Kun Faaya Kun meaning Be And It Is

 Kun Faaya Kun meaning Be And It Is

 

For understanding this song I referred to Irshad Kamil’s website https://www.irshadkamil.com/translationsdetails/455

When I had watched the movie, I had discarded the song as it belonged to a newer generation… and I didn’t have the courage at that time to be patient and try to understand what the new generation is saying. Over the years, I have probably become a bit wiser, and am now probably more open to the new “kids” who are writing stuff in their new way. I have become fond of many new gen lyric writers – Irshad Kamil, Abhijit Bhattacharya, Kausar Munir, Varun Grover, Nilesh Misra and many others. This song from Rockstar is sung by Javed Ali and Mohit Chauhan, set to tune by AR Rahman and lyrics by Irshad Kamil.

 

https://youtu.be/T94PHkuydcw?si=flZ6HuLUMhLbZcPZ

Link to the song

In the movie this song happens when the hero, Janardan is kicked out from his house by his siblings, accused of stealing his elder sister’s money when in fact he hasn’t. He is pained and in this hurt state of mind, he takes refuge in a mosque where evening prayers are taking place. He hears some people around him singing and as he too aspires to be a singer, he joins them.

The origin is from The Quran, the Arabic words “Kun” which means “to be” or “to exist” & “Faya Kun” means “it is”. So, the literal translation of Kun Faya Kun is “Be, and it is”. This phrase signifies the Almighty’s ability to effortlessly create and manifest anything through His divine command. (The nearest Hindustani word would probably be तथास्तु or maybe I am wrong).

The beauty of the song is not just in the words or the music but in the complete conceptualization. For me though the opening phrase is taken from Quran, song is not about religion. Over the years, after experiencing and reading a lot about religion, I have come to the realisation that God is this divine intelligence within humans and our connection with divinity is at the level of our soul. That realisation brings tears to my eyes every time I hear such songs. The song is like a healing therapy for loneliness, sadness and depression. Those who have been there (in that state of mind) will realise this.

What is life really? It's probably a journey of events from birth till death. Some of these events are from past and some planned for future. For some Life is a river of sorrows. But according to Sufi's, the way a river flows, life is a continuous flow of events. And in Sufism one believes that the universe is born and destroyed at or in the same time. Somewhere someone is born at the same time somewhere someone is dying. Somewhere there is celebration and somewhere there is sorrow. Somewhere there is pain and somewhere there is healing.

In the film when the song starts, we see that the shrine (dargah) is almost empty, the inner hall is lighted while the outside is dark. This is also the state of Janardan’s (Jordan) mind. He only sees darkness all around him. He does not see the light within. The camera pans from top to bottom indicating Jordan’s bending in front of the Almighty.

या निज़ामुद्दीन औलिया Oh Ruler of the Saints,
या निज़ामुद्दीन सलक़ा Oh uplifter of the crestfallen (or sad)

The first mood in the song is about repentance. That to repent is never too late. To err is being human. A sinner who regrets his sins and repents is better than a sinner who constantly commits sins. And that God never rejects anyone repenting to him, instead He opens his arms to embrace our homecoming. To lose hope in the mercy of God is perhaps the gravest of sins.

When Jordan enters the dargah (at 7:08), it is all lit up, people have thronged. It is as if the almighty also needed his bhakt. This is typical of Sufism where it is assumed that the way we need God, he also needs us, for if we weren’t there who will call him God?

The song rings the theme that in the line, “Aaja khalipan mein pee ka ghar tera. Tere bin khali aaja khalipan mein.” which means, ” Come into the Void, the home of your Beloved- Without you there is Emptiness in this Void”. It has a profound meaning - that when the Almighty is not present within ourselves, one shall feel a sense of void and emptiness within his soul. A sense of unworthy life and nihilism slacks over the thoughts.

The word “pi” (पी) is usually referred to as piya, but in Sufism, love is the religion and God is the piya. In the film, Janardan goes to Hazrat Nizamuddin in Delhi. Here the Hazrat is referred to as Piya. He is the Murshid.. the one who shows the path. Janardan is thrown out of his house, there is emptiness in his life, at such a time he is being called by saying, come to your Pee Ka Ghar in an empty moment. He is completely defeated, disappointed and in darkness. He comes to this place (his piya ka ghar) in the hope that here light will come in his life, he will get clarity about what he has to do next.

