لطفا منتظر باشید ...
WHAT
SHOULD
THEN
BE
DONE
O PEOPLE
OF
THE
EAST?
EXPLANATORY NOTE
This is the main theme
of the book and, therefore,. deserves very serious consideration. The first
point is that the world is in distress and everybody is feeling the evil effects
of European civilisation. According to Iqbal, the reason for this is the
materialistic outlook and the secular attitude of the West.
[Since the West viewed
body and soul separate,
it also regarded State and Church as two.
See deceit and artifice in Statecraft
body without soul, and soul without body.]
1
The result is:
[The art of the West
is nothing but man-killing.]
2
True peace is possible
here if the spiritual and the temporal are looked upon as twin aspects of the
same unity. Iqbal says: "The essence of Tauhid' as a working idea is equality,
solidarity, and freedom. The state, from the Islamic standpoint' is an endeavour
to transform these ideal principles into space-time forces. . . . "3
[Mankind will be
secure only
when religion and State are one.]
4
A State based on
religious principles and guided by moral considerations is called by Iqbal as
khilafat in the real sense:
[Imperialism is all
deceit and magic,
Caliphate is the
protector -of God's laws.]
5
[Caliphate is Faqr
with political authority.]
6
The secular attitude
is also responsible, according to Iqbal, for the misuse of reason and denial of
revelation. Reason is in-capable of guiding us in the sphere of morals
for which we have to fall back upon revelation. The message of Iqbal, therefore,
is, first, to destroy the secular culture root and branch, and, secondly, to
supplement reason with revelation. Love and reason, dhikr and fikr,
Jamal and jalal, nur (light) and nar (fire) must supplement
one another. It is this spiritual approach that should replace the materialistic
attitude of the West.
Political thinkers of
the West tried to establish a League of Nations after the First World War, but
it could not solve the problems of mankind because, according to Iqbal, it
accepted division of mankind on the basis of land, colour and race as valid. It
thus tended to divide mankind into warring factions instead of bringing them
together. In 1913, only four years after the establishment of the League, Iqbal
could say:
[So that the seed of
strife be sown in the world,
world's well-wishers have set up an organisation
to me it seems some plunderers of the dead
have gathered to divide graves among themselves.]
7
But writing in 1935,
he gives a clearer picture of this organisation in contrast to what Islam
would envisage its programme of action:
[The object of Western
diplomacy: dividing nations,
object of Islam: human brotherhood.]
8
It would be very
instructive if Iqbal's New Year -message, which he gave in 1938, is quoted here.
It is as relevant today as it was when it was given. He says "So long as this
so-called democracy, this accursed nationalism and this degraded imperial-ism
are not shattered, so long as men do not demonstrate by their actions that they
believe that the whole world is the family of God, so long as distinctions of
race, colour and geographical nationalities are not wiped out completely, they
will never be able to lead a happy and contented life and the beautiful ideals
of liberty, equality, and fraternity will never materialise."9
The people of Asia
must acquire power themselves, turn their back on the materialism of the West
and set up a new social order based on the ancient traditions of honesty,
sincerity and spirituality, which Iqbal calls here White Hand of Moses.
The last advice of
Iqbal is that we must develop our economic system free from the influence
of the West. Our trade, commerce and industry must in no case be dependent upon
those of the West. It is better, he emphasises, to remain poor and ill-clad
rather than pine for wealth which may enslave us to the West.
1.
Zabur-i Ajam, p. 217.
2.
Ibid., p. 233.
3.
Reconstruction, p. 154.
4.
Bal-i Jibril, p. 160. Junaid, the mystic of Baghdad, represents religion,
while Ardsher, Iranian monarch of Sassanid dynasty, represents State.
5.
Armaghan-i Hijaz, p. 126.
6.
Ibid., p. 110. "Crown and throne" are symbols of political authority.
7.
Payam-i M'ashriq,
p. 233.
8.
Darb-i Kalim, p. 54.
9. "Shamloo,"
Ed.,
Speeches and Statements
of Iqbal,
p. 222.
