Rawżat al-ṣafā fi sīrat al-anbiya' va-'l-muluk va-'l-hulafa' - The Rauzat-us-Safa (Rehatsek), Part 1, Volume 1

RECORD OF THE SCIENCES AND TRADES THAT ORIGINATED
IN HIS TIME.

These were geometry, medicine and music; and the trades were agriculture, weaving and spinning. It is said that these were invented by the efforts of Dubûil and Qayin, the sons of Lamekh, whose genealogy ascends to Qabil, and they acquired celebrity; but He [i.e. Allah] knows best the true state of things.

RECORD OF ADAM’S DEATH AND THE NUMBER OF HIS
CHILDREN.

The death of the Lord Adam occurred on a Friday, in the holy city of Mekkah. Eve departed this life one, and according to other reports seven, years after him; she was buried by the side of Adam, who did not die before he had seen four thousand of his children and descendants. The number of his own progeny amounted to twenty males and as many females; but, according to more prevalent traditions, the latter were only nineteen. In the preface to the ‘Zafar-nâmah’ it is related that he had twenty-one sons and twenty daughters. It is well known that Sheth was born alone; Sheth is a Syriac word, and means ‘gift of God.’ Sheth is also called the first Uriah; in Syriac he is called a teacher, because he was the first who engaged in teaching religious law and philosophy. It is said that Adam greatly deplored the loss of Habil, whereon Jebrâil descended and said: ‘God will soon present thee with an intelligent son, from whose seed the prince of the sons of men will be born.’ Five years after the murder of Habil— from a regard for the light of Muhammad—Sheth was born alone. A number of historians have related that he was a grandson of Adam, and that his father’s name was Supha, but this opinion we reject. Muhammad Bin Jarir Tabari says that all the genealogies of the sons of men terminate in him, because the seed of man was totally cut off in the time of Nûh (Noah), u. w. b. bl. Sheth perfectly resembled Adam in the beauty of his countenance and in his many virtues. He was his favourite son, and it is said that some time before his decease Adam appointed him his successor, and taught him the hours of the day and of the night, so that man may know what worship is required during each. He also admonished him not to have intercourse with the children of Qabil, and informed him of the impending deluge, ordering him, in case he should survive till that time, to take care of Adam’s bones, or to enjoin his children to do so. Sheth reigned over men and genii, his religion agreed with that of Adam, and the Almighty—w. n. b. ex.—sent him fifty pages, but according to others twenty-nine; they contained mathematical, philosophical, and theological sciences, alchemy and others. He spent most of his life in Syria, and, according to some, he was even born in that country. It is related that most of the sons of Sheth were addicted to solitude; avoiding the society of men, and striving after higher things, they engaged in the service of God. In Sheth’s time the inhabitants of the world were split into two sections, one following him and the other the sons of Qabil, whom he admonished; some of them followed his advice, but others continued in sin; and when nine hundred and twelve years of his age had elapsed, his spirit fled to the throne of grace. The following are some of his sayings: The relation of a king to his subjects is like the relation of the soul to the body; in the same way as the soul does not neglect the body for a single moment, so the king must not forget the care of his subjects even during the twinkling of an eye, in order that they may remain obedient to him. A king who hoards wealth by tyranny acts unrighteously, because the accumulation of treasures can become possible only by keeping the country in a state of prosperity. If a sovereign is even during one day negligent in caring for his subjects, so much detriment will accrue that he will be unable to make it good in one month; indeed, sometimes such mischief ensues that it can never be remedied. It is incumbent on a king to cherish scholars, because this will be an occasion of increase to his virtues; he must also be distinguished by polite manners, adorned with foresight and with patience in his misfortunes; he must abstain from all improper acts; and, lastly, he must remember that an intimate friend is more valuable than even a brother, who covets his inheritance.

RECORD OF ANÛSH [ENOS], THE SON OF SHETH.

He is also called Anûs; historians differ whether his mother belonged to the human species or to that of the genii; it is recorded in the book entitled ‘Arâyis’ that she was a huri,⁷² whom Allah—w. n. b. e.—had created without the intervention of a father or mother, and had presented to Sheth. When the time of Sheth’s death approached, he enjoined Anûsh to take the reins of solving and knotting human affairs into his hands. In the ‘Nizâm-ut-tavârikh’ it is stated that Anûsh lived six hundred years, and was a good sovereign. Tabari says that he lived nine hundred years.

RECORD OF QENÂN [CAINAN], THE SON OF ANÛSH.

According to the testament of his father, the government of mankind devolved upon him. In this responsible office he continued nearly four hundred years, and never swerved from the straight path of his fathers and ancestors. In the history of Hâfez Abrû it is related that his life lasted eight hundred years.

RECORD OF MAHALLAYIL [MAHALALEEL], SON OF QENÂN.

In consequence of his father’s will, he became the sovereign of the inhabitants of the world, who had increased in his time to such numbers that they injured each other; therefore he distributed them over the world, and went with the children of Sheth to the country of Babel, where he built the city of Sûs. Before that time the people used to live in caves and deserts. Some say he lived nine hundred and eight years.

RECORD OF BARD [JARED?], SON OF MAHALLAYIL.

His name is also written Byrd. In his time idolatry originated, and people began to worship graven images. Some say that wicked custom began after the time of Edris, u. w. b., etc., as will be related below in detail. The Almighty Bestower of gifts vouchsafed him intelligent children, one of whom was Ekhnûh, or Enoch. Bard lived nine hundred and sixty years in this world.

RECORD OF EDRIS [ENOCH] THE PROPHET, U. W. B., ETC.

His birthplace was Manaf [Memphis] in Egypt, and in the phraseology of philosophers he is surnamed the third Uriah. In Hebrew his name is Ekhnûh and Khunûh. Among the Greeks he is known by the name of Batrismin and Aursin. The Arabs call him Hermes Edris almuthulluth bilni’mat [who enjoys three graces]. From studying and investigating diligently the books of his ancestors, he was surnamed Edris. Hermes means Mercury, and the epithet grace [ni’mat] alludes here to prophecy and philosophy. It is related that in the beginning he was a disciple of Gâzimûn, one of the prophets sent to the inhabitants of Greece and Egypt. Gâzimûn means ‘fortunate,’ and also the second Uriah. It is said that when the children of Qabil were seduced by Eblis from the straight path into the abyss of infidelity and idolatry, and abolished the institutions of marriage, and became addicted to wickedness and abominations, the Almighty — whose name be glorified—invested Edris with the robe of prophecy, sent him to them, and allowed him to work miracles, so that many were brought over from infidelity and obstinacy to the mansion of peace and rectitude, and having been delivered from the toils of misery, they obtained the asylum of felicity; whilst another section of that community continued to walk in the paths of wickedness because of the hardness of their hearts, and the preaching of Edris took no effect upon them. It is narrated in the ‘Tarikh-i Hukmâ’ that he invited mankind in seventy-two ways,⁷³ laid the foundations of a hundred towns, and established precepts in all countries suitable to their inhabitants, all of whom, as well as those who dwelt in islands, obeyed him. He appointed four men to be his vice-gerents in the world. These were: Ayallaos, and his father Laos, Asqalenus, and Amon. He invited people to the true religion, which is monotheism, to deal justly, to pray, and to leave off superstitions, which precepts lead to eternal salvation. He also ordered prayers and fastings on certain appointed days according to his law, and likewise to wage war for the sake of religion, and to bestow alms. He prohibited the eating of swine, of ass, and of dog flesh; also that of potherbs, and of things injurious to the brain, such as intoxicating plants and drugs. He ordained the offering of sacrifices at sunset, on beholding the new moon, on the arrival of a planet in its own mansion, or when culminating, etc. He was the first who practised astronomy, gave names to the planets, and to the signs of the zodiac, determinated their culminations, right ascensions, aspects, etc. He introduced writing and tailoring, and also established the custom of attacking and imprisoning infidels. It is related in the ‘Kassass Jehâni’ that Edris was very abstemious and ascetical, praying to God twelve thousand times every day. He was quite conversant with celestial things, and enjoyed constant intercourse with angels. The translation of the book ‘Ihvân-ussafa’ relates that Edris said: ‘I was revolving around the skies with Saturn for thirty years, and have become acquainted with the truths and niceties of the upper regions, and have ascertained the secrets of the invisible world.’ It is related in the ‘Tarikh-i Hukmâ’ that Edris had informed his people about the number of prophets who would be sent after him, and also of the deluge that would happen in Nûh’s [Noah] time. According to the opinion of the majority of historians, he induced one of the mighty men of his monarchy to build that pyramid of Egypt which is known by the name of Gunbuzahrâm, for the purpose of preserving the tombs of his friends from the waters of the deluge. He himself left Egypt and travelled through the inhabited world, and when he had again returned, the Most High exalted him to an elevated station. According to authentic tradition, he attained everlasting life in paradise. The state of the case, however, is this: Edris was always anxious to meet his Omnipotent Nourisher, was meditating on death, and the length of time he would have to remain underground until the period of the resurrection, and on the passage over the bridge Sirat.⁷⁴ His ardent desire was to enter paradise without the intervention of the events just alluded to. Day by day he became more fervent in prayer, and his good deeds exceeded the merits of all the people of this world who go to heaven like angels. When A’zrayil had become aware of this fact, a desire rose in him to associate with Edris, and after permission obtained from the Omnipotent Creator, he descended on earth and became his intimate friend; but as he abstained from eating and drinking, Edris soon perceived that he did not belong to the human species. Then A’zrayil revealed himself, and said: ‘I am the angel of death!’ Whereupon Edris inquired whether he had come to take his soul. He replied: ‘I have come to visit thee.’ Then Edris besought him to make him taste the beverage of death. A’zrayil, having been allowed by the Lord of Glory to do so, took possession of his soul. Some assert that A’zrayil removed the soul of Edris to his nostrils, and then again to his body. Then Edris requested A’zrayil to show him hell, which he did after receiving due permission. Afterwards Edris manifested a desire to behold paradise, and by the command of the Glorious Sovereign, he was seated on a wing of A’zrayil, and thus arrived in the seventh heaven, and lastly in paradise, where he spent an hour in contemplating the rivers, fruits, huris, palaces, and youths of that blessed abode. After some time A’zrayil wished to take Edris away from the garden, but Edris, who was aware of the state of affairs, and initiated into secrets, refused to comply, and taking refuge near a tree, resisted all the invitations of his guide, saying: ‘Unless the Creator of paradise and of hell removes me, I shall not quit this place.’

Meanwhile the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—sent an angel to arbitrate between them, who, after conversing with A’zrayil, asked Edris, who replied: ‘Every soul shall taste of death.⁷⁵ I have eaten of the poison of the extinction of life, and, according to the edict, “There is none of you but will go down to it,” I descended to hell; and, lastly, according to the command of the Most High and Glorious concerning the inhabitants of paradise, “And they shall not go out from it,” I shall not go out merely because of A’zrayil’s words until the Omnipotent Inscrutable One orders me to do so.’ Then the divine announcement arrived: ‘By my permission he entered, and by my permission he acted; leave him alone, for the right is on his side.’ Some historians, such as Ka’b-ullâkhbâr⁷⁶ and others, have said that this is the meaning of the words: ‘And we have raised him to a high place.’ Others, again, have said that when Edris came out of paradise he began to worship God in the sixth heaven with the angels, and will continue to do so until the Lord’s command, according to predestination, is issued to him. Some assert that when Edris went to heaven by the aid of the angel, he requested the Lord, who answers prayers, to send him back. Accordingly, his spirit was immediately separated from his body; it was conveyed to the heavenly temple, and he was appointed to worship God in the company of angels.

A FEW WORDS MORE ABOUT EDRIS, U. W. B., ETC.

Some have said that Edris was one hundred years old at the time of Adam’s death; others say three hundred and sixty. Concerning the length of his life, there are also various opinions. It is related that he was sent to prophesy two hundred years after the decease of Adam, and that he obtained thirty pages [of revelation]. His law agreed with that of Adam; his book contained the secrets of heaven, and the way of subjugating spiritual things, curious and wonderful sciences and arts, the knowledge of the nature of all existing things, etc. He preached one hundred and five, and according to others one hundred and eight years. But the Emâm, the sun of truth and of religion, Muhammad Bin Muhammad Shaharruzi, who is the author of the ‘Tarikh-i Hukmâ,’ which is in the possession of the writer, in the author’s own handwriting, has narrated therein that Edris, having ascended to heaven after the termination of the eighty-second year of his life, obtained an exalted place; but Allah knows best.

PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF THE LORD EDRIS, U. W. B., ETC.

He had a handsome physiognomy, of a brown complexion, large moustache and beard; his stature was tall and symmetrical, with strong bones and little flesh. He spoke slowly, but was mostly silent; when he walked he looked down, and was always meditating something. When he spoke he moved the forefinger; and being once asked how a good opinion may be acquired among people, he replied: ‘By dealing honestly and civilly with everybody.’ The following are some of his maxims: The greatest blessings are three in number, namely, meekness in the time of anger, liberality in the time of dearth, and pardon in a powerful position. He is wise who despises not three classes of men, namely, kings, scholars, and friends: for whosoever is impudent to sovereigns will injure his own income; who despises scholars has deteriorated his own faith; and whoever esteems lightly his friends pulls out the shrub of politeness by the roots. An intelligent man ought to covet wisdom; he must not lament in a general calamity; the higher his dignity becomes, the humbler he must be; he must not rail at a man’s faults, nor change at the increase of his own fortune. Call him not perfectly wise who is not perfectly abstinent, and consider him not adorned with science who possesses not sound sense. An ignorant man will appear small to the eye of discernment, though he may be great to the eyes of the world, but with the learned the contrary is the case. Who settles in a place where there is neither a powerful king nor a righteous judge, neither a skilled physician nor a running brook, has no regard for his own life. Riches make a stranger a citizen, and poverty makes a citizen a stranger, which sentiments has been versified by Shekh Sa’di as follows:

Verses:

A rich man is not a stranger in mountain, desert or solitude— Wherever he goes he pitches his tent and makes a sleeping-place; Whilst he who is destitute of the goods of this world Must be in his own country a stranger and unknown.77

There are many sayings of Edris concerning advice and philosophy, a few of which have been given here as specimens. (a)

THE DIABOLICAL SUGGESTIONS OF THE DECEITFUL EBLIS, IN TEACHING THE FRIEND OF EDRIS TO MAKE STATUES OF STONE, AND THE BEGINNING OF IDOLATRY AMONG MEN.

