»T f 



. f 



S6, 



s from the Nafhat 

 and translated by 



LiEUT.-CoLONEL D. C. Phillott and Mr. R. P. Azoo. 



The following stories appear in the original edition of the 

 Arabic, published by the Author in 1811, under the auspices of 

 the College of Fort William, They have been omitted in the re- 

 print published by the Board of Examiners and, consequently, 

 from the two English translations of Part I of the " Breezes/' 

 They have some historical as weU as anthropolosrical interest. 



Story I.* 



KhsUd 



rf ^ 



tary, used to love beautiful boys, and towards the close of his life 

 his mind had become affected on this account. One day 1 saw 

 him astride a cane ^ talking to a good-looking youth and saying 

 to him : — 



r , 



L 



* Is it not time that thy heart should pity me ? * 



The youth said, ' No.' 



Said Khalid^ * For how long will love for thee make sport of 



me?' 



Said the youth, * For ever.* 



Said Khalid^ * How lono^ am I to endure anguish on thy 



account ? ' 



Said the youth, ' Till death.' 



Said ^hdlid^ ' May God never deprive my heart of love ! ' 



Said the youth, 'Amen ! ' 



Added Khali d. * May He never inflict thy heart with it ! ' 



The youth replied, ' God has clearly freed it/ 



Then ^alid said, * If my Lord has decreed that I should 



love 



Interrupted the youth, * What is that to me ? ' ' 

 Continued Khalid^ * ^ — with intensity of passion 



what 



crime is that in thee ? ' 



Said the yooth, * Ask thyself.' 



1 There seems to be no point whatever in this story except that it is a 

 historical fact. 



^ Abu^l-Haysam Khali d^-^hn^-Tazid aUKatih, a clerk and paymaster of 

 the army; lived at Baghdad in the beginning of the third century of the 

 Hijrah. His life ia given in Vol. xxi of the Kitah* H-Aghdnl. 



3 i.e., riding it as a child rides a hobby-horse. This seems to be a com* 

 mon action amongst mad Arabs. 



