Meaning
The peacock, the splendid-feathered bird of the garden and the throne of Persian kings.
How Iqbal uses it
Taaus carries the courtly, ornamental sense of beauty and pomp in the classical idiom. It serves as an emblem of glorious surface display, a beauty Iqbal admires yet measures against deeper worth.
See it in the verse
Taaus in Iqbal’s couplets
Main tujh ko batata hun taqdir-e-umam kya hai
Shamsheer-o-sinan avval taaus-o-rubab aakhir
Shamsheer-o-sinan avval taaus-o-rubab aakhir
Let me tell you the fate of nations: the sword and the spear come first, the peacock and the lute come last.
Action · Adversity · Leadership
Safina-e-barg-e-gul bana lega qafila mor-e-na-tawan ka
Hazar maujon ki ho kashakash magar ye dariya se par hoga
Hazar maujon ki ho kashakash magar ye dariya se par hoga
The caravan of feeble ants will make a boat of a rose petal; though a thousand waves clash against it, this boat will cross the river.
Hope · Courage · Unity