Couplets › Awakening
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 · originally composed in Urdu
Bahut dekhe hain maine mashriq-o-maghrib ke maikhane
Yahan saaqi nahin paida, wahan be-zauq hai sahba
Yahan saaqi nahin paida, wahan be-zauq hai sahba
“I have seen many a tavern of the East and the West — here no cup-bearer is born, and there the wine itself is without relish.”
Romanहिन्दी
बहुत देखे हैं मैंने मशरिक़-ओ-मग़रिब के मयख़ाने
यहाँ साक़ी नहीं पैदा, वहाँ बे-ज़ौक़ है सहबा
यहाँ साक़ी नहीं पैदा, वहाँ बे-ज़ौक़ है सहबा
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal, who studied deeply in both worlds, refuses to romanticise either. The East, he says, no longer produces the one who can pour life-giving wine; the West has the wine but it has lost its savour. Neither civilisation, on its own, is whole.
For You, Today
Beware of anyone selling you a single culture as the complete answer. Iqbal, who knew East and West intimately, found each one missing something the other had.
In the same spirit
Apne mann mein doob kar pa ja suragh-e-zindagi
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Dive into your own self and find the trace of life. If you will not be mine, then do not — but at least become your own.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge
Na samjhoge to mit jaoge ai Hindostan walon
Tumhari dastan tak bhi na hogi dastanon mein
Tumhari dastan tak bhi na hogi dastanon mein
If you will not understand, you will be erased, O people of Hindustan — not even your story will remain among the stories.
Awakening · 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