Word Meaning
ख़ुश-अलहाँ
khush-alhaan
Meaning
Sweet-voiced, melodious, having a pleasant musical tune or song.
Detailed Meaning
Literally meaning 'one with sweet melodies', this compound describes someone gifted with a pleasing voice or tune, frequently attributed to a songbird like the nightingale. In this couplet, it combines as 'murgh-e-khush-alhan' (melodious bird), an allegory for the poet whose expressive song is stifled by the suffocating atmosphere of the garden. It evokes the tragedy of silenced artistic genius.
Etymology
Compound of Persian 'khwush' (good, pleasant) and Arabic 'alhān' (melodies/tunes, plural of 'lahn').
Usage
In classical ghazal, it is a conventional poetic epithet for the nightingale, symbolizing the eloquent, suffering lover or poet.
Examples
a sweet-voiced bird in the withered garden
the melodious lament of the captive nightingale