In this heart-wrenching Saraiki Kafi, titled Tatti Ro Ro Waat Neharaan, the master mystic Khwaja Ghulam Farid articulates the intense spiritual state of Birha (the fire of separation). Portraying the soul through the folkloric lens of Sassi Punnu, the poet describes a longing wanderer in the desert sands. The Kafi captures the devotee’s desperate wait for the Divine “Sanwal” to turn the reins of the camel back towards the seeker, proving that in the state of true longing, all worldly adornments and rituals become meaningless.
تتی رو رو واٹ نہاراں
کڈیں سانول موڑ مہاراں
Tatti ro ro waat neharaan
Kadi Sanwal mor muharaan
Burnt by grief, weeping, I scan the path;
O Beloved, turn your camel’s reins toward me at last.
جیں کارن سو سختی جھاگی
پھراں ڈوہاگی دیس براگی
جیندیں ڈیکھاں سانول ساگی
تھیواں باغ بہاراں
Jain karan so sakhti jhagi
Phiraan dohaagi des baragi
Jeendeen dekhaan Sanwal saagi
Theevaan bagh bahaaraan
For whose sake I endured a hundred hardships;
I wander abandoned and desolate through the land.
If I could see my same Sanwal (Beloved) while I yet live,
I would blossom like a garden in spring.
یار بروچل وسم سولڑا
جیندے سانگے مانیم تھلڑا
خان پنلڑا نہ کر کلہڑا
توں سنگ چانگے چاراں
Yaar Bruchal wasam saulra
Jainde sange maanum thalra
Khan Punhalra na kar kalhra
Tun sang change chaaraan
My Beloved Bruchal (Punnu) lives so close to me,
Yet for his sake, I measured the vastness of the desert sands.
O Prince Punhal, do not leave me all alone;
I wish to graze the camels by your side.
جیں ڈینہہ یار اساں تو نکھڑے
میندھی روپ ڈکھائے پھکڑے
ڈسدے سرخی دے رنگ بکھڑے
وگھریاں کجل دیاں دھاراں
Jain deenh yaar asaan ton nikhre
Mehandi roop dikhaye phikre
Disde surkhi de rang bikhre
Vighriyaan kajal diyaan dhaaraan
Since the day my Beloved parted from me,
The glow of the henna has turned pale and dull.
The colors of my rouge appear scattered and faded;
And the streaks of kohl have washed away in my tears.
من من منتاں پیر مناواں
ملاں گول تعویذ لکھاواں
سڈ سڈ جوسی پھالاں پاواں
کردی سون ہزاراں
Man man mantaan peer manawaan
Mulaan gool taveez likhawaan
Sadd sadd josi phalaan pawaan
Kardi soun hazaraan
I make vows and seek the blessings of the saints;
I seek out clerics to write me protective charms.
I repeatedly call the fortune-tellers to cast my lot;
I practice thousands of omens and rituals for your return.
خواجہ پیر دے ڈیساں چھنّے
ایہے ڈینہہ اتھایئں بھنّے
جیندیاں سبھ دل کیتیاں منّے
دسّم سدا گھر باراں
Khawaja Peer de desaan channe
Ehay deenh athaeen bhanne
Jindiyaan sabh dil kitiyaan manne
Dassam sada ghar baaraan
I will offer bowls of sweets at the shrine of the Master,
If the Beloved spends even a single day here with me.
If he grants all the wishes of my heart,
And blesses my home and hearth forever.
بندڑے نال نہ کر سیں مندڑا
تونیں کوجھا کملا گندڑا
لٹک سہائیں صحن سوہندڑا
پوں پوں توں جند واراں
Bandra de naal na karseen mandra
Toneen kojha kamla gandra
Latak suhayeen sehan sohandra
Poon poon ton jind waaraan
Do not treat this humble servant unkindly,
Though I may be ugly, foolish, or flawed.
Your graceful gait would beautify my humble courtyard;
At every step You take, I would sacrifice my life.
چھوڑ فرید نہ یار دا دامن
جیٔں جی کیتا جڑ کر کامن
ڈوہاں جہاناں ساڈا مامن
کینویں دلوں دساراں
Chorr Farid na yaar da daaman
Jain jee kita jarr kar kaaman
Dohaan jahaanaan saada maaman
Kivain dilon dasaaraan
O Farid, never let go of the Beloved’s hem;
The one who has cast a deep spell upon your soul.
He is our only refuge in both worlds;
How could I ever forget Him from my heart?
Vocabulary: Tatti Ro Ro Waat Neharaan
- Birha / Virha: The agonizing spiritual pain and longing caused by separation from the Beloved.
- Tatti: Literally “hot”; metaphorically, a soul consumed by the fire of grief.
- Waat Neharaan: To scan or watch the path/horizon with anticipation.
- Muharaan: The reins used to guide a camel.
- Dohaagi: An abandoned or separated soul; a woman left by her husband.
- Bruchal: Belonging to the Baloch tribe (a traditional reference to Punnu).
- Thalra: The desert sands or the dunes of the Thal/Rohi.
- Phikre: Pale, dull, or faded (referring to the color of henna).
- Josi: A fortune-teller, astrologer, or one who casts omens.
- Channe: Offering bowls used for charity or spiritual vows.
- Kojha: Flawed, ugly, or unattractive.
- Dasaraan: To forget or lose from one’s memory.