![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
naadजो तुम आ जाते एक बार
कितनी करुणा कितने सन्देश
पथ में बिछ जाते बन पराग
गाता प्राणों का तार तार
अनुराग भरा उन्माद राग
आंसूं लेते वे पग पखार
जो तुम आ जाते एक बार
हंस उठते मन में आर्द्र नयन
घुल जाता ओठों से विषाद
छा जाता जीवन में वसंत
लुट जाता चिर संचित विराग
आँखें देतीं सर्वस्व वार
जो तुम आ जाते एक बार
[ROUGH LITERAL-ISH ENGLISH TRANSLATION]
If you would come but once
how many emotions, how many communiques
as flowers, would the path be bestrewn with
every fiber of my being would be singing
the intoxicating melody of passion
my tears would wash those tired feet
if you would come but once
the sparkle would return to my tear-drenched eyes
the melancholy on my lips would be washed away
a new Spring would come into my life
my long-hoarded store of despondency would vanish
all that is mine, i would lay at your feet
if you would come but once...
Mora Gora Ang Layee Le by Gulzar
Jan. 14th, 2012 11:20 pmdeepadI'm writing a bunch of posts about books and languages and literature and so on over at my blog, and while I was talking about the film-maker and lyricist Gulzar, I tried to translate one of his earliest songs. Here's my attempt at it -
( Devanagri lyrics )
( Roman transliteration )
( My translation to English )
The song, picturised on the incomparable Nutan, from the film Bandini:
( Devanagri lyrics )
( Roman transliteration )
( My translation to English )
The song, picturised on the incomparable Nutan, from the film Bandini:
Bharat Bhushan Agrawal, 'Samadhi Lekh'
Jan. 6th, 2012 08:25 pmesperanteसमाधी - लेख
रस तो अनंत था, अंजूरी भर ही पिया
जी में वसंत था, एक ही फूल दिया
मिटने के दिन आज मुझको यह सोच है
कैसे बड़े युग में
कैसा छोटा जीवन जिया.
-- भारत भूषण अग्रवाल
( hindi transliteration )
Epitaph
The nectar flowed freely, yet I tasted only a drop
Spring flourished in my heart, yet there bloomed only a flower
On this day of departure it occurs to me
it was a time for such greatness
and yet, I led such a trivial life.
-- Bharat Bhushan Agrawal
~~
Last semester, I took a class on Translation Theory and Practice at my university, and for the 'practice' part of the course our professor insisted that each person in the class translate one poem (from any language, into English) everyday and read it aloud. Poems are the hardest and best ways to understand the joys and pains of translation, he said, and he was right. Reading aloud is of course, the best way to enjoy poetry, and the class discussions that followed would be about the specific problems to each language and to the poem in question. Though mostly we talked about how the cadences and vocabulary of English were often so utterly inadequate for the idioms of Indian languages, and how really we were doing English a favour by leaving some words untranslated, or forcing English into specific-language!rhythms ;)
Our prof has worked on translating poems by the Hindi poet Bharat Bhushan Agrawal (he might have published a book, iirc) and he said 'Samadhi Lekh' had been the greatest thorn in his side. He has it up on a poster in his office, and he offers to students in each batch who are comfortable with Hindi as a challenge. This was my effort for class, and he said it was pretty good, but I'm still not happy with it overall. The effect of its sharp, succinct images and its epic sentiment is so hard to capture in English. Ah, well - I guess the only thing to do is to keep talking to poems like these, and be amazed anew each time.
[thank you toazuire for making me finally post poem, and dhobikikutti for typing up all versions of the poem]
रस तो अनंत था, अंजूरी भर ही पिया
जी में वसंत था, एक ही फूल दिया
मिटने के दिन आज मुझको यह सोच है
कैसे बड़े युग में
कैसा छोटा जीवन जिया.
-- भारत भूषण अग्रवाल
( hindi transliteration )
Epitaph
The nectar flowed freely, yet I tasted only a drop
Spring flourished in my heart, yet there bloomed only a flower
On this day of departure it occurs to me
it was a time for such greatness
and yet, I led such a trivial life.
-- Bharat Bhushan Agrawal
~~
Last semester, I took a class on Translation Theory and Practice at my university, and for the 'practice' part of the course our professor insisted that each person in the class translate one poem (from any language, into English) everyday and read it aloud. Poems are the hardest and best ways to understand the joys and pains of translation, he said, and he was right. Reading aloud is of course, the best way to enjoy poetry, and the class discussions that followed would be about the specific problems to each language and to the poem in question. Though mostly we talked about how the cadences and vocabulary of English were often so utterly inadequate for the idioms of Indian languages, and how really we were doing English a favour by leaving some words untranslated, or forcing English into specific-language!rhythms ;)
Our prof has worked on translating poems by the Hindi poet Bharat Bhushan Agrawal (he might have published a book, iirc) and he said 'Samadhi Lekh' had been the greatest thorn in his side. He has it up on a poster in his office, and he offers to students in each batch who are comfortable with Hindi as a challenge. This was my effort for class, and he said it was pretty good, but I'm still not happy with it overall. The effect of its sharp, succinct images and its epic sentiment is so hard to capture in English. Ah, well - I guess the only thing to do is to keep talking to poems like these, and be amazed anew each time.
