The Famous Ghalib: The Sound of My Moving Pen

Marion Molteno, Ralph Russel

Description

‘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.

Sujets

• Literary
• Couplet (disambiguation)
• Literature
• Essential
• Mirza Ghalib
• Scholarly method
• Translations
• Urdu
• Poetry
• Ourdou
• Classics
• Ghâlib
• Ghazal
• Reader

Informations

• Publié par: Roli Books
• Date de parution: 12 juillet 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789351940982
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 11 Mo

Extrait

THE FAMOUS
Ghalib
The Sound of My Moving Pen
Ralph Russell (1918-2008) has been widely recognized as the greatest western scholar of Urdu. Khushwant Singh described him as much the most revered name of interpreters of Ghalib s life and works . For over thirty years he headed the Urdu department at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and throughout his life regularly spent time in both India and Pakistan, writing, working with fellow scholars and as a popular lecturer. After his retirement he pioneered the teaching of Urdu to English speakers in communities across the UK, to encourage greater mutual understanding between people of different backgrounds. His unusual skill as a translator and his insightful writing have opened up an appreciation of Urdu literature to a wide range of readers.
 
Also by Ralph Russell
The Oxford India Ghalib
Ghalib: Life and letters (with Khurshidul Islam)
Ghalib, the poet and his age
Three Mughal Poets: Mir, Sauda, Mir Hasan (with Khurshidul Islam)
The Pursuit of Urdu Literature: A Select History
An Anthology of Urdu Literature
How not to write the History of Urdu literature
Autobiography:
Vol 1: Findings Keepings (1918-1946)
Vol 2: Losses Gains (1945-1958)
 
In appreciation of Ralph Russell s writing on Urdu literature
Easily the best Urdu scholar in the West.
Shamsur Rahman Farouqi, Allahabad
A superb translator the best introductory book to put in the hands of any student interested in Urdu poetry.
C.M. Naim, University of Chicago
A masterly introduction to the Urdu language s greatest poet.
Bhupinder Singh, Sunday Tribune
Those uninitiated in the tradition of ghazals will find this immensely enjoyable.
Shams Afif Siddiqi, The Telegraph
A veritable feast for connoisseurs of poetry and students of literature alike.
A.J. Thomas, Deccan Herald
Urdu literature has gained immensely from his perspective of an outsider not born to the language.
Mohammed Asaduddin, Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi
No one in the West today speaks with such authority about Urdu or is better able to communicate its pleasures to those who do not read the language.
Francis Robinson, Times Literary Supplement, London
 
ROLI BOOKS
This digital edition published in 2016
First published in 2016 by
The Lotus Collection
An Imprint of Roli Books Pvt. Ltd
M-75, Greater Kailash- II Market
New Delhi 110 048
Phone: ++91 (011) 40682000
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.rolibooks.com
Copyright The literary estate of Ralph Russell
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic, mechanical, print reproduction, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of Roli Books. Any unauthorized distribution of this e-book may be considered a direct infringement of copyright and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
eISBN: 978-93-5194-121-7
All rights reserved.
This e-book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated, without the publisher's prior consent, in any form or cover other than that in which it is published.
 
THE FAMOUS
Ghalib
The Sound of My Moving Pen
GHAZALS SELECTED AND EXPLAINED BY
Ralph Russell

REVISED EDITION
Marion Molteno

 

These themes I write of come into my mind from the unseen Ghalib, the sound my moving pen makes is an angel s voice
 
Contents
Foreword
PART 1
GHALIB AND HIS POETRY
Ghalib and the ghazal
Love, mysticism and dedication
Images and symbols
Poetic symbolism and the poet s experience
A poet in Mughal Delhi
Poets against fundamentalists
Ghalib s personal philosophy
Ghalib on his poetry
PART 2
Selections from Ghalib s ghazals
Appendices:
Index to verses
Poetic vocabulary
Editor s note
About the editor
 
