Ghalib’s Comprehensivity

Mirza Ghalib, the master nineteenth century ‘shayer, wove the magic of his poetry on the fabric of human life and existence.

Some of the recurrent and predominent themes in his poetry were:-

• The joy of love
• The Sorrow of Separation
• The Inherent Pain of Existence
• The Struggle between Temporality and Spirituality
• The Power of Resilience
• The Hypocrisy of the Puritan
• The Limit of Patience
• The Way to Handle Fellow Professionals

Besides, of course, the varied hues of love and the charm of the beloved.

Ghalib’s comprehensive grasp of the human predicament, the inevitability of sorrow and pain, human alienation, anomie and ennui – make him a creative genius of the highest order. His complex imagery and difficult language need to be decoded for a larger, cosmopolitan audience.

Hence this monograph. It is the second volume in the series.