The Luzumiyat · Chapter
XIV explained
The chapter reflects on the passage of a funeral procession, equating the sounds of mourning and joy as one in the face of night and transience.
What happens
The chapter reflects on the passage of a funeral procession, equating the sounds of mourning and joy as one in the face of night and transience.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Themes in this chapter
- Mortality and Transience
The funeral procession and the vanishing howdaj underscore the fleeting nature of life and the unity of sorrow and joy in the face of death.
Key passages
“But now the funeral is passing by, And in its trail, beneath this moaning sky, The howdaj comes—both vanish into night; To me are one, the sob, the joyous cry.”
The funeral procession moves along, followed by a howdaj under the grieving sky; both disappear into darkness, and I see no difference between a sob and a cry of joy.
The poet equates mourning and celebration, suggesting that all human expressions are equal in the face of mortality.