Allama Iqbal Poetry

THE CALL OF THE CARAVAN BELL
with the highest intellectual achievements. Sheikh

PREFACE Muhammad Iqbal studied many Persian books
during his stay in Europe and published the results
By of his studies in the form of a research publication,
which should be considered a short history of the
Sir Àbd Al‐Qadir, Barrister At Law,
Persian philosophy. The Germans conferred upon
Editor Makhzan
Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal the degree of PhD on the
No one knew that after the late Ghalib, someone basis of this book. The British Government, which
would rise in India who would again inspire Urdu does not have adequate direct access to the oriental
poetry with a new spirit and through whom the languages and learning, took a long time to realize
matchless imagination and the rare imagery of the universal appreciation of Iqbal’s poetry, but
Ghalib would be created anew and would lead to eventually patronized him by conferring the exalted
the glorification of the Urdu literature. However, honour of knighthood. Though he is now known as
Urdu was fortunate in getting a poet of Iqbal’s Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal which has the fortunate
calibre, the superiority of whose literary elegance quality of being the real as well the pen name, is
has impressed the Urdu knowing people of the better known and liked than his doctorate and
whole of India and whose reputation has spread to knighthood.
Iran, Asia Minor and even to Europe. There is a college in Sialkot where a renowned
Ghalib and Iqbal share many common scholar, Maulvi Saiyyid Mir Hasan, who is
characteristics. If I were a believer in the memorable heir to and a follower of the oriental
transmigration of soul I would have certainly said scholars of former times, teaches oriental learning.
that the love which Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib Recently he has been honoured by the Government
had for Urdu and Persian poetry did not allow his with the title of Shams al ‘Ulema. The characteristic
soul to rest in peace even in the Elysium and quality of his teaching is creation of the right taste
compelled him to re‐appear in another material for Persian and Arabic in the personality of his
form to render service to poetry, and was re‐born in pupils. Iqbal was also fortunate in getting a teacher
a corner of Punjab, called Sialkot and was called like Saiyyid Mir Hasan in his youth. Iqbal’s
Muhammad Iqbal. temperament had a natural inclination for literature.
The respected father and the affectionate mother Learning Persian and Arabic from such a teacher
of Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal must have proposed his added to its elegance. He started writing poetry as
name at a very auspicious time, as the name given early as his school age. By then Urdu had become so
by them proved to be appropriate in all its popular in Punjab that the language and its poetry
connotations, and their successful son proceeded to had spread to more or less every city. During the
England after completing his education in India. On student days of Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal a small
achieving his educational goals at Cambridge he musha’irah used to be convened in Sialkot for which
went to Germany and returned home, equipped Iqbal began writing ghazals occasionally. Nawab
124 Collected Poetical Works of Iqbal
Mirza Khan Sahib Dagh of Delhi had gained much perceptions of his friend, the late Maulana Shibli
renown as an Urdu poet in those days, and this during the period of his professorship at the Aligarh
increased considerably when he became the tutor of College. Now he discovered another gem to convert
the Nizam of Deccan. Those who could not go to which into a shining star became his heart‐felt
him would establish tutorial relationship from afar desire. The mutual friendship and affection created
by mail. Ghazals were sent to him by mail and he in the heart of the teacher and his pupil in the very
returned them the same way after correction. In the beginning ultimately resulted in the latter
olden days when such a mailing service did not exist proceeding to England in the wake of his teacher.
a poet could not get so many pupils. With this This relationship was further strengthened there and
facility hundreds of people had established has endured till the present day. Arnold is happy at
discipleship with him in absentia and he had to the fruition of his labor and at his pupil being a
maintain a department with staff for this purpose. source of pride and fame for him in the intellectual
Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal also established world. Iqbal acknowledges that the perceptions
communication with him and sent some ghazals for created by Saiyyid Mir Hasan, and advanced in the
correction. In this way Iqbal established a interim by the in absentia mutual acquaintance with
relationship in Urdu with a littérateur who, in his Dagh, attained their climax with the affectionate
days, was considered unique in the art of linguistic guidance of Arnold.
excellence in the field of ghazal. Though Iqbal’s Iqbal got very good guides in passing through
ghazals of that early period did not have the his intellectual journey, and became acquainted with
attributes which made his later works very famous, several renowned scholars. Distinguished among
Dagh discerned the beginning of an extra‐ordinary these are Drs. McTaggart, Brown, Nicholson and
writer in this student from a remote Punjab district. Sorley of the University of Cambridge. Professor
Very soon he pronounced his verdict that Iqbal did Nicholson deserves our special gratitude for his
not need any further coaching in the arty of poetry. efforts at introducing Iqbal to Europe and America
Hence this tutorial relationship did not last long but by translating his famous Persian book, Asrar‐i‐
its memories remained on both sides. Dagh’s name Khudi (The Secrets of the Self) into English and for
is so prominent in Urdu poetry that Iqbal has respect providing a preface and commentary to the same. 1
even for this short period and in absentia In the same way Iqbal maintained liaison through
relationship; and Iqbal had attained that high correspondence and personal contact with all the
approbation even in the life‐time of Dagh that the shining stars of India’s intellectual horizon at that
latter was proud of considering Iqbal among the time, such as Maulana Shibli, Maulana Hali and
people whose poetry he had corrected. I had the Akbar. They continued influencing Iqbal’s writings
good fortune of meeting Dagh in Deccan and I am a and Iqbal continued influencing their thought.
witness to such expressions of pride by him. Maulana Shibli, in his many letters, and the revered
As the Sialkot College was up to the F.A. Sheikh Akbar, in his letters as well as in poems have
Muhammad Iqbal had to move to Lahore for his acknowledged Iqbal’s accomplishments. Similarly,
B.A. He wanted to study philosophy and he got a Iqbal has eulogized these eminent personalities in
very affectionate professor among those at Lahore, his works.
who discerned Iqbal’s inclination towards Discounting the period of early practice Iqbal’s
philosophy and started taking special interest in his Urdu poetry starts a little before the commencement
education. Professor Arnold who is now(1924) Sir of the twentieth century. I saw him first in a
Thomas Arnold and is in England, is a man of extra‐ musha’irah in Lahore two or three years before 1901.
ordinary capabilities, is a proficient writer and is He had been prevailed upon by some of his
well‐versed in the new methods of academic class‐mates to participate in this musha’irah and
investigation and research. He wanted to impart his recite a ghazal. People of Lahore had not known
perceptions and procedures to his pupil and he
succeeded in this to a very large extent. Earlier, he 1 Nicholson’s translation is included in the present
had been able to create maturity in the intellectual volume.
The Call of the Marching Bell 125
Iqbal till then. The ghazal was a short one with Lahore. He spent his time continuously in
simple words and thought but had humour and intellectual company and academic pursuits. With a
spontaneity due to which it was much appreciated. surging intellect and extreme inspiration, when
He participated in this musha’irah two or three times inclined towards versification, he could produce
again and people discerned in him the makings of a innumerable verses in a single sitting. Absorbed in
promising poet. However, this fame at first his thoughts he would pour out verses, and his
remained confined to the students of the colleges of friends and some students who might be nearby,
Lahore and those engaged in educational pursuits. would write them down with paper and pencil. In
Meanwhile a literary association had been those days I never saw him with pen and paper in
established which was attended by celebrities, and linguistic pursuits. Writing poetry looked like a
created a demand for prose as well as poetry. Sheikh surging river or a bubbling spring of appropriate
Muhammad Iqbal recited his poem addressing the words with a unique condition of ecstatic softness
Himalayas, called ‘Himala’ in one of its meetings. engulfing him. He would himself recite his verses
This poem combined the English thought with the melodiously, would become ecstatic himself as well
Persian elegance of style, and had the added beauty as would turn others ecstatic. He is remarkably
of the flavour of nationalism. As it conformed with singular in having such a memory that all the verses
the tastes and the needs of the times it was widely constituting a continuous poem would be safe in his
appreciated, and requests for its publication started memory in the same order at another time and on
pouring in. But Sheikh Iqbal took it away with him another day although he had not written them down
with the excuse of the need for review, and it could in the interim. I have been fortunate enough to avail
not be published then. Shortly after this I planned to of the opportunity of the companionship of many
start the magazine Makhzan for the advancement of poets and though I have heard and seen some of
Urdu literature. By this time I had developed them producing poetry I have not seen this style in
friendly relations with Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal. I any of them. Iqbal has the other peculiarity of being
obtained his promise to contribute his new style unable to produce ‘made to order’ poetry in spite of
poems for publication in the poetry section of this all this poetic disposition. When poetically inclined
magazine. About the time of the appearance of the he can produce as many verses as he likes but it is
magazine’s first issue I went to ask him for a poem. almost impossible for him to produce anything ‘to
He said that he did not have any poem ready at that order’ on any occasion. For this reason, on being
time. I asked him to give me the poem titled famous and on becoming flooded with requests, he
‘Himala’ and to write another poem for the next had to deny most of them. Similarly, he would
month. He was reluctant to give that poem because usually pass requests for participation in
he considered it to be in need of improvement. As I associations and assemblies. Only the Anjuman‐i‐
had noticed its extreme popularity I prevailed upon Himayat‐i‐Islam of Lahore, for several reasons, had
him to give it to me and I published it in Makhzan, the privilege of Iqbal’s continued participation for
Volume 1, No. 1, which appeared in April 1901. This several years and recitation of poems written for that
was, as it were, the beginning of the public very meeting after prior thought.
appearance of Iqbal’s Urdu poetry, and this In the early days the poems presented in public
continued till his departure for England in 1905. meetings were recited without melody, which had
During this period he wrote a poem for every issue its own charm. However, in one public meeting
of Makhzan. As the news of his poetry spread far some friends insisted that Sheikh Muhammad Iqbal
and wide requests started coming in from diverse read his poem melodiously. His voice is loud and
magazines and newspapers. Associations and pleasing by nature and he is fully conversant with
conferences also started requesting him to benefit the style of melody. It threw the audience in spell‐
the audiences of their annual meetings with his bound silence and ecstasy. This produced two
poetry. results. One was that it made it difficult for him to
The Sheikh having completed his education, had recite without melody, and when he recites people
become a professor at the Government College, insist on melodious recital. The other is that,
whereas formerly only the select understood and Beside this, as his studies stepped into the deep
appreciated his poetry, this magnet attracted the recesses of philosophy, leading to desire for the
general populace also. In the meetings of the expression of subtle thoughts, he appreciated the
Anjuman‐i‐Himayat‐Islam at Lahore tens of paucity of the Urdu vocabulary compared with that
thousands of people assemble when Iqbal’s poem is of Persian; and in fact readymade phraseology
recited and they are spell‐bound during the entire existed in Persian the equivalent of which would not
recital. Those who understand him and those who be easy in Urdu. So he changed to Persian.
do not are equally absorbed. However, outwardly, the small incident which led
The second period of his poetry extended from him to Persian language is that once he was invited
1905 to 1908 which he spent in Europe. Though he to a friend’s house where he was asked whether he
got comparatively little time there for poetry, and wrote Persian verse and was requested to recite his
only a few poems were written during that stay, Persian poetry. He had to admit that he had never
they exhibit a special style, based on his tried to write in Persian except an odd verse. But this
observations there. Two major changes occurred in was such an occasion, and this request so moved
his thinking at that time. For two of these three years him, that on return from the party perhaps he
I was also living there and had the opportunity of passed the rest of the night lying in bed and framing
meeting him frequently. One day Sheikh Persian verse. Getting up next morning when he met
Muhammad Iqbal told me that he had firmly me he had two Persian ghazals ready, which he
decided to abandon poetry, to avow never to write recited to me orally from memory. His potential for
verse, and use the time he would spend on poetry writing in Persian dawned upon him through these
on some other productive pursuit. I told him that his ghazals, the like of which he had not tried before.
poetry was not such as should be abandoned. On Later, on his return from England, his inclination
the other hand his poetry had the potential of curing turned towards Persian, though he continued to
the malady of our backward nation and unfortunate write Urdu poetry also occasionally. This is the third
country. Hence it would be inappropriate to waste stage of his poetry, which has continued since 1908.
such a useful divinely bestowed capability. Sheikh Though many famous Urdu poems have been
had only half consented, and it was agreed to leave produced during this period the really important
the final decision to Mr. Arnold’s opinion. The work to which he applied himself was his famous
Sheikh was to change his opinion if Mr. Arnold Persian mathnavi titled Asrar‐i‐Khudi(The Secrets of
would agree with me and the reverse would be the the Self)(1915). Its thoughts revolved in his mind for
case if he agreed with Sheikh. I consider it the good a long time till, at last, they started being transferred
fortune of the intellectual world that Mr. Arnold from his mind to paper, and ultimately appeared as
agreed with me. So it was decided that abandoning a book which made Iqbal famous even outside
poetry was not proper for Iqbal, and that any time India.
spent on this work would be equally useful to him To date (1924) Iqbal has produced three books in
and to his country and nation. The first change Persian, viz. Asrar‐i‐Khudi (The Secret of Self) (1915),
which had occurred in our poet ended like this. The Rumuz‐i‐Bekhudi (The Mysteries of Selflessness)
second change started with a small beginning and (1915) and Payam‐i‐Mashriq (A Message from the
led to an important end, i.e. Persian replaced Urdu East) (1923), all of which are superb. The language is
as the vehicle for propagation of Iqbal’s message. progressively simpler and easier from the first
Iqbal’s inclination towards Persian must have through the second to the third. Lovers of Iqbal’s
been motivated by several factors, but I think his Urdu poetry may have been disappointed by the
literature study while writing his monograph on appearance of these Persian books, but they must
Sufism 2 must have been an important one of these. remember that Persian accomplished what Urdu
could not. Iqbal’s works have reached the entire
2 Sir Abdul Qadir is refering to Iqbal’s doctoral Muslim world where Persian is more or less current,
thesis The Development of Metaphysics in Persia and they contain the depth of thought which needed
(1908). much wide‐spread propagation. It also constituted
the means of acquainting the Europeans and form of a beautiful book instead of being spread
Americans with our worthy author. In Payam‐i‐ over the pages of magazines and anthologies. It is
Mashriq the author has written a reply to the West‐ hoped that those who were anxious to see this
Oestlicher Divan by the eminent European poet literary collection would view it with fondness and
Goethe and beautifully expressed highly cordial appreciation.
philosophical thoughts. Its verses have solved some In closing, on behalf of Urdu poetry, I would
intricate enigmas which had never been explained in request the learned author to endow Urdu with the
such easy terms before. Since a long time some share from his intellect, which it needs and deserves.
magazines and newspapers are referring to Dr. He has himself painted the correct picture of the
Muhammad Iqbal with the title of ‘Tarjuman‐i‐ state of Urdu in a verse of eulogy to Ghalib as
Haqiqat’ (The Interpreter of the Truth). The follows:
appropriate verses of this book establish his right to
The lock of Urdu’s hair still some combing craves:
be known by this title, and whoever ascribed this
This candle still for the heart‐burning of a moth
title to him first committed no exaggeration.
craves.
Iqbal’s Persian writings have influenced his
Urdu poetry in the manner that the Urdu poems of After reciting this verse we request him to pay
the third period have even more Persian form and attention again to adorning the hair of Urdu with
elegance of style than the earlier ones and have the same ardour with which he produced the above
sometimes been based upon Persian verses. It verse, and afford us the opportunity of regarding
appears as if Persian thought is being assiduously this present collection of Urdu of belated appearance
goaded into Urdu. to be the prelude to another Urdu collection.
Many people have been calling for the [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
publication of Iqbal’s Urdu poetry which has
appeared periodically in magazines and newspapers
since 1901. His friends were constantly demanding
publication of his Urdu poetry, but this publication
had been delayed for several reasons. Thank God for
the fulfilment of this long‐standing wish of the
PART ONE
lovers of Urdu poetry, which has led to the BEFORE 1905
publication of this collection of Iqbal’s Urdu poems, THE HIMALAYAS
comprising 336 pages, divided into three parts. Part
One includes poems up to 1905, Part Two those of O Himalah! O rampart of the realm of India!
the period 1905 to 1908 and Part Three has the Urdu Bowing down, the sky kisses your forehead
poetry since 1908. It can be claimed that up till now Your condition does not show any signs of
there is no book of Urdu poetry with such an old age
abundance of thought and such a combination of You are young in the midst of day and night’s
research and intrinsic qualities. This is—as was to be alternation
expected—because the book is the essence of a The Kaleem of Tur Sina witnessed but one
quarter century of study, research and observation, Effulgence
and the experience from world‐wide travelling. For the discerning eye you are an
Single verses and hemistich of some poems contain embodiment of Effulgence.
material requiring the space of a dissertation for To the outward eye you are a mere mountain
explaining the thought. This short preface does not range
have the capacity of a critique of any poem or In reality you are our sentinel, you are India’s
comparison between poems of different periods. I rampart
shall look for some other opportunity for this work. You are the divan whose opening verse is the
At present I want to congratulate the litterateur on sky
the availability of the Urdu works of Iqbal in the
You lead Man to the solitudes of his heart’s O wayfarer! The heart comprehends your
retreat music
Snow has endowed you with the turban of
When the night’s Layla unfurls her long hair
honour
The sound of water‐falls allures the heart
Which scoffs at the crown of the
That silence of the night whose beauty
world‐illuminating sun.
surpasses speech
Antiquity is but a moment of your bygone age That state of silent meditation overshadowing
Dark clouds are encamped in your valleys the trees
Your peaks are matching with the Pleiades in That dusk’s beauty which shivers along the
elegance mountain range
Though you are standing on earth your abode Very beautiful looks this rouge on your
is sky’s expanse cheeks.
The stream in your flank is a fast flowing
O Himalah! Do relate to us some stories of the
mirror
time
For which the breeze is working like a
When your valleys became abode of Man’s
kerchief.
ancestors
The mountain top’s lightning has given a Relate something of the life without
whip sophistication
In the hands of cloud for the ambling horse Which had not been stained by the rouge of
O Himalah! Are you like a theatre stage sophistication
Which nature’s hand has made for its O Imagination! Bring back that period
elements? O Vicissitudes of Time speed backwards
Ah! How the cloud is swaying in excessive joy
The cloud like an unchained elephant is
THE COLOURFUL ROSE
speeding. You are not familiar with the hardships of
Gentle movement of the morning zephyr is solving enigmas
acting like a cradle O Beautiful Rose! Perhaps you do not have
Every flower bud is swinging with sublime feelings in your heart
intoxication of existence Though you adorn the assembly yet do not
The flower bud’s silence with the petal’s participate in its struggles
tongue is saying In life’s assembly I am not endowed with this
“I have never experienced the jerk of the comfort
florist’s hand In this garden I am the complete orchestra of
Silence itself is relating the tale of mine Longing
The corner of nature’s solitude is the abode of And your life is devoid of the warmth of that
mine” Longing
To pluck you from the branch is not my
The brook is melodiously descending from custom
the high land This sight is not different from the sight of the
Putting the waves of Kawthar and Tasnim to eye which can only see the appearances
embarrassment Ah! O colourful rose this hand is not one of a
As if showing the mirror to Nature’s beauty tormentor
Now evading now rowing against the rock in How can I explain to you that I am not a
its way flower picker
Play in passing this orchestra of beautiful I am not concerned with intricacies of the
music philosophic eye
Like a lover I see you through the My eye was devoted to seeing, my lip was
nightingale’s eye prone to speak
In spite of innumerable tongues you have My heart was no less than inquisitiveness
chosen silence personified
What is the secret which is concealed in your
bosom?
MIRZA GHALIB
Like me you are also a leaf from the garden of Through you the secret was revealed to the
Tur human intellect
Far from the garden I am, far from the garden That innumerable enigmas are solved by
you are human intellect
You are content but scattered like fragrance I You were the complete soul, literary assembly
am was your body
Wounded by the sword of love for search I You adorned as well as remained veiled from
am the assembly
This perturbation of mine a means for Your eye is longing to witness that veiled
fulfillment could be Beauty
This torment a source of my intellectual Which is veiled in everything as the pathos of
illumination could be life
This very frailty of mine the means of strength The assemblage of existence is rich with your
could be harp
This mirror of mine envy of the cup of Jam As mountain’s silence by the brook’s
could be melodious harp
This constant search is a world‐illuminating The garden of your imagination bestows
candle glory on the universe
And teaches to the steed of human intellect its From the field of your thought worlds grow
gait like meadows
Life is concealed in the humour of your verse
THE AGE OF INFANCY
Picture’s lips move with your command of
The earth and sky were unknown worlds to language
me Speech is very proud of the elegance of your
Only the expanse of mother’s bosom was a miraculous lips
world to me Thurayyah is astonished at your style’s
Every movement was a symbol of life’s elegance
pleasure to me Beloved of literature itself loves your style
My own speech was like a meaningless word Delhi’s bud is mocking at the rose of Shiraz
to me Ah! You are resting in the midst of Delhi’s
During infancy’s pain if somebody made me ruins
cry Your counterpart is resting in the Weimar’s
The noise of the door chain would comfort me garden
Oh! How I stared at the moon for long hours Matching you in literary elegance is not
Staring at its silent journey among broken possible
clouds Till maturity of thought and imagination are
I would ask repeatedly about its mountains combined
and plains Ah! What has befallen the land of India!
And how surprised would I be at that Ah! The inspirer of the super‐critical eye!
prudent lie The lock of Urdu’s hair still craves for
combing
This candle still craves for moth’s heart‐felt I pronounced “Rise” standing by the
pathos verdure’s head
O Jahanabad! O cradle of learning and art I conferred the taste for smile to the rose‐bud
Your entire super‐structure is a silent lament By my benevolence farmers’ huts on the
The sun and the moon are asleep in every mountain side
speck of your dust Are converted into bed chambers of the
Though innumerable other gems are also opulent
hidden in your dust
Does another world‐famous person like him
A SPIDER AND A FLY
also lie buried in you? (Adopted for Children)
Does another gem like him also lie concealed
One day a spider said to a fly
in you?
“Though you pass this way daily
THE CLOUD ON THE MOUNTAIN My hut has never been honoured by you
By making a chance visit inside by you
Elevation bestows the sky’s nearness to my
Though depriving strangers of a visit does not
abode
matter
I am the mountain’s cloud, my skirt sprinkles
Evading the near and dear ones does not look
roses
good
Now the wilderness, now the rose garden is
My house will be honoured by a visit by you
my abode
A ladder is before you if you decide to step in
City and wilderness are mine, ocean is mine,
Hearing this the fly said to the spider,
forest is mine
“Sire, you should entice some simpleton thus
If I want to return to some valley for the night
This fly would never be pulled into your net
The mountain’s verdure is my carpet of velvet
Whoever climbed your net could never step
Nature has taught me to be a pearl spreader
down”
To chant the camel song for the camel of the
The spider said, “How strange, you consider
Beloved of Mercy
me a cheat
To be the comforter of the dispirited farmer’s
I have never seen a simpleton like you in the
heart
world
To be the elegance of the assembly of the
I only wanted to entertain you
garden’s trees
I had no personal gain in view
I spread out over the face of the earth like the
You have come flying from some unknown
locks
distant place
I get arranged and adorned by the breeze’s
Resting for a while in my house would not
I tantalize the expecting eye from a distance
harm you
As I pass silently over some habitation
Many things in this house are worth your
As I approach strolling towards a brook’s
seeing
bank
Though apparently a humble hut you are
I endow the brook with ear rings of
seeing
whirlpools
Dainty drapes are hanging from the doors
I am the hope of the freshly grown field’s
And I have decorated the walls with mirrors
verdure
Beddings are available for guests’ comforts
I am the ocean’s offspring, I am nourished by
Not to everyone’s lot do fall these comforts.”
the sun
The fly said, “All this may very well be
I gave ocean’s tumult to the mountain spring
But do not expect me to enter your house
I charmed the birds into thrilling chants
“May God protect me from these soft beds
Once asleep in them getting up again is The grandeur of mine does not fall to your lot
impossible” The poor animal cannot equal the great
The spider spoke to itself on hearing this talk mountain!”
“How to trap it? This wretched fellow is On hearing this the squirrel said, “Hold your
clever tongue!
Many desires are fulfilled with flattery in the These are immature thoughts, expel them
world from your heart!
All in the world are enslaved with flattery” I do not care if I am not large like you!
Thinking this the spider spoke to the fly thus! You are not a pretty little thing like me
“Madam, God has bestowed great honours on Everything shows the Omnipotence of God
you! Some large, some small, is the wisdom of God
Everyone loves your beautiful face He has created you large in the world
Even if someone sees you for the first time And He has taught me climbing large trees
Your eyes look like clusters of glittering You are unable to walk a single step
diamonds Only large size! What other greatness have
God has adorned your beautiful head with a you?
plume If you are large show me some of the skills I
This beauty, this dress, this elegance, this have
neatness! Show me how you break this beetle nut as I
And all this is very much enhanced by can
singing in flight”. Nothing is useless in this world
The fly was touched by this flattery Nothing is bad in God’s creation
And spoke, “I do not fear you any more
I hate the habit of declining requests
A COW AND A GOAT
Disappointing somebody is bad indeed” (Adopted for Children)
Saying this it flew from its place
There was a verdant pasture somewhere
When it got close the spider snapped it
Whose land was the very picture of beauty
The spider had been starving for many days
How can the beauty of that elegance be
The fly provided a good leisurely meal
described
A MOUNTAIN AND A SQUIRREL Brooks of sparkling water were running on
every side
(Adopted for Children from Ralph Waldo
Many were the pomegranate trees
Emerson)
And so were the shady pipal trees
A mountain was saying this to a squirrel Cool breeze flowed everywhere
“Commit suicide if you have self‐respect Birds were singing everywhere
You are insignificant, still so arrogant, how A goat arrived at a brook’s bank from
strange! somewhere
You are neither wise, nor intelligent! not even It came browsing from somewhere in the
shrewd! nearby land
It is strange when the insignificant pose as As she stopped and looked around
important! She noticed a cow standing by
When the stupid ones like you pose as The goat first presented her compliments to
intelligent! the cow
You are no match in comparison with my Then respectfully started this conversation
splendour “How are you! Madam Cow”?
Even the earth is low compared with my The cow replied, “Not too well
splendour “My life is a mere existence
My life is a complete agony THE CHILD’S INVOCATION
My life is in danger, what can I say?
My luck is bad, what can I say? (Adopted For Children)
I am surprised at the state of affairs My longing comes to my lips as supplication
I am cursing the evil people of mine
The poor ones like us are powerless O God! May like the candle be the life of
Misfortunes surround the ones like us mine!
None should nicely deal with Man May the world’s darkness disappear through
May God protect us from Man! the life of mine!
He murmurs if my milk declines May every place light up with the sparkling
He sells me if my weight declines light of mine!
He subdues us with cleverness! May my homeland through me attain
Alluring, he always subjugates us! elegance
I nurse his children with milk As the garden through flowers attains
I give them new life with milk elegance
My goodness is repaid with evil May my life like that of the moth be, O Lord!
My prayer to God is for mercy!” May I love the lamp of knowledge, O Lord!
Having heard the cow’s story like this May supportive of the poor my life’s way be
The goat replied, “This complaint is unjust May loving the old, the suffering my way be
Though truth is always bitter O God! Protect me from the evil ways
I shall speak what is fair Show me the path leading to the good ways
This pasture, and this cool breeze
This green grass and this shade SYMPATHY
Such comforts, were beyond our lot! (Adapted for Children from William Cowper)
They were a far cry for us speechless poor!
Perched on the branch of a tree
We owe these pleasures to Man
Was a nightingale sad and lonely
We owe all our happiness to Man
“The night has drawn near”, He was thinking
We derive all our prosperity from him
“I passed the day in flying around and
What is better for us, freedom or bondage to
feeding
him?
How can I reach up to the nest
Hundreds of dangers lurk in the wilderness
Darkness has enveloped everything”?
May God protect us from the wilderness!
Hearing the nightingale wailing thus
We are heavily indebted to him
A glow‐worm lurking nearby spoke thus
Unjust is our complaint against him
“With my heart and soul ready to help I am
If you appreciate the life’s comforts
Though only an insignificant insect I am
You would never complain against Man”
Never mind if the night is dark
Hearing all this the cow felt embarrassed
I shall shed light if the way is dark
She was sorry for complaining against Man
God has bestowed a torch on me
She mused over the good and the bad
He has given a shining lamp to me
And thoughtfully she said this
The good in the world only those are
“Small though is the body of the goat
Ready to be useful to others who are
Convincing is the advice of the goat!”
A MOTHER’S DREAM
(Adopted For Children From William Cowper)
As I slept one night I saw this dream
Which further increased my vexation
I dreamt I was going somewhere on the way May it happen that my freedom be in my own
Dark it was and impossible to find the way hands now!
Trembling all over with fear I was How unfortunate I am, tantalized for my
Difficult to take even a step with fear was abode I am
With some courage as I forward moved My companions are in the home‐land, in the
I saw some boys as lined in nice array prison I am
Dressed in emerald‐like raiment they were Spring has arrived, the flower buds are
Carrying lighted lamps in their hands they laughing
were On my misfortune in this dark house I am
They were going quietly behind each other wailing
No one knew where they were to go O God, To whom should I relate my tale of
Involved in this thought was I woe?
When in this troupe my son saw I I fear lest I die in this cage with this woe!
He was walking at the back, and was not Since separation from the garden the
walking fast condition of my heart is such
The lamp he had in his hand was not lighted My heart is waxing the grief, my grief is
Recognizing him I said “O My dear! waxing the heart
Where have you come leaving me there? O Listeners, considering this music do not be
Restless due to separation I am happy
Weeping every day for ever I am This call is the wailing of my wounded heart
You did not care even a little for me O the one who confined me make me free
What loyalty you showed, you left me”! A silent prisoner I am, earn my blessings free
As the child saw the distress in me
He replied thus, turning around to me
THE INTERROGATION OF THE DEAD
“The separation from me makes you cry The bright sun is hidden, the night shows its
Not least little good does this to me” face
He remained quiet for a while after talking The night’s hair is spread on shoulders of the
Showing me the lamp then he started talking earth
“Do you understand what happened to this? This black dress is preparation for some one’s
Your tears have extinguished this”! mourning
Perhaps the Nature’s assemblage for the sun
THE BIRD’S COMPLAINT
is mourning
(For Children) The sky is casting a spell over the talking lip
The night’s magician is watching the
I am constantly reminded of the bygone times
awakened eye
Those garden’s springs, those chorus of
The wind current is submerged in the river of
chimes
silence
Gone are the freedoms of our own nests
However, the tolling bell’s sound comes from
Where we could come and go at our own
the distance
pleasure
Heart which in love’s turmoil is evading the
My heart aches the moment I think
world
Of the buds’ smile at the dew’s tears
Has dragged me here far from the maddening
That beautiful figure, that Kamini’s form
crowd
Which source of happiness in my nest did
I am the spectator of the spectacle of
form
disappointments
I do not hear those lovely sounds in my cage
I am the associate of those sleeping in
now
solitude’s corner
O My restlessness! Wait and let me rest Or it in flames of fire a way of discipline
awhile constitute?
And let me shed a few tears at this habitation Has walking given way to speedy flying in
O those steeped in a swoon, “Where are you? that world?
Tell me something of the land where you live What is the secret of what is called death by
Is that world also one of prevarication? denizens of this world?
Is that world also one of denizens’ struggle? Life eases the heart’s restlessness in this world
Is Man engulfed by sorrow in that land also? Is human knowledge also restricted in that
Is Man’s heart suppressed and helpless in that world?
land also? Does the separated heart get satisfaction by
Does the moth burn itself in candle’s love in sight there also?
that land also? Are “Lan Tarani” saying the Turs of that land
Does the tale of flower and nightingale exist also
in that garden also? Does the soul get solace in longing there also?
In this world a single hemistich perturbs the Is man a victim of desire to learn there also?
heart Ah! Is that land also filled with darkness?
Does there also the warmth of verse soften the Or with Love’s light is completely
heart? illuminated?
This world’s relations and alliances life’s woes Tell us what the secret under this rotating
are dome is
Are similar sharp thorns present in that Death a pricking sharp thorn in the human
garden also? breast is.
