Couplets › Hope
From Bang-e-Dara, 1924 — 'Bachche ki Dua' · originally composed in Urdu
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.”
लब पे आती है दुआ बन के तमन्ना मेरी
ज़िंदगी शम्आ की सूरत हो ख़ुदाया मेरी
ज़िंदगी शम्आ की सूरत हो ख़ुदाया मेरी
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
Written as a child's prayer, this verse is sung every morning in thousands of schools across the subcontinent. The wish is simple and luminous: to live like a candle's flame — to give light, even though it costs the self something to burn.
For You, Today
A life that gives light costs the giver something — that is the nature of a flame. Iqbal's gentlest verse asks the largest question: is your life lighting anything?
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
Nahin hai naumeed Iqbal apni kisht-e-veeran se
Zara nam ho to ye mitti badi zarkhez hai saqi
Zara nam ho to ye mitti badi zarkhez hai saqi
Iqbal is not without hope, even from his barren field — let there be a little moisture, cupbearer, and this soil is wonderfully fertile.
Hope · Aspiration