This research focuses on Paul Smith's approach to translating selected poems by Rahman Baba from their original Pashto into English. The central inquiry is how faithfully the resulting translations capture the essence of the original text. Paul Smith's translation effort encompasses all 343 of Rahman Baba's poems, and the selected poetry from Rahman Baba's Diwan is chosen randomly for this analysis. The research adopts a qualitative approach, involving a thorough examination of the text. The study employs both direct and indirect translation as paradigms. The findings of this research suggest that, in the process of translating Rahman Baba's poetry into English, translators primarily relied on direct translation and borrowing. Many translations are literal translations, often resulting in an incomplete or inaccurate representation of the original text. This is because certain culturally specific metaphors may be unfamiliar or incomprehensible to native speakers of the target language. Paul Smith's translation largely preserves the essence that makes the original text engaging. However, it tends to fall short of capturing the original poet's intent by placing excessive emphasis on exact translation. To truly honor a poem, the translation should prioritize accuracy.

KEYWORDS:

Direct translation, Indirect translation, Paul Smith, Translation study, Rahman Baba