1 9. Return? Alas, my Ar'ab steed, When thou, who wert his all of joy, 10. Slow and unmounted will I roam Where with fleet step and joyous bound And sitting down by that green well, "Twas here he bow'd his glossy neck, 11. When last I saw him drink!—Away! I could not live a day, and know 12. Who said that I had given thee up? 'Tis false, 'tis false! my Arab steed! Thus, thus, I leap upon thy back, And scour the distant plains: MRS. NORTON. 1 Mirage (mè råz'), a deceptive appearance, as an image of water in sandy deserts, or of a village in a desert, built on a lake, or of objects elevated in the air. THE VISION OF CARAZAN. 303 128. THE VISION OF CARAZAN. RAZAN, the merchant of Bagdad,' was eminent through CARAZA out all the East for his avarice and his wealth; his origin is obscure, as that of the spark which by the collision3 of steel and adamant is struck out of darkness; and the patient labor of persevering diligence alone had made him rich. 2. It was remembered, that when he was indigent he was thought to be generous; and he was still acknowledged to be inflexibly just. But whether in his dealings with men, he discovered a perfidy which tempted him to put his trust in gold, or whether in proportion as he accumulated wealth, he discovered his own importance to increase, Carazan prized it more as he used it less he gradually lost the inclination to do good, as he acquired the power; and as the hand of time scattered snow upon his head, the freezing influence extended to his bosom. 3. But though the door of Carazan was never opened by hospitality, nor his hand by compassion, yet fear led him constantly to the mosque at the stated hours of prayer; he performed all the rites of devotion with the most scrupulous punctuality, and had thrice paid his vows at the temple of the prophet. That devotion which arises from the love of God, and necessarily includes the love of man, as it connects gratitude with beneficence, and exalts that which was moral to divine, confers new dignity upon goodness, and is the object, not only of affection, but rev erence. 4. On the contrary, the devotion of the selfish, whether it be thought to avert the punishment which every one wishes to be inflicted, or to insure it by the complication of hypocrisy with guilt, never fails to excite indignation and abhorrence. Carazan, therefore, when he had locked his door, and, turning round with a look of circumspective' suspicion, proceeded to the mosque, 1 Båg dåd', a large and celebrated city of Asiatic Turkey, formerly the capital of the empire of the caliphs.- Av' a rice, excessive love of money or gain.-3 Collision (kol liz'un), striking together. Ad' amant, the diamond, or other hard stone; a flint. In flex' i bly, firmly; immovably.- Mosque (mỏsk), a Mohammedan house of worship.-'Circum spect' ive, looking round; cautious. was followed by every eye with silent malignity: the poor sus pended their supplication, when he passed by: though he was known by every man, yet no man saluted him. 5. Such had long been the life of Carazan, and such was the character which he had acquired, when notice was given by proclamation, that he was removed to a magnificent building in the center of the city, that his table should be spread for the public, and that the stranger should be welcome to his bed. The multitude soon rushed like a torrent to his door, where they beheld him distributing bread to the hungry, and appărel to the naked, his eye softened with compassion, and his cheek glowing with delight. Every one gazed with astonishment at the prodigy; and the murmur of innumerable voices increasing like the sound of approaching thunder, Carazan beckoned with his hand attention suspended the tumult in a moment; and he thus gratified the curiosity which procured him audience. 6. "To him who touches the mountains and they smoke, the Almighty and the most merciful, be everlasting honor! he has ordained sleep to be the minister of instruction, and his visions have reproved me in the night. As I was sitting alone in my harem, with my lamp burning before me, computing the prod uct of my merchandise, and exulting in the in'crease of my wealth, I fell into a deep sleep, and the hand of Him who dwells in the third heaven was upon me. I beheld the angel of death coming forward like a whirlwind, and he smote me before I could deprecate1 the blow. At the same moment, I felt myself lifted from the ground, and transported with astonishing rapidity through the regions of the air. 7. "The earth was contracted to an atom beneath; and the stars glowed round me with a luster that obscured the sun. The gate of paradise was now in sight; and I was intercepted by a sudden brightness which no human eye could behold. The irrevocable sentence was now to be pronounced; my day of probation was past; and from the evil of my life nothing could be taken away, nor could any thing be added to the good 'Ma lig' ni ty, bitter anger; bitterness.