Rubai'yat of Josh Malihabadi

RubaiRubai’’’’yatyat of Josh Malihabadi

A Drop and the Ocean (Second Edition)

Mohammad Yamin

Mohammad Yamin C/o Salina Chowdhury 103-37 177 Street Jamaica NY-11433 USA Phones: 718 219 2760 & 718 658 5508 Email: yamin [email protected]

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First Edition published by AuthorHouse 6/12/2007 Second Edition published by the author – 07/2009

ISBN: 978-1-60458-524-7

Printed in United States of America By Instant Publishers P.O Box: 340, 410 Highway 72 W Collierville TN 38027

3 The Author

orn in Ghazipur, India on June 21, 1938 Mohammad Yamin was Bbrought up and educated in Dhaka (erstwhile East Pakistan). He entered the Banking Profession and worked his way up to Senior Management Position in Muslim Commercial Bank, Dhaka. At the time of formation of Bangladesh he shifted to Karachi (Pakistan) where he worked as Second Vice President and Secretary Executive Board in United Bank Ltd. He left Pakistan for an overseas career in Banking and worked in Banks in London, Swaziland, Egypt and Nigeria, in Senior Management Positions. In 1992 when he said farewell to Banking, he was the Managing Director and Chief Executive of Commercial Trust Bank.

He decided to retire in Portugal and took to pursuing his hobby of writing. His first book of Poetry Ash-hab-e-Khayal (in Urdu Language) gained remarkable popularity in the Literary Circles in Pakistan. In addition to Rubaiyat of Josh Malihabadi his following other books that are in the process of publication:

1. Galaxy of Thoughts (Poems) 2 Aagahi ki Qandeelain (Urdu Ghazals) 3 Kwabon ki Dhanak (Urdu Ghazals) 4 Portuguese Poet Camoes (Research Paper) * 5 Golden Era of Portuguese Culture (Research Paper) 6 Selected Essays of Mohammad Yamin 7 Quran–the Word of Allah

His columns appear in English and Urdu Newspapers in Pakistan. His Ghazals are published in the Literary Magazines of Pakistan. ----

* Its Urdu version was published by the Academy of Letters in their Periodical No. 62 of 2003. 4 LIFE AND POETRY OF JOSH MALIHABADI

osh Malihabadi, whose full name was Shabbir Hasan Khan Jacquired fame for his radical views during the colonial era. He was a poet of excellence, eminence and distinction in the twentieth century and was the envy of many. He won the hearts of the people of the sub-continent and wherever else there are admirers of Urdu Poetry. Even his adversaries admire his mastery over words, his form, his imagery, his use of similes and metaphors, his style and his language. He has written in almost all the traditional genres of Urdu poetry. Poets of such excellence are born in centuries. He himself wrote:

Ash’aar ko zartar qaba deta hoon Afkaar ko Aahang bana deta hoon

Alfaaz ko bakhshta hoon shakl-e-asnaam Aawaaz ko aankon say dekha deta hoon

My verses are attired in the robes of gold Mysteries of rhythm my thoughts unfold

Words take the shape of my charming beloved It’s the grace of my voice, lo and behold!

He wrote under the pen name of Josh followed by the word Malihabadi, in true poetic tradition, to indicate his place of birth, which was Malihabad in U.P., India. He was born in the year 1899 (according to some 1896). He belonged to Afridi family, a family of Jagirdars. He naturally inherited some of the weaknesses common in Jagirdars, like his drinking habit, love for lavish living and reputation of amorous philanderer. His father’s and Grand father’s names were Nawab Bashir Ahmed Khan Bashir and Nawab Mohammad Ahmed Khan Ahmed who were poets in their own right having written books of poetry titled Kalam-e-Bashir and Makhzan- 5 e-Alam. His Grandmother, Begum Nawab Mohammad Ahmed Khan Ahmed was related to the family of the famous poet Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib and had keen interest in poetry. She played a great role in the education and upbringing of Josh.

He received his initial education in Arabic Language from Mirza Mohammad Hadi Ruswa, the famous author of the Novel Umrao Jan Ada. He learnt Urdu and Persian from Maulana Qudratullh Beg Malihabadi, who had written Masnavi of 5,000 Verses, and also from Maulvi Niaz Ali Khan Malihabadi and Maulana Tahir. For his education in English Language, he is indebted to Master Gomti Parshad Malihabadi. In the year 1914, he was admitted to St. Peters College, Agra from where he did his Senior Cambridge. In 1918 he went to Shanti Niketan where he studied for six months.

