THE BOOK WAS

DRENCHED

co >;

oo

164883

^
71

REVISED TRANSLATION

OF THE

CHAHAR MAQALA
("FOUR DISCOURSES")

OF

OF SAMARQAND,
FOLLOWED BY AN ABRIDGED TRANSLATION OF
M1RZA MUHAMMAD'S NOTES TO THE
PERSIAN TEXT

BY

EDWARD

G.

BROWNE,

M.A., M.B., F.B.A., F.R.C.P.

PRINTED BY THE CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS

FOR THE TRUSTEES OF THE "E. J. W. GIBB MEMORIAL"
AND PUBLISHED BY MESSRS LUZAC & CO.,
46, GREAT RUSSELL STREET, LONDON, W.C
1921

GIBB MEMORIAL" PUBLICATIONS.

E. J. W.

OLD SERIES.
I.

II.

B&bur-nama

text, fac-simile), ed.

(Turk!

Out offrint.
History of Tabaristan of Ibn
i-5.
raji;

Beveridge, 1905.

Isfandiyar, abridged transl.

&s.

Browne, 1905,
III,

(25 works, 37 published volumes.)

History of Rasulf dynasty of Yaman by al-Khaz2 transl. of Sir James Redhouse, 1907-8, 7 each;

I,

jr.

Annotations by the same, 1908, 55. 4, 5, Arabic text ed.

Muliammad 'Asal, 1908-1913, 8*. each.
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Arabic of G. Zaidan, 1907, 5J>.
3,

V. Travels of Ibn Jubayr, Arabic

i

VI,

IOJT.,

i,

5,

text,

each

VIII.

Yaqut's Diet, of learned

i, 2, 3, 5, 6.
'A.-//-//'),

VII,

text, ed.

de Goeje, 1907,

os.

Arabic

text, ed.

men

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of Miskawayhi (Arabic
Strange ami others, 1909- 1917, 7*.

Tajribu'l-Umam

6.

fac-simile), ed.
vol.

Marzuban-nama

le

(Persian text), ed.

Mind Muhammad,

1909, 12S.

IX. Textes Houroufis (French and

X.
XI,

Persian), by

Iluart

and

Ri/a Tevfiq, 1909, los.

Mu*jam, an old Persian system of prosody, by Shams-i-Qays,
ed. Mind Muhammad, 1909, 155.
i, 1'ersian text, ed. and annotated
i, 2. Chahar Maqala
;

hy

Mind Muhammad,

i2jr.

1910,

2,

English transl. and

notes by Browne, 1921, 15*.

XII. Introduction & 1'Histoire des Mongols, by

Blochtt,

1910, ioj.

XIII.

Dfwan

of

feld, 1910,

XIV,

XV.
XVI,

Hassan

7.$.

b.

Thabit

(Arabic

text), ed.

Hirsch-

6</.

Ta'rfkh-i-Guzfda of liamdu'llah Mustawfi; i,

i, 2.
Persian text, fac-simile, 1911, 155.; 2, Abridged translation
and Indices by Browne, 1914, io.r.
Nuqtatu'1-Kaf (History of the Babis) by Mfrxa Jani
(Persian text), ed. Browne, 1911, 125.
i, 2, 3.
Ta'rfkh-i-Jah&n-gush&y of Juwayni, Persian
text,

ed.

Mirza

Muhammad;

Khwdrazmshdhs, 1917,

XVII. Kashfu'l-Mahjub

15^.;

(Siifi

i, Mongols, 1913,
15^.; 2,
3 Assassins, in preparation.

doctrine), transl. Nicholson, 1911,

15*-

XVIII,

2 (all hitherto published), JAmi'u't-TawArikh of Rashfdu'd-Din Fadlu'llih (Persian text), ed. and annotated by
Blochet, 1912, 155.

XIX. Kit&bu'l-Wulat

of al-Kindi (Arabic text), ed. Guest, 1912,

15*

XX. Kitabu'l-Ansab

of as-Sam'ani (Arabic

text,

fac-simile),

1913, 205.

XXI. Dfwans of 'Amir

(Arabic text and

b.

transl.

af-Tufayl and 'Abfd b. al-Abra

by Sir Charles

J. Lyall),

1914, 125.

XXII. Kit&bu'l-Lum'a (Arabic text), ed. Nicholson, 1915, 15;.

XXIII, i, 2. Nuzhatu-'l-Qulub of Hamdu'llah Mustawfi;

XXIV.
[XXV.

i,

Persian text, ed. le Strange, 1915, 85.; 2, English transl.

le Strange, 1918, Ss.
Shamsu'l-'Ulum of Nashwan al-ftimyari, extracts from the
Arabic text with German Introduction and Notes by 'Azimu'd-

Dfn Ahmad, 1917, 55.

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Hakfm (Arabic text), ed. Krenkow, in preparation.]

b.^

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Rahatu's-udur

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Persian text, ed. Muhammad Iqbdl (in the Press).
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and Nicholson (in the Press).

Letters of Rashfdu'd-Dfn Fadlu'llah, abridged English

by Muhammad Shaff, followed
Tansuq-nama (on Precious stones) by

transl.

Houtum-Schindler

Mazandaran,

(in preparation).

topography

Kabino, with Map.

by transl. of
the late Sir A.

of,

and

travels

in,

by H. L.

This Volume

one

is

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sophy
his

promote those researches

and

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Youth upwards^ until

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History^

jr,

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and Arabs>

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"

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PREFACE

TWO

reasons have led

me

to publish this revised translation

of the Chahdr Maqdla^ or " Four Discourses," of Nizamf-i'Anidf of Samarqand. The first is that the translation which I
originally published in the July

and October numbers of the

Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

for 1899,

and which also

appeared al a separate reprint, is exhausted, and is now hardly

The second is that that translation contains many
^>tainable.

and

defects

errors

which

it is

now

on the text by Mirzd

amend and correct,

acumen brought to bear

possible to

partly through the learning and critical

Muhammad

of Qazwfn, whose admirable

accompanied by copious critical and historical notes in

Persian, was published in this Series (xi, i) in 1910; and partly
from the fact that the most ancient and correct MS. of the work

edition,

at present discovered 1 , that preserved in the Library of 'Ashir

Efendi at Constantinople (No. 285), was not available when I

made my original translation, while it has served as -the basis for

Muhammad's

Mi'rza

text.

Hence

my

old translation

is

not only

practically unobtainable, but, apart from the defects inherent in

attempt of

first

what

is

now

no longer entirely corresponds with

this sort,

the accepted Persian text, so that

and

liable to confuse

it

is

at times

puzzle, rather than to help, the student.

The

old translation has been carefully revised throughout, and the

proofs have

many

all

been read by Mfrzd

Muhammad, who

supplied

valuable criticisms, together with a good deal of

new

They have also been diligently read by

of the Government of India Research
one
Iqbal,

material in the notes.

Muhammad

Students at Cambridge, who has made many useful suggestions

and saved me from numerous small errors. To these and to other
friends

who have helped me

in

a lesser degree

debted, but special thanks are due to

1

It

was copied

in

Mr Ralph

Herat in 835/1431-2.

am

deeply

in-

Shirley, editor

PREFACE

of the Occult Review, and to

Mr W. Gornold

for the valuable

astrological notes with which they have been kind enough to

supply

me

To facilitate comparison, the points in the translation

1
.

corresponding with the beginning of each page of the Persian

text are indicated by the appropriate Arabic numbers. Mfrza

Muhammad's

notes,

which

in the original

partake of the nature

of a running commentary on the text, though materially separated from

it,

and occupy 200 pages

(\

*A*),

have, from

considerations of space, rearranged and greatly compressed.

The

shorter ones appear as foot-notes on the pages to which thf^

refer,

while the substance of the longer ones, reduced to a mini-

mum, and

shorn of

to illustrate

them

many

of the pieces ju stificatives which" serve

in the original,

has been divided according to

subject-matter under thirty-two headings, fully enumerated in

But although the English notes

embody the more important results of Mirza Muhammad's researches, it has been necessary, in order to effect the required
the following Table of Contents.

condensation, to omit

many interesting

details

and quotations of

texts accessible only in rare manuscripts, so that those

Persian with any facility are strongly

original

recommended

who read

to study the

commentary.

full

account of this work and

its

author

is

given both in the

Persian and English Prefaces to the companion volume containing

the text, and
forth

more

it

will

be sufficient here to summarize the facts set

fully in that place.

The

Ahmad

ibn

'Umar

Aut/tor.

ibn 'All of Samarqand, poetically

NizAmf and further entitled 'Arudf (the

in the

first

"

Prosodist ") flourished

half of the sixth century of the hijra (twelfth of the

Christian era), and seems to have spent most of his

rsn

named

and Transoxiana. What we know of him

*

is

life

in

Khu-

chiefly derived

See Notes xxiv and xxxn, pp. 130-4 and 164-7.

PREFACE
from

this book,

material.

The

xi

which contains a good deal of autobiographical

life to which he refers lie between

events in his

we find him sucTus

and
Samarqand, Balkh, Herat,
Nfshapur. He
was primarily a poet and courtier, but, as we learn from Anecdotes
XXXI (p. 74) and XLIII (p. 96), he also practised Astrology
and Medicine when occasion arose. His poetry, in spite of the

the years 504/1110-1111 and 547/1152-3, and

cessively at

complacency displayed by him in Anecdote XXI (pp. 59-61),

was not, if vfe may judge by the comparatively scanty fragments
v^ich have survived, of the highest order, and is far inferior to
his prose,

which

my

opinion, almost un-

virtue of the

Chahdr Maqdla, and

admirable, and, in

is

equalled in Persian.

It is

by

that alone, that Nizamf-i-'Arudf of

Samarqand deserves

reckoned amongst the great names of Persian

to be

literature.

The Book.

At

the present day, apart from the text printed eleven years

and the rare and bad lithographed edition

published at Tihran in 1305/1887-8, the Ckaltdr Maqdla, so far

ago

in this series

as at present known,

two

in the British

is

represented only by three or four MSS.,

Museum (Or.

3507, dated 1017/1608-9),

2955, dated 1274/1857-8,

and one

in

Constantinople transcribed

at Herat in 835/1431-2, while a fourth, of which

are available to me,

is

During the thirteenth,

centuries of our era it seems to have been

known than during

mentioned or cited

no particulars

said to exist in India.

fourteenth and fifteenth

better

and Or.

the four succeeding centuries, for

in the thirteenth

it is

century by 'Awfi (in the

Lubdlntl-Albab^vnA Ibn Isfandiydr (in his History of Tabaristin);

in the fourteenth century by Hamdu'lldh Mustawff of Qazwfn
(in the Ta'rikh-i-Guzidd)

and

Jmf

in the fifteenth

(in the Silsilatu'dh-Dhahab)

century by Dawlatshdh

and

in the sixteenth

by

the Qidf Ahmad-i-Ghaffirf (Nigdristdn). It is often referred to

as the Majmcttfn-Nawddir (" Collection of Rarities "), which the
1

Indicated by the letter

L in a few of the foot-notes.

PREFACE

xii

Turkish bibliographer Hdjji Khalffa supposes to be distinct from

Muhammad

the Chahdr Maqdla, though, as Mfrzd

clusively proved, these are but

two

different

names

has con-

for the

same

book.

Not

less

remarkable than the style of the Chahdr Maqdla

the interest of

its

contents, for

is

contains the only contemporary

it

account of 'Umar Khayyim, and the oldest known account of

Firdawsf, while

own

author's

by persons

of the anecdotes are derived from the

many

experience, or were orally communicated to hiq&

who had

direct

knowledge of the

The

facts.

book,..,

therefore one of the

most important original sources for our

knowledge of the literary and scientific conditions which prevailed
in Persia for the

which

may

two or three centuries preceding

and 552/1157, and with great probability

in the

composition,

year 551/1

however, must be

this twofold excellence,

Against

its

be placed with certainty between the years 547/1 152

156*.

set the extra-

ordinary historical inaccuracies of which in several places the

author has been guilty, even

in

respect to events in which he

claims to have participated in person.

some of them of the

by Mfrzd

Fifteen such blunders,

grossest character, have been enumerated

Muhammad

in the Preface to the text 2,

and some of

these are fully discussed in Notes IV, V, vin and XXI at the

end of

this

volume.

Nor can

all

these blunders be charitably

ascribed to a careless or officious copyist, since the point of the

story

is

in several cases

Here
and

at all events

interest of

is

dependent on the

error.

the translation of the book, of the value

which the reader, aided

if

necessary by the notes,

can form his own judgement.

1

p. xvi of the English Preface to the

Pp. xx-xxiii of the English Preface.

See

EDWARD
April n, 1921.

text.

G.

BROWNE.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
'Translator's Preface

ix

Author's Preface, including Doxology and Dedication

On the dignity of Kingship

....

Beginning of the Book.

Section II, on Cosmography

Section III, on the Evolution of the Mineral and

Vegetable Kingdoms

...."..

Section IV, on the Animal

External Senses

Kingdom and

the Five

Section V, on the Five Internal Senses

Anecdote

I,

Man

......

......

The

nature of the Secretarial Art and qualifications

of the Secretary
Iskdfi's skilful citation of the Quv>dn
.

IV.

The

V.

VI.

VII.

despatch on the defeat of Makan

secretary must be free from domestic worries

Iskafi's

Laconic dismissal of an unjust judge of

Importunity of the people of Lamghan
Marriage of al-Ma'mtin with Ptirdn

Bughrd Khan's secretary

Muhammad

15

16
18

20

21

...

Supernatural eloquence of the Qur*dn

12

Qum

Al-Mustarshid's denunciation of the Saljtiqs

IX. The Oilr-Khan's warning to Atmatigfn

IX.

VIII.
X.

ON SECRETARIES.

FIRST DISCOURSE.
ANECDOTE

III.

on the Nasnds or Wild Man, and the

Ascent of

II.

ibn 'Abduh

23

24
25

25

SECOND DISCOURSE. ON POETS.

XII.

Al-Khujistdnf's ambition stirred by a verse of poetry

notable poets of the principal Royal

27

The most

Houses of Persia
XIII.

29

On

the quality of the Poet and his verse

celebrated
improvisation
Riidagf's

Excursus.

XIV. Mafcmiid and Ayaz, and

XV. Farrukhfs

...

'Unsuri's improvisation

success at Court

31

33
37

39

XVI. Mu'izzf encourages the Author, and describes

own early struggles and first success
.

his
.

45

TABLE OF CONTENTS

xiv

ANECDOTE

....
....

XVII. Azraqfs happy improvisation

XVIII. The imprisonment of Mas'iid-i-Sa'd-i-Salmdn

XIX. Rashidi and 'Am'aq, the Poet-Laureate

XX. Firdawsf and Sultan Mahmiid

PACK

48

49

52

54

XXI. Autobiographical

59

THIRD DISCOURSE. ON ASTROLOGERS.

How
XXII.

to study

Al-Kindi and

Astronomy and Astrology

Abd Ma'shar

62

.64

XXIII. Al-Bfnini provokes Sultdn Mal.imiid by too correct

a prediction

XXIV.

Al-Birdnf and the

XXV. A

illiterate

...

soothsayer

correct prediction by a servant of the

XXVI. The

Author

makes a correct prediction

XXVII. Nizamu'1-Mulk and the astrologer of Nfshapiir

XXVIII.

crazy Dd'iidi

'Umar-i- Khayyam describes his burial-place

XXIX. 'Umar Khayyam forecasts fine weather

XXX. An unprincipled soothsayer of Ghazna
XXXI. The Author makes a successful prognostication

FOURTH DISCOURSE. ON
How to study Medicine

70

71

72
72

74

good physician
XXXII. Healing by prayer, and further remarks on medical

75

76

wrought by Bukht-Yishii'

'.

81

case of Psycho-Therapeusis related by Avicenna

82

77

study

A heroic cure

XXXV. Another case of Psycho-Therapeusis

XXXVI. A sick lover cured by Avicenna

by Razi

....

XXXVII.
XXXVIII.

68

PHYSICIANS.

Characteristics of the

XXXIV. A

67

...

XXXIII.

66

65

A heroic cure wrought by al-Majtisf

A case of Melancholia cured by Avicenna
.

XXXIX. Remarkable
XL. The

83

90

91

prognosis and cure by Adib Isma'il

fanaticism of the

93

94

'

Shaykh Abdu'llah Ansari

XLI. Galen " treats the root

85

to cure the branch

XLII. The acumen of the Catholicos of Pars

"
.

...

XLIII. Th'e Author's successful treatment of a young

girl

95
95

96

TABLE OF CONTENTS

xv

NOTES.
PAGE
I.

II.

III.

IV.

V.
VI.
VII.

VIII.
IX.

X.

XL
XII.
XIII.

The Dynasty of Ghtir or House of Shansab

The meaning of Jamghdj and TapghAch
Writers adduced as models of style

103
106

....

107

Ahmad

ibn 'Abdu'lldh al-Khujistani

mentioned

writers

XV. The vengeance

Jahan-suz

of

Sultan

in

107
108

108

109

113
113

IJusayn

XVI. Notes on Anecdote XI 1 1

XVII. Note on Anecdote XIV
XVIII. Note on the House of Muhtaj of Chaghdniydn
XIX. Note on Tughanshah and the arbitrary methods of
some Persian editors
.

XX.

Azraqi.

(Anecdote XVII)

120
121

122
122

123

124

XXI. Another

XXIL The

no
112

107

Anecdote XII

'Ala'u'd-Din

XIV. Poets and

102

Anecdote II
Historical errors in Anecdote III
The Sdhib Isma'fl ibn 'Abbdd
Fabrics and Materials mentioned in Anecdote VII
Another historical error in Anecdote VIII
The Giir-Khan and the Qdra-Khita'f dynasty
Atmatigin, Amir Baydbdnf and Atsiz
The House of Burhdn
Bughrd Khan and the flak Khdn in Anecdote XI
Historical errors in

101

instance of the Author's inaccuracy

Khaqani, Khani or Afrdsiyabf Kings

125
126

XXIII. Five notable Astronomers

127

XXIV. Certain astrological terms

XXV. 'Umar-i-Khayydm
XXVI. On certain medical terms

134

130
in the Preface to the

Fourth Discourse

XXVII.

140

Physicians and their works mentioned in Anecdote

XXXII
XXVIII. Jamfs rhymed

144
versions of Anecdotes

XXXIV

and

XXXVIII

159

....

XXIX. The Ma'miinf Khwdrazmshdhs

XXX. The Shdhinshdh 'Ald'u'd-Dawla
XXXI. The Shaykh 'Abdu'lldh Ansdri
XXXII. Additional Note by Mr W. Gornold on
.

.....

of the Unseen

"

the "Part
and other astrological terms .

GENERAL INDEX
INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS

161

162

163

164
168

182

In

t/ie

name of God the Merciful the

Clement.

PRAISE, thanks and gratitude to that King who, by the

intervention 1 of the Cherubic and Angelic Spirits, brought into
being the World of Return and Restoration, and, by means of
that World, created and adorned the World of Growth and
Decay, maintaining it by the commands and prohibitions of the
^ophets and Saints, and restraining it by the swords and pens
of Kings and Ministers. And blessings upon [Muhammad] the
Lord of both worlds, who was the most perfect of the Prophets ;
and invocations of grace upon his Family and Companions, who
were the most excellent of Saints. And honour to the King of this
time, that learned, just, divinely-strengthened, heaven-aided and
ever-victorious monarch Husdmu'd-Daivla wdd-Din, Help of
Isldm and the Muslims, Exterminator of the infidels and polytheists, Subduer of the heretical and the froward, Chief of hosts
in the worlds, Pride of Kings and Emperors, Succourer of these
days, Protector of mankind, Arm of the Caliphate, Beauty of the
Faith and Glory of the Nation, Controller of the Arabs and the
Persians, noblest of mankind, S/iamsul-Ma'dlf Malikiil-Umard,
Abu'l-Hasan 'AH ibn Mas'iid 2 Helper of the Prince of Believers,
may his life be according to his desires, may the greater part of
the world be assigned to his name, and may the orderly governFor to-day he
ment of the human race be directed by his care
is the most excellent of the kings of the age in nobility, pedigree,
judgement, statesmanship, justice, equity, valour and generosity,
as well as in the enriching of his territory, the embellishment of
his realms, the maintenance of his friends, the subjugation of his
foes, the raising of armies, the safe-guarding of the people, the
8
securing of the roads, and the tranquillizing of the realms by
virtue of upright judgement, clear understanding, strong resolve
and firm determination ; by whose excellence the concatenation
of the House of Shansab 4 is held together and maintained in
order, and by whose perfection the strong arm of that Dynasty's
t

fortune

is

strengthened and recognized.

*

L. has
I.e.

"without the intervention."

Husdmu'd-Dfn Abu'l-Hasan 'AH ibn Fakhru'd-Dln Mas'iid.

at the end.'
3 L. has
4

b~

JUlf* jl "from

See Note

I at the end,

1'

perils,

instead of

See Note

<lUl.

and the Tabaqdt-i Ndfirl(zA. Nassau Lees), pp. 101

Instead of Shansab, the correct reading, B. has

B.

May God Almighty

C*^LJI

et seqq.

and L. *,**& Jl.

I

CHAHAR MAQALA. EXORDIUM

vouchsafe to hint and to the other kings of that line a full portion
of dominion and domain, throne and fortune, fame and success,

command and

prohibition,

by His Favour and

SECTION

universal Grace

I.

It is an old custom and ancient convention, which custom is

maintained and observed, that an author (t ) or compiler, in the
introduction to his discourse and preface of his book, should

commemorate somewhat

of his patron's praise, and record

some

prayer on behalf of the object of his eulogy. But I, a loyal

servant, instead of praise and prayer for this prince, will make
mention in this book of the favours ordained and vouchsafed
by God Most High and Most Holy to this King of kingly parentage, that, these Ipeing submitted to his world-illuminating judgement, he may betake himself to the expression of his thanks for
them. For in the uncreated Scripture and unmade Word God
"

"

Verily if ye be thankful I will give you increase* ; for the

gratitude of the servant is an alchemy for the favours of the
Munificent Lord. Briefly, then, it behoves this great King and
puissant Lord to know that to-day, upon the whole of this globe
of dust, and within the circle of this green parasol 2 there is no
says,

more ample circumstances than this monarch, nor any

potentate enjoying more abundant good than this sovereign. He
hath the gift of youth and the blessing of constant health his
father and mother are alive congenial brothers are on his right
hand and on his left. And what father is like his sire, the
king

in

mighty, divinely-strengthened, ever-victorious and heaven-aided

Inin, King of the Mountains (may God prolong his existence and continue to the heights
his exaltation !), who is the most puissant Lord of the age and
the most excellent Prince of the time in judgement, statecraft,
knowledge, courtesy, swordsmanship, strength of arm, treasure
and equipment Supported by ten thousand men bearing spears
and handling reins he hath made himself a shield before his sons,
so that not even the zephyr may blow roughly on one of his
servants. In her chaste seclusion and unassailable abode is a
prayerful lady (may God perpetuate her exaltation !) whose every
invocation, breathed upwards at earliest dawn to the Court of
God, works with the far-flung host and wheeling army. Where
again is a brother like the royal Prince Shamsu'd-Dawla weldDin*, Light of Islam and the Muslims (may his victories be

Fakhrtfd-Dawla wctd-Diu*> Lord of

Qur'dn,

The

xiv, 7.

variant

*->

(wheel, firmament), though

more

attractive than

jj^, (parasol,

umbrella), rests on weaker manuscript authority.

* Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid ibn 'Izzu'd-Din Hasan.
See Note I at the end.
4 Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad ibn Fakhru'd-Din
Mas'tid. See Note I at the end.

PROPHETS AND KINGS

reaches the extreme term and limit in the service

!), who
of this my Lord (whose exaltation may God perpetuate!)? Praise
be to God that this my Lord falls short neither in reward nor retribution yea, by his face the world enjoys clear vision, and life
And a blessing yet greater is this,
passes sweetly by his beauty
that the All-Perfect Benefactor and Unfailing Giver hath bestowed on him an uncle like the Lord of the World and Sovereign
of the East, 'AMu'd-Dunyd wa'd-Din Ab6 'AH al-Husayn ibnu'l1
Husayn Ikhtiydru Amirfl-Mtiminin (may God prolong his life
and cause his kingdom to endure !), who, with fifty thousand mailclad men, strenuous in endeavour, hurled back all the hosts of the
world (r) ancr set in a corner all the kings of the age. May God
(ofessed and exalted is He !) long vouchsafe all to one another,
grant to all abundant enjoyment of one another's company, and
fill the world with
light by their achievementsjby His Favour,
and Bounty, and Grace
glorious

BEGINNING OF THE BOOK.

This loyal servant and favoured retainer Ahmad ibn 'Umar
'AH an-Nizamf al-'Anidf as-Samarqandf, who for forty-five
years hath been devoted to the service of this House and inscribed
ibn

in the register of service of this

the

Dynasty, desireth to dedicate to

Supreme Imperial Court (may God exalt

it!)

some work

equipped according to the canons of Philosophy with decisive

proofs and trenchant arguments, and to set forth therein what
kingship truly is, who is truly king, whence is derived this
honourable office, to whom rightly appertaineth this favour, and
in what manner such an one should shew his gratitude for, and
after what fashion accept, this privilege, so that he may become
second to the Lord of the sons of men 2 and third to the Creator
of the Universe. For even so hath God, in His Incontrovertible
Scripture and Eternal Word, co-ordinated on one thread and
shewn forth on one string the pearls represented by these three
"
exalted titles.
Obey God? saith He, and obey the Apostle, and
stick as possess authority amongst yourselves*?
For in the grades of existences and the ranks of the intelligibles,
after the Prophetic Function, which is the supreme limit of man's
attainment, there is no rank higher than kingship, which is naught
else than a Divine gift. God, glorious and exalted is He, hath
accorded this position to the King of this age, and bestowed on
him this degree, so that he may walk after the way of former
kings and maintain the people after the manner of bygone ages.
1
'Ala'u'd-Din Husayn, called Jahdn-s&z, "the world -consumer," A.H. 544-556
at the end, and p. 31, n. i ad calc.
(A.D. 1149-1161). See Notes I and
8 I.e. to the
Prophet, who is subordinate only to God, as the king is to him.
*
Qur'An* iv, 62.

XV

CHAHAR MAQALA.
SECTION

COSMOGRAPHY
II.

The Royal Mind (may God

exalt it!) should deign to know

necessarily into one of two categories.
Such being is either self-existent, or it exists through some other.
That Being which is self-existent is called "the Necessarily Existent?
which is God most High and most Holy, who existeth by virtue
of Himself, and who, therefore, hath always existed, since He
awaiteth none other ; and who (t) will always exist, since He subsisteth by Himself, not by another. But that existence whose
"
being is through another is called Contingent Being? and this
is such as we are, since our
is
from the seed, and the sepd
being
is from the blood, and the blood is from food, and food is from flie
water, the earth and the sun, whose existence is in turn derived
from somethingcelse ; and all these are such as yesterday were
that

all

existing beings

fall

not, and to-morrow will not be. And on profound reflection [it
appeareth that] this causal nexus reacheth upwards to a Cause
which deri veth not its being from another, but existeth necessarily
in itself; which is the Creator of all, from Whom all derive their
existence and subsistence. So He is the Creator of all these
things, and all come into being through Him and subsist through
Him. And a little reflection on this matter will make it clear
that all Phenomena consist of Being tinctured with Not-being,
while He is Being characterized by a continuance reaching from
Eternity past to Eternity to come. And since the origin of all
creatures lies in Not-being, they must inevitably return
again to
nothing, and the most clear-sighted amongst the human race
have said, "Everything shall return unto its Origin? more
especially in this world of Growth and Decay. Therefore we,
who are contingent in our being, have our origin in Not-being
while He, who existeth necessarily, is in His Essence Being, even
as He (glorious is His Praise and high His Splendour) saith in the
"
Perspicuous Word and Firm Hand-hold, All things perish save
His Countenance 1 "
Now you must know that this world, which lies in the hollow
of the Heaven of the Moon 9 and within the circle of this first
"
Sphere, is called the World of Growth and Decay." And you
must thus conceive it, that within the concavity of the Heaven of
the Moon lies the Fire, surrounded by the Heaven of the Moon
and that within the Sphere of the Fire is the Air, surrounded
by
the Fire; and within the Air is the Water, surrounded
by the Air,
while within the Water is the Earth, with the Water round about
And in the middle of the earth is an imaginary point, from
it.
;

Qur'dn, xxviii, 88.

This is the lowest or innermost of the nine celestial
spheres which environ the
earth. Concerning the Muslim Cosmogony, see Dieterici's
Makrokoftnos, pp. 178 et seqq.
8

THE TERRESTRIAL GLOBE

straight lines drawn to the Heaven of the Moon are

and when we speak of " down," we mean this point or
what lies nearest to it and when we speak of " up," we mean the
remotest heaven, or what lies nearest to it, this being a heaven
above the Zodiacal Heaven, having naught beyond it, for with it
the material world terminates, or comes to an end 2
Now when God most Blessed and most High, by His effective
Wisdom, desired to produce in this world minerals, plants,animals
and men, He created the stars, and in particular the sun and
moon, whereon He made the growth and decay of these to
depend. Arui the special property of the sun is that (o) by its

which
equal

all

warms

when

stands opposite to them,

by the medium of
heat. So, by its opposition, it warmed the water; and, by
means of the warmth, attracted it for a long Awhile, until one
quarter of the earth's surface was laid bare, by reason of the
much vapour which ascended and rose up therefrom. Now it is
of the nature of water to be capable of becoming stone, as it is
reflection

arid

it

all

things

draws them up, that

is

it

attracts them,

admitted to do in certain places, and as may be actually witnessed 8 So mountains were produced from the water by the
and thereby the earth became somewhat
glow of the sun
elevated above what it had been, while the water retreated from
it and dried up, according to that fashion which is witnessed.
This portion, therefore, is called the " Uncovered Quarter," for the
reason above stated and is also called the " Inhabited Quarter,"
because animals dwell therein.
.

SECTION

III.

When the influences of these stars had acted on the peripheries

of these elements, and had been reflected back from that
imaginary [central] point, there were produced from the midst
of the earth and water, by the aid of the wind and the fire,
the products of the inorganic world, such as mountains, mines,
clouds, snow, rain, thunder, lightning, shooting stars, comets,
meteors, thunder-bolts, halos, conflagrations, fulminations, earthquakes, and springs of all kinds, as has been fully explained in its

proper place when discussing the effects of the celestial bodies,

but for the explanation and amplification of which there is no
room in this brief manual. But when time began, and the cycles
of heaven became continuous, and the constitution of this lower
world matured, and the time was come for the fertilisation of
1
This outermost, or ninth, celestial sphere is the Primum mobile of the Ptolemaic
system, called al-Falaku'l-Atlas or Falaku'l-Afldk by the Muslim philosophers.
2
That the material universe is finite and bounded by the Empyrean, or Falaku'lAfldk, is generally accepted by Persian philosophers. See my Year amongst the

Persians, pp. 143-144.

3

The

author apparently alludes to petrifaction and the formation of stalactytes.

CHAHAR MAQALA.

PHYSIOLOGY

that interspace which lies between the water and the air, the
vegetable kingdom was manifested. Then God, blessed and
exalted is He, created for that substance wherefrom the plants
were made manifest four subservient forces and three faculties.
Of these four subservient forces one is that which draws to itself
whatever is suitable for its purpose, and this is called " the Force
"
Attractive (Jddhibd). Another retains what the first may have
"
"
the Force Retentive
attracted, and this is called
(Mdsikd).
The third is that which assimilates what has been attracted,

and transmutes it from its former state until it becomes like unto
and this is called " the Force Assimilative" (Hddima). The
fourth is that which rejects what is not appropriate, and it is
called "the Force Expulsive" (Ddfi'a). And of its three faculties
one is that which increaseth it (i) by diffusing throughout it
nutritious matters with a proportionate and equable diffusion.
The second is that which accompanies this nutriment until' it
itself,

reaches the extremities.

The

third

is

that which,

when the

organism has attained perfection and begins to tend towards

decline, appears and produces ova, in order that, if destruction
overtake the parent in this world, this substitute

may

take

its

be immune from
injury, and the species may not become extinct. This is called
"
the Reproductive Faculty" (Quwwat-i-Muwallida).
So this Kingdom rose superior to the inorganic world in these
several ways which have been mentioned and the far-reaching
Wisdom of the Creator so ordained that these Kingdoms should
be connected one with another successively and continuously, so
that in the inorganic world the first material, which was clay,
underwent a process of evolution and became higher in organisation until it grew to coral (marjdn, bussad), which is the ultimate
term of the inorganic world 1 and is connected with the most
primitive stage of plant-life. And the most primitive thing in the
vegetable kingdom is the thorn, and the most highly developed
the date-palm and the grape, which resemble the animal kingdom
in that the former needs the male to fertilise it so that it may
bear fruit 2 while the latter flees from its foe. For the vine flees
from the bind- weed 8 a plant which, when it twists round the vine,
causes it to shrivel up, wherefore the vine flees from it. In the
vegetable kingdom, therefore, there is nothing higher than the
date-palm and the vine, inasmuch as they have assimilated themselves to that which is superior to their own kingdom, and have
subtly overstepped the limits of their own world, and evolved
themselves in a higher direction.
place, so that the order of the world

may

The

Pearl, however,

Afikrokosmos, p.

seems generally to be placed higher.

See

'Ashaqa, a species of Dolichos.

See Dieterici's
*

n.

Dieterici's tyikrokosnws, p. 25.

See Lane's Arabic Lexicon,

s.v.

THE EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL SENSES

SECTION IV. The Five External

Senses.

Now when this kingdom had attained perfection, and the

influence of the "Fathers "of the upper world had reacted on the
"
"Mothers 1 below, and the interspace between the air and the fire
in its turn became involved 9 a finer offspring resulted and the
manifestation of the animal world took place. This, bringing
,

with

the faculties already possessed by the vegetable kingdom,

others, one the faculty of discovery, which
is called the
"Perceptive Faculty" (Mudrika\ whereby the animal
discerns thirtgs the second the power of voluntary movement,
by the help of which the animal moves, approaching that which
it

added thereunto two

;

congenial to

is

which

is

it

called the

and retreating from that which

"
Motor Faculty" (Mttharrika).

is

Now the "Perceptive Faculty" is subdivided into ten

offensive,

branches,

of which are called the "External Senses," and five the

"
Internal Senses." The former are Touch" (Y), Taste," Sight,"
"Hearing," and "Smell." Now Touch is a sense distributed
throughout the skin and flesh of the animal, so that the nerves
perceive and discern anything which comes in contact with them,
such as dryness and moisture, heat and cold, roughness and
smoothness, harshness and softness. Taste is a sense located
in that nerve which is distributed over the surface of the tongue,
which detects soluble nutriments in those bodies which come
in contact with it; and it is this sense which discriminates
between sweet and bitter, sharp and sour, and the like of these.
Hearing is a sense located in the nerve which is distributed
about the auditory meatus, so that it detects any sound which
is discharged against it by undulations of the air
compressed
between two impinging bodies, that is to say two bodies striking
against one another, by the impact of which the air is thrown
into waves and becomes the cause of sound, in that it imparts
movement to the air which is stationary in the auditory meatus,
comes into contact with it, reaches this nerve, and gives rise
to the sensation of hearing. Sight is a faculty, located in the
optic nerve which discerns images projected on the crystalline
humour, whether of figures or solid bodies, variously coloured,
through the mediiftn of a translucent substance which extends
from it to the surfaces of reflecting bodies. Smell is a faculty
located in a protuberance situated in the fore part of the brain
and resembling the nipple of the female breast, which apprehends
five
"

'

By the

" Seven Fathers above" and the " Four Mothers below/' the seven
planets

aiyl the four elements are intended.

2 The four elemental

spheres (terrestrial, aqueous, aerial and igneous) present

three interspaces (furja), in the first of which is produced the mineral kingdom, in
the second the vegetable, and in the third the animal. These three are called the
"threefold offspring."

CHAHAR MAQALA.

PHYSIOLOGY

what the

air inhaled brings to it of odours mingled with the

vapours wafted by air-currents, or impressed upon it by diffusion
from the odorific body.

SECTION V. The Five Internal Senses

1
.

Now as to the Internal Senses, some are such as perceive the

forms of things sensible, while others are such as apprehend their
meanings. The first is the "Composite Sense" (Hiss-i-mushtarik\
which is a faculty located in the anterior ventricles of the brain,
and in its nature receptive of all images percfived "by the
external senses and impressed upon them to be communicated
to it, such perception being apprehended only when received by
it.
The second is the Imagination (Khaydl\ a faculty located (A)
in the posterior pprtion of the anterior ventricle of the brain, which
"
"
has apprehended from
preserves what the Composite Sense
the external senses, so that this remains in it after the subsidence
of the sense-impressions. The third is the "Imaginative Faculty"
(Mutakhayyila), thus called when animals are under discussion,
but, in the case of the human soul, named the "Cogitative
Faculty" (Mutafakkira). This is a faculty located in the middle
whose function it is to combine or separate,
as the mind may elect, those particular percepts which are stored
in the Imagination. The fourth is the "Apprehensive Faculty"
( Wahm\ which is a faculty located in the posterior portion of
the middle ventricle of the brain, whose function is to discover
the supra-sensual ideas existing in particular percepts, such as
that faculty whereby the kid distinguishes between its dam and
a wolf, and the child between a spotted rope and a serpent. The
"
"
fifth is the Retentive Faculty" (Hdfiza\*\sv called the Memory"
(Dhdkira\ which is a faculty located in the posterior ventricle of
the brain. It preserves those supra-sensual ideas discovered by
the "Apprehension"; between which and itself the same relation
"
subsists as between the " Imagination
and the " Composite
Sense," though the latter preserves forms, and the former ideas.
Now all these are the servants of the "Animal Soul," a substance having its well-spring in the heart, which, when it acts in the
heart, is called the "Animal Spirit," but when in the brain, the
"Psychic Spirit," and when in the liver, the "Natural Spirit." It
is a subtle vapour which rises from the blood, diffuses itself to the
remotest arteries, and resembles the sun in luminosity. Every
animal which possesses these two faculties, the Perceptive and
the Motor, and these ten subordinate faculties derived therefrom,
is called a perfect animal
but if any faculty is lacking in it,
defective. Thus the ant has no eyes, and the snake, which is
ventricle of the brain,

See

my

Year amongst the Persians, pp. 144-145.

THE

MISSING LINK

called the deaf adder, no ears but none is more defective than
the maggot, which is a red worm found in the mud of streams 1
called therefore gil-khwdra ("mud-eater"), but in Transoxiana
ghdk-kirma\ This is the lowest animal, while the highest is the
9
satyr (nasnds) a creature inhabiting the plains of Turkistdn, of
erect carriage and vertical stature, with wide flat nails. It cherishes
a great affection for men wherever it sees men, it halts on their
path and examines them attentively and when it finds a solitary
man, it carries him off, and it is even said that it will conceive
from him. This, after (*) mankind, is the highest of animals,
inasmuch as in several respects it resembles man first in its
and thirdly
erect stature secondly in the breadth of its nails
in the hair of its head.
;

ANECDOTE

I.

I
heard as follows from Abii Ridd ibn 'Abdu's-Saldm of
Nfshdpur in the Great Mosque at Nfshapiir, in the year SIQ/
4
1116-1117: "We were travelling towards Tamghaj and in
our caravan were several thousand camels. One day, when we
were marching in the mid-day heat, we saw on a sand-hill a
woman, bare-headed and quite naked, extremely beautiful in
form, with a figure like a cypress, a face like the moon, and long
hair, standing and looking at us. Although we spoke to her, she
made no reply and when we approached her, she fled, running so
swiftly in her flight that probably no horse could have overtaken
her. Our muleteers, who were Turks, said that this was a wild
man, such as they call nasnds." And you must know that this
is the noblest of animals in these three respects which have been
mentioned.
So when, in the course of long ages and by lapse of time,
equilibrium became more delicately adjusted, and the turn came
of the interspace which is between the elements and the heavens 5
,

man came

into being, bringing with

him

that existed in
the mineral, vegetable and animal kingdoms, and adding thereunto the capacity for abstract concepts. So by reason of inI

all

Cf. Dieterici's Mikrokosmos, p. 43.

correct reading of this word, which appears in a different form in each MS.,
is doubtful, and it is probably a local term only.
Mfrza Muhammad takes gtM-kirma
as equivalent to kirm-i-khdk, "earthworm."
3
The term nasnds either denotes a real animal or a fabulous monster. In the
first sense it is us>ed of various kinds of monkeys, eg. the orang-outang and marmoset;
in the latter it is equivalent to the Shiqq or Half- man (which resembles a man cut in
two vertically) of the Arabs, and the Dfv-martiitm of the Persians. See Qazwinf's
Year amongst the Persians,
''gjtfibiJl-Makkl&qiit, p. 449 ; and my
pp. 165, 267.
4
See Qazwinrs Atkdru'l-Bildd, p. 275. China or Chinese Turkistan appears to
be meant. See Note II at the end.
II
See n. i at the foot of p. 7 supra. This fourth interspace (fur/a) lies outside the
"
"
" Heaven of the Moon."
Igneous Sphere and inside the
a

The

CHAHAR MAQALA.

io

ANTHROPOLOGY

telligence he became king over all animals, and brought all

things under his control. Thus from the mineral world he made
jewels, gold and silver his adornment ; from iron, zinc, copper,
lead and tin he fashioned his utensils and vessels; from the

vegetable kingdom he made his food, raiment and bedding and

from the animal world he obtained for himself steeds and beasts
of burden. And from all three kingdoms he chose out medicaments wherewith to heal himself. Whereby did there accrue to
him such pre-eminence? By this, that he understood abstract
ideas, and, by means of these, recognized God. And whereby
did he know God ? By knowing himself; for "He
knoweth
ytho
himself, knoweth his Lord''
;

So this kingdom [of man] became divided into three classes.

The first is that which is proximate to the Animal Kingdom,
such as the wilc^ men of the waste and the mountain, whose
aspiration doth not more than suffice to secure their own livelihood by seeking what is to their advantage and warding off
what is to their detriment. The second class compriseth the
inhabitants of towns and cities, who possess civilisation, power
of co-operation, (*) and aptitude to discover crafts and arts;
but whose scientific attainments are limited to the organisation
of such association as subsists between them, in order that the
different classes 1 may continue to exist. The third class compriseth such as are independent of these things, and whose
occupation, by night and by day, in secret and in public, is to
reflect, "Who are we, for what reason did we come into existence,
and Who hath brought us into being?" In other words, they
hold debate concerning the real essences of things, reflect on
their coming, and anxiously consider their departure, saying,
"
How have we come ? Whither shall we go ? "
This class, again, is subdivided into two sorts first, those
who reach the essence of this object by the help of masters and
by laborious toil, voracious study, reading and writing and such
are called "Philosophers." But there is yet another sort who,
without master or book, reach the extreme limit of this problem,
and these are called " Prophets."
;

Now

the peculiar virtues of the Prophet are three: first,

without instruction, he knows afl knowledges 8 secondly,
that he gives information concerning yesterday and to-morrow
otherwise than by analogical reasoning; and thirdly, that he
hath such psychical power that from whatever body he will he
taketh the form and produceth another form, which thing none
can do save such as are conformed to the Angelic World. Therefore in the Human World none is above him, and his command
that,

Or perhaps " races."

This

is

what

is

The word

is

et^jt, plural of

called 'Ilm-i'Ladutmi, or

knowledge

Py

"species.'

directly derived

from God.'

PROPHETS, PRIESTS AND KINGS

the well-being of the world ; for whatever others

have, he has, while possessing also an additional qualification
which they have not, that is to say communication with the
Angelic World. This additional qualification is in brief termed
the "Prophetic Function," and is in detail such as we have
is effective for

explained.
Now so long as such a man lives, he points out to his people
what things conduce to well-being in both worlds, by the Command of God, glorious is His Name, communicated to him by
means of the Angels. But when, by natural dissolution, he turns
his face
towards the other world, he leaves behind him as his
representative a Code derived from the indications of God

Almighty and his own sayings And assuredly he requires, to

maintain his Law and Practice, a vice-gerent who must needs
be the most excellent of that community and the most perfect
product of that age, in order that he may maintain this Law and
give effect to this Code; and such an one is called an "Imdm."
But this Imdm cannot reach the horizons of the East, the West,
the North and the South in such wise that the effects of his care
may extend alike to the most remote and the nearest, and his
command and prohibition may reach at once the intelligent and
the ignorant. Therefore must he needs have vicars to act for
him in distant parts of the world, and not every one of these will
have such power that all mankind shall be compelled to acknowledge it. Hence there must be an administrator and compeller,
which administrator and compeller is called a "Monarch," that
is to say, a king; and his vicarious function "Sovereignty." The
king, therefore, is the lieutenant of the Imam, the Imim of the
Prophet, and the Prophet of God (mighty and glorious is He !).
Well has Firdawsf said on this subject: (\\)
1

"Then learn that the functions of Prophet and King

Are set side by side like two stones in one ring"

The Lord of the sons of men 8 himself hath said, "Church and
State are twins? since in form and essence neither differs from
the other, either as regards increase or defect. So, by virtue of
this decree, no burden, after the Prophetic Office, is weightier
than Sovereignty, nor any function more laborious than that of
governing. Hence a king needs round about him, as men on
whose counsel, judgement and deliberations depend the loosing
and binding of the world, and the well-being and ill-being of the
servants of God Almighty, such as are in every respect the most
excellent and most perfect of their time.
1
/.<?. the Scripture and the Traditions,
Qur'dn and the Hadith.

1 I.e.

the Prophet

Muhammad.

in the case of the

Prophet

Muhammad

the

PLAN OF THE CHAHAR MAQALA

12

Now of the servants essential to kings are the Secretary, the

Poet, the Astrologer and the Physician, with whom he can in
no wise dispense. For the maintenance of the administration is
by the Secretary; the perpetuation of immortal renown by the
Poet ; the ordering of affairs by the Astrologer and the health
of the body by the Physician. These four arduous functions and
noble arts are amongst the branches of the Science of Philosophy ;
the functions of the Scribe and the Poet being brancnes of the
Science of Logic ; that of the Astrologer, one of the principal
subdivisions of Mathematics while the Physician's Art is amongst
the branches of Natural Science. This book, therefore, comprises
Four Discourses, to wit :
;

First Discourse^ on the essence of the Secretarial Art, and the

nature of the eloquent and perfect Secretary.
Second Discorrse^ on the essence of the Poetic Art, and the
aptitude of the Poet.

Third Discourse^ on the essence of the Science of Astrology,

and the competence of the Astrologer in that Science.
Fourth Discourse, on the essence of the Science of Medicine,
and the direction and disposition of the Physician.
Such philosophical considerations as are germane to this Book
will therefore be advanced at the beginning of each Discourse
and thereafter ten pleasing anecdotes, of the choicest connected
with that subject and the rarest appropriate to that topic, of what

hath befallen persons of the class under discussion, will be

adduced, in order that it may become plainly known to the King
that the Secretarial Office is not a trivial matter that the Poetic
Calling is no mean occupation; that Astrology is a necessary
Science; that Medicine is an indispensable Art; and that the
wise King cannot do without these four persons, the Secretary,
the Poet, the Astrologer, and the Physician.
;

(if)

On

FIRST DISCOURSE.

the essence of the Secretarial Art,

Secretary

The

and what

Secretarial Function

ts
is

and the nature of the perfect

connected therewith.

an art comprising analogical

methods of rhetoric and communication, and teaching the forms of

address employed amongst men in correspondence, consultation,
contention, eulogy, condemnation, diplomacy, conciliation and
provocation, as well as in magnifying matters or minimising them
contriving means of excuse or censure; imposing covenant^;
and displaying in every case orderly
recording precedents
;

arrangement of. the subject matter, so that

in the best and most suitable manner.

all

may

be enunciated

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE SECRETARY

13

Hence the Secretary must be of gentle birth, of refined Honour,

of penetrating discernment, of profound reflection, and of piercing
judgement and the amplest portion and fullest share of literary
culture and its fruits must be his. Neither must he be remote
;

from, or unacquainted with, logical analogies; and he must

the ranks of his contemporaries, and be familiar with the
dignities of the leading men of his time. Moreover he should not
be absorbed in the wealth and perishable goods of this world ;
nor concern himself with the approval or condemnation of persons
prejudiced in his favour or against him, or be misled by them

know

and he

should,

when

exercising his secretarial functions, guard

the honour of his master from degrading situations and humiAnd in the course of his letter and tenour of his
correspondence he should not quarrel with honourable and
liating usages.

powerful personages ; and, even though enmity subsist between

master and the person whom he is addressing, he should
restrain his pen, and not attack his honour, save in the case of
one who may have overstepped his own proper limit, or advanced
his foot beyond the circle of respect, for they say
"One for one>
and he who begins is most in the wrong ."
Moreover in his forms of address he should observe moderation,
writing to each person that which his family pedigree, kingdom,
domain, army, and treasure indicate save in the case of one who
may himself have fallen short in this matter, or made display of
undue pride, or neglected some point of courtesy, or manifested
a familiarity which reason cannot regard otherwise than as
misplaced in such correspondence, and unsuitable to epistolary
communications. In such cases it is permitted and allowed to
the Secretary to take up his pen, set his best foot forward, (r) and
in this pass go to the extreme limit and utmost bound, for the
most perfect of mankind and the most excellent of them (upon
him be the Blessings of God and His Peace) says: "Haughtiness
towards the haughty is a good work*" But in no case must he
suffer any dust from the atmosphere of recrimination in this
arena of correspondence to alight on the skirt of his master's
honour and in the setting forth of his message he must adopt
that method whereby the words shall subserve the ideas and
the matter be briefly expressed for the orators of the Arabs have
his

"

Thf best speech is that which is brief and significant^ \not

long and wearisome^" For if the ideas be subordinated to the
said,

*>*U*l

#>yi }

*J^1># tj^t^

'*

"Tit

for tat,

and the aggressor

is

most

to blame."

last

'

J**$ J**ijJ 3

words.

<J*

J^ U>^3I

The

printed text omits the

ON

FIRST DISCOURSE.

14

SECRETARIES

words, the discussion will be protracted, and the writer will be

1
stigmatised as prolix, and "ffe who is prolix is a babbler ?
Now the words of the Secretary will not attain to this elevation
until he acquires some knowledge of every science, obtains some
hint from every master, hears some aphorism from every philosopher, and borrows some elegance from every man of letters.
Therefore he must accustom himself to peruse the Scripture of
the Lord of Glory, the Traditions of Muhammad the Chosen
One, the Memoirs of the Companions, the proverbial sayings of
the Arabs, and the wise words of the Persians and to read the
books of the ancients, and to study the writings of their successors,
such as the Correspondence of the Sdhib [Isma'fl, ion 'Abbdd] 2
Sabf and Qdbus 8 the compositions of Hamddf, Imdmi and
4
of Badf*[u'z-Zamdn al-Hamaddnf] 5
Quddma ibn Ja'far the Gests
8
al-Harfrf and al-Hamfdf
the Rescripts of al-Bal'amf 7 Ahmadi-Hasan 8 and A6ii Nasr Kundurf 9 the Letters of Muhammad
'Abduh, 'Abdu'l-Hamfd, and the Sayyidu'r-Ru'asa ; the S/ances
of Muhammad-i-Mansiir 10 Ibn 'Abbzidf 11 and Ibnu'n-Nassdba the
descendant of 'AH; and, of the -poetical works of the Arabs, the
Dtwdns of Mutanabbf 12 Abfwardf 18 and Ghazzf 14 and, amongst
the Persian poets, the poems of Riidag{ 15 the Epic of Firdawsf 18,
and the panegyrics of 'Unsurf 17 since each one of these works
which I have enumerated was, after its kind, the incomparable
and unique product of its time and every writer who hath these
books and doth not fail to read them, stimulates his mind
;

See the Yatimatu'd-Dahr

(ed. Damascus), vol. iii, pp. 31-112 ; de Slane's Ibn

L. omits Sabf.
pp. 212-217, and Note III at the end.
8 The
Tarassult or Correspondence, of Qabris ibn Washmglr, the Ziydrid Prince
of Tabarista'n, who was killed in 403/1012-13. See p. 95 of the Persian notes.
4 See von Kremer's
Culturgesch., i, pp. 269-270.
8 See von Kremer's
Culturgesch., ii, pp. 470-476 ; Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab.
Lit/., i, pp. 93-94 and 276-278.
* See
vol. ii, pp. 747-748, where a very fine old MS. of
Rieu's Persian
Catalogue,
the Maqdmdt-i-Hamldiv* described* written in the 1310 cent, of our era.
7 Abii ( Ali Muhammad al-Bal'ami
(d. 386/996).
8 The Ghaznawi
minister, Ahmad ibn jiasan of Maymand (d. 424/1033).
9 See de Slane's Ibn
Khallikdn, vol. iii', pp. 290-295.
10
Probably Muhammad ibn Mansdr al-Haddad. See H. Kh., No. 1729.
11
Abu 'Asim Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-'Abbadf (see Rieu's Arabic Suppl., p. 755),
who died in 458/1066, is probably intended.
*
19
See von Kremer's Culturgesch., ii, pp. 380-381; Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab.

Khallikdn, vol.

Lit/.,

i,

i,

pp. 86-89.

19

See Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab. Li/t., i, p. 253 ; and the Yatima, vol. iv,
pp. 25 and 62-64, where mention is made of this well-known Abiwardi (whose Diwdn
has been printed at Beyrout) and another.
*

14

ij.

Brockelmann, op. fit., i, p. 253. A., however, reads

See Ethl's monograph and also his article s.v. in the Encyclopaedia Britannua.
10 See
especially Noldeke's Das Iranische Nationalepos in vol. ii (pp. 130-211)
of Geiger and Kuhn'S Grundriss der Iranischen PMtologu.
17
See Eth in the same Grundriss, pp. 224-225.
15

FELICITOUS QUOTATION

15

polishes his wit, enkindles his fancy, and ever raises the level of
his diction, whereby a Secretary becomes famous.

Now if he

therefrom he
did IskdfK

be well acquainted with the Qur*dn, with one verse

may discharge his obligation to a whole realm, as

ANECDOTE
Iskiff 1

II.

secretaries of the House of Sdmdn

him), and knew his craft right well,
could cunningly traverse the heights, and emerge
from the most difficult pdsses. He discharged the

was one of the

(may God have mercy on

so that he

triumphant

duties of secretary in the Chancellery of Niih ibn Mansiir 9, but

they did not prpperly recognize his worth, or bestow on him
favours commensurate with his pre-eminence (\t). He therefore
fled from Bukhdni to Alptagfn at Herdt. Alptagfn, a Turk, wise
and discerning, made much of him, and confided to him the
Chancellery, and his affairs prospered. Now because there had
sprung up at the court a new nobility who made light of the old
nobles, Alptagfn, though he patiently bore their presumption
a while], was finally forced into rebellion, by reason of some
slight put upon him at the instigation of a party of these new
nobles. Then Amfr Niih wrote from Bukhara to Zabulistdn that
3
Subuktigfn should come with that army, and the sons of Sfmjiir

[for

from Nfshdpur, and should oppose and make war on Alptagfn.

this war is very celebrated, and this momentous battle most

And

famous.

So when these armies reached Herdt, the Amfr Niih sent

'AH ibn Muhtdj 4 al-Kashdnf, who was the Chief Chamberlain
(Hdjibu'l-Bdb\ to Alptagfn with a letter [fluent] like water and
[scathing] like fire, all filled with threats and 'fraught with

menaces which left no room for peace and no way for conciliasuch as an angry master might write from a distance to his
disobedient servants on such an occasion and in such a crisis,
the whole letter filled with such expressions as " I will come,"
"I will take," "I will slay." When the Chamberlain Abu'l-Hasan
'AH ibn Muhtdj al-Kashanf submitted this letter and delivered this
message, withholding nothing, Alptagfn, who was already vexed,

tion,

and

Abu'l-Qdsim 'AH ibn

Muhammad

al-Iskaff.

See Yatlma,

vol. iv, pp.

19-33,

Hi, 4.

This seems to be an error (though it stands thus in all three copies) for Mansiir
ibn Niih (Manstir I), who reigned A.H. 350-366; for Niih ibn Manstir (NUh II) reigned
A.H. 36*6-387, and Alptagin died in A.H. 352 or 354. Concerning the Dfwdnu'rRasd'il see von Kroner's Culturgesch., i, pp. 174, 200; and A. de B. Kazimirski's
Menoutchthri, pp. 36 and 43. According to Ibnu'l-Athir (Bulaq ed. of A.H. 1303,
vol. viii, p. 179), Alptagin's revolt took place in A.H. 351, when IskaTi was already
dead. See p. \ - C of the Persian notes and Note IV at end of this volume.
8 See
Defrlmery's Hist, des Samanides, pp 260-161.
4

Concerning

this general, see

Defrlmery's

f/ist. des

Samamdes, pp. 247-248.

FIRST DISCOURSE.

16

ON

grew more vexed, and broke out

SECRETARIES

in anger, saying,

"

was

his

when

my master passed from this transitory

to that eternal abode, he entrusted him to me, not me to him.
Although, to outward seeming, I should obey him, when you
closely examine this matter a contrary conclusion results, seeing
that I am in the last stages of old age, and he in the first stages
of youth. Those who have impelled him to act thus are destroyers
of this Dynasty, not counsellors, and are overthrowers of this
House, not supporters."
Then in extreme ill-temper he instructed Iskafi saying,
"
When thou answcrest this letter omit no detail of disrespect
and I desire that thou shouldst write the answer ofi the back of
the letter." So Iskaff answered it on the spur of the moment,
and first wrote as follows
father's servant, but

Merciful t/te Clement. O Ntih, thou

hast contended faith us and made great the contention with us.
Produce, then, that wherewith thoit thrcatencst us, if thou art of
"/// the

those

who

Name of God the

1

spetik truly

reached Nuh ibn Mansur the Amfr of

Khurdsdn, he read it, and was astonished; and all the gentlemen
of the Court were filled with amaze, and the scribes bit their
fingers [in wonder]. And when the affair of Alptagin was disposed of, Iskafi fled away privily, for he was fearful and terrified;
until suddenly Nuh sent a messenger to summon him to his
presence, and conferred on him the post of Secretary (). So
his affairs prospered, and he became honoured and famous
amongst the votaries of the Pen. Had he not known the Qur'dn
well, he would not have hit upon this verse on that occasion, nor
would his position have risen from that degree to this limit.

When

this

letter

ANECDOTE

III.

When

IskafTs affairs waxed thus prosperous, and he became

established in the service of the Amfr Nuh ibn Mansur, Makan
son of Kakiiy 2 rebelled at Ray and in Ktihistan, withdrew his
neck from the yoke of obedience, sent his agents to Khwar and
8
Simnak, captured several of the towns of Ktimish , and paid no
heed to the Samanids. Nuh ibn Mansur was afraid, because this
was a formidable and able man, and set himself to deal with this
matter. He therefore ordered Tash, the Commander-in-chief, to
I

Qur\fai

xi, 34.

chronological difficulties involved in these two stories are considerable, for

the rebellion of Makdn ibn Kakiiy occurred in 329/940-1, towards the end of the reign
of Nasr II ibn Ahmad, i.e. long before the rebellion of Alptagin (see n. ? on p. 15

The

supra).

See Defr^mery's Satnanides, pp. 248 and 263-264.

See Notes IV and

V at

the end.
Better known as Qtiwis, the arabicised form of the name. See B. de Meynard's
Diet. Gtfogr., Histor.+tt Lift, de la Perse, pp. 454-455. For the three other towns
mentioned, see the same work, pp. 213, 317 and 318.
II

CONCISE DESPATCH

17

march against him with seven thousand horsemen, suppress this

and put an end to this formidable insurrection in whatever way he deemed most expedient.
Now Tdsh was mighty sagacious and clear in judgement,
rashly involving himself in and skilfully extricating himself from
the straitest passes ever victorious in warfare, and never turning
back disappointed from any enterprise, nor defeated from any
campaign. While he lived, the dominion of the House of Sdmdn
enjoyed the greatest brilliancy, and their affairs the utmost
rebellion,

prosperity.

On

this occasion, then, the

Amfr, being mightily preoccupied

mind, sent a messenger to summon Iskdff, and
held a private interview with him. " I am greatly troubled,"
said he, " by this business for Mdkdn is a brave man, endowed
with courage and manhood, and hath both ability and generosity,
so that there have been few like him amongst the Daylamfs. You
must co-operate with Tdsh, and whatever is lacking to him in

and distressed

in

military strength at this crisis, you must make good by your

counsels. And I will establish myself at Nfshdpiir, so that the
army may be supported from the base, and the foeman dis1
couraged. Every day a swift messenger with a concise despatch
from you must come to me and in this you must set forth the
pith of what may have happened, so that my anxieties may be
"
assuaged." Iskdff bowed and said, I will obey."

So next day Tash unfurled

his standard, sounded his drums,

from Bukhdrd, crossing the Oxus with
seven thousand horsemen; while the Amfr followed him with the
remainder of the army to Nfshdpiir. There he invested Tdsh and
the army with robes of honour; and Tash marched out and

and

set out for the front

entered Bayhaq, and went forth into Kumish setting his face (a)
Ray with fixed purpose and firm resolve.
Meanwhile Mdkdn, with ten thousand mailed warriors, was
encamped at the gates of Ray, which he had made his base.
Tdsh arrived, passed by the city, and encamped over against
him. Then messengers began to pass to and fro between them,
but no settlement was effected, for Mdkdn was puffed up with
pride on account of that high-hearted army which he had gathered
together from every quarter. It was therefore decided that they
should join battle.
Now Tdsh was an old wolf who for forty years had held the
position of Commander-in-chief, and had witnessed many such
engagements; and he so arranged it that when the two armies
confronted one another, and the doughty warriors and champions

towards

*
l

Mirza

Muhammad

(p.

-1 of the Persian notes) has investigated the precise

" concise
despatch,' and shews by
meaning of the word mulaitafa, here translated
of being
quotations that it is used for a minutely and concisely written note capable
easily concealed and secretly carried.
1

FIRST DISCOURSE.

RES ANGUSTA DOMI

of the army of Transoxiana and Khurisin moved forward from

the centre, only half of MAkdn's army was engaged, while the
rest were not fighting. Makdn was slain, and Tdsh, when he had
ceased from taking and binding and slaying, turned to Iskaff
and said, "A carrier-pigeon must be sent in advance, to be
followed later by a courier; but all the main features of the
battle must be summed up in one sentence, which shall indicate
all the circumstances, yet shall not exceed what a pigeon can

and

shall adequately express our meaning."

Iskdfi took so much paper as two fingers
"
wrote
As for Mdkdn, he hath become as his

carry,

Then

would cover
name 1 " \Md
and
kdn*s"l\Q hath not been" in Arabic]. By this *md" he in"
tended the negative, and by "kdn the preterite of the verb, so
that the Persian of it would be, " MAkan hath become Ijke his
name," that is to say, hath become nothing.
When the caf rier-pigeon reached the Amfr Nuh, he was not
more delighted at this victory than at this despatch, and he
ordered Iskiff's salary to be increased, saying, u Such a person
must maintain a heart free from care in order to attain to such
:

delicacies of expression 2."

v/

ANECDOTE

IV.

One who pursues any craft which depends on reflection

ought to be free from care and anxiety, for if it be otherwise
the arrows of his thought will fly wide and will not be concentrated on the target of achievement, since only by a tranquil
mind can one arrive at such diction.
It is related that a certain secretary of tlje 'Abbdsid Caliphs
was writing a letter to the governor of Egypt and, his mind
being tranquil and himself submerged in the ocean of reflection,
was forming sentences precious as pearls of great price and
fluent as running water.
Suddenly his maid-servant entered,
"
saying, There is no flour left." The scribe was so put out and
disturbed in mind (*v) that he lost the thread of his theme, and
was so affected that he wrote in the letter "There is no flour
left." When he had finished it, he sent it to the
Caliph, having
no knowledge of these words which he had written.
When the letter reached the Caliph, and he read it, and
arrived at this sentence, he was greatly astonished, being unable
to account for so strange an occurrence. So he sent a messenger
to summon the scribe, and enquired of him concerning this. The
scribe was covered with shame, and gave the true explanation of
the matter. The Caliph was mightily astonished and said, " The
;

The

substance of this anecdote is given in the TtMkh-i-Guzida, and

at pp. 147-348 of his Histcire dcs Samanidts
(Paris, 1845).

Defr&nery

is

cited

by

DISMISSAL OF A DISHONEST JUDGE

19

beginning of this letter surpasses and excels the latter part by

much as the siira * Say, He is God, the One 1 excels the stira
The hands of Abti, Lahab shall perish*} and it is a pity to
surrender the minds of eloquent men like you into the hands of
the struggle for the necessaries of life." Then he ordered him to
be given means sufficiently ample to prevent such an announcement as this ever entering his cars again. Naturally it then
happened that he could compress into two sentences the ideas
of two worlds.
'

as
1

ANECDOTE V.

The Sahib Isma'fl ibn Abbid 8 entitled al-Kdft (" the Com4
He was most
petent ") of Ray was minister to the Shihanshcih
'

perfect in his accomplishments, of which fact his correspondence

and his poetry are two sufficient witnesses aryd unimpeachable
arbiters.

Now

the Sdhib was a Mu'tazilite 5 and such are wont to be

,

extremely pious and scrupulous in their religious duties, holding

it right that a true believer should abide eternally in hell
by
reason of a grain of unrighteousness and his servants, retainers
and agents for the most part held the same opinion that he did.
Now there was at Qum a judge appointed by the Sdhib in
whose devoutness and piety he had a firm belief, though one after
another men asserted the contrary. All this, however, left the
Sdhib unconvinced, until two trustworthy persons of Qum, whose
statements commanded credence, declared that in a certain suit
between So-and-so and Such-an-one this judge had accepted a
bribe of five hundred dtndrs. This was mightily displeasing to
the Shib for two reasons, first on account of the greatness of
the bribe, and secondly on account of the shameless unscrupulousness of the judge. He at once took up his pen and wrote
"
In the Name of God the Merciful the Clement. O Judge of
"
;

Qum ! We dismiss you,

(\

9
A) so Come !
will notice

Scholars and rhetoricians

and appreciate the high

merit of this sentence in respect to its concision and clearness, and
naturally from that time forth rhetoricians and stylists have inscribed this epigram on their hearts, and impressed it on theirminds.
8

Qur'dn, cxi.
Qur'dn, cxii.
For an account of this great minister and generous patron of literature, see
de Slane's translation of Ibn Khallikdn^ vol. i, pp. 212-217, and Note VI at end.
"
4
This old Persian title " King of kings was borne by several of the House of
Buuayh. Here either Mu'ayyidu'd-Dawla or his brother Fakhru'd-Dawla is intended.
9
This, as Mirza Muhammad points out on p. \ * of the Persian notes, is the
8

meaning of
Unity/'
6

See

UU

their adversaries
The followers of this doctrine, called
" the Seceders," called themselves " Partisans of theby
Divine Justice and

'adll ma<thhab.

alAfu'tazila,

my

Lit. Hist,

JU>ft jJ J^

of Persia,

vol.

^UUI

\^\

i,

p. 281.

'^J\ O^P.I ^t^-*

deavoured to preserve^ feebly enough, the word-play in the original.

Ihaveen-

FIRST DISCOURSE.

20

THE TAXES OF LAMGHAN

ANECDOTE

VI.

Lamghdn is a city in the district of Sind, one of the dependencies of Ghazna and at this present time one lofty mountain
separates its inhabitants from the heathen, so that they live in
constant dread of the attacks and raids of the unbelievers. Yet
the men of Lamghdn are of good courage, hardy and thrifty, and
combining with their hardiness no small truculence, to such a
degree that they think nothing of lodging a complaint against a
tax-gatherer on account of a maund of chaff or a single egg
while for even less than this they are ready to comt to Ghazna
to complain of exactions, and to remain there one or two months,
and not to return without having accomplished their object. In
short they have a strong hand in obstinacy, and much back-bone
1

in importunity.

Now

in the reign

Mahmud Yamimfd-Dawla (may

of Sultan

God

illuminate his proof!), the heathen one night attacked them,

and damage of every sort befel them. But these were men who
could roll in the dust 8 without soil and when this event happened
several of their chiefs and men of note rose up and came to the
court of Ghazna, and, with their garments rent, their heads
uncovered, and uttering loud lamentations, entered the bazaar
of Ghazna, went to the King's Palace wailing and grieving, and
so described their misfortune that even a stone would have been
moved to tears. As their truculence, impudence, dissimulation
and cunning had not yet become apparent, that great minister,
Ahmad-i-Hasan of Maymand 3 took pity upon them, and forgave
them that year's taxes, exempting them from all exactions, and
bidding them return home, strive more strenuously, and spend
less, so that by the beginning of next year they might recover
;

their former position.

So the deputation of Lamghanis returned with great contentment and huge satisfaction, and continued during that year
in the easiest of circumstances, giving nothing to any one 4
When the year came to an end, the same deputation returned to
.

present another petition to the minister, simply setting forth that

in the past year their lord the great minister had brightened their
country by his grace and clemency and had preserved them by
1

Or Lamaghan. See B. de Meynard's Diet.

AKm. de Babtr^ ii, pp. 120-121.

Gtogr. dc la Perse, p. 503

Pavet de

Courtcille's
3

See the Editor's note on

on p. \ *\ of the text. This expression appears
A&tj**
"
to denote extreme cunning and resourcefulness, as though one should
say to wash without water." An attractive if bold emendation would be"shamelessly evaded their obligations."
8
See n. 8 on p. 14 supra.
4

This

is

Mirza Muhammad's explanation of the expression

's

MARRIAGE WITH PtiRAN

21

and protection, (\*) so that through that bounty and

beneficence the people of Lamghdn had reached their proper
position and were able to dwell on that border but that, since
their prosperity was still somewhat shaken, they feared that,
should he demand the contribution on their possessions that year,
some of them would be utterly ruined, and that, as a consequence
of this, loss might accrue to the royal coffers.
his care

The minister, Ahmad-i-Hasan, therefore, extending his

favour, excused them the taxes of yet another year. During
these two years the people of LamghAn grew rich, but this did
not suffice tthem, for in the third year their greed reasserted
itself, and, hoping again to be excused, the same deputation
again appeared at Court and made a similar representation.
Then it became apparent to all the world that the people of
Lamghdn were in the wrong. So the Prime Minister turned the
petition over and wrote on the back_of it
*Al-khardju khurd"
"
adifuhu
tax is a running
is
to
The
dawauhu
that
jun,
say,
sore : its cure is its discharge? And from the time of this great
statesman this saying has become proverbial, and has proved
useful in many cases. May the earth rest lightly on this great
:

man

ANECDOTE

VII.

