गुलों में रंग भरे बाद-ए-नौबहार चले
सितम कि सू-ए-खिजाँ तेरे ख़ाकसार चले

बड़े ही देर से हिचका किए हो चौखट पे
चले भी आओ कि गुलशन का कारोबार चले

क़फ़स उदास है यारों सबा से कुछ तो कहो
फिरोगे दिल पे लिए कब तलक पहाड़ चले

तमाम महफ़िलों में शोर दुनियादारी का
कहीं तो बहर-ए-खुदा आज ज़िक्र-ए-यार चले

कभी तो सुबह तेरे कुंज-ए-लब से हो आग़ाज़
निकल के देखने सूरज तेरा रुखसार चले

कभी तो मुश्क-ए-खुतन तेरी महक को तड़पे
कभी तो शब् सर-ए-काकुल से मुश्कबार चले

बड़ा है दर्द का रिश्ता ये दिल ग़रीब सही
जहाँ को जायेंगे देकर के ये उधार चले

फ़क़ीर की है विरासत में तुम्हारी निस्बत
तुम्हारे नाम पे आयेंगे ग़मगुसार चले

जो हम पे गुजरी सो गुजरी मगर शब्-ए-हिजराँ
हम अपने नाम के क़र्ज़े सभी उतार चले

असर तो देख मुहब्बत का ये हुआ आखिर
हमारे अश्क तेरी आक़िबत संवार चले

हुज़ूर-ए-यार हुई दफ्तर-ए-जुनूँ की तलब
तो हम भी साथ लिए दर्द बेशुमार चले

किसी के और गुनाह क्या भला तलाशें हम
गिरह में ले के गरेबाँ का तार तार चले

मक़ाम फैज़ कोई राह में जचा ही नहीं
फिसल के भी सु-ए-मंजिल हज़ार बार चले

सुखनवरी का फैज़ उनसे आज लो वारिस
जो कू-ए-यार से निकले तो सू-ए-दार चले

Translation: To Faiz Ahmad Faiz

The new breeze of spring walks giving roses their hue
Pity that us lowlifes just walk towards autumn

You have hesitated for long at your doorstep now
Come for the garden itself seeks to depart

The cage is struck with grief; say something to this wind
For how long will you live with this mountain upon your heart

All gatherings are cacophonous with talk of this world
For God’s sake let’s talk of the beloved today

Someday shall the morning begin from the shade of your lips
Someday shall the sun rise to see the beauty of your face

Someday shall the musk of Khutan pine for your fragrance
Someday shall the night bathe in the musky smell of your hair

The bond of love is great even though the heart is a pauper
To the world, this love is what we shall give and walk away

The inheritance of the beggar is but his affiliation with you
In your name shall all the wellwishers come to us

May whatever has befallen us but on the night of farewells
We shall walk away after repaying all the debts in our name

See the effect of our love for you, for at the end of it all
Our tears have washed away all your sins on the day of Judgement

In the presence of our love have we been summoned with all our frenzy
So we too took with us to you our innumerable pains and sorrows

For what do we search the sins of others now
We carry the threads of our collar in a knot with us

No resting place Faiz attracted us enough on this path
We slipped a thousand times and yet we walked towards the destination

You will Waris today be blessed with the art of poetry by those
Who after leaving the haunts of the beloved headed for the gallows

Notes: This is an attempt at a tribute to Faiz Ahmad Faiz by a much lesser pen. I have written around the original ghazal – “Gulon mein rang bhare”. This ghazal was written by Faiz on the 29th of January 1953 while he was incarcerated in the Montgomery Prison for an alleged anti-government conspiracy. The ghazal was originally popularised my Mehdi Hasan before being featured in the movie Haider.

Read the original here on Rekhta: “Gulon mein rang bhare baad-e-nau-bahaar chale”

Read translations here and here. Also, note that in her translation, Rana Safvi mentions this was a part of “Dast-e-Saba” but I found in “Zindanama” in Faiz’s complete collection “Saare Sukhan Hamaare”. She also doesn’t translate one verse.

Listen to Mehdi Hasan’s rendition here and listen to the song in the movie Haider here.

Read an introduction to Faiz’s life here on Wikipedia and read more of him here on Rekhta.

Featured Image taken from Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BZqaor-hoJX/?tagged=faizahmadfaiz