NAWÿB MIRZÿ KHÿN DÿGH

Introduction­
This poem is an elegy for Naw«b Mirz« Kh«n D«gh written at the time of his death. It pays tribute to the literary genius of D«gh and shows the reverence and love of ‘All«mah Iqb«l for him. See Chapter 4 and Appendix I, No. 19 for D«gh and his relationship with ‘All«mah Iqb«l.

Translation

The grandeur of Gh«lib¹ has remained buried since long
Mahdi Majrëé¹ is the cemetery's resident since long

Death broke the decanter of Amir ¹ in a strange country
The assembly's eye still has the ecstasy of the wine of Amir

However, today O Companion! The whole garden is mourning!
Lighted candle is extinguished, literary assembly is mourning!

The Delhi's nightingale made its nest in such a garden
Where all the world's nightingales are singing in a chorus

                Ah D«gh has gone! His bier is on our shoulders
                The last poet of Jah«nab«d ² is finally silent

Gone is that smartness! Gone is that humor of style!
The fire of youth was veiled in the old age's camphor³

Every heart has the longing which the language of D«gh had
This Lailah was unveiled there, she is behind the veil here

Who will ask zephyr now the secret of silence of the rose?
Who in the garden will understand the secret of nightingale's wailing?

                In his elegant imagination he was not unaware of reality
                The bird's eye remained focused on the nest even in flight

Others will show us the subtleties of linguistic thought
The elevated elegance of the sagacity of their thought

They will make us cry painting the picture of time's vicissitudes
Or will show us the new world of their imagination

Nightingales of Shir«z ⁴ also will be born in this garden
There will be hundreds of magicians and masters of miracles

Thousands of ÿzars⁵ will rise from the temple of poetry
The new cup-bearers will serve wine from the new goblets

Many commentaries of the book of Love will be written
There will be many interpretations of the youths' dreams

                However, who will draw the exact picture of Love?
                The master having departed who will enchant the heart

I am sowing the seeds of tears in the soil of verse
You also cry, O Delhi's soil! I am crying for D«gh!

Ah! O The Ka'bah of the literateur's ⁶ religion
Your garden has been ruined by autumn today

That colorful rose of yours has departed like fragrance
That is, the abode of Urdu has become deprived of D«gh

Perhaps not much attraction was in the homeland's soil
That full moon has set in the soil of the Dakkan ⁷

The cup-bearers have left, the tavern has become deserted,
Only H«lâ ⁸ the memorable personality of Delhi's assembly has been left

The tyranny of death makes longing shed tears of blood
The archer of death shoots out arrows in the dark

However, the tongue cannot open in complaint
Autumn's style is also a prelude to garden's existence⁹

                The one universal law creates all such results
                Exit of fragrance from the garden, that of the gardener from the world

Explanatory Notes
1. Gh«lib, Mahdâ Majrëé and Amâr- These are three very eminent poets of India who practiced their art in Delhi. For Gh«lib and Amâr see Appendix I, Nos. 31, and 10 respectively. Amâr Khusroe lived during a period when Urdu was being created but was not known by that name. At that time it was called Raikhtah and was a mixture of Persian and Hindi, which was one of the dialects of Sanskrit. Raikhtah in Persian means "mixed", to indicate that the language was a mixture of Persian and Hindi in which the two languages were distinctly separate from each other. Amâr Khusroe was one of the architects of such a language and his genius lies in doing that more successfully than others. He is also famous for devotional poetry in which the Love of God is described in beautiful style. It refers to the famous poet of Delhi, Amâr Mân«’â. If so the mention of Amâr's "mân«" with reference to his poetic name is very artistic.

2. Jah«nab«d- It is an abbreviation of Shahjahanabad, which was the original name of Delhi, given to it when it was reorganized and rebuilt during the reign of the Mughal emperor Shahjah«n.

3. Camphor is characterized with coolness. This verse is a very artistic expression of the fact that D«gh's thinking was a judicious mixture of the fervor of youth tempered with the coolness of mature age.

4 Nightingale of Shâr«z- This is the honorific title of the famous Persian poet "£«fiz Shâr«zâ" and “S«dâ Shir«zâ” on account of their excellence in Persian poetry.

5. ÿzar- He was the father of S. Ibr«hâm A.S. He was a famous sculptor of his age and is famous for making stone idols.

6. This refers to Delhi which was the rendezvous of geniuses in all fields of learning throughout the period of Muslim rule in the Indian sub‑continent.

7. Dakkan‑ This refers to Haiderabad, Dakkan.

8. £«lâ- See Appendix I, No. 36 for Khw«jah Alè«f £usain £«lâ).

9. This and the next verse are very artistic expression of logic and coherence in the working of the universe. Life without death is tasteless as the spring without autumn is tasteless.