Javami' al-ḥikāyāt va lavami' al-rivāyāt - The Jawamiul-Hikayat wa Lawamiur-Riwayat

The Funds of this Memorial are derived from the Interest accruing from a Sum of money given by the late MRS. GIBB of Glasgow, to perpetuate the Memory of her beloved son

and to promote those researches into the History, Literature, Philosophy and Religion of the Turks, Persians and Arabs, to which, from his Youth upwards, until his premature and deeply lamented Death in his forty-fifth year, on December 5, 1901, his life was devoted.

I gladly comply with the request of my friend and sometime pupil, Dr. Muḥammad Niẓámu’d-Dín, now Professor of Persian in the Osmania University, Hyderabad, that I should write a few lines of introduction to the present work, with which, as Trustee-in-charge, I have had exceptional opportunities of making myself acquainted. Yet the pleasure I feel in performing this task is shadowed with regret. I cannot but recall that the work was initiated, directed, and supervised by one who is no longer with us, and that the resolution to publish it was adopted on his recommendation at a meeting of the Trustees held on November 1^st, 1924, the last over which he was destined to preside.

While Professor Browne was by no means blind to ‘Awfí’s demerits, he appreciated the value and importance both of the Lubábu’l-Albáb, which his own edition has rendered accessible to students, and the Jawámi‘u’l-Ḥikáyát. Had he been spared to write a Foreword to this volume, he might have enriched it with many observations drawn from his incomparable knowledge of Persian literary history. For me it is easier to call attention, as I am sure he also would have done, to the principal results achieved by the author’s learning, industry, and enthusiasm.

First, the anecdotes comprised in a hundred chapters and exceeding two thousand in number have been classified, catalogued, and either provided with descriptive titles or summarised, so that with little trouble readers can obtain a systematic view of every part of the immense and hitherto uncharted Persian “Ocean of Story”.

Second, the sources whence ‘Awfí derived the materials for his work have been thoroughly explored and, so far as possible, established. This chapter (pp. 33—103), and indeed the whole of Dr. Niẓámu’d-Dín’s book, displays a critical ability and range of erudition not unworthy of the eminent scholar whom he has taken as his model, Mírzá Muḥammad of Qazwín. ‘Awfí must have had at his command a very large miscellaneous library, including many precious works now lost, and fortunately for us he followed “the good old rule” of appropriating whatever suited his purpose. Judged by the standard of his day, he seems to have been passably honest: here and there he acknowledges a debt, and if he is apt to abridge and popularise his authorities, he does not wilfully garble them.

Third, much new light has been thrown upon the details of ‘Awfí’s life and literary career. From the evidence adduced it appears certain that ‘Awfí’s Persian translation of Tanúkhí’s Faraj ba‘da ’sh-Shidda preceded that of Ḥusayn ibn As‘ad ad-Dihistání, which Ethé supposed to have been the earlier.

Fourth, by personal examination and comparison of more than twenty MSS. and especially of seven belonging to the 14^th century the way has been paved for a complete edition of the Jawámi‘u’l-Ḥikáyát. Apart from the interest of its contents, the text is a monument of classical Persian prose. Great as are the difficulties of publishing it there is reason to hope that they will be overcome.

Subsequent writers made free use of the almost inexhaustible fund of information preserved in the Jawámi‘. As the numerous examples given by Dr. Niẓámu’d-Dín are all, I think, cited from historians or collectors of anecdotes who wrote in prose, I should like to add that probably some of the oldest traces of ‘Awfí’s influence are to be found in the Mathnawí of Jalálu’d-Dín Rúmí. Of course it does not follow that whenever both relate the same story the latter has borrowed it from the former, but several instances suggest that Jalálu’d-Dín may have dipped into the Jawámi‘ with profit to himself and his readers. Anecdote 1192 in ‘Awfí, the original version of the Story of the Arab and his Wife (Mathnawí, Bk I, v. 2244 sqq.), shows how masterfully the genius of the poet could deal with any material presented to it. The wife, who plays such a conspicuous part in the tale, is not mentioned by ‘Awfí; she has been created for the sake of the allegory, in which she typifies the flesh at war with the spirit. I must not dwell on this subject and will only remark that Jalálu’d-Dín’s methods of adaptation are further illustrated by Anecdote 1180 in the Jawámi‘, corresponding to the Story of the Gardener and the Three Friends (Mathnawí, Bk II, v. 2167 sqq.).

