Verse 51821aaz
G8
In this meter the first long syllable may be replaced by a short; and the next-to-last long syllable may be replaced by two shorts.
1
may even/also that day come/exist when, from that tyrant
2
I would experience/endure coquetry, instead of the longing for coquetry
'Blandishment, coquetry, playfulness, amorous playfulness, feigned disdain; dalliance, toying; fondling, coaxing, soothing or endearing expression; --pride, conceit, consequential airs, whims; --softness, delicacy; elegance, gracefulness'.
'To draw, drag, pull; to attract, to draw in, suck in, absorb ... ; to draw out, to stretch; to extract; ... --to drag out, to endure, suffer, bear'.
'Grief, regret, intense grief or sorrow; --longing, desire'.
| References | |
|---|---|
| Arshi, Imtiyaz Ali | Ghazal# 69 |
| Raza, Kalidas Gupta | 332-33 |
| Nuskhah-e-Hamidiyah | 113-114 |
| Hamid Ali Khan | Open Image |
In this sentence, 'I would experience coquetry from that tyrant' [], doesn't seem good. The relationship of is with longing []. That is, the way that I am experiencing the longing for coquetry from that tyrant, may that day too come when in the same way I will experience coquetry. (72)
== Nazm page 72
May God bring to pass that day, when I will support/endure [] her coquetry in the same way that I am now supporting/enduring the sorrow of the longing for coquetry. (154)
'To 'draw'/experience coquetry' [] is an idiom of Persian. According to my understanding, it ought to be like this:
(233)
In this one Ghalib is trying out a clever juxtaposition in which to 'draw'/experience coquetry, shares its verb, to unexpected effect, with , to 'draw'/experience longing. The effect is similar to 'She told me to take great care and a cup of tea.' For another verse in which the poet plays like this with , see 119,5 .
However, the commentators take the verse to task for undue awkwardness and Persianization. As Bekhud Mohani's paraphrase makes clear, the normal Urdu verb for that situation would be , 'to support/endure' (literally, 'to lift up', where the Persian metaphor is 'to draw/pull'). Shadan is even endearingly ready to suggest how Ghalib should have rephrased his verse. Nazm also disapproves of using with the postposition .
Whether or not we accept the technical objections, the poet's intentions are clear enough, and the simplicity of the verse gives it a starkness that helps to convey unvarnished longing and desire. The little word also expands in the mind-- , may even/also that day come to pass, emphasizes how mired the speaker is in this day, the present, when his situation is so incomparably much worse.
And of course, what does he long for from the 'tyrant'? He longs for 'that day' to bring him-- not union, not even real intimacy, but merely coquetry, with all its suggestions of superficiality and frivolity. His desire is touchingly modest-- and even that desire is nowhere near achievement, and perhaps may never be.
graphics/coquetry.jpg