Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai:
“A poet of Character Building”
By Saleem Bhutto Lateefi

Far better not to sleep than mush suffering come across Shah Latif in every walk of life advises to be self-dependant because during the crucial hour no one comes for help.

Fasten your sift tight in shallow waters,
None will bring it to you in deep waters. 

Shah Abdul Latif is poet of life and for his life is actually otherwise it is not worth king as he says:

You ask a coach of comfort and struggle not,
Without pleasing the loved one, you will be considered not. 

Sleeper awake arise, sleep not so,
Royal Beloved you cannot achieve by sleeping more.

Shah Latif is master of human nature and he deals with ever-necessary problems of man. So to preserve man’s moral fiber intact he has to resist temptations and turns that may come on his way. Shah addresses to repent and give up pride and conceit, lust and greed but be humble and neck as he says:

Oh God! Let me not be clever, cleverness brings trouble & sorrows,
My beloved behaved well, when I was simple and steadfast. 

Shah advises not to change or give up his goal on the cost of material gives but suggest for patience because patience to sign of being learned one.

Soda, your patience is pride for the knowing ones,
Respect those who reprimand in silent turns.

Soda, your patience is a lesson to us all,
Resting forward me and then I was foolishly led to my fall. 

Soda, your patience brings the erring one on right track.

Patience tool led me to repent in haste. Shah Abdul Latif lets him characters lead pure life and cultivate with themselves the moral qualities so that they ultimately can perform better deeds in society, native land and people. Shah Latif wants accountability and chastisement for one’s actions in the life. This accountability ought not to be ignored or neglected but one should be mindful of life’s real purpose. With firm determination and hope if one wants to live his life according to the great poet’s guidance and believe that the purpose of life is to deliver goods to others, he will be the ideal one by putting away his ego and duality. Shah laments on ego and duality of man. He finds so sincerity in human beings. Nowadays at is rare that one cause across a right minded and sincere person as he says:

Your face is brighter than mirror, your heart is black,
Your speech is soft and sweet but you are creed and heartless,
Such a one is far from the loved one. 

On the one hand, it is an admonition to humanity is general that without persistent efforts and continues hard word, nothing commendable can be achieved in life. Secondly, the poet addresses man to remove all lumps and other defects from their life and make it perfect for performing good deeds. To be able to live a virtues life, good deeds are essential in a mood of humility and subnessurences. Man should not ignore this duties and responsibilities on one pretext or the other.

With conceit in their hearts, they spurn fine yarn,,
Not on once did the connoisseur accept of their yarns.  

Those with love in their hearts, who spurn coarse yarn,
Un weighed, the connoisseur accepted of their yarn. 

In the above verses our great poet emphasis hard working but with love and sincerity. Shah gives guidance for the good of humanity and wants his youth be all benefactors of mankind. Our poet says that the efforts of such person inspired with a holy zeal of seeking supreme value for themselves and for the rest of mankind are often thwarted by materialistic and base minded persons who only care for the immediate material gains and are capable of employing the nearest methods of obtaining then. But Shah on the contrary insists on cultivating eternal and moral value than never die. We find golden advice in poet’s threat to those who are seekers of true values. For seeking and achieving higher value man should sacrifice all base affinities for better came. This quality of character is not born gifted one but is to be cultivated by hardworking. Ancestry is no far here, he who makes for it deserves, only man should be brave enough to face courageously the rise and fall in the affairs of life. The uncertainly of his fortunes, and transitoriness of life. Shah says one who struggles, works hard achieves success and prosperity and such deeds have very smoothing effects and bring peace.

To maintain peace and keep it prevailing for prosperity, our poet emphases on unity and bonds of fraternity among human beings like birds flying together in flocks.

In flocks they always fly, never connections break,
There is more love in birds than in living men.

Separate not yourself from their carvan, lest they cross,
And you be left behind, unable to trace the track.

