From: memon@acsu.buffalo.edu (Naveed Siraj Memon)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.pakistan
Subject: Re Heer. & Much more. Come on in folks! Lassi anyone :)
Date: 9 Apr 92 00:14:21 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: UB

From: anajam@athena.mit.edu (ADIL NAJAM)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.pakistan
Subject: ...Heer...Punjabi, Saraiki...Sindhi?



>I know that the Heer-Ranjha story (which is a social and political tale,
>not just a romantic one) has been immortalized both in Punjabi and Saraiki
>poetry........do we also find references to it in Sindhi?.......Anyone, Naveed?

I have not heard any verses by Shah about Heer Ranjha. But I bet Sachal Sarmast,
being the shair Haft ziban(the poet who knew seven lanuages) may have verses
about Heer-Ranjha. And I was reading that Khwaja Farid was born in Thatta
and moved northwards into central Punjab. Had it been a downward migration,
Heer Ranjha may have been equally (if not more popular) in Sindh :) :) 

However there is an entire Sur called Sur Sohni in The Risalo of Shah Latif.
But in Sindhi mehivaal becames mayhaar. Sohni remains to be Sohni, I guess the 
two provinces had reached the conclusion that sohni is sohni wherever she
is remembered. The Beautiful. :) Then again it was one continuous stretch of
landmass from the Arabian Sea to Central Punjab that had a relatively 
homogenous population something quite unfathomable :) at present :)
Come to think of it, whereever the two
lovers die before they meet in this world, the folk tales are remembered and
sung about with more devotion. Infact happy ever after ending are rare in
desi folklore. Take Heer Ranjha, sassi punhoN, omar marui, sohni mayhaar/mahi-
vaal, momal raNo etc 

You know ever since we started being so sufi :) I have been  listening to my
desi cassettes more often. Anyway I have this mohammad juman cassette that 
contained the following two bayt(verses). Now as I have maintained in the past
I have never really read the risalo, so this is purely as I hear Mohammad
Juman singing it. This is my translation so apologies in advance if it sounds
a bit wierd. Despite the religious themes that I don't care for too much  
, the sweetness of the language is what works for me, here is a bayt totally
mmersed in Spiritual Thought. 

vehd a ho la shareek a laho jaN tho chaveeN aihN
manJ mohammad nardyooN manjhaN neehaN
so tooN vanjyo keeyaN laa-eeN sir Biyan khay

"The Lord is One, no one shares his Greatness" if that is your understanding 
and with all your heart and soul you accept Mohammad as your guide,
then why do you have to bow your head infront of anyone else

vehd a ho la shareek a laho iho rihaij reeh-o
khateeN jay haraiN ta hand tohinjo hee-o
panhi-o chavandoee pee-o bharay jaam janat maaN

"The Lord is one, no one shares his Greatness" if that is what you believe
Then Win or Lose, your (final resting) place is This,
and (The Lord will) ask you to drink and offer you the 
                                                    Drink from the Heavans.


I think that 'This' refers to the 'Janat'(Heavan) A better translation will
be appreciated. That is what I understand and that is sufficient to move me :) 



A folk song for those who are as homesick as I.  

Ancedote about the singer who did this originally. Here name was JeevaNi Bai,
or mai JeevaNi. Well she was a poor old singer waiting for a train somewhere
in Sindh probably before 1947. She got a seat in the compartment. She noticed
a big 'suitcase' that did not seem to have anything written like the name of the
person it belonged to etc. She guessed that it may have a fortune that could
take care of her for a long time to come. A policemam who was conducting 
regular checks of the train got suspicious and asked her to open the suitcase,
and the found a body and ..........and well! to make to story short. She died
in prison.

Oh well shit happens I guess, ... then you die :)

I know that was pretty sick of me but more about me after the 
song :) 


The song again is sung with the folk story about omar marui. She is in prison
and she is sad cause she misses her people. You know how it is :)


With apologies to the native sindhi speakers if I screw up the song or
the translation. Also apologies to all C programmers out there in the
teenage wasteland. 



moohN khay pavan tha poor pawaNran ja  /*The longing for home has saddened me
tin maron, sangin, siyaRn ja     /* (longing for) my people, the friends,
                              /*  the wise, Oh how I wish I could see em again


qismat ando qaid karay         /*  Fate has brought me this prisoned life */
sa ta sal bahNyaN mohinjee kana saray /* moments seem like a lifetime to me */
taqdeer kya paNwar paray          /* Fate has put this distance between the
ohay dhaN ta DisaaN dhanran ja  /* loved ones. 
            /* The cattlemen and the herds, Oh how I wish I could see em again.


meehaN voTha otay gaah phota    /* Here come the rain, the grassland gets  
maroo mal kahay thya kal e kaTha /* a new life. But my people, 
kan lal loyooN, panwNar laTa, /* they wear mournful clothes 
Omar khaJ khata vaycharan ja  /* Omar due to your injustice, even their
                                 food does nt taste too good :) */

GulRa ghuman bhitun paas rahan  /* children play in the surrounding sanddunes
mohinja naiN sikan GooRha rooz GaRan /* How I long to see em
maroo maal kahin akhyooN shaal Disan /* How I long to see the cattlemen and the
tin sooran atham sangharan ja /* their herd. I am so sad remembering my friends,
                                               oh how I wish to see em again */



Well July is not too far :)




Well was it as good for you as it was for me :)





Naveed[khivRan gaajan, baarish tay baraan vee tooN] Memon



BTW Adil Heer means 'a light breeze' in Sindhi. Get hold of some etymologists.
Doesit mean the same in Punjabi :) 
From: syed@hpcc01.corp.hp.com (Tanwir Syed-Mohammad)
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1992 21:03:16 GMT
Subject: Re: Did this happen to you, too ?
Organization: the HP Corporate notes server