Future generations will read Iqbal in English!
It was September 9, I was in Istanbul. The host, the kind Allama Hameed Turan, had Yusuf Excel, an engineering student with me. He could speak some English. With that, I arrived at Istanbul's famous museum, Cannon Copy.
My wife and two daughters were with me. The magnificent museum had ancient artifacts, writings, and inscriptions. The ancient Turkish alphabet consisted of the Arabic and Persian alphabets. I was reading Arabic and Persian texts and books, and the ancient Turkish writings were also being understood to some extent.
The young man was looking at these writings and me in amazement. I was giving him the address of the monuments of his history. He could not understand his own language. Suddenly there was a flash of lightning in my body. This young man was cut off from the history and heritage of the founder of "modern Turkey".
The "architect" of modern Turkey clothed the Turkish language with the European alphabet. It's gone The next generation became alienated from their original ancient Turkish writings. Now she speaks Turkish but cannot read the history and writings of her fathers. Now the Turks need the help of others to read their capital Iftikhar Jalaluddin Rumi. The founder of modern Turkey thought that in this way he would learn Turkish. Will sever ties with backward Europe and Ajam and connect with developed Europe.
Learning a new Turkish language does not make the Turkish nation able to understand any European language, but it has to learn more or less new alphabets in order to learn every European language, and the distorted or altered form of Turkey cannot benefit it. Despite its long struggle, Turkey has not been able to join the European Union. To please Europe, it has established not only diplomatic but also military ties with Israel, but the former EU president has publicly stated that we cannot include a Muslim country on a Christian platform.
Let us not forget our mourning while reciting the lament of Turkey. We too are gradually being "modernized". Our constitution says that our national language is Urdu. This should be our official and educational language. Rather, the constitution of 1972 required that Urdu be made the official language within five years.
The existence of the "sovereign national language" was introduced only to meet the requirements of official terminology and to meet the constitutional requirements. It was the responsibility of this institution to meet this requirement within the said period. It has fulfilled its responsibility but the defenders of the constitution have not yet fulfilled their responsibility.
English has been imposed on us in such a way that our children are no longer able to pronounce everyday words correctly. The hosts and guests of Urdu TV programs are speaking a mixture of Urdu and English in such a way that half a sparrow becomes half a quail. The fashion of thinking Urdu in the local language and expressing one's conscience in a non-Urdu language can lead to the formation of a dubious nation devoid of a sense of confidence and self-respect. Mir had already predicted:
He will not go away seeing his evil,
O Kabak, he will not come back again
The world has experienced that a nation can develop by adopting its own language and this is the only way to maintain national pride and self-confidence and create a spirit of protection of freedom and sovereignty.
The social and psychological impact of the way the mobile phone has entered our children's lives has not yet been seriously considered. Mobile phone, e-mail and chat methods are gradually taking us towards "modern Pakistan" like "modern Turkey". Our present generation thinks in Urdu and begins to describe it in English script. Strangely, we did not need "Ataturk" for that. The former head of the former military government, Atatرکrk, not only expressed his ideals to Atatرکrk, but also took steps to impose English on our descendants.
It is unfortunate that the present democratic government has continued this practice. The judiciary also did not consider this issue as a fundamental issue of this nation. Incumbent Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry himself has gone through this experience. At the beginning of the Judiciary Restoration Movement, he used to deliver speeches in English. It did not have a significant effect on the people. Then he started giving speeches in Urdu. He understood that this was the only way to get his point across to the people. After all, why not focus on the basic human, constitutional and legal right of the people to be educated in their own language and to develop in their own language? Should be obtained.
Our President Asif Ali Zardari has now made it a tradition to address the joint sitting of Parliament in English. All his listeners understand Urdu better and they themselves can speak Urdu better than English but God knows for whom they speak in English. We have the right to ask them who you are talking to.
In such a situation, when we celebrate Iqbal's birthday or death anniversary, the idea comes to mind that if this trend continues, our future generations will be disconnected from Allama Iqbal. Not only that, Urdu makes us part of a wider Islamic culture and global Islamic family. If we don't give it its rightful place, we will be cut off from Arab and Ajam like "modern Turkey". We will go and we will become unfamiliar with the language of Rumi and Saadi and Hafiz.
The real question is, for whom are we doing this? Is it for those who have not made Turkey a part of the European Union in the "crime" of becoming a Muslim while keeping it a part of NATO so that its military might can be used as required but it has other economic and social benefits? Be deprived of
What is wrong with stopping God and thinking that we are doing justice to ourselves and our future generations. How can a nation deprived of self-confidence and deprived of its identity stand in the ranks of nations with honor and pride? Remember that the issue of language is not just a matter of expressing the past conscience, it is a universal human and public issue linked to civilization, culture, history, and national pride.
