The Warrior Ertogruhl,
Sheik of his tribe of men who dare,
Started a gray wolf in the morning cool,
And on the summit of the mountain bare,
Slew him at set of sun.
And as the sheik upon the topmost peak
Sat resting for a breathing space,
While all the west went red as fire,
El Jann, the monster jinn of Solomon,
Rose in a storm-cloud black and dire,
And from its heart of darkness cried:
“Sheik Ertogruhl, give place,
For I would sit by thee.”
“Make thyself small if thou dst find room,
If thou dst find place,”
Said dauntless Ertogruhl,
When, with a whirr of wings from out the gloom,
A man sat near him, face to face.
“This is the home of eagles” smiled El Jann.
“I ve slain a wolf here” answered Ertogruhl.
“Not so” replied El Jann “thou art beguiled.
No carcass anywhere I see.”
“I ye slain a wolf” low growled the sheik,
“And tho mine eyes in vain the carcass seek,
I ll try my scimetar on thee.”
Then, with a swish of his ringing blade,
He cleft the man head, body to the rock,
But still El Jann sat heedless of the shock,
Still sat and smiled.
“Again” he said “thou art beguiled.
I was the wolf; I was the man,
And still am free of scar;
For I am a thought of Allah’s, the Most High,
The Lord of Near and Far,
And tis not written that His thoughts shall die.
But, as thou rt brave, see what hath Allah willed.”
Then, as he spoke, he lightly spilled
A tiny seed upon the rocky ground.
Lo, as they gazed, a waxen shoot appeared,
That soon grew upward like a lily tall.
Then, like a spear-shaft straightway it upreared,
And, broadening, rising over all,
And flinging leafy arms around,
That touched all corners of the east and west
The Moslem tree in bloom unfurled
With underneath its branches room and rest
And peace for all the peoples of the world.
Lo! what Allah willed!
Allah il Allah!
(Joseph Ignatius Constantine Clarke)
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Based on Topics: Man Poems, God Poems, World Poems, Mind Poems, Sadness Poems, Faces Poems, Place Poems, Cry Poems, Fire Poems, Thought & Thinking Poems, Home PoemsBased on Keywords: sheik, scimetar, spear-shaft, jinn, jann