Issued by Pakistan

Issued on Nov 9, 1976

Issued for : Pakistan Post Office is issuing a promotional commemorative Postage Stamp of 20 Paisa on 9^th November 1976 to announce Allama Iqbal Centenary Year which falls in 1977. Similar promotional stamps were brought out on 9^th November 1974 & 1975.

Description : Stamp is horizontal and rectangular in format. One of the famous verses of Allama Iqbal  appears in stylized calligraphy in the blue colour rectangle at right. The first line of the verse appears in white against a light blue colour background representing the sky while the second line appears to float on a wave of river represented by the dark blue portion. The wording “Allama Iqbal Centenary 1977” appears in reverse form at the bottom of the stamp.

“Pakistan” in Urdu and English together appears in orange colour at the top of the violet panel at left. The denomination figure “20” with the word “Postage” underneath appears in reverse form at the bottom of the panel.

Designer : Mohammad Arif Javed

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Denomination : 20 Paisa

Colours : Blue, Violet, Orange and Black

Size of Stamp : 44.5 x 24.5 m.m.

Size of Print : 41.5 x 21.5 m.m.

Perforation Gauge : 13 x 13 C

Quantity : 10,00,000 Stamps (one Million)

No. of stamps per sheet : 50 (Fifty)

Process of Printing : Litho Offset

Printers : Pakistan Security Printing Corporation Ltd., Karachi

Name : Muhammad Iqbal

Born on Nov 9, 1877 at Sialkot, Punjab, British India

Died on Apr 21, 1938 at Lahore, Punjab, British India

About : 

• Iqbal the great poet philosopher and visionary who played a dominant role in the renaissance of Muslims in India was the first to give a concrete shape to the Muslim aspirations in India for a separate homeland and has rightly been described as the ‘spiritual father of Pakistan‘.
• Coming from a highly respected family of Kashmiri Brahmins who were converted to Islam some three hundred years ago, Iqbal was born at Sialkot on 9^th November 1877.
• Iqbal received his early education at the Scotch Mission School and the Murray College, Sialkot. He obtained his Masters degree in Philosophy from the Government College, Lahore. His learned Professor, Sir Thomas Arnold, recognizing his genius, persuaded him to go abroad for higher education. He stayed in Europe from 1905 to 1908 and studied Law and Philosophy at the Universities of Heidelberg, Munich and Cambridge. He was awarded a Ph.D. by the Munich University on his renowned Thesis ‘The Development of Mataphysics Persia‘.
• Although essentially a poet and a philosopher, he was also actively associated with practical politics and played a leading role in the struggle for the emancipation of the Muslims of the Indian sub-continent. Presiding over the annual session of the All India Muslim League at Allahabad in 1930 he boldly asserted the Muslims demand for the creation of Muslim India within India. He firmly believed that Indian Muslims were entitled to a full and free development on the lines of their own culture and tradition for which a separate homeland was necessary.
• This great poet and thinker and upholder of the cause of Muslim fraternity throughout the world, breathed his last on 21^st April, 1938 in Lahore and is buried in the premises of the historic Badshahi Mosque there.
• The early period of Iqbal‘s poetry is based upon mostly nationalistic ideas and his love nature. His stay in Europe, however, galvanized his thoughts and after returning to India he was no more a poet of narrow nationalistic feelings. From then onwards one finds in his poetry a dominant note of anti colonialism and a burning rage against the unhealthy influence of western modes of thoughts and feelings. He was imbued with an over-powering passion for the reassertion of the spirit of Islam. His book ‘Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam‘ is regarded as a great contribution to Muslim thought, particularly so because of its emphasis on ‘Ijtihad‘.
• Iqbal‘s philosophy has two important aspects. (i) University and (ii) Particularity. He believed in the reality of the individual ego and argued as well for life in a higher, comprehensive, all embracing spiritual world. He believed, on the one hand, in the emancipation and freedom of the Muslims of Indo-Pakistan Sub-continent and on the other, he argued for the unity of Muslim nations all over the world. Iqbal’s political philosophy is not atomistic but organic in that it implied the formation of an association of Muslim countries to better their own lot and be the upholder of peace and justice throughout the world.
• His verses in Urdu and Persian and his monumental treatises have been translated into almost all the important languages of the World and found wide recognition in Iran, Turkey, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Italy, USSR etc.
• An academy named after him has been established by the Government of Pakistan to promote and disseminate the messages and teachings of Allama Iqbal. It is devoted to research on the life, poetry and thoughts of Iqbal and those branches of learning in which he was associated with or interested in. The Government of Pakistan has decided to celebrate the Birth Centenary of Allama Iqbal in November, 1977 in a befitting manner, for which preparation is afoot.
• Issued by : The Director General, Pakistan Post Office, Karachi.

