The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám · Chapter
XIII explained
The chapter contrasts worldly glories and religious hopes for paradise, urging the reader to seize present pleasures (the 'Cash') rather than rely on uncertain future promises (the 'Credit'), and to ignore distant warnings.
What happens
The chapter contrasts worldly glories and religious hopes for paradise, urging the reader to seize present pleasures (the 'Cash') rather than rely on uncertain future promises (the 'Credit'), and to ignore distant warnings.
Themes in this chapter
Carpe Diem
The poem explicitly urges taking the 'Cash' (present pleasure) over the 'Credit' (future reward), embodying the carpe diem ethos.
Skepticism and Doubt
Dismisses the 'distant Drum' of religious or prophetic warnings, suggesting skepticism toward unverifiable promises.
Characters to notice
- Omar Khayyám
Speaker of the quatrain, advocating for present enjoyment over future hopes.
Key passages
“Some for the Glories of This World; and some Sigh for the Prophet’s Paradise to come; Ah, take the Cash, and let the Credit go, Nor heed the rumble of a distant Drum!”
Some people strive for worldly fame, others long for the afterlife promised by religion; but just take what you can enjoy now and forget about future promises, ignoring any warnings from afar.
The paraphrase captures the pragmatic, hedonistic advice of the quatrain.