Naseem Hijazi

Sharif Hussain (Urdu: شریف حسین), who used the pseudonym Nasīm Hijāzī (Urdu: نسیم حجازی, commonly transliterated as Naseem Hijazi or Nasim Hijazi) (19 May 1914 – 2 March 1996), was an Urdu novelist.[1][2]

"Sharif Husain" redirects here. For the Arabian leader, see Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca.

Naseem Hijazi
Naseem Hijazi in 1976
BornSharif Hussain
19 May 1914
Gurdaspur district, Punjab , British India
Died2 March 1996(1996-03-02) (aged 81)
Lahore, Pakistan
OccupationNovelist
LanguageUrdu
NationalityPakistani
Notable awardsPride of Performance Award in 1992

Early life and career

Hussain was born in an Arain family in the village of Sujaanpur, near the town of Dhariwal, in the Gurdaspur district of Punjab, in pre-partition India. He migrated to Pakistan after partition in 1947. He chose Islamic history as the inspiration for his novels.[3]

Among the notable writers of his time, Ibn-e-Safi, Saadat Hasan Manto, and Shafiq-ur-Rehman were his popular contemporaries. He lived most of his life in Pakistan and died on 2 March 1996.[4][3]

Novels

Naseem Hijazi used historic settings as the background for his novels and based most of his work on Islamic history, demonstrating both the rise and fall of the Islamic Empire.[3] His novels Muhammad Bin Qasim, Aakhri Ma'raka, Qaisar-o Kisra, and Qafla-i Hijaz describe the era of Islam's rise to political, militaristic, economic, and educational power, while Yusuf Bin Tashfain, Shaheen,[5] Kaleesa Aur Aag, and Andheri Raat Ke Musafir describe the period of the Spanish Reconquista.

In Akhri Chataan, he depicts the Central Asian conquests of Genghis Khan and his destruction of the Khwarizm Sultanate[3].

Hijazi wrote two sequential novels on the British Raj, and described the shortcomings of many nations within India after the collapse of the Mughal Empire. The novel Mu'azzam Ali starts a little before the Battle of Plassey. The lead character, Muazzam Ali, joins the fight against the British with the army of Siraj-ud-Daula. The story progresses as the character moves from one place in India to another in search of lost glory and freedom. He takes part in the third battle of Panipat and finally settles in Srirangapattana, which is growing in power under the towering personality of Haider Ali. The book ends around the death of Ali. The second book on the battles in the same area, Aur Talwar Toot Gayee (And the Sword Broke), is about Haider's son Sultan Tipu, where the same character is finding his dreams being fulfilled in Tipu's valiant endeavours against the British East India Company. The book culminates in Sultan Tipu's sad and untimely martyrdom.[3][1]

Hijazi also wrote the novel Khaak aur Khoon, which details the violence caused by religious tensions between Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus at the time of the partition of British India and the Independence of Pakistan in 1947.[6][3]

Although some historians have accused him of distorting historical facts in his novels[3], he has influenced many readers inside and outside Pakistan[2].

