The laughable stories collected by MÃ¢r Gregory John Bar HebrÃ¦

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Cornell University Library 

PJ 5671.B25K5 1897 

Laughable stories collected by Mar Greao 

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Semitic êyt anb titanslation Series. 

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Cornell University 

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The original of tiiis book is in 

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There are no known copyright restrictions in 

the United States on the use of the text. 

http://www.archive.org/cletails/cu31924026820187

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES 

COLLECTED BY 

MAR GREGORYJOHN BARHEBRAEUS.

THE 

LAUGHABLE STORIES 

COLLECTED BY 

MAR GREGORY JOHN ÂR-HEBRyÛS, 

MAPHRIAN OF THE EAST FROM A.D. I264 TO 1286.' 

THE SYRIAC TEXT EDITED WITH AN ENGLISH 

TRANSLATION 

E. A. WALLIS BUDGE, Litt. D. (Cantab.), F.S.A., 

KEEPER OF THE EGYPTIAN AND ASSYRIAN ANTIQUITIES IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 

Sionbon: 

LUZAC AND Co. 

1897. 

[/4// Rights Reserved'.^

^.v % 

,-' - -' 

W. DEUGUUN, ORIENTAL PEINTEE, LEIPZIG (GERMAny).

Confenfe. 

PREFACE 

INTRODUCTION 

PAGE 

VII 

XIII 

PROLOGUE BY BAR-HEBRiEUS 3 

LIST OF CHAPTERS 

5 

SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS 7 

SAYINGS 'OF THE PERSIAN SAGES 18 

SAYINGS OF THE INDIAN SAGES 28 

SAYINGS OF THE HEBREW SAGES 

3 I 

SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN RECLUSES 38 

SAYINGS OF THE MUHAMMADAN KINGS i 56 

STORIES OF TEACHERS AND LEARNED MEN 66 

SAYINGS OF THE ARAB ASCETICS 70 

SAYINGS OF PHYSICIANS 80 

STORIES OF THE SPEECH OF IRRATIONAL BEASTS 90 

STORIES OF THOSE WHOSE DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE 95 

STORIES OF WEALTHY AND LIBERAL MEN 105 

STORIES OF MISERS 

Ill 

STORIES OF MEN WHO FOLLOWED DESPISED HANDICRAFTS ... 122 

STORIES OF ACTORS AND COMEDIANS 

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS 

I29 

I40 

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND DEMONIACS 156 

STORIES OF THIEVES AND ROBBERS 165 

STORIES OF WONDERFUL EVENTS , . . . 170

VI 

CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS DESCRIBED 177 

APOLOGUE BY BAR-HEBRiEUS 

l86 

MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS 187 

BAR-HEBRiEUS ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-Ma'dANI ... 193 

INDEX 199—204 

SYRIAC TEXT 

I — 1^6

'treface. 

The present work contains the complete Syriac text 

of the seven hundred and twenty-seven "Laughable 

Stories" which were collected by John Abu'l-Faraj, 

more 

commonly known as Gregory bar-Hebraeus, the head 

of the Jacobite Church, or Maphrian of the East, from 

A.D. 1264 to 1286. Sixty-eight of these stories have 

been published before, eight by Adler, Bernstein and 

others, and sixty by Morales; but the remainder now 

appear in print for the first time. The text is edited 

from two MSS., one of which (India Office MS. No. 9.) 

was written in the year 1712, and the other, (a modern 

copy in my own possession) in 1893, and so far as 

can be judged from the extracts given by Morales 

from the Vatican MS. No. CLXXIII, the greater part 

of which was written about the year 1333, we have 

the text much as it existed about fifty years after the 

compiler's death. The translation has been made tolerably 

literal, but the language of Bar-Bebraeus is so 

concise that I have been obliged to give paraphrases 

rather than translations of certain of his stories and 

pithy sayings. No attempt has been rnade to trace 

the source of all the stories and sayings, for parallels

VIII 

PREFACE. 

and counterparts of the greater number of them may 

be met with in the literature of most of the ancient 

civilized countries. As was to be expected in a work 

devoted to a delineation of the virtues, and follies, and 

vices of man, by means of proverbs, anecdotes and 

narratives, 

a number of stories occur which would have 

been omitted by an occidental compiler. These have, 

however, been relegated to the respectable obscurity 

of the Latin tongue by my friend Mr. J. B. Hodge, M.A., 

of the Department of Printed Books, British Museum; 

thus the integrity of the work has been maintained in 

its printed form, and it is hoped that the general reader 

will find nothing to offend his taste. 

A peculiar interest attaches itself to the "Book of 

Laughable Stories", for it was the child of the compiler's 

old age. And it says much for the broadmindedness 

and versatility of the learned and venerable Bar- 

Hebraeus that, 

while his mind was closely occupied with 

history and philosophy and with the writing of works 

on grammar and other difficult subjects, the enthusiastic 

churchman found time to jot down notes of the witty, 

cynical, amusing, edifying, and didactic sayings and 

narratives which he came across during his perusal 

of the literatures of the Jews and Greeks, Arabs and 

Persians, Indians and Syrians. Lists of proverbs and 

moral and religious aphorisms have been the normal 

product of the writers of the East from the time 

when Kaqemna, who flourished in the reign of Huni, 

king of Egypt, about B. C. 3800, wrote his "Book of

PREFACE. 

IX 

Instructions;" but the work of Bar-Hebraeus differs 

considerably from them all, inasmuch as the soundest 

and best teaching, both as regards the present and 

the future life, is successfully inculcated by means of 

a series of concise sayings and stories culled from 

some of the best literatures of the world. It has been 

the fashion among some to scoff at Syriac literature 

as being the product of priests and monks who had 

no knowledge of the profane writings of other nations; 

that the greater part of it as known to us relates to 

ecclesiastical matters is true beyond a doubt, but that 

the greatest Syriac writers had other interests is also 

equally true, and of these Bar-Hebraeus is the most 

brilliant example. The "Book of Laughable stories" 

covers a wide ground, and embraces a very miscellaneous 

group of subjects. We should hardly expect 

the idea of "Woman's Rights" ever to have entered 

into the head of the Maphrian of the Jacobite Church, 

or even to have existed in an Oriental land in the 

XIII th century of our era, yet from one of his stories 

we see that it did, and also that some women's views 

of the matter were much then what they are now. 

For when one woman asked another why a man should 

have the power to buy a woman and to do what he 

pleased with her while a woman could not act with 

freedom in any matter, she repHed, "It is because kings, 

"and judges, and lawgivers have all been men. They 

"have, therefore, acted the part of advocate of their 

"own cause, and have, in consequence, oppressed the

PREFACE. 

"women" (see infra, p. 136). Similarly we should hardly 

expect Bar-Hebraeus to refer to the breakage of glass 

by careless servants, and yet he does so, for he relates 

that a set of beautiful glass vessels was given to 

Alexander the Great and that, although he much admired 

them, he ordered them to be broken. When 

he was asked why he had done so, he said, "I know 

"that they would be broken one after another by the 

"servants' hands, and that thereby anger would be 

"always stirred up in me; for this reason it is that with 

"one burst 

of wrath I have driven away many storms of 

"rage" (see infra, p. 1 4). Sometimes, too, curious information 

is preserved in a story. 

Thus among Bar-Hebraeus, 

anecdotes of weavers is one in which we are told that 

it was men who followed that trade who stole "Joseph's 

"cup, and the rod of Moses, and the fleece of Gideon, 

"and the sling of David, and the swaddling bands of 

"John, and the sandals of the Apostles; and when Mary 

"asked them to shew her the way to the Sepulchre, 

"they sent her by a wrong road" (see infra, p. 123). 

For a general description of the plan of the "Book 

of Laughable Stories" the reader is referred to p. XXI ff, 

and it only remains for me to express here my grateful 

thanks to Mr. C. H. Tawney for his kindness in obtaining 

for me the loan of the India Office MS. containine a 

copy of the Syriac text of the work. 

London, August i, 1896. 

E. A. WALLIS BUDGE.

^n^tro&ucîon. 

John^ Abu'l-Faraj or Abu'l-Faraj Gregory, the author 

of the "Book of Laughable Stories" printed in the present 

volume, was the son of Aaron, a Jewish physician, Eany ufe 

who lived at Melitene; from the fact that his father Bon of Barwas 

a Jew, the child was commonly called by the 

Syrians "Bar 'Ebhraya" (z. e. the "son of the Hebrew"), 

whence the name "Bar-Hebraeus". He was born A. Gr. 

1537 = A. D. 1226, and the early years of his life were 

passed in the diligent study of the Greek, Syriac, and 

Arabic languages; philosophy and theology next occupied 

his close attention, and he obtained a considerable 

knowledge of medicine from his father and from 

other celebrated physicians. When eighteen years old 

Bar-Hebraeus accompanied his father to Antioch. Subsequently 

he went to Tripolis, qoAo^^'t^, and together 

"e is con- 

with Selibha bar-Ya'kobh Waghih ^cvxisw* is ri'JuX-. 

—J secrated 

. , 

cnjô, studied the healing art and medicme with a cer- Bishop of 

tain learned Nestorian called Jacob; whilst there the 

Patriarch Ignatius II. sent for them, and appointed Selibha 

Bishop of Akko and Bar-Hebraeus Bishop of 

Gubos near Melitene. In the following year Aaron of 

' 

The chief facts of the life of Bar-Hebraeus are given by 

Assemani, Bibliotheca Orientalis, ii. p. 244 f.; Bar-Hebraeus, Chron. 

Ecdes., ii. col. 431 ff.; and Wright^ Syriac Literature, p. 265 fif.

— 

XIV 

INTRODUCTION. 

Lakabhin near Melitene left his flock and went to Jerusalem, 

and Ignatius II. appointed Bar-Hebraeus to the 

vacant see. In 1253 he was transferred to Aleppo, and 

eleven years later he was raised to the dignity of 

Maphrian by the Patriarch Ignatius III., Abbot of Gewikhath 

near Mopsuestia. The principal events which 

Maphrian of took pkce in connection with his ecclesiastical rule are 

described by Bar-Hebraeus himself in his Ecclesiastical 

^^J^^"*"'^ 

Chronicle^, to which work the reader is referred for 

information about the busy and most useful life which 

this eminent man lived; the following account of his 

death we owe to his brother Bar-Sauma. In the year 

1286, when Bar-Hebraeus had arrived at the sixtieth 

y^^'' °f his age, he began to 

i^gs'^^f dealt 

be afraid that his end 

and super- 

âg (Jrawing ulgh, and he said, "I was born in the 

"year when Chronos and Zeus were in conjunction in 

"the sign of the Zodiac Aquarius; twenty years later 

"when the same planets were in conjunction in the sign 

"of the Balance I was consecrated bishop; twenty years 

"later when the same planets were in conjunction in 

"the sign of the Twins I was held to be worthy of the 

"office of Maphrian': and twenty years later, when the 

"same two planets shall again be in conjunction in the 

"sign of Aquarius, I believe that I shall depart from 

"this world." And he said, "O net of the worlds, in 

"the year 1537 

{i.e., A. D. 1226) thy mesh did catch 

"me; but I beheve that in the year 1597 

{i. e., A. D. 1286) 

"I shall no longer be in thee^." Throughout that un- 

' Ed. Abbeloos and Lamy, pt. ii. col.. 431 ff. 

' In Syr., rdiî-îu, i e., "He who maketh [the Church] to 

flourish." 

3 The text of this curious passage runs: 

rC-Jr^ 

iuxsO

INTRODUCTION. 

XV 

lucky year he continued to brood on these things and 

they could not be banished from his mind. Bar- 

Hebraeus was then dwelling in the country near Nineveh, 

and his brother Bar-Sauma, knowing that maraud- ='="'her's 

ing bands from Syria were each summer in the habit safety, 

of invading that district, and of carrying people into 

captivity, and of plundering, and of spoiling and laying 

waste the land about Nineveh far and wide, and 

believing his brother to be quite incapable of taking 

steps to protect either himself or his people, said to 

himself, " Peradventure he will fall into the hands of 

"these robbers, and the Maphrian's words will actually 

"come to pass." From that time on he ceased not 

to urge with great persistence 

that Bar-Hebraeus should Bar-Hebleave 

the district and betake himself to the country g^^^^^^j^"^" 

of Maraghah in Adhorbaijin, that he might escape *°*'^"'ê:hah. 

from the death upon which he perpetually brooded. 

At length Bar-Sauma's importunity had the desired effect 

and Bar-Hebraeus set out for Maraghah and arrived 

there in safety. Here he was treated with the 

K'OOD Jîfl «r^ ca=.T ,00 

ps'jpi' iruM .rilô.13 jc-i.-USQ îiî\5a .t^ îwr^ ^liJL 

— :rôcn iaori'o .pdacn ril'SoL^ pa jiOS^rin 

:^^:AX^ >j.t- iJjp^ iujes risoli- ^.•u-'sj 

A tJ^=3 Pi'ocnri' rA \^r^ Aoiai ,1 Kllr^ vasoa 

See Assemani, £.0., ii. 263; CAron. Eccles., ii. col. 467.

XVI 

INTRODUCTION. 

greatest honour by men of every class, and the Arab 

He transnobles 

entreated him to translate his Chronicle, originlates 

his Syriac 

chro-ally writtcn in Syriac, into Arabic^ so that they also 

Arabic. 

'° ° 

might read and enjoy it. To this he agreed, and he 

at once began to make the Arabic translation, using 

the most beautiful and classical language for the purpose; 

after working for a "month of days" he had 

finished the whole translation with the exception of 

three folios. His death was, no doubt, accelerated by 

this most laborious task, an idea of the magnitude of 

which may be gained from the fact that the translation 

He falls sick, fills 

565 pages in small 4to! On the night of the 

Sabbath, the 27th day of the month Tammuz (July) he 

was seized with fever, and he was consumed with heat 

the whole night long; on the Sunday the physicians 

came and struggled to make him drink some medicine, 

but this he refused to do, saying that drugs would do 

He refuses him no good for his hour had come. It was noticed 

that he had been better and stronger in his Pfeneral 

health and body during that year than he had been 

for many years past, but the fever had so weakened 

him three days later that, when on the Sunday he asked 

for pen and paper to write and they were given to 

him, he was unable to write at all; "and twice an hour 

Is prostrated "he fek hls left hand with his riaht and said, Mv 

by -^ ' 

.' 

fever. 

"strength hath come to an end and is worn out. Thou 

"hast wronged me, O my brother, and hast not per- 

"mitted me to die and to be buried by the pious 

"monks, and elders, and deacons, of whom this day I 

"have been the chief for twenty-two years. Thou 

' The first edition of this work was published at Oxford in 1663 

under the title oi"Historia Compendiosa Dynastiarum" ed. E.Pococke.

' 

INTRODUCTION. 

XVII 

"wouldst make me to flee from death, O my brother, "'"heerfui 

"but behold the flight hath not benefited me. 

1^ 

speech to his 

Be strong, brother, 

"however, and of good cheer, and weep not, neither 

"mourn immoderately as 

if some new thing had taken 

"place in the world. With these and such like words 

"did he speak the whole day, and he was cheerful and 

"laughed, being not at all afraid of death like other 

"men. And he called straightway for Sa'id the phy- 

"sician and deacon and said to him, 'Write what I 

"shall tell thee,' and he made a beginning to his dis- 

"course [with these words]:— 'The days of the child 

"of man are like unto the grass, and like the flower 

"of the field doth he grow up.' Then having completed 

"the confession, as was right, he brought forth with 

"his hand two statutes, one for the patriarchal throne, 

"and the other for the throne of the Maphrian and for^ ^xhortationstothe 

"the ordering of his cell, and delivered them to his brethren, 

"brother. And he began to give commands to his dis- 

"ciples, saying, 'Abide in love, and depart not from 

"one another, and whensoever ye are gathered to- 

"gether in love I also am in your midst.' But they, 

"poor, wretched beings, rent their garments and cast 

"dust upon their heads, and were weeping until about 

"three hours of the night had passed, when he who 

"meanwhile had ceased not to talk and to laugh with 

"a smiling face, went out like a lamp, or I should rather 

"say like a brilliant and splendid torch, and he departed He dies, 

"to his Lord on the night of the thirty-third day of 

"Tammuz (July) in the year 1597." i- e., A. D. 1286.' universal 

^J J I J "^ ^ 

manifesta- 

When the Catholicus Mar Yahbh AUaha, who was tions of grief 

at that time in the city of Maraghah, heard of the death 

' 

For the text see B. O., ii. p. 264 f; and CAron. Ecchs., ii. 

at his death. 

col. 

471 fF.

The 

XVIII 

INTRODUCTION. 

of Bar-Hebraeus, he ordered that no man should go 

into the market and that no shop should be opened. 

The bell-ringer went forth and all the people were 

gathered together to the Maphrian's cell, and the Catholicus 

of the Nestorians sent there the pious folk 

who were with him, together with a number of large 

wax candles to be burnt during the funeral service, and 

•the whole of the congregations of the Armenians and 

Greeks came likewise; about two hundred were assembled 

there and they continued in prayer from dawn 

Sympathy of until the ninth hour. When the Nestorians, and the 

theChristian 

iia 

• 

iii* 

sects. Greeks, and the Armenians 

11 

had ended their prayers 

and had buried him in a suitable manner, they laid the 

holy body in the little altar at which he was wont to 

pray and to make offerings all the time he sojourned 

in Maraghah. Subsequently his body was removed to 

His body is the Monastery of Mar Mattai, which was built in the 

removed to . _ , ^^, ... 

the Monast- early centuries of the Christian era in the mountain 

Mattil called Alpep by ancient Syrian writers', and Jebel 

Maklub by the Arabs, situated at a distance of a few 

hours to the north-east of Mosul (Nineveh). Here in 

a niche in the north-west corner of the same chamber 

in which Mar Mattai is' buried, is the tomb of Bar- 

Hebraeus; the Monastery is in the possession of the 

Jacobites, but it is sadly out of repair and most things 

of value have been plundered by Kurds, and only a 

few monks now live there. During the winter when 

the snow has fallen the Monastery is difficult of access, 

and even when there is no snow the path is steep 

and difficult ^ 

' See Hoffmann, Ausziige, p. ig. 

^ For a view of this Monastery see Badger, 

. 

vol. i. p. 97. 

Nestorians,

INTRODUCTION. 

XIX 

From the facts stated above it is evident that all 

the Christians in Mesopotamia and in the countries 

about deplored the loss of Bar-Hebraeus with sincere 

grief, and there is little doubt that he was the greatest 

writer whom the Syrian Church ever produced \ His 

knowledge of Greek and Arabic opened store-houses 

p''=»* '«""- 

of learning which were closed to most of his fellow- Hebraeus. 

countrymen, and his energy and general literary ability 

were remarkable. 

His works shew that he had studied 

deeply many subjects of which the other scholars of 

his Church were profoundly ignorant, and the ready 

wit of his many-sided mind and his lucid style enabled 

him to adapt the knowledge of extraneous and difficult 

subjects to his own needs, and to express them simply 

but clearly for the advantage of his readers. This 

is no place to give a catalogue of his works ^ and itHisunanng 

must be sufficient to state that during the forty years 

which he passed in the service of his Church—eighteen 

years as bishop of various dioceses, and twenty-two 

years as Maphrian— he seems to have been able to 

master the philosophy of the Greeks and the Arabs, 

and to have made it available by his translations of 

their works for his fellow-countrymen. Philosophy, 

theology, natural science, history, medicine, the science 

of grammar, &c., were only a few of the subjects in 

the knowledge of which he excelled, and it is evident 

from a perusal of his works that he was no superficial 

student of the false sciences of the day, I mean astro- 

" 

See B. O., ii. p. 269 ff.; Wrightj Syriac Literature, p. 265 ff., 

269 ff. 

^ 

Jedenfalls ist Barhebraeus einer der hervorragendsten Manner 

seiner Kirche und seiner ganzen Nation. Noeldeke, Orietitalische 

Skizzen, p. 273.

; 

XX 

INTRODUCTION. 

His service lopfv, divinatioii, and so forth. The service which he 

tothelitera- °"^ 

j 

1, • 

ture of his rendered to his Church and her literature, and to his 

country. 

jj^^Jqj^ ^^^ hardly be overestimated, and Western scholars 

owe him a great debt of gratitude especially for 

his Universal History, his Storehouse of Secrets, and 

his grammatical works. 

The "Book The "Book of Laughable Stories" which is edited 

able sto-and translated in the following pages, is a work which 

Bar-Hebraeus wrote in the late years of his life ' ; 

it is 

called in Syriac both "Book of Laughable Stories", 

reQ rdiioAi.i îlsi\^^ and "Book of Refreshing 

"Stories", t*^''* v^'^~« kIuo^.t rils^. An Arabic version 

of this work was made by its author which was entitled 

Daf al-Hamm, ^\ «i:> or "The Driving away of 

"Care"^; manuscripts of both works are scarce. The 

first* to make any portion of the work known to scholars 

was Adler, who in his Brevis linguae syr. institutio, 

Altona, 1 784, published eight of the stories, which were 

republished by Bernstein' and others. In 1886 Morales 

published the text of sixty of the stories, with a German 

translation® and vocabulary, from the Vatican MS. 

No. CLXXIII. wherein the whole collection fills foil. 

80-158; this MS. seems to date from the XlVth century 

of our era, but the last part of it was written by 

a later hand. 

' 

Wright, Syr. Lit., p. 280. 

^ 

Or rda\ >j3J!i

INTRODUCTION. 

XXI 

The text here given is taken from the India Office 

'^''eMss. of 

MS. No. 9, and from a copy of the "Laughable Stories" 

in my own possession. The India Office MS. consists 

of 444 paper leaves, measuring about 8 in. by 6 V4 in. 

From fol. i to fol. 59, and from fol. 194 to the end 

the page is filled with two columns of 29 lines each; 

but from fol. 60 to fol. 193 the page only contains one 

column of 21 lines. The MS. is beautifully written in 

a fine Nestorian hand, 

and vowels and diacritical points 

have been added abundantly; two handwritings are 

distinguishable in the MS. The "Laughable Stories" 

begin on fol. 351 ^, col. i, and end on fol. 4131^, col. 2; 

they were copied by the famous Homo', the son of 

Daniel the elder, of Al-kosh, A. Gr. 2024 = A. D. 

171 2-1 3. My own copy is quite modern, but it was 

made 'by a good scribe from an ancient manuscript; if 

only he had followed his instructions and copied all the 

stories instead of making a selection from them we 

should probably have gained several additional, important 

textual variants. The MS. is in small quarto 

and the page contains usually about 17 lines; the titles, 

headings of chapters &c., are written in red, and at 

the 

end are a number of exhortations, of a miscellaneous 

character, to the reader to lead a godly, righteous, and 

sober life, followed by some verses on the death of 

the Patriarch John bar-Ma' dani, who died in 1263. 

The "Laughable Stories" of Bar-Hebraeus are in^,'l"JC2. 

number about seven hundred and twenty-seven, and 

these are divided into twenty chapters which vary in 

length. They were compiled from a variety of sources 

I 

See Hoffmann, Opuscula Nestoriana, pp. I and XXIII. When 

I was at Al-kosh in November, 1890, I talked with two men who 

claimed descent from this famous Homo.

XXII 

INTRODUCTION. 

during the later years of his life, and it is clear from 

his Prologue that he intended them to comfort, and 

amuse, and instruct those who read them. That they 

were not written for his own nation alone is clear from 

the fact that he recommends them to the Muslim, and 

to the Hebrew, and to the stranger as well as to the 

Syrian. Men of every taste and disposition can read 

therein with advantage, for the wise man will find 

wisdom therein, and the fool folly, and the pious piety, 

and the gay amusement, and the superstitious reasons 

The miscei- fgr their superstitions. A certain number of the stories 

laneous character 

of the are coarse' and refer to matters which are not generally 

discussed in a book intended for popular reading, but 

the compiler excuses himself for the insertion of such 

by saying that as "in the tabernacle of wisdom every 

"kind of thing is necessary, nothing whatsoever that in 

"a natural way sharpeneth the intelligence, and en- 

"lighteneth the understanding, and comforteth and re- 

"joiceth the mind which is sorrowful and suffering 

"should ever be rejected" (see p. 185). From the India 

Office MS. we may learn that certain stories of 

this class were not considered suitable for all readers, 

but the Western reader will probably doubt the wisdom 

of the man who made the selection. Thus the reader 

is told on the margin to skip (ioi.) No. CCCXXVII, 

yet he is told to read (,io) No. CCCXXVIII, which 

is more coarse; similarly he is told to skip Nos. 

CCCCVII and CCCCIX, but to read No. CCCCVIII. 

No. CCCCXl is passed over without note or comment, 

' /. e., Nos. XXVI, XXXVII, LX, CCCXXVII, CCCXXVIII, 

CCCCVII, CCCCVIII, CCCCIX, CCCCXl, CCCCXXXVII, DI, DV, 

DXX, DXXXVII, DXLV, DLXIII, DLXX, DLXXIV, DLXXXli 

DCXXXV, DCXXXVII, &c.

INTRODUCTION. 

XXIII 

as likewise is No. CCCCXXXVII, a most repulsive 

story. Whether we owe these marginal notes to tradition 

or to Homo the scribe is a matter which cannot 

be cleared up at present. That any reference to the 

relations between the sexes should be expunged from 

a book intended for the use of monks or of men living 

in a monastery is not to be wondered at, but that 

the reader should be specially directed to read certain 

of the stories is a matter for surprise. 

In reading the "Book of Laughable Stories" the most 

casual 

reader will observe that Bar-Hebraeus must have 

spent considerable labour in compiling his work, and 

it is certain that he must have read a vast amount of 

literature of all kinds written in several languages. 

Some of the sayings of the Greek, Persian, Indian, andj^*^ 

The sources 

Arabian sagfes he probably took from some work Hke "^^"e*'^'''= 

o l J 

that of Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Miskavaih 

_ 

(died 

A. H. 421 = A. D. 1030), who collected a number of 

precepts of the ancient sages of Persia, India, Arabia, 

and Greece, which were translated into Persian by 

Taki Shushtar^^ and it seems that he supplemented 

these from notes made during the course of his own 

studies. It is clear that in some cases he amplified his 

text, and that in others he modified and gave a different 

turn to the original story. Some of the stories 

may have existed in more than one form, or they may 

have been told in different ways. 

Thus in No. CCCLXXX 

the 

stories". 

' 

See Brit. Mus. MS. Orient. No. 457, of the Javidan Khirad which, 

infer alia, contains the Precepts of Buzurjmehr (fol. 20 a), the 

Maxims of the Sages of India (fol. 59 a), the Proverbs of the 

Arabs (fol. iii^), and the Proverbs of the Greek Sages (fol. 119a). 

See RieU; Catalogue of the Persian MSS. in the British Museum, 

p. 441(2:.

— 

XXIV 

INTRODUCTION. 

scarabaeus is 

ImTofthe^^^ 

made to say to its mother, "Whithersame 

sto- "soever I go men spit upon me," and its mother replies 

ries. 

• 

T 

1 

"It is because thy beauty and smell are pleasant." With 

this may be compared the Arabic proverb, "The beetle 

"is a beauty in the eyes of its mother."' Again in 

No. CCCLXXV we have the story of the ape of the 

mosque and the dog, but the turn given to the story 

therein is quite different from that of the Arabic 

version". We may also notice in passing that stories 

told of one man by one author are told of some one 

quite different by Bar-Hebraeus. Thus in No. IV it is 

said that Socrates once saw a woman who had hanged 

herself, and that he remarked, "Would that all trees 

"bore such fruit as this;" but in Diogenes Laertius 

(VI, 2) the saying is attributed to Diogenes the Cynic, 

and is thus given : 

ibwv nore YuvaiKa? an' eXeiag dTrriYXOvicr- 

(ievas, "ei'ee Tap, etpn. iravTa rd 5ev6pa toioOtov Kaprrov r|veTKev." 

f^ng em!P'"°'" the fifth Chapter of the "Laughable Stories" we 

ployed by are able to see the plan upon which Bar-Hebraeus 

Bar-He- 

1 j 

• 

i 

• 1 • 

braeus. worked in making his compilation and to form an idea 

how far he followed his authorities, and how far he 

abridged them. In perusing the Chapter we see at 

once that he stands on his own ground, and that he 

is dealing with a class of literature with which he is 

familiar at first hand. The chief source of the stories 

of the Christian recluses is the Syriac version of Palla- 

'

INTRODUCTION. 

XXV 

dius' work, and most of the "Sayings" attributed to 

them are 

from the Apophthegmata which usually follow 

it in MSS. ; of the thirty-eight stories in the Chapter 

I have traced twenty-eight to Palladius, It will be seen "^^^^"^p*^ 

from the full texts which accompany stories Nos. CXC VII, ^^"'""^ 

^"^ 

the Apoph- 

CCII, CCIX, how very much Bar-Hebraeus has con- thegmata of 

densed his authorities, but there is no doubt that he 

has in most cases preserved the pith of the stories in 

his own abridged versions. It is surprising, however, 

that he limited himself to thirty-eight stories, for the 

Syriac Palladius and the Apophthegmata form an almost 

inexhaustible mine for sayings and stories quite 

as remarkable as those which Bar-Hebraeus selected. 

It is difficult also to understand why the names of the 

chief actors in the stories are sometimes omitted. Thus 

"the certain man who was righteous according to this 

"world" (No. CLXXVI) was Arsenius; the brother that 

"was perfect to such a degree that even wild animals 

"became his friends and he used to nourish their young" 

(No. CC) was Macarius of Alexandria, and so on. Whether 

it be true or not the latter story has a pretty continuation 

in Palladius, for we read there that, a few 

days after the holy man had made the hyaena's cubs 

to see by spitting on their eyes and praying over them, 

the mother came into his cell dragging a goat- skin 

which she deposited at his feet, evidently intending it 

for his use. And the ascetic took it and wore it until f^'°^^^^°^ 

he was an old man. On another occasion when the^ciuses. 

door of his cell was shut the hyaena jumped over the 

wall, bearing a young one in her mouth Macarius saw 

; 

that it too was blind and he treated its eyes, as he 

had those of the other cubs, successfully. The day 

following the mother brought back to the cell for the

XXVI 

INTRODUCTION. 

holy man a sheep-skin, which subsequently became the 

property of the blessed woman Melania'. A comparison 

of the other stories of the Christian recluses with the 

Syriac texts which I have given in the notes to them 

will shew that when Bar-Hebraeus found the facts 

briefly related in terse language he excerpted them 

without alteration ; 

but when the opposite was the case he 

cut down the text, or paraphrased it, or explained it, 

or omitted whole passages, whenever it suited his views 

or convenience to do so. Moreover, I suspect that 

this would be found to be the case with almost every 

story in the book, if it were traced to its original form. 

Superstition 

Judging from the group of stories of men whose 

raeus. dreams and divinations have come true it would seem 

that 

Bar-Hebraeus himself was somewhat superstitious, 

and that he was not free from many of the notions 

and beliefs common to the uneducated folk of his day. 

We have seen above (p. XIV) that several months 

before his death he became convinced that his whole 

life was to consist of three parts, each containing 

twenty years, and that the length of it was to be represented 

by the number of years which were to elapse 

between two periods when the planets Chronos and 

Zeus would be in 

conjunction in the sign of the Zodiac 

Aquarius; in other words, he believed that Chronos 

and Zeus were his planets and that the length of his 

life was in some way connected with their movements. 

The interpretation of omens and dreams was a science 

Great anti- in Babyloula and Assyria thousands of years before 

quity of be- ,. ri^TTi 

lief in magic, the time ot hJar-Hebraeus, and there is no doubt that 

many popular beliefs belonging to a far older period 

' For the text see infi-a, pp. 49, 50.

INTRODUCTION. 

XXVII 

existed in his day. Thus in No, DXLVII a simpleton 

asks an astrologer to arrange that his son should be 

born under the sign of Hermes, meaning that he wishes 

him to be a scribe; now, the Greeks identified Hermes 

with the Babylonian godNebo, who was the god oflearning 

and the scribe of the gods, but the idea that a man would 

become a scribe because he was born when Nebo or 

Hermes was "ruling" belonged to a much older time 

than that of the Greeks. Stories of the speech of 

animals, likewise, have their originals in the literature 

of Mesopotamia and Egypt, and if we had records of 

the earliest peoples of these countries we should probably 

find that such originals were derived from writers 

belonging to still earlier nations, and that these in turn 

had borrowed from their predecessors.

BY THE POWER OF GOD, THE LORD OF THE UNIVERSE, THE 

CAUSE OF ALL BLESSINGS, I WRITE THE "BOOK OF LAUGHABLE 

stories" which GREGORY BAR-HEBRÛS, THE MAPHRIAN OF 

THE EAST, COLLECTED WITH MUCH CARE AND DILIGENCE. 

MAY HIS PRAYERS BE WITH US! 

AMEN.

3w^tro5uc(ion. 

^5tou5^ Z^^ Bfeeaeb (name, © Borb of tê (Untveree, Bdeef 

tnge an raineb iewn upon ua; anb (^roug^ ^^5 

gracteue itncfton 

anb guibance [out] ipaiê are tnabe ettatg^^; ani t^voM^^ '2^êe 

our wage ate maie emoof^

IV 

INTRODUCTION. 

pfucft iU fFotvere w3t«? ipkaei îm, for in tîs waj iU Boeft 

wtff 0ucceeb in Bnngtng iog^têt (ê fringe w^tc^ are dfifte, 

4ac$ io t^t otUv>

&i\t 

of (U CâpUte. 

I, PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE PERSIAN SAQES. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE INDIAN SAGES. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE HEBREW SAGES. 

V. PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN ASCETICS. 

VI. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE MUSLIM KINGS AND OF THEIR SAGES. 

VII. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF DOCTORS AND SCRIBES. 

VIII. CONCERNING THE EXCELLENT SAYINGS OF ARAB ASCETICS AND 

IX. 

OLD MEN. 

STORIES OF PHYSICIANS AND LEGENDS ATTRIBUTED TO THEM. 

X. CHOICE STORIES OF THE SPEECH OF IRRATIONAL ANIMALS. 

XL STORIES OF MEN WHOSE DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS HAVE COME 

XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 

XVI. 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

TRUE. 

STORIES OF RICH AND GENEROUS MEN. 

STORIES OF AVARICIOUS MEN AND MISERS. 

STORIES OF WORKMEN WHO FOLLOWED DESPISED HANDICRAFTS. 

LAUGHABLE STORIES OF ACTORS AND COMEDIANS. 

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS. 

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. 

STORIES OF ROBBERS AND THIEVES. 

STORIES OF WONDERFUL aCCIDENTS AND OCCURRENCES. 

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS DESCRIBED BY THE SAGES.

as 

'PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. 

I. A certain disciple of Socrates said unto him, 

"How is it that I see in thee no sign of sorrow ?" Socrates 

replied, "Because I possess nothing, for which 

"I should sorrow if it perished." 

II. Another [disciple] said unto him, "If the vessel 

"wherein thou hidest were to be broken, what wouldst 

"thou do?" Socrates replied, "Even if the vessel were 

"to be broken, the place in which it is would not be 

"broken." 

III. To Socrates the wife of a certain man said, "How 

"ugly' is thy face, O Socrates!" And Socrates replied 

unto her, saying, "If thou thyself hadst been a clean 

"mirror I should have been distressed [by thy words]; 

"but since thou art a dirty one my beauty is not re- 

"flected by thee. I do not, however, blame thee be- 

"cause 

of it." 

IV. Socrates saw a woman who had hanged herself 

on a tree, and he said, "Would that all trees bore such 

"fruit as this!" 

V. A certain woman saw Socrates . 

they were 

carrying him along to crucify' him, and she wept and 

said, "Woe is me, for. they are about to slay thee 

"without having committed any offence." And Socrates 

^ 

See the note to story No. XCIII.

O 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÛS. 

made answer unto her, saying, "O foolish woman, 

"wouldst thou have me also commit some crime that 

"I might be punished like a criminal?" 

VI. A certain philosopher had a daughter, and two 

men came [to him] wishing to take her to wife; one 

of them was poor and the other was rich. To the 

rich man he said, "I will not give my daughter unto 

"thee," and he gave her to the poor man. And when 

the folk asked him, "Why hast thou acted in this 

"manner?" he made answer unto them, saying, "The 

"rich man is a fool, and I was afraid lest he would come 

"to poverty; but the poor man is wise, and therefore I 

"hope and believe that he will gain riches and wealth." 

VII. Certain men asked another philosopher, "What 

"thing would benefit the majority of mankind?" And 

he replied, "The death of a wicked governor." 

VIII. To another philosopher it was said, "Wherein 

"dost thou differ from the king.?" And he replied, "The 

"king is a slave to his lusts, whilst my passion is sub- 

"servient unto 

me." 

IX. Certain men asked Plato, "With what shall a 

"man console himself when he falleth into temptation?" 

And Plato made answer unto him, saying, "The wise 

"man consoleth himself because he knoweth that that 

"which hath come to pass must necessarily have hap- 

"pened; but the fool consoleth himself [by thinking] 

"that that which hath happened unto himself hath also 

"happened unto other men." 

X. Aristotle commanded Alexander [the Great], 

saying, "Do not reveal thy secret unto two men lest, 

"if it be revealed, thou be unable to be certain which 

"of the two hath made it public, and if thou punishest 

"both of them thou wilt then certainly inflict an injury

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. 9 

"upon him that revealed it not, and if thou forgivest 

"both of them thou wilt not do even an act of grace 

"because of him who revealed it not." 

XI. To another philosopher it was said, "What man 

"is happy?" And he replied, "He whose expectations 

"are, for the most part, realised." 

XII. Aristotle said, "One wise man agreeth with 

"another wise man, but a fool neither agreeth with 

"a wise man nor a fool. For, behold, all the parts of 

"one straight line coincide with all the parts of another 

"straight line, but the parts of crooked lines neither 

"coincide with those of a straight line, nor with those 

"of a 

crooked line." 

XIII. It was said to Diogenes, "Why dost thou eat 

"in the market-place.''" He replied, "Because I am 

"hungry in the market-place." 

XIV. Diogenes saw a harlot's child throwing stones 

"at people, and he said to him, "Throw not stones, lest 

"thou smite thine own father without knowing it." 

XV. Another philosopher saw a certain man giving 

instruction to a certain maiden, and he said unto him, 

"Add not wickedness to wickedness. Why dost thou 

"poison that which is right and proper by dipping it 

"in poison, whereby she shall be the more able to slay 

"the children of men and to lead captive their minds?" 

XVI. Another philosopher saw a damsel carrying 

fire, and he said, "Behold fire upon fire, but the bearer 

"is stronger than the burden." 

XVII. Another philosopher saw a woman in the 

theatre looking on as a spectator, and he said [to her], 

"Thou hast not come out to see, but to be seen." 

XVIII. [To him also] it was said, "Why doth not the 

"king love thee?" He replied, "It is the peculiar char-

lO 


"acteristic of kings to love not him that is greater 

"than they." 

XIX. Another philosopher said, "Take heed of the 

"two-legged lion," thereby referring to the king. 

XX. To another philosopher it was said, "Why do 

"we eat the outside of the date, and the inside of the 

"nut?" He replied, "The Divine Providence of the 

"Creator concerneth not itself with how that which 

"hath been created shall be eaten, but with the matter 

"of how the species thereof shall be preserved in per- 

"petuity; thus that whereby the species is preserved 

"is inside both, even though the kernel of the nut is 

"edible and the stone of the date is not." 

XXI. Alexander [the Great] saw among the soldiers 

of his army a man called Alexander who continually 

took to flight in the time of war, and he said to him, 

"Either be strong in battle or change thy name, so 

"that listeners be not deceived by the similarity of our 

"names." 

XXII. Another philosopher saw a city with a mighty 

wall round about it, and he said, "This is a dwelling- 

"place for women and befitteth not men." 

XXIII. A certain philosopher, who was a cynic from 

Alexandria, asked the king for a mathkal"- of gold, and 

the king made answer to him, saying, "This is not of 

"the gifts which kings are wont to give." The philosopher 

then asked him for a talent [of gold]", and the 

king replied, "This is not a request which should be 

"made by a cynic." 

XXIV. Aristotle was asked, "Why have the envious 

"always sad and gloomy faces?" He replied, "Because 

' 

A gold coin equal in value to about nine shillings of our money. 

^ /. e., about £4,217 sterling.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. I I 

"they are not only grieved over their own wicked- 

"nesses, but also over the virtues of others." 

XXV. Another philosopher was asked, "What is the 

"occupation of orators?"' He replied, "To magnify 

"those who are little and to belittle him that is great." 

XXVI. Dixit philosophus alius quidam, "Quatuor sunt 

"genera corporalium voluptatum: quorum primum mo- 

"mento temporis durat ut coitu frueris; alterum per diem 

"ut masculine prole gaudes usque dum nimium flere 

"coepit; tertium per mensem ut nova nupta usque dum 

"ventrem fert; quartum tamen omnem per aevum ut 

"divitiarum 

abundantia." 

XXVII. Plato said, "The fool is known by two things: 

"by his much speaking about that which benefiteth 

"him not, and by his giving answers about subjects 

"concerning which men ask 

him not." 

XXVIII. Another philosopher was asked, "Which is 

"the greatest fool of all.''" He replied, "He who is 

"tripped up twice." 

XXIX. It is said that upon the ring of Pythagoras 

there was written, "The evil which is not perpetual is 

"better than the good which is not perpetual." 

XXX. Another philosopher said, "The wise man re- 

"cogniseth the fool because he himself was formerly a 

"fool; but the fool never recogniseth the wise, man, 

"there never having been a time when he was wise." 

XXXI. Another philosopher said, "About man there 

"is nothing more marvellous than the fact that he 

"spendeth his riches and is sad, but though his days 

"pass away he is not grieved." 

XXXII. A certain man saw Socrates gnawing the 

Read r

12 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-H3EBRÛS. 

root of a tree, and he said to him, "If thou wert a 

"servant of the king thou wouldst have no need to eat 

"such food as this." And Socrates replied, saying, "If 

"thou also didst eat such food as this thou Avouldst 

"have no need to serve the king." 

XXXIII. It is said that when Alexander [the Great] 

had been poisoned' and was nigh unto death, he wrote 

to his mother and said unto her, "When thou hast read 

"this letter make ready much meat and make a feast 

"for [thy] people, but do not allow to eat those who 

"have not lost some relative by death." Now he did 

this so that when she considered and saw that no 

man had escaped this calamity she might be consoled 

and not be sad^ 

XXXIV. To another philosopher it was said, "How 

"is it that thou dost condescend to learn from every 

"man.-*" He replied, "Because I know that learning is a 

"profitable thing come it from whatsoever soiifce it may." 

XXXV. Another philosopher whilst teaching his disciple 

said to him, "Dost thou understand?" and he replied, 

"Yes." The philosopher then said, "Thou liest, 

"for the mark of intelligence is the joy which shew- 

"eth itself in the disciple's face, and not his answer 

"'Yes'." 

XXXVI. It 

was said to Diogenes, "Dost thou possess 

"anywhere a house wherein to rest?" And he replied, 

"Wheresoever I rest there is my house." 

XXXVII. Alius quidam in foro Venerem palam exercebat: 

qui interrogatus, "Nonne tui pudet? Quid facis?" 

' See my Life and Exploits of Alexander the Great, pp. 339, 373, 

427 and 430. 

^ Compare Historia Compendiosa Dynastiarum, ed. Pococke, Arabic 

text, p. 96; and Contextio Gemmarum, ed. Pococke, p. 287.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. I 3 

Respondit, "Cur mei pudere decet: virum enim condo, 

si 

adolescere valet." 

XXXVIII. It was said to Socrates, "Which of the 

"irrational animals is not beautiful?" And he replied, 

"Woman," referring to her folly. 

XXXIX. One day Diogenes went up to a high place 

and cried out for men to come unto him; and a large 

number of people were gathered together round about 

him. And he said unto them, "I did not call you but 

"men," indicating the philosophers by the word "men". 

XL. He was also asked, "What thing is the most 

"difficult for a man [to do]?" And he replied, "To 

"know himself and to conceal his secret." 

XL I. A certain friend of Socrates' took counsel 

with him concerning the marrying a wife, and he replied, 

"Take heed that there happen not unto thee 

"that which befel the fish in the matter of the net; 

"those which were inside longed to go out, and those 

"which were outside were eager to go in." 

XLII. Certain folk enquired of him concerning the 

proper time for [eating] food, and he replied, "Let him 

"that hath food eat when he is hungry, and let him 

"that hath it not eat when he can." 

XLIII. Aristotle wrote to Alexander advising him, 

saying, "Take good heed that thy soldiers think no 

"evil concerning thee, for to him who can think easily 

"it is easy to speak, and to him who can speak easily 

"it is easy to act"; now he said this that Alexander 

might do good unto every man. 

XLIV. Another philosopher said, "Whatsoever thou 

"hidest from thine enemy that reveal not to thy friend, 

Variant^ 

Diogenes.

14 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÛS. 

"for thou knowest not whether he may become thine 

"enemy." 

XLV. Diogenes was asked concerning a certain 

wealthy man, "Is he rich?" And he replied, "I know 

"not whether he is rich [or not], but I do know that 

"he possesseth much money." Now he meant by these 

words that the man who hankereth not to possess anything 

more is a rich man, because everyone who 

longeth for more than he hath is poor in comparison 

with that which he possesseth not. 

XL VI. A king asked Diogenes, "Where are thy 

"wealth and possessions.''" And he pointed to his disciples 

and said, "With them," referring thereby to the 

wisdom [which he had taught them]. 

XLVII. To another philosopher it was said, "It is hard 

"that that which a man seeketh not should come to him." 

And he replied, "Much harder than this is it that a 

"man should seek that which cometh not to him." 

XLVIII. Plato the philosopher was once rebuked because 

he possessed not riches, and he replied, "How 

"can I 

possess that which avarice and greediness guard 

"and which liberality and benevolence destroy?" 

XLIX. Gifts of certain vessels of glass were given 

to Alexander, and though they pleased him very much 

he ordered them to be broken. And when he was 

asked the reason he replied, "I know that they would 

"be broken one after the other by the servant's hands, 

"and that thereby anger would be always stirred up 

"in me; for this reason it is that with one burst of 

"wrath I have driven away many storms of rage." 

