Chapter XXIV: Preface (10)

[155] At the “extreme lote-tree” in the highest heaven, on the night of the ascension. Gabriel could go no further. Muhammed went on, to God’s presence.

[156] The word that signifies “compulsion” also means “reduction” in a surgical sense, and “algebra” mathematically.

[157] “Burāq” is the name of the angelic steed on which Muhammed mounted to heaven in his night journey. Not found in the Qur’ān.

[158] “The moon clave” in twain as a sign of the near approach of the day of judgment. Qur’ān liv. 1.

[159] Muhammed’s name is put on most Muslim coins.

[160] Muhammed is held to be the supplement of all the prophets.

[161] Qur’ān ii. 151.

[162] Not in Freytag’s “_Proverbia_.“

[163] See note in the Author’s Preface, and Chapter vi. in the Anecdotes.

[164] The commentators on Qur’ān xxi. 69, mention Nimrod’s gnat.

[165] Qur’ān xxviii. 5, mentions Haman with Pharaoh.

[166] He is said to have believed Satan rather than Abraham.

[167] The translator has ventured to coin the expressions ”_synglottism_,“ ”_synglottist_,“ and ”_syncardism_“ as specimens of a whole class used in Persian.

[168] A title designating Adam,--who named all things.

[169] Qur’ān ii. 29.

[170] Omar.

[171] A very doubtful clause; it may be rendered: ”_Thou art with me._“

[172] Adam, in most languages, has come to signify _man_.

[173] Qur’ān ii. 33, mentions merely a ”_caulescent plant_;““wheat” is one of several glosses by commentators, like our “apple.”

[174] Qur’ān vii. 22, makes Adam confess sin with contrition, together with Eve, thereby meriting God’s eventual pardon.

[175] Qur’ān cx. 1.

[176] Evidently the name of a rival.

[177] These are sainted spiritualists, true and pious dervishes.

[178] Qur’ān ii. 22, and lxvi. 6, say “mankind and rocks.“

[179] Another word coined to meet the requirements of the original. ”_Ubiquity_“ is the converse of ”_nubiquity_.” _Nulliquity_ might be used.

[180] Qur’ān ii. 111, and seven other places.

[181] “Cæsar” is the Roman Emperor, the Qaysari-Rūm. Other Qaysar there is not.

[182] To write this name _Omar_ is incorrect.

[183] Medina is the usual incorrect spelling of this name.

[184] The Arabian title is Khalīfa; of which Caliph is a corruption.

[185] “_Commander of the Believers_” is his usual title. “Rome” is the Lower Empire.

[186] Muhammed’s heart is believed to have been cleansed by an angel.

[187] “God’s countenance” means also, in Arabic, _God’s cause_.

[188] God is this “sun;” the “motes” are all created objects.

[189] The “Friend” is God, the Gnostic’s “_darling_.”

[190] “Rome” in Asia means the Lower Empire and Asia Minor; or, for the last few centuries, the Ottoman Empire.

[191] “Shadow of God on earth” is an Eastern title of royalty.

[192] These two propositions give the pith of the doctrine held and inculcated by the mystics and spiritualists of Islām: “_He’s bridegroom; God is bride._“

[193] This First Book of the Mesnevī was written before the Būstān of Sa’dī. The myth of the dewdrop and pearl is much more ancient.

[194] The date of the poem will be recollected; who disbelieved alchemy then?

[195] Here is a beautiful and true application of the idea of ”_transubstantiation_.“

[196] The original mentions Ferhād, a kind of Persian Dædalus, by his title of ”_Mountain-Excavator_.“(See Tale vii. dist. 365.)

[197] Qur’ān liv. 1.

[198] Qur’ān vii. 15, and xv. 39. At the fall, Satan accused God of tempting him; whereas Adam confessed his sin, and did not accuse Satan.

[199] Qur’ān vii. 22.

[200] Qur’ān xxiv. 26.

[201] ’Bū is often used as a contraction for Abū. Abū-Jahl (_Father of Ignorance_) was a nickname (see Tale iv. dist. 48, note) given by Muhammed to ‘Amr, son of Hishām, a chief of the Quraysh, his bitter enemy, formerly entitled Abū-’l-Hakem (_Father of the Arbitrator_). He was killed, a pagan, in the battle of Badr, in the second year of the Hijra, A.D. 624.

[202] The word rendered by “explanation” here, means also _information_, and _use_, _advantage_, _profit_, _benefit_, &c.

[203] Literally, “your morning cup,” drunk at dawn ere leaving a house.

