اک سبب مرنے کا، اک طلب جینے کی
چاند پکھراج کا، رات پشمینے کی
– گلزار
Ek sabab marne ka, ek talab jeene ki
chaand pukhraaj ka, raat pashmine ki
-Gulzar
इक सबब मरने का, इक तलब जीने की
चाँद पुखराज का, रात पशमीने की
-ग़ुलज़ार
Meaning of:
Sabab, सबब, سبب: कारण, Cause
Talab, तलब, طلب: चाहत, Desire
Pukhraj, पुखराज, پکھراج: पुखराज, Topaz
Pashmina, पशमीना, پشمینا: पशमीना, Soft wool (Pashmina wool)
Ek sabab marne ka, ek talab jeene ki
chaand pukhraaj ka, raat pashmine ki
A cause to die, a desire to live
the moon glowing (like topaz), the night soft and cozy (like pashmina wool)
Gulzar saheb rarely writes ghazals, at least I haven’t read many of them, so when I chanced upon this sher, I copied it in my notebook. The picture it paints of a glowing moon like a sapphire and the night, soft and cozy like pashmina wool while one deliberates on life and death is very appealing to me.
Photo credit: ivanyen1205 / Foter / CC BY