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Mirza Beg Asadullah Khan famously known as Mirza Ghalib, was a legendary Indian poet of Urdu. He came from a Mughal family that moved to Samarkand after the Seljuk rulers were overthrown. His life and poetry reflect the turbulent political times he lived in. Ghalib’s work is important for showing the decline of the Mughal Empire and the impact of the British East India Company’s rule, as well as the aftermath of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. He wrote in both Urdu and Persian, but his Urdu poetry is most famous and his ghazals are most influential and popular till today. Read on to know more about who is Mirza Ghalib in the blog.
Table of Contents
| Overview of Mirza Ghalib | |
| Real Name | Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan |
| Born | 27 December, 1797 |
| Birthplace | Agra |
| Profession | Persian Poet |
| Pen Name | Mirza Ghalib , Ghalib and Asad |
| Poetry Forms Invented | Ghazal (lyrics) |
| Masnavi (moralistic or mystical parable) | |
| Qasidah (panegyric) | |
| Recognitions | Dabir-ul-Mulk by Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar II in 1850 |
| Najm ud-Daulah. | |
| Died | 15th February 1869, Old Delhi |
hogā koī aisā bhī ki ‘ġhālib’ ko na jaane
-Mirza Ghalib
shā.ir to vo achchhā hai pa badnām bahut hai
Mirza Ghalib: Early Life
Born as Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan at Kala Mahal, Agra on 27th December 1797, he used the pen names Mirza Ghalib or Ghalib, which means the Conqueror and Asad in his poems.
- He was just 7 years old when he travelled to Delhi, and in his later life, he chose Delhi as his hometown.
- Ghalib came from a Central Asian family linked to the Mughal elite.
- He learned Persian, Arabic, and Turkish, and began writing poems at 11.
- Mirza was married to Umrao Begum at a very young age of 13 years.
- After his father and uncle died, and his marriage to Umrao Begum started, his life became very difficult.
- He often wrote about the tough things he saw in life. Some people thought his wife was very religious and traditional, but others disagreed.
- Ghalib moved to Delhi in 1812 but struggled with money and living off loans.
- His personal life was hard because he didn’t have a steady job or a place to live.
- Ghalib had seven children with his wife Umrao Begum, but they faced complexities in their marriage, and all their babies died.
Mirza Ghalib: Career
Mirza Ghalib began writing poetry when he was just 11 years old. Even though his first language was Urdu, he also spoke Persian and Turkish at home because of his family background. Besides Urdu, he picked up Persian and Arabic lessons early on. When Mirza Ghalib was in his early teens, a traveller from Iran named Abdus Samad, who had just converted to Islam from Zoroastrianism, came to Agra and stayed with Ghalib for two years. During this time, Samad taught him Persian, Arabic, Philosophy, and Logic.
- By the time he was 19, Mirza Ghalib had written most of his famous ghazals.
- Back then, ghazals were mainly about love, sadness and pain.
- But Mirza Ghalib had a different approach, he changed the game and started writing ghazals about philosophy, life’s struggles, and mysteries.
- Mirza Ghalib wrote ghazals on all topics relevant, really pushing the boundaries of the ghazal form.
At that point, the Urdu language was all about being fancy and formal. But Mirza Ghalib made it more relatable. This is especially clear in the letters he sent to his friends. These letters comprised humour and wit within them. Thus Ghalib also became a master of letter writing, adopting a style that made the letters feel like personal conversations. His letters were informal, often starting with the recipient’s name.
ham ko ma.alūm hai jannat kī haqīqat lekin
-Mirza Ghalib
dil ke ḳhush rakhne ko ‘ġhālib’ ye ḳhayāl achchhā hai
Ghalib and Bahadur Shah Zafar II
Ghalib is believed to have never got the recognition he truly deserved from the courts of Delhi and Lucknow.
- King Nasiruddin Haidar of Awadh gave him a reward of Rs. 5000, but it got lost to the court officials who swindled him.
- He was also made the royal historian in 1850, even though he was pretty old by then. Bahadur Shah Zafar II gave him a special title and made him the royal historian.
- The Delhi Mughal court gave him titles of Dabir-ul-Mulk, Najm-ud-Daula and Mirza Nosha.
Bahadur Shah Zafar II was not just a ruler; he was also a poet. In 1854, Mirza Ghalib became his mentor, making him an important figure in the royal court. He also looked after Prince Fakhr-ud Din Mirza, the king’s oldest son. But just three years later, the ‘Mutiny of 1857’ took place, crushing all of Ghalib’s hopes. He was there to see the terrible events and the struggles that followed in 1857.
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Mirza Ghalib Literary Contributions
Ghalib’s early learning of Persian and Arabic laid the foundation for his unique style, mixing different language and poetry traditions. He often left the identity and gender of his beloved vague, which let him dive deep into philosophical and existential themes.