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Issued by Pakistan

Issued on Nov 9, 1975

Description : The stamp is vertical in shape. The portrait of Allama Iqbal expresses his philosophical approach towards life. The titles of his famous works are shown in the background in relief. The wordings IQBAL CENTENARY YEAR 1977 appear in Red on top while the dates 9^th November, 1877-21^st April, 1938 are in Blue. ‘PAKISTAN‘ in Urdu and English appears in Blue in the bottom. The denomination “20-Paisa” and word “Postage” appear in the lower right corner in white.

Designer : Adil Salahuddin

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Denomination : 20 Paisa

Colours : Magenta, Cyan, Yellow and Black

Size of Stamp : 50.80 x 35.20 m.m.

Size of Print : 47.80 x 32.20 m.m.

Perforation Gauge : 13 x 13 c

Quantity : 5 Lacs

No. of Stamps in each sheet : 50 set

Process of Printing : Litho Offset

Printers : The Pakistan Security Printing Corporation Ltd. Karachi

Name : Muhammad Iqbal

Born on Nov 9, 1877 at Sialkot, Punjab, British India

Died on Apr 21, 1938 at Lahore, Punjab, British India

About : 

• One fact which strikes every student of Iqbal is his great versatility. First and foremost he was a poet, one of the greatest the world has known. In addition, he was an eminent philosopher, an educationist and a political thinker who played a notable role in the renaissance of the Musalmans of the sub-continent and was aptly described as the Spiritual Father of Pakistan. Although he did not join active politics till late in life, yet on his death he was referred to by the Quaid–i–Azam as “friend, philosopher and guide“.
• Iqbal was born at Sialkot, a small town in the Punjab on 9^th November, 1977. His ancestors who were Kashmiri Brahmans were converted to Islam nearly 300 years ago. Iqbal refers to his ancestry repeatedly in his verses :
  Look at me for in India you will not see again
  A man of Brahaman extraction versed in knowledge associate with Rum and Tabrez.
• Iqbal finished his early education in Sialkot and migrated to Lahore in 1895 for higher studies. In Sialkot he was lucky to have as his teacher Shamsul Ulama Mir Hasan, a great Oriental scholar. Iqbal started writing verses while still at school. At that time Dagh was considered a great master of Urdu verse, and Iqbal started sending his verses to him for correction. After a short time Dagh wrote back that his verses needed no corrections.
• Iqbal passed his M.A. in Philosophy in 1899 and was appointed Lecturer in the Oriental College, Lahore. After some time he went over to the Government College, Lahore. In 1905 he went to Europe on three years study leave, and studied at the Trinity College Cambridge, Lincoln’s Inn, London, and also at Munich University. He returned home in 1908 and soon after started law practice. He also worked at the Government College, Lahore, as a teacher for some time.
• During his stay in England he did write verses but the output of his poetry was not considerable. On his return from England he write some epoch-making poems like Shikwah, Jawab–i–Shikwah and Shama–aur-Shair which displayed superb handling of theme and command over the language. With the publication of these poems his place among the great Urdu Poets was assured.
• Asrar–i–Khudi was published in 1915 and described his philosophy of the ego with great artistic efforts.
• Rumuz–i–Bekhudi appeared in 1918 and described what Iqbal considered ideal society.
• In 1921 appeared Khizr–i–Rah and in 1922 Tulu-i-Islam. The poem Khizr-i-Rah still shows signs of quest and search, but the poem Tulu–i–Islam shows faith and hope. Both the poems are in Urdu and rank amongst Iqbal‘s finest poems. After the publication of these poems appeared the book Payam–i–Mashriq. This book is a collection of miscellaneous poems in Persian, and was written in response to Goethe‘s West Ostlicher Divan. Payam-i-Mashriq was followed by Bang–i–Dara which is actually a collection of Iqbal‘s Urdu verses which were published prior to 1922, and two years later came the Zabur–i–Ajam. The book contains mystic vitalising and ennobling verses. Zabur-i-Ajam was followed by Javid Nama what can be truly regarded as Iqbal‘s magnum opus. Iqbal has said about this book :
  What I have said is from another world.
  This book has come from another Heaven.
• After finishing Javid Nama Iqbal turned to Urdu again, and published a collection of Urdu poems Bal–i–Jibril in 1935 and another collection Zarb–i–Kalim in 1936. In 1934 he had published a Persian poem Musafir. Another Persian Poem Pas Che Bayad Kard was published in 1936. The final collection of his poems appeared posthumously. It was known as Armaghan–i–Hijaz.
• This is the story of Iqbal‘s poetry told briefly.
• In 1923 he was persuaded by friends and admirers to stand for the Punjab Legislative Council, but as his old friend, Mian Abdul Aziz, wanted to stand from the same constituency he decided not to stand. But he stood for election from the same constituency in 1926. He continued as a member of the Punjab Legislative Council for 3 years and made valuable contributions to the deliberations of that august body.
• In 1930 Iqbal was elected President of the Muslim League Session held at Allahabad in India. In the course of his epoch-making presidential address he said, “The unity of an Indian nation, therefore, must be sought, not in the negation but in the mutual harmony and co-operation of the many. The statesmanship cannot ignore facts, however, unpleasant they may be. The only practical course is not to assume the existence of a state of things which does not exist, but to recognize facts as they are, and to exploit them to our greatest advantage. And it is on the discovery of Indian unity in this direction that the fate of India as well as of Asia really depends. India is Asia in miniature.“
• In 1931 he attended the Round Table Conference which met in London to frame a constitution for the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent. He took an active part in the various committees appointed by the Conference and contributed much.
• In 1932, Iqbal presided at the annual session of the Muslim Conference and delivered a thought-provoking address.
• Iqbal developed kidney trouble in 1927. He wanted to visit Vienna for its treatment but some friends advised him to visit Hakim Abdul Wahab (Hakim Nabina) for treatment. Hakim Abdul Wahab‘s treatment cured him of the complaint and he kept good health till 1934, when he developed heart trouble accompanied by loss of voice. Treatment was tried for this in Bhopal and Delhi without any success. This illness took a serious turn on 25^th March, 1938, and in spite of the best medical aid and careful nursing he breathed his last in the early hours of 21^st April, 1938.
• Half an hour before he breathed his last Iqbal recited the following verses which he had composed earlier :
  The departed melody may recur or not
  The zephyr may blow again from Hejaz or not
  The days of this Faqir have come to an end
  Another seer may come or not.
• After the Pakistan Resolution was passed by the Muslim League in its Lahore Session, on 24^th March, 1940, the Quaid-i-Azam said to Matluh Saiyyid, “Iqbal is no more amongst us. But had he been alive he would have been happy to know that we did exactly what he wanted us to do.“ No greater compliment could have been paid to Iqbal for his political services to the Muslims.
• Issued by: The Director-General, Pakistan Post Office, Karachi.

