Iqbal’s

Philosophy and Education

MIAN MUHAMMAD TUFAIL

THE BAZM -I- IQBAL

Club Road, Lahore
IQBAL’S PHILOSOPHY AND EDUCATION
iqbal’s Philosophy and Education

MIAN MUHAMMAD TUFAIL

[A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements

for the Degree of Master of Arts in-the Education Depart-
ment of the American University of Beirut, Lebanon]

THE. BAZM-1-1QBAL
Club Read, Lahore
 Copyright

All rights including those of translation

abridgment, reproduction, etc., reserved

Ist Edition, 1966

2000 Copies

Printed at Din Muhammadi Press

Bull Road Lahore
 With deep reverence
TO

My Teacher

The Late PROFESSOR M.M. SHARTF

 PREFACE
Iqbal is regarded as one of the profound thinkers
of the present century because of the recognition of the
value of his philosophy. This philosophy embodies
such principles as are possible of application in every
area of human experience and endeavour. The fact
that education is an important aspect of human ex-
perience and the consideration that Iqbal did not
express his views specifically on educational problems
justify the attempt in the present study to imply and
infer Iqbal’s probable educational views from his
philosophy. In order to judge their comparative
value, the inferred views have been compared and
contrasted with the educational ideas of a prominent
thinker, John Dewey.
’* The method ‘used in this study consists of review-
ing the pertinent available literature, both by and
about Iqbal and Dewey. The study has been delimit-
ed, firstly, to those aspects of Iqbal’s philosophy which
have a bearing on education, secondly, to a few major
educational problems, and, lastly, to Iqbal’s compari-
son with Dewey’s ideas only.
Iqbal (1873-1938) received both Eastern and
Western education, at home as well as abroad. He
pursued at first teaching as a profession but afterwards
switched over to law. He based his philosophy on
the teachings of Islam, and systematically developed
it with due regard to the ancient, medieval and
viii Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
modern philosophy, and other advanced domains of
human knowledge. He expressed his philosophy
mainly in verse, in Persian and Urdu, in addition to
his prose writings in English and Urdu. His influence
was varied and widespread, especially in the Indo-
Pakistan sub-continent. He took a keen interest in
the political, religious, social, and cultural life of the
country with an emphasis on activity and change. He
tried to reinterpret Islam in its relation to Philosophy
and Science as applied to man’s activities in his daily
life. Many prominent leaders, thinkers, and writers
represent his influence in political, social, religious,
literary, and educational activities in the Indo-Pakistan
sub-continent. His influence abroad is exhibited
through the translations of his works in many foreign
languages.
In the realm of philosophy, Iqbal thinks thatknow-
ledge of reality is possible through perception, intellect
and intuition. They are not opposed to each other;
rather they supplement each other. Through intui-
tion one knows the nature of man and of reality.
Reality and life consist of individual egos, There is
a gradation between them due to their stages of evolu-
tion. Man is relatively the highest ego. God is the
Ego of the universe. Reality as ego is not fixed, but
is constantly changing. It is purposeful and directive,
Tt moves progressively towards perfection in know-
ledge, power, creative activity, and freedom, all of
which are attained by becoming immortal. The pro-
gress of the ego requires a system of values. Values,
for Iqbal, stem mainly from the belief in the unity of
God, and the possibility of the individual’s develop-
ment. The values are highly pragmatic. All aesthetic,
 Preface ix

moral, social, political, and economic values are

different aspects of religion. Religion represents the
philosophy of life and action.
From Iqbal’s point of view, the development of
the individual as a unique entity is the ultimate aim of
education. The proximate educational aims, curri-
culum and method are not fixed. They are deter-
mined by an intelligent analysis of the actual situa-
tions which involve both the individual and the
environment. Such a conception of education en-
hances the teacher’s responsibilities as a guide and
leader. The viewpoints of Iqbal and Dewey differ
basically in the philosophy of the ultimate aim of
education. The former emphasises continued life
with definite characteristics, while the latter em-
phasises rich life as long as one lives. They agree in
their viewpoints in the practical application of their
philosophy in the educational situations, on the prob-
lems selected here mainly for their similarity, because
both of them emphasise purposeful activity in chang-
ing situations. Iqbal’s views, if elaborated, can
provide suggestions for the solution of different edu-
cational problems facing the world today, particularly
of those countries where Islam is a dominant factor in
culture.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I express my deep gratitude to Dr. Habib A.
‘Kurani, chairman of my thesis committee, for his kind
and generous help and guidance in this study. J] am
-also greatly indebted to Professor Faizeh M. Antippa,
Dr. Roland G. Will and Professor Muhammad T.
Husayn, members of my thesis committee, for the
valuable advice which they gave me from time to time.
“My thanks are due to Dr. Frederick R. Korf and Dr.
Naim N. Atiyeh for their valuable suggestions which
they made at the initial stages of this study.
Tam also deeply grateful to Mr. M. Ashraf Darr
(Secretary, Institute of Islamic Culture), for taking
‘pains in seeing the book through the press and im-
‘proving its form.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEDICATION

PREFACE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I. INTRODUCTION
A. Nature and Significance of the Problem
B. The Method of the Study
C. Limitations of the Study

UW. LIFE AND THOUGHT OF IQBAL

A. A Biographical Sketch us
B. Sources and Development of His Thought .
C. Iqbal’s Works
D. Igqbal’s Influence

TI. IQBAL’S PHILOSOPHY

A. Epistemology
B. Metaphysics
1. The Nature of Man
2. Cosmology P
Nature of Time and seas
3. God a
Attributes of God
Prayer
C. Axiology
1. Nature of ine.
2. Realms of Value
Religious Values
xu Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
Ethical Values ..
Social Values
Political Values
Economic Values

IV. IQBAL’S EDUCATIONAL VIEWPOINTS AND

THEIR COMPARISON AND CONTRAST WITH
DEWEY’S PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

A. Education as a Social Institution a

B. Educational Aims : Their Determination and
Selection ve ay 102
Curriculum, Its Selection and Organisation 109
Methods of Instruction 119
Individual Differences 127
mmoo
The Teacher 130

WORKS CITED 142

 Chapter I
INTRODUCTION

A. Nature and Significance of the Problem

The problem to be dealt with in this study is

‘“‘Tqbal’s Philosophy and Education.” One may doubt
at the very outset that Iqbal expressed views about
education, and while it is true that he did not put forth
his ideas about education in a formal way, no student
of Iqbal’s philosophy can escape the conclusion that
his philosophy has significant educational implications.
Igbal’s philosophy embodies a system of interrelated
assumptions, consciously or unconsciously embraced,
which are so basic and universal in their scope as to
be capable of adoption in every area of human experi-
ence and endeavour. Thus, it inevitably applies to
education.
Iqbal (1873-1938) was one of the profound thinkers
of the present century, and his ideas have made a
great impression, especially in the Indo-Pakistan sub-
continent. In his presidential address at the annual
session of the Muslim League held in Allahabad (India)
in 1930, Iqbal stated : ‘‘I would like to see the Punjab,
North West Frontier Province, Sind and Baluchistan
amalgamated into a single state. Self-Government
within the British Empire, or without the British Em-
pire, and the formation of a consolidated North-West
Indian Muslim state appears to me to be the final
2 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
destiny of the Muslims at least of North-West India.””!
It is natural that such a great thinker whose imagination
conceived such a broad and yet a definite plan should
take into account all the problems which would be
faced in the implementation of the plan, and that he
should give some suggestions for the solution of those
probable problems. Iqbal himself derided that type of
philosophy the main concern of which was futile ab-
stractions and endless speculations, which was uncon-
cerned with man’s personality, his practical life and the
universe, his home. Thus Iqbal has tried to build a
well-knit and consistent philosophy with man and his
universe as its central core. For this reason, it is hoped
that a careful analysis of his ideas in this study may
lead to the formation of some principle that may help
in the solution of man’s problems through education.
It is also important to note that Iqbal played a
significant role in promoting an intellectual revolution
among the Muslims of the Indo-Pakistan sub-conti-
nent, and this heralded the emergence of the Muslims
as a definite and separate political force, conscious of
their national destiny. In the nineteen twenties and
thirties up to the time he was allowed by Providence
to continue his work, he was busy in working out the
ideological foundations of the new awakening among
the Muslims. All his poetical works, public addresses
and writings were directed to the central task of in-
culcating in the Muslims a sense of their historic
mission. Thus, with the establishment of Pakistan,
which was a dominating passion with him, especially
in the latter days of his life, his works, both poetical
1. Quoted by Iqbal Singh, The Ardent Pilgrim, An Introduction to the Life
aes woe of Mohammed igbal (Calcutta, Orient Longmans, 1951), Pp.
 Introduction 3

and philosophical, with all their application and impli-

cation, have assumed greater significance and utility
in the life of the new nation.
The educational aspect of Iqbal’s philosophy has
been chosen purposely. For education is one of the
most important means for maintaining the life of any
society, and the chief agency for attaining national
unity. Hence, it is through education that the ideas
of Iqbal will influence the life of the nation. Educa-
tion may be viewed as the sum total of all cultural forces
which play upon the life of the individual and the
community. It consists of all those formative social
and personal influences which shape and powerfully
modify the ideas and conduct of individuals and groups.
The creation and establishment of Pakistan as an
independent and sovereign state in 1947 produced new
hopes and ideals in the nation. All thoughtful citi-
zens realise the need and importance of education in
helping the people to take their due place in the comity
of nations. The people feel that the present system
of education, which is the legacy of the British
rulers, is not suitable for their needs. Government
authorities as well as intelligent leaders appreciate
the necessity of reconstructing the existing system of
education in accordance with the needs of the country,
and traditions and ideals of the people. It is true that
more educational facilities have been provided since
the independence of Pakistan but these facilities
are neither adequate nor suitable? There is no
clearly formulated, well-thought-out and sound
philosophy of education to guide the educational
Government of Pakistan, Planning Board, The First Five-Year Plan,
1955-1960 (Karachi, 1956), pp. 397-403.
4 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
reform in Pakistan. Educators in Pakistan do not
fully realise the significance of a definite philosophy
of education, for it is seldom included in the curriculum
of teacher-training institutions. A little reflection
will show the necessity and importance of a systematic
and guiding philosophy of education for the modifi-
cation or reconstruction of the present system. of
education.
Iqbal does not provide any definite educational
philosophy or methodology of education. But his phi-
losophy certainly reflects the culture, ideology, hopes,
ideals, and aspirations of the people of Pakistan, and
as such the educational implications of his philosophy
may determine the directions which the new education
in Pakistan should follow. In his writings, Iqbal
directs our attention to fundamental principles and
important facts about the universe and man’s per-
sonality and his practical life. It is the purpose of this
study to infer from his thought his probable views
about education and see to what extent these views
are compatible with Dewey’s modern progressive
philosophy of education. By sharing these views with
fellow teachers and other educationists, supervisors
and administrators, it is hoped that they may be used
to help form a sound philosophy of education upon
which the national system of education for Pakistan
can be constructed. This study may also help in
understanding more deeply and clearly the theory
and practice of education in other countries, because,
like all great and creative poets and thinkers, Iqbal
has an appeal which transcends geographical limits,
and his message is one of universal application.
Every coherent system of thought has a message
 Introduction 5
for education. The writer has reason to believe that
Iqbal has a point of view and a philosophy of life which
may be of great value for education—one which can
infuse a new life and vitality into education. In so far
as Iqbal’s ideas serve to build a sound philosophy of
education, they are valuable for sound educational
practice. Most often the success of an educational
practice depends largely upon the soundness of its
underlying philosophy.
On the basis of the above discussion, an attempt
is here made to infer Iqbal’s educational ideas from a
study of his philosophy. Moreover, only those ideas
have been included which, it is felt, Iqbal would have
expressed had he himself written specifically on edu-
cation. These implied ideas are compared and con-
trasted with Dewey’s philosophy of education so that
the reader may judge the compatative value of educa-
tional ideas of Iqbal. To sum up, Iqbal’s implied
educational ideas may help to frame a sound and con-
sistent philosophy of education based on the traditions
and culture of Pakistan. Further, this study may
provide those who control educational activities with
a philosophical insight into the educational ideas of
the man whose vision resulted in the truth of Pakistan.
Finally, this study may also stimulate critical thinking
about educational problems among the teachers,
educational administrators and supervisors of Pakistan
and other countries.

B, The Method of the Study

The nature of a study determines the method to
be followed. The method employed in studying the
6 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

present problem consists of reviewing the pertinent

literature by Iqbal and about Iqbal, written in English,
Persian and Urdu. To this is added the study of
philosophy in general and philosophy of education in
particular. The material studied consists of books,
magazines and articles. All possible efforts have. been
made to consult the available literature which has any
bearing on the problem.
The study of literature is supplemented by an
analysis of the implications of Jqbal’s views about
educational problems; and, finally, an attempt is made
to compare and contrast Iqbal’s views with Dewey’s
philosophy of education.
The following procedure has been adopted for
the study: First of all, the nature, significance, method;
and limitations of the study are stated. This is
followed by a short biographical sketch of Iqbal:
Efforts are made to trace the development of his
thought and determine the forces and influences which
shaped his thinking and helped him to propound his
philosophy. His chief works are mentioned, and the
influence which Iqbal exerted on the minds of the
people and social problems is discussed.
This general approach serves as an introduction
to the study of certain aspects of Iqbal’s thought such
as epistemology, metaphysics, and axiology, which are
of special interest for the purpose of the study. ‘It may
be noted that Iqbal constructed his philosophy with
due regard to the teachings and philosophical tradi-
tions of Islam, the more recent developments in the
domain of human knowledge and criticism and an
appreciation of ancient, medieval, and modern philoso=
phical thought. Important topics in his epistemology
 Introduction 7

are the possibility of knowledge, value and importance

ot knowledge through sense-perception, and com-
patibility and mutual harmony between knowledge
gained through reason and knowledge attained through
the perception of the Qalb (heart) or intention. In
metaphysics, his views about the nature of man, nature
of reality, and the concept of God are dealt with.
Axiology represents the nature of value and different
spheres of value systems with their significant aspects,
as, for example, ethics, politics, economics, and re-
ligion.
This analysis of Iqbal’s thought serves as a
foundation for building an educational theory com-
patible with his views. From the philosophical bases,
Iqbal’s views about the nature of some of the vital
problems in the philosophy of education are discussed.
Some of the aspects of an educational philosophy
which are discussed in this study are : education as a
social institution, the nature of the pupil, educational
aims and curriculum, methods of instruction, evalua-
tion, teacher-pupil relations, and school and social
progress. With these topics, Iqbal’s probable views
about educational problems will be compared and
contrasted with Dewey’s philosophy of education.

C. Limitations of the Study

Iqbal developed his philosophy in a_ peculiar
culture and ideology. Many forces acted upon him,
but they influenced him in a unique way. His philoso-
phy is unique and novel and cannot be identical with,
or entirely dissimilar to, the philosophy of any other
thinker of the present century. In the same way, the
educational implications of his philosophy may or
8 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
may not coincide with the ideas of the modern philoso-
phy of education.
The study has been delimited in certain respects
as follows.
First, the study deals with the implications of
Iqbal’s philosophy to some of the major problems of
educational philosophy. Therefore, it deals with only
those aspects of his philosophy which have a direct
bearing on education. The treatment of his philoso-
phy is therefore not exhaustive but limited within
this frame of reference. There is no contention to
discuss at full length the multifarious problems of his
philosophy. Secondly, an effort has been made to
include the major problems of educational philosophy,
and these in no way exhaust all such . problems.
Thirdly, Iqbal’s probable views have been compared
and contrasted with only the educational ideas of
Dewey on these problems, and hence no other philoso-
pher or his philosophy has been involved in the dis-
cussion. Lastly, the implied educational ideas are
not in any way the philosophy of education which is
necessarily recommended for practical application in
Pakistan or in any other country. The present study
is simply an inference from Iqbal’s thought, and any
of the implied ideas may be accepted or rejected.
Whether some or all of these ideas suit the educational
system of a particular country would constitute the
subject of a separate study.
It is the writer’s belief that only from a coherent
philosophy can follow an educational philosophy
which is consistent both with itself and with the
underlying philosophy. An attempt has been made
to reflect on the problems of educational philosophy
 Introduction 9
and imply and include only those which seem to be
consistent with Iqbal’s philosophy. Iqbal has a
coherent and consistent philosophy, and a conscious
effort has been made to guard against subjective inser-
tion of ideas into Iqbal’s writings. Moreover, the
available literature of or about Iqbal has been relied
upon for this study. -The study would have been
richer and more comprehensive if access had been
possible to all the possible sources.
 Chapter II

LIFE AND THOUGHT OF IQBAL

A great Orientalist in his introduction to the

translation of Iqbal’s book Rumuz-i Bekhudi, writes
about Iqbal: ‘When the future historian proposes
to analyse the causes that determined and conditioned
the emergence of Pakistan, he will be bound to take
into account the personality and writings of a man
who is regarded by some as the creator, and by many
as the principal, or a principal, advocate of the crea-
tion, of that great power.””!
Such significance is attached to the link between
the history of the Pakistan movement and the life and
thought of Iqbal. The link between his philosophy
and life is even stronger. Hence it will not be out of
place to give a brief biographical sketch for proper
and better understanding of his philosophical and
educational ideas.

A. A Biographical Sketch

Iqbal’s life serves to provide a noble and inspiring

story of the heights to which human intellect can soar
in spheres widely apart. To give the life history of a
great and versatile genius in a brief sketch is like an
attempt to paint a landscape on a postal stamp. His

Arberry, Mysteries of Selflessness :A Philosophical Poem by the

late ih ‘Midines Iqbal (London, John Murray, 1953), p. ix,
 Life and Thought of Iqbal i
towering personality had many facets, each superb in
itself. Hence, only the significant can be mentioned
here.
For people migrating from the state of Jammu and
Kashmir, either to seek political asylum from oppres-
sion or to search for fresh grounds for their adventur-
ous spirits, Sialkot, a town in West Pakistan, on the
border of the state, has for centuries provided the first
halting place. Sialkot town, which is to-day a great
centre of industries in Pakistan, contains a large number
of Kashmiri families. Iqbal’s grandfather, Muhammad
Rafiq, left his ancestral home of the village of Looehar
and came to settle in Sialkot. Iqbal was born in this
town on the 22nd of February, 1873, ina pious middle-
class family. His father, Shaikh Noor Muhammad,
was at the time of Iqbal’s birth carrying on business
in Sialkot.
About his childhood the details are scanty, but
what is certainly known about it is his many-sided-
ness. He was an inquisitive and deliberative child;
one who thought for himself and was very much
master of himself.
When Iqbal grew up, the question of his educa-
tion began to worry the family. His father followed
the established practice and sent him to a mosque to
learn the Qur’an. Afterwards, he was sent to a
Mission School. Iqbal shone in the school by winning
prizes and scholarships. After a distinguished career
at school and passing his Matriculation examination,
Iqbal joined the Scotch Mission College in the same
town for his Intermediate studies. He passed his
first University examination from the Scotch Mission
College in the year 1895 and migrated to Lahore, the
i2 igbal’s Philosophy and Education
capital of the province, for his higher studies in the
Government College. About that time, Lahore was fast
developing into a great intellectual centre. Urdu was
replacing Persian. Several societies were sponsored
to encourage the [Link] Urdu; occasionally
some of these societies organised poetical symposia.
Iqbal recited his poems at the meetings of the literary
society whose membership was limited to prominent
literary figures of his time. Some of these poems were
published in the local journals and served to introduce
Iqbal to a wider circle all over the country.
The first important poem which Iqbal read at a
large gathering was at the annual meeting of the
Anjuman-i Himayat-i Islam (Society for Helping the
Muslims) of Lahore in 1899. It was Nala-i Yatimee
(Cry of Orphanhood). At the same meeting next year,
he recited An Orphan’s Address to the ‘Id Crescent.
Iqbal obtained his Master’s degree in Philosophy
in 1899 under the guidance of Sir Thomas Arnold.
The same year he was appointed as a Lecturer in
Philosophy in the Oriental College, Lahore. -Later
on he moved to the Government College, Lahore, as a
Reader in Philosophy. This was a period of intensive
studies and prolific production. , Iqbal’s position as a
poet of renown in the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent
was fully established. He also brought forth his first
book, which happened to be the first book in Econo-
mics in Urdu language at that time.
On the advice of Sir Thomas Arnold, Iqbal, after
six years of teaching, left for Europe for higher studies,
This was in 1905. He was admitted as an advanced
student of Philosophy in Trinity College, Cambridge
University. He joined Lincoln’s Inn for the Bar.
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 13
He continued his research at Hieldelberg and Munich
in Germany. In London he taught Arabic Literature
for some time and delivered a series of public lectures
on Islam. Their summary was reproduced in all the
leading newspapers in England. He obtained his
Master’s degree from Cambridge and his Doctor’s
degree from Munich for a thesis on ““The Development
of Metaphysics in Persia.”” He was called to the
Bar in 1908.
He joined the Government College, Lahore, as a
Professor of Philosophy and English Literature. He
was allowed to practise law also. Two and a halt
years later, he resigned his post from the educational
service of the Government College of which he had
become an outspoken critic. The Principal of the
College and his friends and relatives tried to dissuade
him from this decision, but his mind was made up
because ‘“‘he felt he could not freely express his ideas
while in Government employment.”? However, he
continued to take active interest in-education all his
life. He was associated with the University of the
Panjab. He acted for years as Dean of the Faculty
of Oriental Studies and Chairman of the Department
of Philosophy. He also took a keen interest in Jamia
Millia of Delhi.
He continued to live in Lahore, earning enough
as a lawyer to defray his very modest expenses, while
devoting himself chiefly to his study, thought, writing
poetry, and talking with a continuous stream of callers
to whom he was always accessible.
Iqbal concentrated on proclaiming and elaborating

2. Iqbal Singh, The Ardent Pilgrim : An Introduction to the Life and Work
of Mohammed Iqbal (Calcutta, Orient Longmans, 1951), p. 60.
14 Igbal's Philosophy and Education

his message of dynamic activism, of a potentially

glorious future, and of the supreme value of Islam.
He published his Asrar-i Khudi in 1915 and three years
later followed its companion volume Rumuz-i Bekhudi.
He soon became recognised as an outstanding thinker
and litterateur of India and gradually acquired a
prestige among the intellectuals and middle classes.
By 1922, he was important enough to be knighted by
the Government “‘in recognition of his pre-eminent
contribution to literature.’’? While writing poetry
Iqbal’s versatile genius allowed him to devote attention
to politics also, and in the next ten years he emerged
into the public life of his province and Muslim:
India. In 1927, his friends persuaded him to stand for
the Legislative Assembly, the Provincial Parliament, to
which he was elected. In 1927, he gave his evidence
before the Simon Commission which was visiting the
sub-continent in order to suggest a political reform
for the sub-continent.
In 1928-29, Iqbal delivered lectures on Islam at
the Universities of Madras, Hyderabad, and Aligarh.
In these lectures he made statements that reflect
his own philosophy. These were published under
the title of Six Lectures on the Reconstruction of
Religious Thought in Islam.4 They are a precious
contribution to Islamic literature and brought recogni-
tion to him as a leading thinker of the East.
These lectures attracted wide attention and impressed
Lord Irwin and Lothian of Oxford University. He
was selected for the Rhodes Lectureship in 1935 and
3. Ibid., p. 107.
Later ona seventh lecture, “Is Religion Possible ?”” was added and the
book was published by the Oxford University Press in 1934 under the title The
Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam.
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 15
was invited to give a series of lectures at Oxford.
He accepted the invitation, but the engagement had
to be cancelled owing to his failing health.
In 1930, he presided over the annual session of
the Muslim League at Allahabad and proclaimed
that the safe future of the Muslims with their distinct
cultural and spiritual urges lay in a separate home-
land. In 1931-32, he attended the London Round
Table Conference on Indian Constitution, and as an
active member made substantial contributions to the
deliberations of various committees. On this occasion
he visited Spain, Italy, and Egypt. In 1932, he pre-
sided over the annual session of the Muslim Con-
ference and delivered a thought-provoking address.
He was for many years the President of the Punjab
Muslim League. In 1933, he visited Afghanistan at
the invitation of King Amanullah to advise his Govern-
ment on educational affairs and the reorganisation of
Kabul University.
Iqbal developed kidney trouble in 1924 and was
cured under the treatment of Abdul Wahab Ansari,
an Indian physician. After that he kept in fairly
good health until 1934, when as a result of exposure
he got a throat infection which finally resulted in loss
of voice. Every possible treatment failed. In 1937,
he developed a cataract in his eye. In spite of periods
of comparatively good health, the last phase was
embittered by constant ill-health. But as regards his
creative activities, this period was productive.’ He
was at that time planning to write two books: ‘‘The
Reconstruction of Muslim Jurisprudence” in English
prose and “The Book of an Unknown Prophet” in
5, Between 1924 and 1937 he brought forth eight books,
16 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
English rhymed prose, both of which could not be
completed.¢ His illness took a serious turn on the
25th of March and he breathed his last in the early
hours of 21st of April, 1938, honoured by many thou-
sands throughout India. Seventy thousand people
followed his funeral procession and joined in the
prayers. In his death the nation lost “‘a poet and a
philosopher who was also a fine prose-writer, a great
linguist, a remarkable jurist, a well-known lawyer, a
leading politician, a front-rank statesman, an esteemed
educationist, a respected teacher anda great art critic.”?

