Zehal-e miskin makun taghaful – Amir Khusro

by Vikram

An excellent Qawwali from Amir Khusrau depicting how persian and Indian culture intermingled in the mughal era. First part of each verse is in Farsi and the second part is in Awadhi.

Zehal-e miskin makun taghaful,
baraye naina banaye batiyan;
ki taab-e hijran nadaram ay jaan,
na leho kaahe lagaye chhatiyan.

Do not overlook my misery by blandishing your eyes,
and weaving tales; My patience has over-brimmed,
O sweetheart, why do you not take me to your bosom.

Shaban-e hijran daraz chun zulf
wa roz-e waslat cho umr kotah;
Sakhi piya ko jo main na dekhun
to kaise kaatun andheri ratiyan.

Long like curls in the night of separation,
short like life on the day of our union;
My dear, how will I pass the dark dungeon night
without your face before.

Yakayak az dil do chashm-e jadoo
basad farebam baburd taskin;
Kise pari hai jo jaa sunaave
piyare pi ko hamaari batiyan.

Suddenly, using a thousand tricks,
the enchanting eyes robbed me
of my tranquil mind;
Who would care to go and report this matter to my darling?

Cho sham’a sozan cho zarra hairan
hamesha giryan be ishq aan meh;
Na neend naina na ang chaina
na aap aaven na bhejen patiyan.

Tossed and bewildered, like a flickering candle,
I roam about in the fire of love;
Sleepless eyes, restless body,
neither comes she, nor any message.

Bahaqq-e roz-e wisal-e dilbar
ki daad mara ghareeb Khusrau;
Sapet man ke waraaye raakhun
jo jaaye paaon piya ke khatiyan.

In honour of the day I meet my beloved
who has lured me so long, O Khusrau;
I shall keep my heart suppressed,
if ever I get a chance to get to her trick.

– Amir Khusro

Amir Khusrow teaching his disciples; miniature from a manuscript of Majlis Al-Usshak by Husayn Bayqarah

Ab’ul Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrow (1253–1325 CE) Hindi अमीर खुसरो, (Urdu: ابوالحسن یمین‌الدین خسرو‎;, better known as Amīr Khusrow (also Khusrau, Khusro) Dehlawī (meaning Amir Khusrow of Delhi) (امیر خسرو دہلوی) was a Sufi musician, great poet and scholar. A polymath an iconic figure in the cultural history of the Indian subcontinent. A mystic and a spiritual disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi. Amīr Khusrow was not only a notable poet but also a prolific and seminal musician in the time of the Delhi Sultanate, being reputed to have invented both the Sitar and the Tabla. He wrote poetry primarily in Persian, but also in Hindavi. A vocabulary in verse, the Ḳhāliq Bārī, containing Arabic, Persian, and Hindavi terms is often attributed to him.[2]

He is regarded as the “father of Qawwali (the devotional music of the Sufis in the Indian subcontinent).Introduced the Ghazal style of song into India. These traditions have been kept very much alive in India and Pakistan to this day.[3][4] He is also credited with enriching Indian classical music by introducing Persian, Arabic and Turkish elements into it and was the originator of the khayal and tarana styles of music.

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