Habib Jalib (Urdu: حبیب جالب) was a Pakistani revolutionary poet. A left-wing activist and politician, he was a staunch democrat who opposed martial law, authoritarianism and state oppression.
Early life
Habib Jalib was born on March 24, 1928 as Habib Ahmad in a village near Hoshiarpur, British India. He migrated to Pakistan after partition and worked as a proofreader in Daily Imroze,Karachi. He was a progressive writer and soon started to grab the audience with his enthusiastic recitation of poetry. He wrote in plain language, adopted a simple style and addressed common people and issues. But the conviction behind his words, the music of his voice and his emotional energy coupled with the sensitivity of the socio-political context is what stirred the audience.
Political views
He was a Marxist-Leninist and aspired to the ideals of Communism. He was a member of theCommunist Party of Pakistan; later when the Communist Party was banned and started working under the banner of National Awami Party (NAP), Jalib joined the NAP. Due to his blunt expression of his beliefs, he suffered hard time all his life and spent most of time in Jails.Ayub Khan's martial law
Habib Jalib was first imprisoned during the martial law regime of Ayub Khan due to his defiant views on Ayub Khan's capitalistic policies. He wrote his legendary poem "Dastoor" during those days.
Criticizing those who supported Ayub Khan's regime, he wrote:کہیں گیس کا دھواں ہےکہیں گولیوں کی بارش ہےشب عہد کم نگاہیتجھے کس طرح سراہیںKahin gas ka dhuan haekahin golion ki baarishShab-e-ehd-e-kum nigahitujhay kis tarah saraheinThere is smoke of teargas in the airand the bullets are raining all aroundHow can I praise theethe night of the period of shortsightedness.
A humble man with limited means of livelihood, Jalib could never reconcile with the dictatorship of Ayub Khan. So when Ayub enforced his tailor-made constitution in the country in 1962, which a former prime minister Chaudhry Muhammad Ali likened to the Clock Tower of Lyallpur, Jalib wrote the following poem:دیپ جس کا محلات ہی میں جلےچند لوگوں کی خوشیوں کو لے کر چلےوہ جو سایےمیں ہر مصلحت کے پلےایسے دستور کو، صبح بےنور کومیں نہیں مانتا،میں نہیں مانتاWhose light shines only in palacesAnd carries the joys of only a few peopleThat derives its strength from others' weaknessesThat system, like a dawn without lightI refuse to acknowledge, I refuse to accept
Due to his daring revolt against the order of the day, Jalib was banned from official media but he remained undeterred. He rather started a tirade against the tyranny with more resolution. It reached its zenith when Fatima Jinnah decided to contest elections against Ayub Khan. All democratic forces rallied around her and at her election meetings, Jalib used to recite his fiery poems in front of an emotionally-charged crowd. His most popular poem at that time was:ماں کے پائوں تلے جنت ہے ادھر آجائوMaan kay paon talay jannat hai idhar aa jaoThe paradise is under the feet of the mother. So come into her fold.
In another incident which has become a part of the resistance folklore of the country, the Governor of West Pakistan, the Nawab of Kalabagh, invited filmstar Neelo to dance in front of a foreign dignitary (Be bold and read here Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran!). As she refused, the police was sent to bring her, which led to a suicide attempt on her part. This incident inspired a poem by Jalib, which was later included by Neelo's husband Riaz Shahid in the film Zarqa. The song was:تو کہ ناواقفِ ادبِ غلامی ہے ابھیرقص زنجیر پہن کر بھی کیا جاتا ہےTu kay nawaqif-e-aadab-e-ghulami hae abhiRaqs zanjeer pehan kar bhi kiya jata hai.You are not aware of the protocol of a king's court. Sometimes one has to dance (before them) with the fetters on.Bhutto's government
In 1972 when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto came to power, many of his colleagues were able to hit fortunes. He, on the other hand, kept his integrity and stuck to ideology. According to sources close to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, one day Habib Jalib went to Bhutto's place to meet him. Bhutto on seeing him said that when are you going to come (referring to joining his political Party) Jalib said, "Have the oceans ever fallen in rivers".Zia-ul-Haq's martial law
During General Zia-ul-Haq's dictatorship, Jalib joined movement for democracy. He wrote the famous poem on Zia, where he asked how he could write darkness as Zia ( Zia literally means light in Urdu).ظلمت کو ضیا، صر صر کو صبا، بندے کو خدا کیا لکھناDarkness as light, Hot desert wind as a morning breezeHow can I write a human as God?