Publications
Title (Roman)Title (English)Title (Urdu)GenreHistorical Period/Events
Khaak aur Khoon[6][1]Dirt and Blood خاک اور خون NovelBritish Indian Empire, Partition of India in 1947, Creation of Pakistan
Yousuf bin Tashfin[1]Yousuf Son of Tashfinیوسف بن تاشفینNovelAl-Andalus, First Taifas period, Almoravid Empire, Spanish Reconquista
Akhari Chattan[2][1]The Last Rockآخری چٹانNovelSiege of Jerusalem (1187) – Saladin captures Jerusalem from the Crusaders, Mongol invasion of Khwarezmia and Eastern Iran, Fall of Baghdad (End of Abbasid Caliphate)
Aakhari Maarka[2]The Last Battleآخری معرکہNovelInvasions of India by Mahmud of Ghazni
Andheri Raat Ke Musafir[2]Travelers of the Dark Nightاندھیری رات کے مسافرNovelSpanish Reconquista, Fall of Granada[3]
Kaleesa Aur Aag[2]Church and Fireکلیسا اور آگNovelSpanish Reconquista, Spanish Inquisition, expulsion of the Moriscos - (continued from the end of Andheri Raat Ke Musafir)[3]
Muazzam AliMuazzam Aliمعظم علیNovelBritish Indian Empire, Battle of Plassey, Third Battle of Panipat, Anglo-Mysore Wars (Hyder Ali's Era)
Aur Talwar Toot Gai[2]And the Sword Brokeاور تلوار ٹوٹ گئیNovelAnglo-Mysore Wars (Tipu Sultan's Era - continued from the end of 'Muazzam Ali')
Daastaan-e-Mujahid (1944)[3][2]A Soldier's Taleداستان مجاہدNovelArab Ummayad Caliphate - Muslim Conquest of Al-Andalus, Sindh, Central Asia, and Maghreb
Insaan Aur DevtaMan and Godانسان اور دیوتاNovelAncient India - brutality of upper castes towards lower castes in the Hindu religion
Muhammad Bin Qasim[1]Muhammad Bin Qasimمحمد بن قاسمNovelMuslim Conquest of Sindh[3]
Pakistan Se Diyare Haram TakFrom Pakistan to Sacred Landپاکستان سے دیار حرم تکTravelogue
Pardesi DarakhtThe Foreign Treeپردیسی درختNovelBritish Indian Empire, a few years before partition of British India
Gumshuda Qaafley[2]The Lost Caravansگمشدہ قافلےNovelBritish Indian Empire, Partition of India, Creation of Pakistan - (continued from the end of Pardesi Darakht)
Pouras Ke Hathi [2]Poras's Elephants پورس کے ہاتھیDramaIndo-Pakistani War of 1965[3]
Qafla-e-HijazThe Caravan of Hijazقافلئہ حجازNovelRashidun Caliphate, Muslim conquest of Persia
Qaisar-o-Kisra[1]Caesar and Cyrusقیصر و کسر'یNovelByzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628, Rise of Islam in Arabian Peninsula
Saqafat Ki TalaashIn Search of Cultureثقافت کی تلاشDrama, Humor
Shaheen[5][1]The FalconشاہینNovelSpanish Reconquista, Fall of Granada[3]

(English translation of Shaheen)

Sau Saal Baad100 Years Laterسو سال بعدNovel, Humor
Sufaid Jazeera[2]The White Islandسفید جزیرہNovel, Humor

Death

Naseem Hijazi died on 2 March 1996 at age 81 in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.[4][1][7]

Awards and recognition
gollark: I really ought to make it send links to the message where you queed it.
gollark: I accidentally wiped my downloads folder a few months ago, but it still has 434 items in it.
gollark: There's one file in there called `a2d43200-8ebd-11ea-9107-b5d7b72947b4`. What *is* an `a2d43200-8ebd-11ea-9107-b5d7b72947b4`, I wonder?
gollark: I have 434 things in Downloads.
gollark: Yes, they do have quite good takeaway meals.

References
  1. "Naseem Hijazi's list of novels with their ratings". goodreads.com website. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  2. Unknown (6 September 2013). "URDU ADAB: Complete List of Novels Written by Naseem Hijazi (includes his profile)". urduadab4u.com website. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  3. "Naseem Hijazi: the master of historic fiction". The Nation (newspaper). 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  4. "Writer of Islamic historical novels Naseem Hijazi's anniversary today". Samaa TV News website. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  5. "Shaheen (Volume-1)". 12 March 2007. Archived from the original on 3 May 2007. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  6. "Free Naseem hijazi novels online read". Free Books website. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  7. Shahid Irfan (1 February 2017). "Naseem Hijazi: Historic and Islamic Novel Writer". theurduwriters.com website. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
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