An Analysis of Edward Fitzgerald's Translation of the Quatrains of Omar Khayyam ( Fifth Edition ) By Edward Heron-Allen
Preface
The object with which this volume has been compiled has been to set at rest, once and for ever, the vexed question of how far Edward FitzGerald's incomparable poem may be regarded as a translation of the Persian originals, how far as an adaptation, and how far as an original work. In the Introduction to my recently published translation of the Ouseley MS. in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and more particularly in the Essay which terminates the second edition of that work, I have dwelt at considerable length upon the history of Edward FitzGerald's poem and the influences of various Oriental works which are traceable in it. As it is doubtful whether the present volume will reach the hands of, or at any rate be critically considered by, any students of the poem who have not already had access to my former work, I do not think that it would be either expedient or useful to repeat in this place the information which is collected there, but a short history of the major portion of Edward FitzGerald's material is necessary, for the purpose of showing why this question of translation, adaptation, or original composition should have been a question open to lengthy argument, and why it has been impossible to set it at rest until the present time, when forty years have elapsed since first Edward FitzGerald's poem attracted the attention of those great scholars and poets who rescued it, as recounted in the threadbare anecdote, from the oblivion of the penny box.
The influence of the Ouseley MS. upon the poem forms the subject of the volume to which I have referred, and, save in so far as it recurs in the parallels which give excuse for the present work, may be dismissed, but the doubts which have sprung up as to the extent to which Edward FitzGerald took, as his editor, Mr. Aldis Wright, says, «great liberties with the original,» have arisen in consequence of the vicissitudes which have befallen the rest of the material from which the poet worked during the construction of his first edition. We know that Prof. Cowell made a copy of the Ouseley MS. for Edward FitzGerald just before he went to India in August, 1856. In another letter he says «I got a copy made for him from the one MS. in the Bengal Asiatic Society's Library at Calcutta soon after I arrived in November, 1856. It reached FitzGerald June 14th, 1857, as I learn by a note in his writing. Some time after this I sent him a copy of that rare Calcutta printed edition which I got from my Munshi.» To possess oneself therefore of full information as to what material Edward FitzGerald really worked from in making the original edition of his poem, it was necessary to consult, line by line, and word by word, the Calcutta MS. (noted as No. 1548 in the Bengal Asiatic Society's Library) and the Calcutta printed edition of 1836,—in addition, of course, to the Ouseley MS. Prof. Cowell most generously placed at my disposal his copy of the Calcutta MS., but, as he himself has recorded, the copy was made by an inferior scribe in a hand which is exceedingly difficult to read. I therefore communicated with Mr. A.T. Pringle, Director of Indian Records in the Home Department at Calcutta, himself a keen and critical student of Omar Khayyam, with a view to getting either a photographic reproduction, or a clean copy of this MS. made for me. Careful search and widely spread enquiry brought to light the fact that the MS. was lost, stolen, or strayed, so that Prof. Cowell's copy was the only record left of this portion of Edward FitzGerald's material. This copy I sent out to India, and had copied by a good writer, a copy being made at the same time to replace that which had been stolen.
I next addressed myself to the discovery of «that rare Calcutta printed edition,» of whose existence, after searching in vain every European State library and many others, and every library in India of which I could learn, I began to have grave doubts, thinking that Prof. Cowell had inadvertently confused it with an edition lithographed simultaneously at Calcutta and Teheran in 1836. In the summer, however, when I had given up all hope, one of Mr. Pringle's clerks picked up a copy of the long sought book in the Bazar at Calcutta, printed from type at Calcutta in 1836. A circumstance that greatly adds to the interest of this discovery, whilst at the same time it very greatly lessened my labours, lies in the fact that this edition is evidently printed from the lost Calcutta MS. itself, both introduction and quatrains being identical in readings and sequence. A few quatrains, including the repetitions, forming part of the MS. and nearly all those written in the margins of the MS. are omitted, but nearly all of these are added as an appendix to the book, the printer explaining in a short note that they were found in a bayaz (or book of extracts), and were added in that place instead of in their diwan (or alphabetical) order on account of their more than ordinarily antinomian tendency. A very interesting question arises hereon, whether these latter were printed into the book from the margins of the MS. after being purposely or accidentally omitted, or whether they were written on to the margin of the MS. from this book at some date between 1836 and 1856. I think that the former is the more likely explanation, but in the absence of the MS. this question cannot be solved.
I find myself therefore in the interesting position of having the whole of FitzGerald's material before me; and though (so perfectly did Edward FitzGerald identify himself with his author's habit of mind) many other MSS. contain quatrains that closely resemble his marvellous paraphrase, there is nothing written by or attributed to Omar Khayyam which served FitzGerald for inspiration in making his first edition, other than what is to be found in the three, or rather two, texts above referred to. I have spoken already (and at length, in the Terminal Essay to my former volume) of the influences exerted by other Oriental poets upon his work, and especially that of the Mantik ut-tair, or Parliament of Birds of Ferid ud din Attar; where it was direct or exclusive I have set it down in the parallels which follow. The result of my observations may be summarised as follows:
Of Edward FitzGerald's quatrains, forty-nine are faithful and beautiful paraphrases of single quatrains to be found in the Ouseley or Calcutta MSS., or both.[14]
Forty-four are traceable to more than one quatrain, and therefore may be termed «composite» quatrains.
Two are inspired by quatrains found by FitzGerald only in Nicolas' text.
Two are quatrains reflecting the whole spirit of the original poem.
Two are traceable exclusively to the influence of the Mantik ut-tair of Ferid ud din Attar.
Two quatrains primarily inspired by Omar were influenced by the Odes of Hafiz.
And three, which appeared only in the first and second editions and were afterwards suppressed by Edward FitzGerald himself, are not—so far as a careful search enables me to judge—attributable to any lines of the original texts. Other authors may have inspired them, but their identification is not useful in this case.
The «fillip,» so to speak, given to FitzGerald's interest in the ruba'iyat, by the publication of Monsieur J.B. Nicolas' text and translation of 464 «Les Quatrains de Khèyam» (Paris, 1867), must not be lost sight of, and may be held responsible for many, if not most of the variations and additions that differentiate the second, third, and fourth editions from the first. This volume, as FitzGerald himself records in his Introduction to the second and subsequent editions, «reminded him of several things and instructed him in others.» Two of FitzGerald's later quatrains at least (Nos. 46 and 98) come from that text, and these I have never seen in any MS. text; and, in seeking the parallels to the present volume, I have collated exactly 5,235 ruba'iyat in the original Persian. I have appended to every Persian ruba'i in the following pages, references to the texts in which I have found the same ruba'i, in the identical form, or more or less varied, and it will be observed that, for the most part, the ruba'iyat which inspired FitzGerald are those which have so appealed to the Oriental mind as to be represented in nearly all the MSS. and texts under examination. The Ouseley MS. being the first text that occupied FitzGerald's attention, where his inspirational lines occur both in that MS. and the Calcutta MS., I have given the Ouseley MS. version, noting any important variations to be found in the Calcutta MS. It will be observed that FitzGerald's tendency, after the second edition, was to eliminate quatrains which were merely suggested by the general tone and sentiment of the original poem, and not the reflection or translation of particular and identifiable ruba'iyat. The reader is especially recommended, when studying these parallels, to turn to the corresponding quatrain in the first edition, for FitzGerald often diverged further from the originals in making his subsequent variations—notably, for instance, in the first and forty-eighth quatrains.
With regard to my own translations of the originals in the following pages, I may remark that the excessive baldness of the translation is intentional, for I deemed it better to put before the lovers of FitzGerald's poem the closest and most unpolished English rendering, rather than to attempt to clothe the literal meaning of the originals in graceful phraseology.
I desire to record in this place my most cordial thanks, for the invaluable assistance they have given me in the preparation of this volume, to Mr. A.T. Pringle, Professor E.B. Cowell, and Dr. E. Denison Ross, and to Mr. Aldis Wright, Edward FitzGerald's literary executor, and his publishers Messrs. Macmillan, for their very kind permission to reproduce in this volume the poem which has brought it into existence.
EDWARD HERON-ALLEN.
Explanation of the References in the Following Parallels
The following are the alternative texts and translations referred to in the following parallels:—
O.—The Ouseley MS. No. 140 in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, dated a.h. 865 (a.d. 1460), containing 158 ruba'iyat. A facsimile and translation with notes, etc., were published by H.S. Nichols, Ltd. (London, 1898).
C.—The Calcutta MS. No. 1548 in the Bengal Asiatic Society's Library at Calcutta, containing 510 ruba'iyat. The original has been lost or stolen, but a copy has been made from the copy made for Edward FitzGerald at the instance of Prof. Cowell.
L.—The Lucknow lithograph. The edition referred to is that of a.h. 1312 (a.d. 1894), containing 770 ruba'iyat.
W.—The text and metrical translation published by E.H. Whinfield (London, Trübner, 1883), containing 500 ruba'iyat.
N.—The text and prose translation published by J.B. Nicolas (Paris, Imprimerie Impériale, 1867), containing 464 ruba'iyat.
S.P.—The text lithographed at St. Petersburg, a.h. 1308 (a.d. 1888), containing 453 ruba'iyat. Almost identical with N.
B.—A collection of poems lithographed at Bombay, a.h. 1297 (a.d. 1880), containing 756 ruba'iyat of Omar. Almost identical with L.
B. ii.—The MS. in the Public Library at Bankipur, dated a.h. 961-2 (a.d. 1553-4), containing 604 ruba'iyat.
P.—The MS. in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Supplément Persan, No. 823, ff. 92-113. Dated a.h. 934 (a.d. 1527), containing 349 ruba'iyat.
P. ii.—Seven ruba'iyat written upon blank pages of MS. of the Diwan of Emad. Dated a.h. 786 (a.d. 1384). Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Supplément Persan, No. 745. The handwriting is of the end of the 9th or beginning of the 10th century of the Hijrah.
P. iii.—Six ruba'iyat written in a handwriting of the 11th century of the Hijrah, on fol. 104 of a MS. collection of poems. Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Supplément Persan, No. 793.
P. iv.—The MS. in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Supplément Persan, No. 826, ff. 391-394. Dated a.h. 937 (a.d. 1530), containing 76 ruba'iyat.
P. v.—The MS. in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Ancien Fonds., No. 349, ff. 181-210. Dated a.h. 920 (a.d. 1514), containing 213 ruba'iyat.
T.—The MS. in the Library of the Nawab of Tonk. Apparently copied about a.d. 1840 principally from C., containing 369 ruba'iyat.
E.C.—The quatrains translated by Prof. E.B. Cowell in his article in the «Calcutta Review,» No. 59, March, 1858, p. 149.
De T.—The ten quatrains translated from the Ouseley MS. by Garcin de Tassy in his «Note sur les Ruba'iyat d'Omar Khaïyām.» (Paris, Imprimerie Impériale, 1857.)
V.—The metrical translation by John Payne, published by the Villon Society (London, 1898), containing 845 quatrains.
Analysis of Edward Fitzgerald's Quatrains
I.
Wake! For the Sun, who scatter'd into flight
The Stars before him from the Field of Night,
Drives Night along with them from Heav'n, and strikes
The Sultan's Turret with a Shaft of Light.
This version of the opening quatrain is gradually evolved through the four editions. The quatrain, which, in the first edition runs:
Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night
Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight:
And lo! the Hunter of the East has caught
The Sultan's Turret in a Noose of Light.
is inspired by C. 134.
The Sun casts the noose of morning upon the roofs,
Kai Khosru of the day, he throws a stone into the bowl:
Drink wine! for the Herald of the Dawn, rising up,
Hurls into the days the cry of «Drink ye!»
Ref.:[15]L. 235, B. 232, C. 134, P. 320, T. 138.—W. 233, V. 242.
It is not surprising that Mr. Aldis Wright, in his editorial note at the end of Messrs. Macmillan's definitive edition (London, 1890), states that «the first stanza is entirely his own,» for, in this precise form the ruba'i is only to be found in the Calcutta MS. and in a recently discovered MS. copied largely from it and belonging to the Nawab of Tonk. The matter rests upon the word «stone» in the second line. The word means «to fling a stone into a cup or pot,» which is the signal for «striking camp» among tribes of nomad Arabs. All the other texts I have seen read wine for stone which has made the translators (Whinfield and Payne) properly render the passage «pours wine into the cup.»
