The Secrets of the Self Ws Xpts

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

The Secrets of the Self Ws Xpts THE SECRETS OF THE SELF (ASRAR E KHUDI)) ALLAMA DR. SIR MUHAMMAD IQBAL POETIC RENDERING BY BASHIR SACRANIE The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal FOREWORD I can barely explain the whys and hows of this enter- prise, and its outcome that I here present. It came about without any real will or purpose on my part. It is only now that I cast my mind back and ‘join the dots’ that I can rationalise it and give readers some sense of the course and motivation of this work. Iqbal did not mean much to me. I had heard his name in my childhood when, in the early years after Pakistan’s formation, the Indian Muslims in the then Nyasaland celebrated Pakistan Day. I knew Allama Iqbal was one of its founding fathers and that he was a great poet and intellect. There were speeches and Jinnah and Iqbal were mentioned with great rever- ence. The abiding memory for me of these occasions is that, at the age of 6 years, I stood on the stage in front of a crowded cricket field and sang, “Hum dard ka afsana duniya ko suna dengeh”, an Islamic song from a 1947 Bollywood movie. This little performance significantly affected and influenced my life, but that is another matter. The next significant nudge from ‘fate’ was my meet- ing in 1975 with the man who changed the very course of my life and my ‘raison d’etre’. His name was Shaykh Al Hajj Sayyed Ali Asgar Shah Shirazi; he was called Bawa, or Baba, by all who came to know The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal him. He was Pakistani and he was the cause of my quite unlikely connection with Pakistan in my mature years. On my first visit to Bawa in Karachi at his home in the mid 70s, he took me to the shrine of Shah Abdul Latif of Bhittai in Sindh. He knew of my interest in poetry and this was his subtle way of opening my eyes to some of the most beautiful poetry ever written. In quiet moments, he would recite to me the odd verse, his eyes glistening with tears. He then mentioned to me Mawlana Jalalluddin Rumi and gave me a book of some of his poetry that had been rendered into Urdu. Despite my relatively sketchy knowledge of these languages, the poetry made a big impression on me and set me off on a quest for these works in English. A decade or so ago, I rendered some of Rumi poetry into lyrical verse and published The Ishq of Rumi. Two years ago I did the same of the Qasida Burdah of Imam Busiri. In my occasional forays into Urdu poetry, I was reminded of the Master, Allama Iqbal, and latterly found his Asrar e Khudi, The Secrets of the Self, translated from the original Persian into Eng- lish, by R A Nicholson, the eminent orientalist and scholar of Islamic ‘mysticism’. It was published in around 1920 - a hundred years ago. The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal I read the English version with mixed feelings, and also listened to some of it being recited in Urdu. Of course, the latter was much more powerful and im- passioned than the former. In the mid 90s, I had collaborated with a Pakistani living in the UK, who had a close connection with Us- tad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the great Qawwal, to bring him, for the first time, to perform at the Royal Albert Hall. This added to my education and cultural orien- tation. Here, coincidentally, I met Imran Khan, who was then still involved in cricket commentary, but rather more actively engaged in building a cancer hospital in Pakistan. We negotiated the terms on which Nusrat Khan Sahab would perform at a charity concert to raise funds for the cancer hospital Imran was building in Pakistan in memory of his late moth- er. That brief encounter with Imran Khan made me inter- ested in his career. Somewhat later, I read his book and found much that resonated with my own thoughts and experiences, and I noted that he was deeply influenced by Iqbal. I followed his slow and troubled trajectory to his eventual success and elec- tion as Prime Minister. I have since listened to his speeches and there is in them a frequent reference to Iqbal and the desire to steer Pakistan back to the ideal of the first Islamic state established by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal Some months ago, I downloaded R A Nicholson’s version of The Secrets of the Self, and, as a literary exercise, started rendering it into rhyming couplets, which I felt would be more suggestive of the original. Slowly, haltingly, doubtingly, I