Masnavi

To the earth its dark look and appearance. Can the heaven will to become as dregs ? Can earth will to assume the clearness of pure wine ? That Person has assigned to each its lot. Can mountain by endeavour become as grass ? ” The prophets answered, “ Verily God has created Some qualities in you which you cannot alter ; But He has created other accidental qualities, Which, being objectionable, may be made good. Bid stone become gold — that is impossible ; Bid copper become gold — that is possible. Bid sand bloom as a rose — it cannot ; Bid dust turn to mud — that is within its capacity. God has sent some pains for which there is no cure, Such, for instance, as lameness, loss of nose, and blindness. God has sent other pains for which there are cures, To wit, crooked mouth and headache. God has ordained these remedies of His mercy ; The use of these in pain and anguish is not in vain 1 Koran xxxvi. 6. Nay, the majority of pains may be cured ; When you seek those cures earnestly yon find them.” The men of Saba replied, “O men, these pains of ours Are not of the sort that admit of cure.

Long time ye utter these presages and warnings, But our bonds are made thereby heavier every moment. If our sickness admitted of a cure, It would certainly have been lessened by your spells. When the body is obstructed water reaches not the liver, Though one drinks the ocean, it passes elsewhere. Then of course the hands and feet become dropsical, And yet that draught does not quench the thirst.” The prophets replied, “ To despair is wrong, The mercy and grace of God are boundless. One must not despair of the grace of such a Benefactor, One must cling to the stirrup-straps of God. Ah ! many are the conditions which at first are hard, But are afterwards relieved and lose their harshness. Oftentimes hope succeeds to hopelessness, Many times does sunlight succeed to darkness. We admit that ye are weighted as with stones, And that ye have locks upon your ears and your hearts.1 No condition of ours is altogether as we wish, Our business is to be resigned and to obey. God has enjoined this servitude upon us ; We say not this merely on our own authority. We enjoy life on condition of doing His will ;

If He bids us, we sow our seed upon the sand. The soul of the prophet cares for naught but God, It has naught to do with approving or disapproving His works.” The men of Saba replied, If ye yourselves are happy, Ye make us miserable and annoy and disturb us. Our souls were void of all anxieties, And ye have plunged us into cares and anxieties. 1 Koran lxi. 5 : “ God led their hearts astray.” The comfort and harmony which we enjoyed heretofore Have been rent in pieces by your evil presages. We used to be as parrots munching sugar, Ye have made us as fowls brooding on death. On every side stories inspiring anxiety, On every side sounds exciting fears : On every side in the world an evil presage, On every side evil portents threatening punishment : — This is the burden of your parables and presages, This the purport of your awe-inspiring stories.” The prophets replied, “Our evil presages Are corroborated by the state of your souls. Suppose you are sleeping in a place of danger, And serpents are drawing near to bite your heads, A kind friend will inform you of your danger,

Saying, ‘ Jump up, lest the serpent devour you.’ You reply, ‘ Why do you utter evil presages? ’ He answers, ‘ What presage ? Up, and see for yourself ! By means of this evil presage I rouse you, And release you from danger and lead you to your home.’ Like a prophet he warns you of hidden danger, For a prophet sees what worldlings cannot see.” Mercy inclines the good to devotion, but vengeance the bad (p. 257). If you do a kindness to a generous man, ’tis fitting, For each kindness he will return seven hundredfold. When you treat a base man with scorn and contumely, He will become your slave in all sincerity. Infidels when enjoying prosperity do wrong, When they ai’e in hell they cry, “ 0 our Lord ! ” For base men are purified when they suffer evil, And when they enjoy prosperity they do evil. Wherefore the mosque of their devotion is hell, As the snare is the fetter of wild fowl. The prison is the hermitage of the wicked thief, story xm.] THE PEOPLE OF SABA. 147 For when he is there he is ever crying to God. Whereas the object of man’s being is to worship God,

Hell is ordained as a place of worship for the proud.1 Man has the power to engage in any actions soever, But worship of God is the main object of his existence. Read the text,2 “ I have not created .Jinns and men but to worship me.” The only object of the world is to worship God. Though the object of a book is to teach an art, If you make a pillow of it, it serves that purpose too. Yet its main object is not to serve as a pillow, But to impart knowledge and useful instruction. If you use a sword for a tent-peg, You prefer the worse use of it to the better. Though the object of all men’s being is wisdom, Yet each man has a different place of worship. The place of worship of the noble is nobility, The place of worship of the base is degradation. Smite the base to make them bow the head, Give to the noble to make them repay liberally. Inasmuch as the base are evil and arrogant, Hell and humbling are the “ small gate ” for them. Verily God has created two places of adoration, Hell for the base and increased bliss for the noble.

Even so Moses made a small gate in Jerusalem,3 To make the Israelites bow the head in entering it. The discussion is continued and illustrated by anecdotes of the Sufi who preferred a table with no food upon it, because he ever sought “not-being” ; of Jacob’s vision of Joseph ; and of a devout slave who obtained leave of his master to say his prayers in a mosque, but tarried there so long that the doors were shut, and he could not get out, nor his master in. The prophets at last despaired of making any impression upon the unbelievers, but called to 1 God said, “Come ye either in 2 Koran li. 56. obedience, or in spite of your wishes ” 3 See Koran ii. 55, with Sale’s (Koran xli. 10). note. mind the text “When at last the Apostles lost all hope, and deemed that they were reckoned as liars, our aid reached them, and we delivered whom we would, but our vengeance was not averted from the wicked.”1 The despair of the prophets (p. 259). The prophets said, “ How long, in our benevolence, Shall we give to this and that one good advice ? How long shall we hammer cold iron in vain ?

How long waste breath in blowing into a lattice ? Men are moved by God’s decree and fixed ordinance,2 As sharp-set teeth are caused by heat of belly. ’Tis Primal Soul that dominates the Second Soul,3 Fish begins to stink at the head, not the tail. Yet be advised and keep your steed straight as an arrow, When God says ‘ Proclaim ’ we must obey.4 0 men, ye know not to which party ye belong/’ Exert yourselves then, till ye see which ye are. When you place goods upon a ship, You do it in trust that the voyage will be prosperous ; You know not which of the two events will befall you, Whether you will be drowned or come safe to land. If you say, “Till I know which will be my fate 1 will not set foot upon the ship ; Shall I be drowned on the voyage or a survivor ? Reveal to me in which class I shall be. I shall not undertake the voyage on the chance — On the bare hope of reaching land, as the rest do.’ In that case no trade at all will be undertaken by you, As the secret of these two events is always hidden.

The lamp of the heart, that is a timid trader, 1 Koran xii. 1 1. 'l “All things have we created after a fixed decree, Every action great and small is written.” — Koran liv. 49. ;t The Logos or first Emanation produced the second or “ Universal Soul.” 4 “ 0 Apostle ! proclaim all that hath been sent down ” (Koran v. 71 ). 6 “ Which party,” i.c., those doomed to be saved or those doomed to destruction. Acquires neither loss nor gain by its ventures.1 Nay, it acquires loss, for it is precluded from gain ; ’Tis the lamp that takes fire that acquires light. Since all things are dependent on probability, Religion is so first of all, for thereby you find release. In this world no knocking at the door is possible Save hope, and God knows what is best.” Probability the guide of life in religion as well as in common matters. “ Religion dependent on hope and fear”* ( p. 259). The final cause of trading is hope or probability, When traders work themselves lean as spindles.3 When the merchant goes to his shop in the morning, He does so in hope and probability of gaining bread.

If you have no hope of getting bread, why go ? There is the fear of loss, since you are not strong. But does not this fear of utter loss in your trade Become weakened in the course of your exertions ? You say, “ Although the fear of loss is before me, Yet I feel greater fear in remaining idle. I have a better hope through exerting myself ; My fear is increased by remaining idle.” Why then, 0 faint-hearted one, in the matter of religion Are you paralysed by the fear of loss ? See you not how the traders in this market of ours Make large profits, both apostles and saints ? What a mine of wealth awaits them on leaving it, Seeing they make such profits while still here ! Fire is soft to them as cotton raiment, The ocean bears them gently like a porter ; Iron in their hands is soft as wax. The winds are their obedient slaves. 1 “ Nothing shall be reckoned to a 2 So Sa’di Bostan, Book I. Cp. man save that for which he hath Butler’s Analogy, Conclusion, made effort” (Koran liii. 40). 3 I.e., exert themselves much.

Story XIV. Miracles ‘performed by the Prophet Muhammad (p. 260). It is related that the Prophet was once present at a banquet, and after he had eaten and drunk, his servant Anas threw the napkin which he had used into the fire, and the napkin was not burnt, but only purified by the fire. On another occasion a caravan of Arabs was travelling in the desert, and was in sore distress through lack of water, whereupon the Prophet miraculously increased the water in a single water-skin, so that it sufficed to supply the needs of all the travellers. Moreover, the negro who carried the water-skin was rendered as white and fair as Joseph. Again, a heathen woman came to the Prophet carrying her infant, aged only two months, and the infant saluted the Prophet as the veritable apostle of God. Again, when the Prophet was about to put on his sandals, an eagle swooped down upon one of them and carried it off, when a viper was seen to drop from the sandal. The Prophet was at first inclined to grumble at this stroke of ill-luck ; but when he saw the viper his discontent was turned into thankfulness to God, who had thus miraculously saved him from being bitten by the viper.

In dijfcidties there is provided a way of salvation 1 (p. 263). In this tale there is a warning for thee, 0 Soul, That thou mayest acquiesce in God’s ordinances, And be wary and not doubt God’s benevolence, When sudden misfortunes befall thee. Let others grow pale from fear of ill fortune, Do thou smile like the rose at loss and gain ; For the rose, though its petals be torn asunder, Still smiles on, and it is never cast down. It says, “ Why should I fall into grief in disgrace ? 1 Freytag, Arabum Proverbia, vol. iii. p. 334. story xv.] THE LANGUAGE OF ANIMALS. 15 1 I gather beauty even from the thorn of disgrace.’’ Whatsoever is lost to thee through God’s decree Know of a surety is so much gained from misfortune. What is Sufiism ? Tis to find joy in the heart Whensoever distress and care assail it. Know troubles to be that eagle of the Prophet’s Which carried off the sandal of that holy one, In order to save his foot from the bite of the viper — 0 excellent device ! — to preserve him from harm. ’Tis said, Mourn not for your slaughtered cattle If a wolf has handed your flocks ; ”

For that calamity may avert a greater calamity, And that loss may ward off a more grievous loss. Story XV. The Man who asked Moses to teach him the lanrjuarjc of animals (p. 264). A certain man came to Moses and desired to be taught the language of animals, for, he said, men used their language only to get food and for purposes of deception, and possibly a knowledge of animals’ languages might stimulate his faith. Moses was very unwilling to comply with his request, as he knew such knowledge would prove destructive to him, but, on his persisting, took counsel of God, and finally taught him the language of fowls and dogs. Next morning the man went amongst the fowls, and heard a discussion between the cock and the dog. The dog was abusing the cock for picking up the morsels of bread which fell from their master’s table, because the cock could find plenty of grains of corn to eat, whereas the dog could only eat bread. The cock, to appease him, said that on the morrow the master’s horse would die, and then the dog would have enough and to spare. The master, hearing this, at once sold his horse, and the dog, being disappointed of his meal, again attacked the cock. The cock then told him the mule would die, whereupon the master sold the mule. Then the cock foretold the

death of a slave, and the master again sold the slave. At this the dog, losing patience, upbraided the cock as the chief of deceivers, and the cock excused himself by showing that all three deaths had taken place just as he had predicted, but the master had sold the horse, mule, and slave, and had thrown the loss on others. He added that, to punish him for his fraudulent dealing, the master would himself die on the morrow, and there would be plenty for the dog to eat at the funeral feast. Hearing this, the master went to Moses in great distress, and prayed to be saved. Moses besought the Lord for him, and gained permission that he should die in the peace of God. Why freewill is good for man (p. 264). God said, “Do thou grant his earnest request, Enlarge his faculty according to his freewill. Freewill is as the salt to piety, Otherwise heaven itself were matter of compulsion. In its revolutions reward and punishment were needless, For ’tis freewill that has merit at the great reckoning. If the whole world were framed to praise God, There would be no merit in praising God. Place a sword in his hand and remove his impotence,

To see if he turns out a warrior or a robber. Because freewill is that wherewith ‘ we honour Adam,’ 1 Half the swarm become bees and half wasps. The faithful yield honeycombs like bees, The infidels yield store of poison like wasps. For the faithful feed on choice herbs, So that, like bees, their chyle yields life-giving food, Whilst infidels feed on filth and garbage, And generate poison according to their food.” Men inspired of God are the fountain of life ; Men of delusions are a synonym for death. In the world the praise “ Well done, faithful servant ! ” 1 Koran xvii. 72. story xvi.] THE WOMAN AND HER INFANTS. Is given to freewill which is used with prudence. If all dissolute men were shut up in prison, They would all be temperate and devout and pious. "When power of choice is absent actions are worthless ; But beware lest death snatch away your capital ! Your power of choice is a capital yielding profit, Remember well the day of final account ! Story XVI. The Woman who lost all her infant's (p. 267). A woman bore many children in succession, but none of them lived beyond the age of three or four months. In great distress she cried to God. and then beheld in a vision the beautiful gardens of Paradise, and many fair mansions therein, and upon one of these mansions she read her own name inscribed. And a voice from heaven informed her that God would accept the sorrows she had endured in lieu of her blood shed in holy war, as, owing to her sex, she was unable to go out to battle like the men. On looking again, the woman beheld in Paradise all the children she had lost, and she cried, “ 0 Lord ! they were lost to me, but were safe with Thee ! ”

