in culloden moor had vanished, he left the battlefield together with some companions for the farm of balvraid from which his long flight began. in the early afternoon after the battle, the prince and his party headed southwards to the ford of faillie, which was near the river nairn, to reach the house of lord lovat, one of his kinsmen, who had sent his son to support the prince. after some glasses of wine, the prince had to leave the house as lord lovat ’ s hospitality was rather curt at that time. as the battle was over quicker than expected, nobody knew where to meet and how to reorganise. thus, the prince sent message to his men to avoid total confusion and to attain a re - mustering at fort augustus. early next morning, he reached invergarry castle, which unfortunately was already burnt down by the duke of cumberland, who had led the hanoverian army against the highlanders in the battle or culloden. passing loch lochy and loch arkaig, the prince and his fellows arrived at achnacarry house, which was cameron of lochiel ’ s residence. he was one of the first clansmen to join the prince in his venture, but now he lay helpless and wounded in the burnt ruins of his house. still lacking any considerable support, the prince took a rough path along the north shore to kinloch arkaig where donald cameron of glen pean ’ s residence was located. together with only three remaining fellows which were captain o ’ sullivan, father allan macdonald, and ned burke, whose occupation it was to carry one end of a sedan chair in edinburgh, he stayed there overnight to wait for possible messages from his men. and indeed, a letter from lord george murray, the prince ’ s lieutenant general, arrived in the late afternoon of the 18th april. having slowed down the prince ’ s reckless venture earlier, he was now furious about the devastating result of the battle, which he considered to be on account of captain o ’ sullivan ’ s incompetence and the prince ’ s support of it. as a consequence, lord george murray offered the resignation of his commission. this letter is supposed to be the reason for the prince ’ s further steps on his flight because the re - mustering at fort augustus failed and by then it was clear that scotland could only be won with help of france. heading for the coast to probably charter a ship to france, they had to march through rough highland areas again, passing the


the re - mustering at fort augustus failed and by then it was clear that scotland could only be won with help of france. heading for the coast to probably charter a ship to france, they had to march through rough highland areas again, passing the braes of morar and the small glen of meoble south of loch morar to reach borradale on the north shore of loch nan uamh. there, where the sound of arisaig is opened up, the prince had disembarked his brig doutelle only nine month ago. at borradale, many survivors of the battle sought refuge, so he could recover from the exhaustive march through the amazing landscape of the scottish highlands as well. still planning to re - muster his highland army, he wanted help from the great lairds of the isle of skye, macdonald of sleat and mcleod of macleod, but only almost seventy - year - old donald mcleod, tenant of gualtergill on loch dunvegan in skye and a seaman, came to help the lost prince. supported now by a good seaman who knew the hebridean seas and a little more save, as cumberland ’ s troops headed to st. kilda where they thought the prince sought refuge, they left the main land for benbecula on long island in the outer hebrides. o ’ sullivan, o ’ neil, father allan macdonald, ned burke, donald macleod, and 7 boatmen were with him and they went against donald mcleod ’ s advice to wait for better weather. luckily, they survived this desperate voyage through the cuillin sound and disembarked the ship on 27th april 1746. for his new venture to re - muster the highland army and to get money, he met several important clansmen amongst them clanranald, his brother macdonald of boisdale, and donald campbell, who all offered their help. they indeed chartered a boat for the prince, but none of their plans prevailed in the end because the islanders were suspicious and there was already a reward of £ 30, 000 on charles ’ head. the ever remaining danger of the hanoverian army which still searched all possible places for charles and the terrible hunger convinced him to be more careful. on 28th june, after he rode up and down the islands anxiously and in constant danger of being captured by the english, he crossed to skye in a very unconvincing disguise and the brave company of flora macdonald, the daughter of ranald macdonald of milton in south uist. he was dressed up as


anxiously and in constant danger of being captured by the english, he crossed to skye in a very unconvincing disguise and the brave company of flora macdonald, the daughter of ranald macdonald of milton in south uist. he was dressed up as flora macdonald ’ s maid betty burke. when they landed on the shore of skye, the prince had to stay near the shore because the local militia was near by. they decided to take the prince to macdonald of kingsburgh ’ s house where to they had to walk through the heather. this appeared to look odd as the prince walked like a man and when they reached kingsburgh ’ s house, his wife mrs macdonald was apparently shocked by the appearance of betty burke, whom she described looking “ odd muckle trallop of a carlin ” ( maine 1972 : 139 ). however the prince had to leave kingsburgh ’ s house soon, for it was too dangerous for him to stay too long at one particular place. although he left in women ’ s clothes again, he soon changed into a respectable highland ensemble which he got from mrs macdonald ’ s son - in - law because his disguise was not convincing at all. passing raasay, nicolson ’ s rock, sligachan, and loch ainort, they reached elgol, this time with the prince in disguise of a servant called lewie caw, from where they embarked a ship heading for the main land of scotland. now they were about to meet some other clansmen, amongst them clanranald and glenaladale, who would hopefully be able to help them. in the early morning of the 5th of july, when they landed at mallaig, they couldn ’ t find shelter for a couple of days, which forced the small group, now consisting of different men than before, to ride up and down, back and forth to finally seek refuge at meoble where they unfortunately were surrounded by enemies, still not able to get in contact with any supporters. pursuit by an advancing enemy, they were now forced to find a way to fort augustus. luckily, they met donald cameron of glen pean for whom they had already searched desperately because he was thought of being able to help them breaking through towards fort augustus. and indeed, he knew something about their enemy that would probably help them. threatening enough, the enemy had established camps from the head of loch eil to the top of loch hourn at intervals of half a mile and soldiers were regularly patrolling. always walking up and down the local hills to stay as secure


probably help them. threatening enough, the enemy had established camps from the head of loch eil to the top of loch hourn at intervals of half a mile and soldiers were regularly patrolling. always walking up and down the local hills to stay as secure as possible, they passed camp by camp sometimes near enough to hear the redcoats talking to eventually reach glenshiel in the proximity of shiel bridge, which they later crossed to reach poolewe where the prince hoped to find a french ship. however, the prince ’ s hope was disappointed again and they were guided by donald macdonald, who was also on the flight and who took them to glenmoriston. although the prince was in constant danger of being captured by the redcoats ( the english ), he was not threatened by betrayal as he encountered a group of loyal scotsmen who, although they could have easily earned the reward of £ 30, 000 for charles stuart, swore allegiance according to highland customs. “ that their backs should be to god and their faces to devil ; that all the curses the scriptures did pronounce might come upon them and all their posterity if they did not stand firm to help the prince in his greatest dangers ” ( linklater 1965 : 129 ). throughout the scottish history, one thing has always been for sure – a scotsmen who had sworn an oath stood firmly against any possible threat to answer his duties no matter what that meant for him. guarded and guided by the most loyal men, the prince took shelter in caves along his way and decided to send men to poolewe again to finally find a french ship. meanwhile it was august and he arrived at the most northerly point of his wanderings, beinn acharain, which is north - west of invercannich. there the prince got message from poolewe that a french ship had indeed been there, but that it had also already left again. however, two officers of the ship were now about to meet the prince at lochiel ’ s country, which was located in the south. he met the french officers who had nothing of importance to tell amongst other men who joined the prince on his further way. amongst them was cameron of clunes, also called cluny, who was “ the only person in whom he could repose the greatest confidence ” ( linklater 1965 : 136 ). by now, the duke of cumberland and the main body of lord albemarle ’ s army had also gone, leaving only some companies to watch the region. the last


familiarity plays an important role in face processing. the importance of familiarity is increased when facial form cues are degraded, so that a person must rely primarily on movement ( dynamic ) information to identify someone. it is, however, unclear which dynamic cues are used for face recognition of both familiar and unfamiliar faces. furthermore, little work has been done on dynamic self - face recognition, and none has focused on the type of movement that facilitates this process. the current study used motion capture cameras to record and isolate facial movements in order to test recognition of self, familiar and unfamiliar faces. participants completed a 2afc same / different face - matching task involving point - light displays of natural motion ( i. e. both rigid and non - rigid motion ), rigid motion only ( e. g. nodding / shaking ), non - rigid motion only ( e. g. mouth / eyebrow motion ) and still images to determine whether differences in familiarity resulted in the use of different movement cues. the manner ( style ) in which someone is speaking may also impact on whether they can be easily identified from dynamic cues. consequently, speech style was either matched or mismatched between video clips. we found that matching performance was more accurate overall when speech style was matched than mismatched. familiar face matching appears to use rigid, non - rigid and natural movement cues equally, but unfamiliar and self - face matching are more accurate for rigid than natural motion when speech style differs between clips. these results are discussed in relation to previous research on dynamic face recognition, and possible implications for current face processing models. copyright 2009 by the australasian society for cognitive science. publisher version archived with the permission of the editor, ascs09 : proceedings of the 9th conference of the australasian society for cognitive science. this copy is available for individual, non - commercial use. permission to reprint / republish this version for other uses must be obtained from the publisher.


