Mir Taqi Mir

Mir Muhammad Taqi Mir (February

1723 - 21 September 1810), also
known as Mir Taqi Mir or Meer Taqi
Meer, was a leading Urdu poet of the
18th century Mughal India, and one of
the pioneers who gave shape to the
Urdu language itself. He was one of
the principal poets of the Delhi School
of the Urdu ghazal and is often
remembered as one of the best poets
of the Urdu language. His takhallus
(pen name) was Mir. He spent the
latter part of his life in the court of
Asaf-ud-Daulah in Lucknow.
 Mir Muhammad Taqi Mir

Mir Taqi Mir in 1786

Born February 1723
Agra, Mughal India
Died 21 September 1810
(aged 87)
Lucknow, Oudh
State, Mughal India
Pen name Mir
Occupation Urdu poet
Period Mughal India
Genre Ghazal, Mathnavi,
 Persian Poetry
Subject Love, philosophy
Notable works Faiz-e-Mir
Zikr-e-Mir
Nukat-us-Shura
Kulliyat-e-Farsi
Kulliyat-e-Mir

This article contains Urdu text.

Without proper rendering support,
you may see unjoined letters
running left to right or other symbols
instead of Urdu script.

Life
The main source of information on
Mir's life is his autobiography Zikr-e-
Mir, which covers the period from his
childhood to the beginning of his
sojourn in Lucknow.[1] However, it is
said to conceal more than it reveals,[2]
with material that is undated or
presented in no chronological
sequence. Therefore, many of the
'true details' of Mir's life remain a
matter of speculation.

Mir was born in Agra, India (then

called Akbarabad and ruled by the
Mughals) in August or February 1723.
His grandfather migrated from Hejaz
to Hyderabad State, then to
Akbarabad. His philosophy of life was
formed primarily by his father, a
religious man with a large following,
whose emphasis on the importance
of love and the value of compassion
remained with Mir throughout his life
and imbued his poetry. Mir's father
died while the poet was in his teens.
He left Agra for Delhi a few years after
his father's death, to finish his
education and also to find patrons
who offered him financial support
(Mir's many patrons and his
relationship with them have been
described by his translator C. M.
Naim).[3]
Some scholars consider two of Mir's
masnavis (long narrative poems
rhymed in couplets), Mu'amlat-e-ishq
(The Stages of Love) and Khwab o
khyal-e Mir ("Mir's Vision"), written in
the first person, as inspired by Mir's
own early love affairs,[4] but it is by no
means clear how autobiographical
these accounts of a poet's passionate
love affair and descent into madness
are. Especially, as Frances W.
Pritchett points out, the austere
portrait of Mir from these masnavis
must be juxtaposed against the
picture drawn by Andalib Shadani,
whose inquiry suggests a very
different poet, given to unabashed
eroticism in his verse.[5]

Mir lived much of his life in Mughal

Delhi. Kuchha Chelan, in Old Delhi was
his address at that time. However,
after Ahmad Shah Abdali's sack of
Delhi each year starting 1748, he
eventually moved to the court of Asaf-
ud-Daulah in Lucknow, at the king's
invitation. Distressed to witness the
plundering of his beloved Delhi, he
gave vent to his feelings through
some of his couplets.

‫ﮐﯿﺎ ﺑﻮﺩ ﻭ ﺑﺎﺵ ﭘﻮﭼﮭﮯ ﮨﻮ ﭘﻮﺭﺏ ﮐﮯ ﺳﺎﮐﻨﻮ‬

‫ﮨﻢ ﮐﻮ ﻏﺮﯾﺐ ﺟﺎﻥ ﮐﮯ ﮨﻨﺲ ﮨﻨﺲ ﭘﮑﺎﺭ ﮐﮯ‬
ّ
‫ﺩﻟﯽ ﺟﻮ ﺍﯾﮏ ﺷﮩﺮ ﺗﮭﺎ ﻋﺎﻟﻢ ﻣﯿﮟ ﺍﻧﺘﺨﺎﺏ‬
‫ﺭﮨﺘﮯ ﺗﮭﮯ ﻣﻨﺘﺨﺐ ﮨﯽ ﺟﮩﺎﮞ ﺭﻭﺯﮔﺎﺭ ﮐﮯ‬
‫ﺟﺲ ﮐﻮ ﻓﻠﮏ ﻧﮯ ﻟﻮﭦ ﮐﮯ ﻭﯾﺮﺍﻥ ﮐﺮ ﺩﯾﺎ‬
‫ﮨﻢ ﺭﮨﻨﮯ ﻭﺍﻟﮯ ﮨﯿﮟ ﺍﺳﯽ ﺍﺟﮍﮮ ﺩﯾﺎﺭ ﮐﮯ‬

