A life with no sorrows

And he tried his luck to disclose the hard truth about so much fun in my life. And i could only say creativity is something born out of scarcity, you must read the famous sheer of Iqbal 'ZARA NAM HO TO YE MITTI BAHOOT ZARKHEEZ HAI SAAQI..' did you ever tried to dig out to feel pain of the soil? Evey one have had to pay the cost of happiness, Some one pay first to enjoy and then feels the grief and people like me always enjoy the grief...

Life of Dr. Sir Allama Iqbal

Allama Iqbal's Biography

Birth

Iqbal was born in the Punjab on February 22, 1873. His ancestors, who were Kashmiri Brahmins, had embraced Islam two hundred years earlier. Iqbal’s own father was a devout Muslim with Sufistic bent of mind.

Primary Education

He received his early education in Sialkot. After passing the entrance examination, he joined Intermediary College. Mir Hassan, a great oriental scholar, had a special aptitude for imparting his own literary taste and to his students. Under his influence, Iqbal was drawn towards Islamic studies, which he regarded to be an outstanding favor that he could not forget it all his life.

Higher Education

Passing on to the Government College of Lahore, Iqbal did his graduation with English Literature, Philosophy and Arabic as his subjects. At the college he met Prof. Arnold and Sir Abdul Qadir. Iqbal’s poem, Chand (moon) and other early poems appeared in the journal (which belonged to Sir Abdul Qadir) in 1901 and were acclaimed by critics as cutting a new path in Urdu poetry.

It did not take him long to win recognition as a rising star on the firmament of Urdu literature.

In the mean time he had done his MA in Philosophy and was appointed as a Lecturer in History, Philosophy and Political science at Oriental College, Lahore. He then moved to Government College to teach Philosophy and English Literature.

Wherever Iqbal worked or thought his versatility and scholarship made a deep impression on those around him.

In Europe

Iqbal proceeded to Europe for higher studies in 1905 and stayed there for three years. He took the Honors Degree in Philosophy and taught Arabic at the Cambridge University in the absence of Prof. Arnold. From England, he went to Germany to do his doctorate in Philosophy from Munich and then returned to London to qualify for the bar. He also served as a teacher in the London school of Commerce and passed the Honors Examination in Economics and Political Science. During his stay in Europe Iqbal not only read voraciously but also wrote and lectured on Islamic subjects which added to his popularity and fame in literary circles.

Back in India

Iqbal returned to India in 1908. The poet had won all these academic laurels by the time he was 32 or 33. He practiced as a lawyer from 1908 to 1934, when ill health compelled him to give up his practice. In fact, his heart was not in it and he devoted more time to philosophy and literature than to legal profession.

He attended the meetings of Anjuman Himayat-I-Islam regularly at Lahore. The epoch making poems, Shikwa and Jawab-e-Shikwa, which he read out in the annual convention of it one year after another, sparkled with the glow of his genius and made him immensely popular. They became the national songs of Millet.

Iqbal’s other poems Tarana-e-Hind (The Indian anthem) and Tarana-e-Milli (the Muslim Anthem) also became very popular among masses and used to be sung as symbols of National or Muslim identity at public meetings.

The spirit of Change

The Balkan wars and the Battle of Tripoli, in 1910, shook Iqbal powerfully and inflicted a deep wound upon his heart. In his mood of anger and frustration, he wrote a number of stirring poems, which together with portraying the anguish of Muslims were severely critical of the West.

The spirit of change is evident in poems like Bilad-e-Islamia (the lands of Islam), Wataniat (Nationalism), Muslim, Fatima Bint Abdullah (who was killed in the siege of Cyrainca, Siddiq, Bilal, Tahzib-e-Hazir (Modern civilization) and Huzoor-e-Risalat Maab Mein (in the presence of Sacred Prophet).

In these poems, Iqbal deplores the attitude of Muslim leaders who lay a claim to Islamic leadership and yet are devoid of a genuine spiritual attachment to the blessed Prophet.

