The Third Sphere.

Praises of Hindústán.-Its Climate.-Animals.-Learning and Languages.

"This is a well-known fact, that the language spoken by conquerors who have established themselves, when it has been disseminated amongst people, great and small, has become the common language of the country. Just as in Baghdad, where originally but little Persian was spoken, when the Khalifa's dynasty was overthrown, the Pársís established themselves in it. Thenceforward, everything that was Arab, became subject to Pársí rules, and the herd acquired respect for the language of the shepherds. The city, which was called Baghdád in Arabic, became converted in its first syllable into Bághchadád. Turkí became just as prevalent, when the Turks conquered the country, and the language of the chiefs bore fruit in a new soil."

"Hind has observed the same rule in respect to language. In olden time it was Hindúí. When the tribes, great and small, became intermixed, every one, bad and good, learnt Pársí, and all the other languages which existed never moved from their bounds. As God had taught them all, it is not proper to call them all bad. With the exception of Arabic, which, in consequence of the Kurán being written in it, is the most excellent and eloquent of languages, all the tongues differ from one another, and each one has some peculiar merit of its own. This one exclaims, 'My wine is better than all others.' Every one loses himself in his own cup, and no one admits that his own wine is vinegar. In short, it would be useless to enter into further discussion respecting Pársí, Turkí, and Arabic."

"As I was born in Hind, I may be allowed to say a word respecting its languages. There is at this time in every province a language peculiar to itself, and not borrowed from any other-Sindí, Lahorí, Kashmiri, the language of Dugar,1 Dhúr Samundar, Tilang, Gujarát, Ma'bar, Gaur, Bengal, Oudh, Dehli and its environs. These are all languages of Hind, which from ancient times have been applied in every way to the common purposes of life.

1 This may be considered the country between Lahore and Kashmir. Though now used by us in a more restricted sense, the natives assign to it wider limits.

"But there is another language more select than the others, which all the Brahmans use. Its name from of old is Sahaskrit, and the common people know nothing of it. A Brahman knows it, but Brahmaní women do not understand a word of it. It bears a resemblance to Arabic in some respects, in its permutations of letters, its grammar, its conjugations, and polish. They have four books in that language, which they are constantly in the habit of repeating. Their name is Bed. They contain stories of their gods, but little advantage can be derived from their perusal. Whatever other stories and fables they have, is contained in kabits, parwánas, and námahs. The language possesses rules for composition and eloquence. The language is very precious, inferior to Arabic, but superior to Darí; and though the latter is certainly sweet and melodious, yet even in that respect this language does not yield to it."

Mention of some of the powers of sorcery and enchantment possessed by the inhabitants of India. "First of all, they can bring a dead man to life. If a man has been bitten by a snake and is rendered speechless, they can resuscitate him after even six months. They put him on a river which flows towards the East, and he speeds on his voyage as swift as lightning. When he arrives on the borders of Kámrú, an experienced witch instils life into him."

"Another mode is this, and the power is possessed by the Brahmans as a secret; namely, that they can bring a man to life after his head has been cut off. I will tell you another story, if you will not be alarmed at it, that a demon gets into one's head and drinks as much wine as satisfies him, and whatever he utters in this state, is sure to become true. Another is, that through their art they can procure longevity by diminishing the daily number of their expirations of breath. A jogi who could restrain his breath in this way lived in an idol to an age of more than three hundred and fifty years."

"Another process is, that they can tell future events by the breath of their nostrils, according as the right or left orifice is more or less open. They can also inflate another's body by their own breath. In the hills on the borders of Kashmir there are many such people. Another is, that they know how to convert themselves into wolves, dogs, and cats. They can also extract by their power

the blood from one's body and infuse it again. They can also, even while moving, affect a man, whether old or young, with bodily disease. They can also make a body float from shore to shore. They can also fly like fowls in the air, however improbable it may seem. They can also, by putting antimony on their eyes, make themselves invisible at pleasure. Those only can believe all this who have seen it with their own eyes."

"Though this be all sorcery and incantation, yet there is one marvel which you must acknowledge to be fact, that is, that a woman in her senses will burn herself on the funeral pile of her husband, and that a man will burn himself for his idol or for his master. Though this be not legitimate in Islám, yet see what a great achievement it is! If this practice were lawful amongst us, pious devotees might surrender their lives to the air."

