Engl 221: The Conference of the Birds

Farid ud-Din Attar

this book describes sufism and the history of mysticism in Islam

is a denomination of Islam which holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad's first Caliph was his father-in-law Abu Bakr. which means "example" and refers particularly to the the words and actions or "model"[1] or example of the Prophet Muhammadhttp://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Sunni_Islam

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Shi%27a_Islam Shi'as believe that the Imam - their preferred title for the political and religious leader of the Muslim community must belong to the direct lineage of Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and her husband (and Muhammad's cousin), Ali ibn Abi Talib (Imam Ali, the fourth caliph). The Imam is regarded as sinless and infallible and appoints his successor (except within the Zaydi sub-group, in which he emerges). The Shi'as reject the first three caliphs in Sunni Islam as usurpers of Ali's Imamate.

Simorgh - a mysterious bird in Iranian mythology which is a symbol often found in sufi literature, and similar to the phoenix bird - and "si morgh" - meaning "thirty birds" in Persian. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conference_of_the_Birds

At the onset, the birds are told that Simorgh first appears in China and his fame spreads. People fancy how he looks based on the single feather that he lets float down. It is said to have a counterpart in every soul. Simorgh is the "Friend" of God. In a time of downcast spirits, the birds learn more specifically that the Simorgh long ago creates birds as his shadow, so they have a natural affinity. The truth comes out a lifetime later, as 30 of the 100,000 birds that set off arrive at the Simorgh's doorstep. His servant turns them away, saying the Simorgh is too exalted to receive such vagrants. He relents, however, and takes the birds through 100,000 veils of dark and light to behold the Throne of Thrones. They are amazed to see themselves mirrored, and the Simorgh explains that because they are thirty birds, he appears as thirty birds—si morgh in Persian. If they were forty or fifty, his name and appearance would be otherwise. The journey has been about seeing who they truly are inside: the only authentic form of learning. http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-the-conference-of-the-birds/#gsc.tab=0

The hoopoe is the first bird introduced in The Conference of the Birds. Heaven has sent him to lead the other birds in their quest for a king. The hoopoe is beloved of a prophet, trusted by God, has traveled the world, searched for dry land during the Deluge, and explored with Solomon, whom he has also served as dignified friend and messenger to the Queen of Sheba (summarizing the situation in th Qur'an 27:20-28). The hoopoe even has the bismillah (opening words of the Qur'an) etched on his beak. He sports a long erectile crest, called a "feathered spray," for a crown. In the cover painting by Habib Allah (ca. 1600 CE), the hoopoe appears to the right of the peacock and hawk and is being pointed to by the stork's red beak. http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-the-conference-of-the-birds/#gsc.tab=0

Sheikh Sam'an, "the first man of his time" (57), falls in love at first sight with a Christian woman. Nonetheless, Sam'an is haunted by a dream. He sees himself in Rome, living in a church, and bowing down before an idol-becoming, in other words, a Christian. He decides that the only way to understand this dream is to go to Rome, which he does, accompanied by four hundred scholars. The trouble that awaits the sheikh, though, takes the form not of a spiritual temptation per se to, but of a Christian woman so beautiful that any man who lays eyes on her is rendered helpless with love. he rest of the story concerns the abject lengths to which Sam'an is willing to go to be with this woman and the humiliating deceptions she practices on him in the process, promising herself if only he will drink wine, tend her pigs, and adopt Christianity-he does all three-and even then rejecting him. In the end, however, with the help of his friends, Sam'an returns to the proper path; and the woman, finally, realizing the error of her ways, chooses the Sufi path as well.http://richardjnewman.com/the-sexual-politics-of-spiritual-love-3-when-beauty-is-a-weapon/

a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.

An extreme "antinomian" (relativist), Hallaj openly teaches mystical doctrines, the most famous of which, "I am the Truth," gets him brutally executed and cremated, as is seen in the text. It means that the Self is re-absorbed into the sole reality of God. Sufis see him as being killed for revealing a mystery, not for heresy. As Hallaj is being dismembered for crying, "I am the Truth," he smears blood on his face to show he has not turned white with fear. Facing death, heroes know that the world is worth little and the gallows are a "transitory dream."

Spoken by al-Hallaj.- The statement "I am the Truth" was considered a declaration of the nonexistence of the Self which has been re-absorbed into the true reality, i.e. God; his death was seen as a warning of the world's hostility to sufism, which became ever more secretive, paradoxical and esoteric

In the second valley, the birds give up reason for love and, with a thousand hearts to sacrifice, continue their quest for discovering the Simurgh. The third valley confounds the birds, especially when they discover that their worldly knowledge has become completely useless and their understanding has become ambivalent. They cannot understand why both the mihrab and the idol lead to understanding. Devoid of their earthly measures, they lose their ability to distinguish right from wrong. The fourth valley is introduced as the valley of detachment, i.e., detachment from desire to possess and the wish to discover. The birds begin to feel that they have become part of a universe that is detached from their physical recognizable reality. In their new world, the planets are as minute as sparks of dust and elephants are not distinguishable from ants. It is not until they enter the fifth valley that they realize that unity and multiplicity are the same. And as they have become entities in a vacuum with no sense of eternity. More importantly, they realize that God is beyond unity, multiplicity, and eternity. Stepping into the sixth valley, the birds become astonished at the beauty of the Beloved. Experiencing extreme sadness and dejection, they feel that they know nothing, understand nothing. They are not even aware of themselves. Only thirty birds reach the abode of the Simurgh. But there is no Simurgh anywhere t o see. Simurgh's chamberlain keeps them waiting for Simurgh long enough for the birds to figure out that they themselves are the si (thirty) murgh (bird). The seventh valley is the valley of depravation, forgetfulness, dumbness, deafness, and death. The present and future lives of the thirty successful birds become shadows chased by the celestial Sun. And themselves, lost in the Sea of His existence, are the Simurgh. http://johnwiegley.com/introducing-the-seven-valleys/ The Valley of Quest The Valley of Love The Valley of Understanding The Valley of Independence and Detachment The Valley of Unity The Valley of Astonishment and Bewilderment The Valley of Deprivation and Death *see notes* Farid ud-Din Attar's Conference of the Birds is chiefly concerned with trying to come to terms with mystical experience—with trying to represent union with the divine, and with the enumeration of the steps by which one can attempt to attain such a state. T

belief that union with or absorption into the Deity or the absolute, or the spiritual apprehension of knowledge inaccessible to the intellect, may be attained through contemplation and self-surrender.

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