In Farid al-Din Attar's The Conference of the Birds, the tale of the two disputing cloak-wearers serves as a profound critique of spiritual hypocrisy and superficial piety. The narrative describes two individuals wearing patched cloaks (muraqqa'), which traditionally symbolize Sufi asceticism, poverty, and submission to the divine. However, they bring a fierce, worldly dispute before a judge (Qadi). The judge reproaches them by pointing out the stark contradiction between their garments of spiritual detachment and their aggressive, materialistic behavior. He insists that they must either abandon their quarrel to be worthy of their cloaks, or shed the cloaks if they choose to continue fighting. Through this allegory, Attar emphasizes that the true spiritual path requires genuine inner transformation and submission, rather than merely adopting the outward appearance or attire of a mystic.