[Explaining that the earthen body of man, like iron of fine substance, is capable of becoming a mirror, so that therein even in this world Paradise and Hell and the Resurrection et cetera are shown by immediate vision, not in the mode of phantasy.]
Then, though you art dark-bodied like iron, make a practice of polishing, polishing, polishing,
2470. That your heart may
become a mirror full of images, (with)
a lovely silverbreasted (form reflected) therein on every side.
Although the iron was dark and
devoid of light, polishing cleared away the
darkness from it. The iron saw (suffered)
the polishing and
made its face fair, so that images could be
seen
therein.
If the earthen body is gross and dark, polish it—for it is receptive
to the polishing instrument—
In order that the forms
of the Unseen may appear
in it, and that the
reflexion of
houri and angel may dart into it.
2475. God has given you the
polishing instrument, Reason, to the end that thereby the leaf
(surface) of the heart
may be made resplendent.
Thou, O prayerless man, have put the polisher (Reason) in bonds
and
have loosed the two hands of sensuality.
If bonds be
put
on sensuality, the hand of the polisher (Reason) will be
untied.
A piece
of iron that
became a mirror of the Unseen—all
the
forms (of the Unseen)
would be shot
into it.
(But) you madest (thy heart)
dark and didst let the
rust into your nature: this is (the inner meaning of) they work evil on the earth.
2480. So have you
done till now:
now do it not. You have made the
water turbid: do not
make it more (so).
Do not stir it up
(befoul it): let this water
become clear, and
(then) behold the moon and
stars circling therein.
For man is like
the water of the river: when it
becomes turbid,
you canst not see its bottom. The bottom of the river is full of jewels and
full of pearls: take heed, do not make (the water)
turbid, for it is (originally)
pure and free (from
pollution).
The spirit
of man resembles air: when it (air)
is
mixed with
dust, it veils the
sky,
2485. And prevents
(the eye) from
seeing the sun; (but)
when its dust is gone,
it becomes pure and undefiled.
Notwithstanding your complete darkness, God was showing visions unto
you, that you might’st
wend the way of deliverance.
How Moses, on whom be peace, declared (by inspiration) from the Unseen the
secret thoughts and visions of Pharaoh, in order that he might truly believe in the omniscience of God or (at least) hold that opinion.
From the dark iron (of your nature) He, by His power, was showing
forth the visions that should come to
pass in the end,
In order
that you might’st lessen (refrain from)
that injustice and wickedness: you wert seeing
those (visions) and
becoming
more wicked.
He was showing unto you hideous forms in dream: you wert
shrinking back from
them, and (in reality) they were
your (own) form;
2490. Like the Ethiopian
(negro) who saw in the
mirror that his face was
ugly, et in speculum
cacavit,
Saying, ‘How ugly you art! You art
deserving only of this.’ (The
mirror
replies), ‘My ugliness belongs
to you, O vile blind one.
You art putting this
filth on your ugly face: it is not on me, for I have splendour.’
At one time you
wert seeing (in vision) your raiment burnt; at another
time your mouth and eyes stitched up;
Now a (rapacious) animal seeking
your blood;
now your head in the teeth
of a wild beast;
2495. Now (in
your dream you wert) upside down in the midst of a latrine;
now sunk in a fierce blood-dyed
torrent;
Now from this pure heaven came to
you a voice crying, ‘You art
damned, you art damned, damned’;
Now from the
mountains came to you a voice, (saying) plainly, ‘Begone! You
art one of
the people of the left hand’;
Now from every
inanimate thing was coming to you a voice
(which cried), ‘Pharaoh
is fallen into
Hell for evermore’;
(And you sawest) worse
things than these, which
from shame I will not tell, lest
your perverted nature become hot (with
anger).
2500. I have told you a little, O you who wilt not accept (my warning): from a little you mayst know that I am
acquainted (with the
whole).
You wert making
yourself blind and dead, that you might’st not
bethink you of the
dreams and visions.
How long wilt you flee? Lo, it is come to you in despite of your guile-meditating perception.
Explaining that the door of repentance is open.
Hark, do not
act
(so) henceforth, (but) take precaution, for through (God's)
bounty the door of repentance
is open.
