Meaning
The image of existence; the pattern or design of life and being.
Literally: imprint of existence
See it in the verse
Naqsh-e-Hasti in Iqbal’s couplets
Kuchh baat hai ki hasti mitti nahin hamari
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
There is something in us that our existence will not be erased — though for centuries the turning of the age has been our enemy.
Adversity · Hope · Unity
Hai magar is naqsh mein rang-e-sabaat-e-dawam
Jis ko kiya ho kisi mard-e-Khuda ne tamam
Jis ko kiya ho kisi mard-e-Khuda ne tamam
Only that work bears the colour of lasting permanence which a man of God has brought to completion.
Aspiration · Selfhood · Action
Aa ghairiyat ke parde ik baar phir utha den
Bichdon ko phir mila den naqsh-e-dui mita den
Bichdon ko phir mila den naqsh-e-dui mita den
Come, let us lift the veils of estrangement once more; reunite the separated, and erase the mark of duality.
Unity · Love · Hope
Raaz-e-hasti ko tu samajhti hai
Aur aankhon se dekhta hun main
Aur aankhon se dekhta hun main
You, Reason, comprehend the secret of existence; but I, the Heart, see it with my own eyes.
Self-Knowledge · Love · Awakening
Kuch baat hai ki hasti mitti nahin hamari
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
Sadiyon raha hai dushman daur-e-zaman hamara
There is something about us that refuses to be erased — for centuries the turning of the age itself has been our enemy.
Hope · Adversity · Self-Knowledge
Silsila-e-roz-o-shab, naqsh-gar-e-haadsat
Silsila-e-roz-o-shab, asl-e-hayat-o-mamat
Silsila-e-roz-o-shab, asl-e-hayat-o-mamat
The chain of day and night is the sculptor of all events; the chain of day and night is the root of life and of death.
Action · Self-Knowledge