Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Hum dekhenge
Lazim hai ke hum bhi dekhenge
Wo din ke jis ka wada hai
Jo lauh-e-azl mein likha hai
Jab zulm-o-sitam ke koh-e-garan
Rooi ki tarah ur jaenge
Hum mehkoomon ke paaon tale
Ye dharti dhar dhar dharkegi
Aur ahl-e-hakam ke sar oopar
Jab bijli kar kar karkegi
Jab arz-e-Khuda ke kaabe se
Sab but uthwae jaenge
Hum ahl-e-safa mardood-e-harm
Masnad pe bethae jaenge
Sab taaj uchale jaenge
Sab takht girae jaenge
Bas naam rahega Allah ka
Jo ghayab bhi hai hazir bhi
Jo manzar bhi hai nazir bhi
Utthega an-al-haq ka nara
Jo mai bhi hoon tum bhi ho
Aur raaj karegi Khalq-e-Khuda
Jo mai bhi hoon aur tum bhi ho
My Translation
We shall Witness
It is certain that we too, shall witness
the day that has been promised
of which has been written on the slate of eternity
When the enormous mountains of tyranny
blow away like cotton.
Under our feet- the feet of the oppressed-
when the earth will pulsate deafeningly
and on the heads of our rulers
when lightning will strike.
From the abode of God
When icons of falsehood will be taken out,
When we- the faithful- who have been barred out of sacred places
will be seated on high cushions
When the crowns will be tossed,
When the thrones will be brought down.
Only The name will survive
Who cannot be seen but is also present
Who is the spectacle and the beholder, both
I am the Truth- the cry will rise,
Which is I, as well as you
And then God’s creation will rule
Which is I, as well as you
wonderful, wonderful. who is this author?
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Well done. Great translation.
And welcome to blogging from a lazy blogger 😀 haha…
seriously, thats the worst thing that can happen to you here. Laziness. 😀
enjoy, and good luck.
Beautiful, I look forward to reading more. Good luck!
Thanks! for such a warm welcome and sorry for such a tardy response 😦
Hello Ghazala,
Loved your translation. I hope you don’t mind if I use it for an article I’m doing. It’s the best I’ve found so far.
Stay well, and I hope to see more translations of Faiz.
Best,
Dileep
Thanks! Dileep. Please go ahead and use it just credit me for the translation and i’d like to read your article if possible…
hi thanks for the invite .. to your blog.. I am neither a poet nor have read much poetry in my life ..but love to read poems that friends write on day to day life.. as all great poets really did that anyway..before they became great.. and mostly they became great after they left this world which is the way the world works.. most wonderful things and people are recognised much after they have gone.. humanity only learns in hindsight..it was a pleasure going through some of thepoems on your blog..please keep me posted..regards ash
Thanks! Ashraf, for visiting… please come again.
Salaamz…
This poem came as a ray of light in my life that has lost all hope…
Allah Hafiz…!!!
So shines the humanist poetry of Faiz.
J. Keep it up, friend!
Khuda Haafiz!
Beautiful translation!
I was never into poetry but your blog has given given a new insight!! Your selection of poems is incredible. I am a regular visitor now and really look forward to reading new postings on your blog. Keep writing!!
congratulations Ghazala! it was a great feeling to see ur incredible work! somehow i had come across both the original version and its translation but never knew that its u behind this bridge…..plz carry on! gudluck!
ritu, seema… i’m honoured. I do it only because it really is such a soul-tonic! 🙂 thanks so much.
Hi Ghazala:
Great translation.
‘Ghazal’ is my blog name too 🙂 and this is one of my fav Faiz poems..
after ‘Yeh haath salamat hai jab tak,’..and ‘Sab aatl hoke, tere muqaabil’
I’m sure you’ve heard Nayyara Noor and Farida Khanum sahiba’s great renditions of the same.
Also, may I add a link to your blog..
Thanks and Peace,
L
Hi! Lehar,
thanks! Please do link up my blog 🙂
Peace…
I’ll appreciate if you can provide a Urdu text of this poem, i have searched it on Google but no success…great work anyways
hey well done. I love to read & listen this ghazal; both Faiz Ahmed Faiz & Iqbal Bano are legends.
Nivedita Menon said
on April 22, 2009 at 4:18 PM
http://kafila.org/2009/04/22/iqbal-bano-1935-2009/#comment-5638
[…] looked for translations of Hum Dekhenge on the web, for those who do not understand Urdu, and found two by Ghazala and Maniza Naqvi, on whose translations I based my version […]
Very nice translation Ghazala. I hope you won’t mind if I use it for a post on my blog page on RediffIland about Iqbal Bano.
Not at all, Nadira. Please go ahead… and thanks! 🙂
hey ghazala…a frnd introduced me 2 ur blog n now i m jus hooked! was never much into poetry n especially not urdu, but ur selections of poems and their translations have just opened up a whole new world for me….also love ur descriptions of places…puts me rite ther in tht place visualise n experience it….
went thru ur blog at a time wen i was losing hope abt a lotta things, n m happy 2 find solace in these words n kno ther r more ppl hum bhi dekhenge woh din…
in solidarity..
smita.
Smita… just so humbled by your comment… thanks… i’m glad that you feel this way… blogging has been completely therapeutic for me as well. do continue to visit and feel free to leave your reflections in the comment box. you (readers like you) are my shining light.
thats good, ghazala u r doing a gr8 job. keep it up. all the success
i luv this poetry so meaningful
i luv da translation
I had been looking for a translation of ‘AnalhaQ’ and found this site.
I will visit again for more of Faiz poetry.
Thanks!
welcome chhaya… will try to delve more on Faiz
hello dere, really beautiful translation.
