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Iqbal’s Philosophy of Khudi
What is Iqbal’s message or philosophy of life? If we wish, we can answer this question with just one word: Khudi (the Self), because it is the central axis around which all his thought and discussion revolves. He himself named his message and philosophy of life after this very concept.
Iqbal arrived at this idea while seeking answers to some fundamental questions about the self and the universe: What is man? What is the nature and reality of the universe? Does it truly exist, or is it merely an illusion? If it is an illusion, then what lies behind it?
There are countless such questions that humanity has been grappling with since the beginning.
In Urdu poetry, such questions, which affirm human existence, were raised even before Iqbal — notably by Ghalib:
> "When nothing exists without You,
Then what is all this commotion, O God?
From where have the greenery and flowers come?
What is a cloud, what is the air?"
Khudi is another name for life itself. Khudi is synonymous with love. Khudi is the thirst for conquest. Khudi means self-awareness. Khudi is the passion for seeking. Khudi is equivalent to faith. Khudi is the source of creativity and innovation. Khudi is the depth of conviction. Khudi is the fountainhead of life's fervor and the origin of the creative spirit.
Iqbal writes:
> "What is Khudi? It is the secret of the inner life.
What is Khudi? It is the awakening of the universe.
Eternity lies behind it, eternity lies ahead —
Neither a limit behind nor a limit before.
Flowing within the stream of time,
Bearing the burden of its waves,
It has been imprisoned in the struggle since the beginning,
It became manifest in the dust of Adam.
The nest of Khudi is in your heart,
Just like the sky is hidden in the pupil of the eye."