Adab Mein Jinsi Jazba

With slight variations, the sexual instinct is found in all living beings and acts as a universal biological law that ensures the continuation of life. In human existence, too, it has operated in one form or another throughout every era. If its expression has changed, it has done so under the influence of the same social and economic laws that have transformed other aspects of human life.

Human society has traversed many stages from its inception to the present day, and the pace of its development has varied across different countries. Consequently, just like other concepts, ideas regarding sex have also evolved. In one sense, the sexual instinct is a fundamental and natural drive that inevitably emerges in every healthy life. However, the methods of its expression, fulfillment, and gratification have not remained uniform. Consider hunger: it has demanded satiation in every era, and humans have quenched the fire of their bellies according to their strength, intellect, and available resources—sometimes by hunting, sometimes by foraging for fruits and leaves, and at other times by cultivating grain. As human capabilities expanded, the methods of acquiring these resources also evolved. Similarly, despite being present in every era and every country, the sexual instinct's modes of expression and gratification have remained bound to the prevailing economic system and the moral philosophy generated by that system.

This does not imply that these two drives are identical, that their means of fulfillment are similar, or that the call of the body and the forms of satiation are the same for both. Hunger frequently overpowers the sexual instinct—as the saying goes, during a famine in Damascus, people forget about love—yet both drives are ultimately shaped and altered by the social system. The sexual customs, romantic practices, and marriage rituals of uncivilized tribes differ from those of civilized nations. The sexual life of Sparta differed from that of Greece. To understand the stark contrast between ancient sexual relations and medieval religious moral paradigms, it is not enough to simply acknowledge that the human sexual instinct is natural. The core issue is not its fundamental or natural origin, but rather its evolving nature, its social standing, and its shifting significance.

When discussing the driving forces behind literature, the question is not whether literature acknowledges the importance of the sexual instinct. Rather, we must examine how perspectives on sex have evolved across different literary eras, and what kind of social philosophies or moral frameworks writers and poets have employed to express it. Furthermore, we must consider whether the nature of this expression is purely individualistic, or if it also serves, in some capacity, as a reflection of communal, class, and social life.

While contemplating this subject, the first question that might arise in a logical mind is: what exactly is meant by the sexual instinct, and what are its various dimensions? Once this is defined, it becomes clear how writers and poets have accommodated it within literature. Simply put, the diverse facets of love and romance depicted in poetry and literature all fall under the umbrella of the sexual instinct. This holds true whether the text explicitly mentions sexual desire or merely describes the relationship between a man and a woman; whether the expression is conscious or unconscious; whether its goal is the pursuit of balance and genuine happiness, or social reform; and whether the instinct portrayed is healthy or distorted. Throughout every era of literary history, one form, a few dimensions, or all of these manifestations have featured prominently in poetry and prose. Ultimately, the specific nature of the sexual instinct that societal conditions have fostered is precisely what has emerged at the forefront of literature.

It is not possible here to survey the literature of the entire world and the social conditions of all nations to historically prove that the sexual instinct is not merely a biological life force, but is deeply intertwined with certain aspects of cultural evolution. However, by conducting a historical survey of Urdu literature and understanding the social backdrop of its sexual paradigms, we can certainly bring to light some broad principles and crucial dimensions.

It is a well-known fact that Urdu literature originated in India, a region that had been entrenched in various forms of feudal and imperial systems for centuries. The development of Urdu literature was far more profoundly influenced by Persian poetry and the Iranian worldview than by Sanskrit. Iran, too, had flourished for centuries under a similar patriarchal system, one that could be described as semi-imperial and semi-militaristic. In such a system, the patriarch of the family holds supreme importance; by the same token, the king's decrees serve as the law of the land. Individuals lack personal liberty, and the status of women is relegated to the bottom. While it is true that not every man enjoys economic independence, a woman is left entirely dependent on a man. Consequently, in such a society, the relationship between a man and a woman cannot be founded on free companionship or mutual friendship. To preserve the familial structure, marriages are arranged solely at the behest and with the consent of the household elders. Let alone women, even men are denied the right to choose their life partners. While this might not have been the case in certain disparate tribes, it was the prevailing reality across vast swathes of Iran and India.

