Suhrawardi - Three Treatises on Mysticism.pdf - Platonic Philosophy

22
Upto the time of departure he used to pretend blindness
with great difficulties and used to say:
"Many a time have I said that I will divulge,
Whatever secrets there are in the world.
But out of fear of the sword and slaps on the neck
There are a thousand ties on my tongue."
He was distressed in himself and said :
"Verily in the
house of my friend is knowledge in a great amount,
if I find
for it those who will take it." "If the veil is
removed, my
belief will not be increased" arid the verse "So that they
worship not Allah Who bririgeth forth the hidden in the
heavens and the earth." 1 "And there is not a thing but with
Us are the stores thereof; and We send it not down save in
appointed measure." 2 CHAPTER KIWIT.
A king had a garden
which was never without sweet
basils, verdure, and places of pleasure,
in all the four
seasons. Great streams were running there and many
varieties of birds produced
sides of the branches. Every
different sorts of tones on the
tune that could come to the
mind and every beauty that could come to the imagination
was available in that garden. Of all that, there was a number
of peacocks with extreme gentleness, beauty lind grace,
that lived and resided there.
One day the king caught a peacock out of them and
ordered him to be sewn in leather so that no colour of his
feathers remained visible. He could not observe his beauty
however much he tried. According to his (king's) order a
basket was placed over him in the garden which had not but
1. Quran XXVH, 25,
2. Quran XV, 27,