Arabic · noun · Love & Longing

Ishwa

इश्वा
said ISH-wa
also written: eshwa, ishva, eshve
Meaning

Amorous gesture, coquettish airs; the beloved's flirtatious play.

Literally: coquetry, amorous gesture, blandishment

Usage & notes

Ishwa is flirtatious enticement — the beckoning play of glance and gesture by which the beloved lures the lover on. It runs close to ghamza and ada, all of them the small artful weapons of the beautiful. The ghazal loves to list them together (naaz, ada, ghamza, ishwa) as the repertoire of a beauty that knows exactly what it is doing to the heart that watches.