He said, ‘They have related that a devotee, whose prayers were accepted, had located himself on the bank of a stream, and had washed his hands with the water of contentment from the contamination of worldly affairs. A kite on the wing arrived there, and a young Mouse dropped from its beak on the ground before the holy man; who had compassion on it, and taking it up, and rolling it in his patched gabardine, was about to carry it home. He then reflected that he had better not, lest it should annoy his domestics and do mischief. He prayed, therefore, that God Most High would be pleased to [turn the mouse into a damsel, and thus] bestow on him a daughter. The arrow of the recluse’s prayer struck the target of acceptance, and the tire-woman of Omnipotence adorned for him a daughter of graceful form and straight stature, of bright countenance and curling hair, such that the sun of her cheek cast the fire of jealousy into the harvest of the moon, and her musky ringlets wrung sighs from the heart of black night.
The recluse looked and beheld a figure composed of pure grace, and found a maiden reared in perfect elegance. He delivered her to one of his disciples to treat with the same affection as his children. The disciple, receiving with respect the charge of his spiritual instructor, used the greatest endeavors in tending the girl. In a short time she reached the period of puberty, and the holy man addressing her said, ‘Dear life! thou hast grown up, and there is no alternative but to unite thy pure gem with another jewel on the string of marriage. I leave this to thy own choice, and whomsoever among men or fairies, yea, even of beings from the highest to the lowest rank thou mayest select, to him I will give thee.’ The maid replied, ‘I wish for a husband strong and powerful, who may possess multiform might and majesty, and, in rank, may be distinguished by his exalted dignity and high position.’ The recluse answered, ‘The sun will be the possessor of these qualities which thou mentionest.’ The girl replied, ‘Aye! I am of opinion that he succumbs to none, but has the mastery over all that exist beneath the sky. Marry me to him.’
In the morning, when, by the command of Him who makes the morn break forth, the sun ascended from the eastern horizon, the recluse communicated to him the circumstances, and said, ‘This maiden is exceeding beautiful and amiable; I would have her be thy handmaid, for she has asked of me a husband, strong and mighty.’ The sun blushed356 at hearing this tale, and replied, ‘I will point out to thee one stronger than myself, which is a cloud. For this conceals my light and excludes all living creatures from the rays of my beauty.
The recluse came to the cloud, and repeated his former speech. The cloud, perspiring at this address, said, ‘If thou choosest me for strength and superiority, the wind is my superior, since it carries me whithersoever it will, and takes me along with it in whatever direction it wishes.’ The recluse, acquiescing in this remark, went to the wind, and recited the story of what had passed. The wind writhed from shame, and said, ‘What strength and might do I possess? absolute power belongs to the mountain, since it has drawn the foot of endurance under the skirt of majesty, and like the pole reposes in its own centre; and my influence upon it is no more than that of a low sound in the ear of one born deaf, or of the footfall of a little ant on the surface of the solid rock.356a
The holy man then proceeded to the mountain, and recited the scroll of the affair. The mountain uttered a deep sound, saying, ‘O recluse! the force and strength of the mouse exceed mine, for it pierces my side, and makes its nest in my heart. My breast is rent in a thousand places by its life-exhausting goad, and I know of no expedient to get rid of it.’ The maiden exclaimed, ‘He speaks the truth. The mouse is his conqueror, and deserves to be my husband.’ The recluse then offered her to a mouse, and he, owing to his homogeneousness (for in him the cord of affinity of the girl found its limit), felt an inclination for her in his heart, and replied, ‘I too for a long time have been wishing for a charmer, who should be my mate for life. It is necessary, however, that my spouse should be of the same race with myself.’ The girl said, ‘This is an easy matter. Let the holy man pray that I may become a mouse, and embrace thee with the arms of love.’ The recluse saw that there was an evident longing on both sides: he held up his hands in prayer, and prayed to the Lord Most High to make her a mouse. The petition of the saint was immediately honored with acceptance, and the remarkable truth, ‘Everything reverts to its primitive nature,’ was here manifested, for the girl became a mouse, and the recluse bestowed her on that other mouse, and went his way.
And the moral of this story is that, whatever may be the requirement of the original nature, although other accidental circumstances may divert it, will, in the end, relapse to that same character of its origin. And an eloquent sage has arranged in poetical order this same sentiment, and expresses it in this beautiful language, and with this graceful turn:
The king of the owls, as is the wont of the unlucky, listened not to these admonitions, and imputing the words of his vazír to envy, paid no regard to consequences. The crow, on the other hand, each day adduced some charming tale, and every night some incomparably pleasing narrative, and recited marvelous stories and wonderful anecdotes; until he became the chief confidant; and obtained perfect information of their most recondite secrets and hidden affairs. He then watched his opportunity and suddenly set off to join the crows. The king of the crows seeing him approach, began to address him joyfully, as follows,
Then king Pírúz asked him, saying, O Kárshinás! what hast thou effected?’ He replied, ‘By the king’s good fortune, I have effected all that was required, and have accomplished the object I had in view. Be ready to act! for it is the time for exacting vengeance and for seeing our enemies as our friends would have them.’ The king said, ‘Tell me, concisely, the nature of what thou wouldest advise, in order that we may follow up the measures of importance with a right understanding, and that the things that are required may be made ready.’ Kárshinás said, ‘In a certain mountain there is a cave, and during the day-time the owls go and collect in that cave; and in the vicinity, much dry wood is found. Let the king command the crows to transport a small quantity there and heap it at the door of the cave, and I will bring a little fire from the station of the shepherds, who have their houses in the neighborhood, and cast it upon the wood. Then let the king command the crows to fan it with their wings so that the fire may be kindled. Every owl that attempts to come forth from the cave, will be burnt, and every one that does not come out will be killed by the smoke.’ The king was pleased with this counsel, and he undertook the enterprise in the way the vazír had seen good. Thus they burned all the owls: and the crows having won a great victory, were all glad and triumphant, and loosing the tongue of congratulation, they raised to the star ’Ayyúḳ358 their joyous shouts at this splendid triumph.
The king and the army, deeply obliged by the laudable efforts and acceptable and illustrious acts of Kárshinás, were lavish in the honors they awarded him, and they viewed it as requisite and incumbent on them to go to excess and profuseness in praising him. He, in his turn, invoked benedictions on the king and lauded the others suitably to their respective conditions. In the midst of this, the king gave utterance to these words, ‘The auspiciousness of thy counsel and thy fine judgment in overturning our foes and smiting them on the head, and in gladdening and cheering our friends, have been evinced in a peculiar manner.’ ‘Kárshinás said, ‘All that has succeeded in this respect, has been from the greatness of the good-fortune of the king and his auspicious destiny. I beheld, too, the token of this victory on that very day when those ill-fated ones displayed such designs and permitted themselves to practice such cruelty upon the weak and helpless, and formed the desire of appropriating our fatherland and ancient country.
Again the king asked, ‘How couldst thou for so long a time endure the society of the owls? and how put up with them who in disposition are so opposite to thee? For I know that the good cannot endure the society of the wicked, and that it is the nature of the generous to flee the very sight of the sordid. And they have said that it is better to live with an evil serpent than against one’s will to gaze upon a bad companion.
Kárshinás said, ‘The case is as the king has pronounced; and there is nought more galling to the spirit than so unsuitable a companion.
But a wise man, to please his master and relieve his care, turns not away from difficulties, and goes forth with joy to meet every labor that occurs to him, and willingly accepts it. And the man of high spirit does not at every disappointment and difficulty plunge himself into the place of grief and whirlpool of distress. For in every affair, the issues of which are combined with victory and triumph, though it may be necessary to undergo trouble in the commencement and endure degradation, the effects thereof will not be so great; since no treasure can be won without pain, and no rose gathered without the annoyance of a thorn.
The king said, ‘Narrate somewhat of the sagacity and wisdom of the owls.’ He replied, ‘I did not see a single man of quick parts among them, save that one person who advised my execution. But they thought his judgment weak and did not give ear to his counsels with the hearing of acceptance; and did not reflect thus far, that I had fallen a perfect stranger among them, and that I had held a high station among my own tribe and was noted for my intelligence and prudence, and that I might be devising some stratagem, and might have an opportunity of playing the traitor. They neither from their own good sense understood thus much, nor did they make any account of the words of their counsellors, nor did they conceal their secrets from me; in consequence they suffered what they did suffer and arrived where they did arrive. And they have said, ‘Kings should use the utmost caution in preserving their secrets, specially from despairing friends and alarmed foes.
The king said, ‘It appears to me, that oppression was the cause of the destruction of the owls.’ Kárshinás replied, ‘Even so; every king who enters upon a course of tyrannical conduct, it quickly happens that the foundations of his fortunes are subverted. Moreover, kingly rule may continue to exist with infidelity, but not with tyranny and injustice, ‘Dominion endures notwithstanding infidelity, but it will not remain with tyranny.’
And they have said, that every one who does four things must expect four things. Whoever acts tyrannously must look with certainty for his own destruction; and whoever is greedy of the society of women, must be prepared for his own disgrace; and he that is gluttonous in eating must expect to be ill; and whoever relies on imbecile and unwise ministers, must bid adieu to his kingdom. Moreover it has been recorded amongst the sayings of the wise, that six persons must retrench their longings for six things, and cut off the hope of obtaining them. First, an oppressive and tyrannical king must cease to expect the permanence of empire, and continuance of good fortune. Secondly, a haughty and arrogant person must in like manner abandon the hope of men’s praise, and of being commemorated with honor. Thirdly, ill-humored persons must not hope for many friends. Fourthly, an impudent and disrespectful man is not to look for high rank. Fifthly, a niggard must not expect benefits. Sixthly, a covetous man must not hope for innocence, for covetousness plunges a man in crime; and wherever it and avarice set up the tent of permanence, honor and truthful dealing remove thence. And as the king of the owls was very covetous and greedy to slay the crows and devastate their country, he consequently chose to swerve from the path of justice and uprightness, and became lost in the waste of disappointment, and in the end fell himself into the abyss of contempt and the pit which he had dug for others.
The king said, ‘How can any one fully acquit himself of the gratitude due for this obligation? For thou hast endured infinite labor, and waited graciously on thy enemies against thy will, and hast undertaken the service of one from whose society the heart shrank with abhorrence; and had thy foes listened to the words of their monitor, vast danger was to be anticipated to thy life.’ Kárshinás answered, ‘He may truly be called a brave man, who when his resolve is firmly taken to accomplish a thing, first washes his hands of life, and detaching his heart from the hope of surviving, sets foot in the arena of warriors.
And if he sees it advisable at present to submit to wait on another inferior to himself, he adopts this course in order to attain his object. Thus the Snake seeing his own interest therein, was willing to serve the frog.’ The king inquired, ‘How was that?’
Kárshinás said, ‘They have related that the infirmity of age had taken effect on a Snake, and that complete debility had supervened upon him. Through loss of strength, he was unable to pursue his prey, and was bewildered in his proceedings how to obtain food. Life was impossible without food, and to hunt for that which was wont to be his food, had, through want of strength, become impracticable. Accordingly he thus reflected, ‘Alas! for the strength of my youth, and woe is me for the season of my prosperity; and now to expect the return of the days of my juvenescence, and to hope for the recurrence of my animal vigor is a thing of the same complexion as to light a fire from water, and to desire to remove thirst with fire; and, notwithstanding all this, would that there were permanence even to the season of old age, and that this brief period, too, could be relied upon!
The Snake felt that what was passed could not be recalled, and he therefore busied himself with taking thought for the future, which is the most important business, and said, ‘In lieu of the strength of youth I have a little experience which I have acquired, and a trifle of prudence, the clue of which I have during a long life laid hold of. I must now base my proceedings on abstaining from injuring others, and every degradation that is presented to me I must gratefully accept it. I must begin, too, to consider how I may obtain, for the remainder of my life, what may be the means of support.’ He then went to the brink of a spring of water in which there were a number of frogs, who had a potent king, and one who was obeyed and renowned. The Snake cast himself down there in the dust of the road, like to mourners with their bosoms rent, and to sufferers on whom calamity has fallen. A frog speedily made up to him, and asked him, ‘I see thou art very sorrowful, what is the cause of it?’ The Snake replied, ‘Who deserves more to grieve than I, whose maintenance was from hunting frogs? To-day an event has happened to me which has rendered the pursuit of them unlawful to me, and if I seriously designed to seize one, I could not.’ The frog went away and told the king. The king of the frogs was amazed at this strange circumstance, and coming to the Snake, asked him, ‘What is the cause of this accident that has befallen thee?362 and what act has brought down this upon thee?’ The Snake replied,
O king! audacious greed plunged me into the mesh of calamity, and mischievous covetousness opened upon me this gate of trouble, and this befell as follows. One day I attempted to seize a frog, which fled from me and took refuge in the house of a holy man. My appetite led me to follow him into the house, which happened to be dark. The son of the holy man lay there asleep, and his great toe coming against me I fancied it was the frog. From the ardour of my greediness I closed my teeth upon it, and the child died on the spot. The holy man discovered the fact, and, from regret for his son, attacked me, and I, turning towards the open country, fled with speed, and the recluse pursued me and imprecated a curse on me, and said, ‘I desire of my Creator that He will make thee base and powerless, and cause thee to be the vehicle of the frog-king. And, verily, thou shalt not have power to eat frogs save what their king shall bestow on thee as alms.’ And now, of necessity, I have come hither that the king may ride upon me, and I have acquiesced in the Eternal command and the will of God.
