November 30, 2008	Sunday	Zilhaj 1, 1429

They say each time you go through Hamlet, you’ll find something startling that you somehow missed or overlooked the last time you flipped through the great Shakespearean tragedy. Ghalib’s works and persona (if not personality) can be described in a similar vein. In a time that was rife with palace intrigues, political upheavals and societal changes, Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib was producing timeless poetry. Even the temporal and transitory elements of life assume a kind of divine permanence in his ghazals. And unlike most of his contemporaries he had the gumption to touch upon the metaphysical aspects of existence – and with unparalleled poetic grace.

On Saturday, the session on Ghalib, in collaboration with the Bazm-i-Ghalib, at the International Urdu Conference turned out to be a reasonable one. Provincial minister Rauf Siddiqui was chief guest on the occasion.

One thought that the colossus reputation that the poet enjoys deserved a bit more detailed critical analyses during the session instead of divulging information on what’s being done to ‘promote’ Ghalib shanasi in the subcontinent. However, Dr Aslam Farrukhi, despite not feeling well, read out a paper brimming with erudition. He discussed a relatively unknown man, a distant relative of the great poet, Qamaruddin Raqim, who had written a sharah (guidebook) to Ghalib’s poetry, which somehow never saw the light of day. Dr Farrukhi insisted that his work should be read with a renewed interest because, he iterated, Ghalib’s popularity and critical acclaim have increased manifold over a period of time.

Rauf Siddiqui appreciated the hard work that the conference’s organisers had put in to make the event a success and said that he always encourages literary events. He ensured the organisers that they can always count on his support in his official capacity.

Bazm-i-Ghalib’s Tanvir Kazmi apprised the audience about what’s being done to promote Ghalib’s poetry among youngsters.

Indian scholar Shahid Mahli narrated how Ghalib Institute in India came into being and the role that it’s playing in creating awareness about his poetry.

President Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu Hind Professor Siddiqur Rehma Qidvai said Ghalib doesn’t hail from any one particular region but is an integral part of ‘world culture’. He said it would be a fallacy to confine him to a certain literary or geographical boundary.

Dr Khalique Anjum, in his elaborate essay, discussed Ghalib’s relations with different cities of the subcontinent, with particular reference to Allahbad.

Rear admiral M.I. Arshad expressed his profound admiration for the poet and acknowledged the literary worth of the International Urdu Conference.

Poet Shehzad Ahmed presented an interesting debate and said that Ghalib’s ghazals, among other things, can also be viewed in the light of the ‘principle of uncertainty’. To give cogency to his argument, he quoted the following couplet:

Lazim nahin ke sub ko miley aik sa jawab

Aao na hum bhi ser karein koh-i-toor ki

(Why should everyone get the same response?

Let’s climb Mount Sinai)

During the function a book Mabaad-i-Jadeediat Ka Doosra Rukh, written by the late Zamir Ali Badayuni and published by Scheherzade publications, was also officially launched.