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While going through the themes of the secrets of the selflessness, we notice that Iqbal paid attention exactly to the same questions that are predominant in our Islamic society today. The foremost among the most exciting ideas of Iqbal is his emphasis on the mission of the followers of tawhid. He believed that the Muslims and the Islamic Ummah are bound to spread the message of Islam and they should not rest unless they perform this duty.
It would be interesting, at this juncture, to quote a few selected verses of Iqbal in this regard. In these verses he says that the formation of an Islamic society and the emergence of an Islamic Ummah in this world have not been a simple matter. The world had to wait for ages and history had to undergo countless experiments in order to reach the conception of tawhid and to arrive at a stage where an Ummah inspired with the ideal of tawhid and .a people faithfully following Islamic thought could have evolved:
This ancient body called the world Is constituted by the intermixing of the mother elements. A hundred reed‑beds were cultivated to produce a single melody; A hundred gardens bled for ages to make a tulip bloom; Thousand and thousand images were conceived, carved, and erased So that thine image could be engraved on the tablet of being. Countless whimpers and tears were sown and nurtured in the soul. To let a prayer‑call blossom out. Since ages the world was at war with the noble souls, And it favoured the worshippers of false gods. At last the seed of faith was implanted in the earth, And the word of tawhid found expression through thy lips. The centre of the cycles of the universe is La ilah; The ultimate end of all action in the world is La ilah. It is the force that keeps the heavens rotating, It is what gives the sun its light and life, It is the force that gives birth to pearls in the ocean's womb, And keeps the waves surging and moving all the time. Its morning breeze transforms the soil into flower, Its fire breathes a nightingale's song into a handful of feathers; Its flame runs through the veins of the vinegrape; Its heat makes the goblet‑clay to glow as a spark; Its tunes are asleep within the strings of being Waiting for thy plectrum to fill the air with music. Thine existence shalt vibrate with a hundred songs Arise and strike thy plectrum at its strings. As takbir is the secret of thine existence, The purpose of thy creation is to preserve and spread the message of La ilah. Unless the world echoes with the vibrations of the call of Truth, If really a Muslim, thou shalt not rest. Hast thou not read the verse in the Mother of books That bestowed upon thee the title of the Just Ummah? Thou art the lustre of the visage of time, Thou art made witness to the deeds of all the nations; Extend thine invitation to all who are punctilious. Thou hast to disseminate the treasures of the knowledge of the Ummi (S), Whose words were not polluted with lust of any kind, Whose words interpreted the meaning of the verse: "Whose comrade erreth not, nor is deceived" He washed the tunics of his gardens tulips clean And purified them from all impurities.
After elucidating the all‑embracing nature of Islamic teachings (which has been done a hundred times in his work), Iqbal addresses the Ummah of tawhid declaring that they are the standard‑bearers of Islam, and appeals to them to march forward with the purpose of delivering the message of Islam to the world. Subsequently he asks them to break into pieces the new idol carved by the swindlers of the West. What is this new idol?
Thou who hast the Book under thine arms Should step forward in the arena of action. The human mind is always after carving a new idol; Man's quest for a new image has not ceased in any age, Again he has rebuilt the temple of Adhar (the idol‑maker), And has moulded a god, newer than others, Whose joy lies in shedding the blood of his worshippers. His are numerous names: colour, country and race.
It is implied in these verses that nationalism, racialism and narrow patriotism draw boundaries to isolate peoples and countries. These imprisoned loyalties cause wars between one nation and another in the name of nationality, community, race and colour:
Humanity is being sacrificed like a sheep At the foot of the unholy idol. Thou, who hast drunk from the goblet of Khalil (the idol‑breaker), Thy veins are throbbing with the wine of the passion of Khalil. Thou hast to strike the sword of "nothing exists except Him" Into falsehood disguised as truth. Let thy face shine on the dark horizons of time, And spread the perfect message that has been revealed to thee.
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