Source
There are two prime sources of
information about Meer’s life; the first one is his autobiography ‘Zikr-e-Meer’
and the second is ‘Aab-e-Hayat’ a book written by Muhammad Husain Azad who is
considered to be the founder of modern Urdu literature. ‘AAb-e-Hayat’ talks
about interesting events and instances from Meer’s life, a few of them might be
apocryphal but nonetheless it makes a good read. The source for this Blog post
is ‘Divan-e-Meer’, a book compiled by Ali Sardar Jafri and first published in
1960 by Hindustani book trust - Mumbai. This book in turn takes information
from the aforementioned books.
Biography of Meer
Meer was born in 1722 as Muhammad
Taqi in Agra (then Akbarabad). In his autobiography, ‘Zikr-e-Meer’, he has
mentioned that his grandfather was an inspector in Agra and his father
‘Muhhamad Ali’ was a Sufi fakir. He has
not given any details of his mother in his book. He has said a lot about his
step brother ‘Muhammad Hasan’ and one can infer that Meer’s family was engulfed
in strife and discord.
When Muhammad Ali died Meer was
at tender age of 9 or 10. His father left a debt of rupee three hundred and few
hundred books which Muhammad Hasan usurped. A disciple of Muhammad Ali gave
five hundred rupee which was came handy to settle the debt and perform his
cremation ceremony. Meer inherited his father’s poverty and his mysticism.
Meer’s spent his childhood in
search of employment and this brought him to Delhi. He was just 16 years old
when he left Agra and came to Delhi.
This was the time of rule of Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah. Meer managed
to get close to one of the courtiers ‘Amir-Ul-Umaraa Sams-ud-Daula’ and this
proximity got him a patronage of rupee 1 per day. With this salary he came back
to Agra.
While in Agra, a
beauty enchanted the young shayar. Her name and provenance is still shrouded
into mystery but what is certain is that love was from both the sides. And as
rightly said that love and enmity cannot be hidden (‘Ishq aur Mushq chupaaye nahin chupte’) , people started noticing the love affair. Meer
was a Sayyed (a direct descended of Prophet) and being a member of such a high
clan he was not to fall in love to lesser clan lady. His love affair brought
dishonor to him. Meer has expressed his ignominy as:
फिरते हो मीर ख्वार, कोई पूछता ही नहीं
इस आशिकी में इज्ज़त-ए-सादात भी गयी
[ख्वार = dishonoured/shame; इज्ज़त-ए-सादात = honour of being a saadaat(sayyed) ]
‘Phirte ho Meer khwar, koi puchata he nahin
Iss ashiqi mein izzat-e-saadaat bhee gayi’
(O Meer, you keep wandering in disgrace and no body talks to you,
you have lost
the honour of being a saadat (Sayyed) in this love)
Providence didn’t allow Meer to
have financial stability and peace of mind, not yet. Hardly a year had passed,
when Nadir Shah plundered Delhi and Meer’s employer, Sams-ud- Daula, was killed
in the raid and Meer was pushed back into penury. Once again Meer was
forced to leave Agra. He was pained to leave his hometown and his beloved. Thus
he said:
जैसे हसरत लिए जाता है जहां से कोई
आह यूँ कूचा-ए-दिलबर से हमने किया
‘Jaise hasrat liye jaata hai jahan se koi
Aah yun kuucha-e-dilbar se safar hamne kia’
I left the lane of my beloved as if someone dies with unfulfilled
desire]
‘Beauty lies in the eyes of beholder’ thus said Keats but indeed
the Lady of Meer’s love would really have been very beautiful else these verses
could not be justified:
क्या तन-ए-नाज़ुकी है, जान को भी हसद है
क्या बदन का रंग है, तह जिसकी पैराहन पे है
[तन-ए-नाज़ुकी = slender body, हसद = jealousy, पैराहन = cloth ]
“kya tan-e-naazuk hai, jaan ko bhee hasad hai
Kya badan ka rang hai, tah jiski pairaahan pe hai”
[such is tenderness of her body that even the life is jealous,
such is the colour of her body that its visible within the covering ]
शौक़-ए-कामत में तेरी ए नौ निहाल
गुल की शाखें लेती हैं अंगडाइयां
“shauq-e-kaamat mein teri aye nau nihaal
Gul kee shaakhein leti hain angdaaiyan”
[Enamored of your slender height, o nubile ,
the flower stems are
stretching themselves]
नाज़ुकी उसके लब की क्या कहिये , पंखुड़ी इक गुलाब की सी है
'मीर' उन नीमबाज़ आँखों में सारी मस्ती शराब की सी है
Nazuki uske lab kee kya kahiye, pankhudi ik gulaab kee see hai
‘Meer’ un neembaaz aankhon mein saari masti sharaab kee see hai
[ what to tell you the softness of her lips, its like a petal of a rose
O Meer , In those deep dark eyes, there is merriment of the wine ]
The quest of love and work got intermingled and it became
difficult to identify in Meer’s couplet the sorrow of which he is referring to.
