# XC explained — The Luzumiyat

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

## What happens

A brief but potent quatrain urging the reader to refrain from violence against innocent creatures, emphasizing the shared mortality of hunter and hunted.

## Themes in this chapter

### Mortality and Transience

The quatrain underscores the fleeting nature of life for both hunter and hunted, reminding that neither endures long.

### Suffering and Resilience

The warning against staining life with guiltless blood highlights the suffering inflicted on innocent creatures and the futility of violence.

## Key lines

> Thy life with guiltless life-blood do not stain⁠— Hunt not the children of the woods; in vain Thou’lt try one day to wash thy bloody hand: Nor hunter here nor hunted long remain.

Do not taint your life by shedding innocent blood—do not hunt the creatures of the forest; you will find it futile to cleanse your bloodstained hand, for both the hunter and the hunted are equally transient.

_A moral admonition against killing, rooted in the shared impermanence of all living beings._

## Links

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