XLVIII.

A Moment's Halt--a momentary taste Of BEING from the Well amidst the waste-- And Lo!--the phantom Caravan has reach'd The NOTHING it set out from--Oh, make haste!

We must consider here the form in which this quatrain first made its appearance in the edition of 1859:

One Moment in Annihilation's Waste, One Moment, of the Well of Life to taste-- The stars are setting, and the Caravan Starts for the Dawn of Nothing--Oh, make haste!

The inspiration for this richly varied quatrain comes from O. 60.

This caravan of life passes by mysteriously; Mayest thou seize the moment that passes happily! Cup-bearer, why grieve about the to-morrow of thy patrons?[58] Give us a cup of wine, for the night wanes.

_Ref._: O. 60, C. 135, L. 245, B. 242, P. 223, S.P. 106, B. ii. 146, T. 139.--W. 136, N. 106, V. 251.

Ll. 3 and 4 of C. 368 may also be quoted:

(Man is) a toil-stricken being, fashioned in the clay of affliction, He tasted of Earth for a time and passed away.

_Ref._: C. 368, L. 566, B. 559, S.P. 301, B. ii. 404, T. 242.--W. 338, N. 302, V. 606.

XLIX.*

Would you that spangle of Existence spend About THE SECRET--quick about it, Friend! A Hair perhaps divides the False and True-- And upon what, prithee, may life depend?

L.*

A Hair perhaps divides the False and True; Yes; and a single Alif were the clue-- Could you but find it--to the Treasure-house, And peradventure to THE MASTER too;

This pair of quatrains must also be considered together. The idea contained in them is, I think, collected from C. 482 and 19, and from O. 28.

Oh Boy! since thou art learned in all secrets, Why grieve so much after vain cares? If things will not shape themselves according to thy desire, At any rate be happy in this moment of thy existence.

_Ref._: C. 482, L. 714, B. 703, S.P. 414, B. ii. 560.--W. 458, N. 419, V. 766.

From the state of infidelity to that of faith is but a breath, And from a state of doubt to that of certainty is but a breath, Hold thou dear this one precious moment, For of the outcome of our being there is but a moment.

_Ref._: C. 19, L. 131, B. 127, S.P. 20, B. ii. 22, T. 20.--W. 24, N. 20, V. 130.

My Heart said to me: «I have a longing for inspired knowledge, Teach me if thou art able,» I said the Alif. My Heart said: «Say no more. If One is in the house, one letter is enough.»[59]

_Ref._: O. 28.--W. 109.

LI.*

Whose secret Presence, through Creation's veins Running Quicksilver-like eludes your pains; Taking all shapes from Mah to Mahi; and They change and perish all--but He remains;

In this quatrain FitzGerald has made a masterly conversion of C. 72.

That Moon which is by nature skilled in metamorphosis Is sometimes animal and sometimes vegetable, Do not imagine that it will become non-existent--away with thought! It is always possessed of its essence though its qualities cease to be.[60]

_Ref._: C. 72, L. 179, B. 176, S.P. 73, B. ii. 31, T. 51.--W. 75, N. 73, V. 175.

C. 40 may also be cited.

Place wine in my hand for my heart is aglow, And this fleet-footed existence is like quicksilver. Arise! for the wakefulness of good fortune turns to slumber; Know thou that the fire of youth is (fugitive) like water.

_Ref._: C. 40, L. 63, B. 60, S.P. 54, T. 45.--W. 57, N. 54, V. 62.

«From Mah to Mahi»--_i.e._, from Moon to Fish is a common Oriental metaphor for universality. See FitzGerald's note on this subject, and the Terminal Essay to my former volume, p. 309.

LII.*

A moment guess'd--then back behind the Fold Immerst of Darkness round the Drama roll'd Which, for the Pastime of Eternity, He doth Himself contrive, enact, behold.

This quatrain is translated from C. 479.

Hidden sometimes thou shewest thy face to none, Sometimes thou appearest in the forms of created beings, Thou exhibitest this spectacle to thyself. Thou art thyself both the real thing seen and the spectator.

_Ref._: C. 479, L. 705, B. 695, S.P. 437.--W. 475, N. 443, V. 757.

LIII.*

But if in vain, down on the stubborn floor Of Earth, and up to Heav'n's unopening Door, You gaze TO-DAY, while You are You--how then TO-MORROW, when You shall be You no more?

The original of this quatrain is C. 24.

If the heart understood the secret of existence as it _is_, In death it would know all the secrets of God: If to-day thou knowest nothing, being _with_ thyself, What wilt thou know to-morrow when thou abandonest thyself?

_Ref._: C. 24, L. 78, B. 74, S.P. 49, P. 85, B. ii. 106, T. 25.--W. 52, N. 49. V. 77.