Allama Iqbal and His Women

Understanding this translation from strictly "psychologist's point-of-view" I find the information provided one-dimensional. He seems to be more 'scandalized' by Iqbal's women, than what I would assume a 'neutral', medical perspective should be like.

Since when have psychologists understood poets anyway? Carl Jung was cursed by Joyce, for a good reason. Also, Dr. Sahib, should be a little* (just a little) more comfortable with issues of sexuality, and be able to a) speak about whats really bothering him, openly, and b) have had an encounter with Freud early in his schooling career. And thus it should not shock him that men have strange sexual drives. (lol)

To a Psychologist all this should be rid of (for god sake) muslimalization of every concept in the world. How indelicately he has exposed a poet, and his entire life, his years in Europe laughed at, and ridiculed. What a disrobing has taken place here! by God.
To someone's Venice, to someone's death.

Personally, I would just say, that Iqbal's own lines even though they were used so mercilessly here, still stand out, and manage to robe him with an air of authority which is untouched. Poets, usually are.

So are the real dancers, but you would not agree.
In the nearest language, it always works.

I can only say: becharraah iqbal, so impractical in real life. That's what all poets are.

Hello Mr. Aamer,

Thank you for this article. Very interesting and informative. I remember reading a book by Atiya Faizi some years ago about Iqbal and the most surprising aspect of the book to me, was how different the public Iqbal was from the private Iqbal. The kind of depression and frustration he felt towards his life, his culture, and even towards God, really comes out in his correspondence with Faizi. And that is an aspect of Iqbal's life that is rarely ever mentioned. Although he is highly regarded and respected in Pakistan, as he should be, his public message as well as his private life are largely ignored. He has been made more into a figure to be worshipped but not studied. I love Iqbal and visit his mausoleum every time I go to Lahore. I admire him because of his intellect, his powerful verses that shake the heart, and also for his very human flaws. All of us have flaws and so did Iqbal. And I don't hold that against him. To me, those flaws make Iqbal even more interesting and admirable.

Nauman Mir.

let look at this greatest philosopher of 600 years..not look at his personal life...

nobody is angel here..OK

Sunna he kih Sir Iqbal kothe ke bhi rasia the aur unke apni ek ham naam randi se gahri chhanti thi jis ke baare mein unka ek gher matbuah shehr bhi he:

``Iqbal ne Iqbal ke sab bal die nikaal
muddat se aarzoo thi kih seedha kare koi``

Re: # 50 Hi! The teacher asked his student `what is your name?` The student humbly replied, ``Sher Yar``...The teacher angrily took out his stick asked the student to streatch out his hand and start hitting saying, `where in the world one would call teacher `yar```! Cheers and Peace!

Dr Khalid Sohail has done a painstaking research to open up the subject of critical review of the life and works of those people who are held in kinda reverence.
BRAVO DOC. !!!

It is indeed a message to people from our part of the world to tolerate free thinking and honest debate, irrespective of the level of reverence, and let the people decide what they want to believe or disbelief.

wonderful read

wasif you are right. it is karti. i was quoting from memory.

i agree iqbal is very great as a poet. his bal i jibreel is astonishing. the peak of his urdu poetry.

# 27 Shouldnt it be ``karti`` hai baygaana dil ko ? Instead of ``karta`` hai.... ``Do alam say karta hai baigaana dil ko... ajab cheez hai lazzat e aashnayee``....


``Ik iztaraab e musalsal, ghaayaab ho kay huzoor
Main khud kahoon to mairi daastaan daraz nahin``

What a great, great, intimidatingly great poet !

#49 mfida1952

Yaar, those are weighty questions. I recommend you make couch appointment with the good doctor right away - and make sure to ask him for long-term, discounted rates!

:)

