(8) The Lord said to them then: "Burn my house now!" Thus he said to them. instantly they put fire to the lord's house, and although all the lords were assembled together within the house, they were not burned. Quickly it was whole again, and not for one instant was the house of Hun-Camé destroyed. All of the lords were amazed, and in the same way the [boys'] dances gave them much pleasure. Then they were told by the lord: "Now kill a man, sacrifice him, but do not let him die," he told them. "Very well," they answered. And seizing a man, they quickly sacrificed him, and raising his heart on high, they held it so that all the lords could see it. Again Hun-Camé and Vucub-Camé were amazed. A moment afterward the man was brought back to life by them [the boys], and his heart was filled with joy when he was revived.

In the time of the Khalifa 'Omar there lived a harper, whose voice was as sweet as that of the angel Israfil, and who was in great request at all feasts. But he grew old, and his voice broke, and no one would employ him any longer. In despair he went to the burial-ground of Yathrub, and there played his harp to God, looking to Him for recompense. Having finished his melody he fell asleep, and dreamed he was in heaven. The same night a divine voice came to 'Omar, directing him to go to the burial-ground, and relieve an old man whom he should find there. 'Omar proceeded to the place, found the harper, and gave him money, promising him more when he should need it. The harper cast away his harp, saying that it had diverted him from God, and expressed great contrition for his past sins. 'Omar then instructed him that his worldly journey was now over, and that he must not give way to contrition for the past, as he was now entered into the state of ecstasy and intoxication of union with God, and in this exalted state regard to past and future should be swept away. The harper acted on his instructions, and sang no more.

(4) They made then, a great bonfire, a kind of oven; the men of Xibalba made it and filled it with thick branches. Shortly afterward the messengers arrived who had to accompany [the boys], the messengers of Hun-Camé and Vucub-Camé. "'Tell them to come. Go and get the boys; go there so that they may know we are going to burn them.' This the lords said, oh, boys!" the messengers exclaimed. "It is well," they answered. And setting out quickly, they arrived near the bonfire. There [the Lords of Xibalba] wanted to force the boys to play a mocking game with them. "Let us drink our chicha and fly four times, each one [over the bonfire] boys!" was said to them by Hun-Camé.

In the suburbs of a certain city there was a mosque in which none could sleep a night and live. Some said it was haunted by malevolent fairies; others, that it was under the baneful influence of a magic spell; some proposed to put up a notice warning people not to sleep there, and others advised that the door should be kept locked. At last a stranger came to that city and desired to sleep in the mosque, saying that he did not fear to risk his life, as the life of the body was naught, and God has said, "Wish for death if you are sincere." The men of the city warned him again and again of the danger, and rebuked him for his foolhardiness, reminding him that not improbably Satan was tempting him to his own destruction, as he tempted the men of Mecca at the battle of Bedr. The stranger, however, would not be dissuaded, but persisted in his purpose of sleeping in the mosque. He said that he was as one of the devoted agents of the Ismailians, who were always ready to sacrifice their lives at the bidding of their chiefs, and that the terrors of death did not appal him any more than the noise of a little drum beaten by a boy to scare away birds could appal the great drum-bearing camel that used to march at the head of King Mahmud's army. Accordingly, he slept in the mosque, and at midnight he was awakened by a terrible voice, as of one about to attack him. But instead of being dismayed, he bethought himself of the text "Assault them with thy horsemen and thy footmen," and confronted his unseen foe, challenging him to show himself and stand to his arms. At these words the spell was dissipated, and showers of gold fell on all sides, which the brave hero proceeded to appropriate.

(27) Woe unto you! for we build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres.

(1) Then they [i. e. the gods] said to the Ear: * Sing for us the Udgltha/ ' So be it/ said the Ear, and sang for them. Whatever pleasure there is in the ear, that it sang for the gods; whatever good one hears, that for itself. They [i.e. the devils] knew. 'Verily, by this singer they will overcome us/ They rushed upon it and pierced it with evil. That evil was the improper thing that one hears. This, truly, was that evil.

(4) Happy to hear this, the [lords] then sent their messengers to call [the boys] with flattery. "'Tell them to come here, tell them to come so that we may see what they do; that we may admire them and regard them with wonder,' this the lords said. 'So you shall say unto them,'" this was told to the messengers. They arrived at once before the dancers and gave them the message of the lords.

