Iqbal Poetry

Patras Bokhari & Allama Iqbal

When Patras Bokhari was going to Cambridge University, he requested Allama Iqbal, whom he held in very high esteem, for some references, which Allama Iqbal provided. Upon his return from Cambridge, Allama Iqbal found the young scholar too influenced by the West in what he had seen and studied, and was said to be disappointed by this.
Patras Bokhari regarded Allama Iqbal as the best poet and philosopher in the world. Mr. Muhammed Tufail, publisher of Naqoosh, wrote: “Patras was of the caliber that he would even engage with Allama Iqbal in a philosophical debate. On one occasion they debated on the philosophy of Bergson, with both Allama Iqbal and Patras putting forth their respective arguments and logic. Finally, Allama Iqbal remained silent. After Patras Bokhari left, Allama Iqbal wrote the following poem, titled ‘To a philosophical son of a Syed’ This was a time when Allama Iqbal was at the peak of his intellectual prowess and Patras was just setting out to establish a name for himself.

The poem appears in Allama Iqbal’s book, Zarb-e-Kaleem