Persian · noun · Time, Fate & the Cosmos
Khirman-e-Mah-o-Anjum
ख़िरमन-ए-माह-ओ-अंजुम
said khir-man-e-maah-o-an-jum
Meaning
The harvest-heap of the moon and stars; the gathered glory of the night sky.
Literally: the granary of moon and stars
How Iqbal uses it
Iqbal can picture the whole shining heaven as a harvest-heap that the spark of a single living self could set ablaze, the cosmos dwarfed by the fire of the ego.
See it in the verse
Khirman-e-Mah-o-Anjum in Iqbal’s couplets
Uruj-e-adam-e-khaki se anjum sahme jaate hain
Ki ye toota hua tara mah-e-kamil na ban jaaye
Ki ye toota hua tara mah-e-kamil na ban jaaye
The stars take fright at the rise of the human being of dust — afraid that this broken star may yet become a full moon.
Aspiration · Hope · Selfhood
Agar kaj-rau hain anjum aasman tera hai ya mera
Mujhe fikr-e-jahan kyun ho jahan tera hai ya mera
Mujhe fikr-e-jahan kyun ho jahan tera hai ya mera
If the stars run crooked, is the sky yours or mine? Why should I fret over the world, when the world is yours and not my charge.
Selfhood · Freedom · Courage
Mah o sitara se aage maqam hai jis ka
Wo musht-e-khak abhi aawargan-e-rah mein hai
Wo musht-e-khak abhi aawargan-e-rah mein hai
The handful of dust whose true station lies beyond moon and stars is still wandering, lost, on the road.
Aspiration · Selfhood · Awakening