Edward FitzGerald & Farid ud-Din Attar 
Bird Parliament 
Manṭiq-uṭ-Ṭayr

A philosophical poem in prose – An allegory of the Sufi journey to realization of the nature of God.

Farid ud-Din Attar was one of the most important Persian Sufi poets of the second half of the 12th century. In the poem, the birds of the world gather to decide who is to be their sovereign, as they have none. Each bird represents a human fault which prevents human kind from attaining enlightenment.
Bird Parliament is a deeply meaningful and spiritual work.