Meaning
The wine-flagon; the earthen jar that holds the drink.
Literally: jar of wine
How Iqbal uses it
The sabu-e-mai passes round the assembly, its clay reminding the drinkers that they too are vessels of dust.
See it in the verse
Sabu-e-Mai in Iqbal’s couplets
Kya dabdaba-e-nadir kya shaukat-e-taimuri
Ho jaate hain sab daftar gharq-e-mai-e-naab aakhir
Ho jaate hain sab daftar gharq-e-mai-e-naab aakhir
What of Nadir's dread power, what of Timur's splendour? In the end every such record is drowned in the pure wine of time.
Humility · Self-Knowledge · Adversity
Main shakh-e-tak hun meri ghazal hai mera samar
Mere samar se mai-e-lala-fam paida kar
Mere samar se mai-e-lala-fam paida kar
I am a branch of the vine, my song is my fruit; from that fruit press out the tulip-red wine.
Action · Aspiration · Youth