Couplets › Freedom
From Bang-e-Dara · originally composed in Urdu
mujh ko kar de o karne wale
hun tu kar le
hun tu kar le
“Set me free, you who keep me caged; I am a voiceless captive, release me and earn a blessing.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
मुझ को कर दे ओ करने वाले
मैं हूँ तू छोड़ कर ले
मैं हूँ तू छोड़ कर ले
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
آزاد مجھ کو کر دے او قید کرنے والے
میں بے زباں ہوں قیدی تو چھوڑ کر دعا لے!
میں بے زباں ہوں قیدی تو چھوڑ کر دعا لے!
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
A caged bird makes its plea, and Iqbal turns the cry into a wider statement about freedom. The captive has no power but its appeal to the captor's conscience. Freedom, the verse insists, is the natural condition of a living thing, and to grant it is itself a worthy act.
For You, Today
If you hold any kind of hold over another person, ask whether the cage is really needed. Releasing what you have confined, rather than gripping it, is often the better act.
In the same spirit
Nahin tera nasheman qasr-e-sultani ke gumbad par
Tu shaheen hai, basera kar paharon ki chattanon mein
Tu shaheen hai, basera kar paharon ki chattanon mein
Your nest is not on the dome of a royal palace. You are a falcon — make your dwelling on the rocks of the mountains.
The Falcon · Freedom · Courage
Ho mera kaam ghareebon ki himayat karna
Dard-mandon se zaeefon se mohabbat karna
Dard-mandon se zaeefon se mohabbat karna
Let my work be to defend the poor — to love the suffering and the weak.
Justice · Humility · Love
Ai tair-e-lahooti us rizq se maut achhi
Jis rizq se aati ho parvaaz mein kotahi
Jis rizq se aati ho parvaaz mein kotahi
O celestial bird, better death than the sustenance that brings any shortfall to your flight.
Freedom · The Falcon