My eyes are bloodshot from the hand of that bow-like brow, Ghazal 412 by Hafez

My eyes are bloodshot from the hand of that bow-like brow, Ghazal 412 by Hafez

By @hamed on October 10, 2024

My eyes are bloodshot from the hand of that bow-like brow, Ghazal 412 by Hafez

By hamed @hamed | poet: Hafez Shirazi

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Description:

In this ghazāl, Hafez expresses deep love and longing for his beloved, emphasizing the powerful effect of her eyes and eyebrows. He uses vivid imagery and metaphors to describe her beauty and the impact she has on his heart.

Key Themes:

Love and longing: The poet expresses an intense longing for his beloved and the pain of separation.
The beauty of the beloved: Hafez extols the beauty of his beloved, focusing particularly on her eyes and eyebrows.
The power of the beloved: The beloved is depicted as having immense power over the poet, causing him both joy and pain.


English Translation for Ghazal

My eyes are bloodshot from the hand of that bow-like brow
The world will see much turmoil from that eye and that brow


I am a slave to the eye of that Turk, who in sweet sleep
Has a garden of gold for a face and a dark canopy for a brow

I have become crescent-shaped from this sorrow, with the flourish of her brow
Who is the moon that would appear from the arch of that brow's sky?

Our rivals are oblivious, and from that eye and forehead, we constantly
Receive thousands of messages, with a guard between the brows

For the solitary soul, her forehead is a wondrous flower garden
That revolves coquettishly over the side of her saffron-colored garden

No longer tell anyone of houris and peris with such beauty
For this one has such an eye and that one such a brow

You heartless one, you do not veil your locks, and I fear
That the bend of that beloved's brow will turn my prayer niche

Although Hafiz was a clever bird in devotion
The eye of that bow-like brow captured him with the arrow of a glance.

Ghazal in Persian

مرا چشمی‌ست خون‌افشان ز دست آن کمان‌ابرو

جهان بس فتنه خواهد دید از آن چشم و از آن ابرو

 

غلام چشم آن ترکم که در خواب خوش مستی

نگارین گلشنش روی است و مشکین سایبان ابرو

 

هلالی شد تنم زین غم که با طغرا‌ی ابرو‌یش

که باشد مه که بنماید ز طاق آسمان ابرو؟

 

رقیبان غافل و ما را از آن چشم و جبین هر دم

هزاران گونه پیغام است و حاجب در میانْ ابرو

 

روان گوشه‌گیران را جبینش طرفه گلزار‌ی‌ست

که بر طرف سمن‌زارش همی‌گردد چمان ابرو

 

دگر حور و پری را کس نگوید با چنین حسنی

که این را این چنین چشم است و آن را آن چنان ابرو

 

تو کافر‌دل نمی‌بندی نقاب زلف و می‌ترسم

که محرابم بگرداند خم آن دلستان ابرو

 

اگر چه مرغ زیرک بود حافظ در هوادار‌ی

به تیر غمزه صیدش کرد چشم آن کمان‌ابرو


hamed
@hamed Oct. 10, 2024, 5:26 p.m.

Key Persian terms and nuances:

کمان ابرو: bow-like brow
طغرا: flourish (in calligraphy)
سمن‌زار: saffron-colored garden

Some of the nuances that are difficult to fully capture in translation include:

The intricate use of imagery: Hafez often uses multiple layers of symbolism and metaphor to convey his meaning.
The musicality of the Persian language: The sounds and rhythms of the Persian language contribute significantly to the emotional impact of the poem.
Sufi concepts: The poem is rich in Sufi symbolism and concepts, which can be challenging to convey in a different cultural context.