Benazir Bhutto's government
In 1988, General Zia-ul-Haq died in air crash and general elections were held. Benazir Bhutto came into power and released Habib Jalib. Fortunes were distributed to those who supported the government rather than those who supported democracy. Disappointed at the state of the nation, when asked if he felt any change after democracy, he said:حال اب تک وہی ہیں غریبوں کےدن پھرے ہیں فقت وزیروں کےہر بلاول ہے دیس کا مقروضپائوں ننگے ہیں بے نظیروں کےHaal ab tak wahi hain ghareeboan kayDin phiray hain faqat waziroan kayher Bilawal hai Dais ka maqroozpaoon nangay hain Benazeeroan kayThe status of the poor is still the samethe days of the ministers have indeed changedevery Bilawal (name of the only son of Benazir Bhutto) of the country is under debtwhile Benazirs (literally the poor) of the country walk without shoes
Death
Habib Jalib died on March 12, 1993.
His family refused the offer of the then government to pay for his funeral expenses. Qateel Shifai expressed his sorrow and grief in these words:اپنے سارے درد بھلا کر اوروں کے دکھ سہتا تھاہم جب غزلیں کہتے تھے وہ اکثر جیل میں رہتا تھاآخر چلا ہی گیا وہ روٹھ کر ہم فرزانوں سےوہ دیوانہ جس کو زمانہ جالب جالب کہتا تھاApney saarey dard bhula kar auron ke dukh sehta thaHum jub ghazlain kehtey thay wo aksar jail main rehta thaAakhir kaar chala hee gya wo rooth kar hum farzanoun seWo deewana jisko zamana Jalib Jalib kehta tha.
Poetry
Jalib’s poetry reflected his vision and approach to life. He never deviated from his chosen path. His love for humankind, his sympathy for the underdog and his passion for the fellow-beings were reflected in his verses. What is quite significant and somewhat rare in a poet who is also charged with political ideology is his capacity to suppress his anger against the injustices and tyrannies that he witnesses in life.
Jalib himself remained a victim of a cruel social order. He was imprisoned for some time after being wrongly implicated in various crimes.
With no regular source of income, he had a rootless existence, but he never considered compromising with his tormentors and coming to terms with established order. And yet Jalib’s poetry only reflects his anguish. It is not an expression of his anger or frustration. At times it is pensive, couched in sarcasm, but his typical soft melodious tone is always there. He believed that the Pakistani leaders should stop obeying the Westerners. His following poem reflects this.فرنگی کا جو میں دربان ہوتاتو جینا کس قدر آسان ہوتامیرے بچے بھی امریکہ میں پڑھتےمیں ہر گرمی میں انگلستان ہوتامری انگلش بھی بلا کی چست ہوتیبلا سے جو نہ میں اردو دان ہوتاسر جھکاکے جو ہو جاتا 'سر' میںتو لیڈر بھی عظیم الشان ہوتازمینیں میری ہر صوبے میں ہوتیںمیں واللہ صدرِ پاکستان ہوتاFarangi ka jo main darbaan hotaTho jeena kis kadar aasaan hotaMeray bachay bhi amreeka may parthayMain Har garmi may main Inglistaan hotaMeree English bhi balaa ki chusth hoteeBalaa say jo na main Urdu-daan hotaSar jhuka kay jo ho jaata sir mainTho leader bhi azeem-u-shaan hotaZameenain meree har soobay may hoteenMay wallah sadr-e-Pakistan hotaSome poems in his own voice
ظلمت کو ضیا Zulmat Ko Zia
قائدِ اعظم دیکھ رہے ہو اپنا پاکستان Quaid-e-Azam Dek Rahe Ho Apna Pakistan
فرنگی کا جو میں دربان ہوتا Farangi Ka Jo May Darban Hota
مزارے لغارے Mazaaray Laghaaray
وطن کو کچھ نہیں خطرہ Wathan Ko Kuch Nahi Khathra
یہ منصف بھی تو قیدی ہیں Ye Munsif Bhi Tho Qaidi Hain
گل سن Gal Sun (Punjabi)
میں نے اس سے یہ کہا Mein Ne Uss Se Yeh Kaha
دستور - میں نہیں مانتا Dastoor (Main Nahi Manta)
Recent tributes
Until the end of his life in 1993, Jalib remained a member of the Communist Party of Pakistan. In 1994, the Communist Party of Pakistan merged with the Mazdoor Kissan Party to form the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party.
