‘Thinking’ Islam

IT is a common belief that ‘religion is a matter of blind faith’. Often, Iqbal’s famous verse is quoted to support this view which says, “Be khatar kood pada aatish-i-namrud mein ishq/ Aql hai mahw-i-tamasha-i-lab-i-baam abhi”. The gist: love leapt fearlessly into Nimrod’s fire; while reason stood numb at the edge watching the spectacle. On the contrary, it is the same Iqbal who says, “Jahan-i taza ki afkar-i-taza se hai numud/ Ki sang-o-khisht se hote nahin jahan paida” (New worlds are [created and] driven from fresh thoughts; [remember] new worlds are not brought to life from [dead] stones…