The Fanatic King, the Vizier’s Deception, and the Danger of False Guides | Chapter 5 of The Masnavi
Fanaticism, Deception, and Spiritual Division in Rumi’s Tale of the King and the Vizier | Chapter 5 of The Masnavi (Book One) Chapter 5 of The Masnavi presents one of Rumi’s most sweeping and morally charged allegories: the story of a tyrannical king, a deceitful vizier, and a religious community manipulated into self-destruction. Although framed within a historical setting involving a fanatic Jewish king and the early Christians of Jesus’s era, the tale is not a historical indictment—it is a spiritual parable about the dangers of fanaticism, hypocrisy, blind sectarianism, and the ego’s misuse of religious authority. This chapter is among the longest and most thematically dense in Book One, demonstrating how easily spiritual truth can be obscured when power, envy, and deception take precedence over humility and inner purification. To follow the narrative in full depth, we recommend watching the complete chapter breakdown: The Fanatic King and His Distorted Devotion The stor...