Couplets › Courage
From Zarb-e-Kalim, 1936 — 'Mard-e-Musalman' · originally composed in Urdu
Jis se jigar-e-laala mein thandak ho wo shabnam
Daryaon ke dil jis se dahel jaayein wo toofan
Daryaon ke dil jis se dahel jaayein wo toofan
“To the tulip's heart he is the dew that cools it; to mighty rivers he is the storm that makes their hearts tremble.”
Romanहिन्दी
जिस से जिगर-ए-लाला में ठंडक हो वो शबनम
दरियाओं के दिल जिस से दहल जाएँ वो तूफ़ान
दरियाओं के दिल जिस से दहल जाएँ वो तूफ़ान
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
The Interpretation
Two faces again: gentle as dew to the delicate, terrifying as a storm to the powerful. Iqbal's believer fits his force to what stands before him — mercy to the tender, fury to the arrogant. The same nature contains both.
For You, Today
Be dew to the fragile and a storm to the overbearing. Iqbal's measure of a person is whether they can be both — gentle where gentleness is needed, formidable where it is. One register is never enough.
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