Word Meaning
महाजन
mahājan
Meaning
A moneylender, banker, capitalist, or wealthy merchant.
Detailed Meaning
Historically meaning an eminent citizen or banker, the word primarily denotes a moneylender or capitalist financier in modern and classical idioms. In Iqbal's verse, it signifies the global financial elite and banking system that secretly sustains Western imperialist power. The poet contrasts the visible ruler with the hidden economic master pulling the strings.
Etymology
Sanskrit 'mahājana' (mahā 'great' + jana 'person'), which evolved into a term for a prominent merchant guild leader and banker.
Usage
Rare in romantic ghazal, it frequently appears in modern socio-political Urdu poetry to critique capitalism and financial usury.
Examples
A lifetime passed repaying the debt to the moneylender.
The financier pulls the strings of modern empires from behind the veil.