There arose great statesmen under the 'Abbdsid dynasty, and

indeed the history of the Barmecides is well known and famous,
and to what extent and degree were their gifts and rewards.
Hasan [ibn] Sahl, called Dhif r-Riydsatayn* ("the lord of two
commands "), and his brother Fadl were exalted above the very
heavens, so

much

so that

and

Ma'mun espoused

Now

Fadl's daughter and

in marriage.
she was a damsel peerless in beauty
unrivalled in attainments and it was agreed that Ma'miin

asked her

should go to the bride's house and remain there for a month, and
after the lapse of this period should return home with his bride.
On the day fixed for their departure he desired, as is customary,
to array himself in better clothes.
Now Ma'miin always wore
black and people supposed that he wore it because black was
the distinctive colour of the 'Abbdsids till one day Yahyd ibn
Aktham 8 enquired of him, " Why is it that the Prince of Believers
"
Ma'mun replied to the judge, " Black
prefers black garments ?
garments are for men and for the living for no woman is married
in black, nor is any dead man (f ) buried in black." Yahyd was
;

Literally
2

"a wound

of a thousand fountains," probably a carbuncle.

There appears to be a confusion here between the two brothers.

Sahl was the father of Piirdn, al-Ma'mun's bride, while Fadl bore the title
See de Slane's Ibn Khallikdn, vol. i, pp.* 268-272, and
Riydsatayn.
vol. ii, pp. 472-476.
Also the Laitfifu^l-Ma'drif of Ath-Tha'alibf (ed.
pp. 73-74, where a full account is given of this marriage.
3
See de Slane's Ibn Khallikdn, iv, pp. 33-51.

Hasan ibn
of Dhu'r408-409;
de Jong),

FIRST DISCOURSE.

22

AL-MA'MI)N'S

MARRIAGE

Then on this day Ma'mtin

greatly surprised by this answer.
desired to inspect the wardrobe; but of a thousand coats of satin,
met dint malik{,tam{m, hand-woven, cloth otgo\A,miqrdd, and fine
black silk 1 , he approved none, but clad himself in his [customary]
black, and mounted, and turned his face towards the bride's
house, Now on that day Fadl had decked out his palace in such
wise that the nobles were filled with wonder thereat, for he had
collected so many rare things that words would fail to describe
or enumerate them. So when Ma'mun reached the gate of this
8
palace he saw a curtain suspended, fairer than a Chinese temple
yet withal more precious than the standards of the true Faith,
whereof the design charmed the heart and the colour mingled
with the soul. He turned to his courtiers and said, "Whichever of
those thousand coats I had chosen, I should have been shamed
here. Praise be to God and thanks that I restricted myself to
this black raimenc."
Now of all the elaborate preparations made by Fadl on that
day, one was that he had a dish filled with [pieces of] wax in the
form of pearls, each in circumference like a hazel-nut, and in each
one a piece of paper on which was inscribed the name of a village.
These he poured out at Ma'miln's feet, and whosoever of Ma'miln's
attendants obtained one of these pieces of wax, to him he sent
the title-deeds of that village!
So when Ma'mun entered the bride's house, he saw a mansion
8
plastered and painted, with a dado of china tiles fairer than the
East at the time of sunrise, and sweeter than a garden at the
season of the rose and therein spread out a full-sized mat of
4
'gold thread embroidered with pearls, rubies and turquoises;
and six cushions of like design placed thereon ; and seated
there, in the place of honour, a beauteous damsel sweeter than
in
existence and life, and pleasanter than health and youth
stature such that the cypress of Ghdtafar* would have subscribed
itself her servant
with cheeks which the brightest sun would
have acknowledged as suzerain ; with hair which was the envy
of musk and ambergris and eyes which were the despair of the
onyx and the narcissus. She, rising to her feet like a cypress, and
walking gracefully, advanced towards Ma'mun, and, with a profound obeisance and earnest apologies, took his hand, brought
him forward, seated him in the chief seat, and stood before him
in service.
Ma'mun bade her be seated, whereupon she seated
t

jf

The

exact nature of most of these fabrics I have been unable to ascertain. See
at the end.
"
This, not
spring," seems to be the meaning of bahdr in this passage.
8 Jzdr or izdra
appears to denote a kind of lower half-wall or dado against whicji
one can lean while sitting.
4 Khdnawdr seems to mean "
large enough for [covering the floor of] a house,"
and Sk&sha-i-zar-kashida "spun" or " thread-drawn gold."
'
quarter of Samarqand mentioned in the first story in Book i of the Mathnawi.

Note VII
8

AL-MUSTARSHID'S ELOQUENCE

23

on her knees 1 hanging her head, and looking down at the

carpet. Thereupon Ma'mun was overcome with love: (r\)he had
already lost his heart, and now he would have added thereunto
his very soul. He stretched out his hand and drew forth from
the opening of his coat eighteen pearls, each one as large as a
sparrow's egg, brighter than the stars of heaven, more lustrous
than the teeth of the fair, rounder, nay more luminous, than
Saturn or Jupiter, and poured them out on the surface of the
carpet, where, by reason of its smoothness and their roundness,
they continued in motion, there being no cause for their quino heed to the pearls, nor so much
escence.
Bijt the girl paid
as raised her head. Thereat was Ma'mun's passion further increased, and he extended his hand to open the door of amorous
dalliance and to take her in his embraces. But the emotion of
shame overwhelmed her, and the delicate damsel was so affected
that she was overtaken by that state peculiar to tvomen. Thereat
the marks of shame and abashed modesty appeared in her cheeks
"O Prince of
and countenance, and she immediately exclaimed
Believers! The command of God cometh, seek not then to hasten it!*"
Thereat Ma'mun withdrew his hand, and was near swooning
on account of the extreme appositeness of this verse, and her
he could not
graceful application of it on this occasion. Yet still
take his eyes off her, and for eighteen days he came not forth
from this house and concerned himself with naught but her. And
the affairs of Fadl prospered, and he attained to that high position
which was his.
herself

ANECDOTE

VIII.

Again in our own time one of the'Abbdsid Caliphs, al-Mustarshid bi'lldh 3 the son of al-Mustazhir bi'lldh, the Prince of
Believers (may God render his dust fragrant and exalt his rank
in Paradise !), came forth from the city of Baghddd with a wellarmy in full panoply, treasure beyond compute, and
,

equipped

of war, marching against Khurdsan, seeking to

4
supremacy over the King of the World Sanjar
interested
contrived
been
had
this
Now
persons,
by
quarrel
and was due to the machinations and misrepresentations of
wicked men, who had brought matters to this pass. When the
delivered on a Friday
Caliph reached Kirmdnshdh, he there
a homily which in eloquence transcended the highest zenith
of the sun, and attained the height of the Heavenly Throne

many muniments

establish his

I.e. in

the Persian fashion, on the heels, with the knees together in front.
Cf. de Slane's Ibn Khallikdn, vol. i, p. 270.
xvi, i.

Qur'dn,

relatifs b
a mistake

for

Mas

iid

ibn

Muhammad

ibn Maliksh

FIRST DISCOURSE.

24

THE

and the Supreme Paradise. In the course of this harangue, in his

great distress and extreme despair, he complained of the House
of Saljiiq, in such wise that the orators of Arabia and the rhetoricians of Persia are fain to confess that after the Companions
of the Prophet (God's blessing rest on all of them), who were the
disciples of the Point of the Prophetic Function (ft) and the
expounders of his pithy aphorisms, no one had composed a
"We
discourse so weighty and eloquent. Said al-Mustarshid:
entrusted our affairs to the House of Saljtiq, but they rebelled
and the time lengtltened over them, and their Itearts
against us:
were hardened, and most of tltem are sinners 1,'" ttyit is to say,
'

withdrew their necks from our commands

ing to] Religion and Isl&m.

ANECDOTE

in [matters appertain-

IX.

The Giir-Khdn

of Khitd fought a battle with the King of the

at the gates of Samarqand,
\vherein such disaster befel the army of Isldm as one cannot
2
After putting
describe, and Transoxiana passed into his power
3
Imdm
of
death
the
the
East
to
HusAmu'd-Dfn (may God make
bright his example, and extend over him His Peace !), the Giir
Khdn bestowed BukhirA on Atmatigfn 4 the son of the Amfr
5
BayAbdnf and nephew of Atsiz Khwdrazmshdh, and, when he
retired, entrusted him to the Imdm Tdjril-Isldm Ahmad ibn
'AbduVAzfz, who was the Imdm of Bukhdrd and the son of
Burhdn 8 so that whatever he did he might do by his advice, and
that he should do nothing without his orders, nor take any step
without his knowledge. Then the Gur-Khdn turned back and

World Sanjar, the son of Malikshdh,

retired to

Barskhdn 7

Now

his justice had

the effectiveness of his

no bounds, nor was there any

commands;

limit to
and, indeed, in these two

Qur'dn, Ivii, 15. The meaning of the Arabic is repeated in Persian in the text.
See Mfrkhwand's History of the SaljAqs, ed. Vullers, pp. 176-180. Sir E.
Denison Ross has pointed out to me that Giir-Khan is a generic title. (See History
rfthe Moghuls of Central Asia by Eiias and Ross, pp. 287 et seqq., and also Schefer s
Chrestomathie Persane, vol. i, pp. 34 et seqq^ See also Mirzd Muhammad's note
HI p. \ tf of the text, and Note IX at the end.
s Husamu'd-Din'Umar ibn Burhanu'd-Dm ' Abdu'l- 'Aziz ibn Maza.
See Note XI
1

it

the end.

4
The correct form of this name is uncertain, but Alptigfn, the reading of the
lithographed edition and of Schefer, op. cit., p. tV is certainly wrong. See note
on p. \ t of the text, and Note
at the end.
\

This name also is uncertain, and there are almost as many variants as there are
texts.
See Note X at the end.
6 /.<?. Burhdnu'd-Dfn 'Abdu'l -'Aziz mentioned in the last footnote but two.
See
Note XI at the end.
,
7 The name of a
See G. le Strange's
city in Eastern Turkistan near Khutan.
Lands of the Eastern Caliphate, p. 489, and Barthold in vol. i, part 4, p. 89, of the
Zapiski) or Afifev. de fAcaiL Imp. des Sciences de St Pttersbourg, viii* SMe. Classe
hist.-philoL, 1893-4.

MIRACULOUS ELOQUENCE OF THE QUR'AN

25

things is comprised the essence of kingship. But when Atmatigfn

saw a clear field, he turned his hand to oppression, and began
to levy contributions on Bukhdrl So several of the people of
Bukhdrd went as a deputation to Barskhdn to seek redress. The

Gur-Khin, when he heard this, wrote a letter to Atmatigfn

[beginning] in the Muslim fashion:
"
In the Name of God the Merciful the Clement. Let Atmatigfn
know that although far distance separates us, our approval and
displeasure are near at hand. Let Atmatigfn do that which
[ Tdjti l-Isldm\ Ahmad commands, and Ahmad that which [the
Prophet] Mohammad commands. Farewell."
Again and again we have considered this and reflected on it.
A thousand volumes or even more might be written to enlarge
on this letter, yet its purport is extremely plain and clear, needing
no explanation. Seldom have (ft) I seen anything like it.

ANECDOTE

X.

JThe extreme eloquence of the Qur'dn lies in its concision of

words and inimitable presentation of ideas; and such citations as
those above given which have occurred to orators and eloquent
writers are of a kind to inspire awe, so that the wise and eloquent
man is moved from his [former] mental attitude. And this is a
clear proof and trenchant argument to establish the fact that this
Word did not proceed from the mouth of any created being, nor
originate from any [human] lips or tongue, but that the stamp of
Eternity is impressed on its prescriptions and sentences.|
It is related that one of the Muslims was reciting before
Walfd ibnu '1-Mughfra this verse: "And it was said, *D Earth,
Heaven, draw them tip : and the
gulp down thy waters, and
water abated. Thus was the matter effected. And it [i.e. the Ark]
restedupon Mount JtidW "By God/ said Walfd ibnu '1-Mughfra,
"
verily it hath beauty and sweetness its highest part is fruitful,
and its lowest part is luxuriant; nor is it the word of man!" When
even enemies reached on the plane of equity such a level of
enthusiasm concerning the eloquence of the Qur'n and its
miraculous quality, see to what degree friends will attain.
'

ANECDOTE

XI.

It was formerly customary with the kings of old time and the
autocrats of past ages, such as the Pfshdddf, Kaydnf and Sasdnian monarchs and the Caliphs, to vaunt themselves and compete
I

with one another both in justice and erudition, and with every
ambassador whom they despatched they used to send wise sayings,

26

CHAHAR.MAQALA.

END OF

'^'

FIRST DISCOURSE
'

*
''

'
''

"''

So the king, under these

riddles, and enigmatical questions.
circumstances, stood in need of persons of intelligence and discrimination, and men of judgement and statesmanship; and
several councils would be held and adjourned, until they were
unanimous as to their answers, and these problems and enigmas
were plain and apparent, when they would despatch the ambassador.

This practice was maintained until the time of that just king
Subuktighi Yaminu'd-Dawla (may God have mercy
upon him!). But when (ft) the Saljiiqs succeeded him, they being
nomads, ignorant of the conduct of affairs and the jiigh achievements of kings, most of these royal customs became obsolete in
their time, and many essentials of dominion fell into disuse. One of
these was the Ministry of Posts, from which one can judge of the
remainder.) It isf related that one day Sultan Mahmud YamimidDawla despatched an ambassador to Bughrd Khan in Transoxiana,
and in the letter which had been drafted occurred this passage:
"
God Almighty saith, Verily the most honourable ofyou in God's
1
sight is he wlio is most pious of you
Investigators and critics
are agreed that here he [t.e. the Prophet] guards himself from
ignorance for the souls of men are subject to no more grievous
defect than this of ignorance, nor is there aught lower than the
blemish of folly. To the truth of this proposition and the soundness of this assertion [God's] uncreated word also bears witness:
'[God will raise up those of you who believe~\ and those to whom
hath been given knowledge to [superior] degrees*! Therefore we
desire that the I minis of the land of Transoxiana and the
doctors of the East and scholars of the Kh&qdn's Court should
impart [to us] this much information as to matters essential [to
Salvation]. What is the Prophetic Office, what Saintship, what

Mahm6d ibn

'

'

what Isldm, what Faith, what Well-doing, what Godliwhat the Approbation of Right, what the Prohibition of
Wrong, what the Path, what the Balance, what Mercy, what Pity,
what Justice, and what Excellence?"
When this letter reached the Court of Bughra Khan, and
he had acquainted himself with its purport and contents, he
summoned the Imdms of Transoxiana from the different towns
and districts, and took counsel with them on this matter. Several
of the greatest and most eminent of these Imams agreed that
they should severally compose a treatise on this subject, and
Religion,

ness,

in the course of their dissertation introduce into the text a reply

to these interrogations. They craved a delay of four months for
which respite was fraught with all sorts of detrithis purpose
ments, the worst of which were the disbursements from the treasury
for the expenses of the ambassadors and king's messengers, and
;

Qur'dn,

xlix, 13.

Qur'dn,

Iviii,

12.

SECOND DISCOURSE.

ON THE

POETIC

the maintenance of the Imims, until at length

ART

27

Muhammad

ibn

scribe, who
versed in learning

'Abduh 1 the

was Bughri Khdn's secretary, and was

and highly distinguished in scholarship,
deeply
besides being profoundly skilled in verse and prose, and one of
the eloquent and distinguished stylists of the Muslims, said,
"
I will
reply to these questions in two words, in such wise that
when the scholars of Islim and the most conspicuous men of
the East shall see my answer, it shall command their approval
and admiration." So he took up his pen and wrote (*) under
the questions, after the fashion of a legal decision (fatwd)
"
Saith God's -Apostle (upon whom be ffte Blessing of God, and
His Peace) Reverence for God's Command and loving-kindness
towards God's people.'" All the
of Transoxiana bit their
:

Imms

fingers [in

"

amazement] and expressed

Here indeed

which

is

is

an answer which

comprehensive!"

is

their admiration, saying,

perfect

and an utterance

And the Khdqdn was mightily pleased

because the difficulty had been overcome by a scribe and there

further need for the divines. And when the answer
reached Ghazna, all applauded it.
It therefore results from these premises that an intelligent
and accomplished secretary is the greatest ornament to a king's
magnificence and the best means to his exaltation. And with
this anecdote we conclude this Discourse, and so farewell.

was no

(n)

On

SECOND DISCOURSE.

the essence of the Poetic

Art and the aptitude of the

Poet.

/Poetry is that art whereby the poet arranges imaginary

propositions and blends fruitful analogies, in such wise that he
can make a little thing appear great and a great thing small,
or cause good to appear in the garb of evil and evil in the form
of good. By acting on the imagination, he excites the faculties of
anger and concupiscence in such a way that by his suggestion
men's temperaments become affected with depression or exaltation whereby he conduces to the accomplishment of great things
in the order of the world.
;

ANECDOTE

XII.

Thus they relate that Ahmad ibn 'Abdu'lldh al-Khujistdnf 8

was. asked, "How didst thou, who wert originally an ass-herd,
1

See p. 14 supra, Note III at the end, and p. \\ of the Persian notes.
In the mountains near Herat. From this country issued Ahmad ibn
Khujistan.

*'

SECOND DISCOURSE.

28

ON

POETS

become Amfr of Khursn?" He replied, "One day I was

reading the Dfwdn of Hanzala of Bddghfs in Badghi's of Khujistan, when I chanced on these two couplets
1

lies within the lion*s jaws,

Go, risk it, andfrom those dread portals seize
Such straight-confronting death as men desire,
Or riches, greatness, rank and lasting ease.'*

'If lordship

An impulse stirred within me such that I could in no wise

remain content with that condition wherein I was. I therefore
sold my asses, bought a horse, and, quitting my country, entered
the service of *Al{ ibn Layth, the brother of Ya'qiib and Amr. (fv)
At that time the falcon of fortune of the Safifarids 2 still hovered
'

at the highest /enith of its prosperity. Of the three brothers,

'AH was the youngest, and Ya'qiib and 'Amr had complete precedence over him. When Ya'qub came from Khurasan to Ghazna
over the mountains, 'All ibn Layth sent me back from Ribdt-iSangtn* ('the Stone Rest-house') to act as agent to his feudal
estates in Khurasan. I had a hundred horsemen of that army
on the road, and had with me besides some twenty horsemen of
own. Now of the estates held in fief by 'Alf ibn Layth one
was Karukh 4 of Herat, a second Khwaf" of Nishapur.| When

my

reached Karukh, I produced my warrant, and what was paid

me I divided amongst the army and gave to the soldiers.
now numbered three hundred. When I reached
My horsemen
Khwif 5 and again produced my warrant, the burghers of KhwaT
contested it, saying, We want a prefect with [a body-guard
of only] ten men.' I therefore decided to renounce my allegiance
to the affarfs, looted Khwaf, proceeded to the village of Busht
I

to

'

'Alxlu'lldh al-Khujislanf, who revolted at Nishapilr and died in 264/877-8." (Bar bier
/>/</. Gfogr., Hist*, et Litt. tie la Perse ^ p. 197.)
The editor points out
(Persian notes, p. \tr, and Note XIII at the end) that, according to Ibnu'l-Alhir,

de Mcynard's

Ahmad was
six years.

assassinated in

See

tint

Journal

Shawwal, 268/882, after having reigned at Nisha*piir six

Ariafitjue for 1845, PP* 345 et seqq. of the second half.

See Kth's Rildagfs I'orlanfer und Zeitgenossmi pp. 38-40, where these verses
and others by the same poet are cited.
2 The short-lived Saffaiid
dynasty was founded by Ya'qub ibn Layth in 254/867.
On his death in 265/878 he was succeeded by his brother 'Amr, who was overthrown
by IsmaMl the Samanid in 287/900 and was subsequently put to death.
8
This place, evidently situated between Ghazna and Khurasan, has not been
*

identified, unless, as Muhammad IqUil .suggests, it be identical with the Ribdt-i-Sang-1 of my edition).
bast twice mentioned by Dawlatshah (pp. \ vi and
4

A town situated at

ten parasangs from Herat.

See Barbier de Meynard's Diet.
de la Perse, p. 487, and p. 33 infra.
Ibid.) pp. 213-114.
Busht or Pusht is al&o in the district of NMupiir.

Geogr^ Hist.,
a
6

et Litt.

GREAT DEEDS INSPIRED BY POETRY

29

and came to Bayhaq where two thousand horsemen joined me.

I advanced and took
Nfshdpiir, and my affairs prospered and
continued to improve until I had subdued all Khurdsdn to myself.
Of all this, these two verses of poetry were the original cause."
1

Salldmf 2 relates in his history that the affairs of Ahmad ibn

'Abdu'llah prospered so greatly that in one night in Nishipur
he distributed in largesse 300,000 dinars^ 500 head of horses, and
1000 suits of clothes, and to-day he stands in history as one of
the victorious monarchs, all of which was brought about by these
two verses of poetry. Many similar instances are to be found
amongst both $ie Arabs and the Persians, but we have restricted
ourselves to the mention of this one. So a king cannot dispense
with a good poet, who shall provide for the immortality of his
name, and shall record his fame in dtwdns and books. For when
the king receives that command which none can escape 3 no
traces will remain of his army, his treasure, and liis store
but
his name will endure for ever by reason of the poet's verse, as
4
Sharff-i-Mujallidf of Gurgdn says
,

"

From all the treasures hoarded by the Houses

Of Sdsdn andofSdmdn^ in our days
Nothing survives except the song of Bdrbad*\
Nothing is left save Ri'tdtifcP* sweet lays?

The names of the monarchs of each age and the princes of

time are immortalized by the admirable verse and widelydiffused poetry of this company 8 (f A) as, for example, the names
of the House of S&man through Master Abii 'Abdi'llAh Ja'far ibn
Muhammad ar-Rudaki, Abu !- Abbas ar-Ribanjanf, Abu'l-Mathal
all

al-B'ukhirf,

Abu

Ishaq-i-Juybzirf, Abu'l- Hasan Aghajf,

Tahawf,

1
Bayhaq, also near Ni.sliapur, was according to YarjiU (who gives an unsatisfactory
etymology) the ancient Khusrawjird and the later Sabzawar.
2
See p. if* of the
I.e. Aim 'AH as-Sallamf al-Bayhaqi, who died in 300/912-3.

Persian notes, and Note XIV at the end.

8
l.i. the summons of the Angel of Death.
4

'Awfi, who mentions this poet (Lubdb> i, pp. 13-14), calls him And Sharff
ibn 'All.
8
Concerning Barhad, the celebrated minstrel of Khusraw I'arwfz, see my Lit.
Hist, of Persia, vol. i, pp. 14-18 anH foot-notes, and Noldeke's new edition of his
Persischc Nationalepos^ p. 43, n. 2 ati cole.
6 Of the
poets included in this long list some account will be found in Note XIV at
the end of this volume (derived in almost all cases from Mirza Muhammad's notes to
the Persian text) save in the case of a few who are too well known to need further
mentio/i (such as 'Unsuri, 'Asjadf, Farrukhf and Miniichihri) and a rather larger
number concerning whom no information is obtainable from the sources at present

Ahmad

such as Lii'liVi, Gulabi, 'AH Sipihri, Sughcli, Pisar-i-Tfsha, Kafa'f,

PUr-i-Kalah, Abu'l-Qasim Rafl'f, Abd Bakr Jawhari and 'AH Sdft.
Concerning Ja'far of Hamadan, see vol. ii of my Lit. Hist, of Persia, p. 260.
available,

Ktisa-i-FaH,

30

GREAT PERSIAN POETS

SECOND DISCOURSE.

KhabbAzf of Nfshdpiir, and Abu'l- Hasan al-Kisd'f the names of

the kings of the House of NAsiru'd-Dfn 1 through such men as
'
'Unsurf, Asjadf, Farrukhf, Bahnimf, Zfnatf, Buzurjmihr of QA'in,
Muzaffarf, Manshurf, Minuchihn, Mas'udf, Qasiramf, Abii Hanffai-Iskdf, Rdshidf, Abu'l-Faraj of Riina, Mas'iid-i-Sa'd-i-Salmdn,
Muhammad ibn NAsir, Shdh Abii Rijd, Ahmad-i-Khalaf, 'UthmAn
Mukhuirf, and Majdiid as-Sand'f the names of the House of
Khdqan through Lii' lii'f, Guldbf, Najfbf ofu Farghdna, 'Am'aq
of fiukhdr*, Rashfdf of Samarqand, Najjdr ( the Carpenter") of
;

Sdgharj, 'All Pnfdhf, Pisar-i-Darghush, 'AH Sipihrf, Jawhari,

Sughdi, Pisar-i-Tfsha, and 'Alf Shatranji ("the C^iess-player ") ;
the names of the House of Buwayh by Master Mantiqi, Kiyd
Ghadd*irf, and Bunddr; the names of the House of Saljuq by
Farrukhf of Gurgan, Ldmi'i of Dihistdn, Ja'far of Hamaddn,

Amfr Mu'izzf, Abu'l-Ma^lf of Ray,

'Amfd-i-Kam^lf and Shihdbf the names of the kings of TabaristAn through Qamari of Gurgin, Rdfl'f of Nishdpiir, Kafci'f of
and the names -of the
Ganja, Kiisa-i-Fdlf, and Piir-i-Kalah
Dur-Ffruz-i-Fakhrf, Burhdnf,

kings of Ghur or House of Shansab (may God cause their

kingdom to endure!) through Abu'l-Qdsim Raff'f, Abii Bakr
Jawharf, this least of mankind Nizamf-i-'Arudf, and 'AH Stiff.
The diwdns of these poets are eloquent as to the perfection,
splendour, equipment, military strength, justice, bounty, nobility,
excellence, judgement, statecraft, heaven-sent success and influence of these former kings and bygone rulers (may God
illuminate their tombs and enlarge unto them their restingplaces !). How many princes there were who enjoyed the favours
of kings, and made great gifts which they bestowed on these
eminent poets, of whom to-day no trace remains, nor of their
hosts and retinues any survivor, though many were the painted
palaces and charming gardens which they created and embellished,
but which to-day are levelled with the ground and indistinguishable from the deserts and ravines
Says the author
!

"How many a palace did great Mahmtid raise^

At whose

tall

towers the

Moon did stand at gaze^

Whereof one brick remaineth notinplace,

Though still re-echo 'Unsurfs sweet lays"

The Monarch of the World, Sultin 'Ald'u'd-dunyd

Abii 'AH al-Qusayn ibnu'l-Husayn, the Choice of the Prince of
1

/.. the House of Ghazna.

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE POET

31

his life be long, and the umbrella of his dynasty

marched on Ghazna to avenge those two kings, the
Prince-martyr and the Laudable Monarch and Sultdn Bahrdmshih fled before him. In vengeance for those two royal victims,
whom they had treated with such indignity, and of whom they
had spoken so lightly, he sacked the city of Ghazna, and destroyed
the buildings raised by Mahmud, Mas'iid and Ibrahim, but he
bought with gold the poems written in their praise, and placed
them in his library. Alike in the army and in the city none
dared call them king, yet the Conqueror himself would read
from the Shdtydma what Abu'l-Qasim Firdawsf says

Believers
victorious

(may
!),

"

Of the child in its cot, ere its lips yet are dry
From the milk of its mother, Mahmtid!* is the cry !
A mammoth m strength and an angel in style,
With a bounty like Spring and a heart like the Nile,
Mahmud, the Great King, who such order doth keep
*

That in peace from one pool drink the wolf and the sheep /"

men know that herein was no reverence for Mahmud,

but only admiration of Firdawsf and his verse. Had Sultdn
Mahmud understood this, he would presumably not have left
that noble man disappointed and despairing.
All wise

EXCURSUS. On

the quality of the Poet

and his

verse.

Now the poet must be of tender temperament, profound in

thought, sound in genius, a powerful thinker, subtle of insight.
He must be well versed in many divers sciences, and eclectic
amidst divergent customs for as poetry is of advantage in every
science, so is every science of advantage in poetry. And the poet
must be of pleasing conversation in social gatherings, of cheerful
countenance on festive occasions and his verse must have attained
to such a level as to be written on the page of Time (r-) and
celebrated on the tongues of the noble, and be such that they
transcribe it in books and recite it in cities. For the richest
portion and most excellent part of poetry is immortal fame, and
until it be thus recorded and recited this idea will not be realized.
And if poetry does not rise to this level, its influence is ineffectual,
for it will die before its author. So, being impotent for the im;

1
t^utbu'd-Din Muhammad and Sayfu'd-Dm Surf, both killed by Bahramshah the
Ghaznawi towards the 'middle of the .sixth century of the Flight. From his devastation
of Ghazna (550/1 155-6) their brother 'AlaVd-Dfn Husayn the Ghiiri received the title
vifahdn-sfa ("the World-consumer "). See Note XV at the end.

SECOND DISCOURSE.

32

THE

POET'S TRAINING

mortalizing of its own name, how can it confer immortality on

the name of another ?
But to this rank a poet cannot attain unless in the prime of
his life and the season of his youth he commits to memory
20,000 couplets of the poetry of the Ancients, keeps in view [as
models] 10,000 verses of the works of the Moderns, and continually reads and remembers the diwdns of the masters of his
art, observing how they have acquitted themselves in the strait
passes and delicate places of song, in order that thus the different
styles and varieties of verse may become ingrained in his nature,
and the defects and beauties of poetry may be inscribed on the
tablet of his understanding. In this way his style will improve
and his genius will develop. Then, when his genius has thus
been firmly established in the power of poetical expression, and
his verse has become even in quality, let him address himself
seriously to thfe poetic art, study the science of Prosody, and
familiarize himself with the works of Master Abu'l-Hasan
Bahrami of Sarakhs, such as the "Goal of Prosodists" (Ghdyatul"
Treasure of Rhyme" (Kanzu*l-Qdfiya).
'Aritdiyyttiy and the
Then let him make a critical study of poetic ideas and phraseology, plagiarisms, biographies, and all the sciences of this class,
with such a Master as knows these matters, so that he in turn
may merit the title of Master, and his name may appear on the
page of Time like the names of those other Masters whom we
have mentioned, that he may thus be able to discharge his debt
to his patron and lord for what he obtains from him by immortalizing his

Now

it

name.
behoves the King to patronize such a poet, so that he

and celebrate his praise. But if he fall

this level, no money should be wasted on him and no heed
paid to his poetry, especially if he be old ; for I have investigated
this matter, and in the whole world have found nothing worse

may

enlist in his service

below

than an old poet, nor any money more ill spent than what is
given to such. For one so ignoble as not to have discovered in
fifty years that what he writes is bad, when will he discover it ?
But if he be young and has the right talent, even though his
verse be not good, there is some hope that it may improve, (ft)
and according to the Code of Nobility it is proper to patronize
him, a duty to take care of him, and an obligation to look after
him.
Now in the service of kings naught is better than improvisation, for thereby the king's mood is cheered, his receptions are
made brilliant, and the poet himself attains his object. Such
favours as Rtidagf obtained from the House of Sdmdn by his^improvisations and readiness in verse, none other hath experienced.
1

Or perhaps 'Arudayn, " the two

Editor's note

on

p.

Prosodies," viz. Arabic and Persian.

See the

THE CHARMS OF BADGHfs AND HERAT

ANECDOTE
They

relate thus, that

brilliant jewel of the

33

XIII.

Nasr ibn Ahmad, who was the most

Smdnid galaxy, whereof the fortunes reached

their zenith during the days of his rule, was most plenteously
equipped with every means of enjoyment and material of
splendour well-filled treasuries, a far-flung army and loyal
servants. In winter he used to reside at his capital, Bukhdrd,
while in summer he used to go to Samarqand or some other of
the'cities of Khurdsdn. Now one year it was the turn of Herdt.
He spent th$ spring season at Bddghfs, where are the most
charming pasture-grounds of Khurasdn and 'Iniq, for there are
nearly a thousand water-courses abounding in water and pasture,
any one of which would suffice for an army.
When the beasts had well enjoyed their spring feed, and had
regained their strength and condition, and were fit for warfare or
to take the field, Nasr ibn Ahmad turned his face towards Herdt,
t>ut halted outside the city at Margh-i-Sapfd and there pitched
cool breezes from the
his camp. It was the season of spring
north were stirring, and the fruit was ripening in the districts of
Mdlin and Kariikh 1 such fruit as can be obtained in but few
places, and nowhere so cheaply. There the army rested. The
climate was charming, the breeze cool, food plentiful, fruit
abundant, and the air filled with fragrant scents, so that the
soldiers enjoyed their life to the full during the spring and summer.;
When Mihrgdn 2 arrived, and the juice of the grape came into
8
3
4
season, and the basil rocket and fever-few were in bloom, they
did full justice to the delights of youth, and took tribute of their
juvenile prime. Mihrgdn was protracted, for the cold did not wax
severe, and the grapes ripened with exceptional sweetness. For
in the district of Herdt one hundred and twenty different varieties
of the grape occur, each sweeter and more delicious than the
other and amongst them are in particular two kinds which are
not to be found in any other region of the inhabited world,
1
(rt ) one called Parniydn* and the other Kalanjarl thin-skinned,
*

1
See Barbier de Meynard's Diet, de la Perse pp. 487, 511-512, according to
which the former village is distant from Herat two parasangs, the latter ten.
2
The festival of the autumnal equinox, which fell in the old Persian month of
',

Mihr.
3

Shdhisfaram (Arabic Rayhdri) = Ocymum basilicum. Sec Schli miner's Termino404 ; Achundow, pp. 226, 381.
Hamdkim, said to be equivalent to the Persian BustAn-afr&z.
Uqhuwdn (Persian Babiina-i-Gaw-chashm), Matricaria or Pyre thrum. See

logie, p.
4
*

Schlimm'er, p. 364.
6
The Tihran lithograph has Tarniydn* of which the usual meaning appears to be
a sitfve or basket made of osiers. See Horn's Asadi, p. 99, 1. i ; Salemann's Shams
i Fachrh Lexicon, p. 96, 1. 13 and note ad cole.
1
This word, in the form Kalanjar, is given in the Burhdn-i-Qdti*. The description seems to be based on this passage.
B.

SECOND DISCOURSE.

34

ON POETS

small-stoned, and luscious, so that you would say they contained

cluster of Kalanjarf grapes sometimes
no earthly elements.
attains a weight of five maunds, and each individual grape five
dirhams' weight, they are black as pitch and sweet as sugar, and
one can eat many by reason of the lusciousness that is in them.
And besides these there were all sorts of other delicious fruits.
So the Amfr Nasr ibn Ahmad saw Mihrgdn and its fruits,
and was mightily pleased therewith. Then the narcissus began
to bloom, and the raisins were plucked and stoned 1 in MAlin,
and hung up on lines, and packed in store-rooms and the Amir
with his army moved into the two groups of hamlets called Ghiira

and Darwdz. There he saw mansions of which eaclf one was like
highest paradise, having before it a garden or pleasure ground
with a northern aspect. There they wintered, while the Mandarin
oranges began to arrive from Sfstdn and the sweet oranges from
Mdzandardn aod so they passed the winter in the most agree;

able manner.

When

[the second] spring came, the Amfr sent the horses to

his camp to Mdlin [to a spot] between two
streams. And when summer came and the fruits again ripened,
Amfr Nasr ibn Ahmad said, "Where shall we go for the summer ?
For there is no pleasanter place of residence than this. Let us

Bddghfs and moved

"
Mihrgein came, he said, Let us
enjoy Mihrgdn at Herat and then go"; and so from season to
season he continued to procrastinate, until four years had passed
in this way. For it was then the heyday of the Samdnian prosperity, and the land was flourishing, the kingdom unmenaced by
.foes, the army loyal, fortune favourable, and heaven auspicious
yet withal the Amfr's attendants grew weary, and desire for home
arose within them, while they beheld the king quiescent, the air
of Herdt in his head and the love of Herdt in his heart; and in
the course of conversation he would compare, nay, prefer Herat
to the Garden of Eden, and would exalt its charms above those
of a Chinese temple 2
So they perceived that he intended to remain there for that
summer also. Then the captains of the army and nobles of the
8
kingdom went to Master Abu 'Abdflldh Riidagf than whom
there was none more honoured of the king's intimates, and none
whose words found so ready an acceptance. And they said to
him, "We will present thee with five thousand dinars if thou wilt
contrive some artifice whereby the king may be induced to depart

wait

till

Mihrgdn."

And when

For

this

meaning of munaqqa the editor

refers to the article

ZaMb

in

the

Tnhfattfl-Mtiminin of Muhammad Mri'min al-Husayni. For an account of this

work, which was completed in A.D. 1669, see 'Fonahn's Zur Quellenkunde der

*
Persiscken Medizin, pp. 89-91.
2 Or "Chinese
Spring." See n. * on p. a a supra.
8
See the"s excellent monograph and his article in the Encyclopaedia Britannica;
p. 62 of the/.^.^.A for January, 1899 ; and Note XIV at the end, second paragraph.

RtiDAGf

AND THE

AlVffR

NASR

35

hence, for our hearts are craving for our wives and children, and
our souls (rr) are like to leave us for longing after BukharA."
Rudagf agreed and, since he had felt the Amir's pulse and
understood his temperament, he perceived that prose would not
affect him, and so had recourse to verse. He therefore composed
a qasida and, when the Amfr had taken his morning cup, came
in and sat down in his place and, when the musicians ceased,
he took up the harp, and, playing the " Lover's air," began this
1
elegy
;

" The
Jii-yi-Muliydn* we call to mind,
We longfor those dear friends long left behind?

Then he

strikes a lower key,

J*j OWj-i^i fij

juf

oW

& IjU <&*.

*

Beneath

and sings
'jt
'

*b

u-SAp

wwj> u$M

J*UJ jt

of Oxtis, toilsome though they

be,

my feet were soft as silk to

me.
Glad at the friends* return, the Ox us deep
Up to our girths in laughing waves shall leap.
Long live Bukhdrd / Be tliou ofgood cheer!

Joyous towards thee hasteth our Amir!

The Moon's the Prince, Bukhdrd is the sky;

O Sky,

the

Bukhdrd

Moon shall light thee

is the

Receive at

last,

by and by /
mead, the Cypress he;
"

Mead, thy Cypress-tree !

When Rudagf reached this verse, the Amfr was so much affected
that he descended from his throne, all unbooted bestrode the
horse which was on sentry-duty 8, and set off for Bukhdrd so
precipitately that they carried his leggings and riding-boots
1

is very well known, being cited in almost all notices of Rudagi's life
161-163, and in
by Dawlatshali), in Forbes' Persian Grammar, pp. t
Blochmann's Prosody of the Persians, pp. 2-3. See Note XVI at the end.
9
The original name of this stream and the farms on its banks was, according to
See
Narshakhi's History} of Bukhdrd, J6-yi-Mawdliydn, "the Clients' Stream."
Note XVI at the end of this volume.
*
Khing-i-nawbatl. To provide against any sudden emergency a horse, ready
saddled and bridled, was kept always at the gate of the king's palace, and it is this
"
"
sentry-horse to which reference is here made. See my Lit, Hist, of Persia, vol. i,
p. 317* and n. i adcalc.

(e.g.

This poem

3-2

SECOND DISCOURSE.

36

ON POETS

aftr him for two parasangs, as far as Bur Ana 1 and only then
did he put them on nor did he draw rein anywhere till he
reached Bukhard, and Riidagf received from the army the double
of that five thousand dindrs.
At Samarqand, in the year A.H. 504 (=A.D. iiio-iui), I
heard from the Dihqdn Abii Rij Ahmad ibn 'Abdu's-Samad
"
al-'Abidf as follows
My grandfather' Abu Rija related that on
this occasion when Riidagf reached Samarqand, he had four
hundred camels laden with his baggage." And indeed that
illustrious man was worthy of this splendid equipment, for no
one has yet produced a successful imitation of thjt elegy, nor
found means to surmount triumphantly the difficulties [which
the subject presents]. Thus the Poet-laureate Mu'izzf was one
of the sweetest singers and most graceful wits in Persia, for his
poetry reaches the highest level in beauty and freshness, and
,

excels in fluency"and charm. Zaynu'1-Mulk Abu Sa'd [ibn] Hindu

ibn Muhammad ibn Hindu of Isfahan 2 requested him to compose
an imitation of this qasida. Mu'izzf declared his inability to do so,
but, being pressed, produced a few verses of which this is one
:

"

Now advanceth Rustamfrom Mtizandardn,

Now advanceth Zayn-i-Mulk from Isfahdn?
All wise men will perceive how great is the difference between
this poetry and that for who can sing with such sweetness as
(ft)

does Rudagf when he says

Surely arc renown and praise a lasting gain^

the royal coffers loss sustain!"

Even though

For

in this couplet are

seven admirable touches of art

first,

the

secondly, antithetical thirdly, it has a refrain

it embodies an enunciation of
equivalence fifthly, it
fourthly,
has sweetness sixthly, style seventhly, energy 3 Every master
of the craft who has deeply considered the poetic art will admit,
after a little reflection, that I am right.
verse

is

apposite

1 L.
has AJJu^ l^, and in a marginal note explains buruna as meaning turban or
and I suspect that it is really a place-name.
handkerchief; but A. has AJ^/J
<y,
Cf. Sachau's remarks on the derivation of al-Bfnini's name at p. 7 of his translation of
the Chronology of Ancient Nations.
2
See Houtsma's ed. of al-Bundari's History of the Sa/jriys t pp. 93, 101, 105; and
Ibnu'l-Athir under the year 506/1112-13, in which Zaynu'1-Mulk was put to death by
his master Sultan Muhammad ibn Malikshah the Saljiiq.
3
Mirza Muhammad points out in his note on this passage (p. \Y\) that the first
three artifices are denoted by adjectives and the last four by substantives, and that* the
first and second (mutdbiq and mutadddd] are identical.
Finally he justly observes
that "style" or "elegance" (fa$rfhat) is not a rhetorical artifice but an indispensable
attribute of all good writing, whether prose or verse.

SULTAN HARMED AND AvAz

37

ANECDOTE XIV.
The love borne by Sultdn Yamimtd-Dawla Mahmiid to Aydz
the Turk is well-known and famous. It is related that Ayaz was
not remarkably handsome, but was of sweet expression and olive
complexion, symmetrically formed, graceful in his movements,
sensible and deliberate in action, and mightily endowed with all
the arts of pleasing, in which respect, indeed, he had few rivals in
his time. Now all these are qualities which excite love and give
permanence to friendship.
Yamtnu'd-Dawla Mahmiid was a pious and God( Now Sultan
fearing man, and he wrestled much with his love for Aydz so that
he should not diverge by so much as a single step from the Path
of the Law and the Way of Honour. One night, however, at a
carousal, when the wine had begun to affect hinrf and love to stir
within him, he looked at the curls of Aydz, and saw, as it were,
ambergris rolling over the face of the moon, hyacinths twisted
about the visage of the sun, ringlet upon ringlet like a coat of
mail link upon link like a chain in every ringlet a thousand
hearts and under every lock a hundred thousand souls. Thereupon love plucked the reins of self- restraint from the hands of
his endurance, and lover-like he drew him to himself. 4 But the
watchman of "Hath not God forbidden you to transgress against
Him 1 ?" thrust forth his head from the collar of the Law, stood
before Sultan [Mahmiid] Yaminu'd-Dawla, and said, "O Mahmiid,
mingle not sin with love, nor mix the false with the true, for such
a slip will raise the Realm of Love in revolt against thee, and
like (r) thy first father thou wilt fall from Love's Paradise, and
remain afflicted in the world of Sin." The ear of his fortunate
nature being quick to hear, he hearkened to this announcement,
and the tongue of his faith cried from his innermost soul, " We
believe and we affirm'
But he feared lest the army of his selfcontrol might be unable to withstand the hosts of Aydz's locks, so,
drawing a knife, he placed it in the hands of Ayaz, bidding him
take it and cut off his curls. Ayaz took the knife from his hands
with an obeisance, and, having enquired where he should sunder
them, was bidden to cut them in the middle. He therefore
doubled back his locks to get the measurement, executed the
king's command, and laid the two tresses before Mahmiid.
It is said that this ready obedience became a fresh cause of love;
;

Mahmud called for gold and jewels and gave to Ayaz beyond

and

his usual

wont and custom,

after

which he

fell

into a

drunken

in the next sentence I have preferred the alternative reading of the

" in this
" IVe believe and we
to the printed text, which has
place, and
affirm
omits these and the preceding eleven words below.

Here and

MSS.

SECOND DISCOURSE.

38

When

ON

POETS

upon him, and he arose from

Royal Throne, he remembered what he had
done. He summoned Aydz and saw the clipped tresses. The
army of remorse invaded his heart, and the peevish headache
born of wine vanquished his brain. He kept rising up and sitting
down [aimlessly], and none of the courtiers or men of rank dared
to address to him any enquiry as to the cause, until at length
Hdjib 'AH [ibn] Qarfb, who was his Chief Chamberlain, turned
"
to 'Unsurf and said, Go in before the King and shew thyself to
him, and seek some way whereby he may be restored to good
temper." So 'Unsurf fulfilled the Chamberlain's command, came
in and did obeisance.
Sultdn Yamfnu'd-Dawla raised his head
and said, " O 'Unsurf, I was just thinking of you. You see what
has happened say something appropriate for us on this subject."
'Unsuri did obeisance and extemporized as follows
the morning breeze blew

sleep to ascend the

"

Why deem it shame a fair one*s curls to shear,

Why rise in wrath or sit in sorrow here?

rejoice, make merry, callfor wine;

clipped the Cypress doth most trim appear?

Rather

When

Mahmud was highly pleased with this quatrain, and bade

them bring precious stones wherewith he twice filled the poet's
mouth. Then he summoned the minstrels before him, and all that
day until nightfall drank wine to [the accompaniment of] those
two verses, whereby his melancholy was dissipated and he became
mighty good-tempered.

Now you must know that improvisation is the chief pillar of

the Poetic Art and it is incumbent on the poet to train his
talents to such a point as (n) to be able to improvise on any
subject, for thus can money be extracted from the treasury, and
thus can the statement of any matter be adapted to the king's
mood. All this is necessary to please the heart of one's master
and the humour of one's patron and whatever poets have earned
in the way of great rewards has been earned by improvisations
adapted to the occasion.
;

FARRUKHfS SUCCESS

39

ANECDOTE XV.
Farrukhf was a native of Sfstdn, and was the son of Juliigh,

Amfr

the slave of

He

Khalaf-i-Bdnil 1.

excellent

possessed

composed pleasing verses, and was a dexterous performer

on the harp and he was retained in the service of one of the
dihqdns of Sfstdn, who gave him a yearly allowance of two
hundred measures of corn, each containing five maunds, and a
hundred dirhams in silver coinage of Nilh, which amply sufficed
for his
needs^ But he sought in marriage a woman of KhalaPs
clientage, whereby his expenses were increased and multiplied
talents,

in all directions 2 so that

,

Farrukhf remained without sufficient

8
provision, nor was there in Sfstan anyone else save his nobles.
"
He therefore appealed to the dihqdn saying,
expenses have
been increased how would it be if the dihqdn, having regard to
his generosity, should make
allowance of corn three hundred

My

my

measures, and

make my salary one hundred and

dirhams, so
"
The
my
my
expenditure ?
"
dihqdn wrote on the back of the appeal, So much shall not be
refused you, but there is no possibility of any further increase.
Farrukhf, on hearing this, was in despair, and made enquiries
of such as arrived and passed by to hear of some patron in some
region or part of the world who might look upon him with favour,
so that he might chance on a success until at length they informed him that the Amfr Abu'l-Muzaffar-i-Chaghknf in Cha4
ghaniyan was a munificent patron of this class, conferring on
them splendid presents and rewards, and was at that period unrivalled in this respect amongst the kings of the age and nobles
of the time. So Farrukhf set out thither, having composed the

means may perhaps be equal

that

fifty

to

1'

qasida beginning

'0J*X^J*J

+**

'

'

O^-*- J ^** +t*

0*& W
+

" With caravan

for Hilla boundfrom Shtdn did I start,
With fabrics spun within my brain and woven by my heart?

In truth it is a fine rhapsody in which he has admirably described

the Poetic Art, while as a panegyric it is incomparable.
So Farrukhf, having furnished himself with what was necessary for the journey, set out for Chaghaniyan. And when he
Amir Abu Ahmad Khalaf ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Khalaf ibn
King of Sistsln, whose mother, called Bdnti ("the Lady"), was the
daughter of 'Amr ibn Layth. He died in captivity in 399/1008-9.
2
.See the Farhang-i-Aujuman-drd-yi-Ndfirit s.v. J+^Jj, where iX&JJ 3 **)>
is said to mean
}j4*>
3 f.e. Khalaf s.
1

Le. the

Layth

as-Saffarf,

J^

Or, in

its

Qubadhiyan.

Arabicized form, Saghdnidn, a place in Transoxiana, near Tirmidh and

gee de Goeje's Bibl. Gcogr. Arab., where it is mentioned repeatedly.

ON POETS

SECOND DISCOURSE.

40

arrived at the Court of Chaghdniydn, it was the season of Spring

and the Amfr was at the branding-ground. Abu'l-Muzaffar, as I

have heard, had 18,000 breeding mares 1, each one of which was
followed by its colt. And every year the Amir used to go out
to brand (rv) the colts, and [at this moment he happened to be at
the place where the branding was done while 8 ] 'Amfd As'ad,
who was his steward, was at the court preparing provisions to be
conveyed to the Am{r. To him Farrukhf went, and recited a
qasida, and submitted to him the poem he had composed for the
;

Amfr.

Now
and

a* man of parts and a patron of poets,

he recognized poetry at once fresh, sweet,

'Amfd As'ad was

in Farrukhf's verse

pleasing and masterly, while seeing the man himself to bean ill8
proportioned Sagzf, clothed in a tornjiMa worn anyhow with
a huge turban on his head after the manner of the Sagzfs, with
the most unpleasing feet and shoes and this poetry, withal, in
the seventh heaven. He could not believe that it had been com"
posed by this Sagzf, and, to prove him, said, The Amfr is at the
branding-ground, whither I go to wait upon him and thither I
will take thee also, for it is a mighty pleasant spot
,

"

World within world of verdure

wilt thou see n

full of tents and lamps like stars, and from each tent
strains of the lute, and friends sit together, drinking

come

the

wine and

making merry, while before the AmiVs

pavilion a great fire is

kindled, in size like unto several mountains, whereat they brand
the colts. And the Amfr, with the goblet in one hand and the
lassoo in the other, drinks wine and gives away horses. Compose,
now, a qasida, suitable to the occasion, describing the brandingground, so that I may take thee before the Amfr."

That night Farrukhf went and composed a very fine qastda

which next morning he brought before Amfd As'ad. This is the
y

'

qastda*

The variant
is
in the margin of L. as meaning o J^j} 3
^btj explained
which I originally translated "roadster." The verb O****J> from wnich
seems to be derived, appears to be a variant of )}\j>
8
These words are omitted in the printed edition.
8
Pish upas, "hind before."
* See
pp. i*-\ \v of the lithographed edition of Farrukhf 's works published at
Tihran for Mirza Mahdi Kh&i Baddy?-nigdr, poetically surnamed Mukhlis, in
1

Of

A.U. 1301.

the 52 bayts there given, only 12 are cited in the

also given 'by Dawlatshah (pp. oo-oY of
edition).
important variants are given here.

The poem

is

my

Chahdr Mciqdla.
Only the more

FARRUKHf'S SUCCESS

The

printed text

has^Jta***

*,*& j^J.

gloss in the lithographed Tihrdn edition explains this

"necklace" (jL^ O4r)>

8

for

w^c^ meaning is

Variant ...C^w^^ i^lAAa^jy.

printed text has jl^*. Ot^d"^

The

The

printed text has l^ for

4!

word as meaning

also given in the Ghiydthu'l-Lughdt.

O39"*

j and om. j

after

SECOND DISCOURSE.

42

ON

POETS

The Majma'u 'l-Fusahd,

as pointed out by the Editor (p. til), arbitrarily

jJtlb for ^j>"** , in order to support the theory that the poem was comhonour of No. 6 not No. 7 of the House of Chaghdniyan. See Note XVIII

substitutes

posed

in

at the end.
2

The

The

Tihra*n ed. has

The

The

O^^J explained
O^*> "eye**-"

printed text has

printed text has $~~t? jj*t

as

"

"
slave-boys

'

Fakkr-i-Dawlat."
lithograph substitutes
Both the printed and the lithographed editions have

This verse only occurs in the Tihran lithographed edition

The

lithographed edition
A., B. and L. have

(L.).

FARRUKHi'S SUCCESS
" Since the

meadow

43

hides its face in satin shot with greens

and blues,

And the mountains wrap their brows in silken veils of seven hues.

Earth is teeming like the musk-pod with aromas rich and rare,
Foliage bright as parrofs plumage doth the graceful willow wear.
Yestere'en the midnight breezes brought the tidings of the spring:
Welcomei O ye northern gales, for this glad promise which ye bring I
Up its sleeve the wind, meseemeth, pounded musk hath stored away,
While the garden fills its lap with shining dolls, as though for play
On the branches ofsyringa necklaces ofpearls we see,
.

ear-rings of Badakhshan sparkle on the Judas-tree.

Since the branches of the rose-bush cartnine cups and beakers bore

Ruby

Human-like five-fingered hands reach downwards from

the sycamore.

On the gleaming plain this coat of many colours doth appear

Like a robe of honour granted in the court of our Amir.
For our Princes Camp of Branding stirreth in these joyful days
So that all this age of ours in joyful wonder stands agaze.
Green within the green you see, like skies within thejirwamentj
Like a fort within a fortress spreads the army tent on tent.
%

Every tent contains a lover resting in his sweethearts arms,

Every patch ofgrass revealeth to a friend a favourites charms.
Harps are sounding Amidst the verdure, minstrels sing their lays divine,
Tents resound with clink of glasses as the pages pour the wine.
Kisses, claspings from the lovers; coy reproaches from the fair;
Wine-born slumbers for the sleepers, while the minstrels wake the air.
Branding-fires, like suns ablaze, are kindled at the spacious gate
Leading to the state-pavilion of our Prince so fortunate.
Leap the flames like gleaming standards draped with yellow-hued brocade,

T than gold assayed.

'

plow amain
crimson grain.
Rank on rank of active boys, whose watchful eyes no slumber know ;
Steeds which still await the branding, rank on rank and row on row.
On his horse, the river-forder, roams our genial Prince afar,
Ready to his hand the lassoo, like a young Isfandiydr.
Like the locks ofpretty children see it how it curls and bends,
Yet be sure its hold is stronger than the covenant offriends.
Btfl-Musaffar Shah the Just, surrounded by a noble band,
King and conqueror of cities brave defender of the land.
Serpent-coiled in skilful hands fresh forms his whirling noose doth take,
Like unto the rod of Moses metamorphosed to a snake.
Whosoever hath been captured by that noose and circling line,
On the face andflank and shoulder ever bears the Royal Sign.
But, though on one side he brands, hegiveth also rich rewards,
Leads his foets with a bridle, binds his guests as though with cords?
'

>

When 'Amfd As'ad heard this rhapsody, he was overwhelmed

with amazement, for never had the like of it reached his ears.
He put aside all his business, mounted Farrukhf on a horse, and
set out for the Amfr, whose presence he entered about sun-down,
"
saying, O Sire, I bring thee a poet the like of whom no one
hath seen since Daqfqf's face was veiled iit the tomb." Then he
related

what had passed.

Then the Amfr accorded Farrukhf an audience, and when he

came in he did reverence, and the Amfr gave him his .hand and

SECOND DISCOURSE.

44

ON POETS

assigned him an honourable place, enquiring after his health,

treating him with kindness, and inspiring him with hopes of
favours to come. When the wine had gone round several times 1
Farrukhf arose, and, in a sweet and plaintive voice, recited his
,

elegy beginning

" With caravan

for Hilla boundfrom Sistdn did I start,
With fabrics spun within my brain and woven by my heart?

When he had finished, the Amfr, who appreciated poetry and was
himself something of a poet, expressed his astonishment at this
As'ad said, " O Sire, wait till you see something
rhapsody. 'Amfd
"
still better
Farrukhf was silent and held his peace until the wine
had produced its full effect on the Amfr, then he arose and recited
this rhapsody (* *) on the branding-ground. The Amfr was amazed,
and in his admiration turned to Farrukhf, saying, " They have
brought in a thousand colts, all with white foreheads, fetlocks and
2
The way is [open] to thee Thou art a
feet, bred in Khatlcin
a
cunning rascal,
Sagzf; catch as many as thou art able, that
they may be thine." Farrukhf, on whom the wine had produced
its full effect, came out, straightway took his turban from his
head, hurled himself into the midst of the herd, and chased a
drove of them before him across the plain but, though he caused
them to gallop right and left in every direction, he could not
catch a single one. At length a ruined rest-house situated on
the edge of the camping-ground came into view, and thither the
colts fled. Farrukhf, being utterly tired out, placed his turban
under his head in the porch of the rest-house, and at once went
to sleep, by reason of his extreme weariness and the effects of
the wine. When they counted the colts, they were forty-two in
number. They went and told the Amfr, who, greatly surprised,
"
laughed heartily and said, He is a lucky fellow, and will come
to great things. Look after him and the colts as well, and when
he awakes, waken me too." So they obeyed the King's orders.
Next day, at sunrise, Farrukhf arose. The Amfr had already
risen, and, when he had performed his prayers, he gave Farrukhf
an audience, treated him with great consideration, and handed
over the colts to his attendants. He also ordered Farrukhf to be
given a horse and equipments suitable to a man of rank, as well
as two tents, three mules, five slaves, wearing apparel and carpets.
So Farrukhf prospered in his service, and enjoyed the greatest
circumstance. Then he waited upon Sultdn Yamfnu'd-Dawla
!

*
1

I prefer the reading

o*

^fyjl

to

^5 j3

and Mfrza

Muhammad

concurs.

Editor shews in a note (pp. ill-HA of the text) that Khatldn is the Persian
and Khuttal the Arabic name of a pluce in Transoxiana celebrated for its fine horses,
3

The

called

KhatlL

EARLY STRUGGLES OF Mu'izzf

45

Mahmiid, who, seeing him thus magnificently equipped, regarded

regard, and his affairs reached such a pitch
of prosperity that twenty servants girt with silver girdles rode

him with the same

behind him.

ANECDOTE XVI.
fin the year A.H. 510 (A.D. 1116-1117) the King of Isldm,
Sanjar the son of Malikshah the Saljuq (may God prolong his
existence and continue his exaltation to the heights !), chanced
to be encamped at the spring season within the marches of TiSs,
in the plain of Turuq 1 where he remained for two months. There
I, in hopes of bbtaining some favour, joined his Court from Herat,
having then nothing in the way of equipment (t\) or provision.
I composed a qasida and went to Mu'izzf the Poet-laureate, to
seek an opening through him. Having looked at my poem, he
,

me

ways, and I satisfied his expectations. He

the most generous manner, and deemed it his
duty to act in the way befitting so great a man.
One day I expressed in his presence a hope that fortune
would be more favourable to me, and complained of my luck.
He encouraged me, saying, " Thou hast laboured hard to acquire
this science, and hast fully mastered it
surely this will have its
and good poetry has
effect. My own case was precisely similar
never yet been wasted. Thou hast a goodly share in this art:
thy verse is even and melodious, and is still improving. Wait
and see the advantages which thou wilt reap from this science.
For though Fortune should at first be grudging, matters will
eventually turn out as thou wishest.
"
father Burhdnf, the Poet-laureate (may God be merciful to
him !) passed away from this transitory to that eternal world in the
town of Qazwfn in the early part of the reign of Malikshah, en2
trusting me to the King in this verse, since then become famous
tested

in several

then behaved

in

My

" / am

flitting,

but

I leave a son behind me,

And commend him to my God and to my King?

1
This place is not mentioned in the geographies, but the Editor (p. \1A of the
notes) believes it to be identical with the modern Turuq, a large village distant two
parasangs from Ma&hhad on the road to Tihran.
2
This verse, to which iare added several others, is commonly ascribed to the

Niza'mu'l-Mulk,

e.g.

by Dawlatshah

(p.

o^ of

my

edition).

Apart from the im-

probability that one who lay dying of a mortal wound would be "in the mood to
compose verses, we learn from this anecdote that the NizamuU-Mulk had no opinion
of poets because he had no skill in their art." The verse which gives his age as 94 at
the time of his death, when he was in reality some fifteen or twenty years younger
(born 408/1017, assassinated 485/1092), is alone enough to discredit the legend, while
the authority of the Chahdr Maqdla, of which the author derived his information
directly from Mu'izzi, the son of Burhanf, is far superior to any other source of the
story. Compare my Lit. Hist, of Persia, vol. ii, pp. 188-193, and the Persian notes,

pp.

\1A-\1V

ON

SECOND DISCOURSE.

46

"So

my

and

POETS

father's salary and allowances were transferred to me,

became Malikshdh's court-poet, and spent a year in the
King's service; yet during this time I was unable to see him
save once from a distance, nor did I get one dindr of my salary
or one maund of my allowances, while my expenditure was increased I became involved in debt, and my brain was perplexed
by my affairs. For that great Minister the Nizdmu'1-Mulk (may
God be merciful to him !), had no opinion of poetry, because he
had no skill in it; nor did he pay any attention to any one
except religious leaders and mystics.
"One day it was the eve of the day on which [the new
moon of] Ramadan was due [to appear], and I had not a farthing
for all the expenses incidental to that month and the feast which
I went thus sad at heart to the Amfr 'AH ibn Farfollows it
marz a 'Ald'u'd-Dawla, a man of royal parentage, a lover of poetry,
and the intimate companion of the King, with whom he was
connected by marriage and enjoyed the highest honour, and
1

before whom he could speak boldly, for he held high rank under
And he had already been my patronjl
that administration.
I said,
May my lord's life be long Not all that the father
could do (tf ) can the son do, nor does that which accrued to the
father was a bold and energetic
father accrue to the son.
man, and was sustained by his art, and the martyred King Alp
Arslin, the lord of the world, entertained the highest opinion of
him. But what he could do that can I not, for modesty forbids
'

My

me, and

retiring disposition supports it. I have served [this

for
a
year, and have contracted debts to the extent of a
prince]

my

thousand dinars, and have not received a farthing. Crave permission, then, for thy servant to go to Nfshipiir, and discharge
his debts, and live on that which is left over, and pray for this
victorious Dynasty.'
truly,' replied Amfr AH: 'We have all
been at fault, but this shall be so no longer. The King, at the
time of Evening Prayer, will come out to look for the new moon.

"'Thou speakest

present there, and we will see what chance Fortune

Thereupon he at once ordered me to receive a hundred
dinars to defray my Ramaddn expenses, and a purse 8 containing

Thou must be
will offer.'

According to the Editor's note (p. \\\ of the text) jdmagt is equivalent to the
modern mawdjib or mustamirri, and means wages in cash, while ijrd (the modern
jira\ means allowances, especially in kind.
*
AH ibn Faramara the Kakwayhid is intended. See S. Lane-Poole's Muhammadan
and Mirza* Muhammad's note on pp. \\\\ v. of the text. He is
nasties
> p. 145,
Dy

Ddmdd ("son-in-law," but here in the wider sense of "sib") because in

469/1076-7 he married Malikshah's paternal aunt, Arsldn Kha*tun, widow of the
Caliph al-Qa'im biamri'llah. He ultimately fell in battle in 488/1095.
3
Muhr ordinarily means a seal, but Mirza* Muhammad (p. \ Y of the Persian
notes) quotes other passages shewing that it was also used in the sense of a sealed
purse, containing a definite and certified sum of money.
called

EARLY STRUGGLES OF Mu'izzf

sum

47

was forthwith brought and placed

returned mightily well pleased, and made my
preparations for Ramaddn, and at the time of the Evening Prayer
went to the entrance of the King's pavilion. It chanced that
'Ali'u'd-Dawla arrived at the very same moment, and I paid my
*
Thou hast done excellently well/ said he, and
respects to him.
hast come punctually/ Then he dismounted and went in before
the King.
'"At sun-down the King came forth from his pavilion, with
a cross-bow in his hand and 'Ald'u'd-Dawla on his right side.
I ran forward to do obeisance. Amfr 'AH continued his kindnesses, and they then busied themselves in looking for the moon.
The King, however, was the first to see it, whereat he was mightily
son of Burh^nf, say
pleased. Then 'Ald'u'd-Dawla said to me,
once recited these
about
this
and
I
at
moon/
something original
this

in Nfsnapiir coinage

So

before me.

'

'

two couplets

"

MethinkS) O Moon> thou art our Prince*s bow,

Or his curved eyebrow, which doth charm us so,
Or else a horse-shoe wrought ofgold refined*
Or ringfrom Heavcris ear depending low?

"

When I had submitted these verses, Amfr 'AH applauded

much, and the King said, Go, loose from the stable whichever
horse thou pleasest'; for at that moment we were standing close
to the stable. Amfr 'AH designated a horse which was brought
out and given to my attendants, and which proved to be worth
three hundred dinars of Nfshdpiir. The King then went to his
oratory, and I performed the evening prayer with him, after
which we sat down to meat. At the table Amfr 'AH said, O son
Thou hast not yet said anything about this favour
of Burhinf
conferred on thee by the lord of the world, (tr) Compose a
'

'

quatrain at once!'

and immediately
to

thereupon sprang to

recited these

my

feet,

did obeisance

two verses just as they came

me:

" The

King beheld the

fire

which in me blazed:

Me from low earth above the moon he raised:

From me a

verse, like water fluent^ heard,

And swift as wind a noble steed conferred?

SECOND DISCOURSE.

48

ON POETS

"When I recited these verses 'Ald'u'd-Dawla warmly applauded me, and by reason of his applause the King gave me
a thousand dindrs. Then 'Ald'u'd-Dawla said, 'He hath not
yet received his salary and allowances. To-morrow I will sit
on the Minister's skirt until he writes a draft for his salary on
Ispahan, and orders his allowances to be paid out of the treasury.'
Said the King, 'Thou must do it, then, for no one else has
sufficient assurance. And call this poet after my title/
Now
the King's title was Mu'izzifd-Dunyd wctd-Din, so Amfr 'AH
called me Master Mu'izzf.' 'Amir Mu'izzf,' said the King, [correcting him]. And this noble and nobly born lord so wrought for me
that next day, by the time of the afternoon prayer, I had received
a thousand dindrs as a gift, twelve hundred more as allowances,
and likewise an order for a thousand maunds of corn. And when
the month of Ramadan was past, he summoned me to court, and
caused me to become the King's boon -com pan ion. So my fortune
began to improve, and thenceforth he made continuing provision
for me, and to-day whatever I have I possess by the favour of
that Prince. May God, blessed and exalted is He, rejoice his
dust with the lights of His Mercy, by His Favour and His
'

Grace!"

ANECDOTE XVII.
The House

of Saljuq were all fond of poetry, but none more

so than TughAnshih ibn Alp Arslan 1 whose conversation and
intercourse was entirely with poets, and whose favourite companions were almost all of this class men such as Am{r Abu
'Abdu'lhih Qurashi, Abii Bakr Azraqf 2 Abu Mansur the son of
Abu YiisuP, Shuja'f of Nasa, Ahmad Badfhf, tfaqfqi and Nasfmf, all of whom were ranked in his service, while many others
kept coming and going, all departing with gifts and joyful
countenances.
One day the King was playing backgammon with Ahmad
Badfhf. They were finishing a game for [a stake of] ten thousand
t
[? dirluiM$\ (< ) and the Amf r had two pieces in the sixth house and
,

1
His full names and titles were Sham sit d- Denote Adu'l-Fawtiris Tnghdnshdh ibn
Alp Arslan Muhammad ibn Chaghrl Big ibn Mfofftl ibn SaljAt/. During the reign of
Alp Arsldn he governed Khurasan from Herdt. By Ridd-quli Kha*n (Afajma'u'iFn?a?ni, i, 139) and other biographers he has been confused with Tughdnshah ibn
Mu'ayyad Ay-aba. See the Editor's note on the text, pp. \Y.-t\r, where many
passages from poems in his praise by Azraqi are cited.
8 See Note XX at the
end, and the Editor's long note on pp. iYf-\YA of the
text ; Awfi's Lubab, ch. X, No. 3 ; Dawlatshah (pp. 71-73 of my ed.), Tabaqa II,
No. i ; and Majma'ifl-Fufahd, vol. i, pp. vr*-\of.
8 Abu Mansifr <Abdu'r-Rashid ibn Ahmad ibn Abi Yiisuf al-Hirawf. See 'Awfi's
A few lines lower in this story the author mentions having met
Lubtit>> vol. ii, p. 1
him at Herat in 509/1 115-6.
4
His laqab was Majdu'd-Dfa and his nisba
AlajtNa'til-Fufahdi i, p. \1V
v .

Sajawandi.

AzRAQfs HAPPY IMPROVISATION

Ahmad

49

and it was the

Badihf two pieces in the first house 1
Amir's throw. He threw with the most deliberate care, in order
to cast two sixes, instead of which he threw two ones, whereat
he was mightily vexed and lost his temper (for which, indeed, he
had good cause), while his anger rose so high and reached such
a pitch that each moment he was putting his hand to his sword,
while his courtiers trembled like the leaves of a tree, seeing that
he was a King, and withal a boy angered at such spite of Fortune.
Then Abii Bakr Azraqf arose, and, approaching the minstrels,
;

recited this quatrain

"

Reproach not Fortune with discourteous tricks,

If by the Kinfo desiring double six*
Two ones were thrown; for whomsoever he calls
Face to the earth before him prostrate falls?

When I was at Herat in the year A.ll. 509 (A.D. 1115-1116),

Abu Mansur the son of Abu Yiisuf related to me that the Amfr
Tughanshdh was so charmed and delighted with these two verses
that he kissed Azraqf on the eyes, called for gold, and successively placed five hundred dindrs in his mouth, continuing thus
to reward him so long as one gold piece was left. Thus did he
recover his good humour and such largesse did he bestow, and
the cause of all this was one quatrain. May God Almighty have
mercy on both of them, by His Favour and Grace
!

