Arabic · noun · Love & Longing

Fitna

फ़ितना
said FIT-na
Meaning

Mischief, sedition, an alluring trouble; the beloved as a beguiling source of turmoil.

Literally: discord; sedition; trial; turmoil

Usage & notes

Fitna means discord, sedition, or a trial that throws society into turmoil. Iqbal uses it both ways: he condemns the fitna of division and intrigue that breaks a community, yet can speak admiringly of the rousing 'fitna' an awakener stirs to shatter a deadly calm. The word marks the thin line between destructive chaos and the upheaval that revives.