Singing Words of Wisdom

 

When I find myself in times of trouble, 

Mother Mary comes to me 

Speaking words of wisdom , let it be

And in my hour of darkness,

She is standing right in front of me

Speaking words of wisdom , let it be

Paul McCartney wrote these immortal lines in the sixties in praise for his mother whose name happened to be Mary. He sought answer in his mother’s gospel truth of ‘let it be’ when things were not going right for him and his band. You and I are no different from Paul and have had our share of times of trouble. 

These are times when you wake up in the middle of the night and watch the ceiling fan go round and round and then a streak of moonlight touches the blades giving it a look of Jedi’s Lightsaber in Star Wars; these are times when you are thinking about a million things as the Mumbai local passes swiftly by from one station to another and you miss getting off at the destination; these are times when some quintessential questions of fear, failure, fatigue, futility and frustration creep into your mind.

 Question of Wonder: What is the mystery of life? Why are we chasing dreams?

Question of Failure: Should I give up and end the misery or get up and fight?

Question of Shame: What will people say? How will I face them?

Question of Life: How should I live life? Be concerned about everything or take it as it comes?

Question of Supernatural Help: Believer or not, it doesn’t matter. Need help? Go to Him.

These are the times when a line or two of a song from the past makes a comeback….touches the right chords in your mind and heart….you sing it silently to yourself……and you get a feeling of being uplifted as the words resonate with your inner feelings and give you the answers you seek..…these are the words of wisdom that bring a smile back to the face.

Here’s my selection of such songs in ‘times of trouble’ and ‘hour of darkness’. I am unable to give credit for these inspirational songs to the lyricist alone, for no doubt words matter, but had the music director not set the right tone or the singer sung with the rightful emotion and then the directors of the movies picturized them.….all put together made magic happen on the screen through these songs.

The first song is from the movie Anand, lyrics by Yogesh, music by Salil Choudhury and sung by Manna Dey, and one that will surely be there in the list for almost all the readers. It tells me about the uncertainty of life which has its fair share of laughter and tears. All our lives we chase dreams and then all of a sudden everything draws to a close and you realize the futility of it all. Man proposes, God disposes…all the best laid plans simply go awry in a flash and life changes forever.

Zindagi, kaisi hai paheli haye

Kabhi toh hansaye, kabhi ye rulaaye

Kabhi dekho man nahin jaage

Peeche peeche sapnon ke bhaage

Ik din sapnon ka raahi

Chala jaye sapnon se aagey kahan

The second song is one which tells me to never give up and keep following you dreams. There will be obstacles in your way, failures will pull you back but as long as you keep trying, nothing can stop you. Songs like these inspire you to wake up early and make you wear your running shoes and hit the road again to run faster and longer. This song, called the Test of Life, is from the movie Imtihan, sung by Kishore Kumar, Music by Laxmikant Pyarelal and lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri

Ruk jaana nahin, tu kabhi haar ke

Kaaton pe chalke, Milenge saaye bahaar ke

Saathi na karvan hai, yeh tera imtihaanhai

Yoon hi chala chal, Dil ke sahare

Karti hai manzil, Tujhko ishare

Dekh kahin koi rok nahin le, Tujhko pukaar ke

O rahi, O rahi

While we may put up a brave front by saying, “I care a damn about what others think” but deep inside we do worry how others will perceive our actions, interpret our words and we keep constantly seek the approval of people.  How often such thoughts prevent us from following our hearts and a million dreams must have been crushed beneath the stamping feet of a world suspicious and hateful of your success. No song can be better than the one sung by Kishore in the movie Amar Prem with lyrics by Anand Bakshi and music of Pancham da.

Kuchh toh log kahengey,

Longon ka kaam hai kehna

Chodo bekaar ki  baton mein,

Kahin beet na jaaye raina.

There is one line in the song which to me is the most powerful of all…telling me that even the most honest and pious of all souls was put to shame and had had to pass the test by fire to prove her innocence. Would it not feel good if you could show your middle finger to the nay sayers; and those who made fun of you.

 Tu kawn hai, tera naam hai kya,

Sita bhi yahan badnaam huyi

This fourth song is a perpetual common favourite of my better half as well. We have both used the lines many a times as life’s perfect philosophy on WhatsApp status. This is what I would call the cool, cool song and the best way to accept life in all its glory and failures. Accepting life and not constantly fighting to change it is possibly the way to live. The picturization is also one of the best…a fauji Dev Anand smoking a cigarette and singing the immortal lines penned by none other than Sahir Ludhiyanvi, with the music of Jaidev and the soft lilting voice of Rafi Saab takes this song to a cult status.

Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya

Har fikr ko dhuyein mein udata chala gaya

While every word, every verse of the song is worth repeating over and over again but I shall share two more lines that make this song so special. We all have to face tragedies and failures but the way to treat such situations is to accept both the good and the bad similarly and move on. So don’t worry, be happy.

Gham aur khushi mein fark na mehsoos ho jahan

Main dilko us makaam pe laata chala gaya

Har fikr ko dhuyein mein udata chala gaya

Finally, in all this anxiety and tough times, don’t you wish you got control of yourself and don’t end up doing something foolish for which you regret later. You often seek the blessings of the Good Lord to calm your nerves and help to stay on the right path. And one such song is from the movie Guddi, lyrics penned by Gulzar, music by Vasant Desai and sung beautifully by Vani Jairam as if the Supreme Being cannot but help listening to your prayers.

Humko man ki shakti dena, man vijay karein

Doosron ki jai se pehle, khud ko jai kareein

The key lines which brings out the essence of the song which says that you need to win over yourselves before seeking victory over others.

Bhed bhaav apne dil se saaf kar sakein

Doston se bhool ho toh maaf kar sakein

Jhooth se bache rahein, sach ka dum bharein

Mushkilein padein toh hum par itna karm kar

Saath dein dharm ka, chalein to dharm par

Khud pe hausla pe rahe, badi se na darein

Last Word: Paul isn’t alone in seeking his mother in hour of darkness. We all crave for our mothers, their love, their care and everything good, long after they are gone. Mothers will always be there for you. They are the only ones who never judge you despite disciplining you all their lives. Here’s my Mother Mary song.…

Tu jahan jahaan chalega, Mera saya saath hoga

Kabhi mujhko yaad karke, Jo bahengey tere aansu,

Toh vahin pe rok lengey, Unhe aake mere aansu,

Tu agar udaas hog toh, Udaas hoongi mai  bhi,

Nazar aaun ya na aaaun, Tere paas hoongi mai bhi.

I am sure you too have your uplifting music playlist where you seek your words of wisdom in times of trouble. Would love to know how many songs of my list, also find a place in yours.

SS