Darul Tarjuma Hyderabad Dakan employed him in 1925. He was Editor of the periodical Aaj Kal in Delhi from 1948 to 1955. In 1958 he was associated with Taraqqi-e-Urdu Board, Karachi and was their Literary Advisor, Advisor to compilation of Dictionary and Editor of periodical Urdu Nama. Earlier he was Editor of the monthly journal Kaleem (1935 –39), Chief Editor of monthly journals Naya Adab and Kaleem, in Lucknow in the years 1940 – 41.

The Government of India honoured him with their most prestigious Literary Award Padam Bhushan .

The following renowned poets of Persian and Urdu influenced Josh: Hafiz, Saadi, Firdausi, Urfi, Sarmad, Baba Afghani, Saeb, Bedil, Naziri, Omar Khyyam, Meer Anis, Nazir Akbarabadi, Asadullah Khan Ghalib, Mohammad Iqbal and Rabinder Nath Tagore. Apart from formal education, Josh spent most of his time in studying Literature, History, Philosophy and Poetry etc. In English literature, he studied Shakespeare, Goethe, Dante, Milton, Tolstoy, Wordsworth, Keats, Byron and Bernard Shaw. In Philosophy, he studied Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Carl Marx, Nietzsche etc. In Science, he studied Einstein, Darwin etc. In religions, he studied 6 Quran, Bible, Torah, Veda and Geeta. In Hindi poets, he studied Kali Das, Sur Das, Bhabuti, Tulsi Das, Kabir Das, Malik, Khan Khanan etc.

Josh believed that human beings are both good and bad, beautiful and ugly. They are offspring of the same father Adam and therefore they deserve love and sympathy equally. In one of his prose writings he says, “For a long time the heart of the father of mankind i.e., Adam is beating in my chest.”(Translation from Urdu). The following reflects his philosophic vision of love of humankind and universality of man, “I consider every part of this world as my country and my homeland and every good soul as my child. If there is rejoicing in someone’s house I feel that it is happening in my house. When there is a coffin coming out of someone’s house, I consider that it is coming out of my own house. If I must indulge in enmity or hatred I shall do that with my own self.” (Translation from Urdu).

Although Josh has written in variety of genres in Urdu Poetry, he is best known for his Poems and Ruba’iyat. Ruba’iyee is considered as a most difficult form of Urdu and Persian Poetry and there are not many poets who can boast of having written excellent Ruba’iyat. All Ruba’iyat are written in one meter and scale, in four lines. The first, second and fourth lines rhyme. Dr. Anwer Sadid describes the first line as introduction, second line as extension of the central theme, third line as flight towards climax and fourth line as dramatic conclusion. Dr. Farman Fatahpuri regards Ruba’iyee as a genre that is fathomless in meaning but limited in words. Josh is head and shoulders above many in writing Ruba’iyat.

Josh has skilfully created turbulent seas out of the still and tiny lakes of Ruba’iyat. Josh in his spirited and artistic expression, fearlessness, vision, natural romanticism, poetic expertise and sarcasm is nearest to Omar Khyyam. He is eyes and vision of skies, which transcend into freedom of thoughts from the triviality of antiquated superstition. Paying tributes to the accomplishment of Josh in the art 7 of writing Ruba’iyat Mujtaba Husain writes, “Josh with his mighty pen has bestowed every charm to the genre of Ruba’iyee.” (Translation from Urdu). The fact is that in the entire Urdu poetry one can find not many poets who have written better Ruba’iyat than Josh Malihabadi.

Josh Malihabadi, a poetic genius and a legend, died in Islamabad on February 22, 1982. His death has caused a vacuum that will be difficult to fill. He has written many books of poetry. The last one was his autobiography titled Yadon ki Barat that broke an all time sales record.

*****

1 String of beads, profound prayers, and devotee’s turban Throne, crown, drums, flags and fortification

Their collective powers arrayed on one side On the other the might of His Majesty the Pen.

*** 2 Men who recite their verses profound And in their hearts conceal a bleeding wound

Are insight and vision of the worlds beyond Those who translate their thoughts in sound

***

REFLECTIONS

3 My nerves were seized by a strong current In an immense measure my energy spent

The moment I placed an atom on my palm The weight of the entire solar system descent.

10 IN THE NAME OF POWER AND EXISTENCE

4 My cravings untapped visions bring And lips melody of horizons sing

For long, I'm sowing the seed of thoughts Wait until the new trees of knowledge spring.

*** 5 I'ave searched mosques and temples, but could not see Existence! How long to explore your obscurity

I looked through each nook and corner but couldn't find God Now it's His turn to look for me.

*** 6 A dot is the world - our domain It's a drop of dew on which we reign

When I looked through the granary of stars I found Our world is less than even a grain.

*** 7 Let the antiquated songs again be sung In the flame of tests common notions weren't flung

God is benign, merciful and benevolent In the society of the truthful, why open your tongue.

*** 8