Jaun Elia
Jaun Elia | |
|---|---|
| Native name | جون ایلیا |
| Born | Syed Hussain Jaun Asghar Naqvi 14 December 1931 Amroha, United Provinces, British India |
| Died | 8 November 2002 (aged 70) Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan |
| Occupation | Urdu Poet, scholar philosopher |
| Nationality | Colonial Indian (1931–1947) Indian (1947–1957) Pakistani (1957–2002) |
| Education | Philosopher, biographer, and scholar |
| Genre | Ghazal poetry |
| Notable works | Shayad, Yani, Lekin, Gumman, Goya, Farnod |
| Spouse | Zahida Hina (m. 1970; div. 1992) |
| Children | 2 |
Syed Hussain Sibt-e-Asghar Naqvi,[1] commonly known as Jaun Elia (Urdu: جون ایلیا, 14 December 1931 – 8 November 2002), was a Pakistani poet, philosopher, biographer, and scholar. One of the most prominent modern Urdu poets, popular for his unconventional ways, he "acquired knowledge of philosophy, logic, Islamic history, the Muslim Shia tradition, Muslim religious sciences, Western literature, and Kabbala."[2]
Early life[edit]
Jaun Elia was born as Syed Sibt-e-Asghar Naqvi on 14 December 1931 in Amroha, British India.[3][4] His father, Shafiq Elia, was a scholar of literature and astronomy well-versed in the Arabic, English, Persian, Hebrew and Sanskrit languages, and who corresponded with leading intellectuals like Bertrand Russell.[5] He was the youngest of his siblings. Rais Amrohvi was his elder brother. Indian film director Kamal Amrohi was his first cousin.[6]
Described as a child prodigy, he was initially educated at the Syed-ul-Madaris in Amroha.
Being a communist, Elia opposed the partition of India.[7] Elia once remarked on the creation of Pakistan that "this was the mischief of boys from Aligarh".[8][9][10] However, he eventually migrated to Pakistan in 1957, and decided to live in Karachi. Poet Pirzada Qasim said:
