MIRZA Asadullah Khan Ghalib has many distinctions and one of them is that Ghalib is, along with Allama Iqbal, among the two poets on whom the most number of research-based and critical books have been written in Urdu.
Another unique trait that no other poet of Urdu shares with Ghalib, not even Iqbal, is that his Urdu divan is the book of which the most sharhs, or commentaries, have been written in Urdu. This strange phenomenon is perhaps the result of the fact that Ghalib is considered among the most difficult-to-understand poets of Urdu. Ghalib’s poetry has always been challenging for critics as well as for common readers. Interestingly, many of Ghalib’s couplets can be interpreted in different ways at the same time.
Some have obscurity that Ghalib intentionally created and some verses have multiple layers of meanings and can be explained in different ways. Ghalib plays with words and the equivocal atmosphere of such couplets is exactly what Ghalib wanted to create.
This promptly gave way to one after another explanation of many verses by Ghalib and thus began the race to interpret and understand Ghalib in one’s own and peculiar way. The result was the highest number of commentaries on Ghalib’s Urdu divan and if all such works — known as sharh in Urdu, whether explaining Ghalib’s Urdu poetry wholly or partially — are counted the total comes to at least 50. Though some put the number at 100, it is more like 50 to 60, as at least 50 such works can be named.
Here is a list of some well-known commentaries on Ghalib’ Urdu divan:
1. Bostan-i-khirad
Said to be the first ever commentary on Ghalib’s Urdu poetry, it was written by Ghalib’s disciple Khwaja Qamruddin Raaqim, but it was never published. Prof Ehtesham Hussain had informed Nisar Ahmed Farooqi that he had found a manuscript of Bostan-i-khirad, but it was too brittle.
2. Chaar chaman
Munshi Durga Prashad Nadir Dehlvi was Ghalib’s contemporary. In his book Chaar chaman he explained just 74 of Ghalib’s couplets.
3. Wasooq-i-sarahat
Written in 1894 and published in 1313 Hijri/1895-6 AD, this commentary by Abdul Ali Walah has the distinction of being the first published commentary ever written on Ghalib’s Urdu poetry, albeit at times it sounds like brief notes.
4. Yadgar-i-Ghalib
Penned by Altaf Hussain Hali, a disciple of Ghalib, this is the first book ever written on Ghalib’s life and works. First published in 1897, it explains only parts of Ghalib’s Urdu poetry.
5. Hall-i-kulliyaat-i-Urdu
Written by Shaukat Meruthi and first published in 1898, it explains only the “difficult” verses of Ghalib.
6. Sharh divan-i-Urdu-i-Ghalib
Published in 1900, this commentary by Nazm Tabatabai is one of the first complete commentaries and is also considered one of the best.
7. Divan-i-Ghalib m’a sharh-i-divan-i-Ghalib
Hasrat Mohani published a divan of Ghalib with some rare couplets and commentary in 1911.
8. Matalib-ul-Ghalib
One of the original and reliable commentaries on Ghalib’s Urdu poetry, this has a tendency to explain many of Ghalib’s verses against the backdrop of Sufism and mysticism. Written by Mumtaz Ahmed Suha, it first appeared in 1916.
9. Miraat-ul-Ghalib
This commentary by Bekhud Dehlvi, published in 1924, stresses Ghalib’s diction and Delhi idiom for understanding Ghalib.
10. Matalib-i-Ghalib
This commentary by Qazi Saeeduddin, first published in 1926, was aimed at facilitating students.
11. Mukammal sharh-i-divan-i-Ghalib
Written by Abdul Bari Aasi, it was first published in 1930 and is considered among the authentic commentaries on Ghalib’s Urdu divan, except for the seven fake and forged ghazals that Aasi himself composed and attributed to Ghalib, claiming to have recovered them from a rare bayaaz or notebook. The forgery was so perfect that even a great scholar of Ghalib like Imtiaz Ali Khan Arshi too considered them to be the original ones and included it in his famous Divan-i-Ghalib: Nushka-i-Arshi. It was only in the second edition that Arshi discarded those fake ghazals of Ghalib. But the hoax took quite long to be exposed.
12. Bayaan-i-Ghalib
Written by Dr Mohammad Baqar and first published in 1939, it has been recently reprinted by Karachi’s Fazlee Sons.
13. Afkaar-i-Ghalib
As the writer, Khalifa Abdul Hakeem, had a philosophical bent of mind, this commentary has a tendency to philosophise Ghalib’s Urdu and Persian couplets. It appeared in 1954.
14. Rooh-i-Ghalib
Written for students by Abdul Hakeem Nishter Jallundhari, this appeared in 1954.
15. Sharh-i-divan-i-Ghalib
This commentary, written by Yousuf Saleem Chishtie and published in 1959, has a tendency to explain Ghalib in the light of Sufism.
16. Mushkilaat-i-Ghalib
It is written by Niaz Fatehpuri and appeared in 1961.
17. Rooh-ul-mataalib
The full name of this commentary by Shadan Bilgrami is Rooh-ul-mataalib fi sharh divan-i-Ghalib. Written in 1946, it was published in 1967 as the publisher had lost the manuscript.
18. Nava-i-sarosh
Written by Ghulam Rasool Mehr and first published in 1967, it is the most voluminous of all commentaries on Ghalib’s Urdu divan.
Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2019
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