من الإشعار بالتفيؤ و التحول و الانتقال أي الظلال المتفيئة المتحولة و قال الجوهري اللماظة بالضم ما يبقى في الفم من الطعام و منه قول الشاعر يصف الدنيا لماظة أيام كأحلام نائم. أقول لا يخفى حسن هذا التشبيه إذ كل ما يتيسر لك من الدنيا فهو لماظة من قد أكلها قبلك و انتفع بها غيرك أكثر من انتفاعك و ترك فاسدها لك.

of the suggestion of shifting, changing and moving — that is, the shifting, changing shadows. And al-Jawhari said: al-lumaza, with damma, is what remains in the mouth of food; and from it is the saying of the poet describing this world: a leaving-in-the-mouth of days, like the dreams of a sleeper. I say: the excellence of this likening is not hidden, since everything of this world that is made easy for you is a leaving-in-the-mouth of one who ate it before you, and another profited by it more than your profiting, and left its spoilt part for you.

يَا هِشَامُ إِنَّ كُلَّ النَّاسِ يُبْصِرُ النُّجُومَ وَ لَكِنْ لَا يَهْتَدِي بِهَا إِلَّا مَنْ يَعْرِفُ مَجَارِيَهَا وَ مَنَازِلَهَا وَ كَذَلِكَ أَنْتُمْ تَدْرُسُونَ الْحِكْمَةَ وَ لَكِنْ لَا يَهْتَدِي بِهَا مِنْكُمْ إِلَّا مَنْ عَمِلَ بِهَا.

Hisham, all people see the stars, but none is guided by them save one who knows their courses and their mansions. And likewise you study wisdom, but none of you is guided by it save one who acts by it.

بيان: لما كان من معظم الانتفاع بالنجوم معرفة الأوقات و جهة الطريق في الأسفار و أمثالها و لا تتم معرفة تلك الأمور إلا بكثرة تعاهد النجوم لتعرف مجاريها و منازلها و مطالعها و مغاربها و مقدار سيرها كذلك الحكمة لا ينتفع بها إلا بكثرة تعاهدها و استعمالها لتعرف فوائدها و آثارها و درس كنصر و ضرب قرأ.

Elucidation: since among the greatest benefits of the stars is the knowing of times and of the direction of the way in journeys and the like, and the knowledge of those matters is not completed save by much attending to the stars, so that their courses, their mansions, their risings, their settings and the measure of their motion may be known — likewise wisdom is not profited by save by much attending to it and employing it, so that its benefits and its effects may be known. And darasa, on the pattern of nasara and of daraba, is "he read".

يَا هِشَامُ إِنَّ الْمَسِيحَ عليه السلام قَالَ لِلْحَوَارِيِّينَ يَا عَبِيدَ السَّوْءِ يَهُولُكُمْ طُولُ النَّخْلَةِ وَ تَذْكُرُونَ شَوْكَهَا ١وَ مَئُونَةَ مَرَاقِيهَا وَ تَنْسَوْنَ طِيبَ ثَمَرِهَا وَ مرافقتها- [مَرَافِقَهَا] كَذَلِكَ تَذْكُرُونَ مَئُونَةَ عَمَلِ الْآخِرَةِ فَيَطُولُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَمَدُهُ وَ تَنْسَوْنَ مَا تُفْضُونَ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ نَعِيمِهَا وَ نَوْرِهَا وَ ثَمَرِهَا يَا عَبِيدَ السَّوْءِ نَقُّوا الْقَمْحَ وَ طَيِّبُوهُ وَ أَدِقُّوا طَحْنَهُ تَجِدُوا طَعْمَهُ وَ يَهْنَأْكُمْ أَكْلُهُ كَذَلِكَ فَأَخْلِصُوا الْإِيمَانَ وَ أَكْمِلُوهُ تَجِدُوا حَلَاوَتَهُ وَ يَنْفَعْكُمْ غِبُّهُ بِحَقٍّ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ لَوْ وَجَدْتُمْ سِرَاجاً يَتَوَقَّدُ بِالْقَطِرَانِ فِي لَيْلَةٍ مُظْلِمَةٍ لَاسْتَضَأْتُمْ بِهِ وَ لَمْ يَمْنَعْكُمْ مِنْهُ رِيحُ نَتْنِهِ كَذَلِكَ يَنْبَغِي لَكُمْ أَنْ تَأْخُذُوا الْحِكْمَةَ مِمَّنْ وَجَدْتُمُوهَا مَعَهُ وَ لَا يَمْنَعْكُمْ مِنْهُ سُوءُ رَغْبَتِهِ فِيهَا يَا عَبِيدَ الدُّنْيَا بِحَقٍّ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ لَا تُدْرِكُونَ شَرَفَ الْآخِرَةِ إِلَّا بِتَرْكِ مَا تُحِبُّونَ فَلَا تُنْظِرُوا بِالتَّوْبَةِ غَداً فَإِنَّ دُونَ غَدٍ يَوْماً وَ لَيْلَةً وَ قَضَاءَ اللَّهِ فِيهِمَا يَغْدُو وَ يَرُوحُ بِحَقٍّ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ إِنَّ مَنْ لَيْسَ عَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ أَرْوَحُ وَ أَقَلُّ هَمّاً مِمَّنْ عَلَيْهِ الدَّيْنُ وَ إِنْ أَحْسَنَ الْقَضَاءَ وَ كَذَلِكَ مَنْ لَمْ يَعْمَلِ الْخَطِيئَةَ أَرْوَحُ وَ أَقَلُّ هَمّاً مِمَّنْ عَمِلَ الْخَطِيئَةَ وَ إِنْ أَخْلَصَ التَّوْبَةَ وَ أَنَابَ وَ إِنَّ صِغَارَ الذُّنُوبِ وَ مُحَقَّرَاتِهَا مِنْ مَكَايِدِ إِبْلِيسَ يُحَقِّرُهَا لَكُمْ وَ يُصَغِّرُهَا

Hisham, the Messiah, peace be upon him, said to the disciples: O evil servants, the height of the palm-tree appals you, and you remember its thorns (1) and the trouble of climbing it, and you forget the goodness of its fruit and its benefits. Likewise you remember the trouble of the work of the hereafter, so its term seems long to you, and you forget what you will come to of its bliss, its light and its fruit. O evil servants, clean the wheat and make it good and grind it fine, and you will find its taste and its eating will be wholesome to you. Likewise, make faith sincere and complete it, and you will find its sweetness and its outcome will profit you. Truly I say to you: were you to find a lamp burning with tar on a dark night, you would seek light by it, and the smell of its stench would not keep you from it. Likewise it behoves you to take wisdom from whomever you find it with, and let not the badness of his desire for it keep you from him. O servants of this world, truly I say to you: you will not attain the honour of the hereafter save by leaving what you love. So do not defer repentance to tomorrow, for before tomorrow is a day and a night, and God's decree in them comes at morning and at evening. Truly I say to you: he who has no debt to people is more at rest and less in care than he who has debt upon him, even if he repays it well. And likewise he who has not done the fault is more at rest and less in care than he who has done the fault, even if he makes his repentance sincere and turns back. And the small of sins and the belittled of them are among the wiles of Iblis: he belittles them for you and makes them small