Khushbu (poetry)
Khushbu (Urdu: خوشبو) is a volume of poetry written by Pakistani poet and columnist Parveen Shakir, and published in 1976.[1][2]
Poetry
The poetry in Khushbu, like most of Shakir's subsequent work, can be divided into two categories: the ghazal [plural: ghazalyaat], and free verse.
Ghazal
Style
Most of Shakir's ghazalyaat contain five to ten couplets, often - though not always - inter-related. Sometimes, two consecutive couplets may differ greatly in meaning and context [For example, in one of her works, the couplet 'That girl, like her home, perhaps/ Fell victim to the flood' is immediately followed by 'I see light when I think of you/ Perhaps remembrance has become the moon'].[3] The ghazalyaat in Khusbhu heavily rely on metaphors and similes, which are repeatedly and thought-provokingly used to bring force, thoughtfulness and lyricism in her work. An example is the couplet, "Wo tou khushbu hai, hawaon main bikhar jaye ga/ Masla phool ka hai, phool kidher jayega?"[4] [Translation: He is fragrance, he will scatter in the air/ the trouble lies with the flower - where shall the flower go?] where Shakir relates 'fragrance' to an unfaithful lover, 'air' to the unfaithful's secret loves, and 'flower' to the person cheated. Other metaphors Shakir commonly used in the book are mausum [weather] for times, ghulab [rose] for the female lover, titli [butterfly] for a Romeo, hava [wind] for a wayward love, darya [river] for affection, baarish [rain] for affection, and aandhi [storm] for difficulties.
Themes
The ghazalyaat in Khusbu mainly deal with the feminine perspective on love and romance, and associated themes such as beauty, intimacy, separation, break-ups, distances, distrust and infidelity and disloyalty.[5]
Shakir in her ghazal
The ghazalyaat in Shakir's books are one of the biggest, undisputed sources to her personality, and those in Khushbu establish her as an emotional, romantic, fiery and, above all, strong woman. In one couplet, Shakir's describes her fiery nature, and determination to acquire what she loves, thus:
"My heart is fiery, and to reach thee/
It shall render my body a canoe, and my blood a river."[6]
Separation
Shakir's work Let Him Come to Sprout a Flower in my Heart[7] heavily focuses on these themes. A few couplets are cited here:
"Let him come to sprout a flower in my heart,
Let him come to wound my heart anew!
Let fragrance awaken in my empty doors,
Let him come to decorate my house.
Around here, live many people he knows,
Can not he come under pretense of meeting someone else?"[7]
In The Night Dances Like my Body, Shakir says:
"I will live my life, away from you,
Like an exile."[8]
Similarly, separation that is unwilling on both sides is implied by the following couplets in her ghazal My face - his eyes!
"Often, I wake up from my sleep, thinking,
How does he bear the night [sans me]?
Despite all these distances, his arms,
[Seem to] encircle me, forever."[9]
Some other couplets of Shakir, focusing on the theme of separation:
"He walks with me, like the moon,
Who says I am alone in nights of separation?"[10]
"Meeting - promise to meet again - separation,
So much happened so suddenly!"[11]
"I am living after [separating from] you,
And you - you, too, are living your life."[12]
Other
Shakir's poetry often speaks of pain, its pain and its joy.[13] It also often mentions loss and loneliness,[14] grief, shattered dreams, life after a break-up[15] and the healing power of love.[16]
See also
References
- ↑ "Parveen Shakir: Biography". Archived from the original on 30 September 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
- ↑ "Parveen Shakir in the eyes of Fatema Hassan". The Express Tribune. 23 May 2014. Archived from the original on 5 January 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
- ↑ Neend tou khwaab ho gai shayad - Pg. 121, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Wo tou khushbu hai - Pg. 190, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ "Parveen Shakir birth anniversary". 30 May 2013. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ↑ Dhanak dhanak meri porun ko khwaab kr de ga - Pg. 210, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Kurya-e-jaan main koi phool khilanay aye - Pg. 45, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Raks main raat hai badan ki tarah - Pg. 38, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Chehra mera tha, nigaahain uski - Pg. 46, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Wo rut bhi aai - Pg. 52, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Lamhaat-e-wasl kaisay hijaaboun main kat gaye - Pg. 95, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Sochun tou saath chal raha hai - Pg. 127, Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Pages 132, 306, 336 - Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Pages 61, 243, 222 - Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Pages 83, 95, 127, 136, 196, 228, 232, 263, 292 - Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.
- ↑ Pages 78, 208, 210, 302 - Khushbu by Parveen Shakir, JBD Press Edition.