maana ki teri diid ke qabil nahin huun main tu mera shauq dekh mira intizar dekh

agreed i am not worthy of your vision divine behold my zeal, my passion see how i wait and pine the speaker admits unworthiness before the beloved, showing humility rather than complaint. yet he presents his intense desire and steadfast waiting as his real “qualification.” the couplet turns worthiness into an emotional measure: sincerity, persistence, and love itself become the proof. its core feeling is hopeful, aching devotion that refuses to fade.

aur bhi dukh hain zamane men mohabbat ke siva rahaten aur bhi hain vasl ki rahat ke siva

sorrows other than love's longing does this life provide comforts other than a lover's union too abide

vo afsana jise anjam tak laana na ho mumkin use ik khub-surat mod de kar chhodna achchha

main akela hi chala tha janib-e-manzil magar log saath aate gae aur karvan banta gaya

ujale apni yadon ke hamare saath rahne do na jaane kis gali men zindagi ki shaam ho jaae

ham aah bhi karte hain to ho jaate hain badnam vo qatl bhi karte hain to charcha nahin hota

i do suffer slander, when i merely sigh she gets away with murder, no mention of it nigh

umr-e-daraz maang ke laai thi chaar din do aarzu men kat gae do intizar men

a long life, four days in all, i did negotiate two were spent in hope and two were spent in wait

ranjish hi sahi dil hi dukhane ke liye aa aa phir se mujhe chhod ke jaane ke liye aa

us ki yaad aai hai sanso zara ahista chalo dhadkanon se bhi ibadat men khalal padta hai

ek muddat se tiri yaad bhi aai na hamen aur ham bhuul gae hon tujhe aisa bhi nahin

the couplet holds a quiet contradiction: the beloved hasn’t been consciously remembered for ages, yet the bond hasn’t ended. the speaker separates “not thinking of you” from “forgetting you,” suggesting love can go silent without dying. it conveys emotional numbness, distance, and a lingering attachment that survives even in absence.

bichhda kuchh is ada se ki rut hi badal gai ik shakhs saare shahr ko viran kar gaya

hosh valon ko khabar kya be-khudi kya chiiz hai ishq kiije phir samajhiye zindagi kya chiiz hai

kah raha hai shor-e-dariya se samundar ka sukut jis ka jitna zarf hai utna hi vo khamosh hai

the river's raging is advised by the tranquil sea the greater power you possess, the quieter you be

inhin pattharon pe chal kar agar aa sako to aao mire ghar ke raste men koi kahkashan nahin hai

khudi ko kar buland itna ki har taqdir se pahle khuda bande se khud puchhe bata teri raza kya hai

the couplet urges inner elevation—strengthening character, will, and moral self—until one is no longer passive before destiny. “selfhood” is a metaphor for a disciplined, awakened self that acts with purpose. the striking image of god asking the servant highlights the dignity of human agency when aligned with higher values. emotionally, it is a call to confidence, effort, and responsible choice.

ishq ne 'ghhalib' nikamma kar diya varna ham bhi aadmi the kaam ke

ghalib, a worthless person, this love has made of me otherwise a man of substance i once used to be the poet humorously yet sorrowfully confesses that the pursuit of love has consumed all his worldly potential. he reflects on his former self, claiming that before falling in love, he possessed great utility and capability, which has now been wasted away by his passion.

kar raha tha ghham-e-jahan ka hisab aaj tum yaad be-hisab aae

kisi ko ghar se nikalte hi mil gai manzil koi hamari tarah umr bhar safar men raha

kuchh to majburiyan rahi hongi yuun koi bevafa nahin hota

she would have had compulsions surely faithless without cause no one can be in this couplet, the speaker softens a painful truth: if someone became unfaithful or left, there must have been some compulsion or helpless circumstance behind it. the line “yun koi bewafa nahin hota” is not a factual claim so much as an emotional stance — refusing to reduce a complex human act to sheer cruelty. it carries empathy and self-protection at once: the lover tries to preserve the beloved’s dignity (and their own love) by imagining unavoidable pressures rather than deliberate betrayal.

is sadgi pe kaun na mar jaae ai khuda ladte hain aur haath men talvar bhi nahin

the poet marvels at the beloved's paradoxical nature, where they engage in a conflict or claim to be a slayer without wielding any physical weapon. ghalib implies that the beloved's beauty and glances are far more lethal than any sword, yet the beloved innocently believes they are 'fighting' unarmed. it highlights the deadly charm of such naivety, where the lover is defeated not by force, but by the beloved's simple, unarmed presence.