got half way; about 800 verses, after several breaks where I thought I could not sustain the effort and was drying up. Faced with still some 1000 verses to deal with, I abandoned it. I had noted that, once again, like Bawa and Rumi, people who made a big impression on me invariably .and (ﷺ) were also lovers of the Prophet Muhammad almost throughout my life, I had time and again come across people who were deeply enamoured of the Prophet and who had evinced great beauty of char- acter and conduct, thought and action, reflecting their love for and familiarity with him. Iqbal was one such person, and his influence had brought about the very existence of Pakistan. I went back to reading Rumi for a while and mar- velled at how this great 13th century saint and poet was touching and influencing lives all over the world, as well as human affairs, 700 years later. In the background was my regular review of Imran Khan’s talks. He voiced the concerns of millions of others, Pakistanis as well as Muslims abroad, of how far the country had drifted from the original ideal and The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal lost its standing and reverence in the global Muslim society. He spoke of his ambition to reestablish Pa- kistan’s original motivating force, i.e. an Islamic so- cialist state, where every individual was of equal val- ue with every other one; where there was social and economic justice, and the collective of the individual members in the society owed a duty of care and jus- tice to everyone with whom there was social inter- course or connection. Some two months ago, with Covid lockdowns in full swing, I picked up what I had done, and read through it. It wasn’t bad. To someone reading it for the first time, I dared to say to myself, it could be interesting and rewarding. I thought, let me give it a go and see how much further I can get, still not convinced that I could complete it. This now is what I have managed to produce. I have tried, as far as possible, to keep the original text of the Nicholson version, reordered, manipulated, adapted and minimally reworded to maintain the rhyme. I would guess that this applies to 90 percent at least of the text. Where the original text would simply not yield to my pedestrian efforts to extract a rhyme, I had to go a step further and reword it suffi- ciently fo achieve the object. So here it is now. I hope and pray that it does justice to Allama Iqbal and his scholars and admirers. I hope and pray that it doesn’t offend anyone, and hasten to The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal say that none is intended, and, indeed, any such of- fence is due to my ignorance and inadequacies and not due to any malign intent. May Allah and His Messenger be pleased with it. Bashir Sacranie - 14th February 2021 The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal DEDICATION Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, whose en- lightened view of the duties and responsibilities of government has been influenced by Allama Iqbal and Mohammad Ali Jinnah and the Prophet of Islam Muhammad RasulAllah (PBUH) I have a debt of gratitude to: Mawlana Jalaalluddin Rumi and his heirs, Mawlana Shaikh Nazim Al Haqqani and the Nakshbandi, Mevlevi, Qaderi Orders. Bawa Ali Asgar Shah Shirazi, his son, Kamal Shah and his progeny Allama Muhammad Iqbal and his heirs, scholars and adherents. My parents and theirs. My sister Fatima Hajat but for whom I would not have been on that stage some 70 years ago. And my sib- lings and children. The Secrets of the Self - Iqbal AN INTRODUCTORY NOTE - Bashir Sacranie I put Iqbal’s Asrar e Khudi into the context of the fol- lowing paradigms: According to the Hadith Qudsi (the inspired sayings of the Prophet quoting the words of God) God says, “I was a Hidden Treasure and I Loved to be Known, and so I created Creation so that I should be Known.” There are profound and important words in this say- ing; “Hidden Treasure”; “Loved”; ‘Known”. Within each of us is a ‘spark’ of God, which we call the soul, or ‘rooh’. This soul has certain urges and drives Divinely instilled in it. This is Khudi, the Self, in us. The fundamental urge in humans is to know, to learn. Knowledge is what distinguishes us from the rest of creation. We start life with the knowledge of our mother/father, then our name and our relationship with everything and everyone around us, and so we come to know who we are in the worldly sense. Our sense of “I am” evolves moment by moment. In this sense, we are because we know.
