Ghazal 441x, Verse 2

{441x,2}*

gul sar-bah-sar ishaarah-e jeb-e dariidah hai
naaz-e bahaar juz bah taqaazah nah khe;Nchiye

1) the rose, entirely/'head-to-head', is the sign/trace of a torn collar
2) don't display the coquetry/pride/conceit of spring-- apart from having a claim

Notes:

ishaarah : 'Sign, signal; beck, nod, wink, nudge, gesticulation; pointing to, indication, trace, mark'. (Platts p.55)

 

naaz : 'Blandishment, coquetry, playfulness, amorous playfulness, feigned disdain; dalliance, toying; fondling, coaxing, soothing or endearing expression; — pride, conceit, consequential airs, whims'. (Platts p.1114)

 

khe;Nchnaa : 'To draw, drag, pull; to attract, to draw in, suck in, absorb ... to draw out, to stretch; ... to draw tight, to tighten; ... — to draw away or aside (from), to hold aloof ... to withdraw, withhold; ... — to drag out, to endure, suffer, bear'. (Platts p.887)

Zamin:

That is, upon seeing the rose's burst-open collar, the lesson was obtained that 'Even if spring comes, what does it give? What beyond having your collar grabbed as if by a creditor, and rending your garments? The point is that not even spring brings happiness.

== Zamin, p. 434

Gyan Chand:

The flower is clearly hinting/gesturing that 'Having come into the orbit of spring, I was compelled to rend my garment-hem. Now don't you show the coquetry/pride/conceit of spring. If you have an intense claim, then that's another matter! Prepare yourself for the approach of spring-- although you will be compelled to rend your own garments!'

== Gyan Chand, p. 447

FWP:

SETS
CHAK-E GAREBAN: {17,9}
SPRINGTIME: {13,2}

For more on Ghalib's unpublished verses, see the discussion in {4,8x}. See also the overview index.

The Persianized expression naaz khe;Nchnaa can sometimes mean 'to receive or experience coquetry', as in {71,5}. But here it seems much more like 'to practice coquetry', as in {56,3}.

The rose is (like) a torn collar because after it has bloomed, its petals one by one fall away, like bits of fabric that have been torn by the crazed fingernails of the mad lover. This 'tearing of the collar' [chaak-e garebaan] is a classic ghazal motif; for discussion, see {17,9}. The glories and raptures of the springtime, epitomized by the rose, exact a deadly price. Thus the speaker warns the addressee not to strut around arrogantly or coquettishly in the springtime, not to act as if he had bragging rights-- not, that is, unless he has a 'claim'. The rose's 'claim' is its own imminent death, represented by the loss of its petals. The rose has not just talked the talk, but walked the walk. What will the addressee do, to mark his own 'claim' to a springtime of glory?