Mir migrated to Lucknow in 1782 and

remained there for the remainder of
his life. Though he was given a kind
welcome by Asaf-ud-Daulah, he found
that he was considered old-fashioned
by the courtiers of Lucknow (Mir, in
turn, was contemptuous of the new
Lucknow poetry, dismissing the poet
Jur'at's work as merely 'kissing and
cuddling'). Mir's relationships with his
patron gradually grew strained, and he
eventually severed his connections
with the court. In his last years Mir
was very isolated. His health failed,
and the untimely deaths of his
daughter, son and wife caused him
great distress.[6]

He died of a purgative overdose on

Friday, 21 September 1810.[7] The
marker of his burial place was
removed in modern times when a
railway was built over his grave.[8]

Literary life
His complete works, Kulliaat, consist
of six Diwans containing 13,585
couplets, comprising all kinds of
poetic forms: ghazal, masnavi, qasida,
rubai, mustezaad, satire, etc.[7] Mir's
literary reputation is anchored on the
ghazals in his Kulliyat-e-Mir, much of
them on themes of love. His masnavi
Mu'amlat-e-Ishq (The Stages of Love)
is one of the greatest known love
poems in Urdu literature.

Mir lived at a time when Urdu

language and poetry was at a
formative stage – and Mir's instinctive
aesthetic sense helped him strike a
balance between the indigenous
expression and new enrichment
coming in from Persian imagery and
idiom, to constitute the new elite
language known as Rekhta or Hindui.
Basing his language on his native
Hindustani, he leavened it with a
sprinkling of Persian diction and
phraseology, and created a poetic
language at once simple, natural and
elegant, which was to guide
generations of future poets.

The death of his family members,[7]

together with earlier setbacks
(including the traumatic stages in
Delhi), lend a strong pathos to much
of Mir's writing – and indeed Mir is
noted for his poetry of pathos and
melancholy.

Mir and Mirza Ghalib

Mir's famous contemporary, also an
Urdu poet of no inconsiderable repute,
was Mirza Rafi Sauda. Mir Taqi Mir
was often compared with the later day
Urdu poet, Mirza Ghalib. Lovers of
Urdu poetry often debate Mir's
supremacy over Ghalib or vice versa.
It may be noted that Ghalib himself
acknowledged, through some of his
couplets, that Mir was indeed a
genius who deserved respect. Here
are two couplets by Mirza Ghalib on
this matter.

Reekhta ke tum hī You are not the

ustād nahīṅ ho only master of
ğhālib Rekhta, Ghalib
Kehte haiṅ agle They say there
zamāne meṅ koī used to be a
mīr bhī thā Mir in the past

—Mirza Ghalib
Ghalib apna yeh Ghalib! It's my
aqeeda hai belief in the
baqaul-e-Nasikh words of
Aap bey behrah Nasikh[9]
hai jo muataqid-e- He that vows
Mir nahi not on Mir, is
himself
unlearned!

—Mirza Ghalib

Ghalib and Zauq were contemporary

rivals but both of them believed the
superiority of Mir and also
acknowledged Mir's superiority in
their poetry.
Famous couplets
Some of his impeccable couplets are:

Hasti apni habab ki My life is like

si hai a bubble
Yeh numaish ik This world is
saraab ki si hai like a mirage
Dikhaai She appeared in such a
diye yun way that I lost myself
ki bekhud And went by taking
kiya away my 'self' with her
Hamein Just her glimpse
aap se rendered me numb
bhi juda away she went leaving
kar chale me separated from me

At a higher spiritual level, the subject

of Mir's poem is not a woman but
God. Mir speaks of man's interaction
with the Divine. He reflects upon the
impact on man when God reveals
Himself to the man.
Dikhaai diye When I saw You
yun ke bekhud (God) I lost all
kiya sense of self
Hamen aap se I forgot my own
bhi juda kar identity
chale

Gor kis dil jale What heart-sick

ki hai ye falak sufferer's grave is
Shola ek subh the sky?
yaan se uthta an Ember rises
hai hence at dawn
Ashk aankhon From my eye,
mein kab nahi when doesn't a
aata tear fall
Lahu aata hai jab Blood falls when
nahi aata it doesn't fall

Bekhudi le gai Where has

kahaan humko selflessness
Der se intezaar taken me
hai apna I've been waiting
for myself for
long
Ibtidaa-e-ishq It's the beginning
hai rotaa hai of Love, why do
kyaa you wail
Aage aage Just wait and
dekhiye hotaa watch how things
hai kyaa unveil

Likhte ruqaa, Started with a

likhe gaye scroll, ended up
daftar with a record
Shauq ne baat How fondness
kyaa barhaai escalated the
hai whole matter
Deedani hai Worth-watching
shikastagi dil ki is my heart's
Kya imaarat crumbling
ghamon ne What a citadel
dhaai hai have sorrows
razed

Baad marne ke O Mir, he came

meri qabr pe to my grave
aaya wo 'Mir' after I'd died
Yaad aai mere My messiah
Isa ko dawa thought of a
mere baad medicine after
I'd died
Mir ke deen-o- What can I tell you
mazhab ka about Mir's faith or
poonchte kya belief?
ho un nay to A tilak on his
kashka forehead in a
khaincha dair temple he resides,
mein baitha having abandoned
kab ka tark Islam long ago[10]
Islam kiya

What Mir was practising was probably

the Malamati or "Blameworthy" aspect
of the Sufi tradition. Using this
technique, a person ascribes to
oneself an unconventional aspect of a
person or society, and then plays out
its results, either in action or in verse.