II.
Before the phantom of False morning died,
Methought a Voice within the Tavern cried,
«When all the Temple is prepared within,
«Why nods the drowsy Worshipper outside?»
The inspiration for this quatrain is to be found in C. 5:
There came one morning a cry from our tavern:
«Ho! our crazy, tavern-haunting profligate[16]
«Arise! that we may fill the measure with wine,
«Ere they fill up our measure (of life).»
Ref.: L. 1, B. 1, C. 5, B. ii. 1, T. 3.—W. 1, N. 1, V. 1.
In FitzGerald's quatrain there is traceable the influence of one of the odes of Hafiz, translated by Prof. Cowell (in «Fraser's Magazine,» September, 1854), which he greatly admired. The lines in question run:
The morning dawns and the cloud has woven a canopy,
The morning draught, my friends, the morning draught!
It is strange that at such a season
They shut up the wine tavern! Oh, hasten!
Have they still shut up the door of the tavern?
Open, oh thou Keeper of the Gates![17]
The influence of these lines is carried on into the next quatrain.
III.
And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before
The Tavern shouted—«Open then the Door!
You know how little while we have to stay,
And, once departed, may return no more.»
The inspiration for this quatrain is found in four ruba'iyat of the Calcutta MS., viz.: 641, 207 (ll. 3 and 4), 273, 247.
It is the hour for the morning draught, and the cock-crow, O Saki,
Here are we, and the wine, and the street of the vintners, O Saki,
What time is this for devotions? Be silent, O Saki,
Let be the traditions,[18] and drink to the dregs, O Saki.
Ref.: L. 685, B. 676, C. 461, S.P. 448, B. ii. 599.—W. 483, N. 454, V. 737.
Thou must drink wine, and gratify the pleasures of thy heart,
It is clear that so long (and no longer) thou wilt remain in this world.
Ref.: L. 281, B. 277, C. 207.—V. 285.
O Essence of Delight! Arise, it is the dawn!
Softly, softly drink wine, and play the harp
For those who are asleep do not find much,
And none of those who are gone will ever come back.
Ref.: L. 431, B. 427, P. 289, C. 273, B. ii. 307, T. 173, P. v. 163.—N. 235,
V. 469.
It is the dawn! Arise, O strange boy!
Fill up the crystal cup with ruby wine.
For this moment (of existence) that is lent thee in this corner of mortality
Thou may'st seek long, but thou shalt not find it again.
Ref.: L. 402, B. 398, P. 224, S.P. 213, C. 247, B. ii. 282, P. iv. 21.—N. 214, V. 425.
IV.
Now the New Year reviving old Desires,
The thoughtful Soul to Solitude retires,
Where the White Hand of Moses on the Bough
Puts out, and Jesus from the Ground suspires.
This quatrain is translated from two ruba'iyat in the Ouseley MS., 13 and 80.
Now that there is a possibility of happiness for the world,
Every living heart[19] has yearnings towards the desert,
Upon every bough is the appearance of Moses' hand,
In every breeze is the exhalation of Jesus' breath.[20]
Ref.: P. 194, O. 13.—W. 116.
Now is the time when by the spring breezes[21] the world is adorned,
And in hope of rain it opens its eyes,[22]
The hands of Moses appear like froth upon the bough,
And the breath of Jesus comes forth from the earth.
Ref.: O. 80, L. 272, B. 268, C. 204, S.P. 186, P. 157.—W. 201, N. 186, V. 276.
V.
Iram indeed is gone with all his Rose,
And Jamshyd's Sev'n-ring'd Cup where no one knows;
But still a Ruby kindles in the Vine,
And many a Garden by the Water blows.
This is a very composite quatrain, which cannot be claimed as a translation of all, or the main part of any, of the C. or O. quatrains. All the texts, as indeed all Persian poetry, are filled with references of which we find an echo here. In the authorities at our disposal, Jamshyd is referred to in C. 254. The Ruby in the Wine occurs in O. 39, 87, 149, and in C. 296, 304, 413, and 460. The Garden by the Water occurs in O. 151 (C. 415), and in C. 44 and 417. I have never found any reference to the Garden of Iram in quatrains attributed to Omar Khayyam.[23]
VI.
And David's lips are lockt; but in divine
High-piping Pehlevi, with «Wine! Wine! Wine!
Red Wine!»—the Nightingale cries to the Rose
That sallow cheek of hers to 'incarnadine.
This quatrain (eliminating the reference to David[24]) is translated from O. 67.
It is a pleasant day, and the weather is neither hot nor cold;
The rain has washed the dust from the faces of the roses;
The nightingale in the Pehlevi tongue[25] to the yellow[26] rose
Cries ever: «Thou must drink wine!»
Ref.: O. 67, L. 291, B. 287, S.P. 153, P. 230.—W. 174, N. 153, V. 294.
VII.
Come, fill the Cup, and in the fire of Spring
Your Winter-garment of Repentance fling:
The Bird of Time has but a little way
To flutter—and the Bird is on the Wing.
This is another composite quatrain, and the similarity of its sentiment to that of No. 94 (post) makes it somewhat difficult to allocate the parallels to it. The first two lines come from two quatrains in C. 431 and 460 (ll. 1 and 2).
Every day I resolve to repent in the evening,
Repenting of the brimful goblet, and the cup;
(But) now that the season of roses has come, I cannot grieve,
Give penitence for repentance[27] in the season of roses, O Lord!
Ref.: C. 431, L. 655, B. 647, B. ii. 510.—W. 425, V. 704.
The flowers are blooming, bring wine, O Saki,
Abandon the practices of the zealot, O Saki.
Ref.: C. 460, L. 684, B. 675, B. ii. 540.—V. 736.
The image of the flight of time permeates the whole of the quatrains. The precise image that FitzGerald uses in ll. 3 and 4 I find in the 24th distich of the Mantik ut-tair of Ferid ud din Attar.
The bird of the sky flutters along its appointed path.
VIII.*[28]
Whether at Naishapur or Babylon,
Whether the Cup with sweet or bitter run,
The Wine of Life keeps oozing drop by drop,
The Leaves of Life keep falling one by one.
This quatrain is taken mainly from O. 47 (C. 123). It does not occur in the first edition, and FitzGerald was evidently «reminded of it» by Nicolas, in whose reading of the text, alone, the town of Naishapur is mentioned instead of Balkh. Balkh and Babylon are constantly interchanged in Persian belles lettres.
Since life passes; what is Baghdad and what is Balkh?
When the cup is full, what matter if it be sweet or bitter?[29]
Drink wine, for often, after thee and me, this moon
Will pass on from the last day of the month to the first, and from the first to the last.
Ref.: O. 47, L. 299, B. 226, C. 123, S.P. 105, P. 51, T. 99.—W. 134, N. 105, E.C. 2, V. 236.
If closer reference for line 3 be required, it may be found in N. 18, ll. 3 and 4.
Whether our Saki holds the neck of the bottle in his hand,
Or the soul of wine oozes over the rim of the cup.
Ref.: L. 35, B. 32, S.P. 18.—W. 21, N. 18, V. 33.
«The leaves of life» recur constantly either as leaves of a tree, or of a book. FitzGerald's inspiration comes from C. 377, ll. 1 and 2. (Vide also sub. No. 9.)
At the moment when I flee from destiny,
And fall like the leaf of the vine, from the branch.
Ref.: C. 377, L. 574, B. 567, S.P. 265, B. ii. 353, T. 249.—W. 309, N. 266, V. 614.
IX.
Each Morn a thousand Roses brings, you say;
Yes, but where leaves the Rose of Yesterday?
And this first Summer month that brings the Rose
Shall take Jamshyd and Kaikobad away.
This quatrain owes its origin to three separate ruba'iyat, viz.: O. 135 (ll. 3 and 4) C. 500 (ll. 1 and 2), C. 481 (ll. 3 and 4).
Sit in the shade of the rose, for, by the wind, many roses
Have been scattered to earth and have become dust.
Ref.: O. 135, L. 671, B. 663, S.P. 366, B. ii. 483, T. 277.—W. 414, N. 370, V. 720.
By the coming of Spring and the return of December[30]
The leaves of our life are continually folded.
Ref.: C. 500, L. 745, B. 731, P. 242, S.P. 397, B. ii. 531.—W. 444, N. 402, V. 797.
For it has flung to earth a hundred thousand Jams and Kais,[31]
This coming of the first-summer-month and departing of the month December.
Ref.: C. 481, L. 712, B. 701, S.P. 449, P. 216, B. ii. 603.—W. 484, N. 455, V. 764.
X.
Well, let it take them! What have we to do
With Kaikobad the Great, or Kaikhosru?
Let Zal[32] and Rustum bluster as they will,
Or Hatim call to supper—heed not you.
The first two lines of this quatrain echo two fragments from the MSS. O. 139 (ll. 3 and 4), and C. 57 (ll. 1 and 2).
The cup is a hundred times better than the kingdom of Feridun,[33]
The tile that covers the jar is better than the crown of Kai Khosru.
Ref.: O. 136, L. 650, B. 642, S.P. 378, P. 246, B. ii. 511, P. v. 178.—N. 382, V. 609.
One draught of wine is better than the Empire of Kawus,
And is better than the Throne of Kobad and the Empire of Tus.
Ref.: C. 57, L. 122, B. 119, S.P. 61, P. 297.—W. 64, N. 61, V. 121.
The last two lines are translated from C. 503 (ll. 3 and 4).
Bow not thy neck though Rustum son of Zal be thy foe,
Be not grateful though Hatim Tai befriend thee.[34]
Ref.: C. 503, L. 746, B. 732. S.P. 411, P. 150, B. ii. 552, P. iv. 23.—W. 455, N. 416, V. 798.
XI.
With me along the strip of Herbage strown
That just divides the desert from the sown,
Where name of Slave and Sultan is forgot—
And Peace to Mahmud on his golden Throne!
XII.
A Book of Verses underneath the Bough,
A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread—and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness—
Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!
This pair of quatrains must be considered together. They owe their origin to O. 155 and O. 149.
If a loaf of wheaten bread be forthcoming,
A gourd of wine, and a thigh-bone of mutton,
And then, if thou and I be sitting in the wilderness,—
That were a joy not within the power of any Sultan.
Ref.: O. 155, C. 474, L. 697, B. 688, S.P. 442, P. 229, B. ii. 591. T. 292, P. iv. 24, P. v. 109.—W. 479, N. 448, V. 749.
I desire a flask of ruby wine and a book of verses
Just enough to keep me alive,[35] and half a loaf is needful,
And then, that thou and I should sit in the wilderness,
Is better than the kingdom of a Sultan.
Ref.: O. 149, S.P. 408.—W. 452, N. 413, E.C. 13.
XIII.
Some for the Glories of This World; and some
Sigh for the Prophet's Paradise to come;
Ah, take the Cash, and let the Credit go
Nor heed the rumble of a distant Drum!
The original of this quatrain is found in O. 34.
They say that the Garden of Eden is pleasant with houris:
I say that the juice of the grape is pleasant.
Hold fast this cash and keep thy hand from that credit,
For the noise of drums, brother, is pleasant from afar.
Ref.: O. 34, C. 51, L. 95, B. 91, P. iii. 3, P. 323, P. v. 36.—W. 108, V. 95.
C. 156 is almost identical in sentiment:
They say that there will be heaven and the Fount of Kausar,[36]
That there, there will be pure wine and honey and sugar,
Fill up the wine-cup and place it in my hand,
(For) ready cash is better than a thousand credits.
Ref.: C. 156, L. 297, B. 293, S.P. 169, B. ii. 223, T. 141.—N. 169, V. 300.
C. 288 reproduces the same image, and we have a parallel for ll. 1 and 2 in ll. 1 and 2 of C. 225.
Mankind are fallen from vain imagining into pride,
And are consumed in the search after houris and palaces.[37]
Ref.: C. 225, L. 279, B. 275, S.P. 167, T. 163.—W. 184, N. 167, V. 283.