[thank you to
azuire for making me finally post poem, and dhobikikutti for typing up all versions of the poem]Doosra Banvas by Kaifi Azmi
Dec. 24th, 2011 12:20 pmdhobikikuttiA friend forwarded me this poem by Kaifi Azmi on the Babri Masjid demolitions. I suspect it was originally written in Urdu, so if anyone has the original, or can retransliterate it back, let me know and I'll edit it into the main post. (I suspect there are a few typos in the Devnagari transliteration I was forwarded.) Likewise, a translation, which I'm too lazy to attempt.
दूसरा बनवास
राम बनवास से जब लौट के घर में आये,
याद जंगल बहुत आया जो नगर में आये,
राक्स्से दीवानगी आँगन में जो देखा होगा,
6 दिसम्बर को श्री राम ने सोचा होगा,
इतने दीवाने कहाँ से मेरे घर में आये?
जगमगाते थे जहाँ राम के क़दमों के निशाँ,
पियार की कहकशां लेती थी अंगड़ाई जहाँ,
मोड़ नफरत के उसी रह गुज़र में आये,
धरम क्या उनका है, क्या ज़ात है, यह जानता कौन?
घर न जलता तो उन्हें रात में पहचानता कौन,
घर जलाने को मेरा, लोग जो घर में आये,
शाकाहारी है मेरे दोस्त तुम्हारा खंजर |
तुमने बाबर की तरफ फेके थे सारे पत्थर,
है मेरे सर की खता ज़ख्म जो सर में आये,
पाँव सरजू में अभी राम ने धोये भी न थे
के नज़र आये वहां खून के गहरे धब्बे,
पाँव धोये बिना सरजू के किनारे से उठे,
राम यह कहते हुए आपने द्वारे से उठे,
राजधानी की फिजा आयी नहीं रास मुझे,
6 दिसम्बर को मिला दूसरा बनवास मुझे |
-- कैफ़ी आज़्मी
( Roman transliteration )
दूसरा बनवास
राम बनवास से जब लौट के घर में आये,
याद जंगल बहुत आया जो नगर में आये,
राक्स्से दीवानगी आँगन में जो देखा होगा,
6 दिसम्बर को श्री राम ने सोचा होगा,
इतने दीवाने कहाँ से मेरे घर में आये?
जगमगाते थे जहाँ राम के क़दमों के निशाँ,
पियार की कहकशां लेती थी अंगड़ाई जहाँ,
मोड़ नफरत के उसी रह गुज़र में आये,
धरम क्या उनका है, क्या ज़ात है, यह जानता कौन?
घर न जलता तो उन्हें रात में पहचानता कौन,
घर जलाने को मेरा, लोग जो घर में आये,
शाकाहारी है मेरे दोस्त तुम्हारा खंजर |
तुमने बाबर की तरफ फेके थे सारे पत्थर,
है मेरे सर की खता ज़ख्म जो सर में आये,
पाँव सरजू में अभी राम ने धोये भी न थे
के नज़र आये वहां खून के गहरे धब्बे,
पाँव धोये बिना सरजू के किनारे से उठे,
राम यह कहते हुए आपने द्वारे से उठे,
राजधानी की फिजा आयी नहीं रास मुझे,
6 दिसम्बर को मिला दूसरा बनवास मुझे |
-- कैफ़ी आज़्मी
( Roman transliteration )
naadIn Avadhi as far as I can remember...
Hindi, Devnagri -
राम नाम अवलंब बिना परमारथ की आस
बरसद बारिद बूंद गहिन चाहत चढन अकास
Hindi, Roman -
raam naam avalamb binaa, paramaaratha ki aas
barasada baarid boond gahin, chaahat chadan akaas
English Translation, Roman -
[my own translation, so inaccurate and non-poetic]
aspiring to attain the Ultimate Truth, without meditating upon Raam's name
is like trying to climb to the sky, with a ladder made of raindrops
naadIn Avadhi as far as I can remember...