The matter pleased the king of the frogs, and he thought that it would redound to his honor and advantage; and he always seated himself upon the Snake, and indulged in vain-glorious airs in consequence, and sought to magnify himself above those of his own species. Some time passed in this way. At last the Snake said, ‘May the life of the king be prolonged! I cannot do without food and sustenance, that I may support life thereon, and fulfil this service.’ The king said, ‘The case is as thou sayest; I cannot363 do without my steed, and my steed cannot have strength without food.’ He then fixed two frogs as his daily allowance, that he might use as his regular supply for breakfast and dinner. The Snake maintained himself on that allowance; and inasmuch as the attention he paid to the frog-king involved a benefit to himself, he did not find fault with it.
And I have adduced this story to make it apparent that if I, too, was patient, and endured abasement with a view to the destruction of my foes, and the welfare of my friends, which were involved in that abasement, I did not experience such a sensation of disgust. Moreover, courtesy and humility are readier means to uproot an enemy than war and contest. As when fire furiously assails a tree, all that it is possible for it to consume is as much as is on the face of the earth; while water gently and softly undermines the roots of every tree (even of those that are363a larger and stronger), to such a degree that there is no farther hope of its abiding in the same place.
Hence they have said that indulgence and counsel are better than valor, since, however brave and mighty a warrior may be, he can but match ten persons, or, at the utmost, twenty; and if any one would choose to exagge-rate, he might say a hundred, and a thousand would be the climax. But a wise man, by a single right-aiming scheme, may thrust a whole country into perplexity, and may, by one plan, overthrow a powerful army, and embroil a populous kingdom.
The king said, ‘Thou hast obtained a wonderful triumph over our enemies, and thy hand has won a marvelous victory!’ Kárshinás answered, ‘All this success is not attributable to the goodness of my plans and the excellence of my deliberations, but the splendour of the good fortune and the felicitous auspices of the king lent their aid in this matter. And they have said, ‘If a party form the design of doing a thing, and a body of people take steps in any enterprise, that one will attain his object who is distinguished by a high sense of honor; for it is the peculiar property of honor that the affair of its possessor progresses; and if all are equal in this point, he will be successful who has the greatest firmness and sincerity of purpose; and if they be on the same footing in this respect too, that one will win the end in view, whose friends and allies are most numerous; and if here also there be no difference, his will be the triumph, who is aided by fortune and befriended by destiny.
The king said, ‘They thought not so much of us, and did not imagine that we could be designing to revenge ourselves, for they saw that we were few, and they accounted us weak.’ Kárshinás replied, ‘There are four things, a little of which must be thought a great deal. The first is fire, a little of which is as mischievous in burning as a great deal. The second is debt, since the shame of being dunned for one dirham is the same as for a thousand dínárs. The third is sickness, for, though the health may be but little disturbed, yet its concomitants are debility and want of spirits. The fourth is an enemy, who, though he may be weak and contemptible, will in the end effect his purpose. And I have heard that a Sparrow in spite of its feeble condition, obtained vengeance on a powerful snake.’ The king asked, ‘How was that?’
Kárshinás said, ‘They have related that two sparrows had made their nest in the roof of a house; and, contenting themselves with a single grain, so lived. Once on a time they had young ones, and both the mother and father used to go out in search of food for their support; and what they procured, they made up into grains and dropped into their crops. One day, the male Sparrow had gone out somewhere. When he came back, he beheld the female sparrow fluttering in the greatest distress around the nest, while she uttered piteous cries. He exclaimed, ‘Sweet friend! what movements are these, which I behold in thee?’ She replied,
How shall I not lament, since, when I returned after a moment’s absence, I saw a huge snake come and prepare to devour my offspring, though I poured forth piteous cries and said,
It was all in vain, for the snake said, ‘Thy sigh will have no effect upon my dark-mirrored scales.’ I replied, ‘Dread this, that I and the father of these children will gird up the waist of vengeance, and will exert ourselves to the utmost for thy destruction.’ The snake laughed and said,
And I, since I have been in nowise able to oppose him, raise these cries, and no one heeds them.
And that cruel oppressor has devoured my young, and has also taken his rest in the nest.’ When the male Sparrrow heard this story, his frame was wrung with anguish; and the fire of regret for the loss of his offspring fell on his soul. At this moment, the master of the house was engaged in lighting his lamp; and, holding in his hand a match, dipped in grease and lighted, was about to put it into the lamp-holder. The Sparrow flew and snatched the match from his hand and threw it into the nest. The master of the house, through fear that the fire would catch to the roof, and that the consequences would be most pernicious, immediately ran up on the terrace, and began clearing away the nest from beneath, in order to put out the fire. The snake beheld in front the danger of the fire, and heard above the sound of the pickaxe. It put out its head from a hole which it had near the roof, and no sooner did it do so, than it received a blow on its head from the pickaxe.
And the moral of this fable is, that the snake despised its enemy, and made no account of him, until in the end that enemy pounded his head with the stone of vengeance,
The king said, ‘The successful management of this affair, and the downfall of our foes, was through the blessing of thy counsel, and the happy influence of thy loyalty. And in every affair in which I have relied on thy word the result has developed itself well and favorably. Whoever commits the reins of the management of important affairs to a wise vazír, the hand of reverse never reaches the skirt of his good-fortune and the foot of calamity never circles round the region of his happiness; and thus it has happened to me from the excellence of thy judgment and wisdom.
And of all thy good qualities this is the most perfect, that though thou hast remained for a long time in the enemy’s dwelling; neither did thy tongue utter anything at which they could take offence, nor did any action spring from thee which could occasion aversion in them, or distrust.’ He replied, ‘O King!
For I had no pattern in all that I did, save the king’s good qualities and virtuous habits, and what I borrowed, to the extent of my abilities, from the imperial virtues, that I made the exemplar of my own actions, and, Praise be to God! in the king are combined excellence of judgment and correctness of deliberation, with dignity, and majesty, and valor. Nor do the minutest parts of an affair remain hid from him, nor is the place for haste and delay, nor the suitable time for mildness and wrath, concealed from him. In the commencement of every undertaking, the measures that are expedient for to-day and to-morrow, and the steps requisite for the present and future conjunctures, are perceived by him; and he is cognizant of the modes of remedying the consequences thereof; and at no time, neglecting to be cautious, does he let slip the dignity of the state and the reputation of the Government. And whoever of his own choice enters upon hostility with such a king draws with a thousand cords death upon himself, and repels life from himself by a thousand removes.
The king said, ‘During this long interval of thy absence, I have neither tasted sweetness in my food and drink, nor have I enjoyed my sleep or repose; and now, praise be to God!
Kárshinás said, ‘Of a truth whoever suffers from the calamity of a powerful enemy and a victorious foe, distinguishes not between night and day, and light and darkness; nor discerns his foot from his head, nor his slipper from his turban, until he is liberated from him. And the wise have said, ‘Until the sick man is completely cured, he derives no pleasure from his food, nor does the porter rest until he has set down the heavy burthen from his back, nor does the lover find ease till he attains to the happiness of union with his mistress, nor is the fatigue of the traveler abated till he alights at the station, nor does the frightened man breathe in comfort until he is freed from his powerful enemy.
The king said, ‘What view didst thou take of the qualities and character of their king in the battle and at the social board?’ Kárshinás replied, ‘His actions were based on presumption and self-conceit, and pride and indulgence. He neither possessed any share of right reflection nor did he distinguish right judgment from erroneous projects, and all his followers were like him, save one person who strongly urged my death.’ The king asked, ‘What was the proof of his understanding and wisdom?’ Kárshinás replied, ‘In that his settled opinion was that I should be slain; and in truth that opinion was combined with right reasoning. Secondly, that he withheld not his advice from his master, though he knew that he would not hear him, and in offering his advice, he preserved the bounds of respect.’ The king asked, ‘What is the etiquette to be observed in advising kings?’ Kárshinás answered, ‘Those who address monarchs should speak with courtesy and humility, and should incline from bluntness and roughness towards benignity and gentleness, and having shown the most perfect consideration for the honor of their lord, should not exhibit boldness and audacity; and if in his actions or words—any fault is observable—should employ words of true but kind admonition, and use sweet illustrations and fascinating stories, and recount in the midst of the tale the faults of others—and the vazír of the king of the owls possessed all these qualities, and omitted not one particle in this respect; and I heard with my own ears, that he said to the king, ‘Dominion is a lofty station and elevated rank. One cannot by one’s own endeavor set the foot of desire on that step, nor can one reach that degree save by the aid of fortune and the assistance of destiny; and since it is attainable only by these fortunate coincidences we ought to hold it dear, and show strenuous exertion for retaining its laws and preserving its customs by justice and equity.
And now it is more in accordance with a right course to avoid carelessness in action, and not to look superciliously on measures of importance, since the permanence of a state and the continuance of good-fortune are attainable only by four things. By perfect caution, which beholds the face of to-morrow in the mirror of to-day; and by a universal fortitude, against whose resolve weakness and infirmity make no way; and a right-aiming judgment, which swerves not from the path of moderation towards error; and by a keen sword, which, like the world-consuming lightning, casts fire into the stacked corn of the life of its opponent.
He said all this and no one heeded his words, and his advice was not honored with acceptance.
Neither did they derive any benefit from his wisdom and sagacity, nor did he himself escape from that calamity by his own intelligence and ability. And here the truth of the subtle saying, ‘There is no counsel to him who is not obeyed,’ was thoroughly demonstrated.
This is the story of being cautious of the deceitful snares and treacherous frauds of an enemy. For although he may be extremely humble, and abase himself much; nevertheless, it is far removed from the path of wisdom to be deluded thereby. For a single lone crow, in spite of his weakness and feebleness, in that manner chastised powerful and numerous enemies; and this happened in consequence of their weakness of mind and poverty of understanding. Otherwise, had those owls possessed a particle of prudence, that crow would never have attained his object, nor have seen, even in sleep, the face of that triumph. And it behoves a wise man to survey this history with the eye of self-admonition; and to hear this ensample with the ear of understanding; and to know of a truth that it is not right to place confidence in an enemy, nor to despise a foe, however contemptible he may seem; and however much he may hear his enemy boast of attachment, or perceive him adduce causes for the confirmation of friendship, not to be elated thereby.
And there is a second moral in this story which bids us to secure sincere friends and loyal and attached companions, since that may be regarded as the most profitable of treasures and the most advantageous of transactions. For the friendship of Kárshinás and his aid and assistance issued in such results to the crows, that they arrived from the dangerous place of terror and dismay at the station of security and peace. And if any one show himself to be equitable and amiable, know that he may at the same time have zealous friends, and may also pluck away the skirt of avoidance from perfidious foes. And thus he will arrive at all he could desire and at the summit of his wishes, ‘And God is the Lord of successful assistance.’
The king said to the Bráhman, ‘Thou hast narrated the story of being cautious of the deceit of enemies, and not being beguiled by their words, and of guarding oneself from the injury of the hypocrisy and fraud of foes, and from the calamity of the perfidious and insidious schemes of enemies although they should appear in the guise of friends. My request now is, that thou wouldest explain the story of one who exerted himself to gain a thing, and after having obtained the object of his desire, indulging in carelessness, threw away what he had gained.’ The Bráhman opened the mouth of praise, and recited from the page of eulogy these panegyrical verses.
