Attar was a pharmacist in Nishapur who sold drugs for bodies and gave away prescriptions for souls. He wrote over thirty books, but his masterpiece was "The Conference of the Birds" — an allegory of the spiritual path that has guided seekers for eight hundred years.
The story is simple: the birds of the world gather to find their king, the mythical Simorgh. The journey takes them through seven valleys — the valleys of Quest, Love, Understanding, Detachment, Unity, Bewilderment, and finally Poverty and Annihilation.
"The Hoopoe spoke: 'Our journey is difficult.
Many will start; few will finish.
Those who cling to comfort will turn back.
Those who fear suffering will fail.
Only those who care nothing for themselves
Will reach the dwelling of the King.'"
In the Valley of Quest, the birds learn that seeking is itself a kind of finding. In the Valley of Love, they learn that reason must be abandoned. In the Valley of Understanding, they discover that knowledge is not enough. In the Valley of Detachment, they release their grip on all they have known.
In the Valley of Unity, all distinctions dissolve. "The Valley of Unity," Attar wrote, "is a place where everything is one. This is not monotony but mystery — the many becoming one without ceasing to be many."
"In the Valley of Bewilderment,
The pilgrims forget what they thought they knew.
Every certainty becomes a question.
Every answer becomes a deeper question.
They wander, lost, unable to find the path,
Until they realize: being lost is the path."
Finally, thirty birds reach the dwelling of the Simorgh. And there they discover the great secret: "Simorgh" in Persian means "thirty birds." They had traveled far to find the King — only to discover that the King was themselves all along. The seeker and the sought were always one.
"We have traveled so far," they cry. "Why did you not tell us?" And the Simorgh answers: "Would you have believed? Would you have been transformed? The journey was necessary. Without it, you would not know what you now know: that you are what you sought."
Teaching 38
The King you seek is yourself — not your small self, but the Self you become through the journey. The seven valleys must be crossed: seeking, loving, understanding, releasing, unifying, bewildering, annihilating. At the end, the thirty birds discover they are the Simorgh.