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Issued by Pakistan

Issued on Nov 9, 1974

Design : The format of the stamp is vertical. The main feature of the stamp is the portrait of Dr. Muhammad Iqbal, the great poet and Philosopher, which is printed in Black and Blue colours. In the upper Ultramarine Blue panel the caption “Iqbal Centenary 1977″ is printed in Turquoise Blue and in the lower panel the date of birth “9 November, 1877” and the date of death “21 Apr 1938” is printed on the bottom right side. The word “Postage” and denomination figure ’20-Paisa’ are printed in Black on the bottom left corner in the lower panel. The word “Pakistan” in Urdu and English are printed in Turquoise blue in the vertical panels of Olive Green colour on both sides of the portrait.

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Denomination : 20 Paisa

Colour : Black, Turquoise Blue, Ultramarine Blue and Olive Green

Size of Stamp : 32.50 x 44.50 m.m.

Size of Print : 29.50 x 41.50 m.m.

Perforation gauge : 13 x 13 (C)

Quantity printed : 5,00,000

Number of stamps in each sheet : 50 (fifty)

Process of printing : Litho Offset

Printers : The Pakistan Security Printing Corporation Ltd. Karachi

Name : Muhammad Iqbal

Born on Nov 9, 1877 at Sialkot, Punjab, British India

Died on Apr 21, 1938 at Lahore, Punjab, British India

About : 

