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    Iqbal, the Visionary

    Written by: Dr. Dushka H. Saiyid
    Posted on: November 08, 2023 | | 中文

    A portrait of Quaid-e-Azam and Allama Iqbal

    Allama Iqbal, the poet philosopher, not only conceived the idea of Pakistan, but presciently saw the rise of China and its emergence as a leading world power. He wrote:

    See the sun rising from the East; Springs of hope are emanating from the Himalayas; The great Chinese nation is rising from its slumber

    Iqbal, the Visionary - Iqbal at Aligarh University

    Iqbal at Aligarh University

    His idea of a homeland for the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent was articulated in 1930, when he gave the Presidential address at Allahabad. The Muslims of India were an inchoate body of disparate groups, weighed down by a glorious past, but unable and unwilling to face the challenges of the 20th century. The Quaid, disillusioned by the policies of the Congress, and frustrated by the stasis in the Muslim League, stayed on in London to practice law after attending the Round Table Conferences, and did not return to India until 1934 to revitalize the Muslim League. 

    Allama Iqbal, who had been an active leader of the Muslim League for many years, was called upon to deliver the Presidential Address at Allahabad. A poet and an erudite and brilliant scholar of philosophy, both Western and Islamic, he gave a new direction to the politics of the Muslims of India. He discussed his concept of communalism at the twenty-first session of the All India Muslim League:

    There are communalisms and communalisms. A community which is inspired by a feeling of ill-will towards other communities is low and ignoble. I entertain the highest respect for the customs, laws, religious and social institutions of other communities. Nay, it is my duty, according to the teaching of the Quran, even to defend their places of worship, if need be. Yet I love the communal group which is the source of my life and behavior; and which has formed what I am by giving me its religion, its literature, its thought, its culture, and thereby recreating its whole past, as a living operative factor in my present consciousness. …So also, without the fullest cultural autonomy – and communalism in its better aspect is culture – it will be difficult to create a harmonious nation.

    He then went on to discuss his vision of a separate homeland for Muslims of India:

    The principle of European democracy cannot be applied to India without recognizing the fact of communal groups. The Muslim demand for the creation of a Muslim India within India, is therefore, perfectly justified….Personally, I would go further than the demands embodied in it. I would like to see the Punjab, the North-West Frontier Province, Sind and Baluchistan amalgamated into a single State. Self-government within the British Empire, or without the British Empire, the formation of a consolidated North West Indian Muslim State appears to me to be the final destiny of the Muslims, at least of the North-West India.

    Ahead of his time, Iqbal had sown the seeds of his vision for what became Pakistan. According to the most authoritative historian of the Muslim League, Dr Rafique Afzal, the Muslim League did not adopt the creation of a separate homeland as its goal after the Allahabad Session, nor was any attempt made to make its organization broad based. However, his idea inspired intellectuals, youth and politicians in the years to come. The Quaid returned to India to lead the Muslim League in 1934, transforming it into a mass organization, which henceforward also drew women and youth to its ranks.

    Iqbal’s vision, articulated at Allahabad in 1930, was given a concrete form at Lahore’s Minto Park on 23rd March 1940, when the Pakistan Resolution was passed at a mammoth public meeting.

    As Iqbal foresaw, China has arrived as a global economic powerhouse, and Pakistan, tied to it through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), has entered the group of countries regarded as one of the world’s emerging economies.

    Allama Iqbal was the first Muslim to worship in the mosque of Cordoba since it was converted into a cathedral, after the expulsion of Muslims in 1492. He had been invited to lecture by the Orientalist Asin Palacios in Madrid. When he entered the Cathedral that had been converted into a mosque, he is said to have swooned. He then wrote his much-celebrated poem “Masjid-i-Qurtubah”!

    Jews and Christians had been allowed to practice their religion under Muslim rule but had to pay a tax or jizya. With the success of reconquista, Jews and Muslims were either expelled or under Queen Isabella’s decree of 1502, forced to convert to Catholicism, and the ferocious Inquisition followed, ensuring Catholic orthodoxy and the total elimination of any other religious community.

    Allama Iqbal praying at the mosque in Cordoba in 1933

    Allama Iqbal wrote a poem “Hispania”, on his return from a visit to Granada and Cordoba in 1933:

    Discovering Spain: On the Trail of the Moors

    Spain! You are the trustee of the Muslim blood:
    In my eyes you are as sacred as Muslim holy lands.

    Discovering Spain: On the Trail of the Moors

    Prints of prostration lie hidden in your dust,
    Silent calls to prayers in your morning air.

    Allama Iqbal passed away in 1938, and his funeral was attended by over 20,000 people!


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021