Book Three, chapter 7

1Chapter 7

2Among the works of the Sabians is what al-Ṭabarī the astrologer mentioned concerning the attracting of the powers of the planets. He said: What I have of what I found belonging to the heads of the Sabians and the servants of the temples, concerning the drawing down of the planets and their service, is what I shall mention. They said: When you wish to converse in private with a planet or to ask of it a need, first clothe yourself with the fear of God the Exalted, and purify your heart of evil beliefs and your clothes of filth, and make your soul sincere and clear it.

3And consider the need that you are asking, to which of the seven planets it is right to ask it, and of the nature of which of the higher planets it is; then direct yourself to that higher planet of whose nature that need is, put on its garment, fumigate with its fumigation, and call upon it with its invocation, after that planet is in the terms which I shall draw up for you of the places of its sphere. For if you do that, your need will be accomplished and you will attain what you intend by your request.

4So Saturn: you ask it for needs relating to venerable elders, heads, kings, the ancients, ascetics, owners of estates, tax-farmers, holders of inheritances, stewards, agents, peasants, builders, slaves, thieves, fathers, grandfathers and great men; if you are sad, or you have an illness from black bile; and every matter that is of its nature, seek it according to what I shall draw up for you, and seek the help of Jupiter against it, for it is the one that sets right what [Saturn] corrupts.

5And sometimes a person, as he supposes, seeks a matter from a planet, and that planet asks another planet, and that matter is accomplished. So do not ask a matter except of a planet suited to it.

6And seek through Jupiter what is of his kind, from those who are of his portion, such as the people of high ranks, and whoever has precedence, and the learned, the judges, the jurists, the magistrates, the people of justice, the imams of right guidance, the people of the interpretation of dreams, the eminent, the ascetics, the sages, the kings, the caliphs, the nobles, the great, the viziers, children and younger brothers, and the seeking of a peace or of a trade: ask these of him.

7And ask of Mars the means that you want from the people of his nature, such as the cavalry captains, the commanders, the rebels, the deputies, the companions of the sultan, the champions, the soldiery, the people of dissent, those who strive in the ruin of dwellings and the rending of veils and the undertaking of bloodshed and fires all together, and the craft of iron and working with it, the men of wars, the management of beasts, the shepherds of sheep, the thieves, the highwaymen, the adversaries, the opponents, and middle brothers.

8Ask Mars also all that you want of what is of his nature, such as disease of the lower [parts], bloodletting and cupping; and seek help in this [pronoun ambiguous: against him / for it] through Venus, for she loosens what he binds and puts right what he corrupts.

9And ask of the Sun the needs that you want from the kings, the caliphs, the chiefs, the wearers of crowns, the people of might and of authority, the nobles, the emirs, the brave, the champions, those who uphold the truth and refute falsehood, the lovers of fair praise, the judges, the jurists, the sages, the philosophers, the great, the lords, the illustrious learned, the people of tranquillity, gravity and dignity, those of high ranks, fathers and elder brothers: ask needs for them and from them, such as wealth, chieftainship, governorship and what resembles them.

10And ask of Venus in the affairs of women, singing-girls, slave-girls and beardless youths, and union with them [fem.], and children, and those who love children, the lovers, the people of passion, the fornicators, the sodomites, the copulators, the tribades among women, those who play all kinds of instruments of amusement, the pipers, the singers, the womanish men, the effeminates, the hermaphrodite, the eunuchs, the slaves, the servants, the youths, the people of flattery and extravagant praise, and in short the people of pictures and of ribaldry, spouses, mothers, maternal aunts and younger sisters; and seek help over her through Mars, for she passionately enamours him and inclines to him.

11And ask of Mercury in the affairs of the scribes, the people of reckoning, the geometers, the astrologers, the orators, the eloquent, the fluent, the learned, the philosophers, the sages, the masters of kalām, the men of letters, the poets, the sons of kings, the viziers, the heads of the government offices, the officials, the collectors of revenues, the merchants, the people of the theoretical and practical crafts, the adversaries, the disputants, the slaves, the hermaphrodite, the boys, the young male slaves and young female slaves, younger brothers, the artisans, the engravers, the painters, the goldsmiths, and whatever accords with his nature.

