Couplets › Adversity
From Bang-e-Dara (1924) · originally composed in Urdu
Tumhari tahzib apne khanjar se aap hi khud-kushi karegi
Jo shakh-e-nazuk pe aashiyana banega na-paedar hoga
Jo shakh-e-nazuk pe aashiyana banega na-paedar hoga
“Your civilisation will take its own life with its own dagger; a nest built on a fragile branch will never last.”
Romanहिन्दी
तुम्हारी तहज़ीब अपने ख़ंजर से आप ही ख़ुद-कुशी करेगी
जो शाख़-ए-नाज़ुक पे आशियाना बनेगा ना-पाएदार होगा
जो शाख़-ए-नाज़ुक पे आशियाना बनेगा ना-पाएदार होगा
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 warns that a civilisation carrying the instruments of its own destruction will eventually turn them on itself. The image of a nest on a weak branch makes the point plain: anything built on an unsound foundation is doomed, no matter how impressive it looks.
For You, Today
Whatever you are building, a career, a venture, a home, check the branch before you admire the nest. Brilliance on a weak foundation does not last. Strength is decided by what holds it up.
In the same spirit
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
Jis khet se dehqan ko muyassar nahin rozi
Us khet ke har khosha-e-gandum ko jala do
Us khet ke har khosha-e-gandum ko jala do
The field that does not yield its farmer even his daily bread — burn every ear of wheat in that field.
Justice · Courage
Parwaz hai dono ki isi ek faza mein
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Both take flight in this very same sky — yet the vulture's world is one thing, and the falcon's another.
The Falcon · Self-Knowledge