THE  ISLAMIC  CITIES

Introduction
The rise and fall of he Muslim Ummah was  a very favorite topic with ‘All«mah Iqb«l. His pride at the achievements of the Ummah during the period of its glory knew  no bounds, and similar  was his grief at its  decline and degeneration down to  his days. The latest wound to  his  heart was the destruction of the Uthmaniyah Khil«fah and its dismemberment into secular nation states. This tragedy was, in a great measure, brought about by the untimely rebellion of the Arab world, which  can only be called a treason. However, the purpose of bringing both these aspects to the Muslim Ummah’s attention was to remind it of its past glory and to persuade it to start the difficult but not impossible task of reformation which would lead  to its rejuvenation and renaissance. This poem is one such effort, and deals with just one aspect of the Islamic civilization, viz. the grandeur of its cities.

Translation
The region of Delhi ¹  is adored by my grieved heart
In every speck of  it the ancestors’ blood is asleep

Why should not the land of this desolate garden be holy?
This region is the shrine of the grandeur of Islam

Kings of the Khair al-Umam ² are asleep in this land
Dependent on whose rule remained the world order

                Memory of assembly’s  warmth still renders the heart restless
                The splendor has been burnt but memory of the splendor is still secure

Though  Jah«nab«d³ also is a shrine for the Muslim
Baghd«d⁴  as well is deserving of this magnificence

This  is the garden the source of whose pride was
The  wild tulip which was called  the culture of £ij«z

Why should not the dust of this  habitation be equivalent to Iram ⁵
Which witnessed the footsteps of the Prophet’s  successors

                The garden whose flower buds were the garden’s  wealth is this
                The grave yard of those who made Rome tremble is this⁶

The land  of Qurtubah ⁷ also is the light of the Muslim’s eye
Which shined in Europe’s darkness like the candle of ñër ⁸

Extinguishing of this lamp  dispersed the assembly of Millat-i-Baiî« ⁹
And lighted the lamp of the present day’s  materialistic civilization

                This holy region is the grave of that civilization
                With which the life blood still exists in the veins of Europe’s vines¹⁰

The tract of Constantinople ¹¹, that is the Caesar’s city
The perpetual banner of the grandeur of the Ummah’s  Mahdâ ¹²

Like the £aram’s dust this region is also holy
It is the shrine of descendants of Sh«h-i-Lawl«k ¹³

Its breeze is holy like the fragrance of rose
A voice is calling from the tomb of Ayyëb AnÅ«râ ¹⁴

“O Muslim! this city is the heart of the Nation of Islam !
This city is the reward for millenniums of blood sacrifices!”

But you are that land, O the resting place of Mustaf«
Even to the Ka`bah  whose sight is better than £ajj-i-Akbar ¹⁵

In the world’s  ring you are shining like a gem
Your land was the birth place of our grandeur

That Magnificent Emperor got rest in your midst
Under whose protection the world nations got  security

Whose successors became rulers of world’s empires
Became successors of Caesar, inheritors of J«m’s  throne ¹⁶

If the Muslim nationalism is restricted to place
Neither India nor Persia nor Syria is its base

Ah Yathrib!¹⁷  You are the Muslim’s  homeland and his shelter
You are the focal point of the rays of his inner feelings

                As long as you exist, we will  also flourish in the world
                You are the morning of this garden we are the dew’s pearls ¹⁸

Explanatory Notes
1,3. Delhi- Delhi was also  called Sh«hjah«nabad or Jah«nabad after its re-establishment by the famous Mughal Emperor, Sh«hjah«n (reigned 1627-57). Except for short periods of time  it was the capital of several Muslim dynasties for a period  of 664 years from 1193 to 1857. It was conquered by Sulè«n Quèb al-Dân Aibak in 1193 who made it his  capital, and was lost to  the British in 1857 after the unfortunate defeat of the India’s  freedom fighters in the first war of independence. During this long period it was not only the political capital of the Muslim India but was also a showpiece of their cultural, social and intellectual progress and achievements. It was not only the seat of some of the best and most powerful emperors of India,  as is exhibited  by its buildings and other historical relics,  but was also the rendezvous of the best spiritual, ecclesiastical  and temporal scholars of the world. Qureshi (1942) (Appendix III, No. 50) says, “ It  is now being gradually recognized that the Sultanate was a part of the greater  world of Islam, that it possessed intimate sources of knowledge about the rest of the Muslim world, in particular  the Eastern lands, and that the history and institutions of the empire of  Delhi cannot be properly understood if they are separated from the general background of Islamic History.” (p. vi). “ Delhi became the most enlightened city of the East and the fame of the Sultanate spread into the four corners of the Muslim world” (p. 5). This status of Delhi entitles it to be the starting point of this poem.