B. Sources and Development of His Thought

It is a well-recognised fact that a great genius
has the capacity to assimilate ideas from all sources
and make them his own. He does not copy or trans-
late, but weaves them into. the texture of his own
cognition, fits them into their proper places relative
to his own characteristic and independent ideas and
judgments. From them all he produces a unified and
well-ordered system. It is the same with Iqbal.
Whether we read his poetical works or other writings
we are astonished at the magnitude of his intellectual
powers, by the depth of his knowledge, the breadth of
his outlook ; by the thoroughness of the classical as
well as modern foundations of his philosophy and
religion.* He had pondered deeply ovet the highest
and most fundamental problems of life and death as a
6. Syed Nazir Niazi, “ ‘Allama Iqbal ki Akhri ‘Alalat,” Risala Urdu,
Iqbal Number (Hyderabad Deccan, Anjuman Taraqqi-i Urdu, 1938), pp. 318-9,
1948), iG pe Abdul Vahid, Igbal: His Art and Thought (Lahore, Ashraf,
g This was perhaps due to his wide reading which was made posie
by his mastery of six languages besides his localdialect. He knew Arabic,
German, Persian, Sanskrit, and Urdv
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 47
true believer, as a philosopher and poet. This com-
bination of all three in one and the same individual is
rare and, when it occurs, one can be sure of some
startling results and discoveries. What he thinks asa
philosopher and experiences as a devout believer, he
can express in a forceful language which finds a ready
response in the heart as well as the mind of the reader.
Iqbal possessed yet another characteristic essential to
genius. He always kept an open mind, ready to change
his ideas and judgments according to fresh advances
in human knowledge. He sets down as the basic prin-
ciple of all inquiry that :
«*...there is no such thing as finality in philosophical thinking.
As knowledge advances and fresh avenues of thought are opened,
other views, and probably sounder views than those set torth in
these lectures, are possible. Our duty is carefully to watch the pro-
gress of human thought, and maintain an independent critical atti-
tude towards it.”’?
No one who reads Iqbal’s works carefully can
fail to notice that he always kept himself informed of
the trends of thought in almost all important branches
of knowledge. It is perhaps not surprising that he
was abreast of the current problems and developments
in philosophy and literature, as these were, so to speak,
his professional spheres of interest. Moreover, he
had studied the past history and contributions of
each significant branch of knowledge related to re-
ligion, philosophy and literature. Hence it is probable
that he might have been influenced by the thought of
other thinkers.
As Iqbal in his philosophy deals with matters
concerning mankind, other thinkers in the East and
Sir Be ile paved; The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in
Islam iondan, 1934), p.
18 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
the West, both ancient and modern, have given their
thoughts to the same problems considered by Iqbal.
To trace the affinities of Iqbal’s thought with those of
other great thinkers is in itself an extremely hazardous
task, but to trace the sources of his thought is more
so. Anyhow, if one is able to determine the simi-
larities, then these may in some instances enable one
to guess and understand the sources of Iqbal’s thought.
But one should not rush towards hasty conclusions,
because ‘‘Sir Mohammad Iqbal, in spite of his learn-
ing and wide reading, is no mere echo of other men’s
ideas, but is distinctly an original thinker.’’!®
The development of Iqbal’s thought passes through
three periods. It is, however, not easy to draw a
clear line between these periods. Nevertheless, each
period as a whole bears a few features by which it is
definitely distinguishable from the remaining two.
But before taking up each period singly, it seems
advisable to discuss one element which seems to be
continuously influencing and shaping Iqbal’s thought
throughout all the three periods.
There is not doubt that Iqbal was throughout
his life a devoted student of the Qur’an. The more
he observed the conditions of contemporary society,
both Eastern and Western, which was fast moving
towards its own destruction either through inactive
life devoid of struggle or through extreme materialism,
the more convinced he became that the misguided
humanity could be saved through completely accepting
the teachings of the Qur’an as interpreted in the life
of the Prophet himself. For him, religion is not a
.10. Sir Thomas Arnold, Islamic Faith, p. 77, as quoted by S.A. Vahid,
op. cit., p. 85, c )
 Life and Thought of Igbal 19
departmental affair; it is neither mere thought nor
mere feeling nor mere action. It is an expression of
the whole man.
There is a little incident in his life which is thought
to have changed his whole outlook and made him con-
scious of his duties and responsibilities. The incident
was narrated by Iqbal himself to Allama Sulaiman
Nadvi while they were going to Kabul in 1931 to advise
the Afghanistan Government on the organisation and
administration of Kabul University. He said that
his father was much pleased to hear his daily recitation
from the Qur’an. On the assurance that Iqbal would
carry out the instructions to the best of his ability, his
father one day advised him to try, firstly, to feel while
reciting from the Qur’an that God was talking to him
and, secondly, to carry His message to humanity.
The Allama points out that that is really the essence,
the content and elaboration of all his writings. He
studied the Qur’an in the light of his father’s advice
and all his writings stand evidence to the fact that
he tried to fulfil his promise to the best of his ability.
When he thought of even a humble follower of the
Prophet he cried out :
“None knows the secret that the Believer
Though he seems to be the reader, is himself the Book.”1!
Iqbal has left copious notes in his writings to
enable the reader to trace the connection between his
philosophy and the Qur’an. The citations from, and
references to, the Qur’an in Iqbal’s writings are numer-
ous and one cannot help but invite the reader to
examine Iqbal’s works.
; 11. Quoted by Dr. H.! 1hSaneanne Glimpses of Iqbal’s Mind and Thought
(Lahore, ‘Orientalia, 1954),p.
20 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
Similarly, Iqbal draws a great deal upon the.
traditions of the Prophet for the development of his
thought. Whenever Iqbal praises hardiness, it is sup-
posed that he is borrowing ideas from modern Europ-
ean thinkers, but he has himself said :
“Thou art afraid of trouble, the Prophet hath said :
To a man the day of trouble is but the day of purification.” 12
When describing the Muslim conception of Time,
Iqbal always used to refer to the Prophet’s saying:
“Do not vilify time, for time is God.” About the
concept of Ego which is the basis of Iqbal’s philoso-
phy, there is a well-known saying : ‘“He who knows
his self knows God.” As regards the development of
the ego the Prophet has prescribed for this : “Create
in yourselves the Divine attributes.”’ He who comes
nearest to God is the completest person according
to Iqbal. Similarly, the Prophet’s whole life was spent
inaction, which is the core of Iqbal’s philosophy.
The first period of Iqbal’s mental development
extends from his childhood to about 1908. During
the period of his studentship, Iqbal received various
influences, one of the most powerful being that of his
parents at home. His father was an honest and God+
fearing man with a great, love for learning. He-had
many scholar friends, who gathered for studies oridis-
cussion at his business premises. Iqbal often attended
these discussions, listening quietly. These attendances,
in part, created in the mind of the inquisitive youth
a love for learning and research. His mother was
a quiet, old-fashioned lady, religious in her outlook,
12. Quoted by S.A. Vahid, op. cit., 92.
mE: Sir Mohammad Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thoughtin
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 21
Iqbal was deeply attached to her and her influence
was great in moulding his character and thought
and giving it a religious tinge.
In the first period, Iqbal’s thought and especially
his poetic thought has its sources in Plato and his
followers. “‘This Platonic conception [of man’slife and
universe], as interpreted by Plotinus, adopted by the
early Muslim scholastics and adapted to pantheism by
the pantheistic mystics, came down to Iqbal as a long
tradition in Persian and Urdu poetry and was supple-
mented by his study of English romantic poets.”’"* In
the first phase, therefore, he cannot be considered to
have been very original. He was simply conveying
to the public in beautiful notes what he received as a
heritage of history. His early poems composed in the
traditional style were verses on Nature and love of the
typical Urdu lyric .For the most part, he gained inspira-
tion from Anis, Ghalib, Hali, Bedil, Akbar, Dagh and
the well-known Persian poet Hafiz. He admitted their
greatness and as a token of gratitude and devotion
wrote poems in their praise in his book Bang-i Dara.
Similarly, he wrote some beautiful poems on Shake-
speare and Hindu patriots and leaders. At that time
Iqbal sent his verses, mostly lyrics, to a well-known
Urdu poet, Dagh, for correction. Although these
lyrics lacked the breadth and maturity of later works,
after ‘correcting some poems Dagh wrote back to Iqbal
that his poéms needed no revision.
When Iqbal came to Lahore for further studies,
he.;came under the influence of, and received further
encouragement from, Sir Thomas Arnold, a famous
14. M.M. Sharif, LEN Conception of God,” Jgbal as a Thinker
(Lahore, Ashraf, 1944),p.
22 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
writer, who was a Professor of Philosophy at the
College at that time. He recognised Iqbal’s gifts of
heart and intellect. While Moulvi Mir Hasan’s (Igbal’s
mentor at school) influence and guidance had given
Iqbal a deep insight into Muslim culture, Sir Thomas
Arnold’s company introduced to him all that was and:
is best and noblest in Western thought. At the same
time, he initiated him into the modern methods of
critical studies.
At the turn of the century the political movement
for Indian freedom was very brisk. The intellectuals
and political leaders were very enthusiastic. Iqbal
was also attracted to the surging nationalism of the
day, and wrote poems (The Indian Song, The New
Temple, The Himalayas, My Country, etcetera) ex-
pressing the ideal of Indian unity and Indian freedom.
He appealed strongly for Hindu-Muslim solidarity
and pleaded for inter-communal co-operation in his
Islamic poems also, which were sponsored by the
chief local Muslim society.
But besides these poems which depict the politi-
cal conditions of the country, there are other poems
of the same period. They reveal Iqbal’s tempera-
ment, mental restlessness and search for truth. There
was doubt, indecision, dissatisfaction, and inquisitive-
ness in his mind. He wanted to understand the
nature of life and its realities. Poems like The Lamp
and the Moth, The Child and the Lamp, The Sun, The
New Moon, The Stars, The Bank of Ravi River, and
A Wave of the River, reveal this attitude of the poet.
With this restlessness and inquisitiveness of mind
and heart, Iqbal left for Europe for higher studies in
the hope of solution of the state of indecision and
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 23
confusion and satisfaction of curiosity. There he
began to see the larger horizon of things and to move
in spacious realms. His three years’ stay in Europe
played a great part in the development of his thought.
It was a period, not of deeds, but of preparation.
The libraries of Cambridge, London and Berlin with
all their wealth of knowledge and information were
accessible to him. Iqbal read voraciously and dis-
cussed matters with the European scholars.
Besides this, Iqbal studied the political and social
conditions in Europe. Certain aspects of European
life made a forceful impact upon his sensitive and
brilliant mind. First was the immense vitality and
activity of European life. Second was the vision of
the tremendous potentialities and possibilities before
human life. These two influences energised his spirit,
strengthened his will and brought in their wake a
political faith in him. He began to emphasise action,
activity and self-affirmation rather than passivity,
indifference and self-negation. Thirdly, Iqbal saw
grave limitations in the capitalistic system of business
enterprise devoid of human feelings, and in narrow
and selfish nationalism, which was the root cause of
most political troubles in Europe. He had seen much
of value in certain phases of European life, yet it could
never be a model for a truly good society. Iqbal felt
with ardour that thousands of young Indians, who were
devoting themselves simply to copying Europe, were
misled. For his culture had inspired Iqbal to look
for certain values and virtues that even Europe did not
have; in certain respects, the West was good, but in
certain respects East taught better.
The second period of Iqbal’s mental development
24 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
may be dated from about 1908 to 1920. From 1905
to 1908, Iqbal studied philosophy deeply, under
McTaggart and James Ward at Cambridge. During
this period he made a critical study of philosophical,
cultural, literary and linguistic movements of the
Middle East and especially of Persia in connection
with his thesis entitled ““The Development of Meta-
physics in Persia.” The influence of McTaggart and
James Ward on Iqbal failed to make itself felt till
after his return from Europe. While he was there he
remained a pantheistic mystic. This is corroborated
by McTaggart in his letter to Iqbal on the publication
of Nicholson’s translation of Iqbal’s Asrar-i Khudi
(The Secrets of the Self). ‘Have you not changed
your position very much ?” inquires McTaggart and
adds : “Surely, in the days when we used to talk
philosophy together, you were much more a pantheis-
tic and mystic.”” The fact that Iqbal himself quoted
this remark in one of his articles without any challenge
proves that he regarded this remark as true of his
position.'5 In 1908, however, Iqbal began to appreciate
McTaggart’s conception of personal immortality. He
also saw an identity between the theistic pluralism
of Ward and the metaphysical position of Rumi, and
he soon became a theistic pluralist himself.1° A little
later, Rumi is adopted by him as his spiritual leader.
It seems, however, that Iqbal adopted Rumi as a
spiritual leader, not only because he was a kindred
spirit speaking the same tongue and sharing mystic
15. Sir Muhammad Iqbal, “‘McTaggart’s Philosophy,” as quoted by
M.M. Sharif, op. cit., p. 110.
_ 16. Jalaluddin Rumi, popularly known as Maulana Rumi, was a great
Persian mystic poet and thinker of the thirteenth century. His Mathnawi is
called the Qur’an of the Persian language. His most outstanding ideas are the
concept of ideal man and the theory of evolution,
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 25
philosophy, nor because Rumi was a poetic genius,
with an intense religious fervour, a firm belief in God
and a deep love for the Arabian Prophet. These
merits could perhaps be found also in others. Iqbal
took Rumi as his life-long guide essentially because
Rumi anticipates some of the fundamental ideas of
Igqbal’s two new finds—Nietzsche and Bergson.
Though Iqbal had a working knowledge of
German and could read German authors in the
original, the translation of Nietzsche’s entire works
into English between 1907 and 1911 made these works
even more accessible to him. Between 1910 and 1915,
Bergson’s works were translated into English; now
Iqbal could study Bergson also, as he did not know
French.
Iqbal soon discovered that besides Rumi’s affinity
with Ward (whose conception of God Iqbal very
much appreciated), there was also affinity between
some of Rumi’s ideas and those of Nietzsche. Rumi
like Nietzsche believed in the freedom, possibilities,
and eternity of the self, in the will to power, in the
value of super-egos, and in the destruction of the old
for the construction of the new. Like Bergson, Rumi
believes in movement as the essence of reality and in
intention as a source of knowledge. This vitalistic
position is reinforced in Iqbal’s mind by the influence
of McDougall’s Social Psychology and Outline of
Psychology published, respectively in 1908 and 1910.
In these works life is identified with Bergson’s elan
vital and the sentiment of self-regard is regarded as
the core of human personality.
During this period, Iqbal criticised pantheism in
favour of pluralistic theism. Iqbal agreed with
26 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi!? and both criticised: Ibn
Arabi’s (1164-1240) mystical and pantheistic philoso-
phy of unityism. Iqbal appreciated al-Jili (1336-
1408) for the development of the theory of Jnsan al-
Kamil (‘‘Perfect Man’’). According to al-Jili, man
in perfection is the image of God and attains perfection
in three stages of meditation on the names of God,
acquisition of miraculous powers through participa-
tion in the Divine Attributes, and entrance into the
sphere of the Essence-Absolute, thereby becoming
Perfect God-man or IJnsan al-Kamil. Based on
al-Jili’s idea of Perfect Man Iqbal wrote an article in
1902 and published it in the Indian Antiquary of
Bombay. It is clear that Iqbal first acquainted him-
self with the idea of Perfect Man or Super-man through
his Islamic and Arabic studies. This view is also sup-
ported by S.A. Vahid in a detailed analysis and com-
parison of the philosophies of Nietzsche (from whom
Iqbal is alleged to have taken the idea of Perfect Man)
and Iqbal, and comes to the conclusion that there is
no substantial agreement between the ideas of both
the thinkers; rather there is a fundamental dis-
agreement. '*
Iqbal agreed with al-Ghazali (1058-1111) in the
importance he placed on intuition, but differed when
al-Ghazali failed to see any organic relationship
between Iqbal on the one hand and Scholastic Theolo-
gians (Ash‘arites) and modern relativists on the other,
i.e. that time and space are not two distinct and
absolutely independent categories, but rather that
there is one point-instant or “space-time continuum,”
17. A great religious thinker of be jpeven tren century in India,
18, S.A. Vahid, op. cit., pp. 122-41
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 27
as the scientists call it. Iqbal also extolled the
dynamic philosophy of Sri Krishna and Sri Ramaniy,
and the philosophy of super-man of his own contem-
porary Aurobindo Ghose.
The influence of Greek thought on Islamic and
modern European thought cannot be overemphasised.
Iqbal disapproved of the Hellenistic graft on
Islamic thought, but approved of Aristotle’s criticism
of Plato’s theory of ideas. There is also some resemb-
lance between the description of Aristotle’s Ideal Man
and Iqbal’s Perfect Man.
Leaving aside the criticism of Kant, Iqbal agreed
with Kant in his faith in the existence of God and
freedom of the will, etcetera, which are incapable of
proof through reason. Fichte evolved the conception
of ego into a striving and dynamic creative force.
“Tqbal impregnated Fichte’s concept with practical
content and laid the whole structure of his philosophy
of the moral uplift of the individual and society, on
this concept.’ Both Iqbal and Bergson believed,
firstly, in the reality of duration or pure time as dis-
tinguished from serial time; and, secondly, in intuition
as a source of knowledge; but, Iqbal criticised Bergson
for the condemnation of intellect, and also for his
concept of elan yital (creative impulse) as against
Igbal’s own conception of harmony between intuition
and intellect, and powers of the human ego.
All the ideas discussed above form the keynote
of Iqbal’s philosophy in the second period. He, under
the leadership of an Oriental philosopher, Rumi, and
after gaining strength for his thought from the study
of both Eastern and Western thinkers, began to
19, Ibid., p. 122.
28 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
develop his own philosophy, which, in view of its
most prominent features, may be called the ‘‘philoso-
phy of the self.’ It is in the light of this philosophy
that one must understand Iqbal’s ever-increasing
emphasis on the efficiency and eternity of the will and
his ever-decreasing belief in the efficiency and eternity
of beauty—a change which took him away from
Platonism and pantheistic mysticism.
Iqbal formulated his new philosophy in the latter
poems of Bang-i Dara (The Caravan Bell), Asrar-i
Khudi (The Secrets of the Self), and Rumuz-i Bekhudi
(The Mysteries of Seiflessness). His thought was
guided by the concept of the self which is regarded as
a dynamic centre of desires, pursuits, aspirations,
efforts, resolves, powers, and action. The self does
not live in time, but time is a dynamism of the self,
It (self) is action and like a sword cuts its way through
all difficulties, obstacles and hindrances. Time as
action is life, and life is self: therefore time, life, and
self are all one, compared to a sword.
The so-called external world with all its sensuous
wealth including serial time and space, and the so-
called world of feelings, ideas and ideals are creations
of the self. Following Fichte and Ward, Iqbal held
that self posits from itself the not-self for its own
perfection. The sensible world is the self’s own
creation. All the beauties of Nature are, therefore, the
creatures of our own wills. Desire creates them, not
they desire. God, the Absolute Self, is conceived
as eternal and not as Eternal Beauty, as was thought
in the first period. His unity is emphasised due to its
pragmatic value. God can be reached through the self
only. Search after God is, therefore, conditioned
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 29
upon a search after one’s own self.
The third period of Iqbal’s mental development
extends from about 1920 to the date of his death. If
the second period be regarded as a period of growth,
the last should be taken as a period of maturity.
Iqbal had already accepted the influences which his
genius had allowed him to accept. But it must not
be understood that he adopted his main ideas from
European thinkers. On the contrary, he saw much
in them to criticise as well as to appreciate. Besides,
there are many important aspects of Iqbal’s thought
which were the result of his own continuous intellectual
efforts and struggles. In this period he synthesised
and elaborated these efforts into an all-round system
of philosophy. This he did in eight works which he
brought out in rapid succession between 1923 and 1938.
His philosophy in the last period may aptly be described
as the philosophy of change. The idea of Reality as
Self is still prominent, but that of change is more so.
To sum up, Iqbal’s studies in Eastern and Western
philosophy for his Master’s degree in India and his
research work in England and Germany prepared the
ground for Igbal’s philosophy which included both
religion and science; and his early religious training
supplied the seed, out of which had grown a beautiful
plant. Owing to the inner possibilities of the seed
itself, the richness of the soil, the suitability of the
climate or the temper of the current thought, the
plant began to grow vigorously and gradually and
in due course of time reached its exquisite, final form.
C. Iqbal’s Works
Books are treasures which preserve the reflections
30 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
and personality of the writer. They are invaluable
stores of experiences which the thinker shares with
his readers. They preserve thoughts abundantly and
at the ease of the reader, which he may not be able
to get directly from the author. Although Iqbal
ceased to live physically, he will continue to live among
the posterity through his books. He stands ready to
enlighten and guide whomsoever approaches him
through his writings.
Iqbal’s mind was productive, and he wrote
several books in three languages—Urdu, Persian, and
English. The following are his major works.

Urdu
(1) Im al-Igtisad (Economics, 1903) was the first
work in the Urdu language and also his first effort in
the field of authorship.
(2) Bang-i Dara (The Caravan Bell) is a collection
of Urdu poems up to the year 1924. It is partly de-
scriptive, partly lyrical and sometimes derivative.
Apart from usual influences of Urdu and Persian poets
one observes the impact of English Romantics. There
are familiar devices of Urdu poetry, but it also con-
tains a boldness of image and metaphor, and, above
all, a certain argumentativeness, indicating a mental
inquietude, a restlessness born of an urge to break
through the limitations of his medium.
(3) Bal-i Jibril (The Wing of Gabriel, 1935) is a
work of maturity and stands in the same relation to
his Urdu verse as does’ Zabur-i Ajam to his Persian
verse. It represents the last range of his poetic sum-
mits. Its first part contains sixty-one ghazals and
a few quatrains. The second part opens with a
 Life and Thought of Iqbal -- 31
prayer in the mosque of Cordova, and contains many
other poems written by the poet during his visit to
Spain. Besides, there are miscellaneous poems about
contemporary events. j
(4) Zarb-i Kalim (The Stroke of Moses, 1936) is
a collection of Urdu poems in which the poet-philoso-
pher reviews and criticises different aspects of modern
life. It has six parts. The first part is entitled “Islam
and Muslims.” The second part is devoted to Edu-
cation. The third part presents his thoughts about
Women. In the fourth section he expresses his views
about Art and Literature. The fifth part is devoted
to the Politics of the East and of the West; and the
last part describes the ideas of Mehrab Gull Afghan.
(5) Igbal Namah: Makatib-i Iqbal (Iqbal’s Letters)
is a collection of Iqbal’s letters by Sh. Ataullah.
These letters written to different luminaries and
scholars are full of literary and thought-provoking
discussions.
(6) Bagiat-i Iqbal is a collection of hitherto un-
published Urdu poems.
Persian

(1) Asrar-i Khudi (The Secrets of the Self, 1915)

is the first work in which Iqbal expounds his doctrine
of the human ego, i.e. its affirmation, methods, and
stages of development and perfection. It also ranges
over the whole domain of medieval religious life and
thought. He rejected Platonism and all Muslim
mystic thought of the medieval period in order to
eliminate Greek thought from Muslim thought.
(2) Rumuz-i Bekhudi (The Mysteries of Selfless-
ness, 1918) pursues the theme of the earlier book at
32 Igqbal’s Philosophy and Education
another levell While Asrar-i Khudi deals with the
problem of individual personality in relation to the
problem of its own internal integration and develop-
ment, Rumuz-i Bekhudi deals with the individual in
relation to society. The author visualises and de-
scribes his ideal society, its basis, its aims, ideals, and
ways and means of attaining them. It concerns
itself with relationship of the individual personality to
the collective will and purpose. The essential idea is
that the individual fulfils himself through identifica-
tion with group consciousness.
(3) Payam-i Mashriq (The Message of the East,
1923) consists of four parts and has a thematic co-
herence and emotional consistency. The collection was
intended to be a response, or rather a return of gifts, to
Goethe who had acknowledged his debt to the East
in his Ost Westerliche Diwan. In the introduction
Iqbal discusses the influence of Eastern thought and
poetry on German thought and literature. The first
section, ““The Tulips of Sinai,’’ is the essential core
of his message. It contains 163 quatrains. The
second part, “The Thoughts,” consists of poems on
diverse philosophic themes and some lyrical poems.
The third part, ““‘The Remaining Wine,” is made up of
a series of ghazals. In the final’section, “‘The Image
of the West,” Iqbal expresses himself on a variety
of subjects from the “League of Nations” to ‘Hegel,’
from “The Workers’ Cry” to ‘‘The Evils of the
West.”
(4) Zabur-i Ajam (The Persian Psalms, 1927) is
made up of three parts. In the first part, from which
the book derives its title, Iqbal uses practically every
formal pattern known to Persian poetry. The second
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 33

part is entitled “The Book of Bondage.” The third

part consists of a long poem ““The New Garden of
Mystery,” written on the pattern of Gulshan-i Raz
of Mahmud Shabistari, who wrote this treatise, well
known in mystic literature, in answer to nine questions
put forth by a certain mystic. Iqbal undertook to
answer the same questions in the light of modern
thought.
(5) Javed Namah (The Book of Eternity, 1932),
Iqbal’s magnum opus, is written after the pattern of
Dante’s Divine Comedy. The poet, accompanied
by Rumi, visits various stellar spheres and meets
historical personalities who, in discussion, elucidate
eternal truths. The book deals with the meaning of
life and idea of ‘‘Mi‘raj” or ascension of the Prophet
to the presence of God. After describing his vision of
heaven and other regions, the poet gives a message to
the younger generation in the person of his son, Javed.
(6) Pas Cheh Baid Kard Aye Aqwam-i Sharq
(Then, What Should be Done, O Peoples of the East,
1936) is a mathnawi. A number of Persian poems
with the general title ““Musafir” (The Traveller) com-
posed during the poet’s brief sojourn in Afghanistan,
are appended to it.
(7) Armughan-i Hijaz (Gift of the Hijaz) was pub-
lished posthumously in 1938. It is a collection of
Persian and Urdu verses on diverse topics.

