Ik Alif
Ik alif teray darkar
I’lmon bus kareen o yaar…
Parh parh sheikh mushaikh sadaawein
Be-ilmaan nu lut lut khawein
Tenu kita hirs khwar
Bus kareen o yaar
I’lmon bus kareen o yaar
….
Parh parh ilm te faazil hoya
Te kaday apnay aap nu parhya ee na
Bhaj bhaj warna ay mandir maseeti
Te kaday mann apnay wich warya ee na
Larna ay roz shaitaan de naal
Te kadi nafs apnay naal larya ee na
Bulleh Shah asmaani ud-deya pharonda ay
Te jera ghar betha unoon pharya ee na
April 13th, 2009 at 9:50 am
sounds beautiful but could you please put up a translation for the punjabi/saraiki-illiterate?
April 13th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
i second ambreen.
April 14th, 2009 at 1:10 am
is this what you showed to me on the chit of paper that day ?
April 14th, 2009 at 3:40 am
Ik alif teray darkar
(Only an Alif is what you need)
I’lmon bus kareen o yaar…
(Stop seeking all this knowledge my friend)
Parh parh sheikh mushaikh sadaawein
(The preachers blurt out what they read)
Be-ilmaan nu lut lut khawein
(They rob the ignorant)
Tenu kita hirs khwar
(They have made you greedy [for rewards])
Bus kareen o yaar
(Stop this my friend)
I’lmon bus kareen o yaar
(Stop seeking all this knowledge my friend)
….
Parh parh ilm te faazil hoya
(You read to become all knoewledgable)
Te kaday apnay aap nu parhya ee na
(But you never read yourself)
Bhaj bhaj warna ay mandir maseeti
(You run to enter your mosques and temples)
Te kaday mann apnay wich warya ee na
(But you never entered your own heart)
Larna ay roz shaitaan de naal
(Everyday you fight satan)
Te kadi nafs apnay naal larya ee na
(But you never fight your own conscience)
Bulleh Shah asmaani ud-deya pharonda ay
(Bulleh Shah you try grabbing that which is in the sky)
Te jera ghar betha unoon pharya ee na
(But you never get hold of what sits inside your own house)
April 14th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Nice. Very Nice.
April 14th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
i just know this is bulley shah from ali azmat’s rendition of this on a junoon album.. haunting.
thank you for the translation, sir. =)
April 15th, 2009 at 6:57 pm
This is a real good one. It has a certain depth associated with it which we never try to explore. How about making a song out of it!!
April 18th, 2009 at 3:05 am
wow, i’m awe-struck! thanx for the translation but a couple of days more and i could have understood it in it’s original version.
April 18th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
bulleh shah penned this kalam in 16oos. and hes pointing out the issues we face today.. what is fascinating is that similar issues were faced in his times..dont we ever change , havent we grown,..
i wish the ignorant of today understood shahs kalam..
how true is bullah when he talks about alleged learneds preaching without authentic knowledge.. why cant r acts be selfless.. without the greed for rewards and fear of punishments.. why cant r prayers be of a free man, without the fear of hell and greed for heaven..
April 19th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
=) aliph from Junoon in the album parvaaz?
April 19th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
how many people will actually considering roots and discovering the depths of knowledge that lie buried in our mitti?
yes so it gets commercialised without making it understood. yes. up until you put this on your blog i just used to hum the tunee without knoing what it meant.
i could go on and on but now is the time to revel in the beauty and depth of bulley shah
May 10th, 2009 at 4:12 am
Bulleh shah is one of the Great Sufi Poets .
I like this piece of his great work.
Chal Bulleheya Chal othey chaliyee ,Jithey Saarey Anney.
Na Koi sadi zaat pehchaney ,na koi sano manney.
June 11th, 2009 at 1:32 am
so this is the song which noori performed on coke studio. its gonna on air on sunday. desperately waiting for it
June 15th, 2009 at 8:26 am
Man u ppl have done a great job with this track at coke studio….simply awesome…
June 15th, 2009 at 10:28 am
what you guys did with this haunting beauty was true mesmerisation. Of all teh five episodes of Coke Studio thus far (spanning one year?), this is by far the best, the slot so far being reigned by Strings’ Sar Kiye.
As i said on the Facebook Coke Studio fanpage:
the rendition of Noori and Saeein Zahoor’s “Aik Alif” was as if music trascended all boundaries to deliver Bulley Shah’s msg to its listeners…”
where words fail me, I shall simply say: Brilliance. Bravo. Wow. Congratulations.
June 15th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
Saeein Zahoor is a legend and your vocals were equally mesmerizing. Kudos!
