To all of them who don't know the difference between Ghazal n Sher.
Ghazal is a collection of Shers.
Sher is a poem of two lines. Every sher in itself is a poem.
Ghazal is an Arabic word that literally means a "discourse" or more correctly a "talk to women".
Qasida, an Arabic form of poetry came to Iran in about the 10th century. It was at times unmanageably long, n often have 100 couplets or more. A portion of the qasida, known as the tashib was detached and this became the ghazal. The ghazal soon became the most popular form of poetry in Iran.
Ghazal's introduction into India from the 12th century, was part of an ongoing revolution in North Indian society. India considered herself to be culturally inferior to greater Persia. Thus Persian culture became a great inspiration for India. It was given a local colour by many Indian artists such as Amir Khusru, and continued to enjoy widespread popularity among Indian Muslims for many centuries.
Although the ghazal was introduced first in the north, the south is responsible for its Urdu character. The North Indian principalities were very much oriented toward Persian, but it was in the south that Urdu was beginning to be used for literary purposes. Northern India began to embrace Urdu as a poetic language only in about the 19th century.
Structure of the Ghazal
The poetic structure of the ghazal is precise. It is based upon a series of couplets which are woven together by a precise rhyming structure.
The first couplet is always the most important, this is known as the matla. The matla is important because it establishes the overall form and mood of the entire ghazal. Each subsequent couplet is linked to the matla in a well defined fashion. The second verse of each couplet must rhyme with this. Therefore, if the rhyming structure of the matla is AA, then the subsequent couplets have the form BA, CA, DA, etc.
There is a convention in the ghazal known as the radif. This is a characteristic way that a portion of the first line (usually just two or three words) is maintained throughout the ghazal.
The last couplet of the ghazal is very important, this is called the maqta. It usually contains the pen name (takhallus) of the poet. The maqta is usually a personal statement which may be very different in tone from the rest of the ghazal. Today it is becoming more common to leave off the maqta.
The most common theme in the ghazal is unrequited love. Although the themes of each couplet in a ghazal are usually distinct, there are some occasions where there is consistency. The Nazm is an example of a style that exhibits remarkable consistency in its thematic approach. A more common type of thematic connection is known as qita. Still, the norm is for each couplet to stand alone thematically.
Ghazal is a collection of Shers.
Sher is a poem of two lines. Every sher in itself is a poem.
Ghazal is an Arabic word that literally means a "discourse" or more correctly a "talk to women".
Qasida, an Arabic form of poetry came to Iran in about the 10th century. It was at times unmanageably long, n often have 100 couplets or more. A portion of the qasida, known as the tashib was detached and this became the ghazal. The ghazal soon became the most popular form of poetry in Iran.
Ghazal's introduction into India from the 12th century, was part of an ongoing revolution in North Indian society. India considered herself to be culturally inferior to greater Persia. Thus Persian culture became a great inspiration for India. It was given a local colour by many Indian artists such as Amir Khusru, and continued to enjoy widespread popularity among Indian Muslims for many centuries.
Although the ghazal was introduced first in the north, the south is responsible for its Urdu character. The North Indian principalities were very much oriented toward Persian, but it was in the south that Urdu was beginning to be used for literary purposes. Northern India began to embrace Urdu as a poetic language only in about the 19th century.
Structure of the Ghazal
The poetic structure of the ghazal is precise. It is based upon a series of couplets which are woven together by a precise rhyming structure.
The first couplet is always the most important, this is known as the matla. The matla is important because it establishes the overall form and mood of the entire ghazal. Each subsequent couplet is linked to the matla in a well defined fashion. The second verse of each couplet must rhyme with this. Therefore, if the rhyming structure of the matla is AA, then the subsequent couplets have the form BA, CA, DA, etc.
There is a convention in the ghazal known as the radif. This is a characteristic way that a portion of the first line (usually just two or three words) is maintained throughout the ghazal.
The last couplet of the ghazal is very important, this is called the maqta. It usually contains the pen name (takhallus) of the poet. The maqta is usually a personal statement which may be very different in tone from the rest of the ghazal. Today it is becoming more common to leave off the maqta.
The most common theme in the ghazal is unrequited love. Although the themes of each couplet in a ghazal are usually distinct, there are some occasions where there is consistency. The Nazm is an example of a style that exhibits remarkable consistency in its thematic approach. A more common type of thematic connection is known as qita. Still, the norm is for each couplet to stand alone thematically.
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