Modernism, tradition and Jamal Panipati

“Why shouldn’t I?” came the reply. “I have been reading and thinking over the issues very seriously.”

Jamal Panipati was born on June 15, 1927 at Sambhalka, a small town near Panipat. He was named Gulzar Ahmed by his parents and he adopted Jamal Panipati as his penname. After his matriculation, he got a job in the government of India’s agriculture department in Delhi. In 1947, he migrated to Pakistan and joined government service. He graduated from the University of Karachi in 1964 and joined the National Press Trust. Later he resigned from the NPT and got a job in the National Bank of Pakistan, from where he retired in 1987.

Jamal Panipati began his literary career as a poet and composed ghazals. Later on he began composing ‘dohas’ and became quite an accomplished doha writer. In 1964, his long article evaluating Aziz Hamid Madni’s poetry was published, which earned him accolades from critics such as Saleem Ahmed.

Jamal Panipati translated Rene Guenon’s book ‘The Crisis of the Modern World’ into Urdu, titled ‘Ahd-i-Jadeed Ka Buhraan’, which is yet to be published. His other works include ‘Nafi se isbaat tuk’, ‘Adab aur riwayat’ and the posthumously published one ‘Jadeediat aur jadeediat ki ibleesiat’ .

Jamal Panipati was a critic and poet belonging to the Tradition school of thought, as opposed to Modernism (not modernity). Tradition is, as he has written, a continuity of human thought and actions that draws its meaning and validity from unchangeable metaphysical principles. About Modernism, he said: “Modernism very easily overpowered Christianity and created dispersion and confusion in it.” (Adab Aur Riwayat, p.206)

While commenting on the tussle between Modernity and Tradition in our society, he wrote: “In our society the majority of people is still attached to old traditions and old system of values and they want to remain attached to it, but society’s influential and westernised segment that rules considers the western civilisation the apex of humanity… and then there is a segment consisting of writers, scholars, intellectuals and professors in whose dictionary the name of indifference towards our own traditions, values and religion is universality, impartiality and enlightenment.” (Adab Aur Riwayat, p. 196)

He was a great admirer of Rene Guenon, Hasan Askari and Saleem Ahmed but did not follow them blindly. On several occasions, he disagreed with them. Once when Hasan Askari declared, after evaluating Urdu poetry by the standards of western literary criticism, that Meer was a more modern poet than Ghalib, Jamal Panipati took strong exception to this claim and called it “ridiculous”.

Till his death he constantly remained in touch with ideological debates going on in our society and in reaction to a book by Dr Manzoor Ahmed, he wrote an article. When Dr Manzoor’s rejoinder to it appeared in the press, Jamal Bhai replied to it in a very well-argued article titled ‘Dr Manzoor Ahmed Ka Islam’ (Mukalma, Karachi, Issue 13).

Jamal Bhai’s poetry, especially his dohas, is something to cherish and his philosophical and critical essays are food for thought.

drraufparekh@yahoo.com