Recommended publications
  • The Philosophical Study of Iqbal's Thought
    Teosofia: Indonesian Journal of Islamic Mysticism, Volume 6, Number 1, 2017 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.21580/tos.v6i1.1698 THE PHILOSOPHICAL STUDY OF IQBAL’S THOUGHT: The Mystical Experience and the Negation of The Self-Negating Quietism Alim Roswantoro UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta [email protected] Abstract The article tries to philosophically explore the Iqbal’s notion of mysticism and the mystic’s attitude in facing the world life. The exploration is focused on his concept of mystical experience and the negation of the self-negating quietism. And from this conception, this writing efforts to withdraw the implication to the passive-active attitude of the worldly life. It is the philosophical understanding of the Islamic mysticism in Iqbal’s philosophy as can be traced and found out in his works, particularly in his magnum opus, ‚The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam‛. Mysticism, in Iqbal’s understanding, is the human inner world in capturing reality as a whole or non- serial time reality behind his encounter with the Ultimate Ego. For him, there are two experiences, that is, normal one and mystical one. In efforts to understand mysticism, one has to have deep understanding of the basic characters of human mystical experience that is very unique in nature compared to human normal one. Keywords: mystical experience, self-negation, active selfness, making fresh world A. Introduction he great Urdu poet-philosopher, Muhammad Iqbal, influenced the religious thought of the Muslims not only in Pakistan and India, but also in Europe, Asia, and Africa T in many ways.
    [Show full text]
  • Iqbal's Concept of Mard-E-Mo'min and Rumi's
    IQBAL'S CONCEPT OF MARD-E-MO’MIN AND RUMI'S INFLUENCE Riffat Hassan Humankind is the pivot around which Iqbal's philosophy revolves, yet though for him the Self is the fundamental reality of the world, yet “his revaluation of Man is not that of Man qua Man, but of Man in relation to God.”1 Iqbal's Perfect Person or "Mard-e-Mo’min", like Rumi's "Mard-e-Haqq," though the ruler of the world is first and last the Servant of God. It is important to stress this point in order to differentiate between Iqbal's Perfect Man and figures such as the Nietzschean Superman, the symbol of unlimited power in a world without God. Iqbal considers the Self to be the criterion where by all things are measured. "The idea of personality," he says, “gives us a standard of value: it settles the question of good and evil. That which fortifies personality is good, that which weakens it is bad. Art, religion and ethics must be judged from the stand-point of personality.”2 According to Iqbal, the ego “has the quality of growth as well as the quality of corruption.”3 It can expand to absorb the elements of the Universe and the attributes of God.4 On the other hand it can also degenerate to the level of matter.5 Iqbal looks upon personality as a state of tension which can “continue only if that state is maintained, if the state of tension is not maintained, relaxation will ensue. That which tends to maintain the state of tension tends to make us immortal.”6 For him it is of the utmost importance that this state of tension be maintained for it is only by the preservation and completion of the personality that we can achieve “that awareness of reality which Iqbal believed to be man's ultimate goal on earth, that awareness of which Eliot has called the still point of the turning world.”7 61 The chief factors which strengthen “Khudi” (Selfhood) are: Desire: Throughout Iqbal's writings, great stress is placed on desire (designated by names such as “soz”, “hasra,”, “justuju”, “arzu”, “ishtiyaq” and “tarnmana”) as the spring from which the Self draws sustenance.