[204] Asiatics drink “to the love” of a friend; not “to his health.”

[205] The parrot is known by the title “Sugar-eating.”

[206] A shade of an explanation to this very hazardous saying of the Sūfī Gnostics is found in Qur’ān xvi. 108: “Whoever denieth God after he hath believed, except him who shall be compelled against his will, and whose heart continueth steadfast in the faith, shall be severely chastised.”

[207] The dervish orders call their peculiar cap a “mitre” or “crown” (_tāj_).

[208] The “four rivers” of Paradise, of water, milk, wine, and honey. Qur’ān xlvii. 16.

[209] Qur’ān iii. 31; and numerous other places.

[210] This section purports to have been suggested by the following couplet from ‘Attār:—

“O heedless child of lust, weep thou tears of blood.
If a saint eat poison, honey-like ’tis food.”

The original expression for “saint,” here, is: “a man of heart.”

[211] Canonical “responsibility” falls on all of sane mind and adult age.

[212] See note to dist. No. 33 of the present poem.

[213] Qur’ān vii. 112, &c.

[214] By a “_perfect man_” a saint is intended; as by “imperfect,” here and before, an ordinary mortal is depicted.

[215] Qur’ān vii. 203; xlvi. 28. By “ear” and “tongue” a learner and a teacher are symbolised.

[216] A hazardous assertion. See Anecdotes, Chap, iii., Nos. 2, 5, 7, &c.

[217] A proverbial expression, like: “All’s well that ends well.“

[218] Qur’ān ii. 100.

[219] Qur’ān xxiii. 112.

[220] Also Qur’ān xxiii. 112.

[221] The ”_pupil_“ of the eye; in Persian called ”_the manikin_;“ in Arabic, ”_the man_.“These both allude to the small image of ourselves seen reflected in the pupil.

[222] This rhapsody is mystical, like the Song of Solomon. A “tongue” is a teacher, informant; a prophet; and, apparently, even God himself.

[223] Qur’ān xc. 1-4.

[224] “Other,” as opposed to self; also opposed to “we two” in the case of lovers; it is a term much used in Eastern poetry and philosophy.

[225] The poet’s “_beloved_” appears, here, to be God.

[226] Allusion appears to be made to Qur’ān xxi. 107.

[227] This section is stated to be a gloss upon the following apostolic tradition: “Verily, Sa’d is really jealous; but I am more jealous than he, and God than I. Out of His jealousy hath He made all excesses sinful; whether of outer or of the inner man.” This Sa’d, son of ‘Ubāda, was a disciple of Muhammed, and the most munificent man in Madīna. He embraced the faith before the Hijra. See An-Nawāwī, p. 274, l. 5.

[228] The “two worlds,” spiritual and material, future and present.

[229] The poet’s “love,” is still God. This section purports to be an excursus on the following distich of the poet Sanā’ī, who died A.H. 576 (A.D. 1180):—

“Why leavest thou thy guild, its rules or faith or sin?
Why quittest thou thy mistress, be she plump or thin?”

[230] Reflections on God’s unity, and the plurality of created being.

[231] Qur’ān xix. 41, &c.

[232] Anecdotes, Chap. vi.

[233] “Life” and “coral,” in Persian “jān” and “merjān.”

[234] Men from moral, dawn from material light.

[235] Qur’ān lv. 29.

[236] This section purports to be a dissertation on the dictum: “What God wills, is.”

[237] Man’s “record” is the register of his thoughts, words, and deeds, kept by angels, to be produced in the last judgment.

[238] The same word in Persian, _bū_, signifies “odour” and “hope.” The thing hoped for becomes a distant, odoriferous flower.

[239] Qur’ān ii. 23, and forty places in all.

[240] Jacob is said to have wept himself blind on losing Joseph; the smell of his son’s coat, when refound, later, restored him.

[241] Ferhād was Shīrīn’s lover. (See Tale 6, distich 107, note.)

[242] Majnūn, in story, went mad for love of Laylà.

[243] The “Sage of Gazna” is the poet Sanā’ī, already mentioned in the notes to the present tale, distich 230.

[244] Joseph is held to have been most superlatively beautiful.

[245] Isrāfīl is the angel who will blow the last trump, twice. At the first, all living will die; at the second, all the dead will rise to be judged. His voice is the most musical among all those of the angels.

[246] Our word “fairy” is connected with the Persian “_perī_,” used here by the poet instead of the Arabic “_jinn_,” whence our “genie.”

[247] Qur’ān lv. 33.

[248] That is, it would appear: _Individuals created out of nothing_.

[249] That is: _The Lord is with him who strives on the Lord’s side_.

[250] A dried gourd, a calabash, is commonly used as a wine-decanter.

[251] An apostolic tradition.

[252] Also an apostolic tradition.

[253] Another apostolic tradition.

[254] The traditionary saying of Muhammed, of which this section is an amplification, is the following:—“Verily your Lord hath, in your time, sundry breathings; lo, then, turn ye towards them.”

[255] Qur’ān xxxiii. 72. When all things had declined responsibility, Adam voluntarily accepted it; was tempted; and fell. Had they not shrunk, man would not have been the sinner or the saint that he is.

[256] Luqmān’s story may be read in D’Herbelot, _voce_ “Locman.”

[257] Arabian poets sing of women; often imaginary. In Persia, this is considered very immodest. In Persian poetry, a boy, imaginary also, is always assumed to be the beloved object. Muhammed so addressed his youthful wife, ‘Ā’isha. Humayrā means Rosina,—_little rosy-cheeks_. See also No. 9, distich 184.

[258] A horseshoe, as a charm, with an absent one’s name on it, placed in the fire, is supposed to exercise a magical influence over him, and make him come there in all speed, even though his feet bleed from his haste.

[259] That “Soul” is God, the “_animus mundi_.”

[260] Through humility.

[261] The “call” of God is the call to divine service, the _‘Adhān_ (_ezān_).

[262] Bilāl, a negro, was the first caller to divine service. He was an early convert, a slave, then ‘Abū-Bekr’s freedman; then Mu’edhdhin.

[263] Mustafà, _Chosen_, _Elect_, is one of Muhammed’s titles.

[264] The night of his marriage with Safiyya, after the capture of Khaybar, in the seventh year of the Hijra, as he was returning to Medīna. That night has a special name, based on this circumstance: _the night of the early morning halt_ (laylatu ’t-ta’rīs).

[265] An explanation of this wild expression were much to be desired. Doubtless there is one.

[266] There are seven different Persian games of backgammon. The second of the seven, the one mentioned by the poet, is called “Plus” (_Ziyād_). At each throw of the dice, one is added, arbitrarily, to each number shown on the two, ace becoming deuce, &c. The poet likens the body to this supposititious number, the soul alone being real.

[267] In performing her devotions, a Muslimess has to veil herself, even at home, as though she were abroad in public.

[268] These four lines are quoted from Sanā’ī, for comment.

[269] This section and the next two form a comment on Sanā’ī.

[270] Qur’ān l. 14. The “new creation” is the resurrection.

[271] The tradition, in prose, is as follows, quoted by the poet: “Take ye advantage of the coolness of spring; it invigorates your bodies, as it acts on plants. Avoid ye also the cold of autumn; it acts on your frames as it acts on vegetation.”

[272] Prisoners and fugitive slaves have iron rings or a kind of wooden pillory fastened round their necks to prevent flight or insubordination.

[273] Venus, the musician, who inhabits the planet. See Tale iii., dist. 223.

[274] Muhammed.

[275] The original name of Medīna,—_Jatrippa_.

[276] Qur’ān xlvii. 17.

[277] Qur’ān vii. 171.

[278] Tradition relates that at first, Muhammed used to pronounce his sermon seated on the floor in the midst of his congregation, with his back against a certain wooden pillar. The congregation increasing, he was obliged to adopt the use of a raised platform, a kind of pulpit, so as to be seen and heard of all. The deserted pillar is the one spoken of.

[279] This is a traditionary legend.

[280] The circumambulation of the “House of God” at Mekka, is one of the ceremonies of a pilgrimage, &c.

[281] Qur’ān i. 5.

[282] Hātim Tāyī is the proverbial prince of Arabian generosity. Many anecdotes are current respecting him. His full name was Hātim, son of ‘Abdu-’llāh, son of Sa’d, of the tribe of Tayyi’. For instances of his generosity, as handed down by tradition from a time shortly prior to the promulgation of Islām, see Mr. Clouston’s “_Arabian Poetry for English Readers_,” p. 406; London, 1881; Trübner & Co., Ludgate Hill. But Hātim lived and died before the Caliphs ruled. He, too, was a poet.

[283] Qur’ān xx. 97, makes the wandering Jew, Sāmirī, who produced the golden calf, to shun every one, saying, “Touch me not!”

[284] Vicar of God is one of the Caliph’s titles. This “pretender” must have been some particular adversary of the poet’s. The satire is bitter.

