Arabic · name · Faith & Sacred History
Bathaa
बत्हा
said bat-HAA
also written: Bat-haa, Batha
Meaning
A name for the stony valley of Mecca; the broad watercourse strewn with pebbles where the city lies.
How Iqbal uses it
Iqbal uses Bathaa as a poetic name for Mecca's sacred valley, the cradle of revelation. The barren stones of the valley become, in his vision, the soil of a world-changing faith.
See it in the verse
Bathaa in Iqbal’s couplets
Andaz-e-bayan garche bahut shokh nahin hai
Shayad ki utar jaye tere dil mein meri baat
Shayad ki utar jaye tere dil mein meri baat
Though my manner of saying it is not especially dazzling — perhaps, even so, my words may sink into your heart.
Humility · Love
Kuch baat hai ki hasti mitti nahin hamari
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
There is something about us that refuses to be erased — for centuries the turning of the age itself has been our enemy.
Hope · Adversity · Self-Knowledge
Dil se jo baat nikalti hai asar rakhti hai
Par nahin, taqat-e-parvaaz magar rakhti hai
Par nahin, taqat-e-parvaaz magar rakhti hai
Words that come straight from the heart carry power — they have no wings, and yet they have the strength of flight.
Love · Humility · Action
Nazar nahin to mere halqa-e-sukhan mein na baith
Ki nukta-ha-e-khudi hain misal-e-tegh-e-asil
Ki nukta-ha-e-khudi hain misal-e-tegh-e-asil
If you have no vision, do not sit in my circle of speech — for the subtleties of selfhood are like a sword of true steel.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge · Courage
Na takht-o-taj mein ne lashkar-o-sipah mein hai
Jo baat mard-e-qalandar ki bargah mein hai
Jo baat mard-e-qalandar ki bargah mein hai
Not in throne and crown, nor in armies and soldiers, lies the power that belongs to the court of the free-spirited man.
Freedom · Selfhood · Leadership
Pani pani kar gai mujh ko qalandar ki ye baat
Tu jhuka jab ghair ke aage na man tera na tan
Tu jhuka jab ghair ke aage na man tera na tan
The wandering sage's words washed over me with shame: the moment you bow before another, neither your mind nor your body is your own.
Selfhood · Courage · Freedom