Word Meaning
रौज़ा-ख़्वाँ
rauza-khwāñ
Meaning
A reciter of Karbala elegies; poetically, an elegist or garden singer.
Detailed Meaning
Historically, a rauza-khwan is an elegist who recites the martyrdom of Karbala, named after readings of the text Rawzat al-Shuhada. In poetry, writers play on the word rauza (meaning both sacred tomb and garden) to describe the nightingale or lover mourning the transience of the garden. In this couplet, it represents the dignified role of being the premier singer or mourner of the garden before suffering captivity in a cage.
Etymology
Compound of Arabic 'rawdah' (garden, mausoleum) and Persian 'khwan' (stem of khwandan, to recite/read).
Usage
Poets employ the term through poetic punning (īhām) to equate the religious elegist of a shrine with the nightingale lamenting a garden.
Examples
the mournful voice of the rauza-khwan
like a rauza-khwan weeping for the lost garden