It is not concealed from the penetrating mind of the king, which is the happy site of infinite benevolence, that it is easier to acquire than to preserve a thing. For many precious things may be obtained through a happy contingency and the assistance of fortune, and the aid of destiny; without the woe of exertion and the pain of labor. The retention of them, however, save by clear counsels and proper measures, is impracticable; and whoever is destitute of the ornament of caution and foresight, and who does not370 walk vigorously in the plain of good sense and a regard for consequences; what he has acquired soon falls into the plain of spoliation and ruin, and nothing is left in the grasp of his option but regret and contrition. Just in this manner the friendship of one so attached as the Monkey, was gained without the trouble of labor and exertion, by the Tortoise, and through folly and ignorance was lost by him; and the wound of his fatuity and stupidity found no healing-plaster.’ The king inquired, ‘How was that?’
The Bráhman said, ‘They have related that in one of the islands of the Indian Ocean371 there were many monkeys, and they had a king whose name was Kárdán.371a The foundation of his empire was raised on much awe, and a perfect administration of justice; and the basis of his grandeur was strengthened by a will which brooked no delay, and a justice dealt out to all. His subjects, through the glad influence of his beneficence, placed the side of happy repose on the couch of security and peace, and the inhabitants of that country loosed the tongue of benediction and propitiation in praise of his unlimited liberality.
He lived a very long time in happiness and prosperity, and passed from the spring of youth to the autumn of old age and weakness. Then the symptoms of decrepitude beginning to show themselves in his members, cheerfulness began to pack up its marching equipage to leave his heart, and light to quit his eye; and the plant of vigor, which had produced the fruits of desire, began, under the Samúm of debility and helplessness, to wither, and the lamp of mirth was extinguished by the violent blast of calamity and trouble, and the carpet of pleasure was folded up by the invasion of diseases and sufferings.
And the custom of perfidious fortune is no other than this, that it changes the freshness of the rose-garden of youth into the dismal thorn-thicket of old age and makes turbid the sweet water371b of wealth with the rubbish of the abasement of poverty. The happiness of its day is not separable from the suffering of its gloomy night; and its atmosphere, which shows at first so clear, is not without the dust of damage and injury.
This old husband-slaying beldam, which they call the world, presents herself to mortals in the apparel of a young bride, and with her fleeting jewels and untrustworthy ornaments, brings the heart of foolish simpletons into the snare of her love.
And notwithstanding that she makes all this outward adornment a means of deceiving the victims of the plain of supineness, and employs this false stock of allurements for the demented ones of the bázár of appetite and lust; yet none of those who have bound her with the nuptial knot have succeeded in placing the hand of desire in the bosom of their wish, and not one of all who have brought372 themselves into the net of union with her have for a single night reaped enjoyment according to the wish of their heart.
The puerile ones of the end of the street, ‘This present life is no other than a play, and a vain amusement,’372a lie in her calamitous net, and are attached to her bewitching person, and are ignorant of the foulness of her interior, and the falseness of her promises, and the baseness of her nature, and the impurity of her disposition.
And a wise man, the eyes of whose heart have been enlightened by the jeweled collyrium, ‘The world is a bridge, pass over it,372b but do not repair it,’ gives no heed to its fleeting and delusive tales, nor sets his heart on the pursuit of its vain dignities and useless riches, and since he knows the instability of the world, and the uncertainty of its possessions, he turns his face to search for enduring happiness.
In short, the rumor of the old age and decrepitude of Kárdán being spread abroad, his royal dignity and kingly awe suffered vast diminution; and a complete infraction and absolute weakening found way to the pillars of his princely majesty, and royal power and renown.
It happened that one of the kinsmen of the king, a blooming youth, arrived there, on whose countenance were found the tokens of happy fortune, and in whose movements and attitudes the signs of auspicious destiny were conspicuous. When the nobles beheld in him suitableness for the rank of king, and merit deserving the high office of ruler; and observed his vigor in promoting a rigid administration of justice, and in repressing tyranny, and in perfectly arranging the course of indulgence and protection of the people,
they suffered his friendship to take a firm hold of their minds, and having brought their hearts into the bond of obedience and devotion to him, they said to one another,
This blooming youth, the plant of whose existence has obtained its growth on the margin of the rivulet of courtesy, possesses all the qualifications373 to make the garden of the kingdom, through his means, full of foliage and fruit.
And he, too, getting round the soldiery with caresses, and the people with conciliatory demeanor, presented each with a dress of honor suitable to his rank, and gratified them with the glad announcement of his munificent intentions, and with promises of land, and the good tidings of office and promotion; so that by a simultaneous movement of high and low they removed the broken-down old king from his office, and without a struggle or difficulty committed the reins of authority over the kingdom to the grasp of the sway of the young man.
The hapless Kárdán, when he was stripped of the robe of royalty, not being able to endure that indignity, made choice, through hard necessity, of expatriation; and withdrawing himself to the sea-shore took up his abode in an islet which possessed abundance of trees and much fruit, and contenting himself with the fresh and dry fruits which were to be found in that wilderness, consoled himself, saying,
In this manner in that wild spot, adopting the character of resignation, he traversed with the step of abstemiousness the paths of worship and devotion; and night and day employed himself in making up for the time he had spent in the intoxication of sovereign power; and prepared, by penitence and contrition, provision for the road to a future state, and made ready with daily offerings of words and homage to God, a stock for his final journey; and rubbed off with the aid of the dawning light of old age the dimness which is imparted to the mirror of the breast by the darkness of the night of youth.
One day having ascended a fig tree, in which he passed most of his time, he was gathering figs. Suddenly one of them slipped from his paw and fell into the water, and the noise it made reaching the ear of the Monkey-king his frame thrilled with pleasure, and delight pervaded him. Every minute, to gratify himself in that way, he kept on throwing another into the water, and amused himself with the sound. It happened that a Tortoise had come on his travels from the other side of the water to that island, and stopping under that tree, was wishing to repose there for a day or two, and afterwards return to his wife and family. In short, at that very time when the Monkey was eating the figs, the Tortoise was in the water under the tree. Every time that a fig dropped into the water he devoured it with the greatest avidity, and fancied that the Monkey was throwing it in for him, and that he thought fit to shew this winning behaviour and kindness for his sake. Whereupon he reflected thus, ‘Here is a person who, without previous acquaintance, shews this beneficence towards me. Now, if the link of friendship and the bond of amity should be established between us, it is evident what a vast amount of favor and kindness would be manifested by him. And putting aside374 worldly advantages, the companionship of such a person, in whose nature such virtues and admirable qualities are bound up, and on the pages of whose condition the pen of grace has written the verse of generosity and liberality, is one of the invaluable prizes of fortune. And assuredly, with the furbisher of his society, the dust of ennui may be effaced from the mirror of the heart; and by the light of his presence, the shades of disaster may be removed from the atmosphere of the bosom.
He then resolved on seeking the society of the Monkey; and, raising his voice, offered the customary salutations, as is prescribed. Next he represented the wishes he had formed for his friendship and companionship. The Monkey returned a favorable answer, and evinced the utmost rapture and the strongest inclination for his society, saying, ‘To shew an eagerness for amicable intercourse with comrades, and to seek strenuously to increase the number of our friends, is a praiseworthy quality and an amiable attribute; and whoever has a real friend and a pious brother derives exaltation and success in both worlds.
The Tortoise said, ‘I aim at thy friendship and companionship, but I know not if I possess the requisite fitness for it.’ The Monkey said, ‘The wise have furnished scales for trying friendship, and have pronounced that although it is bad to be friendless altogether, yet it is not every one who is suited to be a friend; and friendship ought to be formed with one of three kinds of persons. The first kind consists of men of learning and devotion, since, by the blessing of their society, happiness may be obtained in this world and the next. Secondly, people of amiable qualities, who will conceal the errors of a friend, and will not withhold their advice from a comrade. Thirdly, such people as are devoid of selfishness and greediness, and who base their friendship on sincerity and true attachment. And it is a divine precept to shun the friendship of three classes. The first is the profligate and debauched, whose energies are expended in gratifying their carnal appetites, and whose companionship is neither a cause of happiness in this world, nor a means of obtaining mercy in the next. The second class is the false and traitorous, whose society is an excruciating torment, and whose converse is a huge misfortune. They will be ever speaking untruths of thee to others, and will bring from others to thee alarming and mischievous messages contrary to the truth. The third class is the fatuous and imbecile, in whom no confidence can be placed for securing advantage and in repelling injuries; and it often happens that what they have thought to be essentially good and advantageous, is absolutely bad and injurious.
And the apophthegm which they have uttered on this subject, viz., that ‘A wise enemy is better than an ignorant friend,’ may signify that when a foe is adorned with the ornament of good sense; he, being invested with foresight, does not inflict a wound till he sees a fitting opportunity; and hence, by observing in his movements and posture, the symptoms of revenge, it is possible to guard oneself against him. But a friend who is destitute of any share of the riches of wisdom, although he may attempt to make himself useful in deliberating on the measures advisable to be adopted, will render no service. And it is probable that the person he attempts to befriend will be caught in some dangerous strait through his defective judgment and mistaken opinions. Just as, from the Monkey that stood sentinel, it almost happened that the vessel of the life of the king of Kashmír fell into the whirlpool of destruction; and if the Thief, who was a wise enemy, had not cried out, it would have been impossible for that affair to have been remedied.’ The Tortoise inquired, ‘How was that?’
Kárdán said, ‘I have heard that in the country of Kashmír there was a great king, who possessed such a treasure that it was too heavy even for mighty mountains to support, and such an army that the thought of reckoning its numbers never entered the idea of the intellect which observes the slightest minutiæ. He had set up the banners of empire and success on the dome of the azure sky, and had inscribed the verses of his justice and benevolence to his subjects on the page of the revolutions of night and day.
And this king had a Monkey upon whom he used to place reliance in perilous circumstances, and there was no point of royal bounty which he failed to observe in rearing him. From the excessive attachment with which the Monkey was indued, he was distinguished by the king’s special favor. Every night he held in his hand a dagger, brilliant as a drop of water, and kept guard at the pillow of the king, nor did he let slip from his hand the clew of that service, until the tumult of the rise of the true morn roused from the bed of sloth the careless slumberers on the couch of pride.377 It so happened that a clever thief from a distant city came into that country, and one night determined that he would shew his skill and get some booty. Putting on the dress that sharpers wear, he traversed the streets accordingly. With the same intentions, another thief, who knew but little and was inexperienced, had come forth. Owing to their homogeneousness they joined each other, and he that was the foreigner asked, by way of taking advice, ‘To which quarter should I go? and whose house should I undermine?’377a The unwise thief replied, ‘In the stable of the Ra’is377b of the city there is a fat and fleet ass, and he values him exceedingly, so that to keep him safe he has put a strong chain on his fore and hind legs, and has set two slaves over him. Our advisable course is to go first and steal that ass, and at the corner of the market-place of the city there is the shop of a glass-blower, into which we will break, and bringing out new and valuable glasses will lade them on that ass, and come back with our wishes accomplished.’ The clever thief stood amazed at his words, and was about to cross question him well about the matter, when all of a sudden, the night-patrol made his appearance. The clever thief dexterously concealed himself behind a wall, and the fool was taken. The watch asked him. ‘Where wast thou going?’ He replied, I am a thief, and my intention was to steal the ass of the Ra’is, and break into the shop of a glass-blower, take his glasses, and carry them off home.’ The patrol laughed and said, ‘Bravo! this is the sort of thief we want, who for an ass that is so watched puts his life in the balista of calamity, and who thrusts himself into danger for glasses, ten of which they sell for a dáng.377c
If thou wert to undertake such perils for the treasures of the king, then indeed reason would hold thee excused.
With these words he tied his hands and dragged him away to prison. The clever thief thus received a warning frem the intellect of the foolish one, and deriving some experience too from what the patrol said, soliloquized as follows, ‘This thief was an ignorant friend to me, and the patrol was a wise enemy, and that friend by his folly was plunging me into the vortex of destruction, and but for this wise enemy, the affair would have passed beyond my control, and ended in my being put to death. Now, just as the patrol said, it behoves me to make for the treasury of the king. Perhaps my main object and my fullest wishes may then be gained’ He then went very softly under the palace of the king, and began to make a mine, and the livelong night, in his covetous desire for gold went on cutting through the stone with his steel instrument.
As yet the sharper that travels by night, the sun, had not completed boring a passage beneath the wall of the horizon, when the thief’s mine was finished and he emerged at the spot where was the bedchamber of the king. There he beheld the monarch sleeping on a golden throne, and a variety of costly furniture around the royal pillow, and divers sorts of gems scattered over the borders of the imperial carpets. Wax candles, white as camphor378a were lighted up like the countenances of wealthy men of rank, and were consuming the poor moth, as the hearts of fasting darveshes is consumed by the flame of despair.
