शिकवा
Shikwa
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शिकवा
The Complaint
[ from Shikwa ]
क्यूँ ज़ियाँ-कार बनूँ , सूद-फ़रामोश रहूँ
फ़िक्र-ए-फ़र्दा न करूँ , महव-ए-ग़म-ए-दोश रहूँ
नाले बुलबुल के सुनूँ और हमा-तन गोश रहूँ
हम-नवा , मैं भी कोई गुल हूँ कि ख़ामोश रहूँ
जुर्रत-आमोज़ मिरी ताब-ए-सुख़न है मुझ को
शिकवा अल्लाह से ख़ाकम-ब-दहन है मुझ को
[from Shikwa]
Why should I be a loser, go on ignoring my own gain?
Not worry about the future, remain absorbed in yesterday's grief.
Listen to the nightingale's laments, all ears, body and soul.
Fellow singer, am I a flower, to keep silent?
My gift of speech gives me courage.
I have, God forgive me, a complaint against him.
[ from Shikwa ]
है बजा , शेवा-ए-तस्लीम में मशहूर हैं हम
क़िस्सा-ए-दर्द सुनाते हैं कि मजबूर हैं हम
साज़-ए-ख़ामोश हैं , फ़रियाद से मामूर हैं हम
नाला आता है अगर लब पे तो माज़ूर हैं हम
ऐ ख़ुदा , शिकवा-ए-अर्बाब-ए-वफ़ा भी सुन ले
ख़ूगर-ए-हम्द से थोड़ा सा गिला भी सुन ले
[from Shikwa]
It is true: we are known for our submission to his will.
We tell a tale of pain because we are compelled to.
We are a silent instrument, yet full of entreaty;
we are justified if the lament reaches our lips.
O God, hear also the complaint of the loyal,
hear also a small reproach from one accustomed to praising you.
[ from Shikwa ]
हम से पहले था अजब तेरे जहान का मंज़र
कहीं मस्जूद थे पत्थर , कहीं माबूद शजर
ख़ूगर-ए-पैकर-ए-महसूस थी इंसान की नज़र
मानता फिर कोई अनदेखे ख़ुदा को क्यूँकर ?
तुझ को मालूम है , लेता था कोई नाम तिरा ?
क़ुव्वत-ए-बाज़ू-ए-मुस्लिम ने किया काम तिरा
[from Shikwa]
Before us, the landscape of your world was strange:
here stones, there trees were worshipped.
Man's gaze was accustomed to the tangible.
How, then, would anyone accept an invisible God?
Do you even know whether anyone mentioned you?
It was the strength of the Muslim arm that did your work.
तो आई आवाज़ :
किस से मुख़ातिब है क्या कह रहा है ?
क्या तेरी ख़्वाहिश है क्या मुदा है ?
सर को पटक कर क्यूँ रो रहा है ?
हम ने तो देने का वादा किया है
अरे , आ , आ , इधर आ
तू फिर माँग , फिर माँग !
सुन !
Then came a voice:
Whom are you addressing, and what is it you are saying?
What is it that you desire, what is your complaint?
Why do you weep, beating your head against the ground?
Did We not promise to give?
Come, come, come here.
Ask again, ask again!
Listen!
[ from Jawab-e-Shikwa ]
सफ़्हा-ए-दहर से बातिल को मिटाया किस ने ?
नौ-ए-इंसाँ को ग़ुलामी से छुड़ाया किस ने ?
मेरे काबे को जबीनों से बसाया किस ने ?
मेरे क़ुरान को सीनों से लगाया किस ने ?
थे तो आबा वे तुम्हारे ही , मगर तुम क्या हो ?
हाथ पर हाथ धरे मुंतज़िर-ए-फ़र्दा हो
[from Jawab-e-Shikwa]
Who erased falsehood from the page of time?
Who freed mankind from slavery?
Who filled my Kaaba with prostrate foreheads?
Who held my Qur'an close to their hearts?
They were your ancestors, but you, what are you?
People who wait for tomorrow, sitting idle.
क्या तेरी ख़्वाहिश , क्या मुदा है ?
और सुन !
पैदा सिकंदर को किस ने किया था ?
हातिम के हाथों से किस ने दिया था ?
अरे , तू क्या समझ कर वापस चला था ?
और हम ने तो देने का वादा किया था
और मायूस जाने को किस ने कहा था ?
What is it that you desire, what is your complaint?
And listen!
Who gave life to Alexander?
Who gave lavishly with the hands of Hatim?
Hey, what made you turn around and leave in disappointment?
Did We not promise to give?
And who told you to go away disappointed?
[ in Persian , from a quartet ]
[ baaz aa , baaz aa , har aanche hastii baaz aa ]
[ gar kaafir-o gabr-o but-parastii baaz aa ]
[ iin dargah-e maa dargah-e naumiidii niist ]
[ sad baar agar tauba shikastii baaz aa ]
[in Persian, from a quatrain]
[Come back, come back, whatever you are, come back;]
[even if you are an infidel, a Zoroastrian or an idolater, come back.]
[This court of ours is not a court of despair;]
[even if you have broken your repentance a hundred times, come back.]
[ from Jawab-e-Shikwa ]
अक़्ल है तेरी सिपर , इश्क़ है शमशीर तिरी
मिरे दरवेश ! ख़िलाफ़त है जहांगीर तिरी
मा-सिवा-अल्लाह के लिए आग है तकबीर तिरी
तू मुसलमान हो तो तक़दीर है तदबीर तिरी
की मुहम्मद से वफ़ा तू ने तो हम तेरे हैं
यह जहान चीज़ है क्या , लौह-ओ-क़लम तेरे हैं
[from Jawab-e-Shikwa]
Reason is your shield; love, your sword.
O my dervish! Your caliphate conquers the world.
Your praise of his greatness is fire to all that is not God.
If you are a Muslim, your initiative is your destiny.
If you are faithful to Muhammad, I am yours.
What does the world matter? The Tablet and the Pen are yours!
About this song
- Singers
- Farid Ayaz & Brothers, Abu Muhammad
- Poets
- Allama Iqbal, Abu Sa’id Abul-Khayr
This song is based on two poems by Allama Muhammad Iqbal: Shikwa (“Complaint,” 1909) and Jawab-e-Shikwa (“Answer to the Complaint,” 1913). In the first, Muslims complain to God, accusing Him of having abandoned them; in the second, God replies that it is they who have strayed from the faith and virtues of their ancestors, and promises that if they become faithful once more, everything will be theirs.
The song also includes a Persian quatrain (rubāʿī) attributed to the Sufi poet Abu Sa’id Abul-Khayr (11th century), which emphasizes God’s mercy and serves as a counterweight to the severity of His answer.
Performed by Natasha Baig together with the brothers Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad on Coke Studio Pakistan (Season 11, 2018), the song fuses qawwali with rock: Natasha Baig sings the opening complaint in a rock arrangement, while the brothers give voice to God’s answer in a more traditional style. It also contains its own arrangements and interpolated verses that serve as bridges between the different parts of the work.