Hāfi?-Erbauliches und Beschauliches-Morgenl?ndische Sagen und Geschichte

st and the West. And his East was not restricted, as Goethe's or Platen's, to Arabia and Persia, but included India and even China. He is not only a devotee to the mystic poetry of Rūmī and the joyous strain of Hāfi?, but he is above all the German Brahman, who by masterly translations and imitations made the treasures of Sanskrit poetry a part of the literary

Orientalist at Vienna, in 1818,145 decided his future career. He at once took up the study of Arabic, Persian

s true of only a limited number; and even these were probably not taken directly from the Persian, but from the versions given by Hammer in his Redekünste.147 As a matter of fact, only twenty-eight-less than one-half of the Gaselen,-can be

nennt sich das

ein euch zeige

elf did not pretend to offer real translations. The majo

Osten warst du d

Bude im Westen

the attitude which the poet of the West as

a consideration of the fourth series (p. 253 seq.), which we shall discuss together with the poems collected under the title of ?stliche Rosen (p.

er and more bacchanalian expression than in the Divan of Goethe or the Ghaselen of Platen. Carpe diem is the sum and substance of the philosop

?? ?? ??

? ??? ????

sthau," p. 261), for as Hāfi? says (H. 487. 11): "Our existence is an enigma, whereof the investigation is fraud and fable." The tavern is celebrated with as much enthusiasm (e.g. "Das Weinha

??? ?????

??? ???

orbidden, do not drink! I said: On my eye (

??? ?? ???? ?? ?? ???? "the place of the straight cypress is on the bank of the brook"); the rose-bush glows with the fire of Moses ("Gnosis," p. 350, cf. H. 517. 2: ??? ???? ???? ?? "the rose displays the fire of Mūsā"); Hafis is an idol-worshipper (p. 305, "Liebesandacht," cf. H. 439. 6, where ?? ????? ????? "the idol

chstem Gipfel warf d

m den Staub in Die

' er draus, und glü

eln trink und deiner

known, is extremely common in Persian

? ?? ?? ??

?? ?? ??

ust will make jugs, take care! make our skul

08, H. 160, couplets 2 and 5 being omitted), "Beschwichtigter Zweifel" (p. 310, H. 430. 6), "Das harte Wort" (p. 350, H. 77. 1 and 2). Sometimes a

ut only a few instances. "Nicht solltest du so, O Rose, vers?umen die Nachti

?? ?? ???

???? ???

he queen of beauty, display no arrogan

Jahr" (p. 260)

eit Koran im of

das Lied Hafis

allel to

?? ?? ??? ?

?? ? ???? ??

a verse of the Qurān; for that reason there is

s of "Schmuck de

Schmink' ein sc

Liebste mein

ly reminisce

? ?? ????

?? ??? ?? ??

loved is independent. What need has a lovel

mploys the form of the dialogue, the lines beginning alternately Ich sprach, Sie sprach, just as Hāfi? does in Ode 136 or 194. The "Vierzeilen" (p. 361), while they have the rubā?ī-rhyme

great mass of narrative, descriptive and didactic poems which were collected under the titles Erbauliches und Beschauliches aus dem Morgenlande, and again Morgenl

nd 1837 in different periodicals. They appeared in collected form as a separate work in 1837.152 The material is drawn from A

ll as many of the proverbs and maxims, pp. 102-108. The poem "Die Kerze und die Flasche," p. 82, is a result of the poet's studies in connection with his translation of the Haft Qulzum, a fragment of Amīr ?āhī154 being combined with a passage cited from Asadī.155 "Eine Kriegsregel aus Mirchond," p. 73, is a paraphrase of a maθnavī from Mīrχvānd's Raū?at-ussafā.156 In "Gottesdienst," p. 52, the first two lines are from Amīr Xusrau (Red. p. 229); the remaining lines were adde

s Hafis," p. 59, is a fine rendering of qi??ah 583 in the form of the original.158 Then a part of the int

? ???? ?

