Word Meaning
अर्सा
arsa
Meaning
A period of time, duration, span, or a long interval.
Detailed Meaning
In Urdu poetry, 'arsa' primarily refers to a span or duration of time. In this couplet, the phrase 'arsa hua' conveys that a long period has elapsed since the lover last wept tears of blood. It highlights an excruciating interval of emotional deprivation before returning to passionate mourning.
Etymology
Arabic عَرْصَة ('arṣah), originally meaning an open space or courtyard, which in Persian and Urdu developed the temporal sense of an expanse or duration of time.
Usage
In classical ghazal, the phrase 'arsa hua' is conventionally used to lament the painful passage of a very long time since an encounter with the beloved or since shedding tears.
Examples
An age has passed since we last spoke.
Much grief was borne in this brief span of life.