Ablutions, religious, 150

Adam, more than one, 157; the son of Time, 158

Adultery, the legal penalty for, 199

Ambition, vanity of, 72, 88

Anaesthesia, Ma‘arrí’s longing for, 109

Angels, their existence doubted, 184; recording angels, 188; the two angels who examine the dead, 138

Animals, wounds inflicted by, not subject to a legal penalty, 68; condemnation of cruelty to, 198-9, 201-2; their skins should not be used for clothing, 137; specula­ tions as to their future existence, 202; happiness of wild animals, 127. See Vegetarianism

Arabic language, debasement of the, 114

Arabs, the pre-Islamic, customs and beliefs of the, 67, 90, 136

Arrows, used in games of hazard, 111

Ascension of the Prophet, 172

Asceticism, Indian, 137-8

Asceticism of Ma‘arrí, 125-41; its ethical character, 126; includes active virtue, 126, 198 foll.; not without a religious element, 132-3; world-flight, 126-31; abstinence from meat, fish, milk, eggs, and honey, 134-6; celibacy, 139-41

Astrologers, 110-12

Augury, 80, 193

Barrenness, a blessing for a wife, 77

basíṭ, metre, 57

Battle-field, description of a, 30

bayt, 56

Bees, ought not to be robbed of their honey, 113, 135, 136

Beggars, 113

Birds, the injustice of taking their eggs, 134, 136; kindness to, 202; poems addressed to, 202

Blindness, allusions by Ma‘arrí to his, 47, 128, 129, 184

Blue and green, wide range of the words denoting these colours, 86

Boasting, in Persian and Arabic poetry, 18, 19

Body, the, brings anguish to the soul, 71; the spirit’s garment, 75, 179; the spirit’s cage, 180; deserves no honour after death, 92; the substance of, eternal and indestructible, 150; resurrection of the body, 169, 185

Body and soul, their marriage the source of all evil, 65, 180; at war with each other, 76; die simul­ taneously, 179

Books, the revealed, spurious, 110, 168

Boys, corporal punishment of, 203

buqqárá, 152

Cadis, unjust, 109

Camels, the blood of, broiled and used as food, 67

Celibacy, 139-41

Charity, 120, 193, 201-2

Charmers, 63, 113, 119

Cheeks, compared to tulips, 12; to fire, 12; to the Pleiades, 23; to the full moon, 29

Chin, the, compared to an apple, 12; to a lily, 30

Christian boy, poem on a, 11-12

Christians, their influence in Moslem society, 115

Clothes, undyed, worn by Ma‘arrí, 137

Coffins, disapproved of, 138

Conceits, in Persian poetry, 9, 20

Creator, the, one of five co-eternal principles, 158

Creed of Ma‘arrí, the, 129, 142, 165, 196

Cremation, praise of, 138

Crucifixion, the, 170-1

Curls, compared to a restless lover, 12; to a waving hand, 12; to chains, 29; black curls compared to negroes, 12; to a raven’s wing, 12

dahr, 155

dá‘í, 82

Damnation, everlasting, 187

Darkness, original, 153, 203

Dawn, compared to a poisoned sword, 89; the bow of, 132

Days, the, compared to dromedaries, 81

Days, holy, 155, 174

Death, the leveller, 66, 79; a long sleep, 85; the grandest of gifts, 86; compared to a woman throw­ ing fuel on a fire, 89; to a lioness, 89; the blessings of, 56, 63, 71, 73, 74, 76, 78, 79, 94, 123; kunya of, 113

Democratic theory, modern, antici­ pated by Ma‘arrí, 107

Dervishes, 113, 115

Determinism, 147, 161-3. See Fate; Freewill; Predestination

Directions, the six, 17

Divines, the Mohammedan, 108-110. See ‘ulamá

Dowry, paid by the husband to the wife, 87

Drinking vessels, luxurious, repro­ bation of, 85, 133

Earth, the most trusty comrade, 72; the best healer of pain, 88; receives its daily portion of human flesh and blood, 89

Earthquakes, 99

Education, views of Ma‘arrí on, 203-4

Elegies, Persian, 20-22

Elements, the four, 7, 17, 22, 91, 157, 207

Epitaph, composed by Ma‘arrí on himself, 140

Equality, religious, 195-6

Ethics of Ma‘arrí, 126, 136-8, 190, 197-205; similar to the ethics of Jainism, 137; intellectual basis of, 198

