Indo-Persian Style Painting – Bird on a Branch

This striking small Indo-Persian painting on paper depicts a vividly rendered bird – perhaps a starling or a myna –  perched on a branch, surrounded by a rectangular border. The work is likely a folio from a Persian or Mughal manuscript – we are not certain of the date, perhaps late 19th or early 20th century. Below the bird are Persian couplets in neat nastaʿlīq script contained within a bordered panel.

Transcription and Translation via ChatGPT 

Persian (Transliterated):

شنیده‌ام ز جهان درآید اینجا
که سال‌ها ز جان مرد و زن ایجا
نخستین ز بطالب نویسند متن
یکی جوابی از آن و خود نویسند طلای

اشارت جان درآید با دهان
خورشید سایه خضری در میان
ز زمین نکته چون رضایی
نه خضر و نه برتن ثنا در گواهی

English Translation (Poetic Rendering):

I’ve heard that in this world appears a trace,
For years men and women sought this place.
First, the seeker’s name they do record,
Then answer written—like gold—is stored.

A signal from the soul escapes the tongue,
Like Khidr’s shadow when the sun has hung.
From earth a secret, like Rida’s grace,
Not Khidr nor the self can testify its place.

• Khidr (خضر) is a mystical Islamic figure associated with knowledge and immortality.

• Rida (رضا) likely refers to divine contentment or satisfaction, possibly invoking Imam Reza.

• The poem is mystical and allegorical, blending Sufi themes of spiritual seeking, hidden knowledge, and divine revelation.