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Divan-e Shams · G969 · 9 beyts

غزل شمارهٔ ۹۶۹

The ghazal begins with an apple, half red and half yellow, as a symbol of the lover's state: half joy, half pain in separation. It then moves through images of weakness containing immense power, like a tiny bird nurturing the heavens. The poem turns toward a call to seek a joyous friend, dismissing the confused games of the world to finally focus on the beloved, whose face outshines a thousand flowers.

This ghazal traces the lover's journey from the paradox of separation to the resolution of union. It opens with the central image of a half-red, half-yellow apple, which immediately becomes a metaphor for the lover's condition: a mix of the memory of union (laughter) and the pain of distance (beyt 1-2). The poem then explores the hidden power within apparent weakness, portraying the lover as a broken-winged finch that paradoxically shelters the entire celestial sphere (beyt 5). A distinct turn occurs in the sixth couplet, which announces that the 'house of laughter' is open and urges the seeker to find a 'laughing friend'—a guide or the Beloved—who can resolve this duality. The ghazal then critiques those who are spiritually ignorant, playing life's games without understanding the fundamental difference between multiplicity and the singular reality of the One (beyt 7-8). The final couplet abandons this critique, turning away from the confused world to go directly towards the Beloved, whose face is described as a garden of countless roses and tulips, resolving all tension in a vision of overwhelming beauty (beyt 9).

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  1. G969:1 سیبکی نیم سرخ و نیمی زردزعفران لاله را حکایت کرد A little apple, half of it red and half of it yellow,told the story of the saffron and the tulip.A small apple, with its two colors, embodied the tale of two different flowers: the yellow saffron and the red tulip.
  2. G969:2 چون جدا گشت عاشق از معشوقنیمه‌ای خنده بود و نیمی درد When the lover was parted from the beloved,half of him was laughter, and half of him was pain.This couplet explains the apple's symbolism: separation from the beloved creates a state of being split between the joy of past union and the pain of current distance.
  3. G969:3 سست پایی بمانده بر جاییپاک می‌کرد از رخ مه گرد Weak-footed, he remained in one place,wiping the dust from the face of the moon.The lover, immobilized by weakness or longing, is still engaged in a noble act: clearing the dust from a beautiful, moon-like face, perhaps the beloved's or his own spiritual heart.
  4. G969:4 دست می‌کوفت نیز می‌لافیدکاین چنین صنعتی کسی ناورد He was clapping his hands and also boasting,that no one has ever brought forth such a craft.Despite his weakness, the lover is in a state of ecstatic joy and pride, celebrating the unique and unparalleled nature of his spiritual state or creation.
  5. G969:5 صعوه پرشکسته‌ای دیدیبیضه چرخ زیر پر پرورد Have you seen a tiny, broken-winged finchthat nurtured the egg of the celestial sphere beneath its wing?This is a rhetorical question presenting a paradox: something as small and fragile as a finch with a broken wing possesses the cosmic power to nurture the entire universe.
  6. G969:6 باز شد خنده خانه این جارو بجو یار خنده‌ای ای مرد The house of laughter has opened here—go, seek a laughing friend, O man!A turning point: the possibility of pure joy is now available. The seeker is advised to find a spiritual companion or guide who embodies this state of happiness.
  7. G969:7 ناز تا کی کنند این زشتانبازگونه همی‌رود این نرد How long will these ugly ones act so proud?This game of backgammon is going backwards.The poem critiques those who are spiritually unrefined yet arrogant. Their progress is illusory; they are actually regressing, playing the game of life incorrectly.
  8. G969:8 جفت و طاق از چه روی می‌بازندچون ندانند جفت را از فرد Why are they playing at even and odd,when they don't know the pair from the single one?They engage in the superficial games of the world (duality) without understanding the fundamental reality: the difference between multiplicity and the singular divine Unity.
  9. G969:9 بهل این تا به یار خویش رویمآنک رویش هزار لاله و ورد Leave this, so we may go to our own friend—the one whose face is a thousand tulips and roses.The final couplet resolves the poem by turning away from the ignorant world to focus entirely on the beloved, whose beauty is vast and all-encompassing like a garden.

ganjoor: sh969 · public domain