The Bird of Time has but little way / To flutter
-- The narrator (chapter 7)

Importance: This is the first allusion to the “Bird of Time” in the Rubáiyát. It begins an extended metaphor identifying time’s passage with the flight of birds – unpredictable and beyond the influence of human agency. In this quatrain the narrator is attempting to express the imminence of mortal expiration in every human being’s life. This is a constant point of emphasis throughout the Rubáiyát. The fleeting nature of human existence is contemplated at length and the explanation for the narrator’s attitude to life is found within this observation: life so quickly expires that it is best if it could be lived without fear of penitence but simply as an arena in which to avail oneself of the natural bounties of the earth that may delight the senses.

The Wine of Life keeps oozing drop...
-- The narrator (chapter 8)