ہے دُعا یاد مگر حرفِ دُعا یاد نہیں
hai duā yaad magar harf-e-duā yaad nahīñ
I remember the prayer, but the words of the prayer are lost to me
ساغر صدیقی
ہے دُعا یاد مگر حرفِ دُعا یاد نہیں میرے نغمات کو اندازِ نوا یاد نہیں
hai duā yaad magar harf-e-duā yaad nahīñ mere naġhmāt ko andāz-e-navā yaad nahīñ
I remember the prayer, but the words of the prayer are lost to me; My songs have forgotten their style and melody.
میں نے پلکوں سے درِ یار پہ دستک دی ہے میں وہ سائل ہوں جسے کوئی صدا یاد نہیں
maiñ ne palkoñ se dar-e-yār pe dastak dī hai maiñ vo sā.il huuñ jise koī sadā yaad nahīñ
I have knocked on the beloved's door with my eyelashes; I am that beggar who remembers no plea to make.
میں نے جن کے لئے راہوں میں بچھایا تھا لہو ہم سے کہتے ہیں وہی عہدِ وفا یاد نہیں
maiñ ne jin ke liye rāhoñ meñ bichhāyā thā lahū ham se kahte haiñ vahī ahd-e-vafā yaad nahīñ
The very ones for whom I laid down my blood in the paths, They now tell me they remember no oath of loyalty.
کیسے بھر آئیں سرِ شام کسی کی آنکھیں کیسے تھرّائی چراغوں کی ضیا یاد نہیں
kaise bhar aa.iiñ sar-e-shām kisī kī āñkheñ kaise tharrā.ī charāġhoñ kī ziyā yaad nahīñ
How someone's eyes welled up at dusk... How the light of the lamps quivered... I cannot remember.
صرف دُھندلائے ستاروں کی چمک دیکھی ہے کب ہوا کون ہوا کس سے خفا یاد نہیں
sirf dhuñdlā.e sitāroñ kī chamak dekhī hai kab huā kaun huā kis se ḳhafā yaad nahīñ
I only saw the glint of blurry stars; When it happened, who it was, who was angry with whom... I do not remember.
زندگی جبرِ مُسلسل کی طرح کاٹی ہے جانے کس جُرم کی پائی ہے سزا یاد نہیں
zindagī jabr-e-musalsal kī tarah kaaTī hai jaane kis jurm kī paa.ī hai sazā yaad nahīñ
I have lived life as a continuous, forced suffering; I just don't remember the crime for which I am being punished.
آؤ اِک سجدہ کریں عالمِ مدہوشی میں لوگ کہتے ہیں کہ 'ساغر' کو خدا یاد نہیں
aao ik sajda kareñ ālam-e-mad.hoshī meñ log kahte haiñ ki 'sāġhar' ko ḳhudā yaad nahīñ
Come, let us perform a prostration in this state of intoxication; People say that 'Saghar' no longer remembers God.
📖Metaphorical & Poetic Meaning
This ghazal is a journey into a state of profound amnesia, a consequence of 'continuous suffering' (jabr-e-musalsal).
Loss of Identity:
The poet starts by stating his naġhmāt (songs, his life's work) have lost their andāz-e-navā (melody, his art). He has lost his core identity.
Loss of Ritual:
He remembers the feeling of prayer (duā) but not the words (harf-e-duā). He performs the ultimate act of devotion (knocking on the beloved's door with his eyelashes) but has forgotten how to beg (sadā). He is a silent, devoted sufferer.
Loss of Past Pain:
The trauma of betrayal ("they remember no oath") has led to a mental fog. He remembers tragic scenes—eyes welling with tears, lamps quivering—but has forgotten the reason why. The pain is so deep that his mind has erased the details ("who was angry with whom... I do not remember").
The "Crime" of Existence:
The most famous couplet is the sixth. His life has been a relentless punishment (sazā), but the crime (jurm) is forgotten. This fatalistic view suggests that existence itself is the crime, and the suffering is its inexplicable, absurd consequence.
The Final Prostration:
The poem concludes with a masterful twist. The world mistakes his detachment and intoxication (mad.hoshī) for atheism ("he no longer remembers God"). Saghar's reply is not to argue, but to act: "Come, let us prostrate right now." He proves that even though he has forgotten the "words," the "rituals," and the "reasons," he has not forgotten the essence of devotion (sajda). His amnesia is not a loss of faith, but a loss of the world's formal, memory-based religion.