O. 40 may also be cited for the closeness of its parallel both to this, and to the preceding quatrain:
I know not whether he who fashioned me
Appointed me to dwell in heaven or in dreadful hell,
(But) some food, and an adored one, and wine[38] upon the green bank of a field—
All these three are present cash to me: thine be the promised heaven!
Ref.: O. 40, L. 89, B. 85, C. 107, S.P. 92, T. 84, P. v. 176.—W. 94, N. 92, V. 89.
XIV.
Look to the blowing Rose about us—«Lo,
Laughing,» she says, «into the world I blow,
At once the silken tassel of my Purse
Tear, and its Treasure on the Garden throw.»
This quatrain is translated from C. 383
The rose said: I brought a gold-scattering hand,
Laughing, laughing, have I blown into the world,
I snatched the noose-string from off the head of my purse and I am gone!
I flung into the world all the ready money that I had.
Ref.: C. 383 only.
XV.
And those who husbanded the Golden grain,
And those who flung it to the winds like Rain,
Alike to no such aureate Earth are turn'd
As, buried once, Men want dug up again.
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from O. 68.
Ere that fate makes an attack upon thy head
Give orders that they bring thee rose-coloured wine;
Thou art not treasure, O heedless dunce! that thee
They hide in the earth and then dig up again.[39]
Ref.: O. 68, C. 151, L. 277, B. 273, S.P. 156, P. 336, P. v. 11.—W. 175, N. 156, E.C. 31, V. 281.
XVI.
The Worldly Hope men set their Hearts upon
Turns Ashes—or it prospers; and anon,
Like Snow upon the Desert's dusty Face,
Lighting a little hour or two—is gone.
The inspiration for this quatrain is to be found in C. 266.
O heart! Suppose all this world's affairs were within your power,
And the whole world from end to end as you desire it,
And then, like snow in the desert, upon its surface
Resting for two or three days, understand yourself to be gone!
Ref.: C. 266, L. 420, B. 416, P. 144, B. ii. 260, T. 168.—V 443.
XVII.
Think, in this batter'd Caravanserai
Whose Portals are alternate Night and Day,
How Sultan after Sultan with his Pomp
Abode his destined Hour, and went his way.
This quatrain owes its origin to C. 95.
This worn caravanserai which is called the world
Is the resting-place of the piebald horse of night and day;
It is a pavilion which has been abandoned by an hundred Jamshyds;
It is a palace that is the resting-place of an hundred Bahrams.[40]
Ref.: C. 95, L. 203, B. 200, S.P. 67, P. 120, B. ii. 42, T. 79 and 357.—W. 70, N. 67, V. 199.
XVIII.
They say the Lion and the Lizard keep
The Courts where Jamshyd gloried and drank deep:
And Bahram, that great Hunter—the Wild Ass
Stamps o'er his Head, but cannot break his Sleep.
The original of this quatrain is C. 99.
In that palace where Bahram grasped the wine-cup;
The foxes whelp, and the lions take their rest;
Bahram who was always catching (gur) wild asses,—
To-day behold that the (gur) grave has caught Bahram.
Ref.: C. 99, L. 210, B. 207, S.P. 69, P. 48 and 139, B. ii. 51, T. 82 and 294, P. iv. 12, P. v. 156.—W. 72, N. 69, V. 205.
XIX.
I sometimes think that never blows so red
The Rose as where some buried Cæsar bled
That every Hyacinth the Garden wears
Dropt in her Lap from some once lovely Head.
The original of this quatrain is found in O. 43.
Everywhere that there has been a rose or tulip bed,
It has come from the redness of the blood of a king;
Every violet shoot that grows from the earth
Is a mole[41] that was (once) upon the cheek of a beauty.
Ref.: O. 43, C. 47, L. 110, B. 106, B. ii. 105, T. 304, P. v. 159.—W. 104, E.C. 4, V. 109.
XX.
And this reviving Herb whose tender Green
Fledges the River-lip on which we lean—
Ah, lean upon it lightly! for who knows
From what once lovely Lip it springs unseen!
The original of this quatrain was C. 44.
All verdure that grows upon the margin of a stream,
You may say, grows from the lip of one angel-natured;
Beware not to set foot contemptuously upon the verdure,
For that verdure grows from the clay of one tulip-cheeked.
Ref.: C. 44, L. 62, B. 59, S.P. 59, P. 64, T. 349, P. iv. 20.—W. 62, N. 59, V. 61.
XXI.
Ah, my Belovéd, fill the Cup that clears
To-day of past Regrets and future Fears:
To-morrow!—Why, To-morrow I may be
Myself with Yesterday's Sev'n thousand Years.
This quatrain is translated from C. 348.
Come, O friend! and let us not suffer anguish concerning the morrow.
Let us take advantage of these few ready-money moments,
When, to-morrow, we depart from the face of the earth
We shall be equal with those who went seven thousand years ago.
Ref.: C. 348, L. 546, B. 540, S.P. 268, P. 122, B. ii. 351, T. 233, P. v. 96.—W. 312, N. 269, V. 586.
XXII.
For some we loved, the loveliest and the best
That from his Vintage rolling Time hath prest,
Have drunk their Cup a Round or two before,
And one by one crept silently to rest.
The inspiration for this quatrain is found in C. 185.
All my sympathetic friends have left me,
One by one they have sunk low at the foot of Death.
In the fellowship of souls they were cup-companions,
A turn or two before me they became drunk.
Ref.: C. 185, L. 381, B. 377, P. ii. 4, B. ii. 141.—W. 219, V. 379.
XXIII.
And we, that now make merry in the Room
They left, and Summer dresses in new bloom,
Ourselves must we beneath the Couch of Earth
Descend—ourselves to make a Couch—for whom?
The main inspiration of this quatrain comes from C. 388.
Arise, and do not sorrow for this fleeting world,
Be at peace, and pass through the world with happiness.
If the nature of the world were constant
The turn of others would not have descended to you yourself.[42]
Ref.: C. 388, L. 585, B. 578, S.P. 322, P. 159 and 178, B. ii. 430, T. 264, P. iv. 29 and 62.—W. 366, N. 325, V. 632.
Combined with the suggestion contained in this ruba'i, we find the echo of a sentiment that recurs continually in the originals, e.g., C. 82 (ll. 3 and 4) and O. 129 (ll. 3 and 4).
This verdure, which for the present is my pleasure-ground
Until the verdure (springing) from my clay shall become a pleasure-ground—for whom?
Ref.: C. 82, L. 191, B. 188, S.P. 70, P. 305, B. ii. 36, T. 63 and 351.—W. 73, N. 70, V. 187.
Sit upon the greensward, O Idol, for it will not be long
Ere that greensward shall grow from my dust and thine.
Ref.: O. 129, C. 416, L. 634, B. 626, S.P. 345, P. 47, B. ii. 464, P. v. 131—W. 390, N. 348, E.C. 3, V. 683.
XXIV.
Ah, make the most of what we yet may spend,
Before we too into the Dust descend;
Dust into Dust, and under Dust to lie,
Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer, and—sans End!
The inspiration for this quatrain is found in the following (O. 76 and 35).
Do not allow sorrow to embrace thee,
Nor an idle grief to occupy thy days,
Forsake not the book and the lover's lips and the green bank of the field,
Ere that the earth enfold thee in its bosom.
Ref.: O. 76, C. 173, L. 315, B. 311, P. 189, B. ii. 233, T. 121, P. v. 39.—de T. 9, V. 317.
Drink wine, for thou wilt sleep long beneath the clay
Without an intimate, a friend, a comrade, or a mate.
Ref.: O. 35, C. 80, L. 188, B. 185, P. 284, T. 60.—W. 107, V. 184.
XXV.
Alike for those who for To-day prepare,
And those that after some To-morrow stare,
A Muezzin from the Tower of Darkness cries,
«Fools! your Reward is neither Here nor There.»
The inspiration for this quatrain is in C. 396.
Some are immersed in contemplation of doctrine and faith,
Others stand stupefied between doubt and certainty,
Suddenly a Muezzin, from his lurking place, cries out
«O Fools! the Road[43] is neither here nor there.»
Ref.: C. 396, L. 591, B. 584, S.P. 324, P. iii. 6, P. 65.—W. 376, N. 337, V. 638.
XXVI.
Why, all the Saints and Sages who discuss'd
Of the Two Worlds so wisely—they are thrust
Like foolish Prophets forth; their Words to scorn
Are scatter'd, and their Mouths are stopt with dust.
This quatrain is taken from O. 140 and C. 236.
Those, O Saki, who have gone before us,
Have fallen asleep, O Saki, in the dust (or khwab sleep) of self-esteem,
Go thou and drink wine, and hear the truth from me,
Whatever they have said, O Saki, is but wind!
Ref.: O. 140, C. 453, L. 687, B. 678, S.P. 380, P. 260, B. ii. 525, T. 279, P. v. 22.—W 428, N. 384, V. 739.
Those who are the cream of the existence of mankind,
Spur the Burak of their thoughts up to the highest heaven,[44]
In the study of your being, like heaven itself
Their heads are turned, and overset, and spinning.
Ref.: C. 236, L. 326, B. 322, S.P. 120, T. 155, W. 147, N. 120, V. 328.
XXVII.
Myself when young did eagerly frequent
Doctor and Saint, and heard great argument
About it and about: but evermore
Came out by the same door wherein I went.
XXVIII.
With them the seed of Wisdom did I sow,
And with mine own hand wrought to make it grow;
And this was all the Harvest that I reap'd—
«I came like Water, and like Wind I go.»
These two quatrains must be considered together. They are inspired by O. 121, C. 281, and O. 72.
For a while, when young, we frequented a teacher,
For a while we were contented with our proficiency;
Behold the end of the discourse:—what happened to us?
We came like water and we went like wind.
Ref.: O. 121, L. 544, B. 538, B. ii. 420, P. v. 99.—W 353, V. 584.
Being (once) a falcon, I flew from the World of mystery,
That from below I might soar to the heights above;
But, not finding there any intimate friend,
I came out by the same door wherein I went.[45]
Ref.: C. 281, L. 429, B. 425, S.P. 224, P. 30, B. ii. 295, T. 184.—W. 264, N. 225, V. 467.
A quatrain that probably contributed to FitzGerald's verse is:
No one has solved the tangled secrets of eternity,
No one has set foot beyond the orbit (of human under-standing),
Since, so far as I can see, from tyro to teacher,
Impotent are the hands of all men born of women.
Ref.: O. 72, C. 176, L. 357, B. 353, S.P. 175, B. ii. 211, P. v. 210—W. 190, N. 175, V. 356.
XXIX.
Into this Universe, and Why not knowing
Nor Whence, like Water willy-nilly flowing;
And out of it, as Wind along the Waste,
I know not Whither, Willy-nilly blowing.
The inspiration for this quatrain is to be found in the following: C. 235 and O. 20 (ll. 1 and 2).
He first brought me in confusion into existence,
What do I gain from my life save my amazement at it?
We went away against our will, and we know not what was
The purpose of this coming, and going, and being.
Ref.: C. 235, L. 324, B. 320, S.P. 117, T. 153.—W. 145, N. 117, V. 326.
Like water in a great river and like wind in the desert,
Another day passes out of the period of my existence.[46]
Ref.: O. 20, C. 23 and 55, L. 84, B. 80, S.P. 22, P. ii. 2, P. 162, B. ii. 24 and 88, T. 22 and 305, P. v. 140 and 186, W. 26, N. 22 and 42, V. 83.
XXX.
What, without asking, hither hurried Whence?
And, without asking, Whither hurried hence!
Oh, many a Cup of this forbidden Wine
Must drown the memory of that insolence!
This quatrain owes its origin to two ruba'iyat in O., viz., 21 and 151.
Seeing that my coming was not in my power at the Day of Creation,[47]
And that my undesired departure hence is a purpose fixed (for me),
Get up and gird well thy loins, O nimble cup-bearer,
For I will wash down the misery of the world in wine.
Ref.: O. 21, C. 49, L. 94, B. 90, B. ii. 86, P. v. 123.—W. 110, V. 94.
Had I charge of the matter I would not have come,
And, likewise, could I control my going, how should I have gone?
There could have been nothing better than that in this world
I had neither come, nor gone, nor lived?
Ref.: O. 157, C. 494, L. 732, B. 720, P. 88, B. ii. 590 and 593, P. iv. 17, P. v. 130.—W. 490, E.C. 30, N. 450, V. 785.
XXXI.
Up from Earth's Centre through the Seventh Gate
I rose, and on the Throne of Saturn sate,
And many a Knot unravel'd by the Road;
But not the Master-knot of Human Fate.
This quatrain is translated from C. 314.
From the Nadir of the earthly globe, up to the Zenith of Saturn
I solved all the problems of heaven;
I escaped from the bondage of all trickery and deceit,
All obstacles were removed save only the Bond of Fate.
Ref.: C. 314, L. 491, B. 487, B. ii. 338, T. 215.—W. 303, V. 531.
XXXII.
There was the Door to which I found no Key;
There was the Veil through which I might not see:
Some little talk awhile of Me and Thee
There was—and then no more of Thee and Me.
The main inspiration of this quatrain is found in C. 387.
Neither thou nor I know the secret of Eternity,
And neither thou nor I can de-cypher this riddle;
There is a talk behind the Curtain[48] of me and thee
But when the Curtain falls neither thou nor I are there.
Ref.: C. 387, L. 581, B. 574, P. 33, B. ii. 421, T. 260.—W. 389, V. 628.
We also see in the quatrain the influence of O. 29 and C. 193, ll. 1 and 2.
No one can pass behind the Curtain (that veils) the secret,
The mind of no one is cognizant of what is there:[49]
Ref.: O. 29, C. 56, L. 61, B. 58, S.P. 43, P. 63, B. ii. 103, P. v. 188.—W. 47, N. 44, V. 60.
No one can pass behind the Curtain of Fate
No one is master of the Secret of Destiny.
Ref.: C. 193, L. 345, B. 341, S.P. 177, B. ii. 212.—W 192, N. 177, V. 346.
XXXIII.*
Earth could not answer; nor the seas that mourn
In flowing Purple, of their Lord forlorn;
Nor rolling Heaven, with all his Signs reveal'd
And hidden by the sleeve of Night and Morn.
This is the quatrain (not No. 31 as stated by Mr. Aldis Wright in his Editorial Note) taken by Edward FitzGerald from the Mantik ut-tair of Ferid ud din Attar. The story which inspired it begins at distich No. 972, and is as follows:
An observer of spiritual things approached the sea
And said «O sea, why are you blue?
Why do you wear the robe of mourning?
There is no fire, why do you boil?»
The sea made answer to that good-hearted one,
«I weep for my separation from the Friend,
Since by reason of my impotence I am not worthy of Him,
I have made my robe blue on account of my sorrow for Him.»
XXXIV.
Then of the Thee in Me who works behind
The Veil, I lifted up my hands to find
A lamp amid the Darkness; and I heard,
As from Without—«The Me within Thee Blind!»
That Edward FitzGerald was not following any particular ruba'iyat of the original MSS. is clearly indicated by the great variation observable in the forms that this quatrain successively assumed in the first, second and third editions. It suggests an exposition of the Sufi doctrine of the emanation of the mortal Creature from God the Creator, and his reabsorption into God. There is a quatrain in L. (No. 641) and in B. ii. (No. 457) which is akin to it, but FitzGerald was not acquainted with these texts. (It is No. 400 in W.) I have no doubt that FitzGerald's 34th quatrain was suggested to him by two intricate passages in the Mantik ut-tair, commencing respectively at distich 3090 and distich 3735. The first of these may be translated:
«The Creator of the World spoke thus to David from behind the Curtain of the Secret: ‹For everything in the world, good or bad, visible or invisible, thou canst find a substitute, but for Me, thou canst find neither substitute nor equal. Since nothing can be substituted for Me, do not cease to abide in Me. I am thy Soul, destroy not thou thy Soul, I am necessary to thee, O thou my servant. Seek not to exist apart from Me.›»
The second passage reads: «Since long ago, really, I am thee, and thou art Me, we two are but One. Art thou Me, or am I thee? is there any duality in the matter? Either I am thee, or thou art Me, or thou, thou art thyself. Since thou art Me and I am thee for ever, our two bodies are One: Salutation!»
XXXV.
Then to the Lip of this poor earthen Urn
I lean'd, the Secret of my Life to learn;
And Lip to Lip it murmur'd—«While you live,
«Drink!—for, once dead, you never shall return.»
This quatrain is translated from O. 100:
In great desire I pressed my lips to the lip of the jar,
To enquire from it how long life might be attained;
It joined its lip to mine and whispered,
«Drink wine! for to this world thou returnest not.»
Ref.: O. 100, C. 283, L. 446, B. 442, P. 99, B. ii. 303, T. 185, P. v. 193.—W. 274, E.C. 25, V. 482.
C. 489 is a mystic and doctrinal quatrain containing the same injunction.
Drink wine! for I have told you a thousand times
There is no returning for you; when you are gone, you are gone!
Ref.: C. 489, L. 723, B. 712, S.P. 385, B. ii. 526, P. iv. 67, P. v. 104—W. 431, N. 389, V. 775.
XXXVI.
I think the Vessel, that with fugitive
Articulation answer'd, once did live,
And drink; and Ah! the passive Lip I kiss'd,
How many Kisses might it take—and give!
The inspiration for this quatrain occurs in O. 9.
This jug was once a plaintive lover, as I am,
And was in pursuit of one of comely face;[50]
This handle that thou seest upon its neck
Is an arm that once lay around the neck of a friend.
Ref.: O. 9, C. 48 and 426, L. 81, B. 77, S.P. 28, P. 108, B. ii. 28, P. v. 142.—W. 32, N. 28, E.C. 5, V. 80.
XXXVII.
For I remember stopping by the way
To watch a Potter thumping his wet Clay;
And with its all-obliterated Tongue
It murmur'd—«Gently, Brother, gently, pray!»
The original of this quatrain is O. 89.
I saw a potter in the bazaar yesterday,
He was violently pounding some fresh clay,
And that clay said to him in mystic language,
«I was once like thee—so treat me well.»
Ref.: O. 89, C. 261, L. 411, B. 407, S.P. 210, P. 100, B. ii. 274, P. iv. 71, P. v. 198.—W. 252, N. 211, V. 434.
XXXVIII.*
And has not such a Story from of Old
Down Man's successive generations roll'd
Of such a clod of saturated Earth
Cast by the maker into Human mould?
This quatrain, which is in the nature of a reflection upon the three preceding ones, conveys an idea which is constantly recurrent in the ruba'iyat. Edward FitzGerald himself records, in a note, that, in composing this quatrain, he had in mind a very beautiful story in the Mantik ut-tair of the water of a certain well which, ordinarily sweet, became bitter when drawn in a vessel made from clay which once had been a man. For its inclusion in this poem FitzGerald had the support of two (among many) quatrains from C. 475 and 488.
I pondered over the workshop of a potter;
In the shadow of the wheel I saw that the master, with his feet,
Made handles and covers for goblets and jars,
Out of the skulls of kings and the feet of beggars.
Ref.: C. 475, L. 698, B. 689, S.P. 426, P. 103, B. ii. 576.—W. 466, N. 431, V. 750.
I made my way into the (abode of the) potters of the age,
Every moment shewed some new skill with clay;
I saw, though men devoid of vision saw it not,
My ancestors' dust on the hands of every potter.
Ref.: C. 488, L. 721, B. 710, P. 101, B. ii. 543.—W 493, V. 773.
XXXIX.*
And not a drop that from our Cups we throw
For Earth to Drink of, but may steal below
To quench the fire of Anguish in some Eye
There hidden—far beneath and long ago.
This quatrain is taken from ll. 1 and 2 of O. 81
Every draught that the Cup-bearer scatters upon the earth
Quenches the fire of anguish in some burning eye.
Ref.: O. 81, C. 180, L. 367, B. 363, S.P. 188, P. 231, B. ii. 241, P. v. 187.—W. 203, N. 188, V. 366.
XL.*
As then the Tulip for her morning sup
Of Heav'nly Vintage from the soil looks up,
Do you devoutly do the like, till Heav'n
To Earth invert you—like an empty Cup.
The original of this quatrain is C. 37.
Like a tulip in the spring uplift your cup;
If you get a (happy) opportunity with a moon-faced one,
Drink wine with cheerfulness, for this worn-out sky
Will suddenly invert you to the level of the earth.
Ref.: C. 37, L. 136, B. 133, S.P. 39, B. ii. 84, T. 40 and 311.—W 44, N. 40, V. 135.
XLI.*
Perplext no more with Human or Divine,
To-morrow's tangle to the winds resign,
And lose your fingers in the tresses of
The Cypress-slender Minister of Wine.
The sentiment of this quatrain is very recurrent. I think that FitzGerald's first inspiration comes from O. 73.
Set limits to thy desire for worldly things and live content,
Sever the bonds of thy dependence upon the good and bad of life,
Take wine in hand and (play with) the curls of a loved one; for quickly
All passeth away—and these few days will not remain.
Ref.: O. 73, C. 179, L. 256, B. 253, S.P. 176.—W. 191, N. 176, V. 262.
Ll. 3 and 4 of O. 118 suggest the quatrain also.
Let us cease to strive after our long delaying hope[51]
And play with long ringlets and the handle of the lute.
Ref.: O. 118, L. 571, B. 564, S.P. 293, B. ii. 391.—W. 332, N. 294, V. 611.
Ll. 1 and 2 of O. 131 are also in point:
Flee from the study of all sciences—'tis better thus,
And twine thy fingers in the curly locks of a loved one—'tis better thus.
Ref.: O. 131, C. 443, L. 670, B. 662, S.P. 356, P. 296, B. ii. 480, T. 276, P. v. 158.—W. 426, N. 359, V. 719.
FitzGerald was probably «reminded of» these by Nicolas whose quatrains 48, 155, and 359 (C. 443) convey the same idea.
XLII.
And if the Wine you drink, the Lip you press,
End in what All begins and ends in—Yes;
Think then you are To-day what Yesterday
You were—To-morrow you shall not be less.
The inspiration for this quatrain is contained in the following, O. 102 and C. 412.
Khayyam, if thou art drunk with wine,[52] be happy,
If thou reposest with one tulip-cheeked, be happy,
Since the end of all things is that thou wilt be naught,
Whilst thou art, imagine that thou art not—be happy!
Ref.: O. 102, C. 291, L. 454, B. 450, S.P. 241, P. 202, B. ii. 322, T. 192 and 296, P. iv. 26, P. v. 5.—W. 282, N. 242, V. 493.
Remember not the day that has passed away from thee,
Be not hard upon the morrow that has not come,
Think not about thine own coming or departure,
Drink wine now, and fling not thy life to the winds.
Ref.: C. 412, L. 619, B. 611, P. 116, B. ii. 444, P. v. 121.—V. 666.
XLIII.
So when that Angel of the darker Drink
At last shall find you by the river-brink,
And, offering his Cup, invite your Soul
Forth to your Lips to quaff—you shall not shrink.
This quatrain owes its origin to C. 256.[53]
In the circle of the firmament, whose depths are invisible,
There is a cup which, in due time, they will cause all to drink;
When thy turn comes, do not utter lamentations,
Drink wine gaily for it has come to be thy turn.
Ref.: C. 256, L. 408, B. 404, B. ii. 273.—W. 254, V. 431.
XLIV.
Why, if the Soul can fling the Dust aside,
And naked on the Air of Heaven ride,
Were't not a Shame—were't not a Shame for him
In this clay carcase crippled to abide?
This quatrain is translated from O. 145.
Oh Soul! if thou canst purify thyself from the dust of the body,
Thou, naked spirit, canst soar in the heavens,
The Empyrean is thy sphere—let it be thy shame,
That thou comest and art a dweller within the confines of earth.[54]
Ref.: O. 145, C. 447, L. 707, B. 697, S.P. 389, P. 111, B. ii. 523.—W. 436, N. 394, E.C. 7, V. 759.
