Lets talk ghazals.
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Tiki Tam Tam
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Could some one tell what is the difference between a nagma and a ghazal?
Nagma is comon word for song, it can be any genre ranging from pop to classic.
In poetry, the ghazal is a poetic form consisting of couplets which share a rhyme and a refrain. Each line must share the same meter. Etymologically, the word literally refers to "the mortal cry of a gazelle". The animal is caled Ghizaal, from which the English word gazelles stems, or Kastori haran (where haran refers to deer) in Urdu. Ghazals are traditionally expressions of love, separation and loneliness, for which the gazelle is an appropriate image. A ghazal can thus be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss or separation and the beauty of love in spite of that pain. The form is ancient, originating in 10th century Persian verse. It is derived from the Persian qasida. The structural requirements of the ghazal are more stringent than those of most poetic forms traditionally written in English. In its style and content it is a genre which has proved capable of an extraordinary variety of expression around its central theme of love and separation. It is considered by many to be one of the principal poetic forms the Persian civilization offered to the eastern Islamic world.
Tiki Tam Tam
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Thanks, Neo.
My CO, who was fond of ghazals, had once asked an officer, who was tone deaf, "What is the difference between a geet and a ghazal?"
This thread reminded me of the same and so I asked the question.
Very comprehensively clarified by you!
And, is it azmana or ajmana?
What does firaqh exactly mean?
My CO, who was fond of ghazals, had once asked an officer, who was tone deaf, "What is the difference between a geet and a ghazal?"
This thread reminded me of the same and so I asked the question.
Very comprehensively clarified by you!
And, is it azmana or ajmana?
What does firaqh exactly mean?
You're welcome, urdu is very rich when it comes to vocabulary.
Gana, naghma, geet are all synonyms for song.
The former.
Firagh is an old persian word often poetically used for unwhishful seperation.
niaz
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Having a good working knowledge of Persian and having read a fair bit of Persian poetry such as Saadi and Hafiz. I find that since early Urdu poets were persian speakers, they have copied Persian poetry forms in urdu almost verbatim.
For the sake of general knowledge, let me elucidate the various forms of verse that exists in persian poetry, urdu forms are alomst identical.
1. Nazm.
Any form of verse ( not prose) is called a nazm. In urdu a nazm is normally any verse which deals with one subject only. For example Shikwah and Jawab Shikwah is a nazm.
2. Ghazal.
In persian, any poetry dealing with love and ishq is called a ghazal. In urdu; whereas in nazm all verses deal with the same subject; in a ghazal each couplet is complete in itself. This is the most sophisticated form of verse and all great poets have written ghazals. Most of the Ghalib's poetry is ghazal. Just compare Ghalib's " Ye na thee hamari Kismat ke waisale yaar hota..." with Iqbal's shikwah and you will see the difference.
3. Hazal
This is a form of nazm where poetry is used for fun. Such as the poems of late Dilawar Figaar. Hijv is a form of hazal where you actually make fun of a person to insult him.
4. Marsia is a form of nazm used for lamentation ( Elegy in english)
5. Musaddass:
Normally in long nazms, it is very difficult to have exactly the same 'Qafia' and 'Radeef', nazm is subdivided into parts of 6 couplets ( such as musaddas Haali )
6. Rubai or Qata
It is a small nazm containing two couples. Again a very sophisticated form. A lot has to be said in just four verses.
7. Mathnavi:
This is the earliest form of nazm, where each couplet has different 'Qafia' even though the there may be one hundred couplets ( shaer) all relating to the same subject.
8. Geet, tarana, naghma is any song, mostly nazm with all the couplets relating to one subject. For example our national anthem or Iqbal's famous "lab pay aati hai duaa ban kay tamanna meree..)
9. Naat is a nazm dedicated to the praise of the holy prophet ( pbuh).
10. Hamd is a nazm dedicated to the praize of Allah.
11. Qasidah: This is a nazm written to praise grandeur of a king or a ruler. ( borrowed from Arabic)
12. Razm/Rizm: Also from Arabic. This refers to the tales describing heroic deeds of great warriors. Mahabharta is a form of rizmic poetry.
Faraaq/firaaq is actually any separation, wisal refers to meeting of the lovers( implies actual love making) Sanam is any idol that you worship; in poetry used for the beloved. Kafir; normally used in conjection with sanam; implies a beloved that makes you adore/worship him or her.
