And Abu Jahl, that prince of iniquity. Likewise did God ordain a punishment for the Thamud Namely, an earthquake which destroyed their lives. Likewise a punishment for the Adites, Namely, a swiftly rising and violent wind. Likewise God ordained acute punishment for Qarun; For the earth concealed wrath under its mildness, Till all its mildness was converted into wrath, And it swallowed up Qarun and his wealth in its depth. So with the mouthful which nourishes your body And wards off the darts of hunger like a cuirass, When God instils wrath into this mouthful of bread, That same bread will choke you like a halter. This same garment which protects you from the cold, God may give it the quality of intense cold, So that this warm vest may become to your body Cold as ice and biting as frost; So that you will cast off these furs and silks, And seek for a refuge from cold with cold itself. You have only one eye, not two (for these two possibili- ties). You have forgotten the story of the "shadowing cloud. God's command came to city and village, And to house and wall, saying, "Afford no shade! Ward not off the pouring rain and the sun's heat;" Till those men hasted to listen to the prophet Shu'aib Saying, 'O king, have pity; most of us are dead!' But read the rest of the tale in the commentaries. When that Omnipotent hand made the staff a serpent, If you have reason, that portent should suffice. You have sight indeed, but fail to mark carefully; Your eyes are dimmed and closed with fat. The heavenly treasure lies "nearer to us than our neck-vein". The Faqir was in this state when a divine voice came, And God thus solved his difficulties, Saying, "The voice told you to place an arrow on the bow, It did not bid you draw the bowstring to the utmost; It did not bid you draw the bow with all your might; It said, 'Adjust an arrow,' not 'Draw the bow fully' You elevated the bow to excess, You magnified unduly the bowman's art, Go! abandon this strong bowmanship, Fix an arrow on the string, but make it not fly far. When it falls, dig in that spot and search, Abandon force and seek the treasure with humility." God is "what is nearer to you than your neck-vein," You have cast the arrow of speculation afar off. O you, who have made ready your bow and arrows, The game is close to you, and you shoot too far off. The further a man shoots, the further off he is, And the more removed from the treasure he seeks. The philosopher kills himself with thinking, Tell him that his back is turned to that treasure; Tell him that the more he runs to and fro, The Almighty says, "Make efforts in our ways," Not "Make efforts away from us," O restless one. Like Canaan, who went away, from shame to follow Noah, Up to the top of that lofty mountain, The more he sought safety on that mountain, The further was he removed from the safe asylum. So this Faqir, in search of that hidden treasure, Day after day drew his bow stronger and stronger; And the harder he drew his bow, The further was he from the seat of that treasure. This parable applies to all times, For the soul of the ignorant is pledged to misfortune. Because the ignorant man is ashamed of a master, Perforce he goes and opens a new school for himself.

And Abu Jahl, that prince of iniquity. Likewise did God ordain a punishment for the Thamud Namely, an earthquake which destroyed their lives. Likewise a punishment for the Adites, Namely, a swiftly rising and violent wind. Likewise God ordained acute punishment for Qarun; For the earth concealed wrath under its mildness, Till all its mildness was converted into wrath, And it swallowed up Qarun and his wealth in its depth. So with the mouthful which nourishes your body And wards off the darts of hunger like a cuirass, When God instils wrath into this mouthful of bread, That same bread will choke you like a halter. This same garment which protects you from the cold, God may give it the quality of intense cold, So that this warm vest may become to your body Cold as ice and biting as frost; So that you will cast off these furs and silks, And seek for a refuge from cold with cold itself. You have only one eye, not two (for these two possibili- ties). You have forgotten the story of the "shadowing cloud. God's command came to city and village, And to house and wall, saying, "Afford no shade! Ward not off the pouring rain and the sun's heat;" Till those men hasted to listen to the prophet Shu'aib Saying, 'O king, have pity; most of us are dead!' But read the rest of the tale in the commentaries. When that Omnipotent hand made the staff a serpent, If you have reason, that portent should suffice. You have sight indeed, but fail to mark carefully; Your eyes are dimmed and closed with fat. The heavenly treasure lies "nearer to us than our neck-vein". The Faqir was in this state when a divine voice came, And God thus solved his difficulties, Saying, "The voice told you to place an arrow on the bow, It did not bid you draw the bowstring to the utmost; It did not bid you draw the bow with all your might; It said, 'Adjust an arrow,' not 'Draw the bow fully' You elevated the bow to excess, You magnified unduly the bowman's art, Go! abandon this strong bowmanship, Fix an arrow on the string, but make it not fly far. When it falls, dig in that spot and search, Abandon force and seek the treasure with humility." God is "what is nearer to you than your neck-vein," You have cast the arrow of speculation afar off. O you, who have made ready your bow and arrows, The game is close to you, and you shoot too far off. The further a man shoots, the further off he is, And the more removed from the treasure he seeks. The philosopher kills himself with thinking, Tell him that his back is turned to that treasure; Tell him that the more he runs to and fro, The Almighty says, "Make efforts in our ways," Not "Make efforts away from us," O restless one. Like Canaan, who went away, from shame to follow Noah, Up to the top of that lofty mountain, The more he sought safety on that mountain, The further was he removed from the safe asylum. So this Faqir, in search of that hidden treasure, Day after day drew his bow stronger and stronger; And the harder he drew his bow, The further was he from the seat of that treasure. This parable applies to all times, For the soul of the ignorant is pledged to misfortune. Because the ignorant man is ashamed of a master, Perforce he goes and opens a new school for himself.