The thief looked about him and beheld the monkey with a poniard in his hand, standing at the king’s pillow and casting vigilant glances to the left and right. The thief was astounded at this sight and said, ‘How has a contemptible creature such as this, to whom it would be too much honor to climb up a lamp-post, set his foot on the carpet of the prince? and whence has a sharp sword, with which is bound up the stability of the realm and nation, fallen into the hands of one so unstable?’ The thief, immersed in the ocean of these meditations, and overwhelmed in the vortex of these cogitations, was looking on, when, on a sudden, some ants fell from the ceiling of the apartment upon the breast of the king, which was the mirror that adorned the world, and began to crawl about, and the irritation of this, affected the heart of the king. The monarch, his slumber unbroken, yet sensible of the tickling of the ants, smote his hand upon his bosom, and the Monkey ran to that side and perceived the ants that were crawling on the king’s chest. The fire of wrath was kindled in his breast, and he exclaimed, ‘Whence comes it that in spite of a guardian such as I am, the star of whose eye, like the rolling planets, has never, any night, beheld the face of sleep, these dusky ants have the audacity to set foot on the breast of my lord?’ Then stimulated by his ignorant zeal, and enraged at the ants,379 he drew his dagger, that he might make a blow at the king’s breast and slay the insects. The thief gave a shout, calling out, ‘Rash churl! hold thy hand or thou wilt overturn a world from its foundation.’ With these words he leaped forward and tightly grasped the monkey’s hand which held the dagger. The king was roused from his slumbers by the shout of the thief, and beholding this posture of affairs, asked the thief who he was? The latter replied, ‘I am thy wise enemy, who had come hither in quest of thy wealth and the attainment of my own ends. And had I paused for a moment in defending thee, this kind ally and attached friend would have saturated thy chamber with gore.’ When the king had learnt the state of the case, he prostrated himself in gratitude for his escape, and said, ‘Aye, truly! when infinite grace befriends us, the thief becomes the guardian and the foe a friend!’ He then rewarded the thief and admitted him among his favorites, and having chained the monkey, sent him to the stable. Thus a thief, who in hope of a treasure, girt up his waist for a night enterprise, and made a breach in the wall of the treasury, inasmuch as he was robed in the vest of wisdom, had the crown of fortune placed upon his head; while a monkey who thought himself the friend and confidant of the secrets of the king, in that the thorn of ignorance adhered to his skirt, was stripped of the apparel of honor.
And the moral of this story is, that it behoves a wise man to pave the way to friendship with the wise and to flee for leagues from the society of ignorant friends.
When the Tortoise had heard this story, which comprised much useful instruction, he said, ‘O ocean of wisdom! thou hast adorned with the princely gem of knowledge the ear of my heart. Now be pleased to recount how many kinds of friends there are.’ Kárdán said, ‘The wise have pronounced that of people who pretend to be friends, there are three sorts. The one kind are like food, since their presence is indispensable, and without the survey of the brilliance of their beauty the taper of social intercourse gives no light.
And another class resemble medicine, being such as are occasionally required; while a third sort are like pain, as being of no use at any time. And these last are the hypocrites and impostors, who have a face and a tongue for thee, and who yet do not quit the path of agreement with thy enemies.
Wherefore it behoves a wise man to shun this kind of enemies with friendly faces, and to flee for refuge to sincere friends and cordial companions.
The Tortoise said, ‘What procedure is one to adopt in order to fulfil all the requirements of friendship?’ The Monkey answered, ‘Those who are adorned with six qualities, there are no short-comings in their friendship. The first is he, who, when he discovers a fault, does not try to divulge it. The second is, he who, if he becomes acquainted with a virtue, magnifies it tenfold. The third is he who, if he does thee a favor, does not always bear it in mind. The fourth is he who, if he receives a benefit from thee, does not forget it. The fifth is he who, if he sees thee commit a fault, does not twit thee with it. The sixth is he who, if thou excusest thyself, accepts the excuse. And whosoever is not indued with these qualities, is totally unfit for friendship; and if thou choosest to become his friend, repentance will come at last. And most people are devoid of these qualities, and consequently a true friend is like the philosopher’s stone; and attachment without a flaw, resembles the ’Anḳa, whose flight is towards the nest of non-existence.
When the conversation had proceeded thus far, the Tortoise said, ‘I opine that I shall plant my foot firmly in friendship, and not omit a single particle of the rites of companionship. If, then, thou wilt honor me with the exaltation of thy friendship, and place on the neck of my heart the chain of obligation, which will abide till the resurrection, it will not be alien to thy beneficent character.’ The Monkey, with courteous demeanour, descended from the tree, and the Tortoise likewise stepped out of the water under the tree, and they embraced one another, and pledged themselves to brotherhood. Thus both the horror of his solitary life was removed from the heart of the Monkey, and the Tortoise, too, was succored by his amity. Every day the plant of unity sprouted more abundantly between them, and the garden of companionship and attachment gained an increase of adornment and freshness. So that the Monkey forgot his kingdom and sovereignty, and the Tortoise, too, failed to remember his family and home.
A long time passed thus, and the period of the absence of the Tortoise was protracted. His partner became anxious, and intense anxiety and boundless solicitude found way to her, and life-consuming separation burnt up her heart with the fire of regret.
At length she introduced the subject of her regret for the absence of her spouse, and the tale of her love, to one of her own race.
I know not in what quarter my poor spouse has been stayed in the mire, or in what slough the foot of his heart has sunk down. Would that by the rising of the moon of his return the gloom of the evening of separation were dispersed! and that by the manifestation of the display of his beauty, the love-thoughts, which tend to madness, were banished!
When her companion beheld all this distress of mind, she said, ‘O sister! if thou wilt not take it ill, or suspect me of evil motives, I will acquaint thee with his condition.’ The wife of the Tortoise replied, ‘Kind friend, and confidante of my hidden secrets! how can I possibly suspect thy words, or think they proceed ftom interested motives? and how could I meet thy advice with evil surmisings and opposition? and it is long since I have tested the coin of thy friendship on the touchstone of trial, and found it unalloyed.
The friend rejoined, ‘I have heard that thy husband has happened to form a friendship and good understanding with a monkey, and dedicating his heart and soul to his amity, regards his society as surpassing all other blessings, and intercourse with him as superior to all other delights; and allays with the water of his proximity the fire of regret for separation from thee, and solaces his time with the beauty of this friend in exchange for thy image.’ When the female tortoise heard these words, the fire of jealousy spread through her brain, and she exclaimed,
O cruel fortune! thou hast given to the wind of dispersion the harvest of my peace of mind, and hast destroyed, with the scorching blast of sorrow, the field of my hopes. Thou hast made the friend, who was the companion of my sad heart, the associate of others, and hast thrown into their embrace the beloved one, with joy at whose sight I used to depict on the carpet of pleasure the painting of my wish. And thou wouldest imagine that the faithless one had never read from the page of association the writing of love, and wouldest say that that apparent stranger had never in his whole life inhaled from the garden of friendship the scent of attachment.
Her friend rejoined, ‘Now what was to be, has been; it is useless to indulge in vain regrets. A plan must be devised which shall comprise the restoration of thy tranquillity.’ They then busied themselves with perusing the book of artifices, an account of the measures of which is rendered by the verse ‘surely your cunning is great,’382 and find no plan better than the destruction of the Monkey. They therefore schemed how to contrive this; and the spouse of the tortoise, at the suggestion of her intimate friend, feigned herself sick, and sent one to the Tortoise with this message,
The Tortoise, having received the intelligence of the indisposition and sickness of his spouse, asked permission of the Monkey to go home, and renew the duty of visiting his wife and children. The Monkey said, ‘O friend, partner of my cares! thou must with all possible speed favor me again with thy society, and not leave poor me in this retired solitude alone and friendless; and, indeed, the grief of being parted from thee will not leave me alone, nor will the pain of separation suffer me to be without a companion.
The Tortoise replied, ‘Kind friend and solace of my soul! a necessary journey has befallen me, and an event has occurred which leaves me without option; otherwise, I should never of my free and willing choice remove myself from thy society, nor would I be absent for a single moment from attending on thee by my own desire.
Then, willing or not, he bade farewell to the Monkey, and turned his face homeward; and, when the familiar fatherland was honored and adorned with the step of the Tortoise, friends and kinsfolk came round and raised their shouts of welcome to the star ’Ayyúḳ383; and the Tortoise, with a party of his intimate friends, entered his abode. He beheld his wife stretched on the bed of death; and on the garden of her cheek, instead of a nosegay of the red Arghawán-flowers, the yellow rose expanding.
Although he laid before her the offering of salutation, he was not honored with the boon of reciprocation; and however much he paved the way with courtesy and tenderness, he discovered no sign of his being heeded; nor did his blandishment and soft address reach the place of acceptance; nor his kindness and caresses yield any result.
He then inquired of her adopted sister who had appointed herself to the attendance on her sick bed, ‘Why does the sufferer not open her lips to speak, nor disclose to me, distracted as I am, what she has on her mind?’ The bosom-friend heaved a cold sigh and said,
How can an illness which is irremediable, and sufferings for which a cure is hopeless, obtain leave from the heart to breathe a word? And by what energies could it be furnished with the means of conversation?’ The Tortoise began to weep, and was excessively distressed, saying, ‘What medicine is this which cannot be found in this country, and which we cannot succeed in obtaining by contrivance and artifice? Speak with all despatch! that I may traverse sea and land in search of it, and seek for it from far and near, and from friend and stranger. If, like a fish, I must descend to the bottom of the deep, I will proceed taking steps with my head; and if, like the moon, I must hasten to the summit of the sky, I will mount by the noose of contrivance to the battlements of heaven. I will freely give my life and heart in quest of this remedy, and devote this essence of water and clay, (which is a metaphor for the continuance of existence), in order to gain this cure.
The waitress at the sick bed replied, ‘This is a kind of pain which is peculiar to women, and which takes place in the womb, and admits of no cure save the heart of a monkey.’ The Tortoise answered, ‘Whence can this be procured, and how can it be obtained?’ The bosom-friend who originated this guileful device, and was the real agent in proposing the remedy for the disease, replied, ‘We, too, knew that the procuring of this sanative would be difficult, and the toil of securing this remedy which resembles the elixir-vitæ, would be great, nay, immense. We therefore sent for thee, in order, in fact, that thou mightest take the last sight of thy faithful friend and say thy last farewell, since to this unfortunate there is no other hope of her pain being alleviated, nor is the blessing of health in any other manner recoverable.
The Tortoise was grieved and agonised beyond measure; and however much he revolved the means of securing a remedy, he saw no escape save in killing the monkey, and felt himself compelled to regard his friend with greed. Clear-counselling reason loosed the tongue of admonition, and said, ‘O ungenerous one! with perfidious hand to destroy the former basis of friendship and unanimity which had been firmly laid down between thee and the Monkey, is far removed from generosity and honor.
And dark passions began to reproach and tempt him, saying, ‘To abandon the cause of a wife, on whom is dependent the prosperity of the house and the prop of maintenance, and the means of living and the safeguard of treasure and property; and thereby to observe the regard due to a friend who has no homogeneousness with thee, nor affinity to thee, appears to be removed from a due regard to the transactions of life.
At last, his affection for his wife prevailing, he resolved to shatter with the stone of treachery the candle of good faith, and to make the scale of loyal attachment kick the balance through fraud and deceit. He, unhappy being that he was, knew not that the mark of insincerity is the brand of misery, the impression of which is not found save on the face of the condition of the ill-starred, and the quality of promise-breaking is a character of infamy which is not inscribed except on the tablet of the forehead of the vile. And whoever has, by perfidy and hypocrisy, reached the degree of notoriety, no man of piety desires his converse; and he that is noted for faithlessness and inconstancy is admitted by no one to the rank of acceptance; nay, people consider it necessary to shun meeting him, or holding conversation with him, and regard it as expedient to disown his actions and all knowledge of his affairs.385a
After the Tortoise had formed this design against the Monkey, he saw that until he could get him to his own house, it would be impossible to secure his object. For this purpose he returned to the Monkey, whose longing to see him was quite overpowering, and whose desire to behold him exceeded the bounds of restraint. As soon as his eyes fell on the beauty of his friend, from the excess of his delight, he commenced, in joy-exciting strains, this song,
Then after warm inquiries concerning the welfare of the Tortoise, he requested that the condition of his children and relations might be made known to him. The Tortoise replied, ‘Pain at separation from thee had entirely overpowered my heart, so that I could not derive pleasure from the warmth386 of my meeting with them, and gladness and mirth displayed not themselves at the companionship of my wife and family. Every moment that I bethought myself of thy solitude, and the separation which has befallen thee from thy followers and retainers, and that I reflected on thy friendlessness, and the isolation from thy kingdom and prosperous fortune, in which thou hast been involved; my pleasure became embittered, and the clearness of the draught of happiness was discolored, and I said to myself, ‘O ungenerous one! is it allowable for thee to sit here in the expanse of the garden of ease on the cushion of enjoyment, while thy faithful friend, in the thorny brake of exile, makes his dark couch upon the earth?
