Hindi-Urdu: karam

[shamsuddin]

In this song
मेरी साँसों में तू है समाया
मेरा जीवन तो है तेरा साया
तेरी पूजा करूं मैं तो हर दम
ये है तेरे करम, कभी ख़ुशी कभी ग़म
Is the word करम كرم used in the Arabic sense or the Sanskrit sense? The Sanskrit sense is "work whose fruit is enjoyed in the next life".

 

[Alexu]

Judging by this translation, here is the Arabic "karam" - favour, grace.

 

[Ali Smith]

Then why is करम كرم being treated as though it were plural? Witness the use of तेरे تيرے immediately before it.

 

[Jashn]

Maybe it's referring to the happiness and sadness in the next clause as the favours bestowed upon us?

 

[littlepond]

It is in the Arabic sense. The syntax, though, will follow Hindi convention, hence "tere karam."

 

[Alfaaz]

Then why is करम كرم being treated as though it were plural? Witness the use of तेरे تيرے immediately before it.

Could you please elaborate? Why do you think كرم being plural couldn't carry the Arabic-derived meanings? Relevant Urdu literary example:

آپ کے جتنے مجھ پہ کرم ہیں میں جانوں یا دل جانے ہے
کتنی خوشی اور کتنے غم ہیں میں جانوں یا دل جانے ہے

حسرت شادانی​

 

[Ali Smith]

If it's plural, why isn't the verb हैं ہیں? Why is it है ہے instead?

मेरी साँसों में तू है समाया
मेरा जीवन तो है तेरा साया
तेरी पूजा करूं मैं तो हर दम
ये है तेरे करम, कभी ख़ुशी कभी ग़म

 

[Alfaaz]

If it's plural, why isn't the verb हैं ہیں? Why is it है ہے instead?

That's interesting. I didn't notice this before, but did notice it now after listening carefully again. Perhaps it is just a mistake by the lyricist and/or singer that went unnoticed...?!

• Another *potential mistake: تیرے ساتھ ہوں گی میری دعائیں، آئے کبھی نہ تجھ پہ کوئی بلائیں - tere saath hoN gii merii du3aaeN, aa'e kabhii nah tujh peh ko'ii balaa'eN, which should have been آئیں - aa'eN instead of aa'e. (*Or maybe the nuun-Ghunnah just isn't clear in the recording.)

Shouldn't it have been haiN regardless of which word (کرم - karam or कर्म - karma) was intended due to tere indicating plural? Otherwise, yeh hai teraa karam or karma?

 

[Alexu]

If it's plural, why isn't the verb हैं ہیں? Why is it है ہے instead?

मेरी साँसों में तू है समाया
मेरा जीवन तो है तेरा साया
तेरी पूजा करूं मैं तो हर दम
ये है तेरे करम, कभी ख़ुशी कभी ग़म

Most likely, they missed the dot... That's what the Google gave out on the main search page - everything is in place.