A befitting tribute to the poet who once described himself as 'collyrium for men's eyes', freely offering to make their vision cleaner.

‘Easily the best Urdu scholar in the West.’ Shamsur Rehman Farouqi ‘Marion Molteno has mined a substantial corpus of Russell’s writings to string together his most valuable insights into the genre of ghazal... to prepare the uninitiated reader for the final feast of Ghalib’s ghazals in English translation. And what a magnificent feast it is!’ M. Asaduddin, Jamia Millia Islamia The second edition of Ralph Russell’s critically acclaimed The Famous Ghalib has been put together according to guidance left by the author/translator before his death in 2008. This book introduces Ghalib to anyone who wants to find out why his poetry has inspired generations of Urdu speakers and many others besides. It explains the form of poetry in which Ghalib wrote, and how he used its symbolism to express his response both to the universal experiences of life and to the times that he himself lived through. With over 200 couplets in Ralph Russell’s translations, alongside the original Urdu – and also transcribed using both English and Hindi scripts, this is a must have for all poetry lovers. The translations are as concise as the original, matching Ghalib’s intensity with words chosen to convey precise meaning; and they do this in English which flows naturally and with unobtrusive poetic metre.

A Selection of Ghalib's Ghazals in Devnagri and English, along with the English Translations

This selection of poetry and prose by Ghalib provides an accessible and wide-ranging introduction to the preeminent Urdu poet of the nineteenth century. Ghalib's poems, especially his ghazals, remain beloved throughout South Asia for their arresting intelligence and lively wit. His letters—informal, humorous, and deeply personal—reveal the vigor of his prose style and the warmth of his friendships. These careful translations allow readers with little or no knowledge of Urdu to appreciate the wide range of Ghalib's poetry, from his gift for extreme simplicity to his taste for unresolvable complexities of structure. Beginning with a critical introduction for nonspecialists and specialists alike, Frances Pritchett and Owen Cornwall present a selection of Ghalib's works, carefully annotating details of poetic form. Their translation maintains line-for-line accuracy and thereby preserves complex poetic devices that play upon the tension between the two lines of each verse. The book includes whole ghazals, selected individual verses from other ghazals, poems in other genres, and letters. The book also includes a glossary, the Urdu text of the original poetry, and an appendix containing Ghalib's comments on his own verses.

Mirza Ghalib is to the Urdu language what William Shakespeare is to the English language. And the most widely read Urdu book in the world is a collection of the Love Sonnets of Ghalib. These sonnets resonate with the voices of maestros through the corridors of history. Ghalib is not just an Asian phenomenon and his sonnets are loved and studied worldwide.

Mirza Asadullah Khan (1797–1869), popularly, Ghalib, is the most influential poet of the Urdu language. He is noted for the ghazals he wrote during his lifetime, which have since been interpreted and sung by different people in myriad ways. Ghalib’s popularity has today extended beyond the Indian subcontinent to the Hindustani diaspora around the world. In this book, Gopi Chand Narang studies Ghalib’s poetics by tracing the archetypical roots of his creative consciousness and enigmatic thought in Buddhist dialectical philosophy, particularly in the concept of shunyata. He underscores the importance of the Mughal era’s Sabke Hindi poetry, especially through Bedil, whom Ghalib considered his mentor. The author also engages with Ghalib criticism that has flourished since his death and analyses the important works of the poet, including pieces from early Nuskhas and Divan-e Ghalib, strengthening this central argument. Much has been written about Ghalib’s life and his poetry. A marked departure from this dominant trend, Narang’s book looks at Ghalib from different angles and places him in the galaxy of the great Eastern poets, stretching far beyond the boundaries of India and the Urdu language.

Publisher Description

A Brilliant Biography Of Nineteenth Century India S Greatest Poet Mirza Mohammad Asadullah Khan Ghalib Began Writing Poetry In Persian At The Age Of Nine And The Pre-Eminent Poet Of The Time, Mir, Predicted A Great Future For The Precocious Genius When He Was Shown His Verse. But Success And Material Rewards Did Not Come To Ghalib Easily For The Times Were Against Him, And He Did Not Suffer Fools Gladly Even If They Occupied Positions Of Importance. Ghalib Was At The Height Of His Powers When Events Took A Turn For The Worse. First Came The Decline Of The Mughal Court, Then The Rise Of The British Empire And, Finally, The Revolt Of 1857. Though Ghalib Lived Through The Upheavals And Purges Of The Revolt, In Which Many Of His Contemporaries And Friends Died And His Beloved Delhi Was Irrevocably Changed, He Was A Broken Man And Longed For Death. When He Died, On 15 February 1869, He Left Behind Some Of The Most Vivid Accounts Of The Events Of The Period Ever Written. In This Illuminating Biography Pavan K. Varma Evocatively Captures The Spirit Of The Man And The Essence Of The Times He Lived In.

This imaginative approach to the work of the Urdu poet Ghalib (1797-1869) presents highly original renderings, made by seven well-known American poets, of Ghalib's ghazals.