Couplets › Humility
From Bang-e-Dra, 1924 · originally composed in Urdu
Zindagi insaan ki ik dam ke siva kuch bhi nahin
Dam hawa ki mauj hai ram ke siva kuch bhi nahin
Dam hawa ki mauj hai ram ke siva kuch bhi nahin
“A human life is nothing more than a single breath — and that breath is a wave of air, nothing but a fleeting movement.”
Romanहिन्दी
ज़िंदगी इंसाँ की इक दम के सिवा कुछ भी नहीं
दम हवा की मौज है रम के सिवा कुछ भी नहीं
दम हवा की मौज है रम के सिवा कुछ भी नहीं
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 compresses a whole life into one breath, and that breath into a passing ripple of air. It is a humbling image, but not a despairing one — naming how brief and light existence is, is his way of asking what you will do with the wave while it lasts.
For You, Today
Holding the brevity of life clearly in mind is not morbid; it is clarifying. When a breath is all you have, you spend it on what truly matters and stop wasting it on what does not.
In the same spirit
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
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
Dayar-e-ishq mein apna maqam paida kar
Naya zamana, naye subh-o-sham paida kar
Naya zamana, naye subh-o-sham paida kar
In the realm of love, create your own standing — bring a new age into being, new mornings and new evenings of your own.
Aspiration · Action · Love