बज़्म-ए-मय वहशत-कदा है किस की चश्म-ए-मस्त का शीशे में नब्ज़-ए-परी पिन्हाँ है मौज-ए-बादा से
— Mirza Ghalib
Meaning

The wine gathering is a place of terror (or wilderness) of whose intoxicated eye? In the glass, the pulse of a fairy is hidden by the waves of wine.

Explanation

My friend, imagine a wine gathering, a 'bazm-e-mai', usually a lively affair. But Ghalib finds it transformed into a 'wahshat-kada'—a wilderness, a beautiful madhouse. He wonders, whose passionate, 'intoxicated eyes' ('chashm-e-mast') have cast such a potent spell? He offers a vivid image: within a glass, the wine's ripples are so vibrant, so alive. They seem to conceal the 'nabz-e-pari'—the very pulse of a jinn or spirit. It's as if the beloved's glance, not merely the drink, infuses this hidden, mystical energy. Their presence transforms the ordinary into something otherworldly, intensely intoxicating. So, Ghalib suggests, true intoxication isn't just from the wine itself. It's from that profound power, awakening the universe's wild, untamed spirit within us.

Difficult Words
बज़्म-ए-मय— Wine gathering, drinking assembly
वहशत-कदा— Place of desolation, wilderness, madhouse
चश्म-ए-मस्त— Intoxicated eyes, dreamy eyes, alluring eyes
नब्ज़-ए-परी— Pulse of a fairy, something extremely delicate or ethereal
मौज-ए-बादा— Wave of wine, ripple of wine

Interpretation note: meanings and explanations may be AI-assisted and should not replace a primary text or scholarly edition. See the editorial policy.

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