Therefore I have come with the strong hope that thou wilt think it right to honor me, and that thou wilt adorn and gratify my house and children with the sight of thee, in order that my kinsfolk may recognize the rank I hold in thy friendship, and that my friends and connections may be proud and elated thereby. Thus both my heart may be soothed by union with thee, and, at the same time, my position may derive lustre from thy beauty, so that, by the good fortune of thy footsteps, my dignity may be elevated, while thou wilt experience no abatement of estimation in accepting my invitation.
Moreover I desire to seat in thy presence a party at the banqueting-table, and thus, perhaps, I may in some degree discharge what is due to thy virtues.’ The Monkey said, ‘Forbear these ceremonies, for when the chain of friendship is firmly riveted, and the knot of affection and companionship is rightly adjusted, there is no necessity for undergoing the trouble of entertainment and the ceremonial usages of general hospitality, as persons of formality and etiquette observe them. For they have said, ‘He is the worst of brothers for whom ceremony is required.’ Yes! truly he is the worst of friends and of brethren for whom ceremony is necessary, and for whom the load of troublous etiquette must be endured.
And with regard to the reciprocal friendship and amity which exist on my part towards thee, if thou observest an excess with reference to thee, for that too, be not sorrowful, since the pride I feel in thy virtues is greater, and my need of thy support and sympathy more urgent, inasmuch as I am cast far from my country and home, and kindred and dominions, and servants and retinue; and am calamitously involved in the disgrace of exile and the abasement of a solitary life and loneliness. Had not God Most High, by the blessing of thy society, conferred a fresh favor on me and bestowed on me the boon of thy friendship in a distressful and forlorn state such as mine then was, who would have extricated me from the injurious claws of fortune? or who would have plucked me from the hand of the affliction of separation from my friends?
Wherefore by the force of these circumstances, thy claim upon me is greater and thy kindness towards me more abundant, and this being the case there is no occasion for this trouble and irksome ceremony; and in friendship the purity of faith is the thing to be relied on, not the preparation of the materials for entertainment; and the offering of mental gratification is what is looked for, not the arrangement of substantial fare.
The Tortoise said, ‘O companion of real sympathy! and O friend and partaker of my secrets! my object in inviting thee is not that same regard for the requisites of entertainment and the preparation of eatables and drinkables, but rather that separation should decamp from between us, and that the ennobling privilege of unbroken intercourse should be secured.
Should the distance of east and west387 intervene between two lovers, even then, inasmuch as their solace is in the remembrance of each other and the mutual happiness of their hearts in picturing each other’s beauty, their actual distance will not prove a veil in the road of their spiritual meeting, and they will incessantly gaze on the incomparable beauty of each other, with the vision of their mind and the mind of their vision.
And a grave authority has said with regard to this,
The Tortoise again applied the arrow of entreaty to the bow of supplication, and began to launch it at the target of his desire, and, at length, aided by the strength of his good fortune, reached the goal of his wishes. The Monkey [at last] said, ‘It is a canon in the code of honor to seek to gratify a friend, and I will not remain at this distance from mine, but regard as a blessing this pilgrimage to thy brethren and connections. However, it is a matter of difficulty for me to pass over water, and to cross this sea which intervenes between the wilderness, where I am, and thy island is for me an impossibility.’ The Tortoise replied, ‘Set thy mind at ease, for I will take thee on my back and convey thee to that island, in which are found both security and happiness, and plenty and peace.’ In short, inasmuch as the Tortoise employed these gentle words, the Monkey desisted from, his opposition, and, tamed by the lash of flattering and courteous expressions, surrendered to him the reins of control. So the Tortoise taking the Monkey on his back, set out homewards. When he arrived in the midst of the sea, the vessel of his mind sank down in the vortex of meditation, and he reflected, ‘What thing is this that I have taken in hand? and what result can it have but dishonor?
For the sake of weak-minded women to adopt perfidious measures towards friends completely wise, is not the wont of those of a liberal spirit; and to let the clue of God’s favor slip from the hands to please the devil, is a source of damage and loss.
In this manner he halted in the midst of the water, and disputed with himself, and the signs of irresolution were apparent in his movements. This gave rise to suspicion in the mind of the Monkey, and he asked, ‘What is the cause of thy pondering? Perchance thou beginnest to find the carrying of me difficult, and hence, being overloaded, thou proceedest so deliberately?’ The Tortoise answered, ‘Whence sayest thou this, and from what dost thou draw this inference?’ The Monkey replied, ‘The marks of thy contest with thyself, and thy embarrassed purpose are evident. Perhaps if thou wouldest acquaint me and bestow on me the honor of an explanation, thou mayest by the aid of my advice, which is worthy of confidence, emerge from the whirlpool of perplexity to the shore of safety.’ The Tortoise answered, ‘Thou sayest truly—I was plunged in meditation, and all my doubt is, that as this is the first time that thou bestowest on my abode the good fortune of thy visit, and my wife is sick, as a natural consequence our domestic arrangements will not be free from confusion, and the due rites of hospitality and obligations of civility, will not be discharged, and this will be a cause of shame and discredit.
The Monkey said, ‘Since the sincerity of thy purpose is certain, and thy eagerness in seeking to gratify me, well ascertained, if thou shouldest postpone this ceremony and omit the compliments and observances which among strangers it is the duty of hosts to pay, it would certainly seem more agreeable to the course of friendship and amity.
The Tortoise proceeded a little further, and stopped and began afresh to ponder the same thing, and said, ‘Women urge me to break my promise and my faith, and I know that sincerity is not to be found in them, and that to expect truth and humanity from them is far removed from the procedure of wise men.
Wherefore, to be deceived by their guile, and to hurry towards unfaithfulness and ungenerous conduct, how can this be done by the followers of rectitude and uprightness? or how can this be practised by men of piety and honesty?’ The Tortoise, busied with these reflections, stopped where he was. This increased the suspicions of the Monkey, and becoming uneasy, he said to himself, ‘When doubt of his friend arises in the heart of any one, he must have recourse to the asylum of counsel; and, gathering up his skirt, must secure himself by courtesy and gentle demeanour. And should that suspicion turn out to be true, he will have preserved himself from the other’s malice and perfidy; while, should it prove false, he will not expose himself to censure, inasmuch as he will have been strict in observing caution and forbearance.
He then called out to the Tortoise, and said, ‘What is the reason that every moment thou givest reins to the courser of thy imagination in the plain of reflection, and makest the diver of thy thought plunge into the ocean of bewilderment?’ The Tortoise replied, ‘O brother! pardon me that the indisposition and illness of my wife, and the distressful condition of my children, owing to their mother’s sickness, keep me absorbed in thought.’ The Monkey rejoined, ‘I knew that thy affliction was on account of the illness of thy wife. In truth, they have said that, ‘To be ill is less grievous than to see illness.’
Now tell me what her disease is, and what is the method of cure? For every ailment there is an appointed remedy, and for every kind of suffering there is a means of cure manifest and distinct. It is necessary that reference be made to physicians of auspicious minds, of fortunate breath and happy footstep, and in whatever way they may direct, exertion must be made for the prescribed remedy.’ The Tortoise replied, ‘For the cure the physicians have pointed out a medicine which is not to be obtained.’ The Monkey inquired, ‘What medicine is that which is not to be found in the shops of druggists, or in the repertories of medicine-vendors? If thou wilt tell me, perhaps I may have knowledge of it, and may furnish a clue to it.’ The Tortoise candidly answered, ‘That rare medicine which has plunged me in the vortex of bewilderment is the heart of a monkey.’ The instant that this word reached the ears of the Monkey, his breast, though in the midst of water, was on flames; and the smoke of despondency ascending to his head, his eyes began to grow dark. By a strong effort of his mind, however, he supported himself, and said, ‘O soul! seest thou not that through a shameful greediness and avidity, thou hast fallen into this dread vortex? and, owing to carelessness and incaution, thou art overtaken in this mighty danger? And I am not the first that has been deceived by the hypocrisy of foes, and has given heed to the speeches of the perfidious, and has been pierced to the heart by an arrow aimed deceitfully by those who pursue their own selfish ends.390
Now I know of no help save stratagem and artifice, nor can I find any aid except in prudence and wise counsel. If, which may God avert! I am cast on the island of the tortoises, there will be a knot in the concatenation of my affairs, which the hand of thought will be weak too to undo. For if I do not resign to them my heart, I shall remain a prisoner, and perish of hunger; and if I wish to fly, I must throw myself into the water; and that plan, too, is rife with destruction. But I deserve a thousand-fold this punishment and requital, in that I left my own happy and secure wilderness without thought of the consequences, and yielding the reins of control to the hands of the tortoise, set my heart on seeing his island.
He then said to the Tortoise, ‘I comprehend the means of curing that virtuous matron, and the remedy for her is in my hands an easy one. Give thyself no anxiety, for our women suffer much from these disorders; and we give them our hearts and suffer nothing from it, but find it quite easy to extract our hearts from within our breasts, and to replace them again. Moreover, we are able to live without them; and I am not in a position to grudge this trifle to thee; for the wise have said, ‘It is not good to be niggardly of four things to four persons. First, one ought not to withhold from kings that which they require for the public weal. Secondly, one ought not to deprive meritorious darveshes of that which they ask in God’s name, for the performance of alms and the providing good deeds. Thirdly, needy scholars, who would desire to obtain the wherewithal for acquiring science, and who advance with the step of sincerity in pursuit thereof, them we ought to assist on their way. Fourthly, we ought not to grudge, or require to be importuned for, that which may be the means of tranquillizing the minds of cordial friends, provided it lies within our reach.’
And hadst thou informed me in my own abode, I would have brought my heart with me, and it would have been a goodly thing indeed if, on my arrival, thy spouse had obtained complete restoration to health. And I have become so weary of my own heart, that it never recurs to my thoughts except with the wish to part from it; and, inasmuch as grief and melancholy have usurped every quarter and part of it, and a throng of troubles have over-run its limits, there is nothing more hard for me to bear than the society of my heart; and I long to sever the cord of connection with it, that I may escape from the thought of my separation from my wife and family, and the grief of the abandonment of my country and wealth; and that my soul may be set free from these excruciating afflictions and consuming horrors.
The Tortoise said, ‘Where is thy heart that thou didst not bring it with thee?’ The Monkey responded, ‘I left it in my house, since it is the custom of my kind, that when they go to visit a friend, and wish the day to pass pleasantly, and the skirt of their enjoyment and mirth to be unreached by the hand of grief, not to take their hearts with them; for that is a gathering-place of pain and affliction, and a source of grief and annoyance. Every moment it stirs up thoughts which trouble the pure fount of enjoyment, and sour the season of mirth and happiness. Thus, too, from its vicissitudes, they have named the heart by a name which signifies change.392 Every instant its inclinations are directed to somewhat new, either of good or ill, gainful or injurious.
And, inasmuch as I was coming to thy house, so much did I wish that I should be thoroughly and perfectly free from solicitude in seeing thee and beholding thy friends and connections that I therefore left my heart there. And very unlucky is it, that I should hear of this means of curing thy chaste spouse, and not have brought my heart with thee. And as thou knowest how I stand in respect of friendship to thee, it is possible that thou mightest excuse me, but the whole body of thy kinsmen and friends will suspect that notwithstanding such previous amicable ties and friendly antecedents which have existed between me and thee, I have grudgingly withheld this trifle, and slight thee in a manner in which no injury would recoil on myself, while benefit would accrue to those connected with me. If thou wouldest return, that we may come again ready and prepared, it would be better.’ The Tortoise forthwith turned back, and in the fullest confidence of obtaining his object, and succeeding swimmingly in his hopes, conveyed the Monkey to the shore. The latter at full speed ascended a tree, and having offered the thanks and acknowledgments [due for his escape], seated himself at the end of a bough. The Tortoise waited some time, and then called out, ‘O friend beloved! the opportunity for going is fleeting away,
The Monkey laughed, and said,
I have passed my life in kingly sway, and I have experienced many heats and chills of fortune. Fortune snatched back from me her own bestowings, and heaven required of me that which it had conferred; and I became numbered with the wretched, and fell into the circle of the ill-starred. Yet I am not of such a nature as to have remained altogether destitute of the fruits of experience; so as not to know what happens, and not to discern a quarter in which reliance can be placed, from one where only hypocrisy is to be found. Cease these words, and forbear henceforth to take thy seat among the generous. Leave off thy boastings of fidelity, nor speak of sincerity and honor.
