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Bahadur Shah Zafar
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thumb|right|Bahadur Shah Zafar (circa 1854)
Bahadur Shah Zafar (24 October 1775 – 7 November 1862) was the last Mughal emperor. He was a nominal Emperor, as the Mughal Empire existed in name only and his authority was limited only to the walled city of Old Delhi (Shahjahanabad). He died on 7 November 1862.
Quotes
غازیوں میں بُو رہے گی جب تلک ایمان کیتخت لندن تک چلے گی تیغ ہندوستان کی
As long as there remains the scent of faith in the hearts of our Ghazis,so long shall the sword of Hindustan flash before the throne of London.
during in the Indian Mutiny, 1857
دوست آں باشد که گیرد دست دوست در پریشان حالی و درماندہ کی دوست مشمرآنکه در نعمت زند لاف باری برادر خواندہ کی
Friend is he, who grasps the hand of Friend,In the midst of trouble and distress,Not they who in prosperity professThemselves friends, nay are brothers by repute.A Friend is he, who proffers Friendship's handWhen care or grief our kindred feelings claimNot he whom prosperous days alone commandAnd is a Friend or Brother but in name.
Autograph to Thomas Metcalfe, The Governor-General’s Agent at the imperial court of Delhi, 29 April 1844 http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/apac/addorimss/a/019addor0005475u00033vrb.html
Ghazal
My heart has no repose in this despoiled landWho has ever felt fulfilled in this futile world?The nightingale complains about neither the sentinel nor the hunterFate had decreed imprisonment during the harvest of springTell these longings to go dwell elsewhereWhat space is there for them in this besmirched heart?Sitting on a branch of flowers, the nightingale rejoicesIt has strewn thorns in the garden of my heartI asked for a long life, I received four daysTwo passed in desire, two in waiting.The days of life are over, evening has fallenI shall sleep, legs outstretched, in my tombHow unfortunate is Zafar! For his burialNot even two yards of land were to be had, in the land of his beloved.https://www.urdupoint.com/poetry/bahadur-shah-zafar/lagta-nehin-hai-mera-jee-ujrey-123.html
thumb|Friend is he, who grasps the hand of Friend,In the midst of trouble and distress,Not they who in prosperity professThemselves friends, nay are brothers by repute.
Ghazal
I wish you had made me the master of royals, Or made my crown the bowl for alms and betrayals.You should have made me mad, crazy only for you, Why did you make me wise, capable of denials?You made me poor, fit only for sifting through dust, And I wish the dust of her feet were my trials.If you made me intoxicated with love, Why did you make the measure of life small vials?A wretched heart torn a hundred times over lives, To be the shoulder to rest her hair is my desire.If I were not worthy to be with the Sufis, Could have been good for the company of drunks, defiant?If you wished to burn me by parting from the pourer, Should have made me the lamp of the tavern’s foyer.The fire of beauty was not unveiled in the garden, Or the bulbul too would have been made a moth on fire.This incessant world is a vile place, O Zafar, Its cities should have been desolate and dire.https://www.dawn.com/news/1444563
Ghazal
The heart is asunder, singed to a kebab, This love has been the disaster of my life.My murder rests good on you, don’t worry, You have found grace, I am away from strife.“Enamoured” one day, “mad” on another, Each day I was given new names, new life.Why should I not drink my blood in envy? When today, with my rival they wine.The goblet’s lips kissed yours in ecstasy, My victory was to bite into mine.For you, I wandered streets with tearful eyes, Setting my heart on you was misery.We have washed your street with a storm of tears, Our begging bowl of a cap is now empty.Without replies now, this is what we found, That the messenger is our sole reply.Had asked for your picture to console my heart, Looking at it I am more uneasy.Your tyranny — boundless, day of reck’ning —one, I wonder how the account is compiled.Zafar, change the refrain, recite that ghazal, Of which each verse is your picked poetry. https://www.dawn.com/news/1444563
Ghazal
I am the sinner’s fault, somewhat, Your devotee, O God, somewhat.I do not understand whole or part, In my heart, I know not all, somewhat.I remain loyal to you, Faithful I am, faithless – somewhat.Since I do not meet any other, With him I have communion – somewhat.The intoxication of love has given me flight, In bliss, I fly some things, somewhat.My dreams lie in wakefulness, I see visions better there, somewhat.I may not be anyone, yet, Don’t ask — I am what I am – somewhat.Let them think me their humble servant, I am the dust of the road, of the feet – somewhat.I have got the blessed eye of faith, O Zafar, from something I have moved to somewhat. https://www.dawn.com/news/1444563
Quotes about Bahadur Shah Zafar
Zafar always put huge emphasis on his role as a protector of the Hindus and the moderator of Muslim demands. He never forgot the central importance of preserving the bond between his Hindu and Muslim subjects, which he always recognised was the central stitching that held his capital city together.
William Dalrymple, The Last Mughal p. 446.
See also
Bahadur Shah II
Bahadur Shah II.
Category:1775 births
Category:1862 deaths
Category:Mughal emperors
Category:Indian Sunni Muslims
Category:Revolutionaries
Category:Muslims from India
Category:Poets from India
Category:People from New Delhi
Category:Persian literature
Category:People from Delhi
Category:Romantic poets
Category:Urdu literature
Category:Urdu-language poets
Category:Urdu-language writers
Category:Urdu writers from India
Category:Persian-language writers