As a result, the passion of romantic love was largely divorced from the institution of marriage. This phenomenon sometimes manifested as a man's love for another man, and at other times as an affair with another woman despite being married. In certain eras, these dynamics were given a highly prominent place in poetry and literature. In Persian poetry, male homoeroticism is a direct consequence of the segregation of the sexes and the overarching lack of personal freedom. Modern psychologists often label male-to-male or female-to-female sexual love as a deviation, arguing that it is merely an individual psychological tendency. However, this is inaccurate. Anyone who has studied Greek society, or Iranian literature and life, knows that this is not simply an individual inclination; rather, it is a structural facet of a social system that denies men and women the freedom to love. Consequently, this trend in Persian poetry crossed over into India, cementing itself as a literary tradition. Critics of Persian literature later sublimated this into a matter of Sufi mysticism. A major reason for this reinterpretation was likely that conventional morality did not view such deviations favorably.

Undoubtedly, this can occasionally be an individual sexual inclination that finds expression in a particular writer's work. Ultimately, it is not easy to accurately gauge how much of this was grounded in reality and how much was merely adherence to literary tradition. However, one thing remains absolutely clear: the quest for true love, romance, passion, and intensity within sexual relationships can be easily traced throughout these literary creations.

There is a long-standing debate regarding the exact nature of the love depicted under the guise of Sufism. Many Sufi poets loved young men and described this earthly love as a stepping stone to divine love. Not only that, but they also portrayed such love as pure and entirely free from sexual impurity. Many poets alluded to Platonic love—that is, love for the sake of love. Most dismissed sexual love as mere lust, thereby cloaking their own romantic passions in a garb of sanctity. However, if one truth emerges from all this, it is that the desire for companionship has continually entered the realm of literature in various disguises. Everywhere, this search for love has persisted outside the bonds of marriage and beyond the narrow confines of domestic life.

In a feudal system, the majority of literature serves as the voice of the feudal class. Here, too, the woman depicted in literature is generally not a part of married life; she exists outside of it. Furthermore, because the custom of the veil was prevalent in certain countries and societies, the pursuit of love and romance outside of marriage became, on the one hand, a pastime for the leisure class, and on the other, a sorrowful tragedy in the event of failure. The warmth and passionate devotion craved by this fundamental instinct of love could not be found within marriage. This was because, conditioned by her social reality, a wife was reduced to the status of a subservient and obedient maidservant. Consequently, you will notice that in Persian and Urdu literature, the romantic love between a husband and wife is rarely depicted. More often than not, the focal point of love is either an imaginary or a real courtesan, who provides some measure of romantic fulfillment. In this kind of love, the conflict between morality and passion is evident at every turn. At times, moral boundaries are shattered, while at other times, sexual desire masquerades as pure, selfless love.

Even after making a courtesan the center of his love, the man still desires her to exhibit the same submission, loyalty, and obedience expected of a woman confined within the four walls of a home. This expectation is a one-sided reflection of male supremacy, a fact that becomes glaringly obvious when studying Urdu literature. The authentic portrayal of women's true emotions is rarely seen, appearing only sporadically. However, a glimpse of their suffocation and the indifference of men toward them can be found in the genre of poetry known as *Rekhti*. The contradictions arising from the lack of genuine love in family life, and the hollowness of sexual relations masked by formal, artificial expressions of romance, occasionally echo in the literature. Yet, the reality remains that the absence of freedom in love results in the expression of either sexual starvation or sexual repression.

As changing economic conditions propelled India toward the industrial age, certain old bonds were broken, and the individual became free—or, at the very least, experienced a sense of freedom. However, due to her marginalized social status and entrenched moral traditions, the condition of women did not change significantly. While reformist literature highlighted her helplessness and victimization, the question of her equality with men was never even raised. Globally, however, women had already begun their struggle for liberation. This struggle was inherently tied to the fight for the freedom to love. A woman no longer wanted to be merely a vessel for satisfying male sexual desire; she aspired to be an equal companion.

Up until that point, the way love and sexuality were depicted in India suggests a distinct lack of clear sexual consciousness. The boundless passion of love was typically framed in romantic or Sufistic terms, making it seem as though our writers were describing a unique kind of love that transcended sexuality. Gradually, however, love began to shift its axis and its meaning. Its conventional expressions were infused with the heat demanded by its inherently tumultuous nature. Although the literary treatment of love still occasionally leans toward the romantic, the sympathetic, or the patronizing, women's ongoing struggle to assert their identity has fundamentally altered the nature of sexual relations. Consequently, a clear sexual consciousness can now be found in the works of modern writers.

In Urdu literature, the individual freedom and sexual exhaustion born out of capitalist civilization did not manifest with the same intensity as they did in the life and literature of Europe and America. In the West, despite newfound freedoms, women and their love were reduced to commodities to be bought and sold. Deprived of genuine love, they fell victim to a profound dissatisfaction—a condition vividly portrayed in the works of writers like D.H. Lawrence, Aldous Huxley, and James Joyce.

