)
کلک را ناله از تهی مغزی استقلم سرمه را صریری نیست
The pearl is used to the ways of the sea. What can it know about the millstone that grind grain? The reed-pen, being hollow, makes a noise; the pencil, being solid lead, makes none. I am one who has walked around the Harem with an idol under my arms. I am one who has shouted Allah’s name when idols were in front of me. My heart still wants that I should go on seeking, though I have set foot on a path thinner than a hair.
قلم کی فریاد خالی ہونے کے باعث ہے ۔ پنسل کی کوئی آواز نہیں ہے
Sources and translator credits
- Original Persian transcription: ) — Pinned Ganjoor data commit a64968e78425b2e8c7904fbdf5289fba8251a757; the underlying printed edition is not identified by the export.Verified against this pinned digital transcription file; not checked against a print edition.Source
- payam-e-mashriq: published English translation by ہادی حسین — Published digital poem page (b88r973o.json); retrieved 2026-10-05.Translation by ہادی حسین; Published English translation credited on the Zinderood digital poem page; the exact source unit is recorded with each imported passage.Source
- payam-e-mashriq: published Urdu translation by حمیداللہ ہاشمی — Published digital poem page (b88r973o.json); retrieved 2026-10-05.Translation by حمیداللہ ہاشمی; Published Urdu translation credited on the Zinderood digital poem page; the exact source unit is recorded with each imported passage.Source