The turning point in Iqbal’s Life

Iqbal was shaken by the tragic events of World War I and the disaster the Muslims had to face. The genius had passed through the formative period. He had attained maturity as a poet, thinker, seer and crusader who could read the signs of tomorrow in the happenings of today, make predictions, present hard facts and unravel abstruse truths through the medium of poetry and ignite the flame of faith, Selfhood and courage by his own intensity of feeling and force of expression. Khizr-e-Raah (The Guide) occupies the place of pride among the poems he wrote during this period. Bang-e-Dara (The caravan bell) published in 1929 has held a place of honor in Urdu poetry and world poetry.

Iqbal preferred Persian for poetic expression because its circle was wider than that of Urdu in Muslim India. His Persian works, Asrar-e-khudi (Secrets of the self), Rumuz-e-Bekhudi (Mysteries of Selflessness), Payam-e-Mashriq (Message of the East), Javed Nama (The Song of Eternity) belong to the same period of his life. And so is Reconstruction of Religious Thoughts in Islam, which was extensively appreciated and translated into many languages. Academies were set up in Italy and Germany for the study of Iqbal’s poetry and philosophy.

Politics

In 1927 the poet was elected to the Punjab Legislative assembly. In 1930, he was elected to preside over at the annual session of Muslim League. In his presidential address at Allahabad, Iqbal for the first time introduced the idea of Pakistan. In 1930-31, he attended the Round Table conference, which met in London to frame a constitution for India.

In Spain

While in England, Iqbal accepted the hospitality of Spain. He also went to Cordoba and had the distinction of being the first Muslim to offer prayers at its historical mosque after the exile of Moors. Memories of the past glory of Arabs and their 800-year rule over Spain were revived in his mind and his emotions were aroused by what he saw.

Meeting with Mussolini

In Italy Iqbal was received by Mussolini who had read some of his works and was aquatinted with his philosophy. They had long meetings and talked freely to each other.

The Universities of Cambridge, Rome and Madrid and the Roman Royal society organized meetings in his honor. On his way back he also went to Jerusalem to attend the International Conference of Motamar-i-Isalami.

In Afghanistan

At the invitation of King Nadir Shah, Iqbal visited Afghanistan in 1932. The king received the poet with great honor and met hi privately, as well during which he laid bare his heart. The two talked and wept.

Iqbal’s Death

The last phase of Iqbal’s life was embittered with constant illness. But as regards his creative activities this product was most productive. He kept in touch with every question of the day and continued composing beautiful verses.

A few minutes before his death he recited these touching lines:

The departed melody may return or not!

The zephyr from Hijaz may blow again or not!

The days of this Faqir has come to an end,

Another seer may come or not!

Although Iqbal’s was long and protracted the end was sudden and verypeaceful. He breathed his last in the early hours of April 21, 1938, in the arms of his old and devoted servant, leaving behind a host of mourners all over the Islamic world. There was a faint smile playing on his lips, which irresistibly reminded one of the last criterions, which he laid down for a truthful Muslim.

I tell you the sign of a Mumin-

When death comes there is smile on his lips.

Note: The above biography is a summarized version from Glory of Iqbal by Syed Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi

A man of wisdom

Javed Ahmed Ghamidi was born in 1951 in a village of Sahiwal, a district of the Punjab province. After matriculating from a local school, he came to Lahore in 1967 where he is settled ever since. He did his BA honours (part I) in English Literature from the Government College, Lahore in 1972 and studied Islamic disciplines in the traditional manner from various teachers and scholars throughout his early years. In 1973, he came under the tutelage of Amin Ahsan Islahi (d. 1997), who was destined to who have a deep impact on him. He was also associated with the famous scholar and revivalist Abu al-A‘la Mawdudi (d. 1979) for several years. He taught Islamic studies at the Civil Services Academy for more than a decade from 1979 to 1991.
Ghamidi has written and lectured widely on the Qur’an, Islamic law and various other aspects of Islam. He is the founder-president of Al-Mawrid Institute of Islamic Sciences and is the chief editor of the Urdu Monthly “Ishraq” and the English Monthly “Renaissance”. He is also the founder of the Mus‘ab School System. He appears regularly on various TV channels to discuss Islam and some contemporary issues as a part of his campaign to educate people about Islam.
Ghamidi has drawn heavily from the Qur’anic thought of his two illustrious predecessors, Hamid al-Din Farahi and Amin Ahsan Islahi presenting many of their views in a more precise manner. However, many of his contributions to the Islamic thought are original.
Both these features can be witnessed in his ongoing annotated translation of the Qur’an, al-Bayan. It takes the reader close to the classical Arabic of the Qur’an in which ideas are conveyed with brevity and terseness. Words and concepts which are understood are suppressed and left to the perspicacity of the reader. To achieve this brevity, various devices are employed in classical Arabic which are not found in most other languages. Ghamidi has tried to unfold the meaning of the divine message by taking into consideration these devices within the text of the translation.
Another original contribution of Ghamidi is his categorization of the contents of religion. According to him, the Qur’an itself divides the contents of Islam in two categories: al-Hikmah and al-Shari‘ah. Whilst the former refers to topics related to the philosophy of religion, the latter to those that relate to law. Ghamidi further classifies these two categories into sub-categories. The former comprises two sub-categories: Faith and Ethics and the latter comprises ten sub-categories: The Shari‘ah of Worship Rituals, The Social Shari‘ah, The Political Shari‘ah, The Economic Shari‘ah, The Shari‘ah of Preaching, The Shari‘ah of Jihad, The Penal Shari‘ah, The Dietary Shari‘ah, Islamic Customs and Etiquette, Oaths and their Atonement. In each of these categories, Ghamidi has made unique contributions in interpreting the directives of the Qur’an. Examples include his views on the specific nature of the preaching mission of Abraham’s progeny, the punishment of apostasy, the testimony and diyat of women, the etiquette of gender interaction, slavery in Islam, the requisites of citizenship, inheritance laws and the general and specific directives of jihad.
Ghamidi has also made a significant contribution to the science of hermeneutics. He has enunciated foundational principles of understanding Islam in his essay, Usul-o Mabadi (Principles and Fundamentals). These principles take into account the specific nature of the texts of the Qur’an and Hadith. One distinctive feature of the approach that pervades these principles is what can be summed up in the form of a dictum: the Hadith should be interpreted in the light shed by the Qur’an and not vice versa.
An important contribution of Ghamidi is the distinction he has made between shari‘ah and fiqh. They are generally rather loosely regarded as synonymous. Whilst the former is divine, the latter is a human endeavour and thus the two must be distinguished from one another. In his seminal work on Islam, Mizan, he has attempted to decipher the shari‘ah from the sources of Islam.
Another prominent contribution of Ghamidi is his concept and definition of the word Sunnah. Whilst categorizing it to be distinct from Hadith, he has laid down certain principles to precisely determine its corpus. By applying these principles, he has actually come up with a list of contents of the Sunnah.
Ghamidi has also presented an integrated framework of the concepts and terms of Islam in his essay Haqiqat-i Din (The Essence of Religion). This framework in itself is a representative of a complete interpretation of Islam in contrast with the two other prevailing interpretations of Islam in the Muslim ummah: the tasawwuf-based interpretation and the jihad-based interpretation.
Burhan and Maqamat are two of Ghamidi’s other books. The former is a treatise in which contemporary religious thoughts have been critically analyzed, while the latter is a collection of his poems and literary essays.