Hindi, Devnagri -
एक भारोसो एक बल एक आस बिसवास
एक राम घनश्याम हित चातक तुलसीदास
Hindi, Roman -
(with diacritical marks to indicate pronunciation - hyphen over a vowel means the long form of that vowel)
ek bharoso, ek bal, ek ās viśhvās
ek rām ghanshyām hit, chātak tulsidās
English Translation, Roman -
[my own translation, so inaccurate and non-poetic]
one (object of) faith, one (source of) strength, one (object of) belief and refuge...
there is only the one Rām for Tulsidās, just as there is only the raincloud for the chātak bird.
Note:
this is based on a कवि सत्य (kavi satya) i.e. poetic truth, which is a particular phenomenon or fact broadly accepted as true within the writer/poet community of Hindi literature. it may or may not be scientific fact. in this case, the kavi satya being referenced, is that the chātak bird, a particular species of bird, refuses to drink any water 'from the earth', and waits for the monsoon clouds to slake his thirst. For marginally more details, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobin_Cuckoo#In_culture
Hindi, Devnagri -
एक भारोसो एक बल एक आस बिसवास
एक राम घनश्याम हित चातक तुलसीदास
Hindi, Roman -
(with diacritical marks to indicate pronunciation - hyphen over a vowel means the long form of that vowel)
ek bharoso, ek bal, ek ās viśhvās
ek rām ghanshyām hit, chātak tulsidās
English Translation, Roman -
[my own translation, so inaccurate and non-poetic]
one (object of) faith, one (source of) strength, one (object of) belief and refuge...
there is only the one Rām for Tulsidās, just as there is only the raincloud for the chātak bird.
Note:
this is based on a कवि सत्य (kavi satya) i.e. poetic truth, which is a particular phenomenon or fact broadly accepted as true within the writer/poet community of Hindi literature. it may or may not be scientific fact. in this case, the kavi satya being referenced, is that the chātak bird, a particular species of bird, refuses to drink any water 'from the earth', and waits for the monsoon clouds to slake his thirst. For marginally more details, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobin_Cuckoo#In_culture
Diwali songs
Nov. 6th, 2010 04:10 pmdhobikikuttiI was going to throw these up for people to listen to, but my internet is borked, so you will have to find the songs on your own. Meanwhile, here are some transcriptions in Devnagari, with the caveat that the songs are in Bhojpuri and Avadhi and various other dialects that I don't know too well, so there are some words there that I have only taken a guess at.
I'll eventually throw up a transliteration and a translation as well, time permitting.
Happy Diwali!
Shubha Mudgal sings in Deepavali Vol. 2
( मंगल दीप – शुभा मुद्गल )
I'll eventually throw up a transliteration and a translation as well, time permitting.
Happy Diwali!
Shubha Mudgal sings in Deepavali Vol. 2
( मंगल दीप – शुभा मुद्गल )
possibly my favorite hindi poem
Apr. 26th, 2010 12:42 amnaadMain tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon
main tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon
janta hoon is jagat mein
phool ki hai aayu kitni
aur yauvan ki ubharti
saans mein hai vayu kitni,
is liye sansaar ka
vistaar saaraa chahta hoon,
main tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon...
jod kar kan-kan kripan
aakaash ne taare sajaaye
jo ki ujwal hain sahi
par kyaa kisi ke kaam aye?
praan, mein to margadarshak
ek taaraa chahta hoon
main tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon...
prashnachinhon mein uthi hain
bhaagya-saagar ki hilorein
aasuon se rahit hongi
kyaa nayan ki namit koren?
jo tumhe kar de dravit
vaha ashrudhaaraa chahta hoon
main tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon...
ye utha kaisa prabhanjan
jud gayi jaise dishayein
ek tarni, ek navik
aur kitni aapdayein...
kya kahoon, manjhadhaar mein hi
main kinaaraa chahta hoon..
main tumhari maun karuna ka sahara chahta hoon...
naad परिचय की वो गाँठ
यों ही कुछ मुस्कुराकर तुमने
परिचय की वो गाँठ लगा दी!
था पथ पर मै भूला भूला
फूल उपेक्षित कोई फूला
जाने कौन लहर थी उस दिन
तुमने अपनी याद जगा दी।
कभी-कभी यों हो जाता है
गीत कहीं कोई गाता है
गूँज किसी उर में उठती है
तुमने वही धार उमगा दी।
जड़ता है
जीवन की पीड़ा
निष्तरंग पाषाणी क्रीड़ा
तुमने अनजाने वह पीड़ा
छवि के सर से दूर भगा दी
परिचय की वो गाँठ लगा दी!
-- त्रिलोचन
Just like that, by smiling
You snared me with the bonds of intimacy!
I wandered on my path
apathetic, disentranced
A blossom blooming unseen by all
Who knows what magic was in the air that day
You rekindled my memories of you...
