Asrar E Khudi and Rumooz E Bay Khudi
By Dr Basheer Ahmed Khan
Garden Grove, CA
After writing about Migration of Maulana Rumi from Balkh to Konya (Pakistan Link, Nov 2, 2018), I thought I should refresh the effort of Dr Sir Muhamad Iqbal in continuing the mission of Rumi RA after 500 years. I say refresh because I had written about Dr Iqbal and his work under the title “Fikr E Iqbal” which was published in Pakistan Link in three series in September and October of 2015.
ThatRoohul Quds (Archangel Gabriel) helps even those who are not prophets is clear from the Hadith of Nabi SA. Talking about the virtues of Hassan bin Sabith’s poetry in which he defended the mission of Nabi SA, Nabi SA said: Hassan is aided by Rooh ul Quds. This provision is kept even after ending prophethood to guide us to the true meanings of the revealed text which is lost in the diversions and dissensions that creep into the religion from time to time in accordance with consciousness and need of time.
In one of his sermons at OCS, Dr Suhaib Webb said: Because of the prayer of Nabi SA during his ascension to Heaven (Mayraj) to bless the obedient servants, obedient servants of Allah still gets some good insights and their supplications are fulfilled. Referring to the two, three and four wings of angels mentioned in the Qur’an (Ch35 V1), Dr Webb pointed out that his teacher at Al Azhar told him that the wings of the angels referred to in this verse of the Qur’an are the number of Rakaaths of our prayers we perform with sincerity each day giving the angels their wings with which they come to our help either swiftly or with delay. Understanding the meaning and spirit of verses like this can’t be without the blessing of God and the help from the Archangel, he said.
Dr Iqbal, who considered Rumi as his spiritual guide, could present his message and his consciousness in a new paradigm for the benefit of those of his time and times to come. By this I wanted to show how God plans to keep His consciousness alive in man in continuum for the benefit of mankind however much man might endeavor to suppress it and destroy it. I will write in this article about Dr Iqbal’s effort to clear the confusion and conflict in understanding the Creator and creation and how the creation can live in peace and happiness by fulfilling the mission of the Creator. Not understanding this properly we have either rejected God or behave like God or destroy ourselves in the hope of becoming lesser gods by joining and becoming a part of His spirit (Hulool).
Ever since man got the faculty of comprehension, analysis and synthesis, he has been trying to understand the reality behind visible objects and events. He has been trying to know the reality of the hidden spirit which keeps his physical body alive and active. He has been trying to understand the reality of his economic, physical, social and emotional circumstances and its relationship with events and his own responses. His attempts have not reached fruition because he is confused by a barrage of ideas and suggestions. The medicines and psychedelic given to him when he is confused and agitated do not help him to understand the realities or solve the problems he faces but only put his mind to rest and rot or put him to sleep and even kill him, to the dismay of both the experts in the field and to the one who is undergoing this traumatic experience.
It is our common observation that when we are healthy, young, energetic and have no worries, we tend to be arrogant and reckless in our behavior. When problems affront us, we become despondent and even commit suicide or homicide. In both situations, we put ourselves and our society into quandary. How can we moderate the behavior of man to behave responsibly, both in success and in adversity, is the subject and concern of all social scientists and prophets. Because of the limitation put on them by their own intellect and institutions, social scientists can only grasp and present partial truths without risking their livelihood and put the blame of failure of their understanding on the imperfect nature of man and the world. On the other hand, Prophets under divine inspiration and no personal ambitions understood the truth honestly and expounded it fearlessly. If prophetic teachings have gone into disrepute it is because of the faulty understanding and botched practices by those who claim to profess allegiance to them.
Dr Iqbal, who had exposure to both the institutional and prophetic sources of knowledge, also has given his understanding and his solution to this problem of exuberance and despair of mankind. In this endeavor he admits that Rumi was his spiritual guide like Shams Tabrizi was to Rumi. How monumental was his work is evident from the fact that his teacher, Dr Sir Arnold, translated his Asrar E Khudi from Persian into English.
Success of Dr Iqbal’s work can be attributed to the age-old Brahminical consciousness etched up in his mind honed by Islam which came into their household when his ancestors converted to this faith. His interaction with modern life and modern knowledge at the universities in London and Germany gave him the opportunity to present it in consonance with modern consciousness in a lucid form. He has written about it in ten volumes of his Urdu and Persian poetry and more specifically in the two collections mentioned in the title.
Poetry is the best medium to express these sublime thoughts which evade the grasp of words. Poetry leaves much more unsaid in words to prevent the distortion of thought by words and leaves the remaining to the discerning reader to understand it in the light of his own knowledge and life experience.
Dr Iqbal says that the arrogant and reckless behavior of man when he is young, energetic and fortunate is because of the misconception that his existence is not only autonomous but independent. Even though he sees his dependency on several things for his existence and achievements, he fails to admit it in the correct connotation and thinks that he has a right over them of his own.