karuk tribe : learning from the first californians for the next california editor ' s note : this is part of series, facing the climate gap, which looks at grassroots efforts in california low - income communities of color to address climate change and promote climate justice. this article was published in collaboration with globalpossibilities. org. the three sovereign entities in the united states are the federal government, the states and indigenous tribes, but according to bill tripp, a member of the karuk tribe in northern california, many people are unaware of both the sovereign nature of tribes and the wisdom they possess when it comes to issues of climate change and natural resource management. “ a lot of people don ’ t realize that tribes even exist in california, but we are stakeholders too, with the rights of indigenous peoples, ” says tripp. tripp is an eco - cultural restoration specialist at the karuk tribe department of natural resources. in 2010, the tribe drafted an eco - cultural resources management plan, which aims to manage and restore “ balanced ecological processes utilizing traditional ecological knowledge supported by western science. ” the plan addresses environmental issues that affect the health and culture of the karuk tribe and outlines ways in which tribal practices can contribute to mitigating the effects of climate change. before climate change became a hot topic in the media, many indigenous and agrarian communities, because of their dependence upon and close relationship to the land, began to notice troubling shifts in the environment such as intense drought, frequent wildfires, scarcer fish flows and erratic rainfall. there are over 100 government recognized tribes in california, which represent more than 700, 000 people. the karuk is the second largest native american tribe in california and has over 3, 200 members. their tribal lands include over 1. 48 million acres within and around the klamath and six rivers national forests in northwest california. tribes like the karuk are among the hardest hit by the effects of climate change, despite their traditionally low - carbon lifestyles. the karuk, in particular have experienced dramatic environmental changes in their forestlands and fisheries as a result of both climate change and misguided federal and regional policies. the karuk have long depended upon the forest to support their livelihood, cultural practices and nourishment. while wildfires have always been a natural aspect of the landscape, recent studies have shown that fires in northwestern california forests have risen dramatically in frequency and size due to climate related and human influences. according to the california natural resources agency, fires in


decrease fuel loads and the risk for more severe wildfires when they do happen. traditional burning was used by the karuk to burn off specific types of vegetation and promote continued diversity in the landscape. tripp notes that these practices are an example of how humans can play a positive role in maintaining a sound ecological cycle in the forests. “ the practice of utilizing fire to manage resources in a traditional way not only improves the use quality of forest resources, it also builds and maintains resiliency in the ecological process of entire landscapes ” explains tripp. another crucial aspect of the plan is the life cycle of fish, like salmon, that are central to karuk food traditions and ecosystem health. traditionally, the karuk regulated fishing schedules to allow the first salmon to pass, ensuring that those most likely to survive made it to prime spawning grounds. there were also designated fishing periods and locations to promote successful reproduction. tripp says regulatory agencies have established practices that are harmful this cycle. “ today, regulatory agencies permit the harvest of fish that would otherwise be protected under traditional harvest management principles and close the harvest season when the fish least likely to reach the very upper river reaches are passing through, ” says tripp. the karuk tribe is now working closely with researchers from universities such as university of california, berkeley and the university of california, davis as well as public agencies so that this traditional knowledge can one day be accepted by mainstream and academic circles dealing with climate change mitigation and adaptation practices. according to the plan, these land management practices are more cost effective than those currently practiced by public agencies ; and, if implemented, they will greatly reduce taxpayer cost burdens and create employment. the karuk hope to create a workforce development program that will hire tribal members to implement the plan ’ s goals, such as multi - site cultural burning practices. the plan has a long way to full realization and federal recognition. according to the national indian forest resources management act and the national environmental protection act, it must go through a formal review process. besides that, the karuk tribe is still solidifying funding to pursue its goals. the work of california ’ s environmental stewards will always be in demand, and the karuk are taking the lead in showing how community wisdom can be used to generate an integrated approach to climate change. such integrated and community engaged policy approaches are rare throughout the state but are emerging in other areas. in oakland, for example, the oakland climate action coalition engaged community members and a diverse group of social justice, labor,


an integrated approach to climate change. such integrated and community engaged policy approaches are rare throughout the state but are emerging in other areas. in oakland, for example, the oakland climate action coalition engaged community members and a diverse group of social justice, labor, environmental, and business organizations to develop an energy and climate action plan that outlines specific ways for the city to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create a sustainable economy. in the end, tripp hopes the karuk plan will not only inspire others and address the global environmental plight, but also help to maintain the very core of his people. in his words : “ being adaptable to climate change is part of that, but primarily it is about enabling us to maintain our identity and the people in this place in perpetuity. ” dr. manuel pastor is professor of sociology and american studies & ethnicity at the university of southern california where he also directs the program for environmental and regional equity and co - directs usc ’ s center for the study of immigrant integration. his most recent books include just growth : inclusion and prosperity in america ’ s metropolitan regions ( routledge 2012 ; co - authored with chris benner ) uncommon common ground : race and america ’ s future ( w. w. norton 2010 ; co - authored with angela glover blackwell and stewart kwoh ), and this could be the start of something big : how social movements for regional equity are transforming metropolitan america ( cornell 2009 ; co - authored with chris benner and martha matsuoka ).


local optometrist dr. john breiwa considers eyes to be windows. " you can actively see the body functioning, " he said. sometimes he sees patients with eye diseases that result from diabetes at drs. breiwa, jeskie and tucker eyecare. some patients don ' t think about how the disease - - where the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone needed to change sugar, starches and other foods to energy - - can affect their vision. " they think, ' my sugar is high. ' the worse - case scenario is that you can go blind, " he said. " diabetes is the third - most common cause of blindness in the nation. kentucky is one of the top states for diabetes. " there are two types of diabetes. in type 1 diabetes, the body doesn ' t produce insulin. in type 2 diabetes, the body makes insulin but is unable to respond to it, said megan givan, a diabetes coordinator at the warren county health department and registered and licensed dietitian. symptoms include frequent urination, excessive thirst, unexplained tiredness, slow - healing wounds and extreme eating without gaining weight - - which happens more frequently with type 1, but doesn ' t happen in type 2. " people with type 1 diabetes use insulin shots or pumps. some are diagnosed at birth or in their teens or early 20s, " she said. " people with type 2 diabetes can control it with diet and exercise, and then that may lead in to prescriptions. sometimes they need a combination of pills and insulin. " the risk factors for diabetes include age, ethnicity, family history and weight, givan said. older people are more at risk. pacific islanders, native americans and african - americans are some of the ethnic groups with the highest risk. weight plays a part, particularly in type 2 diabetes. also at high risk are women with gestational diabetes, which happens during pregnancy, or who give birth to babies weighing more than 9 pounds. diabetic eye diseases breiwa sees include cataracts, which is the clouding of the eye ' s lens ; glaucoma, an increase in fluid pressure inside the eye that leads to optic nerve damage ; and diabetic retinopathy, damage to the blood vessels in the retina that, if left to advance, can turn into proliferative retinopathy, where new blood cells grow on the retina and can bleed into the eye. " the walls bulge out and eventually pop


damage to the blood vessels in the retina that, if left to advance, can turn into proliferative retinopathy, where new blood cells grow on the retina and can bleed into the eye. " the walls bulge out and eventually pop. we see them as large blood vessels in the eye, " he said. " there can be blood floating around in the eye. it ' s hard to see through that. " laser treatment can be done on the retina to stop the growth of the blood vessel. there is also an injection in the eye that can reduce fluid retention. " the blood is reabsorbed back in the body, " he said. if things are bad, breiwa sends patients to a different type of doctor. " when we ' re seeing a lot of little hemorrhages, a retina care specialist gets a hold of them, " he said. breiwa recommends that diabetics have a dilated eye exam a minimum of once a year and, in some cases, every six months. " there can be changes in vision, " he said. " they tend to become nearsighted, but i have seen people go the other way. " regular exams can help detect the diabetic eye diseases earlier and prevent more eye damage. " we generally don ' t find ( more severe ) problems unless they ' ve been diabetic for a while, " he said. other complications that can be caused by diabetes include heart disease, stroke, heart attack, kidney disease and nerve damage. the health department has recently been hosting free diabetes self - management classes that discuss complications that can be caused by diabetes, sick day management and treatments, nutrition, medication and exercise. " we talk about when to call the doctor and what foods you can eat if you can eat, " she said of the sick day plan. " we talk about counting carbohydrates. " exercise helps with weight control and blood sugar control. " the body will be more insulin sensitive if you exercise every 24 hours or so, " givan said. breiwa urges diabetic patients to take of their overall health as well as their eyes, which includes getting a proper diet and doing things in moderation. " people shouldn ' t blow that off, " he said. ©2011 the daily news ( bowling green, ky. ) | cold and flu | | hair, skin, nails |


if you are able to impress the examiner you are likely to improve your grades. this app contains simple and powerful tips to get the examiner onside and boost your grades during the all important exams. you need to know your numbers really well - you can be certain that numbers will come up more than once in your exams. in the following exercise, read the speech bubble and then click on the winning sequence in the strip above : you need to be able to talk about yourself, say where you come from and what nationality you are. this exercise will help you to see whether you are confident in the basic phrases you need to talk about yourself. look at the dialogue below. some words have been missed out. click and drag on the correct word and place it in the correct place in the dialogue. watch out - there are some extra words! there is a lot of vocabulary in this topic - family members, description, characteristics, colours, nationalities... we all like talking about other people, so this is a really useful topic to know when you talk to german - speaking people - it will also gain you loads of marks in the exams! you may need to write about yourself - your family, pets. how much do you know? this letter contains lots of essential words and structures. click on the correct words and drag them into the correct space. watch out - three of the words won ' t be used! in german, it is a little different. when you look up a word in a dictionary, you will see the plural in brackets next to the word, so you know what todo. for example, if you look up the word for ' dog ' you will find ' der hund ( - e ) '. the " - e " in brackets means that you add an " e " to the word hund if you want to say you have more than one dog. for example : ' i have two dogs ' = ' ich habe zwei hunde '. there are other plurals in german. look at the list below. make sure you know what to do when you use a dictionary : | der hund ( - e ) | | dog | | hunde | | der vogel ( " ) | | bird | | vogel | | das meerschweinchen ( - ) | | guinea pig | | meerschweinchen | | der hamster ( - ) | | hamster | | hamster | in this exercise, complete the sentence by typing in the correct plural word. mark


science of breath, by yogi ramacharaka, pseud. william atkinson,, at sacred - texts. com the science of breath, like many other teachings, has its esoteric or inner phase, as well as its exoteric or external. the physiological phase may be termed the outer or exoteric side of the subject, and the phase which we will now consider may be termed its esoteric or inner side. occultists, in all ages and lands, have always taught, usually secretly to a few followers, that there was to be found in the air a substance or principle from which all activity, vitality and life was derived. they differed in their terms and names for this force, as well as in the details of the theory, but the main principle is to be found in all occult teachings and philosophies, and has for centuries formed a portion of the teachings of the oriental yogis. in order to avoid misconceptions arising from the various theories regarding this great principle, which theories are usually attached to some name given the principle, we, in this work, will speak of the principle as " prana, " this word being the sancrit term meaning " absolute energy. " many occult authorities teach that the principle which the hindus term " prana " is the universal principle of energy or force, and that all energy or force is derived from that principle, or, rather, is a particular form of manifestation of that principle. these theories do not concern us in the consideration of the subject matter of this work, and we will therefore confine ourselves to an understanding of prana as the principle of energy exhibited in all living things, which distinguishes them from a lifeless thing. we may consider it as the active principle of lifevital force, if you please. it is found in all forms of life, from the amoeba to manfrom the most elementary form of plant life to the highest form of animal life. prana is all pervading. it is found in all things having life, and as the occult philosophy teaches that life is in all thingsin every atomthe apparent lifelessness of some things being only a lesser degree of manifestation, we may understand their teachings that prana is everywhere, in everything. prana must not be confounded with the egothat bit of divine spirit in every soul, around which clusters matter and energy. prana is merely a form of energy used by the ego in its material manifestation. when the ego leaves the body, the pr


