Karrar Hussain (1911–1999) was a Pakistani educationist, writer and literary critic. In his student days in
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
he was affiliated with the
Khaksar movement
The Khaksar movement ( ur, ) was a social movement based in Lahore, Punjab, British India, established by Inayatullah Khan Mashriqi in 1931, with the aim of freeing India from the rule of the British Empire.
The Khaksars opposed the partiti ...
, with which he later parted ways due to a difference of opinion.
Biography
Karrar Hussain was born in Kota, Rajasthan, British India. After passing Intermediate Exams from Meerut, he went to Agra University and got master's degrees in English and Urdu. As a student politician, he was affiliated with the Indian National Congress and Khaksar Tehreek by Allama Mushriqui. He started working at Meerut College in 1933, where
Jameel Jalibi
Jameel Jalibi (Urdu: جمیل جالبی) was a noted linguist, critic, writer, and scholar of Urdu literature and linguistics from Pakistan. He also was Vice-Chancellor at the University of Karachi.
Early life
Jameel Jalibi was born Moha ...
Intizar Hussain
Intizar Hussain ( ur, ; 21 December 1925 – 2 February 2016) was a Pakistani writer of Urdu novels, short stories, poetry and nonfiction. He is widely recognised as a leading literary figure of Pakistan. He was among the finalists of the Man Bo ...
, and Saleem Ahmed were his students.
In 1948 he migrated to
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, where he continued as a lecturer in English at several colleges and was appointed as the first vice-chancellor of the
University of Balochistan
The University of Balochistan (UB) (Urdu: جامعہ بلوچستان; Balochi: بلوچستان ء یونیورسٹی ), also known as Balochistan University, is a public university located in the downtown area of Quetta, Balochistan, Pakistan. ...
in 1976.
Among his many writings is a biographical treatise about the
Mirza Ghalib
)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Kala Mahal, Agra, Maratha Confederacy
, death_date =
, death_place = Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, Chandni Chowk, Delhi, British India
, occupation = Poet
, language ...
commissioned by the ''Idara Yadgaar-e-Gahlib'' titled "Ghalib: Sab Achcha Kahein Jissay".
Karrar was also a scholar of
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, though he advocated that secularism provided the best environment for an Islamic society.
His written work includes several books and published collections of his speeches. He also wrote Urdu poetry, including Naat, Salam, Munqibat,
Marsiya
A marsiya ( fa, مرثیه) is an elegiac poem written to commemorate the martyrdom and valour of Hussain ibn Ali and his comrades of the Karbala. Marsiyas are essentially religious.
Background
The word ''Marsiya'' is derived from the Arabic word ...
s,
Nazm
''Nazm'' () is a major part of Urdu and Sindhi poetry that is normally written in rhymed verse and also in modern prose-style poems. is a significant genre of Urdu and Sindhi poetry; the other one is known as ''ghazal'' ().
is significantly ...
and
Ghazal
The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...
s. His poems have been published in various literary magazines.
Publications
*Study of Quran
*Quran & our Lives
*Ghalib: Sab Achcha Kahein Jissay
*Sawalat o Khayalaat
*Essays:
**Iqbal, Socialism aur Islam
**Pakistani Culture aur iskey Masail
*English Translations of Books:
**Distribution of Wealth in Islam by Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanwi (Translated by Prof Karrar Hussain & Prof Hasan Askari)
**Answer to Modernism by Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanwi (Translated by Prof Karrar Hussain & Prof Hasan Askari)
Death
Prof Karrar Hussain died on 7 November 1999 in Karachi, Pakistan.
After Karrar's death in 1999, an annual Professor Karrar Husain Memorial Lecture has been held in Pakistan, at which several prominent speakers have spoken, including sociologist Hamza Alavi.