Writing Urdu Poetry

Posted by | Posted in Poetry | Posted on 21-08-2009

If you decide that you want to be a writer, then poetry is a good place to start. Where do you start? How is American poetry different from Urdu poetry? Why write poetry? You may be asking yourself these questions and more.

Where to Start

When you decide you want to write poetry you should decide if you are planning on writing any other kinds of literature. This will help you to know if you are going to want to stay only with creative writing and help you to figure out if you need to research other kinds of poetry such as Urdu poetry. You can write poetry on any subject if you really want to.

How is American Different from Urdu Poetry?

There really is not that much of a difference because it is all poetry that we can learn from. You may not be able to understand this when you are writing because you may not even know what Urdu poetry really is in the first place. You may need to take the time to research what you want to write weather it would be Urdu poetry or American based poetry. If you are multicultural then you will be able to understand the Urdu poetry better then if you are just reading American based poetry. Urdu poetry is a great place for a person that is going to start writing poetry to start because it will help you to respect what others before you have written as well as what other cultures may say. Take the time to learn Urdu poetry for you and your writing. This will help it to get better in the long run.

Why write it?

There are many reasons that you may chose to write poetry but the main reason is that you just want to write. Many people will not follow their instincts when it comes to writing. They don’t understand that it’s really a feeling and it’s not just something that you can learn to do. You have to be born with a creative edge so that you can easily write your words. If you feel that you are not the best writer but still feel that great need to write then you can take classes to learn how to write your grammar better so that your poetry makes more sense to you and your readers.

When you start with your poetry writing you need to think about what you may have already read before you started writing the poetry. This may include the Urdu poetry that you may have heard about from your family or from your college classes. You should take the time to read these so that you know what people in the past have written as well as knowing what style you may want to write in. The more styles that you read, the more that you will learn and the better writer you will become. Take the time to understand the writing that is around you so that you can be the best writer that you can be.

About the Author:
The Author writes articles on urdu poetry. More articles written by the author related to nazam, mushaira and new urdu poets which can be found at www.hallagulla.com/

  • Share/Bookmark

Different Forms of Urdu Poetry

Posted by | Posted in Poetry | Posted on 21-08-2009

Urdu poetry adheres to a number of strict rules that give way to its unique poetic structure. These rules govern the groups of versed lines that are used in every Urdu poem and dictate their meter, rhythm, rhyming pattern, ending words, and the location of the poet’s signature. Despite these strict rules, Urdu poetry has evolved into an incredibly colourful art that manifests itself in a myriad of different forms.

Each of the forms of Urdu poetry has unique characteristics that differentiate them from all the others. Although we won’t be able to cover every single form in this article, we will take a look at some of the more popular ones:

Ghazal. The Ghazal is a collection of many couplets (called “shers”), or pairs of lined verse that follow the rules of bahar, radeef, matla, maqta, and qafiya. Every couplet in a Ghazal should express a single thought or focus on a certain theme in such a way that it has the ability to stand alone. Each couplet in a Ghazal must have the same meter, bahar, the same rhyming pattern, qafiya, and must end in the same words, radeef. Each couplet must also have an opening couplet called a matla. Some Ghazals in Urdu poetry have the pen name of the poet incorporated into the last couplet, which is then called maqta.

Marsiya. A Marsiya is an elegantly written poem whose purpose is to express sorrow over the death of a great man or a deeply-loved person. From a historical perspective, the traditional Marsiya of Urdu poetry was composed to honour the self-sacrifice of Hazrat Imam Husain and his troops at the Battle of Karbala. This type of Marsiya describes how Hazrat Imam Husain and his comrades fought Yazid’s army on Karbala’s plains.

Masnawi. A Masnawi is a long, narrative epic poem that depicts stories of great battles that were fought in the past. They usually include a philosophical or ethical thought. A Masnawi is much longer than a Ghazal and it contains rhyming couplets. However, each of the couplets have a different rhyming pattern and end in different words.

Qasida. A Qasida is very long ballad that is written to praise a king or a nobleman. It sometimes also describes great battles. It is not unusual to find a Qasida that is more than 100 couplets long. Like the Ghazal, the Qasida starts with a rhyming couplet and uses the same qafiya, or rhyming pattern, throughout the poem. The Ghazal as we know it today was originally derived from the Qasida.

Nazm. In Urdu poetry, the word “Nazm” is used to describe a poem that cannot be classified under any particular form. From a literary perspective, each verse in the Nazm is built upon one central theme, as opposed to the theme variation of the couplets in a Ghazal. The verses of a traditional Nazm adhere to the same rhyming pattern, but more modern Nazms may be written in free verse.

As you can see from this short description of some of the different forms of Urdu poetry, the subject is a very intricate and wide-ranging one. It normally takes a dedicated student years and years to master the art of Urdu poetry. But that knowledge shouldn’t stop you from reading and enjoying the fantastic poems of this very special form of art.

About the Author:
The Author writes articles on urdu poetry. More articles written by the author related to Indian and Pakistani poets, Urdu Poetry & Shayari Books and Urdu Poet Forum & Community which can be found at www.urdupoet.net/