Couplets › Love
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 — 'Masjid-e-Qurtaba' · originally composed in Urdu
Ishq dam-e-Jibreel ishq dam-e-Mustafa
Ishq Khuda ka Rasool ishq Khuda ka kalaam
Ishq Khuda ka Rasool ishq Khuda ka kalaam
“Love is the breath of Gabriel, love the breath of the Prophet; love is the messenger of God, love is the Word of God.”
Romanहिन्दी
इश्क़ दम-ए-जिब्रील इश्क़ दम-ए-मुस्तफ़ा
इश्क़ ख़ुदा का रसूल इश्क़ ख़ुदा का कलाम
इश्क़ ख़ुदा का रसूल इश्क़ ख़ुदा का कलाम
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
At the heart of his greatest poem, Iqbal makes ishq — love — the force behind revelation itself. Every sacred thing, from the angel to the scripture, he traces back to love. It is not sentiment but the creative power driving all that is highest.
For You, Today
Iqbal puts love at the source of everything that matters — not as feeling but as the force that creates and sustains. Whatever your highest work, ask whether love drives it. Without that breath, the rest is mechanism.
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
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
Lab pe aati hai dua ban ke tamanna meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
My longing rises to my lips as a prayer: O God, may my life be like a candle's flame.
Hope · Aspiration