The teaching of the Qur'an that life is a process of progressive creation necessitates that each generation, guided but unhampered by the work of its predecessors, should be permitted to solve its own problems.

(The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam)

Iqbal Study Group Copenhagen Session held on 17th March 2010:

An extremely meaningful and one of the most important sessions of  Iqbal Study Group on the Concept of Khudi was held on the 17th. March 2010. The two lectures by Ghulam Sabir and Sarosh Alamgir lasted almost for two hours.

Ghulam Sabir in his short introductory speech of 15 minutes briefed the participants on the following points with the help of Iqbal’s poetry:

1. In the absence of feeling the presence of Khudi in one’s ownself, all sorts of talk and discussion on this vital aspect is no more than what Iqbal said “Khudi bhi fasana, Khuda bhi fasana”.
2. What is Khudi? He quoted Iqbal’s Persian verses, “Nilta-i noor-i key nam-i oo khudist, Zer-i khank-i ma sharar-i zindagist”, then translated the two verses in English.
3. The Khudi in an individual and where from it came to Man – That is God, the fountain source of life and Khudi, the All Embracing Ego or Ultimate Ego.
4. Man possesses highest degree of Khudi as compaired to all other creations of God.

After the above short introduction by Ghulam Sabir, an extensive lecture followed by Sarosh Alamgir. He is one of the life members of Iqbal Academy Scandinavia. He is highly knowledgeable young man and a lovers of Iqbal.

In a very simple and concise way he deliberated Khudi’s presence in Man explaining that the Khudi is the whole of a person including  his body of flesh and bones, his mind, his heart and his very soul. Then he explained about the development of personality in an individual after which, equipped with Khudi, one becomes mindful of his responsibilities and then plays his role in the society. At the end of his lecture he referred to Iqbal’s Rumuz-i Bekhudi’s teachings that how the individual Khudi is able  to create an ideal society. He ended his speech by summarising the main points of his entire talk.

It was a moving seen when a couple of the Group members stood one by one and expressed their feelings with excitement telling that it was a day when someone has pierced in their soul and left them felt filled with sense of khudi in their blood.

A full text of the speech of Sarosh Alamgir will shortly be displayed on the website of Iqbal Academy Scandinavia.

G. Sabir