Meer has been called the Imam (leader/pioneer) of Urdu shayari and this was accepted by the greatest Urdu poets. Shayars of the stature of NaasiKH, GHalib and Zauq used to call him Ustad as is evidenced by these shers:
rekhta ke tum hi ustaad nahiN ho "GHalib"
kahte haiN agle zamane meN koi Meer bhi thA
[rekhta = Urdu]
"GHalib" apna yeh aqeeda hai ba-qoul-e-NaasiKHand
aap be-bahra hai jo motqid-e-Meer nahiN
[ba-qoul-e-NaasiKH = quoting NaasiKH]
[be-bahra = poor]
[motqid-e-Meer = follower of Meer]
na huA par na huA Meer ka andAz naseebInstead of using high-falutin' Faarsi, Meer would use a common and easy to understand style of narration which not only increased the simplicity and beauty of GHazal, but also magnified it's effect to an extent that would leave the listener spell-bound.
"Zauq" yaaroN ne bohot zor GHazal meN mara
Syed Amanullah Meer Taqi was the only son of a Sufi saint, Meer Muttaqi. His father, while on death bed, instructed Meer to "Adopt the path of love. A life without love is an ordeal and losing one's heart in love is the real art. Though this path is riddled with difficulties, love is what drives the world." This is a philosophy reflected by Meer in most of his works.
After his father's death, at the age of 11 years, Meer left his home town of Akbarabad for Delhi. He found his patrons among the Rajas and Nawabs there, but the circumstances did not allow him much rest. After Delhi was ruined, he went to Lucknow. Even here, he got no respite. He spent all his life like a wanderer in search of peace.