    [Show full text]
  • Studying Muhammad Iqbal's Works in Azerbaijan
    Studying Muhammad Iqbal’s Works in Azerbaijan 65 Studying Muhammad Iqbal’s Works in Azerbaijan Dr. Basira Azizaliyeva* Abstract Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) was Pakistan‘s prominent poet, philosopher and Islamic scholar. His works are characterized by a number of essential features. Islam, love philosophy, perfect humans were expressed in unity, in Iqbal‘s worldview. Iqbal performed as an advocate of humanism, global peace and cordial relations between East and West based on peaceful and tolerant values. He awakened the Muslims‘ material-spiritual development in the 20th century. Having a special propensity for Sufism, the writer was enriched and inspired by the work of the great Turkic Sufi thinker and poet Mevlana Jalāl Ad Dīn Rūmī. Muhammad Iqbal acted as a poet, philosopher, lawyer and teacher. Illuminator and reformer M. Iqbal, who was politically active, also gave concept for the establishment of the state of Indian Muslims in north-western India. The human factor is the main subject of M. Iqbal's thinking. The poet-thinker perceived Islamic society, as well as human pride as the centrifugal force of the whole world, and considered creative and moral relations as an important factor in solving the problems of human society. The questions that Iqbal adopted on the social and philosophical thinking of the East and the West were also directed to this important problem. M. Iqbal spoke from the position of the Islamic religion and at the same time correctly assessed the role of Islam in the modern world, and also invited the Islamic world to develop science and education. This article highlights number of research studies accomplished in Azerbaijan on poetry and philosophical works of Muhammad Iqbal.
    [Show full text]
  • Iqbal, Muhammad (1877–1938)
    Iqbal, Muhammad (1877–1938) Riffat Hassan Muhammad Iqbal was an outstanding poet-philosopher, perhaps the most influential Muslim thinker of the twentieth century. His philosophy, though eclectic and showing the influence of Muslims thinkers such as al-Ghazali and Rumi as well as Western thinkers such as Nietzsche and Bergson, was rooted fundamentally in the Qur’an, which Iqbal read with the sensitivity of a poet and the insight of a mystic. Iqbal’s philosophy is known as the philosophy ofkhudi or Selfhood. Rejecting the idea of a ‘Fall’ from Eden or original sin, Iqbal regards the advent of human beings on earth as a glorious event, since Adam was designated by God to be God’s vicegerent on earth. Human beings are not mere accidents in the process of evolution. The cosmos exists in order to make possible the emergence and perfection of the Self. The purpose of life is the development of the Self, which occurs as human beings gain greater knowledge of what lies within them as well as of the external world. Iqbal’s philosophy is essentially a philosophy of action, and it is concerned primarily with motivating human beings to strive to actualize their God-given potential to the fullest degree. Life Muhammad Iqbal was born at Sialkot in India in 1877. His ancestors were Kashmiri Brahmans; his forefathers had a predilection for mysticism, and both his father, Nur Muhammad, and his mother, Imam Bibi, had a reputation for piety. An outstanding student, Iqbal won many distinctions throughout his academic career. He passed the intermediate examination from the Scotch Mission School in Sialkot in 1893 and then moved to the Government College in Lahore, where he graduated in 1897.
    [Show full text]
  • Main Philosophical Idea in the Writings of Muhammad Iqbal (1877 - 1938)
    Durham E-Theses The main philosophical idea in the writings of Muhammad Iqbal (1877 - 1938) Hassan, Riat How to cite: Hassan, Riat (1968) The main philosophical idea in the writings of Muhammad Iqbal (1877 - 1938), Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/7986/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk im MIN PHILOSOPHICAL IDEAS IN THE fffilTINGS OF m^MlfAD •IQBAL (1877- 1938) VOLUME 2 BY EIFFAT I^SeAW Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts in the University of Durham for the Degree oi Doctor of Philosophy. ^lARCH 1968 Sohool of Oriental Studies, Blvet Hill, DURHAM. 322 CHAPTER VI THE DEVELOPMENT OF 'KHUDT' AMD IQBlL'S *MAED-E-MOMIN'. THE MEAMNQ OP *mJDT' Exp3.aining the meaning of the concept *KhudT', in his Introduction to the first edition of Asrar~e~ Kl^udT.