Perhaps what has been said is enough to indicate the quality and extent of the author’s researches and the value of his work to students of the history and literature of Islam.

For years the literature of Persia has attracted the attention of European scholars in particular, so much so that a large body of critiques and studies has been produced. But it is worthy of notice that it is more the poetry of Persia than prose that has been the subject of research and appreciation. No doubt scholars like Schefer, Lees, Elliot, Browne, Áqá Mírzá Muḥammad Khán, Professors Barthold and Nicholson and others have brought to light many a forgotten standard work and have also edited them; but the quantity of prose that has come within their purview is insignificant as compared with the poetic literature that has been the subject of Oriental scholarship. Not that the Orientalists have any particular intellectual or aesthetic distaste for prose or that material is not ready to hand. In spite of the great scourge of 1265 A. D. which afflicted Persia and its intellectual and literary life and resulted in the destruction of countless invaluable works, there still exists a considerable amount of prose literature that can be profitably utilised by modern scholarship. Indeed it is gratifying to note that an increasing and deserved attention is now being given to it.

One of the monumental works that have survived the Mongol Invasion is that great Collection of Anecdotes, the Jawámi‘u’l-Ḥikáyát wa Lawámi‘u’r-Riwáyát of Sadídu’d-Dín Muḥammad-‘Awfí, to which the following pages serve as an analytical Introduction. The great importance of this work is indicated in Chapter II; may this Introduction to it prove, in even so small a measure, a source of help and assistance to all those who may be engaged in research in the different branches of Islamic history, literature, and science.

I wish I could have published the whole or a part of the original text of ‘Awfí along with this Introduction, but it appears that a few more years will have to elapse before I can finally edit it and see it through the press.

Before concluding, it is my chief duty to acknowledge all my obligations. I have dedicated this work to two persons, one, my late revered father Muḥammad Ghiyáthu’d-Dín, who inspired in me from my childhood a love for literature, the other, the late Professor Browne, who at the close of his memorable life, during the four years I worked under him at Cambridge, generously afforded me incalculable guidance in the pursuit of knowledge. As they are no longer living in body, may my humble effort win their spiritual approbation and blessing. These are not my only benefactors. H. E. H. the Niẓám’s government awarded me a special European Scholarship allowance which enabled me to carry on my researches in various Eastern and Western countries. To my Alma Mater, Cambridge, I owe my doctorate. The Trustees of the Gibb Memorial Fund have shown admirable generosity in publishing my Thesis in their Series. Prof. Nicholson, whom once the late Prof. Browne called the “godfather” to my work, stands foremost among those who have helped me in my studies. From the stage of manuscript to the correction of the last proofs, Dr. Nicholson has bestowed on the work such considerable pains and personal interest that words fail me to give adequate expression to my sense of gratitude towards him. There is another benefactor, Áqá Mírzá Muḥammad Khán of Qazwín, whose name I mention with deep reverence. It was he who when I met him in Paris broadened my vision of historical criticism and widened the horizon of the present work. To Sir Denison Ross, Professors Margoliouth, Barthold, Marquart, Kratchkovski, Thomas, Massignon, Messrs Edwards, Ellis, Storey, Blochet, Krenkow, Wharton, and Prof. Iqbál of Lahore I am indebted in various ways. I cannot end without expressing my sense of obligation to all those authors whose works I have consulted and the various librarians through whom Mss. and works of reference were made available to me. Nor can I forget two of my pupils, ‘Abdu’l-Jalíl and Bindú Madhua, who have so dutifully helped me in the preparation and correction of the proofs of the Index.