XLV.
'Tis but a Tent where takes his one day's rest
A Sultan to the realm of Death addrest;
The Sultan rises, and the dark Ferrash
Strikes, and prepares it for another Guest.
This quatrain is translated from C. no. 110.
Khayyam! thy body surely resembles a tent;
The soul is a Sultan and the halting-place is the perishable world,
The ferrash of fate, preparing for the next halting-place,
Will overthrow this tent when the Sultan has arisen.[55]
Ref.: C. 110, L. 100, B. 96, S.P. 80, B. ii. 95, T. 86, P. v. 172.—W. 82, N. 80, V. 100.
XLVI.*
And fear not lest Existence closing your
Account, and mine, should know the like no more;
The Eternal Saki from that Bowl has pour'd
Millions of Bubbles like us, and will pour.
FitzGerald was indebted for this quatrain to N. 137. The original ruba'i is not in O. or C.
Khayyam! although the pavilion of heaven
Has spread its tent and closed the door upon all discussion,
In the goblet of existence, like bubbles of wine
The Eternal Saki brings to light a thousand Khayyams.
Ref.: N. 137,[56] W. 161, V. 397.
XLVII.*
When You and I behind the Veil are past,
Oh, but the long, long while the World shall last,
Which of our Coming and Departure heeds
As the Sea's self should heed a pebble-cast.
In this quatrain FitzGerald is «reminded of» O. 26 and 51 by N. 123.
Know this—that from thy soul thou shalt be separated,
Thou shalt pass behind the Curtain of the Secrets of God.
Ref.: O. 26, C. 83, L. 192, B. 189, S.P. 85, B. ii. 110, T. 64, P. v. J 34.—W. 87, N. 85, V. 188.
My coming was of no profit to the heavenly sphere,[57]
And by my departure nothing will be added to its beauty and dignity.
Ref.: O. 51, C. 129, L. 232, B. 229, S.P. 157, P. 55, B. ii. 158, T. 104.—W. 176, N. 157, E.C. 17, V. 239.
Oh! how long we shall be no more, and the world will continue to exist,
It will continue to exist without fame or sign of us,
Long ago we existed not, and (the world) was none the worse for it,
Afterwards, when we have ceased to exist, it will be all the same.
Ref.: N. 123, W. 150, V. 395.
XLVIII.
A Moment's Halt—a momentary taste
Of Being from the Well amidst the waste—
And Lo!—the phantom Caravan has reach'd
The Nothing it set out from—Oh, make haste!
We must consider here the form in which this quatrain first made its appearance in the edition of 1859:
One Moment in Annihilation's Waste,
One Moment, of the Well of Life to taste—
The stars are setting, and the Caravan
Starts for the Dawn of Nothing—Oh, make haste!
The inspiration for this richly varied quatrain comes from O. 60.
This caravan of life passes by mysteriously;
Mayest thou seize the moment that passes happily!
Cup-bearer, why grieve about the to-morrow of thy patrons?[58]
Give us a cup of wine, for the night wanes.
Ref.: O. 60, C. 135, L. 245, B. 242, P. 223, S.P. 106, B. ii. 146, T. 139.—W. 136, N. 106, V. 251.
Ll. 3 and 4 of C. 368 may also be quoted:
(Man is) a toil-stricken being, fashioned in the clay of affliction,
He tasted of Earth for a time and passed away.
Ref.: C. 368, L. 566, B. 559, S.P. 301, B. ii. 404, T. 242.—W. 338, N. 302, V. 606.
XLIX.*
Would you that spangle of Existence spend
About the Secret—quick about it, Friend!
A Hair perhaps divides the False and True—
And upon what, prithee, may life depend?
L.*
A Hair perhaps divides the False and True;
Yes; and a single Alif were the clue—
Could you but find it—to the Treasure-house,
And peradventure to The Master too;
This pair of quatrains must also be considered together. The idea contained in them is, I think, collected from C. 482 and 19, and from O. 28.
Oh Boy! since thou art learned in all secrets,
Why grieve so much after vain cares?
If things will not shape themselves according to thy desire,
At any rate be happy in this moment of thy existence.
Ref.: C. 482, L. 714, B. 703, S.P. 414, B. ii. 560.—W. 458, N. 419, V. 766.
From the state of infidelity to that of faith is but a breath,
And from a state of doubt to that of certainty is but a breath,
Hold thou dear this one precious moment,
For of the outcome of our being there is but a moment.
Ref.: C. 19, L. 131, B. 127, S.P. 20, B. ii. 22, T. 20.—W. 24, N. 20, V. 130.
My Heart said to me: «I have a longing for inspired knowledge,
Teach me if thou art able,»
I said the Alif. My Heart said: «Say no more.
If One is in the house, one letter is enough.»[59]
Ref.: O. 28.—W. 109.
LI.*
Whose secret Presence, through Creation's veins
Running Quicksilver-like eludes your pains;
Taking all shapes from Mah to Mahi; and
They change and perish all—but He remains;
In this quatrain FitzGerald has made a masterly conversion of C. 72.
That Moon which is by nature skilled in metamorphosis
Is sometimes animal and sometimes vegetable,
Do not imagine that it will become non-existent—away with thought!
It is always possessed of its essence though its qualities cease to be.[60]
Ref.: C. 72, L. 179, B. 176, S.P. 73, B. ii. 31, T. 51.—W. 75, N. 73, V. 175.
C. 40 may also be cited.
Place wine in my hand for my heart is aglow,
And this fleet-footed existence is like quicksilver.
Arise! for the wakefulness of good fortune turns to slumber;
Know thou that the fire of youth is (fugitive) like water.
Ref.: C. 40, L. 63, B. 60, S.P. 54, T. 45.—W. 57, N. 54, V. 62.
«From Mah to Mahi»—i.e., from Moon to Fish is a common Oriental metaphor for universality. See FitzGerald's note on this subject, and the Terminal Essay to my former volume, p. 309.
LII.*
A moment guess'd—then back behind the Fold
Immerst of Darkness round the Drama roll'd
Which, for the Pastime of Eternity,
He doth Himself contrive, enact, behold.
This quatrain is translated from C. 479.
Hidden sometimes thou shewest thy face to none,
Sometimes thou appearest in the forms of created beings,
Thou exhibitest this spectacle to thyself.
Thou art thyself both the real thing seen and the spectator.
Ref.: C. 479, L. 705, B. 695, S.P. 437.—W. 475, N. 443, V. 757.
LIII.*
But if in vain, down on the stubborn floor
Of Earth, and up to Heav'n's unopening Door,
You gaze To-day, while You are You—how then
To-morrow, when You shall be You no more?
The original of this quatrain is C. 24.
If the heart understood the secret of existence as it is,
In death it would know all the secrets of God:
If to-day thou knowest nothing, being with thyself,
What wilt thou know to-morrow when thou abandonest thyself?
Ref.: C. 24, L. 78, B. 74, S.P. 49, P. 85, B. ii. 106, T. 25.—W. 52, N. 49. V. 77.
LIV.
Waste not your Hour, nor in the vain pursuit
Of this and That endeavour and dispute;
Better be jocund with the fruitful Grape
Than sadden after none, or Bitter, Fruit.
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from O. 50 and O. 107:
Those who are the slaves of intellect and hair-splitting,[61]
Have perished in bickerings about existence and non-existence;
Go, thou dunce! and choose (rather) grape juice,
For the ignorant from (eating) dry raisins, have become (like) unripe grapes (themselves).[62]
Ref.: O. 50, L. 262, T. 102, P. v. 164.—W. 216, V. 267.
How long this talk about the eternity to come, and the eternity past?[63]
Now is the time of joy, there is no substitute for wine!
Both theory and practice have passed beyond my ken,
(But) Wine unties the knot of every difficulty.
Ref.: O. 107, C. 312, L. 489, B. 485, B. ii. 341, T. 213, P. v. 207.—W. 304, V. 259.
LV.
You know, my friends, with what a brave Carouse
I made a Second Marriage in my house;
Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed,
And took the Daughter of the Vine to Spouse.
This quatrain is translated from C. 175.
I will fill a one-maund goblet with wine,
I will enrich myself with two half-maunds of wine:
First I will thrice pronounce the divorce from learning and faith,[64]
And then I will take the daughter of the vine[65] to spouse.
Ref.: C. 175, L. 267, B. 263, P. 288, P. v. 209.—V. 271.
LVI.
For «Is» and «Is-not» though with Rule and Line
And «Up-and-down» by Logic I define,
Of all that one should care to fathom, I
Was never deep in anything but—Wine.
This quatrain is translated from O. 120:
I know the outwardness of existence and non-existence,[66]
I know the inwardness of all that is high and low;
Nevertheless let me be ashamed of[67] my own knowledge
If I recognise any degree higher than drunkenness.
Ref.: O. 120, L. 523, B. 518, S.P. 299, P. 265, B. ii. 409, P. v. 38.—W. 336, N. 300, V. 563.
LVII.*
Ah, but my Computations, People say,
Reduced the Year to better reckoning?—Nay,
'Twas only striking from the Calendar
Unborn To-morrow and dead Yesterday.
This quatrain owes its inspiration to C. 381 and O. 20, ll. 3 and 4:
My enemies erroneously have called me a philosopher,[68]
God knows I am not what they have called me;
But, as I have come into this nesting place of sorrow,
In the end I am in a still worse plight, for I know not who I am.
Ref.: C. 381, L. 580, B. 573, B. ii. 383, T. 259.—W. 350, V. 619.
Never has grief lingered in my mind concerning two days,[69]
The day that has not yet come, and the day that is past.
Ref.: O. 20, C. 23 and 55, L. 84, S.P. 22, B. 80, P. 162, B. ii. 24 and 88, P. ii. 2, T. 22 and 305, P. v. 140 and 186.—W. 26, N. 22 and 42, V. 83.
LVIII.
And lately, by the Tavern Door agape,
Came shining through the Dusk an Angel Shape
Bearing a vessel on his Shoulder; and
He bid me taste of it; and 'twas—the Grape!
This quatrain is a refined version of C. 297.
Yesterday, whilst drunk, I was passing a tavern,
I saw a drunken old man bearing a vessel on his shoulder.
I said, «Old man, does not God make thee ashamed?»
He replied, «God is merciful, go, drink wine!»
Ref.: C. 297, L. 462, B. 458, S.P. 243, P. 278, T. 197.—W. 284, N. 244, V. 501.
LIX.
The Grape that can with Logic absolute
The Two-and-Seventy jarring Sects confute;
The sovereign Alchemist that in a trice
Life's leaden metal into Gold transmute;
This quatrain is translated from O. 77.
Drink wine, that will banish thine abundant woes.
And will banish thought of the Seventy-two Sects;
Avoid not the Alchemist,[70] from whom
Thou takest one draught, and he banishes a thousand calamities.
Ref.: O. 77, C. 165, L. 305, B. 301, S.P. 179, P. 283, T. 112, P. v. 152.—W. 194, V. 308.
LX.
The mighty Mahmud, Allah-breathing Lord,
That all the misbelieving and black Horde
Of Fears and Sorrows that infest the Soul
Scatters before him with his whirlwind Sword.
This reference to Mahmoud the Ghasnavide, who made war upon the black infidels of Hindostan, comes from an apologue in the Mantik ut-tair of Ferid ud din Attar, (beginning at distich 3117). The last two lines come from O. 81, ll. 3 and 4.
Praise be to God! thou realizest that wine
Is a juice that frees thy heart from a hundred pains.
Ref.: O. 81, C. 180, L. 367, B. 363, S.P. 188, P. 231, B. ii. 241, P. v. 187.—W. 203, N. 188, V. 366.
LXI.*
Why, be this Juice the growth of God, who dare
Blaspheme the twisted tendril as a Snare?
A Blessing, we should use it, should we not?
And if a Curse—Why, then, Who set it there?
The inspiration for this quatrain is contained in O. 75.
I drink wine, and everyone drinks who, like me, is worthy of it;
My wine-drinking is but a small thing to Him;
God knew on the Day of Creation, that I should drink wine;
If I do not drink wine God's knowledge would be ignorance.
