Ghazal 226, Verse 8x

Asi:

Leave aside formality, and obtain a single dream like the dream of Zulaikha. Otherwise, the truth is that a confused dream will become the 'embrace of leave-taking' of Joseph. He has construed confusion as 'openness' because the 'embrace of leave-taking' is usually open. The gist is, 'obtain composure of heart, otherwise there's no hope of finding the desired Joseph'.

== Asi, p. 233

Zamin:

That is, merely seeing the glory/appearance of the beloved in a dream is no proof of the obtaining of union with the beloved, as long as there wouldn't be a taste/relish like Zulaikha's-- that is, true passion. Instead of 'leave-taking of Joseph' he has brought in 'Joseph-land' because he was forced by the rhyme; this is not devoid of artificiality.... In any case, despite its weakness of composition this verse is not such that it would be called meaningless.

== Zamin, p. 352

Gyan Chand:

Zulaikha saw Hazrat Joseph three times in a dream, and every time when she woke he slipped from her hands. A 'confused/scattered dream' is open and diffused; thus it has a similitude with an 'embrace of leave-taking'. This dream took leave of the stability of Joseph. Oh lover, if you gather an attachment like that of Zulaikha, then you can obtain a beloved like Joseph, as Zulaikha did. If you consider a confused dream to be sufficient, then you will lose Joseph.

== Gyan Chand, p. 359

FWP:

SETS == PETRIFIED PHRASES
DREAMS: {3,3}

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 For more on Ghalib's unpublished verses, see the discussion in {4,8x}.

On the 'petrified phrase' takalluf bar-:taraf , see {65,1}. Here, it will initially appear as a conventional 'claim of candor' phrase, but it can also be read, retrospectively, as describing how the addressee ought to acquire the taste of Zulaikha-- by 'putting aside formality'.

On the paradoxical-seeming 'embrace of leave-taking', see {57,6}.

For discussion of the story of Zulaikha's three dreams about Joseph, see {194,5}.

'Joseph-land'?! This bizarre neologism not only doesn't add to the meaning of the verse, but actually detracts from it (since an 'embrace of leave-taking' is much more appropriate for a person than for a country). This seems to be a clear case of padding. Zamin's criticism is obviously correct: the padding is dictated by the requirements of the rhyme.

This verse reminds me of the famous anecdote attributed to Rumi's teacher Shams-e Tabrizi about how one must look at Laila with the eyes of Majnun. Here, we're enjoined to cultivate the ;zauq (see the definition above) of Zulaikha, because otherwise one will be left with nothing but a confused dream of loss. And Zulaikha's ;zauq requires a stubborn, even foolhardy courage and commitment in the waking world: in order to find Joseph, she had to insist on marrying an unsuitable eunuch.

The wordplay of 'collecting' and 'scattering' works well here. The idea that one must jam((a karnaa one's ;zauq evokes the common expression ;xaa:tir jam((a rakh , meaning something like 'Pull yourself together!' (see the definitions above, and {202,3}). By contrast, pareshaa;N evokes a nightmare of disorder, confusion, and loss.