These were the most painful times of Meer’s life. He describes his situation
aptly in this masnavi:
This Delhi was different than the
one which he visited an year earlier, plundered and destroyed by rapaciousness
of Nadir shah. Nadir Shah looted Delhi and killed its denizen for three
consecutive days, 11th , 12th and 13th of
march in 1739. More than 30000 people were killed. The treasure accumulated by
the eight previous kings of Mughal sultanate got looted and was taken to Iran
on 10000 Camels, 10000 Horses and 3000 Elephants. Entire Delhi including the
king became poor.
क्या कहिये अपने अहद में जितने अमीर थे
टुकड़े पे जान देते थे सब फ़कीर थे
[अहद = period, time ]
“Kya Kahiye apne ahad mein jitney amir the
Tukre pe jaan dete the sab fakir the ‘
[ What to tell, all the rich ppl of our time, were dying for penny,
were beggers]
In such condition who would have
helped Meer? Having nowhere to go he
unwillingly had to take help from the maternal uncle of his step brother. ‘Sirajuddin khan-e-Aarzu’ was a
polymath. He was a shayar of Arabic, Persian, Urdu and Sanskrit. Meer learned
the nuances of Shayari from Khan-e-Aarzu though he had not admitted this in his
autobiography but same can be construed if one looks at the style of his shers.
The relationship between them soured
very soon. Muhammad Husain ‘Azad’ in his book ‘Aab-e-hayat’ has attributed the
split between these two as a religious difference. He says that Khan-e-Aarzu
was a Hanifi and Meer a Shia, a difference in opinion and Meer left
Khan-e-Aarzu. In ‘Zikr-e-Meer’, Meer blames his step brother for enticing
Khan-e-Aarzu against him. Though whatever may have been the reason the
camaraderie between two didn’t last long.
Hardship and broken relationships impacted
Meer and he became mentally ill. During nights he would see a beautiful apparition.
He would not be able to sleep. As the day approached the apparition would
disappear making Meer behave like a madman. He started chasing people with
stone in his hand. His condition became so worse that he had to be kept in
chains. He would tear his clothes and
would be vituperative. Khan-e-Aarzu advised him that it is better to tear shers
than clothes and be poetic even while abusing because a good abuse is better
than a bad wish. What khan-e-Aarzu might
have advised in jest Meer took seriously.
Many critics agree that some of the best
couplets of Meer were composed in those days of insanity. Various medication
and supplications were tried. Gradually he started improving and his condition
became normal.
Husain Azad writes that it was
Khan-e-Aarzu who advised Meer to write in Rekhta ( Urdu was thus called at that
time). But Meer gives this honor to a Sayyed by the name of Saadat Ali, a
resident of Amroha, who encouraged him to write in Rekhta and Meer obliged. By
the age of 25-26 Meer’s mastery was well established and his fame was
everywhere. His shers were making rounds
in many cities. In 1748 he got patronage from the Governor of Malwa, Riaayat Khan. This
brought an end to his miseries giving him the much needed financial stability. He even started conducting Mushairas at his
home.
But those were the tumultuous
time. The Mughal Empire was declining. Delhi was losing it control over it provinces
and everywhere Governors were revolting and declaring themselves self governed.