ANECDOTE XVIII.
In the year A.M. 472 (A.D. 1079- io8o) 2 a certain spiteful person
statement before Sultan Ibnihfm to the effect that his son,
Amfr Mahmud Sayfu'd-Dawla, intended to go to 'Iniq to wait on
Malikshih. The King's jealousy was aroused, and it so worked
on him that suddenly he had his son seized, bound, and interned
laid a

1
For the explanation of this passage I am indebted to my friend Mfrz 'Abdu'l"
Ghaffar of the Persian Legation. The six "houses on each side of the backgammon
board are named (proceeding from left to right) as follows : (i) khdl-khdn
yak-gdh,
(*) d&-khdn, (3) si-khdn, (4) chahdr-khdn, (5) bdf-dar* (6) shish-khdn or shish-dargdh. The numbers contained in these names allude to the numtors which must be
thrown with the dice to get the pieces which occupy them off the board.
3
The MSS. and L. all have "571," an evident error, for (i) Sultan Ibrdlifm the
Ghalnawf reigned A.M. 451-492 (A.D. 1059-1099); (2) Malikshdh reigned A.If. 465485 (A.D. 1072-1092) ; (5) the poet in question died in A.H. 515 or 525 (A.D. 1121 or
1
130) ; (4) the Chahdr Maqdla, as we have already seen, was written during the lifetime of Sultan 'AlaVd-Dfn \\uszynjahdn-si4z, i.e. before A.H. 556 (A.D. 1161).

SECOND DISCOURSE.

50

ON

POETS

His son's intimates (<) also he arrested and inamongst them Mas'tid-i-Sa'd-i-Salmdn, whom he sent to
8
whence he sent the following
Wajfristdn to the Castle of Ndy
quatrain to the King

in a fortress.

terned,

lj

>>

13

IP

"0

Malik Shah should wear thy chain,

AY*/*, '/
That royal limbs might fret with captives pain,

But
\

AH

Sa'd-i-Salmdn's offspring could not hurt,

Though venomous as poison, thy domain /"

Khass brought

this quatrain to the King, but it produced

on him, though all wise and impartial critics will
"
"
Songs of Prison hold in lofty
recognize what rank Mas'ud's
feeling, and what degree in eloquence. Sometimes, when I read
his verses, the hair stands on end on my body, and the tears are
like to trickle from my eyes. All these verses were read to the
King, and he heard them, y*tf they affected him not at all, and
not one particle of his being was warmed to enthusiasm, so that
he departed from this world leaving that noble man in prison.

no

effect

8
Khwdja Salmdn says

1
l

J\

iZ

fW
1

but

Mirzrf

Muhammad

(Persian notes, p. \Y\) at

first

failed to identify Wajirist^n,

now believes it to be identical with the modern Waziristan.

The only mention of Nay hitherto discovered in Persian

occurs in the Nuzhatu'l-QuMb, where

it is

briefly

geographical w^orks

mentioned in the section dealing

with Marw-i-Shhjan.
1
These verses are inserted in the margin of A.
the printed text.

(f.

so8) only. They are omitted in

MAS'UD-I-SA'D'S

IMPRISONMENT

"Naught served the ends of statesmen save

that

51

I,

helpless exile, should in fetters lie,

Nor do they deem me safe within their cells,
Unless surrounded by ten sentinels;
Which ten sit ever by the gates and walls,
ever otte unto his comrade calls:
'Ho there / On guard! This cunning rogue is one

And

To fashion bridge and steps from shaae and sun !

Why, grant I stood arrayedfor such a fight,

'

And suddenly sprangforth, attemptingflight,

Could elephant or raging lion hope,
Thus cramped in prison-cage, with fen to cope?
Can I, bereft of weapons, take the field,
Or make of back and bosom bow and shield? w

by reason of his relation to Sayfu'd-Davda, he remained

1
imprisoned for twelve years in the days of Sultan Ibrahfm, and,
on account of his like relation to Abu Nasr of Pars 3 for eight
years more in the reign of Sult&n Mas'iid ibn Ibrihfm, though
none hath been heard of who hath produced so many splendid
elegies and rare gems of verse as were born of his brilliant genius.
After eight years Thiqatu'1-Mulk Tahir ibn 'AH ibn Mushkdn 8
brought him forth from his bondage, so that, in short, during
So,

these two reigns this illustrious man spent all his life in captivity,
and the ill repute of this deed remained on this noble House.
I hesitate as to the motives which are to be assigned to this act,
and whether it is to be ascribed to strength of purpose, recklessness, hardness of heart, or a malicious disposition. In any case
it was not a laudable deed, and I have never met with any
sensible man who was prepared to praise that administration for

such
it

inflexibility

of purpose or excess of caution.

And

heard

remarked by the King of the world Ghiydthu'd-Dunyd wa'd-

1
As Mfrza Muhammad has pointed out (Persian notes, pp. i YV- \ A ) there is some
confusion of facts here. Mas'iid suffered two separate periods of imprisonment, the
first for ten years, of which seven were spent in Su and Dahak (between Zaranj and
Bust in Sfstan), the second for seven or eight years in Maranj in India. Sultan
Ibrahim's death took place in A.M. 492 (A.D. 1098-9), so that, if he was still suffering
his first imprisonment at that time, it cannot have begun earlier than A.H. 482
have Mas'tid's own authority for fixing the duration of his
(A.D. 1089-1090).
imprisonment at ten (not twelve) years. See his verses quoted at the top of p. \ A of

We

the Persian notes.

Qiwamu'1-Mulk Nizmu'd-Din Abu Nasr Hibatu'lteh al-Farsf, a leading statesduring these two reigns and a friend and patron of our poet, fell into disgrace in
the reign of Sultan Mas'iid, together with his clients and proteges. He died about
3

man

510/1116.

* He was
prime minister to Sultan Mas'iid ibn Ibrahim, and patron of many poets,
including, besides Mas'tid-i-Sa'd-i-Salman, Abu'l-Faraj-l-Runf, Mukhtaii and Sand'f,
all

of

whom

have sung

his praises.

His uncle

Abu Nasr

Manstir ibn Mushkdn was

volume of Memoirs and

secretary to Sultan Mahmud and Sulta*n Mas'iid, author of a

teacher of the historian Abu'1-Fadl-i-Bayhaqi.

42

SECOND DISCOURSE.

52

Dfn

Muhammad

ON

POETS

at the gates of
rebellion of his son-in-law
fragrant their dust, and exalt their station in
,

the son

of Malikshdh,

Hamaddn, on the occasion of the

(may God make

Paradise!) Amfr Shihdbu'd-Dfn Qutulmush Alp Ghdzf, "It

is

the sign of a malicious heart to keep a foe imprisoned for one

of two things, either he is loyal or seditious. Then, if the former,
it is an injustice to
keep him in prison and if the latter, it is
an
to
suffer an ill-doer to live." (ti) In short that
injustice
again
misery of Mas'iid passed, while this ill repute will endure till the
Resurrection.
;

ANECDOTE XIX.
tin the

time of Sultan Khidr ibn Ibrahfm* the power of the

3
Khdqinfs was at its most flourishing period, while the strength
of their administration and the respect in which it was held were
such as could ncf*. be surpassed.
Now he was a wise and just ruler and an ornament to the
throne, and to him appertained the dominion of Transoxiana and
Turkistdn, while he enjoyed the most complete security on the
side of Khurdsdn, wherewith he was allied by friendly relations,
kinship, and firm treaties and covenants. And of the splendour
maintained by him one detail was this, that when he rode out
they carried before his horse, besides other arms, seven hundred
maces of gold and silver. He was, moreover, a great patron of

were Amfr 'Am'aq Master Rashfdf,

Najjdr-i-Sdgharchf, 'AH Pdnfdhi, the son of Darghush, the son
of Isfardyinf, 'AH Sipihrf and Naj(bf of Farghzina, all of whom
obtained rich rewards and vast honours. The Poet- Laureate was
Amfr 'Am'aq, who had profited abundantly by that dynasty and
obtained the most ample circumstance, comprising Turkish slaves,
fair damsels, well-paced horses, golden vessels,
sumptuous apparel,
and servants, biped and quadruped 5 innumerable. He was greatly
poets,

and

in his service

honoured at the King's Court, so that of necessity the other poets

The seventh Saljiiq king, who reigned A.H. 498-511 (A.D. 1104-1117). There
as pointed out by Mirzd Muhammad
(pp. \AV--\At of the Persian notes) an extraat the end.
ordinary confusion of dates and persons in this story. See also Note
2
Sultan Khidr Khdn ibn Tafghaj Khan Ibrdhfm ibn Nasr ArsWn (known as ilak)
ibn 'AH ibn MiUa ibn Sutuq succeeded his brother Shamsu'1-Mulk Nasr ibn Ibrahim
in A.H. 474 (A.D. 1081-2), but died shortly afterwards.
See Ibnu'l-Athir sub anno
A.H. 408, and the Ta?rlkh-i-Jahtln~arA (Or. 141 of the British tyluseum, f. 133*).,
8
This Turkish Muslim dynasty, also known as Khaniyya, Ilak Khdns, and Al-iAfrasiyab, reigned for about 230 lunar years (A.H. 380-609 A.D. 990-1212) in
Transoxiana, and was finally overthrown by the Khwarazmshahs. See S. Lane-Poole's
1

is,

XXI

Muhammadan

Dynasties, pp. 134-135; Note XXII at the end; and pp. \Ai-\A\
of the Persian notes.
4
Mention has already been made of all these poets on p. T A of the text (=pp.
29-30
of this translation) with the exception of "the son of Isfarayinf." See
pp. \ o t-i e r
of the Persian notes, and Note XIV at the end.
5
Literally, "speaking and silent," or "articulate and dumb."

RAsniofs RETORT TO 'AM'AQ

53

must needs do him reverence. Such homage as from the others

he desired from Master Rashfdf also, but herein he was disappointed, for Rashfdf, though still young, was nevertheless
learned in his

art.

The Lady Zaynab was

his panegyrics, while all

the special object of

Khidr Khdn's women were at

his command, and he enjoyed the fullest favour of the King, who was
continually praising him and asserting his merits, so that Rashfdf's
"
"
affairs prospered, the title of Prince of poets
was conferred on
him, he continued to rise higher in the King's opinion, and from
him received gifts of great value.
1

One day, in Rashfdf's absence, the King asked 'Am'aq, "What

"
thinkest thou of the verse of Rashi'df, the Prince of poets ?
"
His verse," replied he, " is extremely good and chaste and
'

'

it wants a little
spice."
After some while had elapsed, Rashfdf (v) came

correct, but

in and did
obeisance, and was about to sit down when th<t King called him
before himself, and said, teasing him as is the way of Kings,
"I asked the Poet-Laureate just now, How is Rashidfs poetry?
He replied that it was good, but wanted spice. Now you must
compose a couple of verses on this subject." Rashfdf, with a bow,
sat down in his place and improvised the following fragment
1

" You

stigmatise

my

verse as

wanting spiceJ

And possibly, my friend, you may

be right.

My verse is honey-flavoured, sugar-sweet,

And spice with such

could scarcely cause delight.

Spice is or you y you blackguard, not for me,
For beans and turnips is the stuffyou write /"

When he submitted these verses the King was mightily pleased.

And in Transoxiana it is the custom and practice to place in the
audience-chambers of kings and others gold and silver in trays,
which they call sim-tdqd or juft and in this audience of Khidr
Khdn's there were set for largesse four trays of red gold, each
containing two hundred and fifty dindrs\ and these he used to
dispense by the handful. On this day he ordered Rashfdf to
receive all four trays, so he obtained the highest honour, and
became famous. For just as a patron becomes famous by the
verse of a good poet, so do poets likewise achieve renown by
u
~'ng
receiving a great reward from the King, these two thi
;

irfterdependent.
1

Sayyidu'sh-Shu'ard.

ON

SECOND DISCOURSE.

54

POETS

ANECBOTE XX.
v

Master Abu l-Q4sim Firdawsf x was one of the Dihqins (land2

owners) of Tiis, from a village called Bdzh in the district of
3
Tabardn a large village capable of supplying a thousand men.
There Firdawsf enjoyed an excellent position, so that he was
rendered quite independent of his neighbours by the income
which he derived from his lands, and he had but one child, a
daughter. His one desire in putting the Book of Kings (Shdhndma) into verse was, out of the reward which he might obtain
for it, to supply her with an adequate dowry. He was engaged for
twenty-five years on this work ere he (IA) finished the book, and
to this end he left nothing undone, raising his verse as high as
heaven, and causing it in sweet fluency to resemble running
water. What genius, indeed, could raise verse to such a height as
he does in the letter written by Z&l to Sim the son of Narfman
in M&zandariin when he desired to ally himself with Ruddba the
4
daughter of the King of Kabul :f,

to Sdm straightway sent he a letter^

Filled with fair praises^ prayers and good greeting.
First made he mention of the World-Maker^

"Then

'

Who doom dispenseth and doom fuljilleth.

On Nfram's son Sdmf wrote he, the sivord-tord\
Mail-clad and mace-girt, may the Lord's peace rest!
'

This anecdote is cited by Ibn Isfandiydr in his History of Tabaristdn (A.H. 613,
See Rieu's Persian Catalogue* pp. 202-204 and 533 b), whence it was
excerpted and published, with a German translation, by Ethe (Z.D.M.G., vol. xlviii,
A.D. 1216.

It was also utilized by Noldeke in 1896 in his Iranischf Nationalepos

pp. 89-94).
\Grundriss d. Iran. Phihlogie^ vol. ii, pp. 150 ct seqq.). A revised edition of this
has just appeared (Berlin and Leipzig, 1920). The references
valuable
monograph
here given are, unless otherwise specified, to the original edition.
2
The Burhdn-i-Qdti'' is the only Persian or Arabic book of reference which
makes mention of this place as situated near Tris.
9 See
Noldeke, toe. cit. t p. 151 (p. 25 of the new edition), and Yaqiit, s.v. The
city of Tiis comprised the two districts of Tabaran (or Tabaran) and Nitqan.
4 These verses
(with some variants) will be found on pp. 124-125 of vol. i*of
Turner Macan's edition of the Shdhndma (Calcutta, 1829).
*

The
The

printed text has

text has

J**

J*\j*
for

FlRDAWSf

55

Hurler of horse-troops in hot-contestedfights^

Feeder of carrion-fowls with foemerfs flesh-feast^
Raising the roar of strife on the red war-field,
From the grim war-clouds grinding the gore-shower.
Who, by his manly might merit on merit
*
Heaps, till his merit merit outmeasures*?
I know of no poetry in Persian which
equals this,
even in Arabic.
'When Firdawsf had completed the Shdhndma, it was transscribed by 'Alf Day lam a and recited by Abii Dulaf2 both of
whom he mentions by name in tendering his thanks to Huyayy-i3
Qutayba the governor of Tus, who had conferred on Firdawsf

In eloquence

and but

little

many

"

favours

^y

//**

men of renown of Ms

city

*AU Daylam and Ab& Dulaf have

participated in this book.

From them my portion was naught save * Well done
*
gall-bladder was like to burst with their Well dones*?
the
son
is
a
nobleman
who
asks
me not for
fltiyayy
of Qutayba

My

unrewarded

verse.

I know nothing either of the root nor the branches of the land-tax;
I lotinge [at ease\ in the midst of my quilt**"

(Huyayy the son of Qutayba was the revenue-collector of T\is,

and deemed it his duty at least to abate the taxes payable by
hence naturally his name will endure till the Resurand Kings will read it.
So 'AH Daylam transcribed the Shdhndma in seven volumes,
and Firdawsf, taking with him Abu Dulaf, set out for the Court
of Ghazna. There, by the help of the great Minister Ahmad ibn
Hasan 8 the secretary, he presented it, and it was accepted, Sultdn
Firdawsf

rection

this rendering is, I am strongly of opinion that for an English rendering

of the Shdhndma (which always seems to me very analogous in aim, scope, and
treatment to that little-read English Epic, the Brut of Layamon) the old English
alliterative verse would be the most suitable form.
2
See Noldeke, op. at., p. 153 (p. 27 of the new edition), and n. ? adcalc.
3
So A. and L. B. has the more usual " Husayn b. Qutayba." Cf. Noldeke, he. cit.
4 I.c. I am sick of their barren and
unprofitable plaudits. As these poor men
rendered him material service in other ways, Firdawsi's remarks seem rather un1

Poor as

grateful.
5

What

being no

evidently an explanation of this couplet. Firdawsf means that

longer vexed with the exactions of the tax-gatherer, he can now repose in
follows

is

peace.
6

This celebrated minister had the title Shamsrfl-Kufdt and the nisba of alHe died in 424/1033 after twenty years' service as Minister to Sultan
Mahmiid.

Maymandi.

ON

SECOND DISCOURSE.

56

POETS

Mahmtid expressing himself as greatly indebted to his Minister.

But the Prime Minister had enemies who were continually
casting the dust of misrepresentation into the cup of his rank,
and MahmiSd (**) consulted with them as to what he should give
Firdawsf. They replied, "Fifty thousand dirhams, and even that
is- too much, seeing that he is in belief a Rifidf and a Mu'tazilite.

Of his

Mu'tazilite views this verse

is

a proof :-f-

Thy gaze the Creator can never descry;

Then wherefore, by gazing, dost weary thine eye ?

'

while to his Rdfidi proclivities these verses of his witness

77/*

//j^ ;////

stirred

conceives the

world as a

sea,

wherefrom the fierce wind has

up waves.

Thereon are seventy ships 1 afloat, all with satis set,

them one vessel, fair as a bride, decked with colour like the
eye of the cock,
Wherein are the Prophet and ''All, with all the Family of the Prophet and

And amongst
his Vicar.

If thou desirest Paradise in the other World, take thy place by the Prophet

and his

Trustee.

If ill accrues to thee thereby, it is my fault : know this, that this way is my
way.
In this I was born, and in this I will pass away; know for a surety that I
am as dust atfeet of *>AU? "

Now Sultdn Mahmud was a zealot, and he listened to these

imputations and caught hold of them, and in all only twenty
thousand dirhams were paid to Hakfm Firdawsf. He was
bitterly disappointed, went to the bath, and, on coming out,
9
bought a draft of sherbet and divided the money between the
bath-man and the sherbet-seller. Knowing, however, Mahmiid's
,

the seventy (or seventy-two) sects of Islm "all of which are doomed to
one which shall be saved."
Fitqd\ described as a kind of beer. See Schlimmer's Terminologie Pharmaceu-

That

is

Hell-fire save
3

tigue

(lith. Tihra*n,

1874), p. 75,

and Abdul-Chalig Akhundow's German translation,

Mansvtr Muwaffaq ibn 'Alt al-Hirawi, pp. 741

with notes, of the Pharmacology of

and 388-389.

AM

FiRDAWsfs SATIRE

57

he fled from Ghazna by night, and alighted in Herdt at

the shop of AzraqPs father, Isma'fl the bookseller (Warrdq\
ah mud's
where he remained in hiding for six months, until
messengers had reached Tus and had turned back thence, when
Firdawsf, feeling secure, set out from Hera*t for Tus, taking the
Shdhndma with him. Thence he came to Tabaristdn to the
Sipahbad ShahriyaV of the House of Bdwand, who was King
there and this is a noble house which traces its descent from
2
Yazdigird the son of ShahriyAr./f
Then Firdawsf wrote a satire of a hundred couplets on Sultdn
Mahmud in the Preface, and read it to Shahriydr 8, saying, " I
will dedicate this book to you instead of to Sultdn" Mahmud, for
this book deals wholly with the legends and deeds of thy forebears." Shahriyar treated him with honour and shewed him many
"
Master, Mahmud was induced to act
kindnesses, and said,
thus by others, who did not submit your book to him under
severity,

proper conditions, (o.) and misrepresented you. Moreover you

are a Shf'ite, and whosoever loves the Family of the Prophet his
worldly

Mahmud is my
me the
have written on him, that I may expunge it
you some little recompense and Mahmud will surely

affairs will

let the
liege-lord
satire which you
:

and give

summon

prosper no more than theirs.

Shdhndma stand

in his

name, and give

thee and seek to satisfy thee fully, for the labour spent on
such a book must hot be wasted." And next day he sent Firdawsf
"
I buy each couplet at a thousand
100,000 dirhams, saying,
dirhams, give me those hundred couplets, and be reconciled to
Mahmud." So Firdawsf sent him these verses, and he ordered
them to be expunged and Firdawsf also destroyed his rough
copy of them, so that this satire was done away with and only
these six verses of it remained 4
;

1
The MSS. have Shahrzdd and the lithographed edition Shfrzdd, both of which
The correct reading Shahriyar is given by Ibn Isfandiyar in
readings are erroneous.
his citation of this passage. His full genealogy, with references to the histories in
whiah mention is made of him, is given on p. \ ^ of the Persian notes.
2
* Cf.
The last Sasanian king.
Noldeke, loc. cit., p. 155, and n. 4 ad cole.
4
This is a remarkable statement, and, if true, would involve the assumption that
the well-known satire, as we have it, is spurious. Cf. Noldeke (op. ?.), pp. 155-156,
and n. i on the latter, and pp. 30-31 of his new edition of Das Iran. NationaUpos.

ON

SECOND DISCOURSE.

58
1

POETS

They cast imputations on me, saying^ That man of many words

Hath grown old in the love of the Prophet and 'Alt:
If I speak of my love for these
c

f can protect a hundred such as Mahmud.

No good can come of the son of a slave,
Even though

his father hath ruled as King.

this subject?
Like the sea I know no shore.

How long shall I speak on

The King had no aptitude for good,

Else would he have seated me on a throne.
Since in his family there was no nobility
He could not bear to hear the names of the noble"

In truth good service was rendered to Mali mud by Shahriyar, and

Mahmud was greatly indebted to him.
When I was at Nfshapur in the year A.II. 5 14 (A.D. 1 120-1 1 2 1),
I heard Amfr Mu'izzf say that he had heard Amir 'Abdu'r-Razzaq
"

Mahmiid was once in India, and was

at Tiis relate as follows
returning then<fe towards Ghazna. On the way, as it chanced,
there was a rebellious chief possessed of a strong fortress, and
next day Mahmud encamped at the gates of it, and sent an
ambassador to him, bidding him come before him on the morrow,
do homage, pay his respects at the Court, receive a robe of honour
and return to his place. Next day Mahmud rode out with the
Prime Minister 1 on his right hand, for the ambassador had turned
I wonder/ said the
back and was coming to meet the King.
*
latter to the Minister, what answer he will have given ?
Thereupon the Minister recited this verse of Firdawsf s
:

'

Should the amwer come contrary to my wish,

Then for me the mace, and the field [of battle\ and Afrdsiydb?

Whose

(o \)

Mahmiid, is that, for it is one to inspire

Poor Abu'l-Qdsim Firdawsf composed it/ answered
courage?
he who laboured for five and twenty years to
the Minister
complete such a work, and reaped from it no advantage.' You
have done well/ said Mahmiid, to remind me of this, for I deeply
regret that this noble man was disappointed by me. Remind me
at Ghazna to send him something/
"So when the Minister returned to Ghazna, he .reminded
Mahmud, who ordered Firdawsf to be given sixty thousand
dindrs* worth of indigo, and that this indigo should be carried
to Tiis on the King's own camels, and that apologies should be
made to Firdawsf. For years the Minister had been working
so now he
for this, and at length he had achieved his work
8
despatched the camels, and the indigo arrived safely at Tabardn
1
Khivdja-i-Buzurg. This was the title commonly given to Shamsii'l-Ku/dt Ahmad
verse, enquired
'

'

'

'

'

ibn

Hasan al-Maymandi. See n. 6 at the foot of p. 55 supra.

name of a portion of the city of Tiis. See B. de Meynard's

* 'Tabaran is the

de la fierse, pp. 374-375. and p. 54 supra, n. 3 adcalc.

Diet.

DEATH OF FIRDAWS!

59

But as the camels were entering through the Rtidbdr Gate, the
1
corpse of Firdawsf was being borne forth from the Gate of Razdn
Now at this time there was in Tabardn a preacher whose fanaticism was such that he declared that he would not suffer Firdawsfs
body to be buried in the MusulmAn Cemetery, because he was a
Rdfidf (Shf'a) and nothing that men could say served to move
this doctor. Now within the Gate there was a garden belonging
to Firdawsf, and there they buried him, and there he lies to this
9
day." And in the year A.H. 5 10 (A.D. 1 1 16-1 117)! visited his tomb
They say that Firdawsf left a daughter, of very lofty spirit,
to whom they would have given the King's gift but she would
not accept it, saying, " I need it not." The Post-master wrote to
the Court and represented this to the King, who ordered that
doctor to be expelled from Tabardn as a punishment for his
officiousness, and to be 'exiled from his home, and the money to
be given to the Imdm Abii Bakr ibn Ishdq-i-KirAmf s for the
repair of the rest-house of Chaha, which stands on the road
between Merv and Nfshdpi'ir on the boundaries of Tiis. When
this order reached Tiis it was faithfully carried out; and the
restoration of the rest-house of Chiha was effected by this money.
.

ANECDOTE XXI.
At the period when I was in the service of my Lord the King
of the Mountains 4 (may God illuminate (r) his tomb and exalt
his station in Paradise !), that august personage had a high opinion
of me, and shewed himself a most generous patron towards me.
Now on the Festival of the Breaking of the Fast one of the
nobles of the city of Balkh (may God maintain its prosperity !),
Amfr 'Amfd Safiyyu'd-Dfn Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn al-Husayn
Rawdnshdhf, came to the Court. He was a young man, accomplished and highly esteemed, an expert writer, a qualified secretary
of state, well endowed with culture and its fruits, popular with
all,

whose

praises were

on

all

tongues.

And

at this time

was

not in attendance.
1
See Noldeke's new edition of his Ptrs. Nationalepos* p. 32, n. 2 ad calc. There
are several places called R&dbdr, of which one situated near Tabardn is probably
meant. See B. de Meynard's Diet, de la Perse, p. 266.
Razdn in Si&tan is mentioned

the district of Nasa in Khurasan

(pp. rvi-TAY), and another (O^j)
(Diet, de la Perse, p. 259).
8 I am not
sure at what point the inverted commas should be inserted, but the last

by al-Baladhnri

sentence of this paragraph is certainly Nizdmi's.

8
This divine, Abti Bakr Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Mahmashad, was the head of
the Kira"mi sect at Nfshapiir, and his biography is given i'n the Tctrikhu'l- Yamlnt
(ed. Cairo, pp.

r v~vr

).

The Kirdmi

sect inclined to

anthropomorphism.

full

account of their doctrines will be found in Shahristdni's Kitdbttl-Milaliva'n-Nihal.

*
This, as already stated, was the title assumed by the kings of GhiSr generally,
and by the first of them, Qutbu'd-Din Muhammad ibn 'Izzu'd-Din Husayn,
especially.
He it was whose death was avenged by his brother Sultan 'Ald'u'd'-Dm Jahdn-s&z in
the sack of Ghazna, and who was our author's patron. See Note
at the end.

XV

SECOND DISCOURSE.

60

ON

POETS

Now at a reception the King chanced to say, " Call Nizdmf."

Said the Amir 'Amfd Safiyyu'd-Dfn, "Is Nizdmf here?" 'They
answered " Yes." But he supposed that it was Nizdmf-Munfrf l
"
"
"
When
Ah," said he, a fine poet and a man of wide fame
the messenger arrived to summon me, I put on my shoes, and, as
,

I entered, did obeisance, and sat down in

my place. When the
wine had gone round several times, Amfr 'Amfd said, "Nizimf
has not come." " He is come," replied the King "see, he is seated
over there." " I am not speaking of this Nizmf," answered Amfr
'Amfd, "that Nizamf of whom I speak is another one, and as for
this one, I do not even know him." Thereupon I saw that the
"
King was vexed he at once turned to me and said, Is there
somewhere else another Nizamf besides thce?" "Yes, Sire," I
answered, "there are two other Nizdmfs, one of Samarqand, whom
they call Nizeimf-i-Munfrf, and one of Nfshaptir, whom they call
Nizmf-i-Athfk-f while me they call Nizdmf-i-'Arudf." " Art thou
;

better, or they ?

"

demanded

he.

Then Amfr

'Arnfd perceived

had made an unfortunate remark and that the King was

"
annoyed. "Sire," said he, those two Nizamfs are quarrelsome
fellows, apt to break up and spoil social gatherings by their
"
"
Wait," said the King jestingly, till you see
quarrelsomeness."
2
this one drain five bumpers of strong wine and break up the
meeting: but of these three Nizdmfs which is the best poet?"
"
Of those two," said the Amfr 'Amfd, " I have personal knowledge, having seen them, while this one I have not previously
seen, nor have I heard his poetry. If he will compose a couple of
verses on this subject which we have been discussing, so that I
may see his talents and hear his verse, I wilt tell you which of
that he

these three is best."

Then the King turned to me, saying, " Now, Nizdmf, do not
shame us, (r) and when thou speakest say what 'Amfd desires."
Now at that time, when I was in the service of this sovereign,
I possessed a prolific talent and a brilliant genius, and the favours
and gifts of the King had stimulated me to such a point that my
improvisations came fluent as running water so I took up a pen,
and, ere the wine-cup had gone twice round, composed these five

couplets

The

reading of this nisba is very doubtful in all three texts, both here and lower.
appears to read Minbari*
The correct reading, si-yak j> is that given in the text, not sangt, which most of
the MSS. have. It 'is wine reduced by evaporation to one-third of its original bulk ;
in Arabic it is similarly called mulhallath. See the Anjuman-drdyi-Nd^irl^ s.v.

In some
2

it

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL

"

H7

<?

7v Mra Nizdmts in the world,

world is filled with outcry.

I am at Warsdd 1 before the Kings

Merv before the Sultdn.

61

King, on account of whom a whole

throne, while those

two others are in

To-day, in truth, in verse each one is the Pride of Khurdsdn.

Although they utter verse subtle as spirit, and although they understand the
Art of Speech like Wisdom,
I am the Wine, for, when I get hold of them, both desist from their work"

When I submitted these verses, the Amfr 'Amfd Safiyyu'dDfn bowed and said, " O King, let alone the Nizamfs, t know of
no poet in all Transoxiana, 'Iraq, or Khurasan capable of improvising five such verses, more especially in respect of strength,
energy, and sweetness, conjoined with such grace* of diction and
Be of good cheer, O Ni/dmf, for
filled with ideas so original.
thop hast no peer on the face of the earth. O Sire, he hath a
graceful wit, a mind strong in apprehension, and a finished art.
The good fortune of the King of the age and his generosity (may
God exalt them !) hath increased them, and he will become a*
unique genius, and will become even more than this, for he is
young, and hath many days before him."
Thereat the countenance of my King and Lord brightened
mightily; a great cheerfulness appeared in his gracious tempera"
ment, and he applauded me, saying, I give thee the lead-mine
of Warsdd from this Festival until the Festival of the Sheepsacrifice 2
Send an agent there." I did so, sending IshAq the
Jew. It was the middle of summer and the time of active work,
and they melted much of the ore, so that in seventy days twelve
thousand maunds of lead appertaining to the tithe 3 accrued to
me, while the King's opinion of me was increased a thousand-fold.
May God (blessed and exalted is He) illuminate his august ashes
with the light of His approval and rejoice his noble soul by the
accumulation of wealth, by His Favour and Grace
.

Warsdd or Warshad was the residence of this king, Qutbu'd-Din Muhammad,

in

mentioned in the Tabaqdt-i-Ndsirl ( Raverty's translation, p. 339).

2
I.e. from the end of Ramadan until the loth of Dhu'l-Ilijja, a period of two
months and ten days.
8 The exact
meaning of this sentence is not clear even to the learned editor Mfrza
Muhammad (p. \\* of the Persian notes). He suggests that our author, Nizamf, was
a Sayyid, or descendant of the Prophet, and that the Mums, or fifth part of the
in this case made over wholly to him. If
profits, to which Sayyids are entitled, was
this be the meaning, we should probably read dar izd'i khums for az dn-i* khums. An
" not
alternative conjecture is to read bi-dun-i-khums, and to translate
counting the
khums'' i.e. that the net profit, after deducting the khums or tithe, was 12,000
maunds of lead.
Ghtir, as

ON ASTRONOMERS

62

(*)

On

THIRD DISCOURSE.

the Lore of the Stars

and the

excellence

of the Astronomer in

that Science.
al-Bfrunf 1 says, in

the first chapter of his

"Explanation" of the Science of Astronomy" (Kitdbitt-Tafhtm
fi sbutatft-Tanjtm)*: "A man doth not merit the title of
Astronomer until he hath attained proficiency in four sciences
secondly, Arithmetic
thirdly, Cosmography
first, Geometry

Abii

Rayhin

and fourthly Judicial Astrology."

Now Geometry is that science whereby are known the dispositions of lines and the shapes of plane surfaces and solid
bodies, the general relations existing between determinates and
determinants, and the relation between them and what has
position and form. Its principles are included in the book of
Euclid the Geometrician 3 in the recension of Thbit ibn Qurra 4
Arithmetic is that science whereby are known the nature of all
',

numbers, especially each species thereof in itself; the

nature of their relation to one another; their generation from
each other; and the applications thereof, such as halving, doubling,
sorts of

and Algebra. The

in the book of the 'ApiffftriTucy,
contained
are
thereof
principles
and the applications in the "Supplement" (Takmila) of Abu
Mansiir of Baghddd 5, and the "Hundred Chapters" (Sad Bab)
of as-Sajzf 8
Cosmography is that science whereby are known the nature of
the Celestial and Terrestrial Bodies, their shapes and positions,
their relations to one another, and the measurements and distances which are between them, together with the nature of the
movements of the stars and heavens, and the co-ordination of
the spheres and segments whereby these movements are fulfilled.
multiplication, division, addition, subtraction,

1
The best account of this great scholar is that given by Dr Edward Sachau in the
German Introduction to his edition of al-Athdru?l-Bdqiya (Leipzig, 1876), and, in a
shorter form, in his English translation of the same (London, 1879). The substance of

this is given by Mirzd

XXII I at the end.

Muhammad on

pp. \vr-'.*Y of the Persian notes.

See Note

This book was composed simultaneously in Arabic and Persian in A.H. 420
There is a fine old MS. of the Persian version dated A.H. 685 (A.D. 1286),
and bearing the class-mark Add. 7697, in the British Museum. See Rieu's Persian
(A.D. 1029).

Catalogue, pp.
8
4

Najj&r,
I

451-45^
"the Carpenter."

literally,

take this to be the sense of

C*~1

o>

^jj*-O *J*
Concerning Thabit ibn Qurra, see Wllstenfeld's Gesch. d. Arabischen Aerzte, pp. 34-36 ;
Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab. LAtteratur, vol. i, pp. 217-218, etc. He was born in
A.H. 221 (A.D. 836) and died in A.H. 288 (A.D. 901).
8
Manstir 'Abdu'l-Qahir ibn Tahir al-Baghdadf, d. A.H. 429 (A.D. 1037}* See

AM

Hajii Khalifa, No. 3253.

* Abii Sa'id Ahmad ibn
'

Muhammad

'

Sajistan or Sfstan)!

the end.

See Brockelmann,

ibn 'Alxta'l-Jalil ns-Sajzi (or Sijazf, i.e. of

op, <*/., vol. i, p. 2r9, and Note XXIII at

JUDICIAL ASTROLOGY

63

This science is contained in [Ptolemy's] Almagest^ whereof the

best commentaries (o) and elucidations are the Commentary of
1
Nayrfzf and the Almagest in the Shifd*. And amongst the
applications of this science is the science of Astronomical Tables
and Almanacs.
Judicial Astrology is a branch of Natural Science, and its
special use is prognostication, by which is meant the deducing
by analogy from the configurations of the stars in relation to one
another, and from an estimation of their degrees in the zodiacal
signs, the fulfilment of those events which are brought about by
their movements, such as the conditions of the world-cycles,
empires, kingdoms, cities, nativities, changes, transitions, decisions,
and other questions. It is contained, as above defined by us, in
the writings of Abii Ma'shar of Balkh 8 Ahmad [ibn Muhammad]
,

ibn'Abdu'l-JaHl-i-Sajzf*,Abu Rayhdn Bfriinf,and KfishyAr-i-Jfli

So the astrologer must be a man of acute yiincl, approved
character, and great natural intelligence, though apparently [some
degree of] folly, madness and a gift for soothsaying are amongst
the conditions and essentials of this branch [of the subject]. And
the Astrologer who would pronounce prognostications must have
the Part of the Unseen 7 in his own Ascendant, or in a position
which stands well in relation to the Ascendant, while the Lord of
the Mansion of the Part of the Unseen must be fortunate and
in a favourable position, in order that such pronouncements as he
gives m^y be near the truth. And one of the conditions of being
a good astrologer is that he should know by heart the whole of
the "Compendium of Principles" (Mujmahil-Upil) of Kiishydr 8
and should continually study the "Opus Major 8/' and should
look frequently into the Qdntin-i-Maftidi* and the Jdmi'-iShdht, so that his knowledge and concepts may be refreshed.
,

1 Abu'l-'Abbas al-Fadl ibn

He
I.Iatam of Nayriz (near Darabjird in Firs).
flourished in the latter half of the third century of the Flight (late ninth and early
tenth of the Christian era).

Presumably Avicenna's great philosophical work of this name is intended.

See Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab. Lttt. t vol. i, pp. 221-222, pp. t*A 4
of the Persian notes, and Note XXI II at the end.
5
4 See n. 6 on
See n. i on p. 62 supra.
p. 62 supra.
9 See
Ibid., pp. 222-223.
Kiya Abu'l- Hasan Kiishydr ibn Labban ibn Basliahrf
al-Jili (of Gilan) was a very notable astronomer who flourished in the second half of
3

fine MS. of his Mujmal

the fourth century of the Flight (tenth of Ihe Christian era).
(Add. 7490) exists in the British Museum. See also p. f f of the Persian notes, and
Note XXIII at the end.
7 For this and other
at the end.
Astrological terms see Note
8 Kdr-i-Mihtar
by Hasan ibnu'l-Khasfb, a notable astronomei of the second
century of the Flight.
8
Composed about A.D. 1031-6 for Sultan Mas'tid, to whom it is dedicated, by
fine MS. transcribed at Baghdad in 570/1174-5 is described in Riei/s
al-Bfrtfni.

XXIV

Arabic Supplement pp. 513-519.

10
A collection of fifteen treatises by Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn 'Abdu'l-Jalfl
as-Sajzf , a notable astronomer who flourished in the latter half of the tenth century of
the Christian era. See p. 62 supra, n. 6 ad calc.
',

ON ASTROLOGERS

THIRD DISCOURSE.

64

ANECDOTE XXII.
1
Ya'qiib ibn Ishaq al-Kindf though he was a Jew, was the
his
age and the wisest man of his time, and stood
philosopher of
high in the service of al-Ma'mun. One day he came in before
al-Ma'miin, and sat down above one of the prelates of Islam.
Said this man, " Thou art of a subject race why then dost thou
sit above the prelates of Islam?" "Because," said Ya'qub, "I
know what thou k newest, while thou knowest not what I know."
Now this prelate knew of his skill in Astrology, but had no
"
I will write
knowledge of his other attainments in science.
down," said he, "something on a piece of paper, and if thou
canst divine what I have written, I will admit thy claim." Then
they laid a wager, on the part of the prelate a cloak, and on the
,

part of Ya'qub (oi) a mule and its trappings, worth a thousand

dinars, which vas standing at the door. Then the former asked

an inkstand and paper, wrote something on a piece of paper,

"
it under the Caliph's quilt, and cried,
Out with it "
Ya'qub ibn Ishaq asked for a tray of earth, rose up, took the
altitude, ascertained the Ascendant, drew an astrological figure
on the tray of earth, determined the positions of the stars and
located them in the Signs of the Zodiac, and fulfilled all the conThen he said, " O
ditions of divination and thought-reading 2
Commander of the Faithful, on that paper he has written something which was first a plant and then an animal." Al-Ma'mun
put his hand under the quilt and drew forth the paper, on which
was written "The Rod of Moses." Ma'mun was filled with wonder,
and the prelate expressed his astonishment. Then Ya'qub took
the cloak of his adversary, and cut it in two before al-Ma'mun,
for

placed

"

saying,

will

make

it

into

two

putties."

This matter became generally known in Baghdad, whence it

spread to 'Iraq and Khurdsdn, and became widely diffused. A
certain doctor of Balkh 8 prompted by that fanatical zeal which
characterises the learned, took a knife and placed it in the middle
of a book on Astrology, intending to go to Baghdad, attend the
,

Ya'qub ibn Ishaq al-Kindf, make a beginning in Astrowhen he should find a suitable opportunity, suddenly
kill him. Stage by stage he advanced in this resolve, until he
reached Baghdad, went in to the hot bath and came out, arrayed
lectures of

logy, and,

himself in clean clothes, and, placing the book in his sleeve, set
out for Ya'qtib's house.

He died about A.H. 260

d. Arab. Aersfe^ pp. 21-22.
author's assertion that the celebrated al-Kindf, called par excellence
" the
Philosopher of the Arabs," was a Jew, is, as the Editor has pointed out (Persian
notes, pp. f r-f -1), so absurd as to go near to discrediting the whole story.
1

See Wiistenfeld's Gesch.

(A.D. 873).

The

*
Khaby means guessing the nature of a hidden object and tiamlr of a hidden
thought, according to ol-Biruni's TafMm. See Note XXIV at the* end.
3 /.. Abu
Ma*shar, as appears from the conclusion of the story.

AL-BiRi)Nfs PROGNOSTICATION

65

When

he reached the gate of the house, he saw standing

horses belonging to descendants of the Prophet 1 and other eminent and notable persons
of Baghddd. Having made enquiries, he went in, entered the
"
I desire to
circle in front of Ya*qtib, greeted him, and said,
of
the
Science
of
the
with
somewhat
Stars
our
Master."
study
"Thou hast come from the East to slay me, not to study
Astrology," replied Ya'qiib, "but thou wilt repent of thine
intention, study the Stars, attain perfection in that science, and
become one of the greatest Astrologers amongst the People of
Muhammad (on whom be God's Blessing and Peace)." All the
great men there assembled were astonished at these words and
Abu Ma'shar 2 confessed and produced the knife from the middle
of the book, broke it, and cast it away. Then he bent his knees
and studied for fifteen years, until he attained in Astrology
that eminence which was his. (*v)

there

many handsomely-caparisoned

ANECDOTE XXIII.
It is related that

once when Yamimtd-Dawla Sultan Mah-

mud

ibn Nasiru'd-Di'n 8 was sitting on the roof of a four-doored

summer-house in Ghazna, in the Garden of a Thousand Trees,
he turned his face to Abti Rayhn 4 and said, "By which of these
"
"
four doors shall I go out ? (for all four were practicable).
Decide and write the decision on a piece of paper, and put it under
my quilt." Abu Rayhan called for an astrolabe, took the altitude,
determined the Ascendant, reflected for a while, and then wrote
down his decision on a piece of paper, and placed it under the
quilt.
"

"Hast thou decided?" asked Mahmtid.

He

answered,

have."

Then Mahmiid bade them bring a navvy with pick-axe and

spade, and in the wall which was on the eastern side they dug
out a fifth door, through which he went out. Then he bade them
bring the paper. So they brought it, and on it Abu Rayhan had
"
He will go out through none of these four doors, but
written,
they will dig a fifth door in the eastern wall, by which door he
will go forth." Mahmiid, on reading this, was furious, and bade
them cast Abu Rayhdn down in the midst of the palace, and so
they did. Now there was stretched a net from the middle floor,
and on it Abii Rayhdn fell. The net tore, and he subsided gently
"
to the ground, so that he received no injury.
Bring him in,"
said Mahmud. So they brought him in, and Mahmiid said, " O
"
Abii Rayhdn, at all events thou didst not know about this event!
1

2
8
*

Eiterally, "of the Banii

See n. 3 on p. 63 supra

Hdshim."
and Note XXIII at the end.
I.e. the great Sultan Mahmiid of Ghazna (reigned A.H. 388-421, A.D.
998-1030).
Al-Bfninf. See n'. i on p. 62 supra, and Note XX III at the end.
B.

THIRD DISCOURSE.

66
"

knew

it,

Sire,"

answered he.

proof?" So Abii Rayhdn

ON ASTROLOGERS
Said Mahmiid, "

Where is the
Almanac

called for his servant, took the

from him, and produced the prognostications out of the Almanac;

"
and amongst the predictions of that day was written
To-day
from
a
cast
me
down
I
the
will
but
shall
reach
high place,
they
earth in safety, and arise sound in body."
All this was not according to Mahmiid's mind. He waxed
still angrier, and ordered Abii Rayhdn to be detained in the
citadel. So Abii Rayhdn was confined in the citadel of Ghazna,
where he remained for six months.
:

ANECDOTE XXIV.
during that period of six months none dared
Mahmiid about Abii Rayhdn; (OA) but one of his
servants was deputed to wait upon him, and go out to get
what he wanted, and return therewith. One day this servant
was passing through the Park {Marghzdr) of Ghazna when a
"
I perceive several things
fortune-teller called him and said,
It is said that

speak to

worth mentioning

may

reveal

them

in

your fortune: give me a present, that I

The servant gave him two dirhams^

to you."

whereupon the Sooth-sayer said, "One dear to thee is in

affliction, but ere three days are past he will be delivered from
that affliction, will be invested with a robe of honour and mark
of favour, and will again become distinguished and ennobled."
The servant proceeded to the citadel and told this incident
Abii Rayhan laughed
jto his master as a piece of good tidings.
and said, " O foolish fellow, dost thou not know that one ought
not to loiter in such places? Thou hast wasted two dirhams"
It is said that the Prime Minister Ahmad ibn Hasan of Maymand (may God be merciful to him !) was for six months seeking
an opportunity to say a word on behalf of Abii Rayhn. At
length, when engaged in the chase, he found the King in a good
humour, and, working from one topic to another, he brought the
conversation round to Astrology. Then he said, " Poor Abii
RayhAn uttered two such good prognostications, and, instead
of decorations and a robe of honour, earned only bonds and
"
"
Know, my lord," replied Mahmiid, for I have
imprisonment."
discovered it, and all men admit it, that this man has no equal in
the world save Abii 'AH [ibn] Sfnd (Avicenna). But both his
prognostications were opposed to my will and kings are like
little children; in order to receive rewards from them, one should
speak in accordance with their views. Jt would have been better
for him on that day if one of those two prognostications had
been wrong. But to-morrow order him to be brought fbrtri, and
to be given a horse caparisoned with gold, a royal robe, a satin
turban, a thousand dinars, a boy slave and a handmaiden."
;

GOOD PREDICTIONS BY ILLITERATES

So, on the very

67

by the sooth-sayer, they brought

the gift of honour detailed above was
conferred upon him, and the King apologized to him, saying,
"
Abu Rayhin, if thou desirest to reap advantage from me,
speak according to my desire, not according to the dictates of
thy science." So thereafter Abii Rayhdn altered his practice;
and this is one of the conditions of the king's service, that one
must be with him in right or wrong, and speak according to
forth

day

specified

Abu Rayhdn, and

his wish 1

Now when

Abii Rayhn went to his house and the learned

to congratulate him, he related to them the incident of the
sooth-sayer, whereat they were amazed, (*) and sent to summon
him. They found him quite illiterate, knowing nothing. Then
Abu Rayhdn said, " Hast thou the horoscope of thy nativity ? "
"
I have," he replied.
Then he brought the horoscope and Abii

came

Rayhdn examined it, and the Part of the Unsfcen

on the degree of his Ascendant, so that whatever he
he spoke blindly, came near to the truth.

fell

said,

directly

though

ANECDOTE XXV.
I had in my employment a woman-servant, who was born on
the 28th of Safar, A.H. 51 1 2 (July ist, A.D. 1117), when the Moon
was in conjunction with the Sun and there was no distance between them, so that in consequence of this the Part of Fortune
and the Part of the Unseen both fell on the degree of the
Ascendant. When she reached the age of fifteen years, I taught
her Astrology, in which she became so skilful that she could
answer difficult questions in this science, and her prognostications came mighty near the truth. Ladies used to come to her
and question her, and the most part of what she said coincided
with the pre-ordained decrees of Fate.
One day an old woman came to her and said, " It is now
four years since a son of mine went on a journey and I have no
news of him, neither of his life nor of his death. See whether he
is of the living or the dead, and wherever he is acquaint me with
his condition." So the woman-astrologer arose, took the altitude,
worked out the degree of the Ascendant, drew out an astrological
and the very
figure, and determined the positions of the stars
first words she said were, "Thy son hath returned!"
The old woman was annoyed and said, "
child, I have no
"
hopes of his coming tell me this much, is he alive or dead ?
;

Cf. Gulistdn, ed. Platts, p. 40, last two lines.

4. and 8. have "512," and L. "510." Although the text has J***e,
"an old wftman," I have substituted "a woman-servant" as more appropriate, for
since she was born in A.H. 51 1 and the Chahdr Maqdla was composed about A.H. 551
8

or 552, she can only have been at most about forty years of
described took place shortly before it was here recorded.

age",

even

if

the incident

5-2

THIRD DISCOURSE.

68

ON ASTROLOGERS

"
"
I tell you," said the other,
thy son hath come. Go, and if
he hath not come, return that I may tell thee how he is."
So the old woman went to her house, and lo, her son had
arrived and they were unloading his ass. She embraced him,
took two veils, and brought them to the woman -astrologer, saying,
"
Thou didst speak truly my son hath come," and gave her a
blessing with her present. When I came home and heard tidings
of this, I enquired of her, " By what indication didst thou speak,
"
and from what house didst thou deduce this prognostication ?
"
She answered, I had not reached so far as this. When I had
finished the figure of the Ascendant, (i ) a fly came and settled
on the number of the degree of the Ascendant, wherefore it so
seemed in my mind that this young man had returned. When
I had thus spoken, and the mother had gone to find out, it
became as certain to me that he had come as though I actually
saw him unloading his ass."
Then I perceived that it was the Part of the Unseen which
had effected all this on the degree of the Ascendant, and that
this [success of hers] arose from nothing else but this.
;

ANECDOTE XXVI.
Mahmiid

Dd'udi, the son of Abu'l-QAsim Da'iidi, was a great

nay, almost a madman, and had no great amount of knowledge of the stars though of astrological operations he could
-cast a nativity, and in his note-book were figures, declaring
"it is" or "it is not." He was in the service of Amfr-DAd Abu
Bakr ibn Mas'ud at Panj-dih; and his prognostications mostly
fool,

came nearly

Now

his

right.

madness was such that when

of the Mountains 1 sent

Amfr-Ddd a

my

master the King

pair of Ghurf dogs, very

large and formidable, he fought with them of his own free will,
and escaped from them in safety. Years afterwards we were
sitting with a number of persons of learning in the Druggists'
Bdzdr at Herdt, in the shop of Muqrf the surgeon-barter, and
discussing all manner of subjects. One of these learned men
to remark, " What a great man was Avicenna (Ibn
happening
"
I
saw Dd'udf fly into such a passion that the veins of
Si'na)
his neck became hard and prominent, and all the symptoms
of anger appeared in him, and he cried, " O So-and-so, who was
Abii 'AH ibn Sfad ? I am worth a thousand Abii 'AHs, for he
!

never even fought with a cat, whilst I fought before Amfr-Dad

with two Ghurf dogs." So on that day I knew him to be mad
yet for all his madness, I witnessed the following occurrence.

I.e.

Qutbu'd-Din

dynasty, poisoned by

Muhammad
Bahrim

ibn 'Izzu'd-Dfn Husayn, the

See Note I at* the end.

Shall.

first

king of the Ghuri

DA'tiuf

THE CRAZY ASTROLOGER

69

In the year A.H. 508 (A.D. 1114-1115), when Sultin Sanjar

1
encamped in the Plain of Khiizdn on his way to Transoxiana
a
to fight with Muhammad
Amfr-Dd made a mighty great
entertainment for the King at Panj-dih. On the third day he
came to the river-brink, and entered a boat to amuse himself (i\)
with fishing. In the boat he summoned Di'iidf before him to
talk in that mad way of his, while he laughed, for Dd'udf would
,

KMn

openly abuse Amir-Ddd.

Presently the

maunds the

King

which

said to DA'udf, "Prognosticate

how many

DA'udi
hook." So the King drew it up and he
"
took the altitude, paused for a while, and then said, Now cast
"
it." The King cast, and he said,
I prognosticate that this fish
"
which you will draw out will weigh five maunds."
knave,"
said Amfr-Dad, "whence should fish of five maunds' weight come
" "
into this stream ?
Be silent," said DA'iidf "what do you know
"
about it ?
So Amir-DAd was silent, fearing that, should he insist
"

said,

fish

shall catch this

time

will weigh."

Draw up your

he would only get abuse.

After a while there was a pull on the line, indicating that a
The King drew in the line with
fish had been taken captive.
a very large fish on it, which, when weighed, scaled six 3 maunds.
All were amazed,and the King of the World expressed his astonishment, for which, indeed, there was good occasion. "Dci'iidf," said
the King, "what dost thou wish for?" "O King of the face of the
Earth," said he with an obeisance, "I desire but a coat of mail,
a shield and a spear, that I may do battle with BAwarclf." And
this Bdwardf was an officer attached to Amfr-Ddd's Court, and
Dd'udi entertained towards him a fanatical hatred, because the
title of Shtijd'u'l-Mulk (" the Champion of the Kingdom ") hac
been conferred on him, while Da'iidi himself bore the title of
Shuj&til-Hukamd ("the Champion of the Philosophers"), and
grudged that the other should also be entitled S/ttytf. And
Amfr-Did, well knowing this, used continually to embroil Da'udf
with him, and this good Musulman was at his wit's end by reason
of him.
In short, as to Mahmiid Dd'udfs madness there was no doubt,
and I have mentioned this matter in order that the King may
further,

know

that as regards astrological predictions folly

amongst the conditions of this craft.

are
1

ibn

See Barbier de Meynard's Diet, de

la Perse, pp.

and insanity

215-216.

The person meant is Muhammad Khan (known as Arslan Khan) ibn Sulaymdn
Da'iid ibn Bughra Khdn of the Khdniyya dynasty. The event alluded to in the

text took place in A.H. 507 (A.D.

3

113-11

14).

^L. has "five," which corresponds better with the prognostication, but the MS.

authority-is in favour of the reading here

adopted.

THIRD DISCOURSE.

70

ON ASTROLOGERS

ANECDOTE XXVII.
Hakfm-i-Mawsilf was one of the order of Astrologers in
and was in the service of that Great Minister Nizdmu'lMulk of Tiis, who used to consult with him on matters of importance, and seek his advice (if) and opinion. Now when Mawsilf 's
years were drawing to a close, and failure of his faculties began
to manifest itself, and feebleness of body began to appear, so
that he was no longer able to perform these long journeys, he
asked the Minister's permission to go and reside at Nfshdpur,
and to send thence, annually, an almanac and forecast for
Nfshdpiir,

the year.
Now the Minister Nizdmu'1-Mulk was also in the decline of
life and near the term of existence
and he said, " Calculate the
march of events and see when the dissolution of my elemental
nature will occuf, and at what date that inevitable doom and
unavoidable sentence will befall."
Hakfm-i-Mawsilf answered, "Six months after my death."
So the Minister bestowed on him in increased measure all things
needful for his comfort, and Mawsilf went to Nfshapiir, and there
abode in ease, sending each year the forecast and calendar. And
whenever anyone came to the Minister from Nfshdpiir, he used
first to enquire, "How is Mawsilf?" and so soon as he had
ascertained that he was alive and well, he would become joyous
;

and

cheerful.

At

length in the year A.ll. 485 (A.D. 1092-3) one arrived from
Nfshapiir, and the Minister enquired of him concerning Mawsilf.
The man replied, with an obeisance, "May he who holdeth the
Mawsilf hath
chief seat in Isldm be the heir of many life-times
quitted this mortal body." "When?" enquired the Minister. "In
the middle of Rabf the First" (April II
May 11, A.D. 1092),
answered the man, " he yielded up his life for him who sitteth in
the chief seat of Isldm."
The Minister thereat was mightily put about ; yet, being
thus warned, he looked into all his affairs, confirmed all his pious
endowments, gave effect to his bequests, wrote his last testament, set free such of his slaves as had earned his approval,
discharged the debts which he owed, and, so far as lay in his
power, made all men content with him, and sought forgiveness
from his adversaries, and so sat awaiting his fate until the month
of Ramaddn (A.H. 485 = Oct. 5 Nov. 4, A.D. 1092), when he fell
a martyr at Baghddd 1 at the hands of that Sect (i.e. the Assassins)
may God make illustrious his Proof, and accord him an ample
!

approval
1

This

sinated at

is

an error of .the

Nihdwand

is

author's, for the evidence that

overwhelming.

Nizdmu'1-Mulk was assas-

*UMAR KHAYYAM'S PROGNOSTICATION

71

Since the observed Ascendant of the nativity, the Lord of the

House, and the dominant influence (hayldj) were rightly determined, and the Astrologer was expert and accomplished, naturally
the prognostication came true
And He \God\ knoweth best.
1

ANECDOTE XXVIII.
In the year A.H. 506 (A.D. 1112-1113) Khwdja Imdm 'UmarImdm Muzaffar-i-IsfizAr{ 3 had alighted
in the city of Balkh, in the Street of the Slave-sellers, in the
house of Amfr (ir) Abu Sa'd Jarrah, and I had joined that
assembly. In the midst of our convivial gathering I heard that
2
i-Khayydmi and Khwdja

Argument of Truth (Hujjatul-Haqq) 'Umar

"

My grave will
a spot where the trees will shed their blossoms on me twice
a year 4 ." This thing seemed to me impossible, though I 'knew
that one such as he would not speak idle words*
When I arrived at N(shpur in the year A.H. 530 (A.D. 1 135-6),
5
it being then four
years since that great man had veiled his
countenance in the dust, and this nether world had been bereaved
of him, I went to visit his grave on the eve of a Friday (seeing
that he had the claim of a master on me), taking with me one to
6
point out to me his tomb. So he brought me out to the Hfra
I turned to the left, and found his tomb situated at
Cemetery
the foot of a garden-wall, over which pear-trees and peach-trees
be

say,

in

thrust their heads, and on his grave had fallen so many flowerleaves that his dust was hidden beneath the flowers. Then I
remembered that saying which I had heard from him in the city
of Balkh, and I fell to weeping, because on the face of the earth,
and in all the regions of the habitable globe, I nowhere saw one
like

unto him.

May God

(blessed

and exalted

is

He!) have mercy

1 I confess that these

astrological terms are beyond me. Several of them (e.g.
hayldj and kaiikhudd) are explained in the section of the MafdtihiSl-'ulum which
treats of Astrology (ed. van Vloten, pp. 125-232).
See, however, Note XXIV at
the end.
2 The
MSS. have Khayydml^ the form usually found in Arabic books. See Note
at the end.
3
A notable astronomer who collaborated with 'Umar-i-Khayydm and others in
A.H. 467 (A.D. 1074-1075) in the computation of the Jalalf era by command of
Malikshah. Ibnu'l-Athir mentions him under the above year by the name of Abu'lMuzaffar al-Isfizarf.
*
The editor of the text has adopted the reading of the Constantinople MS.,
"
every spring-tide the north wind will scatter blossoms on me," but the reading here
adopted seems to me preferable, for there would be nothing remarkable in the grave
being; covered with fallen blossoms once a year ; what was remarkable was that it
should happen twice.
The Constantinople MS., which is the oldest and most reliable, alone has this
reading, the others having "some years." If "four" be correct, it follows that
'Umar-i-IQiayyam died in A.H. 5*6 (A.D. 1132) and not, as stated by most authorities,
in A.H. 515 (A.D. 1121-1122) or 517 (A.D. 1123-1124).
6
Hira, according to as-Sam'ani and Yaqiit, was a large and well-known quarter
lying outside NishapUr on the road to Merv.

XXV

THIRD DISCOURSE.

72

ON ASTROLOGERS

8
1
upon him by His Grace and His Favour! Yet although I
on
of
that Proof of the
the part
witnessed this prognostication
Truth 'Umar, I did not observe that he had any great belief in
nor have I seen or heard of any of the
astrological predictions
great [scientists] who had such belief.
,

ANECDOTE XXIX.
In the winter of the year A.H. 508 (A.D. 1 1 14-1 115) the King
sent a messenger to Merv to the Prime Minister Sadru'd-Dfn
s
[Abu Ja'far] Muhammad ibn al-Muzaffar (on whom be God's
Mercy) bidding him tell Khwdja Imdm 'Umar to select a favourable time for him to go hunting, such that therein should be no
snowy or rainy days. For Khwdja Imdm 'Umar was in the
Minister's company, and used to lodge at his house.
The Minister, therefore, sent a messenger to summon him,
and told him what had happened. So he went and looked into the
matter for two days, and made a careful choice ; and he himself
went and superintended the mounting of the King at the
auspicious moment. When the King was mounted and had gone
but a short distance 4, the sky became over-cast with clouds, a
wind arose, (ii) and snow and mist supervened. All present fell
but Khwaja
to laughing, and the King desired to turn back
Imdm ['Umar] said, " Let the King be of good cheer, for this
very hour the clouds will clear away, and during these five days
there will not be a drop of moisture." So the King rode on, and
the clouds opened, and during those five days there was no
moisture, and no one saw a cloud.
But prognostication by the stars, though a recognized art, is
not to be relied on, nor should the astronomer have any farreaching faith therein and whatever the astrologer predicts he
must leave to Fate.
;

ANECDOTE XXX.
It is incumbent on the King, wherever he goes, to prove such
companions and servants as he has with him and if one is a
believer in the Holy Law, and scrupulously observes the rites
and duties thereof, he should make him an intimate, and treat
;

A. and C. have "cause him to dwell in Paradise,"

" Anecdote XXIX "
In the printed text
begins herewith the following sentence,
which is omitted in the Tihrdn lithographed edition.
8 He was the
grandson of the great Nizamu'1-Mulk. His father, Fakhru'1-Mulk
Abu'1-Fath al-Muzaflar, was put to death by Sultan Sanjar, whose Minister he was,
in A.H. 500 (A.D. 1106-1107). Sadru'd-Dfn himself was murdered by one of Sanjar's
1

1 ( A. i>. 1 1 1 7- 1 1 1 8) .
suppose this to be the meaning of the words :
O**J l&J^ &* j,
which is the reading of all the texts. It perhaps means the distance .which the human

servants in A. II. 5 1

C3^

4 I

voice will carry

when

raised to

its

highest pitch.

ROGUISH SOOTH-SAYER

73

him with honour and confide in him but if otherwise, he should

drive him away, and guard even the outskirts of his environment
from his very shadow. Whoever does not believe in the religion
of God (great and glorious is He !) and the law of Muhammad
the Chosen One, in him can no man trust, and he is unlucky,
both to himself and to his master.
In the beginning of the reign of the King Sultdn GhiydthiidDunyd wctd-Din Muhammad ibn Malikshdh, styled Qastmu
Amtrfl-Mtiminin (may God illuminate his tomb!) the King of
the Arabs Sadaqa 2 revolted ancl withdrew his neck from the yoke
of allegiance, and with fifty thousand Arabs marched on Baghdad
from Hilla 8 The Prince of Believers al-Mustazhir bi'lldh had
;

sent off letter after letter and courier after courier to Isfahdn,
summoning *the Sultdn, who sought from the astrologers the
determination of the auspicious moment. But no such determination could be made which would suit the Lord of the King's

Ascendant, which was retrograde. So they said, "O Sire, we

no auspicious moment." "Seek it, then," said he; and he
was very urgent in the matter, and much vexed in mind. And

find

so the astrologers fled.

Now there was a man of Ghazna who had a shop in the
Street of the Dome and who used to practise sooth-saying, and
women used to visit him, and he used to write them love-charms,

but he had no profound knowledge. By means of an acquaintance

with one of the King's servants he brought himself to the King's
"
I will find an auspicious moment
notice, and said,
depart in
that, and if (i<) thou dost not return victorious, then cut off my
;

head."

So the King was

pleased, and mounted his horse at the

declared auspicious by him, and gave him two hundred
dindrs of Nfshapiir, and went forth, fought with Sadaqa, defeated
his army, took him captive, and put him to death. And when he
returned triumphant and victorious to Isfahan, he heaped favours
on the sooth-sayer, conferred on him great honours, and made
him one of his intimates. Then he summoned the astrologers
and said, " You did not find an auspicious moment, it was this

moment

Ghaznawf who found it and I went, and God justified his foreWherefore did ye act thus ? Probably Sadaqa had sent you
a bribe so that you should not name the auspicious time." Then
"
they all fell to the earth, lamenting and exclaiming, No astrologer was satisfied with that choice. If you wish, write a message
;

cast.

Reigned A. H. 498-511 (A.D. 1104-1117).

"
.For an account of this event and the doings of Sadaqa ibn Mazy ad, the King of
the Arabs*" here mentioned, see Ibnu'l-Athir's Chronicle sub anno A.H. 501 (A.D.
1107-1108).
* This is an
error, for Sadaqa never attacked Baghdad nor quarrelled with the
Caliph al-Mustazhir bi'llah, his quarrel being with Muhammad ibn Malikshdh.
3

THIRD DISCOURSE.

74

PN

ASTROLOGERS

it to Khurdsdn, and see what Khwaja Imdm 'Umar-iKhayydmf says."

The King saw that the poor wretches did not speak amiss.
He therefore summoned one of his accomplished courtiers and

and send

said,

"Hold a wine-party

at

your house to-morrow. Invite

this

astrologer of Ghazna, give him wine, and, when he is overcome

with wine, enquire of him, saying, That moment determined by
thee was not good, and the astrologers find fault with it. Tell me
"
the secret of this/
Then the courtier did so, and, when his guest was drunk,
'

made

this

enquiry of him.

The Ghaznawf answered,

"

knew

that one of two things must happen ; either that army would be
defeated, or this one. If the former, then I should be loaded with
honours; and if the latter, who would concern himself about me?"
Next day the courtier reported this conversation to the King,

who ordered the. Ghaznawf sooth-sayer to be expelled, saying,

"Such a man holding such views about good Musulmdns is
1
unlucky." Then he summoned his own astrologers and restored

"
I myself held this
his confidence to them, saying,
sooth-sayer
to be an enemy, because he never said his prayers, and one who

agrees not with our

Holy Law, agrees not with

us."

ANECDOTE XXXI.
the
the
the

In the year A.H. 547 (A.D. 1 1 S2-3) 2 a battle was fought between
King of the World Sanjar ibn (11) Malikshah and my lord
3
King 'Ala'u'd-DunyA wa'd-Dfn at the Gates of Awba ; and
of
was
and
lord
the
Ghiir
defeated,
King of the
my
army

God perpetuate his reign !) was taken prisoner, and

son the Just King Shamsrfd-Dawla wctdrDin Muibn Mas'ud 4 was taken captive at the hands of the

East (may

my

lord's

hammad

Commander-in-Chief(^w/r-iW^//^2r/r)YaranqushHarfvva. The
ransom was fixed at fifty thousand dlndrs, and a messenger from
him was to go to the court at Bdmiydn to press for this sum
and when it reached Herat the Prince was to be released, being
5
already accorded his liberty by the Lord of the World (Sanjar)
of
his
at
the
time
from
Herat, granted
who, moreover,
departure
him a robe of honour. It was under these circumstances that
I arrived to wait upon him.

A. adds: " they killed him, and...."

This is the correct date, but the Tctrtkh-i-Gustda gives A.H. 544 (A.D. 1149-

1150).
3

A village near

Hertft.

of the Kings of Shansab or Ghi'ir who ruled over Bamiydn, and the
son of Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid. See p. \t of the Persian notes and Note I at the end.
8 The
meaning appears to be that a ransom was demanded by the Amir Yaranqush,
the Prince's actual captor, but not by his over-lord Sanjar.
4

The second

A UTOBIOGRAPH ICAL

75

One day, being extremely sad at heart, he signed to me, and

enquired when this deliverance would finally be accomplished,
and when this consignment would arrive. So I took an observation that day with a view to making this prognostication, and
worked out the Ascendant, exerting myself to the utmost, and
[ascertained that] there was an indication of a satisfactory solution
to the question on the third day. So next day I came and said,
"To-morrow at the time of the afternoon prayer the messenger will
arrive." All that day the Prince was thinking about this matter.
Next day I hastened to wait on him. " To-day," said he, " is the
time fixed." " Yes," I replied and continued in attendance on
him till theafternoon prayer. When the call to prayer was sounded,
he remarked reproachfully, " The afternoon prayer has arrived,
"
but still no news
Even while he was thus speaking, a courier
arrived bringing the good tidings that the consignment had come,
consisting of fifty thousand dinars^ sheep, and olher things, and
that 'Izzu'd-Dfn Mahmiid Hdjji, the steward of Prince Husdmu'dDa\yla wa'd-Dfn, was in charge of the convoy. Next day my lord
Shamsu'd-Dawla wa'd-Dfn was invested with the King's dress of
honour, and released. Shortly afterwards he regained his beloved
home, and from that time onwards his affairs have prospered more
and more every day (may they continue so to do !). And it was
during these nights that he used to treat me with the utmost
kindness and say, "Nizdmf, do you remember making such a
;

prognostication in Herdt, and how it came true ? I wanted to fill

thy mouth with gold, but there I had no gold, though here
'I have."
Then he called for gold, and twice filled my mouth
"
therewith. Then he said, It will not hold enough hold out thy
sleeve." (iv) So I held it out, and he filled it also with gold.
May God (blessed and exalted is He!) maintain this dynasty in
daily-increasing prosperity, and long spare these two Princes to
;

my august

and royal Master, by His Favour, Bounty and Grace

(IA)

On

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

the Science of Medicine, and the right direction

of the Physician.

is maintained in the
wanes, it is restored; and whereby
the body is embellished by long hair, a clear complexion,
1
fragrance and vigour

Medicine

is

that art

whereby health

human body; whereby, when

it

of

1
The ordinary definition of Medicine ends at the word " restored," but the whole
Book VIII of the Dhakhira-i-Khwdrazmshdhi deals with the care of the hair,

nails,

complexion,

etc.

ON

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

76

PHYSICIANS

[Excursus.]

