Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night - Volume 5.djvu/221

 saluted, and speaking with an eloquent tongue, said, "O Commander of the Faithful, bid the Olema and the doctors of law and leaches and astrologers and scientists and mathematicians and all here present contend with me in argument." So he said to them, "I desire of you that ye dispute with this damsel on the things of her faith, and stultify her argument in all she advanceth;" and they answered, saying, "We hear and we obey Allah and thee, O Commander of the Faithful." Upon this Tawaddud bowed her head and said, "Which of you is the doctor of the law, the scholar, versed in the readings of the Koran and in the Traditions?" Quoth one of them, "I am the man thou seekest." Quoth she, "Then ask me of what thou wilt." Said the doctor, "Hast thou read the precious book of Allah and dost thou know its cancelling and cancelled parts and hast thou meditated its versets and its letters?" "Yes," answered she. "Then," said he, "I will proceed to question thee of the obligations and the immutable ordinances: so tell me of these, O damsel, and who is thy Lord, who thy prophet, who thy Guide, what is thy point of fronting in prayer, and who be thy brethren? Also what thy spiritual path and what thy highway?" Whereto she replied, "Allah is my Lord, and Mohammed (whom Allah save and assain!) my prophet, and the Koran is my guide and the Ka'abah my fronting; and the True-believers are my brethren. The practice of good is my path and the Sunnah my highway." The Caliph again marvelled at her words so eloquently spoken by one so young; and the doctor pursued, "O damsel, with what do we know Almighty Allah?" Said she, "With the understanding." Said he, "And what is the understanding?" Quoth she, "It is of two kinds, natural and acquired."--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.

When it was the Four Hundred and Thirty-ninth Night,

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the damsel continued, "The understanding is of two kinds, natural and acquired. The natural is that which Allah (to whom be honour and glory!) created for the right direction of His servants after His will; and the acquired is that which men accomplish by dint of study and fair knowledge." He rejoined, "Thou hast answered well." Q "Where is the seat of the understanding?"--"Allah