The British were acting as ventriloquist to the puppet kings and princes.
The decline of the Mughal empire was expedited by the
frequent attacks of Ahmad shah Abdali which started with attack in North West
frontier in 1748 and continued for about 20 years. These attacks led to many
internal wars which weekend the Mughal Empire and brought it to its deathbed.
Meer was present in many wars along with his patrons. At times he would be on
the side of victor but mostly he was with the vanquished and witnessed a lot of
killing and destruction. In 1748 When
Abdali first attacked India, Meer was present in Lahore with Riaayat Khan. He
also witnessed the third battle of Panipat fought between Marathas and Abdali
in 1761. Meer was seeing the economic and moral decline of his beloved city
Delhi. His work is a documentary of those
times. In one of the Mukhammass he gives a very vivid
description of the war time scene.
Meer was very short tempered and impulsive by nature. He left Riaayat Khan’s job because it so happened that once
Riaayat Khan asked a lower caste boy to sing a Ghazal of Meer. Meer took
umbrage to this and left his job. Meer
couldn’t find a patron soon. The novelty and royalty was busy securing their
own lives and nobody thought about Meer. Meer got very disillusioned and wrote:
किस तरह आह ख़ाक-ए -मज़ल्लत से मैं उठूँ
उफ्तादा तर जो मुझसे मेरा दस्तगीर हो
Kis tarah aah khaak-e-mazallat se main uthun
Uftaada tar jo mujhse mera dastgeer ho
[Oh! How do I rise
from this dirt of distress,
in more distress are the ones who are expected to
subsist me]
तू है बेचारगादा मीर , तेरा क्या मजकूर
मिल गए ख़ाक में याँ साहेब-ए-अफसर कितने
“Tu hai becharagada meer, tera kya majkoor
Mil gaye khaak mein yaan saaheb-e-afsar kitne’
[you are in a
sorrystate, whats your say,
many got in dust who were officers till now ]
In 1954, Ahamad shah, the Mughal emperor was blinded and
removed from the throne. On this
incident Meer writes:
शाहाँ की कोहल-ए-जवाहिर थी ख़ाक-ए-पा जिनकी
उन्हीं के आँखों में फिरती सलाइयां देखी
Shahan kee
kohal-e-jawahir thee khaak-e-paa jinki
Unhi ke aankhon mein
phirti salaaiyaan dekhin
[The king for whom
kohl made of pearls was like a dust of feet,
I saw iron being
pierced in those eyes ]
Alamgir 2, the 55 year old, became the next king. With him
became powerful the sly and cunning people. Meer became very disappointed with
this and wrote:
रही न पुख्तगी आलम में, दौर-ए-खामी है
हज़ार हैफ कमीनों का चर्ख हामी है
Rahi na pukhtagee
aalam mein, daur-e-khaami hai
Hazaar haif kaminon
ka charkh haami hai
[There is no
stability in this time of flux
Thoushand cunnings alas, are ruling the world]
Meer became very acerbic seeing the happenings around. The
freshness, tenderness and imressioninsm in his Ghazals were replaced by strong
,acedic and abusive words yet it
conveyed the feelings to the fullest like the following one:
सुना है मैंने ए घतिये तेरे खलवत नशीनो से
की तू दारु पिए है रात को मिल कर कमीनो से
Suna hai maine aye
ghatiye tere khalvatnashinon se
Kee tu daaru piye hai
raat ko mil kar kaminon se
[O degraded, I have
heard from your partners
That you drink wine
in night with the cunnings and slys]
Meer started avoiding the cunnings and became very secluded.
His reclusiveness in the prevailing political and social situation made his
subsistence difficult. After leaving the job of Riaayat Khan , Meer took the
service of Nawab Bahadur Javed Khan. In 1952 the prime minister of Mughal
kingdom , Safdar Jang, who was also the governor of Awadh province got Nawab
Bahadur killed, after which Meer came into the service of Mahanarayan. After
Mahanarayan he came in the service of Jugal Kishore who was the lawyer for
Bengal.
