Farid al-Din Attar

"A Mystic Allegory"

[A5] Paperback - 88 pages,

by Farid al-Din 'Attar [d.627h],

Translated  & Published by M.S.A.C.

Mt San Antonia College, California.

Description :

Mantiq al-Tayr, The Conference of the Birds or the 'Colloquy of Birds' is an allegorical poem in which Shaykh Farid al-Din describes the quest of the Birds (symbolising Seekers on the Path) to reach the Simurgh (the Lord of Creation).

Shaykh Farid-ud din Attar occupies a prominent place in the roll of distinguished Persian Poets. The Mantiq al-Tayr, his most famous work, presented here in abridged form is a translation of the poem and is the one of the first works published to the common English reader.

It is a story about thousands of birds who set out to find a King for their Kingdom. They cross seven valleys and each valley has a different name and significance. Some birds give up, some die, some decide to return, and many make excuses. Finally, thirty birds make it through the journey, and when they reach the end they realise that the King or Simurgh they came to look for is merely a reflection of themselves!

Shaykh Farid ud-Din Attar : Brought up in a Sufi ambiance, the author of this work, Farid u'd-Din Attar (1145-1221), was an apothecary (chemist) who lived near Nishapur.

Shaykh al-Attar, may Allah be pleased with him, whom legend describes as having taken to the Sufi path in earnest after he witnessed a dervish surrender his soul outside his store, went on to become one of the most famous Sufi poets in history, best known for his classical work the 'Mantiqu't-Tair' The Conference of the Birds.

Dimensions : 23 x 15cm.