Professor Rashid Nazki (born Abdul Rashid Nazki; 18 September 1931 6 January 2016), was a

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Barua ...

poet, teacher, author, critic and the founder of the Adbi Markaz Kamraz Jammu and Kashmir, a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

literary organization of the Jammu and Kashmir state dedicated to promote Kashmiri language and literature. He wrote biography of Islamic Prophet Muhammad, leading him to become the first Kashmiri writer to cover the

life of Muhammad This is a chronological listing of biographies of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, ranging from the earliest traditional writers to modern times. Earliest biographers The following is a list of the earliest known Hadith collectors who specialized ...

. In 1999, he received the Sahitya Akademi Award in Kashmiri for his collection ''Vahraat''. He wrote numerous books in Kashmiri and Urdu languages and later, he was appointed to the Sahitya Akademi as a reviewer for the organisation's first volume of the

encyclopedia An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

, the reference work of the Indian writers compiled by the organisation.

Biography

He earned his Master of Arts in Kashmiri from the University of Kashmir and subsequently became the first

student to receive a PhD for his thesis on "Mystic Trends in Kashmiri and Urdu Poetry", which revolves around mysticism, Kashmiri and Urdu poetry. After serving as a teacher, he served at Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages. In 1975, he served as an editor at the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art Culture & Languages until he was appointed as chief editor. In 1980, he served at Kashmir University until he retired as a professor in early 90s. In 1976, he served as a member of Bharatiya Jnanpith, convener Iqbal Centenary, Shaikul Aalam Centenary, and

Lal Ded Lalleshwari, also known locally as Lal Ded (; 1320–1392), was a Kashmiri mystic of the Kashmir Shaivism school of Hindu philosophy. She was the creator of the style of mystic poetry called vatsun or ''Vakhs'', literally "speech" (from Sansk ...

Centenary which are officially sponsored by Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art Culture and Languages. In the later years of his career, he was appointed as in-charge seminars and Member Consultative Committee of Kashmir University's post-graduate department. He translated Allama Iqbal's ''Asrar-i-Khudi'', ''Javid Nama"', ''Zabur-i-Ajam'', ''Bali-Jabriel'', ''Payam-i-Mashriq'', ''Qaseeda Burda'', and ''Kuliyat-i-Nadim'' of Abdul Ahmad Nadim.

Personal life

His parents died when he was eight and was raised by his brother-in-law. After his matriculation result was declared, he was appointed as a teacher in state primary school. He had four sons and a daughter; however, his wife and two sons died in a grenade blast on 15 March 1992, leading him to leave literary work.

Death and legacy

He was suffering from

chronic condition A chronic condition is a health condition or disease that is persistent or otherwise long-lasting in its effects or a disease that comes with time. The term ''chronic'' is often applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three mo ...

and was subsequently admitted to hospital for

medical treatment A therapy or medical treatment (often abbreviated tx, Tx, or Tx) is the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a medical diagnosis. As a rule, each therapy has indications and contraindications. There are many different ...

. On 6 January 2016, he died at

Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (Urdu: ), often abbreviated as SKIMS, is the largest medical Institute under State Legislature Act in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. SKIMS is the only medical university of the un ...

(SKIMS). He is buried in Bandipora next to his two sons and wife. In 2015, Adbee Markaz Kamraz released a special edition of its biannual academic journal called ''Praave'' aimed at to highlight the life and work of Nazki.

Awards and honours

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nazki, Rashid 1931 births 2016 deaths Kashmiri poets Urdu-language poets from India Persian-language poets Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Kashmiri 20th-century Indian poets Scholars from Jammu and Kashmir Academic staff of the University of Kashmir University of Kashmir alumni