At the very beginning of his seminal book Mahasin-e-Kalam-e Ghalib, Dr Abdur Rehman Bijnori, makes a panegyric statement: Hindustan ki ilhami kitabain do hain, Muqaddas Ved or Diwan-e Ghalib [there are two most inspiring books in Hindustan, the Holy Vedas and Diwan-e-Ghalib]. This statement has become a cliché in the literary realm encompassing the profound impact of Ghalib's poetry on the literature of the subcontinent.

In Mahasin-e-Kalam-e Ghalib, Dr Bijnori compared Ghalib’s poetic genius to that of the world’s greatest poets and philosophers, ultimately concluding that if there was a parallel to Ghalib, it could be none other than Goethe of Germany. Dr Bijnori’s book is not just a literary critique, but a transformative force that elevated Ghalib to the status of a global poetic icon, uncovering the intricate beauties of his poetry with such depth and insight that no critic before him had endeavoured to attempt.

In the historic library of Bhopal, Dr Bijnori fortuitously discovered a manuscript of Diwan-e Ghalib which included the poet's unpublished verses as well. And a treasure trove it turned out to be! Dr Bijnori was so thrilled that he wrote his marvellous prologue known as Mahasin-e Kalam-e Ghalib to be published with the new Diwan-e Ghalib. It later came to be known as Nuskha-e Hamidiya which is now in exclusive possession of a few ardent Ghalibians.

Unfortunately, this limited edition of Diwan-e Ghalib was published after the untimely death of Dr Bijnori in 1918 when he died in his prime at the young age of 33, falling victim to the Spanish flu pandemic. The irony of fate was that Dr Bijnori's illustrious father, Khan Bahadur Nurul Islam, then serving as British Representative to Kandahar, learnt about his son's passing away on a train journey. His fellow traveller, an Englishman, casually read the newspaper aloud. “What a tragedy,” he said as he read out, “a great Indian intellectual, Dr Bijnori, has succumbed to the Spanish flu in Bhopal.” One can feel the soul-shattering moment for the father who went through this life-altering journey, one that changed the rest of his life.

Dr Bijnori’s life was a testament to scholarly brilliance and an unyielding pursuit of knowledge. Born in 1885 in the small town of Seohara in district Bijnor, UP, India, he began his journey at MAO College Aligarh, an institution that was a cradle of intellectual and political awakening for the Indian Muslims. At Aligarh, Bijnori quickly established himself as a formidable debater and a passionate advocate for India's freedom. The college was more than just an educational institution for him; it was a breeding ground for future leaders, scholars, and freedom fighters. The intellectual environment of Aligarh, combined with Bijnori's inherent brilliance, shaped his early thoughts and ambitions. As an exceptional student, he took to writing on serious topics, both in Urdu and English, for prominent magazines and newspapers of his era.

Dr Bijnori's academic journey took him to the prestigious Lincoln’s Inn in London, where he completed his bar at law. This was a period when many of India’s future leaders were studying in England, and Dr Bijnori was among those who absorbed the political currents and intellectual debates of the time. However, his quest for knowledge did not end with his legal education. He went on to earn a PhD from Germany, a country that was then at the forefront of philosophical and scientific thought, and an important learning centre of Europe.

It was during his return to India from Germany, after completing his education, Dr Bijnori visited Turkey and stayed there for two months to keenlyobserve the factors at play in the downfall of the Ottoman Empire. In a letter to his father from Istanbul, he wrote that if the Turks were able to steer the country wisely for another ten years, the Ottoman Empire would be out of dire straits.

But then history bore witness, that the ruling Turks unwittingly embroiled the fractured empire in World War I, which precipitated their disintegration. The empire was, however, reduced to Turkey on signing the Treaty of Lausanne in Switzerland on July 24, 1923. Dr Bijnori also stayed in Bulgaria and Serbia to see the pathetic conditions of the Muslims, a cataclysmic event that resonated deeply with him. With his remarkable foresight, he penned predictions in letters to his father that later proved to be prophetic, reflecting his deep understanding of global politics and its implications for the Muslim world.

A linguist of extraordinary ability, Dr Bijnori’s mastery of languages included Urdu, Persian, Arabic, English, German and French. His scholarly pursuits were diverse, yet it was his deep connection with Ghalib’s poetry that would define his legacy. In Mahasin-e Kalam-e Ghalib, Dr Bijnori explored Ghalib’s poetry not just as verses of artistic beauty but as profound philosophical musings. He argued that Ghalib’s work could stand alongside the greatest poetic traditions of the world, a bold assertion that challenged the literary status quo of his time. Likewise, his critique of Asrar-e-Khudi, the masnavi by Allama Iqbal, was so profound that it inspired Allama Iqbal to pen its sequel, Rumuz-e-Bekhudi. The bond between these two great minds was not merely intellectual but deeply emotional, as evidenced by the letter Allama Iqbal had written to Shoaib Qureshi in Delhi, the editor of a newspaper and Maulana Ali Jauhar’s son-in-law.

From Lahore, Allama Iqbal responded to Shoaib Qureshi's telegraphic news about Bijnori's untimely death. “Your telegram struck me like a bolt of lightning that proved unbearable for me.” Allama Iqbal literally poured out his heartfelt and unrestrained grief and lamented the loss as a severe blow to the Muslim Ummah, expressing that a giant Muslim scholar like Dr Bijnori is born rarely in centuries.

This letter is elaborate and worth reading separately as an astounding tribute from a great poet to his great critic. Allama Iqbal also sent the following quatrain in Persian to Dr Bijnori's father with the impassioned request to have it inscribed on Dr Bijnori's epitaph.

Dil-e mann raaz dan-e jism-o jaan ast

Na pindari ajal ber mann garan ast

Che gham ger yak jahan gum shud ze chashm

Hanuz ander zameerum sadh jahan ast

[Oh heart! Companion of my body and soul

The hasty blow of death is not a heavy toll

Lament I not for losing a world I could eye

As ablaze in my conscience a hundred more lie

At the time of his death in 1918, Dr Bijnori was serving as the educational adviser in Bhopal when the state was under the rule of Princess Kaikhusrau Jahan Begum. He went there on the invitation and insistence of her son, Nawab Hamidullah Khan, who was also the last ruling Nawab of the princely state of Bhopal from 1926 till India gained independence in 1947. Dr Bijnori and the nawab had developed a close bond of friendship at Aligarh as classmates.

While in service, Dr Bijnori was busy planning a world-class university, a dream that remained unfulfilled due to his untimely death. The university was intended to be a beacon of learning, one that would attract scholars from across the world, much like the universities in Germany. Dr Bijnori was so highly regarded in India that he was also selected as the first vice chancellor of the famous Osmania University by the Nizam of Hyderabad just around the time his ephemeral journey of life ended. Dr Bijnori's indelible imprint as a great scholar despite his short life reminds me of a verse by Majaz Lakhnavi, indeed metaphorically:

Us mehfil-e kaif-o masti me us anjuman-e irfani me,

Sab jaam ba kaif baithe he rahe hum pi bhi gaye chhalka bhi gaye

The writer is a retired professional based in Karachi

All facts and information is the sole responsibility of the writer