Revised translation of the Chahár maqála : ("Four discourses") of Nizámí-i-ʼArúdí of Samarqand, followed by an abridged translation of Mírzá Muhammad's notes to the Persian text / by Edward G. Browne.

Nizami Aruzi

Date:: 1921

Credit: Revised translation of the Chahár maqála : ("Four discourses") of Nizámí-i-ʼArúdí of Samarqand, followed by an abridged translation of Mírzá Muhammad's notes to the Persian text / by Edward G. Browne. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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$of the army of Transoxiana and Khurasan moved forward from the centre, only half of Makan’s army was engaged, while the rest were not fighting. Makan was slain, and Tash, 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 carry, and shall adequately express our meaning.” Then Iskaff took so much paper as two fingers would cover and wrote :—“As for Mdkdn, he hath become as his name1 \Md kdn — “ He hath not been” in Arabic]. By this “ ma” he in¬ tended the negative, and by “kdn ” the preterite of the verb, so that the Persian of it would be, “ Makan hath become like his name,” that is to say, hath become nothing. When the carrier-pigeon reached the Amfr Nuh, he was not more delighted at this victory than at this despatch, and he ordered Iskaff’s salary to be increased, saying, “ Such a person must maintain a heart free from care in order to attain to such delicacies of expression2.” 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 con¬ centrated 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 the ‘Abbasid 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 (\y) 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 0 ^ ^ + x Jo 1 ‘ jLai Lot / / - 2 The substance of this anecdote is given in the Tartkh-i-Gnztda, and is cited by Defremery at pp. 247-248 of his Histoire des Samanides (Paris, 1845).$