English
(1) Islam as a Moral and Political Ideal is a maiden
lecture by Iqbal, delivered in 1908.
(2) Development of Metaphysics in Persia (1908)
is a conscientious piece of research work for his
34 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
doctorate from Munich. Views expressed in this book
were changed by Iqbal because at that time he had
his sympathies with pantheism. In a note to its trans-
lation in Urdu, done in 1928, he admitted that very
little of the book is above criticism.
(3) The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in
Islam (1930) represents Iqbal’s most sustained effort
in prose. The first six lectures were delivered at the
invitation and under the auspices of the Muslim
Association of Madras in 1928. In 1929 these lec-
tures were delivered at Jamia Osmania, Hyderabad,
and Muslim University, Aligarh. Later on, the seventh
lecture, “Is Religion Possible 2”? was read at the re-
quest of the Aristotelian Society of London.?®° The
purpose of these lectures is to reinterpret the history of
Islamic thought with due regard to the philosophical
traditions of Islam and in the light of recent develop-
ments in various domains of human knowledge, and,
by so doing, to reconstruct and refashion it.
(4) Letters of Iqbal to Jinnah (1943) is a collection
of Igbal’s letters to the Quaid-i Azam Muhammad
Ali Jinnah (Founder of Pakistan), conveying his views
on the political future of Muslim India.
(5) Szeeches and Statements of Iqbal compiled
by Shamloo and published by Al-Manar Academy in
1945.
Besides these, Iqbal wrote many articles for
newspapers and magazines and gave various addresses
and statements.

Tabet Ree ee Hedaia ode laningy Us eibietsfoteapaation of

‘onstruction 0, eligious ought in I , by re ZI iazi
(Lahore, Bazm-i Iqbal, 1958), p. i, short ete st leas
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 35
D. Iqbal’s Influence

Before venturing upon a statement of Iqbal’s

influence, it seems necessary to clear one misunder-
standing. It is unfortunate that Iqbal’s association
with the political life of his country should have made
the people of his own country or those of the West
think that he was exclusively a thinker of Muslim
India or at best of the Muslim world. The universal
element of his thought has been ignored and his desire
for a peace-loving East has been misunderstood.
Iqbal’s philosophy of life, based on the ideology of
Islam, cutting at the very root of nationalism and
accepting the principle of freedom, equality, and love
as the basis of universal brotherhood, could not be
taken as anything more than an oriental idea. His
frequent choice of personalities from the Muslim
history and his constant reference to the Qur’an per-
haps stood in the way of the West’s appreciation of
the real significance of his thought.
Replying to the charge of Mr. Dickinsons, ‘“‘While
his poetry is universal, his application of it is particular
and exclusive,” Iqbal says : ‘This is in a sense true.
The humanitarian ideal is always universal in poetry
and philosophy, but if you make it an effective ideal
and work it out in actual life, you must start, not with
poets and philosophers, but with a society exclusive
in the sense of having a creed and well-defined outline,
but ever enlarging its limits by example and persuasion.
Such a society has so far proved itself a more success-
ful opponent of the race idea which is probably the
hardest barrier in the way of humanitarian ideal....
While I have the greatest love for Islam, it is in view of
36 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
practical and not patriotic consideration as Mr.
Dickinsons thinks, that I am compelled to start with a
specific society, e.g., Islam....Nor is the spirit of
Islam so exclusive as Mr. Dickinsons thinks. In the
interest of universal unification of mankind, the Qur’an
ignores minor differences and says—‘Come let us unite
on what is common to us all.’ ”’2!
Igbal’s influence has been remarkably varied and
widespread. Almost everyone has found something
in him to applaud, something which stirred the reader
to renewed vigour. This was because of Iqbal’s ver-
satile genius and all-embracing vision. ‘The orthodox
quotes him to support his rigid formulae, and a pro-
fessional religious thinker seeks his assistance to slate
all orthodoxy. A Communist quotes his socialistic
verses and his appreciation of Marx and Lenin, and
an anti-Communist quotes his criticism of atheist
materialism which denies the reality of the spirit. A
democrat sings his verses about sovereignty of the
people and an opponent of democracy counters it
with Igbal’s verses wherein he says that in the pre-
valent system of election, people are counted and not
weighed.22 Thus in his works one can find whatever one
wills, except static contentment: He attacked tradi-
tional Islam and nationalism, but advocated an ardent
nationalism for genuine Islamic society. Some people
know one part of him and follow it, others another.
Iqbal’s attempt in the twentieth century is per-
haps the most consistent one to reconcile religion and
philosophy. The great merit of his work is that it
21. Igbal’s letter to Professor Nicholson’as quoted by Dr. H. H. Bilgrami,
op. cit., pp. 11-2.
22. Khalifa Abdul Hakim, “Iqbal,” in The Pakist. ‘terly, Vol. VIII,
No. 2, Summer 1951, p. 16b, 4 : eit k Ais td :
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 37
reconstructed religious thought in Islam, and carried
out the task which centuries ago great scholastics like
Nazzam and Ash‘ari set themselves to do in the face
of Greek science and philosophy.
Iqbal summoned the sleeping nation to awake.
The bourgeois, already beginning to stir, heard his
appeal and were eager to respond. While he was still
in England, he wrote back to the unchanging East to
arouse itself and change. Throughout his life, he
devoted himself to inciting activity. He insisted
eloquently that life is movement, that action is good,
that the universe is composed of processes and not of
static things. He bitterly attacked the attitudes of
resignation and quiet contentment, the religious
valuation of mere contemplation, passivity and with-
drawal from life. He rejected the mystic and idealistic
world-denying tendencies which were imported from
Iranian and Hellenistic cultures into originally vigorous
religion. Above all, he repudiated the conception
of a fixed universe dominated by a dictator God to be
accepted by servile man. In its place, he put forward
a view of an unfinished universe ever being advanced
by man and by God through man. Iqbal’s prime
function was to lash men into furious activity and to
imbue the idle looker-on with restless impatience.
Life is not to be contemplated but to be practically
lived. The centre of Iqbal’s message and its signifi-
cance lies here :

The pith of Life is contained in action,

To delight in creation is the law of Life.
Arise and create a new world!
Wrap thyself in flames, be an Abraham!
To comply with this world which does not favour thy purposes
38 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
Is to fling away thy buckler on the field of battle.
The man of strong character who is master of himself
Will find Fortune complaisant.
If the world does not comply with his humour,
He will try the hazard of war with Heaven;
He will dig up the foundations of the universe
And cast its atoms into a new mould....
By his own strength he will produce
A new world which will do his pleasure.23

This call to impatient initiative is the chief revolu-

tion wrought by Iqbal in Islamic thought. It is a
necessary revolution if Muslims as Muslims are to
survive. For, modern thinking must the dynamic, and
modern ethics must also be positive and creative. In
a society of to-day it is possible to do good and evil in
numberless ways, which were never possible before,
and any system which ignores them must be super-
seded. Thus the greatest service rendered by Iqbal
was his reiterated call to action in the name of Islam
and humanity, his giving action the status of a virtue
in itself, his bold insistence that a dynamic infidel is
more righteous than a passive Muslim:
An infidel before his idol with wakeful heart
Is better than the religious man asleep in the mosque.24

Similarly, Iqbal wrote many times that for the ortho-

dox theologian those who deny God are infidels, but,
for him, those who deny their selves or the joy of life
are much worse than infidels.
He gave the Muslims faith in Islam and the
Qur’anic teachings. He lifted the veil of superstition,
R.A. Nicholson, Secrets of the Self, translation of Iqbal’s Asrar-i
Khudi anae, 1960), lines 1019-1030, 1033-1034.
24. Sir Muhammad Iqbal, Javed Namah, p. 40.
 Life and Thought of Igbal 39

narrow-mindedness, conservatism, and showed the

dynamic spirit of Islam. His cry was not merely back
to the Qur’an, but also go ahead with the Qur’an. In
short, Iqbal’s influence in the sphere of religion is sub-
stantial. It is now felt that any Muslim who wants
to express himself about progressive religion should
begin from where Iqbal left off, otherwise he is not
worth listening to.
Iqbal wrote poems upholding Indian freedom
which gave a fillip to the activities for independence.
But, later, he changed his ideas. In his presidential
address to the Muslim League in 1930 he made a
suggestion about a separate Muslim state within India.
In 1933, some students in England set themselves to
propagate it. After some time the idea of separate
statehood leapt into prominence in India. Various
Indian Muslims took up the suggestion and began
writing books expounding different visions of it. The
Muslim League took up the idea as their ideal and
went ahead with their struggle. All possible prestige
enjoyed by the Muslim League fighting for the division
of India and making a separate homeland for the Mus-
lims was drawn from Iqbal and his association with
this idea. The Muslim League continued its efforts
and at long last achieved its goal in 1947 in the crea-
tion of Pakistan. The Muslim League was not
primarily religious, but those of its devotees who
were interested in the religious aspects of a separate
state could find ample stimulants for their enthusiasm
and imagination. Throughout the struggle up to the
death of Iqbal, the Quaid-i Azam, the Founder of
Pakistan, had a close contact with Iqbal, consulted and
honoured his opinions upon major political issues,
40 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
Most educated Muslim youth of the sub-
continent were on the move and large sections had
been religiously conscious. They preserved a sense of
being distinctly Muslim and a feeling that Iqbal
rediscovered the true Islam which is supremely ade-
quate. They believed that Islam is compatible with
socialism and that, if properly followed, it would lead
to a better social order than the existing one. It was
held that the period of the rule of Muhammad and
his successors was a model of sociological excellence
and to reproduce that type of ideal society was one
of the highest of possible social aims.
In the literary sphere Iqbal’s influence is very
great. The form of his poetry has become popular.
Urdu poetry is now considered to be a vehicle of
philosophic thought also. The poets, consciously or
unconsciously, followed him and began to write verses
about actual problems of life in optimistic terms.
Before his time, the Urdu language was restricted
mainly to lyrics of imaginary type having little connec-
tion with real-life situations. There is a change and
awakening in the nation due to the new form of poetry
(Nazm) which Iqbal popularised. He stimulated the
potentialities of people and there were new hopes
for, and ideals before, Urdu poetry. The poetry of
Josh, Rawash Siddiqi, Ehsan bin Danish, Saghir,
Majaz, Asar Sehbai and Asad Multani, besides many
others, exhibits the new outlook inspired by Iqbal.
To explain, to expand and write commentaries on
Iqbal’s works and to follow him has become almost a
major profession in the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent.
Numerous books, pamphlets and societies have been
devoted to the memory of Iqbal and to the new social
 Life and Thought of Iqbal 41
order. Shaikh Akbar Ali, Abdullah Anwar Beg, B.A.
Dar, Ishrat Hasan Enver, Zulfigar Ali Khan, Roop
Krishna, K.G. Saiyidain, Schchendananda Sinha, S.A.
Vahid, H.H. Bilgrami, Iqbal Singh and many others
have written books and articles on the life and thought
of Iqbal. “Also prominent among writers on Iqbal are
Professor M.M. Sharif, Syed Nazir Niazi, Dr. Khalifa
Abdul Halim, Dr. Yusuf Husain Khan, Dr. Qazi
Abdul Hamid, Hamid Hasan Qadri, Syed Aal Ahmad
Saroor, Syed Bashiruddin Ahmad, Syed Hashimi Farid-
abadi, Dr. Tej Bahadur Sapru, W. Cantwell Smith,
M. Raziuddin Siddiqi, Mazheruddin Siddiqi, Mar-
ghub Siddiqi, Dr. M.D. Tasir, Venkata Rao, M.
Waliud Din, Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Rushbiook
Williams, Muhammad Shafi, M. Rafiuddin, M.S.
Namus, Ch. Muhammad Ali, F.S. Jafri, Dr. Miss K.
Kazimi, Dr. Aziz Ahmad, Fazlur Rahman, Taj
Muhammad Khayal, Abdul Hamid Khwajah, Abdul
Shakoor Ahsan, F.K. Khan Durrani, Jamila Khatun,
Muhammad Noman, Ziaul Islam, Sir Abdul Qadir,
Mian Bashir Ahmad, Yusuf Salim Chishti, Yusuf
Jamal Ansari, Rashid Ahmad Siddiqi and many
others. In fact, it is impossible to count the names
of writers on Iqbal-in a study like this. His biblio-
graphies now run into hundreds of pages. In
order to understand properly and to propagate his
message and thought, many schools and colleges
have organised literary societies. There are two pro-
minent societies, Iqbal Academy and Bazm-i Iqbal,
aided by the Central Government and the Govern-
ment of West Pakistan. They are devoted to research
and critical study of Iqbal’s thought and of those
branches of learning in which he was deeply
42 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
interested, viz. Islamics, philosophy, history, sociology,
comparative religion, literature and art, etcetera.
Besides Iqbal’s popularity as a potential thinker
in the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent, he is becoming
popular in other countries also, through his original
works, translations and books and articles about him.
Dr. Abdul Wahab Azzam, previously Professor of
Persian at al-Azhar, has translated Iqbal’s Payam-i
Mashrig, Zarb-i Kalim, Asrar-i Khudi and Rumuz-i
Bekhudi into Arabic. Ali Ganjeli translated Payam-i
Mashrig into Turkish. In Indonesia, Mr. Bahram
Rangbuti translated several of his poems and Asrar-i
Khudi. ‘Asrar-i Khudi, Payam-i Mashrig, Zabur-i
Ajam, “‘Shikwah,” ‘‘Jawab-i Shikwah,” Rumuz-i
Bekhudi and many other poems have been translated
into English by different authors. Professor Hell
translated Payam-i Mashrig into German. Madame Eva
Meyerovitch of Paris translated Iqbal’s Reconstruc-
tion of Religious Thought in Islam and Development
of Metaphysics in Persia into French. Professor Ales-
sandro Bausani translated Iqbal’s Javed Namah into
Italian. Work has also been undertaken at Yale
University in the United States of America, under
the guidance of Professor F.S.C. Northrop, to fami-
liarise Iqbal to the general public.
A German writer, Dr. Miss A. Schimmel, has
written a book Gabriel’s Wing (1963), the subject-
matter of which includes religious ideas of Iqbal.
Many other foreign writers have also trans-
lated Igbal’s works and have written books and
articles, and his popularity is ever increasing on inter-
national level,
 Chapter Iii
IQBAL’S PHILOSOPHY
A. Epistemology
Like many other philosophers, Kant in his phi-
losophical system distinguished between appearance
or phenomena, that is, things as they appear, and
reality or noumena, thatis, things in themselves. On
the basis of this distinction he raised the question of
the possibility of knowledge of noumena. His answer
to the question about the possibility of knowledge of
the real was in the negative. From the subjectivity
of space and time Kant concluded that knowledge is
possible only of the phenomena. But with regard to
the possibility of knowledge of noumena he was not
hopeful. Iqbal does not distinguish between pheno-
mena and noumena. To him, knowledge of the real
is possible.
Knowledge of reality is essential for moulding the
environment for the progress of man. Iqbal says :
“It is the lot of man to share in the deeper aspirations of the uni-
verse around him and to shape his own destiny as well as that of the
universe, now by adjusting himself to its forces, now by putting the
whole of his energy to mould its forces to his own ends and purposes.
And in this process of progressive change God becomes a co-worker
with him, provided man takes the initiative... . But his life and
the onward march of his spirit depend on the establishment of
connexions with the reality thet confronts him. It is knowledge
44 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
that establishes these connexions, and knowledge is sense-perception
elaborated by understanding.”!

In the sphere of physical, social, and mathematical

sciences and philosophy Iqbal accepts the mastery of
reason and intellect aided by sense-perception, but he
disapproves of the attitude of the modern scientist and
abstract thinker who confine reality to. sense-percep-
tion or intellect only. Mere speculation can neither
grasp the concrete world, nor is it serviceable in giving
a definite knowledge of the ultimate reality. No
knowledge is possible a priori. Speculation without
experience can never lead to sure foundation of know-
ledge of reality. The modern scientific mind has an
inclination towards the tangible and the perceptible,
and lays emphasis on sense-perception and holds
the sensible alone to be rea].
According to Iqbal, the import of time and space
varies according to the varying grades of beings.
Time and space are not the fixed and unvarying
modes as Kant would have them, into which all
knowledge is moulded and determined.2 These
modes themselves admit of new meanings in relation
to beings higher or lower than human beings and
consequently there may be a grade of experience in
which'there is neither space nor time. This experience
then is not possible through the senses, because just as
limbs of human, body cannot do the task of reason,
similarly reason cannot reach the ultimate reality
which is the sphere of intuition.

1. Sir Bytes ie The Reconstruction of Religious Thought

Islam Condon, 1934),p. 4 sd bel fe
2. Ibid., pp, ae
 Igbal’s Philosophy 45
Unlike Kant, Iqbal is not willing to confine
knowledge to empirical reality. He proves the exist-
ence and nature of reality only through extraordinary
experience of intuition which is unique and aims at
comprehending the whole of reality. The human
mind being dissatisfied with relative knowledge gained
by reason and sense-perception has tended to seek mys-
tic experience through intuition to satisfy the inner
theoretical and conscious yearning for perfect know-
ledge of reality. Iqbal agrees with al-Ghazali in his
meaning and interpretation of the value of Qalb or
heart whichis the medium of intuitional knowledge.
He also realises that the heart is a kind of inner tuition
or insight which brings us into contact with those as-
pects of reality which are not open to sense-perception.
Intuition, according to Iqbal as against al-Ghazali, is a
faculty of knowledge like other faculties of knowledge
such as sense-perception and thought. It is not to be
regarded “‘as a mysterious special faculty; it is rather
a mode of dealing with Reality in which sensation,
in the physiological sense of the word, does not
play any part. Yet the vista of experience thus opened
to us is as real and concrete as any other experience.”’
This experience is essentially cognitive in its character
and is as objective as sense-perception. This experi-
ence, however, cannot be tested due to the lack of “a
really effective scientific method to analyse the con-
tents of non-rational modes of consciousness.’’
Iqbal begins with intuition of the self and brings
intuition nearer to the experience of all human beings.
From intuition of the self, he would go further to the
3. Ibid., p. 15. 4, Ibid., p. 17.
46 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
intuition of reality and from reality to absolute Reali-
ty. ‘Intuition of the selfis open to us all. In some
moments of important decisions and actions we have
it. This intuition takes us to the very root of our
existence and assures us directly of our own reality.”’>
According to Iqbal, intuition leads one to the affirma-
tion of the reality of the self, its freedom and its
immortality. It further opens the avenue of know-
ledge for the affirmation of the existence of God and
apprehension of His nature. Iqbal does not claim
to have had the intuition of God, but he is sure of an
intuition of his own self.
Iqbal holds that the level of intuitional experience,
which is over and above spatio-temporal experience,
is of unique self. It is different from and transcends
the limitations of perception and thought. It is an
immediate experience of the real, resembles percep-
tion, is direct and is different from thought. For,
knowledge gained through the help of thought is al-
ways mediate, indirect, and inferential. Intuition is
like perception which supplies data for knowledge, and
the presence of God is immediately perceived. But
it differs from perception in the sense that in intuition
sensation is not involved. Moreover, perception
grasps reality piecemeal and never completely, where-
as intuition grasps the whole. Intuition is a peculiar
property of the heart which brings us in contact with
an aspect of reality not open to sense, mind, or intellect
—all of which grasp only the phenomenal world,
and see appearances and not things-in-themselves.
Intuition differs from thought in the sense that it is
5. Ishrat Hasan Enver, The Metaphysics of Iqbal (Lahore, Ashraf, 1944),
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 47
highly personal and incommunicable. It transcends
all words, concepts, and categories. But this experi-
ence is not subjective; it has a cognitive content.
Unlike normal experience, it is unanalysable. This
indivisible unity reveals itself as a unique self, trans-
cends finite self and yet is immanent, because the mys-
tic has a consciousness of Perfect Unity with it.6 He
comprehends God and gets a response which is the
test of the presence of a conscious self. The act of
intuition grasps reality in a single moment in whole-
ness and not in isolated and partial aspects. Sequence
of time, therefore, does not exist for him. Hence
intuition proves the unreality of serial time.’
Intuition of the self has given Iqbal a point of
departure from ordinary ways of knowing. A direct
perception of the self by intuition is incomprehensible
in the ordinary sense. But it cannot be rejected for
that reason.
There is no objection to saying that intuition is
organically determined; that in order to be able to
have intuition we must have a definite type of tempera-
ment and mood. All mental states are organically
determined. ‘‘The scientific form of mind is as much
organically determined as the religious.”* To say that
mystic, religious, or intuitional experience is abnormal
or neurotic does not prove the point that it is worth-
less. It is not abnormal in the sense that it reveals the
truth of a cognitive content of the objective reality. It
has the capacity to centralise the forces of the ego and
thereby endow him with a new personality. It opens
6. Iqbal, op. cit.
Ts Nature oftime,Poth serial and durational, is discussed below under
“Nature of Time and Space.
8. Iqbal, op. cit., P. 22.
48 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
for him the hidden possibilities of spiritual growth and
development. A prophet through religious experience
develops his own personality and inspires and shapes
the conduct of humanity according to his own spiritual
experience. Religion is not a silly fancy but ‘“‘a de-
liberate enterprise to seize the ultimate principle of
value.”? Psychology cannot dismiss this experience by
calling it abnormal because it has not investigated the
consciousness of the mystic and the genius.
Sometimes it is said that knowledge through
intuition is personal and hence incommunicable, and
therefore cannot be a source of common knowledge.
But it does not prove the invalidity of intuition as a
knowledge-yielding experience. The incommunicability
of this type of experience is not a serious objection
because it is just like the experience of one’s own self,
which is also incommunicable, but is real and useful.
The fact that different people have different intuitional
experiences like monotheism, pantheism, etcetera,
shows the variety and gradation of these experiences.
One may question the justification of Iqbal’s
attempt to found his philosophical system on rational
principles, when he thought intuition to be a real source
of knowledge. Intuition is basic according to Iqbal.
But to satisfy the questioning mind it is necessary to
explain intuitional experience and religion on the
basis of recent developments of human knowledge
which is founded upon reason and scientific principles,
Igbal tries to explain the spiritual reality with the help
of logic, mathematics, physics, philosophy, and history,
but warns that his intellectualistic effort is meant for
9. Ibid,, pp. 178-9,
 Igbal’s Philosophy 49
those who are unable to apprehend reality directly
through intuition. Moreover, he is of the view that
his explanation, like that of others, is not final, and
there is possibility of modification at any time with the
advancement of human knowledge. Hence philoso-
phic or scientific research cannot be considered capable
of revealing the real, or of being a sure test of reality.
To some extent scientific research can guide towards
spiritual or metaphysical reality, but this guidance is
neither reliable nor final.
But this does not mean conflict between human
perception of and thought about reality on the one
hand and revelation and intuition on the other.
Iqbal does not disregard the value of perception and
thought. Intellect and pursuit of knowledge through
experimentation command his high respect. He points
out that the intellectual effort to overcome the ob-
struction offered by the universe, besides enriching
and amplifying our life, sharpens it and this prepares
us for a more masterful insertion into subtler
aspects of human experience. He further argues that
the subjugation of nature through knowledge has a
still deeper significance, for he identifies all earnest
search for knowledge with an act of prayer. He
raises knowledge of nature to the level of virtue and
thinks it as necessary and imperative as prayer.
According to him, “the scientific observer of Nature
is a kind of mystic seeker in the act of prayer.’’!°
Thus, Iqbal attaches value to intellect and senses
that are responsible for repeating impressions to the
mind. No doubt they are to be supplemented by the
10. Ibid, p. 86,
50 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

perception of the Qalb (heart), i.e. intuition.. He

elaborates two soutces as follows: ““The Quran, recog-
nizing that the empirical attitude is an indispensable
stage in the spiritual life of humanity, attaches equal
importance to all the regions of human experience as
yielding knowledge of the ultimate Reality. which
reveals its symbols both. within and without. One
indirect way of establishing connexions with the
reality that confronts us is reflective observation and
control of its symbols as they reveal themselves to
sense-perception; the other way is direct association
with that reality as it reveals itself within. The
naturalism of the Quran is only a recognition of the
fact that man is related to nature, and this relation,
in view of its possibility as a means of controlling her
forces, must be exploited in the interests, not of un-
righteous desire for domination, but in the nobler
interest of a free upward movement of spiritual life.
In the interests of securing a complete vision of Reality,
therefore, sense-perception must be supplemented by
the perception of what the Quran describes as ‘Fuad’
or ‘Qalb,’ i.e. heart.’""
Iqbal further elucidates the idea of non-opposition
of and rather a harmony between intuition and
thought in the following words : ‘‘They spring up
from the same root and complement each other. The
one grasps Reality piecemeal, the other grasps it in its
wholeness. The one fixes its gaze on the eternal, the
other on the temporal aspect of Reality. The one is
present enjoyment of the whole of Reality; the other
aims at traversing the whole by slowly specifying and
U, Ibid. pp. 14-5,
 Igbal’s Philosophy 51
closing: up the various regions of the whole for
éxclusive’ observation. Both are in need of each
other for mutual rejuvenation. Both seek visions of the
same Réality which reveals itself to them in accordance
with their function in life. In fact, intuition, as Berg-
son rightly says, is only a higher form of intellect.”
In short, Iqbal’s theory of knowledge is a pro-
gressive ideal starting from the knowledge provided
by sense-perception and ending with knowledge pro-
vided by heart. In fact, it never ends, for the ultimate
Reality cannot be grasped in full by man. Man in
the development of his selfhood has to equip himself
with both aspects of knowledge. One cannot be
separated from the other. It is a synthesis of both
to make knowledge fuller and provide for the short-
coming of each aspect. When the cold and analytic
intellect is suffused by the warm and life-giving glow
of intuition, it becomes the greatest power for good,
in the life both of individuals and community.

