Word Meaning
कोफ़्त
koft
Meaning
Agony, severe distress, vexation, or mental affliction.
Detailed Meaning
In classical Urdu poetry, 'koft' denotes an exhausting inner ache, grief, or mental distress that bruises the spirit. In the cited couplet, it signifies the unbearable torment of emotional wounds that drives life to the very brink of death. Etymologically rooted in beating and bruising, it captures the wearing agony of heartbreak.
Etymology
Persian 'kūft' (کوفت), derived from the infinitive 'kūftan' (کوفتن), meaning to strike, beat, crush, or suffer pain.
Usage
Frequently used in the ghazal tradition to evoke the lingering, suffocating weariness and anguish inflicted by love or fate.
Examples
The lingering affliction of sorrow weighed upon the soul.
No remedy could soothe the deep distress of his heart.