The physician should be of tender disposition and wise

nature, excelling in acumen, this being a nimbleness of mind in
forming correct views, that is to say a rapid transition to the
unknown from the known. And no physician can be of tender
disposition if he fails to recognize the nobility of the human
soul nor of wise nature unless he is acquainted with Logic, nor
can he excel in acumen unless he be strengthened by God's aid ;
and he who is not acute in conjecture will not arrive at a correct
understanding of any ailment, for he must derive his indications
;

from the pulse, which has a systole, a

diastole,

and a pause

intervening between these two movements

Now here there is a difference of opinion amongst physicians,
one school maintaining that it is impossible by palpation to
gauge the movement of contraction but that most accomplished
of the moderns, that Proof of the Truth Abu 'Alf al-Husayn ibn
'Abdu'lldh ibn Sfn& (Avicenna) 2 says in his book the Qdntin*
that the movement of contraction also can be gauged, though
with difficulty, in thin subjects. Moreover the pulse is of ten
sorts, each of which is divided into three subordinate varieties,
namely its two extremes and its mean but, unless the Divine
guidance assist the physician in his search for the truth, his
thought will not hit the mark. So also in the inspection of the
urine, the observing of its colours and sediments, and the deducing
of some special condition from each colour (i*) are no easy
matters; for all these indications depend on Divine help and
Royal patronage. This quality [of discernment] is that which we
have indicated under the name of acumen. And unless the
physician knows Logic, and understands the meaning of genus
and species, he cannot discriminate between that which appertains
to the category, that which is peculiar to the individual, and that
which is accidental, and so will not recognize the cause [of the
disease]. And, failing to recognize the cause, he cannot succeed in
his treatment But let us now give an illustration, so that it may
be known that it is as we say. Disease is the genus fever, headache, cold, delirium, measles and jaundice are the species, each of
which is distinguished from the others by a diagnostic sign, and in
"
turn itself constitutes a genus. For example, Fever" is the genus,
wherein quotidian, tertian, double tertian and quartan are the
1

1
Some notes on the varieties of pulse recognized by the Arabian physicians will
be found in Note XXVI at the end.
"
See de Shine's translation of Ibn Khallikdn, vol. i, pp. 440-446; von Kremer's
Culfargeschichte d. Orients, vol. ii, pp. 455-456; WUstenfeld's Gesch. d. *Arab.
^
Aerzte, pp. 64-75; and Note XXVII, No. 10, at the end.
3 The
Qdntin was printed at Rome, A.D. 1593, and the Latin translation at Venice
in A.D. 1544.
According to Steinschneider, Gerard of Cremona's Latin translation
was printed more than thirty times, and fifteen times before A.D. 1500.

HEALING BY PRAYER

77

species, each of which is distinguished from the other by a special

Thus, for instance, quotidian is distinguished
diagnostic sign.
from other fevers by the fact that the longest period thereof is a
1
day and a night, and that in it there is no languor , heaviness,
2
lassitude, nor pain. Again inflammatory fever is distinguished
from other fevers by the fact that when it attacks it does not
abate for several days while tertian is distinguished by the fact
and double tertian by
that it comes one day and not the next
this, that one day it comes with a higher temperature and a
shorter interval, and another day in a milder form with a longer
while lastly quartan is distinguished by the fact that
interval
it attacks one day, does not recur on the second and third days,
but comes again on the fourth. Each of these in turn becomes a
genus comprising several species and if the physician be versed in
Logic and possessed of acumen and knows which fever it is, what
the materies morbi* is, and whether it is simple or compound, he
can then at once proceed to treat it. But if he Vail to recognize
the disease, then let him turn to God and seek help from Him
ancl sq likewise, if he fail in his treatment, let him have recourse
to God and seek help from Him, seeing that all issues are in
His hands.
;

ANECDOTE XXXII.
In the year A.H. 512 (A.J). 1118-19), in the Druggist's Bazaar
of Nfshapur, at the shop of Muhammad (Y.) ibn Muhammad the
4
Astrologer-Physician 1 heard Khw&ja Imam Abti Bakr Daqqdq
saying, "In the year A.H. 502 (A.D. 1108-9) a certain notable
man of Nishdpiir was seized with the colic and called me in.
I examined him, and proceeded to treat him, trying every remedy
suggested in this malady; but no improvement in his health
took. place. Three days elapsed. At the time of evening prayer
I returned in despair, convinced that the patient would pass
away at midnight. In this distress I fell asleep. In the morning
I went up on
I awoke, not doubting that he had passed away.
to the roof, and turned my face in that direction to listen, but
heard no sound [of lamentation] which might indicate his decease.
I repeated the Fdtiha, breathing it in that direction and adding,
my God, my Master and my Lord, Thou Thyself hast said
in the Sure Book and Indubitable Scripture, "And we will send
,

"

Perhaps " languor" is hardly strong enough. The original is takassur, literally
being broken to pieces."
2 4JLJx
*f3' See Schlimmer's Terminologie Mtdico-Pharmaceutique (lithoand 285. Perhaps, however, it should
graphed at Tihran, A.D. 1874), pp. 192-197
" continuous."
See Note XXVI at the end.
here be translated "remittent" or even
* /. whether it be primary or secondary, from which of the four humours it
1

"

contrition,"

arises, etc.
4

The

The readings vary, A. has-^*o

reading adopted in the text

is

J>p

no doubt

* ; B.JMJ*** J>pfc * ; L.^p

correct.

** only.

ON

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

78

down

PHYSICIANS

what shall be a Healing and a Mercy to true

For I was filled with regret, seeing that he was a
young man, and wealthy, and in easy circumstances, and had
all things needful for a pleasant life.
Then I performed the
minor ablution, went to the oratory and acquitted myself of the
3
One knocked at the door of the house.
customary prayer
I looked and saw that it was one of his
people, who gave good
I enquired what had
tidings, saying,
Open
happened, and
he replied, 'This very hour he obtained relief/ Then I knew
that this was through the blessing of the Fdtiha of the Scripture,
and that this draught had been issued from the Divine Dispensary. For I have put this to the proof, administering this
draught in many cases, in all of which it proved beneficial, and
in the Qui*dn

believers*

'

resulted in restoration to health."

Therefore the physician should

and should venerate the commands and prohibitions of the Holy Law.
On the Science of Medicine the student should procure and
read the "Aphorisms" (Fusiil) of Hippocrates, the "Questions
(Masd'il) of Hunayn ibn' Ishdq", the "Guide" (Murshid) of
Muhammad ibn Zakariyya of Ray (ar-Rdzf) 4,and the Commentary
of NfH, who has made abstracts of these. After he has carefully
read [these works] with a kind and congenial master, he should
be of good

faith,

11

diligently study with a sympathetic teacher the following intermediate works, to wit, the " Thesaurus " (Dhakhtra) of Thabit ibn

[Kitdbu't- TibbVl-] Manstiri of Muhammad ibn

the "Direction" (Hiddyd) of Abu Bakr
Ajwfm', or the "Sufficiency" (Kifdyd) of Ahmad [ibn] Faraj and

Qurra", the

7
Zakariyyd of Ray

the
1

"

Aims

QuStin,

"

(Aghrdd) of Sayyid

Isma'il' Jurjdnf 8 .

Then he

xvii, 84.

Kach prayer

consists of three parts, what is obligatory (farff), what is

customary
Prophet's example (suntiat], and what is supererogatory (ndfila).
The
sunnat portion comes first, so that in the story the narrator was interrupted before he
had performed the obligatory prostrations.
3
See Wilstenfeld's Geschichte d. Arab. Aerzte> No. 69, pp. 36-39. He was born
A.H. 194 (A.D. 809) and died A.H. 260 (A.D. 873).
fuller account of all these
writers and their works will be found in Note XXVII at the end.
4
lie is known in
Ibid., No. 98, pp. 40-49.
Europe as Rasis or Rhazes. The
Murshid here mentioned is identified by the Editor with the work properly entitled
al-Fu&l J?t-'fibfa or "Aphorisms in Medicine." See p. fr- of the Persian notes,
and Note XXVII at the end.
See p. f r\ of the Persian notes. His full name was Abii Sahl Sa'id ibn
The nisba " Nili " is explained in
'Ahdu'l-'Aziz, and he was a native of Nfshdpiir.
Sam'ani's Ansdb (Vol. xx of the Gibb Series, f. 574b ) as referring to a place called
Nil between Baghdad and Kitfa, or to connection with the trade in indigo (//). Here
the latter sense is evidently required. Mention is made of the brother o? our
physician,
a poet and man of letters named Abu" 'Abdi'r- Rahman ibn *Abdu'l-'Azfz, who died
about 44O/ 1 048-0.
6
Al-Qifti in his Ttfrlkhttl-Hukamd (ed. Lippert, p. 120) mentions this work, but
expresses a doubt as to its authorship.
* See
Wustenfeld, op. cit., p. 43, No. 2. This celebrated work was composed for
Mansrir ibn Ishaq, Governor of Ray, A.D. 003-9.
after the

tt

See Wustenfeld, */./., No. 165,

p. 95.

79
should take up one of the more detailed treatises, such as the
1
"Sixteen (Treatises/ Sitta 'ashar) of Galen, or the "Continens"
"
1
(Hdwi) of Muhammad ibn Zakariyyri, or the Complete Practitioner" (KdmiliiS-Sind'aty, or the "Hundred Chapters" (Sad
8
Bdb) of Abii Sahl Masfhf or the QdnAn of Abii 'Alf ibn Sfni
4
(Avicenna) or the Dhakhira-i-Khwdrazm-shdhP, and read it in
his leisure moments
or, if he desires to be independent of other
works, he may content himself with the Qdntin.
The Lord (v\) of the two worlds and the Guide of the two
"
Grosser Races says
Every kind of game is in the belly of the
6
of
all
which I have spoken is to be found in
this
wild ass ":
and whoever, has
the Qdmin, with much in addition thereto
mastered the first volume of the Qdmin> to him nothing will be
hidden of the general and fundamental principles of Medicine,
for could Hippocrates and Galen return to life, it were meet
that they should do reverence to this book. Yet have I heard a
wonderful thing, to wit that one hath taken exception to Abii
'AH [ibn Sfnd] in respect of this work, and hath embodied his
"
objections in a book, which he hath named the Rectification of
I
the Qdntin'*"] and it is as though looked at both, and perceived
what a fool the author was, and how detestable is the book
which he has composed For what right has anyone to find fault
with so great a man when the very first question which he meets
with in a book of his which he comes across is difficult to his
comprehension ? For four thousand years the wise men of antiquity travailed in spirit and melted their very souls in order to
reduce the Science of Philosophy to some fixed order, yet could
not effect this, until, after the lapse of this period, that incomparable philosopher and most powerful thinker Aristotle weighed
this coin in the balance of Logic, assayed it with the touchstone
of definitions, and measured it by the scale of analogy, so that all
doubt and ambiguity departed from it, and it became established
,

"
1
Continens," is the most detailed and
This, known to mediaeval Europe as the
most important of ar-Razi's works. The original Arabic exists only in manuscript,
and that partially. The Latin translation was printed at Brescia in A.D. 1486, and in
1500, 1506, 1509 and 1542 at Venice. See Note XXVII at the end, No. 4.
2 This notable
Liber Regius ") was comwork, also known as al-Kitdbtfl-Malikl^
"
posed by 'AH ibnu'l- Abbas al-Majusi (" Haly Abbas of the mediaeval physicians of
in
The
died
A.H.
Arabic
text
has been lithographed
who
384 (A.D. 994).
Europe),
at Lahore in A.H. 1283 ( A D> 1866) and printed at Bulaq in A.H. 1294 (A.D. 1877).
There are two editions of the Latin translation (Venice, A.D. 1492, and Lyons,
4

A.D. 1523).
8

60,

Avicenna's master, d. A.H. 390 (A.D. 1000). See Wiistenfeld, loc, at., pp. 59No. 1 18; p. (? of the Persian notes; and Note XXVII, No. 9, at the end.
4
See Note XXVII, No. 10, at the end.
8
See Rieu's Persian Catalogue, pp. 466-467.
*'
Meaning that every kind of game is inferior to the wild ass. It is said proverbi-

ally of
7

any one who excels

his fellows.

See Lane's Arabic Lexicon, p. 2357)

s.v.

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

8o

ON

PHYSICIANS

on a sure and critical basis. And during these fifteen centuries

which have elapsed since his time, no philosopher hath won to
the inmost essence of his doctrine, nor travelled the high road
of his method, save that most excellent of the moderns, the
Philosopher of the East, the Proof of God unto His creatures,
Abu 'AH al-Husayn ibn 'Abdu'llilh ibn SfnA (Avicemia). He
who finds fault with these two great men will have cut himself
off from the company of the wise, placed himself in the category
of madmen, and exhibited himself in the ranks of the feebleminded. May God (blessed and exalted is He!) keep us from such
stumblings and vain desires, by His Favour and His Grace
So, if the physician hath mastered the first volume of the
!

Qdmin, and hath attained to forty years of age, he will be worthy

of confidence
yet even if he hath attained to this degree, he
should keep ever with him some of the smaller treatises composed
by proved masters, such as the "Gift of Kings" (Tu/ifahflMulfiky of Muhammad ibn Zakariyyd [ar-Razi], or the Kifdya
of Ibn Manduya of Isfahan 2 or the " Provision against all sorts
of errors in Medical Treatment" (Taddruku anwtffl-khatd fi
9
t-tadbtrft-tiUt)* of which Abu 'AH (Avicenna) is the author
or the Kkuffiyy-i^Alai^ or the "Memoranda" (Yddigdr)* of
Sayyid Isma'fl Jurjdnf. For no reliance can be placed on the
Memory, which is located in the most posterior (vc) part of the
brain 8 and when it is slow in its operation these books
may
;

prove helpful.
Therefore every King who would choose a physician must
see that these conditions which have been enumerated are found
for it is no light matter to commit one's life and soul
in him
;

hands of any ignorant quack, or to entrust the care of

any reckless charlatan.

into the

one's health to
1

No

Abu

is made in
any of the biographies of ar-Razi.
Ali Ahmad ibn 'Abdu'r- Rahman ibn
Mandiiya of Isfahan was a notable
of
the fourth century of the hijra (tenth of the Christian era).
He was one
physician
of the four and
twenty physicians appointed by 'Adudu'd-Dawla to the hospital which
he founded at Baghdad. The proper title of the work to which our author here refers
appears to be <i/-A//, not al-Kifdya.

mention of such a work

4

3
This book was printed in 1305/1887-8 at Bulaq in the margins of the
Mandfi'tilAghdhiya wa Maddrru-hd (" Beneficial and injurious properties of Foods ") of

ar-Razi.
4

small manual of Medicine in Persian

by the author of the Dhakklra-iwritten by command of Atsiz Khwdrazm-sha*h (succeeded to the

Khwdrazm-shM,

throne in 521/1 127) and called after him, his title being 4 AlaVd-Dawla.
6
Another small manual by the same author as the last. See Adolf Fonahn's
Zur Qutllenkunde der Persischen Medhin. (Leipzig, 1910), p. 105, No. 380, and
p-

vt

Concerning the Five Internal Senses and their supposed location in the brain,
see p. 8 supra, and also my Year amongst the Persians*
pp. 144-145.

HEROIC TREATMENT BY BuKHT-Yisntf'

81

ANECDOTE XXXIII.
Bukht-Yishu' a Christian of Baghdad, was a skilful physician
and a true and tender man and he was attached to the service
of al-Ma'mun [the Caliph]. Now one of the House of Hashim,
a kinsman of al-Ma'mun, was attacked with dysentery, and
1

al-Ma'mun, being greatly attached to him, sent Bukht-Yishu* to

treat him. So he, for al-Ma'mun' s sake, rose up, girt himself
with his soul a and treated him in various ways, but to no
purpose, and tried such recondite remedies as he knew, but to no
,

advantage, for the case had passed beyond his powers. So BtfkhtYishii* was ashamed before al-Ma'mun, who, divining this, said
to him, "
Bukht-Yishu', be not abashed, for thou didst fulfil
thine utmost endeavour, and rendered good service, but God
Almighty doth not desire [that thou shouldst succeed]. Acquiesce
in Fate, even as we have acquiesced." Bukht-Yishu', seeing alMa'mun thus hopeless, replied, " One other remedy remains, and
it is a perilous one
but, trusting to the fortune of the Prince of

Believers, I will attempt

cause it to succeed."

Now

it,

and perchance God Most High may

the patient was going to stool

fifty

or sixty times a day.

So Bukht-Yishu' prepared a purgative and administered it to

him and on the day whereon he took the purgative, his diarrhoea
was still further increased but next day it stopped. So the
;

"What
adopt?" He

hazardous treatment was this

answered, "The materies morbi
of this diarrhoea was from the brain, and until it was dislodged
from the brain the flux would not cease. I feared that, if I
administered a purgative, the patient's strength might not be
equal to the increased diarrhoea; but, when all despaired, I said
to myself, 'After all, there is hope in giving the purgative,
but none in withholding it.' So I gave it, relying on God, for
He is All Powerful; and God Most High vouchsafed a cure and
and my opinion was justified, namely
the patient recovered
that if the purgative were withheld, only the death of the patient
was to be expected, (vr) but that if it were administered, there
was a possibility of either life or death. So I deemed it best to
administer it."
physicians asked him,

which thou didst

1
See Wllstenfeld, op. /., p. 17, No. 30, and Note XXVII, No. i, at the end.
Concerning this and similar names, see Noldeke's Geschichte d. Artakhshir-i-Pdpakdn*

p. 49. n. 4.
*/.<-.

" Put

his

whole heart into

his task."

82

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

ON

PHYSICIANS

ANECDOTE XXXIV.
The great Shaykh and Proof of the Truth Abu 'AH ibn Sfnd
relates as follows in the "Book of the Origin and the
(Avicenna)
"
Return (Kitdbu'l-Mabdci wa *l-Ma'dd)\ at the end of the section
on " the possibility of the production of exceptional psychical
phenomena": He says "A curious anecdote hath reached me
which I have heard related.
certain physician was attached
to the court of one of the House of Sdman, and there attained
so high a position of trust that he used to enter the women's

apartments and

feel

closely-veiled inmates.

the pulses of

its

One day he was

carefully-guarded and
sitting with the King

women's apartments in a place where it was impossible

any [other] male creature to penetrate. The King demanded
food, and it was brought by the hand-maidens. One of these
who was laying the table took the tray off her head, bent down,
and placed it on the ground. When she desired to stand upright
again, she was unable to do so, but remained as she was, by
reason of a rheumatic swelling of the jointfc 2 The King turned
"
to the physician and said, You must cure her at once in whatever way you can." Here was no opportunity for any physical
method of treatment, for which no appliances were available,,}^
in the

for

So the physician bethought himself ^p,,

r
psychical treatment, and bade them remove the veil fro n he;
head and expose her hair, so that she might be ashamed and
make some movement, this condition being displeasing to her,,
to wit that all her head and face should be thus exposed. As,
however, she underwent no change, he proceeded to something
still more shameful, and ordered her trousers to be removed.
She was overcome with shame, and a warmth was produced
within her such that it dissolved that thick rheum and she stood
3
up straight and sound, and regained her normal condition
Had this physician not been wise and capable, he would
never have thought of this treatment and would have been
unable to effect this cure; while had he failed he would have
forfeited the King's regard.
Hence a knowledge of natural
phenomena and an apprehension of the facts of Nature form
part of this subject. And God knoweth best!
drugs being at hand.

1
The original passage is cited by Mirza Muhammad (on p. Vt of the Persian
notes) from Add. 16,659 of the British Museum, f. 488.
"
2
Literally,
by reason of a thick rheum which was produced in her joints."
8 This anecdote is told
by al-Qifti (p. \rt) and Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (Vol. i, p. \ TV) of

versified rendering of
the physician Bukht- Yishii* and the Caliph Hartinu'r-Rashid.
" Chain of Gold "
it is given in Jdmi's
(Sihilat^dh-Dhahab}, composed in*A.D. 1485.
The text of this version is given in Note XXVIII at the end.

PSYCHOTHERAPEUSIS
(vt)

83

ANECDOTE XXXV.

Another of the House of Simdn, Amfr Mansiir ibn Niih ibn

Nasr 1 became afflicted with an ailment which grew chronic, and
remained established, and the physicians were unable to cure it.
So the Amfr Mansiir sent messengers to summon Muhammad
ibn Zakariyya ar-Razf to treat him. Muhammad ibn ZakariyyA
came as far as the Oxus, but, when he reached its shores and
saw it, he said, "I will not embark in the boat, for God Most
High saith 'Do not cast yourselves into peril with your own
hands* '; and again it is surely a thing remote from wisdom
Ere
voluntarily to place one's self in so hazardous a position."
the AmiVs messenger had gone to Bukhrd and returned, he
had composed the Kitdb-i-Maustiri, which he sent by the hand
of that person, saying, "I am this book, and by this book thou
canst attain thine object, so that there is no necd*of me."
When the book reached the Amfr he was grievously afflicted,
wherefore he sent a thousand dinars and one of his own private
,

horses fully caparisonfed, saying, "Show him every kindness, but,

if this proves fruitless, bind his hands and feet, place him in the
boat, and fetch him across." They did so, but their entreaties
moved him not at all. Then they bound his hands and feet,
placed him in the boat, and, when they had ferried him across
the river, released his limbs. Then they brought the led-horse,
fully caparisoned, before him, and he mounted in the best of
Jiumours, and set out for Bukhara. So they enquired of him,
saying, "We feared lest, when we should cross the water and set
thee free, thou wouldst cherish enmity against us, but thou didst
not so, nor do we see thee annoyed or vexed in heart." He
replied, "I know that every year twenty thousand persons cross
the Oxus without being drowned, and that I too should probably
not be drowned still, it was possible that I might perish, and if
this had happened they would have continued till the Resurrection to say, 'A foolish fellow was Muhammad ibn Zakariyyd, in
that, of his own free will he embarked in a boat and so was
drowned.' So should I be one of those who deserve blame, not
of those who are held excused."
;

1
That is Mansiir I, who reigned A.H. 350-366 (A.D. 961-976). This anecdote
It is,
given in the Akhldq-i-Jaldli (ed. Lucknow, A.H. 1283), pp. 168-170.
however, a tissue of errors, for this Mansiir came to the throne at least thirty years
after the death of the great physician ar-Razf, who died either in A.H. 311 or 320
(A.D. 923-4 or 932). The Manstir to whom his Jfitdbil-Man$iiriw& dedicated was
an entirely different person. See Note XXVII, No. 4, at the end, s.v. Al-KitdbiflManstvt. This anecdote, as Mirza Muhammad has pointed out to me, appears to be
based, so faT as the refusal to cross the Oxus is concerned, on an incident in the life of
the geographer Abu Zayd al- Balk hi. See al-Maqdisi's Ahsanu't- Taqdstmfi
mtfrifatfl-

is

Aqdlim, p.
8

4.

QuSdn,

ii,

191.

6-2

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

84

ON

PHYSICIANS

When he reached Bukhdrd, the Amfr came in and they saw

one another and he began to treat him, exerting his powers to
the utmost, but without relief to the patient. One day he came
in before the Amfr and said, "To-morrow (v) I am going to try
another method of treatment, but for the carrying out of it you
will have to sacrifice such-and-such a horse tnd such-and-such a
mule," the two being both animals noted for their speed, so that
in one night they would go forty parasangs.
So next day he took the Amfr to the hot bath of Jii-yi1
Miiliydn outside the palace, leaving that horse and mule ready
equipped and tightly girt in the charge of his own servant at
the door of the bath while of the King's retinue and attendants
he suffered not one to enter the bath. Then he brought the King
into the middle chamber of the hot bath, and poured over him
tepid water, after which he prepared a draught, tasted it, and
gave it to him to drink. And he kept him there till such time
as the humours in his joints had undergone coction.
Then he himself went out and put on his clothes, and, [taking
a knife in his hand] 2 came in, and stood for a while reviling the
King, saying, "O such-and-such, thou didst order thy people
to bind and cast me into the boat and to threaten my life. If I do
not destroy thee as a punishment for this, I am no true son of
[my father] Zakariyyd!"
The Amfr was furious and rose from his place to his knees.
Muhammad ibn Zakariyyrf drew a knife and threatened him yet
more, until the Amfr, partly from anger, partly from fear, completely rose to his feet. When Muhammad ibn ZakariyyA safr
the Amfr on his feet, he turned round and went out from the
bath, and both he and his servant mounted, the one the horse,
the other the mule, and turned their faces towards the Oxus,
At the time of the afternoon prayer they crossed the river, and
halted nowhere till they reached Merv. When Muhammad ibn
Zakariyyd alighted at Merv, he wrote a letter to the Amfr,
saying, "May the life of the King be prolonged in health of body
and effective command I your servant undertook the treatment
and did all that was possible. There was, however, an extreme
failure in the natural caloric, and the treatment of the disease by
ordinary means would have been a protracted affair. I therefore
abandoned it in favour of psychical treatment, carried you to the
hot bath, administered a draught, and left you so long as to bring
about a coction of the humours. Then I angered the King, so as to
aid the natural caloric, and it gained strength until those humours,
already softened, were dissolved. But henceforth it is not expedient
that a meeting should take place between myself and the King."
,

See n. i on p. 35 supra, and Note XVI at the end.

This sentence, though omitted in the printed text, seems on the whole to be an

improvement

PSYCHOTHERAPEUSIS

8$

Now after the Amfr had risen to his feet and Muhammad
ibn Zakariyyd had gone out and ridden off, the Amir at once
fainted. When he came to himself he went forth from the bath
and (vi) called to his servants, saying, "Where has the physician
gone?" They answered, "He came out from the bath, and
mounted the horse, while his attendant mounted the mule, and
went

off."

Then the Amfr knew what object he had had in view. So he

came forth on his own feet from the hot bath; and tidings of
this ran through the city. Then he gave audience, and his
servants and retainers and people rejoiced greatly, and gave
But they
alms, and offered sacrifices, and held high festival.
could not find the physician, seek him as they might. And on
the seventh day Muhammad ibn ZakariyyA's servant arrived,
riding the mule and leading the horse, and presented the letter.
The Amfr read it, and was astonished, and excused him, and
sent him an honorarium consisting of a horse fufly caparisoned,
a cloak, turban and arms, and a slave-boy and a handmaiden
and further commanded that there should be assigned to him in
1
Ray from the estates of al-Ma'mun a yearly allowance of two
thousand dinars in gold and two hundred ass-loads of corn.
;

This honorarium and pension-warrant he forwarded to him at

the hand of a man of note. So the Amfr completely

Merv by

regained his health, and

object

Muhammad

ibn Zakariyyd attained his

ANECDOTE XXXVI.

AbuVAbbds Ma'miin Khwarazmshah had a Minister named

Abu'l-Husayn Ahmad ibn Muhammad as-Suhaylf He was a man
a

of philosophical disposition, magnanimous nature and scholarly

tastes, while Khwdrazmshdh likewise was a philosopher and
friend of scholars. In consequence of this many philosophers
and men of erudition, such as Abu 'Alf ibn Sfnd, Abu Sahl-iMasfhf, Abu'l-Khayr ibnu'l-Khammdr, Abii Nasr-i-'Arriq and
Abu Rayhdn al-Bfninf 4 gathered about his court.
Now Abii Nasr-i-'Arrdq was the nephew of Khwdrazmshah,
,

The precise meaning of these words has not yet been determined.
See p. viii of the Preface to Sachau's translation of al-Bfriini's Chronology of the
Ancient Nations, and the same scholar's article Zur Geschichte und Chronologic von
Chwarezm in the Sitzungsberichte d. Wiener Akademie'toT 1863. See also Note XXIX
at the end, and pp. Tti i of the Persian notes.
Ma'miin II, to whom this
anecdote refers, was the third ruler of this House, and was killed in 407/1016-17.
"
"
8
Or as-Sahlf," but Mirza* Muhammad considers Suhayli " to be the correct
1

form.
4

He

died at Surra man ra'a in 418/1027-8.

second, and last of these learned

men have been already mentioned.

Abu'l-Khayr al-Hasan ibnu'l-Khammar (WUstenfeld's Geschichte d. Arab.
See also Note XXVII
Aerzte, No. 115, pp. 58-59) who died A.H. 381 (A.D. 991).
at the end, Nos. 5, 6, 9 and 10.
The

The

third

firSt,

is

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

86

ON

PHYSICIANS

in all branches of Mathematics he was second only to

Ptolemy; and Abu'l-Khayr ibnu l-Khammr was the third after
Hippocrates and Galen in the science of Medicine and AbtS

and

position of Abii
Ma's'har and Ahmad ibn 'Abdu'1-Jalfl while Abii 'AH [ibn Sfnd]
and Abti Sahl Masfhf were the successors of Aristotle in the
Science of Philosophy, which includes all sciences. And all these
were, in this their service, independent of worldly cares, and
maintained with one another familiar intercourse and pleasant

Rayhin

[al-Bfriinf|

Astronomy held the

in

correspondence.

But Fortune disapproved of this and Heaven disallowed it;

pleasure was spoiled and their happy life was marred,
(w) A notable arrived from Sultan Mahmiid Yamfnu'd-Dawla
"
I have heard
with a letter, whereof the purport was as follows.
that there are in attendance on Khwarazmshdh several men ol
learning who ^re beyond compare, such as so-and-so and soand-so. Thou must send them to my court, so that they may
attain the honour of attendance thereat, while we may profit by
their knowledge and skill.
So shall we be much beholden to
Khwdrazmshdh."
Now the bearer of this message was Khwaja Husayn ibn
'AH ibn Mfkd'fl, who was one of the most accomplished and
remarkable men of his age, and the wonder of his time amongst
their

Mahmud Yami'nu'd-

his contemporaries, while the affairs of Sultcln

Dawla were at the zenith of prosperity, his

Kingdom enjoyed

the utmost splendour, and his Empire the greatest elevation,

iso that the Kings of the time used to treat him with every respect

and at night lay down

in fear of him. So Khwarazmshdh

assigned to Husayn [ibn AH] ibn Mfka'fl the best of lodgings,
and ordered him the most ample entertainment; but, before
according him an audience, he summoned the philosophers and
"
Mahmud hath a strong
laid before them the King's letter, saying:
hand and a large army: he hath annexed Khurasdn and India
and covets Irdq, and I cannot refuse to obey his order or execute
4

bis

mandate.

What

say ye on this matter?"

ibn Sfnd and Abii Sahl answered, "We will not

o"; but Abii Nasr, Abu'l-Khayr and Abii Rayhn were eager
to go, having heard accounts of the King's munificent gifts and

Abu 'AH

"

Do you

two, who have no

give audience to this
man." Then he equipped Abii 'AU [ibn Sfna] and Abii Sahl,
ind sent with them a guide, and they set off by the way of the
presents.
ivish

Then

said

Khwdrazmshdh,

to go, take your

ivolves 1

own way

before

towards Gurgin.

1
I imagine that a word-play is here intended between Gurgan (the oM Hyrcania,
which the present capital is Astardbad) and as rdh-i-gurgdn (" by the Wolves'
Vay"), i.e. "across the desert." This is the reading of C.; the other texts have

>f

across the desert to Mdzandara*n."

AVICENNA'S FLIGHT FROM

KHW^RAZM

87

Next day Khwdrazmshdh accorded Husayn ibn 'AH ibn

Mfkd'fl an audience, and heaped on him all sorts of favours.
"I have read the letter," said he, "and have acquainted myself with
its contents and with the
King's command. Abti 'AH and Abti
Sahl are gone, but Abu Nasr, Abii Rayhdn and Abu'l-Khayr
are making their preparations to appear at [Mahmiid's] court."

So

little while he provided their outfit, and despatched them

company of Khwija Husayn ibn 'AH ibn Mfkd'fl. And in
due course they came into the presence of Sultdn Yamfnu'dDawla Mahmiid at Balkh, and there joined his court.
Now it was Abti 'AH [ibn Si'nd] whom the King chiefly
desired. He commanded Abii Nasr-i-'Arraq, who was a painter,

in

in the

draw

on paper, (YA) and then ordered other artists

forty copies of the portrait, and these he despatched
with proclamations in all directions, and made demand of the
"
neighbouring rulers, saying, There is a man after this likeness,
whom they call Abu 'AH ibn Sind. Seek him otft and send him
to
to

his portrait

make

to me."

Now when Abii 'AH and Abii Sahl departed from Khwdrazmshdh with Abu'l- Husayn as-Suhaylfs man, they so wrought that
ere morning they had travelled fifteen parasangs. When it was
morning they alighted at a place where there were wells, and
Abii 'AH took up an astrological table to see under what
Ascendant they had started on their journey. When he had
examined it he turned to Abii Sahl and said, "Judging by this
Ascendant under which we started, we shall lose our way and
"
experience grievous hardships." Said Abii Sahl, We acquiesce
in God's decree. Indeed I know that I shall not come safely
through this journey, for during these two days the passage of
the degree of my Ascendant 1 falls in Capricorn, which is the sector,
so that no hope remains to me. Henceforth only the intercourse
of souls will exist between us." So they rode on.
Abii 'AH relates that on the fourth day a wind arose and
stirred up the dust, so that the world was darkened. They lost
their way, for the wind had obliterated the tracks. When the wind
lulled, their guide was more astray than themselves; and, in the
heat of the desert of Khwirazm, Abu Sahl-i-Masfli{, through lack
of water and thirst, passed away to the World of Eternity, while
the guide and Abii 'All, after experiencing a thousand hardships,
reached Baward. There the guide turned back, while Abii 'AH

went to Tiis, and finally arrived at Nfshipiir.

There he found a number of persons who were seeking for
Abii 'AH. Filled with anxiety, he alighted in a quiet spot, where
he abode several days, and thence he turned his face towards
-

me i*n

'uliim.

tasylr

is

explained at p. ft- of

Van

Vioten's ed. of the Mafdtihu'l-

88

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

ON

PHYSICIANS

1
Gurgdn, for Qibiis who was King of that province, was a great
and philosophically-minded man, and a friend of scholars. Abu
'AH knew that there no harm would befall him. When he reached
Gurgdn, he alighted at a caravanseray. Now it happened that
one fell sick in his neighbourhood, and Abii 'AH treated him,
and he got better. Then he treated another patient, who also
got better, and so people began to bring him their water in the
morning for him to look at, and he began to earn an income,
which continued to increase day by day. Some time elapsed
thus, until an illness befell one of the relatives of Qdbiis ibn
Washmgfr, who was the King of Gurgdn. The physicians set
themselves to treat him, (v*) striving and exerting themselves to
the utmost, but the disease was not cured.
Now Qdbiis was
greatly concerned about this, till one of his servants said to him,
Into such-and-such a caravanseray a young man hath entered
who is a great physician, and whose efforts are singularly blessed,
so that several persons have been cured at his hands." So Qabus
bade them seek him out and bring him to the patient, that he
might treat him, seeing that the effort of one may be more
,

41

blessed than that of another.

So they sought out Abu 'AH and brought him to the patient,
whom he beheld to be a youth of comely countenance, whereon
the hair had scarcely begun to shew itself, and of symmetrical

proportions, but now laid low. He sat down, felt his pulse, asked
"
to see his urine, inspected it, and said,
I want a man who
knows all the houses and districts of Gurgdn." So they brought

ope, saying, "Here you are"; and Abu 'AH placed his hand on
the patient's pulse, and bade the other mention the names of the
different districts of Gurgdn. So the man began, and continued
to name the districts until he reached one at the mention of
which the patient's pulse gave a strange flutter. Then Abu 'AH
The man gave
said, "Now give the streets in this quarter."
a
whereat that
of
street
the
name
until
he
arrived
at
them,

"
strange flutter recurred. Then Abu 'AH said, We need someone who knows all the houses in this street." They brought such
an one, who proceeded to give out the houses till he reached
a house at the mention of which the patient's pulse gave the
same flutter. "Now," said Abii 'Alf, "I want someone who
knows the names of all the household and can repeat them."
They brought such an one, and he began to repeat them until
he reached a name at the mention of which that same flutter
was apparent.
Then said Abii 'Alf, " It is finished." Thereupon he turned
"
to the confidential advisers of Qdbiis, and said, This lad is in
J
Shamstfl-Mcfdlt Qdbds ibn Washmgfr reigned A.H. 366-371 (A.D. 976-981)
and again A.H. 388-403 (A.D. 998-1012). To him al-Bfnini dedicated his Chronology
of Ancient Nations. See Sachau's English translation of that work, Preface, p. -viii.

AVICENNA'S DIAGNOSIS OF LOVE

89

love with such-and-such a girl, so-and-so by name, in such-andsuch a house, in such-and-such a street, in such-and-such a
quarter: union with that girl is his remedy, and the sight of her
his cure." The patient, who was listening, and heard all that
Abu 'AH said, hid his face in shame beneath the bed-clothes.
When they made enquiries, it was even as Abii 'AH had said 1
Then they reported this matter to Qdbiis, who was mightily
amazed thereat and said, " Bring him before me." So Abii 'AH
ibn Sfa was brought before Qabiis*.
Now Qdbiis had a copy of Abii 'All's portrait, which Sultdn
Yamfnu'd-Dawla had sent to him. (A.) "Art thou Abii *AH?"
"
Yes, O most puissant Prince," replied the other.
enquired he.
Then Qclbiis came down from his throne, advanced several paces
to meet Abii 'AH, embraced him, sat beside him on a cushion
before the throne, heaped favours upon him, and enquired of him
graciously, saying, "That most illustrious and accomplished man
and most perfect philosopher must without fail explain to me
the rationale of this treatment." "O Sire," answered Abii 'AH,
"
When I inspected his pulse and urine, I became convinced that
his complaint was love, and that he had fallen thus sick through
keeping his secret. Had I questioned him, he would not have
told me the truth; so I placed my hand on his pulse while they
repeated in succession the names of the different districts, and
when it came to the region of his beloved, love stirred him, the
movements of his pulse altered, and I knew that she was a
.

dweller in that quarter. Then I bade them name the streets, and
when he heard the street of his beloved the same thing occurred
again, so that I knew the name of the street also. Then I bade
them mention the names of the households in that street, and
the same phenomenon occurred when the house of his beloved
was named, so that I knew the house also. Then I bade them
mention the names of its inhabitants, and when he heard the
name of his beloved, he was greatly affected, so that I knew the
1
Compare the precisely similar narrative in the first story of the first book of the
Mathnawi of Jalalu'd-Din Riimf, and also a passage in the section of the Dhakhira-i-

vi, Guftdr i, Juz' 2, ch. 3) dealing with the malady of love,

" Now the lover's
a translation
pulse is variable and irregular,
he
sees
the
object of his affections, or hears her name, or gets tidings
especially when
of her. In this way one can discover, in the case of one who conceals his love and the

Khwdrazm-shdhl (Hook

of which this

is

name of his beloved, who is the object of his passion, and that in the following way.
The physician should place his finger on the patient's pulse, and unexpectedly order
the names of those persons amongst whom it may be surmised that his sweetheart is
to be found to be repeated, whereupon it will appear from the patient's behaviour who
Avicenna (upon whom be God's Mercy) says
his beloved is, and what her name is.
I have tried this plan, and have succeeded by it in finding out who the beloved
:

"

Avicenna's actual words are quoted from the Qdntin on pp. f t V-f . of
object was.'
the Prsia% notes.
2
have it on Avicenna's own authority that he arrived in Jurjan just too late to
see Qabris, who had been deposed and cast into prison, where he was soon afterwards
put to death in 403/1011-1013. (See pp. f --f o \ of the Persian notes.)

We

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

go

name

ON

PHYSICIANS

of his sweetheart also. Then I told him my conclusion,

it, but was compelled to confess the

and he could not deny

truth/'

Qdbus was greatly astonished at this treatment and was filled

with wonder, and indeed there was good reason for astonishment.
"O most glorious, eminent and excellent one," said he, ".both the
lover and the beloved are the children of my sisters, and are
cousins to one another. Choose, then, an auspicious moment
that I may unite them in marriage." So Master Abii AH chose
a fortunate hour, and in it the marriage-knot was tied, and lover
and beloved were united, and that handsome young prince was
delivered from an ailment which had brought him to death's
door. And thereafter Qdbiis maintained Abu 'AH in the best
manner possible, and thence he went to Ray, and finally became
minister to the Shihinshah 'Ald'u'd-Dawla 1 as indeed is well
known in the history of Abu *AH ibn Sfna's life.
,

**

ANECDOTE XXXVII.
The author of the Kdmilu's-Sind'at* was physician to 'Adudu'd-Dawla 8 in Pars, in the city of Shiraz. Now in that (A*) city
there was a porter who used to carry loads of four hundred and
five hundred maunds on his back. And every five or six months
he would be attacked by headache, and become restless, remaining so for ten days or a fortnight. One time he was attacked by
this headache, and when seven or eight days had elapsed, and
he had several times determined to destroy himself, it finally
happened that one day this great physician passed by the door
of his house. The porter's brothers ran to meet him, did reverence
to him, and, conjuring him by God Most High, told him about
"
Show him to me," said
their brother's condition and headache.
the physician. So they brought him before the physician, who
saw that he was a big man, of bulky frame, wearing on his feet
a pair of shoes each of which weighed a maund and a half. Then
the physician felt his pulse and asked for and examined his
urine; after which, "Bring him with me into the open country,"
said he. They did so, and on their arrival there, he bade his
servant take the porter's turban from his head, cast it round his
neck, and twist it tight. Then he ordered another servant to
take the shoes off the porter's feet and strike him twenty
blows on the head, which he accordingly did. The porter's sons
lamented loudly, but the physician was a man of consequence
He was the son of Dushmanziyar, ruler over Isfahan from A.H. 398 to 433
1

and is commonly known as Ibn Kdkawayhi or Kakdya.

See Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab. ///., vol. i, p. 437, No. 19. Histnairie was
Abbas
For some account
'All ibnu'l-*
al-Majiisf, and he died in A.H. 384 (A.D. 994).
of his life and work see Note XXVII at the end, and also p. 79 supra, n. i<ad catc.
* The second
of
of
the
House
A.H.
Biiya, reigned
prince
338-372 (A.D. 949-981).

(A.D. 1007-1041),
a

AL-MAjtisl CURES A PLETHORIC

PORTER

91

and consideration, so that they could do nothing. Then the

physician ordered his servant to take hold of the turban which
he had twisted round his neck, to mount his horse, and to drag
the porter after him round the plain. The servant did as he was
bid, and made him run far afield, so that blood began to flow
from his nostrils. " Now," said the physician, " let him be." So
he was let alone, and there continued to flow from him blood
stinking worse than carrion. The man fell asleep amidst the
blood which flowed from his nose, and three hundred dirhams*
weight of blood escaped from his nostrils ere the haemorrhage
ceased. They then lifted him up and bore him thence to his
house, and he never woke, but slept for a day and a night? and
his headache passed away and never again returned or required
treatment.
Then 'Adudu'd-Dawla questioned the physician as to the
"
"
rationale of this treatment.
King," he replied, that blood
in his brain was not a matter which could be eliminated by an
1
aperient of aloes and there was no other method of treatment
than that which I adopted."

(AC)

ANECDOTE XXXVIII.

a disease which physicians often fail to treat

though all diseases arising from the black bile
successfully,
are chronic, melancholia is a pathological condition which is
Abu'l-Hasan ibn Yahya 2 in his work
especially slow to pass.
"
entitled the
Hippocratic Therapeutics" (Mu'dlaja-i-Buqrdtt),
a book the like of which hath been composed by no one on
the Art of Medicine, hath enumerated the leaders of thought,

Melancholia

is

for,

sages, scholars
disease.

and philosophers who have been

afflicted

by

this

My master the Shaykh Abu Ja'far ibn Muhammad Abii

Sa'd 3 [al-Nashawf] 4 commonly known as Sarakh 5 related to me,
on the authority of the
Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Aqfl alQazwfnf, on the authority of the Amfr Fakhru'd-Dawla Abii
Kdlanjar the Buyid as follows
"One of the princes of the House of Biiya was -attacked by
melancholy, and was in such wise affected by the disease that
,

Imm

Aydraj or Ydra

The kind

is

a compound medicine of a purgative or alterative character.

Greek iriKpa) has aloes as its principal active in-

called fiqrd (from the

gredient.
8

See Brockelmann's Gesch.

d.

Arab.

Lift., vol.

i,

p. 337,

and

p.

f of the Persian

He gives his own name in full as Abu'l-Ilasan Ahmad ibn Muhammad atTabari. He was court physician to the Btiyid prince Rukiiu'd-Dawla from A.H. 332

notes.

MSS. of the work cited exist at Oxford, Munich, and in the

(A.D. 943-4) onwards.
India Office.
8 A. has Sa'df.
4 This nisba occurs
only in L.
8
So all texts, *-j*e, a form hitherto unexplained.

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

92

ON

PHYSICIANS

he imagined himself to have been transformed into a cow. All

day he would cry out to this one and that one saying, Kill me,
so that a good stew may be prepared from my flesh '; until matters
reached such a pass that he would eat nothing, and the days
passed and he continued to waste away, and the physicians were
unable to do him any good.
"Now at this juncture Abu 'AH (Avicenna) was prime
minister, and the Shdhinshdh 'Alzi'u'd-Dawla Muhammad ibn
Dushmanziydr favoured him greatly, and had entrusted into his
hands all the affairs of the kingdom, and left all matters to his
judgement and discretion. And indeed since Alexander the
Great', whose minister was Aristotle, no King had had such a
minister as Abu 'AH. And during the time that he was minister,
he used to rise up every morning before dawn and write a couple
of pages of the Shtfd*. Then, when the true dawn appeared, he
used to give audience to his disciples, such as Kiyd Ra'/s
8
4
Bahmanydr Abu Mansiir ibn Zfla 'Abdu'l-Wdhid Juzjdnf,
Sulayman of Damascus, and me, Abii Kdlanjdr. We used to
continue our studies till the morning grew bright, and then perform our prayers behind him and as soon as we came forth we
were met at the gate of his house by a thousand mounted men,
comprising the dignitaries and notables, as well as such as had
boons to crave or were in difficulties. Then the minister would
mount, and this company would attend him to the Government
Offices. By the time he arrived there, the number of horsemen
(Ar) had reached two thousand. And there he would remain
until the noon-tide prayer, and when he retired for refreshment
a great company ate with him. Then he took his mid-day siesta,
and when he rose up from this he would perform his prayer,
wait on the King, and remain talking and conversing with him
until the afternoon prayer; and in all matters of state importance
there was no third person between him and the King.
"
Our object in narrating these details is to shew that the
minister had no leisure time. Now when the physicians proved
unable to cure this young man, the case was represented to that
puissant Prince 'Ald'u'd-Dawla, and his intercession was sought,
so that he might bid his minister take the case in hand. So
'

See Note

One

XXX

at end.
See the British Museum Arabic
of Avicenna's most celebrated works.
Catalogue, p. 745, and the Supplement to the same, No. 711, pp. 484-485.
3
Abu'l-Hasan Bahmanyar ibn Marzuban al-Adharbdyjdni al-Majusi. He was
one of Avicenna's most notable disciples, and died about A.H. 458 (A.D. 1066). See

tf-f or of the

Persian notes.
Mansiir al-Husayn ibn Muhammad ibn 'Umar ibn Zila al-Isfahanf. He
of the Persian notes.
died in A.H. 440 (A.D. 1048-49). See p. f
6
His kunya was Abit 'Ubayd and his father's name Muhammad. He Attached
himself to Avicenna in Jurjan in A.H. 403 (A.D. 1012-1013) and continued with him
as long as he lived, viz. JOT about 35 years. He not only inspired and encouraged
Avicenna during his lifetime, but collected and arranged his works after his death.

pp.

AM

AVICENNA CURES A MELANCHOLIC

93

'Ald'u'd-Dawla spoke to him to this

Then

effect, and he consented.

Give good tidings to the patient, and say, " the
"
When the patient" was told
coming to kill thee

said he,

butcher

'

'

is

Then

the minister mounted his horse, and

this,
rejoiced.
came with his usual retinue to the gate of the patient's house,
which he entered with two others. Taking a knife in his hand,
he said, 'Where is this cow, that I may kill it?' The patient
made a noise like a cow, meaning, It is here/ The minister
bade them bring him into the middle of the house, bind him
hand and foot, and throw him down. When the patient heard
this, he ran forward into the middle of the house and lay down
on his right side, and they bound his feet firmly. Then Abti 'Alt
came forward, rubbing the knives together, sat down, and placed
his hand on the patient's ribs, as is the custom of butchers.
what a lean cow said he; 'it is not fit to be killed: give it
fodder until it gets fat' Then he rose up and f came out, having
bidden them loose his hands and feet, and place food before him,
saying, 'Eat, so that thou mayst speedily grow fat.' They did as
Avicenna had directed and set food before him, and he ate.
After that they gave him whatever draughts and drugs Avicenna
prescribed, saying, Eat well, for this is a fine fattener for cows,'
hearing which he would eat, in the hope that he might grow fat
and they might kill him. So the physicians applied themselves
vigorously to treating him as the minister had indicated, and in
a month's time he completely recovered and was restored to

he

'

'

health."

All wise men will perceive (At) that one cannot heal by such
methods of treatment save by virtue of extreme excellence,
1
perfect science, and unerring acumen
.

ANECDOTE XXXIX.
In the reign of Malikshah and during part of the reign of
Sanjar there was at Herat a philosopher named Adfb Isma'fl,
a very great, learned and perfect man, who, however, derived his
income and livelihood from his receipts as a physician 8 By him
many rare cures of this class were wrought.
One day he was passing through the sheep-slayers' market.
butcher was skinning a sheep, and from time to time he
would thrust his hand into the sheep's belly, take out some of
the warm fat, and eat it. Khwaja Isma'fl, noticing this, said to a
.

This story also occurs in a versified form in Jami's Silsilatttdh-Dhahab. The text
be found in Note XXVIII at the end.
9 This story in substantially the same form is told of Thdbit ibn Qurra in al-Qifti's
Ta*rlkh&l~Hukamd (ed. Lippert), pp. 120-121, and in the Tabaqdtu 'l-Atibbd of
Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (ed. Cairo), vol. i, pp. 216-217. From the account there given
Mirzd Muhammad has restored (in brackets) a sentence which has fallen out in the
Chahdr Maqdla.
1

will

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

94

ON

PHYSICIANS

"
green-grocer opposite him, If at any time this butcher should die,
inform me of it before they lay him in his grave." " Willingly,"
replied the green-grocer. When five or six months had elapsed,
one morning it was rumoured abroad that such-and-such a butcher
had died suddenly without any premonitory illness. The greengrocer also went to offer his condolences. He found a number of
people tearing their garments, while others were consumed with
grief, for the dead man was young, and had little children. Then he
remembered the words of KhwAja Isma'fl, and hastened to bear
the intelligence to him. Said the Khwdja, " He has been a long
time in dying." Then he took his staff, went to the dead man's
"housfe, raised the sheet from the face of the corpse, [felt his
pulse, and ordered some one to strike the soles of his feet with the
staff.
After a while he said to him, " It is enough." Then he]
began to apply the remedies for apoplexy, and on the third day
the dead man aryse, and, though he remained paralytic, he lived
for many years, and men were astonished, because that great
man had foreseen that the man would be stricken by apoplexy.

ANECDOTE XL.
The Shaykhu'l-Isldm 'Abdu'lldh Ansarf (may God sanctify
his spirit!) conceived a fanatical hatred of the above-mentioned
man of science, (*) and several times attempted to do him an
this fanatical dislike arose
injury, and burned his books.
1

Now

from religious motives, for the people of Herdt believed that he

could restore the dead to life, and this belief was injurious to the

common

Now

people

2
.

fell ill, and in the course of his illness

developed a hiccough for the cure of which all the methods of
treatment tried by the physicians availed nothing. They were
in despair, and finally sent a sample of his urine to the Khwdja
under the name of another, and requested him to prescribe.
.When Khwaja Isma'fl had inspected it, he said, "This is the
urine of so-and-so, who has developed a hiccough which they
are unable to cure. Bid him tell them to pound together an
istdr* of the skins of pistachio-kernels, and an istdr of the sugar

the

Shaykh

and administer [the mixture] to him, so that

You should
he may recover and give htm also this message
study science, and not burn books.'"
called 'askari,

'

Concerning

XXXI

this celebrated mystic see pp. Ceo A of the Persian notes, and Note
was born in A.H. 396 (A.U. 1006) and died in A.M. 481 (A.D.

at the end.

He

1080). He was the author of numerous works, some of which are extant, including the
well-known Persian quatrains in which he calls himself P(r-z-Ansdrt Pir-i-Hiri^ and
An$dri. Though a mystic, he was a fanatical Hanbali.
8
44

Instead of tjjtj}fr, the reading adopted in the text, B. and L. have

to [his
3

own] pretensions."

A weight consisting of 4} mithqdls.

INSTANCES OF MEDICAL ACUMEN

So they made a powder of these two ingredients,
patient ate it, and immediately the hiccough ceased,
patient was relieved.

95

and the
and the

ANECDOTE XLI.
In the time of Galen one of the notables of Alexandria was
attacked by pain in the finger-tips, and suffered great restlessness,
being debarred from all repose. They informed Galen, who

prescribed an unguent to be applied to his shoulders. As soon

as they did as Galen commanded, the patient's pain ceased and
he was cured. The physicians were astonished, and questioned
Galen, saying, "What was [the rationale of] this treatment
which thou didst adopt?" He replied, "The nerve which supplies
the aching finger-tips has its origin in the shoulder. I treated
the root and the branch was cured."

ANECDOTE XLII.

Some

traces of leprosy appeared on the chest of Fadl ibn

(the Barmecide), whereat he was greatly distressed, and put off going to the hot bath until night-time in
order that no one might become aware of this. Then he asis considered to-day the
sembled his courtiers and said, "

Yahyd al-Barmakf

Who

most skilful physician in 'Irdq, Khurdsdn, Syria and Pdrs, (AI)

"
"
and who is most famous in this respect ?
They replied, Paul
the Catholicos in Shfrdz." He therefore sent a messenger and
brought the Catholicos from Pars to Baghdad. Then he sat with
him privately, and by way of proving him said, " There is something amiss with my foot you must devise some treatment for
"
You must abstain from all milky foods
it." The Catholicos said,
and pickles and eat pea-soup with the flesh of chickens a year
;

made of the yolk of eggs with honey. When

the arrangements for this diet have been completely established,
"
I will do so," said Fadl ;
I will prescribe the proper drugs."
but that night he ate everything, according to his custom. They
had prepared thick broth flavoured with carroway seed, all of
which he consumed neither did he abstain from highly-flavoured
2
relishes or spiced beans cooked in oil
came
and asked to inspect the
the
Catholicos
Next day

old, with sweets

When

he looked at it his face flushed, and he

patient's urine.
"
I forbade thee pickles and
I cannot treat this case.
said,
milky
foods, but thou dost partake of

carroway broth and dost not

1
This 'anecdote occurs only in C., but is given in the printed text, which is
based on that MS.
8 The
description of these dishes, so far as it goes, is given on p. f o A of the Persian

notes.

FOURTH DISCOURSE.

96

ON

PHYSICIANS

avoid relishes and preserves 1 so that the treatment cannot $ucceed." Then Fadl ibn Yahyd applauded the acumen and discernment of that great man, and revealed to him his real complaint,
"
saying, It was for this that I summoned thee, and what I did
was for a proof."
Then the Catholicos applied himself to the treatment of the
case, and did all that was possible in .this matter. When some
time had elapsed and there was no improvement, the Catholicos
writhed inwardly, for this had appeared no great matter, yet it
was thus protracted. At last one day when he was sitting with
Fadl ibn Yahyd, he said, " Honoured Sir, I have tried every
Perchance thy father is disavailable remedy without effect
pleased with thee. Satisfy him, and I will remove this disease
from thee."
So that night Fadl arose, went to [his father] Yahya, fell at
his feet, and asked for his forgiveness.
His old father forgave
him, [and the Catholicos continued to treat him after the same
,

sort as before,

and he began to improve, and ere long was com-

pletely cured].

Then Fadl asked the Catholicos, " How didst thou know that
"
the cause of my complaint was my father's displeasure ?
The
"
I
tried every known remedy without
Catholicos answered,
effect.
So I said to myself, This great man has received a blow
from some quarter.' (*v) I looked about, but could find no one
who lay down at night dissatisfied and afflicted through thee
on the contrary, many were those who lived in comfort through
thy alms, gifts and marks of favour. At length I was informedthat thy father was vexed with thee, and that there had been
an altercation between thee and him, and I knew that [thine
ailment] arose from this. So I adopted this treatment and it
passed away, and my conjecture was not at fault."
After this Fadl ibn Yahy enriched the Catholicos and sent
'

him back to

Pdrs.

ANECDOTE XLIII.
1
152-3)*, when a battle took place
between the King of the World Sanjar ibn
Malikshdh and my master 'Ald'u'd-Dunyd wa'd-Dfn al-Husayn
ibnu'l-Husayn (may God immortalise their reigns and domains !),
and the Ghurid army sustained so grievous a reverse, I wandered
about Herat in the guise of a fugitive, because I was connected
with the House of Ghiir, against whom enemies uttered all

In the year A.H. 547 (=A.n.

at the gates of

Awba 8

(pi. of anba or anbaja}> see p. f \ of the Persian notes.

L. has "447," both in figures and writing, an evident error, sftice $anjar
teigned A.H. 511-552, and 'AldVd-Din Husayn "Jahan-siiz" A.H. 544-556. A.
omits the figures, and only has " in the year forty-seven."
3 See
p. 74 supra and note 3 adcak.
1

For the meaning otanbajdt

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL

97

manner of

railing accusations, rejoicing malignantly over their

reverse. In the midst of this state of things, I chanced one night
to be in the house of a certain great man. When we had eaten

bread, I went out to satisfy a need. That nobleman by reason

of whom I came to be there happened to praise me during my
"
absence, saying, Men know him as a poet, but, apart from his
skill in poetry, he is a man of great attainments, well skilled in
astrology, medicine, polite letter-writing, and other accomplishments."
When I returned to the company, the master of the house
shewed fne increased respect, as do those who are in need of
some favour, and in a little while came and sat by me, and said,
"
so-and-so, I have one only daughter, and, save her, no other

relative, and she is my treasure.

Lately she has fallen a
victim to a malady such that during the days of her monthly
courses ten or fifteen maunds 1 of sanguineous matter come from
have consulted the
her, and she is greatly weakened.
physicians, several of whom have treated her, but it has availed
nothing, for if this issue be checked, she is attacked with pain
and swelling in the stomach, and if it be encouraged, it is increased in amount, and she is much weakened, so that I fear lest
her strength may wholly fail." "Send me word," said I, "when

near

We

next this state occurs."

When (AA) ten days had passed, the patient's mother came
to fetch me, and brought her daughter to me. I saw a girl very
comely, but despairing of life and stricken with terror. She at
For God's sake
once fell at my feet, saying, " O my father
help me, for I am young, and have not yet seen the world."
The tears sprang to my eyes, and I said, " Be of good cheer, this
is an easy matter."
Then I placed my fingers on her pulse, and
found it strong, and her colour and complexion normal, while
most of the ten indications were present, such as a robust habit
of body, a strong constitution, a healthy temperament, a clear
complexion, a favourable age, season and climate, suitable habit,
propitious accessories and skill. Then I summoned a phlebotomist
and bade him open the basilic vein in both her arms; and
The bad blood continued to flow,
I sent away all the women.
and, by pressure and manipulation, I took from her a thousand
dir/iams* weight of blood, so that she fell down in a swoon. Then
I bade them bring fire, and prepared roasted meat beside her,
and put a fowl on the spit, until the house was filled with the
steam of the roasting meat, and it entered her nostrils. Then
she came to her senses, moved, groaned, and asked for a drink.
Then I. prepared for her a gentle stimulant agreeable to her
taste, and treated her for a week until the loss of blood was
!

B. has

sirs.

A UTOBIOGRAPHICAL

98

made good, and that illness passed away, and her monthly courses
resumed their normal condition. And I called her my daughter,
and she called me her father, and to-day she is to me as my
other children.

CONCLUSION.
purpose in composing this treatise and inditing this disnot to flaunt my merits or recall my services, but rather

My
course

is

to guide the beginner, and also to glorify my master, the august,

divinely favoured, triumphant and victorious King Husdmu'dDawla wa'd-Dunya wa'd-Dfn, defender of Isldm and the Muslims,
Lord of hosts in the worlds, pride of kings and sovereigns, exterminator of heathens and infidels, subduer of heretics and
innovators, guardian of the days, protector of the people, forearm of the Caliphate, beauty of the church, glory of the state,
organizer of the Arabs and Persians, noblest of the world,
Skamstfl-Mefdtt, Maliktil-Umard, Abu'l-Hasan 'Alf ibn (A*)
Mas'iid ibnu'l-Husayn Nasiru AmMl-Mtiminin (may God continue his glory and increase his progress in prosperity!), by
whose high station the Kingly Function is magnified, and for
whose service Fortune hastens
May God (blessed and exalted is He!) continue to embellish
the Empire with his beauty, and the Kingdom with his perfection
May the eyes of my Lord's son, that divinely aided,
victorious and triumphant Prince Sltamsud-Dawla wctd-Dtn be
brightened by his excellent conduct and heart
May the Divine
Protection and Royal Favour be as a buckler to the majestic
And may the heart of my
statures and virtuous forms of both
Lord and Benefactor, that august, learned, just, divinely-aided,
victorious and triumphant King Fakhrrid-Dawla wdd-Din,
Bahditl-Isldm wctl-Muslimin^ King of the kings of the Moun!

tains, be gladdened, not for a period but for ever, by the continuance of both 1
!

For an account of the House of Shansab or Kings of Ghilr and their genealogy,
Note I at the end. Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid, whom the author praises in the concluding sentence of his book, was the first of the Kings of Bamiyan and the father of
Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad and Hu&amu'd-Dfn Abu'l-Hasan 'All, of whom the latter
was our author's special patron.
see

FINIS.

NOTES
.V

Mirza

Muhammad

has elucidated his

Maqdla by copious and

valuable

critical edition

of the

ChahAr

Persian

notes following the text

*
in
of
it has seemed better
them
Instead
extenso^
(pp.
r\).
translating
to incorporate the shorter ones as footnotes on the pages to which they
refer, and to distribute the longer ones, with considerable rearrangement

and condensation, under the topics of which they treat. A little fresh
matter has been added by the translator, especially in the Fourth Discourse dealing with Medicine, and a great deal more by Mfrza
Muhammad, who carefully read and richly annotated the proofs in slip.
For the astrological notes (XXIV and XXXII) contributed by Mr Ralph
Shirley and Mr W. Gornold the translator desires to express his deep
gratitude.

NOTES
I.

The Dynasty

of Ghtir or

House of Shansab.

(Text, pp. 1-2; Persian notes, pp. 90-2.)

The kings of Ghiir, under whose patronage our author flourished*

claimed descent from Dahfrak (Dahak, Azhidahaka) the legendary tyrant
of ancient Persia, who", after a reign of a thousand years, was finally
overthrown by Firfdun. Shansab, the more proximate ancestor from
whom they derived their name, is said to have been contemporary with
the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law Alf ibn Abd T^lib, to have accepted
Islam at his hands, and to have received from him a standard and
recognition of his rule. It was a source of pride to the family that during
the Umayyad period they refused to conform to the order for the public
cursing in the pulpits of the House of Ali.
j
Our principal source of information concerning this dynasty is the
l
Tqfagdt-i-Ndsiri , but the history of Herat entitled Rawddtu 'l-Janndt
by Mu'inu'd-Dfn of Isfizar also contains a pretty full account of them.
(

This, however, was composed nearly three centuries later (in the latter
part of the fifteenth century), and, moreover, exists only in manuscript.
The independent sway of the House of Shansab endured only about
2
67 years (A.D. 1 148-1 2 is) , from the time when they shook off the yoke
of the House of Ghazna to the time when they succumbed to the power
of the Khwdrazmshahs. They were divided into two branches, who
ruled respectively over Ghiir with their capital at Firtiz-ktih, and over
Tukharistan with their capital at Bamiyan. The relationship existing
between the chief members of the dynasty mentioned in this book is
shewn in the following table.
'Izzu'd-Din

Ghiyathu'd-Dfn

Husayn

Shihab^d-Dfn
(or Mu'izzu'd-Din)

Shamsii'd-Din

HusanJd-Dfn

Muhammad

'AH

Of

these 'Ala'u'd-Dfn Husayn of Ffrtiz-ktih was the most powerful

raised the glory of his House to its highest point.
To avenge the death of his two brothers Qutbu'd-Din Muhammad and
Sayfu'd-Dfn Stirf he made war on Bahramshah, entered and occupied

and important, and

his capital

Ghazna, and looted, massacred and burned it for seven days,

" World-consumer." He
title vijahdn-stiz, the
reigned

thus earning the

from A.H. 545 to 556

(A.D.

1150-1161).

in the Bibltotheca Indica, and translated by Major H. G. Raverty

Published
with copious notes. Sections xvii-xix (pp. 300-507) of vol. i of the translation are
devoted to this dynasty.
8 See
Lane-Boole's Mohammadan

Stanley

Dynasties^ pp. 491-494.

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

102

Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid, first of the Bamiyan line, brother of IJusayn

Jahdn-stiz and father of our author's special patron Husamu'd-Din 'All,
outlived the year 558/1163, in which, according to the Tabaqdt-i-Ndsirt\
he made war on his nephews Ghiyathu'd-Di'n and Shihab [or Mu'izz]u'dDin. The title Maliktf l-JMl ("K\n% of the Mountains") given to him
in the text was common to all the rulers of this dynasty.
Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad, son of the above-mentioned Fakhru
'd-IMn and second of the Bamiyan line, survived at any rate until the year
586/1190, when he aided his cousins Ghiyathu'd-Pin and Shihab [or
Mu'izz]u'd-Dfn in their struggle against Sultan-shah ibn fl-arslan ibn
Atsiz

Khwarazm-shdh 2

IJusdmu'd-Din Abu'l-Hasan 'Ali, brother of the above-mentioned

Shariisu'd-Dfn, was our author's patron to whom the Chahdr Maqdla is
dedicated, and who must therefore have been living in 551-2/1156-7
when it was written. He is only mentioned in the Tabaqdt-i-Ndsiri
(p. 104) amongst the children of Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid, and further
particulars of his

life

are lacking.

The meaning

II.

of

Tamghaj or Tapghdch.

(Text, p. 9; Persian notes, pp. 92-4.)

Tamghaj

is

generally explained as the

name

of a city or district in

China or Chinese Turkislan. In illustration of this view Mirza Muhammad cites three passages from Arabic writers and some verses by the
Persian poet Mukhtari. An-Nasawf, the biographer of Sultan Jalalu'd3
Di'n Khwarazm-shah
says that it is the custom of the Great Khan to
"in
the
summer
Tamghaj, which is the centre of China, and its
spend
environs"; and this statement is quoted by Abu'1-Fida (who, however,
writes the word Tilmhaj or Tumkhaj) in his Geography. Al-Qazwini in
his Athdru'l-Bildd*' describes Tamghaj as "a great and famous city in
the land of the Turks, comprising many villages lying between two
mountains in a narrow defile by which only they can be approached."
Finally Mukhtari of Ghazna, in the course of a panegyric on Arslan Khan
of the Khdniyya dynasty of Transoxiana, speaks of "nimble Tamghajf
,

minstrels, quick at repartee."

5
It seems possible, however, that Tamghaj and Tafghach are merely
variants of the Eastern Turkish word Tapghdch, meaning "worshipful,"

"renowned," and used repeatedly in the sense of "Chinese" in the

Orkhon inscriptions of the eighth century of our era. In this case the
title "Tamghaj (or Tapghach) Khdn*' commonly assumed by rulers of
the Khaniyya dynasty really signifies "the worshipful Khan," not "the
Khan of Tamghaj"; and the prevalent belief that there was a country
called Tamghdj arose from a misunderstanding, and from a false analogy
with such titles as Khwarazm-shah, which does actually mean "King of
Khwarazm." Mirza Muhammad, however, in a lengthy and learned
1

Ed. Calcutta, pp. 29

et seqg.

Ibnu'l-Athir (ed. Tornberg), xiii, 28; Tafaitlt-i-Ntlfiri, p. 52; Lubdltfl-Alb&b

(ed. Browne), i, 321.
4
3 Ed.
Ed. Wustenfeld, p. 275.
Houdas, pp. 4-5.
For this form see the Persian notes to the text, pp. 151, 1. 3, 189, 1. 12, etc.

NOTE

III.

GREAT STYLISTS

103

note which he has been good enough to send me, proves that the name
Tamghaj was applied by early Muhammadan writers to a definite and
real city, identified by him on the strongest evidence with Khan Baligh
("the Middle Capital")
("Cambaluc") or Pekin, also called
and jjub (" the Great Capital ").
See also F. W. K. Miiller's Uigurica I (Berlin, 1908), p. 13, n. i adcalc.

>x&^

Writers adduced as models of style.

(Text, p. 13; Persian notes, pp. 95-101.)

III.

ahib Abu'l-Qasim Isma'fl ibn 'Abbad at-Tlaqanf

The

died in 385/995-6. Yaqi'it, who consecrates a long notice to him in his

"
1
Irshddrfl-Arib, or
Dictionary of Learned Men /' says that there are
two places called Talaqan, one in Khurasan, and the other, from which
the Sahib came, between Qazwin and Abhar.
Mirza Muhammad,
however, in a long manuscript note on this passage, proves conclusively
that he was a native of Isfahan.

Shamsu'l-Ma'alf Qabus ibn Washmgfr ibn Ziyr, Prince

of Tabaristan, was put to death by his son Miniichihr and nobles in
2
He
403/1012-3. Of him also Vaqiit gives a fairly lengthy notice
with
Sahib
the
above
and
was
celebrated
mentioned,
very
corresponded
for his skill in this form of composition. Many of his letters were
collected by Abu'l-Hasan 'All ibn Muhammad al-Yazdadi, and extracts
are given by Muhammad ibn Isfandiyar in his History of Tabaristan as
well as by Yaqiit. I have recently acquired a MS. of Yazdadi's com"
Perfection of Eloquence ")
pilation entitled KamdMl-Baldgha (the
.

Abu'l-Faraj

Qudama

ibn Ja'far ibn

Qudama

ibn Ziyad

al- Baghdad! was born and brought up a Christian, but was converted
to Islam by the Caliph al-Muktafi, and died in 337/948-9. A short
notice of him also occurs in Yaqtit's Irjshdd^^ where some dozen of his
works are enumerated, of which three, the Kitdbu "l-Khard) the Naqdu
'n-Nathr and the Kitdbitsh-ShPr are noticed by Brockelmann (vol. i,
p, 228). Hariri mentions him in his Maqdmdt as a model of eloquence.
',

The Maqamat-i-Hamfdf were composed

in 551/1156-7 by the
Hamidu'd-Dfn al-Mahmddf
al-Balkhi, who died in 559/1163-4. This work has been lithographed
at Kanpdr (Cawnpore) in 1268/1851-2, and at Tihran in 1290/1873-4.
There is a very fine MS. of the i3th century of the Christian era in the

Qadi Abti Bakr 'Umar ibn Mahmiid,

Museum (Add. 7620).

The mention of the Maqdmdt

entitled

British

of

Hamfdi

in this place is of great

importance in fixing the date of composition of the Cliahdr Maqdla as

posterior to 551/1156-7, for since Sultan Sanjar, who is repeatedly (e.g.
pp. 40 and 87 of the text) referred to as still living, died in 552/1157-8,
it is evident that this date lies between these two limits (A.H. 551-552;
A.D.
1

1156-1157).
Vol.

pp. 273-343 of Prof. D. S. Margoliouth's edition in the

Series (vi, 2, London, Luzac and Co., 1909).

ii,

Memorial"

Ibid., vol. vi, pp. 143-151.