That school is higher than your true master, O beloved, And hard of access, and full of scorpions and snakes. Straightway overthrow it, and turn back again To the green garden and sweet watered meadows. Not like Canaan, who, through pride and ignorance, Sought his ark of safety on a protecting mountain. His far-shooting learning veiled his eyes, While his heart's desire was all the while in his grasp. Ah! oftentimes have learning and genius and wit Proved to the traveler to be Ghouls and highwaymen! "The majority of those in Paradise are the simple," Who have escaped the snares of philosophy. Strip yourself bare of overweening intellect, That grace may ever be shed upon you from above. Cleverness is the opposite of humility and submission, Quit cleverness, and consort with simple-mindedness! 1. Koran lxviii. 16. 4. Because, as Sir T. Browne says, "God is all things." 5. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 265, and note. 6. Koran xxvi. 189. The cloud emitted heat instead of rain, to punish those who disregarded Shu'aib, or Jethro. 8. A Hadis. Cp. 1 Cor. i. 25, 26. STORY VII. The Three Travelers. A Mosalman was traveling with two unbelievers, a Jew and a Christian. Like wisdom linked with the flesh and the devil. God was "nigh unto His faithful servant," and when the first stage was completed He caused a present of sweet- meats to be laid before the travelers. As the Jew and the Christian had already eaten their evening meal when the sweetmeats arrived, they proposed to lay them aside till the morrow; but the Mosalman, who was keeping fast, and therefore could not eat before nightfall, proposed to eat them that night. To this the other two refused to consent, alleging that the Mosalman wanted to eat the whole of the sweetmeats himself. Then the Mosalman proposed to divide them into three portions, so that each might eat his own portion when he pleased; but this also was objected to by the others, who quoted the proverb, "The divider is in hell" The Mosalman explained to them that this proverb meant the man who divides his allegiance between God and lust; but they still refused to give way, and the Mosalman there- fore submitted, and lay down to sleep in the endurance of the pangs of hunger. Next morning, when they awoke, it was agreed between them that each should relate his dreams, and that the sweetmeats should be awarded to him whose dream was the best. The Jew said that he had dreamed that Moses had carried him to the top of Mount Sinai, and shown him marvelous visions of the glory of heaven and the angels. The Christian said he had dreamed that 'Isa had carried him up to the fourth heaven and shown him all the glories of the heavens. Finally the Mosalman said that the Prophet Muhammad had appeared to him in

That school is higher than your true master, O beloved, And hard of access, and full of scorpions and snakes. Straightway overthrow it, and turn back again To the green garden and sweet watered meadows. Not like Canaan, who, through pride and ignorance, Sought his ark of safety on a protecting mountain. His far-shooting learning veiled his eyes, While his heart's desire was all the while in his grasp. Ah! oftentimes have learning and genius and wit Proved to the traveler to be Ghouls and highwaymen! "The majority of those in Paradise are the simple," Who have escaped the snares of philosophy. Strip yourself bare of overweening intellect, That grace may ever be shed upon you from above. Cleverness is the opposite of humility and submission, Quit cleverness, and consort with simple-mindedness! 1. Koran lxviii. 16. 4. Because, as Sir T. Browne says, "God is all things." 5. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 265, and note. 6. Koran xxvi. 189. The cloud emitted heat instead of rain, to punish those who disregarded Shu'aib, or Jethro. 8. A Hadis. Cp. 1 Cor. i. 25, 26. STORY VII. The Three Travelers. A Mosalman was traveling with two unbelievers, a Jew and a Christian. Like wisdom linked with the flesh and the devil. God was "nigh unto His faithful servant," and when the first stage was completed He caused a present of sweet- meats to be laid before the travelers. As the Jew and the Christian had already eaten their evening meal when the sweetmeats arrived, they proposed to lay them aside till the morrow; but the Mosalman, who was keeping fast, and therefore could not eat before nightfall, proposed to eat them that night. To this the other two refused to consent, alleging that the Mosalman wanted to eat the whole of the sweetmeats himself. Then the Mosalman proposed to divide them into three portions, so that each might eat his own portion when he pleased; but this also was objected to by the others, who quoted the proverb, "The divider is in hell" The Mosalman explained to them that this proverb meant the man who divides his allegiance between God and lust; but they still refused to give way, and the Mosalman there- fore submitted, and lay down to sleep in the endurance of the pangs of hunger. Next morning, when they awoke, it was agreed between them that each should relate his dreams, and that the sweetmeats should be awarded to him whose dream was the best. The Jew said that he had dreamed that Moses had carried him to the top of Mount Sinai, and shown him marvelous visions of the glory of heaven and the angels. The Christian said he had dreamed that 'Isa had carried him up to the fourth heaven and shown him all the glories of the heavens. Finally the Mosalman said that the Prophet Muhammad had appeared to him in

person, and after commending him for his piety in saying his prayers and keeping fast so strictly on the previous night, had commanded him to eat up those divinely pro- vided sweetmeats as a reward, and he had accordingly done so. The Jew and the Christian were at first annoyed with him for thus stealing a march upon them; but on his point- ing out that he had no option but to obey the Prophet's commands, they admitted that he had done right, and that his dream was the best, as he had been awake, while they were asleep. The moral is, that the divine treasure is revealed as an immediate intuition to those who seek it with prayer and humble obedience, and not to those who seek to infer and deduce its nature and quality from the lofty abstrac- tions of philosophy. Lofty philosophical speculation does not lead to the knowledge of God. The Mosalman said, "O my friends, My lord, the Prophet Muhammad, appeared to me And said, 'The Jew has hurried to the top of Sinai, And plays a game of love with God's interlocutor; The Christian has been carried by 'Isa, Lord of bliss Up to the summit of the fourth heaven Thou who art left behind and hast endured anguish, Arise quickly and eat the sweetmeats and confections! Those two clever and learned men have ascended, And read their titles of dignity and exaltation; Those two exalted ones have found exalted science, And rivaled the very angels in intellect; O humble and simple and despised one, Arise and eat of the banquet of the divine sweets!" They said to him, "Then you have been gluttonous; Well indeed! you have eaten all the sweets!" He answered, "When my sovereign lord commanded me, Who am I that I should abstain from obeying? Would you, O Jew, resist the commands of Moses If he bade you do something, either pleasant or not? Would you, O Christian, rebel against 'Isa's commands, Whether those commands were agreeable or the reverse? How could I rebel against the 'Glory of the prophets'? Nay, I ate the sweets, and am now happy." They replied, "By Allah, you have seen a true vision; Your vision is better than a hundred like ours. Your dream was seen by you when awake, O happy one, For it was seen to be real by your being awake." Quit excessive speculation and inordinate science, 'Tis service of God and good conduct that gains its end. 'Tis for this that God created us, "We created not mankind save to worship us" What profit did his science bring to Samiri? His science excluded him from God's portals. Consider what Qarun gained by his alchemy; He was swallowed up in the depths of the earth. Abu-1 Jahl, again, what gained he from his wit Save to be hurled head-foremost into hell for infidelity? Know real science is seeing the fire directly, Not mere talk, inferring the fire from the smoke. Your scientific proofs are more offensive to the wise Than the urine and breath whence a physician infers. If these be your only proofs, O son, Smell foul breath and inspect urine like physicians. Such proofs are as the staff of a blind man, Which prove only the blindness of the holder. All your outcry and pompous claims and bustle Only say, "I cannot see, hold me excused!"