Ref.: O. 75, C. 202, L. 356, B. 352, S.P. 182, P. 324, B. ii. 234, T. 129, P. v. 181.—W. 197, N. 182, V. 355.
LXII.*
I must abjure the Balm of Life, I must,
Scared by some After-reckoning ta'en on trust,
Or lured with Hope of some Diviner Drink,
To fill the Cup—when crumbled into Dust!
This quatrain is taken from C. 505 and O. 143, ll. 3 and 4.
They say, «Do not drink wine for thou wilt suffer for it,
On the Day of Rewards thou wilt be cast into the fire.»
That is so; but what is worth both the worlds
Is the moment when thou art elated with wine.
Ref.: C. 505, L. 748, B. 734, P. 250, B. ii. 587.—V. 800.
Make thyself a heaven here with wine and cup,
For at that place where heaven is, thou mayst arrive, or mayst not.
Ref.: O. 143, C. 495. L. 733, B. 721, S.P. 379, P. 209, B. ii. 529, P. v. 129.—W. 427, N. 383, V. 786.
LXIII.
Oh threats of Hell and Hopes of Paradise!
One thing at least is certain—This Life flies;
One thing is certain and the rest is Lies;
The Flower that once has blown for ever dies.
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from O. 35 of which ll. 1 and 2 are quoted as parallel to quatrain No. 24 ante.
Take care that thou tellest not this hidden secret to anyone
The tulips that are withered will never bloom again.
Ref.: O. 35, C. 80, L. 188, B. 185, P. 284, T. 60.—W. 107, V. 184.
LXIV.*
Strange, is it not? that of the myriads who
Before us pass'd the door of Darkness through,
Not one returns to tell us of the Road,
Which to discover we must travel too.
This is a constantly recurring image in the ruba'iyat. C. 36 and 270 may be cited:
I have travelled far in a wandering by valley and desert,
It came to pass I wandered in all quarters of the world,
I have not heard from anyone who came from that road,
The road he has travelled, no traveller travels again.
Ref.: C. 36, L. 57, B. 54. T. 39.—W. 129, V. 56.
Of all the travellers upon this long road,
Where is he that has returned, that he may tell us the secret?
Take heed that in this mansion (by way of metaphor)
Thou leavest nothing, for thou wilt not come back.
Ref.: C. 270, L. 424, B. 420, S.P. 216, P. 121, B. ii. 286, P. v. 9.—W. 258, N. 217, V. 462.
C. 211 and 277 contain the same image.
LXV.*
The Revelations of Devout and Learn'd
Who rose before us, and as Prophets burn'd,
Are all but Stories, which, awoke from Sleep,
They told their comrades, and to Sleep return'd.
This quatrain is translated from C. 127.
Those who have become oceans of excellence and cultivation,
And from the collection of their perfections have become lights of their fellows,
Have not made a road out of this dark night,
They have told a fable and have gone to sleep.
Ref.: C. 127, L. 261, B. 258, P. 86, T. 101.—W. 209, N. 464, V. 266.
LXVI.*
I sent my Soul through the Invisible,
Some letter of that After-life to spell:
And by and by my Soul return'd to me,
And answer'd, «I myself am Heav'n and Hell»:
This quatrain is inspired by O. 15.
Already on the Day of Creation, beyond the heavens, my soul
Searched for the Tablet and Pen, and for heaven and hell,
At last the Teacher said to me with His enlightened judgment,
«Tablet and Pen, and heaven and hell, are within thyself.»[71]
Ref.: O. 15, L. 59, B. 56, P. 114, B. ii. 69, P. v. 79—W. 114, V. 58.
LXVII.*
Heav'n but the Vision of fulfill'd Desire,
And Hell the Shadow from a Soul on fire,
Cast on the Darkness into which Ourselves,
So late emerged from, shall so soon expire.
The inspiration for this verse comes from O. 33.
The heavenly vault is a girdle (cast) from my weary body.
Jihun[72] is a water-course worn by my filtered tears,
Hell is a spark from my useless worries,
Paradise is a moment of time when I am tranquil.
Ref.: O. 33, C. 90, L. 199, B. 196, S.P. 90, P. 148, T. 70, P. v. 183.—W. 92, N. 90, V. 195.
FitzGerald's verse was evidently also influenced by distich 1866 of the Mantik ut-tair.
Heaven and hell are reflections, the one of thy goodness, and the other of thy wrath.
LXVIII.
We are no other than a moving row
Of Magic Shadow-shapes that come and go
Round with the Sun-illumined Lantern held
In Midnight by the Master of the Show;
This quatrain is translated from O. 108.
This vault of heaven beneath which we stand bewildered,
We know to be a sort of magic-lantern:[73]
Know thou that the sun is the flame and the universe is the lamp,
We are like figures that revolve in it.
Ref.: O. 108, C. 332, L. 505, B. 501, S.P. 266, P. 40, B. ii. 356, P. iv. 34.—W. 310, N. 267, E.C. 28, de T. 10, V. 545.
LXIX.
But helpless Pieces of the Game He plays
Upon this Chequer-board of Nights and Days;
Hither and thither moves, and checks, and slays,
And one by one back in the Closet lays.
This quatrain is translated from O. 94.
To speak plain language, and not in parables,
We are the pieces and heaven plays the game,
We are played together in a baby-game upon the chess-board of existence,
And one by one we return to the box of non-existence.
Ref.: O. 94, C. 280, L. 443, B. 439, S.P. 230, P. 31, B. ii. 291, T. 183, P. v. 10.—W. 270, N. 231, E.C. 27, V. 480.
LXX.
The Ball no question makes of Ayes and Noes
But Here or There as strikes the Player goes;
And He that toss'd you down into the Field,
He knows about it all—HE knows—HE knows!
This quatrain is translated from C. 422.
O thou who art driven like a ball by the mallet of Fate,
Go to the right or take the left, but say nothing;[74]
For He who set thee running and galloping
He knows, he knows, he knows, he——.
Ref.: C. 422, L. 633, B. 625, P. 167, B. ii. 462, T. 274.—W. 401, V. 682.
LXXI.
The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all your Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all your Tears wash out a Word of it.
The origin of this quatrain is to be found in O. 31
From the beginning[75] was written what shall be;
Unhaltingly the Pen (writes) and is heedless of good and bad;
On the First Day He appointed everything that must be—
Our grief and our efforts are vain.
Ref.: O. 31, C. 87, L. 195, B. 192, S.P. 31, B. ii. 60, T. 67, P. v. 211.—W. 35, N. 31, V. 191.
LXXII.
And that inverted Bowl they call the Sky,
Whereunder crawling coop'd we live and die,
Lift not your hands to It for help—for It
As Impotently moves as you or I.
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from O. 134, ll. 1 and 2, and O. 41.
This heavenly vault is like a bowl fallen upside down,
Under which all the wise have fallen helpless.
Ref.: O. 134, C. 435, L. 657, B. 649, S.P. 360, P. 34, B. ii. 481, P. v. 154.—W. 408, N. 363, V. 706.
The good and the bad that are in man's nature,
The happiness and misery that are predestined for us,
Do not impute them to the heavens, for, in the way of Wisdom,
Those heavens are a thousandfold more helpless than thou art.
Ref.: O. 41, C. 62, L. 80, B. 76, S.P. 95, P. 45.—W. 96, N. 95, V. 79.
LXXIII.
With Earth's first Clay They did the Last Man knead,
And there of the Last Harvest sow'd the Seed:
And the first Morning of Creation wrote
What the Last Dawn of Reckoning shall read.
In this quatrain we trace the influence of O. 31 (quoted in the parallel to quatrain No. 71, ante) and of O. 95.
Oh, heart! since, in this world, truth itself is hyperbole,
Why art thou so disquieted with this trouble and abasement?
Resign thy body to destiny and adapt thyself to the times,
For, what the Pen has written, it will not re-write for thy sake.[76]
Ref.: O. 95, L. 430, B. 426, S.P. 215, P. 59, B. ii. 292.—W. 257, N. 216, E.C. 15, V. 468.
LXXIV.*
Yesterday This Day's Madness did prepare;
To-morrow's Silence, Triumph, or Despair:
Drink! for you know not whence you came, nor why
Drink! for you know not why you go, nor where.
The first half of this quatrain comes from O. 152 and the second half from O. 26, ll. 3 and 4.
Be happy! they settled thy business yesterday,
And beyond the reach of all thy longings is yesterday,
Live happily, for without any importunity on thy part yesterday,
They appointed with certainty what thou wilt do to-morrow—yesterday!
Ref.: O. 152, C. 473, L. 702, B. ii. 564, P. v. 196.—W. 489, V. 754.
Be happy!—thou knowest not whence thou hast come:
Drink wine!—thou knowest not whither thou shalt go.
Ref.: O. 26, C. 83, L. 192, B. 189, S.P. 85, B. ii. 110, T. 64, P. v. 34.—W 87, N. 85, V. 188.
LXXV.
I tell you this—When, started from the Goal,
Over the flaming shoulders of the Foal
Of Heav'n, Parwin and Mushtari they flung,
In my predestined Plot of Dust and Soul.
This quatrain is translated from C. 147.
On that day when they saddled the wild horses of the Sun,
And settled the laws of Parwin and Mushtari,[77]
This was the lot decreed for me from the Diwan of Fate:
How can I sin? (my sins) are what Fate allotted me as my portion.
Ref.: C. 147, L. 286, B. 282, S.P. 110.—W. 140, N. 110, V. 289.
LXXVI.
The Vine had struck a fibre; which about
If clings my Being—let the Dervish flout;
Of my Base metal may be filed a Key,
That shall unlock the Door he howls without.
The sentiment of this quatrain is contained in C. 143.
Since Eternity itself was He created me,
From the first he dictated to me the lesson of love,
At that time a small filing of the dust of my heart,
He made into a key of the treasure-house of substance.[78]
Ref.: C. 143, L. 311, B. 307, P. 81, T. 134.—V. 314.
LXXVII.
And this I know; whether the one True Light
Kindle to Love, or Wrath-consume me quite,
One Flash of It within the Tavern caught
Better than in the Temple lost outright.
This quatrain is translated from O. 2.
If I talk of the mystery with Thee in a tavern,
It is better than if I make my devotions before the Mihrab[79] without Thee.
O Thou, the first and last of all created beings,
Burn me an Thou wilt, cherish me an Thou wilt.
Ref.: O. 2, C. 272, L. 427, B. 423, S.P. 221, P. 7, B. ii. 294, T. 172.—W. 262, N. 222, V. 465.
LXXVIII.*
What! out of senseless Nothing to provoke
A conscious Something to resent the yoke
Of unpermitted Pleasure, under pain
Of everlasting Penalties, if broke!
It is not easy to deal with this and the three following quatrains separately, the sentiments of all four being closely interchangeable and largely identical. To avoid confusion, however, I have attempted the task. There are some scores of ruba'iyat that may be said to have contributed their imageries to the quatrain. The main sources of the first of them seem to be C. 85 and N. 226:
God, when he fashioned the clay of my body,
Knew by my making what would come of it;
(Since) there is no sin of mine without his order
Why should he seek to burn me at the Day of Resurrection?
Ref.: C. 85, L. 194, B. 191, S.P. 99, P. 18, T. 66.—W. 100, N. 99, V. 190.
Thou knowest that abstinence from that (sin) is impossible,
Having (nevertheless) ordered and ordained abstinence from it;
Thus between the order and the prohibition we stand helpless,
We mortals are helpless at the permission to slant
(the cup) but not to spill (its contents).[80]
Ref.: N. 226, L. 442, B. 438, S.P. 225, P. 317, B. ii. 297, T. 180.—W. 265, V. 479.
LXXIX.*
What! from his helpless Creature be repaid
Pure Gold for what he lent him dross-allay'd—
Sue for a Debt he never did contract,
And cannot answer—Oh the sorry trade!
This quatrain would seem to be specially inspired by C. 201 and 433, which are so much alike (ll. 2, 3, and 4 are practically identical in both) that one or the other is obviously the addition of a later scribe.
