A
Poet’s Touching Epitaph
by Khushwant Singh
Daman lying in eternal
sleep next to Madho Lal Husain.
photo by Amarjit Chandan. 1999
Once on a visit to Pakistan, I
went to see its largest bookstore, Ferozesons, in Lahore. It was a
large hall crammed with books in Urdu and English. I bought a
compilation of poems of Ustad Daman — Punjabi verses written in
Urdu [script]. There were also many books in English published in
England and America. But there was none published in India.
I was surprised because all Pakistani writers who write
in English are published in India and command a sizeable
readership in this country. I went to meet the manager of the
bookstore to find out the reason. He admitted that it was against
the policy to market Indian publications. "Eh
dushmani kad tak chaleygee? (How long will this enmity go
on?)" I asked. He had no answer. I told him that their
leading writer of Punjabi poetry was a Lahoria who, in two lines
of a poem, had demolished Pakistan’s claim to be a people’s
republic:
Pakistan diyan maujan hee maujan;
Chaarey passey faujan hee faujan.
(Whichever way you look, there are armies and more
armies). Ustad Daman was jailed many times by the government.
Amongst his admirers was Pandit Nehru. He offered Daman Indian
citizenship. Daman thanked him but stated clearly that he would
never leave Lahore. Before dying, he expressed his wish to be
buried in the graveyard where Madholal and Hussain, two ... Sufi
poets, were buried. And so it was. I went to put flowers on his
grave and copied the epitaph he had composed himself:
Sarsaree nazar maari jahan ander;
Tey zindagi vark uthallia main;
Daman koi na millia Rafeeq mainoo;
Tay challya main … … …
(I took a casual glance at the world; And turned the
pages of my life; Daman found no one to befriend him; And took the
road to eternity). My excuse for writing about Daman is the
publication of his life in Punjabi by Jaiteg Singh Anant, entitled
Bey Niyaz Hastee: Ustad
Daman by Punjabi Adabi Sangat of Canada. Daman was born on
September 3, 1910, in Chowk Mati Das in Lahore. His father was
Mian Mir Baksh. Ustad Dam's real name was Charagh Din. He died in
Lahore on December 3, 1984. •
[Courtesy: The Tribune, Sept 3 2011
______________________________
Editor's Note: The epitaph on the headstone of Daman's grave is as follows:
Waro wari e saaryan kooch karna, aayee wari na kisse atko jana
Mere wehndyan wehndayan kayee ho gaye, main kayee-an de wehndayan ho jana
Daman shaal doshale, leeran walyan wi, sabhna khak de wich samo jana
(This world is like an inn where travelers come to rest and then get ready to leave.
Everyone will leave at his turn. No one will be left behind.
Many have left in front of my eyes and many will observe my departure.
Richly dressed and those in tatters, they will all eventually become dust.)