Ghazals of Ghalib

Ghalib's couplet (ghazals) rival Alexander Pope's for biting wit in comments on the human condition. One of Ghalibs surprising conceits in the Ghazals of Ghalib shows God as the beloved --- in which Ghalib is the rejected suitor, while God is coquettish, disdaining, a tease. Ghalib was a master of irony; his high intellegence & complex emotions sparkle in his poetic flashes of insight. This translation aims for sense, keeping the couplet schema but not trying to duplicate Urdu rhythm or rhyme. Though Ghalib was born in wealthy circumstances, his family lost all when his father & uncle were both killed in military service. Orphaned & dependent. Ghalib became a court wit, in & out of favor. He even solicited Queen Victoria for patronage, after the Moghul Empire fell.Ghalib, Mirza Asadullah Khan is the author of 'Ghazals of Ghalib', published 1989 under ISBN 9780942208061 and ISBN 0942208064.