Word Meaning
शीशा-बाज़
shīsha-bāz
Meaning
A juggler or acrobat who performs tricks with glass bottles or flasks.
Detailed Meaning
In classical Urdu culture, a shīsha-bāz is a street acrobat or juggler who performs precarious tricks balancing glass flasks or cups, often on his head. In this couplet, Ghalib poetically envisions wine-flasks jumping with such exuberant froth and bubbling that every corner of the drinking floor resembles the head of a bottle-balancing acrobat.
Etymology
Persian compound of 'shīsha' (glass, flask, bottle) and '-bāz' (player/performer, from bākhtan).
Usage
Used in classical ghazals as an ingenious metaphor for precarious balance, showmanship, or the chaotic frenzy of the wine gathering.
Examples
The juggler balanced a delicate flacon upon his brow.
The drinking hall turned into the stage of a bottle-balancer.