Shakespeare for laymen and Ghalib today (Part three of both)

 

Readers may recall my blog posts on how both on Shakespeare and Ghalib had influenced me profoundly by their seemingly simple creations which we, mostly unknowingly, speak even today to make our language more powerful, and indeed, colourful.  I have, in the course of three blogs, and a couple of YouTube sessions, presented some examples of what all we say today which we owe to Shakespeare, outlining the background as well. I had also put together some outstanding couplets of Ghalib, which we can liberally use to make our day-to-day language potent and splashy, without going into its deeper or mystical meaning. The link of the latest blog covering all this:

 

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7064545110574138828/2510936612468269240 

 

I had thought of continuing it as a series with blogs and sessions on YouTube but, gradually, I realized that it would be a good idea to put it all together in a book, which would go in other aspects of the poetry of these two greats. Whatever, I do, I would merely be able to scratch the surface so I will conclude this series with this blog. And whether it affords a large readership or not, I would enjoy writing this book. In the same format as earlier, let me start with the bard:

 

Shakespeare’s original text and context	Phrase/idiom in use
In Henry VI, a starving Jack Cade, confronted by Iden and his five men, about to be vanquished by famine, not valour, says, “…come thou and thy five men, and if I do not leave you all as dead as a doornail, I pray God I may never eat grass more.” Also, in Henry IV Part 2, we have the dialogues: FALSTAFF: What, is the old king dead?  PISTOL: As nail in door.	‘Dead as a doornail’ means dead, very dead, beyond any doubt. Also used for electrical and electronic gadgets which do not even turn on.
In Macbeth,  Macbeth speaks in respect of the planned assassination of the king, “If it were done, when ’tis done, then ’twere well, it were done quickly. If th’ assassination could trammel up the consequence, and catch with his surcease, success: that but this blow might be the be-all and the end-all.”	The phrase ‘the be-all and end-all’ is a noun that designates a thing that is much more important than all other things, the ultimate part of something; it is the thing, idea, person or activity that is the most essential element in a person’s life.
In Richard II, Thomas Mowbray pleads with the king to let him avenge the slander by Henry Bolingbroke, accusing him of having played a role in Gloucester's murder, “…My dear dear lord, the purest treasure mortal times afford is spotless reputation: that away, men are but gilded loam or painted clay.”	‘Spotless reputation’ describes a person or organisation that is known to have a good, clean character and that is believed to be decent and honest.
Shakespeare coined the phrase ‘fair play’ and used it in several of his plays, e.g., during a game of chess, Miranda tells Ferdinand in The Tempest as the latter is trying to tell her that he would never cheat her for the whole world, “Yes, for a score of kingdoms you should wrangle, And I would call it, fair play.”	'Fair play' indicates that a game is conducted with proper conditions, giving all participants an equal chance. It is also used more widely to mean fairness and justice in contexts other than games.
In literal sense, it simply means who is at the door. Porter, guarding the gates of the castle in Macbeth, as the king of Scotland is being murdered, hears knocking off-stage, and pretending he is the gate-keeper of Hellgate, says, “Knock, knock, knock! Who’s there, i' th' name of Beelzebub? Here’s a farmer that hanged himself on the expectation of plenty.” This knocking and his monologue continues several times over.	The It’s pretty curious something has been taken from a scene discussing treason, murder, and politics and made it into a childish joke.  "Knock knock.""Who's there?" The teller of the joke says a name. The person to whom the joke isn't being told repeats the name, followed by "who?" and then the teller of the joke says a pun based on the name.
In Henry IV Part 1, Glendower tells Hotspur that he composed many English songs for the harp, an accomplishment the latter never achieved. Hotspur observes, “…that would set my teeth nothing an edge, nothing so much as mincing poetry. 'Tis like the forced gait of a shuffling nag.”	Set one’s teeth on edge today means to irritate, annoy or make one cringe.
In The Tempest, Miranda exclaims, “O brave new world that has such people in’t”, as she fails to recognise the evil nature of the island's visitors because of her innocence.	A brave new world, often used ironically, a situation, society or times that transforms in a way that is meant to instill hope and improve everything but is actually a source of more problems.
In Twelfth Night, Antonio, who had saved Sebastian from drowning,  says “Let me speak a little. This youth that you see here I snatch'd one half out of the jaws of death…”	Out of the jaws of death means to escape from certain death or to be saved from some great danger.
Shakespeare used the phrase many times in his plays for example, in Henry VI Part III, when Queen Margaret says, “ Off with his head, and set it on York gates; So York may overlook the town of York.”	Off with  his head literally means 'chop off his head' but it is now used humorously as a means of firing somebody or mildly reproaching someone
In Hamlet, the ghost tells Hamlet that he must listen seriously to something he was about to tell him but first he makes an observation of purgatory where he was trapped in, "…I could a tale unfold, whose lightest word would harrow up thy soul…thy knotted and combined locks to part and each particular hair to stand an end, like quills upon the fretful porpentine..."	Make your hair stand on end refers to the sensation of hairs, especially those on the neck, standing upright when the skin contracts due to cold or to fear, basically to make you cold with fear.
In Henry IV Part 1, during a conversation between Prince Henry and his friend Poins, the former says, “Sir John stands to his word, the devil shall have his bargain; for he was never yet a breaker of proverbs: he will give the devil his due.”, meaning that when you owe the devil, you should pay up.	The phrase give the devil his due is used when you admit that someone you do not like or admire does have some good qualities.
The following appears in the play King John, with Bastard advising the king, “…Govern the motion of a kingly eye: Be stirring as the time; be fire with fire…"	Fight fire with fire means you deal with people attacking or threatening you by using methods similar to the ones that the latter are using

