hain us ko
“India takes pride in the very existence of Ram; those of discerning sight regard him as the spiritual leader of India.”
समझते हैं उस को
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
اہل نظر سمجھتے ہیں اس کو امام ہند
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
Iqbal, a Muslim poet, openly honours Ram as a figure of light belonging to all of India. He calls Ram an imam of the land, a guide whose worth the discerning recognise across any line of faith. The couplet is a clear statement of shared inheritance: India's great souls belong to everyone who claims the country, not to one community alone.
Treat the wisdom of every tradition around you as part of a common inheritance. The discerning person, Iqbal suggests, learns from a great soul regardless of which community first claimed them.
Hindi hain hum, watan hai Hindostan hamara
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
Muslim hain hum watan hai sara jahan hamara