ڈالی تھی بستیوں پہ نظر
امیرِ شہر نے دیکھی نہ حالتیں دل کی
Translation:
From the height of his rooftop, he looked over the towns,
But the city’s ruler never saw the condition of the heart.
Analysis:
A beautiful metaphor for detached authority or privilege. The ruler surveys the land from a height, symbolizing power and distance. But what is missed is the inner suffering of the people — of the poet. The “حالتیں دل کی” (conditions of the heart) are personal, emotional states that don’t show from above. This couplet subtly criticizes superficial leadership and people who fail to connect emotionally with those below them.
5.
بجھے چراغ بھی لو دے اٹھے ہیں خلوت میں
یہ تیری یاد ہے یا ہیں کراماتیں دل کی
Translation:
Even extinguished lamps have begun to glow again in solitude,
Is this your memory, or are these miracles of the heart?
Analysis:
This is a mystical, deeply romantic moment. In solitude, where even hope seems lost (symbolized by extinguished lamps), the memory of a beloved revives light. This could be interpreted as either divine remembrance or a powerful personal love. The word “کرامات” (miracles) introduces a spiritual dimension — suggesting the heart itself holds mystic potential when touched by love or longing.
6.
یہ اور بات، سماعت گریز تھا منصف
ہر اک زبان پہ رواں تھیں شہادتیں دل کی
Translation:
It’s another matter — the judge refused to listen,
Though every tongue flowed with testimonies of the heart.
Analysis:
This couplet critiques injustice or indifference in a legal or metaphorical sense. The “منصف” (judge) could be society, a beloved, or a divine being — one who holds the power to understand or absolve. Yet, they chose not to hear, despite overwhelming witness accounts. This could imply societal silencing of emotional truths — or the painful reality that even truth, when spoken loudly, can be ignored.
7.
بچھڑ کے مجھ سے ملا وہ جو ایک عمر کے بعد
عیان تھیں اس کی نظر سے ندارتیں دل کی
Translation:
He met me again after a lifetime of separation,
And even he could now see what was once hidden in my heart.
Analysis:
Time has passed, and perhaps with age or wisdom, the once-blind now sees. The “ندارتیں” (absences/hidden things) of the heart have become “عیان” (apparent). This verse captures the bittersweet reunion — the pain of late understanding. The damage has already been done, but finally, recognition arrives. A classic moment in Urdu poetry where realization comes, but too late to change the past.
8.
یوں ہی چراغ رہیں اس کی یاد کے روشن
سجائیں بزمِ تخیل فراغتیں دل کی
Translation:
Let the lamps of his memory remain glowing,
To illuminate the gatherings of the heart’s imagination.
Analysis:
This couplet celebrates memory as a sustaining light. Even in absence, the beloved or the memory continues to inspire and decorate the poet’s inner world — the “بزمِ تخیل” (assembly of imagination). It suggests that from pain can grow beauty; from longing, a kind of poetic abundance. There’s peace now — “فراغتیں” (tranquilities) — suggesting a settling of the heart.
9.
یہ تار تار گریباں، بجھی بجھی سی نظر
ہوئی ہیں ہم پر بھی کیا کیا عنایتیں دل کی
Translation:
This tattered collar, this dimmed gaze,
Even I have been blessed with the heart’s strange favors.
Analysis:
A powerful and ironic conclusion. The “تار تار گریباں” (torn collar) and “بجھی بجھی نظر” (dimmed eyes) represent emotional suffering and weariness. Yet the poet calls them “عنایتیں” (blessings, favors). This is the classic Sufi paradox: pain as grace, suffering as enlightenment. The heart — though a source of anguish — has bestowed upon the poet a profound understanding of love, longing, and life.
💫 Overall Themes & Reflections:
- Unheard Emotion: Much of the poem reflects the pain of being unheard, unseen — not in loud sorrow, but in subtle emotional truths.
- Spiritual Longing: Especially in verses like the glowing lamp and the miracle of memory, there’s a Sufi undercurrent — where longing leads to spiritual elevation.
- Social Critique: The “ameer-e-sheher” and “manṣif” stand as metaphors for detached authority and unempathetic systems — critiques delivered in graceful poetic form.
- Memory as Light: Even in loss, the poet chooses to find light in memory — a recurring metaphor in Urdu poetry that speaks of love’s immortality.
- Transformation Through Pain: Ultimately, the poet emerges wiser, not despite heartbreak but because of it.
What do you think about the translation? Does it truley reflect the meaning, emotional spirit and profound message poet is trying to convey? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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