Both Attar's 'Manteq-ot-Teyr' and Rumi's 'Masnavi' narrate the story of Bilal being tortured and crying out 'Ahad' (One). While Attar uses Bilal's story to illustrate absolute devotion and warn against sectarian disputation, Rumi (in Book 6) expands the narrative significantly, focusing on the dialogue between Bilal and Abu Bakr, the nature of love-induced suffering, and spiritual redemption. Rumi's retelling builds directly upon the Sufi symbolism established in Attar's earlier work.