mana ki teri did ke qabil nahin hun main
tu mera shauq dekh mera 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 mein mohabbat ke siwa
rahaten aur bhi hain wasl ki rahat ke siwa
sorrows other than love's longing does this life provide
comforts other than a lover's union too abide
hum ko malum hai jannat ki haqiqat lekin
dil ke khush rakhne ko 'ghaalib' ye khayal achchha hai
the poet expresses a witty skepticism regarding the religious promise of the afterlife. he implies that while he knows the 'truth' about paradise (perhaps that it is metaphorical or non-existent), the concept itself serves a useful psychological purpose. it acts as a comforting illusion that allows people to find joy and endure life's hardships through hope.
dil na-umid to nahin nakaam hi to hai
lambi hai gham ki sham magar sham hi to hai
wo afsana jise anjam tak lana na ho mumkin
use ek khub-surat mod de kar chhodna achchha
main akela hi chala tha jaanib-e-manzil magar
log sath aate gae aur karwan banta gaya
barbaad gulistan karne ko bas ek hi ullu kafi tha
har shakh pe ullu baitha hai anjam-e-gulistan kya hoga
ujale apni yaadon ke hamare sath rahne do
na jaane kis gali mein zindagi ki sham ho jae
hum aah bhi karte hain to ho jate hain badnam
wo 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
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 'ghaalib' nikamma kar diya
warna hum 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.
ye ishq nahin aasan itna hi samajh lije
ek aag ka dariya hai aur dub ke jaana hai
umr-e-daraaz mang ke lai thi chaar din
do aarzu mein kat gae do intizar mein
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
hazaron sal nargis apni be-nuri pe roti hai
badi mushkil se hota hai chaman mein dida-war paida
the poet uses the narcissus—often imagined as an eye—to symbolize a world that longs for true sight. its “lack of light” suggests spiritual or intellectual blindness and a persistent yearning to see clearly. the “garden” stands for society, where a genuine seer—someone with insight and guidance—emerges only rarely. the emotional core is both lament for blindness and hope for the arrival of real vision.
kar raha tha gham-e-jahan ka hisab
aaj tum yaad be-hisab aae
tu idhar udhar ki na baat kar ye bata ki qafile kyun lute
teri rahbari ka sawal hai hamein rahzan se gharaz nahin
kisi ko ghar se nikalte hi mil gai manzil
koi hamari tarah umr bhar safar mein raha
us ki yaad aai hai sanso zara aahista chalo
dhadkanon se bhi ibaadat mein khalal padta hai
mohabbat mein nahin hai farq jine aur marne ka
usi ko dekh kar jite 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.
ek muddat se teri yaad bhi aai na hamein
aur hum bhul 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.
achchha khasa baithe baithe gum ho jata hun
ab main aksar main nahin rahta tum ho jata hun
bichhda kuchh is ada se ki rut hi badal gai
ek shakhs sare shahr ko viran kar gaya
kuchh to majburiyan rahi hongi
yun koi bewafa 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 jae ai khuda
ladte hain aur hath mein talwar 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 walon ko khabar kya be-khudi kya chiz hai
ishq kije phir samajhiye zindagi kya chiz hai
ki mere qatl ke ba'd us ne jafa se tauba
hae us zud-pashiman ka pashiman hona
after she had slain me then from torture she forswore
alas! the one now quickly shamed was not so before
this couplet highlights the tragic irony of a repentance that comes too late. ghalib mocks the beloved's nature of being 'quick to regret' (zood-pashemaan) because, in this specific instance, the decision to stop being cruel occurred only after the lover had already died from that very cruelty.
sair kar duniya ki ghafil zindagani phir kahan
zindagi gar kuchh rahi to ye jawani phir kahan
kah raha hai shor-e-dariya se samundar ka sukut
jis ka jitna zarf hai utna hi wo 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
mere ghar ke raste mein koi kahkashan nahin hai