tains, the houses and cultivated lands, and all the good things through which we lived in pleasure, and now other people have become the possessors of them. "1

The phoenix said to the owl, "What do you say about this which the shunkár has settled for you?" He replied, "The shunkár speaks truth; but still I cannot go there, because all men nourish animosity against me, and consider the sight of me unlucky, and they cast abuse upon poor innocent me, who never did them any harm. If they should see me there at the time of the argument they will become still more inimical, and through this animosity the day of battle will again arrive. It is better that you should not send me there." The phoenix then asked the owl, who among the animals (present) was best fitted for the business; and he replied, "Kings and nobles among men are very fond of hawks, falcons, and charghs,2 and with great fondness seat them on their hands. If the king should send one of them there, it would be better." The king, looking towards the assemblage of hawks, said, "What is advisable in your opinion?" The hawk said, "The owl speaks truth. But men do not distinguish us because we have any affinity with them, nor because there is any great knowledge or gentle manners in us through which they should have affection for us. They show a liking for us merely for their own benefit; for they tear away our prey from us, and apply it to their own use. Night and day they are engaged in amusement and pleasure. Those matters which God has made incumbent on them, such as to perform their devotions, and to have a dread of the account and books of the day of judgment,-for these matters they never show any inclination."

The phoenix said to him, "In your opinion whom is it advisable to send ?" He said, "My opinion is, that the parrot should be sent there, because among men, kings and 1 Kurán, Súrat xliv. v. 24-27. 2 Chargh- a bird of the hawk kind.

nobles, everybody, small or great, male or female, learned or ignorant, is fond of him, and talks with him. Whatever he says, they attend and listen to." The king asked the parrot what he thought was advisable. He replied, "I am ready. I will go there, and, on the side of the animals, will contend with the men; but I hope that the king, and all this congregation, will unite and render me assistance." The phoenix inquired what he wished. He replied, “My object is that the king should pray to God for me, that I may prevail over the enemy." The king, in compliance with his request, prayed to God for help, and all the congregation said, Amen.

The owl said, “O king! if prayer is not accepted, then trouble and labour are in vain, and unless prayer is attended with all the requisites, no result follows." The king asked what the conditions were for the acceptance of prayer, and told him to state them. The owl said, "For the acceptance of prayer, sincerity of purpose and purity of heart are necessary. Like as a person prays to God when in the deepest distress, so should one fix the mind upon God at the time of prayer. And before offering our (special) prayers, the regular form of prayer should be repeated, abstinence should be observed, and we should show some kindness to the poor and needy, and then, whatever our state of grief and sorrow may be, we should represent it to the Divine Majesty." All said, "He speaks the truth; in prayer these things are requisite.”

The king said to all the congregation, "Ye know that men have so practised violence and oppression over the animals that those poor wretches have at their hands been rendered exceedingly miserable; to such a degree, indeed, that, notwithstanding our being so far away, they have come to seek refuge with us. And we ourselves, notwithstanding that we have greater strength and vigour than man, and soar to the skies, still we have fled from their tyranny, and have come to hide ourselves in the hills and rivers. Our brother the

shunkár also having fled from their oppression, has gone to dwell in the forests, giving up his abode in his own country. But with all this even, we cannot get deliverance from their tyranny. Having no remedy, the time for a struggle has arrived. Although we are so strong that any individual of us might, if he liked, take up several men, and make spoil of them, still it is not befitting for the good to do such evil, or to pay any regard to their wicked conduct. We deliberately1 keep aloof, and remit them to God, for in this world there is no good in fighting and contending. They will obtain the fruit and results of it in the world to come."

After that he said, "How many ships are there which have been in distress through adverse winds, and we have helped them upon their course? and how many poor fellows are there whose ships have been broken by fierce winds, and whom, when they began to sink and to drown, we have brought to the shore, so that God Almighty might be satisfied and pleased with us, and that we might in this way show our gratitude for His mercies! For He has made us powerful in body, and has bestowed upon us vigour and strength, and He, under every circumstance, is our aider and helper."

Lit. "having seen and known, all."

CHAPTER XV.

On the affairs of the Fifth Messenger.

WHEN the fifth messenger went into the presence of the

king of the aquatic animals, and conveyed to him the intelligence of the dispute, he also assembled all his dependents and adherents. Accordingly, the fish, the frog, the crocodile, the dolphin, the turtle, &c., all aquatic animals of every variety, and of every form and shape, in accordance with the command, collected together. The king set forth to them all that he had heard from the tongue of the messenger. After that he said to the messenger, 66 If the men consider themselves superior to us in strength and courage, I will immediately go, and in one instant I will spurt out fire on them, and then dragging them down by the force of my breath, I will swallow them." The messenger replied, "They boast of no one of these things, but they consider themselves superior in this respect, that they possess the greatest sense and wisdom, that they are acquainted with every science and art, and know very many crafts and plans, maintaining that there is no equal to them in sense and judgment."

The king said, "Set forth in detail the facts of their science and art, that we also may know them." The messenger said, "What! does not the king know that by their science and wisdom they go down into the ocean1 and bring up jewels from its bed? By their stratagems and artifices 1Daryde kulzum, the ocean, or, in a more restricted sense, the Red Sea.

they climb up the mountains, and catching vultures and eagles, bring them down to the ground. In the same way, by their science and wisdom they construct a yoke of poles, and placing it upon the shoulders of oxen, they lade heavy goods upon their backs, and conduct them from east to west, from west to east, traversing every forest and desert. By thought and wisdom they build ships, and embarking goods, convey them about from sea to sea. Going on to the mountains and hills, they dig and extract from the earth jewels of every kind, gold, silver, iron, copper, and a great variety of things. If a man goes to the bank of any rivulet, river, or stream, he can by the force of his knowledge bind such a charm that if a thousand crocodiles or dragons should afterwards go to that place, it would not be possible for them to enter there. But before the King of the Jins the discussion is about justice and equity, argument and proof; there is no mention whatever of power and strength, stratagem and artifice."

When the king heard all this from the mouth of the messenger, he looked intently all round upon those who were sitting around and before him, and asked what in their opinion was the best course, and if there was any one who would go and contend with the men. No one gave any answer except the dolphin, who dwells in the salt sea, and is exceedingly friendly with men; for when a person is drowning he drags him from the water and places him on the shore. He represented, "Among aquatic animals the fish is best fitted for this work, because she is large in body and good in figure; she has a fair face, white colour, and straight body; she is swift in motion, and in swimming surpasses everything; in numbers she exceeds all aquatic creatures, and her offspring is so abundant that every river and stream, sea and lake are filled. And she holds a high position also in the opinion of men, because on one occasion she gave refuge in her belly to their prophet, and afterwards brought him to his