    [Show full text]
  • Muhammad Iqbal – Reconstructing Islam Along Occidental Lines of Thought
    Interdisciplinary Journal for Religion and Transformation in Contemporary Society 5 (2019) 201–229 brill.com/jrat Muhammad Iqbal – Reconstructing Islam along Occidental Lines of Thought Stephan Popp Institute of Iranian Studies, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstrasse 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria [email protected]; [email protected] Abstract The philosopher Muhammad Iqbal is officially seen as the inventor of the idea of Pakistan and is considered to be the national poet of the country. Indeed, he is one of the most important Islamic modernists, a source of inspiration for enlightened Islam today, and one of the great philosophers of life in the first half of the 20th century. This article explains the main concepts of philosophy: “self”, “love”, “intuition”, his philoso- phy of time, his concept of Islam, and his critique of the West. It then traces the in- fluences on his thought from Islamic thinkers, from the Western philosophers Fichte, Kant, Nietzsche, and Bergson, and the Influence of the Indian society he was living in. Iqbal claimed that all his ideas derived from his thorough reading of the Quran. However, the questions that shaped his answers were very much in the form of the European philosophy of the time, and in that of the discourses of his society too. Keywords Philosophy (1900–1940) – Pakistan – modern Islam – Allama Muhammad Iqbal 1 Introduction Muhammad Iqbal from Lahore, then British India, is not very well known in German- speaking countries. Yet, he can be regarded as one of the great rep- resentatives of the philosophy of life (“Lebensphilosophie”) beside Nietzsche and Bergson, both of whom he had studied.
    [Show full text]
  • The Spirit of Muslim Culture According to Muhammad Iqbal
    International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, Vol. 5, No. 8, August 2015 The Spirit of Muslim Culture According to Muhammad Iqbal Adibah binti Abdul Rahim systematically in his lectures, the Reconstruction of Religious Abstract—In the history of civilization, culture and religion Thought in Islam. For Iqbal, understanding of the nature of have always developed in a close proximity to each other. self is essential for understanding of the nature of culture and Indeed, one cannot conceive of development in religion and the principle of its growth. Iqbal regarded self as the basis of culture in isolation from each other. It is precisely this unity of culture and religion which is to be the basis of Muhammad the entire organization of life. Self, according to him, is an Iqbal’s views on Muslim culture. Culture, for Iqbal, is the most active and creative force in which a person should strive important factor of sociological life and the basis of its change. towards the achievement of a refined personality as well as to In explaining social change, he believed that culture plays a participate in the affairs of the universe to suit his highest greater role than other factors, such as, economy and politics. position as the vicegerent of God on earth. Self is also Although he has deeply studied the Western thought, Iqbal’s considered as the centre of all man‟s activities and actions. views on culture are essentially shaped by the teachings of the Qur’an. This paper tries to explore Iqbal’s concept of Muslim Therefore, Iqbal rejected all philosophical and religious culture and its spirit.
    [Show full text]
  • Dr. Sk Md Hafijur
    Subject:- PERSIAN M.A. IInd Semester Course No. Per 205 Topic- Study of Allama Iqbal Lahori Online Class Materials Dated- 21.05.20 Friday 02.00 P.M. By Dr. Sk Md Hafijur Guest Lecturer L. S. College Muzaffarpur Allama Muhammad Iqbal Sir Allama Muhammad, known as Allama Iqbal, was a poet, philosopher, theorist, and barrister in British India. He is held as the national poet of Pakistan. He has been called the "Spiritual Father of Pakistan" for his contributions to the nation. Iqbal's poems, political contributions, and academic and scholarly research were distinguished. He inspired the Pakistan movement in British India and is considered a renowned figure of Urdu literature, although he wrote in both Urdu and Persian. Iqbal is admired as a prominent poet by Indians, Pakistanis, Iranians, Afghans, Bangladeshis and other international scholars of literature. Though Iqbal is best known as a poet, he is also an acclaimed "Muslim philosophical thinker of modern times". His first poetry book, The Secrets of the Self, appeared in the Persian language in 1915, and other books of poetry include The Secrets of Selflessness, Message from the East and Persian Psalms. His best known Urdu works are The Call of the Marching Bell, Gabriel's Wing, The Rod of Moses and a part of Gift from Hijaz. Along with his Urdu and Persian poetry, his Urdu and English lectures and letters have been influential in cultural, social, religious and political discourses. Sir Allama Iqbal was born on 9th November 1867 in an ethnic Kashmiri family in Sialkot within the Punjab Province of British India.
