Couplets › Self-Knowledge
From Zarb-e-Kalim, 1936 — 'Javed Se' · originally composed in Urdu
Wo behar hai aadmi ke jis ka
Har qatra hai behar-e-baikrana
Har qatra hai behar-e-baikrana
“Man is an ocean whose every drop is itself a boundless sea.”
Romanहिन्दी
वो बहर है आदमी कि जिस का
हर क़तरा है बहर-ए-बेकराना
हर क़तरा है बहर-ए-बेकराना
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's image of human depth: a person is not just an ocean but one whose smallest drop contains another limitless ocean. There is no bottom to a human being. The self holds infinities within infinities.
For You, Today
Never assume you have reached the bottom of what you — or anyone — contain. Iqbal sees infinity in every drop of a person. Whatever you have discovered in yourself, there is always another ocean beneath it.
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