not be confounded with the egothat bit of divine spirit in every soul, around which clusters matter and energy. prana is merely a form of energy used by the ego in its material manifestation. when the ego leaves the body, the prana, being no longer under its control, responds only to the orders of the individual atoms, or groups of atoms, forming the body, and as the body disintegrates and is resolved to its original elements, each atom takes with it sufficient prana to enable it to form new combinations, the unused prana returning to the great universal storehouse from which it came. with the ego in control, cohesion exists and the atoms are held together by the will of the ego. prana is the name by which we designate a universal principle, which principle is the essence of all motion, force or energy, whether manifested in gravitation, electricity, the revolution of the planets, and all forms of life, from the highest to the lowest. it may be called the soul of force and energy in all their forms, and that principle which, operating in a certain way, causes that form of activity which accompanies life. this great principle is in all forms of matter, and yet it is not matter. it is in the air, but it is not the air nor one of its chemical constituents. animal and plant life breathe it in with the air, and yet if the air contained it not they would die even though they might be filled with air. it is taken up by the system along with the oxygen, and yet is not the oxygen. the hebrew writer of the book of genesis knew the difference between the atmospheric air and the mysterious and potent principle contained within it. he speaks of neshemet ruach chayim, which, translated, means " the breath of the spirit of life. " in the hebrew neshemet means the ordinary breath of air, and chayim means life or lives, while the word ruach means the " spirit of life, " which occultists claim is the same principle which we speak of as prana. prana is in the atmospheric air, but it is also elsewhere, and it penetrates where the air cannot reach. the oxygen in the air plays an important part in sustaining animal life, and the carbon plays a similar part with plant life, but prana has its own distinct part to play in the manifestation of life, aside from the physiological functions. we are constantly inhaling the air charged with prana,


in sustaining animal life, and the carbon plays a similar part with plant life, but prana has its own distinct part to play in the manifestation of life, aside from the physiological functions. we are constantly inhaling the air charged with prana, and are as constantly extracting the latter from the air and appropriating it to our uses. prana is found in its freest state in the atmospheric air, which when fresh is fairly charged with it, and we draw it to us more easily from the air than from any other source. in ordinary breathing we absorb and extract a normal supply of prana, but by controlled and regulated breathing ( generally known as yogi breathing ) we are enabled to extract a greater supply, which is stored away in the brain and nerve centers, to be used when necessary. we may store away prana, just as the storage battery stores away electricity. the many powers attributed to advanced occultists is due largely to their knowledge of this fact and their intelligent use of this stored - up energy. the yogis know that by certain forms of breathing they establish certain relations with the supply of prana and may draw on the same for what they require. not only do they strengthen all parts of their body in this way, but the brain itself may receive increased energy from the same source, and latent faculties be developed and psychic powers attained. one who has mastered the science of storing away prana, either consciously or unconsciously, often radiates vitality and strength which is felt by those coming in contact with him, and such a person may impart this strength to others, and give them increased vitality and health. what is called " magnetic healing " is performed in this way, although many practitioners are not aware of the source of their power. western scientists have been dimly aware of this great principle with which the air is charged, but finding that they could find no chemical trace of it, or make it register on any of their instruments, they have generally treated the oriental theory with disdain. they could not explain this principle, and so denied it. they seem, however, to recognize that the air in certain places possesses a greater amount of " something " and sick people are directed by their physicians to seek such places in hopes of regaining lost health. the oxygen in the air is appropriated by the blood and is made use of by the circulatory system. the prana in the air is appropriated by the nervous system and is used in its work. and as the oxygenated blood is


. the oxygen in the air is appropriated by the blood and is made use of by the circulatory system. the prana in the air is appropriated by the nervous system and is used in its work. and as the oxygenated blood is carried to all parts of the system, building up and replenishing, so is the prana carried to all parts of the nervous system, adding strength and vitality. if we think of prana as being the active principle of what we call " vitality, " we will be able to form a much clearer idea of what an important part it plays in our lives. just as in the oxygen in the blood used up by the wants of the system, so the supply of prana taken up by the nervous system is exhausted by our thinking, willing, acting, etc., and in consequence constant replenishing is necessary. every thought, every act, every effort of the will, every motion of a muscle, uses up a certain amount of what we call nerve force, which is really a form of prana. to move a muscle the brain sends out an impulse over the nerves, and the muscle contracts, and so much prana is expended. when it is remembered that the greater portion of prana acquired by man comes to him from the air inhaled, the importance of proper breathing is readily understood.


studies in islamic mysticism, by reynold a. nicholson,, at sacred - texts. com pensando al bel ch eta non cangia o verno. one of the deepest differences between arabs and persians shows itself in the extent and character of the mystical poetry of each people. as regards persia, the names of sanai, attar, jalaluddin rumi, sadi, hafiz, and jami are witnesses enough. whether quantity or quality be considered, the best part of medieval persian poetry is either genuinely mystical in spirit or is so saturated with mystical ideas that it will never be more than half understood by those who read it literally. when we turn to arabic poetry of the period subsequent to the rise and development of sufisim, what do we find? no lack of poets, certainly, though few of them reach the first rank and their output is scanty compared with the opulent genius of their persian contemporaries. but from mutanabbi and maarri down to the bards unknown in europe who flourished long after the baghdad caliphate had fallen, it is remarkable how seldom they possess the note ( as newman would say ) of mysticism. the main reason, i think, lies in racial endowment. the arab has no such passion for an ultimate principle of unity as has always distinguished the persians and indians 1. he shares with other semitic peoples an incapacity for harmonising and unifying the particular facts of experience : he discerns the trees very clearly, but not the wood. like his art, in which " we everywhere find a delicate sense for detail, but nowhere large apprehension of a great and united whole 2, " his poetry, intensely subjective in feeling and therefore lyrical in form, presents only a series of brilliant impressions, full of life and colour, yet essentially fragments and moments of life, not fused into the substance of universal thought by an imagination soaring above place and time. while nature keeps arabian poetry within definite bounds, convention deprives the arabic - writing poet, who is not necessarily an arab, of the verse - form that is most suitable for continuous narrative or expositionthe allegorical, romantic, or didactic mathnawiand leaves him no choice but to fall back upon prose if he cannot make the qasida or the ghazal answer his purpose. both these types of verse are associated with love : the ghazal is a love - lyric, and the qasida, though its proper motive is praise, usually begins " with the mention of women and the


ghazal answer his purpose. both these types of verse are associated with love : the ghazal is a love - lyric, and the qasida, though its proper motive is praise, usually begins " with the mention of women and the constantly shifted habitations of the wandering tribesmen seeking pasture throughout the winter and spring ; the poet must tell of his love and its troubles, and, if he likes, may describe the beauty of his mistress 3. " thus the models of arabic mystical poetry are the secular odes and songs of which this passion is the theme ; and the imitation is often so close that unless we have some clue to the writer ' s intention, it may not be possible to know whether his beloved is human or divineindeed, the question whether he himself always knows is one which students of oriental mysticism cannot regard as impertinent. ibnu l - arabi, a great theosophist rather than a great poet, deserves to be mentioned amongst the few arabs who have excelled in this ambiguous style 1 ; but its supreme master is sharafuddin umar ibnu l - farid, a native of cairo, who was born seventeen years after ibnu l - arabi and died five years before him ( a. d. 1182 - 1235 ) 2. the two seem never to have met. the description of ibnu l - arabi as ibnu l - farid ' s teacher ( ustadh ) rests upon a far - fetched interpretation of the verse, [ paragraph continues ] here n. detects an allusion to ibnu l - arabi, who belonged to the tayyi tribe 3. it rarely happens that the outward lives of mystics are eventful. the poet ' s chief biographerhis grandson, alihas much to say about his personal beauty, his ecstatic temperament, his generosity and unselfishness, his seclusion from the world, and the veneration in which he was held by all 4. as his name declares, he was the son of a notary ( farid ). in his youth he practised religious austerities on mt muqattam near cairo, returning at intervals to attend the law - courts with his father and study theology. one day he encountered a saint in the guise of an old greengrocer, who told him that the hour of his illumination was at hand, but that he must go to the hijaz to receive it. accordingly ibnu l - farid set out for mecca,


in the guise of an old greengrocer, who told him that the hour of his illumination was at hand, but that he must go to the hijaz to receive it. accordingly ibnu l - farid set out for mecca, where the promise was fulfilled. many of his odes celebrate the hills and valleys in the neighbourhood of the [ paragraph continues ] holy city, scenes endeared by the visions and ecstasies which they recalled to his mind. after fifteen years absence from egypt he heard the voice of the saint, who was then on his deathbed, bidding him return to cairo, in order to pray over him and bury him. ibnu l - farid obeyed, and having performed this pious duty settled in cairo for the rest of his life, lodging ( it is said ) in the mosque al - azhar, as his father had done. the biographer ali, whose mother was a daughter of ibnu l - farid, mentions two sons of the poet, kamaluddin muhammad and abdu l - rahman, who were invested with the khirqa 1 by the famous sufi, shihabuddin abu hafs umar al - suhrawardi on the occasion of his meeting with ibnu l - farid at mecca in a. d. 1231. the diwan, first edited by the aforesaid ali from a manuscript in the author ' s handwriting, is a thin volume comprising about twenty qasidas and qitas together with some quatrains ( rubaiyyat ) and enigmas ( alghaz ). the longest ode, the nazmu l - suluk or " the mystic ' s progress, " generally known as the taiyyatu l - kubra 2, has been omitted from the marseilles edition, which is otherwise complete. owing to its expository and descriptive character this poem stands apart from the purely lyrical odes, and i have treated it as an independent work. the wine ode ( khamriyya ) and several other pieces have been published with a french prose translation in the anthologie arabe of grangeret de lagrange ( paris, 1828 ), and a few more will be found in de sacy ' s chrestomathie arabe. italy possesses a prose rendering of the minor poems by p. valerga ( firenze, 1874 ). there is nothing in english except some fragments which hardly amount to a hundred lines in all 3. i hope to persuade my readers that the diwan of


