Elephant in the Dark

A poem by Rumi

Rumi

• Celebrated Persian mystic and poet

• Lived 1207 – 1273

• Actual name was Jalal ad-Din

• His most celebrated work is the Masnavi

The Masnavi

• Long poem written in Persian in rhymed couplets

• Intended to provide guidance for his disciples and future generations

• Includes fables, short stories, allegories, and proverbs

Elephant in the Dark

• Comes from the Masnavi

• Written as an analogy

• Translated into free verse form poetry

• What is an analogy?

• An explanation of how two things are similar.

• Usually an extended comparison that explains something unfamiliar by showing how it is like something familiar.

• What is the analogy in this poem?

• What three elements are presented to us in the poem?

• The elephant

• Five men

• The darkness

• Try thinking of it like a metaphor

• What is the analogy in this poem?

• What three elements are presented to us in the poem?

• The elephant = Experience / World

• Five men

• The darkness

• Try thinking of it like a metaphor

• What is the analogy in this poem?

• What three elements are presented to us in the poem?

• The elephant = Experience / World

• Five men = Lack of cooperation

• The darkness

• Try thinking of it like a metaphor

• What is the analogy in this poem?

• What three elements are presented to us in the poem?

• The elephant = Experience / World

• Five men = Lack of cooperation

• The darkness = Partial knowledge / Search for truth

• Try thinking of it like a metaphor

Final Analogy

• If the men would work together to find out what the animal is, they would come to know that it was an elephant.

• No one person can attain full knowledge on their own. Instead of looking at a part of a thing on one’s own, people should work together to see the whole.

Alternative Title

• “Overcoming the Fear of Ignorance”

• “Understanding Ourselves Better by Studying Animals”

• “Overcoming the Limits of Human Understanding”

• “Learning to Overcome Our Fears”

Alternative Title

• “Overcoming the Limits of Human Understanding”

Just a misunderstanding

• How often are we mistaken?

• How do we feel when the mistake is pointed out to us?

• What is the proper way to cope?

• What is the most successful way to correct a misunderstanding?