Ghamay pinhaan ayaan karnay laga houn
Hadeesay dil bayaan karnay laga houn
A good deal of Rasheed Saqi’s poetry is nothing more than his own private reverie. His style is not only elaborate but too concerned with the ordinary, familiar emotions. He understands them so well and finds so much in them that he feels no need to explore unusual regions of the poetry.
In his ‘ghazal’ collections i.e. ‘Souzay Daroon’, ‘Zoukay Safar’, ‘Haaslay Umray Rawaan’ and ‘Chashmay Nazzaara Talab’, candour and passion fall naturally into a formal pattern and give life to it. That is the secret of the perennial appeal of the classical style:
Aanghain purnum, dil afsurda, lub mehvay faryad rahay
Gardashay douran tairay haathoun hum kitnay nashad rahay
Saqi’s poetry is not like an overdressed lady. The language of his poetry has a broad import. His poetry flows straight from the heart. His verses are neither crowded nor heavy. We pass quietly from one verse to the next and see exactly what he wishes to convey. This is the secret of his art:
Ujri hui basti mein guzar kon karay ga
Meray dile sud chaak mein ghar kon karay ga
Yeh mojza shaed teray hathoun se ho mumkin
Warna kisi pathr ko gohar kon karay ga
His words are fresh, simple, and the result never looks laborious. Although thoughts are never very far from his verses, but personal gloom inspires much of his poetry. His is a mild submissive melancholy which releases his creative muscle in a unique way. There is a note of complaint in his poetry but less self-pity:
Aap kay hotay huyay kutch fikray tanhaee na tha
Aap kay janay se main dunya mein tanha reh gaya
Main ne dekha tha kabhi Saqi jahane rango boo
Dekhnay ko ab tu apna he tamasha reh gaya
Saqi writes so well that he does not need to raise his voice for emphasis or effect. While poets shout slogans or rumble with visionary noise, he speaks to
us calmly:
Go bayanay talkhiyay shamo sahar kartay rahay
Zikr tera he bunwane digar kartay rahay
Booyay gul ka tha ya saba ka tha
Tazkra aap ki ada ka tha
Much of Saqi's poetry is about the intricate and incompatible impulses that make us what we are -- both at our greatly humdrum and inspirational moments:
Ek talawan sa sada apni tabeeat mein raha
Kabhi eman pe maael kabhi ilhaad kay saath
Jis ki nafrat bhi ghazabnaak mohabbat bhi azzem
Hum hain Saqi usi mujmooayay azdaad kay saath
What animates Saqi's poetry is the profound genuineness of a poet who knows precisely what he is and never tries to look otherwise. His work is not ostentatious or puffed-up:
Wajhay taskeen teri awaz bhi ho sakti thi
Zindagi aik haseen saaz bhi ho sakti thi
Lub pe musnooi tabbusam ko chupanay walay
Aankh ehsas ki ghammaz bhi ho sakti thi
One reason that Saqi's work feels so real is that most of it grew directly out of his life, His ‘ghazal’ volumes have been culled from his life experience. They are all spun from the same autobiographical cloth:
Dekhnay waloun ne dekhay unchay ewanoun kay khawb
Meri aankhoun ko mera chota sa ghar acha laga
Zindghi mein bas yahi tha apna meyaare nazar
Aik baar acha laga jo umr bhar acha laga
Tuj mein Saqi aur kuch khoobi nazar aati naheen
Ek hajoome gham mein jeenay ka hunar acha laga.