Rasta bhi dhund khizr ka sauda bhi chhod de
“Better self-destruction than a life of blind imitation; find your own road, and give up the obsession with a guide.”
रस्ता भी ढूँड ख़िज़्र का सौदा भी छोड़ दे
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
Iqbal's hardest line on independence. To live entirely by copying others, never thinking or choosing for yourself, is a kind of death already, so why fear the risk of walking alone? He even sets aside Khizr, the legendary guide, urging the seeker to stop waiting to be led. Selfhood is built by walking your own path, not by following a borrowed one.
If you only ever do what others have done, you are not really living your life; you are repeating theirs. Stop waiting for a perfect mentor or map. Find your own road and start walking it.
Khuda bande se khud pooche, bata teri raza kya hai
Tu shaheen hai, basera kar paharon ki chattanon mein
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban