POEM · PERMANENT EDITION
Mirza Ghalib جہاں تیرا نقش قدم دیکھتے ہیں Jahan tera naqsh-e-qadam dekhte hain ●sher 1 of 6

جہاں تیرا نقشِ قدم دیکھتے ہیں

Jahan tera naqsh-e-qadam dekhte hain

خیاباں خیاباں اِرم دیکھتے ہیں

Khyaban khyaban Iram dekhte hain

Where we behold your footprint,
Garden after garden, we see Iram (Paradise).

دل آشفتگاں خالِ کنجِ دہن کے

Dil-ashuftagan khaal-e-kunj-e-dahan ke

سویدا میں سیرِ عدم دیکھتے ہیں

Suwaida mein sair-e-adam dekhte hain

Distraught hearts, by the mole at the corner of the mouth,
In the black spot (of the heart), they behold the journey to non-existence.

ترے سروِ قامت سے اک قدِ آدم

Tere sarv-e-qamat se ik qadd-e-adam

قیامت کے فتنے کو کم دیکھتے ہیں

Qayamat ke fitne ko kam dekhte hain

From your cypress-like stature, a human height,
They see the tribulation of Doomsday as insignificant.

تماشا! کہ اے محوِ آئینہ داری

Tamasha! Ke ae mahv-e-aaina-dari

تجھے کس تمنّا سے ہم دیکھتے ہیں

Tujhe kis tamanna se hum dekhte hain

Behold! O engrossed in self-admiration,
With what longing do we gaze upon you.

سراغِ تُفِ نالہ لے داغِ دل سے

Suragh-e-tuf-e-nala le dagh-e-dil se

کہ شب رَو کا نقشِ قدم دیکھتے ہیں

Ke shab-rav ka naqsh-e-qadam dekhte hain

Trace the sigh from the heart's wound,
For we behold the footprint of the night traveler.

بنا کر فقیروں کا ہم بھیس غالبؔ

Bana kar faqeeroun ka hum bhes Ghalib

تماشائے اہلِ کرم دیکھتے ہیں

Tamasha-e-ahl-e-karam dekhte hain

Disguising ourselves as beggars, Ghalib,
We watch the spectacle of the benevolent.

Context

This ghazal by Ghalib exemplifies classical Urdu poetry's thematic depth, where the beloved's footprint transforms every path into paradise and their cypress-like stature makes even doomsday's terrors seem minor. The poem delves into the lover's desperate longing, their heart's journey into non-existence, and the poignant observation of the beloved's self-absorption. Ghalib's signature philosophical melancholy and humble quest for grace, adopting the guise of a beggar, are vividly portrayed, reflecting the intricate interplay of love, beauty, and existential contemplation common in his work.

love & longing (ishq, judāī) · grief (gham) · wonder & existence

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