Overview

AATISH: LIFE & POEMS Translation & Introduction by Paul Smith AATISH (1777-1847). Khwaja Haidar Ali... pen-name Aatish ('fire') was born in Faizabad. His ancestors had been dervishes and religious men. Because of the death of his father during his childhood he did not have any regular instruction in a school. He had a profound, natural ability for creating poetry that eventually gave him access to the court of Nawab Mohammed Taqi Khan Taraqqi, who took him to Lucknow. At Lucknow he sought and was given instruction in writing poetry by Mushafi, then an important poet of the Lucknow school of verse. A contented, self-¬respecting man he led a simple, ascetic life and never bowed to nobility to gain favours. This freedom of spirit and ascetic-like lack of concern for worldly comforts is reflected in his poetry. His words are simple and carefully chosen. Some critics rank him beside Mir and Ghalib. His ghazals are Sufi in flavour on the traditional themes of human and divine love. He went blind towards the end of his life. His Urdu Divan is composed of ghazals and ruba'is and a qasida. This is the largest translation of his poems into English in the correct form. 120 pages. Introduction to Sufi Poets Series AATISH, ASHGAR, 'AISHAH Al-BA'UNIYAH, AMIR KHUSRAU, ANSARI, ANVARI, AL-MA'ARRI, 'ARIFI, 'ATTAR, ABU SA'ID, AUHAD UD-DIN, BABA FARID, BABA AZFAL, BABA TAHIR, BEDAR, BEDIL, BULLEH SHAH, DARA SHIKOH, DARD, FAIZI, GHALIB, GHANI KASHMIRI, HAFIZ, HALI, HASAN DEHLAVI, HATEF, HUMA, IBN 'ARABI, IBN YAMIN, IBN AL-FARID, IQBAL, INAYAT KHAN, 'IRAQI, JAHAN KHATUN, JAMI, JIGAR, KAMAL AD-DIN, KABIR, KHAQANI, KHAYYAM, LALLA DED, MAHSATI, MAKHFI, MANSUR HALLAJ, MIR, MOMIN, MU'IN UD-DIN CHISHTI, NAZIR, NESIMI, NIZAMI, NUND RISHI, OBEYD ZAKANI, PAUL, QUTUB SHAH, RABI'A, RAHIM, RAHMAN BABA, RUMI, SADI, SA'IB, SANA'I, SARMAD, SAUDA, SEEMAB, SHABISTARI, SHAH LATIF, SHAH NI'MAT'ULLAH, SHEFTA, SULTAN BAHU, URFI, WALI, YUNUS EMRE, ZAFAR, ZAUQ, EARLY ARABIC, PERSIAN, URDU, TURKISH, AFGHAN SUFI POETS. 90-120 pages Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Lalla Ded, Mahsati and others, and his own poetry, fiction, biographies, plays, children's books and screenplays. www.newhumanitybooks.com