Poets Who Composed The Legend Story of Heer Ranjha

Heer Ranjha was handed down from generation to generation. According to scholars, the earliest version in Punjabi was that of Damoodar Das Gulati composed during Mughal Emperor Akbar’s reign (1542 to 1605). Although the incident took place during the reign of the Lodhi rulers, it became a popular folk story during this period.

Initially narrated in Persian poetry (during that time Persian was the official as well as language of the rulers), it was rendered into Punjabi by Damoodar. He has repeatedly described it as an eyewitness account essentially for the sake of narration. The story he has told seems to be based on facts. He gave numerous connotations to the tale from mundane to spiritual. All the later poets built on the hidden meanings of the tale suggested or hinted at by him. The language is simple and the style is straightforward with metaphors and similes borrowed from a local life.

Damoodar’s work was rewritten by Ahmad Gujjar in the 1680s. He is unquestionably the first among the great story tellers of the Punjab, who with his all-inclusive vision created characters that surpassed the parochial and came to embody the universal human predicament-individual versus repressive social structure. The unmistakable sign of his profound social consciousness is that he makes his protagonist, a woman, an eternal metaphor for defiance and resistance, without which human love born of freedom would remain a hollow ideal.

The language of the story is similar to the dialect of the area between the river Ravi and Chenab. Great poet Waris Shah and Muqbal got a lot of help from the story of Ahmed Gujjar.

Shah Jahan Muqbal wrote this romantic tale in the second quarter of the 18th century. He was blind, so he is also called Hafiz Shah Jahan Muqbal. His story is famous for being in Punjabi idiom which was written about 30 years before Waris Shah. It is also said that Waris Shah built his story of "Heer" on the same foundations as Hafiz Shah Jahqan Muqbal. 

The next famous poet who wrote the story of Heer is Ahmad Yar Maralvi, who was born in 1768 at Marala in district Gujrat. He was a multi-talented poet who wrote about fifty books. His Heer contains 183 stanzas, a number of them are similar to those of Waris Shah. The plot of both the stories is the same except for the ending. According to Maula Bakhsh Kushta, Ahmad Yar’s Heer made a sketch and Waris Shah painted it.

Among the writers of Heer's story is Imam Bakhsh Qureshi (1778-1863), a resident of Pasianwala, Sialkot district. He was a prolific writer and carpenter by profession.

In addition to the above-mentioned poets, more than 70 such stories are found in printed form, but the fame bestowed on Waris Shah's Heer did not come to any other poet. 

Waris Shah was born in a respected Syed family in Jandiala Sher Khan, a town in Sheikhupura District of the Punjab. His father's name was Syed Qutb Shah. He was well-versed in Tafseer (explanation of the Holy Quran), Hadith, Jurisprudence, History, etc. He was also interested in medicine, astrology, music and mysteries of Sufism. He knew Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Punjabi and other regional languages.

Heer Ranjha was handed down from generation to generation. According to scholars, the earliest version in Punjabi was that of Damoodar Das Gulati composed during Mughal Emperor Akbar’s reign (1542 to 1605). Although the incident took place during the reign of the Lodhi rulers, it became a popular folk story during this period.

Initially narrated in Persian poetry (during that time Persian was the official as well as language of the rulers), it was rendered into Punjabi by Damoodar. He has repeatedly described it as an eyewitness account essentially for the sake of narration. The story he has told seems to be based on facts. He gave numerous connotations to the tale from mundane to spiritual. All the later poets built on the hidden meanings of the tale suggested or hinted at by him. The language is simple and the style is straightforward with metaphors and similes borrowed from a local life.

Damoodar’s work was rewritten by Ahmad Gujjar in the 1680s. He is unquestionably the first among the great story tellers of the Punjab, who with his all-inclusive vision created characters that surpassed the parochial and came to embody the universal human predicament-individual versus repressive social structure. The unmistakable sign of his profound social consciousness is that he makes his protagonist, a woman, an eternal metaphor for defiance and resistance, without which human love born of freedom would remain a hollow ideal.

The language of the story is similar to the dialect of the area between the river Ravi and Chenab. Great poet Waris Shah and Muqbal got a lot of help from the story of Ahmed Gujjar.

Shah Jahan Muqbal wrote this romantic tale in the second quarter of the 18th century. He was blind, so he is also called Hafiz Shah Jahan Muqbal. His story is famous for being in Punjabi idiom which was written about 30 years before Waris Shah. It is also said that Waris Shah built his story of "Heer" on the same foundations as Hafiz Shah Jahqan Muqbal. 

The next famous poet who wrote the story of Heer is Ahmad Yar Maralvi, who was born in 1768 at Marala in district Gujrat. He was a multi-talented poet who wrote about fifty books. His Heer contains 183 stanzas, a number of them are similar to those of Waris Shah. The plot of both the stories is the same except for the ending. According to Maula Bakhsh Kushta, Ahmad Yar’s Heer made a sketch and Waris Shah painted it.

Among the writers of Heer's story is Imam Bakhsh Qureshi (1778-1863), a resident of Pasianwala, Sialkot district. He was a prolific writer and carpenter by profession.

In addition to the above-mentioned poets, more than 70 such stories are found in printed form, but the fame bestowed on Waris Shah's Heer did not come to any other poet. 

Waris Shah was born in a respected Syed family in Jandiala Sher Khan, a town in Sheikhupura District of the Punjab. His father's name was Syed Qutb Shah. He was well-versed in Tafseer (explanation of the Holy Quran), Hadith, Jurisprudence, History, etc. He was also interested in medicine, astrology, music and mysteries of Sufism. He knew Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Punjabi and other regional languages.

After getting his primary education from the village madrasa, he went for higher education to Qasur, a renowned seat of learning in that era. He was a student of Ghulam Murtaza who was also a teacher of Great Sufi poet Bulleh Shah. After completing his education in Qasur, he moved to the village of Malka Hans, 12 km north of Pakpattan in the Punjab. Here he lived in a small room, adjacent to a historic mosque, now called the Waris Shah Mosque.

Waris Shah is called the Shakespeare of Punjabi language because of his great poetic skill and expression of folk wisdom. It is said that through this romantic story, he tried to present man's love for God (a popular theme of Sufi literature). Waris Shah's Heer Ranjha also called the encyclopedia of the Punjab in which political, social, economic, societal issues as well as historical references are found in abundance.

In addition, the language used by Waris Shah is considered a veritable “treasure-trove of Punjabi phrases, idioms and sayings” passed down to coming generations. Pearls of wisdom are scattered in the pages of Heer Waris Shah, the wisdom that the common folk of the land have received from nature, based on personal experience and observation. It is one thing to memorize the sayings of wisdom from books and it is another thing to take experiences in the lap of nature. The unity of the environment has given freshness and depth to these wise sayings of Waris Shah.

After getting his primary education from the village madrasa, he went for higher education to Qasur, a renowned seat of learning in that era. He was a student of Ghulam Murtaza who was also a teacher of Great Sufi poet Bulleh Shah. After completing his education in Qasur, he moved to the village of Malka Hans, 12 km north of Pakpattan in the Punjab. Here he lived in a small room, adjacent to a historic mosque, now called the Waris Shah Mosque.

Waris Shah is called the Shakespeare of Punjabi language because of his great poetic skill and expression of folk wisdom. It is said that through this romantic story, he tried to present man's love for God (a popular theme of Sufi literature). Waris Shah's Heer Ranjha also called the encyclopedia of the Punjab in which political, social, economic, societal issues as well as historical references are found in abundance.

In addition, the language used by Waris Shah is considered a veritable “treasure-trove of Punjabi phrases, idioms and sayings” passed down to coming generations. Pearls of wisdom are scattered in the pages of Heer Waris Shah, the wisdom that the common folk of the land have received from nature, based on personal experience and observation. It is one thing to memorize the sayings of wisdom from books and it is another thing to take experiences in the lap of nature. The unity of the environment has given freshness and depth to these wise sayings of Waris Shah.