And if any one makes an initiatory display of virtues, whatever they may be,393 and talks of his manliness and honor, one may discover his real metal in the time of trial, and test his coin on the touchstone of experience.
The Tortoise exclaimed loudly in great grief and said, ‘What suspicion is this that thou entertainest of me? and what quality is this that thou imputest to me? Heaven forbid that anything contrary to thy good pleasure should ever have passed through my mind! or that any ill-design or perfidious scheme with reference to thee should have crossed my thoughts. And though thou shouldest cast a hundred thousand stones of despite in my face, I will not remove my face from the dirt of thy threshold; and though thou shouldest pierce my breast again and again with the sword of contumely, I will not remove my heart from thy society.’
The Monkey retorted, ‘Fool! think not I am like that Ass of which the fox said, that it had neither heart nor ears.’ The Tortoise said, ‘How was that?’
He said, ‘They have related that a lion had become afflicted with the mange. Together with constant fever, he was worn out with itchy torments, and at last by reason of the irritation, the numberless thorns of disquietude pierced his heart and his vigor flagged, and abandoning all motion, he relinquished the pleasures of the chase. Now in this lion’s service was a fox, who used to gather up the scraps from his table, and the remnants of his repast, and who gained strength and food from the blessing of his leavings. When the lion was unable to pursue the chase, the affairs of the fox came to distress. One day from the meagreness of the supplies and the overpowering violence of hunger, he began to reproach the lion, and said, ‘O king of beasts! anxiety for thy indisposition, has made the beasts of this jungle sad, and the lassitude of thy state and the impression of thy despondency, pervade all thy attendants, nay, the whole body of thy subjects.
Wherefore dost thou not apply some remedy to this disease, and direct attention to the cure of this heart-tormenting pain?’ The lion, groaning with pain, said,
O fox! I have now a long time suffered agonies394a from this cruel disease, and from this itching I waste away daily. My body from attenuation has become like a hair, and not a hair is left upon it; and I know not how to cure this illness, or how to allay these sufferings. A physician, in whose words I have complete confidence, has, indeed, lately pronounced that I must eat the ears and heart of an Ass, and that all other remedies will be unavailing. Since then I have been rendered anxious by the thought how this wish can be accomplished, and by what stratagem of my friends I can obtain this desired object.’ The fox replied, ‘If the royal command is condescendingly uttered, I that am the nearest of the attendants of the court will gird up the waist of inquiry and step forward on the road of search, and my hope is that by the blessing of the imperial auspices and the happy influence of the perpetual fortune of the king, what is desired will be gained.’ The lion asked, ‘What kind of artifice hast thou imagined? and what device hast thou read from the volume of imposture?’ The fox answered, ‘O king! it occurs to me that it is impossible for you to issue forth from this jungle; since, after your body has been denuded of hair, and the gloriousness of your beauty, and the majesty of your appearance, have suffered some deterioration; to move out and exhibit yourself to friends and strangers would be injurious to the royal dignity and kingly awe. Wherefore, the advisable course appears to me to be this, that I should bring the object of your desire into this jungle, in order that the king of the beasts may tear him to pieces, and at pleasure eat that which he may desire.’ The lion replied, ‘Whence wilt thou bring him?’ The fox answered, ‘In the vicinity of this wilderness there is a spring of water, which from its abundance resembles the sea of ’Umán,395 and by its sweetness and purity represents the fountain of life.
And a washerman comes there every day to wash clothes, and an Ass, which carries burthens for him, grazes daily around that spring. Perhaps I may, by a stratagem, lead him to this jungle. Let the king, however, vow that, after eating his heart and ears, he will bestow the rest as alms on the other beasts.’ The lion vowed and promised accordingly, and confirmed his words with an oath; and the fox, in hopes of a plentiful feast, directed his steps towards the spring of water, and as soon as he saw the Ass at a distance he performed the customary salutations, and began to address him in a soft voice, and politely opened the path of conversation.
He then asked, ‘What is the cause that I see thee suffering and lean?’ The Ass replied, ‘This washerman is constantly imposing work on me, and neglects to take care of me; I perish of distress for forage, and he cares not a grain for it; and the harvest of my life is almost carried away by the wind of extinction, and he takes not so much account of it as of a blade of grass.
The fox replied, ‘O simpleton! thou hast feet and the power of moving; why, then, dost thou choose this drudgery, and why tarry thus miserably beset?’ The Ass rejoined, ‘I am a notorious bundle-carrier, and go where I will there is no getting free of this toil. Besides, I am not the only ass especially devoted to this labor: all my brethren are overtaken in the same troubles, and groan under the like burthens.
And after much consideration I have come to the firm conclusion that since the cup of trouble is to be quaffed everywhere, and the garment of vexation and endurance of suffering to be put on in all places, I must rest quiet in the house of some one, and not endure the reproach of fickleness for a life which, as it passes, disappoints our expectations.
The fox said, ‘Thou art wrong,
In accordance with the text, ‘Verily God’s earth is spacious,’396 to the earth’s plain ample space has been given; and the royal mandate, ‘Go through the earth,’396a was sent down for those who suffer oppression and endure tyranny.
The Ass said, ‘Let one go where he will, he will obtain no more than what is destined. Wherefore, to choose to be covetous, and on the top of other loads to undertake voluntarily the hardships of travel, is far removed from what is reasonable.
The fox said, ‘These words have reference to an exalted state of reliance on God, and every one is not able to attain this rank. The command of the Lord God (may His name be glorified!) was on that account issued, that in this world of causes, subsistence should be conveyed to each by the intervention of some means, and the Causer of Causes, in respect to each one of those who subsist by Him, displays in a different manner the means of supply.
And if thou art content I will take thee to a meadow, the ground of which, like the houses of the vendors of jewels, is adorned and lustrous with the radiance of a variety of gems, while its air, like the tray of the perfumer, is aromatized and scented by its fragrant breeze with the odor of the purest musk.397
And before to-day I have given advice to another ass, and led him to that Eden-like spot, and at this moment he walks proudly, at perfect ease, in the expanse of freedom from care, and feeds in happiness and health in the garden of security and peace.’ In short, the fox, employing his subtle language, used such wheedlings, and uttered such cajolings, that the bread of his deceit was baked in the oven of imposture, and the cauldron of the Ass’s desire began to boil with vain longing, and he said, ‘It is not right to turn aside from thy directions, which spring from pure friendship and compassion, nor allowable to disregard thy injunctions, which are the essence of kindness and commiseration.
The fox went first, and brought him near the lion, who, from excessive eagerness, sprang at him at once, and inflicted a wound on him, but owing to excessive weakness, failed of his object. The Ass turned to flight, and the fox, astonished at the feebleness of the lion, began to reproach him, saying, ‘Well now! what was the advantage of uselessly tormenting an animal? and what end has been served from being hasty in a matter, the opportunity for commencing which was not fleeting away? Prudence required thee to restrain thyself, and firmness of purpose pointed out to thee not to relinquish the hold on the reins of option, so as not to repent in the end.
These words annoyed the lion, and he thought to himself, ‘If I admit that I have not kept a guard on my actions, I shall lay myself open to the charge of unsteadiness and want of fixed purpose; and if I shall have recourse397a to the temptations of appetite as my apology, I shall be branded with greediness and levity and rashness; and if I acknowledge my want of strength, the imputation of weakness and impotence follows, and sundry bad consequences, which are not for the public good, will result therefrom. My advisable course is not to reply to the fox, save roughly and with asperity, and to prohibit him from speaking thus in future.’ He then said, ‘It is excessively disrespectful for subjects to inquire into, or pry after, the recondite intention of what kings do, whatever that may be.
And the real circumstances of the actions of kings cannot be known to every one of their servants. The capacity of subjects is unable to comprehend that which the judgment of monarchs requires, [as it is said] ‘None but their beasts carry their burthens.’
Cease this questioning, and employ some stratagem that the Ass may come back, and thus the sincerity of thy faith and the excess of thy friendship will be manifest to me, and thou wilt be distinguished by my favorable notice and favor above thy peers and fellows.’ Thereupon the fox went again to the Ass, and with the utmost courtesy went through the customary benedictions and salutations. The Ass turned away his face and said,
O worthless deceiver! thou didst begin by promising me my freedom; and in the end thou broughtest me into the claws of the lion.
The fox replied, ‘O simple one! what fancy hast thou formed, and what thought hast thou suffered to pass through thy mind? The instant thou sawest the talisman, thou wast scared from the pursuit of the treasure; and, before thou didst behold the asperity of the thorn, thou didst relinquish the spectacle of the garden. Know that what thou sawest is a talisman, which sages have made and excogitated by way of caution, on account of the beasts and reptiles which repose in this spot; because this meadow is adorned with a variety of delicious viands, and a diversity of exquisite fruits. And did this magic spell not exist, wherever there is a beast in the world, it would come to this place, and the affairs of the inhabitants of this wilderness would become embarrassed; and now, on account of this talisman, a great variety of animals do not resort to this secluded haunt; but each one that comes hither, and beholds this shape and appearance which thou sawest, hovers no more about this meadow. Thus the inhabitants of this wilderness pass their time in freedom from care, and in happiness. And we impart to every one, for whom we have a friendship, the mystery of this talisman; and we make known the true state of this enchantment, which is nothing but mere show, to him, in order that, without fear of distraction, he may attain to these incalculable blessings.
And I intended to warn thee beforehand, that if thou shouldest see anything of the kind thou shouldest not be afraid. But I was so transported at meeting thee that it escaped my memory. Now that thou hast full know-ledge of that empty form, come back, since my directions will issue only in thy honor.’ In this manner he tempted and cajoled the unfortunate Ass till he trod again the path of folly; and, beguiled by his seductive persuasions, proceeded towards that jungle. The fox went before him, and having conveyed to the lion the good tidings of the Ass’s approach, besought him not to move from his place, and not to step beyond the circle of dignified repose. Nay, he desired him not to heed the Ass at all, however near he might pass by him until he should get full power and a good opportunity to accomplish his purpose. The lion heartily assented to the fox’s advice, which was so loyally given, and stood on his feet in a corner of the jungle like a magical figure without life. Then the fox said to the Ass, ‘Come here! that thou mayest see the real truth of this enchantment, and mayest know that it is altogether incapable of motion, and devoid of all idea of doing mischief. The Ass advanced boldly, and however near he grazed to the lion he did not see him move in the least. By gentle degrees he became accustomed to him, and gradually grew familiar with him; and being altogether at his ease, with reference to him, fell to work with the grass. Then the luckless Ass, who had suffered a long time from insatiable hunger, on now beholding the table of invitation spread before him, and on finding the tray of dainties ready, began to eat, and did not pull the rein until he reached the boundary of repletion. When he was quite full he lay down before the enchanted lion in the middle of the meadow. Thereupon the lion, finding him off his guard, made a spring and tore open his belly. This done, he said to the fox, ‘Keep watch! till I go to the spring of water and perform my ablutions, after which I will eat the heart and ears of the Ass, since the physicians have prescribed them as the remedy of this disease.’ The lion accordingly turned in the direction of the fountain, and the fox ate up the heart and ears of the Ass, which were the daintiest parts of him. When the lion had finished the requisite ablutions, and had returned, however much he searched for the heart and ears, he could not find a trace of them. He then said to the fox, ‘Where are these two parts, which are to cure me, gone? and who has taken them away?’ The fox replied, ‘May the king live for ever! this Ass had neither ears nor heart, for had he had a heart, which is the place of the reason, he would not have been deceived by my artifices; and had he had ears, which are the organs of hearing, he would, after having had ocular demonstration of the terrors of your majesty, have distinguished my false words from the truth, and would not have come with his own feet to the edge of the grave.’
And I have adduced this story in order that thou mayest know that I am not without heart and ears; and thou hast not omitted any refinement of artifice, but by my own penetration and sagacity I have found thee out, and I have exerted myself much, so that when affairs had become perilous, they were smoothed again; and life which had reached the lip, again shed the radiance of animation over my frame.
