174 They asked the Lover: ‘Why wilt thou not defend thyself from the falsehoods, errors and crimes of which thou art accused?’ He answered and said: ‘I have to defend my Beloved, whom men falsely accuse; man may indeed be full of deceit and error, and is scarce worthy to be defended.’ 175 ‘Say, O Fool, why defended thou Love when it thus tries and torments thy body and thy soul?’ He answered: ‘Because it increases my worth and my happiness.’ 176 The Lover grieved and cried out on his Beloved, because He caused Love to torment him so grievously. And the Beloved made reply by increasing his trials and perils, thoughts and tears. 177 ‘Say, O Fool, why dost thou excuse the guilty?’ He answered: ‘That I may not be like those who accuse the innocent with the guilty.’ 178 The Beloved raised the understanding of the Lover that he might comprehend His greatness, and incline his memory to recall his own shortcomings, so that his will might hate them, and aspire to a love of the Beloved and His perfection. 179 The Lover sang of his Beloved and said: ‘So great is my will to love Thee, that all I hated once is now, through love of Thee, a greater happiness and joy to me than what I once loved before ever I loved Thee.’ 180 The Lover went through a city, and asked if there were none with whom he might speak of his Beloved as he wished. And they showed him a poor man who was weeping for love, and who sought a companion with whom to speak of love. 181 Thoughtful and perplexed was the Lover, as he wondered how his trials could have their source in the glory of his Beloved, who has such great felicity in Himself. And then he thought of the sun, which, though it is so high, strikes the weak eyes of us men that are here below. 182 The thoughts of the Lover were between forgetfulness of his torments and remembrance of his joys; for the joys of love drive the memory of sorrow away, and the tortures of love recall the happiness which it brings. 183 They asked the Lover: ‘Will thy Beloved ever take away thy love?’ And he answered: ‘No, not while memory has power to remember, nor understanding to comprehend the Beloved’s glory.’ 184 ‘Say, O Fool, what is the greatest comparison and similitude of all that can be made?’ He answered: ‘That between Lover and Beloved.’ They asked him: ‘For what reason?’ He replied: ‘For the greatness of their love.’ 185 They asked the Beloved: ‘Hast Thou never had pity?’ He answered: ‘If I had not had pity, my Lover had never learned to love Me, nor had I tormented him with sighs and tears, with trials and with griefs.’ 186 The Lover was in a vast forest, seeking his Beloved. He found there Truth and Falsehood, who were disputing of his Beloved, for Truth praised Him and Falsehood accused Him. And the Lover cried out to Love that he would come to the aid of Truth.