Meaning
A confidant of secrets; one trusted to share an intimate mystery.
Literally: intimate of the secret
How Iqbal uses it
The rare soul to whom the heart's hidden truth may be told; the lover and the mystic alike search, often in vain, for a mehram-e-raaz.
See it in the verse
Mehram-e-raaz in Iqbal’s couplets
Khudi kya hai raaz-e-darun-e-hayat
Khudi kya hai bedaari-e-kaayenat
Khudi kya hai bedaari-e-kaayenat
What is selfhood? The secret hidden inside life. What is selfhood? The waking-up of the whole universe.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge · Awakening
Tu raaz-e-kun-fakan hai apni aankhon par ayan ho ja
Khudi ka raazdan ho ja, khuda ka tarjuman ho ja
Khudi ka raazdan ho ja, khuda ka tarjuman ho ja
You are the secret of creation — become visible to your own eyes. Become the confidant of your selfhood, the interpreter of the divine.
Self-Knowledge · Selfhood · Awakening
Khudi ke zor se duniya pe chha ja
Maqam-e-rang-o-bu ka raaz pa ja
Maqam-e-rang-o-bu ka raaz pa ja
By the force of your selfhood, rise and overspread the world — and seize the secret of this realm of colour and scent.
Selfhood · Action · Aspiration
Use subh-e-azal inkar ki jurat hui kyunkar
Mujhe malum kya wo raaz-dan tera hai ya mera
Mujhe malum kya wo raaz-dan tera hai ya mera
How did he find the daring to refuse at the dawn of time? How would I know whose confidant he is, yours or mine.
Courage · Selfhood
Be-huzuri hai teri maut ka raaz
Zinda ho tu to be-huzur nahin
Zinda ho tu to be-huzur nahin
Absence from the present is the secret of your death; if you are truly alive, you are never absent.
Awakening · Self-Knowledge