12And ask of the Moon in the affairs of the kings, the deputies, the heirs apparent, those in charge of the land-tax, the posts and the couriers, the messengers, the travellers, those who move from place to place, the peasants, the people of cultivation, the geometers, the surveyors, the agents, the dihqāns, the sailors, those who busy themselves on the water, the common people and the mass of mankind, the magicians, the wealthy among women and the pregnant among them, the servants of kings, mothers, maternal aunts and elder sisters. And what is intended is that you not ask of a planet what is not of its nature; so know that.

13And here I am, setting out for you their natures and the particular character of their signification of existing things. The first of them, the highest of them in place and the nearest of them to the sphere of the signs, is Saturn. Its power is cold and dryness, and its substance is unfortunate and corrupting. It is foul of smell, wicked, treacherous, feared; and when it intends a thing it betrays, and so it scatters and terrifies. It signifies the works of gardens and rivers, tillage and husbandry, abundance of wealth, avarice and poverty, discord, and long, bad journeys.

14And it signifies depth of mind, rancour, cunning, deceit, flight [word uncertain], little mixing with people, and every work that is done by evil and by force; imprisonment, change, weariness, toil, weakness and corruption; truthfulness of speech, affection, steadfastness, old age, deliberateness, building, depth of mind, fear, much thought and care, experiences, anger, obstinacy, little good, griefs and sorrows, hardship and misery, death, fraud, inheritances, accusations, ancient things, long reflection, much speech, the knowledge of secrets, and the hidden depths of matters.

15When it is retrograde it signifies abasement and weakness, and it signifies bonds and persistence in matters. If it aspects a planet while it is retrograde, and that planet too is weak, it weakens it and makes its state weaker. And if it is also retrograde and a need is asked about, it signifies hardship and misery and the bearing of a heavy burden in seeking it. When it is in its own portion its evil increases; and if it has a mixture in the ascendant, it is moderate.

16Jupiter: its power is heat and moderate moisture, and its substance is fortunate. It is below Saturn in rank and height. It signifies life, animal bodies, growth, generation, increase and flourishing, justice and moderation in things, gravity, chastity, truthfulness, righteousness, trustworthiness, piety, kindness, godliness, praise and commendation, patience and forbearance, understanding and wisdom, endurance, zeal, mastery, reconciliation, honour, husbandry, victory,

17leadership, desire for wealth and its gathering, inheritances, good character, alms, generosity and giving, helping people in things, love of cultivation and of inhabited dwellings, love of mercy towards people, keeping of covenants and rendering of trusts, love of jesting and pleasantry, adornment and comeliness, joy and laughter, much speech and practised skill of tongue, delight in whoever agrees with him, much marriage, love of good and hatred of evil, and commanding what is right and forbidding what is wrong.

18Mars: its power is heat and burning dryness, and its substance is unfortunate and corrupting. It signifies corruption, ruin, dryness and drought, fires and burning, discord, bloodshed, every matter that happens suddenly, tyranny, force, grief, killing, wars, seditions, dispersal and squandering, the corruption of things, hardships, torment, beating, prison, straitness, the flight of slaves, quarrelling, rashness, obstinacy, haste, folly, foulness of tongue, little joy,

19lying, slander, little shame, travel and roaming, exile and solitude, hardships, sharpness of temper and anger, treating forbidden things as lawful, fear, little piety and faithfulness, debauchery, wickedness, swearing false oaths, evil deeds, little good, much thought about things, ugliness in coupling such as dallying with animals, fornication, the cutting off of the child in the womb and the miscarriage of the foetus,

20treachery, thieving, cunning and deception, bad neighbourliness, much weariness, injury, harshness, wickedness, highway robbery, plundering, plots, breaking through walls, opening doors, tearing down curtains and rending veils, and every work in which there is no good and no benefit.

21And the Sun: its power is heat and dryness, and its substance is mixed; it makes sound and corrupts, harms and benefits, makes fortunate and makes unfortunate. It signifies intellect, understanding, knowledge, courage, valour, inquisitiveness, strength, vehemence, contending for mastery, domination, severity of assault, injustice towards the opponent and justice towards the ally, ill-treatment of everyone who is near and beneficence to everyone who is far, much benefit and much harm, keeping of covenant, doing good to people, joy,

22completeness in purpose, much speech, quickness of reply, love of amassing wealth, good praise, majesty in the eyes of people and mixing with them, and every virtue and property that kings and chiefs need in their governance and their policies, and the working of the noble metals, the making of crowns and of the exalted implements of kings, and the assayers who refine things from the gold ore.

