The English Translation of Poetry of Dr. Iqbal

By: Dr. Maqsood Jafri

Mr. Surjit Singh Lamba has translated the Urdu poem of Dr. Allama Iqbal in to English verse. The name of the poem is " Shikwa and Jawab-e-Shikwa" ( Complaint and Reply). Mr. Lamba belongs to Sikh community and hails from Rawalpindi, Pakistan. His parents migrated to India at the time of partition in 1947. He now resides in New Delhi, India and is one of my dear friends.He is a renowned scholar and is gifted with the gems of ecstasy. He has kindly visited my residence in Pakistan and America. I have found him a man of intense passions. About four years ago, when he visited me in New York, he gave me his valuable book titled  "Quran-e-Natiq"( The Speaking Quran) which is about the holy Prophet of Islam.

He is a great fan of Dr. Allama Iqbal and is decorated with the title of "Hafiz-e-Iqbal." Whenever, he visits Pakistan,he is especially invited by Dr. Justice Javid Iqbal who considers him as a member of his family. The lovers of Allama Iqbal invite him and listen to his soul stirring and thought provoking lectures on Iqbal with intense solemnity. He has successfully translated the famous Urdu poem of Dr. Allama Iqbal in to English. He contacted me from India and recited some of the translated verses on phone which I found very powerful, fascinating and facile. As he well understands the poetry of Dr. Iqbal and wields good command over English language, his translation is splendid and inspiring.

Dr. Allama Iqbal in his poem "Shikwa" had addressed God and complained about the miseries of the Muslims. In this poem, he said how the Muslims sacrificed for the glory of God and for His divine mission. But the Muslims are neglected and do not have His blessings. It was a very strong poem in the form of a complaint to God. The Muslim hard liners and the narrow minded clerics did not comprehend the poetic,allegorical and metaphoric beauties and accessories of the poem and branded him an infidel and heretic for such poetry. They also issued a decree of infidelity against him. On this, Dr. Iqbal wrote " Jawab-e-Shikwa." In His reply to the complaint, God addressed the Muslims and counted His favors on them. God reprimanded the Muslims for being divided in to sects and races. Having become lazy, indolent and insolent, they do not struggle and depend on fate. In this way, Dr. Allama Iqbal awakened the Muslims from deep slumber and pointed out their shortcomings and loopholes. He showed them the real path of success and exhorted them to end priesthood and monarchy.

In this " Reply from God," we find that Dr. Allama Iqbal showed us the way of God to Man. God wants us to be perfect Muslims and good humans to serve mankind. John Milton in his famous poetry books " Paradise Lost" and " Paradise Regained" finds the salvation of the Christians in the pale of the teachings of Jesus Christ. His poem shows the ways of God to Man. Similarly, Dr. Iqbal devised a sublime poetic style to steer the skiff of the Muslims to safe shore.

 The translator is not a Muslim but his zeal and zest for Iqbal surpasses all his contemporaries. He is a man of wisdom and passion. He has been endowed with the natural gift of creation, imagination and intuition. It is a rhymed translation. It is not prosaic, it is poetic. It is my proud privilege to write the Foreword of the book. Dr. Javid Iqbal opines about his literary services in these words:" He is an ardent lover of Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal and his poetry. His participation in world symposiums for fostering the spirit of universal brotherhood makes him a " Global Personality." The Chairman of Iqbal Academy India Dr. Syed Zafar Mahmood eulogizing the work of Mr. Lamba writes:" The book garnishes the beautiful bouquet of rich works authored in India and across the globe to broadcast Iqbals' panacea to to heal the world."  It is indeed a great  task done by the translator. William Wordsworth regarded his poetry as a "Chosen Task." The same way, I deem this excellent translation of the poetry of Dr. Allama Iqbal a " Chosen Task" by Surjit Singh Lamba. He has achieved high place in the translators of Dr. Iqbal. We must applaud the translations of the works of Dr. Iqbal done by Dr. Nicholson, Professor A.J. Arberry, and Khushwant Singh for their arduous and irksome efforts but the sincerity and conviction imbibed and instilled in the lines of Mr. Lamba has no parallel.