The young man was looking at these writings and me in amazement. I was giving him the address of the monuments of his history. He could not understand his own language. Suddenly there was a flash of lightning in my body. This young man was cut off from the history and heritage of the founder of "modern Turkey".
The "architect" of modern Turkey clothed the Turkish language with the European alphabet. It's gone The next generation became alienated from their original ancient Turkish writings. Now she speaks Turkish but cannot read the history and writings of her fathers. Now the Turks need the help of others to read their capital Iftikhar Jalaluddin Rumi. The founder of modern Turkey thought that in this way he would learn Turkish. Will sever ties with backward Europe and Ajam and connect with developed Europe.
Learning a new Turkish language does not make the Turkish nation able to understand any European language, but it has to learn more or less new alphabets in order to learn every European language, and the distorted or altered form of Turkey cannot benefit it. Despite its long struggle, Turkey has not been able to join the European Union. To please Europe, it has established not only diplomatic but also military ties with Israel, but the former EU president has publicly stated that we cannot include a Muslim country on a Christian platform.
Let us not forget our mourning while reciting the lament of Turkey. We too are gradually being "modernized". Our constitution says that our national language is Urdu. This should be our official and educational language. Rather, the constitution of 1972 required that Urdu be made the official language within five years.
The existence of the "sovereign national language" was introduced only to meet the requirements of official terminology and to meet the constitutional requirements. It was the responsibility of this institution to meet this requirement within the said period. It has fulfilled its responsibility but the defenders of the constitution have not yet fulfilled their responsibility.
English has been imposed on us in such a way that our children are no longer able to pronounce everyday words correctly. The hosts and guests of Urdu TV programs are speaking a mixture of Urdu and English in such a way that half a sparrow becomes half a quail. The fashion of thinking Urdu in the local language and expressing one's conscience in a non-Urdu language can lead to the formation of a dubious nation devoid of a sense of confidence and self-respect. Mir had already predicted:
He will not go away seeing his evil,
O Kabak, he will not come back again
The world has experienced that a nation can develop by adopting its own language and this is the only way to maintain national pride and self-confidence and create a spirit of protection of freedom and sovereignty.
The social and psychological impact of the way the mobile phone has entered our children's lives has not yet been seriously considered. Mobile phone, e-mail and chat methods are gradually taking us towards "modern Pakistan" like "modern Turkey". Our present generation thinks in Urdu and begins to describe it in English script. Strangely, we did not need "Ataturk" for that. The former head of the former military government, Atatرکrk, not only expressed his ideals to Atatرکrk, but also took steps to impose English on our descendants.
It is unfortunate that the present democratic government has continued this practice. The judiciary also did not consider this issue as a fundamental issue of this nation. Incumbent Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry himself has gone through this experience. At the beginning of the Judiciary Restoration Movement, he used to deliver speeches in English. It did not have a significant effect on the people. Then he started giving speeches in Urdu. He understood that this was the only way to get his point across to the people. After all, why not focus on the basic human, constitutional and legal right of the people to be educated in their own language and to develop in their own language? Should be obtained.
Our President Asif Ali Zardari has now made it a tradition to address the joint sitting of Parliament in English. All his listeners understand Urdu better and they themselves can speak Urdu better than English but God knows for whom they speak in English. We have the right to ask them who you are talking to.
In such a situation, when we celebrate Iqbal's birthday or death anniversary, the idea comes to mind that if this trend continues, our future generations will be disconnected from Allama Iqbal. Not only that, Urdu makes us part of a wider Islamic culture and global Islamic family. If we don't give it its rightful place, we will be cut off from Arab and Ajam like "modern Turkey". We will go and we will become unfamiliar with the language of Rumi and Saadi and Hafiz.
The real question is, for whom are we doing this? Is it for those who have not made Turkey a part of the European Union in the "crime" of becoming a Muslim while keeping it a part of NATO so that its military might can be used as required but it has other economic and social benefits? Be deprived of
What is wrong with stopping God and thinking that we are doing justice to ourselves and our future generations. How can a nation deprived of self-confidence and deprived of its identity stand in the ranks of nations with honor and pride? Remember that the issue of language is not just a matter of expressing the past conscience, it is a universal human and public issue linked to civilization, culture, history, and national pride.