a prose rendering of the minor poems by p. valerga ( firenze, 1874 ). there is nothing in english except some fragments which hardly amount to a hundred lines in all 3. i hope to persuade my readers that the diwan of ibnu l - farid, though it will not please every taste, is too curious and exquisite to be left on one side by those who take an interest in oriental poetry. concerning the subtle quality of his thought no less than of his style, it would be hard to better what a french critic wrote ninety years ago : lintelligence parfaite de ses productions ne peut etre que le fruit dune etude longue et approfondie de la poesie arabe. deux causes principales les rendent dun difficile acces. la premiere, cest quil arrive souvent a ce poete de quintessencier le sentiment ; et alors ses idees sont si subtiles, si deliees, et, pour ainsi dire, si impalpables, quelles echappent presque aux poursuites du lecteur le plus attentif : souvent meme elles disparoissent des quon les touche pour les transporter dans une autre langue. on voit quil a pris plaisir, par un choix de pensees extraordinaires, et par la singularite des tours, a mettre a lepreuve la sagacite de ceux qui etudient ses ouvrages. au reste, les lettres de lorient pensent quun poete est sans genie et sans invention, ou bien quil compte peu sur leur intelligence, quand il na pas soin de leur menager des occasions frequentes de faire briller cette penetration qui sait decouvrir les sens les plus caches. il faut donc que le poete arabe, sil veut obtenir les suffrages et ladmiration des connoisseurs, noublie pas de porter quelquefois a lexces le raffinement et la subtilite dans ses compositions, daiguiser ses pensees, et de les envelopper de telle sorte dans les expressions, quelles se presentent au lecteur comme des enigmes, quelles reveillent


dans ses compositions, daiguiser ses pensees, et de les envelopper de telle sorte dans les expressions, quelles se presentent au lecteur comme des enigmes, quelles reveillent son attention, piquent sa curiosite, et mettent en jeu toutes les facultes de son esprit. or, il faut convenir qu omar ben - faredh na point manque a ce devoir prescrit aux poetes arabes, et quil na point voulu que ses lecteurs lui reprochassent de leur avoir enleve les occasions de montrer leur sagacite 1. this describes very well a general and obvious feature of ibnu l - farid ' s style, a feature which is entirely absent both from pre - islamic and early islamic poetry, although since the time of mutanabbi, who first brought it into prominence, it has maintained itself, not merely as a local or temporary fashion but with all the force of a fixed and almost universally accepted tradition. while ibnu l - farid has nothing in common with the imitatorum seruum pecus, he neither attempted nor desired to swim against the stream ; and it is probable that only his mysticism saved him from the worst excesses of metaphysical wit. in him, as in meleager and petrarch, " the religion of love is reduced to a theology ; no subtlety, no fluctuation of fancy or passion is left unregistered 1. " if his verse abounds in fantastic conceits, if much of it is enigmatic to the last degree, the conceits and enigmas are not, as a rule, rhetorical ornaments or intellectual conjuring tricks, but like tendrils springing from a hidden root are vitally connected with the moods of feeling which they delineate. it may be difficult to believe, what is related on the testimony of his most intimate friends, that he used to dictate his poems at the moment when he came out of a deep ecstatic trance, during which " he would now stand, now sit, now repose on his side, now lie on his hack, wrapped like a dead man ; and thus would he pass ten consecutive days, more or less, neither eating nor drinking nor speaking nor stirring. " his style and diction resemble the choicest and finest jewel -


side, now lie on his hack, wrapped like a dead man ; and thus would he pass ten consecutive days, more or less, neither eating nor drinking nor speaking nor stirring. " his style and diction resemble the choicest and finest jewel - work of a fastidious artist rather than the first - fruits of divine inspiration. yet i am not inclined to doubt the statement that his poetry was composed in an abnormal manner 2. the history of mysticism records numerous instances of the kind. blake said that he was drunk with intellectual vision whenever he took a pencil or graver in his hand. " st catherine of siena, " we are told, " dictated her great dialogue to her secretaries whilst in the state of ecstasy 3. " " when jalaluddin rumi was drowned in the ocean of love he used to take hold of a pillar in his house and set himself turning round it. meanwhile he versified and dictated, and people wrote down the verses 4. " since the form of such automatic composition will largely depend on materials stored within the mystic ' s brain, and on the literary models with which he is familiar, we need not be surprised if his visions and revelations sometimes find spontaneous utterance in an elaborately artificial style. the intense passion and glowing rapture of ibnu l - farid ' s poetry are in keeping with this account of the way in which it was produced 1. that he may have written it while not under the influence of ecstasy, i can conceive 2 ; but that he wrote it in cold blood, for the sake of those who might enjoy sharpening their wits upon it, seems to me incredible. the double character of islamic mystical poetry makes it attractive to many who are out of touch with pure mysticism. ibnu l - farid would not be so popular in the east if he were understood entirely in a spiritual sense. the fact that parts of the diwan cannot be reasonably understood in any other sense would not, perhaps, compel us to regard the whole as spiritual, unless that view of its meaning were supported by the poet ' s life, the verdict of his biographers and commentators, and the agreement of moslem critical opinion ; but as things are, we can declare, with nabulusi, that " in every erotic description, whether the subject thereof be male or female, and in all imagery of gardens, flowers, rivers, birds and the like he refers to the divine reality manifested in phenomena, and not to those phenomena themselves 3. " this reality,


every erotic description, whether the subject thereof be male or female, and in all imagery of gardens, flowers, rivers, birds and the like he refers to the divine reality manifested in phenomena, and not to those phenomena themselves 3. " this reality, i. e. god ( or, in some places, mohammed conceived as the logos ) is the beloved whom the poet addresses and celebrates under many namesnow as one of the heroines of arabian minnesong, now as a gazelle or a driver of camels or an archer shooting deadly glances from his eye ; most frequently as plain he or she. the odes retain the form, conventions, topics, and images of ordinary love - poetry : their inner meaning hardly ever obtrudes itself, although its presence is everywhere suggested by a strange exaltation of feeling, fine - drawn phantasies in which ( as the same french critic remarks ) the poet is rapt " au - dela des bornes de la droite raison, " mysterious obscurities of diction and subtle harmonies of sound. if ibnu l - farid had followed the example of ibnu l - arabi and written a commentary on his own poems, it might have added considerably to our knowledge of his mystical beliefs, but i am not sure that it would have had much greater interpretative value than the work of his commentators, who profess to explain the esoteric meaning of every verse in the odes. while such analysis may be useful within certain limits, we should recognise how little it is capable of revealing. an eminent scholar came to ibnu l - farid and asked permission to write a commentary on his masterpiece, the nazmu l - suluk. " in how many volumes? " " two. " the poet smiled. " had i wished, " said he, " i could have written two volumes of commentary on every verse of it 1. " the more interpreters, the more interpretations, as those who have given time and labour to the study of mysticism well know. poetry of this kind suggests more than it says, and means all that it may suggest. we cannot do without the commentators, however, and they will help us a good deal if we learn to use them discreetly. when they handle their text like philologists and try to fasten precise mystical significations upon individual words and phrases, the process is as fatal to poetry as the result is likely to be far from truth. against this, they have the immense advantage of being


handle their text like philologists and try to fasten precise mystical significations upon individual words and phrases, the process is as fatal to poetry as the result is likely to be far from truth. against this, they have the immense advantage of being sufis, that is to say, of knowing through tradition and their own experience what europeans can only acquire by study and perceive by sympathy. they are the poet ' s fellow - citizens in the ideal world from which he drew his inspiration ; they have dreamed his dreams and travelled on his path towards his goal ; they do not miss the main drift of his allegory even though they err in some of the details. any one who has read the diwan of ibnu l - farid in [ paragraph continues ] arabic will admit that while a complete rendering into english verse would be a quixotic enterprise, some entire odes and not a few passages in others are suitable for that form of translation. therefore, instead of confining myself to prose, i have sought here and there to capture the shadows at least of things that no prose version can reproduce. the following ode, though characteristically subtle, presents no special difficulties : after reading a little of ibnu l - farid ' s poetry, one can take a general view of the whole. all his odes are variations on a single theme, and the variations themselves have a certain interior uniformity. not only do the same " leitmotifs " recur again and again, but the same metaphors, conceits and paradoxes are continually reappearing in new dress. although translators must regret this monotony, which they cannot make other than tedious, i think most of them would agree that the poet has triumphed over it by means of the delicacy of his art, the beauty of his diction, and the " linked sweetness " of his versificationpowerful spells to enchant those who read him in his own language. the diwan is a miracle of literary accomplishment, yet the form would be cold and empty without the spirit which it enshrines. like sidney, ibnu l - farid looked into his heart before he wrote. his verse is charged with the fire and energy of his inmost feelings. in exquisite contrast with this high - wrought prelude is another passage of the same ode, describing the mystic ' s vision of the divine beauty revealing itself in all things beautiful. here the moslem commentator, startled for a moment out of his luc


. in exquisite contrast with this high - wrought prelude is another passage of the same ode, describing the mystic ' s vision of the divine beauty revealing itself in all things beautiful. here the moslem commentator, startled for a moment out of his lucubrations on syntax and rhetoric, pauses to pay a tribute of admiration to the poet, a tribute which is the more noteworthy because in these six verses ibnu l - farid comes as near as he ever does to the modern european conception of what poetry should be. unadorned simplicity is the antithesis of his style. for our taste, he has far too much of the gift of [ paragraph continues ] holofernes : he plays with sound and sense alike, though in the daintiest and subtlest fashion imaginable. concerning his verbal euphuism a treatise might be written. one versean extreme instance, no doubtwill serve as a sample of many : his extravagant flights of fancy are generally accompanied by an equal exaltation of feeling and sustained by the fiery element in which they move ; at times, however, they sink into something very like the " sweet smoke of rhetoric, " e. g., they said, " thy tears flowed red. " i answered, " they flowed from causes which are small in comparison with the greatness of my desire : i slaughtered sleep on my eyelids to entertain my phantom - guest and therefore my tears flowed bloody over my cheek 3. " the following examples are more typical : o thou who didst treacherously take my heart away, how didst not thou let follow it the rest of me that thou sparedst? part of me is made jealous of thee by part of me, and my outward envies my inward because thou art there 5. to affirm that lovers and mystics delight in paradox is only to acknowledge that in states of spiritual enthusiasm we enter a region where the logic of common experience is perceived to be false. this alta fantasia moulds the language of the odes, imposing its own laws and revelling in its power to transcend contradictions which, for the intellect, are final. tis love! keep thy heart safe. passion is no light thing, and he that is wasted thereby chose it not when he was sane. and live fancy - free, for love ' s joy is sorrow : its beginning a sickness and its end a slaying ; yet, methinks, death owing to love - desire is a life that my loved one bestows upon me as a boon


fancy - free, for love ' s joy is sorrow : its beginning a sickness and its end a slaying ; yet, methinks, death owing to love - desire is a life that my loved one bestows upon me as a boon 3. if separation be my guerdon from you, and if there be no ( real ) distance between us, i regard that separation as union. repulse is nothing but love, so long as it is not hate ; and the hardest thing, excepting only your aversion, is easy to bear. delicious to me is the torment which ye inflict ; and the injustice which love ordains that ye do unto me is justice. and my patience, a patience both without you and with you 4its bitterness seems to me everlastingly sweet 5. besides the two protagonists, arabian love - poetry introduces several minor figures, who play a helping or hindering part in the idyll. ibnu l - farid, of course, uses them allegorically. one of them is the " watcher " ( raqib ), who prevents the lover from approaching. the " slanderer " ( washi ) represents the logical and intellectual faculty, which cannot pierce beyond the outward forms of things. more important than either of these ( to judge by the frequent passages of description and dialogue in which he appears ), and more dangerous, because of his greater plausibility, is the " blamer " ( laim ) or " railer " ( lahi ), a type of the devil, suggesting evil and inspiring doubt, of sensual passion, and of all that lures the soul away from divine contemplation. it is a favourite paradox of ibnu l - farid that reproof bears a message of love, and that the " railer " deserves to be thanked and praised. but i found thee in one way my benefactor, albeit thou wouldst have hurt me by the scorch of thy rebuke, had i obeyed thee. thou didst me a kindness unawares, and if thou wroughtest ill, yet art thou the most righteous of wrong - doers. the phantom that visits me in the hour of blame 2 brings the beloved, though he dwell afar, close to the eye of my waking ear. and thy reproof is, as it were, my loved one ' s camels which came to me when my hearing was my sight 3. thou tiredst thyself and i was


afar, close to the eye of my waking ear. and thy reproof is, as it were, my loved one ' s camels which came to me when my hearing was my sight 3. thou tiredst thyself and i was refreshed by thy mention of him, so that i regarded thee as excusing me for my passion. marvel, then, at a satirist lauding with the tongue of a thankful complainant those who blame him for his love 4! the hyperfantastic strain in ibnu l - farid ' s poetry is surprisingly relieved by a poignant realism, of which there is no trace in the work of his persian rivals. they have, what he reserves for his great taiyya, the power of lifting themselves and their readers with them into the sphere of the infinite and eternal, the arabic odes, on the contrary, are full of local colour and redolent of the desert ; and the whole treatment of the subject is intimately personal. jalaluddin rumi writes as a god - intoxicated soul, ibnu l - farid as a lover absorbed in his own feelings. while the persian sees a pantheistic vision of one reality in which the individual disappears, the arab dwells on particular aspects of the relation of that reality to himself. some of the finest passages are inspired by the author ' s recollection of the years which he spent in the hijaz, where ( he says ) he left his heart behind when his body returned to egypt 1. from many such passages i select one that is characteristic, because it illustrates ibnu l - farid ' s habit of seeking his imagery in nature, as seen by bedouins 3, and also his sense of the poetic value of proper names. it needs but a slight acquaintance with ibnu l - farid to discover that he fully possesses a gift which the arabs have always prized in their rulers no less than in their poets and oratorsthe power of terse, striking, and energetic expression. he depicts the lover wasted by suffering, an exceeding great love hath hewn my bones, and my body is vanished, all but the two least parts of me 3. i felt such passion for you that if the strengths of all who love had borne half the burden thereof, they would have tired. my bones were hewn by a desire twice as great as that of my eyelids for my sleep or of my weakness for my strength 4. any one of the odes will furnish


love had borne half the burden thereof, they would have tired. my bones were hewn by a desire twice as great as that of my eyelids for my sleep or of my weakness for my strength 4. any one of the odes will furnish examples of this arabian eloquence which has its roots deep in the structure of the language and defies all attempts to transplant it. in his famous wine ode ( khamriyya ) ibnu l - farid develops a symbolism which elsewhere he only uses incidentally. his sparing use of it may perhaps be attributed to his respect for the mohammedan religious law, just as the antinomian bias of some persian mystics seems to express itself in the freedom of their bacchanalian imagery. according to ibnu l - farid ' s custom, the symbolism is precise and circumstantial, so that its interpretation is far more baffling than in persian odes of the same kind, where large and simple ideas carry the reader easily along. i hope that the literal translation given below, together with the notes accompanying it, will make the meaning tolerably clear, though we may doubt whether the poet would always have accepted the interpretation given by his commentator, abdu l - ghani al - nabulusi, who not only explains too much but brings in philosophical theories that belong to ibnu l - arabi rather than to ibnu l - farid. into this question, however, i need not enter now. ( 1 ) in memory of the beloved we quaffed a vintage that made us drunk before the creation of the vine 2. ( 2 ) its cup the full - moon ; itself a sun which a new moon causes to circle. when it is mingled ( with water ), how many stars appear 3! ( 3 ) but for its perfume, i should not have found the way to its taverns ; and but for its resplendence, the imagination would not have pictured it 4. ( 4 ) time hath preserved of it but a breath : it is unseen as a thing hidden in the bosom of the mind 1. ( 5 ) if it be mentioned amongst the tribe, the tribesmen become intoxicated without incurring disgrace or committing sin 2. ( 6 ) it oozed up from the inmost depths of the jars ( and vanished ), and in reality nothing was left of it but a name 3. ( 7 ) if it ever come into the mind of a man, joy will


( 6 ) it oozed up from the inmost depths of the jars ( and vanished ), and in reality nothing was left of it but a name 3. ( 7 ) if it ever come into the mind of a man, joy will abide with him and grief will journey away. ( 8 ) and had the boon - companions beheld the sealing of its vessel, that sealing would have inebriated them without ( their having tasted ) the wine 4 ; ( 9 ) and had they sprinkled with it the earth of a dead man ' s grave, his spirit would have returned to him, and his body would have risen ; ( 10 ) and had they laid down in the shadow of the wall where its vine grows a man sick unto death, his malady would have departed from him ; ( 11 ) and had they brought to its taverns one palsied, he would have walked ; and at the mention of its flavour the dumb would speak ; ( 12 ) and had the breath of its aroma floated through the east, and were there in the west one that had lost the sense of smell, he would have regained it ; ( 13 ) and had the palm of one touching its cup been stained red thereby, he would not have gone astray at night, the lodestar being in his hand ; ( 14 ) and had it been unveiled in secret ( as a bride ) to one blind from birth, he would have become seeing ; and at the sound of its ( decanting into the ) strainer the deaf would hear ; ( 15 ) and had a party of camel - riders set out for the soil that bore it, and were there amongst them one bitten by a snake, the venom would not have harmed him ; ( 16 ) and had the sorcerer inscribed the letters of its name on the brow of one smitten with madness, the writing would have cured him ; ( 17 ) and had its name been blazoned on the banner of the host, that blazon would have intoxicated those beneath the banner. ( 18 ) it corrects the natures of the boon - companions, so that those who lack resolution are led by it to the path of resolution, ( 19 ) and he whose hand was a stranger to munificence shows himself generous, and he who had no forbearance forbears in the hour of wrath. ( 20 ) had the dullest - witted man in the tribe kissed its fidam, his kissing it would have end


the lover of num when her name is spoken. ( 33 ) they said, " thou hast drunk the draught of sin. " nay, i have only drunk what, in my judgment, twere the greatest sin to renounce. ( 34 ) health to the people of the christian monastery! how often were they intoxicated by it without hawing drunk thereof! still, they aspired 4. ( 35 ) in me, ere i was born, it stirred a transport that abides with me for ever, though my bones decay. ( 36 ) take it pure! but if thou wish to temper it, the worst wrong is thy turning aside from the water of the beloved ' s teeth 1. ( 37 ) seek it in the tavern, and there to the accompaniment of tuneful notes bid it display itself, for by means of music it is made a prize 2. ( 38 ) wine never dwelt with care in any place, even as sorrow never dwelt with song ; ( 39 ) and, though thy intoxication with it have but the life of a moment, thou wilt regard time as a slave obedient to thy command. ( 40 ) joyless in this world is he that lives sober, and he that dies not drunk will miss the path of wisdom. ( 41 ) let him weep for himselfhe whose life is wasted without part or lot in wine! the khamriyya forms a link between the love - lyrics and the great ode in which ibnu l - farid describes his own mystical experience and puts it forth ( excepting, however, the highest stage of all ) as a doctrine for others. this ode, the author ' s masterpiece, bears a plain and appropriate title, nazmu l - suluk, " the poem of the mystic ' s progress " ; the meaning of the name al - taiyyatu l - kubra, by which it is commonly known, has been explained above 3. the taiyya, with its 760 verses, is nearly as long as all the minor poems together, if we leave the quatrains and enigmas out of reckoning. it was edited in 1854 by joseph von hammer and may be studied in the fully vocalised text which he copied from an excellent manuscript in his possession. to transcribe is one thing, to translate is another ; and as " translation " of a literary work usually implies that some attempt has been made to understand it, i prefer to say that von hammer rendered the poem


