The narrator

The narrator of the verse is a philosophical and puckish figure, who ruminates on the fate of humanity and the conundrum of life itself. From various indications in the verse this is an older man, who has lived through different youthful phases of seeking knowledge and learning. The narrator indicates that he sought to sow the seed of knowledge and attain ultimate wisdom with various saints and sages, but that he no longer follows this path and has settled on a better way of living, which largely revolves around accepting the unknown in the universe, imbibing wine, and enjoying other carnal pleasures.

There is ample indication in the verse that the narrator is a direct stand-in for Omar Khayyam himself. Due to Omar Khayyam’s high level of learning and polymathic talents, the life the narrator describes as his own coheres with what is known about Omar...