Sham'a aur Parwana by Allama Iqbal

This is one of the many interestingly rich poems by Iqbal that talks about the human insignificance in the face of divine knowledge and power. The parwana is a beautiful, often used image of human aspiration and desire to break out of 'humanity'. The poem also reiterates the fact that in a bid to acquire what the finite humanity cannot fathom it loses itself in momentary firworks which ends in naught. On the other hand it also shows that the only way for the human, depicted by the parwana, is to lose itself in the light of the shama. It is only in the second case that the loss of everything turns into a gain. The only thing on which a judgement could be made is whether the petty human mind, the parwana, INTENDS, to acquire the light of the shama or to lose itself in it. The etiquettes of love teach us that its always better to lose yourself for the beloved rather than making do with the 'represented' version of the beloved, like a large part of the world.


PARWANA TUJH SE KARTA HAI, AI SHAMA, PYAAR KYON?
YE JAAN E BE QARAAR HAI TUJH PAR NISAAR KYON?

SEEMAABVAR RAKHTE HAI TERI ADA ISE
AADAAB E ISHQ TUNE SIKHAYE HAIN KYA ISE?
(Aadaab e ishq =the etiquettes of love)
KARTA HAI YE TAWAAF TERI JALWA GAH KA
PHOONKA HUA HAI KYA TERI BARQ E NIGAH KA?
(tawaaf )
AAZAR E MAUT MEIN ISE AARAM E JAAN HAI KYA?
SHOLAY MEIN TERE ZINDAGI E JAVIDAAN HAI KYA?
(zindagi e javidan=eternal life)
GHAM KHANA E JAHAN MIEN JO TERI ZIYA NA HO
IS TUFTA DIL KA NAKHL E TAMANNA HARA NA HO

GIRNA TERE HUZOOR MEIN IS KI NAMAAZ HAI
NANHE SE DIL MIEN LAZZAT E SOZ O GURAAZ HAI

KUCH IS MEIN JOSH E AASHIQUE E HUSN E QADEEM HAI
CHCHOTA SA TOOR TU, YE ZARA SA KALEEM HAI

PARWAANA--AUR ZAUQ E TAMASHA E RAUSHNI
KEEDA ZARA SA AUR TAMANNA E RAUSHNI