person, and after commending him for his piety in saying his prayers and keeping fast so strictly on the previous night, had commanded him to eat up those divinely pro- vided sweetmeats as a reward, and he had accordingly done so. The Jew and the Christian were at first annoyed with him for thus stealing a march upon them; but on his point- ing out that he had no option but to obey the Prophet's commands, they admitted that he had done right, and that his dream was the best, as he had been awake, while they were asleep. The moral is, that the divine treasure is revealed as an immediate intuition to those who seek it with prayer and humble obedience, and not to those who seek to infer and deduce its nature and quality from the lofty abstrac- tions of philosophy. Lofty philosophical speculation does not lead to the knowledge of God. The Mosalman said, "O my friends, My lord, the Prophet Muhammad, appeared to me And said, 'The Jew has hurried to the top of Sinai, And plays a game of love with God's interlocutor; The Christian has been carried by 'Isa, Lord of bliss Up to the summit of the fourth heaven Thou who art left behind and hast endured anguish, Arise quickly and eat the sweetmeats and confections! Those two clever and learned men have ascended, And read their titles of dignity and exaltation; Those two exalted ones have found exalted science, And rivaled the very angels in intellect; O humble and simple and despised one, Arise and eat of the banquet of the divine sweets!" They said to him, "Then you have been gluttonous; Well indeed! you have eaten all the sweets!" He answered, "When my sovereign lord commanded me, Who am I that I should abstain from obeying? Would you, O Jew, resist the commands of Moses If he bade you do something, either pleasant or not? Would you, O Christian, rebel against 'Isa's commands, Whether those commands were agreeable or the reverse? How could I rebel against the 'Glory of the prophets'? Nay, I ate the sweets, and am now happy." They replied, "By Allah, you have seen a true vision; Your vision is better than a hundred like ours. Your dream was seen by you when awake, O happy one, For it was seen to be real by your being awake." Quit excessive speculation and inordinate science, 'Tis service of God and good conduct that gains its end. 'Tis for this that God created us, "We created not mankind save to worship us" What profit did his science bring to Samiri? His science excluded him from God's portals. Consider what Qarun gained by his alchemy; He was swallowed up in the depths of the earth. Abu-1 Jahl, again, what gained he from his wit Save to be hurled head-foremost into hell for infidelity? Know real science is seeing the fire directly, Not mere talk, inferring the fire from the smoke. Your scientific proofs are more offensive to the wise Than the urine and breath whence a physician infers. If these be your only proofs, O son, Smell foul breath and inspect urine like physicians. Such proofs are as the staff of a blind man, Which prove only the blindness of the holder. All your outcry and pompous claims and bustle Only say, "I cannot see, hold me excused!"

This is illustrated be an anecdote of a peasant who, hear- ing a proclamation issued by the Prince of Tirmid, to the effect that a large reward would be given to him who should take a message to Samarcaud in the space of four days, hur- ried to Tirmid by relays of post-horses in the utmost haste, and threw the whole city into alarm, as the people thought that his extreme haste and bustle must portend the approach of an enemy or some other calamity. But when he was admitted to the presence of the prince, all he had to say was, that he had hurried to inform him that he could not go to Samarcand so quickly. The prince was very angry with him for making all this disturbance about nothing, and threatened to punish him. The uses of chastisements. He said, "Alms of mercy repel calamity, Alms cure thy sickness, O son 'Tis not charitable to burn up the poor, Or to put out the eyes of the meek." The prince replied, "Kindness is good in its place, Provided you do kindness in its proper place. If at chess you put the king in the rook's place That is wrong; and so if you put the knight in the king's, The law prescribes both rewards and chastisements. The king's place is the throne, the horse's the gate. What is justice but putting each in his place? What injustice but putting each in what is not his place? Nothing is vain of all that God has created, Whether vengeance or mercy, or plain dealing or snares. Not one of all these is good absolutely, Nor is any one of them absolutely bad. Each is harmful or beneficial according to its place, Wherefore knowledge of these points is proper and useful. Ah! many are the chastisements sent to the poor Which are more beneficial to him than bread and sweets; Because sweets out of season excite biliousness, While blows make him pure from impurity. Strike the poor man timely blows, Which may save him from being beheaded later." The peasant, in reply, urged the prince not to be over hasty in punishing him, but to take counsel with suitable advisers, as enjoined in various texts, and in the Hadis pro- hibiting monkery, and warned him that if he shunned the advice and society of his equals he would assuredly be led astray by wretched companions. In illustration of this a story is told of a mouse who conceived a great affection for a frog living in a neighboring pond. That he might be able to communicate with his friend at all times, he fastened a string to the frog's leg, and the other end of it to his own. The proverb says, "Occasional intermission of visits aug- ments love," but ardent lovers desire to be in communica- tion with the object of their love without intermission. The frog was at first unwilling to enter into such close relations with an animal of another species, but at last allowed him- self to be persuaded to do so, against his better judgment. Shortly afterwards a raven swooped down on the mouse and carried him off, and the frog, being fastened to the mouse, was dragged off and destroyed along with it. The raven's friends said to him, "How is it you managed to catch an ani- mal that lives in the water?" and he replied, "Because it was so silly as to consort with one of another species that lived on dry land."

