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    Faiz Ahmed Faiz: A Revolutionary Poet

    Written by: Waseem Abbas
    Posted on: October 27, 2022 | | 中文

    Faiz Ahmed Faiz in Karachi, 1968

    Poetry is simply wordplay; you describe your emotions with the use of classical maxims, adjectives, similes and metaphors. It is only immortalized if it conveys the burning issues of the day along with the aesthetics of the poet, all through verse. Few poets can claim to have produced poetry that relates to the issues of every age, and which appeals to all sections of society worldwide. Faiz Ahmed Faiz is one such poet.

    Young Faiz Ahmed Faiz

    "Nisar Ma Teray Galiyon Kay" is one nazm that captures the real essence of Faiz's poetry in its entirety. The poem has all the ingredients of Faiz the poet: raising his voice against the oppressors, treading non-conformist paths, using classical diction and style, mixing romanticism with revolutionary zeal and the hope of the eventual rise of the oppressed.

    Faiz's stature in Urdu poetry is uncontested, and he has mixed realism into hitherto surrealistic Urdu poetry. Noon Meem Rashid wrote in the foreword of Faiz’s first collection, Naqsh-i-Faryadi: “This is a collection of ghazals and nazms by a poet standing at the intersection of romance and realism”. Faiz’s impact and influence in the contemporary era is such that 'you can love him, or you can hate him, but you can't ignore him.' He was not a regular Urdu poet who wrote poem after poem on the beauty of his beloved, mentioning her long black hair that glitter as she walks, praising her beautiful eyes, and her face as bright and spotless as the sun, lips as thin as a petal, and voice as soothing as a bird. His beloved is situated in a social setting and is influenced by the happenings of the day.

    Noon Meem Rashid and Faiz

    In his famous poem 'Mujh se Pehli se muhabbat meray Mehboob na mang' (my beloved, do not demand the love I gave you once), Faiz says:

    Aur bhi dukh hain zamanay ma muhabbat kay siwa
    Rahatain aur bhi hain wasl ki Rahat kay siwa

    "This world of ours bleeds
    With more pains than just the pain of love;
    And many more pleasures beckon us all the time
    Than just the fleeting pleasures of a reunion with you"

    Dilip Kumar and Faiz

    Moeen Qazi eulogies Faiz's poetic prowess for seamlessly mingling the love of the beloved and the societal oppressions, and penning both in the traditions and diction of classical ghazal and nazam. Love and revolution go side by side in Faiz's poetry, Qazi retorts: "At the hands of an artistic rebel like Faiz, even surrealism became a weapon in the advance of the proletariat."

    Faiz's poetry is a reflection of his times; it reverberates with the themes like the issues of the working class, injustice, exploitation of the workers, poverty, and the suffering of ordinary men and women. Yet he doesn't let his poetry become political rhetoric. He was a progressive and art for him served a purpose. Poets and artists, like all human beings, reside in a social world, so they must be cognizant of the realities of their era and their poetry should reflect it. He maintained that 'art for art's sake' is not as effective as 'art for the sake of life'. He was of the view that any art that doesn't inspire action from the onlookers is simply not great as art. Content, not form, has primary importance in poetry.

    Faiz was not only a man of words but also a man of actions. He did not shy away from challenges and resisting oppression. He was one of the main suspects in the 1951 Rawalpindi Conspiracy case, was jailed and tried for plotting to overthrow the democratically elected government of Liaqat Ali Khan. The plan ostensibly was to oust the government backed by the Western bloc and replace it with a government that was more independent. Gen Akbar Khan, who masterminded and led the conspiracy, blamed the civilian government for the disastrous incursion in Kashmir and the lack of vision for Pakistan's future. Many army officers and communist leaders joined him in the conspiracy, most notably Sajjad Zaheer, Major General Nazir, Colonial Hasan Khan, Brigadier Latif and Faiz Ahmed Faiz.