Where Delhi was declining, Lucknow was on rise or at least
it seemed so. The governor of Awadh Safdar Jang took advantage of weakening of
the Mughal empire and declared himself independent. After his death his son
Sujjaudin Daula became the head of Awadh. He led a big army in 1964 against
British in the battle of Buxar. He lost the battle and English took control of
his kingdom proclaiming him a titular head. Unlike Delhi where kings became
fakir or were killed when they lost , in Lucknow they would immerse themselves
in hedonistic activities. This led to a pseudo cultural ascendency. Art and
literature flourished under the kings who had no power to govern. This culture was hollow and rotten from
within. To this stogy culture were
attracted many shayars from Delhi. Many like Khan-e-Aarzu , Sauda , Mirza
jaan-e-jaana migrated to Lucknow looking for a greener pasture. Meer too eventually had to leave Delhi.
He came to Lucknow in
1782-83 in the reign of Asif-ud-daula who was the son of Suja-ud-daula .What a
travesty of time it was, in the Mughal rule the literati would introduce themselves
to the kings in the court presenting their composition whereas Meer met Asif-ud -Daula during a game of cock fight. The rest of his life he spent in
Lucknow without worrying about money. The stability and peace which he kept searching in Delhi, he
found it in Lucknow but still his heart longed for beleaguered Delhi and he
never liked Lucknow:
फिर मैं सूरत-ए-अहवाल हर इक को दिखाता याँ
मुर्रवत कहत है, आँखें नहीं कोई मिलाता याँ
Phir main surat-e-ahwaal, har ik ko dikhata yaan
Murrawat kahat hai, aanken nahin koi milata yaan
खराबा दिल्ली का दह्चंद बेहतर लखनऊ से था
वहीँ मैं काश मर जाता, सरासीमा न आता याँ
Kharaaba dilli ka dahchand behtar lucknow se tha
Wahin main kaash mar jaata, saraaseema na aata yaan
बरसों से लखनऊ में इक्मात है मुझको लेक
याँ के चलन से रखता हूँ, अज्म-ए-सफ़र हनोज़
Barson se luknow mein ikaamat hai mujhko lek
Yaan ke chalan se rakhta hoon, azm-e-safar hanoz
आबाद उजड़ा लखनऊ चुगदों से अब हुआ
मुश्किल है इस खराबे में आदम की बी-ओ-बाश
Aabaad, ujda luck now chugdon se ab hua,
Muskil hai iss kharabe mein aadam kee bood-o-baash
किस किस अदा से रखते मैं कहे वले
समझा न कोई मेरी जबान इस दयार में
Kis kis adaa se rekhte maine kahe wale
Samjha na koi meri jabaan iss dayar mein
In last 20-30 years
of his life he didn’t write Ghazals worthy of his calibre. He kept writing
masnavis and shikaarnaama for Asifuddaula. He had reached the zenith in
delhi, Lucknow couldn’t provide a more higher level for him to soar. He died in
1810.
जाने का नहीं शोर सुखन का मिरे हर्गिश
ता हश्र जहां में मीरा दीवान रहेगा
Jaane ka nahin, shor sukhan ka mire hargisz
Taa hashr, jahaan mein mira diwaan rahega
An anlysis of Meer's Literature
Shayars have been called the disciple
of Shayari and Messenger of Shayari (Paighambar-e-Sukhan,
“Wali Deccani”). Meer Taqi Meer is the shayar who is called God of Shayari (‘Khuda-e-Sukhan’). In the presence of Wali Dakhani, Sauda, Nazir Akbarabadi, Ghalib and Iqbaal it would be unfair to
say that Meer is the greatest shayar yet it is undeniable fact that in the list
Meer’s name will come on the top. Even though in terms of popularity Ghalib and
Iqbaal are ahead of Meer and their books sell more than Meer’s and their shers
are more often quoted than Meer’s and they had influenced the modern day Shayars
more than Meer yet there are critics who
have denied greatness to them but none has yet questioned the mastery of Meer.
Shayars across all generations have bowed before Meer.