This is illustrated be an anecdote of a peasant who, hear- ing a proclamation issued by the Prince of Tirmid, to the effect that a large reward would be given to him who should take a message to Samarcaud in the space of four days, hur- ried to Tirmid by relays of post-horses in the utmost haste, and threw the whole city into alarm, as the people thought that his extreme haste and bustle must portend the approach of an enemy or some other calamity. But when he was admitted to the presence of the prince, all he had to say was, that he had hurried to inform him that he could not go to Samarcand so quickly. The prince was very angry with him for making all this disturbance about nothing, and threatened to punish him. The uses of chastisements. He said, "Alms of mercy repel calamity, Alms cure thy sickness, O son 'Tis not charitable to burn up the poor, Or to put out the eyes of the meek." The prince replied, "Kindness is good in its place, Provided you do kindness in its proper place. If at chess you put the king in the rook's place That is wrong; and so if you put the knight in the king's, The law prescribes both rewards and chastisements. The king's place is the throne, the horse's the gate. What is justice but putting each in his place? What injustice but putting each in what is not his place? Nothing is vain of all that God has created, Whether vengeance or mercy, or plain dealing or snares. Not one of all these is good absolutely, Nor is any one of them absolutely bad. Each is harmful or beneficial according to its place, Wherefore knowledge of these points is proper and useful. Ah! many are the chastisements sent to the poor Which are more beneficial to him than bread and sweets; Because sweets out of season excite biliousness, While blows make him pure from impurity. Strike the poor man timely blows, Which may save him from being beheaded later." The peasant, in reply, urged the prince not to be over hasty in punishing him, but to take counsel with suitable advisers, as enjoined in various texts, and in the Hadis pro- hibiting monkery, and warned him that if he shunned the advice and society of his equals he would assuredly be led astray by wretched companions. In illustration of this a story is told of a mouse who conceived a great affection for a frog living in a neighboring pond. That he might be able to communicate with his friend at all times, he fastened a string to the frog's leg, and the other end of it to his own. The proverb says, "Occasional intermission of visits aug- ments love," but ardent lovers desire to be in communica- tion with the object of their love without intermission. The frog was at first unwilling to enter into such close relations with an animal of another species, but at last allowed him- self to be persuaded to do so, against his better judgment. Shortly afterwards a raven swooped down on the mouse and carried him off, and the frog, being fastened to the mouse, was dragged off and destroyed along with it. The raven's friends said to him, "How is it you managed to catch an ani- mal that lives in the water?" and he replied, "Because it was so silly as to consort with one of another species that lived on dry land."

Comparison of the body to the mouse, and the soul to the frog. The two friends discussed the matter long, And after discussion this plan was settled, That they should fetch a long string, By means of which to communicate with one another. The mouse said, "One end must be tied to your leg, And the other end to the leg of me, your double, That by this contrivance we two may be united, And be mingled together like soul and body." Body is like a string tied to sod's foot, That string drags soul down to earth. The soul is the frog in the water of ecstatic bliss; Escaping from the mouse of the body, it is in bliss. The mouse of the body drags it back with that string; Ah! what sorrow it tastes through being dragged back If it were not dragged down by that insolent mouse, The frog would remain at peace in its water. On the last day, when you shall awake from sleep, You will learn the rest of this from the Sun of truth! In illustration of the thesis that the sense which perceives the unseen and spiritual world is superior to the other sens- es, and is exempt from death and decay, the poet tells an anecdote of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni and some robbers. One night, when walking about the city alone, he fell in with a band of robbers. He told them he was one of them, and proposed that each should tell his own special talent. Accordingly one said he could hear what the dogs said when they barked; another that his sight was so good that when he saw a man at night he could recognize him without fail next day; another said his talent lay in the strength of his arms, whereby he dug holes through the walls of houses another said he could divine by his sense of smell where gold was hidden; another said his wrist was so strong that he could throw a rope farther than any one. At last it came to the turn of the king, and he told them that his talent lay in his beard, for when he wagged it he could deliver crimi- nals from the executioner. The robbers then went to the king's palace, and, each of them co-operating by the exercise of his peculiar talent, they broke into it, and plundered a large sum of money. The king, after witnessing the burglary, withdrew from them secretly, and, having summoned his Vazir, gave orders for their apprehension. No sooner were the robbers brought before the king than the one whose tal- ent lay in recognizing by day those whom he had seen in the darkness of night at once knew him, and said to the others, "This is the man who said his talent lay in his beard!" Thus the only one whose talent profited him at the time of need was he who could recognize by day what he had previously seen by night; for he appealed to the king to exercise his tal- ent of deliverance, and the king listened to his entreaty, and delivered him from the executioner. He whose eyes discern God in the world is safe from destruction. He who, when he had once seen a person at night, Recognized him without fail when he saw him by day, Saw the king upon the throne, and straightway cried, "This was he who accompanied us on our nightly walk; This is he whose beard possessed such rare talent;

Comparison of the body to the mouse, and the soul to the frog. The two friends discussed the matter long, And after discussion this plan was settled, That they should fetch a long string, By means of which to communicate with one another. The mouse said, "One end must be tied to your leg, And the other end to the leg of me, your double, That by this contrivance we two may be united, And be mingled together like soul and body." Body is like a string tied to sod's foot, That string drags soul down to earth. The soul is the frog in the water of ecstatic bliss; Escaping from the mouse of the body, it is in bliss. The mouse of the body drags it back with that string; Ah! what sorrow it tastes through being dragged back If it were not dragged down by that insolent mouse, The frog would remain at peace in its water. On the last day, when you shall awake from sleep, You will learn the rest of this from the Sun of truth! In illustration of the thesis that the sense which perceives the unseen and spiritual world is superior to the other sens- es, and is exempt from death and decay, the poet tells an anecdote of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni and some robbers. One night, when walking about the city alone, he fell in with a band of robbers. He told them he was one of them, and proposed that each should tell his own special talent. Accordingly one said he could hear what the dogs said when they barked; another that his sight was so good that when he saw a man at night he could recognize him without fail next day; another said his talent lay in the strength of his arms, whereby he dug holes through the walls of houses another said he could divine by his sense of smell where gold was hidden; another said his wrist was so strong that he could throw a rope farther than any one. At last it came to the turn of the king, and he told them that his talent lay in his beard, for when he wagged it he could deliver crimi- nals from the executioner. The robbers then went to the king's palace, and, each of them co-operating by the exercise of his peculiar talent, they broke into it, and plundered a large sum of money. The king, after witnessing the burglary, withdrew from them secretly, and, having summoned his Vazir, gave orders for their apprehension. No sooner were the robbers brought before the king than the one whose tal- ent lay in recognizing by day those whom he had seen in the darkness of night at once knew him, and said to the others, "This is the man who said his talent lay in his beard!" Thus the only one whose talent profited him at the time of need was he who could recognize by day what he had previously seen by night; for he appealed to the king to exercise his tal- ent of deliverance, and the king listened to his entreaty, and delivered him from the executioner. He whose eyes discern God in the world is safe from destruction. He who, when he had once seen a person at night, Recognized him without fail when he saw him by day, Saw the king upon the throne, and straightway cried, "This was he who accompanied us on our nightly walk; This is he whose beard possessed such rare talent;