Mir Taqi Mir in fiction

Khushwant Singh's famous novel
Delhi: A Novel gives very interesting
details about the life and adventures
of the great poet.

Mah e Mir is a 2016 Pakistani

biographical film directed by Anjum
Shahzad and Fahad Mustafa plays the
lead role of Mir Taqi Mir.

Major works
 "Nukat-us-Shura" Biographical
dictionary of Urdu poets of his time,
written in Persian.
"Faiz-e-Mir" Collection of five
stories about Sufis & faqirs, said to
have been written for the education
of his son Mir Faiz Ali.[11]
"Zikr-e-Mir" Autobiography written in
Persian language.
"Kulliyat-e-Farsi" Collection of
poems in Persian language
"Kulliyat-e-Mir" Collection of Urdu
poetry consisting of six diwans
(volumes).

See also
 List of Urdu poets
Ghazal
Mah-e-Meer

References
Meer Taqi Meer, November 16,
2016.[12]

References
1. Naim, C M (1999). Zikr-i-Mir, The
Autobiography of the Eighteenth
Century Mughal Poet: Mir
Muhammad Taqi Mir (1723–
1810), Translated, annotated and
with an introduction by C. M.
Naim. New Delhi: Oxford
University Press.
2. Faruqi, Shamsur Rahman. "The
Poet in the Poem" (PDF).
3. Naim, C. M. (1999). "Mir and his
patrons" (PDF). Annual of Urdu
Studies. 14.
4. Russell, Ralph; Khurshidul Islam
(1968). Three Mughal Poets: Mir,
Sauda, Mir Hasan . Harvard
University Press.
5. Pritchett, Frances W. "Convention
in the Classical Urdu Ghazal: The
Case of Mir" .
6. Matthews, D. J.; C. Shackle
(1972). An anthology of classical
Urdu love lyrics . Oxford
University Press.
7. Legendary Urdu poet Mir Taqi Mir
passed away , [The Times of
India], Rajiv Srivastava, TNN, 19
September 2010, 05.58am IST
 8. Dalrymple, William (1998). The
Age of Kali. Lonely Planet. p. 44.
ISBN 1-86450-172-3.
9. Shaikh Imam Bakhsh Nasikh of
Lucknow, a disciple of Mir.
10. Article in The Asian Age by
Javed Anand
11. Foreword by Dr. Masihuzzaman
in Kulliyat-e-Mir Vol-2, Published
by Ramnarianlal Prahladdas,
Allahabad, India.
12. alifseye, Meer Taqi Meer,
November 16, 2016 Meer Taqi
Meer poetry
Lall, Inder jit; Mir A Master Poet;
 Thought, November 7, 1964
Lall, Inder jit; Mir The ghazal king;
Indian & Foreign Review, September
1984
Lall, Inder jit; Mir—Master of Urdu
Ghazal; Patriot, September 25, 1988
Lall, Inder jit; 'A Mir' of ghazals;
Financial Express, November 3

Further reading
Mīr Taqī Mīr (1999). Zikr-i Mir: the
autobiography of the eighteenth
century Mughal poet, Mir
Muhammad Taqi ʻMir', 1723-1810 .
Translated by C. M. Naim. Oxford
University Press. OCLC 42955012 .
Khurshidul Islam; Ralph Russell
(1994). Three Mughal Poets: Mir,
Sauda, Mir Hasan . OUP India.
ISBN 978-0-19-563391-7.
Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, Shiʻr-i
shor angez : ghazaliyāt-i Mīr kā
muḥaqiqānah intikhāb Qaumī
Kaunsil barāʼe Farogh-i Urdū Zabān,
2006 (4-volume study on ghazals of
Mīr Taqī Mīr)
The Anguished Heart: Mir and the
Eighteenth Century: 'The Golden
Tradition, An Anthology of Urdu
Poetry', Ahmed Ali, pp 23–54;
 Poems:134-167, Columbia
University Press, 1973/ OUP, Delhi,
1991
Kumar, Ish (1996). Mir Taqi Mir.
Makers of Indian Literature (2nd
ed.). New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
ISBN 81-260-0186-0.
OCLC 707081400 .

External links
alifseye, Meer Taqi Meer
Mir Taqi Mir on IMDb
A Garden of Kashmir: the Ghazals
of Mir Taqi Mir
Dewaan-e-Meer (Online)
 Meer Taqi Meer's poetry at Rekhta
Zikr e Mir: Biography of poet in
Hindi on Scribd
The Meer Pages
Mir Taqi Mir at Kavita Kosh
Sher e Shor Angez Vol.2 on Scribd

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