Chapter V: Part 5

Thus spake an idol to his worshipper,
«Why dost thou worship this dead stone, fair sir?
'Tis because He who gazeth through thine eyes,
Doth some part of His charms on it confer.»

14. L. Meaning, all is of God, even idols.

15.

Whate'er thou doest, never grieve thy brother,
Nor kindle fumes of wrath his peace to smother;
Dost thou desire to taste eternal bliss,
Vex thine own heart, but never vex another!

15. L. b. Line 1 is in metre 14.

16.

O Thou! to please whose love and wrath as well,
Allah created heaven and likewise hell;
Thou hast thy court in heaven, and I have naught,
Why not admit me in thy courts to dwell?

16. Bl. L. The person addressed is the prophet Muhammad. The Sufis were fond of dwelling on the opposition between the beautiful and the terrible attributes of Deity.

17.

So many cups of wine will I consume,
Its bouquet shall exhale from out my tomb,
And every one that passes by shall halt,
And reel and stagger with that mighty fume.

17. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J.

18.

Young wooer, charm all hearts with lover's art,
Glad winner, lead thy paragon apart!
A hundred Ka'bas equal not one heart,
Seek not the Ka'ba, rather seek a heart!

18. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. Line 2, «In the presence seize the perfect heart.»

19.

What time, my cup in hand, its draughts I drain,
And with rapt heart unconsciousness attain,
Behold what wondrous miracles are wrought,
Songs flow as water from my burning brain.

19. L. N.

20.

To-day is but a breathing space, quaff wine!
Thou wilt not see again this life of thine;
So, as the world becomes the spoil of time,
Offer thyself to be the spoil of wine!

20. L. N.

21.

'Tis we who to wine's yoke our necks incline,
And risk our lives to gain the smiles of wine;
The henchman grasps the flagon by its throat
And squeezes out the lifeblood of the vine.

21. L. N. Line 3 is in metre 19.

22.

Here in this tavern haunt I make my lair,
Pawning for wine, heart, soul, and all I wear,
Without a hope of bliss, or fear of bale,
Rapt above water, earth, and fire, and air.

22. Bl. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

23.

Quoth fish to duck, «Twill be a sad affair,
If this brook leaves its channel dry and bare»;
To whom the duck, «When I am dead and roasted
The brook may run with wine for aught I care.»

23. L. Meaning, «_Après nous le déluge_».

24.

From doubt to clear assurance is a breath,
A breath from infidelity to faith;
O precious breath! enjoy it while you may,
'Tis all that life can give, and then comes death.

24. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J.

25.

Ah! wheel of heaven to tyranny inclined,
'Twas e'er your wont to show yourself unkind;
And, cruel earth, if they should cleave your breast,
What store of buried jewels they would find!

25. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. «Wheel of heaven,» _i.e._, destiny, fortune. Sir Thomas Browne talks of the «wheel of things.»

26.

My life lasts but a day or two, and fast
Sweeps by, like torrent stream or desert blast,
Howbeit, of two days I take no heed,--
The day to come, and that already past.

26. Bl. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

27.

That pearl is from a mine unknown to thee,
That ruby bears a stamp thou canst not see
The tale of love some other tongue must tell,
All our conjectures are mere phantasy.

27. Meaning, real love of God differs from the popular idea of it. Bl.

28.

Now with its joyful prime my age is rife,
I quaff enchanting wine, and list to fife;
Chide not at wine for all its bitter taste,
Its bitterness sorts well with human life!

28. Bl. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

29.

O soul! whose lot it is to bleed with pain,
And daily change of fortune to sustain,
Into this body wherefore didst thou come,
Seeing thou must at last go forth again?

29. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J.

30.

To-day is thine to spend, but not to-morrow,
Counting on morrows breedeth naught but sorrow;
Oh! squander not this breath that heaven hath lent thee,
Nor make too sure another breath to borrow!

30. Bl. C. N. A. B. I.

31.

'Tis labour lost thus to all doors to crawl,
Take thy good fortune, and thy bad withal;
Know for a surety each must play his game,
As from heaven's dice-box fate's dice chance to fall.

31. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Naksh_, the dots on dice.

32.

This jug did once, like me, love's sorrows taste,
And bonds of beauty's tresses once embraced,
This handle, which you see upon its side,
Has many a time twined round a slender waist!

32. Bl. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

33.

Days changed to nights, ere you were born, or I,
And on its business ever rolled the sky;
See you tread gently on this dust--perchance
'Twas once the apple of some beauty's eye.

33. C. L. N. A. I. J.

34.

Pagodas, just as mosques, are homes of prayer,
'Tis prayer that church-bells chime unto the air,
Yea, Church and Ka'ba, Rosary and Cross
Are all but divers tongues of world-wide prayer.

34. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. Meaning, forms of faith are indifferent.

35.

'Twas writ at first, whatever was to be,
By pen, unheeding bliss or misery,
Yea, writ upon the tablet once for all,
To murmur or resist is vanity.

35. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. Meaning, fate is heartless and resistless.

36.

There is a mystery I know full well,
Which to all, good and bad, I cannot tell;
My words are dark, but I cannot unfold
The secrets of the «station» where I dwell.

36. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Hale_, a state of ecstasy.

37.

No base or light-weight coins pass current here,
Of such a broom has swept our dwelling clear
Forth from the tavern comes a sage and cries,
«Drink! for ye all must sleep through ages drear»

37. Bl. L. N. Meaning, Mullahs' fables will not go down with us.

38.

With outward seeming we can cheat mankind,
But to God's will we can but be resigned,
The deepest wiles my cunning e'er devised,
To balk resistless fate no way could find.

38. L. N. Meaning, weakness of human rule compared to the strength of Divine decrees.

39.

Is a friend faithless? spurn him as a foe;
Upon trustworthy foes respect bestow;
Hold healing poison for an antidote,
And baneful sweets for deadly eisel know.

39. L. N. These gnomical epigrams are not common in Khayyam.

40.

No heart is there but bleeds when torn from Thee,
No sight so clear but craves Thy face to see;
And though perchance Thou carest not for them,
No soul is there but pines with care for Thee.

40. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Jigar_, the liver, was considered to be the seat of love.

41.

Sobriety doth dry up all delight,
And drunkenness doth drown my sense outright;
There is a middle state, it is my life,
Not altogether drunk, nor sober quite.

41. C. N. I. _Masti_ o: scan _mastiyo_. The Epicurean golden mean. See Ecclesiastes, vii, 16, 17.

42.

Behold these cups! Can He who deigned to make them,
In wanton freak let ruin overtake them,
So many shapely feet and hands and heads,--
What love drives Him to make, what wrath to break them?

42. C. N. A. B. I. J. _Pryalae_, a cup. So Job, «Thy hands have made me, yet thou dost destroy me.»

43.

Death's terrors spring from baseless phantasy,
Death yields the tree of immortality;
Since 'Isa breathed new life into my soul,
Eternal death has washed its hands of me!

43. L. N. Meaning, the Sufi doctrine of _Baka ba'd ul fana_. See _Gulshan i Raz_, p. 31.

44.

Like tulips in the Spring your cups lift up,
And, with a tulip-cheeked companion, sup
With joy your wine, or e'er this azure wheel
With some unlooked-for blast upset your cup.

44. C. L. N. A. I. J.

45.

Facts will not change to humour man's caprice,
So vaunt not human powers, but hold your peace;
Here must we stay, weighed down with grief for this,
That we were born so late, so soon decease.

45. C. L. N. A. I. J. Meaning, the futility of striving against predestination. _Ank_, for _anki_. Bl., Prosody 13.

46.

Khayyam! why weep you that your life is bad?
What boots it thus to mourn? Rather be glad.
He that sins not can make no claim to mercy,
Mercy was made for sinners--be not sad.

46. C. L. N. A. B. I. See note on No. 130

47.

All mortal ken is bounded by the veil,
To see beyond man's sight is all too frail;
Yea! earth's dark bosom is his only home;--
Alas! 'twere long to tell the doleful tale.

47. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

48.

This faithless world, my home, I have surveyed,
Yea, and with all my wit deep question made,
But found no moon with face so bright as thine,
No cypress in such stateliness arrayed.

48. L. N.

49.

In synagogue and cloister, mosque and school,
Hell's terrors and heaven's lures men's bosoms rule,
But they who master Allah's mysteries,
Sow not this empty chaff their hearts to fool.

49. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. Meaning, souls re-absorbed in the Divine essence have no concern with the material heaven and hell.

50.

You see the world, but all you see is naught,
And all you say, and all you hear is naught,
Naught the four quarters of the mighty earth,
The secrets treasured in your chamber naught.

50. L. N. Meaning, all is illusion (_Maya_).

51.

I dreamt a sage said, «Wherefore life consume
In sleep? Can sleep make pleasure's roses bloom?
For gather not with death's twin-brother sleep,
Thou wilt have sleep enough within thy tomb!»

51. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. So Homer, _Kasignetos thanatoio_.

52.

If the heart knew life's secrets here below,
At death 'twould know God's secrets too, I trow;
But, if you know naught here, while still yourself,
To-morrow, stripped of self, what can you know?

52. C. L. N. A. I. In line 2 scan _Ilahi_. Bl., Prosody, p. 7.

53.

On that dread day, when wrath shall rend the sky,
And darkness dim the bright stars' galaxy,
I'll seize the Loved One by His skirt, and cry,
«Why hast Thou doomed these guiltless ones to die?»

53. C. L. N. A. I. J. See Koran, lxxxii. 1. Note the _alif i wasls_ in lines 1 and 2. In line 4 scan _kata lat_, transposing the last vowel. Bl., Prosody, p. ii.

54.

To knaves Thy secret we must not confide,
To comprehend it is to fools denied,
See then to what hard case Thou doomest men,
Our hopes from one and all perforce we hide.

54. C. L. N. A. B. I. There is a variation of this, beginning _Asrar i jahan_.

55.

Cupbearer! what though fate's blows here betide us,
And a safe resting-place be here denied us,
So long as the bright wine-cup stands between us,
We have the very Truth at hand to guide us.

55. C. L. N. A. I. In line 3 scan _mayast_. Bl., Prosody, p. 13, and note _tashdid_ on _hakk_ dropped. Ibid, p. iv.

56.

Long time in wine and rose I took delight,
But then my business never went aright;
Since wine could not accomplish my desire,
I have abandoned and forsworn it quite.

56. C. L. N. A. I. J.

57.

Bring wine! my heart with dancing spirits teems,
Wake! fortune's waking is as fleeting dreams;
Quicksilver-like our days are swift of foot,
And youthful fire subsides as torrent streams.

57. C. L. N. A. I. J. In line 3 scan _bedariyi_.

58.

Love's devotees, not Moslems here you see,
Not Solomons, but ants of low degree;
Here are but faces wan and tattered rags,
No store of Cairene cloth or silk have we.

58. L. N. For the story of Solomon and the ants, see Koran, xxvii., 18. _Kasab_, linen made in Egypt.

59.

My law it is in pleasure's paths to stray,
My creed to shun the theologic fray;
I wedded Luck, and offered her a dower,
She said, «I want none, so thy heart be gay.»

59. C. L. N. A. I. J.

60.

From mosque an outcast, and to church a foe,
Allah! of what clay didst thou form me so?
Like sceptic monk, or ugly courtesan,
No hopes have I above, no joys below.

60. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Ummed_ has the _tashdid ob metrum_. Bl., Prosody 9. Line 2 is in metre 17. _Gil i mara_ for _gil i man ra_, Vullers, pp. 173 and 193.

61.

Men's lusts, like house-dogs, still the house distress
With clamour, barking for mere wantonness;
Foxes are they, and sleep the sleep of hares;
Crafty as wolves, as tigers pitiless.

61. C. L. N. A. I. J. «Sleep of hares,» deceit.

62.

Yon turf, fringing the margent of the stream,
As down upon a cherub's lip might seem,
Or growth from dust of buried tulip cheeks;
Tread not that turf with scorn, or light esteem!

62. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Juyiy_: the _ya_ of _juy_ is hamzated because followed by another _ya_. Vullers, p. 24.

63.

Hearts with the light of love illumined well,
Whether in mosque or synagogue they dwell,
Have _their_ names written in the book of love,
Unvexed by hopes of heaven or fears of hell.

63. C. L. N. A. I. J. Compare Hafiz, Ode 79: «Wherever love is, there is the light of the Beloved's face.»

64.

One draught of wine outweighs the realm of Tus,
Throne of Kobad and crown of Kai Kawus;
Sweeter are sighs that lovers heave at morn,
Than all the groanings zealot breasts produce.

64. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Kawus_ is the old spelling.

65.

Though Moslems for my sins condemn and chide me,
Like heathens to my idol I confide me;
Yea, when I perish of a drunken bout,
I'll call on wine, whatever doom betide me.

65. L. N.

66.

In drinking thus it is not my design
To riot, or transgress the law divine,
No! to attain unconsciousness of self
Is the sole cause I drink me drunk with wine.

66. C. L. N. A. I. J. Perhaps a hit at the orthodox Sufis.

67.

Drunkards are doomed to hell, so men declare,
Believe it not, 'tis but a foolish scare;
Heaven will be empty as this hand of mine,
If none who love good drink find entrance there.

67. C. L. N. A. I. J. Line 4 is in metre 17.

68.

'Tis wrong, according to the strict Koran,
To drink in Rajah, likewise in Sha'ban,
God and the Prophet claim those months as theirs;
Was Ramazan then made for thirsty man?

68. C. L. N. A. I. J. The point, of course, is that Ramazan is the Mahammadan Lent.

69.

Now Ramazan is come, no wine must flow,
Our simple pastimes we must now forego,
The wine we have in store we must not drink,
Nor on our mistresses one kiss bestow.

69. L. N. Does _Sada_ mean the winter feast?

70.

What is the world? A _caravanserai_,
A pied pavilion of night and day;
A feast whereat a thousand Jamshids sat,
A couch whereon a thousand Bahrams lay.

70. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Wamanda_, «leavings.»

71.

Now that your roses bloom with flowers of bliss,
To grasp your goblets be not so remiss,
Drink while you may! Time is a treacherous foe,
You may not see another day like this.

71. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Bar bar_ «blooming, on the branch,» _i.e._, you are still young. Bl.

72.

Here in this palace, where Bahram held sway,
The wild roes drop their young, and tigers stray;
And that great hunter king--ah! well-a-day!
Now to the hunter death is fallen a prey.

72. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Daro_: see Bl., Pros. 11.

73.

Down fall the tears from skies enwrapt in gloom,
Without this drink, the flowers could never bloom!
As now these flowerets yield delight to me,
So shall my dust yield flowers,--God knows for whom.

73. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. In line 4 _ta_ is the «_ta i tajahul_,» meaning, «I do not know whether,» «perhaps.» Bl.

74.

To-day is Friday, as the Moslem says,
Drink then from bowls served up in quick relays;
Suppose on common days you drink one bowl,
To-day drink two, for 'tis the prince of days.

74. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. Friday is the day «of assembly,» or Sabbath.

75.

The _very_ wine a myriad forms sustains,
And to take shapes of plants and creatures deigns
But deem not that its essence ever dies,
Its forms may perish, but its self remains.

75. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. On this Bl. notes «The Arabic form _hayawan_ is required by the metre.» And _Suwar_ is the Arabic plural, used as a singular. Bl., Prosody 5. Wine means the divine «_Noumenon_.» _Gulshan i Raz_, 825.

76.

'Tis naught but smoke this people's fire doth bear,
For my well-being not a soul doth care;
With hands fate makes me lift up in despair,
I grasp men's skirts, but find no succour there.

76. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. Scan _tayifa_.

77.

This bosom friend, on whom you so rely,
Seems to clear wisdom's eyes an enemy;
Choose not your friends from this rude multitude,
Their converse is a plague 'tis best to fly.

77. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. The MSS. transpose the lines.

78.

O foolish one! this moulded earth is naught,
This particoloured vault of heaven is naught;
Our sojourn in this seat of life and death
Is but one breath, and what is that but naught?

78. Bl. L. N. _Shakl i mujassam_, «the earth.» Bl.

79.

Some wine, a Houri (Houris if there be),
A green bank by a stream, with minstrelsy;--
Toil not to find a better Paradise
If other Paradise indeed there be!

79. Bl. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Dozakh i farsuda_, «an old hell,» _i.e._, vain things which create a hell for you. Bl.

80.

To the wine-house I saw the sage repair,
Bearing a wine-cup, and a mat for prayer;
I said, «O Shaikh, what does this conduct mean?»
Said he, «Go drink! the world is naught but air.»

80. N.

81.

The Bulbul to the garden winged his way,
Viewed lily cups, and roses smiling gay,
Cried in ecstatic notes, «O live your life,
You never will re-live this fleeting day.»

81. N. The MSS. have a variation of this beginning, _Bulbul chu. Jam . ra_. See Bl., Prosody, p. 12.

82.

Thy body is a tent, where harbourage
The Sultan spirit takes for one brief age;
When he departs, comes the tent-pitcher death,
Strikes it, and onward moves, another stage.

82. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Manzil_, in line 2, «lodging»; in line 3, «stage» _Khimaye_, a «tent.»

83.

Khayyam, who long time stitched the tents of learning,
Has fallen into a furnace, and lies burning,
Death's shears have cut his thread of life asunder,
Fate's brokers sell him off with scorn and spurning.

83. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

84.

In the sweet spring a grassy bank I sought,
And thither wine, and a fair Houri brought;
And, though the people called me graceless dog,
Gave not to Paradise another thought!

84. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. _Batar_, a contraction. See Bl., Prosody, p. 10.

85.

Sweet is rose-ruddy wine in goblets gay,
And sweet are lute and harp and roundelay;
But for the zealot who ignores the cup,
'Tis sweet when he is twenty leagues away!