In Indian literature, concepts of sexuality reflect the blended influences of religion, morality, customs, and both feudal and capitalist societies. The modest degree of romantic freedom gained through modern education could only find expression, at best, in romantic poems and stories. While there is a longing for female companionship, this desire usually culminates in despair and a resignation to abandon love altogether, because society has still not granted India the freedom to love. Sexuality, as in every era, remains a pervasive force in literature, but it now yearns for the destruction of the very system that obstructs the path of true, liberated love. These obstacles sometimes stem from archaic moral codes, and at other times from economic and financial constraints. This is why Urdu literature frequently dwells on the helplessness of love. The writers are not merely romantics; they also expose the social backdrop that creates this helplessness.

The literature of the past twenty years offers every conceivable example of sexual complexity and confusion. Many Urdu writers have been deeply influenced by Freud’s psychoanalysis. They have explored themes such as the Oedipus complex, sexual perversion, unconscious behaviors, homosexual inclinations, and other psychological phenomena, basing their entire ideological framework on the sexual instinct. For these writers, every human action is an unconscious manifestation of blind sexual drive, and humanity is merely a plaything in the hands of this instinct. Consequently, when cultural and social restrictions obstruct this drive, the individual falls prey to various mental illnesses in the attempt to suppress it. The reality, however, is that such writers remain ignorant of the broader social context that shapes sexual relations.

Sexuality has always been discussed in literature and will continue to be, and these depictions will largely reflect the sexual inclinations of their respective eras. In certain cases, it may also be the product of individual suffocation, dissatisfaction, perversion, or psychological illness. Nevertheless, to truly understand it, one must examine the evolving history of this instinct, its structural and cultural development, its relationship with morality, and its economic background. If no effort is made to strike a balance, it remains a mere biological, animalistic urge that will manifest as such. Conversely, if society itself is brought into balance, the avenues for expressing this instinct will naturally become balanced as well.

Therefore, contemporary writers also bear a responsibility when it comes to its expression. They must carefully consider which forms of this expression hold social significance and which forms devolve into mere obscenity. Unless they are guided by their artistic and social consciousness, this arduous path cannot be easily navigated. The slightest negligence can turn a genuine social issue into obscenity.

With slight variations, the sexual instinct is found in all living beings and acts as a universal biological law that ensures the continuation of life. In human existence, too, it has operated in one form or another throughout every era. If its expression has changed, it has done so under the influence of the same social and economic laws that have transformed other aspects of human life.

Human society has traversed many stages from its inception to the present day, and the pace of its development has varied across different countries. Consequently, just like other concepts, ideas regarding sex have also evolved. In one sense, the sexual instinct is a fundamental and natural drive that inevitably emerges in every healthy life. However, the methods of its expression, fulfillment, and gratification have not remained uniform. Consider hunger: it has demanded satiation in every era, and humans have quenched the fire of their bellies according to their strength, intellect, and available resources—sometimes by hunting, sometimes by foraging for fruits and leaves, and at other times by cultivating grain. As human capabilities expanded, the methods of acquiring these resources also evolved. Similarly, despite being present in every era and every country, the sexual instinct's modes of expression and gratification have remained bound to the prevailing economic system and the moral philosophy generated by that system.

This does not imply that these two drives are identical, that their means of fulfillment are similar, or that the call of the body and the forms of satiation are the same for both. Hunger frequently overpowers the sexual instinct—as the saying goes, during a famine in Damascus, people forget about love—yet both drives are ultimately shaped and altered by the social system. The sexual customs, romantic practices, and marriage rituals of uncivilized tribes differ from those of civilized nations. The sexual life of Sparta differed from that of Greece. To understand the stark contrast between ancient sexual relations and medieval religious moral paradigms, it is not enough to simply acknowledge that the human sexual instinct is natural. The core issue is not its fundamental or natural origin, but rather its evolving nature, its social standing, and its shifting significance.

When discussing the driving forces behind literature, the question is not whether literature acknowledges the importance of the sexual instinct. Rather, we must examine how perspectives on sex have evolved across different literary eras, and what kind of social philosophies or moral frameworks writers and poets have employed to express it. Furthermore, we must consider whether the nature of this expression is purely individualistic, or if it also serves, in some capacity, as a reflection of communal, class, and social life.

