Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani has said the nation should renew its pledge to translate the universal message of love, peace and harmony of Allama Iqbal into a living reality by applying it in particular way to the affairs of the country. In his message on the occasion of 133rd birth anniversary of poet, philosopher and thinker Allama Muhammad Iqbal, being celebrated on November 9, the Prime Minister said, “It is with a deep sense of pride and profound feelings of gratitude that we are celebrating the birth anniversary of Allama Muhammad Iqbal, the poet and philosopher of all times.”
He said given the unique nature of challenges facing the humanity in general and the Muslim Ummah in particular, the relevance of Dr. Iqbal’s message and thought has increased manifold.
Prime Minister Gilani said, “We owe not only a poetry that stirs our soul and a philosophy to Allama Iqbal that serves as a clarion call for a dynamic life, but also a national home that he visualized for us and gave it a conceptual form.”
He said, “Allama Iqbal awakened the desire to seek our identity and our entity as Muslims and urged the Muslims of the sub-continent to turn to Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah to lead them in their struggle for freedom.”
Gilani said, “We are celebrating the birth anniversary of Allama Iqbal at a critical juncture of our national history.”
He said the Allama Iqbal, the poet of the East, was the harbinger of hope.
Prime Minister Gilani said Allama Iqbal taught the lesson of not submitting before the challenges and urged the Muslims to find creative solutions to their problems by depending upon their inherent strengths.
“Allama Iqbal’s life-long mission was to create in the Muslims an impelling awareness of the need for synergizing efforts and energies for the overall welfare of humanity,” he said.
The Prime Minister said the thought of Iqbal was instrumental in marshalling the multitudes of Muslims into a well-knit nation.
He said in his poetry Allama Iqbal stressed that the pre-requisites for Islamic renaissance are self-gnosis and discipline, which he defined as unquestioning obedience to the will of ALLAH and action, which he interpreted as steadfast endeavour to follow the injunctions of the Holy Qur’an and the teachings of the Holy Prophet (PBUH).
The Prime Minister said, “The scourges of terrorism and extremism that afflict our body politic can be eliminated by preaching Allama Iqbal’s message and forging unity in our ranks.”
He said the policies of the government have been set in the direction of Allama Iqbal’s vision and the government is committed to mould political, social and economic systems in accordance with the vision of Allama Iqbal.
The Prime Minister said, “Iqbal’s thought can help us fix and achieve our national goals through awakening our collective ego.”
He said, “Allama Iqbal believed in the dignity and brotherhood of man as a basis to establish peace and global order.”
The Prime Minister said, “Indeed, the best tribute we can pay to his memory is to ensure that we do not allow any vested interest to deflect us from this course.”
