Firaq-12
Raj Kumar Pathria
Firaq-11 ke nashr hone ke baad mujhe to yeh khadsha lag rahaa tha ke aap
log 'sang-baari' par utar aayen ge, magar hua us ke ain bar-aks......jis
ke liye aap sab ka bahut bahut shukriya.
ab chalte hain us ghazal ke maqte' ki taraf:
Firaq too ne jagaaya hai sote fitnon ko
rahen gi yaad yeh jaado-bayaaniyaan teri
is she'r mein Firaq Sahib "ta'alli" se kaam le rahe hain, jaisa ke Urdu
shaa'iri ke besh-tar asaatiza ka maa'mool rahaa hai. So, let me first
explain this concept --- of which some of you might not be aware.
[The word ta'alli derives from the Arabic word 'uloo, which means
eminence, highness, height, ... as in 'uloo-e-fikr, meaning height of
imagination, etc. Thus, ta'alli means the act of achieving eminence
(usually by self-proclamation), self-exaltation, etc. In Urdu poetry, as
in Persian, it has been an established practice that poets of renown
indulge themselves in ta'alli whenever they arrive at the maqta of an
especially good ghazal of theirs; of course, this is supposed to done in
style, and very often such maqtas become almost proverbial --- as
Ghalib's "yeh masaa'il-e-tasawwuf ........". In today's maqta, Firaq is
doing the same and, as you can readily see, he too is doing this in
style.]
---------------
The crucial word in today's she'r is 'fitna', which means calamity,
evil, mischief, .....,discord, conflict,,revolt,.....,temptation,
seduction,....in fact, anything that "upsets the normal pattern of
life". Let me illutrate this variety of meanings of the word 'fitna' by
furnishing for you some (beautiful) examples.
sab se barhaa fitna to hai 'qayaamat' ya 'mehshar' ka, jise Mirza Dagh
Dehlvi ne barhe aaraam se handle kar liya hai. farmaate hain:
dekh lein ge fitna-e-mehshar ko bhi
ab to chaadar taan kar sote hain hum
ya phir fitne uth'te hain mukhtalif mazaahib ke takraao par, jo Jigar
Sahib ko yeh kehne par majboor kar dete hain:
zaahid! kuchh aur ho na ho maikhaane mein, magar
kya kam hai yeh ke fitna-e-dair-o-haram naheen!
aur Mirza Ghalib apne makhsoos andaaz mein yeh keh kar apni mehbooba par
chot kar jaate hain:
kabhi jo yaad bhi aaya hoon main to kehte hain
ke aaj bazm mein kuchh fitna-o-fasaad naheen
aur Maulaana Haali aek zaraa si sargoshi ke andaaz mein kitni pate ki
baat keh jaate hain:
bahut chain se din guzarte hain Haali
koi fitna barpaa hua chaahata hai!!!
aap ne kayee baar yeh phrase suni hogi: lull before the storm. Can
anyone express the content of that phrase as aptly as Haali has done in
this couplet? Whenever I feel like contemplating on this she'r in my
solitude, I simply shudder at the thought of it!
khair, chaliye ab apni mehbooba ki taraf; woh bhi keh rahi hogi ke 'aaj
to bas aap falsafi ban gaye, aur mujhe bhool hi gaye'! qasam khudaa ki,
mujhe to taras aa jaata hai us par jab woh aisi baaten karti hai.
magar, huzoor, haqeeqat to yeh hai ke hamaari mehbooba ki har 'sifat'
bhi aek fitna hai, jaisa ke Saif-ud-Din Saif Sahib keh gaye hain:
tere fitne kaheen aaraam to lene dete
chain kuchh mujh ko teh-e-daam to lene dete
magar 'sifaat' ki baat to chhorhiye, Hazrat Bekhud Dehlvi ka farmaan hai
ke yeh mehbooba to ba-zaat-e-khud aek fitna hai. farmaate hain:
fitna ban kar aaj woh uththe hain khwaab-e-naaz se
muskaraa kar li hai angrhaaee AJAB andaaz se
aaj kuchh baaten hui hain aashiq-e-jaanbaaz se
sharm se, neechi nazar se, naaz se, andaaz se
mujhe umeed hai ke ab tak aap is lafz ka matlab samajh gaye hon ge, to
chaliye phir aaj ke she'r ki taraf.
