Main Jo Shaheed Hoon Lab-e-khandaan-e-yaar Ka — Sheikh Ibrahim Zauq
Meaning
Since I am martyred for the smiling lips of my beloved, how wondrously do lamps burn upon my grave.
Explanation
The poet calls himself a martyr to the beloved's smiling lips. He died, in a sense, from the beauty of that gentle smile. And now, look how his grave is lit up, how many lamps glow upon it. This is a tender boast. His love was so true, his devotion so complete, that even in death he is honored like a saint. People come to his resting place and light candles, as they would at a shrine. The couplet turns the pain of unrequited love into something beautiful and almost sacred. To die for love, he suggests, is not a loss but a kind of glory that outlives the one who feels it.
Interpretation note: meanings and explanations may be AI-assisted and should not replace a primary text or scholarly edition. See the editorial policy.
Audio
Free — just your email. You'll come right back here.
No comments yet. Be the first.