کشمیر Kashmir

### Translation of the Poem "Kashmir" by Afzal Shakeel Sandhu

**Every house is a mourning place, every house has buried corpses,**
**The sight of unburied bodies is unbearable.**
**Mothers' beloveds leave wrapped in shrouds,**
**On this earthly paradise, they all shed their blood.**
**Hopes sigh here, desires weep,**
**Even tongues are ashamed to speak of the conditions.**
**The dark nights of oppression yearn for rays of hope,**
**In their madness, these tyrants become even more insane.**
**But how will the gravity of the situation be handled,**
**In this earthly paradise, even beauty feels ashamed.**
**This is what peace-loving is, this is affection for humanity,**
**Sympathy for the oppressor, hatred for the oppressed.**
**Why is this valley of light a hut of sorrows,**
**Is the blood of Muslims so cheap?**

### Description of the Poem

Afzal Shakeel Sandhu's poem "Kashmir" is a poignant depiction of the anguish and devastation in the region of Kashmir. The poet uses vivid imagery and powerful language to convey the depth of suffering and the paradoxes of human behavior in the face of violence and oppression.

**1. Universal Mourning:**

The poem opens by painting a grim picture of universal mourning, where every house is in grief, and unburied corpses lie around, highlighting the pervasive death and destruction.

**2. Sacrifice of Youth:**

It then touches on the heart-wrenching sight of mothers' beloved children leaving wrapped in shrouds, signifying the young lives lost. The poet laments the bloodshed on what should be an earthly paradise, pointing to the irony of such beauty being marred by violence.

**3. Suffering and Silence:**

Hopes and desires are personified as sighing and weeping, with even tongues too ashamed to speak of the horrors, indicating the depth of despair and the unspeakable nature of the atrocities.

**4. Oppression's Darkness:**

The poem describes the dark nights of oppression longing for rays of hope. The madness of the oppressors is emphasized, showing how cruelty escalates in such an environment.

**5. Ashamed Beauty:**

The poet questions how the severity of the situation can be managed when even the natural beauty of Kashmir seems to feel ashamed. This highlights the incongruity of the natural splendor amidst such human suffering.

**6. Irony of Peace:**

Sandhu criticizes the distorted sense of peace and humanity, where there is sympathy for the oppressors and hatred for the oppressed. This irony underscores the moral failure and the skewed values in addressing the conflict.

**7. Valley of Sorrow:**

Finally, the poet questions why this valley of light has become a hut of sorrows and if the blood of Muslims is so cheap. This rhetorical question is a powerful indictment of the disregard for human life and the systemic devaluation of the oppressed.

Overall, the poem is a heartfelt plea for recognition of the suffering in Kashmir, a call for empathy and justice, and a condemnation of the moral and ethical failures that perpetuate the cycle of violence and oppression.

afzal shakkel sandhu