Brij Narayan Chakbast
Encyclopedia
Brij Narayan Chakbast, also spelled, Brij Narain Chakbast, was an Urdu
poet.
poet. He was born in 19 January 1882 in a Kashmiri Pandit
family settled in North India
in 15th century A.D.. Chakbast was born in Faizabad
(near Lucknow
) in 1882. His father Pandit Udit Narayan Chakbast, was born at Lucknow in, circa 1843, and he was also a poet. Pandit Udit Narayan was deputy collector, the highest post that any Indian could have at that time. After the death of his father in 1887, the family moved to Lucknow and they started living in Kashmiri Mohalla of Lucknow. Chakbast was educated in Lucknow, and he became a successful lawyer. Chakbast married in 1905, but lost his wife and first child in 1906. He married again in 1907, and settled down as a practising lawyer at Lucknow. In 12 February 1926, he collapsed at the railway station in Rae Bareli and died few hours later at the age of 44.
Chakbast made a thorough study of Urdu poetry. He defended Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim
when it was suggested that he was not the author of the epic Gul Bakawali.
He was actively involved in social and political affairs, and was a strong proponent of the Home Rule
and actively participated in the Home Rule Movement
.
in 1905, and L.L.B. in 1907, from Canning College
, Lucknow, which was affiliated with Allahabad University
at that time. Later, he became a successful lawyer.
Chakbast's premature death was a great loss for Urdu but whatever he left is exemplary and is considered among the gems of Urdu literature. He was strongly influenced by Ghalib, Mir Anis and Aatish. Chakbast was primarily a nazm
poet. He began his poetic career with a nazm in 1894. He wrote nazms, mathnavi, a play, and about 50 ghazals. His Ramayan ka ek Scene is strongly remniscent of marasi of Mir Anis. His verses from his ghazal
Zindagi kya hai anasir mein zahur-e tarteeb,
Maut kya hai ini ajza ka pareshan hona
are considered to be an umatched description of life and death by any poet.
On Kashmir he wrote
"Zarra Zarra hai mere Kashmir ka mehmaan nawaaz,
raah mein pathar ke tukdoon ne diya peene ko pani mujhe".
Subh-e Watan is collected works of Chakbast as its title and many of its poems reflect about his intense patriotism, predominantly a central theme of his poetry.
Khak-e-Hind
Gulzar-e-Naseem a masnavi,
Ramayan ka ek scene musaddas
Nala-e-Dard
Nala-e-Yaas,and a play named
Kamla
Kulliyate-Chakbast and Maqalaat-e-Chakbast is the complete collection of Chakbast's works in poetry and prose that was published posthumously on the birth centenary of the poet, compiled by Kalidas Gupta 'Raza' around 1983.
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
poet.
Life
Chakbast (1882–1926) was an UrduUrdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
poet. He was born in 19 January 1882 in a Kashmiri Pandit
Kashmiri Pandit
The Kashmiri Pandits are a Hindu Brahmin community originating from Kashmir, a mountainous region in South Asia.-Background:The Hindu caste system of the region was influenced by the influx of Buddhism from the time of Asoka, around the third century BCE, and a consequence of this was that the...
family settled in North India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in 15th century A.D.. Chakbast was born in Faizabad
Faizabad
City of Faizabad , previous capital of Awadh, is the headquarters of Faizabad District and a municipal board in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India, situated on the banks of river Ghaghra . Faizabad has a twin city of Ayodhya, which is considered to be the birthplace of Rama...
(near Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
) in 1882. His father Pandit Udit Narayan Chakbast, was born at Lucknow in, circa 1843, and he was also a poet. Pandit Udit Narayan was deputy collector, the highest post that any Indian could have at that time. After the death of his father in 1887, the family moved to Lucknow and they started living in Kashmiri Mohalla of Lucknow. Chakbast was educated in Lucknow, and he became a successful lawyer. Chakbast married in 1905, but lost his wife and first child in 1906. He married again in 1907, and settled down as a practising lawyer at Lucknow. In 12 February 1926, he collapsed at the railway station in Rae Bareli and died few hours later at the age of 44.
Chakbast made a thorough study of Urdu poetry. He defended Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim
Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim
Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim was a Urdu poet of the 19th century who won fame for his epic Gul Bakawali. He was defended by Brij Narayan Chakbast when it was suggested that he was not the author of this book. The poet lived from 1811–1845.-External links:...
when it was suggested that he was not the author of the epic Gul Bakawali.
