Persian · noun · Time, Fate & the Cosmos
Charkh-e-Kuhan
चर्ख़-ए-कुहन
said charkh-e-ku-han
Meaning
The old, ancient wheeling sky; the aged heaven of fate.
Literally: the old wheel
How Iqbal uses it
The ancient turning sky is the worn fatalism Iqbal rebukes, the tired old heaven the young, defiant self refuses to keep circling beneath.
See it in the verse
Charkh-e-Kuhan in Iqbal’s couplets
Aaeen-e-naw se darna, tarz-e-kuhan pe arna
Manzil yahi kathin hai qaumon ki zindagi mein
Manzil yahi kathin hai qaumon ki zindagi mein
To fear the new order, and to dig in stubbornly on the old way — this is the hardest pass in the life of a people.
Awakening · Courage
Sultani-e-jamhur ka aata hai zamana
Jo naqsh-e-kuhan tum ko nazar aae miTa do
Jo naqsh-e-kuhan tum ko nazar aae miTa do
The age of the people's rule is arriving; whatever old patterns you still see, wipe them away.
Freedom · Awakening · Justice