MUHAMMAD SALEEM
LAHORE: The 145th birth anniversary of the national poet, Dr Allama Muhammad Iqbal will be observed across the country with national fervor and zeal on Wednesday (today).
The day will begin with special prayers in mosques for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan. Dr Allama Muhammad Iqbal known as “Poet of East” was born in Sialkot on November 9, 1877.
To mark the day, different social and literary organisations have planned seminars, exhibitions and conferences to honor the national poet.
Dr Iqbal awakened the Muslims of the sub-continent through his poetry and political acumen by presenting the idea of the creation of Pakistan through his historic address at Allahabad in 1930.
His Allabad address had given a clear direction and separate identity to the Muslims of the sub-continent to achieve Pakistan. Iqbal’s ideology and principles of life are the best source of inspiration for people in all sectors of life by strictly adhering to his lesson of Khudi (ego) and preservation of national identity.
Iqbal attended Scottish Mission School Sialkot for his early education and graduated from the prestigious Government College Lahore in 1897.
He earned his master’s degree in philosophy from the same institution in 1899. He received a scholarship from Trinity College in Cambridge and graduated as a bachelor of arts in 1906. Iqbal earned a doctorate degree from Ludwig Maximilian University in Germany in 1908 with his thesis on the development of metaphysics in Persia. The same year, he returned to Lahore and joined Government College University as a professor of philosophy and English literature. In 1922, he was knighted by King George V Iqbal also persuaded Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, to return from England and lead the Indian Muslims in their struggle for a separate homeland. Jinnah returned to India in 1936 and became the president of the All India Muslim League, the founding political party of Pakistan. People hailing from different walks of life acknowledged the services of national poet.
