The name Jaun Elia during the last few years has taken Urdu poetry circles in cyberspace by storm. Now a well-known name among aficionados of Urdu literature of this era, perhaps Jaun is the most googled Urdu poet. A peerless poet, whose tragedies in his personal life, an unfulfilled love, migration from his home, shaped his poetry, which throbs with his grief and pain till today.
Born on 14th December 1931 and raised in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, Jaun shifted to Karachi 10 years after partition with anguish in his heart. Shifting from his homeland was again a major element of the melancholy which is seen and felt in his poetry. Mostly Urdu poets are acknowledged for their elegance to adoring beauty and love through their poetry. But Jaun was famous for his ‘Phrasing’(Andaz-e-Bayan). Jaun was a poet of Urdu who influenced and amused the masses through his writing on various subjects.

He had fluency in Arabic, English, Persian, Sanskrit and Hebrew. Due to this linguistic proficiency his poetry has references to Sufism, Science and Western literature. The readers of his poetry do not only learn about different perspectives of worldly affairs but also about the socio-religious reality that encourages them to think critically.
The life of Jaun Elia was full of pain and difficulties. He mentioned it in the preface of his book ‘SHAYAD’ that he did not write a single word for a period of 10 years and lived in a single room. He mentioned this in a symposium, saying:
‘‘Lazim hai apne aap ki imdaad kuch karun
Seene mai wo khala hai ki eejaad kuch karun’’
(It is obligatory to help myself and
invent something from the cavity that is in my chest)
We often say that there are two forms of man’s existence: the spiritual and the temporal. Jaun’s understanding of the philosophy of life illustrates the deep comprehension and recognition of the spiritual part of man. He wrote:
‘‘Itna khaali tha andrun mera
Kuch dino to khuda raha mujh mai’’
(How empty was my inner self
Even God resides in me for days)
Jaun Elia believes that when someone rises above temporal needs and rhymes word to his own silence, then he is writing poetry. The spontaneity is exhibited in his poetry in all its shades. He wrote:
‘‘Apne andar hasta hun aur bahut sharmata hun’’
(I laugh inside myself and feel very abashed too)
I have watched almost all Mushaiaras of Jaun and he never admitted in any of them that he is a poet (Shayir). In fact Jaun believed that poets were mere jesters. He never liked them much, so he never aspired to be one. In his preface to ‘SHAYAD’, his first poetic anthology and the only one which came out during his lifetime, he makes clear that he would not compromise on anything less than prophethood. Hence he loved the pre-Islamic pagan. He lived a life of a pagan and he died as one. Therefore calling Jaun Elia a poet or comparing him with others is actually belittling Jaun.
On his 91st birthday I dedicate some of my lines to Hazrat Jaun Elia:
‘‘Meer ki ghazalon pe bhi aetibaar aata tha
Ghalib ka bhi khayal baar baar aata tha
Ab to bas seene mai ranjjsh simat aata hai
Jaun! Mujhe ab tera dard samajh aata hai’’
(I used to trust on ghazals of Meer
I used to often think about Ghalib
Now only sadness grounds my heart
Jaun! I understand your pain now)
Jaun left us on 8 November 2002 after living a controversial life. He left a legacy and his name to be remembered forever. He enriched Urdu poetry with a new thought, new tone, new melody and new style and manner. I will conclude with Jaun’s own two couplets, the former one written on his tombstone:
‘‘Mai bhi bahut ajeeb hun itna ajeeb hun ki bass
Khud ko tabah kar liya aur malal bhi nahi’’
(I am too weird, so weird that
Destroyed myself and didn’t even care)
‘‘Khatam hai bas Jaun par Urdu ghazal
Usne ki hai khoon ki gul-kaariyan’’
(With Jaun has just ended Urdu poetry
With blood he has created embroidery)

The writer is a fan and follower of Jaun Elia. [email protected]

Faizan Aisha