85. N. The MSS. have a variation of this. Note _Khush_.

86.

Life, void of wine, and minstrels with their lutes,
And the soft murmurs of Irakian flutes,
Were nothing worth: I scan the world and see:
Save pleasure, life yields only bitter fruits.

86. L. N. See an answer to this in No. 97.

87.

Make haste! soon must you quit this life below,
And pass the veil, and Allah's secrets know,
Make haste to take your pleasure while you may,
You wot not whence you come, nor whither go.

87. C. L. N. A. I. In line 3 scan _nidaniyaz_.

88.

Depart we must! what boots it then to be,
To walk in vain desires continually?
Nay, but if heaven vouchsafe no place of rest,
What power to cease our wanderings have we?

88. N. In line 3 scan _jayiga_. Bl., Prosody, p. 15.

89.

To chant wine's praises is my daily task,
I live encompassed by cup, bowl and flask;
Zealot! if reason be thy guide, then know
That guide of me doth ofttimes guidance ask.

89. C. L. N. A. I. J. In line 1 scan _maddahiyi_; and compare Horace,
«_Edocet artes;
Fecundi calices quem non fecere disertum._»

90.

O men of morals! why do ye defame,
And thus misjudge me? I am not to blame.
Save weakness for the grape, and female charms,
What sins of mine can any of ye name?

90. C. L. N. A. I. J. This change of persons is called _Iltifat_. Gladwin, Persian Rhetoric, p. 56.

91.

Who treads in passion's footsteps here below,
A helpless pauper will depart, I trow;
Remember who you are, and whence you come.
Consider what you do, and whither go.

91. C. L. N. A. I. _Khabarat_: see Bl., Prosody, p. v.

92.

Skies like a zone our weary lives enclose,
And from our tear-stained eyes a Jihun flows;
Hell is a fire enkindled of our griefs;
Heaven but a moment's peace, stolen from our woes.

92. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. This balanced arrangement of similes is called _Tirsi'a_. Gladwin, p. 5.

93.

I drown in sin--show me Thy clemency!
My soul is dark--make me Thy light to see!
A heaven that must be earned by painful works,
I call a wage, not a gift fair and free.

93. C. L. N. A. I. J. Arabic words like _raza_, drop the _hamza_ in Persian, except with the _izafat_: (Bl., Prosody 14). For this _hamza, ya_ is often used, as here.

94.

Did He who made me fashion me for hell,
Or destine me for heaven? I cannot tell.
Yet will I not renounce cup, lute and love,
Nor earthly cash for heavenly credit sell.

94. C. L. N. A. B. I. In line 4 the _izafat_ is dropped after silent _he_. Bl., Prosody, p. 15.

95.

From right and left the censors came and stood,
Saying, «Renounce this wine, this foe of good»;
But if wine be the foe of holy faith,
By Allah, right it is to drink its blood!

95. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. See Koran, ii. 187.

96.

The good and evil with man's nature blent,
The weal and woe that heaven's decrees have sent,--
Impute them not to motions of the skies,--
Skies than thyself ten times more impotent.

96. C. L. N. A. I. J. Fate is merely the decree of Allah. For the distinction between _kaza_ and _kadar_, see Pocock, «_Specimen Historiae Arabum_,» p. 207.

97.

Against death's arrows what are buckles worth?
What all the pomps and riches of the earth?
When I survey the world, I see no good
But goodness, all beside is nothing worth.

97. N. Possibly written on the margin by some pious reader as an answer to No. 86.

98.

Weak souls, who from the world cannot refrain,
Hold life-long fellowship with rule and pain;
Hearts free from worldly cares have store of bliss,
All others seeds of bitter woe contain.

98. L. N. _Tajrid_, see _Gulshan i Raz_, p. 8, n.

99.

He, in whose bosom wisdom's seed is sown,
To waste a single day was never known;
Either he strives to work great Allah's will,
Or else exalts the cup, and works his own.

99. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. _Tarabe_, query, _takhme?_ giving a line in metre 23.

100.

When Allah mixed my clay, He knew full well
My future acts, and could each one foretell;
Without His will no act of mine was wrought;
Is it then just to punish me in hell?

100. C. L. N. A. I. Of the Moslem theory of predestination, Khayyam might truly say, «Ten thousand mortals, drowned in endless woe, for doing what they were compelled to _do_.»

101.

Ye, who cease not to drink on common days,
Do not on Friday quit your drinking ways;
Adopt my creed, and count all days the same,
Be worshippers of God, and not of days.

101. L. N. In line 3 scan _yakist_.

102.

If grace be grace, and Allah gracious be,
Adam from Paradise why banished He?
Grace to poor sinners shown is grace indeed;
In grace hard earned by works no grace I see.

102. N. The _tashdid_ of _rabb_ is dropped. Bl., Prosody, p. iv.

103.

Dame Fortune's smiles are full of guile, beware!
Her scimitar is sharp to smite, take care!
If e'er she drop a sweetmeat in thy mouth,
'Tis poisonous,--to swallow it forbear!

103. C. L. A. B. I. _Hush_ contracted from _hosh_.

104.

Where'er you see a rose or tulip bed,
Know that a mighty monarch's blood was shed
And where the violet rears her purple tuft,
Be sure a black-moled girl hath laid her head.

104. B. L. The MSS. have a variation of this, beginning _Har khisht ki_.

105.

Wine is a melting ruby, cup its mine;
Cup is the body, and the soul is wine;
These crystal goblets smile with ruddy wine
Like tears, that blood of wounded hearts enshrine.

105. L. B.

106.

Drink wine! 'tis life etern, and travail's meed,
Fruitage of youth, and balm of age's need:
'Tis the glad time of roses, wine and friends;
Rejoice thy spirit--that is life indeed.

106. L. B. There being no _izafat_ after _yaran_, _sar i mast_ must agree with _hangam_.

107.

Drink wine! long must you sleep within the tomb,
Without a friend, or wife to cheer your gloom;
Hear what I say, and tell it not again,
«Never again can withered tulips bloom.»

107. C. A. B. I. J. This recalls the chorus in the «Oedipus Coloneus.»

108.

