Mersiya /Marsiya is an Urdu-Persian poetry form that is recited
normally on the death of a dear one. This art form was first originated
in Iran where it was customary to recite Marsiya in order to commemorate
and lament the death of Hazrat Hussein and 72 of his comrades during the
siege of Karbala. Marsiya generally consists of six-line units, with a
rhyming quatrain, and a couplet on a different rhyme. Marsiya has its
roots in Arabic and Persian literature. By 1830 the genre had emerged in
Lucknow, at the hands of Mir Babur Ali Anis and Mirza Salamat Ali Dabir,
in a form distinct from its earlier literary antecedents. Marsiya is
extremely popular all over the world but some of the best exponents of
Marsiya reside in Lucknow.
A Marsiya is characterized by six-line verses in an AA, AA and BB rhyme
scheme. An independent verse of Marsiya is known as Noha. They are
traditionally either recited by Marsiya-Khwans or sung by a Marsiya-Soz
at Shia mourning assemblies held during the month of Mohharum. Though
its language draws heavily on Arabic and Persian vocabulary, the Urdu
Marsiya is imbued with the color and flavor of the Indian subcontinent.
The best of verses are exquisite cameos composed of images of local
flora and fauna, drawing on local custom and tradition. Some of the
famous Marsiya writers are Mir Babur Ali Anis, Salamat Ali Dabir, Syed
Muhammad Mirza Uns, Syed Sajjad Hussein, Shadeed Lucknavi, Dr. Syed Ali
Imam Zaidi and Gauher Lucknavi.