Historians have related that Edris—u. w. b., etc.—had, before his ascent to heaven, a friend on earth, who never separated from the company of his lordship the refuge of prophecy; and as substances are endowed with certain inseparable qualities, in the same manner, also, the said friend was never separated from the noble threshold, and after being deprived of the exalted society of Edris, he never ceased his lamentations, and was highly distressed. Eblis inquired about the cause of his misfortune, and was informed by the man that all his desolation and grief arose from the absence of Edris, and from the loss of the blessing and advantage of his company. Eblis said: ‘If thou wilt, I shall make for thee a statue in the similitude of his person, and by associating therewith thou wilt become pacified.’ The friend agreed, and Eblis constructed a figure representing Edris, at the sight of which the pain of having lost his former companion was diminished. He erected it in his house that no one might see it, and every morning and evening he visited it in order to blot out the rust of grief from the speculum of his mind. It happened that this man suddenly died in his house; as the people had not seen him for several days, they entered his dwelling, and, opening the door, found him dead near a statue, which fact greatly astonished them. On that occasion Eblis made his appearance among them in the shape of a man, saying: ‘Edris and this man who was his friend worshipped this statue of the living God, and therefore their prayers were granted.’ The fraud of Eblis took effect, and every one of the people fabricated an idol, and worshipped it. Thus idolatry spread in the world. Some have asserted that it originated when the children of Adam were guarding their father’s corpse in a coffin, bearing it along wherever they went, and, according to Adam’s command, not allowing Qabil or his children to behold it. Thus Satan got an opportunity to execute his deceit, and going to Qabil and his children he said: ‘If you think fit, I shall prepare for you a statue resembling the body of Adam, which will always remain with you.’ They agreed, and Satan made the promised figure, which the children of Qabil placed into a coffin, and kept with them at home and abroad. In course of time every nation had a statue like the above, and after the lapse of years they by degrees commenced to worship these statues.

Others have said that after the decease of Edris there arose some pious men whose names were as follows: Wadd, Soowâ, Yaghuth, Ya’vuq and Nasser⁷⁸; whenever one of them attained the mercy of Allah [i.e. when he died] his adherents fabricated a statue in his likeness for their consolation, and kept it in the house; when these adherents died, Satan persuaded their descendants that these statues were gods; they believed his words, and began to adore them. These idols having been lost in the deluge which happened during Nûh’s time, Eblis again found them, and gave one to each tribe. Thus he presented Wadd to the Beni Kalb, Soowâ to the tribe Hozayil, Yaghuth to the tribe Mazhaj, Ya’vuq to the tribe Qoza’a, and Nasser to the tribe Hamyar. This despicable religion flourished until Islâm was established. There are also various opinions about the beginning of fire-worship, one of which has been narrated in the story of Qabil. Some maintain that the religion of ignolatry originated in Ebrahim’s time, since Satan suggested to the people that the cause of Ebrahim’s not having been injured by fire was because he had worshipped it.⁷⁹ Others assert that as God —w. n. b. e.—threatened mankind with fire by means of the prophets, Satan said to the people: ‘You ought to adore fire, then it would not burn you on the day of the resurrection.’ From all these opinions, however, it does not appear when this blamable custom originated. Another party affirms that when Zartusht [Zoroaster] came forward with his pretensions to prophetship in the time of Gushtasp [Darius?], and made a book called ‘Zend’ [Avesta], whence one who believes in it is surnamed Zendiq, he invited people to worship fire, saying: ‘Whoever worships fire in this world, God—w. n. b. e.—will not afflict him therewith in the next.’

STORY OF HARÛT AND MARÛT.

Some historians have said that when Edris attained felicity, according to the verse, ‘And we raised him to an exalted station,’ he became in the upper world an associate of angels, who mistook him for Adam, saying: ‘What seeketh the sinner among an assembly which never transgressed?’ The Absolute Sage [i.e. God] did not approve of these words, and reproached them as follows: ‘Had you been in the position of men you would have likewise sinned; and in order to cause this truth to become evident to all, I command you to select some of yourselves, whom I shall appoint to execute a certain business.’ Then the inhabitants of the upper world chose the three following individuals: A’za, A’zaya, and A’zayil. The Lord commanded them to descend upon earth, and to rule the inhabitants thereof with rectitude; to participate with them in eating, drinking and in their appetites; to worship Him, but to kill no one unjustly, neither to drink wine, nor to commit adultery. The three angels agreed to all this. They arrived on earth, associated with mankind, occupied themselves by day in governing, and returned at night to heaven, stripping off their humanity when ascending, and re-assuming it when descending. One of the three intended to rebel, was therefore excused from reigning, and was at his own request again allowed to enter the ranks of the saints in heaven. The two remaining ones, who were surnamed Harût and Marût, remained on the throne of dominion and continued to rule. Meanwhile, a handsome female, unsurpassed in amenity and beauty, who was in Arabic called Zohra, in Syriac Nâhid, in Persian Beedukht,⁸⁰ came one day on business to these two angels. When they beheld Zohra’s beauty they were inclined towards her, kept their desires concealed from each other, but ascertained her dwelling-place, and told her to return to it, and that after duly investigating her affair they would get it settled. She accordingly went to her house, and both the angels hastened to the same place, unknown to each other, anxiously endeavouring to meet her. They however, happened to meet each other at her door, and were thus forced to reveal their mutual aspirations. They asked Zohra for permission to enter, after obtaining which they began to declare to her their love. She replied: ‘Your religion is different from mine; I shall not obey you until you worship my idol.’ The angels replied: ‘This culpable deed will never be committed by us, since the Most High never pardons the sin of associating [with Him] another in His worship.’ Zohra continued: ‘If you will not adore my idol, then teach me the ineffable name by the power of which you ascend to heaven.’⁸¹ They again refused, whereon Zohra said: ‘I have a pretty maid-servant; I shall give her to you instead of myself.’ They said: ‘We want thee! How could a person elect a substitute for one who has no equal?’ Zohra continued: ‘Some pure wine is at hand; if you drink some of that I shall comply with your wishes.’ Harût and Marût agreed that this was the easiest thing of all she asked them to do. When they had partaken of the wine, and become intoxicated, they worshipped the idol and taught Zohra the ineffable name. At that time a man arrived among them and became aware of all that had happened. Zohra told them that this man knew their evil deeds, and that it would be best to kill him, lest he should put them to shame among the people. Harût and Marût arose, and in their drunkenness separated the head of that luckless individual from his body. Zohra then ascended to heaven by the power of the ineffable name she had learnt from them. After the base acts which Harût and Marût had committed, the Absolute Sovereign spoke thus to the angels: ‘Have you seen the state of those elected by yourselves?’ The angels replied: ‘O Lord! Thou knowest thy servants best.’ When Harût and Marût awoke from the sleep of their drunkenness they became convinced of their perdition, and began to weep. At that time Jebrâil, the faithful spirit, arrived from the Powerful Avenger, and taking part in their lamentations said: ‘The Almighty—w. n. b. pr.—has given you the choice between the punishment in this or in the next world.’ They replied: ‘The misery of this world is transient, and will cease, but condemnation in the next will last for ever; therefore we select punishment in this world.’ Accordingly they were suspended upside down in the well of Babel, where they must remain till the day of the resurrection. Their most acute torment consists in their becoming from time to time a prey to carnal lusts to a degree which it is impossible to conceive. It has been related that Jebrâil has taught them a word which, if pronounced at a time lust is at its highest, will appease it.

In some histories it is narrated that a man, having acquired great proficiency in magic, died. His son was exceedingly anxious to learn this science, but was told by an old sorcerer to whom he had been directed that he could never do so unless he paid a visit to Harût and Marût. The said sorcerer conducted the youth to a cave situated between two mountains, and told him not to mention the name of Allah in the presence of these two. He agreed, whereon the old sorcerer beckoned to him to enter. After proceeding a considerable distance in the cavern, the young man heard the roaring of a dreadful voice, and beheld two men suspended upside down from a gibbet; but when he saw their eyes shining like torches he lost his self-possession, and exclaimed: ‘No god but Allah, and Muhammad His prophet!’ The two angels trembled at these words, saying: ‘O young man! it is a long time since we have heard these words. Do the inhabitants of the earth at present utter them?’ The youth replied, ‘Yes.’ They inquired for the reason of his coming, after hearing which they dissuaded him from learning sorcery, and said to him: ‘Our joy is near, for the resurrection is at hand.’ The youth accepted their advice, and returned from that place repentant and sad. The strangeness of this narrative has caused its extension to this length.

RECORD OF NÛH [NOAH] THE CONFIDANT, O. W. B. P.

Chroniclers differ about the name of Nûh’s father. Some call him Malak, and others Malakan, and Lâmak,⁸²

and Lâlay also. Nûh was born one hundred and twenty-six years after the decease of Adam, when Leo was in the ascendant. Various opinions are current concerning the reason of his being called Nûh. According to some, Satan paid a visit to Nûh after the deluge had subsided, and said: ‘O prophet of Allah, thou hast done me good service, and accomplished a matter impossible to me and to my assistants after the toil of many years.’ Nûh asked: ‘What is that, O enemy of Allah?’ Eblis rejoined: ‘Thou hast prayed to God to destroy all infidels at once, and to send them to hell.’ Nûh repented of that prayer, and said: ‘Would to God I had not done so!’ After that he began to lament and to mourn; therefore he was called Nûh.⁸³ The learned have thus explained it in their books. Whilst writing this a doubt has occurred to the author, and he lays it before the reader as follows: Etymologists agree that Nûh is a foreign word, but that Nuha is Arabic; but as the latter is derived from the former, it must likewise be an Arabic, and not a foreign word. Allah— w. n. b. e.—knows best. Some call this blessed name Sâkun, and others Sâkub and Sakub; but according to current opinion Nûh is the first Uvlu-l-a’zm,⁸⁴ which means a prophet whose law superseded a former law. After Nûh had been sent he supplanted the commands of the book of Adam by his own. It is reported that after the ascension of Edris wickedness and crime began to prevail in this corruptible world, and its inhabitants rebelled. In order to ameliorate and to arrange the condition of mankind, Nûh—u. w. b., etc.—was sent as a prophet after the expiration of two hundred and fifty years of his own life. Some historians have augmented or diminished this number, as will, if it pleaseth Allah—u. w. b. e.—appear from the appendix to the present narrative. It is certain that the sending of prophets and the establishing of laws are for the good of mankind, and for the purpose of saving them from the punishment and remorse certain to overtake them on the day of judgment; but nevertheless,

Distich:

If all creatures were to become infidels It would not in the least injure His magnificence.

In short, according to the history of Tabari, Nûh is said to have been sent by the Almighty—w. n. b. p.—to Zohâk and to his followers, who were idolaters. In the ‘Nizâm-ut-tavârikh’ it is recorded that Ebrahim had been sent to Zohâk; but the best opinions are nearest to the truth, since according to the most correct accounts Kaiumorth was the grandson of Nûh, and after several generations Zohâk attacked Jamshid, who was a descendant of Kaiumorth. It is recorded in some books that after all sorts of wicked and base acts had been committed by the children of Qabil, the Most High and Glorious God had sent Nûh to them. It is said that he was the first prophet who frightened people on account of their infidelity, and the first messenger at whose request a nation was destroyed, and the first person who will in the second creation raise his head from the earth after his lordship [Muhammad] the refuge of prophecy—u. w. b., etc.—will be he. No prophet was living contemporaneously with him. When the stature of Nûh’s ability had been invested with the robe of prophecy, and the Almighty had despatched him to preach to the inhabitants of the world, he was engaged in guiding and directing them during nine hundred and fifty years.⁸⁵ A small company believed his words; though he suffered much persecution from the infidelity of those who went astray, he was patient and long-suffering in all his trials, and besought the Lord, saying: ‘My God, direct the people, for they know not;’ but the more he prayed for the amelioration of that race, the more their infidelity increased day by day, and no one minded his preaching or advice. They attributed his eloquence to sorcery and madness, and vied with each other in persecuting and deriding him; they pointed him out to their children, and attributed to him improper acts, enjoining them not to follow his law or religion. Thus once when he was preaching, a prominent individual of the people, whose name was Baqssi, went with his son Jarud to Nûh, and, taking the hand of the boy, commenced to admonish him, saying: ‘My son! know that this fellow is a magician and a liar. Take care not to abandon the faith of thy ancestors, nor to be decoyed by his enticing words; endeavour rather to distress him as much as possible, for this is the command of our forefathers.’ During this insulting speech that ill-fated boy took up a handful of earth and threw it into Nûh’s face. His lordship complained thereof at the palace of the Most Gracious God, and received this reply: ‘The keys of the hearts of our servants are in the treasury of our power, and no created being can accomplish any matter whatever without the aid of our grace previously vouchsafed. Do not be sad; for after all this long time nobody will believe except this company, which consists of the fewest of the few, and which has been ennobled by the honour of monotheism.’ Nûh asked: ‘O Lord, will none of the progeny of this nation believe?’ Then the announcement came: ‘The pen of the divine will has thus decreed that none of the descendants of these black-hearted ones should profess the unity of Allah according to the blessed verse, “And it was revealed unto Nûh: no one of thy people will believe except he who has already believed.”’ After despairing concerning the faith of the people, Nûh prayed for them, and one of his requests was this: ‘Lord, do not sow or multiply infidels upon the earth.’⁸⁶ The prayer of his lordship reached the target of response, and the announcement arrived: ‘Begin to construct the ship, for we shall destroy this miserable and foolish people by the rebellion of the water, which has hitherto been to them an occasion of life, and shall send them to the fire of hell.’

At the request of Nûh the people were afflicted with scarcity and dearth before the deluge arrived. In consequence of his prayers the custom of generation and parturition also ceased for several years among them. It is related that Jebrâil, having brought an ebony-tree, told Nûh to plant it, which he did. After twenty, and according to others, after forty years, when the wood of it had become large and strong, he felled and dried it; then he began, with his three sons and one other man, to build the ark in the desert near Kufah, under the instruction of Jebrâil. It is asserted by some that when he had despaired of converting the people, he desisted from preaching to them. The infidels likewise ceased gradually to distress him, but nevertheless occasionally grieved the mind of his lordship by way of derision. While he was engaged in cutting the planks for the ark the chiefs of the people looked on and railed at him, saying: ‘O Nûh, after the dignity of a prophet thou hast attained that of a carpenter.’ They also said to each other: ‘See this fool who is with all diligence and solicitude preparing a ship, whereas there is no water anywhere!’ Nûh retorted: ‘Ye are unobservant of the reward of your works, and careless of the punishment to come; but after being in this world afflicted with drowning, and in the next subject to the punishment of burning, then sarcasm and pity will fall upon you for your own lot.’

When Nûh had completed [the building of] the ark, and had, after placing the beams and arranging the stories, coloured them with pitch and tar inside and out, the command arrived to him to construct a sarcophagus of box-wood wherein to preserve Adam’s body, so that his august stature might not be injured when the floods were let loose, and the waters of the rains, springs, and seas began to superabound. The wind was likewise ordered to assemble the different kinds of wild animals, birds, and all sorts of animate beings, a pair of each species of which, for the preservation of their genus, Nûh was to put on board the ark till the waters subsided; others say that Jebrâil collected them, and Nûh acted according to the instructions he had received.

