pahaaR kii bulandioN se
baRhte saaye
girte aa rahe haiN
shaam kii fasurdagii meN
aik surKh Dor sii, ufaq kii
jhilmilaa rahii hai
vaadioN meN
ek udaas raagnii kii guuNj sii lapak gayii
biraah kii aag
naGhmaa ban ke jaag uThThii
ufaq kii Dor TuuT kar
kisii amiiq Gaar kii siyaahiyoN meN kho gayii
udaas raagnii kii guunj
chiiKh ban ke rah gayii
Tasadduq Husain Khalid
English Translation
The rising shadows
from the height pf mounts
are now falling down
in the lap of this pensive evening,
a scarlet thread of horizon
twinkles in the plains;
a sad musical note echoed,
the flames of separation
leaped up as a song,
the thread of horizon snapped
and got lost in the murk of a deep cave,
the reverberations of the sad music
turned into a scream.
Translation by Anisur Rahman from “Fire and the Rose: An Anthology of Modern Urdu Poetry”