Ghazal 385x, Verse 4

Zamin:

saa;Gar-e ;xaalii = the illusion/notion of existence. He says that in existence there's nothing-- it is only an illusion, and whatever is in our atmosphere is as if someone would see an empty wineglass and become intoxicated. That's all-- all the 'black-drunkennesses' of the people of the world are enjoyings of this same empty wineglass.

== Zamin, p. 455

Gyan Chand:

In the world, the illusion/notion of happiness is born from extreme heedlessness. Existence is not a cup of happiness, it is an empty cup. But through misunderstanding/error, hundreds of gatherings in the world are made joyous by this very thing.

== Gyan Chand, p. 484

FWP:

SETS == A,B; EXCLAMATION; IZAFAT; LIST
GATHERINGS: {6,3}
WINE: {49,1}

For more on Ghalib's unpublished verses, see the discussion in {4,8x}.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

In this meter each line consists of two metrically identical halves, with a caesura in the middle. Taking full advantage of this structure, the verse consists of four items, each occupying exactly half a line; as icing on the cake, the first line also offers internal rhyme at the halfway point.

Three of these four items are verb-less i.zaafat phrases; this gives the verse a 'list' structure (on 'list' verses see {4,4). The fourth item is a complete clause, with a verb of its own; but of course, it's left for us to decide how the clause is to be connected to each of the three verb-less phrases. One way would be to read the lines separately. In this case, the first line would look equational: the 'illusion' is the 'invention' (or of course, vice versa: the 'invention' is the 'illusion'). This is basically how both Zamin and Gyan Chand read it, and it works well; the internal rhyme could also be invoked to support the unity and coherence of the line.

My own favorite reading is a cumulative one: a sequence of three extravagant descriptive phrases, culminating in the naming of what they are describing. This reading would give the verse the rhetorical structure of a toast, or of a eulogy-- though it might well turn out to be a sarcastic one.

Either of these readings will have to be built on a foundation of intriguing ambiguities generated by the i.zaafat constructions. The 'illusion of the joy of existence'-- is that an illusion created by the joy, or an illusion that creates the joy, or an illusion that itself is the joy? Similarly, the 'invention of black-drunkenness'-- is that an invention created by drunkenness, or an invention that creates drunkenness, or an invention that itself is drunkenness? As so often, we're left to decide for ourselves, with no guidance whatsoever from the verse.

To balance the internal rhyme in the first line, the second line offers us some elegant numerical wordplay: we have first dah , which means not only 'giver' but also 'ten', then immediately .sad , then finally yak .

The reason I truly love this verse, however, is its radical undecidability of tone. Is the speaker boasting about human ingenuity (we imaginatively make something out of nothing)? Is he in despair at the paucity of our resources (we ultimately have, alas, nothing to make things out of)? Is he conveying a glorious mystical insight (the empty glass invites us to transcendence)? Is he laughing at human folly (how deeply we delude ourselves about the world!)? Is he simply expressing amazement (how can so much be made out of so little?!)? Or is he reporting neutrally, or observing ruefully, or giving vent to bitterness? Every time we encounter the verse, we have to decide for ourselves.