I regret that in spite of the efforts of several careful proof-readers, a number of mistakes have crept into the book, so that I have found it necessary to add a list of corrigenda. I hope and trust that any mistakes which may have escaped my notice will be kindly overlooked by indulgent readers.

Add. = Additional (Mark of the Mss. in the British Museum).

Aghání = Kitáb Agháni’l-Kabír of Abu’l-Faraj-Iṣbahání, Búláq, 1868.

Ansáb = Kitábu’l-Ansáb of ‘Abdu’l-Karím b. Muḥammad -Sam‘ání, (Facsimile, Gibb Memorial Series), Leyden, 1912.

Ar. = Arabic.

Asia. Muz. = Asiatsky Muzei, Petrograd.

A. T. A. = ‘Aṭṭár, (Farídu’d-Dín), Tadhkiratu’l-Awliyá’, ed. R. A. Nicholson, (Persian Historical Text Series), Leyden, 1905, 1907.

B. A. B. or Áthár = -Bírúní, Abú Rayḥán, Átháru’l-Báqiya ‘an-Qurúni’l-Kháliya, Arabic text ed. E. Sachau, Leipzig, 1876—78.

Bib. Geog. Arab. = Bibliotheca Geographorum Arabicorum, ed. M. J. de Goeje, Lugduni Batavorum.

Bib. Indica = Bibliotheca Indica Series, Asiatic Society of Bengal, Calcutta.

Bib. Nat. = Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris.

Bodl. Lib. = Bodleian Library, Oxford.

Br. Mus. = British Museum, London.

Brock. = Carl Brockelmann.

Brock. Gesch. Ar. Litt. = C. Brockelmann, Geschichte der Arabischen Litteratur, Weimar and Berlin, 1898—1902.

B. T. F. = Briggs’s edition of Ta’ríkh-i-Firishta of Muḥammad Qásim b. Hindúsháh Astarábádí, Bombay, 1831.

B. T. G. = E. G. Browne’s abridged translation of Ta’ríkh-i-Guzída, Gibb Series, Leyden, 1913.

B. T. H. or Indica = -Bírúní, Abú Rayḥán, Kitábu’l-Hind or Kitáb fí Taḥqíqi-má li’l-Hind etc. Arabic text, ed. E. Sachau, London, Göttingen, 1887.

B. T. M. = Bayhaqí, Abu’l-Fadhl, Ta’ríkh-i-Mas‘úd, ed. W. N. Lees (Bibliotheca Indica Series) Calcutta, 1862.

Cat. = Catalogue.

Cat. Pers. Mss. Br. Mus. = Catalogue of the Persian Manuscripts in the British Museum, by Charles Rieu, London, 1879—83.

D. H. H. = -Damírí, Ḥayátu’l-Ḥayawánu’l-Kubrá (Arabic Text, Búláq).

D. N. D. = Dimashqí, Shamsu’d-Dín Abú ‘Abdi’llah Muḥammad b. Abí Ṭálib, Nukhbatu’d-Dahr fí ‘Ajá’ibi’l-Barri wa’l-Baḥr, ed. A. F. M. Mehren, 1866.

D. T. S. = Dawlatsháh, Tadhkiratu’sh-Shu‘ará, ed. E. G. Browne, (Persian Historical Text Series).

Eclipse = Eclipse of the Abbasid Caliphate (Supplement to the Tajáribu’l-Umam of Miskawayh, Arabic text, ed. D. S. Margoliouth).

Ency. Brit. = Encyclopaedia Britannica, XI Edition.

Ency. Islam = Encyclopaedia of Islam.

Fihrist = Kitábu’l-Fihrist of Ibnu’n-Nadím (Muḥammad b. Isḥáq b. Abí Ya‘qúb -Warráq, -Baghdádí), ed. G. L. Flügel.