Ghalib pays his tribute to Meer
as:
ग़ालिब अपना यह अकीदा है बकौल-ए-नासिख
आप बेबहरा है जो मोताकिद-ए-मीर नहीं
"GHalib" apna yeh aqeeda hai ba-qoul-e-NaasiKH
aap be-bahra hai jo motqid-e-Meer nahiN
[aqeeda = affirmation/confirmation, ba-qoul-e-NaasiKH
= quoting NaasiKH (a student of Meer), be-bahra = poor, motqid-e-Meer =
follower of Meer]
Ghalib affirms this
quoting Naasikh
That one is poor who
is not the follower of ‘Meer’
रेख्ता के तुम ही उस्ताद नहीं हो 'ग़ालिब'
कहते हैं अगले ज़माने में कोई मीर भी था
rekhta ke tum hi
ustaad nahiN ho "GHalib"
kahte haiN agle zamane meN koi Meer bhi thA
[rekhta = Urdu]
You are not the only
master of ‘Rekhta’, O Ghalib
People says that in
past there was someone called ‘Meer’
and Ghalib’s
contemporary Zauq says
न हुआ पर न हुआ मीर का अंदाज़ नसीब
"जॉक" यारों नें बहुत जोर ग़ज़ल में मारा
na huA par na huA
Meer ka andAz naseeb
"Zauq" yaaroN ne bohot zor GHazal meN mara
Couldn’t attain
the style of Meer,
Zauq though
friends tried a lot in Ghazals writing
And what did Meer say about
himself. In self praise Meer says:
सारे आलम पे मैं हूँ छाया हुआ
मुस्तनद है मेरा फरमाया हुआ
Saare aalam per main
hoon chaya hua
Mustnad hai mera
farmaya hua
[ aalam = world;
mustanad = proven/verified]
In a masnavi Meer calls himself a python and his
contemporaries as snakes, rats and other
smaller insects. When someone asked Meer
that who are the shayars today he replies, “there are two; One is Suada and
other one is me” then takes a pause and says “Khwaja Meer Dard can be counted as half”.
During medieval period the Bhakti
and Sufi movement was a big cultural revolution which emphasized on the
relationship of human with human and human with the God. This movement had a
profound impact on the working class. By the eighteenth century the movement
had lost it steam because socio political decline of the country but the
central idea of unity of mankind [ “Wahdat-e-Insani”]
remained prevalent amongst the adherents of this belief. This idea was opposed
to any form of sectarianism in the society.
Love and heart are the two objects
that are central to this idea. Love is the greatest of the feelings and heart
is the greatest of the objects. Places of worship can be rebuilt if destroyed
but not the heart; so what is the point of making temples and mosques by
breaking hearts. A man is what his heart is. Heart is the teacher and the
guide. It is central to the concept of love. Love creates, love destroys. Love
is God and that’s how man (heart) is connected to God (Love) directly. Any intermediaries in between in the form of
the Mullahs or the Priests were castigated by the followers of this thought.
Having love in the heart is having god in the heart; so love is divine. Love
has as many forms as there are manifestations of beloved. Shayari, and in
particular Ghazal, is the expression of love in words. Love is the central theme of Shayari. Meer is
the shayar from the same tradition.
The style and emotions in modern Shayari
seems to be originating from Meer. Not only will one find a Ghalib in him but also
a Momin and a Daag both of whom eulogized the external beauty of the Beloved.
This Style of Shayari is now known as Lucknow school of Shayari wherein
the shayar gives more importance to external beauty of beloved than the
internal feeling of love, Often called ‘the Kanghi-Choti’ (Comb & tresses) Shayari.
Even the Ghazals of Iqbaal which are laden with philosophical thoughts also
finds it origin in Meer and we find uncanny similarities not only in style but
also in thoughts in many verses of the two great poets who were separated by
two centuries.
