Why should I live with sorrow and toil, when time keeps passing and my heart yearns? The couplet asks why one should continue living with sorrow and hard work when time is passing and there is a strong yearning in the heart.

This profound couplet by Mir Taqi Mir speaks to the philosophy of existence. The poet asks: why should we fear or worry about the struggles (ranj) and efforts (mehnat) of life? The answer is that as time simply passes, the only thing that remains is a deep, persistent yearning or longing (hasrat). It suggests that the struggles we face are fleeting, but the ache of unfulfilled desires—the longing for what was or what might be—is constant and inescapable.