In the early 20th Century, the youth
of the sub-continent were eagerly broadening their horizons
by learning about the nations of the world, and Italy
and Japan were among their favorites – apparently
because they were seen as nations which had “understood
the meaning of the present changes and tried to adjust
their cultural, moral and political circumstances accordingly”
(as Iqbal explained in his Urdu essay ‘The National
Life’ [‘Qaumi Zindagi’] in 1904-5).
The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)
was generally perceived in the sub-continent as a conflict
between the West and the East, and hence the victory of
Japan over Russia was celebrated as a morale booster.
Two of the imperialistic ventures
of Italy received special censure from Iqbal: the invasion
of Tripoli in 1911 and the invasion of Abyssinia in 1936.
On both occasions Iqbal expressed sympathy with the invaded
countries through memorable poems.
During the First World War, both
Italy and Japan sided with the Allies – Britain,
France and Russia – and thus fought against the
Ottoman Empire, whose cause was so dear to the Muslim
world. In the preface to The
Message of the East (1923), Iqbal cited Francesco
Saverio Nitti (1868-1953), the prime minister of Italy
from 1919 to 1920, on the decline of Europe (“I
believe that Europe is threatened with decadence more
owing to the Peace Treaties than as a result of the War,”
Nitti had suggested in his 1921 book, Europe Without Peace
[L'Europa senza pace], and this was remarkably close to
the views which Iqbal had been expressing since the end
of World War I).
Iqbal visited Rome on his return
from the Third Round Table Conference in 1933 –
reportedly on an invitation from Dr. Scarpa, the Consul
of the Italian Government in Bombay and a great admirer
of Iqbal. In Rome, Iqbal had a brief interview with the
dictator Benito Mussolini (1883-1945), wrote the first
of his two poems about him (see Chapter 89), and delivered
a lecture – the notes for which have survived and
include, “But there can be no denying that Islam
has lost its hold on matter. It is moving towards the
West. It is not decay but reawakening; it is search for
power… The friendship of Islam worth having.”
Special
thanks to Iqbal Academy Pakistan
