The Way it Was Once: Faiz Ahmed Faiz- His Life, His Poems by Ali Madeeh Hashmi

by Ali Madeeh Hashmi

Hindi Text With English 255 (60 B/W Illustrations)About the AuthorFaiz Ahmed Faiz was and continues to be one of the most popular and iconic Urdu poets of the Indian subcontinent. Since his death in 1984, the interest in his ideas and work has only grown, and the ideals that underlined his poetry – love, freedom, justice and hope – continue to inspire people all over the world.In this wonderful book, with a biography by Faiz's grandson Ali Madeeh Hashmi and translations of fifty – two of his poems by noted Pakistani writher Shoaib Hashmi, Faiz's life and verse come alive as never before.While the biography, incisive as well as affectionate, captures the key moments of Faiz's life, the translations capture the spirit and flavour of Faiz's poems. A visual treat, with rare pictures from the family album and letters written by the poet, this tribute to Faiz in his centenary year is a collector's delight. IntroductionTranslation is a tricky business under the best of circumstances. It is difficult and convey the essence of a literary work of art in another language, especially one that is culturally and ethnically dissimilar. This is especially true of the delicate art of poetry, which is, definition, culture bound. The Urdu expression, kooze mein darya band kama ("capturing a river in a cup", itself demonstrative of the difficulty of translation!) Is emblematic of poetry.Unlike prose, which allows some leeway for explication, poetry is a much tighter form of expression that relies on simile, metaphor and nuance, and thus assumes much familiarity with symbols. It is almost impossible to translate poetry compactly and capture the essence of the original. Any attempt to explain makes the translation unwieldy and awkward. If one tries to circumvent this problem by concept substitution

Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Kirti Upreti · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of the life of Faiz can perhaps only be compared to his writings: moving, soothing, invigorating and donning multiple colors. A truly delightful read.