B. Metaphysics
1. ‘The Nature of Man. The conception of self is
one of the most important ideas in Iqbal’s metaphysics
and even in the whole of his philosophy. The main
strain of his philosophical thinking deals with the phi-
losophy of the self because it is at once the starting and
basic point of his thought. The intuition of the self,
which gives a direct and unflinching conviction of the
reality of experience, makes metaphysics possible for
him.
The self or individuality, according to Iqbal, is a

12. Ibid., pp. 2-3.

52 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
real and pre-eminently significant entity which is the
centre and basis of the entire organisation of human
life. He asserts the existence, nature, and reality of the
self through direct intuitional, experience. Intuition,
however, is possible only in moments of great deci-
sion, action, and deep feeling. The self is revealed as
the centre of all activity and action; and the core of
personality. It may be named as “ego.” It'is at work
when one makes choices, judgments and resolutions.
The self is not a mere collection of static or iso-
lated states and experiences. Between two such states
there is always a third state which provides the inner
unity behind all the multiple experiences. This unity
is the pivot of all experiences. These states and experi-
ences never stand isolated one from the other, nor can
they be observed individually. Hence observation
and experiment do not reveal the nature of the life of
the inner self. Experience is continuous and without
break. The self is a constant flux of sensations, feelings,
and affections, etcetera. There is within us a succession
without change. In this movement there is multi-
plicity in unity and unity in multiplicity. Unity
means that all experiences are felt by a single ego—by
an “I”, Thus the ego consists: in unity and diversity.
According to Iqbal, life is real and it is in the
form of an individual. Its highest form is the ego in
which the individual becomes a self-contained exclu-
sive centre. Every object possesses an individuality.
Egohood is the pivot of all reality. The degree of
reality of any living organism is the extent to which it
has achieved the feeling of distinct egohood. ‘‘It is
the degree of the intuition of ‘I-amness’ that determines
 igbal’s Philosophy 53
the place of a thing in the scale of being.’ In the scale
of existence and life every object has its position
according to the extent it develops its individuality and
gains mastery over the environment. Moreover, the
movement towards the achievement of a profounder
individuality is not confined to man alone, but is ex-
pressed in all living organisms. ‘““Throughout the
entire gamut of being runs the gradually rising note of
egohood until it reaches its perfection in man.” By
attaining relatively the highest development in man
the ego becomes a personality. The personality or
self as revealed through intuition is the centre of all
activity and action... Ii is through activity alone that a
personality can grow and maintain itself in the universe
as an ever-growing ego.
The ego appreciates itself in its purposeful activity.
“We appreciate the ego itself in the act of perceiving,
judging, and willing. The life of the ego is a kind of
tension caused by the ego invading the environment
and the environment invading the ego. The ego does
not stand outside this arena of mutual invasion. It is
present in it as a directive energy and is formed and
disciplined by its own experience.’ The life of the
self, then, lies essentially in its directive function and
will-attitudes, and depends upon actions, desires, long-
ings, and yearnings. The more one tastes of them, the
more one ascends in the scale of life. The desires have
for themselves a creative force and power, and stir
us to life and action. This creative force of desires is
the basal characteristic of our personality. Desires
become highly strengthened and forceful in intuition

13, Ibid., p. 53. 14, Ibid., p. 68. 15, Thid., p. 97.

“54 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
and love.’ According to Iqbal, love “‘means the desire
to assimilate and absorb. Its. highest form is’ the
creation of values and ideals and the endéavour to
tealise them.”?!6
The life of the ego consists both’ in knowledge
and activity, but the latter is more important. The
activity is dynamically related to reality and issues from
a generally constant attitude of the whole man towards
reality. The end of ego’s quest, according to Iqbal,
is a more precise definition of individuality which
is possible through a life of active striving and en-
deavour. The final act is not an intellectual act, but
a vital act which deepens the whole being of the ego
and sharpens his will, and with the creative assurance
that the world is not some- thing to be merely seen
or known through concepts, but something to be
made and remade by continuous action. It is a
moment of supreme bliss and also a moment of great
trial for the ego.
Life, according to Iqbal, is ‘‘a forward assimilative
movement. It removes all obstructions in its march
by assimilating them. Its essence is the continual
creation of desires and ideals, and for the purpose of
its preservation and expansion it has invented or devel-
oped out of itself certain instruments, e.g., sense, intel-
lect, etc., which help in to assimilate obstructions,
The greatest obstacle in the way of life is. matter,
Nature; yet Nature is not evil, sinceit enables the inner
powers of life to unfold themselves. The Ego attains
to freedom by the removal of all obstructions in its

16. Iqbal’s letter to R.A. Nicholson inciuded by the latter in Secrets of

the Self: A Philosophical Poem, being a translation of Iqbal’s Asrar-i Khudi,
(Lahore, Ashraf, 1955), p. xxv.
 Igbal’s Philosophy 55
way. .It is partly free, partly determinate, and reaches
fuller freedom by approaching the Individual who is
most free.”!7. But Iqbal warns that the ego’s approach
to God does not consist in losing his individuality
by being absorbed into God’s individuality! On the
contrary, the individual wants to absorb God into
himself. ‘‘The true person not only absorbs the world
of matter; by mastering it, he absorbs God Him-
self into his Ego.’’!® Hence, life is an’ endeavour for
freedom.
The man of science has a prejudice in favour of
the mechanical phenomena and tries to explain that
all organic growth, life, and even consciousness are
mechanically conditioned to the laws of causality. Not
only material phenomena but mental world of our ac-
tivity and thought is also bound by this necessity. But,
according to Iqbal, this does not seem to be true, be-
cause, if thought is causally determined, then it follows
that thought-processes are not processes of judgment
nor can there be any new thought and philosophy
under the sun.’® Moreover, if thoughts and actions
are fixed and determined, it is not in any way justifiable
to demand from an ego moral standards and impose
upon him social and political injunctions. Freedom
is, therefore, a necessary postulate for all thought and
practical activity.
Practically also, the concept of mechanical causali-
ty does not explain the phenomena of life such as
maintenance and reproduction. However, in the
sphere of physical beings, causation is a convenient
17, Ibid., oe eee
18. Ibid.,
19, Shaikt Mutarmmad Iqbal, The Development of Metaphysics in Persia
(London, 1908), B ‘
56 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

invention of the ego which helps it to grasp connections.

Thought grasps these connections with the help of
which the ego masters the environment, and maintains
his unhampered movement. ‘The view of his environ-
ment as a a system of cause and effect is thus an indis-
pensable instrument of the ego, and not a final expres-
sion of the nature of Reality. Indeed in interpreting
Nature in this way the ego understands and masters its
environment, and thereby acquires and amplifies its
freedom.”’¢
The ego in its environment gets sensations, feel-
ings, and perception upon which thought works and,
by a process of combination and synthesis, plans the
activities of the ego. The judging self or the thinking
self is free. This is the basic assumption of all know-
ledge. One thought may lead to another thought,
yet the relation between these two is not that of neces-
sity. The judging self is free to accept, reject, or adapt
the thought of others. Our philosophies like our
judgments are expressions of our free choice and free
will. The will is the core of personality and plays an
important role in our thought-constructions. It is the
ego at work which evaluates thought freely.
Thought is an indirect means to freedom. This
remark is amplified by the obvious difference between
animal and human freedom. Man, though living in
an environment, has the power to hammer it according
to his own will. His freedom is manifested in his
actions in which he transforms and trains the pheno-
mena. If he meets obstructions and hindrances in
his activities, they sharpen the insight and power of

20. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p, 102,

 Igbal’s Philosophy 57
the ego. This makes him self-conscious and helps
him to find in the deep recesses of his own heart a free
cause and personality.?!
The Qur’anic idea of Destiny and Fate does not
go against freedom, because Destiny is not a fixed
programme for the ego. No doubt, the ego is limited
by his inner possibilities, but this limitation does not
impose determinism upon the ego. The ego is free to
choose and act within his possibilities.
According to Iqbal, intuition reveals that the ego
is not only free but also immortal. But Iqbal conceiv-
ed immortality differently from Ibn Rushd’s concept
of “Eternity of the Active Intellect,’ Nietzsche’s doc-
trine of “Eternal Recurrence,” Bergson’s “Elan”? and
Kant’s concept of “Personal Freedom.”” Immortality,
which according to Iqbal is a question of biological
evolution, is not a ‘“‘complete liberation from finitude
as the highest state of human bliss. The ‘unceasing
reward’ of man consists in his gradual growth in self-
possession, in uniqueness, and intensity of his activity
as an ego.”22. The fact that the human ego has taken
millions of years to attain this evolutionary form sup-
ports the concept of immortality. In moments of
great decision and action, the ego directly apprehends
itself to be self-determining and free. It has intuition
of its free causality and movement. It is thus classed
beyond the categories of space and time, and has pure
movement in which the ego is constantly moving,
doing, and desiring. Its free movement towards the
realisation of high ideals and aspirations makes it feel
that it is a permanent element in the scale of being and
21. Ibid. 22. Ibid., p. 111.
58 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education

existence. Action confers the intuition that self is

immortal. But some egos do not feel themselves as
self-determined and progressing towards permanent
existence. Immortality is, therefore, ‘“‘not ours as of
right; it is to be achieved by personal effort. Man is
only a candidate for it.”23 In our actions we grow
and strengthen our consciousness of our own self.
Our personality is, in the evolutional progress, “‘a state
of tension and can continue only if that state is main-
tained. If the state of tension is not maintained,
relaxation will ensue. Since personality, or the state of
tension, is the most valuable achievement of man, he
should see that he does not revert to a state of relaxa-
tion. That which tends to maintain the state of
tension tends to make us immortal.’ Action and
struggle alone can lead us to immortality through
evolution.
Iqbal has strong faith in the evolution of man in
three directions—‘‘Personal Freedom,” “‘Personal Im-
mortality,” and ‘“‘Production of Superman.’’ Thus,
in addition to attaining freedom and immortality,
the ego has to help in the upward march of humanity
by leading to the birth of a higher type of man,
i.e. perfect man, who is the ideal to which all life as-
pires. To attain this evolution, man must follow all
that tends to fortify personality and avoid that which
is likely to weaken it. Various factors which accord-
ing to Iqbal strengthen human personality are
love, fagr, courage, tolerance, kasb-i halal (lawful
earning), and taking part in creative and original
activities. The factors which weaken the ego and are
23. Ibid., p. 113. : 4
24. Iqbal’s letter to R.A. Nicholson, op. cit., p. %xi,
 Igbal’s Philosophy 59

to be avoided are fear, su’al (asking or beggary),

slavery, and pride of one’s origin or stock.?5
In its evolution the ego grows strong by encourag-
ing influences which fortify the ego and avoiding those
which weaken it. There are three stages in the evolu-
tion of the ego. They are:
(i) Obedience to Law;
(ii) Self-control, which is the highest form of self-
consciousness or egohood: and
(iii) Divine vicegerency.
Although the first two phases greatly contribute
to the development of the ego but, according to Iqbal,
they are the milestones for the upward march of man
towards the goal, i.e. perfect man. Iqbal describes
the third and final stage as follows : “The naib (vice-
gerent) is the vicegerent of God on earth. He is the
completest Ego, the goal of humanity, the acme of life
both in mind and body; in him the discord of our
mental life becomes a harmony. The highest power
is united in him with the highest knowledge. In his
life, thought and action, instinct and reason, become
one. He is the last fruit of the tree of humanity, and
all the trials of a painful evolution are justified because
he is to come at the end. He is the real ruler of man-
kind; his kingdom is the kingdom of God on earth.”*
The ego develops and grows through three stages
by creating new desires and ideals, and struggling
hard to achieve them. The ego grows fully in asso-
ciation with other egos and not in isolation. It has to
work in co-operation with others in mutual interest.
25. Both these types of factors are postponed for their description in the-
section on Values. . i oe
26. Iqbal’s letter to R.A. Nicholson, op. Cit., pp. Xxvii-xxvill.
60 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
The adjustment of personal activity to social good is
mutually beneficial because the individual can achieve
his highest possibilities by identifying himself to a
social group and purpose. It means that the individual
ego has to live in a society. In determining the rela-
tion between individual and society Iqbal synthesises
a compromise between atomistic and organismic types
of society and conceives of a pluralistic society, and
giving each individual maximum freedom. He holds
that growth of a full and free personality depends
upon its spiritual sustenance from culture of the group
to which he belongs. The group in its own interest
owes a duty to the individual and hence interferes with
his development as little as possible, and only when
common good demands it. Thus the quality of the
life of a community is simply the quality of life of the
individual writ large. For the development and pro-
gress of such an ideal society, Iqbal developed certain
principles which may for fear of repetition or over-
lapping be postponed until the section on Values.
2. Cosmology. The ego grows and develops by
creating new desires and ideals and struggling hard to
achieve them. Both these factors presuppose an en-
vironment and a goal. This section is devoted to
Iqbal’s conception of the environment in which man
lives, that is, cosmology or the nature of the universe.
Iqbal claims the intuition of the self and on its
analogy he tries to determine the nature of the material
world.
Iqbal disagrees with those physicists who, on the
basis of observation and experiment, hold that nature
is material, made up of small, hard, inert, impenetrable,
and indivisible physical entities called atoms, of which
 Igbal’s Philosophy 61

objects are made, and existing in a void called space.

According to Iqbal, this view is based on the attribu-
tion of substantiality to things. He denies the sub-
stantiality of objects and agrees with Einstein who
destroys the view of substance as simple location in
space, but retains the objectivity of nature. Iqbal
criticises the hypothesis of matter as an independent
existence. To him this hypothesis is perfectly gratui-
tous. Matter is ‘a colony of egos of a low order out of
which emerges the ego of a higher order, when their
association and interaction reach a certain degree of
co-ordination.”’” Similarly, objects are a system of
inter-related events, as Einstein would say, or, accord-
ing to Whitehead’s view of objects, as “organism”
rather than a static block of substance.?8
The objective method of the scientist relying on
sense-perception does not reveal the real being of
things. Moreover, it has created in experience the
duality of the perceiver and the perceived. The nature
of matter can be revealed neither by sense-perception
nor by thought because they assume reality to be static
and fixed.2? One should, therefore, start on one’s
inquiry about the nature of the object or the material
world, from one’s own self, and should know the un-
known on the analogy of the known.
The nature of the material world, according to
Iqbal, is like that of the self; it is life. All life must
take place in the finite centres of experience and wear
the form of finite “this-ness.’”’ It is the fundamental
fact of the universe. In the whole universe, there is a

27. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p. 100.

28. Ibid., pp. 36-37.
29. Ibid., p. 49.
62 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
tendency to individuate and to grow as an individual.
The highest form of life is the ego, in which the indi-
vidual becomes a self-contained exclusive centre. The
world in all its details, from the mechanical, of what
we call matter, to free movement in the human ego, is
the self-revelation of the “Great-I-am.”’ Every atom,
howsoever low in the scale of existence, is an ego.
Body is not necessary for the ego, because matter is
unreal. The absolute reality is spirit, life, or Elan.
Life does not need a body; it is its outward manifesta-
tion only which requires a body. Life manifests itself in
body and mind by individuating and centralising itself.
Mind and body do not differ vitally. Indeed, the
imind as an ego emerges from the lower colonies of
the sub-egos, called body. Both belong to the same
system of spiritual monism.
Life is not static but changing. No two moments
in the life of reality resemble each other. There is
constant activity and movement. The egos grow,
change, and ascend to higher levels of self-conscious-
ness by increasing acts of tension, aspiration, and
hopes. They are teleological in nature. Our life is
teleologically determined in the sense that “‘while there
is no far-off distant goal towards which we are moving,
there is a progressive formation of fresh ends, purposes,
and ideal scales of value as the process of life grows
and expands. We become by ceasing to be what we
are. Life is a passage through a series of deaths.’
There is continuity in this passage, and the
stages, in spite of abrupt changes, are organically re-
lated. The life-history of each individual is a unity
20. Ibid., p. 52.
 Igbal’s Philosophy 63
and not a mere series of mutually ill-adapted events.
We constantly create our ends while knowing ourselves
as free agents. We choose new hopes, new ideals,
and new aspirations which involve thought and intelli-
gence. So the self is both will and thought, which
form an active unity in our active life. Again, the end
is “will-to-live better’ and not only “will-to-live,”’
otherwise hazardous enterprises would have been im-
possible.21_ Moreover, will to power which Nietzsche
thought as an end, and religion, art, morality, and
science as means, is not an end but only one of the
means to a further end of intensification of life, pro-
vided this will to power is not destructive.
The world-process, or the movement of the uni-
verse in time, is certainly devoid of purpose, if by
purpose we mean a foreseen end—a far-off fixed goal
to which the whole creation moves. To endow the
world-process with purpose in this sense is to rob it of
its originality and its creative character. A time-
process is not a line already drawn. It is a line in the
drawing—an actualisation of open possibilities. It is
purposive only in this sense that it is selective in
character, and brings itself to some sort of a present
fulfilment by preserving and supplementing the past.
The facts of life point to a constant progress and
evolution in the realm of biology. The biologist, how-
ever, contents himself to postulate that man is the
final link of the evolutionary process.*3 But this
supposition is unwarranted. Man has grown out of
the lower life and it is a mistake to end the evolutionary

31. Iqbal, Payam-i Mashriq (Lahore, 1923),p.

32. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious CRA in Islam, p. 52.
33. Ibid., p. 177.
64 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
process with him. There is no end to evolution.
Progress is relative and knows no bounds. Moreover,
if it is supposed that man and the universe have reached
their final stage of evolution, it would make life and
existence unbearable. It will be without any effort
and aspiration. Eternal perfection or even eternal
recurrence of that perfection, such as that of Nietzsche,
makes our universe fixed and determined for ever.34 But
the observation of nature and the self gives a sufficient
proof to the fact of growth and possibility of creation.
According to Iqbal, then, the universe is not a
completed act. The process of creation is still going on.
“The universe ...is an association of individuals; but
we must add that the orderliness and adjustment which
we find in this association is not eternally achieved and
complete in itself. It is the result of instinctive or con-
scious effort. We are gradually travelling from chaos
to cosmos and are helpers in this achievement. Nor
are the members of the association fixed; new members
are ever coming to birth to co-operate in the great task.
Thus the universe is not a completed act: it is still in
the course of formation. There can be no complete
truth about the universe, for the universe has not yet
become ‘whole.’ The process of creation is still going
on, and man too takes his share in it, inasmuch as he
helps to bring order into at least a portion of the chaos.
The Kuran indicates the possibility of other creators
than God.’’35
The universe then, on the analogy of one’s own
self, is of a free, original and creative character. It is
constantly growing. It is an organic unity of will,
34. Ibid., pp. 108-9,
35. Iqbal’s letter to R.A. Nicholson, op, cit,, pp. xVii-xviii.
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 65

thought and purpose. The universe is not chaotic,

false, cruel, contradictory and seductive. It has both
a reason and a plan. It is definitely tending to end,
but the end is, and will ever remain, for human beings,
in the future. Hence, there is no final state to the
universe. Itis a constantly progressing, self-generating
and self-evolving universe, whose inner possibilities
of growth and evolution will never know any limit.%¢
Nature of Time and Space. * \qbal has discussed
the age-old philosophic and scientific problem of
space and time. According to his version, he derived
his ideas from the Qur’an and the ideas of the Muslim
thinkers, because of the Qur’an’s reference to the
alteration of day and night as the greatest sign of God,
and the Prophet’s identification of God with Dahr
or time.
According to him, time and space are subjective.
Space is not something given which follows from the
concept of a fixed universe. But universe is growing,
hence there is no absolute space in which things are
situated. Space of human beings is measurable in three
dimensions. It is, however. possible to decrease or
increase one dimension by decreasing and increasing
our senses and psychic powers. Similarly, time also
admits of different varieties, relative to the varying
grades of beings. It is different at different levels of
experience in the same being. On the level of percep-
tion, time appears to be purely spatial. Human beings
translate their movements as “now” and “not-now”
meaning practically the same as “here” and “‘not-here.””
It seems to be a line part of which has been travelled

36. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, pp. 52-4.

66 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

and part of which still remains to be travelled in

future. As a matter of fact, present does not exist. It
is a moment which either lies in some near future or in
some recent past. But when time is observed in
relation to the inner self, it is not spatial or serial but
durational in character. In it the past, the present
and the future all intertwine and form a unity. It has
succession but no change.
The time, of which people talk in ordinary sense
as absolute, true, mathematical, made up of many
discrete “nows,”’ which flows without any relation to
anything external and which we measure through the
concept of past, present and future, is serial time and
not real time. According to Iqbal, the purely physical
point of view is only partially helpful in our under-
standing of the nature of time. The right course is a
careful psychological analysis of our conscious experi-
ence which alone reveals the true nature of time.
Though space-time is the matrix of all things, still
the relation between space and time is akin to the
relation between body and mind. Time is the mind of
space. Iqbal quotes a set of verses from the Qur’an,
which indicate the relativity of our reckoning time,
and suggests the possibility of unknown levels of con-
sciousness. He agrees with Bergson in his view
about the duration in time and in the universal
-change both in the external worid and in our inner life.
This view, is: wholly qualitative and peculiar to our
inner. self which Iqbal calls the “appreciative self.”
“Thus “the time of the appreciative-self is a single
“now’ which the efficient-self, in its traffic with the
world of space, pulverizes into a series of ‘nows’
like the beads in.a»thread. Here. is; then; pure
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 67

duration unadulterated by space.’’37 The time of

this efficient ego is just a dimension of the space-time
continuum. The appreciative ego lives in pure dura-
tion and forms unity. ‘he interval which the efficient
ego reckons in millennia, centuries and years is the
same “‘now” for the appreciative ego. Just as in the
single momentary mental act of perception of light we
hold together a frequency of wave motion which is
practically incalculable, transforming thus succession
into duration, similarly, the efficient ego synthesises
all the “heres” and “nows’’—the small changes of
space and time, indispensable to the efficient ego—
into a coherent wholeness of personality.
A critical interpretation of the sequence of time
as revealed in ourselves leads Iqbal to the notion that
Ultimate Reality is a pure duration in which thought,
life and purpose interpenetrate to form an organic
unity. Iqbal criticises those thinkers like McTaggart
who do not distinguish between serial and non-serial
time, and assign finality to serial time. He says, “If
we regard past, present, and future as essential to time,
then we picture time as a straight line, part of which
we have travelled and left behind, and part lies yet
untravelled before us. This is taking time, not as a
living creative movement, but as a static absolute,
holding the ordered multiplicity of fully-shaped
cosmic events, revealed serially, like the pictures of a
film, to the outside observer.’’3* His answer is that
future exists only as an open possibility and not a
fixed reality. Here the modern Quantum Theory
supports Iqbal.