 

And now the chacha (uncle), Ghalib. Ghalib has the stature he has, not merely because of the elegance of his poetry, but his sharp understanding and cognition of human behaviour and his great ability to weave it in his words and special style. If he was alive today, he would rank as a top-notch psychologist. How has the layman made him a part of his vocabulary?  He rides people’s minds as a reader and lyricist of their feelings and emotions. Although the culture of Urdu shairi is not as alive and kicking as it used to be,  you would frequently come across ordinary men and women quoting Ghalib, at times, without knowing the full import of what they mouth; Ghalib is like a generic name of  a quintessential shair.

 

As I said earlier, my objective here is not to decipher the abstruse nature of Ghalib’s poetry from my mediocre pen. The examples I present are such as can excite you to use in certain situations that you confront, or find yourself into, and transform your conversation or observations to another level of grace and appeal.

  

Original sher(s) by Ghalib (Present colloquial or even written usage; the lines which have found such usage are in bold. Meanings of only tough words have been given merely to follow the perspective.)	Used frequently in conversation today (The usage may have been distorted, or made light-hearted; there is no attempt to explain the deeper interpretation here, only the context in which it is used today.)
Ug rahā hai dar-o-dīvār se sabza Ghalib ham bayābāñ meñ haiñ aur ghar meñ bahār aa.ī hai	Recalled when one is speaking about others enjoying in one’s absence.
Ho chukīñ Ghālib balā.eñ sab tamām ek marg-e-nā-gahānī aur hai (marg-e-nā-gahānī: untimely death)	Quoted, tongue in cheek, when many misfortunes had come about and the last calamity is anticipated.
Be-ḳhudī be-sabab nahīñ Ghalib, kuchh to hai jis kī parda-dārī hai	Cited when one suspects, from someone’s discomfiture, that something is being hidden from them.
merī qismat meñ ġham gar itnā thā dil bhī yā-rab ka.ī diye hote	Spoken, in a grave situation or in jest, about the multitude of grief in one’s life.
nukta-chīñ hai ġham-e-dil us ko sunā.e na bane kyā bane baat jahāñ baat banā.e na bane (nukta-chīñ: nitpickingly critical)	Spoken when complaining about one’s own or someone else’s nitpicking or carping.
Ghair phirtā hai liye yuuñ tire ḳhat ko ki agar koī pūchhe ki ye kyā hai to chhupā.e na bane	When it is difficult to hide a secret.
Bojh vo sar se girā hai ki uThā.e na uThe kaam vo aan paḌā hai ki banā.e na bane	Cited for any difficult task.
Ishq par zor nahīñ hai ye vo ātish Ghālib ki lagā.e na lage aur bujhā.e na bane (ātish: fire, spark)	For any form of compulsive love, mainly romantic.
Bak rahā huuñ junūñ meñ kyā kyā kuchh kuchh na samjhe ḳhudā kare koī	Spoken while describing one’s incoherence, whether deliberate or natural.
Jab tavaqqo.a hī uTh ga.ī Ghālib kyuuñ kisī kā gila kare koī (tavaqqo.a: expectation)	Quoted in a situation of utter despair and the futility of complaining.