    [Show full text]
  • Iqbal's “Khudi”
    Iqbal’s “Khudi” - Its Meaning and Strengthening Factors Riffat Hassan The Meaning of “Khudi” Explaining the meaning of the concept of “Khudi”, in his introduction to the first edition of Asrar-i-Khudi, Iqbal puts this question: “What is this luminous centre of the unity of intuition or mental awareness which intensifies human thoughts and feelings, this mysterious thing which is the repository of the diversified and unlimited potentialities of human nature, this “khudi” or “ana” or “mun” which is practically known but essentially hidden, which is the maker of appearances, yet cannot bear to be seen itself? Is it an eternal fact, or has life, in order to fulfil its immediate practical needs, invented this fanciful delusion or plausible deception? From the viewpoint of ethics, the way of life of individuals and actions depends on the answer to this question.” The answer to this question, says Iqbal, does not depend ''on the intellectual capability of individuals or nations, as much as it does on their attitude.” It is to be pointed out that Iqbal’s choice of the word “Khudi” raised a storm of protests. This was understandable considering the highly negative significance of the word “Khudi” which was synonymous with selfishness and egotism.1 Iqbal was aware of this and admitted that the "word “Khudi” was chosen with great difficulty and most reluctantly,” because “from a literary point of view it has many shortcomings and ethically it is generally used in a bad sense both in Urdu and Persian.”2 Iqbal tells us that he wanted “a colourless word for Self, ego, having no ethical significance.
    [Show full text]
  • Muhammad Iqbal and Environmental Ethics
    89 VOL. 2, NO. 2, DECEMBER 2017: 89-112 MUHAMMAD IQBAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS By İBRAHIM ÖZDEMIR* Today, we face many problems at the planetary, national, local, and personal level. What is interesting and important is the fact that the environmental crisis that we have been facing since the 1960s is seen by many environmentalists as a crisis of Western civilization, a slow collective suicide, and “the defining challenge of our age.” This fact has encouraged many environmentalists, thinkers, and activists to turn to the wisdom of the East for a better and deeper understanding of nature and humanity for a sustainable future. Moreover, environmental, social, and eco- nomic threats are aimed at everyone without discrimination, be they Christian, Jew, Muslim, or Buddhist. Therefore, the very nature of the environmental crisis and challenge requires a cooperative, global response. In this context, this study sug- gests that Eastern societies may re-discover the richness of their own traditions in the light of pressing environmental problems and offer new insights to respond to these problems. This paper will explore the possibility and relevance of Sir Muhammad Iqbal’s (1877-1938) ideas for an attitude of reverence and care for nature. It will suggest that his ideas could enlarge and enrich our perspective of ourselves vis à vis nature, * İBRAHIM ÖZDEMIR is a professor of Philosophy and Chairman of the Department of Philosophy at Üsküdar University, Istanbul, Turkey. 90 Acta Via Serica, Vol. 2, No. 2, December 2017 and raise our “ecological consciousness” and moral responsibility to take action for the environment. It will be argued that Iqbal, as a great and towering son of the Silk Road and a bridge between East and West, is still relevant for us.
    [Show full text]
  • Khizr-I Rah: the Pre-Eminent Guide to Action in Muhammad Iqbal's Thought!
