Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: Mefâ‘îlün Mefâ‘îlün Mefâ‘îlün Mefâ‘îlün

Kerem kıl ‘âşık-ı dîdâra bir lahza yeter nâz it
Niyazdârâna ihsân eylegil bezminde dem-sâz it
Eger düşvârdır terk ey sanem-sîmâ habîbâna
Yine rahm eylegil ger nâz idersen bârî birâz it
Beni rüsvây-ı ‘âlem kılgil söylesün her kim
Budur dîvâne-i bî-tâ cünûnân içre mümtâz it
Diler gönlüm dem-â-dem isterem kim güller açılsun
Sînemde ‘aks-i rûyundan nikâbın bir nefes bâz it
Mey-i la‘lin temennâsındadır her dem temennâsın
Kerem kıl söylesün şîrin açılsun tab‘ dil-bâz it
Müheyyâ eylegil bezmi ki ehl-i dil müheyyâdır
Ayağ al tîz getür âhengi çengi mutribâ sâz it
Sükân-ı kûyun içre ey habîbim lutf kıl bir yer
Nigârî bî-nevânı ‘âşıkãn içre ser-efrâz it
Ser-i kûyunda dildârın düşüp şâm u seher ey dil
Enîsin mûnisin yârın nigârın şâh-ı tannâz it
Gönül vir turre-i tarrâr kıl gel bir hevâ peydâ
Alup bir şeh-per-i pervâ pey-â-pey tîz pervâz it
Eger takrîr-i dil mümkin degül ahvâlini takdîm
Ola rahm eyleye ol serv-i nâzındır demî bâz it
Dilâ eş‘âr üslûbunda sa‘y it ol kadar tâ kim
Pesendîde-i ashâb-ı safâ ehl-i Şîrâzî it

In English

1. Be generous to the lover who longs for your face, a moment's coquetry is enough; grant favour to those who plead, be their companion in your gathering.

2. O idol-faced one, if giving up coquetry is hard for you with your lovers, still be merciful; if you must be coy, at least be a little coy.

3. Disgrace me before the world, let everyone say "here is that peerless madman"; make me distinguished among the mad.

4. My heart longs every moment, I wish, that roses may open; open your veil for a breath, so that the reflection of your face may be in my breast.

5. The heart's wish every moment is the wine of your ruby lips; be generous, let your lips speak sweetly, let nature open and the heart dance.

6. Make the gathering ready, for the people of the heart are ready; take the cup, bring it quickly; O musician, play the melody and the harp.

7. O my beloved, grant me a place among the dwellers of your street; raise poor Nigârî's head high among the lovers.

8. O heart, falling morning and evening at the head of the beloved's street, make your companion, your comfort, your love, your beloved a coquettish king.

9. Give your heart, come (love) the deceitful forelock, conceive a longing; take the strongest flight feather of passion and fly swiftly, again and again.

10. If it is not possible to tell what is in the heart, present your state to her; she may pity you, she is your graceful cypress, she may unveil her face for a moment. (The couplet has been understood approximately.)

11. O heart, strive so much in the style of poetry that you become a poet admired by the people of purity, the people of Shiraz.

Literary and Historical Commentary

The last couplet states the standard Nigârî set for his own poetry: he must strive in poetic style so much that the "ashâb-ı safâ", the people of purity, and the "ehl-i Şîrâz", the people of Shiraz, will admire him. Shiraz is the city of the two great names of Persian poetry, Hafez and Saadi. In the introduction to his edition A. Azmi Bilgin notes that in one couplet Nigârî ranks himself with Hafez and Khwaju of Kerman, and in another asks for the regard of Saadi, whom he considers the sultan of eloquence, and for help from sugar-tongued Hafez. In this ghazal the standard is more modest: the poet asks not to compete with the men of Shiraz but to win their approval.

The second couplet of the ghazal carries a humour seldom met in divan poetry. Giving up coquetry may be hard for the beloved; the lover understands and strikes a bargain: if you must be coy, at least be a little coy. In the third couplet disgrace is asked for as a distinction: the lover wants to be disgraced before the world and counted "mümtâz", distinguished, among the mad. It is one of many examples in the divan of the melâmet stance.

The sixth couplet describes the preparing of a gathering: the people of the heart are ready, the cup must be brought, the musician must strike the harp. In the ninth the heart is given a "şeh-per-i pervâ", the strongest flight feather of passion, and told to fly again and again. The language of the ghazal is lively throughout; almost every couplet ends in a command, and the refrain "it" (do, make) carries these commands. The rhyme opens with nâz and closes with Şîrâz; in between, dem-sâz, birâz, mümtâz, bâz, dil-bâz, sâz, ser-efrâz, tannâz and pervâz keep up the "-âz".

Bibliography

Online sources