The Simurg is an immortal mythical bird living on Mountain Qaf.
One day, all the birds meet together and decide to find the Simurg to take her wisdom and guidance for a better world. But they know that this journey is not easy. It takes too much time and energy. To reach her home on Mountain Qaf, they must cross 7 valleys.


The first one is the valley of “Quest”. When they arrive there, they find everything a bird wants. Some of them have caught in this, give up on the journey and decide to stay here.
Next valley is the valley of “Love” where beautiful swans live. Blinded by the magic of beauty, some birds lose their way and cannot continue their journey.

The others arrive to the valley of “Knowledge”. Everything looks good to their eyes here, and after a while, some birds start not to care anything and ignore their surroundings. They stop questioning and thinking, and eventually, forget their journey.
The remaining birds keep flying and reach the valley of “Faithlessness”. Some of them get really exhausted. They begin to think that the Simurg does not exist and that this journey is not worth anything. They lose their faith and don’t go further.

In the valley of “Loneliness”, many birds choose to continue their journey alone. They think for themselves and go searching for their own food. One goes in one direction, the other in another. However, the birds that stay together fly on their path.
When they arrive the valley of “Rumours”, they hear that the Simurg become soil. Most of them believe this without any doubt and decide to return home.

The valley of “Me” is the last valley they must cross. Arguments begin to arise among the remaining birds. They do not listen to anyone except themselves. They believe only their own truth and judge each other. Only 30 birds who move away from their ego are able to cross this valley.
They finally arrive at the place where the Simurg should be. But she is not there. All they see is a lake and their own reflections on the lake. The mystery is then revealed. In Persian, “si” means thirty and “murgh” means bird. The Simurgh they seek is themselves.
(This story is originally told by Farid Ud-Din Attar in the 12th century.)
