About The Book
The Land of Reflections is an English translation of Marghoob Banihali's Sahitya Akademi award-winning collection of Kashmiri poems Partavistan. The collection won him fame and the Sahitya Akademi award in 1979. The book has been appreciated for its original treatment of conventional themes. It refreshed the Kashmiri diction and introduced the element of modernity in classical expressions. The book is also valued for its mellifluous continuity and linguistic richness. In addition to traditional genres, the book showcases first attempts at writing pictorial poems in Kashmiri. Partavistan made a mark for having an independent poem on different theories of art from early Greek to postmodern times and is considered pathbreaking in its fresh approach to conventional topics like love, separation, union of lovers, etc. The writing stands apart for use of metaphors in creative ways to reinforce the passion of love, rigour of intellect and striving for the meaning of life. The book was received well among the literary circles in Kashmir and continues to inspire succeeding generations of Kashmiri poets, writers and litterateurs. Some poems in the book celebrate the varied colours of nature in the tradition of Mehjoor
About The Author
Ghulam Mohammed Giri (1937-2021) popularly known by his penname Marghoob Banihali was born in Banihal in J&K's Ramban district. The loss of his parents at a young age had a deep and lasting effect on Marghoob's life. Prof. Marghoob was a writer, poet and an academician. With more than fifty books to his credit, Prof. Marghoob has left an indelible legacy by way of his arduous research, intellectual rigour and creative use of language. In his academic career spanning over several decades, he served as Professor in the Department of Persian, the Centre of Central Asian Studies, the Department of Kashmiri and the Iqbal Institute at the University of Kashmir. As a celebrated public intellectual, Prof. Marghoob was respected for his forthright expression, insightful ideas and forceful impact. He received the J&K State Award. Sahitya Akademi Award, Best Book Award from J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, and innumerable awards from organisations at state and national levels for his monumental contribution to Kashmiri language, literature and culture.
Abid Ahmad (born 1977) is an award-winning writer and translator based in Srinagar, Kashmir. He has worked in Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture & Language for around two decades as Editor of Sheeraza, Transcreation and Virasat, the Academy's literary and cultural periodicals in English language. He writes in Kashmiri, Urdu and English. He has so far published three books and innumerable esearch papers on Kashmiri art, culture and poetry at national and international level. He won the Best Translation Award in J&K for the year 2012 for Crescendo.
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