• Allama Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal was born at Sialkot on 9^th November, 1877. In his early age, he was greatly influenced by his father Sheikh Noor Mohammad who was a very pious man. He received his early education under the guidance of Shamsul Ullama Mir Hassan who was a great oriental scholar of his time. He passed his Middle and High School examination with distinction and was awarded scholarships in both the examinations. After clearing Intermediate examination he joined Government College, Lahore, where he was a student of Professor Arnold, a great literary figure of his time. He stood first in B.A. examination with distinction in Arabic and English and obtained a Gold Medal in M.A. Soon he was appointed as Professor of Philosophy in Oriental College, Lahore. After some time he went over to Government College, Lahore. He went to England in 1905 and joined Cambridge University as a student of Philosophy. He was awarded the degree of Ph.D. by the Munich University (Germany) on his thesis entitled “Mabaadul Tibyyat“. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn, London and was appointed as a Professor of Arabic at London University. He returned home in 1908 and again joined service in Government College, Lahore. After some time he resigned his job and started law practice. He was elected member Punjab Legislative Assembly in 1926 for 3 years. In 1930 Dr. Iqbal was elected President of the Muslim League session held at Allahabad. In 1931 and 1932 he attended the Round Table Conference which met in London to frame a Constitution for India and took an active part in its various Committees.
• Iqbal developed kidney trouble in 1927, which was cured by Hakim Abdul Wahab and he kept good health till 1934. In 1934, he developed heart trouble accompanied by loss of voice. His illness took a serious turn on 25^th March, 1938 and he breathed his last in the early hours of 21^st April, 1938. Half an hour before his death, he recited the following verses :
• The last word Iqbal uttered was ‘Allah‘. He lived in God and died in God.

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Issued by Pakistan

Issued on Apr 21, 1967

Issued for : To observe the death anniversary of Dr. Mohammad Iqbal, the great philosopher-poet and political thinker of the Indo-Pakistan Continent, the Pakistan Post Office is issuing a set of two stamps of 15 Paisa and Re. 1/- denominations on the 21^st April, 1967.

Designs : The stamps show a portrait of Dr. Iqbal in the right hand square panel. ‘Pakistan Postage’ is printed in Sepia at the foot of the left hand square panel. The word ‘Pakistan’ in Urdu and Bengali printed in Sepia appears below the panel at the left hand side of the stamps. The name of the poet and his life span dates appear in the bottom right panel, printed in reverse lettering from red in the 15 Paisa stamp and from green in the Re. 1/- stamp. The left hand square of the 15 Paisa stamp contains following verse in Urdu from the poet’s book “” :–

Perfecting thy ego, the striking
Power of Moses would thou attain;
On thy path beset with stones
A thousand springs would gush in train.

This verse is printed reverse from the red panel; below this verse the value ’15 Paisa’ is also shown in reverse lettering.

The left hand square of the Re. 1/- stamp contains a verse in Persian from the poet’s book “” :–

Far from singing melodies am I
Mere pretence is this lay of mine;
Back to the straight path I guide,
The unbridled folk gone awry.

This verse is printed in reverse from the green panel; below this verse the value Re. 1/- is also shown in reverse lettering.

Type : Stamps, Postal Used

Denomination : 15 Paisa and 1 Rupee

Colour :
15 Paisa – Sepia and Red
Re. 1/- – Sepia and Green

Size of Stamps : 49.2 x 30.7 mm.

Size of Prints : 46.2 x 27.7 mm.

Perforation Gauge : 13 x 13 (C)

Quantity Printed : 15,00,000 each

Number of Stamps in each sheet : 50

Process of Printing : Litho Offset

Printers : The P.S.P.C. Karachi

Name : Muhammad Iqbal

Born on Nov 9, 1877 at Sialkot, Punjab, British India

Died on Apr 21, 1938 at Lahore, Punjab, British India

About : 

• Iqbal was born on November 9, 1877, in Sialkot, a city in West Pakistan on the border of Kashmir. His forefathers, originally of Kashmiri Brahmin descent, had embraced Islam some three hundred years before at the hand of some mystic and Iqbal has time and again referred to himself in his works, as “unique in being Brahmin born but familiar with the mysteries of Rum and Tabrez”. In his early life, he was greatly influenced by his own father, Noor Mohammad, who was a deeply religious man and who had advised Iqbal to read the Quran as if it was being revealed to him. Besides, his teacher, Saiyed Mir Hasan, who was an unassuming but a great scholar of Arabic and Persian literature and was known and respected as a man of strong religious convictions and piety, was greatly instrumental in developing the genius of Iqbal in his formative years for developing deep into religious thought and reaching perfection in Persian and Urdu literature.
  
