Professor Naveed Shahzad is a well-known poet, studious scholar and good critic. He has a score of publications to his credit. He has equal facility to compose poetry and prose. He is foremost a poet but he has gradually expanded his area of interest. His foray into academic and research field has paid him dividends. He has established himself as a serious scholar and a reliable researcher.

His latest book ‘Shlok Farid: Matni Mutaliya (ba hawala Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji)’ has been published by Baba Farid Ganj Shakar Research Chair, Institute of Punjabi and Cultural Studies, Punjab University, Lahore. This tome is a magnificent work of scholarship. It takes up the comparative study of the texts of Baba Farid’s shoklas (couplets) as we find them in various editions edited by different scholars. It juxtaposes these texts with the version preserved and carried by Guru Granth Sahib, the original source of Baba Farid’s verses.

Prof Nabeela Rahman says in the blurb that Naveed Shahzad “is a seasoned poet, researcher and critic. ‘Shlok Farid’ reflects all his three aspects’. Talking about the various attempts to create a reliable version of the texts Dr. Khawaja Muhammad Zakria says: “Dr. Naveed Shahzad has minutely examined all such efforts and has done his best to create a standard text with a discerning eye.”

Likewise Punjabi fiction writer and scholar Prof Jameel Paul is full of praise for the book. As all familiar with the history of Punjabi literature know that it is Baba Farid, a grand saint, poet and scholar who is rightly considered the pioneer of our literary tradition. He was the first to compose his thought-provoking and elegant verses with creative brevity in a language we call Punjabi.

His verses were collected and preserved by inimitable Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikh faith, and later became a part of Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib. The script employed in the Granth Sahib is Gurmukhi, developed by Sikh gurus and their community while Punjabi Muslims used Arabic-based script for the Punjabi language.

Two main problems with the question of script(s) for the Punjabi have been; 1, Gurmukhi script has evolved over centuries and different letters have undergone changes with the passage of time. The situation can afford different readings of the same text by different editors and scholars. 2, more challenging has been the task for the editors who tried to transliterate the couplets from Gurmukhi to Shahmukhi script.

The reason is that their readings of the text have variations because of the problems the Gurmukhi scripts itself offer. More importantly, the problem is exacerbated by non-standardisation of Shahmukhi script that allows the editors to use the script in a subjective manner.

Prof Shahzad rightly treats the text as a source that is found in the edition of Granth Sahib brought out by ‘Shrimani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Sri Amritsar, India’. He painstakingly compares the various versions found in Shahmukhi script with the original and points out the discrepancies when and where found. Some of the most prominent editors of the couplets this side of the border have been Asif Khan, Dr. Fakir and Dr. Nazir Ahmed.

Asif Khan in his remarkably edited book on Farid that has a thorough introduction gives the both versions, Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi. Prof Shahzad mentions all the worthwhile Shahmukhi texts but refrains from making sweeping statements which unfortunately is almost a habit with our scholars. He leaves it to the judgment of the readers to form their opinions on the matter.

The problem cannot be wished away as Muslim Punjabis, and Sikh and Hindu Punjabi have certain sounds specific to them because of the differences in their religious cultures. Z sound coming from Arabic is pronounced and written as J sound by the latter. Secondly, like all scriptures Granth Sahib has its own specific pronunciation of the text which is slightly different from what we find in everyday speech.

The book carries research work done wonderfully and with care. It would help editors to prepare version of Shlokas compatible with the one we find in Granth Sahib. The author has done a commendable job. The book is a treasure trove for serious readers and scholars.

Akash is a known fiction writer; he writes short stories as well novels. His latest novel ‘Kingray’ has been published by Fiction House, Lahore. Akash, now based in Lahore, is from Ganji Bar, one of the major Bars between the river Ravi and Sutlej that had one of the most ancient cities in the world namely Harappa. The Bar is now a home to diverse communities comprising locals, settlers and migrants.

The migrants are the people who were forced to take refuge here in the aftermath of the division of Punjab in 1947. The locals have a distinct culture in terms of way of life, social values and dialectal difference with other regions of Punjab.

Most of the classical literature has been created in their dialect of Punjabi language. Akash being a local carries the ethos of Bar’s society. The story the novel narrates is set in the pre-Partition era and revolves around five families; Muslim, Hindu and Sikh. They live a normal life despite having diverse religious persuasions. Of course it’s not a paradise as it has all the conflicts and contradictions typical of Punjab’s society of the era.

Tension between a small land owner and a so-called feudal landlord spills over into hostility and ends in a bloodshed. Sikh protagonist is a peasant proprietor. His young son is kidnapped by the Muslim feudal landlord to wreak vengeance on him for falling in love with his daughter.

Everything goes topsy-turvy with the announcement that Punjab would be divided into eastern and western parts; former would go to India and latter to Pakistan. Horribly short-sighted colonial administration does not envisage mass migration which is forced on the people as a result of rabid communal flare up that proves the biggest holocaust in the history of the subcontinent.

Muslims in the non-Muslim majority East Punjab are slaughtered and forced to flee to West Punjab. Similarly Sikhs and Hindus in Muslim majority West Punjab are indiscriminately massacred and expelled from their homes. It is an ethnic cleansing on the both sides. Akash shows us why characters like his Sardol Singh refused to leave their ancestral land and how a Sikh Sardar this side of the border became Bodi Sain and a Muslim on the other side of the border became Iqbal Singh. The novel has an elegiac quality.

‘Kingray’ is a gripping novel and Akash deserves accolades both from readers and critics. — soofi01@hotmail.com

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2024