This story is followed by anecdotes of Hamza going out to battle without his coat-of-mail, of the Prophet advising a man who complained of being cheated in his bargains to take time before completing them, and of the death of Bilal, Muhammad’s crier, and by illustrations of the illusive nature of the world, of the difference between things self-evident and mere matters of inference, and between knowing a thing through illustrations and on the authority of others, and knowing it as it really is in its essence. The difference betvjeen knowing a thing merely by similitudes and on the authority of others, and knowing the very essence thereof (p. 272). God’s mercy is known through the fruits thereof, But who save God knows His essence ? 1 No one knows the very essence of God’s attributes But only in their effects and by similitudes. A child knows naught of the nature of sexual intercourse, Except what you tell him, that it is like sweetmeats. Yet how far does the pleasure of sexual intercourse Really resemble that derived from sweetmeats ? Nevertheless the fiction produces a relation Between you, with your perfect knowledge, and the child ; So that the child knows the matter by similitude,

Though he knows not its essence or actual nature. Hence if he says, “ I know it,” ’tis not far wrong, And if he says, “ I know it not,” ’tis not wrong. Should one say, “Do you know Noah, That prophet of God and luminary of the Spirit ? ” If you say, “ Do I not know him, for that moon Is more famed than the sun and moon of heaven ? Little children in their schools, And elders in their mosques, All read his name prominently in the Koran, And preachers tell his story from times of yore ; ” — You say true, for you know him by report, Though the real nature of Noah is not revealed to you. On the other hand, if you say, “ What know I of Noah As his contemporaries knew him ? I am a poor ant — what can I know of the elephant ? What knows a fly of the motions of the elephant ? ” — This statement also is true, 0 brother, Seeing that you know not his real nature. But this impotence to perceive real essence, 1 There is a Hadis, “Think on God’s mercies, and not on His essence.”

Though common to ordinary men, is not universal ; Because essence and its deepest secrets Are open and manifest to the eyes of the perfect. Negation and affirmation of one proposition are lawful ; When the aspects differ the relation is double. “ Thou castest not when thou castest ” 1 shows such relation, Here negation and affirmation are both correct. Thou castest it, since it is in thy hand, Thou casteth not, since ’tis God who affords the strength. The might of the sons of Adam is limited, How can a handful of sand shatter an army ? The sand was in man’s hands, the casting was God’s. Owing to the two relations negation and affirmation are both true. The infidels know the prophets, As well as they doubtless know their own children ; Yea. the infidels know them as well as their own sons, By a hundred tokens and a hundred evidences, But from envy and malice conceal their knowledge, And incline themselves to say, “We know them not.” So when God says in one place “ knows them,” In another He says, “ None knows them beside me.” For in truth they are hid under God’s overshadowing,2 And none but God knows them by actual experience. Therefore take this declaration with its context, Remembering how you know and do not know Noah.

Story XVII. The Vakil of the Prince of Bokhara (p. 272). The Prince of Bokhara had a Vakil who, through fear of punishment for an offence he had committed, ran away and remained concealed in Kuhistan and the desert for the 1 Koran viii. 17. Said of the the commentator says the allusion is sand cast into the eyes of the men to Moses at Mount Sinai. Koran of Mecca at Beder. vii. 1 39. 2 See Gulshan i Raz, 1. 354, where space of ten years. At the end of that time, being unable to endure absence from his lord and his home any longer, he determined to return to Bokhara and throw himself at his lord’s feet, and endure whatever punishment his lord might be pleased to inflict upon him. His friends did all they could to dissuade him, assuring him that the Prince’s wrath was still hot against him, and that if he appeared at Bokhara he would be put to death, or at least imprisoned for the rest of his life. He replied, “ 0 advisers, be silent, for the force of the love which is drawing me to Bokhara is stronger than the force of prudent counsels. When love pulls one way all the wisdom of Abu Hanifa and AshShafi’i is impotent to withstand it. If it shall please my lord to slay me, I will yield up my life without reluctance, for this life of estrangement from him which I am now leading is the same as death, and release from it will be eternal happiness. I will return to Bokhara and throw myself at my lord’s feet, and say to him, ‘ Deal with me as thou wilt, for I can no longer bear absence from thee, and life or death at thy hands is all the same to me ! ’ ” Accordingly, he journeyed back to Bokhara, counting the very toils and discomforts of the road sweet and delightful, because they were steps in his homeward course. When he reached Bokhara his friends and relations all warned him not to show himself, as the Prince was still mindful of his offence and bent on punishing him ; but he replied to them as to his other advisers, that he was utterly regardless of his life, and was resolved to commit himself to his lord’s good pleasure. He then went to the court and threw himself at his lord’s feet and swooned away. The Prince, seeing the strong affection borne to him by his repentant servant, conceived a similar affection towards him, and descended from his throne and graciously raised him from the ground, and pardoned his offence. Thus it is that eternal life is gained by utter abandonment of one’s own life. When God appears to His ardent lover the lover is absorbed in Him, and not so much as a hair of the lover

story xvii.] THE VAKIL OF BOKHARA. remains. True lovers are as shadows, and when the sun shines in glory the shadows vanish away. He is a true lover of God to whom God says, “I am thine, and thou art mine ! ” In the course of this story, which is narrated at great length, are introduced anecdotes of a lover and his mistress, of the Virgin Mary being visited by the “ Blessed Spirit” or Angel Gabriel,1 of the fatal mosque, of Galen’s devotion to carnal learning, of Satan’s treachery to the men of Mecca at the battle of Bedr,2 and of Solomon and the gnat. There also occur comments on various texts, and a curious comparison of the trials and wholesome afflictions of the righteous to the boiling of pot-herbs in a saucepan by the cook. The reply of the lover when asked by his mistress which city of all those he had seen was most pleasing in his sight (p. 276). A damsel said to her lover, “ 0 fond youth, You have visited many cities in your travels ; Which of those cities seems most delightful to you ? ” He made answer, “ The city wherein my love dwells.

In whatever nook my queen alights, Though it be as the eye of a needle, ’tis a wide plain ; Wherever her Yusuf-like face shines as a moon, Though it be the bottom of a well, ’tis Paradise. With thee, my love, hell itself were heaven. With thee a prison would be a rose-garden. With thee hell would be a mansion of delight, Without thee lilies and roses would be as flames of fire ! ” 1 Koran xix. 18. 2 Koran viii. 10. The answer of the Vakil to those who advised him not to court death by yielding himself up to his lord (p. 2 77). He said, “ I am a drawer of water ; water attracts me, Even though I know water may be my death. No drawer of water flees from water, Even though it may cause him a hundred deaths. Though it may make my hand and belly dropsical, My love for water will never be lessened, I should say, when they asked me about my belly, ‘ Would that the ocean might flow into it ! ’ Though the bottle of my belly were burst with water, And though I should die, my death would be acceptable. Wheresoever I see one seeking water, I envy him,

And cry, 1 Would I were in his place ! ’ My hand is a tabor and my belly a drum, Like the rose I beat the drum of love of water. Like the earth or like a foetus I devour blood, Since I became a lover this is my occupation. If that ‘Faithful Spirit’ should shed my blood, I would drink it up drop by drop like the earth. At night I boil on the fire like a cooking-pot, From morn till eve I drink blood like the sand. It repents me that I planned a stratagem, And that I fled from before his wrath. Tell him to sate his wrath on my poor life, He is the ‘ Feast of Sacrifice,’ and I his loving cow.1 The cow, whether it eats or sleeps, Thinks of naught but sacrificing itself. Know me to be that cow of Moses which gave its life, Each part of me gives life to the righteous. That cow of Moses was made a sacrifice, And its least part became a source of life. That murdered man leapt up from his deadness 1 The Id ul Azha, or the Feast of the month Zul Hijja. It is also Sacrifices, held on the tenth day of called “ The Cow Festival.”

At the words, ' Strike the corpse with part of her.’ 1 2 0 pious ones, slay the cow (of lust), If ye desire true life of soul and spirit ! I died as a mineral and arose a plant, 1 died as a plant and rose again an animal. - I died as an animal and arose a man. Why then should I fear to become less by dying ? I shall die once again as a man To rise an angel perfect from head to foot ! Again when I suffer dissolution as an angel, I shall become what passes the conception of man ! Let me then become non-existent, for non-existence Sings to me in organ tones, ‘To him shall we return.’3 Know death to be the gathering together of the people, The water of life is hidden in the land of darkness. Like a water-lily seek life there ! Yea, like that drawer of water, at the risk of life, Water will be his death, yet he still seeks water, And still drinks on, — and God knows what is right. 0 lover, cold-hearted and void of loyalty. Who from fear for your life shun the beloved !

0 base one, behold a hundred thousand souls Dancing towards the deadly sword of his love : Behold water in a pitcher ; pour it out ; Will that water run away from the stream ? When that water joins the water of the stream It is lost therein, and becomes itself the stream. Its individuality is lost, but its essence remains, And hereby it becomes not less nor inferior. 1 will hang myself upon my lord’s palm-tree In excuse for having fled away from him ! ” Even as a ball rolling along on head and face, 1 This refers to Koran ii. 63. The cow was to be sacrificed in order that a murderer might be discovered by striking the corpse with a piece of her flesh. 2 I.e., Earth losing its own form becomes vegetable, vegetable again perishes to feed and be transmuted into animal, and in like manner animal becomes man. See the passage of Milton quoted below, and Gulshan i Raz, 1. 490 and note. 3 Koran ii. 153: “Verily we are God’s, and to Him shall we return.” 160 THE MASNA VI. [book in. He fell at the feet of the Prince with streaming eyes.

The people were all on the alert, expecting That the Prince would burn him or hang him, Saying, “ Moth-like he has seen the blaze of the light, And fool-like has plunged therein and lost his life.” But the torch of love is not like that torch, ’Tis light, light in the midst of light, ’Tis the reverse of torches of fire, It appears to be fire, but is all sweetness. Love generates love. “ If ye love God , God will love yovj ” 1 (p. 289). That Bokharian then cast himself into the flame, But his love made the pain endurable ; And as his burning sighs ascended to heaven, The love of the Prince was kindled towards him. The heart of man is like the root of a tree, Therefrom grow the leaves on firm branches.2 Corresponding to that root grow up branches As well on the tree as on souls and intellects. The tops of the perfect trees reach the heavens, The roots firm, and the branches in the sky. Since then the tree of love has grown up to heaven, How shall it not also grow in the heart of the Prince ? A wave washes away the remembrance of the sin from his heart,

For from each heart is a window to other hearts ; Since in each heart there is a window to other hearts, They are not separated and shut off like two bodies. Thus, even though two lamp-dishes be not joined, Yet their light is united in a single ray. No lover ever seeks union with his beloved, But his beloved is also seeking union with him. 1 Koran iii. 29. tree, its root firmly fixed, and its 2 “Seest thou not to what God branches in the heaven” (Koran likeneth a good word? To a good xiv. 29). But the lover’s love makes his body lean, While the beloved’s love makes hers fair and lusty. When in this heart the lightning spark of love arises, Be sure this love is reciprocated in that heart. When the love of God arises in thy heart, Without doubt God also feels love for thee. The noise of clapping of hands is never heard From one of thy hands unaided by the other hand. The man athirst cries, “ Where is delicious water? ” Water too cries, “Where is the water-drinker?” This thirst in my soul is the attraction of the water ; I am the water’s and the water is mine.

God’s wisdom in His eternal foreknowledge and decree Made us to be lovers one of the other. Nay more, all the parts of the world by this decree Are arranged in pairs, and each loves its mate. Every part of the world desires its mate, Just as amber attracts blades of straw. Heaven says to earth, “All hail to thee ! We are related to one another as iron and magnet.” Heaven is man and earth woman in character ; Whatever heaven sends it, earth cherishes. When earth lacks heat, heaven sends heat ; When it lacks moisture and dew, heaven sends them. The earthy sign 1 succours the terrestrial earth, The watery sign (Aquarius) sends moisture to it ; The windy sign sends the clouds to it, To draw off unwholesome exhalations. The fiery sign (Leo) sends forth the heat of the sun, Like a dish heated red-hot in front and behind. The heaven is busily toiling through ages, Just as men labour to provide food for women. And the earth does the woman’s work, and toils In bearing offspring and suckling them. Know then earth and heaven are endued with sense, Since they act like persons endued with sense.