While contemplating this subject, the first question that might arise in a logical mind is: what exactly is meant by the sexual instinct, and what are its various dimensions? Once this is defined, it becomes clear how writers and poets have accommodated it within literature. Simply put, the diverse facets of love and romance depicted in poetry and literature all fall under the umbrella of the sexual instinct. This holds true whether the text explicitly mentions sexual desire or merely describes the relationship between a man and a woman; whether the expression is conscious or unconscious; whether its goal is the pursuit of balance and genuine happiness, or social reform; and whether the instinct portrayed is healthy or distorted. Throughout every era of literary history, one form, a few dimensions, or all of these manifestations have featured prominently in poetry and prose. Ultimately, the specific nature of the sexual instinct that societal conditions have fostered is precisely what has emerged at the forefront of literature.

It is not possible here to survey the literature of the entire world and the social conditions of all nations to historically prove that the sexual instinct is not merely a biological life force, but is deeply intertwined with certain aspects of cultural evolution. However, by conducting a historical survey of Urdu literature and understanding the social backdrop of its sexual paradigms, we can certainly bring to light some broad principles and crucial dimensions.

It is a well-known fact that Urdu literature originated in India, a region that had been entrenched in various forms of feudal and imperial systems for centuries. The development of Urdu literature was far more profoundly influenced by Persian poetry and the Iranian worldview than by Sanskrit. Iran, too, had flourished for centuries under a similar patriarchal system, one that could be described as semi-imperial and semi-militaristic. In such a system, the patriarch of the family holds supreme importance; by the same token, the king's decrees serve as the law of the land. Individuals lack personal liberty, and the status of women is relegated to the bottom. While it is true that not every man enjoys economic independence, a woman is left entirely dependent on a man. Consequently, in such a society, the relationship between a man and a woman cannot be founded on free companionship or mutual friendship. To preserve the familial structure, marriages are arranged solely at the behest and with the consent of the household elders. Let alone women, even men are denied the right to choose their life partners. While this might not have been the case in certain disparate tribes, it was the prevailing reality across vast swathes of Iran and India.

As a result, the passion of romantic love was largely divorced from the institution of marriage. This phenomenon sometimes manifested as a man's love for another man, and at other times as an affair with another woman despite being married. In certain eras, these dynamics were given a highly prominent place in poetry and literature. In Persian poetry, male homoeroticism is a direct consequence of the segregation of the sexes and the overarching lack of personal freedom. Modern psychologists often label male-to-male or female-to-female sexual love as a deviation, arguing that it is merely an individual psychological tendency. However, this is inaccurate. Anyone who has studied Greek society, or Iranian literature and life, knows that this is not simply an individual inclination; rather, it is a structural facet of a social system that denies men and women the freedom to love. Consequently, this trend in Persian poetry crossed over into India, cementing itself as a literary tradition. Critics of Persian literature later sublimated this into a matter of Sufi mysticism. A major reason for this reinterpretation was likely that conventional morality did not view such deviations favorably.

Undoubtedly, this can occasionally be an individual sexual inclination that finds expression in a particular writer's work. Ultimately, it is not easy to accurately gauge how much of this was grounded in reality and how much was merely adherence to literary tradition. However, one thing remains absolutely clear: the quest for true love, romance, passion, and intensity within sexual relationships can be easily traced throughout these literary creations.

There is a long-standing debate regarding the exact nature of the love depicted under the guise of Sufism. Many Sufi poets loved young men and described this earthly love as a stepping stone to divine love. Not only that, but they also portrayed such love as pure and entirely free from sexual impurity. Many poets alluded to Platonic love—that is, love for the sake of love. Most dismissed sexual love as mere lust, thereby cloaking their own romantic passions in a garb of sanctity. However, if one truth emerges from all this, it is that the desire for companionship has continually entered the realm of literature in various disguises. Everywhere, this search for love has persisted outside the bonds of marriage and beyond the narrow confines of domestic life.

In a feudal system, the majority of literature serves as the voice of the feudal class. Here, too, the woman depicted in literature is generally not a part of married life; she exists outside of it. Furthermore, because the custom of the veil was prevalent in certain countries and societies, the pursuit of love and romance outside of marriage became, on the one hand, a pastime for the leisure class, and on the other, a sorrowful tragedy in the event of failure. The warmth and passionate devotion craved by this fundamental instinct of love could not be found within marriage. This was because, conditioned by her social reality, a wife was reduced to the status of a subservient and obedient maidservant. Consequently, you will notice that in Persian and Urdu literature, the romantic love between a husband and wife is rarely depicted. More often than not, the focal point of love is either an imaginary or a real courtesan, who provides some measure of romantic fulfillment. In this kind of love, the conflict between morality and passion is evident at every turn. At times, moral boundaries are shattered, while at other times, sexual desire masquerades as pure, selfless love.