Sometimes it happens
Someone, somewhere hums a tune
And it echoes in someone else's heart
Such is the hidden spring of the water of life
That you tapped in me
Stagnation is the bane of life
Inanimate, ossified, petrified functioning
Unknowingly
You obliterated that pain
With a single arrow of your beauty
And snared me with that bond of intimacy...
-- Trilochan (Trans. <user name=dhobikikutti> & <user name=naad>)
Note: "Parichay ki voh gaanth" translates more literally as "that knot of knowing (someone)".
यों ही कुछ मुस्कुराकर तुमने
परिचय की वो गाँठ लगा दी!
था पथ पर मै भूला भूला
फूल उपेक्षित कोई फूला
जाने कौन लहर थी उस दिन
तुमने अपनी याद जगा दी।
कभी-कभी यों हो जाता है
गीत कहीं कोई गाता है
गूँज किसी उर में उठती है
तुमने वही धार उमगा दी।
जड़ता है
जीवन की पीड़ा
निष्तरंग पाषाणी क्रीड़ा
तुमने अनजाने वह पीड़ा
छवि के सर से दूर भगा दी
परिचय की वो गाँठ लगा दी!
-- त्रिलोचन
trilochan: parichay ki wah gaanth
(That bond of intimacy)Just like that, by smiling
You snared me with the bonds of intimacy!
I wandered on my path
apathetic, disentranced
A blossom blooming unseen by all
Who knows what magic was in the air that day
You rekindled my memories of you...
Sometimes it happens
Someone, somewhere hums a tune
And it echoes in someone else's heart
Such is the hidden spring of the water of life
That you tapped in me
Stagnation is the bane of life
Inanimate, ossified, petrified functioning
Unknowingly
You obliterated that pain
With a single arrow of your beauty
And snared me with that bond of intimacy...
-- Trilochan (Trans. <user name=dhobikikutti> & <user name=naad>)
Note: "Parichay ki voh gaanth" translates more literally as "that knot of knowing (someone)".
Khusro, the forked tongued Dilliwala. :)
Apr. 19th, 2010 10:20 pmshiftingoutlinesAmir Khusro was a Hindustani Turk, born of a Turkish father and a Rajput mother, in India. Mureed (spiritual disciple) of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi, Khusro was a renowned sufi poet and musician of the 13th century. He wrote poetry primarily in Farsi (Persian) and Hindavi (Although Khusro seems to have referred to it as ‘Dehalvi’ or ‘of Delhi’(yay delhi!). Hindavi can be considered as a close ancestor of present day Hindi and Urdu).
I post two of his poems here—one Farsi and the other Hidavi/Dehalvi/Kharibolo/Hindi. I am only posting transliterations, mostly because I am lazy.
Taakas na guyad baad azeen, mun deegaram tu deegari
I have become you, and you me,
I am the body, you soul;
So that no one can say hereafter,
That you are are someone, and me someone else.
***
CHHAP TILAK
Chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Prem bhatee ka madhva pilaikay
Matvali kar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Gori gori bayyan, hari hari churiyan
Bayyan pakar dhar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Bal bal jaaon mein toray rang rajwa
Apni see kar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Khusrau Nijaam kay bal bal jayyiye
Mohay Suhaagan keeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay
You took away my looks, my identity, with just a glance.
By making me drink the wine of love,
You've intoxicated me with just a glance;
My fair, delicate wrists with green bangles in them,
Have been held tightly by you with just a glance.
I give my life to you, Oh my cloth-dyer,
You've dyed me in yourself, by just a glance.
I give my whole life to you Oh, Nijam,
You've made me your bride, with just a glance.
Ustad Meraj Ahmed Nizami’s rendition of chhap tilak can be found here on youtube
Translation from herewww.ektaramusic.com/ak/index.html. Translations of poetry, particularly sufi poetry are always a tad inadequate. If you know better, less literal translations, please do post them.
nh4everThis is the original in Hindi by Avinash Dharmadhikari
The translation (done by me) goes something like this
(If I am going to stay with someone) Ill stay with that tiger
(Who) makes my garden into a jungle
O of what use is that cat
Who eats food from my hands
p.s Ive taken one liberty in this translation, wich is to replace 'sher' with 'tiger' instead of 'lion' wich is what sher means, as upon advice given the connotations of 'tiger' are truer to the connotations of 'sher' which the poet intended to convey.
The translation (done by me) goes something like this
(If I am going to stay with someone) Ill stay with that tiger
(Who) makes my garden into a jungle
O of what use is that cat
Who eats food from my hands
p.s Ive taken one liberty in this translation, wich is to replace 'sher' with 'tiger' instead of 'lion' wich is what sher means, as upon advice given the connotations of 'tiger' are truer to the connotations of 'sher' which the poet intended to convey.
