A Treasury of Iqbal

by Abdur Rashid Siddiqui

MUHAMAD IQBAL (d.1938), thinker and philosopher – poet of Indo-Pakistan sub-continent was one of the key architects of contemporary Islam. Through the medium of his thoughtful writing and soul-transforming poetry, both Urdu and Persian, he infused a new spirit in the Muslims, not only of India and Pakistan but also Iran, Afghanistan, Central Asia and the Middle East. He challenged the western concept of nationalism and expounded the concept of Islamic nations, on which the idea of Pakistan is based. A Treasury of Iqbal is a glimpse of his thought and contribution

Genres: Islam

204 pages, Hardcover

Published May 4, 2021

Reviews

[Edin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a welcome book for a giant personality who is still sadly grossly understudied and unknown in English, but it is lacking in a few key places. As a broad overview of Iqbal, it does its job well, and it's especially good at bringing together translated poems that aren't collected together anywhere else; however, the book is reliant on old translations of his poetry that are inconsistent and vary widely in quality (it's a shame a crack wasn't made at new translations!). Additionally, the book is at its weakest when the author offers analysis, and the short chapter lengths lead to topics getting cut abruptly.

[Osama Zubair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enlightening but had to take it with a pinch of salt as it is someone else's interpretation of Iqbal's writings/views.

[Thaqib Moosa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent primer to Iqbal's work. Striking that Iqbal's work is so we'll represented even today.

Overall the book itself was fawning, quite badly written, difficult to follow,etc.

[Jaani Ramaki · Rating 1 out of 5]

How to: fortælle historien om en filosof og gøre at folk mister alt interesse i ham på under 200 sider

[Hyeyeongie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Philosophy. Not a subject nor path many people would want to take. It requires critical thinking and often time, provoking

But to emanate deep thoughts into beautiful words & prose are something else, talent is needed. And for that I really love how Iqbal (d.1938), a poet & philosopher from Pakistan aced it

He observed & reflected the vast universe, not only God & Quran but men & women, time & space, life & death, science & art, civilisation & democracy, Marxism & Nietzsche.. almost every topic is covered!

“Every atom throbs with life;
Rest is an illusion;
Life’s journey pauses not
For every moment is new glory”

There’s even an imaginary conversation-poem between Jibril & Iblis, where Iblis justifies himself 👀

“If you’re alone with God, ask Him;
Whose blood coloured the story of Adam?
I rankle in God’s heart like a thorn. But what about you?
All you do is chant: ‘He is God’ over and over”

And these poetries alone wouldn’t be so easy to understand if not for the work of Abdur Rashid Siddiqui (author) that helps to explain and justify meanings and reasons behind each verses. He basically endowing us the vision of Iqbal within all 40 topics and each topic are concise that you won’t feel overwhelmed reading it

“When we are dead, seek not our tomb in the earth, but find it in the hearts of men”

Would suggest you to devour this book slowly, digesting every thoughts and moments

Thank you @kubepublishing for sending me this review copy! This book is also available in other series such as Al-Ghazali, Maxims, Ibn Taymiyyah, Rumi, Aishah (coming soon)