37. Ibid., p. 46. 38, Ibid., pp. 54-55.

68 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

A deeper insight into our conscious experiences

convinces Iqbal to believe that beneath the appearance
of serial time there is non-serial time, i.e. pure duration.
The Ultimate Ego, that is, God, exists in pure duration
in which change ceases to be a succession of varying
attitudes and reveals its true character as continuous
creation, “untouched by weariness’’ and “unseizable by
slumber or sleep.”” Moreover, the life of the ego exists
in its movement from appreciation to efficiency, from
intuition to intellect, and atomic time is born out of
this movement. On the one hand, the ego lives in
eternity, i.e. in non-successional change, and, on the
other, it lives in serial time which Iqbal conceives as
organically related to eternity in the sense that it is a
measure of non-successional change. This explains the
relation between Divine Time and serial time, which
contains in itself the essentially Islamic idea of creative
evolution. Iqbal also conceives of life as a movement
in time. He believes that man with his body, mind
and soul is a single unit. It is a mistake to suppose
that man can be separated into distinct realities. The
fact is that matter and spirit are not opposed to each
other. Matter is nothing but spirit in space-time
reference. The unity called man is body when looked
at as acting with regard to the so-called external world;
it is mind or soul when looked at as acting with regard
to the ultimate aim and ideal of such acting. Modern
Relativistic Theory confirms this when it is said that
matter and energy are not opposed to each other but
they are only two states of one and the same thing. -
 Igbal’s Philosophy 69
3. GOD
Scholastic philosophy put forward three famous
arguments, i.e. the Cosmological, the Teleological, and
the Ontological, for the existence of God. According
to Iqbal, “‘These arguments.. .embody a realmovement
of thought in its quest after the Absolute.”® But after
analysing and discussing them he comes to the conclu-
sion that, regarded as logical proof, these arguments are
untenable and are open to serious criticism. Through
intuition he has a consciousness of his own self, and
on the analogy of the self he conceives of an ego in
each object, an ego of individual, an ego of community,
an ego of humanity, and an ego of the universe. The
ego of the universe, which is the spiritual principle of
the universe, may be called the Ultimate Ego. In re-
ligious terminology it is called God.
God or Reality is of the nature of a free, purposive
and creative will. It is essentially spiritual in the
sense of being an Individual and an Ego. He is an
Ego because He responds to our reflection and our
prayer ; for “‘the real test of a self is whether it res-
ponds to the call of another self.’’4°
The relation of man and God is, therefore, quite
intimate. Iqbal rejects the idea of regarding the
Ultimate Ego as apart and above the finite egos. “The
infinite reached by contradicting the finite is a false
infinite, which neither explains itself nor the finite
which is thus made to stand in opposition to the in-
finite.”"4! This idea creates a gulf between the finite

30. Mohammad. label, “MoTaggart’s Philosophy,” reprinted in The

40.
fruth, Lahore, July, 1937. i
41, Iqbal, The. Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Isiam, pp. 27-8.
 70 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

and the infinite. He also rejects the idea that the Ulti-
mate Ego is the only reality, and that the finite egos
are absorbed in it, which have no existence apart from
the Ultimate Ego. Although this position has the merit
of designating personality and egohood to the Ultimate
Reality, it has the drawback of denying the existence
and the value of the activities of the finite egos. Iqbal
is of the view that the Ultimate Ego holds the finite
egos in its own self without obliterating their existence.
But the Ultimate Ego may hold the finite egos in
His Imagination or in His Being. The first alternative
seems to be pantheistic. According to this, the human
ego is regarded as a creation of the imagination of God
and hence lifeless and imaginary. If somehow it were
to have life and activity, it would be all determined by
the imagination of God and not by itself. Hence it
cannot be assumed to be real and existent by itself,
which has otherwise been confirmed by the intuition
of the self. One must, therefore, come to the conclu-
sion that the Ultimate Ego holds the finite egos in His
own being without effacing their existence.
At the same time, the Ultimate Ego does not lie
apart from the universe, as if separated by a space
lying between Him and ourselves. The Ultimate
Self, therefore, is not transcendent, as is conceived by
the anthropomorphic theists. He is immanent, for
He comprehends and encompasses the whole universe.*?
But He is not immanent in the sense of the pantheists
of the traditional type, because He is a personal and not
an impersonal reality. He has an egohood, i.e.
consciousness of His own “‘I-am-ness”? like us.*? But

42. Ibid., pp. 71-2 43. Ibid., p. 53.

 Iqbal’s Philosophy nr
His consciousness does not lie within the grasp of
human experience. He is, therefore, transcendent.
Both immanence and transcendence are true of the
Ultimate Reality, but neither of them singly.
“But Iqbal emphasises the transcendence of the
Ultimate Ego, rather than His immanence.”4 For,
an emphasis on the transcendence of the Ultimate
Ego enhances the reality and existence of the human
ego, and also because it brings to light the individuality
and egohood of the Infinite Self.
The Ultimate Reality is an individual, an ego, or a
Person. Our criticism of experience reveals the Ulti-
mate Reality to be rationally directed life which in
view of our experience of life cannot be conceived
except as an organic whole, as something closely knit
together and possessing a central point of reference.
He is a unique individual which is not finite. He is
not infinite in the sense of spatial infinity. “The in-
finity of the Ultimate Ego consists in the infinite inner
possibilities of His creative activity of which the uni-
verse as known to us is only a partial expression.’’4
His personality is thus intensive and not extensive.
Attributes of God. Because the Ultimate Ego is
an Individual and a Personality, therefore, He has a
character and possesses some attributes. Among His
most important attributes are creativeness, omni-
science, omnipotence and eternity. His omnipotence
means a creative movement. But this movement or
change which implies want, limitation and imperfee-
tion is inapplicable to'Him. He is continuous creation

44. Ibid. p. 58. i

45. Ishrat Hasan Enver, op. cit.‘ p. 73.
46. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p. 61.
72 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
and changes only in the sense in which continuous
creation or continuous flow of energy can be said to
change. He does not create matter as something ex-
ternal to Himself. He is Creator from within. ‘To
Him the not-self does not present itself as a confronting
‘other’, or else it would have to be, like our finite self,
in spatial relation -with the confronting ‘other’. .What
we call Nature or the not-self is only a fleeting moment
in the life of God.’’47 The Ultimate Ego has a charac-
ter of Divine Activity of unlimited creation, which
is the unfoldment of His own inner possibilities.
The Absolute Ego is Omniscient in the sense that
in Him the act of knowledge and the object of know-
ledge are one. His knowledge is not, like the know-
ledge of finite beings, discursive—always moving
round a veritable ‘other’. His knowledge is perfectly
self-conscious, living activity—an activity in which
He creates as He knows and knows as He creates. His
thought and activity are one and the future, therefore,
is nothing but the open possibilities of creation.
The Uitimate Ego is Omnipotent, but does not
have unlimited, blind, and capricious power. It is
limited by His'own nature—His Wisdom and Good-
ness. His infinite power is revealed in the recurrent,
the regular, and the orderly, and not in the arbitrary
and the capricious. The Divine Will essentially
moves in the direction of the Good. Evil and pain
are not absolute, rather they are relative to our success-
es and failure in our attempts to perfect our egohood
and personality. Moreover, the issue whether the
universe is inherently good or evil cannot be decided

47. Ibid., p. 53.

 Iqbal’s Philosophy 73

at the present stage of our knowledge of the uni-

verse, hence one should rely on one’s faith in the
eventuai triumph of goodness.
God is Perfect because He is an organic whole
and has infinite scope of His “Creative Vision.”’ His
being Perfect implies that there is no reproduction in
Him, for reproduction means a building up of a new
organism—a duplication—out of a detached fragment
of the old. He as a Perfect Ego cannot be conceived
as procreating His own equals and “harbouring His
rivals at home.”’ God is Perfect throughout His crea-
tive progress, for this progress is progress in perfec-
tion, not towards perfection.*®
Iqbal is of the view that God's will functions
through the will of the finite egos. Reason can prove
the necessity of faith, but it cannot turn faith into know-
ledge. The belief in God is ultimately a matter of
faith, and that conviction or complete certitude about
Him comes not from reason but by living in direct com-
munion with Him.
Prayer. \qbal would not emphasise immanence
of God more than His transcendence because imma-
nence would dissolve the finite ego into Infinite,
and would take away the reality of the self which is
the basis of his philosophy. Due to Iqbal’s concept of
transcendence ofthe Infinite} the human ego is capable
of continued existence throughout an endless time
and achieve immortality by which alone it can approach
the Infinite? The finite can achieve communion
with the Ultimate Ego in the act of prayer. Prayer

48. M. M. Sharif, pana Conception of God,” Iqbal as a Thinker,

(Lahore, Ashraf, 1946), ape
49, Iqbal, The EDeaarction of Religious Thought in Islam, pp. 110-1.
74 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

has meaning only and in so far as the human self is

conceived as having a separate being of its own as
distinguished from the Divine Self. Iqbal objects to
the belief of anthropomorphic theists that miracles
can be worked by prayer. He believes that prayer
is instinctive to the heart of man. The act of
prayer as aiming at knowledge resembles knowledge,
yet prayer at its highest is much more assimila-
tive than abstract reflection. ‘Prayer as a means of
spiritual illumination is a normal vital act by which
the little island of our personality suddenly discovers
its situation in a larger whole ofJife.”5° But accord-
ing to Iqbal, the object of prayer is better achieved
when this act becomes congregational. The spirit
of all true prayer is social. A congregation is an
association of human beings who, animated by the
same aspiration, concentrate themselves on a single
object and open up their inner selves to the working
of a single impulse. It is a psychological truth that
association multiplies the normal man’s power of
perception, deepens his emotions, and dynamises his
will to a degree unknown to him in the privacy of his
individuality. Islam attaches a high value to this
socialisation of spirituai illumination through asso-
ciative prayer.>!
Prayer, according to Iqbal, whether it is individual
or associative is an expression of man’s inner yearning
for a response in the awful silence of the universe. It
is a unique process of discovery whereby the searching
ego affirms itself and discovers its own worth and justi-
fication as a dynamic factor in the life of the universe.

50. Ibid., p. 85. Si. Ibid., p. 87.

 Igbal’s Philosophy 715
In short, God must be regarded as an ego. He
is ‘‘not an anthropomorphic being or architectonic
intelligence, acting upon the world from without.”
He encompasses and comprehends the whole universe.
The finite egos are part and parcel of His Being, but
they do not lose their freedom in Him. He has, of
His own accord, chosen the finite egos as participators
in His life. But finite ego’s existence in relation to
God is its own and its thoughts and actions are self-
determined. God, therefore, is not necessarily opposed
to the being and freedom of finite egos.

C. Axiology
1. Nature of Value. According to Iqbal, “There
can be no complete truth about the universe, for the
universe has not yet become ‘whole.’ The process of
creation is still going on, and man too takes his
share in it, inasmuch as he helps to bring order into
at least a portion of the chaos.’’s3 In the process of
creation man realises his self and becomes stronger
personality. There are no fixed and unchangeable
values which have no utility. They are in the pro-
cess of transformation. Whether something has value
or not can be determined in its relation to the per-
fection of the ego. Egohood is the end to which all
our activities point or rather should lead to. The
“idea of personality gives us a standard of value.
. That which fortifies personality is good, that which
weakens it 1s bad.”%* He praises strong personalities.
All human pursuits should, therefore, be judged from

52. Ishrat Hasan Enver, op. cit., p. 83.

53. Iqgbal’s letter to Nicholson, "op. cit., pp, xvii-xvlii.
54... Ibid., pp. xxi.-xxii.
76 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education

the standpoint of personality. According to Iqbal,

human situations determine values. These yalues may
be comprehended through personal experience, past
history and revelation to prophets.
It seems that, according to Iqbal, values are in-
strumental. He subordinates all values to the develop-
ment of personality. This may be supported by Iqbal’s
elucidation and interpretation of a remark made by
the Prophet regarding the poetry of a great Arab poet.
This interpretation may also depict Iqbal’s conception
of art and aesthetic values:
“The ultimate end of all human activity is life glorious,
powerful, exuberant. All human art must be subordinated to this
final purpose, and the value of everything. must be determined in
reference to its life-yielding capacity, The highest art is that which
awakens our dormant will force and nerves us to face the trials of
life manfully. All that brings drowsiness and makes us shut our eyes
to Reality around, on the mastery of which alone Life depends,
is a message of decay and death. There should be no opium-eat-
ing in Art. The dogma‘of Art for the sake of Art is a clever inven-
tion of decadence to cheat us out of life and power.’5>
Iqbal’s conception of values as instrumental may be
further elucidated from the following lines;
Nose, hand, brain, eye, and ear,
Thought, imagination, feeling, memory and understanding—
All these are weapons devised by Life for self-preservation,
In its ceaseless struggle.
The object of science and art is not knowledge,
The object of the garden is not the bud and the flower,
Science is an instrument for the preservation of Life,
Science is a means of invigorating the Self.
Science and art are servants of Life,
Slaves born and bred in its house.>¢

55. Quoted by K. G. Saiyidain, “‘Progressive Trends in Iqbal’s Thought,”

4Igbal as a Thinker, pp. 59-60.
5 Nicholson, The Secrets of the Self; A Philosophical Poem MN, 303-21
 Igbal’s Philosophy TI

2. Realms of Value. Religious Values. Accord-

ing to Iqbal, all human values take their root from
the belief in the unity of God, which is the basis of
religion. .As Iqbal’s philosophy is mainly religious,
though he never, as Professor Nicholson rightly
points out, “treat philosophy as a handmaid of
religion,’’’’ therefore religious truths for him are
of supreme value. They are of paramount im-
portance. These are the existence of God, the reality
of the self, its freedom and immortality. Religion
provides the whole value-system to Iqbal, because
Islam is basically different from all modern “isms” or
systems. It is, therefore, a mistake to identify Islam
with any one of the present value-systems. The fact
is that so many of the man-made philosophies which
aim at creating a better world often have remark-
able similarities with the implication of Islam which
speak for the truth of the “natural faith.” But all
these philosophies stress only one peculiar aspect of
life or value-system, e.g. political, economic, social,
moral, spiritual, etcetera, whereas Islam embraces the
whole of man’s life, and would not ailow any one of
its aspects to overshadow the rest. In short, if one
holds fast the true spirit of Islam, the democratic ideal
and other modern ideals will take care of themselves;
for the essence of Islam contains all that is noble and
sublime in life. If, on the contrary, one pins one’s faith
to any one of the “isms’’ of the present day, one will
inevitably be following a course which can, at best,
assign one a secondary role in ordering the affairs of
the: world. :
The most important principle to be borne in mind
57. Ibid
.,pixiii.
 78 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
is that Islam is not merely a religious doctrine, but is
a practical and realistic code of life. Moreover, the
Qur’an, which guides to certain values, “is a book
which emphasises deed rather than ‘idea’.’’** It is not
only a book of certain principles of faith, but is a
combination of faith with the rules of everyday conduct
which forms the basis of all social, moral, political
and civil institutions. ‘“The Quran considers it neces-
sary to unite religion and State, ethics and politics, in
a single revelation much in the same way as Plato does
in his Republic.’
Islam exhorts its followers not to flee from but to
face and conquer the difficulties and despairs of life and
existence. Religion is not simply ethics. It aims at
the evolution of the ego beyond the present span of
life. The essence of religion is yearning tor a direct
contact with the Ultimate Reality. It is morality
touched with emotion. It aims at close association
with the ultimate source of all life and being. This
yearning is expressed through prayer and adoration.
-Religion is not a code of beliefs and doctrines, and
hence of dogmatic ethics. Each good religion is a
“deliberate enterprise to seize the ultimate principle
of value.’’® Religious life may’be divided into three
‘stages of faith, thought and discovery. Direct ex-
perience is indeed the real purpose of all religious life.
The religious belief and tenets are found to be the very
source of satisfaction in the last stage.
Iqbal’s conception of religion is very wide.
According to him, religion is a force that liberates, not
a force that imprisons. Iqbal’s religion, of which he
58. Iqbal, The sconstenetion of Religious Thought in Islam, p. v.
59. Ibid., p. 60. Ibid., p. 178-9.
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 719

finds the best and the most congenial example in Islam,

demands breadth of vision and tolerance, and sets
free the dynamic powers of thought, which religious
fanatics have always sought to suppress, because
restrictions on the most precious of God’s gifts to
men are denial of his distinctive significance in the
scheme of the universe. He disagrees fundamentally
with those who would make religion a means for pro-
ducing in people a false sense of contentment, fatalism
and the desire for withdrawal from embracing the
struggle of life.. His religion is not “the opium of the
people” as the Communist ideology calls all religions
to be. It is essentially a religion of power, challenging
men and women for the conquest of the universe, not
advising them to adopt a policy of retreatment or re-
nunciation. Iqbal contrasts his own conception of true
religion with the false conception which is generally
prevalent. Iqbalcondemns as utterly evil all static and
other-worldly religions. He attacks traditional reli-
gion because it impedes right action, by diverting atten-
tion by its idealism from the real situations and real
opportunities. He states the place of religion in the
life of modern man in the following words:
“And religion, which in its higher manifestations is neither
dogma, nor priesthood, nor ritual, can alone ethically prepare the
‘modern man for the burden of the great responsibility which the ad-
vancement of modern science necessarily involves, and restore to him
that attitude of faith which makes him capable of winning a person-
ality here and retaining it hereafter. It is only by rising to a fresh
vision of his origin and future, his whence and whither, that man
will eventually triumph over a society motivated by an inhuman
competition, and a civilization which has lost its spiritual unity by
its inner conflict of religious and political values.¢!”
61, Ibid., p. 178.
80 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

Belief in the oneness of God is the central point

of all the fundamental values of Islam, e.g. equality of
mankind, as the vicegerent of God on earth, social
justice, liberty, tolerance, rationalism, and the closest
scrutiny of physical world and natural phenomena—
which is an act of devotion. A little reflection will
show that from a living faith in the unity of God, all
the values and principles flow directly from the main
spring.
Religion, according to Iqbal, is not a name for
beliefs and certain forms of worship; it is, in fact, a
philosophy of life and action. It is a complete code
for the guidance of the individual’s entire life. Islam
lays down the broad principles of life; the details of
these values are provided by the Prophet. Islam is
all-embracing in its nature and affects all aspects of
human activity, i.e. transformation of the individual,
the community, and the humanity. The goal of life is.
the realisation and perfection of individual self, which
depends upon the development of human potentialities.
in right direction. Guidance is necessary in every
sphere of life and Islam provides the details of law, a
complete code of creed and morals, a social order
creative of a polity with every institution of an extensive
commonwealth. But one [Link] the various
aspect of life. [Link] reality which appears-as church
looked at from one point of view, and State, from
‘another. Islam is a single unanalysable reality, which
“is one or the other as one’s point of view varies. The
Qur’an considers it necessary to unite religion and
State, ethics and politics in a single revelation and
represents an ideal of a harmonious whole.
Ethical Values. Régarding the question of good
 Igbal’s Philosophy 81
and evil in the universe, Iqbal’s view is melioristic.
According to Iqbal, Islam looks upon the universe as
a reality, and consequently recognises as reality all
that is in it. Sin, pain, sorrow, and struggle are cer-
tainly real, but evil is not essential to the universe.*
The universe can be reformed and there are chances of
improvement. The elements of sin and evil can be
gradually eliminated. Man is endowed with powers
to understand and control the forces of nature,
and, if properly controlled, these seemingly destruc-
tive forces of nature become sources of life.? Still
the issue between optimism and pessimism cannot
be finally decided at the present stage of our knowledge
of the universe. As Iqbal says:
“Our intellectual constitution is such that we can take only a
piecemeal view"of things. We cannot understand the import of the
great cosmic forces which work havoc, and at the same time sustain
and amplify life. The teaching of the Quran, which believes in the
possibility of improvement in the behaviour of man and his control
over natural forces, is neither optimism nor pessimism. It is melior-
ism, which recognizes a growing universe, and is animated by the
hope of man’s eventual victory over evil.”’%4
Thus the universe is neither completely evil nor com-
pletely good. According to Iqbal, Islam believes in the
efficiency of well-directed action based on man’s use
of his senses and reason. Hence the standpoint of
Islam is the ultimate supposition of all human effort
at scientific discovery and social progress.%
Thus, the moral and religious ideal of man is not
self-negation, but seif-affirmation, and he attains ‘to
62. Muhammad agra Islam as an Ethical anda Political Ideal
(Lahore, Orientalia, 1955),p. 3
63. Ibid., p. 63.
64. Ibid., p. 64.
65. Iqbal’s letter to Nicholson, op. cit., pp. xvii-xix,
82 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
it by becoming more and more individual and unique.
The Prophet said, ZYakhallaqu bi-akhlag Allah, i.e.
“Create in yourselves the attribute of God.” Man be-
comes more and more unique by becoming more and
more like the most unique Individual (God).© Iqbal
enunciated activity with all his might. He denounced
the old quietist ethics, and pleaded for activity and
vitality. He called for vigorous action to change the
present conditions, but would not allow to copy blindly
the modern West. He scorned the old concept
of virtue in the static saint, and praised the man of
action, dominant, growing through struggle, wrestling
with the material world, and conquering it. Hence
science is valuable in giving man mastery over the
elements, and helps in the conquest of natyre. Matter
is valuable in obstructing man, thus making him strive.
Society is valuable in purging man of fear, and ex-
hilarating him with a divine discontent, and the enthusi-
asm of creative power.
Man must be regarded as a “unit ot force and
energy,”’ a will, a germ of infinite power. The gradual
expression of this power must be the object of all
human activity. The essential nature of man consists
in will and not in intellect and understanding. More-
over, Iqbal believes that, according to the tenets of
Islam, ‘‘man is essentially good and peaceful.’6? The
possibility of the elimination of sin and pain from the
evolutionary process and faith in the natural goodness
of man are the basic propositions of Islam.
Fearlessness and freedom are the two bases of
ethics in Islam. The essential ideal of Islam is to free
66. Iqbal, Islam as an Ethical and a Political Ideal, p. 65.
67, Tbid. ‘ 68. Ibid., (S66,
 igbal’s Philosophy. 83
man from fear, for fear is the cause of almost all vices.
Man should be given a sense of his personality to make
him conscious of himself as a source of power. The
idea of man as an individuality, which is free and has
infinite power, determines, according to the teachings
of the Qur’an, the worth of all human action. That
what intensifies the sense of individuality and its
freedom in man is good and that which enfeebles it is
bad. Give a man a sense of respect for his own per-
sonality and let him move fearless and free in the
immensity of God’s earth, and he shall respect the
personalities of others and become virtuous. The
highest virtue from the standpoint of Islam is “right-
eousness” which may be defined as the preservation and
intensification of a sense of human personality to be
the ultimate ground of all ethical activities.” Man
is a free and responsible being; he is the maker of his
own destiny. The assumption that human personality
is insufficient and hence man is dependent is false, and
it is an obstructing force in the ethical advancement
of man.
Man is directed to secure the highest well-being
both materially and morally. Islam sets forth a stand-
ard of conduct: “Enjoin right and forbid wrong.”’7!
Rightness or wrongness of conduct may be considered
with reference to their tendency to good or evil. A
conduct or an act is right when it is according to rule;
and an act is good when it is valuable or serviceable
for some end. Islam is a creed of service and leads
its followers to seek the welfare and finally the perfec-
tion of individuals and humanity in a co-operative
69. Ibid., p. 67. 70. Ibid., p. 69,
71. The Qur'an, xxii. 6.
84 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
spirit.2 Hence the goodness or badness of a Muslim’s
conduct consists in its serviceableness for the above
end. Similarly, only that conduct is right which is
according to the law of the Qur’an. The Shari‘at
will tell him what is right that is enjoined and what is
wrong that is forbidden.
The ethical ideal of Islam furnishes those basic
emotions and loyalties which may gradually uniiy the
scattered individuals and groups, and finally trans-
form them into a well-knit people, the millat (communi-
ty), possessing a moral consciousness of their
own. According to Iqbal, Islam, as an emotional
system of unification, recognises the worth of the indi-
vidual and rejects blood-relationship as the basis of
human unity. The unity of brotherhood of man,
irrespective of race, nationality, colour, language, is
most dependable. All human life is concerved as
spiritual in origin, and this conception creates fresh
loyalties. These emotions and loyalties create a
solidarity which is essential to the development and
organisation of a corporate life in which each member,
-being morally conscious, strives towards the realisation
of the ideal.
Social Values. Islam, like every organised life,
has certain laws and institutions which are essentially
creative of a social order and moral development.
The life of Islam, consequently, has a peculiar cultural
force, and is distinguished by a complete organisation
-and unity of will and purpose in millat (community).
The structure of Muslim society, in other words, is
entirely due to the working of Islam as a culture in-
spired by specific ethical ideal.
72. Ibid., v. 17.
 Igbal’s Philosophy 85
Islam believes in a universal social polity based on
the fundamentals revealed to the Prophet. A rational
interpretation of the principles of Islam began with the
Prophet himself, whose constant prayer was: “God,
grant me the knowledge of the ultimate nature of
things.’ It was his religious experience which created
a distinct social order, which developed into a polity
with implicit legal percepts. The structure and work-
ing of the Islamic society rested on an analysis and
systematisation of these fundamentals into a body of
tules called Shari‘at. The religious ideal of Islam is
thus related to the social order and the social order
to Islamic polity.
According to Iqbal, the development of selfhood
is the ideal. But if it is developed in isolation from
society, it would end in an unmitigated egoism and
anarchy. Man is a social being, and can live only in
the society of his fellow-men. Out of necessity, the
individual depends upon the community for hi8 self-
expression and realisation. His individuality strives
in the multiplicity of community, and the diversity of
community acquires unity through his individuality.
The community which is composed of individuals is
required to achieve a real collective ego to live as a
single individual. Thus Iqbal is not interested only
in the individual and his self-realisation. He was
equally concerned with the evolution of an ideal
society, a community as he preferred to call it.
In Asrar-i Khudi and Rumuz-i Bekhudi, Iqbal
discusses the life of the individual and of the com-
munity, which require a social order for their develop-
ment and realisation. As to the relation between the
individual and the community, there is need for a right
 86 igbal’s Philosophy and Education
kind of balance between the rights and requirements of
the individual and of the society. No doubt, the full
development and continued growth of an individual
presuppose a society, but the individual should not be
crushed out of existence through an over-organised
society. To guard against the defects of an over-
organised or laissez-faire society, the creation of an
ideal society is necessary. It is only as a member of
this society that the individual, by the twin principles
of conflict and concord, is able to express himself
freely and ideally, and hope to achieve complete self-
affirmation. It is only as an association of self-
affirming individuals that the community can come into
being and perfect itself. ‘“‘Iqbal thus escapes from
libertarianism by limiting the individual’s freedom,
making him a member of a homogeneous community,
and, from totalitarianism by limiting the community’s
authority, making it a challenge and not aninsurmount-
able &bstacle to the individual’s self-realization.”’?
Iqbal stated certain values and principles upon
which the ideal Islamic community is to be founded.
The first and fundamental value of the ideal society
is that it should be based on spiritual consideration
like monotheism. The belief in the unity of God is
highly pragmatic for its utility to individuals and
society. Many values stem from this belief, and pro-
vide a value-system for the growth and development of
human beings through social environment. Mono-
theism gives a foundation of world unity by admitting
that all mankind represents one brotherhood as vice-
gerent of God on earth. Universal brotherhood