[285] Bāyezīd of Bestām, in Persia, an early Gnostic saint; died A.D. 874 (A.H. 261).

[286] Yezīd, second Caliph of Damascus, persecutor of Husayn, son of the fourth Caliph ‘Ali.

[287] The original naturally mentions the “qibla” of Islām; not the “east,” as used in Christian churches.

[288] “My poverty’s my pride” is a saying traditionally attributed to Muhammed.

[289] Qur’ān iii. 12, mentions several things “made goodly to man.“

[290] Qur’ān vii. 189, relates the creation of a helpmate for Adam.

[291] Muhammed.

[292] For Humayrā, see a note in No. 8, dist. 69.

[293] Yet Europe still pretends to believe that Islām has denied the possession of a soul by woman!

[294] Qur’ān lxxix. 24. So Pharaoh is there said to have styled himself.

[295] Qur’ān ii. 3, &c.

[296] Not Easterns only have a superstition about treasures hid in ruins.

[297] Qur’ān xxii. 11.

[298] Man has a triple nature, vegetative, bestial, and human.

[299] Qur’ān xxxix. 54.

[300] Qur’ān vii. 142, &c.

[301] Qur’ān xxxiv. 42.

[302] Qur’ān vii. 75; xi. 65-70; xxvi. 142-158. Sālih was sent to the tribe of Thamūd, troglodytes who dwelt in the valleys about half-way between Medīna and the Gulf of Akaba.

[303] Qur’ān xci. 13.

[304] Qur’ān vii. 76, 89; xi. 70, 97; xxix. 36.

[305] Qur’ān vii. 91.

[306] Qur’ān lv. 20.

[307] Qur’ān vi. 2, 60.

[308] Qur’ān xxxviii. 34.

[309] Not textually from the Qur’ān.

[310] Not textually from the Qur’ān.

[311] Qur’ān xxiv. 30.

[312] Qur’ān ii. 23, &c.

[313] Rich Muslims everywhere break their fast in Ramazān with water from the well of Zemzem, in Mekka, if possible.

[314] A pearl is believed to be a special dewdrop, caught by a special oyster, and thence brought to perfection by a special providence. (See Sa’dī’s ode at the end of translator’s preface.)

[315] Qur’ān xciii. 1.

[316] Qur’ān xciii. 10.

[317] Qur’ān cxii. 3.

[318] The world.

[319] The belief is that Jesus was not crucified, but was caught up to the fourth heaven, that of the sun, where he will live until he comes again in glory.

[320] The belief is that Adam plucked an ear of corn, the forbidden fruit, in paradise.

[321] Abbās, Muhammed’s uncle, ancestor of the Abbāsī Caliphs.

[322] Qur’ān li. 9.

[323] Von Hammer, in his History of the Ottoman Empire, so entirely misunderstood this beautiful Arabian proverb, “_Es sabru miftāhu ’l faraj_,” as to read “_farj_” (pudendum), for “_faraj_” (success); and cloaked his blunder by the remark: “Too pungent for literal translation.”

[324] Qur’ān iii. 153.

[325] ‘Ali’s title is “The victorious Lion of God.”

[326] This journey is recounted in Qur’ān xviii. 64-81.

[327] Qur’ān xviii. 69.

[328] Qur’ān xviii. 70.

[329] Qur’ān xviii. 73.

[330] Qur’ān xlviii. 10.

[331] Qur’ān xviii. 16.

[332] Qur’ān iii. 153.

[333] Qur’ān xlviii. 6.

[334] Qur’ān xxviii. 88.

[335] Qur’ān lv. 29.

[336] Qur’ān vii. 132.

[337] See Tale iv., dist. 121.

[338] Qur’ān vii. 132. See note, p. 224.

[339] In Semitic and Muslim lore the moon is “he,” the sun “she.“

[340] Qur’ān xlviii. 29.

[341] Qur’ān vi. 94.

[342] Qur’ān li. 17.

[343] Qur’ān li. 18.

[344] Qur’ān iv. 99.

[345] Qur’ān xviii. 8-21.

[346] Qur’ān lxix. 19.

[347] Qur’ān lxix. 25.

[348] The Persian equivalent of our ”_carrying coals to Newcastle_.”

[349] A metallic mirror, formerly much used.

[350] Qur’ān vii. 11.

[351] I have failed to discover the name and history of the individual here used to point a moral by our great poet. Ibnu-Hishām and Nawawī do not mention him.—_Translator._

[352] Osmān.

[353] Qur’ān xxxvi. 7.

