3_13x

{3,13x}

puuchhaa thaa garchih yaar ne a;hvaal-e dil magar
kis ko dimaa;G-e minnat-e guft-o-shunuud thaa

1a) although perhaps the friend/beloved had asked the state of the heart,
1b) although the friend/beloved had asked the state of the heart-- but

2) who had a mind/taste/nose for obligation/supplication to speech and hearing?

Notes:

dimaa;G : 'The brain; head, mind, intellect; spirit; fancy, desire; airs, conceit; pride, haughtiness, arrogance; intoxication; high spirits (produced by stimulants, esp. by drinking bhang, &c.; --the organ of smell'. (Platts p.526)

minnat : 'Kindness or service done (to); favour, obligation; --grace, courtesy; --entreaty, humble and earnest supplication; --grateful thanks, praise'. (Platts p.1070)

*Platts Dictionary Online*

Asi:

Although the beloved had asked about the situation of our heart, still we had no mind for speaking and hearing, such that we would express the situation, and take up the burden of indebtedness to speaking and hearing.

== Asi, p. 52

Zamin:

The meaning is clear. But in this verse don't consider the yaar to be the beloved of the poets. In reality it will be someone else, who has been moulded/cast in ghazal-ness [ta;Gazzul]. When the beloved inquires about his situation, for the lover to express disaffection is, in the 'religion of passion', a sin. So how would Ghalib have been guilty of such a sin?

== Zamin, p. 30

Gyan Chand:

Although the beloved asked about the state of our heart, it wasn't in my power to accept kindness/favor from speech/conversation. Therefore I said nothing to her.

== Gyan Chand, p. 67

FWP:

SETS == MAGAR
INDEPENDENCE: {9,1}
SPEAKING: {14,4}

For background see S. R. Faruqi's choices. This verse is NOT one of his choices; I thought it was interesting and have added it myself. For more on Ghalib's unpublished verses, see the discussion in {4,8x}.

The beloved is obviously willing to rely on the usual communicative means, since she asks a question, and expects to hear an answer. But the speaker has extraordinary scruples, or diffidence, or visions of radical autonomy: he can't stand to be a debtor or beggar or supplicant before 'speech and hearing'-- he has no 'mind' for it. And of course, with amusing wordplay, he has no 'nose' for acts that involve the 'mouth' and 'ears'. Ultimately, the speaker has no 'mind' to answer questions about the 'heart'.

His radical autonomy apparently deprives him of the chance to communicate with the beloved-- a contretemps that seems to happen fairly often (see {115,7} for another example.)

For more verses with clever wordplay on dimaa;G , see {11,2}.