From the quarter of the
West a door of repentance is open to mankind
till the Resurrection.
2505. Till the sun lifts
up its head (rises) from the West, that
door is open: do not avert your face from it.
By the mercy
(of God) Paradise has
eight doors: one of those
eight is the door of repentance, O
son.
All the others are sometimes
open, sometimes shut;
and never is the door of
repentance but
open.
Come, seize the opportunity: the
door is open: carry your baggage thither at once in despite of
the envious (Devil).
How Moses, on whom be peace, said to Pharaoh, “Accept one counsel from me and take four excellent qualities as recompense.”
Come, accept from
me one thing and
bring (it into practice), and
then take from
me four as recompense for that.”
2510. He replied, “O Moses,
what is that one thing? Explain to me a little about that one thing.”
“That one thing,” said he,
“is that you shouldst say publicly that there is no god but
the Maker,
The Creator of the
heavenly spheres and of the stars on high
and of man and devil and genie and
bird,
The Creator of sea and plain
and mountain and desert:
His sovereignty is without
limit and He is
without like.”
He (Pharaoh) said, “O Moses, what are
those four things that you wilt give me in recompense? Declare (what they are)
and bring (them before me),
2515. That perchance, by the favour
of that goodly promise, the
crucifixion
(torment) of my unbelief may be assuaged.
Perchance the lock of my hundred maunds'
weight of unbelief may be
opened by those fair
and
desirable promises.
Perchance, by the
effect of the
river of honey, this poison of
hatred may be
turned into honey
in my body;
Or by the
reflexion of the
river of that
pure milk, (my) captive intelligence
may be nourished for a moment;
Or perchance, by the
reflexion of those rivers of wine,
I may be intoxicated and obtain a scent of the
delight of (obedience to)
the
(Divine) command;
2520. Or perchance, by the favour of those rivers of water, my
barren devastated body may gain
refreshment—
Some verdure may appear
on my barren soil,
my
thorn-brake may become
the Garden of
(everlasting) abode;
Perchance, by the reflexion of
Paradise and the four
rivers, my spirit,
through God's befriending
(it), may become a seeker of the
Friend,
In the same
fashion as from
the reflexion of Hell I have become fire
and am steeped in the wrath of God.
At one moment, from
the reflexion of the snake
of Hell I have become
(engaged in) dropping
poison, like a snake,
on those who shall dwell in Paradise;
2525. At another time, from
the reflexion of the boiling of the
hot water (of Hell), the
water of my oppression has
made the people
(like) rotten bones.
From the reflexion
of
the zamharír (intense cold of Hell) I
am (as) the zamharír; or from the reflexion of the sa‘ír (flames of Hell) I am as the sa‘ír.
I am now the Hell of the poor
and oppressed: woe to him
whom I suddenly find subject
(to
me)!”
How Moses, on whom be peace, explained those four excellent qualities (which should be bestowed) as a reward for Pharaoh's coming into the Faith. Moses said, “The first of those four will be constant health for
your body: These maladies that are described in (books of) Medicine will be far from your body, O
estimable one.
2530. Secondly, you wilt
have a long life, for
death will be
cautious of
(attacking) your life;
And after a life
uniform (in
happiness) this will not be (the sequel, namely) that
you wilt go forth from
the world against your will;
Nay, but (you wilt go) desiring
death as the sucking
babe (desires
milk), not on account of
the
pain that holds you captive.
You wilt be seeking death, but not from painful infirmity; nay, you wilt see the treasure in the ruin
of
the house (of the body).
Therefore with yours own
hand you wilt take a pick-axe and smite upon the house without any care;
2535. For you wilt deem the house to be the barrier to the
treasure, and this single grain to
be the obstacle to
a hundred corn-stacks.
This grain, then, you wilt
cast into the fire
and adopt the (only)
profession that is worthy of a man.”
O you who because of
(addiction to) a single leaf
have been left without (enjoyment of) a
(whole) orchard, you art
like the worm which
(desire for) a leaf has driven away
from (deprived of)
the vineyard.
When Grace awakened this worm, this worm devoured
the dragon of ignorance.
The worm
became a vineyard
full of fruit
and trees: even so is the blessed
man transformed.
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