I have used your translation on my blog http://my.opera.com/Changing_woman/blog/2009/04/24/iqbal-bano as I couldn’t find any better translation..however I have mentioned your blog and gave links to your original work…do you mind?
Thanks, Ayesha… mind? not at all! 🙂 please visit again.
this is beautiful…..this ghazal has always touched me but this is the first time someone has helped me understand it fully…thanks
thanks pallavi, you might be interested in another post on the blog https://ghazala.wordpress.com/2008/07/16/sounds-of-resistance-and-freedom/
brother the translation of “Bas naam rahega Allah ka” should be “Only The name of ALLAH will survive”
very impressive,,,,
Achha lagaa.
Ghazala This man is such a dynamo to read even today. I wonder why dont we have walls full of graffiti of what he wrote. It surely will make us so much more alive! 🙂
this poem is so powerful, and your translation makes it even prettier! good job keep up the good work 🙂
Thanks… i really enjoyed it!!
wonderful recording! ejaz mazhar… just amazing! it gave me goosebumps to listen to it. Thankyou so much!
Thinking of the street protests in the Middle East brought this inspiring poem to my mind. Thanks for the translation. Have posted on Facebook.
salam to all, the poetry of faiz is truely amazing. everytime i read it it invokes a new passion in me, and i start to work again, for my nation my country.
Hi Ghazala,
i am speechless!!!! I can curse myself of not being noticing this magnum opus earlier. What a magnificent work Ghazala and I need your approval if you kindly allow me so i can use it on social media.
Regards,
Saad
Hi! Saad do use it… i’d appreciate if you acknowledge me and linkup.
Hi Ghazala,
Nice work indeed. There should be ‘lightening thunder shall roar” as it shall be more appropriate.
There is a need to promote works of the liberal and progressive people like Faiz. You have taken first step, it is good.
Take care.
great masterpeice by sir faiz ahmed faiz!!!hats off
When I hear
“When the crowns will be tossed,
When the thrones will be brought down.”
When the singing stops,
When the crowds sing
‘Inquilab Zindabad’
When a tear flows down my cheek
When the promised day flashes
in front of my eyes
for an intense moment.
When I am told
that I, too, am true.
Then I realize
I am one with Khuda.
He who is the spectacle
and the beholder!
Hi Ghazala, i just had a discussion with my friend over this poetry. I think you can give us the answer. the stanza:
Jab arz-e-Khuda ke kaabe se
Sab but uthwae jaenge
Hum ahl-e-safa mardood-e-harm
Masnad pe bethae jaenge
Sab taaj uchale jaenge
Sab takht girae jaenge
isn’t it anti-hindu and anti-indian (surely, it’s not clearly specified in words but i think it’s implied)? Also, i have heard that the pakistani army uses this poetry as a motivational song for the soldiers.
Please answer it truthfully, I assure that you need not to worry about my nationality and religion. Thanks.
Hi! Sanjeev… No… The poem is not directed at either India nor Hindu religion or people. Faiz was actually talking of tyrannical rulers of Pakistan and used this metaphor as one that his people in could instantly follow. That the very Army that the poem lambasted (During Gen Ziaul Haq Regime) feels the need to co-opt this poem speaks volumes of its power. A parallel can be seen in the attempts to co-opt Gautam Budhha as a Hindu God- Avatar by the very Brahminical structure whose domination and oppression he opposed. Please see my post at
https://ghazala.wordpress.com/2008/07/16/sounds-of-resistance-and-freedom/
for a partial answer to your question but I think I need to address this question in a separate post more directly. Will soon write it…keep in touch with my blog for more…
Thanks Ghazala, looking forward to read your post on that.
Hi Ghazala, i am eagerly waiting for the post that you promised.
Great Ghazala
Liked your translation. accidentally reached your site while i was reviewing a music album by Tima Sami. The album is a disservice to Faiz’s poetry for you can’t make any head and tail of the words as the music is too overpowering.
Very Motivating !!!
Very Motivating !!!
very very nice it touches my heart………………
Have mentioned u in my blogpost and copied the translation. Please let me know if you have any objections
http://almostareview.wordpress.com/2011/11/25/hum-dekhengey-faiz-translation/
Thanks for mentioning and linking me on your blog. No problem at all.
Why don’t you try changing font colour? I almost lost my vision 🙂 Great translation!!
Done! :)) Thanks!!
Any idea which year Faiz wrote this nazm ?
ghazala..immaculate translation. im an art student who was given an assignment to respond to faiz ahmed faiz’s poem..uve made me understand this poem on a much deeper level that i didnt know existed. im very thankful. plz updating me with ur new blogs. i like the way u see things…
Thank you so much fatima. 🙂 I’m so glad. I too miss writing on the blog… will do so soon… have been promising myself :))
A big thank you for posting original urdu and translation of Faiz’s iconic poetry for people like me who are not proficient in Urdu and it’s meaning. Iqbal Bano’s rendition is awe inspiring!
Great poetry and thanks for the translation…
bohot khub..
great wordings ,,,and wonderful
Certainly we shall witness… in-sha Allah
-Student-
I am not a poet nor do I read much poetry. Having now read Hum Dekhenge I now understand why my late father Maulana Ismail Saloojee of South Africa was an ardent admirer of Faiz Ahmed Faiz.
Faiz Ahmed Faiz what a noor of the subcontinent !
Please suggest some of his autobiographical works.
Dear blogger, its just a splendid translation of the work of one of the finest poet lived on Earth. I am from India and after reading ‘Intesaab’ and now this poem, i have fallen in love with the work of Faiz sahab. I don’t know urdu a lot. And can you do the translation of ‘Gulon mein rang bhare’? please! Thanku and khudafiz! 🙂
sublime translation!
Reblogged this on Senseless_Scribbles..
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