Two members of the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party — Shahram Azhar and Taimur Rahman — launched a music video reciting Jalib's famous poem "Musheer Se" under the band title Laal, symbolizing Jalib's struggle for the workers and peasants.
Laal band remastered and remixed the revolutionary poem "Dastoor" in Habib Jalib's voice and included it in their 2009 album Umeed-e-Sahar.
On 23 March 2009, President of Pakistan has given the highest civil award (posthumously) to the legendary poet, which was received by his daughter.
Solo artist Umair Salim composed his poem "Dastoor" in a musical track to tribute the poet on his death anniversary in 2009, followed by a music video portraying Habib Jalib's life.
But as nation remembers this great poet, Pakistani channels have aired a story that Habib Jalib’s life partner is fighting with illness and she is deprived of the money President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister have announced for her.
Books
Sir-e-Maqtal
Zikr Behte Khoon Ka
Gumbad-e-Bedar
Kulyaat e Habib Jalib
Section of Habib Jalib work:
Maulana Altaf Hussain Hali (1837–1914) (Urdu: مولانا الطاف حسین حالی) was an Urdu poet, andWriter. Hali occupies a special position in the history of Urdu literature. He was a poet, a critic, a teacher, a reformer and an impressive prose-writer. He was a close friend of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.
Moulana Altaf Hussain Hali has an important place in Urdu literary history.He is one of the Aanasar-e-Khamsa of Urdu.He has written the Musaddas-e-Hali which occupies an important position in Urdu literature.
Born in Panipat in 1837, circumstances did not permit him to attain formal education in a school or college, yet he managed to acquire , through sustained self-effort, perfect command of Urdu, Persian and Arabic, and a good working knowledge of English. He later moved to Delhi where he wished to study the Islamic theology and poetic tradition. As a poet he did not confine himself within the narrow bounds of the ghazal, but successfully exploited the other poetic forms such as the nazm, the rubai, and the Marsia. More particularly, he harnessed his poetic abilities to the higher aims of social and moral edification. His famous long poem, Musaddas-e-Hali, examines the state of social and moral degradation prevalent in the then contemporary Muslim society. His prose treatise, Muqaddama-e-Shair-o-Shairi, is a pioneering work of literary criticism. It dwells on the limitations of the traditional ghazal, and points to the hollowness of its hackneyed themes and imagery, especially when the form is handled by inferior poets and versifiers.
Civil Service
It was here he chose the cognomen of Khastah ("The Spent One", or "The Tired One"). He was forced to return home, and pursued a government job until displaced by the First War of Independence of 1857.
Writing
Early life
Habib Jalib was born on March 24, 1928 as Habib Ahmad in a village near Hoshiarpur, British India. He migrated to Pakistan after partition and worked as a proofreader in Daily Imroze,Karachi. He was a progressive writer and soon started to grab the audience with his enthusiastic recitation of poetry. He wrote in plain language, adopted a simple style and addressed common people and issues. But the conviction behind his words, the music of his voice and his emotional energy coupled with the sensitivity of the socio-political context is what stirred the audience.
Political views
He was a Marxist-Leninist and aspired to the ideals of Communism. He was a member of theCommunist Party of Pakistan; later when the Communist Party was banned and started working under the banner of National Awami Party (NAP), Jalib joined the NAP. Due to his blunt expression of his beliefs, he suffered hard time all his life and spent most of time in Jails.Ayub Khan's martial law
Habib Jalib was first imprisoned during the martial law regime of Ayub Khan due to his defiant views on Ayub Khan's capitalistic policies. He wrote his legendary poem "Dastoor" during those days.
