When you are faced with a difficult problem— a situation, a person, or a habit of your own mind—where do you turn for support?
And when the struggle continues and your strength wavers, what helps you stay steady?
Rumi’s Masnavi shares a story of a royal falcon who lost its way — offering an important lesson for the inner battles we all face.
The Royal Falcon
The falcon is known for its sharp vision and its ability to soar high. Kings once trained falcons for hunting. They rested on the king’s gloved arm, flew out at his command, and always returned to their master.
In the Masnavi, Rumi tells of a king’s falcon that wandered away from the palace and landed at the doorstep of an old woman.
The Falcon Wanders Away
Enchanted by the bird, she lifted it gently, offered it barley and water, and tied its legs so it would not fly away.
Seeing its sharp talons, she said, “Who has kept you so neglected? Look how overgrown your nails are,” and clipped them.
Stroking its wings with motherly affection, she frowned again and cut its feathers so it wouldn’t fly away. The falcon did not resist.
Away From Home
She brought broth meant for her children and placed it before the bird. But the falcon could not eat such food — it was accustomed to the king’s hand. When it refused, the woman grew angry.
“I care for you so much, and this is how you respond?”
In her rage, she poured hot soup over the falcon’s head.
The falcon remembered its days with the king — flying freely, circling the seas, responding to the master’s call. Tears flowed from its eyes.
The Return
Meanwhile, the king’s attendants searched everywhere for the lost falcon. They finally arrived at the old woman’s house. Seeing the bird’s condition, the king was deeply grieved.
The falcon, reunited with its master, pressed itself against him—resolved never again to wander away.
Rumi writes:
Your soul is the king’s falcon, that says:
“This old woman’s rage does not touch my true glory.”
The Spiritual Metaphor
In many traditions, the falcon symbolizes the soul. Its sharp vision points to inner clarity; its flight, to freedom beyond limitation.
Above all, the falcon belongs to the Master. It arises when the Master commands it to arise, performs its task in the world, and returns to the Master’s arm when the drums beat the call to return.
In Rumi’s poetry, the king’s forearm becomes the soul’s resting place—a symbol of returning to one’s Divine source.
What the Story Reminds Us
- We are made for freedom, clarity, and strength—not confinement.
- When we forget our source, we wander into spaces that cannot nourish us.
- What sustains the soul may appear strange or unworthy to the material world.
- Trying to fit into shallow ideals slowly strips us of our true capacities.
- Love rooted in possession turns to anger when it is not obeyed.
- The soul’s deepest needs can be fulfilled only by its Source.
The longer the falcon wanders, the longer its suffering continues.
An End Note from the Masnavi
The story leaves us with a deeper question: When is the falcon truly worthy—and what makes a life well lived? Rumi returns to this question in another verse from the Masnavi, where someone asks a teacher about a falcon perched on the palace wall:
Which part of the falcon is worthy—its head or its tail?
The teacher replies:
It depends on the direction it faces.
If it faces the King (inward), its head is worthy of reverence.
If it faces outward, then even its tail is worthy—
for that alone points toward the palace.
Even a royal falcon loses its worth if it hunts a mouse.
And even an owl gains dignity if it longs for the King.
It is not the outer form that matters, but the direction of one’s turning.
Reflection Question
The falcon symbolizes loyalty to its Source, calm strength, and clarity of vision.
Which of these qualities is calling out to you at this moment in your life?
References
- Shaikh-ul-Arab, Maulana Muhammad Zakariya Kandhlawi. Ma‘ārif-e-Mathnawi — “The Royal Falcon.”
- Dar-al-Masnavi.org. The High Station of Man (Part One).
- Barks, Coleman. The Old Woman and the Falcon, from The Masnavi of Rumi.
- Johnson, Ibukunoluwa. The Falcon in Egyptian Mythology: Symbol of Power, Protection, and Divine Vision.
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