(142) But we have fastened his work about his neck." Thy lust is even as fire burning in thy evil deeds; The black coal of these deeds is lighted by the fire; The blackness of the coal is first hidden by the fire, But, when it is burnt, the blackness is made visible. The building of the prophets was without lust, Yea, many are the noble temples they have raised, Though all were not named "The Most Remote Temple." The Ka'ba, whose renown waxes greater every moment, Its glory is not derived from stones and mortar,

(40) And none of them ever say, "The Ka'ba is empty;" How can one who knows the truth say that? These people are ranged in battle array, And risk their lives to gain God's favor; One plunged in calamities like Job himself, Thousands of them are thirsty and afflicted, Striving in earnest desire to do God's will. I likewise, in order to please the merciful God, Seek ye a purchaser who will pay you gold;

(7) Again, there is the veil of the entrance into the holy of holies. Four pillars there are, the sign of the sacred tetrad of the ancient covenants.

(4) In the midst of the covering and veil, where the priests were allowed to enter, was situated the altar of incense, the symbol of the earth placed in the middle of this universe; and from it came the fumes of incense. And that place intermediate between the inner veil, where the high priest alone, on prescribed days, was permitted to enter, and the external court which surrounded it - free to all the Hebrews - was, they say, the middlemost point of heaven and earth.

(3) Rabi'ah, although a woman, was the crown of men. She once spent eight years making a pilgrimage to the Ka'aba by measuring her length on the ground. When at last she reached the door of the sacred temple she thought: ' Now at last, have I performed my task.' On the consecrated day, when she was to go in to the Ka'aba, her women deserted her. So Rabi'ah retraced her steps and said: 'O God, possessor of glory, for eight years I have measured the way with the length of my body, and now, when the longed-for day has come in answer to my prayers, you put thorns in my way!'

To understand the importance of such an incident it is necessary to discover a lover of God like Rabi'ah. So long as you float on the deep ocean of the world its waves will receive and repel you, turn by tura At times you will be admitted into the Ka'aba, sometimes you will sigh in a pagoda. If you succeed in withdrawing from the attachments of the world you will enjoy felicity; but if you

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remain attached your head will turn like the grindstone of a mill. Not for a moment will you be tranquil; you will be upset by a single fly.

(11) You have made the pilgrimage and gained the life to come, You have become pure, and that in a moment of time. Of a truth that is God which your soul sees in me, Though the Ka'ba is the house of His grace and favors, Since He made that house He has never entered it, But none but That Living One enters this house; When you have seen me you have seen God, And have circumambulated the veritable Ka'ba. To serve me is to worship and praise God; Open clear eyes and look upon me,

King David purposed to build a temple at Jerusalem, but was forbidden to do so by a divine voice, because he had been a man of blood. But, it was added, the work should be accomplished by his son Solomon, and Solomon's work would be reckoned the same as David's, in accordance with the texts, "The faithful are brethren," and "Sages are as a single soul," and "We make no distinction between any of the apostles." Accordingly, when Solomon came to the throne, he set about the building, which was attended with many miraculous circumstances, e.g., the stones in the quarry crying out and moving of themselves to the site of the temple. Bilqis, Queen of Saba, sent Solomon a present of forty camels laden with ingots of gold; but Solomon would not receive them, and sent her messengers back with a letter commanding her to abandon the worship of the sun and embrace Islam. At the same time he charged the messengers to report fully to the Queen all they had seen in his kingdom, and to urge her to comply with his commands to renounce her sovereignty and present herself in all humility at his court. As she delayed to come, Solomon again sent to assure her that he had no sinister views regarding her, and desired her attendance at his court solely for her own spiritual benefit. At last Bilqis renounced her royal state and cast away all care for worldly things, and, impelled by earnest desire to learn the true faith, presented herself at the court of King Solomon. Then Solomon commanded that the throne of Bilqis should be brought from Saba, and an 'Afrit offered to fetch it, but Asaf, the vizier anticipated him. Afterwards Solomon proceeded with the building of the temple, wherein he was assisted by devils and fairies. Then God tried Solomon by placing on his throne a false counterpart of him. His miracle working signet was stolen by a devil named Sakhar who thereupon assumed his shape and personated him for forty days, during which Solomon had to wander about and beg his bread. After this he regained his throne, and having completed the temple, began to worship therein. One day he observed that a tuft of coarse grass had sprung up in a corner of the temple, and he was greatly distressed because he thought it portended the ruin of the building, but he took comfort from the thought that while he himself lived the temple would not be allowed to fall into ruin; so long as he lived, at least, he would root up all evil weeds that threatened the safety of the temple, as well the temple built with hands as the spiritual temple in his heart. In the course of this story, which is told at great length, there occur anecdotes of the beginning of the reign of 'Othman, of the miracles of 'Abdullah Moghrabi, and others, of which abstracts are given below.