Book & Author
Syed Muhammad Taqi: Essays in Philosophy
By Dr Ahmed S. Khan
Chicago, IL
“Philosophy is a battle against the bewitchment of our intelligence by means of language” – Ludwig Wittgenstein
“Science is what you know. Philosophy is what you don't know” – Bertrand Russell
Expounding on the nature and importance of philosophy, John Dewey (1859 - 1952) the great 20th Century American philosopher, had observed: “ Philosophy is therefore the last and highest term in pure contemplation. Whatever may be said for any other kind of knowledge, philosophy is self-enclosed. It has nothing to do beyond itself; it has no aim or purpose or function—except to be philosophy—that is, pure, self-sufficing beholding of ultimate reality. There is of course such a thing as philosophic study which falls short of this perfection…Poetry, art, religion are precious things. They cannot be maintained by lingering in the past and futilely wishing to restore what the movement of events in science, industry and politics has destroyed. They are an out-flowering of thought and desires that unconsciously converge into a disposition of imagination as a result of thousands and thousands of daily episodes and contact. They cannot be willed into existence or coerced into being…We are weak today in ideal matters because intelligence is divorced from aspiration. The bare force of circumstance compels us onwards in the daily detail of our beliefs and acts, but our deeper thoughts and desires turn backwards. When philosophy shall have cooperated with the course of events and made clear and coherent the meaning of the daily detail, science and emotion will interpenetrate, practice and imagination will embrace. Poetry and religious feeling will be the unforced flowers of life. To further this articulation and revelation of the meanings of the current course of events is the task and problem of philosophy in days of transition.”
Syed Mohammad Taqi (1917: Amroha, British India – 1999: Karachi, Pakistan) was a distinguished philosopher, intellectual, writer and journalist, who had the unique distinction among the philosophers of the East and among those of the West, of producing a comprehensive system of history, epistemology and cosmology. He is the first modern philosopher of the East, who expounded a fully consistent and internally coherent system of the Universe. Taqi sahib’s father Shafiq Hasan Elia, was a prominent scholar of Amroha, and his other illustrious brothers include Rais Amrohvi (1914-1988)) and Jaun Elia (1931-2002).
Syed Muhammad Taqi, during all of his life, strived to propagate the use of logic and reasoning; his book "History & the Universe - My View (Taarikh aur Qaainat - Mera Nazaria) " published in 1974, regarded as his magnum opus; covered all facets of human philosophical quests; he devised a sound philosophical system which is based on rationality viz a viz the human mind and society. Another of his major book Logic, Philosophy and Science was published in 1970.
Taqi sahib was a gifted writer; his writings range from economics, politics and sociology to constitutional theory and literary criticism. Three of his books on philosophy, based on his articles in the newspapers — Rooh aur Falsafa, Mantiq, Falsafa aur Science, and Essays in Philosophy (in English) — have been well received around the globe.He was a philosopher par excellence. Indeed, a rare philosopher who popularized the domain of philosophy, and was the first and only philosopher who promoted philosophy by writing in Urdu. His services to language and literature have been recognized widely. His book, Hindustan: Pas’manzar-o-pesh’manzar, was very well received and earned him the prestigious Adamjee Prize. He had also translated many popular English books into Urdu, which included Karl Marx's Das Kapital, Sir James Jeans's Mysterious Universe, and Arthur Eddington's Signs and Philosophy. He also served as the editor for Urdu daily Jang for more than 20 years.
Taqi sahib, representing Pakistan, regularly participated at international conferences on philosophy, held every four years in Europe and North America. At such conferences he interacted with many Nobel Laureates like Bertrand Russel and Chandra Shakhar. During the 1990s he was invited to chair the philosophy conference in Mexico. During this trip he also visited his brother-in-law Professor Naqi Akhter in Chicago and participated in various intellectual and academic activities.
In Essays in Philosophy, Taqi sahib had covered a wide spectrum of topics related to philosophy: Universe and Reality, A new concept of Universe, What is reality? Time and Space, Is the Universe eternal? Logic, mathematics and Science, Formal Logic, Logic and Mathematics, The Intellectual Decadence of Modern Science, Reason, Law and Society, Ontological Basis of Law, Reason and Democracy, Reason and Democracy, Reason and Theocracy, Newspapers and Society and Intellectual Renaissance.
Discussing the state of democracy in Pakistan, Taqi sahib writes: “It is our national responsibility therefore to do necessary thinking in this matter and ferret out causes which twice led to unhappy results. It is no use creating imaginary devils and cursing them for the misdeeds which are really the outcome of the immaturity of our national consciousness. Now the question before our nation is this: Whether democracy has failed us or in other words we as a nation could not size up ourselves to the ideals of democracy. The question is of paramount importance as its answer would open a new vista to the understanding of our collective consciousness which ultimately determines the success or failure of a political and constitutional system.”
