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SRF's translation comes, with his permission, from Mir Taqi Mir: Selected Ghazals and Other Poems, translated by Shamsur Rahman Faruqi. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2019. Murty Classical Library of India; Sheldon Pollock, General Editor. Ghazal 46, pp. 131-133.
FWP:
(inspired by SRF's translation)
(1) They got off lightly, the ones who caught on quick.
I, my dear friends, was slow to heed the warning.(2) My sad heart's restlessness denied me rest.
Longing so gripped me that, ah! -- I fell ill.(3) The heart-- merchandise worth the two worlds--
was on sale for a single glance. You didn't buy it.(4) Passion is such that they who lived in purity and seclusion--
even they became disgraced in the streets and the bazaars.(5) Let the morning breeze go and enjoy the garden! As for me,
I hadn't made a single flight-- when I was caught.(6) The devotees of that tyrant's street--
when I mentioned Paradise, they took me for a sinner. s(7) Ah, I never doubted the promise of revelation on judgment day--
so on what grounds did I seek to see your face?(8) Just look at the fickleness of fortune-- despite so much love,
the others were 'trustworthy'; I was deemed 'not faithful'.(9) The Lord knows what fault Mir Sahib committed,
for which he earned such a violent punishment!
Zahra Sabri:
Zahra Sabri is a special guest translator for this site.
(1) They came to a good end, those who came to their senses quickly
It was late, oh my friends, when I gained awareness(2) I was pained by the agitation of my weeping heart
My longing reached such an extent, alas, that I fell to ailing(3) The merchandise that is my heart, whose worth was both the worlds
Became offered for the price of a single glance. You didn’t buy it.(4) Love is such a thing, that even those who dwelt in holy seclusion (closeted with God)
Were drawn to disgrace in the streets and marketplace(5) May the morning breeze be felicitated on enjoying the sights of the garden; whereas, I
Had not even made a single flight, when I became a captive(6) Among those who hold in affection that cruel one’s lane
Mentioning paradise earned me the charge of sinning(7) I did not doubt Resurrection Day’s promise
So, on what expectation did I seek to behold your face?(8) Just look at the fecklessness of fortune, that despite such sincere love
My rival was called trustworthy, and I was not deemed faithful(9) God knows what fault was committed by “Mir” Sahib
Which led him to be deemed deserving of such manifest cruelty