Hogā koī aisā bhī ki Ghālib ko na jaane shā.ir to vo achchhā hai pa badnām bahut hai	Spoken with mock modesty yet in a grandiose manner.
Hazāroñ ḳhvāhisheñ aisī ki har ḳhvāhish pe dam nikle bahut nikle mire armān lekin phir bhī kam nikle (ḳhvāhisheñ: wishes, desires)	Talks of one’s endless desires and wishes.
Nikalnā ḳhuld se aadam kā sunte aa.e haiñ lekin bahut be-ābrū ho kar tire kūche se ham nikle (ḳhuld: paradise, aadam: Adam)	Used when one wants to describe, seriously or in jest, one’s insult.
Mohabbat meñ nahīñ hai farq jiine aur marne kā usī ko dekh kar jiite haiñ jis kāfir pe dam nikle (kāfir: infidel, used for the beloved here)	Employed, in jest, for the strange ways of love and lover.
Kahāñ mai-ḳhāne kā darvāza 'ġhālib' aur kahāñ vaa.iz par itnā jānte haiñ kal vo jaatā thā ki ham nikle (vaa.iz: preacher)	Used while speaking of a preaching or sermonizing elder who is himself culpable.
Kahte ho na deñge ham dil agar paḌā paayā dil kahāñ ki gum kiije ham ne mudda.ā paayā (mudda.ā: matter, issue)	Recalled for someone who does not want to par with something or help in a matter but without saying so, puts ridiculous conditions.
Ishq se tabī.at ne ziist kā mazā paayā dard kī davā paa.ī dard-e-be-davā paayā (ziist: life)	Used when one is trying to glean over one’s agonies, either in jest or when being philosophical.
rahiye ab aisī jagah chal kar jahāñ koī na ho ham-suḳhan koī na ho aur ham-zabāñ koī na ho	Recalled when one is sick of so called friends and well-wishers.
be-dar-o-dīvār sā ik ghar banāyā chāhiye koī ham-sāya na ho aur pāsbāñ koī na ho (pāsbāñ: guard)	Somewhat similar to above, with the added sense of one’s renouncing any need to patronage and protection.
Bhāge the ham bahut so usī kī sazā hai ye ho kar asiir dābte haiñ rāhzan ke paañv (asiir: prisoner, rāhzan: robber)	Quoted either in ironical disappointment or in jest when someone is serving (or associating with) a wrong-doer.
Ye ham jo hijr meñ dīvār-o-dar ko dekhte haiñ kabhī sabā ko kabhī nāma-bar ko dekhte haiñ (nāma-bar: messenger)	Quoted when one is wistful about some good news.
Vo aa.e ghar meñ hamāre ḳhudā kī qudrat hai kabhī ham un ko kabhī apne ghar ko dekhte haiñ	Used, usually playfully, when to please a visiting guest.
Dard minnat-kash-e-davā na huā maiñ na achchhā huā burā na huā (minnat-kash: obliged)	Recalled when someone is relieved that they have not taken any obligation or favour even if their condition is not very good.
Jam.a karte ho kyuuñ raqīboñ ko ik tamāshā huā gila na huā (raqīboñ: rivals in love)	Said when purposeful discussion is replaced by showmanship.
Ham kahāñ qismat āzmāne jaa.eñ tū hī jab ḳhanjar-āzmā na huā (ḳhanjar-āzmā: trying out a dagger)	Quoted in jest when someone close has not heeded to an advice which was a trying one to begin with.
Kitne shīrīñ haiñ tere lab ki raqīb gāliyāñ khā ke be-mazā na huā	Recalled for someone whose vituperative outburst is not taken badly by a third person.

    This it for today but hope to see you again with my book on the two greats..

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