Abu'l Kalam Azad's Birth Anniversary
National Education Day
Book Excerpt
National Education Day is observed on Nov 11, every year, commemorating the birth anniversary of independent India's first Education Minister, Maulana Abu'l Kalam Azad. He was a man of great learning, who had mastered the old classics and yet was blessed with modern scientific temper. The book Builders of Modern India: Abu'l Kalam Azad published by the Publications Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, presents the life of Maulana Abu'l Kalam Azad who has been written upon extensively, yet scattered. An attempt has been made to bring together the stray strands, objectively. Unconventional and a firm believer in carving out his own course, he lit many a lamp to dispel gloom and ignorance. Following is an excerpt from the book.
A man of strong determination and pure heart, Maulana Azad was handsome and majestic in appearance and balanced and dignified in expression. His high and noble aspirations, mature wisdom and brilliant oratory put the stamp of truth and integrity over politics and captivated the hearts of millions. As a writer he breathed a new life into the pages of journalism and history. He was a man of vision, the like of whom is not seen often. It is an index of his vast bearing that when Hali and Shibli met Azad when he was 16 years old, they took him only to be the son of the famous man.
Like Azad, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan had also opposed the orthodox mullahs and endeavoured to promote a progressive outlook among the Muslims. To that extent, Azad was duly impressed by Sir Syed. But Sir Syed had felt that it was opportune for the Muslims of his time to acquiesce in the British rule. Abu'l Kalam Azad rejected this thesis. Although he was born in a family which had a long tradition of learning and scholarship, he accepted that learning and scholarship with due caution. He removed the dress of orthodoxy from learning. In short, he was a progressive person by any definition.
In an article entitled 'The Mischief of the Graves', he writes:
"When Islam came to Arabia, the world was lost in heresy and idolatry. One of the deadliest forms of heresy was that people had started worshipping the holy and saintly persons and their relics out of a misguided love and regard for them."
Azad's father, Maulana Khairuddin, who is buried in Calcutta, had thousands of devotees who considered him as their spiritual guide. When his first death anniversary was observed, the devotees insisted that Azad should wear the mantle of the spiritual guide and organise the Urs of his father on a regular basis. Azad strongly condemned this move and declared that if any Urs was held it would be against his wishes and he would not take any part in it. Abdur Razzak Malihabadi mentions that as long as he stayed in Calcutta, Azad took care never to visit his father's tomb lest it might be misinterpreted and he might get involved in the business of spiritual guidance.
Azad tried his level best for the uplift of the Muslims. He told them in unambiguous terms that the freedom of India was linked with the freedom of the Muslims throughout the world. He was influenced by revolutionaries like Jamaluddin Afghani and Mohammad Abdu and in the beginning of his career, he was also associated with the Indian revolutionaries. But as soon as he met Mahatma Gandhi, in 1920, he had the foresight to realise that there was no leader better suited to lead India than Gandhiji. Thus he became Gandhiji's companion and remained so throughout his life. He was not like others who accompanied Mahatma Gandhi for some distance and then took to their own ways, some just vanishing, some getting bogged down in communal politics and others being swept away in some other direction. Azad was steadfast in his loyalties and withstood all pulls and pressures like a rock.
Perhaps Azad's most prominent talent was his ability to effect rapprochement between conflicting and contradictory views. It was because of this gift that he was elected President of the Indian National Congress at the age of 35 years. In this capacity he successfully reconciled opposing groups and political claims. His critical faculty and capacity to judge and weight and his scientific temper proved that though in appearance he was like a Maulana, in fact, he was possessed of one of the most modern minds. That is why his commentary on the Quran, Tarjuman-ul-Quran is the most famous commentary of this age, for it explains that Islam is a beneficial way of life for the whole of humanity. Azad has controverted the very basis of religious differences. He has also proved that the classic commentary of Imam Razi had missed the basic issues because he was guided by Greek influences.
Despite the talent, Azad started increasingly to keep to himself in the later part of his life. No doubt he must have enjoyed the company of his own choice ideas in these hours of solitude. It is, however, a fact that he developed a love for the silence that speaks volumes, the silence that is not easily decipherable, the silence that enabled him to dive deep into the recesses of his heart and come up with the power to bear frustrations and disappointments of this fickle world, not because he was a cynic or a pessimist, but because he was basically an optimist and a rationalist who bowed only before God's will. This, in a nutshell, was his religion.
When, however, he was in congenial company, he liked to talk and he was a most engaging conversationalist. Whether it was a meeting of the Congress Working Committee or a get-together at the dining table, it was mostly Azad who spoke and the range and scope of his conversation was limitless. On whatever subject he talked, history or geography, philosophy or linguistics, or even trivial topics like dress or cuisine, his knowledge of the subject seemed to be boundless. He had also a lively sense of humour and enjoyed teasing his friends, occasionally.
Professor Dr. Nafisi of Tehran University found Azad a profound and rare scholar. When Nafisi first came to India, he had a one-hour interview with Azad but even within that brief period Azad impressed him as a comprehensive scholar of Arabic and Persian and one who possessed a prodigious memory, for he could not only quote from a large number of authors and poets but could also give a complete list of their works. This impression of Nafisi was confirmed when Azad visited him in Tehran while returning from a European tour. According to Nafisi, the more he saw of Azad, the more convinced he was of his stature as a scholar, a human being and as a lover of learning.
There have been scholars and learned persons, also persons who have spent their lives with grace and dignity. But Azad was unique. In him knowledge was combined with action and he faced life with a dignity and grace that remained unshaken under the stress of grief or sorrow, or that of joy or happiness.
Azad has left an indelible imprint on Indian philosophy. A most affable and charming man, he had the rare gift of inspiring genuine regard and admiration from every one who came in contact with him. He was sedate, but never aloof for he seemed to be eager to see the "good point" in others. This always made him a sympathetic listener despite being a forceful advocate and a persuasive orator. Indeed, such a one who embodied so many qualities is hard to come by. When he breathed his last, on February 22, 1958 the country, and indeed the world, was made poorer.
Print version of the book can be purchased from the website of Publications Division (publications division.nic.in) and Amazon (www.amazon.in) @ Rs. 235/-.
E-version is available @ Rs. 90/- on Amazon Kindle and DPD website.