jo the mire ke
“Mistaking them for pearls, a generous grace gathered up the drops that were only my sweat of shame.”
क़तरे जो थे मिरे के
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
قطرے جو تھے مرے عرق انفعال کے
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
Iqbal turns his own sense of unworthiness into a meditation on grace. The drops of shame he produced, the residue of his failings, were taken up and treasured as if they were pearls. The couplet suggests that what we are ashamed of need not be the final word; a generous regard can receive even our worst with unexpected tenderness.
Do not let shame convince you that your failings are worthless and beyond redemption. Even the parts of yourself you would rather hide can be met with grace; offer them honestly and let them be received.
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
Har jagah mere chamakne se ujala ho jaye
Dard-mandon se zaeefon se mohabbat karna