Couplets › Unity
From Bang-e-Dara, 1924 — 'Tarana-e-Milli' · originally composed in Urdu
Chin o Arab hamara Hindostan hamara
Muslim hain hum watan hai sara jahan hamara
Muslim hain hum watan hai sara jahan hamara
“China and Arabia are ours, India is ours; we are Muslims, and the whole world is our homeland.”
Romanहिन्दी
चीन-ओ-अरब हमारा हिन्दोस्ताँ हमारा
मुस्लिम हैं हम वतन है सारा जहाँ हमारा
मुस्लिम हैं हम वतन है सारा जहाँ हमारा
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
The Interpretation
Written years after 'Saare jahan se accha' as its deliberate counterpoint, this anthem widens belonging past any single country. Iqbal imagines an identity defined not by borders but by a shared faith and conscience that spans the earth.
For You, Today
Iqbal pushes against the instinct to shrink belonging to one patch of ground. Whatever your community, the line asks you to draw your sense of home wider than a border — a circle made of values, not geography.
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
Mazhab nahin sikhata aapas mein bair rakhna
Hindi hain hum, watan hai Hindostan hamara
Hindi hain hum, watan hai Hindostan hamara
Religion does not teach us to hold enmity among ourselves. We are of Hind, and Hindustan is our homeland.
Unity · 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