1494_01

{1494,1}

bāġh meñ sair kabhū ham bhī kiyā karte the
ravish-e āb-e ravāñ phaile phirā karte the

1) in the garden, sometimes even/also we always used to stroll
2) in the path/movement/manner of flowing water we always used to 'spread out' and wander

Notes:

ravish : 'Motion, walk, gait, carriage; practice, custom, fashion, usage; rule, institution, law; conduct, behaviour; order, course, proceeding, procedure; manner, method, mode, way; —a garden-walk, path, avenue, passage, gallery'. (Platts p.605)

*Platts Dictionary Online*

S. R. Faruqi:

The opening-verse is by way of introduction, but it's not devoid of interest. There's the wordplay among sair , ravish , āb-e ravāñ , phirā karte . Between ravish and bāġh , and similarly between āb-e ravāñ and phaile , there's the relationship of a zila.

Then, phaile phirā karte the is fine also because when someone sees some situation to be favorable he increases his claim on it; or when he becomes more at home than he was before, this is called phail paṛnā . And to phail kar rahnā in some place, or phail kar baiṭh rahnā , means to take up a lot of space and fearlessly remain. It's clear that all these meanings are appropriate, because water after all 'spreads out'.

FWP:

SETS
MOTIFS
NAMES
TERMS == WORDPLAY

There used to be the idiomatic 'to spread oneself' in English, meaning to relax, to become expansive, to feel comfortable or even superior. The idiomatic uses of phailnā in Urdu are similar; in both cases the process of physical or bodily spreading out comes by extension to include psychological or political ease or ascendancy.

This usage makes ravish (see the definition above) most enjoyably the key to the verse. The speaker used to 'spread himself' and 'wander' along 'paths' of flowing water (and of course elegant gardens of the time had networks of water-channels); or with the 'movement' of flowing water (a very relaxed, effortless, natural movement); or in the 'manner' of flowing water (when flowing water spreads, it moves irresistibly and occupies any space in the vicinity).