When finishes the character building of youth, he aspect from then to create such an atmosphere in society where not only the youth themselves but get others including the rulers the cultivation of the qualities of compassion, generosity and responding to the call of the supplicants with smile, without any delay. Shah wants every one of us be the crown of there qualities and epitome of all above qualities. He places great emphasis on charity. While narrating the story of Noori and King Tamachi, Shah has gives a graphic picture of the poverty and rough life of fishermen, contrasting it with that of the Kind’s palace and its inmates. The King’s generosity and his freely mixing with them points to the amelioration of their lot and doing away the bother of a class oriented society Shah Abdul Latif aspects changed world order where generosity equality, justice and brotherhood could flourish as he depits in his verse.

With fishermen Tamachi now is pleased to talk,
Young and old fishermen to palace flock,
Living by Kenjhar lake or far off, all have gain.

Shah Abdul Latif is very modern in his attitude and approach. As a geologist his only live sets man aback and compels to think about it where is Shah talk about the treasure of minerals and other precious stuff under beneath earth.

Dust’s with you will not find in any thing else. 

Because of such qualities of land Shah considers his native land as Beloved and takes it to high esteem. In chapter of Marvi he sings a song of patriotism and depoits Marvi longing to return to her native land and till the freedom from chains she certainly remembers her land without being lured by the many frivolous attraction and offered by Kind Umer. Shah Abdul Latif thought out his poetry keeps an remembering his native land and his people.

Longing for my native land, if here I die,
Make my grave beside my folks, oh Soomra!
Though dead, I will live if my body is sent to Malir. 

Such is Latif’s love for land. He takes it to the lofty heights of love and takes it as his beloved.

Land and loved one, no one alone forget indeed,
One who forgets his land, it is inhuman deed. 

By just listening to talk about native land, separation disappears,
Believed of all solrance, happiness seems to be near. 

Shah Latif’s love for his people has no match in literature.
Other prisoners are at rest, I alone on restless in chains,
My people’s memory, hangs like sword over head. 

Shah Abdul Latif love for his land and people is the main theme of his poetry. He always pray for their peace and prosperity.

Dear God, may you always make Sindh a land of abundance,
Beloved me, may you make prisoners the whole universe.

He an great poet note only prays for his native land Sindh but at the same time, his universally can be seen when in the same breath he prays for the prosperity and peace of the whole world. This is Shah’s concept of universal peace and prosperity, because he is of the views that when peace and prosperity prevails in every work and nook and corners of the world, every one is happy, everything found in plenty and every are rejoices at this prosperity. All share there feeling of joy but the only persons who can not share there feelings of joy, are the hoarders who had hoards of grain and other commodities to sell in time of sear city at higher price. There are the real and serious threats of world economy and ultimately danger for peace and prosperity and Shah does not like all their deeds.

Clouds was commanded to prepare for rain,
Rain patterned and paused, lightening flared,
Grain hoarders, hoping for dearness wing their hands,
Five would become fifteen in their pages the had planned,
From the land may perish all the profiteers,
Herdsmen one again talk of abundant shower,
Latif says have hope in God’s blessed grace. 

In Shah Abdul Latif, while reading hi poetry, one finds an inborn tendency in a poet to probe deeper into the man and his relationship with other, the ever-recurring problems of society and their effects on him. This kind of inner urge never dies out in him, as he involves in the affairs of man, and finds the solution of certain pertinent and forceful question which remain unanswered for others. Shah is ever haunted by there questions and try to seek their solution. Shah Latif from his very birth, is observant as well as contemplative. His very nature impels and guides him to solve the mystery of human problems. His longing for best order of thins and for a direct approach to solve there problems, supersedes everything else in his life. The quest for eternal truth which never die, becomes his primary concern and Shah Latif himself says for his verses on guiding principles and if we abide by his ideas, then the sure success in life awaits for us. As he says:

What you consider to be verses are sign posts,
That direct your mind to Lord’s abode. 

(Concluded)