    Faiz with Sajjad Zaheer

    Faiz's poetry is replete with religious symbolism, but his understanding of religion is inspired by Sufi thought and not by obscurantist and dogmatic religious scholars. Faiz's resolve to fight religious extremism and authoritarian rulers made this iconoclast an international name. Faiz in his famous nazm ‘Ham dekheñge’, which is replete with religious symbolism and has become an anthem of resistance both in Pakistan and India’ writes:

    “ham dekheñge
    lāzim hai ki ham bhī dekheñge
    vo din ki jis kā va.ada hai
    jo lauh-e-azal meñ likhkhā hai
    jab zulm-o-sitam ke koh-e-girāñ
    ruuī kī tarah uḌ jā.eñge

    ham mahkūmoñ ke pāñv-tale
    jab dhartī dhaḌ-dhaḌ dhaḌkegī
    aur ahl-e-hakam ke sar-ūpar
    jab bijlī kaḌ-kaḌ kaḌkegī
    jab arz-e-ḳhudā ke ka.abe se
    sab but uThvā.e jā.eñge
    ham ahl-e-safā mardūd-e-haram
    masnad pe biThā.e jā.eñge
    sab taaj uchhāle jā.eñge
    sab taḳht girā.e jā.eñge
    Bas naam rahegā allāh kā
    jo ġhā.eb bhī hai hāzir bhī
    jo manzar bhī hai nāzir bhī
    uTThegā anal-haq kā na.ara
    jo maiñ bhī huuñ aur tum bhī ho
    aur raaj karegī ḳhalq-e-ḳhudā
    jo maiñ bhī huuñ aur tum bhī ho”

    translation:

    “We’ll see!

    We’ll so damn see the promised day —
    carved on the stone of eternity
    When the mountains of oppression
    will disperse in the air like feathers

    When ground beneath the feet of us
    will thump with the beats of our hearts
    When over the heads of the rulers
    will crash a thunderous roar
    When idols from the holy shrine
    We’ll throw away for good
    When we the denigrated ones,
    we the purest souls
    will take the highest seat
    we’ll fling all crowns to dirt
    and thrash all thrones to ground.

    What will remain is only His name –
    He who’s present and also isn’t
    He who observes
    and is also observed

    The sky will drown with the cries
    of I am truth, I am God, I am one with God

    And what will rule the world
    is only His creation —
    which is you, which is me
    which is everyone.”

    Faiz with Iqbal Bano

    Faiz spent many years in prison and many more in exile, in England and Lebanon. His opposition to tyranny was not confined to geographical boundaries, as he supported the Vietnamese cause and the Palestinian liberation movement. In fact, he was a close friend of Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)'s leader Yasser Arafat in his quest for Palestine's liberation.

    Faiz and Yasir Arafat

    Faiz’s personal life was also a subject of great debate even in his life. Faiz was born in 1911 in Sialkot, but his life revolved around fighting for the downtrodden section of society. Faiz, the winner of the Lenin Peace Prize, remained a harsh critic of imperialism, the Army, and the establishment, but he fought for the British Army in World War II. Ali Madeeh Hashmi, the author of Faiz’s authorized biography and the poet’s grandson, argues that Faiz fought against Fascists in WWII, which is not a deviation from his principles. Controversies didn’t evade Faiz even after his death; when his family decided to give him a Muslim burial, his lifelong communist friends objected to it. Ali Madeeh quotes Salima as saying: “They were very angry. They said, as an atheist, he would not have agreed to that (traditional burial). But I said, Abba organized that for anyone in the family who died. His sister passed away, his mother passed away, all of that was done…But those diehard communists, they weren’t convinced.”

    Faiz anf his wife with their kids

    Faiz had become a legend during his lifetime due to his revolutionary politics and poetry, his commitment to Marxism, his humanist approach towards society, and above all, as a man who never compromised his principles, even if the price was imprisonment and exile. Faiz's revolutionary poetry and life inspired many in his lifetime and continues to do so, and hopefully, his message of humanism and egalitarianism will inspire the coming generations as well.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021