July 2 marked the 121st birth anniversary of Muhammad Asad. He was born as Leopold Weiss in Lviv, Ukraine and rose to fame as a journalist, traveler, writer, linguist, political theorist, diplomat and Islamic scholar and, most importantly, as a worker of the Pakistan Movement.
During his lifetime, Asad was known by many titles. Early in Arabia, he was called the “Leopold of Arabia, in likeness to Lawerence of Arabi. In Pakistan, he was titled by people as Allama (a scholar). He is recognized as a religious bridge-builder, a mediator between Islam and the West, and Europe’s Gift to Islam.
Asad, a writer and Islamic Scholar wrote his magnum opus “The Message of the Quran” (1980). An English translation and commentary of the Quran which he published after 17 years of painstaking scholarly research. It is regarded as one of the most influential translations of the modern era. Earlier his autobiography “The Road to Mecca” (1954) became a bestseller. His other literary works include “Islam at Cross Roads” (1934), “Translation of Sahih Al Bukhari: The Early Years of Islam” (1981), “The Law of Ours and Other Essays” (1987) and “Home Coming of the Heart,” which is regarded as part II of ‘The Road to Mecca.'”
Lviv in the early 1900s was part of Austro Hungarian Empire and was known as Galicia. Today it is befittingly recognized as the cultural capital of Ukraine. Leopold Weiss was born in Lviv to a Jewish family and, after his schooling, he traveled to the Middle East. He converted to Islam in Arabia in 1926 and adopted the name Muhammad Asad. Indeed he had taken the Road to Mecca very early in his life.
In the early 1930s, Asad traveled to the subcontinent where met Allama Iqbal, a world-renowned Islamic philosopher and thinker who envisioned Pakistan as a home for Muslims of the subcontinent. Allama Iqbal asked him to elucidate the intellectual premises of the future Islamic state and help achieve it as well. His book “The Principles of State and Government in Islam” (1961) describes a democratic political system that is grounded in Islamic principles.
Iqbal also encouraged Asad to translate Sahih Al-Bukhari into English for the first time in history. Asad in order to find a serene place to stimulate his intellectual and spiritual thought traveled to Kashmir during the summer of 1934. There he became friends with Mirwaiz Muhammad Yusuf. While working enthusiastically on his translation, he also set up a printing press in Srinagar. First, two chapters of his translation were printed in Srinagar. Asad in his book “Homecoming of the Heart” mentions his special relationship with Kashmir.
During World War II Asad was imprisoned by the British but continued to work as a dedicated worker of the Pakistan Movement. On the creation of Pakistan on 14 Aug. 14, 1947, he adopted Pakistan as his home and was honored with citizenship of Pakistan. He was first appointed director of the Department of Islamic Reconstruction and then he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Pakistan, where he served as deputy secretary to the Middle East and then Pakistan’s envoy to United Nations. Asad Platz in the United Nations Square Vienna is dedicated to honoring his services. On March 20, 2013, the Pakistan Post issued a postage stamp under the “Men of Letters” series to recognize his literary works and Islamic Culture Centre has a dedicated center in Lviv in his name.
To inform the people of Pakistan and Ukraine about the numerous contributions of Muhammad Asad, the Pakistan Embassy, in coordination with the Islamic Center Kyiv, launched a Ukrainian translation of his book “The Unromantic Orient” during the International Book Arsenal Festival in Kyiv.
In concert with the state administrator, we will initiate work to place a plaque at his birthplace, erect his bust at a suitable location and name a location in Lviv and Kyiv after Asad.
The embassy, in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, plans to hold a reference event in Kyiv and has approached the National Book Foundation of Pakistan to furnish a complete set of publications of Asad for placing in the libraries in Ukraine. We have also invited the universities in Ukraine and Pakistan to sponsor joint research to document Asad’s numerous accomplishments and most importantly to explore his ideas as an Islamic scholar for the benefit of humanity.
Asad continues to act as a bridge between Islam and Europe and most importantly between Pakistan and Ukraine. It is because o Asad that Ukraine can claim that it effectively contributed towards the making of Pakistan.
Noel I. Khokhar is Pakistan’s ambassador to Ukraine.
