Different attempts at poetry embody different virtues. Poems can be lyrical, evocative, subtle, mysteriously abstract or purposefully silly. Poetry is generally pardoned for its verbosity if the “overproduction of words” serves some purpose. Notwithstanding, poetic license quite frequently suffers from borderline abuse – where more is said and less is conveyed. Some of the fiercest and finest works of literature may be complex, wordy and labyrinthine. Nonetheless, complexity is only a tool, and not a desirable entity in and of itself. Every once in a while, however, we do come across lines that capture so much more than the space they inhabit. Arrays of assembled word that are unavoidably memorable. Apart from being beautiful and captivating, they possess this special virtue of brevity, or as one calls it in Urdu – Ikhtisaar ( اختصار). Good literary work that is also mukhtasar (adjective deriving from Ikhtisaar) is truly a sign of genius. For it is difficult to be brief, simple and yet profound. Here are some beautiful lines that I recently stumbled upon:
“Umar Jalwo.n Me Basar Ho Ye Zarori To Nahi
Har Shab-e-Gham Ki Sahar Ho Ye Zarori To Nahi
Chashm-e-Saaqi Se Piyo Ya Lab-e-Saghar Se Piyo
Be-Khudi Atho.n Pehar Ho Ye Zarori To Nahi”
Should life most certainly be spent in spectacles?
And should dawn follow every night of sorrow?
One may choose to drink from someone’s eyes, or from the lips of a goblet
Must the state of overwhelming ecstasy last forever?
Entropy of Words 