Word Meaning
ख़स्ता-लोहू
khasta-lohu
Meaning
Wounded, worn out, and transformed or reduced to blood by suffering.
Detailed Meaning
In classical poetry, this expression characterizes a heart that has been so battered by grief that it has dissolved into blood. In this couplet, it signifies that the long-tormented heart has finally disintegrated into blood, relieving it from endless burning and pain. It blends Persian pathos with vernacular idiom to intensify the image of suffering.
Etymology
Hybrid compound: Persian 'khasta' (wounded, weary, broken) + Indic/Prakrit 'lohu' (blood, from Sanskrit 'lohita').
Usage
It is used in classical Urdu ghazal as an affective hyperbole for the ultimate devastation and melting of the lover's heart.
Examples
The weary, blood-soaked heart wept at last.
A heart reduced to blood found rest from sorrow.