Why Ghalib Is Considered As The Most Popular Urdu Poet?

“Ballimaran ke mahalle ki wo pechida dalilon ki si galiyan,
Saamne taal ke nukkad pe, bateron ke qaside,
Gudgudati hui paan ki peekon mein woh daad, woh wah-wah,
Chand darwazon pe latke hue bosida-se kuchh taat ke parde,
Ek Bakri ke mamiyaane ki awaaz,
Aur dundhlayi hui shaam ke benoor andhere,
Aise deewaron se munh jod ke chalte hai yahan,
Chudivalan ke katre ki ‘badi bi’ jaise,
Apni bujhti hui aankhon se darwaze tatole,

Isi benoor andheri-si ‘gali Qasim’ se,
Ek tarteeb charaghon ki shuru hoti hai,
Ek Quran-e-sukhan ka safha khulta hai,
‘Asad Allah Khan Ghalib’ ka pata milta hai

Some people become so larger than life than their very names become the definition of their areas of expertise. For example, when one hears the word “Scientist”, first name that crosses mind is of Albert Einstein. Similarly, when one thinks about poetry, the thought is immediately followed by the name “Shakespeare”. Another such larger than life figure whose persona became the very definition of the word “Shayri” was Mirza Ghalib.

Considered to be the most popular and influential poet of the Urdu language, Ghalib was the last great poet of the Mughal Era. He was born as Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan in Kala Mahal, Agra into a family descended from Aibak Turks. He spent 13 years of his Initial life in Agra and then was married to Umrao Jaan at an early age of thirteen after which he was brought to Delhi from Agra as “Ghar Jamai” by his father in law.

“Shayri” was his passion ever since he was a teenager. The word “Ghalib” means winner and there is an interesting story behind why he decided to write under this pen name. He earlier wrote using his actual name “Asad” but when he was still a teenager, he learnt that there was already a poet who was using “Asad” as his pen name.

“Asad is jafa par, buton se wafa ki,
Mere sher shabash, rehmat khuda ki ….”

Ghalib read this sher somewhere and absolutely hated it. It got him to worry that if he continued to write as Asad, all these bad couplets will be accredited in his name and someone else will take credit for his couplets. Hence he decided to change his pen-name and started writing as “Ghalib”.

Perhaps the most talked about aspect of life apart from “Shayri” is his marriage to Umrao Jaan. Some people believe that he was absolutely in love with his wife and adored her all his life. The following lines are believed to have been written by him for Umrao,

“Unke dekhe se jo aa jaati hai munh par raunak,
Vo samajhte hai ke beemar ka haal achha hai”

“Dekhana qismat ki aap apane pe rashk aa jaaye hai
main use dekhun bhalaa kab mujhse dekha jaaye hai

hoke aashiq vo parii_rukh aur naazuk ban gaya
rang khilta jaaye hai jitna ki udta jaaye hai”

There are people however who believe that he considered his marriage no more than an un-necessary confinement. This opinion is majorly derived from several of his letters in one of which, he describes marriage as the second imprisonment after the initial confinement that was life itself. He fathered seven children by the age of thirty but unfortunately, none of his children survived beyond infancy.

“Dekhiye paate hain khushab buton se kya faiz,
Ek Brahmin ne kaha hai ke ye saal achha hai”

Ghalib’s entire life remained a constant financial and emotional struggle. His father-in-law’s earnings were dependent on a pension that he was receiving from the royal family. Ghalib too depended on this pension in his early twenties but when the pension was stopped by the English, he ran into severe financial troubles. He was urged by his close friend Bansidhar to return to Agra several times but still decided to stay in Delhi, even though the financial difficulties.

Hai ab is mamoorah mein qaht-e-ghame ulfat, Asad
Hum ne ye mana ke Delhi mein rahein par khayenge kya ?

He settled in Delhi but could never afford to buy a house of his own. He tried very hard to find a place in the court of Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar but his rival poet of those times, Zauq, ensured that he did not. Zauq held an important place in the court as “Ustad” of Emperor Zafar and made it impossible for Ghalib to secure a place of his own.

Throughout his life Ghalib was always under debt because of his gambling habits. He was once imprisoned for gambling and subsequently relished the affair with pride. He was proud of his reputation as a rake and even acquired a reputation as a “ladies’ man”. Legend has it that Once, when someone praised the poetry of the pious Sheikh Sahbai in his presence, Ghalib immediately retorted saying, “How can Sahbai be a poet? He has never tasted wine, nor has he ever gambled; he has not been beaten with slippers by lovers, nor has he ever seen the inside of jail.” He admitted it openly in his own works,

“Hoga Koi Aisa Bhi Jo ‘Ghalib’ Ko Na Jaane,
Shayar To Wo Acha Hai Pe Bad-Naam Bahut Hai…”

Maybe it is because of this reputation that he carried for most of his life and his reckless attitude that his works never received the publicity, honor and attention during his lifetime. It was after his death that he rose to fame, so much that the works of other famous poets that he himself had once quoted were considered inferior to Ghalib’s.