What I find strangest of all is that in both the persian and urdu poetry, masculine form of the verb/noun is used for the beloved.
For the sake of general knowledge, let me elucidate the various forms of verse that exists in persian poetry, urdu forms are alomst identical.
1. Nazm.
Any form of verse ( not prose) is called a nazm. In urdu a nazm is normally any verse which deals with one subject only. For example Shikwah and Jawab Shikwah is a nazm.
2. Ghazal.
In persian, any poetry dealing with love and ishq is called a ghazal. In urdu; whereas in nazm all verses deal with the same subject; in a ghazal each couplet is complete in itself. This is the most sophisticated form of verse and all great poets have written ghazals. Most of the Ghalib's poetry is ghazal. Just compare Ghalib's " Ye na thee hamari Kismat ke waisale yaar hota..." with Iqbal's shikwah and you will see the difference.
3. Hazal
This is a form of nazm where poetry is used for fun. Such as the poems of late Dilawar Figaar. Hijv is a form of hazal where you actually make fun of a person to insult him.
4. Marsia is a form of nazm used for lamentation ( Elegy in english)
5. Musaddass:
Normally in long nazms, it is very difficult to have exactly the same 'Qafia' and 'Radeef', nazm is subdivided into parts of 6 couplets ( such as musaddas Haali )
6. Rubai or Qata
It is a small nazm containing two couples. Again a very sophisticated form. A lot has to be said in just four verses.
7. Mathnavi:
This is the earliest form of nazm, where each couplet has different 'Qafia' even though the there may be one hundred couplets ( shaer) all relating to the same subject.
8. Geet, tarana, naghma is any song, mostly nazm with all the couplets relating to one subject. For example our national anthem or Iqbal's famous "lab pay aati hai duaa ban kay tamanna meree..)
9. Naat is a nazm dedicated to the praise of the holy prophet ( pbuh).
10. Hamd is a nazm dedicated to the praize of Allah.
11. Qasidah: This is a nazm written to praise grandeur of a king or a ruler. ( borrowed from Arabic)
12. Razm/Rizm: Also from Arabic. This refers to the tales describing heroic deeds of great warriors. Mahabharta is a form of rizmic poetry.
Faraaq/firaaq is actually any separation, wisal refers to meeting of the lovers( implies actual love making) Sanam is any idol that you worship; in poetry used for the beloved. Kafir; normally used in conjection with sanam; implies a beloved that makes you adore/worship him or her.
What I find strangest of all is that in both the persian and urdu poetry, masculine form of the verb/noun is used for the beloved.
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I always assumed Kafir Sanam implies a betrayal or an unreturned love.
muhabbat men nahiin hai farq jiine aur marane kaa
usii ko dekh kar jiite hain jis kaafir pe dam nikale
hazaaron Khvaahishen aisii ki har Khvaaish pe dam nikale
bahut nikale mere armaaN lekin phir bhii kam nikale
niaz
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Kafir here does not necessarily mean betrayed or unreturned love. Here it implies that you love him/her so much that you live for seeing her,
whether she returns you love or not . Also that the beloved was so desirable that the poet would have died of happiness if his desire for union with his beloved was fulfilled.
Most poetry is about "unrequitted love" any way. Whenever I came across love poetry, regrettably, the love remained unfulfilled. Remember Akhtar Shiraani's famous Salma ??
I once inquired a very learned Irani, as to why Hafiz; the most famous ghazal poet of all times; refers to the beloved as Sanam or Kafir or Turk.
The reply was that once you start adoring a living being, it amounts to kufr, that is why ultimate beloved is a sanam or kafir. Also by the Hafiz's era, Turks had been rulers of Iran for a more than three centuries ( first the ghaznavids, than suljuqis followed by mongols and timurids, ruling class was associated with ultimate beauty and beolved was also refered to as 'toork'.
Some of my favourite couplets about unrequitted love are by Faiz who says
Ham pay goozri so goozri magar shabey hijraan
Hamaaray ashk teri aaqbat sanwar challey.
Also
Muqaam Faiz koeey raah mein jacha he nahein
jo kooay yaar say niklay to sooay yaar challey
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