Love has the inborn strength to weed out the seedlings of hatred

In hand this week is a thick volume of reflections on Urdu poetry, a language that started originating in the Indian subcontinent sometime in the 12th century inspired by the dialect spoken in the streets of Delhi or Dilli of yore, sharing its origins with Hindi, and is often referred to as the sibling of Hindi but with the influence of Persian, Turkish and Arabic. In times to come it was taken to great heights by Allama Iqbal who penned the famous ‘tarana’: “Mazhab nahi sikhata aapas mein bair rakhna, Hindi hain hum watan hai Hindustan hamara.” Sadly, in recent times when Iqbal, who was hailed by fellow poet Sarojini Naidu as the poet laureate of Asia, was removed from the Delhi University syllabus in recent times amid protests from academics. The book in its beautiful glossy cover of red and white is titled “Love In The Time Of Hate” and penned by literary historian and translator Rakhshanda Jalil who views the theme in the mirror of Urdu poetry, which is the forte of the author who says, “ This is a book about love, love for one’s country and for all that goes to make it one we can be proud to belong to.” Interestingly, Jalil who started this remarkable work in 1992, has published by now some 40 books, big and small of translation, critique and more till date on the theme of togetherness. Commenting on this tremendous body of work, she says, “ I have put together this collection of essays in an attempt to put up some however feeble, however ineffective, however flimsy in the face of formidable faces.” She adds that call her a dreamer if you may, but in John Lennon’s words, “I am not the only one.” Of burying hatred deep The book opens with an inspiring couplet by the famous and much-loved contemporary poet of Urdu, Bashir Badr, “Saat sanduqon mein bharkar dafn kar do nafratein/ Aaj insaan ko mohabbat ki zaroorat hai bahut;. In her composite work on the much treasured pluralism of the Indian society book after book, Jalil has covered a wide range of genres ranging from fiction, poetry, memoirs with rare passion and persistence, including the iconic Munshi Prem Chand, who wrote in both Urdu and Hindi, Asghar Wajahat of “Jis Lahore nahi dekhya” fame, Saadat Hasan Manto, Shaharyar, Intizar Husain, Mushirul Hasan, Qurratulain Hyder, Krishan Chander, Gulzar and others.