Ghalib’s work is often considered as hard to comprehend. He was a master of Urdu and Farsi and his selection of words was hard to understand not only by common folks but other poets as well. The depth of his couplets was such that people often wondered that what he was actually trying to say. There is one incident from his earlier days when Prince Shah Zafar called for a Mushaira. This Mushaira was attended by several well known and noted poets including Zauq himself. When it was Ghalib’s turn to recite, he read out,

Naqsh faryadi hai kiski shokhi-e-tehrir ka,
kaghazi hai pairahan, her paikar-e-tasvir ka

kavkav-e sakht jaani haaye tanhai, na puchh,
subah karna sham ka, lana hai ju-e shir ka

jazb’a(h)-e be ikhtiar-e shauq dekha chahiye
sin’a(h)-e shamshir se bahar hai dam shamshir ka

Aagahee daam-e shunidan jis qadar chaahey bichhaaye
Mudad aa anka hai apney aalam-e takreer ka

Baski hoon Ghalib aseeri mein bhi aatish zer-e pa
Muu-e aatish-deedah hai halkah meri zanjeer ka.

After he was done, everyone was looking at each others faces because no one could understand what he just said. This disturbed his so much that he excused himself from the mushaira and walked out.

He lived his life in absolute poverty but still would never take favors from his friends or relatives. His closest friend Bansidhar would often offer him money but Ghalib never accepted it.  He was also a man of excellent memory. It is said that he would sit or walk around on the roof all night coming up with couplets and would write them all down in the morning. His way of remembering was that for each couplet he came up with, he would tie a knot in his hand towel and in the morning, he would untie the knots one by one while writing down the couplets.

He had great difficulty getting his earlier works published. Because of the difficulty people faced in understanding the meaning of his couplets, even all major publishers refused to publish his Ghazals.

“Zindagi Apni Jab Is Shakl Se Guzri Ghalib
Ham Bhi Kya Yaad Karenge Ke Khuda Rakhte The”

“Runj se khugar hua insaan to mit jaata hai runj
Mushkilein mujh par padi itni ke aasaan ho gayi”

Because he used to drink, his wife stopped eating with him in the same plate. He didn’t believe much in god which his wife always questioned because she was highly religious. He believed that his relations with Allah were more than just praying five times a day, free of any such bounds. He refused to bow down in front of god and beg. He considered himself a son of Allah and believed that children do not have to beg their parents for anything. Even in his final days, when forced by his wife, he would walk to the gates of the mosque and return without going in.

Qarz ki peetay thay maay lekin samajhtay thay k haaN
Rang laeygi hamari faka masti aik din

Malum na tha itna kuchh hai ghar mein bechne ke liye “Ghalib”,
Zameen se lekar zameer tak, sab bik raha hai …..

He had an acute sense of humor. Someone once asked him if “Qalam” or the word “Pen” whether is male of female? Should it be called “Mera Qalam” or “Meri Qalam” to which he replied that if a man writes its “mera qalam” and if a woman writes than its “meri qalam”. Similarly, someone asked him if Joota is correct or Jooti to which he replied, “Agar zor se pade toh joota aur agar halki pade toh jooti”. He was very fond of Mangoes. On this habit of his, someone remarked that “Aam toh gadhe bhi nahi khaate” to which he replied saying, “Isi liye toh gadhe hain kyunki aam nahi khaate”His rivalry with Zauq is very well known. Once Zauq was passing throught when he remarked,

“Bana hai Shah ka Musahib,
phire hai itrata”

After his visit to Calcutta, his works started to get published and he had won a large audience in the city of Delhi. He was then by far the most popular shayar in the city and his financial situation also improved. In those days, people working in Emperor’s palace and in governing jobs used to get paid only twice in a year, after every six months due to which they were under a constant financial stress. Ghalib wrote a letter to Emperor Shah Zafar which was immediately accepted and acted upon.

Aey shehenshah-e-aasmaan auranga-e-jahaan.
Gaar-e-aaftaab aasaar,

Baar-e-naukar bhi ho gaya sad-shukr,
Nisbatein ho gayin mushakhkhas chaar,

meri tankhwaah jo muqarrar hai,
uskey milney ka hai ajab hanjaar

Na kahoon aap se toh kis se kahoon,,
Mudda-a-e-zaroori-ul-izhaar

Kyun na ho darkar mujhe koshish,
Jism rakhta hoon hai agarche vaar,

Rasm murda ki hai chhe-maahi ek,
Khalq ka hai isi chalan pe madar,

Kuchh khareeda nahin hai ab ke saal,
Kuchh banaaya nahin hai ab ke baar

Raat ko aag aur din ko dhoop,
bhaad mein jaayen aise lail-o-nahaar

bas ke leta hoon har maheene qarz,
aur rehti hai sood ki takraar

Meri tankhwah mein tihaai kahan,
Ho gaya hai shaamil saahukar

Aap ka banda aur phirun nanga,
Aap ka naukar aur khaaoon udhaar !

