mere kaandhe pe baiThaa koii
paRtaa rahtaa hae iNjiil-o-quran-o-ved
makhiyaaN kaan meiN bhanbhanaatii haiN zakhmiiN haiN kaan
apnii aawaaz kais sunooN
raanaa hindu thaa, akbar musalmaan thaa
sanjya woh pahlaa insaan thaa
hastinapur meiN jisne qabl-e-masih television bamvaayaa
aur ghar baiThe ik andhr raajaa ko yudh kaa tamaashaa dikhaayaa
aadmii chaaNd par aaj utraa tou kyaa, ye taraqqii nahiiN
ab se pahle, bahut pahle
jab zarraa TuuTaa naa thaa; chashmaa jauhar se phuuTaa naa thaa
farsh se arsh tak jaa chukaa hai koii
ye aur aesii bahut-sii jihaalat kii baateiN
mere kaaNdhe pe hotii haiN; kaaNdhe jhuke jaa rahe haiN
qad meraa raat-din ghat rahaa hai
sar kahiiN paaNv se mil naa jaayeN
The Saint With Strapped Feet
Sitting on my shoulders someone
Keeps reading the Bible, the Quran and the Vedas
Flies buzz around my ears; the ears are wounded
How do I hear my own voice?
Rana was Hindu, Akbar was Muslim
Sanjaya was the first person, who, before Christ, made the television
And sitting at home, to a blind king, showed the tamasha of war
So what if man has landed on moon today? This is not progress
When the atom had not been broken
When the fountain of energy had not sprung forth
Someone had gone from the earth to the sky
This and much other ignorant talk
Takes place on my shoulders; my shoulders are drooping
My height is decreasing by night and day
Lest the head should merge with the feet
Pathetic, hurried, literal, working and klutzy translation by Sundeep Dougal. Please feel free to sendin your criticism and corrections.
