Hum gard-e-safar, hum naqsh-e-kadam...

"Sometimes you run away only to see who is running after you..."

So you too, my dear, ran away. But no one followed. Nobody ran after you to stop you. But you kept running, hoping against hopes. You kept running because you were afraid to stop by and look back- only to find the dusty trail left by your own sorry self. You kept running until your knees refused to move you any further. You kept running until your lungs refused to spare you even a quarter of  a breath. You kept running until your heart could not beat any harder. You kept running until there was not a single bit of oxygen left in your body to spare. And then- you stopped. Your knees protested against your weight, gave up and you fell to the ground. You felt a line of a searing liquid trickling down your face and vanishing into the dusty ground. Someone spoke inside in a whisper, wanting to take a chance, wanting to look back only to find someone behind you. You scolded the meek voice that rose its head and the whisper scurried away. There was silence now. A deathly silence , that prevailed. All of a sudden, the same whisper rose again. And then another and another until there was a deafening cacophony of whispers. You covered your ears to shut out the dissonance only to find out that the noise came from not outside but from within your own self. You screamed with all that was left of you in an attempt to crush the noise inside. And you failed. Your scream sounded nothing but like a feeble mumble that was never meant to be heard. You felt the damp warmth on your face again and soon the dust on your face had been washed away by your tears. You did not want to look back because you knew. You knew that looking back would turn you into stone- just as in those Alif Laila Tales you once heard. However, you did not have any other option, did you? You had to look back. You body refused to carry you any further. The screaming whispers had now turned into sharp shrills that pierced your soul and the only way to stop them was to look back. So, you looked back. To your surprise, you did not turn into a stone. You focused your gaze to the view that long awaited you. Your tears had blurred your sight so you wiped your eyes with the back of your hand and tried to focus again. And you saw.

What did you see, my precious? What did you see?

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Hum Gard-E-Safar Hum Naqsh-E-Kadam 

Hum Soz-E-Talab Hum Tarz-E-Fugaa'n 

Hum Ranj-E-Chaman Hum Fasl-E-Khizaa'n 

Hum Hairat-O-Hasrat Yaas-O-Alam 

Hum Dasht-E-Junuun K Soda'ee 

Ye Dasht-E-Junuun Ye Pagalpan 

Ye Pecha Kerti Ruswa'e 

Ye Ranj-O-Alam Ye Huzn-O-Malaal 

Ye Nala-E-Shab Ye Soz-E-Kamaal 

Dil Mein Kahin Benaam Chuban 

Aur Hadd-E-Nazar Tak Tanha'i 

Hum Dasht-E-Junuun K Soda'ee 

Ab Jaan Humari Chotay Bhi 

Ya Dasht-E-Junuun Hi Thak Jaye 

Jo Roh-O-Badan Ka Rishta Tha 

Ka'ee Saal Hoye Wo Toot Gaya 

Ab Dil Ka Dharakna Ruk Jaye 

Ab Saans Ki Dori Tootay Bhi 

Hum Dasht-E-Junuun K Soda'ee