-Prod'iġy, a surprising thing; a wonder. Ha'rem, a place in Eastern dwelling-houses allotted to the women.- – Dêp' re cate, pray earnestly against.— Ir rêv'o ca ble, that can not be recalled.- Pro bà' tion, moral or preparatory trial. THE VISION OF CARAZAN. 305 When I reflected that my lot for eternity was ast, which not all the powers of nature could reverse, my confidence totally forsook me; and while I stood trembling and silent, covered with confusion and chilled with horror, I was thus addressed by the radiance that flamed before me. 8. "Carazan, thy worship has not been accepted, because it was not prompted by love of God; neither can thy righteousness be rewarded, because it was not produced by love of man: for thy own sake, only, hast thou rendered to every man his due; and thou hast approached the Almighty only for thyself. Thou hast not looked up with gratitude, nor around thee with kindness. Around thee, thou hast indeed beheld vice and folly; but if vice and folly could justify thy parsimony,' would they not condemn the bounty of Heaven? 9. “If not upon the foolish and the vicious, where shall the sun diffuse his light, or the clouds distill their dew? Where shall the lips of the spring breathe fragrance, or the hand of autumn diffuse plenty? Remember, Carazan, that thou hast shut compassion from thy heart, and grasped thy treasures with a hand of iron; thou hast lived for thyself; and, therefore, henceforth forever thou shalt subsist alone. From the light of heaven, and from the society of all beings, shalt thou be driven; solitude shall protract the lingering hours of eternity, and dark ness aggravate the horrors of despair.' 10. "At this moment, I was driven, by some secret and irresist ble power, through the glowing system of creation, and passed innumerable worlds in a moment. As I approached the verge of nature, I perceived the shadows of total and boundless vacu ity deepen before me, a dreadful region of eternal silence, soli tude, and darkness! Unutterable horror seized me at the prospect, and this exclamation burst from me with all the ve'hemence of desire: 'Oh that I had been doomed forever to the common receptacle of impenitence and guilt! There society would have alleviated the torment of despair, and the rage of fire could not have excluded the comfort of light. Or, if I had 'Pår' si mo ny, sparingness in the use of money; avarice; meanness -Va củ'ity, space without matter; emptiness.- Vè' he mence, vio lent ardor; eagerness. been condemned to reside in a comet, that would return but once in a thousand years to the regions of light and life, the hope of these periods, however distant, would cheer me in the dread interval of cold and darkness, and the vicissitudes would divide eternity into time.' 11. "While this thought passed over my mind, I lost sight of the remotest star, and the last glimmering of light was quenched in utter darkness. The agonies of despair every moment in creased, as every moment augmented my distance from the last habitable world. I reflected with intolerable anguish, that when ten thousand thousand years had carried me beyond the reach of all but that Power who fills infinitude, I should still look forward into an immense abyss of darkness, through which I should still drive, without succor and without society, further and further still, forever and forever. I then stretched out my hands toward the regions of existence, with an emotion that awakened me. 12. "Thus have I been taught to estimate society, like every other blessing, by its loss. My heart is warmed to liberality; and I am zealous to communicate the happiness which I feel, to those from whom it is derived; for the society of one wretch, whom in the pride of prosperity I would have spurned from my door, would, in the dreadful solitude to which I was condemned, have been more highly prized than the gold of Africa, or the gems of Golconda." 13. At this reflection upon his dream, Carazan became suddenly silent, and looked upward in ecstasy2 of gratitude and devotion. The multitude were struck at once with the precept and example; and the caliph,3 to whom the event was related, that he might be liberal beyond the power of gold, commanded it to be recorded for the benefit of posterity. HAWKESWORTH. 'Gol con' da, a fortified town in Hindostan, which has been noted as a place of deposit for diamonds, which are brought hither from the plains at the base of Neela Hulla mountains, on the banks of Kistnah and Pennar rivers, no mines existing in the vicinity. A large amount of treasure is supposed to be kept here, as Europeans or native strangers are not usually allowed to enter the gates.- Ec' sta sy, extreme joy or pleasure; overpowering emotion.- Cål' iph, a successor, or representative of Mohammed; the highest ruler among the Mohammedans. |