23And Venus: its power is cold and moisture, and its substance is fortunate. It signifies cleanliness, vanity, pride, boastfulness, jesting, love of singing, amusement, laughter, adornment, joy, gladness, dancing, piping, plucking the strings of lutes, songs, weddings, perfume and scent, composing melodies, playing at backgammon and chess, reckless violence, idleness, fornication, shamelessness, making oneself beloved to women and being at ease with them, self-adornment, generosity, liberality,

24freedom of soul, magnanimity, good character, beauty, splendour, much desire for everything, swearing false oaths, love of intoxicating drinks and the use of them, much intercourse of various kinds, such as intercourse in the anus and tribadism, love of children, inclination to justice and fairness, love of markets and being in them, passionate love, affection, acceptance, stringing crowns and their ornaments, stringing diadems, sweetness of speech, mockery, slackness, weakness of soul,

25joy in every beautiful thing into which desire enters, the making of dyes, the craft of gold, trade and the selling of perfume. And to it belongs keeping to houses of worship, holding fast to religion and devotion; and to it belong the desires that prevent the completion of wisdom.

26And Mercury is quick of change, inclining by its power and its nature to the powers of all the planets and their natures. It signifies intellect, rational speech, discourse, depth, intelligence, acuity, good learning, disputation, letters, philosophy, foreknowledge, arithmetic, surveying, geometry, the science of the stars, soothsaying, augury from birds, divination by scaring birds, omens, writing, eloquence, purity of language, sweetness of speech and its quickness, knowledge of the sciences, renown and praise on their account, and being foremost in them in all things,

27composing poetry, knowledge of books, registers and the land-tax, insight into hidden secrets, revelation to the prophets, sympathy, kindness, mercy, tranquillity, gravity, joy, ruin of wealth, trade, buying and selling, taking and giving, partnership, lawsuits, thought, scheming, cunning, deceit, craftiness, rancour, lying, depth, and that what is in his soul is not known, the use of forged documents,

28enmity, fear of enemies, quickness in actions, much changeability, dexterity of hand, working at the various crafts, skill in everything, desire for every fine work, amassing wealth and ruining it, patience, helpfulness, and refraining from evil.

29And the Moon: its power is coldness and moisture, and its substance is fortunate. It signifies the beginning of works, much thought about things, talking to oneself, soundness of opinion, eloquence, wakefulness, good fortune in livelihood, success in what is desired of things or is made or [reading uncertain: is delighted in], good dispositions and companionship, lightness of spirit, elegance, quickness of movement, and soundness the heart, much eating, little sexual intercourse, peaceableness in it, refraining from evil, desire for praise and commendation, joy and beauty, knowledge of the higher sciences, being informed, divulging secrets, marrying women, rearing the children of [other] people, and doing good to the people of his household; made beloved to people, honoured among them, of little desire for defilement, fit for every matter; and much forgetfulness, dullness, remoteness from wisdom, love of lying, slander, rancour, deceit, envy, cowardice, injustice, irritability, faintheartedness, laziness, abasement, haste, much spending and squandering.

30So if you wish to commune with one of these seven planets, do what I mention to you. And let us begin with the mention of Saturn. If you wish to stand before him, to commune with him and to draw down his spiritual power (rūḥāniyya) for the manifestation of his powers, then set right his times for that: that he be in his exaltation in Libra, and after that Aquarius, because it is his house and he rejoices in it, then in Capricorn, which is his second house.

31If he is not in one of these places that I have mentioned, then let him be in his dignities, such as his term or his triplicity, or let him be oriental, or be in the angles or what follows them, and the best of that is in the angle of midheaven; or let him be direct in course, or in a masculine quadrant. And the best of that is that he be in one of his dignities, as we have mentioned, direct in course, free of the malefics, oriental, in midheaven.

32And beware of his misfortunes: Saturn is at his most severe when he is in square with Mars or is in the house of his fall. The right way in this is that the planet be in good condition, clear of the malefics, for then he is like the good-natured man who is not asked for a need without fulfilling it. And when he is combust, or made unfortunate, or retrograde, or is in a house cadent from the ascendant, he is like the irritable man who is occupied with himself to the neglect of others.