Gh. or Ghurar = Histoire des Rois de Perse, or Ghuraru Akhbári Mulúki’l-Fursi wa Siyari-him of Abú Manṣúr ‘Abdu’l-Malik Ath-Tha‘álibí, ed. H. Zotenberg, Arabic Text, Paris, 1900.

G. I. P. = Grundriss der Iranischen Philologie, ed. Geiger and Kuhn.

H. Khal. = Ḥájjí Khalfa, Kátib Chalapí, Kashfu’ẓ-Ẓunún, ed. G. L. Flügel.

H. N. Q. = Ḥamdu’llah Mustawfí, Nuzhatu’l-Qulúb, Persian text, ed. Guy Le Strange (Gibb Series).

H. S. R. = Ibn Hishám, Síratu Rasúli’llah, ed. F. Wüstenfeld.

H. T. Q. = Ḥamdu’llah Mustawfí, Ta’ríkh-i-Guzída, (Facs. Gibb Series).

H. T. S. = Ḥamza b. Ḥasan -Iṣfaháni, Ta’rikh-i-Siní Muluki’l-Ardh wa’l-Anbiyá’ (Káviání Press, Berlin, 1340 A. H.).

Ibn Khal. = Ibn Khallikán, Wafayátu’l-A‘yán, ed. F. Wüstenfeld.

Imp. Publ. Bib. = Imperatorskaya Publichnaya Biblioteka, Petrograd, now Leningrad.

Imp. Sank. Uni. = Imperatorsky Sanktpeterburgsky Universitet Library, Petrograd, now Leningrad.

Ind. Off. = India Office Library, London.

J A S B. = Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.

Jawámi‘ = Jawámi‘u’l-Ḥikáyát wa Lawámi‘u’r-Riwáyát of -‘Awfí. (For Mss. used, see the list on p. 111).

J. K. H. = Jáḥiẓ, Kitábu’l-Ḥayawán, Cairo, 1325 A. H.

J. N. U. = Jámí, Nafaḥátu’l-Uns (Lees’s Persian Series).

J R A S. = Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.

Kámil = -Kámil fi’t-Ta’ríkh of Ibnu’l-Athír, ed. C. J. Tornberg, 1867—71.

Kh. H. S. = Khwándamír, Ḥabíbu’s-Siyar, Bombay, litho. 1857.

L. E. C. = Lands of the Eastern Caliphate, Guy Le Strange (Cambridge University Press).

Lit. His. Persia = Literary History of Persia, by E. G. Browne.

Lubáb = Lubábu’l-Albáb of -‘Awfí, ed. Browne, vols. I—II (Persian Historical Text Series).

M. A. T. or Asrár = Muḥammad b. -Munawwar, Asráru’l-Tawḥíd fí Maqámát-i-Shaykh Abí Sa‘íd, ed. Zhukovski.

M. K. B. = Maqdisí, Muṭahhar b. Ṭáhir, Kitábu’l-Bad’i wa’l-Ta’ríkh or Le Livre de la Création et de l’Histoire, ed. Cl. Huart, Arabic Text, 4 vols, Paris 1899—1907.

M. M. Dh. = Mas‘údí (‘Alí b. Ḥusayn), Murúju’dh-Dhahab or Les Prairies d’Or, Arabic Text, ed. Barbier de Meynard, Paris.

M. R. S. = Mírkhwánd, Rawdhatu’ṣ-Ṣafá, Lucknow Litho., 1874.

M. T. I. = Mas‘údí (‘Alí b. Ḥusayn), Kitábu’l-Tanbíh-wa’l-Ishráf, ed. M. J. de Goeje, Bib. Geog. Arab., vol. VIII.

M. T. N. = Minháju’d-Dín (‘Uthmán b. Siráju’d-Dín-Júzjání), Ṭabaqát-i-Náṣirí, ed. W. N. Lees, Bib. Indica Series.

Nishwár = Nishwáru’-Muḥádhara, Arabic Text, ed. by Margoliouth.

