Couplets › Courage
From Bang-e-Dara (1924) · originally composed in Urdu
Mujhe tu ai kya hone se
Ki ko ho jaate hain mein
Ki ko ho jaate hain mein
“Boatman, how will you save me from drowning? Those fated to drown will drown even aboard the ship.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
मुझे रोकेगा तू ऐ क्या होने से
कि को हो जाते हैं सफ़ीनों में
कि को हो जाते हैं सफ़ीनों में
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
مجھے روکے گا تو اے ناخدا کیا غرق ہونے سے
کہ جن کو ڈوبنا ہو ڈوب جاتے ہیں سفینوں میں
کہ جن کو ڈوبنا ہو ڈوب جاتے ہیں سفینوں میں
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal refuses borrowed safety. A person who has lost their own will to stay afloat will sink even in a sturdy vessel; one with real resolve can survive the open water. Survival is not handed to you by a rescuer or a safe position. It comes from your own inner strength, which no external shelter can supply.
For You, Today
Do not pin your safety on someone else's boat. If your own resolve is gone, no shelter will hold you. Build the strength to stay afloat yourself.
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
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
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