The daily bread and a million calamities this
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
world has
Does the soul freedom from anxieties in that MOTH AND CANDLE
world has?
Why is the moth your lover, O flame,
Are the thunder, the farmer, the harvest there
Giving life in a yielding move?
also?
You make its ways the quicksilver’s ways.
Are the caravan and the robber’s fear there
You taught it, what rites of love?
also?
Do birds collect bits of straw for nests there The creature circles around your flare.
also? How burnt in your flash of sight!
Is the search for bricks and clay for house Does it know life’s peace in the throes of
there also? death?
Are the humans unaware of their reality there Life endures in your ardour bright?
also?
Had your lustre not been in the world’s house
Are they after nations’ and customs’
of woe
discrimination there also
The tree of hot love had not been green.
Does garden not cry at the nightingale’s wail
Moth sinks before you making its prayer,
there also?
Frail heart to feel scorching keen.
Like this world is there no sympathy in that
world also? It must throb like one loving the beauty of
Does the Paradise a garden or a restful old:
mansion constitute? Small prophet! small mountain of fire!
Or does the Eternal Beauty’s Unveiled Face it The moth with its urge to envisage the flame!
constitute? Poor worm, with its light’s desire!
Does hell a method of burning away sins [Translated by H.T. Sorley]
constitute?
REASON AND HEART Though I exceedingly love the real closeness
I am upset by the mixing of waves and the
One day reason said to the heart: shore
‘I am a guide for those who are lost. The miraculous poet is like the grain from the
I live on earth, but I roam the skies— barn
just see the vastness of my reach. The grain has no existence if there is no barn
My task in the world is to guide and lead, How can beauty unveil itself if no one is
I am like Khizr of blessed steps. anxious for sight
I interpret the book of life, Lighting of the candle is meaningless if there
And through me Divine Glory shines forth. is no assembly
You are no more than a drop of blood, Why does the taste for speech not change to
While I am the envy of the priceless pearl! silence
The heart listened, and then said: Why does this brilliance not appear out from
‘This is all true, my mirror
But now look at me, Alas! My tongue poured its speech down
And see what I am. When war’s fire had burnt the garden down
You penetrate the secret of existence,
But 1 see it with my eyes. THE SUN
You deal With the outward aspect of things,
(Translated from Gautier)
I know what lies within.
Knowledge comes from you, gnosis from me; O Sun! The world’s essence and motivator
You seek God, I reveal Him. you are
Attaining the ultimate in knowledge only The organizer of the book of the world you
makes one restless— are
I am the cure for that malady. The splendor of existence has been created by
You are the candle of the Assembly of Truth; you
1 am the lamp of the Assembly of Beauty. The verdure of the garden of existence
You are hobbled by space and time, depends on you
While I am the bird in the Lotus Tree. The spectacle of elements is maintained by
My status is so high— you
I am the throne of the God of Majesty! The exigency of life in all is maintained by
you
[Translated by Mustansir Mir]
Your appearance confers stability on
THE PAINFUL WAIL everything
Your illumination and concord is completion
Consumed with grief I am, I get relief in no of life
way You are the sun which establishes light in the
O circumambient waters of the Ganges drown world
me Which establishes heart, intellect, essence and
Our land foments excessive mutual enmity wisdom
What unity! Our closeness harbors separation O Sun! Bestow on us the light of wisdom
Enmity instead of sincerity is outrageous Bestow your luster’s light on the intellect’s
Enmity among the same barn’s grains is eye
outrageous You are the decorator of necessaries of
If the brotherly breeze has not entered in a existence’ assemblage
garden You are the Yazdan of the denizens of the
No pleasure can be derived from songs in that high and the low
garden
Your excellence is reflected from every living Innumerable fire temples are asleep in this
thing spark
The mountain range also shows your elegance Discrimination between high and low is
You are the sustainer of the life of all created by this alone!
You are the king of the light’s children Fragrance in flower, ecstasy in wine is created
There is no beginning and no end of yours by this alone!
Free of limits of time is the light of yours Garden, nightingale, flower, fragrance this
Cognition is
THE CANDLE Root of the struggle of ‘I and you’ this
O Candle! I am also an afflicted person in the Cognition is
world assembly At creation’s dawn as Beauty became the
Constant complaint is my lot in the manner of abode of Love
the rue The sound of “Kun” taught warmth to the
Love gave the warmth of internal pathos to spirit of Love
you The command came Beauty of Kun’s garden
It made me the florist selling blood‐mixed to witness
tears With one eye a thousand dreadful dreams to
Whether you be the candle of a celebrating witness
assembly or one at the grave Do not ask me of the nature of the veil of
In every condition associated with the tears of being
sorrow you remain The eve of separation was the dawn of my
Your eye views all with equity like the being
Secret’s Lovers Gone are the days when unaware of
My eye is the pride of the tumult of imprisonment I was
discrimination That my abode the adornment of the tree of
Your illumination is alike in the Ka’bah and Tur was
the temple I am a prisoner but consider the cage to be a
I am entangled in the temple and the Haram’s garden
discrimination This exile’s hovel of sorrow I consider the
Your black smoke contains the sigh’s elegance homeland
Is some heart hidden in the place of your Memories of the homeland a needless
manifestation? melancholy became
You burn with pathos due to distance from Now the desire for sight, now Longing for
Tajalli’s Light search became
Your pathos the callous ones consider your O Candle! Look at the excessive illusion of
light thought
Though you are burning you are unaware of Look at the end of the one worshipped by
it all celestial denizens
You see but do not encompass the internal Theme of separation I am, the exalted one I
pathos am
I quiver like mercury with the excitement of Design of the Will of the Universe’s Lord I am
vexation He desired my display as He designed me
As well I am aware of vexations of the restless When at the head of Existence’ Divan He
heart wrote me
This was also the elegance of some Beloved The pearl likes living in a handful of dust
Which gave me perception of my own pathos Style may be dull the subject is excellent
This cognition of mine keeps me restless Not seeing it rightly is the fault of short‐
sighted perception
The universe is the show of effulgence of taste The nightingale be so familiar with my face
for Cognizance that
This network of time and space is the scaling Her little heart harboring no fear from me
ladder of the Universe may be
It is the necklace of the neck of Eternal Beauty Avenues of green trees standing on both sides
I have lost the way, Longing for the goal I am be
O Candle! Captive of perception’s illusion I The spring’s clear water providing a beautiful
am picture be
I am the hunter as well as the circle of The view of the mountain range may be so
tyranny’s net! beautiful
I am the Haram’s roof as well as the bird on To see it the waves of water again and again
Haram’s roof rising be
Am I the Beauty or head to foot the melting The verdure may be asleep in the lap of the
love am I? earth
It is not clear whether the beloved or the Water running through the bushes may
Lover am I? glistening be
I am afraid the old secret may come up to my Again and again the flowered boughs
lips again touching the water be
Lest story of suffering on the Cross may come As if some beauty looking at itself in mirror
up again. be
When the sun apply myrtle to the evening’s
A LONGING bride
O Lord! I have become weary of human The tunic of every flower may pinkish golden
assemblages! be
When the heart is sad no pleasure in When night’s travelers falter behind with
assemblages can be fatigue
I seek escape from tumult, my heart desires Their only hope my broken earthenware lamp
The silence which speech may ardently love! may be
I vehemently desire silence, I strongly long May the lightning lead them to my hut
that When clouds hovering over the whole sky be.
A small hut in the mountain’s side may there The early dawn’s cuckoo, that morning’s
be mu’adhdhin
Freed from worry I may live in retirement May my confidante he be, and may his
Freed from the cares of the world I may be confidante I be
Birds’ chirping may give the pleasure of the May I not be obligated to the temple or to the
lyre mosque
In the spring’s noise may the orchestra’s May the hut’s hole alone herald of morning’s
melody be arrival be
The flower bud bursting may give God’s When the dew may come to perform the
message to me flowers’ ablution
Showing the whole world to me this small May wailing my supplication, weeping my
wine‐cup may be ablution be
My arm may be my pillow, and the green In this silence may my heart’s wailing rise so
grass my bed be high
Putting the congregation to shame my That for stars’ caravan the clarion’s call my
solitude’s quality be wailing be
May every compassionate heart weeping with
me be
Perhaps it may awaken those who may May the Love‐creating Beauty in everything
unconscious be appear to me!
If the rose petals get damaged by the breeze
THE MORNING SUN May its pain dropping from my eye as a tear
Far from the ignoble strife of Man’s tavern be
you are May the heart contain that little spark of
The wine‐cup adorning the sky’s assemblage Love’s fire
you are The light of which may contain the secret of
The jewel which should be the pearl of the the Truth
morning’s bride’s ear you are May my heart not mine but the Beloved’s
The ornament which would be the pride of mirror be!
horizon’s forehead you are May no thought in my mind except human
The blot of night’s ink from time’s page has sympathy be!
been removed! If you cannot endure the hardships of the
The star from sky like a spurious picture has tumultuous world
been removed! O the Great Luminary that is not the mark of
When from the roof of the sky your beauty greatness!
appears As you are not aware of your
Effect of sleep’s wine suddenly from eyes world‐decorating beauty
disappears You cannot be equal to a speck of dust at the
Perception’s expanse gets filled with light Man’s door!
Though opens only the material eye your The light of Man eager for the Spectacle ever
light remained
The spectacle which the eyes seek is desired And you obligated to the tomorrow’s
The effulgence which would open the insight morning ever remained
is desired Longing for the Light of the Truth is only in
The desires for freedom were not fulfilled in our hearts
this life Abode of Lailah of desire for search is only in
We remained imprisoned in chains of this litter
dependence all life Opening of the difficult knot, Oh what a
The high and the low are alike for your eye pleasure it is!
I too have longing for such a discerning eye The pleasure of universal gain in our endless
May my eye shedding tears in sympathy for effort is!
others’ woes be! Your bosom is unacquainted with the pain of
May my heart free from the prejudice of investigation
nation and customs be! You are not familiar with searching of the
May my tongue be not bound with secrets of Nature
discrimination of color
PATHOS OF LOVE
May mankind be my nation, the whole world
my country be O Pathos of Love! You are a glossy pearl
May secret of Nature’s organization clear to Beware, you should not appear among
my insight be strangers
May smoke of my imagination’s candle rising The theatre of your display is concealed
to the sky be under the veil
May search for secrets of opposites not make The modern audience’ eye accepts only the
me restless! visible display
New breeze has arrived in the Existence’ A WITHERED ROSE
garden
O Pathos of Love! Now there is no pleasure in How shall I call you now a flower—
display Tell me, oh withered rose!
Beware! You should not be striving for How call you that beloved for whom
ostentation! The nightingale’s heart glows?
You should not be obligated to the The winds’ soft ripples cradled you
nightingale’s lament! And rocked your bygone hours,
The tulip’s wine‐cup should be devoid of And your name once was Laughing Rose
wine In the country of flowers;
The dew’s tear should be a mere drop of With the dawn breezes that received
water Your favours you once played,
Your secret should be hidden in the bosom Like a perfumer’s vase your breath
somewhere Sweetened the garden glade.
Your heart ‐melting tear should not be your These eyes are full, and drops like dew
betrayer Fall thick on you again;
The flowery‐styled poet’s tongue should not This desolate heart finds dimly its
be talking Own image in your pain,
Separation’s complaint should not be A record drawn in miniature
concealed in flute’s music Of all its sorry gleaming;
This age is a critic, go and somewhere conceal My life was all a life of dreams,
yourself And you—you are its meaning.
In the heart in which you are residing conceal I tell my stories as the reed
yourself Plucked from its native wild
The learning’s surprise is neglecting you, Murmurs; oh Rose, listen! I tell
beware! The grief of hearts exiled.
Your immature eye is not the seeker of Truth,
[Translated by V.G. Kiernan]
beware
Let the elegant thought remain in search of THE TOMBSTONE OF SAYYID
Truth
O you whose life is confined in the material
Let your wisdom‐loving eye remain in
world
astonishment
O you whose soul is imprisoned in the cage
This is not the garden whose spring you may
Look at the freedom of this garden’s warblers
be
Look at the prosperity of those once desolate
This is not the audience worthy of your
This is the congregation with which I was
appearance
concerned
This audience is the lover of the material
This is the reward of patience and
sights
perseverance
The purpose of your sight is the closet of
My tomb‐stone is ardently desirous of speech,
secrecy
look!
Every heart is intoxicated with the wine of
At this tomb‐stone’s inscription with insight
thinking
look!
Something different is the Tur of the Kalims
If your aim in the world is din’s education
of this age
Never teach your nation world’s abdication
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Do not use your tongue for sectarianism
Resurrection Day’s tumult for booty is
stalking
Your writings should pave the way for unity All shapes of life that wanes and grows before
Beware! No heart should be hurt by your us you display:
speech Where is your native land? towards what
In the new congregation do not start old tales country lies your way?
Do not start again what are now unacceptable You who still wander yet still keep your path,
tales take me with you,
Listen to my advice if you are any statesman Take me now while these throbbing thorns of
Courage is your support if you are a leader of torment pierce me through!
men I grope for light, I anguish in this earth‐abode,
Hesitation in expressing your purpose does a child
not behoove you In the schoolroom of existence, like pale
If your intentions are good you should not mercury quick and wild.
fear anything
The Mu’min’s heart is clear of fear and
MAN AND NATURE
hypocrisy Watching at daybreak the bright sun come
The Mu’min’s heart is fearless against the forth
ruler’s power I asked the assembled host of heaven and
If your hands do hold the miraculous pen earth—
If your heart’s cup is clear like the cup of Jam Your radiant looks are kindled by that
You are a Divine pupil! Keep your tongue glowing orb’s warm beams
immaculate! That turns to rippling silver your flowing
Beware, Lest your prayer’s call remains streams;
unanswered! That sun it is that clothes you in these
With the miracle of your verse awaken those ornaments of light,
sleeping And whose torch burns to keep your
Burn down falsehood’s produce with the concourse bright.
flame of your call. Your roses and rose‐gardens are pictures of
Paradise
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Where the Scripture of The Sun paints its
device;
THE NEW MOON
Scarlet the mantle of the flower, and emerald
The day’s bright launch has floundered in the of the tree,
whirlpool of the Nile, Green and red sylphs of your consistory;
On the river’s face one fragment floats Your tall pavilion, the blue sky. Is fringed
eddyingly awhile; with tasselled gold
Into the bowl of heaven the twilight’s crimson When round the horizons ruddy clouds
blood‐drops run— are rolled,
Has Nature with her lancet pricked the hot And when into evening’s goblet your rose‐
veins of the sun? tinted nectar flows
—Is that an earring, that the sky has thieved How lovely the twilight’s soft vermilion
from Evening’s bride, glows!
or through the water does some silvery fish, Your station is exalted, and your splendour:
quivering, glide? over all
Your caravan holds on its way, though no Your creatures light lies thick, a dazzling
trumpet be blown; pall;
Your voice still murmurs, though no mortal To your magnificence the dawn is one high
ear may catch its tone. hymn of praise,
No rag of night lurks on it in that sun’s THE MESSAGE OF DAWN
blaze.
And I—I too inhabit this abode of light; but (Adapted from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)
why When the sparkling of the night’s forehead’s
Is the star burned out that rules my decoration disappeared
destiny? The zephyr of life with the news of the happy
Why chained in the dark, past reach of any morning appeared
ray, It awakened the nightingale of flowery song
Ill‐faring and ill‐fated and ill‐doing must I in its nest
stay? It shook the shoulder of the farmer on the
field’s edge
Speaking, I heard a voice from somewhere It broke the spell of darkness of night’s
sound, talisman with Surah al‐Nur
From heaven’s balcony or near the It robbed the golden crown of bed‐chamber’s
ground— candle in the dark
You are creation’s gardener, flowers live only It chanted the magic of awakening on those
in your seeing, sleeping in the temple
By your light hangs my being or not‐being; It gave the Brahman the tidings of the bright
All beauty is in you: I am the tapestry of your sun
soul; Arriving at the mosque’s roof it said to the
I am its key, but you are Love’s own scroll. Mu’adhdhin
The load that would not leave me you have “Do you not fear appearance of the
lifted from my shoulder, resplendent sun?”
You are all my chaotic work’s re‐moulder. Climbing the garden’s wall it cried this to the
If I exist, it is only as a pensioner of the sun, rose‐bud
Needing no aid from whom your spark “Burst! You are the Mu’adhdhin of the
burns on; morning O rose‐bud”
My garden would turn wilderness if the sun It gave the command in the wilderness “Move
should fail, O Caravan”!
This sojourn of delight a prison’s pale. “Every dust speck will shine like fire‐fly in
Oh you entangled in the snare of longing and the wilderness”
unrest, When it reached the cemetery from the
Still ignorant of a thing so manifest— living’s habitation
Dullard, who should be proud, and still by Witnessing the spectacle of the cemetery it
self‐contempt enslaved spoke thus
Bear in your brain illusion deep “Remain lying in comfort still, come again
engraved— shall I
If you would weigh your worth at its true Make the whole world sleep, wake you up
rate, shall I
No longer would ill‐faring or ill‐doing be
your fate! LOVE AND DEATH
[Translated by V.G. Kiernan] (Adapted From Lord Alfred Tennyson)
The hour of the Universe’ appearance was
charming
The flower‐bud of life was showering smiles
Here the golden crown, the sun was getting
There the moon its moon‐light was getting
The dark gown to the night was being given The thunder of such smile descended on
Training of brightness to stars was being death
given How can darkness stay in front of such light?
The Existence’s branch was getting leaves On seeing eternity to death it fell
here Death it was, to death it fell
The bud of life was bursting out there
The angels were teaching weeping to the dew
For the first time the rose was laughing VIRTUE AND VICE
They were conferring pathos on the poet’s
A Mullah (I tell you his tale not a bit
heart
With any ambition of airing my wit)
Khudi for the wine of bekhudi was pining
By ascetic deportment had won high repute,
For the first time dark black clouds were
In his praise neither gentle nor simple were
appearing
mute.
As if some Houri of Paradise with open hair
God’s will, he would say, just as meaning is
was standing
latent
The earth was claiming elegance of the sky
In words, through pure doctrine alone
The space was claiming to be boundless
becomes patent.
In short so beautiful the sight was
His heart a full bowl: wine of piety worked
That seeing it in itself a panorama was
there,
The angels their flying powers were testing
Though some dregs of conceit of omniscience
Eternal lights from their foreheads were
lurked there—
appearing
He was wont to recount his own miracles,
An angel called Love there was
knowing
Whose guidance everyone’s hope was
How this kept his tally of followers growing.
The angel who the embodiment of
He had long been residing not far from my
restlessness was
street,
Angel among angels and restless like mercury
So sinner and saint were accustomed to meet:
he was
‘This Iqbal,’ he once asked an acquaintance of
He was going towards the Paradise for a stroll
mine,
He met death on its way by the destiny’s roll
‘Is dove of the tree in the literary line,
He asked death, “What is the name and work
but how do religion’s stern monishments
of yours?
seem
I do not want to encounter the face of yours”
To agree with this man who at verse beats
Hearing this said the angel of death
Kalim?
“My work is clear, I am the angel of death
He thinks a Hindu not a heathen, I’m told,
I shatter the chattels of existence
A most casuistical notion to hold,
I extinguish the spark of life
And some taints of the Shias’ heresy sully
The magic of annihilation is in my eyes
His mind—I have heard him extolling their
The message of destruction is its symhol
Ali;
But there is one entity in the Universe
He finds room in our worship for music—
It is fire, I am only mercury before it
which must
It lives in the human heart as a spark
Be intended to level true faith with the dust!
It is the darling of the Divine Light
As with poets so often, no scruple of duty
It constantly drips as tears from the eyes
Deters him from meeting the vendors‐of‐
The tears whose bitterness is tolerable”
beauty;
When Love heard this from the death’s lips,
In the morning, devotions—at evening, the
Laughter started appearing from its lips
fiddle—
I have never been able to fathom this riddle. THE POET
Yet dawn, my disciples assure me, is not
More unsoiled than that youth is by blemish A nation is like a body,
or spot; And the individuals in it the body’s limbs:
No Iqbal, but a heterogeneous creature, Those who walk the road of industry
His mind crammed with learning, with Are its hands and feet,
impulse his nature, The office of government is its beautiful face,
In divinity, doubtless, as deep as Mansur; And the poet of tuneful melodies is its seeing
What the fellow is really, I cannot make out— eye.
Is it founding some brand‐new Islam he’s If just one limb should suffer pain,
about?’ Tears will drop from the eye–
—Thus the great man protracted his chatter, How anxious the eye is for the whole body!
and in short made a very long tale of the [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
matter.
In our town, all the world hears of every THE HEART
transaction: Tales of gallows and crucifixion are mere
I soon got reports from my own little faction, child’s play for the Heart
And when I fell in with His Worship one day The request of Arini is only the title of the
In our talk the same topic came up by the story of the Heart
way. O Lord! How powerful the full cup of that
‘If,’ said he, ‘I found fault, pure good‐will was wine would be?
the cause, The Way to eternity is each single line on the
And my duty to point out religion’s strict measuring cup of the Heart
laws.’ O Lord! Was it the cloud of mercy or the
—‘Not at all,’ I responded, ‘I make no thunderbolt of Love
complaint, When the life’s crop got burned down,
As a neighbour of mine you need feel no sprouted the seed of the Heart
constraint; You would have got the Beauty’s bountiful
In your presence I am, as my bent head treasure
declares, O Farhad! You never dug into the ruins of the
Metamorphosed at once from gay youth to Heart
grey hairs, Now it looks like the ‘Arsh‘, now like the
And if my true nature eludes your analysis, Ka’bah
Your claim to omniscience need fear no O God! Whose lodging is the abode of my
paralysis; Heart
For me also my nature remains still It has its own junun and I have my own sawda
enravelled, The Heart loves someone else and I love the
The sea of my thoughts is too deep and Heart
untravelled: You do not comprehend this, O simple
I too long to know the Iqbal of reality, hearted ascetic!
And often shed tears at this wall of duality. Envy of a thousand prostrations is one slip of
To Iqbal of Iqbal little knowledge is given; the Heart
I say this not jesting—not jesting, by Heaven! It changes the heap of earth into elixir
Such is the power of the ashes of the Heart
[Translated by V.G. Kiernan] It gains freedom after being caught in the net
of Love
On being thunder‐struck greens up the tree of I searched long for the rose’ sight among
the Heart. thorns
Ah! I have not found that Yusuf in your
market place
THE WAVE OF RIVER The perplexed eye for another scene is
searching
My restless heart doth never keep me still:
As storm‐stricken my eye for coast is
This inner core of me is mercury.
searching
They call me wave. The ocean is my goal.
Leaving your garden like fragrance I am
No chain of whirling eddy holdeth me.
going
My steed like air upon the water rides.
Farewell! O worldly company I am going to
My garment’s hem on thorn of fish e’er tore,
the homeland
When moon is full sometimes I leap all fey;
I have made my home in the quietness of the
Sometimes all mad I dash my head on shore.
mountain side
I am the pilgrim loving journey’s stage.
Ah! I do not get this pleasure in
Why am I restless? If my heart make quest.
conversation’s music!
I flee from the cramped torment of the stream,
Associate of Nargis‐i‐Shahlah, and rose’s
Away from the sea’s wide spaces, all
companion I am
distressed.
The garden is my homeland, nightingale’s
[Translated by H.T. Sorley] associate I am
The sound of the spring’s music lulls me to
FAREWELL O WORLDʹS CONGREGATION!
sleep
(Adapted from Ralph Waldo Emerson) The morning cuckoo from the green carpet
wakes me up
Farewell O worldly companions! I am going
Everyone in the world assemblage social life
to my homeland
likes
I am feeling unhappy in this well‐populated
The poet’s heart but the solitude’s corner likes
wilderness
I am verged on lunacy by being perturbed in
I am very much dejected, unsuitable for
habitations
assemblies I am
For whom I am searching, roaming in the
Neither you are suitable for me nor suitable
mountain valleys?
for you I am
Whose love makes me roam in the meadows?
The king’s audience and the minister’s bed‐
And makes me sleep on the spring’s banks?
chamber each is a prison
You taunt me that fond of the corner of
The golden chain’s prisoner will break
retirement I am
himself free from this prison
Look O imprudent one! Messenger of
Though much pleasure is in embellishing
Nature’s assembly I am
your assembly
Compatriot of the elms, turtle‐dove’s
But some kind of strangeness is in your
confidante I am!
acquaintance
In this garden’s silence in the state of anxiety I
I remained long in company of your
am!
self‐centered people
If I do hear something it is only to tell others
I remain restless for long like the waves of the
If I do see something it is only to show others
ocean
My heart is a lover of retirement, proud of my
I remained long in your luxury gatherings
home I am
I remained long searching for light in the
Scoffing at the thrones of Dara and Sikandar I
darkness
am
How enchanting is the act of lying under the Like you, I sometimes weep; and sometimes I
trees laugh.
As now and then my sight falls at the evening I appear to be a foolish adolescent, but I am
star also a baby!
Where in the strange house of learning can
[Translated by D.J. Matthews]
this be seen!
The secret of universe can only in the THE PORTRAIT OF ANGUISH
rose‐petal be seen. My story is not indebted to the patience of
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] being heard
My silence is my talk, my speechlessness is
YOUNG BABY my speech
Why does this custom of silencing exist in
I took a knife away from you and you shriek.
your assembly?
I am kind, but you thought I was being
My tongue is tantalized to talk in this
unkind.
assembly
Then you will lie there and cry, you who have
Some leaves were picked up by the tulip,
just arrived in this world of sorrow.
some by the narcissus, some by the rose
Make sure it does not prick you! The tip of the
My story is scattered around everywhere in
pen is so slender.
the garden
Ah! Why are you so fond of a thing which
The turtle‐doves, parrots, and nightingales
will give you pain?
pilfered away
Play with this piece of paper—that is
The garden’s denizens jointly robbed away
harmless.
my plaintive way
Where is your ball? Where is your china cat?
O Candle! Drip like tears from the eye of the
That little animal with the broken head?
moth
Your mirror was free from the dust of desire.
Head to foot pathos I am, full of longing is my
As soon as your eyes opened, the spark of
story
desire shone out.
O God! What is the pleasure of living so in
It is hidden in the movement of your hands,
this world?
in the way you see.
Neither the eternal life, nor the sudden death
Like you, your desire is also new‐born.
is mine
Your life is free of the prison of discretion.
This is not only my wailing, but is that of the
Perhaps the secret of nature is manifest to
entire garden
your eyes.
I am a rose, to me every rose’ autumn is my
When you are angry with me about autumn
something, you shriek. “In this grief‐stricken land, in life‐long spell of
What a sight! You are made happy with a the caravan’s bell I am
piece of waste‐paper! From the palpitating heart’s bounties the
In this habit, I am in harmony with you. silent clamor I have“
You are capricious; I am also capricious. In the world’s garden unaware of pleasant
I am given to the joys of momentary pleasure; company I am
I shriek as well. Whom happiness still mourns, that hapless
I am quickly moved to anger; I am quickly person I am
consoled. Speech itself sheds tears at my ill luck
My eyes are enchanted with all the beauty Silent word, longing for an eager ear I am
they see before them. I am a mere handful of scattered dust but I do
My foolishness is no less than yours. not know
Whether Alexander or a mirror or just dust Conspiracies for your destruction are afoot in
and scum I am the heavens
Despite all this my existence is the Divine Pay attention to what is happening and what
Purpose is going to happen
Embodiment of light is whose reality, that What good there is in repeating the tales of
darkness I am the old glories?
I am a treasure, concealed in the wilderness How long will you remain silent? Create taste
dust for complaint!
No one knows where I am, or whose wealth I You should be on the earth, so your cries be in
am? the heavens!
My insight is not obligated to the stroll of You will be annihilated if you do not
existence understand, O people of India!
That small world I am whose sovereign Even your tales will disappear from the
myself I am world’s chronicles
Neither wine, nor cup‐bearer, nor ecstasy, nor This is the law of Nature, this is the order of
goblet I am Nature
But the truth of everything in the existence’ Those who tread dynamism’s path, are the
tavern I am darlings of Nature
My heart’s mirror shows me both world’s I will surely exhibit all my hidden wounds
secrets today
I relate exactly what I witness before my eyes I will surely change assembly to a garden
I am bestowed with such speech among the with blood‐mixed tears
elegant speakers I have to light every heart’s candle with
That the birds of the ‘Arsh’s roof are hidden pathos
concordant with me I will surely create bright illumination in your
This also is an effect of my tumultuous love darkness
That my heart’s mirrors are Destiny’s So that love‐cognizant hearts be created like
confidante rose‐buds
Your spectacle makes me shed tears, O India! I will surely scatter around my handful of
Your tales are admonitory among all the tales dust in the garden
Conferring the wailing on me is like If stringing these scattered pearls in a single
conferring everything rosary
Since eternity Destiny’s pen has put me where Is difficult, I will surely make this difficult
all your mourners are task easy
O gardener do not leave even the rose‐petals’ O Companion! Leave me alone in the soul‐
trace in this garden! searching effort
By your misfortune war preparations are As I will surely exhibit this mark of the ardent
afoot among the gardeners Love
The sky has kept thunderbolts concealed up I will show the world what my eyes have seen
its sleeve I will surely make you also bewildered like a
Garden’s nightingales should not slumber in mirror
their nests The discerning eye sees every thing covered
Listen to my call, O imprudent one! This is in veils
something which It does see the exigencies of the nature of
The birds in gardens are reciting like the daily times
prayers You have not acquainted your heart with
Think of the homeland, O ignorant one! Hard pleasure of dignity
times are coming
You have passed your entire life in humility Sectarianism is the tree, prejudice is its fruit
like foot‐prints This fruit caused expulsion of S Adam from
You always remained entangled inside the Paradise
assembly, but Not even a single rose‐petal could rise by
Have not acquainted yourself with the world sun’s attraction
outside the assembly It is the longing for elegance which raises the
You have continued loving the charm of dew
material beauties Those wounded by Love do not wander in
But you have never seen your own elegance search of cure
in this mirror These wounded ones themselves create their
Give up prejudice O imprudent one! In the own cure
world’s glass house The heart gets complete illumination by the
They are your own pictures which you have spark of Love
taken as evil ones The Tur’s flower bed is raised from the Love’s
Become embodiment of the wail of tyranny of small seed
life’s pathos! Every malady’s cure is to remain wounded
You have concealed sound in your pocket like with Longing’s sword
the rue seed Wound’s remedy is to remain free from
Clarity of heart has nothing to do with obligation to stitching
external decorations With the Bekhudi’s wine up to the celestial
O imprudent one! You have applied myrtle to world is my flight
mirror’s palm From disappearance of color I have learnt to
Not only the earth even the sky is bewailing remain fragrance
your imprudence How can the weeping eye refrain from
It is outrageous that you have twisted the homeland’s lamentation?
Qur’an’s lines! The ‘ibadah for the poet’s eye is to remain
To what purpose is your claim to constantly with ablution
monotheism! To what purpose should we make our nest in
You have made the idol of self conceit your the rose‐branch
deity Ah! How can we live with constant disgrace
What did you see even if you saw Yusuf in in the garden
the well? If you understand, independence is veiled in
O imprudent one! You have made the Love
Absolute confined Slavery is to remain imprisoned in the net of
You are greedy of flowery style even at the schism
pulpit Contentment is what keeps the cup
Your advice also is a form of story telling submerged in water
Show that universally illuminating Beauty to You should also remain like the bubble in the
your weeping eye stream
Which renders the moth highly agitated, It is best for you not to remain indifferent to
which makes the dew weep like eye yours own
Mere seeing is not its purpose! O greedy one O apathetic person! If you want to remain
Some One has made the human eye with alive in the world
some purpose Soul‐invigorating wine is the Love of the
Even if he viewed the whole world, what did human race
he see? It has taught me to remain ecstatic without
Jam could not see his own reality in the wine the wine cup and the pitcher
cup
Sick nations have been cured only through Sight is asleep in my eyes like the
Love extinguished candle.”
Nations have warded off their adversity I am fond of seclusion, I hate the habitation
through Love I run away from the city in excruciation of
The expanse of Love is at once foreign land love
and homeland I make the heart restless from the olden days’
This wilderness is the cage, the nest, as well as memory
the garden For satisfaction I come ardently running
Love is the only stage which is the stage as towards you
well as the wilderness Though the eye is familiar with your nook
It is the bell, the caravan, the leader as well as and corner
the robber Still some strangeness is apparent from my
Everybody calls it an illness, but it is such an speed
illness My heart’s speck was just to be acquainted
In which the cure for all ills and misfortunes with the sun
is concealed The broken mirror was just to expand into the
The heart’s pathos in a way is to become universe
embodiment of Light The tree of my longings was just going to
If this moth burns it is also the assembly’s green up
candle Ah! what does any one know what I was
The Beauty is just one but appears in going to be!
everything Mercy’s cloud gathered up its skirt from my
It is Shirin, the sky, as well as the mountain garden and departed
digger Rained a little over the flower buds of my
Distinction of sects and governments has desires and departed
destroyed nations Where are you! O Kalim of the pinnacle Sina
Is there any concern for the homeland in my of learning!
compatriot’s hearts? Your breath was the breeze promoting the joy
Prolonging the tale of my woes calls for of learning
silence, otherwise Gone is that zeal for walking in the vast
The tongue in my mouth as well as the ability expanse of learning!
to speak is In my intellect also you were the inspirer of
“Take not this meaningful tale as related by love of learning
me is “Where is Layla’s fervor, so as to decorate
The story was endless, but related with Love again
silence is.” May make the dust of Majnun mixed with
wilderness again
LAMENT OF SEPARATION The wilderness of solitude will open the fate’s
(In Memory of Arnold) knot
I shall reach you after breaking the chains of
O house! Your resident is now residing in the
the Punjab
West
The bewildered eye looks upon your picture
Ah! The land of the East was not liked by him
But how can one searching for speech be
Today my heart is convinced of this truth
happy?
The light of the separation’s day is darker
“No power to speak the picture’s mouth has
than night
Silence is the speech which the picture has”
“As from his departure’s breast the scar is
picked up [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
THE MOON Still far from thirst of consciousness, a
thousand journeys far;
My desert from your native land how many a Before my soul the path lies clear in view that
league divides! it must trace—
Yet by your power the waters of my heart No gleam of knowledge such as mine will
feels these rough tides. ever light your face.
To what far gathering are you bound, what
far gathering come? [Translated by V.G. Kiernan]
Your face is blanched, as if from journeyings
BILAL
long and wearisome.
You in this universe all light, and I all As the star of your destiny ascended to shine
darkness, share It lifted and brought you from Abyssinia to
One destiny together in our valley of despair; Hijaz
I burn in a flame of longing, ah! burn for the This alone made inhabited your desolate
gift of sight, house
And you, all seared with fires of longing, bed Better than a thousand freedoms is your
the sun for light; slavery
And if your footsteps cannot stray from one That threshold not even for a moment you
fixed circle’s bound, could leave
I too move in one circle as a compass‐hand In some one’s Love all torments you bore
moves round. cheerfully
You roam forlorn life’s path to whose dull The oppression befalling in Love is not
griefs I too am doomed, oppression
You shining through creation’s throng, I in If there is no torment, there is no pleasure in
my flame consumed; Love
A long road lies before me and a long road Full of Intellection like Salman was your
waits for you; insight
The silence of your thronging skies is here in The wine of sight used to increase your thirst
my heart too. Like Kaleem you were in search of the Sight
My nature is like yours, you who were born Uwais was tantalized for the power of Sight
to seek, to rove, Madinah was the light for your eyes so to say
Though yours are silver rays—the light that For you this wilderness was the Tur so to say
guides my feet is love. Your longing for Sight continued even after
I too dwell among many: if you go witnessing the Sight
companionless The cold heart warmed up but its breath did
Amid the company of heaven, I know your not rest even for a moment
loneliness; Such a lightning struck your impatient soul
And when for you the blaze of dawn That your darkness was scoffing at the Musa’s
proclaims extinction, I palm
Drown with you in the crystal glory of “They captured warmth from the flame and
eternity. struck it on your heart
And yet, yet, radiant moon! we are not of one What a lightning of Effulgence they struck on
race; it is motes of your efforts!”
No heart like your heart that can feel and tell The charm of your longing for the Sight was
its miseries. the embodiment of supplication
Though you are of light, and I of darkness The continuous sighting of someone was your
made, you are prayer
Since eternity the adhan was the anthem of I taught the proposition of the revolving
your Love earth.
Prayer was the subtle pretext for the Sight I donned the lens of far‐seeing reason,
Happy was the age when Yathrib was his and told the world the secret of gravity.
abode! I captured rays and the restless lightning,
How happy was the time when common was Making this earth the envy of paradise.
his Sight But although my reason held the world
captive to my ring,
Yet I remained ignorant of the secret of
THE STORY OF ADAM existence.
When at last my eyes, worshippers of
What a story I have to tell, to anyone who will
appearance, were opened,
listen,
I found it already lodged in the mansion of
Of how I travelled in foreign lands!
my heart!
I forgot the story of the First Covenant.
In the garden of heaven, [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
When 1 drank the fiery cup of awareness I felt
THE INDIAN ANTHEM
uneasy.
I have always searched for the truth about the The best land in the world is our India;
world, We are its nightingales; this is our garden.
Showing the celestial heights of my thought. If we are in exile, our heart resides in our
Such was my fickle temperament homeland.
That in no place under the sky could I settle Understand that we are also where our heart
for good. is.
At times 1 cleared the Kaʹba of stone idols, That is the highest mountain, the neighbour
But at times put statues in the same sanctuary; of the sky;
At times, to savour talk, 1 went to Mount It is our sentry; it is our watchman.
Sinai In its lap play thousands of streams,
And hid the eternal light in the folds of my And the gardens that flourish because of them
sleeve; are the envy of Paradise.
By my own people I was hung on the cross; Oh, waters of the river Ganges! Do you
I travelled to the skies, leaving earth behind. remember those days?
For years I hid in the Cave of Hira, Those days when our caravan halted on your
I served the world its last cup of wine; bank?
Arriving in India, I sang the Divine Song; Religion does not teach us to be enemies with
I took a fancy to the land of Greece; each other:
When India did not heed my call, We are Indians, our homeland is our India.
I went to live in China and Japan; Greece, Egypt and Byzantium have all been
I saw the world composed of atoms, erased from the world.
Contrary to what the men of faith taught. But our fame and banner still remain.
By stirring up the conflict between reason and It is something to be proud of that our
faith, existence is never erased,
I soaked in blood hundreds of lands. Though the passing of time for centuries has
When I failed to probe the reality of the stars, always been our enemy.
I spent nights on end wrapped in thought. Iqbal! No‐one in this world has ever known
The sword of the Church could not frighten your secret.
me; Does anyone know the pain I feel inside me?
FIREFLY This moon of the sky is as heat of the bard.
There shines the bright moon: here is anguish
Is the firefly aglow in the garden’s abode? of pain.
Or blazes a lamp in the throng of the flowers? There must be some trick in the ways of the
Has a star fluttered down that high aloft word:
rode? Else the bird would be fragrance, the flower
Has a ray of the moon won some life‐ sing refrain.
throbbing powers? The riddle of union’s in beauty rich hid.
Has the envoy of day come to realms of the The glitter of firefly is fragrance of flower.
night? Then why comes perversely this discord
Come humbly, a gleam to its own land unbid
unknown? When all things at heart hide this silence of
Has there fallen a whorl that moon’s cloak power?
once bedight?
From the robe of the sun has a sequin been [Translated by H.T. Sorley]
shown?
MORNING STAR
Here is hidden the sheen of Old Beauty and
bright Enough of this sun‐and‐moon neighbouring
That Nature uncovers for men of our day. glory—
In this little moon are both darkness and light, Enough of this office of heralding dawn!
As eclipse may advance, or eclipse pass away. Worthless to me the abodes of the planets,
The moth and the firefly through air both take Lowly earth‐dwelling is more than these
wing. heights
One seeks for light: one in light’s all arrayed: I inhabit, to heaven but a realm of extinction,
Dawn’s skirt of the hundred‐fold rent for my
On earth nature grants all some soul‐
shroud:
gladd’ning thing.
To live, to die daily my fate, to be poured
For the moth was heat, for the firefly light
The morning‐draught first by the cupbearer
made.
Death.
On birds that were tongueless it dowered
Thankless this duty, this station, this
melody:
dignity—
Gave a tongue to the rose but withheld from it
Better the dark then to shine for one hour!
song.
For sunset it fashioned sheer half‐light to see; No star would I be, if it lay in my will,
Set fairy a‐glitter but her life made not long: But a gleaming white pearl in the cavernous
The morning made brilliant like sweet bird of sea,
love: And then, if too fearful the strife of the waves,
Clad down in red robes—with dew’s mirror Leave ocean, and hang in some necklace—
dawn plays. what joy
It brought the tree shadiness, caused air to It would be there to glitter as beauty’s bright
move, pendent,
Set motion to water, taught waves’ restless A gem in the crown of an emperor’s consort!
ways. What fragment of stone, if its destiny smiled,
Might not flash in the ring on the finger of
Yet this is a puzzle that troubles our mind.
Solomon?
The day of the firefly for us is the night.
But glory of all such in this world must
In everything luster of beauty we fine;
vanish,
In man there is speech: opening buds smile
The rich gem must vanish at last. That alone
delight.
Lives, that need have no acquaintance with For which people of Hijaz abandoned the
death: Arabian wilderness
Can that be called life, that hears death’s That same is my homeland, that same is my
importunity? homeland
If, making earth lovely, our end must be thus, Whose wisdom had left the Greeks
Let me rather be changed to a flower‐falling bewildered
dewdrop, Which gave knowledge and skill to the entire
A speck in the gold‐dust that paints a bride’s world
forehead, Whose soil had been endowed by God with
A spark in the sigh that a wounded heart the elixir’s effect
breathes— Which had filled the pocket of the Turks with
Or why not the glistening tear‐drop that rolls diamonds
Down the long lashes fringing the eyes of a That same is my homeland, that same is my
lady homeland
Whose lord, in chain armour enmeshed, must Which illuminated and established in the
set forth milky way again
To the battlefield, hurried by love of his The stars which had fallen from the sky of
country, Persia
—A woman whose face like a picture shows The House from which the world had heard
hope Tawhid’s tune
and despair side by side, and whose silence From where the Holy Prophet had felt cool
shames speech: breeze
her patient thoughts built on her husband’s That same is my homeland, that same is my
firm soul, homeland
Her looks from their modesty borrowing Whose denizens are Kaleems, whose
eloquence, mountains the Sinais are
That hour of farewell when the rosy cheek Where the Prophet Nuh’s boat and its
pales occupants had landed
And the sorrow of parting makes beauty The land whose elegance is the stairway to
more beautiful! the sky
There, though she locked up her heart, I Living in whose environment is like living in
would gleam, Paradise
One waterdrop split from her eye’s brimming That same is my homeland, that same is my
cup, homeland
To find in the dust an immortal new life,
And teach to the world the long passion of
love. A NEW ALTAR
[Translated by V.G. Kiernan] I’ll tell you truth, oh Brahmin, if I may make
so bold!
THE NATIONAL ANTHEM FOR THE
These idols in your temples—these idols have
INDIAN CHILDREN grown old,
The land in which Chishti delivered the To hate your fellow‐mortals is all they teach
message of God you, while
The garden in which Nanak sang the song of Our God too sets his preachers to scold and to
Tawhid of God revile;
The land which the Tatars adopted as their Sickened, from both your temple and our
homeland shrines I have run,
Alike our preachers’ sermons and your fond Where is that elegant rakishness now? The
myths I shun. coquettish style?
—In every graven image you fancied God: I The fire of youth was ever hidden in the
see camphor of his old age.
in each speck of my country’s poor dust, The desire that Dagh’s words expressed are in
divinity. everyone’s heart.
The Layla of meaning with him was unveiled;
Come, let us lift suspicion’s thick curtains
with us she is hidden in the drapes of the
once again,
camel‐litter.
Unite once more the sundered, wipe clean
Now, who will ask of the morning breeze the
division’s stain.
secret of the peace of the rose?
Too long has lain deserted the heart’s warm
Who will understand the mystery of the
habitation—
nightingale’s lament in the garden?
Come, build here in our homeland an altar’s
He never neglected reality when his thoughts
new foundation,
took flight.
And rise a spire more lofty than any of this
The bird kept its eye on the nest as it flew.
globe,
With high pinnacle touching the hem of There will be others to show us the delicacies
heaven’s robe! of a subject—
And there at every sunrise let our sweet The way that the finer points of their thought
chanting move soar to the sky!
The hearts of all who worship, pouring them There will be those who paint pictures of the
wine of love: bitterness of time to make us weep or show
Firm strength, calm peace, shall blend in the us a new world engendered by their
hymns the votary sings— imagination.
For from love comes salvation to all earth’s In this garden more nightingales of Shiraz
living things. will be born.
There will come forth myriad magicians,
those who possess the art of spells.
DAGH From the temples of verse will arise
thousands like Azar
The fame of Ghalib has long been buried in
And new wine‐pourers will give us wine to
the ground.
drink from new measures.
Mahdi Majruh dwells in the city of the silent.
Many commentaries will be written on the
In exile, Death broke the win‐jar of Amir,
book of the heart.
But in the eyes of the assembly still resides the
There will be, oh dream of youth, many an
intoxication of the wine of Amir.
interpretation of you.
But today, my fellow singers, the whole
But who will draw exactly the picture of love?
garden is in mourning.
The archer has been taken away, who will fire
The bright candle has been extinguished. The
the arrow at the heart?
company of poetry is lamenting.
I sow the seeds of tears in the soil of poetry.
The nightingale of Delhi made its nest in that
You also weep, oh earth of Delhi! I weep for
garden,
Dagh.
Where its nightingale fellow‐singers are in the
Oh Jahanabad! Oh wealth of the assembly of
garden of existence.
verse!
Dagh is dead. Alas! His corpse brings
Your garden has once more today been
adornment to our shoulders.
trampled by autumn.
The last poet of Shajahanabad is silent.
That colourful flower of yours has departed With the wind’s wild blast the nimbus grew
like perfume. to mounting and soaring mass,
Ah! The dwelling‐place of Urdu is bereft of And towering still higher it showered the rain
Dagh. out over the grass.
Perhaps there was no great attraction in the It has made for the mountain saplings their
dust of his native‐land. own miraculous tent.
That full‐moon was hidden in the soil of the Here let them rest, the wanderers, who from
Deccan. journey in vale are spent.
The wine‐pourers who were there have been
[Translated by H.T. Sorley]
taken from us and the tavern is empty.
As a monument to the assembly of Delhi only FIREFLY AND BIRD
Hali remains.
Early one Evening the sweet voice was heard,
The injustice of death makes desire weep tears As it sat on a twig, of a carolling bird.
of blood. When it spied something glittering there on
The hunter of death fires his arrow in the ground
darkness. It flew to the place and a firefly it found.
But my tongue can utter no complaint. The firefly said: “Bird of the musical charm,
The colour of the autumn is also the cause of Take your sharp beak away: do a poor one no
the garden’s permanence. harm,
These are all the effects of the one universal Allah granted you song and gave the flower
law: scent:
The perfume leaves the garden; the rose‐ That same Allah to me did my lustre present.
plucker bids farewell to the world. My being is hidden in garments of light,
[Translated by D.J. Matthews] The zenith of creatures that flutter in flight.
If your dulcet note has of Heaven the ear,
CLOUD The eye of that Heaven sees my gleaming
clear.
Today again from the east that thick black
While Nature with sparkle did cover my wing
nimbus fares
It gave you the song that charms hearts when
And Surban’s mountain‐crest a dark‐hued
you sing.
covering ears.
It instructed yours beak in all musical grace
When the face of the sun was hid in the skirt
And made me the torch of the garden’s space.
of its misty course,
Flashing it gave you: to me it gave voice.
A chill wind raced on the cloud as a horseman
My portion is radiance: in song you rejoice.
speeds his horse.
Radiance and song in this world are not foes;
There is no rumble of thunder: the silence is
They cling to each other in harmony close.
thick as a pall:
Creation’s firm frame is compact of the two:
In the strange wine‐shop of the heavens a
All heights and all depths are to both alike
quiet lies over all.
due.
It has ordered a scheme for the garden of joy
They mingle together to make every thing;
that will always bless
In this garden from both comes the beauty of
And has come to fasten a gem on the hem of
spring.”
the flower’s long dress.
The bloom that once had nodded in the heat [Translated by H.T. Sorley]
of the sun’s fierce ray
To fall in earth’s lap, it rouses from sleep to a
lifting day.
THE CHILD AND THE CANDLE In the city, the forest, the wilderness, the
habitation is Beauty
O Child with moth‐like nature, “How strange The soul but longing for some lost object is
that Or else why is it lamenting in wilderness like
You keep gazing at the flame of the candle for a bell?
hours It is restless even in this general splendor of
What is this movement, when you are in my Beauty
lap? Its life is like a fish out of water.
Are you intending to embrace the light?
Though your tiny heart is surprised at this [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
spectacle
ON THE BANK OF THE RAVI
But this is recognition of some object already
seen! Raft in its music, in evening’s hush, the Ravi;
The candle is but a flame, you are the Light But how it is with this heart, do not ask—
embodied Hearing in these soft cadences a prayer‐call,
Ah! In this assembly that is manifest, you are Seeing all earth God’s precinct, here beside
concealed The margins of the onward‐flowing waters
It is not known why the Nature’s hand made Standing I scarcely know where I am
it manifest! standing.
And concealed you in the dark soil’s mantle With palsied hand the taverner of heaven
Your light has been concealed under the veil Has brought the cup: red wine stains
of Intellect! evening’s skirt;
The veil of Cognition is a mere mist to the Day’s heading caravan has made haste
wise eye! towards
What is called life really a mirage it is Extinction: twilight smoulders like hot ash
A dream, a swoon, an ecstasy, oblivion it is Of the sun’s funeral pyre. In solitude
The Nature’s assembly is the Beauty’s Far off, magnificent, those towers stand,
boundless ocean where
For the discerning eye every drop is the The flower of Mughal chivalry lies asleep;
Beauty’s storm A legend of Time’s tyranny is that palace;
Beauty is in the frightening silence of the A book, the register of days gone by;
mountain No mansion, but a melody of silence—
In shedding of sun’s light, and in night’s No trees, but an unspeaking parliament.
darkness
It is in the morning sky’s mirror‐like glitter Swiftly across the river’s bosom glides
In the night’s darkness and in the twilight’s A boat, the oarsman wrestling with the
floridity waves,
It is in the disappearing relics of the old A skiff light‐motioned as a darting glance,
magnificence Soon far beyond the eye’s carved boundary.
In the small child’s effort to commence So glides the bark of mortal life, in the ocean
speaking Of eternity so born, so vanishing,
It is in the harmony of the denizens of the Yet never knowing what is death; for it
rose‐garden May disappear from sight, but cannot perish.
In the nest‐building efforts of the tiny little [Translated by V.G. Kiernan]
birds
In the mountain stream, in the ocean’s
freedom is Beauty
THE TRAVELLER’S REQUEST May I see the same nest in the garden again
May I come back to put my forehead at my
(At The Tomb Of Hazrat Mahbub Ilahi Of Delhi) parents’ feet
What angels recite is your exalted name Whose efforts made me the confidante of love
Your threshold is exalted, your munificence is That candle of the audience of the Holy
general Prophet’s descendants
The stars are stable by the attraction of your Whose threshold I will always consider like
Love the Harem
Your system is like the system of the sun Whose breath opened the flower bud of my
The pilgrimage to your tomb is life for the longing
heart By whose benevolence I became sagacious
Your status is higher than those of Masih and Pray to the terrestrial and the celestial world’s
Khidar Lord
The Beloved’s Nature is veiled in your Love That I may again become happy with paying
High is your dignity, exalted is your homage to him
veneration That second Yusuf to me, that candle of
If my heart has a stain the stain is of your love Love’s assembly
But if cheerful I am, I am the rose of your Whose brotherly love has given soul’s
spring tranquillity to me
Leaving the garden I have come out like the Who in his love, destroying the book of “you
rose of your fragrance and I”
I am determined to go through the test of Has brought me up to my youth in the
perseverance environment of happiness
I have started with zeal from the homeland’s May he remain happy in the world like rose
tavern Whom I have always held dearer than my life
The pleasure of the wine of knowledge is Blooming, my heart’s bud may become a
speeding me up flower!
I am gazing at the mercy’s cloud, I am the May this traveler’s request be accepted!
wilderness tree [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
With the Mercy of God I am not in need of the
gardener GHAZALS
May I be living elegantly in the world like the
Do not look at the garden of existence like a
sun
stranger
May I be bestowed with that ladder by your
It is a thing worth looking at, look at it
blessings
repeatedly
May I be so far ahead of the fellow travelers
You have come into the world like a spark,
That I may be regarded as the destination by
beware
the caravan
Lest your ephemeral life may end suddenly,
May my pen not hurt anybody’s feelings
beware
May I have complaint against none under the
Granted that I am not worthy of your Sight
sun
You should look at my zeal, and look at my
Whose effect may penetrate the hearts like a
perseverance
comb
If your eyes have been opened by the longing
May I receive such a clamor from your
for Sight
threshold
Look for the foot prints of the Beloved in
The nest I had made by picking up bits and
every lane
pieces
* So the sky may turn around to annihilate me
best
If you had not come I would have had no
Collect your harvest first by picking it grain
occasion for contention
by grain
But what reluctance in making the promise
Some thunderbolt will surely come out to
was?
annihilate it
Your messenger disclosed every secret
I had regard for the failure of the hunter, O
O Lord! What fault of Man in this was?
friend
You recognized Your Lover in the full
Otherwise, why could I come over flying for
assembly
one grain?
How alert Your eye in the middle of the
The heart should not sing freedom’s song in
ecstasy was!
this garden
True! Reluctant he was to come, O messenger
Ah! This garden is not suitable for such odes.
But tell me what the manner of denial was
Musa was effortlessly attracted to Tur *
How strong, O Zeal your attraction was!
What can I say how I got separated from my
Your fame continues somewhere, O Iqbal!
garden
Some magic, not your speech it was
And how I got imprisoned in the net of greed

It is strange that the whole world being
* against me
How the recipient of honor of respectability I
O Lord! Strange is the piety of the preacher
have been
He has animosity towards the whole world
Some demand of showing and seeing was on
Nobody has so far understood that Man
the Tur
Where he is going, and from where he has
What do you know, O heart! How it was
come?
decided?
From the same source has the night obtained
The desire to be without any desire is also a
darkness
desire
From where the star has obtained brightness
How the heart’s bird freed from the net of
The tale of our compassion is
greed was
Always related by our sympathizer
Those desirous of seeing You, see You here
Very subtle are the ways of the preacher
also
He trembles on hearing the sound of adhan!
Then how the Last Day’s promise a test of
* patience was
I should procure such straws for my nest from The Perfect Beauty itself may be the cause of
somewhere this unveiling
For burning which the lightning may be How became self‐apparent what concealed in
restless curtains was
Alas! O despair! The sky broke it down Death as a recipe still remains, O separation’s
intently pathos!
Whichever branch I selected for my nest The physician is insane, how I deemed
You are contending with the seventy two incurable was
nations O admonishing eye! Have you ever seen, how
One goblet of yours suits the whole world the rose
best Having been born out of dust became colorful
I should create some such longing in my heart The purpose of interrogation for deeds was to
disgrace me
Otherwise all as to how and why it happened The real Seeing is that one should not try to
obvious was see Him
My destruction was something worth I am the extreme Love, Thou art the extreme
witnessing Beauty
What can I say how l facing Him was One should see me or witness Thy Spectacle
The Beloved’s Beauty is the creator of excuse
*
for Love’s crime
Unusual in state, distinct from the whole One need not create a new excuse on the Day
world they are of Judgment
O Lord! Inhabitants of which habitation these O Companion! It is not possible to close this
Lovers are? zealous eye!
Even during pathos’s cure I desperately love In what other manner should one try to
pathos witness Him
Blisters’ thorns have been extracted with With what thought did Kaleem become
needle’s point insistent on the Tur?
O Lord, the garden of my hopes may remain One should request for the Sight if he has the
prosperous power for the Sight
I have raised these plants watering them with Even the eyebrow’s movement is unwelcome
my blood to the Sight
The stars’ silence at night makes me weep With the eye of the narcissus should one see
Strange my Love is, strange my Laments are Thee
Do not ask me of the pleasure of remaining The pleasures of the Longings of Love will be
destitute manifest
Hundreds of nests have been made and If one has Longing like me for a few days
destroyed by me
*
Being a stranger to the journey’s companion is
not good What should I say how much Longing for
O spark! Wait, after all we are also going to dejection I have
disappear The elegance of my market is only up to the
Expectation for the houri has taught ardent desire for losing
everything to the preacher I am the sot who himself becomes garden by
Only in appearance simple and straight the Wine’s Light
forward these people are Rose’s love is only up to the departure of the
Why should not my verses be dear to me, O unkind cup bearer
Iqbal Hunter’s enhancement of garden’s beauty is
These the painful laments of my heart are till start of my melodies
As for the thunderbolts’ restlessness, it is up
*
to my nest
One should not see the Spectacle with the I am that handful of dust, which is changed to
material eye wilderness by distress’ grace
If one wants to see Him he should open the Do not ask me of my span, it is from the earth
insight’s eye to the sky
His talking lip was death’s message to I am the bell, complaint is asleep in my whole
Mansur nature
How can anybody dare to claim Someone’s The silence of mine only is up to the caravan’s
Love now departure
Close your eyes if you want taste for the Sight With a tranquil heart create means of
attaining your aims
Because the whirlpool’s knot is only up to the This pearl is not available in the treasures of
water’s flow kings
Silence is death in the garden of Love, O Do not ask of these Devotees, if you have
nightingale faith, you should look at them
This life is only up to observance of the They have the illuminated palm up their
wailing’s custom sleeves
In youth, there is Sight’s zeal as well as The insightful eye for whose spectacle is
Longing’s pleasure tantalized
The happiness of our house is only up to the That elegance of congregation is in these very
guest’s presence recluses
Disgraced though I am in the whole world Burn the produce of your heart with some
but, O ignorance such spark
I understand that my Love is known only to That the Last Day’s sun may also be among
my confidante your gleaners
For Love search for some heart which would
*
become mortified
The one I was searching for on the earth and This is the wine which is not kept in delicate
in heaven wine glasses
Appeared residing in the recesses of my own The Beauty itself becomes the Lover of whose
heart Beauty
When the reality of the self became evident to O Heart! Does someone among the beautiful
my eyes has that beauty?
The house appeared among residents of my Someone became highly excited at your grace
own heart of Ma’arafna
If it were somewhat familiar with taste of Your rank remained among the most elegant
rubbing foreheads of all the Lovers
The stone of Ka’ba’s threshold would have Manifest Thyself and show them Thy Beauty
joined the foreheads some time
O Majnun! Have you ever glanced at yourself Talks have continued among the sagacious
That like Layla you are also sitting in the litter since long time
The months of the union continue flying like Silent, O Heart! Crying in the full assembly is
moments not good
But the moments of separation linger for Decorum is the most important etiquette
months! among the ways of Love
O seaman, how will you protect me from It is not possible for me to deem my critics
being drowned bad
As those destined to drowning get drowned Because Iqbal, I am myself among my critics
in the boats also
*
The one who concealed His Beauty from
Kalim Allah Completion of your Love is what I desire
The same Beloved is manifest among Look at my sincerity what little I desire
beloveds It may be oppression or the promise of
The breath of Lovers can light up the unveiling
extinguished candle Something testing my perseverance I desire
O God! What is kept concealed in the breast of May the pious be happy with this Paradise
the Lovers? Only to see your Countenance I desire
Serve the fakirs if you have the longing for Though I am but a tiny little heart I am so
Love bold
To hear the same Lan tarani I desire I am the falsehood which is annihilated by the
O assembly’s companions! I am existing only Truth
for a few moments From the knowledge’s sea divers came out
I am the dawn’s candle, I am about to be with pearls in hand
extinguished Alas, O deprivation! A mere pebble collector
I have divulged the secret in the full assembly on the sea shore I am
I am very insolent, punishment I desire My disgrace itself is the demonstration of my
nobility
*
I am the negligence which the angels ardently
When that Beniaz opens His Graceful Hand desire
Why should the niazmand be not proud of his O the existence’ assemblage! Be not proud of
humility your beauty
You have confined Him to the ‘Arsh, O You are a mere picture of the assemblage, I
preacher! am the assemblage
What kind of God would keep away from His O Iqbal! I am in constant search for myself
people? I am the traveler as well as the destination
In my view he is not a rind at all, O
*
cup‐bearer
Who would distinguish between ecstasy and Majnun abandoned habitation, you should
lack of it abandon wilderness also
Always remain very attentive to the heart, If there be ambition for Sight, you should
this orchestra is such abandon Layla also
If broken, it would produce the music of the O preacher! Perfection of abandonment
Secret attains the objective
Somebody should ask how it hurts the As you have abandoned the world, abandon
preacher the Hereafter also
If God shows His Grace even to the sinner Suicide is better than the way of taqlid
O God! From where does poetry acquire its Seek your own path, abandon the love of
heat? Khizr also
This is a thing with which even stone would Like the pen the un‐Islamic message is on
soften your tongue
Nightingale’s lament comes from Abandon unjustified pride in the un‐Islamic
discrimination between tulip and rose objects also
No one in the world should open the Theology is no pleasure if heart does not have
discriminating eye Love’s pathos
The arrogance of piety has taught the If you are not the Wounded, you should
preacher abandon fluttering also
To use abusive language to the people of God Weep like the dew on flowers and leave the
Such wind should blow from India, O Iqbal garden
Which would blow me as dust to Hijaz Abandon the desire of staying in this garden
also
*
The custom of Love is abandonment of all
I bear hardships on myself, I am unconcerned Abandon temple, mosque, and church also
with others This is not business, this is ‘ibadat of God!
Alas! How strange, I am the oppressor, I am O ignorant one, abandon the longing for
the ignorant reward also
I existed only till the time Thy Splendor It is good to guard Intuition with Intellect
appeared But sometimes you should let it go alone also
What life is that which is dependent on Which angels always guarded from the ken of
others? Adam’s soul destined by it to live.
Abandon dependence on the life of fame also The alchemist was ever on the watch
Repeated request is a kind of boldness! O Knowing this recipe more precious than the
Kaleem Great Name itself.
The condition for approbation is to abandon Till seemingly saying his orisons, he nearer
urging also drew
As the preacher brought proof in support of And gained the strictly guarded pedestal, his
wine constant effort yielding in the end the fruit
Iqbal insists that he should abandon drinking of his desire for which he burned.
also. And having learnt it, he went forth to seek
through the vast field of possibilities for its
ingredients and collected them;
Yea! what is there that can be hid from those
who know the halls where truth for ever
dwells.
From stars he took their brightness; from the
PART TWO moon the marks of burnt‐out passions of the
1905—8 past;
And from night’s floating and dishevelled
tresses a little darkness;
LOVE From the lightning he received its
As yet the tresses of the bride of night were restlessness; and purity from houris;
not familiar with their graceful curls; And the gentle warmth that runs rippling
And the stars of heaven had tasted not the from healing breath of Mary’s son.
bliss of whistling motion through the depths Then from the quality of Providence he took
of space. that splendour which dependeth not on
The moon in her new robes looked rather aught else than itself,
strange And from the dew and angels took he their
And knew not revolution’s ceaseless law. humility.
From the dark house of possibilities the world Then in the waters of the spring of life he
had just emerged to spin along, made them to dissolve;
No joy of life had throbbed as yet within the And from the Throne of Most High they
furthest limits of immensity. called this essence “Love.”