    Marquette University e-Publications@Marquette Theology Faculty Research and Publications Theology, Department of 4-1-2004 Khizr-i Rah: The rP e-Eminent Guide to Action in Muhammad Iqbal's Thought Irfan A. Omar Marquette University, [email protected] Published version. Islamic Studies, Vol. 43, No. 1 (2004): 39-50. Publisher Link. © 2004 Islamic Research Institute. Used with permission. Islamic Studies 43:1 (2004) pp. 39-50 Khizr-i Rah: The Pre-Eminent Guide to Action In Muhammad Iqbal's Thought! IRFAN A. OMAR If Khizr were to break the ship in the sea A hundred good reasons lie in Khic,ir's deed. AI-Khi<;lr (variously pronounced as al-Kha<;lir, Khizr, Hizir or simply Khi<;lr) is known as the immortal guide in the Islamicate tradition. He is the Muslim equivalent of Elijah, a prophet by some accounts and a mysterious "servant of God" by others. Although he has many names, al-Khi<;lr itself means "the green one", 'perhaps indicative of his characteristic of making things green, or to his regenerative qualities in general. The story of Khi<;lr is embedded in the Qur'an as God's "servant" while his name appears in the tapir literature. According to many mufassirun, the mysterious person mentioned in Surah 18:65 (Khi<;lr-Moses episode) is none other than Khi<;lr. In Islamic history, many have made use of the symbolism that Khi<;lr carries - in poetry and other Sufi writings as well as in the massive literature known as qi~a~ al-anbiyii' (stories of prophets).} Poets such as Rumi: and I:Iafi~ to Ghalib and Iqbal all 1 I wish to acknowledge my gratitude to Professor Riaz Umar, former principal of ZOOr Hussain College, University of Delhi, who over a decade ago, first encouraged me to pursue "Khizr-i Rail" and to attempt to discover the unique manner in which Iqbal looks at the person of Khi4r.
    [Show full text]
  • IQBAL REVIEW Journal of the Iqbal Academy Pakistan
    IQBAL REVIEW Journal of the Iqbal Academy Pakistan Volume: 51 April/October 2010 Number:2, 4 Editor: Muhammad Sohail Mufti Associate Editor: Dr. Tahir Hameed Tanoli Editorial Board Advisory Board Dr. Abdul Khaliq, Dr. Naeem Munib Iqbal, Barrister Zaffarullah, Ahmad, Dr. Shahzad Qaiser, Dr. Dr. Abdul Ghaffar Soomro, Prof. Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Dr. Fateh Muhammad Malik, Dr. Khalid Masood, Dr. Axel Monte Moin Nizami, Dr. Abdul Rauf (Germany), Dr. James W. James Rafiqui, Dr. John Walbrigde (USA), Morris (USA), Dr. Marianta Dr. Oliver Leaman (USA), Dr. Stepenatias (Russia), Dr. Natalia Alparslan Acikgenc (Turkey), Prof. Prigarina (Russia), Dr. Sheila Ahmet al-Bayrak (Turkey), Dr. McDonough (Montreal), Dr. Mark Webb (USA), Dr. Sulayman William C. Chittick (USA), Dr. S. Nyang, (USA), Dr. Devin M. Baqai Makan (Iran), Alian Stewart (USA), Prof. Hafeez Desoulieres (France), Dr. Durmus Malik (USA), Sameer Abdul Bulgur (Turkey), Prof. Barbara Hameed (Egypt) , Dr. Carolyn Metcalf (USA) Mason (New Zealand) IQBAL ACADEMY PAKISTAN The opinions expressed in the Review are those of the individual contributors and are not the official views of the Academy IQBAL REVIEW Journal of the Iqbal Academy Pakistan This peer reviewed Journal is devoted to research studies on the life, poetry and thought of Iqbal and on those branches of learning in which he was interested: Islamic Studies, Philosophy, History, Sociology, Comparative Religion, Literature, Art and Archaeology. Manuscripts for publication in the journal should be submitted in duplicate, typed in double-space, and on one side of the paper with wide margins on all sides preferably along with its CD or sent by E-mail.
    [Show full text]