excellent manuscript in his possession. to transcribe is one thing, to translate is another ; and as " translation " of a literary work usually implies that some attempt has been made to understand it, i prefer to say that von hammer rendered the poem into german rhymed verse by a method peculiar to himself, which appears to have consisted in picking out two or three words in each couplet and filling the void with any ideas that might strike his fancy. perhaps, in a sense, the taiyya is untranslatable, and certainly it offers very slight encouragement to the translator whose aim may be defined as " artistic reproduction. " on the other hand, it seemed to me that a literal prose version with explanatory notes would at least enable the reader to follow the course of the poem and become acquainted with its meaning, while any one who ventured on the arabic text would profit by the labours of a fellow - student and would not be so likely to lose heart, [ paragraph continues ] though formally an ode ( qasida ), the taiyya is addressed to a disciple, so that its prevailing tone is didactic and descriptive, the exposition being only now and then interrupted by strains of pure lyric enthusiasm. not that the poem is deficient either in beauty or in power ; much, if not most of it, combines these qualities, and in the following version i have tried to preserve some traces of them. ibnu l - farid is here illustrating the doctrine that phenomena are merely the illusory medium through which the soul acts in the world. for this purpose he compares the soul to the showman of the shadow - lantern who throws his puppets on a screen, keeping himself out of sight while he manipulates them 1. the passage beginning describes the various scenes and incidents of the shadow - play and the emotions aroused in the spectators. regard now what is this that lingers not before thine eye and in a moment fades. all thou beholdest is the act of one in solitude, but closely veiled is he. let him but lift the screen, no doubt remains : the forms are vanished, he alone is all ; and thou, illumined, knowest that by his light thou findst his actions in the senses night 1. ibnu l - farid more often reminds us of dante than of lucretius, but these verses may be compared with a passage in the de rerum natura ( 2, 323 foll. ) where the author illustrates " the perpetual motion of the atoms going


farid more often reminds us of dante than of lucretius, but these verses may be compared with a passage in the de rerum natura ( 2, 323 foll. ) where the author illustrates " the perpetual motion of the atoms going on beneath an appearance of absolute rest " by a picture " taken from the pomp of human affairs and the gay pageantry of armies " : " the truth and fulness of life in this passage are immediately perceived, but the element of sublimity is added by the thought in the two lines with which the passage concludes, which reduces the whole of this moving and sounding pageant to stillness and silence a similar and perhaps even more striking effect is produced when ibnu l - farid, after having brought before his readers the spectacle of restless life and strife which fills the world, at once transforms it into a vision of eternal order and harmony all thou beholdest is the act of one. in reading the taiyya it is a rare pleasure to meet with. even ten or twenty consecutive lines like these, which require no commentary to interpret them. yet the poem, as a whole, is not unduly cryptic in expression. those who blame a writer for obscurity ought to ask themselves whether his meaning could have been given more clearly ; and if so, whether he can allege good and sufficient reasons for his default. on these counts i think ibnu l - farid will secure an acquittal, if we remember that he was bound by the poetic forms and fashions of his day. the obscurity does not lie in his style so much as in the nature of his subject. while his symbolism may have served him at times as a mask when plain speaking would have been dangerous 1, he generally uses it as the only possible means of imparting mystical truth ; and in his own circle, no doubt, it was understood readily enough. we, on the other hand, must begin by learning it and end with recognising that no intellectual effort will bring us to the stage whence an initiated mohammedan sets out. what makes the interpretation of the poem especially uncertain is that the author ' s account of his religious and mystical experience is psychological in character and throws but a faint light on his theological position. was he really a pantheist, or was he an orthodox mystic whose feeling of oneness with god expressed itself in the language of pantheism? does the taiyya reflect the doctrines of ibnu l - arabi, as its commentators believe? although


really a pantheist, or was he an orthodox mystic whose feeling of oneness with god expressed itself in the language of pantheism? does the taiyya reflect the doctrines of ibnu l - arabi, as its commentators believe? although such questions cannot be ignored by any one who attempts to translate or explain the poem, they are not easy to answer definitely. i have followed kashani in the main ; nevertheless i regard his interpretation as representing a point of view which is alien to ibnu l - farid. logically, the mystical doctrine of ittihad ( einswerden ) leads to the pantheistic monism of ibnu l - arabi ; but those who find in the taiyya a poetical version of that system are confusing mysticism with philosophy. in some passages, however, we meet with philosophical ideas 2 and may draw inferences from them. while they do not appear to me to support the view that ibnu l - farid was a follower of ibnu l - arabi, they imply pantheism and monism on the plane of speculative thought, where commentators and theologians [ paragraph continues ] ( not poets and mystics ) are accustomed to dwell. i consider, therefore, that k. ' s interpretation, false as it is to the spirit of the poem, places it in a medium intelligible to us and conveys its meaning in a relatively adequate form. and my readers will see at once how the mystical content of the taiyya as well as its philosophical implications are illustrated by the foregoing essay on the insanu l - kamil. was ibnu l - farid consciously a pantheist? i do not think so. but in the permanent unitive state which he describes himself as having attained, he cannot speak otherwise than pantheistically : he is so merged in the oneness that he identifies himself now with mohammed ( the islamic logos ), now with god, whose attributes he assumes and makes his own. many of these passages are such as no medieval religion but islam would have tolerated, and we cannot wonder that he was charged with heresy. his opponents accused him of holding the doctrine of incarnation ( hulul ) and of pretending to be the qutb. he disavows hula l and shows how it differs from his own doctrine ( vv. 277 foll. ). as regards the qutb, the most explicit reference occurs in vv. 500 - 1 : here is another suspected verse ( 313 ) :


kashfu l - wujuhi l - ghurr li - maani nazmi l - durr ( cairo, a. h. 1319 ). ( c ) the taiyyatu l - kubra, with the commentary of al - nabulusi entitled kashfu l - sirri l - ghamid fi sharhi diwan ibni l - farid ( ms. in the british museum, add. 7564 - 5 rich. ). the commentary on the taiyya begins at f. 176 of the first volume. ( d ) the taiyyatu l - kubra, ed. with a german verse - translation by hammer - purgstall ( vienna, 1854 ). concerning the italian translation of the taiyyatu l - kubra by sac. ignazio di matteo ( rome, 1917 ) and the valuable notice of it by prof. nallino which appeared in rivista degli studi orientali, vol. viii ( rome, 1919 ), some remarks will be found in the preface to this volume. the abbreviations diwan, k. and n. refer to ( a ), ( b ) and ( c ) respectively. 163 : 1 even zoroastrianism does not exclude the monistic principle. it seems to be uncertain whether ormuzd and ahriman stood in direct and equal antagonism to each other, or whether anra mainyu ( ahriman ), the evil spirit, and spenta mainyu, the good spirit, were conceived as opposite emanations of one ( ormuzd ) who is above them both. in any case, the struggle between ormuzd and ahriman ends with the complete destruction of the latter. 163 : 2 noldeke, sketches from eastern history, tr. by j. s. black, p. 20. 163 : 3 sir charles lyall, ancient arabian poetry, p. xix. 164 : 1 the present writer has edited and translated a collection of mystical odes by ibnu l - arabi, entitled tarjuman al - ashwaq, in the oriental translation fund, new series, vol. xx ( london, 1911 ). 164 : 2 the date of his birth is usually given as a. d. 1181, but see nallino, op. cit., p. i, note 3. 164 : 3 diwan, p. 4, 1. 13 foll. and p. 75,


usually given as a. d. 1181, but see nallino, op. cit., p. i, note 3. 164 : 3 diwan, p. 4, 1. 13 foll. and p. 75, 1. i foll. 164 : 4 the life of ibnu l - farid by his grandson has been printed as an introduction to the diwan ( pp. 3 - 24 ). a shorter notice, extracted from my ms. of the shadharatu l - dhahab, was published in the jras. for 1906, pp. 800 - 806. see also ibn khallikan, no. 511 ( de slane ' s translation, vol. n, p. 388 foll. ). 165 : 1 see p. 22 supra. 165 : 2 i. e. the greater ode rhyming in t. it is so named in order to distinguish it from the taiyyatu l - sughra, i. e. the lesser ode rhyming in t ( diwan, p. 142 foll. ). 165 : 3 see professor browne ' s literary history of persia, vol. 11, p. 504 ; my literary history of the arabs, p. 397 fol., and the don and the dervish, pp. 105 - 9. a latin version of one entire ode ( diwan, p. 306 foll. ) is given by sir william jones in his poeseos asiaticae commentarii ( works, ed. by lord teignmouth, vol. vi, p. 74 ). 166 : 1 grangeret de lagrange, anthologie arabe, p. 128. 167 : 1 j. w. mackail, select epigrams from the greek anthology, p. 34. 167 : 2 preface to the diwan, p. ii, 1. 20. 167 : 3 evelyn underhill, mysticism, p. 352. 167 : 4 introd. to selected poems from the divani shamsi tabriz, p. xl. 168 : 1 of course these remarks do not apply to many passages in the taiyyatu l - kubra, which in respect of its didactic purpose bears the same relation to the minor odes as the masnavi of jalaluddin rumi to his diwan. 168 : 2 prof. nallino ( op. cit. p. 17 ) points out that at


didactic purpose bears the same relation to the minor odes as the masnavi of jalaluddin rumi to his diwan. 168 : 2 prof. nallino ( op. cit. p. 17 ) points out that at a later period the odes were often chanted in the musical concerts of the sufis and suggests that they were composed for this purpose. 168 : 3 diwan, p. 52, l. 8 foll. burini ( ibid. p. 202, 12 foll. ) asserts that ibnu l - farid ' s poetry is not invariably mystical. the two verses which he cites might bear an allegorical sense as easily as many of a similar kind in the song of solomon ; and, in any case, they are extracted from rubais. the fact that ibnu l - farid is known to have written one amatorious epigram ( diwan, p. 549, 9 fol. ibn khallikan, de slane ' s translation, vol. ii, p. 389 ), and that he may have written others, proves nothing against those who find mysticism in every line of the odes. 169 : 1 preface to the diwan, p. 11, l. 1 foll. 170 : 1 diwan, p. 263 foll. prof. browne has given a translation of this ode in his literary history of persia, vol. ii, p. 504. 170 : 2 a valley with fountains and date - palms in the neighbourhood of medina. 170 : 3 the dream - form ( khayal ) of the beloved in the poet ' s fancy ( khayal ). 171 : 1 diwan, p. 230 foll. 172 : 1 literally, " if thy everlastingness ( baqa ) demands my passing - away ( fana ). " 172 : 2 according to n. the words " those who beheld thee " refer to the light of mohammed, which emanated from the light of god. 173 : 1 a veil covering the lower part of the face. 173 : 2 " within thy borders " : literally " within thy preserve ( hima ). " the divine essence is preserved ( made inaccessible ) by the spiritual and sensible forms in which it veils itself. as the bedouin poet brags about himself in order to assert the dignity of his tribe, so when the mohammedan saints boast of the unique endowments which god has bestowed upon them,