Two hundred years later in 1947
when the riots engulfed Delhi and Punjab, the young Shayars left Ghalib, Iqbaal
and Josh and came to Meer looking for solace. The wounded land of India and
Pakistan took ‘Kuliyaat-e-Meer’ in
its bosom and started looking for a balm in it. Meer was a victim and eye
witness to similar tragedy when Nadir Shah and Abdali plundered India. Two
centuries later these verses are still fresh and comforting. Time could not
relegate it to dust, affirming greatness of Meer.The famous expositionist Muhammad
Husain Azad (1833 to 1910) in his delightful book ‘Aab-e-Hayat’ has praised Meer
in these words:
“Patrons valued his oeuvre with pearl and sapphire and
made his name effervescent like the fragrance of the flower. He is the only
blessed one, whose Ghazals are taken from one city to another as a gift by the
travelers.”
Even today this fragrance is
vagabond. Call it Meer’s bad luck or Urdu lover’s myopia that still there is no
correct and researched compilation of ‘kulliyat-e-meer’
and those that are there are mostly impure. Now it’s another matter that few of
the Meer’s couplets are on the lips of people who find solace from them during
tough times of life. These couplets orally got passed on from one generation to
another and in the way some shers got distorted and some shers from less
talented and obscure Shayars got attributed to Meer. This also led a very
simple way of understanding Meer. Meer was branded as a shayar of pain and
misfortune as his popular shers are those that depict misery. Someone said that
Meer’s Shayari is ‘aah’ (expression of pain) and Sauda’s
is ‘waah’ (expression of delight) , though this statement is
not completely untrue, many of Meer’s couplet are full of love and pleasure.
Meer probably could not
disassociate himself from the time in which he lived as Ghalib and Hafiz have
done. The Iran, of Hafiz, was torn with internal conflict and destroyed by the
raid of Timur yet his writing depicts joy, pleasure and optimism. Ghalib was
witnessing the demise of Mughal dynasty and British gaining control of India
still his works oozes arrogance and rebellion. Meer cannot smile and
write in jest, it’s easier for him to get frustrated and being abusive. After
Sauda, Meer has used most abusive language in his Diwan and to this someone has
rightly said that Meer’s high category writings are of very high class and his low
category writings are of very low class.
For Meer if Love is the reason for the
creation of world but it is also the reason for destruction. Loafing is not
about freedom but a sign of wretchedness and sorry state. He compares loafing
not with wind but with swans. Meer cannot flirt or be chivalrous with the
beloved; he either complains about his bad condition or submits himself
completely admitting subjugation. He wrote what he had undergone. His writing
tells the sorrow tale of his time. He says that his oeuvre is collection of pain and this pain is not personal but a collective one.
दर्हमी हाल की है सारे मिरे दिवान में
सैर कर तू भी ये मजमुआ परिशानी का
Darhami haal kee hai saare mire deewan mein
Sair kar tu bhee yeh majmuaa parishaani ka
[Darhami = confusion, majmuaa = some total/collection]
In a Masnavi, Meer writes, “My
sorrow and sadness is famous in the town and everywhere people are talking
about my capriciousness. But what can I do? Because of the pain and sorrow in
my heart I behave like that. The feeling itself takes the shape of verse and my
Diwan is the collection of my pain and sorrow.
मिसरा कोई कोई कभी , मौजूं करूँ हूँ मैं
किस खुश सलीक्गी से जिगर खून करूँ हूँ मैं
Misra koi koi kabhi, maujoon karoon hoon main
Kis khush salikagee se jigar khoon karoon hoon main
[Misra = a line of couplet/sher, maujoon = well placed ]
मुझ को शाएर न कहो मीर, की साहिब मैंने
दर्द-ओ-गम कितने किये जमा, सो दिवां किया
Mujhko shaair na kaho meer, ki sahib maine
Dard-o-gam kitne kiye jamaa, so diwaan kia
For Meer romance as an emotion
have many facets. He does not limit the romanticism to mere pleasure. Meer
represents the reality. So in his Shayari, destruction of Dil (heart) is also destruction of Dilli (Delhi) and the Aashiq
(Lover) is any Aadmi (man).Meer says
about his Shayari that
“My Shayari is liked by a certain class of people but my conversation
is with all”
So it’s not unexpected that lover
in the Meer’s Shayari is as downtrodden and trampled as a common man of his
time. The lover in his Shayari is not an egoist person but he is a madman. Ego
comes from wealth, power or talent and madness comes from loosing these. The ‘Lover’ of Meer, just wants a fair and
respectful treatment from the beloved unlike Ghalib’s where the lover is egoist
and knows his superiority over his beloved. The Lover in Meer’s Shayari is not
an arrogant and conceited person that one finds in Ghalib’s.This is the salient differentiator between Ghalib and Meer. Meer’s lover is a
frustrated and an insane man.