When Khusrú Khán was returning to the king after the defeat of Rághú, he received intelligence on the road that Rána Harpál had rebelled, and taken up a position in the hills at the head of a powerful army. The Khán went in pursuit of him, and was vigorously attacked two or three times by the rebel, who, in the end being desperately wounded, was taken captive, and his army put to flight. He was brought, bound hand and foot, before the king, who gave orders that he should be put to death; after which his body was delivered to his attendants to be burnt. "When his way had been taken towards hell by the sword, the king gave his body to the other hellites, that this great infidel and little Satan might become one of its chief ornaments of their kingdom. The hellites who had accompanied him out of regard and had fought by his side, also afforded food to the flames of the infernal regions. Those hellites did not desire that he should be burnt by himself alone, so they accompanied him into the flames, and hell was gratified by that sacrifice.”

In the beginning of the month of Rajab, 718 H., the king, on his return towards Dehli from Deogír, crossed the Nerbadda in a boat. "Nerbadda is a river which flows very rapidly, and is so deep that it cannot be fathomed. Swifter than an arrow, and about two bow-shots broad from shore to shore, even an expert swimmer dare not attempt to cross it." On the day of the passage of the river, the captured elephants arrived in the royal camp from Telingána.

The Fourth Sphere.

Admonitions and precepts for kings, chiefs, soldiers, and the common people.

"I have heard a story that, in Dehli, about five or six hundred years ago, there was a great ráí, called Anangpál. At the entrance of his palace he had placed two lions, sculptured in stone. He fixed a bell by the side of the two lions, in order that those who sought justice might strike it, upon which the ráí would order them to be summoned, would listen to their complaints, and render justice. One day, a crow came and sat on the bell and struck it; when the ráí asked who the complainant was. It is a fact, not unknown, that bold crows will pick meat from between the the teeth of lions. As stone lions cannot hunt for their prey, where could the crow obtain its usual sustenance? As the ráí was satisfied that the crow justly complained of hunger, having come to sit by his stone lions, he gave orders that some goats and sheep should be killed, on which the crow might feed himself for some days."

The Fifth Sphere.

The king's fondness of hunting. His preserves.-Praise of the seasons of Hindústán.-Dialogue between the king's bow and arrow.

The Sixth Sphere.

Birth of Prince Sultán Muhammad on the 23rd of Rabí'u-l awwal, 718 H. (June 25th, 1318 A.D.).—The king distributes gold and jewels among the nobles after seeing the child.-Its education.

The Seventh Sphere.

Encomium upon spring and new year's day; on flowers and birds.-The king's public audience, and the honours and robes bestowed by him upon the nobles, especially upon Khusrú Khán.

The Eighth Sphere.

The king's skill in the game of chaugán.-Dialogue between the bat and the ball.

The Ninth Sphere.

The poet exalts his own merits, and boastingly says that though at that time, in all 'Ajam and Irán, the two poets of chief celebrity

were Shaikh Sa'dí Shírází and Hakím Humám Tabrízí, yet he excelled them both; because, whatever might be the merit of their verses, they possessed not the same multifarious accomplishments as himself.

He tells us that he was sixty-five years of age, and becoming infirm, when he concluded this poem on the 30th of Jumáda-s sání, 718 H. (August 24th, 1318 A.D.), and that it contains 4,509 lines.

5. I'JAZ-I KHUSRUWIr.

[This work, sometimes called Inshá-i Amír Khusrú, is a collection of farmáns, despatches, and letters by Amir Khusrú. It is rather an extensive work. A MS. belonging to Nawáb Zíáu-d dín, of Dehli, consists of 382 pages of small writing, nineteen lines in the page. The documents it contains are, as usual, written in the most grandiloquent style, a very small amount of information being wrapped up in a bewildering maze of words. The following abstract, made by a munshi, of a portion of one despatch, relates to a matter upon which the historians are silent. Barní says nothing of 'Aláu-d dín's ascendancy at Ghazní, and Firishta (I. 364) speaks only of plundering expeditions into that and the neighbouring countries.]

EXTRACT.

Abstract (Book IV., Sec. iii., Letter 3) of part of an Arz-dásht of Hájib Badr to the address of Prince Khizr Khán, the eldest son of Sultán 'Aláu-d dín Khiljí. The letter has no date. This servant, Badr, begs to state, for the information of his highness Prince Khizr Khán, son of Iskandar-i sání ('Aláu-d dín), that, according to the royal orders, he marched with an army, and, after travelling through the various stages, he reached the banks of the Indus. He crossed the river in boats, and, proceeding onwards, arrived at Ghaznín in winter. The season was exceedingly cold. The Mughals of the place were in great alarm, from fear of the Musulmán army. But when the purport of the royal farmán was read to them, they became comforted, expressed their obedience, and were happy. As the king had ordered that the khutba of his name should be read in Ghaznín, all the Muhammadans, who had con