----------------
is maqte mein Firaq Sahib keh rahe hain ke "Firaq, teri
jaadoo-bayaaniyon ne kuchh aise fitne jagaaye hain jo barhi mudaaton se
soye parhe the. agarche aisa karne se too ne logon ke zehnon mein aek
khalbal si machaa di hai, phir bhi log tere is achhoote andaaz-e-bayaan
ko yaad kiya karen ge". ab yeh to aek mussalima haqeeqat hai ke, chaahe
koi Firaq Sahib ke andaaz-e-bayaan ko pasand kare ya na kare, magar jo
ahamiyat unhon ne Urdu shaa'iri mein haasil ki hai, us se koi bhi shakhs
munkir naheen ho sakta... aur un ki jaado-bayaaniyon ko har koi yaad
karta hai!
peshtar is ke ke main aaj ki tashreeh ko khatm karoon, aek do zaroori
baaten bataane waali hain... aur woh baaten fitna-angezi hi se mut'alliq
hain. abhi kal hi main ne Firaq-11 ke jawaaz mein jo khat Janaab Hari
Khanna Sahib ko likhkha tha us mein main ne Firaq Sahib ke do aur she'r
quote kiye the. woh she'r bhi aaj ke mauzoo' ko achhchhi tarah se waaze'
karte hain!
is ke ilaawa, aap sabhi jaante hain jo hangaama un ke is she'r pe barpaa
hua tha:
zaraa visaal ke baad aa'ina to dekh, ai dost!
tire jamaal ki dosheezagi nikhar aayee
mut'addid naaqideen, Janab Asar Lakhnavi ki qayaadat mein, Firaq Sahib
ke peechhe lath le ke parh gaye; bahuton ne un ka saath bhi diya ---
khaas kar Allama Niaz Fatehpuri ne. aakhir ko bach nikle, kiyoon-ke
'uloo-e-fikr mein aur zabaan-daani mein apne beshtar ham-asaron se
kaheen oonche the.
Now, a digression: main ne pehli baar Firaq Sahib ko 1953 mein purani
Dilli ke Town Hall mein mun'aqid aek mushaa'ire mein sunaa tha, aur
pehla she'r jo unhon ne us mushaa'ire mein parha tha woh aaj ki behs se
hi mut'alliq hai. microphone ke saamne aate hi nihaayat zor-daar aawaaz
mein cheekh uththe:
"bhari duniya ke soone-pan" se tang aa kar yeh kehta hoon
mizaaj-e-zindagaani aur barham aur barham ho!!!
hai na fitna-angezi ki pukaar?
usi mehfil mein unhon ne yeh she'r parha jo aaj tak meri zindagi mein
aek mash'al ki tarah jal rahaa hai:
maut ka bhi 'ilaaj ho shaa'id
zindagi ka koi 'ilaaj naheen!
is she'r mein, hamen fitna-angezi ka koi unsar nazar aaye ya na aaye,
magar phir bhi yeh she'r hamaari takh'eel ko jhanjhorh to jaata hi hai!
is lihaaz se, mere khayaal mein, is she'r ka aaj ki behs se kuchh na
kuchh ta'alluq zaroor hai.