They preach how sweet those Houri brides will be,
But I say wine is sweeter--taste and see!
Hold fast this cash, and let that credit go,
And shun the din of empty drums like me.

108. C. L. A. B. I. J. _Sin_, «nuptials.» Like me, _i.e._, as I do.

109.

Once and again my soul did me implore,
To teach her, if I might, the heavenly lore;
I bade her learn the _Alif_ well by heart.
Who knows that letter well need learn no more.

109. B. _Alif Kafat_, the One (God) is enough. Probably a quotation. Hafiz (Ode 416) uses the same expression: «He who knows the One knows all.»

110.

I came not hither of my own free will,
And go against my wish, a puppet still;
Cupbearer! gird thy loins, and fetch some wine;
To purge the world's despite, my goblet fill.

110. C. L. A. B. I. J. _'Azme, ya i tankir_, or _tans ifi?_

111.

How long must I make bricks upon the sea?
Beshrew this vain task of idolatry;
Call not Khayyam a denizen of hell;
One while in heaven, and one in hell is he.

111. C. L. A. B. I. J. _Andar-ba_, Bl., Prosody 12.

112.

Sweet is the breath of Spring to rose's face,
And thy sweet face adds charm to this fair place;
To-day is sweet, but yesterday is sad,
And sad all mention of its parted grace.

112. C. L. A. B. I. J. _Khush_ is pronounced _khash_ or _khush._ Bl., Prosody, p. 12. _Guyi_ is generally written with _hamza_ and _ya_, but in some MSS. _fatha_ is substituted for the _hamza_ [?].

113.

To-night pour wine, and sing a dulcet air,
And I upon thy lips will hang, O fair;
Yea, pour some wine as rosy as thy cheeks,
My mind is troubled like thy ruffled hair.

113. B. _Roziyyi_.

114.

Pen, tablet, heaven and hell I looked to see
Above the skies, from all eternity;
At last the master sage instructed me,
«Pen, tablet, heaven and hell are all in thee.»

114. Allah writes his decrees with the «pen» on the «tablet.» Koran, lxviii. l. See _Gulshan i Raz_, 1, n.

115.

The fruit of certitude _he_ cannot pluck,
The path that leads thereto who never struck,
Nor ever shook the bough with strenuous hand;
To-day is lost; hope for to-morrow's luck.

115. L. B. _Lit._ «Consider to-morrow your first day.»

116.

Now spring-tide showers its foison on the land,
And lively hearts wend forth, a joyous band,
For 'Isa's breath wakes the dead earth to life,
And trees gleam white with flowers, like Musa's hand.

116. B. Alluding to the life-giving breath of Jesus, and the white hand of Moses. (Exodus, IV. 6.) _Bakhushi dastrase (ya i tankir_), «_an_ aid to joy,» _i.e._, Spring.

117.

Alas for that cold heart, which never glows
With love, nor e'er that charming madness knows;
The days misspent with no redeeming love;--
No days are wasted half as much as those!

117. Bl. L. B.

118.

The zephyrs waft thy fragrance, and it takes
My heart, and me, his master, he forsakes;
Careless of me he pants and leaps to thee,
And thee his pattern and ensample makes!

118. Bl. C. L. A. I. J. Also ascribed to Abu Sa'id bin Abul Khair. C. writes _buyi_ with two _yas_, and _hamza_ on the first. The second _ya_ seems to be _ya i batni_ or _tausifi_, though that is usual only before adjectives. Bl., Prosody, p. 11.

119.

Drink wine! and then as Mahmud thou wilt reign,
And hear a music passing David's strain:
Think not of past or future, seize to-day,
Then all thy life will not be lived in vain.

119. Bl. C. L. A. I. J.

120.

Ten Powers, and nine spheres, eight heavens made He,
And planets seven, of six sides, as we see,
Five senses, and four elements, three souls,
Two worlds, but only one, O man, like thee.

120. L. A summary of the Muhammadan doctrine of «Emanations.» See _Gulshan i Raz_, p. 21. Three souls, _i.e._, vegetive, animal and human, as in Aristotle's _De Anima_. _Akhtaram_ (?), also in Cambridge MS.

121.

Jewry hath seen a thousand prophets die,
Sinai a thousand Musas mount the sky;
How many Cæsars Rome's proud forum crossed!
'Neath Kasra's dome how many monarchs lie!

121. L. J. Time is long and life short.

122.

Gold breeds not wit, but to wit lacking bread
Earth's flowery carpet seems a dungeon bed;
'Tis his full purse that makes the rose to smile,
While empty-handed violets hang the head.

122. L. Alluding to the golden stamens of the rose. I supply _tihi_ from the Cambridge MS.

123.

Heaven's wheel has made full many a heart to moan,
And many a budding rose to earth has thrown;
Plume thee not on thy youth and lusty strength,
Full many a bud is blasted ere 'tis blown.

123. L.

124.

What lord is fit to rule but «Truth»? Not one.
What beings disobey His rule? Not one.
All things that are, are such as He decrees;
And naught is there beside beneath the sun.

124. C. L. A. I. «The Truth» is a Sufi name for the Deity.

125.

That azure coloured vault and golden tray
Have turned, and will turn yet for many a day;
And just so we, impelled by turns of fate,--
Come here but for a while, then pass away.

125. Bl. L. _Guzasht_, «It is all over with us.» Bl. «Golden tray,» the Sun.

126.

The Master did himself these vessels frame,
Why should he cast them out to scorn and shame?
If he has made them well, why should he break them?
Yea, though he marred them, _they_ are not to blame.

126. C. L. A. I. J. In line 4 _suwar_ is an Arabic plural used as a singular. Bl., Prosody, p. 5.

127.

Kindness to friends and foes 'tis well to show,
No kindly heart can prove unkind, I trow:
Harshness will alienate a bosom friend,
And kindness reconcile a deadly foe.

127. L. In line 2 scan _neykiyash_.

128.

To lovers true, what matters dark or fair?
Or if the loved one silk or sackcloth wear,
Or lie on down or dust, or rise to heaven?
Yea, though she sink to hell, he'll seek her there.