WE . J. Arberry, Trans., The Mysteries of Selflessness; A Philosophi-

cal Poem eeSir Muhamnad Iqbal ‘London, John Murray, 1953), p. xi,
 Igbal’s Philosophy 87
means equality of mankind, and hence the values of so-
cial justice and respect for the dignity of each indi-
vidual. Supporting this, in the New Year broadcast
from All India Radio, Lahore, on 1 January 1938, Iqbal
said:
“Remember, man can be maintained on this earth only by
honouring mankind, and this world will remain a battle-ground of
ferocious beasts of prey unless and until the educational forces
of the whole world are directed to inculcating in man respect for
mankind.”’74
As vicegerent of God on earth, man should be free
to a reasonable degree to realise himself, Tolerance
is a natural corollary of liberty. If a man wants his
freedom to be respected, he must tolerate the liberty of
others. Tolerance for the actions and views of others
is beneficial to human ego as well as to society. For
the development of individuality of each member of
the group, tolerance is essential, and its absence leads
to perpetual quarrels and conflicts. ‘The principle
of the ego-sustaining deed is respect for the ego in my-
self as well as in others.”75 Thus, according to Iqbal,
tolerance which is born of strength and not of weakness
sustains and strengthens theego. Thus from the living
faith in the unity of God other values and principles
flow directly. This principle, psychologically, seeks to
restore internal unity into a divided world. It provides
for all the members of the society unity of thought and
action.
Belief in the unity of God shakes all worldly fear
which is a great factor in retarding individual’s growth
and development. Modern psychology has shown the
origin of abnormality of the bully, the coward, the
74. Shamloo, Ed., op, cit.,
75. Iqbal, The Reconstruction ‘of
F Religious Thought in Islam, p. 113,
88 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
tyrant, and the dictator in suppressed fear. Whereas
fear retards individual’s development, courge helps
him to achieve lofty ideal for progress. Progress
means facing obstacles and hardships which serve to
draw the best out of those possessing courage, develop
character, and bring forth potential virtues. It
(courage) does not consist in simply facing physical
dangers bravely, but in not losing faith in one’s stand-
ard of values. Hence the belief in God is helpful to
the ego in overcoming fear and inculcating courage
in order to grow and develop in a healthy manner.
The belief in God or loyalty to Him, the ultimate
spiritual basis of all life, amounts to man’s loyalty to
his own ideal nature, because, according to Iqbal, all
life is spiritual in origin.
Besides being a basis of an ideal society, the belief
in the unity of God is also the objective of society.
The propagation of the doctrine of the unity of God
is a well-defined goal towards which the whole com-
munity should strive to attain real solidarity in a com-
munity. Against other mundane objectives, such as
the conquest of land or the attainment of political
power, this objective is capable of stimulating a life
of high endeavour and unselfishness.
Inspired leadership or prophethood provides the
second important value for the structure of ideal
society. The part played by the prophets in the evolu-
tion of humanity cannot be overestimated, because
each of the prophets presented to people a religion
which is the sum total of their life-experience finding a
definite expression through the medium of a great per-
sonality.” Loyalty to the prophets has always been a
16, Iqbal, Islam as an Ethical and a Political Ideal, p. 56.
 Igbal’s Philosophy 89

source of strength to their people, and the great and re-

markable personality of each prophet provides a focus
where all loyalties converge and all disrupting tenden-
cies disappear. According to Iqbal, Muhammad is the
last prophet because he presented all the comprehen-
sive principles for the development of the ego in a
rational way. The miracles which were required to
guide humanity in its infancy are not needed now,
because through the development of reason humanity
can determine ways and means for its welfare and
progress; blind faith is not required; rational thinking
and observation of nature will provide guidance. This
guidance is provided by the Code, i.e. the Qur’an.
To Iqbal, there is no conflict between the Qur’anic
teachings and human reason, rather each principle
of the Qur’an fulfils the intellectual test. The prin-
ciples provided for the progress of humanity are un-
changeable but they are capable of adaptation and
interpretation in the spirit of the Qur’an and the
traditions of the Prophet. Obedience is necessary to
the Code and the law given by the Prophet, who is a
great unifying force of the Islamic community. With-
out observance of the principles, the communal life
is sure to end in confusion. Through his practice of
these principles, the Prophet established an ideal so-
ciety. According to Iqbal, the community should have
a centre from which all the cultural and social activi-
ties will radiate. Mecca provided and provides this
centre to the Islamic community.
Another principle of the ideal society is to gain
supremacy over the forces of nature, by developing
the study of sciences and taking part in creative and
original activities. While scientific outlook to probe
90 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education

the mysteries of nature and to control the environ-

ment for its active utilisation through the proper use
of sciences is necessary for the individual; for the
community it is a matter of life and death. The West
owes its supremacy to its development of physical
resources and study of natural phenomena, and one
of the main reasons of Eastern decadence is the neglect
of physical sciences. ““The West has bartered away
its soul in the process of conquering the world of
matter; the East has developed a pseudo-mystical way
of thinking, which has bred a false kind of renuncia-
tion in its people and reconciled them to ignorance,
weakness, and intellectual and political slavery.’’”7 Thus
both have suffered. Iqbal brings about a union of the
essentially complementary values of scientific know-
ledge and love or intuition. He realised the possi-
bility of the salvation of humanity through two values
jointly. One is ‘power’ which is born of science,
technology, andindustrialisation. The otheris “vision”
which is the gift of religion to mankind and the fruit
of intuition or love which Iqbal considers to be the es-
‘sential supplement to intellect. Love creates values and
ideals and tries to realise them to attain unique indi-
viduality by appropriation of the attributes of the most
unique Individual (God). The divorce of power from
vision, of science from religion, of intellect from intui-
tion has produced the present tragic situation in the
world, when Godless power has ruthlessly trampled
over all human rights and values, both in the life of
individuals and of nations. Iqbal, therefore, advo-
cates the acquisition of this power, but wants this power

77. a
1954), fe K. G. Saiyidain, Igbal’s
Iq Educational Phil:ilosophy (Lahore, P Ashraf,
hraf,
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 91

to be kept in subordination to the principles and values

of religion, which teaches love, sympathy, self-restraint,
and respect for human individuality. He is of the
view that exploitation, destruction, and misery of man-
kind in the modern world can be eradicated, and
mankind can be integrated into a single society if man
learns the values which true religion has always taught
throughout the ages. The scientist’s arrogance and
the priest’s renunciation of the world are alike stupid
and criminal. They both must strive for the good of
mankind so that vision may direct the application of
power.
Although the social order of Islam is keenly alive
and responsive to the fact of change, it also preserves
the history and traditions of the community which are
serviceable. Iqbal places high value on the develop-
ment of the communal ego or national spirit, by con-
serving the traditions of the society with a view to
attaining stability and prosperity. During the period
of prosperity every community creates certain healthy
values, and in the days of adversity the community
should stick to these traditions till there is turn of the
tide. National history is as important for the nation
as memory is important for the individual. Com-
munal ego is strengthened by preserving and propa-
gating the national traditions and national history
among the future generations.
The ideal human society must safeguard mater-
nity. Maternity, according to Iqbal, symbolises all
that is best in woman, all that she has to offer to
humanity in her chaste, steadfast and unassuming
manner in humanity’s march of evolution. To him,
a woman who creates and sustains a home and under
92 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
whose hands children grow up to be strong and pure
men and women, is a creator second only to God.
Political Values. Iqbal’s idea of ideal society
which is based on spiritual principle and value, based
on a worldwide basis, is cosmopolitan in outlook and
frees the conception of the unity of mankind from
nationalism based on the accident of geographical
situation, race, colour, language, and materialistic
conception. Pride in one’s stock or extraction, accord-
ing to Iqbal, is unhealthy for the development of the
ego. It tends to create barriers between man and
man. Nations, tribes, races, communities, castes,
and families—all claim for themselves, and take pride
in, their peculiar excellence and superiority. But these
distinctions are not based on the intrinsic worth of the
individual. Nationalism and imperialism, based on
such distinctions, ‘“‘he says, ‘rob us of Paradise’: they
make us strangers to each another, destroy the feel-
ings of brotherhood, and sow the bitter seed of war.
He dreams of a world ruled by religion, not by poli-
tics.” Every member in this society enjoys equal
status and rights in the body politic. The community
does not curb the freedom of the individual. Both
the individual and the society. submit to the Divine
Code of ethical, social, and political laws, as interpret-
ed by the Prophet. But this law is not absolute. It
admits of interpretation and adjustment in changing
circumstances. The ultimate spiritual basis of all life,
as conceived by Islam, is eternal and reveals itself
in permanence and change. It possesses eternal
principles to regulate its collective life; for eternal
gives a foothold in the world of perpetual change.
78. R. A. Nicholson, Trans., The Secrets of the Self, pp. x-xi.
 Iqbal’s Philosophy 93

“‘The teaching of the Quran that life is a process of

progressive creation necessitates that each generation,
guided but unhampered by the work of its predeces-
sors, should be permitted to solve its own problems.”
This implies the right of /jtihad—independent judg-
ment and interpretation of law in the light of the
changed and changing circumstances, which Iqbal
holds essential to the healthy development of the
body politic.
In Iqbal’s view, “‘The state from the Islamic stand-
point is an endeavour to transform these principles
[the unity of God and other implied principles] into.
space-time forces, an aspiration to realize them in a
definite human organization.’*° The membership of
Islam is not determined by birth, locality, or naturali-
sation; it consists in identity of belief. Each member
of the community in striving to make himself more
perfect and self-concentrated individual is helping to
establish the Islamic kingdom of God upon earth.
“The Kingdom of God on earth means the democ-
racy of more or less unique individuals presided over
by the most unique individual on this earth.’’#
This type of democracy would uplift humanity
and secure world peace. In Iqbal’s view, the ideal
Islamic democracy does not ignore the masses, but
develops in them a character so that they have a
higher purpose in life. Iqbal shifts the basis of democ-
racy from economic exploitation to a spiritual eleva-
tion and better economic adjustment. He looked for
Islamic democracy as a social order to implement the
79, Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p. 160.
80. Tbid., p. 147,
81, Iqbal’s letter to Nicholson, op. cit., pp. xxviii-xxix.
94 Igbal’s Phiiosophy and Education

concepts of equality, brotherhood, liberty, justice,

and humanitarianism. The Islamic democracy is, thus,
neither nationalism nor imperialism but a league of
nations, which recognises artificial boundaries and
racial distinctions for facility of reference only, and
not for restricting the social horizon of its members.
“The growth of republican spirit, and the gradual for-
mation of legislative assemblies in Muslim lands, con-
Stitutes a great step in advance.’’82 Iqbal appealed to
every Muslim nation to sink into her own self alone,
until all are strong and powerful to form a living
family of republics.
The ideal of a social order in Islam is to let man
develop all the possibilities of his nature by allowing
such freedom as is practicable. Each person in the
State would enjoy security of life, property, and honour,
freedom of religion and belief, freedom of expression,
movement, association, and occupation, and equality
of opportunity. The head of the state and an ordi-
nary individual would be equal before law. In short,
there are two basic propositions underlying political
constitution. The first is the supremacy of the law.
Authority except as an interpreter of the law has no
place in the social structure of Islam.* The second
is the equality of the members of the community.
There is no aristocracy or a privileged class in Islam.
Iqbal criticised Nietzsche’s abhorrence of “the rule of
the herd,”’ and founding a higher culture on the culti-
vation and growth of an “aristocracy of supermen.””
Iqbal regards every human being as a centre of latent
power, the possibilities of which can be developed by
82. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religous Thought in Islam, p. 165.
83. Iqbal, Jslam as an Ethical and a Political Ideal; p. 97.
 Igbal’s Philosophy 95
cultivating a certain type of character. He gives the
example of democracy of the common people in the
period of Muhammad the Prophet and Early Caliphate
as an experimental refutation of the ideas of Nietz-
sche.%
Iqbal judged contemporary value-systems, and
did not identify himself with a particular school of
thought. He approves with favour the principles and
objectives that underlie democracy and socialism,
because they offer a better chance for man’s progres-
sive development. But still he had an independent
and critical attitude towards the evils and corruptions
of these systems. He refers hopefully to democracy
as the sovereignty of the masses, but when it fails to
develop right leadership and becomes a repressive
influence arresting the growth of individuality and its
uniqueness, it is no better than a blind and mechanical
counting of heads instead of weighing them, and hence
political wisdom and justice are apt to become mere
functions of a numerical majority.®*
No doubt, Iqbal had an admiration for demo-
cratic way of lfe, and wanted to see true democracy
reigning over a united world: But he had no patience
with the practice of narrow concept of democracy
which is as harmful as Fascism and Communism.
Broadcasting on the occasion of New Year’s Day in
. 1938, Iqbal said :
“The modern age prides itself on its progress in knowledge
and its matchless developments. No doubt, this pride is justified...
But, in spite of all these developments, the tyranny of imperialism
struts abroad, covering its face in the mask of Democracy, Nation-

84. Nicholson, op. cit., p. xxix.

85. Sir Muhammad Tabal, Zarb-i Kalim (Lahore, Sh. Ghulam Ali&
Sons, 1955), p. 150.
 96 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
alism, Communism, Fascism and heaven knows what else besides.
Under these masks, in every corner of the earth, the spirit of freedom
and dignity of man are being trampled underfoot ina way of which
not even the darkest period of human history presents a parallel....
So long as this so-called democracy, this accursed nationalism and
this degraded imperialism are not shattered, so long as men do not
demonstrate by their actions that they believe that the whole world
is the family of God, so long as distinctions of race, colour, and
geographical nationalities are not wiped out completely, they will
never be able to lead a happy and contented life and the beautiful
ideal of tiberty, equality, and fraternity will never materialise.?8¢
Economic Values. To put every citizen at the
mercy of the state possessed of all political and econo-
mic power, and of all the means of living, as is done
in Russia, to solve the problems of relationship be-
tween capital and labour, and inequalities of an
industrial system, is totally opposed to the spirit of
Islam. In Iqbal’s view, although each man is influ-
enced by his environment and can reach maturity as a
member of a society, yet the central core of his being
is his moral responsibility. Any effort to reduce man
to the level of an automaton, or to reduce the central
feature of his ego is opposed to Islam. The type of
ideal society that Islam favours is a society of free in-
dividuals earning their living by their own exertions,
enjoying a high degree of economic independence, and
co-operating with each other in all the affairs of life.
Iqbal emphasised Kasb-i Halal (lawful earning
and acquisition) through personal effort and struggle.
Therefore he discourages su’al (asking) which means
getting things without personal effort. All exploiters
of others are beggars because their egos lack personal
effort and vigour. The same are those who inherit
86. Shamloo, Ed., op. cit., pp. 220-22,
 Iqgbal’s Philosophy 97
wealth or borrow ideas of others. At the same time,
Iqbal denounces slavery as a degrading institution
designed by the ingenuity of man to exploit his fellow-
beings. He attacks modern forms of Slavery, such as
political and economic exploitation, on account of
which normal human growth could not be attained
in a spirit of freedom.
In the ideal society, Iqbal demands the maximum
possible production and widest distribution of pro-
perty and income, but wants to check the inclination
of the individual towards ruthless egoism and infinite
gold-hunger by preaching fagr or disregard for and
carelessness towards the rewards which this world or
the next has to offer, and which the majority covet.
The institution of zakat is meant to provide that no
one shall be in want. It is the first example in human
history of a social security scheme operating through-
out the state, and applicable to every individual. Simi-
larly, Iqbal refers to other similar Qur’anic injunctions
against hoarding, usury, circulation of wealth only
among the well-to-do, low standard of living of the
masses, marked differences in economic classes, gambl-
ing, speculation, and other undesirable trade practices.
 Chapter IV
IQBAL’S EDUCATIONAL VIEWPOINTS AND
THEIR COMPARISON AND CONTRAST
WITH DEWEY'S PHILOSOPHY
OF EDUCATION
To conclude this study an attempt will be made
to state Iqbal’s educational viewpoint from the state-
ment of his philosophy exposed earlier, and to com-
pare these viewpoints, whenever possible, with those
of Dewey. The fact that Iqbal did not present his
views on educational problems in a specific manner
leads one to expect that inferences on educational
problems from his philosophy in some cases may be
sketchy. It is also to be expected that there is a
difference between the quality and kind of ideas ex-
pressed by someone else for him. However, keeping
these limitations in mind, an attempt is made in this
chapter to infer Iqbal’s ideas which are consistent
with his philosophical ideas.

A. Education as a Social Institution

Education is primarily a social process, and this

process constitutes one of the main dimensions of any
philosophy of education. The significance of this
social dimension of educational philosophy varies
according to the conception one has of how individuals
are, or should be, related to one another. Different
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 99
arrangements of social relations lead to different edu-
cational policies. Hence the conception of education
as a social process and function has no definite mean-
ing until one defines the kind of society one has in mind.
If one takes Iqbal’s view of society, one finds that his
philosophy of society necessitates education as a social
institution, because he has great confidence in human
society. He entrusts the education of the child to
society as against the views of thinkers like Rousseau
who suggest taking the child away from society to
nature for his education, because in Rousseau’s opinion
society, instead of educating the child, pollutes him.
Iqbal says :
Individual lives in relation to community,
Alone, he is nothing!
The wave exists in the river,
Outside the river it is nothing.!
Hence there is a firm basis for making education a
specialised function to be fulfilled in a formal agency
of society.
According to Iqbal, education as a social affair is
charged by the society with the function of bringing
up the youth for their effective participation in the life
of the group. The school as a special environment
provided by the society is responsible for providing
education for wholesome character and personality,
and training for a vocation in adult life. The school
as a social institution is related at all points to life
and is responsive to all the forces of the outside social
environment which play upon it. Iqbal would say
that “‘school is, or rather should be, ‘an idealized

1, Muhammad Iqbal, Bang-i Dara (The Caravan Bell), (Lahore, 1924),

p. 210,
 100 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
epitome’ of social life, reflecting within it the elements
of all worthful major activities that make up the work
of the society.”? The individual has to be brought
up with reference to the needs, demands, and ideals of
the society. The society entrusts this task of education
to schools which, according to Iqbal’s view, should be
conceived as an instrument of progress of the individual
and the society or individual-in-society. The school’s
accomplishment should, therefore, be judged by the
criterion of its fostering the development of indi-
viduality and its efforts in managing to adjust the indi-
vidual adequately to his growing social environment.
It can also be inferred that the school has also a
function of organising in a critical way the many pro-
cesses of informal communication and persuasion
which constantly proceed outside school to pass on and
transform ideas, attitudes, and skills. Under ideal
conditions the school passes on the common store of
purposes and ideals, clarifies the common ideology and
strengthens its appeal, and exerts a stabilising and
cohesive effect upon the community as a whole. It
also preserves, disseminates and extends pupils’ know-
ledge and experience in their environment along with
all the techniques of learning and teaching.
Iqbal would conceive as indispensable the exist-
ence of education as a social institution for critically
evaluating the culture which exists in humanity’s
contemporary life and its past traditions; for incul-
cating the need for changing the undesirable elements,
retaining the worthy ones; having a progressive,
creative vision towards the future; and providing
2. K. G. Saiyidain, Problems of Educational Reconstruction (Bombay,
Asia Publishing House, 1950), p. 59.
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 101
guidance to the community as a whole. He thus
endeavours to secure the continuity of collective life
and culture and ensure their intelligent and creative
reconstruction by influencing the course and direction
of the individual’s development.
Thus, education as a social institution is a great
concern for Iqbal, and for Dewey education is ‘‘scarce-
ly anything at all unless it is a social institution.’’?
According to Dewey, society established schools, first,
because the young need to know more than they can
learn in daily, direct participation in the life of the
community; secondly, modern life is so complex
and the community itself is so developed that they
necessarily depend and draw upon the experiences
which are remote in time and space; and, lastly, the
social inheritance is so complex that it can no longer
be transmitted by word of mouth but has to be trans-
mitted through written symbols. So the society ful-
fills the educational task with an institution designed
for this purpose. Education as a social institution
performs three functions by means of a special
chosen social environment, i.e. school, as compared
with ordinary association in life. Firstly, the school
provides a simplified environment by selecting from
the complex civilisation fairly fundamental features
capable of being responded to by the young. Second-
ly, the school environment tries to eliminate, as far as
possible, the unworthy features of the existing environ-
ment from influencing mental habits. The selection
aims at both simplifying and weeding out what is
undesirable, thus purging and idealising certain social
D. Butler, Four eae Cpales, and Their Practice in Education and
Religion rey York, Harper, 1957),p.
102 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
customs. Thirdly, the school is expected to provide
a broad, balanced, and representative social environ-
ment in order to give an opportunity to each indi-
vidual to escape from the limitations of the social group
in which he was born. The school also co-ordinates
within the disposition of each individual the influences
of the various social environments in which he enters.*
Both Dewey and Iqbal emphasise education as a
social institution. Education would lose its meaning
if itwas not a social process sponsored by society. In-
dividuals cannot grow and develop as personalities
if they do not get education through the social environ-
ment. According to both of them, society cannot
dispense with formal education as a social institution
in the modern age of technological development which
results in diversification and stratification of society
through division of labour with its distinct occupational
and professional groups.

B. Educational Aims: Their Determination and

Selection

Educational aims are primarily a phase of values.