Meanwhile the command was issued from the Residence of Glory to the seven planets to hasten their motions; but according to another opinion they were ordered to assemble in one degree, yea, in one minute of the sign Cancer, which is the mansion of water and the horoscope of the world,⁸⁷ and to hasten to manifest the properties inherent in, and resulting from their congregation. Accordingly, the seven planets moved into the sign Cancer, and a short time after they had met there the waters began, in consequence of the prediction, to flow when the twenty-first degree was in the ascendant. On that occasion one of the believers in the unity of God went to Safardûs, the king of that nation, and, informing him of the state of the case, began to frighten him about the danger of drowning, and to advise him to fly. The king immediately mounted his horse, and, going to Nûh, asked him about this calamity. Nûh replied: ‘Alas! my king, the command of thy Lord has arrived.’ Safardûs became frightened, and fled from that place. Nûh, however, and his followers, amounting to eighty souls, entered the ark, wherein they remained sound and safe from the catastrophe of the deluge.

Hemistich:

What fear has he of the sea whose pilot is Nûh?

It is on record that Nûh’s wife, Vaa’la by name, who was of a different religion, perished in the waves; and likewise his son Kana’an, according to some traditions called Avrayam and Râya, abstained from entering the ark, although Nûh admonished him, saying: ‘O my son, embark with us.’ But the latter replied: ‘I shall repair to the mountain, and it will protect me from the water.’⁸⁸ At that very moment a wave snatched him off from before his father, who became greatly distressed, and, opening his lips in prayer, said: ‘O Almighty Nourisher, my son is of my own family, which Thou hast promised to save.’ Immediately the allocution reached him: ‘He does not belong to thy family, because improper acts and unrighteous deeds were committed by him.’ It is well known to the discerning and cultivated minds of well-educated persons that noble descent is not esteemed by the intelligent if it be unadorned by the accomplishments of knowledge, and the decorations of prudence and laudable acts. In short, the waters of springs and fountains exundated beyond measure during forty days and nights; at the same time the rains poured down in such a manner that the whole became one vast ocean, covering the highest mountains by more than forty cubits.

Hemistich:

What is one spear length or a hundred if the head be surpassed?

The majority of historiographers narrate that, despite of this altitude of water, it covered only the knee-joints of A’vuj Bin A’nak, who was in the prime of youth.

Hemistich:

If the world be changed to a sea, it reaches only a duckling’s breast.

It is said that A’vuj Bin A’nak was saved from the deluge in spite of his idolatry, because he had assisted Nûh— u. w. b., etc.—in building the ark, which is said to have begun to move from Kufah, and on arriving at the honoured city of Mekkah it revolved seven times around the temple; then it passed over the whole world, and finally stopped, after five months, on the top of Mount Jûdi,⁸⁹ which is situated in Arabian Mesopotamia; and there it stopped one month more. During the time of the deluge night could not be distinguished from day on account of the clouds, the rain, and the black vapours arising from the surface of the water. Ebn Abbâs is said to have related that the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—fixed two luminous discs, one like the sun and the other like the moon, on the wall of the ark, and by their means the time of the day or night, as well as the times appointed for prayers, were ascertained. When the rains abated the earth began to absorb the waters, and when Nûh beheld the rainbow he knew that the time for leaving the ark was near, and let out a raven for the purpose of learning the state and quantity of the waters; but that ill-fated bird met a corpse and returned not, whereon Nûh cursed it, and prayed that its nourishment might at all times consist of carcases. Afterwards he let fly a dove,⁹⁰ which returned, after a short time, with an olive-sprig in its beak. From this circumstance he concluded that the tops of trees must have appeared above the waters; and, on account of the pigeon’s obedience and information, he blessed it, and prayed that it may always enjoy the favour of man. Nûh then continued to send out the dove until it returned with some of the loam of the sea sticking to its feet, and on that day, which was the tenth of the month Muharram, all the people came out from the ark.

Hemistich:

What shall I say for joy how they came!

They built a village at the foot of the mountain, which, as the company amounted to eighty persons, was called Sauk-ut-thamaneen [Forum of eighty]. After the village had been completed, all the inhabitants died from plague and pestilence except Nûh, his three sons Sâm, Hâm, Yâfuth and their wives, who were spared from the calamity. It is related that the Almighty—whose magnificence be glorified—sent a revelation to Nûh to the effect that his people had been destroyed for their ingratitude, and that the Almighty swore by His own magnificence and glory never again to punish His servants with a deluge.⁹¹ Nûh was rejoiced at this news, and divided the entire habitable earth into three parts, which he thus distributed among his three sons: To Sâm [Shem] he gave Syria, Mesopotamia, Erâq, Persia and Khorâsân, because he was the most intelligent of his children. To Hâm he granted Africa, Ethiopia, Abyssinia, India, Sind and the country of the blacks. Upon Yâfuth [Japheth] he bestowed China, the Slavonian countries and Turkestân. Accordingly, the inhabitants of the whole of Persia, Arabia and Greece, which countries are the centre of the civilized world, are the descendants of Sâm. The Turks, Slavonians, and the nations around the Caspian Sea, who are noble and brave, are the children of Yâfuth; and all the blacks of India, Sind, Zanzibar, Abyssinia and the negro land are the offspring of Hâm.

It is related that when Nûh—u. w. b., etc.—had one day fallen asleep, his pudenda happened to be uncovered, on seeing which Hâm began to laugh, and instead of covering them informed his brothers of the circumstance. They reproved him, and veiled the nudity of their father. When Nûh awoke he became aware of what had taken place, reproached Hâm angrily, and prayed to the Almighty to make his children the slaves of the descendants of Sâm and Yâfuth; in consequence whereof the progeny of the two latter became honoured, but that of the former afflicted with misery and servitude.⁹² It is said that after Nûh’s prayer the wife of Hâm gave birth to twins, one male and the other female, both of whom were black, at the sight of whom Hâm became melancholy and despondent, and informed his brethren of the event. Sâm and Yâfuth said that this untoward accident happened in consequence of their father’s prayer. Therefore Hâm abstained from intercourse with his spouse, but after some time again resumed it, whereon she became pregnant, and was again delivered of black twins exactly as before. Then Hâm was convinced that nothing could stop or hinder the execution of God’s decree and order.

It is related, according to Wuhub Bin Muniah, that when the waters of the deluge had disappeared, and the trees had begun to wear a blooming and joyous aspect on the banks of rivers, and when people established themselves permanently on the face of the earth, Eblis waited upon Nûh, and said: ‘Thou hast conferred a great benefit upon me, for which I am very thankful. Ask now anything thou chooseth, and I shall practise no fraud towards thee.’ Nûh—u. w. b., etc.—was suspicious of these words, but the divine command having been issued to him to converse with and to interrogate the Evil One, because it had been decreed that this time words of truth should flow from his lips, Nûh put the following question to Satan: ‘Which of the characteristics of men are of the greatest assistance to thee for their perdition?’ Eblis replied: ‘Envy and covetousness, malevolence and precipitation in the transactions of life.’ Nûh continued: ‘O enemy of Allah! wherein lies the good I have done to thee?’ Satan rejoined: ‘Thou hast prayed against the inhabitants of this world, and hast sent them to hell in one hour; otherwise I would have been obliged to machinate against them for a long time.’ Nûh then repented of his prayer. Some of this conversation has, however, already been narrated above.

After the deluge Nûh continued to live for a long time, but at last, in his dying hour, when Jebrâil arrived with A’zrayil, and asked, ‘O prophet, whose life was the longest, what thinkest thou of life after so long a duration?’ Nûh replied, ‘I have learnt that this world is like a house with two doors, by one of which I entered, and, after staying therein a little while, I left it by the other.’

Verses:

This ornamental garden has two portals, Keys and locks removed from both; Enter the garden by one portal and look round, Then issue from the garden by the other.

When he departed this life, and his precious soul went to the propinquity of the Most Merciful, his noble children committed his august body to the earth in Jerusalem.⁹³

His external Description.—Nûh had a brown complexion, a very corpulent and broad body, but slender legs and arms. His eyes were large, his stature high, his beard and moustache straight, and he was subject to stormy fits of anger.

His Name and Surnames.—In Syria he is called Bushkur, and Nûh in Arabia. He is also called the second Adam. His surname is the chief of prophets, and the confidant of Allah.

Some of his Characteristics.—According to some, he was the first Uvlu-l-a’zm, and by others he is called the second; according to the most approved opinion Uvlu-l-a’zm (see footnote 84) is a prophet who substitutes his own law for that of another. Though Nûh was constantly occupied with his mission to the people, he was extremely pious, and performed more than seven hundred prayer-flexions during the twenty-four hours of the day. He was patient, long-suffering, grateful, meritorious; and, in spite of the people’s conduct, he distributed among them everything he possessed, hoping thus to captivate them and to decoy the birds of the hearts of those lost ones, with the bait of liberality and good deeds, to enter the nest of peace, security and happiness.

RECORD OF NÛH’S ARK.

It is recorded in several commentaries that the length of the ark was eighty, the breadth fifty, and the height thirty cubits. It contained three stories, the lowest of which was the abode of wild beasts and reptiles, the second that of birds and cattle, and the highest was the dwelling of Nûh and his followers. Such is the tradition of the followers of the book.⁹⁴ Some assert that the birds were in the first story, men and cattle in the middle, and wild beasts with reptiles in the last story; but Allah knows the true state best. It is recorded by Abdullah Bin Abbas—u. w. b., etc.—that the length of the ship consisted of six hundred and sixty, the breadth of three hundred, and the height of thirty-three cubits, divided into three compartments as has just been mentioned. Others, again, have reported in their commentaries that the length of the ark was one thousand, the breadth five hundred, and the height three hundred cubits. It was formed in the shape of a bird: its head being like that of a peacock, its eyes like the eyes of an eagle, its breast like the breast of a dove, and its extremity like the tail of a cock. It was lined outwardly and inwardly with resin and pitch. It is related after the Emâm of the Emâms of guidance, Hasan Mahani —u. w. b., etc.—that the length of the ark was one thousand and two hundred, and its breadth six hundred cubits, which tradition agrees with that obtained from Sâm, the son of Nûh—u. w. b., etc.—at the time when he was resuscitated to life by the prayers of I’sa [Jesus].

RECORD OF THE NUMBER OF INHABITANTS OF THE SHIP.

Qotadah says that only eight persons were in the ark: namely, Nûh—u. w. b., etc.—with his wife; Yâfuth, Sâm, and Hâm, with their wives. Agmush records that there were only seven individuals—that is to say, Nûh, with his three sons and daughters. Muhammad Bin Eshaq states that besides the females there were ten men—i.e. Nuh, his three sons, and six warriors from among the inhabitants of Yemen. Muqâtl states that there were seventy people besides Nûh, his sons, and their wives; so that their total amounted to seventy-seven. Ebn A’bbâs relates that the whole number amounted to eighty souls, and this is the most correct opinion.

It is said that impurities and excrementitious matter so molested the company that they complained to Nûh, who in his turn besought the Most Gracious Benefactor to remedy the evil, whereon he was by divine command ordered to touch the back of the elephant; and after he had done so, the elephant gave birth to a hog, which immediately began to swallow the impurities, and thus cleansed the ship. It is related that Eblis touched with his hand the back of the hog, and a mouse came forth from its nostrils, which injured the ark much, and almost perforated it; but by the blessing of the Almighty—w. n. b. e. —Nûh was commanded to pass his hand over the face of the lion, who immediately sneezed, and a cat came out from his nostrils, which removed the nuisance of the mice.

EXPLANATION OF THE WORDS, ‘AND THE OVEN BOILED.’⁹⁵

THE MIRACLES OF NÛH.

Besides [the miracles connected with] the deluge, and others already mentioned, the following are also attributed to him: When the believers in the unity of God had come out from the ark, all their eatables had been consumed, and they were entirely famished; then Nûh took up a quantity of sand from the ground, and by the blessing of his prayers it was changed into grilled wheat. Some say that after leaving the ark he planted fruit-trees, which immediately became green and bore fruit; so that the troubles of the believers were changed into repose, and they were saved from the pangs of hunger, which are one of the most dreadful scourges. Another of his miracles is that he cured one of his daughters of barrenness by placing his finger upon her navel. Besides these miracles, he performed many others, to enumerate which would greatly lengthen this record.

HIS MISSION AND THE LENGTH OF HIS LIFE.

The approved opinion is that the duration of his blessed life amounted to one thousand years, of which he spent nine hundred and fifty in his mission of converting the people. He walked to the Abode of Truth [i.e. he died] during the same year in which he left the ark. The learned affirm that Nûh received his mission in the fiftieth year of his life, and that he was six hundred years old at the time of the deluge, and that he lived three hundred and fifty years more after it.

Be it known that all nations believe in the deluge except the Majûs and the inhabitants of Khatay.⁹⁶ Some chroniclers say that Nûh was two hundred and fifty years old when he was appointed to his mission, and that he lived nine hundred and fifty years more. According to one calculation the length of his life would amount to one thousand four hundred and fifty years. The total period of his mission [to admonish the people] before and after the deluge consisted of one thousand and two hundred years. Others state that he died at the age of one thousand and three hundred, or of one thousand four hundred and seventy years. In short, when the catastrophe of the deluge had terminated, and the company who believed in Nûh’s preaching had died, the whole world belonged to the sons of Nûh, every one of whom departed to his inheritance, and engaged in cultivating it.

RECORD OF YÂFUTH, THE SON OF NÛH, U. W. B., ETC.,
AND DESCRIPTION OF THE TURKS, HIS DESCENDANTS.

Some have said that Yâfuth became a prophet, appointed by the Almighty. When Nûh took leave of him at the foot of Mount Jûdi, and sent him towards the north and the east, over which he had been appointed, Yâfuth requested his father to teach him a prayer by means of which he might procure rain at any time. Nûh complied, and, after having turned towards the Lord of Glory, Jebrâil brought in response to his request the ineffable Name, which Nûh carved on a stone and gave to Yâfuth. It is called ‘rain-stone,’ but the Turks have named it Jaddatâsh.⁹⁷

When Yâfuth left the ‘Forum of the eighty,’ he travelled for a long time until he arrived at the limits of his empire, where he pursued a nomadic life and established good customs. When his progeny had greatly increased, he removed his goods and chattels to the abode of perpetuity [i.e. he died]. Some say that he laid the foundation of one of the great cities of China in his dominions. It is related that the Bestower of all good gifts had granted to him eleven sons—namely, Chin, Saqallâb, Kamâri, Turk, Khalj, Kharz, Rûs, Sadsân, A’z, Bâraj, and Manshaj—each of whom he married to one of his own daughters, commanding them to cultivate the land, and to multiply the number of the worshippers of God.

Turk, the son of Yâfuth, his successor, and the most intelligent of his sons, strenuous, upright, and sagacious, also called Yâfuth Oglân, was the first who explored those regions. He arrived at a place called Selûk, where he found a lake with warm water, pleasant springs, and numberless prairies. The locality suited Turk extremely well. He settled therein, erected houses built of wood and grass; after some time he invented tents by sewing together hides of sheep and of other animals. He was a just and excellent king, cared unceasingly for the well-being of his subjects, and the servants of God—w. n. b. e.—reposed in tranquillity under the shadow of his protection. The Bestower of all good gifts presented him with children worthy of himself. One of these, Fûduk by name, who was addicted to hunting, one day roasted and consumed some of the game he had slain, when suddenly a piece of meat slipped from his hand into saline ground. On taking up the meat again he found it to be very savoury; he accordingly began to salt his victuals, and this custom originated from that day among the Turks, who are his descendants.