L. Plato was asked, "Why are not wisdom and anger 

"found together?" And he replied, "Because no man 

"can be found who is perfect in everything."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. I 

5 

LI. Aristotle said, "The fool perceiveth not the sick- 

"ness of his mind any more than doth the drunkard 

"the thorn which hath entered into his hand." 

LII. To Aristotle it was said, "Wherein art thou 

"better than other men?" And he replied, "Because 

"they live that they may eat, but I eat that I may 

"live." 

LIII. Another philosopher married a small and thin 

wife, and when he was asked why he had done so replied, 

"I chose the lesser evil." 

LIV. It was reported to Alexander that the daughters 

of Darius were exceedingly beautiful, and he replied, 

"It would be a most shameful thing for us to be con- 

"quered by the men [of any nation whatsoever], [how 

"much more^ then would it be a disgrace to us] if 

"their women were to do so.f*" 

LV. It happened to Socrates that he became once 

a fellow-traveller on the road with a rich man, and 

the report reached them that there were gangs of 

robbers and highwaymen on the road. And the rich 

man began to say, "Woe is me if they recognize me." 

But Socrates made answer to him, saying, "I am not 

"of this opinion at all, woe be to them if they do not 

"recognize me." 

LVI. A certain rich man wrote above his door, "No 

"evil thing shall enter in through thee." When Diogenes 

met him, he said unto him, "How, then, will thy 

"wife enter the house?" 

LVII. It was said to a certain philosopher while he 

was soaking dry bread in water to eat, "How canst 

' 

Compare TiXriv aicrxpov effiiv f]iiaq Toiig divipaq viKrjffaVTas 

UTTO Y^vaiKOiv riTTn9f)vai. Pseudo-Callisthenes, ed. Muller, p. 74, 

col. 2.

I 6 


"thou desire to eat such [food] as this?" And he replied, 

"I leave it until I do desire to eat it." 

LVIIL When Alexander was going to wage war 

against the Amazons he said, "If we conquer this race 

"it will not be a matter of boasting for us, and if they 

"vanquish me it will be a great disgrace."^ 

LIX. Hippocrates said, "Whosoever injureth him- 

"self in order to do his neighbour any good what- 

"soever is a fool." 

LX. Dixit idem philosophus, "Duobus tantum com- 

"miscere fas est feminae—conjugi scilicet et pulveri se- 

"pulchri."^ 

LXI. It was to him that his wife said, "Behold thy 

"son doth not resemble thee in any way." He replied, 

"I gave thee the shapeless matter for his physical form 

"only, and it is others who have given it shape," meaning 

by "others" the various natural formative forces which 

fashion the child in the womb. 

LXII. It was he who said also, "It is meet for the 

"wise man to look at his face in a mirror. If his 

"countenance be ugly let him not add foulness of deeds 

^ Compare the words of the Amazons to Alexander:—^ râ 

îsao ^J^^ca=n .iIiiyimi pdaibrtV^ja ^ cucrA Jlm.t »î.i^ 

vftA\ ocn rdioA.T r^—cixSa See my History of Alexander, 

Syr. text, p. 229. 

^ 

Or, "Duo tantum lecti ascendendi sunt feminae — genialis scilicet 

et funebris.

' 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS. I 

7 

"thereunto; and if it be fair, let him not defile it by 

"corrupt 

deeds and actions." 

LXIII. Another philosopher was asked, "Which is the 

"best doctrine?" And he replied, "That which fools 

"hate." 

LXIV. As a 

certain philosopher was passing through 

a city he there saw the captain of a host who had 

not succeeded at all in warfare, together with a certain 

physician, and he said to the people of that city, 

"Would that this physician were the captain of your 

"host, for he hath far more experience in the slaughter 

"of men [than the captain of the host], and would that 

"the captain of your host were your physician, because 

"he is far more careful about killing men than the 

"physician." 

LXV. Plato said, "It is a very great disgrace' indeed 

"for a man to be both ignorant and not anxious to 

"gain instruction, for two vices are gathered together 

"in him." 

LXVI. It was said to Socrates by a certain man, "lam 

"deeply pained for thee because thou art so poor." 

And he replied, "If thou couldst only attain unto the 

"pleasure of poverty, whereof thou art [now] deprived 

"thou wouldst be sorry for thyself and not for me." 

LXVII. To Socrates also a certain man said, "The 

"words which thou hast spoken have not been [well] 

"received." And he replied, "I grieve not at all that 

"they have not been [well] received, but I should grieve 

"if they had not been well delivered." 

On p. 1 6 of the Syr. text, 1. 12, for rcTiflQjj.T read p^.tim>.l. 

I I I I

Z^c Second tâpUv. 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE PERSIAN SAGES. 

LXVIII. Cyrus wrote to Hormizd the sage, saying, 

"If kings only knew their need of wise men, [and wise 

"men knew] their need of kings, kings would never 

"marvel if they stood continually at the doors of the 

"wise; for the need of kings for wise men is greater 

"than that of wise men for kings." 

LXIX. Bazarjamhir' said, "It is better for a man to 

' /. ^.^ Buzurjumihrj the son of Bakhtagan, -^^^^p*, a famous 

Persian sage who flourished during the reign of Khusrau An6- 

sharwan, A.D. 531-579. According to Mas'udi (ii. p. 205) this 

king one day assembled his wise men and asked them to give 

him such advice as would be to the benefit of both himself and 

his people. When all had spoken except Buzurjumihr this sage 

said, "O king, all that thou desirest to hear I can say in twelve 

"sentences," and when ordered to speak on he said that his counsel 

was:— I. "When a king is about to fall into lust, or covetous- 

"ness, or laziness, or anger, or love, to fear God, and to dread 

"in the consequences of these passions not man, but God. 2. To 

"be sincere in word and faithful in performing engagements; to 

"carry out what has been agreed upon, and bonds and treaties. 

"3. To accept the counsel of the sages in every matter. 4. To 

"honour the learned, the nobles, the governors of frontiers, offi- 

"cers, secretaries and officials each in his grade. 5. To watch 

* For this form of the name see Tornberg, Ibn-el-Athiri, tom. ii. 

p. 368, 1. 14.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE PERSIAN SAGES. I 

9 

"humble himself that he may overcome than to conquer 

"that he may humble himself," that is to say, we must 

not be deceived by the man who humbleth himself to 

us for a time and afterwards ruleth over us tyrannically. 

LXX. This same Bazarjamhir was asked, "What is 

"the wealth which is not destroyed when cast away?" 

He replied, "Humility." 

LXXI. This same Bazarjamhir said, "How beautiful 

"the judges and to control the accounts of the taxgatherers ; to 

"reward faithful service and to punish dishonest service. 6. To 

"visit often those in prison so as to learn their condition^ in order 

"to be able to double the Viâtch over the guilty and to set free 

"the innocent. 7. To safeguard roads and places of dealing, and 

"to facilitate trade and the business of the merchant. 8. To punish 

"the guilty according to their deserts, and to keep the people 

"loyal. 9. To keep up a supply of arms and the munitions of 

"war, 10. To honour his family, and children, and neighbours, 

"and to watch over their interests. 11. To watch keenly over 

"the frontier defence so as to perceive when danger is about to 

"come and to take steps to ward it off. 12. To keep a watch 

"upon the ministers and officials, and to recall those who are 

"notoriously disloyal or incapable." Several other wise sayings 

are attributed to him, and this distinguished Persian seems, as 

Noldeke says {Geschichte der Perser und Araber, p. 251) to have 

been the ideal of an Oriental Minister; the above twelve maxims were 

thought so highly of that the king ordered them to be written in 

letters of gold. A full account of Buzurjumihr and of his interpretation 

of the King's dream may be found in Mohl, Le Livre 

des Rois par AbouU-kasim Firdousi, tom. vi. p. 192 £f. A copy of 

his moral teachings in the shape of question and answer, the 

interlocutors being the sage and his master, exists in Brit. Mus. 

MS. Add. 8994, fol. 84^-99^; see Rieu, Catalogue of the Persian 

MSS. in the British Museum, p. 52, col. 2. The work is stated 

to have been written at the request of his master. 

and it was called Zafar-Ndmah. 

King Anosharwan,

20 THE LAUGHABLE StORIES OF BAR-HEBRÛS. 

"patience would be if it were, not that life is [so] 

"short." 

LXXII. Another sage was asked, "Is it indeed true 

"that any speech of truth can be hated?" He replied, 

"Yes, by the Calumniator." 

LXXIII. Another sage said, "I hold every man who 

"saith that he hateth riches to be a liar until he es- 

"tablisheth a sure proof thereof from what he hath 

"gathered together, and having established his belief it 

"is, at the same time, quite certain that he is a fool!" 

LXXIV. Another sage was enquired of concerning a 

means of subsistence, and he replied, "If it is ordained 

"for thee hasten not, for it will come unto thee; and if 

"it be not ordained go not in after it, for it will not 

"come unto thee." 

LXV. Another sage said, "He that doeth good 

"to a fool is like him who decketh a pig with rich and 

"heavy jewellery and who feedeth a serpent upon 

"honey." 

LXXVI. Another sage said, "He who is mighty in 

"the fulfilling and keeping of the laws shall become 

"mighty, and he who is mighty in transgressing the 

"commandment and in [doing] illegal things shall become 

"feeble." 

LXXVII. Another sage used to say, "The wise man 

"goeth round about [seeking] for a means of subsist- 

"ence, but the fool [stayeth] in the place of his father 

"who begot him." 

LXXVIII. Once upon a time Anosharwan' the king ordered 

that 

no man should either eat of the same kind of 

food as that of which he ate, 

or drink of the same kind of 

' He reigned from A.D. 531 to 579.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE PERSIAN SAGES. 

2 I 

drink as that of which he drank. Now a certain prince 

having made ready royal food sent and invited one of 

the nobles to sit at meat with him. And when he had 

eaten his meal and had gone forth he wrote to the 

king, saying, "Such and such an one maketh use of 

"the royal food. I myself have seen it and I cannot 

"hide it from thee." And the king wrote on the back 

of the letter, "We praise thee for fidelity and for the 

"covenant which thou hast kept with us, but we blame 

"him that made use of the food because he did not 

"know how to keep his secret and revealed it unto 

"such as thou." 

LXXIX. Khusrau' was asked, "Which of thy sons 

"is [most] beloved by thee?" He replied, "He that 

"loveth correction and feareth disgrace, and longeth for 

"a rank higher than his own." 

LXXX. Bazarjamhir said, "The defect of this world 

"is that it never giveth to a man that of which he is 

"deserving. For it either giveth to him more than that 

"of which he is worthy, or it giveth to him less than 

"that of which he is worthy." 

LXXXI. Ardashir'' said, "It is meet that the wrath 

"of kings should be made manifest in shewing mercy 

"upon those who provoke to wrath and not in de- 

"priving them of that 

which they need." 

LXXXII. [Ardashir]^ said that the foundation of 

' 

Probably Khusrau Anosharvvan. 

' 

Probably Ardashir I, who began to reign A.D. 226^ is here 

referred to. He was the author of several maxims and wise 

sayings. 

3 Surely Bar-Hebraeus must here have a version of a piece of 

advice which Ardashir is said to have given to his son Shapur. 

"0 my son, behold, religion and sovereignty are sisters, neither

— 

2 2 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÛS. 

"a nation is religion, and that the government is the 

"protector thereof. Every building which possesseth 

"not a sound foundation is quickly overthrown, and 

"every house which possesseth no keeper is speedily 

"despoiled." 

LXXXIII. It is said that in the days of Khusrau' 

the king a certain man went round about crying, "Who 

"will buy three wise maxims for a thousand dinarsf 

When the king heard [these words] he called him, 

and said unto him, "What are the sayings?" And the 

man ordered that the dinars of which he had spoken 

should be made ready, and when they were ready he 

said, "This is the first saying:— There is no good 

"in any man whatsoever. And the second is: 

"Although all men are thus nothing rational is to be 

"obtained from them. And the third is:—It is ne- 

"cessary for the king to know the extent of the wicked- 

"ness of every man and to expose him according to 

"his wickedness so that he may escape from him." 

When the king heard these words he praised them 

and ordered the man to take the gold; but he would 

not do so. And the king said to him, "Why then 

"didst thou ask for it?" The man replied, "I wished 

"to ascertain if ever any man would be willing to buy 

"wisdom with gold, or not." 

"one of which can exist without the other. For religion is the foundnation 

of sovereignty, and sovereignty is the protector of religion. 

"Every building which is without foundation falleth down, and 

"whatsoever is ûnprotected perisheth." viUAlj cr?oJl ^^\ ^J^ b 

^Lii ^^\^ ^^^ ^ 

jj 

U^ j-jjâ-^ ^\ ^ ^ ^ 

Mas udt (ed. B. de Meynard) torn. ii. p. 162. 

' 

Probably Khusrau Anosharwan. 

Uo, *^jl-w See

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE PERSIAN SAGES. 23 

LXXXIV. Anosharwan said, "Idleness exciteth the 

"thoughts, and the thoughts provoke sadness." 

LXXXV. Another king commanded his son, saying, 

"When thou art king do not add unto the riches of thy 

"soldiers, lest they cease from thy service through 

"having no need of thee; neither do thou reduce them 

"to poverty, lest they hate thee. But give thou unto 

"every man that which is meet for him in his own 

"capacity, and act in such a way that their hope in 

"thee may be ever more and more increased even 

"though thy gifts to them be not multiplied." 

LXXXVI. Bazarjamhir said, "Of the supporters of 

"a king some are like spears which can only be used 

"by those who guard [him] at a distance; and some are 

"like arrows which are shot away and return not; and 

"some are like swords for which it is not meet that 

"they should turn away from him." 

LXXXVII. Khusrau said, "Do not show hatred to 

"one whom thou art unable to remove from thee." 

LXXXVIII. Bazarjamhir was asked, "Why do friends 

"so easily turn into enemies, for with much more diffi- 

"culty do enemies become friends?" And he replied, 

"Even in the same way that to overthrow a house is 

"easier than to build it up, and the breaking of a 

"vessel is easier than the making of it, and the spending 

"of money is easier than the acquisition of it." 

LXXXIX. Bazarjamhir also said, "In the season of 

"Teshrin' months the crops are beautiful, and in the 

"time of the month Nisan^ [we] have the flowers. 

' 

The first and second Teshrln months correspond roughly to 

our October and November. 

^ Nisan corresponds roughly to our April.

^ 

24 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR.EUS. 

"[Even so] in the maiden [we should have] beauty, and 

"in the youth strenuous action [of the limbs], and in 

"the stranger humility of mind." 

XC. It was said to Khusrau, "What [class of] men 

"dost thou wish to become wise?" He replied, "My 

"enemies, because wise men are not easily made to 

"work wickedness, 

but fools cannot by any means what- 

"soever keep themselves away from it." 

XCI. 

When Bazarjamhir was imprisoned by the king' 

his friends asked him, "With what, now, dost thou 

"console thyself.''" He replied, "With four sayings. In 

"the first I say to myself. Everything is decreed and 

"fixed by fate, and escape from wrath is impossible; in 

"the second I say, If I cannot endure suffering patiently 

"what can I do ?; in the third [I say]. It were possible for me 

"to fall into a worse plight than this; and in the fourth 

"I say. Perhaps respite is nigh although I know it not." 

XCII. Bazarjamhir also exhorted a certain king who 

was ruling over a country to act as a friend towards 

honest folk, and as a judge towards those who were 

neither good nor bad, and as a tyrant towards the wicked 

XCIII. When the king was angry with this same 

Bazarjamhir and crucified^ him, his daughter heard 

' He was thrown into prison by Khusrau 11 Parwez (A.D. 

590-628), who is said to have suspected him of having joined 

the atheists, iS>\Jji\; whilst there the king wrote insulting letters 

to him, and was so enraged at the sage's replies that he had his 

head cut off. See Mas'udt, ffj>. at, torn. ii. pp. 224. 225. 

^ The text of the first line of this saying appears to be corrupt. 

The saying itself echoes the general sense of Buzurjumihr's 

fifth maxim; see the note to story No. LXIX. 

J 

As a matter of fact his head was cut off; see the note to 

story No. XCI. In story No. V Bar-Hebraeus used the root .â\ 

in the same loose way, for Socrates died by drinking poison.


[about it] and ran out among the men having her 

head uncovered, but when she came to her father on 

the cross she covered it. And when the king asked 

her concerning what she had done, she replied, "He 

"was the only man [there] before whom it was meet 

"to be ashamed [at being uncovered]." 

XCIV. Sapor' said, "The ornaments of a city are 

"these:— A victorious king, a righteous judge, a market 

"full] of merchandize, a skilful physician and a flowing 

"river." 

XCV. Khusrau (II) asked one of his wise men, 

"Which are the more numerous, men or devils?" And 

he replied, 

"If thou considerest the Kurds and the com- 

"mon folk of the bazaars men, men are the more 

"numerous." 

XCVI. Bazarjamhir said, "Whosoever loveth thee 

"will keep thee from thine anger, but whosoever hateth 

"thee will stir thee up thereunto." 

XCVII. To this same Bazarjamhir it was said, "Who 

"is he that hath no defect in him?" And he replied, 

"He that dieth not." 

XCVIII. Bazarjamhir's wife asked him a certain 

question and he replied, "I know not the answer." 

Thereupon she said unto him, "Dost thou take such 

"large wages from the king [for thy wisdom] and yet 

"not know the answer to my question?" And he replied, 

"I receive my wages for what I know, and it is 

"not payment for what I know not. If I were to re- 

"ceive wages for that which I know not all the king's 

"treasures would be insufficient to reward me, for the 

"things which I know not are exceedingly many." 

' 

Shapur I began to reign A.D. 272, Sh^pur II A.D. 621, and 

Shapur III A.D. 695.

^ 

2 6 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRyEUS. 

XCIX. Ispandahar' said, "The horse, even though he 

"be exceedingly swift, hath need of the whip, and 

"a woman, though she be chaste, yet hath need of a 

"man, and a man, even though he be wise, hath need 

"to receive counsel from others." 

C. Khusrau said, "Wine washeth from the heart 

"trouble 

and grief." 

CI. When Kikobad (Kaikubad)' the king died, one 

of his wise men said, "Yesterday the king spake vol- 

"ubly, but to-day he being silent admonisheth [us] 

"with greater effect." 

CII. This same wise man said, "Hearts have need 

"to be reared on wisdom, even as men's bodies have 

"need of food whereon to grow." 

cm. Sapor said, "On many occasions matters come 

"to fools on the right hand, and to wise men on the 

"left, and I recognize' that the Governor of affairs is 

"a Being quite distinct from them." 

CIV. Ardashir* said, "Occupy thyself with the things 

' Probably Ispandahar, the son of Gushtasp; see Malcolm, 

History of Persia, Vol. I. p. 46 ff.; and Mohl, Le Livre des Hois, 

torn. IV. p. 451. 

^ The founder of the Kaianian dynasty is here referred to; see 

Malcolm, History of Persia, vol. I. p. 23 £f.; Mohl, Le Livre des 

Rois, torn. I. p. 367. 

3 This saying is also attributed to Diogenes, who is said to have 

uttered it over Alexander's dead body. In Mas udi {op. cit. torn. vii. 

p. 186) it runs "Alexander was less talkative yesterday than he 

"is to-day; but to-day he teacheth us more than he did yesterday." 

Another version is, "Of all teachings which thou hast bestowed 

"upon us the most eloquent is thy death." Mas'udi {op. cit., torn. ii. 

P- 253)- 

1 Probably Ardashir I, who began to reign A.D. 226.


"which are seemly, in order that thoumayest.be kept 

"from the things which are unseemly." 

CV. Bazarjamhir said, "When thou dost not know 

"which of two things is the better for thee [to do], 

"take counsel with thy wife and do the opposite of 

"that which she saith, for she will only counsel [thee 

"to do] the things which are injurious to thee." 

CVI. Meradwikh' was asked, 

"Wherein doth trouble 

"differ from wrath?" And he replied, "When a man 

"is injured by some great thing he is. troubled, but 

"when by some small matter he is enraged." 

CVII. One day while Khusrau was sitting down, a 

man mean of stature drew nigh to him and began to 

weep and cry, saying, "Avenge me upon him that 

"hath oppressed me ;" but Khusrau took no notice of him. 

And when one of his noblemen asked him, "Why dost 

"thou not hearken unto his voice?" he said, "The 

"man mean of stature cannot be oppressed." And the 

mean man understood and cried out, "Master, he that 

"hath oppressed me is meaner than I;" and when the 

king heard [this] 

he laughed and avenged his cause. 

' 

Probably Mardawij, gojli^, the king who was slain by his 

Turkish bodyguard while enjoying a bath in the palace of Ahmed 

ibn 'Abd el- Aziz, A.H. 323.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE INDIAN SAGES. 

CVIII. It is said that when any man belonging to 

the Indians is dying, his friends arm themselves and 

go to his door, and say unto [the door-keeper], "Shew 

"us who hath slain thy friend that we may kill him." 

And when he replies, "He that slayeth him is invincible 

"and invisible,", they say, "Grieve not then overmuch 

"about that which neither thou nor we are able to 

"withstand;" and thus are they wont to comfort the 

mourners. 

CIX. A certain Indian sage used to say, "The wound 

"of a sharp weapon may be quickly healed, but the 

"wound caused by words is incurable." 

ex. Another Indian sage said, "The lusts of this 

"world are like unto the waters of the sea, for however 

"much a man drinketh thereof his thirst increaseth." 

CXI. Another Indian sage said, "Learning addeth 

"unto the wisdom of the wise man, and folly [addeth 

"unto the folly] of the fool, even as the sun addeth 

"sight unto healthy eyes, and doeth harm unto those 

"which are 

diseased." 

CXII. Another Indian sage said, "Put not thy con- 

"iidence in thine enemy, even though he shew himself 

"exceedingly gracious unto thee; for, behold, even

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE INDIAN SAGES. 29 

"though the water which is poured upon the fire is 

"heated thereby, it nevertheless extinguisheth it." 

CXIII. Another Indian sage said, "Wine maketh those 

"who drink it to have four peculiarities. First of all 

"it maketh a man like a peacock, that is to say he is 

"pleased with his manner and movements; next he is 

"like unto the ape, that is to say he beginneth to 

"chatter with every one; next he is like a lion which 

"relieth upon his strength and is puffed up; next he 

"is like the swine, for having drunk immoderately he 

"walloweth in the mire, and finally he vomiteth and 

"rejoiceth after the manner of the beast." 

CXIV. Another Indian sage said, "Wise men are 

"those who suffer in their souls, but the fools are those 

"who suffer in their bodies." 

CXV. Another Indian sage was asked, 

"Which is the 

"worst country?" And he replied, "That in which there 

"is neither plenty nor peace." 

CXVI. Another Indian sage said, "It is good for a 

"man to approach his friend in a moderate spirit. For, 

"behold, when a pillar is set in the sun, being parti- 

"ally in the shadow, its shadow is increased, but 

"when it is too much in the shade its shadow is di- 

"minished." 

CXVII. Another Indian said, "There are six things 

"which abide not:— The shadow of a cloud, 

the friend- 

"ship of fools, the love of women, overflowing wealth, 

"the king who oppresseth, and lying praise." 

CXVIII. Another Indian sage said, "There are five 

"classes of men who weary their own souls and those 

"of their neighbours — The ignorant man who devot- 

: 

"eth himself to the teaching of others; the man who 

"desireth that which cometh not to him; the governor


"who taketh not counsel with his friends; the man who 

"undertaketh a work which is too great for him; and 

"the man who serveth the king deceitfully." 

CXIX. Another Indian sage said, "Mixed wine is the 

"preserver of the body even as the pillar is that of 

"the house, which remaineth unmoved by reason of its 

"sound 

condition." 

CXX. Another Indian sage said, "There are two 

"classes of men whose fraudulent pretensions are very 

"evident. One is that of the hunter who boasts that 

"he hath behaved with great valour in the fray, although 

"no sign of a blow is seen upon him, and the other is 

"that of the man who feigneth to lead a life of ascet- 

"icism, although his neck is thick and his body strong." 

CXXI. Another Indian sage was asked, "Which man 

"is the most foolish?" And he replied, "He who having 

"married a beautiful maiden leaveth her and departeth 

"into a far country." 

CXXII. Another Indian sage was asked, "What loss 

"is that to which no advantage whatsoever cleaveth?" 

And he replied, "The loss of the raiment which is laid 

"with a corpse in the grave." 

CXXIII. Another Indian sage was asked, " Unto what 

"is a woman who hath no husband like?" And he 

replied, "A river [bed] wherein there is no water." 

CXXIV. Another Indian sage was asked, "Why is a 

"fool like unto a blind man?" And he replied, "As a 

"blind man cannot distinguish between light and dark- 

"ness even so the fool cannot distinguish between wis- 

"dom and folly." 

CXXV. Another Indian sage was asked, "What man 

"is the strongest?" And he replied, "He that guardeth 

"himself from a wanton gaze and from harlotry."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE HEBREW SAGES. 

CXXVI. A certain Hebrew sage said, "Chastity and 

"wantonness exist not only in act, but also in word." 

CXXVII. Unto another rich Hebrew sage it was said, 

"Why dost thou suffer hunger seeing that thou lackest 

"nothing?" And he replied, "Because I do not forget 

"those who hunger and are in want." 

CXXVIII. 

Another Hebrew sage wrote over the door 

of a prison, "This is the house of tribulation, wherein 

"life is buried, and wherein the love of friends and the 

"hatred of enemies are tried." 

CXXIX. Another Hebrew sage said, "Let thine 

"enemy who is feeble be considered a mighty man 

"by thee in order that thou mayest not neglect to be- 

"ware of him, and let thy strong friend be accounted 

"a feeble man by thee, thus that thou mayest rely upon 

"his support, and thou shalt [not] be harmed by thy 

"companions." 

CXXX. Another sage said, "It is not meet for a 

"king to hasten to [take] vengeance, because he is able 

"to avenge himself whensoever he pleaseth." 

CXXXI. A certain ascetic saw a man eating flesh 

and he said, "Behold flesh eating flesh." 

CXXXII. It is said that a certain ascetic entreated 

God to shew him flesh wherein was no blood in order

32 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRJEUS. 

that he might eat it, and He—Glory be to His goodness! 

— shewed him a grasshopper, saying, "Behold 

"flesh wherein is no blood." 

CXXXIII. Another sage said, "He who looseth any 

"jot of the Law and doeth some other good work in 

"its place, this good work is not imputed unto him for 

"a reward, inasmuch as a gift doth not redeem a 

"thing which is obligatory." 

CXXXIV. Another sage said, "Overabundance of 

"food 

"[ruineth] 

poisoneth the heart even as a superfluity of water 

seed." 

CXXXV. It is said that when Joseph put his 

brother Benjamin into prison straightway Jacob wrote 

to him, saying, "Prophets do not steal, neither do 

"they beget thieves." 

CXXXVI. It is said that God said unto Abraham, 

"Knowest thou why I have chosen thee to be My 

"friend?" And Abraham replied, "Tell me, O Lord." 

And the Lord made answer to him, saying, "It is be- 

"cause thou hast taken upon thyself to be injured and 

"not to do injury; therefore let him that would increase 

"friends 

do likewise." 

CXXXVII. Another sage said, 

"The man who work- 

"eth guile is like unto a drawn sword; it is fair in 

"its appearance, but when it is in action heed must be 

"paid to 

it." 

CXXXVIII. Another sage commanded his son, saying, 

"Divide thy time into three seasons. A season for thy 

"prayer, a season for thy trafficking, and a season for 

"thy bodily recreation and for thy ordinary meat and 

"drink; for if thou dost not take thy [season of] recrea- 

"tion thou wilt not be able to fulfil the other two of 

"prayer and trafficking."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE HEBREW SAGES. 33 

CXXXIX. Another sage said, "Do not despise a 

"man of mean appearance and of humble garb, lest 

"perchance some excellent quality be concealed and 

"hidden within him although thou knowest it not. 

CXL. Another sage ordered his son, saying, "If thou 

"art brought to poverty do not make it known to thy 

"neighbours, lest thou be despised in their .sight and it 

"be grievous unto thee." 

CXLI. Another sage said, 

"The soul which is deprived 

"of wisdom is dead; but through doctrine it becometh 

"alive, even as doth the waste and barren land by 

ram. 

CXLII. Another sage said, "The forgiveness of a 

"fault is what is obligatory on thd man of understanding." 

CXLIII. Another sage said, "Liberality is the cloak 

"of defects." 

CXLIV. Another sage said, "The fact that a man 

"hasteneth to behave nobly saveth him from penitence." 

CXLV. Another sage said, "Hardihood is the vice 

"of youth even though it driveth it to virtue." 

CXVI. Another sage said, "By the examination of 

"the deeds vices are detected." 

CXLVII. Another sage said, "The confession of his 

"folly by the sinner is an entreaty for forgiveness 

"which shall be accepted, and his repentance is his 

"apology." 

CXLVIII. Another sage said, "Place not thy confi- 

"dence in a friend who is easily made angry, even 

"though he be hidden within much goodness." 

CXLIX. Another sage said, "Greediness is a sister 

"unto prodigality and it inviteth it [to come]." 

CL. Another sage said, 

" Cast not out from thy heart 

"the fear of the king, even though thou be a constant

34 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR/EUS. 

"member of his household, that his friendship for thee 

"may increase." 

CLI. Another sage said, "Make not a friend of thy 

"house the man whose relatives make him a stranger 

"unto them, for they are better acquainted with him 

"than thou." 

CLII. Another sage was asked, "What is the [greatest] 

"labour in the world.'"' And he replied, "That of the 

"feeble man who multiplieth hope." 

CLIII. Another sage said, "Freedom of speech di- 

"minisheth honour, and it is bare of real love." 

CLIV. Another sage said, "By gratitude gifts are 

"made to abound, but by the cutting off of the same 

"they also are cut off." 

CLV. Another sage wrote to a certain man, saying, 

"I have sent such and such an one to thee in order 

"that thou mayest satisfy my wants through him, not 

"because I would not condescend to come in person, 

"but in order that he might help me to return thanks 

"unto thee, and be a witness of thy excellent behaviour 

"towards me." 

CLVI. Another sage said, "Despise not the mean 

"man who hath been useful to thee in becoming great." 

CLV II. Another sage said, "Fools pay attention to 

"the errors and lapses of the children of men, but they 

"take no heed of their excellent qualities, even as flies 

"are persistent in setting upon the ulcerated members 

"of the body, but never upon the limbs which are 

"healthy." 

CLVIII. Another sage said, "When thou askest for 

"a gift which is greater than thy position and it is not 

"granted unto thee, blame thyself because thou didst 

"not ask something proportionate to thy condition."

he 


CLIX. Another sage said, "Now, as concerning those 

"who argue madly with each other in the debate, if they 

"sought the truth they would never strive, because 

"truth is a thing by itself, and truth and striving do 

"not agree. But if they do not seek the truth but 

"victory, 

then the contest must increase between them, 

"for one of them cannot conquer unless the other be 

"overcome." 

CLX. Another sage said, "It is right that the gover- 

"nor of a nation should first of all order his own 

"goings and then those of his people, for unless he 

"doeth. this it will happen to him as it would happen 

;'to the man who should wish to set in order the 

"shadow of the thread before he had set in order the 

"substance to which the shadow belonged." 

CLXI. Another sage said, "It is right that the man 

"who wisheth to do good things should thoroughly 

"examine himself, [that he may do] even as Jie would 

"that a man should do unto him; And . 

must be 

"like the man who wisheth to sow seed, to whom it 

"is therefore necessary to plough up thoroughly the 

"ground in which he would sow the seed, lest perad- 

"venture it should be barren." 

CLXII. Another sage said, "The king who is an op- 

"pressor speedily destroyeth his kingdom, but the 

"righteous king prolongeth the life thereof; for the 

"oppressor is a waster and a destroyer, and the 

"righteous man is one who buildeth up. [With him] 

"that which hath been laid waste speedily cometh into 

"being [again], and in the process of time the edifice 

"appeareth." 

CLXIII. Another sage was asked by the wise men, 

"Wherein lieth the difference between fear and 

E2


"affliction?" He replied, "Fear cometh into being be- 

"fore tribulation cometh, but affliction after it." 

CLXIV. The perfection of the rhetorical art is to be 

able to make truth wear the guise of falsehood, and 

that which is false the garb of truth; and to force men 

to the doing of that from which they would rather 

be excused, and to keep them back from the doing 

of that which they earnestly desire to do; and that 

not by forcfe but by the ready will of those who hearken 

unto 

it" 

CLXV. Another sage said, "Silence is the sleep of 

"the mind and speech is its waking state, and when 

"either sleep or waking is in moderation the mind is 

"praiseworthy; and whether it be asleep or awake it 

"is meet that it should be praised." 

CLXVI. Another sage said, "I have often repented 

"that I have spoken, but very rarely that I have held 

"my peace." 

CLXVII. Another sage said, "As long as a word 

"remaineth unspoken it is in the prison of him that 

"wished to speak, but when once it hath been spoken 

"the speaker thereof becometh its prisoner." 

CLXVIII. Another sage said, "Beware of speaking 

"overmuch, for much speaking is a wide gulf wherein 

"stumbling-blocks are exceedingly many." 

CLXIX. Another sage said, "If animals which are to 

"be eaten had been sent to the ... . of death, even 

"like man, the flesh which is fat would never have 

"been eaten." 

CLXX., Another sage said, "Blessed is he who is 

"occupied with his own defects, for he will not make 

"it a care unto him to pry into the weaknesses of his 

"companions."


CLXXI. To another sage it was said, "Who are 

"the blessed of the Lord? and who are accursed by 

"Him?" He replied, "The blessed of the Lord are the 

"children who are like unto old men, and the accursed 

"are the old men who are like unto children." 

CLXXII. Another sage said, "The places for prayer 

"which are in their own houses are better for women 

"than the public congregations." 

CLXXIII. Another sage said, "If only ye knew that 

"which I know your weeping would get the better of 

"your 

laughter."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN RECLUSES. 

CLXXIV. One of the Fathers said, "Young men in 

"the beginning of their career take unto themselves 

"labours for the sake of vain glory, but afterwards 

"Divine grace secretly whispereth to them and per- 

"suadeth them to labour for Divine and not for human 

"glory." 

CLXXV. Another father said, "When God (Glory 

"be to His Grace!) saw that the Fathers were exalted 

"in their minds, He used to send them to men who 

"wrought righteousness, even though they toiled little 

"in the ascetic life, in order that they might be abased 

"somewhat. Thus He sent Antony to a tailor, and Ma- 

"carius to two women, and Paphnutius to a thief and 

"a singer, and He sent two solitaries to a shepherd." 

CLXXVI. It was said by God unto a certain man 

who was righteous according to this world, "Flee from 

"men and thou shalt live," God indicating to him that 

he should go into the desert. Then a second voice 

came to him, saying, "Flee, keep silence, and lead a 

"life of contemplation," that is to say, "When thou hast 

"gone and hast become mighty in the deeds of the 

"ascetic life then thou shalt 

dwell alone with thy soul"." 

' 

The man here referred to was Arsenius. The story as given 

in my MS. of Palladius is as follows:— "When Arsenius was in the

— 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN RECLtSES. 39 

CLXXVII. A certain brother said unto one of the 

aged men, "My thoughts wage war against me and 

"say unto me, Thou art not able to fast and to pray, 

"therefore go out of thy cell, and depart and minister 

"unto the sick and let thy righteousness be sufficient 

"for thee." The aged man made answer to him, "Go, 

"eat, drinki and labour not, only do not depart from 

"thy cell," for he knew that persistent dwelling in the 

"cell would cut off all [his] thoughts'. 

"palace he prayed to God, saying, 'O Lord, direct me how to 

"live.' And a voice came to him which said, 'Arsenius, flee from 

"men and thou shalt live.'" And again, when he was living in 

the monastery, he prayed to God the [same] words, and again he heard 

a voice saying to him, "Arsenius, flee, keep silence, and lead a 

"life of contemplation, for these are the roots which prevent a man 

"from sinning." 

.^ji^lso Ktooo ,coaAv.p^ T^ ooilfloir^ r .coaiviK' oep .1^ oo^ acaa : o 

: 

ii\it^ 

fjAcn )W " .j9odf\x.o .ôi^ .r^lfloip^ .cni TiarS' «k riln 

vjor^ r^\-MJ p^s ^ca^ p^tq^ '**^ ,^_ajr^ (fol. 197^, 

Nos. I & 2). 

' 

The text of the story in full runs: 

a\o\ r^r^ .Tm p^q\«^ 

.^^•tajrÔ .intuT. »2z.(Xu .oA •isori'a oouooir^ rdar!' 

auLia>-ir^ pisf^ oA isspita .rclai rO.Tco^ cucna .*

— 


"the 

CLXXVIII. Another sage said, "He that dwelleth in 

world seeth not his sins by reason of the disturbed 

"state of the affairs [therein]; but if he dwell in the 

"peace and quietness of the desert, he will see God 

"clearly and his sins will be rebuked." 

CLXXIX. A certain noble and honourable and believing 

woman came from Rome to Egypt to Abba 

Arsenius and entreated him to make mention of her 

in his prayers. And he replied, "I will pray unto God 

"that He may make the remembrance of thee to pass 

"out of my heart." Now although by reason of her 

grief and sorrow she became sick, yet he did as he 

had said, that he might shut the door against the women 

who thronged to see him\ 

.tr^^\\-) ^ oA dur\n-i ÂcnQ .r^'iuji.zo riX.1 »

1 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN RECLUSES. 4 

CLXXX. Abba Antony said, "As a fish which is lifted 

"up out of the water dieth, even so doth the recluse 

"who tarrieth outside his cell." 

(A ."T^Q .rii-Lj*.! V^ h^siî .(jlcn AxaJô t. .tô 

,CT3CUCVuo .cni>xL^ p3 

K'Auc.r^ «A riioor) Avîi. .A>4«r^ 

rsrA^ri-o .«rcn*iii ri^n.\\nic\flp ,m.i .aisorsTo riacuiflaairsA 

.ctMcoici^.T ri'iFvl^ ciaisrj ^pdJS cn\ rsTocn 00x3030 cbAioX 

Axissri' .rJlîoo ivî.i r


CLXXXI. Abba Theodore and Abba Luke remained 

for fifty years in doubt, for they were vexed about the 

matter of changing their [dwelling] place, and they 

said, "Behold, in the winter will we change [it];" thus 

they did, and they did not go forth [from it] until the 

end of their 

lives'. 

CLXXXII. One of them said, 

"The recluse who loveth 

"a life of contemplation in his cell doth not flee meeting 

"his neighbour because he despiseth and hateth him, 

"but because of the sweet fruits which he plucketh 

"therefrom, that is to say, freedom from worldly toil 

"and from the sight and learning [of the same]." 

CLXXXIII. Abba Agathon kept a stone in his mouth 

for a period of three years until he succeeded in keeping 

silenced 

rcLi,i eiil 'isari'o .rîi\ii^ ^^ riiK" rîuJsa r^cna 

vrÂ\o.T»*3 cbiA\rili iAtrS'o ^Vtoao .oq-it .a.»»-> (fol. 229a, 

No. 251). 

' The text in Palladius differs somewhat and reads: — ^jissr^ 

O-TSi^.i .ocA rcisK' A}ô .r^â^^^h\ ri~>r^ \\-n oocn 

K'oiuial ri'cn.T .oocn ^jisorô •K'Axaq.t ..ÔaSlmJ.t .^_ôtA 

>\ f^\in\ riahvsx) r


CLXXXIV. One of the 

old men gave a cup of wine 

[twice] to Sisoes the great and he drank [it], but when he 

mixed it for him the third time he would not drink, 

saying, "Forbear, old man, for thou knowest not whether 

"it" be Satan," referring by these words to drunkenness 

which is the mother of all vices ^ 

CLXXXV. Abba Arsenius used, every Saturday 

night, to leave the sun behind him, and to stretch out 

his hands towards heaven and to pray until the sun 

rose in his face^ 

CLXXXVI. Certain of the Fathers said, 

"Whosoever 

"doth not receive all the brethren alike is not, as yet, 

"perfect." 

CLXXXVII. Certain philosophers went once on a 

time to the desert that they might tempt the recluses. 

vjb&vx. Ktoqa.T »^:TenA cnTSo^s (fol. 205 a, No. 61). 

' Compare the following:—Abraham, the disciple of Sisoes, said 

to him, 

"Supposing there be a congregation on Saturday or Sunday, 

"and that, a brother were to drink three cups of wine: would that 

"be too much ?" Sisoes replied, "If Satan did not exist it would 

"not be too much, but since he doth exist it is too much." T»3p^ 

.^jiM^ rîr^hx r!i>< rîuoo .rîT-i .-uxra Of^ .ri'iv3i= 

.»^ red ivA rf\\tr> .^j^ .riaoo eiA issri' .,is^ riiaX.i 

vocn >i!siSp «


and they said to one of the old men, "What do ye 

"more than us? For we fast, and pray, and watch, and 

"lead lives of self-abnegation." And they replied, "We 

"do not only preserve our minds from turning to de- 

"bating and reasoning but every aspect of our minds 

"is in converse with God." 

CLXXXVIII. Abba Macarius the Great arrived at 

so great a pitch of humility that when the brethren 

spake with him they spoke as unto a saint, and the 

great old man answered them never a word. But 

when a certain man of the brethren said unto him 

insultingly, "Ho father, if only thou hadst been a camel 

"thou mightest have stolen natron and they would 

"never have beaten thee'', 

he gladly made answer unto 

them. 

CLXXXIX. Abba Kirnen used to say^ "If the man 

"who dwelleth with a young man would be mighty in 

"the ascetic life, he will not descend [from his cell] even 

"for a moment, and he will not stretch himself out in 

"his presence even for the sake of comfort. For youno- 

"men excite lust by means of their faces, which are 

"like those of women, and they stir up tribulation by 

"their 

audacity." 

CXC. When Abba Pachomius was afflicted by the 

' 

In Palladius:— >ii- iSli^.i r

— 


passion of fornication he used to cast himself down 

naked before a hyaena's den, and take a desert viper 

and press it upon his body that it might bite him 

and that he might die. And he never went into 

a city or into a village, so that he might not see a 

woman'. 

CXCI. Once on a time Abba Abraham said to Abba 

Sisoes, "Father, thou art grown old, let us now go and 

"live among men for a little." And he replied, "Let 

"us go where there is no woman^" This he said not 

' The actual words of Pachomius are: 

h\^r^ .t\r, 

îs-iirX 

.1.1^ i^l&vx.K' rf.lôo r^.icn A^'roo .rXiaL&rdio .ÔLn^.i s/yr^ rdlr^ jjlAz. .t^ ouî^ 

i^ôcoiA >rs CtjjuiK'o .r^&vaiiia p^-j^.T 

riJT* anai .is&xsol 

.TAo .JiiijtA rdsa.-Wk-o >x.i p3 liî^ oA Â2kjjL\» .ta 

^^Cl .>l_'S3 .^.OcyA __ArLjjitjoi^(


because he was afraid for himself, but that he might 

warn his disciples not to fall. 

CXCII. Abba Ammon used to say, "There are some 

"men who might live in their cells for a hundred years, 

"and yet not know how it is meet for a recluse to 

"live 

therein'." 

CXCIII. Abb4 Agathon said, "The man of anger 

"will never be accepted by man, even though one rose 

"from the dead." 

CXCIV. Once when Abba Moses of Patra was battling 

against fornication he went to Abba Isidore [for 

advice]. And Isidore took him up upon the roof of 

his house, and shewed him the hosts of devils waging 

war in the west and the angels who were gaining the 

mastery in the east. This he did to him so that Moses 

might be encouraged to fight, and he returned to his 

celP. 

vA»p^ Ax2ioo rtf'ira.TSoX .KCruJo cta\ iiar^ (fol. 24512, 

No. 369). 

' 

The saying in full runs:—.^CLSJK' rSlartf Aj^cd issr^ 

.^."U »rô .rîo.TLiJft.pi' rirsrSlX .2b..iOp^ AtrCo .cnixAna 

r^^£>3 (.i\n\ coxifiorô CD"te."i .pdsjf^" ia^xor^.t pilip^


CXCV. Mother Sara fought for 

seven years against 

the demon of fornication upon the roof until she had 

overcome him\ She used to say, "Whenever I put 

"my feet upon the ladder to go up, I set my death 

"before my eyes before I ascends" 

CXCVI. Concerning her it is said that she dwelt in 

an upper chamber over the river, and that she never 

once looked out to see the river which passed by the 

side of her celP. 

CXCVII. There were two brethren who went back 

into the world and took wives, but afterwards they 

repented and returned [to their cells]. And when the 

period of their repentance was ended and they went 

forth from their seclusion, the countenance of the one 

was transformed and was sad, but the appearance of 

the other was fair to see and his face was radiant. 

Now when the fathers saw them they were doubtful 

iojj ^cn r^co .K'io.-uco't^ KlsK" cm Tsar^ ..^^ftaixu.i 

e»A iijarô .rÂ>rCj5:»^ r^d\uCVajt.iv3 ^_acnîf\^rô 

.^j£ai.a.i 

.Klz^'.TQ.l __ocQji.TCiiA pi'cnlpi' p3 ^-ii&ueJSa.t ,_cu»^ 

vrSlLj.i rid.i cn&vAxi\ v\acnc\ .aaX^r^ (fol. 269,5, No. 551). 

^ 

In Palladius this story ends here (fol. 270, No. 555). 

^ 

In Palladius:— >A\i rSlsai.l .h\am r^vsir^ r€vx> rli!^ -prta rdi(


if the repentance of each was equally [sincere], and 

they said, "The one meditateth upon his sins and on 

"hell, but the other on God's mercy which is poured 

"out abundantly upon all men'." 

^ 

The full text runs:— rîx^jis aVOr^hxr^ ^jiA> rdiir^ 

cuoA>A>rr< acnanh\a .M^â cnÛi ôcn rd>T v>,»-iT Am oocn î (

— 


CXCVIII. One of the brethren asked Abba Sisoes, 

saying, "What wouldst thou do, O father, for I have 

"fallen?" Sisoes said to him, "Rise up," and the brother 

said unto him, "I have fallen many times and risen up 

"[after them]. How long shall I continue to fall and 

"rise up?" The old man said unto him, "Until death 

"shall overtake thee in one of them, I mean either in 

"rising up or in falling'." 