Criticizing those who supported Ayub Khan's regime, he wrote:کہیں گیس کا دھواں ہےکہیں گولیوں کی بارش ہےشب عہد کم نگاہیتجھے کس طرح سراہیںKahin gas ka dhuan haekahin golion ki baarishShab-e-ehd-e-kum nigahitujhay kis tarah saraheinThere is smoke of teargas in the airand the bullets are raining all aroundHow can I praise theethe night of the period of shortsightedness.
A humble man with limited means of livelihood, Jalib could never reconcile with the dictatorship of Ayub Khan. So when Ayub enforced his tailor-made constitution in the country in 1962, which a former prime minister Chaudhry Muhammad Ali likened to the Clock Tower of Lyallpur, Jalib wrote the following poem:دیپ جس کا محلات ہی میں جلےچند لوگوں کی خوشیوں کو لے کر چلےوہ جو سایےمیں ہر مصلحت کے پلےایسے دستور کو، صبح بےنور کومیں نہیں مانتا،میں نہیں مانتاWhose light shines only in palacesAnd carries the joys of only a few peopleThat derives its strength from others' weaknessesThat system, like a dawn without lightI refuse to acknowledge, I refuse to accept
Due to his daring revolt against the order of the day, Jalib was banned from official media but he remained undeterred. He rather started a tirade against the tyranny with more resolution. It reached its zenith when Fatima Jinnah decided to contest elections against Ayub Khan. All democratic forces rallied around her and at her election meetings, Jalib used to recite his fiery poems in front of an emotionally-charged crowd. His most popular poem at that time was:ماں کے پائوں تلے جنت ہے ادھر آجائوMaan kay paon talay jannat hai idhar aa jaoThe paradise is under the feet of the mother. So come into her fold.
In another incident which has become a part of the resistance folklore of the country, the Governor of West Pakistan, the Nawab of Kalabagh, invited filmstar Neelo to dance in front of a foreign dignitary (Be bold and read here Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran!). As she refused, the police was sent to bring her, which led to a suicide attempt on her part. This incident inspired a poem by Jalib, which was later included by Neelo's husband Riaz Shahid in the film Zarqa. The song was:تو کہ ناواقفِ ادبِ غلامی ہے ابھیرقص زنجیر پہن کر بھی کیا جاتا ہےTu kay nawaqif-e-aadab-e-ghulami hae abhiRaqs zanjeer pehan kar bhi kiya jata hai.You are not aware of the protocol of a king's court. Sometimes one has to dance (before them) with the fetters on.Bhutto's government
In 1972 when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto came to power, many of his colleagues were able to hit fortunes. He, on the other hand, kept his integrity and stuck to ideology. According to sources close to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, one day Habib Jalib went to Bhutto's place to meet him. Bhutto on seeing him said that when are you going to come (referring to joining his political Party) Jalib said, "Have the oceans ever fallen in rivers".Zia-ul-Haq's martial law
During General Zia-ul-Haq's dictatorship, Jalib joined movement for democracy. He wrote the famous poem on Zia, where he asked how he could write darkness as Zia ( Zia literally means light in Urdu).ظلمت کو ضیا، صر صر کو صبا، بندے کو خدا کیا لکھناDarkness as light, Hot desert wind as a morning breezeHow can I write a human as God?
Benazir Bhutto's government
In 1988, General Zia-ul-Haq died in air crash and general elections were held. Benazir Bhutto came into power and released Habib Jalib. Fortunes were distributed to those who supported the government rather than those who supported democracy. Disappointed at the state of the nation, when asked if he felt any change after democracy, he said:حال اب تک وہی ہیں غریبوں کےدن پھرے ہیں فقت وزیروں کےہر بلاول ہے دیس کا مقروضپائوں ننگے ہیں بے نظیروں کےHaal ab tak wahi hain ghareeboan kayDin phiray hain faqat waziroan kayher Bilawal hai Dais ka maqroozpaoon nangay hain Benazeeroan kayThe status of the poor is still the samethe days of the ministers have indeed changedevery Bilawal (name of the only son of Benazir Bhutto) of the country is under debtwhile Benazirs (literally the poor) of the country walk without shoes
Death
Habib Jalib died on March 12, 1993.