spiritual and sensible forms in which it veils itself. as the bedouin poet brags about himself in order to assert the dignity of his tribe, so when the mohammedan saints boast of the unique endowments which god has bestowed upon them, it is not self - glorification, but thanksgiving to him " from whom all blessings flow. " 173 : 3 real being is manifested in phenomena, just as the light of the sun is reflected by the moon. 173 : 4 see kor. 6, 76 foll. " and when the night overshadowed him, he saw a p. 174 star, and he said, this is my lord ; but when it set, he said, i like not gods which set. and when he saw the moon rising, he said, this is my lord ; but when he saw it set, he said, verily, if my lord direct me not, i shall become one of the people who go astray " ( sale ' s translation ). 174 : 1 in this verse there is an untranslatable play on the double meaning of badr, which signifies ( i ) a place between mecca and medina where the prophet won his memorable victory over the meccan idolaters in a. d. 624 ; ( 2 ) a full moon. thus the ahlu badr are to moslems more than what of οι μαραθωνομαχαι were to the greeks of plato ' s time, while the phrase also suggests the perfect illumination reserved for adepts in mysticism. irish politics of forty years ago would provide an exact parallel, if the moonlighters were regarded as national heroes and saints. the poet says that the men of badr, i. e., the noble company of mystics, journey not so much in the light which phenomena derive from reality as in the light of reality itself. 174 : 2 material beauty is not worthy to be loved except in so far as it is one of the ideas ( attributes and manifestations ) of absolute beauty. 174 : 3 when god withdraws himself ( from the inward eye of the mystic ), he still lays his commands on the soul, so that it performs its predestined good and evil works. 174 : 4 divine love sweeps away the conventional standards of truth and right and honour. 176 : 1 diwan, p. 331 foll. 176 : 2 ibid. p. 347, 1. 6 foll. cf. shelley, epip


4 divine love sweeps away the conventional standards of truth and right and honour. 176 : 1 diwan, p. 331 foll. 176 : 2 ibid. p. 347, 1. 6 foll. cf. shelley, epipsychidion : 177 : 1 ibid. p. 173. it is true, as prof. nallino has observed ( op. cit. p. 16 ), that some odes are less artificial in style than others. 177 : 2 ibid. p. 467. 177 : 3 ibid. p. 165. 177 : 4 ibid. p. 108. 177 : 5 ibid. p. 278. 178 : 1 diwan, p. 410. 178 : 2 ibid. p. 384. 178 : 3 ibid. p. 391 foll. 178 : 4 " patience without you, " i. e. in bearing your separation from me ; " patience with you, " i. e. in bearing the pain which you, as the object of my love, cause me to suffer. 178 : 5 diwan, p. 402. 179 : 1 the poet was rapt in contemplation of the beloved and could not bandy words with his critic. 179 : 2 i. e. by convincing my " blamer " of the error of his ways i acquired as much religious merit as by making the pilgrimage to mecca. it is meritorious to combine the greater pilgrimage ( hajj ) with the lesser pilgrimage ( umra ). 179 : 3 rajab is the seventh and al - muharram the first month of the mohammedan year. 179 : 4 i. e. inconstancy. 179 : 5 diwan, p. 179 foll. the last verse alludes to the manna and quails which dropped from heaven upon the israelites ( kor. 2, 54 ). in the original there is a double word - play : mann ( separation ), mann ( manna ), salwat ( forgetfulness ), salwa ( quails ). 180 : 1 diwan, p. 443 foll. 180 : 2 i. e. the image or vision of the beloved which appears when his name is pronounced by the " blamer. " 180 : 3 as camels bring the beloved to the lover ' s eye, so reproof brings him to the lover ' s ear. 180 : 4 diwan, p. 275 foll. cf


pronounced by the " blamer. " 180 : 3 as camels bring the beloved to the lover ' s eye, so reproof brings him to the lover ' s ear. 180 : 4 diwan, p. 275 foll. cf. p. 346, l. 5, and p. 429, l. 27p. 420, l. 6. 181 : 1 ibid. p. 370, 1. 22. 181 : 2 the arabic word for rocks ( safa ) is also the name of a peak near mecca, and this may be its meaning here. 182 : 1 reading with the commentator haya instead of hiba. 182 : 2 diwan, p. 297 foll. 182 : 3 this is quite different, of course, from the pictorial treatment of desert life and scenery which we find in the pre - islamic odes. 182 : 4 reading. 183 : 1 diwan, pp. 429 - 441. 183 : 2 ibid. p. 6. 183 : 3 ibid. p. 70. " the two least parts " are the heart and the tongue. 183 : 4 ibid. p. 160, l. 24 foll. 184 : 1 diwan, p. 472 foll. 184 : 2. the soul was intoxicated with the wine of divine love ( i. e. was rapt in contemplation of god ) during its pre - existence in the eternal knowledge of god before the body was created. 184 : 3 the full - moon is the perfect man, i. e. the gnostic or saint in whom god reveals himself completely and who is, as it were, filled with divine love. the new moon is the gnostic veiled by his individuality, so that he manifests only a part of the divine light, not the whole ; he causes the wine of love to circle, i. e. he displays and makes known to others the names and attributes of god. when the wine is watered, i. e. when pure contemplation is blended with the element of religion, the seeker of god obtains spiritual direction and is like a traveller guided by the stars in his night - journey. 184 : 4 n. ' s commentary on this verse is characteristically recondite. he interprets " its perfume " as the sphere of the primal intelligence, whence emanate all created things ; " its taverns " as the divine names and attributes ; " its resplendence


verse is characteristically recondite. he interprets " its perfume " as the sphere of the primal intelligence, whence emanate all created things ; " its taverns " as the divine names and attributes ; " its resplendence " as the human intellect, which is a flash of the primal intelligence. divine love, being of the essence of god, has no form except in the imagination. 185 : 1 " time, " i. e. the world of change. the second hemistich may be rendered literally : " tis as though its occultation were a concealment in the breasts of ( human ) minds. " 185 : 2 " the tribesmen, " i. e. mystics capable of receiving illumination. 185 : 3 this verse describes the gradual fading of ecstasy from the heart of the mystic. 185 : 4 i need not trouble my readers with the detailed allegorical analysis to which the commentator subjects this and the next nine verses. they explain themselves, if taken as a fanciful description of the miracles wrought by divine love. 186 : 1 the fidam is a strainer placed over the mouth of the bottle, so that the wine may run clear. 186 : 2 vv. 23 - 30 are wanting in the commentary of burini and may have been inserted in the poem by a copyist. see nallino, op. cit. p. 31, note i. divine love, as the eternal source of all created things, is logically prior to them, although it does not precede them in time, which itself is created. 186 : 3 inasmuch as real being belongs to god alone, mystical union cannot be likened to the permeation of one body by another, as when water is absorbed by a sponge. 186 : 4 this enigmatic verse refers to being under its two aspects. wine signifies pure being, vine phenomenal being. in so far as man is related to the divine spirit ( here identified with adam, whom god " created in his own p. 187 image " ), he is pure reality ; but in so far as he belongs to nature, he is unreal. " its mother " is the mother of wine, i. e. the vine, which is a symbol for the material world. 187 : 1 the " vessels " are the phenomenal forms by which real being is manifested. they are " subtle, " i. e. spiritual, because every such form is the veil of a reality. these realities " increase, " i.


187 : 1 the " vessels " are the phenomenal forms by which real being is manifested. they are " subtle, " i. e. spiritual, because every such form is the veil of a reality. these realities " increase, " i. e. appear as the many, by means of the forms which our senses perceive. 187 : 2 absolute being or god or divine loveall these terms are the same in essenceis not conditioned by time. 187 : 3 i. e. it was an orphan before the beginning of fatherhood. this, i think, is merely a paradox indicating the timeless nature of reality. the word " orphanhood " ( yutm ) may allude to mohammed ( cf. note on the taiyya, vv. 288 - 9 ). in this case the meaning will be that mohammed ( as the logos ) existed before the creation of adam. according to n., absolute being is made an " orphan " by the passing - away ( fana ) of the spirit in man. universal spirit or reason, the first emanation, may be said to " die " when its essence ( the human spirit ) is mystically re - united with the absolute ; and its " death " leaves the absolute, i. e. the phenomenal world regarded as the other self of the absolute, " an orphan in the bosom of its mother nature. " 187 : 4 moslems associate with christianity the beverage forbidden by their own religion. when their poets describe a wine - party, the scene is often laid in the neighbourhood of a christian monastery ( dayr ). ibnu l - farid says that the christians became intoxicated without having drunk, i. e. their doctrine that god reveals himself in christ is only a glimpse of the truth, p. 188 which is fully realised by moslem saints, that god reveals himself in every atom of existence. cf. the taiyya, v. 730 foll. and p. 140 supra. 188 : 1 i. e. seek to contemplate the divine essence alone, or if you must seek anything besides, let it be the first and highest manifestation of that essence, namely, the spirit or light of mohammed, which is figuratively called " the water of the beloved ' s teeth. " 188 : 2 the sufis have always known the value of music as a means of inducing ecstasy. cf. the mystics of islam, p. 63 foll. ; d. b. macdonald, emotional religion in islam