During the greater part of the suzerainty of Muslims the Muslim world has consisted of three important regions, viz  (1) the Eastern region with its center at Delhi, (ii) the Central region with its center at Baghd«d and Qusèunèuniyah (Constantinople) and (iii) the Western region with its centre at Qurtubah (Cordoba) in Islamic Spain. ‘All«mah Iqb«l describes  the glories of all of them in this poem. This is followed by his tribute to Madânah Munawwarah and Makkah Mu‘aïïamah which  are the original spiritual centers of the Islamic world and the Muslim’s heart.

2. “Khair al-Umam-” The title of the Muslim Ummah as is conferred on them by the Holy Qur’«n 3:110.

4. Baghd«d- it is one of the world’s oldest cities and is situated in Iraq. It remained the capital of the Abb«sid Dynasty for about 450 years from the middle of the eighth to the middle of the twelfth centuries. For this period it is well known for its achievements in the fields of learning, art and culture as well as its cosmopolitan nature. Though it preceded Delhi’s glory it was in no way different from that.

5. Iram- This was  a famous garden in Yemen, established on the model of Paradise by Shadd«d, an ancient king. This word is also used for Paradise.

6. Allusion to the struggle of the Muslim muj«hids whose struggle in the cause of God and Islam shook up and ultimately destroyed the Eastern or the Byzantine part of the Roman Empire.

7. Qurèubah (Cordova)- This  important city in north-central Spain was the capital of the Muslim Khil«fah in Andalus (Spain) for about three centuries from the middle of the eighth to the middle of the eleventh centuries. During this period its contribution to the strength of the Muslims and Islam in Spain as well as its rich and intellectual culture is famous. ‘All«mah Iqb«l was very much moved during his visit to Spain in 1933, which is reflected in several poems in his book B«l-i-Jibrâl, the most  important of which is “Masjid-i-Qurèubah” (written in Spain, particularly in Cordova), which can be appreciated and enjoyed only by reading the poem itself. However, the following  two verses are presented as a small sample:

(193) The signal of the Man of God is your majesty and beauty
          He has majesty and beauty as you have majesty and beauty

(194) The K’abah of the people of learning! The grandeur of Islam
          You have made the Andalus region equal in rank to the £aram

(Appendix III, No. 29.)

8. Allusion to the leading role of Qurtubah in the spread of knowledge in Europe. Cf.:

(195) Whose vision educating the East and the West  was
          Whose intellect beacon of light in Europe’s  darkness was

(Appendix III, No. 29.)

9. Millat-i-Baiî« - It means  “the nation like the illuminated egg ”, which comes from the bright egg-shaped mark on the palm of S. Mësa A.S. Conferred by God at Mount ñër ( The Holy Qur’«n 27:12). ‘All«mah Iqb«l has frequently used this name for the Muslim Ummah.

10. Allusion to the fact that Europe’s  material and intellectual progress is the result of the light of learning radiating from Cordova and its educational institutions which brought about the Reformation and Renaissance in Europe.

11. Qusèunèuniyah (Constantinople)- This the third of the Muslim city which saw the  beauty and grandeur of the Muslim world. It was the capital of the Uthm«niya Khil«fah from 1453 to 1921.  It was originally established by the Romans and called Constantinople by them after the Emperor Constantine (280-337). This is referred to in the first hemistich of this verse.

12. Allusion to the Holy Prophet S.A.W.

13. Sh«h-i-Lawl«k- This is the title of the Holy Prophet S.A.W which comes from a £adith-i-Qudsi,  “ If  I  had not intended to create thee (the Holy Prophet S.A.W) I would have not created the universe”.

14. Abu Ayyëb AnÅ«râ R.A.- He was an eminent companion of the Holy Prophet S.A.W, who was martyred in a battle for the conquest of Constantinople during the Khil«fah of  Mu`«wiyah R.A.

15. £ajj-i-Akbar- The Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah Mu`«ïïamah which falls on a Friday and is considered to be equal to a thousand pilgrimages.

16. Allusion to the fact that Muslims conquered and have ruled, since the seventh century lands which once formed the mighty Roman and Persian Empires.

17. Yathrib- The original name of Madânah Munawwarah which is also used as an alternate name.

18. This is a beautiful metaphor of the morning and its beauty created by the morning’s dew whose droplets shine like pearls. Just as the morning dew lends beauty to the morning, Muslims  added beauty to the world (metaphor of a garden used) by shining like dew drops.