Meaning
'Servant', 'humble self' — used as a modest first-person self-reference.
Literally: servant, slave
See it in the verse
Bandah in Iqbal’s couplets
Tu qadir-o-aadil hai magar tere jahan mein
Hain talkh bahut banda-e-mazdoor ke auqat
Hain talkh bahut banda-e-mazdoor ke auqat
You are all-powerful and just — and yet, in Your world, the hours of the labouring man are very bitter.
Justice · Adversity · Awakening
Asar kare na kare, sun to le miri faryad
Nahin hai daad ka talib ye banda-e-azad
Nahin hai daad ka talib ye banda-e-azad
Whether it has an effect or not — at least hear my plea. This free soul is not asking for any applause.
Freedom · Courage · Selfhood
Fitrat ke maqasid ki karta hai nigehbani
Ya banda-e-sehrai ya mard-e-kohistani
Ya banda-e-sehrai ya mard-e-kohistani
It is the one who keeps watch over nature's purposes — either the dweller of the desert, or the man of the mountains.
Adversity · Freedom · Self-Knowledge
Tu qadir o adil hai magar tere jahan mein
Hain talkh bahut banda-e-mazdoor ke auqaat
Hain talkh bahut banda-e-mazdoor ke auqaat
You are all-powerful and just, yet in this world of yours the hours of the labouring worker are very bitter.
Justice