Afghan proverbs

From Wikiquote

"Glassman script" is the primary English alphabet for transliterating Dari (one of the national languages of Afghanistan). These proverbs are currently all in Dari. Other Afghanistan languages are needed.

A - B - C - D - E - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q -R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

[edit] A

• آب رفته به جوی بر نمی گردد
  • Transliteration: "Ab e rafta ba joy bar namegardad."
  • English Translation: What is done cannot be undone.

• آزموده را آزمودن خطاست
  • Transliteration: "Azmoda ra azmodan khat ast."
  • English Translation: It is a mistake to try the tried one.

• ارزان بی علت نیست و قیمت بی همت
  • Transliteration: "Arzan be ellat nest, qimat be hemmat."
  • English Translation: Cheap things don't come without problems; expensive things don't come without effort.

• از بد بدتر شد
  • Transliteration: "Az bad badtar shud!"
  • English Translation: It got worse than worse!

• از بد بدتر اش توبه
  • Transliteration: "Az bad badtaresh toba."
  • English Translation: Fear the worst.

• از آدم بیکار خدا بیزار
  • Transliteration: "Az adam bekar khoda bezar."
  • English Translation: Even God is fed up of workless(lazy} people.

[edit] B

• با چل چل سگ دریا مردار نمیشود
  • Transliteration: "Ba chal-chale saggh darya mordar namaisha."
  • English Translation: The river won't get dirty just by the leap of a dog.

• باری کج به منزل نمی رسد
  • Transliteration: "Bar-e kajj ba-manzel na-merasad."
  • English Translation: A tilted load won’t reach its destination.

• باصلح گفتن دنیا آرام نمی شود
  • Transliteration: "Ba solha-goftan dunya aram namishawad."
  • English Translation: The world will not find rest by just saying "Peace."

• باحلوا گفتن دهان شیرین نمی شود
  • Transliteration: "Ba halwa goftan dahan shirin namishawad."
  • English Translation: The mouth can not taste sweet just by speaking sweetly.

• با ماه نیشینی ماه شوی، با دیگ نیشنی سیاه شوی
  • Transliteration: "Ba mah nesheen mah shawe -- ba deg nesheni siah shawe."
  • English Translation: If you sit with us, you will become like us. If you sit beside a cooking pot, you will become black.
  • English Equivalent: A man is known by the company he keeps.

• بدبختها ها سرخود یاد ميگيرند، خوش بختها سر دیگران میبینند
  • Transliteration: "Bad bakhta sare khod yaad megeeran, khosh bakhta sare deegaran."
  • English Translation: Unfortunates learn from their own mistakes, and the lucky ones learn from others' mistakes.

• بعد از هر تاریکی روشنایی است
  • Transliteration: "Ba'd az har tariki, roshanai ast."
  • English Translation: After every darkness is light.

[edit] D

• دیوارها موش دارد موشها گوش
  • Transliteration: "Dewar ha mush darad, mush ha gosh."
  • English Translation: Walls have mice, mice [have] ears.

• دوست آنست که دست آدم را در پریشان حالی ودرماندگی اش بگیرد
  • Transliteration: "Dost an ast ke dest-e Adam ra dar pereshan hali o dar mandagish bigirad."
  • English Translation: A real friend takes the hand of his friend in overwhelming worry and fire.

• دوتربوز دریک دست گرفته نمیشود
  • Transliteration: "Du tarbuz da yak dest grefta na-mesha."
  • English Translation: Two watermelons can’t be grabbed in one hand.

• • he who tries to walk on water will drown.

[edit] E

[edit] F

[edit] G

• گل پشت و روی ندارد
  • Transliteration: "Gul pusht o rui na-dara."
  • English Translation: The flower has no front or back.

[edit] H

• هرتاریکی از خود روشنی دارد
  • Transliteration: "Har tariky az khood khow rooshnay darad."
  • English Equivalent: Every cloud has a silver lining.

• هرچیز به اندازه
  • Transliteration: "Har chiz ba andaza."
  • English Translation: Moderation is everything.

• هرسخن جایی و هرنقطه مکانی دارد
  • Transliteration: Har sokhan jayee va har noqta makani darad."
  • English Translation: Every word has a place and every dot a coordination.

• هر جای که سنگ است, به پای بز لنگ است
  • Transliteration: "Har jaye ke sang as, ba pai e boz e lang as."
  • English Translation: Every rock strikes the feet of disabled goat.

[edit] I

[edit] J

• جنگل که در گرفت، تر و خشک میسوزد
  • Transliteration: "Jangal ke dar greft, khusk o tar mesoza."
  • English Translation: If a forest catches fire, both the dry and the wet will burn.