They are conscious or unconscious value-judgments.
These judgments involve thinking in metaphysics and
epistemology. Educational aims take their root from
philosophy. Iqbal’s philosophy is the philosophy of
the self. He prizes and stresses self or individuality.
Hence in Iqbal’s view the highest or ultimate aim of
all educational effort as well as other social efforts is
to develop and strengthen the individuality of all per-
sons. In other words, the ultimate aim of man in his
4. John Dewey, Democracy and Education-(New York, Macmillan ,
1954), pp. 22-7.
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 103
life as well as in education is the actualisation and
realisation of the open, infinite possibilities within,
without, and before him. The highest ideal, according
to Iqbal, is a continued life with the highest quality of
knowledge, power, perfection, goodness, vision, and
creativity.’ But the ideal at this level is not a fixed one.
As one acquires more of the qualities of the ideal, it
shifts its place to a still higher Jevel. It does not mean
only the development of the inherent possibilities of
man, but in a great measure the individual’s power
to absorb into himself, for the reconstruction of his
experience, power, personality, and the enrichment of
his life, the influences of the universe external to him.
Sense, reason, intellect, and intelligence are the evolved
instruments for this purpose. Hence, according to
Igbal, the cultivation of any of the faculties like reason,
intellect, and intelligence is not the aim in education;
rather they are the means for the ideal of continuation
and enrichment cf life.®
According to Iqbal, the statement of the ultimate
aim and the description of its various aspects into
objectives of education as continuous life of good
health, perfection, power, knowledge, goodness, vision,
creative and original activity, and other values of
his philosophical system for the development of
individuality would not be enough. He recognises
the need for more proximate, immediate and specific
objectives which when realised would become re-
sources to achieve the ultimate aim with more vigour
and enthusiasm.?7 The actualisation of specific
objectives becomes a means and refers to immediate
5. Supra, pp. 57-8, 57-9, 76,
6. Supra, pp. 76-81, 7, Supra, p. 43-4.
104 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
direction while the ultimate aim signifies a more
remote direction.
The value of the ultimate aim as the development
of individuality is supreme because, through suggestion
and direction, it controls the selection of more proxi-
mate aims, and their execution. The development of
individuality can be accelerated by the formulation of
new creative purposes and objectives which always
determine the direction of man’s activity and evolu-
tion. Hence by means of the motive force of unceas-
ing and creative desires and ideals the individual
builds his selfhood, culture, and institutions. Educa-
tion would defeat its purpose of the development of
free, creative, and unique personalities if the educa-
tional system discourages the formation of new ideals
and objectives. These objectives, according to Iqbal,
grow out of the dynamic, forward-moving activity of
the individual in relation to his environment, cultural
heritage, ongoing experience and projected ideals.
The objectives depend also upon the nature of the
pupil, social institutions, contemporary life with due
regard to the activities of children and adults for the
development of their personalities and character and
preparation for a vocation. ‘They emerge from the
present experience and man’s problems of meeting
the constant needs of a dynamic environment; his
desire to achieve ideals by changing the environment
to his needs with the help and direction of his will,
intelligence, and valuable surviving traditions and
principles of the past.
Growth and development of individuality in active
and purposeful participation in life, through the
agency of education, requires a material and cultural
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 105
environment. There is need for intense and mani-
fold activity on the part of the growing individual
which must be carried out in vital contact with the
whole of his material and cultural environment. The
social setting provides the individual with such a
wholesome environment. Man does not live to himself
alone. On the contrary, he lives among his fellows
in a social structure. He realises his ideals in partici-
pation in society not simply as it is, but also as it is
becoming and ought to be. Iqbal’s concept of an
ideal society is a democracy of more or less unique
individuals towards which they all should move pro-
gressively for their mutual rejuvenation. Such a
socially organised environment, to Iqbal’s mind, is
not the end but a means to each individual’s effort to
realise his ideal of unique personality.2 Of course,
society does not exist for individual’s selfishness but
for mutual help through co-operative effort of all
its members. Education develops individuality by
bringing about a dynamic and progressive interaction
between the individual and the society with the object
of adjusting them to each other.
To realise the broad educational aims and values
as framed by Iqbal, the teacher will have to plan specific
objectives for classroom activities. Of course, when
these aims and values are expanded to this length and
detail, they merge with the curriculum itself. Accord-
ing to Iqbal, then, the specific objectives will not be
one or many in a specific number but a multitude as
framed by teachers and pupils. Iqbal would like
these aims to be based on democratic principles. They
should not be enforced from outside. The pupil and
8. Supra, pp. 59-60,
106 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
teacher should be free to make, choose, [Link]
them. In other words, they should be meaningful
to those who use them. Iqbal would disapprove. of
the determination of aims of one indiyidual or group,
by another individual or group, because he has great
tegard for the individuality of each person and even
urges him to make his purposes and ideals himself.?
Further, aims arise out of the [Link] concrete
situations and are selected by teacher and pupil from
among the various alternatives. The end of these
intelligently projected ideals gives an insight or vision,
and becomes an instrument in guiding both pupil
and teacher in reaching that end by helping them
consider and adjust the means, and by suggesting the
order a procedure to be followed in using the means.
Since aims are values, they provide motivating forces
to achieve the ideal put forth, and also the basis for
the evaluation of the ideal when it is achieved. Fur-
ther, according to Iqbal, his aims and values are a set
of principles, and are useful to the educator as well
as the educated, not as aims, but as suggestions for
their guidance in keeping an overall balance of all, the
values that may be involved.
Iqbal’s philosophy subscribes to that kind of
proximate educational aims which are not fixed, static,
and immutable, but which should be flexible and
subject to continual reconstruction. In a universe of
change and evolution the educational aims should be
tentative and must shift with the rest of the scenery of
changing individuals and their environments. They,
should be constantly made and remade, and be an
outgrowth of practical changing situations. Hence
9, Supra, pp. 53-4.
 ighal’s Educational Viewpoints 107
Iqbal’s educational aims do not consist in maintaining
a status quo because he preaches a life of ideals and
putposes, and ceaseless effort to realise them. The
desires, objectives, purposes and ideals are not mere
impulses, because one’s acting on impulse does not
become an activity with a purpose until one tries to see
the means at one’s command, the reasonableness of the
objective, and probable outcome of the activity. One
may note that educational aims and their outcomes
are not the same or identical in their meaning. The
former are what one tries to do and the latter are what
one actually succeeds in performing. Here one per-
ceives how aims change in the process of actualisation,
and the scope of uncertainty of result they are expected
to bring. It also points towards the importance of
careful formulation and use of aims to manage the
educative process with intelligence and vision which
Iqbal greatly emphasises.
According to Dewey, the ultimate educational
aims, though rooted in concrete situations and experi-
ence, should not be thought of as determined by exter-
nal conditions in politics, business, or religion. These
conditions supply the material by which to judge the
effects of the educational process. But these con-
ditions do not supply the educational norm.'!® Educa-
tion is itself an independent process for determining
what values deserve to be pursued as ends. Then
education is subordinate to nothing save more educa-
tion." As Dewey states: ‘“‘The educational process
has no end beyond itself: it is its own end.” Tn other

ea, ie John Dewey, The Sources of a Science of Education (New York, 1929),
11. John Dewey, Democracy and Education, p. 60. *
12. Ibid, p. 59. iste : r
108 igbal’s Philosophy and Education
words, education is one with life, and life is growth;
therefore education is growth.
Dewey also emphasises social efficiency as an aim
which ‘‘as an educational purpose should mean culti-
vation of power to join freely and fully in shared or
common activities.’’!3 According to Dewey, all educa-
tional aims have a social nature and impact. To him
an aim denotes the result of any natural process
brought to consciousness and made a factor in deter-
mining present observation and choice of ways of
acting. It signifies that an activity has become intelli-
gent. Or to have an aim, to act with a purpose, to
adjust the means to the end, to consider the future
ends in the light of the past is all one with acting in-
telligently.'¢
Dewey believes that an abstract idea like educa-
tion cannot have any aims, and that only people like
pupils, teachers, and parents have them. Hence teachers
and pupils should accept only those aims which
suit the pupils in their participation of their present
life and their eventual preparation for subsequent
events. Some people underscore the claim of children
of their present, ie. their childhood. They think
childhood to be a preparation for adult life or even
beyond. But, according to Dewey, immaturity is not
to be conceived as a liability but as an asset or a power
to grow.’ Education is a growth directed towards
the future. Preparation for future is then a by-
product of growing in present. Present growth helps in
growing well in future.’ According to him, the school
should try to aim at life here and now and not a
13. Ibid.,p. 14, Ibid.,pp. 119-21.
15. Tbid.; pp. "49:50. 16. Ibid. p. 65.
 igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 109
preparation for it. He is fearful of remote aims or values
deferred in time, which may fail to enlist the native
energies of the child because of their remoteness.!7
Dewey’s ultimate aim in education as growth
for the sake of further growth needs some speci-
fications for the character, direction, and purpose of
growth. Continued growth as the ultimate aim of
education seems confusing, for “‘it appears. to fail to
specify what is desirable or right direction for growth
to take.”'!8 Dewey’s conception, if considered from
Iqbal’s point of view, would seem to deprive life of the
charm of its ideals and purposes, and the efforts to
realise them. According to him, life without purpose
would be uninteresting, boredom, and unworthy of
living. Life does not consist in simply adjusting to
the environment but also in ever creating fresh ideals
and realising them by changing the environment.
For the most part there appears to be similarity
in the ideas of Dewey and Iqbal about the nature and
function of proximate aims in education. As to the
ultimate aim, Dewey emphasises one’s continued
growth as long as one lives, while Iqbal stresses as
aim one’s continued life possessing certain definite
characteristics. Iqbal’s aim seems to be directed more
towards some consciously known end,

C. Curriculum, Its Selection and Organisation

Curriculum which involves the considerations of
epistemology and axiology means, according to its
Latin origin, a “race course,’’ and if carried over to
17. aaa p. 60.
18. nee. Seal Modern Philosophies of Edusation (New York,
McGrail 50) 109. 4 , mM a
John De Experience and Education (New York, 1938), pp. 28-9,
i10 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
educational discourse it signifies ““course of study.”
Curriculum, as now understood, refers to the activities
and experiences of pupils, for the modification of their
behaviour, under the direction of the school. It is
one of the important ways and means in the educative
process to achieve the objectives of education. The
objectives and curriculum are so closely related that
curriculum may be conceived as aims and values writ
large in expanded form.
At present, there exists a controversy among edu-
cators regarding the composition and organisation of
the curriculum. Some educators think that the curri-
culum should be composed of subject-matter. It is
based on knowledge-mastery concept. Other educa-
tors conceive of curriculum as consisting of the
activities and experiences of the pupils. Further,
some educators believe that the curriculum should be
organised in a logical order, while others favour the
organisation of curriculum in a psychological order.
From Iqbal’s point of view, there is no need for
mastery of subject-matter, but for efficiency in, and
capacity for, creating ideals and realising them in actual
situations. He would not allow the fitting of child to
subject-matter, because in that case the activities of
pupils determined in advance will neglect their in-
terests, result in indoctrination, limit the operation of
intelligent choice and paralyse originality and creati-
vity.2° Such activities lack integrating purposes, and
contribute to make individuals dependent upon exter-
nal authority. Nor can the curriculum be wholly
based on the interests of students because a‘ desirable
eurriculum must include activities of many kinds. Kt:
“20, Supra, p. 92,
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 111
can be inferred that an overemphasis either on subject-
matter or on pupil alone is dangerous. Educative
experience, in a constructive sense, should find its
direction from the situation which includes both the
pupil and the environment, that is, the materials of
instruction. :
Iqbal would think that a desirable curriculum
consists of only those activities that supply desirable
experiences for the growth of individuality. Hence,
the quality of desirable experience is the criterion for
the selection of the curriculum. According to Iqbal,
curriculum activities should have a quality of contin-
gency. To him, things and their value and conse-
quently aims and curriculum as well should be looked
upon as relative. They get their meaning and signifi-
cance in their relationship to other things. Whatever
is learnt in such activities is flexible and capable of
modification as conditions change. The curriculum
activity should also involve socialisation, widen the
area of common interests and concerns through social
sensitivity, participation, and appreciation. The acti-
vity should be acceptable and satisfying on the whole
to the individual who engages in it.2! Iqbal would
also emphasise that. each desirable activity should
involve creativity and originality. It should provide
for learning new things in new ways through curiosity
and wonder, and should encourage experimentation
with new ideas. Curriculum activity should involve
intelligent choice and selection from among alter-
natives on the basis of profitable consequences. It
should also be purposive because purposes constitute
the integrating agencies of desirable experiences and
21. Supra, p. 63,
112 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
necessitate a psychological variety of, and effort in,
activity.
According to Iqbal, changes in social conditions,
the corresponding changes in the needs and interests
of people including children, and advancement of
knowledge, and consequently the continuous formula-
tion of educational aims require that selection of curri-
culum should also be continuous. Both the content
and material of curriculum should be constantly chang-
ed, revised, and reconstructed. The teacher may engage
continuously in its selection beginning long before he
meets his pupils in educational situation and continue
to make modifications and adjustments so long as he
works with them. The use of the textbook, although
desirable and even indispensable, should never serve
as a means of determining curriculum or subject-matter,
because too much reliance on the textbook, which itself
is a tool, overemphasises indirect experience at the
expense of direct experience. Similarly, the selection
of curriculum by authorities in advance and its pre-
scription is not decidedly the best. No kind of advance
selection and determination can be satisfactory for
particular changing situations which cannot be foreseen.
The teacher should not expect the pupils to take their
curriculum readymade from administrative authori-
ties and official curriculum designers.22
From this point of view, the school administration
and curriculum-makers should not be rigid on the
school for their prescribed programme. Rather they
have done their part by placing within the reach of
the school and teacher all the information. While
selecting activities for immediate and practical situa-
22. Supra, pp. 92-3,
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 113

tions the teacher and pupil should consider the recom-

mended programme as suggestions only as was hinted
at in the case of selection of aims. So the teacher
should, according to the views of Iqbal, neither get a
prescribed programme in advance, nor make the pro-
gramme on the spot, but he should make advance and
continuous selection. The more attention he gives
to the selection of curriculum in advance, the more
effectively its selection will be completed in the imme-
diate situation. Each later study should reconstruct,
readjust, and remake what has been selected before
until it is used in the actual situation. Even here the
teacher should learn something new that will improve
his selection of curriculum content and material for
subsequent experiences of the pupils.
Iqbal would conceive of curriculum as a pro-
gramme of sum total of desirable activities and experi-
ence of pupils, as a means of development of indi-
viduality, at school. To him, curriculum represents
the social stuff out of which the individual realises
himself. The development of personality includes
emotional attitudes, moral ideals, and the usual sort of
information in which experience has a central place.
Curriculum is dynamic and things like facts, know-
ledge, information, and _ subject-matter containing
social heritage have a secondary place. They may be
changed to fit the present situation, because Iqbal
emphasises ijtihad or reinterpretation and adjustment
even of religious values which are generally thought
to be static and fixed.
For the continuous selection of curriculum, Iqbal
would proceed according to its pragmatic value and
usefulness for the development of individuality. Of
114 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
course, he would not ignore certain subjects entirely,
because, according to him, they possess immense
instrumental value for the development of the indi-
vidual. They take their character from the way they
serve. Iqbal would emphasise the combined study of
religion, cultural history, natural and physical sciences,
psychology, metaphysics, social sciences, and literature
for the continuous development of individuality. The
inclusion of these in the curriculum content will en-
hance the learning of pupils towards intelligent thought
and action. Iqbal is fully sensitive to the value of
cultural history for the inspiration, achievement and
proper expression of individuality. The continuity
of the cultural life of the community demands on the
part of its members not only a genuine appreciation,
but also a critical appreciation of its cultural values
and traditions. The individual members must acquire
the capacity for active understanding, assimilation and
reconstruction of the existing culture.23 Reconstruction
and revision, according to Iqbal, should be based on the
needs, interests, and practical problems of the com-
munity, and should not imitate blindly the ideas and
culture of others. Ignoring the culture and past
history and borrowing ideas and culture from others
indiscriminately weaken the personality through re-
pression of creativity and originality.24 But when
Iqbal attaches value to history and historical evolution
of the community, he does not mean amusing legends
of the past but valuable traditions of the past on which
present and consequently future can also be built for
the continuity of the community.2> He does not want
ioe ceea G. Saiyidain, Igbal’s Educational Philosephy (Lahore, Ashraf,
), P, 2.
24. Muhammad Jqbal, Rumuz-i Bekhudi, pp. 186-8,
25. Ibid., pp. 172-3,
 Ighal’s Educational Viewpoints 115
to limit education to narrow attitudes of political,
racial, geographical loyalties, but inculcating a truly
international outlook and broadminded spirit for the
whole of humanity.
Iqbal deplores the Muslims’ neglect of sciences
which resulted in loss in intellectual growth and weak-
ness in economic and political position and he would
advocate sciences as an important factor in curriculum
content to make good the deficiency and develop
scientific temper. Iqbal is keenly aware of the prac-
tical significance of science in modern life, but wants
religion to provide direction to life and also application
of science. He wants religion to occupy a high
place in the realm of human experience. While refer-
ring to religion as an essential part of curriculum, he,
of course, does not mean by religion a set of dogmas
and rituals to be preached, but understanding the basic
values which support and liberate the individuality.
It can also be inferred that the curriculum should
include co-curricular activities which, through cultural,
social, and intellectual education, enrich the life and
work of pupils. To become really educative the school
should widen the sphere of activities to enlist the
child’s manifold growing powers by previding leisure
pursuits, work and play, individual hobbies and cor-
porate activities, and by relaxing rigid boundaries
which divide the home from school, study and work
from [Link] leisure.
. Further, the experiences through the study of
subjects and pursuit of activities mentioned above have
worth to the extent that they serve as means and re-
sources for illumination and solution of contempo-
rary problems. But if sometimes the contemporary
i16 igbal’s Philosophy and Education
complexities do not cover what subject-matter seems
to be useful for pupils to learn, the farseeing teacher
will direct the activities of the students into such a
situation where they will themselves demand it.
According to Iqbal, the curriculum should be
flexible with respect to individual differences among
pupils and also in point of time. Emphasis on the
development of individuality and variegated nature of
each pupil requires individualised instruction and cur-
riculum. Moreover, to say that the curriculum should
be made as life and learning develop and not to be
prepared in advance requires even a more difficult kind
of long-range planning which is broad and flexible
to cope with a variety of contingencies. The teacher,
because of his mature experience and knowledge of the
pupils’ past and present, can anticipate within limits
their future problems, and prepare information and
sources for them to guide them in their life of conti-
nued experience.
For better and continuous organisation of the
experiences of the pupils, the teacher, according to
Iqbal, should, besides knowing the pupils, study the
views of the educated adults, teachers, experts and
authorities in*different fields for the direction of the
pupils. The schemes of curriculum organisation should
be arranged, in as many ways as possible, by the
teacher in a logical pattern towards which his pupils
progressively move. He may organise curriculum in
units of subject-headings, units by centres of interest,
problems or in other ways. There is no best scheme
of advance organisation. The teacher may use all
schemes to gain perspective with régard to the pupils.
Although he should keep his pupils in mind while
 igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 117
reconstructing his advance organisation from time to
time, on the basis of suggested organisation by autho-
rities, any such organisation should be conceived as
an instrument of teaching and not as an order to be
followed in teaching.
According to Dewey, the measure of the. worth
of the school curriculum is the extent to which it is
animated by a social spirit.2° He criticises the curri-
culum loaded down with purely inherited traditional
subjects and matter, and pleads for constant criticism
and revision to make sure that it is accomplishing its
purpose. There is need for critical survey in curri-
culum because there is probability of its representing the
values of the adults rather than those of children and
youth, and those of pupils a generation ago rather than
those of the present day.?7 :
He also criticises the idea that different studies
represent separate kinds of value and that to get a
sufficient variety of independent values, the curriculum
should be constituted of a combination of various
studies.28 For him, it is based on the assumption of
faculties to be trained and leads to disintegration of
educational experience.”® It is also based on the con-
ception of diversity of interests which should be cared
for by each separate study. The outcome is conges-
tion of the course of study and the school programme
or the time-table becomes mechanical.3°
He pleads for the unity or integration of experi-
ence through organisation of interests of life by
oganisation of school materials and methods which
will operate to achieve breadth and richness of
26. Dewey, Democracy and Education, p. 415.
27. Thbid., p. 283. 28. Thid., p. 286.
29. Tbid., p. 287. 30. Ibid., p. 290,
118 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
experience.*!_ The scheme of curriculum should take
into account the adaptation of studies to the needs
and improvements of community life. It must, in its
planning, place essentials first and refinements second.
Essentials are the experiences in which the widest
groups share and things which represent the need of
specialised groups, and technical pursuits are second-
ary. In other words, the curriculum must first be
human and then professional.*?
To sum up, according to Dewey, “curriculum
which acknowledges the social responsibilities of edu-
cation must present situations where problems are
relevant to the problems of living together, and where
observations and information are calculated to
develop social insight and interest.’
Although life is individual for both: Dewey and
Iqbal, Dewey emphasises more of its social aspect.
For Iqbal, individual and society are co-ordinated and
mutually adjusted. Dewey regards as essential those
parts of the curriculum which promote sociality and
culture, but Iqbal gives the highest importance to those
parts of the curriculum which develop individuality,
although he conceives of the existence and develop-
ment of the individual only within the society. Dewey
seems to be more dissatisfied with subjects, their
boundaries and materials than Iqbal. Iqbal recog-
nises the usefulness of certain subjects for the develop-
ment of individuality. Both Dewey and Iqbal judge
subjects and materials by their instrumentality and
utility. q

31, Tbid., p. 291. 32, Ibid., p, 225. 33. Ibid.; p. 226,

 Iqbal’s Educational Viewpoints 119
D. Methods of Instruction
Method is the structure in which the curriculum
should be cast in ordcr to accomplish selected educa-
tional aims in a satisfactory manner. It is related to
the conception of the nature of the curriculum. Some-
times method is considered a phase of curriculum and,
at. others, curriculum is constructed with regard
to method. Indeed, the structure and the material,
method and curriculum are correlative terms. Method
is never something outside the materials of instruction.
Experience is a single process in which the individual
perceives the connection between something which
he tries to do, and the consequences that flow from
that attempt. The teacher helps the pupils in these
attempts by suggesting the method and procedure.
His method consists in varying the environment with
the hope that the modification of stimuli will produce
modification of pupils’ intellectual and emotional
responses. Environment is the medium in which
teacher plies his techniques. It is made up of all that
concerns the pupil and is continuous with his interests
and purposes. The teacher may organise the lesson by
controlling the educative environment in one or more
structures out of many such pedagogical methods.
Iqbal’s method of instruction will be determined
by the kind of individuals Iqbal wants to bring up by
means of education, and it will be reorganised in the
light of child psychology. Iqbal wants to bring up
each pupil a free, daring, and creative individual of
developed personality. He thinks that the individual
can develop all his powers in an atmosphere of treedom
which would allow for experimentation with the
environment, the exercise of choice and discrimination
120 Iqbal’s Philosophy and Education
in the use of methods and materials, and by learning
by direct first-hand experience. In a creative process
for the development of personality man must act and
react purposefully on his environment.** It is not a
matter of passive adaptation to a static environment.
Moreover, Iqbal thinks that the child, because of his
native tendencies, is interested in activity. He ex-
presses himself through the activity of construction.
For that he requires a concrete type of knowledge
which is useful to him for application in actual life.
This also applies to his school subjects. Theoretical,
abstract, and far-fetched ideas are useless for him.
According to Iqbal, man has been placed in such
an environment which is suited to the development
of scientific attitudes and intellectual powers. His
life in a growing and changing environment depends
upon “‘the perpetual expansion of knowledge based on
actual experience. The experience of the finite ego
to whom several possibilities are open expands by trial
and error. Therefore, error. . . is an indispensable fac-
tor in the building up of experience.’’5 It follows
from this that, through a spirit of intellectual effort,
trial and error, and intelligent exploration into the
realms of thought, one can make an original and
valuable contribution to the enrichment of life. He
encourages freedom of thought and originality for the
achievement of something unique.*® He, therefore,
favours those methods of instruction which allow a
student in his process of learning a chance of intellec-
tual initiative, and learning from his own mistakes.
He favours the methods of self-activity and learning
34. Supra, pp. 52-5.
35. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p. 82.
36. Iqbal, Payam-i Mashriq, p. 62.
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 121
by doing, which confront the students with new situa-
tions and problems, compelling them to put in their
efforts purposefully with the resources of their environ-
ment, to fit the means to the ends, and to rely on their
own efforts to learn to overcome their difficulties them-
selves. Iqbal’s ideas imply a somewhat similar inter-
pretation of the psychology of learning and experience
as of Project Method. The movement of life “‘is
determined by ends, and the presence of ends means
that it is permeated by intelligence. . . Thus ends and
purposes, whether they exist as conscious or uncon-
scious tendencies, form the warp and woof of our con-
scious existence.”37 Thus it appears that life and
experience are purposeful and intelligent, and hence
suitable educational techniques like the Project Method,
in so far as it is based on purposeful activity, is more
conducive to develop the right kind of intelligent
attitude for the development of personality.
Tqbal exhorts for purposeful activity by thinking,
planning out things and trying alternative ideas and
schemes. Intellectual curiosity and search for truth,
for him, are more important than truth itself. He
says :
Would you ensure the phoenix of knowledge?
Rely less on belief, and learn to doubt.38
But intelligence and intellectual knowledge, accord-
ing to Iqbal, are not ends in themselves but means for
the achievement of life’s purposes. Man through action
transforms knowledge into power for its use in the
reconstruction of his environment. Iqbal is, therefore,
sceptical of the value of bookish academic knowledge,

37. Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, p. 50.