" E.

J.

W. Gibb

Ibid.* vol. vi, pp. 203-205.

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

104

Abu

<Ali

Muhammad

ibn

Muhammad

ibn <Abdu'll&h

at-Tamfmf al-Bal'amf

was minister to the Samanf King Mansilr I

ibn Niih ibn Nasr (reigned A.H. 350-366; A.D. 961-976), for whom he
translated Tabarf s great history from Arabic into Persian. This Persian
version was lithographed at Lucknow in 1291/1874 (800 pages), and
a French translation of it by Hermann Zotenberg was published in
Paris in four volumes (1867-1874). This Bal'amf (Abd 'Alf) is often
confused with- his father Abu'1-Fadl, who also bore the name of Muhammad, was minister to Isma'fl the Samni, and died in 329/940-1,
while the son, with whom we are here concerned, died in 386/996.
Bal'am, from which both derive their nisba, is said to be a town in
Asia Minor. See Sam'ani's Ansdb (Gibb Series, vol. xx, f. 90*), where,
however, an alternative statement represents Bal'am as a district in the
village of Balashjird near Merv.

Ahmad

ibnu'l-Hasan al-Maymandi,

entitled

Shamsu'l-

Kuf&t, was for twenty years minister to Sultan Mahmiid of Ghazna

and his son Mas'rid, and died in 424/1033. He was a noted stylist, and
caused all official documents to be written in Arabic, not, as had previously been the case, in Persian. His biography is given by al-'Utbi,
Abu'l-FacJl Bayhaqf, 'Awfi in his Lnbdbu^Albdb, Ibnu'l-Athfr, the
Athdril- Wuzard of Sayfu'd-Dfn al-'Aqili and the Dasttiru'l- Wvzard
of Khwandamir. For the references see the footnotes on pp. 98-9 of
*

the Persian text.

Abd Nasr Muhammad

Kundurf,

entitled

ibn

Mansur

'Amfdu'1-Mulk, was

ibn

for

Muhammad

ala long while Prime

Minister to the Saljtiqs Tughril Beg and Alp Arslan, and was finally
put to death at the instigation of his yet more celebrated successor the
Ni/amu'1-Mulk in 456/1064, or, according to Sam'ani (Ansdb^ f. 488**),
about 460/1067-8.

Muhammad
text as

one of the

[ibn]

Abduh

is

mentioned again on p. 24 of the

Khdn of the Khaniyya (Turkish)

secretaries of 'Bughra

dynasty of Transoxiana.

He

flourished in the latter part of the fourth

centuries of the hijra, and his poems are
frequently cited in evidence by Rashfdu'd-Dfn.Watwdt in his Hadd'iqu'sSihr, or "Gardens of Magic," a well-known work on Rhetoric.

and beginning of the

fifth

The'Abdu'l-Hamfd here mentioned is probably 'Abdu'l-Hamfd

ibn 'Sa'fd, who was secretary to Marwan II, the last
Caliph (A.H. 127-132; A.D. 744-750), and perished with his
master in the year last mentioned. It is he to whom allusion is made
" The art
in the Arabic proverb
of polite letter-writing opened with
'Abdu'l-Hamid and closed with Ibnu'l-'Amfd"
ibn

Yahy

Umayyad

By the Sayyidu'r-Ru'asa it is almost certain that allusion is

made to Abu l-Mabasin Muhammad ibn Fadlu'llah ibn Muhammad,
who bore this title, and who was one of Malikshdh's under-secretaries
and favourites. He was subordinate to Sharafu'1-Mulk Abu a'd
J

ibn Mansur ibn Muhammad,

Muhammad
and both were

Ministry,

dynasty.

his chief in the same

notable secretaries and officials of the Saljriq
See al-Bundarfs History of the Saljtiqs (ed. Houtsma), p. 59.

NOTE
Ibn 'Abbadf,

called

GREAT STYLISTS

III.

105

by Ibnu'l Athfr

(ed. Tornberg, xi, 77, 78, 88,

died at 'Askar Mukram in RabP ii,
=
547 (July, 1 152). See Ibn Khallikan (Cairo ed., iii, 539-54o <te Slane's
is given
Ardashir
father
his
of
notice
translation, iii, 365-366).
long
in the Mirdtu'z-Zamdn sub anno 496 (A.D. 1102-3).

103) "the Preacher" (al

W6Hz\

Muhammad ibn
al-Qurashf al-Umawf al- Abfwardf,
a notable poet and philologist who died in 507/1113-4 at Isfahan.
Yaqdt gives a long notice of him in his Irshddul-Arlb (ed. Margoliouth,
By Abfwardf

Ahmad

ibn

vol..vi, pp.

is

meant Abu'l-Muzaffar

Muhammad

341-358).

By Ghazzf

Abu Ishaq Ibrhfm

ibn Yahya ibn

al-Kalbf, a notable Arabic poetVho
travelled widely in Persia and sung the praises of the nobles of Khurdsdn,
where his poetry, as Ibn Khallikan informs us (de Slane's translation,

<Uthman

ibn

is

meant

Muhammad

38-43), thus obtained a certain circulation. He died at

524/1130. Rashidu'd-Din Watwdt frequently quotes him in
his Had&iqtfs-Sihr. There is in the Bibliothfeque Nafionale at Paris a
fine manuscript of his Diwdri (Ponds Arabe 3126) transcribed at
Karkh, a quarter of Baghdad, in 590/1194. Other more eminent poets
of Ghazza in Palestine bore the nisba al-Ghazzf, but this one, being
nearly contemporary with our author and well known in Khurdsan, is to
him the most famous.

vol.

i,

Balkh

pp.

in

ibn Muhammad al-Iskaff of Nishapiir,

Anecdotes II and III are concerned, completed his studies
in his native town and at an early age entered the service of Abu 'All
ibn Muhlaj-i-Chaghani, one of the Amirs in the service of the House of
Sainan, who made him one of his chief secretaries and held him in high
"honour. He achieved a great reputation as a stylist, and repeated but
unsuccessful attempts were made to secure his services at the Samdnid
Court at Bukhara. Finally, in 334/945-6, his master Abu 'Alf rebelled
against his over-lord Ndh I ibn Nasr the Sdmanid, but was finally defeated near Bukhdra and compelled to flee to his own country. Amongst
those of his followers who were taken prisoner was Iskafi, whom Niih
imprisoned at Quhandiz near Bukhdrd. Wishing to prove him and
ascertain his real sentiments, Nith caused a forged letter, couched in
the most flattering terms and purporting to be from a certain notable
at the Court, to be sent to him, the letter expressing a hope that he
would enter the service of AbuVAbbas i-Chaghdnf, the brother of his
late master Abu 'Ali. Iskafi, possibly suspecting a snare, simply wrote
" O Lord!
at the foot of the letter in Arabic:
This prison is more
to
than
that
me
whereunto they invite me ." When this was
acceptable
shewn to Amfr Niih he was greatly delighted and at once released
Iskdff from prison, conferred on him a robe of honour, and made him
chief assistant secretary to Abu* 'Abdullah in the department of Foreign
Correspondence, of which he subsequently became chief. When Amfr
Ndh <Jied in 343/954-5, his son and successor 'Abdu'l Malik continued
and even Increased the honours conferred by Ndh on Iskdff, who, however, did not long survive the opening of the new reign. His death was

Abu'l-Qasim <A1

with

whom

Qur*dn

xii,

33.

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

io6

mourned by many poets, including Hazfmi of Abiward, three of whose

verses are quoted in the Persian notes (pp. 102-3). Tha'alibi says in
the Yatimattfd Dahr (vol. iv, pp. 29-33) that Iskaff had much greater
skill

in official

than in private and friendly correspondence, and that,

he was as strong in prose as he was

like the celebrated writer al-Jahiz,

weak in verse.

There can be little doubt that the anecdote of the forged letter
mentioned above forms the historical basis of a well-known story in
the Gulistdn of Sa'di (ed. Platts, pp. 35-6; Book I, Story 25). The
same anecdote is given by Yaqilt in his notice of Iskaff in the Irskddtfl*
Arib (ed. Margoliouth, vol. v, pp. 329-331).

IV. Historical errors in Anecdote

II.

(Text, pp. 13-15; Persian notes, pp. 103-105.)

This anecdote furnishes several striking instances of the glaring

anachronisms and historical inaccuracies which too often deface the
otherwise admirable work of our author.
could not possibly have been secretary to Niih II ibn
reigned from A.H. 366 to 387 (A.D. 976-997), since, as
we have seen, he died soon after the accession of 'Abdu'l-Malik in
343/954-5. Nor can we suppose that we are confronted with a mere
scribe's error as to the name of the reigning king, since the whole
point of the story lies in the king's name being Ndh.
Iskafi

(1)

Mansitr,

who

(2) Alptagin died, according to different authorities, in 351/962-3,

352/963, or 354/965, while Ndh II ibn Mansiir did not ascend the
throne until 366/976-7, so that to represent the former as living in the
reign of the latter is an evident anachronism. The author has probabl)
either confused this king with his father Mansitr I ibn Ndrji (reigned

from 350/961-2 until 366/976-7), against whom Alptagfn actually

rebelled, and even conquered Ghazna (not Herat, as the author
erroneously asserts) or (and this is perhaps more probable) has confused Alptagin with Abu 'Ali Simjiir, who raised a formidable rebellion
;

against

Ndh

II ibn Mansiir.

(3) It is true that in 383/993-4 the above-mentioned Ntifr summoned

Subuktagin from Zabulistan to help him, but not against Alptagfn, who
at this date had been dead thirty years ; and not in conjunction with
but against Abii 'Ali Simjiir, who had long been in rebellion against him.

" Abu'l-IIasan 'Ali ibn

It is almost certain that by
Mul.itaj al(4)
Kashani...the Chief Chamberlain" our author means the famous general
Amir Abd 'Ali Aljmad ibn Muljtaj as-Saghani (i.e. of Chaghaniydn), who,
however, died in 344/955-6, i.e. 22 years before Ndri II succeeded to the
throne, and 39 years before Subuktagfn led his army into Khurasan in

383/993-4.

According to that great scholar

when

Abd Rayhan

al-Birdnf 1 , the occasion

QuSdn (xi, 34) was so aptly quoted^was quite

Ahmad Khalaf ibn Ahmad the ruler of Sijistan

this verse of the

different, viz.

by Abd
1

Al-Athdru'l'JBdqiya (ed. Sachau), p. 332.

NOTES V, VI AND VII

107

(or Sistan) in reply to a threatening letter addressed to him by Niifc II

ibn Manstir the Samanid ; and this is no doubt the correct version
of the story, since al-Bfrtinf was as remarkable for his accuracy as our
author is for his carelessness, and, moreover, wrote more than a century
and a half earlier.

V. Historical errors in Anecdote III.

(Text, pp. 15-17 ; Persian notes, pp. 105-106.)
In this anecdote also our author is guilty of two historical errors.
(1) He supposes that Makan's rebellion took place in the reign of
Nilh II ibn Mansiir, whereas it really occurred in the reign of his
great-grandfather Nasr II ibn Ahmad ibn Isma'il, and Makan was
defeated and killed in 329/940-1, some 37 years before Nilfo's accession.

(2)
states,

The general who defeated Makan was not Tash, as our author
but the Amir Abii *Ali Ahmad ibn Muhtaj.

VI. Anecdote V.

The

&hib Isma'fl ibn*Abbad.

(Text, pp. 17-18; Persian notes, pp. 107-109.)

The Saliib Isma'il ibn 'Abbad is, as we have seen, described by the
best authorities as "of Talaqan" (Tdlagdni), not "of Ray" (Razi).
Al-Mafarriikhi, author of a notable but rare history of Isfahdn, claims
him as a native of that city, and cites verses composed by him during a
1
Al-Mafarrtikhi
campaign in Jurjan which lend colour to this assertion
wrote his history between A.H. 465 and 485 (A.D. 1072-1092)^1 Arabic,
and there is a MS. of it (Or. 3601) in the British Museum, while I
possess another from the library of the late Sir Albert Houtum-Schindler.
ft was translated into Persian by Muhammad ibn 'Abdu'r-Ridd
.

al-Husayni about 730/1329-30 and dedicated to Ghiyathu'd-Dm Mujiammad ibn Rashidu'd-l)in Fadlu'llah. Of this Persian version (of which I
have since myself obtained a MS. formerly in the possession of Sir
A. Houtum-Schindler) I published an abridged translation with extracts
in ft\v J.R.A.S. for 1901, also obtainable as a separate reprint.

VII. Fabrics and Materials mentioned in Anecdote VII.

(Text, pp. 19-21; Persian notes, pp.

no-ni.)

Muhammad

has kindly communicated to me the following

shorter version of this anecdote from the Kitdbu7- Kindya wdt-Tcfrid
of ath-Tha'alibi (Berlin Arabic MS. No. 7337, Petermann II, 59, f. i46 a j,
who wrote about a century and a half earlier than our author

Mirzd

A<
AXJI

>
Cf. p. 103 supra.

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

io8

Three of the precious fabrics mentioned in this story are included in the
added by Mirza Habib of Isfahan to his edition of the Diwdn-iAlbisa (Constantinople 1 3037 1885-6) of Nizamu'd-Din Mahrmid Qarf of
Yazd, the poet of clothes. Atlas "is called by the Franks 'satin'." Akstn
is "a black brocade (dibd}^ like dabiql (a fine silken stuff) worn by the
"
See Yule's
silk inwoven with gold.
great for ostentation." Naslj is
Marco Polo (ed. 187-5), v l- i> PP- 6 5> 67, 276 and 285.
Of the remainder the exact nature is more doubtful. Mfrza Muhammad makes the following remarks (notes, p. no)
Mumazzaj appears to mean a garment made of gold mixed with
some other substance. This fabric is mentioned by Ibnu'l-Athfr sub
anno 512/1118-9 (ed. Tornberg, vol. x, p. 382).
Miqrddi is some precious fabric of which the exact nature is not
clear, but it is also mentioned, with the addition of the epithet Riimi
(Greek or of Asia Minor) in a quaint passage in al-Mafamlkhfs History
of Isfahan (see the last note), cited on p. no of the Persian notes,
where a dying nobleman requests that his shroud shall be made of this
material, not, ks the bystanders suggest, of plain linen, because he is
unwilling to appear before God less sumptuously clad than it had been
glossary

1'

'

'

appear before his fellow-men.

the nature of Ma'dint and Maliki no information is obtainable,
nor on Jbmim, which the editor of the Tihran lithographed edition has
seen fit to emend to Tumam (pi. of Tumma), meaning a handful of wool
or hair plucked from a sheep or other animal, an emendation neither
plausible nor appropriate to the context, although the aforesaid editorv
mentions it with especial pride and satisfaction in his concluding note.
his habit for sixty years to

On

VIII. Another historical error in Anecdote VIII.

(Text, pp. 21-2

Persian notes, p. in.)

In this story the author has, according to Mirza Muhammad, confused Sultan Mas'tid with Sultan Sanjar, for all the historians agree that
it was against the former, not the latter, member of the House of SaljiiC^
that the Caliph al-Mustarshid marched forth from Baghdad. When the
two armies met near Kirmanshah most of the Caliph's troops deserted
to Mas 'ild, and he himself was taken prisoner. On his arrival at Mardgha
he fell a victim to the Assassins of Alamut in 529/1 134-5.

IX.

The Gur-Kh&n and

(Text, p. 22

the Qara-Khita'f dynasty.

Persian notes, pp. 112-113.)

The

battle to which reference is here made took place in 536/1 141-2,

1
generally known as the Battle of Qafawan , this place being
a suburb or quarter of Samarqand. The Muslims are said to have lost
100,000 men (of whom 12,000 were "turbaned," i.e. belonged to the
learned or clerical classes), and Sultdn Sanjar's wife was taken prisoner.
The power of this dynasty of unbelieving Turks, known as Qara-Khita'f
and Gtir-Khanf, which endured for more than eighty years, dates from
this battle. They were finally overthrown by Sultan 'Ala'u'd-Din Muhammad in alliance with the Tartar Kdchluk Khan in 607/1210-11.

and

is

See Ibnu'l-Athir

(ed. Tornbeig), vol. xi, p. 57.

NOTES IX AND

109

For more than two centuries which elapsed between the fall of the
Samanid and the rise of the Mongol power there existed in Transoxiana
a Muslim Turkish dynasty variously known as " i lak-Khani," " Khanf "
and "Afrasiyabi/ These the Qdra-Khita'is suffered to remain, only
requiring of them the payment of tribute and the acceptance of a
political resident (Shahna) at their Court. From most of the Khwarazmshdhs also they received tribute until overthrown by them in 607/1210-1 1
as mentioned above.
This collapse of the Qara-Khita'i power proved, in fact, to be a great
calamity for the Khwarazm-shahs in particular and the Muslims in general,
for thereby was broken down a barrier which had hitherto effectively
protected them from the Mongols and other predatory heathens who
dwelt further to the north ajid east, and so was prepared that gr(at
catastrophe which shortly afterwards laid waste the Muslim world; a
fact emphasized by Ibnu'l-Athir (ed. Tornberg, xii, p. 235) in a passage
translated in the second volume of my Literary History of Persia,, p. 430.

The word Giir-Khdn* (otherwise Ktir-Khdn, KA-Khdn, tfz-Khdn,

&r-Khdn or Or-Khdn) was a generic title of these KingjJ, not the proper
name of any one of them. Ibnu'l-Athir says " Ku in the Chinese language
:

given to the greatest of their Kings, while Khdn is a title of the

Kings of the Turks, so that it [the compound Ku-Khdn\ means 'Greatest
of Kings
In the Ta*rikh-i-Jahdn-gushdy (vol. ii, p. 86) and in the
is

title

Ta'rtkh-i-Jahdn-drd also it is explained as Khdn-i-Khdndn, i.e. "KhAn

"
"
of Khans
or " Great Khan ; and on the same authority the name
this particular G&r-Khdn is said to have been Qtlshqin Tayqii.
Dr Babinger has kindly called my attention to a note on Ibn 'Arabshdh's
explanation of Gur-Khdn by S. de Sacy in the Menwires de FAcademie

of

for 1822, p. 476.

X. Atmatigfn, Amfr Bay&banf and Atsiz.

(Text, p. 22

The

Persian notes,

p.

114.)

signification of the first and second of these

three names is uncertain, and the MSS. differ in their readings. The
first has been found by Mirza Muhammad in the History of Bukhdra of
Muhammad ibn Zufar ibn 'Umar, composed in 574/1178-9, only 38
years after the Battle of Qatawan, but here also the MSS. differ, the
British Museum MS. (Add'. 2777, f. 28 a ) having "Aymantigin" or
"fmantigin," and the Bibliotheque Nationale MS. (Suppl. Pers. 1513,
'
b
f.
23 ) AHtigin." It is evidently one of the numerous Turkish names
ending in tigin (like Subuktigfn, Alptigin, etc.) but the first element
remains doubtful. The same uncertainty affects "the son of the Amir
Bayabani, on whose identity no satisfactory light has yet been thrown."
1

correct form

Mirza

Muhammad

lies their point,

adopted.

See also

and

that

cites two passages which show, by the word-plays wherein

by the Persians at any rate the pronunciation Gur-Khdn was

Khaqani says

vol.

ii,

p.

J^J >j
93 of the Tdrikh-i-Jahdn-gushdy

no

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

The name Atsiz, also Turkish, is compounded of dt (Western Turkish

"
"
name," and the privative siz without," and consequently means
dd)
" nameless."
to
Ibn
it was customary amongst the
Khallikan
According
Turks when a man lost several sons in childhood to give this name,
which was supposed to be a protection, to a newly-born son in the hope
that he

might survive.

XI.

The House

(Text, p.

of

Burhan

(Al-i-Burhdn).

22, bis\ Persian notes, pp. 114-121.)

The "Sons of Burhan," or Banii Maza, were one of the great families
of Bukhara, celebrated for their splendour and bounty, and were hereditary
leaders of the Hanafi school of Sunni 'doctrine which prevailed in
Transoxiana. During the later Qara-Khita'i period they held an almost
regal position, and paid tribute to that dynasty. Qazwinf in his Athdrit
Bildd (ed. Wiistenfeld, p. 343), composed in 674/1275-6, mentions
'Umar ibn 'Abdu'-l-'Aziz ibn Marwan as the head of the house in his
time, and it still flourished in the reign of Uljaytil (Khuda-banda)
the Mongol (A.H. 703-716; A.D. 1303-1316), after which all trace of it
'I

Mirza Muhammad has collected from various sources a mass of

information about fourteen of the most eminent members of this family,
which he embodied in the notes contributed by him to my edition of
'Awffs Lubdbu'l-Albdb (vol. i, pp. 332-6), and which he has reproduced
in his notes to the Chahdr Maga la. These are as follows.
v
is lost.

(1)

the

first

The Imam Burhanu'd-Din 'Abdu'l-'Aziz ibn Maza

member of the family to attain celebrity.

of B-ikhara,

(2) His son JJusamu'd-Din 'Umar ibn 'Abdu'l-'Aziz, born in SaLr

483 (April 1090) and put to death in 536/1141-2 after the Battle of
Qatawan by the Gilr-Khan, as mentioned by our author, and hence called
"the Martyr." See Ibn Qutliibugha's Tdjtft-Tardjim fi TabaqdtflHanafiyya (ed. Fliigel, Leipzig, 1862), p. 34, No. 139, where five or six
of his works are enumerated.

(3) Taju'l-Islam Ahmad ibn 'Abdu'l-'Aziz, who succeeded his brother

above mentioned, as recorded by our author, and enjoyed the favour

and confidence of the Gtir-Khan.

Shamsu'd-Dm Sadr-i-Jahdn Muhammad, son of tlusamu'd-Dfn

Martyr," who in 559/1 163-4 saved Bukhara from being looted by the
Qarluq Turks, and whose praises were sung by Srizani in verses of which
seven are given as a specimen on pp. 116-7 of the Persian notes.
(4)

" the

(5) Sadru's-Sudiir Sadr-i-Jahan Burhanu'd-Din 'AbduVAziz, another

son of Husamu'd-Din "the Martyr/' to whom Mubiammad ibn Zufar ibn
'Umar in 574/1178-9 dedicated his Persian version of an-Narshakhi's
Arabic History of Bukhara, composed in 332/943-4 for the Samanid
King Nilh ibn Nasr. Instances of his magnanimity and generosity are
given by 'Awfi in his vast, but unfortunately unpublished, collection of
stories, the JawdmPifl-Hikdydt wa LawdmiWr-Riwdydt, of which two

are given in the Persian notes (pp. 117-8).

NOTE XI. THE HOUSE OF BURHAN

in

Burhanu'd-Dfn Mahmiid ibn Taju'l-Islam Afcmad, author of

DhakhiratiM-Fatdwd (also called adh-Dhakhiratu'l-Burhdniyya}
mentioned by Ilajji Khalifa.
(6)

the

(7-10) Burhanu'd-Din Muhammad Sadr-i-Jahan ibn Ahmad, brother

of the above ; his two sons Maliku'l-Islam and 'Azizu'l-Islam, and another
brother, Iftikhar-i-Jahan. The first of these four was practically King
of Bukhdrd and paid tribute to the Khita'i's, as indicated by a passage
1
In
in an-Nasawi's Biography of Sultan Jalalu'd-Din Mankobirni .
603/1206-7, while on his way to Mecca, he was received with great
respect at Baghdad, but on his return thefe, on account of his behaviour
towards the pilgrims, he incurred such unpopularity that he earned for
himself the nick-name of ^adr-i-Jahannam (the "Chief" or "President of
Hell"). In 613-614/1216-17, when 'Ala'u'd-Din Muhammad Khwarazmshah set out on his campaign against the Caliph an-Nasir li-Dini'llah, as
a precautionary measure he deported these four persons (Burhanu'd-Din
Muhammad and his brother and two sons) from Bukhara to Khwdrazm.

Two

years later (in 616/1219), when Khwarazmshah'^ mother Turkan

Khatiin decided to flee thence for fear of the Mongol advance, she put
all four of them to death, together with other hostages resident at her
2

capital

Sadr-i-Jahan Sayfu'd-Din Muhammad ibn 'AbduVAm (son of

is repeatedly mentioned as still living in 'Awfi's LubdMlAlbdb^ which was written in 618/1221.

(n)

No.

5),

who

(12) Burhanu'l-Islam Taju'd-Din 'Umar ibn Mas'iid ibn Ahmad ibn

'AbdmVAziz ibn Maza (grandson of No. 3, nephew of Nos. 6, 7 and 8,
and cousin of Nos. 9 and 10). He was one of the teachers and masters
who makes mention of him also in the Lubdb (ed. Browne,
fff 'Awfi,
vol.

i,

pp. 169-174).

(13) Ni/amu'd-IMn Muhammad, son of the above, also mentioned

8
by 'Awfi (i, 176), who spent some days with him at the town of Amii
on the Oxus about 600/1203-4.

(14) Another Burhanu'd-Dfn (pedigree unspecified) is mentioned by

'Ala'u'd-Din 'Atd Malik-i-Juwayni in connection with the rebellion of
4
Tardbi in 636/I238-9

any member of this family occurs

the Ta'rlkh-i-Jahdn-drd of the Qddi Ahmad-i-Ghaffari, who states
that tlljaytii (Khuda-banda, reigned A.D. 1303-1316) was impelled to
embrace the Shi'a doctrine by his disgust at the unseemly altercations of
two Sunni theologians of different schools, Khwaja 'Abdu'l-Malik the
Shafi'i, and Sadr-i-Jahan of Bukhara the Ilanafi. The title, place of

The

latest historical reference to

in

p.

This passage
19,

1.

6.

It

is cited in the Persian notes, p. 118, fourth line from the end to
occurs on pp. 23-4 of the edition of M. O. Houdas (Paris, 1891), and

on pp. 41-2 of his French translation (Paris, 1895).

8 An-Nasawl
(ed. Houdas), p. 39= pp. 66-7 of the French translation.
8
Sfce Y^qiit's Mu'jamu'l-Buld&n, vol. i, pp. 69-70, and G. le Strange's Lands of
the Eastern Caliphate, p. 434. The town is also called Amul by the Arabs, like the
better-known town of that name in Mazandaran.
4
See Mfrzd Muhammad's edition of the Ta"rikh-i-Jahdn-gushdy, vol. i, p. 88
"
Series, xvi, i).
(" E. J. W. Gibb Memorial

NOTES ON THE FIRST DISCOURSE

ii2
origin,

that

and theological school of the last-named all point

to the conclusion

he belonged to the Al-i-Burhdn.

The

following genealogical table indicates the relationship of the

members of this family mentioned above. In each case the corresponding

number is given for reference to what precedes, the proper name is given
in full, and the title in an abbreviated form, where 'A. = 'Aziz ;
B. - Burhdn ; D. = Din ; H. = Husdm ; If. = Ijtikhdr ; Is. = Islam ;
= adr ;
J. ^Jahdn ; M. = Malik / N. = Nizdm ; S. - Say/;
S/t. = Shams ; and T. = Taj.
*

(i)

(6)

B. D.

Mahmud

(7)

B. D.

Maza

B. D. 'Abdu'l-'Aziz

Muhammad
(9)

F
M. Is.

MasYid

(8) If. J.

(10)

'A.\.

(12) B. Is.

(13)

XII.

Bughr

T. D. 'Umar

N. D.

Muhammad

KMn and flak Khan in Anecdote XI.

(Text, p. 24; Persian notes, pp. 121 -3.)

Our author makes an

error here in substituting the

name

of Bughra

Khan, who was Sultan Mahmiid's contemporary.

Bughrd Khan was the first King known to history of the Afrasiyabf or
Khani Turkish dynasty of Transoxiana. The origin of this dynasty and
the period at which they embraced Islam is involved in obscurity.
1
Bughra Khan's proper name is said by Ibnu'l-Athfr to have been
Ibn
Hartin
ibn Farrukhdn
ibn
Hariin
Khalddn,
Sulayman ; but, by
Sir Henry Howorth in his article on the Af~
(? Qard-Khdn) 'Ali, and
2
rdsiydbi Turks prefers the latter; but as Bughra* Khan appears to have
struck no coins, the question remains uncertain. Bughra Khan was his
Turkish title his Islamic title (probably conferred by the Caliph) was
Shihdbu'd-Dawla. His territories marched with China and included most
of Eastern Turkistan, with the cities of Kashghar and Balasaghiin, which
latter was his capital. He fought several campaigns against the Samanid
Kings, in the last of which he took their capital Bukhara, but died on
his homeward march in 383/993-4*, five or six years before Sultan

Khan

for that of Ilak

Mahmud ascended the

He was succeeded

throne of Ghazna.
by his nephew (or, according to Howorth, his
brother) frak Khan, whose proper name appears to have been "Nasiru'lHaqq Nasr flak ibn *AH ibn Mtisa ibn Satuq, while .his 'coins,
bearing dates ranging from A.H. 390 to 400 (A.D. 1000 to 1010) were
1

Ed. Tornberg,

Ibnu'l-Athfr, sub

ix, 68.

anno

J.R.A.S.

(ed. Tornberg), ix, 70.

for 1898, pp.

467-507.

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE,

XIII,

XIV

113

struck at Bukhara, Khujand, Karghana, Uzkand, Saghaniyan, Samarqand,

Ush and Ilaq, />. in all the chief cities of Transoxiana and Turkistan 1 .

He reigned for twenty years (A.H. 38.^-403 = A. u. 993-1013), overthrew

the authority of the Samanids in Transoxiana, and quarrelled with
Mahmiid over the partition of their territories, which were finally
Sultan
divided between them.

Ahmad

XIII.

(Text, p.

ibn 'Abdu'llah al-Khujistanf.

26

Persian notes, pp. 123-4.)

a district dependent on Badghis and situated in the

Khujistan
mountains of Herat. This Ahmad was originally an Amir in the service
of the Tahirids, but on their collapse he joined the Saffarids, and finfelly
exercised authority over the greater part of Khurasan. Finally he fought
and defeated the Saffarid 'Amr ibn Layth at Nfshapilr, struck money in
his own name, and was contemplating the conquest of 'Iraq, when he
was murdered by some of his own servants after exercising more or less
is

independent authority for eight years (A.H. 260-8 A.JIL 874-82).

In the Trfrikh-i-Guzida* Saman, the ancestor of the Samanid Kings,
;

represented as the person thus affected by these verses; but, apart

from the improbability that Persian verse existed in his time, at any rate
in theform in which it is known to us, Hanzala, the author of these verses,
flourished under the Tahirid dynasty, of which the founder was contemporary with Asad the son of Saman.
is

Poets and writers mentioned in Anecdote XII.

(Text, pp. 27-8; Persian notes, pp. 125-56.)

Sallamf.

Abii 'All as-Sallami al-Bayhaqi of Nfshapur died in

According to at h-Tha 'alibi' ( Yatima, iv, 29) he was attached
as secretary to Abi1 Bakr Muhammad ibn al-Mu/affar ibn Muhtaj and
his son Abii 'All Ahmad. He wrote many books, of which the most
'famous is the "history" referred to in the text, viz. the History of the
Governors of Khurasan, which was used by Ibn Khallikan, especially in
his notice of Ya'qtib ibn Layth the Saffarid. A short notice of Sallamf
occurs in Ibn Funduq's History of Bayhaq, composed in 563/1167-8 in
Persian, of which a good MS. (Or. 3587) exists in the British Museum.
The text of this article is given in the original by Mir/a Muhammad on

300/912-3.

p.

125 of the Persian notes.

Sharff-i-Mujallidi of Gurgan. This poet is mentioned in

Lubdb (vol. i, pp. 13-14), where he is called Abti Sharif Ahmad
ibn 'Ali, and where this same verse is cited.
'Awfi's

Rudakf (or -gf). One of the oldest and most authentic notices of this
3
ancient and celebrated Persian poet occurs in the Ansdb of Sam 'an f ,
his
native
from
his
who says that he derived
pen-name (takhallus)
place
1

Se Sic Henry

Howorth's paper referred to in the last paragraph.

Ed. Jules Gantin (Paris, 1903), pp. 20-21 ; Gibb Memorial facsimile ed.

(xiv, i),

p. 37<j.
3

" E.

The
J.

W.

given on pp. 125-6 of the Persian notes, occurs on

Gibb " Memorial'* edition (vol. xx, published in 1912).

text,

f.

262* of the

NOTES ON THE SECOND IJISCOURSE

ii4

Riidak, a district situated near Samarqand. His full name was Abu*
'Abdu'llah Ja'far ibn Mufoammad; he was "the first to produce good
poetry in Persian," and he died in 329/940-1. See the late Dr Hermann
Ethe's monumental paper Rtidagi, der SamarAdendichter 1 The vocalization Rawdhakf also occurs, with the addition of the names of the
.

poet's grandfather (Ffakim), great-grandfather ('Abdu'r- Rahman), and

great-great-grandfather (Adam). See my Hand-list of Muhammadan
Manuscripts (Cambridge, 1900), No. 701, pp. 125-6.

Abu*l-<Abbs as-Ribanjanf's

full name was Fadl ibn 'Abbas.

Ribanjan (the correct reading is due to
the late Professor de Goeje) is a city near Sughd and Samarqand, given
"
by ydqtit in the corrupt form Rabaykhan." It is also mentioned in
the Ansdb of as-Sam'ani (Gibb Series, vol. xx, ff. 23 b and 248 b ) as
Atbinjan and Rabinjan. Mfrzd Muhammad has furnished me with a

See 'Awffs Lubdb

vol.

ii,

p. 9.

AbuVAbbas in the' Thimdru'l-Qulub (Cairo ed.,

147) of ath-Tha'alibi, where some Persian verses (a good deal
corrupted in the f printed text) from an unlucky qaslda which he composed on the occasion of a festival in the thirty-first and last year of the
A.D. 942-3)
reign of his patron Nasr ibn Ahmad the Sdmdnid (A.H. 331
are cited.
fresh reference to this

p.

---

Abu'l-Mathal of Bukhara
and

is

mentioned

in the

Lubdb

(ii,

26)

The vocalization "Mathal"

is proved by a verse of Mimlchihri's in which mention is made of ten old
Persian poets, all of whom are identified by Mfrzd Muhammad, who
cites the verse (pp. 127-9
f the" Persian notes).
Of these the most
interesting is Shahfd of Balkh, who resembles 'Umar Khayyam iri this,
in Asadi's Glossary (ed. P.

Horn,

p. 28).

that his real fame as a philosopher has amongst his countrymen been
eclipsed by his fame as a poet, though he was much more notable in the
former than in the latter capacity. He is mentioned in the Fihrist^
p. 299, as a doughty antagonist of Abii Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariyya ar-

Razi (the great physician), who wrote a treatise in refutation of some of his
Yaqiit also mentions him in his article on Jah&dhdnak near
Balkh, the village in which he was born, while Tha'alibf reckons him as
one of the four greatest men produced by that ancient city. The correct
reading in this last case is given in the Paris MS. of the Yatimatu'dDahr\ in the printed text it appears as "Sahl ibnu'l- Hasan" instead of
"Shahidu ibnu'l-FIusayn." That he predeceased Riidaki, who died in
329/940-1, is proved by a verse in which that poet laments his death.
He is casually mentioned, as Mfrza Muhammad points out to me, in
two passages in Yaqdt's " Dictionary of Learned Men " (Gibb Series, vi,
i, pp. 143 and 149), and an article on him was included in the lost
fourth volume of this work. 'Awfi also relates a short and rather
pointless story about him in the
JawdmMl-Ifikdydt (Brit. Mus. MS.
opinions.

Or. 2676,

f.

235

).

Abu Ishq-i-Jiiybrf s

personal name, according to the Lubdb

Asadi's Glossary (p. 17), was Ibrahim, and his fatherXname
was Muhammad. The Jriybar from which he derived his nisba was
apparently situated near Bukhara.
(ii,

n)and

Gottinger Nachrichten, 1873, PP- 663-741.

NOTE XIV. POETS AND WRITERS IN ANECDOTE XII

115

Abu'l-Hasan Aghajf was one of the nobles of the Samanid Court

vhose praises were sung by Daqiqi 1 This celebrated poet, as appears from
Awfi's Lubdb (i, 31-2) and Asadi's Lughat (p. 17), was contemporary
vith Nilli II ibn Mansiir the Samanid, who reigned from A.H. 366 to 387
|A.D. 976-997)^ Aghajfs full name was Abu'l-JJasan 'AH ibn Ilyas
il-Aghaji (or al-Aghjf) of Bukhara. His title Aghdji(<yc one of its several
variants) appears to be a Turkish word meaning a chamberlain or
personal servant of a king, serving as an intermediary between him and
2
There is a notice of him in ath-Tha'alibi's Supplement 3
lis subjects
;o his
Yatimatu'd-Dahr, from which we learn that he was fond of
ran slat ing his own Persian verses into Arabic verse. How he understood
;he art of verse-translation may be seen by comparing the
Persian
verses in 'Awfi's Lnbdb, i, 32, 11. 1-4 with the Arabic rendering on
11.
of
the
Persian
Chahdr
notes to the
130,
5-6,
Maqdla.
.

:>.

Tahawi

4
For
(so in all three MSS.) nothing is known
of Nfshapdr, see 'Awfi's Lubdb^ ii, 27, where, however,
jxcept that he is included amongst the poets of the S&manid period, no
)articulars are given. The modern Majmeftfl-Fusahd (i, 199) makes
lim a contemporary of Kildagi, Kisa'i, etc^ and gives the date of his
ieath as A.H. 342 (A.D. 953-4), but on what authority is not stated.*

About

Khabbazi

Abu'l-Hasan al-Kisa'i was

born, as stated by himself in one of

on Wednesday, Shawwal 26, A.H. 341 (March 16, 953), and
lad attained the age of fifty when he wrote it. How much longer he
ived is unknown. The late Dr Hermann Kthe wrote a valuable monojrapti on him (Die Liederdes Kisdi) in the Sitzungsberichte d. Mtlnchener
4kad. (philos.-phitol. Classe) for 1874, pp. 133-153.
lis

poems

Abu'l-Hasan 'AH Bahramf of Sarakhs was not only a poet but

:omposed several reputable works on Prosody and Rhyme, such as.
he Ghdyatrfl-'Ariidayti) Kanzifl-Qdfiya and Khujista^ often cited by
Jhams i-Qays in his Mu*jam fi Ma'dyiri Ash'drPl-'Ajam*. His date is
lot exactly known, and the statements of the Majma*ifl-Fusahd (i, 173)
end rather to obscure than to elucidate it.
Zfnatf, called 'Alawi "the descendant of 'All/' was one of the
ah mud and his son Mas'tid, and
poets of Ghazna under Sultan
s twice mentioned by Abu'1-Fadl of Bayhaq in his Tat rikh-i- Mas'&di
Tihran ed., pp. 125 and 276) as receiving a handsome present for

:ourt

verse.

lis

1
The only authority for this statement is the passage in 'Awfi's Lubdb cited in the
ext line, and, as Mir /a Muhammad now thinks, it is not certain that it will bear so

an interpretation.
For the evidence for

precise
a

Awfi's Lubdb,

i,

this see

a note by Mirxa

Muhammad

in

my

edition of

397-8.

the Bibliotheque
There is a fine MS. of this Tatimma, or Supplement,
Rationale at Paris (Ponds Arabs, 3308). Unfortunately it still remains unpublished.
4 Re
with
identical
the
of
native
is, per haps,
Tukhdrl (or
Tukharistan) mentioned
n the Majma'iil-Fusahd as Khabbazi's contemporary.
6
The first eight verses are cited in the Persian notes, pp. 131-2. The whole
a$lda is given in 'Awfi's Lubdb, ii, 38-9.
"
6
Vol. x of the " E. J. W. Gibb Memorial
Series.
a

in

8-3

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

ii6

The

full

name

of

Buzurjmihr

of Qayin was Amir Abu* Mansiir

Qasim ibn Ibrahim, and he

above-mentioned
the

Tatimma\

or

Zinati.

flourished during the same period as the

Abu* Mansiir ath-Tha'dlibi mentions him in

Supplement to

one of the
and quotes some
shrewd satires on a miser.

his Yatimatu'd-Dahr, as

bilingual poets, who wrote both in Arabic

of his Arabic verses, including some very

and

Persian,

By MuzafTari is meant Muzaffar of Panjdih (see 'Awffs Lubdb, ii,

Horn in his edition of Asadi's Lughat has misread

63-65). Dr Paul
"
"

Marwi

(of

" Hirawi
Merv) as

poet with a later namesake

who

"

(of Herat), and has confused this

died in A.H. 728 (A.D. 1327-8).

The proper name

of Manshiirf was Abu* Sa'id Abmad ibn

of Samarqand (see 'Awffs Lubdb, ii, 44-46). He is mentioned by Rashidu'd Din Watwat in the Haddiiju*s-Sihr as especially
skilful in composing verses of the kind called Mulawwan, capable of
being scanned in two or more metres.

Muhammad

Mas'udi was^one of the court poets of Sultan Mas'iid of Gha/na,

whose anger he incurred, as we learn from Bayhaqi's history 2 by some
admonitory verses in which he (with a foresight justified by subsequent
events) warned his sovereign against the growing power of the Saljiiq
,

Turks.

Qasarami was one of the panegyrists

Muhammad ibn Marmiiid of Ghazna. He is

of Sultan Abii

Ahmad

mentioned by Asadi
His name remains unexplained, nor is it known

his

Lughat (p. 27).

what this nisba refers.

in

to

Abii Hanffa-i-Iskaf8 was one of the court poets of Sultan Ibrahim

Ghazna (reigned A.H. 451-492 = A.D. 1059-1099), and is

.ibn Mas'tid of

repeatedly so described, in terms of the warmest eulogy, by Abu'lFadl-i-Bayhaqi (ed. Tihran, pp. 276-281, 387--39I and 633-636).
'Awfi, therefore, can hardly be correct in including him amongst the
A.D. 1117-1157).
poets of Sultan Sanjar the Saljiiq (A.H. 511-552
The account of him given in the MajmtfiM-Fusahd is full of the most
astonishing confusions and chronological errors, fully set forth by Mfrza
Muhammad at the conclusion of his long note (pp. 136-140 of the
Persian text) on this poet.
--.

Rashidf is not mentioned by any of the biographers, but somewhat

detailed references are made to him by his contemporary and rival
c
Mas'iid-i-Sa d-i-Salman (see below) in two of his qasidas cited by Mi'rza

Muhammad

in the Persian notes (pp.

140-142).

Abu'1-Faraj-i-Runf was a younger contemporary of the two poets

above mentioned,

for he survived into the reign of Sultan Ibrahim's son

Mas'iid III (A.H. 492-508 = A.D. 1099-1114), so that the biographer
Taqiyyu'd-Din-i-Kashi is evidently mistaken in placing his death in
1

See

p.

ad calc.

Tihran lithographed ed.,

is a suburb of Baghdad, but, on the face of

have been directly connected with that city.

as-Sam'ani,
Iskdfi can

115 ju/ni, n. 3

it,

it

is

p.

60 1.

not likely that our

NOTE XIV. POETS AND WRITERS IN ANECDOTE XII

117

489 (A.D. 1096). Riina, from which he took his nisba> was a place
near Lahore, not, as asserted in the Ta^rtkh-i-Guzida^ in Khawaran of
Khurasan, nor, as the MajmaWl-Fusahd states, near Nishapiir.
A.H.

On this poet Mirza Muhammad

based on a careful study of his poems,
which I translated into English and published in tivtJ.R.A.S. for 1905
(pp. 693-740) and 1906 (pp. 11-51). The substance of this, which he
has summarized in the Persian notes (pp. 142-150 and 178-182) to this
text, is here given in a still more condensed form. The poet's family came
originally from Ramadan in Persia, but he himself was born at Lahore,
of which, in several passages in his poems, he speaks as his native place.
Five Kings of the House of Ghazna were the objects of his panegjjrics,
to wit Ibrahim, Mas'rid III, Shirzad, Arsldn and Bahrdmshah, whose
reigns extended over a period of 96 lunar or 93 solar years (A.H. 451547 = A.D. 1059-1152). His special patron was Sultan Ibrahim's son
Mahmiid, who was made governor of India in A.H. 469 (A.U. 1076-7),
an event which the poet asserts to have been foreshadowed fifty years
earlier by the great astronomer al-Biruni in his Tafhim 1
This is the
earliest date explicitly mentioned by Mas'dd-i-Sa'd. He was probably
born about A.H. 440 (A.D. 1048-9) and died about A.H. 515 (A.D. 1121-2).
In A.H. 480 (A.D. 1087-8) he shared the suspicion and disgrace into
which his master fell and was imprisoned in different fortresses for ten
years. At the end of this period he was set free at the intercession of
Abu'l-Qasim, one of Sultan Ibrahim's courtiers, and returned to his
father's estate in India. In A.H, 492 (A.D. 1098-9) Sultan Ibrahim died
and was succeeded by his son Mas'iid III, who conferred the government
of India on his son Shir/ad, with whom he sent Qiwamu'1-Mulk Abit
,Nasr Hibatu'llah of Pars as commandcr-in-chief and adviser. This man,
being an old friend of the poet, made him governor of Jalandar, a
dependency of Lahore; but soon afterwards fell into disfavour in which
his clients were involved, and Mas'iid-i-Sa'd was again imprisoned in
the fortress of Maranj for another period of eight or nine years. Finally,
about A.H. 500 (A.D. 1106-7), he was released at the intercession of
Thiqatu'1-Mulk Tahir ibn 'All ibn Mushkun. Being now sixty years of
age and worn out by his long confinements, he retired from public life
and spent the remainder of his days in seclusion. Many contemporary
poets, such as 'Uthman Mukhtarf of fahazna, Mu'izzf and Sana'? (who
first collected and edited his poetry) bear witness to his pre-eminence
Mas'iid-i-Sa'd-i-Salman.

wrote a long

critical notice,

in their art.

Muhammad

ibn Nasir al-'Alawi and his brother

Jamdiu'd-Dfn
Sayyid Flasan ibn Nasir of Ghazna were two well-known poets of the
court of Bahramshah, as was also Shihabu'd-Din Shah * All Abu Rija.
See 'Awfi's Lubdbu'l-Albdb, vol. ii, pp. 267-282.

There

is

a faint probability that

Ahmad-i-Khalaf may

have been

the son of Khalaf ibn Ahmad, the ruler of Sistan, a probability enhanced
by the fact that the latter bore the kunya of Abil Ar^mad, although
there is no other record of the existence of such a son.
1

See the verses from

and note

this interesting

at the foot of the latter.

poem

cited

on pp. 144-5 of tne

1'ersian notes,

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

[i8

'Uthm&n

Muhammad Mukht&rf of Ghazna died in A.H. 544

A.H. 554 (A.D. 1159). He was the panegyrist of
or
[A.D. 1149-1150)
Arslan and his brother and successor Bahramshah of the House of
ibn

Shazna, whose reigns extended from A.H. 509-552 (A.D. 1115-1157);

= A.D. 1100-1141);
:>f Arslanshah the
Saljiiq of Kirman (A.H. 494-536
md of Arslan Khan Muhammad of the Turkish Khaniyya dynasty of
Fransoxiana (A.H. 495~524=A.D. 1 101-1 130). Mfrza Muhammad (p. 151
rf the Persian notes) calls attention to some extraordinary chronological
errors in the notice of this poet in the Majmcfu'l-Fusahd, and some
irbitrary alterations of the text of certain poems into which these errors
have misled the author.

^bu'1-Majd Majdud ibn Adam as-Sana'f of Ghazna, the wellknown mystical poet, author of the Hadiqatiil-Haqiqa and an extensive
Diwdn, died, according to the most correct statement, in A.H. 545
A.U. 1150-1). The date given by Jami in his Nafahdtu'l- Uns (p. 697),
wz. A.H. 525 (A.D. 1131), is certainly much too early, since Sana'i composed verses on ,the death of Mu'izzf, which took place in A.H. 542
[A.D.

1147-8).

Najfbf of Farghana (of whom further mention is made in Anecdote XIX) was one of the court poets of Khidr Khan ibn Tafghaj Khan
(of the Khaniyya dynasty of Transoxiana) who succeeded to the throne
in A.H. 472 (A.D. 1079-1080) and died after a brief reign. 'Am'aq of
Bukhara, poet-laureate of the same king, died, according to Taqiyyu'dDfn of Kashan, in A.H. 543 (A.D. 1148-9). Abd Muhammad 'Abdu'llah
(or 'Abdu's-Sayyid) Rashfdf of Samarqand, Najj&r-i-Sagharjf
(from Sagharj, a village of Sughd), 'AH P&nfdhf and Pisar-iDarghiish were poets attached to the same court, of whom little or
nothing is known.
Abu'l-Mafoamid Mahmiid ibn Umar al-Jawharf (the Jeweller)
as-Sa'igh (the Goldsmith) of Herat was contemporary with Farrukh-zad,
Sultan of Ghazna (A.H. 444-451; A.D. 1052-9). A notice of him is
(

given in 'Awfi's Lubdb

(ii,

110-117).

The Dihqan 'AH Sha^ranjf of Samarqand, another poet of Transoxiana, is said by the MajmaWl-Fusahd to have been a pupil of the
celebrated satirist Srfzani, who .died, according to Taqiyyu'd-Din of
Kashan,

in A.H.

569

(A.D.

1173-4).

Mansiir ibn 'AH al-Manfiqf of Ray, whose verses are repeatedly

cited in evidence by Rashidu'd-Din Watwdt in his Hadtfiqrfs-Sihrt was
one of the poets attached to the Sdhib Isma'fl ibn 'Abbad (Lubdb, ii,
16-18).

Abii Zayd Muhammad ibn Alf al-Ghadd'irf of Ray was a contemporary of 'Unsuri and his circle, and died, according to the MajmaWl(

His nisba, Ghada'iri, is explained 1

meaning "potter," tile-maker/' ghad&ir being the plural Qfghatfdra,
a kind of sticky, greenish clay used for making pottery. The' form
Ghada'iri (not Ghadarf, as the Majmtfu'l-Fusahd has it) is proved corFusahd, in A.H. 426
as

(A.D. 1034-5).

"

See the Ansdb of as-Sam'dni (Gibb Series,

vol. xx),

f.

4oo

b.

NOTE XIV. POETS AND WRITERS IN ANECDOTE XII

19

by verses of the poet himself and of his contemporary 'Unsuri

is true, uses the form Ghacttrf,
(see Persian notes, p. 153). Mimichihrf, it
but
only from the requirements of his metre.

rect

apparently

Bundar

of Ray, chiefly notable for his Fahlawiyydt, or verses in

was a contemporary of the Satu'b Isma'fi ibn 'Abbdd and of
Majdu'd-Dawla-i-Daylami, and therefore flourished between A.H. 387

dialect

and 420

(A.D.

997 and 1029).

all the MSS. have Farrukhf of Gurgdn it seems probable

should beTFakhrf, ie. Fakhru'd-Din As'ad of Gurgdn, author of
the well-known romantic poem on the loves of Wis and Ramfn. The
XV is devoted, was from
only well-known Farrukhi, to whom Anecdote

Though

that

it

Sistan.

Abu'l-Hasan Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-L&mi'f al-Jurjani adDihist&nf was one of the poets of Malikshah the Saljtiq and his
celebrated Minister Nizamu'1-Mulk, and was the contemporary of
Burhdni, the father of Mu'izzf.
" Baba "
Ja'far of Hamaddn was a friend of Babd T&hir, and
contemporary with Sultan Tughril the Saljdq. See vol. ii of my Lit.

Hist of Persia^

p.

260.

The only other mention of Dur-Ffruz-i-Fakhrf at present noticed

occurs in al-Mafamtkhi's "Beauties of Isfahan," composed in the fifth
century of the hijrd (eleventh of the Christian era), where he is described
as contemporary and is given the kunya of Abu'l-Fadl.
*Abdu'l-Malik Burhanf of Nishapiir, entitled Amfru'sh-Shu'ard, who
died at Qazwin early in the reign of Malikshah, was the father of the
more celebrated Mu'izzf, whose early struggles are described in

Anecdote

XVI and who

was accidentally shot by

Sulfcin Sanjar in A.H.

542 (A.D. 1147-8).

The Dih-Khuda Abu'l-Ma'alf of Ray was

Muliammad ibn Malikshah the Saljiiq

Mas'iid ibn

547;

A.D. 1133-1152),

in A.H.

541

the panegyrist of
(reigned A.H. 527-

and

(A.D. 1146-7).

died, according to the Majma^l-Fusahd^

See 'Awfi's Lubdb, ii, 228-236.

Amfd Kamdlu'd-Din of Bukhdra, known as Kam&lf, was

music as well as poetry, and was one of the favourites oi
Sultan Sanjar. See 'Awfi's Lubdb, i, 86-91.
The Amir

skilled in

By Shihdbf Shihabu'd-Din Ahmad

ibnu'l-Mu'ayyad an-Nasafi as

Samarqandi appears to be meant. The Majma'u'l-Fusahd quotes several

of his qasidas in praise of Ruknu'd-Din Qilij Tamghaj Khan Mas'iid, ol
the Khdriiyya dynasty, who reigned from A.H. 488-494 (A.D. 1095-1 101)
Abu'l-Qasim Ziyad ibn Muriammad al-Qamarf" al- Jurj&nf was a
who was killed
contemporary of Shamsu'i-Ma'ali Qabds ibn Washmgfr,
in A.H. 403 (A.D. 1012-1013). See 'Awfi's Lubdb> ii, 19-20.
1

edition of Dawlatshdh, pp. 42-3; Majdlistfl-M&mi*tn (Tihran lith. ed.,

Ta'rikh-i-Guzlda (Gibb Series, xiv, i), p. 816; and the Mttfam ol
Shams-i-Qays (Gibb Series, x), pp. 145 and 146.

See

my

A.H. 1268);

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

120

RafH of Nfshapur occurs in the

appears that he was a contemporary of
Sultan Mabmiid of Ghazna (A.H. 388-421 ; A.D. 998-1030).
The

only other mention of

MajmaW l-Fusahd,

from which

it

XV. The Vengeance

of Sultan 'Ala'u'd-Din Husayn

Jahan-suz.

(Text, p. 29 ; Persian notes, pp. 1569.)

"those
two
By
Kings, the Prince-martyr and the laudable Monarch"
are meant Qutbu'd-Din Muhammad ibn 'Izzu'd-Din tfusayn MalikttlJibMmA his brother Sayfu'd-Din Stirf, the brothers of Sultdn 'Ala'u'dDin Husayn. Qutbu'd-Din, whose capital was Firtiz-kuh, had quarrelled
with^

brothers and gone to Ghazna, where Bahramshah at first

as an honoured guest, but subsequently, his suspicion being

his

treat'ed

him

aroused by intriguers,

poisoned him. Sayfu'd-Din on hearing this

large army. Bahramshah fled to India, and
Sayfu'd-Dfn occupied the city, took possession of the throne, and soon
dibbanded a great part of his army. On the approach of winter, when the
roads to Ghiir were blocked with snow and the arrival of reinforcements
was impossible, Bahramshah, at the instigation of his subjects, suddenly
returned to Ghazna, took captive Sayfu'd-Din and his followers, and put
them to death in the year A.H. 544 (A.D 1 149-1 50).
Sultan 'Ak!Vd-Din Husayn, furious at the loss of a second brother,
sent a threatening quatrain 1 to the Chief Judge of Ghazna, and,
assembling a large army from Ghtir and Gharjistan, marched on Ghazna
and proceeded to make good his threats. Having thrice defeated
Bahramshah and compelled him again to retire to India, he occupied
Ghazna, and for seven days and nights gave it up to slaughter, pillage
-and destruction. He killed the men, took captive the women and
children, and caused the bodies of all the Kings of Ghazna, except those
of Sultan Mahmtid, Mas'iid and Ibrahim, to be exhumed and burned.
During the seven days of massacre and pillage he was drinking and
making merry in the Royal Palace of Ghazna, and at the end of this
period, when he put a stop to the slaughter, he ordered his minstrels to
sing some rather fine and spirited verses which he had composed for the
8
occasion
After spending another week in mourning for his brothers, he
returned to Ghdr with their effects, destroying on his way all the fine
buildings erected by Sultan Mahmiid of Ghazna. On reaching Finlz-kiih
he composed another fine but arrogant piece of poetry* which he bade
his minstrels sing. These events took
place in A.H. 545 (A.D. 1150-1),

marched on Ghazna with a

the year of his accession to the throne, or in the following

year. Two or
three years later, in A.H. 547 (A.D. 1152-3), he was himself defeated and

taken prisoner at Awba near Herat, by Sultan Sanjar the Saljitq, together
with our author, who refers to this event in Anecdote XXXI.
The chief authority for the history of the Kings of Ghiir is the
Tabaqdt-i-Ndsiri of the Qadi Minhaju'd-Dfn 'Uthmdn ibn Siraju'd-Din

Muhammad, who was their contemporary (born 589/1193 and survived

the year 658/1260). This valuable history has been
published if* the
Bibliotheca Indica Series, but the late
Major H. G. Raverty's English
1

Persian notes, p. 157,

Ibid., p. 158,

1.

II.

7-8.

p. 159,

I.

Ibid., p. 157,
2.

1.

18

p. 158,

5.

NOTE XVI. THE Jti-vi-MtfuvAN OF BUKHARA

121

translation (2 vols. containing lxiv+i296+xxvi + 272 pp., London, 1881)

is even more valuable, being based on a careful and extensive collation
of fresh MSS., and furnished with numerous notes, critical, historical and

geographical. The first six of the twenty-three sections comprised in the

work are only given in brief epitome, but this is of little consequence, as
they deal with matters which can be better studied in older Arabic histories.

XVI. Notes on Anecdote XIII.

(Text, pp. 31-4

Persian notes,

p. 160.)

This anecdote about Riidakf and his improvisation

known and occurs

is

very well

in nearly all the biographies of poets, but nowhere

very interesting point, to which I have elsewhere

so fully as here.
1
called attention , is the wide divergence of opinion as to the meuit of
the verses existing between the author of this work and Dawlatshah,

who

lived some three centuries later, indicating a complete change in

the canons of taste during this period, and, it must be admitted, a change
for the worse. The late l)r Hermann Ethe's monograph, published in
the Gbttinger Nachrichlcn for 1873 (pp. 663-742), remains the best and
account of Ritdaki, concerning whom some further particulars

fullest^

have already been given (pp. 113-114 supra),

The true explanation of the name of the s\xzwmJ&-yi-Muliydn has been
discovered by Mir/a Muhammad in Narshakhi's History of Bukhdrd.
This work, originally composed in Arabic in A.H. 332 (A.D. 943-4), was
translated into Persian

and again by

first

by Abil Nasr-i-Qabawi

in A.H.

522 (A.D.

Muhammad

ibn Zufar in A.H. 574 (A.D. 1178-9).

It is this second translation which was published at Paris in 1892 by the
late M. Charles Schefer, and from which the information in question is
" Account of the
derived. In a section entitled
Ju*-yi-Mi1liyan and its
"
the author writes as follows 2 :
qualities
"In old times these estates of the Jii-yi-Milliydn belonged to King
Tughshada, who gave a portion of them to each one of his sons and
sons-in-law. Amir Ismail the Samani (may God have mercy upon him !)
bought these estates from Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn TaMt, who was a
captain of [the Caliph] al-Musta'in ibnu'l-Mu'tasim, and made palaces
and gardens in the Jii-yi-Miiliyan, most of which he conferred on the
Mawdlls\ and which are still endowments. His heart was always pre1128),

occupied about his Mawdlis

(clients), until one day he was gazing from

the fortifications of Bukhara towards the Ji'i yi-Mtiliyan. His father's
client, Sima'u'l-Kabir, whom he greatly loved and held in high honour,
was standing before him. Amir Isma'il said, 'Will it ever be that God
Most High will bring it to pass that I may buy these estates for you, and
grant me life to see these estates yours, for they are of greater value than
all the other estates of Bukhdra, and pleasanter and of better climate ?
And God Most High vouchsafed to him to buy them all and give them
to his Mawdlis, so that the place was named jA-yi-Mawdliydn^ which
was commonly called Ju-yi-Mtiliydn"
'

Lit. Hist, of Persia* vol. i, pp. 16-17. S G a l so my article on

etc., in the J.R.A.S. for January, 1899 (pp. 37-69).
The original passage is quoted on p. il of the Persian notes.

The Sources of

Dawlaishaki
2

Mawdli being itself the plural of Mawld (a

of an Arabic plural, appears to be a solecism.

client),

Mawdllydn^ a Persian

plural

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

122

XVII. Note on Anecdote XIV.

(Text, pp.

known

34-6

Persian notes, 161-2.)

Chamberlain" (Hdjib-i-Buzurg)
was one of the principal nobles of Sultan Mahmtid of Ghazna. On the
death of this monarch, he raised his younger son the Amir Abu* Ahmad
Muhammad to the throne. A quarrel shortly arose between him and his
brother Sultan Mas'iid, who was then at Isfahan. The latter marched on
Ghazna, and when he reached Herat 'AH ibn Qarib deposed Abii
Ahmad Muhammad and imprisoned him in the Castle of KUhshir
near Gha/na. On Dhu'l-Qa'da 3, A.H. 421 (Nov. 2, 1030) he waited at
Herdt on Sultan Mas'itd, who, however, seized him and his brother the
Chamberlain Mankftarak and cast them both into prison, after which
they were no more heard of.
'Alf ibn Qarib,

as "the Great

XVIII. Note on the House of Muhtdj of Chaghniyin.

(Text, p. 36; Persian notes, pp. 163-6.)

The

noble an/1 influential House of Muhtaj, which had its home at

Chaghaniyan in Transoxiana, produced many notable men during the
Samanf and Gha/nawi periods. Concerning some of the most famous of
these Mirza Muhammad has collected from various sources the
following
particulars.

Abit Bakr Muliammad ibnu'l-Muzaffar ibn Muhtaj was given the

of the armies of Khurasan by the Amir Nasr II ibn
Ahmad the Samani in A.H. 321 (A.D. 933), which position he held until
the latter part of his life, when, being attacked by a chronic illness,
he resigned in favour of his son Abit 'All Ahmad, died in A.H." 329
(A.D. 941), and was buried at Chaghaniydn.
(i)

chief

command

(2) This son, Abi1 'Ali Ahmad, defeated and killed Makan ih
Kakiiy the Daylami in A.H. 329 (A.D. 941), and it was on this occasion
that the celebrated despatch of his secretary Abu'l-Qasim Iskafi
(alluded
to in Anecdote III, pp. 16-18 supra) was penned. He extended the
Samdnid authority over Jurjan, Tabaristan, Zanjan, and Kirmdnshah.
In A.H. 333 (A.D. 944-5) the Amfr Niih I ibn Nasr II ibn Ahmad
dismissed him from the Government of Khurdsdn, whereupon he rebelled,
deposed the Amir (who fled to Samarqand), overran Khurdsdn, and
captured Bukhdrd. Finally in A.H. 344 (A.D. 955-6) he fell a victim to
the plague at Ray and was buried with his father at Chaghaniyan.
f

(3) AbuVAbbas Fadl ibn Muhammad, brother of the above, who

appointed him in A.H. 333 (A.D. 944-5) Governor of the Jabal province

(modern

'Irdq-i-'Ajam).

He subdued Dinawar and Nihawand. When

his

brother rebelled against the Samdnids, as above mentioned, he supported

them, in spite of which he incurred their suspicion in A.H. 336 (A.D. 947-8)
and was imprisoned at Bukhara, after which all future trace of him
disappears.

Abu'l-Muzaffar 'Abdu'llah ibn Ar^mad, son of No. 2, who, in

948-9), when his father made peace with Amfr Ntih I
the Samdnid, was sent as a hostage to Bukhard, where he dwelt as
an honoured guest until he was killed by a fall from his horse in A.H. 340
(951-2), and was buried at Chaghaniydn.
(4)

'

H 337 ( A -D.

NOTE XIX. TUGHANSHAH THE

SALJI^Q

123

(5) Abu Mansiir ibn Ahmad, another son of No. 2, who appointed
him Governor of Chaghaniyin in A.H. 340 (A.D. 951-2) when he himself

was made Governor of Khurasan.

Abu'l-Muzaffar Jahir ibn Fadl, nephew of No. 2 and son of
was Governor of Chaghaniyan until his death in A.H. 377 (A.D.
987-8). He was himself a poet and a generous patron of poets, Manjik
of Tirmidh being one of \\isproteges. See 'Awff's Lubdb, i, pp. 27-29.
(6)

No.

3,

(7) Fakhru'd-Dawla Abu'l-Muzaffar Afcmad ibn Muhammad, the

person to whom reference is here made in the Chahdr Maqdla, is believed by Mi'rza Muhammad to have been a son or grandson of the
above mentioned Abti 'Ali. Daqiqi preceded Farrukhi as his panegyrist,
a fact to which the latter alludes in three verses not included in the
portion of the qasida here quoted, but given on pp. 165-6 of the Persian

notes.

Of Farrukhi's " admirable description of the poetic art " six verses,
besides the one given in the text, are cited on p. 166 of the Persian
notes. The editor's learned demonstration of the identity of Khuttal and
Khatldn, of which place the former is the Arabic and the latter the
Persian name, is mentioned in note 2 at the foot of p. 44 supra. The
details of the proof must be sought in the Persian notes, pp. 166-8.

XIX. Note on Tugh&nshah, and the arbitrary methods

of some Persian editors.
(Text, p. 43; Persian notes, pp. 170-3.)

As pointed out

in note i at the foot of p. 48 supra, this Tughanshah

the son of Alp Arslan the Saljiiq is a totally different person from the
Tughanshah ibn Mu'ayyad Ay-Aba with whom the author of the Majma
'ul-Fusahd and others have rashly identified him, regardless of the fact that
Azraqi (as shewn by three conclusive proofs on p. 173 of the Persian
notes) must have been dead long before the latter ascended the throne
in A.H. 569 (A.-D. 1 173-4). The curious thing about the first Tughanshah
(the Saljilq, to whom reference is here made) is that he is not mentioned
1
by any of the historians of this period except our author Nizamf of

Samarqand in this passage and in 'Awffs Lubdb (ii, 87-8), and nearly
that we know about him is derived from Azraqi's poems in his honour.

all

The

author of the Majma'u'l-Fusahd, starting from the misconception to

which allusion has been made, has deliberately and arbitrarily falsified
the text of Azraqi's poems to make it support his erroneous theory, and
has changed (vol. i, p. 145) "Tughanshah ibn Muhammad" into
"Tughanshah ibn Mu'ayyad." On these reprehensible methods Mfrza
Muhammad justly remarks (pp. 172-3 of the Persian notes ad calc.)
" Such
arbitrary emendations are not only an encouragement to
ignorance, but a betrayal of the trust committed to us by men of yore.
:

For it is evident that their books, compositions, writings and harangues

are a precious heritage which our forefathers have bequeathed to us
1
Dawlatshdh, Hajji Khalifa and the Haft IqUm do, indeed, speak of an older
Tughanshah praised by Azraqi, but all the statements they make about him are
incorrect. See the Persian notes, p. ivr, second paragraph.

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

124

trust, and which we in turn should transmit to our descendants

untampered with and unaltered. For should it once be allowed that from
the time of Firdawsi until now, a period of nearly a thousand years,
everyone should emend the verses of the Shdh-ndma in accordance with
his own whims and fancies, no trace or sign would now remain of
this Royal Treasure, this Mine of Jewels and Coral, which constitutes
the greatest literary glory of Persia, and is the guarantee of the per-

in

petuation of our national tongue.

"
'
I actually heard a certain Persian scholar in Paris say
My late
and
besides
no
rival
in
all
sciences
father,
accomplishments,
having
possessed a special talent wherein no one could equal him. This was,
that any manuscript work of an ancient writer, from the beginning, end
or Middle of which some leaves had been lost, used to be given to
my father, who, in the course of one or two nights, would supply the
missing portion with a composition of his own in the same style and cast
as the rest of the book, and would add it to the original ; and it so
closely resembled the other chapters and sections of the book that no
scholar or savanfcould decide whether these leaves formed part of the
original book or were an addition to it.'
"
"
May God guide us into the Way of Rectitude
:

Note XX. Azraqf (Anecdote XVII).

(Text,

p.

43

Persian notes, pp. 174-178.)

Abti Bakr Zaynu'd-I)m ibn Isma'fl al-Warraq ("the book-seller") of

Herat, poetically surnamed Azraqf, would appear from a verse in oie of
his poems (p. 174 of the Persian notes) to have borne the proper name of
His father Isma'il was the contemporary of Firdawsi, who, when
Ja'far.
he fled from Sultan Mahtmid's wrath, was for six months in hiding in
his house at Herat.
Most of Azraqi's panegyrics are in praise of two Saljiiq princes,
Tughanshah ibn Alp Arslan, mentioned in the last note, and Amiranshah
ibn Qawurd. This Qawurd was the first of the Saljiiq rulers of Kirman,
but, as his son Amiranshah did not ascend the throne, the date of his
death is not recorded, though he predeceased his brother Sultanshah,
who died A.H. 476 (A.D. 1083-4).
Taqiyyu'd-Din of K.ashan gives A.H. 527 (A.D. 1132-3) as the date
of Azraqi's death, which, however, must have taken place at least forty
" he was antecedent
years earlier. For in the first place 'Awfi says that
to Mu'izzi," and secondly he makes no mention in his poems of Malikshah
or Sanjar or their nobles and ministers, which omission would be almost
inconceivable if he lived in their time. Thirdly, Azraqi's father was the
contemporary of Firdawsi, who died sometime before A.H. 42 1 (A.D. 1030),

and

it is

who was
A.H.

evidently extremely improbable that he could have had a son

living a century later. It is probable that Azraqi died before

still

465 (A.D. 1072-3).

Rashfdu'd-Dfn Watwat in his Hadd'tqu's-Sthr(" Gardens of.Magic")
criticizes Azraqi for his far-fetched and fantastic comparisons, and
especially comparisons to non-existent things, so that, for example, he
compares burning charcoal to a sea of musk with golden waves.

