Muhammad Iqbal: Encyclopedia II - Muhammad Iqbal - Iqbal in Europe

Muhammad Iqbal - Iqbal in Europe

In 1905, he went to Europe and began studies at Trinity College, Cambridge. While in England he also was able to practise law, which he did through Lincoln's Inn. At Cambridge, he crossed paths with other great scholars who further influenced his scholastic development. Under their guidance, Iqbal refined his already considerable intellect and widened his mental horizon. After staying in the United Kingdom, he then went on to study at the University of Munich. He earned a Ph.D. with a thesis on the "Development of Metaphysics in Persia", his only other English work being The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam in 1928. While in Europe he also began to write his poetry in Persian, because it allowed him to reach a wider audience, i.e., Iran and Afghanistan; but he finally decided on sticking to Urdu since most Indians did not understand Persian.

It was while in Britain that he first went into politics. Following the formation of the All-India Muslim League in 1906, Iqbal was elected to the executive committee of the league's British chapter. Together with two other leaders, Sayyid Hassan Bilgrami and Sayyid Amir Ali, he also sat on the subcommittee which drafted the league's constitution.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Iqbal in Europe", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki