Structure of Ghazal: 3 Steps to write a Ghazal

The ghazal  may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss or separation and the beauty of love in spite of that pain. The form is ancient, originating in 6th-century Arabic verse. It is derived from the Arabian panegyric qasida.

The structural requirements of the ghazal are similar in stringency to those of the Petrarchan sonnet. In style and content it is a genre that has proved capable of an extraordinary variety of expression around its central themes of love and separation. It is one of the principal poetic forms which the Indo-Perso-Arabic civilization offered to the eastern Islamic world.

The Ghazal is a centuries-old, popular form of poem and song in Persia (Iran), Pakistan and India.[1] It can be an interesting challenge, but fun, too.

A ghazal consists of a series of couplets (two-line verses), with each line containing the same number of syllables. Every verse ends with the same word or group of words (radif), preceded by a rhyme (qaafiya). Additionally, both lines of the first verse end with the qaafiya and radif.

Hari Manandhar "Bibash"

STEPS:
1. Decide what your radif is going to be. Every verse ends with the same word or group of words (radif). It makes sense to choose one that can be flexible in use and meaning, so you can use it in different ways in each verse.

2. Consider what your qaafiya is going to be. The qaafiya is a rhyme that precedes the radif. Again, pick something with lots of possibilities.

3. Get writing! A ghazal consists of a series of couplets (two-line verses), with each line containing the same number of syllables. Each couplet is a separate, complete mini-poem, so there’s no need for any narrative progression, or any real connection between the couplets. Both lines of the first verse end with the qaafiya and radif. See down the page for an example ghazal.

Source: Wikipedia/Wikihow