Saleem Asmi, Nov. 29, 1934 – Oct. 30, 2020
First published in The News on Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020. Reposted here with more photos.
By Beena Sarwar
His old friend S. M. Shahid termed Saleem Asmi a ‘Marxist Sufi’ in his compilation of biographical essays, ‘Living Souls: Memories’. Asmi Sahib would typically brush aside the accolades that came his way, not because he didn’t appreciate himself but because he had no false pride, false humility, or a shred of hypocrisy.
I can imagine his chuckle at the couplet by his favourite poet initially chosen by family and friends to inscribe on his gravestone:
Ye masaail-e-tassawuf, ye tera byan Ghalib
Tujhey hum vali samajhtalay jo na baada khwar hota
The way you talk of philosophy Ghalib, the mystical way you explain it
You would have been considered a saint yourself, had your drinking been less.
Filed under: Obituary, Progressive politics, Student politics | Tagged: Asma Jahangir, Dawn, Democratic Students Federation, Dr Haroon Ahmed, DSF, HRCP, journalism, Khaleej Times, Pakistan, S M Shahid, Saleem Asmi, zohra yusuf | 4 Comments »
Journeys to democracy 