When they mixed the earth of my shaping-mould,
They produced an hundred wonders from me;[81]
I cannot be better than I am,
For this is how I was turned out of the crucible.
Ref.: C. 201, L. 355, B. 351, T. 128.—W. 221, V. 354.
LXXX.
Oh Thou, who didst with pitfall and with gin
Beset the Road I was to wander in,
Thou wilt not with Predestined Evil round
Enmesh, and then impute my Fall to Sin!
This quatrain is translated from O. 148.
In a thousand places on the road I walk, Thou placest snares,
Thou say'st «I will catch thee if thou settest foot in them,»
In no smallest thing is the world independent of Thee,
Thou orderest all things, and (yet) callest me rebellious!
Ref.: O. 148, B. ii. 546.—W. 432, N. 390.
LXXXI.
Oh Thou, who Man of baser Earth didst make,
And ev'n with Paradise devise the Snake:
For all the Sin wherewith the Face of Man
Is blacken'd—Man's forgiveness give—and take!
* * * * * * *
This is a very composite quatrain, round which some controversy has raged. Professor Cowell has given the weight of his authority to the statement that «there is no original for the line about the snake.» This is true in so far as that the image does not occur in Omar, but FitzGerald had seen it in an important apologue in the Mantik ut-tair (beginning at distich 3229) in which we read of the presence of the Snake (Iblis) in Paradise, at the moment of the creation of Adam, and in the course of which, Satan himself addresses God thus:
If malediction comes from Thee, there comes also mercy,
The created thing is dependent upon Thee since Destiny is in Thy hands;
If malediction be my lot, I do not fear,
There must be poison, everything is not antidote.
The influence of the following is traceable in the quatrains, C. 115, C. 286, and C. 510:
I am a disobedient slave, where is Thy mercy?
My heart is dark, where is Thy light and clearness?
If, for serving Thee, Thou givest me heaven,
This a reward, but Thy grace and Thy gifts—where are they?
Ref.: C. 115, L. 217, B. 214, S.P. 91, P. 23.—W. 93, N. 91, V. 211.
Oh! Thou who knowest the secrets of the hearts of all,
Protector of all in their hours of helplessness:
Oh, Lord! grant me repentance and accept my excuses,
Oh! Thou who grantest repentance and acceptest the excuses of all.
Ref.: C. 286, L. 449, B. 445, S.P. 235, B. ii. 308, T. 188.—W. 276, N. 236, V. 488.
Professor Cowell attributes FitzGerald's quatrain to the above ruba'i. Vide the Editorial Note previously referred to.
The manager of the affairs of the dead and living art thou,
Thou art the keeper of this unstable heaven;
Though I am wicked, thou art my Master,
Who can sin, seeing that thou art the Creator (of all)?
Ref.: C. 510, L. 700, B. 691, S.P. 431, P. 2, B. ii. 584.—W. 471, N. 436, V. 753.
LXXXII.[82]
As under cover of departing Day
Slunk hunger-stricken Ramazan away,
Once more within the Potter's house alone
I stood, surrounded by the Shapes of Clay.
LXXXIII.*
Shapes of all Sorts and Sizes, great and small,
That stood along the floor and by the wall;
And some loquacious Vessels were; and some
Listen'd, perhaps, but never talk'd at all.
LXXXVII (post).
FitzGerald constructed these three quatrains from O. 103.
I went last night into the workshop of a potter,
I saw two thousand pots, some speaking, and some silent;
Suddenly one of the pots cried out aggressively:—
«Where are the pot-maker, and the pot-buyer, and the pot-seller?»
Ref.: O. 103, C. 301, L. 470, B. 466, S.P. 242, P. 102, B. ii. 323, T. 202 and 297, P. v. 37.—W. 283, N. 243, E.C. 26, V. 509.
It will be observed that the reading of quatrain 87, l. 4, in the third edition of FitzGerald is close to this original. «Who makes—Who buys—Who sells—Who is the Pot?»
«Hunger stricken Ramazan» is described in C. 198.
They say that the moon of Ramazan[83] shines out again
Henceforth one cannot linger over the wine;
At the end of Sha'ban I will drink so much wine
That during Ramazan I may be found drunk until the festival (arrives).
Ref.: C. 198, L. 352, B. 348, S.P. 172, P. 347, B. ii. 216, T. 125.—W. 188, N. 172, V. 351. See also the quatrain from the «Notes,» p. 155.
LXXXIV.
Said one among them—«Surely not in vain
My substance of the common Earth was ta'en
And to this Figure moulded, to be broke,
Or trampled back to shapeless Earth again.»
The sentiment of this quatrain is traceable in C. 293.
There is a cup which wisdom loud acclaims,
And for its beauty gives it a hundred kisses on the brow,
Such a sweet cup, this Potter of the World
Makes, and then shatters it upon the ground.
Ref.: C. 293, L. 456, B. 452, B. ii. 321, T. 194.—W. 290, V. 495.
LXXXV.
Then said a Second—«Ne'er a peevish Boy
Would break the Bowl from which he drank in joy;
And he that with his hand the Vessel made
Will surely not in after Wrath destroy.»
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from O. 19.
The elements of a cup which he has put together,
Their breaking up a drinker cannot approve;[84]
All these heads and feet—with his finger-tips,
For love of whom did he make them?—for hate of whom did he break them?
Ref.: O. 19, C. 64, L. 40, S.P. 37, P. ii. 7, P. 95, B. ii. 77, T. 309.—W. 42, N. 38, V. 220.
LXXXVI.
After a momentary silence spake
Some Vessel of a more ungainly make;
«They sneer at me for leaning all awry:
What! did the Hand then of the Potter shake?»
This quatrain is a perfect reflection and companion of all these Kuza Nama quatrains, but I have not found a ruba'i in O. or C. which can be pointed out as having directly inspired[85] it. It must, I think, be considered together with No. 88.
LXXXVII.
Whereat some one of the loquacious Lot—
I think a Sufi pipkin—waxing hot—
«All this of Pot and Potter—Tell me, then,
Who is the Potter pray, and who the Pot?»
LXXXVII. Ante sub LXXXIII.
LXXXVIII.
«Why,» said another, «Some there are who tell
Of one who threatens he will toss to Hell
The luckless Pots he marr'd in making—Pish!
He's a Good Fellow, and 'twill all be well.»
The inspiration for this quatrain, and I think for No. 86, comes from C. 69 and C. 159:
Since the Director set in order the elements of natures,
For what cause does He again disperse them into loss and deficiency?
If they are good, why should He break them?
And if they turn out bad, well, why is there any blame to these forms?
Ref.: C. 69, L. 103, B. 99, P. 94, B. ii. 107.—W. 126, V. 103.
They say that at the resurrection there will be much searching,
And that that excellent Friend will be hasty;
Nothing but good ever came from the Unalloyed Goodness,
Be happy! for the upshot will be all right!
Ref.: C. 159, L. 316, B. 312, S.P. 178, P. 197.—W. 193, N. 178, V. 318.
LXXXIX.
«Well,» murmured one, «Let whoso make or buy,
My Clay with long Oblivion is gone dry:
But fill me with the old familiar Juice,
Methinks I might recover by and by.»
This quatrain is inspired by C. 188 and O. 116:
At that moment when the plant of my existence shall be rooted up,
And its branches scattered in all directions;
If then they make a flagon of my clay,
When they fill it with wine it will live again.
Ref.: C. 188, S.P. 115.—N. 115.
When I am abased beneath the foot of Destiny,
And am rooted up from the hope of life,
Take heed that thou makest nothing but a goblet of my clay,
Haply when it is full of wine I may revive.
Ref.: O. 116, C. 345, L. 539, B. 534, S.P. 289, P. 227, B. ii. 385, T. 230, P. v. 146.—W. 330, N. 290, V. 579.
XC.
So while the Vessels one by one were speaking,
The little Moon look'd in that all were seeking:
And then they jogg'd each other, «Brother! Brother!
Now for the Porter's shoulder-knot a-creaking!»
* * * * * * *
This quatrain which concludes the Kuza Nama is inspired by the concluding quatrain of O. 158.
The month of Ramazan passes and Shawwal comes,
The season of increase, and joy, and storytellers comes;
Now comes that time when «Bottles upon the shoulder!»
They say—for the porters come and are back to back.[86]
Ref.: O. 158.—W. 218.
XCI.
Ah, with the Grape my fading life provide,
And wash the Body whence the Life has died,
And lay me, shrouded in the living Leaf,
By some not unfrequented Garden-side.
This quatrain owes its inspiration to C. 12.
When I am dead wash me with wine,
Say my funeral service with pure wine,
If thou wishest that thou shouldst see me on the resurrection-day
Thou must seek me in the earth of the tavern threshold.
Ref.: C. 12, L. 13, B. 12, S.P. 7, P. 299, B. ii. 9, T. 12.—W 6, N. 7, V. 11
O. 69 may also be quoted:
Take heed to stay me with the wine-cup,
And make this amber[87] face like a ruby;
When I die, wash me with wine,
And out of the wood of the vine make the planks of my coffin.
Ref.: O. 69, C. 158, L. 308, B. 304, S.P. 109, P. 212, B. ii. 199, T. 143, P. v. 153.—W. 139, N. 109, V. 311.
XCII.
That ev'n my buried Ashes such a snare
Of Vintage shall fling up into the Air
As not a True-believer passing by
But shall be overtaken unaware.
This quatrain is translated from C. 16.
I will drink so much wine that this aroma of wine
Shall rise from the earth when I am beneath it;
So that when a drinker shall pass above my body,
He shall become drunk and degraded from the aroma of my potations.
Ref.: C. 16, L. 28, B. 26, S.P. 14, B. ii. 11.—W. 17, N. 14, V. 27.
XCIII.
Indeed the Idols I have loved so long
Have done my credit in this World much wrong;
Have drown'd my Glory in a shallow Cup,
And sold my Reputation for a Song.
The inspiration for this quatrain comes from C. 170.
When my mood inclined to prayer and fasting,
I said that all my salvation was attained;
Alas! that those Ablutions[88] are destroyed by my pleasures,
And that Fast of mine is annulled by half a draught of wine.
Ref.: C. 170, L. 366, B. 362, S.P. 162, P. 343, B. ii. 207, T. 118.—W. 180, N. 162, V. 365.
The last line is suggested by O. 22.
XCIV.
Indeed, indeed, Repentance oft before
I swore—but was I sober when I swore?
And then and then came Spring, and Rose-in-hand
My thread-bare Penitence apieces tore.
This quatrain is inspired by C. 431.
Every day I resolve to repent in the evening,
Making repentance of the brimful goblet and cup;
Now that the season of roses[89] has come, I cannot grieve
Give penitence for repentance in the season of roses, O Lord!
Ref.: C. 431, L. 655, B. 647 B. ii. 510.—W. 425, V. 704.
XCV.
And much as Wine has play'd the Infidel,
And robb'd me of my Robe of Honour—Well,
I wonder often what the Vintners buy
One half so precious as the stuff they sell.
The original of this quatrain is O. 62.
Although wine has rent my veil (of reputation),
So long as I have a soul I will not be separated from wine;
I am in perplexity concerning vintners, for they—
What will they buy that is better than what they sell?
Ref.: O. 62, C. 196, L. 350, B. 346, P. 311, B. ii. 167, T. 123, P. iv. 63, P. v. 202.—W. 208, N. 463, E.C. 11, V. 350.
XCVI.
Yet Ah, that Spring should vanish with the Rose!
That Youth's sweet-scented manuscript should close!
The Nightingale that in the branches sang,
Ah whence, and whither flown again, who knows!
This quatrain is translated from C. 223.
Alas! that the book of youth is folded up?
And that this fresh purple spring is winter-stricken;[90]
That bird of joy, whose name is Youth,
Alas! I know not when it came nor when it went.
Ref.: C. 223, L. 332, B. 328, S.P. 128, B. ii. 155, T. 161.—W. 155, N. 128, V. 334.
XCVII.*
Would but the Desert of the Fountain yield
One glimpse—if dimly, yet indeed, reveal'd,
To which the fainting Traveller might spring,
As springs the trampled herbage of the field!
