Faiz Ahmed 'Faiz'


Date of Birth: February 13th, 1911Place: Sialkot (Punjab), Pakistan
Faiz's mother was Sultan Fatima. Faiz's father died in Sialkot in 1913. Faiz's father was a learned man and enjoyed the company of well-known literary persons. Wrote the biography of Amir Abdur Rehman. Faiz was therefore, born in a respectable and literary environment and was a very promising student with a religious background.
Primary Education: Started memorizing the Holy Quran at the age of four and in 1916 started his formal education in the famous school of Moulvi Ibrahim Sialkoti, and learnt Urdu, Persian and Arabic. Was admitted to the Scotch Mission High School in 1921 in Class IV. Passed his Matriculation Examination in the 1st Division from Murray College, Sialkot and during this period learnt Persian and Arabic from Allama Iqbal's teacher, Shamsul Ullama Moulvi Syed Meer Hasan.
College Education: Passed his B.A. (Honours) in Arabic from the Government College, Lahore and then M.A. in English from the same College in 1932. Passed his M.A. in Arabic in the 1st Division, from Oriental College, Lahore.
Employment: Lecturer in English at M. A. O. College, Amritsar in 1935 and then at Hailey College of Commerce, Lahore. Joined the Army as Captain in 1942 and worked in the department of Public Relations in Delhi. Was promoted to the rank of Major in 1943, and Lieut. Colonel in 1944. Resigned from The Army in 1947 and returned to Lahore, where, in 1959 appointed as Secretary, Pakistan Arts Council and worked in that capacity till 1962. Returning from London in 1964 he settled down in Karachi and was appointed as Principal, Abdullah Haroon College , Karachi. Editorship of the monthly magazine Adabe-Latif from 1947 to 1958. Worked as Editor under the Progressive Papers Ltd, of the Pakistan Times, the Urdu newspaper Imroze and the weekly Lailo-Nihar. In the 1965 war between India & Pakistan he worked in an honorary capacity in the Department of Information. Acted as Editor of the magazine Lotus in Moscow, London and Beirut.
Marriage & Children: In March 9th, arrested under Safety Act and charged in the Rawalpindi Conspiracy case, and having borne the hardships of imprisonment for four years and one month in the jails of Sargodha, Montgomery (now Sahiwal) Hyderabad and Karachi, was released on April 2nd, 1955.

Faiz on 'Faiz"

Before going on to a consideration of other poems, it would be appropriate to insert here Faiz's brief and characteristic comments on himself.
I hate to talk about myself. This is so because it is the habit of all bores.
This is so because the period between 1920 and 1930 constituted a state of carelessness, prosperity and exuberance, in which along with important national and political movements, in prose and poetry, there was an element of light heartedness, along with serious thinking and observation. Poetry was dominated by Hasrat Mohani, then Josh, Hafiz Jallendhari and Akhtar Shirani.
The early poems of Naqshe Faryadi such as Khuda Wo Waqt Na Lae Ke Sogwar Ho Tum, Merijan Ab Bhi Apna Husn Wapas Pher De Muj Ko, Tare Nagme Kahin Chandani Ke Daman Mein and some others were composed in this kind of prevailing atmosphere. In this atmosphere there was also the wonder of the beginning of love but we had just a glimpse of this period, when we reached the end of love's companionship.
YAAS (HOPELESSNESS)
In 1934 we left college and in 1935 got employment in M.A.O. College, Amritsar. It is from here that a new mental and emotional phase begins for me and for several of my contemporaries. In this period we met the late Sahibzada Mahmuduz Zafar and his wife Rashida Jehan, and the Progressive Writers Movement began, and continued with the labour movements. It seemed that several schools had opened in the garden. In this school the first lesson we learnt was that to think of separating oneself from the world is, in the first place, useless. This is so because the experiences around us necessarily affected us. The self of a human being, despite all its loves, troubles, joys and pains, is a tiny, limited and humble thing. The measure of the vastness of life is the whole universe. Thus the agony of love and the agony of time are two aspects of one experience. The beginning of this new feeling is the first poem of the second phase. Its title is: Don't ask me, my beloved, for the previous kind of love After this came the stage of 'espousing the misery of the whole world'. Then, after spending some time in the Army, journalism, and trade-unionism I (we) were in prison for four years. The two subsequent books Daste-Saba and Zindan Nama are records of jail life'. Prison life, like love, is itself a fundamental experience which opens up a new vista of thoughts and insight. The first thing is that, like the dawn of love, all the sensations are again aroused and the mistiness of the early morning and evening, the blue of the sky, the gentleness of the breeze return with the same sense of wonder. And the second thing that happens is that the time and distances of the outside world are negated; the sense of distance and nearness is obliterated in such a way that a single moment weighs on the mind like the day of judgement and sometime the occurrences of a century seem to be like the happenings of yesterday. The third thing is that in the vastness of separation, one gets more time for reading and thinking and for decorating the bride of creativity.
(Faiz did not like to talk about himself and left this account incomplete).