The order of existence scarcely had begun That alchemist sprinkled this liquid on the
unfolding to perfectionment; new sprouting being,
It seems as if the world, like a ring whose And its magic touch released the spell‐bound
socket waiteth for its precious stone, longed process of the worlds.
to evolve the archetypes to come. Motion appeared in atoms; forthwith they
They say there was an alchemist on high, abandoned their repose,
Dust of whose footsteps sparkled even more And roused themselves embracing their
than Jamshid’s crystal cup. 3 affinities again.
And on the pedestal of heaven there was The suns and stars rolled in majestic curves,
engraved Elixir’s wondrous recipe, The buds received fresh tints, and poppy
flowers were branded with the burning
marks of Love.
3 “Wherein the king beheld the marvels of a [Translated by Umrao Singh Sher Gil]
universe,” adds Umrao Singh in paranthesis.
BEAUTY’S ESSENCE If Beauty has ecstasy of elegance you too give
elegant reply
Beauty asked God one day O Tavern‐keeper! Pleasure is the only effect of
This question: ‘Why West’s wine
Didst Thou not make me, in Thy world, It does not have pleasure of affliction, give me
undying?’ the home‐made wine
And God replying— Do you not know? The old congregation has
‘A picture‐show is this world: all this world changed
A tale out of the long night of not‐being; For God’s sake do not give them
And in it, seeing materialism’s wine.
Its nature works through mutability,
That only is lovely whose essence knows SWAMI RAM TIRATH
decay.’
O Impatient drop! You are in the bosom of the
The moon stood near and heard this colloquy, sea
The words took wing about the sky You were a pearl earlier, now you are an
And reached the morning‐star; invaluable pearl
Dawn learned them from its star, and told the Ah! How gracefully you opened the secrets of
dew— life
It told the heavens’ whisper to I am still a prisoner of the discriminations of
Earth’s poor familiar; life
And at the dew’s report the flower’s eye filled, The life’s clamor on destruction became the
With pain the new bud’s tiny heartbeat thrilled; Last Day’s tumult
Springtime fled from the garden, weeping; The spark on being extinguished became
Youth, that had come to wander there, went Azar‘s fire temple
creeping The denial of Existence is the Love’s gesture
Sadly away. of the informed heart
In the river of La is concealed the pearl of
Illallah
THE MESSAGE The meaning of the end is hidden from the
unsightful eye
Love made you acquainted with the taste of
Mercury is only raw silver, when its
affliction
restlessness stops,
Like assembly’s candle give affliction’s gift to
The Ibrahim of Love is the destroyer of the
the assembly
idol of existence
The illuminating Love depends on God’s
The ecstasy of Tasnim of Love is the cure of
Benevolence
awareness.
To whomever He may give without
restriction of temple or Harem ADDRESSED TO THE STUDENTS OF
Like the candle the mantle of light he does not ALIGARH COLLEGE
get
Whom God does not give effective wail in the The message of others is different, my
world message is different
He is in the star, the moon, the dawn’s theatre The style of address of the one afflicted with
of display Love is different
You need not apply discrimination’s You have heard the laments of the bird under
collyrium to the Sightful eye the net
Love is exalted above the customs and usages Also listen to the laments of the bird on the
of prayers roof tops which are different
Call was coming from the mount, “Life’s Behind the veil of light in the moon‐lit night
secret is peace” Just like the Kaleem’s radiant palm in the
The frail ant was saying “The pleasure of Tur’s effulgence
struggle is different” And the flower bud’s fragrance in the wave of
The glory of Hijaz’ assemblage is based on garden’s breeze
Haram’s Love Similar is my heart in the flood of Thy Love
The station of this is different, the system of If Thou art the assembly, I am the assembly’s
that is different! splendour
Eternal luxury is death if there is no Longing If Thou art the Beauty’s thunder, I am the
for Search produce of Love
Man’s revolving is different, wine‐cup’s If Thou art the dawn, my tears are Thy dew
revolving is different If I am traveller’s night, Thou art my twilight
The dawn’s candle left the message that My heart harbours Thy dishevelled hair locks
burning is life’s secret My bewilderment is created by Thy picture
In the life’s sorrowful abode the condition for Thy Beauty is Perfect, my Love is perfect
eternity is different Thou art the spring’s breeze for my poetry’s
The wine is still half‐mature, Love is garden
unsuccessful still Thou gave tranquillity to my restless
Leave the church’s brick on the pitcher’s imagination
mouth still. Since Thy Love took residence in my breast
New lights have been added to my mirror
THE MORNING STAR Love’s nature gets stimulation for Perfection
The dawn’s star was weeping and saying this from Beauty
“I got the eye but not the leisure for Sight My hope’s trees flourished through Thy
Everything has come to life through the sun’s favour
energy My caravan has reached its destination.
Only I did not get protection under the
ON SEEING A CAT IN THE LAP OF
morning’s skirt
After all what is the capacity of the dawn’s SOMEONE
star Who has taught you this glancing with
It is like bubble’s breath, like the spark’s shyness?
brightness” Who has taught you the riddle of Love’s
I said “O beautiful jewel of the dawn’ s initiation?
forehead Love comes out of each grace of yours
Do you have fear of death? Come down from Wit is dripping from the blue eyes of yours
the sky You see him sometimes, you shy away
Drop down from the sky’s height with the sometimes
dew Rise up sometimes, lie down and sleep
My poetry’s field will be invigorating to you sometimes
I am the gardener, Love is its bloom Is your eye bewildered like the mirror?
Its foundation is firm like eternity Are you recognized by the glow of
knowledge?
THE BEAUTY AND THE LOVE
You strike him with wrists, this is a strange
Just as the moon’s silver boat is drowned playfulness!
In the storm of sun’s light at the break of Is it aversion or anger? Or a way of Love it is?
dawn You will be removed from the lap if you will
Just as the moon‐like lotus disappears be naughty
You will be beaten if the flower on the breast Let me bare to its nakedness my hidden
will fall thought;
What are you longing for? What are you Make plain all the truth of being’s sad plight.
seeking?
Ah! Are you also in Love with the same
thing? MOON AND STARS
The feeling for Beauty is not special to Man
Trembling at the chill breath of dawn
Like the heart it is present in everything
The fearful stars said to the moon:
In the flask of time Love is like the pure wine
‘About us lies heaven’s changeless scene
Love is the sun’s spirit, and the blood in
Where wearied we must shine, still shine,
moon’s veins
Tasked to move on, on, morn and eve—
Its pain is concealed in every speck’s core
To move, to move, for ever move!
This is the light which is reflected in
No creature of this world knows rest,
everything
Nowhere can fabled peace exist,
It causes happiness somewhere, and sorrow
All things condemned by tyrant laws
somewhere
To wander, stars, men, rocks, and tress—
It is pearl somewhere, tear somewhere, dew
But shall this journeying ever end,
somewhere.
Ever a destination find?’
‘Oh my companions,’ said the moon,
THE BUD ‘You who night’s harvest‐acres glean,
On motion all this world’s life hangs:
When the bud shows itself in the morning’s
Such is the ancient doom of things.
fresh beauty
Swift runs the shadowy steed of time
It reveals at that moment its bosom of gold:
Lashed by desire’s whip into foam,
It quaffs sparkling wine from the tavern of
And there’s no loitering on that oath,
dawning
For hidden in repose lurks death:
And draws from sun’s goblet the life it can
They that press on win clear—the late,
hold.
The laggard, trampled underfoot.
It rends the sun’s heart, its own head
And what the goal of all this haste?—
extending:
Its cradle love, beauty its quest.’
And oh: what delight it has of that rending.
At times, o sun of mine, you too raise your
veil: THE UNION
As the glamour of my gaze spins all restless
O Nightingale! The rose whose search made
apace.
me flounced
Let the heat of thy radiance in me find abode
By dint of good luck that rose I have finally
And that vision’s reflection fill all mirror’s
found
space.
I used to flounce myself, I used to make
Let your gleaming become at the life of my
others flounced
heart
I used to feel shy when I found you singing
And my soul in your light as in cradle‐bed
beautifully
swing.
A mere restless heart was not in my bosom, it
And little by little bring again flowing joy
was mercury
In my grief shining clear as the jewel in a ring.
I was impatient for fulfillment of the Longing
The vision of you let me put far away
of Love
And just like a bud live in your lap of light.
My misfortune was famous in the assembly of In your eye is Its climax, O Sulaima!
the rose
My morning was the reflection of my dark
THE UNFAITHFUL LOVER
night 1
With my breath I have a blood‐stained knife
O Iqbal! You are a strange mixture of
in the bosom
opposites
Under the cloak of silence I have Judgment
You are the elegance of assembly’s crowd as
Day’s uproar
well as alone
Now that distress does not exist in my
O lunatic with colorful song! Your struggles
reflections’ world
and efforts
My reciting ghazals is no longer irksome to
Are the garden’s beauty as well as wilderness’
rose garden’s assembly
adornment
With the heat of Love my blisters became
You are the associate of stars due to your
flames
flight’s elegance
Now playing with thunderbolts are my
O land traveler your steps also traverse the
wailings
sky
The rouge of Love has changed this dark dust
Your forehead is in prostration in the midst of
into a mirror
preoccupation with wine
And I see the old companion’s reflection in
In your system are some colors of the system
the mirror
of goblets also
By becoming a prisoner I gained my freedom
Like flower’s fragrance you are devoid of
By ruining the heart I got prosperity for my
color’s dress
house
Though you are a creator of wisdom you are
My star is shining with this sun’s light
also insane
By whose path’s dust the moon light is shy
Like waves you are running to the destination
By a glance you taught me the rules of
without foot‐prints
annihilation
And then you are also left behind like the sea‐
How cool the day that has burnt away the
shore
motes from me
Female beauty has the effect of electricity for
SULAIMA your nature
And strangely enough your loves are
The one whose manifestation witnessed the
unconventional also
astronomer’s eye
Your existence depends on the amusement’s
In the sun, in the moon, in the assembly of
law
stars
Are you prostrating only at a single door
Whom the Sufi found in the dark recesses of
step?
his heart
Among the beautiful you are famous for
Whom the poet saw in the midst of elegance
infidelity
of Nature
O fickle‐minded! You are famous as well as
Whose brilliance exists, whose fragrance
infamous
persists
You have come into the world with mercury’s
In the pearls of dew, in the shirts of flowers
nature
Who has inhabited the wilderness by
Your restlessness is lovable, you are very
becoming tranquillity
restless
Whose Presence creates the uproar in the
midst of the garden
Though His Beauty is manifest in everything
2 As a picture, I have complaint against my
Painter
What the disturbance of love has turned into
If the Beauty was so short‐lived in existence’
wilderness
assembly
I keep that handful of dust concealed under
Why then do I keep such a boundless
the cloak
imagination?
It has thousands of facets, each of a different
I am constantly struggling in the Longing’s
color
wilderness
I keep such a multi‐faceted diamond in my
I am the ocean’s wave, I carry my destruction
breast
on my shoulder
The poet’s heart, is but intoxication’s toil and
hustle THE UNSUCCESSFUL EFFORT
What do you know, what I keep inside my
breast! The dawn is vexed by separation from the sun
In every intoxication of Love there is a new The twilight’s eye is raining blood for the
effulgence of Longing evening star
I am restless, I have a heart unacquainted The day’s Qais has the pining for the night’s
with rest Layla
Though a new beauty every moment is the The morning star is restless for perpetual
sight’s object radiance
I have a firm covenant of fidelity with the The sky’s polar star was saying to the stars’
Beauty caravan
Beniazi has created my nature’s Niaz “Companions! I am tantalized for the pleasure
I keep the struggle for the Longing like the of walking”
zephyr Springs desire rivers, rivers love the ocean
The spectacle of a single flying spark The ocean wave is in love with the full moon
Cannot be assuasive as I have a thunderous The eternal Beauty which is veiled in tulips
heart and roses
What may fulfill every demand of the nature Is considered to be restless for general
of Love manifestation
Ah! Attainment of that Perfect Effulgence is Ask Khizr of blessed steps for the secret of life
my aim Everything is alive with un‐achieved effort
The search for the Whole misguides me into THE SONG OF GRIEF
It’s parts
The Beauty is boundless, I have the incurable My life is similar to that of the silent violin
pathos The lap of which is full of all kinds of
My life depends upon Love’s extreme melodies
compassion The harp of the universe is sacrificed on
But I keep the Love free of customs of fidelity whose silence
The truth is that lack of imagination produces Every string of which is the grave of
fidelity hundreds of melodies
I have a new Resurrection Day ever fresh in The silence of which is the custodian of
my heart music’s perfection
Cup‐bearer’s bounty is like dew, heart’s And the silence of which is not obligated to
capacity demands oceans any uproar
I am always thirsty, I have a burning fire Ah! The hope of my Love was never fulfilled
under my foot This instrument was never hit by the
By creating me He created His own critic plectrum
But sometimes the zephyr of the garden of Wonder is at the beginning and the end—
Tur flows What else is there in this house of mirrors?
And sometimes the breeze of Houri’s breath The wave of the river glides along,
from the sky The river follows its course to the ocean,
Which gently touches the string of my life The wind sweeps the clouds along,
And frees the imprisoned soul of my life Bearing them on its shoulders,
The gentle sound of the music of despair rises The stars are drunk with the wine of fate,
The clarion’s call for the caravan of tears rises And lie chained in the sky’s prison;
Just as dew’s elegance depends upon the taste The sun, a worshipper who gets up at dawn,
for racing And calls out the message ‘Arise!’,
The elegance of my nature depends upon Is hiding in the western hills,
grief’s melodies! Drinking a cup of reddish wine.
All things delight in their very existence,
THE SHORT‐LIVED JOY They are drunk with the wine of being.
You should not tell me, “Death is a message But there is no one to drive away his
of luxury and pleasure” sorrow—
You should not draw the picture of Sharab‐i‐ How bitter are the days of man!
Tuhur’s ecstasy– [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
Do not feel grieved by separation from the
Houri THE MANIFESTATION OF BEAUTY
Do not present the Houri in the mirror of
Beauty’s manifestation which gives
words
restlessness to Longing
Do not make me fascinated by the beautiful
Which youth nurtures in its fancy’s lap
cup‐bearer
By which this ephemeral universe becomes
Do not describe the Houri, do not relate the
eternal
Salsabil’s story
By which youth becomes a colorful tale
I do not doubt Paradise being the place of
Which teaches us to be meditating
peace
To be escaping the present state’s scene
Your message is not proper for the life’s
Which removes the immaturity of perceptions
prime!
Which makes Intellect a slave to impressions
Ah! How long should youth linger in hope
Ah! Does that Beauty exist anywhere or not?
Joy is not joy for which you remain waiting
O Lord! Does that jewel exist on the
What worth is the beauty which is in need of
universe’s ring?
the discerning eye
Which is obligated for the tomorrow for its [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
manifestation
ONE EVENING
Strange is the feeling for life
“Today’s joy” is the belief of youth. (BY THE NECKAR AT HEIDELBERG)
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Silent is the moonlight pale,
The boughs of all the trees are still,
MAN The music‐maker of the vale
Nature has played a strange and wanton Hushed, and the green robes of the hill;
joke— Fallen into a swoon creation
Making man a seeker of secrets, Sleeps in the bosom of the night,
But hiding the secrets from his view! And from this hush such magic grows,
The urge for knowledge gives him no rest, No more now Neckar’s current flows;
But the secret of life remains undiscovered. Silent the starry caravan moves
Onward, no bell tinkling its flight, Saving your skirt from idols become the dust
Silent the hills and streams and groves, of the way of Hijaz.
All Nature lost in contemplation.
Oh heart, you too be silent: keep
Your grief hugged close, and sleep. SEPARATION
SOLITUDE I am wandering in search of some lonely
retreat.
Solitude, night—what pang is here?
I have hid myself here by the great
Are not stars your comrades? Clear
mountains’ feet.
Majesty of those silent skies,
Like the halting attempts of a small boy to
Drowsed earth, deep silence of the worlds,
pray,
That moon, that wilderness and hill—
The spring’s music is broken—my joy hath
White rose‐beds all creation fill.
full sway.
Sweet are the teardrops that have pearled
To the red twilight’s throne comes the eve’s
Like gleaming gems, like stars, your eyes;
starry race;
But what thing do you crave? All Nature,
‘This a vision of heaven thus to see beauty’s
Oh my heart, is your fellow‐creature.
face.
[Translated by V.G. Kiernan] Still eve’s separation’s excuse for my mood;
Some memory has taught me how music is
THE MESSAGE OF LOVE good.
Listen O seeker of heart’s pathos! I am Naz, My life is all restless—unrest is mine own—
you should become Niaz It is just as I were like some small boy alone.
I am the Ghaznavi of heart’s Somnath, you When the night is all dark he commences to
completely become Ayaz hum
Greatness in the world is not associated with And he thinks that the sound from some other
the Alexander’s splendor has come.
Your breast has everything, you should also The lessons of patience I teach my heart,
become the maker of mirrors As though to night’s sev’rance I show a false
The aim of life’s struggle is perfection of your part.
Crescent’s grandeur [Translated by H.T. Sorley]
You are the world’s oldest Divine Command,
be fulfilled like prayer TO ABD AL‐QADIR
Be not contented, O gardener, your dignity is
Rise, as darkness has appeared on the eastern
established by this alone
horizon
If flowers abound in the garden, you should
We should light up the assemblage with
become a more ardent beggar
blazing songs
Gone are those days, these are not the times
Our capacity is only a cry of lament like the
for wandering in wilderness
wild rue
Become melted in the world like the
We should overturn the assemblage with this
congregation’s lighted candle
same uproar
The individual’s existence is unreal, the
We should show the assemblage the effect of
nation’s existence is real
Love’s polish
Be devoted to the nation, become destroyer of
We should convert the stone of today into the
the unreal’s magic
mirror of tomorrow
Iqbal! These sectarians of India are working
By showing them the effulgence of the lost
like Azar.
Yusuf
We should make them more agitation‐prone And freedom to men from the chains of
than Zalaykha’s blood superstition.
By giving the lesson of the law of growth to Is that cry of God is great silent for ever,
this garden Whose reverberations delight the ear to this
We should turn the insignificant drop of dew day?
into the ocean
Oh Sicily! The sea is honoured by you,
We should lift our dearest chattel from the
You are a guide in the desert of these waters.
China’ s temple
May the cheek of the ocean remain adorned
We should fascinate all with the face of Sa’di
by your beauty spot;
and Sulaima
May the lamps comfort those who measure
Look! The Layla’s she‐camel became useless
the seas;
in Yathrib
May your view be ever light on the eyes of the
We should make Qais acquainted with the
traveller,
new longing
May waves ever dance on your rocks!
The wine should be mature and so hot that
with it Once you were the cradle of civilization of the
We should soften the heart of the glass, the people,
goblet, and the decanter The fire of whose glance was world‐burning
The grief which kept us warm in the cold of beauty.
the West The nightingale of Shiraz wailed over
Opening up the breast we should make it Baghdad,
public And Dagh wept tears of blood over Delhi.
In the world’s congregation we should live When the heavens scattered the wealth of
like the candle Granada to the winds,
We should burn ourselves and open up the The sorrowful heart of Ibn Badrun cried out.
rivals’ eyes The dirge of your ruin fell to the lot of the
“The candle reveals whatever passes through grieving Iqbal:
the heart Destiny picked up the heart that was privy to
Burning is not the thought which the candle your secrets.
conceals.” Whose story is hidden in your ruins?
The silence of your footfall has a mode of
expression.
SICILY Tell me of your sorrow—I too am full of pain;
I am the dust of that caravan whose goal you
Weep to thy heart’s content, O blood‐weeping were.
eye! Paint over this picture once more and show it
Yonder is visible the tomb of Muslim culture. to me;
Once this place was alive with those dwellers Make me suffer by telling the story of ancient
of the desert, days.
For whose ships the ocean was a playground; I shall carry your gift to India;
Who raised earthquakes in the palaces of the I shall make others weep as I weep here.
kings of kings,
In whose swords were the nests of many [Translation by Umrao Singh Sher Gil;
lightning. revised by the Editors] 4
Whose birth was death for the old world,
Whose fear caused the palaces of error to
tremble;

Whose cry of arise gave life to a lifeless world 4 This translation is based on the
GHAZALS *
* The world will know when the flood of
conversation will emerge from my heart
The life of Man is no more than a breath! This is not my silence, but is the shrine of the
Breath is a wave of air, it is no more than a word of my Longing
flow! As the ocean wave said, “My dignity is
The flower was depicting life as a smile, but established by flowing”
The candle said that it is no more than a cry of The pearl said, “Sitting in shell is the safety of
grief! my brightness”
The secret of life is a secret till there is a Whose temperament does not deserve are not
confidante improved by training
When it is open, it is nothing more than the Reflection of the river bank’s cypress does not
confidante! prosper by living in the water
Somebody should ask the pilgrims of Ka’bah, I did not see any heart in which Longing is
O Iqbal not concealed
Is the gift of the Harem nothing more than O God! What is Thy universe! It is a picture
Zamzam? gallery of Longing
* It dawned after death that our life was a spell
of greed
O God! Teach a little Love to my happy
What we called material body, was
Intellect.
dust‐cloud of greed’s lane
It loves fine stitching but my shirt has no
Why am I the embodiment of search if
collar
nothing is concealed?
As I got Love’s ardor the angels said on azal’s
The sight is Longing for the Spectacle, the
morning
heart is mad after the Search
“You are like the grave’s candle, you have no
The garden’s flower bud asked the gardener,
assembly”
“Why is Man so heartless?
No friend is available here, this land is
The breaking of my wine glass is occasion for
friendless, O Heart!
smile in your eyes
You want something from me which does not
The effulgence of Love emanates from every
exist under the sky
speck of the existence’ garden
The Arab architect made it distinct from the
If you know the reality of rose, it is also a
whole world
combination of color and fragrance”
The foundation of our nation’s fort is not
All my writings are anachronism, my poetry
geographical unity
is completely defective
Why this coming and going, future’s concern
If somebody sees some skill in me it is the
is a conceit
fault of my critic
We are manifest in everything, we do not
Decorum requires silence, otherwise Thy
have any homeland
Mercy is worse than Tyranny
Somebody should take my message to the
Thou hast given a tiny heart, which also is
Makhzan’s editor
misled towards greed
Activist nations do not have taste for poetic
Unity’s perfection is so evident that if you cut
literature!
with the knife ‘ s tip
Sure you would see human blood trickling
out of the rose’ vein
The age of taqlid has passed, allegorism
should depart!
When the Truth itself is evident who is O Wine! How much enamored you were with
authorized to talk? the custom of concealment
If I am far from home, my relatives should not After emerging from grape’s veil you were
be sad concealed in the decanter
Like pearl separation from home is perfecting Knowledge could not comprehend the
my elegance Beauty’s effect
So much ignorance prevailed in all the
*
world’s sages
Thy splendor is manifest in thunder, in fire, in O Iqbal! I have searched for it in Europe in
spark vain
Thy luster is evident in the moon, in the sun, The characteristic which was in the beauties
in the star of India
Thy elegance exists in skies’ heights, and in
*
earths’ depths
It is in the ocean’s flow, and in falling behind We circumambulate the wine‐cup like the
of the shore wine’s ref lection
Why should Shariàh be the accuser of the We are offering this prayer from morning till
eloquence’ taste? evening
I only conceal the meaning of my heart in You are not singular in this O Kaleem
metaphors Trees and stones are also talking with God
The real life in Man is pervading in O Candle! Search for a new world, because
everything here
It is in tree, in flower, in animal, in stone, in We are enduring tyrannies of the incomplete
star Love
The heat of the drop of Love’s tear has O Companions! Silence in this garden is good
consumed me As the melodious ones are kept in cages here
Boundless fire existed in this little drop of Those whose purpose is pleasure from wine
water Are changing the lawful into the unlawful
There is no longing in me for reward of the How can you and we reconcile, O preacher
Judgment Day As we are making the custom of Love
I am the merchant who sees profit in the loss universal!
Being unaware of tranquility is existence for it O God! What magic is concealed in the saints,
O God! Restlessness of which heart is residing clad in rags!
in mercury That they subdue the youth with a single
O Iqbal I am silent after hearing the call of glance
“Lan Tarani” I shudder at the pleasures of their assemblies
Being afflicted with separation I have no Who are getting fame by destroying their
strength for importunity homes
May the meadows of the motherland be ever
*
flourishing
O worldly congregation! Though your We are saluting you from the ship sailing
gatherings were attractive away
Some degree of melancholy there was in your When those un‐accustomed to prayers
spectacles assemble for one, Iqbal
Finally that dust acquired comfort in Love Calling me back from temple they make me
Which had been wandering long in Intellect’s their imam.
wilderness
March 1907 The buds started saying that I must be the
knower of the garden’s secrets!
Time has come for openness, Beloved’s Sight
There are thousands of God’s Lovers, who are
will be common
roaming in the wilderness
The secret which silence had concealed, will
I shall adore the one who will be the lover of
be unveiled now
God’s people
O Cup‐bearer! Time has gone when wine was
This is the world’s custom, O Heart! Even
taken secretly
winking is a sin
The whole world will be tavern, everyone will
What will our respect be if you will be restless
be drinking
here?
Those who once wandered insane, will return
In the darkness of the night I shall take out
to habitations
my tired caravan
Lovers’ wandering will be the same but
My sigh will be shedding sparks my breath
deserts will be new
will be throwing f lames
The Hijaz’ silence has proclaimed to the
If there is nothing but show in the aim of your
waiting ear at last
life
The covenants established with desert’s
Your destruction from the world will be in a
inhabitants will be re‐affirmed
breath like spark
Which coming out of deserts had overturned
Do not ask about the condition of Iqbal, he is
the Roman Empire
in the same state
I have heard from the Qudsis that the same
Sitting somewhere by the wayside he must be
lion will be re‐awakened
waiting for oppression!
As the cup‐bearer mentioned me in the
wine‐drinkers’ assembly [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
The tavern’s sage said, “He is insolent, he will
be disgraced”
O Western world’s inhabitants, God’s world
is not a shop!
What you are considering genuine, will be PART THREE
regarded counterfeit
Your civilization will commit suicide with its
own dagger THE ISLAMIC CITIES
The nest built on the frail branch will not be The region of Delhi is adored by my grieved
durable heart
The caravan of the feeble ants will make fleet In every speck of it the ancestors’ blood is
of rose petals asleep
However strong the ocean waves’ tumult be it Why should not the land of this desolate
will cross the ocean garden be holy?
The poppy, roaming in the garden, shows its This region is the shrine of the grandeur of
spots to every flower‐bud Islam
Knowing that by this exhibition it will be Kings of the Khair al‐Umam are asleep in this
counted among the Lovers land
O Sight! That was the One you showed us as a Dependent on whose rule remained the world
thousand order
If this is your state what will be your Memory of assembly’s warmth still renders
credibility? the heart restless
As I told the turtledove one day the free of The splendor has been burnt but memory of
here are treading on dust! the splendor is still secure
Though Jahanabad also is a shrine for the That Magnificent Emperor got rest in your
Muslim midst
Baghdad as well is deserving of this Under whose protection the world nations got
magnificence security
This is the garden the source of whose pride Whose successors became rulers of world’s
was empires
The wild tulip which was called the culture of Became successors of Caesar, inheritors of
Hijaz Jam’s throne
Why should not the dust of this habitation be If the Muslim nationalism is restricted to
equivalent to Iram place
Which witnessed the footsteps of the Neither India nor Persia nor Syria is its base
Prophet’s successors Ah Yathrib! You are the Muslim’s homeland
The garden whose flower buds were the and his shelter
garden’s wealth is this You are the focal point of the rays of his inner
The grave yard of those who made Rome feelings
tremble is this As long as you exist, we will also flourish in
The land of Cordoba also is the light of the the world
Muslim’s eye You are the morning of this garden we are the
Which shined in Europe’s darkness like the dew’s pearls
candle of Tur
Extinguishing of this lamp dispersed the
THE STAR
assembly of Millat‐i‐Baida Are you afraid of the moon or the dawn?
And lighted the lamp of the present day’s Are you conscious of the end of beauty?
materialistic civilization Are you afraid of being robbed of light’s
This holy region is the grave of that wealth?
civilization Are you afraid of annihilation like the spark?
With which the life blood still exists in the The sky has settled you far from the earth
veins of Europe’s vines It has wrapped you in gold’s mantle like the
The tract of Constantinople, that is the moon
Caesar’s city It is outrageous that your feeble life is still in
The perpetual banner of the grandeur of the fear
Ummah’s Mahdi Your whole night passes in trembling with
Like the Haram’s dust this region is also holy fear
It is the shrine of descendants of Shah‐i‐ O shining traveler! This habitation is strange
Lawlak The rise of one leads to the fall of the other
Its breeze is holy like the fragrance of rose The birth of one sun is the death of a myriad
A voice is calling from the tomb of Ayyub stars
Ansari Annihilation’s sleep is the ecstasy of life’s
“O Muslim! this city is the heart of the Nation wine
of Islam! Flower bud’s departure is the secret of
This city is the reward for millenniums of flower’s birth
blood sacrifices!” Is annihilation life’s end, or is the equivalent
But you are that land, O the resting place of of life!
Mustafa Quiescence is difficult in the universe
Even to the Ka‘bah whose sight is better than Only change is permanent in the universe
Hajj‐i‐Akbar
In the world’s ring you are shining like a gem
Your land was the birth place of our grandeur
TWO PLANETS This traveler is going to his destination since
eternity
Two planets meeting face to face, Seeing revolutions’ spectacles from the sky’s
One to the other cried, ‘How sweet seclusion
If endlessly we might embrace, Though quiescence of the star is not possible
And here for ever stay! how sweet in the universe
If Heaven a little might relent, It has stopped momentarily for saying prayer
And leave our light in one light blent!’ for the dead
But through that longing to dissolve This earth is full of flowers of life’s
In one, the parting summons sounded. variegations
Immutably the stars revolve, This earth is the cemetery of many destroyed
By changeless orbits each is bounded; civilizations
Eternal union is a dream, This grief‐stricken stage is the resting place of
And severance the world’s law supreme. kings
O admonished eye! Pay the tribute of rosy
tears
THE ROYAL CEMETERY Though a mere cemetery, this dust ranks with
the sky
The sky is clothed in the cloud’s old tattered
Ah! this is the wealth of an unfortunate
robe
nation!
The mirror of moon’s forehead is somewhat
So astounding is the grandeur of mausoleums
gloomy
That the spectator’s eye evades even winking
The moon light is pale in this silent panorama
Such an expression of failure is in this picture
The dawn is sleeping in the lap of the night
Which is impossible to reflect in description’s
How astonishing is silence of the trees
mirror
This silence is the soft tune of Nature’s harp
Far from the habitations’ crowds are sleeping
The heart of every speck of the universe is
Those who were restless with unfulfilled
pathos embodied
Longings
And the silence is a sad sigh on the lips of
The grave’s darkness holds the brilliance of
existence
those suns
Ah! That fort, that universal mustering
At whose thresholds the sky used to remain
ground
prostrating
Is carrying millennia’s weight on its shoulders
Is this the end of these emperors’
Was full of life at one time, now is desolate
magnificence?
This silence is the cemetery of its past
Whose diplomatic policies knew no decline
elegance
Be it the grandeur of Qaisar or Faghfur’s sway
It is the lover of the remains of its old
The foe of death’s assault cannot be turned
denizens
away
It is standing on the mountain top like a
The result of kings’ life‐efforts also is the
sentinel
grave
There from the cloud’s window above the
The last stage on path of magnificence is the
sky’s roof
grave
That young green star is viewing the universe
Neither the happy assembly’s commotion nor
The earth’s vast expanse is a mere child’s play
the genius’ talk
to it
Not even the wailing people’s whole night’s
The story of Man’s failure is known to it by
compassion!
heart
Neither the tumult of the sword in the battle!
Nor the cry of blood warming Takbir!
No call can wake up those who are sleeping The mother earth has always remained
No life can return to the desolate breast expecting new nations!