om fear of Thee he open his mo

well r

ft, in deiner F

enken andres

to reproduce the mutaqārib, as Platen has done in h

ischen Dichters," p. 62, is a free rendering of Hammer's version of the invocation prefixed to A??ār's Mantiq-u? ?air (Red. p. 141 seq.) and Rückert br

Rūmī concerning music prompted the composition of the poem, p. 54 (on which see Boxberger, op. cit. p. 241), and on p. 62 the great mystic is made to give a short statement of his peculiar Sūfistic doctrine of metempsychosis.162 In "Alexanders Verm?chtnis," p. 61, we have th

mention "Hormusan," p. 25, the subject being the same as in Platen's more f

as versified extracts from Oriental history of prevailingly legendary or anecdotal character. Their arrangement is mainly chronological. Only the fourth, fifth and seventh books call for discussion as having Persian m

ue Orientale,168 de Sacy's version of the Tārīχ-i-Yamīnī1

give the story directly according to Firdausī (tr. Mohl, iv. 224, 278-281) but makes his hero go to Tūrān, whence he returns at the head of a hostile army. At the boundary he i

oth," p. 116 (Mém. pp. 345, 346); "Die Heerschau," p. 117 (Mém. p. 373). The two stories about Bahrām ?ubīn, pp. 119-122, are also in Mém. p. 395 and pp. 396, 397 respectively.171 "Der Mann mit einem Arme," p. 124,

y of the Ghaznavid dynasty, in connection with which the story of Alp Tagīn is told in "Lokman's Wort," p. 214, according to the account of Haidar in Wilk. Gasnevid. p. 139, n. 1, preceded by an anecdote told of Luqmān (d'Herb. ii. 488). "Die Schafschur," p. 215, gives a saying of Sabuktagīn from the Tārīχ-i-Yamīnī (on the authority of ?Utbī, de Sacy, Notices et Extr. iv. 365). In the story of Mahmūd's famous expedition to Sōmanatha, p. 215, Rückert has combined the meagre account of Mīrχvānd with that of Firi?ta for the story of the Brahman's offer and with that of Haidar for the sultan's reply (Wilk. Gasn

d pp. 128-132); "Die unglückliche Stunde," p. 232 (ibid. pp. 153, 154). "Die unterth?nigen Würfel," p. 227, is from the Haft Qulzum (Gram. u. Poet. der Perser, pp. 366, 367). The stories of Alp Arslan and Romanus, p. 225, and

. pp. 408, 409). The material for the poems concerning Mu?ammad Xvārazm ?āh, p. 237, and his brave son Jalāl ud-dīn, pp. 240, 241, is found in the work of Deguignes (op. cit. ii. p.

n Anvarī and Ra?īd, surnamed Va?va? "the swallow" (Hammer, Red. p. 121; David Price, Chronological Retrospect, London, 1821, ii. 391,

es, the famous "Es ging ein Mann im Syrerland," p. 303,175 a

ly derived from Arabic and Persian sources. We may now turn our attention to a collec

bject-matter, whether originally Oriental or not, has long ago become the common property of the world's fable-literature, as, for instance, "Weisheit aus Vogelmund," p. 239, the story of which may be found in the Gesta Romanorum, and in French, English and German, as well as in Persian, fable-books.17

, "Fluch und Segen," p. 234 (Gul. i. 1), and "Busurgimihr," p. 225 (Gul. i. 32; K.S. 31). "Die Bibliothek des K?nigs," p. 405, is from the Bahāristān (K.S., p. 31; Red. p. 338). Three episodes from the Iskandar Nāmah are narrated on

han," p. 397. It is not taken from Firdausī, for it relates the story somewhat differently, and introduces a love-episode of which the epic knows nothing.182 Again, "Der in die Stadt verschlagene Kurde," p. 229, is an anecdote which Rückert had already translated in the Haft Qulzum (see his Poet. u. Rhet. der Perser, pp. 72-74), while "Glücksgüter," p. 233, may have been suggested by a story of A??ār which he published afterwards (1860, ZDMG. vol. 14,

