Crisis — Humans don’t know what it is to be a Human.
In the book Secret of the Self, Iqbal wrote this poem on how a clever sheep convinced a herd of lions; that its life struggles can find peace by inhabiting the sheep's way of life; but in the end, the lion lost what it meant to be a lion.
Every object has its self, and its existence can only remain if it continues to project that and keep to its real self; otherwise, if it stops being that thing it will become something and lose what it is.
In the end, the question becomes what is to be a human?
Hast thou heard that in the time of old
The sheep dwelling in a certain pasture
So increased and multiplied
That they feared no enemy?
At last, from the malice of Fate,
Their breasts were smitten by a shaft of calamity.
The tigers sprang forth from the jungle
And rushed upon the sheepfold.
Conquest and dominion are signs of strength,
Victory is the manifestation of strength.
Those fierce tigers beat the drum of sovereignty,
They deprived the sheep of freedom.
Forasmuch as tigers must have their prey,
That meadow was crimsoned with the blood of the sheep
One of the sheep which was clever and acute,
Old in years, cunning as a weather-beaten wolf,
Being grieved at the fate of his fellows
And sorely vexed by the violence of the tigers,
Made complaint of the course of Destiny
And sought by craft to restore his fortunes.
The weak man, to preserve himself,
Seeks devices from skilled intelligence.
In slavery, for the sake of repelling harm,
The power of scheming becomes quickened
And when the madness of revenge gains hold,
The mind of the slave meditates on rebellion.
“Ours is a hard knot,” said this sheep to himself,
“The ocean of our griefs hath no shore.
By force we sheep cannot escape from the tiger:
Our legs are silver, his paws are steel.
’Tis not possible, however much one exhorts and counsels,
To create in a sheep the disposition of a wolf.
But to make the furious tiger a sheep — that is possible;
To make him unmindful of his nature — that is possible.”
He became a prophet-inspired,
And began to preach to the bloodthirsty tigers.
He cried out, “O ye insolent liars,
Who wot not of a day of ill luck that shall continue forever!
I am possessed of spiritual power,
I am an apostle sent by God for the tigers.
I come as a light for the eye that is dark,
I come to establish laws and give commandments.
Repent of your blameworthy deeds!
O plotters of evil, bethink yourselves of good!
Whoso is violent and strong is miserable:
Life’s solidity depends on self-denial.
The spirit of the righteous is fed by fodder:
The vegetarian is pleasing unto God.
The sharpness of your teeth brings disgrace upon you
And makes the eye of your perception blind.
Paradise is for the weak alone,
Strength is but a means to perdition.
It is wicked to seek greatness and glory,
Penury is sweeter than princedom.
Lightning does not threaten the corn-seed:
If the seed becomes a stack, it is unwise.
If you are sensible, you will be a mote of sand, not a Sahara,
So that you may enjoy the sunbeams.
O thou that delightest in the slaughter of sheep,
Slay thy self, and thou wilt have honor!
Life is rendered unstable
By violence, oppression, revenge, and exercise of power.
Though trodden underfoot, the grass grows up time after time
And washes the sleep of death from its eye again and again.
Forget thy self, if thou art wise!
If thou dost not forget thy self, thou art mad.
Close thine eyes, close thine ears, close thy lips
That thy thought may reach the lofty sky!
This pasturage of the world is naught, naught:
O fool, do not torment thyself for a phantom!”
The tiger-tribe was exhausted by hard struggles,
They had set their hearts on the enjoyment of luxury.
This soporific advice pleased them,
In their stupidity, they swallowed the charm of the sheep.
He used to make sheep his prey
Now embraced a sheep’s religion.
The tigers took kindly to a diet of fodder:
At length, their tigerish nature was broken.
The fodder blunted their teeth
And put out the awful flashings of their eyes.
By degrees courage ebbed from their breasts,
The sheen departed from the mirror.
That frenzy of uttermost exertion remained not,
That craving after action dwelt in their hearts no more.
They lost the power of rule and the resolution to be independent,
They lost reputation, prestige, and fortune.
Their paws which were as iron became strengthless;
Their souls died and their bodies became tombs.
Bodily strength diminished while spiritual fear increased:
Spiritual fear robbed them of courage.
Lack of courage produced a hundred diseases —
Poverty, pusillanimity, lowmindedness.
The wakeful tiger was lulled to slumber by the sheep’s charm:
He called his decline Moral Culture.
Many philosophers, and thinkers over the years have spent their lives understanding humans, but modern humans have become obsessed and entangled with this material being, its whole life purpose has become to preach and desire more luxury and comfort; and fulfill and acquire as many resources as it can acquire.
But all these self-fulfilling desires are not making us satisfied or giving us peace; did we arrive at the wrong definition of who we are; and find ourselves in a dark lane with no way out?
Iqbal also gives a solution
Agar Na Ho Tujhe Uljhan To Khol Kar Keh Doon
Wujood-e-Hazrat-e-Insan Na Rooh Hai Na Badan
If you do not get much disturbed, to you this truth I may unroll
That man, Godʹs image, on the earth is neither a frame of clay nor a soul.
In easier words, a human is a perfect mix of body and soul; with no duality; it has earthy desires and heavenly qualities of compassion, fairness, equality, and love.
It becomes a human quest to control these two opposing forces and be a force of good in this world.
Man's purpose is to seek truth and justice and be an object that constantly imitates and resembles them in his life and community; fight what is evil and unjust; and make sure humanity's dignity and sacredness are restored rather than the divisions and oppression we have found ourselves in.
If a human does not move toward a purpose that transcends its lower desire or becomes more than a Darwinian egoistic survival being then we can declare that thing anything but a human!!
The question is who will tell this thing that what is to be a human?
“Surely in the heart of every human being, there is a sense of scattering which cannot be brought back together except by turning to Allah. And in the heart of every human being, there is a sense of loneliness that cannot be put out except by being close to Allah. And in the heart of every human being, there is anxiety and there is a sense of fear and unease which cannot be removed except by fleeing to Allah. And in the heart of every human being,g there is a sense of guilt and regret which cannot be removed except by being pleased and content with Allah.” — Ibn al Qayyim
Rafiuddin explored and expanded on Iqal's ideas and if one is looking to understand it more on a philosophical level
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/57317/57317-h/57317-h.htm#VII