The soul in the handful of dust is enduring This highway is acquainted with thousands of
injustice caravans
When breath enters non‐existence’ flute it is a Kohinur’s eye is familiar with innumerable
mere complaint kings
Human life resembles the sweet singing bird, Egypt and Babylon are annihilated, not a
which mark remains
Sat on the branch a while, chirped, flew away The roll of existence does not have even their
Ah! For what purpose did we come in the names
world, for what purpose did we go away! The evening of death has overpowered the
Sprouted from the life’s branch, blossomed, sun of Iran
faded away Time has robbed the grandeur of Greece and
Death is interpretation of the dream of the Rome
king and the poor alike Ah! The Muslim also from the world similarly
This atrocious one’s terror is the picture of departed
justice The azure cloud appeared over the horizon,
The stream of life is a boundless ocean rained and departed
And the grave is a wave of this boundless The rose petal’s vein is a string of pearls with
ocean dawn’s tears
O ambition! Shed tears of blood as this life is Some ray of the sun is enmeshed in the dew
unreliable The river’s breast is the cradle for sun’s rays
It is the smile of the spark, it is the flammable How beautiful is the sun’s sight at the river
straw bank!
This moon which is a miracle of the Lord of Juniper is busy in beautifying, river is the
the universe mirror
Clad in the robe of gold is slowly and proudly For the flower bud spring breeze is the mirror
strolling The cuckoo remains calling from the garden’s
But in the frightening vastness of the starless nest
sky Remains hidden from the human eye in the
Its helplessness is worth watching at time of leaves’ privacy
dawn And the nightingale, the flowery singer of the
What was the moon is a mere piece of cloud garden
Whose destruction is in the last tear drop By whose presence is alive the glory of the
Similarly unpredictable is the life of nations garden
Their glory is a picture of the happy times Is a living picture of the commotion of Love
gone by How beautiful is this picture from Nature’s
In this world no nation however prestigious it pen!
may be In the garden the roses silent assemblies are
Can continue its existence till the end of time holding
So much accustomed to nations’ destruction is The shepherd boys’ shouts in the valley are
the universe echoing
That it watches this scene with indifference This old world is so full of life
Nothing stays the same without change That in death also is hidden the zest of life
The universe’ nature is made of change The petals fall in autumn in the same way
The beauty of world’s jewel is in ever‐ As toys fall from the sleeping infant’s hand
changing names In this cheerful world though luxury is
limitless
One grief, that is grief of the Millat is always Draws the bright sword from the sheath’s
fresh darkness
Memories of the age gone by are still fresh in The dawn’s meaning in the eastern horizon is
our heart hidden
This Ummah cannot erase its kings’ memories As inside the goblet the pleasant wine is
form its heart hidden
These desolate mansions are excuses for The dawn is under the skirt of the friendly
shedding tears breeze
Insight has developed in the eye with The noise of the conch is mixed with the call
continuous tears of adhan
We give to the world the pearls of the All the singing birds woke up by the cuckoo’s
weeping eye call
We are the remaining clouds of a storm gone Every string of dawn’s system has become
by musical
There are hundreds of pearls in this cloud’s
breast
TADMIN ON A VERSE OF ANISI SHAMLU
Thunder still lurks in this cloud’s silent breast I always remain roaming like the morning
It can change the dry wilderness to a flowery breeze
vale Roaming is more pleasant in Love than
It can change the farmer’s hope from slumber destination
to awakening The restless heart reached the land of the
The manifestation of this nation’s majesty has Saint of Sanjar
passed Where the cure for the malady of impatience
But the manifestation of its beauty has not yet is available
passed The longing of my heart had not yet reached
the lips
MORNING’S APPEARANCE
The tongue was about to be obligated to the
From under the horizon’s skirt is appearing power of speech
The day and night’s virgin daughter that is A voice came from the tomb, “The Harem’s
dawn inhabitants have
The sky has completed benedictions for the A complaint against you, O renouncer of
star’s crop ancestors’ ways!
The sun has decorated the eastern horizon O Qais! How has your internal warmth cooled
with mirrors down?
The sky, getting news of the arrival of the sun Because Layla still has the same ways of her
Has packed up night’s litter on dust‐cloud’s old self
shoulders The seed of La Ilaha did not sprout in your
The sun’s flame seems to be the produce of barren soil
this field The sterility of your nature is universally
Which was sown by sky’s farmer as sparks of disgraced
stars O imprudent one! Do you know what your
The morning star is on the way from the sky life is?
retrieving It is the builder of synagogues, full of church
As the last nightly worshiper from the music
mosque be retrieving Though your training has been in the House
What a beautiful sight it is as somebody of God
slowly Your rebellious heart is the lover of temple
“You learnt fidelity from us but used it on Who always remained ecstatic with pleasure
others and exhilaration
You snatched a pearl from us but sacrificed it The gardener whose hand is safe from thorn’s
on others.” tip
Whose love is unaware of the pathos of
THE PHILOSOPHY OF GRIEF separation
(Addressed to Mian Fazli Husain Barrister‐At‐ Though grief’s affliction is far from his life
Law, Lahore) The secret of life is concealed from his eyes
O the one with comprehension of life’s affairs
Though the wine of life is the embodiment of
Why should not grief and sorrow be easy for
pleasure
you?
The cloud of life carries tears also in its skirt
Love is the introduction to the Eternity’s old
The bubble of life dances on the wave of grief
treatise
“Alam’s” Surah is also part of the Book of Life
Human intellect is mortal but Love is
By losing even a single petal the rose ceases to
eternally alive
be rose
The evening of death is no match to the sun of
If the nightingale is unaware of autumn it
Love
ceases to be nightingale
Love is the warmth of life and lasts till
The heart’s story is colored with Longing’s
eternity
blood
If annihilation had been intended for the
The human music is incomplete without
departed beloved
lament’s cry
Love’s zeal would have also departed from
For the discerning eye the grief’s scar is
the Lover’s heart
insight
Love does not die by the beloved’s death
For the soul sigh’s mirror is beauty’s
It stays in the soul as grief but does not die
accompaniment
Lover’s immortality is the beloved’s
Incidents of grief give perfection to human
immortality
nature
The beloved’s life is unacquainted with
The dust of anguish is rouge for the heart’s
mortality
mirror
The spring comes singing from the mountain
Youth is awakened from sleep’s pleasure by
top
grief
Teaching the art of singing to the birds of the
This orchestra wakes up with this plectrum
sky
alone
Its mirror is bright like the Houri’s cheek
For the heart’s bird grief is the strongest
But falling on valley’s rocks it is shattered
feather
The river’s pearls ever more beautiful became
The human heart is a secret whose disclosure
That is by this fall they water’s stars became
is grief
The river of flowing mercury spread and
Grief is not distress, but is the soul’s silent
became scattered
song
A whole entire world of restless drops
Which is locked in the embrace of existence’
became manifest
harp
But separation is the training for reunion to
Whose night is not acquainted with Ya Rab’s
those drops
plaint!
After a while the same river is running like a
Whose night does not manifest the stars of
silver string
tears
The flowing river of life is of the same origin
Whose heart’s cup does not know breaking
Falling from high it became the concourse of
with grief
humanity
In the depths of this world we part to reunite The garden of my youth,
But we cry considering temporary parting as Could never flower‐like nestle
permanent In the desired one’s breast,
Though the dead do die they do not perish Nor ever feel the smooth
Really they do not get separated from us Touch of the shimmering vest.
When Intellect be surrounded in worldly No springtime shall come freighting
calamities Its leaves with April’s luck,
Or when it be besieged in the dreary night of It withers in this waiting
youth For her who comes to pluck.
When the heart’s skirt be the battle field of
good and evil
When journey to the goal be difficult in road’s THE ANTHEM OF THE ISLAMIC
darkness COMMUNITY
When the Khizr of courage may be resigned
from longing China and Arabia are ours; India is ours.
When Intellect be helpless and conscience a We are Muslims, the whole world is ours.
silent voice God’s unity is held in trust in our breasts.
When not a single fellow‐traveler be in the It is not easy to erase our name and sign.
vale of life Among the idol temples of the world the first
When not even fire‐fly’s spark to show the is that house of God;5
way there be We are its keepers; it is our keeper.
The foreheads of the dead brighten up in this Brought up in the shadow of the sword, we
darkness reached maturity;
As stars are shining in the darkness of the The scimitar of the crescent moon is the
night. emblem of our community.
In the valleys of the west our call to prayer
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] resounded;
ON A FLOWER‐OFFERING Our onward flow was never stemmed by
anyone.
When she walks drunk with pride We, oh heaven, are not to be suppressed by
About the garden path, falsehood!
Flowerets on every side A hundred times you have tested us.
Lift up one suppliant voice— Oh garden of Andalusia! Do you remember
May she, ah God, make me those days,
Of all the rest her choice, When our nest was in your branches?
Raise me from low degree Oh waves of the Tigris! You also recognize us;
To wake the sunflower’s wrath! Your river still relates our story.
—Divine fortune, that she Oh land of purity! We fell and died for your
Should pluck you from the stem! honour;
Your rivals toss their petals; Our blood still courses through your veins.
The shock of severance past, The Lord of Hijaz is the leader of our
New bliss of union settles community;
Upon your life, whose gem

Shines perfectly at last. 5 Matthews’ translation of this line is flawed. The
My heart, though it found love original rather means, “Among the temples of the
In feeling hearts it its vassal— world that first House of God,” implying that
This heart of mine, pride of many temples existed before Ka‘bah but they were
dedicated to deities other than God.
From this name comes the peace of our soul. The antagonism among world’s nations is
Iqbal’s song is like the bell of a caravan; 6 created by this alone
Once more our caravan measures the road. Subjugation as the goal of commerce is
created by this alone
Politics have become bereft of sincerity is by
PATRIOTISM this alone
The destruction of the home of the weak is by
As a Political Concept
this alone
In this age the wine, the cup, even Jam is God’s creation is unjustly divided among
different nations by it
The cup‐bearer started different ways of grace The Islamic concept of nationality is uprooted
and tyranny by it
The Muslim also constructed a different
harem of his own
A PILGRIM ON HIS WAY TO MADINAH
The Azar of civilization made different idols The caravan has been robbed in wilderness
of his own and the destination is far
Country, is the biggest among these new The coast of this desolation, that is this dry
gods! ocean is far
What is its shirt is the shroud of Din My fellow travelers became victims of the
This idol which is the product of the new robbers’ dagger
civilization The remaining ones turned back to Makkah in
Is the plunderer of the structure of the Holy frustration
Prophet’s Din How willingly this young man from Bokhara
Your arm is enforced with the strength of the gave his life!
Divine Unity In the poison of death he has found the taste
You are the followers of Mustafa, your of life!
country is Islam The robber’s dagger was the Eid’s crescent to
You should show the old panorama to the him
world “Ah Yathrib” was within heart, Tawhid’s
O Mustafaa’s follower! You should destroy slogan was on the lips
this idol Fear says, “Do not travel alone towards
The limitation to country results in Yathrib”
destruction Longing says, “You are a Muslim, travel
Live like the fish in the ocean free from fearlessly”
country “Would I return to Makkah without paying
Renouncing the country is the way of the homage?
God’s Beloved Would I not appear confidently before Lovers
You should also testify to the Prophethood’s on the Judgment Day?
Truth by similar action The traveler through Hijaz’ wilderness has no
In political parlance country is something fear for life
different This secret is hidden in the emigration of the
In Prophet’s command country is something Holy Prophet
different Thought safety is in the companionship of the
Syrian litter

6 “the bell of a caravan”—or, more correctly, “the Pleasure of Love is in the heart‐breaking
call of the marching bell” (this is one of the few affliction of danger
occurences of the title phrase in the anthology Ah! How clever this timid Intellect is!
itself).
And the brave man’s feeling how fearless is! From lips accustomed but to praise
Hear Thou these words in blame of Thee!
QATÀH
From when eternal Time began,
Yesterday a desperate Lover was saying with Thy Timeless Self had also been;
wailing at the Prophet’s tomb But then no breeze its sweetness spread
“The Egyptian and Indian Muslims dare Though the Rose reigned the garden’s queen.
destroying the Millat’s foundation! Canst Thou, in justice, but confess,
These pilgrims to the West’s sanctuary may O Lord! from whom all favours flow,
fake our leadership Had not the south wind toiled in love
What bond do we have with those who have The world Thy fragrance would not
remained unacquainted with you? know?
Outrageous are these “self‐seeking spiritual The glad travail we sought for Thee
leaders”, Rejoiced our souls and was our pride—
May God protect your Millat Thinkst Thou the followers of Thy Friend
They are promoting their own glory by Insanely spread Thy Truth so wide?
destroying the Muslims
O Iqbal who would listen to you, the Before we came, how strange a sight
congregation has changed Was this most beauteous world of Thine!
You are telling us these tales of the old in the For here to stones men bowed their heads,
new age. And there in trees did ‘gods’ enshrine!
Their unenlightened minds could seize
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Nought else but what their eyes could
THE COMPLAINT see,
Thou knowest, Lord, Thy writ ran not
Why should I choose the loser’s role? —Man neither knew nor worshipped
Forbear to seek what gain I may? Thee!
Nor think of what the morrow holds, And canst Thou say that even once
But brood o’er woes of yesterday? One of these did Thy name recite?
Why should my ears enraptured hear It was the might of Muslim arms
The plaintive notes of Philomel? Fulfilled Thy task and gave them Light.
Fellow‐bard! a rose am I
To lose me in sweet music’s swell? Yet once there lived the Seljuks here,
For I too have the gift of song Turanians too, and wise Chinese,
Which gives me courage to complain, Sasanians drew their breath and thrived
But ah! ‘tis none but God Himself In rose‐perfumed Iranian breeze;
Whom I, in sorrow, must arraign! And elsewhere in Thy peopled world
The Greeks of Yunan held their sway,
I grant that we have earned repute While sons of Israel side by side
As ever reconciled to Fate, With Christian nations had their day.
But to Thee still a tale of pain But which among these nations raised
I can no longer help narrate. The sacred sword in holy fight,
Though we may seem like voiceless Self‐consecrated to Thy cause,
lyres, To set their crazy world aright?
Within, imprisoned anguish cries;
Its urge compels, and I obey, ’Tis we and we alone who thronged
Framing these plaintive melodies. As warriors on Thy fields of fray,
Hear Thou, O God! these sad complaints And now upon the land we fought
From those of proven fealty; And now upon the salt sea spray.
We made our Azan’s call resound
Beneath proud spires in Western lands, And in that land did once again
And made that magic melody Revive the worship of Yazdan?
Thrill over Afric’s burning sands.
Among those nations, was there one
The pageantries of mighty kings
Who craved Thee as we craved and sought?
To us were shows that mattered not,
Or risked the perils of fell war
Beneath the shade of blades unsheathed
That Thy Divinest will be wrought?
In Kalima we glory sought.
Whose was that conquest‐thirsty sword
Our only life was then to face Which won and held the world in fee?
The perils 0f Thy holy wars; And whose the Takbeer‐sounding call,
To glorify Thy name we died, Which wakened all the world to Thee?
Adorned with hallowed battle scars. Whose was the fateful wrath which made
Not lust for power for our own sakes All idols shrink in terror just?
Our drawn‐sword’s playfulness “There is no god but God,” they cried,
inspired, As crumbling down they kissed the dust.
Nor roamed we hand‐in‐glove with
When worship’s ordained hour was come,
Death
And furious raged the battle’s fray,
For worldly riches we desired.
Those men of Hijaz, staunch in Thee,
Our people, had they set their hearts
Facing Thy Ka‘ba, bowed to pray.
On this world’s riches or its gold,
Mahmood the king and slave Ayaz,
Not idol‐breaking would have gone
In line, as equals, stood arrayed,
But idols would have bought and sold.
The lord was no more lord to slave:
We stood our ground like rocks when once While both to the One Master prayed.
The foe had met our phalanx dread; Slave or slave’s master, rich or poor,
Before our might the bravest quailed No sense of difference then felt,
And, vanquished, from the battle fled. For each a brother was to each
And those who offered Thee affront When in Thy Presence, Lord, they
Our swift, relentless fury faced, knelt.
Their mightiest arms we set at nought,
And Thou dost know we went about
Their insolence and pride abased.
At sunrise or when stars did shine,
On all men’s minds we set Thy seal,
In banquet‐halls of Time and Space,
Thy tawhid’s firm and sure impress—
Like goblets, filled with tawhid’s wine
The selfsame message preached our lips
Both heights and lowlands we
When swords danced high in battle’s
traversed to spread
stress.
Thy message; O glad pain!
Declare Thou whose fierce valour once Not even once, Thou knowest well,
Did Khyber’s barriers overthrow? We strove against the world in vain.
Or whose resistless might once laid Not only land we bore Thy Word
Famed Caesar’s proudest cities low? Glorious across the heaving seas,
Who smashed to dust man’s hand‐ Upon our steed of zeal, we rode
wrought gods, Unto their darkest boundaries!
Those things of straw and earth and
We who removed from this world’s book
clay?
The leaves which were with falsehood
And who did unbelieving hosts
stained,
To spread Thy name and glory slay?
We who, from tyrant ignorance,
And who was it that quenched and cooled
The prisoned human race unchained,
The fiery urns of fair Iran ?
We who with myriad sajdas filled
Thy holy Kaʹba’s hallowed shrine, And limitless Thy means remain?
Whose bosoms reverently held If Thou but will, fountains can flow
Thy great and glorious Book Divine— From barren desert and parched sands,
If our meed still the obloquy And mirage‐bound a traveller be
That we have shirked the Faithful’s part, While walking through green forest
How then canst Thou make claim to be lands:
The kindly faith‐compelling heart? Yet foemen‐taunted, grace‐deprived,
For there are those of other faiths And poorest of the poor are we!
Among whom many sinners , Is this Thy recompense to those
Some humble, others puffed with pride, Who sacrifice their lives for Thee?
Drunken in their effrontery; Thy world, how eagerly, today
If some have vision, thousands are On strangers, all its grace bestows:
Of little worth, neglectful, worse; For those who walk Thy chosen way
And millions upon millions live A world of dreams its glamour throws!
From Thy dear, glorious name averse. So be it then, so let us pass,
Yet see how still Thy bounties rain Let other nations hold the sway—
On roofs 0f unbelieving clans, When we are gone, reproach us not
While strikes Thy thunder‐bolt the homes That tawhid too has passed away!
Of all‐forbearing Mussalmans! We live here only that Thy Name
In idol‐houses, hark! they say, May live here in men’s minds enshrined;
“Behold, the Muslim star sinks low! Can saki bid his last adieu
How glad they are that now at last And leave Love’s cup and wine behind?
Thy Kaʹba’s brave protectors go! Thy court‐yard empties. They depart
They say, “The world is well rid now Who came to worship and adore;
Of hymn‐reciting camel‐men, The midnight’s sighs, the dawn’s lament,
Their Quran folded in their arms, Now Thou wilt miss for evermore!
At last they hie them from our ken! They came, they gave their hearts to Thee,
Thus they rejoice who own Thee not; They had their recompense, and went.
Yet still unmindful seemest Thou But hardly they had seated been
Of Thine own One‐ness, Thy tawhid— When from Thy Presence they were sent!
Art Thou so unregarding now? They came glad lovers, begging love;
That ignorant men who lack the grace With future promise turned away:
To ope their lips in conclave high Go, shine Thy Beauty’s lamp about
Should have their coffers treasure‐filled, And seek and win them if Thou may!
Is not the burden of our sigh; The love of Layla burneth still,
But O, that this world’s best should fall And Majnun passion’s yearning knows;
To unbelievers from Thy hand In hill and valley of the Nejd
While we on promises are fed The fleet gazelle still leaping goes;
Of pleasures in a shadowy land! The soul of Love is still the same,
Where are those favours which Thou once Still, Beauty’s magic charms enthral,
Upon our grateful hearts didst pour ? Thy Ahmad’s feemen still abide;
Why cherishest Thou not, O Lord, And Thou art there, the soul of all.
The Faithful as in days of yore? Then Stranger! why estranged today
Why from the bounties of this life The bond of love ‘twixt Thee and Thine?
The Faithful now no profit gain Upon the Faithful, O Unkind,
Though still Almighty Thou remainest Why frowns Thy eye of wrath Divine?
Did we forswear our faith to Thee? When by unbashful glad feet turn
To Thy dear Prophet cease to cling? Towards our nesting‐place again.
Of idol‐breaking did we tire?
Beside the garden fountain now,
Or take to idol‐worshipping?
Quaffing wine, strangers sit, alas!
Or did we weary of Thy Love,
The cuckoo’s note their ear regales
Or Thy Love’s rapture ever shun?
And their hands hold the sparkling glass!
Or turned we from the path which trod
From all this garden’s riot far,
Qaran’s Owais and Salman?
Calm in a corner seated too,
Thy Takbeer’s unextinguished flame
Love‐longing lunatics await
Within our hearts we cherish yet:
Thy frenzy‐kindling breath of hu!
Aethiop Belal’s life, the star
The passion for the flame’s embrace—
By which our own lives’ course we set!
Thy moths—ah, let them once more know;
But even if a change hath been, And bid Thy ancient lightning strike
And we in Love are less adept, And set these ash‐cold hearts aglow!
Or out of resignation’s path
Towards the Hijaz turn again
Our erring wayward feet have stept;
The straying tribe their bridle‐strings!
If, unlike trusted compasses,
Lo, wingless soars the nightingale
Our souls respond not now to you,
Aloft, upon its yearning’s wings!
And if to laws of faithfulness
The fragrance in each blossom hid
Our roving hearts are now less true ;
Within the garden palpitates,
Must Thou too play the fickle flirt
But with Thy plectrum wake its strings—
With us, with others, day by day,
The lute that livening touch awaits!
We cannot help the sinful thought
Yea, longs to break its prison’s bounds
Which shame forbids our lips to say.
The string‐imprisoned melody;
Upon the peak of Mount Faran And yearning Sinai waits again
Thy glorious Faith Thou didst perfect— To burn itself to dust in Thee
With one Divinest gesture drew
Resolve, O Lord! the travail sore
A host of fervid first‐elect;
Which this Thy chosen people tries,
Thy flaming Beauty filled the world
Make Thou the ant of little worth
And set a myriad hearts on fire;
To Solomon’s proud stature rise!
Then blew the quintessence of Love
Bring Thou, O Lord, with our grasp
In Man to passion’s wild desire.
That most rare love for which we pray;
Ah, why within our deadened hearts
To India’s temple‐squatters teach
That holy flame today leaps not?
The truth of the Islamic way.
Though still those burnt‐out victims we
Our hearts’ desires, long unfulfilled,
Which once we were, hast Thou forgot?
Unceasingly our life‐blood drain;
Upon the dale of Nejd is stilled Our breasts, with thousand daggers pierced,
The clanging of the captive’s chains; Still struggle with their cry of pain!
To glimpse the camel‐litter, Qais
The fragrance of the rose has borne
No longer with his madness strains
The garden’s secret far away—
The yearnings of the heart are dead,
How sad it is, the traitor’s role
The heart itself is cold; so we;
The garden’s sweetest buds should play!
And desolation fills our house
The bloom‐time of the rose is done;
For shines not there the Light of Thee.
The garden‐harp now shattered lies;
O blessed day when Thou shalt come,
And from its perch upon the twig,
A thousand graces in Thy train
Away each feathered songster flies—
But yet there uncompanioned sits THE MOON
A lonely bulbul, all day long;
Its throat a‐throb with music still O moon! Your beauty is the dignity of creation
And pouring out its heart in song. Circumambulating the earthly sanctuary is
your old habit
The darkening cypress sways no more; This something like a spot which appears on
From shadowy nests its doves have fled; your breast
The withered blossoms droop and die, Are you someone’s Lover? Is this the
And all around their petals shed; Longing’s scar?
Those memoried, old garden walks I am restless on the earth, you are impatient in
Of all their former pride lie shorn, the sky
Despoiled of raiment green, each You are also in search, I am also in search
branch Man is the candle of the congregation which
In nakedness now stands forlorn; is also yours
Unmoved by passing seasons’ change, The direction in which I am going is also your
The songster sits and sings alone: destination
Would there were in this garden some The one you are searching for in the stars’
Could feel the burden of its moan! silence
This life no more its joy retains, Perhaps is concealed in the commotion of life
Nor even death can bring relief; It is standing is the cypress tree, is sleeping in
‘Tis sweet to sit alone and sigh the verdure
And eat a sad heart out in grief. Is singing in the nightingale, is silent in the
Out from the mirror of my soul ‘ flower bud
What gems of thought now strive to Come, I shall show you His luminous cheek
shine; In rivers’ mirror, in dew’s looking glass
What visions splendid, dreams In forest, in mountains in everything only He
sublime, exists
Arise within this breast of mine! In the heart of Man, in your cheek only He
But in this garden lives not one exists.
To see and hear, to feel and know: [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
No tulip with its streak of pain,
To sense my heart‐blood’s smarting flow. THE NIGHT AND THE POET
May this sad bulbuls lonely song THE NIGHT
To grief each listening soul awake; Why do you roam about in my moonlight,
The clangour of these rousing bells So worried,
Make drowsy hearts their sleep forsake! Silent as a flower, drifting like perfume?
Let Faithful hearts re‐plight their troth, Perhaps you are a jeweller
And forge afresh their bond Divine; Dealing in the pearls that are called stars,
Let in the long‐parched breast of each Or are a fish that swims in my river of
The old thirst wake for sweet old wine! light;
The blood of sweet Arabian vine Or a star that has fallen from my brow,
O’erflows this wine‐jar Ajamy, And, having forsaken the heights,
Although the singer sings in Ind, Now resides in the depths below.
Of Hijaz is his melody. The strings of the violin of life are still;
[Translated by Altaf Husain] My mirror reflects life as it sleeps.
The eye of the vortex too is sleeping
)
In the depths of the river;
The restless wave hugs the shore and is The sky’s assembly was busy lighting up the
still. sky
The earth, so busy and bustling, From the Àrsh‐i‐Barin the call of an angel
Slumbers as though no one lived on it. came
But the poet’s heart is never at peace— “O sentinels of the night! O stars of the sky!
How did you elude my spell? The whole shining nation of yours inhabits
the sky
THE POET Start such music as may awaken all those
I sow pearls in the soil of your moon; sleeping
Hiding from men, I weep like dawn. The brightness of your forehead is guide for
I am reluctant to come out in the busy day, caravans
And my tears flow in the solitude of night. The earth’s denizens consider you the
The cry pent up inside me, destiny’s mirrors
Whom should I get to hear it, Perhaps they will listen to your call”
And to whom can I show my burning Silence departed from this star‐spangled
desire? expanse
Lying on my chest the lightning of Sinai The sky’s expanse was filled with this music
sobs: The Eternal Beauty is produced in the stars’
Where is the seeing eye—has it gone to loveliness
sleep? As the image of rose is in the looking glass of
My assembly‐hall is dead like the candle at the dew
a grave. To be afraid of the new ways, to insist on the
Alas, night! I have a long way to go! old ones
The winds of the present age are not This is the only difficult stage in the life of
favourable to it: nations
It does not feel the loss it has suffered. This caravan of life is so fast moving
The message of love, Many a nation is trampled in whose race
When I can no longer keep it to myself, Thousands of stars are hidden from our eyes
I come and tell it to your shining stars. But their existence is also included in our
[Translated by Mustansir Mir] group
The earth’s denizens did not understand in a
THE ASSEMBLY OF STARS whole life
While setting, the sun threw at the dark‐ What has come in our comprehension in a
clothed evening short span of life
Tulip flowers which it had collected from All systems are established on mutual
horizon’s basin attraction
The twilight of evening put all ornaments of This secret is concealed in the life of the stars”
gold on it, STROLLING IN THE CELESTIAL WORLD
Nature put off its entire set of silver
ornaments As only imagination was my fellow‐traveler
The Layla of the night in the litter of silence My path happened to pass through the sky
arrived I was flying constantly and no one
Started shining the beautiful pearls of the Was acquainted with me in the sky
evening’s bride The stars were staring at me in surprise
Those living far from the commotion of the My journey was a well guarded secret
world I escaped from the alternation of day and
Which Man calls “stars” in his own language night
I escaped from this ancient order of things You are seen in the mosque also on the Eid
What can I tell you what Paradise is day
It is the climax of material longings Your heart is also softened by the sermon’s
Birds were singing in the branches of Tubah effect
Unabashed Houri’s beauty was present all You practice reading country’s newspapers
around also
Beautiful cup‐bearers with wine‐cups in hand Which are obligated to sing your repute’s
The audience was crying drink more and songs
more” On top of all this you can also write verse
Far from the Paradise the eye observed Your poetry’s goblets are full of the wine of
There was a dark house, cold and silent Shiraz
Countenance of Qais and Layla’s material Whatever are the attributes of leaders, you
form have them all
Were shoulder to shoulder with its darkness Incumbent on you is rising and joining the
It was so cold that being embarrassed by it struggle
The Arctic Circle was concealing its face You are not afraid of hunters, as you have
When I inquired about its condition wings also
The reply of the angel was strange Then why are you not inclined for flight?
“This cold place is called Hell “The end of our life is the cemetery
It is deprived of fire and light Presently raise tumult in the sky’s vault”
The heat of its flames which is borrowed
Terrifies the people seeking admonition
RAMA
When the earth’s people come here Overflowing with the wine of Truth is the cup
They bring their embers with them” of India
All philosophers of the Western world have
ADVICE
acknowledged India
One day by way of advice I said to Iqbal It is the result of the elegant thinking of
Neither you fast nor are regular in prayers Indians
You are also perfect in the ways of That higher than the sky is the position of
hypocritical people India
You pine for London in the heart but you talk This country has had many people of angelic
of Hijaz disposition
Your lies are also based on what is On whose account world renowned is the
expediency name of India
The manner of your flattery also is fully India is proud of the existence of Rama
miraculous Spiritual people consider him prelate of India
Your lecture ends on glorification of the This alone is the miracle of this light of
government righteousness
Your bright thought is the inventor of That brighter than world’s morning is the
methods of entreating evening of India
Officials’ doors are also like Maqam‐i‐ He was expert in sword craft, was unique in
Mahmud to you bravery
Your designs are more interlocked than locks Was matchless in piety and in the enthusiasm
of Ayaz’ hair of love
Like other people you can also conceal
Secrets of self aggrandizement in your cloak
of din’s service
THE MOTOR CAR In the close embracing of love,
A stock that trampled under foot
How rightly Jogender said this yesterday Dara who wore the crown.
“The car of Zulfiqar ‘Ali Khan is so quiet Civilization’s grace they forged
Its elegant and graceful pace is not noisy To a world‐disposing law,
Fast like lightning, like breeze it is quiet” Those folks that came from the Arab sands
I replied “This is not restricted to car That cradled their camel‐men.
In the path of life every fleet footed is quiet The simple life was the pride they had
The bell is footless from its habit of lamenting In their deeds of glorious show.
The caravan of fragrance like zephyr is quiet How does the lovely face feel need
The decanter always walks on embers due to Of rouge and mole and art?
gurgling In pure plain life and in fear of God
But the nature of the gentle‐moving wine‐cup They lived their modest way.
is quiet The rich man stood in no fear of the poor
To the poet’s thoughts the wings for flight are That he gives his wealth in fee. 7
silence In short, in words can I tell to you
The wealth of the voice’s warmth lies in What were these desert men?
silence”! Holders, Keepers, Saviours, Adorners
THE HUMAN RACE Of what we call the world.
If I should draw the sketch aright
The sights of the garden may or may not be Limning the form in words,
beautiful The vision I’d draw would be better far
The narcissus, unable to act, forced to Than all your fancy paints.
watching is! There is no standard by which to judge
It does not appreciate the pleasure of Yours and your father’s worth.
movement You utter words but they did deeds.
The very nature of juniper devoid of longing They roamed: you stay at home.
is! We have despoiled the inheritance
Whatever is in the world is accustomed to That we from our fathers won.
submission The heaven from the zenith has dashed it
Every power of Man busy in pressing for his down
Longing is! And cast it on the ground.
