The plant thou waterest now with tender care, Then the Brahman having opened the lid of the casket of secret knowledge, filled the shell of the king's ear with the jewels of wisdom, and putting aside his own avocations for some days, employed himself in instructing the monarch, and in the midst of their converse, mention was made of the testament of Húshang. The king recounted to the sage, the precepts, one by one; and the Bráhman addressed the great monarch on the subject: and Dábishlím indited his words, with the pen of understanding, on the tablet of memory; and the book 'Kalilah and Damnah,' is composed of the questions and answers of the King and Bráhman; and we have arranged it in fourteen chapters, after the manner set forth in the catalogue of the book, and, ‘Aid is from God from whom help is supplicated; He is sufficient for us, and in Him is our trust.' The great king Dábishlím said to the Bráhman Pílpáí, 'The purport of the first precept was, that when one is exalted by being honored with the confidence of kings, he will assuredly be envied by his peers, and those who envy him, endeavouring to destroy the pedestal of his honor, will, by deceitful words, work a change in the king's disposition towards him. Wherefore it behoves a king to ponder well on the speech of interested persons; and, on discovering that it is not devoid of an admixture of falsehood and corruption, not to conduct it to the confines of acceptance. DISTICHS. Admit not interested men, for they With honey too the poisoned sting convey. Thy honey-bringing friend, to outward eye- And I make my request to the Bráhman, that he may be pleased to relate a story suitable to this case, and may detail the history of some one who was the intimate counsellor of a king, and the basis of whose dignity was injured by the interested words of an envious person, and with whom friendship terminated in enmity, and concord in contention.' The Brahman said, 'The centre of the basis of dominion, rests on this precept, and if a king does not deter interested persons from mischief and injurious acts, they will bring the majority of the nobles, to misery and disgrace; and hence complete disorder will find its way into the empire, and spread even to the prince; and when a mischief-maker has found the means of coming between two 1 There is an equivoque intended in the use of the word, which cannot be preserved in English. bihi is a 'guava,' a fruit of an exquisite flavour; and bahiy means 'beautiful,' 'excellent.' friends, the conclusion of their affairs will assuredly draw towards a terrible and disastrous catastrophe, as befell between the Lion and the Ox.' The king asked, 'How was that?' STORY I. The Brahman said, "They have related, that there was a trader who had compassed land and sea, and traversed the regions of east and west, and experienced the chills and heats of fortune, and tested the sweets and bitters of many1 days. COUPLET. Prudent and faithful and expert was he, By much experience taught sagacity. When the van of Death's array-for so the infirmity of age is termed-began to make inroads into the realm of his constitution, and the advanced guard of fate, by which white hairs are implied, took possession of the outworks of the fortress of his existence, VERSE. When the changing watch of age, strikes the drum of deep distress,2 The merchant knew that every moment they were about to beat the drum of departure, and would demand back the stock of life which they had deposited în the tabernacle of the body. He assembled his sons, three youths, intelligent and learned, but who, from the pride of riches, and the inpetuosity of youth, had overstepped the path of moderation, and extended the hand of expenditure to the property of their father; and having averted their faces from business and professional employment, passed their precious time in vanity and sloth. Their kind father, from excess of that affection and tenderness which fits the character of the paternal relation, began to admonish them, and opened to them the gates of disinterested advice, which comprehended all the topics of fear and hope: and said, 'O youths! if ye understand not the value of the property, in the acquisition of which ye have suffered no toil, ye are excusable in the judgment of men of wisdom, but ye ought to know that wealth may be made the source of happiness in this world and in that which is to come, and whatever men seek of every degree in the two worlds may be secured by means of wealth, and all people seek for one of three conditions. The first is abundance of worldly goods and an 1 Bisyár may very well be taken with chashidah. I have made it depend on ayyám, because that construction is not so common, and because, taken by itself, chashidah corresponds better to paimúdah and tayy kardah, which are used simply, without an adverb. 2 Keene makes hús-i dard the nominative to zanad, which it may very well be. Old age is compared to a watch which is relieving guard and beats a drum, or, as Keene takes it, the drum of pain beats the signal for old age to relieve guard. ample supply of effects and chattels, and this is desired by the class whose mind is limited to drinking and dress, and labouring for the fulfilment of sensual gratifications. The second condition is exalted rank and elevation in dignity, and the class whose object this is, is that of the nobility and men of office; and it is impossible to attain these two conditions save by wealth. The third condition is the obtaining the reward of a future state, and the arriving at the grades of religious excellence; and the class who look to this object are the people of salvation and pious eminence; and the acquisition of this dignity may be through lawful wealth, [according to the saying,] 'Good is pure wealth to the man that is pure,'1 and the Great Doctor of Mysticism has said in his Poem.2 COUPLET. If for the Faith thou bear'st thy wealth, 'It then,' The Prophet says, 'is pure to righteous men.' Wherefore it is plain that by the blessing of wealth, most objects of pursuit are attained, and to get wealth without a profession, and the due quest of it, appears impossible, and if a person, as is rarely the case, obtains it without toil, inasmuch as he has not undergone labour in acquiring it, he will assuredly, through not knowing its worth and value, quickly pass it from his hands. Therefore, having averted your faces from sloth, incline towards the acquisition of money, and employ yourselves in the same profession of traffic in which ye have for many years seen me engaged.' The eldest son said, 'O Father! thou enjoinest us to acquire money, and this is repugnant to dependence on God, and I feel assured that whatever is predestined to me by fate will accrue to me although I employ no labour or exertion for it, and as to that which is not my destiny, however much I may exert myself in pursuit of it, it will be all in vain. VERSE. Whate'er my fate, will surely be my lot. And that unfated will, as sure, be not. Why then for that which I can ne'er obtain, Use fruitless efforts and exertions vain. And I have heard that a sage has said, 'That which was my destiny, though I have fled from it, has adhered to me; and that which was not fated for me, however much I have stuck to it, has fled from me.' Wherefore,. whether we undertake a profession or not, it is all the same. HEMISTICH. Eternal fate can ne'er be overthrown. 