"Those who do not understand a thing," Rumi observes, "claim that it is useless. The hand and the instrument are as flint and steel. Strike flint with earth. Will a spark he made?" One of the reasons why the mystic does not preach publicly is that the conditioned religious man, or the materialist, will not understand him:

A king's hawk settled upon a ruin inhabited by owls. They decided that he had come to drive them out of their home and take possession of it himself. "This ruin may seem a prosperous place to you. To me, the better place is upon the arm of the King," said the hawk. Some of the owls cried, "Do not believe him. He is using guile to steal our home.