In Book One of the Masnavi, following the story of the grocer and the parrot, Jalaluddin Rumi warns seekers against the spiritual fallacy of comparing the deeds of holy men to themselves (kar-e-pakan ra qiyas az khod magir). He explains that while the actions of saints and ordinary humans may appear identical outwardly, their internal realities and spiritual stations are entirely different. To illustrate this, Rumi uses the Persian homograph shir, which can mean either 'milk' or 'lion'. Just as these two words look identical on paper but represent completely different entities, the outward behavior of a spiritual guide must not be judged by the limited standards of ordinary human behavior.