Couplets › Self-Knowledge
From Zarb-e-Kalim, 1936 — 'Zamana-e-Hazir Ka Insan' · originally composed in Urdu
Dhoondne wala sitaron ki guzargahon ka
Apne afkaar ki duniya mein safar kar na saka
Apne afkaar ki duniya mein safar kar na saka
“He who charts the very pathways of the stars could not journey through the world of his own thoughts.”
Romanहिन्दी
ढूँढने वाला सितारों की गुज़रगाहों का
अपने अफ़कार की दुनिया में सफ़र कर न सका
अपने अफ़कार की दुनिया में सफ़र कर न सका
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's quiet indictment of the modern mind. We have mapped the orbits of distant stars and yet never travelled the inner country of our own thoughts. Mastery of the outer world is no substitute for the unexplored self.
For You, Today
You can know the news, the markets, the science — and still be a stranger to your own interior. Iqbal asks where the real frontier is. It may be the one place you have never visited.
In the same spirit
Khudi ko kar buland itna ki har taqdeer se pehle
Khuda bande se khud pooche, bata teri raza kya hai
Khuda bande se khud pooche, bata teri raza kya hai
Raise your selfhood so high that, before issuing every decree of destiny, God Himself asks you: tell me, what is your wish?
Selfhood · Courage
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
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