Waris Shah

Author of Heer, the most celebrated version of the Heer–Ranjha story

PunjabiPoet

Life

Waris Shah was born into a Syed family in Jandiala Sher Khan. He studied at Kasur and later lived at Malka Hans, near Pakpattan, where he stayed in a small room at a mosque.

It was at Malka Hans that he completed his poem Heer in about 1766. The story of Heer and Ranjha had been told before, for example by Damodar, but Waris Shah's version became so famous that 'Heer' and 'Waris' became almost the same word in Punjab.

Little is known for certain about the rest of his life, and many stories about him are legends. He died in his hometown, where his shrine stands today.

Major works

Heer (Heer Ranjha): A long narrative poem telling of Heer, a beautiful girl of the Sial tribe of Jhang, and Ranjha (Dhido), a young man from Takht Hazara who becomes a cowherd for her father. Their love is opposed by her family and ends in tragedy. Waris Shah filled it with detailed pictures of 18th-century Punjabi village life, customs and characters.

Themes and style

Love against social barriers, the hypocrisy of clerics and village elders, and the power of fate. Heer can also be read as a Sufi allegory of the soul's love for God. His language is rich with proverbs and everyday Punjabi expressions.

Legacy

Waris Shah is often called the 'Shakespeare of Punjabi'. Heer is still recited in a special singing style across Punjab. In 1947, the poet Amrita Pritam wrote the famous poem 'Ajj aakhaan Waris Shah nu' ('Today I call on Waris Shah'), asking him to rise from his grave and write about Partition's suffering.