to, huzoor, yeh rahee aaj ke she'r ki tashreeh aur, saath hi saath, is
session ki takmeel. main ne apni taraf se poori koshish ki hai ke is
ghazal ke contents, baghair kisi mubaaligha-aamezi ke ya baghair kisi
haashiya-aaraaee ke, aap tak pahuncha sakoon. ab kahaan tak is koshish
mein kaamyaab hua hoon, aap hi jaanen! main to bas yihi kahoon ga ke
ab to chalte hain mai-kade se Meer
phir milen ge agar khuda laaya
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
Umang Bali
>
>
> to, huzoor, yeh rahee aaj ke she'r ki tashreeh aur, saath hi saath, is
> session ki takmeel. main ne apni taraf se poori koshish ki hai ke is
> ghazal ke contents, baghair kisi mubaaligha-aamezi ke ya baghair kisi
> haashiya-aaraaee ke, aap tak pahuncha sakoon. ab kahaan tak is koshish
> mein kaamyaab hua hoon, aap hi jaanen! main to bas yihi kahoon ga ke
>
> ab to chalte hain mai-kade se Meer
> phir milen ge agar khuda laaya
>
> Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
Raj Sahib,
aadab arz huzoor, aap ka bahut bahut shukriya jo aap ne itni behtareen
series ka lutf uTHane ka mauqa diya...Tashreehat be-had pasand aa.in.
Umeed hai
ki aap is silsilae ko jari rakhainge...Chaliye aap ki masroofiyat, aur
guzhista qiston ki thkaavat, ko madd-e-nazar rakhte huae, kuch dinoN ki
muahlat aap zaroor lein. Magar, aapne jo ye wazahatoN ka daur shuru kiya
hai, use barqaraar rakhain...
aap ke dil mein sher-o-shayri ki janib jitna prem hai vo aap ki har
wazahat mein numayaN hai. bas yunhi baanTte rahiye is prem ko ham sab ke
saath.
Aap ki nayi series ka muntazir,
Umang
Raj Kumar Pathria
> Dear Raj Sahib,
>
> In the following sher of Jigar's:
>
> > zaahid! kuchh aur ho na ho maikhaane mein, magar
> > kya kam hai yeh ke fitna-e-dair-o-haram naheen!
>
> instead of 'fitna', the word used is 'shikwa' as in:
>
> kya kam yeh hai ke shikwa-e-dair-o-haram nahin
>
> At least that's how it is in Begum Akhtar's song version! It
> does give a slightly different meaning to the sher.
Janaab Jas Sahib:
main choonke ziyaada-tar ash'aar apne haafize ki binaa par quote karta
hoon, is liye aap ke khat ne mujhe chaunka sa diya kiyoonke main ne to
Jigar Sahib ka yeh she'r lafz 'fitna' ke aek khaas ma'ni (yaani
conflict) ko waaze' karne ke liye pesh kiya tha. aap ka khat parh kar
main ne fauran apne sources check kiye to, huzoor, saheeh lafz 'fitna'
hi hai --- 'shikwa' naheen! Please see Jigar's book Aatish-e-Gul, p.
111, or Kuliyaat-e-Jigar (second section), p. 32.
Jas Sahib, aksar aisa hota hai ke jab koi ghazal "gaane" ke liye tayyar
ki jaati hai to 'public consumption' ka khayaal rakhte huye us mein
kuchh tabdeeliyaan ki jaati hain. lagta hai ke kisi ne yeh socha ke
choonke lafz 'fitna' ke kayee matlab hain --- khaas kar sharaarat,
qayaamat, etc. --- is liye is lafz ko dair aur haram ke saath na hi
jorha jaaye to behtar hoga, kiyoon-ke aisa karne se kuchh logon ki
mazhabi sensitivity ko thokar lag sakti hai. to unhon ne 'fitna' ki
bajaaye 'shikwa' istemaal kar liya.
ab aap ka yeh kehna bilkul bajaa hai ke aisa karne se she'r ka matlab
bahut badal gayaa hai. balke main to kahoon ga ke original she'r ka
khoon ho gayaa hai! jis conflict ki taraf aek humanist shaair, Jigar
Sahib, ka ishaara tha, woh to kafoor hi ho gayaa.
main isi mazmoon par aap ko Mohtarma Yaad Dehlvi ka aek she'r sunaata
hoon. baat bilkul wuhi hai jis ka rona Jigar Sahib ro rahe hain, magar
alfaaz ka intikhaab mukhtalif hai. farmaati hain:
kya bura hai ke ho taa'meer wahaan mai-khaana?
jis jagah maa'rka-e-dair-o-haram hota hai!