Ghalib had a broad spectrum of religious beliefs. In his works, he paid tribute to the Prophet Muhammad while criticizing the hypocrisy and misconduct of some religious figures. His poem “Chiragh-i-Dair,” which reflected his view of India, offered a thoughtful insight into the Indian continent.
mohabbat meñ nahīñ hai farq jiine aur marne kā
-Mirza Ghalib
usī ko dekh kar jiite haiñ jis kāfir pe dam nikle
Translations and Books on Ghalib’s work
During a special event called the “ru-ba-ru session” by the Haryana Urdu Academy, Dr. Taqi discussed Mirza Ghalib’s poetry. He shared that Ghalib wrote more than 1,700 couplets in Urdu in 1865 compared to over 11,000 in Persian.
| Love Sonnets of Ghalib | It was the first complete English translation of Ghalib’s Ghazals. |
| It was written by Sarfaraz K. Niazi and published by Rupa & Co. in India and Ferozsons in Pakistan. | |
| The Oxford Ghalib | Ralph Russell translated Ghalib’s letters. |
| Published by The Oxford University Press | |
| Urdu Letters of Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib | Daud Rahbar’s translation. |
| Released by SUNY Press in 1987 | |
| Kulliyat-e-Ghalib Farsi | It is an anthology of Persian poetry by Ghalib |
| First introduced at Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) | |
| Later, released in Tehran by the ambassadors of India and Pakistan at a function sponsored by the Iranian Ministry of Arts and Culture on September 20, 2010. | |
| This unique collection contains 11,337 verses of Ghalib’s poetry | |
| It was compiled by Dr Syed Taqi Abedi. |
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Later Life of Mirza Ghalib: Death
After the Mutiny of 1857, Mirza witnessed the fall of the Mughal Empire and the rise of British rule. He never earned a living, relying on royal favours or friends’ support.
- After the Mughal Empire’s decline, Ghalib struggled to receive his full pension.
- His poetry reflects the changes he observed, including the disappearance of Delhi’s historic bazaars like Urdu Bazaar, Khara-Ka Bazaar and Khas Bazaar and the transformation of the city into a military camp.
- Ghalib passed away in Delhi on 15th February 1869, buried near Nizamuddin Auliya’s tomb.
- His former residence in Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, Chandni Chowk, Old Delhi, is now a ‘Ghalib Memorial’ housing a permanent exhibition.
Ghazal by Mirza Ghalib
दिल-ए-नादाँ तुझे हुआ क्या है आख़िर इस दर्द की दवा क्या है हम हैं मुश्ताक़ और वो बे-ज़ार या इलाही ये माजरा क्या है मैं भी मुँह में ज़बान रखता हूँ काश पूछो कि मुद्दआ' क्या है जब कि तुझ बिन नहीं कोई मौजूद फिर ये हंगामा ऐ ख़ुदा क्या है ये परी-चेहरा लोग कैसे हैं ग़म्ज़ा ओ इश्वा ओ अदा क्या है शिकन-ए-ज़ुल्फ़-ए-अंबरीं क्यूँ है निगह-ए-चश्म-ए-सुरमा सा क्या है सब्ज़ा ओ गुल कहाँ से आए हैं अब्र क्या चीज़ है हवा क्या है हम को उन से वफ़ा की है उम्मीद जो नहीं जानते वफ़ा क्या है हाँ भला कर तिरा भला होगा और दरवेश की सदा क्या है जान तुम पर निसार करता हूँ मैं नहीं जानता दुआ क्या है मैं ने माना कि कुछ नहीं 'ग़ालिब' मुफ़्त हाथ आए तो बुरा क्या है
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जौर से बाज़ आए पर बाज़ आएँ क्या कहते हैं हम तुझ को मुँह दिखलाएँ क्या रात दिन गर्दिश में हैं सात आसमाँ हो रहेगा कुछ न कुछ घबराएँ क्या लाग हो तो उस को हम समझें लगाव जब न हो कुछ भी तो धोका खाएँ क्या हो लिए क्यूँ नामा-बर के साथ साथ या रब अपने ख़त को हम पहुँचाएँ क्या मौज-ए-ख़ूँ सर से गुज़र ही क्यूँ न जाए आस्तान-ए-यार से उठ जाएँ क्या उम्र भर देखा किया मरने की राह मर गए पर देखिए दिखलाएँ क्या पूछते हैं वो कि 'ग़ालिब' कौन है कोई बतलाओ कि हम बतलाएँ क्या
धमकी में मर गया, जो न बाब-ए-नबर्द था इश्क़-ए-नबर्द-पेश:, तलबगार-ए-मर्द था था ज़िन्दगी में मर्ग का खटका लगा हुआ उड़ने से पेश्तर भी मिरा रंग ज़र्द था तालीफ़-ए-नुस्ख़:हा-ए-वफ़ा कर रहा था मैं मजमू`अ:-ए-ख़याल अभी फ़र्द फ़र्द था दिल ता जिगर कि साहिल-ए-दरिया-ए-ख़ूँ है अब इस रहगुज़र में जलव:-ए-गुल आगे गर्द था जाती है कोई कशमकश अन्दोह-ए-इश्क़ की दिल भी अगर गया, तो वही दिल का दर्द था अहबाब चार:-साज़ि-ए-वहशत न कर सके ज़िन्दाँ में भी ख़याल, बयाबाँ-नवर्द था यह लाश-ए-बेकफ़न, असद-ए-ख़स्त: जाँ की है हक़ मग़फ़िरत करे, `अजब आज़ाद मर्द था -मिर्ज़ा ग़ालिब
Deep Thinking and Relevance Today
Ghalib’s deep thoughts on life, faith, happiness, sadness, existence, and death made him stand out. He did not dwell on being cynical; instead, he was realistic about life’s complexities. His influence has only deepened over the years, drawing in today’s audience with his blend of intellectual depth and spiritual yearning.
FAQs
Mirza Ghalib is famous because of his relatable Urdu Ghazals and sher’s.
Ghalib
Hazaron khwahishe aisi ke har khwahish pe dam nikle, Bahut nikle mere arman lekin fir bhi kam nikle.
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