Iqbal Qalander

Hz Allama (ra)

کہاں سے سیکھی ہے تو نے اے اقبال یہ درویشی

کے چرچا ہے بادشاؤں میں تیری بے نیازی کا

A Great Ghazal by Allama (ra)

Birthday of Hz Allama (ra)

Today is the birthday of Hz Allama Iqbal, poet, philosopher and mystic and one of  the founding fathers of Pakistan. Despite recent attempts to “shelve” his teachings by some recent governments that feel that he is not liberal enough for their liking, he continues to be an inspiration to millions.

Death Anniversary of Hz Allama (ra)

I was reminded by a fellow enthusiast that it being the 21st of April, it is Allama sahib’s death anniversary today. At the moment I’m not in a position to offer anything original but I thought I should do something to mark the day. So here is Ustad Nusrat singing his famous poem “khudi ka sirr e nehan, La ilah Ilallahu” (the hidden secret of the self is: no god but God). This sums up his message in more ways than one.

Part 1

Part 2

70th Anniversary of Hz Allama

Those who have visited this blog must have come to know how indebted this scribe is to Hz Allama Muhammad Iqbal (ra). I have never thought of him as a mere poet, as even before I could read Urdu properly, I had heard from reliable sources that there was a mystic hidden behind the intellectual. Accordingly I have always found him to be an inspiration. Here are a few memorable pictures of Allama along with a recital of his poem Ilm O Ishq (Knowledge and Love) in remembrance of him on the 70th anniversary of his passing from the world.

Bring forth once more that goblet and wine, o Saki!

A friend who has a knack for finding great renditions of Allama Iqbal’s poetry brought this to my attention recently. I have listened to it a number of times and I have to admit that it is great. If anyone knows of other pieces sung by Shabnam Majeed do let me know.

Philosophy and Religion- Allama Iqbal (trans)

Here is a translation of the poem that is recited in the video in the previous post.

What is this sun and what are these starry heavens?

I have yet to understand this continuation of night and day

Am in in my homeland or am I a stranger here?

Seeing this vast and desolate desert fills me with fright

I am unable to attain the secret of this journey of life

From where can I bring the man of true vision?

Avicenna is wondering where he came from and

Rumi is concerned about where he should head for

“With every wayfarer I travel a short while

I do not yet know who my real guide is”.

Philosophy and Religion- Allama Iqbal

Here’s a nice little poem from Hz Allama called Falsafa o Mazhab (philosophy and Religion). Its last two verses particularly strike a chord with me these days. Listen, look and enjoy.

Iqbal Day

With all the recent events I had forgotten that today was Iqbal day. Happily someone sent me a couple of text messages of Iqbal quotes. As I’ve said before I feel much indebted to Allama and over the years he has been something of a “murshid” for me. He continues to be an inspiration, may God elevate his rank.

Masjid-e-Qurtaba

Here’s a truly evocative reading of this great poem by Allama with some beautiful pictures as well.