Hello! If you have been to Nepal, then you must have had heard this song at least once…if you haven’t, then it’s still okay! The song in the question is ’Phul ko aakha ma’ which means ’In the eyes of a flower’. The song is sang by Ani Choying Dolma. To listen to the song, click here.
The song is alternatively known as ’Phool ko aankha ma’.
Sorry, Nepali text is not provided. I would like to thank her official website (choying.com) for the lyrics.
The lines have been translated literally line by line whereas recurring lines are cancelled.
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ENGLISH LYRICS
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansaara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara ( 2 times )
Jhulkincha hai chaya, bastu ansaara
Kaada ko aakha ma, Kaadai sansara
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
.
Chitta suddha hos mero, boli Buddha hos
Mero paitala le, kirai namaaros (2 times )
Ramro aakha ma khulcha, ramrai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
.
Taha taha jun dekhu, kalo raatai ma
Jiwan sangit sunu ma, sukha patai ma
Sanglo man ma khulcha hai, sanglai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
.
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara (2times)
Jhulkincha hai chaya, bastu ansaara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
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MEANING
Phul ko aakha ma, phulai sansaara
Kaada ko aakha ma, kaadai sansara
= In the eyes of a flower, the world appears as a flower
In the eyes of a thorn, the world appears as a thorn
.
Jhulkincha hai chaya, bastu ansaara
= The shadow is cast according to the (size of the) object
.
Chitta suddha hos mero, boli Buddha hos
Mero paitala le, kirai namaaros
= Let my heart be pure, (let my) speech be (like) Buddha’s
Let my feet kill not a single insect
.
Ramro aakha ma khulcha, ramrai sansara
= A good world opens in the eyes of the good
.
Taha taha jun dekhu, kalo raatai ma
Jiwan sangit sunu ma, sukha patai ma
= (Let me) see the sparkling moon on a black night
Let me listen to the song of Life, even in Dried leaves
.
Sanglo man ma khulcha hai, sanglai sansara
= A limpid world opens in a limpid heart
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VOCABULARY
Phul (फूल) = Flower
Kaada (काँडा) = Thorn
Chaya (छायाँ) = Shadow
Bastu (वस्तु) = Object; Thing
Ansaara (अन्सार) = Variation of anusar, meaning ‘according to’
Chitta (चित्त) = Mind; ‘feeling’ heart
Suddha (सुद्ध) = Pure; Unadulterated
Boli (बोली) = Speech
Paitala (पैताला) = Sole; Feet
Jun (जून) = Moon
Jiwan (जीवन) = Life
Sanglo (सङ्लो) = Limpid; Transparent (Usually a quality of water)
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ANALYSIS
This song is very beautiful in lyrics, richly composed of and highly meaningful. I have just sketched a rough meaning out of it, because translations alone cannot do justice. So, the first ’phulko akha ma…’ bascially means that the world which we perceive to be is how we perceive ourselves. That means, a ‘flower’ will see the world as being a ‘flower’ whereas a thorn will see it as thorny. Then, the lines ‘jhulkincha hai chaya…’ means that our mark on this world is made by the amount of contribution we do, hence the ‘Shadow’ is cast according to the size of the object. By doing good work, we cast a ‘good shadow’.
Then the lines ’chitta suddha hos….’ means that no evil should remain inside her/us. Our mind should be free of any contamination and our speech should be like Buddha’s (pure and loving). We should not harm the innocent or basically anyone, even unknowingly. The lines ’taha taha jun…’ means that, even in the pitch darkness of night, we can still admire the bright shine of the Moon. That means, we can still find happiness and hope even when outcomes look dark. ‘Jiwan sangit sunu…’ basically means we can still hear the sound of life, even in dead, inanimate things like dried leaves. Similarly, hope can be found in hopeless situations.