CXCIX. One of the brethren went into the world 

and married a woman, and when his master heard 

thereof he prayed and entreated God, saying, "O Lord, 

"permit not Thy servant to be dragged through the 

"mire of the world;" and when the betrothed man and 

his bride went in to sleep together, he gave up the ghost 

and was not united unto her. 

CC. One of the brethren was perfect to such a degree 

that even wild animals became his friends, and 

he used to nourish their young ^ Now a certain father 

r^Ôou^ ,ctj rdôz. .rtîrwo TSarSta .rt'.TMO rCcnirdA 

vri'orApi' A>aX ,__ooa.iA«.i (fol. 175^, No. 587). 

' 

In Palladius the text runs:—auricocUJo rtapd Ardz. r€»tr^ 

rC'-iW oA T2J3r^ .dni^.l pdap^ .Tas^r*' KllSO .otaA 'tssrS'o 

T93r^ .A>\°>1 .sodxQ irina .am riur^ .ciA i^K* ."p&a 

ood>o .OCTD rs6jr(

50 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRJEUS. 

said unto him, "Go and enter a monastery of brethren, 

"and dwell with them if thou wishest to be perfect," 

meaning thereby that to dwell [in peace] with the 

brethren was much more difficult than to live [friendlily] 

with wild animals. 

CCI. Abba Poemen said, "An evil nature is a wall 

"of brass between God and man." 

ca-UX AorA râco ix^râ .r^ja.T^n -> re'îsJSa.s f^*^ 

rîn-> cnixAjaX d^sino .rCU^ coA ^.T^.^ dfU^>-0 

.irA oraX AvnnY.o .cnî&J^ r^^^pj.l rdsoi^ cnea2>. A^râ 

._OcniSis-) jaio A,- .^_OJrtf K'Vm S^ ^».1 Oqp .,cntti^^ 

âjK" AAojlo ..__air^ i\nl*rÔ. CLu^va^^r^ rcn«Vu -TÔ .cnenoâ 

ri\&^r

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN RECLUSES. 

5 I 

ecu. When the mother of Abba Poemen and of his 

brethren went to see them, they did not bring her into 

their cells neither did they speak with her', thus keeping 

' The full text of the story is as follows:—A^. QOCO î^.du»9 

K'SiriXj ^^T^SQs* isai>- »^.t .ô.^ rC3r< ûs.n ^jAco 

(

. 


the command of our Lord Who said, "Whosoever loveth 

"father or mother, &c/" 

CCIII. Abba Ammon the virgin^ once went to Abba 

Antony and said unto him, "I observe that I labour in 

"the ascetic life more than thou, how is it then that 

"thy name is more renowned in the world than mine?" 

Abba Antony said unto him, "Because I love our Lord 

"more than thou." 

CCIV. Once a year Abba Arsenius used to taste 

once every kind of fruit in order that he might give 

praise unto God, but Evagrius^ never at any time ate 

any fruit or any green thing. 

CCV. Abba Poemen used to say, "As a snake or 

"a scorpion having been placed in a closed vessel for 

"a long time will in process of time die, even so will 

"the wicked thoughts which are stirred up in the heart 

"of ascetics, unless they actually turn them into actions, 

"become powerless and perish." 

CCVl. Abba Jacob used to say, "For a man to teach 

"his neighbour without being asked to do so, is as if 

"a man were to rebuke his neighbour." 

^ "He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy 

"of Me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not 

"worthy of Me." St. Matthew x. 37. 

" 

In Palladius, K'ii^.T om ._a»ir^ Klrsp^ "AbbaAmmon, 

he of Nitria," i. e., the Nitrian desert (fol. 305 b, No. 165), but 

Bar-Hebraeus seems to have missed the meaning of K'Vi-Li^ here. 

3 The followers of Evagrius never drank their fill of water^ and 

many of them ate neither bread nor fruit, nor any green thing 

except bitter herbs, rdi r^Jlsa.l ^âî..! pdiirciA pStocn .ija^S30 

(fol. 1920. Triumphs of Evagrius)


CCVII. A certain brother asked Abba Sisoes saying, 

"So then thou hast not, O father, yet arrived at An- 

"tony's capacity [for ascetic labours]?" The old man 

said unto him, "If I had had only one thought of Abba 

"Antony's my whole being would have been like a 

"pillar of light ^" 

CCVIII. A certain aged man was asked by a brother, 

"When I am in the place of purity, and the hour for 

"prayer cometh, must I return?" The aged man said 

to him, "Nay, brother. Who having been rich would 

"return to poverty?" Now he referred to the lifting up 

of the mind and to the converse with God in the place 

of purity. 

CCIX. It is said concerning Saint Ammon^ the vir- 

In Palladius this story runs:— oa.r^.J!OCU» rdar^ JO»


gin that when he was compelled by his parents to 

take a wife, on the night of the feast, immediately after 

rdX.t ^.iinT~a\ rdi^cn.t .,cwo.ia.»\-i 

..\n.»A\50 Pdl.i .rOaJis,5 jjLiJ^dM.-i Ai^w .rililo^ r^rt T^ 

rSlA.T ,cnj30 .ôi&iO .pdm'W.i KlÔî^ ^^ vyr^ 

.TM .tjjlI^.i .pillr!' Qaj3»)0 rOp^ pî-s p'->n ru ( 1-1-1 atan.i pîsspC 

.vA CTU rôcn siki r£t)aE9aarCl=3 .pÂ\»-i-) cn=> rC'ÔXiToa 

iv.r^.1 _teiifloaia.i piiLp^ pi'oon mV ^ r^sacL* crAô 

_asiiiJQV=>ftaocr).i pdiAjp^ K'JCQ î oqp .cnû^^^ eiA pi'ooQ 

.jA^&Cflo .Mit»\^'sqo :3îo3 r^ô 

ôd>Q .oasa^ K'ocn Airs' ^x>cno .cn^cA^ ps'ooo ôlxsso 

rsilX-SD r^ssiAa Ô .rS'Oco îpdii r«li\A.T pCAvwiiitiA 

.^.Oca»''tA< .r


going in with the bride to the feast, he brought out 

from his bosom the Book of the Apostle Paul, 

and admonished 

and taught the young woman the words 

which were written therein by the blessed man on 

virginity, saying, "It is better for a man not to approach 

"a woman', and I would that all men should live even 

"as do I in purity^" and again [where] he saith, "The 

"woman who hath never known man meditateth upon 

"her Lord, that she may be holy^ in her body and in 

"her soul." With words such as these did he exhort 

his betrothed one, and they made their bodies temples 

to the Holy Spirit. 

CCX. One of the old men said, "If thou seest a 

"young man who lusteth to go up to heaven of his 

"own will, take hold of his leg and sweep him thence." 

CCXL One of the solitaries had so thoroughly dried 

up his body through the labour of fasting and prayer 

that the sun could be seen [shining] through his ribs. 

.^_OS0rc' Klar^.T coAxol^ >oeD i.T^ Eventually Ammon's wife 

thinks it better for herself and her husband to live wholly apart, 

and they do so (fol. 54a Of Abba Ammon). 

^ 

' 

I Corinthians vii. i. Bar-Hebraeus quotes the Peshttta Version. 

I Corinthians vii. 6. ^ The Peshitta has rîvx.Mo. 

t I Corinthians vii. 34.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF MUHAMMEDAN KINGS AND OF 

THEIR SAGES. 

CCXII. A certain king was asked by one of his 

nobles, "Who was the founder of thy race?" And he 

replied, "111 luck brought it upon them that I should 

"be the founder." 

CCXIII. Another of the sages said, "The members of 

"a man's household are the moth of his money." 

CCXIV. Another of the kings was asked, "How is 

"the peaceable condition of thy kingdom maintained?" 

And he replied, "When I fly, my nobles alight; and 

"when they fly, I alight; that is to say, when I am in 

"a rage they pacify me, and when they are enraged 

"I pacify them." 

CCXV. Another king was asked by his sages, "To 

"what limit hath thine understanding reached?" And 

he replied, "To the extent that I believe no man, 

"neither do I put any confidence in any man what- 

"soever." 

CCXVI. One of the 

kings when he was young and 

was learning from his master made a Ihistake in a 

word, and when his teacher rebuked him the boy said 

to him, "What is that to thee? The very best horses 

"stumble sometimes." The teacher replied, "Very true, 

"but they are beaten and corrected for it." And the

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF MUHAMMEDAN KINGS. 57 

boy said, "Yes, but they break the nose of him that 

"beateth them." 

CCXVII. Another king said to one of his sages, 

"There are three attributes which I yearn greatly to 

"possess. The first is that no man should be able to 

"commit any sin against me which I should not have 

"the power to forgive. The second is that none of 

"those who ask boons from me should have any want 

"which I should not be able to satisfy. And the third 

"is that there should be no time longer than mine own." 

When the wise man heard these words he laughed. And 

the king said, "Why dost thou laugh?" He replied, 

"How can I help laughing, for behold thou lustest for 

"the attributes which are only found with God." The 

king said, "I know it. Hide, then, my words, and let 

"them be as a secret unto thee, lest every one who 

"heareth of them shall laugh at me also." 

CCXVIII. Another king ordered his son, saying, 

"Strengthen thy kingdom with righteousness, for that 

"is a wall which cannot be breached." 

CCXIX. Another of the sages said, "There are four 

"things which a man need not be afraid [to serve]: — 

"The king, a child, the road, and an animal." 

CCXX. Another of the sages said, "It is meet that 

"those kings who heap up money should have the 

"minds of those who are going to live for ever, and 

"that those who scatter gifts should have the minds 

"of those who are going to die to-morrow;" that is to 

say they should spare nothing, for thus will their kingdom 

stand. 

CCXXI. Another of the sages said, 

"Guard ye care- 

"fully your women against singing and music, for they 

"overthrow chastity, and build up lust, and invite want-


"onness and the drunkenness which is worse than that 

"of wine." 

CCXXII. Another of the sages said, "The Greeks 

"are the more skilful, but the Persians are the more in- 

"telligent." 

CCXXIII. Another king never permitted any man to 

kiss his hand, "For," said he, "the kissing of the hand 

"is the proof [of the friendship] of friends and of the 

"flattery 

of foes." 

CCXXIV. Another king was besought by a certain 

man who professed to lead an ascetic life to give him 

the office of governor in a certain place, and he said 

to him, "If the ascetic life wherein thou art occupied 

"is of God, it is not meet for us to destroy it by 

"giving thee a governorship whereby sin would be 

"provoked; and if it be merely hypocrisy it is not meet 

"for us to make a hypocrite a governor." Thus he 

dismissed him. 

CCXXV. Another of the wise men used to say, 

"The 

"power of being able to [gratify a passion] destroyeth 

"lust, even as water quencheth fire." 

CCXXVI. One of the nobles of a certain king was 

about to rebel against him, and although the king 

wished to slay him he would not do this thing without 

taking counsel of one of his sages. And having called 

a certain wise man he asked him concerning it; and 

he made answer to him, saying, 

"There is nothing [left] 

"for thee to do but to remove him from the earth; if 

"thou doest not this thy kingdom will not stand." 

When 

the king heard this he was mightily angry, and he 

said to the sage, "Wouldst thou counsel me to slay 

"the man who is my right arm and upon whom I lean?" 

and he thrust out the wise man and drove him away.


And it came to pass after a few days that the king 

devised means and cut 

off the head of him that wished 

to rebel, and he called the wise man and said unto 

him, "Dost thou remember the day wherein I took 

"counsel with thee?" He replied, "How can I ever 

"forget the day wherein I tasted death through fear 

"of thee?" And the king said to him, "What thou 

"didst counsel was right, and I had intended in my 

"mind to do, it, but I was afraid lest when thou hadst 

"confirmed my own intention this secret would be- 

"come revealed and the noble would slip out of my 

"hands." 

CCXXVII. To another king a certain man brought 

a pair of shoes, saying, "These are the shoes of the 

"Prophet;" and the king received them and he gave 

him much money. And it came to pass that when 

the man had gone forth he said to those who were 

round about him, "I know that these shoes are not 

"those of the Prophet, for the man who owned them 

"was not 

one of those who could have inherited them, 

"and that he either bought them or that they were 

"given to him as a gift. Only I was afraid lest it 

"should be reported concerning me that the shoes of 

"the Prophet had come to me and that I had not made 

"rejoicings over them, and lest I should be judged as 

"one of little faith by men." 

CCXXVIII. Another king (Harun al-Rashid^ had 

' 

This famous man was proclaimed Khalifa at Bagdad on Friday, 

the Xllth day before the end of Rebt' I. A.H. 170J he died 

at Sanabadh near Tus on Saturday the IVth day of Jumada II. 

A.H. 193. He reigned twenty-three years and six months, and 

died aged forty-four years and four months, A.D. 808.

6o 


two sons, the one (El-Amin') by the Queen (Zubedah') 

and the other (Al-Ma'mun^) by a handmaiden^ and because 

he wished the 

son of the handmaiden to be king 

after him the Queen was loud in her reproaches of the 

king. Thereupon the king said to her, "Let us make 

"a trial of the intelligence of both of them, and which- 

"ever is the wiser shall reign;" and he then sent one 

trusty man to the one son, and another to the other 

to ask each of them what he would do for him when 

he became king. When the trusty man asked him that 

was the son of the Queen, he promised to make him 

his counsellor and to give him dominion over countries. 

But when the trusty man asked him that was 

the son of the handmaiden he took up the ink-pot 

which was in front of him and smote him on the head 

therewith and said, "O fool, wouldst thou demand a 

"gift from me if the king died? Now as for me I would 

"rather that we all should die, and that the king should 

"live, because he would not miss such people as we, 

"but where could we find another like him?" And 

when the Queen heard these things she agreed that 

the son of the handmaiden should become king and 

not her own son. 

' /. e., 

cr:^^! '^ho 'was murdered on the XXVth day of the 

month Muharram, A.H. i98=A.D. 813; his head was cut off and 

sent to his brother Al-Ma'mun. 

^ /. e., i'lXôj, daughter of Ja'far, the son of the Khalifa Mansur, 

and wife 

of Harun al-Rashid. 

i I. e., |^Û\ was proclaimed Khalifa at Bagdad when he was 

twenty-eight years and two months old. He died at Podendon, 

and his body was taken to Tarsus where it was buried A.H. 218 

Â.D. 833. He reigned twenty-one years, and was forty-nine years 

old when he died. 

/. e., Merajil, J.a.\j^, a native of i.;;-*^^^.

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF MUHAMMEDAN KINGS. 

6 I 

CCXXIX. One of the kings used to hate a certain 

member of his bodyguard, and he said to one of his 

nobles, "Hast thou not with thee someone who could 

"slay such and such an one?" And he replied, "I will 

"straightway slay him." And the king said to him, "I 

"do not require the matter performed thus, for I want, 

"when he is killed, to be able to pass judgment upon 

"him that slew him and to kill him according to 

"justice." 

CCXXX. The handmaiden of a certain 

prince died, 

and he was so sorely grieved about her that he used 

to go out to the cemetery at night and weep. When 

his father heard this he wrote to him, saying, "How canst 

"thou expect me to give thee dominion over a nation when 

"thou sufferest thus for the sake of a handmaiden?" The 

son answered, "It is not about her price that I grieve, 

"but because of the manner of woman that she was." 

CCXXXI. Another king said, "Do not praise the 

"kings who were before us, for this will lead the sold- 

"iers of our army to despise us." 

CCXXXII. When another king was dying he ordered 

that after his eldest son the younger should be king, 

and when the son heard these words he said, "Thy 

"will shall be fulfilled, my lord. But give orders that my 

"young brother reign before me and I after him, so 

"that the kingdom shall remain for my seed after my 

"death, and thus the universal custom shall not be ab- 

"rogated." 

CCXXXIII. Another king said to his wise man, 

"We 

"are much more intelligent than thou art, but thou art 

"much more learned than we are. Therefore do not 

"attempt to teach us in public, and do not say anything 

"whatsoever to us unless we ask thee. When thou


"answerest do not go on to repeat some other matter, 

"and to instruct us in learned doctrines, but only such 

"learning as is necessary for our kingdom. Further- 

"more do not feign to be greatly struck with wonder 

"at the things which are spoken by us, for if thou 

"doest this thou wilt show contempt for us. If thou 

"doest 

these things thy position with us shall be exalted, 

"and thou wilt be beloved by us." 

CCXXXIV. There was a certain young prince who 

was requested by his father to come to him one morning, 

and when he went in to him the king thought that he 

had just been eating something. And he said unto 

him, "Dost thou eat so much as this early in the 

"morning.''" and the son denied that he had eaten 

anything. Now when the king asked those who were 

rearing him [whether his son had eaten or not], they 

confessed that he had, saying, "Every morning he asks 

"for some food and eats it in this manner." And the 

king ordered them to rub down his teeth with a file 

in order to cause him pain [when he ate], and when 

they had filed away those in the upper jaw, he wept 

and said to the king, "Leave the teeth in the lower 

"jaw until another time when thou art angry;" so the 

king laughed and sent 

him away. 

CCXXXV. Another king when the table was removed 

used to say, "How manifold are thy mercies, O 

"Lord, Who hast prepared for us more than we need." 

CCXXXVI. One of the sages used to say, "The 

"men in the market are despicable, and the handicrafts- 

"men are rude, and the merchants are avaricious, but 

"it is the lawyers who are the kings of the people." 

CCXXXVII. A young prince said to his servant, 

"Go into the market and buy me of fine dates the


"value of half a zusa." When his father heard of it, 

he said to him, " Having now understood that a suza 

"may be halved thou mayest also understand that thou 

"art not able to prosper." 

CCXXXVIIL Another king said, "If men only knew 

"how pleasant to me it is to forgive faults there is 

"not one of them who would not commit them." 

CCXXXIX. A certain prince had a little servant 

who used to learn with him in school, and who suddenly 

sickened and died. And when the king said to 

him, "My son, thy servant is dead," he replied, "Yes, 

"he is dead, and he hath escaped from the school." 

CCXL. A certain Byzantine king wrote a letter to 

one of the Arab kings using threatening words, and the 

Arab king wrote back, saying, "Our complete answer 

"to that which thou hast written will be something 

"which can be seen and not read," that is to say, "We 

"will come in person to meet thee." 

CCXLI. Another Arab king was pleased in his mind 

because they had brought to him certain baked meats 

which he loved. And ' 

having begun to eat he found 

therein a fly; and when he had thrown it away and 

had eaten a little more, he found another fly and yet 

another; and when he had eaten and they had taken 

away the table, he said, "Let them cook for me only 

"a portion of this meat to-morrow, so that there may 

"be fewer of flies 

therein." 

CCXLII. Another sage said, "The gratification which 

"ariseth from forgiveness is very much better than that 

"which ariseth from vengeance, because to forgiveness 

"praise appertaineth, and to vengeance repentance." 

CCXLIII. Another sage said, "Do not speak too freely 

"and openly with him that is thy superior, lest he be


"angry with thee; neither do thou thus with him that is 

"thy inferior, lest he presume overmuch before thee." 

CCXLIV. When the father of a certain young prince 

died a man asked him, "Whom did the king order to 

"take care of thee?" And he replied, "The king ordered 

"me to take care of those who should care for me." 

CCXLV. Another king commanded his sons' teacher, 

saying, "First of all order thine own doings and then 

"those of my sons, for upon thee are their eyes set. 

"Teach them from books, from the Divine Scriptures, and 

"from the histories of the righteous kings and prophets. 

"Do not threaten them in my name, 

for when they have 

"learnt by experience that thou art not able to reprove 

"them, they will despise thee. Be not harsh with them, 

"and drive them not overmuch lest they hate instruction; 

"and be not slack with them lest they love idleness." 

CCXLVI. Another of the sages used to say, 

"facedness is 

"Shame- 

destroyed by two things, by a man seeking 

"his own desire, and by converse with fools." 

CCXLVII. When another king was admonishing the 

soldiers of his bodyguard and they were paying no 

heed unto him, he said to them, "Ye need a king who 

"will do more unto you than admonish, ye need a 

"king who will 

beat you." 

CCXLVIII. Another of the sages was asked, "How 

"is that thy mercy is so abundant?" And he replied, 

"I have never inflicted punishment on a man without 

"leaving room for 

reconciliation." 

CCXLIX. Another of the sages said, "The crime of 

"him that slayeth a prophet is not greater than that 

"of him whom a prophet slayeth, that is to say, he that 

"slayeth a prophet certainly committeth sin, but unless


"the sin of him that is slain by a prophet be not very 

"great he will not be slain." 

CCL. Another of the kings said, "He that will not 

"condescend to ask a gift of me is not worthy of a gift," 

whereupon a sage who was ready-witted said, "He 

"that asketh and receiveth lacketh more than what he 

"gaineth, but a truly graceful act on thy part would 

"be to give before thou art asked." 

CCLI. A certain sage asked the Queen, saying, 

"Persuade the king to fulfil a certain thing [for me]." 

And the Queen said, "Instead of asking me to persuade 

"the king thou shouldst try to persuade him thyself, 

"and let him make answer to thy petition." The sage 

said, "Nay my lady, when the tops of the branches of 

"a tree which are laden with fruit are high and out of 

"reach it is meet for a man to lay hold upon the 

"lower parts of the branches and to pull them down 

"[to him], so that he can easily pluck the fruit and eat 

"thereof," whereby he gave it to be understood that 

the head of a woman is man.

PROFITABLE STORIES OF TEACHERS AND LEARNED MEN. 

CCLIL A certain teacher used to say, "A very large 

"portion of learning hath escaped me, I mean that por- 

"tion which I was ashamed to learn from men who 

"were my inferiors. Therefore do not, O my disciples, 

"let it be accounted a disgrace by you to ask questions 

"of those who are your inferiors, whereby ye may 

"become accomplished and perfect." 

CCLIII. 

Another teacher related a story of his master 

to. the effect that on a certain day the people asked 

him more than fifty questions, and that he replied to 

[each of] them shamelessly "I do not know the answer 

"thereof;" and that he never answered questions 

on any 

matters except such as he knew accurately. 

CCLIV. Another teacher used to say, "The things 

"which I know are few, but I know those accurately." 

CCLV. Another learned man, when sitting at a feast 

with certain people who were drinking milk and honey, 

said to the servants, "Give me to drink of that for 

"which when it cannot be found a man would sell his 

"soul, but which when found is rejected;" now by these 

words he meant water. 

CCLVI. Another learned man in heaping abuse on a 

common man, said, " The father of this man used to con- 

"ceal the greater number of the animals which he owned

PROFITABLE STORIES OF TEACHERS AND LEARNED MEN. 6/ 

"in his garments;" now by those words he referred 

to 

lice. 

CCLVII. Another learned man used to say, 

"Honour- 

"able praise is that the man to whom thou hast done 

"no good thing should praise thee, 

and veritable abuse, 

"likewise, is that he to whom thou hast never done 

"harm should abuse thee." 

CCLVIIL Another learned man said, "A man is 

"wholly at ease until his teeth become worn out or he 

"be sick." 

CCLIX. Another learned man said, "I wish to be 

"considered before God as one of the excellent ones 

"of men, and before myself as one of the abjects of 

"the children of men, and before men as one among 

"them who is neither good nor bad; for the exalted 

"are eaten up by care, and the abjects are wasted 

"away by hunger." 

CCLX. Another learned man said, 

"There are three 

"classes of men who are not destitute of advantage: 

"—He that teacheth being hired for wages, and he 

"that hireth to learn excellence, and he who being 

"the equal of his pupil in knowledge merely calleth to mind 

"what he hath learnt; but the man who wisheth to 

"learn whilst pretending to teach is remote from any 

"advantage whatsoever." 

CCLXI. Another learned man said, "He that med- 

"itateth upon a learned life, having no need so to do, 

"should not be deprived of the benefit thereof when he 

"hath need of it." 

CCLXII. Another learned man said, 

"A good woman 

"is like a raven with white legs," that is to say, she 

cannot be found. 

CCLXIII. Another learned man was asked, "Who 

l2

' 


"are the foolish ones?" And he replied, "Those who do 

"not know either how to praise or to blame." 

CCLXIV. Another learned man said, "Smite no man 

"for his folly, for if thou dost so he will make profit 

"by thee as from a friend, or he will hate, thee as an 

"enemy," 

CCLXV. Another learned man was asked, "Who is 

"the wise man? Is it he of whom a man hath said, 

"Send a wise man and command him not?" And he 

replied, "He that hearkeneth." 

CCLXVI. Another teacher pretended to learn the 

answer to a certain question from his disciple, and it 

was said to him [by a certain man], "Dost thou learn 

"from such an one as this?" And he replied, "I know 

"the answer to this question much better than he, but 

"I wish him to taste the pleasure of teaching, in order 

"that he may be incited the more to learn." 

CCLXVII. Another teacher said, "The commentary 

"on the Books of Scripture is like the earrings in the 

"ears of a virgin." 

CCLXVIII. Another teacher said, "Let the counsels 

"which are mingled with the Scriptures be thy principal, 

"and let those which are in thy heart be the interest 

"thereof." 

CCLXIX. Another teacher while writing a certain 

discourse upon a tablet, found that the tablet was filled 

before he had finished this discourse, and he began to 

rub out the beginning of his discourse from the top of 

the tablet, and then wrote the remainder of it. And 

when he was asked why he did this, he answered, 

"I am doing this in order that I may have my dis- 

' 

Read piâsax.."!.

PROFITABLE STORIES OF TEACHERS AND LEARNED MEN. 69 

"course by me complete, for having written down the 

"beginning thereof I can repeat it by heart." 

CCLXX, Another teacher said, "There are four 

"classes of men to whom it is pleasant for them to 

"be listened unto:—The man from whom a gift, or in- 

"struction, or blessings, or prayers are expected, or 

"he that having the power can cause loss."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE ARAB ASCETICS AND OLD MEN. 

CCLXXI. One of the Arab ascetics happened to 

be present in the mosque with the governor of the 

country, and the governor said to him, "Ask of me 

"whatsoever thou needest." The ascetic repHed, "In 

"the house of God it is meet to make supplication to 

"God alone." 

CCLXXII. Another ascetic said, "Extinguish the light 

"of your anger by the remembrance of the fire 

of Ge- 

"henna" [z. e., hell). 

CCLXXIII. It was said to another ascetic when he 

was threatening sinners with [God's] punishment, "Where, 

"then, is the lovingkindness of God?" He replied, 

"It is spread abroad over the righteous." 

CCLXXIV. Another ascetic said, "It may be known 

"that this world is a world of tribulation and wicked- 

"ness, from the fact that there is no man in it who doth 

"not seek to be something very much better than what 

"he is." 

CCLXXV. Another ascetic said, "The desirable things 

"of this world which are transient are like dreams, and 

"those who look for the things of the next world are 

"in 

doubt about them." 

CCLXXVI. Another ascetic said, "The world is carried 

"on by those who serve God and by those who do not."

1 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE ARAB ASCETICS. 7 

CCLXXVII. To another ascetic it was said, "Hast 

"thou ever done anything whatsoever whereat God 

"hath been pleased?" And he replied, "I do not know 

"of a certainty whether I have or not, but I do know 

"that in the matter of what I have done I have always 

"been afraid lest it should displease God, and lest He 

"should turn Himself against me." 

CCLXXVIII. When another ascetic saw a certain man 

giving alms in the sight of men, he said unto him, "If 

"thou wishest to lay up treasure for thyself carry it 

"secretly, lest when men see it they plunder it." 

CCLXXIX. Another ascetic admonished a king, 

saying, 

"Know well, [O king,] that if these treasures which 

"are laid up in thy treasury had remained in the hands 

"of those who were before thee they would never have 

"come to thee. Traffic thou, then, for thyself in that 

"merchandise which thou hast not, for this will not re- 

"main with thee although it belongeth unto thee." 

CCLXXX. Unto another ascetic it was said by the 

king, "Ask of me whatsoever thou needest, and I will 

"give it unto thee." And he replied, "If it be that [I 

"know] that thou wilt give when I ask, and that thou 

"wilt open when I knock unto thee, this [knowledge] 

"is to me one half of the gift." 

CCLXXXI. Another ascetic said, 

"Death is the Divine 

"Passover and the universal festival of this world." 

CCLXXXII. Another ascetic was asked, "How was 

"it thus easy for thee to dismiss the desirable things 

"of this world?" And he replied, "Because I knew that 

"death would pluck them away from me by force, 

"therefore I renounced them of mine own free-will." 

CCLXXXIII. Another ascetic heard a poor beggar 

saying, "Where are those who hate this transient world

72 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRiEUS. 

"so that they may possess the world which will not 

"come to an end?" And the ascetic replied, "They 

"are all in heaven. Thou mayest find a few upon 

"earth, but it is most probable that thou wilt not find 

"any at 

all." 

CCLXXXIV. Unto another it was said, "In what 

"condition will men be on the day of Resurrection?" 

He replied, "The penitent will be like the lamb which 

"having gone forth to graze hath returned to the fold, 

"and the wicked will be like the lamb which [having 

"gone forth to graze] hath been worried by a mad dog, 

"that is to say by Satan: therefore he must be bound 

"in 

chains." 

CCLXXXV. Another ascetic 

seeing a king strongly 

guarded by his bodyguard said, "If he had done no 

"injury to men he would not be afraid of them." 

CCLXXXVI. Unto another ascetic it was said, "How 

"canst thou endure being in this comer?" He said, 

"I am not alone, for I am continually holding converse 

"with the Lord of created things, and when I wish 

"Him to talk to me I read the Divine Scriptures, and 

"when I wish to speak unto Him I pray." 

CCLXXXVII. Another ascetic used to say, "It is 

"meet that ye should fear the Lord, for He hath power 

"over your strength, and that ye should be shamefaced 

"before Him, because He observeth you continually in 

"order to look closely into your doings." 

CCLXXXVIII. Another ascetic used to say, "Take 

"good heed lest there should happen unto thee that 

"which happened unto him that oppressed thee." 

CCLXXXIX. Unto another ascetic it was said by a 

certain governor, "How strict is thy life of abstinence!" 

And he replied, "Thou art more strict in thine as-

he 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE ARAB ASCETICS. 

T^ 

"ceticism than am I, because I have only renounced 

"this world which abideth not, from which also thou 

"thyself art about to be deprived by death; but thou 

"hast also renounced that world which passeth not 

"away, and thou hast hated it,, therefore thou art an 

"ascetic in respect of both worlds, while I am an as- 

"cetic in the matter of one only." 

CCXC. Another ascetic said, "He that is careful to 

"gather together more than he needeth, heapeth up 

"for 

another." 

CCXCI. When certain men were blaming another 

ascetic, and saying, "Thou givest away thine alms too 

"freely," he made answer to them, "Why will ye not under- 

"stand that it is meet for him that wisheth to go from 

"one house to another to send on some provision in 

"advance.''" 

CCXCII. Unto, another ascetic a king said, "How is it 

"that thou dost not pay homage to me, seeing that thou 

"art of my servants.''" And he replied, "If thou didst 

"but understand thou wouldst know that thou wert in 

"very truth the servant of my servants, for I have 

"gained the mastery over and have conquered worldly 

"lusts, but they have gained the mastery over and 

"have conquered thee." 

CCXCIII. Unto another ascetic 

one of the rich men 

said, "How is it that thy face is always joyful as if 

"thou didst lead a life of pleasure?" And he replied, 

"It is meet for thee to lament and mourn and for me 

"to rejoice and be glad, for in thy case the days of 

"thy pleasure are coming to an end, and in mine it is 

"the days of my tribulation which are about to cease." 

CCXCIV. Another ascetic was asked, "Who is the 

"Good One?" And ' replied, "The Good One is 

K


"He against Whom ye sin hourly, and Who promiseth 

"to forgive you if ye repent of your evil deeds." 

CCXCV. Another sage said, "When thou sinnest thou 

"sinnest against thy Lord, Who feedeth thee; it is meet 

"that thou shouldst fear Him." 

CCXCVI. Another ascetic said, "What resemblance 

"is there between those from whom the world hath 

"fled and to whose hands the desirable things thereof 

"come not, even though they struggle hard to possess 

"them, and those who, being in a prosperous condition 

"as regards the things of this world, have fled from 

"the world?" 

CCXCVII. Another ascetic said, "It is very much 

"better for a man that his Lord should ask him, say- 

"ing, "Why hast thou not done [such and such a 

"thing]?" than that He should ask him, "Why hast 

"thou done [such and such a thing]?" That is to say, it 

were better for 

a man to do neither righteousness nor 

evil, than that he should do nothing but sin. 

CCXCVIII. Another ascetic was asked, 

"What is this 

"world?" And he replied, "A laughing-stock to him 

"that 

hath had experience thereof" 

CCXCIX. Another ascetic was asked, "What man 

"is wise?" And he replied, "He that doth not rejoice 

"in the possession of the [things of the] world." 

CCC. Another ascetic stood over the grave of a 

certain highway robber and said, "O mighty man, how 

"is it that thou canst rest having slain so many souls? 

"Behold, I could not rest [were I thee]." 

CCCI. Another ascetic was asked, "Unto what is the 

"world like?" And he replied, "It is too contemptible 

"to be compared with anything whatsoever, for every- 

"thing which is beyond the world is better than it."


CCCII. Another ascetic said to the children of men 

when he was admonishing them, "It is not that which 

"ye know not which we teach you, 

"of that which ye well know." 

but we remind you 

CCCIIL A thief went to the abode of another ascetic 

by night, and finding nothing there he said to 

him, "O thou ascetic, where are thy possessions?" 

And he replied, "I have hidden them in the house 

"above," meaning in heaven. 

CCCIV. Unto another ascetic it was said, "How is 

"it that thou dost never cast blame upon any man.-*" 

And he replied, "Because I myself am not entirely free 

"from blame." 

CCCV. To another ascetic it was said by a certain 

nobleman, "How is it that thou dost never come to 

"visit us?" And he replied, "Because thou hast not 

"with thee that which I seek to have, neither have I 

"with me anything which I 

fear thou wilt want to carry 

"off from me." 

CCCVI. Another ascetic used to say, " Consider, now, 

"and see of what benefit is wealth to those who have 

"it. They have [always before them] the fear of the 

"governor, and the care and anxiety [of keeping it] 

"from thieves, and the envy of friends, and the hatred 

"of the son who is 

waiting anxiously to inherit by [his 

"father's] 

death." 

CCCVII. Another ascetic used to say, 

"The members 

"of a man are the armour of God with any one of 

"which He can slay him;" that is to say, by the injury 

and destruction which appertain naturally to each 

member. 

CCCVIII. Another ascetic used to say, "Thou shouldst 

"increase thy fear of the Lord as if thou hadst never 

K2

']6 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÊUS. 

"wrought righteousness, and thy hope in Him shall 

"increase in thee in proportion as thou dost not 

"commit sin." 

CCCIX. Another ascetic said, "Teachers are the 

"physicians of the people, and lusts are the diseases 

"thereof. If a physician hath not the power to remove 

"sickness from himself he is a fool to imagine that he 

"can heal other folk." It seems as if this saying had 

been stolen from the Holy Gospel wherein it saith, 

Physician, heal thyself 

CCCX. When certain folk went to the abode of 

another ascetic they did not find in his house even a 

mat whereon to sit, and while they were marvelling 

that it was thus he said to them, "If we had been 

"going to remain here'^ we should have spread the 

"place with the finest carpets." 

CCCXI. Another ascetic said, 

"Paradise was our first 

"abode, and since we have been driven out therefrom 

"we earnestly desire to return thither; therefore do we 

"crave to return to the place which gave us birth, and 

"not to an alien country." 

CCCXII. Another ascetic said, "He that renounceth 

"the world is not worthy to be praised overmuch, be- 

"cause, although for a short time he doth not voluntarily 

"renounce it, after a little he is made to to do so in- 

"voluntarily." 

CCCXIII. Another ascetic wrote to a fellow ascetic 

and asked him to 

shew him what this world resembled, 

and what that which is to come will be like, and he 

^ This remark may be that of a scribe. Compare St. Luke 

iv. 23. 

^ /. tf., "If we were not going to die.''

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE ARAB ASCETICS. 7/ 

wrote to him, saying, " This world is a sleep, and the 

"world which is to come is the waking. Therefore, 

"although we are unconscious thereof, it is of dreams 

"that our conversation consisteth; but when we wake 

"up we find most certainly that all the things which 

"are here are phantoms." 

CCCXIV, Unto another ascetic it was said, "Why, 

"since thou art not sick and art not old, dost thou 

"always lean upon a staff.!*" He replied, "Because I 

"am [travelling] along a road, and I look forward to 

"the pleasant time when I shall be removed therefrom, 

"and it is manifest that a staff belongeth to the equip- 

"ment of him that desireth to journey along a road." 

CCCXV. Another ascetic said, "If thou wishest to 

"comprehend the folly of [holding] worldly possessions,, 

"consider carefully that it is only the fools who gather 

"them together, 

for good and excellent men are without 

"them." 

CCCXVI. Another ascetic said, 

"It is meet for a man 

"to make provision for himself in this world according 

"to the time which he shall abide therein, and also 

"for the world which is to come according to the time 

"which he shall abide therein." 

CCCXVII. Another ascetic when he was passing by 

saw a certain man standing in the cemetery by the 

side of a sepulchral monument, and he said to him, 

" Observe, O man, that the place wherein thou standest 

"is between two marvellous storehouses; in one are 

"heaped up the children of men, and in the other are 

"gathered together the things which they desired." 

CCCXVIII. Unto another ascetic who lived in the 

cemetery it was said, "Why dwellest thou here?" And 

he replied, "I wish to distinguish between the bones


"of kings and those of their servants, but they cannot 

"be distinguished, for they are all alike." 

CCCXIX. Unto another ascetic the king said, "Ask 

"whatsoever thou wishest me to give to thee." He 

replied, "[Give me] the life which is everlasting, and 

"the youth which is without old age, riches which are 

"never ending, and the joy which is not mingled 

"with sorrow." And the king said, "I have not power 

"over these things to give them to thee," whereon 

the ascetic replied, "Leave me, then, to ask them of 

"Him that hath power over them," that is to say, from 

God in the world to come. 

CCCXX. Another ascetic used to say, "If God had 

"said that He was about to punish one man only, I 

"should have been horribly afraid lest I might be that 

"man ; and 

similarly, if He had said that He was about 

"to shew mercy on one man only I should not have 

"despaired of being that man. For although God is 

"strong and His judgment is terrible, yet His mercies 

"are exceedingly manifold." 

CCCXXI. Another sage said, "Whatsoever thou 

"wishest to possess not to-morrow, that let go to-day; 

"and that which thou wouldst have to-morrow possess 

"thou thyself thereof this day." 

CCCXXII. Another sage said unto certain rich men, 

" I swear to you, by God, that when ye go forth from 

"this world ye will lust for nothing further, except to 

"return to the world, and to work righteousness that 

"ye may be reckoned worthy of happiness and be 

"delivered from punishment. Do righteousness then in 

"the world before ye go out therefrom, for ye will 

"never have the power to return here again." 

CCCXXIII. Another ascetic used to say, "For forty


"years I have been always entreating God to fulfil for 

"me one request, and He hath not granted it." And 

it was said to him, "What is the request for which 

"thou hast petitioned and which hath not been granted 

"unto thee.-*" And he replied, "That I might not be 

"meditating on that which would not profit me." 

CCCXXIV. Another ascetic used to say, "In Ge- 

"henna there is no punishment more severe for those 

"who are there than the knowledge which they have 

"that there is no end to their punishment; and similarly 

"those who dwell in Paradise have no greater happiness 

"than the knowledge that their glory and triumph are 

"everlasting."

PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF PHYSICIANS AND LEGENDS 

ATTRIBUTED TO THEM. 

CCCXXV. It is said that Ardashir, the king of the 

Persians, never permitted a physician to prescribe for 

him until he had had him stung by a viper; if he was 

able to heal himself he gave him his daily food and 

the physician entered his service. 

CCCXXVI. It^was said unto a certain physician by a 

sick man, "I have eaten several chickens," and the 

physician said to him, "One chicken would have been 

"sufficient for thee." The sick man said, "But chickens 

"do no harm," and the physician answered, "If a man 

"should put on ten silk garments, one over the other, 

"he would imagine that he was clothed in a thick cloak." 

CCCXXVII. Dixit medicus alius questo cuidam quia 

saepe cum feminis coire nequibat, "Came vescere, vinum 

"bibe, medicamentis utere in Venerem incitantibus, cum 

"petulantibus versare ac lascivis— sic demum virum te 

"praestare 

poteris." 

CCCXXVIII. Medicus quidam cui dixerat aliquis, 

"Clamosis ventris inflationibus afficior et ructationibus 

"flatuosis," respondit, "Ventrem certe cum strepitu in- 

"flant pedita quae nequeunt evadere : de flatuosis tamen 

"ructationibus non adhuc legi quid sint." 

CCCXXIX. A physician said, "The food which is

1 

PROFITABLE SAYINGS AND LEGENDS OF PHYSICIANS. 8 

"not digested devoureth him that eateth it; eat then 

"food in moderation that thou mayest have the power 

"to digest it." 

CCCXXX. A physician used to say, "He who exer- 

"ciseth the duty of marriage overmuch multiplieth the 

"destruction of the oil of the lamp of his life; but, how- 

"ever, if he wisheth to increase it let him do so, or if 

"he pleaseth let him diminish it." 

CCCXXXI. Another physician said, "It is meet for 

"a physician to heal every sick person with medicines 

"which are strange to him, but his diet must consist 

"of things which he hath been in the habit of taking, 

"because his nature is familiarized with them and will 

"receive them; for by strange food it is harmed and 

"it revolteth at it." 

CCCXXXII. Another physician at the time of his 

death said unto his disciples, "Behold, he that pro- 

"longeth his sleep, and keepeth his stomach soft and 

"his skin moist, his life shall be long." 

CCCXXXIII. Another physician said, 

"That which is 

"rarely used for its injurious qualities is better than 

"that which is frequently used for the benefits [which 

"it 

giveth]." 

CCCXXXIV. Another physician said, "If we had 

"been created from one elemental substance 

we should 

"never be sick, for there would not have been mingled 

"therewith any other natural element which would work 

"in 

opposition thereto." 

CCCXXXV. A physician said unto a certain man 

who came to him to be healed, "See now, behold we 

"are three, I, and thou, and the sickness. Therefore 

"if thou wilt take my side we two shall be easily able 

"to conquer the one which is by itself; but if thou for-


"sakest me and cleavest thereunto, I by myself shall 

"not be able to overcome the two of you." That is 

to say, "If thou wilt not take care, and wilt eat meats, 

"and wilt act in other harmful ways which strengthen 

"the disease [I cannot cure thee]." 

CCCXXXVL Medicus olim quidam roganti, 

"Cathar- 

"tica sumenti cur corpus sollicitatur ?" respondit, "Quia 

"et in conclavi verrendo crescit pulvis." 

CCCXXXVII. When a certain physician went to 

visit a prince who was grievously sick, he felt his 

windpipe and looked at his urine, but could find in 

him no sign of bodily disease. Then he began to introduce 

love stories, and he saw that the beat of his 

pulse was changed, and he straightway enquired if he 

had been in the habit of holding converse with the 

servants out of doors. And the servants said to him, 

"He hath never been in the habit of going out." Then 

the physician said, "Let all the handmaidens come 

"forth and pass before him," and they went by one by 

one, and straightway when a certain handmaiden drew 

nigh to him a mighty change took place in his pulse 

and breathing. Thus the physician was confirmed in 

his opinion, and he told the king his story and the 

handmaiden was given to him, and he was healed of 

his 

sickness. 

CCCXXXVni. Another physician was asked, "Why 

"doth a dead man become heavy?" And he replied, 

"Because [in the human body] two substances are 

"united; the light substance which beareth, and the 

"heavy substance which is borne. When the light 

"substance departeth the weight of that which is 

heavy 

"ihcreaseth." 

CCCXXXIX. Another physician said, "The waste


"products of the body are these:—That which is In 

"the head, [which is expelled] by means of the hair; that 

"which is in the stomach, by vomiting; that which is 

"under the skin, by perspiration; and that which is 

"deep down and below the arteries, by the door of 

"the blood." 

CCCXL. Another physician said, "The seat of the 

"phlegm is in the stomach and its dominion is in the 

"breast; the seat of the blood is the heart and its do- 

"minion is in the head; the seat of red bile is in the 

"gall bladder and its dominion is in the liver; and the 

"seat of black bile is in the spleen and its dominion is 

"in the heart." 

CCCXLI. Another physician wishing to 

demonstrate 

the difficulty of the art of healing said, "Life is short 

"but art is long, time presseth, experimenting is in- 

"cautious, and finality is difficult" [of attainment]. 

CCCXLII. Another physician said, "Divide thy days 

"into three seasons:—A season for work, that is to say 

"for visiting the sick; a season for study, that is to say 

"for reading medical books; and a season for bodily 

"recreation." 

CCCXLIII. A certain 

physician had a son who was 

hard of understanding, and who was incapable of receiving 

instruction. And his wife said to him, "Since 

"this son was [begotten by] thee how is it that he 

"cannot receive instruction as thou canst?" And he 

replied, "The mind, that which receiveth instruction, was 

"not from me." 

CCCXLIV. When a sick man asked a certain physician, 

who was wont to jest, about a drug he said to 

him, "Take an emollient of violet which hath grown 

"as large as a clod of dung, and pour upon it as much 

L2


"boiling water as the juice which cometh out from a 

"gourd; macerate them together until the mixture be- 

"cometh like fat {or oil) and drink it." The sick man 

said to him, "Perhaps if I were beaten with a hundred 

"stripes I might do the things which thou sayest, but 

"without the stripes I never will." 

CCCXLV. Another physician used to say, 

"Moderation 

"is the friend of Nature and by it is health preserved; 

"therefore let your toils, and meals, and motions, and 

"intercourse with women be in moderation." 

CCCXLVI. Another physician said, "The bodies 

"which have not experienced sickness are not remote 

"from danger." 

