The Philosopher: The Force Behind the Forces

Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal

November 9, 1877 – April 21, 1938
 Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal

• Sir Iqbal was undoubtedly one of the greatest

poets, philosophers and seers of humanity of
all times. He took a prominent part in the
politics of the country and in the intellectual
and cultural reconstruction of the Islamic
world. His contribution to the literature and
thought of the world will live for ever.
• (Quaid-e-Azam, M. A. Jinnah)
 Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal
• He is called the “Ideological/ Spiritual Father of Pakistan.
• In much of South Asia and the Urdu-speaking world,
Iqbal is regarded as the Shair-e-Mashriq (Urdu: ‫شاعر‬
‫مشرق‬, "Poet of the East"). He is also called Mufakkir-e-
Pakistan (Urdu: ‫مفکر پاکستان‬, "The Thinker of
Pakistan"), Musawar-e-Pakistan (Urdu: ‫مصور پاکستان‬,
"Artist of Pakistan") and Hakeem-ul-Ummat (Urdu:  ‫حکیم‬
‫ االمت‬, "The Sage of the Ummah"). The Pakistan
government officially named him "National Poet of
Pakistan". 
 Phases of Iqbal’s Thought
1. Iqbal as Indian Nationalist Leader (1900-
1908)

2. Pan-Islamist/Pan-Islamism 1908-1920/23

3. Muslim Nationalist Leader 1920-1938

 ‫‪Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal‬‬

‫‪1. Iqbal as Indian Nationalist Leader (1888-‬‬

‫)‪1908‬‬

‫سارے جہاں سے اچھا ہندوستاں ہمارا‬

‫ہم بلبلیں ہیں اس کی‪ ،‬یہ گلستاں ہمارا‬
‫مذہب نہیں سکھاتا آپس میں بیر رکھنا‬
‫ہندی ہیں ہم‪ ،‬وطن ہے ہندوستاں ہمارا‬
 Study Journey to Europe
• Years in Europe 1905-1908
 Study in England & Germany
 Law England: Lincoln's Inn (London)
 PhD Germany:  University of Munich

Change after his stay & Education at Europe

 The Paradigm Shift
2. Pan-Islamist/Pan-Islamism 1908-1920
 Reason for Change
• Ideological Change due to the down fall of the
Muslim Ottoman Empire/ Caliphate
• The dream of the revival of Muslim Caliphate
was shattered after the abolition of Ottoman
Caliphate in 1923
 The Paradigm Shift
• Became a Muslim Nationalist Leader
• Two Nation Theory & Iqbal
 1930: December 29, presides over the annual
session of the All India Muslim League at
Allahabad, suggesting the amalgamation of
the north-western Muslim majority provinces
of India for a balance of power in the region as
well as a renaissance of Islamic thought
 Concept of Ijtihad: The Way Forward
• Ijtihad (Arabic ‫ ) اجتهاد‬is a technical term of Islamic
law that describes the process of making a legal
decision by independent interpretation of the
legal sources, the Qur'an and the Sunnah. 

• Iqbal's stature as a philosopher rests mainly on his

superb poetry but is thoroughly supplemented by
his prose writings, especially The Reconstruction
of Religious Thought in Islam
 Dr. Iqbal’s Work
Prose book in Urdu
• Ilm ul Iqtisad (1903)
Prose books in English
• The Development of Metaphysics in Persia (1908)
• The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam (1930)
Poetic books in Persian
• Asrar-i-Khudi (1915)
• Rumuz-i-Bekhudi (1917)
• Payam-i-Mashriq (1923)
• Zabur-i-Ajam (1927)
• Javid Nama (1932)
• Pas Cheh Bayed Kard ai Aqwam-e-Sharq (1936)
• Armughan-e-Hijaz (1938) (in Persian and Urdu)
Poetic books in Urdu
• Bang-i-Dara (1924)
• Bal-i-Jibril (1935)
• Zarb-i Kalim (1936)