Even after making a courtesan the center of his love, the man still desires her to exhibit the same submission, loyalty, and obedience expected of a woman confined within the four walls of a home. This expectation is a one-sided reflection of male supremacy, a fact that becomes glaringly obvious when studying Urdu literature. The authentic portrayal of women's true emotions is rarely seen, appearing only sporadically. However, a glimpse of their suffocation and the indifference of men toward them can be found in the genre of poetry known as *Rekhti*. The contradictions arising from the lack of genuine love in family life, and the hollowness of sexual relations masked by formal, artificial expressions of romance, occasionally echo in the literature. Yet, the reality remains that the absence of freedom in love results in the expression of either sexual starvation or sexual repression.

As changing economic conditions propelled India toward the industrial age, certain old bonds were broken, and the individual became free—or, at the very least, experienced a sense of freedom. However, due to her marginalized social status and entrenched moral traditions, the condition of women did not change significantly. While reformist literature highlighted her helplessness and victimization, the question of her equality with men was never even raised. Globally, however, women had already begun their struggle for liberation. This struggle was inherently tied to the fight for the freedom to love. A woman no longer wanted to be merely a vessel for satisfying male sexual desire; she aspired to be an equal companion.

Up until that point, the way love and sexuality were depicted in India suggests a distinct lack of clear sexual consciousness. The boundless passion of love was typically framed in romantic or Sufistic terms, making it seem as though our writers were describing a unique kind of love that transcended sexuality. Gradually, however, love began to shift its axis and its meaning. Its conventional expressions were infused with the heat demanded by its inherently tumultuous nature. Although the literary treatment of love still occasionally leans toward the romantic, the sympathetic, or the patronizing, women's ongoing struggle to assert their identity has fundamentally altered the nature of sexual relations. Consequently, a clear sexual consciousness can now be found in the works of modern writers.

In Urdu literature, the individual freedom and sexual exhaustion born out of capitalist civilization did not manifest with the same intensity as they did in the life and literature of Europe and America. In the West, despite newfound freedoms, women and their love were reduced to commodities to be bought and sold. Deprived of genuine love, they fell victim to a profound dissatisfaction—a condition vividly portrayed in the works of writers like D.H. Lawrence, Aldous Huxley, and James Joyce.

In Indian literature, concepts of sexuality reflect the blended influences of religion, morality, customs, and both feudal and capitalist societies. The modest degree of romantic freedom gained through modern education could only find expression, at best, in romantic poems and stories. While there is a longing for female companionship, this desire usually culminates in despair and a resignation to abandon love altogether, because society has still not granted India the freedom to love. Sexuality, as in every era, remains a pervasive force in literature, but it now yearns for the destruction of the very system that obstructs the path of true, liberated love. These obstacles sometimes stem from archaic moral codes, and at other times from economic and financial constraints. This is why Urdu literature frequently dwells on the helplessness of love. The writers are not merely romantics; they also expose the social backdrop that creates this helplessness.

The literature of the past twenty years offers every conceivable example of sexual complexity and confusion. Many Urdu writers have been deeply influenced by Freud’s psychoanalysis. They have explored themes such as the Oedipus complex, sexual perversion, unconscious behaviors, homosexual inclinations, and other psychological phenomena, basing their entire ideological framework on the sexual instinct. For these writers, every human action is an unconscious manifestation of blind sexual drive, and humanity is merely a plaything in the hands of this instinct. Consequently, when cultural and social restrictions obstruct this drive, the individual falls prey to various mental illnesses in the attempt to suppress it. The reality, however, is that such writers remain ignorant of the broader social context that shapes sexual relations.

Sexuality has always been discussed in literature and will continue to be, and these depictions will largely reflect the sexual inclinations of their respective eras. In certain cases, it may also be the product of individual suffocation, dissatisfaction, perversion, or psychological illness. Nevertheless, to truly understand it, one must examine the evolving history of this instinct, its structural and cultural development, its relationship with morality, and its economic background. If no effort is made to strike a balance, it remains a mere biological, animalistic urge that will manifest as such. Conversely, if society itself is brought into balance, the avenues for expressing this instinct will naturally become balanced as well.

Therefore, contemporary writers also bear a responsibility when it comes to its expression. They must carefully consider which forms of this expression hold social significance and which forms devolve into mere obscenity. Unless they are guided by their artistic and social consciousness, this arduous path cannot be easily navigated. The slightest negligence can turn a genuine social issue into obscenity.