Arabic · noun · The Heart & the Body

Istighna

इस्तिग़्ना
said is-tigh-naa
also written: istighnaa, self-sufficiency, Istighnaa
Meaning

Contented independence and freedom from need, the heart's dignified self-sufficiency.

Literally: independence; needing none but God

Usage & notes

Self-sufficiency — the inner independence of one who needs nothing and no one but God, a virtue closely tied to faqr (spiritual poverty). For Iqbal istighna is a mark of the strong self and the true faqir: free of greed and of subservience to any earthly power, the believer who needs only God is the freest of men, able to stand erect before kings. It is dignity born of nearness to God.