Leyla and Majnoo story: a beautiful dialogue from a Hindi movie..

 

Sharing a particular scene from an old Hindi Movie that is based on the tragic story of the Persian/Arabic folk tale of Leyla (or Laila or Layla) and Majnoo. I was particularly captivated by the beauty of the dialogues and what Majno was trying to convey...The scene is available to watch here at this clip:

Ibadat dialogue Laila Majnu | full screen status

The lines where Majnoo says: 

And its English translation:

The lines spoken are very sublime, and I was reminded of two different poetries of Allama Iqbal with similar thoughts:

 "tere sajde tujhe kaafir na kar de Iqbal,

      Tu jhukta kahin aur hai aur sochta kahin aur hai.."

 "Ragon Mein Woh Lahoo Baqi Nahin Hai

       Woh Dil, Woh Arzoo Baqi Nahin Hai.

       Namaz-o-Roza-o-Qurbani-o-Hajj

        Ye Sub Baqi Hain, Tu Baqi Nahin Hai"

As the folk story goes, the love which Majnoo had for Leyla was so profound that he lost himself in it completely (turned into a Deewana- which translates to a madman), and in that state, he did not have any awareness of any other worldly thing or the rituals of religious practices...His love has often been compared to the love which the Sufis seek for the one Beloved...so much so that even the regard of so many traditional practices lose their charm or importance...all the lover (the Sufi) knows is continuously longing for the one. And in that he is often regarded as mad by the world...

Sang-e-Saboor: A deeply divine Persian Song

 

Sharing a beautiful Persian song (by Mohsen Chavoshi), that I listened to recently after almost a gap of 15 years..I was able to recognize the song by its specific music that is primarily played on the santoor...and the song felt so nostalgic and also apt at this time...The lyrics of the song are very beautiful and talk of loneliness from the perspective of a male. 

An interesting thing about this song is that sang-e-saboor actually translates to stone of patience. (the English translation shows it as a shoulder to cry on which is not the exact translation). However, the stone of patience was a book (and movie by the same name), and there is a legend that there used to be a stone that could listen to a person's troubles and sorrows (similar to a shoulder to cry on but metaphorically) and would keep on absorbing them all like a sponge until one fine day (unbeknownst to all) it would burst, almost signaling that it could take no more..For some reason this also resonated with the current turmoil which the country of Iran is in, almost like the sang-e-saboor bursting....

The original song can be heard here:

Mohsen Chavoshi - Sange Saboor [Lyric Video] (محسن چاوشی-سنگ صبور) 

The persian lyrics (english transliteration) and the English translation are below. 

The lyrics above are available here Mohsen Chavoshi - سنگ صبور (Sange Saboor) (English translation #2)

https://lyricstranslate.com/en/sange-saboor-sang-e-saboor.html

           Anyhow, the beauty of this song is the specific rhythms of santoor in it which make it very soulful. Interestingly, I happened to listen to it in piano version and was so mesmerized by the piano version (a cover by another artist) as it was able to recapitulate some of the complex santoor sounds used in the original song.

Sange saboor (Santouri) - Mohsen Chavoshi - piano Mohsen Karbassi - سنگ صبور- سنتوری - محسن چاوشی

This piano version is far ahead of its time and stands out amidst several piano compositions I have heard..In my view, this song is way too close to my heart, and I will always know its melody no matter what time..its almost an immortal song....

Vo jo uski umr bhar ka haasil tha: Remember to be grateful

 

I came across an interesting piece of information that pertains to the tiny creature- the Honeybee. (see the photo below). It turns out that the little teaspoon of honey which a person consumes is in fact a sum total of so much hard work and encompasses the lifetime struggles and journeys of several honeybees...

How often have we taken a moment to reflect that the honey we consume so quickly (which is also called as the nectar of life, holding a myriad of scientific benefits for the human body) was not given so easily to us, but was someone's else's life's treasure (almost like mata-e-jaan) or almost umr bhar ka haasil...

Have we ever paused, and expressed gratitude at this spoonful of bounty which was coming from a majestic creature designed perfectly by God?

For some reason, I was reminded of the following poetry which is a part of a bigger poem. These particular lines somehow resonated deeply with me as I heard it from some speech of some pious scholar...However, for some reason the connection between the fact of honey and a bee's journey seemed to strike a chord in my heart as if the bee is not visible to speak for itself but is trying to tell the human to be grateful and mindful....

...Truly, we as humans are so caught up that we have forgotten to give thanks or express gratitude...

Here is the poetry:

"वो  जो  गीत  तुम  ने  सुना  नहीं 

 मेरी  उम्र  भर  का  रियाज़ था

 मेरे दर्द  की  थी दास्ताँ

 जिसे  तुम  हंसी  में  उड़ा  गए "

-Amjad Islam Amjad

I, for one do consume a tiny teaspoon of honey in morning and felt in awe and wonder after knowing I was consuming someone's else's such immense lifelong journey, without paying attention.

I now try to remember the bee and its struggles and thus remember the One who created it for his makhlooq (creation).

Let us be grateful for the tiny bounties of life...

Let us be grateful for all creatures, big and small....

Let us remember the Al-Shakur.....