(6) And do thou command the children of Israel to observe this festival in all their generations for a commandment unto them : one day s in the year in this month they shall celebrate the festival.

A certain man had a Hindu slave, whom he had brought up along with his children, one of whom was a daughter. When the time came for giving the girl in marriage many suitors presented themselves, and offered large marriage portions to gain her alliance. At last her father selected one who was by no means the richest or noblest of the number, but pious and well-mannered. The women of the family would have preferred one of the richer youths, but the father insisted on having his own way, and the marriage was settled according to his wishes. As soon as the Hindu slave heard of this he fell sick, and the mistress of the family discovered that he was in love with her daughter, and aspired to the honor of marrying her. She was much discomposed at this unfortunate accident, and consulted her husband as to what was best to be done. He said, "Keep the affair quiet, and I will cure the slave of his presumption, in such a way that, according to the proverb, 'The Shaikh shall not be burnt, yet the meat shall be well roasted.'" He directed his wife to flatter the slave with the hope that his wish would be granted, and the girl given to him in marriage. He then celebrated a mock marriage between the slave and the girl, but at night substituted for the girl a boy dressed in female attire, with the result that the bridegroom passed the night in quarrelling with his supposed bride. Next morning he had an interview with the girl and her mother, and said he would have no more to do with her, as, though her appearance was very seductive at a distance, closer acquaintance with her had altogether destroyed the charm. Just so the pleasures of the world seem sweet till they are tried, and then they are found to be very bitter and repulsive. The Prophet has declared that "Patience is the key of joy;" in other words, that he who controls and restrains himself from grasping at worldly pleasures will find true happiness; but this precept makes no lasting impression on the bulk of mankind. When bitter experience overtakes them, as the pain of burning afflicts children, or moths sporting with fire, or the pain of amputation a thief, they curse the delusive temptations which brought this pain upon them; but no sooner is the pain abated than they run after the same pleasures as eagerly as ever. This is divinely ordained, that "God may bring to naught the craft of the infidels." Their hearts have, as it were, been kindled on the tinder-box of bitter experience, but God has put out the sparks of good resolution, and caused them to forget their experience and vows of abstinence according to the text, "Often as they kindle a beacon-fire for war doth God quench it." This is illustrated by an anecdote of a man who heard a footstep in his house at night, and at once struck a light; but the thief put it out without being observed, and the man remained under the impression that it had gone out of itself. This leads the poet again to dwell on his favorite theme of the sole agency of Allah. Then, to supply the necessary corrective of this doctrine, another anecdote is told concerning Mahmud and Ayaz. The courtiers grumbled because Ayaz received the stipend of thirty courtiers, and Mahmud by a practical test convinced them that the talents of Ayaz equalled those of thirty men. The courtiers replied that this was due to God's grace, not to any merit on the part of Ayaz; and the king confuted them by pointing out that man's responsibility and merit, or demerit, for his actions are recognized in the Koran. Iblis was condemned for saying to God, "Thou hast caused me to err," and Adam was commended or saying, "We have blackened ourselves." And elsewhere it is said, "Whosoever shall have wrought an atom's weight of good shall behold it; and whoso shall have wrought an atom's weight of evil shall behold it."

(152) Neither are the prophets' writings like other writings; Nor their temples, nor their works, nor their families; Nor their manners, nor their wrath, nor their chastisements; Nor their dreams, nor their reason, nor their words. Each one of them is endued with a different glory, Each soul's bird winged with different feathers. Ho! pious ones, build the lively temple of the heart, That the Divine Solomon may be seen, and peace be upon you! And if your demons and fairies be recalcitrant, If your demons go astray through guile and fraud,

(21) He by whose preaching the world was entranced Was he who spake the two words, "O Humaira!" Though water prevails over fire in might, When the cauldron intervenes between these two, Apparently thou art the ruler of thy wife, like water; Such is the peculiarity of man, He cannot withstand animal desire; that is his failing. The Prophet said that women hold dominion Over sages and over men of heart, But that fools, again, hold the upper hand over women,

