If you have been separated from the shadow of the sword, O 'Mir', which lover has found this taste of annihilation?

This powerful couplet by Mir Taqi Mir explores the paradox of existence. The 'shadow of the sword' represents constant danger, conflict, or a life lived in turmoil. The poet asks: if you are constantly surrounded by such peril, how could any lover develop a taste (zauq) for nothingness or annihilation (fana)? It suggests that the trauma of life makes us crave an escape, a return to oblivion.