Page:Sacred Books of the East - Volume 9.djvu/34

18 thrones; — pleasant is the reward, and goodly the couch !

Strike out for them a parable : Two men, for one of whom we made two gardens of grapes, and surrounded them with palms, and put corn between the two. Each of the two gardens brought forth its food and did not fail in aught. And we caused a river to gush forth amidst them ; and he had fruit, and said unto his fellow, who was his next-door neighbour, ‘ I am more wealthy than thee, and mightier of household.’

And he went in unto his garden, having wronged himself : said he, ‘ I do not think that this will ever disappear; and I do not think that the hour is imminent; and if even I be sent back unto my Lord, I shall find a better one than it in exchange.’

Said unto him his fellow, who was his next-door neighbour, ‘ Thou hast disbelieved in Him who created thee from earth, and then from a clot, then fashioned thee a man ; but God, He is my Lord ; nor will I associate any one with my Lord. Why couldst thou not have said, when thou didst go into thy garden, “ What God pleases ! there is no power save in God,” — to look at, I am less than thee in wealth and children; but haply my Lord will give me something better than thy garden, and will send upon it thunder-claps from the sky, and it shall be on the morrow bare slippery soil; or on the morrow its water may be deeply sunk, so that thou canst not get thereat !’

And his fruits were encompassed, and on the