Word Meaning
वाइज़ा
Wā'izā
Meaning
O preacher! (a direct vocative address to a religious sermonizer)
Detailed Meaning
In classical Urdu poetry, 'waiza' is the vocative form of 'waiz' (preacher), used to address a self-righteous moralizer directly. In this couplet, the speaker addresses the preacher to contrast their divergent spiritual destinies, allotting the mosque to the moralizer and the tavern to the passionate lover.
Etymology
Arabic root w-ʿ-ẓ (to admonish or preach), borrowed into Persian and Urdu with the Persian vocative suffix '-ā' (alif-e nidā).
Usage
In ghazal tradition, the waiz serves as a conventional foil to the lover (rind), embodying dry orthodoxy in contrast to authentic love.
Examples
O preacher, spare your counsel, for we are not in our senses.
Listen to the tale of the tavern, O preacher, and forget your sermon.