Meaning
Life-wasting, exhausting, that which wears away the spirit.
Literally: life-diminishing
See it in the verse
Jaan-kaah in Iqbal’s couplets
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
Tha zabt bahut mushkil is sail-e-maani ka
Kah Daale qalandar ne asrar-e-kitab aakhir
Kah Daale qalandar ne asrar-e-kitab aakhir
It was very hard to hold back this flood of meaning; at last the wandering sage spoke out the secrets of the book.
Courage · Self-Knowledge · Awakening
Apne bhi khafa mujh se hain begane bhi na-khush
Main zahr-e-halahal ko kabhi kah na saka qand
Main zahr-e-halahal ko kabhi kah na saka qand
My own people are displeased with me and strangers are unhappy too; I could never bring myself to call deadly poison sugar.
Courage · Selfhood · Justice