Maulana Haali On Sir Syed - A Laudatory Poem
Afzal A. Khan
Recently, I had posted two Marsiyas (Elegies), both composed by
Chowdhury Khushi Mohammed Naazir. One was in respect of Sir Syed
Ahmed Khan and the other related to Maulana Haali.
In order to sort of complete the triple connection, I would like
to present here a laudatory poem by Maulana Haali on Sir Syed.
Quite deliberately, I have not labelled it as a "Qaseeda". As a
rule, the Urdu Qaseeda is in praise of some royal or otherwise
affluent patron and is characterised by exaggeration and hyper-
bole. This genre, epitomised by poets like Sauda and Zauq, has a
special charm of its own, no doubt. But this poem by Haali is a
simple, straight-from-the-heart attempt to commemorate the
pioneering efforts of Sir Syed in the cause of modern education and,
generally, for the upliftment of the community. Apparently, this
was written during the lifetime of Sir Syed himself.
Pin'haaN naheeN hai yaaro, sab par khula huwa hai
Jo haal aaj apna aur apni qaum ka hai
Hai ik lakeer baaqi, jis par faqeer haiN hum
KHud saaNp warna yaaN se kab ka nikal gaya hai
Is par bhi ai 'azeezo, hai jaa-e-faKHr tum ko
DeenoN men deen-e-baiza, haq ne tumheN diya hai
Qibla hai woh tumhaara, jo ghar hai sab se pehla
Haadi hai woh tumhaara, jo KHatm-e-an(m)bia hai
Di hai woh muslih-e-kul haq ne Kitaab tum ko
Jis ne sharee'atoN ko sheer-o-shakar kiya hai
BaKHshi tumheN hukoomat, hikmat tumheN 'ata ki
DauraaN sada moaafiq tum se yuN'hi raha hai
Is daur-e-aaKHiri men jab yooN bigaR chale tum
Ik Haash'mi tumhaara musleh khaRa kiya hai
Sar~sabz chaahta hai jo qaum ko jahaaN men
FatwoN se qaum ke go, kaafir Theh'r chuka hai
Waqt apna, kaam apna, jaan apni, maal apna
YaaroN pe jis ne sab kuchh qurbaan kar diya hai
Waar is pe qaum ke haiN, woh qaum ki sipar hai
Qaum is se bad'gumaaN hai, woh qaum par fida hai
Dirham se aur qalam se, dam se, qadam se apne
Jo kuchh kiya hai us ne, woh kis se ho saka hai
Hamdard-e-qaum aisa, hum ne suna na dekha
Yeh dard us ko jad ki meeraas men mila hai
T'aleem ki tumhaari bun'yaad us ne Daali
MulkoN men jis ka charcha har simt ho raha hai
B'ad~az quroon-e-oola, kis ne kiya bataao
Syed ne kaam aa kar jo qaum men kiya hai
*******
Afzal
Naseer
One or two observations and questions Afzal Sahib.
> Hai ik lakeer baaqi, jis par faqeer haiN hum
> KHud saaNp warna yaaN se kab ka nikal gaya hai
The "normal" idiom one hears and reads is "lakiir kaa faqiir". Could
the first misra' be........jis ke faqiir haiN ham?
Is it Khatm-i-anbiyaa or Khaatam-i-anbiyaa as in Khaatamu_nnabiyyiin?
and finally, is it "Haashmii" or "Haashamii"?
Naseer
Afzal A. Khan
Naseer Saheb,
It is true that the normal idiom is "lakeer ke faqeer".
But I have adhered to what the poet had written.
Also, the idea behind the idiom might have been to
indicate a sort of continuous movement, i.e to carry on
doing as per the precedent. "Usi lakeer (beaten path)
par chalte rehna". Maybe, therefore, the poet is
lamenting that the qaum (as a whole) is treading the
same age-old ways. " Puraani lakeer par chale ja rahe haiN".
I think the word "KHatm" fits the behr. Try replacing it
with the other words you have in mind and then see whether
the sher remains a smooth read. Hazrat Mohammed (PBUH) was
no doubt the "KHaatam", but the word actually used isn't
wrong either. The prophet represents The End (or "KHatm") of
the long silsila of God's Messengers.
The word "Haash'mii", when added after somebody's name in order
to indicate the genealogical connection to the Arab tribe, is
normally written (in Roman characters) in the same style,
usually as "Hashmi" or "Haashmi". No diacritical mark
is included by adding an 'i' or 'a' after "sh". That is what
I have seen in Roman renderings of this word. I have added
an apostrophe, after "sh", simply to indicate a very slight
pause in pronunciation.
Afzal
Naseer
Thank you for detailed reply, Afzal Sahib. I meant to write
"Haash*i*mii.
Naseer