Couplets › Freedom
From Bal-e-Jibril · originally composed in Urdu
ka aata hai
Jo ko aae do
Jo ko aae do
“The age of the people's rule is arriving; whatever old patterns you still see, wipe them away.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
का आता है
जो तुम को आए मिटा दो
जो तुम को आए मिटा दो
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
سلطانیٔ جمہور کا آتا ہے زمانہ
جو نقش کہن تم کو نظر آئے مٹا دو
جو نقش کہن تم کو نظر آئے مٹا دو
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal announces a turn toward government by the many rather than the few. He treats the inherited structures of privilege as worn marks to be erased. The verse is a summons to clear the ground so that a more just order can take its place.
For You, Today
When an old arrangement no longer serves the people it governs, do not preserve it out of habit. Some structures have to be cleared away before something fairer can stand.
In the same spirit
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
Ho mera kaam ghareebon ki himayat karna
Dard-mandon se zaeefon se mohabbat karna
Dard-mandon se zaeefon se mohabbat karna
Let my work be to defend the poor — to love the suffering and the weak.
Justice · Humility · Love
Ai tair-e-lahooti us rizq se maut achhi
Jis rizq se aati ho parvaaz mein kotahi
Jis rizq se aati ho parvaaz mein kotahi
O celestial bird, better death than the sustenance that brings any shortfall to your flight.
Freedom · The Falcon