June 16th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Aik Alif was a one of the most amazing performances and very inspirational..i just couldn’t make much of the poetry and now i do:) i loved the part you sang..jo na jaanay haq ki taaqat…Rab na devay ussko himmat…i can’t explain how touching that was. It inspired me to write…i haven’t written in 5 years…
Search
Climbing the rope of faith
In search of my God
And His Divine Light
Through deep darkness
That encompasses the depth of my soul
In search of reality
So far fetched
My God, where are you?
I am blind and deaf
Fill my void with light
And forgiveness
Find me or let me find you
Take my hand
As i climb this rope
Which burns in a fire that destroys
But my faith is untouched
My search indestructible
June 17th, 2009 at 10:59 pm
The song based on alip can be seen at http://www.cokestudio.com.pk under the artist Saieen Zahoor and Norri.
regards,
Nasir
June 18th, 2009 at 12:01 am
i am listening to the coke studio version of Aik Alif, while writing this comment.
I have been listening to Aik Alif non-stop for two days now. Bulleh Shah’s visionary poetry, powerful vocals of Saeen Zahoor and OFCOURSE the Noori effect! one word.. Magical
It truly is an outclass music production from Pakistan. Something, we can all be proud of! Thumbs up!
jo na janae huq ke taqat… rub na daiwaee uss ko himat… hum mun kay duriya mein doobae.. kaisee naeya kia manjhdar..
your vocals have a different (yet wonderful) strength, perfect match for these lyrics.
good luck!
June 18th, 2009 at 3:33 am
i love this song aik alif , especially the coke studio performance with saeen zahoor . You guys rock . i suggest u guys should do a few more songs with saeen zahoor or sufi based for your next album.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
Can anyone translate this line? Please
kaisi maiyaa kya manzidaa
June 18th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
This song..is awesome..i love it..as i have Listened..to it now.
U have put a lot of feeling in it..!!!
June 19th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
Loving it even more after sayin zahoors cokestudio rendition
June 20th, 2009 at 10:22 am
ulleh Shah was a wonderful poet and mystic saint. May God bless his station. I really enjoy his kalam through Noori and Sain Zahoor’s singing. I have been listening to it non stop.
Beautiful music, meaningful and I think the sound of your voice is amazing, Hamza. And Sain’s perfomance gave me goosebumps.
I’m not a Pakistani, but I am fortunate to have grown up in a house where Bulleh Shab, Rumi and others were often mentioned and quoted, and equally fortune to have some Pakistani friends, who introduced me to Noori a couple of years ago, and I became a fan ever since. By then, I could already understand a bit of Urdu, and with little help from my friends, I was able to get the right meaning of the songs.
Long may Noori’s music continue.
Warmest wishes from Brazil
June 20th, 2009 at 11:13 am
Amazing…… staff.
I just want to express my heartiest gratitude to the initiator(s) and organizer of such an wonderful event (Coke Studio).
June 20th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
i listen to coke studio and think ‘hey this sounds familiar’ and then it strikes me that u posted it in ur blog along with the translation. Ali Hamza had given us a sneak preview of the first coke studio episode without us knowing it! This blog entry relly enabled me to feel the song in coke studio, thanx!
I don’t think i have to say it but Aik Alif was the best performance alongwith Paimona!
Great going noori!
June 22nd, 2009 at 9:42 am
“Jjoooo na Jane haq ki taakat” I just listened the word jo from you Ali and just became your fan, man what a great bass you have in your voice.
Great voice man.
Achha ali Hindi to samajhte hi hoge after all you sung the song in hindi.
You know, I am a music lover, a singer as too.
Remain in contact. hope you’ll reply.
Thanks
June 22nd, 2009 at 11:53 am
hi this is my original profile that i created to remain in contact with you, earlier comment by akhilendra was done by me, I am Akhilendra.
June 25th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
I agree with the comments that people have left. It’s been a while since I’ve heard a song, that captures you, and intoxicates you with its melody. The composition is fantastic, and it is a perfect build up to Hamza’s part which for me is the best part of the song! Noor and Saeen Zahoor were great too.
June 29th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
While surfing through the TV channels this weekend, I stumbled upon the coke studio performance of Aik Alif.
After the 1st album of Noori which was really nice, I kind of lost touch with their music and didn’t listen to the last album. But this song from Noori is pure magic. Amazing and really powerful stuff. Very relevant to the mess our nation is in at the moment. Great job guys. I’ll add a thumb to the comment from Ms. Madiha….Two Thumbs up!!!
