A little intro
What is this?
Misra shares one Urdu poem each week and keeps a library to return to. Every word can answer when you reach for it.
Why Urdu poetry?
Urdu poetry has a courtly literary register shaped by Persian and Arabic. It is also a tradition of poetry recited and traded aloud at a mushaira. Compression is part of the craft: a sher is two lines that must land whole, which is why single shers circulate in conversation and song the way whole poems do elsewhere.
The words.
| word | is |
|---|---|
| misra مصرع | one line — this site's name |
| sher شعر | two misras; the couplet. Plural ash'ār |
| ghazal غزل | a poem built of shers sharing rhyme and refrain |
| nazm نظم | a poem in the general, modern sense |
| shayari شاعری | poetry itself; a shayar writes it |
| mushaira مشاعرہ | a gathering where poets recite and the crowd answers |
How do I read here?
Hover or tap any word for its meaning. The Roman line is for reading aloud. Try random when you do not know what you want, browse the library by poet, or sign up for one poem each week — the same one for everyone.
Where do the translations come from?
Original text comes from named public sources. Transliteration and translation are machine-assisted and reviewed; each poem shows its source.