CCCXLVII. Another physician was asked, 

"What is 

"the aim and end of the art of healing?" He replied, 

"The preservation of health in [our] equals and friends, 

"and the driving of sickness into [our] adversaries." 

CCCXLVIII. Another physician said, "There are three 

"great sins in the art of healing:—The administration 

"of a poisonous drug, the administration of the medi- 

"cine of barrenness, and the administration of the drug 

"which expelleth the child from the womb." 

CCCXLIX. Another physician said, "Nature is the 

"minister of the soul in the formation of the body, and 

"in Che depicting of its designs, and in the preparation 

"of its foods; and it draweth in nourishment and keep- 

"eth it, though it expelleth therefrom the useless super- 

"fluity; and it digesteth it and throweth it into the 

''member which is to be nourished." 

CCCL. To another physician it was said, "Beans in 

"their skins easily build up (?) the body." And he 

replied, "Perhaps in the stomachs of those who are 

"hungry, otherwise they digest betterwithout their skins."


CCCLI. Another story. When the physicians of the 

Greek kings became sick the kings did not support 

them any longer. 

CCCLII. [Another] story. When the Arab kings 

were about to employ a physician and wished to try 

[his skill], they were wont to bring to him a certain 

table and to order him to compound therefrom a food 

which would strengthen the bodies of [their] warriors, 

and a food which would heal the sick, and a food 

which would bring sickness and death upon the enemy; 

if he were able to do [these things] they then employed 

him. 

CCCLIII. [Another] story. When a certain man came 

to a physician to enquire of him concerning an attack 

of colic which had come upon him, the physician said 

to him, "Eat a few thorns." And the man brought out 

ink and paper to write upon and said to the physician, 

"What dost thou advise?" And the physician said unto 

him, "Eat a few thorns, together with a bushel of bar- 

"ley." And the man said, "Thou saidst nothing at all 

"about barley at first," and the physician replied to 

him, "No, I did not, for I did not know until this mo- 

"ment that thou wert an ass." 

CCCLIV. Dixit quidam scurrae urbano, 

"Matris meae 

"gula assidue aliquid coUigit: flagratque et constricta 

"est." Respondit autem scurra, "Si venter uxoris tuae 

"ad matris gulam similitudine accederet, multum pro- 

"ficeres." 

CCCLV. A certain actor said unto a jesting physician, 

"The colic hath got hold of the ends of my hair, and 

"my belly is becoming black." The physician said to 

him, "Shave thy head and thy beard and thou wilt 

"never again have colic in the ends of thy hair; and


"as for the duskiness of thy belly, paint it with anti- 

"mony and thou wilt be gratified therewith." 

CCCLVI. When a certain jesting physician was 

passing by the door of a bath he saw a naked man 

coming out, and he said to him, "Why art thou going 

"forth naked? go in lest, thou suffer harm." And the 

man said, "They have stolen my clothes, and I am 

"going out to seek for them;" and the physician said, 

"Let me bleed thee, then, that thy affliction may be 

"diminished." 

CCCLVII. Unto another physician it was said, "What 

"is the [most] convenient time for eating," and he replied, 

"To him that hath anything to eat, when he is 

"hungry, and to him that hath nothing, when he findeth 

"[food]." 

CCCLVIII. When a physician went in to visit a 

certain simple man and asked him, "How dost thou 

"think thou art to-day? and what dost thou wish 

"for?" he replied, "I am very well, but I am longing 

"for some snow to eat." The physician said to him, 

"Snow is not a suitable thing for thee, for it will make 

"thee cough." The sick man said to him, "Only let 

"me suck the water from it, and I will throw away 

"the rest of it even as I do with an apple." 

CCCLIX. When a certain physician was sitting at 

meat at the table of a certain sophist a servant offered 

him fish and milk, and the physician began to eat one 

of them. Then the sophist said unto him, "Why dost 

"thou not also eat of this dish which is very good?" 

and the physician replied, "I am afraid to do so, be- 

"cause the two together are not wholesome." And 

the sophist said, "This being so thou must, now, per- 

"force solve one of the two following propositions:


— "They are either antagonistic to each other when 

"mixed together, or they are equal; now if they be 

"antagonistic it is meet that one of them should be 

"the bane of the other, and if they are equal why are 

"they injurious when mixed together and when separate 

"are not so? the mixture being injurious in each case." 

With such words did the sophist shut the mouth of 

the physician. But the truth of the dispute is that 

when they are gathered together they destroy each 

other through the properties which they possess, and 

thus they together become unwholesome, even without 

being mixed together. 

CCCLX. When a certain man with a delicate 

stomach came to a physician, he asked him the reason 

why he was sick, and he replied, "I have eaten burnt 

"bread." And the physician said unto him, "Paint thine 

"eyes with stibium 

or with something that will sharpen 

"thy vision." And the man said, "I did not ask thee 

"about mine eyes, but about my belly;'" and the physician 

said to him, "I know that, but I say unto thee, 

"Paint thine eyes' with something that will sharpen 

"thy vision, in order that thou mayest observe the bread 

"which is burnt and mayest not eat of it." 

CCCLXI. Another physician said, "It is not right 

"for a man to hold intercourse with fools, because in 

"the place where they sit fever cleaveth to the soul, 

"even as the sitting under the shadow of nut trees in- 

;'flameth the body." 

CCCLXII. While a physician was sitting in the presence 

of a certain king, a nobleman to whom a child 

had been newly born, entered, and the king asked him, 

I 

For (Ju^, read v>Ail^.


"How is the child? and how old is he?" The nobleman 

replied, "The child is well, but at present he is 

"only seven days old." And the physician said to 

him, "What manner of understanding hath he?" And 

the nobleman answered, "Didst thou not hear me tell 

"the king that he is only seven days old? Why dost thou 

"enquire of me concerning his intelligence?" The physician 

said to him, "The child, whose looks are keen 

"and whose crying is little, evidently hath under- 

"standing." 

CCCLXIII. A certain man who had once been a 

painter left off painting and became a physician. And 

when it was said to him, "Why hast thou done this?" 

he replied, "The errors [made] in painting [all] eyes 

"see and scrutinize; but the mistakes of the healing art 

"the ground covereth." 

CCCLXIV. Another physician was asked concerning 

[the use of] a certain laxative drug, and he replied, 

"It is [like] an arrow which is cast into the belly in 

"the darkness. Now, if it falleth upon something which 

"is effete and it expelleth it, then healing followeth its 

"use; but if it doth not fall upon something effete, it 

"must necessarily fall upon something which is in a 

"healthy condition, and then it will do harm and cause 

"disease." 

CCCLXV. Another physician on being asked concerning 

a certain laxative drug, said, "It is like soap, 

"which although it cleanseth also destroyeth things, 

"especially the weak and the old." 

CCCLXVL Another physician when consulted by a 

certain man because his food did not digest in his 

stomach, said to him, "Eat it when it hath already 

"been digested," that is to say, "Cook it well."


CCCLXVII. A physician said to a certain sick man, 

"Thou must eat neither fish nor flesh," and the man 

said to him, "If I had eaten them formerly I should not 

"probably have been sick." 

CCCLXVIII. A physician, 

seeing a man who had had 

a blow on the head about to bind it up with salt and 

carraway seeds, said to him, "Art thou going to send 

"down thine head to the oven to be baked?"

CHOICE STORIES OF THE SPEECH OF IRRATIONAL BEASTS. 

CCCLXIX. A fox was making sport of a lioness 

and mocking her because she only gave birth to one 

whelp a year. "Very true", replied the lioness, "but he 

"is 

a lion." 

CCCLXX. A gazelle or a fox said, 

"I am able easily 

"to run faster than any hound of the chase, for if I can 

"not how, when I am pursued, can I turn round and see 

"the beards of the huntsmen who are galloping and 

"shouting and abusing each other? and I make a laughing- 

"stock of their stupidity because no hound of the turf 

"hath ever been able to overtake me." 

CCCLXXI. A wolf, and a fox, and a lion having 

banded themselves together snared a goat, and a stag, 

and a hare. And the lion said to the wolf, "Divide 

"these amongst us". The wolf said, "The goat is for 

"thee, the stag is for me, and the hare is for the fox;" 

and when the 

lion heard these words he became wroth 

and leaped upon the wolf and choked him. Then he 

said to the fox, "Do thou divide [the spoil]." And the 

fox said to him, "The goat is for thy breakfast, the 

"hare for thy lunch, and the stag for thy supper;" and 

the lion said to him, "Whence hast thou learned to make 

"such an equitable division?" The fox replied, "From 

"this wolf which lieth before thee, 

O my lord the king."

1 

CHOICE STORIES OF THE SPEECH OF IRRATIONAL BEASTS. 9 

CCCXXII. A wolf, and a fox, and a hare found a 

lamb, and they said to each other, 

"He that is the oldest 

"amongst us shall eat him." The hare said, "I was born 

"before God created the heavens and the earth;" and the 

fox said, "Thou art right indeed, for I was present when 

"thou wert born;" and the wolf at the same time seizing 

the lamb, said, "My stature and capacity are witnesses 

"that I am older than you both," so he ate the lamb. 

CCCLXXIII. It was said to a fox, "Wilt thou accept 

"one hundred dinars'' and take [this] letter addressed 

"to a dog?" He replied, "The remuneration would 

"be far too much, but I cannot travel along a road which 

"droppeth with blood". 

CCCLXXIV. Two foxes having been snared together, 

one of them said to his neighbour, "Where shall we 

"meet together again?" He replied, "In the dead meat 

"market three 

days hence." 

CCCLXXV. A certain dog in passing by a mosque 

defiled it, and when an ape who was squatting there 

saw him and said to him, "Dost thou not tremble 

"before God that thou darest to defile the mosque?" 

the dog said to him, "Yea, thou hast been created in 

"such a beautiful form by Him, that thine heart would 

"[naturally] 

be grieved for His house and thou wouldst, 

"of course, spare it thyself" 

CCCLXXVI. A goat was standing on a roof and 

abusing a wolf, when the wolf replied, "It is not thou 

"that art abusing me but it is the place whereon thou 

"standest." 

CCCLXXVII. A certain man having taken hold upon 

a thorn bush to mount a wall was caught thereby. 

' 

/.


and he began to abuse it; and the thorn bush said to 

him, "Abuse thyself because thou didst wish to take 

"hold upon that which layeth hold upon everything." 

CCCLXXVIII. A certain king was in company with 

one of his philosophers, and as they passed through a 

ruined village they saw there two owls; and he said to 

the philospher, "What are these birds saying to each 

"other?" And the philosopher said, "I understand some- 

"thing of what they are saying, and if thou wilt swear 

"unto me that thou wilt do me no harm, I will shew 

"thee." And when the king had sworn to him, the 

philosopher said, "One of the owls hath a son and the 

"other a daughter, and they wish to arrange a marriage 

"between them. The owl with the daughter is willing 

"to give her one hundred ruined [villages] as a dowry, 

"but the other one will not accept them and demandeth 

"more. The father of the daughter having no more to 

"give promiseth his fellow, saying, 'If this king ruleth 

"his kingdom in the way in which he is now ruling it 

"for one year more, I will give thee a thousand ruined 

"[villages].'" 

and he began to 

When the king heard this he was rebuked, 

work righteousness. 

CCCLXXIX. While a certain dog was pursuing a 

gazelle, the gazelle said unto him, "Thou art not able 

"to catch me", and the dog said, "Why not?" The 

gazelle said to him, "Because I run for my life, but 

"thou for thy master." 

CCCLXXX. A scarabaeus said to its mother, 

"Whithersoever I go men spit upon me." Its mother 

replied, "It is because thy beauty and smell are 

pleasant." 

CCCLXXXI. When a fox was being hotly pursued 

by a dog he said to him, "Thou art not acting thus

CHOICE STORIES OF THE SPEECH OF IRRATIONAL BEASTS. 93 

"towards me because of thy strength but because of 

"my feebleness; if this be not so, go and try [to 

*'catch] a wolf." 

A house-sparrow having been caught 

CCCLXXXII. 

by a man said to him, "What wouldst thou do with 

"me?" and he replied, "I am going to kill and eat 

"thee." The sparrow said to him, "How can the little 

"flesh which is on my body satisfy thee? Only promise 

"that thou wilt let me go and I will teach thee three 

"things which will be much better for thee than eating me. 

"The first thing I will teach thee whilst I am still in 

"thine hands; the second when I am on a tree; and 

"the third when I am on a rock." The birdcatcher 

said, "Teach me [the first] now." And the bird said, 

"Take heed that 

thou dost not repent of a thing which 

"is past," whereupon the birdcatcher let the sparrow 

go free. And when the sparrow was sitting on a tree, 

he said, "Take heed that thou dost not believe in that 

"which cannot happen." And then he began to fly 

away, saying, "O fool, if thou hadst killed me thou 

"wouldst have found in my stomach two precious stones 

"which are beyond price." And the birdcatcher began 

to bite his fingers and said, "Teach me the third thing 

"before thou fliest away." Then the bird said to him, 

"Since thou hast forgotten the two things which I have 

"taught thee what will it profit thee if I teach thee the 

"third? Did I not say, 'Thou shalt not repent over 

"'that which is past,' and, 'Thou shalt not believe in 

'"that which cannot be?' whenever was a precious 

"stone seen in the stomach of a sparrow?" 

CCCLXXXIII. A certain hawk was vexing a cock 

with abuse and saying, 

"all. 

"Thou hast no love for man at 

For behold men with their own hands cause thee


"to be begotten, and they feed thee, and they prepare 

"hens to be thy wives, and they do all manner of good 

"unto thee. Yet when they leave thee by thyself a little 

"time thou takest to flight, and thou flauntest about, 

"and thou goest up upon the walls, 

and thou crowest 

"loudly, and thou wilt not return to the house wherein 

"thou hast been reared. But as for me, having taken 

"me from my native rock they starve me, and when 

"they have trained me for a short time, they turn me 

"loose and I must go off by myself, and get quarry, and 

"bring it to them, although if I wished I need not come 

"back." The cock said unto him, "Thou dost not 

"understand the matter clearly. If thou didst see as 

"many hawks spitted on short skewers roasting before 

"the fire as I see chickens, thou wouldst never come back 

"when once thou hadst 

escaped." 

CCCLXXXIV. Another fox taught its young, saying, 

"When ye see the vines loaded with grapes, and the 

"keeper asleep, and the river full of water with waves 

"thereon, and the moon shining, rejoice and be glad, 

"for your luck hath arisen, and ye may feed yourselves." 

CCCLXXXV. Another fox said, "If the fox-grapes 

"were sweet they would not be left out in the open, 

"without keepers, 

by mankind."

STORIES OF THOSE WHOSE DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS HAVE 

COME TRUE. 

CCCLXXXVI. A certain king saw in his dream that 

another king who was his enemy had thrown him upon 

the ground, 

and he went up and gathered together his 

wise men and repeated to them what he had seen. 

one of the 

And 

wise men who was more skilful than all the 

rest said to him, "The dream and the interpretation 

"thereof are as follows. Thou shalt indeed fight with 

"that king and thou shalt overcome him, for thou wert 

"upon the earth, and it was supporting thee and was 

"nigh unto thee, while he was above thee, and his back 

"was towards the sky which was very far away from thee.'' 

CCCLXXXVn. A certain king sent an ambassador 

to another king who was his enemy, and when he returned 

the king said to him, "How didst thou find 

"him?" The ambassador said, "I found him sitting on 

"a step with his feet in water." And the king said, 

"In very truth he shall 

have dominion over me, and he 

"will make spoil of my wives and daughters, for a step 

"indicateth dominion, and the feet being in the water 

"indicate commerce with women." 

unto 

CCCLXXXVIII. Another king sent a painter secretly 

another king who was his enemy to paint his portrait 

and to bring it to him. And when he had painted

96 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR/EUS. 

it and brought it to him, he took the picture and placed 

it on the cushion {or pillow) and said to the philosophers 

who were able to read characters in faces, "What 

"say ye of the man who hath such features as these?" 

And they said to him, "There is no need for us to 

"tell thee anything about his features, for inasmuch as 

"thou hast placed him on thy pillow, he will in very 

"truth reign in thy room." And thus it happened. 

CCCLXXXIX. Another king gathered together his 

troops and went forth to make war against his adversary, 

and as they were passing by a certain village 

they saw two rams fighting and their owners came 

and each took his own ram, and they went away. And 

a wise man said to the king, "Thou wilt neither con- 

"quer nor be conquered, but even as thou art, so wilt 

"thou return." And it came to pass that when they had 

marched for a few days, a certain report came to the 

king, and he went back to his own country. 

CCCXC. A certain man asked a fortune-teller about 

a relative of his who had gone to a far country, and 

of whom for a long time he had heard no news. And 

it came to pass that whilst they were in the midst of 

the narrative behold a dead man passed by, being 

carried on his way to be buried; and his hand was 

upon his breast. And the fortune-teller said, "He 

"about whom thou askest is dead," whereupon his 

disciple said to him, "He is not dead, for the dead 

"man who hath his hand on his breast indicateth that 

"it is the dead man himself who is dead and not any one 

"else." And after some time he that had gone away 

returned. 

CCCXCI. They say that in a certain village a troop 

of devils appeared in the form of men, and they said

STORIES OF DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS. 97 

to the villagers, "Behold, a camel hath strayed away 

"from us: give us a man that he may search for 

"him." And when they brought out a man to them to 

look for the camel, he saw ravens flying about, and he 

made his escape, and went into the village and said, 

"In very truth, these are devils and not men; further- 

"more they have lost no camel." And it came to pass 

at these words that these men vanished, and they never 

appeared again. 

CCCXCII. A certain ruler had a diviner whose words 

he wished to prove false. And it came to pass on a 

certain day that the sheep which he possessed strayed 

into the wilderness; and he told his diviner to make 

divination concerning them; and he also commanded his 

servant, saying, "Whilst I am speaking with the diviner, 

"do thou emit a croak like that of a raven on the roof" 

Now when the diviner heard the croak he said, "In 

very truth highway robbers have stolen the sheep." 

Thereupon the governor laughed and said, "Thou 

"hast made a mistake, for it was not a raven which 

"croaked, but my servant." The diviner answered, 

"Now therefore, if it was thy servant who croaked and 

"not a raven, in very truth the shepherd is slain and 

"the flocks are carried off." And when they went to 

enquire they found that the matter was thus. 

CCCXCIII. A certain king said unto a man who used 

divination on the Sabbath day, "Look [and tell me] 

"if my kingdom shall endure for my son after me, or 

"not;" and he took him by his hand and squeezed it. 

And the diviner made answer to him, saying, "Thy son 

"will demand overmuch from the people, and his king- 

"dom shall come to an end, for the pressure of my hand 

"by thee indicateth the oppressive demand for money

— 


"from the people [by thy son], and, moreover, the Sab- 

"bath day whereon thou hast asked the question is 

a day 

"of cessation from labour according to the old Law." 

CCCXCIV. A certain Arab related that once when 

he was mounted on a camel and was travelling in the 

desert, he became thirsty, and he took out a waterskin 

wherefrom to drink; and as he did so a raven 

croaked in his face, and the water was scattered about 

in the dust. And being very angry he drew his sword 

and slit up the skin bottle, and behold, there fell from 

it a large viper which had made its way therein for 

the sake of the water, and which had escaped the 

notice of him that filled the skin. And it came to pass 

that when the man had travelled a little further he 

saw the raven alight in the middle of the way, and 

when he cried out to him he stood up upon a rock, 

and swooped down upon a large purse full of gold 

that 

had been dropped by some merchants. 

CCCXCV. Another magician went to 

a certain king, 

and said to him, "I saw in my dream a man who said 

"to me. Go and announce to the king that he shall live 

"another eighty years, and behold this shall be a sign 

"unto him:—Behold, he shall see in a dream as if 

"eighty rings [set with] hyacinthine stones were given 

"to him." And when the king heard these words he 

marvelled and said, "Verily I have seen even as thou 

"hast said;" and he gave him a thousand dinars^ 

CCCXCVI. Another magician who had at home 

a wife whose name was Zahrah was once travelling 

alone in the desert. And having gotten concerning her 

a suspicion of wrong he began to mutter to himself 

' /. if., about twenty-five pounds sterling.

STORIES OF DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS. 99 

just as a man hummeth a tune to himself in the night 

—several times, "Hath Zahrah any who committeth 

"adultery with her?" And when by these means his 

mind had become wholly occupied with the matter, he 

heard a voice from the desert, saying, "Yes, Nathreh 

"sleepeth with her." And it came to pass that when 

he returned to his house, his neighbours came and 

went into the house to see him. And when they had 

all departed there remained with him one who prolonged 

his converse, and when he also had gone out 

the magician said to his wife, "Who is this man and 

"what is his name?" His wife replied, "This is Nathreh 

"who of all the neighbours is most beloved by our 

"children, and he is exceedingly affectionate to them." 

Her husband said unto her, "Yea, O woman, out of 

"the desert we have received an account of this man 

"and of his 

name." 

CCCXCVII. A certain man dreamed in his dream 

that he was frying dung, and he came to an interpreter 

of dreams that he might explain it for him. And the 

interpreter said to him, "Give me a zuza, and I will 

"interpret it for thee;" and the man replied, "If I had 

"a zuza I would buy fish with it and fry them, and I 

"would not fry dung." 

CCCXCVIII. Another interpreter of dreams having 

gone from Taghrith (Tekrit)' to Babel (Babylon) it was 

said to him, "In Tekrit there are many interpreters of 

"dreams, but here we have none; why hast thou left 

"thy native place?" And he replied; "The people of 

"Tekrit will not allow even the gnats to sleep, there- 

' 

A city on the west bank of the Tigris about two days' journey 

below Mosul (Nineveh). 

N2

lOO 


"fore they do not have many dreams; consequently 

"there is no work for us." 

CCCXCIX. Another magician saw a certain dead' 

thief in a dream, and he said to him, " What hath God 

"done to thee?" He replied, "For every man whom 

"I have killed He hath slain me ten times." But when 

on another night the magician saw the same dream 

again, and asked him the same question again, the thief 

replied to him, "How often wilt thou weary me, O 

"son of a whore.'' I know that I answered thy question 

"once." 

CCCC. Another magician said, "It is absolutely ne- 

"cessary for a man to resemble his father, either in his 

"head, or in his voice, or in his gait." 

CCCCI. Another magician saw a certain comic actor, 

who had been long dead^ in a dream, and he said, 

"What hath God done to thee?" The actor replied 

to him, saying, "O fool, what dost thou imagine He 

"hath done to me? Thinkest thou that He hath a 

"daughter to whom He hath married me? He hath 

"done unto me that which He doeth unto all men 

"who die." 

CCCCII. The wife 

of a certain man saw in her dream 

as if a man was saying to her, "Wouldst thou rather 

"have ten ordinary children, or three which should be 

as ten?" And having made no answer to him she 

awoke and related the dream to her husband, who 

said unto her, "If thou seest again him that spake unto 

"thee, thou shalt say unto him, Nay, but I would rather 

"have three children who should be as ten." And it 

came to pass on the following night, when the woman 

' 

Read AviiSo.i. = 

Read AvuCM.

STORIES OF DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS. 

lOI 

was asleep, that she saw again him that had asked 

her the question, and she said that which her husband 

had instructed her to say. And after some time 

she gave birth to three sons, one after the other, and 

the three of them became captains of thousands and 

men famous in the world. 

CCCCIII. A certain man had a virgin daughter who 

was skilled in divination, and a man who had lost a 

horse went to 

her that she might divine for him [where 

he was]; and when she had divined, she looked in the 

face of the man, and blushed, and became shamefaced, 

and covered her face, and she was unable to speak to 

the man. And when her father saw her, he said to 

the man, "My daughter hath divined, and she hath 

"shewn that thou wilt find thy horse; let her then be- 

"come thy wife and take her to thy house, because 

"she is so shamefaced in thy presence." And it came 

to 

pass that when the man had gone forth and searched 

for his horse he found it, and he was hot with love 

for the young woman, and he sent for her, and married 

her. 

CCCCIV. As. two merchants were going about in a 

certain city to amuse themselves they saw a certain 

woman sitting in the market with her hair dishevelled, 

and many people were gathered together about her. 

And one of the two merchants began to laugh and to 

make a mock of the woman, whereupon she lifted up 

her head and said, "Mark, now, O thou man, who 

"laughest, and believe [what I say]; thou shalt not go 

('forth from this city until thou art dead; and this man, 

''thy friend who is with thee, shall take to wife the 

"handmaiden that thou lovest as thine own soul." And 

it came to pass that after a few days he in truth

I02 


sickened and died, and the other man took the handmaiden. 

CCCCV. A certain man came to an interpreter of 

dreams, carrying a sack on his shoulder, and he said, 

"I saw in my dream as if I were tying up with cords 

"the necks of skin-bags with great violence." And the 

interpreter of dreams said to him, "Hast thou in very 

"truth seen this dream?" And the man said, "Yea, in- 

"deed, I have seen it." Then the interpreter of dreams 

said to the people who were round about him, "This 

"is the man who stealeth children and strangleth them, 

"and strippeth their clothes from off them; and if ye 

"search his sack ye will find the cords for strangling 

"[them]." And when they had searched it, they found 

that the matter was so, and they took the man and 

they delivered him to the judge, and they crucified 

him. 

CCCCVI. Another man drew nigh to 

an interpreter 

of dreams and said, "I saw in my dream as if I had 

"upon my knees a child, and he was uttering cries." 

The interpreter of dreams saith to him, "Dost thou 

"play upon the harp.'' [for if thou dost], do not occupy 

"thyself therewith again." 

CCCCVII. Dixit alius quidam somniorum interpreti, 

"Dormienti mihi duo panes in manibus visi sunt quorum 

"de utroque sumebam." Responsum est "Tu quidem 

"cum duabus una matre natis coire soles." 

CCCCVIII. Dixit mercator quidam somniorum interpreti, 

"Dormienti mihi canis rufus commensalis epulari 

"visus est." Responsum est, "Scythicum servum habes 

"qui uxori tuae hand secus quam tu, inire solet." Quod, 

rem percontatus, verum esse intellexit. 

CCCCIX. Dixit alius quidam somniorum interpreti,

STORIES OF DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS. 

IO3 

"Dormiens favum edere ad focum visus 

sum et postea 

"mel quod e favo effluxerat." Cui responsum est, 

"Deorum igitur iram pertimesce et coire desine cum 

"ista quae te lactavit." 

CCCCX. A certain woman said to one of the wise 

men, "I saw in my dream that a black cat went 

"into my husband's belly, and that it brought forth 

"something therefrom which it ate." He said to her, 

"If thy dream be really thus, in the coming night a 

"certain black thief will break into thy husband's shop 

"and will steal therefrom a hundred and fifteen zuze"-'.' 

And when that day was passed and the night had 

come, the man's shop was broken into, and that exact 

sum of money was found to have been stolen. And 

when the man who heated the bath had captured the 

black man and beaten him, he confessed that it was 

he who had broken into the shop. And when the 

people asked the interpreter of dreams, saying, "How 

"couldst thou [find] out these things by divination.-*" 

he said, "The interpretation of cat is a thief, and the 

"blackness thereof was an indication of the colour of 

"the thief; the belly indicated a storehouse, and the 

"number of the zuze was indicated by the numerical 

"values of the letters which form the word 'cat'^" 

CCCCXI. Dixit alius quidam somniorum interpret!, 

"Dormienti mihi vestes sanguine perfundi visi sunt 

"quem cum in puteal expresseram, iterum perfun- 

"debantur." Cui responsum est, "Nefasto cum quadam 

"coitu diu fruitus es at nondum tui poenitult." 

^ /. e., about £2.17.6 of our money. 

^ 

The Syriac word is

I04 


CCCCXII. A certain man's wife saw in a dream a 

dead woman, and she asked her, saying, "My daughter, 

"what deed is most beloved by God?" And she replied, 

"He that distributeth nuts to the poor." Now 

when she repeated this to the interpreter he said to 

her, "Thou hast hidden treasure laid up under the 

"ground, go and distribute it among the poor and 

"needy; for nuts are symbolic of treasure, both by 

"the similarity of their name' and also by the simi- 

"larity of action, for when a man draweth nigh to a 

"nut it is noised abroad and cannot be hidden; even 

"so also is it with treasure." 

' Gawzd="nut" , and gazzd "treasure".

STORIES ABOUT WEALTHY AND LIBERAL AND GENEROUS MEN. 

CCCCXIII. A certain poet rebuked a certain king 

in the following words, saying, 

"I made a mistake in praising him having drunk wine from out 

of his 

cups, 

"For evil lieth in ambush in his cups, and his walls are built 

upon it." 

Now when the 

king heard these words he was neither 

grieved nor angry, but he sent to him a thousand 

dinars, and said to him, "Spend these on thy supper, 

"and come not inside our walls lest the evil which is 

"in our cups meeteth thee." 

CCCCXIV. The wife of a certain liberal and wealthy 

man said to him, "I have never seen any behaviour 

"worse than that of thy brethren, 

for in the time of thy 

"prosperity they come round about thee, but in the 

"time 

of thy poverty and misery they kept aloof from 

"thee." He replied to her, "This ariseth from the 

"nicety of their discretion, because they do not wish 

"to be a weight upon us when our hand is forced to 

"give." 

CCCCXV. A man came to a certain liberal man 

and asked alms of him, and he unwittingly set the end 

of the stick upon which he rested upon his toe, and 

leaned his weight upon it. And when the rich man

I06 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR.«US. 

had granted him his 

request and the beggar had gone, 

those who were about him said, "How couldst thou 

"bear him to put the end of his sticlc on thy toe with- 

"out thy saying a word?" He replied, "I was afraid 

"to say anything to him, lest being ashamed he would 

"not condescend to ask [anything of nje]." 

CCCCXVI. A certain king whilst riding through the 

market heard the voice of a woman calling to her son 

by the royal name, and he said, "Who is this that 

"hath the same name as the king? Give him one 

"hundred dinars" Thus it came to pass that every 

woman who bore a male child used to call it by the 

king's name, and she went and received a hundred 

dinars. 

CCCCXVII. A certain wealthy man having been 

sick for some days, no man came in to visit him. And 

he said to those who were round about him, "How is 

"it that no man cometh to me?" They said to him, 

"They are afraid because of the debts which thou hast 

"against them, and fear lest thou shouldst remember 

"them and shouldst demand the payment thereof from 

"them." When he heard these words he said to the 

criers, "Go ye forth and cry in the markets, saying, 

"I, so and so, hereby testify that no man shall be 

"held to be in debt to me, neither during my lifetime 

"nor to my children after me." Thus he made a present 

of several thousands of pieces of silver in one day 

to 

the people. 

CCCCXVIII. Another rich man having been asked 

by a poor man for a piece of silver, and not having 

one with him, wrote him an order with his own hand, 

saying that he owed him two pieces of silver until the 

end of the month, thus giving [them] to him.

STORIES ABOUT WEALTHY AND LIBERAL MEN. 

IO7 

CCCCIX. Another wealthy merchant bought a 

maiden for sixty thousand pieces of silver in the 

market, and he wanted a beast whereon she could 

ride and go with him to his house; and as at the 

moment there was ho animal ready a certain soldier 

brought his mule to her to ride upon. And when she 

was mounted he that had bought her said unto him 

that had lent her his beast to ride, "She shall be thine, 

"and she shall go with thee to thine house." And the 

soldier being bashful and hardly liking to accept her, 

her master swore that neither the maid nor the price 

thereof should come into his possession; and thus he 

made a gift [worth] sixty thousand suze in a moment'. 

CCCCXX. Another man brought a gift to a certain 

king, and having accepted it the king was sad. And 

when he was asked why he was sad, he replied, "How 

"can I help being sad, for, behold, every time that I 

"give this man the price thereof, he will only consider 

"it to be what he hath given to me. Therefore it is 

"meet for kings to give rather than that gifts should 

"be made to them." 

CCCCXXI. A certain player of music asked a king 

to give him something which he could ride, and the 

king commanded them to give him a camel, and a 

horse, and a mule, and an ass, and a maiden, saying 

to him, "If we could find anything else which could 

be ridden we would have given it to thee." 

CCCCXXII. A poet asked a certain king to give 

him [some] flour, but he did not give it to him. And 

when the report thereof reached a certain neighbouring 

/. e., £1500, if we reckon the zuzd at sixpence. 

02

Io8 


king he sent the poet a sack of flour, wherein were one 

thousand dinars, and he wrote to him, saying, "We 

"have sent thee flour to eat, together with a thousand 

"dinars which thou mayest spend in purchasing other 

"things that may be needed by thee." 

CCCCXXIII. Another man dwelt in the neighbourhood 

of a certain rich man, and he wished to sell his 

house. And when some one came to buy it the owner 

of the house said, "And how much wilt thou give 

"extra for the wealthy man who liveth in the neighbourhood?" 

The would-be buyer said to him, "How canst 

"thou imagine that thou oughtest to receive extra money 

"because of the wealthy man in the neighbourhood?" 

The owner of the house said, "Wilt thou not purchase 

"from me [this] neighbourship ? Now everything which 

"thou lackest he would have supplied thee with, and 

"whenever thou wert overburdened he would have 

"set thee free. Go, thou art not worthy to buy my 

"house." And it came to pass that when the rich man 

heard [these things], he sent to the owner of the house 

one thousand dinars, saying, "Spend whatsoever thou 

"needest to spend, but do not sell thy house." 

CCCCXXIV. Another rich man said unto a certain 

needy man who had asked a gift from him, "Go and 

"ask so and so, for he hath never looked upon the 

"back of the man who went without a gift from him." 

CCCCXXV. A certain king, wishing to go forth on 

a journey of pleasure, said to one of those who desired 

to go forth with him, "See what money I have in the 

"treasury, and let the governors thereof allow thee to 

"take some, and thou shalt come forth with us." And 

the man went and took nine hundred thousand pieces 

of silver and came back and kissed the king's hand,

STORIES ABOUT WEALTHY AND LIBERAL MEN. 

IO9 

saying, "I have taken nine hundred thousand pieces 

"of silver;" 

and he began to return thanks [to the king]. 

And when he had gone out, the king said to those 

who were about him, "What have I said to him.^ [I 

"told him] to take the money and to come forth with 

"us that he might spend it upon what we needed, but 

"he thought that I had given it as a gift to him. As, 

"however, he has thought thus, even as he hath be- 

"lieved so shall it be to him." So he allowed him to 

have all this sum [of money]. 

CCCCXXVI. Another rich man being asked, "What 

"is the height of liberality?" said, "For a man to grant 

"the request of the poor man in the time of his need." 

CCCCXXVII. A poet having gone to the house of 

a certain governor and sung a song in his praise, the 

And it 

governor made him a present of much money. 

came to pass that when he wished to depart the governor's 

servants did not attend him to set him on his 

way, neither did they pay attention unto him [when 

he called]. And when he began to reprove them for 

behaving thus, the servants said unto him, "We do not 

"consider that we are obliged to wait upon him that 

"is about to leave us, but only upon him that arriveth, 

"and we rejoice more in him that cometh than in him 

"that goeth away, because we are accustomed to receive 

"travellers only." Then the poet, wondering at their 

intelligence, said, "Ye are much more worthy of praise 

"than 

your master." 

CCCCXXVIII. A certain lawyer related [the following 

story]. 

" There were three of us students together, 

"and each of us invested ten [talents] of silver. With 

"their money my companions bought houses, 

and vine- 

"yards, and gardens, but I spent mine on my own wants

I lO 


"and in making sundry and divers gifts to the king's 

"servants. And after a little time it was discovered 

"that a robbery had been committed, and the king 

"commanded them to confiscate everything which we 

"possessed, and to shut us all up in prison. Where- 

"upon the king's servants having made entreaty and 

"supplication on my behalf, they brought me out again, 

"but behold, my former companions are still languishing 

"in restraint, and they are begging for alms."

STORIES OF MISERS. 

CCCCXXIX. A poet said unto a certain avaricious 

man, "Why dost thou never bid me to a feast with 

"thee?" He replied to him, "Because thou eatest very 

"heartily indeed, besides thou swallowest so hurriedly; 

"and whilst thou art still eating one morsel thou art 

"getting ready for the next." The poet said to him, 

"What wouldst thou have then? Wouldst thou have 

"me whilst I am eating one morsel to stand up and bow 

"the knee^ and then take another?" 

CCCCXXX. While a certain miserly man was eating 

bread with his wife a man came to visit them, and 

they said unto him, "Command [us]." And he said 

unto them, "I am quite undone," that is to say, "I am 

"exhausted." And when the miser heard these words 

he said to his wife, "Doth he mean to say 'I have 

"had my meal^,' that is to say, 'I have eaten,' but doth 

"not know [how to speak] after the manner of books? 

"Let us not press him, then, lest he lay in food upon 

"food, and he suffer pain and blame us for urging 

"him [to 

eat]." 

CCCCXXXI. Whilst a certain 

miser was eating figs 

a man came to visit him, and immediately he saw him 

^ 

The pun is^ of course, on the words >lo>x.r

— 


he hid the figs in the skirts of his garments. Then 

. 

he drew his head inside the body of his garment and 

cried out to the man from within, saying, "I am fumi- 

"gating myself from below because I have taken cold; 

"therefore stay outside for a little until I can stand up, 

"and blame [me] not." 

CCCCXXXII. Another man relates the following: 

"I was sitting at the table of a certain miser when he 

"took a bread-cake in his hand, and said, 'People com- 

"plain that my bread-cakes are small; now what son 

"of a whore is able to eat the whole of one of these 

"bread-cakes?"' 

CCCCXXXIII. Another miser used to say, "If we 

"were to gratify the lust of the poor by granting their 

"requests, we should be worse than they." 

CCCCXXXIV. The noblemen of a certain miserly 

king said unto him, "If thou wishest, be pleased to make 

"a certain sign to us, so that when we see it we may 

"depart from thy presence that thou mayest have rest. 

"Thy father had a sign which consisted in his saying, 

"'Whenever ye please,' and as soon as the nobles heard 

"these words they departed, and thine ancestor straight- 

"way threw the sceptre out of his hand. But now what 

"sign wilt thou give us?" He said to them, "My sign 

"is this:—When I ask the cooks, saying, 'What have 

"ye prepared?' let no man prolong his sitting in my 

"presence." 

CCCCXXXV. When the friend of a certain miser 

went to visit him he brought him some dates, and 

they began to eat; and every time that the master of 

the house ate one the friend ate one also. And when 

the master of the house saw that the dates were coming 

to an end, he said to his friend, "O thou man of

STORIES OF MISKRS. 1 I 

3 

"understanding, if every time I eat a date thou doest 

"likewise, where is the reward of my labours? Or per- 

"haps thou dost imagine that I gained these without 

"any exertion?" 

CCCCXXXVI. When a number of folk were sitting 

at table with another miser and he wished to keep 

them from eating, he said to them, "This is not the 

"kind of food for a man to eat if he wisheth to make 

"a supper." 

CCCCXXXVII. Avarus alius quidam aegrotans oleum, 

medicis jubentibus, hausit: ubi alvum autem pergasset, 

servis, "Ite," clamat, "oleum e stercore meo colligite quo 

"ad lucernas incendendo uti possimus." 

CCCCXXXVIII. When a certain miser was dying 

he commanded his son, saying, "In thy dealings with 

"men be thou like unto those who play chess, and 

"who are most careful to keep what is their own, and 

"to take what belongs to others both by skill and 

"craft." 

CCCCXXXIX. When a certain miser heard that 

there lived in the city another miser who was more 

crafty in miserly acts than himself he went to see him. 

And when he had gone into his house and had saluted 

him, the master thereof rose up and went to the market 

to buy oil to bring in to his guest to eat with the 

bread; and having drawn nigh to one of the shopmen, 

the shopman said to him, "I have some oil which is 

"as clear as water." Then the miser said, "I have 

"whole skins full of water in the house," and he quickly 

returned thereto. And he filled a dish with water and 

setting it before his guest said unto him, "I went out 

"to buy some oil to bring thee, and I saw that wish- 

"ing to praise the oil they compared it unto water.

i4 


"Now unless water had been better than oil, 

they would 

"not have compared it therewith." And when the 

traveller heard these words he said, "Verily there hath 

"never been in our time a more clever miser than 

"thou." 

CCCCXL. A certain miser used to rise up during 

the night whilst his children were asleep, and if he 

saw any of them lying upon his right side he turned 

him over upon his left, saying, "[I do this] that the 

"food in them may not be too quickly digested, so 

"that they may not wake up in the early hours of the 

"morning and ask for something to eat before anything 

"is ready for them." 

CCCCXLI. A certain miser observed that his son 

on the window 

was wont to take bread and to place it 

near which he went out, after which he ate it; and he 

asked him why he did so. His son said to him, "I 

"can inhale the smell of the baking which cometh out 

"from the windows, therefore I set the bread there that 

"the steam of the smoking meat may pass through it; 

"and then I eat it." Then his father smote him and 

said to him, "O son that murmurest, henceforward 

"thou shalt be in the habit of eating bread only." 

CCCCXLII. A certain miserly woman was wrangling 

with a man who was selling flour to her, and she said, 

"I have taken from thee a riila'' of flour, and only 

"ninety bread-cakes can be made therefrom." The 

man said to her, "O woman, whose womanly character 

"hath fled, if thou art wont to make every bread-cake 

"of the size of a mill-stone, wherein have I offended?" 

CCCCXLIII. Another man saw the daughter of a 

^ The Arabic JJ^^, a weight of about a pound.

STORIES OF MISERS. I 1 

5 

certain man saying to a shopman, "My mother saith 

"to thee, 'Take back this loaf and give me a smaller 

"one, but give me some carrots besides.'" 

CCCCXLIV. A certain butcher once, when he had 

no work in the city, went out to one of the villages, 

and bought a sheep* and killed it; and he skinned it 

as if he were about to sell it. And having waited from 

morning until evening and nothing had been bought, 

a certain old woman came to him with a basket of 

bran and said unto him, "Give me some flesh for this 

"bran, only let it be from a fatty part." Then the 

butcher being enraged said, "May the village perish in 

"which flesh can be bought for bran." The old woman 

said to him, "Woe is me, for thou art a man of the 

"city with heavy teeth; wilt thou only sell flesh for 

"date-stones.'*" And it came to pass that when the 

butcher heard that people could buy meat there with 

date-stones, he took his dead beast and went back to 

the 

city. 

CCCCXLV. Another man in going through a certain 

city wanted some fine wheat flour, and when he asked 

where it could be bought they said to him, "Here 

"thou wilt only find fine wheat flour at the scent mer- 

"chants', who sell it for [laying upon] sores." 

CCCCXLVI. Another miser said to a dealer, "Give 

"me a piece of cheese for a halfpenny," and the dealer 

said to him, "For a halfpenny all that thou wilt get 

"of the cheese is a sniff of it." 

CCCCXLVII. When a traveller visited a certain 

miser he said to his handmaiden, "Make ready the 

"sweetmeats that our guest may eat." And she said 

to him, "We have no honey," and he said to her, 

"Prepare the silk covered couch for him to recline

6 

1 1 


"upon, and sit thou beside him, and chafe and rub 

"his 

feet." 

CCCCXLVIII. Another miser whilst quarrelling violently 

with his neighbour was asked by a certain man, 

"Why art thou fighting with him?" He replied to 

him, "I had eaten a roasted heSd, and I threw the 

"bones outside my door, so that my friends might re- 

"joice and mine enemies be sorry when they saw in 

"what a luxurious manner I was living; and this fellow 

"rose up and took the bones and threw them before 

"his own door." 

CCCCXLIX. Whilst the wife and son of another 

miser were eating with him at table he said, "Laziness 

"is accursed at the table." His son said to him, "Dost 

"thou now speak concerning me, O my father?" And 

his father said to him, "Wouldst thou then have thy 

"mother to understand that she was to go out and la- 

"bour, and then eat?" 

CCCCL. Three misers hired a house and dwelt 

therein together, and they bought the oil for the lamp 

from a common fund; and they bound up in a napkin 

the eyes of him that had nothing to contribute to the 

price of the oil, until they went to sleep and had hung 

up the 

lamp. 

CCCCLI. A certain 

author composed a tract wherein 

he praised miserly conduct, and he brought it unto a 

king who was a miser. And it came to pass that when 

the king had read it, 

he sent to the author, and said unto 

him, "We do not wish to give thee any money so that 

"it may not be we who shall destroy thy good and 

"excellent counsels;" thus was the author put to shame 

by that which he himself had written. 

C.CCCL1I. 

Another miser having taken a hireling said


I I 

J 

unto him, "On what terms wilt thou work for me?" 

and the hireling said, "For the food of my mouth." 

The miser said to him, "Nay; thou must come down 

"very, very much lower than this [in terms]." And 

the hireling said to him, "I do not know any way of 

"reducing them lower than this except by fasting 

"the whole of Wednesday, and the whole of Friday 

"until the next day." 

CCCCLIII. Another poet was questioned by a man 

concerning a certain miser, saying, "Who eateth with 

"him at his table?" and the poet replied, "Flies." 

CCCCLIV. Another miser said, "That no man may 

"ever say to the angels, Give me some money," or, 

"Give me something to eat," or, "Give me something 

to put on," is an abundant gratification for them." 

CCCCLV. Unto another miser it was said, "How 

"beautiful the hands look on the table!" and he said, 

"Only when they are empty." 

CCCCLVI. Whilst a certain poor man was sitting 

by the side of a very rich but mean man, the rich 

man asked him, "How many persons are there in thy 

house?" The poor man said to him, "Three daughters 

"and our handmaidens." And when the rich man heard 

this he wagged his head and bent it down before him, 

and the poor man thought that he was going to have 

pity upon him and to give him something. 

But straightway 

the rich man lifted up his head and said to him, 

"I was calculating how much four people could weave; 

"the man who hath four spinning-wheels at work in 

"his house is not a poor man." 

CCCCLVII. Another nobleman who was very miserly, 

while going on a journey to the king, passed through 

a certain village, and he stayed the night at the house

I I 8 


of a certain widow; and [on his departure] he said to 

her, "This time, if the king giveth me a thousand 

"dinars, I will give thee one dinar!' And having 

gone to the king he gave him five hundred dinars, 

and on his return the nobleman saw the woman and 

gave her half a dinar, saying, "Even this half a dinar 

"ought not to come to thee by right, for I did not 

"say to thee, 'If he giveth me five hundred,' and the 

"promise was made in respect of the thousand dinars 

"only." 