His family refused the offer of the then government to pay for his funeral expenses. Qateel Shifai expressed his sorrow and grief in these words:اپنے سارے درد بھلا کر اوروں کے دکھ سہتا تھاہم جب غزلیں کہتے تھے وہ اکثر جیل میں رہتا تھاآخر چلا ہی گیا وہ روٹھ کر ہم فرزانوں سےوہ دیوانہ جس کو زمانہ جالب جالب کہتا تھاApney saarey dard bhula kar auron ke dukh sehta thaHum jub ghazlain kehtey thay wo aksar jail main rehta thaAakhir kaar chala hee gya wo rooth kar hum farzanoun seWo deewana jisko zamana Jalib Jalib kehta tha.
Poetry
Jalib’s poetry reflected his vision and approach to life. He never deviated from his chosen path. His love for humankind, his sympathy for the underdog and his passion for the fellow-beings were reflected in his verses. What is quite significant and somewhat rare in a poet who is also charged with political ideology is his capacity to suppress his anger against the injustices and tyrannies that he witnesses in life.
Jalib himself remained a victim of a cruel social order. He was imprisoned for some time after being wrongly implicated in various crimes.
With no regular source of income, he had a rootless existence, but he never considered compromising with his tormentors and coming to terms with established order. And yet Jalib’s poetry only reflects his anguish. It is not an expression of his anger or frustration. At times it is pensive, couched in sarcasm, but his typical soft melodious tone is always there. He believed that the Pakistani leaders should stop obeying the Westerners. His following poem reflects this.فرنگی کا جو میں دربان ہوتاتو جینا کس قدر آسان ہوتامیرے بچے بھی امریکہ میں پڑھتےمیں ہر گرمی میں انگلستان ہوتامری انگلش بھی بلا کی چست ہوتیبلا سے جو نہ میں اردو دان ہوتاسر جھکاکے جو ہو جاتا 'سر' میںتو لیڈر بھی عظیم الشان ہوتازمینیں میری ہر صوبے میں ہوتیںمیں واللہ صدرِ پاکستان ہوتاFarangi ka jo main darbaan hotaTho jeena kis kadar aasaan hotaMeray bachay bhi amreeka may parthayMain Har garmi may main Inglistaan hotaMeree English bhi balaa ki chusth hoteeBalaa say jo na main Urdu-daan hotaSar jhuka kay jo ho jaata sir mainTho leader bhi azeem-u-shaan hotaZameenain meree har soobay may hoteenMay wallah sadr-e-Pakistan hotaSome poems in his own voice
ظلمت کو ضیا Zulmat Ko Zia
قائدِ اعظم دیکھ رہے ہو اپنا پاکستان Quaid-e-Azam Dek Rahe Ho Apna Pakistan
فرنگی کا جو میں دربان ہوتا Farangi Ka Jo May Darban Hota
مزارے لغارے Mazaaray Laghaaray
وطن کو کچھ نہیں خطرہ Wathan Ko Kuch Nahi Khathra
یہ منصف بھی تو قیدی ہیں Ye Munsif Bhi Tho Qaidi Hain
گل سن Gal Sun (Punjabi)
میں نے اس سے یہ کہا Mein Ne Uss Se Yeh Kaha
دستور - میں نہیں مانتا Dastoor (Main Nahi Manta)
Recent tributes
Until the end of his life in 1993, Jalib remained a member of the Communist Party of Pakistan. In 1994, the Communist Party of Pakistan merged with the Mazdoor Kissan Party to form the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party.
Two members of the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party — Shahram Azhar and Taimur Rahman — launched a music video reciting Jalib's famous poem "Musheer Se" under the band title Laal, symbolizing Jalib's struggle for the workers and peasants.
