The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám · Chapter
XXXVIII explained
The chapter reflects on the ancient and recurring story of humanity being formed from clay by a divine Maker, emphasizing the transient and humble origins of mankind.
What happens
The chapter reflects on the ancient and recurring story of humanity being formed from clay by a divine Maker, emphasizing the transient and humble origins of mankind.
Themes in this chapter
The Potter and Clay Metaphor
The chapter directly invokes the image of a clod of saturated earth cast into human mould by the Maker, echoing the potter and clay allegory.
Mortality and Transience
The reference to successive generations rolling down from of old underscores the fleeting and cyclical nature of human life.
Key passages
“And has not such a Story from of Old Down Man’s successive generations roll’d Of such a clod of saturated Earth Cast by the Maker into Human mould?”
Hasn't this same tale been told through the ages, of how each generation of humans is formed from a lump of moist clay shaped by the Creator into a human form?
The quatrain emphasizes the ancient and repetitive nature of human creation from clay, reinforcing the potter and clay metaphor.