On the far horizon waved some flicker of light
My heart, a city of suffering, awoke in a state of dream
My eyes, turning restless, still dreaming,
the morning, dawning in this vacuous abode of separation
In the wine-cup of my heart, I poured my morning wine
Mixing in the bitterness of the past, the poison of the present
On the far horizon waved some flicker of light
far from the eye, a precursor to some morning
Some song, some scent, some unbelievably pretty face
went by unknowingly, carrying a distressful hope
Mixing in the bitterness of the past, the poison of the present
I proposed a toast to the longings on this day of prison-visit
To the fellow drinkers of my homeland and beyond
To the beauty of the worlds, the grace of beloved's lip and cheek
(Prison of Lahore Fort, 1959. Taken from the collection: The hand under the stone)
Notes
Translation by Hamid Rahim Sheikh www.ece.utexas.edu/~sheikh/poetry/faiz
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Comments
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From guest MAK. (contact)
If u follow it word by word..u will end up where the author wants to take you...and be part of the celebration of his loneliness...as in the end we have to live with it and accept it as it is.... -
Bitterness of the past - poison of the present... that's a great line and I think it describes the gist of this poem perfectly. This is a new author for me. I have never read him before.
♥ Kimberly -
I like this poem. The title explains everything but his words compliment it nicely. It was a joy to find a dead poet with live words.
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Another piece that didn't seem like it ended, like it was cut short for some reason whether by the author or the site or the translator who knows.
But, this piece reminds me of a painting, not any particular painting just a painting and that is the image I got from it.
A good piece written by the author of this poem.
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