Couplets › Self-Knowledge
From Bang-e-Dara, 1924 — 'Tulu-e-Islam' · originally composed in Urdu
Tu raaz-e-kun-fakan hai apni aankhon par ayan ho ja
Khudi ka raazdan ho ja, khuda ka tarjuman ho ja
Khudi ka raazdan ho ja, khuda ka tarjuman ho ja
“You are the secret of creation — become visible to your own eyes. Become the confidant of your selfhood, the interpreter of the divine.”
Romanहिन्दी
तू राज़-ए-कुन-फ़काँ है अपनी आँखों पर अयाँ हो जा
ख़ुदी का राज़दाँ हो जा, ख़ुदा का तर्जुमाँ हो जा
ख़ुदी का राज़दाँ हो जा, ख़ुदा का तर्जुमाँ हो जा
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
Iqbal tells you that the mystery you keep searching the universe for is housed inside you. The task is not to acquire it but to become visible to yourself — to befriend your own selfhood until you can speak for the deepest thing you carry.
For You, Today
You spend enormous energy understanding the world and almost none understanding yourself. Iqbal reverses the priority: become the confidant of your own self first. Everything you are looking for is already on the inside.
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
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
Na samjhoge to mit jaoge ai Hindostan walon
Tumhari dastan tak bhi na hogi dastanon mein
Tumhari dastan tak bhi na hogi dastanon mein
If you will not understand, you will be erased, O people of Hindustan — not even your story will remain among the stories.
Awakening · Courage