Kharz travelled in the north, and when he arrived on the Amut [Amûr?] he was so pleased that he built a city, where his sons introduced in the world the art of catching foxes, of the skins whereof they made clothes, according to the instructions of their father, during whose lifetime one of his sons happened to die. For a long time he knew not what to do with the corpse. As, however, Yâfuth, with some of his adherents, had perished in the sea, he kindled fire, which is antagonistic to water, and threw the body into it, causing his followers to play on musical instruments and to sing during the act of cremation; and it is said that this blamable habit is still flourishing in that country. It is said that his descendants followed bees until they arrived in the cavities of mountains, where they found honey, of which they prepared sweetmeats.

After some time Rûs arrived in the vicinity of the country of Kharz, and sent to him a messenger for the purpose of asking permission to settle in the realm. Kharz received the envoy with compliments, and presented his master with several oases possessing a good climate with a fertile soil. When each of the children of Yâfuth had taken up his abode in a separate region, his son A’z went to the outskirts of the country of Bulgâr, constructed edifices, and settled there. A’z was of a cunning and deceitful nature, who carried on great wars against his brother Turk: the reason of which was that when Yâfuth got drowned in some sea, the stone which he had received through Nûh for the purpose of obtaining rain had fallen into the hands of A’z; but as every one of the brothers coveted that stone, A’z made use of his cunning disposition, and, procuring a false stone, which resembled the true one, he carved the ineffable Name on it. In order to settle the dispute who should obtain the stone, the brothers drew lots, and Turk having won, A’z was compelled to surrender it. He did so, but it was the fabricated stone. Turk entertained no suspicion, and, joyfully accepting it, never tried it till several years afterwards, when he stood in need of rain. He produced the just-mentioned stone, but his asking for rain was of no use, wherefore he became convinced that A’z had deceived him. He accordingly collected an army, which mountain and dale were too small to hold, and hastened to meet and to fight his brother for the purpose of recovering the original stone. A’z was likewise ready with numerous troops, and sent his eldest son, Begûr, who was decorated with the ornaments of valour and bravery, to combat Turk. A sanguinary battle ensued, in which Begûr was killed. Turk returned, but it is said that enmity subsists till this day between the descendants of the two families.

Saqallâb intended to settle in a good locality, since his progeny had likewise increased. On one occasion a son was born to him whose mother died in the travail of child-birth. It happened that at the same time a bitch in the hunting-kennel was delivered of pups, and the new-born infant was suckled with dog’s milk; accordingly when he grew up he snapped at everybody like a member of the canine race. His father married him to a female relative, who gave birth to an infant, also named Saqâllab. After some time he went, with all his followers, goods, and chattels, to the country of Rûs, and asked a place from him. Rûs said: ‘This country is very small, and you need much space, because you are so very numerous.’ After being thus disappointed, they applied also to Kumâri and Kharz, but received the same answer. Therefore the fire of war blazed up among them; the Saqallâbas fled, and wandered to the sixty-fourth degree of latitude, which is called the country beyond the seven climates,⁹⁸ where they were compelled to construct subterranean houses, on account of the severe cold; and there they dwelt.

Kamâri, the son of Yâfuth, was a jovial fellow, and a great hunter, who, finding whilst engaged in the chase, on the outskirts of the Bulgâr country, an agreeable prairie with a temperate climate, settled there. The Lord—whose name be glorified—bestowed two sons on him, one of whom he called Bulgâr and the other Bartâs. When both of them had attained mature age, each of them selected a place and cultivated it; they caught foxes, sables, ermines, and squirrels, of the skins whereof they made garments, and the inhabitants of that country are their descendants.

Chin, the son of Yâfuth, was exceedingly circumspect, discerning, and intelligent. He built a city in his country, and called it after his own name, as has been mentioned before; and as Chin was of a refined and aspiring disposition, he invented the arts of drawing, painting, and of weaving variegated stuffs. These arts he imparted to his children. He also reared silkworms, and nearly all the trades current among the Chinese must be ascribed to his ingenuity. Meanwhile his world-embracing eye became illuminated by the birth of a son of happy omen, whom he surnamed Mâchin. This son married when he had attained the age of maturity, and begat a numerous progeny. Then he consulted his father on the propriety of founding a new city, since their children and relatives had increased excessively; and after due permission he built near the capital of Chin a city which he called after his own name; therein he dwelt and prospered greatly. Mâchin took the wool of his sheep and taught his children to spin and to weave cloths. He was also fond of hunting, and one day caught an A’nka, which is a very handsome bird,⁹⁹ took its feathers, and ordered his warriors to put them on in war like plumes. On another occasion he caught a fawn. When it was killed and skinned a black clot of blood flowed from its navel, which Mâchin ordered to be kept and dried; he afterwards observed that it had become even more fragrant than it had been before. He therefore ordered that whenever a deer like this one was killed its navel-bag should be preserved; and in this manner the people obtained musk.

After the lapse of many years the descendants of Yâfuth began to multiply and to differ from each other so greatly that their speech became [also] changed, thirty-six dialects having become current among them, so that they could no longer understand each other. Therefore they separated, and cultivated the land in various parts of the north. Some of them, however, had been so much accustomed to nomadic life that they continued therein, and to this day the various tribes of Turks, Mongolians, Tartars, Kipjaks, etc., are known as his descendants. The Khâns of Turkestân and of the northern country are also of this race. Let it not remain unknown to the intelligent reader that whatever has been said in these pages concerning the numbers and affairs of the children of Yâfuth is quite different from the preface of the ‘Zafar-nâmah,’ which the author himself—may Allah have mercy on him—has not seen, consequently he has made no use of it.¹⁰⁰

RECORD OF HÂM, THE SON OF NÛH, U. W. B., ETC.

According to some chronicles, he is likewise considered to be a prophet, sent by the Almighty. Muhammad Bin Ka’b-ul-Fuzi states that the cause of the change of his countenance happened in the following manner: By the command of the Most High, w. n. b. e., all those who were in the ark of Nûh had been prohibited to have connection with their wives until the violence of the storm, the accumulation of the clouds, and the beating of the waves had subsided, and the ark had settled on dry ground. But the fire of Hâm’s lust blazed up whilst the deluge was at its height; he had intercourse with his spouse, and his complexion became changed. Some of the principal historians, however, have rejected this tradition, and even that of his having witnessed the nudity of Nûh and not covered it. At any rate, Hâm separated from his father, and travelled until he arrived at the shores of the southern ocean, where he settled. There the Almighty—w. n. b. pr.—bestowed upon him nine sons, namely, Hind, Sind, Zanj, Nuba, Kana’an, Kûsh, Qabat, Berber, and Habsh; from these the negroes of Africa, the Abyssinians, Zanzibaris, and Hindus are derived. Among the children of Hâm eighteen languages originated, each tribe using its own idiom; but when they could no longer understand each other, they necessarily dispersed, and built towns. It is said that to the south of the equinoxial line the land is cultivated as far as the fourteenth degree of latitude, and inhabited by some of the children of Hâm.

RECORD OF SÂM, THE SON OF NÛH, U. W. B., ETC.

Muqadasi narrates in his chronicle that Sâm, the son of Nûh, was one of the greatest prophets sent by Allah; and as the Lord Nûh found him to be the most intelligent, perfect, amiable, learned, pious, and noble of his sons, he appointed him to be his successor, communicated to him the secrets of prophecy and the mysteries of apostleship. He ordered all his descendants to obey him, bestowed upon him the middle climate, which is the best region in the habitable world, and prayed that the majority of saints, prophets, philosophers, sovereigns, chiefs of the people, and devout persons should be produced from his seed. Sâm lived five hundred years, and according to some till the time of the prophet Yaqûb, u. w. b., etc.; but the first opinion is the most correct. The Omnipotent, Inscrutable One presented him with nine sons; namely, Arfakhshad, who is the father of prophets; Kaiumarth, who is called the parent of kings; Asûd, Yafun, Yuruj, Lavud, A’ilam, Eran, and Sûr. Sâm despatched every one of these sons to another country. Some have recorded in their histories that the languages of the children of Sâm increased till they amounted to nineteen, and when they could no longer understand each other they dispersed, civilized, and cultivated the land separately. Kaiumarth reigned over all the races of Sâm, governed them like a king, and bestowed on them various appointments, according to the requirements of that age. His life will—if it pleaseth Allah—be narrated in the history of the kings of Persia.¹⁰¹ After the children of Sâm had greatly multiplied in Babel, Yemen, Hadharamaut, O’mân, in both the E’râqs and in Persia, some of them emigrated eastward and others westward. They mixed with the children of Yâfuth and of Hâm, and built cities and villages.

RECORD OF HÛD AND HIS MISSION TO THE PEOPLE OF A’AD.

It is the opinion of all historians that from the time of Nûh till Ebrahim, u. w. b., etc., which amounted to one thousand and two hundred years, there were no prophets sent except Hûd and Sâlah. Some affirm that Hûd was the son of A’bdullah, son of Remâh, son of Hareth, son of A’ad, son of A’os, son of Eram, son of Sâm, son of Nûh. Several of the commentaries, and most of the historical books, mention that A’aber, son of Sâlah, son of Arfakhshad, son of Sâm, is another name for him. At all events, the Lord and Beneficent Donor had sent him for the guidance and direction of the people of A’ad. Muhammad Ebn Esahaq and all chroniclers and expounders have related that the people of A’ad were an Arab tribe, notorious for the height, strength, and corpulency of their bodies, and for their bravery; so that the tallest individuals among them were one hundred, and the smallest sixty, cubits high, and they were the strongest men in the world. The people of A’ad and the sons of A’ad Bin A’os Bin Eram were all idolaters, one of their gods being Samûd and the other Samad. It is related that they constructed pillars of stone as high as their own bodies, and built upon them tall edifices, from which they precipitated any men against whom their wrath was incensed. Allah—w. n. b. pr.— said: ‘When ye are violent, ye are violent.’ The people of A’ad were mighty, addicted to idolatry, and committed all sorts of wickedness; but after their vileness had attained the highest degree, Hûd—u. w. b., etc.—was sent to that nation. He directed that misguided race during fifty years to the straight road; he invited them to acknowledge the unity of Allah, w. n. b. pr., and to discard idolatry; he threatened the people with [the consequences of] the sinfulness of their oppression, tyranny, and obstinacy; but they trusted to their own strength, and disregarded his admonitions. Nor did they accept his law, except a small company of them, who followed his precepts and injunctions. They were, however, obliged to keep their religion secret, for fear of being persecuted by the unbelievers. Not one of the nobles of the tribe believed except Murshed Bin Sa’d Bin A’kir. It is related in the history of Tabari that Loqmân-A’ad was likewise one of the faithful, and when the endeavours of Hûd to convert those refractory ones had exceeded all bounds, they unanimously determined to distress and to persecute him. The followers of Hûd, however, became aware of this intention, and when they informed him thereof he raised his hands in prayer, besought the Almighty to grant security to the believers, and to afflict the infidels and malefactors and their adherents with adversity. The arrow of prayer hit the target of response, and the abundance of the rain of heaven was changed into scarcity; the waters of their fountains, wells, and rivers were absorbed by the earth; their gardens, parks, and tanks became exsiccated. Lastly, the fire of hunger and famine was kindled in the stomachs of those heedless people, and during seven years they were afflicted with the misery of dearth. But compassion being one of the qualities of prophets, the Lord Hûd admonished them on that occasion, saying: ‘O ye misguided people, believe in God the most gracious and most high, that this punishment and calamity may be removed from you; because it is only the consequence of your rebellion and disobedience.’ They, however, considered his admonitions and promises to be impossible chimeras, and persisted in their former ways, not paying attention to his preaching, but continuing in their infidelity and wickedness, saying: ‘We cannot abandon the worship of our gods for the sake of thy words’; and when the famine had culminated in the most acute distress, and they had neither bread nor water, they unanimously decided to send a number of men to Mekkah in order to pray for rain.

In short, it was customary at that time, that when any calamity befell a believer in the unity of God or an infidel, he betook himself to the sanctuary of the Lord—whose magnificence be glorified — which was situated in the locality of the Ka’bah, where a red hill stood, and after he had prayed his wish was granted. At that time the inhabitants of the blessed city of Mekkah were of the children of A’mallâq, or A’maliq, the son of Lao, son of Sâm, and they were called A’maliqites. The Sherif of Mekkah and chief of that tribe was Moa’via Bin Bakr; his mother’s name was Gulchahra, the daughter of Khayberi, of the tribe of A’ad. When the calamity of famine had arisen among the A’adites, they sent the headmen of their people—such as Qil Bin A’z, Loqmân Bin A’âd, Baqum Bin Hillâl Bin Murshad Bin A’qir, Sa’d Bin Haliqa Bin Alkhayberi, the maternal uncle of Moa’via Bin Bakr, and many others, to the number of seventy, under the leadership of the above-named Qil—to the noble city of Mekkah, with instructions to stay in that holy place for the purpose of praying for rain. This company started from their homes as they were bidden, and, after the termination of their journey, they arrived in Mekkah, and alighted at the house of Moa’via Bin Bakr, who waited upon them with abundance of food and drink, and also ordered a singing girl to entertain the people of A’ad. The ambassadors of this tribe, who had exchanged the calamity of dearth and hunger for the pleasure of tranquillity and comfort, forgot the distress of the A’adites and the prayers for rain, so that they remained a full month in the neighbourhood of the sanctuary in the house of Moa’via, engaged in joy and pleasure, following up their nocturnal potations with matutinal draughts, and vice versâ, incessantly beating the drum of joviality, and never caring for good or ill luck.