1 J.e., of the Zodiac. If these two lovers did not suck nutriment from each other, Why should they creep together like man and wife ? Without the earth how could roses and saffron grow ? For naught can grow from the sole heat and rain of heaven. This is the cause of the female seeking the male, That the work of each may be accomplished. God has instilled mutual love into man and woman, That the world may be perpetuated by their union. Earth says to the earth of the body, “ Come away, Quit the soul and come to me as dust. Thou art of my genus, and wilt be better with me, Thou had’st better quit the soul and fly to me ! ” Body replies, “ True, but my feet are fast bound, Though like thee I suffer from separation.” W ater calls out to the moisture of the body, “ 0 moisture, return to me from your foreign abode ! ” Fire also calls out to the heat of the body, “ Thou art of fire ; return to thy root ! ” In the body there are seventy-and-two diseases ; It is ill compacted owing to the struggle of its elements. Disease comes to rend the body asunder,

And to drag apart its constituent elements. The four elements are as birds tied together by the feet ; Death, sickness and disease loose their feet asunder. The moment their feet are loosed from the others, The bird of each element flies off by itself. The repulsion of each of these principles and causes Inflicts every moment a fresh pang on our bodies. That it may dissolve these composite bodies of ours, The bird of each part tries to fly away to its origin ; But the wisdom of God prevents this speedy end, And preserves their union till the appointed day. He says, “ 0 parts, the appointed time is not yet; It is useless for you to take wing before that day.” But as each part desires reunion with its original, How is it with the soul who is a stranger in exile ? It says, “ 0 parts of my habitation here below, My absence is sadder than yours, as I am heaven-born. The body loves green pastures and running water, For this cause that its origin is from them. The love of the soul is for life and the living one, Because its origin is the Soul not bound to place.

The love of the soul is for wisdom and knowledge, That of the body for houses, gardens, and vineyards ; The love of the soul is for things exalted on high, That of the body for acquisition of goods and food. The love too of Him on high is directed to the soul : Know this for ‘ He loves them that love Him.’ ” 1 The sum is this, that whoso seeks another, The soul of that other who is sought inclines to him. Let us quit the subject. — Love for that soul athirst Was kindled in the breast of the Prince of Bokhara. The smoke of that love and the grief of that burning heart Ascended to his master and excited his compassion. The praises addressed to the Prince by the Vakil (p. 296). He said, “ 0 phcenix of God and goal of the spirit, I thank thee that thou hast come back from Mount Qaf ! 0 Israfil of the resurrection-day of love, 0 love, love, and heart’s desire of love ! Let thy first boon to me be this, To lend thine ear to my orisons. Though thou knowest my condition clearly, 0 protector of slaves, listen to my speech.

A thousand times, 0 prince incomparable, Has my reason taken flight in desire to see thee, And to hear thee and to listen to thy words, 1 Koran v. 59. And to behold thy life-giving smiles. Thy inclining thine ear to my supplications Is as a caress to my misguided soul. The baseness of my heart’s coin is known to thee, But thou hast accepted it as genuine coin. Thou art proud towards the arrogant and proud ; All clemencies are as naught to thy clemency. First hear this, that while I remained in absence, First and last alike escaped me. Secondly, hear this, 0 prince beloved, That I searched much, but found no second to thee. Thirdly, that when I had departed outside thee, I said it was like the Christian Trinity.1 Fourthly, when my harvest was burned up, I knew not the fourth from the fifth. Wheresoever thou findest blood on the roads, Trace it, and ’tis tears of blood from my eyes. My words are thunder, and these sighs and tears Are drawn by it as rain from the clouds. I am distracted between speaking and weeping. Shall I weep, or shall I speak, or what shall I do ?

If I speak, my weeping ceases ; If I weep, I cease to praise and magnify thee.” He spoke thus, and then fell to weeping, So that high and low wept with him. So many “Ahs” and “ Alases” proceeded from his heart, That the people of Bokhara formed a circle round him. Talking sadly, weeping sadly, smiling sadly, Men and women, small and great, were all assembled. The whole city wept in concert with him ; Men and women mingled together as on the last day. Then Heaven said to Earth, “ If you never saw a resurrection-day, see it here ! ” Reason was amazed, saying, “ What love, what ecstacy ! Is his separation more wondrous, or his reunion ? ” 1 “ They surely are infidels who for there is no God but one God ” say, ‘ God is the third of three,’ (Koran v. 77). story XVIII.] THE DEADLY MOSQUE. Story XVIII. The Deadly Mosque (p. 278). In the suburbs of a certain city there was a mosque in which none could sleep a night and live. Some said it was haunted by malevolent fairies ; others, that it was under the baneful influence of a magic spell ; some proposed to put up a notice warning people not to sleep there, and others advised that the door should be kept locked. At last a stranger came to that city and desired to sleep in the mosque, saying that he did not fear to risk his life, as the life of the body was naught, and God has said, “ Wish for death if you are sincere.”1 The men of the city warned him again and again of the danger, and rebuked him for his foolhardiness, reminding him that not improbably Satan was tempting him to his own destruction, as he tempted the men of Mecca at the battle of Bedr.2 The stranger, however, would not be dissuaded, but persisted in his purpose of sleeping in the mosque. He said that he was as one of the devoted agents of the Ismailians, who were always ready to sacrifice their lives at the bidding of their chiefs, and that the terrors of death did not appal him any more than the noise of a little drum beaten by a boy to scare away birds could appal the great drumbearing camel that used to march at the head of King Mahmud's army. Accordingly, he slept in the mosque, and at midnie-ht he was awakened bv a terrible voice, as of one about to attack him. But instead of being dismayed, he bethought himself of the text “Assault them with thy horsemen and thy footmen,” 3 and confronted his unseen foe, challenging him to show himself and stand to his arms. At these words the spell was dissipated, and showers of gold fell on all sides, which the brave hero proceeded to appropriate.

1 Koran ii. 88. 2 Koran viii. 50. 3 Koran xvii. 66. The “ knowledge of certainty ” and the “ eye of certainty (p. 283). Our body and substance are snow, doomed to perish. God is He who buys them, for “ God hath bought them.” 1 You prefer this perishing snow to God’s price Because you are in doubt and have not certainty ; And, strange to say, opinion abides in you, 0 weak one, And never flies away to the garden of certainty. Every opinion is aiming at certainty, 0 son, And more and more moves its wings towards certainty. When it reaches knowledge it stands erect, And its knowledge again hastes on towards certainty, Because in the approved road of the faith Knowledge is lower than certainty, but above opinion. Know knowledge aspires to certainty, And certainty again to sight and ocular evidence. In the chapter, “ Desire of riches occupieth you,”2 After “ Nay,” read “ Would that ye knew ! ” Knowledge conducts you to sight, 0 knower ! “If ye are certain, ye shall see hell-fire.” Sight follows on certainty with no interval, Just as reasoned knowledge is born of opinion. See the account of this in the chapter cited,

How knowledge of certainty becomes the eye of certainty. As for me, I am above both opinion and certainty ; My head is not affected by your cavils. Since my mouth has eaten of His sweetmeats, I am become clear-sighted, and see Him face to face ! 1 “ Verily of the faithful hath God bought their persons and their substance, on condition of Paradise for them in return ” (Koran ix. 112). 2 “ The desire of riches occupieth you till ye come to the grave. Nay ! but in the end ye shall know. Nay ! would that ye knew it with knowledge of certainty. Surely ye shall see hell-fire. Ye shall surely see with the eye of certainty ” (Koran cii.) The righteous are exposed to trials for their improvement, as pot-herbs arc boiled to make them fit for food (p. 284). Behold these pot-herbs boiling in the pot, How they jump and toss about in the heat of the fire. Whilst they are boiling, they keep leaping up, Even to the top of the pot, and utter cries, Saying to the housewife, “ Why do you set us on the'fire ? Now you have bought us, why should you afllict us ? ”

The housewife pushes them down with her spoon, saying, “ Be still, and boil well, and leap not off the fire. I do not boil you because I dislike you, But that you may acquire a good savour and taste. When you become food you will be mingled with life ; This trial is not imposed on you to distress you. In the gai’den you drank water soft and fresh ; That water-fed one was reserved for this fire. Mercy was first shown to it before vengeance, That mercy might train it to be proof against trial ; Mercy was shown to it previously to vengeance, That it might acquire its substance of being. Because flesh and skin grow not without tender care, How should they not grow when warmed by the Friend’s love. If vengeance follows as a necessary consequence, That you may make an offering of that substance, Mercy follows again to compensate for it, That you may be purified and raised above your nature. I am Abraham, and you his son under the knife. Lay down your head ! ! I have seen I must sacrifice you.’ 1 Yield your head to vengeance, your heart to constancy, That I may cut your throat like an Ismailian’s.

I cut off your head, but that head is such That it is restored to life by being cut off ! ” 1 Koran xxxvii. 101. My main object herein is to inculcate resignation, 0 Mussulman ! it behoves you to seek resignation.1 0 pot-herbs, you boil in trials and sufferings That neither existence nor self may remain in you. Though you once smiled in that earthly garden, You are really roses of the garden of life and sight. If you are torn away from the garden of earth, You become sweet food to revive man’s life ; Yea, become his food and strength and thought ! 2 You were only milk, you become a lion of the forest ! You issue from God’s attributes at first ; Return again back to those attributes with all speed ! You come from the clouds and sunshine and sky, Then assume moral qualities and ascend the sky. You come in the form of rain and sunshine, You depart endued with excellent attributes. You begin as a part of the sun, clouds, and stars, You rise to be breath, act, word, and thought! The life of animals comes from the death of plants.

True is the saying, ‘ Kill me, 0 faithful ones ! ’ Since such exaltation awaits us after death. True it is that ‘ In our death is life.’ Acts, words, and faith are the food of the King, So that in this ascent one attains to heaven. Thus, as pot-herbs become the food of men, They rise above the grade of plants to that of animals.” Objections of fools to the Masnavi (p. 285 ). A certain goose pops his head out of his coop, And displays himself as a critic of the Masnavi, Saying, “ This poem, the Masnavi, is childish ; 1 According to its etymology, Islam means self-surrender to God, as well as safety, peace, and obedience to divine laws. 2 Cp. Milton, Paradise Lost, v. 482 — “ Flow’rs and their fruit, Man’s nourishment, by gradual scale sublim’d To vital spirits aspire, to animal, story xviii.] THE DEADLY MOSQUE. 169 Tis but a story of the prophets, and so on. ’Tis not an account of the arguments and deep mysteries, Whereto holy men direct their attention ; — Concerning asceticism, and so on to self-annihilation, Step by step, up to communion with God ; —

A11 explanation and definition of each several state, Whereto the men of heart ascend in their flight.” Whereas the Book of God resembles the Masnavi in this, The infidels abused it in the same manner, Saying, ‘ It contains old tales and stories ; ’ 1 There is no deep analysis or lofty investigation therein. Little boys can understand it ; It only contains commands and prohibitions, Accounts of Yusuf and his curled locks, Accounts of Jacob, of Zulaikka and her love, Accounts of Adam, of the wheat, and of the serpent Iblis, Accounts of Hud, of Noah, of Abraham, and the fire.” Know the words of the Koran are simple, But within the outward sense is an inner secret one.3 Beneath that secret meaning is a third, Whereat the highest wit is dumbfoundered. The fourth meaning has been seen by none Save God, the Incomparable and All-sufficient. Thus they go on, even to seven meanings, one by one, According to the saying of the Prophet, without doubt. Do thou, 0 son, confine not thy view to the outward meaning, Even as the demons saw in Adam only clay.3 The outward meaning of the Koran is like Adam’s body, For its semblance is visible, but its soul is hidden.

0 reviling dog ! thou makest a clamour, 1 Koran xxvii. 7. 2 There is a Hadis to the effect that each word of the Koran has seven meanings. See Koran iii. 5. 3 Koran xvii. 63. Tliou makest thy abuse of the Koran thy destruction.1 This is not a lion, wherefrom thou canst save thy life, Or canst secure thyself from his talons ! The Koran cries out even to the last day, “ 0 people, given up as a prey to ignorance, If ye have imagined me to be only empty fables, Ye have sown the seed of reviling and infidelity. Ye yourselves who abuse me will see yourselves Annihilated, and made like a tale that is told ! ” Solomon and the Gnat (p. 295). A gnat came in from the garden and fields, And called on Solomon for justice, Saying, “ 0 Solomon, you extend your equity Over demons and the sons of Adam and fairies. Fish and fowl dwell under the shelter of your justice ; Where is the oppressed one whom your mercy has not sought ? Grant me redress, for I am much afflicted, Being cut off from my garden and meadow haunts.”

