KarunaIntermediate

किस को पार उतारा तुम ने किस को पार उतारोगे

Kis Ko Par Utara Tum Ne Kis Ko Par Utaroge

Ibn-e-Insha

1 min read 6 versesLove

6 verses · ~1 min

किस को पार उतारा तुम ने किस को पार उतारोगे मल्लाहो तुम परदेसी को बीच भँवर में मारोगे

मुँह देखे की मीठी बातें सुनते इतनी उम्र हुई आँख से ओझल होते होते जी से हें बिसारोगे

आज तो हम को पागल कह लो पत्थर फेंको तंज़ करो इश्क़ की बाज़ी खेल नहीं है खेलोगे तो हारोगे

अहल-ए-वफ़ा से तर्क-ए-ताल्लुक़ कर लो पर इक बात कहें कल तुम इन को याद करोगे कल तुम इन्हें पुकारोगे

उन से हम से प्यार का रिश्ता ऐ दिल छोड़ो भूल चुको वक़्त ने सब कुछ मेट दिया है अब क्या नक़्श उभारोगे ष्

‘इंशा’ को किसी सोच में डूबे दर पर बैठे देर हुई कब तक उस के बख़्त के बदल अपने बाल सँवारोगे

इति

Rasa: Karuna
Stanzas: 6
Lines: 12
Reading time: ~1 min
Form: Ghazal
Metre: ghazal
Rhyme: AA BA CA DA EA FA

The poem carries a heavy, mournful emotional atmosphere steeped in betrayal, grief, and a sense of impending doom. Visually, a painting of this scene would depict a lone, weathered boatman mid-stream on a dark, turbulent river, trapped in a swirling whirlpool while a dejected figure sits forlornly on the distant shore or at a desolate doorstep. The recurring motif of the boatman and the treacherous waters symbolizes the fickle cruelty of fate and the abandonment of the faithful by those they trusted, blending romantic heartbreak with existential resignation. Its artistic tone is deeply tragic and accusatory yet quietly melancholic, capturing the bitter realization of love's ruin and the lingering ghost of unrequited devotion.

किस को पार उतारा तुम ने किस को पार उतारोगे (Kis Ko Par Utara Tum Ne Kis Ko Par Utaroge), by Ibn-e-Insha runs to 12 lines across 6 stanzas, set as Six couplets (Sher). Its governing rasa is Karuna, shaded by Shringara. The metre is ghazal. Rhyme falls as AA BA CA DA EA FA.

It belongs to the 1927 · 1978 span of Ibn-e-Insha's working life, and keeps the plain, spoken register that period is known for.

Read it for विश्वासघात और विरह का दर्द and प्रेम की बाज़ी हारना. 3 words in it carry older or regional senses, so the poem rewards a second pass.

The verse is hung beside Shantanu and Ganga: The painting evokes a dramatic and heartrending emotional atmosphere, contrasting the serene detachment of the divine with the helpless anguish of mortal grief. It depicts the poignant mythological moment from the…

Words worth pausing on

तर्क-ए-ताल्लुक़: संबंध तोड़ना
बख़्त: भाग्य या किस्मत
बिसारोगे: भूल जाओगे

Threads

Love

The Poet

इब्ने इंशा

Ibn-e-Insha

1927 · 1978

Sher Muhammad Khan, immortalized under the pen name Ibn-e-Insha, was a literary wanderer who observed the world with a brilliant mix of deep melancholy and razor sharp wit. Born in 1927 in the Jalandhar district of Punjab, he migrated to Pakistan and became one of the most beloved Urdu poets and travelogue writers of his generation. His most famous ghazal Insha Ji Utho Ab Kooch Karo carries an overwhelming sense of world weariness and final departure, sung beautifully by generations of classical vocalists. Yet, alongside this intense sorrow, he authored travelogues filled with hilarious, biting satire that dissected human follies across the globe. He served in the United Nations, traveling extensively before his premature death in London in 1978. He remains the poet of the restless soul, wrapping profound existential grief inside breathtaking lyrical beauty.