Muntakhab al-tawarikh 257.4

257.4

Thou layest thy hand on the tusk of the elephant, But thy people take the finger of anxiety between their teeth. Thou layest thy hand on the elephant's trunk, But our sleeves are shaken free of the world. Thou boldly facest the raging tiger, While men flee on every side in terror. Take thou thy pleasure in the fighting of leopards, While we in fear tear our faces with our hands and our nails. Thou withstandest unmoved the attack of the wolf, While all, both great and small, wonder at thee from afar. Thou seizest by its neck the snake that has, like the dragon, an arrow for its tongue, While the people of the world are writhing in dread. Thou art swimming in a boundless ocean, While we, washing our hands of life, stand trembling on its brink. Thou enterest the forest intent on the chase, The people stand at its margin in fear and anxiety. In one dark night thou travellest a month’s journey, While men struggle after thee sighing for the light of a torch. Thou wanderest almost naked in the cold, While the people are shivering under their wrappings. Thou runnest, heavily clad, in the heat, While the people, bathed in sweat, take shelter under a tree. Thou pressest onward in every direction on foot, While we on our horses are fainting with weariness. Thou facest the warlike foe on the field of battle, While the army looks on from every side.