Shikwa Jawab E Shikwa

* * * In his two most famous poems, Muhammad Iqbal sets out to reconcile the vacuum between Man and God with his philosophy and vision intricately woven in this epic dialogue * * * Besides other translations out there, this book aims to provide a more literal and detailed analysis that will appeal to the young and old readers alike. Read on to gain a better understanding of arguably Iqbal's best works and discover why he was named The Poet of the East as this iconic dialogue incites a feeling of pride and re-connection to one's Self.

Though much of Iqbal's best poetry is written in Persian, he is also a poet of colossal stature in Urdu. Shikwa (1909) and Jawab-i-Shikwa (1913) extol the legacy of Islam and its civilising role in history, bemoan the fate of Muslims everywhere, and squarely confront the dilemmas of Islam in modern times. Shikwa is thus, in the form of a complaint to Allah for having let down the Muslims and Jawab-i-Shikwa is Allah's reply to thepoet's complaint.

An excellent work detailing with notes the thoughts of Allama Iqbal in his famous work. The text features extensive notes and gives an introduction to each poem.

When Muhammad Iqbal first recited Shikwa (Taking Issue) in 1909, his audience was enraged by his effrontery. Iqbal, in his lament, took issue with Allah directly, audaciously implicating Him for the sorry state of Muslims worldwide and ruing the lost glory of Islam. In recompense, Iqbal composed Jawaab-e-Shikwa (Allah’s Answer) in 1913. Here, Allah responds to the poet, first berating his community, then offering hope for Islam in the world. Iqbal’s mellifluous words greatly assuaged those angered earlier. Over time, the poems have found their place in the canon of South Asian literature, and, through recitation, repetition and selective use, have forwarded a variety of agendas in the subcontinent. In this elegant translation by Mustansir Dalvi, these classics by the most influential poet of his generation come alive once again in a language that is contemporary and immediate.

Iblees ki Majlis-e-Shoora is a conversation between Iblees (the devil) and the five members of his advisory council. It is one of the final works of Allama Iqbal. The work consists of 64 amazingly dramatized, well composed couplets. Here, Iblees presides over the clandestine session and leads the conversation. He boasts how successfully he has mislead Mankind throughout history by introducing ideas and doctrines such as Imperialism, Capitalism, Fascism etc., which have ultimately landed the human society in ruins. His advisers point towards a few emerging trends such as Western democracy and Marxism that they saw as potential threats to the evil regime of Iblees. Summarily dismissing all these apprehensions of his advisers, Iblees concludes, that the revolutionary spirit of Islam is the greatest threat to his evil empire and hence the most crucial task ahead was to stop the waves of Muslim resurgence. He instructs them to keep the followers of Islam totally preoccupied with vain spiritual rituals, complex philosophical debates and narrow theological intricacies.Allama Iqbal, an advocate of universal human fraternity, envisaged the revival of the original Islamic civilization, globally. His works, exposed the limitations of the socio-political and economic concepts introduced by the West.