Then Solomon replied, “ 0 seeker of redress, Tell me from whom do you desire redress ? Who is the oppressor, who, puffed up with arrogance, Has oppressed you and smitten your face ? ” The gnat replied, “ He from whom I seek redress is the Wind, ’Tis he who has emitted the smoke of oppression at me ; Through his oppression I am in a grievous strait, Through him I drink blood with parched lips ! ” Solomon replied to him, “ 0 sweet-voiced one, 1 The Lucknow commentator says Masnavi, and on the leaves being that Faizi (brother of Abul Fazl, turned over, this passage presented Akbar’s minister) once spoke dis- itself, respectfully of the Koran and the You must hear the command of God with all your heart. God has commanded me saying, ‘ 0 dispenser of justice, Never hear one party without the other ! ’ Till both parties come into the presence, The truth is never made plain to the judge.” When the Wind heard the summons, it came swiftly. And the gnat instantly took flight. In like manner the seekers of God’s presence-seat, — When God appears, those seekers vanish. Though that union is life eternal,

Yet at first that life is annihilation. The book ends with the beginning of a story which is finished in the fourth book. Story I. The Lover and his Mistress (p. 303). The fourth book begins with an address to Husamu-’dDin, and this is followed by the story of the lover and his mistress, already commenced in the third book. A certain lover had been separated from his mistress for the space of seven years, during which he never relaxed his efforts to find her. At last his constancy and perseverance were rewarded, in accordance with the promises “The seeker shall find,” and “ Whoso shall have wrought an atom’s weight of good shall behold it.” 1 One night, as he was wandering through the city, he was pursued by the patrol, and, in order to escape them, took refuge in a garden, where he found his long-sought mistress. This occasioned him to reflect how often men “ hate the things that are good for them,” 2 and led him to bless the rough patrol who had procured him the bliss of meeting with his mistress. Apropos of this, an anecdote is told of a preacher who was in the habit of blessing robbers and oppressors, because their evil example had turned him to righteousness. The moment the lover found himself alone with his mistress, he attempted to embrace her, but his mistress repulsed him, saying, that though no men were present, yet the wind was blowing, and that showed that God, the mover of the wind, was also present. The lover replied, “ It may be I am lacking in good manners, but I am not lacking in constancy and fidelity towards you.” His mistress replied, “One must judge of the hidden by the manifest; I see for myself that your outward behaviour is bad, and

1 Koran xeix. 7. 2 Koran ii. 213. story i.] THE LOVER AND HIS MISTRESS. thence I cannot but infer that your boast of bidden virtues is not warranted by actual facts. You are ashamed to misconduct yourself in the sight of men, but have no scruple to do so in the presence of the All-seeing God, and hence I doubt the existence of the virtuous sentiments which you claim to possess, but which can only be known to yourself.” To illustrate this, she told the story of a Sufi and his faithless wife. This wife was one day entertaining a paramour, when she was surprised by the sudden return of her husband. On the spur of the moment she threw a woman’s dress over her paramour and presented him to her husband as a rich lady who had come to propose a marriage between her son and the Sufi’s daughter, saying she did not care for wealth, but only regarded modesty and rectitude of conduct. To this the Sufi replied, that as from her coming unattended it was plain that the lady had not the wealth she pretended to have, it was more than probable that her pretensions to extraordinary modesty and humility were also fictitious. The lover then proceeded to excuse himself by the plea that he had wished to test his mistress, and ascertain for himself whether she was a modest woman or not. He said he of course knew beforehand that she would prove to be a modest woman, but still he wished to have ocular demonstration of the fact. His mistress reproved him for trying to deceive her with false pretences, assuring him that after he had been detected in a fault, his only proper course was to confess it, as Adam had done. Moreover, she added that an attempt to put her to the test would have been an extremely unworthy proceeding, only to be paralleled by Abu Jalil’s attempt to prove the truth of the Prophet’s claims by calling on him to perform a miracle.

The sold of good in things evil. Evil only relative (P- 303)- The lover invoked blessings on that rough patrol, Because their harshness had wrought bliss for him. They were poison to most men, but sweets to him, Because those harsh ones had united him with his love. In the world there is nothing absolutely bad ; Know, moreover, evil is only relative. In the world there is neither poison nor antidote, Which is not a foot to one and a fetter to another ; To one the power of moving, to another a clog ; To one a poison, to another an antidote. Serpents’ poison is life to serpents, In relation to mankind it is death. To the creatures of the sea the sea is a garden, To the creatures of the land it is fatal. In the same way, 0 man, reckon up with intelligence The relations of these things in endless variety. In relation to this man Zaid is as Satan, In relation to another he is as a Sultan. The latter calls Zaid a sincere Mussulman, The former calls him a Gueber deserving to be killed. Zaid, one and the same person, is life to the one,

And to the other an annoyance and a pest. If you desire that God may be pleasing to you, Then look at Him with the eyes of them that love Him. Look not at that Beauty with your own eyes, Look at that Object of desire with His votaries’ eyes ; Shut your own eyes from beholding that sweet Object, And borrow from His admirers their eyes ; Nay, borrow from Him both eyes and sight, And with those eyes of His look upon His face, In order that you may not be disappointed with the sight. God says, “ Whoso is God’s, God also is his.” STORY i.] THE LOVER AND HIS MISTRESS. God says, “I am his eye, his hand, his heart,”1 That his good fortune may emerge from adversity. Whatsoever is hateful to you, if it should lead you To your beloved, at once becomes agreeable to you. Why God is named “ Hearing ,” “Seeing,” and “ Knowing ” (P- 307). God calls himself “ Seeing,” to the end that His eye may every moment scare you from sinning. God calls himself “ Hearing,” to the end that You may close your lips against foul discourse.

God calls himself “ Knowing,” to the end that You may be afraid to plot evil. These names are not mere accidental names of God, As a negro may be called Kafv.r (white) ; They are names derived from God’s essential attributes, Not mere vain titles of the First Cause. For if so, they would be only empty pleasantries, Like calling the deaf a hearer and the blind a seer, Or a name like “ impudent ” for a modest man. Or “ beautiful ” for an ugly negro. Or such a title as “ Haji ” for a new-born boy. Or that of “ Ghdzi ” applied to a noble idler. If such titles as these are used in praising persons Who do not possess the qualities implied, ’tis wrong ; ’Twould be jesting or mockery or madness. “ God is exalted above” what is said by evil men.2 I knew you before I met you face to face, That you had a fair face but an evil heart ; Yea, I knew you before I saw you, That you were rooted in iniquity through guile. When my eye is red owing to inflammation, I know ’tis so from the pain, though I see it not.

1 “ My servant draws nigh to me and by me he sees, hears, talks by pious deeds till I love him, and, walks, and feels.” — Hadis. when I love him, I am his eye, his 3 Cp. Koran svi. 3. ear, his tongue, his foot, his hand, You regarded me as a lamb without a shepherd ; You fancied that I had no guardian. Lovers have suffered chastisement for this cause, That they have cast ill-timed looks at fair ones. They have supposed the fawn to have no shepherd, They have supposed the captive to be going a begging ; Till in the twinkling of an eye an arrow pierces them, Saying, “ I am her guardian ; look not at her rashly ! ” What ! am I less than a lamb or a fallow deer, That I should have none to shepherd me ? Nay, I have a Guardian worthy of dominion, Who knows every wind that blows upon me. He is aware whether that wind is chill or mild, He is not ignorant nor absent, 0 mean one. The carnal soul is made by God blind and deaf ; I saw with the heart’s eye your blindness afar off.

For this cause I never incjuired about you for eight years, Because I saw you filled with ignorance and duplicity. Why indeed should I inquire about one in the furnace, Who is bowed down with reproach, like yourself ? Comparison of the world to a lath stove , and of piety to the hot bath (p. 307). The lust of the world is like a bath stove, Whereby the bath of piety is heated ; But the lot of the pious is purity from the stove’s filth, Because they dwell iu the bath and in cleanliness. The rich are as those that carry dung To heat the furnace of the bath withal. God has instilled into them cupidity, That the bath may be warmed and pleasant. Quit this stove and push on into the bath ; Know quitting the stove to be the bath itself. Whoso is in the stove-room is as a servant To him who is temperate and prudent. Your lust is as fire in the world, story ii.] THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. With a hundred greedy mouths wide open. In the judgment of reason this gold is foul dung, Although, like dung, it serves to kindle the fire.

Whoso was born in the stove-room and never saw purity, The smell of sweet musk is disagreeable to him. In illustration of this, a story follows of a tanner who was accustomed to bad smells in the course of his trade, and who was half killed by the smell of musk in the bazaar of the perfumers, but was cured by the accustomed smell of dung. Story II. The Building of the “ Most Remote Temple ” at Jerusalem (p. 3 1 1 ). King David purposed to build a temple at Jerusalem, but was forbidden to do so by a divine voice, because he had been a man of blood. But, it was added, the work should be accomplished by his son Solomon, and Solomon’s work would be reckoned the same as David’s, in accordance with the texts, “The faithful are brethren,” and “ Sages are as a single soul,” and “ We make no distinction between any of the apostles.” 1 Accordingly, when Solomon came to the throne, he set about the building, which was attended with many miraculous circumstances, e.g., the stones in the quarry crying out and moving of themselves to the site of the temple. Bilqis, Queen of Saba, sent Solomon a present of forty camels laden with ingots of gold ; but Solomon would not receive them, and sent her messengers back with a letter commanding her to abandon the worship of the sun and embrace Islam.2 At the same time he charged the messengers to report fully to the Queen all they had seen in his kingdom, and to urge her to comply with his commands to renounce her sovereignty and present herself in all humility at his

1 Koran xlix. 10 ; xxxi. 27 ; ii. 2 The letter is given in Koran 285. xxvii. 30. court. As she delayed to come, Solomon again sent to assure her that he had no sinister views regarding her, and desired her attendance at his court solely for her own spiritual benefit. At last Bilqis renounced her royal state and cast away all care for worldly things, and, impelled by earnest desire to learn the true faith, presented herself at the court of King Solomon. Then Solomon commanded that the throne of Bilqis should be brought from Saba, and an ’Afrit offered to fetch it, but Asaf, the vizier, anticipated him.1 Afterwards Solomon proceeded with the building of the temple, wherein he was assisted by devils and fairies. Then God tried Solomon by placing on his throne a false counterpart of him. His miracleworking signet was stolen by a devil named Sakhar, who thereupon assumed his shape and personated him for forty days, during which Solomon had to wander about and beg bis bread. After this he regained his throne, and having completed the temple, began to worship therein. One day he observed that a tuft of coarse grass had sprung up in a corner of the temple, and he was greatly distressed because he thought it portended the ruin of the building, but he took comfort from the thought that while he himself lived the temple would not be allowed to fall into ruin ; so long as he lived, at least, he would root up all evil weeds that threatened the safety of the temple, as well the temple built with hands as the spiritual temple in his heart.

In the course of this story, which is told at great length, there occur anecdotes of the beginning of the reign of ’Othman, of the miracles of ’Abd Ullah Moghrabi, and others, of which abstracts are given below. 1 All these legends are derived from Koran xxi., xxvii., and xxxviii. See Sale’s notes. Though philosophers cull man the microcosm, divines call him the macrocosm (p. 314). I11 outward form thou art the microcosm, But in reality the macrocosm.1 2 Seemingly the bough is the cause of the fruit, - But really the bough exists because of the fruit. Were he not impelled by desire of fruit, The gardener would never have planted the tree. Therefore in reality the tree is born from the fruit, Though seemingly the fruit is born from the tree. For this cause Mustafa said, “ Adam and all prophets Are my followers and gather under my standard. Though to outward view I am a son of Adam, In reality I am his first forefather, Because the angels worshipped him for my sake, And ’twas in my footsteps that he ascended to heaven. Hence in reality our first parent was my offspring, As in reality the tree is born of its own fruit.”

What is first in thought is last in act. Thought is the special attribute of the Eternal. This product goes forth from heaven very swiftly, And comes to us like a caravan.3 ’Tis not a long road that this caravan travels ; Can the desert stop the deliverer ? The heart travels to the Ka’ba every moment, And by divine grace the body acquires the same power. Distance and nearness affect only the body, What do they matter in the place where God is ? When God changes the body, It regards not parasangs or miles. Even on earth there is hope of approaching God. Press on like a lover, and cease vain words, 0 son ! 1 This refers to Muhammad, who is at once the “ First reason” (Logos) and the “ Perfect man,” who is “ the sum of all the worlds ” and the “Great world.” See Notices et Extraits des MSS., x. p. 86. 2 He was also the final cause of creation. “ If it had not been for thee, the worlds had not been created.” 3 Muhammad as the Logos is the channel by which divine grace is conveyed to man. The “ change of the body ” i3 an allusion to the ascension of Muhammad (Mi raj).

180 THE M A SNA VI. [book iv. In the course of his rebuke to the messengers of Bilqis for bringing him mere gold instead of a humble heart, Solomon tells the story of the druggist who used soapstone or Persian earth for a weight. A man came to him to buy sugar-candy, and as he had no weight at hand, he used a lump of soapstone instead ; but, while his back was turned, the purchaser stole a bit of the soapstone. The druggist, though he saw what he was doing, would not interrupt him, for he knew that the more soapstone the purchaser stole, the less sugar-candy he would get. In like manner the more men grasp at the transitory wealth of this world, the less they will obtain of the stable wealth of the world to come. Part of Solomons message to Bilqis (p. 317). Report to Bilqis what marvels ye have seen, And what plains of gold belong to Solomon ; How ye beheld forty mansions faced with gold, And how ye were ashamed of your presents ; That she may know Solomon is not covetous of gold ; He has received gold from the Creator of gold.

