page_title: Momin Khan Momin
section_title: Works
hierarchical_section_title: Momin Khan Momin / Works
caption_attribution_description: English: Momin Khan Momin's (1800-1851 AD) famous ghazal in Devnagri script.
context_page_description: Momin Khan Momin was a late Mughal era poet known for his Urdu ghazals. A lesser-known contemporary of Ghalib and Zauq, he used "Momin" as his nom de plume. His grave is located near the parking area of Maulana Azad Medical College in Delhi.
context_section_description: Momin is known for his particular Persianized style and the beautiful use of his 'takhallus'. According to legend, Mirza Ghalib (his contemporary and also a rival) offered Momin his entire diwan (collection of poetry) in exchange for a particular verse of Momin. However, most modern poets believe this claim as an 'exaggeration' which poets commonly indulged in at that time. This exaggeration was usually done to emphasise some thing. The couplet in question was:
  تم میرے پاس ہوتے ہو گویا
  جب کوئی دوسرا نہیں ہوتا
  "Tum mērē pās hōtē hō gōyā
  Jab kō'ī dūsrā nahīⁿˡ hotā"
  which translates to:
  You are close to me [as if]
  When no one else is.
  This couplet's beauty is in its succinctness and multiple layers of meaning. One of the meanings is When you're with me(on my mind), no-one else is and a second meaning/interpretation is You are with me (on my side), when no-one else is. The two meanings emerge by the use of words gōyā and jab (when)."
  One of his very famous ghazals starts with the following matla (the first line of the opening couplet of a ghazal).
  Woh jō ham mēⁿ tum mēⁿ qarār tḣā; tumhēⁿ yād hō, keh nah yād hō:
  Wohī, yaʿnī waʿdah nibāh kā; tumhēⁿ yād hō, keh nah yād hō
  وہ جو ہم میں تم میں قرار تھا، تمہیں یاد ہو کہ نہ یاد ہو
  وہی یعنی وعدہ نباہ کا، تمہیں یاد ہو کہ نہ یاد ہو
  That understanding which we had between us... whether you remember it or not...
  That promise of trust and faithfulness...whether you remember it or not...
caption: Momin Khan Momin's famous ghazal in Devnagri script.
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