कदम बढ़ा ले हदों को मिटा ले Take a step forward, destroy these distances
आजा ख़ालीपन में पी का घर तेरा Come into this void, the home of your beloved
तेरे बिन ख़ाली, आजा, ख़ालीपन में Without you there is emptiness, come into this void
तेरे बिन ख़ाली, आजा, ख़ालीपन में

रंगरेज़ा He who fills me with color
रंगरेज़ा
रंगरेज़ा
ओ ओ रंगरेज़ा

कुन फायाकुन कुन

फायाकुन फायाकुन

फायाकुन फायाकुन फायाकुन

When there was a nothingness everywhere, He was there, over there. He was the creator of the Universe. He who was within me and I was engulfed within him. रंगरेज़ा is the who dyes clothes. Rangrez is used as a metaphor for the one with whom we love, because in love we get coloured in the colors of our beloved and the beloved also gets colored in our colors. You are my Piya, take me on your path, color me in your colors.  And He was the one who brought colors in my life, He can take them away as well

जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था When, there was nothing,
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था He was the one, the only one.
जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था

वो जो मुझ में समाया He is the one who is in my soul,
वो जो तुझ में समाया He is the one in your soul,
मौला वही वही माया O dear Lord, He is the one that is mystery
वो जो मुझ में समाया
वो जो तुझ में समाया
मौला वही वही माया

रंगरेज़ा रंग मेरा तन, मेरा मन My painter, color my body my soul
ले ले रंगाई चाहे तन, चाहे मन Take away the colors, from the body, from the soul
रंगरेज़ा रंग मेरा तन, मेरा मन
ले ले रंगाई चाहे तन, चाहे मन

The next aspect that the song addresses is ‘purity’. The song intends to purify our soul from every dark and negative aura that damages the heart thus, advises oneself to sincerely turn towards the light (God). This point is reverberated with the line, “Sajra savera mere tann barse, Kajra andhera teri jalti lau”. which literally means, “The Morning Showers Rain (Blessing) on me – And Cleans up the darkness in me or lights up a flame in the darkness of my mind”. Who awaits for the morning light the most? He who is troubled by the darkness of the night. The verse above is an allegory “if God’s blessings resonated in our life, then no darkness can extinguish the light within. He then goes to say क़तरा मिला जो तेरे दर पर से – meaning he is thirsty for blessings and just a drop (क़तरा) of those are enough for him.

सजरा सवेरा मेरे तन बरसे The Morning showers(blessings) rain on me
कजरा अँधेरा तेरी जलती लौ And it cleans up the dark soul of mine which is like darkness of night.
सजरा सवेरा मेरे तन बरसे
कजरा अँधेरा तेरी जलती लौ
क़तरा मिला जो तेरे दर पर से Its only for the drop of nourishment that flows from yours,
ओ मौला, मौला Oh Lord…

जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था
जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था

In the next lines he says about “release the me from myself - कर दे मुझे मुझसे ही रिहा”. The Lord is in me and the Lord is in you. Let’s free the Lord from within. When we come into this world, we arevpure. Later, we create a fake self within ourselves. This fake self is also called ego, which is completely different from our true self. Until we do not destroy this ego self, we aren’t able to see our true self, so the same is written in this song that कर दे मुझे मुझसे ही रिहा, meaning release me from my false self, if I get freed from it, then I shall get a glimpse of my real self.

When he says मन के मेरे ये भरम, he is introspecting that the ego’s he had led him to his illusions and weaknesses.

ओ मुझपे करम सरकार तेरा It would be your generosity upon me, Oh master
अर्ज़ तुझे, "कर दे मुझे मुझसे ही रिहा My request, Free me from myself
अब मुझको भी हो दीदार मेरा Even I should see myself
कर दे मुझे मुझसे ही रिहा Make me free from myself
मुझसे ही रिहा" From myself…

मन के मेरे ये भरम There is a mirage in my mind
कच्चे मेरे ये करम For the weakness of my actions
लेके चले है कहाँ Have got me where…
मैं तो जानूँ ही ना I am lost…

तू है मुझमें समाया
कहाँ लेके मुझे आया
मैं हूँ तुझमें समाया
तेरे पीछे चला आया
तेरा ही मैं एक साया

तूने मुझको बनाया You have created me
मैं तो जग को ना भाया I didn’t fit in the world
तुने गले से लगाया Yet you embraced me
हक़ तू ही है ख़ुदाया Only you are the Just,
सच तू ही है ख़ुदाया Only you are the Truth…

जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था
जब कहीं पे कुछ नहीं भी नहीं था
वही था, वही था, वही था, वही था

Go ahead and listen https://youtu.be/T94PHkuydcw?si=flZ6HuLUMhLbZcPZ