Meaning
A human being; man as a moral and spiritual creature.
Literally: human being; man
How Iqbal uses it
Insaan is the human being, man as such. Iqbal places an extraordinarily high estimate on the human person, the bearer of khudi and God's chosen vicegerent on earth, capable of partnering in creation itself. His ideal Mard-e-Momin, the perfected man, is insaan brought to full stature, free, creative, and self-possessed.
See it in the verse
Insaan in Iqbal’s couplets
Abhi tak aadmi sayd-e-zaboon-e-shahryari hai
Qayamat hai ki insaan nau-e-insaan ka shikari hai
Qayamat hai ki insaan nau-e-insaan ka shikari hai
Even now, the human being is the wretched prey of the rule of kings — it is a catastrophe that one human still hunts another.
Justice · Awakening
Zindagi insaan ki ik dam ke siva kuch bhi nahin
Dam hawa ki mauj hai ram ke siva kuch bhi nahin
Dam hawa ki mauj hai ram ke siva kuch bhi nahin
A human life is nothing more than a single breath — and that breath is a wave of air, nothing but a fleeting movement.
Humility · Awakening · Action
Related words
ARABIC
Bashar
A human being; mankind in its mortal, bodily nature.
ARABIC
Aadam
Adam; by extension humankind, the human race.
ARABIC
Momin
A true believer; the person of faith.
ARABIC
Insaaniyat
Humanity, humaneness, the quality of being truly human.
ARABIC
Adam
Adam, the first human and prophet; in mystic thought, the bearer of the divine trust and vicegerency.
ARABIC
Bani-Aadam
Humankind; the children of Adam, the whole human family.