This speck remains incessantly ambitious of What is this weeping at ordered things
expansion That it is the affair of a day?
Not a speck but perhaps the constricted Except the help of all‐certain law
wilderness he is The world has no other plan.
If he wills he can change the face of the But if those pearls of learning’s lore,
garden Those books our fathers wrote
This entity wise, clear‐sighted and powerful is We see in Europe made scholar’s joy,
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] The heart is rent with grief.
Rich man 8, behold the darkened day
ADDRESS TO THE MUSLIM YOUTH
Have ever you pondered, O Muslim youth,
On deep and serious things? 7 “In pure plain life…wealth in fee.” Sorley’s
What is this world in which this you translation of these lines is absurd. The original
Is only a broken star? lines mean: Those God‐fearing men held such
You came of a stock that nourishes you pride even in poverty that the rich dared not give
alms to the poor [without taking permission].
Kinan’s old man once knew, Muslims are tightly bound in chains of
That the light of his eyes to Zuleikha’s eyes sectarianism
Might bring the brightness of sight. Look at your freedom and at their bondage
also look
In the mosque look at disintegration of the
THE EID CRESCENT priest’s love
In the temple at the Brahman’s strong idol‐
O the pride of Shawwal! O the fasting
worship also look
person’s darling!
Look at the sight of the Muslim ways in the
Come! As Muslims were very anxiously
infidels’ life
waiting for you
And at your Muslims’ tormenting other
The message of Eid is written on your
Muslims also look
forehead
Be the spectator of the shower of rocks of
Your evening is the preface to the dawn of
misfortunes
pleasure
At the frailty of the Muslims Ummah’s abodes
You are the mirror of the history of Millat‐i‐
also look
Baidah
Yes, look at the advance flattery of the
O crescent! We are your lovers since a very
‘honorable’ people
long time
And at the self‐respect of the formerly
The banner under whose shade we wielded
shameless people also look
our swords
Whom we got acquainted with the taste of
Under whose shade we used the blood of our
eloquence
enemies
At the haughty speech of that former
The companionship of this very banner is
speechless adversary look
your destiny
Listen to sounds of pleasurable orchestra in
The Millat’s honor is by your ever‐increasing
West’s palaces
beauty
And at the preparations for the mourning in
Our nation is cherisher of friends, fidelity is
Iran also look
your way
The imprudent Turk has torn the cloak of the
This silvery shirt of yours is the propagator of
Divine Khilafah
love
Look at Muslims’ simplicity at other’s
Look at the earth’s habitation from your
cunningness also look
celestial apses!
Look at everything, and remain quiet like a
Look at the depth of our abode from your
mirror
eminence!
In today tumult remain occupied in evening’s
Look at the caravans and also look at their fast
music!
speed
At the destitute traveler’s estrangement with THE CANDLE AND THE POET
destination also look
(February 1912)
On sighting you we used to give charity
lavishly THE POET
O empty cup! Today at our indigence also Last night I said to the candle of my desolate
look house
“Your hair gets combed by the wings of the
8 “Rich man…” It should be read “O Ghani!” moth
(Sorley has mistakenly translated the name of the In the world I am like the lamp of the
Kashmiri poet whose Persian couplet is quoted wilderness’ tulip
here. Ghani Kashmiri himself appears among the
heroes in A Message of the East and Javidnama.
I am neither in an assembly’s lot, nor in a That Qais be produced in your assembly is
house’ fortune not possible
Since a long time I am also burning my breath Your wilderness is straitened, without Lailah
like you is the litter of yours
Though I am circling the flame no moth has O brilliant pearl! O the one reared in the
hit its wing wave’s lap
Many an effulgence is crammed in my life of Unacquainted with the taste of storms is the
unfulfilled desires ocean of yours
Not a single loving heart rises in this Why are you singing now? your garden is in
assembly disorder!
From where have you acquired this world‐ Your singing is out of place, your music is out
illuminating fire? of season
You have infused the love of Kalim in the Those who were anxious for the Spectacle
poor insect”! have departed
Your coming now with general Sighting’s
The Candle
promise matters little
“The blow of breath which gives me the Those old ardent lovers of wine are gone from
message of death the assembly
By the same blow of breath your lip is O cub‐bearer! Your coming now in assembly
melodious with strong wine in the cup matters little
I am alight because burning is built into my Ah! When the rose garden’s organization has
nature already got disorganized
You are alight so that the moths may have the If the flower got the message of spring breeze
love of yours matters little
I am weeping because a flood gushes forth The lover’s condition was worth seeing at the
from my heart night’s end
You shed dew so that garden’s assembly may The Beloved’s arrival early in the morning
sing praises yours matters little
My morning is adorned with the roses from Extinguished is the flame which was every
my night’s toil moth’s objective
Your tomorrow is unaware of the today of If some pursuer of perfect love came now it
yours matters little
Though you are lightened your are devoid of The flowers do not care, you may or may not
the inner heat sing
Like the lamp of the wilderness’ tulip is the The caravan is callous, the bell may or may
flame of yours not ring
Just think if cup‐bearer’s title is appropriate If devoid of love’s warmth you remained
for you even as assembly’s candle
Assembly is thirsty and the wine‐measure is Your moths also unacquainted with this taste
empty of yours remained
Your ways are different, the law of the Millat If you could string them together on the
is different thread of Love
Your mirror has been disgraced by the ugly Then why did the beads of your rosary
appearance of yours scattered remain?
With the Ka’bah by your side you are Gone is the courageous Love, gone is the
temple’s lover sublime thinking
How rebellious is the irresponsible love of In your assembly neither the insane nor the
yours sages remain
Gone is that burning of Love, gone is that However, the grief’s night gives the message
heart’s pathos of ‘Eid’s morning
What good it is if the moths round the candle In the darkness of the night the ray of hope
did remain? has appeared
Very well, the cup‐bearer you may be, whom Glad tidings, O cup‐bearer of the tavern of
will you serve wine Hijaz
Now neither those wine‐drinkers nor those After ages your rinds have regained
taverns did remain consciousness
Today a broken decanter is crying for the cup‐ Wealth of self‐respect was the price for other’s
bearer wine
Whose goblets in circulation till yesterday did Now your shop is again full of calls for the
remain carousal
Today are silent those Love‐cherishing About to break is the magic of India’s white
expanses faced masters
Where Layla and her lovers dancing did Again the Sulaima’s eye is the harbinger of
remain clamor’s message
How disappointing! The caravan’s wealth is There is clamor again for cup‐bearer to bring
gone the home‐made wine
The feeling of loss from caravan’s heart is As the heart’s uproars have been silenced by
gone the West’s wine
With whose activities the wilderness was once Sing because this is not the time for silence
flourishing The dawn’s sky is shouldering the sun like
Their cities are wiped out, habitations decanter
desolate have became Burn in sympathy with others and also make
The prayers which established the grandeur others burn
of Tawhid Listen if you can, a bright Hadith has been
Those prayers offerings to Brahman in India conveyed to you
have become Ancestors have said that poetry is a part of
In this world ever‐lasting comfort on laws’ prophethood
observance depends Yes, convey to the Millat the glad tidings of
To the ocean wave freedoms prelude to the Messenger Angel!
lamentation have become Awaken the eye with the promise of the
The Manifestation Itself was longing for Beloved’s Sight
whose eyes Bring the heart to life with the warmth of
Those eyes despaired of Aiman’s light have speech’s skill
become Your love for indulgence became a robber of
Thousands of nightingales were flying about courage
in the rose‐garden You were an ocean in wilderness, in garden a
What happened to them that they confined to brook you became
the nests have become? When you stood firm in your purity, you had
In the celestial expanse whose lightning the nation also
power was panoramic Caravan of fragrance after leaving the rose
Those lightning’s satiated with the barn’s scattered became
sides have become The life of the drop has lessons of the secrets
Why should the blood letting eye ingratiated of life
to the rose garden be? Sometimes pearl, sometimes dew, sometimes
With continuous tears the eyes fully satiated tear it became
with embers have become Obtain it from somewhere it is a great wealth
What good is life if the heart unaware of Ah! Whose search keeps you aimlessly
bosom became wandering
Your honor depended upon the organization The path, the traveler, the guide, as well as
of the Millat the destination you are
When this organization departed, disgraced Why is your heart trembling with the fear of
world wide you became the storm?
The individual is firm by nation’s coherence, The sailor, the ocean, the boat, as well as the
otherwise nothing sea‐shore you are
The wave is only in the ocean, and outside it Come and look some time in the lane of the
is nothing torn collars
Keep the love concealed in your heart’s veil Qais, Lailah, the wilderness as well as the
still litter on the camel you are
That is do not disgrace your wine like the Woe foolishness! You are in need of the cup‐
decanter bearer
Pitch your tent in the Valley of Sinai like The wine, the decanter, the cup‐bearer, as
Kalim 1 well as the assembly you are
Make the Truth’s flame destroyer of home’s Becoming a flame burn down the rubbish of
comfort Godlessness
The candle should also know the result of Why are you afraid of the falsehood? The
atrocities destroyer of falsehood also you are
Make the moth’s ashes restorer of the O imprudent one! You are the essence of
morning time’s mirror
If you are self‐respecting be not obliged to the The ultimate message of God in the world
cup‐bearer you are!
In the ocean’s midst turn the goblet up side O imprudent one! Be aware of your own
down like the bubble reality as
No joy remains in the old mountains and Though you are only a drop your reality is
wilderness also like the boundless ocean
Your love is new, you should create new Why are you imprisoned in the spell of poor
wilderness resources
If the destiny has destroyed you completely Just look, concealed in you is also the storm’s
From downfall make a new rod like the seed power!
Yes! Build your nest again on the same old Your breast is custodian of the love’s message
branch of the one
Make the rose garden’s residents martyrs of Who is Apparent as well as Hidden in the
the song of intoxication universe’ system
In this garden be the nightingale’s follower or What conquers the whole world without
rose’ pupil sword and gun
Either be all complaint or do not produce any If you understand the material is also in your
music mettle
Why are you silent in the garden like dew’s O indolent One! Do you remember that
retreat covenant also?
Open your lips, you are the music of the On which Mount Faran till now is a silent
world’s harp! witness
Become somewhat acquainted with your own O ignorant one! Only you became contented
reality O farmer! with some flower buds
The grain, the cultivation, the rain, as well as Otherwise in the rose‐garden there is also
the produce you are cure for the receiver’s small capacity!
The heart’s state is produced in the speech’s MUSLIM
curtain
In decanter’s veil the wine is apparent as well (June 1912)
as veiled Every breath you draw, Iqbal,
My fiery music has burnt me down Is laden with sighs;
And this is the very means of my life! Your smouldering breast is filled with lament.
Look into my breast for the secret of this fiery The lute of your heart has no song of hope:
music Your litter, we believe, has not his Layla.
Look into heart’s mirror for destiny’s Your ears seek the sound of a song
manifestation! That has been sung and is no more,
The sky will shine mirror‐like with the Your heart is unconcerned
morning’s light With the commotion of the present.
And the night’s darkness will be speeding Your fellow‐singers of the garden
away! Would not hear the tale of the rose:
The spring breeze will be so melody inspiring The assembly would not listen
That flower‐bed’s silent fragrance will become To your message of old.
melodious! Quiet, O bell of the numb‐footed caravan!
The garden’s afflicted ones will unite with Your voice causes much despair—quiet!
other afflicted ones It cannot be brought back to life,
The zephyr will become companion of the The assembly of olden times;
rose’ assembly! Yesternight cannot be lit up with candles.
My gentle spray of dew will produce warmth
I am a Muslim, my friend
and music
A bearer of the message of tawhid
Every flower‐bud of this garden will become
And a witness since eternity to that truth!
appreciative of pathos!
To tawhid is due the warm beat
You will see the result of the glory of the
Of the pulse of the existents;
river’s flow
From it, too, the boldness
The restless wave itself will become its ankle’s
In the Muslim’s thought.
chain!
It is for the sake of this truth
The hearts will again recall the message of
That God created the world,
prostrations
And to guard that truth He created me.
The foreheads will become acquainted with
It was I who abolished
the Harem’s dust
The worship of falsehood—
The hunter’s wailing will give material for the
I, indeed, who proved to be
birds’ singing
The protector of the laws of existence.
Colored with flower‐picker’s blood the
My existence is a robe
flower‐bud will became
That covers the nakedness of the world:
Whatever the eye is seeing cannot be
To destroy me would be
described by the lips
A disgrace to mankind!
I am lost in amazement as to what the world
Of the fate of the world,
will become!
The Muslim is the shining star—
The night will eventually disappear by sun’s
One whose brilliance puts to shame
appearance!
The spell cast by dawn.
This garden will be filled with the Light of
The secrets of life are exposed to my view:
Tawhid!
I cannot be said to have despaired
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Of waging the struggle of life.
How can I be frightened
By the transient scene of sorrow? But I have brought this chalice here to make
I believe in the destiny of my Community! my sacrifice;
Of the element of despair my life is free: The thing it holds you will not find in all your
The heat of the battle Paradise.
Gives notice of complete victory. See here, oh Lord, the honour of your people
Yes, my eyes are fixed on the age gone by, brimming up!
And to the assembly I tell The martyred blood of Tripoli, oh Lord, is in
The same old story. this cup.’
To the dust of my being is elixir
The memory of the bygone age.
My past is the exegesis of my future; THE HOSPITAL OF HIJAZ
I keep in view that exciting age—
A leader of the nation once said to Iqbal
In the mirror of the past I see the future.
“A hospital is about to open in Jeddah for
[Translated by Mustansir Mir] Hijaz
Every speck of your dust becomes restless
BEFORE THE PROPHET’S THRONE
As you hear from somebody the tale of Hijaz
Sick of this world and all this world’s tumult Move your hand of Love towards your pocket
I who had lived fettered to dawn and sunset, You are world famous as the lover of Hijaz
Yet never fathomed the planet’s hoary laws, The hospital in the suburbs of Batha is needed
Taking provisions for my way set out In the hands of ‘Isa the patient’s pulse is
From earth, and angels led me where the needed”
Prophet I said “Life lies in the veil of death
Holds audience, and before the mercy‐seat. As the Truth lies veiled in metaphors
What the Lover has obtained in the position
‘Nightingale of the gardens of Hijaz! each bud
of death
Is melting,’ said those Lips, ‘in your song’s
Khizr could not obtain in the wine of eternal
passion‐flood;
life
Your heart forever steeped in the wine of
Sir, convey this message of life to others
ecstasy,
I am searching for death in the land of Hijaz
Your reeling feet nobler than any suppliant
Why have you brought the message of cure?
knee.
What concern do Lovers have with the
But since, taught by these Seraphim to mount
Masiha.”
so high,
You have soared up from nether realms [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
towards the sky
And like a scent comes here from the orchards
THE ANSWER TO THE COMPLAINT
of the earth— When passion streaming from the heart
What do you bring for us, what is your Turns human lips to lyres,
offering worth?’ Some magic wings man’s music then,
‘Master! there is no quiet in that land of time His song with soul inspires;
and space, Man’s words are sacred then, they soar,
Where the existence that we crave hides and The ears of heaven they seek,
still hides its face; From dust those mortal accents rise,
Though all creation’s flowerbeds teem with Immortals hear them speak;
tulip and red rose, So wild and wayward was my Love,
The flower whose perfume is true love—that Such tumult raised its sighs,
flower no garden knows. Before its daring swiftly fell
The ramparts of the skies. A song of eulogy;
A bridge of converse thou hast formed
The skies exclaimed in wonderment,
‘Twixt mortal man and Me!
“Some one is hiding here,”
The wheeling Planets paused to say, Behold, my hands arc full of gifts,
“Seek on the highest sphere.” But who comes seeking here?
The silver Moon said, “You are wrong, And how shall I the right road shew
Some mortal it must be,” When there’s no traveller?
The Milky Way too joined converse, My loving care is there for all,
“Here in our midst is he.’’ If deserved but by few!
Rizwan alone, my plaintive voice Not this the clay from which I can
Began to recognise, An Adam’s shape renew!
He knew me for a human who On him who merits well I set
Had lost his Paradise. The brightest diadem,
And those who truly questing come,
And even the Angels could not tell
A new world waits for them.
What was that voice so strange,
Whose secret seemed to lie beyond Apostate hearts and palsied hands
Celestial wisdom’s range. Your earthly lives debase,
They said, “Can Man now roving come You all, to your great Prophet, are
And reach these regions high? Bringers of deep disgrace;
That tiny speck of mortal clay, Those idol‐breakers all have gone,
Has it now learnt to fly? You idolaters are,
How little do these beings of earth Abraham was the father, you
The laws of conduct know; His sons, are but Azar;
How coarse and insolent they are, Now stranger bands carousal hold,
These men who live below. Strange are both cup and wine,
A strange new Kaʹba you have reared,
So great their insolence indeed,
Strange idols oh its shrine!
They dare even God upbraid!
Is this the Man to whom their bow The tulip of the wilds once reigned
The Angels once had made? The queen of blossom‐time:
Of Quality and Quantity In this once lay the quintessence
He knows the secrets, true— Of loveliness sublime.
The ways of humbleness as well Once every true‐born Mussalman
If he a little knew! By Allah set his store,
That they alone are blest with speech This fickle‐hearted courtesan
How proud these humans be, Even you did once adore!
Yet, ignorant, they lack the art Go, seek some constant mistress now,
To use it gracefully.” To her a new bond sign,
Muhammad’s universal creed
Then spake a Voice Compassionate:
To narrow bounds confine!
“Thy tale enkindles pain,
Thy cup is brimming full with tears To pray to me at break of day
Which thou couldst not contain You now an ordeal deem,
Even High Heaven itself is moved Your morning slumber sweeter far—
By these impassioned cries; Yet you would faithful seem!
How wild the heart which taught thy lips The hardships of the fast oppress
Such savage melodies! Your natures—now grown free;
Its grace yet makes this song of thine Such are your ways and you still would
Protest your love for me! And one your Kaʹba, One your God,
Unto a nation faith is life, And one your great Quran;
You lost your faith and fell, Yet, still, divided each from each,
When gravitation fails, must cease Lives every Mussalman.
Concourse celestial. You split yourselves in countless sects,
In classes high and low;
You love your homes the least among
Think you the world its gifts will still
The nations of the earth,
On such as you bestow?
You are the most incompetent
In knowledge and in worth; Who now forgetfully neglect
You are a barn where lightning stays, My Rasool’s Law sublime?
Where ruin idle lies, And whose lives write them clearly down
Ancestral coffins long entombed As servers of the time?
Your only merchandise; To whom now other customs seem
In turning graves to profit, you Far nobler than their own?
Have proved yourselves adept; By whom your great forefathers’ ways
Should idol‐trading offer gain Once followed, are forsworn?
Of course you would accept. Your hearts are now of longing void,
Your souls now know no zeal,
Whose striving, from this world of mine,
You heed no more that message great
Its falsehoods did efface?
Which Ahmad did reveal.
Whose toil, from age‐old ignorance
Set free the human race? If any fasting’s hardship bear,
And whose the brows whose worship It is the poor, today;
filled If worship’s echoes ring in mosques,
My Kaʹba’s hallowed shrine? It is the poor who pray;
Or whose the breasts which fondly held It is the humble and the poor
My ‘glorious Book Divine’? Who still my name esteem,
These were your great progenitors; Theirs is the word, theirs is the deed,
You lack their brain and brawn; Yours the shame they redeem.
You sit and wait in slothful ease The rich are drunk with wine of wealth,
For every morrow’s dawn. Their God they hardly know,
It is because the poor yet live
And did you say, for Muslims I
That wells of Faith still flow.
Mere promises dispense?
Unjust laments at least should show That judgment ripe is no more theirs
Some spark of commonsense. Who play your preachers’ role,
Eternal is the Law of God Nor kindling accents from their lips,
And Justice is its name, Reveal the flaming soul.
Should infidels like Muslims live Azan yet sounds, but never now
The meed shall be the same. Like Bilal’s, soulfully;
Not one among you seeks in truth Philosophy, convictionless,
To come at bliss through me Now mourns its Ghazzali,
Still the Light Sinai’s mount illumes— Untrod by praying feet, the mosques
No Moses there to see. Lament their emptiness,
For gone are those exemplars great
Your nation’s weal, your nation’s woe,
Of Arab godliness
In common you all share,
Your Prophet and your creed the same, ’Tis said: “ The Muslims quit this world,
The same Truth you declare; Their days are on the wane,”—
The Muslims died out long ago; The paths of Al‐Quran.
Such a lament is vain.
You roll the eye of mutual wrath,
From Christians you have learnt your
Their eye was ever kind;
style,
You err, for errors look, while they
Your culture from Hindus;
Were generously blind.
How can a race as Muslims pass
Aspiring for the Pleiades,
Who shame even the Jews?
How simple it all seems!
You are known as Syed, and Mughal,
But let there first be hearts like theirs,
You call yourselves Pathan;
To justify such dreams.
But can you truly claim as well
They reigned upon the Chinese throne,
The name of Mussalman?
They wore the Persian crown:
The Muslim was sincere of speech,
Where is that honour that they knew—
Of fear his voice was free;
Words are your whole renown.
Just, staunch, he scorned the slightest breath
Of partiality. They fought for honour, self‐respect,
In nature, like a tree, kept fresh Yours the self‐slayer’s knife,
By modesty most rare, You shun the ties of brotherhood
Yet braver than the bravest he, They cherished more than life.
Intrepid past compare. You can but weave the web of words,
Like wine, upon the drinker’s lips, They did their deeds of might:
His joy, in losing, lay; You pine after a bud: they basked
As the cup pours its liquor out, In gardens flower‐bright.
He poured his ‘self’ away. The world remembers still the tales
Which hymn their bravery,
What the knife is to cankerous growths,
And in their storied book of life
To all untruth was he,
Shines their sincerity.
His actions, in life’s mirror shone
Like light, vibratingly. Upon your nation’s sky you rose
If he was confident of aught, Like stars of brilliant hue,
It was his right arm’s might, The lure of India’s idols made
He feared but God, while thoughts of Even Brahmans out of you;
death Drawn by the wander‐lust, you went
Your craven souls affright. A‐roving ‘from your nests:
When sons, lacking their fathers’ worth, Slothful in good, your youth next learnt
Are neither skilled nor sage, To doubt their faith’s behests;
With what deserving can they claim ‘Enlightenment’ ensnared you all,
Their fathers’ heritage? And all your ‘fetters’ fell,
The land of Kaʹba you forsook,
The love of ease, like fumes of wine
In idol‐land to dwell!
Makes sots of you today,
How dare you pass as Mussalmans? If longing Qais roams no more,
That is not Islam’s way? But seeks the town again,
Nor Usman’s treasure‐chest you own, Leaving the lonely desert wastes
Nor Ali’s empty bowl, To share tile life 0f men,
With spirits of such great forbears, Qais is mad: what if he dwells
What kinship has your soul? In town or wilderness?
The honoured of their times, they lived, Yet from him Layla must not veil
For theirs was true iman, Her face in bashfulness!
You live disgraced, as having left Complain ye not of heart unkind
Nor speak of tyranny! Thou holdest the starting bells 9

When Love no bondage knows, then why Nought else is needed, if thy will
Should Beauty not be free? Thy onward march impels.
Thou candle‐tree! thy wick‐like root,
Each stack and barn it sets on fire,
Its top with flame illumes,
This lightning‐like New Age,
Nor bowling wild nor garden gay Thy thought is fire, its very breath
Escapes its flaming rage; All future care consumes.
This new fire feeds on fuel old,— And thou shalt suffer no surcease
The nations of the past, Should Iran’s star decline,
And they too burn to whom was sent ‘Tis not the vessel which decides
God’s Messenger, the last. The potency of wine;
But if the faith of Abraham ‘Tis proved to all the world, from tales
There, once again, is born, Of Tartar conquerors,
Where leaps this flame, flowers will bloom, The Kaʹba brave defenders found
And laugh its blaze to scorn. In temple‐worshippers.
In thee relies the bark of God,
Yet, let the gardener not be sad Adrift beyond the bar,
To see the garden’s plight, The new‐born age is dark as night,
For soon its branches will be gay And thou its dim pole‐star.
With buds, like stars of light;
The withered leaves and weeds will pass, The Bulgars march! the fiend of war
And all its sweepings old; In fearful fury breathes;
For there, again, will martyr‐blood The message comes: “Sleepers, awake!
In roses red unfold. The Balkan cauldron seethes.”
But look! a hint of russet hue, Thou deemest this a cause of grief,
Brightening the eastern skies, Thy heart is mortified;
The glow on yon horizon’s brow, But nay, thy pride, thy sacrifice,
Heralds a new sunrise. Thus, once again, are tried.
Beneath thy foes if chargers neigh?
In Life’s old garden nations lived Why tremblest thou in fright?
Who all its fruits enjoyed, For never, never, shall their breath
While others longed in vain, while some Extinguish Heaven’s light.
The winter blasts destroyed;
Its trees are legion; some decay, Not yet have other nations seen
While others flush with bloom, What thou art truly worth,
And thousands still their birth await, The realm of Being has need of thee
Hid in the garden’s womb; For perfecting this earth.
A symbol of luxuriance, If aught yet keeps world alive,
The Tree of Islam reigns, ‘Tis thine impetuous zeal,
Its fruits achieved with centuries And thou shalt rise its ruling star,
Of garden‐tending pains. And thou shalt shape its weal.
This is no time for idle rest,
Thy robe is free from dust of home, Much yet remains undone;
Not thine such narrow ties, The lamp of tawhid needs thy touch
That Yousuf thou, who Canaan sweet, To make it shame the sun!
In every Egypt lies;

The qafila can ne’er disperse 9 ‘Starting bells…’ Or the ‘marching bells’—The
expression in Urdu is the same as the title of the
anthology.
Thou art like fragrance in the bud, It swims perpetually!
Diffuse thyself: be free.
Thy shield be wisdom, be thy sword
Perfume the garden breeze, and fill
The flaming Love Divine,
The earth with scent of thee.
My fond dervish! dost thou not know
From dusty speck, do thou increase
That all the world is thine?
To trackless desert‐main.
All else but God is at thy feet,
From a faint breeze, a tempest grow,
If sounds thy Takbeer great;
Become a hurricane!
If thou a Muslim truly art,
Raise thou, through Love, all humble
Thy effort is thy fate.
To greatness and to fame;
To my Muhammad be but true,
Enlighten thou the groping world
And thou hast conquered me;
With dear Muhammad’s Name.
The world is nought: thou shalt command
If this fair flower blossom not, My Pen of Destiny.
The bulbul will not sing,
[Translated by Altaf Husain]
Nor rose‐buds make the garden smile
Welcoming in the spring; THE CUP‐BEARER
If he is not the saki, then
Everyone knows how to throw down people
Nor jar nor wine will be,
with intoxicants
Nor in this world will tawhid shine,
The fun is to convert the intoxicated one to
Nor thy heart beat in thee;
sanity, O cup‐bearer
Yonder ethereal skyey tent,
Those who were the old wine‐drinkers are
This great name still sustains,
gradually departing
And dancing to its music, flows
Bring the water of immortality from
The blood in Life’s own veins.
somewhere, O cup‐bearer
’Tis in the forests and the hills,
Your whole night has passed in tumult and
And on the tranquil plains,
clamor
On the seas, in the arms of waves,
The dawn is close remember God, O cup‐
In roar of hurricanes;
bearer!
A music heard in China’s towns,
Morocco’s desert‐song, EDUCATION AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
And hid within each Muslim’s heart
(Tadmin Bar Shi’r‐i‐Mullah ‘Arshi ‐ Based on a
It makes his faith grow strong.
verse of Mullah ‘Arshi)
Let all the peoples of the world
See till the end of time, Though we also are happy with the progress
How I have made this glorious name of the young
Beyond all thought sublime! But some complaint from the happy lips also
comes with it
That pupil of the eye of Earth,
We had thought education would bring
Soil only dark men tread,
economic freedom
That region where have always been
We did not know that atheism would also
Your martyrs born and bred,
come with it
That land upon the hot sun’s lap,
Though Shirin did honor Parviz with her
That land of al‐hilal,
presence
Which lovers fondly love to call
But she brought the ax of Farhad also with her
The land of their Bilal,‐‐
Let us take the seed afresh in our hand and
Is all a‐quiver with this Name,
use it anew
Like trembling mercury,
Like pupils dark, in pools of light,
We are ashamed to reap what would come Just listen to the message of the ecstatic
out from whatever we sowed stroller
Only he is living who unconcerned with
CLOSENESS TO KINGS resting is
The distinction between the ruler and the In the valleys the cloud’s elegant daughter is
ruled cannot disappear roaming
The beggar cannot have the audacity of being Exhibiting her love for the greenery of the
equal to the king meadow is
In the world adoration of the master is the Stealing away the cup of wine from
climax of devotion mountain’s tavern
“Seek the pleasure of the master and have the Passing throughout ups and downs suckling
beautiful tunic” the fields is
But if you aim to have the good pleasure of If the affectionate poet also exhibits the truth
the ruler Life’s cultivation greens up from his bountiful
You will have the title of self‐seeker and anti‐ ways
national Khalil’s glory is evident from his verse
The old way has thousands of difficulties When his nation exhibits the Azar’s ways
In the new principle the lap is free of worries For earth’s inhabitants is the recipe of eternal
The real joy comes by passing one’s life like life
this The literature which is nurtured in sincere
“Thousand words in the mouth and have ways
silent lips” If the book of literature’s wine in the world’s
This principle alone is the mainstay of garden does not exist
peaceful existence The flower, the bud, the verdure, even the
“The recluse beggar you are, O Hafiz make no garden will not exist
clamor”
THE GOOD NEWS OF THE DAWN
But “If you are inclined to clamor let us begin
“Grasp holy wine, then drink it to the harp’s (1912)
tune”
When the dawn full of action arrives from the
Join the assemblies of the rich, the minister
east
and the king
The silence marches off from the stage of life
Smash to pieces conscience’ goblet with
The quietude of nature’s congregation ends at
greed’s stone
last
However, listen to the message of the Saint of
Everything presents evidence of its life at last
Shiraz also
The birds warble on getting the message of
That this is the secret of the conscience seller’s
life
closet
In the garden flowers also put on the robe of
“Light of effulgence is the king’s brilliant
life
opinion
O sleeping Muslim get up! You also engaged
If you want his closeness try to have clean
in action be
intention”
Look, the horizon has brightened up, you also
THE POET busy in urgent tasks be
In the universe’s expanse a traveler like the
The melodious brook is coming down from sun be
the mountain So that the sky not producing these spots of
After drinking red wine from the tavern’s clouds be
spring
Pulling the dagger of sun’s ray get busy again I am a nightingale making my lament,
in the fight I am from a garden which has been ravaged.
Again teacher of escape’s rules to falsehood’s I wish that my prayer would have effect—
darkness be Give to a beggar, bounteous Lord!
You are head to foot Light, manifestation
makes you happy
And after being manifest spreading out is IN RESPONSE TO THE REQUEST FOR
incumbent on you WRITING A POEM ON ʹEID
Yes! On being manifest become lightning to In the Shalamar Garden a yellowed leaf was
the bat’s eye saying
O hidden mystery of the heart of universe “Gone is that spring of which the confidante I
manifest be! am
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] The garden’s visitors should not trample me
down
PRAYER The memory of the branch of their own nest I
Lord, fill the Muslim’s heart am”
With a desire so fervent This tiny little leaf made the heart restless
That it will set his heart aflame One coming into the garden complete
And stir his soul. mourner of spring I am
Light up again every speck of dust In the autumn I am crying in remembrance of
In the Valley of Faran. the spring
Make us long again for beautiful sights, How can I get the happiness of Eid as grief‐
And create in us the urge to make demands. stricken I am
Give piercing vision Devastated have become the olden days’
To those deprived of sight, taverns
And show to others what I have seen. A memorial of the olden days’ wine drinkers I
Lead the stray gazelle back to the Sanctuary. am
It has grown used to the city ‐ It gives the message of pleasure and
Give it back the vastness of the desert. happiness to us!