CCCCLVIII. When a certain man went to the house 

of a miser he gave him old wine to drink on an empty 

stomach; and when he had taken the cup he said 

"Ugh!" And they said unto him, "What is it? Why 

"dost thou not speak?" He replied, "If I were to 

"speak the master of the house would die when he 

"heard of it, for I want something to eat; and if I am 

"silent I shall die by reason of the strength of this 

"wine." 

CCCCLIX. A certain miser was in the habit of not 

eating except at midnight, and when he was asked 

why he behaved thus, he replied, "At this time the 

"flies have all settled to rest, and a man may re- 

"main undisturbed by him that knocketh at the door 

"[begging]." 

CCCCLX. A certain philosopher said unto a miser, 

"Thou imaginest that thou art a miser and a skin- 

"flint, but behold, thou art the most liberal of men. 

"For after a short time thou wilt distribute thy wealth 

"among thy heirs who have pleased thee, and also 

"among those who have not pleased thee." 

CCCCLXI. A certain miser fell sick, and the day of 

the crisis of the disease came and he did not sweat.

STORIES OF MISERS. 119 

And straightway his servants said to the physician, 

"Why is this?" The physician said to them, "Go ye 

"and eat of the bread of which he himself is wont to 

"eat, and when he sees you [eating], the sweat will 

"soon break out upon him." 

CCCCLXII. Another miser having found a zuza {i. e., 

sixpence) in the market, took [it] and threw it into his 

purse, saying, "It may now be hoped, O susd, that 

"thou wilt henceforth have some rest, and that soldiers 

"will not fight and slay each other in war, and that 

"merchants will not act like highwaymen in the roads, 

"and that the daughters of noblemen will not fall into 

"wantonness on thy account." 

CCCCLXIII. It is said that certain miserly merchants 

joined together and set up a common cooking-pot, and 

each of them passed a different coloured thread through 

the piece of meat which belonged to him. And when 

it was cooked each took hold of the thread and brought 

out his meat, but they divided the broth among them 

equally. 

CCCCLXIV. Once when a susa fell into the hands 

of a certain miser he kissed it and hugged it lovingly 

and said, "Thou art my father, and my mother, and 

"my brother, and my friend. Through what a number 

"of cities hast thou circulated! What a number of 

"seas hast thou passed through! How very many rich men 

"hast thou brought to poverty! How very many needy 

"ones hast thou enriched! How very many virgins 

"hast thou corrupted and brought to misery! And 

"how very many daughters of noblemen" (.'') hast thou 

"called to wantonness!" And as he threw the coin 

' The exact meaning of r^.ioii3r

— 

I 20 


into his purse he said, "Go into the place wherefrom 

"thou shalt never again emerge to be troubled." 

CCCCLXV. Another miser said to his servant, "Bring 

"hither the table and shut the door," and the servant 

said, "This is not right. I will first of all shut the 

"door and then I will bring the table, lest, perad- 

"venture, while I am putting the table in its place some 

"one will enter before I can shut the door." His master 

said unto him, " Henceforward, by reason of thine under- 

"standing, thou shalt be a free man and not a slave, 

"for thou behavest like a nobleman." 

CCCCLXVI. Another man relates the following: 

"Once when I was eating a spoonful of food out of a 

"dish with a certain miserly merchant, I saw that the 

"bread which was spread out on his side of the dish 

"was made of fine flour, whilst that which was on my 

"side was made of coarse meal." 

CCCCLXVII. Another man relates the following: 

"Once when I was eating in the company of a rich 

"but miserly man, a cat came up, and I wanted to 

"take a little piece of bread to throw to her; and he 

"said to me, 'Put it down, for this doth not belong to 

"us but to the neighbours.'" 

CCCCLXVIII. Another miser had a very beautiful 

wife, but because he did not provide her with all that 

she wanted, they were continually falling out. And 

it came to pass on a certain day, the man being angry 

with her, that he obtained a separation from her legally, 

and he gave her her dowry and expelled her from his 

house. Now the rumour of her and of her beauty 

spread abroad and reached the king, 

and he lusted for 

her, and sent to her to take her to wife. But the 

woman said that she would not consent to his wish


1 2 I 

until after he had commanded that she should sit on 

a chariot, and that her former husband should draw 

her along in it; and the king commanded that it should 

be thus. And as they were travelling along the road, 

she took out a dinar and threw it on the ground, 

and said to him that had formerly been her husband 

and was now drawing her chariot, "Hand me up the 

"zuza which I have dropped;" and when he looked 

on the ground he found the dinar. And he said to 

her, "This is not a ziiza, but a dinar'.' She said to 

him, "Blessed be the Lord who hath prepared a dinar 

"for me to find, seeing that I have lost a zuza'.' By 

the zuza she referred to the man whom she had lost, 

and by the dinar to the king' whom she had found.

STORIES OF MEN WHO FOLLOWED DESPISED HANDICRAFTS. 

CCCCLXIX. A certain man came to a barber and 

said to him, "Shave my head for me and take heed 

"that thou handle the razor skilfully. Be careful of my 

"ears and do not gash me, and do not leave a hair any- 

"where." The barber said to him, "Rest assured that 

"I will shave thy head as thou commandest me, and I 

"will do so in such a way that everyone who seeth it 

"shall wish to stroke it with his hand." 

CCCCLXX. A certain weaver came to 

a judge and 

asked him, saying, "If a judicial case required men 

"(i. e., witnesses) and people asked me to come to bear 

"witness before thee on a certain matter, wouldst thou 

"receive my testimony?" The judge replied to him, 

"Yes, if it were accompanied by that of three other 

"trustworthy witnesses." And the weaver said to him, 

"Well and good, I will tell these three witnesses that 

"they may be ready beforehand, and then, [when] they 

"let me know, I will come." 

CCCCLXXI. Another weaver wished to prophesy, 

and when certain folk said to him, "No one ever saw 

"a prophet who was a weaver," he replied, "Shepherds, 

"in spite of their exceedingly great simplicity, have been 

"employed as prophets, but weavers have never been 

"so 

employed."

STORIES OF MEN WHO FOLLOWED DESPISED HANDICRAFTS. I 2 3 

CCCCLXXII. Another weaver was asked by a certain 

man, "If thou wert king what wouldst thou desire?" 

He repHed, "Honey and pounded sesame seeds." 

CCCCLXXIII. Luck came to a certain weaver and 

he became a governor. And one day his music player 

said to him, "O master, give me a fine cloak wherein 

"I may dress myself at the feast." He replied to him, 

"Bring me the stuff for weaving it, and in the three 

"days which are yet to pass before the feast day I will 

"make for thee a cloak." 

CCCCLXXIV. Another man said, "The intelligence 

"of seventy women is like unto that of one man, and 

"the mind of seventy weavers is as that of one woman." 

CCCCLXXV. Another man said, "They were weavers 

"who stole Joseph's cup, and the rod of Moses, and the 

"fleece of Gideon, and the sling of David, and the 

"swaddling bands of John, and the sandals of the 

"Apostles; and when Mary asked them to shew her 

"the way to the Sepulchre, they sent her by a wrong 

"road. For this reason she prayed and entreated her 

"Lord, saying, 'Wherever weavers live let them toil 

"'with their hands and feet for others, and let no 

ever come upon them.'" 

CCCCLXXVI. Another man went to 

'"blessing 

a tooth-drawer 

to extract for him a tooth which was diseased, and the 

man said, 

tooth-drawer asked him for a susa; and the 

"I will not give a whole zuza,, but only a half." Then 

the handicraftsman said to him," Less than a zuza 

I will not take, but if thou wishest it, and on account 

"of thine honourable position, I will pull out another 

"tooth also, and I will not charge thee any more than 

"the zusa." 

CCCCLX,XVII. Another man had a diseased tooth 

Q2


which made his mouth to smell badly, and when he 

went to the tooth-drawer and had opened his mouth 

and exhaled the foul smell, the handicraftsman said to 

him, 

"This matter doth not belong to my handicraft buf 

"to the trade of those who cleanse the sewers." 

CCCCLXXVIII. A certain woman took a kettle with 

a hole in it to the blacksmith, and she said to him, 

"Mend it for me." And having taken it he smeared a 

little clay over and into the hole and blackened it with 

soot and gave it back to her. And when the woman 

had taken the kettle [home], and had filled it with water 

[and set it on the fire], the clay melted away as the 

water began to boil. Then straightway she took the 

kettle and went back to the blacksmith and said to 

him, "What hast thou done? Behold, the kettle is just 

"as it was [when I first brought it], and the hole is 

"unstopped." The blacksmith said to her, "Perhaps thou 

"hast put some water in it? I thought that thou wishedst 

"to put bran or herbs into it, bat since it is water that 

'thou wouldst put in it get thee to some other crafts- 

"man who is more skilled than I am, and let him mend it." 

saw 

CCCCLXXIX. Another man who was a sailor, 

a man riding a horse, and noticed that he worked his 

legs as he did so; and he said, "Glory be to Thee, 

"O God, the legs of this man are his rudders!" 

CCCCLXXX. Another man was gathering up dung 

[for fuel] and he said, "How beautiful is that which 

"David' saith, 

Man in his honour hath no understanding, 

"but resembleth the beast and is like thereunto." And 

when a certain rich man heard him he said unto him, 

"What now, is this honour of thine whereby thou hast 

' 

Psalm xlix. 20.


"understanding, which causeth thee to be dissimilar and 

"unlike the beast? For, behold, thou art occupied with 

"the dung of beasts all the days of thy life." The man 

said to him, "My honourable estate is that I eat of the 

"labour of my hands, and that I ask no alms from such 

"as 

thou." 

CCCCLXXXI. A certain shopkeeper lit a lamp in 

the day time and set it before him, and when it was 

said to him, "Why doest thou this?" he replied, "Behold 

"all the shopkeepers around me are buying and selling, 

"but no man cometh nigh unto me. And I thought that 

"perhaps folk did not see me, and therefore I have 

"made a blaze before me that they may do so." 

CCCCLXXXII. Another man wishing to sell rue cried 

out, saying, "Take ye of this honey; take ye of this 

"sweetmeat." And a certain man drew nigh to him 

and said, "I have a sick person at home, and I wish 

"to buy some bitter rue, for this is what he longeth 

"for; hast thou none.''" The seller said to him, "Take 

"some of this which is before me, and do not believe 

"my words, for every bit that I have is more bitter 

"than the vinegar in my shop." 

CCCCLXXXIII. A certain cook' cried out about the 

roasted meat which he had before him, saying, "Perad- 

"venture ye would wish me to prolong my praises of 

"the meat which is before you? Whosoever eateth of 

"my meat once will not [need] to buy oil for seven 

"days by reason of the grease which will run from him." 

CCCCLXXXIV. Another man went to a certain man 

in the market and asked him to lend him some money, 

and he said to him, "At thy command will I withhold 

rCl4'=i^^=f


"nothing from thee," And he commanded his servant 

to bring him a bag of zuze, and a pair of scales, and a 

mirror, and he weighed out to him the amount which 

he required. And when he had taken the money the 

man of the market put the mirror into his hands, and 

said unto him, "Look, now, at thy face in the mirror 

"and see how joyful it is on the day whereon thou 

"borrowest money and receivest it. Take care, now, that 

"thy countenance be thus gladsome, and not gloomy 

"on the day whereon thou must pay it back." 

CCCCLXXXV. A certain merchant having bought 

a crate full of glass vessels wanted some one to carry 

it to his home with him, and when a certain youth 

came to carry it, he said to him, "Take it, and ask no 

"hire of me, and I will teach thee three counsels whereby 

"thou shalt live nobly." And when the youth hath 

shouldered the crate and had gone one third of the 

way he said to the merchant, "Teach me, now, one of 

"the three counsels." And the merchant said to him, 

"This is one of them:—If any man say unto thee, 'Hunger 

'"is better than satiety,' believe him never a whit." And 

when the youth had gone one half of the way, he said 

to him, "Tell me, now, the second counsel." And the 

merchant said to him, "If any man say unto thee, 'It is 

"'better to walk than to ride,' believe him never a whit." 

And when the youth had come to the house he said, 

"Teach me, now, the third counsel." And the merchant 

said unto him, "If any man shall tell thee that he hath 

"found any man who will 

carry a load for hire less than 

"thine, believe him never a whit." Then the youth cast 

the crate upon the ground and the glass vessels which 

were in it were broken to pieces and crushed into 

dust, and he said to the merchant, "If any man saith


"unto 

thee that a single glass vessel remaineth unbroken 

"among these, believe him never a whit." 

CCCCLXXXVI. A certain tax-gatherer having fled 

and hidden himself from the king found that his blood 

had become heated and excited in him, and he said 

unto him in whose house he was hidden, "Go to such 

"and such a bloodletter and mention my name in his 

"presence; if he abuseth me say nothing further to him, 

"but if he speaketh well of me bid him come to me." 

Ajid the man went and did thus, 

and he took the bloodletter 

and brought him to him; and when he had gone 

in he saluted the tax-gatherer with respect and behaved 

graciously to him. And the tax-gatherer said to him, 

"Cup me on the back of my neck," 

and when he had 

cupped him and had let blood and wished to depart, 

the tax-gatherer took out a dinar and gave it to him; 

and the surgeon took the money and went and told 

his son. Then the son rose up and went and knocked 

at the door and entered the chamber of the tax-gatherer 

and said to him, "I hear that thou hast been cupped 

"on the back of the neck, but thou didst not require 

"this, for it should have been done on thine arm." Then 

he cupped him on the arm and let out some more blood, 

and as he was going out the tax-gatherer gave him a 

dinar also ; and he went and told his son-in-law. And 

this man came also and knocked at the door, and he 

entered the chamber of the tax-gatherer and said to 

him, "Thou didst not require cupping except on thy 

"legs." Then the tax-gatherer being afraid that [if he 

refused to allow it] the man would be angry and go 

forth and betray his hiding-place, said, "Do as thou 

advisest;" and when he had let out some blood and 

wished to go the tax-gatherer gave him a dinar and

I 2 8 


bade him tell no man about the house where he was. 

And it came to pass that, when the tax-gatherer had 

meditated a short time, he rose up and went to the 

king, and told him his story, saying, "These cursed vil- 

"lains wanted to let out and suck all my blood by their 

"cuppings; draw thy sword now, and slay me, and I 

"shall escape from [my] trouble." And when the king 

heard this, he laughed and forgave him all the money 

which he owed him.


CCCCLXXXVII. To a certain comedian it was said, 

"When a cock riseth up in the early morning hours, 

"why doth he hold one foot in the air?" He replied, "If 

"he should lift 

up both feet together he would fall down." 

CCCCLXXXVIII. Another comedian said, "If it be 

"only those that are weary and heavy-laden who are 

"to enter Paradise, as our Lord said', there is nothing 

"that who will go in before the harp, for in this world 

"he endureth much trial and tribulation. His throat is 

"squeezed, his ear is twisted, his belly is smitten, and 

"when he is old he is thrown into the fire." 

CCCCLXXXIX. Another actor said, "When I was 

"young and was learning the actor's art, my master 

"used to say to me, 'Take heed and learn well how 

"'thou mayest become used to do the exact opposite 

'"of the words which are spoken to thee, that is to 

'"say, if people say unto thee, Go, thou must come, 

'"and when they say unto thee. Come, thou must go.' 

"And in the morning he himself used to say, 'Good 

"evening,' and in the evening, 'Good morning.' And 

"it came to pass one day that having been into the 

"king's presence and made him laugh, the king com- 

"manded them to write him an order on the Treasury 

' St. Matthew xi. 28.

I 30 


"to give him a thousand pieces of silver. Now when 

"he had taken the paper he came out to me and gave 

"it to me, saying, 'Collect [the money] for me.' And 

"I went straightway and soaked the paper in water, 

"and when I had brought it to him it was torn into 

"shreds; and the guards would not let him go into the 

"king's presence again in order that he might give 

"him another order. Then, being greatly wroth, he said 

"to me, 'Go then utterly to perdition, for thou hast no 

'"longer 

any need of me.'" 

CCCCXC. Another actor used to say, "With one 

"small experiment I can vanquish the believer who saith 

"that everything, both of good and of evil, 

cometh from 

"God, and that man hath no power to do anything of 

"himself" And when it was said to him, "How is this?" 

he said, "I will lift up my hand over a man's neck, 

"and I will ask him, 'Am I able to smite thy neck, or 

"not? If he saith, 'Yes,' behold he hath repudiated what 

"he confesseth; and if he saith 'No,' I will smite him 

"and shew him that I have the power to do so." 

CCCCXCI. Unto another actor who was lame it was 

said, "What is the cause [of thy lameness]?" He replied, 

"I wish to go forth into the country to-morrow, but I 

"shall not get far if a thorn run into my foot." 

CCCCXCII. Another actor said, "I and my brother 

"were twins, and we both came forth from the womb 

"at one time. He hath become a merchant whilst I am 

"a wandering beggar. How then can the opinions of 

"the astronomers be held to be true ? This proof alone 

"is quite sufficient to shew their falsehood." 

CCCCXCIII. Another actor was eating his supper 

with his friend, whose wife waited upon them, when 

straightway there fell in front of them a pebble from


I 3 I 

the roof, and then another and another. And looking 

up he said to his handmaiden, "Go up to the roof and 

"see if the sun hath set;" and having gone up and 

tarried for a season, she came down and said, "Yes." 

His friend then said to him, "Didst thou not know that 

"the sun had set and that darkness reigned?" And he 

answered, saying, "Yes, how could I help knowing it? 

"But unless I had made the girl go up with some such 

"excuse as this to those who wanted her, they would 

"never have ceased calling her and making signs to 

"her to go up. 

Dost thou understand?" He said to him, 

"Yes, I understand." 

CCCCXCIV. Whilst another comic actor was in the 

comipany of a judge, a certain woman came in with 

her face covered, and her eyes, which were very beautiful, 

alone were visible; and she began to weep and 

to make railing accusations against her adversary. And 

the actor said to the judge, "Believe [me], this woman 

"is an evil-speaking person, but her eyes proclaim her 

"to be suffering oppression." And having spoken further 

and at great length she uncovered her face, and behold 

she 

had on her face a most hideous nose [as flat] 

as a sixpence; and when he had eyed her closely the 

actor said to the judge, "Nay, my lord, although her 

"eyes shew that she is an injured woman, yet her nose 

"testifieth that she is a liar and an abominable person, 

"and she is not worthy that any man should shew pity 

"upon her." 

CCCCXCV. Another actor whilst eating with his 

children at table [observed] that they seized their meat 

before he could do so, and ate it, and he said to 

them, "Take heed, now, for the Law commandeth [you, 

"saying], 'Honour thy father and thy mother,' now, as


"far as I am concerned, ye may curse me a thousand 

"times; but do not then take a morsel of meat before 

"I have done so." 

CCCCXCVI. Another actor was asked, "What do 

"comic actors resemble?" He replied, "A man whose 

"left hand is filled with filth, and [who hath] his right 

"hand [stretched out for]' alms, and [who saith] 'yes,' 

and 

"'no?' If ye do not^ say to him 'Take,' he causeth 

"pollution^." 

CCCCXCVII. Another actor having taken money 

on loan from a certain man denied [that he had done 

so], and having been brought before a judge, the 

judge said to the owner of the money, "Hast thou 

"any witnesses?" And the lender said, "No." The judge 

said to the actor, "Swear now to me that thou hast 

"not received the money," and the actor replied, "If 

"thou wilt allow it, prithee let my brother swear for 

"me, for I know certainly that he hath not taken any- 

"thing." 

CCCCXCVIII. Unto another actor it was said, "Dost 

"thou wish that a dinar might be given to thee now?" 

And he said, "Yes, only stop them from giving me 

"twenty stripes with sticks." The people said to him, 

"Why?" He said to them, "Because I know that the 

"children of men of this age never give for nothing." 

CCCCXCIX. Another actor was going about in Sebastia 

{%. e., Siwas) in the winter season dressed in a new flaxen 

garment, and a certain man said to him, "Give me 

"this tunic of thine and thou wilt still have thy cloak, 

"and thy Christ commanded thee to 

give both thy tunic 

^ 

Supply some word like jjl*4\S3 or .\iT°>. ' 

Read rdX ^r^d. 

J /. e., "If you will not give me something I will throw dirt at you.''

LAUGHABLE STORIES OF ACTORS AND COMEDIANS. I 

33 

"and thy cloak to whosoever asked thee for them'." 

And he replied, "Let the mind of Christ be far from 

"me on this matter ! For this commandment was [not] 

"given by Him to the people of Sebastia in the winter 

"season, although it may have been given to the people 

"of Palestine in the summer season." 

D. Another actor was quarrelling with a shopkeeper 

called Zakron, who said to him, "Art thou not ashamed 

"of me? Thy mother was like a sister to me at the 

"time when thou wert a child among us." And being 

much offended the actor went to his mother and said 

to her, "My mother, knowest thou Zakron the shop- 

"keeper?" And she said "Dost thou mean Zakron the 

son of Isaac?" And the actor said, "Now I believe that 

"the man did not lie in what he said. I did imagine 

"that thou couldst never have known him, but behold, 

"thou hast known his father also." 

DI. Mimus alius interrogatus, "Quis tibi foramen 

"istud perfossit quod in ano geris?" 

respondit, "Idem qui 

"matri tuae duo foramina, alterum in parte anteriore, 

"alterum 

a tergo." 

DII. Another actor went into his house and found 

a man with his wife and the door wide open; and he 

said to the man, "What a senseless dolt thou art to 

"imagine that this woman doth not know the difference 

"between good and evil; 

art thou in reality thus wanting 

"in sense?" 

DHL Another actor saw his wife halfway up a ladder, 

and swore that he would never again have any more 

to do with her, whether she came down or whether 

she went up. And when the woman heard this she 

threw herself down from the ladder on the ground, 

' St. Matthew v. 40.

I 34 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRyEUS. 

and said, "Behold, I did not come down, and I did 

"not go up, but I fell down." Her husband said to 

her, "Believe me, if only the people of the city were 

"acquainted with thee they would certainly hire thee 

"to teach them cunning ways of making their decisions." 

DIV. When another actor was drunk his wife, said 

to him, "I wish to God that He would make the 

"drinking of wine abominable in thy sight." And he 

said to her, "And I also wish that he would make sweet- 

"meats, and cakes, and dainty foods abominable in thy 

"sight, for behold thou hast ruined my house by the 

"buying of flour, and dripping, and honey." 

DV. Mimus alius quidam deformem quamdam viduam 

uxorem duxerat interrogatus, "Qualis sit ista femina," 

regessit, "Vaginae latitudine aream Arani^ refert, frigi- 

"ditate 

autem Montem Libanum." 

DVI. Another actor was asked if it were possible for 

a child to be born to a man seventy years old, and he 

replied, 

"Yes, if he hath a neighbour handy aged thirty." 

DVII. The wife of another actor being with child 

looked at her husband's ugly face and said, "Woe is 

"me if the child which I carry in my womb resembleth 

"thee." And he said, "Nay, but woe be to thee if he 

"doth not resemble me, for thou shalt no longer eat 

"my bread, and I will send thee away to him whom 

"the child shall resemble." 

DVIII. Another actor saw a Jew who had become 

a Christian and who was not leading a very good life, 

and he said to him, "O thou who didst provoke Moses 

"to wrath, and who dost not please Christ, go now to 

"Muhammed. Perhaps, however, thou wilt die on thy 

"first coming to him, and before thou hast time to 

^ I.e., Oman or Araunah. See 2 Samuel xxiv. 16; i Chronicles xxi. 18.


35 

"provoke him to wrath, for I know that if thou wert 

"converted to him for long thou wouldst anger him." 

DIX. When the neighbour of another actor wanted 

from him a spoon, he said, "I only wish that we had 

"something which we could eat in our fingers." 

DX. Whilst another actor was eating fish and milk 

it was said to him, "Art thou not afraid to put milk 

"and fish into thy stomach together?" And he replied, 

"How can the fish be sensitive to the milk seeing that 

"he is dead already.?" 

DXI. Another actor was quarrelling with his wife whom 

he wished to put away from him, and she said to him, 

"Remember the very long time wherein we have livfed 

together." And he said to her, "Believe me, thou hast 

"never committed any [greater] folly than this, 

for thou 

"hast tarried too long with me, and behold I am sated 

"with thee, and I hate thee." 

DXII. Once when it was winter another actor said 

to his wife, "Make me a key, for I greatly desire it." 

His wife said to him, "Whatever stores have we 

"which need [locking up withj a key.-*" And he replied, 

"The coldness of the air which will freeze them, and 

"behold the place will be ready for the time when we 

"prepare flesh and vinegar", and salt, and wood." 

DXIII. As another actor was going into a place 

where there 

were some drunken men they struck him, 

and when it was said to him, "Why dost thou not 

"curse them.''" he said, "They are drunken men and 

"would not understand curses, and therefore I am not 

"going to waste my abuse upon them in vain." 

DXIV. Another actor went into his house and found 

For Klii** read r^ll,M.


a sieve laid upon his couch, and he went and hung 

himself up on the peg in the wall. His wife said to 

him, "What is this? Art thou possessed of a devil?" 

And he said to her, "Nay, but when I saw the sieve 

"in my place, I went to its place." 

DXV. A certain woman asked her neighbour, 

saying, 

"Why should a man have power to buy a handmaiden 

"and to lie with her and to do whatsoever he pleaseth 

"with her, while a woman hath no power to do any 

"such things freely and openly?" And she said to her, 

"Because the kings, and the judges, and the lawgivers 

"are all men; and they have therefore acted the parts 

"of advocates of their own causes and have oppressed 

"the women." 

DXVI. Another actor went to a certain merchant 

and begged him to lend him a hundred silver zuze, 

and he said to him, "What wilt thou deposit with me 

"as surety?" And the actor said, "I have no pledge 

"[to leave], but I will write thee an acknowledgment, 

'•so that at the time of payment if I do not produce 

"witnesses [to swear] that I have paid thee I will swear 

"[it myself] without either reason or speech." 

DXVII. Another actor said to his servant, "When 

"thou goest on any business' and returnest, if it be 

"ended satisfactorily say 'Wheat,' and if not say 'Barley.'" 

And one day when he had gone and returned, the 

actor asked him, "Wheat or Barley?" and he replied, 

"Something quite different." The actor said, "What 

"meanest thou?" And the servant said, "Not only did 

"they not perform the business on which I went, but 

"they cursed me and beat me." 

^ 7. e., Arab. ,J-i-io.


37 

DXVIII. Another actor heard a man saying to his 

companion, "When thou art travelling by night and 

"wouldst that the dogs should not molest thee, shout 

"in their faces the Psalm wherein occur the words, 

'"[And save] my only one from the mouth of the .dogs'.' 

"And he said to him, Nay, but let him also take a 

"stick in his hand, for all dogs do not understand the 

"Psalms, although there may, be among them some who 

"read them." 

DXIX. A judge commanded them to shave off the 

beard of an actor, and when the barber wanted to do 

so, he said to him, "Fill thy mouth with air." The 

actor said to him, "O fool, did the judge command 

"thee to shave my beard or to teach me how to blow 

"a whistle?" 

DXX. Mimus alius interrogatus quot eduxisset 

liberos, regessit, "Deos obtestor uxorem meam saepius 

peperisse quam cum ilia concubuerim." 

DXXI. Unto another actor who had been bitten by 

a dog it was said, "If thou wishest to know whether 

"he was mad or not, give him bread made of fine 

"wheaten flour; if he eateth it then he is mad." The 

actor said, "If I were to do this there is not a dog 

"in the world but would bite me in order to be tried 

"in this same way." 

DXXII. Certain men told lies about another actor 

concerning some offences 

[which had been committed], 

and the judge took him and gave him fifty stripes 

with a stick, but some time afterwards, when the judge 

discovered that the men had accused him falsely, he 

said to the actor, "I punished thee by mistake." The 

' Psalm xxii. 20.


actor said, "Nay, but keep an account of my stripes 

"by thee, so that when I in very deed do commit some 

"offence, thou mayest reckon them as my punishment 

"and not inflict chastisement upon me afresh." 

DXXIII. Unto another actor it was said, "What 

"sayest thou to some cakes fried in butter and honey?" 

The actor said, "What am I able to say? But indeed 

"this I know of a certainty. If Moses the prophet had 

"gone into Pharaoh's presence with cakes fried 

in butter 

"and honey, the king would have believed his words 

"straightway; but since he went in with a rod, Pharaoh 

"is not to be blamed overmuch because he did not be- 

"lieve, for he was a king and was angry." 

DXXIV. Another actor who hated the egg plant, having 

been invited by a certain nobleman, found that all 

his meats were made therewith; and he said to the 

servant, "Give me some water that I may drink, that 

"is, if there be no egg plant in it." 

DXXV, Another actor was invited to a feast by a 

certain nobleman who began to eat the yelks of hardboiled 

eggs and to set the white of the eggs before 

the actor to eat. And the actor said, "May God have 

"mercy on -the sphere wherein all exactitude is 

"found," that is to say wherein the yelk and the 

white are bound closely together. 

DXXVI. Another actor went to the house of a certain 

rich man who was sick, and enquired concerning 

his illness, and the sick man said to him, "Boils have 

"broken out upon me in a loathsome place." The actor 

said, "I do not see any in thy face," meaning "thy face 

"is 

a loathsome place." 

DXXVII. Another actor, who was sitting at meat 

with a certain miserly nobleman, let fall some of his


39 

food on to his garments, and the nobleman said to the 

servants, "Wash the meat off his garments for him." 

The actor said, "Thy meat doth not need to be 

"washed off," that is to say, "there is no grease in it." 

DXXVIII. Another actor had a wife whose face was very 

ugly, and one rainy and gloomy day she said to him, 

"How can one use such a day as this advantageously?" 

He said to her, "In divorce and separation." 

DXXIX. Unto another actor it was said, "Is wheat 

"flour very dear in the market to-day?" And he 

replied, "I never asked, for I only buy baked bread." 

DXXX. When another actor saw a man who had 

sore eyes, he said, "With what dost thou treat the disease 

"in thine eyes?" And he replied, "With the singing 

"of Psalms and with the prayers of my mother who is 

"a nun." The actor made answer, "These are very 

"excellent things indeed, but a little antimony is needed 

"with them." 

DXXXI. Another actor said, "For six kinds of men 

"it is not good to drink wine: for him who when sing- 

"ing is a fool; for him who reclineth at meat on his 

"right side; for him who eateth green herbs overmuch; 

"for him who drinketh of the first cup; for him who 

"rejoiceth in suppers; and for him who is in the habit 

"of defiling his garment." 

DXXXI. Another actor was sick, and when his 

master, who was a very foolish man, went out he asked 

him, "What wouldst thou that I should do for thee?" 

he replied, "I very much want thee not to come into 

"my presence again."


DXXXIII. It is said that a silly fellow heard that 

a certain man was dead, and that when he saw his 

brother, he asked him, "Is it thou that art dead, or 

"thy 

brother?" 

DXXXIV. Another silly fellow whose son was dead 

was much grieved, and he wished to kill himself, but 

having taken counsel with one of his friends, he said, 

"Perhaps if I kill myself the prince will suffer sorrow 

on my account." 

DXXXV. The wife of another simpleton said to him, 

"Thy beard has grown long by reason of thy stupidity," 

and he said to her, "Reproach me not, otherwise that 

"for which thou reproachest me may happen unto thee," 

that is to say "thy beard may grow long." 

DXXXVI. To another man a son was born, and when 

his neighbours came to congratulate him he thanked 

them, and said, "He cometh from God and from 

"you." 

DXXXVII. Stultus alius quidam qui cum matre sua 

pisces conditos edebat, "Epulare" ait, "mi mater: Cibum 

"enim habemus ad coeundum praestantissimum." 

DXXXVIII. Another simpleton went to visit his 

neighbour's son who was sick, and he said to his 

neighbour, "When he dieth, do not do as thou didst


I4I 

"when thy other son died, for I do not remember that 

"I was invited to his funeral." 

DXXXIX. Another fool had two hunting dogs, one 

black and the other white. And the governor said to 

him, "Give me one of them." The man said to him, 

"Which of them dost thou want?" and the governor 

said, "The black one." The man said, "The black one 

"I love more than the white," and the governor replied, 

"Then give me the white one." And the foolish 

man said to him, "The white one I love more than 

"both put together." 

DXL. A certain rich man who was a clown never 

gave anything to a poor man, and he used to say, 

"That which God hath not given him, how can I give 

"him?" 

DXLI. Another simpleton said to his wife, "After 

"thou art dead I shall not stay with my children." And 

she replied, "Thus thou sayest, but thou wilt not do 

"[what thou sayest];" and he made answer to her 

saying, "After my death thou wilt see the truth of 

"my words." 

DXLII. Another man had a pain in his stomach, 

and being asked the cause thereof, he said, "I have 

"eaten largely of a little milk and it hath done me 

"harm." 

DXLIII. Another simpleton seeing a fat 

ox said, "He 

"would become a fine buffalo if his hoofs had not been 

"cloven." 

DXLIV. Unto another silly man it was told concerning 

the Magians that they were in the habit of knowing 

their mothers carnally, and he said, "The wrath of God 

"be upon them. Believe [me], if thou wert to give me 

"a hundred pieces of silver I would not do this thing."


DXLV. Stultus alius quidam quum cum virgine 

quam 

duxerat concubuisset virglnis patrem mane salutatum 

ivit dixitque, "Filia tua me noctu sanguine perfudit— quod 

"credo te fraude finxisse ne quid de istius castitate du- 

"bitarem." 

DXLVI. Another fool, who was a Jew, when his son 

was being circumcised said to him that was making 

the cutting, "Cut him little by little, for he hath never 

"before been circumcised." 

DXLVII. A son having been born to another simpleton, 

he brought an astrologer to cast his nativity, 

that is, to declare the sign of the Zodiac under which 

he was born; and he said to him, "I entreat thee 

"to make Hermes his sign of the Zodiac, for I have 

"heard that he who is born under such circumstances 

"becometh a scribe." 

DXLVIII. The neighbour of another silly fellow said 

to him, "I see that thy wife is with child," and he replied, 

"[Yes], in a slight way and not very much." 

DXLIX. A certain simpleton looked at the moon 

when it was fourteen days old, and said, "Blessed 

"month." And when it was said to him, "How is it 

"thou didst not see the moon before?" he answered, 

"I was not in the city having only just come." 

DL. Another silly man said, "I was wishing that God 

"had never created me at all, or that I had been now 

"blind, or that my hands and my feet were cut off." 

DLL When another fool was passing by some fishermen, 

he said to them, "Are those fish which ye are 

"catching fresh or salted?" 

DLII. Another simpleton asked his disciple, "On what 

"day did we celebrate the fifth day of the week of the 

"Mysteries a year ago?" And the disciple who was

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS. 1 43 

more simple than he, replied, "I do not know of a certainty, 

"but a year ago I think we celebrated the fifth day of 

"the week of the Mysteries on the third day." 

DLIII. The friend of another fool had promised to 

send him some grapes from his vineyard, and when 

he delayed in doing so, the fool put some of his urine 

into a glass and sent it to a physician, and said, "See 

"if this sheweth any sign of grapes being sent to me 

"during the next few days." 

DLIV. Another simpleton said, "I understand every- 

"thing, I know even how mustard may be obtained from 

"figs, and how a bottle in the shape of an acorn may 

^ 

have never yet known him 

"be made out of wood, but I 

"that made holes collectively." 

DLV. A certain governor set out to go and worship 

in Jerusalem, and he was hastening on with all speed 

that he might arrive there while the festival was being 

celebrated. And a silly man said to him, "Why dost 

'thou kill the horses and the people who are with thee? 

"Send on [in advance] and let them know of thy coming 

"in Jerusalem, so that they may delay the festival and 

"may not hurry on too fast." 

DLVI. The daughter of another simpleton died, and 

when he was asked how old she was, he replied, "I 

"do not know exactly, but she was born at the time 

"when oranges were plentiful." 

DLVII. Another fool being mounted on an ass that 

would not travel under him swore that he would give 

him no barley that night. Nevertheless having come 

to his house and the evening having fallen, he said to 

' 

I. e., KliâLa, a rare word; see my Thomas of Marga, Vol. i. 

1- 

P- 3S3. 17-


his disciple, "Give the ass a sack of barley, but do not let 

"him know that I told thee to do so, otherwise he will 

"not be afraid of me in the future." 

DLVIII. Another simpleton said, "I was present this 

"day at the burial of such and such a man." And when 

he was asked, "Which of his sons is dead," he said, 

"There were two of them, and the middle one is dead." 

DLIX. Another fool said to his neighbour, "Last 

"night I saw a dream, and I thought that the governor 

"of our city was talking with thee, and that he was 

"looking at me: what did he say about me?" 

DLX. Another silly man whilst praying in Jerusalem 

said, "O My Lord, forgive me, that it may be forgiven 

"to Thee, give unto me, that it may be given unto 

"Thee thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold, even as 

"Thou hast promised'." 

DLXI. Another simpleton visited a certain man, and 

he went to kiss his head; but the man said to him, 

"Do not kiss my head because I have put some grease 

"on it." The foolish man said to him, "I would kiss it 

"even if there were pounds and pounds of dung upon it." 

DLXII. Another fool said, "When my brother died, my 

"father was very penitent," and his companion said, "Did 

"he kill him, or did thy brother fall sick and die?" The 

fool said, "I do not know, only thus did such and such 

"a servant of ours relate." 

DLXIII. Stultus alius quidam interrogatus, "Cur non- 

"dum uxorem duxisti?" respondit, "Frater mens uxorem 

"duxit quae, en! ambobus et illi et mihi sufficit." Conclamabant 

omnes, '-Vae misero tibi! quo modo una duum 

"uxor fieri potest?" Respondit autem, "Abram respice 

^ 

Compare St. Matthew xiii. 8.


"qui pater erat gentium : 

quomodo evenit ut duas uxores 

"duxisset, ipse tamen unus ambabus suffecit." 

DLXIV. Another fool said, "My father went twice to 

"Jerusalem, and there did he die and was buried, but 

"I do not know which time he died, whether it was dur- 

"ing the first visit or the last." 

DLXV. Another silly man having gone to the bath 

found that fra:nkincense was being burnt therein, and 

thinking that the smoke thereof was dust he became 

very angry, and said to the man in charge of the bath, 

"I tell thee that when I wish to enter the bath thou 

"must neither sweep the room with a brush nor make 

"a dust." 

DLXVI. When another fool was told, "Thy ass is 

"stolen," he said, "Blessed be God that I was not upon 

him." 

DLXVII. Another fool looked up into the heavens 

and said, "How beautiful are Thy heavens, O Lord, 

"but Thou art worthy of something which is more 

"beautiful than they." 

DLXVIII. Another stupid man became a judge, and 

it was said to him, "Forgive such and such a man 

"his offence." And he said, "I will not forgive him 

"until I hear that he hath fallen at my feet and kissed 

"them." 

DLXIX. Another simpleton, who was a servant, had 

ten asses which he hired to certain people, and when 

they came back to their places he took his asses and 

counted them, [and found them to be] ten. Then he 

mounted one of them and rode some distance and 

came back, and as he was going away he counted 

those that were before him, and found them [to be] 

nine; and he was angry, and alighted and counted them

146 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÊUS. 

And he mounted 

over again, and found them [to be] ten. 

an ass again, and counted the others and found them 

[to be] nine; thereupon he dismounted and counted 

[them], and found them [to be] ten. Then he said, 

" Verily there is a devil with me, for whenever I mount 

"an ass I lose one of them; therefore I must not ride 

"lest I lose one altogether." Thus he travelled over 

the whole country on foot, for he dared not mount 

one of them. 

DLXX. Stultus quidam qui catharticum sibi adhibuerat 

in aedificium dirutum se contulit ventrem evacuatum; 

cum autem subligacula solvere voluit, tunicae ligamina 

recinxit ut ubi consederat ventrem in chlamydem 

exoneraret. 

DLXXI. Now the son of a certain silly man died, 

and as they were letting him down into the grave, the 

father said to the men, "Let him rest on his right 

"side, for [to lie] this way is much better and more con- 

"venient for the digestion of the food." 

DLXXII. A foolish old woman having gone to visit 

a sick man said unto his masters, "Believe me, I have 

"become very old and infirm, and I am not always 

"able to go in and come out. Therefore when this 

"man dieth—may God preserve your lives! — do not 

"blame me if I am unable to come to his burial." 

DLXXIII. Another fool whose hawk had escaped 

asked the governor to shut the gates of the city until 

he had caught him. 

DLXXI V. Stultus alius quidam interrogatus, "Quot 

"annos natam filiam in matrimonium tradidisti.''" 

"Nescio 

"hercle" respondit, "hoc tamen scio me istam spopon- 

"disse verendis cum maxime istius lanugine tectis. Com- 

"putate ergo quot annos natae verenda lanugo tegat."


DLXXV. A certain simple judge was asked, 

"What 

"ought to be done unto the man who committeth an 

"offence with a she-ass?" and he replied, "They should 

"both be put to death." And the people said, "Wherein 

"hath the she-ass offended, for it is an irrational animal, 

"and hath no understanding?" He replied, "If my 

"mother or my sister happened to be the she-ass I 

"would put her to death without mercy." 

DLXXVI. The son of a certain silly old woman 

died—now his name was Lazarus— and the priest was 

burying him. 

of the] Gospel which begins, 

And when he began to read the [section 

"Now Lazarus was dead'," 

he said, "Lazarus is dead, and I rejoice." And the 

old woman said to him, "And why shouldst thou not 

"rejoice? For behold, his clothing, and his bed, and 

"everything which he possessed have been carried to 

"thy house." 

DLXXVII. A certain poet made some verses in 

praise of a certain weak-minded man who said to him, 

"I cannot reward thee with anything which I possess, 

"but if thou hast committed any offence I will forgive 

"It 

thee." 

DLXXVIII. When another foolish man was praying 

in a church, he said, "O my Lord, have pity upon me, 

"and pardon me the offences which I have committed 

"by Thy will and against Thy will, with Thy know- 

"ledge and without 

Thy knowledge.'' 

DLXXIX. And another said, "Forgive me all my 

"sins which are known unto Thee, and those which 

"are 

not." 

DLXXX. Another simpleton said when the rain fell 

' See St. John xi. 14.


upon his grain crop, "O Lord, dost Thou know how 

"much wages are due unto Thee that Thou waterest 

"this my crop?" 

DLXXXI. Stulto cuidam meienti, stultus alius, "Quam 

"ingentem penem habes!" ait, "quo modo, quaeso, istum 

"portare vales?" Regisset alter, "I istud domi meae 

"dictum: ibi enim assidue maledicor quia tam parvus sit." 

DLXXXII. Another silly man buried some zuze 

coins in the plain, and made a fragment of a cloud a 

mark of the place where it was. And some days after 

he came to carry away the money, but could not find 

the place to do so, and he said, "Consider now; the 

''zuze were in the ground, and they must have been 

"carried away by some people. For who can steal the 

"cloud which is in the sky? And what arm could reach 

"thereunto? This matter is one worthy to be wonder- 

"ed at." 

DLXXXIII. Another simpleton looked into a vessel 

of water, and he went and said to his mother, "There 

"is a thief in the vessel." And when his mother came 

and had looked in also she saw her own face in the 

water by the side of that of her son. And she said 

to her son, "Verily it is a thief, and there is, besides, 

"a whore with this cursed fellow; stand thou here 

"that they may not come out and escape until I can 

"call the neighbours." 

DLXXXIV. Another silly 

man remarked concerning 

a certain lascivious man who was a Sodomite, that 

even more than Lot he was the prince of Sodomites. 

DLXXXV. Another simpleton was asked, "How 

"many days' journey is it between Aleppo and Damas- 

"cus?" and he replied, "Twelve; six to go and six to 

"come back."

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS, 1 49 

DLXXXVI. Another silly man looked at the chickens 

which were in his house and said, "O chickens, when 

"will [any] man become sick that he may eat you and 

"[thus] will ye be saved from the knock on the head 

"which ye will 

receive?" 

DLXXXVII. Another simpleton was running along 

on the heath and crying out certain words with a loud 

voice, and when he was asked why he did thus, he 

said, "I wish to know how far my voice will reach." 

DLXXXVIII. Another silly man, when asked by his 

friends to lend them a saddle, said, "Believe me, I have 

"only just now alighted from it, perhaps ye will wait 

"for an hour in order that it may have some rest." 

DLXXXIX. When the wife of another silly man was 

about to bring forth a child, he said to the midwife, 

"Get me a son, and I will give thee a dinar." 

DXC. Another fool when about to buy some snow 

took a piece of it and tasted it, and he said to the 

seller, "If ye have any that is colder than this shew it 

"to me," and when the seller had shewn him another 

piece, he asked, "How dost thou sell this?" and the 

seller said, "This latter kind I sell by the carat; but 

"the former kind I sell either in the lump or by the 

"piece." Then the fool said, "In that case I will take 

"a little of the latter kind for my own use, and some 

"of the former kind for the people in my house." 

DXCI. Another silly man when told by the physician, 

"Squeeze the juice 

of two pomegranates [into a vessel] 

"with the pulpy parts of them and drink [it]," said, 

"How much pulp am I to put with them?" 

DXCII. y\nother fool having bought a handmaiden 

[found that] his wife was enraged, and he said to her, 

"If thou dost continue to annoy me in this way I swear


"by God that for a whole year from now I will have 

"nothing more to 

do with thee." 

DXCIII. Another simpleton, having looked at a mirror 

and seen his face therein, laughed, and being asked [why 

he did so] said, "I am astonished at my face, for 

"it is beautiful [when seen] afar off, but when near it 

"is 

not." 

DXCIV. Another silly man was asked, "How many 

"years old art thou?" He replied, "I know not, but 

"I have heard my mother say that I was born before 

"the grapes were ripe, 'and', said she, 'thy brother is 

"older 

than thou by two months and half a year.'" 

DXCV. Another fool owned a house together with 

some other folk, and he said one day, "I want to sell 

"the half of it which is my share and buy the other 

"half, so that the whole building may be mine." 