a, its literature, mythology, religious customs, geography and history, an

mals, p. 252, is found in the Kathāsaritsāgara (tr. Tawney, ii. pp. 103-108; cf. Pālī version in Rasavāhinī, Wollheim, Die National-Lit. s?mtlicher V?lker des Orients, Berl. 1873, vol. i. p. 370). "Katerstolz und Fuchses Rath," p. 243, has for its prototype the fable of the mouse changed into a girl in Pa?catantra (iv. 9; cf. the story of the ambitious Ca??āla maid in Kathās. tr. Tawney, ii. p. 56). King Raghu's generosity to Varatantu's pupil Kāutsa, as narrated in the Raghuva??a (ch. v.), is the subject o

46-355. For the Hindostanee version in the Premsāgar, see Wollheim, op. cit. i. p. 421). In the Sanskrit the story is not so ideal as in Rückert's poem. The poor Brahman is urged on to the visit, not by affection for the playmate of his youth, but rather by the prosaic appeals of his wife; yet, though the motive be different, the result is the same. Besides these, we find the legend of Kāma, the Hindu Cupid, burned to ashes by ?iva's third eye for attempting to interrupt the god's penance, p. 266 (Rāmāy. i. c. 23, Kumāras. iii. v. 70 seq.), and Rückert manages to introduce and to expla

s in the supernatural power conferred by excessive penance, as exemplified by the legend of ?akuntalā's birth. The practice of pa?catapas, "the five fires" (Manu, vi. 23. See Monier Williams, Indian Wisdom, Lond. 1876, p. 105) is the subject of the poem "Des Büssers L?uterungswahn," p. 285. The selfish greed of the Brahmans (cf. Manu, vii. 133, 144; xi. 40) is referred to in two poems

criptive poems, e.g., "Das ewige Frühlingsland der Tudas," p. 301 (op. cit. iv. 1. 951), "Das Frühlingsland Kaschmir," p. 315 (ibid. ii. 1142 and 630), "Die Kokospalme," p. 304 (ibid. iv. 1. 834 seq., 838, 851, 85

1567.184 The heroic queen-regent of Ahmadnagar, Chānd Bībī, and the romantic story of her struggle against Akbar, in 1596, is the subject of the poem on p. 353. Only the bright side is, however, presented; the tragic fate which overtook the unfortunate princess three years later is not referred to.185 The famous battle of Samūgarh, 1658, by whi

Thus the fact that the word pāda may mean either "foot," "step," or "ray of the moon or sun," is utilized for the last lines of "Vom Monde," p. 368. The meaning of the term bakravratin, "acting like a crane," applied to a hypocrite, is used for a poem on p. 363. Similarly the threefold signification of dvipa as "brahman," "bird," and "tooth" suggests "Zweigeboren," p. 423, and more instances might

he poet's attention. "Es muss alles hinein, was ich eben lese: vor acht Wochen Spinoza, vor vierzehn Tagen Astronomie, jetzt Grimms überschwenglich gehaltreiche Deutsche Mythologie, alles unter der nachl?ssig vorgehaltenen Brahmanenmaske...."187 These are the author's own words and render further detailed characterization of the work superfluous. It is well known that the sources for the great didactic collection, even for that part of it which is not compo

89 but particular instances of such influence are not hard to find. We shall adduce only a few, taken from the fifth division or Stufe, called Leben. Of these there are taken from the Hitōpadē?a Nos. 25 (Hit. i. couplet 179; tr. Hertel, 141), 26 (ib. i. 178; tr. Hertel, 140), 111 (ib. i. couplet 80; Wilkins' tr. p. 56). From the Gulistān are taken Nos. 290 (Gul. i. 13; K.S. dist. p. 42), 326 (ibid. vii. 20; K.S. dist. p. 230), 366 (ibid. vi