Sir Iqbal says in the following couplets: Indeed you are bestowed with a self and with autonomy and independence. This freedom is not given to you by yourself. Your freedom (Khudi) has its origin from your Creator, the One to whom everything belongs and to whom you approach in the hour of your need (La Ilaha Il lal Lah). Therefore, know that both the happy time of spring and the melancholy of autumn in your life are from the One to Whom everything belongs.
Khudi Ka Sir-ray Nihan La Ilaha Il-lal-lah
Bahar Ho Ya Khazan La Ilaha- il-lah
He further elucidates this point by pointing to this poignant reality that our existence, its sustenance and its growth and its beauty and its value is because that Allah has given it to all of us through our spirits which is from a part of His Own Spirit like the ocean that gives a drop of water to the shell to nurture it and make that drop into a pearl. Without Him in our lives, we are nothing.
Khudi ra us wujooday Haq wujooday
Khudi ra us Namooday Haq Namooday
Nami Danam Kay Ein Tabinda Gauhar
Kuja Booday Agar Darya Na Booday
In the following couplet Dr Iqbal refers to the origin of our Self and its freedom (Khudi) to the precious drop of water (Khatra e Naisan) and our life in this world to a shell which is given the opportunity of accepting this drop and turning it into a pearl. Our earthly body which has been given our souls by God should nurture this soul like what shell does to the drop of water and makes it a pearl. Our life serves no purpose if it does not function like the shell and wastes this drop to become just a scallop instead of a pearl. Such a life is useless, he says.
Zindagani Hai Sadaf, Khatra E Naisan Hai Khudi
Woh Sadaf Kya kay Jo Khatray ko Guhar Kar Na Sakay
Dr Iqbal knows how difficult this process is and that is why he says in the following couplet: The only thing in my earthly existence is the spirit which You have blown into me and it is difficult for me to do justice to it while meeting the demands of lust, greed, name and fame of my earthly existence.
Is Paykar e Khaki May Ek Shai Hai so Theri hai
Mayray liye Mushkil hai Is Shai ki Nigahbani
This Self (Khudi) is not Independent as it is derived from a Creator. Therefore, it can’t be reckless in exercise of its Independence ignoring its responsibility to the other creations. This is in contrast to Ego which is self-aggrandizement that makes us to overlook the harm it causes to others while we are scheming for our success. Dr Iqbal wrote Asrar eKhudi not just to differentiate between Khudi and Ego, but also to negate the nihilistic concepts of stoicism which was rampant in the name of religiosity and to whip the people into positive action.
Bay Khudi (Negating the self) is essential to reign in the Khudi, the self. To Dr Iqbal Bay-Khudi is not the confusion of the cobweb into which we are caught during the normal course of our thought process or under the influence of psychedelics and babble incoherently or act aimlessly. To him Bay Khudi is enhancing the Self by using the prowess of self not for self but for the good of all. This enhanced self is the Bay Khud soul and not the meek and inactive and confused one which thinks that it has merged with the soul of God and become a part of God and does some limited magical feats and causes disasters in people’s lives. We see reports of such maniacs in daily newspapers.
Maulana Waheeduddin Khan has explained the concept of Bay Khudi thus: Man can accomplish great things if he locks the little cog wheel of his efforts into the big plan of God’s cog wheel which is to establish peace, progress and harmony in the life of human being as it is in celestial objects. Man is able to accomplish this because his efforts gain momentum by the wheel of Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient God. By corollary if man allows the wheel of his life to revolve independent of God’s plan then he may achieve some selfish objectives at great loss and risk to society. By keeping God out of the equation, we lose the momentum and by going against the big wheel we disturb the peace and harmony in our lives altogether.
When the self (Khud) becomes selfless (Bay Khud) then God will do everything according to the desire of such a person and prompting such a person not to be satisfied by destiny but working hard to make his place in it. Iqbal says in this couplet:
Khudi Ko Kar Buland Ithna Kay Har Taqdeer Say Pehlay
Khuda Banday Say Khud Puchay Batha Thayri Raza Kya Hai.
Dr Iqbal further says: Our earthly existence is neither angelical nor devilish. It is we who make it so by either making our self, selfless for the good of all or make it selfish to benefit our ownselves through what God has blessed us with and make this world a hell for the others right away and for ourselves sooner or later.
Khudi say Zindagi Banthi Hai Jannath Bhi Jahannam Bhi
Yay Khaki Apni Fitrath May Na Noori Hai Na Nari Hai.
In the concept of Khudi and Bay Khudi Dr Iqbal has given the sum and substance of teachings of all prophets and sages who strived to bring peace, progress and tranquility in individuals and in society which is disturbed and destroyed by the stoicism of some and boisterousness of others.
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