Now, maa'rka means an open (and often violent) conflict, and there is no
ambiguity here about what the learned poetess means. In Jigar Sahib's
case, the word 'fitna' also meant a confict but, unfortunately, other
connotations of the word had the potential of creating confusion. But
the fact remains that, by substituting the word 'shikwa', the original
intent of the poet is totally ruined.
> ..... I enjoy your postings on alup and look forward to reading them
> (especially the digressions!!). Although, after Firaq-11, I have
> some difficulty believing the age you claim to be :-)
pehle to bahut bahut shukriya ke aap ko in posts mein dilchaspi rahi
hai.
doosre, Jas Ji, main to kahoon ga ke Waheguru ki kirpa (yaani kripa) hai
ke, Firaq-11 ke baad, aap ko sirf meri umr par shak hua hai --- kuchh
log to mere hosh-o-hawaas par shak karne lage hain! :-)))
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
Raj Kumar Pathria
>
> Raj Kumar Sahib:
> aadab.
> aap Firaq-12 per aa gaye aur hum abhi tak Firaq-11 pe khade hain!
>
> Firaq ka eik sher is rang mein yaad aa gaya:
>
> KHALWAT TAMAAM AALAM-E-ASRAAR BAN GAYI
> JAB USNE CHUST-O-TANG QABAAEN UTARIAAN
wah, wah, Amit Sahib, khoob she'r nikaala hai aap ne! ab main samajh
gayaa ke aap abhi tak Firaq-11 par hi kiyoon ATKE huye hain!!! :-))
> Aur aap ne bahut badhia samjhaya hai Urdu Ghazal aur 'ghata' ka rishta.
Thanks for the compliment. The reason I went into those details was to
emphasize the fact that, while 'ghataa' had figured prominantly in Urdu
poetry in a variety of ways, Firaq's mode of personification was
uniquely different.
> ghata ka baare mein Kalidas ne ye kaha hai:
>
> Clouds as dark as lotuses of Night
> Clouds like slices of mist, sparse and light;
> CLOUDS SWARTHY LIKE A PREGNANT WOMAN'S BREAST:
> Prim sky is in full vest!
I had thought that Kalidas used clouds only as 'messengers of love', but
your quote adds another dimension to it; in fact, it is quite
conceivable that Firaq's own inspiration came from sources such as this
one! Of course, it is well known that his brand of imagery drew a lot
from classicaal Hindi and Sanskrit literature.
Thanks, once again, for bringing these fine pieces of composition to my
attention.
ab jab kabhi Firaq-11 se fursat mile, to zaraa Firaq-12 bhi parh leejiye
ga!
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
HARI AND MANJU KHANNA
With Firaq 12, we complete this journey on which we started in September
and what a beautiful safar this has been !!
What started with a "'ghair mamooli " sher and ghazal by Firaq, matched
with an equally "ghair mamooli" vazaahat by you, has made this a very
enjoyable experience. -( "..ALUP ki mehfil mein peechhay ki taraf baiThnay
walon ko bhi lutf aa gaya !!) - for me and other ALUPers.
I thank you for giving us your time and sharing your knowledge so
generously.
Please enjoy your break, as you know we are anxiously waiting for the next
session(s).
Regards,
Hari
Raj Kumar Pathria
> Janab Raj Kumar Sahab.
> Aap nay tashreeh ki fitna aarai main kami nahein rakhi.
>
> Uss husn-e-fitna khaiz ki ta'reef hai yehi
> Soya hooa tha hasher ki veeranian liye
>
> Maqta ki tashreeh kertey aap nay bhi hasher barpa kerkay phir poocha hay keh
> kahan tak kamyab raha hoon. Iss per bhi aik shehr yad aaya. Adam Sahab
> fermatey hain.
