Kalam Sultan Bahu

Zabaanee kalma har koee parhhdaa,
Dil daa kalmaa koee hoo.
Jitthe kalmaa dil daa parhhee-e,
Mile zabaan na dhoee hoo.
Dil daa kalmaa aashiq parhhde,
Jaanan yaar galoee hoo.
Kalmaa mainoon peer parhhaaiaa,
Sadaa suhaagan hoee hoo.

-

Everyone recites the Kalma with his lips;
Rare is the person who recites it from the heart.
When the Kalma comes from the heart,
The spoken word has no value.
Only mystics know this Kalma of the heart.
What do they know, who only sing and preach?
My Master has taught me this secret Kalma;
I am now forever united with my Lord.


Sun fariaad peeraan diaa peeraa,
Aakh sunaavaan kainoon hoo.
Tain jehaa mainoon hor na koee,
Main jeheeaan lakkh tainoon hoo.
Phol na kaaghaz badeeaan waale,
Dar ton dhakk na mainoon hoo.
Main wich aid gunaah na hunde,
Toon bakhshendon kainoon hoo.

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O Shah Jilani, Master of Masters! Listen to my supplication.
Who else will minister my needs? Who else will attend to my plight?
For me, there is no one like you;
But for you, there are forlorn millions like me.
Do not read the scroll of my evil deeds;
Pray shut not the door of remission on my soul!
But for a blatant sinner like me, says Bahu,
who would have given you such a chance
To exercise your forgiveness?


Sun fariaad peeraan diaa peeraa,
Arz suneen kan dhar ke hoo.
Berha arhiaa wich kapraan,
Jith machh na baihnde dar ke hoo.
Shahh Jilaanee mahboob subhaanee,
Khabar lio jhat kar ke hoo.
Peer jinhaan daa Meeraan Baahoo,
Kaddhee lagde tarke hoo.

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O Shah Jilani, Master of Masters,
Listen intently to my supplication:
My ship is caught in perilous seas
Where even mighty whales dare not venture.
O Shah Jilani, beloved of God,
Make haste and come to my rescue!
Those who rely on you, O Meeran,
As their Master and Saviour,
Will safely swim across the ocean of life.


Sai roze sai nafal namaazaan,
Sai sajde kar thakke hoo.
Makke hajj gae sai vaaree,
Dil dee daurh na mukke hoo.
Chille, chalee-e jangal bhauna,
Is gal theen na pakke hoo.
Sab matalab ho jaande haasil,
Peer nazar ik takke hoo.

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Endless fasts, prayers and worship,
And acts of prostration have worn me out.
A thousand times have I gone on pilgrimage to Mecca,
But that did not end the wanderings of my mind;
Nor did my retreats to the seclusion of the forest
Bring me the enlightenment I had sought.
But all the objectives of life are met, O Bahu,
When the Master bestows a merciful glance!


Seene wich maqaam hai kaindaa,
Murshid gall sujhaaee hoo.
Eho saah jo aave jaave,
or naheen shai kaaee hoo.
Is noon Ism-al-Aazam aakhan,
Eho sirr Ilaahee hoo.
Eho maut hayaatee Baahoo,
Eho bhet Ilaahee hoo.

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My Master has explained to me
The reality of living in the heart:
It is called Ism-i-A’zam,
the Word of God- It is the divine mystery.
This Word is the breath of our lives;
Other than the Word nothing exists!
It brings life, it causes death;
In it lie all the secrets of God!


Shariat de darwaaze uchche,
Raah faqar daa moree hoo.
Aalim faazil den na langhan,
Jo langhe so choree hoo.
Putt putt ittaan vatte maaran,
Dardmandaan de khoree hoo.
Raaz maahee daa aashiq jaanan,
Jaanan keeh athoree hoo.

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Lofty are the portals of religion;
Hard to find is the narrow path that leads to God.
Priests and scholars allow no one to find it;
They throw stones and rocks, they persecute Saints.
Lovers have only discovered this strait path
By keeping out of their sight.
Only lovers know the secret path to the Lord.
How can people driven by blind impulse find it?


Shor shaihar te raihamat wasse,
Jitthe Baahoo jaale hoo.
Baaghbaanaa de boote vaangoon,
Taalib nit sambhaale hoo.
Naal nazaare rahmat waale,
Kharha huzooron paale hoo.
Naam faqeer tisse daa Baahoo,
Ghar wich yaar vikhaale hoo.

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May God’s grace descend on Shorekote,
Where Bahu lives!
Like a gardener who nurses his seedlings,
The Master always tends and protects his disciples:
He nourishes them from his court With his merciful glance.
Someone who shows you the Lord within your body
Deserves the name ‘Master’, O Bahu.