Humanism in poetry and songs of Nazrul

M. Mizanur Rahman :
Kazi Nazrul Islam (1899-1976) was a devout Muslim in accordance with the spirit of Islam. The social background of the family of Nazrul was deep-rooted in Islamic tradition. Firstly this Kazi (Judge) appears to have been royal Mughal descend. The British colonial rule, after capturing power from the Muslim rulers of India, took all the subjects including those of Mughal royal authorities under its heel and extirpated most of them as inhumanly as possible according to the contemporaneous history of India. However the family of Nazrul came from their working place Patna, the capital Bihar to Churulia village of Bardwan district of Bengal (now West Bengal, India) and settled there. Under the demonic repression of the British ruler the Muslims in India became an almost destitute poverty-stricken jobless poor pauper that’s ruinous status in life. Such poor one was Nazrul’s family. But, come what may, this Kazi family had its staunchest faith in Islam. Nazrul’s father Kazi Fakir Ahmad having lost the power and properties of forefathers with no other means of livelihood had to eke out his living being the Imam of the nearby village mosque. But he died at the age of 60 when the child Nazrul was at the age of eight facing extreme poverty. This time Nazrul passed the lower primary examination from the Maktab. Here he learnt Bengali, Arabic and Persian adeptly. His mother Zaheda Khatun could not defray his educational expenses furthermore for want of money to send him to English school. In order to earn money for bare survival Nazrul became the teacher of the same Maktab. At this early age talented Nazrul led the prayers five times at the mosque as Imam. Furthermore he had knack in poetry and music that he used to learn from his uncle Kazi Bazle Karim who wrte songs both in Bengali and Urdu and set them to tune. Hence Nazrul learnt the art of writing poetry and songs suitable to the village folk-singers. The then villagers were interested in Leto songs and Yatra in which the script of the story to be played must have songs with music. Hence Nazrul took the idea and started composing songs setting tunes as well to popularise the culture. This gave him immense popularity overnight. This Leto had afterwards converted into Kobi Gaan or Kobi Lorai (fighting between the two poets on a specific contradictory subject lyrically on social or political or religious ones). That was one poet who must justify the specified subject in affirmative sense in his own favour but the other poet must justify the same subject in negative terms in his favour. But all such conversations must be lyrically conversed into rhymes and rhapsodies, so that the audience may enjoy them spell bound like songs. The winner party was rewarded by the village folk enjoying the justness of the argument of the party concerned.
Since childhood Nazrul developed both poetical as well as musical talent. We find in him its fruition in his later age. Nazrul’s first long poem, ‘The Rebel’ brought him world wide honour and acclamation per excellence, In this poem Nazrul proclaimed that human dignity supersedes everything on earth distinguishing none in consonance with truth and beauty in nature corresponding cosmic universe. Herein lies also the proof that human beings supersede Super-natural Beings if any. This is unprecedented in the poetic world of ours. Being as being is good (esse qua esse bonum est) with self-affirmation, along with terms like dynamis, parentis (Leibnitz) for Nietzsche’s ‘Will to Power’ united ontologically within Nazrul’s Rebellion in his great poem ‘The Rebel’ appears to be adjusted herein.
Say, ‘O Hero’,
Say, ‘My head’s raised high!
On seeing my head
the peak of that Himalaya bows down!’
Say, ‘O Hero’,
Say, ‘Tearing apart the firmament
of the universe, overwhelming planets
unlike the moon, the sun,
and the stars,
piercing through the cosmos
and the heavenly seat of Khoda
and the earth, I, becoming
ever wonderment
of the creator of universe
have risen myself. …
The stream of restless poet’s rebellious deliberations put forward to his readers or listeners and at one stage one must have to pause and ponder that the rebel poet is yet to be calm as his anguish get flashed-
I would be calm that day
when the cry of the oppressed
would never rend the sky
and air;
when the brandishing weapons of death of the tyrants ,
would not be rattled in the fiercest battle field,
I would be calm that day.
