PESHAWAR: The Gandhara Hindko Academy has launched a collection of the work of Hindko Sufi poet Sain Ahmad Ali.

Titled Ganjeena-i-Sain, the 1035-page publication has almost 1,000 harfis (couplets), an important genre of the Hindko literature.

Ali Awais Khayal, a young researcher at the Gandhara Hindko Academy, who has a flair for classic Hindko poetry, has compiled the book.

Gandhara Hindko Academy to promote Sain Ahmad’s poetry by Android app

All harfis have been arranged in the alphabetical order, captioned topic wise and explained in detail by placing them in their respective categories.

The index in the publication facilitates readers.

The Gandhara Hindko Board, a literary and cultural organisation, launched the book during a special ceremony held to mark the 82nd death anniversary of Sain Ahmad Ali, who was born in Peshawar in 1842 and passed away in 1937.

The event was hosted at the Dr Zahoor Ahmad Awan Conference Room of the Gandhara Hindko Academy run by the Gandhara Hindko Board under the public-private partnership.

Octogenarian writer Iqbal Ali presided over the function, where senior Hindko poet and writer and Urdu lyricist Syed Saeed Gilani was the chief guest.

The speakers highlighted the life and work of Sain Ahmad Ali, who hailed from Peshawar but was equally popular in Potohar region, where he lived a considerable part of his life before returning to his birthplace.

They recited verses from his poetry to highlight the command of the great mystic over the arrangement of words, metaphors and allegories to portray human feelings.

Gandhara Hindko Board general secretary Mohammad Ziauddin said Sufi poets and their work had a great role in the promotion of the literature and culture of a language.

He said the Gandhara Hindko Board and the academy not only collected the work of Sain Ahmad Ali but also brought it out in a book’s form.

Mr Ziauddin said the board and the academy had published books on the life and poetry of Sain Ahmad Ali and produced a documentary on it.

“We have translated some work of Sain Ahmad Ali into Urdu and Pashto but a larger part of his poetry has yet to be researched and printed,” he said adding that publication of the poet’s work will help disseminate the message of this great Sufi poet to a wider audience.

Mr Gilani said Sain Ahmad Ali enjoyed a distinct place in Hindko literature as his poetry explored mysticism.

“The thoughts contained his poetry signify the exalted position of Sain Ahmad Ali among Sufis. His poetry has a universal appeal due to the matter discussed therein,” he said.

Gandhara Hindko Academy director Professor Mohammad Adil said the academy’s researchers were working to disseminate Sain Ahmad Ali’s work through an Android app.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2019