Book contents
- Grief and the Shaping of Muslim Communities in north India, c. 1857–1940s
- Grief and the Shaping of Muslim Communities in north India, c. 1857–1940s
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note on Transliteration
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 A Garden Lost
- 2 Useful Grief
- 3 Memorials, Feelings, and Public Recognition, c. 1911–1915
- 4 Empowering Grief
- 5 Nostalgia in Delhi
- Epilogue
- Glossary
- Bibliography
- Index
4 - Empowering Grief
Poetry and Anti-colonial Sentiments in the Early Twentieth Century
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 March 2023
Book contents
- Grief and the Shaping of Muslim Communities in north India, c. 1857–1940s
- Grief and the Shaping of Muslim Communities in north India, c. 1857–1940s
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note on Transliteration
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 A Garden Lost
- 2 Useful Grief
- 3 Memorials, Feelings, and Public Recognition, c. 1911–1915
- 4 Empowering Grief
- 5 Nostalgia in Delhi
- Epilogue
- Glossary
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
This chapter explores the development of shahr āshob and marṡiyah poetry from the Kanpur mosque incident of 1913. It argues that poets built on grief and lament to reclaim power and agency, reinterpreting grief and martyrdom in a Sufi perspective as positive symbols of love and faith, which nourished anti-colonial mobilisations in the 1910s and during the Khilafat movement (1919–1924). Iqbal’s poetry was emblematic in proposing a new positive and hopeful interpretation of grief as he turned ruins into new beginnings.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023