Urdu Dictionary

Persian · phrase · The Tavern & the Cup

Saqi-e-Azal

साक़ी-ए-अज़ल

said saa-qee-e-a-zal

also written: saqi e azal, saqie azal, saqi-e-azal, saaqi e azal

Meaning

The eternal cupbearer; the primordial Saqi (God or destiny) who pours the wine of existence.

Literally: the cup-bearer of eternity / the pre-eternal

How Iqbal uses it

Saaqi-e-azal is 'the cup-bearer of pre-eternity' — an unmistakable name for the Divine as the one who, before time began, poured the first wine of love into the cup of creation. It lifts the saqi-figure to its theological height: God as the eternal pourer of grace. The phrase names the source behind every earthly cup-bearer and every draught of love.

See it in the verse

Saqi-e-Azal in Iqbal’s couplets

Nahin hai naumeed Iqbal apni kisht-e-veeran se
Zara nam ho to ye mitti badi zarkhez hai saqi

Iqbal is not without hope, even from his barren field — let there be a little moisture, cupbearer, and this soil is wonderfully fertile.

Hope · Aspiration

Bohat dekhe hain main ne mashriq-o-maghrib ke maikhane
Yahan saqi nahin paida wahan be-zauq hai sahba

I have seen many a wine-house in both East and West: here no cup-bearer worth the name, there a wine with no savour at all.

Awakening · Self-Knowledge

Keh raha hai mujh se ae joya-e-asrar-e-azal
Chashm-e-dil wa ho to hai taqdeer-e-aalam be-hijab

He says to me: O seeker of the secrets of eternity, if the eye of the heart opens, the destiny of the world stands unveiled.

Self-Knowledge · Awakening · Aspiration

Bahut dekhe hain maine mashriq-o-maghrib ke maikhane
Yahan saaqi nahin paida, wahan be-zauq hai sahba

I have seen many a tavern of the East and the West — here no cup-bearer is born, and there the wine itself is without relish.

Awakening · Self-Knowledge

Nasha pila ke girana to sab ko aata hai
Maza to jab hai ki girton ko thaam le saqi

Anyone can pour the wine and let people fall — the real worth is when the cup-bearer catches those who are falling.

Leadership · Humility · Action

Use subh-e-azal inkar ki jurat hui kyunkar
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

Related words

Saqi

The cup-bearer who pours the wine; in mysticism, the master or the Divine who dispenses spiritual grace.

Azal / Abad

Eternity-without-beginning (azal) and eternity-without-end (abad).

Saaqi

The cup-bearer who pours the wine; in mystic verse the giver of spiritual ecstasy, and the beloved.

Pir-e-mughaan

The old Magian, master of the tavern who dispenses the wine of wisdom; the true spiritual guide.

Mai

Wine; emblem of divine love, ecstasy, and the annihilation of the ego.

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