“Pass us not by, for our thought is set on thy constancy,
Our heart on the hope of thy promise, and our soul on thy faith!
If it be thy pleasure to thwart our pleasure, that matters little;
Our object in this world and the next is thy pleasure.
Hereafter, since we have staked our head in following thee,
Drive us not from thy presence, for our heart follows after thee.
I put my neck under the yoke and bow my head in service:
Forgive me, if thou wilt, or slay me: it is for thee to judge.
He who is thy slave becomes freed from all:
He who is thy friend becomes a stranger to his own kin.
O thou who art dearer to my heart than the soul which is in the body,
That soul which is in my body exists but for thee!
This sad-hearted victim who aspires to thy love,
His rightest oath is by thy heart-entrancing stature.
Khwájú, who is passing away through thy cruelty and harshness,
His heart is still set on thy love and loyalty!”

Besides odes (ghazals) and the above-mentioned math-nawís , Khwájú has several tarkíb-bands, one or two “fragments” (muqaṭṭa'át), and a few quatrains, including one about the dove crying “Kú, kú?” (“Where, where” are the great ones of yore departed?), generally ascribed to 'Umar Khayyám.

The following mustazád is not without grace:

<text in Arabic script omitted>

“Is there none to say from me to that Turk of Cathay (Khaṭá)
‘If any fault (khaṭá) * has been committed
Come back, for we hope from thee for ourselves
Fidelity to promises.

Do not cast pepper in the name of me, the heart-consumed,
On the fire of thy cheek, *
For because of that musky grain of thine I have fallen, O friend,
Into the snare of misfortune.
Today I am, like the curve of thine eyebrow, in the city
Like unto the crescent moon, *
Since I have seen that face of signal beauty
The cynosure of every eye.
Come back, that I may lay down my head at thy feet, and my life
At the feet of thy horse,
Since the hand of poor indigent me cannot provide
Anything more than ‘hoof-money.’ *
Is it a rule in your city not to enquire
Into the condition of poor strangers?
After all, what hurt could befall the realm of thy beauty
From one so helpless [as me]?
How long, O sweet-voiced minstrel, wilt thou play out of tune
The ‘Lover's Air’?
Soothe me, the poor and portionless, for once
By a song of substance!
After all, how much longer can I keep hidden
In my heart the grief of separation?
O Beloved, I am sure that this grief will spread
One day somewhither.
Through regret for thy ruby lip I am in the Darkness of Alexander *
Like Khwájú,
But what can I do, since the Kingdom of Darius.
Is not meet for a beggar?”

These few specimens of Khwájú's poems will perhaps suffice to show that his verse, while graceful and pleasing, lacks any conspicuous distinction or excellence.

'Ubayd-i-Zákání is, perhaps, the most remarkable parodist and satirical writer produced by Persia, and 'Ubayd-i-Zákání though, like most Persian, Arabian and Turkish satirists, his language is frequently so coarse as to render a large part of his writings unfit for trans­lation, his Akhláqu'l-Ashráf, or “Ethics of the Aristocracy,” is, where not so marred, a fine piece of irony, while some of his serious poems (which have been too much ignored by most of his biographers) are of singular beauty. Of his life, as usual, little is known, save that he was originally from Qazwín (for which city he seems to have had little affection, since he is constantly gibing at the stupidity of its inhabitants), lived at Shíráz (to which, on the other hand, as several of his poems show, he was much attached) during the reign of Shaykh Abú Isḥáq Injú (who was killed in 747/1346-7), abandoned serious writing for a ribaldry more in accord with the taste of the great men of that time, but none the less (as several of his poems and a well­known anecdote about his death indicate) suffered much from penury and debt, and finally died about 772/1371. Another well-known anecdote describes his quarrel and reconciliation with his contemporary Salmán of Sáwa, * and he appears to have enjoyed the patronage of Sulṭán Uways at Baghdád or Tabríz, or both. Dawlatsháh * con­secrates a long but not very informative article to him, most of which (with fuller quotations from his poems) is reproduced in the Haft Iqlím. The notice in the Átash-kada is very meagre, and no mention of him is made in the Mujmal of Faṣíḥí or in the modern Majma'u'l-Fuṣaḥá. His satirical mathnawí of “the Mouse and the Cat” (Músh u Gurba) has been lithographed, with quaint woodcuts, at Bombay, without date; * and a selection of his Facetiœ, to which is prefixed a Persian preface, probably by the late Mírzá Ḥabíb of Iṣfahán, followed by another of M. Ferté, was printed at Constantinople, at the Press of Ebu'ẓ-Ẓiyá Tevfíq Bey, in 1303/1885-6. * As these two prefaces contain most that is to be said about 'Ubayd-i-Zákání, I here append a translation, omitting only a few unsuitable passages.

“That most witty poet 'Ubayd-i-Zákání was of the village of Zákán * near Qazwín, and was one of the notabilities of the eighth century of the Flight. * He was a man of talent and learning, one of the masters of style and sound taste. Although some reckon him as one of the ribald writers, it is only fair to state that, though jests, ribaldry and satire occur in his poems, he deserves to rank as something more than a mere satirist, being, indeed, conspicuous amongst the older poets for his grace and wit, and in these respects approached by few. He was particularly skilful in incorporating in his poems and investing with a ludicrous sense the serious verses of other poets, an achievement in which he left no ground unturned. His own serious poems, on the other hand, are incomparable in fluency of diction, sweetness and dis­tinction, and are unrivalled in grace and subtlety.

“'Ubayd-i-Zákání pursued his studies at Shíráz in the reign of Sháh Abú Isḥáq, and became one of the most accomplished men of letters and learning of his time, acquiring complete proficiency in every art, and compiling books and treatises thereon. He subsequently returned to Qazwín, where he had the honour of being appointed to a Judgeship, and was chosen as the tutor and teacher of sundry young noblemen. At that time the Turks in Persia had left no prohibited or vicious act undone, and the character of the Persian people, by reason of association and intercourse with them, had become so changed and corrupted that 'Ubayd-i-Zákání, disgusted at the contemplation thereof, sought by every means to make known and bring home to them the true condition of affairs. Therefore, as an example of the corrupt morals of the age and its people, he composed the treatise known as the ‘Ethics of the Aristocracy’ (Akhláqu'l-Ashráf), which was not intended as mere ribaldry, but as a satire containing serious reflections and wise warnings. So likewise, in order to depict the level of intelli­gence and degree of knowledge of the leading men of Qazwín, each one of whom was a mass of stupidity and ignorance, he included in his ‘Joyous Treatise’ (Risála-i-Dilgushá) many anecdotes of which each contains a lesson for persons of discernment. As a measure of his accomplishments, experience, learning and worldly wisdom, his ‘Tract of a Hundred Counsels’ (Risála-i-Sad Pand) and his ‘Defini­tions’ (Ta'rífát) are a sufficient proof. Moreover, even those who speak of him as a mere ribald satirist admit that he composed a treatise on Rhetoric ('Ilm-i-Ma'ání u Bayán) which he desired to present to the King. The courtiers and favourites, however, told him that the King had no need of such rubbish. Then he composed a fine panegyric, which he desired to recite, but they informed him that His Majesty did not like to be mocked with the lies, exaggerations and fulsome flattery of poets. Thereupon 'Ubayd-i-Zákání said, ‘In that case I too will pursue the path of impudence, so that by this means I may obtain access to the King's most intimate society, and may become one of his courtiers and favourites,’ which he accordingly did. Then he began recklessly to utter the most shameless sayings and the most unseemly and extravagant jests, whereby he obtained innumerable gifts and presents, while none dared to oppose or contend with him.