Persian · noun · Nation, Faith & Society
Sarmaya
सरमाया
said sar-MAA-ya
also written: Sarmayadari
Meaning
Capital or invested wealth.
Literally: capital; wealth; stock-in-trade
How Iqbal uses it
Sarmaya is capital or accumulated wealth, the root of sarmayadari, capitalism. Iqbal is a sharp critic of an economic order in which sarmaya devours the labour of the worker and peasant, and he foresees the toilers' revolt against it. He attacks not wealth as such but the exploitation and idolatry of capital that grind down the many.
See it in the verse
Sarmaya in Iqbal’s couplets
Zindagi ka raaz kya hai saltanat kya cheez hai
Aur ye sarmaya-o-mehnat mein hai kaisa kharosh
Aur ye sarmaya-o-mehnat mein hai kaisa kharosh
What is the secret of life? What is this thing called the State? And what is this clamour between capital and labour?
Justice · Awakening
Yaqeen afrad ka sarmaya-e-tameer-e-millat hai
Yahi quvvat hai jo surat-gar-e-taqdeer-e-millat hai
Yahi quvvat hai jo surat-gar-e-taqdeer-e-millat hai
The conviction of individuals is the capital that builds a community — this is the very force that sculpts a people's destiny.
Unity · Selfhood · Leadership