Couplets › Selfhood
From Bal-e-Jibril (1935) · originally composed in Urdu
Wahi jahan hai tera jis ko tu kare paida
Ye sang-o-khisht nahin jo teri nigah mein hai
Ye sang-o-khisht nahin jo teri nigah mein hai
“Yours alone is the world you yourself create; not this one of stone and brick that lies before your eyes.”
Romanहिन्दी
वही जहाँ है तिरा जिस को तू करे पैदा
ये संग-ओ-ख़िश्त नहीं जो तिरी निगाह में है
ये संग-ओ-ख़िश्त नहीं जो तिरी निगाह में है
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 pushes selfhood to its furthest reach. The given world, the one made of stone and brick, the inherited circumstances, is not truly yours. The world that belongs to you is the one you bring into being through your own will and vision. A person of khudi does not inherit a world; they make one.
For You, Today
The situation you were handed is not your real world. Your world is the one you build. Stop treating inherited circumstances as fixed, and start creating.
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