دلش را روي در محراب دوشین نبود آن خواب بل بیهوشیش بود زسوداي شبش مدهوشیش بود کنیزان روي بر پایش نهادند پرستاران بدستش بوسه دادند نقاب از لاله سیراب بکشان خمار آلوده چشم از خواب بکشاد کریبان مطلع خورشید و مه کرد ز مطلع سر زده هر سو نکه کرد

the "bird of dawn began to fing: the nightingales warbled their enchanting notes, and rent the thin veils of the rose-bud and the rose: the jasmine stood bathed in dew, and the violet alfo fprinkled his fragrant

"In the morning, when the raven of night had flown away,

،،

“ locks. At this time Zelikba was funk in pleafing flumber; her heart was turned towards the altar of her facred vifion*. It was not fleep; "it was rather a confused idea: it was a kind of phrenzy caused by her nightly melancholy. Her damfels touched her feet with their faces; "her maidens approached, and kiffed her hand. Then she removed the "veil from her check, like a tulip besprinkled with dew; she opened "her eyes, yet dim with fleep. From the border of her mantle the "fun and moon arofe; fhe raised her head from the couch, and looked "around on every fide.'

This poem contains about four thousand couplets, and deferves to be translated into every European language: though I fhall have neither time nor inclination to translate it myself, yet I may perhaps be induced,

* A metaphor taken from the custom, which prevails among Mahomedans, of turning their faces, when they pray, towards the temple of Mecca.

fome

fome years hence, to present the Original to the learned world, which any man, who has the advantage of greater leisure, may take the pains to interpret.

In the fame Century with Jami, flourished a poet named CATEBI, who was highly honoured at the court of Mirza Ibrahim, one of Tamerlane's defcendants. Mr. d'Herbelot tells a very pleasing ftory of this writer, which deserves a place in this effay; though, in order to understand it, we must remember, that the Perfians frequently end their couplets with the fame word, which is often continued through a long poem; but in that cafe, the rhyme falls upon the preceding fyllable. "Catebi, fays he, having compofed an Elegy, each verfe of which "ended with the word, Gul, a rofe, or any flower, repeated it to the "prince Ibrahim, his Patron; who, being extremely delighted with it, "could not forbear interrupting him, by saying, From what bower did "this tuneful nightingale (meaning the poet) take its flight? that is, "without a metaphor, In what city were you born? to which Catebi, " without hesitation, replied in a couplet of the fame measure with the poem, and with the same rhyme, as if he had only continued to read "his Elegy:

همچو عطّار از گلستان نشاپورم ولي

خار صحراي نشاپورم من وعطار كل

"that is, Like Attár *, I came from the rofe-garden of Nishapor; but I

am only the thorn of that garden, and Attár was its most beautiful flower."

This distich, though delivered extempore, is at least equal to any of the rest in spirit and elegance. The poem confifts of about thirty-five couplets, the firft of which is the following:

* Attar a Perfian poet, author of the Pendnáma.

باز

328

باز با صد برک آمد جانب گلزار کل همچو نرکس کشت منظور اولی الابصار كل

that is ; Again the rofe advances towards the bower with an hundred leaves; like the narciffus, it is a charming object to every discerning eye.

In the fixteenth and feventeenth Centuries, under the family of Sefi, the Perfian language began to lofe its ancient purity, and even to borrow fome of its terms from the Turkish, which was commonly spoken at Court. As to the modern dialect, no specimen of it needs be produced, fince the Life of Nader Shah, which was written in Perfian about fourteen years ago, and tranflated into French by the author of this Volume, may be confulted in the original by the learned reader.

POESEOS