' s teeth. " 188 : 2 the sufis have always known the value of music as a means of inducing ecstasy. cf. the mystics of islam, p. 63 foll. ; d. b. macdonald, emotional religion in islam as affected by music and singing in the journal of the royal asiatic society, 1901, pp. 195 foll. and 748 foll., and 1902, p. 1 foll. 188 : 3 p. 165, note 2. 189 : 1 see v. 679 of the prose translation infra. 190 : 1 " the forms of things, " i. e. the puppets, typify phenomena, which in themselves are lifeless and passive : all their life and activity is the effect of the manifestation in them of the actions and attributes of reality. 190 : 2 the greek fire to which von hammer finds an allusion here is, i think, an ignis fatuus. 190 : 3 the genies ( jinn ) are described as ethereal creatures, endowed with speech, transparent ( so that they are normally invisible ), and capable of assuming various shapes. 191 : 1 taiyya, vv. 680 - 706. 192 : 1 w. y. sellar, the roman poets of the republic, p. 403. i give munro ' s translation : " again when mighty legions fill with their movements all parts of the plains, waging the mimicry of war, the glitter then lifts itself up to the sky, and the whole earth round gleams with brass, and beneath a noise is raised by the mighty trampling of men, and the mountains stricken by the shouting re - echo the voices to the stars of heaven, and horsemen fly about and suddenly wheeling scour across the middle of the plains, shaking them with the vehemence of their charge. and yet there is some place on the high hills, seen from which they appear to stand still and to rest on the plains as a bright spot. " 192 : 2 taiyya, v. 489. 193 : 1 taiyya, vv. 395 - 6. 193 : 2 e. g. emanation ( fayd ) in vv. 403 - 5. the spiritual and sensible worlds derive their life from universal spirit and universal soul ( v. 405 ; cf. v. 492 ). in v. 455 the hallajian terms, lahut ( divinity ) and nasut ( humanity ) are used in the same way as by ibnu l


at the end of september 2007, my husband, evans starzinger, and i were in the iles gambier, at the southeastern edge of french polynesia, aboard our 47 - foot aluminum van de stadt samoa, hawk. we were about to embark upon a 3, 400 - nautical - mile passage to canal de chacao, the narrow channel that leads to puerto montt, at the north end of the channels in chile. the passage would take us across three of the global wind systems : the southeast trades, the variables, and the westerlies of the roaring 40s. during what turned out to be a 24 - day ( and 3, 800 - nautical - miles - sailed ) passage, we relied upon the weather information derived from gridded binary files to help us pick our way through the complex weather systems we encountered. by sharing the exact information we had at our disposal, we hope to help others understand these valuable forecasting tools and how we make use of them to benefit from or avoid weather systems. the iles gambier are located in the belt of southeast trade winds that extends to around 30 degrees s. to avoid beating dead into the trade winds for several hundred miles, the traditional sailing route between french polynesia and the chilean coast calls for vessels to sail as close to due south as they can manage through the southeast trades and the variables until reaching the westerlies of the roaring 40s. here, voyagers turn east and run to chile. to avoid being becalmed in the southern hemisphere summer ( december through february ), vessels may need to drop below 45 degrees s to remain in the westerly flow of winds under the semi - permanent high - pressure system centered around 30 degrees s, in the vicinity of easter island. in the early southern hemisphere spring, when we were about to embark, the south pacific high would be expected to be north of its summer position and not yet fully established. low - pressure systems with strong westerly flows would be tracking as far north as 30 degrees s, which we hoped would allow us to sail more directly to our destination. when departing on a long passage, we start with the assumption that we will follow the conventional sailing directions, but two weeks before our departure we start watching how systems are actually tracking and whether we should modify our route. because we were coming to the end of the trade - wind season, low - pressure systems had begun tracking across the gambiers from the north and west, out of the subtropics, pushing easterly winds


we should modify our route. because we were coming to the end of the trade - wind season, low - pressure systems had begun tracking across the gambiers from the north and west, out of the subtropics, pushing easterly winds ahead of them. since the south pacific high wasn ’ t yet established, both lows and highs from the roaring 40s regularly rolled northward into the variables ; these, too, brought easterly winds well above 35 s. taking the traditional route with these weather patterns would mean many days of beating into easterlies and the likelihood of several easterly gales or even storms. by mid - september and our departure, it was becoming increasingly apparent that we ’ d have to modify the traditional route to avoid a significant percentage of strong headwinds. during this passage, we ’ d download gribs once a day. when determining where we ’ d be on each successive time period in the gribs, we assumed an average of 150 nautical miles per day. here ’ s a look at four 120 - hour grib files we downloaded during our trip, how we interpreted them, and how the actual weather systems played out. for much of this passage, we felt like a pinball ricocheting between the various low - pressure and high - pressure systems, but by using the gribs, we never experienced sustained winds of more than 40 knots or headwinds of more than 20 knots true. few passages are this complicated, and those that are rarely work out so well. but in this case, the gribs made for a much easier passage than we would ’ ve had if we ’ d followed the conventional sailing route.


print version issn 0256 - 9574 samj, s. afr. med. j. vol. 100 no. 3 cape town mar. 2010 indoor and outdoor allergens our knowledge of disease is often added to incrementally. in his editorial, potter1 notes that two papers published in this issue of samj2, 3 add to the growing body of published information on allergens and allergies in southern africa. seedat et al. 2 studied indoor and outdoor allergen sensitisation in the free state. they identified sensitisation to a previously unrecognised outdoor allergen ( the spider mite, tetranychus urticae ) in the region and also found that the sensitisation rate to house - dust mites in patients with allergic rhinitis is a significant 46 % for dermatophygoides pteronyssinus and 44 % for d. farinae. high levels of sensitisation to the spider mite have also been reported from the hex river valley. since many subjects sensitised to spider mite are simultaneously polysensitised to other outdoor and indoor allergens, the clinical significance of this finding has yet to be studied, and there are no vaccines available to desensitise patients to spider mites. allergic subjects in the free state who had previously lived at the coast were significantly more likely to be sensitised to mites than those who had not. sinclair et al. 3 studied house - dust mite species in bloemfontein and unexpectedly found mites in 50 % of the homes investigated. they found that in some homes high levels of mites are attained as a result of indoor microclimate factors that raise indoor humidity, such as en - suite bathrooms. these studies suggest that the relationship between exposure, sensitisation and the expression of clinical allergic disease to house - dust mites is not a simple one and may depend not only on level of exposure but age of exposure and context of exposure. danger of air in the wrong places two short contributions graphically illustrate the potential danger of pneumopericardium and tension pneumothorax. sun and colleagues4 describe the successful outcome of a case of pneumopericardium resulting from a stabbed chest. cardiac tamponade secondary to air is rare, and in adults blunt trauma is the main cause of pneumopericardium. the primary management of tension pneumopericardi


positive patients compared with the general population suggests that hiv is the most common cause of vzv re - activation in the population at risk. their findings confirmed that a positive hutchinson ' s sign in an hiv - positive patient with hzo is a specific predictor of intra - ocular involvement and that hzo in young patients may be the presenting sign of hiv positivity. the cd4 count was not found to be a significant predictor of ocular involvement. they recommend that all patients with hzo should be seen by an ophthalmologist. factors associated with smoking cessation reductions in the prevalence of smoking in south africa have been mainly attributed to higher cigarette prices. ayo - yusuf and szymanski report on data concerning smoking from the 1998 south african demographic and health survey. 7 of those who attempted to quit smoking, only 14. 1 % succeeded. they recommend clinical interventions, targeting alcohol - dependent smokers, and policies that boost smoke - free homes and increase knowledge of harmful effects of smoking. 1. potter pc. indoor and outdoor allergens in bloemfontein. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 155. [ links ] 2. seedat ry, claasen j, claasen aj, joubert g. mite and cockroach sensitisation in patients with allergic rhinitis in the free state. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 160 - 163. [ links ] 3. sinclair w, coetzee l, joubert g. house - dust mite species in bloemfontein, south africa. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 164 - 167. [ links ] 4. sun gr, goosen j, florizoone m. cardiac tamponade secondary to tension pneumopericardium from penetrating chest trauma. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 150. [ links ] 5. tiemensma m, buys p, wadee sa. sudden death on an aeroplane. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 148 - 149. [ links ] 6. van dyk m, meyer d. hutchinson ' s sign as a marker of ocular involvement in hiv - positive patients with herpes zoster ophthalmicus. s afr med j 2010 ; 100 : 172 - 174. [ links ] 7. ayo - yusuf oa, szymanski b. factors associated with smoking cessation in south africa. s


june 8, 2007 concerned that current methods for making computer chips might become stymied as components keep shrinking, many engineers are looking for circuit building blocks with improved electrical properties. among the most promising are stringy carbon nanotubes that capably form transistors to switch current on and off. but the nanotubes tend to grow with unpredictable kinks and bends that could cause bad wiring connections. this week at the design automation conference in san diego, a group of stanford engineers will present a way to design circuits that should work even when many of the nanotubes in them are twisted and misaligned. " the question is what ' s next in chip technologies, " says subhasish mitra, an assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science. " that ' s why nanotechnology is important. but you want to make sure that you are not in a lab making something that chip designers cannot actually use. " to prevent that, he and electrical engineering professor h. - s. philip wong, working with chemistry professor chongwu zhou at the university of southern california, have been looking closely at how nanotubes end up resting on the surfaces of experimental chips. " it ' s not as bad as a plate of noodles, " mitra says. " you want to create transistors out of these things, and hook up these transistors and make them turn on and off independently. but if twisted carbon nanotubes, for example, short out the circuit, you lose the opportunity to do that. " making messy workable what mitra, wong and graduate students nishant patil and jie deng have realized is that if nanotubes are always going to be somewhat askew, engineers will have to design circuits that can work regardless of where and how the tubes lie. they started by coming up with a single circuit element, a nand gate, that was immune from the vagaries of its underlying nanotube layout. from that single element that could function despite misalignments, they abstracted and generalized the math to come up with an algorithm that can guarantee a working design for any circuit element, mitra says, even when a large number of nanotubes are misaligned. using simulations developed by wong and deng, the group has been able to show that not only do the algorithm ' s designs work, but they also don ' t appear to exact a significant financial, speed or energy price compared to traditional designs, mitra says. the key to determining whether a circuit