Syed Ali Abbas Jalalpuri () was a professor of philosophy in Government College Lahore. He is regarded by the intellectuals of Pakistan as the Will Durant of Pakistan. He had master's degrees in Philosophy, Persian and Urdu. He wrote at least fourteen books on philosophy, history, and religion in Urdu language. He was known as a first-rate scholar, and his books seemed to herald an age of reason in Pakistan.
His opinions on the subjects of history, civilization, religion, philosophy, metaphysics, and folklore are held in great esteem. In his greatest work, Riwayat-e-Falsafa (Story of Philosophy), he tried to educate the common Urdu reader on the subject of Philosophy. This book served its purpose in popularizing the subject it discussed like Will Durant's The Story of Philosophy.
Like the Dictionnaire Historique et Critique of Pierre Bayle and the Philosophical Dictionary of Voltaire, he wrote a philosophical dictionary, 'Khird Nama Jalalpuri' to explain the subject's terminologies in Urdu. He also wrote "Jinsiyati Mutaley" (A Study of Sex), which presented a great research work on the subject in Urdu language.
"Ali Abbas Jalalpuri was a very rigorous historian of Philosophy and Epistemology. As the dominant mode of Philosophy in Indian Subcontinent has been âÂÂAnalyticalâ I include him in the first trend as well. He is amongst first of the Modern Pakistani academics who took interest in the âÂÂQuestion of CivilizationâÂÂ, âÂÂHistory of Ideasâ and âÂÂAcademic ClarityâÂÂ, âÂÂRelationship of Metaphysics, Language and FolkloreâÂÂ, the questions which would eventually become most important issues for European Philosopher especially after âÂÂStructuralistâ revolution in Paris. Jalalpuri was aware of the inconsistencies and contradictions in explaining Iqbal when subjected to traditional Analytical Model of Philosophy. Where to place Iqbal in the Web of Modern Philosophical Ideas?â was the question he faced and he thought he had theperfect solution. Instead of trying to put Iqbal in the Project of Modernity and face the problem of Contradiction, Jalalpuri placed Iqbal among the traditional Islamic Philosophers or the âÂÂKalamistâÂÂ. So the âÂÂParadoxâ is âÂÂAvoidedâÂÂ, Instead of Philosopher, Iqbal is a âÂÂSchoolmenâ trying to complete âÂÂIslamic Scholasticismâ after Ghezali. Jalalpuri is rigorous in his work. due to non existent academy, the trend ended with him. âÂÂCompleting Islamic Scholasticismâ is certainly a part of Iqbal's work, but it's a Part, not the whole."
"In 1971, Ali Abbas Jalalpuri wrote a very comprehensive critique of IqbÃÂl's theology of modernity. He faults IqbÃÂl for selective and arbitrary interpretation of the QurâÂÂÃÂnic verses. To him, ambivalence towards pantheism and Ibn Arabi (d. 1240) at some places, his devotion to the pantheist Rumi, and his idea of Absolute Ego make it clear that IqbÃÂl's theology has deep roots in pantheism."