However, she said, he had two principal disciples in this tradition: Iqbal and Bhitai. Once, in a lecture delivered on Allama Muhammad Iqbal, German scholar Anne Marie Schimmel had said that Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi had significantly impacted the overall South Asian poetic tradition. In Sindh, Ayaz is rightly considered the true successor of Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai - one of the greatest poets born in our part of the world. It is not just the resistance against oppression and struggle for fundamental freedoms in Sindh that he symbolises in both poetry and prose he has holistically captured the Sindhi living experience, its highs and lows, enchantment and anxiety. The event ended with a befitting recitation of the poet’s works by Zia Mohyeddin.Īyaz is among the very few who gained legendary status in their lifetimes.
It was followed by multiple sessions to explore his personal life, political struggle and poetic genius. At the outset, a documentary film was shown on the poet’s life. Writers, poets, scholars, journalists, politicians and cultural commentators attended the event. In Karachi, the Sindh Culture Department and the Arts Council of Pakistan recently organised a national conference to celebrate Shaikh Ayaz’s 98th birth anniversary.
