Couplets › Self-Knowledge
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 · originally composed in Urdu
Guzar ja aql se aage ki ye noor
Charagh-e-raah hai, manzil nahin hai
Charagh-e-raah hai, manzil nahin hai
“Move on past the intellect — for this light is a lamp for the road, not the destination itself.”
Romanहिन्दी
गुज़र जा अक़्ल से आगे कि ये नूर
चराग़-ए-राह है मंज़िल नहीं है
चराग़-ए-राह है मंज़िल नहीं है
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 honours reason and then puts it in its place. Intellect is genuine light, a lamp that helps you walk the path. But a lamp is not where you are going. To mistake the means of travel for the journey's end is to stop short of where you were meant to arrive.
For You, Today
Analysis and logic light your way — keep them. But Iqbal warns against treating them as the goal. The intellect shows the road; something more is needed to actually arrive.
In the same spirit
Sitaron se aage jahan aur bhi hain
Abhi ishq ke imtihan aur bhi hain
Abhi ishq ke imtihan aur bhi hain
Beyond the stars there are worlds yet — there are still more trials of love to come.
Aspiration · Love · Restlessness
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
Mohabbat mujhe un jawanon se hai
Sitaron pe jo dalte hain kamand
Sitaron pe jo dalte hain kamand
My love is for those young ones who cast their lasso upon the stars.
Youth · Aspiration