After anecdotes of the man, in the time of 'Omar, who mistook his eyelash for the new moon, of one who stole a snake and got bitten by it, and of 'Isa's foolish disciple who besought the Lord to teach him the spell whereby he raised the dead, comes the following story. A certain Sufi, after a long day's journey, arrived at a monastery, where he put up for the night, and strictly enjoined his servant to groom his ass carefully and give him plenty of litter and fodder. The servant assured him that his minute directions were superfluous, and promised to attend to the ass most carefully; but when his master's back was turned he neglected the ass, and the poor animal remained all night without water or food. Consequently he was weak and unfit to travel next morning, and in spite of the blows and kicks that were showered on him, could not carry his master, but had to be led. The other Sufis who were traveling with his owner thought that the ass was useless, and when they arrived at the place where they halted for the night, they sold the ass to a traveler, and with the proceeds of the sale bought delicate viands and torches, and made a feast. The owner of the ass, who was ignorant of this transaction, shared the feast, and joined in the chorus sung by the others, "The ass is gone, the ass is gone," without attaching any sense to the words, and blindly following their example. Next morning he asked his servant what had become of the ass, and the servant told him it had been sold, adding that he thought he had known it overnight, because he had heard him singing "The ass is gone" along with the other Sufis. In the course of this story there occur anecdotes of God consulting with the angels as to the creation of man, of a king who lost his hawk and found it again in the house of a poor old man, and of Shaikh Ahmad Khizrawiya buying sweetmeats for his creditors.

(5) Neither had they women to sleep with, but they remained alone, fasting. They were in the House of God, all day they prayed, burning incense and making sacrifices. Thus they remained from dusk until dawn, grieving in their hearts and in their breasts, and begging for happiness and life for their sons and vassals as well as for their kingdom, and raising their faces to the sky. Here are their petitions to their god, when they prayed; and this was the supplication of their hearts:

(3) Come on ye jugglers and sorcerers or witches, you that go a wooing and a whoring after the devil: Come to my school: I will shew you how, with your necromancy or art, you are carried into hell.

(8) But the Time is coming, when the Aurora or Day Spring will break forth, and then the Beast, that evil Child [or Child of Perdition] shall stand forth naked and in great Shame; for the Judgement of the Whore of the great Beast goes on. Therefore awake and fly away ye Children of God, that you bring not the Mark of the great evil Beast upon your Forehead with you, before the clear Light; or else you will have great Shame and Confusion of Face therewith. It is now high Time to awake from Sleep, for the Bridegroom makes himself ready to fetch home his Bride, and he comes with a clear shining Light: they that shall have Oil in their Lamps, their Lamps shall be kindled, and they shall be Guests; but those that shall have no Oil, their Lamps shall continue dark, and they shall sleep still, and retain the Marks of the Beast till the Sun rise, and then they shall be horribly affrighted, and stand in eternal Shame; for the Judgement shall be executed; the Children of God shall observe it, but those that sleep shall sleep till Day. Further of the Birth.

(175) O ye watchmen of Israel! why do ye sleep? Awake from the sleep of whoredom, and dress or trim your lamps: The Bridegroom cometh, sound your trumpets.

(1) Then they [i.e. the gods] said to the In-breath (prana): c Sing for us the Udgitha.' e So' be it/ said the In-breath, and sang for them. Whatever pleasure there is in the in-breath, that it sang for the gods; whatever good one breathes in, that for itself. They [i.e. the devils] knew: 'Verily, by this singer they will overcome us.' They rushed upon it and pierced it with evil That evil was the improper thing thai one breathes in. This, truly, was that evil.

(1) They said to Speech: c Sing for us the Udgitha. 'So be it/ said Speech, and sang for them. Whatever pleasure there is in speech, that it sang for the gods; what- ever good one speaks, that for itself. They [i. e. the devils] knew: ' Verily, by this singer they will overcome us.' They rushed upon it and pierced it with evil. That evil was the improper thing that one speaks. That was the evil.

(49) And the man who is free from uncleanness, and doth not come to observe it on occasion of its day, so as to bring an acceptable offering before the Lord, and to eat and to drink before the Lord on the day of its festival, that man who is clean and close at hand will be cut off ; because he offered not the oblation of the Lord in its appointed season, he will take the guilt upon himself.

(1) HERE, king Lucifer, pull thy hat down over thy eyes, lest thou shouldst see how man will take off thy crown away from thee, thou canst no more rule in heaven; stand still a little while, we must first view thee, and observe what a beauteous fair bride thou art, and whether the filth of thy whoredom may not be cleansed and washed away from thee, that thou may be fair again; we will a little describe thy chastity and virtue.