Evil, greatly preponderates over good, 85, 87, 90; original, 90, 117, 153, 198, 203; God or Fate responsible for, 119, 161-2; should be repaid with good, 200

fakhr, 19

Fame, vanity of, 207; Ma‘arrí’s expectation of, 207

Famine, in Mesopotamia, Syria, and Egypt, 99

Fanaticism, denounced, 103

Fasting, useless without silence, 131; from sin, 182

Fate, 60, 64, 65, 66, 69, 83, 88; rules the whole course of life, 31; subject to Allah, 161; compared to a nose-ring, 178. See Deter­ minism

Father, the, identified with the Active Intelligence, 22

Fathers, the seven, 22

Fire, a flaming, compared to a gambolling foal, 154; to a restless bay mare, 154

Flowers, described by Persian poets, 11, 13, 14

Freethought, 142, 146 foll. See zindíq; Reason; Rationalism

Freewill, 60, 70, 129, 163, 189

furqán, 174

Games. See buqqárá and kharáj

Genies, 111. See Jinn

ghazal, Persian verse-form, 3, 8, 11, 12, 22-27

Girls, should be taught to spin, not to read and write, 204

God, Ma‘arrí’s conception of, 158 foll.; the author of evil, 147, 161-2; justice of, 161-3

Government, Ma‘arrí’s views on, 106-7; injunctions against holding office under the, 133-4

Governors, military, called “devils,” 108

Grave, the, haunted by the dead man’s wraith, 90

ḥabr, 110

Hair, compared to violets, 21; to hyacinths, 23

háma, 90

Heaven, everlasting or not, 62, 149

Hedonism, no trace of, in the Luzúm, 205-6

Hell, 68, 95, 151, 187

Hermits, 61, 108, 130, 132, 139, 180; happier than kings, 107; the tears of, 115

Hours, the, compared to snakes, 60; to mares, 61, 157

Humour, in the Persian qaṣída, 38-9

Hypocrisy, the religion of mankind, 122 foll.; practised by Ma‘arrí, 122 foll., 146-9, 151, 164-6. See Irony

iḥrám, 192

ilḥád, 172

Imám, Shí‘ite belief concerning the, 96, 101-3, 105, 106

Immortality of the soul, 178-85. See Life, a future; Resurrection

Indian practices, 85, 137-8, 201

Insects, compassion for, 202

Intelligence, a divine, 158, 160; the Active, 22

Irony, employed by Ma‘arrí, 110, 138, 147, 151, 166-72, 174, 177

Islam, the attitude of Ma‘arrí towards, 146-8, 164 foll.; his criti­ cism of, 191. See Religion

Ismá‘ílís, the higher teaching of the, 105; their view of religion, 136; methods of their missionaries, 82

jabr, 161

Jews, the, influence of, 115; trans­ formed into apes, 183; attacks on their religion, 167-8, 171, 174, 175, 181; toleration for, 195-6

Jinn, the, 184. See Genies

Judgment Day, the, 117, 129, 132

Jupiter and Saturn, conjunction of, 103, 105

kámil, metre, 57

kharáj, 144

khaṭíb, 195-6

Kings, useful to society, 106; the servants of their subjects, 107; the poorest and most miserable of men, 130, 203

Koran, the, imitated or parodied, 165-6; kernel of the, 190

kunya, 45, 87, 113

Lamentation for the dead, con­ demned by Ma‘arrí, 72, 135

Laughter, ought to be avoided, 72

Letters, of the Arabic Alphabet, 89, 123

Life, a dream, 65, 93; a disease, 74, 91; bitterness of, 60, 66, 92; com­ pared to a serpent with black and white stripes, 68, 91; to a bridge, 69, 175; to a she-camel, 90; to an ill-strung necklace, 93

Life, a future, uncertain, 148, 178-84; references to, 131 foll. See Resurrection

Light, posterior to darkness, 153, 203

Lips, compared to coral, 23

Literature, the state of, in the age of Ma‘arrí, 100

Love, Persian poems on the subject of, 11-13, 22-27; treatment of, in the ghazal, 22, 24; in Persian epic and romantic poetry, 22; in semi-mystical poetry, 24; a favourite topic in the exordium of a qaṣída, 29