Stir up again the ruins of the heart The crescent of Eid is making fun of us!
With a commotion like judgment Day. [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
Let this empty litter once again seat
A sweetheart ‐ a Layla! FATIMA BINT ‘ABDULLAH
In the darkness of this age give Fatima, you are the pride
To every troubled heart Of the Community ‐God bless it!
Scars of love that would shame the moon. Your dust is holy, every particle of it.
Let the goals be as high as the Pleiades. You, houri of the desert,
Give us the calm and poise of the shore, Were fated to win such merit!
But the freedom of the sea. To give the soldiers of Islam water to drink
Let love be selfless Was to be your good fortune.
And truth fearless; A jihad in the way of God,
Let our breasts be flooded with light‐ Waged without sword or shield!
Make our hearts clear as crystal. What courage the love of martyrdom gives!
Enable us to foresee the calamity that is O that in our autumn‐stricken garden
coming; There were flower‐buds like this!
In the midst of today’s upheaval O that a spark like this, dear Lord,
Give us a vision of tomorrow. Could be found in our ashes!
In our desert many deer still hide! The songbirds are captive—what an outrage!
And in the spent clouds Thorns grow in the rose’s shadow‐what an
Many flashes of lightning still lie dormant! outrage!
Fatima, though our grieving eyes The eyes of the ailing narcissus are never dry.
Weep tears like dew over you, The heart longs to see, but the eyes are blind.
Our dirge is also a celebration song. The ardour of its complaint has burnt the tall
How thrilling is the dance of your dust, tree’s heart;
Every atom of which is charged with life. The tree is a captive, and is free only in name.
There is stirring in your quiet grave: The stars ‐ in the language of men ‐ are sparks
Within it a new nation is being reared. struck by human sighs;
Though I know nothing of the range of its In the language of gardens, I am the sky’s
ambition, tears.
I see them spring to life from this tomb. It is foolish how the moon circles the earth—
New stars are appearing in the sky above, It believes that the earth will heal the scar in
Stars whose rolling waves of light its heart!
Have not been seen by the eyes of man; The world is a cottage built in the air—
Stars just risen out of the dark dungeon of A picture of lament drawn on the canvas of
time, space.’
Stars whose light is not hostage to day and
night;
Stars whose radiance is both old and new, THE SIEGE OF ADRIANOPLE
And partakes of the splendour
When the struggle between Truth and
Of the star of your destiny too.
falsehood began in Europe
[Translated by Mustansir Mir] The Truth was compelled on wielding the
dagger
THE DEW AND THE STARS
The dust of the Cross circled round the
One night the stars said to the dew: Crescent
‘Every morning you get to see new sights. Shakree became besieged in the fortress of
Who knows how many worlds you have seen! Adrianople
You have seen the traces left behind by those Provisions of Muslim soldiers became
Who once flourished but then perished. exhausted
Venus has heard this news from an angel: The face of hope from the eye became
Far, far from the heavens is the city of men. concealed
Tell us the story of that beautiful realm At last by the Turkish army commander’s
Which is serenaded by the moon. orders
‘Do not ask me, stars, about the garden of the “Martial Law” was proclaimed the law of the
world; city
It is no garden, but a town filled with sighs Everything was transferred to the army
and screams. camp’s store
The west wind arrives there, only to leave The eagle became beggar for the grain of the
again; sparrow
The poor bud blooms, but only to Wither. But when the Faqih of the city heard this
How do I describe to you news
The bud that brightens the garden— He exploded with anger like the thunderbolt
It is a tiny flame with no heat! of Tur
The rose cannot hear the nightingale’s cry, “Dhimmi’s” wealth is forbidden for the
Or pick up pearls from the fold of my hem. Muslim army”
This edict was published throughout the “You should have no complaint against your
whole city fate”
The army would not touch the Jews’ and My sleeping in the couch was a mere show,
Christians’ wealth an affectation
The Muslim became compelled by the Because stupor is foreign to the dignity of
Command of God! fighters
It was my intention that some daughter of
GHULAM QADIR RUHILAH Taimur
How cruel, tyrant and vindictive the Ruhilah Considering me unconscious might kill me
was with my own dagger,
He blinded the Mughal Emperor with the But at last this secret has dawned to the whole
point of his dagger world
The tyrant ordered members of the royal Concern for honor has departed from
household to dance Taimur’s household.”
This tyranny was no less than the Judgment
A DIALOGUE
Day’s signal
For the delicate ladies of the royal household A domesticated bird once said to the wild
it was bird
Utterly impossible to comply with this “If you have wings, do not I also have wings?
shameless order If you are air‐borne, I am also air‐borne
Ah! The merciless one made them the means If you are free I am also not a prisoner
of pleasure All winged creatures are characterized by
Whose beauty had been veiled from sun’s, flight
moon’s and stars Why then are wild birds inclined to be
The feeble hearts were throbbing, the feet arrogant!”
were forced to move As the wild bird’s self‐respect became
A river of blood was flowing from the wet wounded
eyes of the princesses He spoke thus on hearing this heart‐rending
For some time his eyes remained thus talk
absorbed in seeing “There is no doubt you also are free for flight
In confusion he freed his head from the load But the limit of your flight is only up to the
of Mighfar wall
He untied the deadly, fire‐spitting sword Are you unacquainted with the courage of the
from the waist wild birds?
Whose sharpness was a source of You live on the dust, they are concerned with
luminescence to the stars the sky
He put the dagger in front, and lied down in You are a household bird, you seek food in
some thought the dust
Sleep was demanding rest from the red eyes We strike the star with our beak in search of
so to say the grain”
The water of sleep extinguished the embers of
his eyes
I AND YOU
The tyrant’s sight became ashamed of the My eye is unacquainted with the taste for the
painful spectacle! Sight
He got up and started saying this to Taimur’s Your eye is the knower of Nature’s secret, so
household what?
My tongue is indebted to the complaint “You must be subservient to whom you had
against time become rebellious
The universe’s rotation depends on your will, From wherever you departed like flame, turn
so what? back to it”
The sky kept me wandering in garden like the
breeze’s current
SHIBLI AND HALI
The sky has bestowed the abode over you, so One day Iqbal said to the Muslim
what? “Your existence is unique in the universe
The wealth of your life is free of desire for The tunes of your old songs are the basis of
gain new knowledge
In my heart is the anxiety of loss, so what? Civilization is the dust of your old caravans
Your planes are flying about in the air Even the zephyr’s current is like stone to it
My ship is devoid of the sail, so what? Very delicate is the mirror of Man’s honor
I became strong, so what, I became weak, so The men of action by discovering the causes
what? of phenomena
This happened, so what, that happened, so Find the cure for the azure‐colored sky’s
what? cruelties
Tranquillity does not exist to any extent in Ask them who are the old secret keepers of
this rose‐garden! the garden
If you became spring, and I became autumn, How the autumn became engaged in fight
so what? with your garden”
The Muslim became restless with my
THE POEM BASED ON A VERSE OF ABU
conversation
TALIB KALIM The sad sigh became betrayer of the inner
Your regard for the ways of the Lord of sorrow
Yathrib is strange He said “Just look at the autumn’s condition
Your life is exhibiting that you are not a The leaves of the tree of life have become pale
Muslim Those garden’s secret keepers became silent
What made heavens contained in your ring’s Whose tune of pathos was the means of
circle mellowness
O Sulaiman! that jewel is lost by your The garden’s inhabitants were still mourning
negligence! Shibli
That mark of prostration which used to shine When Hali also became a traveler towards
like a star Paradise
Your forehead has now become unacquainted “Still he is a fool who is asking the gardener
with that mark! What did nightingale say, what did rose hear,
Just look at your actions, do you envisage what did zephyr do?”
That candor whose fearlessness was always
EVOLUTION
wonderful
Your ancestors’ eye was the thunderbolt for Struggle has continued from eternity till the
falsehood present day
The same falsehood is now lodged in your Between the lamp of Mustafa and the spark of
breast Bu Lahab
O negligent one come and inhabit in your Life is flame‐tempered, high‐minded and
abode again fervent
The discerning Kalim is singing on the It’s nature is resolving difficulty, bearing
spiritual Tur cruelty
From the evening’s quietude till the No man more loyal, he brought with him
morning’s song Everything with value in the eyes of the
There are many a stage of the midnight world:
wailing! Slaves, money, goods and chattels.
Struggle exists between the heat and cold, He brought his horses, their hooves shining
throbbing and shaping like the moon,
From the dark dust to the polished glass of And his camels, mules and asses.
Halab The Prophet said, ‘It is necessary to think of
The phenomena of making and breaking, one’s family too!’
squeezing, heating and distilling That man, who knew the secrets of love, said,
Exist between the drop of spring rain and the ‘You are the one from whom the moon and
heat of the grape wine! stars
Nations live by this continuous struggle alone Receive the brightness of their eyes;
This alone is the secret of the Arab nation’s And you are the one for whose sake
struggle The universe was brought into being:
“The tavern‐keepers making wine from the The lamp is enough for the moth,
grape The flower is enough for the nightingale—
Break the stars and construct the sun” For Abu Bakr the Prophet of God is enough’.
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
ABU BAKR THE TRUTHFUL THE PRESENT CIVILIZATION
One day the Holy Prophet said to his (Based on a Verse of Faizi)
Companions,
Extremely excessive is the heat of current
‘The rich among you should give in the way
civilization’s wine
of God’.
The clay body of the Muslim has exploded
On hearing that command, an overjoyed
into flames
‘Umar stood up;
It made the speck into fire‐fly by giving it
That day he had thousands of dirhams.
borrowed light
Today, for sure, he said in his heart,
Just look at what the trickery of the splendid
My horse will take the lead from Abu Bakr’s.
sun is
So he brought his wealth to the Trustworthy
The nature of the young generation has found
Prophet—
new ways
Sacrifice is needed to start a project off.
This beauty, this alertness, this freedom, this
‘Umar’, asked the Prophet, the Sovereign of
fearlessness
the world,
Such a change has come about in planning
‘A passion for truth is the sole comfort of your
and thought
heart.
Bursting of the garden’s flower‐buds in Love
Did you keep anything back for your
is considered trivial
family?—
The newly flying birds have lost their nests
For a Muslim must honour the duty he bears
but
to his relations.’
A pretty sight has been shown by magician’s
‘Half’, he said, ‘belongs to wife and children,
cunningness
The rest I offer to the Community of Light.’
The new life brought with it ever changing
In the meantime that Companion of the
pleasures
Prophet arrived
Rivalry, selling conscience, impatience, greed
Who gives strength to the edifice of love and
Muslim’s assembly is glittering with the new
devotion.
candle’s light
But my old time wisdom is saying this to the But your picture is the messenger of eternal
moths grieving—
“O moth! You have derived this warmth from Alas! it cancels out my powerful wisdom.
the assembly’s candle
By drunken lamentation, the foundation of
Burn in your own fire like me if you have the
life is made firm;
warmth of the heart.
By the knowledge of pain, stony hearted
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] intelligence is put to shame.
By the wave of the smoke of the sigh, my
IN MEMORY OF MY LATE MOTHER mirror is bright;
Every atom of creation is a prisoner of fate; My breast is filled from the watery treasury.
Contrivance is the veil of constraint and I am amazed at the spell your portrait casts,
helplessness. Which has changed the direction of the flight
The sky is compelled; the sun and the moon of time.
are compelled; It seems that it has stood past and present
The fleet‐footed stars are compelled in their side by side;
course. It has once more made me aware of the time
The cup of the bud in the garden is destined of my childhood,
to be smashed; When that helpless life was nurtured in your
Verdure and flowers are also compelled to lap,
grow in the garden. Whose tongue was not properly familiar with
Be it the song of the nightingale or the silent words.
voice of the innermost spirit, And now he is famous for the charm of his
Everything is a captive of this world‐ speech;
encompassing chain. His eyes, which shed jewels, are priceless
pearls.
When this secret of constraint is clear to the
eye, The serious discourse of wisdom, the
The flowing stream of tears grows dry in the awareness of old‐age,
heart. The grandeur of worldly honours, the pride of
The dance of pleasure and grief no longer youth—
remains in the human breast; We come down from the pinnacles of life’s
The song remains, but the joy of high and low towers
does not. And in the company of our mother remain a
Knowledge and wisdom are the highway‐ simple child.
robbers of the goods of tears and sighs; We observe no formality, we laugh, we are
The aware heart is a fragment of a diamond. free from care:
Although in my garden, there is not the Once more we abide in this paradise which
freshness of the dew we had lost.
And my eye is not the possessor of the dark Now, who will wait for me, alas!, in my
red tear, homeland?
I know, alas! the secret of human tribulations; Who will be anxious when my letter does not
The instrument of my nature is empty of the arrive?
melody of complaint. I shall come to the dust of your grave,
The tale of the changing colours of time is not bringing this lament:
on my lips; Now who will remember me in midnight
My heart is not amazed, not laughing, not prayers?
weeping;
Because you brought me up, I shared the fate Nothing but the capital of a tearful eye.
of the stars;
But the age of testing will also end;
The house of my forefathers was accorded
Behind the nine veils of the firmament even
honour.
now there are other ages.
In the scroll of existence your life was a
If in this garden the breasts of the tulip and
golden page.
the rose are torn, so what?
Your life was from beginning to end a lesson
If nightingales are forced to cry and lament,
in faith and the world.
so what?
Throughout my life, your love was my
The bushes, which keep the sigh of the
servant,
autumn imprisoned in their cage—
And when I was able to serve you, you
The wind of eternal spring will make them
departed this world.
green.
That young man who in stature is like the
If our vital spark sleeps in the trampled earth,
lofty cypress and who was more blessed by
so what?
your service than I,
If our pinch of dust travels in this transitory
He stood shoulder to shoulder with me in the
litter, so what?
business of life;
The finality of the fire of life is not a bed of
He, a portrait of your love; he, my right arm.
ashes.
Now he mourns you like a helpless baby,
It is not the pearl whose destiny is to be
And weeps for you morning and evening,
broken.
knowing no self‐control.
The seed, which you sowed in the field of our In the eye of existence, life is so beloved:
life, In the nature of everything there is the desire
As we share our grief—that love has become to preserve life.
even stronger. If the trace of life could have been erased by
the hands of death,
Ah, this world, this house of mourning for
The order of the universe would not have
young and old;
made it so common.
To what spell of yesterday and tomorrow is
If it is so cheap, then think that death is
mankind captive!
worthless,
How hard life is! How easy is death!
In the same way as sleeping does not stop one
In the garden of existence, death is as cheap as
living.
the morning breeze.
Alas, my ignorant one! The hidden secret of
There are earthquakes, lightning, famines,
death is quite different.
tribulations—
From the instability of its impression,
All daughters of the mother of the days!
something else is visible.
Death comes to the poor man’s hovel; death
The impression of the wind on the water is a
comes to the rich man’s palace.
vision of paradise;
Death is present in deserts and towns, in
Breaking the agitated wave, it creates bubbles.
cities, in garden, in the wilderness.
And then it hides them in the bosom of the
Death even creates its tumults in the silent
wave.
sea,
How cruelly it rubs out its own trace.
And boats sink in the embrace of the wave.
But if the wind could not create anew the
There is no room for complaint, nor power of
bubbles it hade made,
speech;
The wind would not be so careless as to
What is life? A noose that squeezes the throat.
smash them.
In the caravan, there is nothing but the lament
But what effect does this behaviour have
of the bell;
upon the actual form of creation?
It is proof that the wind has the power to In the veil of sleep, it is a message of
create. awakening.
Could it be that the nature of existence will Those who are accustomed to flying have no
not ever be a martyr to desire? fear of flying.
Could it be that it will not seek to make a In this garden, death means nothing more
better form? than the poising of wings.
Ah! Restless quicksilver, stars that light in the People of the world say that the pain of death
heavens! is incurable;
These lively sparks, whose shining is indebted The wound of separation is healed by the
to the darkness of the night. balm of time.
Knowledge bows in humility to the length of But the heart which is filled by grief for the
their life. death
One hour of theirs is the life‐story of Is freed from the links of the chain of morning
mankind. and evening.
But then a man it is who casts his sight to the The lamentation of mourning is not stopped
heavens, by the spell of time;
And in his purpose he is purer than even the Time is no balm for the wound of the sword
angels. of separation.
Like a shining candle, he stands in the When a disaster suddenly befalls a man,
assembly of nature, Tears continually flow from his eyes.
And in the vastness of his nature the sky is There comes about a connection between the
just a point. heart and lament and complaint;
His lack of knowledge is anxious for truth. The blood of the heart flows in the tears
His finger‐nail is the plectrum of the which fill the eyes.
instrument of existence. Although man is bereft of the strength of
Is this flame then less bright than the sparks patience,
of the firmament? In his nature there is an undefinable sense.
Is this sun cheaper than the stars? Man’s spirit does not know annihilation;
It may disappear from sight, but is not
The eye of the seed of the flower is awake
obliterated.
even under the soil.
The apparel of existence is turned to ashes by
How anxious it is to grow to maturity!
the flames of grief;
The flame of life which is hidden in this seed
This fire is put out by the water of that
is compelled to show itself, to increase itself
pleasant feeling.
in growth.
Ah! The suppression of lamentation is not the
It cannot be dispirited even in the coldness of
silence of indifference.
the grave.
It is awareness that brings consolation, not
Even pressed into the soil, it cannot lose its
forgetfulness.
passion.
It becomes a flower and rises from its coffin, As soon as the morning appears in its
As if it acquires the clothes of life from death. brightness from the veil of the east,
It is the grave that binds together this The morning washes the strain of the night
distracted power, from the garment of the skies.
And casts its noose around the neck of the It clothes the fading tulip in a fiery cloak,
firmament. And it stirs the silent birds to ecstatic song.
Death is the name of the renewal of the taste The melody is freed from the prison of the
for life. nightingale’s breast.
The early morning breeze is full of a hundred What kind of restlessness your impatient life
tunes. has!
The sleepers of the garden of tulips, the flank Are you a small little lightning, which the sky
of the mountain and the rivers are at last by Is nurturing to fall on the harvest of nations
the side of life’s bride. Is this a flash, or your eternal nature, what is
If this is the law of existence that every it?
evening turns into morning, Is it a dance? wandering? seeking what is it?”
Why should not the end of the night of man’s “A sea of tumults is asleep in my silent life
tomb not be morning? My existence has been nurtured by the
morning’s breeze
The net of my swift imagination captures the
My destiny keeps me constantly restless
heavens;
Taste for enlightenment keeps me busy in
By it I have captured your memory.
seeking
My heart which knows pain is full of your
I am not fire‐brand lightning, though by
memory,
nature fire I am
As in the Kaʹba, the air if filled with prayers.
Message of awakening from the world‐
That chain of duties, whose name is life—
illuminating sun I am!
Its places of manifestation are thousands of
Becoming collyrium I shall enter the human
unstable worlds.
eye
Every stage of existence has different ways
Whatever night had hidden I shall show to
and customs;
the eye
The world to come is also a coursing‐field.
Among your ecstatics is there any seeker of
There the tilled field of death produces no
prudence also?
crop;
Among the sleeping people is anyone with
The climate is appropriate for the seed of
taste of awakening also?”
action.

The light of nature is not the prisoner of the
darkness of the body; ‘URFI
The scope of human thought is not so narrow.
Life was made brighter by your moonlight. The imagination of ‘Urfi has created a
Your journey was also made better by the mansion
morning star. Which has became the envy of Sina and
Like the halls of the dawn, may your grave be Farabi
radiant! On the subject of Love he wrote such music
May your dusty sleeping chamber be filled By which red tears are still available to eyes
with light! One day my heart made this complaint at his
May the sky shed its dew upon your grave! grave
May the freshly grown verdure watch over “Tunes of restlessness no longer come from
your home! world’s assembly
The disposition of the world’s people has
[Translated by D.J. Matthews] changed so much
That such condition of restlessness has gone
THE SUN’S RAY
from the world
At the dawn when my eye was enjoying the The midnight wailing of the poet is offensive
panorama to the ear
I saw that a ray of the sun was wandering When assembly’s eye be unaware of pleasure
about of sleeplessness
I asked the ray, “O head to foot restlessness!
How can somebody’s flame of lament remove It was not an assembly‐hall to be lit up by the
darkness? lamp of truth;
When the morning’s light is unwelcome for The rain of mercy fell, but the land was
nightly worshipers” barren.
Call came from grave “Reduce complaint Alas, for the shudra India is a house of sorrow,
against world’s people This land is blind to the sufferings of man.
‘Strike the tune harder if the taste for music The Brahmin is still drunk with the wine of
has become low pride,
Sing the hudi faster if the camel’s litter has In the assembly‐halls of foreigners burns
became heavy’ Gautama’s lamp.
But, ages later, the house of idols was lit up
IN RESPONSE TO A LETTER again–
Even if I have greed I do not have the strength Azar’s house was lit up by Abraham!
for exertion Again from the Punjab the call of
Acquiring position is connected with the taste monotheism arose:
for search A perfect man roused India from
A thousand thanks to God that my nature is slumber.
contentment [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
A thousand thanks to God that my mind is
not mischievous INFIDELITY AND ISLAM
Cultivations of human hearts flourish with
(Includes a Verse of Mir Razi Danish)
my writings
In the world I am creative like the ocean One day Iqbal questioned the Kaleem of Tur
feeding cloud “ O You whose foot‐prints converted the
Congratulations to you on these secrets of Valley of Sinai into a garden!
politics The fire of Nimrod is still ablaze in the world
As my finger nail by Love’s grace is breast‐ Why your Love’s old fire has been hidden
excoriating from the eye”?
Desire for audience with kings is a sign of The reply of Sinai’s Master was “If you are a
lifelessness Muslim
This secret has been exposed by Hafiz of Leaving the Invisible do not become the lover
elegant poetry of the visible
“If you desire that you elevated to Khidar be If you have taste for the visible you need the
Hidden from Sikandar’s eye as immortality’s Faith of Khalil
water be.” Otherwise ashes are the adornments of your
life
If you are Lover of the Invisible do not care at
NANAK all
Set your lamp in the Valley of Faran and
The nation could not care less about remain waiting
Gautama’s message— The visible’s glory is temporary, the
It did not know the price of its unique pearl! Invisibile’s Majesty is permanent
Poor wretches! They never heard the voice of This Truth has the body‐and‐soul connection
truth: with Love
A tree does not know how sweet its fruit is. What if the flame of Namrud is alight in the
What he revealed was the secret of existence, world
But India was proud of its fancies; ‘The candle melts itself in the midst of the
assembly
My light like the stone’s spark is better if Those who were invaluable once are not even
concealed’” saleable now
That bright flame of yours from which
BILAL darkness escaped
A righteous Western writer has written Now is reduced to a spark, less bright than
Who was highly respected among the stars
literateur Cease to be the Invisible’s Lover, be the
“Asia was the marshaling place of Sikandar of visible’s lover
Rome Now influence of the visible God is
His status was More elegant than even the sky triumphant over nations
History attests that in combat with the In this garden success for your efforts is not
Romans possible
The claims of Porus and Dara were vain Your snare is worn out and the fast‐flying
At this emperor with the myriad‐man army bird is clever
The blue sky was looking with amazement In this age education is the cure for nations’
Today nobody knows him in Asia maladies
Even the historian does not recognize him Education is like a lancet for the diseased
But Bilal, that humble person with Negroid blood”
origin By the leader’s suggestions love of education
Whose nature had been brightened by the developed in me
Prophethood’s Light Obeying the command of Khidar is
The call whose custodian the breast of Bilal incumbent on the wanderer of the
since eternity became wilderness
Subservient to which call emperors as well as But the discerning eye should see my
the indigent became! misfortune
Which brings amity between the black and “Went to pull thorn from foot, the litter
the red disappeared from the sight
By which the poor and the rich are placed I was negligent for a moment it moved by a
together hundered years”
That heart‐melting song is fresh till the
THE PRINCESS OF FLOWERS
present age
Which the old sky’s ear has been hearing for One day the dew in the garden was saying to
centuries” the flower bud
Iqbal! This general blessing is due to whose “I lived for a long time among the flower
love? buds of Paradise
The Roman has perished, the Negro is The condition of your garden is so elegant
immortal! The Paradise’s sight is concealed in my
bewildered eye
THE MUSLIMS AND MODERN I have heard that some princess is the ruler of
EDUCATION this garden
(Includes a Verse of Malik Qumi With whose foot‐prints the wilderness would
produce flowers
The preceptor’s teaching was, “O foolish Some day take me with you up to her palace
Muslim! Take me concealed in your skirt like
“Necessary preparations are incumbent on fragrance”
the traveler The flower bud said “On the throne is that
The world’s ways have changed, such princess of ours
changes have come that
By whose kick even stones become “O with the pearl of whose poetry’s sky‐
resplendent jewels illuminating light
But your nature is bright and princess’ rank is The falcon became companion of moon and
elegant stars’ light!
It is not possible that you reach her in Relate to me what the story of the Indian
company with me Muslim is
However you can reach up to our princess Is he lagging at the halt or busy in exertion is?
By becoming the hot tear of some afflicted Is some warmth of din left in his veins?
person The heat of whose call was once burning the
Her glance is the message of ‘Eid to the sky”
Muharram’s people Hali was moved by the talk of the Shaikh
Turns the continuous tears of afflicted people He started weeping and saying, “O man of
into pearls. miracles!
When the sky turned over the leaf of time
BASED ON A VERSE OF SA’IB The call came that respect was possible only
O Iqbal! In what a place you have constructed with education!
your nest But this has produced wavering in
In this garden song is the prelude to fundamental beliefs
nightingale’s disgrace! Secular benefits were obtained, but din had
Though you are planting the sparks of the been undermined
Valley of Aiman Goals also become exalted if the din is
Sprouting of seed of Sinai is not possible in preserved
this soil The youth’s nature is paralyzed and very low
The bud cannot be a flower even with the keyed
force of breath Concordance among individuals is kept only
Where everything is devoid of the exigency of with din
self‐development Din is the plectrum if national congregation is
Outrageous that the nature of garden’s the musical instrument
denizens is asleep If the foundation of the garden’s wall is
Neither old age’s heart is awake nor the youth shaken
is courageous It is clearly the beginning of the garden’s end
When the intelligent hearts fall asleep in As the water of Zamzam was not available to
breasts it
For the singer sweet music is changed to Some manner of atheism is appearing in the
poison new progeny
Fly away from this garden if music’s restraint Do not talk of this in the audience of the Lord
is impossible of Yathrib
As better than this assembly is the seclusion Lest Muslims of India consider that this is my
of some wilderness back‐biting”
“Manifestation of Lailah is much better in Dates cannot be obtained from the weeds we
wilderness have sown
City’s strait is unable to contain wilderness’ Brocade cannot be obtained from the wool we
beauty” have spun”
A CONVERSATION IN PARADISE ‐‐Sa’di
Hatif said to me that in Paradise one day
Sa’di of Shiraz addressed Hali in this way
RELIGION The army’s general exclaimed., “You are that
young man
(Includes a verse by Mirza Bedil) The respect for whose Love is binding on the
The teaching of the sage of Western elders
philosophy is May the God of Muhammad fulfill your wish
“Those seeking the Invisible Existence are How elegant is the stage of your Love!
ignorant When you arrive in the audience of the Holy
If the form is unfamiliar to sight Prophet
Would the Sheikh also be an idol‐maker like Present this petition with my sincere
Brahmin? compliments
The foundation of modern knowledge is on “The Exalted God has shown His Mercy to us
the tangible Have been fulfilled all the promises you had
In this age the wine‐bottle of Faith is shattered made to us.”
What is known as din is an immature frenzy
RELIGION
Which is repulsive to human imagination”
But the philosophy of life is saying something Judge not your nation on the criteria of
else Western nations
This secret has been divulged to me by the Special in composition is the Hashimi
Perfect Preceptor Prophet’s nation
“With every perfection a little distress is Based on country and race is their
welcome organization
However, perfect the Intellect, it is not good The force of din stabilizes your organization
without Love.” If the din’s skirt is lost, disappears the
organization
And if organization departs also disappears
AN INCIDENT OF THE BATTLE OF the nation!
YARMUK
REMAIN ATTACHED TO THE TREE KEEP
The armed Arab youth were arrayed for battle
SPRING’S EXPECTATION
The bride of Syria’s land was waiting for
myrtle The branch of the tree which got separated in
A young man who was restless like mercury autumn
Approaching the army’s general started Is not possible to green up with the cloud of
saying spring
“O Abu ‘Ubaidah grant me permission to The autumn season for this branch is ever‐
fight lasting
The cup of my patience and calm is full It has no connection with flourishing in the
I am becoming impatient in the Holy spring
Prophet’s separation Autumn season prevails in your rose garden
In his Love even a moment’s life has become also
hard The pocket of the rose is devoid of good cash
As I am going to the Holy Prophet’s audience The birds which were singing in the seclusion
I shall gladly convey if there is any message” of leaves
The general’s eye, whose sight was like an un‐ Have departed from your shady tree’s leaves
sheathed sword, You should learn a lesson from the separated
Noticing this zeal and fervor was moist with branch
tears As you are unacquainted with the customs of
the world
Keep very strong communication with the If you should be the decoration of some
nation beauty’s robe!
Remain attached to the tree and have spring’s
expectation!
SHAKESPEARE
THE NIGHT OF THE CELESTIAL
ASCENSION OF THE PROPHET The flowing river mirrors the red glow of
dawn,
This call of the evening star is coming from The quiet of the evening mirrors the evening
the sky song,
“This is the night before which the dawn The rose‐leaf mirrors spring’s beautiful cheek;
prostrates The chamber of the cup mirrors the beauty of
“For courage the ‘Arsh‐i‐Barin is only a pace the wine;
away” Beauty mirrors Truth, the heart mirrors
The Mi’raj’s night is saying this to the Muslim Beauty;
THE FLOWER The beauty of your speech mirrors the heart
of man.
O flower! Why do you care for the Life finds perfection in your sky‐soaring
nightingale’s wounded heart thought.
First you should darn the slits of your own Was your luminous nature the goal of
shirt! existence?
If you long for respect in the rose garden of
When the eye wished to see you, and looked,
existence
It saw the sun hidden in its own brilliance.
You should get accustomed to living
You were hidden from the eyes of the world,
entangled in thorns!
But with your own eyes you saw the world
The juniper in the garden is free as well as
exposed and bare.
chained to the soil
Nature guards its secrets so jealously—
You should acquire freedom within these
It will never again create one who knows so
constraints!
many secrets.
With contentment give message of
embarrassment to miserliness [Translated by Mustansir Mir]
Do not remain obliged to dew, you should
empty the cup and the bottle! I AND YOU
It does not befit self respect that being picked In me no mind of Moses, in you no virtue
from the garden Of Abraham: idolatrous foes like theirs,
You should be put in some turban or pinned New Samris, Azars, have with eldritch arts
to some collar! Destroyed us; I am a song burned out in the
The dew disappeared from garden saying to throat,
the flower bud And you a shrivelled colour, a frightened
If you love gardener’s oppression, you should scent;
create beauty I, memory of the pain of longing—you,
If you want to remain unacquainted with Echo of a lament for love. My joys
autumn Are gall, my honey venom, my soul twin‐
First you should abandon the desire for the brother
beauty’s world To blank oblivion: your heart’s temple
Look, in this alone is concealed your life’s pawned
perfection! To Persia’s strange gods, your religion
bartered
To infidels. Life’s every breath is numbered— IMPRISONMENT
To count them, terror: to wail at life’s brief
span, Imprisonment enhances confidence if the
Poison; do not bewail that terror, do not nature is elegant
Swallow the poison of that wailing; take The spring drop becomes blessed inside the
The road by which the saints came to their shell’s prison
crown, The excellent musk is nothing but a drop of
And have no thought, if one spark burns in blood
your dust, Which becomes musk when it is enclosed in
Of wealth or penury; for here on earth the deer’s navel
Black peasant bread breeds Hyder’s strength. However, not everyone gets trained by nature
Oh lamp Only an odd bird is prosperous in
Of the shrine! teach me, your circling moth, a imprisonment
way “Strength of crow’s and kite’s wing is not in
Of worship to renew in me that nature cage and prey
Which like the salamander feeds on flame. This grace is reserved for the falcon and the
Against the guardians of the shrine, the shrine eagle”
Brings accusation of such villainy BEGGING FOR THE CALIPHATE
Decked out as loyal zeal, that let me once
Proclaim it in the very idol‐house, If the territory is being lost let it be lost
The senseless monsters 10 would cry out ‘Oh You should not be disloyal to God’s
Vishnu, commands
Vishnu!’ Not new to‐day the world’s arena, Do you not have knowledge of history?
