This poem was translated by Professor Carlo Coppola as part of the MULOSIGE Translations project. You can explore our collection of Urdu Poetry here.
Shām / Evening
Every tree seems a temple,
Dark, desolate, old,
Long seeking excuses for its ruin.
Each turret cracked, each arch decayed.
The sky is a priest who sits under the turrets,
Body ash-rubbed, sindur on palms,
Head bowed, silent . . . who knows since when.
.
It seems that behind the curtain some wizard
Has cast a spell on the horizons
And now evening is forever tied with Time.
It seems that Time will never end, darkness will never come,
Nor will night cease, nor dawn rise.
.
The sky hopes for the spell to break,
For the silence-chain to shatter, for time to break loose,
A conch to cry out, some ankle-bell to ring,
For an idol to come to life, for some beauty to doff her veil.
.
With C. M. Naim
.
From: Yāden̲ (Remembrances), 1963. pp. 31 – 32
Shām is quoted in full in Urdu Poetry, 1935-1970
Every tree seems a temple,
Dark, desolate, old,
Long seeking excuses for its ruin.
Each turret cracked, each arch decayed.
The sky is a priest who sits under the turrets,
Body ash-rubbed, sindur on palms,
Head bowed, silent . . . who knows since when.
.
It seems that behind the curtain some wizard
Has cast a spell on the horizons
And now evening is forever tied with Time.
It seems that Time will never end, darkness will never come,
Nor will night cease, nor dawn rise.
.
The sky hopes for the spell to break,
For the silence-chain to shatter, for time to break loose,
A conch to cry out, some ankle-bell to ring,
For an idol to come to life, for some beauty to doff her veil.
.
With C. M. Naim
.
From: Yāden̲ (Remembrances), 1963. pp. 31 – 32
Shām is quoted in full in Urdu Poetry, 1935-1970
Leave A Comment