After a protracted stay of these guests in Moa’via’s house, the host became distressed, and said to himself: ‘These men have come to ask for rain, but they have taken to drinking wine, and my relatives have remained afflicted with famine. If I admonish my guests they will probably attribute my advice to stinginess, and will say that I am weary of entertaining them.’ At last he composed a piece of poetry, wherein he alluded to the carelessness of Qil and his boon companions, and to the misery of their friends at home. He also incited them to ask for rain, and reminded them of the helpless state of the A’adites. He made the singing girls learn these verses and chant them at the banquet; the guests were admonished by their contents, repented of their own procrastination, reproached each other, and began to make the arrangements necessary for the prayers—such as offerings, sacrifices, etc. They also prepared to go to the customary place for making the necessary inquiries. On that occasion Murshad Bin S’ad, who had hitherto kept his faith secret, informed them that, if they did not believe their prophet, the Absolute Benefactor [i.e. God] would not grant the rain; he also recited verses to them, which began as follows:

They perceived from the words of Murshad that he belonged to the company of Musalmâns; therefore they separated from him, and hastened to the place of prayer, and, having taken refuge with the Beneficent Donor, they asked for rain, whereupon three clouds made their appearance —one white, one red, and the third black—and a voice was heard from above saying: ‘O Qil! select one of these three clouds.’ Qil imagined that the black cloud would give more rain than any other, selected it, and said: ‘I have chosen the black cloud, because it contains most water.’ Suddenly a herald’s voice was heard: ‘Thou hast chosen ashes! Ashes! Not a single individual of the tribe of A’ad will be left; it will [i.e. the cloud] spare neither the father nor the son.’ Then the Almighty Sender of the winds despatched the black cloud selected by Qil, which contained a storm of chastisement and vengeance, towards Ahqâf,¹⁰³ to the tribe of A’ad. When the latter perceived the approaching cloud, they joyfully pointed it out to each other, saying: ‘This is a cloud the showers of which will refresh and gladden the garden of our expectations’; and the blessed verse, ‘They said, This is a traversing cloud, which bringeth us rain,’¹⁰⁴ is confirmatory of this assertion. The Almighty also says: ‘Nay, it is what ye demanded to be hastened, and a wind, wherein is a severe vengeance’;¹⁰⁵ because when Hûd called the people of A’ad, and threatened them with divine punishment, they derided and challenged him to fulfil his threats. It is said that the first person among the A’adites who became aware of this dreadful catastrophe was a woman of the name of Mahad, who shouted for fright when she beheld the cloud, and then fainted. When she recovered herself, she was asked for the cause which made her lose her senses, and she said: ‘I behold something which shines like fire, and I perceive a fearful troop, drawing it towards us. The terror of this spectacle has overwhelmed me.’ When Hûd had cast a glance upon that dark cloud he knew it to be the beginning of the chastisement. By divine command he left the people of A’ad, proceeded with four thousand individuals to Yanbo’, and drawing with his blessed finger a line on the ground to encompass his followers in the similitude of a stronghold, he ordered that no one should overstep it, or withdraw his head from the line of obedience until the calamity had elapsed.

It is related, after Ebn A’bbâs, that Hûd went with his followers into Mesopotamia, where they enjoyed pleasant breezes. It is said that when the people of A’ad had become aware of the motion of the air, and the greatness of the calamity, they assembled in a circular encampment, holding fast to each other, and binding even their garments together, saying: ‘Let the wind of Hûd do its worst, no ill will befall us.’ The storm commenced, however, by raising their animals and cattle, with their women and children, from the ground, and sent them flying into the air, whence they fell back again and were dashed to pieces. When the A’adites saw this they endeavoured to flee to their houses, but the wind overtook and utterly destroyed them under the ruins. Some remained outside, and, trusting in the strength of their bodies, they dug their legs into the ground as far as the knees, and tried to stand up, but they fared no better than the others. The storm continued to rage during seven days and nights, until it extirpated the whole race; it is said that the A’jûz days,¹⁰⁶ set down by astronomers in calendars towards the end of the winter, allude to these days. The reason why they are called A’jûz days is because, when the hurricane [above alluded to] took place, an old woman of that tribe concealed herself in a house underground; on the third day, however, the wind reached her also, and joined her to her former friends. The chronicler says that, after Qil and all the envoys of the A’adites had terminated their prayers, and were staying near the sanctuary, they beheld a man riding on a camel in great haste who informed them that he was one of the followers of Hûd, travelling from the country of the A’adites to Egypt, and that their whole tribe had perished in the hurricane of annihilation. Qil and his companions were much distressed at this news, and said: ‘O All-powerful Nourisher! cause us to taste of the same beverage which Thou hast made our friends quaff, because without them our life is of no value!’ Their request was granted, and the Almighty—w. n. b. pr.— ordered the wind to convey them into the fire of hell. Some historians state that when Qil had inquired after and had ascertained the destruction of his tribe, he coveted eternal life, but the divine allocution reached him that the predestined bounds were not to be exceeded, and that everyone would be allowed to fix a certain period of time, after the expiration of which he would have to die; but they [i.e. the tribe] unanimously said: ‘O Lord,

Distich:

If a man be compelled to separate from his friend He is wise if he associates with no one.

Destroy us likewise, and cause us to be united with our tribe’; and in this wish of theirs they were gratified.

Loqmân, the son of A’ad, who is also named the companion of light, besought the arbiter of life and death to grant him the lifetime of seven eagles. His prayer was heard; he successfully caught young eagles and brought them up; according to the most current opinion, each of them lived eighty years and then died. Loqmân called the seventh eagle Labad, which means in their language ‘a thousand years.’ When this eaglet had become larger, it used to fly out; one day, however, when the eagles flew away from the top of the mountain, Loqmân did not see it among them. He became uneasy, and called Labad to ascertain the reason of his not flying out; he also cajoled him to do so, but, after making a fruitless effort to get up, Labad again fell to the ground, and his spirit took flight. At that very moment the bird of Loqmân’s soul was liberated from the cage of his body, and hastened to the mansion of eternity.

Distich:

If thou remainest for a century, thou must Leave this joyous house in a moment.

The bouquet-binders of the gardens of narratives say that when the people of A’ad were afflicted by the wrath of God, and their habitations were destroyed, Hûd emigrated with a company of pious and believing men, who had remained under the secure shadow of the peace and protection of God, and settled in the region of Hadharamaut, where they built houses and established themselves. On the termination of the one hundred and sixtieth year of his blessed life, he met the command of the Almighty with the response, ‘I hear and obey’; he was gathered into the gardens of eternity, and left this world denuded of the presence of his virtues and laudable qualities. It is said that in one of the caves among the mountains of Hadharamaut there is a high tower, in front whereof a marble sarcophagus, containing his blessed body, stands. On the sarcophagus there is a tablet with the following inscription: ‘In the name of Allah the Most High! I am Hûd the prophet, and the messenger of the God of heaven and earth to the people of A’ad, whom I invited to accept the Faith, and to abandon idols, but they refused, the storm destroyed them, and they became ashes!’ It is related after A’li— may Allah ennoble his face—that the tomb of the prophet Hûd is situated in Hadharamaut on a hill of red sand. Others have said that every prophet who came out unscathed from the wars with infidels, went with his companions to Mekkah, where he is [invisibly] living till the end of all time. When the people of A’ad had been overtaken by the vengeance of the Lord, Hûd invited his followers to emigrate; they accordingly went to Mekkah, and lived in that blessed country till their destiny overtook them [i.e. till they died]. The sepulchres of Hûd and his followers are situated between the House of Assembly and the gate of the prophet of Allah, u. w. b., etc.; but God is most wise!

Description of his Person.—His manners were extremely affable and jovial; his body was entirely covered with hair, and greatly resembled that of Adam, u. w. b., etc. His name is A’abud in the Hebrew tongue,¹⁰⁷ but in Arabic he is called Hûd, and surnamed the prophet.

His Qualities.—He was very pious, abstemious, liberal, amiable, and a great almsgiver. Sometimes he engaged in commerce. His law was like that of Nûh, u. w. b., etc.

His Miracles.—He worked numerous miracles, one of which was that, when the people of A’ad were in trouble about pastures for their sheep and cattle, they requested him to change a mountainous region full of gravel into prairies for the enjoyment of their animals, and assured him that they would accept his religion. He accordingly uttered a prayer, whereon the gravel was changed into mud, which soon produced abundant grass and springs of water; but, despite of the miracle, those hard-hearted wretches did not believe. On another occasion, when he happened to be travelling with several other persons, all were so distressed by rain and lightning that it seemed to them impossible either to stop or to move. Then his lordship began to pray, and the wind brought so many blocks of earth that they were enabled to build a shelter, which they abandoned after the weather had again cleared up.

The Length of his Mission and his Life.—All historians agree that the time of his mission amounted to one hundred years—fifty before and fifty after the destruction of the tribe. According to the most correct statements, he lived four hundred and sixty-four years, or three hundred and forty-three years according to the tradition of Christian U’lamâ; one hundred and fifty years according to some commentators, but according to another opinion four hundred and eighty years. Allah, however, knows bests.

RECORD OF SHADEED AND SHADÂD.

Historians who lived before our times, and who were a great deal better acquainted with the world, versed in sciences, and endowed with more intelligence than ourselves, have not mentioned Shadeed and Shadâd in any dynasty of kings or potentates, but have appended their history to that of Hûd. Therefore the musk-charactered reed follows the custom of the ancients, and discourses as follows: Shadeed and Shadâd were two brothers of the children of A’ad, who governed almost the whole inhabited world, and dwelt in Syria. Though Shadeed was an idolater, the sheep and the wolf became friends on account of his great justice, and the hawk dared not to attack the partridge on account of his perfect government. It is said that he appointed a Qâzi in his country, and laid down rules for his guidance, but after the expiration of a whole year he had not a single case to judge. The Qâzi then informed the king that he did not consider himself entitled to the salary of his office, because no one had lodged any complaint during the just - mentioned period of time. Shadeed replied that he must nevertheless continue in his appointment and draw his pay. Some time afterwards two individuals made their appearance in the court of justice. One complained that he had purchased a piece of ground from the other, in which a treasure had been discovered, and though he had invited him to take possession of the treasure, he refused, replying that he had sold the land to the buyer with everything it contained. The Qâzi made inquiries, and found that one of these men had a son and the other a daughter; therefore he ordered them to be married to each other, and the treasure to be given to them. It is related that Hûd often visited Shadeed and invited him to accept his religion, but he always demurred, and died an infidel. When Shadâd ascended the throne of royalty, after his brother’s death, the prophet Hûd ordered him to believe in the unity of God, and to worship Him; but Shadâd refused and said: ‘If I receive thy religion, and worship and magnify thy God only, what will He give me in return?’ Hûd replied: ‘Eternal life in paradise.’ Then Shadâd continued: ‘This is easy, and I shall even in this world make a paradise.’ Accordingly, he set about it, and despatched ambassadors to Zohâk the Arab, who was his sister’s son, and who reigned at that time over the empire of Jamshid, requesting him to send all the silver, gold, and jewels he could spare. Zohâk complied with the demand, and had treasures of untold value conveyed to Syria. Shadâd issued orders also in his own dominions to collect all the silver and gold, musk, ambergris, precious stones, silver vessels, and the like, and to despatch all to the metropolis. After having collected the means, he selected a locality for building, and found it in one of the districts of Syria, the atmosphere whereof breathed the air of paradise, and the running brooks of which recalled to the mind the rivers of the garden of Eden, flowing with milk and honey. He quickly assembled architects endowed with skill and taste, who built an enclosure for the park, the extent whereof surpassed the aspirations of the poor; its breadth was greater than the intentions of the benevolent, and its height almost reached the vault of heaven. In the garden they built a castle, the like of which had not been seen since the creation of the world. Its walls were raised with alternate courses of bricks of gold and silver; its roof consisted of sheets of gold inlaid with rubies and all sorts of precious stones, and its columns were of crystal. Instead of gravel they poured precious stones into the rivulets; they constructed trees of pure gold, and stuffed them with amber and ambergris, so that, when the wind blew, perfume emanated from the trees. Instead of earth, the ground consisted of saffron and amber. It is said that twelve thousand turrets constructed of pure silver and gold adorned with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, and the like, decorated the circuit of the castle. There were five hundred guards, each of whom had a separate house. Moon-faced women and sun-like maidens were collected from the whole world, and these, who excited the envy of fairies and the jealousy of hûris, were collected to abide in that locality, in the construction whereof all the money that existed in the world had been expended

When the news of the completion of the park had reached Shadâd, who was at that time in Hadharamaut, he marched there with an army more numerous than ants or locusts; and when he had arrived at a distance of one stage from the garden he perceived a fawn, whose feet were of silver, horns of gold, and eyes of rubies. Shadâd was so enchanted with the beauty and elegant form of the fawn that he pursued it on horseback, and went far away from his army into the desert. All of a sudden a rider approached him, who said: ‘Hast thou with this building which thou hast constructed found freedom from death?’ All the limbs of Shadâd began to quake, and he asked: ‘Who art thou?’ The cavalier replied: ‘I am the angel of death.’ Shadâd asked: ‘What hast thou to do with me, and what wantest thou from me?’ A’zrayil rejoined: ‘Thy soul.’ Shadâd became much disturbed, and said: ‘Give me quarter until I cast one glance upon the edifice I have built.’ The angel continued: ‘I have no command from the Lord of Lords about that matter.’ Thereon Shadâd fell from his horse, and abandoned his impure spirit to the clencher of souls. On that occasion also all that magnificent army heard a voice from heaven, and hastened after Shadâd into the lowest pits of the infernal regions.

It is related that A’zrayil was once asked whether, during all the time he had been engaged in taking souls, he had ever felt pity for anyone, and whether an impression of the weakness and helplessness of anyone had ever been made upon his mind. A’zrayil replied: ‘I was sorry for two individuals: the one was an infant born in a ship, which went to pieces at that very moment in the vehemence of a storm, and the child remained floating on a piece of plank in the boundless ocean; the other was Shadâd, who had undergone so much trouble and entertained great hopes until he had completed that palace, of the enjoyment whereof he was after all deprived.’ After A’zrayil had finished this recital a divine allocution reached him of the following purport: ‘O A’zrayil, I swear by my glory and magnificence that the helpless infant whom thou hast seen on the plank was no other than Shadâd, whom I raised from that state to his high dignity, and bestowed upon him all that power and opulence; but he became rebellious and ungrateful, and was overtaken by my sore displeasure, and fell a prey to my wrath.’ Let us fly to Allah for refuge from His anger!

It is recorded in histories that after Shadâd’s death, that palace, high and magnificent as it was, disappeared from the eyes of men, and that no one had ever seen it except A’bdullah Bin Qallâba, who went there during the Khalifate of Moa’via; the circumstances of that event were as follows: A’bdullah happened to lose a camel and went in search of it through the desert. All of a sudden he arrived near the garden, and beheld a locality which even the flights of his imagination had never reached before. Though he tried much to obtain possession either of a brick of the garden wall, or of one of the precious stones which adorned the turrets, he could not succeed. At last he perceived the gems which had been thrown into the brooks; he therefore carried off as many of them as he was able, brought them to Moa’via, and narrated his whole adventure. Moa’via was greatly astonished, and asked Ka’b the chronicler, who was well acquainted with the histories of our ancestors. Ka’b replied: ‘That palace and that pageantry belong to Shadâd, and has survived till our times. In our age an individual of the people of Ahmed¹⁰⁸ has arrived at that place, and till the hour of the resurrection no one will see it.’

RECORD OF SÂLAH THE PROPHET, OF THE PEOPLE OF THAMÛD, AND OF WHAT HAPPENED DURING HIS PROPHETSHIP.