Our arrest is due to his sagacity." He added, '"Yea, he was with you,' this great king; He beheld our actions and heard our secrets. My eyes guided me to recognize that king at night, And dwelt lovingly on his face, like the moon at night. Now, therefore, I will implore his grace for myself, For he will never avert his face from him that knew him." Know the eye of the ' Knower is a safeguard in both worlds, For therein ye will find a very Bahram to aid you. For this cause Muhammad was the intercessor for faults, Because his eye 'did not wander' from the King of kings. In the night of this world, when the sun is hidden, He beheld God, and placed his hopes on Him. His eyes were anointed with the words, ' We opened thy heart,' He beheld what Gabriel himself had not power to see." The story of the frog is concluded by the lamentations of the frog over his folly in consorting with an animal of a dif- ferent genus to his own, on which Reason warns him that homogeneity lies in spirit, not in outward form; and this is illustrated by an anecdote of a man named 'Abdul Ghaus, who was the son of a fairy mother, and consequently homo- geneous with the fairies, though only an ordinary man to outward appearance. 3. Samiri, the maker of the golden calf. Qarun Koran. 4. Freytag Arabum Proverbia, iii. 277. 5. Koran lxvii. 22, iii. 155, xlii. 36. 7. Anvari Suhaili, Chap. vii. Story III. 8. Freytag, Arabum Proverbia, i. 287. 1 1 . Koran xciv. 1 . 12. Gulshan i Raz, I. 120. STORY VIII. The Man who received a Pension from the Prefect of Tabriz. These reflections on the nothingness of outward form compared to spirit lead the poet to the corollary that often men whose outward forms are buried in the grave are greater benefactors to the poor and helpless than men still living in the body. This is illustrated by the story of the man who was maintained by the Prefect of Tabriz. This man incurred heavy debts on the credit of his pension, even as the Imam Ja'far Sadiq was able to capture a strong fort sin- gle-handed through the power of God assisting him. When the creditors became pressing the man journeyed to Tabriz to seek further aid; but on arriving there he found the Prefect was dead. On learning this he was much cast down, but eventually recognized that he had erred in looking to a creature instead of his Creator for aid, according to the text, "The infidels equalize others with their Lord." This obliq- uity of spiritual sight, causing him to see a mere human benefactor, where the real benefactor was God alone, is illustrated by anecdotes of a man buying bread at Kashan, of Sultan Khwarazm Shah deluded into disliking a fine horse by the interested advice of his Vazir, and of Joseph, who when imprisoned by Pharaoh was induced to trust for deliverance to the intercession of the chief butler rather than to God alone, for which cause "he remained several years in prison." A charitable person of Tabriz endeavoured

Our arrest is due to his sagacity." He added, '"Yea, he was with you,' this great king; He beheld our actions and heard our secrets. My eyes guided me to recognize that king at night, And dwelt lovingly on his face, like the moon at night. Now, therefore, I will implore his grace for myself, For he will never avert his face from him that knew him." Know the eye of the ' Knower is a safeguard in both worlds, For therein ye will find a very Bahram to aid you. For this cause Muhammad was the intercessor for faults, Because his eye 'did not wander' from the King of kings. In the night of this world, when the sun is hidden, He beheld God, and placed his hopes on Him. His eyes were anointed with the words, ' We opened thy heart,' He beheld what Gabriel himself had not power to see." The story of the frog is concluded by the lamentations of the frog over his folly in consorting with an animal of a dif- ferent genus to his own, on which Reason warns him that homogeneity lies in spirit, not in outward form; and this is illustrated by an anecdote of a man named 'Abdul Ghaus, who was the son of a fairy mother, and consequently homo- geneous with the fairies, though only an ordinary man to outward appearance. 3. Samiri, the maker of the golden calf. Qarun Koran. 4. Freytag Arabum Proverbia, iii. 277. 5. Koran lxvii. 22, iii. 155, xlii. 36. 7. Anvari Suhaili, Chap. vii. Story III. 8. Freytag, Arabum Proverbia, i. 287. 1 1 . Koran xciv. 1 . 12. Gulshan i Raz, I. 120. STORY VIII. The Man who received a Pension from the Prefect of Tabriz. These reflections on the nothingness of outward form compared to spirit lead the poet to the corollary that often men whose outward forms are buried in the grave are greater benefactors to the poor and helpless than men still living in the body. This is illustrated by the story of the man who was maintained by the Prefect of Tabriz. This man incurred heavy debts on the credit of his pension, even as the Imam Ja'far Sadiq was able to capture a strong fort sin- gle-handed through the power of God assisting him. When the creditors became pressing the man journeyed to Tabriz to seek further aid; but on arriving there he found the Prefect was dead. On learning this he was much cast down, but eventually recognized that he had erred in looking to a creature instead of his Creator for aid, according to the text, "The infidels equalize others with their Lord." This obliq- uity of spiritual sight, causing him to see a mere human benefactor, where the real benefactor was God alone, is illustrated by anecdotes of a man buying bread at Kashan, of Sultan Khwarazm Shah deluded into disliking a fine horse by the interested advice of his Vazir, and of Joseph, who when imprisoned by Pharaoh was induced to trust for deliverance to the intercession of the chief butler rather than to God alone, for which cause "he remained several years in prison." A charitable person of Tabriz endeavoured

