She has written: The henna is afresh on my hands,
But the water has dried in your eyes.
She has written: Whoever told it, told a lie --
The roses are scorched on the roads.
She has written: What’s befallen shouldn’t be written;
But all this happened in your grief.
She has written: I asked for your love -- a clear mirror.
I didn’t ask for the gems of Yemen.
She has written: Should I tell them we died in dreaming?
Perchance they decide to ask a question.
She has written: Why are you sad at the sight of the mansions?
Refrain from thinking on the matters of Fate.
She has written: Our case files will be reopened at last;
Finally our issues will also be raised.
She has written: Now only the scars will remain.
Surely our wounds will be cured.
Translated by Muneebur Rahman
Shahnaz Rashid is a promising young poet of Kashmiri who became known in the last few years. A very talented poet with a masterly grasp on linguistic expression, Rashid recently published his fisrt collection of peoms Dod Khatith Guldanan Manz (Pain Behind Flower Vases). The collection earned him much acclaim from all the established writers. Rashid is now considered as yet another powerful voice of ghazal among the budding writers. Kashmir has yet to see a promising poet in nazam form among the younger poets. Ghazal has completely outshined the prestigeous poetic form of nazam which gained momentum in the 1960s and in the 1970s.
