Maqta

Maqta

A maqta is the final couplet, or pair of lines, of a ghazal in which the poet places their pen name. A ghazal is a poem of self-contained couplets joined by rhyme and a shared pattern of line length and rhythm. The pen name is called the takhallus.

Many ghazals of Mirza Ghalib end with a couplet addressing Ghalib by name. The poet can speak to themselves as though someone else were speaking to them. Faiz and Faraz are also pen names that appear in their poets’ maqtas.

The maqta both closes the poem and signs it. Not every ghazal has one, so a final couplet need not contain a poet’s name.

Where you hear a maqta

In a sung ghazal, a poem built from self-contained pairs of lines called couplets, the maqta is the couplet the audience waits for. A returning melody connects the couplets, while repeated lines and pauses give you time to hear their meaning.

Many ghazals of Mirza Ghalib end with a couplet addressing Ghalib by name. This is his takhallus, or pen name. Faiz and Faraz are also pen names that appear in their poets’ own maqtas, often addressed to the poet as if by someone else.