Couplets › Self-Knowledge
From Bal-e-Jibril (1935) · originally composed in Urdu
Miri mashshatgi ki kya zarurat husn-e-mani ko
Ki fitrat khud-ba-khud karti hai laale ki hina-bandi
Ki fitrat khud-ba-khud karti hai laale ki hina-bandi
“What need has true beauty of meaning for my adorning hand? Nature, all on its own, paints the tulip red.”
Romanहिन्दी
मिरी मश्शातगी की क्या ज़रूरत हुस्न-ए-मअ'नी को
कि फ़ितरत ख़ुद-ब-ख़ुद करती है लाले की हिना-बंदी
कि फ़ितरत ख़ुद-ब-ख़ुद करती है लाले की हिना-बंदी
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
Iqbal says real substance does not need decoration. Just as nature colours the tulip without any help, genuine meaning carries its own beauty and asks for no cosmetic dressing. When something is true and alive at its core, the urge to embellish it is unnecessary and even a distraction.
For You, Today
If your work has real substance, resist the urge to over-decorate it. What is genuinely good shows its colour on its own. Build the meaning; skip the gloss.
In the same spirit
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
Amal se zindagi banti hai jannat bhi jahannum bhi
Ye khaki apni fitrat mein na noori hai na naari hai
Ye khaki apni fitrat mein na noori hai na naari hai
By our deeds we make life a heaven or a hell. This creature of dust is, by nature, neither angel of light nor demon of fire.
Action · Courage
Parwaz hai dono ki isi ek faza mein
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Both take flight in this very same sky — yet the vulture's world is one thing, and the falcon's another.
The Falcon · Self-Knowledge