Sir Muhammad Allama Iqbal or for brevity sake lets call him Iqbal.

The National poet of Pakistan who is

hailed as ideological father of Pakistan, who persuaded Mr Jinnah to take the lead in Partion of the
Hindustan. Although he himself was not able to see his dream come true (he passed away in 1938) and
the great bloodbath which was ensued which took million of innocent lives.

Iqbal is often quoted as great philosopher, thinker, poet and a proponent of Islamic utopia. Often he is
considered as sacrosanct , God like poetry figure to be criticized. Even a word is uttered against a
Blinded lobby make huge decry, how can even one think of criticizing Great poet. Following are the
opinions of dilettante whose pursuit of happiness and physical well being do not lend much of time, still
makes a strenuous efforts to read a lot.

As a poet Allama Iqbal is blown out of proportion than what he really was. Of course his mastery over
his language, his mellifluous way of arranging words often veils what sort connotations he harped in
mind.

Most of the ruminations in his poetry were inspired by Shelly , Gothe , Hegel etc. But he was too much
obsessed with old islam an then islamic values. He has little regard for western values(of which he is
product was) or altruistic human values. His whole concern is Islam and muslim world. His so called
great poems, shikwa and jawab-e-shikwa (incidentally again inspired!! from Milton's Paradise lost and
Paradise regained) has less to do with humanity and more on problems of Muslim world. Apparently
universal brotherhood has no place in Iqbal's thought process.

Again the poems are hailed as great today, but was vociferously attacked by then mullahs it was banned
and most of the copies were set on Burning pyre in Front of Badshahi Masjid lahore.

His imagery always goes 1000 years back islamic golden age. Consider one of his couplet which portrays
islam and Iqbal as a fulcrum of equality
एक ही सफ मे खड़े हो गये महमूद व अयाज़

न कोई बंदा रहा और न कोई बन्दानवाज़

The period in which he was writing there was neither mahmood nor ayaz. He could have said either
rich/poor or upper caste/lower caste. Obviously he wanted people to be oblivious of current notions
and problems with which they were and are marred with.

Again for umpteen number of times he stressed over the point he was born Brahmin. He quotes same in
his urdu and farsi poetry. So even though he considers himself muslim and shams a idea of Equality, he
seems to have bogged with superiority complex.

His impractical thoughts can go haywire, he never tried to resolve the problem which ails the society. He
says
जिस खेत से दहक़ाँ को मयस्सर नहीं रोज़ी

उस खेत के हर ख़ोशा-ए-गंदुम को जला दो

This is often quoted couplet and is considered as pro farmer couplet

But nobody thinks What will happen if the sheaf of grains are burned down, poor farmer living under
precarious earnings will anyhow die along with it. Problem was with feudal system but great Iqbal never
was against it

His dislike of Democracy is apparent

जम्हूरियत इक तर्ज़-ए-हुकूमत है कि जिस में

बंदों को गिना करते हैं तौला नहीं करते

इलेक्शन , मेंबर , Council, सदारत

बनाए हैं खुब आजादी ने फंदे ,

मियाँ नज़र भी छिले गए साथ

निहायत तेज हैं यूरोप के रंदे .

He was against Equality for all and power for few like old islamic master slave thought.

He was religious zealot if not a bigot. While Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was the original proponent of the two-
nation theory that Muslims are a separate nation and cannot live a under one roof along with Hindu.
Then Mohammad Iqbal carried the legacy forward. He presented the idea of Pakistan. In 1930, he
presided over the Allahbad session of the all India Muslim league. In his presidential speech , he made it
clear that the Muslims of the sub continent would have to struggle hard to achieve a separate
homeland if they wanted to leave their lives according to the teachings of islam.

Mohammad Iqbal was initially before 1905 a sort of egalitarian poet, and he composed the Qaumi
Tarana ‘सारे जहां से अच्छा हिन्दोस्तां हमारा ’. What many us are not aware subsequently he distanced himself
from tarana and composed tarana-e-milli, in which again his gyrometer pointed towards islam.