The moment he wills it, every grain of earth’s dust Is changed into gold and precious pearls. For this cause, 0 thou that lovest gold, On the last day God will make earth all silver (white).1 Quit thy wealth, even if it be the realm of Saba ; Thou wilt find many realms not of this earth. What thou callest a throne is only a prison ; Thou thinkest thyself enthroned, but art outside the door. Thou hast no sovereignty over thine own passions, How canst thou sway good and evil ? Thy hair turns white without thy concurrence, Take shame to thyself for thy evil passions. Whoso bows his head to the King of kings Will receive a hundred kingdoms not of this world ; But the delight of bowing down before God Will seem sweeter to thee than countless glories. An anecdote follows of a darvesh who saw in a dream some saints, and prayed them to provide him with his daily bread without obliging him to mix in worldly affairs. The saints ordered him to go to the forest, and there he found that all the wild fruits were rendered fit for his food. Having a few grains of gold by him, which he had gained by worldly labour before this miracle had been wrought for him, he was about to give them to a poor woodcutter who was passing that way. But this woodcutter was a saint, and at once read his thoughts, and to show, like Solomon, that he had no need of worldly wealth, he offered up a short prayer to God, and straightway his bundle of firewood was changed into gold, and immediately after, at another prayer, was changed back again into firewood.

Ibrahim bin Adham and his fondness for music 1 (p. 3 1 8). Haste to renounce thy kingdom, like Ibrahim bin Adham. To obtain, like him, the kingdom of eternity. At night that king would sleep on his throne, With his guards of state surrounding his palace, Though he needed no guards for the purpose Of warding off robbers and vagabonds ; For he who is a just king knows everything, And is safe from harm and his mind is at peace. Justice is the guardian of his steps, Xot guards with drums round his palace. His purpose in having this band of music was this, To recall to his longing heart that call of God.2 The wailing of horn and the thunder of drum 1 Music is much used in the reli- Dervishes,” by J. P. Brown, p. gious sendees of the “Maulavi” 197. order of Darveshes, founded by 2 “ Am not I your lord ?” (Koran Jalalu-d-Din Rumi. See “The vii. 171). Resemble in some sort that dread “trumpet blast.”1 Wherefore philosophers say that we have learned Our melodies from those of the revolving spheres. The song of the spheres in their revolutions Is what men sing with lute and voice.

The faithful hold that the sweet influences of heaven Can make even harsh voices melodious. As we are all members of Adam, We have heard these melodies in Paradise ; Though earth and water have cast their veil upon us, We retain faint reminiscences of those heavenly songs. But while we are thus shrouded by gross earthly veils, How can the tones of the dancing spheres reach us ? 2 Hence it is that listening to music is lovers’ food, Because it recalls to them their primal union with God. The inward feelings of the mind acquire strength, Nay, are shown outwardly, under influence of music. The fire of love burns hotter under stimulus of music, Even as occurred in the case of the nut-gatherer. Ibrahim’s abdication (p. 318). Once that noble Ibrahim, as he sat on his throne, Heard a clamour and noise of cries on the roof, Also heavy footsteps on the roof of his palace. He said to himself, “ Whose heavy feet are those ? ” He shouted from his window, “ Who goes there ? ’Tis no man’s step ; surely ’tis a fairy.” His guards, filled with confusion, bowed their heads, Saying, “It is we who are going the rounds in search.” He said, “ What seek ye ? ” They said, “ Our camels.” 3 He said, “ Who ever searched for camels on a housetop ? ”

1 “ When there shall be a trumpet spheres” was as well known to blast, that shall be a dreadful day ” Persian poets as to Shakespeare. (Koran lxxiv. 7). 3 This is an allusion to the story 2 The so-called Pythagorean doc- of the “Believer’s lost camel.” Book trine of the “ Harmony of the ii., Story xi. They said, “ We follow thy example, Who seekest union with God while sitting on a throne.'’ This was all, and no man ever saw him again. Just as fairies are invisible to men. His substance was hid from men, though he was with them, For what can men see save the outward aspect and dress ? As he was removed from the sight of friends and strangers. His fame was noised abroad like that of the ’Anka. For the soul of every bird that reaches Mount Qaf Confers glory on the whole family of birds.1 The anecdote of the nut-gatherer, introduced in the above story, is only another version of the story of the thirsty man who threw bricks into the water in order to hear the sound of the splash.2 This is followed by an address to Husamu-’d-Din, in which the poet says that his object in writing the Masnavi was to elicit words from Husam, as his words were the same as the words of God.

Solomon’s preaching to the people of Bilqis. The art of preaching (p. 321). 1 tell the tale of Saba in lovers’ style. When the breeze bore Solomon’s words to that garden. ’Twas as when bodies meet souls at the resurrection. Or as when boys return to their loved homes. The people of love are hidden amongst the peoples, As a liberal man encompassed by the contumely of the base. Souls are disgraced by union with bodies, Bodies are ennobled by union with souls. Arise, 0 lovers ; this sweet draught is yours ; Ye are they that endure ; eternal life is yours. Ho ! ye that seek, arise and take your fill of love. Snuff up that perfume of Yusuf ! 1 This alludes to the well-known poem of Faridu-d-Din ’Attar, the “Mantiqu-t-Tair.” 2 Book ii., Story v. i84 THE MASNAVI. [book iv. Approach, 0 Solomon, thou that knowest birds’ language, Sound the note of every bird that draws near.1 When God sent thee to the birds, He taught thee first the notes of all the birds. To the predestinarian bird talk predestination, To the bird with broken wings preach patience, To the patient well-doer preach comfort and pardon,

To the spiritual ’Anka relate the glories of Mount Qaf, To the pigeon preach avoidance of the hawk, To the lordly hawk mercy and self-control ; As for the bat, who lingers helpless in the dark, Acquaint him with the society of the light ; To the fighting partridge teach peace, To the cock the signs of dawning day. In this way deal with all from the hoopoo to the eagle. Then follows a long account of various miraculous incidents that occurred during the childhood of the Prophet, — how he was suckled by Halima, a woman of the Bani Sa’ad, — how the idols bowed down before him, — how he strayed from home, — how his grandfather, Abd ul Muttalib, prayed to God that he might be found, — and how he was at last found in the Ka’ba and restored to his grandfather. Next a story is told of a cur who attacked a blind man (Kiir) in the street, rather than hunt the wild ass ( Gor ) on the mountains in company with well-bred dogs. This is an illustration of the thesis that mankind is prone to run after mean earthly objects, and to neglect aspiring to the spiritual world.

Solomon's admonitions to Bilqis (p. 32 7). Ah ! Bilqis, bestir thyself now the market is thronged, Flee away from them whose traffic is unprofitable ! 2 Arise, Bilqis, now that thou hast the choice, 1 Koran xxvii. 16. There is a bought error at the price of guidance, Hadis, “Speak to men according to but their traffic hath not been gainthe amount of their intelligence.” ful” (Koran ii. 15). 2 “These are they who have Before that death lays his heavy hand upon thee. Soon will death pull thy ears, as if thou wert A thief dragged before the officer in deadly fear. How Ion" wilt thou steal shoes from asses of the world ? If thou must steal, steal pearls of the world above. Thy sisters have found the kingdom that lasts for ever, Thou cleavest to the kingdom of darkness. Happy is he who quits this earthly kingdom, Which sooner or later death will destroy. Arise ! 0 Bilqis, at least behold The kingdom of the roval kings of the faith ! In reality they are seated in the garden of the spirit, Though to outward view they are guiding their friends. That spiritual garden accompanies them everywhere,

Vet it is never revealed to the eyes of the people, — Its fruits ever asking to be gathered, Its fount of life welling up to be drunk ! Go round about the heavens without aid of wings, Like sun or full moon or new moon ! Thou wilt move as a spirit without aid of feet, Thou wilt eat sweet viands without mouth or palate. No crocodile of sorrow will attack thy bark, Nor will sad thoughts of death assail thee. Thou wilt be at once queen, army, and throne, Endued with good fortune and fortune itself.1 Thou sayest thou art a great queen of good fortune ; But thy fortune is apart from thee and will soon fade, Thou wilt be left like a beggar without sustenance ; Therefore, 0 chosen one, become thy own fortune. When, 0 spiritual one, thou hast become thy own fortune, Then, being thyself thy fortune, thou wilt never lose it. How, 0 fortunate one, canst thou ever lose thyself, When thy real self is thy treasure and thy kingdom ? 1 Union attained, all duality and non). (See Gulshan i Raz, 11. 835 separate phenomenal existence are and 845.) swallowed up in the One (Xoume-

How men and demons helped Solomon in building the temple (p. 327). When Solomon laid the foundations of the temple, Men and Jinns came and lent their aid to the work, Some of them with good-will, and others on compulsion, Even as worshippers follow the road of devotion. Men are as demons, and lust of wealth their chain, Which drags them forth to toil in shop and field. This chain is made of their fears and anxieties. Deem not that these men have no chain upon them. It causes them to engage in labour and the chase, It forces them to toil in mines and on the sea, It urges them towards good and towards evil. God saith, “ On their necks is a rope of palm fibre,” 1 And “ Verily on their necks have we placed ropes,” 2 “We make this rope out of their own dispositions ; There is none either impure or intelligent, But we have fastened his work about his neck.”3 Thy lust is even as fire burning in thy evil deeds ; The black coal of these deeds is lighted by the fire ; The blackness of the coal is first hidden by the fire,

But, when it is burnt, the blackness is made visible. The building of the prophets was without lust, And accordingly its splendour ever increased. Yea, many are the noble temples they have raised, Though all were not named “The Most Remote Temple.” The Ka’ba, whose renown waxes greater every moment, Owed its foundation to the piety of Abraham. Its glory is not derived from stones and mortar, But from being built without lust or strife. Neither are the prophets’ writings like other writings ; 1 Koran iii. 5. him a book, which shall be shown to 2 Koran xxxvi. 7. him wide open. Read thy book ; 3 “And every man’s work have there needeth none but thyself to we fastened about his neck, and on make out an account against thee the last day will we bring forth to that day ” (Koran xvii. 14.) story ii.] THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. Nor their temples, nor their works, nor their families ; Nor their manners, nor their wrath, nor their chastisements ; Nor their dreams, nor their reason, nor their words. Each one of them is endued with a different glory, Each soul’s bird winged with different feathers. Ho ! pious ones, build the lively temple of the heart,

That the Divine Solomon may be seen, and peace be upon you ! And if your demons and fairies be recalcitrant, Your good angels must place collars on their necks. If your demons go astray through guile and fraud. Chastisement must overtake them swift as lightning. Be like Solomon, so that your demons May dig stones for your spiritual edifice. Be like Solomon, free from evil thoughts and guile, So that carnal demons and Jinns maybe submissive to you. Your heart is as Solomon’s signet; take good care That it falls not a prey to demons. For then demons will rule over you as over Solomon. Guard then your signet from the demons, and be at peace. Then follows a story of a poet who recited a panegyric in honour of a liberal king. The king commanded that he should receive one thousand pieces of gold, but the vazir. named Abu-’l-Hasan, gave him ten thousand. The poet went to his home well contented, but after some years fell into poverty, and naturally bethought him of the generous king and his vazir, who had before assisted him. Sibawayh, the grammarian of Shiraz, says "Allah” is derived from “Alah” (fleeing for refuge), and thus we see all creatures, and even the elements themselves, ever looking to Allah to sustain them in existence. The poet, therefore, again presented himself to the king with a new panegyric, and the king, on hearing it, commanded as before that a thousand pieces of gold should be given him. But the new vazir, who was also named Abu-’l-Hasan,

persuaded the king that the exchequer could not afford this large outlay, and kept the poet waiting so long for his money, that at last he was glad to get away with only one hundred pieces of gold. These two vazirs recall Asaf, the good vazir of King Solomon, who deserves the title “ Light upon light,” 1 and Haman, the evil vazir of Pharaoh, who turned his heart against Moses, and brought many plagues upon the kingdom of Egypt. Hovj all creatures cry to God for sustenance (p. 329). Yea, all the fish in the seas, And all feathered fowl in the air above, All elephants, wolves, and lions of the forest, All dragons and snakes, and even little ants, Yea, even air, water, earth, and fire, Draw their sustenance from Him, both winter and summer. Every moment this heaven cries to Him, saying, “ 0 Lord, quit not Thy hold of me for a moment ! The pillar of my being is Thy aid and protection ; The whole is folded up in that right hand of Thine.” 2 And earth cries, “0 keep me fixed and steadfast, Thou who hast placed me on the top of waters ! ”

All of them are waiting and expecting His aid, All have learned of Him to represent their needs. Every prophet extols this prescription, “ Seek ye help with patience and with prayer.”3 Ho ! seek aid of Him, not of another than Him, Seek water in the ocean, not in a dried-up channel. The next anecdote is that of the raven who taught Cain the art of digging graves and burying corpses, as told in Koran v. 34. This is designed to illustrate the thesis that unaided human reason can discover no new truth, unless inspired by Divine wisdom, of which the prophets, and especially “ Universal Reason,” or the Prophet Muhammed, 1 Koran xxiv. 35. s Koran xxxix. 67. 3 Koran ii. 148. story II.] THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. 189 are the channels. Thus physicians and herbalists have derived their knowledge of the virtues of plants from the instructions originally given by King Solomon when he classified the plants that grew in the court of the temple. The inner eye sees more than is visible to the sight of the vulgar. To illustrate this, an anecdote is told of a Sufi who had accompanied his friends to a beautiful garden, but instead of looking about and enjoying the fragrance of the flowers and fruits, sat with his head sunk on his breast in Sufi fashion. His friends said to him, in the words of the Koran, “ Look at the signs of God’s mercy, how after its death He cjuickeneth the earth ! ’M He answered them that these signs were far more plainly visible to him in his heart than in the outward creation, which was merely as it were a blurred reflection from the spiritual creation enshrined in his heart. For God says, “ The life of the world is naught but a cheating fruition.”2 In other words, “ Nature conceals God, but the supernatural in man reveals Him.”3