Foreword
T his book is for anyone who has heard that Ghalib is a great poet and wants to find out why his poetry has inspired generations of Urdu speakers and many others besides. You may have tried reading some of it in translation but found it didn t make much sense to you. Or you may have listened to his ghazals being sung and wished you could understand more - but if you cannot read the Urdu script it s difficult to get further on your own. Whatever your starting point, Ralph Russell s insightful writing and translations will make it possible for you to get to know Ghalib s poetry, and open up to you a store of delight.
Part 1: Ghalib and his poetry - 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.
Part 2: Selections from Ghalib s ghazals - gives over 200 couplets in Ralph Russell s translations, alongside the original Urdu - and not just in Urdu script, but also transcribed using both English and Hindi scripts. If you know no Urdu, you can just read the translations. If you know Hindi or understand even a basic level of spoken Urdu, this unique feature will help you get as close to Ghalib s original poetry as your language knowledge allows.
How to use this book
I suggest you start by reading Part 1. The form of poetry in which Ghalib wrote - the ghazal - comes from a centuries-old tradition and his thoughts and feelings are expressed in its terms. Even in the best translations you may miss the point of what he is saying unless you know something of that tradition. Every significant point in Part 1 is illustrated with examples from Ghalib s ghazals, so as you read you will also be getting to know the poetry - but in a context that makes its meaning clear. Even if you are from an Urdu-speaking background and have heard ghazals recited all your life, you will still find this introduction will help you make sense of things you didn t understand before.
Poetry books are to be dipped into and you may prefer to go straight to the poetry, turning the pages and seeing what catches your eye. Where you come across verses that puzzle you, go back and read Part 1 - and when you have done so you will be able to return to those same verses and understand them in a new way.
Reading Ghalib s own words
For those who know Hindi or spoken Urdu there is an added pleasure in store, in getting nearer to Ghalib s original words. Some verses you will immediately understand for they are expressed in everyday words that are common to Urdu and Hindi. Others will seem to be composed almost entirely of words you don t know, for Urdu has a rich poetic vocabulary. But by comparing the transcribed verse with the translation you can begin to puzzle it out, and the Poetic vocabulary has been added to help you. Many words carry symbolic meaning. Part 1 will start you off with a general understanding of this symbolism, and as you work through the couplets you will begin to recognize more of these. The ideas behind the words will begin to weave together and each couplet will create its own succinct spell of meaning.
For all readers, the Index of verses will help you find a verse if you can remember how it starts. If it was mentioned in Part 1, the English index will also take you back there to give you a context. The selections of poetry in Part 2 are arranged in the traditional ghazal order, that is, alphabetically by the last letter in the rhyme. The numbers in the Urdu index will help you locate the whole ghazal in any published collection.

What makes this book different from any other introduction to Ghalib s poetry is the unusual qualities of the author, Ralph Russell. Those who have grown up with Urdu poetry take its form and cultural content for granted - and seeing no difficulties, they cannot easily help newcomers through them. Ralph Russell s response to Urdu poetry was deep and personal but he did not forget how puzzling it had seemed to him at first, and he drew on this experience to find ways to help others over those initial barriers. His readers often say that when they read his books they feel they are listening to him talk, as he explains just what they need to know. This is how one described it - Deepak Kirpalani, a Gujarati speaker whose love of film songs led him to want to find out more about Urdu poetry: Ralph Russell s book was unlike anything I had come across before. It combined the knowledge of an expert with the tone of a guide and the familiarity of a favourite uncle who took you as a child to the ice cream vendor or the cricket ground.
As a translator, Ralph Russell s aim was to let Ghalib speak as directly as possible to an English reader. His 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. There is a spare, unadorned quality about them that lingers in the mind far longer than flowery language would.
In his last years he talked of drawing on all that he had written over forty years to produce one definitive introduction to Ghalib s poetry. He knew he would not have the energy to do this before he died, so he explained in detail what he intended and entrusted the selection and editing to me. The Editor s Note explains what he wanted done and how I have tried to carry that out.
I am one of the many people who would not have found my way to appreciating Ghalib s poetry if it had not been for Ralph Russell s engaging writing and his lucid translations. I hope that with this book in your hands, you too will discover that pleasure.
Marion Molteno
London, 2015
 
Part 1
Ghalib and his Poetry
 
Ghalib and the ghazal
G halib was one of the greatest poets South Asia ever produced, and in my view the greatest poet of two of its great literary languages, Persian and Urdu. His poems are recited and sung wherever Urdu spe