Urdu Couplet Of The Day - 11

tum hamaare kisi tarah na hue

warna duniya meiN kya nahiN hota

-Momin Khan 'Momin'

Paraphrased in simple terms the shair is as uncomplicated as it it appears:

I could not win you, try as I did/Else I would have had everything I wanted in this world.

Hakeem Mohammed Momin Khan 'Momin' came from a family of court physicians. He is regarded as one of the foremost exponents of the Ghazal form and adorned Bahadur Shah Zafar's court during what is seen as the greatest period in the history of Urdu poetry. ‘Momin’, could not only hold his own in an age studded with some of the finest Urdu masters of all time, but earned the respect of the great poets of the time, including Ghalib, Zauq and Zafar. Momin's mastery of Urdu, Persian and Arabic, his chaste and oblique expressions set him apart from other masters of the Ghazal. He was known for his delicate turn of phrase and the uncompromising purity of his expressions.

Momin’s other celebrated shair is one of the most popular couplets in Urdu literature:

tum mere paas hote ho goya

jab koi doosra nahiN hota

The shair is self-explanatory and refers to the overpowering presence of the beloved and his abiding devotion to her. Incidentally, the great Mirza Ghalib had offered his entire Diwan or collection of verses to Momin, in exchange for this shair.

Also Read:Urdu Couplet Of The Day-10