On cleansing the inward temple of the heart from self-conceit and reliance on carnal reason (p. 333). When the body bows in worship, the heart is a temple, And where there is a temple, there bad friends are weeds. When a liking for bad friends grows up in you, Flee from them, and avoid converse with them. Root up those weeds, for, if they attain full growth, They will subvert you and your temple together. O beloved, this weed is deviation from the “ right way,” You crawl crookedly, like infants unable to walk. Fear not to acknowledge your ignorance and guilt, That the Heavenly Waster may not withhold instruction. 1 Koran xxx. 49. but by reason of the supernatural 2 Koran iii. 182. in man, which alone reveals him 3 “But is it unreasonable to confess and proves him to exist ?” (Jacobi, that we believe in God, not by reason quoted in Sir W. Hamilton’s Lecof the nature which conceals him, tures on Metaphysics, vol. i. p. 40). When you say, “ I am ignorant; 0 teach me,” Such open confession is better than false pride. 0 ingenuous one, learn of our father Adam, "Who said of yore, “ 0 Lord, we have dealt unjustly.”1 He made no vain excuses and prevaricated not,

Nor did he raise the standard of guile and craft. On the other hand, Iblis raised arguments, saying, “ I used to be honourable ; Thou hast disgraced me. My stain is owing to Thee ; Thou art my dyer ; Thou hast caused my sin and transgression.” Read the text, “ Lord, Thou hast caused me to err,”2 That you plead not compulsion, and so err (like Iblis). How long will you climb into that tree of compulsion ? How long cast out of sight your own freewill ? How long, like Iblis and his evil crew, Throw the blame of your own sins upon God ? How were you compelled to sin when you took such pleasure And pride in engaging in those sins ? Does a man feel such pleasure in acting on compulsion As he exhibits when committing wrong actions? You battle like twenty men against those Who give you good advice not to do that act ; Saying to them, “This is right and quite proper; Who dissuades me from it but men of no account?” Does a man acting on compulsion talk like this ? Or rather one who is erring of his own freewill ? Whatever your lust wills you deem freewill,

What reason demands you deem compulsion. Whoso is wise and prudent knows this, That cleverness comes from Iblis, but love from Adam. Cleverness is like Canaan’s swimming in the ocean ; 3 ’Tis no l’iver or small stream ; ’tis the mighty ocean. Away with this attempt to swim ; quit self-conceit. 1 Koran vii. 22. is the burden of many of ’Omar 8 He said, ‘‘That thou hast caused Khayyam’s poems, me to err" (Koran vii. 15). This 3 Koran xi. 43. See Book iii., ’Twill not save you ; Canaan was drowned at last. Love is as the ark appointed for the righteous, Which annuls the danger and provides a way of escape. Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment ; Cleverness is mere opinion, bewilderment intuition. Make sacrifice of your reason at the feet of Mustafa, Say, “God sufficeth me, for He is sufficient for me.”1 Do not, like Canaan, hang back from entering the ark. Being puffed up with vain conceit of cleverness. He said, “ I will escape to the top of high mountains. Why need I put myself under obligation to Noah ? ” Ah ! better for him had he never learnt swimming !

Then he would have based his hopes on Noah’s ark. Would he had been ignorant of craft as a babe ! Then like a babe he would have clung to his mother. Would he had been less full of borrowed knowledge ! Then he would have accepted inspired knowledge from his father. When, with inspiration at hand, you seek book-learning, Your heart, as if inspired, loads you with reproach.2 Traditional knowledge, when inspiration is available, Is like making ablutions with sand when water is near. Make yourself ignorant, be submissive, and then You will obtain release from your ignorance. For this cause, 0 son, the Prince of men declared, “The majority of those in Paradise are the foolish.”3 Cleverness is as a wind raising storms of pride ; Be foolish, so that your heart may be at peace ; Not with the folly that doubles itself by vain babble, But with that arising from bewilderment at “ The Truth.” Those Egyptian women who cut their hands were fools 4 — 1 Koran ix. 130. 2 Knowledge of “ The Truth ” is to be attained not by exercise of the reason, but by illumination from above. When the light of “ The Truth” is revealed, reason is drowned in bewilderment. Gulshan i Raz, Answer ii.

3 Frey tag, Arabum Proverbia, vol. ii. p. 898 ; I Cor. iv. 10. 4 “They were amazed at Yusuf, and cut their hands, and said. ‘ God keep us, this is no man ! ’ ” (Koran xii. 31). Fools as to their hands, being amazed at Yusuf’s face. Make sacrifice of reason to love of “ The Friend,” True reason is to be found where He is. Men of wisdom direct their reason heavenwards, Vain babblers halt on earth where no “ Friend ” is. If through bewilderment your reason quits your head, Every hair of your head becomes true reason and a head. Then follow commentaries on the text, “ 0 thou enfolded in thy mantle ; ” 1 on the proverb, “ Silence is the proper answer to a fool ; ” on the Hadis, “ God created the angels with reason and the brutes with lust, but man he created with both reason and lust ; the man who follows reason is higher than the angels, and the man who follows lust is lower than the brutes ; ” on the text, “ As to those in whose heart is a disease, it will add doubt to their doubt, and they shall die infidels,” 2 and a comparison of the struggle between reason and lust to that between Majnun and his she-camel, he trying to get to his mistress Laila, and the she-camel trying to run home to her foal.

Story III. The Youth who wrote a letter of complaint about his rations to the King (p. 337). A certain youth in the service of a great king was dissatisfied with his rations, so he went to the cook and reproached him with dishonouring his master by his stinginess. The youth would not listen to his excuses, but wrote off an angry letter of complaint to the king, in terms of outward compliment and respect, but betraying an angry spirit. On receiving this letter, the king observed that it contained only complaints about meat and drink, and evinced no aspirations after spiritual food, and therefore needed no answer, as “ the proper answer to a fool is silence.”3 When the youth received no answer 1 Koran lxxiii. 1. 3 SeeFreytag, Arabum Proverbia, 2 Koran ix. 126. i. 551, for a parallel. story hi.] THE YOUTH AND HIS RATIONS. to his letter, he was much surprised, and threw the blame on the cook and on the messeuger, ignoring the fact that the folly of his own letter was the real reason of its being left unanswered. He wrote in all five letters, but the king persisted in his refusal to reply, saying that fools are enemies to God and man, and that he who has any dealings with a fool fouls his own nest. Fools only regard material meat and drink, whereas the food of the wise is the light of God, as it is said by the Prophet, “ I pass the night in the presence of my Lord, who giveth me meat and drink,”1 and again, “ Fasting is the food of God,” i.c., the means by which spiritual food is obtained.2

Explanation of the text, “And Moses conceived a secret fear within him. IVe said ‘Fear not, for thou shalt be uppermost ( over Pharaoh’s magicians) ’ ” 3 (p. 340). Moses said, “ Their sorcery confuses them ; What can I do? These people have no discernment.” God said, “I will generate in them discernment ; I will make their undiscerning reason to see clearly. Although like a sea their waves cast up foam, 0 Moses, thou shalt prevail over them ; fear not ! ” The magicians gloried in their own achievements, But when Moses’ rod became a snake, they were confounded. Whoso boasts of his beauty and wit, The stone of death is a touchstone of his boasts. Sorcerv fades away, but the miracles of Moses advance. Both resemble a dish falling from a roof : The noise of the dish of sorcery leaves only cursing ; The noise of the dish of faith leaves edification. When the touchstone is hidden from the sight of all, Then come forth to battle and boast, 0 base coin ! Tour time for boasting is when the touchstone is away ; 1 Koran xxvi. 79. 2 See Mishkat ul Masabih, vol. i. p. 463.

3 Koran xx. 70. The hand of power will soon crush your exaltation. The base coin says to me with pride every moment, “ 0 pure gold, how am I inferior to you ? ” The gold replies, “ Even so, 0 comrade ; But the touchstone is at hand ; be ready to meet it ! ” Death of the body is a benefaction to the spiritual ; What damage has pure gold to dread from the shears ? If the base coin were of itself far-sighted, It would reveal at first the blackness it shows at last. If it had showed its blackness at first on its face, ’Twould have avoided hypocrisy now and misery at last. ’Twould have sought the alchemy of grace in due time ; Its reason would have prevailed over its hypocrisy. If it became broken-hearted through its own bad state, ’Twould look onward to Him that heals the broken ; ’Twould look to the result and be broken-hearted, And be made whole at once by the Healer of broken hearts. Divine grace places base copper in the alembic, Adulterated gold is excluded from that favour. 0 adulterated gold, boast not, but see clearly That thy Purchaser is not blind to thy defects.

The light of the judgment-day will enlighten his eyes And destroy the glamour of thy fascinations. Behold them that have regard to the ultimate result, And also the regrets of foolish souls and them envy. Behold them that regard only the present, And cast away from their minds thoughts of evil to come. Story IV. Bayazul and his impious sayings when beside himself (p. 343). The holy saint Bayazid before his death predicted the birth of the saint Abu-’l-Hasan Khirqani, and specified all the peculiar qualities which would be seen in him. And after his death it came to pass as he had predicted, and Abu-’l-Hasan, hearing what Bayazid had said, used to frequent his tomb. One day he visited the tomb as usual, story iv.] BAYAZID AND HIS SAYINGS. and found it covered with snow, and a voice was heard saying, “ The world is fleeting as snow. I am calling thee ! Follow me and forsake the world ! Row Bayazid cried out, when beside himself, “ Glory be to me!" and hoiv his disciples were scandalised at this saying, and how Bayazid ansivered them (p. 349). Once that famous saint Bayazid came to his disciples, Saying, “ Lo, I myself am God Almighty.”

That man of spiritual gifts being visibly beside himself, Said, “ There is no God beside me ; worship me ! ” Next morning, when his ecstatic state had passed, They said, “You said so and so, which was impious.” He answered, “ If I do so again, Straightway slay me with your knives ! God is independent of me ; I am in the body. If I say that again you must kill me ! ” When that holy person had given this injunction, Each of his disciples made ready his knife. Again that overflowing cup became beside himself, And his recent injunctions passed from his mind. Alienation came upon him, reason went astray, The dawn shone forth and his lamp paled at its light. Reason is like an officer when the king appears ; The officer then loses his power and hides himself. Reason is God’s shadow ; God is the sun. What power has the shadow before the sun ? When a man is possessed by an evil spirit The qualities of humanity are lost in him. Whatever he says is really said by that spirit, Though it seems to proceed from the man’s mouth. When the spirit has this rule and dominance over him, The agent is the property of the spirit, and not himself ; His self is departed, and he has become the spirit.

The Turk without instruction speaks Arabic ; 1 1 Alluding to the story of the Kurd, Syad Abu-’l-Wafa, Book i. Story xiv. note. When he returns to himself he knows not a word of it. Seeing God is lord of spirits and of man, How can He be inferior in power to a spirit ? When the eagle of alienation from self took wing, Bayazid began to utter similar speeches ; The torrent of madness bore away his reason, And he spoke more impiously than before. “ Within my vesture is naught but God, Whether you seek Him on earth or in heaven.” His disciples all became mad with horror, And struck with their knives at his holy body. Each one, like the assassins of Kardkoh,1 Without fear aimed at the body of his chief. Each who aimed at the body of the Shaikh, — His stroke was reversed and wounded the striker. No stroke took effect on that man of spiritual gifts, But the disciples were wounded and drowned in blood. Each who had aimed a blow at his neck, Saw his own throat cut, and gave up the ghost ; He who had struck at his breast Had cleft his own breast and killed himself.

They who knew better that lord of felicity, Who had not courage enough to strike a deadly blow, Their half-knowledge held their hands back ; They saved their lives but slightly wounded themselves. On the morrow those disciples, diminished in number, Raised lamentations in their houses. They went to Bayazid, thousands of men and women, Saying, “ The two worlds are hidden in thy vestui’e ; If this body of thine were that of a man, It would have perished of sword-wounds, like a man’s. The man in his senses fought with him beside himself, And thrust the thorn into his own eyes.” Ah ! you who smite with your sword him beside himself, You smite yourself therewith ; Beware ! 1 A kill in Mazandaran. story iv.] BAYAZID AND HIS SAYINGS. For he that is beside himself is annihilated and safe ; Yea, he dwells in security for ever. His form is vanished, he is a mere mirror ; Nothing is seen in him but the reflection of another. If you spit at it, you spit at your own face, And if you hit that mirror, you hit yourself ; And if you see an ugly face in it, ’tis your own,

And if you see an ’Isa there, you are its mother Mary. He is neither this nor that — he is void of form ; 'Tis your own form which is reflected back to you. But when the discourse reaches this point, lip is closed ; When pen reaches this point, it is split in twain. Close then your lips, though eloquence be possible. Keep silence ; God knows the right way ! This is followed by an anecdote of the Prophet appointing an Hudhaili youth to be captain of a band of warriors amongst whom were many older and more experienced soldiers, and of the objections made to this appointment, and of the Prophet’s answer to the objectors. Why the Prophet promoted the youth to command his seniors (p. 351 ). The Prophet said, “ 0 ye who regard only the outside, Regard him not as a youth void of talents. Many are they whose beards are black yet are old, Many too have white beards and hearts like pitch. 1 have made trial of his wisdom often and often, And that youth has shown himself old in his actions. Age consists in maturity of wisdom, 0 son, Not in whiteness of the beard and hair.