n ein Kameel du bi

. "Flieg!" Ich bi

igible, unless one happens to know that the Persian

a similar use on p. 463 (162). Some poems are moralizingly descriptive of Indic customs, e.g., p. 157 (11), where reverence for the guru or "teacher" is inculcated (cf. Manu ii, 71, 228) and pp. 10, 11 (18, 19), where the conditions are set forth under wh

mass of verse, and we also meet with insipid puns, like that on the

or our purpose. With the philosophical par

e," p. 286, "Die nackten Weisen," p. 287, and others. Some poems in this collection are in spirit akin to the ?stliche Rosen, e.g. "Becher und Wein," p. 291, "Der Traum," p. 283, and the "Vierzeilen," pp. 481, 482. Be

having sprung from the sea,190 he states (p. 24), that if he were to be the judge, these fifty-three million nymphs bedecked with jewels would have to bow before the one Aphrodite in her naked glory. And again in "Rückkehr," p. 51, the poet confesses that havi

dency to overproduction. He offers an

chen und künstliche

nes Lied, so übers

ion, Musst du denn immer d

nie ohne z

nie ohne

entence which a Spaniard pronounced about Lope de Vega, that no p

than any one else he brought over into it a new spirit and new forms; and it is due primarily to his unsurpassed technical skill that the

TNO

ich Rückert, Fkft. a.

v. pp.

224. Such also was the opinion of the scholarly von Schack, Strophen des Omar Chijam, Stuttg.

i. with Red. p. 175, and No. 24

v. ii. 25

is most familiar to the English reader from Fitzgerald's version, Rubaiyat of Omar Khayya

senalmanach, 1838, and do not belong pr

en, pp. 210-278. Also Beyer, Neue Mittheil. vol. i. p. 213

rzeilen-Sprüche, pp. 102-

oetik u. Rhetorik der Perser, ed.

bid.

Gasnevid. Berol. 183

Persian text of these fables appeared in 1805 in the chrestomathy appended to Fr.

is, Tüb. 1812, vol. ii. p. 553. Bodenstedt has given a version

hīrāz, A.H. 1312. In Wilberforce Clarke's transl. of the Iskanda

e Tassy, Mantic Uttaīr, Paris, 18

rd) Jelālu-d-dīn, Muhammed, er-Rūmī, Lond. 1881, B. i. p

s. Litt. in Grdr. iran.

is Leben u. Werke, Leip

s Rois de la dynastie des Sassanides, suivis de l'Histoire de cette Dyn

go Mirchondi Historia Samanidarum Per

Mirchondi Historia Gasnevidarum Pe

irchond, Wilken in Hist. philos. Abh. der kgl. Akad. d.

en, aus d. Pers. zum ersten Mal übers.

shed by European scholars before 1837 may be found in Zenker's Bibl. Or

n op. cit. p. 74 shows that Rücke

ar A.I. Silv. de Sacy in Notices et Extrait

is, 1869, vol. ii. pp. 9, 10, where the story is given on the authority of

t this man see Th. N?lde

See also Malcolm, op. c

et des autres Tartares occidentaux, etc. Paris, 1756-1758

liot, The History of India as told by its own historians, Lond. 1867-1877, vol

3, where it is given as f

. For bibliography of this fable see W.A. Clouston, A G

d One Nights, by John Payne

bid.

bid.

6, p. 359; see also Bacher, Nizā

ed in Hammer, Red. p. 118; se

of this collection (pp. 392-439 in our edition) is made up

Religion in Grdr. iran.

f India, vol. v. pp

te, where the legend of the queen firing silver balls is giv

pp. 106-131. See also Elliot, op. cit. vol. vii. pp. 220-224, and Elphinstone, op.

6, cited by C. Beyer in Nachgelassene Ged

ne, Breslau (Deutsche Büchere

ence see esp. in vol. viii. of the ed

we read that sixty kōtis, i.e. 600,000,000 (a kōti being 10,000,000), c

och, op. cit. pp. 11-13; Rud. Gottschall, Fried. Rückert in Portraits u. Studien, Leipz.