NOTE XX. THE POET AZRAQI

121

Hajji Khalifa and many of the biographers ascribe to Azraqi th<

Sindibdd-ndma and the Alfiyya wa SJialfiyya. This is an error, for th<
former of these two books was of Persian or Indian origin, and wai
composed in pre-Islamic days, as clearly appears from the statement!

of Mas'tidi in the MurAju* dh-DhabaP and of the

Of thi
fihrist*.
Sindibdd-ndma the Pahlawf text was extant in the time of the Ami!
Nuh II ibn Mansiir the Sdmanid (A.H. 366-387; A.D. 976-997), b]
whose command it was translated into Persian by Khwaja 'Amid Abu'l
Fawaris-i-Qanawazf, whose translation, however, appears to be entirel]
This translation was, however, revised and re-edited in a mon
ornate form about A.H. 600 (A.D. 1203-4) by Bahd'u'd-Din Muhammad..
az-Zahi'ri of Samarqand, who was secretary to Sultan Tamghaj Khan o
the Khaniyya dynasty of Transoxiana. Of this recension one manuscrip
exists in the British Museum, from the preface of which Mirza Muhammac
derived the information here given. It was apparently the older Persiar
prose translation of Qanawazi which Azraqi versified or intended t<
versify; a task which he evidently found far from easy, for in a passag<
of a qasida addressed to Tughanshah (quoted on p. 177 of the Persiar
lost.

notes) he says:
"
O

whoever regards the counsels of SindibAd

well that to compose poetry thereon is difficult :
1 will render its ideas a help to learning
Prince,

Knows

If thy fortune,

O King,

helps

my mind?

This versified translation of Azraqi, if ever completed, seems to havt

been entirely lost, though a later anonymous verse translation composec
3
in A.#. 776 (A.D. 1374-5) is preserved in the India Office Library
This, however, in Mirza Muhammad's opinion, is of very poor literary
quality.

The Alfiyya wa Shalfiyya is another ancient book which existec

long before Azraqi's time. The Fihrist mentions two recensions,
greater and a lesser; and the Tdrikh-i-Bayhaqi* mentions a summer
house which Prince Mas'rtd had built for himself secretly in th<
Bagh-i-'Adnani on the walls of which were painted the pictures illustra
This book may have been versified or re-edited b}
tivc of the Alfiyya.
Azraqi, but was certainly not his original work.

Note XXI. Another instance

(Text, p.

of the

Author's inaccuracy.

45; Persian notes, pp. 182-4.)

an extraordinary and inexplicable thing that Mi/ami of Samar

qand, in recounting what professes to be a personal reminiscence, shoulc
It is

commit several grave historical and chronological errors. First, the rea
name and genealogy of Qutulmush were Shihabu'd-Dawla [not -Din] ibr
Isra'il ibn Saljiiq, and he was first cousin to Tughril, the first of th<
Great Saljuqs, and father of Sulayman, the first of the SaljUqs of Rum
In A.H. 456 (A.D. 1064) he rebelled against Tughril's nephew Alp Arslar
and was killed in battle near Ray. Sultdn Muhammad, the grandson o
Alp Arslan, was born in A.H. 473 (A.D. 1080-1), seventeen years aftei
1

Ed. B. de Meynard, i, 162 and iv, 90.

See Dr H. Ethe's Catalogue, No. 1236.

*
4

Ed. Fhigel, pp. 304-5.

Tihran ed., p. 116.

J26

NOTES ON THE SECOND DISCOURSE

the death of Qutulmush, who therefore obviously could not have rebelled
Secondly, Qutulmush was not the son-in-law of Sultan
against him.
Muhammad, but the first cousin of his great-grandfather. Thirdly
title of Qutulmush was Shihabu'd-Dawla, not Shihabu'd-Dfn. Fourthly,
he did not bear the name Alp Ghazi. Fifthly, the battle in which he

^^

killed was near Ray, not Hamadan; and sixthly, it took place
nearly a century before Nizami of Samarkand wrote the Chahdr Maqdla.
are driven to suppose that in this passage the original text has
been tampered with. The real Alp Ghazt was the nephew of Sultan
Ghiyathu'd-Dfn Muhammad of Ghtir, and fell in battle with Sultan
Muhammad Khwarazmshah near Herat in A.H. 600 (A.D. 1203-4),

was

We

There were two

fifty years after the Chahdr Maqdla was written.
kings called Ghiyathu'd-Din Muhammad, the one of Ghur, mentioned
immediately above, who died in A.H. 599 (A.D. 1202-3) and was actually
related to the real Alp Ghazi ; and the other the grandson of Alp Arslan
the Saljiiq, to whom this anecdote refers, and who died in A.H. 511
(A.D. 1117-8).
A

Note XXII. The Khaqanf, Khani or Afrasiyabi Kings.

(Text, p. 46; Persian notes, pp. 184-189.)

This Turkish Muslim dynasty, also called flak-Khani, ruled for

230 years (A.H. 380-609 = A.D. 990-1212) over Transoxiana,
supplanting the Samanid and succumbing to the Khwarazmshahi power.
They were sometimes practically independent, while at other times they
paid tribute to the Saljtiqs, Qara-Khita'fs or Khwarazmshahs. yheir
history is confused and obscure, nor is it precisely known when their
power arose or when they embraced Islam. Hartin ibn Sulayman,
nearly

known as Bughra Khan flak, and entitled Shihabu'd-Dawla,

conquered Bukhara in A.H. 383 (A.D. 993), and is the first of the
dynasty mentioned in history. His lieutenant Shamsu'd-Dawla Nasr ibn
AH ibn Miisa ibn Sutuq, better known as flak Khan, again subdued
Bukhara in A.H. 389 (A.D. 999) and finally extinguished the Samanid
power in Transoxiana. The last of the line was Nusratu'd-Din Qilij
Arslan Khaqdn 'Uthman ibn Qilij Tamghaj Khan Ibrahim, who was
killed in A.H. 609 (A.D. 1212-3) by Sultan 'Ala'u'd-Din Muhammad
Khwarazmshah.
The first historian of this dynasty appears to have been the Imam
Sharafu'z-Zaman Majdu'd-Din Muhammad ibn 'Adnan as-Surkhakatf,
better

uncle of Ntiru'd-Dfn Muhammad 'Awff, the author of the often-quoted

Lubdbu'l-Albdb and of the vast collection of anecdotes entitledyiwwfw/V/Hikdydt wa Lawdnu'u'r-Hiwdydt. This history, dedicated to Sultan
Qilij Tamghaj Khan, the last ruler but one of the dynasty, is mentioned
by IJajji Khalifa, and 'Awff quotes from it in the seventeenth chapter
of the fourth part of his JawdmPifl-Hikdydt, composed about A.H. 630
(A.D. 1232-3). Except for this quotation (of which the text is cited on
pp. 185-6 of the Persian notes) this work appears to be entirely lost.
The chief extant sources of information about them are as follows
:

(i) Scattered 'references in such Arabic general histories as lbnu'1Athir and Ibn Khaldtin.

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

127

(2) The Tctrikh-i-Jahdn-drd of the Qadi Ahmad-i-Ghaffari has a short

chapter on this dynasty , which, though it adds little to the particulars
given by the above-mentioned historians, has the advantage of gathering
the details under one head and giving them a connected arrangement.
1

(3)

A rare general history in

Persian, of unknown authorship, entitled

Majmcftft-Tawdrikh?) contains a chapter of seven large pages on

dynasty, here called "the House of Afrasiyab."

this

(4) A long note by Major H. G. Raverty on pp. 900-911 of his

English translation of the T&baqdt-i- Ndsiri (vol. ii, London, 1881).

An

Henry Howorth on the Afrdsiydbi Turks in the

467-502. For this excellent article he obtained
new materials from aTurki MS from Eastern Turkistan entitled Tadhkira(5)

J.R.A.S.

article

by

Sir

for 1898, pp.

i-Bughrd Khan.
(6) Scattered references in such special histories as 'Utbi's Tdrikh-iYamlnl, the Tctrikh-i-Bayhaqi, Narshakhi's T<Jrikh-i-Bukhdrd> 'Imadu'dDfn's and Abii Bakr ar-Rawandi's histories of the Saljdqs, the Tdrikhi-Jahdngushdy of Juwayni, 'Awfi's Lubdbtfl-Albdb and JaiudmPrflHikdydt, the fabaqat-i- Ndsiri^ and this book, etc., the history of this
dynasty being intermixed to some extent with that of the Ghaznawis,
Saljilqs

and Khwdrazmshahs.

The

verses of certain contemporary poets who were their panesuch as Rashidi and Siizani of Samarqand, Mukhtdrf of Ghazna,
Racliyyu'd-Dfn of Nishapilr, 'Am'aq of Bukhara, Shams-i-Tabasf, etc.
(7)

gyrists,

In none of these books, however, except 'Awfi's Lubdb^ is mention

of Qilij Tamghaj Khan Ibrahfm, the last ruler but one of the
dynasty. He was a great patron of poetry and learning. Radiyyu'd-Din,
the poet just mentioned, has especially celebrated his generosity to men
of letters, and several notable prose works were dedicated to him, amongst
others the Sindibdd-ndma* and the A'rddu'r-RiydsatfiAghraiWs-Siydsat*
of Baha'u'd-Din az-Zahiri of Samarqand, and another work by the same
author entitled Sam^%-Zahlrft fa

made

Note XXIII. Five notable Astronomers.

(Text, pp. 54-5; Persian notes, pp. 193-206.)

Abu Rayhan Muhammad

ibn

Ahmad

al-Bfrunf

or BayrtinP) was born in a suburb or outer district (bir&ri) of

1

8
4

Berum
Khwarazm

(or

Or. 141 of the British Museum, flf.

Suppl. Persan 1331 in the Bibl. Nationale of Paris, ff. 132^136*.
See p. 1 25 supra.
See Hajji Khalifa, s.v., and 'Awff's Luldb, i, 91. There is a MS. of the work

in

the Leyden Library.

6

See ff. Kh.> s.v. and the Lubab, i, 91.

Sachau quotes the Ansdb of as-Sam'ani in favour of this latter pronunciation, but
in \htfacsimile of this work published by the " E. J. W. Gibb Memorial" (vol. xx,
b
f. 98 ) the
passage in question has bfl-kasri (with the i vowel) instead of b?l-fath),
(with the a vowel).
t

(i

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

128

1
(Khiva) on Dhu'l-JJijja

3, A.H. 362 (Sept. 4, A.D. 973), and died (probably

Ghazna) on Rajab 2, A.H. 440 (Dec. 1 1, A.D. 1048) at the age of 77 lunar
years and 7 months. He was one of the greatest men of science produced
"
by Persia, and in him, as Dr Sachau says, there is much of the modern
spirit and method of critical research," in which respect "he is a phenomenon in the history of Eastern learning and literature " As a writer
his industry equalled his learning. In A.H. 427 (A.D. 1035-6), when he
had reached the age of 65 lunar (63 solar) years, he drew up for a
correspondent a list of his writings, which has been fortunately preserved
to us, and of which the original Arabic text is included by Sachau in

at

the

German Introduction to his edition rial-Athdru'l-Bdqiya (pp.

xlix).

This

as follows

list

xxxviii-

comprises over a hundred works, arranged in 13 classes

I.

Geometry, Astronomy,

etc.

...

18 works

...

15

II.

Geography

III.

Arithmetic

Light
The Astrolabe
Times and Seasons

IV.
V.i
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.

...

...

4
5

Comets

Stations of the

Moon

Astrology

...

Persian

12
...

and other

tales

...

...

13

Religion

Books of which the author retained no copy

...
...
5
XIII. Unfinished books
ip
Total: 113

He also enumerates 25 other works written by three other men of

learning and ascribed to him, viz. 12 by Abii Nasr Mansilr ibn 'All ibn
'Arraq; 12 by Abii Sahl 'fsa ibn Yahya al-Masftn; and one by Abii 'AH
al-Hasan ibn 'All al-Jili. Further, Hajji Khalifa enumerates 15 more of
al-Binini's works not appearing in the above list,
though some of them
are no doubt included in it under slightly different titles, while others
are probably wrongly ascribed to our author. In Europe he is chiefly
known

"

by^his

Chronology of Ancient Nations" (al-Athdntl-Bdqiya

'-anVl-Qurtinfl-Khdliya) and his work on India, editions and translations

of both of which we owe to the learning and
industry of Dr Edward
Sachau. The former, unfortunately, presents many serious lacunae-.

"Many most

essential parts," says

Dr Sachau 2 "both
,

large

and

small,

e.g. the chapter on Zoroaster, a most deplorable loss, arising

probably from Muslim bigotry." On Nov. 12, 1912, however, I received
a letter from my colleague Professor Bevan in which he wrote:"! have
just received from Salemann in St Petersburg an article which he has

are missing,

Mirza

Muhammad

points out to

me

of the older tirganj.'

2
Preface to the English translation, p.

that the original capital city of

xiii.

Khwarazm

NOTE XXIII. FIVK NOTABLE ASTRONOMERS

129

published in the Bulletin de FAcademie Imperial*. You will be glad to

hear that another MS. of al-Binini's al-Athdn?l-Bdqiya has turned up
ancl enables us to supply most of the gaps in Sachau's edition, in particular the sections on Zoroaster and Bardaisan."
"
Al-Qifti has no article on ai-Binini in his
History of the Philosophers," and only once refers to him. Ibn Abf Usaybi'a gives him a
short notice in his "Lives of the Physicians" (ii, pp. 20-21). The short
articles consecrated to him by Zahiru'd-Din Abu'l-Hasan ibn Abu'l-Qasim
(wrote about the middle of the twelfth century of our era) and by
Shamsu d-I)in Muhammad ibn Mahmtid ash-Shah raztiri (early thirteenth
There is also a long notice of
century) are quoted in full by Sachau
him in the modern Persian Ndma-i-Ddnishwardn (vol. i, pp. 37-49)
:

composed in A.H. 1294 (A.D. 1877), which

not add much to our knowledge.

is

of

little

authority

and Soes

Abu Ma'shar Ja'far ibn Muhammad ibn Umar al-Balkhi

was one of the most celebrated astronomers of the third century of the
(

2
hijra (ninth of the Christian era), and, according to al-Qifti , the greatest
on
in Baghdad,
He
dwelt
the
of
ancient
Persians.
the
authority
history
in the western part, and was originally a traditionist ; and his fanaticism
led him to insult and molest Ya'qiib ibn Ishaq al-Kindi, the " Philosopher
of the Arabs," and to stir up the common people against him. Finally

al-Kindi induced some of his friends to draw his attention to, and
arouse his interest in Mathematics and Geometry, so that he came to
seek instruction from al-Kindi, and was reconciled with him. He soon
passed on (at the age of forty-seven) to the study of Astronomy. On
one -occasion he was scourged by command of the Caliph al-Musta'm
(reigned A.H. 248-251; A.D. 862-5) because of a prognostication which
,he had made and which proved too correct. Thenceforth he used to
say: "I guessed right and was punished." He died on Ramadan 28,
A.H. 272 (March 8, A.D. 886). Al-Qifti enumerates 38 of his works, of
which such as are still extant are enumerated by Brockelmann (i, 221-2).

Abu Sa'fd Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn <Abdu'l-Jalil asSajzi was a notable mathematician and astronomer of the fourth century
"
of the hijra. Amongst his numerous works is \hzJdmi -i-Shdhi) or Royal
astronomical
on
treatises
subjects; of
Compendium," containing 15
In the course of
which there is a fine MS. in the British Museum
this work, written at Shirdz, where he apparently spent most of his life,
he refers to the years A.H. 351 (A.D. 962) and A.H. 380 (A.D. 990). The
t>

11

4
Bibliotheque Nationale at Paris possesses a beautiful MS. , containing
41 mathematical and astronomical tracts, transcribed by him in Shiraz
during the years A.H. 358-361 (A.D. 969-972). The colophons of such
of these tracts as have them are given by Mirza Muhammad on pp. 200201 of the Persian notes. Including the 15 tracts comprised in the
Jdm?-i-Shdhi, 29 of his treatises are extant in European libraries',
besides the ad Bdb mentioned in the text, and a dissertation on the

Astrolabe.
1

German

2
8

Tiirlkhu'l-Hukamd, ed. Lippert, p. 152.

See Rieu's 'Arabic Suppl., pp. 528-530.

Ponds Arabe

Introduction to the text, pp. Hi

2457.

and

liii.

See Brockelmann,

i,

219.

'

3.

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

130

Kiy& Abu'l-Hasan Kiishy&r ibn Labb&n ibn B-shahrf

al-Jfl&nf (of Gilan) was a notable astronomer who flourished in the
latter part of the fourth century of the hijra. In his Mujmalu'l-Ut&P
he alludes to the year 321 of Yazdijird (A.H. 342 = A.D. 953-4), and in
another passage of the same work 8 to A.Y. 361 (A.H. 383 = A.D. 993-4),
so that his active life appears to have lain between these two limits, and
the date given by Hajji Khalifa (A.H. 459=- A.D. 1066-7) under Zlj-iKushydr is certainly too late. See also Brockclmann, i, 222-3.

Abii Yiisuf Ya'qiib ibn

Ish&q

al-Kindf, entitled "the

Philosopher of the Arabs," traced his descent from Ma'di-Karib, and

belonged to an Arabian family equally notable for ancient and noble
lineage and honourable achievements. How our author can have represented him as a Jew is incomprehensible. The story about him and
Abd Ma'shar, however, derives some confirmation from the Fihrist*.
He composed some 270 works on Logic, Philosophy, Geometry, Arithmetic, Music, Astrology and Medicine, of which about a score are
4
extant in European libraries
The date of his death is not known, but
he flourished in fne reigns of al-Ma'miin and al-Mutawakkil (A.H. 198247; A.D. 813-861). It is not clear on what authority Dr Heinrich
Suter" gives A.H. 260 (A.D. 873-4) as the date of his death. He was
noted for his parsimony, and a good many pages are devoted to him in
the "Book of Misers" (Kitdbtfl-Bukhald) of al-Jahii/A A number of his
sayings in praise of this unattractive quality are quoted on p. 206 of the
Persian notes from Ibn Abi Usaybi'a's "Lives of the Physicians"
.

(vol.

i,

pp. 208-9).

Note XXIV. Certain

(Text, pp. 56, 59

astrological terms.

and 62; Persian

notes, pp. 206-8.)

In these anecdotes about astrologers and their predictions there
occur a few technical terms which can be properly understood
only by
those (few in these days) who have made Astrology the special
object
of their studies. Amongst such is Mr Ralph Shirley, editor of the
Occult Revieiv* who has most kindly
supplied me with the valuable
notes which I have placed after the explanations derived from Arabic

and Persian works.

i.

Khaby and Damir

The

"

divinaexplanation of these terms, which I have translated by

tion and thought-reading," is given by Abu
Rayrjdn al-Binini in a passage
of his Ta/Afm, quoted by Mirzd Muhammad in the Persian notes
(pp. 206-7), of which the translation is as follows:
1

Brit.

/6i,

Mus. MS. Add. 7490, f.

*>.
f.
For a description of this
4
.

fine

MS.

see Rieu's Arabic Supplement,

PP- 51.1-9.
8

Ed. Flttgel, p. 377.

See Flugel's Al-Kmdi genannt der
Philosoph der Araber, in the Abhandlung /.
1
voh * P* 11 * < Lei P zi & |8 57)J the long notice in
i,^/
al-Oiftrs TcCrikWl-Hukamd,
pp. 366-378; and Brockelmann, i, 209-* Jo.
* In
his Die Mathematiker und Astronomen der Araber und ihre Werke
(Leipzig.
* **
4

'^^^/^'^^'
'

1900).
6

Cairo ed. of 1323/1905-6, pp. 64-76.

NOTE XXIV. CERTAIN ASTROLOGICAL TERMS

"

Q.

"A.

'

131

What are khaby and

Khaby is that which

is hidden in the fist; and damir is that

Aie should think of something and [that the operator should] find it
out by questioning.'
"
Herein are astrologers speedily put to shame, and their mistakes
are more frequent than their successes."

2.

Sahmrfs-Sa'ddat and Sahmit l-Ghayb

(*r*t*)\

^^ 3 oU-J1 ^-).

" Part of
explanation of these terms, which I have translated
and " Part of the Unseen," is given in vol. i of the Dictionary
of the Technical Terms used in the Sciences of the Musalmdns ', pp. 698-9.
After defining the pronunciation and ordinary meaning ("arrowy") of
sahntj and its special sense in Geomancy and (ieometry, the article

full

Fortune

"

proceeds
" With astronomers the term sahm means a definite
portion of the
/odiacal heaven. According to them, these Parts' (sa/im-M)aru many,
e.g. the 'Part of Fortune' (or
Happiness': Saftyiu's-Sa'ddat), also
and the Part of the Unseen
called by them the Part of the Moon
(Sahmu l-Ghayb), the Part of Days (Submitl-Ayydm\ the Part of
Men-servants and Maid-servants (Sahm-i Ghuldmdn wa Kanizakdn),
and so forth. So by day they compute the Part of Happiness from
:

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

the

Sun

Moon, and add to

to the degree of the

it

(that

is

to the degrees

between the Sun and the Moon) the degree of the Ascendant. Then
from the Ascendant's total they subtract thirty each [for the Sign
of the Ascendant and the adjoining Sign], and what remains will be the
the position of the Part of Happiness.' And by night they
compute from the degree of the Moon to the degree of the Sun, and
add thereto the degree of the Ascendant.
"Example. Ascendant 10 in Aries; the Sun 20 in Leo; the Moon
15 in Libra, leaving 40 [from the position of the Sun in Leo] to [the
*

de^ee of

beginning of] Libra.

[To

'

we add

the 15

[already] traversed by
we add the degree of
us 65. Of these we give 30 to Aries and
remaining to Gemini. So the place of the
the fifth degree of Gemini."

this]

the Moon [in Libra], which

the Ascendant, which gives
30 to Taurus, and the 5
'
Part of Happiness will be

gives us 55.

Pisces

To

this

Aries

Capricorn

Taurus
Gemini

Sagittarius
Scorpio

Leo

Aquarius

Cancer

Libra
" As for the

Virgo

Part of the Unseen/ by day they compute it from the

Moon and by night from the Sun, adding thereto the degree of the
Ascendant, and subtracting thirty each from the Ascendant, as before;
then what remains over is the place of the 'Part of the Unseen.'"
^her/follow directions on similar lines for calculating the other 'Parts,
'
'
viz. the
Part of Days (Sahmu'l-Ayydm), the Part of Men-servants
1

'

Published in the Bibliotheca Indica, Calcutta, 1862.

92

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

132

'

Part of Wealth and Friends (Sahm-i-Mdl u

of
Women (Tazwij-i-Zandn), and the 'Parts'
the
'Marriage
Asdiqd),
of the Five Planets, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury and Venus.

and Maid-servants/ the

'

3.

Kad-khudd and Hayldj

(^%Jb

j 1j^.j^>).

in Astrology to two indications of the length

1
of the child. According to Abu Rayhan al-Biriini , "the Hayldj
is one of five things: first, the Master of the day- or night-shift ($dhib-iNawbat-i-r&z yd shaft); secondly the Moon by day and the Sun by
'Part of
night; thirdly the Degree of the Ascendant; fourthly, the
Fortune '; fifthly, the House of the Conjunction or Opposition which

These terms are applied

of

life

-,

-,

have taken place before birth. One of these five things they call
the Hayldj when it is conjoined with its own proper conditions described
in books on Astrology, and the sum total they call Haydlij or Hayldjat.
"The Kad-khudd ('Master of the House ) is the star which dominates the place of tthe Hayldj in this sense, that it is the Lord of the
Mansion wherein the Hayldj is actually situated, or the Lord of its
exaltation ($dhib~i-SIiaraf\ or the Lord of some other of its Parts which

shall

stand in relation to that position.

14
If the Hayldj be one which has no Kad-khudd, then they leave it
out and seek another of the five Haydlij which has one; and if none of
them has a Kad-khudd, then the quality of being a Hayldj belongs to
the 1 )egree of the Ascendant.
"
Example of the Hayldj and Kad-khudd. If at the time of the birth
of the child (by day) the Moon be in 19 of Aries, then the Moon' will
be one of the five Haydlij (subject to the concurrence of the other

in
proper conditions which are set forth in books of Astrology). Then,
for the Sun
the
will
be
Kad-khudd
the
Sun,
example,
dominates the place of the Hayldj, that is to say is the Lord of its
altitude, for the exaltation (sharaf) of the Sun is in 19 of Aries. And if,
in this hypothetical example, the degree of the Ascendant is in 19 of
Aries, this degree of the Ascendant will be the Hayldj, and again the
Sun will be the Kad-khudd, and so on.
41
So from the admixture and combination of the sum-total of the
Hayldj and the Kad-khudd, they deduce (as they imagine) the duration

this hypothetical

of the child's life, its length or brevity, and its happiness or infelicity.
"The derivation of the word Hayldj is unknown 2 ."
Mr .Ralph Shirley's observations are contained in three letters, dated
May 22, May 31 and October 25, 1920, the first addressed to Professor
Margoliouth, to whom my enquiries were originally addressed, the others
to myself, the last one after reading the proofs containing the anecdotes
to which this note refers.

These particulars were derived by Mirza* Muhammad from the British Museum
of the Tafhlm* Add. 7697, ff. 146* and 154*', and from Kushyar's Mujtyalu'lUf*l< Add. 7490, ff. 28-9.
9
It is said to he from the Greek vXtfcfa; see Sedillot's Prolegomena, p. \t\ of the
1

MS.

text.

See also Schefer's Chrestoniathit Persant>

vol.

i,

p. 102

ad calc.

NOTE XXIV. CERTAIN ASTROLOGICAL TERMS

(Extracts from first

"The

133

letter.)

hyleg (hayldj) in astrology is the vital point, or 'giver of

life.'

This is considered to be either the sun, or the moon, or the ascendant.

In order to be hyleg, the sun or moon must occupy either the 9th, loth,
or nth houses, or else the ascendant or yth house. If, <?.#, the sun
occupies one of these positions and the moon does not, then the sun is
hyleg or life-giver. If, on the other hand, they both occupy such a
position, then the one that is most predominant or most elevated, would
if the sun occupied the loth house and the moon the nth,
be hyleg,
the sun would be hyleg, and vice versa. If neither sun nor moon occupy
/'.<?.,

it is usual to take the ascending

degree as hyleg,
but some of the old astrologers would regard the dominant planet as
hyleg under such circumstances. It must not be supposed from this that
when the sun is hyleg the moon has therefore no influence on the constitution. The moon in any case has to do with the digestion and various
matters of this kind, and the sun is in any case the ruler of the hcait
and therefore always important. The sun, however, niight be violently
afflicted though the health might not bo seriously endangered, if it did
not occupy the position of hyleg. The same would apply to the moon.
I think, other things being equal, the moon is to be regarded as having
more influence with a woman and the sun with a man. Alcohodcn is
merely another name for hyleg, but is not used nowadays.
"
As regards the other words, I have never heard of them. 1 have
however little doubt that the last, sahmits-sa^ddat^ is the Arabic term
for fche Part of Fortune.' Some old astrologers attached a good deal of

any of these positions,

importance to this, without, I imagine, much justification. The Part

of Fortune is that part of the horoscope where the moon would be if the
sun were exactly rising. The Part of Fortune was supposed to refer to
the wealth and property of the native.' Ptolemy laid great stress on it,
but the author of the Text-book of Astrology remarks that it must be
rejected from a rational system of genethlialogy.'
'

'

'

'

'

'

" 'Part of
Mystery (sahmtJl-ghayb) conveys no meaning, and I do not
think anything can be found corresponding to this in the astrological
'

at present available. The only suggestion I can make is that it

might conceivably be the opposite point in the horoscope to the Part
of Fortune.' But this is pure conjecture and may be entirely on the
wrong track. It looks as if the Arabs had some tradition here which
does not find its place in any asttological books extant."

books

'

(Extract from second

letter.)

"Thank you for yours of the 29th May. I think it might be a help
I have, however, read
if you sent me a copy of the book in question.
so much on the- subject of astrology that I question whether there is any
likelihood of my being able to throw light on the Part of the Unseen.'
I cannot, think there is any reference to it in any known author on the
subject. Astrologers of the present day look upon Neptune as the
'

planet that gives psychic powers, and this is unquestionably correct.

In the case of people who have clairvoyant gifts, etc., or are mediumistic

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

134

in temperament, one constantly finds Neptune and the Moon predominant in the horoscope. But it is of course impossible to suppose
that the Arabian astrologers had any clue to the planet Neptune. The
4
Part of Fortune is merely the translation of the Latin Pars Fortunae.
I cannot account for the origin of the idea, which seems quite
'

fantastic....

"The Ascendant is the degree rising at birth; *>., at sunrise the sun
would be on the ascendant. The Lord of the Ascendant is the planet
that rules the ascending sign of the Zodiac. The two most important
'

'

positions in the horoscope are the ascendant and the mid-heaven, and
any planets here are considered more powerful than any others. The
Ascendant has special relation to the individual, and the mid-heaven to

the fortune."

(Extract from third

letter.}

"I am sorry to have kept your proofs so long, but I have been
a good deal away from the office lately, and consequently my work has
got into arrears.
*
" With
regard to the Part of the Unseen/ this is evidently something
kindred in nature to the Part of Fortune/ and as the Part of Fortune
(pars fortunae) is always so called by astrologers, I think it would be
'
Part and not Share.' I have not yet
well to use the expression
discovered what the 'Part of the Unseen' actually is. It obviously
cannot be the opposite position to that of the 'Part of Fortune/ as
I see that in one instance cited in your proofs the two are in conjunction on the Ascendant."
'

'

Note XXV.

Umar-i-Khayyam.

(Text, pp. 63-4, 65; Persian notes, pp. 209-228.)

Abu'1-Fath
called

'Umar

(or

Umar ibn Ibrahim al-Khayyamf, commonly

'Omar) Khayyam, is so much more celebrated in

the West, especially in England and America, than in the East that
Mirzd Muhammad has, for the benefit of his own countrymen, for whom
he is primarily writing, added a very long note on his biography, the
sources of our information about him, and the history of the "Omar
in London in his honour in 1892.
The
information contained in this note is mainly derived from Professor
Valentin Zhukovski's masterly article on the "Wandering Quatrains" 01
'Umar-i-Khayydm, which appeared in the Festschrift published in 1897 at
St Petersburg in honour of the late Baron Victor Rosen, by eleven of his
pupils, and entitled, in allusion to his Christian name, al-Muzaffariyya.
This article, written in Russian, was translated by Sir E. Denison Ross
and published in the f.R.A.S. for 1898 (vol. xxx, pp. 349-366), and
reproduced in its essentials by him in Methuen's edition of FitzGerald's
Quatrains, and by me in vol. ii of my Literary History of Persia,
pp. 246-9. It is therefore sufficient to summarize here the inrbrmatiqn
which can be found in greater detail in those places.

Khayyam Club" founded

NOTE XXV. 'UMAR-I-KHAYYAM

135

Persian and Arabic Sources of Information arranged chronologically.

The Chah&r Maq&la.

i.

This present work, the author of which was personally acquainted

with 'Umar, and wrote only some thirty years after his death, contains
the oldest account of him yet discovered.
2.

The

Kharidatu'l-Qa$r.

(Addition to Persian notes, p. r*\

book, composed by 'Imadu'd-Dm al-Katib al-Isfahani in

572/1176-7, contains a notice of 'Umar i-Khayydm amongst the poets
of Khurasan. Two MSS. of this work exist in the Leyden library (see
Dozy's Catalogue, vol. ii, pp. 208-288), viz. Warner 348, f. 185* and
Gol. 2ib, f. 238.

This

3.

single reference to

Khqanf.

him occurs

Khaqdni, who died about A.H. 595

4.

in a verse of the Persian poet

(A.D. 1198-9).

The Mirs&du'l-'Ibd.

The Mirsddu I-' Ibdd

of Shaykh Najmu'd-Din Daya, composed in

A.H. 620 (A.D. 1223-4), contains a passage in which *Umar is denounced

as an atheist, and two of his quatrains are cited with disapproval. The

Muhammad

text of this important passage is quoted by Mirza

(Persian
notes, p. 211) from Zhukovski's article. I have collated this with a fine
old 'MS. of the Mirsdd transcribed in A.H. 768 (A.D. 1367), which

presents the following variants, generally improvements.

for
after >^Jl**; reads
211, i, inserts *}

tj^lj.y

inserts

^Jl

after

Ojy*; and reads

3 before *<u3^: 1. 6
the following words

after

JU.

for

^J&U..

|;^y^jj j;

211,

5,

inserts

JL^ substitutes for jjt^ at the end of the line

211, 8, for C*9jA* reads

before,

and

inserts

3>3 ^^. ^SU^.

omits [Uul^].
translation

is

lj^

^JjjjL*.

after

211,

211, 10, inserts jjtw at

211,

4*3 j3 for j
cJk( adds U jl^\ j
beginning of line. 21 1, 12,
9,

cJ^ILg; and

n, ijuO.

Of

substitutes

after

the passage thus

emended the

as follows:

"And it will become apparent for what reason this pure, celestial
and luminous spirit was drawn into the form of this lowly earthen
mould, and also why it must part therefrom, why the spirit must sever
its connection with this mould, why the form must perish, and what is
the reason for the restoration of this mould at the Resurrection and the
Then will he [t.e. the enquirer]
reinvestiture of the spirit therewith.
*
foJth from the company of these are like cattle^ nay^ they are yet
more misguided? / attain to the rank of [true] humanity, escape from the

come

Qnr'dn, xxv, 46.

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

136

of heedlessness of 'they know the outward appearance of this present

but are careless as to the life to come\ and set his feet eagerly and
joyfully in the Pilgrim's Path, so that what he acquires by vision he n.ay
translate into progress, seeing that the fruit of vision is Faith, while the
fruit of progress is Wisdom. But those poor philosophers, atheists and
materialists, who are debarred from these two stations, err and go astray,
so that one of the most talented of them, who is known and noted
veil

/iff,

amongst them

for scholarship, philosophical knowledge and judgement,

'Umar-i- Khayyam, in the extreme of bewilderment must needs
advertise his blindness in the desert of error by uttering the following
verses

that

is

circle wherein is our coming and going

^Neither beginning nor end is apparent.
No one breathes a true word in this world
As to whence is our coming and whither our going?
*

'

To that

Since [God the All-] Holder arranged the composition 0/ [men's] natures
Wherefore did He again cast them into decline and decay ?
If these form* are ugly, whose is the fault,
And if they are good, wherefore their destruction '*?"
5.

Shahrazurf s Tawarfkhu'l-Hukama.

This " History of the Philosophers," properly entitled Nuzhatu'lAnvdh wa Rawdatu' l-Afrdh, composed by Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad
ibn Marnmid of Shahraziir between A.H. 586 and 6n (A.D. 1190 and
3
Of the
1214), exists in two recensions, one Arabic and one Persian
latter there exists, besides the MS. described by Rieu, another iMS.
(No. 97) in the Pole Collection in the library of King's College,
4
Cambridge. Both versions are given in the original by Zhukovski ,
translation
of
the
Persian
while
E.
Sir
With a Russian
Denison
version,
Ross's English translation follows the Arabic, of which the text is
reprinted on pp. 212-214 of Mirza Muhammad's Persian notes. The
Arabic verses contained in it are, however, corrupt, and need emenda.

tion.

6.

Ibnu'l-Athfr.

Mention of 'Umar-i-Khayyam is made by this great historian, who

wrote in A.H. 628 (A.D. 1230-1), under the year A.H. 467 (A.D. 1074-5),
where he says:

"And in it the Nizamu'1-Mulk and Sultan Malikshah assembled

a number of the most notable astronomers, and fixed the Naw-rtiz
(Persian New Year's Day) in the first point of Aries, it having been
hitherto at the passage of the Sun through the middle point of Pisces;
and what the Sultan did became the starting-point of [all subsequent]
Calendars. In it also was constructed the Observatory for Sultan
n, xxx, 6.
9

The second

of these quatrains, which may be accounted amongst the, most

certainly genuine of those ascribed to 'Umar, is No. 126 in E. H. Whinfiel&'s edition.
3
See Sachau's Introduction to his edition of al-Bfruni's al-Athdril-Bdqiya,
pp. L-LI, and Rieu's Persian Supplement, pp. 68-9.
*

Op.

cit.,

pp. 327-9.

NOTE XXV. 'UMAR-I-KHAYYAM

137

Malikshah, for the making of which a number of notable astronomers

were assembled, amongst them 'Umar ibn Ibrahim al-Khayyamf, Abu'l-

Mzaffar al-Isfizari, Maymiln ibnu'n-Najib al-Wasiti, and others. A great

amount of wealth was expended upon it, and the Observatory remained
in use until the King died in A.H. 485 (A.D. 1092-3), but after his death
it

was disused."

Al-Qiftf s Ta'Hkhu'l-Hukam&.

7.

The

"

History of the Philosophers," composed between A.H. 624 and

646 (A.D. 1227 and 1248-9) by Jamalu'd-Din Abu'l-rjasan 'Alf ibn
1
Ytisuf al-Qiftf, and edited by Dr Julius Lippert , also contained a notice
of 'Umar-i- Khayyam, of which a French translation is given by Woepcke
in his I'Algtbre tfOmar Alkhayydmi*) while later Russian and English
versions are given by Zhukovski
8.

and Ross

respectively

Ta'rfkh-i-JahSn-gush6.

In the account of the massacre of the people of Merv perpetrated

the
Mongols early in the year 618/1221 one of 'Umar's quatrains is
by
said to have been recited by Sayyid 'Izzu'd-Din Nassdba when he had
finished counting the bodies of the victims, of whom the number exThis history was composed in 658/1260, and the
passage in question occurs in vol. i, p. 128 (" K. J. W. Gibb Memorial"

ceeded 1,300,000.
Series, xvi, i).

9.

Qazwfnf s Atharu'l-Bilad.

"Monuments

of the Lands," composed in A.H. 674 (A.D

ibn Mahmild al-Qazwfni gives,
Muhammad
ibn
Zakariyya
1275-6),
under his notice of the city of Nishapur, some account of 'Umar 4
containing certain new materials which I have summarized in my
Lit. Hist, of Persia (ii, 251 -2).

In his

The Jami'u't-Taw&rikh.

10.

was the first to call attention 5 to an important notice

Rashidu d-Din Fadlu'llah's great history, compiled about

I believe that I

of 'Umar in
the beginning of the eighth century of the hijra (fourteenth of the
Christian era). The importance of this notice lies in the fact that it
professes to be copied from an Isma'ili biography of Hasan-i-Sabbah,
entitled Sar-guzasht-i-Sayyid-nd ("the Adventures of Our Master"),
found in the library of Alamiit, the Assassins' chief stronghold in Persia,
where it was destroyed by Hiilagu and his Mongols in the middle of the
thirteenth century of our era and that it affords a much more respect"
able authority than any previously adduced for the famous
Story of
the Three Friends,"/.* the Nizdmu'l-Mulk, Hasan-i-Sabbah, and Umar-i6
The chronological difficulties involved in this story, howKhayyam
;

Leipzig, 1903. The notice of 'Umar occurs on pp. 243-4.

Paris, 1851, pp. v-vi of the Preface and p. 52 of the text.
Persia,, ii, pp. 250-1.
See also my Lit. Hist, of Persia
4
P. 318 of Wttstenfeld's edition.
6 In a
entitled Yet more Light on 'Umar-i-Khayy&m which appeared in the
paper
.A.S. for 1899 (pp. 409-411). See my Lit. Hist, of Persia, ii, 252-3.
6
See, besides the passage in my ///. Hist, of Persia cited in the previous note,
pp. 190-193 of the same volume.
1

NOTES ON THE THIRD DISCOURSE

138

ever, render its acceptance very difficult. Mirza

municated to me the ingenious suggestion that

be found in a passage
Learned Men ," where
1

in Ydqtit's
is

it

stated

Muhammad
its

has com-

historical basis is to

"

Mu'jamtfl Udabd or Dictionary of

on the authority of Abu'l-IJasan ibn

Qasim Zayd al-Bayhaqi, author of the Mashdribu't-Tajdrib, that in

the year 434/1042-3 the poet 'All ibnu'l-Hasan al-Bakharzi and Abil
Nasr Muhammad ibn Mansrir al-Kunduri, who subsequently became
famous under the title of *Amidrfl-Mulk as Minister to the Saljuq
Sultans Tughril Beg and Alp Arslan, were fellow-pupils of the same
Imam Muwaffaq of Nishaptir at whose lectures the "Three Friends"
are supposed to have become acquainted. That the framework of a
story should be preserved with the substitution of more interesting or
mort celebrated personalities as its heroes is a very common literary
phenomenon. If this has happened in the present case, the poet alBakharzi has simply been replaced by the poet 'Umar-i-Khayyam, and
Alp Arslan's earlier Minister 'Amtdu'I-Mulk by his later Minister
Nizdmu'l-Mulk, the Imam Muwaffaq remaining in both versions.
Abi'l

Ta'rfkh-i-Guzida.

ii.

This well-known history, composed in 730/1329-1330, also contains

a brief notice of 'Umar and cites one of his quatrains. ("E. J. W. Gibb

Memorial"

Series, xiv,

i,

12.

pp. 817-818.)

Firdawsu't-Tawdrfkh.

"
Paradise of Histories," composed in A.H. 808
This work, the
Khusraw of Abarqiih, contains an account
Mawland
(A.D. 1405-6) by
of 'Umar-i-Khayyam of which the Persian text is reproduced from
Zhukovski's article on pp. 217-219 of the Persian notes, and of which
the substance is given in my Lit. Hist^ ii, 254.
13.

The

Ta'rfkh-i-Alff.

This late work, composed, as its title implies, in A.H. 1000 (A.D. 1 591-2^
Emperor Akbar by Ahmad ibn Nasru'llah of Tatta in India,
contains a very entertaining anecdote concerning 'Umar-i-Khayyam's
belief in Metempsychosis, which is given in English on pp. 254-5 of
vol. ii of my Lit. Hist, of Persia, and of which the text will be found on
for the

pp.

219-220 of the Persian

The above

list is far

more authentic as
this famous man.

notes.

from exhaustive, but contains

well as the

more

interesting of the

'Umar-i-Khayyam's

Scientific

all

the older and

notices of

modern

Works.

These include
of which the Arabic text accompanied
(1) His treatise on Algebra,
by a French translation was published at Paris in 1851 by F. Woepcke.
(2) On the difficulties of Euclid's Definitions, of which a manuscript
is preserved at Leyden (No. 967). See also Brockelmann, i, 47 1.
1

"
Series, vi, 5, p. 124.
J. W. Gibb Memorial
extends, however, only to the year 997/1588-9.

"E.
It

NOTE XXV. 'UMAR-I-KHAYYAM

(3)

The

2/y, or Calendar, of

Ibnu'l-Athir),

(s.v.

A
A

(4)

'Umar

brief treatise

139

Malikshah, to which, as noticed above

contributed.

on Natural Philosophy.

Persian treatise on Being, composed for Fakhru'i-Mulk 1 ibn

Mu'ayyad, of which a MS. (Or. 6572, f. 51) is preserved in the British
Museum. In another MS. (Suppl. Pers. 139, No. 7) in the Bibliotheque Nationals in Paris, described by M. E. Blochet in his Catalogue
des Manuscrits Persans (Paris, 1905, vol. i, p. 108), the name of the
person to whom this work is dedicated is given as Fakhru'd-Din
Mu'ayyadu'l-Mulk, whom Mirza Muhammad is inclined to identify with
the son of the Nizamu'1-Mulk who bore this latter title. This treatise,
according to a manuscript note by M. Blochet, has been translate*} by
M. Christensen and published in the Monde Oriental (Copenhagen,
(5)

1905)-

(6)

treatise

on Growth and Obligation (Kawn wa

Taklif).

(7) Methods for ascertaining the respective proportions of gold and

silver in an amalgam or admixture containing both.
MS. of this

(No.

158) exists in the library of Gotha.

(8) A treatise entitled Lawdzimtfl-Amkina on the Seasons and on

the causes of the diversity of climate in different places.

The Quatrains.
How many

of the Rubfriyydt or Quatrains attributed to 'Umar-iit is

impossible to determine, since no very
ancient manuscript collection of them has yet been discovered 2 but
Zhukovski has enumerated more than fourscore which are ascribed on
at least equally good authority to other poets
Although they have
repeatedly been lithographed in Persia and India, they enjoy, thanks to
Edward Fit/Gerald's translation, a far greater celebrity in the West, and
especially in England and America, than in the land of their origin,
where no one would think of ranking 'Umar as a poet in the same
category as Firdawsi, Sa'di or Hafiz. The causes of 'Umar's popularity
in the West are manifold. First^ he had the supreme
good fortune
to find a translator like FitzGerald. Secondly, the beauty of his quatrains
depends more on their substance than on their form, whereas the converse

Khajfyam are

really his

*.

Perhaps Fakhru'1-Mulk ibn

Nizamu'1-Mulk, the Prime Minister of Sultan

Barkiyaruq.
3

The

oldest MS. (Bodl. No. 525) was copied in A. if. 865 (A.D.
1460-1) nearly
three centuries and a half after 'Umar's death. The text of this, in facsimile and
in print, with literal prose translation, was published by Mr Edward Heron Allen
(London : H. S. Nichols, Ltd.) in 1898. Mirza Muhammad informs me that a year
or two before the War (i.e. in 1912 or 1913) there was offered for sale
by an Armenian
dealer in Paris a very fine autograph MS. of the M&'nisu'l-Ahrar of the Persian
poel
Muhammad ibn Badr-i-Jajarmi, transcribed in the year 740/1339-1340. It comprised
about 600 leaves, and contained extensive selections from the works of some two
hundixd ofohe most celebrated Persian poets from the earliest times down to the date
ocompilation. Amongst these poems were included some twenty of *Umar-i-K

yam's quatrains, which were copied by Mirza Muhammad into a note-book.

know what has become of this precious manusciipt.
J
For a list of these see my Lit. Hist, of Persia, ii, 256-7.

hay-

do not

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

140

holds good of much Persian poetry. Thirdly, their gentle melancholy,

half sceptical mysticism and graceful pessimism are congenial to an age
which, like his own, has come to the conclusion that science can anlwer
almost every question save that which most intimately concerns our own

hopes and happiness

The information given by Mirza Muhammad in the latter part of his

note (pp. 222-7) about the European renderings of 'Umar-i-Khayyam
and his admirers and imitators, and especially about the Club called by
his name, though new to most Persian readers, is familiar to all in this
country who take an interest in such matters, and may be found in great
"
detail in Nathan Haskell Dole's " Multi-Variorum edition
(Macmillan,
London, 1898).

Note XXVI. On certain medical terms

to the Fourth Discourse.
(Text, pp.

The

Pulse (frabd)

is

68-9

Persian notes,

very fully discussed in

works on Medicine, e.g. the

at-Tabari, JVaw* iv, Maqdla
ff!

p.

in the Preface

230.)

all

Firdawsu'l-Hikmat

Arabic and Persian

of 'Ali ibn Rabban

#//', chs. 6-9 (Brit. Mus. Arundel Or. 41,

Kamilu's-Sina'at, also called al-Kitbu'libnuVAbbas al-Majtfsi, Part /, Maqdla vii, c/is. 2-11

a
b
i63 -i6s ); the

Malikf, of 'Ali
(Cairo ed. of 1294/1877, vol. i, pp. 254-281); the Qanun of Avicenna,
.Book /, Fann //, Tcflim iii,Jumla 1(19 sections), pp. 628 of the Rome
h
b
edition of A.D. 1593 (= ff. 49 -53 of the Latin translation printed at
Venice in 1544); and the Persian Dhakhfra-i-Khwarazrnsfcahi,

Book //, Guftdr

As our author

/'//',

chs.

1-23.

Avicenna, we may conveniently do the,

same, though indeed the general views of all these writers appear to be
almost identical. Each pulsation consists of four factors or elements,
two movements (harakat)^ a diastole (inbisdt) and a systole (inqibdd),
and two pauses (suk&n) separating the two movements. The ten kinds or
genera (jins) of pulse are determined by consideration of the following
features

chiefly follows

The amount of the diastole (miqddru 'l-inbisdt, " genus quod est
sumptum ex quantitate diastoles "). In this genus three elements are to
(1)

be considered, length (////), breadth (fard) and depth {^umq\ each of

which supplies three simple varieties of pulse, two extremes and a mean,
besides composite varieties, which I shall not here enumerate. Thus we
have the long (tawil), the short (gasfr, "curtus") and the intermediate
"
" mediocris
latus "), the narrow (dayyiq,
") ; the broad ({arid>
(mu'tadit,
"strictus") and the intermediate; the depressed {mukhaffad> "profundus"), the ascending, elevated or prominent (mushrif, "apertus")
and the intermediate.
(2)

The

quality

of the impact on

the fingers of the observer

(kayfiyyatu qar*?l-harakat?l-asdbfai "genus quod est sunpptuffn ex

qualitate percussionis venae in digitos "). This also has three varieties,
the strong (qawi, ".fortis"), the weak (da% "debilis") and the inter-

mediate (wu'tadi/,

"

aequalis ").

NOTE XXVI. ON THE PULSE

141

(3) The time or duration of each movement (zamdnu kulli hara&attn, "quod ex tempore cujuscunque motionis sumptum est"). This
also* comprises three varieties, the quick (sari\ "velox"), the slow
"
tardus "), and the intermediate (" aequalis ").
(bati\
"
ex essentia instruResistance to the touch
(4)

(qiwdmu'l-dlat,
quod
three varieties, the soft (layyin^
the hard (salby " durus ") and the intermediate (" mediocris ").

ment! sumitur
11

mollis
(5)

"),

").

Here

also

we have

Emptiness or fulness (hdlu

'mtiid'ihi,

est

"quod

md yahtawi 'a layhi min

sumptum ex eo quod

the full (mumtali\ "plenus"), the empty

intermediate (" mediocris ").
(6)

khald'ihi wa
three vaiieties,
(khdli> "vacuus") and the

continetur

"),

Heat or cold (harru malmasihi wa barduhu^ "quod ex suo

tejctu

three varieties, the hot (hdrr, "calidus"), the cold

(bdrid^ "frigidus") and the intermediate ("temperatus ").

sumptum

est"),

(7) The duration of the pause (zamdmf s-sukun, "quod est sumptum
ex tempore quietis"), three varieties, the continuous (tuntawdtir, also
called mutaddrik and mutakdthif^ "frequens," "consequens" or "spissus")>
the differentiated (mufafdwit, also called mutardkht and mutakhalkhil^
"rarus," "lassus" or "resolutus"), and the intermediate ("mediocris").
(8) The equality or diversity of the pulse (istiwd'u'n-nabdi wa
'khtildfuhui "quod est sumptum ex aequalitate et diversitate," "aut sequale,
>J
aut diversum seu insequale ), two varieties, equal (niustaw, "iequalis")

and unequal (mukhtahf, "di versus

(9)
nizdrh,

two

The
'

").

regularity or irregularity of the pulse (an-ni^dm

genus (juod ex ordinatione

et inordinatione

wa g/iayru'n-

sumptum

est"),

regularly different (wukhtalif munta^im^ "diverse ordiirregularly different (innkhtalif ghayrtt muntazitn^ "diverse

varieties,

natus") and
inordinatus ").

"
Weight, harmony or measure (wazn,
quod ex ponderc est
of which comprises
which
or
each
be
either
bad,
may
good
sumptum "),
(10)

three varieties.
It will thus be seen that 37 primary varieties of pulse are recognized,
but there are many secondary and composite types which it would take
too long to enumerate. Speaking of the latter in the first group or genus
mentioned above Avicenna says that some only are named, such as
al-^azim ("magnus") and as-saghir ("parvus"), al-ghaliz ("grossus")
and ar-raqiq ("subtilis ) and the next section but one ( iii) treats of
the different sorts of composite pulse which have proper names, such as
:>

"
undosus "), ^-^//(^vermiculosus"),
an-namli (" formicans "), etc. Very full treatment is accorded to the
whole subject, and in particular it is explained why the pulse is felt at
the wrist preferably to any other place, and what precautions should
be observed in feeling it. The remarks about the observing of the
systole ascribed by our author to Avicenna appear to be really quoted
" Galenus
quoque dixit longo tempore non fui
by hhn from Galen
sJllicitus ex depressione
postea vero non quievi tangendo donee ex eo
aliquid percepi, et postea illud complevi. Nam postea portpe pulsus mihi

al-ghazdli (" gazellans "), al- mawji (

'

apertae fuerunt

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

142

to the examination of the pulse came the

as
a
the
urine
means of diagnosis. This is called, as in the
of
inspection
text, Tafsira, a word thus denned in the great Dictionary of the Technical
Terms used in the Sciences of the Musalmdns (p. 1115) "This with the
physicians is the vessel wherein is the patient's urine [intended] to be
shewn to the physician ; and it is also called dalil (indication, guide). It
is only called tafsira because it explains (tufassir) and makes manifest to
the physician the patient's physical condition." The chief points to be
observed in it are the colour (lawn), consistency (giwdm\ smell (rdtiha\
froth (zubd), sediment (rusttfy, and copious or scanty quantity (kathratwa
gillat). Twelve sections are devoted to this subject in the Qdntin, and
twenty-nine in the Dhakhira-i-Khwdrazmshdhi.

Next

in importance

The word

"

'*

delirium in the text is sarsdm, so explained

by Schlimmer (pp. 179 and 460), with the equivalent of Phrenitis. This
latter

translated

word appears

correctly as

^Ja^f^
*

(farrdnftus) in a fine old

twelfth or thirteenth century MS. of the Qdndn in my possession ; but

in the Rome edition of A.D. 1593 (p. 302) in the corrupt form ^^JkJIjJ
(gardnitusYi and in the Latin version as "karabitus." It is defined by

Avicenna as a " hot swelling (or inflammation) of the pia mater or dura
mater not extending to the substance of the brain," and would therefore
appear to be equivalent to meningitis.
"
Arabian
general doctrine of Fever and its Varieties taught by
of the
Medicine" is most clearly and succinctly set forth in Book
Persian Dhakhira-i-Khwdrazmshdhi> of which I possess a very fine MS.
transcribed in the thirteenth century of the Christian era. This e Book
comprises six Guftdrs, or Discourses, of which the first, divided into
"
of what Fever is, and of how many species, how it
four chapters, treats

The

"
passes away." The first chapter, on
be translated in full on account of its brevity.

appears and
is,"

how

it

may
You must know

"

What Fever

Fever is an abnormal 2 heat enkindled in the

by the intermediary of the spirit and the blood to the
blood-vessels and [thus] diffused throughout the whole body, which it
heats and inflames with an inflammation whereof the harmful effects
appear in all the natural functions.' This sentence formulated above is
the definition (hadd) of Fever ; the word Heat is the genus, while the
other words are the specific differentiations (fasl-hd-yi dhdtf) whereby
the definition is completed. Further you must know that the heat of
Fever is not like the heat of anger, fatigue, grief and the like, because
that

heart, transmitted

'

these heats harmfully affect the natural functions without the intervention
of anything else, even as when water descends into the eye the hurtful
effect thereof on the vision becomes apparent without the intervention of
anything else ; and when the heat of anger, or the like thereof, reaches
that point where it will be injurious to the natural functions, it is but the
cause, and the injury thereof only becomes apparent by the intervention
of something else. Even so is the putridity \^uf&nai\ of fever, for the
This same corrupt form also occurs in most MSS. of the Dhakhtra-i-Khwdra^iBook VI, Gutter i, Part i, ch. i, where, however, the word is specifically
recognized as Greek.
1

shdhi,

?Gharlb

lit.

"strange."

NOTE XXVI. FEVERS

143

putridity is the cause, while the hurt thereof is through the intervention
of that heat which is produced from it. And the natural functions,
wherein the hurt of fever becomes apparent, are such as the appetite for

food and wine, digestion, rising up, sitting down, going, eating, sexual
intercourse,

and the

like thereof."

The

next (second) chapter deals with the different kinds of fever,

and is too long (3 pages) to be translated in full here. The human body
is compounded of three sorts of substances
(i) basic tissues such as
the bones, nerves and blood-vessels; (2) the marrow of the bones, the
blood, and other liquids contained in the vessels and cavities of the
body, such as the phlegm, bile and black bile, known as the 'humours';
(3) the natural, animal or vital, and psychic spirits, and the vapours
diffused throughout the body. This
the ancients Jbave
composite body
likened to a hot bath, whereof the walls, bricks and stones are represented
by the bones, nerves and blood-vessels ; the water by the marrow, the
blood, and the humours; and the steam by the natural, animal and
psychic spirits, and the vapours. When the heat of the fever attacks the
basic tissues of the body, it is like the heat of the fire Affecting the walls,
stones and bricks of the hot bath; and this kind of fever is called
'
hectic (diqq). When it first attacks the humours and subsequently the
basic tissues, it is like the hot water being let into the chambers of the
bath and heating the walls ; and this kind of fever is called 'humoristic'
(khaltiyya). When it attacks the spirit and the vapours, which in turn
heat the humours and the tissues, it is like the hot air in the bath heating
in turn the water and the walls thereof ; and this kind of fever is called
'quotidian' (Pers. tab-i-yak-niza \ Arab, hummd yawm ").
;

'

This

compound

'

'

classification.

more than one. Thirteen kinds of

(1)

(2)

'

Another is into simple (basif) and

(murakkab\ according as one humour only is involved, or

one

is

That which
That which

is

in itself

is

the

fever are recognized, viz.

an independent disease.

symptom
'

of

some other

disease.

'

Very high fever called acute (hddda).

(4) The slower and heavier fever called chronic (muzmitta).
(5) That which attacks by day.
(6) That which attacks by night.
(7) That which passes away easily.
(8) Fevers which are fierce in their onset and accompanied by
alarming symptoms.
(9) Continuous fevers (Idzim or mutbiqa).
(3)

'

(10)

'

Non-continuous fevers (mufttra).

(u) Cold

fevers.

(12) Fevers accompanied by rigors (Pers. larza ; Arab, ndfid, ra'da).

(13) Fevers accompanied by 'goose-skin' (Pers. fardshd\ Arab.

m These, says the author, are the broad general divisions, each of
which contains subdivisions which will be treated of in subsequent
chapters.

"
Fevers of the type called " putrid

('ajfn, in

Persian ganda or

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

144

p&sida) are of four kinds, corresponding to the four humours (akhldt)

from the corruption of which they arise, and each of these is* subdivided
into two varieties, according as the corruption arises within or withouU he
blood vessels. But since two or more of these kinds may co exist or
combine, a large number of compound or composite fevers (tab-kd-yi

murakkab) arises, each presenting

different

and

characteristic

symptoms.

Thus two

types of intermittent fever may co-exist, or two types of continuous fever, or an intermittent with a continuous fever, so that the
diagnosis may be very difficult. Generally speaking, quotidian fever
(Arab, hummd hull* yaw m ", Pers. tab-i-har-rtiza} arises from corruption
of the phlegm (balgham) ; tertian (Arab, ghibb) from that of the bile
(safrd)
quartan is atrabilious (sawddwi) in origin ; and semi-tertian
(shafru* l-ghibd) is from a combination of bilious and phlegmatic disturbance. Fevers arising from corruption in the blood, on the other
hand, are continuous (mutbiqa, or Idzini). If the blood become overheated in the vessels without undergoing corruption, the resulting fever
is called s&ndkhis (? O-UFC^T/S).
If there is corruption as well, it may
affect half the blood, or less, or more, in which last case the resulting
"
"
fever is called
burning (Arab, muhruja, Pers. st'tzanda). But if all the
blood be so affected, the patient will surely die. All fevers arising from
the blood are continuous, whether the affection of the blood be primary
or secondary. The latter may arise from a " bloody swelling" (dmds-ikhuni) of one of the internal organs, such as the stomach, liver, spleen,
gall-bladder, bowels, lungs, diaphragm, muscles or nerves. Such secondary
fever is not an independent disease but a symptom, and the treatment
must therefore be directed to the cause. The aetiology of corruption of
the humours is discussed in a subsequent section of the book (Bodk V,
l

Guftar

iii,

ch. i).

be noted that in the older Arabic medical treatises, such as

the Firdawsu'l-Hikmat (composed in A.D. 850), there is a tendency to
use the original Greek nomenclature transcribed into Arabic characters
instead of the Arabic translations which subsequently replaced these
(tyrjucpo*:)
foreign forms. Thus we find quotidian fever called
It is to

^j^^t

as well as

Jo

jft3J^+>

hectic fever called

^yLJaSt

tertian ^jlbljip (rptraio?) instead of

(CKTIKO?) instead of

^^^^^

and

semi-tertian

as i^lbtjjflutot (iJ/AnyuTaios) instead of v^JUt jJk&.

The student's attention may also be directed to an excellent article

on Fever (^^aJI)
where a fourfold

in vol.

of the Diet, of Technical Terms * etc , pp. 381-3,

classification

is

primary or secondary (marad or

adopted having regard to

'/<*</)

causation,

(2) point of attack, as explained

above (quotidian, hectic and putrid or humoristic)

complexity

;
(3) simplicity or
(4) occurrence or non-occurrence of rigors

Note XXVII. Physicians and their Works mentioned

Anecdote XXXII.
(Text, pp. 70-71
It will

under

in

Persian notes, pp. 230-8.)

be convenient to arrange the medical works here mentioned

their authors,

and these in

turn, so far as possible, in chronological

NOTE XXVI I. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

145

order. For the authorities to which reference is most

constantly made
the following abbreviations are used.
Barhebraeus is meant the

By

Mitfthtasaru'd-Duwal (Beyrout ed. of 1890) of Gregorius Abu'l-Faraj ibn

Ibnu'l-'Ibri or Barhebraeus. The Fihrist of

Ahnin commonly called

Abu'l-Faraj Muhiammad

ibn Abi Ya'qiib IsWq an-Nadim al-Warraq is,

of course, quoted from Hugel's (the only) edition. Ibn Abf
Usaybi'a
means that author's *Uy&*tt'Llnbdff 7W*/^///Y-< ;///>/*/, Cairo edition of
1299/1882, two volumes. Qifff means Jamahi'd-Din Abu'l-Hasan 'AH
ibn Ydsuf al-Qifti's Ta'rfkhu'l-Hukamd,^. Lippert
(Leip/ig, 1903). The
chief European authorities quoted are Wiistenfeld's Geschichte der
Arabischen Atrzte und Naturforsc/ier (Gottingen, 1840), a small book
but compact with useful information Lucien Leclerc's Histoire de la
;

Medecim Arabe

(2 vols., Paris, 1876)

Max Neuburger's

Geschichte

der Medizin (Stuttgart, 1908), especially vol. ii, pp. 142-228, l Die
Medizin beiden Arabern," and the complementary Jjterarhistorische Ubersic/it'; Pagel' s
EinfiiArung in (fie Geschichte der Aledizin ( Berlin, 1898),
ninth lecture (pp. 146-160) on Arabian Medicine; Adolf Fonahn's
/Mr Qudltnkuude der Fersischeti Medizin
1910); K. T.
'

(Leipzig

Withington's Medical History from the earliest times (London, 1894);

and F. H. Garrison's Introduction to the Flistory of Medicine (London
and Philadelphia, 1917). As a rule, however, in these brief notes refer
ence

will

only be

made

to the original Arabic sources.

r.

Bukht-Yishff.

Ten members

of this great medical family, which for three centuries

(eighth to eleventh of our era) produced some of the most eminent
physicians of that time, are enumerated by Wiistenfeld (pp. 14-18,
Nos. 26-35). They were Christians, as indicated by the family name,
for the correct explanation of which (Bukht-Yishi1'= "Jesus hath de1
The chief members of the
livered") we are indebted to Noldeke
family, with their affiliation, so far as it is known, were as follows
.

i.

2.

Jurjls*

(physician to al-Mansiir, d. 152/769)

3.

Kukht-YMm*

II

(phyMCiari to -Mahcli, -Hadf and llarifnu'r-Rashfd,

4. JibrdM (physician to Hdriinu'r-Rashid,
-Amin and -Ma'mun, d. 213/828-9)
6.

Bukht-Yishfr III (physician

s.

to

7.

Yahyd or Yuhannd

Bukht- Yifk* 1 IV (physician to

-Muqtadir, d. 329/940-1)

Jurjh

II

'Ubaydtfllah

y. Jibrtfil (physician to

Dawla,

10.

i.s/8oi)

(physician to -Muttaqf)

-Mu'tazz, d. 256/870)
8.

cl.

1 1 .

Abti

d.

Mid

(cl.

'Adudu'd-

397/1006-9)

UbayduWdh

450/1058-9)

S^ee p:'8i supra, n. j ad calc.

Wiistenfeld (p. 14), following Ibn Abi Usaybi*a (i, 123), inserts a Jibra'fl between
furjis and Bukht-Yishu', but Qifti (p. 158 etc.) represents Juriis I as the son, not the
grandson, of Bukht- Vishrf* I.
1

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

146

Concerning the original Bukht-Yishti' I can find out nothing, but it

may be supposed that he, like his son Jurjis, was attached to the great
hospital (Blmdristdn) and medical school of his native town JupdiSabtir. This once famous Persian city, of which hardly a trace now
remains, though its site has been identified by Rawlinso^as the modern
Shah-abad, about mid-way between Dizful and Shiishtar, was originally
founded by Shapiir T, and named, according to Tabari 2 Beh-az-Andew"
"
a name gradually
i-Shdptir, or
ShapuYs Better than Antioch,'
" It
shortened to Gunde-Shapiir, or, in its Arabic form, Junday-Sabtir.
was enlarged into a great city," says Rawlinson, " by his seventh successor Shapiir II Dhrfl-Aktdf (A.D. 309-379).. .and during his reign
became the see of a bishop of the Nestorian Church which had been
instituted in Susiana a century before; and when Jundi-Sabiir soon
afterwards rose to be the chief city of the province, the seat of the
metropolitan, which had been formerly fixed at Ahwaz, or, as it is called
8
by the Syrians, Beth Lapat was transferred to it. The School of JundiSabdr was renowned, during the reign of Antisharwan (A.D. 531-578),
through the Kastf and West and the city continued, to the time of the
Arab conquest, one of the great capitals of Susiana. It appears to have
sunk before the rising greatness of Shiishtar in the thirteenth century
and it is little mentioned in Oriental History after that time."
On the destruction of the great Persian school of Edessa in A.D 488-9
4
by order of the Emperor Zeno many of its learned Nestorian professors
and physicians sought refuge from Byzantine fanaticism under the more
,

'

'

tolerant rule of the Sasanians at Jundi-Sabilr, and gave a fresh impulse

to its activity.
During the Arab invasion of Persia (A.H. 15-17;
8
A.I). 636-8) it surrendered on terms to the Muslims , and its school

apparently continued unmolested until the early 'Abbasid period, when

the Caliph al-Mansilr (A.H. 136-158; A.D. 754-775), being grievously
ill, summoned Jurjis I, son of Bukht-Yishii' I, to Baghdad, where he
remained, greatly trusted and honoured, in spite of his refusal to forsake
the Christian for the Muhammadan faith, until A.H. 152 (A.D. 769),
when, being himself sick unto death, he obtained the Caliph's permission
to return home. From that time onwards until the middle of the eleventh
century some member of the family was always one of the chief physicians of the Court at Baghdad.
Lengthy notices of most of those
enumerated above, with lists of their medical and other works, are given
by Qiftf, Ibn Abi Usaybi'a and other medical biographers. For such
as do not read Arabic the information given by Wiistenfeld (pp. 14-18)
and Leclerc (i, pp. 95-103) will probably suffice. It is uncertain whether
the Bukht-Yishii* mentioned in the text (Anecdote XXXI 11) is intended
to be the father or the son of Jibra'il. The former died twelve years
before al-Ma'rmin's accession, while the latter survived him thirty-seven
years.
1

Notes on a A/arch

from Zohdb to KhAzistdn in they.A*. Geqgr. Soc. foi 1839,

See also Layard's remarks in vol. xvi, p. 86, of the same Journal.
See NoldekeV Gtsch. d. Fers. u. Arab, sur Zeit //. Sawnidcn (Leyden, 1879),

vol. ix,
a

pp. 71-72.

pp. 40-41.
8
*

See Noldekc, loc. cit.

See Dr VV. Wright's Syriac fMeratttre, pp. 46-47.
See Baladhuri's FtttAtttl-BitMS* (ed. de Goeje), pp. 382-385,

NOTE XXVII. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

147

An

anecdote in the KitdbtflBukhald ("Book of Misers") of

which an Arab physician, Asad ibn Jani, complains that
"his
patients will not consult him because, amongst other reasons,
language is Arabic, and it should have been the language of JundiSabitr," shews how great was the repute of that famous school of
Medicine in early 'Abbasid times. Exactly what this language was is
uncertain. Ibn Hawqal 2 says that, besides Arabic and Persian, the people
of Jundi-Sabdr have another speech of Khitzistan which is neither
Hebrew, nor Syriac, nor Persian ; while in the MandMjitl-Fikar it is
said that they have a language peculiar to themselves, resembling a
al-Jahiz in

jargon (ratdna\ though the Persian language is prevalent amongst

them". Speaking of their religion al-Muqaddasi 4 says that in his time
(middle of the tenth century of the Christian era) there were few
Christians and not many Jews and Zoroastrians, and that of the Muslims
many were Mu'tazilites, Shf'a (especially at Ahwaz) and Hanbalites.
2.

Hunayn

ibn Ishdq al-'/bddi.

This was another Christian scholar, well known to nfcdiacval Europe

under the name of Joannitius, who rendered signal services to Arabian
science, together with his sons Da'iid and Isl.iaq and his nephew
Hubaysh, all of whom were skilful and industrious translators of Greek
books into Arabic. He was a Nestorian of Hfra, where his father was
an apothecary, and early in the ninth century of the Christian era came
to Baghdad, where he studied under the celebrated Yaliya (or Yulianna)
Masawayh (Mesue senior) of Jundi-Sabiir, a pupil of Jibni'il ibn Bukht-

Offended at some real or fancied slight, he went off to study

Greek amongst the Greeks 5 and some years later was seen by one ol his

Yishtf.

of a long-haired wandering bard

former acquaintances in the guise
he returned to Baghdad, having
Later
streets.
in
the
Homer
reciting
himself to the study of
perfected his knowledge of Greek, and applied
Arabic under Khalil ibn Ahmad. He then became so excellent as a trans4ator from Greek into Arabic that Jibra'il ibn Bukht-Yishd' said of him,
if his life be prolonged he will assuredly put Sergius" to
"By God,
"
He attracted the notice, and finally, after undergoing a cruel
shame
7
won the confidence of the Caliph altest of his professional honour
of his
but
Mutawakkil (A.D. 847-851),
finally succumbed to the intrigues
and died in A.H. 260
rivals, was excommunicated by Bishop Theodosius,
enumerates 33 of his original works
(A.D. 873). Wustenfeld (pp. 28-9)
and a number of his translations from the Greek, including the Aphorisms (Fusut) of Hippocrates. His son Ishaq died in A.D. 910 or 911,
and his nephew Hubaysh about the same time.
I

Ed. Van Vloten (Leyden, iyoo), pp. 109-110.

De

Ibn Abi Usaybi'a specially mentions that both Juijis

vol.
Goeje's Bill. Geogr. Arab.,

ii,

pp. 173-1 74-

I (vol.

i,

p.