A true islamic scholar

Islahi was born in 1904 at Bamhur, a small village in Azamgarh (U.P.), India. He passed out from the Madrasah al-Islah around 1922. The teacher which influenced him the most during his student life at the Madrasah was ‘Abd al-Rahman Nigrami, himself a versatile genius. Nigrami’s attention helped him in developing a profound inclination towards Arabic literature. After graduating from the Madrasah, he entered the field of journalism. For a while, he edited a newspaper Madinah at Bijnawr and also remained associated with Sach, a newspaper edited by the luminary ‘Abd al-Majid Daryabadi.
From 1925-1930, he remained with Farahi like his shadow. It was in this forming period of his life in which he developed a deep understanding of the Qur’an and learnt from Farahi the principles of direct deliberation on the Book of Allah. After Farahi’s death, Islahi studied Hadith from a celebrated scholar of this discipline, ‘Abd al-Rahman Muhaddith Mubarakpuri. In 1936, he founded the Da’irah-i Hamidiyyah, a small institute to disseminate the Qur’anic thought of Farahi. Under the auspices of this institute, he brought out a monthly journal, al-Islah, in which he translated many portions of Farahi’s treatises written in Arabic.
Islahi was among the founder members of the Jama‘at-i Islami, a religious party founded by the eminent Islamic scholar, Mawdudi, in 1941. In 1958, he abandoned the Jama‘at, after serious differences arose between him and Mawdudi on the nature of the constitution of the Jama‘at.
After leaving the Jama‘at, he finally got the chance to fulfill his cherished goal of writing a commentary on the Qur’an. He also launched a monthly journal Mithaq in which portions of this commentary, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, were published. In 1961, he established a small study circle Halqah Tadabbur-i Qur’an for college students to whom he taught Arabic language and literature, the Holy Qur’an and the al-Jami‘ al-Sahih of Imam Muslim. He also taught Shah Wali Ullah’s Hujjatullah al-Balighah and Ibn Khaldun’s Muqaddamah to some pupils.
It was on the 29th of Ramadan 1400/ 12th August 1980 when the great day arrived – the day when a monumental effort reached its culmination: the Tadabbur-i Qur’an had taken twenty-two long years to complete. In the Tadabbur-i Qur’an, he produced a masterpiece of tafsir which does not simply reflect the principles of his illustrious mentor, Farahi: it also bears the stamp of originality. It is indeed a unique work that has ushered in a new era in the field of scriptural interpretation. Islahi proved from a Qur’anic verse that the Almighty has divided the Qur’an in seven discrete groups keeping in view the preaching mission of the Prophet Muhammad (sws). Each of these groups has a theme and surahs are arranged in a group keeping in view this theme. Within a group, the surahs themselves generally occur in pairs with regard to the subject discussed in them. Each surah also has a specific theme which is the most comprehensive statement of its contents.
In 1981, Islahi founded the Idarah Tadabbur-i Qur’an-o Hadith, which remained until his death (15th December 1997) the centre of his intellectual activities. A quarterly journal Tadabbur was taken out in 1981 as its organ. He gave weekly lectures on the text of the Qur’an. Later, he took up deep study on the principles of Hadith and began teaching the Mu’atta’ of Imam Malik in weekly sittings to a close circle of students and associates. After completing the Mu’atta’, he also taught some portions of Imam Bukhari’s al-Jami‘ al-Sahih.
Besides writing the Tadabbur-i Qur’an, Islahi has authored a number of books in Urdu on various topics of Islam. They include Tazkiyah-i Nafs (Purification of the Soul), Haqiqat-i- Shirk-o Tawhid (The Essence of Polytheism and Monotheism), Da‘wat-i Din awr us ka Tariqah-i Kar (Islamic Message and the Mode of its Preaching), Islami Riyasat (The Islamic State), Mabadi Tadabbur-i Qur’an (Principles of Understanding the Qur’an), Mabadi Tadabbur-i Hadith (Principles of Understanding the Hadith), Islami Riyasat mayn Fiqhi Ikhtilafat ka Hal (Solution of Juristic Differences in an Islamic State) and Islami Qanun ki Tadwin (Codification of Islamic Law).
Islahi also translated Farahi’s commentary consisting of fourteen surahs of the Qur’an, as well as his following books from Arabic: Fi Man huwa al-Dhabih (Which of Abraham’s son was Sacrificed?) and Aqsam al-Qur’an (Oaths of the Qur’an).

Shehzad Saleem