Song of the Hoopoe

by John Herlihy

Who dares look away when the hoopoe calls,

Its mystical majesty the entire world enthralls.

Warm pinkish-brown body with noble breast,

A fan-shaped crown of feathers upon the crest.

Bold black and white barring on wings and tail,

As a princeling of a bird thru the sky doth sail.

Its enchanting adornment is as a king’s attire,

Its stately stance will a simple nobility inspire.

Even its scientific name, upupa, mimics its call,

A far-reaching hoop-oop-oop there to enthrall.

A long slender bill make the picture complete,

To search for insects upon the earth at its feet.

King Solomon sees one of his birds as absent.

“I see not the hoopoe, is the bird not present?”

(Quran 27:20)

But the faithful hoopoe did not long stay away,

He soon returned with news of Sheba to convey.

(Quran 27:22)

The hoopoe as King Solomon’s messenger served.

In his kingdom, he favored this most faithful bird.

In Attar’s Conference of the Birds, the hoopoe appears,

A bird full of knowledge and wisdom among its peers.

Attar speaks of inner kingship to make nations whole,

As the hoopoe symbolizes the sovereignty of the soul.

In Jewish folklore, the hoopoe a bird of wisdom, insight,

In Aristophanes’ play a bird of brutality, strength, might.

In Christianity, associated with vigilance and repentance,

A shepherd of souls, a sage, and purveyor of forgiveness.

The hoopoe, a crowned warrior with zebra-striped wings,

A curved probing bill and a call that echoes as it sings.

The beloved bird has lived beside humanity for millennia,

Painted on Egyptian tombs, part of the folklore of Persia.

A truth-bearing messenger and warner of divine wrath,

In Sufism, the voice of the seeker on the straight path.

The symbol of the hoopoe cuts across culture and tradition,

For Persians protection, for the Greeks beauty’s reflection.

A magisterial bird of wonder that has flown thru the ages,

Symbolizing the wisdom of kings and the secrets of sages.

I listen intently, hear the voice of the hoopoe in my heart,

May its insight inform all my actions its wisdom to impart.

- - - - -

Copyright © John Herlihy

Monday 22 December 2025