Meri tankhwaah kijiye maah-ba-maah,
Ta na ho mujh ko zindagi dushwaar

Tum salaamat raho hazaar baras,
Har baras ke ho’n din pachaas hazaar

However, this fame lasted for only three years and he was back to his days of poverty after the mutiny of 1857. In his last days, he was completely cut off from the world and used to remain within himself

“Rahiye ab aisi jagah chal kar, jahan koi na ho,
Ham-sukhan koi na ho, ham-zubaan koi na ho.

Padiye agar beemar toh koi na ho teemar-daar,
Aur agar mar jaaiye toh Noha Khoaan koi na ho ….

bedar-o-divaar saa ik ghar banaayaa chaahiye
koi hamasaaya na ho aur paasabaan koi na ho”

“Raqaab mein paon hai, baag par haath hai,
Bada lamba safar darpesh hai,
Saad-e-raah maujood nahi,
Khaali haath jata hoon,
Hairan hoon,
Koi soorat zeest ki nahi,
Phir main kyun jeeta hoon.
Hawas kho betha,
Haafze ko ro betha,
Agar uthta hoon toh itni der mein,
Jitni der mein qad-e-adam deewar uthe,
Aage na-tama tha,
Ab neend-jaan hoon,
Zindagi ab barso ki nahi,
Din aur maheeno ki lagti hai.
Ab thak gaya zindagi se,
In dino mein itne janaze uthaye hain,
ke lagta hai,
jab main marunga,
mujhe uthane wala koi na hoga.”

I am an avid fan of Ghalib and have read most of his works. Urdu shayri is a world that is full of shayars. From “Momin” to “Faiz”, some of these shayars were quite famous and equally talented but none could match the persona of Ghalib. What makes Ghalib stand above all others is definitely the truth and the pain that rang in his ghazals and couplets. Unlike other noted poets, he never tried to revolve his writings around great philosophy or ideas of an ideal world but wrote what he saw, what he felt. His mastery however is in his selection of words and the way he presented them.

“HaiN aur bhI duniya mein sukhanwar bahut achchhe,
kehte hain ke ‘GHalib’ ka hai andaaz-e-bayaan aur…”

And these words are true. His lifelong struggle over sorrow and financial matters reflects in almost all his works.

” Ghalib-e-khasta ke bagair kaun se kaam band hain
Roiye zaar-zaar kya, kijiye haaye-haaye kyun”

“Qaid-e-hayat, band-e-gham, asal mein dono ek hain,
Maut se pehle aadmi gham se nijaat paaye kyun….”

Ghalib was not only a poet; he was also a prolific prose writer. His letters are a reflection of the political and social climate of the time. Ironically enough, it is said that he did some other petty works and even turned towards gambling to earn his livelihood but never could rely on his literary mastery for the purpose. He never quite cared about what people would think of his writings or if they would even understand it. Some of his writings were of satire, ridiculing the ways of life, people beliefs and even religious belief which made him notorious back then but famous now. It was the truth that rang in his words that people found hard to acknowledge in his times but that never stopped him.

“Pakde jate hai farishton ke likhe per nahaq
Aadmi koi hamara dam-e-tahreer bhi tha”

In my opinion, what makes Ghalib’s work so famous is that he wrote freely, free of any boundaries. Earlier poets like Mir, several others of his times like Zauq, Momin and many after him wrote in order to please their readers. They always kept a restriction around themselves to not write words that may offend others or tried to write something that would reflect their intellectual nature. Ghalib on the other hand just said what crossed his mind. He never tried or cared whether people understood or liked him but always made a point to say what he felt was true. Following couplets are a small reflection of his understanding of the world,

“Sau pusht se, hai pesha-e-aaba sipahgari
kuchh shayari, zari’ye-e-izzat nahiN mujhe “

baaziichaa-e-atfaal hai duniyaa mere aage
hotaa hai shab-o-roz tamaashaa mere aage

[baaziichaa-e-atfaal = children’s playgound]

The following lines of his literary means, “Out of the unknown I get these strange ideas that scratching sound of the pen is the sound of an angel”

“Aate hain gaib se ye mazaamin khyaal mein,
Ghalib sarir-e-khaamaa nawa-e-sarosh hai”

He died in Delhi on 15 February 1869. The house where he lived in Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, Chandni Chowk, in Old Delhi known as the Ghalib ki Haweli has now been turned into ‘Ghalib Memorial’ and houses a permanent Ghalib exhibition.

“ye   masaail-e-tasawwuf,  ye  tera bayaaN  ‘GHalib’ !
tujhe ham walee samajhate, jo na baada_KHwaar hota

hue mar ke ham jo ruswa, hue kyoN na GHarq-e-dariya
na  kabhee janaaza  uThata, na  kaheeN  mazaar hota”