Discussing the role of newspapers in society, Taqi sahib observes: “Newspaper is the most powerful weapon modern society has forged to meet the ever recurring threat of societal collapse which was an intermittent phenomenon of pre-Renaissance social order. Until quite recently the newspaper was the only cohesive force which embodied all other cementing social factors operating in a society…In the ancient world, civilizations declined and fell in a rhythmic fashion but in the modern world civilizations only decline, they never fall…In modern society, the newspaper has to perform a two-fold task. On the one hand it has to reflect public opinion and sentiments, which means, in other words, to crystallize it and to sanctify it. This, per se, is not a very laudable function. The other responsibility which a conscientious newspaper is expected to perform is imparting of education and directing of public opinion to intellectual pursuits. Fundamentally, these two are seldom to concur…Urdu newspapers have tried to raise the understanding of the nation at large and thus contributed to the development of the country as a whole…. Nations develop with the development of newspapers and so newspapers grow with the growth of society…”
In the chapter titled “Intellectual Renaissance,” Taqi sahib discusses the new demands of the modern era states: “During the momentous decade which preceded the establishment of Pakistan when Muslim politics was in its virile state of effervescence and new hopes and expectations were emerging on the national horizon it was the student community which spread through all nooks and corners of this subcontinent and enthused Muslim masses for the freedom struggle…. (For) Every nation which shapes its destiny according to some high ideals and struggles for a brighter life in future innumerable difficulties crop up. Intricate problems block the way of progress. In these problems, some at least are very difficult to solve, especially those which concern human prejudices and unenlightened complexes of ignorant masses, offer difficulties and obstacles. In this unsatisfactory world in which we, the condemned mortals, are forced to live in unusual insight into things and events is demanded, by every individual. Obscurantism, narrow-mindedness and parochialism are very dangerous companions in the new set-up of things. Pakistan, like other Muslim peoples of the world has to strike its path through the maze of innumerable difficulties. Hoary and sanctimonious values are dying rapidly, leaving in their place some new though unwieldy ones. In this dynamic world Muslims have to refresh on their cultural structure and intellectual outlook in accordance with the fundamental tenets of their religion on-the one hand and the needs of the modern world on the other.”
Expounding on dealing with the modern challenges, Taqi sahib observes: “From seventeenth century onward human knowledge has suffered devastating shocks from intermittent discoveries due to the untiring efforts of a host of scientific workers. These epoch-making discoveries have altogether changed the old intellectual landscape and posed unwieldy problems for modern generation to handle. Muslim countries cannot possibly escape this new challenge thrown by modern science. This challenge has to be accepted and a reorientation of outlook is to be wrought to meet the incessant onslaught of Western lore on our cultural heritage. In other words, a syncretism is the need of the hour. Precious decades of our existence as an independent nation are already alone. Now the situation cannot brook any delay. Either we have to dovetail a substantive syncretism of ancient and modern cultural values sooner or we would be forced to prepare ourselves for eventual collapse of our whole cultural structure in the not very distant future. Much can be retained of the past while a lot has to go by the board. This onerous task of syncretism requires a comprehensive study of Muslim culture as well as an extensive critical analysis of modern European thought. Thus, as it is evident, it is an ambitious project which cannot be executed under the patronage of a government which seems to be completely apathetic to all these academic and cultural activities. In this nauseating commercial atmosphere, it is the responsibility of mental workers to at least have a clearer perspective of what will have to be done to save Muslim culture from utter collapse.”
Discussing the responsibility of the intellectuals, Taqi sahib states: “The intellectuals of Pakistan have greater responsibilities to shoulder. They should, if I am permitted to offer a suggestion, form a committee of thoughtful workers among them to initiate work in this direction and make a solemn beginning for the achievement of this ideal. The magnitude of the work should not deter them from pursuing the right objective as the beginning has, somehow, to be contemplated. I am sure, the intellectual community of Pakistan would give careful thought to this suggestion and make a beginning in this direction. A great deal of work has already been completed by the valuable efforts of Syed Amir Ali, Iqbal and Shibli in the formulation of a new casuistry of Islam. But this work ,great as it was, is certainly inadequate for our present needs. We require a wider perspective and comprehensive vision to perform the task in hand and to do justice with our present-day responsibilities. “
At the launching ceremony of Taqi sahib’s book “Karbala – Tehzeeb Ka Mustaqbil ,” in Karachi Arts Council, Dr Aliya Imam, a prominent writer, made a very interesting observation about the state of intellectual decline in the society: “… in this era when fascination to ‘darul kitaab’ (library) has long been overshadowed by ‘darul kabaab’ (restaurants), one really misses scholars like Syed Muhammad Taqi.” Indeed, Taqi sahib was a philosopher par excellence, and people who value ‘darul kitaab’ can truly appreciate his scholarly achievements viz a viz Essays in Philosophy , and pay attention to his advice.
[Dr Ahmed S. Khan ( dr.a.s.khan@ieee.org ) is a Fulbright Specialist Scholar (2017-2022)]