• On Saiyed Mir Hasan’s advice, who was a great admirer of Syed Ahmad Khan, Iqbal’s father gave him English education and consequently he prosecuted his studies at the Scotch Mission High School, Sialkot. He later moved to Lahore and joined the Government College. He graduated in Arabic and Philosophy and got his Master of Arts’ degree in Philosophy in 1899 from the Punjab University. Here he was fortunate enough to come into contact with Sir Thomas Arnold, who had been in Aligarh before coming over to Lahore. Arnold besides being a great scholar, was a noble and sympathetic spirit. His contribution to the development of Iqbal’s thought is undoubtedly great, as he infused in Iqbal the spirit of constant search for truth as well as the urge to unveil the mysteries of life. This fruitful contact between the two allied spirits continued when Iqbal went to Cambridge in 1905 for higher studies. Sir Thomas Arnold is reported to have said, “Though Iqbal is my pupil, I get instructions from his writings.” On his advice, Iqbal went to Germany and received his Doctorate in Philosophy in 1907 from the Munich University for his thesis on The Development of Metaphysics in Persia. In 1908 he was called to the Bar in London. In 1926, and later in 1930, Iqbal was elected President of the Muslim League. In 1931 and 1932 he attended the Round Table Conferences in London.
  
• He at one time thought of abandoning the muse and devoting his time to more constructive work, but he was persuaded by Sir Thomas Arnold not to give up poesy. This decision of his proved very beneficial to the people and to the Muslims in particular. It also brought the genius of Iqbal into full play. In later years, he wrote that he did not feel embarrassed in writing poetry with a message as in a period of hundred decades, it is difficult to produce a poet and a mystic like Fariduddin Attar. Iqbal also acknowledges his great debt to Jalaluddin Rumi and considers him as his guide and preceptor.
  
• The political situation in the Indian Sub-Continent in the early years of the twentieth century was highly turbulent. The wave of patriotic feelings and a new born sense of nationalism was having its effect on the people. Iqbal was also influenced by his environments and sang melodious songs about different earthly symbols of this god of nationalism, the echoes of which continued to resound even in England while he was there. But Iqbal’s stay in Europe soon disillusioned him. The partition of Bengal in 1905 by the British and the possibility of the creation of a province where Muslims could be in a majority had evoked violent protests from Hindus and this exposed the hollowness of the national cause and the intolerance with which the Hindus were likely to treat the Muslims. The operation of Nationalism in Europe itself had led to mutual rivalries among nations which were ready to fly at one another’s throat. Nationalism had also weaned away the Muslim peoples in the Middle East from their traditional alignment with and loyalty to their Umma.
  
• When this realisation dawned upon Iqbal, a totally new vision arose before his eyes. This was the vision of Man as an embodiment of spiritual and cultural values, the central figure in the whole universe, created in the image of God, to whom everything in the universe was subservient. It was this Man who was being exploited by different ideologies in different garbs. This new vision of Man and his destiny became the starting point of his philosophy. He felt convinced that no ideology, no system of thought, no political or social programme, then existing, gave due recognition to this basic principle except Islam which lays so much emphasis on the worth of the individual. He says : “The Quran in its simple, forceful manner emphasises the individuality and uniqueness of man and has a definite view of his destiny as a unity of life”. It was for the same reason that Islam denounced all distinctions of race, colour, geography, for they all militated against the supreme dignity of Man. To him, maintaining respect of man as man is the only way to alleviate miseries of mankind. Speaking of the dignity of man, he says in Javed Nama –
  
  It is Man who gives value to the universe,
  Man by following the golden mean provides the standard of values.
  The phenomenal world becomes lost in Man;
  While Man can never be lost in the world.
  It is Man’s self-display which manifests sun and moon;
  Even Gabriel has no access to his experience.
  Man is loftier than the heavens,
  The very basis of civilization is respect for Man.
  
• He also firmly believed in the freedom of the human ego and its perfection through self-knowledge, self-affirmation and self-purification based on the love of God and man. In one of his letters to Dr. Nicholson, Iqbal elucidated his stand-point thus : “The humanitarian ideal is always universal but if you (wish to) make it an effective ideal and work it out in actual life, you must start, not with poets and philosophers, but with a society exclusive in the sense of having a creed and well-defined outline, but ever enlarging its limits by example and persuasion. Such a society, according to my belief, is Islam”.
  
• In short, his philosophy of the ego, the idea of a superman who is not an embodiment of lust for power but a true image of God on earth, the concept of an ideal society that would cater to the spiritual and material welfare of mankind and his clarion call for elimination of divisive forces of nationalism and racialism, and establishment of human brotherhood, equality and freedom as based on the ethical ideal of Tauhid, were put forth with great vigour and found a ready acceptance.
  
