That thou mayst be fit for Life’s battle,
That thy body and soul may burn in Life’s fire!
FOOTNOTES:
[58] I.e. in his body.
[59] Khizr, according to the legend, discovered the Fountain of Life in the Land of Darkness.
[60] In this passage the author assails the Persian and Urdu poetry so much in favour with his contemporaries.
[61] Arabic odes usually begin with a prelude in which the poet makes mention of his beloved; and her name is often Salmá. Here “the Salmá of Araby” refers to the Koran and the ideals for which it stands.
[62] It is related that an ignorant Kurd came to some students and besought them to instruct him in the mysteries of Súfism. They told him that he must fasten a rope to the roof of his house, then tie the loose end to his feet and suspend himself, head downwards; and that he must remain in this posture as long as possible, reciting continually some words of gibberish which they taught him. The poor man did not perceive that he was being mocked. He followed their instructions and passed the whole night repeating the words given him. God rewarded his faith and sincerity by granting him illumination, so that he became a saint and could discourse learnedly on the most abstruse matters of mystical theology. Afterwards he used to say, “In the evening I was a Kurd, but the next morning I was an Arab.”