Ham Parwarish e Lauh-o-Qalam Karte Rahenge

ham paravarish-e-lauh-o-qalam karate rahe.nge

jo dil pe guzaratii hai raqam karate rahe.nge


[paravarish=nurture; lauh-o-qalam=writing implements; raqam=keep count/record of]


asbaab-e-Gam-e-ishq baham karate rahe.nge

viiraanii-e-dauraa.N pe karam karate rahe.nge


[asbaab=cause/means; baham=gather; dauraa.N=time/age/period]


haa.N talKhii-e-ayyaam abhii aur ba.Degii haa.N

ahal-e-sitam mashq-e-sitam karate rahe.nge


[talKhii=bitter; ayyaam=days; ahal-e-sitam=people who oppress/tyrants] [mashq karanaa=to practise]


ma.nzuur ye talKhii ye sitam ham ko gavaaraa

dam hai to madaavaa-e-alam karate rahe.nge


[madaavaa=cure]


maiKhaanaa salaamat hai to ham surKhii-e-may se

tazziin-e-dar-o-baam-e-haram karate rahe.nge


[surKhii=redness; tazziin=decoration; dar=door] [baam=roof/terrace; haram=sacred place]


baaqii hai lahuu dil me.n to har ashk se paidaa

rang-e-lab-o-ruKhsaar-e-sanam karate rahe.nge


[lab=lips; ruKhsaar=cheek]
ek tarz-e-taGaaful hai so vo un ko mubaarak

ek arz-e-tamannaa hai so ham karate rahe.nge


[tarz=style; taGaaful=neglect; arz karanaa=to express; tamannaa=desire]

Aaj Ke Naam

aaj ke naam

aur

aaj ke Gam ke naam

aaj kaa Gam ki hai zindagii ke bhare gulasitaa.N se Khafaa

zard patto.n kaa ban

zard patto.n kaa ban jo meraa des hai

dard kaa a.njuman jo meraa des hai kilarko.n kii afasurdaa jaano.n ke naam

kirm_Khurdaa dilo.n aur zabaano.n ke naam

posT-mai.no.n ke naam

Ta.ngewaalo.n ke naam rel_baano.n ke naam

kaaraKhaano.n ke bhole jiyaalo.n ke naam

baadashaah-e-jahaa.N, waali-e-maasivaa, nae_bullaah-e-fil-arz, dahakaa.N ke naam

jis ke Dhoro.n ko zaalim ha.Nkaa le gaye

jis kii beTii ko Daakuu uThaa le gaye

haath bhar Khet se ek a.ngusht paTavaar ne kaaT lii hai

duusarii maaliye ke bahaane se sarakaar ne kaaT lii hai

jis ke pag zor waalo.n ke paa.Nvo.n tale

dhajjiyaa.N ho gayi hai

un duKhii maao.n ke naam

raat me.n jin ke bachche bilaKhate hai.n

aur nii.nd kii maar khaaye hue baazuuo.n se sa.Nbhalate nahii.n

dukh bataate nahii.n

minnato.n zaariyo.n se bahalate nahii.n

un hasiinaao.n ke naam

jinakii aa.Nkho.n ke gul

chilamano.n aur daricho.n kii belo.n pe bekaar khil khil ke

murjhaa gaye hai.n

un byaahataao.n ke naam

jinake badan be_mohabbat riyaakaar sejo.n pe saj saj ke ukataa gaye hai.n

bewaao.n ke naam

kata.Diyo.n aur galiyo.n, muhallo.n ke naam

jinakii naapaak Khaashaak se chaa.Nd raato.n ko

aa aa ke karataa hai aksar wazuu jinakii saayo.n me.n karatii hai aaho-bukaa

aa.Nchalo.n kii hinaa

chuu.Diyo.n kii khanak

kaakulo.n kii mahak

aarazuuma.nd siino.n kii apane pasiine me.n jalane kii buu

pa.Danewaalo.n ke naam

wo jo asahaab-e- tablo-alam ke daro.n par

kitaab aur qalam kaa takaazaa liye,

haath phailaaye pahu.Nche,

magar lauT kar ghar na aaye

vo maasuum jo bholepan me.n

wahaa.N apane na.nhe chiraaGo.n me.n lau kii lagan le k

pahu.Nche jahaa.N ba.NT rahe the ghaTaaTop,

be-a.nt raato.n ke saaye un asiiro.n ke naam

jin ke siino.n me.n fardaa ke shabataab gauhar

jel_Khaano.n kii shoriidaa raato.n kii sar-sar me.n

jal-jal ke a.njum-numaa.N ho gaye hai.n

aanewaale dino.n ke safiiro.n ke naam

vo jo Khushbuu-e-gul kii tarah

apane paiGaam par Khud fidaa ho gaye hai.n


**Left incomplete by Faiz**
[kirm_Khurdaa=moth-eaten; waali-e-maasivaa=master;] [nae_bullaah-e-fil-arz=God's representative on Earth; dahakaa.N=peasant] [a.ngusht=small (u.ngalii bhar); maaliye=levy, tax; zaariyo.n=weeping;] [riyaakaar=insincere; kata.Diyo.n=group of houses; Khaashaak=trash;] [kaakulo.n=tresses; asahaab-e- tablo-alam=owner of flag and drums (leaders);] [asiir=prisoner; fardaa=future; gauhar=pearl; shoriidaa=anxious, worried;] [a.njum-numaa.N=star-like; safiiro.n=ambassador]