Iqbal is matchless...His dream for Pakistan meant a `self` both individual and collective on the smilitude of friedrich Nietzschde...but now in 21st century finding Mahmud of Ghazna, Tariq Ziyad, Musa Bin Nussr or Mohammad Qassim happily going for conquering foreigners and their lands seems `aggression`...This is the time that would make us think if it is ok finding a powerful eagle ruling the skies to may poor swans its prey...? Or let me tell it step by step as what that we have in present since 17th century believes..
1. Doubt gives rise to begin investigation
2. Self is “a thing that thinks” (mind) leads to analysis of doubt […I think therefore I am”…Descartes ]
3. Therefore ‘self’ is the grounding point of modern philosophy . Self make us explore further unto the God and Universe.
4. The power of mind is meaningful for an investigation on what is true and what is false, right and wrong. Thus initiating an identity search.
5. Veracity (truth) is not in body but in mind (self). [Dualism two different kinds of substances mind and body.]
6. Mind: is immaterial and internal existence that known to mind itself.
7. Body is material, occupies space and is divisible. Head, fingers, thumbs…are identifiably parts of body.
8. Mind and Body are distanced and distinct from each other.
Question arises as:
9. How the two can be reconciled?
10. But self includes the body too.
11. Therefore body is a self too but different from the self (mind)
12. Mind is pivot of the vessel that control and direct the body.
13. Mind’s control over body can be challenged and hijacked? Say drunken man has not control of mind any more. Hence foreign substance has taken over the role of mind…
Thus came Sigmund Freud criticism on Descartes approaches saying:
14. Mind cannot be the sole pivot of the vessel controlling and directing the body. There is more to the self than that Descartes appreciated…said Sigmund Freud.
15. Self grounding in mind and responsible for every thing is too primitively simple
16. Self cannot be a thing as Descartes said but more mysterious, messy and complicated.
17. Freud distinguished self with an iceberg said it is ‘an intricate web of conflicting desires, dictates and attempts to be rational but still remains unexposed.’ Freud self has three parts; the id, the superego and the ego.
18. Id contains two instincts called ‘thanatos’ and ‘eros’ demanding satisfaction/pressing for irrational acts. Hence it operates for body related pleasures (food/sex) only however:
19. Id is constantly warned and checked by part of our self called superego, an integral part of our psych that exercises a check and balance mechanism versus id.
20. And thus the tussle between id and superego attempts to change the structure of the self.
21. However, here ego intervenes to keep balance between reality and desires. It is the ego that tells you chill when you doing some self-destructive. It is some times successful some times not.
22. To find why one would act in a way that is devastating Freud has developed ‘psychoanalysis’ that would unearth the fault by talking about the past.
23. What The Descartes and Freud discussion gets struck with is the role of mind that no body has seen to say if its existence.
Other Theorists:
24. The search for alternative explanation of identity has made other theorists to return to the body part of self that Descartes had discarded as unreliable and unworthy of attention. Hence it was said that if there be any thing called mind it must be located nowhere but in body existing in space and time.
25. The consequences of physical body are immense with respect to such person’s psychologies about himself and others.
26. These theorists observed that both Descartes and Freud overlooked the consequences of body that abodes the mind.
27. The role of body was further enhanced with the discovery of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) that helped resolved all the issues of self.
28. DNA is divided into chromosomes alongside what lays genes that furnishes a blue print of a person, his growth and development. Genes containing four acids:-(i) Adenine, (ii) Guanine, (iii) Cytosine and (iv) Thymine, all called ‘nucleotides. This discovery helped researchers in Human Genome Project to know the self.
The Human Genome Project in 1990 mapping out the complete human genetic code came out with the results that human genome consists of approximately 30 to 40 thousand genes that send messages to our body thus dictating our behaviour. These genes reflect about the entire self its past, present and future.

looks like allamsab was a fun-loving guy and took advice of various molvies etc for making sure he does his 4-th nikkah right. i hope his other affairs were clean and kosher, and a proper a muta was performed, registered with a kaji in case of physical relationship. i am not sure if mere friendship, holding hands, taking walks etc needs a kaji registration, maybe jeemax will address these.

Re: # 45

dr. javed iqbal goes through all the versions of this story in his biography of his father and conclusively proves it as a fabrication.

Many great personalities had turbulent personal lives.
Guru Nanak can not be called a responsible husband or father as he was mostly away on his udaasis.

Guru Gobind Singh had two wives...some say four.

Maharaja Ranjit singh was punished by the Akal takht for his affair with MoraaN, the courtesan, and had many wives.

We all know about Mahatma Gandhi`s `experiments with truth` and his affair with Rabindranath Tagore`s niece, whom he even wanted to declare as his `spiritual wife`

Einstein`s love life was miserable.

Amrita Pritam, Sahir Ludhianvi, Shiv Kumar Batalvi were all wrecks in their love lives.

But the contribution of all these great people to art/philosophy, science, religion etc. can not be belittled because of their personal problems.

People may have different opinions about Iqbal`s philosophy, but he remains one of the great urdu poets and is loved and respected by people of the subcontinent and will always be.

Re: # 40
dear rf786....i have heard that story from many urdu writers who visited toronto from india

as well as pakistan but nobody provided me with a valid proof or authentic evidence so i

did not include in my essay. if any of the readers read it in an authentic book about that

episode please let me know. there is no doubt iqbal went through a very turbulent phase

emotionally but gradually recovered and focused his energies on his creative work. iqbal,

like many other creative personalities, is a wonderful example how an emotional

breakdown can be trasformed into a creative breakthrough.

sincerely sohail