# XXVII explained — The Luzumiyat

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

## What happens

The chapter reflects on the transient nature of human creeds, suggesting that one belief system dominates until it is replaced by another, and that the world perpetually seeks new narratives or 'fairy-tales' to believe in.

## Themes in this chapter

### Illusion and Reality

The chapter presents creeds as 'fairy-tales,' implying that human belief systems are illusions that are successively replaced, questioning the reality behind them.

### Mortality and Transience

The rise and fall of creeds mirrors the transient nature of all things, emphasizing that no belief system is permanent.

## Key lines

> So, too, the creeds of Man: the one prevails Until the other comes; and this one fails When that one triumphs; ay, the lonesome world Will always want the latest fairy-tales.

In the same way, human belief systems follow a cycle: one dominates until another emerges, and the old one falls when the new one succeeds. Indeed, the solitary world will always crave the newest stories or myths.

_This passage encapsulates the chapter's theme of the cyclical and ephemeral nature of religious and philosophical doctrines._

## Links

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