Lyrical Odes Aankh bhar Hairat: Book Review

Lyrical Odes Aankh bhar Hairat: Book Review

(Naeem Baig)

Mohsin Shakeel’s heart touching lyrical odes that keep you in musical, insightful and sentimental delights all the way through. As Dr. Aslam Farrukhi says Mohsin is a poet of adagio silent nights of human sentiments filled with soft fragrance and beautiful eyes. I see Mohsin a step ahead of it as he passed through the era of 1990-2000s, unlike his contemporaries his poetry becomes more consistent and romantic in nature. He unfolds the human with his imaginary hallucination and rich phrasing. Every ode he portrays in words set a throne under the poetic umbrella. His ode “Na’tamam” imprints the melancholy figment of his thoughts with incredible structure of words.

Kishwar Naheed says, Mohsin’s ghazals speak new turn in literature and pledge the moment’s direction. I’m compelled to add little more that Mohsin’s imagism, (a moment in early 20th century English and American poetry which sought clarity of expression). The movement derived from the part of the aesthetic philosophy of T.E Hulme, and James Joyce) is more articulate than his contemporaries in 1990s in Urdu poetry, though ghazals in Pakistan in late 1990s often contribute literature contentment. Mohsin’s Ghazal flakes away the layers of fantasy beautifully leaving readers motionless for a while.

سمیٹ لے میری وسعت کو اعتبار ترا
ہے اس قدر مری وحشت پہ اختیار ترا

ہوائے صبح کی صورت تجھے میں تکتا ہوں
کہ دل کے دشت کو رہتا ہے انتظار ترا

As John Keats (1795-1821) was second generation romantic poet along with Lord Byron and P.B Shelley, his contemporaries have praised his fragment of “Rich Imaginary & Phrasing” and his three poems Lamia, Isabella, and the Eve of St. Agnes were considered the finest in English language. Mohsin’s Gittar, Pehla lamha and Raaz are the finest pieces I find in the present Urdu odes as “Rich Imaginary & Phrasing” as he described himself in the preface of “Aankh bhar Hairat.” While writing he stands excruciated by the possibility of illusion with silent existence of his vows and the words he phrases echoed his deep conscience.

Legendry poet Iftikhar Arif praises while commenting on “Aankh bhar Hairat” that voice of Mohsin sounds towering through his odes and ghazals among his contemporaries of 1990s. Iftikhar further admires that the classical touch in use of words and phrases is the skill that only Mohsin dwells in.

پہلا لمحہ

ہم اس لمحہ اُن آنکھوں کے گہرے دائروں کے حبس میں تھے
تنفس موسموں کے ربط میں اترا نہ تھا جس دم
بدن میں ذائقہ احساس کا اپنے کسی نقطے میں ٹھہرا تھا
رتوں کی دھند میں لپٹے ہوئے تھے رابطے سارے
فضاؤں میں دھنک احساس کی بکھرے ہوئے رنگوں میں تھی شاید
ہواؤں میں کسی پرواز کے سارے حوالے سرسراتے تھے
صداؤں کا سفر امکان کی پہلی سحر میں تھا

Mohsin is greatly working on his new project and his new book is expected soon in the market. His newest ghazals and poems published around in print and the social media have unveiled the social evils of the present era as well in the stream of post-modernism. I wish that he could maintain the strength he has shown in his poetic history of 1990-2000.