aah ko chaahie ek umr asar hone tak
kaun jitaa hai tere zulf ke sar hone tak

aashiqi sabr talab aur tamannaa betaab
dil kaa kyaa rang karun khun-e-jigar hone tak

ham ne maanaa ke tagakul na karoge lekin
khaak ho jaaege ham tum ko khabar hone tak

gam-e-hasti kaa 'asad' kisase ho kuz-marg-e-ilaaj
shamaa har rang me jalati hai sahar hone tak

Ah, a sigh demands a lifetime's grace,
To bloom in the soul's enduring space.
Who lives, to see your tresses' sway,
Their conquest of the heart's despair?

Love's a patient plea, desire's a fire,
The heart, a canvas stained with blood's pyre.
What hue to paint, before the crimson stain,
Of life's deepest wounds, and love's sweet pain?

Though you vow delay, a cautious art,
We'll turn to dust, before your heart,
Receives the news, the whispered plea,
Of a love that lives eternally.

From life's sorrow, 'Asad', where does solace reside?
The candle burns in every shade, its light to guide,
Until the dawn, and the final trace,
Of the soul's last breath, in time and space.