Sher on Sharab

Firaq came into the tavern laughing and carefree.

But after drinking the wine, he turned serious.

The couplet shows an ironic reversal: the place associated with lightness and revelry becomes a doorway to gravity. “Wine” works as a metaphor for experience and truth—once tasted, it strips away easy laughter. The emotional core is sobering self-awareness: joy gives way to reflection, as if the intoxication awakens, rather than numbs, the mind.

Firaq came into the tavern laughing and carefree.

But after drinking the wine, he turned serious.

The couplet shows an ironic reversal: the place associated with lightness and revelry becomes a doorway to gravity. “Wine” works as a metaphor for experience and truth—once tasted, it strips away easy laughter. The emotional core is sobering self-awareness: joy gives way to reflection, as if the intoxication awakens, rather than numbs, the mind.

Ghalib says: even though I had quit drinking, I still sometimes feel drawn back to it.

I drink on cloudy days and on moonlit nights—at such times the urge returns.

The couplet captures a relapse of desire: a “quit” habit is not fully gone, it merely sleeps. Cloudy day and moonlit night become metaphors for two moods—gloom and romantic softness—both of which awaken the old taste for wine. Beneath the wit is confession: solitude and atmosphere make the heart vulnerable.

Ghalib says: even though I had quit drinking, I still sometimes feel drawn back to it.

I drink on cloudy days and on moonlit nights—at such times the urge returns.

The couplet captures a relapse of desire: a “quit” habit is not fully gone, it merely sleeps. Cloudy day and moonlit night become metaphors for two moods—gloom and romantic softness—both of which awaken the old taste for wine. Beneath the wit is confession: solitude and atmosphere make the heart vulnerable.

O pious ascetic, why have I become an infidel merely by drinking wine?

Is my faith so weak that it was washed away in just a handful of liquid?

The poet challenges the rigid religious ascetic (Zahid) who judges faith based solely on rituals and prohibitions. Zauq uses sarcasm to ask how deep spiritual belief (Imaan) can be so fragile that a trivial amount of wine—metaphorically described as a mere 'handful of water'—could destroy it completely.

O pious ascetic, why have I become an infidel merely by drinking wine?

Is my faith so weak that it was washed away in just a handful of liquid?

The poet challenges the rigid religious ascetic (Zahid) who judges faith based solely on rituals and prohibitions. Zauq uses sarcasm to ask how deep spiritual belief (Imaan) can be so fragile that a trivial amount of wine—metaphorically described as a mere 'handful of water'—could destroy it completely.

Oh Zauq, be careful and do not let the 'daughter of the vine' (wine) touch your lips.

Once this cruel temptress gets attached to the mouth, it becomes impossible to let go.

The poet personifies wine as 'Dukhtar-e-raz' (daughter of the grape) and warns against tasting it. By calling it 'Kafir' (infidel or cruel one), he suggests that wine is an enchanting but dangerous mistress. The core theme is the difficulty of breaking an addiction; once one indulges, the habit refuses to leave.

Oh Zauq, be careful and do not let the 'daughter of the vine' (wine) touch your lips.

Once this cruel temptress gets attached to the mouth, it becomes impossible to let go.

The poet personifies wine as 'Dukhtar-e-raz' (daughter of the grape) and warns against tasting it. By calling it 'Kafir' (infidel or cruel one), he suggests that wine is an enchanting but dangerous mistress. The core theme is the difficulty of breaking an addiction; once one indulges, the habit refuses to leave.

O ascetic, how can I describe to you the pleasure of wine?

Alas, unlucky one—you have never even tasted it.

The speaker addresses a moralizing “zaahid” who condemns wine, and says its delight cannot be explained to someone who has never tried it. Wine becomes a metaphor for lived joy, ecstasy, and inner freedom. The couplet carries gentle mockery: judgment without experience is portrayed as misfortune. Emotionally, it blends pity with witty defiance of dry piety.

O ascetic, how can I describe to you the pleasure of wine?

Alas, unlucky one—you have never even tasted it.

The speaker addresses a moralizing “zaahid” who condemns wine, and says its delight cannot be explained to someone who has never tried it. Wine becomes a metaphor for lived joy, ecstasy, and inner freedom. The couplet carries gentle mockery: judgment without experience is portrayed as misfortune. Emotionally, it blends pity with witty defiance of dry piety.

