The Story of Ahikar

[Music] the story of ahikar [Music] on the outskirts of modern day mosul Iraq lie the remains of Nineveh an ancient city first settled as much as 8 000 years ago it was a trading center and capital city for many kingdoms and Empires among the highest of its economic political and cultural Peaks was during the neo-assyrian Empire when Nineveh was rebuilt by the son of Sargon II Sena cherub he chose this city already ancient in his day for his seat of power what he and his city planners and laborers built was a Marvel of canals and Gardens and temples many to Ishtar the name of the city itself May mean House of Ishtar the palace which sanicharab declared to be without equal was hundreds of meters in length featuring bronze columns atop bronze lions and Bulls Each of which weighed many tons the legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon may have actually been located in Nineveh where archaeological evidence of similar structures exists and here according to a popular myth from around 2600 years ago is where the perhaps fictional perhaps real figure of ahikar served as Chancellor to sanicharab and his son Sr Hadden his Parables of wisdom and Prudence are found as far away as elephantine Egypt on papyri from the 5th Century BCE in Aramaic where his name is given as ahu akar there are ancient versions of the story in Syriac and transliterations into Armenian Aramaic and ottoman Turkish in the tail the wise Chancellor of sanicharab is sad because he remains childless encouraged by the gods to adopt his sister's infant boy nadan he raises the child as his own as ahikar ages nadan grows to be an ungrateful and conniving young man looking to unseat and replace his uncle finally after suffering much at the hands of nadan ahikar prevents his nephew from destroying the kingdom outright none of the earliest versions of the story of ahikar have survived with a clear conclusion later versions tack on endings where nadan is executed by the king or chastise extensively by ahikar in some the guilty nephew dies heartbroken or takes his own life the story of ahikar chapter one ahikar grand vizier of Assyria has 60 wives but is fated to have no son therefore he adopts his nephew he crams him full of wisdom and knowledge more than of bread and water the story of ahikar the wise vizier of senator of the king and of nadan sister's son to ahikar the sage there was a vizier in the days of King senator of son of sarhadam King of Assyria and Nineveh a wise man named ahikar and he was vizier of the king senator he had a fine fortune and much goods and he was skillful wise a philosopher in knowledge in opinion and in government and he had married 60 women and had built a castle for each of them but with it all he had no child by any of these women who might be his heir and he was very sad on account of this and one day he assembled the astrologers and the Learned men and the Wizards and explained to them his condition and the matter of his barrenness and they said to him go sacrifice to the gods and beseech them that perchance they may provide thee with a boy and he did as they told him and offered sacrifices to the idols and besought them and implored them with requests and entreaty and they answered him not one word and he went away sorrowful and dejected departing with a pain at his heart and he returned and implored the most high God and believed beseeching him with a burning in his heart saying almost high God o creator of the heavens and of the earth o creator of all created things I beseech thee to give me a boy that I may be consoled by him that he may be present at my death that he may close my eyes and that he may bury me Then There came to him a voice saying inasmuch as thou Hast relied first of all on graven images and Hast offered sacrifices to them for this reason Thou shalt remain childless thy life long but take nadan thy sister's son and make him thy child and teach him thy learning and thy good breeding and at thy death he shall bury thee thereupon he took nadan his sister's son who was a little suckling and he handed him over to eight wet nurses that they might suckle him and bring him up and they brought him up with good food and gentle training and silken clothing and purple and crimson and he was seated upon couches of silk and when nadan grew big and walked shooting up like a Tall Cedar he taught him good manners and writing and Science and philosophy and after many days King senichereb looked at ahikar and saw that he had grown very old and moreover he said to him oh my honored friend the skillful the trustee the wise the governor my secretary my vizier my Chancellor and director verily Thou Art grown very old and waited with years and I departure from this world must be near tell me who shall have a place in my service after thee and ahikar said to him oh my Lord May thy Head live forever there is nadan my sister's son I have made him my child and I have brought him up and taught him my wisdom and my knowledge and the King said to him oh ahikar bring him to my presence that I may see him and if I find him suitable put him in thy place and thou shalt go thy way to take a rest and to live the remainder of thy life in sweet repose then ahikar went and presented nadan his sister's son and he did homage and wished him power and honor and he looked at him and admired him and rejoiced in him and said to ahikar is this thy son o ahikar I pray that God May preserve him and as thou Hast served me and my father sarhadan so may this boy of thine serve me and fulfill my undertakings my needs and my business so that I may honor him and make him powerful for thy sake and ahikar did obeisance to the king and said to him May thy Head Live O My Lord the king forever I seek from thee that thou mayst be patient with my boy nadan and forgive his mistakes that he may serve thee as it is fitting then the king swore to him that he would make him the greatest of his favorites and the most powerful of his friends and that he should be with him in All honor and respect and he kissed his hands and paid him farewell and he took nadan his sister's son with him and seated him in a parlor and set about teaching him night and day till he had crammed him with wisdom and knowledge more than with bread and water chapter 2. thus he taught him saying O my son hear my speech and follow my advice and remember what I say oh my son if thou hearest a word let it die in thy heart and reveal it not to another lest it become a live coal and burn thy tongue and cause a pain in thy body and thou gain a reproach and are shamed before God and man oh my son if thou Hast heard a report spread it not and if thou Hast seen something tell it not o my son make thy eloquence easy to The Listener and be not Hasty to return an answer oh my son when thou Hast heard anything hide it not o my son loose not a sealed not nor untie it and seal not a loosened not oh my son covet not outward Beauty for it wanes and passes away but an honorable remembrance lasts for I oh my son let not a silly woman deceive thee with her speech lest thou die the most miserable of deaths and she entangle thee in the net till Thou Art ensnared o my son desire not a woman bedisened with dress and with ointments who is Despicable and silly in her soul woe to thee if thou bestow on her anything that is thine or commit to her what is in thine hand and she enticed thee into sin and God be wroth with thee know my son be not like the almond tree for it brings forth leaves before all the trees and edible fruit after them all but be like the Mulberry Tree which brings forth edible fruit before all the trees and leaves after them all my son Bend thy head low down and soften thy voice and be courteous and walk in the straight path and be not foolish and raise not thy voice when thou laughest for if it were by a loud voice that a house was built the ass would build many houses every day and if it were by Dent of strength that the plow were driven the plow would never be removed from under the shoulders of the camels o my son the removing of stones with a wise man is better than the drinking of wine with a sorry man oh my son pour out thy wine on the tombs of the just and drink not with ignorant contemptible people oh my son cleave to wise men who fear God and be like them and go not near the ignorant lest thou become like him and learn his ways oh my son when thou Hast got thee a comrade or a friend try him and afterwards make him a comrade and a friend and do not praise him without a trial and do not spoil thy speech with a man who lacks wisdom o my son while a shoe stays on thy foot walk with it on the thorns and make a road for thy son and for thy household and thy children and make thy ship taut before she goes on the sea and its waves and sinks and cannot be saved oh my son if the rich man eat a snake they say it is by his wisdom and if a poor man eat it the people say from his hunger though my son be content with thy daily bread and thy goods and covet not what is another's oh my son be not neighbor to the fool and eat not bread with him and rejoice not in the calamities of thy neighbors if thine enemy wrong thee show him kindness oh my son a man who fears God do thou fear him and honor him oh my son the ignorant man falls and stumbles and the wise man even if he stumbles he is not shaken and even if he falls he gets up quickly and if he is sick he can take care of his life but as for the ignorant stupid man for his disease there is no drug oh my son if a man approached thee who is inferior to thyself go forward to meet him and remain standing and if he cannot recompense thee his Lord will recompense thee for him oh my son spare not to beat thy son for the drubbing of thy son is like manure to the garden and like tying the mouth of a purse and like the tethering of beasts and like the bolting of the door o my son restrain thy son from wickedness and teach him manners before he Rebels against thee and brings thee into contempt amongst the people and thou hang thy head in the streets and the assemblies and thou be punished for the evil of his Wicked Deeds oh my son get the a fat Ox with a foreskin and an ass great with its hoofs and get not an ox with large horns nor make friends with a tricky man nor get a quarrelsome slave nor a thievish handmaid for everything which thou committest to them they will ruin oh my son let not thy parents curse thee and the Lord be pleased with them for it hath been said he who despiseth his father or his mother let him die the death I mean the death of sin and he who honoreth his parents shall prolong his days and his life and shall see all that is good oh my son walk not on the road without weapons for thou knowest not when the foe may meet thee so that thou mayst be ready for him oh my son be not like a bear leafless tree that doth not grow but be like a tree covered with its leaves and its bows for the man who has neither wife nor children is disgraced in the world and is hated by them like a leafless and fruitless tree o my son be like a fruitful Tree on the roadside whose fruit is eaten by all who pass by and the beasts of the desert rest under its shade and eat of its leaves o my son every sheep that wanders from its path and its companions becomes food for the wolf oh my son say not my Lord is a fool and I am wise and relate not the speech of ignorance and Folly lest thou be despised by him oh my son be not one of those servants to whom their Lords say get away from us but be one of those to whom they say approach and come near to us o my son caress not thy slave in the presence of His companion for thou knowest not which of them shall be of most value to thee in the end o my son be not afraid of thy Lord who created thee lest he be silent to thee no my son make thy speech fair and sweeten thy tongue and permit not thy companion to tread on thy foot lest he tread at another time on thy breast oh my son if thou beat a wise man with a Word of Wisdom it will lurk in his breast like a subtle sense of shame but if thou drub the ignorant with a stick he will neither understand nor hear oh my son if thou send a wise man for thy Deeds do not give him many orders for he will do thy business as thou desirest and if thou send a fool do not order him but go thyself and do thy business for if thou order him he will not do what thou desirest if they send thee on business hasten to fulfill it quickly o my son make not an enemy of a man stronger than thyself for he will take thy measure and his revenge on thee on my son make trial of thy son and of thy servant before thou committest thy belongings to them lest they make away with them for He Who hath a full hand is called wise even if he be stupid and ignorant and he who hath an empty hand is called poor ignorant even if he be the prince of sages oh my son I have eaten a Collison and swallowed aloes and I have found nothing more bitter than poverty and scarcity oh my son teach thy son frugality and hunger that he may do well in the management of his household of my son teach not to the ignorant the language of wise men for it will be burdensome to him oh my son display not thy condition to thy friend lest thou be despised by him oh my son the blindness of the heart is more Grievous than the blindness of the eyes for the blindness of the eyes may be guided little by little but the blindness of the heart is not guided and it leaves the straight path and goes in a crooked way oh my son The Stumbling of a man with his foot is better than the stumbling of a man with his tongue oh my son a friend who is near is better than a more excellent brother who is far away oh my son Beauty Fades but learning lasts and the world wanes and becomes vain but a good name neither becomes vain nor wanes oh my son the man who hath no rest his death were better than his life and the sound of weeping is better than the sound of singing for sorrow and weeping if the fear of God be in them are better than the sound of singing and rejoicing oh my child the thigh of a frog in thy hand is better than a goose in the pot of thy neighbor and a sheep near thee is better than an ox far away and a sparrow in thy hand is better than a thousand sparrows flying and poverty which gathers is better than the scattering of much provision and a living Fox is better than a dead lion and a pound of wool is better than a pound of wealth I mean of gold and silver fourth the gold and the silver are hidden and covered up in the earth and are not seen But the wool stays in the markets and it is seen and it is a beauty to him who wears it oh my son a small fortune is better than a scattered Fortune o my son a living dog is better than a dead poor man o my son a poor man who does right is better than a rich man who is dead in sins oh my son keep a word in thy heart and it shall be much to thee and beware lest thou reveal the secret of thy friend oh my son let not a word issue from thy mouth till thou Hast taken counsel with thy heart and stand not betwixt persons quarreling because from a bad word there comes a quarrel and from a quarrel there comes a war and from war there comes fighting and thou Wilt be forced to Bear witness but run from fence and rest thyself oh my son withstand not a man stronger than thyself but get thee a patient spirit and endurance and an upright conduct for there is nothing more excellent than that oh my son hate not thy first friend for the second one may not last oh my son visit the poor in his Affliction and speak of him in the Sultan's presence and do thy diligence to save him from the mouth of the Lion oh my son Rejoice not in the death of thine enemy for after a little while Thou shalt be his neighbor and him who mocks thee do thou respect and honor and be beforehand with him in greeting oh my son if water would stand still in heaven and a black crow become white and myrrh grow sweet as honey then ignorant men and fools might understand and become wise oh my son if thou desire to be wise restrain thy tongue from lying and thy hand from stealing and thine eyes from beholding Evil then thou Wilt be called wise oh my son let the wise man beat thee with a rod but let not the fool anoint thee with sweet Salve be humble in thy Youth and thou shalt be honored in thine old age oh my son withstand not a man in the days of his power nor a river in the days of its flood o my son be not Hasty in the wedding of a wife for if it turns out well she will say my Lord make provision for me and if it turns out ill she will rate at him who was the cause of it oh my son whoever is elegant in his dress he is the same in his speech and he who has a mean appearance in his dress he also is the same in his speech oh my son if thou Hast committed a theft make it known to the sultan and give him a share of it that thou mayest be delivered from him for otherwise thou Wilt endure bitterness o my son make a friend of the man whose hand is satisfied and filled and make no friend of the man whose hand is closed and hungry there are four things in which neither the king nor his army can be secure oppression by the vizier and bad government and perversion of the will and tyranny over the subject and four things which cannot be hidden The Prudent the foolish the rich and the poor chapter 3. thus spake ahikar and when he had finished these injunctions and Proverbs to nadan his sister's son he imagined that he would keep them all and he knew not that instead of that he was displaying to him weariness and contempt and mockery thereafter ahikar sat still in his house and delivered over to nadan all his goods and the slaves and the handmaidens and the horses and the cattle and everything else that he had possessed and gained and the power of bidding and of forbidding remained in the hand of nadan and ahikar sat at rest in his house and every now and then ahikar went and paid his respects to the king and returned home now when nadan perceived that the power of bidding and of forbidding was in his own hand he despised the position of ahikar and scoffed at him and set about blaming him whenever he appeared saying my uncle akikar is in his dotage and he knows nothing now and he began to beat the slaves in the handmaidens and to sell the horses and the camels and be spendthrift with all that his uncle ahikar had owned and when ahikar saw that he had no compassion on his servants nor on his household he arose and chased him from his house and sent to inform the king that he had scattered his possessions and his provision and the King arose and called nadan and said to him whilst ahikar remains in health no one shall rule over his Goods nor over his household nor over his possessions and the Hand of nadan was lifted off from his uncle ahikar and from all his Goods and in the meantime he went neither in nor out nor did he greet him thereupon ahikar repented him of his toil with nadan his sister's son and he continued to be very sorrowful and nadan had a younger brother named benuzardan so ahikar took him to himself in place of Natan and brought him up and honored him with the utmost honor and he delivered over to him all that he possessed and made him governor of his house now when nadan perceived what had happened he was seized with envy and jealousy and he began to complain to everyone who questioned him and to mock his uncle ahikar saying my uncle has chased me from his house and has Preferred my brother to me but if the most high God give me the power I shall bring upon Him The Misfortune of being killed and nadan continued to meditate as to the stumbling block he might contrive for him and after a while nadan turned it over in his mind and wrote a letter to achish son of Shah the wise King of Persia saying thus peace and health and might and honor from sanicharab King of Assyria and Nineveh and from his vizier and his secretary ahikar unto thee o great king let there be peace between thee and me and when this letter reaches thee if thou Wilt arise and go quickly to the plain of nisrin and to Assyria and Nineveh I will deliver up the kingdom to thee without war and without battle array and he wrote also another letter in the name of ahikar to Pharaoh king of Egypt let there be peace between thee and Me O mighty king if at the time of this letter reaching thee thou Wilt arise and go to Assyria and Nineveh to the plain of nisrin I will deliver up to thee the kingdom without war and without fighting and the writing of nadan was like to the writing of his uncle ahikar then he folded the two letters and sealed them with the Seal of his uncle ahikar they were nevertheless in the king's Palace then he went and wrote a letter likewise from the King to his uncle ahikar peace and health to my vizier my secretary my Chancellor ahikar oh ahikar when this letter reaches the assemble all the soldiers who are with thee and let them be perfect in clothing and in numbers and bring them to me on the fifth day in the plain of nisrin and when thou shalt see me there coming towards the haste and make the Army move against me as an enemy who would fight with me for I have with me the ambassadors of pharaoh king of Egypt that they may see the strength of our army and may fear us for they are our enemies hate us then he sealed the letter and sent it to ahikar by one of the king's servants and he took the other letter which he had written and spread it before the king and read it to him and showed him the seal and when the king heard what was in the letter he was perplexed with a great perplexity and was wroth with a great and fierce wrath and said ah I have shown my wisdom what have I done to ahikar that he has written these letters to my enemies is this my recompense from him for my benefits to him and nadan said to him be not grieved O King nor be Roth but let us go to the plane of nisrin and see if the tale be true or not then nadan arose on the fifth day and took the king and the soldiers and the vizier and they went to the desert to the plain of nisarin and the King looked and lo akhikar and the Army were set in a ray and when ahikar saw that the King was there he approached and signaled to the Army to move as in war and to fight in Array against the king as it had been found in the letter he not knowing what a pit nadan had dug for him and when the king saw the act of ahikar he was seized with anxiety and Terror and perplexity and was wrought with a great wrath and nadan said to him my Lord the king what this wretch has done but be not that wrath and be not grieved nor pained but go to thy house and sit on thy throne and I will bring ahikar to the bound and chained with chains and I will chase away thine enemy from thee without toil and the King returned to his throne being provoked about ahikar and did nothing concerning him and nadan went to ahikara and said to him my uncle the king verily rejoiceth in thee with great joy and thanks thee for having done what he commanded thee and now he hath sent me to thee that thou mayest dismiss the soldiers to their duties and come thyself to him with thy hands bound behind thee and thy feet chained that the ambassadors of pharaoh may see this and that the king may be feared by them and by their King then answered akikar and said to here is to obey and he arose straight away and bound his hands behind him and chained his feet and nadan took him and went with him to the king and when ahikar entered the king's presence he did obeisance before him on the ground and wished for power and Perpetual Life To The King then said the king oh my secretary the governor of my Affairs my Chancellor the ruler of my state tell me what evil have I done to thee that thou has rewarded Me by this ugly deed deed then they showed him the letters in his writing and with his seal and when ahikar saw this his limbs trembled and his tongue was tied at once and he was unable to speak a word from fear but he hung his head toward the Earth and was Dumb and when the king saw this he felt certain that the thing was from him and he straightway rose and commanded them to kill ahikar and to strike his neck with the sword outside of the city then the Dan screamed and said oh black face what avails thee thy meditation or thy power in the doing of this deed to the king thus says the Storyteller and the name of The Swordsman was Abu samik and the King said to him o Swordsmen arise go cleave the neck of akikara the door of his house and Cast Away his head from his body a hundred cubits then ahikar knelt before the king and said let my Lord the King live forever and if thou desire to slay me let thy wish be fulfilled and I know that I am not guilty but the wicked man has to give an account of his wickedness nevertheless oh my Lord the king I beg of thee and of thy friendship permit the Swordsmen to give my body to my slaves that they may bury me and let thy slave be thy sacrifice the king arose and commanded the swordsman to do with him according to his desire and he straight away commanded his servants to take ahikar and the swordsman and go with him naked that they might slay him and when ahikar knew for certain that he was to be slain he sent to his wife and said to her come out and meet me and let there be with thee a thousand young virgins and dress them in gowns of purple and silk that they may weep for me for my death and prepare a table for the swordsman and for his servants and mingle plenty of wine that they may drink and she did all that he commanded her and she was very wise clever and prudent and she United all possible courtesy and learning and when the army of the king and the Swordsmen arrived they found the table set in order and the wine and the luxurious beings and they began eating and drinking till they were gorged and drunken then ahikar took the swordsman aside apart from the company and said o Abu samik thus thou not know that when sarhadam the king the father of sanicharab wanted to kill thee I took thee and hid thee in a certain place till the king's anger subsided and he asked for thee and when I brought thee into his presence he rejoiced in thee and now remember the kindness I did thee and I know that the king will repent about me and will be wrath with a great wrath about my execution for I am not guilty and it shall be when thou shalt present me before him in his Palace Thou shalt meet with great good fortune and know that nadan my sister son has deceived me and has done this bad deed to me and the King will repent of having slain me and now I have a seller in the garden of my house and no one knows of it hide me in it with the knowledge of my wife and I have a slave in prison who deserves to be killed bring him out and dress him in my clothes and command the servants when they are drunk to slay him they will not know who it is they are killing and Cast Away his head 100 cubits from his body and give his body to my slaves that they may bury it and thou shalt have laid up a great treasure with me and then The Swordsman did as ahikar had commanded him and he went to the king and said to him made I had lived forever then ahikar's wife let down to him in the hiding place every week what sufficed for him and no one knew of it but herself and the story was reported and repeated and spread abroad in every place of how ahikar the sage had been slain and was dead and all the people of the city mourned for him and they wept and said alas for the O ahikar and for thy learning and thy courtesy how sad about thee and about thy knowledge where can another light V be found and where can there be a man so intelligent so learned so skilled in ruling as to resemble thee that he may fill thy place but the King was repenting about ahikar and his repentance availed him not then he called for nadan and said to him go and take thy friends with thee and make a Mourning and a weeping for thy uncle akikar and lament for him as the customers doing honor to his memory but when nadan the foolish the ignorant the hard-hearted went to the house of his uncle he neither wept nor sorrowed nor wailed but assembled heartless and dissolute people and set about eating and drinking and nadan began to seize the maidservants and the slaves belonging to ahikar and bound them and tortured them and rubbed them with a sword rubbing and he did not respect the wife of his uncle she who had brought him up like her own boy but wanted her to fall into sin with him but ahikar had been cast into the hiding place and he heard the Weeping of his slaves and his neighbors and he praised the most high God the merciful one and gave thanks and he always prayed and besought the most high God then The Swordsman came from time to time to ahikar whilst he was in the midst of the hiding place and ahikar came and entreated him and he comforted him and wished his Deliverance and when the story was reported in other countries that ahikar the sage had been slain all the kings were grieved and despised King senacharib and they lamented over ahikar the solver of riddles chapter 4. and when the king of Egypt had made sure that ahikar was slain he arose straightway and wrote a letter to King sanicharab reminding him in it of the peace and the health and the might and the honor which we wish specially for thee my beloved brother King Cena cherib I have been Desiring to build a castle between the Heaven and the Earth and I want thee to send me a wise clever man from thyself to build it for me and to answer me all my questions and that I may have the taxes and the custom duties of Assyria for three years then he sealed the letter and sent it to Senator cherub he took it and read it and gave it to his viziers and to the Nobles of his kingdom and they were perplexed and ashamed and he was Wrath with a great wrath and was puzzled about how he should act then he assembled the old men and the Learned men and the wise men and the philosophers and the diviners and the astrologers and everyone who was in his country and read them the letter and said to them who amongst you will go to Pharaoh king of Egypt and answer him his questions and they said to him oh our Lord the king know thou that there is none in thy kingdom who is acquainted with these questions except and secretary but as for us we have no skill in this unless it being nadan his sister son for he taught him all his wisdom and learning and knowledge call him to thee perchance he may untie this hard not then the king called nadan and said to him look at this letter and understand what is in it and when nadan read it he said oh my Lord who is able to build a castle between the Heaven and the Earth and when the king heard the speech of nadan he sorrowed with a great and sore sorrow and stepped down from his throne and sat in the ashes and began to weep and wail over ahikar saying oh my grief oh ahikar who did know the secrets and The Riddles woe is me for the oahi car o teacher of my country and ruler of my kingdom where shall I find thy like oh ahika o teacher of my country where shall I turn for thee woe is me for thee how did I destroy thee and I listened to the talk of a stupid ignorant boy without knowledge without religion without Manliness ah and again ah for myself who can give thee to me just for once or bring me word that ahika is alive and I would give him the half of my kingdom went is this to me uh that I might see thee just for once that I might take my fill of gazing at thee and delighting in me ah oh my grief Folly to all time oh ahika how I have killed thee and I tarried not in that case till I had seen the end of the matter and the King went on weeping night and day now when the Swordsmen saw the Wrath of the king and his sorrow for ahikar his heart was softened toward him and he approached into his presence and said to him oh my Lord command thy servants to cut off my head then said the king to him woe to the Abu samik what is thy fault and The Swordsman said unto him oh my master every slave who acts contrary to the word of his master is killed and I have acted contrary to thy command then the king said unto him woe unto thee yo Abu samik in what has thou acted contrary to my command and The Swordsman said unto him oh my Lord thou didst command me to kill ahikah and I knew that how would repent he concerning him and that he had been wronged and I hid him in a certain place and I killed one of his slaves and he is now safe in the cistern and if thou command me I will bring him to thee and the King said unto him woe to thee o Abu samik thou Hast mocked me and I and I Lord and The Swordsman said unto him nay but by the life of thy head O My Lord ahikar safe and alive and when the king heard that saying he felt sure of the matter and his head swam and he fainted from Joy and he commanded them to bring ahikar and he said to the Swordsmen oh trust his servant If thy speech be true I would think enrich thee and exalt thy dignity above that of all thy friends and the Swordsmen went along rejoicing till he came to akikar's house and he opened the door of the hiding place and went down and found ahikar sitting praising God and thanking him and he shouted to him saying oh ahikar I bring the greatest of joy and happiness and delight and ahikar said to him what is the news of Abu samik and he told him all about Pharaoh from the beginning to the end then he took him and went to the king and when the king looked at him he saw him in a state of want and that his hair had grown long like the wild beasts and his nails like the claws of an eagle and that his body was dirty with dust and the color of his face had changed and fated and was now like ashes and when the king saw him he sorrowed over him and Rose at once and embraced him and kissed him and wept over him and said praise be to God who hath brought thee back to me then he consoled him and comforted him and he stripped off his robe and put it on the swordsman and was very gracious to him and gave him great wealth and made ahikar rest then said ahikar to the king let my Lord the King live forever these be the Deeds of the children of the world I have reared me a palm tree that I might lean on it and it Bend sideways and threw me down but oh my Lord since I have appeared before thee let not care oppress thee and the King said to him blessed be God who shall be mercy and knew that thou was wronged and saved thee and delivered thee from being slain I'd go to the warm bath and shave thy head and cut thy nails and change thy clothes and amuse thyself for the space of 40 days that thou mayst do good to thyself and improve thy condition and the color of thy face may come back to thee then the king stripped off his costly robe and put it on ahikar and ahikar thanked God and did obeisance to the king and departed to his dwelling glad and happy praising the most high God and the people of his household rejoiced with him and his friends and everyone who heard that he was alive rejoiced also chapter 5. and he did as the king commanded him and took a rest for 40 days then he dressed himself in his gayest dress and went riding to the king with his slaves behind him and before him rejoicing and delighted but when nadan his sister-son perceived what was happening fear took hold of him and Terror and he was perplexed not knowing what to do and when ahikar saw it he entered into the king's presence and greeted him and he returned the greeting and made him sit down at his side saying to him oh my darling ahikar look at these letters which the king of Egypt sent to us after he had heard the thou bust slain they have provoked us and overcome us and many of the people of our country have fled to Egypt for fear of the taxes that the king of Egypt has sent to demand from us then ahikar took the letter and read it and understood all its contents then he said to the king binatra my Lord I will go to Egypt and I will return the answers to pharaoh and I will display this letter to him and I will reply to him about the taxes and I will send back all those who have run away and I will put thy enemies to shame with the help of the most high God and for the happiness of thy kingdom and when the king heard this speech from ahikar he rejoiced with a great joy and his heart was expanded and he showed him a favor and ahikar said to the King Grant me a delay of 40 days that I may consider this question and manage it and the King permitted this and ahikar went to his dwelling and he commanded the Huntsman to capture two young eaglets for him and they captured them and brought them to him and he commanded the Weavers of ropes to weave two cables of cotton for him each of them two thousand cubits long and he had the Carpenters brought and ordered them to make two great boxes and they did this then he took two little Lads and spent every day sacrificing lambs and feeding the Eagles and the boys and making the boys ride on the backs of the Eagles and he bound them with a firm knot and tied the cable to the feet of the Eagles and let them soar upwards little by little every day to a distance of 10 cubits till they grew accustomed and were educated to it and they Rose all the length of the Rope till they reached the sky the boys being on their backs then he drew them to himself and when ahikar saw that his desire was fulfilled he charged the boys that when they were born Aloft to the sky they were to shout saying bring us clay and stone that we may build a castle for king Pharaoh for we are Idol and ahikar was never done training them and exercising them till they had reached the utmost possible point of skill then leaving them he went to the king and said to him oh my Lord the work is finished according to thy desire arise with me that I may show Thee the Wonder so the Kings sprang up and sat with ahikar and went to a wide place and sent to bring the Eagles and the boys and akikar tied them and let them off into the air all the length of the ropes and they began to shout as he had taught them then he drew them to himself and put them in their places and the king and those who were with him wondered with a great wonder and the King kissed ahikar between his eyes and said to him go in peace o my beloved oh pride of my kingdom to Egypt and answer the questions of pharaoh and overcome him by the strength of the most high God then he paid him farewell and took his troops and his Army and the young men and the Eagles and went toward the dwellings of Egypt and when he had arrived he turned toward the country of the king and when the people of Egypt knew that senacharib had sent a man of his privy counsel to talk with pharaoh and to answer his questions They Carried the news to king Pharaoh and he sent a party of his privy counselors to bring him before him and he came and entered into the presence of pharaoh and did obeisance to him as it is fitting to do to Kings and he said to him oh my Lord the king senator of the king hails thee with abundance of peace and might and honor and he has sent me who am one of his slaves that I may answer thee thy questions and may fulfill all thy desire for thou Hast sent him to seek from my Lord the king a man who will build thee a castle between the Heaven and the Earth and I by the help of the most high God and thy Noble favor and the power of my Lord the king will build it for thee as thou desirest but oh my Lord the king what thou Hast said in it about the taxes of Egypt for three years now the stability of a kingdom is strict Justice and if thou witnessed and my hand hath no skill in replying to the then my Lord the king will send thee the taxes which thou Hast mentioned and if I shall have answered thee in thy questions it shall remain for thee to send whatever thou Hast mentioned to my Lord the king and when Pharaoh heard that speech he wondered and was perplexed by the freedom of his tongue and the pleasantness of his speech and king Pharaoh said to him oh man what is thy name and he said thy servant is abikam and I a little ant of the ants of King senichereb and Pharaoh said to him had thy Lord no one of higher dignity than thee that he has sent me a little ant to reply to me and to converse with me and ahikar said to him oh my Lord the king I would to God most high that I may fulfill what is on thy mind for God is with the weak that he may confound the strong then Pharaoh commanded that they should prepare a dwelling for ABI calm and Supply him with provener meat and drink and all that he needed and when it was finished three days afterwards Pharaoh clothed himself in purple and red and sat on his throne and all his viziers and the magnates of his kingdom were standing with their hands crossed their feet close together and their heads bowed and Pharaoh sent to fetch abhikam and when he was presented to him he did obeisance before him and kissed the ground in front of him and king Pharaoh said to him oh abhikam whom am I like and the Nobles of my kingdom to whom are they like and ahika said to him oh my Lord the king Thou Art like the idol Bell and The Nobles of thy kingdom are like his servants he said to him go and come back hither tomorrow so ahikar went as king Pharaoh had commanded him and on the morrow ahikar went into the presence of pharaoh and did obeyes and stood before the king and Pharaoh was dressed in a red color and the nobles were dressed in white and Pharaoh said to him oh abhikam whom am I like and the Nobles of my kingdom to whom are they like and abhikam said to him oh my Lord Thou Art like the sun and thy servants are like its beams and Pharaoh said to him go to thy dwelling and come hither tomorrow then Pharaoh commanded his court to wear Pure White and Pharaoh was dressed like them and sat upon his throne and he commanded them to fetch ahikar and he entered and sat down before him and Pharaoh said to him oh abhikam whom am I like and my Nobles to whom are they like and abikam said to him oh my Lord Thou Art like the moon and thy Nobles are like the planets and the Stars and Pharaoh said to him go and tomorrow be thou hear then Pharaoh commanded his servants to wear Robes of various colors and Pharaoh wore a red velvet dress and sat on his throne and commanded them to fetch abacom and he entered and did obeyescence before him and he said awabikam whom am I like and my armies to whom are they like and he said oh my Lord Thou Art like the month of April and thy armies are like its flowers and when the king heard it he rejoiced with a great joy and said oh I've become the first time that did compare me to the idol Bell and my Nobles to his servants and the second time thou did compare me to the Sun and my Nobles to the Sunbeam and the third time thou didst compare me to the moon and my Nobles to the planets and the stars and the fourth time thou did compare me to the month of April and my Nobles to its flowers but now oh abhi come tell me thy Lord King sennachereb whom is he like and his Nobles to whom are they like shouted with a loud voice and said be it far from me to make mention of my Lord the king and thou Seated on thy throne but get upon thy feet that I may tell thee whom my Lord the king is like and to whom his Nobles are alike and Pharaoh was perplexed by the freedom of his tongue and his boldness in answering then Pharaoh arose from his throne and stood before ahikar and said to him tell me now that I may perceive whom thy Lord the king is like and his Nobles to whom they are like and ahikar said to him my Lord is the god of heaven and his Nobles are the Lightnings and the Thunder and when he Wills the winds blow and the rain falls and He commands the Thunder and it lightens and Reigns and he holds the sun and it gives not its light and the moon and the stars and they Circle not and He commands The Tempest and it blows and the rain falls and it tramples on April and destroys its flowers and its houses and when Pharaoh heard this speech he was greatly perplexed and was wroth with a great wrath and said to him oh man tell me the truth and let me know who that really are and he told him the truth I am ahikar the Scribe greatest of the privy councilors of King Senator cherib and I am his vizier and the governor of his kingdom and his Chancellor and he said to him thou Hast told the truth in this saying but we have heard of ahika that King sanicharium had slain him yet seemed to be alive and well and ahikara said to him yes so it was but praise be to God who knoweth what is hidden for my Lord the king commanded me to be killed and he believed the word of profligate men but the Lord delivered me and blessed is he who trusteth in him and Pharaoh said to ahikar go and tomorrow be thou here and tell me a word that I have never heard from my Nobles nor from the people of my kingdom and my country chapter 6. and ahikar went to his dwelling and wrote a letter saying it on this wise from sanicharab King of Assyria and Nineveh to Pharaoh king of Egypt peace be to thee o my brother and what we make known to thee by this is that a brother has need of his brother and kings of each other and My Hope from thee is that thou wouldst lend me 900 talents of gold for I need it for the ritualing of some of the soldiers that I may spend it upon them and after a little while I will send it the then he folded the letter and presented it on the morrow to pharaoh and when he saw it he was perplexed and said to him verily I have never heard anything like this language from anyone then ahikar said to him truly this is a debt which thou owest to my Lord the king and Pharaoh accepted this saying it is the like of thee who are honest in the service of Kings blessed be God who hath made thee perfect in wisdom and hath adorned thee with philosophy and knowledge and now o ahikar there remains what we desire from thee that thou should build us a castle Between Heaven and Earth then said ahikar to here is to obey I will build the a castle according to thy wish and choice but O My Lord prepare us lime and stone and clay and workmen and I have skilled Builders who will build for thee as thou desirest and the King prepared all that for him and they went to a wide place and ahikar and his boys came to it and he took the Eagles and the young men with him and the king and all his Nobles went and the whole city assembled that they might see what ahikar would do then ahikar let the Eagles out of the boxes and tied the young men on their backs and tied the ropes to the Eagle's feet and let them go in the air and they soared upwards till they remained Between Heaven and Earth and the boys began to shout saying bring bricks bring clay that we may build the King's Castle for we are standing idle and the crowd were astonished and perplexed and they wandered and the King and his Nobles wandered and ahikar and his servants began to beat the workmen and they shouted for the king's troops saying to them bring the skilled workmen what they want and do not hinder them from their work and the King said to him Thou Art mad who can bring anything up to that distance and ahikar said to him oh my Lord how should we build a castle in the air and if my Lord the king were here he would have built several castles in a single day and Pharaoh said to him go oh to thy dwelling and rest for we have given up building the castle and tomorrow come to me then ahikar went to his dwelling and on the morrow he appeared before pharaoh and Pharaoh said what news is there of the horse of thy Lord for when he Nays in the country of Assyria and Nineveh and our Mayors hear his voice they cast their young and when ahikar heard this speech he went and took a cat and bound her and began to flog her with a violent flogging till the Egyptians heard it and they went and told the king about it and Pharaoh sent to fetch ahikar and said to him oh ahika wherefore Dost thou flogged thus and beat that dumb beast and ahikar said to him oh my Lord the king verily she has done an ugly deed to me and has deserved this drubbing and flogging for my Lord King senichereb had given me a fine and he had a strong true voice and knew the hours of the day and the night and the cat got up this very night and cut off its head and went away and because of this deed I have treated her to this drubbing and Pharaoh said to him oh ahikar I see from all this that thou art growing old and art in thy dotage for between Egypt and Nineveh there are 68 parasangs and how did she go this very night and cut off the head of thy and come back and ahikar said to him oh my Lord if there were such a distance between Egypt and Nineveh how could thy Mayors hear when my Lord the king's horse Nays and cast their young and how could the voice of the horse reach to Egypt and when Pharaoh heard he knew that ahikar had answered his questions and Pharaoh said oh ahika I wanted to make me ropes of the sea sand and ahikar said to him oh my Lord the king order them to bring me a rope out of the treasury that I may make one like it then ahikar went to the back of the house and board holes in the rough shore of the sea and took a handful of sand in his hand sea sand and when the sun rose and penetrated into the holes he spread the sand in the sun till it became as if woven like ropes and ahikar said command thy servants to take these ropes and whenever thou desirest it I will weave thee some like them and Pharaoh said oh ahika we have a millstone here and it has been broken and I want thee to sew it up then ahikar looked at it and found another Stone and he said to Pharaoh oh my Lord I am a foreigner and I have no tool for sowing but I want thee to command thy faithful shoemakers to cut alls from this stone that I may sow that Millstone then pharaoh and all his Nobles laughed and he said blessed be the most high God who gave thee this wit and knowledge and when Pharaoh saw that ahikar had overcome him and returned him his answers he had once became excited and commanded them to collect for him three years taxes and to bring them to ahikar and he stripped off his robes and put them upon ahikar and his soldiers and his servants and gave him the expenses of his journey and he said to him go In Peace So strength of his Lord and pride of his doctors have any of The Sultans die like give my greetings to thy Lord King senichereb and say to him now we have sent him gifts for kings are content with little then ahikara Rose and kissed King Pharaoh's hands and kissed the ground in front of him and wished him strength and continuance and abundance in his Treasury and said to him o my Lord I desire from thee that not one of our countrymen May remain in Egypt and Pharaoh arose and sent Heralds to Proclaim in the streets of Egypt that not one of the people of Assyria or Nineveh should remain in the land of Egypt but that they should go with ahikar then ahikar went and took leave of king Pharaoh and journeyed seeking the lands of Assyria and Nineveh and he had some treasures and a great deal of wealth and when the news reached King Senator cherub that ahikar was coming he went out to meet him and rejoiced over him exceedingly with great joy and embraced him and kissed him and said to him welcome home oh Kinsman my brother ahikar the strength of my kingdom and pride of my realm ask what thou Arts have from me even if thou desirest the half of my kingdom and of my possessions then said ahikar unto him oh my Lord the King live forever show favor O My Lord the king to Abu samik in my stead for my life was in the hands of God and in his then said Senator cherub the king honor be to thee o my beloved ahikar I will make the station of Abu samik The Swordsman higher than all my privy counselors and my favorites then the king began to ask him how he had got on with Pharaoh from his first arrival until he had come away from his presence and how he had answered all his questions and how he had received the taxes from him and the changes of Raymond and the presence and senator of the king rejoiced with a great joy and said to ahikar take what thou would Spain have of this tribute for it is all within the grasp of thy hand and ahikar said let the King live forever I desire not but the safety of my Lord the king and the continuance of his greatness oh my Lord what can I do with wealth and it's like but if thou Wilt show me favor give me nadan my sister's son that I may recompense him for what he has done to me and Grant me his blood and hold me Guiltless of it and senator of the king said take him I have given him to thee and ahikar took nadan his sister's son and bound his hands with chains of iron and took him to his dwelling put a heavy Fetter on his feet and tied it with a tight knot and after binding him thus he cast him into a dark room beside the retiring place and appointed nebu Hall as Sentinel over him and commanded him to give him a loaf of bread and a little water every day chapter 7. and whenever ahikar went in or out he scolded nadan his sister-son saying to him wisely oh nadan my boy I have done to thee all that is good and kind and thou Hast rewarded me for it with what is ugly and bad and with killing oh my son it is said in the Proverbs he who listeneth not with his ear they will make him listen with a Scruff of his neck and nadan said for what cause heart thou froth with me and ahikar said to him because I brought the up and tati and gave the honor and respect and made thee great and rear thee with the best of breeding and seated thee in my place that thou mightest be my Heir in the world and doubt it treat me with killing and it's repay me with my ruin but the Lord knew that I was wronged and he saved me From The Snare which thou had set for me for the Lord healeth the broken hearts and hindereth the envious and the haughty oh my boy thou has been to me like the Scorpion which when it strikes on brass pierces it oh my boy Thou Art like the gazelle who was eating the roots of the matter and it said to her eat of me today and take thy fill and tomorrow they will tend thy hide in my roots oh my boy thou has been to me like a man who saw his comrade naked in the chilly time of winter and he took cold water and poured it upon him oh my boy thou has been to me like a man who took a stone and threw it up to heaven to Stone his Lord with it and the stone did not hit and did not reach high enough but it became the cause of guilt and sin oh my boy if thou Hast honored me and respected me and had listened to my words thou would step in my air and would have rained over my dominions oh my son know thou that if the tail of the dog or the pig were 10 cubits long it would not approach to the worth of the horses even if it were like Silk oh my boy I thought that that would have been my air at my death and thou through thy envy and thy insolence did desire to kill me but the Lord delivered me from thy cunning no my son thou Hast Bend to me like a trap which was set up on the dunghill and there came a sparrow and found the Trap set up and the sparrow said to the Trap what Dost thou hear said the Trap I am praying here to God and the Lark asked it also what is the piece of wood that thou holdest said the Trap and that is a Young Oak Tree on which I lean at the time of my prayer said the Lark and what is that thing in my mouth said the Trap that is bread and rituals which I carry for all the hungry and the poor who come near to me said the Lark now then may I come forward indeed for I am hungry and the trap said to him come forward and the Lark approached that it might eat but the traps sprang up and seized the lock by its neck and the lock answered and said to the Trap if that is type bread for the hungry God except if nothing arms and thy kind deeds and if that is thy pasting and thy prayers God accepteth from thee neither thy fast nor thy prayer and God will not perfect what is good concerning the oh my boy thou has been to me as a lion who made friends with an ass an ass kept walking before the lion for a time and one day the lion sprang upon the ass and ate it up oh my boy thou has been to me like a weevil in the wheat for it does no good to anything but spoils the wheat and gnaws it oh my boy thou has been like a man who sowed 10 measures of Wheat and when it was Harvest time he arose and reaped it and garnered it and threshed it and toiled over it to the very utmost and it turned out to be 10 measures and its Master said to it oh that lazy thing thou Hast not grown and thou has not shrunk oh my boy thou has been to me like the Partridge that has been thrown into the net and she could not save herself but she called out to the partridges that she might cast them with herself into the net o my son thou has been to me like the dog that was cold and it went into The Potter's House to get warm and when it had got warm it began to bark at them and they chased it out and beat it that it might not bite them oh my son thou has been to me like the pig who went into the hot bath with people of quality and when it came out of the hot bath it saw a filthy hole and it went down and wallowed in it oh my son thou Hast been to me like the goat which joined its comrades on their way to the sacrifice and it was unable to save itself oh my boy the dog which is not fed from its hunting becomes food for flies oh my son the hand which does not labor and plow and which is greedy and cunning shall be cut away from its shoulder o my son the eye in which light is not seen the Ravens shall pick at it and pluck it out oh my boy thou has been to me like a tree whose branches they were cutting and it said to them if something of me were not in your hands verily you would be unable to cut me oh my boy Thou Art like the cat to whom they said leave off thieving till we make for the chain of gold and feed thee with sugar and almonds and she said I am not forgetful of The Craft of my father and my mother oh my son that was been like the serpent riding on a thorn bush when he was in the midst of a river and a wolf saw them and said Mischief upon mischief and let him who is more mischievous than they direct both of them and the serpent said to the wolf the Lambs and the goats and the Sheep which thou hasten all thy life wilt thou return them to their fathers and to their parents or no said the wolf no and the serpent said to him I think that after myself Thou Art the worst of us oh my boy I fed thee with good food and thou did not feed me with dry bread oh my boy I gave thee sugared water to drink and good syrup and thou didst not give me water from the well to drink oh my boy I taught thee and brought thee up and thou did dig a hiding place for me and did conceal me oh my boy I brought thee up with the best upbringing and train thee like a Tall Cedar and thou has Twisted and bent me oh my boy it was my hope concerning thee that thou would build me a fortified Castle that I might be concealed from my enemies in it and thou did become to me like one burying in the depth of the Earth but the Lord took pity on me and delivered me from thy cunning oh my boy I wished thee well and thou dids reward me with evil and hatefulness and now I would feign tear out thine eyes and make thee food for dogs cut out by tongue and take off the head with the edge of the sword and recompense the evil thine abominable Deeds and when nadan heard this speech from his uncle ahikar he said oh my uncle deal with me according to thy knowledge and forgive me my sins for who is there who hath sinned like me or who is there who forgives like thee accept me o my uncle now I will serve in thy house and groom thy horses and sweep up the dung of thy cattle and feed thy sheep for I am the wicked and thou art the righteous I the guilty and thou the forgiving and ahikar said to him oh my boy that was like the tree which was fruitless beside the water and its master was faint to cut it down and it said to him remove me to another place and if I do not bear fruit cut me down and its Master said to it thou being beside the water Hast not borne fruit how shalt thou bear fruit when thou art in another place oh my boy the old age of the eagle is better than the Youth of the crow oh my boy they said to the wolf keep away from the Sheep lest their dust should harm thee and the Wolf said the dregs of the sheep's milk are good for my eyes oh my boy they made the wolf go to school that he might learn to read and they said to him say a b he said lamb and goat in my belly oh my boy they set the ass down at the table and he fell and began to roll himself in the dust and one said let him roll himself for it is his nature he will not change oh my boy the saying has been confirmed which runs if thou begetst a boy call him thy son and if thou rearest a boy call him thy slave oh my boy he who doeth good shall meet with good and he who doeth evil shall meet with evil for the Lord requireth a man according to the measure of his work oh my boy what shall I say more to thee than these sayings for the Lord knoweth what is hidden and is acquainted with the Mysteries and the secrets and he will requite thee and will judge betwixt me and thee and will recompense thee according to thy desert and when nadan heard that speech from his uncle ahikar he swelled up immediately and became like a blown out bladder and his limbs swelled and his legs and his feet and his side and he was torn and his belly burst asunder and his entrails were scattered and he perished and died and his latter end was destruction and he went to hell for He Who digs a pit for his brother shall fall into it and he who sets up traps shall be caught in them this is what happened and what we found about the tale of ahikar and praise be to God forever amen and peace this Chronicle is finished with the help of God may he be exalted amen amen amen [Music] [Music] oh my God

Channel: Study of Antiquity and the Middle Ages

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Keywords: ahikar, words of ahikar, Aramaic, elephantine, Egypt, Middle East, near east, world literature, ancient history, bce, Assyrian, Tobit, jews, books of eden, ancient near east, neo-assyrian empire, ancient Egypt, ottoman empire

Id: AX9Hmh5qJ9U

Length: 77min 13sec (4633 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 16 2022