The garden was so lovely, until his hair was youthful, when the bird of the soul was not captured in the cage of the body.

This profound couplet by Mir Taqi Mir speaks to the inherent tragedy of human existence. He suggests that life, which initially feels like an endless garden of beauty and freedom, loses its natural luster. The moment the soul is captured—or restrained—by the cage of the physical body and worldly attachments, the true, pristine essence of life fades away. It’s a beautiful lament on the loss of pure spirit.