Meaning
Beauty of imagination; the elegance and loftiness of a poet's conception.
Literally: beauty of thought
See it in the verse
Husn-e-Khayaal in Iqbal’s couplets
Ishq bhi ho hijab mein husn bhi ho hijab mein
Ya to khud aashkar ho ya mujhe aashkar kar
Ya to khud aashkar ho ya mujhe aashkar kar
Love is veiled and beauty too is veiled; either reveal yourself, or make me one who can be revealed.
Love · Self-Knowledge · Restlessness
Miri mashshatgi ki kya zarurat husn-e-mani ko
Ki fitrat khud-ba-khud karti hai laale ki hina-bandi
Ki fitrat khud-ba-khud karti hai laale ki hina-bandi
What need has true beauty of meaning for my adorning hand? Nature, all on its own, paints the tulip red.
Self-Knowledge · Humility · Action
Hayat kya hai khayal o nazar ki majzubi
Khudi ki maut hai andesha-ha-e-guna-gun
Khudi ki maut hai andesha-ha-e-guna-gun
What is life? The absorbed focus of thought and vision; and scattered, many-coloured doubts are the death of selfhood.
Selfhood · Action · Self-Knowledge