Tribute to Mirza ghalib

ghalib... Mirza Asadullah Khan "Ghalib" is one of the best of the Urdu poets. He led a revolution in Urdu poetry with his words. According to the critic Aal Ahemd Sarvar "Ghalib gave brain to our poetry which was till then dominated by the people of heart."

Ghalib used to have takhallus (pen name) of 'Asad' but he listened to this sher

Asad us jafaa par butoN say wafaa ki

me-ray sher shabaash rahmat kHuda ki

He said whose sher is this should get lots of rahmat of God but if it is mine then lots of laanat on me, and he changed his takhallus to 'ghalib'.

the beginning... He was born in 1796 in Akbarabad (present Agra). His father Abdullah Beg Khan and Uncle Nasrullah Beg Khan were in the Army. Mirza Ghalib become orphaned when he was just 5 years old. He lived with his uncle for 4 years, when his uncle too died.

He started saying sher in Agra itself. He married the daughter of Nawab Ilahi Baksh 'Maaroof' and therefore moved to Delhi. In Delhi he devoted his full concentration to poetry. Soon he mastered the Persian language. So that no one should call him be-ustad ( without a teacher) he fabricated a story that he had an Iranian teacher Abdul-samad live in house for two years to teach him Farsi. Ghalib was always proud of his Farsi poetry but he is known more by his Urdu prose and poetry.

life... He always lived his life lacking money. After 1857 the support from the Royal durbar stopped. The pension from the British Govt. was stopped because he was suspected of supporitn the rebels. He even traveled to Calcutta to restart the pension but to no avail.

He went to the Nawab of Rampur, who promised him Rupees 200 if he lived in Rampur and Rs. 100 if he lived anywhere else. His pension was resumed 3 years after that, but all that money was used up for paying old debts. Ghalib died in 1869.

letters... Not only Urdu poetry but the prose is also indebted to Mirza Ghalib. His letters gave foundation to the easy and popular Urdu. Before Ghalib, letter writing in Urdu was highly ornamental. He made his letters "talking" by using words and sentences as if he is talking to the reader. According to him

"sau kos say ba-zabaan-e-qalam baateiN kiya karo aur hijr meiN visaal kay ma-zay liya karo"

[ from hundred of miles talk with the tongue of the pen and enjoy the joy of meeting even when you are separated]

His letters were very informal, some times he will just write the name of the person and start the letter. He himself was very humerous and also made his letter very interesting. He said

"maiN koshish karta hooN keH koi aisi baat likhooN jo pa-Rhay kHoosh ho jaaye"

[ I want to write the lines that whoever reads those should enjoy it]

When the third wife of one of his friends died, he wrote...

"Allah allah aik woH log haiN jo teen teen dafaH iss qaid say chhooT chu-kaiN haiN aur aik hum haiN keH aik ag-lay pachas baras say jo phaNsi ka phaNda ga-lay meiN paRha hai to naH phaNda hi TuT-ta hai naH dum hi nikalta hai"

[Allah Allah, there are some among us who have been freed from the prison three times and I have for the past 50 years this rope around my neck neither this rope breaks nor it takes my life]

Some scholars says that Ghalib would have the same place in Urdu litterature even only on the basis of his letters.

poetry... In Urdu ghazals, along with the love and beauty Ghalib added all the facets of life. Because of him the canvas of Urdu ghazal became very extended.

Since Ghalib was very occuppied with Persian , his earlier shers used difficult words and his flights of imagination was such that...

"yaa to aap sam-jhay yaa kHuda sam-jhay"

[ either you (Ghalib) understand or the God understand]

Ghalib was not a philospher but he questioned things around him.

jub keH tujh bin nahiN koi maujood

phir yeH hungaamaH ai kHuda kya hai

[ when there is no one besides you;

then oh God why is this pandemonium]

One also find naughtiness in his writings, he makes fun of every thing and evreybody including himself.

jiss meiN laakhoN baras ki hooreiN hoN

aisi jannat ka kya ka-ray koi

[ when the women are million years old