Couplets › Freedom
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 · originally composed in Urdu
Ai us se achhi
se aati ho mein
se aati ho mein
“O celestial bird, better death than the sustenance that brings any shortfall to your flight.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
ऐ तैर-ए-लाहूती उस से अच्छी
से आती हो में
से आती हो में
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
اے طائر لاہوتی اس رزق سے موت اچھی
جس رزق سے آتی ہو پرواز میں کوتاہی
جس رزق سے آتی ہو پرواز میں کوتاہی
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Addressed to a heavenly bird, this is Iqbal's fiercest verse on dignity. Any sustenance — any salary, any security — that clips your flight is worse than death. Survival bought with the loss of your purpose is not really survival.
For You, Today
If the thing keeping you fed is also keeping you grounded, Iqbal does not call that safety — he calls it a slow death. Guard your flight more carefully than your comfort.
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
Parwaz hai dono ki isi ek faza mein
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Both take flight in this very same sky — yet the vulture's world is one thing, and the falcon's another.
The Falcon · Self-Knowledge
Utha na sheeshagaran-e-farang ke ehsaan
Sifaal-e-Hind se meena o jaam paida kar
Sifaal-e-Hind se meena o jaam paida kar
Do not accept the favours of the West's glassmakers — from the humble clay of India, fashion your own goblet and cup.
Selfhood · Freedom · Action