Shikwa
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shikvaa
The Complaint
[ from Shikwa ]
kyuuN ziyaaN-kaar banuuN , suud-faraamosh rahuuN
fikr-e-fardaa na karuuN , mahav-e-Gam-e-dosh rahuuN
naale bulbul ke sunuuN aur hamaa-tan gosh rahuuN
ham-navaa , maiN bhii koii gul huuN ki xaamosh rahuuN
jurrat-aamoz mirii taab-e-suxan hai mujh ko
shikvaa allaah se xaakam-ba-dahan hai mujh ko
[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 ]
hai bajaa , shevaa-e-tasliim meN mashhuur haiN ham
qissaa-e-dard sunaate haiN ki majbuur haiN ham
saaz-e-xaamosh haiN , fariyaad se maamuur haiN ham
naalaa aataa hai agar lab pe to maazuur haiN ham
ai xudaa , shikvaa-e-arbaab-e-vafaa bhii sun le
xuugar-e-hamd se thoRaa saa gilaa bhii sun le
[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 ]
ham se pɛhle thaa ajab tere jahaan kaa manzar
kahiiN masjuud the patthar , kahiiN maabuud shajar
xuugar-e-paikar-e-mehsuus thii iNsaan kii nazar
maantaa phir koii andekhe xudaa ko kyuuNkar ?
tujh ko maaluum hai , letaa thaa koii naam tiraa ?
quvvat-e-baazuu-e-muslim ne kiyaa kaam tiraa
[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.
to aaii aavaaz :
kis se muxaatib hai kyaa kɛh rahaa hai ?
kyaa terii xvaahish hai kyaa mudaa hai ?
sar ko paTak kar kyuuN ro rahaa hai ?
ham ne to dene kaa vaadaa kiyaa hai
are , aa , aa , idhar aa
tuu phir maaNg , phir maaNg !
sun !
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 ]
safhaa-e-dahar se baatil ko miTaayaa kis ne ?
nau-e-iṁsaaN ko Gulaamii se chhuRaayaa kis ne ?
mere kaabe ko jabiinoN se basaayaa kis ne ?
mere quraan ko siinoN se lagaayaa kis ne ?
the to aabaa vo tumhaare hii , magar tum kyaa ho ?
haath par haath dhare muntazir-e-fardaa ho
[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.
kyaa terii xvaahish , kyaa mudaa hai ?
aur sun !
paidaa sikandar ko kis ne kiyaa thaa ?
haatim ke haathoN se kis ne diyaa thaa ?
are , tuu kyaa samajh kar vaapas chalaa thaa ?
aur ham ne to dene kaa vaadaa kiyaa thaa
aur maayuus jaane ko kis ne kahaa thaa ?
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 ]
aql hai terii sipar , ishq hai shamshiir tirii
mire darvesh ! xilaafat hai jahaangiir tirii
maa-sivaa-allaah ke lie aag hai takbiir tirii
tuu musalmaan ho to taqdiir hai tadbiir tirii
kii muHammad se vafaa tuu ne to ham tere haiN
ye jahaan chiiz hai kyaa , lauh-o-qalam tere haiN
[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.