Private Opinion

Munir Niazi Passes Away

December 27th, 2006 Posted in Literature, Urdu Poetry

innaa lillaahe va inna ilaihe raajiuun

To Allah We Belong And To Him We Shall Return

As if the loss of Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi was not big enough for us comes the shocking news of the demise of Munir Niazi. For many admirers, Munir Niazi was up there at the top with the very best. Shamsur Rahman Faruqui, one the most prominent critics of our time places the following nazm of Munir Niazi at a higher pedestal than any nazm of Faiz’s.

aaGhaaz-e-zamistaaN meN dubaara

Ghuruub-e-mehr kaa manzar GhaRii huvii guzraa
bas aik pal ko niyastaaN usii tarah larzaa
giyaah-e-sabz kii Khushbuu usii zamaane kii
usii tarah kii masarrat bahaar aane kii
vuhii jamaal-e-dar-o-saqf-o-baam hai, maiN huuN
kinaar-e-raud-e-siah-faam-e-shaam hai, maiN huuN

Munir Niazi

Translation by Zafar Iqbal Syed.

In the Beginning of Winter Again

The sunset elapsed by a while ago
Just for a moment the reed-jungle trembled alike
The odor of the green-grass of the same times
The same ecstasy for the approaching of spring
The same glory of the doors, rooftops, terraces - and I am
The banks of the grey waters of the evening - and I am

While many would contest that claim, and the point is not to prove someone is better than somebody else, it gives us an idea about the class of Munir Niazi. His nazm hameshaa der kar detaa huuN maiN was the most popular nazm among youngsters at was scribbled at the walls of Karachi University.

I have listened to two Ghazals of Munir Niazi sung by Ghulam Ali. Both are amazing.

How beautifully has he used words like nain, bhed, khoj, diip, dvaar etc. in this Ghazal.

un se nain milaakar dekho
ye dhokhaa bhii khaa kar dekho

duurii meN kyaa bhed chhipaa hai
iskii khoj lagaakar dekho

(bhed : secret)

kisii akelii shaam kii chup meN
giit puraane gaakar dekho

aaj kii raat bahut kaalii hai
soch ke diip jalaa kar dekho

jaag-jaag kar umr kaTii hai
niiNd ke dvaar hilaakar dekho

(dvaar : door)

———

And another one.

aa gayii yaad sham Dhalte hii
bujh gayaa dil chiraaGh jalte hii

(Compare this sher with Mir’s “shaam se hii bujhaa saa rahtaa hai, dil hu’aa hai chiraaGh muflis kaa”)

khul gaye shahr-e-Gham ke darvaaze
ek zaraa sii havaa ke chalte hii

(shahr-e-Gham : city of sufferings)

kaun thaa tuu ke phir na dekhaa tujhe
miT gayaa Khvaab aaNkh malte hii

tuu bhii jaise badal saa jaataa hai
aks-e-diivaar ke badalte hii

(aks-e-diivaar : reflection of the wall)

———

As he himself wrote:

ko’ii kyaa rahegaa jahaaN-e-fanaa meN
raho to raho jaavidaaN mere dil meN

(jahaaN-e-fanaa : the mortal world; jaavidaaN : eternal)

Indeed Munir saahab!

Read more of Munir Niazi’s poetry here and here. Listen him here and here.