Word Meaning
फ़र्ज़
Farz
Meaning
Duty, obligatory requirement, or predetermined necessity
Detailed Meaning
In classical Urdu literature, 'farz' primarily signifies an indispensable religious obligation or moral duty. In this famous couplet by Ghalib, it is used idiomatically to denote an unavoidable necessity or fixed assumption, questioning why it must be taken for granted that every seeker at Mount Tur will receive the same denial that Moses received. It reflects poetic skepticism toward predetermined religious and existential limits.
Etymology
Arabic (فَرْض, farḍ), from the root f-r-ḍ meaning to apportion, decree, or make obligatory.
Usage
In ghazal poetry, 'farz' is frequently invoked either in religious dispute against rigid ritualists or idiomatically to question unquestioned social and spiritual dogmas.
Examples
It is not an obligation to stay silent before tyranny.
Fulfilling the duty of love demands sacrifice.