Tere Ishq Nachayya
// October 17th, 2004 // All, Poetry
A superlative translation of the old favourite by Bulleh Shah:
Tere Ishq Nachayya
Come fast o physician,
Or of life I?ll be free;
Love for you makes me whirl in ecstasy.
The solitary sun has hidden away,
Leaving crimson tracery on the way,
By way of tribute to you
Life I?ll forfeit, utterly undo
O beloved I erred so,
In not accompanying thee;
Love for you makes me whirl in ecstasyWithin me love for you
has made an abode,
I myself drank
The brimming poison lode;
Love for you makes me whirl in ecstasy.Summon Bulleh Shah for Shah Inayat
has brought us to the door,
Whose love do I whirl bedecked
in varied shades of green and red.
Whilst dancing rapturously
Beloved I found thee;
Love for you makes me whirl in ecstasy.
Muzaffar Ghaffar.
I like the translation because it retains some of the fluidity that is so inherent in Bulleh shah’s poetry. But it compromises on another endearing quality-it looses that earthy simplicity that Bulleh shah wove into the fabric of his poetry. Translations are but ofcourse never faithfully reproduce the nuance that poets infuse in there work-but for a nessesary evil, this is as good as it gets.
Enjoy.
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