चीन-ओ-अरब हमारा हिन्दोस्ताँ हमारा

मुस्लिम हैं हम वतन है सारा जहाँ हमारा

Sahir Ludhianvi even wrote parody song over the mill tarana in a movie

फिर सुबह होगी picturised on Raj Kapoor

चिन ओ अरब हमारा हिंदुस्तान हमारा

रहने को घर नहीं है सारा जहां हमारा

Sahir spoofs Iqbal making his statement applicable to humanity and stress on problem faced by human
on all along rising above parochial view of Iqbal. In his mili tarana his Verbose thought of worrying for
islamic world and utter disregard for the problem faced by humanity is apparent.

Now coming on to other generally considered great works like Asrar-e-Khudi and Rumuz-e-Bekhud.
Much of the so called philosophy embedded in the potery is influenced by German thinkers. Iqbal's
theory of Khudi, even if not directly derived from famous German mathematician leibniz theory of
monads and certainly resembles it in a great deal

His concept of Mard-eKamil or Mard-e-Momin is directly taken from Nietzsche Superman

Hikayat-e-Almas-o-Zaghal a story is directly taken from Nietzsche (Twilight of the idols) Kitchen coal and
diamond..

While people raised concerns over his thoughts taken from west but Iqbal mentioned that he was
thinking that since 1902. But his poem Asrar-e-Khudi was itself published in 1915, over which he was
exposed to western ideas, getting his Phd in 1907.

Was Great Iqbal for gender Equality. In his concept of Mard-e-Momin women has no place. He considers
that women are beautiful objects, like everything beautiful they are better off if they remain under veil,
One can view that how beautifully he spins the cobwebs of words to pass on his inimical thoughts

ना पर्दा , ना तालीम नई हो कि पुरानी

निस्वानियत जन का निगाहबान है फकत मर्द

Which says that only male can protect virtues of female

लड़कियां पढ़ रही हैं अंग्रज
े ी

ढूँ ढ ली कौम ने फलाह की राह

He detested women learning english and western values. However its ironical that he himself and his
progeny were all are the products of the western education, not sure why he do not recommend same
for others

While Iqbal also harboured animosity towards perhaps greatest poet of the East Rabindranath Tagore.
When Tagore was felicitated by Muslims nations Iran, Saudi Arab etc. Iqbal wrote a vengeful letter to
authorities stating they should not encourage Hindus as such. But tagore had respect for him so far as
when tagore was in lahore he visited Iqbal's home to meet him, However Iqbal was away and the
meeting could not happen.

And such was magnanimity of Rabindranath that after Iqbal's passing away he wrote heartfelt eulogy.
Till date argument goes on why Tagore was Noble prize and not Iqbal. But much to chagrin of Iqbal and
his supporters, Iqbal was not even considered for Noble prize. How come a narrow thought of Iqbal can
be compared with tagore's universal, all pervasive vision of mankind.

Iqbal was loyal Muslim League supporter and often spoked against Hindus in his speeches and warned
that Ulema who are supporting Congress are on wrong side and will face grave consequences

For this Great Son of Soil whose ancestors were Hindu Brahmin, who spoke mostly in his mother tongue
Punjabi, Islam was panacea for all problems. For him if socialism then it Should be Islamic Socialism,
economics it should be Islamic economics, Renaissance then Islamic Renaissance.

Finally in his series of lectures as "The Reconstruction of Islamic Thought", He considered spirituality as
decadent concept and gave a clarion call for reorganisation of the Muslim fraternity without any
boundaries swaying away from Westphalian world. Nowhere in History had a such precedence, a region
was divided basis the religion. But his theory culminated as the partition of India along religious lines.

While his Islamic philosophy and interpretations remains moribund but the wounds inflicted by partition
continue to haunt sub continent..