N. S. N. = Niẓámu’l-Mulk, Siyásat-náma, Persian Text, ed. C. Schefer, Paris.

Or. = Oriental (Mark of the Mss. in the British Museum).

Pers. = Persian.

Pet. = Petrograd.

Q. A. B. = Qazwíní (Zakariyyá), Átháru’l-Bilád, ed. F. Wüstenfeld, Göttingen, 1848.

Q. A. M. = Qazwíní (Zakariyyá), ‘Ajá’ibu’l-Makhlúqát, Arabic Text, ed. F. Wüstenfeld, Göttingen 1847.

Q. K. M. = Ibn Qutayba, Kitábu’l-Ma‘árif, Arabic Text, ed. F. Wüstenfeld, Litho., Göttingen, 1850.

Q. T. H. = Ibnu’l-Qifṭí (Jamálu’d-Dín), Ta’ríkhu’l-Ḥukamá’, ed. J. Lippert, Leipzig, 1903.

Q. U. A. = Ibn Qutayba, ‘Uyúnu’l-Akhbár, ed. C. Brockelmann.

R. Q. = Risálatu’l-Qushayriyya of ‘Abdu’l-Karím b. Hawázin -Qushayrí, Búláq, 1287 A. H.

S. J. M. = Sírat Jalálu’d-Dín Mankubirní, Arabic Text, ed. O. Houdas, Paris, 1891.

S. K. M. = Sijistání (Abú Ḥátim), Kitábu’l-Mu‘ammarín, ed. Ign. Goldziher, Leyden, 1899.

S. S. N. = Supplément Siasset Naméh (Texte Persan) by C. Schefer, Paris, 1897.

Suppl. = Supplement.

Ṭab. or Ṭabarí = Ta’ríkhu ’r-Rusuli-wa’l-Mulúk of Muḥammad b. Jarír -Ṭabarí, ed. de Goeje, Leyden.

Ṭabarí-Uebersetzung = Geschichte der Perser und Araber zur Zeit der Sasaniden. Aus der arabischen Chronik des Ṭabarí übersetzt, von Th. Nöldeke, Leyden 1879.

T. F. S. or Faraj = Tanúkhí, Muḥassin, Faraj ba‘da’sh-Shidda, Arabic Text, Cairo 1903, 1904.

T. J. J. = Taríkh-i-Jahán-gushá-i-Juwayní, ed. Mírzá Muḥammad Qazwíní, Gibb Seríes, 1912, 1916.

T. S. N. = Translation of Siasset Naméh in French by C. Schefer, Paris, 1893.

Turkistán = Turkistán at the time of the Mongol Invasion, Russian edition, W. Barthold.

U. Q. N. = ‘Unṣuru’l-Ma‘álí, Qábús-náma, Ṭihrán Litho., 1285 A. H.

U. T. A. = Ibn Abí Uṣaybi‘a, Ṭabaqátu’l-Aṭibbá’, Cairo and Königsberg, 1884.

Wüst = H. F. Wüstenfeld.

Wüst. Gesch. = Die Geschichtschreiber der Araber und ihre Werke, by Wüstenfeld.

Y. I. A. = Yáqút, Irshádu’l-Aríb ilá Ma‘rifati’l-Adíb, ed. Margoliouth, Gibb Series.

Y. M. B. Yáqút, Mu‘jamu’l-Buldán, ed. Wüstenfeld.

Z. D. M. G. = Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft.

Z. V. O. = Zapiski Vostochnavo Otdyeleniya Imperatorskevo Russkavo Arkheologischeskavo Obshchestva.

Through Fresh contribution towards the life of the author. the publication of the first part of the Lubábu’l-Albáb⁾ of our author, many incidents of his life have been revealed in the masterly introduction of Mírzá Muḥammad Khán of Qazwín, and in fact his research is an advance upon that of Nathaniel Bland⁾, Charles Rieu⁾, Prof. E. G. Browne⁾ and Th. W. Juynboll⁾; the present notice is a continuation of the above, and is chiefly based on a closer study of the three works of our author, viz., the above-mentioned Lubáb, the Persian Translation⁾ of at-Tanúkhí’s al-Faraj ba‘da’sh-Shidda, by our author, and the Jawámi‘u’l-Ḥikáyát⁾, the present work, which we mean to discuss in this Introduction.