128. L. Probably Mystical.

129.

Full many a hill and vale I journeyed o'er;
Yea, journeyed through the world's wide quarters four,
But never heard of pilgrim who returned;
When once they go, they go to come no more.

129. C. L. N. (in part) A. I. J.

130.

Wine-houses flourish through this thirst of mine,
Loads of remorse weigh down this back of mine;
Yet, if I sinned not, what would mercy do?
Mercy depends upon these sins of mine.

130. C. Bl. L. A. I. J. Bl. quotes similar sentiments from Nizami and Hafiz. Mercy is God's highest attribute, and sin is required to call it forth.

131.

Thy being is the being of Another,
Thy passion is the passion of Another.
Cover thy head, and think, and thou wilt see,
Thy hand is but the cover of Another.

131. Bl. Meaning God is the _Fa'il i hakiki_, the only real Agent.

132.

From learning to the cup your bridle turn;
All lore of world to come, save Kausar, spurn;
Your turban pawn for wine, or keep a shred
To bind your brow, and all the remnant burn.

132. N. _Kausar_, the river of wine in Paradise.

133.

See! from the world what profit have I gained?
What fruitage of my life in hand retained?
What use is Jamshid's goblet, once 'tis crushed?
What pleasure's torch, when once its light has waned?

133. L. N. _Tarf bar bastan_,«to reap advantage.»

134.

When life is spent, what's Balkh or Nishapore?
What sweet or bitter, when the cup runs o'er?
Come drink! full many a moon will wax and wane
In times to come, when we are here no more.

134. C. L. N. A. B. I. J.

135.

O fair! whose cheeks checkmate red eglantine,
And draw the game with those fair maids of Chin,
You played one glance against the king of Babil
And took his pawns, and knights, and rooks, and queen.

135. L. B.

136.

Life's caravan is hastening on its way;
Brood not on troubles of the coming day,
But fill the wine-cup, ere sweet night be gone,
And snatch a pleasant moment, while you may.

136. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. The «_rinds_» loved a dark night. Bl.

137.

He, who the world's foundations erst did lay,
Doth bruise full many a bosom day by day,
And many a ruby lip and musky tress
Doth coffin in the earth, and shroud with clay.

137. C. L. N. A. I. J. So Job, «Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands?»

138.

Be not beguiled by world's insidious wiles;
O foolish ones, ye know her tricks and guiles;
Your precious life-time cast not to the winds;
Haste to seek wine, and court a sweetheart's smile.

138. N.

139.

Comrades! I pray you, physic me with wine,
Make this wan amber face like rubies shine,
And, if I die, use wine to wash my corpse,
And frame my coffin out of planks of vine!

139. C. L. N. A. B. I. _Kahraba_, «amber,» literally «attractor of straw.»

140.

When Allah yoked the courses of the sun,
And launched the Pleiades their race to run,
My lot was fixed in fate's high chancery;
Then why blame me for wrong that fate has done?

140. C. L. N. A. I. J. Also ascribed to Afzul Kashi.

141.

Ah! seasoned wine oft falls to rawest fools,
And clumsiest workmen own the finest tools;
And Turki maids, fit to delight men's hearts,
Lavish their smiles on beardless boys in school!

141. N. So Hafiz, «If that Turki maid of Shiraz,» etc.

142.

Whilom, ere youth's conceit had waned, methought
Answers to all life's problems I had wrought;
But now, grown old and wise, too late I see
My life is spent, and all my lore is naught.

142. N. C. A. and I. give another version of this.

143.

They who of prayer-mats make such great display
Are fools to bear hypocrisy's hard sway;
Strange! under cover of this saintly show
They live like heathen, and their faith betray.

143. C. L. N A. I. In line 2, note the arrangement of the prepositions. There is a proverb, «The Devil lives in Mecca and Medinah.»

144.

To him who would his sins extenuate,
Let pious men this verse reiterate,
«To call God's prescience the cause of sin
In wisdom's purview is but folly's prate.»

144. L. N. _Sahl_, of «no account.»

145.

He brought me hither, and I felt surprise,
From life I gather but a dark surmise,
I go against my will;--thus, why I come,
Why live, why go, are all dark mysteries.

145. C. L. N. A.

146.

When I recall my grievous sins to mind,
Fire burns my breast, and tears my vision blind;
Yet, when a slave repents, is it not meet
His lord should pardon, and again be kind?

146. L. N. In line 2, _az sar guzarad_ means «drops from the eyes,» and in line 4, «remits the penalty.» This change of meaning is called _Tajnis_.

147.

They at whose lore the whole world stands amazed,
Whose high thoughts, like Borak, to heaven are raised,
Strive to know Thee in vain, and like heaven's wheel
Their heads are turning, and their brains are dazed.

147. C. L. N. A. Borak, or Burak, the steed on which Muhammad made his famous nocturnal ascent to heaven.

148.

Allah hath promised wine in Paradise,
Why then should wine on earth be deemed a vice?
An Arab in his cups cut Hamzah's girths,--
For that sole cause was drink declared a vice.

148. L. N. Nicolas says this refers to an event which occurred to Hamzah, a relation of Muhammad.

149.

Now of old joys naught but the name is left,
Of all old friends but wine we are bereft,
And that wine _new_, but still cleave to the cup,
For save the cup, what single joy is left?

149. L. N. B.

150.

The world will last long after Khayyam's fame
Has passed away, yea, and his very name;
Aforetime we were not, and none did heed.
When we are dead and gone, 'twill be the same.

150. N.

151.

The sages who have compassed sea and land,
Their secret to search out, and understand,--
My mind misgives me if they ever solve
The scheme on which this universe is planned.

151. C. L. N. A. I.

152.

Ah! wealth takes wings, and leaves our hands all bare,
And death's rough hands delight our hearts to tear;
And from the nether world none e'er escapes,
To bring us news of the poor pilgrims there.

152. C. L. N. A. I.

153.

'Tis passing strange, those titled noblemen
Find their own lives a burden sore, but when
They meet with poorer men, not slaves to sense,
They scarcely deign to reckon them as men.