1 I have not found this in the Hadís, but there is something like it in the Mishkátu-'lMasábíḥ, vol. 2, p. 2, 1. 3. He This couplet is from the Masnavi, or poem of Jalálu'ddin Muhammadu-'l-Balkhi, or 1-Konoví, more commonly called Maulavi Rúmi, who composed about A. H. 600. founded a celebrated sect of darveshes at Cogni in Natolia, and his work is regarded by them as of equal authority with the Kur'an. Once upon a time an important and necessary affair arose which called the lion away to a distant jungle; and at that time the heat of the oven of the sky, was unmitigated,' and the expanse of waste and mountain, like a furnace of glass, fiercely inflamed. From the excessive heat of the air, the brain of animals was boiled in their cranium, and the crabs in the water were fried like fish in the frying-pan. VERSE. Had sudden clouds collected then-so burned It melted e'en the heart of the hard stone. The lion reflected, 'At such a time, when the shell at the bottom of the deep, like a fowl on a spit, is roasting; and the ocean, from fear of the sun's heat, steps not in the midst of the fire to the shore, an affair of this importance has occurred. Who may there be among my attendants, who would not be affected by the labour? and who, undeterred by the heat of the atmosphere, would approach this undertaking?' In the midst of this reflection, the Tiger came in with the line of attendants, and observed that the king was thoughtful. On the ground of his abundant affection and complete tact, he advanced near the throne of royalty, and was emboldened to ask the causes of that thoughtfulness, and having learned how the case stood, he took upon himself to accomplish the matter, and having been honored with permission, he set off with a body of attendants, and arriving at that place at noon, he betook himself to the accomplishment of the affair, and the instant that the business was settled to his satisfaction, he changed his reins to return. The officers and counsellors, who had been appointed to attend upon him, unanimously represented as follows: 'In such heat as this, all this distance has been traversed by the steps of completion, and now that the affair has been settled and that there is not the slightest cause for uneasiness; and the confidence placed in you by his high majesty, has been demonstrated to the extent that it has, it will certainly not be removed from advisability, if you should repose a short time under the shade of a tree, and allay the fiery tongue of thirst by drinking cool water.' COUPLET. Rest! and the load of toil support no more; The Tiger smiled and said, 'My intimacy and rank with his majesty the In the margin of one MS. asir is explained by khális, 'pure,' 'unadulterated.' 2 Az miyán here seems to be used for dar miyán. 3 Lit. Ungird thyself.' king, is a banner that I have by toil and effort set up. It would not be well to level it with the ground by indulgence and sloth. Without supporting trouble it is impossible to arrive at the carrying off treasure, and unaccompanied by the heart-afflicting thorn, we cannot reap the enjoyment of surveying the rose-garden. STANZA. He may embrace his wishes' neck, who will, Shield-like, confront the darts of coming ill; 'Tis won by efforts stern, and tearful eyes.' The informers furnished intelligence of this to the lion, and recited the book of this affair, from the preface to the conclusion. The lion nodded the head of approval, and said, 'Such a person is fit for sway and chieftainship, who can raise up his head from the collar of toil; 2 and the people may be at peace in the just reign of that ruler who does not place his head on the pillow of repose.' VERSE. That monarch's reign will peace and rest ensure, Who can himself the loss of rest endure. Happy the sovereign who submits his mind To hardships, that his subjects rest may find. He then sent for the Tiger, and having distinguished him with special honors, committed that jungle to him, and having bestowed on him the place of his sire, conferred on him, in addition, the dignity of being his heir. And the use of this apologue is, that thou mayest learn that to no one does the sun of his wish rise from the eastern quarter of hope, without the diligent use of great exertion; nor, without complete and searching labour, does the preamble of hope yield the issue of the acquirement of the desired object. COUPLET. Who bears not toil, will ne'er the treasure gain; His is the guerdon, brother! whose the pain. And since in this journey the object is the quest of knowledge, I have formed a firm resolution, and have placed the foot of endeavour in the stirrup of intention. From the mere thought of the labour which may accrue in going3 and returning, the page of my purpose shall not receive the inscription of abrogation, and the cavalier of lofty spirit, will not turn back from this path, This is a matter that is absolutely determined." 1 The printed edition by a typographical error omits tá before khátimah. ? This sentence and the following one appear to me rather obscure: I suppose sar az giribán-i mushakkat bar dwardan means To put on toil like a garment, drawing the head through the collar.' The employment of sar-afrází by itself, for an exalted person' is very unusual. 3 Zahab wa iyáb, two not very common words, explained in the margin of one MS. by kushish and báz gashtan. Kur'an, Fl. ch. iii. 187; Mar. iii. 183; Sale, p. 53, 1. 14: "Ye shall be proved in your possessions and in your persons; and ye shall hear from those unto whom the Scripture was delivered before you, and from the idolaters, much hurt; but if ye be patient and fear God, this is a matter that is absolutely determined.' |