In Chapter 15, Poem 19 of Attar's Mokhtar Nameh, the poet laments a world overtaken by the base and unworthy. The verse describes how a group suddenly seized the earth, crushing the 'life-vein' of the heartbroken (the spiritually aware or lovers of truth). As a consequence of this usurpation, the true 'men of the world' have retreated into isolation, leaving the world to be dominated by 'cowards' (the spiritually empty or ignoble). This poem highlights a profound sense of alienation, criticizing a time of moral decay where worldly power rests with the base, forcing the virtuous to withdraw.