• جوینده یابنده است
  • Transliteration: "Joyenda yabenda st."
  • English Translation: The seeker is a finder.

[edit] K

• کوه هر چقدر که بلند باشد باز هم سر خود راه دارد
  • Transliteration: "Ko ar qadr ke beland basha, baz am sar-e khud ra dara."
  • English Translation: However tall the mountain is, there’s a road to the top of it.

• کوه به کوه نمی رسد آدم به آدم میرسد
  • Transliteration: "Ko ba ko na-merasa, Adam ba Adam merasa."
  • English Translation: A mountain doesn't reach out to mountain, (but) a man is reaching out to a man.

• خواستن توانستن است
  • Transliteration: "Khastan tawanistan ast."
  • English Translation: Where there is a will, there is a way.

• کرم خوده ده بین مار ها دیده میگه ما مارها کجا میریم
  • Transliteration: "Kirm khoda da bain mar ha deeda mega ma mar ha kuja mereem."
  • English Translation: Worm has seen itself among snakes and says where do we snakes go

[edit] L

[edit] M

• مثل بلبل شیرین گپ میزنی
  • Transliteration: "Mesl-e bulbul shirin gap mezani."
  • English Translation: You talk sweet like the bulbul bird.

[edit] N

• نان وپیاز، پیشانی باز
  • Transliteration: "Nan o pyaz? peshani waz!"
  • English Translation: Bread and onion but an open forehead!

• نظافت نصف ایمان
  • Transliteration: "Nizafat nisf iman ast."
  • English Translation: Cleanness is half of believe.

• نزن به دروازه کس به انگشت که به دروازه ات میزنند به مشت
  • Transliteration: "Nazan ba darwazayi kas ba angusht ki ba darwazahat mezanan ba mosht."
  • English Translation: Don't hit someone's door by finger because your door will be punched.

[edit] O

[edit] P

• پنج انگشت برادر است برابر نیست
  • Transliteration: "Panj angusht bradar as, barabar nes."
  • English Translation: Five fingers are brothers, not equals.

[edit] Q

• قطره قطره جمع شود دریاشود
  • Transliteration: "Qatra qatra jam shawad daria shawad."
  • English Equivalent: Many a little, makes a mickle.

[edit] R

• راستی مایه ای سعادت است
  • Transliteration: "Rasti maya sadad ast."
  • English Translation: Honesty is the key to success.

• رحم ازبک، قهر افغان
  • Transliteration: "Rahm e Uzbek o qahre afghan."
  • English Translation: Mercy of an Uzbek; torture of an Afghan.

• روباه را وقتی شکار گوه میگیرد
  • Transliteration: "Robara wakhte shikar go migrra."
  • English Translation: Fox feels shiting just before hunting.

[edit] S

• صبر تلخ است ولی بهار شیرین دارد
  • Transliteration: "Sabr talkh hast, wali bahari sheerin daarad."
  • English Translation: Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.

• سال نیکو از بهارش پیداست
  • Transliteration: "Sal-e neko az baharesh paeda ast."
  • English Translation: A good year is determined by its spring.

• صد زدن زرگر یک زدن آهنگر
  • Transliteration: "Sad zadan zargar yak zadan ahangar."
  • English Translation: Goldsmith hits 100 and blacksmith one.

• صدای دول از دول خوش است
  • Transliteration: "Sadayi dool az dool khosh ast."
  • English Translation: "Drum is happy by a drum's sound"

[edit] T

• تا شمال نشود شاخه تکان نمی خورد
  • Transliteration: "Ta shamal na-shawad, shakha shor na-mekhura."
  • English Translation: As long as there is no wind, the tree won’t blow.

• تاوقتی که ریش دنیا به تشویش تاوقتی که پکول همه گرنگ و گول
  • Transliteration: "Ta wakht-e rish, dunya ba tashwish. ta wakht-e pakul, ama ganz o gul."
  • English Translation: As long as the beard exists, the world clenches its fists. As long as the pakul hat exists, the world stutters in fits.
  • Notice: This is not really a proverb in Afghan literature or history, it exists during civil war which had happened in the last few years, mainly when Mujahidin groups got the power to rule the country.

[edit] U

• عقل مند را اشار ه کا فی است
  • Transliteration: "Aqelmand ra eshara kafee ast."
  • English Translation: A sign is enough for the wise man (in order to understand something).

[edit] V

[edit] W

[edit] Y

• یک روز دیدی دوست، روزی دیگر دیدی برادر
  • Transliteration: "Yak roz didi dost, roze dega didi bradar."
  • English Translation: The first day you see a friend; the next day, a brother.