to raise funds for the poor man, and appealed to the citizens to aid him, but only succeeded in collecting a very small sum. He then visited the Prefect's tomb, and implored assis- tance from him; and the same night the Prefect appeared to him in a dream, and gave him directions where to find a great treasure, and directed him to make over this treasure to the poor man. Thus the dead Prefect proved a more lib- eral benefactor than the citizens of Tabriz who were still liv- ing. The poor man's regrets for having placed his trust in man and not in God. When he recovered himself he said, "O God, I have sinned in looking for aid to a creature! Although the Prefect showed great liberality, It was in no wise equal to Thy bounty. He gave me a cap, but Thou my head full of sense; He gave me a garment, but Thou my tall form. He gave me gold, but Thou my hand which counts it; He gave me a horse, but Thou my reason to guide it; He gave me a lamp, but Thou my lucid eyes; He gave me sweetmeats, but Thou my appetite for them; He gave me a pension, but Thou my life and being; His gift was gold, but Thine true blessings; He gave me a house, but Thou heaven and earth; In Thy house he and a hundred like him are nourished. The gold was of Thy providing, he did not create it; The bread of Thy providing, and furnished to him by Thee. Thou also didst give him his liberality, For thereby Thou didst augment his happiness. I made him my Qibla, and directed my prayers to him; I turned away my eyes from Thee, the Qibla-maker! Where was he when the Supreme Dispenser of faith Sowed reason in the water and clay of man, And drew forth from Not-being this heavenly dome, And spread out the carpet of the earth? Of the stars He made torches to illumine the sky, And of the four elements locks with keys (of reason). Ah! many are the buildings visible and invisible Which God has made between heaven's dome and earth. Man is the astrolabe of those exalted attributes, The attribute of man is to manifest God's signs. Whatever is seen in man is the reflection of God, Even as the reflection of the moon in water." Say not two, know not two, call not on two! Know the slave is obliterated in his lord! So the lord is obliterated in God that created him Yea, lost and dead and buried in his Creator! When you regard this lord as separate from God, You annihilate at once text and paraphrase. With eyes and heart look beyond mere water and clay, God alone is the Qibla; regard not two Qiblas! If you regard two you lose the benefit of both; A spark falls on the tinder and the tinder vanishes! Joseph kept in prison a long time for having placed his hopes of release in man and not in God. In like manner Joseph, in the prison, With humble and earnest supplications Begged aid, saying, "When you are released, And are occupied with your ministrations to the king, Remember me, and entreat the king To release rue too from this prison." How can one prisoner fettered in the snare Procure release for a fellow prisoner? The people of the world are all prisoners, Awaiting death on the stake of annihilation; Except one or two rare exceptions,

to raise funds for the poor man, and appealed to the citizens to aid him, but only succeeded in collecting a very small sum. He then visited the Prefect's tomb, and implored assis- tance from him; and the same night the Prefect appeared to him in a dream, and gave him directions where to find a great treasure, and directed him to make over this treasure to the poor man. Thus the dead Prefect proved a more lib- eral benefactor than the citizens of Tabriz who were still liv- ing. The poor man's regrets for having placed his trust in man and not in God. When he recovered himself he said, "O God, I have sinned in looking for aid to a creature! Although the Prefect showed great liberality, It was in no wise equal to Thy bounty. He gave me a cap, but Thou my head full of sense; He gave me a garment, but Thou my tall form. He gave me gold, but Thou my hand which counts it; He gave me a horse, but Thou my reason to guide it; He gave me a lamp, but Thou my lucid eyes; He gave me sweetmeats, but Thou my appetite for them; He gave me a pension, but Thou my life and being; His gift was gold, but Thine true blessings; He gave me a house, but Thou heaven and earth; In Thy house he and a hundred like him are nourished. The gold was of Thy providing, he did not create it; The bread of Thy providing, and furnished to him by Thee. Thou also didst give him his liberality, For thereby Thou didst augment his happiness. I made him my Qibla, and directed my prayers to him; I turned away my eyes from Thee, the Qibla-maker! Where was he when the Supreme Dispenser of faith Sowed reason in the water and clay of man, And drew forth from Not-being this heavenly dome, And spread out the carpet of the earth? Of the stars He made torches to illumine the sky, And of the four elements locks with keys (of reason). Ah! many are the buildings visible and invisible Which God has made between heaven's dome and earth. Man is the astrolabe of those exalted attributes, The attribute of man is to manifest God's signs. Whatever is seen in man is the reflection of God, Even as the reflection of the moon in water." Say not two, know not two, call not on two! Know the slave is obliterated in his lord! So the lord is obliterated in God that created him Yea, lost and dead and buried in his Creator! When you regard this lord as separate from God, You annihilate at once text and paraphrase. With eyes and heart look beyond mere water and clay, God alone is the Qibla; regard not two Qiblas! If you regard two you lose the benefit of both; A spark falls on the tinder and the tinder vanishes! Joseph kept in prison a long time for having placed his hopes of release in man and not in God. In like manner Joseph, in the prison, With humble and earnest supplications Begged aid, saying, "When you are released, And are occupied with your ministrations to the king, Remember me, and entreat the king To release rue too from this prison." How can one prisoner fettered in the snare Procure release for a fellow prisoner? The people of the world are all prisoners, Awaiting death on the stake of annihilation; Except one or two rare exceptions,

Whose bodies are in prison but their souls in heaven. Afterwards, because Joseph had looked to man for aid, He remained in prison for many years. The Devil caused the man to forget Joseph, And blotted Joseph's words from his remembrance; And on account of this fault of that holy man God left him in the prison for many years. STORY IX. The King and his Three Sons. A certain king had three sons, who were the light of his eyes, and, as it were, a fountain whence the palm tree of his heart drank the water of bliss. One day he called his sons before him and commanded them to travel through his realm, and to inspect the behavior of the governors and the state of the administration; and he strictly charged them not to go near a particular fort which he named. But, according to the saying, "Man hankers after what is forbidden," the three princes disobeyed their father, and, before going any- where else, proceeded to visit this fort. The result was, that they fell into calamities, and had occasion to repeat the text, "Had we but hearkened or understood, we had not been among the dwellers in the flame." The fort was full of pic- tures, images and forms, and amongst them was a portrait of a beautiful damsel, the daughter of the King of China, which made such a deep impression on the three princes that they all became distracted with love and determined to journey to the court of the King of China and sue for the hand of his daughter. The significance of forms. Be not intoxicated with these goblets of forms, Lest you become a maker and worshipper of idols. Pass by these cups full of forms, linger not; There is wine in the cups, but it proceeds not from them. Look to the Giver of the wine with open mouth; When His wine comes, is not cup too small to hold it? O Adam, seek the reality of my love, Quit the mere husk and form of the wheat. When sand was made meal for "The Friend of God," Know, O master, the form of wheat was dispensed with. Form proceeds from the world that is without form, Even as smoke arises from fire. The Divine art without form designs forms (ideals), Those forms fashion bodies with senses and instruments. Whatever the form, it fashions in its own likeness Those bodies either to good or to evil. If the form be blessing, the man is thankful; If it be suffering, he is patient; If it be cherishing, he is cheerful; If it be bruising, he is full of lamentation!

