masjid-e qur:tubah
*stanza four*

  ....  
1) your beauty and grandeur,
proof of the man of the Lord
  
teraa jamaal-o-jalaal , mard-e ;xudaa kii daliil
he too, grand and beautiful,
you too, grand and beautiful		  
vuh bhii jaliil-o-jamiil , tuu bhii jaliil-o-jamiil
     
2) your foundation firm,
your pillars innumerable
  
terii binaa paa))edaar , tere sutuu;N be-shumaar
as would be, in the desert of Syria,
a grove of date-palms		  
shaam ke .sa;hraa me;N ho jaise hujuum-e na;xiil !
     
3) on your door and roof
the light of the Auspicious Valley
  
tire dar-o-baam par vaadii-e aiman kaa nuur
your lofty minaret
the manifestation-place of Gabriel		  
teraa minaar-e buland jalvah-gah-e jibra))iil
= The 'Auspicious Valley' is where the Prophet had
his first divine revelation from the angel Gabriel		    
     
4) [he] can never become erased,
the Muslim man, for
  
mi;T nahii;N saktaa kabhii mard-e musalmaa;N , kih hai
from his calls to prayer is revealed
the mystery of Moses and Abraham		  
us kii a;zaano;N se faash sirr-e kaliim-o-;xaliil !

= The mard-e musalmaan is definitely masculine;
unlike insaan or (in traditional usage) aadmii ,
mard doesn't include women. Iqbal had very little
to say about women, and literally nothing to say
to them (or to non-Muslims, for that matter).

= kaliimull;aah , the 'Speaker with God', is Moses;
and ;xaliilull;aah , the 'Friend of God', is Abraham.

  
  ....  
5) his land without boundaries,
his horizon without borders
  
us kii zamii;N be-;huduud , us kaa afaq be-;su;Guur
the waves of his ocean,
the Tigris and the Danube and the Nile		  
us ke samundar kii mauj , dajlah-o-danyuub-o-niil !
     
6) his times are extraordinary,
his stories strange
  
us ke zamaane ((ajiib , us ke fasaane ;Gariib
to the old era he gave
the message of departure		  
((ahd-e kuhan ko diyaa us ne payaam-e ra;hiil !
     
7) cupbearer of the possessors of taste,
horseman of the field of ardor
  
saaqii-e arbaab-e ;zauq , faaris-e maidaan-e shauq
his wine is pure,
his sword is well-made		  
baadah hai us kaa ra;hiiq , te;G hai us kii a.siil !
     
8) he is a soldier,
his every atom is 'la-ilah'
  
mard-e sipaahii hai vuh , us kii zarah laa-il;aah
in the shadow of the sword
his refuge is 'la-ilah'		  
saayah-e shamshiir me;N us kii panah laa-il;aah
= 'la-ilah' is the beginning of the Muslim
confession of faith, 'There is no God but God,
and Muhammad is the Prophet of God'.		    
   

*On to stanza five* -- *Masjid-e Qurtubah index page*

 
 
 

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