Pashto Proverbs
پشتو متلونه

S. S. Thorburn

From "Bannu: Our Afghan Frontier"

Topic: Fate
تقدير

With the exception of the first, all under this head teach a doctrine familiar to us as one of the canons of belief of all Musalmans, namely, that whatever befalls a man was his destiny, with which there is no striving. Though all natives are fatalists, still I think the limits to which their fatalism is supposed to lead are often mis-understood. It is only the spiritless and disappointed who resign themselves to their "Nasib" and ascribe all their failures in life to it; but it is not so with others, who hold, with most of ourselves, that, though everything that occurs was fore-ordained, that is, that God in his omniscience and prescience knew what would happen, still man is in a great measure a free agent, and "himself can change or fix his fate". The first proverb, which is now a household word to many, asserts this pretty plainly.

• Destiny is a saddled ass, he goes wherever you lead him
  نصيب يو کنه کړې خر دې؛ چې چېرته ئې بيائې هلته به ځي
  This dictum is a contrast to those following it. He must have been a bold man who first asserted it.
• Though you go to Kabul, your appointed lot will follow you there.
  که ته لاړ شې تر کابله برخه به ځي در پسې خپله
• Man's lot is (fixed) from the creation, it is not (attained) by force of competition
  برخې ازلي دي؛ نه په زور او نه په سيالې دي
• Had your pen been in my hand, I would have marked you "fortunate"
  که ستا قلم ځما په لاس وې، ما به ستا ليک په نيکبختي وهلې ؤو
  That is, I would have done so, had I at your birth had the filling in of your destiny in the Book of Fate
• Without destiny, food is difficult
  بې نصيبه خواړه ګران دي
• The inevitable laughs at man's schemes
  تقدير په تدبير پورې خاندي
  The same as our "Man proposes, God disposes"
• The goat was fleeing from the wolf, and spent the night in the butcher's house
  ؤزه له ليوه تښتېده او د قصاب کره ئې شپه شوه
  That is, he went "out of the frying pan into the fire" in trying to escape his fate
• I was escaping from Ram, and fell on hard work
  له رام رام نه تښتېدم او په کام ؤاوښتم
  The story goes, that a Muslim king ordered a Hindu to repeat "Ram Ram" daily when attending his person, but the Hindu, thinking this is tyranny, absconded, and was captured and sold as a slave. The meaning is the same as the last proverb.
• Were the whole world to turn physician, the cure rests entirely with fate.
  که ټول جهان طبيب شي، چارې واړه په نصيب شي
• There is no fleeing from one's lot, there is no sharing it with another
  له خپلې برخې تيښت نه شته، او له پردې برخې ويش نه شته
• If the night is to be spent at home, it won't be in the grave, and if in the grave, it won't be at home
  شپه چې په کور وي، په قبر به نه شي؛ او چې په قبر وي، په کور به نه شي
• Let not the horseman say, "I shall not become a footman" nor the footman, "I shall not become a horseman."
  سپور دې داسې نه وائي چې پلې به نه شم؛ او پلې دې داسې نه وائي چې سپور به نه شم
  That is, let no man predict his own betterment or debasement, for there is no saying what fate has in store for him.
• What God does will take place, nevertheless tie your camel's knee tight
  چې خدائې کوي، هغه به وشي؛ خو د اوښ ګونډه ټينګه وتړه
  So that the camel may not wander or be stolen. Though God disposes all things, man must use his best endeavours to effect what he wants. The proverb is adapted from the Persian, and is a very familiar one amongst all. We say, "God helps them who help themselves."
• If retching come on you by destiny, close your teeth on it (i.e., accept it)
  که په نصيب کښۍ درغلې، غاښ پرې ټينګ کړه
  Meaning, be content whatever happens to you.