Persian · noun · Selfhood & Will
Be-baaki
बेबाकी
said be-BAA-ki
also written: bebaki, bebaaki
Meaning
Fearlessness, dauntless frankness, the boldness that knows no dread.
Literally: Persian be (without) + baak (fear): without fear.
How Iqbal uses it
Be-baaki is the fearless candour of the free spirit who speaks and acts without dread of consequence; it accords with Iqbal's call to the believer to stand undaunted before every earthly power.
See it in the verse
Be-baaki in Iqbal’s couplets
Yunan-o-Misr-o-Roma sab mit gaye jahan se
Ab tak magar hai baqi naam-o-nishan hamara
Ab tak magar hai baqi naam-o-nishan hamara
Greece, Egypt and Rome have all been erased from the world — yet our name and our mark still remain.
Hope · Unity
Aaeen-e-jawan-mardan haq-goi-o-be-baaki
Allah ke sheron ko aati nahin rubaahi
Allah ke sheron ko aati nahin rubaahi
The code of the brave is to speak the truth and to be fearless — the lions of God do not know the ways of the fox.
Courage · Justice · Selfhood
Haya nahin hai zamane ki aankh mein baaqi
Khuda kare ki jawani teri rahe be-daagh
Khuda kare ki jawani teri rahe be-daagh
No sense of shame is left in the eye of the age; may God keep your youth unstained.
Youth · Self-Knowledge