We wept and wept in their memory, filling tubs,
But they proved so disloyal, they bathed and then departed.
This Urdu couplet employs hyperbole, characteristic of the ghazal tradition, to depict the 'mazloom aashiq' (oppressed lover) and 'zaalim mehboob' (cruel beloved). The lover's immense suffering, expressed as filling tubs with tears, is starkly contrasted by the beloved's extreme indifference and 'bewafai' (unfaithfulness), who uses those very tears to bathe and depart, creating a poignant and almost darkly humorous commentary on unrequited love.
love & longing (ishq, judāī) · grief (gham) · wit & rebuke