In Investigation of three problems. this estimate of the life and works of al-‘Awfí, only those points are discussed which were doubtful, and required a thorough investigation, e. g. his real title, the actual period of his life, and his literary career. For the first point documentary evidence is recorded and examined, for the second, an attempt is made to adduce circumstantial evidence, in order to determine the distinct phases into which his life falls, and for the third, a critical estimate of his individual works is affixed.

Until Discussion on his Laqab, as Sadídu’d-Dín, not Núru’d-Dín nor Jamálu’d-Dín. now, the laqab of the author Muḥammad al-‘Awfí has been known as Núru’d-Dín, which is founded on a wrong basis. Surely al-‘Awfí was known to his contemporaries as Sadídu’d-Dín, and how it was converted into Núru’d-Dín, one cannot say; probably the earliest authority for this innovation is that of Ḥamdu’llah Mustawfí al-Qazwíní, but we possess ample proofs to the contrary, and even contemporary documentary evidences regarding his correct laqab as Sadídu’d-Dín.

The The endorsement of a contemporary. latter statement is based, firstly, on an extract from a subscription to al-‘Awfí’s Persian Translation of al-Faraj ba‘da’sh-Shidda⁾, which runs as follows: — [Ind. Off. 1432] = Ethé’s Cat. No. 737 f456b-f457a.

⁾

This endorsement of a contemporary establishes beyond doubt, the title by which al-‘Awfí was known in his own times; actually his title was Sadídu’d-Dín and not Núru’d-Dín as the later authorities are inclined to believe. There has been a great confusion about it from the earliest down to modern times; Ḥamdu’llah Mustawfí al-Qazwíní being the first author to give an account of him, a very short one, in his Ta’ríkh-i-Guzída (see facs., p. 811). This history was composed in 730 A. H. = 1330 A. D., that is to say a century after the death of al-‘Awfí, and in it he mentions his title as Núru’d-Dín, in which he has been followed by all the later writers, except H. Khalfa (Vol. II, p. 510 No. 3899) whose knowledge of al-‘Awfí’s works is very inaccurate, and who mentions his title as Jamálu’d-Dín. This error has multiplied, as we find Flügel (Vienna Cat. [Persisch 422] Vol. I, p. 410) and a host of other Orientalists incorrectly describing the authorship and dedication of the Jawámi‘.

There Recognition of it by the author himself. is no mention in the text of the Lubáb or in the oldest and most reliable Mss. of the Jawámi‘, of his title as Núru’d-Dín, except in F.⁾ on f135b, which is an abridged and supplemented codex. On the other hand, the title of al-‘Awfí as Sadídu’d-Dín is confirmed by another authentic record concerning al-‘Awfí, i.e., a line preserved in the Lubáb (I, p. 158-9) which occurs in a communication addressed by a friend of al-‘Awfí, called Muhadhdhabu’d-Dín Manṣúr b. ‘Alí al-Asfuzárí⁾ (or Asfizárí), and is acknowledged by the author:

The words Sadíd and ‘Awfí, which occur in the last hemistich with the definite article, are not merely ornamental, but they form a part of the author’s full name; thus the shortened laqab and nisba are very aptly combined here.