He was of the children of the tribe of Thamûd, the son of A’aber, son of Sâm, the son of Nûh, likewise called Thamûd, and they are the cousins of A’aber Bin A’oth Bin Eram. The tribe of Thamûd dwelt in the country of Hijar, which is situated between Hejâz and Syria. This was before the destruction of the people of A’ad, after which they went into that region, repopulated and cultivated it again, they also rebuilt the edifices and enjoined sovereign power. The Almighty—whose name be glorified —had granted them long life, wealth, and a numerous progeny. Subsequently they began to rebel against, and to disobey the laws of God; according to the saying, ‘Man is prone to rebellion,’ they began to worship idols, and preferred obscenity and wickedness to probity and rectitude. Then the Lord of Unity sent Sâlah, son of A’aber, son of Thamûd, who was in the prime of youth and possessed a great deal of property and riches, to that nation. Some, however, are of opinion that he was despatched for the guidance of that tribe only after the completion of the fortieth year of his age. He acted in conformity with his instructions, invited that disobedient nation to follow the straight path and threatened it with the consequences of resistance and obstinacy; but after [he had preached] a long time only a few of the weak believed his words, whilst the majority, persisting in haughtiness, paid no attention to his admonitions. Sâlah’s uninterrupted efforts [to convert the people] excited, however, their aversion to such a degree that they desired to get rid of him; so that at last they determined that, on a certain holiday, a company of the wicked should proceed with their idols, and Sâlah with his followers, to the place of the festival, and both parties should engage in prayer to ascertain on which side the truth is, and that all of them would adopt the religion of that party. When the day of the feast had arrived, the good and the wicked, the virtuous and the vicious, left the town and proceeded to the plain, the infidels taking their idols with them, which were small gods according to their belief, imploring them to frustrate the cause of Sâlah, and not to allow the great God to grant his prayers. When the people of Thamûd had finished their devotions, their prince and chief, whose name was Janda’ O’mar, thus addressed Sâlah with the consent of his people: ‘O Sâlah, if thy pretensions be true, and thou desirest us to believe in thy mission, and so assert the unity of God, I challenge thee to produce from the hard stone, which is opposite to us in the direction of Hijar, a she-camel with abundance of hair, and in the tenth month of her pregnancy, and to produce at the same time, from the womb of the pregnant camel, a young one, perfectly resembling its mother.’ After Sâlah had prayed and besought the Almighty Granter of requests, the divine response arrived to the effect that a long time ago a camel endowed with the above-mentioned properties had been created in those stones for the purpose of answering Sâlah’s prayer, in order to enable him to enter into a covenant, and to make a contract with the people of Thamûd, and that if this miracle should take place, Janda’ O’mar with all his tribe would believe. After the infidels had agreed to this proposal, Sâlah raised his hands towards heaven, and turned his face to the Qiblah of prayer, thereon the stone commenced gradually to increase in bulk, hour by hour, until it assumed the shape of a pregnant camel whose time of confinement was at hand. Sâlah and the people of Thamûd were looking, when the stone-hill began suddenly to move, and wailings, like those of a woman in travail, were heard proceeding from the mute rocks; the hill burst, and a camel endowed with the above-mentioned properties issued from it, which measured according to tradition one hundred and twenty cubits from one side to the other. This camel was at the same time delivered of a young one, resembling its mother in strength of body and stature. Janda’ O’mar, who beheld this prodigy, was ennobled by the felicity of religion, and became, with some of his adherents and intimate friends, worthy of eternal salvation in paradise.

Distich:

To whom God gives happiness, It suddenly comes from a rock.

All the gentle and simple of the tribe of Thamûd wished to follow Sâlah, but devils in human shape, such as Duab, the son of O’mar, and Mahân, who were idolaters, and chiefs of the people hindered them, accused Sâlah of witchcraft, and did not allow that lost nation to obey the precepts of the Immortal Sovereign. After the she-camel had been delivered of her young one, and began to graze in the fields, Sâlah—u. w. b., etc.—advised the people to cherish, and not to injure her. They had a well, deep like the meditation of sages, for the purpose of watering their sheep and cattle; after the appearance of the she-camel they agreed that one day it should drink from the well, and on the next all their quadrupeds, according to the verse: ‘This she-camel shall have her drink, and you your drink on a certain day.’¹⁰⁹ When the she-camel’s turn came, it went to the edge of the well, the water likewise ascended to the brim, and the camel drank it all up. After that, the people of Thamûd milked her, and obtained a quantity of milk equal to the water consumed by the camel, and they also used its wool. The camel drank on alternate days, and when the turn of the cattle arrived, the people drew a double quantity of the liquid, that their cattle might not suffer on the camel’s day. According to a certain tradition the camel remained with her young one thirty years among them. It was of a wonderful form, dreadful aspect, and strange countenance. It is related that the length of her body was one hundred, and the breadth likewise one hundred cubits, and each of her legs was one hundred and fifty feet high. When this camel was grazing in summer, on the top of a Vâdi, all the quadrupeds of the people of Thamûd were frightened at its extraordinary stature, and took refuge at the bottom of the Vâdi, where the intensity of the heat injured them. In winter the she-camel took up her abode inside the Vâdi, and the cattle went to the top of it, where they became lean and weak on account of the rigour of the cold, and some even died. These trials and temptations continued for a while, but after the people had been extremely harassed by them, they determined to hamstring and to slaughter the camel. It is reported in some books, deserving of credit, that when the said camel made its appearance at the request of the people, Sâlah was informed by divine inspiration that the request had been granted for his sake, and that he was to admonish them not to injure, kill, or remove the camel by any means, because the destruction of the camel would bring on their own, as predestined fate can neither be resisted nor delayed. Sâlah informed them of this message, and they assured him that they would never attempt such an act; whereupon he gave them notice, that according to the divine revelation received by him, the person who was to destroy the camel would be born that very month. Accordingly the people of Thamûd agreed to kill every male infant born during that period of time, in order to preserve the she-camel from injury; during it (i.e. during the month), however, nine boys happened to be born, and they were slain in conformity with this resolution. When the tenth child entered this world, his father, whose name was Sâluf, was loath to kill him, because he never had any children before. He, therefore, preserved him and named him Qadâr, who became a very skilful archer when he attained maturity, and surpassed his contemporaries in all material accomplishments. Every time Qadâr met any of the nine men who had killed their sons, he reproached them with the deed, and when they beheld his attainments, their sorrow and repentance increased, until at last they began to consider Sâlah to be the cause of the loss of their offspring, and were inclined to murder him. They left their tribe under the pretence of a journey, concealed themselves in a cave, and intended to issue from it at midnight in order to assassinate Sâlah in his sleep; the cavern, however, suddenly collapsed over their heads, and they were buried under the débris. When the people became aware of this event, they immediately determined to hamstring the she-camel, and were seconded in their intentions by two women, who had all their lives harboured intentions of the same kind. In short, in that nation there was an old woman of the family of Thamûd, whose name was A’nezah; she was very rich, had beautiful and pleasing daughters, and numberless cattle. She bore great enmity to Sâlah—u. w. b., etc.—on account of the injury which the she-camel occasioned, and because it shared the pastures with her own cattle. There was also another woman in the tribe, called Sadûf, who was extremely opulent and handsome. Her husband had become a follower of Sâlah, and had spent some of his wife’s fortune to promote his religion. When Sadûf became aware of this fact, she separated from her husband, and spent the remainder of her property, whereon implacable hatred towards Sâlah took root in her impure mind likewise. These two impudent females associated with some of the chiefs of the infidels in the matter of the she-camel, threw lots who was to execute the project, and selected Qadâr the the son of Sâluf, with Massda’ the son of Mahruj, whom they accordingly met. When Sadûf opened her mind to the last-named individual she stated that the dowry required by her would be the death of Sâlah’s she-camel: A’nezah on her part also promised Qadâr Bin Sâluf to let him have the handsomest of her daughters in marriage if he would hamstring the camel; meanwhile the women presented these two individuals with a sum of ready cash, and various goods as an earnest. These accursed ones accordingly picked out seven other men from among the worst of the tribe, and were in ambush when the camel was going to drink. Massda’ first shot an arrow and wounded her foot, whereon Qadâr, who was a short-bodied, blue-eyed, turbulent blackguard, drew his sword, overtook the camel, and hamstrung her. When the seven other men arrived they slaughtered the camel, and the people of Thamûd vied with each other to get pieces of the meat, as on the occasions when a camel was being slain for a sacrifice. The young camel was so frightened at this dreadful event, that it fled to the top of a mountain.

When Sâlah had been apprised of the perpetration of this abominable crime, he made his appearance among the people, who begged his forgiveness, assuring him that they had no knowledge of this act, and that it had been committed by those men entirely without their advice or approbation. On that occasion the faithful besought Sâlah to pray that the people of Thamûd might be spared the misery of the threatened chastisement. He advised them to endeavour to obtain possession of the young camel, hoping that by the blessing to result therefrom the Almighty—w. n. b. e., etc.—would perhaps not punish them. The people of Thamûd hastened towards the mountain after the young camel, but its summit rose, by the command of Allah, so high up the firmament, that even birds could not ascend to it. Sâlah followed the people to the mountain, and when the young camel had perceived him from the top thereof, it exclaimed thrice: ‘O Sâlah! weep for my mother!’ and then disappeared. Sâlah now assured the people, that on account of the voice they had heard, they would be respited one day, but that on the fourth day the punishment of God would overtake them, and they would obtain the reward of their works, according to the verse: ‘Enjoy your homes three days, and this is no mendacious promise.’ They, nevertheless, asked by way of derision: ‘What will be the sign of the judgment to come?’ Sâlah then informed them thus: ‘To-morrow your faces will be yellow, after to-morrow red, and on the third day black, but on the fourth day the chastisement of the Omnipotent Avenger will overtake you.’ After Sâlah had uttered these words, the nine men who had girded their loins to destroy the she-camel and had slain it, determined to assassinate Sâlah. They entered his house on the same day and lay in wait for him, but a legion of angels broke the heads of those malefactors with stones, and thus put an end to their evil design. When the tribe heard of this event, they accused Sâlah of the murder of their clansmen, and agreeing to put him away, they hastened to his abode; his followers and adherents reminded them, however, that as Sâlah had forewarned them of the affliction which would befall them after three days, and that if his prediction turned out to be true, there would be no use in molesting him, and on the contrary, they would only augment the wrath of God; but in case Sâlah should, after the expiration of the appointed time, prove to be a liar, they might do to him whatever they thought fit. These words brought the people to their senses; they returned to their homes, left Sâlah alone, and spent the night in great uneasiness and expectation. When the morn broke they perceived that their ill-fated countenances were yellow, as if they had been dyed with saffron. In the height of their fear and disquietude they again hastened to the dwelling of Sâlah; the latter, however, learnt the intention of the idolaters and took refuge in the house of one of the chiefs of the people of Thamûd, whose name was Nafyl, but who was also called Abu Hadab. After the infidels had heard of his whereabouts, they followed him there also, but when they saw that Nafyl, in spite of his unbelief and idolatry, granted protection to Sâlah, they returned disappointed and sad. On the second day—which was a Friday, and was called A’rûba among the people of Thamûd—their faces became red like blood; they were now certain of the approaching disaster, and they exclaimed with lamentations and wailings: ‘Two days of the appointed time are past!’ On Saturday their rosy cheeks became black, as if they had been smeared with pitch and tar. When the night had set in, Sâlah made his appearance among them secretly, and emigrated with all the believers to the country of Filisteen in Syria. On Sunday morning, which was the eve of the [end of the] prosperous life of the infidels, the people of Thamûd got ready their shrouds and the things necessary for dying persons. They threw themselves upon the ground, looking alternatively towards heaven and earth, until at last a terrible voice, coming from the upper regions, began to resound in their ears, so that their hearts were smitten, their livers burst, and all of them expired, as the Almighty said: ‘Whereupon a terrible noise from heaven assailed them, and in the morning they were found in their dwellings prostrate on their breasts and dead.’¹¹⁰ Masu’di narrates in the Akhbâr-uzzamân that because of that dreadful shout no one of the people of Thamûd remained alive, except a woman afflicted with paralysis, whose name was Durya’a, and who greatly hated Sâlah. After the catastrophe her limbs became straight and sound; she quickly left the country and betook herself to Vadiulqara, to the inhabitants whereof she narrated the dreadful event. After having finished her tale, she asked for some water, which she drank, and surrendering her soul to the Owner of spirits, hastened to hell. A man of the name of Abu Ruga’l, who belonged to the same tribe, remained alive in the sanctuary of Mekkah, and no ill befell him there; but as soon as he had left it he went the same way which his clansmen had gone, and was buried with a horn of gold which he had been carrying. It is related that the lord of prophecy [Muhammad] addressed on a certain occasion his companions when passing near the tomb of this man, which be pointed out to them, and related the circumstances of his death and burial, whereupon his companions opened the grave and took out the horn of gold.

It is related that after the people of Thamûd had been overtaken by sudden destruction in consequence of the predestined decree and of irresistible fate, and Sâlah had emigrated, he felt, after some time, a yearning to revisit his native country; and, after returning to it, he wept much and deplored the obduracy of his countrymen which had been the cause of their ruin. He had also spiritual conversations with the souls of the departed, and thereon again travelled back to Filisteen. Some time afterwards, however, he went to the noble sanctuary of the Lord in Mekkah, and made it his home. In that place he also departed from this perishable abode and mansion of darkness.

It is related, after Ebn A’bbâs, u. w. b., etc., that when Sâlah despaired of the people’s accepting the faith, he was much distressed, and prayed that God would allow him to travel in order to meet some of his accepted worshippers, so as to associate with them for awhile. After obtaining permission, he roamed about the country and met an individual engaged in the service of the Omnipotent Nourisher. Sâlah asked this man why he was quite alone, whereon the hermit informed him that formerly a great town had been in that locality, none of the inhabitants whereof had adored the most wise God; consequently, the decree for their extermination was issued from the glorious court of the Lord of Unity, so that not one of the inhabitants had been left alive except himself, and that, having many reasons to be thankful, he was now constantly engaged in worshipping the Lord of lords. Sâlah, having likewise offered his own thanksgivings, travelled towards the sea, and arrived after his voyage in an island where he saw a man engaged in prayer; Sâlah asked him the reason for dwelling in that isle, and the man informed him that he had been in a ship with most wicked persons, none of whom prayed to God except himself. At last all of them were, by the command of the Almighty, drowned in the sea, whereon he gratefully and constantly engaged in adoring his Maker. Sâlah took leave of him also, and some time afterwards arrived in a town, all the inhabitants of which were unbelievers; he found only two pious men therein, who were during the day occupied in earning their bread, and gave in the evening the surplus of their wants to the indigent by way of alms. Sâlah was one day sitting with them, and when the evening approached a fearful voice struck their ears. On inquiry he found it to be the roaring of a monster which issued from the sea each day about this time, and destroyed everyone it could get hold of. Sâlah asked what his reward would be if he killed the monster, and delivered the city from this affliction. The said two men then informed the inhabitants, who agreed to give to Sâlah one-half of their possessions. Thereupon the latter addressed his prayers to the Mansion of Unity; they met with response, the monster burst in twain, the people kept their promise and abandoned one-half of their property to Sâlah, who, in his turn, begged those two pious men to accept it; they, however, refused, and assured him that their daily income was sufficient for them. Thereupon Sâlah returned the property to its owners, and thanked the Almighty for having allowed him to meet some of His servants; then a divine allocution reached him as follows: ‘O Sâlah! knowest thou not that I have servants with whose existence the order of the world is bound up and connected; if they were not obedient to me I would not cast a single glance upon the rebellious.’ After this Sâlah returned to his native country, and his people met the fate decreed for them [i.e. they died].

