# LXVII explained — The Luzumiyat

> Chapter companion for The Luzumiyat by Abu al-ʻAlaʼ al-Maʻarri.

## What happens

The chapter critiques religious hypocrisy, depicting a figure who boldly proclaims faith yet cowardly submits to a corrupt ruler's authority, symbolized by the Sultan's wine-empurpled throne and carousing court.

## Themes in this chapter

### Critique of Power and Hypocrisy

The chapter contrasts bold religious declamation with cowardly submission to a debauched sultan, exposing the gap between professed faith and actual moral compromise.

## Character check-ins

### The Sultan

Depicted as a corrupt ruler enthroned amid wine and carousing courtesans, embodying worldly power and hypocrisy.

## Key lines

> For after she declaims upon the vows Of Faith, she pusillanimously bows Before the Sultan’s wine-empurpled throne, While he and all his courtesans carouse.

After loudly proclaiming her religious commitments, she timidly submits to the Sultan's authority, as he and his court indulge in drunken revelry.

_Highlights the hypocrisy of outward piety that yields to corrupt worldly power._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se/chapters/lxvii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se/chapters