Critical review Sahar of ul - - Bayan by Dr. Rasheed Hasan Khan

Abstract

Sahar-ul-Bayan is a celebrated Urdu masnavi written by Mir Hasan Dehlavi. It is renowned for its literary merits—including its characterization, plot structure, emotional depth, dialogue, head-to-foot (sarapa) descriptions, scene-painting, and cultural detail. Mir Hasan composed Sahar-ul-Bayan in 1782, at a time when printing presses had not yet arrived in the Indian subcontinent. Nonetheless, the poem gained wide popularity among both common readers and the literary elite. Later, in 1803, Fort William College, Calcutta, had it printed and published—a significant moment in bringing the work into print. The masnavi illuminates Mir Hasan’s personal worldview and the religious, moral, and ethical values of his era. These ideas were deeply embedded in the societal mindset of his time. In its narrative, Sahar-ul-Bayan mirrors the prevailing religious beliefs, mental frameworks, and moral concepts of that culture.