इस दश्त में ए दिल संभल के ही कदम रख
हर सम्त को दफन यां मेरी तशनालबी है
iss dasht mein aye dil sambhal ke hee kadam rakh
har samt ko yaan dafn meri tashnalabi hai
[dasht = desert, tashnalabi = thirsty ]
कोई तुझ सा भी ए काश तुझ को मिले
मुद्दा तो हमको इन्तेकाम से है
koi tujh sa bhee aye kaash tujhko mile
Mudda tou humko intekaam se hai”
हाथ दामन में तेरे मारते न झुंझलाके
अपने जामे में गर गिरेबान होता
“haath daman mein tera maarte na jhunjhla ke
Apne jaame mein agar girebaan hota”
Meer has written many couplet which represents the harsh realities which at times makes the delicate nature of Ghazal
heavy. Few examples:
रहते हैं दाग़ अक्सर नान-ओ-नमक की खातिर
जीने का इसमें क्या मज़ा रहा
“Rahte hain daagh aksar naan-o-namak kee khatir
Jeene ka iss samay mein kya maza raha “
जिनको खुदा देते हैं सब कुछ वो ही सबको देता है
टोपी लंगोटी पास अपने, हम पर क्या इनाम रखे
“Jinko khuda dete hain sab kuch wo hee sabko deta hai
Topi langoti paas apne, hum uss per kya inaam rakhe”
चोर उच्चक्के सिख मर्हट्ठे शाह-ओ-गदा ज़र ख्वाह हैं
चैन में हैं जो कुछ नहीं रखते, फक्र ही इक दौलत है अब
“Chor uchhake sike marhate shah 0-gada zar khwaah hain
Chain mein hain jo kuch nahin rakhte, fakr hee ik daulat hai ab”
दिल्ली में आज भीख भी नहीं मिलती उन्हें
था कल तलक दिमाग, जिन्हें ताज-ओ-तख़्त का
“Dilli mein aaj bheek bhee nahin milti unhen
Tha kal talak dimaag, jinhe taaz-o-takht ka”
Meer has represented the exploitation and defeat of human by
the victor. The victor is a tyrant and represented as beloved in his Shayari.
Meer beloved is cruel, cunning, blood thirsty and a person with turpitude. The
way in which Meer curse his beloved is a style of Shayari called ‘Bashokht’ and Meer was the first person
to compose a ‘Bashokht’ in Urdu. No
other shayar has cursed his beloved as Meer has. He calls his beloved tyrant,
frugal and executioner. The black eyes
are not dark but it’s a dangerous and
fearsome black.
गर्दिश-ए-चश्म-ए- सियाहकश से जमा खातिर तुम
भूखे प्यासे मार रखा है तुमसे उनने हज़ारों को
“Gardish-e-chasm-e-siyahkash
se Jamaa rakho khatir tum
Bhookhe pyaase maar
rakha hai Tum se unne hazaaron ko”
The Beloved generally represent one of the three entities,
the god, the conquerors and his own beloved.When Meer’s love is God, he complains that his beloved
misbehaves with him
परदे में बदसलूकी मुझसे खुदा करे है
“parde mein badsaluki mujhse khuda kare hai”
And he is wary of submitting himself to his love because the
Love is nonchalant towards him.
कोई हो मरहम-ए-शोख़ी तेरा तो मैं पूछूँ
की बज़्म-ए-ऐश-ए-जहां क्या समझ के बरहना की
“Koi ho marham-e-shokhi tera to main poochon
Kee bazm-e-aish-e-jahaan kya samjh ke barhanaa kee”
Meer’s beloved is also the cruel and the exploitative Kings
and the blood thirsty conquerors.
