Re: Nonsense

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful :

<http://www.bartleby.com/16/701.html>

They continued their journey until they arrived at a palace;=20
whereupon the sheykh said, Advance with us to this palace,=20
which presenteth a lesson to him who will be admonished. So=20
the Emir Musa advanced thither, together with the sheykh=20
=D4Abd-Es-Samad and his chief companions, till they came to its=20
entrance. And they found it open, and having lofty angles, and=20
steps, among which were two wide steps of coloured marbles,=20
the like of which hath not been seen; the ceilings and walls were=20
decorated with gold and silver and minerals, and over the=20
entrance was a slab, whereon was an inscription in ancient=20
Greek; and the sheykh =D4Abd-Es-Samad said, Shall I read it, O=20
Emir? The Emir answered, Advance and read. May God bless=20
thee! for nought hath happened to us during this journey but=20
what hath been the result of the blessing attendant upon=20
thee.=D1So he read it; and, lo, it was poetry; and it was this:=D1
=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA	Here was a people whom, after their works, thou sh=
alt see=20
wept over for their lost dominion;
And in this palace is the last information respecting lords=20
collected in the dust.
Death hath destroyed them and disunited them, and in the dust=20
they have lost what they amassed;
As though they had only put down their loads to rest a while;=20
quickly have they departed!
And the Emir Musa wept until he became insensible, and he=20
said, There is no deity but God, the Living, the Enduring without=20
failure! He then entered the palace, and was confounded by its=20
beauty and its construction; and he looked at the figures and=20
images that it contained. And, lo, over the second door were=20
inscribed some verses. So the Emir Musa said, Advance, O=20
sheykh, and read. Accordingly he advanced and read; and the=20
verses were these:=D1
=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA	How many companies have alighted in the tabernacle=
s=20
since times of old, and taken their departure!
Consider thou then what the accidents of fortune have done with=20
others when they have befallen them.
They have shared together what they collected, and they have left=20
the pleasure thereof, and departed.
What enjoyments they had! and what food did they eat! and then=20
in the dust they themselves were eaten!
And again the Emir Musa wept violently: the world became yellow=20
before his face; and he said, We have been created for a great=20
object!	=CA=CA
=CA=CAThen they attentively viewed the palace; and, lo, it was devoid of=20
inhabitants, destitute of household and occupants: its courts=20
were desolate, and its apartments were deserted; and in the=20
midst of it was a chamber covered with a lofty dome, rising high=20
into the air, around which were four hundred tombs. To these=20
tombs the Emir Musa drew near, and, behold, among them was=20
a tomb constructed of marble, whereupon were engraved these=20
verses:=D1
=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA	How often have I stood [in fight]! and how often s=
lain! and to=20
how many things have I been a witness!
And how often have I eaten! and how often drunk! and how often=20
have I heard the songs of beauteous damsels!
And how often have I ordered! and how often forbidden! and how=20
many strong fortresses are seen,
Which I have besieged and searched, and from which I have=20
taken the lovely females=D5 ornaments!
But in my ignorance I transgressed to obtain things wished for,=20
which proved at last to be frail.
Then consider attentively thy case, O man, before thou shalt=20
drink the cup of death;
For after a little while shall the dust be poured upon thee, and=20
thou wilt be lifeless.
And the Emir Musa, and those who were with him, wept. Then he=20
drew near to the dome-crowned chamber, and, lo, it had eight=20
doors of sandal-wood, with nails of gold, ornamented with stars=20
of silver set with various jewels. And over the first door were=20
inscribed these verses:=D1
=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA=CA	What I have left, I left not from generosity; but =
through the=20
sentence and decree operating upon man.
Long time I lived, happy and enraged, defending my asylum like=20
a fierce lion.
I was never quiet, nor would I bestow a mustard-seed, by reason=20
of my avarice, though I were cast into the fire.
Thus did I until I was smitten by the decree of the glorious Deity,=20
the Creator, the Maker.
When my death was appointed soon to take place, I could not=20
prevent it by my numerous stratagems;
My troops that I had collected availed not, and none of my friends=20
aided me, nor my neighbour.
Throughout my whole life was I wearied in my journey to the=20
grave, now in ease, and now in difficulty.
So, when the purses have become laden, shouldst thou=20
accumulate dinar upon dinar,
It will all pass before the morning to another, and they will have=20
brought thee a camel-driver and a grave-digger;
And on the day of thy judgment, lone shalt thou meet God, laden=20
with sin and crimes and heavy burdens.
Then let not the world deceive thee with its beauty; but see what=20
it hath done to thy family and neighbour.
And when the Emir Musa heard these verses, he wept again so=20
violently that he became insensible

--- In [email protected], Michael Cuffaro=20
<michael.cuffaro@...> wrote:
>
> The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath
> -Mark 2: 27
>=20
> For this command which I enjoin on you today is not too=20
mysterious and remote for you. It is not up in the sky, that you=20
should say, 'Who will go up in the sky to get it for us and tell us of=20
it, that we may carry it out?' Nor is it across the sea, that you=20
should say, 'Who will cross the sea to get it for us and tell us of it,=20
that we may carry it out?' No, it is something very near to you,=20
already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry=20
it out.
> -Deuteronomy 30:11-14=20
>=20