Whose bodies are in prison but their souls in heaven. Afterwards, because Joseph had looked to man for aid, He remained in prison for many years. The Devil caused the man to forget Joseph, And blotted Joseph's words from his remembrance; And on account of this fault of that holy man God left him in the prison for many years. STORY IX. The King and his Three Sons. A certain king had three sons, who were the light of his eyes, and, as it were, a fountain whence the palm tree of his heart drank the water of bliss. One day he called his sons before him and commanded them to travel through his realm, and to inspect the behavior of the governors and the state of the administration; and he strictly charged them not to go near a particular fort which he named. But, according to the saying, "Man hankers after what is forbidden," the three princes disobeyed their father, and, before going any- where else, proceeded to visit this fort. The result was, that they fell into calamities, and had occasion to repeat the text, "Had we but hearkened or understood, we had not been among the dwellers in the flame." The fort was full of pic- tures, images and forms, and amongst them was a portrait of a beautiful damsel, the daughter of the King of China, which made such a deep impression on the three princes that they all became distracted with love and determined to journey to the court of the King of China and sue for the hand of his daughter. The significance of forms. Be not intoxicated with these goblets of forms, Lest you become a maker and worshipper of idols. Pass by these cups full of forms, linger not; There is wine in the cups, but it proceeds not from them. Look to the Giver of the wine with open mouth; When His wine comes, is not cup too small to hold it? O Adam, seek the reality of my love, Quit the mere husk and form of the wheat. When sand was made meal for "The Friend of God," Know, O master, the form of wheat was dispensed with. Form proceeds from the world that is without form, Even as smoke arises from fire. The Divine art without form designs forms (ideals), Those forms fashion bodies with senses and instruments. Whatever the form, it fashions in its own likeness Those bodies either to good or to evil. If the form be blessing, the man is thankful; If it be suffering, he is patient; If it be cherishing, he is cheerful; If it be bruising, he is full of lamentation!

Since all these forms are slaves of Him without form, Why do they deny their Lord and Master? They exist only through Him that is without form; What, then, means their disavowal of their Sustainer? This very denial of Him proceeds from Him, This act is naught but a reflection from Himself! The forms of the walls and roofs of houses Know to be shadows of the architect's thought; Although stones and planks and bricks Find no entrance into the sanctuary of thought, Verily the Absolute Agent is without form, Form is only a tool in His hands. Sometimes that Formless One of His mercy Shows His face to His forms from behind the veil of Not- being, That every form may derive aid therefrom, From its perfect beauty and power. Again, when that Formless One hides His face, Those forms set forth their needs. If one form sought perfection from another form, That would be the height of error. Why then, O simpleton, do you set forth your needs To one who is as needy as yourself? Since forms are slaves, apply them not to God, Seek not to use a form as a similitude of God. Seek Him with humbleness and self-abasement, For thought yields naught but forms of thought. Still, if you are unable to dispense with forms, Those occurring independently of your thought are best. The "Truth," which is our real self, lies hidden within our phenomenal and visible self, and the Prophets reveal it to us. "Now have we seen what the king saw at the first, When that Incomparable One adjured us." The prophets have many claims to our gratitude, Because they forewarn us of our ultimate lot, Saying, "What ye sow will yield only thorns; If ye fly that way, ye will fly astray. Take seed of us to yield you a good harvest, Fly with our wings to hit the mark with your arrow. Now ye know not the truth and nature of the 'Truth,' But at the last ye will cry, 'That was the "Truth."' The Truth is yourself, but not your mere bodily self, Your real self is higher than 'you' and 'me.' This visible 'you' which you fancy to be yourself Is limited in place, the real you' is not limited. Why, O pearl, linger you trembling in your shell? Esteem not yourself mere sugar-cane, but real sugar. This outward 'you' is foreign to your real ' you;' Cling to your real self, quit this dual self. Your last self attains to your first (real) self Only through your attending earnestly to that union. Your real self lies hid beneath your outward self, For 'I am the servant of him who looks into himself " "What a youth sees only when reflected in a glass, Our wise old fathers saw long ago though hid in stones. But we disobeyed the advice of our father, And rebelled against his affectionate counsels. We made light of the king's exhortations, And slighted his matchless intimations. Now we have all fallen into the ditch, Wounded and crushed in this fatal struggle. We relied on our own reason and discernment, And for that cause have fallen into this calamity. We fancied ourselves free from defects of sight, Even as those affected by color-blindness. Now at last our hidden disease has been revealed, After we have been involved in these calamities." "The shadow of a guide is better than directions to God,

Since all these forms are slaves of Him without form, Why do they deny their Lord and Master? They exist only through Him that is without form; What, then, means their disavowal of their Sustainer? This very denial of Him proceeds from Him, This act is naught but a reflection from Himself! The forms of the walls and roofs of houses Know to be shadows of the architect's thought; Although stones and planks and bricks Find no entrance into the sanctuary of thought, Verily the Absolute Agent is without form, Form is only a tool in His hands. Sometimes that Formless One of His mercy Shows His face to His forms from behind the veil of Not- being, That every form may derive aid therefrom, From its perfect beauty and power. Again, when that Formless One hides His face, Those forms set forth their needs. If one form sought perfection from another form, That would be the height of error. Why then, O simpleton, do you set forth your needs To one who is as needy as yourself? Since forms are slaves, apply them not to God, Seek not to use a form as a similitude of God. Seek Him with humbleness and self-abasement, For thought yields naught but forms of thought. Still, if you are unable to dispense with forms, Those occurring independently of your thought are best. The "Truth," which is our real self, lies hidden within our phenomenal and visible self, and the Prophets reveal it to us. "Now have we seen what the king saw at the first, When that Incomparable One adjured us." The prophets have many claims to our gratitude, Because they forewarn us of our ultimate lot, Saying, "What ye sow will yield only thorns; If ye fly that way, ye will fly astray. Take seed of us to yield you a good harvest, Fly with our wings to hit the mark with your arrow. Now ye know not the truth and nature of the 'Truth,' But at the last ye will cry, 'That was the "Truth."' The Truth is yourself, but not your mere bodily self, Your real self is higher than 'you' and 'me.' This visible 'you' which you fancy to be yourself Is limited in place, the real you' is not limited. Why, O pearl, linger you trembling in your shell? Esteem not yourself mere sugar-cane, but real sugar. This outward 'you' is foreign to your real ' you;' Cling to your real self, quit this dual self. Your last self attains to your first (real) self Only through your attending earnestly to that union. Your real self lies hid beneath your outward self, For 'I am the servant of him who looks into himself " "What a youth sees only when reflected in a glass, Our wise old fathers saw long ago though hid in stones. But we disobeyed the advice of our father, And rebelled against his affectionate counsels. We made light of the king's exhortations, And slighted his matchless intimations. Now we have all fallen into the ditch, Wounded and crushed in this fatal struggle. We relied on our own reason and discernment, And for that cause have fallen into this calamity. We fancied ourselves free from defects of sight, Even as those affected by color-blindness. Now at last our hidden disease has been revealed, After we have been involved in these calamities." "The shadow of a guide is better than directions to God,

