'Fernweh' in Urdu poetry
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Introduction

A while ago a good friend, Ana, introduced me to the German word “fernweh”. This word, from what I gather, means “wanderlust”, a longing to explore, travel, see far away places. Ana asked me if Urdu has something like this and I was intrigued. This post remained in draft mode for at least two years but not anymore.

The closest conceptual cousin in the Urdu (and Persian) tradition are words like

There's also a whole sub-vocabulary with words like

Where fernweh is a single word, Urdu tends to braid the feeling from several threads and angles. Some couplets from famous Urdu poets follow.

Mir Taqi Mir

Mir Taqi Mir talks about something that carries that sense of being a stranger in the world, never quite arrived.

لے سانس بھی آہستہ کہ نازک ہے بہت کام

آفاق کی اس کارگہ شیشہ گری کا

le saañs bhī āhista ki nāzuk hai bahut kaam
 āfāq kī is kārgah-e-shīshagarī kā

Breathe here softly as with fragility here all is fraught
In this workshop of the world where wares of glass are wrought

Allama Iqbal

Allama Iqbal is probably the most fernweh-complete poet in Urdu. His entire philosophy of Khudi is famous, which talks about the shaheen (falcon) who refuses to nest, who is at home only in distance. I love these lines from him.

ستاروں سے آگے جہاں اور بھی ہیں

ابھی عشق کے امتحاں اور بھی ہیں

sitāroñ se aage jahāñ aur bhī haiñ
 abhī ishq ke imtihāñ aur bhī haiñ

Beyond the stars there are more worlds still
Love has more trials yet to face

Haneef Akhgar

Haneef Akhgar wrote about determination to travel:

عزم سفر سے پہلے بھی اور ختم سفر سے آگے بھی

راہ گزر ہی راہ گزر ہے راہ گزر سے آگے بھی

azm-e-safar se pahle bhī aur ḳhatm-e-safar se aage bhī
 rāhguzar hī rāhguzar hai rāhguzar se aage bhī

Before the resolve to journey (determination to travel), and beyond the journey's end as well
It is only road, only road, even past the road itself

Altaf Hussain Hali

Altaf Hussain Hali wrote about justuju :

ہے جستجو کہ خوب سے ہے خوب تر کہاں

اب ٹھہرتی ہے دیکھیے جا کر نظر کہاں

hai justujū ki ḳhuub se hai ḳhūb-tar kahāñ
 ab Thahratī hai dekhiye jā kar nazar kahāñ

The seeking goes on, where is the better-than-beautiful
Let us see, now, where the gaze finally comes to rest

Nida Fazli

Nida Fazli has my favourite couplets of all time about the non-agency of the traveler :

اپنی مرضی سے کہاں اپنے سفر کے ہم ہیں

رخ ہواؤں کا جدھر کا ہے ادھر کے ہم ہیں

apnī marzī se kahāñ apne safar ke ham haiñ
 ruḳh havāoñ kā jidhar kā hai udhar ke ham haiñ

Since when have we been masters of our own journey?
Whichever way the winds turn, that is the direction we belong to.

وقت کے ساتھ ہے مٹّی کا سفر صدیوں سے

کس کو معلوم کہاں کے ہیں کدھر کے ہم ہیں

vaqt ke saath hai miTTī kā safar sadiyoñ se
 kis ko ma.alūm kahāñ ke haiñ kidhar ke ham haiñ

For centuries now, dust has traveled alongside time
Who knows where we are from, where we are of.

چلتے رہتے ہیں کہ چلنا ہے مسافر کا نصیب

سوچتے رہتے ہیں کس راہ گزر کے ہم ہیں

chalte rahte haiñ ki chalnā hai musāfir kā nasīb
 sochte rahte haiñ kis rāhguzar ke ham haiñ

We keep walking, because to walk is the traveler's fate
We keep wondering which road it is we belong to.

Ghalib

Ghalib has the wanderer's Being in this couplet as well, the same helplessness, the same non-agency :

رو میں ہے رخش عمر کہاں دیکھیے تھمے

نے ہاتھ باگ پر ہے نہ پا ہے رکاب میں

rau meñ hai raḳhsh-e-umr kahāñ dekhiye thame
 ne haath baag par hai na pā hai rikāb meñ

The steed of life is in full gallop, who knows where it stops
The destination is unknown and that's the point

The first line of the sher (couplet) alone could just be wonder at how fast life moves but the second line admits the rider has no control. The rider has their hands off the rein, their feet out of the stirrup. They aren’t even riding anymore, they’re just on the horse and the journey continues without them steering it. Oof!

Haidar Ali Aatish

In searching for this topic, I came across this couplet for the first time. It captures that those who want to and long to travel will find the necessities met somehow.

سفر ہے شرط مسافر نواز بہتیرے

ہزارہا شجر سایہ دار راہ میں ہے

safar hai shart musāfir-navāz bahutere
 hazār-hā shajar-e-sāya-dār raah meñ hai

The journey is the condition; there are many who welcome travellers
A thousand shade-giving trees stand along the way