Couplets › Awakening
From Bal-e-Jibril, 1935 — 'Saqi Nama' · originally composed in Urdu
Zamane ke andaz badle gaye
Naya raag hai saaz badle gaye
Naya raag hai saaz badle gaye
“The ways of the age have changed; the tune is new, the instruments have changed.”
Romanहिन्दी
ज़माने के अंदाज़ बदले गए
नया राग है साज़ बदले गए
नया राग है साज़ बदले गए
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 announces an epochal shift: the old forms no longer fit a transformed world. New music demands new instruments. It is a call to recognise when an era has turned and to stop playing the previous age's song.
For You, Today
When the times genuinely change, last era's tools and tunes stop working. Iqbal's instinct is to retune, not to cling. Notice when the raag has changed, and reach for a new instrument.
In the same spirit
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
Ho mere dam se yunhi watan ki zeenat
Jis tarah phool se hoti hai chaman ki zeenat
Jis tarah phool se hoti hai chaman ki zeenat
Let my country be adorned by me, as a garden is adorned by its flowers.
Aspiration · Youth · Action
Amal se zindagi banti hai jannat bhi jahannum bhi
Ye khaki apni fitrat mein na noori hai na naari hai
Ye khaki apni fitrat mein na noori hai na naari hai
By our deeds we make life a heaven or a hell. This creature of dust is, by nature, neither angel of light nor demon of fire.
Action · Courage