MUHAMMAD IQBAL - MODERN HISTORY

News: Muhammad Iqbal: a poet for all ages

 

What's in the news?

       Obtrusively, India walks away from Muhammad Iqbal, the man who penned Tarana-i-Hindi, ‘Saare jahan se achcha Hindustan hamara’.

       It may not be a crime yet to sing his Bachche ki Dua (A Child’s Prayer) but it is close as proved by a recent incident in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh where a principal and a shiksha mitr were booked for asking children in the school assembly to sing, “Lab pe aati hai dua ban ke tamanna meri”.

 

Muhammad Iqbal:

       Muhammad Iqbal (1877 – 1938), widely known as Allama Iqbal was a poet-philosopher whose work promoted the philosophy of self-hood and dealt with the intellectual and cultural reconstruction of the Islamic world.

 

Works:

       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.

       "Sare Jahan se Accha", formally known as "Tarānah-e-Hindi", is an Urdu language patriotic song for children written by poet Muhammad Iqbal in the ghazal style of Urdu poetry. The poem was published in 1904.

 

Role in creation of Pakistan Movement:

       He is widely regarded as having inspired the Pakistan Movement. He is called the "Spiritual Father of Pakistan."

       In 1930, during the 25th Session of the All-India Muslim League in Allahabad, he delivered his most famous presidential speech known as the Allahabad Address in which he pushed for the creation of a Muslim state in north-west India.

       Iqbal is considered to have given the vision for the creation of Pakistan, whereas Jinnah is considered to be the one who shaped this vision.

       The Pakistan government officially named him "National Poet of Pakistan".

       He was regarded as the ideological founder of the nation in Pakistan.