In Attar's Elahi Nameh, the tale of the dust-sifter illustrates the mystical paradox of seeking the Divine. The sifter is told he is seeking something he has never lost, symbolizing the omnipresence of God which is already within and around him. The poem posits that the true barrier to finding this 'unlost' reality is the seeker's own ego or existence. The narrative concludes that the ultimate goal is for the seeker to cease to be (a reference to 'fana' or self-annihilation), for it is only through the complete negation of the self that one can truly recognize the Divine presence.