Mother’s Dream: English translation of Dr. Allama Iqbal’s Maa Ka Khawab by Iqra Jamal

While sleeping one night, I saw a dream,
That aroused my curiosity to esteem,
In my dream, I was scrolling around,
Darkness prevailed; nothing was found

Body was shivering, soul was in tear,
Feet were frozen by extreme fear,
Gathering my courage, I moved a step,
Found a queue of some boys ahead.

Wearing greenish robe, steady on the lands,
Holding the bright lanterns in their hands,
Intensely quiet, they were moving so fast,
God knows, where they have to halt.

Lost in thoughts, I noticed my dear,
Walking in the group of all those peers,
With his slow tread, he was lagging back,
The lamp in his hands had turned black.

Seeing him, I pleaded, Ah my dear,
Where had you gone leaving me in tears?
Your separation has made me so craving,
Each day contributes to my despairing.

Leaving us all behind, you cared no one,
Showed no affection by departing all alone.
Staring my body upside down,
He replied by turning face around.

“My grief makes you teary and sob
In return, I get no peace, no hope”,
As he answered, he became so quiet,
Resumed speaking by showing his light,

“You Know why this lamp looks brown?
Your tears had burst all light down”.

Iqra Jamal is an undergraduate student of Physics at NUST Islamabad.