I, the great Rebel,
have been tired of war. …
In Islam unjust war or killings are strictly prohibited. Islam dictates peace of entire humanity irrespective of colours or creeds, and difference of faiths of human beings. That’s the reason why the Quran also dictates the unity of mankind of the entire world in oneness irrespective of faiths for there should not be any conflicting chaos and confusion. The Muslim has become a nation to that end. Kazi Nazrul Islam deliberates-
We are that nation who sacrifices life for faith.
We make this world of our own by dint of equality and fraternity.
Out of the depth of dry dreary desert
We have brought soothing streams of peace to this sunburn thirsty earth!
We break barriers between high and low to give loving laps to all equally.
That nation we are who feels Islam is not for the Muslim alone.
Only he/she is a Muslim who is the protagonist of truth
resigning his/her self for Allah.
A Muslim does not distinguish
between the rich and the poor.
We are that nation who gives women equal rights with men.
We brought light of hope tearing apart the cover of darkness
and everyone here is treated on equal footing.
That nation we are!
The Muslims all over the world are yet to redeem whether they are ‘That Nation’ as envisaged by Kazi Nazrul Islam.
In ‘The Rebel’ he proclaimed the song of life,
“I must rid the world of the war-mongering race… In vehement disdain I must extirpate the world in chains to create blithely once again that delightful world. Tired of war I, the great Rebel, would remain at peace only then, when the anguished cry of the oppressed would no longer rend the sky and air and the tyrant’s lethal weapons would not rattle in the battle field .. .!, the great Rebel, would remain at peace only then.”
In Islam human equality is ensured. So Nazrul sings of that human equality in all his poetic notions.:
“None is high or low, all men (and women) are equal,
and none is either king or subjects of anyone.
We all share happiness and sorrow equally.
None has the right to hoard. Would some shed tears
to put light on to another’s room to enlighten the fate
of the few; keeping the millions remained ill-fated?
It is not the law of Islam.”
Nazrul had his humanity in the light of Islamic liberalism. He had profound faith in Islam from where his reflection came to light that, “Love for human is the best prayer of Allah.”
These love, justice, devotion for truth bring human beings under the compunction of self-consciousness with due consideration of fellow feelings. He lashed us-
“When you do not expect sorrow, pain, torment and indignity for yourself, you must not wish them for your brothers. Do not take your meal keeping your neighbours starved.”
“Give us strength and courage and tolerance
And give us heart, O Allah!
Give life to the dead put infinite strength and courage
to those fearing hearts,
– O Allah, the Omnipotent.
Give us health, give us longevity
with ever fresh light and air,
and make our free mind, and give us accurate knowledge,
-O Allah, the Omnipotent.
Again and again Nazrul entreats upon Allah for His Divine blessings with the followings-
Give us divine grace in our body,
Give us bliss and peace at home always,
Give us virtue of sacred love
and welfare-oriented devotion
So that we can keep our head aloft
and remain straight beyond any fear of proscription.
Whatever we want, we must earn it by our labor
but not by drawing gifts or begging alms from anywhere
O Allah, the Omnipotent you are!”
And
“I sing of equality,-
where every barrier has been shattered and converged in oneness
where Hindu-Buddhist-Muslim-Christian converged in oneness.
O stupid O foolish and weak-minded person,
learn truth which is greater than scriptures .
Nothing sort of Kaba-Mandeer is better than this (Human) heart
In the poem ‘Iswar’ Nazrul said,
“He is revealed in everything everywhere among everyone
Having seen me I came to know of my Creator.”
In the symbol of great hero Khaled Nazrul composed the poem ‘Khaled’ in which he reproached the bigots who stand on the way to progress as saying:
“When the world is on the progressive way,
we are sitting still researching
the Feka and the Hadith for edict
of divorcing wife.”
Kazi Nazrul Islam was a great voice for peace and happiness of mankind. He never expected that anybody in the name Islam should do wrong or unjust work against anybody. Whether he/she is Muslim or non-Muslim, he must be treated as human being related to everything created on earth for his/her comfort, peace and happiness .