Luxury of women, 114

Luzúmu má lá yalzam, by Abu ’l-‘Alá al-Ma‘arrí, style and matter, 43-5, 50 foll., 53-5, 58; disliked by Mohammedans, 50; a book of moral poetry, 50; main themes, 52; meaning of the title, 52; characterised by a difficult form of rhyme, 52-3; poems on Life and Death, 59 foll.; poems referring to political affairs, 100 foll.; on the Fáṭimids and Carmathians, 101-6; on government, 106-7; on the ruling classes and the ‘ulamá, 107 foll.; on astrologers, 110 foll.; on the wickedness of mankind, 116 foll.; on world-flight, 126 foll.; on vegetarianism, 134-5; on celi­ bacy, 139-40; in praise of Reason, 144; the Luzúm anti-Islamic in spirit, 146 foll., 164 foll.; poems on the stars, Time and Space, etc., 149 foll.; on God and Fate, 159 foll.; poems in which the dogma of Revelation is discredited, 167 foll.; poems illustrating the author’s view of positive religion, 173 foll.; poems on the nature and destiny of the soul, 178 foll.; on angels and Jinn, 184; on Resur­ rection and Retribution, 185-9; on the uselessness of external rites, 190; on the Pilgrimage, 191-3; on religious equality and toleration, 195-6; on virtue, 198-200; on charity, 201-2; against war, 203; on the education of girls and women, 204-5; the Luzúm and the Rubá‘iyyát of Omar Khayyám, 205-6

Lynx, somnolence of the, 145

Ma‘arrí, essentially a poet, 44, 51; aims at telling the truth, 44, 50 foll.; his life, 45-8; his poetry unconventional, 49-50; his pessi­ mism, 52, 95; wide range of his interests, 54; his fondness for philology and rhetoric, 55; his poverty, 46, 95, 125; he was familiar with the horrors of war, 97; came forward as a peace-maker, 97-8; sympathised with the ‘Abbásids and attacked the Ismá‘ílís, 101 foll.; did not believe in “blood and iron,” 103; denounces fanaticism, 103; assails governors, theologians, astrolo­ gers, and professional poets, 106-14; describes the corruption of Moslem society, 114 foll.; was thought to be rich, 124-5; his asceticism, 125 foll.; his philosophy and religion, 141 foll.; the practical tendency of his philosophy, 141; his importance in the history of Moslem thought, 142; an instance of his erudition, 143; his rationalism and scepticism, 144 foll.; his relation to Islam, 146 foll., 164 foll.; he uses irony, 147, 166 foll.; his philosophical principles, 149 foll.; they resemble those of al-Rází, 158; he believes in one God, 158-60; holds God or Fate responsible for evil, 160 foll.; throws doubt on Revelation, 166 foll.; does not write at random, 169; criticises Judaism and Christianity, 168-71; his views on the origin of religion, 173 foll.; on the soul, 178 foll.; on metempsychosis, 182-3; on the fundamental dogmas of Islam, 184-93; he censures superstition, 193; has nothing of the mystical spirit, 194; pleads for religious toleration, 195-6; his creed, 165, 196; his ethical teaching, 197 foll.; he expects to be famous after his death, 207

madíḥ, 29

Mankind, the breaths of Earth, 60; compared to plants, 86, 182, 183; the wickedness of, 116-24; incorrigible, 119-122

Mare, the black, referring to the ‘Abbásid dynasty, 67

Marriage, 87, 112, 114, 116, 141

mathnawí, Persian verse-form, 3, 8

Matriarchy, 143

Matter, the eternity of, 79, 149-50; the First or Primeval, 158

Mercy, enjoined by Ma‘arrí, 201; the Divine, 187

Metempsychosis, 182-4

Metres, Arabic, 55; specimens of the four principal, 56-7

Miracles, 194

mi‘ráj, 172

Monorhyme, the, in Arabic and Persian verse, 8, 27, 55; examples in English, 19, 21, 28, 133

Moon, the crescent, compared to a spear, 89

Mothers, the four, 22

mu‘áhid, 115

muḍári‘, metre, 11

nafs, 144

Nails, allowed to grow long by Indian ascetics, 138; to pare the nails, a mark of asceticism, 138