153. C. L. N. A. I.

154.

The wheel on high, still busied with despite,
Will ne'er unloose a wretch from his sad plight;
But when it lights upon a smitten heart,
Straightway essays another blow to smite.

154. C. L. N. A. I. Vullers, Section 207.

155.

Now is the volume of my youth outworn,
And all my spring-tide blossoms rent and torn.
Ah, bird of youth! I marked not when you came,
Nor when you fled, and left me thus forlorn.

155. C. L. N. A. I.

156.

These fools, by dint of ignorance most crass,
Think they in wisdom all mankind surpass;
And glibly do they damn as infidel,
Whoever is not, like themselves, an ass.

156. N. So Job, «Ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you.» Probably addressed to the 'Ulama.

157.

Still be the wine-house thronged with its glad choir,
And Pharisaic skirts burnt up with fire,
Still be those tattered frocks and azure robes
Trod under feet of revellers in the mire.

157. C. L. N. A. J. Hafiz (Ode V.) speaks of the blue robes of certain Dervishes as a mark of hypocrisy.

158.

Why toil ye to ensure illusions vain,
And good or evil of the world attain?
Ye rise like Zamzam, or the fount of life,
And, like them, in earth's bosom sink again.

158. C. L. N. A. I.

159.

Till the Friend pours his wine to glad my heart,
No kisses to my face will heaven impart
They say, «Repent in time»; but how repent,
Ere Allah's grace hath softened my hard heart?

159. C. L. N. A. I. Meaning, man is powerless to mend his ways without Divine grace.

160.

When I am dead, take me and grind me small,
So that I be a caution unto all,
And knead me into clay with wine, and then
Use me to stop the wine-jar's mouth withal.

160. C. L. N. A. I. J.

161.

What though the sky with its blue canopy
Doth close us in so that we cannot see,
In the etern Cupbearer's wine methinks,
There float a myriad bubbles like to me.

161. N.

162.

Take heart! Long in the weary tomb you'll lie,
While stars keep countless watches in the sky,
And see your ashes moulded into bricks,
To build another's house and turrets high.

162. L. N. C. A. and I. split this into two. In line 1 note _izafat_ dropped after silent _he_.

163.

Glad hearts, who seek not notoriety,
Nor flaunt in gold and silken bravery,
Haunt not this ruined earth like gloomy owls,
But wing their way, Simurgh-like, to the sky.

163. C. L. N. A. I.

164.

Wine's power is known to wine-bibbers alone,
To narrow heads and hearts 'tis never shown;
I blame not them who never felt its force,
For, till they feel it, how can it be known.

164. C. N. A. I. J.

165.

Needs must the tavern-hunter bathe in wine,
For none can make a tarnished name to shine;
Go! bring me wine, for none can now restore
Its pristine sheen to this soiled veil of mine.

165. C. L. N. A. B. I. In line 3 scan _masturiyi_ dissolving the letter of prolongation _ya_.

166.

I wasted life in hope, yet gathered not
In all my life of happiness one jot;
Now my fear is that life may not endure.
Till I have taken vengeance on my lot!

166. C. L. N. A. I. _Rozgare_, «some time.» In line 3 note the _madd_ of _An_ dropped. Bl., Prosody, p. 11.

167.

Be very wary in the soul's domain,
And on the world's affairs your lips refrain;
Be, as it were, sans tongue, sans ear, sans eye,
While tongue, and ears, and eyes you still retain.

167. L. N.

168.

Let him rejoice who has a loaf of bread,
A little nest wherein to lay his head,
Is slave to none, and no man slaves for him,--
In truth his lot is wondrous well bested.

168. C. L. N. A.

169.

What adds my service to Thy majesty?
Or how can sin of mine dishonour Thee?
O pardon, then, and punish not, I know
Thou'rt slow to wrath, and prone to clemency.

169. C. L. N. A. I.

170.

Hands, such as mine, that handle bowls of wine,
'Twere shame to book and pulpit to confine;
Zealot! thou'rt dry, and I am moist with drink,
Yea, far too moist to catch that fire of thine!

170. L. N. I follow Nicolas in taking _mani_ as a possessive pronoun, «mine,» though such a word is not mentioned in any grammar or dictionary. It occurs again in No. 478.

171.

Whoso aspires to gain a rose-cheeked fair,
Sharp pricks from fortune's thorns must learn to bear.
See! till this comb was cleft by cruel cuts,
It never dared to touch my lady's hair.

171. C. L. N. A. I. Lyttleton expresses a similar sentiment.

172.

For ever may my hands on wine be stayed.
And my heart pant for some fair Houri maid!
They say, «May Allah aid thee to repent!»
Repent I could not, e'en with Allah's aid!

172. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. Note the conjunctive pronoun separated from its noun.

173.

Soon shall I go, by time and fate deplored,
Of all my precious pearls not one is bored;
Alas! there die with me a thousand truths
To which these fools fit audience ne'er accord.

173. C. L. N. A. I.

174.

To-day how sweetly breathes the temperate air,
The rains have newly laved the parched parterre;
And Bulbuls cry in notes of ecstasy,
«Thou too, O pallid rose, our wine must share!»

174. L. N. B.

175.

Ere you succumb to shocks of mortal pain,
The rosy grape-juice from your wine-cup drain.
You are not gold, that, hidden in the earth,
Your friends should care to dig you up again!

175. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. Note the old form of the imperative.

176.

My coming brought no profit to the sky,
Nor does my going swell its majesty;
Coming and going put me to a stand,
Ear never heard their wherefore nor their why.

176. C. L. N. A. B. I. J. Voltaire has some similar lines in his poem on the Lisbon earthquake.

177.

The heavenly Sage, whose wit exceeds compare,
Counteth each vein, and numbereth every hair;
Men you may cheat by hypocritic arts,
But how cheat Him to whom all hearts are bare?

177. C. L. N. A. I. J.

178.

Ah! wine lends wings to many a weary wight,
And beauty spots to ladies' faces bright;
All Ramazan I have not drunk a drop,
Thrice welcome, then, O Bairam's blessed night!