Description of his Person.—He was very handsome; the complexion of his face was white, his hair black; he had a full-grown stature and a broad breast, straight beard and moustache, and a very corpulent body.

His Qualities.—According to the current opinion he was not yet of age when he was honoured by becoming a prophet. His speech was eloquent and pleasing; he never wore shoes, and always walked about barefoot. It is said that during his whole life he never sought shelter under the roof of a house. Many of the sermons he preached have been preserved, and most of them are contained in the ‘Noâdir - ullâkhbâr,’ the author whereof is A’bd-ulhâkum Jauhari. His law was more or less similar to that of Nûh, u. w. b., etc.

His occupation was commerce, and after he had terminated divine service he engaged therein. The duration of his life was, according to some opinions, two hundred and fifty-eight, but, according to the most correct tradition of chroniclers, it was two hundred and eighty years; according to another opinion it was eighty, according to another eighty-five, and, lastly, according to yet another it was two hundred years. But He [i.e. Allah] knows the true state of the case. His august tomb was situated in the noble city of Mekkah, near the sanctuary in the house of assembly.

STORY OF ZULQARNEEN.¹¹¹

NOTICE OF YAJÛJ AND MAJÛJ.¹¹⁵

Description of the Wall.¹¹⁶ — When the dominion, oppression and despotism of Yajûj and Majûj had endured for a long time, and the tongue of complaint was stretched out on account of their enmity and violence, Zulqarneen issued a mandate that the passages between the two mountains, through which the enemy used to enter, should be dug until water is reached. Then large rocks were placed for a foundation up to the level of the soil; after that the wall was built of pieces of iron, copper and lead, placing them upon each other like bricks. Fireplaces were so arranged as to heat the interstices into which the fire was blown until the whole melted together and became one compact mass. The work was continued in this manner until the top of the mountain had been reached, when the holes left in the walls by the scaffolding were filled in with molten copper and brass. The length of this wall is said to extend to a distance of one hundred and fifty Farsakhs; the breadth of it is fifty miles, and its height eight hundred cubits.¹¹⁷ Muhammad Farghani [known in Europe as Alfaragius], the astronomer, and various learned men of later times, have denied this statement, and asserted it to be false; but as it is laid down in this manner in historical books, the author of this work considered it his duty to follow the ancients, and, by agreeing more or less with them, has obstructed the way of contradiction.

In short, when the building was completed, Zulqarneen offered thanks to the Almighty, saying: ‘This is a mercy from my Lord; but when the prediction of my Lord shall come to be fulfilled, He shall reduce the wall to dust; and the prediction of my Lord is true.’ Then Zulqarneen journeyed to the farthest north, and arrived in a city the towers and ramparts of which were all of brass and copper, so polished that when the sun shone upon them the eyes of the beholder were dazzled by the glare. The gate of the city was closed, but Zulqarneen cunningly despatched a man up to the summit of the wall, who glanced at the city and towards the army of Zulqarneen, and, bursting into a laugh, descended on the other side without returning. In this manner several men went and entered the city, without its being known what had become of them.¹¹⁸ Then Zulqarneen turned away the reins of his intention from that region, and after traversing a great distance arrived in India, where he hastened to the south of the equinoctial line. After seeing the whole inhabited world, with its mountains and deserts, land and sea, cities and villages, cultivated and waste localities, he stopped at Eskandaria [Alexandria], where he founded the city of Makadûnia.

It is related in the A’jâyib-ullakhbâr that it took one hundred and fifty years to build the just-mentioned city, and that it was surrounded by a wall so polished that on account of its glare the inhabitants were forced to keep veils over their faces. In one corner of the town there was a tower six hundred cubits high, containing a talismanic speculum, in which an army coming from any quarter of the world could be perceived;¹¹⁹ and the inhabitants were thus enabled to make timely preparations for defence. It is said that the city remained inhabited during one thousand five hundred years; after that it was in ruins during one thousand, and now it is in ruins for two thousand years, since Eskander the Greek had built a town there which still exists in the present—i.e. the eight hundredth and first—year of the Hegira (A.D. 1398).

When the greater Zulqarneen had conquered the whole inhabited world, fulfilled all his secular and religious enterprises, and seen all the marvels of the universe, he disbanded his army, became a hermit in the desert, and was entirely absorbed in the worship of his Creator, w. n. b. e. A short time afterwards he heard the invitation of the Lord of Glory, to which he responded, ‘I hear and obey, O Lord,’ departed from this perishable world, and surrendered his life to the requirements of fate.

Verses:

If the wheel of fortune bears thee even to its top, It will not spare thee in its turns; It is the same to friend or foe; Now it gives us the kernel, and now the husk.

Zulqarneen’s Person, Name, Trade, and Tomb.—He was of a middling stature; had a white-and-red complexion; his head and eyes were large, and his hair black. It is reported in the Akhbâr-uz-zamân that his original name was Hermes, and that after traversing the East and the West, and seeing and experiencing the ups and downs of the world, he had been surnamed Zulqarneen. He was quarrelsome, and submissive [to destiny?], but greatly enjoyed political and religious wars. He was a basket-maker by trade, thus supported himself with his family, and gave away in alms whatever exceeded these wants.

RECORD OF EBRAHIM, THE FRIEND OF GOD, WITH AN EXPLANATION
OF HIS BIRTH AND MISSION, U. W. B., ETC.

His father, Azar, who is also called Târakh, was from Kûthâria, a village near Kufah. According to the unanimous consent of the principal historians, the birth of Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—took place when Nimrud, the son of Kana’an, the son of Kûsh, the son of Eram, the son of Sâm, the son of Nûh, was the ruler of the country of Babel. All historians agree that Nimrud reigned over the whole world, since it is recorded in history that four individuals governed the entire inhabited world—namely, two believers and monotheists, and two unbelievers or infidels. The believers were Zulqarneen and Suleimân; the unbelievers, Nimrud and Bakhtanassar. The opinion, however, of Qâzi Beidhâví is that the mission of Ebrahim the prophet took place in the time of Zohâk the Arab, which is contradictory to the assertion that Nimrud was the sovereign of the whole world. The Rauzat-ullâbab informs us that Muhammad Bin Esahâq asserts that the dominion of the whole world fell to the lot of three persons only—that is to say, to Nimrud, Zulqarneen, and Suleimân the son of Daûd. Others have asserted that Bakhtanassar also enjoyed the sovereignty over the whole world, but their opinion has never been considered to be true, and here the quotation from the Rauzat-ullâbab terminates; but Allah knows best what is correct.

It is related that when Nimrud became established on the throne of royalty, the rose-grove of his prosperity and good fortune increased daily in freshness and magnificence, and the foundation of his greatness and splendour became more firmly established from hour to hour. He governed his subjects with justice and rectitude until the expiration of a considerable time, when Satan, who is from olden times an unequalled champion in the arts of seduction and perdition, inspired him with diabolical suggestions of haughtiness and despotism, so that depraved imaginations having found their way into the mansion of Nimrud’s perverted intellect, he overstepped the dignity of a sovereign, and coveting the honours of a god, considered himself to be the partner of the Omnipotent. ‘Great God! protect us from what they utter, puffed up with pride.’¹²⁰ When the just-mentioned pretensions became fixed in his impure mind, he invited all persons to adore him, and having fabricated idols in his own likeness, he placed them in temples and monasteries, and commanded the inhabitants of the world to worship them. About that time Nimrud was one day sitting in council to decide certain affairs with the grandees of the realm, and with a company of soothsayers and astrologers. On that occasion the chief of the latter, Khâled Bin A’as, said to Nimrud that ‘it appeared from the position of the celestial bodies that this year a man of wonderful power and great authority will be born in the capital [of Nimrud], who will invite the people to a new religion and law; and will likewise abolish idols and the dynasty [of Nimrud].’ Khâled took pains to impress on the mind of the king the necessity of preventing this event, if possible; and Nimrud assured him that it could be easily done by appointing watchmen to prevent husbands from having connexion with their wives, and by causing trustworthy women to supervise the confinements, leaving all female infants alive, but slaying all the males which would be born. The assembly approved of this remedy, whereon Nimrud placed a guard over every ten men to watch them. Azar, however, the father of Ebrahim, did not happen to be one of the watched, but one of the watchers, being one of the intimate friends of Nimrud, enjoying his full confidence. Numerous midwives were superintending all pregnant women, and allowed freely to go and come, without let or hindrance, to and from the houses, and were ordered to send every male infant who entered the world out of it again. Kasâi narrates in his history—and the responsibility rests with the chronicler—that during the time the accursed Nimrud was engaged in slaying male infants one hundred thousand of them were exterminated. It is also said that their number amounted to seventy-seven thousand. When the time was near at hand for the pure seed [of Ebrahim] to become fixed in the womb of a virtuous wife, soothsayers and astrologers hastened to the palace of Nimrud, [which appeared to be] strongly based, like the firmament, and informed him that, after all, his numerous projects would prove futile to hinder the dreaded event from taking place, as the seed would become fertilized on such and such a night. Nimrud then issued a mandate that on the eve of the just-mentioned night all men should go out of the city; he also appointed confidential watchmen at the gates, so as not to allow any one of them to return to, nor to permit any women to come out from it. On this occasion even Nimrud himself left the city with his friends, and when the women saw it empty they walked out of the houses and promenaded about. When the evening had nearly set in, the mother of Ebrahim arrived near the gate which Azar and a number of other men had been appointed to guard. As soon as Azar recognised her face his love manifested itself; he retained her, and had connexion with her that night, that God might accomplish a matter which He had predestined. The mother of Ebrahim kept her pregnancy secret for some time from Azar; but when it was no longer possible to do so she said to him: ‘I am with child, and if it be a male we ought to give it to the king, because he has highly obliged thee by his kindness; and if we do what I suggest, his favours and gifts to us will yet become more and more numerous.’ Azar consented to the advice of his spouse, and was very joyous. When the moment of her confinement was near, the mother of Ebrahim said to Azar: ‘I am afraid lest some dangerous accident befall me whilst I am suffering the travail of parturition. I adjure thee, by our former love, to go to the idol-temple, to remain there, and to implore the greatest of the gods—namely, such and such an idol—to grant me a happy delivery. Do not come out from that temple until my infant is born!’ Azar replied that he would comply with her wish, for the sake of old obligations, and for the sake of relieving her mind from grief and apprehension. He accordingly went to the idol-house, where he remained during forty days and nights. In Azar’s absence, and after her confinement, the mother of Ebrahim had prepared a subterraneous apartment, provided with all things needful for an infant, and after concealing Ebrahim in that place, she informed Azar of her confinement and safe delivery. When Azar had returned from the idol-temple and inquired about his son, Ebrahim’s mother replied: ‘May thy life be long! The child was very sickly, and died the same hour it was born.’ Azar believed the words of his wife, and was grateful for her own safety. Whenever her husband left the house she went to suckle the infant, and when that boy of happy augury was two years old his mother weaned him. It is related, after A’bdullah Bin A’bbâs, u. w. b., etc., that Ebrahim grew in one day as much as other children do in one week; in one week as others in one month, and in one month as others in one year. When his mother tarried in coming she saw that Ebrahim sucked his own thumb, which emitted milk with honey, and nourished him. It is said that Ebrahim first manifested his intelligence on the occasion when he asked his mother, ‘Who is my nourisher?’ and she replied, ‘I.’ He continued: ‘Who is thy nourisher?’ She answered: ‘Thy father.’ He said: ‘Who is the nourisher of my father?’ She rejoined: ‘The king.’ He further queried: ‘Who is the nourisher of the king?’ His mother said: ‘Be silent; for the king is the greatest lord, and there is none higher than him.’ Ebrahim again asked: ‘Is my face better-looking, or thine?’ She said: ‘Thine.’ Ebrahim continued: ‘Is thy complexion purer, or my father’s?’ She answered: ‘Mine.’ Ebrahim further queried: ‘Is my father more beautiful, or the king?’ She replied: ‘Thy father.’ Then Ebrahim said: ‘If the king be the nourisher of my father, why has he created one better than himself? And if my father Azar is thy creator, why has he made thee handsomer than himself? And, likewise, if thou art my creator, why hast thou made me more beautiful than thyself?’ The poor woman was fairly puzzled how to answer her son’s questions, and left him alone. When Azar returned to the house he perceived that she was quite embarrassed, and on inquiry she replied as follows:

Distich:

A secret is in this breast which I cannot tell, Which I cannot reveal, and cannot conceal.

After he had much pressed and interrogated her, she said, ‘O Azar! the individual expected to change the religion of the world is thy son!’ When Azar heard these words he was quite confused, and asked: ‘What son, and what information?’ Then Ebrahim’s mother revealed the concealment of her son, and his being brought up underground; likewise the conversation which he had with her, and his denial of Nimrud’s godhead, as well as all the circumstances from his birth to the present hour. Thereupon Azar went down angrily into the cellar with the intention of doing some grievous bodily harm to Ebrahim; but when his eyes beheld the august and well-boding person of the latter, the Lord, who changes hearts and eyes, inspired Azar with love for his son, so that he was unable to inflict any injury upon him; whereon Ebrahim had a discussion with his father likewise, as God —whose word be glorified—has said, ‘O my father! why worshippest thou that which cannot hear, neither see, nor is of any use to thee?’ But Azar, not being able to refute Ebrahim’s objections, reproved him, according to the verse: ‘Dost thou not like reprimand, O Ebrahim? If thou hadst not been reproached I would not have mercy on thee, and would altogether exclude thee.’ It is said that the occasion of Ebrahim’s quarrel with his father originated from the latter’s giving carved idols to the former to sell them in the market. He carried them out of the house, tied ropes around their necks, and dragged them thus to the bazâr, exclaiming: ‘Who will buy a thing from which neither profit nor loss can be expected! What enjoyment will a carved statue afford to you? Rather worship an idol which has a soul!’ When the people heard these words of Ebrahim, they purchased no statues, and began to doubt their utility. Azar, having been informed of this, angrily reproved Ebrahim, who, however, gave intelligent answers to his father, and convinced him of their truth.

The inhabitants of Babel entertained religious superstitions concerning the stars, the sun, and the moon, wherefore one night, whilst they were keeping awake, Ebrahim made his appearance among them, and began to speak disparagingly of Venus, of the sun, and of the moon, first calling them lords, but afterwards denying that they were deities, and saying: ‘O people! I am innocent of your idolatry.’¹²¹ The particulars of this will, however, be narrated by-and-by, at the end of the second tradition concerning the birth of Ebrahim. When Ebrahim’s way of thinking, and his dispute with Azar concerning the worship of idols, had become publicly known, the people were highly astonished, and asked him what kind of a new sect or religion he had invented, but he replied: ‘What are these statues which you constantly worship?’