He was actively involved in social and political affairs, and was a strong proponent of the Home Rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
and actively participated in the Home Rule Movement
Home Rule Movement
The All India Home Rule League was a national political organization founded in 1916 to lead the national demand for self-government, termed Home Rule, and to obtain the status of a Dominion within the British Empire as enjoyed by Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and Newfoundland at the...
.
Education
Chakbast's early education was in Faizabad. After his father's death his family moved to Lucknow, and it was here he completed his remaining education. He earned his degree of B.A.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1905, and L.L.B. in 1907, from Canning College
Canning College
Canning College is an adult-education centre located in Bentley, Western Australia.The College offers a range of educational programs for adults both continuing and returning to education....
, Lucknow, which was affiliated with Allahabad University
Allahabad University
Allahabad University , is a premier Central University located in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. Its origins lie in the Muir Central College, named after Lt...
at that time. Later, he became a successful lawyer.
Works
Chakbast was primarily a poet but his prose is also considered at par with his poetry.Chakbast's premature death was a great loss for Urdu but whatever he left is exemplary and is considered among the gems of Urdu literature. He was strongly influenced by Ghalib, Mir Anis and Aatish. Chakbast was primarily a nazm
Nazm
Urdu Nazm is a major part of the Urdu poetry, that is normally written in rhymed verse and also in modern prose style poems. Nazm has many different forms as,* Doha * Geet * Hamd * Hazal * Hijv...
poet. He began his poetic career with a nazm in 1894. He wrote nazms, mathnavi, a play, and about 50 ghazals. His Ramayan ka ek Scene is strongly remniscent of marasi of Mir Anis. His verses from his ghazal
Zindagi kya hai anasir mein zahur-e tarteeb,
Maut kya hai ini ajza ka pareshan hona
are considered to be an umatched description of life and death by any poet.
On Kashmir he wrote
"Zarra Zarra hai mere Kashmir ka mehmaan nawaaz,
raah mein pathar ke tukdoon ne diya peene ko pani mujhe".
Subh-e Watan is collected works of Chakbast as its title and many of its poems reflect about his intense patriotism, predominantly a central theme of his poetry.
Khak-e-Hind
Gulzar-e-Naseem a masnavi,
Ramayan ka ek scene musaddas
Nala-e-Dard
Nala-e-Yaas,and a play named
Kamla
Kulliyate-Chakbast and Maqalaat-e-Chakbast is the complete collection of Chakbast's works in poetry and prose that was published posthumously on the birth centenary of the poet, compiled by Kalidas Gupta 'Raza' around 1983.
External links
- http://www.kavitakosh.org/kk/index.php?title=%E0%A4%AC%E0%A5%83%E0%A4%9C_%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%A3_%E0%A4%9A%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%AC%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4 Brij Narayan Chakbast at Kavita Kosh, (Hindi)
- http://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/18707/11AggarwalChakbast.pdf?sequence=2 The Rama Story of Brij Narain Chakbast by Neil Krishan Agarwal
- http://www.koausa.org/Vitasta/10a.html Chakbast the Poet of Patriotism by A N D Haksar
- http://www.koausa.org/Poets/Chakbast.html Chakbast: A Scholarly Poet And A Great Reformer by Dr. B. N. Sharga
- http://www.urdunet.com/englishadab/urduadab/biographies/chakbast.htm BRIJ NARAIN CHAKBAST (1882–1926)
- http://books.google.com/books?id=sqBjpV9OzcsC&pg=PA211&lpg=PA211&dq=chakbast&source=web&ots=D889F0mgGn&sig=KJ2LK044FoO3We0isU43rkEbn6k&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA211,M1 A History of Indian Literature By Sisir Kumar Das
- http://www.vitasta.org/1999/9a.html KASHMIRIS IN THE SERVICE OF URDU by Z. L. Kaul
- Brij Narayan Chakbast at Anubhuti
- http://anubhuti-hindi.org/anjuman/c/chakbast_ki_ramayan.htm Chakbast ki Ramayan transliterated in Hindi (devnagri).
- http://aligarians.com/category/poets/brij-narayan-chakbast/ Ghazals and Nazms of Chakbast