DXCVI. Another silly man bought a piece of meat 

and gave it to his servant, saying, "Take this home 

"and tell them to boil it for me with some rice." The 

servant said, "They have no wood there," and the man 

said, "Very well, then, let them boil for me pearl-barley 

"and rice in equal parts." 

DXCVII. Another simpleton, whose daughter had 

fallen into a well, said to her, "Do not move from 

"where thou art until I bring some one to draw thee up." 

DXGVIII. Another silly man having been asked about 

his birthday, said, "I was born on Hosanna Sunday, 

"two weeks after the Feast of the Resurrection." 

DXCIX. Another stupid man said during his prayers, 

"O Lord, my God, pardon my mother, my sister, and 

"my wife." And when he was asked, "Why dost thou 

"not mention thy father?" he replied, "Because I was 

"a child when he died, and I did not know him."


I 5 I 

DC. Another simpleton when praying said, "O my 

"Lord, give me five thousand pieces of silver, so that 

"I may give one thousand of them to the poor; and 

"if it be that Thou art not certain [about me] give 

"me four thousand and. do Thou Thyself give the 

"other thousand with Thine Own hands into theirs." 

DCI. Another silly man having gone on a journey 

to carry on his trade wrote to his father, saying, "I 

"have been ill with a very grievous sickness, and if 

"any one else had been in my place he would not 

"have been able to live." And his father made him 

answer, saying, " Believe me, my son, if thou hadst died 

"thou wouldst have grieved me sadly, and I would 

"never have spoken to thee again in the whole course 

"of my life." 

DCII. Another simpleton on being asked what he 

had learned at school replied, "Arithmetic;" whereupon 

some people said to him, "If four pieces of silver be 

"divided equally among three men, how much will each 

"receive.''" And he said, "Two of them will receive 

"two pieces of silver each, so that there will be twice 

"two pieces of silver for the three of them." 

DCIII. 

Another silly man was carrying on his shoulder 

a little boy dressed in a red gown, and forgetting all 

about his being there, he began to ask the folk, saying, 

"Who hath seen a boy dressed in a red gown?" 

And when it was said to him, " Peradventure it is this 

"boy who is on thy shoulder," and he had lifted up 

his head and seen him, he struck him, saying, "O son 

"of adultery, how many times have I told thee that 

"when I am carrying thee thou art not to go away 

"from me?" 

DCIV. Another simpleton was sitting in a boat on

I 5 2 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÊUS. 

the sea, and he had a few ziize in his hand. And as 

he looked, 

he saw on the garment of one of those who 

were with him an orange, and he stretched out his 

hand and laid hold of it with his two fingers, but 

wishing to throw the orange into the sea he threw the 

zuze instead, and kept fast hold on the orange. And 

when he was rebuked for doing this, he said, "I was 

"afraid that it might run away and stick in our gar- 

"ments again." 

DCV. Another fool seeing an Arab minaret from 

which men were calling [the people] to prayer, said to 

his companion, "How very tall the men who built this 

"minaret must have been!" His friend replied, "O 

"silly man, how could any man be as tall as this? 

"They built it first of all on the ground, and then set 

"it up [on its end]." 

DC VI. Certain stupid husbandmen came to the 

governor and began to complain, saying, "The taxes 

"laid upon us are too heavy, and if thou canst not 

"diminish them we must leave [our lands] and go away." 

The governor said to them, "What now do ye wish 

"me to do for you?" and they replied, "We wish that 

"thou wouldst tax us one fifth and that thou shouldst 

"not take tithe from us, for we cannot pay tithe." The 

governor said to them, "Your wishes shall be carried 

"out," and so this custom came upon them even to this day. 

DCVII. Another fool said, "I saw a man with a 

"long beard who was riding upon an ass which he 

"was beating, and he said to him, "O cursed one, if 

"thou didst not wish to be ridden why didst thou be- 

"come an ass?"' 

' Var. "was asking in the market, 'Has there not passed before 

you a red old man with a red helmet on his head?'"

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS. I 

53 

DCVIII. Another simple man, when he saw his crop 

lying flat before the violent wind and hail, looked up 

to heaven and said, "O Lord, Thou commandest the 

"children of men neither to do evil nor to do harm 

"to each other, but what sayest Thou to this work of 

"Thine? But who can judge Thee because Thy deeds 

"do not correspond to Thy words?" 

DCIX. Another fool had a son who had put his 

head outside the window and a hailstone fell upon it, 

whereupon he cursed him that had struck him. Then 

his father struck him and putting his own head out of 

the window looked up to heaven and said, "O my 

"Lord, blame him not, for as yet he knoweth Thee not." 

DCX, Another simpleton, whilst washing his hands, 

said, "I have tried my hands, and if I were to wash 

"them a thousand times they would not be clean, 

unless 

"I washed them twice." 

DCXI. Another silly man went to visit a man whose 

son was dead, and he began to say, "Blessed be God; 

"I thank God for His goodness." And the people who 

were there present began to rebuke him, saying, "Why 

"speakest thou in this manner?" He replied, "Because 

"I heard that some one belonging to him was dead, 

"and since it is his son there is no [cause for] trouble, 

"for so long as he liveth he will be able to beget one 

"son after the other." 

DCXII. Another fool went to a grammarian that he 

might teach him to speak correctly, and when he had 

read with him for nigh upon a year, he asked the 

grammarian, "Do I pronounce szisyd with a tsadhe or 

"with 

a semkaih}'"' 

* /. e., the fool could not distinguish between the sounds of s 

and ts after nearly a year's study.

154 THE LAUGHABLK STORIES OF BAR-HEBRÛS. 

DCXIII. Another nobleman was a silly man, and 

once when he was travelling along the road in company 

with some other folk, he said to them, "Leave 

"me for a short time, for I want to say a few words 

"to 

myself." 

DCXIV. Whilst another simpleton was saying his 

prayers in the church he heard the priests saying in 

their prayers, "Adam sinned, but Christ was crucified 

"to redeem him;" and he said, "This is not justice, for 

"he that committed the sin should be the one to be 

"crucified." 

DCXV. When another silly man was cracking an 

almond the kernel slipped away out of his hands, and 

he said, "Glory be to Thee, O God, for even the 

"kernel of the almond trieth to escape death." 

DCXVI. Another fool stood on the sea-shore and 

said, "Glory be to Him that created the sea out of 

"dry wood." 

DCXVII. The son 

of another simpleton shewed him 

a young dove, and said, "Look, father, which doth it 

"resemble, its father or its mother?" His father said 

to him, "Which is its father or mother? This male 

"or this female?" 

DCXVIII. Another simpleton said, "I love the dis- 

"courses of Mar Jacob' very much indeed, so much so 

"that I am blessed by him every day." His companion 

said to him, "But why art thou not blessed by the 

"Holy Gospel?" and he replied, "The Gospel is good, 

"but I have found by experience that Mar Jacob help- 

"eth 

me." 

DCXIX. Another fool went into a new house and 

' I.e., Jacob of Edessa; he was born about A.D. 640 and died 

Sth of June A.D. 708.

STORIES OF CLOWNS AND SIMPLETONS. I 

55 

was walking round about in it when the owner thereof 

said, "What sayest thou; have I built well [or not]?" 

He said, "Everything is beautiful in it except the 

"latrine, which hath one fault: its door is so narrow 

"that a table will not go through it." 

DCXX. A certain nobleman who was a fool had 

got possession of a village, and he sent to those who 

were over it, saying, "Do not let the husbandmen sow 

"their fields any more with seed of the downy thorn 

"or with the pips and stones of fruit, because not a 

"quarter of it cometh up; but let them sow it with 

"pure seed, and let the poor sow grass seed likewise 

"without the pips and stones of fruit."

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. 

DCXXI. They say that a certain demoniac saw a 

fai, nobleman and he said to him, "O thou who art as 

"fat as a pig, if the devil which is in me had been 

"alive in the time of Christ, he would never have left 

"thee and entered into me." 

DCXXII. When it was said to another demoniac by 

a certain nobleman, "Knowest thou me? he said, "Yes, 

"I know thee, and I know thy brother." The nobleman 

said to him, "Who is my brother?" And he replied to 

him, "Thou, even as one who is like him, hast neither 

"root nor stem," that is to say, "Thou art not of noble 

"descent." 

DCXXIII. When another demoniac went to the house 

of a certain nobleman he offered him some bread only, 

and the demoniac went out refusing this and saying, "I 

"will come to thee on the day of the feast when some 

"meat may be found with thee." 

DCXXI V. Another demoniac said, "I went into a 

"hospital and saw a demoniac who was in fetters, and 

"I thrust out my tongue at him and rolled mine eyes. 

"And when he saw me do this he looked up to heaven 

"and said, 'Glory be to Thee, O God, for one whom 

"'the physicians have left free, and for one whom they 

"'have bound.'"

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. I 

5 / 

DCXXV. Another demoniac went round about the 

market, saying, "He that would be an excellent man, 

"let him learn that which I know not. For when he 

"saith, 'I know not,' men will teach him to know; and 

"when he saith, 'I know,' those who ask questions will 

"prove to him that he is ignorant by means of hard 

"questions." 

DCXXVI. Another demoniac, having laid hold upon 

a man, threw him down under him and was choking 

him, when certain folk came and rescued the man from 

him. And when they were beating him they asked 

him why he did this, and he said, "If he did not wish 

"to be choked why did he fall under me.'' And he did 

"not suffer for a moment in my hands." 

DCXXVII. Another madman said, "I wish to eat 

"sweetmeats and dung," whereupon certain folk who 

heard him, said, "Let us bring both to him, and we 

"shall see how he will eat them." And when they had 

brought them to him he began to eat the sweetmeat 

and left the dung where it was, saying, "I suspect that 

"there is poison in this dung, but if ye wish me to 

"eat it without a doubt, do ye also eat a portion 

"thereof and I will eat the remainder." 

DCXXVIII. Another madman went up to 

a polished 

pillar and said, "Who will give me a zuza for going 

"up to the top?" And when certain folk had given him 

the ziiza, he took it and said, "Bring me now a ladder," 

and the people said, "Did we agree with thee [to climb 

"it] with a ladder?" The madman said, "Ye certainly 

"did not agree with me to do it without one, ye only 

"stipulated that I should go up." 

DCXXIX. Another madman said to a certain teacher, 

"What manner of words are these which are uttered


"in the Gospel, 'If they persecute you in one city, flee 

'"to another?' and, besides, if they shut up a man how 

"can he escape ? It would have been right for our Lord 

"to give the command, 'They shall bind in chains no 

'"man, neither shall they shut him up.'" 

DCXXX. It was said unto a certain lunatic by the 

demoniacs, "Number for us the demoniacs that are in 

"Emesa." And he replied, "I cannot count the demoniacs 

"because they are so many, but I can count the men 

"of understanding who are therein because they are 

"so 

few." 

DCXXXI. A certain lunatic put on a skin cloak with 

the hairy side outwards, and when people asked him 

why he did so, he replied, "If God had known that it 

"was better to have the hairy side of the skin cloak 

"inwards, He would not have created the wool on the 

"outside of the sheep." 

DCXXXII. Another lunatic when asked "Wheire is 

"thy native land?" replied, "The place where I was 

"born was Sinjar', and I was reared in the Monastery 

"of Mar Behnam^" because in the majority of cases 

demoniacs were accustomed to be carried there bound 

in fetters, so that they might be benefited by the 

power of the saint. 

DCXXXIII. Another demoniac being very mad iêd 

to strike people, and a certain man rose up and took 

a stick and beat him severely. Then the people began 

to say to him, "Let him alone, for he is a demoniac 

"and doth not know what he doeth," and when the 

demoniac heard this he said to them, "Make him to 

"understand about God, for he knoweth Him not." 

' 

A city in the mountains about four days' journey east of Mosul. 

^ 

See Hoffmann, Ausziige, p. 17 ff.

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. I 59 

DCXXXIV. A certain man said unto a demoniac, 

"Take four pieces of silver, and go and reap in my 

"place in the royal crops." And he replied, "There are 

"two things which I cannot do by myself, that is, to 

"take money and to reap; but let me take the money 

"and do thou go and reap, so that the labour may be 

"easy both for thee and for me." 

DCXXXV. Dixit alius quidam a daemone obsessus, 

"Proxima nocte somnium mihi obvenit partim verum, 

"partim falsum." Quaestum est de eo, "Quid vis di- 

"cere?" et regessit, "Dormiens cum pulcherrima puella 

"coire visus sum: experrectus autem intellexi me coiisse 

"non tamen cum puella." 

DCXXXVI. Another demoniac lifted his eyes to 

heaven and said, "Should the understanding One do thus? 

"Was this the work of a wise being.'' Thou, [O God] 

"hast created a multitude of men, but, behold, Thou 

"killest half of them by hunger. How much better 

"would it have been if instead of every hundred souls 

"Thou hadst made one, for then all men could have 

"lived happily and in abundance. It is meet that a man 

"should multiply those who are supported by him in 

"proportion to the food which he hath." 

DCXXXVII. Another demoniac was very skilful in 

interpreting dreams in his madness, and one day a 

certain nobleman said to him, "I saw in my dream as 

"if a great number of sparrows were fastened up the 

"skirts of my garments, and I made them to fly off 

"one after the other, but when the last one came to 

"escape I caught hold of it." And the demoniac interpreted 

the dream thus:— "If thou didst in truth see 

"what thou sayest thou must have made thy supper 

"upon lentiles.— Cum autem dormitares pedere coepisti:

l6o 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR/EUS. 

"ventrem postremus exonerare expetentem te ipsum 

"cohibuisti." Cui nobilis subridens, "Di te accusent! 

"Mihi enim evenit quemadmodum narras." 

DCXXXVIII. Whilst another lunatic was sitting down 

and weeping it was said to him, "Why weepest thou? 

"And why art thou sad?" He replied, "How can I help 

"weeping? for behold the winter hath come and I have 

"no tunic." And they said to him, "Be not in tribulation, 

"God will not leave thee without a tunic," and he replied, 

"True, but last year He not only left me without 

"a tunic, but also without a cloak and without a loin 

"cloth." 

DCXXXIX. Another lunatic was sitting in the market 

and eating baked meat, and a certain man said to him, 

"Give me some of that which thou art eating, so that 

"I also may eat like thee." He replied, "This doth 

"not belong to me, but a certain nobleman commanded 

"me to eat it all for his sake, and I am afraid to trans- 

"gress his commandment." 

DCXL. To another lunatic, round about whom a large 

number of boys were gathered together, it was said, 

"Go and lie down in a certain place so that these 

"boys may go away from thee;" and he replied, "When 

"they are hungry they will depart." 

DCXLI. Another lunatic was a Jacobite, and a certain 

Greek said to him, "Wilt thou take a zuza and curse 

"Jacob Burde'aya?"' And he replied, "No, but give 

"me the half of one and I will curse thee and Leo^ 

"who is much more honourable than Jacob, and to 

' Born at Edessa A.D. 154, died A.D. 222. 

^ /. e., Leo 'the Pope; he was born about A.D. 400, and died 

about A.D. 461.

1 

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. 1 6 

"these I will also add for the Marcianus who was an 

"emperor'." 

DCXLII. Another lunatic was boasting that he was 

a king in the time of Hercules, and when a certain 

nobleman said to him, "Thou art the king of podical 

"sternutations", he replied, "If I were what thy words 

"say I am, my kingdom would be greater and much 

"more vast than that of Hercules, because podical 

"sternutations are much more numerous than Greeks." 

DCXLIII. When another lunatic was fettered in the 

hospital, he that filled the drinking-cup came to him 

and said, "Take, drink, and if thou dost not do so I 

"will beat thee with this whip." And the lunatic replied, 

"Give it to me and I will drink, although I know 

"well that thou thyself needest to drink it more than 

"I do." 

DCXLIV. Another lunatic was passing through the 

cloth-workers' bazaar when he saw a large number of 

men gathered together about a shop which had been 

broken into during the night, and he also drew nigh 

and looked at the place where the thieves broke through. 

Then he said, "Do not all of you know who did this?" 

and they said, "No." And the lunatic said to them, 

"I know, but I shall not tell you until you bring me 

"three loaves of bread, and two roasted heads to eat, 

"for I am famished; and when I have satisfied my 

"hunger I will tell you." And the people said to each 

other, "It is not to be wondered at if he should know 

"[who did it], for he is wandering about the whole night 

"through, and thieves never hide from him, because they 

"know that he hath no intelligence and that he could 

' Emperor of the East A.D. 450—457.

I 62 


"not identify them." And when they had brought the 

food to him and he had eaten and was satisfied, he 

stood up in the breach and said, "So ye do not know 

"whose deed this is? Then ye have all become little 

"children. This is, indeed, the work of thieves and of 

"no one else." So he left [them] and went away. 

DCXLV. Another lunatic, when the boys were throwing 

stones at him, ran away from them, and there met him 

a woman who was carrying- a little child, and he went 

and smote the little child so that he nearly died. And 

the woman said to him, "The wrath of God be upon 

"thee! In what way did the child offend thee?" The 

lunatic said, "O harlot, to-morrow when he hath grown 

"a little more he will be worse than these." 

DCXLVI. Two lunatics were engaged in a severe 

fight with each other when the guards captured them 

and hauled them before the governor. The governor 

said to one of them, "Why didst thou strike this man?" 

and he replied, "Manu testes meas exporrecta captabat 

"ut prehensum alterutrum resecaret." Judex ergo quaesivit, 

"Quare manu testes illius captabas?" Respondit, 

"Crede mihi tot habet uxores et pellices ut tale facinus 

"patrare nunquam ausus essem." 

DCXLVII. Another lunatic was eating dates together 

with their stones, and when he was asked why he 

did so, he said, "The shopman weighed them out to 

me thus." 

DCXLVIII. Whenever an ordinary man died people 

were in the habit of giving a zftza to a certain lunatic, 

and once when a rich man died, his relatives gave 

him two. And having taken the zilzc and gone out 

the lunatic said to the relatives of the dead man, "Do

STORIES OF LUNATICS AND OF MEN POSSESSED OF DEVILS. 1 

63 

"not forget that ye have given alms to me for the 

"next among you who shall 

die." 

DCXLIX. Another lunatic asked a certain 

nobleman 

to give him a pair of shoes, "For", he said, "I am bare- 

"footed." And when the governor had given him the 

shoes, he said to him, "Have a care so that my head 

"also may pray for thee as well as my feet, otherwise 

"the prayer of my feet will not be more availing 

"than the curses of my head." And the nobleman 

commanded and gave him a cloak also. 

DCL. The wife of another lunatic came to the judge 

and made a complaint against her husband, saying, 

"He beateth me and he starveth me." And when the 

judge had rebuked him for such conduct the lunatic 

said, "As regards the beatings which I give her she 

"speaketh the truth, but fn the matter of the starving 

"she lieth." Then he fell at the feet of the judge, and 

entreated him to come in person with him to the door 

of his house that he might see for himself and judge 

rightly in the matter. Now when the judge heard 

[these words] he imagined that the lunatic wished to 

shew [him] the quantity of bread and meal which were 

in his house, so he rose up and went with him. Quum 

tamen ad aedium fores ventum est ingentem merdam 

illi monstravit quaesivitque, "Hanc per deos rem cogno- 

"scite, num istam merdam edere famelica valuisset?" 

And when the judge looked he was very angry and 

reproached himself because he had been persuaded to 

come with the lunatic. 

DCLI. Unto another lunatic a certain man said, 

"Why 

"standest thou idle? Behold, the prince distributeth two 

''suze to every man." The lunatic said, "Shew me, now, 

X2


"the 

two Buze which he hath given thee if thou art tell- 

"ing the truth." 

DCLII. A certain lawgiver became possessed of a 

devil, and a man said to him, "What saith the law 

"concerning a man who hath died and left a widow, 

"and a son, and a daughter, when it is found that he 

"hath also left behind him a thousand dinars?" The 

lunatic replied, "To the widow shall come widowhood, 

"to the son shall come the orphan's estate, and the 

"daughter hath that whereon she can live by whoring; 

"but the money shall be divided among the poor and 

"the lunatics who are not able to work."

STORIES OF THIEVES AND OF ROBBERS. 

DCLIII. 

When a certain man's money had been stolen 

the people said to him, "Grieve not, for in the day 

"of judgment the wages of him who took it shall not 

"be reckoned [unto him];" and he replied, "I do not know 

"about that, but at the moment he hath taken all my 

"wages." 

DCLIV. Certain things having been stolen from a 

man it was said to him, "Take refuge in God and in 

"the adorable Gospel, and He will expose the thief." 

The man replied, "If the thief had hearkened unto the 

"counsel of the Gospel, he would not only have robbed 

"me, but he would also have destroyed me and slain 

"me; for he would have heard our Lord saying, 'The 

"thief Cometh not except to steal and to slay, and to 

"destroy',' and how can He Who counselled the thief 

"thus 

expose him.-*" 

DCLV. When some thieves were stripping another 

man of his clothes he said to them, "Leave my clothes 

"on me, and I will send you the price thereof with 

"something in addition." The thieves said to him, "O 

"fool, who ever saw the robber who put anything out 

"at interest?" 

DCLVI. Another thief used only to steal children, 

^ St. John X. 10.

I 66 

THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR.EUS. 

whom he sold. 

And when he was asked why he did 

this, he said, "I steal children because they will all 

"rise at the Resurrection, and when people demand 

"their children from me I shall be able to say, 'Here 

"'are your children, take them.' But if I were to steal 

"an ass or a garment, whence should I obtain them 

"when they were demanded from me in the day of 

"the Resurrection?" 

DCLVII. Another thief having stolen much clothing 

from a certain house, the owners of the house found 

out who he was and captured him: and he began to 

entreat them to let him go, and took an oath that he 

would leave off stealing. Then they said unto him, "Let 

"go our clothing then, and go to the Devil's per- 

"dition," whereupon the thief said to them, "If ye 

"take those things away from me on what shall I live 

"during the time of [my] repentance? 

For behold, I have 

"sworn to you that I will not steal again, and I have 

"no other handicraft." 

DCLVIII. Some thieves went to the house of a certain 

man by night, and began to search for something which 

they found not, whereupon the owner of the house 

said to them, "O brave boys, that which ye seek to 

"find in this house by night I have looked for therein 

"very carefully, but have not found it." 

DCLIX. Another man was repeating a story of how 

whilst travelling along the road together with twenty 

men, two wicked highwaymen fell upon them and 

stripped them of what they had. And when it was 

said to him, "How could two men get the mastery over 

"you?" he said, "What could we do? For one of them 

"seized one of us and the other did the plundering; 

"how then could one of us vanquish two?"

STORIES OF THIEVES AND OF ROBBERS. I 6/ 

DCLX. From one of the elders a Book of the 

Gospels with a golden case was stolen, and he stood 

up in the church, and admonished and cursed him that 

had stolen it. And when he saw them all weeping 

and uttering curses with him, he said to them, "Behold, 

"all ye people of the village, ye all weep, men, and 

"women, and children, but if your weeping be sincere, 

"who stole the Book of the Gospels?" 

DCLXI. When some money had been stolen from 

another man, he said, "This is a sad day," and a thief 

replied, "Not for every man." 

DCLXII. When another robber broke into a house 

and found nothing therein except a pen and some ink, 

he took [the pen] and wrote on the wall, "Woe is me 

"for your sakes! How needy and lazy ye must be." 

DCLXIII. From another man some money was stolen, 

and he suspected that his wife had stolen it. And 

while he was weeping and groaning his neighbour said 

to him, "Weep not, have hope in God and He will 

"return to thee thy money." And the man said to 

him, "Behold, this woman maketh no use of God, and 

"it will not be easy for her to return anything; and 

"as for God, whom doth He fear that He should return 

"anything?" 

DCLXIV. Another thief stole an ass and carried him 

to the market to sell, and when he was asked for how 

much he had sold it, he said, "For exactly what I gave 

"for it: I gained nothing and I lost nothing." 

DCLXV. Certain thieves went into the house of another 

man, and took everything which they found 

therein, and they left nothing there except a mat; and 

as they were going out the owner of the house took 

the mat himself and went forth with them. The thieves

I 68 


said to him, "Where art thou going with us?" and he 

replied, "To see the house to which we are going 

"from here, for God hath made you to carry for me 

"my property without payment." 

DCLXVI. Another thief broke into a house and 

found there nothing but a jar of wine whereof he was 

glad; and he took [it] and drank [it], and became drunken. 

In the morning the master of the house rose up and 

found him lying there asleep, and he took his upper 

tunic and went and sold it in the market, and boueht 

something to eat; and this he brought home and cooked 

and ate, and the remainder he left. Now when the 

thief woke up he found that 

the eye of day had risen, 

and that as he could not go forth he must hide himself 

until the evening. And when the evening had come 

the thief waited for the master of the house to go to 

sleep so that he might go forth; and when he had 

gone to sleep the thief rose up to depart, and again 

ransacked everything in the house but found nothing 

except that which the master of the house had left of 

his food. And this he sat down and ate, and he took 

[some of the wine], and drank it and made merry and 

did not go forth until the morning. Then the master 

of the house arose, and finding him still there, he took 

his second tunic and went yet again [to the market] 

and sold it, and bought some things to eat; and he 

brought these home, and cooked and ate of them, and 

what was over he left. And the thief woke up at the 

third hour of the day and could not, therefore, depart; 

so he remained until the night. Now when he was wishing 

to go forth once more, he found the food which had been 

left, and he ate it, and drank [wine], and became drunken 

and fell asleep. Then the master of the house rose up

STORIES OF THIEVES AND OF ROBBERS. I 69 

and took his cloak and went and sold it, and thus the 

two of them did until the master of the house left no 

garment at all on the thief not even his loin-cloth. 

And finally when the thief woke up and found that he 

had nothing at all wherewith to cover his body, he 

said to himself "Why should I fear the master of the 

"house? For he hath eaten of what belongs to me 

"more than I have eaten of his." Then he went, and 

woke him up, and said, "Give me something where- 

"with I may cover myself, so that I may turn and de- 

"part; where is my clothing?" The master of the house 

said to him, "Where am I to get it to give thee? 

"Consider, 

now, what we have spent and what we have 

"eaten. On the first day we ate the price of thy upper 

"tunic, and on the second day the price of thy lower 

"one, and on the third day the price of thy cloak, and 

"on the fourth day the price of thy loin-cloth. If thou 

"wert able to drink more than what thou didst eat, 

"why didst thou not inform me? For I did not prepare 

"food for thee."

STORIES OF WONDERFUL EVENTS AND OCCURRENCES. 

DCLXVII. They say that the mind of a certain sage 

was so wonderfully acute that he acquired the knowledge 

of the four sciences of mathematics in one year, 

and that he understood them perfectly. And it came 

to pass that he forgot all this learning, and that his 

understanding was so disturbed that one day he took 

hold of his beard in his hand, wishing to shave off that 

which was superfluous: but he let go that which was 

below his hand and cut off that which was above it. 

Thus he remained beardless and he was obliged to sit 

in the house for a whole year until his beard grew 

long again. 

DCLXVIII. It is found written in a certain Hebrew 

book that, at the time when the prophet Isaiah was 

sawn asunder with a saw, a certain traveller tarried 

the night with another man. And the traveller 

began to speak to the master of the house, saying, 

"Do not imagine that God will be unmindful of the 

"murderers of the prophet, for He will reward them 

"in this world ;" and the master of the house said to 

him, "I was one of those who held the saw." And it 

came to pass that whilst they were conversing the flame 

of the lamp flickered and spluttered, and the master of 

the house straightway put his hand out to make it

— 1 

; 

STORIES OF WONDERFUL EVENTS AND OCCURRENCES. I 7 

burn properly. And the flame caught hold of his fingers 

—now at that time they burned naphtha in their lamps 

and as he at once put his mouth to spit on them, 

straightway the fire caught his beard and face, and 

although he went and threw himself into the cistern of 

water, the whole of him was consumed. 

DCLXIX. A certain nobleman was sitting at table 

eating, and the smell of his cooked meat was wafted 

out into the market-place; and a poor man came and 

begged for a little of it. And the wife of the nobleman 

rose up to give him some, but he cried out to her 

and would not allow her to do so. And it came to 

pass, when the nobleman had eaten and had risen up 

from the table, that he rose up to go on the roof, 

and he fell down from the top of the ladder and died 

and his wife inherited everything that he had. Then 

she returned to her father's house and began to give 

away the old clothes of her husband, among which was 

a very old pillow, and one day she saw a certain poor 

man and gave this to him. And the poor man went 

and emptied out the hay stuffing that he might wash 

the pillow-case, and he found inside it one thousand 

dinars of gold. Then he took the money and obtained 

for himself goodly apparel, and he took his seat in the 

clothworkers' bazaar; and he told the old women to 

look out for a wife for him to marry. And it came to 

pass that one of them went and found the lady who 

had given him the pillow, and the woman returned 

and said to him, "Behold, I have found a beautiful 

"widow, but she is a young and a God-fearing woman, 

"and she hath inherited great wealth from her first 

"husband." And the man was pleased with her and 

sent to her the gifts of a bridegroom to a bride, and 

Y2


took her to wife. Now when she had gone to his 

house and had repeated to him the story of her life, 

and the account of the poor man who had begged for 

some food and of her husband's death, he in his turn 

told her the story of the pillow, whereupon they recognised 

each other. And they glorified God, Who had 

given to the poor man the house, and property, and 

wife of him that had deprived him of a little food. 

DCLXX. Another of the Prankish merchants was 

about to go by sea to the country of China, when an 

old man came and entreated him to take with him in 

the ship a piece of lead [weighing] about ten litre, and 

to sell it in China, and buy with the price thereof 

something which he would find there and bring it back 

to him; and the merchant undertook to do so. And 

when he had arrived in China, a certain man came 

and asked him, "Hast thou no lead with thee?" and 

he replied, "I have a little;" and he sold the piece for 

one hundred and thirty dinars, and he bought with 

the money some silk and came back. Now the man 

who bought the lead from him also came and was a 

fellow-passenger in the ship with him, and he began 

to question him about him that had given him the lead; 

so the merchant described to him the old man. Then 

the man said, "This old man is my uncle, by whom 1 

"have been cruelly treated, and through whom I came 

"to this country. Now, therefore, will I reveal to thee 

"the story of the lead, for I am no longer afraid. When 

"I had bought the lead from thee I carried it to an- 

"other city where lead is exceedingly precious, and 

"certain 

buyers came to me and entreated me to break 

"it up and to give a piece to each of them. And 

"when I had broken it up in my house I found in the

STORIES OF WONDERFUL EVENTS AND OCCURRENCES. I 

73 

"middle of it one thousand mathkals of gold, and be- 

"hold, with them I purchased the things which I have 

"with me; and I thank God that He hath not deprived 

"me of what belonged to my uncle, even though he 

"hated me and would not willingly have given me any- 

"thing at all." Now when they arrived at their city 

they found that the old man was dead and that he 

had no other heir except his brother's son; so he took 

the silk which the merchant had with him and everything 

which he found in his uncle's house. 

DCLXXI. It is said that a certain man was sitting 

in company with some other men, and that some one 

called to him from behind him; and when he turned 

round to see who it was, he died. And some days 

after his son was asked, "How did thy father die?" and 

as he was shewing them and saying, "He turned round 

"and died, just like this," he also died as he uttered 

the 

words. 

DCLXXII. A certain young man whilst sleeping one 

night saw in his dream that the angels carried him to 

Gehenna and delivered him over to the devils who cast 

him into Gehenna; and by reason of his terror when he 

rose in the morning all the hair of his head and of his 

beard was quite white like that of an old man eighty 

years old. And his acquaintances wondered at him. 

DCLXXIII. It is said that a certain king wished to 

put one of his soldiers to death by poison, and having 

heard that he was about to have a vein opened he 

called the physician who usually bled him, and giving 

him gifts ordered him to poison the scalpel. And he 

went and did so, and he opened the vein of the soldier 

and he died ; and 

the physician put the scalpel among 

his other scalpels and forgot it. And it came to pass


that some days after this the physician himself needed 

to be bled, and he told his disciple to open a vein; 

and the disciple went and unconsciously took that same 

scalpel and opened his master's vein, and thus he died 

by the same means as those by which he had killed 

the 

soldier. 

DCLXXIV. It is said that once on a time a certain 

blind man was on board a ship, together with seventy 

souls, and that the ship having been wrecked they 

were all drowned except the blind man who saved 

himself by means of a spar; 

yet when he came on shore 

he fell sick and died. 

DCLXXV. Once on a time a certain wealthy man 

who had become absolutely poor, went to another rich 

man who was his friend, and when he had shewn him 

his condition his friend brought out a bag containing 

three hundred dinars, and he swore an oath that besides 

these he had nothing else left. And when his 

friend had taken the bag and had gone to his house, 

another of his friends came to him and shewed him 

that he had not enough money for a day's expenses; 

and he had compassion upon him and brought forth 

the bag, saying, "I also have nothing, but one of my 

"friends gave me this bag. Do thou, however, take it, 

"and God will provide for me." And when the friend had 

taken the bag and gone to his house, before he opened 

it, there came unto him the man unto whom the bag 

had belonged originally, and asked him for some help, 

and the friend said within himself, "I apprehend that 

"this bag hath not fallen to my lot;" so he took it out 

and gave it to the man. And when he saw it he recognized 

that it was his own bag and he asked the 

friend concerning the matter, and the friend told him

— 

STORIES OF WONDERFUL EVENTS AND OCCURRENCES. I 

75 

that such and such an one had given it to him. And 

the original owner said, "And I gave it to him, but 

"justice demandeth that we should divide it among the 

"three [of us]." And they sent and called the other man 

and divided the money equally among them. 

DCLXXVI. A certain sailor, that is to say a mariner, 

related the following:— "Once when I was in a certain 

"^city of Hagiopontos a merchant called me into his 

''house, and said unto me, 'If thou canst carry me in 

''thy ship to the country of Palestine secretly, I will 

'"give thee whatsoever thou askest; 

for the king of the 

'"country hath set his eye upon me, and he is expecting 

" 'gifts from me, the which I am bringing from my store.' 

"Then I being greedy said, '[It shall be according to] 

"'thy command;' so I took all the possessions of the 

"man, which [in value] amounted to more than one 

"hundred thousand dinars of Egyptian gold, besides 

"royal apparel. And I took the man also, and one 

"night we embarked in the ship and put out to sea, 

"and there fell upon us sea-robbers and they carried 

"off all the merchant's property and also wished to kill 

'him. Then I entreated them to let me put him ashore 

"naked, and after a time I myself escaped from them. 

"And I went to one of the cities of Palestine and I 

"found that same man sitting by a roadside asking for 

"alms; and I glorified God Who maketh rich and Wi\o 

"maketh poor." 

DCLXXVII. Another man told the following story: 

"One day I lost a horse, and I went out to the plain 

"to find him ; and being hungry and thirsty I went into 

"a certain village where I saw in a certain house a 

"young woman with a beautiful face; and I asked her 

"for a little bread, and she said, 'Sit down that I may

1^6 


" 'bring thee a little cooked food.' And when I had sat 

"down her husband came and said to her, 'Did I marry 

'"thee to set out food for wayfarers?' And he said to 

"me, 'Get up, man, and go about thy business,' and 

"being ashamed I rose up and went to another village. 

"And when I had gone therein I met a young man with 

"a handsome face and I asked him for some bread, 

"and he replied, 'Prithee let us go to the house that 

'"thou mayest eat a little cooked food.' So I went 

"with him and we came to the door of his house, and 

"there came forth a woman and said, 'Who is this man?' 

"and the young man said, 'He is a traveller, and I have 

'"brought him to eat bread.' And the woman said, 

'"Have I taken thee for a husband that thou shouldst 

'"bring wayfarers in on me in this wise?' and she shut 

"the door in his face and mine. Then I laughed out 

"loud straightway, and I began to wonder at the man 

"in the first village, and at the woman in this village. 

"And the young man asked me why I laughed, and I 

"told him what had happened to me in the former 

"village; and having described to him the house and 

"the woman and her husband, he said to me, 'This is 

'"much more worthy of wonder— that the woman is my 

'"sister, and this wife of mine is the sister of the man 

'"who is my sister's husband.'"

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS DESCRIBED BY THE SAGES. 

DCLXXVIII. Soft hair indicateth timidity, and harsh 

hair is a sign of bravery. For behold, the camel, and 

the hare, and the lamb have soft hair, but the lion 

and the wild pig have harsh hair; now this characteristic 

is found also in the fowl of the air. An abundance of 

hair on the belly indicateth a strong desire for marriage; 

and this [observation] is derived from winged fowl. 

DCLXXIX. The man with coarse hair, and lofty 

stature, and a broad belly, and a closely knit back, 

and broad shoulders, and little flesh on his neck, and 

a fleshy breast, and small thighs, and red and dry eyes, 

and a long and pointed forehead, is a mighty man 

and a hunter; but he who hath the reverse of these 

attributes is a weak and timid man. 

DCLXXX. He whose flesh is soft, and who is not 

fat overmuch, whose arms move easily, whose hair is 

soft and not black overmuch, and whose complexion 

is between red and white, is a good man by nature and 

in him there is no wickedness. 

DCLXXXI. He that hath much flesh on his neck, 

and large feet, and shoulders drawn upwards, and a 

round belly, and forehead and a tinge of green in his 

eyes, is a man who is without sexual passion. 

DCLXXXII. He that hath his eyes open always, and

' 

the 


thick eyebrows, and a meagre stature, and hasty movements, 

and a ruddy colour, and a round face, 'and a 

mole on his cheek, is an impudent and audacious man. 

DCLXXXIII. He that hath an emaciated face, and 

eyebrows which do not meet, and slow movements, is 

a man who grieveth and despaireth habitually. 

DCLXXXIV. He whose head leaneth to the right, 

and whose knees are stretched out from each other in 

walking, who moveth his arms as he goeth along, who 

leaneth with his hand on the top of his side when he 

sitteth down, and who doth not look upon the various 

sides [of a matter] in a disordered manner, is a man 

who is blessed in all his movements and actions, and 

he is naturally noble. 

DCLXXXV. He that hath a broad cheek, and coarse 

thick hair upon it, and quick movements of the head, 

is a man of wrath. 

DCLXXXVI. He that hath the upper lip 

larger than 

lower one, and a ruddy colour, and a hasty gait, 

is a man easily [moved] to words of abuse. 

DCLXXXVII. He that hath a whitish colour, and 

very fat eyes, and a round nose, and moist eyes, is a 

man prone to the passion of love and to the love of 

women; he will never allow himself to do harm to 

any man whatsoever, and usually daughters are born 

to 

him. 

DCLXXXVIII. The man who hath the upper members 

of his body larger than the lower ones, and a flat nose, 

and a fat body, and a fluent speech, and a superabundance 

of hair on his belly, loveth his children exceedingly. 

DCLXXXIX. The man who hath a thick neck is a 

man of wrath, and is even like the bull.

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS. I 

79 

DCXC. The man who hath a long and thin neck 

is a man addicted to love like the gazelle. 

DCXCI. He that hath a very meagre neck is a craftyman 

like the wolf. 

DCXCII. He that shaketh his legs as he goeth along 

is one who meditateth upon lofty subjects and is even 

like the lion, especially if his arms are curved. 

DCXCIII. He that hath thin and mobile lips, with 

the upper one falling over the lower, is a hunter even 

as are the lion and large dogs. 

DCXCIV. He that hath a thick upper lip, which appeareth 

to cover over the lower one, is a man lacking 

in intelligence, and dense in understanding and is even 

like the ass. 

DCXCV. He that hath a thick nose-end is a sluggish 

man and is even like the ox; but he that hath a thin 

nose-end is a man of wrath like the dog. 

DCXCVI. He that hath large ears is like unto the 

ass in his movements, for behold, those dogs which 

have small ears are very swift and active, in their 

movements. 

DCXC VII. He that hath deep-set eyes is cunning 

like the ape, and he that hath very prominent eyes is 

simple like the ass. 

DCXC VIII. He whose complexion is very black or 

very white is a timid man, like the Indians and the 

whole race of women. 

DCXCIX. He whose complexion is ruddy overmuch 

is one who leadeth into error, like the fox. 

DCC. He that hath a very red face is a lover of 

wine ; now this indication is derived from the drunkard. 

DCCI. He that hath blue or gray eyes is a 

timid man.

l8o 


DCCII. The man whose eyes are absolutely colourless 

is a fool, even like the goat. 

DCCIII. He that hath hair overmuch on his breast and 

belly hath neither foundation nor stability in his actions, 

and is even as are certain feathered fowl. 

DCCIV. He that hath no hair upon his breast is 

an impudent man, and he is even like unto a woman; 

but he that hath hair upon his breast is even like 

a lion. 

DCCV, He whose hair covereth his forehead is a 

man who is fitted naturally to be a slave. 

DCCVI. He whose steps are long behaveth wickedly 

in his actions: and he is accounted excellent, even as 

is the lion, especially if there be a sound [when he 

moveth] his 

arms. 

DCCVII. He whose eyes have swift motions is a 

plunderer, even as the hawk. 

DCCVIII. He that hath a dense body is a fool like 

unto the ass, especially if he hath a loud voice. 

DCCIX. The man who at the beginning speaketh 

with a loud voice and endeth his speech in a thin, 

small voice is one who grieveth and who beareth many 

burdens like the ox. 

DCCX. The man whose voice is feeble is timid like 

the lamb, and he whose voice is sharp and disjointed 

is a fool like the goat. 

DCCXI. The man who reigneth when yet exceedingly 

young, that is to say in his childhood, being naturally 

of a good disposition, will not live to an old age, and 

in his hands the sovereignty will pass from his race, 

and things will happen in his time which have never 

happened before. Similarly, if a man reign in the prime 

of life, and he be naturally of a wicked, avaricious, and

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS. 161 

greedy disposition, his kingdom will not endure. But 

the kingdom of the man who cometh to the throne 

when he is forty or fifty years of age, being naturally 

of a good disposition, will endure in proportion to the 

age which he is when he beginneth to reign. This 

fact hath been demonstrated by the experience of a 

great many sages 

of old. 

DCCXII. The man who hath round eyes which project 

from his head and have red streaks in them is a 

miser, and an avaricious and corrupt man; and if it 

happen that they are directed upwards continually he 

hath not a single good trait in his character. Similarly 

a broad face is a sign of good nature, and for a man 

to have a face which is broad at the top and narrow 

at the chin is an indication of an evil nature. 

DCCXIII. The man who hath a wide space 

between 

the eyebrows, and who winketh with the left eye, and 

whose ear is full of hair, and who looketh on the 

ground is crafty,, and subtle, and deceitful, especially 

if his nose inclineth to the left. 

DCCXIV. The man whose eyes are deep-set, and 

who hath a high forehead, and slightly elongated face, 

is an audacious fellow who will live long. 

DCCXV. The man who hath large lips, and a flat 

nose, and great eyes which stare upwards is a fool, 

and no trust can be placed in him. 

DCCXVI. The man who hath small eyes, and long 

eyelashes, and a high forehead, and a loose mouth, 

and crisp hair, and a bald skull, is a tyrant and one 

who sheddeth blood. 

DCCXVII. The man who hath large eyes, with a 

cast(.'') in the left one, and a handsome face, is a 

lover of wisdom, and is of keen intelligence; he is also


addicted to fornication and is not entirely free from 

fraud. 

DCCXVIII. The woman whose nose-end is slightly 

large, and who hath large black eyes with a slight 

tinge of red in the left one is chaste; she shunneth 

marriage with the greatest care, and hideth herself in 

corners. 

DCCXIX. Thick and bushy eyebrows, small eyes, 

thick lips, and a sharp nose are bad signs in a woman. 

DCCXX. No woman with a round face, and a small 

nose, and a pointed head, and whose eye is darker than 

her complexion, and whose hair is crisp, can escape 

fornication. 

DCCXXI. The man whose eyes project from his head 

and who prolongeth his gaze on anything, is one who 

boasteth of himself and hath a high spirit, and is 

strenuous in worldly matters. 

DCCXXII. He whose nose-end is high is one who 

hateth occupation. 

DCCXXIII. Sharpness of nose, exceeding blackness 

of the eye, length of hair, and hasty speech, are signs 

of wrath and anger; the inward qualities of the man 

who hath them do not testify to his externals, and he 

is the offspring of fornication. 

DCCXXIV. Furthermore, little 

compassion, avariciousness, 

mercllessness, lasciviousness, insolent speech and 

weakness in action are the signs of an adulterer and 

of one who is the offspring of fornication. 

DCCXXV. Aristotle the Great said', "Since the soul 

' 

For the original Greek text see Didot's edition of Aristotle, 

fol. iv. p. I. The following passage, having reference to the 

same subject, I extract from Bar-Hebraeus' great translation of

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS. I 83 

"and the body are counterparts in growth and are 

"the natural kinsmen, each of the other, each of them 

Aristotle's work entitled, "Butter of Wisdom," rÂvsai** A^rt'cuj 

cnA r^&Mh\ia jcJp^ ^qAjci 1^ ^î K'ocn KlxA-jJôxOso 

..iâJ rdz^.1 t rSii-.-ircr criV^=> rî^r^ S^ : 4v\A»:i 

AVn rdijw cnY^.i pi'\\n ^ 

.TsAa ri'iixM AxliJ* v^rC .^îM 

,ep .Mlkhw fCui«r .^.ooA^ra rdai-Jw TajS t^î^la^^«i=a 

vK'A^ri' cruifup^ io.m1= rcSjcC^ Oco rixai ^^.^ 

.rû^h\x:x ^x.^r^ ^î^\=> rS'Axpi' r^xui «"«i»> i.^îri'S


"acteth upon the other, and each is acted upon by his 

"fellow. The soul is acted upon by the body in sea- 

"sons of anger, and love, and sadness, and because the 

"body is the revealer of our senses, the soul concealeth 

"by means of the body the motion whereby we came 

"to know this. And this is the science of physiognomy, 

"and the signs which it possesseth are threefold. 

