Waste not thou the moment, if thy heart is not mad,
For the value of the remainder of thy life is not certain.”
PRESS AND PERSONAL NOTICES
Mr. Rihani’s book is soundly workmanlike, with adequate scholarship, and is often very felicitous. He has done a real service to modern understanding of an important though slightly known literature in presenting these selections with sufficient annotation.—New York Evening Sun.
The Luzumiyat. By Abu’l-Ala. Born in Syria, in the tenth century A. D., this poet, scholar, teacher, philosopher and pessimist became known as “the Voltaire of the East,” and may well be read for the beauty of his work, even if there is little agreement with his general ideas of life.—The Christian Century.
Abu’l-Ala is a true poet, with a philosophy much nobler than Omar’s, and Mr. Rihani’s translation has rare poetic qualities.—Edwin Markham.