And hereafter hope not for companionship with me, and relinquish the idea of my return, which belongs to the impossibilities, and rest assured that,
The Tortoise answered, ‘Thou sayest the truth, and it is all one whether I protest or deny. I own I have inflicted on thy heart a wound, which, as long as existence lasts, cannot be salved. And the brand of perfidy and cruelty has so set its stamp on my countenance, that its erasion enters not into the area of possibility. I feel that I must make up my mind to quaff the bitter beverage of separation, and must oppose my body like a shield, to the poisoned sword of parting.
Thus he spake and downcast and shame-stricken turned back, and during the rest of his life he bewailed his separation from such a friend, and said,
This is the history of one who, having acquired wealth or secured a friend, loses him through folly or neglect, and so falls into perpetual remorse; and however much he beats his head on a stone, or a stone on his head, it is all in vain. It behoves men of understanding to make the instructions of this story the guide of their conduct, and to set a high value on a desired object when it is gained, whether it be worldly substance or a soul-bound friend. Whatever of this nature is let slip is not to be re-acquired by wishing, and regret and chagrin will prove unavailing.
The world-conquering king, distinguishing the clear-minded Bráhman by the honor of his address, said,
Thou hast narrated the story of one, who after securing the object of his desire, chose to be careless in preserving it, and hence the treasure passed from his hands and he was plunged in regret, and though panged with distress for his bereavement,402a obtained nought but remorse and grief. Now recount the tale of one acting precipitately in the pursuit of his desired object, and continuing devoid of the advantages of counsel and deliberation, and point out in what such conduct and procedure finally issued, and what fruit men reap when they sow in the field of action the seed of haste?’ The Bráhman loosed his tongue in praise of the great king, and said,
Whoever bases not his actions on patience and steadiness, and does not strengthen the foundation of his proceedings by firmness and constancy, the final tendency of his doings is towards reproach, and the conclusion of his affairs will issue in repentance. And the most praiseworthy quality with which the Most High God has adorned men, and by the blessing of which he has bestowed on mankind the grade of a dignified position, is, that graceful one, long-suffering; and that eminent virtue, constancy.
And they have cleverly said, as to this, ‘That if thou wilt convert Ḥilm it becomes Milḥ,’402b that is, meekness is the salt of the table of qualities. Thus when any one outstrips his peers in the acquisition of various excellencies, and carries off the ball of superiority from those of his time in the display of numerous virtues; if he combine therewith, roughness and haste and levity, his other good qualities, like insipid food, are relished by none; nay, his frivolity and want of steadiness cause him to be regarded with aversion. Thus it has been said, ‘But if thou hadst been severe and hard-hearted, they had surely separated themselves from about thee.’403 And notwithstanding all those perfections which centred in his Holiness the Lord of created things, (On whom be the choicest blessings and most perfect benedictions!) he was graciously addressed as follows, by the Lord of Lords, saying, ‘O Muḥammad! if thou hadst been rough-tempered and hard-hearted, and prone to anger and resentful, assuredly the legions of stars—as it is said, ‘My companions are like the stars,’—which are now assembled round thee like the Pleiades, would be dispersed like the daughters of the Bier.403a Moreover, the possessor of God’s friendship, and the Full Moon of Faith, Abraham the friend of God, (On our Prophet and on him be the blessings of The Merciful!) is praised for this quality, there, where he says, ‘Verily Abraham was pitiful and compassionate.403b For the mild person is beloved of all hearts, and the minds of high and low are all inclined towards him.
Precipitation is altogether alien from men of sense, and the thoroughly wise man regards it as a temptation of the devil; as it is said, ‘Patience is from God, haste from the devil,’ the meaning of which they have thus explained,
And whoever in his proceedings surrenders the reins of choice to the grasp of precipitation, assuredly in the end his affairs will draw towards contrition, and the issue of his doings will be disappointment and regret.
And there are many anecdotes and innumerable stories à-propos of this subject which are written and commemorated in the pages of nocturnal conversations and elegant annals, and among these is the story of the Holy Man, who rashly stepped into the plain of precipitate action, and, staining his hands with innocent blood, destroyed404 the unfortunate Ichneumon; which displays the ill effects of this precipitation.404a The king asked, ‘How was that?’
He said, ‘They have related that a Devotee after long celibacy404b desired to put in practice the injunction, ‘Matrimony is my commandment, therefore he who turns away from my commandment is none of mine,’ and act in accordance with the mandate deserving of obedience, ‘Marry and beget children.’ He therefore conferred with one of the pious men of the time, and asked his blessing and his permission. The devotee [whom he addressed] responded, ‘Thou hast formed a very praiseworthy project, since matrimony is beneficial as relates to subsistence here, and is perfectly advantageous and protective in matters of religion, and by it is obtained a safeguard to household chattels, and, moreover an abundance of children, from which results a continuance of one’s name.
Nevertheless use thy endeavors to secure a tender partner, and avoid an unsuitable companion.’ The Devotee asked, ‘What sort of wife ought one to make choice of?’ The other replied, ‘A wife that is affectionate, and prolific, and sedate, that is to say, one that holds her husband dear, and brings him many children, and avoids crime. And a virtuous wife bestows new light on every house into which she enters.
The Devotee asked, ‘The society of what wife ought we to shun?’ The other replied, ‘Three kinds of wives ought to be avoided, a widow anxious to marry again; a woman who places her husband under an obligation; and a complaining woman. Now the first is one who has had a husband before thee, and has been separated from him by death or divorce, and ever remains longing to regain his society. The second is one who possesses property, and effects, and who, by her wealth, imposes on thee an obligation. The third is a wife who, when she sees thee, speaks with a feeble voice, and feigns herself to be ill when she is not, and the sight of such a wife is a renewal of death every hour.
Again the Devotee who wished to marry, asked, ‘Of what age shall I choose a wife?’ The other replied, ‘It must be a young maiden of tender years, since old women steal away the roses from the cheek, and converse with them brings on debility and weakness.
And wives, from ten years old to twenty years, are places of security and promise; and from twenty to thirty years, they are the solace of the hearts of and lovers, and the delight of the souls of those who eagerly pursue them; their from thirty to forty years, controllers of the property and the children, and displayers also of high feelings; and from forty to fifty years they aim at name and reputation, and employ on those present, artifices and finesse. But after they have passed fifty years, they become dark calamities, and the destruction of property and rank, and withered gardens, and rain-penetrated mansions, and fallow fields, and serpents without treasure, and mines of trouble and annnoyance.
The questioning Devotee again asked, ‘What sayest thou as to beauty and good looks?’ The other replied, ‘The best thing in the matter of women is chastity and amiability. If to these be added the blessing of beauty it is like adding light to light.
But a beautiful and comely woman, if she be unamiable, is a mortal calamity and a perpetual source of annoyance; while an amiable woman, although she be plain-featured, is a kind companion and an ornament of the family.
And two or three couplets from the ‘Results of Meditation,’ composed by that illustrious author, which relate to this subject ought to be borne in mind.
In short, after extensive inquiry and infinite pains, the Devotee, through the aid of his lofty fortune, and the help of his noble spirit, obtained a wife of a great family and an illustrious stock. The reflection of her countenance gave radiance to the morn, and the hue of her curling ringlets aided the perfumer of evening in intensifying his gloom. The azure sky had never beheld her equal, save in the mirror of the sun; and the swift-sighted limner of the imagination had ne’er looked on the like of her lovely semblance, save in the world of dreams.
And, together with this beauty of form, she was adorned with excellence of disposition, and the graces of her body were set off by those of her mind. The Devotee, in his daily prayers, returned thanks for such a blessing; and having thus commenced his intercourse with that partner whose face resembled the beauties of Eden, he desired to beget a son. And no wise person bases his desire for children on mere sensual appetite, nor yields his body to the task save in quest of a virtuous son, who, in procuring the blessings asked for by prayer, is equivalent to the perpetual offering of alms.
And when an interval had passed, and the desired event did not happen, the Devotee, losing hope, began to place the face of supplication on the ground of entreaty, and to let fly the arrow of prayer from the bow of sincerity; and since he was altogether absorbed in the path of prayer, according to the saying, ‘Who heareth the afflicted when he calleth upon him,’407 the shaft of his supplication reached the target of acceptance.
Then after his despair the gates of the heavenly favor were opened with the keys of mercy, and the wife of the Devotee became pregnant. Greatly did the holy man rejoice, and his wish was all day long to renew the mention of his son, and, after the performance of his daily devotions, his tongue did nought but utter his name. One day he said to his wife, ‘O partner of my life, and sympathizing friend! may it quickly happen that the princely pearl may reach the shore of manifestation, from the shell of thy womb: and that a fair son may step gracefully from the cabinet of the unseen to the plain of evidence, and that I may give him a good name and a becoming title. Then, may I next engage to the utmost of my power in his education and instruction, that he may learn the precepts of the law, and that I may exert myself fairly in correcting and improving his manners. So will he become adorned with the demeanour which is fitting for a spiritual walk in life; and thus, in a short time, rise to fill an eminent station in the faith, and be a venerated leader possessed of miraculous gifts. I will then wed him at the proper season to a religious lady, and from them will spring children and grandchildren, and through this blessed channel our seed will be perpetuated, and our name will, by means of our descendants, endure on the page of existence.
The wife replied, ‘Sweet friend and venerable leader of the faith! these words befit not a posture of adoration on the carpet of prayer, nor do they demand the ejaculation of thanksgivings. In the first place, thou hast set thy mind on a son, and it is possible that I may not bear a child, and if I should, it is likewise possible that it may not be a male, and though this should be the case, it is again possible that it may not survive nor be blessed with life. In short, the conclusion of this affair is not to be discerned, and thou, like a besotted visionary, hast taken thy seat on the steed of desire, and galloped the courser of thy hope—like foolish persons infatuated with their own longings—in the plain of expectation.
And thy words resemble the conduct of that Religious Man, who besmeared his own face and hair with honey and oil.’ The Devotee inquired, ‘How was that?’
She said, ‘They have related that a pious man had a house in the vicinity of a merchant, and lived happily through favor of his neighborly kindness. The merchant continually sold honey and oil, and made his profits by that traffic in unctuous and sweet commodities. Inasmuch as the pious man lived a blameless life, and ever sowed in the field of his guileless heart the seed of the love of God, the merchant reposed implicit confidence in him, and took the supply of his wants upon himself. And in this very thing is the use of riches,—to win over the hearts of the poor, and to raise up a perpetual provision from perishable wealth.
The merchant, too, considering the opportunity of doing good a blessing, sent every day somewhat from the stock, in the buying and selling of which he was occupied, for the support of the Devotee. The latter used somewhat of this and stored up the rest in a corner. In a short time a jar was filled by these means. One day the pious man looked into that jar, and thought thus to himself, ‘Well, now! what quantity of honey and oil is collected in this vessel?’ At last he conjectured ten mans to be there, and said, ‘If I can sell these for ten dirams, I can buy for that sum five ewes, and these five will each have young every six months, and each will have two lambs. Thus in a year there will be twenty-five, and in ten years from their progeny there will be herds upon herds. So by these means I shall have an abundant supply, and will sell some, and lay in a handsome stock of furniture, and wed a wife of a noble family. After nine months, I shall have a son born to me, who will study science and polite manners. However, when the weakness of infancy is exchanged for the strength of youth, and that graceful cypress grows up in the garden of manhood, it is probable that he may transgress my orders, and begin to be refractory, and in that case it will be necessary for me to correct him, and I will do so with this very staff which I hold in my hand. He then lifted up his staff, and was so immersed in thought, that, fancying the head and neck of his rebellious son before him, he brought down the staff, and struck it on the jar of honey and oil. It happened that the jar was placed on a shelf, beneath which he sate with it facing him. As soon as his staff reached the jar, it broke it, and let out the honey and oil all over the head and face and vest and hair of the pious man.
And I have adduced this tale in order that thou mayest know that without positive certainty it does not do to plunge into such projects as these, nor is it right to be led on by ‘Would that!’ and ‘Perhaps,’ and ‘Haply,’ and ‘It may be.’ They have said, too, that when any one takes ‘If,’ and ‘Perchance,’ for his partner, the offspring will be sure to be ‘Would that I had not!’
It behoves a wise man not to base his proceedings on mere imagination, nor to admit into his heart vain thoughts, which resemble the ill-omened temptations of the devil.
The Devotee received this advice with the ear of his soul, and was roused from the sleep of self-deceit, and abandoning those words, no longer indulged in unwarrantable expectations. But when the time of gestation was concluded, and the period of the imprisonment of the fœtus in the womb was finished; a son of fair visage and lovely form was born, such that the tokens of beauty and accomplishments bespoke his perfection, and the signs of admir-able gifts shone and gleamed on the forehead of his condition. The Devotee beheld the morn of hope begin to smile from the dawning-place of desire, and the nightingale of his pleasure commenced singing on the rose-shrub of joy.