38. Iqbal, Payam-i Mashriq, p, 86.
122 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
and consequently textbook method which often con-
sumes the vitality of students and fails to equip them
properly for a life of active struggle. The active quest
and yearning for achievement gives vitality to know-
ledge and life. Therefore, that knowledge and learning
is profitable for the development of individuality
which comes through activity and experience in all its
cognitive, affective, and conative aspects.
According to Iqbal, the individual exists and
develops in his manysided social environment by
establishing contact with the surrounding reality. A
life of solitary, self-sufficient contemplation which
cuts him off from the stimulating and energising
currents of social life is apt to make him egocentric
and limited in his interests and sympathies. He would,
therefore, recommend social structure as method.
Most learning, according to him, takes place in social
environment and social context. Social environ-
ment provides both content and method of learning.
Change in the social context would change the indi-
vidual. The social structure as method would aim at
democratic citizenship of pupils through student
government, civic projects in the economic and political
life of the community, and classroom teaching and
learning by sharing with the teacher the selection of
projects and their execution and evaluation.
This method links learning with life. _Iqbal’s em-
phasis on the world of phenomena as real requires that
the school should try to elicit the intellectual, aesthetic,
and moral significance of the ordinary occupations
and interests oflife, and bring the activities and occupa-
tions of life into the work of the school, because
knowledge divorced from activity in actual situations
 igbal "sy Educational Viewpoints 123
becomes dead and superficial. Iqbal would urge that
the school should be in vital rapport with the life
outside school. The school should educate children
for a changing and dynamic environment. Excursion,
observation, and experimentation beyond the walls
of the school in relation to community and social
institutions is a valuable procedure involving scientific
method. It supplements the learning at school.
Iqbal would say that realities and phenomena of life
should take the place of rigid formulae of abstract
thought. As, for example, science may be conceived
as a record of struggle of human mind against nature’s
forces by observation and research, and also as “‘science
in the service of man’’ rather than abstract laws and
formulae. In such a method which has genuine social
import, the pupils will face problems demanding their
thought and action, and will personally feel the need
for eyen some subject-matter, but with a changed
attitude.
It can be inferred from Igbal’s philosophy that
different types of desirable activities and experiences
for the development of individuality require different
methods and techniques. No single best method can
be found. Method depends upon teacher and pupils
in particular situations and they change as the cir-
cumstances change. But changing situations do not
necessitate the acceptance of new methods and rejec-
tion of old ones. Each method, whether new or old,
makes a contribution to the rich store of suggestions
indispensable for good teaching and learning.
Iqbal’s concept of originality and creativity pro-
vides justification for his insistence that teachers and
pupils should create method according to particular
24 igbal’s Philosophy and Educatioit
situations and should not follow some one method.
Iqbal would also agree with those educators who,
realising the multiplicity of methods accumulated,
have an inclination to determine the general features
of an educational undertaking or unit, to be used in
practical school situations because it utilises any of
the methods in different phases of the lesson required.
Iqbal would not accept the organisation of the
lesson, singly and exclusively, either in logical or psy-
chological order. He would recognise pre-planning and
preparation of lesson and relevant information into
logical steps as essential provided that, firstly, the
logical order does not become too formal and a source
of imposition and indoctrination and, secondly, the
teacher is sensitive to the interests and needs of pupils
and is aware that both logical and psychological orders
are necessary for different phases of the same lesson.
According to Dewey, method is not antithetical
to subject-matter. It is effective direction of subject-
matter to desired ends. Methods mean that arrange-
ment of subject-matter which makes it most effective
in use.2? Or, in other words, it is a statement of the
way the subject-matter of an experience develops effec-
tively and fruitfully. The assumption that method is
something separate is, according to Dewey, connected
with the notion of isolation of mind and self from
subject-matter and the world of things. It makes ins-
truction and learning formal and mechanical. Accord-
ing to Dewey, the traits of a good-method expressed in
terms of the attitude of the individual are straight-
forwardness, flexibility, intellectual interest or will to

39. Dewey, Democracy and Education, p. 194,

 igbai’s Educational Viewpoints 125
learn, integrity of purpose and acceptance of respon-
sibility for the consequences of one’s own activity
including thought.*°
Dewey advocates the principle of activity as a
means of understanding the lesson. Pestalozzi and
Froebel thought that objects should first be known
and then used whereas, according to Dewey, the objects
become usually known and senses are incidentally
exercised, in the course of using objects to achieve
some ends. He insists that activity must involve some
kind and amount of overt doing.4t Growth in know-
ledge is not possible by thinking alone. Thought must
be tested by action to become knowledge. Activity,
according to Dewey, is in the nature of child looked
at philosophically, psychologically, and biologically.
It is a series of changes adapted towards accom-
plishing an end.#2, Thus he would have objects and
materials used at school in both work and play as a
means of achieving ends suggested by the child’s
impulsive activities.*3 In striving to achieve his ends
the child should act:on his environment and note the
consequences in terms of his objective.
Instead of studying subjects the student works
over projects and life situations. The problem, accord-
ing to Dewey, should not start with someschoolsubject
but with some life experience. It should be the pupil’s
own real problem. Hence Dewey recommends “‘prob-
lem method” as classroom method. The steps in this
method are the same as in the scientific method.
40. sg p. 211.
41, John S. Brabacher, e History of the Problems Educatic
York, MéGraw-Hili, 1947), p. 338 f of Bee
42. Ibid. p. 239.
43. Dewey, Demiocracy and Education, pp. 180-1,
126 Ighal ‘s Philosophy and Education

According to Dewey, these are identical with the

essentials of reflective thinking.
Before arising out of a problem, the pupil has a
genuine situation of experience and there is continuous
activity in which he is interested for its own sake. A
genuine problem develops within that situation as a
stimulus to thought, and the epupil clearly locates it.
Secondly, he collects data and analyses them, which
suggests various ways of solving the problem. Thirdly,
out of the various suggestions, he constructs, projects
and elaborates his own hypothetical solution in an
orderly way. Fourthly, he tests his hypothesis experi-
mentally and sees if the consequences corroborate his
initial hypothesis. The outcome of the test is what he
learns. Learning is thus the product of the lesson rather
than its main objective. Finally, the results of experi-
ence are integrated and generalised with earlier ex-
periences.‘* Although in solving a problem each indi-
vidual has the same procedure, the specific elements of
an individual’s method of attack upon a problem are
found ultimately in his native tendencies and his acquir-
ed habits and interests. Methods, therefore, remain
the personal concern, approach, and attack of an
individual and no list can exhaust their diversity.‘
The teacher and pupil make’a joint investigation of
the problem. The teacher creates doubtsand stimulation
to think. The problem should be suitable for pupils
and moderate in the degree of difficulty. Independent
thinking and self-reliance on the part of the pupil is
commendable, but when he is in difficulty the teacher
should suggest and direct his activities to cross the
44, John Dewey, How We Think (Boston, D.C. pce and Company,
1910), pe 6 8-78; Democracy and Education, pp. 179-92, 20.
. Dewey, Demdcracy and Education. pp. 203-4.
 Iqbal’s Educational Viewpoints 127
hurdle. Knowledge of or thinking on a problem in-
volves action. Problem-solving is not opposed to
traditional methods. Sometimes it embraces them, but
the effect is different, because they havea functional
context.
Dewey gives this method a social setting by con-
ceiving of the school 2s a social organism, and a minia-
ture co-operative society. The method of instruction
for him has value to the extent that it is animated
by a social spirit, because moral and social qualities of
conduct are identical for him.** Children are grouped
and bonds of school become strengthened with the
family and the community. Informal domestic and
industrial activities are taken from the community
into the school, and constructive and creative projects
are undertaken. Some of them are individually pur-
sued, others by the common social effort of the whole
class, frequently reaching out into the community.
Thus, it can be concluded from the above exposi-
tion that Dewey and Iqbal agree in their points of view
on method.

E. Individual Differences

The doctrine of individual differences which is

popular and current in modern educational thought is
a sign of the acceptance of the individuality of each
pupil. According to this, children differ widely as to
sex, height, weight, mental and intellectual capacity,
interests, attitudes, and other emotional dispositions.
Not only do they differ in such traits, they also differ in
the rate and manner of growth in different capacities.

46. Thid., p. 415.

 128 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
For Iqbal, individuality rather than universality is
the goal of all life. Emphasis on individuality makes
life full of enthusiasm. The whole educative process
would be organised according to the individuality of
each pupil. In that case, according to Iqbal, indigenous
experience of the child rather than universality of
reason would become the measure of all educational
practice. Iqbal would stress the reorganisation of
social structure as method. Creativity and originality
in experience as a source of social progress can be ex-
pected if the teacher recognises the uniqueness and
looks into the requirements of each individual pupil,
in practical situations. The teacher should provide
an environment where there is elasticity, variety, and
room for individual adaptation, so that the unique
individuality of each child belonging to different
psychological and physiological types can be brought
to development and expression.
But individuality, according to Iqbal, is not fixed
and rigid. Nor is the social uniformity. inelastic.
For Iqbal, group culture and the individual’s creativity
are not contradictory, because the development of
individuality depends upon the culture and traditions
of the group.47 The individual uses the culture of
the group for its reconstruction. Hence the universal
in the social heritage should be subject to amendment
in the light of the individual’s experience. By accept-
ing flexibility, the educational problem, according
to Iqbal, is to discover within the individual’s present
experience the interests which the community prizes.
By cultivating these, the individual and social interests
can be harmonised in the classroom. Groups should
47. Supra, pp. 85-7,
 Iqbal’s Educational Viewpoints 129
be formed in the class by reconsidering and also re-
forming almost every time when there is a change in
the area of instruction.
Iqbal does not emphasise only the development
of unique personality. When he conceives of democ-
racy composed of unique individuals, he is also of
opinion that democracy is possible only through
mutual understanding and areas of common interests.
Hence in its application to a class of pupils and their
grouping both heterogeneity and homogeneity are
required. Individuals are homogeneous in some traits
and heterogeneous in others. A heterogeneous group
shares a greater variety of experiences of its members
and enriches the common experience of the whole
group. A certain level of homogeneity is desirable
and necessary to ensure communication, to economise
the teacher’s work and to expedite the progress of the
pupils.
Iqbal would disapprove of the idea of sharp and
strict division of pupils into intelligent and wnintelli-
gent or leaders and followers, which is based on a
wrong conception of individual differences.4¢ Almost
any normal pupil may lead in something, and almost
anybody may be a follower in something. There
are too many activities in the modern world for a
person to be a leader in everything. Moreover, to be a
good leader one must also be a good follower.
Furthermore, if leadership is to be really appreciated
by followers, they themselyes should be leaders in
some things.
According to Dewey, there are variations in indi-
viduals. These should not be suppressed for the sake
48. Supra, pp. 93-5,
 130 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
of uniformity at the cost of originality and confidence
in one’s quality of mental operation, because, due to
uniformity, a single mould of method and material of
study will prevail which will encourage artificiality.»
Each student must have originality of attitude towards
experience, and should not be measured by the pro-
duct of experience. The development of individual
differences results in social efficiency and it is not
against social expectation.s° According to Dewey, a
progressive society counts individual variations as
precious since it finds in them the means of its
growth. Hence, a democratic society should allow
for intellectual freedom, and the play for diverse
gifts and interests in its educational measures.*!
Thus, both Dewey and Iqbal recognise the facts
of homogeneity and heterogeneity among individuals,
and also their value for the development of the indi-
viduals as well as of the community. They value the
peculiar capacities of each individual and emphasise
their wholesome growth and development for the
enrichment of individuality and its contribution to
culture.

F. The Teacher
There is a change in contextinmodern education.
It lays stress upon the importance of the task and
responsibilities of the teacher, which have become
more difficult and complex than in the past. It is
usually said that education in the modern era is child-
centred, but it would also be justifiable and realistic
to say that the emphasis on the responsibilities of the
49. Dewey, Democracy and Education, p. 354.
50, Ibid., p. 142, 51, Ibid., Pp. 357,
 Iqbal *s Educational Viewpoints 131
teacher is more than ever. This is because education
is becoming more and more professional and techni-
eal. There is a growing recognition that the ultimate
success of an educational system depends upon the
teachers serving in the schools of that system.
Iqbal idealises the democratic state of affairs in
which men of concentrated personalities work together
all for each and each for all. The actual working out
of such a state of affairs necessitates the development
of democratic leadership in all affairs of life. The
democratic leadership in the school is necessary for
the development of a democratic leadership in other
social institutions.
The teacher is an important element in Iqbal’s
pattern of education. A survey of Igbal’s views, as
inferred in the previous sections of this chapter, re-
veals that the teacher’s function is not mere promotion
of literacy by imparting a certain limited quantum of
knowledge to the pupils. Due to a higher conception
of aims, curriculum and method of education as in-
ferred from Iqbal’s philosophy, the importance and
responsibility of the teacher are greatly increased.
The main direction of the educative process depends
upon the teacher. He determines the type of oppor-
tunities for the learning and growth of the pupils. He
frames objectives and arranges curriculum materials
according to immediate learning situations and experi-
ences under the suggestion and guidance of his
superiors. In fact, he is the key to the whole educa-
tive process.
The main characteristic of Iqbal’s view about the
teacher is’ that he is the child’s ideal, guide, and some-
times even a model to be followed. He is a leader
132 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
who inspires and teaches by example as well as by
precept. The pupil should have some type of devo-
tional respect and gratitude towards the teacher, as
Iqbal has towards his guide, Rumi.*? There should
exist an understanding and deep regard for the per-
sonality of one another between the teacher and the
pupil. The teacher should be such a person who
commands the respect of pupils by virtue of what he
is. According to Igbal’s line of thinking, a good
teacher never openly demands respect, but his bearing
is such as wins it. He is, as a result of wider experi-
ence and greater maturity, able to interpret life to
his pupils. He should be a specialist in the knowledge
of what he wants to teach. Iqbal is not alone in
placing stress upon the professional excellence of
the teacher for pre-planning of the lesson and pre-
paring relevant information for better discharge of
his duties. Iqbal is also aware of the necessity of the
teacher’s knowledge of the pupil whom he teaches.
As it is impossible to teach a subject without a
thorough knowledge of it, it is equally impossible to
teach a student without a thorough knowledge of him,
for the proper growth and development of his indi-
viduality. Iqbal would agree with Kandel that the shift
of emphasis from subject to the child has, in fact,
been a shift of emphasis to the teacher who must
know both the child and the meaning of subject or
what he teaches in a particular cultural environment.»
For this, the teacher requires a higher standard of pre-
paration and professional status by giving up the old
idea that ““anybody can teach’’.
se Supra, pp» 24-5.
The New Era Edueat; tive bride,
Stois (Cambridge,
ive
Massariuseette, Houghton ? Mite Conan We Aggro
 igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 133
According to Iqbal, the teacher’s prolonged and
specialised preparation should include a broad general
education, training in ability to understand the place
of cultural assets that he finds in the environment, and
the acquisition of skill in understanding pupils as
growing individuals. He should grasp the meaning
of education in the past and in the present, its relation
to society, and the contribution of psychology to the
learning process. According to Iqbal, teaching really
involves a sympathetic understanding of the place of
knowledge in the growth of each pupil, and its value
to society.
To Iqbal, the teacher during his life career is a
learner continually engaging in his growth by having
a broad horizon and open mind. He should stimu-
late children towards social progress. He should
create the educational environment of the child and
be a source of his inspiration. He should not shield
the students; rather he should encourage them to make
their own decisions and judgments, and thereby solve
their own problems themselves.‘* He makes definite
plans which are capable of modification as conditions
change. He wishes his pupils to plan things and to
change them is necessary on the basis of intelligence.
He disapproves of his pupils taking their impulses and
superficial desires as guides to action. He should
secure the intelligent participation on the part of his
pupils in the development of purposes, policies and
plans, by exhibiting his democratic spirit.
In order to work with the pupils, the teacher has
to secure their participation by invoking their interest
and calling for effort and discipline. Iqbal preaches a
34. Supra, pp. 92-3.
134 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
life of effort and activity. For him, effort is the hench-
man of interest and purpose. Individuality develops
by putting forth effort in order to face hardships and
to realise ideals. Discipline is born of the persever-
ance and endurance of the pupil in following the ideal
with [Link] The teacher may create interest in the
problem, and may even appeal to the child’s will and
self-respect to put forth effort in a disciplined way.
Interest is aroused when the pupil confronts some
difficulty. Taking interest as in impulsive urge is not
sufficiently broad, according to Iqbal’s view, to pro-
vide for all the needed education because doing a thing
on account of one’s being interested in it is too ideal
to be always practical and at times too individualistic
to be desirable.
Immediate interests of pupils, from the viewpoint
of Iqbal, leads them towards spontaneous activity
connected with present situation and also with present
satisfaction, and therefore needs a voluntary effort.
The interesting activity is carried forward because
interest arouses enough effort to move the task on its
way to completion. Conversely, the teacher should
direct the effort of the pupil to give birth to effort.
From Iqbal’s point of view, interest should primarily
permeate all school activities but, if required, it may
be supported by voluntary attention and effort.
Discipline, according to Iqbal, is inherent in all
genuine teaching-learning situations. It is an intimate
part of the personality and directive activity of the
teacher. The directive activity of the teacher leads the
pupil towards habit formation and self-control which
are important factors for genuine and internal kind of
55. Supra, pp. 63-4.
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 135
discipline. According to Iqbal, when an activity is
self-initiated, organised, purposeful, intelligent, and
resolute, it is being pursued in a disciplined way.
According to Iqbal, interest like purpose is pecu-
liarly personal to the pupil. The learner identifies
himself with the kind of activity which his environ-
ment invites. It begins with a purpose in the present
experience, and continues till the purpose is achieved.
Hence interest depends upon what has significance
for the child. Discipline and duty are not opposed to
interest. They are the power to exert in the face of
obstacles till the deferred values have been realised.
Iqbal would believe that there should be certain
optimum social conditions such as law and order which
must obtain in the school if effective learning is to take
place. According to Iqbal, discipline does not come
either from the teacher as obedience to his will or from
his interesting instruction, but froma social order of all
the students as a function of a group purpose. There is
some rule of law according to which the children and
the teacher should regulate their conduct, and this
ensures their freedom. In this way freedom is the off-
spring of authority and law, Freedom, according to
Iqbal, means to do what the law permits or urges to do,
The child learns freedom under the discipline of law.
It can be inferred from Iqbal’s philosophy that
the freedom of the pupil does not require a repressive
discipline of the teacher, but favours a suitable kind
of self-government in school. The rigidity of the
teaching procedures, prescription of rigid standards
of achievement, and mechanical discipline are all un-
warranted interference with the freedom of the child’s
growth, According to Iqbal, disciplining of power
136 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
is, of course, essential for working towards an effective
expression of the self. This discipline should be a
restraint from within, inspired by a recognition of
social obligation and of conditions necessary for
fruitful and intelligent activity in a given situation.
Iqbal disapproves of discipline by the authority
of the teacher and maintained by fear of punishment.
Fear is an evil which hinders the development of per-
sonality. The child is afraid of his teacher and ir-
rational opinion of his fellows, who are generally im-
patient to newness and originality, and consequently
the child is unable to give expression to his freedom
of thought and action, and independent judgment on
some vital issues due to the fear of a constituted
authority.
According to Iqbal, academic freedom on the
part of the teacher depends upon his training and ex-
perience. If he is going to criticise the social order,
the community should have assurance of the compe-
tence of the educational leadership of the teacher.
The teacher has academic freedom for reconstructing
the social order through persuasion, and it is limited
to the field of his specialisation. |Within this area,
he should be free to investigate, publish and teach the
truth as he sees it. Iqbal would like the teacher to
act. The teacher should present all the sides of the
controversial issue without indoctrination, so that the
students can independently think themselves through
to their own personal convictions. Iqbal would ad-
yocate that the school should be a fearless critic of the
status quo, and should be an instrument of social
progress by departing from conventional ways of think-
ing and acting. Iqbal thus allows academic freedom
 Igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 137
to the teacher who, consequently, will be able to
educate the children in a free atmosphere in order to
liberate whatever genius is latent in any child’s indi-
viduality.
According to Iqbal, the teacher must negotiate
many personal relationships with his pupils, his col-
leagues, his supervisors, parents of children, and the
lay public. He should not underestimate his relations
with his pupils. The teacher should know the pupil
and. about his home for the direction of his growth.
Education will be effective if there is a real meeting of
minds between the teacher and the pupil. Mainly for
this reason, the teacher should invite pupils to share
in planning the work of their class. Similarly, the
teachers should get a chance to participate in the task
of the supervisor or inspector and other authorities, in
order to determine the policies of their schools. These
relations should establish professional solidarity born
out of mutual respect and loyalty. The teacher should
also contact the parents of children to bring the school
and community near to each other through a parent-
teacher organisation.
According to Dewey, the task of the teacher is not
furnishing readymade subject-matter, but providing
the conditions which stimulate thinking, and taking
sympathetic attitude towards the activities of the
learner by entering into common experience. He
should allow the student to devise his own solutions,
and learn by engaging in significant activities, where
his own activities generate, support, and clinch ideas.
The teacher is neither a looker-on nor one who sup-
plies subject-matter and checks students’ reproduction
of that subject-matter. He is a participant sharing in
 138 Igbal’s Philosophy and Education
an activity. In such a shared activity the teacher is a
learner, and the learner is, without knowing it, a
teacher and, upon the whole, the less consciousness
there is on either side, of either giving or receiving
instruction, the better.%¢ Moreover, the teacher’s
task is to teach pupils to do rather than to know, to
originate rather than to repeat.*? The teacher, having
greater insight into the possibilities of continuous dev-
elopment in any suggested project, has to suggest lines
of activity. He should work out a definite and organ-
ised body of knowledge, together with a list of sources
from which additional information of the same kind
can be secured. This material would indicate the
intellectual possibilities of this and that course of
activity.5*
Dewey compares the teacher as a disciplinarian
among pupils with the parent’s place in the family.
He is an important member of the family who directs
a well-ordered home life.*® The teacher should guide
the pupils as an active member of a learning group,
who must assess the capacities and needs of students.
He must also supply subject-matter and content for
experiences that satisfy these needs and develop these
capacities. He should respect the freedom of his
students and, by virtue of his own freedom, take on
the responsibilities of the leader of group activities.
Moreover, the planning function of the responsible
teacher calls for careful deliberation and intention.
Occasionally improvisation may be a normal part of
56. Dewey, Democracy and Education, p. 188.
87. Beto The School and Society (Chicago, 1916),p.
58. c, yp Oe Philosophy of Education (New York, Harper &
Brothers, 195th, p. 5
. Dewey, Tai itor and Education, pp. 53-4,
60. Thid,, p. 65,
 igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 139
free play of intelligence on the part of both the teacher
and the pupils, but the main line of activities will follow
from careful planning on the part of the teacher.*
According to. Dewey, academic freedom given to
the teacher is not purely a personal privilege, but
it is primarily for the benefit of his students. He
should not hand out readymade conclusions but en-
courage freedom on the part of the student. Dewey
disapproves of teacher’s method of indoctrination
and propaganda as positively unethical. This method
treats the child as a means rather than as an end.
Instead of using his intellect independently, the pupil
becomes dependent upon the thinking of others.
According to Dewey, the genuine principle of
interest is the principle of identity of proposed line of
action with the self; it lies in the direction of the
agent’s own self-expression and is, therefore, imper-
iously demanded, if the agent is to be himself. If
this identification is secured, the teacher has neither
to appeal to sheer strength of will nor has he to
occupy himself with making things interesting to
the child. According to’ Dewey, certain activities are
interesting because they appeal to natural, biological,
and. social reaction tendencies located within the ner-
vous system of the normal individual. Dewey for-
mulates the schoolboy’s interests as communication
or expression, inquiry, construction, and artistic ex-
pression. These are the sources upon which depends
the active growth of the child. Interest, thus, is a
form of self-expressive activity that is acting upon
nascent, tendencies. aig is an ally: R - interest.

‘61. Ibid., p. 96.

62. Dewey, Human Nature and Condu* + (New York, 1922), p: 64,
i40 ighal’s Philosophy and Education
Interest implies effort for completing the incomplete
phase of acting by continuity of attention’ and
endurance or will. When study is arranged by the
teacher in such a way that it appeals to the interests,
then there will be sufficient effort to overcome obstacles
without appeal to duty and sterner virtues. Discipline
or the development of power of continuous attention:
is the fruit of endurance and attention. Hence one
may conclude that effort and discipline are not external
to the pupil and opposed to his interests.
According to Dewey, a teacher who falls back
upon discipline, whether in the form of punishment
or of external reward, as a motive to the performance
of a school task, is a poor teacher and a failure: To
Dewey, if children are co-operatively engaged with the
teacher in a joint project, the pursuit of the common
end will enforce its own order. The children will
discipline themselves in order to gain their accepted
objective. Hence each member of the group exercises
compulsion on every other, and in turn submits
to compulsion from him. Dewey thinks that such
occasions when pupils remain unruly, in spite of a
teacher’s best efforts, are very rare. Punishment is
permissible at that time only as a last resort, provided
it is given to have an educational effect.
Thus, it is clear from the above exposition that
Dewey and Iqbal agree in their viewpoints on the
importance, task, and responsibilities of the teacher.
To conclude this study, some of Iqbal’s ideas on
educational problems have been inferred from his
philosophy, and have been céfipared and contrasted
with Dewey’s philosophy of education. Despite their
fundamental differences in ultimate aims, in the
 igbal’s Educational Viewpoints 141
treatment of each selected problem, it was revealed
that Iqbal’s inferred practical ideas compare well with
the practical ideas of Dewey, who is considered to be
a leading modern educational thinker. One may object
to the judgment about and justification of the value
and soundness of Iqbal’s educational views because
of. their evaluation from the standpoint and criterion
of Dewey’s philosophy of education, because, in fact,
one cannot judge the value and soundness of the
viewpoints of one thinker on the authority of another.
Even if considered independently, Iqbal’s educational
viewpoints point to the fact that his philosophical
system has important and valuable educational impli-
cations. They further reflect the need for extensive
and intensive work in Iqbal’s philosophy for its appli-
cation in education and also in other spheres of life.
If his ideas are further elaborated for their value in
education, they may serve as a rich store of suggestions
for helping to reconstruct any educational system.
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(Orientalia), 1954.

Brubacher, John S., A History of the Problems of Education, New

York (McGraw-Hill), 1947.
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Butler, J.D., Four Philosophies, and Their Practice in Education
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Dewey, John, Democracy and Education, New York (Macmillan),

1954, 2

--— Experience and Education, New York (Macmillan), 1938.

—-— How We Think, Boston, 1910.

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—— The School and Society, Chicago, 1916.

—-— The Sources of a Science of Education, New York, 1929.

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