Na Khinch Ai Sa.i-e-dast-e-na-rasa Zulf-e-tamanna Ko — Mirza Ghalib
Meaning
O futile effort of an incapable hand, do not draw or untangle the tresses of desire; for even the skill and plan of Mani the painter is more disheveled than the hair of a brush.
Explanation
Ghalib gently warns his own reaching, helpless hands against trying to grasp or tame the wild tresses of longing. Drawing on the legend of Mani, the master painter, he reflects that just as the finest hair of an artist's brush frays when attempting to capture profound vision, our fragile human plans unravel before the deep complexities of meaning. It is a tender reflection on human limitation, reminding us that some desires are simply too vast and intricate for us to ever neatly untangle.
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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