178. Bairam, the feast on the 1st Shawwal, after Ramazan. In line 2 _Khirad_ seems wrong, the rhyme would suggest _Kharo_?

179.

All night in deep bewilderment I fret,
With tear-drops big as pearls my breast is wet;
I cannot fill my cranium with wine,
How can it hold wine, when 'tis thus upset?

179. C. L. N. A. I. Note _tashdid_ of _durr_ dropped.

180.

To prayer and fasting when my heart inclined,
All my desire I surely hoped to find;
Alas! my purity is stained with wine,
My prayers are wasted like a breath of wind.

180. C. L. N. A. I. In line 2 scan _Kulliyam_. In line 4 note _izafat_ dropped after silent _he_.

181.

I worship rose-red cheeks with heart and soul,
I suffer not my hand to quit the bowl,
I make each part of me his function do,
Or e'er my parts be swallowed in the Whole.

181. C. L. N. A. I. Line 4 alludes to reabsorption in the Divine essence. Note _juzwiyam_, and _tashdid_ of _kull_ dropped.

182.

This worldly love of yours is counterfeit,
And, like a half-spent blaze, lacks light and heat;
True love is his, who for days, months and years,
Rests not, nor sleeps, nor craves for drink or meat.

182. L. N. B. Line 3 is in metre 17.

183.

Why spend life in vainglorious essay
All Being and Not-being to survey?
Since Death is ever pressing at your heels,
'Tis best to drink or dream your life away.

183. C. L. N. A. I. J. In line 2 scan _payi_. Being, _i.e._, the Deity, the only real existence, and Not-being, the nonentity in which His attributes are reflected.

184.

Some hanker after that vain phantasy
Of Houris, feigned in Paradise to be,
But, when the veil is lifted, they will find
How far they are from Thee, how far from Thee!

184. C. L. N. A. I.

185.

In Paradise, they tell us, Houris dwell,
And fountains run with wine and oxymel:
If these be lawful in the world to come,
Surely 'tis right to love them here as well.

185. C. L. N. A. I. J.

186.

A draught of wine would make a mountain dance,
Base is the churl who looks at wine askance;
Wine is a soul our bodies to inspire,
A truce to this vain talk of temperance!

186. C. L. N. A. I.

187.

Oft doth my soul her prisoned state bemoan,
Her earth-born co-mate she would fain disown,
And quit, did not the stirrup of the law
Upbear her foot from dashing on the stone.

187. N. Meaning, «I would make away with myself, were it not for the Almighty's canon 'gainst self-slaughter.»

188.

The moon of Ramazan is risen, see!
Alas, our wine must henceforth banished be;
Well! on Sha'ban's last day I'll drink enough
To keep me drunk till Bairam's jubilee.

188. C. L. N. A. I. Note _wa_ omitted in line 2. Also ascribed to Jalal 'Asad Bardi.

189.

From life we draw now wine, now dregs to drink,
Now flaunt in silk, and now in tatters shrink;
Such changes wisdom holds of slight account
To those who stand on death's appalling brink!

189. N.

190.

What sage the eternal tangle e'er unravelled,
Or one short step beyond his nature travelled?
From pupils to the masters turn your eyes,
And see, each mother's son alike is gravelled.

190. C. L. N. A. B. I. In line 1 note _ra_ put after the genitive, following its noun. _'Ijz._ ... «impotence is in the hand of each.» «Beyond his nature,» _i.e._, beyond the limit of his own thought.

191.

Crave not of worldly sweets to take your fill,
Nor wait on turns of fortune, good or ill;
Be of light heart, as are the skies above,
They roll a round or two, and then lie still.

191. C. L. N. A. B. I. The skies have their allotted term like you, yet do not distress themselves.

192.

What eye can pierce the veil of God's decrees,
Or read the riddle of earth's destinies?
Pondered have I for years threescore and ten,
But still am baffled by these mysteries.

192. C. L. N. A. I. So Job, «The thunder of his power who can understand?»

193.

They say, when the last trump shall sound its knell,
Our Friend will sternly judge, and doom to hell.
Can aught but good from perfect goodness come?
Compose your trembling hearts, 'twill all be well.

193. C. L. N. A. I. J. _Juzi_, (?) _juz az_.

194.

Drink wine to root up metaphysic weeds,
And tangle of the two-and-seventy creeds;
Do not forswear that wondrous alchemy,
'Twill turn to gold, and cure a thousand needs.

194. C. L. N. A. B. I. Muhammad said, «My people shall be divided into seventy-three sects, all of which, save one, shall have their portion in the fire.» Pocock, Specimen 210.

195.

Though drink is wrong, take care with whom you drink,
And who you are that drink, and what you drink;
And drink at will, for, these three points observed,
Who but the very wise can ever drink?

195. C. L. N. A. B. I. A hit at the casuistry on the subject of wine.

196.

To drain a gallon beaker I design,
Yea, two great beakers, brimmed with richest wine;
Old faith and reason thrice will I divorce,
Then take to wife the daughter of the vine.

196. C. N. A. I. A triple divorce is irrevocable. Koran, ii. 230.

197.

True I drink wine, like every man of sense,
For I know Allah will not take offence;
Before time was, He knew that I should drink,
And who am I to thwart His prescience?

197. C. L. N. A. B. I.

198.

Rich men, who take to drink, the world defy
With shameless riot, and as beggars die;
Place in my ruby pipe some emerald hemp,
'Twill do as well to blind care's serpent eye.

198. C. L. N. A. I. Scan _af'ayi_. The emerald is supposed to have the virtue of blinding serpents.

199.

These fools have never burnt the midnight oil
In deep research, nor do they ever toil
To step beyond themselves, but dress them fine,
And plot of credit others to despoil.

199. C. L. N, A. I. _Shame chand_ Vullers (p. 253) takes this _ya_ to be _ya i tankir_; and Lumsden (ii. 269) says the presence of this letter, between a noun and its attribute, dispenses with the _izafat_ (?). But why not add the _izafat_, and scan _Shamiyi_?

200.