In the Masnavi, Jalaluddin Rumi critiques the rationalistic and materialist philosophy of the Dahri (the eternalist/materialist who denies a divine creator and claims the universe has no temporal beginning). To illustrate the limitations of purely speculative intellect in comprehending cosmic origins and divine reality, Rumi employs the allegory of a small worm buried inside dung.

Just as a tiny worm living its entire existence underground cannot possibly comprehend the vastness, beginning, or end of the earth, a human relying solely on limited sensory perception and speculative philosophy cannot grasp the temporal creation (huduth) or ultimate reality of the sun, the heavens, and the divine. Rumi argues that true knowledge of creation and divinity requires spiritual illumination that transcends the physical senses and rationalistic skepticism.