Justification Of “Shikwa” And “Jawab e Shikwa” in Iqbal's Thought

Abstract

Allama Iqbal was a great poet and thinker of the twentieth century. He used poetry as one of the most important tools for the awakening of the Muslim Ummah. In Urdu and Persian he devised a new vocabulary and a new style to present his wise and philosophical thoughts. Initially, he adopted the traditional style of poetry and took the discipleship of a great poet like Dagh Dehlvi. But very soon he abandoned this style of poetry. After returning from Europe, there was a complete change in style.The first successful poem of this changed style and style can be called "Shikwa". In “Shikwa”, the desperation and helplessness of the Muslims was attributed to God's indifference. In "Shikwa" the style of boldness is naturally dominant. In it, the services of Muslims have been highlighted, from which the people of God have benefited. In “Jawab e Shikwa”, it is said that the dialogue is from God, so his style is different. In this, the complacency of the Muslims, their aversion to hard work and their negligence have been blamed for their present situation.When Iqbal wrote "Shikwa", a storm arose against him and many Mullahs also imposed fatwas of disbelief on him, but when Iqbal wrote "Jawab-e-Shikwa", people started to hide their faces and from their first thoughts, they began to move, in which Iqbal was challenged. These two great poems are very central in Iqbal's thought. The importance of these two poems is reflected in all the later poetry of Iqbal. In this article, an attempt has been made to trace the causes and factors of the creation of these two poems and to determine their status.