• He embodied the above concepts in his poetical works in Persian beginning with Asrar–i–Khudi (translated into English by R. E. Nicholson under the title The Secrets of the Self and in Urdu verse by Justice S. A. Rahman of the Supreme Court of Pakistan) and Ramuz–i–Bekhudi (translated by Prof. A. J. Arberry under the title The Mysteries of Selflessness), which were continued in his great work Javed Nama (translated in English by (i) Prof. Mahmud Ahmad (ii) Prof. Arberry – in Italian by Prof. Busani – in German by Prof. Schimmel – in French by E. Meyerovitch), that contains Iqbal’s mature thought and represents his philosophy fully. In prose, his monumental work is Reconstruction of Religious thought in Islam, consisting of 7 lectures (since translated into Arabic, Turkish, Bengali and Urdu), written to meet the demand of modern man “for a scientific form of religious knowledge … attempting to reconstruct Muslim religious philosophy with due regard to the philosophical traditions of Islam and the more recent developments in the various domains of human knowledge.” His other works in Persian are Piyam–i–Mashriq (Message of the East), Zabur–i–Ajam, Musafir, Pas Che Bayad Kard and Armoghan–i–Hijaz (partly in Urdu). Most of these works have been translated into foreign languages, such as, German and English. Among his Urdu works, besides the Bang–i–Dara, already mentioned, are Bal–i–Jibril and Zarb–i–Kalim in which he has expressed his views in beautiful and exquisite verse on philosophical, social and political themes. Iqbal even conceived the idea of comity of people of the East and declared that if Tehran could become the Geneva of the East, the destiny of the whole world might possibly change. We find the echo of this idea in the Establishment of the R.C.D. between Turkey, Iran and Pakistan.
  
  
• Iqbal was not, however, merely a philosopher and an intellectual. He believed in constant action and strife cemented with a firm faith in God and a world conquering love for man. His contribution towards Muslim renaissance had been truly remarkable. His insight into the history of the Muslim people and the causes which led to their decline have proved perfectly correct. He found the people around him weighed down heavily by the burden of old traditions that had totally lost their relevance and significance and by his poetry roused them from slumber, gave them the zest for new life of progressive advancement, constant strife and endeavour for the realization of spiritual values that had been the sacred heritage of mankind. He exhorted them –
   
• In the political field, he stood for a state that was democratic and socialistic. In one of his letters to the Quaid–i–Azam, Iqbal says, “For Islam, the acceptance of social democracy in some suitable form and consistent with the legal principles of Islam is……a return to the original purity of Islam.” Like the Quaid-i-Azam, Iqbal tried to solve the political problem of the sub-continent consistent with the interests of the Muslim community. But all attempts, to discover some principle of internal harmony whereby both the communities of the sub-continent could live peacefully and harmoniously, totally failed. With a penetrating insight, Iqbal was able to realise the consequences of this stalemate for the future welfare of the Muslims. It was this realization that forced him to declare in 1930, presiding over the annual session of the Muslim League, “The Muslim demand for the creation of a Muslim India within India is, therefore, perfectly justified…… I would like to see the Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, Sind and Baluchistan amalgamated into a single State. The formation of a consolidated North-West Indian Muslim State appears to me to be the final destiny of the Muslims, at least of North-West India…… This will eventually solve the problem of India as well as of Asia.” Later on, in one of his letters to the Quaid-i-Azam, Iqbal also included Bengal in this scheme. Very few people at that time could fully realise the profound significance and the far-reaching consequences of this scheme. It, however, became a living reality when in 1940, the Muslim League, in the light of this proposal, formulated its demand for the establishment of Pakistan and the Muslim people responded from the depth of their hearts. It was to be the fulfilment of their destiny in the sub-continent and it became a reality in 1947 when an independent State of Pakistan was born.
  
• Iqbal died on April 21, 1938 after a protracted illness of several years with a smile on his face as he had himself said :–
  
  
• The significance of his contribution to the renaissance of the Muslim people not only of the sub-continent but of the Middle East and elsewhere can be seen in the enthusiasm with which his memory is kept alive everywhere in the world. April 21 has become the symbol of our struggle for the regeneration of the world Muslim community so as to realise the basic Islamic ideal of human brotherhood, peace, freedom and security.
  
• (Issued in collaboration with Iqbal Academy, Karachi.)
  
• With the compliments of the Director-General, Pakistan Post Office, Karachi.

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