The Devotee indulged in raptures at the beauty of his son, and fulfilled a variety of vows which he had made; and girding up his loins in attendance on his son’s cradle night and day, drew through other matters the pen of oblivion, and expended all his energies in [promoting] his growth and strength, and grace and freshness and vigor.
One day the mother of the child desiring to take a warm bath committed him, with many injunctions, to the care of his father, who, besides, had nothing else then to do. Some time passed, and a confidential person, sent by the king of the country, came to request his attendance, and there was no possibility of delay. He was, of necessity, compelled to go out of the house. Now they had an Ichneumon, in whose charge they left the house, and through him their minds were altogether set at ease; and he used to display the utmost exertion in ridding them of noxious reptiles, and beasts that bite or sting. The Devotee came out and left the Ichneumon with his son. To be short, no sooner had he left the house than a large snake shewed itself near the cradle. When the Ichneumon saw that dart-like, armour-wearing snake, and that malignant creature swift to wrath, which, when quiescent, assumes the shape of circle—that arrowy-paced reptile, which at times, like a curved bow, joins its extremities,411—
making for the cradle, and intending to kill the child, it leapt up, and seizing his throat, imprisoned him in the ring of the noose of death; and, by the blessed influence of its defence, the boy escaped from that whirlpool of destruction. Shortly after, the Devotee returned, and the Ichneumon, smeared with blood, ran to meet him, in exultation at having done a good deed. The Devotee imagined that it had killed his son, and that these stains were from his blood. The fire of wrath was kindled in the stove of his heart, and the smoke of precipitation entered the aperture of his brain; and his reason, through the murkiness of the fumes of rashness;—which like the cloud of tyranny, is the cause of darkening the world,—covered its face with the veil of concealment. Before inquiring into the matter, or examining into the real state of the case, he smote down his staff on the Ichneumon, and broke the vertebræ of its back, and knocked its head into the casket of its chest. But when he entered the house he beheld the child sleeping in safety in the cradle, and a huge serpent lying there torn in pieces. Then the smoke of remorse ascended from his heart, and he began to smite his breast with the stone of regret, and complaining and lamenting said,
Alas! that the fire of this distressing accident cannot be extinguished by the water of excuses, and that the dart of the shame of this troublous transaction will not be repelled by the shield of extenuation. What unjust action is this that I have committed! and what unsuitable act is this that my hands have done!
Would to God that this son had never come into existence from nonentity, and that I had not set my love and affections upon him! so that this innocent blood would not have been shed on this account, and I should not have happened to embark in this unholy business. And what answer shall I give to my Creator for this, that I have causelessly destroyed one that dwelt in the same house with me; and have slain the guardian of my home, and the protector of my beloved son, without reason? And what excuse can I offer to my fellow-creatures for this? And, hereafter, the chain of censure will not be removed from my neck, and the writing of infamy will never be obliterated from the page of my affairs.
The Devotee writhed under these thoughts, and wept piteously at this distress and affliction; and when his wife returned and beheld this state of things, she loosed the tongue of reproach and said,
Pray, is this thy thankfulness for the divine blessing in bestowing on thee thus, by an unusual mercy, a son in thine old age? and oughtest thou thus to show thy gratitude for God’s grace in delivering thy darling from the deadly wound of the snake?’ The Devotee, with a loud exclamation of sorrow, replied, ‘Dear friend! speak not to me thus,
I, too, am aware that I have been neglectful in the performance of the thanks due to God, and in the recognition of the value of His inestimable benefits; and that I have swerved from the straight path of patience, which is the road of those who travel in the way of ‘Let God alone be thy stay!’ And now, by reason of my impatience and unthankfulness, I am neither named in the register of the enduring, nor inscribed in the page of the grateful, and thy reproach at the present moment is like a sting inflicted on a part already wounded; or using salt as the ointment for a sore.
The wife said, ‘Thou speakest truth, there is no advantage, now, in reproaches, and from this action that thou hast done, there is this experience to be gleaned, that the conclusion of rashness is repentance and shame; that levity and instability, in all matters, is reprehensible; and that he who acts precipitately, is sure to be excluded from his object.
And thou art not the only one that has fallen into this snare and opened this door of mischief upon himself; for ere this, many such occurrences have happened, and innumerable similar incidents have taken place. Thus I have heard that a King put his unoffending Hawk to death, and for years his heart was consumed with the fire of regret, and his breast inflamed with the burning of repentance.’ The devotee asked, ‘How was that?’
Bar afrúkhtah, lit., ‘blazed up,’ ‘kindled.’
↩The printed edition has here a mistake,—ṣamád for ṣammd, ‘hard rock that returns no echo,’ which is the reading of my best MS. The lithographed edition reads ṣád, which is meaningless.
↩A bright red star, which follows the Pleiades.
↩The printed edition, by a typographical error, omits bar before tú.
↩The MSS. show that níst should be supplied after guzír, though wanting in the editions.
↩The editions read ḳawíytar nah báshad, but my best MS. omits the negative.
↩I can make no sense of rájil báshad. It appears to me that a negative is absolutely required, prefixed to the verb, and I translate accordingly, though no MS.supports the reading.
↩Lit, ‘the green sea.’
↩‘Knowing affairs,’ ‘experienced.’
↩I have no doubt a play on words is intended here, as ’aẕb means ‘sweet water,’ and ’aẕab, ‘water covered with weeds.’
↩My best MS. inserts khẉudrá before dár ávarad, which I think a great improvement on the reading of the editions.
↩Ḳur’án, Fl. vi., 32; Mar. 31; Sale, p. 94, 1. 17. ‘This present life is no other than a play, and a vain amusement; but surely the future mansion shall be better for those who fear God: will they not, therefore, understand?’ A similar expression occurs also at Ch. xlvii, 38, lvii. 19, of the Ḳur’án.
↩For the reading of the edition fá’atabarúhá, I would suggest fá’abarúhá, which is the reading of my best MS., and is evidently the correct one.
↩One MS. reads here sázad for the sázand of the edition, and I should much prefer the former reading, if the awkward and unnecessary bi-daulat-i ú could be got rid of.
↩Observe the expression, ḳaṭa’-i nazar, which is here used adverbially.
↩Lit. ‘The heart, that is a royal mirror, has dust; I ask of God the society of the clear-minded.’
↩Or it may be, gharúr, ‘the world.’
↩Oriental thieves enter houses by mining under the walls which are generally built with little or no foundation.
↩The Ra’is is the chief citizen, a sort of alderman.
↩A small silver coin.
↩In every case where, as in this line, there is a jingle of words like ‘burden’ and ‘guerdon,’ let the reader remember it represents a similar effect in Persian; and has been often arrived at with considerable trouble.
↩The word áb signifies not only ‘water,’ but also ‘the polish of steel.’ Perhaps therefore this strange expression means that the steel was polished by collision with the stone and sparks of fire struck out. Or, the áb may refer to the perspiration of the man, and the átish to the sparks struck out from the stone.
↩Or, ‘perfumed with camphor,’ according to some.
↩Readings differ here very considerably, but I think that of the editions as good as any.
↩I have freely rendered these very difficult lines, about the real meaning of which I am in some doubt. The last two lines are, perhaps, literally; ‘Warm, but more melancholy than the liver: Alive, but more dead than the heart itself.’ But the az dil may signify ‘at heart,’ as I have translated it.
↩This line means, either that a mirror is the only unsullied surface; all human breasts are stained with some selfish or evil quality: or, that a mirror shews a true friend, even oneself; yet this image vanishes if one breathe on it.
↩Kur’án, Fl. xii. 28; Mar. 29; Sale, p. 176, 1. 22: ‘And when her husband saw that his garment was torn behind, he said, This is a cunning contrivance of your sex: for surely your cunning is great. O Joseph, take no further notice of this affair: and thou, O woman! ask pardon for thy crime; for thou art a guilty person.’
↩A certain bright red star, which follows the Pleiades.
↩There is a very good play on words here, which I find it impossible to retain in English. The Persian has,—From (nálah) ‘wailing,’ she became (nálí) ‘a reed;’ from (múyah) ‘weeping,’ she became (múí) ‘a hair.’
↩‘To rend the vest,’ is here an expression for acting ‘nnchastely,’ ‘dishonorably;’ in the latter sense as applied to the tortoise.
↩We have here the first of three pages of excessively obscure and difficult Persian.
↩The word átish seems to me meaningless here. One MS. reads for faraḥí, ḥaraḳ, which may mean, ‘the fructifying property of the male palm!’
↩B’udu ’l-mashriḳayn, lit. ‘The distance between the two Easts.’ It seems somewhat forced to suppose that the West is to be reckoned one of these. Hence, the two farthest points at which the sun rises, viz., the tropics, have been suggested in lieu of the above explanation.
↩Lit. ‘From the thumbstall of the deceit of the lords of selfishness.’
↩Kalb means ‘turning,’ as well as ‘heart.’ From the word in its former sense comes inḳiláb, ‘vicissitude.’ Our word ‘heart,’ is no doubt from the Sanskrit hṛid, which is derived from hṛi, ‘to take.’ The equivoque, therefore, is unretainable in English.
↩I am doubtful of this rendering, but I can make no other meaning of this obscure sentence.
↩Lit. ‘And this thorn comes not forth from my heart.’
↩Lit. ‘I drink blood from this anger.’
↩The sea betwixt Ethiopia and India.
↩‘Elephant’ in the original, a word never intended for verse.
↩Kur’án, ch. xxix. 56; Sale, p. 301, 1. 1: ‘O my servants, who have believed, verily my earth is spacious; wherefore serve me.’
↩Ḳur’án, ch. vi. 11; Sale, p. 92, 1. 27: ‘Say, Go through the earth, and behold what hath been the end of those who accused our prophets of imposture.’ Vide also Sale, p. 298, 1. 27, where the same expression occurs; as also p. 44 of this book where, by an error, p. 82 of Sale is quoted for p. 92.
↩For the reading of the editions I would gladly substitute bih nasím-i ’ambar shamím-i ú muṭayyab va mu’ aṭṭar, did the MSS. allow it.
↩Observe this somewhat uncommon use of tamassuk justan.
↩Kun fakán, ‘Be, and it was;’ a title of the Deity.
↩Or, more literally, ‘amercement,’ ‘mulct.’
↩ The word
Ḳur’án, Fl. iii. 153; Sale, p. 50, l. 14. The same quotation occurs at p. 2 note of this translation, q.v. Through a typographical error the page of Sale is there given 30 instead of 50.
↩The constellation of the Bear.’ See note 1, page 279.
↩Ḳur’án, Fl. ix. 115; Mar. 117; Sale, p. 152, l. 20: ‘Neither did Abraham ask forgiveness for his father, otherwise than in pursuance of a promise, which he had promised unto him: but when it became known unto him that he was an enemy unto God, he declared himself clear of him. Verily Abraham was pitiful and compassionate.’
↩That is, with the k and n in kun, ‘be,’ as in the common title of the Deity, ‘Be, and it was.’ See the preceding page, note 1.
↩Lit. ‘Gave his head to the wind.’
↩The Dictionary gives for siyáḳat only ‘driving,’ ‘urging onward.’
↩This meaning of tajarrud has been omitted in the Dictionary.
↩These lines are quoted from the ‘Gulistán,’ ch. ii., story 32, (p. 134 of my translation).
↩‘Straight,’ is here an adverb to ‘thou’lt learn,’ not an adjective agreeing with ‘arrow.’ The original is intentionally ambiguous here, thus affording a play on words, as if, while her back was crooked the woman’s mind was straight.
↩That is, If a man survive the society of a wife who has reached fifty, his fate is only the more deplorable, for she will grow older and uglier every day.
↩Ḳur’án, xxvii. 63; Sale, p. 288, l. 2: ‘Is there any other God equal with the true God? yet the greater part of them know it not. Is not he more worthy who heareth the afflicted, when he calleth upon him, and taketh off the evil, which distressed him; and who hath made you the successors of your forefathers in the earth?
↩The letter alif resembles the serpent when straight, but the latter when coiled up is like the sign of jazm, which denotes that the letter is quiescent. Such is the meaning of this frigid metaphor.
↩The letter alif resembles the serpent when straight, but the latter when coiled up is like the sign of jazm, which denotes that the letter is quiescent. Such is the meaning of this frigid metaphor.
↩That is, ‘the tongue.’
↩The spirit of evil, according to the creed of the fire-worshippers.
↩