Persian · noun · Mind & Knowledge
Aql-e-Farangi
अक़्ल-ए-फ़िरंगी
said A-qal-e-fa-RAN-gee
also written: aql-e-farang, frankish reason, european reason, aqle farangi
Meaning
'European reason' — the calculating, instrumental rationality of the modern West; Iqbal admired its scientific power but warned it had lost the heart (qalb) and turned clever without being wise.
See it in the verse
Aql-e-Farangi in Iqbal’s couplets
Aql-o-dil-o-nigah ka murshid-e-awwaleen hai ishq
Ishq na ho to shar-o-deen butkada-e-tasavvurat
Ishq na ho to shar-o-deen butkada-e-tasavvurat
Love is the first teacher of intellect, heart and sight. Without love, even law and faith become only a temple of empty ideas.
Love · Self-Knowledge
Guzar ja aql se aage ki ye noor
Charagh-e-raah hai, manzil nahin hai
Charagh-e-raah hai, manzil nahin hai
Move on past the intellect — for this light is a lamp for the road, not the destination itself.
Self-Knowledge · Aspiration · Love
Aql ko tanqeed se fursat nahin
Ishq par aamaal ki buniyaad rakh
Ishq par aamaal ki buniyaad rakh
Reason never finds a free moment away from criticism — so build your deeds on the foundation of love.
Action · Love
Be-khatar kud pada aatish-e-Nimrood mein ishq
Aql hai mahv-e-tamasha-e-lab-e-baam abhi
Aql hai mahv-e-tamasha-e-lab-e-baam abhi
Love leapt fearlessly into the fire — while reason still stood on the rooftop's edge, lost in watching the spectacle.
Courage · Love · Action
Achchha hai dil ke saath rahe pasban-e-aql
Lekin kabhi kabhi ise tanha bhi chhod de
Lekin kabhi kabhi ise tanha bhi chhod de
It is good that reason stands guard alongside the heart — but now and then, leave the heart on its own.
Love · Self-Knowledge · Courage
Ye aql o dil hain sharar shola-e-mohabbat ke
Wo khar-o-khas ke liye hai ye nistan ke liye
Wo khar-o-khas ke liye hai ye nistan ke liye
Both intellect and heart are sparks of the flame of love — one is meant for thorns and straw, the other for a whole reed-bed.
Love · Self-Knowledge · Action
Related words
ARABIC
Aql
Intellect, reason; the calculating, analytical mind.
PERSIAN
Farang
The land of the Franks — Europe and the West; in Iqbal the emblem of dazzling but soulless modern civilisation and material power.
ARABIC
Ishq
Love — passionate, all-consuming love, whether for the divine or the human.
PERSIAN
Tahzeeb-e-Hazir
'Modern / present-day civilization' — the contemporary Western order. Iqbal's standing critique: brilliant in science and machinery, hollow at the centre, having lost God and the soul.