O! Gods I Ask Youo! Gods I Ask You Poem by Muhammad Shanazar

O! Gods I ask you,
Whether you ever have steered ships in the ocean of efforts,
Whether you ever have made new fronts in the cantonment of thoughts,
Whether you have in your world someone who sees dreams,
Writes poem,
Sings a song,
Who streams a tributary of love from the valleys of heavens,
On the bank of which Heer Ranjha settle abodes of felicity,
Whether there is someone among you like you
Who may define new destinations in the darkness,
Who holding Cross like Christ may gather all pangs of the world,
Whether among you, you have a figure like Socrates who may abase to ask questions,
And the convolutions of those questions may seek compromising responses,
And then on the route of faith
Gulp down a bowl of poison smilingly.

O! My gods tell me,
Whether you have ever rewarded the children of Adam who attribute all adorations to you.

O! My gods tell me,
Whether you have ever rewarded human efforts with good fortune and loyalties,
And ever you have visited dark world of Man to enkindle it with your enlightenment.

O! My gods tell me,
What you have given to the kids of Adam,
Except dungeons of hatred,
Display of religions,
Holding the bows of brutality
The pungent smell of faiths,
The earth coated with blood,
Caravans of rotting dead bodies on the roads of panting cities,
Sighs of the orphan kids,
Depressed dismayed girls
Who prayed to you in idolatries and places of worship,
To evoke your blessings,
Your benedictions,
A life of peace.

O! My gods tell me,
What you have done this;
What have you done?

Written by Jagdish Prakash
Translated by Muhammad Shanazar