ShantaBeginner

मैं ज़िन्दगी का साथ निभाता चला गया

Main Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhata Chala Gaya

Sahir Ludhianvi

1 min read 4 versesLife Sorrow Grief

4 verses · ~1 min

मैं ज़िन्दगी का साथ निभाता चला गया हर फ़िक्र को धुएँ में उड़ाता चला गया

बरबादियों का सोग़ मनाना फ़ुजूल था बरबादियों का जश्न मनाता चला गया

जो मिल गया उसी को मुक़द्दर समझ लिया जो खो गया मैं उसको भुलाता चला गया

ग़म और ख़ुशी में फ़र्क़ न महसूस हो जहाँ मैं दिल को उस मुक़ाम पर लाता चला गया

इति

Rasa: Shanta
Stanzas: 4
Lines: 8
Reading time: ~1 min
Form: Ghazal
Metre: ghazal
Rhyme: AA BA CA DA

The poem evokes a serene, stoic atmosphere of detachment, captured through the imagery of a traveler walking calmly through a landscape of dissipating smoke and scattered remnants. A visual representation would depict a lone figure standing amidst the charred debris of past struggles, holding a flickering lamp or blowing embers into the wind, suggesting a deliberate transformation of grief into a quiet, meditative celebration. This imagery symbolizes the transcendence of binary emotions, where the protagonist inhabits a neutral, liminal space—a place beyond the reach of fortune or loss—conveying a deeply philosophical and tranquil tone. The artistic composition rests on the balance between the weight of experience and the lightness of letting go, embodying a spiritual equanimity that renders joy and sorrow indistinguishable.

मैं ज़िन्दगी का साथ निभाता चला गया (Main Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhata Chala Gaya), by Sahir Ludhianvi runs to 8 lines across 4 stanzas, set as Two-line stanzas (couplets) with a repeating refrain. Its governing rasa is Shanta, shaded by Hasya. The metre is ghazal. Rhyme falls as AA BA CA DA.

One of Sahir's most celebrated philosophical songs, reflecting a carefree yet deeply stoic approach to life's ups and downs.

Read it for जीवन की चिंताओं को हंसकर उड़ाना and सुख-दुख में समभाव रखने का दर्शन. 3 words in it carry older or regional senses, so the poem rewards a second pass.

The verse is hung beside View from Ugneswur Ghat, Benares: Bathed in a cool, contemplative atmosphere, the scene evokes a quiet reverence for the bustling sacredness of the Ganges riverfront. Clustered along the monumental stone steps of the Ugneswur Ghat, tiny figures of…

Words worth pausing on

फ़िक्र: चिंता, परेशानी
मुक़द्दर: भाग्य, नसीब
सोग़: शोक, दुख

Threads

Life Sorrow Grief Joy

The Poet

साहिर लुधियानवी

Sahir Ludhianvi

1921 · 1980

Sahir Ludhianvi possessed a voice that refused to separate the agony of romance from the brutal inequalities of the world. Born Abdul Hayee in 1921 in Punjab, he adopted the pen name Sahir, meaning magician, and proved it entirely accurate through a lifelong mastery of Urdu poetry. As a prominent figure in the Progressive Writers Movement, he rejected the traditional obsession with the idealized beloved. Instead, he forced his readers to look at the poverty, the exploitation, and the hypocrisies of society that destroy love before it can even bloom. When he entered the Hindi film industry, he fundamentally changed the stature of the lyricist. Directors and composers adapted their music to his words, rather than the other way around. Through films like Pyaasa and Kabhi Kabhie, he brought profound literary dignity and fierce anti establishment critique to mainstream cinema. He passed away in 1980, but his poetry remains a burning torch. Sahir remains the ultimate poet of the disenchanted, a man who wrote beautiful verses to express an absolute refusal to accept an ugly world.