Couplets › Selfhood
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 · originally composed in Urdu
Na tu ke liye hai na ke liye
hai tere liye tu nahin ke liye
hai tere liye tu nahin ke liye
“You are not made for the earth, nor for the sky — the world is made for you, you are not made for the world.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
न तू के लिए है न के लिए
है तेरे लिए तू नहीं के लिए
है तेरे लिए तू नहीं के लिए
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
نہ تو زمیں کے لیے ہے نہ آسماں کے لیے
جہاں ہے تیرے لیے تو نہیں جہاں کے لیے
جہاں ہے تیرے لیے تو نہیں جہاں کے لیے
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal reverses the usual hierarchy between the human being and the universe. A person is not a small item inside creation, fitted to serve it; creation is the field, and the self is what gives it meaning. To shrink yourself to the world's expectations is to misread your own scale.
For You, Today
Do not let circumstances define how large you are allowed to be. Iqbal's claim is bracing — you were not built to fit the world, the world is the arena in which you become 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
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
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