33So when Saturn is in one of these places mentioned, in good condition, and you wish to commune with him, put on black garments or a black burnous, which is the dress of the sages; and if it is a khubb [word uncertain], let it be black. And approach the place in which you wish to commune with him with submission and humility, you being like one grieved and sorrowful, head bowed, walking slowly, gently and calmly.

34And come to him in the garb of the Jews, for he is the lord of their cycle, you wearing a ring of iron, and with you a censer of iron; and fumigate in it with this fumigation, which is that you take opium, storax, saffron, plantain, qardamānā, bark of frankincense, the dirt of wool, fat of colocynth, and the skull of a black cat, of each one part in equal measure; grind what needs grinding, and mix it all as a paste with the urine of black goats, and make it into wicks and put them away; and fumigate with one wick of them when standing before him at the time of communing. And face him with your face,

35and say, while the fumigation rises: O lord, whose name is great, whose standing is mighty, whose spiritual power is lofty! O lord Saturn, the cold, the dry, the dark, the beneficent, true of affection, faithful to the covenant, the friend, the solitary, the unique, the one of bonds [sense uncertain], far of depth, true of promise, the weary, the toiling, alone in grief and sorrow, the one withdrawn from joy and delight, the aged elder, the cunning, the experienced, the deceiving, the wily, the intelligent, the understanding, the one who sets right, the one who lays waste; wretched is he whom you make unfortunate, and fortunate is he whom you make fortunate!

36And I ask you, O first father, by the right of your great benefits and your noble characters, that you do for me such-and-such. And you prostrate yourself to him with submission, humility and abasement, gently and deliberately, and repeat the words in your prostration several times, for your need which you have asked of him will be fulfilled. And take care that the hour in which you address him be his hour and the day his day, for that is more effective in fulfilling it.

37And he has a second address and another fumigation, which a group of them use. The fumigation: Armenian wormwood, savin, the nut of the tar-tree, mujwa dates [reading uncertain] and asparagus, in equal parts; it is pounded and kneaded with basil-scented cooked wine, made into pellets and stored. Then at the time of need you do what I have mentioned, face him, and fumigate while you say:

38"In the name of God, in the name of Ishbīl, the angel appointed over Saturn in all cold and ice, lord of the seventh sphere: I call upon you by all your names: in Arabic, O Zuḥal; in Persian, O Kaywān; in Rūmī, O Qurūnus; in Greek, O Aqrūnus; in Indian, O Shanshar. By the right of the Lord of the highest edifice, do answer my prayer, accept my call, obey through obedience to God and His dominion, and do for me such-and-such."

39And the fumigation is to be in an iron censer. When you have finished the address and the fumigation, you do what is in his nature, prostrate yourself to him, and repeat the address several times. Then you glorify the Creator and sanctify Him, and offer him [pronoun ambiguous: the Creator or Saturn] a sacrifice; let it be a black he-goat with nothing of white in it. When you have slaughtered it, you burn its body in a blazing fire until its smoke rises into the air. Then keep the blood with you, to employ it in his works, and eat the liver; for your need will be accomplished as desired.

40As for Jupiter: when you wish to converse with him, let your clothing be white and yellow, and you humble and lowly, in the garb of monks and Christians, for he is the lord of their cycle. And you should do everything the Christians do and adorn yourself with what they adorn themselves with, such as a honey-coloured cloak, the girdle and the cross. Let there be on your finger a ring of crystal, and on you a white burnous, and with you a censer which you have prepared for the fumigation.

41Its making is that you take sandarac, liquid storax, dove's-foot, fāwiyā wood (which is a wood in which, when you break it, you find a cross inside, however you break it), sweet flag, pine resin and juniper berries, of each one part, in equal measure. It is kneaded with wine after pounding, made into wicks, and used at the time of need.

42And your standing and your actions are to be as we mentioned for Saturn. You face him and say: "Peace be upon you, O blessed, fortunate lord, hot, moist, temperate, beautiful, knowing, truthful, possessor of right, justice, equity and piety, sage in religion, ascetic, powerful, of great resolve, reformer, noble, lofty, great, made subservient, bestower of honour, faithful to the covenant, sincere in affection, noble of nature: I ask you, O father, by the right of your noble, beautiful character and your precious deeds, do for me such-and-such, O mine of good things and fulfiller of requests."

