Muhammad Mukim

Muhammad Mukim (18th century) poet, born in the village of Noapara in Chittagong district, son of Syed Muhammad Daulat, whose ancestors belonged to feni district. He lost his father in childhood and had to earn his living early, taking up a job in the record office of a zamindar, Ali Akbar Chowdhury.

Muhammad Mukim wrote Faydul Muktadi (1773) as well as a version of the popular gule'' ''bakawali, which has references to English rule in Chittagong. He is said to have written three other books - K'a'l'a'k'a'm, M'r'ig'a'vat'i' and A'yub Nab'i'r Kath'a' - but their manuscripts have not been found.

Gule Bakawali is interspersed with his thoughts on prosody, astrology, music, Hinduism, and Islam. His language is simple, but not without poetic beauty. F'a'ydul Muktad'i was chiefly aimed at preaching Islam. [Wakil Ahmed] [Ahmed, Wakil former Vice Chancellor, National University]