The Three Phases Of Allama Muhammad Iqbal

Source : http://khudi.wordpress.com/ , http://pakhistorian.com/ & http://www.rupeenews.com

THE FIRST PHASE: INDIAN NATIONALIST

1) HUM BULBULAIN HAIN IS CHAMAN KI , YEH WATAN HAI HUMARA. HINDUSTAN HUMARA

“Saare Jahan se Aachha/ Hindusthan Hamara“

The first phase of Iqbal was as an Indian nationalist. He believed that both the Hindus and the Muslims could live together to return the subcontinent of India to its pre-British Moghul glory. This belief was made under the hypothesis that the two-century British period was an aberration in the thousand year history of South Asia. Iqbal believed that after the British left, South Asians (‘Indians’) could live together in peace and harmony and make the country great again. In the Forties, the Muslims made up about 40% of the population of South Asia (‘India’) and Hindus were in slight majority. However the cultural and social centers of South Asia were in the hands of the Muslims. During this phase of his life Iqbal believed that South Asia is as big as Western Europe could compete as a great nation against Europe, America and China. Jinnah at the time also experimented with unity and was called “The ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity “.

Here is Iqbal clearly disassociating himself from the scheme of Pakistan though he still defends his Allahbad speech made four years earlier

Dr. Sir Mohd. Iqbal Kt. M. A., Ph.D. Barrister-at-Law, Lahore

4th March 1934 My dear Mr. Thompson

I have just received your review of my book. It is excellent and I am grateful to you for the very kind things you have said of me. But youhave made one mistake which I hasten to point out as I consider itrather serious. You call me [a] protagonist of the scheme called‘ Pakistan’. Now Pakistan is not my scheme. The one that I suggestedin my address is the creation of a Muslims Province–i.e. a province having an overwhelming population of Muslims–in the North west of India. This province will be, according to my scheme,a part of the proposed Indian Federation.

Pakistan scheme proposes a separate federation of Muslim Provinces directly related to England as a separate dominion. This scheme originated in Cambridge. The authors of this scheme believe that we Muslim Round Tablers have sacrificed the Muslim nation on the altar of Hindu orso called Indian Nationalism

Yours sincerely,

Mohammad Iqbal

SECOND PHASE OF IQBAL: PAN ISLAMISM

2) CHEEN – O ARAB HUMARA, HINDUSTAAN HUMARA, MUSLIM HAIN HUM, WATAN HAI SARA JAHAN HUMARA

Disappointed by the Hindu attitudes, Iqbal began to think himself as a Muslim first, and an ‘Indian’ second. During this stage of his thinking, Alama Iqbal began believing in Pan-Islamism. Iqbal worked with Mohammed Ali and Shaukat Ali and Abul Kalaam Azad. He actively wrote poems on his belief that all Muslims should think of themselves as Muslims first. Caste and Creed were to be given up, and nationalism was shunned for the crescent and star.

Cheen-o-Arab hamara, Hindustan hamara

Muslim main hum, watan hai sara jahan hamara

Tauheed ki amanat senon main hai hamarey

Asan nahin mitana naam-o-nishaan hamara

Duniya kay bu’t kadon main, wo pehla ghar Khuda ka

Hum uss kay pasban hain, wo pasban hamara

Baatil say dabney waley, aey Asman! nahin hum

Sou baar ker chuka hai Tu imtihan hamara

Salar-e-Karwan hai Meer-e-Hijaaz (PBUH) apna

Iss naam say hai baaqi, aaram-e-jahan hamara

Iqbal ka tarana baang-e-dara hai goya

Hota hai jada paima, phir karwan hamara

(Meanings: Cheen-o-Arab = China and Arabia; Hindustan = India; watan = homeland; jahan = world; Tauheed ki amanat = Islam; Senon = Insight; asan = easy; mitana = eliminate; naam-o-nishan = survival; bu’t kadon = idol temples; pehla ghar Khuda ka = Referring to Khana Kaaba; pasban = Protector; Baatil = Oppression; Dabney waley = Oppressed; Asman = Nature; Salar-e-Karwan = Leader of Caravan; Meer-e-Hijaaz (PBUH) = Muhammad (PBUH); Aaram-e-jahan = satisfaction; Tarana = Anthem; bang-e-dara = Voice of bell; jada paima = reactivate)

THE CONCEPT OF KHUDI (self)

Iqbal wrote on the concept of self.

” Khoodi ko kur bulund itna kai khuda bundai say khood poochay, buta teri ruzaa kiya hai “.

This concept of self asked the Muslims to improve their lot by themselves, and not be at the mercy of any other person or nationality.