124)

and

his

son Bukht-Yishii* (vol. i, p. 126), on being presented to the Caliphs al-Mansiir and
Haninu'r-Rashid respectively, prayed for them in Arabic and Persian.
8
*
Q fti PP- "7^-75De Godje's Bibl. Geogr. Arab., vol. Hi, pp. 4'4~4<5the Greek sciences
^Sergius of Ra's Ayn flourished about A.D. 536, and translated
into Syriac. See Wright's Syriat Literature, pp. 88-93.
'

Qiftf, p.

176.

IO

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

148

3.

Thdbit ibn Qurra of Harrdn.

Thabit ibn Qurra was the chief of another group of non-Myslim

whom Arabic science is deeply indebted. These were the
1
so-called Sabeans ($dbt) of ftarran, a town so devoted to Greek
culture that it was known as Hellenopoiis. The following were the most
scholars to

notable

members of

the family

Qurra
Thdbit I

(d.

Feb. 19, 901 A.D.)

Sin an

Ibrdftim I

(d.A.H. 331; A.D. 942-3)

Thdbit II

IbrMm

II

(d.A.H. 363; A.D. 973-4)

Thabit ibn Qurra, to whom Qifti devotes a long notice (pp. 115-122),
was a most prolific writer on logic, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy,
medicine, etc. tie was born at Ilarran in A.H. 221 (A.D. 836) but spent
most of his life at Baghdad, where he enjoyed the favour of the Caliph
Qifti gives a very full and authoritative
of his writings compiled by Abii *Ali al-Muhassin 2 ibn Ibrahim ibn
Hilal as-Sabi, including some in Syriac on the Sabean religion and on

al-Mu'tadid (A.D. 892-902).

list

music which were never translated into Arabic. The almost miraculous
cure of the butcher related in Anecdote XXXIX of this book is by
Qifti (pp. 1 20- 1.) and Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (i, 216) ascribed to Thabit ibn
Qurra. The Dhakhira ("Thesaurus") mentioned in the text was, According to Qifti (p. 1 20), declared by T habit's hompnymous grandson to be
unauthentic, though a good book enjoying a wide circulation.
4.

Abti

Bakr Muhammad

ibn Zakariyyd ar-Rdzi.

This famous Persian physician, known to mediaeval Europe as

Bubikir, Abu-beter, Errasis, Rasis and Rhazes, was probably the greatesf
8
practitioner of the so-called Arabian Medicine who ever lived and as a
,

surpassed his later and more celebrated countryman

Avicenna, whose reputation rests more on his philosophical than on his
medical attainments, while the contrary holds good of ar-Razf. Indeed
Qifti says (p. 271) that though he devoted a good deal of attention to
Metaphysics he did not understand its ultimate aim, so that his judgement was disturbed, and he adopted untenable opinions and objectionable
doctrines. In Medicine, on the other hand, he was incomparable, and
clinical observer far

1
The true Sabeans of Chaldaea are the Mughtasila of the Arabs, the so-called
"Christians of St John the Baptist" of some European writers. The heathens of
Harrdn only adopted this name in the time of al-Ma'miin for a curious reason fully
explained by Chwolson in his great work Ssabier und Ssabismus (vol. i, ch. vi,
pp. 139-.* 57)a
This name, being unpointed, might equally be read "Muhsin," but Mfrza*
Muhammad, in the course of a long note, has pointed out to me that, though Common
in later times, Muhsin was in early days a
;
very rare name compared with Muhassin
*'
statement which he amply substantiates.
8
Compare the enthusiastic but judicious estimate of his talents given by Neuburger
'

1 68

et scqq.).

NOTE XXVII. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

149

"

"

work the Hdwi (or Continens of mediaeval Europe), so far

as I can judge from the portions of it accessible to me in the original
Arabic, stands on an altogether different plane from the Qdnun of
Avicenna or any other Arabic system of Medicine.
The year of Razi's birth is not recorded, but he seems to have spent
the first thirty years of his life in his native town of Ray (situated near
the modern Persian capital Tihran), from which he derived the name by
his great

which he is generally known, without becoming famous for anything

-except an unusual skill in music and singing. He was then seized with
a desire to study Medicine and Philosophy, went to Baghdad, and there

became the pupil of 'AH ibn Rabban 1 at-Jabari, formerly physician to

the unfortunate Persian rebel Mazyar and afterwards to the Caliph alMutawakkil, for

whom

in A.D.

850 he composed

his remarkable

vprk

"
the " Paradise of Wisdom
(Firdawsu*l-Hikmat\ Having completed
his medical studies he became director first of the hospital at Ray and
2
He also devoted some attention to Alchemy, on
then at Baghdad
which he composed 12 books 3, but the study brought him no luck, for,
being unable to translate his theories into practice, he vjas struck on the
head by his disappointed patron Mansrir, governor of Ray, in consequence
of which he became blind. He refused to undergo an operation on his
eyes on ascertaining that the surgeon who was to perform it was ignorant
of the anatomy of the eye, adding afterwards that he had looked on the
world until he was tired of it.
The marvellous acumen displayed and the wonderful cures effected
by him form the subject of numerous anecdotes similar in character to
in this book in such collections of stories as the Arabic
No.
4
al-Faraj btfdctsh-Shidda ("Joy after Sorrow") of at-Taniikhf and the
Persian Jawdmfrfl-Hikdydt of 'Awfi.
.

XXXV

Razf was a most prolific writer, and Qifti (pp. 274-7) enumerates
more than a hundred of his works, most of which, unfortunately, are

while only a very few have been printed in the original, to wit his
5
celebrated treatise on small-pox and measles , his work on stone in the
8
and
bladder
the
anatomical
and
,
portion of the ManstirP.
kidneys
Latin versions of the Hdwi ("Continens"), Mansuri ("Liber ad
Almansorem "), and various smaller works were made and widely read
in mediaeval Europe, and were in many cases printed during the
fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. They are enumerated by Dr Ludwig
Choulant in his Handbuch der Biuherkunde filr die Altere Median
(Leipzig, 1841), pp. 340-5. One of the most interesting of Razi's minor
works, in which he discusses the reasons why quacks often enjoy
lost,

1
His father's name is often wrongly given as Zayn (&2J), but he explicitly states
in the Introduction to his Hrdawsiil-Ifikmat, or "Paradise of Wisdom," that he was
"that is to say, our master and teacher." Ibn Abi Usaybi'a
called Rabban

(i,

(^>Jj)>
86) explains the title in precisely the

same
3

sense.

7^-' P- *7*
See the edition of this work printed at the Hildl Press, Cairo, in 1903, vol. ii,
and died in 384/994-5.
p. 96. The author was born in 317/938-9
5 Ih Variolis tt
MorbilliS) arabice et latine> euro, John Channing ( London, 1766).
* Traitt sur le Calcul dans les Reins et dans la Vessie...traduction accompagnlt du
textepar P. de Koning (Leyden, 1896).
7 Trois Traitfs <? Anatomic arabes...texte et traduction
par P. de Koning (Leyden,
2

Qifti, P- -271-

PP- *-89-t

i$o

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

greater popularity than properly qualified physicians, has been translated

into German by the learned Moritz Steinschneider and published in
Virchow's Archiv (vol. xxxvi, 1865, pp. 570-586). This is entitled "Wis-

senschaft und Charlatanerie unter den Araben im neunten Jahrhundert,"

and appears to be identical with the tract described by Qifti (p. 274) as

Kitdb fil-Asbdbtl-mumayyila li-quMbtn-Nds 'an afddilfl-Atibbtfi ila

"
the causes which incline men's hearts from the most
akhisstfihim, on
eminent of physicians to the vilest of them."
Only four of Razi's numerous works are mentioned in the Chahdr
t

Maqdla. One of them, the Tuhfattfl-Multik (p. 71, 1. 22 of the text), is

nowhere else mentioned by this title, and cannot be identified. Another,
here called the Murshid(" Guide"), is properly entitled al-Fustil fi t-Tibb
1
The two remaining works, the Manstiri
("Aphorisms in Medicine")
and the Hdwf, are more important (especially the last named), and
deserve somewhat fuller mention.
.

Al-KitdMl-Manstirt ("Liber ad Almansorem ")

A great deal of confusion exists, even amongst Oriental writers, as to

the identity of the Mansiir to whom Razf dedicated this work, and at
whose hands (as narrated above) he finally suffered such indignity.
2
Yaqiit alone correctly identifies him as Mansiir ibn Ishaq ibn Ahmad
ibn Asad, who was appointed Governor of Ray in A.H. 290 (A.D. 903)
by his cousin Ahmad ibn Isma'fl ibn Ahmad ibn Asad ibn Saman, the
second King of that Royal House, held that position until A.H. 296
(A.D. 908-9), and rebelled against Nasr II ibn Ahmad ibn Isma'il in
A.H. 302 (A.D. 914-915). All other authorities, even those generally
frza Muhammad points out (Persian notes,
most trustworthy, seem, as
pp. 231-3 and 240-1), to have fallen into error. Thus the Fihrisi

(pp. 299-300), Qifti (p. 272, 11. 21-2) and Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (i, p. 310,
" Mansiir ibn
Isma'il," a person unknown to
29) call Rdzi's patron

1.

history ; or (Ibn Abi Usaybi'a in another passage, viz. i, p. 313, 1. 20)

" Mansiir ibn Isma'il ibn
Khaqan, lord of Khurasan and Transoxiana";*

or (Ibn Abi Usaybi'a, i, p. 317, 11. 17-18) "Mansiir ibn Ishaq ibn
Isma'fl ibn Ahmad." Ibn Khallikan in one passage identifies him with
Abii Salih Mansiir ibn I slid q ibn Ahmad ibn Niih (which is correct
"
if we substitute
Asad " for " Niih " in the genealogy), and in another
falls into the same error as the author of the Chahdr Maqdla by
identifying him with the sixth Sdnianid ruler Mansiir ibn Niih ibn Nasr,
who reigned from A.H. 350 to 366 (A.D. 961-976-7), long after the

death of Razi, which is generally placed either in the year A.H. 311
(A.D. 923-4), or in A.H. 320 (A.D. 932), though one MS. of Qiftf. (p. 272)
puts it as late as A.H. 364 (A.D. 974-5).
The Arabic text of the Mans&ri has, so far as I know, never been
published in its entirety, nor are MSS. common. For his edition of the
anatomical portion of the work Dr P. de Koning made use of a MS. in
the Bibliotheque Nationale at Paris (No. 2866 of de Slane's Catalogue).
The Latin version, as already noted, has been repeatedly printed 3
.

See Choulant's Handbuch, pp. 341 and 343.

Mu'jamu'l-Bulddn, vol. ii, p. 901.

See Choulant,

op. laud., p.

343

NOTE XXVII. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

151

Al-Kitdbu'l-Hdwl ("Continens")the largest and most important of the works of Rdzi. It is,
%This
moreover, a posthumous work, for after Razi's death Muhammad ibnu'l'Arnid, the Minister of Sultan Ruknu'd-Dawla ibn Buwayh, bought
the materials and notes left by the author from his sister for a high
price and placed them in the hands of a committee of his pupils to be
arranged and edited. It therefore lacked the finishing touch of the
Master's hand, which fact, perhaps, accounts for its somewhat inchoate
character and confused arrangement. The original Arabic text has never
been published; MSS. are rare and widely scattered* and it is doubtful
if those which exist in the British
Museum, the Bodleian, Munich and
the Escorial represent in all more than half of the entire work. The
Latin version, first published in 1486, and subsequently in 1500, {506
and 1509, is rare, and has been accessible to me only in the copy
marked XV. 4. 2 in the Library of King's College, Cambridge; nor do
its contents
agree well either with the account of the original given in
the Fihrist (pp. 299-302) or with the manuscript volumes which I have
examined in London and Oxford.
The Fihrist (p. 300) and Qifti describe the book as comprising
twelve parts, thus enumerated by the former:
is

(i)
(ii)

The
The

treatment of disease and of the sick,

preservation of health,

(iii)

Fractures, dislocations

(iv)

Materia medica and

and

surgical operations,

diet.

(v)
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)

(ix)

(x)
(xi)
(xii)

Compound medicaments,
The Art of Medicine.
Apothecarium; colours,

tastes

and smells of

drugs,

Bodies.

Weights and measures.

The anatomical

structure

and uses of the

different

members,

Natural causes in Medicine.

Introduction to the study of Medicine: medical names and
principles of Medicine.

first

The Latin version, on the other hand (Brixise, October

1
comprises twenty-five parts entitled as follows:
(1) De morbis cerebri.
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)

(6)

18, 1486),

De oculis.
De auribus, naribus, lingua et gula.
De asmate, peripleumonia et pleuresi.
De passionibus stomachi.
De evacuationibus.

(7) *De passionibus cordis et epatis et splenis.

1

But according to Choulant

the Venice edition of A.D. 1509 is divided
(p. 343)
into 37 books. In the following table I have retained the original spelling, except in
the case of ligatures and contractions.

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

52
(8)
(9)

(10)
(i i)

De passionibus intestinorum.
De clisteribus et morbis matricis.
De passionibus renum.
De passionibus vesice, hernia, vermibus et cabbo(?) emorroiciibus
et spermate.

(12)

(13)
(14)
(15)

(16)
(#7)
(18)

(19)
(20)
(21)

De arthetica et varicibus.
De squirros et aliis apostematibus.
De eo quod dissolvit saniem.
De dislocatione et minutione.
De prognosticis et summa febrium.
De
De
De
De
De

effimera et ethica (for ectica).

quotidiana, quartana, rigore et

aliis.

crisi.

urina et venenis.
simgiicibus medicinis, incipiendo a Camomille usque ad

Dausar.
(22)

De

simplicibus

medicinis,

incipiendo a

Dausar

usque

ad

Cordumeni.
(23)

(24)

De simplicibus medicinis, incipiendo a Cordumeni complet

totum.
De

electionibus et sophisticationibus medicinarum simplicium

tabula.

(25)

De

regimine

sanitatis.

Hdwi

or "Continens" must be regarded as the most

important work of the greatest of "Arabian" physicians, access to the
original text would be an essential condition of success in any detailed

Since the

and comprehensive study of "Arabian" Medicine. This condition,

unfortunately, is unlikely to be fulfilled, for who would undertake the
labour of editing, or pay the cost of printing, for so large and so crabbed
an exposition of an obsolete science? And even were the difficulty of
finding an editor and a publisher overcome, it is doubtful if the manuscript materials are sufficient; if, indeed, more than half the work is
Of the MSS. I have only been able to examine cursorily
still extant.
those in the British Museum and the Bodleian. Laud 289 in the
latter is described as containing Part (or Book) I of the work; but
it deals not only with the diseases of the Brain, but also of the
Throat, Lungs and Stomach it would appear to correspond with Books
I-V of the Latin translation. Marsh 156 in the same library is
described as containing Books VI and VII, but, to judge by the conThe third
tents, appears rather to contain Books XVI and XVII.
Bodleian MS., Or. 561, is described by Uri (ii, 162), apparently
correctly, as containing Books XXIV and XXV, and deals chiefly with
drugs and diet; but beginning with a glossary, alphabetically rrrafiged,
of the different organs and the diseases to which they are subject,
followed by the Kitdbu hallfr-JRumtiz wa Saydalat? t-Tibb on Materia
Medica, and "Rules for the use of foods and drinks for the preservation

since

NOTE XXVII. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

153

etc.
The British Museum MS. Arundel Or. 14 contains
Books VIII, IX and X; while Books IV, V, VI and XI are said to be
pr^erved in the Escorial Book XJ I (? XIX) at Munich and another

of Health/'

MS:

of

Book IV

in

the Khedivial Library at Cairo.

Should these

Books I-VI, VIII-XI, XVI-XVII, and

XXIV-XXV (*.*. 14 out of the 25 Books) would appear to be extant,"
while others, still undescribed and unidentified, probably exist elsewhere.
One very important and interesting feature of the Bodleian MS.
Marsh 156 is that six leaves of it (ff. 239 b-245 b ) contain clinical
reports of some two dozen of Rdzi's own cases which presented some
identifications prove correct,

unusual features rendering the diagnosis difficult. The name of the

and symptoms of the disease, the initial and final
diagnosis and treatment, with the termination of the case, are/ully
described with great clearness and acumen; and these 'cases, which
certainly deserve publication, quite bear out Razi's high repute as a
1
clinical observer
patient, the signs

5.

Abtfl-Khayr ibn Khammdr.

This was another eminent philosopher, physician and logician, born

in A.H. 331 (A.D. 942-3), with whom the author of the
Fihrist was personally acquainted 2 The date of his death is unknown,
but from Anecdote XXXVI it is clear that he survived the year A.H. 408
(A.D. 1017-8) in which Sultan Mahmiid conquered Khwarazm. His full
name was Abu'l-Khayr al-Hasan ibn Suwar ibn Baba ibn Bahram l[or,
according to Ibn Abf Usaybi'a, Bihnam), and he was a Christian,
apparently of Persian ancestry. He made translations from Syriac into
Arabic. Fifteen of his works are enumerated by Ibn Abi Usaybi'a*, but
it is uncertain whether
any of them still exist.
at

Baghdad

6.

He

Abti

Nasr

ibn 'Arrdq.

al-Biriini, in whose name he com4

His full name
posed twelve astronomical and mathematical tracts
was Abd Nasr Mansiir ibn Ali ibn 'Arraq Mawld Amirfl-Mtfminin.
He was descended from the old kings of Khwarazm, who claimed
descent from the legendary Kay-Khusraw, and who maintained a quasi-

was another contemporary of

independent sovereignty until the tenth Christian century. The penultimate king or prince of this line, Abti Sa'id Ar^mad ibn Muhammad ibn

and corrected the Khwarazmian Calendar, while the

of them, Abu. 'Abdi'llah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad

'Arraq, revised
last

1
6
ibn 'Arraq, is entitled by al-Birilni " Shahid" ("the Martyr' )
This,
like so many other ancient and noble Persian families, seems to have
.

been destroyed or dispersed by Sultan Mahmiid of Ghazna. There is no

our author's assertion that Abu* Nasr ibn 'Arraq was
the nephew of Khwarazmshah.

justification for

a
See pp. 145 and 265 of that work.
ii, pp. 168-175.
*
333.
4
edition
of the Athdrif l-Bdqiya, where
i. xlviii of the Einltitung of Sachau's
tifty are enumerated; and also pp. 246-249 of the Persian notes to the Chahdr
1

Cf. Neuburger,

Op.
See

tit., i, p.

Maadla.
*

Al-Birdni's references to these

Athdru'l-Bdgiya.

two kings occur on pp. 241 and 35-36 of

al-

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

i$4

7.

Abu Sahl Sa'id ibn 'Abdu'VAziz

an-Nili.

He was a poet as well as a physician, and is consequently mentioned

by Tha'alf bi in his Yattmatu'd-Dahr as well as by Ibn Abi Usaybi'u in
his Tabaqdtrfl-Atibbd V T lis brother Abii 'Abdu'r-Rahman was as em?hent
in Jurisprudence as he was in Medicine. Only two or three of his
medical works (commentaries on Hippocrates and Galen, an epitome of
yunayn's "Questions" or Masd'il, and extracts from RazCs commentaries) are

mentioned.
8.

*Ali

ibmJVAbbds al-MajusL

This notable physician, known to mediaeval Europe as "Haly Abbas,"

as well as al-Majiisi ("the Magian," presumably because
his father or grandfather was converted to Islam from the Zoroastrian
2
religion ), the nisbas of al-Ahwazi and al-Arrajani, was the pupil of

and bearing,

Abit Mahir Mtisa ibn Yilsuf ibn Sayyar and afterwards court-physician
and died in A.H. 384 (A.D. 994-5). The notices of
him given by Qifti (p. 232) and Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (i, pp. 236-7) are
very meagre, and he is chiefly known through his great work the Kdmi-

to 'Acludu'd-Dawla,

Ms-$infra ("Perfect Practitioner") or Kitdbrfl-Maliki("\:\\>vt Regius"),

of which there is a good edition of the original Arabic text printed at
Cairo in 2 vols. in 1294/1877, besides an edition lithographed at Lahore
in 1.283/1866. This book enjoyed a great reputation, though it was, as
Qifti tells us, to some extent eclipsed by Avicenna's Qdnun, which was
deemed stronger on the theoretical, though less strong on the practical
It

side.

Venice

was translated into Latin, and this translation was printeU at

1492 and again at Lyons in A.D. 1523. The title-page

in A.D.

of the latter edition bears the following legend:

Liber totius Medecina necessaria continens quern sapientissimus Haly
filius Abbas discipulus abimeher moysi filii seiar edidit : regique inscripsit.

nomen assumpsit et a Stephana philosophic

ex arabica lingufr in Latinam satis ornatam reductus necnon
a domino Mich&le de Capella, artium et medecinte doctore, fecundis sinonomis a multis et diversis autoribus ab eo collectis illustrator^ summaque

unde

et regalis dispositions

discipulo

cum

diligentid impressus.

Each volume, the

first dealing with the theory and the second with

the practice of Medicine, contains ten Discourses ( Maqdldt}, which are
subdivided into numerous chapters. The anatomical portion of the first
volume (Maqdlas ii and iii), comprising 53 chapters, has, as already
been mentioned, been published with a French translation by Dr P. de
Koning in his Trots Traitfs d* Anatomic arabes (Leyden, 1903).
1

Vol.

"

Mirza

pp. 253-254.
Muhammad (Persian notes, p. 234) thinks that he himself was a Magian,
so how could he have been called 'All and his father al-*Abbas? In the Cairo
edition of his Kdmilifs'Sinfrat "Majiisi" has been wantonly pointed as " Mujawwisi"
or " Mujawwasi," in order, I
suppose, to attempt to conceal his Zoroastrian Origin.
Mfrza Muhammad, howevei, after reading this note, has supplied me with many
instances derived from such respectable authorities as as-Sabi, Qifti, Ibn Khallikan,
Ibn Abi Usaybi'a, etc., of Jews, Christians and other non-Muslims bearing Muham-

but

i,

if

madan names,

titles

and kunyas.

NOTE XXVII. CERTAIN EMINENT PHYSICIANS

The Kdmilu's-Sind'a

is,

in

my

155

opinion, far superior in style, arrange-

Qdn&n^ and the author's estimate of

hfc predecessors, both the "Ancients" (i.t. the Greeks, especially
Hippocrates, Galen, Oribasius and Paul of Aegina) and the "Moderns"
(*.Athe Syrians and Arabs, such as Ahrtin, Ibn Serapion, Razi, etc.) is
which he gives as
admirable, as is the model description of Pleurisy
a specimen of the method he proposes to employ in the description of
each disease. l)r Lucien Leclerc (Hist, de la Mtdedne Arabe, vol. i,
pp. 383-8) gives a French translation of the opening portion.

ment and

interest to Avicenna's

9.

Abu SahH-MasihL

name

is Abti Sahl 'isa ibn Yahya ai-Masfhi (the

Christian) al-Jurjani (of Gurgan, Jurjan or Hyrcania), .and his* work,
ad Bdb (the "Hundred Chapters"), properly bears the
here called
Arabic title of Kitdbtfl-Mfa fit-Tibb (the "Book of the Hundred on
Medicine"), or al-M?atu Maqdla (the "Hundred Discourses"). Born
in Jurjan, the author studied chiefly at Baghdad, and was one of
Avicenna's teachers, and one of the numerous men of learning who

This

writer's full

found patronage and protection at the Court of Ma'mtin ibn Muhammad

Khwarazmshah and his son Abu'l- 'Abbas Ma'mrin ibn Ma'mtin, killed
in 407/1016-7. His friend Abit Rayfran al-Birtini enumerates twelve
books and treatises which Abii Sahl composed in his honour and
1
Wustenfeld gives 390/1000 as the year
dedicated or ascribed to him
of Abri Sahl's death, but it is not clear on what authority.
.

10.

Avicenna (Shaykh

AM

*Ali ibn Slnd).

So much has been written about this celebrated philosopher and

it will be sufficient here to recapitulate the chief facts of
his life. These are particularly well authenticated by his autobiography,
which carries the narrative down to the time of his father's death, when
he was twenty-one years of age, and its continuation by his friend and
pupil Abri 'Ubayd al-Jrizjani*. An excellent summary, together with
a list of nearly one hundred of his books, will be found in Brockelmann's
Gesch. d. Arab. Litt.> vol. i, pp. 452-8, and there is an independent
work on him (considered rather as a philosopher than a physician) by
Baron Carra dc Vaux 3 Accounts of him, of varying degrees of completeness and accuracy, arc naturally to be found in most Muhammadan
physician that

biographical works

our

composed subsequently

to the eleventh century of

His

intellectual influence, not only in the Islamic world, but,

until the Renaissance, in Europe also, was immense.
Brockelmann
(op. laud., i, 453) well says:
displayed an extraordinarily fruitful
era.

"He

most varied fields of learning, especially in Philosophy

and Medicine. His works, indeed, lack originality throughout; but,
because they set forth in an elegant and easily intelligible form almost all
the profane learning of his time, they have exercised an enduring
influence on scientific studies, not only in the East, but also in Europe."
activity in the

1
See pp. xlvii-xlviii of the Preface to Sachau's edition of al-Bfrtini's Atharu
*l-BAqiya (Leipzig, 1876).
2
For the Arabic text of them, see al-Qifti (ed. Lippert, Leipzig, 1903), pp. 413-426.
3 Les Grands
Philosophes ; Avicenna (Paris, 1900).

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

156

Abd 'AH al-Husayn ibn 'Abdu'llah ibn Sfna (better known in the
West by the Europeanized form of his name Avicenna, and commonly
called in Persia, his native country, ash-Shaykhu'r-Ra'fs, 'the Ch/fef
Doctor," or al-Mu'allimu'th-Thnf, "the Second Great Teachef )
k

fl

was born in August, A.D. 980, in a

near Bukhara, wherrf- he

village

received his earlier education, the philosopher an-Natilf and

fye physician *lsa ibn Yahya being amongst his teachers. At the early age of 17
he achieved medical renown by his successful treatment of the Samanid
prince Niir> ibn Manstir (reigned A.D. 976-997). On his father's death,
when he was about 21 years of age, he went.to Khwarazm, the circumstances of his departure from which are described in Anecdote XXXVI.
Attracted to Tabaristan by the fame of Qabtis ibn Washmgir, he arrived
1
there,, as he himself says only to find that that talented but unfortunate
,

prince had been deposed and cast into prison, where he was soon afterwards murdered (403/101 2-3). Avicenna subsequently became minister

Shamsu'd-Dawla at Ramadan, where he suffered disgrace and imprisonment, but presently escaped to Isfahan, and entered the service of 'Ala'u'd-.
'Dawla Abii Ja'far IJluhammad ibn Dushmanziyar of the so-called Kaka2
wayhid dynasty for whom he wrote his Persian Encyclopaedia of the
Sciences called in his honour Ddnish-ndma-i^Ali\ He died of colic
to

on the march

to

Ramadan

(where his tomb

still

exists) in

428/1037, at

the age of 58 lunar years, after a short illness for which he treated himself
with less than his usual success, so that it was said of him by a contem-

porary

satirist

OU
"
"

saw Ibn Sind (Avicenna) contending with men, but he died

What

in prison (or,
of constipation) the most ignoble death ;
he attained by the Shijd (or, by healing) did not secure his health,
nor did he escape death by his Najdt (or 'Deliverance 1 )."

In these verses there are three ingenious word-plays, for habs means
"
both " imprisonment and " constipation," while two of his most famous
works are entitled Shifd (" Healing") and Najdt (" Deliverance ").
Besides his medical- and philosophical works, Avicenna wrote a good
deal of fine poetry in Arabic and a few quatrains (some of which are
often ascribed to 'Umar-i-Khayyam) in Persian. The latter hate been
5
collected by the late Dr Hermann Ethe and of the former a considerable number are given by Ibn Abi Usaybi'a 6 Of his beautiful Arabic
qasida on the descent of the soul into the body a translation will be
found in vol. ii of my Literary History of Persia (pp. 1 o-i 1 1). Another
remarkable qasida 1 ascribed to him foretells with extraordinary prevision
,

the

Mongol

invasion, the sack of Baghdad, the

murder of the Caliph,

See the note on p. 79, I. 23 of the text (Persian notes, pp. 250-151).
2
See S. Lane-Poole's Mohammadan Dynasties, p. 145.
3 See Kieu's Persian
Catalogue^ pp. 433-434. A lithographed edition of ^his toook
was published at Haydarabdd in the Deccan m 1309/1891-2.
4
Ibn
Abi Usaybi'a's TabaqAt, vol. ii, p. 6.
See
5
Avicenna als persischtr Lyriker in the Gottinger Nachrichtcn for 1 875, pp. 555-567 .
tt

Vol.

ii,

pp. 10-18.

Ibid.,

pp. 16-18.

NOTE XXVII. AVICENNA

157

and the

victory of the Egyptians led by Qutuz al-Maliku'1-Muzaffar over

the Tartars at 'Ayn Jaliit in A.D. 1260, these predictions being based on
considerations connected with the conjunction of Jupiter and
astrological
Swurn in Capricorn " the Mansion of Saturn." Another poem contains
medical -advice as to the treatment of an ulcer on the forehead addressed
to fne Wazir Abu" '^alib al-'Alawf, who had consulted Avicenna on this
1
There are also some remarkable verses in
subject, in similar verses
"
blood of gold," the Christian
praise of wine, which is compared to
His
First
the
Cause.
and
literary activity was prodigious and
Trinity,
varied, extending to almost every branch of letters and learning, as may
be seen by glancing at the lists of his works given by Ibn Abf Usaybi'a 2
and Brockelmann. Of these only three are specifically mentioned in the
Chahdr Maqdla^ namely the KitdbtM-Mabda\v(Jl-Ma''dd, quoted by
3
Mirza Muhammad from the British Museum MS.; the book htitled
" How to
guard against various mistakes in medical treatment," printed
at Biilaq in the margins of ar-Razi's Mandfi^il-aghd/uya wa daj'u
~naddrri-hd under the title of Daf>u'l-mcn1drr?l-kulliyya 'aml-abddtrfl4
usdntyya ; and the Qdntin, the largest and most famous of Avicenna's
medical writings. In the preparation of the FitsJl'atrick lectures on
"Arabian Medicine" which I delivered at the Royal College of Physicians in November 1919 and 1920, and which will I hope be published
in the course of 1921, I made use of the fine but not very correct edition
printed at Rome in AD. 1593, but there is also a Biilaq edition in two
volumes. A good account of the various editions and Latin translations
will be found in Dr Ludwig Choulant's Handbuch der Bilcherkunde fur
die Altere Medicin (Leipzig, 1841), pp. 359-368. See also Morilz Stein.

scnneider's Die Europdischen Ubersetzungen aus dem Arabischen bis Mitte

des 17 Jahrhunderts* in the Index s.v. "Avicenna."
In Anecdote XXXVIII the narrator, Abii Kalanjar, mentions four
other disciples of Avicenna, concerning three of whom Mirza Muhammad gives some valuable information in the Persian notes on pp. f of-

ro. Bahmanyar's full name was Abu'l-Hasan Bahmanyar ibn Marzuban al-Adharbayjanf al-Majrisi, and he died in 458/1066. A few of his
writings exist in manuscript, and two of his metaphysical treatises were

printed at Leipzig in A.D. 185 1. Abu" Mansiir al-FIusayn ibn Muhammad

ibn 'Umar ibn Zila al- Isfahan! died in 440/1048-9. The assertion that
he was a Zoroastrian is unsupported by evidence, and, in view of the
names of his father and grandfather, appears very improbable". There
exist in the British Museum MSS. of two of his treatises, one on Music,
entitled al-Kdfi (Or. 2361), and the other a Commentary on Avicenna's Story ofHayy ibn Yaq%dn.
Far more important than these two was Abii 'Ubayd Abdul-Wa^id ibn
Muhammad al-JUzjani, who first became acquainted with Avicenna in
7
Jurjan in 403/101 2-3 Avicenna was then about thirty-two years old, and
2
1
Lw* cit.) pp. 18-20.
Vol. ii, p. 14.
.

4
See p. ft of the Persian notes.
Ibid., p. f rv.
Published in two parts with separate pagination in the Sitzungsberichte d. fCais.
J(kad. J! Wissensch. (Phiios.-histor. Klasse^ Vienna, 1904 and 1905.
8
i at the foot of p. 154 supra.
Compare, however, note
7
Mirza Muhammad has established this date from the writings of both Avicenna and
al-Juzjani. See Persian notes, pp. f of-CM ad cole.

*l

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

158

was thenceforth constantly with him until his death in 428/1037,

always urging him to record his knowledge in books while he lived, and
preserving these writings from destruction after his death. For Avicenna,
as recorded in the Chahdr Maqdla (p. 92 supra), distracted by the
rijal
claims of learning, pleasure and statecraft, enjoyed little leisure jnid
tranquillity, and when he wrote a book would often give the original to
the person who had asked him to write it without keeping a ctipy for
himself. After his death al-Jtizjani sought out these scattered writings
wherever they could be found and arranged and edited them, while in
other cases he actually assisted in their composition. Thus the Ddnishndma-i-'Altfi 1 Avicenna's most important Persian work, composed for
and dedicated to 'Ala'u'd-Dawla Abii Ja'far Kakiiya, was designed to
treat of Logic, Metaphysics, Natural Science, Mathematics, Astronomy,
Musitf and Arithmetic; but after his death only the first three sections
could be found. The missing portions were therefore compiled and
translated by al-Jiizjani from the Shifd and other Arabic works of his
master, and the lacuna thus filled. We also owe to al-Jilzjanf the continuation of Avicenna's autobiography from the time of their first
meeting in Jurjan flown to his death The full text of this is given by
Ibn Abi Usaybi'a 2 and an abridgement of it by al-Qifti*.
al-Jdzjanf

ii.

Sayyid Ismctiljurjdni.

probably the first Muslim physician who used the Persian

language chiefly or exclusively in writing on scientific subjects, or at
least the first whose works have come down to us. He gives his name
and genealogy as follows in the Introduction to his Dhakkirq-iKhwdrazmshdhi*
Isma'il ibnu'l-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad
5
al-Husaym al-Jurjam. Fonahn gives his father's name as Ahmad
instead of al-Hasan, his laqab as Zaynu'd-Din, and his kunya as Abu"

This

is

Muhammad and Ahmad in

him Abu'l-Fada'il and Sharafu'd-Dfn.

6
Ibrahim; while Rieu transposes

gree;

and Leclerc 7

calls

his pediLittle is

known of his life except that he came to Khwarazm (Khiva) and

entered the service of Qutbu'd-Din Muhammad Khwarazmshah in
504/1110-1111, composed the four medical works (Aghrdd, Dhakhira,
Khuffi and Yddgdr) mentioned in the Chahdr Maqdla, and died at
Merv in or about the year 531/1136-7.
The contents of the Aghrdtfu* *-&&(" Aims of Medicine"), composed
for the Minister of Atsiz Khwarazmshah (reigned A.D. 1127-1156), and
the manuscripts of it existing in different libraries are fully described by
Fonahn 8 as are the Khuffi-i-*AltiP (composed in A.D. 1113) and the
10
which deals with PharmacoYddgdr-i-Tibb ("Medical Memoranda ")
,

As

already noted, the text was lithographed in India in 1309/1891-2, but is

rare. Mr A. G. Ellis most kindly placed his copy at my disposal. Mirza Muhammad
mentions two MSS. in the British Museum, viz. Add. 16,830 and Add. 16,659,
b
b
ff.
258 -342 , and there is another, Or. 16,830. Sec Rieu's Pers. Cat., pp. 433-434.
*
Pp. 417-426 of Lippert's edition.
Tabaqdtitl'Atibbdt ii, pp. 4-9
4 In an old thirteenth
century MS. of Books l-III of this work in my possession.
*
5 Zur
Quellenkunde d. Pers. Meet., p. 129.
7
6 Pers.
Hist, dc la Midtcine Arabe, vol. ii, pp. 18-20.
Cat., p. 466.
1

8
10

Op.

No. 16, pp. 11-13.

No. 280, p. 105!

fit.,

Ibid.,

/Wtf-i

No

39>

35-

NOTE XXVI

1 1.

J Aid's

VERSION OK TWO ANECDOTES 159

logy and Therapeutics.

These I have not seen, and they are completely

overshadowed by his magnum opus the Dhakhtra-i-Khwdrazmshdhi, or
"Thesaurus of Khwarazmshdh," of which I have collected several fine
manuscripts and which I have studied with some care. Before speaking
of iUJiowever, I must observe that the Khuffi was so called from khuff^
a boo^, because it was written in two elongated narrow volumes, one of
which tre traveller could carry in each of his riding-boots, and that its

name

not Khafi ("Hidden," "Secret"), as stated by Fonahn and

is

Leclerc 1

The

general contents of the Dhakhira-i-Khwdrazmshdtii are pretty

2
by Fonahn , and in particular the contents of Book IX,
dealing with poisons and antidotes, bites and stings of animals, etc. He
also enumerates the MSS. of the work, which has never been published
in the original Persian, though an Urdii translation has been lithograplied
in India. The complete work, of which I possess one manuscript, while
2. 6,
another, wanting only a few leaves, and bearing the class-mark
is preserved in the
Cambridge University Library, originally comprised
3
9 Books
75 Discourses, 1107 chapters, and 450,000 words. I also
possess three fine old MSS., transcribed in the thirtejnth or fourteenth
century, containing portions of the work, viz. (i) Books I, II and part
of III; (2) Book III, Maqala iv, Bakhsh i to the end of Book V;
(3) Book VI, Guftar xi to the end. I also possess a more modern MS. of
the whole work, and another of the whole of Book VI, Guftars i -xxi. I
have discussed this book more fully in my FitzPatrick lectures, delivered
before the Royal College of Physicians in November 1919 and 1920,
which are now in the press, so that I need say no more of it in this place.
fully stated

Mm.

Note XXVIII.
Jami's rhymed versions of Anecdotes XXXIV (Text, p. 73) and
XXXVIII (Text, pp. 82-4) in the Silsilatu'dh-Dhahab.
(The

text is taken

Or. 425,

ff.

from a MS. dated 997/1589 /;/ my own possession and

b
and 76* in the Cambridge University Library.)
,

75

Anecdote

XXXIV.

1
Mirza Mujiammad has pointed out to me that, as we learn from Qifti (p. 80) and
Ibn Abf Wsaybi'a (i, p. 20 r), one of Ishaq ibn Ilunayn's works was similarly entitled
tfunndshiS'l-Khuff, and that Sayyid Isnia'il probably got the idea from him.

Op.

cit.,

Book

No.

15, pp. 7-1 1.

X on Compound

Medicaments was subsequently added by the author.

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

160

*-W

Anecdote XXXVIII.

ju

o^-

^ ^ J5j j

^
-

NOTE XXIX. THE MA'MtiNf KHWARAZMSHAIIS

161

Note XXIX. The Ma'miinf Khwarazmshahs.

(Text, p. 76; Persian notes, pp. 194

and 241-4.)

This older dynasty of Khwarazmshahs was originally tributary to

the bamanids, but, during the interval (A.H. 380-407 -A.D. 990-1016)
which separated the decay of these latter rulers from the final ascendency
of the House of Ghazna, it enjoyed a quasi-independence. The following
are those of its rulers whose names occur in history.
i.

Ma'mun

ibn

Muhammad Khwdrazmshdh.

He

was originally governor of Gurganj (Jurjaniyya), and in 385/995

captured and killed Abii 'Abdi'llah Khwarazmshah, the lord of Kath,
and annexed his realms. He himself died in 387/997 '. He was succeeded by his son
2.

'Ali ibn Mctmtin Urn

who succeeded

Muhammad Khwdrazmshdh,

mentioned and married

Mahmtid of Ghazna Avicenna came to Khwarazm
during his reign, and met with much honour at his hands ". The date of
his death is not exactly known. Abu'l-Husayn Alimad ibn Muhammad
his

father in the year last

the sister of Sultan

as-Suhaylf, a great patron of learning, to whom

3
was Minister to him
least two of his works
,

Avicenna dedicated at
and afterwards to his

brother and successor

2

ftmuM-Athfr, vol. ix, pp. 76 and 93.

Al-Qiftf, p. 417.
See p. fit of the Persian notes. He fled from Khwarazm to Baghdad
404/1013-4 and died in 418/1027 at Surra-man-ra'a.
1

>>3

B.

in

NOTES ON THE FOURTH DISCOURSE

62

Abu'l-'Abbds

3.

Ma'mun

ibn

Ma'mun

ibn

Muhammad Khwdrazmshdh,

the hero of Anecdote XXXVI, who was likewise a generous friend to

men of learning, and, like his brother, was married to one of SuUan
sisters. He continued for some time on friendly terms * ith
ambitious potentate, who, however, finally ordered him to recognize

Mahmtid's
this

as his over-lord and insert his name in the k/iutba. This Abu
'Abbas Ma'mdn consented to do, but after the departure of t\e envoy
to Ghazna his nobles rose and murdered him in 407/1016-7 when he
was only thirty-two years of age.

him
'1-

4.

Abtfl-Hdrith

Muhammad ibn

'All ibn

Mtfmun

ibn

Muhammad

Khwdrazmshdh.
He succeeded to the throne on the murder of his uncle, but no long
while had elapsed when Sultan Mahmtid, on the pretext of avenging his
murdered brother-in-law, invaded and annexed Khwara^rn and carried
off as hostages or captives the survivors of the family. This happened
in 408/1017-8, and the event was celebrated by 'Unsurf in a qasida of
which the opening

lines are

1
quoted by the editor

The

'l-Fadl-i-Bayhaqf in his Ta'rlkh-i-MasWdi* gives an

events based on a lost work of Abil Rayhan al-Bfriinfs

historian

Abu

account of these
on the " Notables

From this it appears that

years (A.H. 400-407 = ^0. 1010-1017) at the
Court of AbuVAbbas, where he held various offices, and was conversant
with all the circumstances which led up to his death.
In conclusion Mirza Muhammad observes that the Qacli Ahmad-iGhaffari, probably misled by the Ta'rikh-i-Guzida (p. 389 of the Gibb
facsimile), in his Nusakh-i-Jahdn-drd confuses the dynasty discussed in
this note with the Farighilni family who acted as viceroys first for the
Samanids and then for the Ghaznawfs in Jilzjan.
Khwarazm" (Mashdhir-i-Khwdrazm).

of

al-Birdni spent seven

Note

XXX. Shhinshdh
(Text,

p.

'Ala'u'd-Dawla.

82; Persian notes,

p,

251.)

'Ala'u'd-Dawla l.Iusamu'd-Din Abii Ja'far Muhammad ibn

Dushmanziyar ruled over Isfahan and the adjacent districts from

The Amir

398/1007-8 to 433/1041-2, in which latter year he died. His father

Dushmanziyar was the maternal uncle of Sayyida, the spirited mother
of Majdu'd-Dawla 8 ibn Fakhru'-Dawla, the Daylami or Buwayhid prince,
and since in the Daylami dialect "Kdktifor "KdMya" signifies "uncle,"
he is often called by this title, and his son 'Ala'u'd-Dawla by the title of
"Ibn KdMya? while the dynasty to which they belonged is called by
4
S. Lane-Poole "Kakwayhid."
1

Persian notes, p. Ctf.

Tihrdn lith. ed., pp. 663-677 ; Cairo ed. of *Utbfs history with Manlnl's commentary, p. 258. Yaqiit in his "Dictionary of Learned Men" (vol. vi, p. 311 of the
Gibb edition) mentions amongst al-Biriinf's works a Kitdbu'l-Musdmara fi Akhbdri
Khwtirazm, which, as Mirza Muhammad points out, is probably identical with this
work. He suggests, indeed, with great probability, that Bayhaqi's Mashdhlr (j^AJJLo)
probably a corrupt reading for Musdmara (*j*oL*wo).
3 See
pp. 43-44 of my edition of Dawlatshah.
4
Mohammadan Dynasties p. 145. See also the references at the foot of p. fot
of the Persian notes.

is

'

NOTE XXXI. SHAYKH 'ABDU'LLAH ANsAni

163

In this Anecdote (XXXVIII) two errors occur, for Avicenna acted

as Minister to Shamsu'd-Dawla ibn Fakhru'd-Dawla (brother of the
above-mentioned Majdu'd-Dawla) at Ramadan, not to 'Ala'u'd-Dawla,
he never served in this capacity, and who, moreover, lived not at
Ra\ but at Isfahan, whither Avicenna went to attach himself to his
Cou\in 412/1021-2 on the death of Shamsu'd-Dawla and the accession

wlm
of his

^p

Sama'u'd-Dawla.

Note XXXI. The Shaykh 'Abdu'llah Ans&rf.

(Text, p. 84; Persian notes, pp. 255-8.)

Shaykhu'l-Islam Abd Isma'il 'Abdu'llah ibn Abf Mansiir Muhammad... al-Ansari al-Khazraji al-Hirawi traced his pedigree to Abil
He was born on
Ayytib, a well-known companion of the Prophet.
Sha'bdn 2, 396 (May 4, 1006), and died towards the end of A. if. 481
(March, 1088). He was a notable traditionist and theologian, and, in
spite of his fanatical attachment to the narrow and anthropomorphic
doctrines of the Hanbali school and his hatred of philosophers, who
stood in terror of him, was accounted a leading Sufi. In Persia he is

The

generally known as Khwaja 'Abdu'llah Ansari. In his Persian poems

quatrains, which are highly esteemed and have been repeatedly
lithographed in Persia, he calls himself Ansari, Pfr-i-Ansar, and Pfr-iHirf. The prayers (Afundjdt) which he composed in Persian are also
greatly admired. He used to lecture on the lives of the Saints, taking
as his text the J\xbaq&hts-${ijiyya of as-Sulamf, and adding observations
of his own. One of his disciples took down these lectures in the
ancient language of Herdt, and on this version Jamf based his wellknfjwn Hagiography the Nafahdtu'l-Uns*. Of his numerous works there
still exist, besides those already mentioned, a condemnation of Scholastic
2
Philosophy (Dhamnid l-Kaldni) in Arabic , a less rare treatise in the same
language entitled Mandzilu's-Sd'irln ilctl-Haqqi'l-Mubin) and in Persian
a tract entitled Zddu'l-'Arifin*\ and another, of which extracts are
4
preserved , called the "Book of Mysteries" (Kitdb-i-Asrdr).
Mirza Muhammad gives, on the authority of the historian adhDhahabi, two narratives of attempts to discredit the Shaykh made by the
philosophers whom he persecuted. On one occasion, when Sultan Alp
Arslan the Saljiiq and his great Minister Nizamu'1-Mulk visited Herat,
they asked him why he cursed Abu'l- Hasan al-Ash'ari, whose doctrines
the Nizamu'1-Mulk professed. After some hesitation he replied, "I do
not recognize al-Ash'ari; him only I curse who does not believe that

and

God is in Heaven." On another occasion they produced a little copper

image, which, as they told the King, Ansari's anthropomorphism led
him to worship, but he, being summoned and accused, so vehemently
denied this calumny that the King, convinced of his innocence, dismissed him with honour and punished his detractors.
this work. Mirza Muhammad informs
of these lectures in their ancient original form exists in the Nur-i'Uthmdniyya Library at Constantinople, and that M. Louis Massignon shewed him
the cpy jie had made of the portion referring to the celebrated StSfl al-Hallaj. I supjpse that this is the MS. (No. 2500) to which M. Massignon refers in his striking work
on the Kitdbu't-Taivdsin of al-Hallaj (Paris, 1913), p. 94, n. 4 ad cale.
2
Add. 27,520 of the British Museum.
4
3
Rieu's PITS. Cat., p. 738.
/Mr/., p. 774.
1

me

See pp. 1-3 of Nassau Lees's edition of

that a

MS.

II

NOTE XXXIT. THE "PART OF THE UNSEEN"

164

XXXII. Additional Note by Mr W. Gornold on the

"Part of the Unseen" and other Astrological terms.
"

me

quite patent that all theories as to what the ^ irt

dispelled by the text of your work w'^ich
clearly gives the rule (p. 131 supra):
"' As for
the Part of the Unseen, by day they compute it 'irbm the
Moon and by night from the Sun, adding thereto the degree of the
Ascendant, and subtracting thirty (for) each (whole sign) from the
then what remains over is the place of the Part
Ascendant, as before
It

of the

appears to

Unseen may be are

of the Unseen.'
"In the case cited, 28 Safar, A.H. 511 (i July, A.D. 1117), the time
of birth being New Moon (here shown to be at 5.32 p.m. local mean
time) when both the luminaries were above the horizon, we have to deal
with a day horoscope. Therefore we count from the Moon's place to
that of the Sun, which is twelve whole Signs and nothing over. The
Part of the Unseen must therefore be on the Ascendant, and this must
be the case at the time of every New Moon, whether it happens by day
or by night. Only we have to note that as the Moon separates from the
Sun the Part of Fortune is carried from the Ascendant downward to
the nadir, while the Part of the Unseen is carried upward towards the
midheaven, and this converse motion goes forward in each case at the
rate of about 12 degrees per day until they meet again, this time in
opposition to the Ascendant, at the full of Moon.
" I had the
pleasure of seeing Mr Shirley yesterday and conferred
with him in regard to his use of the term ' Alcochoden as synonymous
with 'Hyleg' or Hayldj, and he informed me that he derived fcis
information from Wilson's Dictionary of Astrology^ a work of which I
am extremely suspicious, as on many occasions I have found that he
treats of subjects about which he has evidently no practical experience.
But I think the matter must be settled by reference to some of the
Arabic or Persian works in which the term is used. The context would
undoubtedly give any astrological student the clue to interpretation.
If, as I think, Alcochoden is Ruler of the i2th House then its influence
would be associated in the text with enemies, capture, imprisonment,
etc., which would clearly indicate its evil repute, while Almuten, conversely, would be associated with friends and supporters, favours and
wishes granted, etc., indicating its beneficent influence. Probably you
can turn up some reference in support, or otherwise, of this view.
'

hope so."
"P. 6, 1.

4.

'The

four subservient forces' appear to answer to

mental as well as physical processes thus

The Force
'

*
c

Attractive

'

'

Force Retentive
Force Assimilative
Force Expulsive
'

'

= Absorption = Perception,
= Circulation = Cogitation,
= Secretion = Memory,
= Excretion = Expression.

"P. 63, 11. i and 3. The Almagest of Claudius Ptolemy Appears,

from observations recorded by him, to have been compiled about the
year A.D. 140, for it -con tains no account of observations made after the

NOTE XXXII. THE "PART OF FORTUNE"

165

year A.D. 138. It was translated into Arabic in the ninth century by
of the Caliph Al-Ma'mun. Persian, Hebrew, and Greek
versions are also mentioned. The best English translation is that of
AVimand. Ptolemy's astrological work, the Tetrabiblos^ or Quadrapartite^
students.
is
standard work on the subject in general use among modern
Th^A/magest, Syntaxis and Tetrabiblos are works of extreme interest
to astr^pomers and students of astrology.
"P. 67, 1. 23. The 'Part of Fortune/ depending on the elongation of
the Moon referred to the Ascendant of the horoscope, would of course
be on the Ascendant at the time of New Moon. At First Quarter it is
on the nadir, at Full Moon on the descendant, at the Last Quarter on
the midheaven. Some authors compute its place by longitude in the
Zodiac and others by oblique ascension or descension. The rule of
Ptolemy is that it corresponds with the place held by thfc Moon'at the
time of sunrise, but he does not say whether it is local or equatorial

command

nor whether the 'place' of the moon is to be taken by longitude,

right ascension, or oblique ascension.
" P.
67, 1. 21. July ist, A.D. 1117 is equivalent to Safar 28, A.H. 511.
This appears evident from reference to other datt% occurring in the
sunrise,

course of your pages.

"This date, July

"By

ist, is O.S. and corresponds with July 8th N.S.

adding 760 years (or 40 cycles of 19 years each) to the date

1117 we get equivalent year of cycle A.D. 1877, and to the date we
must add two days due to the omission of leap year days in the i2th
and 1 6th century-years, which brings us to July loth, 1877, when
it is seen that there was a New Moon.
Hence the date is correctly
taken.

" As to the Part of the

Unseen/ this appears from the context to
be derived from a reversal of the method employed for the Part of
Fortune.' The former is counted from the Moon to the Sun, and the
latter from the Sun to the Moon, and the distance in the Zodiac is set
off from the Ascendant.
"Unlike all the planetary Points to which I have drawn your
attention, and which are determined by their solar elongations, the Part
of the Unseen appears to be a lunar Point, determined from the Sun's
'

'

'

'

elongation in respect of the Moon.

"TheViate of birth having been fixed, we are left to find the time
of birth by the reference to the positions of the Sun and Moon, which
it is said were so situated that there was no
space at all between them.
It is not presumed that this was an observation made at the time of
birth, but one that was afterwards calculated and found to be correct.
The New Moon of Safar 28, A.H. 511, took place locally in longitude
68 E. at 5.32 p.m. (G.M.T. i o'clock) when the luminaries were in
ecliptic conjunction in Cancer 15 8'. The Moon was then only about
1 1
past the S. Node, and therefore had about 57' of S. latitude. It was
a partial eclipse of the Sun. The fact that this is not mentioned goes to
prove that the calculation was retrogressive and that the observation
was* not made at the time of birth.
" The
following is the horoscope set for lat. 35 N. and long. 68 E.
The planets' places are put into the nearest whole degree. I do not

66

NOTE XXXII. THE HOROSCOPE

IN

XXV

ANECDOTE

know what symbol was used

for the 'Part of the Unseen/ and if it

occurs in any of the works to which you have access, I should be glad
to have it. The others, belonging to the planets, I have put in according
to their traditional use among the moderns. To these we have
receip,ly
added the Lightning Flash, due to Uranus, and the Web or Grille >ue
to Neptune. They are found in the same way as the others, Jty the
planet's distance from the Sun in the order of the signs.

MID-HEAVEN.

The Map
Date

July, A.D. 1117

Hour

of the

Heavens

5.32 p.m. (local); Lung.

.,

Lat. 35

N.

"The symbol for the 'Part of the Unseen, when found, should be
placed on the Ascendant with Fprtuna, and the figure will then be
complete. I do not think that it will be found very far out of the true,
but I am of course relying on Lunation Tables which are not quite up to
date. The secular equation due to these may be as much as 5 minutes
for seven centuries, as they were constructed about A.D. 1800, and are
here applied to a date about 700 years previous.
,

"P. 64, 1. 22, and pp. 130-131. Khaby and Damir The 'Hindus
have systems of horary astrology, called Salyana and Arudha, by which
they are able to determine what is hidden and where lost property may

NOTE XXXII. HAYLAJ AND KAD-KHUDA

167

be found. Things held in the hand concealed have often been well
described to me by Indian Jyoshis.
*" Hyleg' or Hayldj This term is in common use among astrological
sturents, and the rules for finding it are contained in Ptolemy's work
on Astrology, and also in Placidus de Titus' 1 'Primum Mobile.' Both
these^uthorities differ from the Arabic authors in their method of
*

location\
"P. 132, 1. 17. * Exaltation.' The planets, also the Sun and Moon,
are held to be ' exalted' in certain Signs, and especially in certain degrees
of those signs. Thus the Sun is ' exalted* in the sign Aries and the i9th
*
Altitude' 2
degree thereof.
distance above the horizon
connection.

is

an astronomical term which

signifies
in this

and should preferably not be used

" The term Almuten refers to the Planet which has dominion Jh the
House of Friends and Allies. Alchocoden or Alcoc/toden
(whichever may be the correct form) refers to the planet which has
dominion in the i2th House, or House of Enemies. It has not any
connection with the Hyleg, as Mr Shirley seems to think.
"The term Kad-khudd (Lord of the House) reJbrs to the Planet
which rules the Sign in which the Hyleg is found at birth. Thus if the
Sun were so qualified as Hyleg and were in the sign Scorpio, then the
i

ith House, or the

planet

Mars would be the Kad-khudd.

1
Mr Gornold sends me the following note: "Of Placidus de Titus, who first
rendered a studied version of Ptolemy's work on Astrology, we have very little information. It appears that he was known as Didacus Placidus, and was a native of
Bologna, became a monk, and was appointed mathematician to the Archduke Leopold
of Austria. He wrote in the early part of the seventeenth century a work entitled the
"Primum Mobile," in which he gives a thorough digest of the teaching of Ptolemy.
The best English translation is by Cooper. Placidus showed that Ptolemy recognized
two sets of directions arising out of two sets of planetary positions, one in the Zodiac
and the other in the World, i.e. in the prime vertical. To Placidus remains the credit
of having elaborated that part of directional Astrology which has regard to all directions in mundo"
9
I originally translated Sharaf by this term, but have corrected it according to
Mr Gornold's suggestion.

GENERAL INDEX
In this Index I have followed the same plan as that adopted in my /'ersian
Literature under Tartar Dominion. Where numerous references occur vider one
heading the more important are printed in Clarendon type, which is alsotf<ed for the
first entry under each letter of the alphabet, and for headings under which two or
moie homonymous persons are grouped together, either in chronological order, or in
order of importance, or in classes (rulers, men of learning, poets, etc.). The letter b.
between two names stands for Ibn ("Son of..."), and n. after the number of a page
indicates a foot-note. The addition in parentheses of a numl>er after a name, book,
battle, or the like, indicates, if Roman, the century, if Arabic, the year of the Christian
era in which the man was horn (b.), flourished (fl.) or (d.) died, or in which the book
was written or tjie battle fought. Prefixes like Abii ("Father of...") and Ibn ("Son
of...") in Muhammad an, and de, le, von in European names are disregarded in the
so that names like Abu Sa'fd, Ibn Sina, le Strange, de
alphabetical arrangement,
Slane, etc., must be sought under S, and von Kremer under K. Titles of books
and foreign words are printed in italics, and an asterisk is prefixed to the former when
they are quoted at any length in the translation or notes.
hyphen preceding a word
indicates that the Arabic definite article al- should be prefixed to it.

Abawardf

((1.

115),

b.

Ahmad

69

Abu 'Asim Muhammad

IbmiM-'Abbadi,

(d. 1066),

14 n.; orlbnu'l-

'Abbadi-Wa'iz ("the Preacher")

(d.

1152), 105

Abu'l-' Abbas
Fadl
105;

b. Muhtiij-i-Chaghani (x),
b. 'Abbas-Kibanjani (x),

Ma'mun

29, 114;

b.

Ma'miin Khwa-

'Abdu'l-'Aziz b. Ma/a (xi), no, 112;

b. Husdmu'd-Din 'Umar (xii), 100,
112

'Abdu'l-Ghafla'r

Khan
b.

'Abdu'Uah
122

b.

(xix-xx), 49 n.
b. Sa'id (viii),

Yahya

Ahmad

. .

b.

Muhtaj
(xi),

(x),

94, 163

Abii Abdullah Khwarazmshah, lord of

KjUh (d. 995), 161;
(secretary to
Nuh I b. Nasr the Sainanid, x), 105 ;

Muhammad
b.
1

Ahmad

b.

'Arraq, king of

61

Qurashf

b.

Muhammad

Khwarazm

(xi), 153,

(boon-companion

of

Tughanshah the

Abdu'l-Malik
105, 106

(poet, x),

Saljviq, xi), 48
b. Nuh (Samdnid,

"5

2(j

Aghradt? t-Tib by Sayyid

(xii),

Isma'il Jurjani

78, 158

b.
^Xbdu'llah-Khujistani iflx),
b. Muhammad b. 'Ab27-29, 113;
du'1-Jalil-Sij^i (astronomer, x), 63, 86,

b. Isma'il b. Ahmad b. Asad

129;
b. Abii Bakr
(Samanid, ix-x), 150;
Muhammad b. Mu/affar b. Muhtaj (x),
1 22,
b. Muhammad, Fakhru'dif. 1 1 3
;

Dawla

Shaykh

Ansari,

Ahmad

ra/mshah (d. 1016), 85-7, 162

'Abbiisid Caliphs, 18, 21, 23, 146-7

'Abdu'l-Hamid

'Adudu'd-Dawla (Buwayhid, x), Son., 90

and n., 91, 154
see KhaAfrasiyab, 58; House of
niyya and Khaqan, House of
Hasan 'AH b. Ilyas
Aghaji, Aghji, Abu'l- I.l

x),

(Shaft 'ite doctor, xiv), 1 1 1

1048), 78 n.,

Abu* Abdu'r-Kahmdn-Nili (d.

154
'Abdu'r-Razzdq,

Abu'l- Mu/aflfar (of the

Muhtaj,

b.

123;

xi),

House of

Hasan-i-May-

mandi Sluimui'l- K'ufat (Minister

Sultan Mahmiid of Ghazna, xi),
20-izi,

58

55-6,

Khalaf (poet,

xi),

n.,

b.

104;

66,

30, 117;

b.

hammad Suhayli (xi), 161

b. 'Abr<tjiM-M<tm (of the House
of Burhan, xii), 24-25, no, 112;
b.
b. 'Umar b.
Faraj (physician), 78;
'Ali (xii), the author of this book, see
;

Nizamf-i-'Arudi-i-Samarqandi

Ahriin (physician), 155

Ahsanu't-faqaslm by -Mas'iidi, 83
87, 106

-Abiwardi, Abu'l Muzaffar

(author of the Ta'rl&h-i-Alff, xvi), 138

n.

Ahwdz, 146-7

Muhammad

See also Bawardi

aus Baku,
Achundow, Abdul-Chalig
Die pharmakologischen Grundsatzc des
Abu Alansur Aluwaffak* etc. 33 n., s6n.
(x), 14, 105.

Qadf
(author of the ATigaristdn and Nusakk-i-Jahan ~dra> xvi),
1 1 1,
b. Nasru'lUh of Tatta
127, 162
Ghaffarf,

Abhar, 103
-

Mu-

cluM-'Aziz,

Amir
(fl. 1120), 58
'Abdu'l-Wrfhid-Jtizjani (disciple of Avicenna, xi)| 92, 155, 157-8

Abiward (BaVard),

to
14,

'AjffiMl-Makhluqdt of -Qazviini

9n.
Akbar (Emperor,

xvi),

*(xiii),

138

Akhldq-i-Jaldll (xv), 83 n.
Alamiit, 108, 137. Sec alsp

Assassins

INDEX
'Ala'u'd-Dawla Abu

Ja'far

Muhammad

Dushmanziyar, called Ibn Kakiiya

and Shahinshah (1007-1041), 90, 92-3,
'AH b. Faramarz (d. 1095),
^8, 162-3 5
4 -8
Ala I'd-Dfn IIusaynb.Husayn"Jahanb.

'

sil/

30-1

1149-1161), 3 and n.,

49 n., 59 n., 74, 96, 101,

Ansab. See Sam'ani

Ansari. See 'Abdu'llah
Shaykh ,
and Pir
Antioch, 146
(Sasanian king,
Aniisharwan, Khusraw
,

146

vi),

(author of the

Sayfu'd-Dm

ZGhiirid,

-'Aqili,

at

04
Arab conquest of Persia, 146
Ibn 'Arabshah (xv), 109

n.,

102, 120-1;
sha"h (xii), 1 08,

Muhammad Khwara/m-

n i,

126

Alcohoden, Alcochoden, Alchocoden

(as-

Alexander the Great, 92

Alexandria, 95
Alfiyya wa Shalfiyya, 125
Algebra, 62
'Alf b. Abii Talib (vii), 56, 57, 58, 101 ;
b.
b. Layth (Saftarid, ix), 28 ;

Rabban-Tabari" (physician, ix), 140,

b. *Abbas-Majiisi (physician,
149;
"
the I laly Abbas "of mediaeval Kurope,
b Muhliijd. 994), 79 n., 154-5;
Kashaiu (described as Chamberlain of
b. Ma'miin b. MuAlptagin, x), 15;
-

hammad Khwara/mshah

(x-xi), 161

Faramarz, see above under Ala'u'd*

Dawla

b.

kin? I- Mtsani),

It

rtiitfr-/iiyiSsrtftA$hrtW\-Siytistit\vy

BahdVd-l Mn-Xahfri of Samarqand, 127

Ardashfr (father of Ibn Abbadi, r/.v., fl.

trological term), 133, 164, 167

b.

169

1102), 105
Aristotle, 79, 86, 92

Arithmetic, 62
'ArrAq, Abii Nasr-i-

(xi), 85-7, 28, 153

Arslan (Gha/nawf, xii), 117, 118
Arslan Khan Muhammad (of the Khaniyya
dynasty, xii), 102, 118
Arslan Khdtiin (Saljiiq princess, xi), 46 n.

Arsl.lnsh.ih (Saljiiq of

Kirman, xii),
Artidha (Hindu astrology), 166

Asad b. Jani (physician),

man (ix), 113
Asad(

Qarib, called Hdjib-i-

Buzurg ("the Great Chamberlain"),

Khass
38, 122
Daylam (xi), 55 ;
1'dnfdhf (poet), 30, 52, 118;
(xi), 50 ;

18

b. Sa-

147;

slexicon(Ai'-//rt/-*-/*'tfyj,e<l.

.U

lorn),

"6

Ascendant

(definition of -in astrology),

Shatranji (poet), 30,

(poet), 29 n., 30, 52 ;
2j,

Abu

18

Siiff

b.

Muhtaj

(d.

955), 105, 106, 107, 122

Edward Heron
(of

Ahmad

13911.

Claudius Ptolemy), 63, 164,

165

125, 126, 138, 163

Alp Ghazf, Shihsibu'd-Dawhi Qutulmush

(Saljdq, xi), 52, 125, 126; but the text
transmitted to us has apparently con-

founded two different people

Alptagin

(x),

24 n., 106, 109

(poet, xii), 30, 52, 53,

15, 16,

*Am'aq of Bukhara

rukhf), 40, 43, 44

'Amid Safiyyu'd-Dm Abii Bakr Muhammad b. -Husayn Rawdnshahf (xii), 59,

60-61
'Amfdu'1-Mulk. See -Kunduri
Ibnu'l-'Amid, 104
Amiransha*h b. Qawurd (Saljiiq of Kirma"n,
xi). 124

Amfr-DaM Abti Bakr b. Mas'ud

(fl.

1114),

68-9
b.

Layth

gest), 165
Asjadf, (poet,

xi),

29^, 30

Muhammad

b.

Ahmad,

14,

See Ibn' Abbadi

(

105.

*Askar Mukram, 105

Assassins, 70, 108, 137.

See also

Alamut

Astarabad, 86 n.
(ed. and
n., 88 n ,
128, 129, 136 n., 153 n., 155 n.

-/WMntl'Hdqiya of -Bfnint
transl. by Ed. Sachau), 62

AtlMrifl-Bttdd (of -Qa/wfnf, 1276, ed.

Wustenfeld), 9 n., 102, no, 137
ItMritl- Wit-Mra (of SayfuM-Dfn - t A(jili),
104
Ibnu'l-Athir (Arab historian, xiii), 15 n.,
28 n., 36 n., 52 n., 71 n., 73 n., 104,
105, 108 n., 109, 112 n., 126, *i36-7,
.

139, 161 n.

118, 127

Amid- i- As 'ad (patron of the poet Far-

'Amr

Abu'l-Hasjin
163
(translator of Ptolemy's Alma-

Abii 'Asim

Almuten (astrological term), 164, 167

Alp Arslan (Saljiiq, xi), 46, 48 n., 104,

Ashmand

(poet),

30
Ali ibn Sina, see Avicenna

Almagest
.

-Asii'arf,

Muhammad, see -Bal'ami

Allen,

Sipihrf

n.
(

(Saffjlrid, ix),

28 and

n.,

39 n., 113

Amu, Amul ftpwn on Oxus),

1 1 1

and

n.

Atmatigfn (name uncertain), 24-5, 109

Atsiz (Khwarazmshah, xii), 24, 80 n., 109,

no,

158

Avicenna (Abii *Alf-llusayn

b.

'Abdu

980, d. 1037), 63^,

66, 68, 76, 79-80, 82, 85-90, 92-3,
140-1, 142, 148, 149. '54 ^S-S* 160,
161, 163
Awba, Battle of (1152), 74, 96, 120
'Awfi, Muhammad
(author of the Lubdbtfl'Albdb and the JawdmMr-&i'IhCh b. Sfnd, b.

kdydt wa Lawdmi'ifr-ltiwdydtt xiii),

29 n., 48 n., 104, no, in, 113, 114,
115, 116, 126, i*7i '49

INDEX
Ayaz
'Ayn

(xi),

Bevan, Professor A. A.
,
Bimaristdn (hospital), 146

37-8

jdli'it,

Battle of

(1260), 157

Abu

Ayyiib (Companion of the Prophet),

163

'Azfzu'l-Isldm b. Burhdnu'd-Dfn

mad

Azraqf (poet,

Muham-

n., 65-7, 85-7, 88 n., 106-7, "7

127-9, 'SO- 1 * 136 n., 153, 155 ? .dn.,
162 and n.

64

48-9, 57, 123, 124-5

xi),

28

-Bininf, Abu Rayhdn

(astronomer and
historian, x-xi), 36 n., 62 and n. 63,

1 1 1

(xiii),

Blochet, E.
139
Blochmann's Prosody ofthe Ptf'sians, 35 n.
Bodleian Library, 151-3
Brockelmann's Gesch. d. Arab. Lttf. 9
14 n., 62 n., 630., 90 n., 91 n., 103,
,

Baba

Tpahir (mystic and poet,

Bahingcr, Dr F. II.
109

xi),

19

Btlbur-ndma

20
41, 43

(xvi),

Badakhshn,

n.

Bddghis, 28, 33, 34, 113

129, *i55

Kadihi, Ahmad
(xi). 48-9
Badf 'u'z-Zamdn - 1 1 am ad an f, 1 4
Baghddd, 23, 63 n., 64, 65, 70, 73, 7811.,
80 r.., 81, 95, 105, r 08, in, ii6n.,

'57

Rrut of Layamon, 55 n.
"Bubikir." See -Razi
Bughra Khan, 26-27, 69 n.,
Bukhara, 15,

104, 112, 126

24, 25, 33, 35, 36, 83,

84, 105* 109, no, in, 112, 113, 114,
115, 121, 122, 126, 156

129, 146, 147, 148, 149, 153, 155, 156,

161

17,

Bagh-i-'Adnani, 125
Kiyii Ra'is
(disciple
d. 1066), 92, 157

Bahmanydr,
Avicenna,

Bahrami of Sarakhs ( >oet), 30,

Bahramshab (Ghaznawf, xii),
101,

17,

iK,

of

32, 1x5
31, 68 n.,

-Hasan

Abu Bakr

(xi),

138

Ajwini (physician, date unb. Ishaq-Kirami (theoknown), 78 ;

logian), 59 and n. ;
IJaqqdq (physician,
b. MoV lid Amir (xii), 68-9
xii) 77 ;
-Baladhurf (author of the Fitttihu'i/bf/f/fffr),

59

n.,

-Bal'ami, Abu'I-Fiull

BurUriu'd-Din 'AbduVAzfe
and four of
1

2411.,

Muhammad

10-1

his

descendants

b.

