The Ghazal

Part Two.

....There are good shers and not-so-great shers in a ghazal. The good shers are the ones that make you sing, memorize, or listen to the ghazal. The not-so-great shers are there to add bulk and consistency to the Ghazal. To give you the general drift of what is going on in the Ghazal. The good shers and the not-so-great shers have a symbiotic relationship. The good shers climb on top of the not-so-great shers in the word-ly pyramid and the not-so-great shers aquire meaning and radiance in the reflected glow of the good shers. Sometimes you will like a Ghazal and it's not-so-great shers even for half a good sher, more likely the second half....

Often you are trying to show off your favourite Ghazals to others. You might play it to them from a cassette or recite it or (heaven forbid) sing it out aloud. In any case it is somewhat difficult to pass through the not-so-great shers when your audience gives you the 'what's-so-great about this not-so-great sher' look. You want to say, "Wait. wait. The best part is yet to come. Wait, wait, you'll like it yet. Wait." When the ghazal is playing on the music system, as the good shers arrive and waft past, you sit still, and almost stop breathing. And you hope your audience will stop chattering for those few seconds and listen!

Which is why writing about your favourite ghazal is so much more convenient. You can almost point an arrow, as if to a diagram, and say, "Hey! Is'nt this clever?"