سندبادنامه 123
English (machine translation) 123
- Language
- English
123.1
The Creator of the world has always ordained this nature: / goodness after evil, and joy after sorrow.
He rubbed his face and hair in the dust of humiliation and said: If the king gives no weight to this servant's rights of service and long-standing
servitude, and takes no pity on the hearts of his children and women who will become orphans and widows,
yet today the kings of the world cite his justice and equity as a proverb, and derive the rule
and mandate of equity and justice from the chancery of his majesty, and seek the exposition of the fiefs of the realms
of justice from the scribe of his generosity. It is not worthy of his justice to deem such punishment
permissible against his servant without cause, or to dye his hair, which in the course of his service had turned white
has turned white in the long course of service, with the blood of the dagger!' The king said, 'What crime could be greater than this,
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that I ordered you to train and discipline this elephant, and yet in the span of three years
it remains refractory and wild?' The elephant-driver said, 'May it be known to the most noble and exalted judgment that
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the servant has not been negligent in any manner of discipline and instruction, and has taught it all the proprieties of motion
and rest. If the king commands that the servant's hands and feet be unloosed,
he will make the proof of this claim manifest before the king's eyes and will clearly display the evidence of compliance
with royal commands and prohibitions before [your] sight.' When the king heard these preliminary points,
the fury of his anger subsided, and he commanded that the bonds and chains be removed from his hands and feet.
The elephant-driver climbed onto the elephant's back and said, 'Let them bring bundles of grass and pieces of fiery iron!'
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When both were brought forward, the elephant, out of extreme hunger and need
for fodder, reached out its trunk toward the fodder. The elephant-driver said, 'Do not take the fodder; take up
the fire!' It moved to take up the fire. He said, 'Do not take it up; place your trunk on it!' It moved
to place its trunk upon it. He said, 'Do not place your trunk upon it; pay homage to the king!' The elephant paid homage to the king.
The elephant-driver kissed the ground and said, 'May the king live forever in perfection of dominion and permanence of power!
I was able to teach this elephant that which it could perform with head, neck, hands,
feet, and trunk; but that which pertained to its heart and innate nature, I was not able
to teach, for that is concealed from me, and I have no knowledge of it. Perchance it was celestial destiny
that it should rebel against the rein of the king's control; and human intellects cannot attain insight into the hidden secrets of fate
and the concealed effects of destiny. Whatever incident descends from the upper realm
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Sindbād Undertakes the Education of the Prince and the Viziers Object
to the lower realm, repelling it lies not within the capability of created beings: "And when God wills evil for a people, there is no repelling it" (13:11).' When the king heard the elephant-driver's argument,
‘[When] God [intends] evil for a people, there is no turning it back’ (Qurʾān 13:11). When the shah heard the argument of the elephant-keeper,
he forgave his offense.
[Sindbād said,] 'And I, the servant nurtured by the bounty and praying for the realm of the king, have up until this
point, under the shadow of his kindnesses and graces, acquired the means of religious and worldly prosperity,
and within the shelter of his clemency and the proximity of his mercy, occupied myself with resolving grave matters and solving difficult problems.
And when the king's luminous judgment bestowed upon the servant the honor of educating his son,
I performed every exertion and endeavor that was possible. Yet a secret among the deposits
of fate and the concealments of destiny placed the hand of rejection upon his forehead and cast away the cast of his dice,
and no creature can gallop a horse or carry a ball on the field of resistance against celestial fate.
And now the auspicious stars of the heavens are aspecting the prince's ascendant, and up to this point
I have been watching for this opportunity and waiting for this hour; by compiling the astronomical table and casting the ephemeris,
I have awaited and observed the rising of these auspicious stars and the attainment of this goal. And now,
by the requirement of fate, the aspect of the two auspicious planets, and the effect of the Creator's grace, I undertake
that within the space of six months I shall teach all that belongs to the conduct of kings and the conditions of sovereigns, including noble
morals, praiseworthy qualities, subtleties of the sciences, exquisite dispositions, the secrets of the science
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Sindbād Undertakes the Education of the Prince and the Viziers Object
of astrology, knowledge of the degrees and minutes of the ephemeris, the subtlety of the science of medicine, extracts of the properties of drugs,
and other subjects besides. And if any deficiency or delay should enter into its requirements,
I shall be deserving of the king's punishment and chastisement.' The company of viziers and courtiers marveled at this speech
and said, 'O sage, you have made a tremendous claim! The wise have said that every word
that does not culminate in action is a rainless cloud, a blunted sword, and a barren tree.
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Since he did not attain perfection in the span of twelve years, how will it be accomplished in six months?'
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One of the company of viziers said, 'There are four things that do not warrant praise or blame until they are completed:
first, food until it is digested; second, a pregnant woman until she gives birth; third, a brave warrior until
he emerges from the battle; fourth, a farmer until he gathers yield and crop from the seed and grain.' Another
said, 'No science can be acquired without tools and instruments, and those are purity of nature,
perfection of sagacity, and strength of memory and reflection; and with all this, it cannot be possible without divine grace and celestial
confirmation. The custom and experience of people is that when in the beginning of growth,
the start of childhood, the tenderness of age, and the prime of youth—when the mind and memory are at the height of sharpness
and clarity, and natural talent and intelligence are in the perfection of growth and development—if nothing of the sciences is acquired,
it will likewise not be acquired at the close of one's days and in old age.' Another said, 'Sindbād is deeply versed in the sciences
and virtues, and abundantly endowed with numerous disciplines; and sages consider it an obligation to guard and protect the gardens of words, the meadow of speech,
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Sindbād Undertakes the Education of the Prince and the Viziers Object
and the rose-garden of meanings from the thorns and weeds of falsehood, and to preserve the beauty
of veracity in speech—which is the distinguishing property of man—from the deformities of falsehood and the shames of deceit.'
[protect], and the vigilance and alertness of Sindbād are known and acknowledged to the inhabitants of the realms; and deeds
are dependent and contingent upon times. Whoever, in the season of the equinox of Farvardīn, when planting and trimming,
makes ornamentation, [if] its soil does not nurture it with maternal affection, and its water, through the fosterage of the zephyr, does not grant it
the milk of favor, then the month of Urdībihisht will not clothe it in the robe of paradise."
The shah, from these agreeable premises and elegant words, regained his composure, and his agitation subsided,
and he said: "'What is past, I do not mention.' You must fulfill this promise,
and protect words of equity from the falsehoods of contradiction; for the elders have said: 'Breach
of a promise is like the willow tree (khilāf): it has the appearance of greenness, freshness, and luster, but it has neither blossom
nor fruit:'
Linked texts (1)
- سندبادنامه — Ẓahīrī Samarqandī, Persian