On the Issue of the Concept of Taqlid in the Iqbal’s Poetry: Selfless Following or Shameless Imitation?

Abstract

Muhammad Iqbal (1877–1938) was a notable figure in the Muslim Reformation movement in India of his time. He wrote poetry in Urdu and Persian and philosophical prose in English. The article is devoted to a rare case in the poetic practice of Iqbal when the theological concept of taqlid — “imitation”, “following the tradition”, radically changes its connotation in a poetic text. In Islam, there is a trend opposite to taqlid –ijtihad, the solution of emerging legal problems that had no precedent. The term ijtihad is always mentioned by Iqbal in the same sense, while for taqlid the situation is different. At the beginning of his creative career (1901–1905), the poet believed that “Suicide is better than the path of imitation (taqlid)”; however, in the poems in Persian “The Secrets of the Self” (Asrār-i Xudī, 1915), and then “The Mysteries of Selflessness” (Rumūz-i Bīxudī, 1918) taqlid acquires a positive connotation. Iqbal’s position is reflected in his comments on Nicholson’s English translation: “The idea is that taqlid is also a form of love”. The second poem deals with the formation of the Muslim nation. Chapter 16 of the poem Rumūz-i Bīxudī is titled: “In explaining that in the period of the decline of the nation, taqlid is better than ijtihad.” Nevertheless, examples of the positive use of the motive taqlid make up a smaller part of the statistics. Iqbal-Westerner and modernist comes to the conclusion that the penetration of the Western ideas, as well as the influence of the West on all spheres of life in India of his time, is fraught with terrible danger. At the same time, the poet’s attention is drawn to ijtihad, which contributes to progressive changes in the life of some Muslim countries. A. Schimmel, in her main work “Gabriel’s Wing” (first published in 1963), does not mention the positive connotation of Iqbal’s taqlid. Meanwhile, as one can see, the concept of taqlid, while retaining its meaning of “imitation, following”, changes its connotation depending on the poetic discourse.