[354] Qur’ān xxxvi. 8.

[355] Qur’ān xcix. 1.

[356] In allusion to the Brahminical marks used in India.

[357] The heterodox sects of Islām are commonly said to be seventy-two.

[358] “_The Veiler_,” _i.e._, of sin, is one of “the most comely names” of God, but is not found in the Qur’ān. “_Yā Sattār!_”

[359] Some of the commentators hold that Qur’ān vii. 174, alludes to the opposition of Balaam to Moses and the Israelites.

[360] See Tale iv. dist. 121; and xi. 112.

[361] See Tale ix. 266.

[362] Qur’ān ii. 96.

[363] See Tale iv. dist. 121.

[364] Qur’ān i. 5.

[365] ’Ikrima, son of Abū-Jahl, embraced Islām at sea, as he fled from Mekka at its capture by Muhammed. He returned and was pardoned.

[366] Qur’ān xi. 44, 45.

[367] This is a canon of Islām. If a worshipper has no means of knowing the direction of “God’s House” at Mekka, he may face in any direction he judges most probable, and so perform his worship.

[368] The Prophet.

[369] Qur’ān vi. 32; xxix. 64; xxx. 6; xlvii. 38; lvii. 19.

[370] Qur’ān lxx. 4.

[371] Qur’ān x. 37.

[372] Qur’ān lxii. 5.

[373] See, in the author’s own preface, his eulogistic mention of Sheykh Husāmu-’d-Dīn, p. iii., where this saying is also given.

[374] By “Roman,” in the East, is meant what Europeans incorrectly name “Greek.” Since Alexander of Macedon’s time, no “Greeks” have existed. Their very memory is lost in Asia, and Alexander himself is styled there “_the Roman_.”

[375] Commonly, in Islām, eight paradises, or, properly, eight mansions of Paradise, are reported, mentioned, and believed. Baydhāvī, in Qur’ān ii. 23, gives only seven, and one of those is wrong. Guided by him, however, I have corrected this, and verified the others, besides finding the eighth. Their names, then, are as follows:--1. _Jennatu-’l-Khuld_, the Paradise (garden) of Eternal Duration; 2. _Jennatu ‘Aden_, the Garden of Eden; 3. _Jennatu-’l-Firdaws_, the Garden of Paradise; 4. _Jennatu-’l-Me’và_, the Garden of the Abode; 5. _Jennatu-’n-Na’īm_, the Paradise of the Pleasantness; 6. _Dāru-’s-Selām_, the Home of Security; 7. _Dāru-’l-Maqāma_, the House of Sojourn; 8. _’Illiyūn_, the Sublime Heights. Baydhāvī has _Dāru-’l-Khuld_ for _Jennatu-’l-Khuld_; but that is one of the names of Hell, as occurring in Qur’ān xli. 28. There is also a _Dāru-l-Qarār_, Home of Permanence, mentioned in Qur’ān xl. 42; but it applies to Hell and Heaven, as does the _Dāru-’l-Baqā_, Home of Duration, commonly used, but not found in the Qur’ān.

[376] Zeyd, son of Hāritha and father of Usāma, the freedman and adopted son of Muhammed, one of his most devoted disciples.

[377] For the eight paradises, see Tale xiv. dist. 74, p. 253.

[378] The seven hells are:--1. Jahannam; 2. Latzā; 3. Hutama; 4. Sa’īr; 5. Jahīm; 6. Hāwiya; 7. Saqar. All these names for Hell occur in the Qur’ān.

[379] This is predestination indeed. But does not our “vessels of wrath” come to about the same thing, at least in some opinions?

[380] Qur’ān iii. 102.

[381] “Turk and Hindū” is synonymous with “_fair and dark_.”

[382] “They of the left hand,” Qur’ān lix. 8; xc. 18.

[383] “The seven pits of hell” are named respectively: Jahannam, Latzā, Hutama, Sa’īr, Jahīm, Hāwiya, and Saqar, as above mentioned, p. 254, note 3.

[384] “Al-Kawthar,” Qur’ān cviii. 1, is variously explained, but probably means: _the great multitude_, scil., _of mankind_; not “a fountain.”

[385] Qur’ān ii. 24.

[386] Qur’ān ii. 231; and, indirectly, in many texts.

[387] Qur’ān xvi. 4; xl. 23.

[388] Qur’ān lxxvi. 17, 18.

[389] Michael is mentioned in Qur’ān ii. 92; Gabriel is also there mentioned, and in two other places; but no other angels by name.

