Meaning
Consolation and comforting of the heart, the soothing reassurance offered to a grieving spirit.
Literally: heart-giving, consoling
How Iqbal uses it
Dil-dahi is the act of cheering and comforting a sorrowful heart, the balm offered to one in distress. It names the tender consolation that answers grief, the giving of courage back to a faltering spirit.
See it in the verse
Dil-dahi in Iqbal’s couplets
Jis se jigar-e-lala mein thandak ho wo shabnam
Dariyaon ke dil jis se dahal jayen wo toofan
Dariyaon ke dil jis se dahal jayen wo toofan
To be the dew that cools the heart of the tulip — and the storm that makes the hearts of rivers tremble.
Courage · Leadership · Love
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
Khudi ka nasheman tere dil mein hai
Falak jis tarah aankh ke til mein hai
Falak jis tarah aankh ke til mein hai
The nest of your selfhood is inside your own heart — the way the whole sky lives inside the pupil of an eye.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge
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
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
Nigah-e-ishq dil-e-zinda ki talash mein hai
Shikar-e-murda sazawar-e-shahbaz nahin
Shikar-e-murda sazawar-e-shahbaz nahin
The gaze of love is searching for a living heart — dead quarry is not worthy of the royal falcon.
Love · The Falcon · Awakening