THIRD PHASE OF IQBAL:PAKISTANI SEPARATISM

3) KHANJAR HILAL KA HAI QAUMI NITAAN HAMARAH

باطل سے دبنے والے اسماں نھیں سو بار کت چکا ھي امتھاں ھمارا

توشاھیں ھے بسيرا کر پھاڑوں کي چٹانوںپر
پلٹنا چھپٹنا چھپٹ کے پلٹنا
لھو گرمانے کا ھے بھانا

“Tu shaaheen hai, basaira kar pharaon kee chatanon pur”..

“Jhapatna palatna, palat kar jhapatna;

Lahu garm rakhne ka hai ik bahana”…..Alama Iqbal

This is the third and final stage of Iqbal’s’ thinking patterns. Influenced by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan writings, Iqbal changed his thinking. During this phase of his life, Iqbal worked for the All India Muslim League, whose sole purpose was the creation of a separate homeland for the Muslims of the Subcontinent

Of his different phases Iqbal himself wrote:

” I have myself been of he view hat religious differences should disappear from this country, and even now act on the principle, in my private life. But now I think that the preservation of their national identities is desirable for both the Hindus and the Muslims. The vision of a common nationhood for India is a beautiful idea, and has a poetic appeal, but looking to the present conditions and the unconscious trends of the two communities, appears incapable of fulfillment”.

By the year 1941 He was indeed a firm believer in Pakistan and the Two Nation Theory

” Cant you see that a Muslim, when he was converted more than a thousand years ago, bulk of them, then according to your hindureligion and philosophy, he becomes an outcast and he becomes aMalecha (an untouchable) and the Hindus ceased to have anythingto do with him socially , religiously , culturaly or in any otherway? He, therefore belongs to a different order not merely religiousbut social and he has lived in that distinctly separate and antagonostic social order, religiously, socially and culturally…can you posibally compare this with that nonsensical talk thatmere change of faith is no ground for a demand for Pakistan? Cantyou see the fundamantle difference ? “ 2 march 1941. Pres. address toPunjab Muslim Students Fed.

As can be seen from the above that the entire Muslim nation of India did not actually believe in “Pakistan” untill after the failure of the Cabinet Mission Plan. It was after the failure of the CMP that Quaid-e-Azam and the Muslim League had accepted that the MOVEMENT TOWARDS Pakistan or an independent Muslim state began. Earlier writings from Iqbal DO NOT DETRACT anything from Iqbal becasue as early as 1930 he WAS propogating a SEPERATE identity of the Muslims of India.Iqbal’s vs Goethe’s: Deja Vu in Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan

Nikal kay sehra say jis nay Roma ki saltanat ko ulat diya tha

Suna hai qudsiyon say main nay, wo sher phir hoshyar ho ga

Khuda kay bandey tou hain hazaron, banon main phirtey hain marey marey

Main uss ka banda banon ga jis ko Khuda kay bandon say pyar ho ga

(Meanings: saltanat = State; ulat = to conquer; Qudsiyon = fortune tellers; sher = lion (referring to Sultan Salah ud Din Ayubi and other brave Muslims); hoshyar = Attention; banon = forests)

موت العاﹺلم موت العالمﹶ

For those who ponder!

By Faraz Baig

An extremely thought provoking article

The modern age is the age of professionalism. This is the age when being workaholic is not a disorder but a demand. People now cannot tend to their most basic needs because they haven’t the time to do so. Being ahead from their peers in the rat race remains the ultimate desire of every individual. So much so that to be ahead in life they forsake their basic rights, right to be happy, right to be content, right to be with the family, right to be religious etc.

Today’s civilization seems like a giant web which has tied us in invisible strings where we’re supposed to do only three things: Go to work, go home, and prepare to go to work. Even our recreations are a way of supplementing this schedule.

But there are times, when destiny laughs in our face and makes us feel so helpless that we’re left wondering if we had any power all along. It’s at such times that our monotony comes to an abrupt halt. One such instance is when we’re witnessing the funeral of a loved one. At such a time, none of our “most important and most urgent” errands are so much as important as the grief of losing our loved ones. Work can wait then, because we’ve humbly submitted to our destiny.

The same hand of destiny is currently holding an entire continent- who is the flag bearer of atheism in the world- in a state of paralysis. Europe’s air travel has come down to an absolute halt due to hot toxic ash oozing from a glacier. I couldn’t help but laugh at the remark from an acquaintance that “isn’t it ironic hot lava is coming from Iceland!” The volcano, Eyjafjallajökull (Pronounced something like Aiya-fjadla-yeugdul), is a veteran of centuries and since the time of its reawakening last week, has spewed enough fumes and toxic ash into the atmosphere to have spread over almost all Europe.