>
> Mehsher main ik sawal kiya tha kareem nay
> Mujh say wahan bhi aap ki taa'reef ho gaye (Adam)
bahut khoob, Almas Sahib. nihaayat umda she'r nikaala hai aap ne....
"mujh se wahaan bhi aap ki taareef ho gayee"; kya be-basi hai,
mar'habaa!!!
> Umeed hay yeh hasher samaniyan kam nahein hongi, kiuonkeh abb to Tishna kay
> kehnay kay mutabiq kuch khaof nahei raha.
>
> Hasher ki dhoom hay sab kehtay hain, uoon hay, uoon hay
> Fitna hay teri thokar ka magar, kuch bhi nahein (Tishna)
>
> To Raj sahab yeh takmeel nahein balkeh Aghaz kehiye.
bhai, takmeel to us session ki thi; ab, agar aap chaahen, to ise aaghaaz
keh sakte hain baaqi silsilon ka. After all, today is the first day of
the rest of our lives. isi liye to kehte hain ke "yaar zinda, sohbat
baaqi"!
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
Raj Kumar Pathria
> Raj Sahib,
>
> aadab arz huzoor, aap ka bahut bahut shukriya jo aap ne itni behtareen
> series ka lutf uTHane ka mauqa diya...Tashreehat be-had pasand aa.in.
> Umeed hai
> ki aap is silsilae ko jari rakhainge...Chaliye aap ki masroofiyat, aur
> guzhasta qiston ki thkaavat, ko madd-e-nazar rakhte huae, kuch dinoN ki
> muahlat aap zaroor lein. Magar, aapne jo ye wazahatoN ka daur shuru kiya
> hai, use barqaraar rakhain...
bahut bahut shukriya aap ka, Umang Sahib, jo aap ne meri is haqeer
kaavish ko pasand farmaaya.... aur is ke saath-saath mujhe kuchh dinon
ke liye 'aaraam farmaane' ki ijaazat bhi de di hai. itni thakaavat to
naheen hai, magar yeh to hota hi hai ke jab aap poori tan-dahi se kisee
silsile mein ulajh jaayen to phir baaqi kaam peechhe parh jaate hain. ab
kuchh din un kaamon ko bhugtaane mein lagaaoon ga, phir aap ki khaatir
agle silsile ki taraf tawajjoh doon ga.
> aap ke dil mein sher-o-shayri ki janib jitna prem hai vo aap ki har
> wazahat mein numaayaN hai. bas yunhi baanTte rahiye is prem ko ham sab ke
> saath.
>
> Aap ki nayi series ka muntazir,
Thanks for your observation.... and let us see what more I can offer in
this regard.
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar
Raj Kumar Pathria
>
> Aadaab arz hai, Professor Sahib,
> and what a beautiful safar this has been !!
> What started with a "'ghair mamooli " sher and ghazal by Firaq, matched
> with an equally "ghair mamooli" vazaahat by you, has made this a very
> enjoyable experience.
Thanks, Hari Sahib, for the nice words you have used in describing this
six-week experience, which I personally enjoyed as much as anyone else.
Yes, indeed, this was a beautiful journey we covered together, with so
many other ALUPers hand-in-hand .... and it was FUN.
> Please enjoy your break, as you know we are anxiously waiting for the next
> session(s).
I know your intentions very well and, although it has been a taxing task
(at least, the way I undertook it), I do hope there will be more
opportunities like the Seemab-session and the Firaq-session. By the way,
while both these sessions were well-received, you see the qualitative
difference between the two! There is no denying the fact that the
overall flavor of the session depends so much on the choice of the
ghazal; that is what concerns me most regarding future plans.
In any case, so far so good. But, before anything else, I must enjoy a
little break.
Khair-andesh, Raj Kumar