Whether Thou remain silent or ignore me, I shall forever hold on to Thee

1.
Mo se bol na bol, meri sun ya na sun
Mein to tohe naa chhoruungii ai sanvare

Whether You remain silent or Ignore me,
I shall forever hold on to You, O my Dearest

Mori saas nanandiaa phiri to phiri
Mosay phir kiyon na jaey sabbi gaon ray

Though by both kith and kin I am rejected
Though the entire world reject me, I care not

Ek tu na phiray mo say ae meray piyaray
Main bhi to aee teri chhaon ray 

Only You abandon me not, O my Beloved,
And now I've arrived under Your shade

Rahee laaj sharam ki baat kahan
Jab prem kay phanday diyo paon ray

Where's room anymore for bashfulness or shame?
Now your feet is caught by love’s brace

Bagar kay log lagai hamka
Dharat naam to dharo naon ray

Now let all the people hate me, I do not care
Now let them revile, let them my name smear

Nizam ko lal Fakhar Diin piyaray
Tumrii kahoo ke main kit jaauun re?

Fakhar Ud-Deen is dear to Nizam, his darling
Tell me, if I were to leave you, where could I go?

Main to apnii mauj se rahoongi tore sang
Main to yahee na chukuun rahunn thaam ray

 The ecstasy by Your side is enough for me
This is where I’ll stay, this is where I want to be


~ Original by Hazrat Amir Khusrau, Great Sufi Poet and Disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Awliya, one of the greatest Sufi Master


The above kalam (sufi text) is beautifully rendered as Sufi Qawwali by Farid Ayaz & Abu Muhammad

This song is inspired by Hazrat Amir Khusrau’s spiritual master Hazrat Nizammudin Auliya. Here again, it takes the form of a touching love poem.  It’s the testimony of a lover who has surrendered to love without any regret or regard for consequences. This is love unconditional; a love of complete surrender; love that does not require reciprocity. This absolute love is central to Sufi philosophy, which teaches that bliss is attained only by treading the path of humility, selflessness and pure love.Hazrat Amir Khusrau, who wrote in farsi and hindvi (a proto hindi/urdu language), was also an immensely talented musician; his contributions to Indian classical music are seminal and paradigm-changing, while his compositions are enshrined in the musical canon of the sub-continent. He is also ascribed with the invention of the tabla and the sitar.

From the station of complete love and faith to the human teacher, the master, a devotee in Sufi path learn and ascend to the station of complete love and faith to the Ultimate Teacher, the Ultimate Master, the Beloved God. So the above song can also be interpreted not only a spiritual seeker's love for his master, but also a song dedicated to God.


2.
The lyrics of the above song can remind the Muslims who are familiar with the life of the Prophet (s), his episode in Ta'if, a town about 70 miles in the south east of Mecca. It was almost ten years into his Prophetic Mission and very few people responded to his mission. He invited the people of Ta'if to abandon polytheism and to acknowledge the Oneness of God and to repudiate false distinctions of high and low, and to believe in the equality and brotherhood of all of humanity.

The chiefs of Ta’if were a conceited and arrogant crew, and they did not want even to listen to Muhammad. They greeted him with mockery and ridicule and set upon him the idlers and the louts of the city. They pelted him and his companion Zayd with clods and rocks. Wounded and covered with blood, Muhammad staggered out of Ta’if. Once he was outside the city walls, he almost collapsed.

At that point the Messenger of God raised his hand and uttered this prayer which is also echoed in the lyrics of Hazrat Amir Khusru's devotional Qawwali: "Ek tu na phiray mo say ae meray piyaray  / Main bhi to aee teri chhaon ray."

It matters not as long as You are by my side / I want only, my Beloved, in your shade to abide

This is the prayer of the Messenger in translation:

Allahumma ilayka ashkoo
To You, my Lord, I complain

Dhu'fa quwwati
Wa qillata hilaty,
of my weakness,
and lack of support

Wa hawany alla nas,
and the humiliation I am made to suffer from fellow-men.

Ya arham-ar rahimin
O Most Compassionate and Merciful!

Anta rabbul mustadaafeen,
You are the Lord of the weak,

Wa anta rabbi,
and you are my Lord.

Ila man takilny, 
To whom do You leave me?

Ila baeedin yatajahhammuny ,
To a distant person who receives me with hostility?

Am ila aduwwin mallaktahu amry,
Or to an enemy You have given power over me?

In lam yakun bika ghadabun alayy,
As long as You are not displeased with me,

Falaa ubaali
I do not care (what I face).

Wa laakinn aafiyatuka heeya awsa'uw lee
Your forgiveness is all that matters to me

A'uzu biNoori wajhik 
I seek refuge in the Light of Your Face

allazee ashraqtu lahuz- zulumatu
Which dispels all darkness

Wa saluha 'alayhi amrud-dunya wal-akhirah
And solves all the problems in this life and hereafter

Min an yanzila bi ghadabuka,
Lest Your wrath descend upon me

Aw yahilla alayya sakhatuka,
I desire Your pleasure and satisfaction

Lakal utba
To You is the supplication

Hatta tardha
Until You are pleased

Wa la hawla wa la quwwata illa bika
Everything is powerless without You.


(See the original in Arabic)


# Translation Tips:
* Mose Bolo na Bol by Hazrat Ami Khusrau
* Qawwali Translation


# Further:
* The Journey to Taif and the Unprayable Prayer
* Hamza Yusuf on the Prophet's Prayer at Taif
* Mosay Bol na Bol by Munshi Raziuddin