July 1st, 2009 at 10:02 am
@koolmuzone: literal translation:
“jo na jaane”: He who does not know
“Haq ki taaqat”: The Power of the Almighty/Knowledge/Right
“Rab Ne Deve”: The Lord does not bless
“Uss Ko Himmat:” Him Any strength
“Hum Mann ke darya main doobe”: We drown in the river/sea of our wants
“Kaisi nayya”: [forgetting] the boat [that will take us there]
“Kya Manjhdhaar:” [forgetting] the person who rows [the boat]
sorry. its the closest i could get.
hope you understand the deeper meaning behind this.
July 3rd, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Much depth, eh.
July 5th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
This is just beyond Perfection…
I love Noori’s music already!
Or na koe meri dil dia qadran pacharen
Mai sawali jeda nai ko sawal!!!!
I have no vocabulary to express what I feel when I listen to Ik ALIF.
It simply fills the heart!
Great Job! Great Great Job!!!
July 9th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Great song. Hamza you were exceptional.
July 17th, 2009 at 5:51 am
Sigh. Translations. Never can get the right flavour.
July 26th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
yr vocals were spellbounding..uve made me a fan….i keep singing aik alif and mairay log all the time….u r really tooo good….
aik alif and coke studio version…..brilliant, specially when u started to sing….jo na daiway….
August 2nd, 2009 at 9:16 am
I shared it to my friends living in europe and north america, they all loved it. I think these sort of music can be vital for promoting Pakistaniyat.
Junoon also did a fine job with “Aleph” but there was no such media hype, those days.
hat’s off to Bulleh shah and as well as coke studio team.
August 2nd, 2009 at 9:18 am
@ Koolmuzeone
Kaisi nayya? Kya manjhdhaar…
(the boat and the flowing waters do not matter)
August 4th, 2009 at 1:38 am
bulleh shah is my favorite poet. i think he defines the confluence of islam and the world of secular modernity. He also shows how maturing islamic evolution requires corrections of conscience.
anyone studying islam today, who misses out on bulleh shahs work, is missing out on several steps along which islamic culture has positively evolved -
Here is a link to “eik nuktay which gal mukdi ay”
http://ca.homelinux.net/~amalik/articles/eik-nuktay-which-gal-mukdi-ay.pdf
August 5th, 2009 at 5:19 am
buhut ala lyrics hai and i loved it
August 19th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
AWESOME AWESOME Song! I love the way Ali Hamza sings his part. Please can you also write down the lyrics of your part. Though I understand it but I miss out on the last couple of lines..:S
September 2nd, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Hi,
I have goosebumps…and i think they are permanent..have been there since i first heard aik alif…and its been playing on repeat..on my pod when i travel, on my pc at work and in my head when i sleep..for the last 3 days..
I relate to all of it..the music..the words..and to your voice..
(must admit that i chanced upon it completely by accident and one thing led to another and finally led me here ..to your blog.)
I am going to stay in touch..and look forward to more goosebumps…
Cheers
Sameera
September 18th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
yes there is no doubt that Baba Bullay Shah is the greatest punjabi sufi poet
September 24th, 2009 at 11:50 pm
I am from India… Really nice to see such wonderful lyrics and fabulous singing by Noori. I like ‘Mere Log’, ‘Do dil’ and ‘Saari Raat’ as well. Thank you so much.
October 7th, 2009 at 12:41 am
the coke studio version of aik alif was phenomenal!!!! music like this is created once every century!!!! hamza…..u, noor, baba and the rest of the coke studio team were amazing!!!!
i can not stop listing to that song!!!!
October 10th, 2009 at 12:21 am
Baba Bullay Shah is the greatest punjabi sufi poet
October 27th, 2009 at 12:04 am
I’d have to agree …just think Aik-alif (coke studio version) is such a ‘ phenomenal ‘ song…that had I still been an RJ…i would have given it more airtime than anything else…. Noor and Hamza in equal measure…both just blow you away…. awesome is the word !
November 22nd, 2009 at 1:29 am
Even if you dont understand the song fully, you can pick up the feelings through words that other people speak (sing in this case) when they embed their own thoughts in them. I think the more a person submerges in the song when he/she sings it, is imagining it and feeling it, the more other people can pick those energies. In other words, the more depth something has, the more attraction it holds!!
How amazing is the feel of the fact that those words hold the feelings of so many people, not just the writer…Life is strikingly amazing at times…
December 12th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
dude…u hav no idea how good these lyrics are i mean they just rock! an yeah i just LOVE noori i mean its like my FAVORITE band an the lyrics of every song u guys sing is absolutely amazin ….keep up the gud work guys!