43As for his second address and his second fumigation: you take of costus, poley, frankincense and Rūmī spikenard, of each one three and a half parts; of myrrh nine parts; and of raisins with the seeds removed two parts. What must be pounded is pounded, and it is kneaded with basil-scented cooked wine, stored, and used as a fumigation when conversing with him.

44And let there be on you the clothes of the righteous and the garb of the people of justice, with you girt with the scripture of the Ḥanīfs, and submissiveness and calm evident upon you. You use the fumigation which we have described, face him, and say: "O Rūfiyā'īl, the angel appointed over Jupiter, the fortunate, perfect, complete, righteous, of fine garb, gravity and intelligence, far from impurities and corrupt speech: I call upon you by all your names in Arabic, O Mushtarī; in Persian, O Birjīs; in 'Ajamī, O Hurmuz; in Greek, O Zāwush; and in Indian, O Wahasfaṭ: by the right of the highest edifice, and of the bounties and the favours, [I ask] that you do for me such-and-such. And when you have finished that, you prostrate yourself to him, then you offer a white lamb and burn it in the manner mentioned, and eat its liver as went before; for what you want will be accomplished.

45As for the speech of Jupiter and his intimate prayer, which needs no fumigation with it, and which is used for safety at sea from the great might of [the seas] — a group of the people of this field have mentioned it, and al-Rāzī mentioned it in the Book of Divine Science according to a transmission of his — it is that you face him with your face while he is in mid-heaven,

46and say: 'Peace be upon you, O noble, majestic, mighty, compassionate planet, who takes charge of the affairs of the worlds, who makes way for the spirits of the pure, and who rescues in the depths of the seas the drowning who cry for help: pour out upon us, from your light, your spirit and your spiritual power (rūḥāniyya), that by which our states become good, and our going forth becomes good, and the filth of nature is washed from us. Amen.'

47And the sign of the answer is the appearance of a lighted candle before the one who addresses him in prayer; and it is the spiritual power of Jupiter.

48As for the greatest speech among them, which gathers all his actions and powers, it is that you say, facing him: 'Peace be upon you, O fortunate planet, noble of nature, majestic of rank, mighty of consequence, lord, blessed, hot, moist, airy, temperate, beautiful, knowing, true in affection, learned in religion, possessor of truth and certainty, and of manifest good fortune, and of trustworthiness and religion, and of justice, equity and piety;

49wise, sublime, radiant, righteous, compassionate, great of resolve, who sets things right, lofty, generous, who subjugates [reading uncertain: or 'made subservient'], who grants might, faithful to the covenant, true to the promise, complete, perfect, good, pure, God-fearing, upright, clean, possessor of good judgement, far from impurities and corrupt speech;

50possessor of judgement and religion, of tranquillity and gravity, of sharpness, understanding and wisdom, of the interpretation of dreams, of truthfulness, of worship and obedience to the Lord of the worlds, and of judging between people with fairness, righteousness and piety;

51possessor of fine praise, of forbearance, zeal, reconciliation, mastery, honour, success, victory, leadership and authority, of kings, nobles and great men, of desire for wealth and its amassing, of alms, generosity and giving, of helping people toward good, of love of building and of inhabited dwellings, of mercy toward people, of keeping the covenant and rendering what is entrusted, of jesting and humour, of dress and appearance, of joy and laughter, of much speech and fluency of tongue, of love of marriage and of good, and hatred of evil, and of commanding what is right and forbidding what is wrong.

52Peace be upon you, O planet strengthened with mercy and beneficence, who takes charge of the affairs of the worlds, who escorts the spirits of the pure, who brings relief from terrors, and who rescues the drowning who cry for help in the depths of the seas: pour out upon us, and upon our children and our families, from your light, your spirit, your repose and the light of your noble spiritual power joined to the upper powers, that by which you guard our states, increase our wealth, and avert from us all the cares of our livelihoods in our world, so that our living may be abundant, ample, good, wholesome and blessed;

