Couplets › Youth
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 — 'Saqi Nama' · originally composed in Urdu
Khirad ko ghulami se azad kar
Jawanon ko peeron ka ustad kar
Jawanon ko peeron ka ustad kar
“Free the intellect from slavery; make the young the teachers of the old.”
Romanहिन्दी
ख़िरद को ग़ुलामी से आज़ाद कर
जवानों को पीरों का उस्ताद कर
जवानों को पीरों का उस्ताद कर
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
A prayer for liberation and renewal: emancipate thought from servile imitation, and let the energy of youth instruct age rather than the reverse. Iqbal inverts the usual hierarchy — the future should teach the past, not merely inherit it.
For You, Today
Iqbal wants thinking freed from inherited servility and the young empowered to lead, not just obey. Where elders only transmit and never learn, something is stuck. Sometimes the youngest in the room should be teaching it.
In the same spirit
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
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
Door duniya ka mere dam se andhera ho jaye
Har jagah mere chamakne se ujala ho jaye
Har jagah mere chamakne se ujala ho jaye
May the world's darkness be dispelled by my being; may every place be lit by my shining.
Aspiration · Hope · Youth