Ghazal 100, Verse 1

{100,1}

;zikr meraa bah badii bhii use man:zuur nahii;N
;Gair kii baat biga;R jaa))e to kuchh duur nahii;N

1) mention of me, even/also with abuse, is not acceptable to her
2) that the Other's plan/prospects might be ruined-- well, it's not very improbable/'far off'

Notes:

;zikr : 'Remembering, remembrance; memory; commemoration; —mention, telling, relating, relation, recital, report, account; praise, eulogy'. (Platts p.577)

 

man:zuur : 'Chosen; approved of, admitted, accepted; sanctioned, granted; —agreeable; acceptable; admissible;—designed, intended'. (Platts p.1078)

 

baat biga;Rnaa : 'To lose credit, become bankrupt, be ruined'. (Platts p.117)

*Platts Dictionary Online*

Nazm:

That is, she hates me so much that if anyone mentions my name before her, even to insult me, then it doesn't please her. And the Other has the habit of always abusing me. So it's not improbable that for this reason she and the Rival might have a falling-out. (105)

== Nazm page 105

Hasrat:

The Other is mentioning me 'with abuse', although it doesn't please the beloved to hear me mentioned even with abuse. (89)

Bekhud Mohani:

The beloved is angry at me. But there's still enough effect of love remaining that if anyone abuses me, then she can't listen to it. And the Rival will certainly abuse me. From this there's the hope that his plan will fail. Such things sometimes do happen, and sometimes lovers comfort their hearts in this way. (203-04)

Arshi:

Compare {189,6}. (228-29, 289)

FWP:

SETS

On the standard reading, the lover is desperately looking for hope in what seems to be a hopeless situation. He's grasping at straws. After all, if she hates him so much that she can't stand to hear the mention of his name, and the Other keeps mentioning it-- then he might vex her, and she might reject him and ultimately favor the speaker instead! Who's to say it couldn't happen? It's at least 'not far off' that the Other might seriously anger her, and lose his own chances with her. Surely that would be a sign of hope? (And the wordplay between ;zikr and baat is enjoyable too.)

But we know how determined the lover is to delude himself. If the beloved so hates him that she can't stand even the mention of his name, even if it's accompanied by abuse, is there really much likelihood of her changing her mind and deciding to favor him? The lover seems to think that a break with the Other is imminent, or at least 'not far off'. But if she's so irascible as to break off with the Other on such slight grounds, doesn't that show that her temperament is wrathful and any chance of forgiveness or favor for the lover is minute? And if the lover is wrong, and she isn't about to break off with the Other, then his chances are equally dim (if not dimmer).

The first line paints an entirely grim picture, and the second line seeks to give it a rosy color of hope, or at least a reddish tinge of the malicious pleasures of revenge. We see the lover's thought processes at work. And then, of course, we're invited to see through and beyond them. The lover's situation is so desperate that it's hard to begrudge him any vain shreds of hope he can salvage from the wreck.

 

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