To be satisfied is better than a hundred nice dishes. A seeing eye is better than a hundred walking-sticks, Eye discerns jewels from mere pebbles." The princes ascertained the name of the lady depicted in the fort from an old Shaikh, who warned them of the perils they would encounter on their journey to China, and told them that the King of China would not bestow his favor on those who tried to gain it by tricks and clever stratagems, but solely on those who were prepared to yield up their lives to him, according to the saying, "Die before you die." This is illustrated by an anecdote of a Chief of Bokhara, who made it a rule never to bestow his bounty on beggars who asked for it, but only on those who awaited his pleasure in silence. A certain Faqir tried many stratagems to evade this rule, but his craft was at once seen through by the Chief, and turned to his own confusion. The thesis that the unbought free grace of God is superior to any blessing obtainable by human exertion and contrivance is further illustrated by an absurd anecdote of two youths, one of whom trusted for protection to his own contrivance, and found it a broken reed. The Prophet said, "Two there are who are never satisfied the lover of the world and the lover of knowledge;" and he who loves knowledge will continue to trust in his knowledge, in spite of all exhortations and experience. But the eldest prince advised his brothers to risk the perils and persevere in the journey, reminding them that "Patience is the key of joy." Accordingly they abandoned their country and their parents, like Ibrahim Adham, who renounced the throne of Balkh, and like the old Arabian king Amru'l Qais, who fled from the pursuit of his female adorers to seek the Spiritual Beloved in a far country. How the princes discoursed with one another in figurative language concerning their beloved mistress. They told their secrets to one another in dark sayings, Speaking beneath their breath in fear and trembling. None but God was privy to their secrets, None but Heaven was partner in their sighs. Yea, they used technical expressions one to another, And possessed intelligence to extract the sense. The vulgar learn the words of this "language of birds," And make boast of their mastery thereof; But these words are only the outward form of the lan- guage, The "raw" man is ignorant of the birds' meaning. He is the true Solomon who knows the birds' language, A demon, though he usurp his kingdom, is quite another. The demon has taken upon him the form of Solomon, His knowledge is fraud, not "what we have been taught." When Solomon was blessed with inspiration from God, He learned birds' language from "what we were taught." But thou art only a bird of the air; understand then That thou hast never seen the true spiritual birds! The nest of the Simurgh is beyond Mount Qaf, Not every thought can attain thereto; Save thoughts which catch a glimpse thereof, And after the vision are again shut off. Yet not all shut off, rather intermitted for a wise end, For the blessing abides, though shut off and hidden! In order to preserve that body which is as a soul, The Sun is veiled for a while behind a cloud; In order not to melt that soul-like body, The Sun withdraws itself as from ice. For thy soul's sake seek counsel of these inspired ones.

To be satisfied is better than a hundred nice dishes. A seeing eye is better than a hundred walking-sticks, Eye discerns jewels from mere pebbles." The princes ascertained the name of the lady depicted in the fort from an old Shaikh, who warned them of the perils they would encounter on their journey to China, and told them that the King of China would not bestow his favor on those who tried to gain it by tricks and clever stratagems, but solely on those who were prepared to yield up their lives to him, according to the saying, "Die before you die." This is illustrated by an anecdote of a Chief of Bokhara, who made it a rule never to bestow his bounty on beggars who asked for it, but only on those who awaited his pleasure in silence. A certain Faqir tried many stratagems to evade this rule, but his craft was at once seen through by the Chief, and turned to his own confusion. The thesis that the unbought free grace of God is superior to any blessing obtainable by human exertion and contrivance is further illustrated by an absurd anecdote of two youths, one of whom trusted for protection to his own contrivance, and found it a broken reed. The Prophet said, "Two there are who are never satisfied the lover of the world and the lover of knowledge;" and he who loves knowledge will continue to trust in his knowledge, in spite of all exhortations and experience. But the eldest prince advised his brothers to risk the perils and persevere in the journey, reminding them that "Patience is the key of joy." Accordingly they abandoned their country and their parents, like Ibrahim Adham, who renounced the throne of Balkh, and like the old Arabian king Amru'l Qais, who fled from the pursuit of his female adorers to seek the Spiritual Beloved in a far country. How the princes discoursed with one another in figurative language concerning their beloved mistress. They told their secrets to one another in dark sayings, Speaking beneath their breath in fear and trembling. None but God was privy to their secrets, None but Heaven was partner in their sighs. Yea, they used technical expressions one to another, And possessed intelligence to extract the sense. The vulgar learn the words of this "language of birds," And make boast of their mastery thereof; But these words are only the outward form of the lan- guage, The "raw" man is ignorant of the birds' meaning. He is the true Solomon who knows the birds' language, A demon, though he usurp his kingdom, is quite another. The demon has taken upon him the form of Solomon, His knowledge is fraud, not "what we have been taught." When Solomon was blessed with inspiration from God, He learned birds' language from "what we were taught." But thou art only a bird of the air; understand then That thou hast never seen the true spiritual birds! The nest of the Simurgh is beyond Mount Qaf, Not every thought can attain thereto; Save thoughts which catch a glimpse thereof, And after the vision are again shut off. Yet not all shut off, rather intermitted for a wise end, For the blessing abides, though shut off and hidden! In order to preserve that body which is as a soul, The Sun is veiled for a while behind a cloud; In order not to melt that soul-like body, The Sun withdraws itself as from ice. For thy soul's sake seek counsel of these inspired ones.