Meaning
The dust of travel; the dust that settles on the wayfarer from a long journey.
Literally: dust of the journey
How Iqbal uses it
The grime of the road that marks the seasoned traveller; the gard-e-safar is worn almost as proof of the distances love or duty has driven one to cross.
See it in the verse
Gard-e-safar in Iqbal’s couplets
Dhoondne wala sitaron ki guzargahon ka
Apne afkaar ki duniya mein safar kar na saka
Apne afkaar ki duniya mein safar kar na saka
He who charts the very pathways of the stars could not journey through the world of his own thoughts.
Self-Knowledge · Selfhood
Nigah buland, sukhan dilnawaz, jaan pur-soz
Yahi hai rakht-e-safar mir-e-karvan ke liye
Yahi hai rakht-e-safar mir-e-karvan ke liye
A lofty gaze, speech that wins the heart, a soul that burns with feeling — this alone is the travelling kit a caravan's leader needs.
Leadership · Aspiration
Baagh-e-bahisht se mujhe hukm-e-safar diya tha kyun
Kaar-e-jahan daraaz hai ab mera intezaar kar
Kaar-e-jahan daraaz hai ab mera intezaar kar
Why was I given the command to depart the garden of paradise? The work of the world is long now — so wait for me.
Action · Aspiration · Restlessness
Har ek maqam se aage maqam hai tera
Hayat zauq-e-safar ke siwa kuchh aur nahin
Hayat zauq-e-safar ke siwa kuchh aur nahin
Beyond every station lies a station that is yours; life is nothing but the joy of the journey.
Restlessness · Aspiration · Action