Couplets › Leadership
From Bal-e-Jibril (1935) · originally composed in Urdu
Kise nahin hai
ki ho mein wo kya hai
ki ho mein wo kya hai
“Who does not long for leadership? But what kind of leadership is it, if reaching it kills the self?”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
किसे नहीं है
की हो में वो क्या है
की हो में वो क्या है
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
کسے نہیں ہے تمنائے سروری لیکن
خودی کی موت ہو جس میں وہ سروری کیا ہے
خودی کی موت ہو جس میں وہ سروری کیا ہے
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal admits the desire to rise is universal and does not shame it. His warning is about the price. If climbing demands that you surrender your selfhood, your khudi, then the position you win is hollow. Leadership that costs you who you are is not an achievement; it is a quiet defeat.
For You, Today
Wanting to lead is healthy. Just check the cost of the climb. If a promotion or platform requires you to betray your own centre, the title will not be worth what you traded for it.
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
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
Mere Allah burai se bachana mujh ko
Nek jo raah ho us rah pe chalana mujh ko
Nek jo raah ho us rah pe chalana mujh ko
My God, save me from evil; set me on the path that is good.
Humility · Self-Knowledge