O son of Adam, how heedless art thou of the case of him who hath been before thee!  Thy years and age have diverted thee from considering him.  Knowest thou not that the cup of death will be filled for thee, and that in a short time thou wilt drink it?  Look then to thyself before entering thy grave.  Where are those who possessed the countries and abased the servants of God and led armies?  Death hath come upon them; and God is the terminator of delights and the separator of companions and the devastator of flourishing dwellings; so He hath transported them from the amplitude of palaces to the straightness of the graves.

And in the lower part of the tablet were inscribed these verses:—­

     Where are the Kings and the peoplers of the earth?  They have
       quitted that which they have built and peopled;
     And in the grave they are pledged for their past actions:  there
       after destruction, they have become putrid corpses. 
     Where are the troops?  They repelled not, nor profited.  And
       where is that which they collected and hoarded? 
     The decree of the Lord of the Throne surprised them.  Neither
       riches nor refuge saved them from it.

And the Emeer Moosa fainted; his tears ran down upon his cheeks, and he said, By Allah, indifference to the world is the most appropriate and the most sure course!  Then he caused an inkhorn and a paper to be brought, and he wrote the inscription of the first tablet; after which he drew near to the second tablet, and the third, and the fourth; and having copied what was inscribed on them, he descended from the mountain; and the world had been pictured before his eyes.

And when he came back to the troops, they passed the day devising means of entering the city; and the Emeer Moosa said to his Wezeer, Talib the son of Sahl, and to those of his chief officers who were around him, How shall we contrive to enter the city, that we may see its wonders?  Perhaps we shall find in it something by which we may ingratiate ourselves with the Prince of the Faithful.—­Talib the son of Sahl replied, May God continue the prosperity of the Emeer!  Let us make a ladder, and mount upon it, and perhaps we shall gain access to the gate from within.—­And the Emeer said, This is what occurred to my mind, and excellent is the advice.  Then he called to the carpenters and blacksmiths, and ordered them to make straight some pieces of wood, and to construct a ladder covered with plates of iron.  And they did so, and made it strong.  They employed themselves in constructing it a whole month, and many men were occupied in making it.  And they set it up and fixed it against the wall, and it proved to be equal to the wall in height, as though it had been made for it before that day.  So the Emeer Moosa wondered at it, and said, God bless you!  It seemeth, from the excellence of your work, as though ye had adapted it by measurement to the wall.—­He