Couplets › Love
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 · originally composed in Urdu
Tu hai muheet-e-bekraan main zara si aabju
Ya mujhe ham-kinar kar ya mujhe be-kinar kar
Ya mujhe ham-kinar kar ya mujhe be-kinar kar
“You are the shoreless ocean, I a tiny stream: either draw me to Your shore, or make me shoreless like Yourself.”
Romanहिन्दी
तू है महीत-ए-बेकराँ मैं ज़रा सी आबजू
या मुझे हम-किनार कर या मुझे बे-किनार कर
या मुझे हम-किनार कर या मुझे बे-किनार कर
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
The small stream addresses the boundless sea: unite me with you, or make me as limitless as you are. Iqbal wants either nearness or transformation, no half-measures. The self seeks to either reach the infinite or become it.
For You, Today
Faced with something vast, Iqbal refuses to stay a trickle at a polite distance. Either bring me close or expand me — but don't leave me small and separate. Ask for union or transformation, not a comfortable gap.
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
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