Ghazal 194, Verse 6

Nazm:

[Nazm offers no comment.]

== Nazm page 219

Bekhud Dihlavi:

He says, 'Oh Ghalib, how can I describe what state my heart's in, in separation from the beloved! To put it briefly, from my constant writhing my bed has become so full of wrinkles that every single thread of the bedding has become, to the touch, a thorn in the bedding.' (278)

Bekhud Mohani:

Oh Ghalib, what can I say about what happens in separation from her! To put it briefly, when I lie alone in the bedding, every thread of the bedding seems to be a thorn. That is, I constantly writhe, and can't find rest in any position-- as if I am writhing on thorns. (384)

FWP:

SETS == INEXPRESSIBILITY
SOUND EFFECTS: {26,7}

For discussion and examples of kyaa kahuu;N , see {15,11}.

What nicely echoing internal rhyme in the last line, with the extended sequence of taar-e bistar ;xaar-e bistar ! It gives the feeling of cycling back and rolling over on itself, and thus helps enact the idea of restlessness, of tossing and turning. Think of the pleasure of hearing this one at a mushairah. It's not rocket science, this one-- Nazm doesn't even deign to comment on it. But then-- not every enjoyable verse has to be rocket science. It's fun to recite, and makes a fine thumping conclusion for a ghazal with many highly baroque and cerebral verses.

Here every thread of the bedding is a thorn-- while only two verses ago, in {194,4}, every thread was nothing less than a ray of the sun of the dawn of Doomsday. Is this a spectacular genre, or is this a spectacular genre?