تھا جہاں مدرسہ شيري و شاہنشاہي
English title: The cloisters, once the rearing place, Of daring men and royal breed
The cloisters, once the rearing place of daring men and royal breed, Alas! Now nothing else impart – to foxy ways they pay much heed.
The chiefs who lead the caravan train, of that virtue quite are blank, which is found in shepherd’s task and leads to Moses’ noble rank.
How can the birds with voices sweet the thrilling joy of song attain? Alas! The birds in hostile mead cannot their breath for long sustain.
One type of rapture and surprise is darkness deep and pitch complete; the other rapture and surprise with love and knowledge is replete.
My thoughts sublime that soar aloft, like the flash of lightning, show the way: Lest travelers in the dark of night should miss the track and go astray.
Sources and translator credits
- Original text transcription: Bal-e-Jibril — تھا جہاں مدرسہ شيري و شاہنشاہي — Digital transcription file at commit 39d44fc0c2b8ca25769c4b36e6eac4d90cb42b35; the source dataset does not identify the underlying print edition.Verified against this pinned digital transcription file; not checked against a print edition.Source
- Iqbal Demystified source list: Bal-e-Jibril — Pinned digital dataset commit 39d44fc0c2b8ca25769c4b36e6eac4d90cb42b35; the underlying print edition is not identified by the dataset.Community dataset list; not reconciled against a print edition.Source
- Bal-e-Jibril English translation at allama-iqbal.com — — Public digital poem page, retrieved 2026-10-06; pinned to allama-iqbal.com commit 82547635bb6b758c45082084b2f152fc453a8056.Translation by Syed Akbar Ali Shah; English Translation by: Syed Akbar Ali ShahSource