Names, inappropriate, ridicule of, 87

Names of honour, 45, 71, 75, 87, 113

námús, 172

nasíb, 29. See qaṣída, exordium of the

Nature, Persian poems descriptive of, 13

Nature, human, radically evil, 116 foll.; fights against Reason, 81, 117

náẓir, 195

Olive oil, the merits of, 133

Omens, 193

Ostrich, food of the, 90

Panegyrics, by Persian poets, 14, 15, 33-9

Paradise, 13, 17, 132, 133, 151, 187, 188; burlesque description of, 166; the eight Paradises, 16

Patronage, influence of, on Persian court-poetry, 32-4

People of the Book, the, 167

Pessimism of Ma‘arrí, 47, 52, 95, 206

Philosophy, defined by Jáḥiẓ, 141; the Pythagorean, 158

Pilgrimage, the, not performed by Ma‘arrí, 45, 78, 191; interrupted by Carmathians and brigands, 98-9; immoral and superstitious, 191-3

Planets, the seven, 207; subject to Allah, 152, 159; influence of, 22, 151-2, 161, 207; conjunction of, 103, 105; endowed with souls and minds, 151, 154; capable of speech, 152, 181; Jupiter, 14, 65, 103, 105; Mars, 19, 62, 65, 152; Saturn, 8, 14, 103, 105, 152; Venus, 152

Poet, the first Arabic, 4; the first Persian, 4

Poetry, Arabic, criticism of, 48-50; the proper end of, 44, 50; con­ demned by many Moslems, 51; moral poetry regarded as inferior, 50-52

Poetry, Persian, five main types of, 2, 3; the oldest, 8-15; mystical, 6, 24

Poets, professional, 4, 18, 32 foll., 45, 114

Political conditions, in Ma‘arrí’s time, 96 foll.

Polygamy, 114

Prayer, the efficacy of, 182; cannot alter the course of Fate, 64, 200

Prayers, the public, 109, 128

Preachers, the popular, corruptors of true religion, 110

Predestination, the question of, a sterile controversy, 163; an excuse for sin, 175

Procreation, a sin against the child, 126, 139; the source of misery, 139; increases the sum of evil, 139; the cause of death, 140

Prophets, the, 171-3

Proverbs, Arabic, 124, 145

Punishment, corporal, 203

qaṣída, the Arabic, 48-50; the Persian, 3, 8, 27-42; exordium of the, 17, 28; primary motive of the, 27; rhyme-system of the, 27-8; structure of the, 28-9; charac­ teristics of the, 33-4

qass, 196

qiṭ‘a, Persian verse-form, 3, 8-22

quṣṣáṣ, 110

radíf, 28

Rain, metaphors derived from, 60, 77, 88; prayers for, 200

Rationalism of Ma‘arrí, 47, 142, 167 foll.; of the Mu‘tazilites, 164

Reason, opposed to Revelation, 142, 168, 190; the sage’s mirror, 63; the only true Imám, 102; the source of right knowledge and action, 142; an attribute of the Creator, 158; the means of self-emancipation, 197; passages in praise of, 143-4

Recompense, future, 117, 132, 187-9, 199

Religion, a human institution, 106, 173-8; causes men to hate one another, 181, 195-6; makes them slaves, 197; false and irrational, 86, 167, 177; subordinate to righteousness, 190; its outward forms have no value in them­ selves, 190, 201; neglected, 115, 116; definitions of true religion, 102, 133, 182, 197

Resurrection, possible, 181, 185; doubtful, 169, 175, 184-7; terri­ fying sermons on, 110

Retaliation, the Mohammedan law of, condemned, 80

Revelation, how Ma‘arrí deals with the dogma of, 166 foll.

Rhyme, in the rubá‘í, 5; in the qaṣída, 27-8; in the Luzúm, 52-3; irregularities of, 127. See Mono­ rhyme

riqán, 111

Rose, the, poems on the, 13, 14

rubá‘í, Persian verse-form, 3, 5-8

Rue-seed, burnt as a charm against the evil eye, 5

sahl-i mumtani‘, 16

Scepticism of Ma‘arrí, 145-6

Scholasticism, Ma‘arrí’s contempt for, 164

Sectarianism, condemnation of, 194-6

Self-cremation, practised by Indian ascetics, 85

shanbalíd, 11

Shoes, should be made of wood, not of hide, 137

Silence, praise of, 130, 131, 142

Sin, original, 90, 198; a ladder to religion, 163

Sky, the, described as blue or green, 86

Slaves, humane treatment of, enjoined by Ma‘arrí, 201

Solitude, 122, 126

Sons, the worst enemies of their fathers, 112, 140

Soul, the, has its centre in the highest sphere, 118; subject to cognition and nescience, 145; obstinate in evil, 136; weakened by Reason, 144; nature and destiny of, 178-85. See Body; Spirit

