I was at home this whole week, and managed to browse through my old collection of cassettes. Yes, cassettes are the same plastic objects which were used for storing audio in the last century. Anyways, the collection reminded me of my long lost favorites like – Sufi music. I used to like it a lot … voices of Abida Parveen and Shubha Mudgal … and lyrics by Khusrau, Manzoor Alam, Taji, Kabir. I suddenly fell in love with them again and spent the whole day listening to them. I’m posting a Persian song by khusrau and a Hindi one by Zaheen Shah Taji that I liked the most:

chonani dar nazar nazzaare gaan raa,
ke ronagh beshkani mahpare gaan raa.

[Your lovers behold your limitless beauty so as to make a thousand idols fade away]

to dar khaabe khosho man bhi to har shab,
shomaram taa sahar sayyare gaan raa.

[As I see you lost in the darkness of night, I count the stars till dawn (as if they were you)]

The Hindi one…

मै होश में हूँ तो तेरा हूँ, दीवाना हूँ तो तेर हूँ,
हूँ राज़ अगर तो तेरा हूँ, अफ़साना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ॥
[ अफ़साना == a popular story, a legend ]

बरबाद किया बरबाद हुआ, आबाद किया आबाद हुआ,
वीरानां हूँ तो तेरा हूँ, काशाना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ॥
[ काशाना == a flourishing abode, a garden ]

इस तेरी तजल्ली के क़ुर्बाँ, क़ुर्बान-ए-तजल्ली हर उनवाँ,
मैं शमा भी हूँ तो तेरा हूँ, परवाना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ॥
[ तजल्ली == light ] [ क़ुर्बान-ए-तजल्ली == dedication to eternal light or god ]
[ उनवाँ == path, used here as ways of worship ]

तू मेरी कैफ़ की दुनिया है, तू मेरी मस्ती का आलम,
पैमाना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ, मयखाना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ॥
[ कैफ़ == intoxication ]

हर ज़र्रा ज़हीन की हस्ती का तस्वीर है तेरी सर-ता-पा,
ओ काबा-ए-दिल ढाने वाले, बुतखाना हूँ तो तेरा हूँ॥
[ ज़र्रा == dust ] [ हस्ती == existence ]
[ सर-ता-पा == head to feet ] [ बुतखाना == temple ]

The above songs are from the album based on the Jahan-e-Khusrau concert. The album is called “The Realm of the Heart”.