मौत माँगू तो मिले (Maut Manguu to Mile) -- Khwaja Hyder Ali 'Aatish'

[Urdu Couplet #28]

मौत माँगू तो मिले आरज़ूए ख़्वाब मुझे 

डूबने जाऊँ तो दरिया मिले पायाब मुझे 

Maut manguu to mile arzoo-e-khawab mujhe

dubane jaaun to dariya mile payaab mujhe

Khwaja Hyder Ali 'Aatish'
(1778 - 1847)

मौत (Maut) = death; आरज़ूए ख़्वाब (arzoo-e-khawab) = desires to have dreams; डूबना (dubana) = to drown, sink, dip, immerse; दरिया (dariya) = sea; पायाब (payaab) = shallow, not deep or a shoal (in relation with a water body like sea)

[English Meaning]

When I ask for death, I get desires to have dreams 

Even when I go to drown myself, I get a shallow sea

About the Poet

ख्वाजा हैदरअली 'आतिश' Khwaja Hyder Ali 'Aatish' was a 19th century poet, thus a poet from the initial days of the modern Urdu language era. He was a poet from Lucknow in the service of Nawaab Muhammad Ali. He was one of the greatest Lakhnawi  poets of his time and considered as one of the iconic poets in Urdu literature because of his unique style in writing poetry. He use to refrain himself from useless embellishment using heavy vocabulary. His style of poetry was simple and lyrical that had a natural flow. He had an ability to express deep emotions through sensitive and simple compositions.