[390] Solomon was robbed of his seal by a genie, and temporarily deprived of his kingdom.

[391] Qur’ān xxxi. 12. _Lokman_, the commonly received orthography, is doubly erroneous; the first vowel of the name is _u_, the Italian _u_, the French _ou_, the _oo_ of our words _foot_, _good_, _wood_; not of _coot_, _moot_, _root_. Our _q_ is, historically, the only true representative of the Phoenician letter that equally gave rise to the Hebrew ק, to the old Greek Q, to the Latin Q, and to the Arabic ق; as may be seen by comparing the letters in the last element of the Arabian numeral alphabet, قرشت, with the Hebrew _Koph_, _Resh_, _Schin_, _Tau_; with the Greek Q = 90, Ρ = 100, Σ = 200, Τ = 300; and with the Latin Q, R, S, T. The proof is still more conclusive by comparing, in order, the whole alphabets, as to positions, names, shapes, values in sound, and numeral values.

[392] Solomon, when deprived of his kingdom, became a fisherman.

[393] Qur’ān ii. 2. Our: “_Credo, quia impossibile._”

[394] Qur’ān lxvii. 3.

[395] Muhammed is reported to have said: “The prince of a people is their servant.” This may be compared with Matt. xx. 26 and 27.

[396] Qur’ān iii. 16.

[397] Qur’ān ii. 256.

[398] Qur’ān xxxv. 4.

[399] Qur’ān xxi. 108.

[400] Qur’ān xx. 4.

[401] Qur’ān xxxvi. 53.

[402] Qur’ān xi. 59.

[403] Qur’ān xxxiv. 12.

[404] See the Translator’s “Turkish Poetry” (p. 32 or 45), 1879; published by Trübner & Co., Ludgate Hill, London, E.C.

[405] Qur’ān ix. 32; lxi. 8. The expression “polytheist,” generally used by translators to render the meaning of the Arabic “_mushrik_,” is not correct; to attribute one “partner” to God is as much “_shirk_” as to attribute many. See note in p. 36, Tale iii.

[406] Qur’ān xxi. 68, 69, alludes to this.

[407] Qur’ān ii. 22; lxvi. 6.

[408] Qur’ān ii. 58.

[409] Qur’ān ix. 130, &c.

[410] Qur’ān lxv. 2.

[411] ‘Aliyyu-’l-Murtadzā--“_in whom_ (God) _is well pleased_”--is the chiefest of the titles of ‘Alī, Prince of Princes, Captain-General of Saints.

[412] Muhammed is reported to have declared: “I am the City of Science, and ‘Alī is the Portal thereof;” alluding to the heavenly secrets he had intrusted to the latter, for communication to the worthy. See Anecdotes, chap, iii., No. 79.

[413] Qur’ān cxii. 4.

[414] “Commander of the Faithful;” but “Commander of _the Believers_” would be more correct.

[415] Qur’ān viii. 17.

[416] ‘Umer swore he would kill Muhammed, and went to execute his design. Arrived at the house of his own sister, who was already a secret Muslim, he heard chanted the twentieth chapter of the Qur’ān, and was immediately converted. He then went to Muhammed, and publicly professed the faith.

[417] The shooting stars.

[418] Shanfarà says: “The most excellent is he who confers a favour.”

[419] Qur’ān ii. 100.

[420] Idem.

[421] Qur’ān iii. 163, 164.

[422] Qur’ān ii. 175.

[423] Qur’ān iii. 6.

[424] Qur’ān xxv. 66.

[425] Qur’ān ii. 191.

[426] Qur’ān ii. 149.

[427] Qur’ān ii. 151.

[428] All Muslim poets speak of wounds as “flowers.”

[429] Qur’ān liii. 17. There is a pun here. The Arabic for “swerved” and the Persian for “a crow,” are identical in orthography,—_zāg_. Muhammed has been called by other Persian poets: “The nightingale of the garden of _mà zāg_;” which really means “swerved not,” but may be rendered: “we, the crows.”

[430] The “Limner” is, here, God, of course. He was intoxicated with love, not wine.

[431] Qur’ān ii. 88.

[432] These were the Christian Arabs of Nejrān. They sent an embassy to Muhammed at Medina. He proposed to them a trial by invocation of God’s curse on the liars, their wives, and children. He uttered it; they shrank, and accepted submission to him, on condition of paying tribute.

[433] The “_canda draconis_” was the “descending node,” one of the ecliptical points. The “forbidden fruit,” in Islām, is held to have been _wheat_.