How can any one be older than Iblis ? Yet, if he has no wisdom, he is naught. Suppose him an infant, if he has ’Isa’s soul, He is pure from pride and from carnal lust. That whiteness of the hair is a sign of maturity Only to purblind eyes whose vision is limited. Since that shortsighted one judges by outward signs, He seeks the right course by outward tokens. For his sake I said that if ye desire counsel Ye ought to make choice of an old man. He who has emerged from the veil of blind belief Beholds by the light of God all things that exist. His pure light, without signs or tokens, Cleaves for him the rind and brings him to the kernel. To the regarder of externals, genuine and base coin are alike. How can he know what is inside the basket ? Many are the gold coins made black with smoke, So that they elude the clutches of greedy thieves ; Many are the copper coins gilded with gold, And sold as gold to men of slender wits. We who regard the inside of the world, We look at the heart and disregard the outside.

The judges who confine their view to externals And base their decisions on outward appearances, As they testify and make outward show of faith,1 Are straightway dubbed faithful by men of externals. Therefore these heretics, who regard only externals, Have secretly shed the blood of many true believers. Strive then to be old in wisdom and in faith, That, like Universal Reason, you may see within.” - Story Y. The Three Fishes (p. 352). This story, which is taken from the book of Kalila and Datnnah,3 is as follows. There was in a secluded place a lake, which was fed by a running stream, and in this lake were three fishes, one very wise, the second half wise, 1 “And some there are who say, to Muhammad. “The first thing ‘ We believe in God and in the last which God created was (’aql) Reason day,’ yet they are not believers” or Intelligence,” i.c., the Logos. (Koran ii. 7). 3 Anvar i Suhaili, Book i. Story 2 Universal Reason, here applied 15. STORY v.] THE THREE FISHES. 199 and the third foolish. One day some fishermen passed by that lake, and having espied the fish, hastened home to fetch their nets. The fish also saw the fishermen and were sorely disquieted. The very wise fish, without a minute’s delay, quitted the lake and took refuge in the running stream which communicated with it, and thus escaped the impending danger. The half wise fish delayed doing anything till the fishermen actually made their appearance with their nets. He then floated upon the surface of the water, pretending to be dead, and the fishermen took him up and threw him into the stream, and by this device he saved his life. But the foolish fish did nothing but swim wildly about, and was taken and killed by the fishermen.

The marks of the wise man, of the half wise, and of the fool (p. 351 ). The wise man is he who possesses a torch of his own ; He is the guide and leader of the caravan. That leader is his own director and light ; That illuminated one follows his own lead. He is his own protector ; do ye also seek protection From that light whereon his soul is nurtured. The second, he, namely, who is half wise, Knows the wise man to be the light of his eyes. He clings to the wise man like a blind man to his guide, So as to become possessed of the wise man’s sight. But the fool, who has no particle of wisdom, Has no wisdom of his own, and quits the wise man. He knows nothing of the way, great or small, And is ashamed to follow the footsteps of the guide. He wanders into the boundless desert, Sometimes halting and despairing, sometimes running. He has no lamp wherewith to light himself on his way, Nor half a lamp which might recognise and seek light. He lacks wisdom, so as to boast of being alive, And also half wisdom, so as to assume to be dead ?

That half wise one became as one utterly dead In order to rise up out of his degradation. If you lack perfect wisdom, make yourself as dead Under the shadow of the wise, whose words give life. The fool is neither alive so as to companion with ’Isa, Nor yet dead so as to feel the power of ’Isa’s breath. His blind soul wanders in every direction, And at last makes a spring, but springs not upwards. The counsels of the bird (p. 253). A man captured a bird by wiles and snares ; The bird said to him, “ 0 noble sir, In your time you have eaten many oxen and sheep, And likewise sacrificed many camels ; You have never become satisfied with their meat, So you will not be satisfied with my flesh. Let me go, that I may give you three counsels, Whence you will see whether I am wise or foolish. The first of my counsels shall be given on your wrist, The second on your well-plastered roof, And the third I will give you from the top of a tree. On hearing all three you will deem yourself happy. As regards the counsel on your wrist, ’tis this, —

‘ Believe not foolish assertions of any one ! ’ ” When he had spoken this counsel on his wrist, he flew Up to the top of the roof, entirely free. Then he said, “ Do not grieve for what is past ; When a thing is done, vex not yourself about it.” He continued, “Hidden inside this body of mine Is a precious pearl, ten drachms in weight. That jewel of right belonged to you, Wealth for yourself and prosperity for your children. You have lost it, as it was not fated you should get it, That pearl whose like can nowhere be found.” Thereupon the man, like a womau in her travail, Gave vent to lamentations and weeping. The bird said to him, “ Did I not counsel you, saying, ‘ Beware of grieving over what is past and gone ? When ’tis past and gone, why sorrow for it ? Either you understood not my counsel or are deaf. The second counsel I gave you was this, namely, ‘ Be not misguided enough to believe foolish assertions.’ O fool, altogether I do not weigh three drachms. Iiow can a pearl of ten drachms be within me ?

The man recovered himself and said, “Well then, Tell me now your third good counsel ! ” The bird replied, “ You have made a fine use of the others, That I should waste my third counsel upon you ! To give counsel to a sleepy ignoramus Is to sow seeds upon salt land. Torn garments of folly and ignorance cannot be patched. 0 counsellors, waste not the seed of counsel on them ! ” Story VI. Moses and Pharaoh (p. 3 5 4).1 Then follows a very long account of the dealings of Moses, an incarnation of true reason, with Pharaoh, the exponent of mere opinion or illusion. It begins with a long discussion between Moses and Pharaoh. Moses tells Pharaoh that both of them alike owe their bodies to earth and their souls to God, and that God is their only lord. Pharaoh replies that he is lord of Moses, and chides Moses for his want of gratitude to himself for nurturing him in his childhood. Mcses replies that he recognises no lord but God, and reminds Pharaoh how he had tried to kill him in his infancy. Pharaoh complains that he is made of no account by Moses, and Moses retorts that in order to cultivate a waste field it is necessary to break up the soil : and in order to make a good garment, the stuff must first be cut up ; and in order to make bread, the wheat must first be ground in the mill, and so on. The best

1 This story is an expansion of Koran xliii. 50 and following verses, and of Koran xi. return he can make to Pharaoh for his hospitality to him in his infancy is to set him free from his lust-engendered illusions, like a fish from the fish-hook which has caught him. Pharaoh then twits Moses with his sorceries in changing his staff into a sequent, and thereby beguiling the people. Moses replies that all this was accomplished not by sorcery, like that of Pharaoh’s own magicians, but by the power of God, though Pharaoh could not see it, owing to his want of perception of divine things. The ear and the nose cannot see beautiful objects, but only the eye, and similarly the sensual eye, blinded by lust, is impotent to behold spiritual truth. On the other hand, men of spiritual insight, whose vision is purged from lust, become as it were all eyes, and no longer see double, but only the One sole real Being. Man’s body, it is true, is formed of earth, but by discipline and contrition it may be made to reflect spiritual verities, even as coarse and hard iron may be polished into a steel mirror. Pharaoh ought to cleanse the rust of evil-doing from his soul, and then he would be able to see the spiritual truths which Moses was displaying before him. The door of repentance is always open. Moses then promised that if Pharaoh would obey one admonition he should receive in return four advantages. Pharaoh was tempted by this promise, and asked what the admonition was. Moses answered that it was this, that Pharaoh should confess that there is no God except the One Creator of all things in heaven and on earth. Pharaoh then prayed him to expound the four advantages he had promised, saying that possibly they might cure him of infidelity, and cause him to become a vessel of mercy, instead of one of wrath. Moses then explained that they were as follows: — (i.) Health. (2.) Long life, ending in the conviction that death is gain. Even as one who knows of a treasure hid in a ruined house pulls down the house to find that treasure, so does the wise man, full of years aud experience, pull down the house of the body to gain the treasure of eternal life.

story vi.] MOSES AND PHARAOH. 203 The tradition “ I was a hidden treasure,” See., bears on this matter. (3.) A better kingdom than that of Egypt, one of peace in place of one of enmity and contention. (4.) Perpetual youth. Pharaoh then proceeded to take counsel with his wife, Asiya, whether it would be advisable to quit his infidelity and believe in the promises of Moses. Asiya, being a pious woman and well inclined to Moses, whom she had nurtured in his infancy, urged him to do so, but Pharaoh said he would first consult his vazir Haman. Asiya had a bad opinion of Hainan, whom she knew to be as blind to spiritual truths as Pharaoh himself, and she did her best to dissuade Pharaoh from consulting him. To illustrate Haman’s spiritual blindness, she told the story of a royal falcon who fell into the hands of an ignorant old woman. This old woman knew nothing of the virtues of a falcon, and was displeased at the falcon’s appearance, and said to it, “ What was your mother about to leave your claws and beak so long?” She then proceeded to trim them short, according to her fancy, and of course spoiled the falcon for all purposes of falconry. Pharaoh, however, would not be diverted from his purpose of consulting Haman, and Asiya was fain to console herself with the reflection that like always herds with like, and so Pharaoh must needs consort with Haman, who was in so many respects a duplicate of himself. To illustrate this she recalled the story of a woman whose infant had crawled to the brink of a canal, where it persisted in remaining, at the imminent peril of its life, despite all her calls and entreaties. In her distress she asked aid of ’Ali, who told her to place another infant on the top of the bank. She did so, and her own infant, seeing its playfellow, left the brink of its own accord and came to join its fellow. The spirit of man is of like genus with the holy prophets, but man’s animal lust with the demons. And as things of like nature attract one another, so unlike things repel one another. Thus it is said that when holy men pray to be delivered from

hell, hell also pi-ays that they may be kept away from it. Pharaoh then proceeded to consult Haman, and Haman, on hearing that Moses had proposed to Pharaoh to humble himself and confess the supreme lordship of Allah, was indignant and rent his clothes, saying, “ Is not the kingdom of Egypt thine ? Art thou not mightier than this despicable fellow ? 1 Who is he to degrade Pharaoh from his ‘ supreme lordship ? ’ ” So Pharaoh listened to Haman and refused to be converted to the true faith. Then Moses was much discouraged, but he was consoled by a voice from heaven assuring him that he was well-beloved of God, because in spite of disappointments and through good and evil he clung to God. On the tradition, “I was a hidden treasure and 1 desired to he lcnown, and I created the world in order to he known” (p. 360). Destroy your house, and with the treasure hidden in it 2 You will be able to build thousands of houses. The treasure lies under it ; there is no help for it ; Hesitate not to pull it down ; do not tarry ! For with the coin of that treasure A thousand houses can be built without labour.

At last of a surety that house will be destroyed, And the divine treasure will be seen beneath it. But ’twill not belong to you, because in truth3 That prize is the wages for destroying the house. When one has not done the work he gets no wmges; “Man gets nothing he has not worked for.”4 5 Then you will bite your finger, saying, “Alas! That bright moon was hidden under a cloud. 1 See Koran xliii. 50. 2 Compare the Iladis, “Die before you die,” i.e., mortify your carnal desires, and you will find spiritual treasure. 5 The Turkish commentator trans- lates ruh by Ilaqq Yoluna, “ for the sake of truth,” “in the way of truth.” The Lucknow commentator, as usual, shirks the difficulty. 4 Koran liii. 40. I did not do what they told me for my good ; Now house and treasure are lost and my hand is empty.” You have taken your house on lease or hired it ; ’Tis not your own property to buy and sell. As to the term of the lease, it is till your death ; In that term you have to turn it to use. If before the end of the term of the lease You omit to derive profit from the house,

Then the owner puts you out of it. And pulls it down himself to find the gold-mine. While you are now smiting your head in deep regret, And now tearing your beard to think of your folly. Saying, “ Alas ! that house belonged to me ; I was blind and did not derive profit from it. Alas ! the wind has carried off my dwelling For ever ! ‘ 0 misery that rests on slaves ! ’ 1 In that house of mine I saw but forms and pictures ; I was enchanted with that house so fleeting ! I was ignorant of the treasure hidden beneath it, Otherwise I would have grasped an axe as a perfume. Ah ! if I had administered the justice of the axe, I should now have been quit of sorrow. But I fixed my gaze on outward forms, Like an infant I sported with playthings. Well said the famous Hakim Sauai, ‘ Thou ai't a child ; thy house is full of pictures.’ In his divine poem he gives this advice, 1 Sweep away the dust from thy house ! ’ ” They who recognise the almighty power of God do not ask where heaven is or where hell is (p. 366).

