Aam Hukm-e-sharab Karta Hoon — Mir Taqi Mir

आम हुक्म-ए-शराब करता हूँ मोहतसिब को कबाब करता हूँ
— Mir Taqi Mir

Meaning

I issue a general decree for wine to flow freely and I turn the censor, who forbids it, into a roasted kebab through my defiance.

Explanation

This couplet is a masterful piece of witty defiance. The poet suggests that he is not only dispensing the 'command' (हुक्म) of wine—a pleasure that should be restricted—but he is also actively mocking the moral watchdog, the 'muhtasib.' By making the muhasib a kebab, Mir Taqi Mir asserts that he controls pleasure and even the conscience itself. It's a celebration of indulgence and freedom from judgment.

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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