254. It was evidently the custom, even among the Greeks also, to harangue their horses, for Homer repeatedly puts these speeches into the mouths of his heroes. Hector addresses his horses in the Eighth Book:

And in the Nineteenth Book, Achilles reproaches his horses with the death of Patrocles, when

before he makes a spirited reply foretelling his master’s death.

255. This “tiger skin” is supposed to be a magic garment which had the power of resisting the impression of every weapon. It was proof against fire, and would not sink in water. According to some classic authorities, he received it from his father, Zal; others say it was made from the skin of an animal which Rustem killed on the mountain of Sham. It will be remembered that the heroes of ancient poets frequently wore the skins of animals. Hercules wore the skin of the Nemæan lion. The skins of panthers and leopards were worn by the Greek and Trojan chiefs, and Virgil says of Alcestes:

256. Compare Shakespeare—

257. In Virgil there is a similar scene, where Dido bids her sister erect a pile to burn the arms and the presents of Æneas.

258. There is a tradition that Gushtasp was Darius Hystaspes, and that his son Isfendiyar was Xerxes.

259. Compare the wooden horse that caused the fall of Troy, also the fall of Arzestan, which the Saracen general conquered by smuggling into the city a portion of his troops in chests, having obtained leave of the governor to deposit there some old lumber which impeded his march.

260. Pichula, used anciently for Persian arrows. During the rainy season it blooms profusely on the banks of the rivers, where it is interwoven with twining Asclepias.—Sir W. Jones in “Botanical Observations.”

261. About A.D. 1200.

262. Born A.D. 1141, and died A.D. 1203.

263. Kais was the proper name of the lover, but he received the cognomen of Majnun on account of his madness.

264. Except the desert scene, the poetical extracts in this chapter are from Atkinson’s translation.

265. Zemzem is the sacred well enclosed by the temple at Mecca, and even a stone dipped in its waters is thought to possess marvelous virtues.

266. Born at Balkha, A.D. 1297.

267. A.D. 1176.

268. Some authorities say that he died at the age of one hundred years, while others claim that he lived to be one hundred and sixteen.

269. Journal Asiatique, Jan., 1843.

270. From Davies’ version.

271. From Gladwin’s Translation.

272. A.D. 1388.

273. It is claimed that he used ninety thousand human heads in erecting pyramids to illustrate his horrible triumph.

274. Timur was also of Mongol origin, and a descendant of Genghis Khan.

275. Khizer was the prophet who, according to Oriental tradition, discovered and drank of the Fountain of Life, and it was he who bore the nectar to the waiting poet.

276. Most of the Asiatic poets are Sufis, and claim to prefer the meditations of mysticism to the pleasures of the world. Their fundamental tenets are that nothing exists, absolutely, except God, and that the human soul is an emanation from his essence, and will finally be restored to him.

277. Sidrah—Tree of Paradise.

278. Bichnel’s Trans.

279. Finished about A.D. 1575.

280. A.D. 1611.

281. A.D. 1430.

282. Haji Luft Ali.

283. A.D. 1556-1605.

284. A.D. 1585-1628.

285. Herodotus IX.

286. Ousley, Biog. Pers. Poets, p. 202.

287. A very popular style of decoration in Persia is the kainah-karree; while the plaster is yet soft, the surface is inlaid with minute mirrors of every conceivable shape. The amount of work and skill necessary to inlay a room in this style is almost incalculable, and although the materials are comparatively cheap, the immense amount of labor required make the work very expensive. The effect, however, is one of bewildering splendor as if the light were flashed from the polished facets of millions of gems.—Benjamin, Persia and Persians, p. 279.

288. Ven., XIX, 43.

289. Yasna, XII, 9, p. 174.

290. Dr. Haug, Essays, p. 2. 67

291. Prof. Roth, Tubingen. Chips, p. 85.

292. There are also many so-called historical works, which, although deficient in sound criticism, and to a greater or less extent unreliable, still furnish some curious and noteworthy data. They have translations of the Maha-bharata, the Ramayana and other standard works of Sanskrit literature, but the original fire of Persian genius appears to be hopelessly crushed.

293. The Tazieh is the outgrowth of a ceremony which, for centuries, the Persians have annually performed in the holy month Moharrem. At this time they celebrate the tragic death of Hossein, the grandson of the Prophet who perished with all his house at the hands of a rival for the honors of a caliphate. The month of mourning is largely occupied with the recitals and ceremonies pertaining to the event; halls being especially constructed for these rhapsodies, as after more than seven hundred years, the terrible scenes of the tragedy were dramatized and placed upon the Persian stage. In the royal Takieh, or theatre, the great drama is unfolded for ten successive days, during the month of mourning, while in all other portions of the empire it is reproduced with more or less power, at the same time.