English Peotry is something I can never relate to......for that matter even the ones in Hindi and Marathi....dont really strike a chord.....I dont know if Urdu shayari can be classified as poetry.....someone please enlighten me....but whatever it may be classified....shayari is something that I can relate too.....though Urdu is tough to understand most of the times....I have enough people I can go to and get the meaning sorted out.....what makes shayari appealing to me is that soo much is packed in those few lines....somehow I never get that feeling from those long poems or then maybe I have not come across anything yet that appeals to this mind that seeks depth of meaning with minimal words....

A few of my favorite shers are as follows....I think the Zaahid ko Guzarish is by Ghalib....not sure abt the Zaahid ka Jawab one.....

Zaahid ko guzarish

Zaahid sharab peene de muje masjid mein baith ke
Ya voh jagah dikha jaha Khuda na ho...

Allow me to sit in the mosque and drink (appealing to someone who is Abstemious i.e. Zaahid)
Or show me a place where there is no God

Zaahid kaa jawaab

Zaahil sharaab naa pii masjid mein baith ke,
Botal ek hii hai kahin khudaa naa maang le

Dont sit and drink in the mosque,
There is just one bottle, God might just ask you for it

I am guessing Zaahil is the opposite of Zaahid.....

The other one.....

Mulla gar dam hai teri dua-on mein to masjid hilake dikha
aur gar nahin to do ghoont pee aur masjid ko hilta dekh

I consider dua to be something akin to paryer so my translation is...judging by the theme I think this one would be by Ghalib too......

If there is strength in your prayer then let me see you shake this mosque,
if not then have a couple of drinks with me and watch the mosque shake....

More often than not...when I am couple of beers down...or have enjoyed some good scotch....I can't help think of the above shers and smile to myself....I guess I am not that poetically challenged...:)