Ek kamzarf Lubna thi qabiz wajood-e-Kais pe,
Humko BaKhuda kar de, hume bhi ishq karna hai.
A powerless Lubna permeated Kais until he ceased to be.
Permeat me, my Lord—I, too, want to love.
Author’s note:
“BaKhuda” actually means, “I swear by Allah (Khuda)”.
But “Ba” in Urdu means “permeated with” and “Khud” means “self”. Hence, I have used the word differently to mean “fill with Yourself”.
The story of Lubna and Kais is one of the most famous love stories in Urdu poetry, as Kissa-e-Laila-Majnun.
A very handsome man called Kais fell in love with Lubna who was very plain and dark as night (Laila). People were surprised at the match. At that time, the Arab law was against love marriages. They were separated. But Kais lost himself completely and was called Majnun (mad). When he found that his Laila has died of long suffering, he searched for her grave and died next to her—not because of the heartbreak but because of the ecstasy of finally finding her. Thus, they became one.
It is said that on the day of judgement, Allah will present Majnun to the mankind as the epitome of love and ask everyone why no one loved Him as much as Kais loved Lubna.
A question every woman asks her man…Sigh!
Short Stories | Fish-eye Perspective 