We tend to admire and praise great poets and writers too often and by doing so we also end up ignoring many other lesser-known poets and writers. Take, for example, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Sheikh Ayaz who have been shining on the literary firmament of Pakistan for the past eight decades.
In front of them, many other poets have received short shrift, and this has been the case not necessarily by design. Somehow, in a particular age, a couple of extraordinary creative persons tend to dominate, and others pale or gradually fade away. In Sindhi poetry, Sheikh Ayaz has held the pinnacle for long, and others just perch on the ladder at various rungs. But now at the Art Council Karachi, Dr Ayub Sheikh and Dodo Chandio – whose novella ‘Sumani ji Karachi’ (Sumani’s Karachi) is a new addition to Sindhi fiction – have started celebrating other Sindhi poets and writers as well.
Many poets have creative talent that is no less than any other great poet, but seldom do we see any event that commemorates them. On January 18, Dr Ayub Sheikh gathered admirers of Ghulam Hussain Rangrez, an author of many books in Sindhi, a poet of brilliant imagery and a nationalist ideologue whose 80th birthday falls in 2025. And that gives me an excuse to introduce Ghulam Hussain Rangrez to my readers who may not be familiar with his name.
G H Rangrez was born in 1945 in Mirpur Bathoro in Sujawal which was a taluka (administrative unit) of Thatta but now is a separate district. Rangrez died in 2021 at the age of 76 and left behind over a dozen books containing his articles, essays, poetry, and translations. He was also a former secretary general of Sindhi Adabi Sangat and a member of the Board of Governors of the Sindhi Language Authority where one of his students – Muhammad Ali Manjhi – served as its chairman. Throughout his life, he remained an active member and central leader of Sindhi Adabi Sangat. Like many other activists and authors of his time, Rangrez also became involved in the nationalist politics of the 1960s.
He played his role in the movement against the One Unit that had come into being after the dissolution of all the provinces of West Pakistan in 1955. Rangrez became a devout follower of G M Syed and Ibrahim Joyo and worked closely with them. Even a small town such as Mirpur Bathoro at that time had literary organisations such as ‘Bazm-e-Adab’ and ‘Tehreek-e-Tameer-e-Adab’ which held regular meetings which Rangrez attended and organised. He struggled for the restoration of Sindh as a province and the recognition of Sindhi as one of the national languages.
With a Master’s degree in political science and education from the University of Sindh and an LLB from Sindh Law College, Hyderabad, he became an ardent advocate of national rights in Pakistan and also served as a school teacher before retiring as principal of Thatta Elementary College. After retirement, he practised law. In an interesting incident, when he recited his poem on the birth anniversary of GM Syed in 1974, the Z A Bhutto government sent him to Central Jail, Karachi. In 1988, the Sindhi Adabi Sangat elected him unopposed as its general secretary and in this capacity he served for two consecutive terms.
Writing remained his lifelong passion, and he used both poetry and prose to spread his message of love for his land and people. He became one of the most prominent newspaper columnists in Sindhi and contributed to various Sindhi newspapers. Especially his column ‘Je chawaan such’ (If I tell the truth) in daily ‘Awami Aawaz’ and column ‘Wichaar Dhaara’ (Stream of though) in ‘Sindh Express’ attracted a wide readership. Rangrez mostly wrote on current affairs and national politics, emerging as one of the most distinguished and well-respected writers in Sindhi. In addition to fiction, poetry and politics, Rangrez was equally well-versed in the intricacies of music.
Metaphysics and mysticism also remained one of his lifelong interests as we can judge from his books and essays. His essay ‘Sarmad chha tho sochey’ (What Sarmad is thinking) and his book ‘Tassawuf hik tehreek’ (Mysticism: a movement) are highly instructive. Rangrez takes the expression ‘Sarmad chha tho sochey’ from Sheikh Ayaz’s famous poem in which he questions the role of clergy in society and how it affects the thinking process of people like Sarmad Kashaani.
Sarmad Kashaani – born in 1590 –was an Armenian Jewish merchant turned mystic saint. He later adopted Islam and left his home in Iran for India. Sarmad first stayed in Thatta before moving on to Delhi where he became friends with Dara Shikoh and was later executed for apostasy in the reign of Aurangzeb Alamgir.
Thatta was a centre for both learning and trade in 17-century Sindh. Perhaps due to his association with Thatta, Rangrez was so fascinated by Sarmad who mentions one of his Hindu disciples in his poetry that he reportedly wrote during his stay in Thatta. Later, Sarmad grew critical of all religions and renounced orthodoxies, especially religious ones, taking a more spiritual position rather than a religious one.
That’s what attracted both G M Syed and his disciple G H Rangrez to mysticism. His ‘Wakhar so Wahai’ is also taken from Shah Lateef’s famous line which states that if you create something unique, it doesn’t get old. Rangrez also translated a play from ‘Alf Laila’ (A Thousand and One Nights) titled ‘Ghulaam ja Tahkra’ narrating a story about a slave who challenges the despotic Abbasi emperor Haroon Rasheed. The selection of this story of slave struggle and revolt shows how Rangrez was ready to draw inspiration from world literature especially if it dealt with the struggle of the downtrodden against oppressors.
His poetry collection ‘Akhiun Ujja Upar’ appeared in 2005 and gained critical acclaim. Many of Sindh’s famous and popular singers such as Ahmed Mughal, Sarmad Sindhi, and Zareena Baloch, have recited and rendered Rangrez’s poetry, making him a household name in Sindh. The pages of his notebook he presented in ‘Warq Warq Zindagi’ (Life in leaves) in 2012. His student and later chairman of Sindhi Language Authority Dr Muhammad Ali Manjhi wrote a detailed introduction to the book which in itself is a treat to read. Rangrez was also a master translator from English and Urdu to Sindhi.
His translations ‘Funn-e-tehreer ji Tareekh’ (history of the art of writing) and ‘Muqbarun ji patharan tay ukrial Tareekh’ (History on tombs) are just two examples of his best translations. Most of his writings dealt with the issues of common people and their struggles in life. One of his books that I like the most is ‘Tassawuf hik tehreek’ (Mysticism – a movement). It is a compact book of just 120 pages containing Rangrez’s articles and essays on mysticism. He begins with the history of mysticism and then goes on to discuss mystics such as Ibn-e-Arabi, Maulana Rumi, Shams of Tabrez, Mansoor Hallaj, Baba Fareed, Attar, and Shah Inaayat.
In his chapter on Shah Inaayat, Rangrez clarifies many misunderstandings about this Sufi saint who established a commune near Thatta and died fighting for its survival. He concludes the book with a chapter on the concept of Mehdiyat and the Mehdavi movement. It is worth mentioning that the Mehdavi movement had a wide following in southern Sindh and Balochistan. In Sindh, it had influenced local rulers such as the Kalhoro kings who tried to impose the puritan ideas of the Mehdavi movement and enforced a strict code of conduct against the prevailing tolerant ethos of Sindh which draws inspiration from spiritual leaders such as Makhdoom Bilawal and Shah Inaayat.
Poets such as Shah Lateef, Sachal and Saami wrote against and condemned in their poetry a narrow version of religion and propagated tolerance and harmony in Sindh.
Ghulam Hussain Rangrez was an outstanding poet and writer who made his mark on education, journalism, and literature. There is a need to translate some of his writings into English and Urdu so that his ideas become accessible to a wider audience.
The writer holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK. He tweets/posts @NaazirMahmood and can be reached at:
mnazir1964@yahoo.co.uk
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