Laal band remastered and remixed the revolutionary poem "Dastoor" in Habib Jalib's voice and included it in their 2009 album Umeed-e-Sahar.
On 23 March 2009, President of Pakistan has given the highest civil award (posthumously) to the legendary poet, which was received by his daughter.
Solo artist Umair Salim composed his poem "Dastoor" in a musical track to tribute the poet on his death anniversary in 2009, followed by a music video portraying Habib Jalib's life.
But as nation remembers this great poet, Pakistani channels have aired a story that Habib Jalib’s life partner is fighting with illness and she is deprived of the money President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister have announced for her.
Books
Sir-e-Maqtal
Zikr Behte Khoon Ka
Gumbad-e-Bedar
Kulyaat e Habib Jalib
Section of Habib Jalib work:
MAULANA HALI
Maulana Altaf Hussain Hali (1837–1914) (Urdu: مولانا الطاف حسین حالی) was an Urdu poet, andWriter. Hali occupies a special position in the history of Urdu literature. He was a poet, a critic, a teacher, a reformer and an impressive prose-writer. He was a close friend of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.
Moulana Altaf Hussain Hali has an important place in Urdu literary history.He is one of the Aanasar-e-Khamsa of Urdu.He has written the Musaddas-e-Hali which occupies an important position in Urdu literature.
Born in Panipat in 1837, circumstances did not permit him to attain formal education in a school or college, yet he managed to acquire , through sustained self-effort, perfect command of Urdu, Persian and Arabic, and a good working knowledge of English. He later moved to Delhi where he wished to study the Islamic theology and poetic tradition. As a poet he did not confine himself within the narrow bounds of the ghazal, but successfully exploited the other poetic forms such as the nazm, the rubai, and the Marsia. More particularly, he harnessed his poetic abilities to the higher aims of social and moral edification. His famous long poem, Musaddas-e-Hali, examines the state of social and moral degradation prevalent in the then contemporary Muslim society. His prose treatise, Muqaddama-e-Shair-o-Shairi, is a pioneering work of literary criticism. It dwells on the limitations of the traditional ghazal, and points to the hollowness of its hackneyed themes and imagery, especially when the form is handled by inferior poets and versifiers.
Civil Service
It was here he chose the cognomen of Khastah ("The Spent One", or "The Tired One"). He was forced to return home, and pursued a government job until displaced by the First War of Independence of 1857.
Writing
After this turning point in his life, he drifted from job to job for several years, arriving eventually in Lahore in the mid 1870s, where he began to compose his epic poem at the request of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, the Musaddas e-Madd o-Jazr e-Islam ("An elegiac poem on the Ebb and Tide of Islam") under the new poetic pseudonym of Hali ("The Contemporary"). The Musaddas, or Musaddas-e-Hali, as it is often known, was published in 1879 to critical acclaim, and considered to herald the modern age of Urdu poetry. Hali also wrote one of the earliest works of literary criticism in Urdu, Muqaddamah-i Shay'r-o-Sha'iri.
Musaddas e mado jazr islam, one of Hali's most famous works describes the rise and fall of the Islamic empire in the sub-continent. It speaks about the Islamic empire at its best and worst.About Masadas-e-Hali,Sir Syed had said that If God will ask me that what have I achieved in life Then I will say that I've achieved The Mussadas written by Hali. The aim of this writing was to forewarn the Muslims of the sub-continent and make them more aware of their past and help them learn from their forefathers' mistakes. Some scholars of Pakistani nationalism also consider The Mussadas an important text for future articulation of a Muslim nation.
He has also written memorable biographies of Ghalib, Saadi Shirazi, and Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, entitled respectively, Yaadgar-e-Ghalib, Hayat-e-Saadi, and Hayat-e-Javad. His poem "Barkha Rut," describes the beauties of nature in the rainy season; "Hub-e-Watan," underscores the virtues of patriotism; while "Bewa ki Manajaat" focuses on the plight of widows in Indian society. Hali’s interests were wide-ranging, and his literary abilities were commensurate with his humanitarian aims.
MUSADAS-E-HAALI:
JALIB AND HAALI BOOKS
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