Poet: Bahauddin Majrooh;
Translation: Faraz Jamil Kakar
They say:
These ruins were once a beautiful city
A city famous for its beauty
Tourists would travel for days and nights
Through forests, rivers and streams
To wander in this city
And enjoy it’s ecstatic sceneries
Deer would graze in the green fields
And come close to the door of city to play with kids
Birds would sing in the garden all day long
Because…
People, till then, had not invented cages
The city had no doors, or walls, or trenches
Beautiful huts in dense gardens and green fields
Paths through green fields
Led to forests, fields and deserts
Young girls would run the city
Youthful couples would whisper of love by the riverside
The elders would rest beneath the shades of Chinar trees
To advise, converse and plan
And kids would laugh and sing in streams
Or would play with deer in meadows
The angry, raging, wrathful or the gloomy
Would be taken to the wise, skilful doctor of the city
Who was skilled to treat such ailments
………
People till then had not learned
The skill of slavery and submission
The city had no masters and no slaves
No maids, no servants
Kids were obedient
The elders thought
That kids are closer to nature
And knew it’s secrets
They understood
The songs of birds, music of brooks and whispers of forests
The silence of mountains and that of deserts
And were friends with roaming spirits
And they knew…
The dreadful cave and all its secrets…
For this reason
Their opinion was respected
They advised on big affairs
So sometimes
The kids and elders would come together
In the shade of Chinar trees
Amidst laughs and plays and smiles
They would take big big decisions
………
The Great Conqueror of World
One day by the river
Flowers fresh like all the time
Noisy kids jumping with joy
Couples whispering of love
Birds singing
Suddenly a cold storm rose from the horizon of barren desert
At the sunset
Amidst dark clouds
A strange rider appeared
With black dress riding a black horse
His iron mask had sketch of dragon
Carrying a lance, a shield and hunter
He came close to the door of city
Rage brimming from his face
Strong and mighty, enraged and brutal
He came close to the door of city
Girls and boys, and kids and elders
All gathered to see the stranger
The rider raised his lance and shouted
In voice so loud and sharp and scary
‘‘O the dwellers of this city… who am I?’’
I am Ego
The mightiest in the world
The great conqueror of all battles
From this moment, your city is mine
You are my subjects…
