GHAZAL(rhymes with guzzle)

The word originates from arabic, meaning, "way or mannerism of talking to or talking about women." Thus in fact it s an expression of love. But in this ever changing world the ghazal has become a reflection of the life around us, and now there is hardly any sphere of human interaction which the ghazal hasn't touched. 

In its form, the ghazal is a short poem rarely of more than a dozen couplets in the same meter. It always opens with a rhyming couplet called matla. The rhyme of the opening couplet is repeated at the end of second line in each succeeding verse, so that the rhyming pattern may be represented as AA, BA, CA, DA, and so on. In addition to the restriction of rhyme, the ghazal also observes the convention of radif. Radif demands that a portion of the first line -- comprising not more than two or three words -- immediately preceding the rhyme-word at the end, should rhyme with its counterpart in the second line of the opening couplet, and afterwards alternately throughout the poem. The opening couplet of the ghazal is always a representative couplet: it sets the mood and tone of the poem and prepares us for its proper appreciation. The last couplet of the ghazal called makta often includes the pen-name of the poet, and is more personal than general in its tone and intent. Here the poet may express his own state of mind, or describe his religious faith, or pray for his beloved, or indulge in poetic self-praise. The different couplets of the ghazal are not bound by the unity and consistency of thought. Each couplet is a self-sufficient unit, detachable and quotable, generally containing the complete expression of an idea.

More specifically, the form is comprised of the following:

SHER: An odd number of independent couplets (shers), five or more, each of which is complete by itself and autonomous. This is the most consistently (often the only) rule followed in modern English-language ghazals.

BEHER: Metric consistency, or counted syllabics. There are 19 beher in Urdu, but they can be classified as long, medium and short. The lines of each sher should be of equal beher or length.

RADIF: The second end word of each sher should repeat according to the scheme: aa, ba, ca, da, ea, etc.

KHAAFIYAA: Internal rhyme in each line of the first couplet, and in the last line of each couplet In Urdu, this is the most rigid rule, yet is usually ignored in English.

MAHKTA: An optional mahkta or signature final couplet, where the poet's name is used in the second or third person. This is often used retorically, as if the poet was talking to him/herself. Many traditional ghazal poets (shayar) used pen names here. Mirza Asadulla Khan was known as "Ghalib."

For a complete exposition of these rules see: Agha Shahid Ali. "Transparently Invisible: An Invitation from the Real Ghazal," Poetry Pilot, The Newsletter of the Academy of American Poets

To summarize, the ghazal consists of:

- Five or more couplets, generally an odd number of total couplets
- Theme is generally of a romantic nature
- Consistent meter throughout
- Each couplet consists of a specific idea that can stand alone (do not connect the couplets other than in theme)
- Rhyme scheme of AA, BA, CA, DA etc.
- The final phrase of the second line of each couplet is a repeated refrain, or Radif
- The final couplet contains a reference to the pen name of the poet as its "signature"

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