Rekhta AI Explanation

जबीं अर्थात माथा। जबीं पर शिकन डालने के कई मायने हैं। जैसे ग़ुस्सा करना, किसी से रूठ जाना आदि। शायर मदिरापान कराने वाले अर्थात अपने महबूब को सम्बोधित करते हुए कहता है कि शराब एक मुस्कुराती हुई चीज़ है और उसे किसी को देते हुए माथे पर बल डालना अच्छी बात नहीं क्योंकि अगर साक़ी माथे पर बल डालकर किसी को शराब पिलाता है तो फिर उस मदिरा का असली मज़ा जाता रहता है। इसलिए मदिरापान कराने वाले पर अनिवार्य है कि वो मदिरापान के नियमों को ध्यान में रखते हुए पीने वाले को शराब मुस्कुरा कर पिलाए।

Shafaq Sopori

Rekhta AI Explanation

जबीं अर्थात माथा। जबीं पर शिकन डालने के कई मायने हैं। जैसे ग़ुस्सा करना, किसी से रूठ जाना आदि। शायर मदिरापान कराने वाले अर्थात अपने महबूब को सम्बोधित करते हुए कहता है कि शराब एक मुस्कुराती हुई चीज़ है और उसे किसी को देते हुए माथे पर बल डालना अच्छी बात नहीं क्योंकि अगर साक़ी माथे पर बल डालकर किसी को शराब पिलाता है तो फिर उस मदिरा का असली मज़ा जाता रहता है। इसलिए मदिरापान कराने वाले पर अनिवार्य है कि वो मदिरापान के नियमों को ध्यान में रखते हुए पीने वाले को शराब मुस्कुरा कर पिलाए।

Shafaq Sopori

O Preacher, you can neither drink this wine yourself nor serve it to anyone else.

So what exactly is the greatness of your promised 'pure wine of paradise'?

Ghalib employs biting sarcasm against the religious preacher who forbids earthly wine while promising 'Sharab-e-Tahoor' (the pure wine of Heaven). The poet argues that a reward which is purely theoretical, cannot be consumed now, and allows for no communal sharing, is essentially useless compared to the immediate joys of life.

O Preacher, you can neither drink this wine yourself nor serve it to anyone else.

So what exactly is the greatness of your promised 'pure wine of paradise'?

Ghalib employs biting sarcasm against the religious preacher who forbids earthly wine while promising 'Sharab-e-Tahoor' (the pure wine of Heaven). The poet argues that a reward which is purely theoretical, cannot be consumed now, and allows for no communal sharing, is essentially useless compared to the immediate joys of life.

Even though the conversation is strictly about witnessing the Divine Truth.

It is impossible to express it effectively without using the metaphors of wine and the cup.

Ghalib highlights the limitations of human language when describing spiritual experiences. He suggests that the ecstasy of witnessing the Divine (Truth) is so profound that it cannot be described in ordinary terms; the poet is forced to borrow the terminology of intoxication (wine and cup) to convey that spiritual state.

Even though the conversation is strictly about witnessing the Divine Truth.

It is impossible to express it effectively without using the metaphors of wine and the cup.

Ghalib highlights the limitations of human language when describing spiritual experiences. He suggests that the ecstasy of witnessing the Divine (Truth) is so profound that it cannot be described in ordinary terms; the poet is forced to borrow the terminology of intoxication (wine and cup) to convey that spiritual state.

O preacher, it would actually be enjoyable if the punishment were like this.

Even in hell, my feet would still have a goblet of wine in hand.

The speaker addresses the moralizing preacher with sharp irony: even the threatened torment cannot scare him. Hell becomes a stage for defiance where wine symbolizes pleasure, habit, and refusal to repent. By imagining “punishment” as “fun,” he flips fear into bravado, exposing the tension between desire and religious warning.

O preacher, it would actually be enjoyable if the punishment were like this.

Even in hell, my feet would still have a goblet of wine in hand.

The speaker addresses the moralizing preacher with sharp irony: even the threatened torment cannot scare him. Hell becomes a stage for defiance where wine symbolizes pleasure, habit, and refusal to repent. By imagining “punishment” as “fun,” he flips fear into bravado, exposing the tension between desire and religious warning.

If you want to know the real delight of wine, ask the drinkers.

How could the strictly pious understand this kind of pleasure?

Dagh Dehlvi contrasts lived experience with moral distance: the joy of wine is knowable only to those who partake. The “pious” are shown as outsiders to certain human pleasures, not necessarily superior, just unacquainted. The couplet carries a playful, slightly mocking irony about judgment without experience. At its core is the claim that some tastes can’t be grasped through purity or preaching alone.

If you want to know the real delight of wine, ask the drinkers.

How could the strictly pious understand this kind of pleasure?

Dagh Dehlvi contrasts lived experience with moral distance: the joy of wine is knowable only to those who partake. The “pious” are shown as outsiders to certain human pleasures, not necessarily superior, just unacquainted. The couplet carries a playful, slightly mocking irony about judgment without experience. At its core is the claim that some tastes can’t be grasped through purity or preaching alone.