Meaning
A necklace or garland.
How Iqbal uses it
Everyday word for a worn necklace or a flower garland; note the homophone 'haar' meaning defeat.
See it in the verse
Haar in Iqbal’s couplets
Khudi ko kar buland itna ki har taqdeer se pehle
Khuda bande se khud pooche, bata teri raza kya hai
Khuda bande se khud pooche, bata teri raza kya hai
Raise your selfhood so high that, before issuing every decree of destiny, God Himself asks you: tell me, what is your wish?
Selfhood · Courage
Jis khet se dehqan ko muyassar nahin rozi
Us khet ke har khosha-e-gandum ko jala do
Us khet ke har khosha-e-gandum ko jala do
The field that does not yield its farmer even his daily bread — burn every ear of wheat in that field.
Justice · Courage
Patthar ki mooraton mein samjha hai tu Khuda hai
Khaak-e-watan ka mujh ko har zarra devta hai
Khaak-e-watan ka mujh ko har zarra devta hai
You have imagined that God dwells within stone idols — for me, every single speck of my homeland's dust is itself a deity.
Unity · Love
Afrad ke hathon mein hai aqwam ki taqdeer
Har fard hai millat ke muqaddar ka sitara
Har fard hai millat ke muqaddar ka sitara
The destiny of nations rests in the hands of individuals — every single person is a star in the fortune of the whole.
Action · Leadership · Selfhood
Har shai musafir har cheez raahi
Kya chand tare kya murgh o maahi
Kya chand tare kya murgh o maahi
Every thing is a traveller, every object a wayfarer — whether the moon and stars, or the birds and the fish.
Restlessness · Action · Unity
Har guhar ne sadaf ko toD diya
Tu hi aamada-e-zuhur nahin
Tu hi aamada-e-zuhur nahin
Every pearl has broken open its shell; only you are unwilling to come forth.
Selfhood · Courage · Awakening