“Tum se pehle woh jo ek shakhs yahan takht-nasheen tha, usko bhi apnay khuda hone pe itna hi yaqeen tha!” (translation: The one who was perched on this throne before you, was also under the impression that he was a god).
In 1969, during the early days of Yahya Khan’s dictatorship, Habib Jalib recited these verses at a mushaira held in Murree.
The story goes that Jalib wrote his famous poem Dastoor in response to the 1962 Constitution, drafted by Manzoor Qadir during the military rule of Ayub Khan.
At the mushaira, a judge, aiming to dilute the impact of Jalib’s poetry, schemed to have the poet Dilawar Figar perform before Jalib, as Figar’s poems were humorous and no one could steal his thunder. But Jalib came to the podium after Figar and looking at Yahya Khan’s picture (which had succeeded Ayub Khan’s photo) read out the following couplet:
“Tum se pehle woh jo ek shakhs yahan takht-nasheen tha, usko bhi apnay khuda hone pe itna hi yaqeen tha!” (The one who was perched on this throne before you, was also under the impression that he was a god).
Read the full poem by Habib Jalib below, along with its English translation.
تم سے پہلے وہ جو اک شخص یہاں تخت نشیں تھا
اس کو بھی اپنے خدا ہونے پہ اتنا ہی یقیں تھا
[Tum se pehle woh jo ek shakhs yahan takht-nasheen tha]
[Us ko bhi apne khuda hone pe itna hi yaqeen tha]
The one who was perched on this throne before you,
He was also under the impression that he was a god
کوئی ٹھہرا ہو جو لوگوں کے مقابل تو بتاؤ
وہ کہاں ہیں کہ جنہیں ناز بہت اپنے تئیں تھا
[Koi Thehra ho jo logoun ke muqabil tou batao]
[Woh kahan hain ke jinhein naaz bohot apne tayi’n tha]
Tell me, was there anyone who managed to stand against the people
Where are those who once took immense pride in themselves?
آج سوئے ہیں تہ خاک نہ جانے یہاں کتنے
کوئی شعلہ کوئی شبنم کوئی مہتاب جبیں تھا
[Aaj soye hain tah-e-khaak na jane yahan kitne]
[Koi shola koi shabnam koi mahtaab jabeen tha]
Today, countless lie buried beneath the dust—
Some were like flames, some dew, and some radiant as moonlight.
اب وہ پھرتے ہیں اسی شہر میں تنہا لیے دل کو
اِک زمانے میں مزاج ان کا سر عرش بریں تھا
[Ab woh phirte hain isi shehar mein tanha liye dil ko]
[Ek zamane mein mizaaj unka sar-e-arsh-bareen tha]
Now they wander this city, clutching their hearts in solitude,
Once, their demeanor was as lofty as the throne of the heavens
چھوڑنا گھر کا ہمیں یاد ہے جالبؔ نہیں بھولے
تھا وطن ذہن میں اپنے کوئی زنداں تو نہیں تھا
[ChoRna ghar ka humein yaad hai Jalib, nahin bhoole]
[Tha watan zehan mein apne koi zindaan to nahin tha]
We still remember leaving our homes, Jalib; we have not forgotten
To us, the homeland was no prison