Not new the antagonists, face to face, hands You have started begging for the Khilafah!
clenched; If we do not purchase with our own blood
Unchanged of purpose stands the Lion of Such sovereignty is a disgrace to the Muslim!
God, “I do not feel as much ashamed of being
Unchanged the opposing champions. Aid us, broken down
Prophet, As in asking others for mumiya’i for my
Lord of Arabia and the alien lands! treatment.”
Awaiting here thy bounty are those beggars LATE SHAH DIN HUMAYUN
Whom thou has given the pride of Alexander.
O Humayun! your life was full of warmth
Your spark was an assembly‐enlightening
lamp
Though your earthly body was slim and weak
Your elegant disposition was bright like a star
How fearless a heart in this frail body was
A universal flame in this handful of dust was!
But the intelligent heart was not at all afraid
10 “the senseless monsters” is a gross of death
misrepresentation of Iqbal’s sanam, which simply In night’s silence there is nothing except
means an idol (with the poetic connotations of morrow’s affairs!
fondness). Iqbal actually means to say that the The imprudent ones consider death is the end
idols too would join him if he were to complain of life
against the worshippers who bring bad name to
their faith, since the phenomenon is common to all
religions—self‐righteous but ill‐guided followers
lose sight of the higher ideals.
This apparent evening of life is the morning of —What is the riddle of life? What thing is the
perpetual life! State? or why
Must labour and capital so bloodily disagree?
Asia’s time‐honoured cloak grows ragged and
KHIZR THE GUIDE wears out,
From upstart lands her young men borrow
THE POET
their finery;
By the river’s brink I stood one evening, lost Though Alexander could never find the elixir
in the scene, of life,
Yet hiding a world of fretting thoughts in my His robber spirit still revels here in drunken
heart’s cell. glee;
Night deepened silence: calm the air, languid The lord of Makkah barters the honour of
the current, Makkah’s faith
River or painted water the eye could scarcely That the stubborn Turk, late convert, guards
tell. through war’s agony.
As the sucking infant laid in the cradle falls Tyrants and flames once more on Abraham’s
asleep race have glared:
The restless wave lay slumberously in its For whom this new ordeal, or by whose hand
deep well, prepared?
The birds held captive by night’s gramarye in
KHIZR’S REPLY
their nests,
And the faint‐gleaming stars fast bound by Desert‐roaming
the bright moon’s spell. What is it to make you wonder, if I roam the
There that would‐measuring courier I had desert waste?
sight of—Khizr, Witness of enduring life is this unending toil
That ancient in whom youth’s colours fresh as and haste!
the daybreak dwell. You, shut in by walls, have never known that
‘Seeker,’ said he, ‘of eternal secrets! when the moment when shrill
heart Bugle‐call that sounds the march goes echoing
sees clear vision, the fates that rule earth wear over wood and hill,
no veil.’ Never known the wild deer’s careless walk
At these words in my soul doomed to long across its sandy plain,
search awoke Never halt unroofed, uncumbered, on the trail
A tumult as of Judgment Day; and thus I no milestones chain,
spoke. Never fleeting vision of that star that crowns
‘To your world‐ranging eye is visible the the daybreak hour,
storm Never Gabriel’s radiant brow effulgent from
Whose fury yet lies in tranquil sleep under the heaven’s topmost tower,
sea: Nor the going‐down of suns in stillness of
That innocent life, that poor man’s boat, that desert ways,
wall of the orphan, Twilight splendour such as brightened
Taught Moses’ wisdom to stand before yours Abraham’s world‐beholding gaze,
wonderingly! Nor those springs of running water where the
You shun abodes, for desert‐roaming, for caravans take rest
ways that know As in heaven bright spirits cluster round the
No day or night, from yesterdays and to‐ Fountain of the Blest!
morrows free.
Wildernesses ever now love’s fever seeks and Until its spark engenders the eternal light.
thirsts to roams— Let it shine over the soil f the East like the sun,
You the furrowed field and palm‐groves fetter Until Badakhshan once more throws up the
to one poor home; same priceless ruby.
Mellow grows the wine of life when hand to Let it send the ambassador of its night‐
hand the cup goes round encompassing lament to the heavens;
Foolish one! In this alone is life’s eternal secret Let it share its secrets with the stars of the
found. night.
This moment is the Day of Judgment; you are
Life
in the field of Judgments’ Day!
Life is higher than the calculation of profit My forgetful one, put forward something you
and loss; have accomplished, if you have anything
Life is sometimes living and sometimes written on your scroll.
forfeiting living.
The State
Do not measure it by the scale of today and
tomorrow; What scripture sets forth riddlingly
Life is eternal, constantly moving, at every Of Kings, let me impart:
moment youthful. In towering empires sovereignty
If you are among the living, fashion your own Is all a conjuror’s art—
world;
If ever subjects from their sleep
Life is the secret of Adam, the essence of the
Half rouse themselves, the sure
words Be and it was!
Enchantments of their rulers steep
Ask the reality of life form the heart of the
Their wits in dreams once more;
mountain‐digger;
Life is the milky stream, the axe and the hard When Mahmood’s blandishments begin
stone. Ayaz slave‐eyes dote,
In servitude the stream diminishes and almost And find a fine love‐token in
runs dry, The halter round his throat.
And in freedom life is an ocean which knows But now the blood of Israel
no bounds. Boils up in rage at last,
It knows well its power of domination, And some new Moses breaks the spell
Although life is hidden in a frame of clay. That wizard Samri cast!
From the sea of existence you arose like a
bubble; None with diamond’s orb invest
In this dwelling of loss, life your test. But the Most High alone:
While you are still immature, you are a heap He is the sovereign, all the rest
of dust; Are idols carved from stone;
When you ripen, you will become an Stain with no slavery you free‐souled
irresistible sword. Estate,—worse pagan than
The heart which is impatient to die for the The Brahmin, if your chisel mould
truth— A king out of a man.
First of all let it create life in its form of clay. In the West the people rule, they say:
Let it set fire to this earth and this sky, which And what is this new reign?
are borrowed, The same harp still, the same strings play
And from the embers, let it give birth itself to The despots’ old refrain;
its own world.
Make the hidden strength of life manifest, In Demos‐dress let tyranny’s
Old demon‐dance be seen,
Your fancy calls up Liberty’s And in Orient and in Occident your own age
Blue‐mantled fairy queen! comes to birth!
Those Parliaments and their reforms, For the lofty soul all ocean is too mean a gift:
Charters and Bills of Rights— will you,
The Western pharmacopoeia swarms Like the careless bud, much longer be content
With opiate delights; with drops of dew?
To those drowsy tales of Jamshid and
That rhetoric of the Senator,
Sikander for how long
Flowing in fiery stream—
Will you listen, now men’s joy is in
God save the mark! the brokers’ war
democracy’s new song?
Of gold is its true theme.
From the womb of this old universe a new red
This paint and perfume, this mirage, sun is born—
A garden’s blooming face For extinguished stars, of heaven, how much
You thought, simpleton, and your cage longer will you mourn?
A downy nesting‐place. Now the human mind has made of all its
Capital and Labour chains a broken heap,
For his banishment from Eden how much
To the workman go, the toiler, and to him this longer must Man weep?
message tell: How much longer, of the garden’s old
Words not mine alone, a message that the attendant asks the Spring,
world’s four corners swell— For the red wounds of the rose your idle
Oh, the crafty man of capital has devoured ointments will you bring?
you flesh and fell: Silly firefly, so long fluttering round the
On the wild deer’s horns for ages your candle, now be free!
reward has run astray! Where the lamp of your own spirit shines,
In the hand that forges all wealth he has there let your dwelling be.
dropped a grudging pay,
As the poor receive in charity what their The World of Islam
betters throw away. Why do you tell me the story of the Arab and
Like an Old Man of the Mountain he has fed the Turk?
you with hashish, Nothing of the burning and making of the
And poor innocent! you took it for the Muslims is hidden from me.
sweetest‐flavoured dish; The sons of the Trinity have taken away the
For the bourgeoisie is cunning, and from heritage of Khalil;
country and from creed, The sand of Hijaz has been made into the
Colour, culture, caste and kingdom, has foundation stone of the Church!
brewed drugs to serve its need; The red‐capped one has been dishonoured in
For these false gods, witless victim, you have the world;
rushed upon your doom Those who were pride from head to foot,
And been robbed of life’s bright treasure for today are compelled to submission.
the taste of its mad fume. Persia is buying from the vintners of the West
Your sharp paymasters have swept the board, that heady wine
they cheat and know no shame: Whose heat is enough to melt the jar.
You, forever unsuspecting, have forever lost By the wisdom of the West the state of the
the game. Community has become thus:
But now come! for ways are changing in As scissors cut gold into tiny pieces.
assembly of the earth,
The blood of the Muslim has become cheap as You have seen the heights of the power of the
water; river’s current;
And you are fretting because your heart does Now see how the agitated wave forms a
not know the secret. chain.
Said Rumi: Before they can repopulate any The dream which Islam saw of general
ancient ruin, do you not know that first of all freedom—
they must destroy the foundation? Oh Muslim, see the interpretation of that
dream.
The country slipped from its hands, and the eyes of
Its own bed of ashes is the means of existence
the community were opened;
for the salamander;
God has blessed you with sight; look forward,
See this old world dies and is born again.
my negligent one!
Open your eyes and look at the mirror of my
Defeat is better than begging for balm;
words;
Wingless ant! Do not bring your request
See a hazy picture of the age to come.
before Solomon.
The sky has another well‐tried plague to
The cohesion of the Radiant Community is
bring;
the salvation of the East,
See the disgrace of scheming before fate.
But the people of Asia are so far ignorant of
You are a Muslim; fill your breast with desire;
this principle.
At every time keep before your eyes the
Again abandon politics and enter the
words My promise is never broken.
ramparts of the faith;
Polity and dominion are only a fruit of the [Translated by V.G. Kiernan and D.J. Matthews] 11
protection of the Shrine.
May the Muslims unite in watching over the
Shrine,
THE RISE OF ISLAM
From the banks of the Nile to the deserts of The dimness of the stars is evidence of the
Kashghar. bright morning.
Whoever practises discrimination of colour The sun has risen over the horizon; the time of
and blood will be erased, deep slumber has passed.
Whether he be a tent‐dwelling Turk or an The blood of life runs in the veins of the dead
Arab of noble family! East:
If race takes precedence over the religion of Avicenna and Farabi cannot understand this
the Muslim, secret.
You have flown from the world like the dust The storm in the West made Muslims
of the highway. Muslims.
So that the foundation of the Caliphate may Pearls are produced in abundance from the
be once again firm in the world, very buffetings of the sea.
Search for and bring from somewhere the The true believers are once more to receive
heart and spirit of your ancestors. from the court of God
Ah you who cannot distinguish the hidden The glory of the Turkamans, the intellect of
from the revealed, become aware! the Indians and the eloquence of the Arabs.
You, caught up in Abu Bakr and Ali, become
aware!
Lamentation was necessary, but now that is
11 In ‘Khizr the Guide’ the section ‘The Poet’ and
the sub‐sections ‘The State’ and ‘Capital and
over.
Labour’ were translated by V.G. Kiernan. The
Now control your heart a little and see the
remaining sub‐sections, ‘Life’ and ‘The World of
effect of the lament. Islam’ have been taken from the translation of D.J.
Matthews.
If there is still some trace of sleep left in the The spirit of the royal falcon may arise in the
buds, my nightingale, delicate body of the dove!
Then make your songs more plaintive, for you The secret of life is hidden in your breast—
found their desire to hear your melody too then tell it;
little. 12 Tell the Muslims the account of the burning
Whether your agitation be in the courtyard of and re‐making of life.
the garden, in the nest, in the leafy
You are the ever‐powerful hand and the
branches—
tongue of the eternal God;
This quicksilver‐destiny cannot be separated
Give birth to certainty, of negligent one, for
from mercury.
your are laid low by doubt.
Why should that pure‐seeing eye look at the
The goal of the Muslim lies beyond the blue
glitter of armour on the horse
sky;
When it sees the valour of the holy warrior?
You are the caravan, which the stars follow as
Make the lamp of desire bright in the heart of
dust on the road.
the tulip!
Space is transient; its inhabitants are
Make every particle of the garden a martyr to
transitory, but the beginning of time is
search!
yours; its end is yours.
The effect of the spring‐rain is born in the You are the final message of God; you are
tears of the Muslims. eternal.
Pearls will be born again in the sea of the The blood of your heart is the henna which
Friend of God. decorates the tulip‐bride.
This book of the Radiant Community is You belong to Abraham; you are the builder
receiving a new binding; of the world.
The Hashimite branch is once more ready to Your nature is the trustee of all the
bring forth new leaves and fruit. possibilities of life;
The Turk of Shiraz has ravished the heart of You are like the touchstone of the hidden
Tabriz and Kabul; essence of the world.
The morning breeze makes the scent of the The One who left this world of water and clay
rose its companion on the road. for eternal life—
If a mountain of grief collapsed upon the The one whom the prophethood took with
Ottomans, then why lament? it—you are that gift.
For the dawn arises from the blood of a This principle rises from the story of the
hundred thousand stars. Radiant Community—
More difficult than the conquest of the world You are the guardian of the nations of the
is the task of seeing the world; land of Asia.
When the heart is reduced to blood, only then Read again the lesson of truth, of justice and
does the eye of the heart receive its sight. valour!
For a thousand years the narcissus has been You will be asked to do the work of taking on
lamenting its blindness; responsibility for the world.
With great difficulty the one with true vision
This is the destiny of nature; this is the secret
is born in the garden.
of Islam—
Burst into song, oh nightingale! so that from
World‐wide brotherhood, an abundance of
your melody
love!
Break the idols of colour and blood and
become lost in the community.
The italicized line is translated from the poet Urfi
12 Let neither Turanians, Iranians nor Afghan
Shirazi. Iqbal also used it in his poem ‘Urfi’. remain.
How long will you keep company in the The blood of the sun will drip, of we split the
branches with the birds of the garden; heart of an atom.
In your arms is the flight of the royal hawk of Firm certainty, eternal action, the love that
Quhistan. conquers the world—
In the abode of doubts of existence is the These are the swords of men in the holy war
certainty of the Muslim hero; of life.
In the darkness of the desert night is the What else does man need but a lofty spirit
candle of the monks. and pure character,
What was it that erased the tyranny of Caesar A warm heart, a pure‐sighted eye and a
and Cyrus? restless soul?
The power of Hyder, the asceticism of Bu
Those who rushed forward with the
Dharr, the truth of Salman!
splendour of the eagle emerged plucked of
How magnificently the heroes of the
their wings and plumage;
community have blazed the trail,
The stars of evening sank in the blood of the
And those who have been prisoners for
sunset but rose again.
centuries peer at them through a crack in the
Those who swam under the sea were buried
door.
by the ocean,
The stability of life in the world comes from
But those who suffered the buffeting of the
the strength of faith,
wave arose, and became pearls.
For the Turanians have emerged firmer than
Those who prided themselves on their
even the Germans.
alchemy are the dust of the wayside;
When certainty is born in these embers of
Those who kept their forehead upon the dust
ashes,
emerged as the makers of elixir.
Then it gives birth to the wings of Gabriel.
Our slow‐running messenger brought the
In slavery, neither swords or plans are tidings of life;
effective, Those to whom the lightning gave news
But when the taste for certainty is created, emerged unknowing.
then the chains are cut. The Shrine was disgraced by the lack of
Can anyone even guess at the strength of his foresight of the old keeper of the shrine;
arm? But how our Tartar heroes emerged as young
By the glance of the man who is a true men of vision!
believer even destiny is changed. Those who soar aloft and light the sky say this
Empire, sainthood, the knowledge of things to the earth,
which holds the world in its sway— ‘These earth‐bound creatures emerged more
What are they all? Only commentaries on one lively, more stable and more shining.’
small point of faith. In the world, the people of faith live like the
But it is difficult to create the insight of sun;
Abraham; Here they sink, there they arise, there they
Desire insidiously paints pictures in our sink, here they arise!
breasts. The certainty of individuals is the capital for
The distinction of servant and lord has put building the community;
mankind into turmoil; This is the power which draws the portrait of
Beware, oh powerful ones; the penalties of the fate of the community.
nature are harsh.
You are the secret of creation, see yourself in
There is one reality for everything, be it of
your eyes;
earth or fire;
Share the secret of your own self, become the
spokesman of God.
Greed has split mankind into little pieces; Open the knot of the bud, for you are the
Become the statement of brotherhood, become spring breeze for this garden.
the language of love. Once more the spark of love has arisen from
Here are Indians, there people of Khurasan, the heart of Asia;
here Afghans, there Turanians— The earth is the coursing‐ground for the stain‐
You, who despise the shore, rise up and make cloaked Tartars.
yourself boundless. Arise! A buyer has come to our hapless life;
Your wings and your plumage are soiled with After an age, the time has come for our caravan’s
the dust of colour and race; departure.
You, my bird of the holy shrine, shake your
Come, Saki! The song of the bird of the
wings before you start to fly.
garden has come from the branches;
Immerse yourself in your self, my forgetful
The spring has come; the beloved has come;
one, this is the secret of life;
the beloved has come; peace has come!
Come out from the fetters of evening and
The spring cloud has pitched its tent in the
morning, become immortal.
valley and the desert;
On the battle‐field of life adopt the nature of
The sound of the waterfall has come from the
steel;
summit of the mountains.
In the bed‐chamber of love become as soft as
I implore you; renew the law of the past!
silk and painted brocade.
For the army of singers has come drove upon
Pass like a river in full spate through the
drove.
mountains and the deserts;
Turn away from the ascetics and fearlessly
If the garden should come your way, then
drink wine from the jar;
become a melodiously singing stream.
After an age the song of the nightingale has
There is no limit to your knowledge and love;
rung out from this old branch.
In the instrument of nature there is no sweeter
Bring the account of the Master of Badr and
song than you.
Hunain to those who yearn;
Even now, mankind if the miserable prey to Its hidden mystic powers have been revealed
imperialism; to the eye.
How distressing that man is hunted by man! Again the branch of Khalil has been watered
The glitter of modern civilization dazzles the by the sap of our blood;
sight; In the marketplace of love our cash has
But this clever craftsmanship is a mosaic of proved to be perfect.
false jewels. I scatter the pearls of tulips upon the dust of
That science, in which the scholars of the West the martyrs,
took pride, For their blood has proved to be effective for
Is the sword of warfare held in the bloody the saplings of the community.
grip of greed. Come, so that we may strew roses and pour a
That civilization of the world, which is measure of wine in the cup!
founded on capitalism, Let us split open the roof of the heavens and
Can never be become strong by spellbinding think upon new ways.
schemes.
By action life may become both paradise and
hell; GHAZALS
This creature of dust in its nature is neither of
O zephyr! Convey my message to the one
light nor of fire.
wrapped in blanket
Teach the nightingale to send forth its
The poor Ummah has lost both din and
clamour;
material resources
The river bank gave this message to the Love fearlessly jumped into the fire of
restless wave Namrud
“Union with ocean is still far and you have Intellect is absorbed in the spectacle from
already lost patience in the river” roof‐top still
O Qais! Love’s honor is made durable with Love moves fast in action under the
litter’s curtain messenger’s precept
If litter is lost, glory, honor as well as Lailah is Intellect has not even understood the Love’s
lost! message still
Though the drop got pearl’s dignity by The way of Love is freedom and world
abandoning struggle revolution
It lost taste for wandering and struggle in the You are imprisoned in day and night’s temple
river still
Though this voice has emerged from Iqbal’s On the plea of temperance the cup‐bearer says
lips its source is unknown rudely
The assembly got hope’s message as well as In your heart is the same anxiety for the end
became restless for activism still
Constant struggle is the measure for life’s
*
Kamm and Kaif
These songs of turtle doves and nightingales Your measure is the counting of days and
are merely ear’s illusion nights still
Behind this uproar the world of the garden is O spring rain! How long this miserliness?
silent The tulips of my hillside are thirsty still
O Western wine the effect of your goblets is They are accustomed to Àjam’s wine I have
only this the Àrab wine
That cup‐bearer is laughing and the entire My cup makes wine‐drinkers startled still
assembly is unconscious Zepheyr has brought news about Iqbal from
In the world’s sorrowful house you are not the garden
traceable The newly seized is writhing under the net
Was creation also a crime so Your nature is still.
concealed?
*
Ah! What the world considers heart is not
heart Lift the veil from thy Face and be manifest in
In the human breast this is a silent tumult the assembly
Walk on the path of life but walk carefully Make the eyes of the sun, moon and stars thy
Understand that some glass work is on your spectators
shoulders If thou art the lightning how long this secret
Through whom Delhi and Lahore were winking?
drawn together Make acquaintance with my heart without a
Ah! Iqbal that nightingale is silent now. veil.
The warm breath’s effect is the miracle of life
*
If it is on thy breast perform life‐giving
O dejected nightingale your lament is miracles
immature still How long should begging be on the Tur like
You should hold it in your breast for a little Kaleem!
while still Make the flame of Sinai manifest with thy
If Intellect is prudent it is considered mature existence
If Love is prudent it is considered immature Let the Harem be built with every speck of
still thy dust
Make the heart alien to the ways of the Church My dark misdeeds found no refuge in the
It is not good to exceed limits in this garden wide world—
If thou showeth elegance make its show with
The only refuge they found was in Thy
grace
beginning forgiveness.
First become self‐respecting like Alexander.
Then make the show of desire of Dara’s Even as I laid down my head in prostration a
grandeur cry arose from the ground:
You will reach the destination of Layla one Thy heart is enamoured of the idol, what shalt
day, O Iqbal thou gain by prayer?
For some more days continue wandering in
the wilderness [Anonymous translation]13
* *
The spring breeze is flowing again start singing, No wonder if the garden birds remained fond
O Iqbal of poetry even under the net
If you are a bud be the flower, if a flower the The lament fluttering in hearts as silent song
garden become remained
You are a handful of dust, with the warmth of Thy Effulgence could not satisfy the restless
the components heart at all
Wander around, scatter about and wilderness The same dawn’s lament remained, the same
in extent become midnight sighs remained
You belong to the essence of Love, you are Neither God, nor idols nor the rivals of
invaluable temple and the Harem remained
The purchasers are indigent, low priced in Neither ‘Ali’s prowess nor Abu Lahab’s
this country become infidelity remained
Why should your tunes be veiled in the Though my orchestra remained oppressed by
guitar’s frets? Àjam’s plectrum
You are an ornamented song, evident to every I am that martyr in fidelity’s cause whose
ear become song ever Arabic remained!
O wise traveler! If in your path you encounter *
The garden become dew, if wilderness the
storm become Though you are bound by cause and effect
Indulgence is concealed in the love of Keep your heart a little independent
opulence Intellect is not free from criticism
If you aim at the destination, destroyer of Establish the foundation of your deeds on
opulence become Love
O Muslim always in your mind
[Translated by M.A.K. Khalil] Keep the verse La Yukhlif ul mi ‘ad
* This is the message of the Voice of Time
Always deep in heart Inna wa`d‐Allah i Haqqun
For once, O awaited Reality, reveal Thyself in
a form material, [Translated by M.A.K. Khalil]
For a thousand prostrations are quivering
eagerly in my submissive brow.
Know the pleasure of tumult: thou art a tune
consort with the ear!
13 This translation appears as a page‐filler in Iqbal
Review April 1967 but the translator could be Lt.‐
What is that melody worth, which hides itself
Col. K.A. Rashid since he is credited for another
in the silent chords of the harp.
filler on p.22 of the same issue.
SATIRICAL *
In the East principles are changed to religion It does not matter if the preacher is poor
But in the West they are changed into He should bend to the new civilization
machines Much has been written on cancellation of
We do not retain even one of them jihad
There one is changed into three He should write a tract on cancellation of hajj
* *
The girls are learning English The patient of civilization will not be cured by
The nation prosperity’s way has found the goli
The ways of the West are in view For curing of the malady you should present
Eastern ways sinful are found him with pill
What scenes will this drama produce? There was a time when in exchange for the
On curtain’s rising this will be found teacher’s services
One wanted that the gift of the heart he
* should present!
The Sheikh also is not a supporter of women’s Times have changed so much that the pupil
seclusion after the lesson
The college boys unnecessarily suspicious of Says to the teacher “You should present the
him became bill”
He clearly stated in the sermon yesterday *
“From whom would women be secluded if
men women became” Will there be an end to this, how long should
we buy
* Umbrellas, handkerchiefs, mufflers, shirts
O wise man! This is a matter of a few days from Japan
only If this condition of our complacence continues
Neither you will be modest nor woman will Washers of the dead will come from Kabul,
seclusion want shrouds from Japan
That time is approaching when instead of *
children
Votes for the council’s membership will she We poor Easterners have been entangled in
want the West
All crystal decanters are there, only an old
* earthen jar is here
Western education is very encouraging All will be annihilated in this age except the
Its first lesson is to brag sitting in the college one
As only the purchasers inhabit India Who established in his ways and firm in his
Afghans also bring assafoetida from their thought is
country O Shaikh and Brahman do you listen to what
My condition is that I lick the toe of the boot people with insight say?
She says “Beware do not be crawling on my Heaven from great heights has thrown down
carpet” those nations
The camel is said to be a somewhat clumsy Who formerly had assemblies of affection
animal with firm love
The cow is good as she has slender horns Now under discussion is Urdu and Hindi or
Dhibh and Jhatka
* *
“The search, the witness and the thing Membership of the Imperial council is not at
witnessed are the same” all difficult
If this saying of Ghalib is true there is no Votes will be available; Will we be paid
strangeness money also?
O Shaikh! Have you heard something? May God bless Mirza Ghalib, who has rightly
What the temple’s people’s say to the said
Ka`bah’s people! “We are prepared to live in Delhi, how shall
“We ask the Muslim with the disposition of a we subsist”?
lover 16
If you love the idols why is enmity with the What will be a better proof of affection and
Brahman?” fidelity
With no love for you how intolerable will this
*
cruelty be
We have lost all material resources Insistence is that in the ward committee I
The thought of Judgment Day has gone also should also speak
The Shaikh was fighting for Endowment Acts But I shall speak after guessing if the Collector
Ask him if there is any property left for agreeable with me will be
endowment also? Obtain the testimonial, it will be of use for
* sons
He is favorable now, later he may or may not
As I tried to commit suicide the Miss be
exclaimed Indians cannot find a place on the earth
“O lover! If you are civilized do not transgress But the oceans’ bottom available may be
the limits Like the insensitive boat we are subservient to
Without courage or dagger suicide’s intention orders
is strange We are bound to the bank or float as your
Even granting your pain of failure has desire may be
exceeded the limits”
I said, “O dear, give me some cash *
I shall hire some Afghan from the Frontier The Sheikh was giving a sermon on the mode
Province” of operation
* “The infidels of India are very hard working
in business
So naive were they not to appreciate the Polytheists are those having trade relations
Arabs’ worth with polytheists
What they got was that assault and battery But our nation’s people are lacking in
they escaped not intelligence and sense
In the West camel is called ship of the desert Unclean is the article touched by the infidel
The Turks made use of this fleet not Should listen if Muslim’s ears are amenable to
* truth!
A drunkard was also present in the sermon’s
In India councils are a part of the government assembly
This is the start of our political perfection To whom such talks as those of the preacher
We were always beggars, begging was our were irksome
way He said, “It is atrocious that in such
The rich should now acquire the skill of restrictions
“begging”
Are imprisoned the dealings in articles of If the gardener learns the lesson of uniformity
eating and drink” Why should not the gardens’ birds live in
I said, “There is no difficulty for you harmony
As in India Muslims also are liquor sellers!” Give me also the same cup as only this
appears proper
*
You should be intoxicated, your companions
Let us see how long this business of the East should also be intoxicated
lasts “The patched garment of Hafiz is worthless,
People are buying cups and jars instead of color him with wine
din’s goblets Then bring him to the market, lost and
The cure of Love is the new education’s lancet intoxicated
My surgeon is drawing blood from the
*
Millat’s vein
Last night the mosquito related to me
*
The whole story of his failures
The cow one day started saying to the camel “They give me only one drop of blood
Nothing in the world rests in one condition In return for the whole night’s labor
I am ignominious by breaking my rope And this land owner without any effort
I hear you have also broken your nose string Sucked all the blood of the cultivator”
Though you are important in India for
*
political reasons
But due to railway the Arabian desert finds This new ‘verse’ was revealed to me from the
no use for you jail
Till yesterday you were avoiding the cow’s That the Quran is in the Gita and the Gita is in
companionship the Quran
The voice of ‘never’ on your hanging lips was How well friendship developed between
persistent Sheikh and Brahmin
What is the matter that you are so favorable to In this battle after all neither this nor that was
me today winning
That old displeasure does not exist in your “Badri” was already disgusted with the temple
heart today “Masita” does not step out of the mosque, he
Hearing this speech the camel bashfully said is stubborn.
I am also to be counted among your lovers
*
The envy of hundreds of camel’s ogle is your
one frisk Life may be lost but truth should not be lost
Since long I am the lover of such a frisk This one principle is the core of all religions
The effects of your tumults have spread in the They are the birds of the same feather,
forest such Banking, landlordship, monarchy
That speech has produced its taste even *
among the speechless
I am living only in one desert since a long Capital and labor are in confrontation with
time each other
As I have nothing I am fed on borrowed Let us see how many people’s expectations
money are destroyed
If goat, camel, cow, leopard and the lame With cleverness and prudence this mischief
donkey cannot be delayed
All exist in the same condition we shall have Because “Wa qad kuntum bihi tasta’jilun”
prestige Gog and Magog all have been released
The Muslim eye will see the meaning of The carpenter has also been pared
Yansilun The Europe’s planes are very sharp
* *
That eternal rind has departed from the The owner of the factory is a useless man
border of Sham He is very pleasure loving, hard work does
Shelving away all the rules and etiquette of not suit him
the tavern God’s command is “Laisa lil Insani Illa Ma
If so, how much is this the occasion for Sa’a”
admonition Fruit of laborer’s work should not be usurped
The blue sky changes its colors in a moment by the capitalist
Cursor certainly would be concerned with
*
remedial measures
In the belly of obedience has started I have heard this was the talk in the factory
unequaled convulsion yesterday
Sir Agha Khan is demanding the delegation “The artisans only in old huts have their
from India abode
Is this the digestive for devouring Iraq and But what a good council hall the government
Palestine has made
In this city the capitalists did not have any
*
abode”
One day a dispute arose between the farmer
*
and the owner
Each of them was saying that the land Though the mosque was built overnight by
belonged to him the believers
The farmer said that the field belonged to the Our heart being old sinner for years devout
cultivator could not be
The owner said that the farmer had become What a beautiful message did Sanusi give to
demented King Faisal
I asked the land as to whose property it was By descent you Hijazi are, but in heart Hijazi
It replied that it was believing only this: could no be
Whether it be the owner or the wretched Though eyes become wet there is no pleasure
farmer is in this weeping
Whatever is under the sky is property of the If by mixture of affliction’s blood tears pink
land could not be
Iqbal is a good advisor, fascinates the heart in
*
moments
Throw them out in the alley He did become hero in talk, but one in deeds
The new civilization’s eggs are rotten he could not be.
Election, membership, council, presidency
The nooses of independence are very strange

Allama Iqbal Poetry

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THE CALL OF THE CARAVAN BELL

with the highest intellectual achievements. Sheikh

Nor speak of tyranny! Thou holdest the starting bells 9

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