That’s why all flights coming in and out of Europe have been seized, leaving hundreds of thousands of commuters stranded at airports, airlines incurring daily losses of over 200 Million USD for accommodating customers, even Germany’s Chancellor has had to make her trip back home from Italy via car. Those who could afford are opting for the Intra-Continent train system, and some have opted for the fairy, converting one industry’s misery into another’s pleasure. The majority of people are those who are left stranded. People who were supposed to be on urgent assignments abroad have had to realign their schedule, they couldn’t have done otherwise.

No matter how badly the airlines and the passengers want these flights to take off, conditions are absolutely not favorable for flight and there is high risk of plain crashes with ash blocking the engines. Worse, the glacier is still exhuming its contents and there’s a fair chance it could continue to do so for a month or even more. Worst, it could trigger other volcanoes which are somehow quite abundant in Iceland.

Our businesses run on the premise of predictability. We hope that the world wouldn’t come to end tomorrow. That’s why we leave our loved ones behind everyday to work because we believe that we’ll come back in the evening to see them again.

This predictability comes from the laws that ALLAH (swt) has embedded in the universe: law of gravitation, law of entropy, law of aerodynamics, law of surface tension, law of aging etc. ALLAH (swt) declares this tranquility in the Quran as one of His Ayaat. In Surah Faatir it is mentioned:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ أَن تَزُولَا ۚ وَلَئِن زَالَتَا إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّن بَعْدِهِ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًا

خدا ہی آسمانوں اور زمین کو تھامے رکھتا ہے کہ ٹل نہ جائیں۔ اگر وہ ٹل جائیں تو خدا کے سوا کوئی ایسا نہیں جو ان کو تھام سکے۔ بےشک وہ بردبار (اور) بخشنے والا ہے

Lo! Allah graspeth the heavens and the earth that they deviate not, and if they were to deviate there is not one that could grasp them after Him. Lo! He is ever Clement, Forgiving. (41)

On another place it is mentioned in Surah Shoora:

إِن يَشَأ يُسكِنِ الرّيحَ فَيَظلَلنَ رَواكِدَ عَلىٰ ظَهرِهِ ۚ إِنَّ فى ذٰلِكَ لَءايٰتٍ لِكُلِّ صَبّارٍ شَكورٍ

اگر خدا چاہے تو ہوا کو ٹھیرا دے اور جہاز اس کی سطح پر کھڑے رہ جائیں۔ تمام صبر اور شکر کرنے والوں کے لئے ان (باتوں) میں قدرت خدا کے نمونے ہیں

“If He will He calmeth the wind so that they keep still upon its surface – Lo! herein verily are signs for every steadfast grateful (heart). – (33)

In Surah Room it is mentioned:

وَمِن ءايٰتِهِ أَن يُرسِلَ الرِّياحَ مُبَشِّرٰتٍ وَلِيُذيقَكُم مِن رَحمَتِهِ وَلِتَجرِىَ الفُلكُ بِأَمرِهِ وَلِتَبتَغوا مِن فَضلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُم تَشكُرونَ

اور اُسی کی نشانیوں میں سے ہے کہ ہواؤں کو بھیجتا ہے کہ خوشخبری دیتی ہیں تاکہ تم کو اپنی رحمت کے مزے چکھائے اور تاکہ اس کے حکم سے کشتیاں چلیں اور تاکہ اس کے فضل سے (روزی) طلب کرو عجب نہیں کہ تم شکر کرو

And of His signs is this: He sendeth herald winds to make you taste His mercy, and that the ships may sail at His command, and that ye may seek his favour, and that haply ye may be thankful. (46)

As it is clear from the above mentioned verses, the laws of nature, no matter how predictable, are subject to ALLAH (swt)’s will. It’s not just that the universe was created by ALLAH (swt) and triggered in a self-perpetuation state. No. ALLAH (swt) is well and truly at the helm of His eternal kingdom. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, cyclones, tremors, and epidemics like dengue fever, cholera and plague are not signs of chaos, but the exceptions that prove the rule.

They are but just a way to remind human beings that they’re not left unanswerable and that they’re not indispensable. There were much mightier civilizations than the current one which have been swept clean from the face of this earth in such catastrophes. As if they never were.

For those affected by this current debacle, and for those who’re witnessing it happen, maybe ALLAH (swt) has given a chance to ponder in his Ayaat. We’ve got to take the time out of our busy schedules to look into ourselves and in the universe. Human being has become lonelier and lonelier but the solitude that lets us think about our Creator is still a rare commodity. We should relish this chance. Any calamity that makes us closer to our Lord is not a calamity, it’s a blessing. And smart and practical people grab blessings with both hands!

May ALLAH (swt) makes us one of his dear ones. Ameen

Quranic references from:

Quran Media Player

Quran Explorer

Tanzil.info

Source : http://baigsaab.wordpress.com/2010/04/21/for-those-who-ponder/