Saturday Translations…

We accidently come across a nice Sher and then we go, reading many more. This post is an attempt to translate one of those Ghazals.

अब के हम बिछड़े तो शायद कभी ख़्वाबों में मिलें
जिस तरह सूखे हुए फूल किताबों में मिलें।

Ab ke bichhde to shaayad kabhi khwaabon mein milen
Jis tarah sookhe huye phool kitaabon mein milen.

If we part this time maybe we'll meet in the dreams
The way dried old flowers are found in the books.

ढूँढ उजड़े हुए लोगों में वफ़ा के मोती
ये ख़ज़ाने तुझे मुमकिन है ख़राबों में मिलें।

Dhoond ujde huye logon mein vafa ke moti
Ye khazaane tujhe mumkin hai kharaabon mein milen.

Search for pearls of loyalty among the devastated
This treasure is most likely found in the wrecks.

ग़म-ए-दुनिया भी ग़म-ए-यार में शामिल कर लो
नशा बढ़ता है शराबें जो शराबों में मिलें।

Gam-e-duniya bhi gam-e-yaar mein shaamil kar lo
Nasha badhta hai sharaaben jo sharaabon mein milen.

Include the sorrow of my beloved in the sorrow of this world
The intoxication rises, after all, when the wines mix in wines.

तू ख़ुदा है न मिरा इश्क़ फ़रिश्तों जैसा
दोनों इंसाँ हैं तो क्यूँ इतने हिजाबों में मिलें।

Tu khuda hai na mira ishq farishton jaisa
Donon insaan hain to kyun itne hizaabon mein milen.

You are neither a God nor is my love angel-like
We are both humans so why do we meet in veils.

आज हम दार पे खींचे गए जिन बातों पर
क्या अजब कल वो ज़माने को निसाबों में मिलें।

Aaj hum daar pe kheenche gaye jin baaton par
Kya ajab kal vo zamaane ko nisaabon mein milen.

Those ideas for which I was tortured in the gallows today
How strange, tomorrow the world found those in the texts.

अब न वो मैं न वो तू है न वो माज़ी है 'फ़राज़'
जैसे दो साए तमन्ना के सराबों में मिलें।

Ab na vo main na vo tu hai na vo maazi hai ‘Faraz’
Jaise do saaye tamanna ke saraabon mein milen.

Neither the old me or you nor are those past times here 'Faraz'
It is just like two shadows cast across the mirage of desires.

– अहमद फ़राज़ (Ahmad Faraz)

To take our spirits to yet another level, here comes the nice Sher that sparked the idea for this post.

हम जिसके हो गये वो हमारा ना हो सका
यूँ भी हुआ हिसाब बराबर कभी कभी।

Ham jiske ho gaye vo humara na ho saka
Yun bhi hua hisaab baraabar kabhi kabhi.

I became theirs who could never become mine
Even like this the account balances sometimes.

– आल-ए-अहमद सुरूर (Aal-e-Ahmad Suroor)

That’s all for now. Happy Sunday! 😀

Forgiveness…

Today is an important day in the Jain calendar. People start their conversations on this day by saying ‘Khamat Khaamna’ to each other, which means ‘Forgive me if I have said or done anything that hurt you (un)intentionally’. Yesterday was ‘Samvatsari’ – the holiest day and end of an eight day festival [also called as Paryushan] celebrated by Shwetamber Jains. The word Samvatsari has its origin in Sanskrit, the original word being ‘Samvatsara’ which means ‘a year’ and in this context, means ‘occuring once a year’. Unlike other festivals which are about gatherings, food, decorations, gifts, etc. this one is about contemplation, prayer and repentance. Many Jains fast for around 36 hours on the 8th day and at the end of the fast, they seek forgiveness for their words and deeds from all the living beings of the world.

On this important day, ‘Khamat Khaamna’ to our readers.🙏

Park Visits…

We regularly visit a nearby park and many fun things happen while we are there. Most of the times, I’m still thinking about the fun stuff when we walk back home while Sakura tries to get hold of my hair but her hands already have a few strands. There is this 4 year old boy who always enters the park after we do. It can’t be a coincidence every time, it should be intentional that he enters the park a few minutes later. He speaks to me everyday and gives me some information about the park and nothing else. Yesterday he said ‘there is rain water clogged under that swing’. The day before he said ‘the grass in this park has grown so much’. The day before that he said ‘the grass in this park has snakes. I saw one’. So everyday I wait for him to come, give me some information after which he goes away. There are days when I have tried to strike a conversation with him – ‘so are you done with school today?’ and he just ‘nods’.

Sakura and I occupy the same swing. It’s so kind of the caretakers they never ask me to not use a swing designed for children. I guess they know that Sakura can’t ride on her own as yet, so they must be fine with me giving her company. The first time we were on the swing Sakura sat all cuddled in my lap. She was looking at the soil underneath and I observed that her hands moved slowly onto the sides as if trying to locate something. A few minutes later, I saw her holding on to the swing. A few days passed and I knew she had become very comfortable with the swing as she knew instinctively how to hold on to the swing. This is the difference I feel between training a neural network and teaching a child. The former only does what you have trained it for but a child can do things with no training or coaching, it in fact can apply its own principles. She moves her legs just the way I do just to add to the momentum of the swing. Last month, I was teaching her how to hit the mattress using her palms and observe the kind of sound produced. A few days later I saw her hitting some of the toys the same way and trying to see what kind of sounds they produced. To my astonishment, she is hitting my arms and face the same way as she hits those toys and is stunned that no interesting sound is being produced. What a child may be thinking is pretty interesting to imagine and people say there is so much not known in the area of Child psychology.

For now, I’m taking Sakura to the verandah where she notices all kinds of vehicles passing by. She is either smiling at people who are on their bicycles or is calling those who are speeding up in their cars.

Have a nice weekend.