This quatrain is inspired by C. 509.
Oh! would that there were a place of repose,
Or that we might come to the end of the road;
Would that from the heart of earth, after a hundred thousand years,
We might all hope to blossom again like the verdure.
Ref.: C. 509, L. 768, B. 754, S.P. 395, B. ii. 522.—W. 442, N. 400, V. 820.
XCVIII.*
Would but some wingéd Angel ere too late
Arrest the yet unfolded Roll of Fate,
And make the stern Recorder otherwise
Enregister, or quite obliterate!
This quatrain in its original form in the second edition was closer to the original Persian.
Oh if the World were but to re-create,
That we might catch ere closed the Book of Fate,
And make the Writer on a fairer leaf
Inscribe our names, or quite obliterate!
It owes its inspiration to N 457.
I would that God should entirely alter the world,
And that he should do it now, that I might see him do it;
And either that he should cross my name from the Roll,
Or else raise my condition from want to plenty.[91]
Ref.: N. 457, S.P. 451.—W. 486, V. 841.
XCIX.
Ah, Love! could you and I with Him conspire
To grasp this sorry Scheme of Things entire,
Would not we shatter it to bits—and then
Re-mould it nearer to the Heart's Desire!
* * * * * * *
This quatrain is translated from C. 395.
Had I, like God, control of the heavens,
Would I not do away with the heavens altogether,
Would I not so construct another heaven from the beginning
That, being free, one might attain to the heart's desire?
Ref.: C. 395, L. 594, B. 587, S.P. 337, P. 98, B. ii, 450, T. 268.—W. 379, N. 340, V. 641.
C.
Yon rising moon that looks for us again—
How oft hereafter will she wax and wane;
How oft hereafter rising look for us
Through this same Garden—and for one in vain.
This quatrain in its various forms is inspired by O. 5.
Since no one will guarantee thee a to-morrow,
Make thou happy now this lovesick heart;[92]
Drink wine in the moonlight, O Moon, for the moon[93]
Shall seek us long and shall not find us.
Ref.: O. 5, C. 7, L. 5, S.P. 8, P. 219, B. 4, B. ii. 8, T. 6, P. v. 168.—W. 7, N. 8, E.C. 5, V. 4.
CI.
And when like her, Oh Saki, you shall pass
Among the Guests Star-scatter'd on the Grass,
And in your joyous errand reach the spot
Where I made One—turn down an empty Glass!
This quatrain is taken from O. 83 and 84.
Friends when ye hold a meeting together,
It behoves ye warmly to remember your friend;
When ye drink wholesome wine together,
And my turn comes, turn (a goblet) upside down.
Ref.: O. 83.—W. 234, V. 459.
Friends, when with consent ye make a tryst together,
And take delight in one another's charms,
When the Cup-bearer takes (round) in his hand the Mugh[94] wine,
Remember a certain helpless one in your benediction.
Ref.: O. 84, L. 290, B. 286, S.P. 191, P. 226, B. ii. 245.—W. 205, N. 192, V. 293.
Appendix.
In addition to the quatrains composing the final form in which we know his poem, there are a few stray quatrains scattered about Edward FitzGerald's Introduction and Notes. There are also two quatrains which appeared in the first edition only, and nine that appeared in the second edition only. I do not think that this work would be complete without an attempt to identify these quatrains in the original texts which inspired them.
IN THE INTRODUCTION.[95]
Page 4.
Khayyam, who stitched the Tents of Science,
Has fallen in Grief's furnace and been suddenly burned;
The shears of Fate have cut the tent-ropes of his life,
And the Broker of Hope has sold him for nothing!
The quatrain upon p. 4 is a literal translation by Prof. Cowell of O. 22.
Ref.: O. 22, C. 59, L. 74, B. 70, S.P. 81, P. 205, B. ii. 94, T. 307, P. iv. 65, P. v. 195.—W. 83, N. 81, V. 73.
Page 7.
Oh, Thou who burn'st in Heart for those who burn
In Hell, whose fires thyself shall feed in turn;
How long be crying, «Mercy on them, God!»
Why, who art Thou to teach, and He to learn?
The quatrain upon p. 7 is FitzGerald's rendering of C. I.
O, burnt one (born) of the burnt! destined in turn to burn,
And oh, thou! from whom the fires of Hell shall blaze,[96]
How long wilt thou keep saying, «Have mercy upon Omar!»
Wilt thou be a teacher of mercy to God?
Ref.: C. 1, L. 769, B. 755, S.P. 453, P. ii. 1, B. ii. 537, T. 1.—W. 488, N. 459, V. 821.
Page 7.
If I myself upon a looser Creed
Have loosely strung the Jewel of Good deed,
Let this one thing for my Atonement plead.
That One for Two I never did misread.
The quatrain on p. 7 is FitzGerald's rendering of O. 1.
If I have never threaded the pearl[97] of thy service,
And if I have never wiped the dust of sin from my face,
Nevertheless, I am not hopeless of thy mercy,
For the reason that I have never said that One was Two.[98]
Ref.: O. 1, C. 274, L. 423, B. 419, P. 4, S.P. 228, B. ii. 302, P. iv. 8.—W. 268, N. 229, V. 461.
In the Notes.
XVIII.
The Palace that to Heav'n his pillars threw,
And Kings the forehead on his threshold drew—
I saw the solitary Ringdove there,
And «Coo, coo, coo!» she cried, and «Coo, coo, coo.»
The quatrain in the note to quatrain No. 18 is translated from C. 419.
That palace that reared its pillars up to heaven,
Kings prostrated themselves upon its threshold;
I saw a dove that, upon its battlements,
Uttered its cry: «Where, where, where, where?»[99]
Ref.: C. 419, L. 627, B. 619, S.P. 347, P. 140, B. ii. 459, P. iv. 13.—W. 392, N. 350, V. 677.
XC.
Be of Good Cheer—the sullen Month will die,
And a young Moon requite us by and by:
Look how the Old one, meagre, bent, and wan
With Age and Past, is fainting from the Sky!
The quatrain in the note to quatrain No. 90 is translated from C. 218.
Be happy! for the moon of thy festival will come,
The means of mirth will all be propitious;
This moon has become lean, bent-figured and thin,
Thou may'st say that it will sink under this trouble.
Ref.: C. 218, B. ii. 186.
In the First Edition.
XXXIII.
Then to the rolling Heav'n itself I cried,
Asking, «What Lamp had Destiny to guide
«Her little Children stumbling in the Dark?»
And—«A blind Understanding» Heav'n replied.
XLV.
But leave the Wise to wrangle, and with me
The quarrel of the Universe let be;
And, in some corner of the Hubbub coucht,
Make Game of that which makes as much of Thee.
XXXVII.
Ah! fill the Cup—what boots it to repeat
How Time is slipping underneath our Feet?
Unborn To-morrow and dead Yesterday.
Why fret about them if To-day be sweet?
In the first edition we find quatrain No. 33, which, like its distant cousin in the fourth edition (No. 34), appears to have no near parallel in the texts. No. 45 is a quatrain in a like predicament, and it may be for this reason that FitzGerald dropped it out of all subsequent editions.
The only other quatrain peculiar to the first edition is No. 37. This would appear to have been inspired by ll. 3 and 4 of O. 20, quoted in the parallels to quatrain No. 57 and by O. 17, ll. 3 and 4.
Nothing thou canst say of yesterday, that is past, is sweet;
Be happy and do not speak of yesterday, for to-day is sweet.
Ref.: O. 17, C. 84, L. 193, B. 190, P. 126, B. ii. 59, T. 65 and 352, P. iv. 68, P. v. 62.—W 112, E.C. 6, V. 189.
In the Second Edition.
The quatrains peculiar to the second edition are as follows:
XIV.
Were it not Folly, Spider-like to spin
The Thread of present Life away to win—
What? for ourselves, who know not if we shall
Breathe out the very Breath we now breathe in!
This quatrain is inspired by O. 136.
How long shall I grieve about what I have or have not,
And whether I shall pass this life light-heartedly or not?
Fill up the wine-cup, for I do not know
That I shall breathe out the breath that I am drawing in.
Ref.: O. 136, C. 504 and 427, L. 740, B. 726, S.P. 362, P. 207, B. ii. 484, P. v. 64.—W. 411, N. 366, V. 730.
XXVIII.
This was replaced by No. 63 in the fourth and fifth editions, taken from the same original.
XLIV.
Do you, within your little hour of Grace,
The waving Cypress in your Arms enlace,
Before the Mother back into her arms
Fold, and dissolve you in a last embrace.
The sentiment of this quatrain is traceable in C. 189, ll. 1 and 2, and in C. 195.
Be happy! for the time will come
(When) all bodies will be hidden in the earth.
Ref.: C. 189, L. 393, B. 389, S.P. 160, B. ii. 203.—N. 160, V. 390.
My whole mood is in sympathy with rosy cheeks,
My hand is always grasping the wine cup;
I exact from every part (of me) its allotted function,
Ere that those parts (of me) be mingled with the all.
Ref.: C. 195, L. 349, B. 345, S.P. 163, P. 287, B. ii. 206, T. 122.—W. 181, N. 163, V. 349.
LXV.
If but the Vine and Love-abjuring Band
Are in the Prophet's Paradise to stand,
Alack, I doubt the Prophet's Paradise
Were empty as the hollow of one's Hand.
This quatrain is inspired by O. 127 and by C. 60.
To drink wine and consort with a company of the beautiful
Is better than practising the hypocrisy of the zealot;
If the lover and the drunkard are doomed to hell,
Then no one will see the face of heaven.
Ref.: O. 127, L. 608, B. 601, S.P. 339, P. 330, B. ii. 453, P. v. 151.—W. 381, N. 342, V. 655.
FitzGerald was evidently «reminded of» this by N. 64 which is C. 60.
They say that drunkards will go to hell,
It is a repugnant creed, the heart cannot believe it;
If drunken lovers are doomed to hell,
To-morrow heaven will be bare like the palm of one's hand.
Ref.: C. 60, L. 158, B. 155, S.P. 64, T. 308, P. v. 29.—W. 67, N 64, V. 156.
LXXVII.
For let Philosopher and Doctor preach
Of what they will, and what they will not,—each
Is but one Link in an eternal Chain
That none can slip, or break, or over-reach.
For this quatrain I can find neither authority nor inspiration.
LXXXVI.
Nay, but, for terror of his wrathful Face,
I swear I will not call Injustice Grace;
Not one Good Fellow of the Tavern but
Would kick so poor a Coward from the place.
I think the inspiration for this must have been C. 8.
No man is he whom his fellow men spurn,
And (at the same time) for fear of his malice number among the good;
If a drunkard shows reluctance in generosity,
All his fellow drunkards hold him to be a mean fellow.
Ref.: C. 8, L. 3, B. ii. 15, T. 9.—V. 416.
XC.
And once again there gather'd a scarce heard
Whisper among them; as it were, the stirr'd
Ashes of some all but extinguisht Tongue,
Which mine ear kindled into living Word.
This was a fourth quatrain evolved out of O. 103. Vide quatrains Nos. 82, 83, and 87 ante.
XCIX.
Whither resorting from the vernal Heat
Shall Old Acquaintance Old Acquaintance greet,
Under the Branch that leans above the Wall
To shed his Blossom over head and feet.
This quatrain, interpolated after No. 91 of the fourth edition (= No. 98 of the second edition), is an elaboration founded upon the story told by Nizam ul-Mulk and recorded by FitzGerald in his Introduction.
CVII.
Better, oh better, cancel from the Scroll
Of Universe one luckless Human Soul,
Than drop by drop enlarge the Flood that rolls
Hoarser with Anguish as the Ages roll.
This quatrain, interpolated after the quatrain which became No. XCVIII. in the fourth edition, was no doubt inspired by N. 457 (q.v. sub No. 98 ante) and by O. 54.
What the Pen has written never changes,
And grieving only results in deep affliction;
Even through all thy life thou weepest tears of blood,
Not one drop becomes increased beyond what it is.
Ref.: O. 54, B. ii. 144.