By Waseem Barelvi
bahut se khwab dekhoge to aankhen
tumhara saath dena chhod dengi

If you dream too many dreams, your eyes will stop keeping you company.

Romanहिन्दीWaseem Barelvi
बहुत से ख़्वाब देखोगे तो आँखें
तुम्हारा साथ देना छोड़ देंगी

The verse in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.

♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation

The couplet warns that dreaming has a cost the dreamer pays in his own eyes — pile up too many and they will stop keeping you company. The image is both literal and figurative: eyes wearied by sleeplessness, and a self worn out by ambitions that outrun what one life can hold.

For You, Today

Guard against chasing more dreams than you can carry — spread too thin, even your capacity to hope grows tired.

A frequently quoted verse, loved for the gentle caution it sets against limitless aspiration.
Themes:AspirationHope
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More from Waseem Barelvi
Longing
ye kaisa khwab hai aankhon ka hissa kyon nahin hota
Love & Loss
vo jhut bol raha tha bade saliqe se
Solitude
jahan rahega vahin raushni lutaega
All couplets by Waseem Barelvi

The heart of this site stays with Iqbal: explore his couplets → Or browse the whole Other Voices shelf →