Couplets › Courage
From Zarb-e-Kalim, 1936 — 'Momin' · originally composed in Urdu
Ho halqa-e-yaaran to bresham ki tarah narm
Razm-e-haq-o-baatil ho to faulad hai momin
Razm-e-haq-o-baatil ho to faulad hai momin
“Among friends, the man of faith is soft as silk; in the battle of truth against falsehood, he is steel.”
Romanहिन्दी
हो हल्क़ा-ए-यारां तो बरेशम की तरह नर्म
रज़्म-ए-हक़-ओ-बातिल हो तो फ़ौलाद है मोमिन
रज़्म-ए-हक़-ओ-बातिल हो तो फ़ौलाद है मोमिन
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
The Interpretation
Iqbal's portrait of the believer in two gestures: tenderness with companions, hardness against injustice. The same person who is gentle in friendship becomes unyielding when truth is at stake. Strength and softness are not opposites but a single character that knows when to be which.
For You, Today
Real strength knows when to be silk and when to be steel. Iqbal's ideal is not the perpetually hard man but the one who is soft with his people and immovable against wrong. Match your edge to the moment.
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
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
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