In As recorded in the [Supplément Persan 95] Bib. Nat. Paris. support of this argument, the second oldest extant Ms. of the Jawámi‘ = B. dated 717 A. H. can also be adduced. In the body of the text at the end, on f289b in conclusion the author calls himself Sadíd-i-‘Awfí, and on the frontispiece f1a. of this Ms. the following words are written in the gilded border decoration.

and again on f202b. (f203a)

The As duly acknowledged in the Tajáribu’s-Salaf. fourth item of evidence in proof of his title as Sadídu’d-Dín is based on the three quotations in the Tajáribu’s-Salaf⁾, the enlarged Persian translation of the Kitábu’l-Fakhrí, by Hindúsháh b. Sanjar al-Kírání aṣ-Ṣáḥibí, who composed this work about 724 A. H. = 1324 A. D. In two of these quotations from the Jawámi‘ he acknowledges in clear words the title of the author as Sadídu’d-Dín:

In point of time Hindúsháh is as much later as Ḥamdu’llah, but the former acknowledges the title of the author and quotes correctly, whereas the latter in his Nuzhatu’l-Qulúb borrows from the Jawámí‘, yet mentions neither the laqab nor the nisba of the author. Perhaps the only passage that supports the claims of later writers⁾ who give his title as Núru’d-Dín is this:

⁾

This short and unsatisfactory notice in the Ta’ríkh-i-Guzída is contrary to the weighty arguments advanced in proof of his correct title as Sadídu’d-Dín; hence Ḥamdu’llah’s version deserves very little credit, and henceforward his laqab will be regarded as Sadídu’d-Dín.

Before Determination of the Periods of his life. proceeding to discuss the actual details of our author’s life, it is necessary to determine the probable dates of his birth and death, but in this direction only internal and external evidence can be brought forward, and only approximate limits can be fixed, for we are not possessed of conclusive dates.

In The earliest limit. the year 597 A. H. = 1200/1 A D., we find him vigorous⁾, coming out of his native town Bukhárá, as an accomplished scholar, and appearing at the court of the Sultan Jalálu’d-Dín Ibráhím b. al-Ḥusayn Ṭamgháj Khán of Samarqand, who reigned 574-597 A. H. = 1178/9-1200/1 A. D., and having literary discussions in the company of teachers and learned men like the Amír ‘Amíd Bahá’u’d-Dín, the tutor to the Prince Nuṣratu’d-Dín Qilij Arslán Kháqán ‘Uthmán⁾, whose reign terminated about 609 A.H. = 1212/3 A. D. and whom he thinks to be 15 years old at that time. It is natural enough that al-‘Awfí, after his long studies in Bukhárá, should have attained an age of 25-30 years, after which he started on his literary tour, or in search of some position at the courts of the different princes, to which he pays visits in turn, as we shall notice presently; therefore on this hypothesis his birth can be placed between 567 and 572 A. H. = 1171/2-1176/7 A. D.

Whereas The latest limit. in the Jawámi‘⁾ there are conclusive proofs that our author lived up to 630 A. H., one significant line in the memoria technica of the ‘Abbásid Caliphs suggests a much longer period than what is supposed. Our author has written the accounts of the 36 Caliphs of the ‘Abbásid line, and has brought down the history to the Caliphate of al-Mustanṣir, (623-640 A. H.), from whom his patron-monarch Shamsu’d-Dín Iltutmish received the nominal insignia of office in 626 A. H., in order to establish friendly relations between Baghdád and Dihlí (A. f118b. I. v. 362) but it appears that this line was added later on and the discrepancies were overlooked.

The Approximate age 60 years. persistence with which thirteen Mss. repeat this line makes one believe that the author lived at longest until the accession of al-Must‘aṣim, the last of the ‘Abbásid Caliphs, and added this line about 640 A. H. = 1242 A. D. Thus the period of his life falls roughly speaking between 567 and 640 A. H. = 1172-1242 A. D., or 572-635 A. H. = 1176/7-1232/3 A. D. which is probably nearer the truth. According to the latter reckoning al-‘Awfí lived a little less than 60 lunar years.

This Divisions of his life-period. period of about 60 years is marked by three distinct phases of his life: