The universe is but a point in our poor round of life; the Djeihoun [Oxus] but a feeble trace of tears and blood; Hell but a spark of useless worry which we give ourselves, and Paradise an instant of repose, which here below we rarely catch. 91. A slave in dire revolt am I: where is Thy will? Black with all sin my heart: where is Thy light and Thy control? If Thou giv'st Paradise to our obedience alone [to Thy laws], it is a debt of which Thou quit'st Thyself and in such case we need Thy pity and benevolence. 92. I know not at all whether He who created me belongs to a delicious Paradise or a detestable Hell. [But I do know] that a cup of wine, a charming girl and a zither at the edge of a green field are three things which I enjoy at present, and that you will find them in the promise that is made you of a future Paradise. 93. I drink wine, and those who are opposed to it come from the left and from the right to ask me to abstain from it, because, say they, wine is an enemy of religion. But, for that very reason I would drink it, now that I hold myself an adversary of faith, because we are permitted by God to drink the blood of an enemy. 94. The light of the moon has cut the black robe of night: drink then of wine, for one finds not often moments so precious. Yes, abandon thyself to joy, for this same moon will shine over the surface of the earth a long time [after our day]. 95. Impute not to the wheel of the heavens all the good and all the bad which are in man, all the joys and sorrows which come to us by destiny; for this wheel, friend, is a thousand times more embarrassed than thou, in the path of love [divine]. 96. There is no shield which is proof against an arrow hurled by Destiny. Grandeur, money, gold all go for nothing. The more I consider the things of this world, the more I see that the only good is good, all else is nothing. 97. A heart which does not contain in itself complete abstinence [from things here below] is to be pitied, for it is at all times the prey of regret. It is only the heart free from care that can be joyous; all that exists beyond this is but a subject of torment. 98. He who has had the intelligence to sow joy in his heart has not lost a single day in sorrow; he has employed his faculties in seeking the will of God, or has procured repose for his soul by taking a cup of wine. 99. When God fashioned the clay of my body, he knew what would be the result of my acts. It is not without His orders that I have committed the sins of which I am guilty; in that case, why should I burn in hell-fire at the last day? 100.