Dil-e-bad-khwaah Mein Tha Maarna Ya Chashm-e-bad-been Mein — Sheikh Ibrahim Zauq
Meaning
I should have struck the heart of the ill-wisher or the evil-eyed gaze; O Zauq, if I loosed the arrow of my sigh at the sky, I have struck nothing worthwhile.
Explanation
The poet is scolding his own sigh for aiming badly. The real target, he says, should have been the heart of an ill-wisher or the eye of someone who looks at him with envy and malice. Instead, his arrow-like sigh went soaring up and struck the sky. What kind of achievement is that? Hitting the empty heavens accomplishes nothing. The sigh's power was wasted on a useless mark. Through this image, the poet gently mocks his own helplessness and frustration. His emotions are strong enough to pierce the sky, yet they fail to reach the ones who actually deserve them. There is both pride in that strength and sorrow at its uselessness.
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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