Persian · noun · Nature & the Garden
Sharar / Shola
शरर / शोला
said sha-RAR / SHO-la
also written: shola, sharara
Meaning
Spark (sharar) and flame (shola).
How Iqbal uses it
The self is a flame, never to be bartered for a mere spark — “do not trade your Khudi for silver and gold; flames are not given in exchange for sparks.” The soul is a spark of love's fire; the embers of his sighs could yet reach the heavens.
See it in the verse
Sharar / Shola in Iqbal’s couplets
Khudi ko na de seem-o-zar ke ewaz
Nahin shola dete sharar ke ewaz
Nahin shola dete sharar ke ewaz
Do not trade away your selfhood for silver and gold — no one hands over a blazing flame in exchange for a mere spark.
Selfhood · Freedom · Courage
Ye aql o dil hain sharar shola-e-mohabbat ke
Wo khar-o-khas ke liye hai ye nistan ke liye
Wo khar-o-khas ke liye hai ye nistan ke liye
Both intellect and heart are sparks of the flame of love — one is meant for thorns and straw, the other for a whole reed-bed.
Love · Self-Knowledge · Action
Napaid tere bahr-e-takhayyul ke kinare
Pahunchenge falak tak teri aahon ke sharare
Pahunchenge falak tak teri aahon ke sharare
The shores of your sea of imagination are nowhere to be found; the sparks of your longing will reach all the way to the sky.
Aspiration · Restlessness · Hope
Aaya hai tu jahan mein misal-e-sharar dekh
Dam de na jaye hasti-na-paayedar dekh
Dam de na jaye hasti-na-paayedar dekh
You have come into the world like a spark — see that this fleeting existence does not slip away from you.
Action · Awakening · Aspiration