Soul, the Universal, 158

Souls, human, infinite in number, 158

Space, Absolute, 158; infinite, 154-5, 160

Spheres, the nine, 17

Spirit, the, feels nothing after death, 121; corrupts the body, 179; dies with the body, 179; illumines the body, 180

Spring, poems on, 13, 31

Stars, influence of the, 70, 151-2, 160; sentient, intelligent, and articulate, 151, 152, 154; married to each other, 152, 154; the flowers of heaven, 86; ought to be venerated, 93, 153-4; foretell death, but not resurrection, 186; question whether they are eternal, 150, 154; Aquila, 156; Arcturus, 74, 152; Ashráṭ, 186; ‘Ayyúq, 35; Canopus, 152; al-Faníq, 47; Lyra, 74; Sirius, 37, 66; Spica Virginis, 66; Suhá, 37; Virgo, 74

Stone, the Black, a relic of paganism, 177, 191

ṣúfí, derivation of, 194

Ṣúfís, dissolute, 115, 194; God-fearing, praised by Ma‘arrí, 194; have something in common with freethinkers, 194; pietism of the early, 133

Sun, the, will not rise unless he is beaten, 89; may be extinguished, 149; eternal, 157

taqiyyat, 151. See Irony

ṭawíl, metre, 56

Tears, when shed by hermits, put out Hell-fire, 115

thaghám, 101

thawáb, 187, 199

Time, the nature of, 59, 154-7; subject to Allah, 116, 157; defini­ tion of, 156; has no influence on events, 156-7; abuse of, forbidden by the Prophet, 155; brings anguish on the wise, 31; immortal, 70

Time, Absolute, 158

Toleration, religious, 195-6

Traditions, religious, weakly attested, 144; forged, 110, 168, 175

Transmigration of souls, 182-4

Truth, used by Ma‘arrí in the sense of Right, 54; cannot be spoken in society, 122; moral, the object of Ma‘arrí’s poetry, 50; religious, not the monopoly of any race, 174

Tulips, compared to blood-stained swords, 13; to flagons of wine, 32

‘ulamá, attacks on the, 107-110, 175

Vegetarianism, adopted by Ma‘arrí, 134; its motives and character, 134-8; based on the principle of non-injury, 136-7; possibly derived from Jainism, 137-8

Verse, the Arabic, 56

Virtue, a reality, 143; ought to be practised for its own sake, 175, 187, 199, 200; not rewarded in this world, 187; the fruit of knowledge, 198; consists in renouncing evil, 198; involves world-flight, 126, 198; not innate, 198

wáfir, metre, 57

War, denunciation of, 127, 135, 199, 202-3

War-horse, description of a, 36

Water, the symbol of life, 136

Wickedness, described as “ignorance,” 198

Wife, the ideal, 204-5

Willows, lashed by the wind, com­ pared to drunkards, 13

Wine, Persian poems on, 9-11; composed of light and fire, 9; compared to a star, 9; to the moon, 9; to rubies, 10; to poppies and cornelian, 11

Wine-drinking, invariably con­ demned by Ma‘arrí, 104, 114, 129, 167-8, 205

Wit, in Persian poetry, 38, 40-2

Wolf, poem addressed to the, 202

Women, the general Moslem opinion of, 204; offer large dowries in order to get husbands, 112

Works, good, may be rewarded hereafter, 199

World, the, wickedness of, 70, 116 foll.; described as Hell, 68, 95; eternal, 149 foll., 158, 160; loved by mankind, 69, 71; deceives its friends, 84; its best moment, 70; its name of honour, 71; compared to a carcase, 60, 117; to a brute, 68; to a murderess, 85; to a harlot, 87

World, an upper, the archetype of this world, 152

World-flight, poems on, 126 foll.

Yellow, equivalent to “pale,” 17, 42

Youth, lament for the loss of, 15, 64, 69

zindíq, 151, 166, 194, 196