Ghazal 322x, Verse 6

{322x,6}*

detaa huu;N kushtagaa;N ko su;xan se sar-e tapish
mi.zraab-e taar'haa-e guluu-e buriidah huu;N

1) I give to the slain ones a mind/'head' for heat/agitation, through poetry/speech
2) I am the plectrum/pick of the strings of a cut throat

Notes:

tapish : 'Heat, warmth; distress (esp. that caused by heat); affliction; agitation; palpitation'. (Platts p.309)

 

mi.zraab : 'An instrument for striking; the plectrum with which a lute, or sitar, &c., is struck or played'. (Platts p.1043)

Asi:

Through my sweetness of poetry/speech, I give to the dying a lesson of heat/agitation. That is, I writhe. So to speak, I am a plectrum and I move around on the strings of those with their throats cut. Thus I am, so to speak, the cause of the writhing of the dying ones.

== Asi, pp. 172-173

Zamin:

That is, having heard my poetry, people of a lover-like temperament suddenly throb/palpitate. The second line is illustrative and is only a poetic habit/custom.

== Zamin, p. 254

Gyan Chand:

Through my words or poetry, I cause those who have died of passion to writhe. If the strings of a musical instrument are plucked with a plectrum, then a lament is raised. I am the kind of plectrum that plucks the vein-strings of cut throats, and I am raising up a voice/cry from them. By 'cut throat' is meant the throat of lovers.

Ghalib would not have been acquainted with 'vocal cords' [[here SRF annotates, 'Why not?']]; thus taar-e guluu will be taken to mean 'veins of the throat'.

== Gyan Chand, p. 280

FWP:

SETS == GROTESQUERIE; POETRY
MUSIC: {10,3}

For more on Ghalib's unpublished verses, see the discussion in {4,8x}.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

What a consummately grisly image! I really can't muster up much to say about it.

By comparison, the 'cut-off tongue' in {321x,5}, and the 'cut-off hand' in {323x,4}, look quite mild and mellow.