Mirza Ghalib: Still Nonpareil After 225 Years
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
27 December
2022
Despite Knowing Excellent Persian, Ghalib And
Iqbal Remained Next To Iranian Greats In Terms Of Syntax And Structure Of
Persian Language And Grammar
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December 27
is Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib's 225th birthday. He was born on December 27,
1797 and passed away on February 15, 1869.
Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib
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Ghalib's
oeuvre like that of the Bard of Avon has been 'squeezed to the last drop' (to
borrow T S Eliot's phrase for William Shakespeare's works) yet, many aspects of
Ghalib's poetry and persona still remain to be explored.
Professor
Edwin Arnold wrote about Hinduism, ' Veil after veil will lift but there'll be
veil after veil behind. ' The same eulogy can be heaped upon Ghalib's
multifaceted and multi-layered poetry.
Intezaar
Hussain wrote, ' Ek Hi Baat Ko Hazaar Log Ek Hi Tareeqe Se Kahte Hain Par
Khaas Log Usi Ko Mukhtalif Andaaz Mein Kahte Hain ' (one thing is expressed
by a number of people without much change, but special people express the same
thing in a different and striking manner). Very true. Ghalib himself wrote
about his profound poetry and manner of presentation in his oft-quoted couplet:
Hain Aur Bhi Duniya Mein Sukhanvar Bahut Acchhe/Kahte Hain Ke Ghalib Ka Hai
Andaaz-E-Bayaan Aur (though there're other very good poets around/ Ghalib's
manner of expression is altogether different).
If you look
at his entire works, Ghalib didn't write too much. His wasn't a factory
churning out Sher after Sher. But whatever he wrote was enough to
immortalise him. All his 235 Urdu Ghazals are gems. Every couplet is a Koh-e-Noor.
His Tarkeeb (conceit, far-fetched idea, Udbhavna in Sanskrit) can
startle a reader. Ponder over this couplet, " Aate Hain Ghaib Se
Mazameen Khyal Mein/ Ghalib Sareer-E-Khaama Nawa-E-Sarosh Hai" (these
thoughts descend from the divine realm/ Ghalib, the scratching sound of a quill
is the euphony of angels). One is surely transported to a different plane when
one mulls over a pen, making the sounds of angelic music.
Not only
poetry, Ghalib wrote purple prose as well. His collection of letters in Dastamboo
(Persian for a bouquet) can be adduced as his mastery over Nasr (prose).
It's time
to analyse his poetry from psychological perspective as well though English
scholar of Ghalib, Ralph Russell and Rehan Ashraf of Islamabad University tried
to delve into the psychological depths of Ghalib's poetry. More exploration is
required. His Persian poetry should also be redefined and studied all over
again.
Somewhere,
Ghalib and also Iqbal cannot be bracketed with the legends like Rumi, Sanai,
Khaqani, Hafiz, Nizami etc. Despite knowing excellent Persian, Ghalib and Iqbal
remained next to Iranian greats in terms of syntax and structure of Persian
language and grammar. The reason could be their sub-continental linguistic
roots, juxtaposed with Central Asian or Iranian Persian. I wrote on this aspect
of stylistics for Persian broadsheets and journals and would love to translate
into English for the readers.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several
languages including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/mirza-ghalib-nonpareil/d/128724