Karwaan Guzar Gaya..

The very first time I listened to this song, I felt like, I was the person the song was implied on. “Karwaan guzar gaya...” is probably one of the best songs ever written in Hindi poetry. Md.Rafi gave life to the song by his unarguably and lovable voice. Gopal Das Neeraj, the poet, is among the best known poets in Hindi literature. The song depicts the predicament of a lonely person who was deserted by his loved ones. He used figurative language and tried to describe the plight of a deserted man with different metaphors like shredding of leaves in fall, destruction of calm by storm etc. The primary lyric of the song “Karwaan gujar gaya, gubaar dekhte rahe” is the essence of the song, which conveys the message of the entire song. It means “Gone is caravan - seek my eyes in vain, All I see is dust - dust full of cloudy train”, implying the message that things are moving away in front of my eyes, and all I could do is see and face the consequences.

Probably this is the best way to explain the pain a person undergoes who is betrayed by the loved ones. He portrayed all the pain and agony into these beautiful words to give a feel of what the person is going through. The poet has strike the perfect and commendable balance in the way he used the Hindi and Urdu.

Everybody goes through the kind of phase described in the song at least once in a lifetime. The phase where you realize it is too late to embrace your aspiration, where you look helplessly at your dreams that are shattered by the time and fate, and you realize that all that time you were there standing haplessly and watching hopelessly at the debacle of time. This entire trauma is encapsulated in one song. Each word, each line has its own significance, has its own inner depth of feelings and leaves its own impact on the listener. This song is perfect example for a ‘Pleasant Hell’.

Here is the song..

Swapn jhare phool se,meet chubhhe shool se,
lut gaye shringaar sabhii baag ke babool se ;
aur hum khhade-khhade bahaar dekhte rahe
kaarwaan guzar gayaa, gubaar dekhte rahe !

Neend bhi khulii na thii ki haay dhoop dhhal gayii,

paav jab talak uthein ki zindagii phisal gayii,

paatpaat jhhar gaye ki shaakhh-shaakhh jal gayii,

chaah to nikal sakii na, par umar nikal gayii,

geet ashk ban gaye,chhand ho dafan gaye,

saath ke sabhi diye dhhuaa-dhhuaa pehan gaye,

aur hum jhhuke-jhhuke,mod par ruke-ruke,

umr ke chadhhaav ka utaar dekhte rahe

kaarwaan guzar gayaa, gubaar dekhte rahe !

Kya shabaab tha ki phool-phool pyaar kar uthhaa,

kya suroop thha ki dekhh aayinaa sihar uthha,

is taraf zameen aur aasmaan udhar uthha

thhaam kar jigar uthha ki jo milaa nazar uthha,

ek din magar yahaan,aisii kuchh hawaan chalii,

lut gayii kalii-kalii ki ghhut gayii galii-galii,aur hum lute-lute,

waqt se pite-pite,saans ki sharaab ka khumaar dekhte rahe

kaarwaan guzar gaya, gubaar dekhte rahe !

Haath the mile ki zulf chaand ki sanwaar doon,

honthh the khule ki har bahaar ko pukaar doon,

dard tha diyaa gayaa ki har dukhii ko pyaar doon,

aur saans yun ki swarg bhoomi par utaar doon,

ho sakaa na kuch magar,shaam ban gayi sahar,

vah uthi lahar ki deh gaye kile bikhar-bikhar,

aur hum dare-dare,neer nayan mein bhare,

odhkar kafan, pade mazaar dekhte rahe

kaarwaan guzar gaya, gubaar dekhte rahe !

Maang bhar chali ki ek, jab nayi-nayi kiran,

dhholke dhumak uthhii, thhumak uthhe charan-charan,

shor mach gaya ki lo chalii dulhan, chalii dulhan,

gaanv sab umad padaa, behak uthe nayan-nayan,

par tabhii zehar bharii,gaaz ek beh girii,

punchh gayaa sindhoor taar-taar hui choonri,

aur hum ajaan se, door ke makaan se,

paalkii liye hue kahaar dekhte rahe

kaarwaan guzar gaya, gubaar dekhte rahe !

Meanings:
Kaawaan : Caravan
Gubaar : Dirt, Dust
Ashk : Tears
Dafan : Buried
Sehar : Magic
Sahar : Dawn, Morning
Kafan : Cloth to cover the corps, Shroud
Mazaar : Mausoleum, shrine, Tomb

(By my Friend and me)