miTTii thaa, kisne chaak pe rakh kar ghumaa diyaa
voh kaun haath the ki jo chaaha banaa diyaa
[chaak=potter's wheel]
مٹی تھا کسنے چاک پہ رکھ کر گھما دیا
وہ کون ہاتھ تھے کہ جو چاہا بنا دیا
اجلال مجید
मिटटी था, किसने चाक पे रख कर घुमा दिया
वह कौन हाथ थे कि जो चाहा बना दिया
Isn't it an amazing couplet? We often ask ourselves the same question. It is an age-old quest regarding the raison d'etre behind our existence but Ijlal Majeed's ghazal with the above mentioned matlaa' has said it in a unique way.
Was nothing but a handful of soil from the earth, turned
Who were those hands that created, had this form envisioned!
The mystery behind the creation. He has expressed it beautifully. Ijlal is brother of Iqbal Majeed, the rewnowed Urdu writer who is foremost contemporary fiction writer in Urdu after Intizar Husain in Pakistan and Naiyar Masood in India.
Iqbal Majeed is popular across the Urdu world though his association with radio affected his literary output earlier. His recent work, 'Namak', was a masterful novel. However, his brother Ijlal [pronouced Ijlaal] is a poet who prefers solitude.
To read the entire ghazal in Urdu, Hindi and English scripts. Click here