“ 0 Pharaoh, if you are wise, I show you mercy ; But if you are an ass, I give you the stick as an ass. So I will drive you out of your stable, 1 Koran xxxvi. 29. Even as I make your head and ears bleed with my stick. In this stable asses and men alike Are deprived of peace by your oppressions. See ! I have brought a staff for the purpose of correcting Every ass who does not prove tractable. It turns into a serpent in vengeance against you, Because you have become a serpent in deed and character. You are an evil serpent, swelled to the size of a hill. Yet look at the Serpent (constellation) in heaven. This staff is a foretaste to you of hell, Saying, ‘ Ho, take refuge in the light ! Otherwise you will fall into my jaws, And will find no escape from my clutches ! ’ This staff even now became a serpent, So that you need not ask, ‘ Where is God’s hell ? ’ God makes a hell wheresoever He wills ; He makes the very sky a snare and trap for birds. He produces pains and aches in your teeth,

So that you say, ‘ ’Tis a hell and serpent’s bite.’ Or again He makes your spittle as honey, So that you say, ‘ ’Tis heaven and wine of Paradise.’ He makes sugar to grow in your mouth, That you may know the might of the divine decrees. Therefore, bite not the innocent with your teeth ; Bear in mind the divine stroke that tarries not.” God made the Nile blood to the Egyptians, He preserved the Israelites from the peril, That you might know how God discerns Between the wise and the foolish wayfarers. The Nile learned of God discernment When it let the ones through and engulphed the others. God’s mercy made the Nile wise, His wrath made Cain foolish. Of His mercy He created wisdom in inanimate things, And of His wrath He deprived the wise of wisdom. Of His mercy wisdom accrued to inanimate things, As a chastisement He took wisdom from the wise. Here at His command wisdom was shed down like rain, Whilst there wisdom saw His wrath and tied away. Clouds and sun, and moon and lofty stars, All come and go in obedience to His ordinance ; No one of them comes save at His appointed time ;

It lingers not behind nor anticipates that time. Whereas you understood not this secret, the prophets Have instilled this knowledge into stone and staff ; So that you may infer that other inanimate things Without doubt resemble in this stones and staves. The obedience of stone and staff is shown to you. And informs you of that of other inanimate things. They cry, “ We are all aware of God and obey Him ; We are not destructive by mere fortuitous chance.” Thus you know the water of the Nile when in flood Made distinction between the Egyptians and the Israelites. You know the others are wise as earth, who, when cleft, Knew Qarun and swallowed him up in vengeance. Or like the moon, who heard the command and hasted To sever itself into two halves in the sky.1 Or like the trees and stones, which in all places Were seen to bow down at the feet of Mustafa. The arguments between a Sunni and a Materialist 2 ( Dahri ) decided by the arbitrament of fire (p. 367). Last night a Sunni said, “The world is transitory; The heavens will pass away ; ‘ God will be the heir.’ ”3 A philosopher replied, “ How know you they are transitory ?

How knows the rain the transitory nature of the cloud ? Are you not a mere mote floating in the sunbeams ? How know you that the sun is transitory ? A mere worm buried in a dung-heap, 1 Koran liv. 1. yun. Schmolders, Ecoles Philoso- - Ghazzali divides the ancient phiques, p. 29. Greek philosophers into three classes 3 Koran xv. 23. — Dahriyun, Tabayi’un, and Ilahi- How can it know the origin and end of the earth ? In blind belief you have accepted this from your father, And through folly have clung to it ever since. Tell me what is the proof of its transitoriness, Or else be silent and indulge not in idle talk.” The Sunni said, “ One day I saw two persons Engaged in argument on this deep question, — Yea, in dispute and controversy and argument. At last a crowd was gathered round them. I proceeded towards that company To inform myself of the subject of their discourse. One said, ‘ This sky will pass away ; Doubtless this building had a builder.’ The other said, ‘ It is eternal and without period ; It had no builder, or it was its own builder.’

The first said, ‘ Do you then deny the Creator, The Bringer of dav and night, the Sustainer of men ? ’ He answered, ‘ Without proof I will not listen To what you say : ’tis only based on blind belief. Go ! bring proof and evidence, for never Will I accept this statement without proof.’ H e answered, ‘ The proof is within my heart, Yea, my proofs are hidden in my heart. From weakness of vision you see not the new moon ; If I see it, be not angry with me ! ’ Much talk followed, and the people were perplexed About the origin and end of the revolving heavens. Then the first said, ‘ 0 friend, within me is a proof Which assures me of the transitoriness of the heavens. I hold it for certain, and the sign of certainty In him who possesses it is entering into fire. Know this proof is not to be expressed in speech, Any more than the feeling of love felt by lovers. The secret I labour to express is not revealed Save by the pallor and emaciation of my face. When the tears course down my cheeks, They are a proof of the beauty and grace of my beloved.’

The other said, “ I take not these for a proof, Though they may be a proof to common people.” The Sunni said, “ When genuine and base coin boast, Saying, ‘Thou art false, I am good and genuine,’ Fire is the test ultimately, When the two rivals are cast into the furnace.” Accordingly both of them entered the furnace, Both leapt into the fiery flame ; And the philosopher was burnt to ashes, But the God-fearing Sunni was made fairer than before. Story VII. The Courtier who quarrelled with his Friend for saving his Life (p. 369). A king was enraged against one of his courtiers, and drew liis sword to slay him. The bystanders were all afraid to interfere, with the exception of one who boldly threw himself at the king’s feet and begged him to spare the offender. The king at once stayed his hand, and laid down his sword, saying, “ As you have interceded for him, I would gladly pardon him, even if he had acted as a very demon. I cannot refuse your entreaties, because they are the same as my own. In reality, it is not you who make these entreaties for him, but I who make them through your mouth. I am the real actor in this matter, you are only my agent. Remember the text, 4 You shot not when you shot ; ’ 1 you are, as it were, the foam, and I the mighty ocean beneath it. The mercy you show to this offender is really shown by me, the king.” The offender was accordingly released and went his way ; but, strange to say, he showed no gratitude to his protector, but, on the contrary, omitted to greet him when he met him, and in other ways refused to recognise the favour he had received from him. This behaviour excited remark, and people questioned him as to the cause of his ingratitude to his benefactor. He

1 Koran viii. 17. replied. “ I had offered up my life to the king when this man intervened. It was a moment when, according to the tradition, ‘ I was with God in such a manner that neither prophet nor angel found entrance along with me,’ 1 and this man intruded between us. I desired no mercy save the king’s blows ; I sought no shelter save the king. If the king had cut off my head he would have given me eternal life in return for it. My duty is to sacrifice my life ; it is the king’s prerogative to give life. The night which is made dark as pitch by the king scorns the brightness of the brightest festal day. He who beholds the king is exalted above all thoughts of mercy and vengeance. Of a man raised to this exalted state no description is possible in this world, for he is hidden in God, and words like ‘ mercy ’ and ‘ vengeance ’ only express men’s partial and weak views of the matter. It is true ‘God taught Adam the names of all things,’2 but that means the real qualities of things, and not such names as ordinary men use, clad in the dress of human speech. The words and expressions we use have merely a relative truth, and do not unfold absolute truth.”

He illustrates this by the reply made to the angel Gabriel by Abraham when he was cast into the fire by Nimrod.3 Gabriel asked him if he could assist him, and Abraham answered, “No! I have no need of your help.” When one has attained union with God he has no need of intermediaries. Prophets and apostles are needed as links to connect ordinary men with God, but he who hears the “ inner voice ” within him has no need to listen to outward words, even of apostles. Although that intercessor is himself dwelling in God, yet my state is higher and more lovely than his. Though he is God’s agent, yet I desire not his intercession to save me from evil sent me by God, for evil at God’s hand seems to me good. What seems mercy and kindness to the vulgar seems wrath and ven- 1 See Gulshan i Raz, 1. 120. 3 See Koran xxi. 68, and the Com- 2 Koran ii. 29. inentators thereon. geance to God-intoxicated saints. God’s severity and chastisements serve to exalt his saints, though they make the vulgar more ungodly than before, even as the water of the Nile was pure water to the Israelites, but blood to the Egyptians.

Moses asks the Almighty, “ Why hast Thou made men to destroy them ? 1 ” (p. 371 ). Moses said, “ 0 Lord of the day of account, Thou makest forms; wherefore, then.destroyest Thou them ? Thou makest charming forms, both men and women ; Wherefore, then, dost Thou lay them waste r' ” God answered, “ I know that this query of thine Proceeds not from negation or vain curiosity. Otherwise I should chastise and punish thee ; Yea, I should rebuke thee for this question. But thou seekest to discover in my actions The ruling principle and the eternal mystery, In order to inform the people thereof, And to make ‘ ripe ’ every ‘ raw ’ person. Yea, 0 messenger, thou questionest me that I may reveal My ways to the people, though thou knowest them. O Moses, go and sow seed in the ground In order to do justice to this question.” When Moses had sowed and his seed had grown up, He took a sickle and reaped the com, And then a divine voice reached his ears : — “ Why hast thou sown and nurtured the corn, And then cut it down directly it was ripe ? ”

Moses replied, “ Lord, I cut it and lay it low Because here I have grain and straw. Grain is out of place in the straw-yard, And straw is useless in the wheat-barn. 1 So Job x. 8 : “ Thy hands have made me, yet Thou dost destroy me.” ’Tis wrong to mix these two, It is needful to sift them one from the other.” God said, “From whom learnest thou this knowledge Whereby thou hast constructed a threshing-floor ? ” Moses said, “ 0 Lord, Thou hast given me discernment.” God said, “ Then have not I also discernment? Amongst my creatures there are pure spirits, And also dark and befouled spirits. The oyster-shells are not all of the same value ; Some contain pearls, and others black stones. It is needful to discern the bad from the good, Just as much as to sift wheat from straw. The people of this world exist in order to manifest And to disclose the 1 hidden treasure.’ Read, ‘ I was a hidden treasure, and desired to be known ; ’ Hide not the hidden treasure, but disclose it. Your true treasure is hidden under a false one, Just as butter is hidden within the substance of milk.

The false one is this transitory body of yours, The true one your divine soul. Long time this milk is exposed to view, And the soul’s butter is hidden and of no account. Churn your milk assiduously with knowledge, So that what is hidden in it may be disclosed ; Because this mortal is the guide to immortality, As the cries of revellers indicate the cup-bearer.” Story YIII. The Prince who , after having been beguiled by a Courtesan , returned to his True Love (p. 3 73). A certain king dreamed that his dearly beloved son, a youth of great promise, had come to an untimely end. On awaking he was rejoiced to find that his son was still alive ; but he reflected that an accident might carry him off at any moment, and therefore decided to marry him without delay, in order that the succession might be secured. Accordingly he chose the daughter of a pious Darvesh as a bride for his soil, and made preparations for the wedding. But his wife and the other ladies of his harem did not approve of the match, considering it below the dignity of the prince to marry the daughter of a beggar. The king rebuked them, saying that a Darvesh who had renounced worldly wealth for the sake of God was not to be confounded with an ordinary beggar, and insisted on the consummation of the marriage. After the marriage the prince refused to have anything to do with his bride, though she was very fair to look on, and he carried on an intrigue with an ugly old woman who had bewitched him by sorcery. After a year, however, the king found some physicians who succeeded in breakiug the spell, and the prince returned to his senses, and his eyes were opened to the superior attractions of his wife, and he renounced his ugly paramour and fell in love with his wife. This is a parable, the true wife beiug the Deity, the old paramour the world, and the physicians the prophets and saints. Another illustration is a child who played at besieging a mimic fort with his fellows, and succeeded in capturing it and keeping the others out. At this moment God “ bestowed on him wisdom, though a child,” 1 and it became to him a day “ when a man flees from his brethren,” 2 and he recognised the emptiness of this idle sport, and engaged in the pursuit of holiness and piety. This is followed by an anecdote of a devotee who had so concentrated his thoughts on things above that he was utterly careless of all earthly troubles, and was cheerful and rejoicing even in the midst of a severe famine.

1 Koran xix. 13. 2 Koran lxxx. 34. The world is the outward form, of “ Universal Reason " {Muhammad), and he who grieves him, must expect trouble in the world 1 (p. 377). The whole world is the outward form of Universal Reason. For it is the father of all creatures of reason. When a man acts basely towards Universal Reason, Its form, the world, shows its teeth at him. Be loyal to this father and renounce disobedience, That this earthy house may furnish you golden carpets. Then the judgment-day will be the “ cash of your state,” Earth and heavens will be transfigured before you.2 I am ever in concord with this father of ours, And earth ever appears to me as a Paradise. Each moment a fresh form, a new beauty, So that weariness vanishes at these ever-fresh sights. I see the world filled with blessings, — Fresh waters ever welling up from new fountains. The sound of those waters reaches my ears, My brain and senses are intoxicated therewith. Branches of trees dancing like fair damsels, Leaves clapping hands like singers. These glories are a mirror shining through a veil ; If the mirror were unveiled, how would it be ?