Society of Iqbal Studies (SoIS) series of workshops is typically conducted on a Saturday or Sunday. Details of the workshops of the upcoming workshops are given on these pages. SoIS members would be pleased to know that the program the series has again been started after the return from sabbatical of Mr. Khurram Ali Shafique from UK.

Previous SoIS Events

SoIS workshops started with nine questions raised by Iqbal in Gulshan e Raaz e Jadeed (Zabur e Ajam) and nine books of Iqbal which were covered in detail in a series of workshops. Khurram Ali Shafique in his distinctive style interprets the links between each book collection of Iqbal and each of the nine questions. Each workshop highlighted the themes and distinctive style that Iqbal used for each of the collection. Of particular interest is his connection of past events with the emerging future. Each work of Iqbal and his thought is living and inspiring the events occurrence in the future. These links are explored in detail in these workshops. 

The idea of "consensu literature" that inspires the people vs literature that promotes despondency and disillusionment is a central theme through which Iqbal, Rumi, Nizami Ganjwi and others of the past are linked with influentials like Hasrat Mohani, Zafar Ali Khan and Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar during pre-partition, poets and literati like Hafeez Jullandri and Agha Hashar around partition and new genres like films of Waheed Murad and detective fiction of Ibne Safi in the post partition period, in a wonderfully architected thesis distinctive of Mr. Khurram Ali Shafique.

First session in this series was on Asraar e khudi. The discussion then got extended and spread over four sessions. Followed by another four sessions on Ramooz e Baykhudi. There had been several other programs related to or inspired from Iqbal's conception of history, culture and society specifically dealing with the role of literature and political narratives in building consensus among the masses by directing their energies and thinking towards positive aspects of life and inspiring them and giving them confidence in their abilities and potential.