In Chapter 24, Poem 7 of Mokhtar Nameh, Attar criticizes both the pursuit of social approval and the outward, superficial displays of asceticism (represented by the staff and patched cloak). He argues that when these behaviors are driven by base worldly desires—referred to metaphorically as running about "for the sake of the belly"—they constitute hypocrisy. Attar warns that such a relentless pursuit of material or social sustenance ultimately leads to spiritual self-destruction, vividly describing it as hanging oneself by one's own throat.