Maza

(xii-xiii),

54 n.

(d.

Baiasaghi'm, 1 12
Balashjird (near Merv), 104
Balkh, 59, 64, 71, 87, 105, 114
Bamiyan, 74, 98, 101, 102
Bdrbad (minstrel of Khusraw Parwiz), 29
Bardaisdn (herosiarch), 129

Barhebraeus, Gregorius Abu'l-Karaj (historian, physician, etc. xiii), 145

Barkiydruq (Saljiiq), 1390.
Barmak, Al-i(Barmecides), 21, 95
Barskhan, 4 and n., 25
Barthold, 24 n.
Bawand, House of , 57
Bdward, 87
Bdwardi, 69
Bay a ban i, Amfr , 14, 109
Bayhaq, 17, 29, 113
Bayhaqi, Abu'1-Fadl
(author of the
Ta'rifch-i-Afas'Adf), 51 n., 104, 115,
Abu'l-Hasan
116, 125, 127, 162;
,

Abi'l-Qasim Zayd (author of the

Mashdribu't-Tajtirib), 138

b.

Bazh, 54
Beh-az-Andew-i-Shdpiir, 146. See Jundi

Beth Lapat, 146

Burhanf (poet, father of Mu'i/zi), 30, 45,

/lurhan-i'Qtiti* (Persian Lexicon), ^5 n.,

Muhammad
, Abu *Ali
940-1), 104;
(son of the preceding and translator of
Tabar Ps history into Persian), 14, 104

Sabur

no-

24,

12

146 n.

Bal'am, 104

104

BuqraU See Hippocrates

Burhan, House of
(xi-xiii),

120

-Bakhar/f, 'Ali b.

Bukht-Yishii (family of physicians, viiixi), 8z, 82 n., 145-7

Bundar of Ray (poet, x-xi), 30, 1 19
-Bundarf's History of the Saljuqs, 36 n.,

Buriina, 36

and

n.

Busht, 28 and n.
Bust, 5

n.

Buwayh, or

Biiya,

House

of

90 n., 91, 160, 162

Buzurjmihr of Qayin, 30,

19 n., 30,

16

By/^intine fanaticism, 146

Cairo, 153

"Cambaluc" (Khan

Baligh, Pekin), 103

Carra de Vaux, Baron

155
Chaghanf, Amir Abu'l-Muzaffar
,

39-

'

40, 42 n.

Chaghaniydn (Saghaniyan), 39, 40,

4211.,

105, 106, 122-3

Chdha, 59
Chaldaea, i48n.
China, 9n., 22, 102, 109, 112
Choulant's Handbuch d. Backerkunde
-, 157
it.s.w., 149, ison., 151
Christensen, 139
Christians, 81, 145, 146, 147, 148 n., 153,
i5 4 n.
Chwolson's Ssabier undSsabismus, 148 n.
Claudius Ptolemy, 164, 165
Constantinople, li^n.
Continens. See -Hawi, -Razi
Cosmography, 62-3
de Courteille, Pavet
, 20 n.

INDEX
(a

mad, Abu'l-' Abba's

medical

work), 157
Dahalc, Dahhak (Azhidahaka), 101
Dahs'c (prison), 5 in.
*t-ndma-i-'AltV{$yy Avicenna,
156, 1 68 and n.

Dam

xi),

Daqfqf ^oet, x), 43, 115, 113

i 'm Bakr
(xii), 77

xi),

30, 52,

18

19 n., 91

Fakhru'l-Mulk b. Niz^mu'1-Mulk),
39
Fakhru'1-Mulk Abu'1-Fath- Mu/afiar b.
Nizdmu'l - Mulk (d. 1 106-7), 72 n.,

Darwaz, 34

(?

Wuzard (by Khwandam(r), 104

Dasttiru'l-

House of

Fakhru'd-Din Mas'iid b. 'Izzu'd-Dm

Hasan (Ghiirid, xii), 2 and n., 74 n.,
98, 101-2
Mu'ayyadu'l Mulk

n.

<>

Darghiish, Pisar-i

(of the

Muhtaj, x), 122

Abu'l -Fadl-Bayhaqf, 5 in. See-Bayhaqi
Fahlawiyydt (verses in dialect), 119
Fakhrf (of Gurgan, poet), 119
Fakhru'd-Dawla Abu Kalanjar (Biiyid,

Daqqa"q,

Da'ra'bjird,

171

Da'iid b. I lunayn (translation from

into Arabic, ix-x), 147

Greek

Mahmud b. Abu'l-Qasim, 68-9

DawlatshaVs "Memoirs of the Poets"
(xv), 2811., 35 n., 4on. 44 n., 48 n.,

Da'iidf,

Falakifl- Atlas or ^l-AJlak, 5 n.

-Farajbrtda 'sh-Shidda (by -Tamikr ', x),
149 and n.
Abu'l-Faraj of Runa (poet, xi-xii), 30,

121, 123 n., 162

(xi), 55
Daylam, 'AH
Daylam, House of
17,122,
also Buwayh, Buy a supra
,

162.

See-

51 n., 116-7
30, 113

Farghna,

Defremcry, 15 n., 16 n., i8n.

-Dhahabi (historian), 163

Dhakhlra (medical work

Thabit

to

Qurra, y.v.) t 78 and n., 148

b.

Dhakhlra

ascribed

Khwarazmshdht

Persian

System of Medicine by Sayyid Isma'fl

Jurjanf, xii), 75 n., 79, 80 n., *89 n.,
140, 142 n., 158-9
Dhakhtratitl-Fatawa [or U-Kurhaniyya,
xii-xiii],

1 1 1

(a condemnation of
Scholastic Philosophy by the Shaykh
'Abdu'llah Ansarf, xi), 163
Dhu'r-Kiyasalayn (title of Fadl b. Sahl,

Dhaminu'l-Kalam

ix), 21

and

n.

Farhang'i'Anjuman'dra~yi'Nasirl ( Persian Lexicon), 39 P. 60 n.

Farighuni dynasty (x, xi), 162
Farrukhf (poet, xi), 29 n., 30, 39-45,

H9< ?) "3
Farrukh/ad (Glia/navvf, reigned 1052-9),
118
Fars, 63 n.
Fevers, classification of
,
76-7, 142-4
Abu'1-Ficla, 102
Filinst (x), 114, i2,s, i.jo, 145, 150, *i5i,
"53
Firdawsl, n, 14, 31,54-9. 124, 139

Firifawsitl-lhkmat (work on

composed

Dictionary of Technical Terms. ..of the

Miisalnuins, 131 and n., 142, 144

in

850 by

Medicine

'Ali b.

Kabban

-TabarH, 140, 144, 149

Firdawsu t- Tatvdrfkk (composed in 14056 hy Khusravv of Abarquh), 38

1

Dieterici, 411., 611., 911.

Firidiin, 101

Dihistdn, 30
Dinawar, 122

Finiz-kiih, 101, 120

Dfv-mardumi 9

FitzGerald, Edward
,
134, 139
Fit/Patrick Lectures, 157, 159
Flugel. SeeFihrist

n.

Dfwdn-t-Albisa, 108
ZVttft/ififY-AViAiV/,

3 n.

Dizful, 146
, 140
Dole, Nathan Ilaskell
Dozy, 135
AbuDulaf(xi) 55
khri (poet of Saljiiqs), 30,
Dur-Firuz-i-Fakhri

no

Dush'manziyar, 90

n.,

Fonahn's Zur QuellenkundederPenischcn

Medizin, 34 n., Son., 145, 158, 159
Forbes* Persian Grammar 35 n.
Ibn FundiKi's Tdrlkh-i-Bayhati{ 1 167-8),
-,

!I 3
Fusul-i-Buqrdl.

See Hippocrates, A-

phorisms of

92, 162

Futuhu'l-Bulddu (of -Balddhuri), 146

n.

Edessa, 146

Galen

Egypt, Egyptians, 18, 157

24 n.
Ney
, 158
Ellis, A. G.
Escorial ( Library), 151, 153

Elias,

Ethe*,

Hermann

i4n., 28 n., 3411.,

n., 156

54 n., 114, 115, 121, 125

EiHid, 62

Fal

b.

Yahya-Barmakf

b.

Sahl

(ix),

21-2

(viii-ix),

b.

95-6

Muham-

'54
(Jdlfmis), 79, 86, 95. *'4'
155
Ganja, 30
,
Gantin, Jules
113 n.
Garrison's Introduction to the History of
Medicine, 145
Geiger and Kuhn's Grundriss der Irunischen Philologie, 14 n.
Ghadd'irf of Kay (poet, d. 1034-5), 30,

118-9

INDEX

172
Ghdk-Kirma (mud-worm), 9 and

n.

Harran, 148

Ghdrjistdn, 120
Ghatafar (quarter of Samarqand), 11 and n.

Ghdyattfl-^Arudayn (work on Prosody by

Bahrdmf of Sarakhs), 32, 115
,
20, 28, 31, 57, 58,
Ghazna, City of
59 n., 65, 66, 74, 101, 106, 112, 115,

n6

117,

18, 120, 122,

Ghazna, House of

162

14 n., 30, 73, 101,

117, 118, 127, 128, frit, 1^2
Ghazza (Palestine), 105
-Ghazzi, Abu Ishdq Ibrahfm b. Yahya
(xii),

14 and

Ghiyathu'd-Dfn

n.,

105

Muhammad

likshdh (Ssdjuq, d.

52
(<!

36

1117),

b.

Ma-

n.,

51,

of Gluir
73 n., 74, 125-6;
b. Kushidu'd1202), ipi-2, 126;

n.,

I)fn (xiv), 107

Ghiydthifl- /Mghdt ( 1'ersian I ,exicon) ,4 1 n.

Ghtlr, 120; House of
30, 59 n., 61 n.,
68 n., 74, 96, 98, 1 01 -2. Sec also
,

Shansab, House of

b.

-Tal>arf (physician, x), 91 n.

Muhammad
Aghajf

'AH

(patron of Daqfqf, x), 29, 115;

b.

Fakhru'd-Dm

Mas'iid, see under

Kisa'i (poet, b.

Husamu'd-Din
'AH
"5;
rakhs, see Bahrami
;

953 ) 30.

BahraVni of Sa;

b.

Vahya

(apparently a mistake for the first entry

under this heading), 91 and n.
Hashim, House of , 81
Hdwl (the Continens" of -Razf, q.v.)>
'

Hebrew

147, 148

Gregorius Abu'l- 1< araj. See Barhebraeus

n.,

Abu'l-Hasan Ahmad

'

Gil'khwara (mud-worm), 9
de Goeje, 39 n., 114, 147 n.
Gornold, VV.
99, 164-7*

Guldbf (poet), 29

(Caliph, ix), 82 n.; 147 n.;

Farrukhan, orb. Sulayma'n, better
known as Bughra Khdn, q.v., 11 , 126
Hasan b. 'Ali-Jfli (scientist, xP 128 ;
b. Khasfb (astronomer, viii^ 63 n. ;
b. Muhammad b. Tzilut
officer of
the Caliph -Musta'fn, ix). .21;
b.
Nasir (poet of Ghazna, x .j, 117;
b.
Sabbah (xi), 137 ;
b. Sahl (ix), 21, 107
b.

79 M9-I53
Ibn Hawqal (geographer), 147
Hayy b. Yakzan, 157
Haziinf of Abfward (poet, x), 106

Ghiira, 34

Greek Science,

Harun-Rashfd

30

Gnlhtdn of Sa'df, 6711., 106

Gunde-Shdpur, 146. See Jundi-Sabiir
Gurgdn (Jurjdn), 86, 88, 89 \\.,()i n., 107,
122, 155,, 158

language, 147
Hellenopolis (Hairan), 148
Herat, 15, 27 n., 28, 33, 34, 45. 48 n.,
49 57. 68, 74, 75 9.*. 94* 9^, 101, 106,
113, I l8, 120, 122, 124, 129, 163;
ancient language of
,
163
Hibalu'lldh.

See

Huidya

Qiwamu'i-Mulk
work by Abu Bakr

Gurgdnj (Urgdnj, Jurjaniyya), 128 n., 161

Ciiir-Khan, 24-5, 108-9,
Giishyar. See Kushyar

(medical
Ajwfnf), 78
Hilla, 39, 44, 73
Hindus, 166

Plabib of Isfahan, Mfrza

108
HaiWiqits-'toh* (by KushCdu'd-lXn Wat-

Hippocrates (Buqrat), 78, 79, 86, 91, 147,

154 '55
at Nishapiir,7i
Hira, 147; Cemetery of

no
,

-I

Homer,

wdt), 104, 105, 116, 118, 124

u ham mad b. Mansur

ladddd,

lladtqatttl-lfaqtqa (by Sand

1150), 1 18
Hafiz, 139
IFaft LjUm (of

f,

4 n.

tj.v.,

d.

Aminird-I)m Rui),

12 jn.

fldjtb-i-Buzurg, Ali b. Qarib

(xi), 122
Uajji Khalifa, 62 n., 12311., 125, 126, 128
16$ n.
-Ilallaj, llusayn b. Mansur
"'Haly Abbas" ('AH b.'-Abb!s-Mujiis{,
^-0i 154
II annul dn, 52, 117, 126, 156, 163
,

-llamadanf. See
llamadi, 14

Badi'u'z-Zaman

Hamfdi, 1 4 and n. See following entry

Ijamklu'd-Dfn-Mahmiidi-Balkhl (author
of the A/at]dnidt-i-ffamMf9 mm\wsB& in
1156-7), 103

no

Hanafis,
Hanbalfs, 94 n., 147, 163
Hanzala of Bad^his (poet, ix), 28, 113
Abvi Hanffa Iskaf (poet, xi), 30, 116
(poet), 48
-Harfrf, 14, 103

Haqfqf

147

Horn, Paul
33 n.
,'i'u n.
Houdas, O.
Houtsma, 23 n., 36 n.
Houtum-Schindler, Sir Albert
107
Howorth, Sir Henry
112, 113, 127
,

Hubaysh
Iluldgii

(ix-\), 147

Khdn

(xiii),

137

IJunayn b. Ishdq (physician and tianslator from Greek, ix), 78, 147, 154
Husamu'd-Din Abu'1-Ha.san 'AH b.
Fakhru'd-Dfn Mas'ud (Ghurid Prince,
'Umar b.
i, 75, 98, 101-2;
xii),
Buihanu'd-Din (Imam, d. 1141-2), 24,

no, 112
Husayn,

'AH

Abii
f

Jhdn-sAz,

see

under 'Ala'u d-Din supra;

b. 'AH
b. Mfkd'fl (xi), 86-7
Abu'l- llusayn Ahmad b. MuhammadSuhayli (d. 1027-8), 85 and n., 8?

Huyayy

b.

Qutayba (governor of TVS

Firdawsfs time), 55
Hyleg (HayMj, astrological term), 71
3-3t ^4 '67

in

n.,

INDEX
Ibrahim

b.

Mas'ud (Ghaznawi Sultan,

1

1059-1099), 31, 49, 51,

Iftik? ir-i-Jaha'n (xii-xiii),

6, 117, 120;

n in Transoxiana), 113
'Imddu'dOfn-Katib-Isfahanf, 127. '35
India, 51 n., 58, 86, 117, 120, 128
'Irfq. 33. 49' 6l 64, 86 95, "3
Jla*q (to

(if

Avicenna), 156
Isfahdn, 36, 48, 73, 103, 105, 107, 108,
122, 156, 162, 163
(author
Isfandiydr, 43 ; Muhammad b.
of History "of Tab'arislan), 5411., 103
Isfarayinf, the son of (poet), 52
Isfizarf, Imam Muzaffar-i
(astronomer,
xi), 71 and n.
Ishaq b. Hunayn (d. 910 or 911), 147
the Jew (contemand n., 159 n. ;
porary with author), 61

Abu

IshsCq-i-Jiiybarf (poet), 29, 114

Iskdf, "Abii Hanffa
(poet, xi),

30,

116
Iskaff,

Muhammad

'All b.

Abu'l-Qasim
and secretary,

x),

(stylist

15

and

n.,

16-18, 105-6, 122

IslAh-i-QAnfttt ("Rectification of the
QAn&n" of Avicenna, by an anonymous
critic), 79

Isma-il

b.

Ahmad

28

b.

Asad
121

(the Sdmanid,
b.

'Abbad,
the Sahib, 14, 19, 103, 107, 118, iig;
Adib
Jur(physician, xi), 93-4;
jani, Sayyid (physician, xii), 78, 80,
of
158-9
Airaqi,
Warraq (father
xi) 57
124
IsinaMH sect, 137
ix-x),

n.,

104,

~
;

'Izzu'd-Dfn Husayn
Mahmiid Hajji,
Sayyid

Jabal

(fl.

(Ghiirid, xii), 101

75

Nassaba,

1221), 137

(province), 122

Ja'far b. Muhammad, see Rudaki ;

i-IIamadani, 29 n., 30, 119
Alnt Ja'far b. Muhammad Abi'i Sa'd

-Nashawf "Sarakh," 91 and n.

Jahdn-suz. Sec supra, under *Ala'u'd-

Dfn

146,

145,

Sec

147.

30;

Bukht-

Joannitius. See Hunayn b. Ishaq

Fohn the Baptist, Christians of
, 25
Judf, Mount
'fiih'igh (father of the poet Farrukhl), 39
Jundf-Sabiir, 146-7

See

Qurgdn
Jurjdn.
Jurjilniyya (Ifrgjinj or Gurganj), 12811.,
161
Jurjis, 145, 146. See Bukht-Yishii*
Juwayuf, 'Ala'u'd-Dfn 'Ala Malik (author

of

the

Tttrtkh-i-JahAngH*ht\yi

xiii),

in
Ju-yi-Muliyiin, 35, 84, 121
Jiizjan, 162
-Ju/janf,

Abu

Abdu'l-Wjlhid b.
(disciple of Aviconna),

'Ubayii

^f uhammad

92

^S. 157-8

Jyoshis, 167

Kdbul, Rudaba

, 54
princess of
Kafa'f of (lanja (poet), 29 n., 30
A7//7 (treatise on Music by Alnl MansurIIusayn..l>. /ila, xi), 157
-Kdff, 19. See Ismail b! 'Abbad

Kakawayhid dynasty, 156, 162-3

Kaku, Kakiiya, Kakawayhi, 16, 90

n.,

162

Kalanjarf grapt-s, 33, 34

Abu Kalanjar (disciple of Avircnna), 92,
'57
Kamdlf, 'Amfd-i(poet), 30, 1 19
KamAhfl-RalAgha of Ya/dfidf, 103
/CtiiNiliff'Shiatat (System of Medicine
by 'AH b. -'Abba's -MajtH, x), 79, 90,
140, 154, 155
Kanzti* l-Qrifya (treatise on Prosody by
liahramf), 32, 115
"Karabitus," 142
(treatise on Astionomy,
b. -Khasfb), 63 n.

KAr-i-Mihtar

Hasan

Karkh, 105
Karukh, 28, 33 and
Kashghar, 112

by

n.

Kdth, 128, 161

Kayanf (ancient dynasty of Persian Kings),

-Jdhiz, 106, 130, 147

Jahudhanak (near Balkh),

Zargar, 30, 118

Jews, 64, 130, 147, 154

Yishii*

under Yaqut
(physician and teacher

100, 126, 127, 149

,
29 n.,

xiii),

Jawhari, Abu Bakr

Jibrsffl,

See also

**shddifl-Ar{b, 103, 105, 106.

Yahyd

7<fwiV/- Taw&rtkh (history by Rashfdu'dDm FadluMlah, xiv), 137-8

JawAmi'u'l-Hikdytit (by Muhammad
'Awff,

1 1 1

<hns, 112-113. See Khaniyya

and Khaqan, House of

lUCk

sa b.

173

Jdlandar (near Lahore), 117

JaldH era, 71 n.

Jalalu'd-Din Khwarazmshdh,
Kiimf, 89 n.
Jalfnus See Galen
Jamf (poet, xv), 82 n., 93 n.,

102,

*5
Kay-Kliusraw, 153
Kazimirski, A. de B.
,
15 n.
Khal)bdzi (poet), 30, 115
Khalaf b. Ahmad, or Khalaf-i-li,imi
(Saflarf, d. 1008-9),

if 8,

159-

161*, 163

JAmi^i-SMht (astronomicnl work by Abu

Sa*id Ahmad... -Sajzf, x), 63, 129

39 and

n.,

106-7,

117

Ibn Khaldiin

(historian,

fl.

about 1400),

112, 126

Khali I

b.

Ahmad

(philologist, ix), 147

INDEX

174
Ibn Khallikdn (biographer,
19, 21 n., 105,

xiii),

14 n.,

10, 113, 154

Alm'l-Khayr b.
(physician,

-Khammdr,

b- 942-3, d. alxnit 1018), 85-7, 153

Khdn Baligh ("Cambaluc,"

Pekin), 103

Khdniyya dynasty (House of Afrdsiydb,

of Khdqdn, 990-1213), 30, 52 n.,
or
69 n., 102, 104, 109, 112-3, 1/8, 119,
125, 126-7. Sec also Bughra Khan,

Giir-Khan

948-9), 103
'Imddu'd - Din
Khartdatu'l- Qasr
(by
-K dUb- Isfahan!, 1176-7), 135
Ibn Khasfh, Hasan
(astronomer, viii(d.

63 n.
Khatlan, or Khuttal
ix).

(in

Transoxiana), 44

and n., 123

Khawardn, 117

Khayydm, -Khayydiuf. See 'Umar

Kherlivial Library, 153

Khidr Khan
(xi)i 5*~3
Khitd'is,

Tafghdj Klrfn Ihruhfm

b.
i

in

Khiva, 128 and

n.

Sec also

Khwarazm

Khuda-banda (Uljdytu, reigned

1316), no, in
Kkuf, JChuffi, 80 and n., 158-9

1303-

Khujand, 113
Khitjista (work on Prosody by Hahrdmi),
115
Khujistan, 2711., 28, 113

Khurdsdn, 16, 18, 23, 28, 29, 33, 48 n.,

52, 59 n., 60, 61, 64, 74, 86, 95, 103,
105, 113, 117, 122, 123, 135, 150
.Khusraw Parwfz (Sasanian king, vii),

of Abiirqilb (author of the

Finiawsift-TawArtkhi 140;? 6), 138
Khusrawjird, 29 n.

29 n.

Khutan,

Kirdmf

sect,

59 and

n.

Kirrruin, 118, 124

Kirmanshdh, 23, 108, 122

Kisa'i, Abu'l-

Hasan

(poet, b. 9* J, 30,

"5
Kitdbu n-Asrdr ("Book of Mysteries,"
by the Shaykh 'Abdu'lla' Ansari, xi),
n-Bukhald ("Book of Misers,"
163

Rhu7iin, 69 and n.
Khu/.istiln (Susiana), 146 and n., 147

Khwdf, 28
Khwdndamfr's J^tutiiru'l-lVNsanii 104
Khwdr, 16
Khwdraxm, 87, 102, in, 127, 12811.,
53 '56, 158, 161, 162
Khwara/.mshahs. There were three distinct dynasties who ruled over Khwarazm with this title, viz.: (i) an ancient
dynasty claiming descent from the legendary Kay-Khusraw, 153; (ii) the
dyrtasty

*l-KinAya wa
'/-'/a'rM (by -Tha'libi, xi), 107;
Abu
Sahl-Masihi,
n-Mfafi 'f-TfM (by
'i~MilalvHtn-Nikal("toix>\i
x). '55 ;
of Sects," by -Shahristani), 59 n.

by

-Jahiz), 130, 147;

de Koning, I)r P., 149 n., 150, 154

von Kremcr, Alfred
,
Culturgesch.
Orients water d. Chaltfen, 14
Kiichluk Khan (xiii), 108

n.,

'

d.

i$n.

Kufa, 78 n.
Kuhistan, 16
122
Kuhshir, Castle of
, near Ghazna,
Kiimish (Qiimis), 16, 17
-Kunduri, Abu'n-Nasr Muhammad b.
Mansiir, entitled 'Amfdu''l-Mulk (d.
io6 4 'or 1068), 14, 104, 138

Kunndshu'l-Khuff (medical work by

Ishaq b. Hunayn, d. 910 or 911), 159
Kiisa-i-Falf (poet), 2911.,

30

Kushydr-Jili (astronomer, x), 63 and n.

Abu Lahab,
Lahore,

1 1

Lamghan,

19

20, 21

Ldmi'i of Dihistan (poet, xi), 30, 119

Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon 6 n. ,7911.
Lane-Poole, Stanley
46, 52 n., 101 n.,
,

162

Lattfifin-Ma*drif{\v -Tha'dlibi), 21

Layamon, Brut of

-2411.

Ma'muni

151

(poet, cl. 1198-9), 135

,
Khardj* Aftttfaflby Abu'l Faraj

Khaqanf

Quddma

King's College, Cambridge, Library of

55

n.

n.

Layard, 14611.
Layth, 39 n. See Saffarids
LawAzinnn-Amkina (by 'Umar-i-Khayyiirn), 139
Hist, de la MJLeclerc, Dr Lucien
,

dedne Arabe), 145, 146, 155, 158, 159

Liber Almansoris. See -Mansiirf and

-Razi
Lippert.

See -Qifti, Ta'rfkhu'1-Hu-

Lubdbifl-Albdb.
Lii'lii'i

See under 'Awfi supra

30

(poet), 29 n.,

(995-1017), 85-7,

155, 161-2; (iii) the latest and most

celebrated dynasty (founded by Anitshtigfn about 1077 ami finally extinguished
by the Mongols about 1231), 52 n., 101,
102, 109, iii, 126, 127, 158, 159

Kifaya (work on Medicine, by Ahmad b.

Kiraj), 78; (do., by Ibn Manduya),
80
-Kindi. See Ya'qdb b. Ishaq

Abu'l-Ma'ali of Ray (poet,

xii),

MaMa

urfl-Mtfitd, KitabulAvicenna), 82*, 157

Macan, Turner
,
54 n. See

30,

(by

Shah-

nama

Ma'di-Karib, 130
-Mafarrukhi (historian of Isfahan,
108, 119

xi),

107,

INDEX
Mafdtlhu'l^ Ulnm (ed. Van Vloten), 71 n.,
87
Abil Mahir Miisa b. Yilsuf b. Sayyar

37-fr 45, 5' n., 55 n., 56-8, 65-7, 867, 89, '04, 112, 113, 115, 120, 122,
Sayfu'd-Dawla
124, 153, 161, 162;
b. Ibrahim-i-Ghaznawi (fl. 1080), 49,
b. Tdju'l- Islam Ahmad,
117;
DaYuli (circ. 1115), 68-^g ;
108
,
Qarf-Yazdi, Nizamu'd-D(n

51,

Mjali\itl-Mmintn

(by the Qddi Nil-

ru'lldh Shiishtarf, circa 1585), 11*911.

Majdu'd-Dawla

Fakhru'd-Dawla (Bu-

b.

wayhid, x-xi), 1 19, 162, 163

Abu'1-Maid Majdiid. See Sana'i

Afajma'ul-Fnsahd (biographies of poets

by Rida-quli Khan Hid ay at, xix), 42 n.,
48

n., '115, 116, 117,

118

Majma ''/- 7 'awdrtkh ,127

Afajma'ifl-UftM (by Kushyai the astronomer, x-xi), 130, 13211.
'AH b. -'Abbas
(physician, x),
-Majiisfj
79 n., 90 and n., 91, 140, 154-5

Makan

940-1), 16, 17, 18, 107, 122

(d.

Khaqan, 150;

Ahmad, 150;
Nasrfxi), sin.

b.

b. Ishaq b. Isma'il

Mushkan, Abit

b.

Abvi Mansiir Muvvaffaq

(physician, ix), 154

Mai mild, Sultan Yammu'd-Dawla

Gh znawf (998-1030), 20, 26, 30, 31,

1 1

b.

(author of the oldest

'AU-Uirawi

b.

known

Persian

b. Ahmad
56 n. ;
(of the House of Muhtdj, fl. 950), 123;
'Abdu'l-Qjihir b.' TAhir- Baghdad!
(mathematician, d. 1037), 62 and n. ;
Ilusayn b. Muhammad b. 'Uniar b.

pharmacology,

x),

Zila-Isfahani (d. 1048-9), 92 and n. t

h. Abi Yiisuf Sajdwandi (poet,
57?
xi),

48, 49

-MansAH, "-Kitab

"Liber AI-

(the

mansoris of -Razi, q.v.}, 78, 83, 149,

150
Mantiqi of Ray (poet), 30, 118
of I.iamfdf
Maqdmat of -Hariri, 103 ;

(composed in 1156-7), 14 n. f 103

-Maqdisl (or -Muqaddasi), geographer,
83 n.
Mardgha, 108

Maranj

(in India), 51 n., 117

Polo, 108
Margh-i-Sapfd (near Herat), 33
,
Margoliouth, Prof. IX S.
10311., 105
Matw-i-Shahjan, 50 n. See also Merv

Marco

-A/aKM, -Kitdb
("Liber Regius").
See Kdmilu's-Sind'at

Marwdn

Malikshiih (Saljiiq, 1072-92), 24, 45-8,

49 5. 5*> 7n- 93 ">4 "9i I2 4
136, 137
Maliku'l-Iildm b. Hurhdnu'd-Ufn Mu-

MasiYil ("Questions" on Medicine) by

Hunayn b. Ishdq (//.7/.), 78
Ibn Mdsawayh (Messue), 147

hammad

(xiii),

II

(LJmayyad Caliph, 744- 750),

104

A/ashtihfr-i-/(kwttrazinfyy-\\{t\\\\[)t 162 n.
b.
Abu Ma'shar Ja'far

Muhammad

1 1 1

Maliku'l-Jibal (" King of the Mountains,"

title of
), 102

Malin (near Herat), 33, 34

Ma'mtin ('Abbasid

-Balkhf

(astronomer, ix),
65, 86, 129, 130
Ataskttridtft- To/drib^ 1 38

63,

64

n.,

Caliph, 813-33),
21-3, 64, 81, 85, 107, 130, 146, 165 ;

Mashhad, 45
Masiln. See

b.

i63n.
Massignon, L.
Mas 'lid b. Mahmiid-i-(iha/nawi, Sultdn
--, 63 n., 104', 115, 116, 120, 122, 125;
Ill b. Ihnihmi-i-Gha/.iiawi (1099b. Muham1114), 5 in.; ii 6, 117;
mad b. Malikshah (Saljiiq, r 133-1 152),
b. 'Izzu'd-HIn Hu23 n., 108, i HI;
sayn (Ghuricf, fl. 1163), see under
Fakhru'd-Din ;
i-Sa'd-i-Salman

Muhammad Khwarazmshah

(995-7),
b. Ma'mi'm (son of pre!
55 '*6 1 ;
d.
85-7,
155, 162
ceding,
1016-7),

Ma'muni Khwarazmshdlis, 161-2

wa Maddrrn-lui

Matidfi'u'l-Ag/tdhiya

(work on diet), 8011., 157

Mandhijtfl-Fikar, 147

MandsiMs-Sd'irt* Ml-Haqq?l-Mubln
(l>y the Shaykh Alidii'lldh Ansarl (396481)), 163

Ibn Manduya (physician of Isfahan, x),

80 and n.
Manjik of Tirmidh (poet, x), 123
Mankitarak (d. a1x>ut 1030), 122
-Manini's commentary on -'Utbfs Kidibitl-Yaminl, i62n.
Manshiiri (poet), 30, 116
Mansiir ('Abbasid Caliph, 754-775),
I b. Nith (Sdmanid, 961146, 147 n. ;

83

and

n., 104, 106, 150;

b. Asad (Samdnid governor of Ray in 903-8), 78 n.,
b. Isma'il ("a person un149, 150;

976^

b.

15 n.,

I Jiaq

known

b.

Ahmad

to history'*), 150;

b. Isma'il

n.

Abu Sahl
,

(poet, xi-xii), 30, 5-52> n6, "7

Mas'Udi (Arab geographer, author

Afun'yudh-Dhahab, etc.), 1 25 ;

of

(poet

xi), 30, 116

Abu'l-Mathal of Kukh.ir.4(poet, x), 29, 1 14
Mathnawt of JaUClu'd-Dfn Rumi, 22 n.,

of Ray,

89 n.

Ma

waraVn-Nahr. See Transoxiana

MawsiH, Hakfm-i
(astrologer, xi), 70
Maymandf. See Ahmad b. Hasan
Maymiin b. -Najib-Wlsitf (astronomer,
xi),

Mdza,

137
24 n.,

110-112.

Sec

Burhan,

House of
Maiandaran,

34, 36, 54,

86

n.,

1 1

n.

INDEX

76

Mdzydr

158
de Meynard, Barbier
28 n.,
, 16 n., 2on.,
33 n., 59 n., 69 n., i25n.
M?a Mapf/a (the "Hundred Discourses"
on Medicine, by Abu Sahl-Masfhf, x),
'55

Michael de Capella, 154

Mihrgdn

of

(festival

Autumn

Solstice),

33* 34

Minhdju'd-Dm 'Uthman (author of the

TabtujAt-i-NAsiri,

Mindchihrb. Qdbils
Mintichihrf (poet,

120

xiii),

h.

xi),

Washmgfr (xi), 103

29

n., 30, 114, 119

MirAtifz-ZamAn, 105

Mfrkhwdnd (Persian historian, xv), 24 n.

MirsAdrfl-'JbAd (by Najmu'd-Dfn Ddya,
1223-4), 135-6*
Mongols, 109, in, 137, 156
Moses, 64
MuWaja-i-BuqrAtt\ y Abu'l -Hasan Ahmad (x), 91
"
J/f/W/fV.f-/<faS(the Second Master").
See Avicenna
Mu'ayyidu'd-Dawla (Buwayhid,

Muhammad

Dfn

(Saljiiq,

19 n.

1080- 1 117), 36 n., 51-2,

b. Kakhru'd-I)in Mas-

(Cihi'uid, xii), 74 and n., 75, 98,

b. Sam, (ihiydthu'd-Din
101, 102;
Khwdrazm(Ghurid, d. 1202), 126 ;
'iid

'AlaVd-Dfn (xiii), 126;

b.
'Abduh (Secretary of Bughra Khdn, x-

shah,
xi),

(xiii),

kidd-I.Iusayn(

Ahmad

b.

b.

104;

27,

14,

Sadr-i-Jahan

(fl.

in;

'Abdu'l-'Azfz
b. 'Abdu'r-

1330),

Muhammad

107;

b.

b. 'Arr.-iq (king
b. *Amfd
153 ;

of Khwdrazm, x),
(minister of RuknuVl-Davvla the Bu;

b.

Dm (d. 1219),

1 1 1 ;

wayhid), 151
91

b.

shdh

~39
1

(xi),

n.

Ahmad, Burhanu'd'b.

'Aqil-Qazwuif,

Ma'miin KhwdrazmBadr Jajarmi (poet),

Dushmanziyar. Abu Ja'far

'AH
162

b.

b. Zakariyya, Abii Bakr

, see -Razi
Muhassin, Abu 'AH
Stfbi, 148 and n.
122-3
Muhtaj, House of
Mu'inu'd-Dfn (author of the hist< y of
Her^t entitled Rmydatit'l-Jann-'t^ xv),
,

101
Mu'izzf (poet, xii), 30, 36, 45 >, 58, 117,
118, 119, 124
Mujallidf of Gurga'n (poet), 29, 113

Mu'jam f( Mcfdytri Ash*arri-*Ajam

(by Shams-i-Qays, xiii), 115, ripn.
Mu'jamitl-BuldAn* see Ydqdt
Mu'jamifl- Udabd, or IrshAditl-Arib, see
Yaqiit
MujmaMl-Ui&l (or Astrology) of Kiishyar, </.v., 63
Mukhlis, Mirza Mahdi Khan Baddyi'nigar (fl. 1884), 40 n.
Mukhtiiri, 'Ulhmdn (poet,
102, 117, 1 18, 127

Mukhtasanfd'Duwalt
braeus

xii),

145.

30, 51 n.,

See Barhe-

Muktaff ('Abbdsid Caliph), 103

Miiller, F. W. K.
, 103
151

Alffnistfl-Alumr (MS. selections of verses

by the poet Muhammad b. Badr-iJdjarmi), 13911.

-Muqaddasi (Arab geographer), 147

Muqri (surgeon-barber, xii), 68

Murshid of -Kazf

with the
50
Mnrufudli-Dhahab (of -Mafudl), 125
Mmdmara fi Akhlnir-i-KhwArami (by
(itlentified

Fusiil or Aphorisms), 78,

-Biriini, xi), 162 n.

-Musta'in ('Abbasid Caliph), 121, 129

-Mustarshid ('Abbdsid Caliph), 23-4, 108
-Mustazhir ('Abba'sid Caliph), 23, 73
-Mu'tadid ('Abljasid Caliph), 148

-MiUanabbi (the poet), 14

-Mutawakkil ('Abbdsid Caliph), 130, 147,
149

and
Imim

Mu'tazilitcs, 19

Muwaffaq,

-Mirzaffariyya

n., 56, 147

of Nishapur, 138
Victor Rosen's

(Baron

Festschrift, 1897), 134

b.

b. Fadlu'lhih, Abu'l(xi), 156;

see Sayyidu'r-Ru'asa;
Mahiisin
,
b. IhisilmuVl-lXn, Shamsu'd-Dfn
Iqbdl
Sadr-i-Jahdn (fl. 1163), no;

Mansiir-Hadddd,
1921), 28 n.;
b. Muhammad (astro14 and n.;
Mu'min-Huloger, fl. i r 18-9), 77;
sayni, see Tuhfatu'l-Mti'minin ;
b. Muzaftar b." Muhtaj (d. 941), 113,
(fl.

b. Ndsir-'Alawf (poet, xii), 30,

b. *Umar, Nizdmu'd-Dfn (fl.
b. Sulayma*n b. Da'ud
1
203), 1 1 1 ;
b. Bughrd Khan (fl'. 1 1 14), 69 and n. ;

122;
117;

of

Munich Library,
xi),

the Prophet, i,
n., 14,
b. Mahmud of
5 6 > 57> 58, 73, 163 ;
Ghazna, Sultan Abii Ahmad
(1030),
1 16; 122 ;
b. Malikshdh, Ghiyiithu'd-

73-4, 125-6;

Umar (author of a history

Bukhara, 1178-9), 109, no, 121*;

b. Zufar b.

149

(ix),

Mecca, in
Messue. See supra Ibn Masawayh
Merv, 59, 60, 61, 71 n., 72,84, 104, 137,

NafahAtifl-Uns (by Jdmi, xv), 118, 163

-NajAt (of Avicenna), 156
Najfbf of Farghdna (poet, xi), 30, 52,118
Najjdr-i-Sagharji (poet), 30, 52, 118

Najmu'd-Dfn Daya (xiii), 135-6

NAma-i-DAnishwarAn
(composed

in

1887), 129

Naqdiin-Nathr (by Abu'l-Faraj Quddma,

x),

103

(father of Sdm
father of Rustam), 54

Narfman

and greatgrand-

Narshakhf (author of Arabic History of

Bukhdra* composed in 943-4), 35 n.,
no, 121*, 127

INDEX
Nasawf, 102,
59 n. ;
-Nashawf, Shaykh Abu Ja'far
Nasfmf (poet), 48

Nasa*,

-N.

1 1 1
,

li-Dfni'lldh (Caliph, xiii),

iir

91

1 1 1

Nas -u'd-Dfn Subuktigm (Ghaznawf), 30

Sec flak

Ndsifn'1-Haqq Nasr.

Nasnu.

Nasr

II

i6n.,

'AHb.
b.

Q and
\

Khan

n.

Ahmad

(Sdmanid, 913-942),

107, 114, 122, 150;

Musd, 126, see flak Khan

b.

3.j -6,'

Ibrahim

52 n.
Abxi Nasr b. -'Arraq (astronomer, xi),
Kunditrf, entitled
85-7, 1*28, 153;
Amfdu'l-Mulk (d. 1064), 14, 104;
Mansiir b. Mushkan (teacher of the
(xi),

historian-Bayhaqf,

xi),

51 n.

Hib-

atu'lldh of Pdrs (d. 1116), 51 n., 117

Ibn-Nassdba

(stylist),

-Natili (philosopher

14

and teacher of Avi-

cenna), 156
(Castle), 50 and n.
-Nayrfzi, Abu'l-' Abbas- Fadh b. Ildtam
(astronomer, ix-x), 63 and n.
Neptune (planet), 133, 134
Nestorlans, 146, 147
,
145, 148, 1 53 n.
Neuburger, Dr Max

Nay

Nihdwand, 70

n.,

Abu

logical term), 67, 131, 164-5

"Part of the Unseen," 67, 68, 164-7

Paul of Aegina, 155
Paul the Catholicos of Pars, 90, 95, 96
Pekin (Khan-bdligh, Cambaluc), 103
Persian language, 147
Pfr-i-Ilirf (xi), 94 and
See also 'Abdu'llah Ansari
Pisar-i-Darghush. See Darghiish

Pfr-i-Ansdrf

n.,

163.

Pisar-i-Tisha, see

Tishp

Pfshdddi dynasty, 25
Placidus de Titus, 167

Pritmtm Mobile^

5 n., 167

Ptolemy, Claudius

63, 86, 133, 164,

165
, 76,
Pulse, varieties of
140-141
Piirdn (married to ihe Caliph -Ma'mun),

21-3, 107
Piir-i-Kalah (poet), 29 n., 30

Qabawi, Abu Nasr

Sahl Sa'fd (physician,

xi), 78,

Nfshapiir, 9, 15, 1 7, 28, 29, 46, 47, 58, 59,

60, 70, 71, 73, 77, 87, 106, 113, 115,
1-7, 119, 120, 137

Ni?ami -'Ariidf (the author of this work),

3, 30,

Pagel, 145
Pdnidhf, 'All
(poet), 30, 52, 118
Panj-dih, 68
of
Parniyan (kind
grapes), 33 ; (silk), 35
Paris, 124
Pars (province), 90, 95, 96
Pars Fortunae ("Part of Fortune," astro-

122

Nile, 31

-NfH,
154

177

60-6 1', 74-5

123* 125, 126;

Athiri of Nishapur (poet, contemporary

with author), 60 ;
Munfri of Samarqand (poet, contemporary with author),

shakhi's
121

(translator of NarHistory of Bukhdra, 1128),

Qdbiis b. Washmgfr (2iiyarid, 976-1012),

14,, 88-90, 103,, 119, 156
d'im bi-amri'lldh ('Ab
('Abbasid Caliph),
-Qd'im
,

46

n.

Qamarf of Gurgdn (poet, xi), 30, 119

Qanawazi, *Amid Alm'l-Fawdris, x), 125
Qaniin (of Avicenna), 79, 80, 8911., 140,

--

i-Mas'tidi
142, 149, 154, 155, 157 ;
astronomy, by -Birunf, 1031-6),

(on

po

Nizdmu'l-Mulk (minister to Alp Arsldn

and Malikshdh, xi), 45 n., 46, 70, 72 n.,
104, 119, 136, 137-138, 139* 163
Noldeke, Prof. Th.
,
14 n., 29 n., 54n.,

55 n - 57 n

59 8l n J 45 *4<> "
I b.
Niih (the Patriarch Noah), 16 ;
Nasr (Samdnid, 942-954), 105, no,
II b. Mansiir (Sdmdnid, 976122";
997). i5-i8, 39, 106, 107, 115, 125, 156
-

Nuqan, 54 n.

Niir-i-'Uthnuiniyya Library (Constantinople), 163 n.

Nusakh~i'Jahan-tird(tiy\he Qadf Ahmadi-Ghaffari), 162

NuzhadSl-Qulub

(of

Hamdu'lldh Mus-

tawfi of Qazwfn, xiv), 500.

Occult Review, 130

"Omar Khayyam

Club,"

'Uma--i-Khayyam
Gribasius, 155
inscriptions, 102
Oxford, 151
Oxus, 17, 35,^83, 84, in, ia8

Orkhon

B.

134.

See

63 and

n.

Qard-Khan

(or Farrukhdn),

(,)dni-Khitd'f

(or

f r 2

Giir-Khdnf)

dynasty,

108-9, no, 126

Qarluq Turks, f 10

Qohdramf

(poet, xi), 30,

16

Dd'udi, see Da'iidi ;

(courtier of Sultdn Ibrahfm-i-Gha/jiawf,
xii), 117
Qasfmu Amfri'l-Mu'minfn, 73. See Mu-

Abu'l-Qasim

hammad

b.

Malikshah

Qatawan, Battle of

(Saljiiq)

(1141-2), 108-9,

110

Qawurd
xi),

(first

of the Saljuqs of Kirman,

124

Qazwin, 103, 119

-Qazwfnf, Zakariyyd b. Muhammad b.
Mahmud, xiii, 90., 102, no, 137
-Qiftf (author of the TtfrikhtJl-HukamA,
ed. Lippert), 78 n., 82 n., 93 n., 129,
137* '45 146, I4
'49
155. 158. i59 l6 'nQilij
3),

>50, 151. 154.

Arslan Khdqan 'Uthmdn

n6

(d.

1212-

INDEX
Qilij

Tamghaj Khan (reigned 1095-1 101),

Qiwamu'1-Mulk Nizamu'd-Dfn Abu Nasr

Hibatu'lldh (xi), 510., 117
Quadrapartite of Ptolemy, 165
Quba'dhiya'n, 39 n.
Quddma b. Ja'far (stylist, d. 948-9), 14,
103
Quhandiz (near Bukhara*), 105
Qum, 19
Qumis, i6n.

-QuSan, i n., 3n., 4n.,

n., 14, 15, 16,
I9n., 23, 24, 25, 26, 77-8, 83, 105,
106, 107, 135

Amfr

AM 'Abdu'llah

Qurashf,
(of Harran), 148
Qrishqfi Tayqu, (iiir-Khan, 109

48

'Abdu's-Sal^m of Nishapiir

Hidayai

b. 'Izzu'd-Din Husayn
shah, 158;
(Ghurid, xii), 31 and n., 59 n., 6in.,
68 n., 101, 120
Ibn Qutlubugha, 1 10

(Sal-

u'1-Fusahd
^

Rieu, Dr Ch.
iabic,
(British Museum
Persian and Turkish Catalogue .), 14 n.,
5411., 62 n., 63 n., 79 n., i 9, I36n.,
158, 163

Abd

Rija, Shah

Ahmad

b.

Radiyyu'd-Din of Nfshainir (poet), 127

Rafidis, 56, 59. Sfee Shi'ites
Rdfi'i, Abu'l-Qasim of Nfshapur (poet),
29 n., 30, 120
Rdshidi (poet), 30, 116
Rashfdi of Samarqand (poet), 30, 52-3,

Din

Fadlu'lUh

physician, historian
learning, xiv), 137

and

(minister,

patron

of

(a jargon), 147

101 n.,
, 61 n.,
Raverty, Major H. G.
i 20 -i, 127
Rawandi's history of the Saljiiqs, entitled
Rdhatu'$-Sudur, 127

Rawanshahii 59. See

Din

'Amid Safiyyu'd-

Ra-wdatifl-JannAt fl Ta'Hkhi Herat by

Mu'inu'd-Din of Isfizdr (xv), 101

Rawlinson, 146
Ray, 16, 17, 19, 48, 85, 107, 122, 125,
126, 149, 150, 163
Abu Rayhan. See -Birdni
at Tiis, 59
Razan, Gate of
Razi, AbuBakr Muhammad b. Zakariyyd
(the great physician,known to mediaeval

Europe as Rasis, Rhazes,

79883-5

etc.), 78,
ri 4f 148-153, 154, 155

Ribanjani, Abu'l-*Abbds (poet, x),

114

117;

poet, x), 14, 29, 32, 34-6, 113-4, 121

at Tvis, 59
Riidbar, Gate of
Ruknu'd-Dawla (Buwayhid, x), 91 n.,
i5>

Rum

(Asia Minor), Saljuqs of

125

Runa, 117
Rustam, 36
n.

-Sahi, 14, 1540.

Sahuktigin. See Subuktigin

Sabzawar, 29 n.
Sachau, Dr E.
,
36 n., 62 n., 85 n.,
88 n., 128, 129, 15311. See also under

-Atharu'l-Baqiya and -Biriini

de Sacy, S.
109
'
Sadaqa b. Mazyad, King of the Araos,"
,

129

of -Sajzi (on Astronomy), 62,

of Abu Sahl-Masihf (on Medi-

cine), 79, 155

b. Hindii of Isfahan, Zaynu'lMulk (d. 1112-3), 36;
Jarrah, Amir

Ab\i Sa'd

Ka&hfdu'd-Dfn Watwat (poet and prosodist), 104, 105/116, 118, 124

Rasis. See -Razi
Ka'su'l-'Ayn, 147 n. See Sergius

Ratdna

30,

10-1 1 1 1 his grandfather was also

Abd Rija), 36
Baron
Victor
Rosen,
134
E. Denison
Sir
Ross,
24 n., 134, 137
earliest
celebrated
Persian
Rudagf (the
(fl. 1 1

Sad Bab

118, 127
-

(poet),

AbduVSamad-'Abidi

called

Sabaeans, 148 and

Rabban-Tabarf, 'AH b.
(teacher of
Razf and author of Firdawsun-Hikmat,
ix), 149 and n.

Rashfdu'd

r ee

(xix).

Parhang-i-Anjuman-ara, Majr .a-

Muhammad Khwarazm-

Qutulmush, AmirShih.-ibu'd-Dm
jtiq, d. 1064), 52, 125-6
Qutuz-Malik-Muzaffar (xiii), 157

b.

1116-7), 9
Rida-quli Khdn
(fl.

Qurra

Qutbu'd-Dln

Ribat-i-Sangfn, 28

Abu Ridd

119, 126, 127

29,

(fl. 1112-3), 71
Sa'df of Shfraz, 106, 139
Sadr-i-Jahan, 110-112. See Burhan,
House of , several of whom bore
this name, while one (in, 1. 12) was

nick-named Sadr-i-Jahannatn
Sadru'd-Din Muhammad b. MuzatTar
(grandson of Nizamu'l-Mulk, d. 11178),

71

SafTarid dynasty (867-900), 28 and n.,

*
113. See also under Amr, Layth and

Ya'qiib
Saghdnf, Saghaniy^n.

See Chaghani,

Chagh&iiyan
Sagharchi. See under Najjar supra
Sagzi (or Sajzi or Sijazi, a native of
Sistan, q.v.}, 40
Sahib. See Isma'il b. 'Abbdd
Sahib. -Hasan, 114. Probably an jrror

Shahid b. -Husayn

of Baikh, ^.r.
-Masfhi (Avicenna's master,
d. 1000), 79 and n., 85-7, 128, 155;

for

Abu Sahl

Sa'fd, see -Nili

INDEX
Ahmad -Sajzi (astronomer,
d. 886), 62 and n., 63, 129 ;
'Ubaydu'lldh (physician, d. 1058-9), 145

Abii Sa'fd

St Petersburg, 128
Saj (. See above under Sagzi and Abii

179

Shahriya'r (of the

and

n.,

House of Bdwand), 57

58

Shahrzdd, error for Shahriyar, 57n.

(lexicographer), 33 n*
Shanis-i-Qays (prosodist), 115

Shams -i-Fakhrf

Salenl^nn, 33 n., 128

Salyana, Hindu system of Astrology, 166

Shams- i-Tabasi (poet), 127

Shamsu'd-Dawla b.
Fakhru'd-Dawla
(Kdkawayhid, patron of Avicenna, xi),

Saila*mf, 2 Sii 'Alf

3), 26 and n., 113

Shamsu'd-Din

Sa'id and below under Sfstan

House of

-Bayhaqi

912-

(d.

23-4, 26, 48, 104,

116, 118, 125, 126, 127
of
the poet Ma'stidSalmon, grandfather
, 50
i-Sa'd, q.v. ; Khwaja
Sam (legendary hero of Persia), 54;
Saljiiq,

Baha'u'd-Dfn (Ghiirid), 101

Saman, House of

15-17. 28 n., 29,

3*. 33. 34, 8 *

3 ! 4, io.S
no, 112, 159, 161, 162
Sam'a"ni's Ansab, 71 n., 78 n., 104, 113,
114, n6n., 11811., 127 n.

i7 '9

24, 33, 36, 60, 108, 113, 114,

115, 116, 118, 122, 126, 150

Samarqand,

SamaVd-Dawla (Kdkwayhid,
few'//'-*fc//-,

xi),

163

by BahaVd-I)fn-/a'hfri

127
Abu'l Majd Majdiid

(xi-xii)',

Sand'f,

"50), 30, .sin., 117, 18

Sanjar b. Malikshah (Saljiiq,

(poet, d.

117-1 1 57),

23, 24, 45, 69, 72 n., 74, 93, 96, 103,

108, 1 16, 119, 1 20, 124

Sarakh (?), Shaykh Abu Ja'far

, 91
Sarakhs, 1 1 5
Sar-guzasht-i-Sayyid-nd (Biography of
Ilasan-i-Sabbah), 137
Sasanian dynasty (iii-vii), 25, 29, 57 n.,
146
Sayfu'cl-Dawla Mahmiid b. Sultan Ibrdhiiu (Ghaznawf, fl. 1080), 49, 51
Sayfu'd-Din Suri (Ghiirid, xii), 31 n., 101,
120

Ibn Sayyar (physician), 154

Sayyida (mother of Majdu'd-Dawla the

Buwayhid prince of Tabaristdn), 162

104
I32n.
Schlimmer's Terminologie, 56 n., 77n.
Sedillot, i32n.
Ibn Serapion, 155
Sergius of Ra's *Ayn (fl. 536), 147 and n.
Sayyidu'r-Ru'asd (secretary,
Schefer,

M. Ch.

Shah-aMd (modern

24

xi), 14,

n., 121,

site

of Jundi-Sdbur),

146
Sha*hinsha*h

(ancient title reSh^hansh^h,

vived by Buwayhids), 19, 90, 92, 162-3
Shahid b. Husayn of Balkh (poet and
philosopher), 114
Shahna (prefect or political resident), 109
Shdhndma (of Firclawsf), 54, 55, 57, 124
-Shal-.azurf,
,

Shamsu'd-Din

Muhammad

author of a History of Philosophers

(xiii),

59 n

129, 136

156, 163

Muhammad

b.

Fakhru'd-

Dm Mas'iid (Ghiirid, xii), 2 andn.,

5,

Shansab, House of
74

74-

98, 101-2
n., 98,

(1148-1215),

i,

30,

101-2

Shdpur (Sdsdnian king, iii), 146

Sharafu'1-Mulk Abii Sad Muhammad
(secretary to Malikshah, xi), ic
Sharif-i-Mujallidf of Gurgdn (poet), 29,
j.

"3

Abii Sharif Ahmad b. 'AH (name given to

the poet mentioned above by 'Awff in
his Litbdb}, 29 n.
^poet, xii), 30, 1 18
Shatranjf, 'Ali
-Shaykhu'r-Ka'is. See Avicenna
-SAi/a (-of Avicenna), 63, 92, 156, 158
Shihabf (poet, xi-xii), 30, 119

Shihdbu'd Dawla.

See

Shihabu'd-Din

(or

Bughrd Khan

Mu*i7/,u'd-I){n)
1163), 101-2 ;
Qutulmush
, 52,
125-6
AlpGha/i, Amir
ShfMles, 57, in, 147. See also Rafidis

Ghiirf

(fl.

Shiqq (" Half-man

"),

n.

ShfrdK, 90, 95, 129

, 99,
130, 132, 164, 167
Shirley, Ralph

KUMnfsk
Qudama (x), 103

-.SV4/V,

Abu'l-Faraj

'by

Shirzad (Ghaznawi king), 117;

error

for Shahriyar, 57 n.

Shuja'i of

Nasd

(poet),

Shujd'u'l-Hukamd,
1114), 69

48

ShujjCVl-Mulk

(fl.

Shitshtar, 146

Silsilatu'dh-Dhahab (by Jilmf, 1485),

82 n., 93 n., 159, 161
J
S(md'u l-Kab(r (client of Amfr Isma'(I-i-

Sdmani), 121
Sfmjur, Abii 'All

(x), 15,

106

Simnak, 16
Slm-Tdqd, 53
Ibn Sind. See Avicenna
Sina*n b. Thdbit b. Qurra of Ilarrdn
(scholar and translator, d. 942-3), 148
Sind, 20
SindibAd-ndma, 125, 127
(poet), 29 n., 30, 52
Sipihri, 'AH
Sfstan, 34, 39, 44, 51 n., 59 n., 106, 117,
119l
Sitta ashar ("the Sixteen Treatises" of
Galen), 79
de Slane, Baron McGuckin
, see Ibn
Khallikan, who is cited throughout in
his translation
Steinschneider, Moritz

150, 157

INDEX

i8o

-Tanukhi

Stephanus philosophus, 154

le Strange, Guy
,
24 n., in n.
Su (fortress and prison), 51 n.
Subuktigfn (father of Sultan Mahmud-i-

Ghaznawf,

x), 15, 106,

poets),

Suhayli, Ahmad b. Muhammad

(patron
of Aviccnna), 161
-Sulami (author of Tadof/dt-t-StiJiyya),

163
(first Saljuq ruler of Asia
of Damascus (disciple
Minor), 125 ;
of Avicenna), 92
Sultan shah b. Quwurd (Saljiiq of
D ^*
Rinnan, d. 1083-4), I2 4?
Arsldn b. Atsiz Khwa*ra/msha*h, 102
Sunnis and Shi 'a, 111-112
Surkhakatf, Majdu'd-Dm Muhammad b.
'Adna*n (uncle of 'Awfi and author of
a lost history of the Khaniyya dynasty),
126
Surra man ra'a, 85 n., 161 n.
Susiana (Khiizistan), 146
Suter, Dr Heinrich
(author of Die
Mathematikcr und Astronomcn dcr

Sulayman

Araber und ihre Werke\

Siizani (poet, xii),

Syiia, 95

Kabban

30, 57, 103, 122, 156;

Ibn Isfandiyar, 103

by
History of
Taddruk (medical work by Avicenna), 80
Tadhkira-i-Bughrd Khan (Eastern Turkf
work), 127

To/him (astronomical work by

-bfnini),
62, 6411., 117, 130, 132 n.
Tahdwi (rTukharl, poet), 29, 115
b. Fadl,
House of (ix), 1 13 ;
Tahir,
"
b.
Abu'l-Muzaffar
(d. 987), 12 $ ;

'AH

b.

Mushkan, Thiqatu'1-Mulk

1106), 51, 117

Taju'l-Islam.

See

Ahmad

b.

'Abdu'l-

'Aziz
Tdju't-TarttjimQsy Ibn Qutlubugha), 10
Takntila (work on mathematics by Abu
Mansiir-Baghdddf, d. 1037), 62
1

Ta*laqdn, 103, 107

Talib-'Alawi (Waztr, patient of

Avicenna), 157
Khan,
famghaj (place), 9, 102-3 ;

Abii

of

(biographer

8, 124

Washmgir

(d.

1012-3), 14 ar

Tarabi (rebellion of
,
1238- >),
Ta'iikh-i-^^7 (1591-2), 138;

n.

in
-/-

Bukhara (Arabic

original composed in
943-4, Persian translation in 1 1 78-9),
-zno; see also -Narshakhi ;

Guzlda (composed in 1330 by HamMustawfi of Qa/win), 18 n.,

i74 n., 113, 117, ii9n., 138,162;

du'lldh

IliikamA of -Qiftf (1227-1248), 78 n.,

93 n., 129 n., 137, 145; see also -Qifti,
Shahraziiri ;
-t-Ja/uin-dni (by the
Qddi Ahmad-i-Ghaff^ri), 52 n., 109,
in, 127, 162;
i-Jtthdn-gushay (by
Juwaynf, 1260), 109, in, 127, 137;
-i-MasVidl (by Abu'1-Fadl-i-Bayi-Yamint (by
hacii),
115, 162;
-'Utbf, xi), 59 n., 127
Tartars, Tatars, 157; see Mongols
Tash (general), 16-18

Dahr, ro6, 113, 115, 116, 154

Thabit b. Qurra (scholar of Harran,

48, 153

Tabaqat-*-M/.r/r/, in., 6 in., 101, 102,

1 20-1, 1 27 ;
i-Shi^ara, see Sallami
and Dawlatshah ;
-i-MJiyya (of
Sulami), 163
Tabaran (Tiis), 54, 58, 59
-Tabari (the historian), 104, 146;
"(physician, teacher of -Rdzf). See *Ali

(fl.

Kashf
1 1

wdtTa'Hd, 107; iMttfifu'l-Ma'Arifi 21 n.;

Thimdrttl-QiiMbi 114; Yatlmctiu'd-

Syntaxi\i 165

Tabari stan, 140,,

6,

Tetralnblos (by Ptolemy), 16^

-Tha'dlibi (xi), KrtAbu*l-Kindya

30

no, 127

Syriac language, 147,

1 1

Tarassul (Epistolary models) of Oibiis b.

Sughd, 114, 118

Sughdl (poet), 29 n., 30

b.

102-3

TaqiyyuM-Dfn

109

163

Stiffs,

(author of -fiaraj ba'dtfshShidda), 149

" =
Chinese),
(" worshipful
Tapghach

b.

n., 148; also

b. Sinan (d. 942-3), 148

836, d. 901), 62, 78, 93

his

grandson

Theodosms, Bishop
ThtmdnSl-Qnhtt(\sy

-Tha'alibi), 114*

Thicjatu'l-Mulk T^hir

b.

147

(ix),

*AH

1).

Mushkan,

"7

5'i

ribb-i-MamiM (by

-Razi), 78 and n.

Tihr&i, 149
Tirmidh, 39 n.
Tisha, the son of
(poet), 2911., 30
Tiansoxiana (AIdwarti a ti'Nahr)> 9, 18,
t

>

24, 26, 27, 3911., 52, 53, 61, 69, 102,

104, 109, no, 112-113, 118, 122, 125,

126-7

fughanshah

b.

Alp Arsldn

(Saljiui),

b. Mu'ayyad Ay-aba
123;
(crowned ii73~4) 48 n., 123
Tughril (Saljuq), 104, 119, 125, 138
Tughshdda (King), 121
Tuhfatitl-Muluk (of -Razi), 80, 150
Tuhfatu'l-MiVminfn (by Muhammad
Mti'min-Husayni, 1669), 34 n.
Tukhdristdn, 101
Turka*n Khdtiin (mother of Muhammad

48-9,

Khwa*razmsha*h), in
Turkistdn, 9, 24 n., 52,
also

Turks,

ui-nr

Transoxiana
9,

10

Turuq

(near Tus), 45
45 55 57> 58i 59

7.

87

See

INDEX
'Ubaydu'llah (physicians of

the family
of Bukht-Yishu'), 145, Nos. 7 and 1 1
Abu 'Ubayd-JiUjanf (friend, pupil and
b ographer of Avicenna), 155, 157-8
F. W. K. Miiller), 103
Lft^ttrica (by
Ulja/tu (Khudd-banda, 1303-1316), no,
fir
'Umar-. Khayyam, or -Khayyiimi (the
astronori -r-poet, d. 1112 or 1132), 71,
b. 'Abdu'l72, 74, 1 1 4, 134-140, 1 56 ;
'Azfz b. Marwan (of the House of
:

Burhan,

1275), up;
(of the same family, xiii),
Umayyads, 101, 104
fl.

b.

Mas*ud

1 1 1

'Unsurf (poet, xi), 14, 2911., 30, 38, 118,

,119, 102
Urganj (Gurganj, Jurjaniyya), 12811.
Uri's Catalogue of Arabic MSS. in the
Bodleian Library, 152
Unnoscopy (tafsira)^ 142
Ibn Abf Usaybi'a (biographer of physicians, xiii), 8211 , 9311., 129, 130, 145,
146, 147 n., 150, 153, 154, 156, 157,
,

i5.

Ush,

59 n

H3

-'Utbf (author of -Ttfrikku'l-Yamint)*

104, 127, 162 n.

Uthrnan MukhUri (poet), 30, 51 n.

See above under Ibn

'Uyiintfl-Inbd.
,

Abi Usaybi'a

181

Yahya
(ix),

b.

96

Banna kf
Aktham (ix), 21;
Masawayh (physician, ix),

b. Bukht-Yishu' III (ix), 145

147 ;
Yaminu'd-Dawla, see Mahmud, Sultdn

Ghaznawi
Ya'qiib b. Ishaq -Kindf (the "Philosopher
of the Arabs," d. 873), 64-5, 129, 130 ;
b. Layth (Saflarid, 867-878), 2811.,
1J 3
Yaqiit (Dictionary of Learned Men), 103,

105,

106,

14,

162 n.

(Geographical
in, 150
Yaranqush llarfwa (general, fl. 1152), 74
;

Dictionary), 29 n., 5411.,

and n.
Yatlmatu\i-Dahr
15 n.,

1411.,

-Tha'alibf, xi),
113, 154; Suppleiijjn.,

(l>y

106,

ment (TatiMima) to the same,

1 16
-Ya/dadf, Abu'l-I.Iasan 'Ali b. Muhammad (editor of the letters of Qdhiis b.
Washmgfr, d. 1012), 103
Yaidigird-i-Shahriyar (the last Sasanfan
king), 57
Year amongst the Persians by E. G.
Browne, 5 n., 8 n., 9 n., 80 n.
Yule's Marco Polo^ 108

Zabulistan, 15
the
ZtiiMl-'ArifF* (by
Ansilri, xi), i6{

Shaykh *Abdu'llah

Bahd'u'd-Dfn

of Samarkand

Uikancl, 113

Zahfrf,

Van Vloten

1203), 125, 127

Xahiru'd Din Abu'l-I.Iasan
(fl.

(cd.

MaftMkifl-'UMm),

8, n. (ed. A'ttdbifl-Jiukhald), 147

Qdsim

Wajiristan, 50
Walfd b. Mughfra, 25
Wars*, Warsad, 60, 61
Whinfield, E. EL (ed. and trans! of
'Umar-i-Khayyam's Quatrains), I36n.
.

Wilson's Dictionary of Astrology * 164

Wis it Ramin (romantic poem by Fakhri
of Gurgdn), 1 19
Withington's Medical History etc., 145
Woepcke's FAlgebrc d'Omar Alkhayydmi, 137, 138
(Syriac Literature),
Wright, Dr W.
146, 147
Wustenfeld's Gesck. d. Arab. Aerztc^
62 n., 64 n., 78 n., 79 n., 81 n., 145,
147,
155 ; ed. of -Qazwfnf's
146,

Atkdru'l-BMU,

no

Yadigdr (Medical "Memoranda" by

Sayyid Isma'il Jurjanf, d. about 1136),
80, 158

Abi'l-

b.

129
(father of Rust am), 54
122
Xanjan,
(xi),

7M

Virchow's Archiv^ 150

Zaranj, 51 n.
Abii Zayd-Balkhf (geographer), 83 n.
Zaynab, the Lady
(xi), 53

Zaynu'1-Mulk, Abu Sa*cl b.

36
/eno, Kmperor
(fl. 488),
Zhukovski, V.
134, 135,
Zlyi-K&shyar (x), 130;
,

Hindu
146

137, 138, 139

i-Malikshah{

(xi), 1259

Zfla,
n.,

Abu

Mansiir b.

(\ii),

(d. 1048),

92 and

157

116
Zinatj (poet, xi), 30, 115,
Ziyarid dynasty of Tabarista~n (x-xi),
14 n. See also Qabiis b. Washmgfr

Zohdb, 146

n.

Zoroaster, 128, 129

Zoroastrians, 147, 154, 157
(translator into
Zotenberg, Hermann
French of -BaPamf s Persian version of

-Tabarf), 104

INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS EXPLAINED

OR DISCUSSED IN THE NOTES

46 n. 'j^.t
33 n. 'tjt^aJH
7

'

144 '^j^i. iptUI

08 '^Jlbl

'*

"
'

08

JpUtaJl

140

96 n.

91 n.

^sJU

4911.

33

'O^

22 'jlyj

142 'dj-Ju

49 n. 'ol^jlv**

w^A^.

53

*- l?

9411

^Ul

ii

'i^JULtf Oly.il

140 '^^IJut

33 n.

'

^
'

330.

33 n.

46 n.

c
33 n.

^^Ufc*

'

142

**)jZ~6 u**^,

c
3-1, l66 '^5**-

22 'jtyU.

4911.

35n-'L5^y^-^

43

'

3
]

42
108

*cW>

<43<

44

l^>

141 '(^^oJ)

3>

^>^>

I0

1490. *^
n C *

INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS

'

143

4*

**^j

183

'

'

V*-*j

33

34n. '^--rfj

7811.

*C*i*

64, 131, i64 S>l*J1

'.X-

60 n.

140 *(U^H)

>n-

6 4i 67-8,

<l*U**~'

53

142 j

OjZ*

^O 1^*-'

49 "

'

144

'

'

164-7

r;,i,

xx

49 n.

'

'

*tfj> JL^

O^cA^

^s,

l6 7

33 and

^*-^

n.

22

132

's^

tj

j^j

^^>>

132

^^aL-lo

*w5p

6411., 130-*!,

166

22, 108

144 'u
ion.
141

'jfojJ*

* 2>

9 n ******* \J<**

43 'C-S^ii

<

6n

'Of^

9^

*s^

144

'(c^)^!^

118

7 n.,

142

9'te.y

'^ J^
5 n. '^JUkt

42

^J uJI
fl

143

'^

36

4J*
4 n.,

^^^1

^U3

5 6n.

>U

INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS

184

164

6,

<A^u.*3

14

'

*j>\

*4*

aj&U*

*<

6,

<*w jity

'

AjLa^o

*oijd

A^J***

"^

'

**5t 3 **

64

143

6,

^S^=>

aJs

64
'

7
6,

33

'

'

'

164

71, 132, 167

J
14.5,

144

'

tfiu

3611.

* '
(

4611.

22, 108

ij*~*

'^^o
Ml

41 n.

AijLi

36 n

143, 144 '(v^o*-)

<uLu

1711.

144'^^
22, 108

143 '(^5^*-

Ml

08 '9->0*0

116*^^X0

*
i

^-otjJU

'

'

(u^-H) ^5--^

v-^

22,

108
.Un.
4611. 'j

U
'

35"-

91

n.

jl*

78 *AAJU

j^U-J

HI

'i^y

7i

CAMBRIDGE: PRINTKD BY

J.

'3 2 -3

It.

(cAfJ)

^^P

143, 144
1

08

'

164, 167

PhACK, M.A., AT

THK

I'NIVBRSI'IY PRKSS