Beloved Delhi: A Mughal City and her Greatest Poets by Mahmood Saif

Author:Mahmood, Saif [Mahmood, Saif]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-09-10T04:00:00+00:00

Ghalib is not an agnostic, but his hostility towards structured religion and religious formalism is well-known. He makes no bones about his religious beliefs, or the lack of them. He ridicules both the Hindu tradition of idolatry and the Islamic belief in life hereafter. The idea of a paradise is juvenile fiction:

Dekhiye paate hain ushhaaq bu’ton se kya faiz

Ek barahman ne kaha hai ki ye saal achha hai

Hum ko maaloom hai jannat ki haqeeqat, lekin

Dil ke khush rakhne ko Ghalib ye khayaal achha hai

(Let’s see how lovers benefit from idol-worship

A brahmin has predicted this to be a prosperous year

We know the reality of Paradise, but

To keep the heart happy, it is a good idea.)

There may be divine rewards for worship and piety, but he can’t bring himself to follow religious protocol:

Jaanta hoon sawaab e taa’at-o-zuhd

Par tabiyat idhar nahin aati

(I am aware of the reward of obedience and piety

But my temperament doesn’t tilt that way.)

When he finds a mosque next to his rented accommodation at Gali Qasimjan, he is flustered. He decides to first declare himself God’s neighbour:

Masjid ke zer-e-saaya ek ghar banaa liya hai

Ye banda-e-kameena hamsaaya-e-khuda hai

(In the shadow of a mosque, he has made his home

This rascal is now a neighbour of God!)

He then demands a place for debauchery right next to the mosque. He needs to drink not for pleasure but to reach a state of oblivion:

Masjid ke zer-e-saaya kharaabaat chaahiye

Bhon paas aankh qibla—e-haajaat chaahiye

Maiy se gharaz nishaat hai, kis rooh siyaah ko

Ik goona be-khudi mujhe din-raat chaahiye

(In the shadow of the mosque is required a tavern—

Like the brow above the eye—the altar of life’s necessities.

Which wretched fellow wants pleasure out of drinking

A means to attain oblivion is all I need day and night.)

Ghalib refuses to change his ways even in captivity and wonders what the preacher will have to say to him:

Gar kiya naaseh ne hum ko qaid, achha yoon sahi

Ye junoon-e ishq ke andaaz chhut jaaweinge kya

Hazrat-e-naaseh gar aavein, deeda-o-dil, farsh-e-raah

Koi hum ko ye toh samjha do, ke samjhaaveinge kya

(If the preacher imprisons me, so be it

Will that rid the world of my wild and passionate ways?

If the preacher comes, I’ll lay out my eyes and heart to welcome him

But will someone please explain to me what he will explain?)

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