Let it not remain unknown to the reader that whatever has been here narrated, concerning the birth and bringing up of Ebrahim, is, according to the opinion of the author, very reliable; the most current statements, however, set down by excellent and learned historians are as follows: When the astrologers and soothsayers had either from the aspect of the stars, or from dreams, obtained the information and conveyed it to Nimrud, that during a certain month of the year an infant would be born in the capital who would abolish all the existing religions; that his advent would bring great confusion upon the empire, and would shake the earth of royal authority, Nimrud asked whether the act of sexual connection had already taken place, in consequence whereof the child would be born. He obtained a negative reply, and determined to spare no effort to hinder such an event; he accordingly ordered all men to leave the city, near which he also encamped with his entire court. After some time, however, he despatched Azar, who was one of his confidants, to the city on a certain errand, telling him at the same time that he had been selected, in preference to others, on account of his perfect trustworthiness, causing him at the same time to swear that he would have no intercourse with his wife. When Azar had entered the city he considered with himself that, as he had not seen his family for a long time, it would now be proper to do so. As soon as he beheld his spouse, the fire of lust blazed up so lustily that the water of patience could not extinguish it; accordingly he spent some time with his wife in the embraces of conjugal duties. When the next morning had dawned, the soothsayers apprised Nimrud that during the past night a womb had received the deposit from which the birth of the dreaded child would ensue. He was so disconcerted at this news that he issued a mandate for the assassination of all male children about to be born that year. When the signs of approaching parturition began to manifest themselves upon Ebrahim’s mother, she went to the bed of a waterless river for concealment, and there gave birth to a darling the like of which had not been produced by Dame Nature since the creation of the world. The mother wrapped her infant in swaddling clothes, and hid it in a cavern, situated in the vicinity, so as to withdraw it from the sight of enemies. Then she returned to her home, and only went to the cave several days afterwards to ascertain whether the apple of her eye was dead or alive. She perceived, however, that her beloved infant was [alive and] sucking milk from one, and honey from another of his own fingers. Beholding this wonderful spectacle, the mother of Ebrahim took the finger of astonishment between the teeth of meditation, and after enjoying her son’s aspect for awhile, she went to her house, but returned again to the cave as often as she found an opportunity, and suckled the child until the time for weaning it had drawn near, which occurred, according to the opinion of some historians, in his eleventh year[!]. It happened one night, when his mother had arrived to contemplate his blessed person, that he asked her whether there is another world besides the place he was in, whereon she informed him that she had placed him in this narrow cave and secluded abode for the purpose of withdrawing him from the evil machinations of his enemies, but that the earth was great, the sky high, the world unbounded, and the universe immeasurable. Then Ebrahim concluded that hereafter he would no longer have the patience to dwell in a cave; he determined to leave it, to seek his creator, and so discover what his vocation ought to be. As soon as his mother was out of sight, he also left the cave and amused himself by contemplating the stars. Looking at the planet Venus, he said, by way of interrogation, ‘Is this my lord?’ but when it was near setting he exclaimed, ‘Indeed I love not the setting ones.’ Then he looked at the moon and said, ‘This is my nourisher,’ but when it likewise disappeared he retracted his opinion. When the shining morn removed the nocturnal veil from the light-spreading disc of the sun, the Lord Ebrahim beheld the magnificence of its form with the infinite radiations of its splendour, and said: ‘This is my lord; this is the greatest!’ But when the sun likewise withdrew its head within the skirts of the occident, the vanity of the adoration of celestial bodies was manifest to his enlightened intellect as clearly as the meridian sun; accordingly he turned away therefrom and said, ‘I direct my face unto Him who hath created the heavens and the earth. I am orthodox, and am not one of the idolaters,’¹²² but the poet says:

It is related that after Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—had left the cave, his mother brought him home, and, on presenting him to Azar, said that hitherto the fear of Nimrud had induced her to keep him concealed. Azar was delighted when he beheld his son, and was always caressing him, till the time when he began to manifest his aversion to idols, and to their worship. On this circumstance, however, the two traditions differ.

When Ebrahim began to invite the people to the orthodox religion and to the sublime Lord, and his creed had become public, Nimrud having heard of this state of affairs, sent for Ebrahim, who then went to the palace, but, acting contrary to everybody, did not adore the haughty tyrant. Nimrud inquired about the reason, whereon Ebrahim replied that he worshipped no one except the Omnipotent Nourisher. Nimrud asked, ‘Who is thy Nourisher?’ Ebrahim replied, ‘My Nourisher is He who causes to live, and to die.’ Then Nimrud ordered two men to be brought from the prison, one of whom he killed, and the other he allowed to depart. Then he turned towards Ebrahim, saying: ‘I have caused one of them to die and the other to live.’ Ebrahim then saw that those misguided persons who surrounded Nimrud could not be easily convinced of his false pretensions, and resolving to have recourse to plainer argument, said: ‘My Nourisher causes the sun to rise in the east; do thou so in the west;’ but Nimrud, being unable to answer, remained mute and confused. The Most High—w. n. be e.—said: ‘And he who blasphemed was astounded.’

As Nimrud was unable to refute Ebrahim, the latter departed, and began with all his might to invite the people to embrace the illustrious law and the white religion.¹²³ By the blessing of his august exhortations, untold multitudes and numberless crowds confessed the unity of the Deity and became followers of Ebrahim.

It is related that Ebrahim waited for an opportunity to demonstrate to the people the imbecility and abjectness of idolatry, to make it evident that statues are unworthy to be worshipped, and can neither profit nor hurt anyone. He meditated and hit on a plan, but hesitated to execute it until the festival of the idolaters had taken place, during which the people of Nimrud were accustomed, when the holiday drew near, to prepare handsome garments and costly robes, with savoury meats and beverages for the purpose of carrying them to the idol-temple, where they placed them before the statues on the feast-day. On the said day they betook themselves to the place of the celebration, on returning from which they entered the idol-temple, distributed those dresses and eatables to each other, and said: ‘Our idols have thrown rays of blessing and favour upon these things.’ They considered this act a good omen, an occasion of rejoicing and pleasure for the whole ensuing year. When the festival had arrived, the people requested Ebrahim to accompany them; but he refused on pretence of sickness, and said to himself: ‘By Allah! I will surely devise a plot against your idols, after ye shall have returned from them, and shall have turned your backs.’¹²⁴ Some persons who were going to the place of the festival in the wake of the others had, however, heard these words. When Ebrahim found the idol-temple empty, and containing no guards, the Friend of the Merciful One entered and addressed the idols by way of sarcasm, saying: ‘Why do not you eat something? What is the matter with you that you do not speak?’ Hereupon he broke all the idols to pieces with an axe, except the largest one, upon whose neck he hung the axe and left the temple. On the return of the people to the temple, according to the usual custom, they found the idols destroyed, and the axe suspended from the neck of the big idol; whereon they began to shout, to lament, and accuse him of impiety who had done this. From the blame and vituperation which Ebrahim had been in the habit of lavishing upon the idols and their worshippers, the latter were convinced that he must have perpetrated all this injury; therefore a great number of them made their appearance at the palace of Nimrud to explain the matter. Ebrahim was summoned, and the people who had heard his words concerning the idols bore testimony against him in the presence of Nimrud, who accordingly with his courtiers accused Ebrahim of having committed the act, but the latter answered, ‘Nay, the biggest of them has done it,’ and added, ‘But ask them whether they can speak.’ When Ebrahim had uttered these words the idolaters hesitated; everyone meditated within himself, and suspended his judgment. They all concluded that the right was on the side of Ebrahim, and said to each other: ‘Verily, ye are the impious persons.’¹²⁵ These words were intended to convince them that neither loss nor gain could be expected from the idols, and that they could not even protect their own bodies. In short, the idolaters were greatly abashed and ashamed, but relapsing into their former obstinacy, they said to Ebrahim: ‘Verily thou knowest that these speak not.’¹²⁶ Ebrahim answered: ‘Do ye therefore worship, besides God, that which cannot profit you at all, neither can it hurt you? Fie upon you, and upon that which ye worship besides God! Do ye not understand?’ After Nimrud and all the idolaters had been confounded, and unable to answer Ebrahim, he again began to preach to the people, and gradually many began to follow him. When Nimrud perceived that confusion had taken root, and the nation was favourably inclined towards Ebrahim, he ordered him to be imprisoned, whereon the hostile and obstinate party unanimously agreed to burn Ebrahim. By the mandate of Nimrud an enclosure was erected at the foot of a mountain near the city, sixty cubits long and forty broad, with walls seventy cubits high. Nimrud also ordered that, as an oblation to the idols, every man should carry a donkey-load of wood into the enclosure, which was in this manner filled up; then naphtha and sulphur were thrown into it. The fire having been kindled, the flames ascended up to the sky, so that birds could not fly across them, nor were the people able to approach the fire. And being perplexed, the crafty Eblis came to their assistance, and taught them to fabricate a catapult, after finishing which he proved the perfection of his workmanship by projecting from it stones into the fire. Then Ebrahim was placed upon this engine in bonds and fetters. This dreadful circumstance disquieted the spirits of the upper and the nether world, who began to clamour and to shout. The angels besought God to allow them to save Ebrahim, lest he who acknowledged the unity of the Almighty should be destroyed; whereon the allocution reached them that they might help him, but that it would be strange if he were to look for their aid, and stood in need of their assistance. Hereon two angels, who were in charge of rain and wind, approached Ebrahim, and informed him that if he allowed them, they would send a small cloud with a little rain over the fire, which would either extinguish it altogether, or, at least, scatter it in all directions; but Ebrahim refused, and when he had been projected from the engine, and was nearly falling into the fire, the faithful spirit [i.e. Gabriel] met him in the air and asked him whether he wanted anything, and Ebrahim replied, ‘Not from thee!’ Then Jebrâil advised him, if he refused his assistance, to ask it from HIM who could help him, because there was not a more dreadful event nor a harder fate than the impending one. Ebrahim then said: ‘Inform HIM of my case, and my deliverance will depend from my request.’

Then the inspiration of the Most High Sovereign arrived to the effect: ‘O fire, be thou cold, and a safety unto Ebrahim.’¹²⁸ Ebn A’bbâs says that if the allocution of the Most Wise King had not contained the word ‘safety,’ Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—would have perished of cold. It is related that the angels took hold of Ebrahim’s arms and softly placed him on the ground. Jebrâil brought, with the consent of the gardener of paradise, a costly robe from that locality wherewith he invested him; and by the mandate of our Lord and Creator a space twenty cubits long and as many broad surrounded the Friend of God, and this area was full of aromatic and green plants, intermixed with various blooming flowers, and it also contained a fountain of delicious water. It is said that in the plenitude of His grace the Inscrutable Creator sent an angel resembling Ebrahim to keep him company, and ordered Esrafil¹²⁹ to bring a flower-bed from paradise, and to spread it under the noble feet of His friend.

Distich:

Who was honoured by stepping on His threshold Placed his first step into the uppermost paradise.

It is also narrated that Esrafil was ordered to bring, every morning and evening, savoury meats from paradise for the nourishment of Ebrahim (O God, provide for us with Thy wisdom and favour!). When three, and according to others eight, days had elapsed, and the vehemence of the fire had subsided, Nimrud the rejected one ascended a high spot and looked for Ebrahim, because his unhallowed mind had always suspected Ebrahim’s case to be a wonderful one, and that he might possibly have remained unhurt by the fire. He also dreaded that if his surmise should be verified, his own dominion would be jeopardized; but after communicating his fears to others, his courtiers reassured him, and considered it impossible that Ebrahim should have survived a fire wherein a mountain of stone would certainly have melted. Nimrud nevertheless beheld from his elevated position Ebrahim sitting with another individual among roses and fragrant herbs near a fountain of water. The aspect of that locality, which was more handsome than the garden of paradise, so dismayed Nimrud that he shouted in agony to Ebrahim and asked him how he had been saved from so great a calamity, and had been delivered from the vortex of perdition and established in so agreeable a spot. Ebrahim replied: ‘All this happened by the favour of my Lord’; whereon he inquired also concerning the person near Ebrahim, and was informed of his being an angel sent by the Almighty to keep him company. Then Nimrud said: ‘Thou hast a great God, O Ebrahim, whose power is manifested in the way we now see.’ Then he continued: ‘Canst thou leave the fire and come to me?’ Whereon Ebrahim said: ‘Why not?’ and immediately arising, placed his feet on a mountain of fire, passed through the flames, went to Nimrud, invited him to confess the unity of God, to acknowledge the truth of Ebrahim’s mission, and to be aware of the foreordained promises and threats; but Nimrud asked Ebrahim for delay, and consulted his friends and Haran, who enjoyed the dignity of wazirship. Haran said to Nimrud: ‘Wilt thou, after having been the Nourisher of the created beings of this lower world, become the slave of the creator of the spirits of the upper regions, and thus descend from the throne of deity to the condition of servitude?’ When the time of the respite [of Nimrud] had elapsed, Ebrahim condescended to pay a visit to the court of Nimrud, and invited him to accept Islâm; but he excused himself from receiving the Faith just then, but averred that he would offer a great sacrifice to Ebrahim’s Nourisher. Thereupon the Friend of God informed him that if he would not believe, his sacrifice would not be acceptable. Nimrud, however, would not be deterred, but prepared a great altar, whereon he sacrificed four thousand kine, one hundred thousand sheep, camels, and other animals. This was, however, of no avail, and on account of Haran’s diabolical advice he was at last received in the abyss of eternal perdition.

Although the following tradition differs from that which has just been narrated—but has been recorded in several respectable chronicles—the author of this work has considered it incumbent upon himself to take notice of it, lest critics should accuse him of apathy and obliviousness. He also hopes that wherever the gentle and intelligent reader meets in these pages with defects, to ascribe them to the various books from which the narratives labouring under them have been taken.

It is related in some books that when the Lord Ebrahim had issued from the calamity of the fire, like a hair from a trough of leaven, Nimrud challenged him to fight. Ebrahim agreed, and, having fixed a day, implored the Lord of Glory to cause Nimrud to perish, with all his followers, by the meanest and most despicable of creatures. His prayer was granted, and on the appointed day Nimrud marched out of the city with a perfectly-armed host of troops more numerous than locusts or ants, and halted with his army in battle array in a spacious plain. His lordship the refuge of amity [i.e. Ebrahim, the Friend of God] likewise arrived, and halted, quite alone, opposite to the army of Nimrud. Thereon the latter asked him with amazement where his army was, and Ebrahim replied that God—whose magnificence be glorified—would send it by-and-by. As soon as the conversation was ended, countless numbers of gnats made their appearance by the mandate of God, fell upon the army of transgressors, ate up their accoutrements, their flesh, and their very bones, so that no trace was left of them.