Classical · 1776–1838 · Faizabad – Lucknow
Sheikh Imam Bakhsh Nasikh was, with Aatish, the founder of the Lucknow school. Known for purifying and standardising the diction of the ghazal, he favoured a stately, ornamented style and trained a wide circle of pupils. His reforms shaped the sound of nineteenth-century Urdu verse.
gul ko mehboob main samajhta hoon
us ko mehboob ki ada kahta hoon
dil ke aaine mein hai tasveer-e-yaar
jab zara gardan jhukaayi dekh li
shab-e-firaaq ki tanhaaiyon mein yaad aaya
vo ek shakhs jo betaab kar gaya tha kabhi
na poochh aalam-e-barbaadi-e-jahaan-e-dil
har ek ghar mein hai is shahr ke kharaabi-e-dil
mehfil mein baar baar idhar dekhte hain vo
ye mera dil hai ya koi jaadu nazar mein hai
vafa ke baab mein vo bevafa nikla
jise main aashna samjha vo na-aashna nikla
zindagi apni isi shauq mein guzri Nasikh
aaj vo aaye ki kal aaye ki parson aaye
umeed-e-vasl ne dam-bhar na chain lene diya
gaya vo waqt ki rota tha hijr-e-yaar mein main