किया है खून मेरा पामाल, वो सुर्खी न छुटे
अगर कातिल तो अपने हाथ भी पानी से धोये
“kia hai khoon mira paamal, who surkhi na chute
Agar qaatil to apne haath bhee paani se dhoye”
( a la lady Macbeth)
जम गया खूं , काफ-इ-कातिल पे तेरा मीर जिबस
उनने रो रो दिया कल हाथ को धोते धोते
“jam gaya khuun, kaf-e-kaatil pe tera meer jibas
Unne ro ro dia kal haath ko dhote dhote”
When Love comes it is the cause of destruction. In trail, he
leaves the ocean of blood.
मारो हो इक दो को तो हो मुद्दई कोई
खुस्तों का उसके रोज़-ए-जजा में शौक़ क्या
“Maaro ho ik do ko to ho muddai koi
Khuston ka uske roz-e-jaza mein shauq kya”
तेरी गली से सदा ए खुशिंद-ए-आलम
हज़ार आती हुई चारपाइयां देखीं
“Teri gali se sada aye kushind-e-aalam
Hazaar aati hui chaarpaayien dekhi”
फिटने फसाद उठेंगे, घर घर में खून होगा
गर शहर में खिरामा वह खाना जंग आये
“Fitne fasaad uthenge, ghar ghar mein khoon hoga
Gar sahar mein khirama, wah khana jang aaye”
The third type of beloved is Meer’s own beloved. He has
always concealed her identity. For this beloved Meer’s Shayari takes the
sublime form of romanticism.
रात मजलिस में तेरी खुदा थे चुप
जैसे तस्वीर लगा दे कोई दीवार के साथ
“raat majlis mein teri khuda the chup
Jaise tasveer laga de koi dewaar ke saath”
हुई फिराक में, जैसे, ख़याल मुफलिस के
गयी है फ़िक्र-ए-परीशान, कहाँ कहाँ मेरी
“hui firaak mein, jaise, khayaal muflis ke
Gayi hai fikr-e-parishaa, kahaan kahan meri”
वे तो खड़े खड़े मिरे घर आके फिर गए
मैं बे-दयार-ओ-बेदिल-ओ-बेखानुमा हुआ
“Ve tou khade khade mire ghar aake phir gaye,
Main be-dayaar-o-bedil-o-bekhaanuma hua”
Meer is not rebellious in front of this beloved . He is
innocent and obedient
हम फकीरों से बे-अदाई क्या
आन बैठे जो तुमने प्यार किया
“hum fakeeron se beadaayee kya
Aan baithe jo tumne pyaar kia”
दूर बैठ गुबार-ए-मीर उसे
इश्क बिन ये अदब नहीं आता
“Duur baith Gubbar-e-Meer use
Ishq bin ye adab nahin aata”
Meer’s position
is not only important in Shayari but also in his contribution toward popularization
of Urdu language. The khariboli
(local dialect), which is the foundation of Hindi and Urdu, looks so beautiful
in Meer’s Shayari. Eighteenth century, the Century of Meer, was also marked by
ascendency of Hindi and Urdu. Till then the language which was spoken in Delhi
was also called ‘Rekhta’ or ‘Zabaan-e-Dehlavi’. This century was the
time for decline of Persian in India. And like a retreating wave Persian left a
lot of precious stones and shells on the shore which was picked up by Hindi and
Urdu. These new born languages picked a lot from the 500 year old linguistic
development of Persian. The tavern along with the wine, the Saqi, the jar
entered the Urdu Ghazals from Persian, along with similes like Aatish-e-Gul (fire of flower), Dast-e-Subuu (the hands of wine cup), Garden-e-Meena (the neck of wine jar)
and many more. Twenty two years before the birth of Meer, a shayar came to
Delhi from the city of Aurangabad. His name was Wali Deccani and he was the first
big shayar of the new language. The shayars of Delhi adopted his style and by
1750 when Meer was at his Zenith, this language was formalized and well
accepted by the class and the mass.
