Hyderabad achieves literary feat

Litterateurs in the city complete 1,000 lectures on one of the greatest Urdu poets, and author of Saare Jahan se Achcha, Allama Iqbal, in a span of two decades

To some it is the Devil’s wine, to some a rhythmical creation of beauty in words, but for Hyderabadis poetry is both a purpose and passion. No wonder, the city pulled off a literary feat of sorts recently when it crossed the thousandth lecture series on Allama Iqbal, one of the greatest of Urdu poets.
It took two decades to clinch this record which has no parallel in the history of Urdu. While musharias and musical concerts are common, discussing threadbare a poet’s genius, style and craft week after week is unique to Hyderabad. What started perhaps as a one-off lecture on the celebrated poet in 1997, touched the 1,000 mark on October 9. Senior advocate Ghulam Yezdani, the man behind the marathon lectures, never thought that his initiative would continue this far. The first lecture was delivered by Mohd Zaheeruddin Ahmed, president, Iqbal Academy, on October 8, 1997. Since then, the weekly lectures under the banner of ‘Iqbal Shinasi’ have continued without a break. And they go on even after crossing the milestone.

Noted scholar Taqi Khan feels there is enough depth and material in Iqbal’s poetry to last for another 1,000 lectures. He cites the famous couplet to drive home his point:

Ye kainat abhi na-tamam hai shaid
Ke aa rahi hai damadam sada’ay ‘Kun Fayakoon’

(This universe is perhaps incomplete so far
As every moment the voice-call ‘be and it is’ is coming)

The conference hall of the Masjid-e-Aliya, Gunfoundry, has seen eminent scholars hold forth on various aspects of Iqbal’s poetry. The names of scholars, who have expounded on the philosophical and poetical merit of Iqbal, reads like a who’s who list of literary luminaries. Ziauddin Shekeb, Dr Taqi Abedi, Prof Mohsin Osmani, Prof Khaja Naseeruddin, Dr Murtuza Siddiqui, Maslehuddin Saadi, Dr MM Taqi Khan, Moulana Khalid Saifullah Rahmani, and Dr Yousuf Azmi, to name a few, have spent hours discussing the poetic brilliance of Iqbal.

A compilation of these lectures would form a treasure trove of reference material for scholars doing research on the Poet of East. In view of the growing popularity of these lectures, they are now being uploaded on YouTube.  Anybody can now watch the lectures from the comfort of their home. Ifteqar Husain, a die-hard Iqbal fan, has launched the website through his Faiz-e-Aam Trust.

“The idea of launching a lecture series on Allama Iqbal is to ensure that the youth take inspiration from his poetry and achieve excellence in whatever field they choose to work,” says Yezdani, who is organising the lectures with commitment and integrity for the last 22 years.

Come rain or shine, fans of the visionary poet make a beeline to Majsid-e-Aliya on Wednesdays. And they come back with new insight, intuition and understanding of the life and works of the poet-philosopher. For sheer numbers, the Iqbal Shinasi mahafil have no match. The 100th lecture mark was reached on December 4, 1999, 200th lecture (March 9, 2002), the 300th lecture (May 16, 2004), 400th lecture (July 12, 2006), 500th lecture (August 31, 2008), 600th lecture (December 5, 2010), 700th lecture (February 6, 2013),  800th lecture (April 3, 2015) and 900th lecture on July 12, 2017.

The Iqbal Shinasi lectures have been both scholarly and intellectually stimulating. Over the years, experts in Iqbaliat have added to the ever-increasing outpouring of literature about the poetical genius and philosophical profundity of one of the outstanding poets of our times. They have shed light on the phraseology used by Iqbal for his concepts of ‘khudi’ (self) and bekhudi (selflessness), which have been an intriguing problem of all great thinkers. Iqbal, who is anchored in Quranic tradition, believes man can realise his potential only when he abides by the commandments of Allah.

Scholars have also talked about the notion of harmony found in the concept of ‘Mard-e-Mumin’ (the perfect man), an oft recurring theme in Iqbal’s verses. The legendary poet gave a new meaning to age-old symbols and images in his verses. Iqbal’s idea of ‘taqdir’ (destiny), ‘faqr’ (destitution), the aesthetic perception in his poetry besides his thoughts concerning history and life after death have all been explained.

‘Qalandar’ (symbol of the evolved man) and ‘Shaheen’ (falcon) are other motifs Iqbal often refers to in his poems. Scholars have taken pains to explain how Iqbal wants the youth to possess the ‘khudari’ (individualism) of the fearless bird which doesn’t believe in eating leftovers of other animals.

Nahin tera nasheman Kasr-e-Sultani ke gumbad par
Tu shaheen hai basera kar, pahadon ki chatanon par

(Your abode is not the dome of emperor
You are the Hawk, you live on the rocks of mountains)

Another important verse which has been discussed at length in the Iqbal Shinasi programmes is from Bal-e-Jibril. The poet expresses his angst at the presence of outward manifestations of Islam like namaz, fast, sacrifice and Haj but not the spirit of Islam. He says:

Ragon mein wo lahoo baqi nahin hai
Wo dil, wo arzoo baqi nahin hai
Namaz-o-Roza-o-Qurbani-o-Hajj
Ye sab baqi hain, tu baqi nahin hai

Enough light has also been thrown on the evolution of Iqbal’s poetry and how from being a poet of linguistic purity, to a social reformer and then to a poet of new world outlook, he has emerged as an architect of new cosmic consciousness. Basically a poet of faith, love and deep-heartedness, Iqbal remains a never failing source of inspiration. For this reason, many regard him as Hakeem-ul-Ummat (the sage of community). “His poetry opens up new vistas of understanding and fills readers with intense ardour,” says Ziauddin Nayyer, who has addressed several Iqbal Shinasi programmes.

The celebrated poet, who penned Saare jahan se accha, has a special connect with Hyderabad. He visited the city for the first time in 1910 and followed it up with two more visits. He was the special guest of Maharaja Kishan Pershad, then Prime Minister of Hyderabad State. During his stay in Hyderabad, he visited the Qutb Shahi tombs and wrote the touching poem Goristan-e-Shahi which speaks about the inevitability of death, and rise and fall of kingdoms. Allama Iqbal also delivered extensive lectures on ‘Reconstruction of Religious thought in Islam’ at the Town Hall, the present Assembly building.

Syed Khaleelullah Hussaini, eminent educationist and visionary, who is greatly influenced by Allama Iqbal, is responsible largely for keeping the poet’s philosophy and thought alive in Hyderabad first through Bazm-e-Ahbab, Majlis-e-Tamire Millat and then Iqbal Academy. He used the poetry of Iqbal to lift the spirits of Hyderabadi Muslims who felt let down after the merger of Hyderabad into the Indian Union in 1948. Even today, his poetry is found to be the perfect antidote to troubled souls. It seldom fails to evoke warmth and action, yearning and earnestness among its readers and listeners. As Iqbal himself says:

Apne mann main doob kar paja suraghe zindagi

Tu agar mera na bunta na bun, apna to bun

(Delve deep into yourself and find the clue to life

If you can’t be mine then be not, but be your own)

J.S.Ifthekhar,

Hyderabad based journalist.

Article published in Telangana Today

Dated November 3,2019