For word meanings and explanatory discussion in English click on the tabs marked “Roman” or “Notes”.

https://urdushahkar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/gssh-roTi-ke-fasaane-audio.mp3

Recitation

روٹی  کے  فسانے  ۔  گیان  سنگھ  شاطرؔ

۱

اِک  سمت  مئے  عیش  کہ  بہتے  ہوئے  دھارے

اِک  سمت  بلکتے  ہوئے  اِفلاس  کے  مارے

۲

اِک  سمت  شب  و  روز  زر  و  سیم  کی  برسات

اِک  سمت  ہیں  روٹی  کے  لیے  پھیلے  ہوئے  ہات

۳

اِک  سمت  نفس  مستیِ  دولت  میں  شرابور

اِک  سمت  کلیجے  میں  غم  و  رنج  سے  ناسور

۴

اِک  سمت  دل  آویز  محبت  کے  ترانے

اِک  سمت  سلگتے  ہوئے  روٹی  کے  فسانے

۵

اِک  سمت  ہے  چہرے  پہ  مہکتا  ہوا  غازہ

اِک  سمت  ہے  دل  اپنی  امیدوں  کا  جنازہ

۶

اِک  سمت  اداؤں  میں  نفاست  ہی  نفاست

اِک  سمت  نگاہوں  میں  ہلاکت  ہی  ہلاکت

۷

اِک  سمت  جواں  شوخ  مچلتی  ہوئی  باہیں

اِک  سمت  لبِ  یاس  پہ  سہمی  ہوئی  آہیں

۸

افلاس  و  امارت  کی  یہ  تہذیب  کا  دھارا

طوفان  کی  زد  میں  نظر  آتا  ہے  کنارا

रोटी के फ़साने – ज्ञान सिंह शातिर

१

एक सम्त मय-ए ऐश के बहते हुए धारे

एक सम्त बिलकते हुए इफ़्लास के मारे

२

एक सम्त शब-ओ-रोज़ ज़र-ओ-सीम की बरसात

एक सम्त हैं रोटी के लिए फैले हुए हात

३

एक सम्त नफ़स मस्ती-ए दौलत में शराबोर

एक सम्त कलेजे में ग़म-ओ-रंज से नासूर

४

एक सम्त दिल-आवेज़ मुहब्बत के तराने

एक सम्त सुलगते हुए रोटी के फ़साने

५

एक सम्त है चेहरे पे महकता हुआ ग़ाज़ा

एक सम्त है दिल अपनी उमीदों का जनाज़ा

६

एक सम्त अदाओं में नफ़ासत ही नफ़ासत

एक सम्त निगाहों में हलाकत ही हलाकत

७

एक सम्त जवाँ शूख़ मचलती हुई बाहें

एक सम्त लब-ए यास पे सहमी हुई आहें

८

इफ़्लास-ओ-अमारत की ये तहज़ीब का धारा

तूफ़ान की ज़द में नज़र आता है किनारा

Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. gyaan siNgh shaatir (1936-xxxx) hoshiarpur, punjab. He was from a rural agricultural background with no tradition of formal education. His father was annoyed with his desire for schooling and after he graduated from high school with high honours, threw him out of the house at 17. He walked to dehli where he worked as a construction labourer and graduated from the polytechnic college as a civil engineer. Hired by the government on dam construction projects he was sent to Moscow for further training and appointed (1962) as Executive Engineer in hyderabad, where he settled and called home. He started composing in the mid 1960s. In addition to a collection of rubaaii and Ghazal, he published a novel too. ratan panDorvi was his ustaad.

gyaan siNgh shaatir (1936-xxxx) hoshiarpur, punjab.  He was from a rural agricultural background with no tradition of formal education.  His father was annoyed with his desire for schooling and after he graduated from high school with high honours, threw him out of the house at 17.  He walked to dehli where he worked as a construction labourer and graduated from the polytechnic college as a civil engineer.  Hired by the government on dam construction projects he was sent to Moscow for further training and appointed (1962) as Executive Engineer in hyderabad, where he settled and called home.  He started composing in the mid 1960s.  In addition to a collection of rubaaii and Ghazal, he published a novel too.  ratan panDorvi was his ustaad.

1.direction, side 2.wine 3.luxury/pleasure 4.poverty, destitution.

On one side, there is an abundance of pleasure and luxury, likened to freely flowing streams of wine. On the other side, there are people stricken by extreme poverty, weeping and struggling. The nazm sets up the central theme of disparity.

1.direction, side 2.night and day 3.gold and silver

The contrast continues. One group experiences a constant shower of wealth, gold and silver, day and night. Meanwhile, another group extends their hands, begging for a mere piece of bread.

1.breath 2.intoxication 3.wealth 4.drenched, steeped in 5.liver, heart 6.sorrow and grief 7.festering sore, malignancy

One side is completely absorbed and intoxicated by their wealth and self-indulgence. The other, however, carries a deep, festering wound in their heart, caused by sorrow and pain.

1.enchanting, heart-capturing 2.songs 3.smoldering, burning slowly 4.tales, stories

The contrast shifts to culture and expression. On one side, there are enchanting songs of love and happiness. On the other, there are “tales of bread” that are not joyous, but smoldering. These are not just stories; they are narratives of hunger and suffering that burn with a silent, intense pain.

1.face 2.fragrant, scented 3.rouge 4.hopes, desires 5.funeral procession, coffin

This highlights the vanity of one world with its obsession with self-adornment and the complete loss of hope in the other. One side wears fragrant makeup, a symbol of beauty, luxury, and keeping up appearances. The other side’s heart carries the coffin of its hopes, signifying that their hopes and dreams are dead and gone.

1.mannerisms, gestures 2.refinement, sophistication 3.sight, gaze, glance 4.destruction, ruin, death

The contrast is now about demeanor. One group’s every gesture and mannerism exudes pure refinement and sophistication. In stark opposition, the eyes of the other group show nothing but ruin and destruction, reflecting a life of hopelessness and despair.

1.youthful, energetic 2.playful, mischievous 3.playful, restless 4.lips 6.despair 7.frightened, timid 8.sighs

This verse juxtaposes youthful vitality with utter despair. One side shows playful, restless arms, full of life and energy. The other side has ‘frightened sighs’ on the ‘lips of despair’, indicating a life where even a sigh is hesitant and filled with fear.

1.poverty and wealth 2.civilization, culture 3.stream, current 4.storm 5.range, strike, target 6.sight 7.shore, edge

This concluding couplet brings the poem’s message to a powerful climax. The vast difference between poverty and wealth is not just a social issue but a fundamental ‘current of civilization’.  This current, with its stark divisions, is so unstable that the ‘shore’, a symbol of peace and stability, appears to be the target of a devastating storm. It suggests that this deep-seated inequality is a dangerous situation that threatens the entire society.

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