OBITUARY

The sad demise of Dr. Khawaja Abdul Hameed Irfani occurred on Sunday the 11th March, I990 at his native place in Sialkot city. Dr. Irfani was born on 4th Nov., I907 in the Mohallah of Mughlanwali of this city. He came of a business family of Kashmir. Dr. Irfani got the degrees of Masters in Arts in Persian and in English and started his carreer as a lecturer of these languages in the Government College, Quetta from I93I. The Government of those days deputed him as Liaison Officer of Education in the Consulate of Meshhad in I945 but at the time of partition in 1947 he was called back. The Government of Pakistan deputed him as its first Cultural and Press Attache at the Embassy of Tehran in I949. He continued his appointment upto I955 and after his return to Pakistan he was appointed editor of Persian quarterly Hilal in I955 but after 3 years he was re-deputed to Iran on his formal post in I958 from where he retired in 1963. After his retirement from Iran he paid several private and official visits to his dear country. Moreover he worked very efficiently as the Principal, Islamia College, Gujranwala for several years. Dr. Irfani was a great scholar of Persian language and literature, a staunch Pakistani Muslim and a deep scholar and lover of Allama Iqbal. He was conferred the degree of Ph.D. in Persian language and literature by the University of Punjab, Lahore at his dissertation on the life, works and thoughts of Malik-i-Shura Bahar of Iran. He tried his level best to introduce and popularize Allama Iqbal to the Iranians elite. He was a effective poet and writer in Persian and besides several articles a number of his works have been published in Pakistan and Iran. His following works on Allama Iqbal are noteworthy:

1. Rumi-e-Asr being a detailed introduction of Allama Iqbal’s life works and thoughts in Persian.

2. Persian translation of Allama Iqbal’s Urdu poetic work Zarb-i-Kaleem.

3. Sayings of Rumi and Iqbal, being selected from the couplets of these two sage poets alongwith the English translation of the those.

4. Iqbal-e-Iran, an introduction of Allama Iqbal’s Popularity among the Iranians as envisaged by the writer.

5. Iqbal from the points of view of the Iranians (Urdu). A selection from the prose and poetry of great Iranian contemporary scholars about Allama Iqbal’s impact on them (Persian text with Urdu translation).

Dr. Irfani was a very social, agile and fast moving personality. But he has been suffering from sugar for about a quarter century and this told upon his health. Still he remains busy in various social activities and as a founder Chairman of Bazm-e-Rumi, Sialkot till his death. May his ever anxious soul rest int eternal peace (Amen).