"For either by the resemblance which we see between 

"some human and some animal form do we identify 

"the motions of the person from the motions of the 

"animal; or by the likeness which we see between a 

"certain human being and a certain being among the 

"various human races—as we might say the Ethiopians, 

"or the Huns, or the Hittites—and when we compare 

"the habits of the person with those of [one belonging 

"to] these nations we cannot make a mistake; or the 

"form of some person whom we see being like unto 

"the form of him that is angry, or him that is afraid, 

"or him that lusteth; therefore he who is naturally a 

"man of wrath, or a timid man, or a man of lust we 

A>a=5iA ..iQ w*-) rîrtflrs rtfi>oirdMa .K'i.âiLSO rîpe^ 

rdlo rS'Ô'irSlM.l Kl\ K'^CU&Ajlm.i rÂxr^ KliiA^ rÂcu» 

.coaadflo îoiTa îiar^ .i^ .T

PHYSIOGNOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS. I 85 

"can describe and be certain that we are right. And 

"this art hath need of a subtle intellect, and a pro- 

"found understanding, and a perfect mind, and the 

"heavenly aid of God—may His glory be adored! And 

"he, 

who will ornament [his] understanding with spiritual 

"light and, will devote himself to the understanding [of 

"physical signs], will be even like unto the sun in true 

"light in respect of the things which are visible, for 

"without it no single eye is able to attain thereunto." 

DCCXXVI. A certain wise man wished to listen 

rather than to speak, and being asked "Why?" replied, 

"It was for this reason that God created one tongue 

"and two ears for man." 

DCCXXVII. Another wise man said, "As men are 

"wont to try vessels of earthenware by their ring, 

"so also is a man tried by the word of his mouth." 

even 

-J


^ê wvikx 6Ait^:— 

"etoviu wU

[The following verses are not found in the India 

Office 

MS.] 

EXHORTATION TO A LIFE OF EXCELLENCE. 

As a mourner weeping thou didst enter the world on 

the day of thy birth, 

Though thou didst bring joy and laughter to thy kinsfolk; 

Take care that thou art joyful and innocent on the day 

of thy death, 

When they are weeping and wailing by reason of thy s 

departure. 

THE WORTHLESSNESS OF [tHIs] FLEETING LIFE. 

The [days of] men's lives are few and evil, as hath 

been said. 

And are for the most part, [full of] toil, and pain, and 

suffering, and disgrace. 

Childhood hath [its] faults and stripes of correction; 

And manhood its fatiguing passions and goadings of lo 

the flesh; 

And in old age sickness and pain wear [a man] to 

nothing. 

Then, straightway, death snatcheth [him] away to the 

storehouse 

of the grave. 

And, behold, there are for him henceforth either the 

awful judgment, and the fiery furnace, 

AA2

155 MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS. 

And the torment and the thick darkness wherein there 

is no light, 

IS Or happiness with the angels in the shining heavens. 

ON THE TRANSIENT NATURE OF [tHIS] WORLD. 

The moon, by reason of her phases, 

a type 

of man. 

may be taken as 

She Cometh into being, she waxeth, she groweth old, 

she dieth, and is as if she had never been. 

The course of her hours daily depicteth the form of the end, 

20 And teacheth us that in the same manner the world 

and the things thereof must pass away. 

ON DEATH AND THE RESURRECTION. 

The mornings and the evenings without written words 

depict 

The story of death and of the resurrection by means 

of things which are visible. 

Night, like death, cometh upon all beings and creatures, 

25 And spreadeth out over all rest and silence and tranquillity. 

He carrieth away the crowns of exalted kings shamelessly, 

And all the ranks of mighty men sink to rest at his 

approach. 

He depriveth thrones also of their splendour. 

And from princes he demandeth tax and tribute. 

30 He maketh merchants to cease suddenly from travelling. 

And handicraftsmen also from their trades and handicrafts. 

He sheweth the way to all husbandmen coming from 

their 

fields.

MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS. 1 

89 

And work and tillage upon all homesteads come to 

an end. 

He burieth every man in his bed as if he were dead, 

And he draweth over his face the gate of sleep as it 3S 

were a curtain. 

He bindeth on crowns and is boastful, and commandeth 

all creation, 

And he subdueth the sceptres of sea and of land [to 

his] 

dominion. 

He maketh the earth to appear unformed, and waste, 

and void, 

And he stilleth the clamour of all those who are prosperous 

through trafficking. 

And as with colour he depicteth to every man the 40 

type of the end. 

And how the course of the world and of the vault of 

heaven will cease. 

Morn riseth like unto the sun of righteousness. 

And with his beams he driveth away the night from 

the ends of the earth. 

Like a trumpet the light it beareth forth into the inhabited 

world, 

And men rise up from sleep as out of the grave. 4S 

Suddenly each man possesseth himself of life and wakefulness, 

And every one pursueth his labours with zeal and 

diligence. 

Mo>n commandeth the earth to beget its offspring from 

the 

womb of night. 

And each man riseth up to the things which belong 

to him in due order; 

The rich man riseth up to his riches and the poor man 50 

to his poverty without confusion.

I 90 

MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS. 

Morn painteth the picture of the great day of the 

Resurrection, 

And sheweth how every man will possess the [fruit of] 

his labour from justice. 

OF THE FOOLS WHO MAGNIFY THEMSELVES OVER THE WISE. 

The time when foxes shall turn into lions hath not yet 

been recorded, 

SS Nor when slaves shall have obtained dominion over 

their lords. 

OF THE DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST ON OUR BEHALF. 

O turtle-dove, I am struck with wonder at thee, for I 

marvel at thee, 

For though thou hast ornaments on thy neck, 

thou pitch in thy hands, 

yet hast 

and weeping in thy mouth. 

If thou art a bride why have thy wailings disturbed 

the 

woods? 

60 And if thou art a mourner wherein do thine ornaments 

benefit thy body? 

The dove replieth, "The love of my spouse hangeth 

upon my neck like a jewelled ornament, 

"And my hands are dyed with his precious blood as 

it were with a pledge. 

"And, behold, I suffer henceforth through what he 

suffered for me, 

"Even as I take pride in and am glad because of his 

resurrection." 

65 THE DISSOLUTION OF THE WORLD. 

A certain wise man likened the world to the globe of 

the sun.

MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS. I 9 

1 

Which in turning in the hands of children indicateth 

the 

end; 

It leapeth from one to another and passeth on without 

stopping. 

And it indicateth to us that temporal glory is a dream. 

The new moon sheweth the vanishing of the time of 7° 

my life, 

And I take pride therein, and my mind rejoiceth in the 

sight 

thereof. 

She is born, she waxeth, she waneth, she dieth away, 

and finally disappeareth, 

And every man occupieth himself with vain things and 

feareth 

not. 

For the lamb is bound beneath the knife whilst its 

fellow 

leapeth. 

And men are greatly moved by things which are to 7S 

be greatly desired whilst death spoileth. 

ANOTHER. 

O young man, thou lover of the world, let not this 

[present] enjoyment flatter thee. 

For the name of this world is derived from labour', 

yea, even from vexation. 

OF THE CRAFTY MAN, AND OF THE MOCKER, AND OF THE 

BOASTER. 

The man who is wicked, and is crafty, and is a boaster, so 

Continually pryeth into the lapses of his neighbour. 

And rather than gaze upon virtues he closeth the eye. 

And, like the fly, never seeketh anything but a sore. 

^ 

The play here is on the words riSQiii- "world", and ri'i'^ns 

"labour".

192 MISCELLANEOUS MORAL EXHORTATIONS. 

OF THE AVARICIOUS MAN. 

85 The man who is sluggish and altogether lazy in [doing] 

good 

Leaveth behind not any to pollute the wall. 

That the miser may heap up money he will even wear 

sandals 

of iron, 

For never by any means whatsoever doth he improve 

in 

virtue. 

He is a fountain from which man draweth not water. 

go And even though such a fountain were the spring of 

Siloam it would be meet for it to be shut up. 

When such a fountain is choked man complaineth not, 

And when its waters are cut off every man rejoiceth, 

and leaveth it, and is at peace. 

ANOTHER. 

The perverse prince of a people should firs of all 

correct 

himself, 

95 And then his people; otherwise his labour will be in vain. 

For the crooked shadow cannot be straight 

Except the wood from which it 

cometh be also straight. 

ON THE DEATH OF A BELOVED ONE. 

O our brother, at thy death I am stricken with amazement, 

I am afflicted and am utterly undone, 

100 And what I shall say of both matters I know not. 

For either in thy death have I eaten of the second 

death. 

Or death in thy death hath swallowed me up like a dragon. 

O our little brother, among the brethren thou wert 

splendid 

and glorious.

ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-MA'DANI. I 

93 

Even as thou wert splendid and glorious among the 

stars 

of clay. 

Thou didst dissipate all afflictions and sorrows, '°S 

Even as the rays of the sun scatter the darkness at 

noonday. 

Against sufferings we had a buckler and armour, 

And by thy converse every disagreeable thing was 

driven away. 

ANOTHER. 

The Lord, Who hath wrought great and mighty deeds no 

on earth. 

And hath made the dead to live and hath given strength 

to the feeble, 

Will give thee, O my brother, happiness with the angelic 

hosts. 

And will sprinkle thee with the dew of mercy and of 

glorious things. 

And the spirits of the righteous will be friends and 

brethren 

of thine. 

ANOTHER. 

H5 

ON THE DEATH OF THE PATRIARCH JOHN BAR-MA DANi ', 

BY GREGORY BAR-HEBRÛS. 

O Angel of Death, why hast thou smitten me with 

such sorrow as this. 

And hast pitilessly rewarded me with such evil as this? 

The sun of time, the luminary, the prop of the Church, 

The head of the soul, the soul of the spirit, the right 12° 

spirit, 

' 

He was created Maphrian A.D. 1232, and Patriarch in 1252, 

and he died in 1263.

194 ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-MA DANI. 

The fruit of the heart, the life of life, the light of the 

pupil of the eye, 

The holy of holies, the pure in feelings, the new spirit. 

Hast thou taken away from us; and our lament is one 

of mourning. 

Thou hast cast our crown to earth, 

our exalted horn. 

thou hast overturned 

125 Under thy protection it became springtime for us throughout 

the year. 

And even winter took upon itself the attribute of summer. 

In the time of December as in the time of January 

We possessed a rose without any hateful thing and 

grapes on the vine. 

No man among us ever drew nigh to the fig-tree 

130 Without seeing it to be full of fruit, yea, richly dowered 

therewith. 

[Our] garden was like unto the Garden of Eden, 

And, behold, without our father, it is like unto the 

bottommost hell. 

O father of truth, let all life perish except thy life, 

And if I forget thee, let this my beloved right hand 

forget 

me. 

135 Through thy removal, behold, the Church hath become 

filled with grief 

And through the want of the perfection which belongeth 

to thee it hath become a defective thing-. 

That which belonged to thyself alone hath become a 

And to 

strange 

form, 

thee alone hath come the manhood of our Lord. 

Tell me, O our father, where thy blessed habitation is, 

140 And how the eye which hath become infirm can see 

thee. 

Though there fall to me the fiercest path of fire,

ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-MA DANI. 1 95 

Yet I will travel on the top thereof, even though it blaze 

with flame. 

The pure soul which was in thy body hath become 

And it 

perfect, 

hath straightway become mingled with the phalanxes 

of the Watchers and of the spiritually wise; 

Above the fiery coals among the wheels [hast thou] set hs 

thy 

footstep. 

If thou couldst permit me to see the divine Shechinah, 

The eye of the soul which though now it were bashful, 

Yet at the sight of thy shadow would it become luminous. 

This despised form [of mine] would be unworthy to 

see 

thee. 

Therefore hath thy Lord made for thee a house in the 150 

heavens. 

In all the world ipy soul hath become a wretched and 

apostate 

thing. 

And thyself alone in all the world wast its friend. 

Why didst thou leave it in despair and solitude.'^ 

Why didst thou not take it with thee as a handmaiden 

or as a servant? 

Since it never at any time spared itself in [thy] service, 155 

Why didst thou leave it in tears behind thee like a 

rejected thing? 

From the time when it came into being it never heard 

the voice of weeping, 

But through thy departure it hath become skilled in the 

arts 

of grief 

What one who mourneth for a lover or for a mistress, 

Payeth heed to the voice of him that draweth nigh 160 

with 

speech of consolation? 

Though thinking to give comfort to others like the 

tragedian. 

BB2

— 

196 ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-Ma'dANI. 

Its own habitation is far removed from consolation. 

In the dreams of the night when [my] rational soul is 

empty, 

It becometh painted with shapes of vanity in thy form,_ 

165 For thou knowest that that which was sweet hath become 

most bitter. 

And what ill luck hath come upon the soul that was 

thine handmaiden, O mistress! 

From the time when became certain to thee the intention 

It 

of departure 

became empty and destitute of both knowledge and 

understanding. 

In the treasury of the mind blazing fire halh been piled up, 

170 Which overcometh with fierce flame and burning the 

Babylonish woman. 

With the dew of life of thine angelic shadow 

Unless thou sprinkle her behold she will be burnt up 

like the Chaldean woman. 

Her liver 

hath become to her a well^— like the Israelitish 

woman 

And in it is preserved the unquenchable fire of thy love. 

175 In two mighty fire-temples it hath become a dweller. 

And within a very little it had worshipped the fire 

like 

a Persian. 

In the heart and liver, which are the houses of life, 

the fire kindleth. 

And into them entereth the Magian prophetess to prophesy. 

Inasmuch as her body is enfeebled and her mind 

wandereth, 

180 If she erreth in her speech let her not be blamed. 

My heart hath no peace and quietness, and my mind 

getteth no rest,

ON THE DEATH OF JOHN BAR-MA'DANI. I 

97 

And without thy likeness there will never remain perception 

in my brain. 

[My] sleep by day and by night is washed with tears, 

"And for this reason a sleepless eye hath come to me. 

If an unwatchful eye hath ever been seen,* 185 

It would fix itself to see thee; and if [it] did not no 

man would see it sunk in slumber.* 

For at thy gate [my] soul standeth like a beggar, 

Asking a vision of thyself in a dream and not a cake. 

* I am uncertain about the meaning of these lines.

^n^tx. 

Abraham 32. 

Abraham, disciple of Sisoes 

43, 45- 

Actors, stories of 129— 139. 

Agathon, Abba 42, 46. 

Ahmad ibn 'Abd el-Aziz 27. 

Aleppo 148. 

Alexander the Great, 8, 10, 

letter to his mother 12, 13; 

glass vessels brolcen by 14; 

his chastity 15; his saying 

about the Amazons 15. 

Alexander, History of, 

12, 16. 

Alexander, the soldier 10. 

quoted 

Alexandria 10. 

Al-Ma'mun 60. 

Amazons 16. 

Ammon, Abba 46, 52, 53, 55. 

Angels 46. 

Antony, Abba 38, 41, 52, S3- 

Ape and the dog, story of 91. 

Apostles 123. 

April 23. 

Arab ascetics, sayings of, 

70—79. 

Aramean 3. 

Araunah 134. 

Ardashir 21, 26, 80. 

Aristotle 8, 9, 10, 13, 15, 182. 

Arithmetic 151. 

Arsenius 38, 39, 40, 52. 

Arteries, the 83. 

Babel 99. 

Babylon 99. 

Bagdad 59, 60. 

Bakhtagan 18. 

Barber, story of 122. 

Bazarjamhir, sayings and stories 

of, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27. 

Behnam, Mar, Monastery of 1 58. 

Beasts, irrational, stories of 

speech of, 90—94. 

Benjamin 32. 

Bile, the red | 

Bile, the black 1 ^" 

Birdcatcher and the sparrow 93. 

Blacksmith and the woman, 

story of 124. 

Blood, the 83. 

Brethren, the two who took 

wives, 47. 

Butcher, story of a, 115. 

"Butter of Wisdom" quoted 183. 

Buzurjumihr 18.

. 

200 INDEX. 

Calumniator, the 20. 

Carrots 115. 

Cat, a black, story of, 103. 

Cell, the monk's 39, 41, 42. 

Chastity 31. 

Cheese 115. 

China 172. 

Christian recluses, sayings of 

38-55- 

Chronicles, the Book of, quoted 

134. 

City, the walled, lO; ornaments 

of 25. 

Clowns, stories of, 140—155. 

Cock and hawk, story of, 93. 

Comedians, stories of, 129— 139. 

Confession 33. 

Corinthians, Epistle to, quoteds 5 

Creator, the, 10. 

Cynic of Alexandria 10. 

Cyrus 18. 

Damascus 148. 

Darhsel and the fire 9. 

Darius, the daughters of, 15. 

Date, the, 10. 

David 124. 

Death 71. 

Devils 46. 

Diogenes and the harlot's child 

9; his house 12; stories and 

sayings of 14, .15, 26. 

Doctrine, the best 17; its effect 

on the soul 33. 

Dog and ape, story of, 91. 

Dog and fox, story of, 92. 

Dog and gazelle, story of, 92. 

Dreams, stories of, which have 

come true 95— 104. 

Edessa 154, 160. 

Egypt 40. 

El-Amin 60. 

Emesa 158. 

Envious, the 1 1. 

Ethiopians 1 84. 

Evagrius 52. 

Firdousi 19. 

Fish and the net, story of, 

13. 41- 

Flesh 31. 

Flies and the miser 117. 

Food, evil effects of too much, 

32. 

Fool, the greatest, 11. 

Fornication 45, 47. 

Fox and dog, story of 91, 93. 

Fox and the grapes, story of, 

94. 

Fox and the lioness, story 

of, 90. 

Fox, wolf and lion, story of, 90. 

Fox, wolf and hare, story of, 91. 

Foxes, the two, story of, 91. 

Friday 117. 

Gazelle 90. 

Gazelle and dog, story of, 92. 

Gehenna 70, 173. 

Gideon 123. 

Glass vessels of Alexander 14. 

Goat 90. 

Goat and Wolf, story of 91. 

Gospels, Book of, stolen, 167. 

Greediness 33. 

Greeks 58, 161. 

Grasshopper 32.

INDEX. 

20I 

Gratitude 34. 

Gushtasp 26. 

Hagiopontus 175. 

Hair, the 83. 

Hardihood 33. 

Hare 90. 

Hare, wolf, and fox, story of, 91. 

Harlotry 30. 

Harp, the 102, 129. 

Harun al-Rashid 59. 

Hawk and cock, story of, 93. 

Heart, the 83. 

Hebrew, the 3. 

Hebrew sages, sayings of 31 — 

37- 

Hercules 161, 

Hermes 142. 

Hippocrates 16. 

Hittites 184. 

Hoffmann's Auszuge quoted 158. 

Hormizd the sage 18. 

Horse, the 26. 

Hosanna Sunday 150. 

Humility 19, 44. 

Huns 184. 

Ibn al-Athir 18. 

Indian sages, sayings of, 28 — 30. 

Indians and the dying 28. 

Isaiah 170. 

Isidore 46. 

Ispandahar 26. 

John bar-Ma'dani, verses on 

his death by Bar-Hebraeus 

193 ff. 

John, Saint 123, 165. 

Joseph 32, 123. 

Jumada 59. 

Kaianian dynasty 26. 

Kaikubad 26. 

Khusrau Anosharwan 18, 19, 

20, 21, 22, 23, 24. 

Khusrau II. Parwez 24, 25. 

Kikobad 26. 

King, the, characteristic of, 10. 

Kings need wise men 18. 

Kirmen, Abba 44. 

Lamb, the story of, 91. 

Law, obligation of, 32. 

Lazarus 147. 

Lead, story of block of, 172. 

Lebanon 134. 

Leo the Pope 160. 

Liberality 33. 

Lines, straight and crooked, 9. 

Lion, the two-legged, 10. 

Lion, wolf, and fox, story of 90. 

Lioness and fox, story of 90. 

Liver, the 83. 

Lot 148. 

Luke, Saint 42, yd. 

Lunatics, stories of, 156— 164. 

Macarius, Abba, the Great 38, 

Jacob, Abba 52. 

Jacob Burdeaya 160, 

Jacob of Edessa 154. 

Ja'far 60. 

44. 

Macarius and the hyaenas 49, 

SO. 

Magians 141. 

CO

— 

202 INDEX. 

Maiden 9. 

Malcolm quoted 26. 

Mansur 60. 

Marcianus 161. 

Mardawij 27. 

Market-place 9. 

Mary the Virgin 123. 

Mas'udi quoted 18, 22, 24, 26. 

Matthew, Saint 52, 133, 144. 

Meradwikh 27. 

Merajil 60. 

Merchant and the glass vessels, 

story of, 127. 

Midwife 149. 

Minaret 152. 

Mirror 7, 16. 

Misers, stories of, in— 121. 

Moderation 84. 

Mohl 19, 26. 

Moses the Great 123, 134, 138. 

Moses, Abba 46. 

Mosul 99. 

Muhammad 134. 

Muhammadan kings and sages, 

stories of 56— 65. 

Muharram 60. 

Miiller 15. 

Muslim 3. 

Nathreh 99. 

Nature 84. 

Net and the fish, story of, 13. 

Nineveh 99. 

Nisan 23. 

Nitria 52. 

Noeldeke quoted 19. 

November 23. 

Nut, the 10, 104. 

October 23. 

Orators 11. 

Oman 134. 

Owls, the two, story of, 92. 

Pachomius, Abba 44. 

Palestine 233, 175. 

Palladius quoted 38 — 55. 

Paphnutius 38. 

Paradise ^6, 79, 129. 

Patra 46. 

Penitence 33. 

Persian sages, sayings of 1 8 — 27. 

Persians 58, 80. 

Peshitta 55. 

Pharaoh 138. 

Philosopher with two daughters, 

stories of, 8. 

Philosophers and the recluses 

Paul, St. 55- 

43- 

Philosophers, stories of the 

Greek, 7— 17. 

Phlegm, the 83. 

Physician and the captain of 

the host 17. 

Physicians, sayings of 80— 89. 

Physiognomical 

characteristics 

described by the sages 117 

185. 

Plato, stories of, 14, 17. 

Pleasure, the four kinds of, 11. 

Pococke 12. 

Podendon 60. 

Poemen 50, 51, 52. 

Poet and the miser, story of, 

III. 

Poverty 33. 

Prayer, season of, 32.

— 

INDEX. 203 

Prison 31. 

Prodigality 33. 

Prophet, Muhammad the 59. 

Prophets, the, 32. 

Psalms quoted 125, 137. 

Pseudo-Callisthenes 15. 

Pythagoras 11. 

Rebi' 59. 

Recreation, season of, 32. 

Resurrection 72, 166; Feast of 

ISO. 

Rhetorical art, the, 36. 

Ring of Pythagoras, the 11. 

Rieu, his Cat. of Persian MSS. 

quoted 19. 

Rome 40. 

Sabbath Day, the 97. 

Sailor and the ass 124. 

Samuel, Book of, quoted 134. 

Sanabadh 59. 

Sapor 25, 26. 

Sara, Mother 47. 

Satan 43. 

Saturday 43, 59. 

Scarabaeus 92. 

Scorpion 53. 

Scripture, Books of, 68. 

Sebastia 132, 133. 

Secret, difficulty of keeping a, 

Sepulchre 123. 

Shapur 21, 25. 

Silence 36, 42. 

Simpletons, stories of, 140 

13- 

155- 

Sinjar 158. 

Sisoes 43, 45, 49, S3, 

Sivas 132. 

Six things which abide not, 29. 

Skin, the 83. 

Snake S2. 

Socrates 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 15, 

17, 24. 

Sodomites 148. 

Sorrow 7. 

Spleen, the 83. 

Sparrow and birdcatcher, 

of, 93- 

Stag, story of, 90. 

Stomach 83. 

Sword 32. 

Taghrith 99. 

Talent, the 10. 

Tarsus 60. 

story 

Tax-gatherer, story of, 127. 

Taxes 152. 

Teachers, stories of 66— 79. 

Tekrit 99. 

Teshrin 23. 

Theatre 9. 

Theodore, Abba 42. 

Thieves, stories of, 165 — 169. 

Thorn-bush, story of 92. 

Tigris 99. 

Tooth-drawer, story of, 124. 

Tornberg 18. 

Trafficking, season of, 32. 

Tus 59. 

Vengeance 31. 

Wantonness 31. 

Weavers, stories of, 122, 123.

204 INDEX. 

Wednesday 117. 

Wife, the thin 15. 

Wine 26; effects of 29. 

Wolf and goat, story of 91. 

Wolf, fox, and hare, story of, 

91. 

Wolf, fox, and lion, story of, 

90. 

Woman, the, 

who hanged herself, 

7; the most irrational 

animal 13; the chaste 26. 

Zafar-Namah 19. 

Zahrah 98, 99. 

Zakron 133. 

Zodiac 142. 

Zubedah 60.

.r^l^M^^ rôif.i rish\.^ 166 

: r.:i3 

rdl^jji^^.l rduo^.l (

165 ».i.T2^;:73 ia ô.< riAi.'i^ ._»ask. Ai^ 

: K'ôj.ui .3^ ca.Aur^ cndrvLS p^«'i2>3 vvJtai.i ri'AvMK' rdxAi pS*.!^ Amjcs 

: p«'A\\\jjt^Ji K^cou 7ioA\s«33 jt% riX vr>Ai3CUs rsilpi'Q 

: rS'AxA.cxsa.t rA t^îs

.rdliMis^" riiJoA\i rdaivsi 164 

: ri'ûw rjaaM ifyaco «'âiiSa^ >cp vosa rC'A.icv 

: f^^Tn >cn r^ÔM.-t vJl dfiOco vy.iOMla.'U 

: pÂviitw re'iâiir^ i\Qoo .icu».i3 vA^.io 

: K'dn.udâo!^ vv^&O.i ,cy3 r^j^p^ .stops' A i-S3p^ 

: r rî.'^^ Ol^^.l v>âj (

•rdJTuK'-; 

: ri'A^.i^.T rdSiSafioQ pi'i.cnilo rdl=3\i f

.rdliU*^^ rÔ^.l r«l=>^ 162 

: rî ril JUK* rdi-sa oaiio.i r^x>r^ rfJaîa 

: rdlo K'l^TJk^fio (^mCvIix. îs ^n râcohy •Aps'o Foi. 75. 

rpdlx. ,priT. r^.TM jtiiA oojisg ^jvi\^ .t^cv 

•rdlTA)r^v 

rdA&\^'» rdsa2k..i (C03 oen Qri' 

KliCtMK' QP

: \irdS3 >ji>.i r\ jAo^ ri^^M rîcnco 

:ioi >ix2>.'i cnd>V'Ut3 .t^ cos rOK* i>^jjO 

^°'- 74- 

: ô.^ ,oooiu\o K'ivxuTOarj joAa riiiâ 

vrdiTwpCv 

vriL^cdD .UK' A,i 

K'Jfx r

; pdiiSaco 

.rdiiLuâa rô^.l «a 160 

: f Fol. 73. 

>AS]0,i^3 rtfiAso >^*.i.Kl3 fîaoAO »AiQ-3 pia^.t 

: vaîvAor^ ^Sl- «

159 .rd:5aMOJo riôso 1.^ 

vr^SXuCUO r^hxosn 

Ask. v 

Fol. 71. : rîf\-i^h>^ pdi.i toaA^ ^jIsix.! rCisa'io K'lSi^ 

iK'êdxM.i rdfia:&^ .^,ocn\A cn.TôX ^cnso 

: pÂ>j.iTJsa ^ pî^^ô >\ti*a3 A\-i'ai 

: rîAiijj pa pC't^p^ Aa.i r^âr^ ^\\ 

:rîv.T=j A^. .liia ii&VMO pO^ t^^ 

Fol. 72. : r

: tOOCX^MOZ. 

' 

Fol. 70. 

vrr

157 .reJioAxMj 

V rd»i«CU) • 

riJoA> Ax.ri' OpcT .iMr^ -^cn .rOco aivâ AuttAô 

^>Kfyo.Ky \ .-iv ^ ocn AcrA.i rtfl*r^ oco ax^jc^ ^.T-M 

rsda ff^v-A^-a '^xsal^ rdiuiSîOM tA^ rdiAJcia^ 

Kl^jccu) jj^d>o rii=>A>o .fÂuik.iA\ icQiAxo .rd^TSo Atm^ 

vrililiooo en rdij.icn pa Oop jai^fio.i r^Ju.r^ ocb .oaa 

: 7i\t. 

.i.T-2b.i re'Taio .Aajj.i r^cTslru rduLaO-Z. 

' 

I.O. poTSJ .1^. 2 I.O. )ooA\2>3. 3 i.o. ,» r^'Aviaa. 

+ In 1.0. oocuiois^-i^ lisal .ims :t rdio^.l ri'.sAv^ ;)ali. 

T^ .oenaco rdzixo K'\iM'g3 j.ijrda rtfW.vn.l Kîsca 

ri'erAre'Ao : (^jJCuX .l^pi'r^ ivlZa .r

.rdliLMisii^ rdkiod>.i rds^ 156 

r^ÔjSnja or.TS3.i tÂ

155 »***!""< «iV fîisor^.i rdjxi93aAâ,SJaocx^ rsi!iîioar.s pôA\ 

_eur^ rd^.ioai. .(îi-tu Avciaîuo rÂ\aaj».T ri'A^cuiaiô 

cniiMJ ioii-to oxAo^T^ .\i\\j rÂ\Auf^ aA 720. 

.onicu* (SO ocn i*^ cnus i pdSOAOjô ctmlt .^tmo 

vviosao .iaX >^pi\ ,(T)oIj^ ^ni«\i.i jsa rtfliip^ 721. 

rd-i-Bo rCim oqs cniLjjJ.i rOt-i )ai.i ^ fs>iôrc'.T ri'ôrii^floo rJ A>

.r^liiM^^ (ô^^ r^s&\& 154 

:• 

rel^.-iox^n 

cnUi^ -aas^MO .,0001*3^ Aua jjôi.i ^ pduK* 713. 

irtlM.i rôcba .r^v^jao rdiJea cnJ.ip^ di>^,ô rdijMfio.-l 

Aufîu (cncuj^. oo^ 

V (ôtAl^Qjicn cn.3 ov*f^ 

ocno^jAd^ Â^dirô ,cnau^ ^"icua.t.l ^ rtflxir^ 716. 

.even r

ar«^ 

153 .rCsaJi&jjA îisorf:! ri, g iraaaj^gifloQA (

.rdiiM^â^ (.-i (i.ii.:9i.so >;^fio.i 

^ 

rdaup^* 699. 

>jji rilJcn ..oDOAr^ î.ii.:»aso ,5s,flo.T ^sa rCxir^ 700. 

vr^joo (2iafio.i p3 r^lxip^ 703. 

V re'AvMTa pj ^.lia .^k'.I vyr^ 

(

151 .rd'Sai]^^ fîiSaK'il r^t.aâa£i„^Soa^ rC^looz,.! rCuct^ 

ôo ^so îsioi (:ij^ rdlcn .000 rfviv* cofioi^ A.i»..T r^îJ»a 

vy^K" .ocn rdl^xâj.) : cmia ff^ns .i ^ 

'r

tflUkM^t^ K^d^.l rdadnA 150 

.cn-lxii A.^.1 pÂ>T-fia.3 _jcf3CU.i^_ ^jjiit'div^ ^rdLiS9r^.l ^ râca:ao .corona 

pdicn .rd'sVux'ô t(U AA.i r^cn .crayon .aôoio >iiit7jQo cruo^^

.i.'i .^.awsn 

rdaJ^ r^d> : ri'iaua rdnincuao Avia r^îw-soso coA^CUto 

. rdJiwre*, ' 

I.O. rdXxSkS.

.rCliijji^)^ rc^ci^.l Kls^ 148 

rîa^ ooos rdir^ icnA> îz.o .riiri h\^J»^^ r^ljjco 

»Alr

147 .r\ a.t ,cb pi'iui'.Tia p3 p^.tmlI AA\r.i rSlia-K' .K'-biV^ A vsivaou KUri'.i 

•^'"'^ Api'.coaapsla pdi>-iA> 

T2 

^.tmK'o AyujAxi.pe'o .p«i>iop^

.rs^lNHâg rdLJO^.i r^s^ 146 

Muo ..-u) rt'.ai Ai-.i ri-iJsasx) ocb »_i^ re'Ape' ^loiuL-r^ 

\\r^ .7o.T."3S ctA a^ pdi .-ui T t

' 

145 .r^T.«cnA< riliOA.o r^Js&aBo^ r^ 

rOco.-t cnia ArîuLri' r^h\^y3Ci* ii\30 .eni iviia 000.3 

v1aA>«^ rîAcns ^__QOQi jftM .Tô .v\asr^ hvtsn r:=a.-i ri'AOortfA rd^,\io >cti.vi 

.k!i^1j^ toocu.msi fS^*7ii~rHY).i cnîoô .r^Ti=j rils rdial^ oco an\ .aJniO 

vOOT kLmI^ cait^JSar(^ r^Sa^rf ocn Api* û2>9o 

jcjre" ri-j^saso r. 3 i.o. risnoin.i 

AuSoJ. 4 1,0. ocn rSliaiii^. aiSa»» r^JWrcTo.

^\ a ..\^ r^ci^.l rCDOâJuûao .r^'i^t^ ocas ,cncui3UO .(

143 .r=>3ir

vit»,S.Avi.A\:T 

n^\o^ry 

3k^Xu oiAsk rOcH.T rfJSaiAM ^ tm Aj»- î»3f< 667. 

oqIa rOcnO .Av.pîv.A\A> XîMorâ ^h\r^ rÂux. pi'.TMia 

rdl.i .zSiO .cnT*r

141 .tî'^(Yi\o rdiil^jl rd\A >i50 oqs .pSlieo rÂua 

v\.AaoDrcn ^>.5q '«'V~> >->i^.l 

vr«'irAa^riS3 vA dnÔcn A\ni^ r€l^ : 

'*>3i\^.iQp^ 

I.O. .axM. = i.o. >2>aJL}^ Kli-iiuao. 3 i.o. ^ QSal. 

+ I.O. >i i\^.iOr

.rC^l'^M^gq.l Kô^.t ^d^^^& 140 

>l^ oono .^|M^ h\ir^ \\r^ rtfaL»r^ .riliia^ crA ^îiar^ 

ri'cmr^l ,00=3 .icwQ.\s..i r^&ul^. (î^^cisA .aouo 

.l^râ At no rÂ\«n-> ,^r^Q .(^â^(

139 .r/ii'\rf»\o rtîisX? riJoA» 

rfdni&a ^â»\Ôf^ ciA .si^J^r^ rc^.ViTn pj piiiwr^ 660. 

.fôcn varC rd^JJCtA etal nA\^K' .1^ rOiwrC' 661. 

orxiD jjALr^ rdA )aT^S3 K'A\*=> JeIa .tA pdliur^ 662. 

v^ôiuK' .i^'inuo ,^_QitU!

.r5ain-) ^ oorA^ îSaloi A^^ .r^(^ -t^ rOiur^ 657. 

.Skz^&ca jii-o .tcno.Turti'o fîv*as >coOT^ta eras ftiîr^ 

.»Â>Aai^wa do^.i .êni r^:sua 

oOomoniTia ,^_oem 

pilisa Klips' .>JS»3 ^ o^.-inni rOco t^.t .acp _ocrA T»3r^ 

^_a^ d\iSa> pe'cnQ .»^."l pi'As rilrsUa rdiri" Air^ 

vrdiri' A-.-u 

rStX ri'^viwr^ Kdxcu.'S30t

cn\ OTJSari' riafio^ oral .aiÂ»r^ i^ JOK* K'ta^^ 653. 

r«l\ria Qopo .r

.r. ^ l.O. cn.ra^.

135 .r^jciiio rtfjit. ^Jixir^.t p^'oA> 

rC'Qcn ji'ik. rdj^ enl ooco .i~yi\j n^ rdiiwr^ 645. 

»^_a^ .vsp K'oQ^rS'.l p^lôi.T rÂîvir^ >co cni Aîior^ 

vK'ocb ^\cn »»3 Jtia ^Tj XAn a(\h\ .t^ 

K'.tSmI oqco fjSiâ v>- rdcun ^sa ^4A\ riiiwr^ 646. 

^_air^ A=or«'o .fcnazi 

.T*kO ...ÔCTXiSooiis^ r- rial) ,^_CC^ A\*r^ ...ÔÂx »

.rf'A'^MVg rduodx.i (

133 .pCja*so rCiix. ^jiiiK's r f.-i ^ pdii»»p^ 641. 

.»

.rs^li^ MiVja reiio^.t r«:a^ 132 

.laau.i .T.T am w\»f^ tSfUMna ^Vu.l .(

131 .riifU.TO rîx. (jJOf^-T f

.KliiLM^tn rô^.i rdaAvA 130 

V i^^ 

^\o 

jW.t .pS'oco i-'Wpô rdoOJts r^Qcn vîi riljiurc' 625. 

A.^^ .rdi^..-i> p^.i >co A^rili .rîiusa rôotai.t r«l=iî 

.rc^nfws. ruK'oz. Tâ -i^ti r!ll:i cn\ ^.t=k^ .^.ll.-l i^r^ 

.,cno^(Vij^ 0QA"»-ir^.T .XI ri" ri'ia^ .TJjr^ .T^ riiiur^ 626. 

.T.a.o .oax.'sa ,cna\^L&o ^xJbr^ oAxr^* .orA ri rixx\ .sLiMhKsa^ 

V ,fi.pia 

.r^dato rS'AxeuLw Aft^K".! >.i ri^.i iajr!' rciiiMK' 627. 

.^Ôcnu.'iA^ cni ^d>UM Klair^ .oiwr^ îr^ a^MX^ :tô 

r^âAjjA A^r^ >'TZ. .col cudfur^ T^Q .A^r^ ^r^ ^L>'vmO 

rdir^ i^flo^s) rdJr^.i .'ijsarô co&xô.Ts ^rillnli caxxa.1,0 

rdi»1 .sent ^ 

l.xtsa ,A oAv*r

• 

rÔj.iCV 

• 

TCa^dfXAZ..! ôptdan 

r^ i'xL ^jJOp^.T rôo\ 

vv5» rili .riijLit»ii ri'ocrj rillaVa >=i ri'CU.i curs' .Aur^ 

.^.ii.T our^ rf\y .i ^Sso crA i:=»3rjj»

î'^M^ga «1 ii^^Tsn ir\A.cai 

.003 pôcn vviio rîmiii »- rr^ rosacea .tsj 

:T

127 .rôiliao p^'ti'ia (j.rJr^.i r^'oAx 

îAu:Y 'r^'Aîri'.xir^ cocuii^-jstÂacA A^rsf rilJ'ijJpC' 612. 

Af

.rC'A^w^^ relici^.l rd=iv^ 126 

-aiîi rdLD.i vyiK" Pîa^ Ax*vi>.1 isjpi' riliTAir^ 607. 

kIiIcAk' r£\A aril .iajrCo oral Kljjcaja rîanuj Asi- 

K'AvxXia pe'jjQi ,50 .^>usi.T or22>.-iil r^vjj i^ KlliMpC' 608. 

Aur^ :riiso are's .tsars'Q rdaJM-x^ i»» .pi'.iia pao 

_k;.1.1 CUSj .iupi' h^r< Kisso .v\.T=i^ rilJonQ .r^.i.i*»i 

Aski Ta\ pC'iâ^ (20 cni.i oois) ji^p^ .i^ rdaiwr:^ 609. 

âX>cn .,

125 .r^miMO r^T*T3 îXlK*.! r 

rd]L>^(\^ K'Qcn .Ti->\.i rCt\\ rÛf CLl^.t .rCitiOjai 

.cni T^rc*© tcojjjCQ .,cix>VMO cRz.i îr^" .iô .vÂvl 

v\A Kljr^ î^ :t^.l .v^\ rî»3('»JJS»9 K'Vw 1-^ pdiiwrt' 605. 

or^.t orA >i^ ocpo .rc'icn K'^TAJ^ cnor^lsi __QJ5tj 

.piîorC pdlcna pduis c

.rduijjii)^ rdJci^.l rdadn^ 124 

T-Sar;^ .cn:t\o93.i rdsno.* A!^^ Ir^hvLr^ :i^ riiiur^ 598. 

ti-M^T .»^r^ &UM ISk ôcn rîcUk.1 tOrc'.T 

>lr)cn ,T50 .pi'cfcrj TiaK" .rcfecn ru^'ss .t^ reîjjK' 600. 

r

123 .rd.e»\iao p^T.i:! îJUr^.i rdij'o^ 

rdlMoH ^jiA> iQ^.i rCxSor^ ea\ "tair^ i^ rdii^r^ 591. 

^pt'ji ri=-id^ rd'5'1^.1 isor^ ocp .,Aut,rÔ ^paaia'-iJrta 

V ^ôcni\s 

tors' 

V\iJ3.-i 

.vt*!.^ oaao-ia pi'UiO r2ar^ ^S3 îiSaz. riL.A\r^ rt'-iflora îlza.i "pila 

.(

.r

121 .rd>aa\;^0 r..'U.'l Âcn 

r

.t^>Kuô (3 ."t^ _oetaJ.S>3 rtfllTwr^ 571. 

rôoii^ iojtjsod^.i 3r\.\s .!& JUK* r^dxso) r

119 .(^mAs90 r

.rc^^%»\53 r^JO^.l Kls^ 118 

.^1 coAnra A>.'n«\A>! Ar^ «A cn^^r^ rdnaao rC'cnO .iaso Ju.t p

117 .rdiOaÔ tlA>."t rsa rîMpS" 556. 

r1^ ocno .crA ^r^ ^jJUC- 

V pc^ls-Ax'-ioA ^Jî^ cna.t rdJs\=) ^.iL^r^ 

AHk* r

.rdiMijâ rô^.i rCsh\^ 116 

TAsn.T r^hCiab\sa ri'A\4ur^ >a^ vy=)9:i .1^ rdJXMf^ 545. 

n£S3^=>l i5P3reu=aof(< 548. 

•:• 

»^^ 

ft\a rî»-=> 7>."Un."i isat^ oqjo .rilji^.i 

Â^cL ijaaîuiirf.l K'iciafloa rôcn ird* 'rdliMK* 549. 

r

115 .r^misso rîuis ^^K*.! r 

rC'&usa.l ii\=D p3 fOK' cnA»Aurdl iso»^ rOiur^ 541. 

^Tiaird ,cpo .>1*.T Kllia ôl rl& oopo .^t^ .Vi^ rtd rcAr^ .dur^ T^nr^ >â3.i cnl 

V >Aaai K'iix. ,û* >Ad\cca -iiu3.i ou 

A(î>2.rd .tô .cnsaoi^ crA ôcn rdaiA rfllTMr^ 542. 

v»l°i&>ô .rdaVv \i\o p9 idkr^ i\«"i iMrC* .rCJn)^. A^ 

w^\\C?.l iiord .rc*l i^riT. rîoA\ r^vj* •'l^ KIiTmK' 543. 

V cndfvooT& »QCD r'H^ (^ oird .r^cn K'ocia rî&!^ 

>î rsiiLa^^ A2^ enl iiOri'A\»^ .lA reliiwr^ 544. 

V (^^CD 

OVaOCO 

' 

I.O. S*».

ifla^&vz..! 

ôr^liajs 

V rtâoLSoo rî.'te ^^r^.i rduo^ 

ivAi.i jtir^ A\pn j^sax. jur^ rî.i3.f ' fîsore'iixsa 533. 

vy&Var^ >A dfUf^.T .qoIkIz. tCnOjJr^ r^Vu .lâ .^ cn\ 

rioAr^ ooA 'U»Jp^ .r^^.lOJtOA 

vpiivPO\\ 

.f^locp caî^.i araaaz..i r

113 .rt^nVrqcuaO rdfioôiSa .iVir^.t rdSjif^Zoa râh\ 

.-ux=30 .K'OU) AxtjAi. r.i oral iiapCA»r^fl9.i .>1Sl acpa .vJl riisar^.l

.k'^nwV^^ r^ci^.T rilrsAx^ 112 

Klxwicuao rdi*^ .1=1^ .1^.1 pdla^ri' .vy.tr^^ vv^duss 

v»>njr«^ jci.t is (\ jqtmAx .K'iiza î.Tâ 

f^ i->M-» AvipS' Tiar^ .-a?3.t .c*A isorÂxr^ rO'U.rS' 523. 

^rS* .isopi'.i pdir^ p^SO •-^r' 

'i-SOr^ OcpQ r^T-r.i ;n^.i 

A^ rsiru reltccw oXrJ'.T .^ri'^d^jj rciirrT Ji-i. rC.loo 

rcir^ .cndru2a\ pfaoo px>cn A:âi^ ._&«>. ia .-u-. ->!'.. -iff -> 

,sj\^rf .T^ _i

Ill r

.rdliLui^)^ f^vloi».i (

^dud> is KlnajL era râcni .1^ ^(^.1 .>!% acpo .rîL 

V ^ 1 ^ T, 

ôii^jca îij .cnd>4urT. p^'oco i=3.idnS3 râ 

isA .xiajjoss iicd pcliz. .pt^wiTâi i^ pdla .rdi-asal 

vV^d> cnl Ap^ T^^ pdJOD .v^ Ap^ .-_?^ ptfl^.Vta 

X2at^ .«^.ioiA\ coa^z. cnJ-Sa .^^^ .TA »OvMr^ 509. 

vorA ôcn âIapS' _i\^-=-s.i -p^â ^ ptf'ocn Aup^ ,cd."i 

X2ati^ oqaa .,_âai(Qx..i 

V >Ad\UjaOO t^^~« ,X^ 

Any -ifw 

• TSii>-T .cnA>AupeA ispr^ rC'odfVfio pi'Qoo .1^ rdliup^ 512. 

.d>4ut^ oral A>is3p^ .jAv^ Ai-=O.T A^Tj .în >\

.rdli^jjî^ r^ci^.l rtflaix^ 108 

rdicn rdajil oA .Ta^ ^.1 orA TJMf^^rtf' rdliur^ 501. 

.T» 

15 

oor^ rîa^ jjL&z.rô OD^vvaa Aj^. rdiiur^ 502. 

vAur^ (

scn^^.l dfxôcn pili-a.T ctaX TiOrÂxK' fîjjr^ 498. 

.K^l^Q A^. oa\ ^^T^nK' .K'l^CUt îcQik. >A QQcn . « t'?*^ 

rdJcn.t riixir^ A=>.1 rdiri' .î^.i A^^.l _OotA i-J3p

.r^Xii^M^!^ KjJO^.I rAur^ irvL^ .r^Xi.i Axol ri'oen .-ii\-« i^ rdliwr^ 494. 

