or Paeon quartus.  In Mufa’alatun (ii. 3. = U — U U -) and Mutafa’ilun (ii. 8. = U U — U -), again, the Sabab ’ala and mute may become khafif by suppression of their final Harakah and thus turn into Mufa’altun, by substitution Mafa’ilun (ii. 2. = U — — -), and Mutfa’ilun, by substitution Mustaf’ilun (ii 6.= — — U U as above).  In other words the two feet correspond to the schemes U_U-U_ and U-U-U-, where a Spondee can take the place of the Anapaest after or before the Iambus respectively.

’Illah, the second way of modifying the primitive or normal feet, applies to both Sabab and Watad, but only in the ’Aruz and Zarb of a couplet, being at the same time constant and obligatory.  Besides the changes already mentioned, it consists in adding one or two letters to a Sabab or Watad, or curtailing them more or less, even to cutting them off altogether.  We cannot here exhaust this matter any more than those touched upon until now, but must be satisfied with an example or two, to show the proceeding in general and indicate its object.

We have seen that the metre Basit consists of the two lines: 

          Mustaf.’ilun Fa.’ilun Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun
          Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun.

This complete form, however, is not in use amongst Arab poets.  If by the Zuhaf Khabn, here acting as ’Illah, the Alif in the final Fa’ilun is suppressed, changing it into Fa’ilun (U U -), it becomes the first ’Aruz, called makhbunah, of the Basit, the first Zarb of which is obtained by submitting the final Fa’ilun of the second line to the same process.  A second Zarb results, if in Fa’ilun the final n of the ’Watad ’ilun is cut off and the preceding l made quiescent by the ‘Illah Kat’ thus giving Fa’il and by substitution Fa’lun (- -).  Thus the formula becomes:—­

Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun
Mustaf’ilun Fa’ilun Mustaf’ilun{Fa’ilun
{Fa’lun

As in the Hashw, i.e. the first three feet of each line, the Khabn can likewise be applied to the medial Fa’ilun, and for Mustaf’ilun the poetical licences, explained above, may be introduced, this first ’Aruz or Class of the Basit with its two Zarb or subdivisions will be represented by the scheme

U U     | U     | U U     |
— — U — | — U — | — — U U | U U —

U U | U { U U —
— — U — | — U — { — —

that is to say in the first subdivision of this form of the Basit both lines of each couplet end with an Anapaest and every second line of the other subdivision terminates in a Spondee.

The Basit has four more A’ariz, three called majzuah, because each line is shortened by a Juz or foot, one called mashturah (halved), because the number of feet is reduced from four to two, and we may here notice that the former kind of lessening the number of feet is frequent with the hexametrical circles (B.  C. D.), while the latter kind can naturally only occur in those circles whose couplet forms an octameter