maana ki teri diid ke qabil nahin huun main tu mera shauq dekh mira intizar dekh

agreed i am not worthy of your vision divine behold my zeal, my passion see how i wait and pine the speaker admits unworthiness before the beloved, showing humility rather than complaint. yet he presents his intense desire and steadfast waiting as his real “qualification.” the couplet turns worthiness into an emotional measure: sincerity, persistence, and love itself become the proof. its core feeling is hopeful, aching devotion that refuses to fade.

aur bhi dukh hain zamane men mohabbat ke siva rahaten aur bhi hain vasl ki rahat ke siva

sorrows other than love's longing does this life provide comforts other than a lover's union too abide

dil na-umid to nahin nakam hi to hai lambi hai ghham ki shaam magar shaam hi to hai

vo afsana jise anjam tak laana na ho mumkin use ik khub-surat mod de kar chhodna achchha

barbad gulistan karne ko bas ek hi ullu kaafi tha har shakh pe ullu baitha hai anjam-e-gulistan kya hoga

ujale apni yadon ke hamare saath rahne do na jaane kis gali men zindagi ki shaam ho jaae

khudi ko kar buland itna ki har taqdir se pahle khuda bande se khud puchhe bata teri raza kya hai

the couplet urges inner elevation—strengthening character, will, and moral self—until one is no longer passive before destiny. “selfhood” is a metaphor for a disciplined, awakened self that acts with purpose. the striking image of god asking the servant highlights the dignity of human agency when aligned with higher values. emotionally, it is a call to confidence, effort, and responsible choice.

ishq ne 'ghhalib' nikamma kar diya varna ham bhi aadmi the kaam ke

ghalib, a worthless person, this love has made of me otherwise a man of substance i once used to be the poet humorously yet sorrowfully confesses that the pursuit of love has consumed all his worldly potential. he reflects on his former self, claiming that before falling in love, he possessed great utility and capability, which has now been wasted away by his passion.

umr-e-daraz maang ke laai thi chaar din do aarzu men kat gae do intizar men

a long life, four days in all, i did negotiate two were spent in hope and two were spent in wait

ranjish hi sahi dil hi dukhane ke liye aa aa phir se mujhe chhod ke jaane ke liye aa

kar raha tha ghham-e-jahan ka hisab aaj tum yaad be-hisab aae

tu idhar udhar ki na baat kar ye bata ki qafile kyuun lute tiri rahbari ka saval hai hamen rahzan se ghharaz nahin

us ki yaad aai hai sanso zara ahista chalo dhadkanon se bhi ibadat men khalal padta hai

mohabbat men nahin hai farq jiine aur marne ka usi ko dekh kar jiite hain jis kafir pe dam nikle

in love there is no difference 'tween life and death do know the very one for whom i die, life too does bestow the couplet says that true love dissolves the boundary between life and death: both become equally acceptable states. the lover’s survival depends on the beloved’s presence, yet that same beloved is so cruel or powerful that a single look can kill. this tension—being sustained and destroyed by the same sight—captures the intensity and helpless devotion of عشق.

achchha khasa baithe baithe gum ho jaata huun ab main aksar main nahin rahta tum ho jaata huun

bichhda kuchh is ada se ki rut hi badal gai ik shakhs saare shahr ko viran kar gaya

is sadgi pe kaun na mar jaae ai khuda ladte hain aur haath men talvar bhi nahin

the poet marvels at the beloved's paradoxical nature, where they engage in a conflict or claim to be a slayer without wielding any physical weapon. ghalib implies that the beloved's beauty and glances are far more lethal than any sword, yet the beloved innocently believes they are 'fighting' unarmed. it highlights the deadly charm of such naivety, where the lover is defeated not by force, but by the beloved's simple, unarmed presence.

hosh valon ko khabar kya be-khudi kya chiiz hai ishq kiije phir samajhiye zindagi kya chiiz hai

sair kar duniya ki ghhafil zindagani phir kahan zindagi gar kuchh rahi to ye javani phir kahan

kah raha hai shor-e-dariya se samundar ka sukut jis ka jitna zarf hai utna hi vo khamosh hai

the river's raging is advised by the tranquil sea the greater power you possess, the quieter you be