>:^)^.t ,ocn ûi^VM :iCUii\.=3 cruiOk.o cnl&K' î'°>»»'w.t r^Tu 

ii»r^ .aaL>i .\s-i A^- >la3Loô rdAsAx.i 

îx.o ..^Juî. 

.rî^JU* A\i.TS3 r. coftMJ.T rÔJX. rdio 

.K'ioAxS^ Aj^ ,cn

""•\"^l •iS3fjjrc'0 rOr^.t rôen isori' rdiiwr^ 492. 

rôcp acno .ts^v-ii-sg ^ .\^\o> k'&x^.je. k'-Tmâ 

r^''V i iiAutro ^.TSa rdi^*r^ .rîo^w r^ri"© .rîÂ* 

•/...oaaÔs.i^ Aiw (

V ifia^ A\»S7Uj 1 

o r^lV^Q 

rclbs«îAx rdlial\».i .xsir^^rf _ocnJ_ta .-ujil 487. 

.»l^ 0CT30 .livl eobî K'Tm r^rASf* TarCla ."t^ rÂv.i2k^ 

vAai rSiXiu r^.TjjL^ri' ,eoftU

jaari* A\r^.T r^^â .rSSsa.i ji^rô >»3if.i.i A^- oral >2oif K'ocn jaai .1^0 .nîiAu 

Qopo vry'i'nT. A.i>. ruK* rînXioO^ v>A ajlXu ru ^ *^-'' 

.r^&xô.T A.^ iocobu ^ a£UQ Ax^^ kA.i ""N '" ^ rtlca^M 

A2^ JSis^ r

.KlliMis^ riiJoA>.T riaiv^ 102 

'Av-iÂ, K-Ao «*ii4,.", oqI i^^ .^., p^l^ ^ ^^„ 

.(ên rcL;a5sJ^2i pa .»« Axi^sj .jasArcr •K'ii^^ i»r^ 

.v>^flo ,enCUl=a.cnAx r-il .rds^nsw pj ja!^ rdiÂ.T rcLxji= 

>i T.»nS' .ctA isar^ nijjicvrS'.-i cri^Sk^ rdiTj.v^ A\f

101 .pÂ\îJL rîvQisaor^ ,i»j ^r^ rdiSJor^.T riiJoAx 

ri-isîjc- rsôcn jA.lri^ JUpS' rX iviK' pS'cix.T^.I ctA is3rÔ JOp^ 

oopo .vA AvA ..ii^-i (Acn.i A!i^ .âal Îp**.! t^^s-i 

pcAo .Auf

.rdXXM^^^.I K^ci^.i r ^îiJSS.'t _ajco.T »cr}oiv.(^ jLi 

rsifio.iD ri".!*) ri'A>Auri' CQi ^^K* t^'iSin ^»3 .i** 478. 

rfi^nn .3,fl(U i&O .>\ icn^ja^.i ^T.:73rcf>o4\*rjJ1m.'i r-o.i\ vnA^cxaK'.I (-S30 .riliK' A-iK" ,.T-.p

99 .r^hC^x, t

V ifia±..Û3 i K*."! 

«_^Q rdlan 

e»A tsarô rcîâi^ JUri' Axcvl ^tq _oofirs3 .»*> 469. 

.^^Âu vA.TJa r^VJ*l.T (Sli^.T .v\.l-i 

rdJr^ rd^.1»J rdlAOO.T 

V co.%iral r âi- ^^r^ .an\ >i^ 

'^ToOA fa.\arA.i ._oen\ pdlr^ Tiiri' ^j:i.:?3 .Kl^CU) crai 

oi.soK' .i^Q .cuûdiâi ''^^ rSlÔjj (.50 rAO.T=.

97 .riiôlfl ^jiiri".-! riJoii 

A>ii

.rdliijji^^ reLio^.l rdad\^ 96 

..-Ocni^ -J.^ î\ .j^° 

> *a « rc'ocn rdôLa.i 

K'.TiSatf r^4p *^= "t^ ^'^'^ "•'^ fQ .pitocn 

r^T*A«^ (20 .TAJ .T.*^ Av.Oco Air^ .iî >jA< Kijiwr^ 467. 

K'.S'iM.X AAo jafioK'.i ^jr3^Q o!^ d^sio .rfocD rfÂlxi.-i 

f^f^" Aj.t aa.>dM\ cni.aaajc.'t tsaK* oopo .oiA piôipô 

V pC^-inT .1 

' 

I.O. ri'.tQiii. ^ I.O. omits rôcn. 3 i.Q. pc^SUjaz..

95 .râ\j3 âxiK'.i rdJoAx 

coA>Q °> « nh\ ^JSO rdipi' ^rCsa rOr^ jaiv^ ^.j^ 

oriiâo rdri' .ri'Ocn Airs' red 

' rd^cvia ri'jiupsr 459. 

p3 ^ jurd rdom rdiji^rs rCA.tO .riii=.l ^jiiîz. rcirst 

.jtJp*' 'pd^(\a>Q\i'\ orA •isarS' _aaQi=o riliiur^ 460. 

K'ooo .rdiA\Aa.00MO h\iri rôlo.-t iuK* iruM )ai iur^.i 

iviK' rî.i AAxi iAv^.T .iur^ .siQtT. t^^% ^ i*Au 

rdîf ..Ôjcoo .vvCljjLiJr^.T .._OJen vyAxoi. A^. vryiâ^ 

rd^ncu rîf\râ .ri'Oen

.rilijjNs^ r^ci^.l rtiâ^ 94 

rdi.i.K' _juajt risa ca\ \:3ir^h\ri rôln ^sa .tm 455. 

r^TÂv^ .T»^ f ^cAn ,;i^S rdlaioi ^=»3 rCjijjK' 457. 

pi'AxAvJK' T.- 4\=o ^x=o K'iv.in.s iaj*- .rd^LaJ ."U^ 

,.TM ri'TUi >a\ rcilaoo. rdir^ .K'i.V*! r

93 .Klâln ÂJUr^.i rdkioAx 

.,sr^ iuK' iJWrC' K'irC >A0l5i^ .cn'te oA vsapS* .pi'io^ 

^T.:ia^-o .TM pC'Aus ot^^ „__ocnl2a ri'A\lA> rd'Uir^ 450. 

•:• 

K^XJatl ^JiA\a octcn âasj.i.t 

Qrt\n*73 Mk. yaX^M r±)i^ iure' .)>'»\°> rdi^^p^.i .c»A isap*' 

d^cu) .r3oA> .30^ .pÂ .aco cqa t2?3p^ .>2aaa.i »:^ 

ptîT-is -lipg'.i p

cnA rîiOr^ .rîj3a.3 ^3.1\=q r-ii rÂviin atm^.t 

Auk* ÎSJ r^ .rdi-T^ 'iui* riiO .raz..i oil isori' .A ivA r€xsM .qa 

V >cncA^^ >aox.o jOOQ.ipi"- >ad>o .v^rtJ.i pdoa.&jî±a.i 

^p^li&flQM rt'acn .rDijoSa n^ _ocriAi33 piljiMpC' 448. 

.aa,â^ i(Ur^ .aiccw rd^sA^ .xjp^ oAp^z. .cnn-iT. >iiipiioi.^ 

iviSaipi'o .r^r^ bAkr^ .oAz-.t pdi.i.T .»ia oopo 

• tpduiA jiii-pi'o .>:MMii pi'.'UJp^.l p

91 .rCj.Mri r^'.Apd^ vyri* ri'icAo 

V iAM»rc' 

kL.(Mjj.\ K'iiaK'.i ri'.-UJ K'Aviri ri'u* riliiwri' 443. 

.cniso-icUwt.T ^cna p

.^^r^ coAxoA ooco îdu.S3 .t^ »_oeai5>3 rdiiurc' 436. 

cmiuA _c>cnl iajri' .rÂAa^rslso 

^ ...OJrS' rdt^.t «i Av.pS'.i 

.enA iiarÔ orx*>ip^ ;)a.to >fioo rdjlsa f

89 .rôlo jjibri'.i rijJoA> 

\\'-n .thus^ rdJrC i\s-73.T y^sart .och c^t -i\^ 

^ XMi r ^jiia\s K'Aus rîss 

Ap

•iflttÂuA^.T 

-cvrilaa 

rdôJLo ^jJUK'.l pdiJQ^ 

r-ilu^r^.T .rsi^cdB ^sn .t»».\ isar^ .xirf rX AursT rîn v>.a> rsd 

.ri'A>iA»r ^^Tia r3 .r

87 •K'.T.ptf' »iu&u>.0 rf^'s i

A&O .vylSu -TSou^.i r^.ôlA.i .r^ÂscuE. >i=n ^r^ ^\ 

Ardz. Ai .reifiAlso AJK" rî-a.^ TJSSr^ Kliiwr^ 424 

•:• 

coAvacDCCa ^sa ll^^K's ^S KUm p^VJ* vyoj r^.f=j 

^ ^ 

.rtfk^jci^ jao^l.l rôcn r^- .T^ pdilsa p3 .Tjj 425. 

r^rf-n yy Ai .aijpjQ oris Axp*"© .,50^ jioaô .îfio^.i 

•tsprâ .r^^\:99.i rTi- ."BkO .lOoo^Jôz. pdlaK' .oris (

85 .r-^-t f^^^" Ooa.T .-nXM >^>ji^ rdjptf' 

r^jj-^qj JUr!^ rdîao ^ 

.^Âa 'rî^ri'aA îo .Tm 422. 

rd^lsa AxCU "^-'^^ rôcn l\r^ .tô .crA êti. rô .pîi-i.T KtalK' oo^Q piw&io.T 

Kl^TJtJB jiaAiO ^t^.i rt'Tij.1 r^fAri'o .AoAr^^.T r5an 

.KliLi^z. ^ 

V V\A\JtXXu.l 

.Tm.t t..i ,VM^r^ rs'AAari'.T .ocn ciA isaK' .Aur^ csofx. riia^ 

riA.T .ii73r^ ocpo .i^fiai ^.kjaobi rfSii^ .3od\ r

dnOjca iruÔ rC'Qoo .=LL&i ta rd^lib pa .tm 416. 

• f^'Tlj.T r

V i on V iA»^ ÔrdAa 

vpiifii* rdaocaô Wt.pS' ,vduô f

.pt*i\M.v^ r^d^.t r^sdnA 82 

esm •*'^-^\\ .tmc^ .i&o .riêuin^ ,m coisa ^^rC'o ami 

.ji\% oqpi tiaJrcnolrClz. .Tô 

A:^ cnÔôÔrÔ .mTz& ocn rdai^ (>V^.t i^r^ .^co 

K'Ôjôô.tcn rti'v^d'us rdfloT&o .dr\î..iAX. rc^n^^j cnio^ 

V ^v2^.iod^z.r^ Ciî cn.'sax.n psiuiso ^jso K'\d\.i po 

^.kLsb.l vôLjs ^V».1 rilnxasaX i»rcnO .pn\Avso JOp^ «A îa :»^ p^\0^ Ar^.l

81 .^.ôeniioÔ »._ocnilialjj 0TZ..1 ^ cacni re^'o^ 

..__oeTA jil>»*WQ rdilAj^ uai^^ rîai^CUcb.i .cnl ^T'.'Uj.-i 

.,_CVM.Az.dô .cndrvM oioAs rdAr0^ rSq\iJi-) ^Wu.l .ndlniaaj ^ .tjA U33frdr3 t^r^ .TiMPS*.! Om vypS" 

-\o.T»S3.T oiuK' pS'tti^^ .cnl >1S> ocpcv .»__ocnuiA\ p3 

vtTiWs û>:i riiniasol isari' p^'HiyAx po pdiiMK" 408. 

0030 .pîoA\A=) >27U>. i^r pô .riMP^ 410. 

craooi^X îs. rîKSiâr^ r\°^ 

etc" vyt^ ,2)31^x3 ^Vu-l 

.craA XS3f^ oopo .Wi^rô ^.T2a cnJL33 Aua^fÔ I'si-i.T 

KliX.0.^ .tir^ rdni^ p«'^r^ rdiWa , N*n\ t. i^Ti, .î^.t 

itYisT'Taô r^r€sn criA^Pi .~,\\^ ,^1^.3.1 r

.rCy \ tJ^g rdilo^.i rda^ 80 

ri'AAoAvrs cral pS'qod Av»r^ rÂ\T=> JUri' rdliur^ 403. 

• irsOp^ (.1 .Aî-Sflrô AiA cni.i ^\^ ,q3 ^.T*ora 

ootÂxpS' rîttacv. i^vao .v^^^ vyr^ cnA iur^ )awi.i ,cn 

. .^\ .tA. .r«^Ûi saSasi .rip^ ô\ oin rdiiwr^ 405. 

oeb vyp^ ,Saij*3 ^Wl .XSOria .cn&^ A:s- tî>^ 

r^zJ( rdif^ rîiia ^r^

i^ ^j.i 

V riiijAcva 

A 

rt'Qoo A\jjLi»3.T t^fni\^ ^ xu riLMLS 

.l!^c* .rÂvLax -uo^ A\V^n.i ri'ia^ Aî pt~M 

jao^ r^'iMP^ piiil 

Ori' .A Aur^ K'riiio rîn^.i .rdflcu^ oqa oA >i% .jso^ 

vrÂu3\ r^lM v«A A^T2j3^j».i ptlTli\3 _c>crJL^ ^ 

am v>.*r^ .oa^mMJa ^V*» Jtir^* A\iuc3.T.ia .T^Q .rc'ica^ vyp^ rÂAA\ 

Jci.T ^S3 A^t-uAf •—T^l .cnK-> crA X^r^ m\'Aup^ .1^ is3r

.rîijjiigs ri\m-^ 

^VM Kli^cn.i .TJSOrtf'a crjoA\ .ôo t3 .sviy. .tao 

V r^Tlj.l rdsAp^ eral .3Ctx>o .A\t=op^.i pdaj vyr^ rîiis 

.r^Tsa.Tioa >cno.i^viL2L=3 coico\ aa^>ax..T tÂîur^ enl rA rîrtf'.T .(

77 ._oaQi5>3ô ,,._ocn't'*gi\ >> otjc-i ^Ôicfj.T Kii'oAx 

.r^T^^rda ja^r^ rd=>-ift^.l r^ln Aur^ .pdiri' Aisaw cnJSas.- 

.(i= A^ rÂvL=A\ 

Kliia.^ K'oco .SAî .T^.i >jA> .rdirairi' ^.»J .UJ 394. 

.r^\ .00 .f

.rdLi^jj^^ rôA^.T rdaiv^ 76 

.lintiflp KlX.T cm OT^f^ .^^qpo .cah\osa^ ^nc' j.i\cn.T 

vy.lfiaa A^.i .coa pdiK' .cr3d>053.t 

A^â )o.ii>3 vA TSarO.T 

.cn^CUxl^ A=3 K'oen Jtoi rdiAia p3 rii'Ujri' 389. 

cm isorS' .A\pô Tjj .Tm A^ CLaMia __ocn»Ti73 oA\râ 

vv»p^ ri\r^ .Aur^ pd^nVSO Klô .iurt' Kl^t pdX.l rÎSiii^M 

vcoiA>r3Jt..T 

:»^ KloaT-t i-is .1 .tm rîviSo ra.Tia rii=\ iîao .ocb r>i\o cni Ausa.i cuocn.i 

vrôcn A'iri'i ocn cni 

r^CV^l O-iVM^K" »^L.iaj3 ^=0 r^.iAxa.t ^j'i-SOri' 391. 

rdlsa^j jcb f

V icws. xu .1 

-ordia^ 

rîijr^ piîio.i .ori2aV»»i3 pS'vjj Klii\so ^ Mi 386. 

.>cnCV.L^\^ ^r^Q OCT3.1 coÔit. jc&x^^d^.i .cucn cniz&o 

vf>A hxacn rdiaflasso ,cpo ôcn r^^-ir^ A^. ^r^.i .okltj 

rC'i^'iz. 

&ul^= cnâ .râco v\^^n A±>A OcpO .vo r^Lsîoo 

V vîsa rô CO jioji .3^.1 

.T.^ k'.t^V*'^ rôon itJc riliJea »aj rOiwr*' 387. 

Tsars' cni T

^îaX w\OAcnA>.i iuK' «i=>^ redo .iurcT ILsoQ Aupi" 

(Jia^sao ».\ ^«n ṭY»l rîo^ ^^ .t^ p3 riiri'O .Av^sjiAxr^ cnrs.t 

>1 î^Î&sa rdif^ .U2i.d^:» ,_oerA pî»^p ril=\ t^q .>\ 

rilJp^ K'AviSoa Pi*.!*-! r^pS' jiifiaio tiaula r€iri Aipô 

• rilAjîA^ oral iior^ .iv.d>p^ riA &>^3^ oXpi'o .^ôotA 

rîaîrj dn^Vu cvlri' 

.rdii^CUQo.i OD^ô^^^M Avî.iK' r^.i 

.rÔcn iiijri'a >cnc\iai rCocn .a\2J3 .tm 't*^\v Ai 384. 

K'icruo .vvC33.i.t pîo^yia .^j^J^.i rdsai^ ^_ovuA\ .t^.i 

,'a\.s- oocn .i\m a\r

irsJ.T •isari' : jcir*' ^so .t.ÂÂaK' t^ .tm rî^^ 382. 

.v>A^rûXdô .rill.pd= 

A^=D ^P^ pdâK" .rôcn rdil ô.-Vâi ^ti^cq^ rcAo .1=1^.-1 

vrdxia.T o\iLiia rd^pci^ rîa^.1 .•«v>^«v-. vvfio 

.K'oor) i=0f

.r^liUjî)^ rc^dd>.i ri^ ri'aoo -uiia .-tji rtliltos po t*> 378. 

ata=j ou>o .r^^TM ^.lio K'ix-ina oTru^. .,cniw 

..i»=.l ^Q.Tio A .la^-A^ rill.t ''lA iure* pîi. _rÔ .^îiar^.l 

.•»*» 

ocn.t T^r^ .rdî-SJ crA p^So. .iô .vrA rOT*AS3o .rÂîs p^jtajp^ ocoa .otaA 

i\*f^ r^ts ^M 

rÂuiia cnAAiaX om^ ^tm rdr^'si .tjj Qcno ..^_oT-isi.i 

c»A AuX .Tô .fs^s-i .aod> r

^^hy ca\ iiaptf' .rCir03 »iur

^tflOi^.l 

-^Qp^lLajo 

V K'Axli'.Lsa rill rÂxcujj ^\ 1^ pdlia\^ râ^ 

r!iia\^ yA .Tij.t .ri^\cu^r*^W A< o^ t*^'-'\ 370. 

cArCQ .rcT.-u^.T rclal^ Aa ^sa ja^ ^cnir^Ts rd.Jrt' p^t« 

K'ooo AnT .o .•ux\ .TM ^.>'T^^£na .iWi^qo »j^^cni.i r^.ti-.i 

: orajjA^p^ .TA. Pdi-irô ri'.iÂ>o 'â.iio Klar^.t 371. 

riiipi' TSOr^ ^."UCD .râiir^cv kJuK'o pS'.tm r1. 3 1.0. >X and omits rÔa3h\.

69 .^jiÂxr^ _ocn\i t*a rdln^ : A\ h-tj ^^ri".! .riJaa^.i Dcn pi'i^CtoD.ta.t 

K'-iia >1 rcd.T .JOK" ,20 Ar!rA>X.r^ »^ rdlTMrS' 366. 

.ua. ooAcUir^.T oral issr^ .en N 'gaa^twrelB pÂAa^pilw 

rdicu AoAr!Â\ riAi ourf K'ca.vA iiaK' rdj-oor^ 367. 

^.tn ^ ._^f< iuirr^.

.Klliijji^g (jArJ3o'i^ A2^ pdAp^ 

r^.-uuA r^VM^n Kli^ t f^ .^JuL^w îjj03.i •px:s>3 vA r^jiSar^ 

V cnA^?3 

Aa^r r^v-iT. i=.i rd&l^ AxiiJar^.T 

r

67 .^^r^ ^âaAn riia acaa ôxir^ ^^^(XSor^^ r^'o^ 

riaJcn^ r^l^ at.r^.1 .ctA tsoK'A^p^ fOiwri' 357. 

.^&^ .T^ : ^.TSO crA iv.ri'.l Ocni.T .»JA OcpO .pS'AuoapcI'SiA 

aa\rii«S?o .»4>-»r^ Aur«:a^ 

.lOula cnL.i pdiba »

^liijjC:v?9 rdtJcii^.t Kliaiv^ 

voni 

Qocn 

r^jh^'y \\'y3 cnAr^JCO .JUr^ cn\ îa .t& r^fio .vîwr^.t r«'oop 

rdftiSaiSa .iirôrA isa (< r^Jjj -Sso pa ao^ rdiiur^ 355. 

acpa .>S0^ rioiMO >-UiJ3o.i r orA ^.Tûrf' rdoaîaj.T 

vA Jt-.T^ ôh\ rsAo vsAD.io v^jci .5».ai^ .oA i.S3r^ 

v\iVT^:i rÂxcApO-isasi- A\=flQ .v\T.^.a> '^

65 .^jaA^p^ ._acru.n rsia omo •jiuK' r

.re'AJi.uî^ reiJoA>.i relaivA 64 

CD Av.*-=> (•» rdsa:^4~^^ rôcb •isoK' r^xuri 340. 

••"^^ oaAvjo relsn.io .r

Â\i^°ii'ii».g»*g3 r^h\\uri K'Axo-tCVJUM iai^DoAvO ri'Auircia 

•^.•usa .-lobi.t rdaoirD rdvsj A2t^.i iiJj»}.io _jnsô .^crai^ K'Axoasor^ ^XSi n'Nl.i .Tiop^ 

ôrU-Sj ri'.lJJ AxiaLi...! K'.Ta»»3 .p^.Iij r^.TM ^T=il^ l^Q 

iiiucr^ rix=> rôqp râi r^^LuOZ. 

ri'ixsflr^ ,ob orA A>i3c«x.^f

.rdliLwIb)^ K^kjci^.T rfla^ 62 

,cp /rîxA rdl.T rÂAft^risj.T i»3p«' 'rdliijrS' 329. 

r^Lis^â .rtl^ôi rili»,So»3.i ^^ .K'Qcn isJJr^ r^lfiorS' 330. 

Kla-l ^ r^ _aivj=i .lOnCUu.i Kl^jts pcUxI-SS Q. n\\*gA 

viâJ rjri''i.—n.T jcfj.i .T^r^ rdliiiri' 333. 

r^jiiU^cC^fior^ re^Li^ .•»*» 

^ 

cAk"."! .isDr^ r^J.-twr^ 334. 

K'ocn rôcn rdi.Ta 

.^ôco ^cni^&\93 vy» (

jjA^sq piC\ rcifloia.i ril^Jcss iiX-.Tir^.i ri'isorÂco 325. 

f» 

orA ri3oVia 

ÔCTlil^. îo Aj^.T-:^ p^ t*^v.~wv ft*n\f> .^_jiiJtSi »^.T 

' I.O. -Tm rciflorsA. = I.O. JUp^ pi'oa.i^. 3 I.Q. omits

.r

59 .-U.o rî.u.-t rÂvu-iA\Q=>3 rcdia 

oral t-" pîaflo 

V tCnecoMi ..»*^'.'\^ .a^ : cniji.-T r^^xno (

Kll&ooa .tô .oruiiw _0-3iu."i cn^VxOLs Au^x^r^ K'i^îflo 

.ôoo ^xziSi rilîoo cUr^.T .^ ocm ijasri" .oooo ^cnj^sod^ 

.r^jsa:ia .jd>p^ ribcn rJcn±>. 

V p

57 .vi.a pî.U.1 rÂvii'"iA\as3 riliij 

cbA\i,T^ (Âik. r^d\xa 02=3.1 •>!& acpa .vsÔaIh ,cn 

•/(

.K'V'inNg riiloAxi rda^ 56 

__jA 

jii^.l _fticn\ iv.r^ r^Ôjoai pCi-r^ .isor^ rdliwr^ 296. 

»cn(xAr:lxi.i pduirA pîAuM >.:^«^.l .is3r^ rfjiur^ 297. 

iCnCUAKlxj.-i ,cn ^ .^tÂ> rdl Kll-tq A.i>..i coxâ 

vjejpS' 

icv^jaai 

.>i^ oqao .pdico rdsoi^ ai^.i Ak'Avi.pS' pdii»»t

55 .ix-o pS'TiVli rcn.:a .iuri' TjU AÔ 'uiv. AupS'.t .>Aa oqao .vvAaotû 

.vÂ\CV.i»a^ tWÂm iur^ i3&\^. cnAia ooA\ Aur^ Ar^.t 

.TMk=3 ^.1 r\ jis.Sf'T •riJO.il=5 cni aocn ^.T^ .1^ .pdiiuK' 291. 

V .00^X1 ;)Q13J.T ciA ii3\ r1 AurC .1^ riA ^.i oqa .,i-is ^ vyAv.(^0 

^jjL*—a pdlâpi".! .r^Tiix*^ »i>3 jurôa\ iiTSrs' rdliwr^ 293. 

f

dliijj^^ rdô^.i r^sh^^ 54 

ocpo .i.">i^ pcd.T om rcisaL^l .__aiiu.i rdiA^r^ .ri'icinsvAx^X.^1 

AxirS" K^'W v>.oo rdi OPS' ._^ctsiM iur< jjl^z^q 

rilxAilsi ^Qcn '>a rdJârfs .crA issri'Axr^ rdiiwptf' 284. 

jiAaj.T OCT! riaii^ VYri" rilji..HO .jjiriirut.ri'.T ri. rdArJ' 

*

53 .ix. o r^'i.VJ.1 rÂviiiAicco rillw 

r!lU»iciSk v«.)» ivjjiVa rîrsT.T .orA i=arÂ>p^ r^Jiwri' 277. 

.Av^K'Av.Avjj r^Jr^ î. ndA.i -.i^ ocpo .rcTciArcd iî,.! 

.oA xan rid r!iia\ rtliri" Ai>.-t ivwia v^.t ocnlpcT ^-^C 

vctuoJLmJ rf'r\%\-> cniov»»J T^ r^^ .ctiAosmt rdxSa^^ 

.i^^ 'ii^z..i .isari' f

V ( r^.tcna.i .tS9p^ K^TMpf 274. 

.Av.» orA oqs >orDaAv.ri!„i|^.i isor^ riiiurT3.i>-.l 

.^_AJorJO .^»x.saxiJ3 rôrArcA.i .^.aico.i xsarf rdiiwr^ 276. 

V jcjM^vx.'S} ..ôotavsa r£M!i^. ..irrausa r

51 .vco rdi^Jeo.T K'AuJiAô.'So rîio 

iisSrC.l acfj risix^M ftUrî Ari'iutri' rCi^Mr^ 265. 

r3.\ r^lir^.l >ia Qcpo .aII K'jch.t ^sa 

,33 pCAAOf^Jcn ^^N M oa= rdJp^ rd=)^ Klip^ .Kêo rdiJOSis 

vyr^ .pd=jA\^ Slri'Nn r^'icnCU.T .iSDr^ rdliwp^ 267. 

V p

.P^lijji^ rdÔ^.I r^raiv^ 50 

vyfiaVoJ.i .OJcb Klxiiin r^Loaiau.i [isor^] tOiwr^ 257. 

p^Vti, ra^cn acp .eiA Axjspil^r^ rCA.i rdi^r^ 

vorA A«,rd=«^ (^l.t piljr^ vyl^tK^.l Oen ocb 

.Qcn Kijjula cniA rdicn p^joiiai tjWp^ rOi»r^ 258. 

vorx>i^:T orti* >odciz.i^ Ajjaî rdss.i^ 

^273 r^crAr^ A>a\ K'QCDr^.t riîK' pdi-.l •T:S3p

^ 

r

.rdlikM^;^ rdJci^.i ptflaix^ 48 

rtliK' ..zirf' J^. A\jiMivx,ris^ cAi .isjr^ rdJSaûxw p3 rili'UiK' 249. 

rdxaj ^.1 Oooo .K*^^ K'.IMSS \\ri rS^n^N.I ocfj.l &\2)9rdl 

K'JoaenCCal ri'ax, p«Ai .'i»3r^ rg'.ii.\ra 

^ 

r^'T«rCia,i4_ r^ri* 

>Jniar

47 .rcîsairso r^^ Aii»aaj ^r

.oniaiA is3r^ KLSiso ^ rîa^l ^'SJ tm rOiuK' 237. 

.r^\0\.i cnîÂr3 ^so pcliiur*' 239. 

,Au=no co\^^r^ r^.lM.'sa ooaioAjaorda co^yn^ rôm .^.t 

^..."I oqa .,"i=j vyioi. ciA ^'»].i .pilîo col \Spr^ .tô 

V oocAo^jaoK' ^ ,en\^Q Awss ^pi'.t .>ia 

»» .Tu ^cu .3^^ rextflocn'-i rCliil'M pa .-u* (mi >^«S9.i •p:i^n r peAtoa p^cn ^ 't»»:^\.i 

.isapi' ri'ioA>£A 

^SS.T K'A>Or«l»J0D.T "iiar^ r^2ajl&4i ^SO K'JTMr^ 242. 

' 

Var. pCôSoxuAvso.

45 .riba.liia rdilsas r^îi'ih\oen pdtto 

>A»r«'.l .lAJi-a r€\r^ .,iio rdiiaAvjJ vOjcs^.t .'iajr^ 

rcA vr\i\ôn 

.p^QOD ri'icuii.i rdLl.'SO .JLs p3 .t» riliiwr^ 234. 

A^ .TÔ .OoAxcA AeiîJ.l K'ia—3 .OOOaptf' ^SJ )V-iAif«^n 

'03»

OcoQ .,cr>aiy^Wi rÂô'iAxf^ A:ô .>odq,j:t~isi cn\ir

43 .riisaixsi rfliklss.i «'AuJ'"iA>osa rcdsb 

rilikA-rw QoiAA>r^ ri'-u^ rîvsscu iAvso .oo.tOô 

r.ri\~i 

v,ii»r^ p3 OOP .\^'MO .'r

.rS3 f^>JoA>.i iA rfxicu.i .iajr^ rt'.âiJiM ^sa rdiiur^ 222. 

J3CVX11 K'ocn A3.X. yaabÔi rdA r^lso -so riliiur^ 223. 

vrdX.iax, (A.t 

r^hx&X^^^hssa^ .rÔcn vssK' r

41 .rîsx^xTTj riii'so.i fîv*j'iA>cc»3 ridsa 

ooru.i rCiujJ ^T=>^ isAxso "pXs r^ .^*r^.T i^ri" ^î 

V rCAt^M _. ocm T 

Â>'iAx:T .oiin-iT.r^.l K'-SoAap*' rîr^ .isapi* pc'^niXn pa rdiiijK' 219. 

.ri'ôs.i.T yc\ r

^^\3L.r^^ 

-Qt

39 .rdViÔOT^.l rdîjjju.! ri'iujHA^CVSS rdl^ 

(i Ktooo Axiri" airs'."! rSlaoo cnA iijaptf' 

r^-id>r

^''^T«>iJf' r:i n^^\^ 38 

oeo rîctt. (^ ..ÔenSOr^ ^^^^ •*-^ .oocuiri'o â£k KisrS' 202. 

vr^lîi-o p^sor^ Ops' rdap^ ^wi.i ^».l 

rirsr^ 3r\cA ^3\=3 ^\p^ .rdAoA«s ^ ci^r^ rdari' 203. 

JrupS' vr^LSS iad^.>.-T rilipS' pc'vw.T .ctA TSarS'O .Qcuja^r^ 

>^ pÂvi^\ r^.TM ri'Aux. Aa .ooujaoirS' rclarS' 204. 

a2jtia»©r^ .pCctaipiA re'.tCU.t wy*^ •K'HrSlA _oonl^ ^ pi'ocn 

V pcLir^ 

>4)i 

rid Ar^ .ri'iKla (.S3 .tm ^^sa ri'aoD Akp^ rii iSTii,^ ^-i 

.r^laiaô p^CUj.t K^t^pi':! .p3aa P5i=r^ri'oor> i^p^ 205. 

p^pd^^â* r\ ,CQCU2>.axio rSLspCioa JOp^ ._CU*^ >LiJ2ai .t^.i 

r

37 .(s\ jnOîz.^ ru 

rdSA»r^ .K'oop iSFi^^p^ ctAa tOoo r

a 

^\ 

..v~ri r^xiod^.i r«l=)d\& 36 

50.V1 .K'A\CUl\.i rdzM ^^ 

-.\r:93 

rilsre' aa>r^fioaco rA rîsir^ 195. 

"U^ ,cp .cnAxAri riiaTi^. .rî^r^ Ai». pS'^^ftux.-i K'.irdr. 

^.To ,''- ;jQ.To tôsa pdir^ K^saxfio .jaJ»»

35 T'^'-X""!*^! 

r^.T&Mj.-l rax.r^ rdiiflo ^=o Tjj 184. 

ji3±. .r9 piA.T >,\ pdliK*."! .i»p^_QaxiS3a 186. 

.^ftoaii.T vypC r^va.-tSoX t:Mo îooz-o .a A. ago 

rÔQiÂoJora r^l^ r^.i ^"T^gl .iCUuLa rOocn ^.i .>i^ ^.i 

rÂ\3.T rîvMOiSa ptf.icn\ .r

.r

..__QcpA>CUoil3 "jtA rf' » \\.l ^ is3r^ rÂ>a23r..f ctA tr^ r^lo A>CQ rClJ^p^ .Kllxi 

.rîao.tsj iurC ialik^viao AvipcT AirC i^.i -.î aim 

V VSfii^ K>Oco v^c2a ^xu^ r^lxs 

înis tJax.eUj.1 .JUr^ »A 177. 

rdA^ô ÔÂ\.i iruri' rs^^so psIA.t .A ^jiiari'o >:a^

.AAsQ^ K'rdXcifio.T ,m ^ 

"icn.iir^ .'T-Wr^ reU'tAjr^ 168. 

(cti3 

rÂvJLl\Ari'A\5»3 rr^ riiTwr^ 171. 

îbn.idfxss.l riiiflo ,cno^^Q .riana^ ^tTa.i&VM.l rd-ili^ 

__Oetai'Av=.T rÂ>a\- ir\xs ^50 piaLiX .ijajK' rilii»r^ 172. 

&\^.T..1 r..-u îxiôipsr-ijSJni' rdiiwr^ 173. 

^ 

I.O. rdsacl=a riLnriSal >i otA. 

^^ 

I.O. i.WK'A^K'i. 

3 

I.O. omits "t*^'

31 .rî3L2^ r£MJi^Mi rîÂii^cai rd\in 

rc'\\-i A-V.^^ .rdiool^ rClAwi isarsT rdiiwK' 162. 

ris3a\î ,CTi3 .cnAxxaiio fîiai r^rC^ rCiSsna .cndxa^Ln 

rdss'ijj.io .r^Ô-irq rilpdÔ .KllsiMlô Ocn ta^ ocno .rfAvns ^» r^'iujj.T 

vosidxa ^.T fi\r^ H^saSo.i .varS* rsljiMK' 166, 

V >::i^ cA ^^vx..i 

h\jL=is h\\S^^r^ kA rÂ\\=>3.i rdia^.i .isani' rdliur^ 167. 

4\i^3 .irvlisiA^K' (j.T .T^ .AAsm.T ri=)-.i ocfj.t ,co r^lioor^

w^^KuVigi r.i rcA i>i.Ti. ^l^n JUr^ iôl în^ rfjiwrS" 155. 

jjiZM.l .rîft^\X \o.X.b\ pdls .VS3(< relli-uK' 156. 

Aj^.t pdiin.i .arS'.T vyK" .^'u* ro'iA\x'Si\o 

ya^^ îora^.T .._ajm iiX, w.o«n^."» 'tsar^ rîsjr*' 159. 

^.1 onairi' .^'ôlz. ., Q oaj'iA^ cvlo .ocn .tm rîTX-.T jcna 

cTa:Mcaii\.i Kisoi- jtil ctal j3.it.1 .isar^ pdjiMK' 160. 

îiu.t )o.Tn ^ .r^L&\&.l ^K'Auii^ OîAcsal rili^.i 

^ 

I.O. i=J3r^ rili'UjK'. ^ 

I.O. ^jJJ-»»x=a.t rdsb.icn As*.

29 .rs^j^ns rdSoi'Âj."! rÂvuiixCCa riiib 

p°>T..i issiu.i ôuu.i >cr) .iiapC pîurC 144. 

V fQ A 1 {»:sajj.'P3.i .is3K' p^'jiwrC 145. 

V oral pC.Ti^ K'ôiAvitjA ^pCo .rCAÔill^.i 

^'Ut.sAoo rr

.tr'i'SM^ga r^ci^.T rfls^ 28 

p^.liiô .r

.T^ .Aur^'^Â. rilia>A.i .iiOp^^r^rSlOQM pîia ^îurell 127. 

rdi2^ ru.i ,cn As^.T .t3^ dma .\r\ i£a>* rd\ ^n.tia 

eucf) .f^'iiflof^ diXAS.l « K'i.u .xiri'.l rîiar

.rt*\KM^^ (

25 .rôvoD rfJSaiAjj.T r^h^'^h\os>3 rdiiso 

rcÂn-w pÂvilL.T .1.^-ir^ (M r^-iiojj.T •tjmpS' riliiwr!' 113. 

^00 rîri'.T K'Au.L.T î&\=3 .JCll^ >i^

V rî^lA\.t 

.^Qp^lô 

p3 JUKlV K'aen ^r£x r^h\.^si it^s rîsorîvw 108. 

r

23 .nslxaoia r^:âi!&jj.-T pa33 rîa 

h\^:ioins.r^ .^rdl-sajao fS^tnlXtAo .^^K" ^rÛSOi 

v ^ o cnttq iôr> ooo •jT»»t

.r^liLj4::î^ relld^.l rCsh^-^ 22 

: rdsoass ct2=s i>^.i om oi^r^.i .isorr^S3 redi ocni .>ia ocpo 

oepQ .^.Tio rd^K'CUt. cnA\iur^cnA\Xpdi, icnSo-^Jiual 98. 

r^KtlVw rfJCD.1 îsor^ ^.s ,cp .aoiJO^ r^JuS^.T^ rd\.i >1^ 

.AkÛc^ rfliA^ ^r^ .îj (AA oopo 

d\aAU oXpô .(\ rOTA-aoo —-j^jissiSP (J^lt isar^ iaai. 103. 

^ 

I.O. crA .•Vi otA. ^ I.O. .^*i*>.1. 3 I.O. rdi^CuA jiiioo. 

+ I.O. r. 5 I.O. >*ajj. ^ 1.0. liaiigjA.. 

' 

I.O. y^ f

21 .finV3 dn^^ 

K'CVJt-S rdJt-lii3 d\it-M .TQ.M \ -i cnA.T if\,i ^

.rdliiMîi^ (^jci^.T ra\ 

^SJ3 »._ocnia) .rda.ttO.T ,opaisi'w73.i isop^ icn&a^jus 86. 

»^_cvem5a .^tj^.i .iciMla riiujoi îa.i .ojr^ pcliui vyr^" 

pC^w »»\\-iO .rduii^ ^.\tv,.\~.n 

.

19 .rdifioY^ rcLan'i\».t rfh^xiib^caa r^^ 

.cam rtfsoliw rSlicn.T ^ cn^qevsa.i tjsoK' icnia^^VD 80. 

aoo* OK" .en\ rS'ai.i rîo Qw ôdnsosa jUru .=>crx. rî 

•> ._ocn'o n 1 aco.i rÂxotiiî,^ Kô .rt'ocni.T ^.V\ rdii^,ji3.i 

.^rali-..T ,qp ^ r^h\Dor^hvT. K'irt..ToA>.T iajp^ iuc-.iip^ 82. 

ctal rS'ocoj rilA.T rîr\j=3 Aô .i^ûaoBS A.^^ p«'A>5aAA» 

pôen i.TM rd^lsa oijioa^.i aD&\S!3C\x=3.-i pe'isopi'Acn 83. 

• f^""U*.T rslairila ^jilso iAix în po.i .i^rito Airs' r^Sa^ 

oqpo .^r^ K'Jsa.T .ctA isaK'Q >crL>'ta rîisa '^•7'* .oâ 

• i^'ari' aa42Â>»u.i 

p^rsoX.I. .crA vajr^ rilaAiOO .Klip^ kA ocpo .r3pi'i>2>3. 2 i.o. rtiai^.T. 3 i.O. 

mA\icCi^ pCc^xmAsso. 4 1.0. ..jjôii.cupi'.

V a CO 

ri!Lw».i 

v^\ XxaS^ ^_j

fâctoo rii.i rfiAxO^ ocn rixw.i ArfAuLr^ oop .t^ oqp 70. 

.taii. rCluab.T iwK'.T âj Aa.t tsok' I^Tt^Tt^ 73. 

' The words in brackets are from I.O. ' 

I.O. p«Is>3. 

c

.(îJLm^S)^ r«iJoA\.T ribi\i, 16 

.>i^ Ocpo .i&u» rdia\cu rdUrCa Ari'iii.K' IItmK^ 63. 

vr

15 .rdij'a* (cJu^ rîvjiiâso rcdib 

rtCflail^ ((\* 

.r^^JrUK*.-! cruj-i^voo:^ .__AJr

.TJt.r..i rilsaâ jc^^jjso rda rS-oi .aK'.i vyrS" .cruocns 

•«_OA^f.ô.i ^Jtcui.T ius Ai^ isaK'A^p^ oooi.T^wN\t

13 .r rdôJuaVA&.i rÂvriiAxw redia 

V ^ôiiJ.i ^îur^ iaX.i „__a^6aa 

.ri'AAftakfîo.l rdi:u>. A!5^ >ooair5l1i ,dnS9(^ orA d>via aqso .ocn rî.iuw 

A^.T >CTa=> .C3Q^ ptf'.ln'aX .a^r^ kAt .ocn ocn r^Tiiv^.i 

vr3r^.

.ri'\'

A»r Aaco ajjri'.T .lrr^hvt.rd ^rur^ 28. 

V .^.T ri'VMpi'ivSO 29. 

vrS'AouSJrS' rill ri'Ava^ ^^ 

''^^^ .rÂujSari' r^ ri'Aucia.i 

.ar«':T »cn=i rdl^flol .^.lo^^z:»l rdaii\M.i vwpi' îwr^ 30. 

.^.iQdvz.:^ tiiA*» 'rdiiwr^ 31. 

aod\sncL ^^n«sm .Tô&dua oqpo cniôs^ .o^.-t >cn vyrs' 

.•Oiî>£»3 

r^^ ocpo 

•reliiip^.l rîn:^ Aap^.T jtJr^ >ca*WM ^QixLiaCiail 32. 

iuOoD jnAvfloso rid .rdaAsal Axxsii. cArJ'.-i .crA isorô 

Aurf 3ir< air!'.! .oop >iô .K'^vlci^rslso K'.ieo vyri'.il 

Jtsajt-A».i duiiAuiopi' rill .r«'A\lc\.^riio ri'.icn vyK".! AAirJ' 

vriLilsal 

.:i.Too .-Qooi.-Ufla^lri' >xii,A\A\r^ .i^.l pi'tWrS'Acao 33. 

în^ .1^.-? .oal i.'Mri'o ctisar^ A^ftl .=^ .d>c\2ai.i ptf'ocn 

(=^ •*-»•

Ij^dnâ CT23.T c\cn (- ar€:t .cnA 

isor^Q .K^lxSQM r

.rîj'cu re^ftivifi' .«\7 r^&ujid^ft93 re:\Ss 

rtfiiîaco 'U^ri'cn .rdL^ctA rfl^t^ .rAi. rii rs^Kcoo 

ocpQ .rôza AupS' Airs' rdlSol.T .x:sir€h\r^ Qml^Ô.il 13. 

reiiai.i rî\Ii\ ,1= ^ jor^ rcix\}!^ n^Vw .tti-i\ pÂ\gi-) .^fiood\ rdA.i .cnX TWri'o 

^r^Tsdfu oa=>.i pdsnfn-) cm ^r^ '^^^ ix-ârC^ .dadÂoi 

v., aaiiacn rdajcô rdaor*' >i3l Ao!^cid>.i r«'-£aî< 

rîcu.T •isari'a •rS'icu r^îv\.T pÂ\iA^ rÛi rdiiwp^ 16. 

V rilli*^ p3 

v»Vi>- i.iv. (A^c\ pîoj AaiajrirQ 

.,_OT^rA% oqscv .K5a.\s3 v>A powi pc:\ rdl» Ai^.i iiOri'A^r^ 18. 

v._ootalS3 .ai.T rdJ^rdl .._C»ii>il p^.i .riiKTJ.I ,03 K'^vAi.t.-l 

.>03al^^ îdx-id^.i r«iir^ j=J3 o-im.i\rô tsar^ rdiiMK" 19. 

V tsai rd^Jco A^- .T^ 

.l^r^hysn

.rA pilJSarj.T .onolrdx. J^^^^ 9- 

Qcia.-T .2^.ii.i=D (df\=a ^ r^sau^M.i 1^ acpa .(XA ^^.7 acp. s 

jq. 

r^lMia&ai cni. « I.O. omits eras.

vritos.vi 

'_ar

._cu2aoiSk 6 

.ri'TiaivX rdriÔ .;

eusaoi^ 

>tUnT . 

»»3 ^jxu.i&>=a .r^û^z. dv>AOr- îaA^ Aa\ ôcn 

.r^d>anu^ Aa ^50 pdal ,^v^t*^30 .rZJA^ •p^xa. " I.o. t'A^«Vq.

.coo&i.ioo 4 

70 ri-ixliliss r«d 

75 

• »_Qoai20ô 

83 ^r

7 rdii'cu 

17 rcifioaa 

24 piio.'Uon 

27 rSliTTiii- 

33 3,,;ii^;j^, 

40 ^.^ÔoraiSaiiAiO rdisoixia 

49 rîaooo ,j!np^ 

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The laughable stories collected by MÃ¢r Gregory John Bar HebrÃ¦

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