Word Meaning
रवी
ro'ī
hiverb
Meaning
Wept or cried; archaic spelling of the feminine past tense 'ro'ī'.
Detailed Meaning
In this couplet by Mir Taqi Mir, the word is an unhamzated scribal spelling of 'ro'ī' (wept), rhyming with 'kho'ī'. It describes the night-long mourning of the melting candle standing over the dying, solitary lover. Due to the unpointed Nastaliq spelling 'روی', it is frequently mis-transliterated into Hindi script as 'रवी' instead of 'रोई'.
Etymology
Hindustani, derived from Sanskrit 'रोदन' (rodana, weeping) through Prakrit 'रोअइ' (roai) to Hindi/Urdu 'रोना'.
Usage
In classical ghazal, the candle's melting wax is conventionally personified as weeping (sham' kā ronā) at the lover's grave or bedside.
Examples
Sham' sarhaane raat bhar zor ro'ī
Aankh hijr meñ be-ikhtiyaar ro'ī
Synonyms
रोईआँसू बहाएअश्क-बार हुई
Related Words
रोनाशम्अअश्कगिरिया