53and you set right our bodies by the powers of your spiritual power, and lengthen our lives by them, and grant us by them health from all sicknesses and pains, and avert from us by them all affliction, the little of it and the much; and you cast upon us, by the powers of your noble, majestic, excellent spiritual power, [that] by which you gain for us awe, honour, veneration and esteem, and make for us by it acceptance on earth from all mankind, and avert from us by it whoever wishes us harm from all creatures, speaking and silent; and that you cast upon us by it a love from you, and veil us by the powers of your spiritual power with a fair veil, and guard us by it with an impregnable guard, and cut off by it the tongues of all people from us, and let down over their eyes a spiritual veil, repelling their wicked looks, cutting off their harmful tongues, restraining their striking hands and their walking feet, subduing their evil intentions,

54so that they are drawn, by the powers of your noble, excellent spiritual power by which you hold us fast, to our spiritual souls, which are bound in the eyes of all of them and joined to their hearts with awe of us, and honour, reverence and veneration, like the rising of the ray of the Sun over the light of the world and its powers; and that you grant us … by the power of your noble, excellent, sublime spiritual power by which you hold us fast, in understanding of the law, in religion, and in obedience to the Lord of the worlds.

55And make a power of the powers of your noble, excellent, sublime spiritual power by which you hold us fast encompass us, supporting us, guarding us, guiding us, honouring us, and interceding for us with our Creator, blessed be His name, that He may protect us from the dominance of nature and the rule of the appetites, and make us formed in character by the intellect, and by it attached to His divine lights;

56and that He may supply us with pure souls and clear intellects, and direct us aright with heavenly might and spiritual powers, so that our spirits may thereby be longing and our intellects yearning for the mine of mines in the kingdom of the pre-eternal of pre-eternity; and that He may turn our intentions away from the perishing aims and make them easy for the seeking of the abiding ones, and forgive us and pass over the gravity of our sins,

57so that it may be a single one among the singular ones, and be freed from association with peers and from opposition of contraries; and that you may thereby look to the meanings of our letters, and not try us with letters resembling one another, nor with differing forms, nor with the changing of a name, nor with the altering of a written trace, so that our going forth may be good, by the power of your noble, sublime, excellent spiritual power by which you hold us fast; and that you wash from us by it the filth of nature, and gather for us by it the good of this world and the next. Amen.

58And here I am calling on you by all your names: in Arabic, O Mushtarī; in Persian, O Barjīs; in Rūmī, O Hurmuz; and in Greek, O Zāwush. So answer my prayer, hear my call, and accomplish all my needs, by the right of Rūfiyā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs, and by the right of Daryās Haṭīs Maghīs Darīs Ṭahīs Farūs Dahīdās Afrīdūs Damāhūs, by the Lord of the lofty edifice and of the bounties and favours, the First of the first and the Eternity of eternity, [I ask] only that you grant my desires and accomplish for me all my needs.

59For I have fled to you in the scantiness of what is in our hands, the narrowness of our livelihoods and the weakness of our circumstances, and I have cast our keys before you, and made my sincerity to you good, and humbled myself to you, and prostrated myself before your lordship, and worshipped your light; and I acknowledge you, am obedient to you, and follow your noble natures.

60So answer my prayer, obey my command, and accomplish my need in all that I have desired of you, and hold back from us what has befallen us of that, and grant us a share of your majesty and your beauty, and pour upon us, from the power of your noble, sublime, excellent spiritual power by which you hold us fast, that by which you set right our circumstances, and by which you increase our wealth, and by which you move a portion of the desire of this world into us [sense uncertain], and by which you provide us with love from all the world, so that our works may all be accepted, our judgements among men approved, and our practice lawful. Make us near to kings, grant us the obedience of the common people and the elite, and make us known for truthfulness.

61Take hold for us of the thought of all creatures and subject them [to us], by the right of your light and your spirit and the power of your noble, sublime, excellent spiritual power, by which you hold us fast, by which you have mercy on the small child and give to the great.

62And I ask you, O merciful one, by the right of your noble, beautiful character and your precious deeds, and by the right of what flows upon you from the light of the Creator, majestic, exalted and mighty is He, that you hear my call and answer my prayer, and uncover for me what concerns my soul of what I have kept hidden and wished to have uncovered and have petitioned you about, and that you grant us of your love and your kindness that by which I may perceive your answer to me. So bestow on us your mercy, relieve us of our distress, and make us happy with a happiness that no misery alters.

63For I ask you by your right and entreat you by your bounty to be my intercessor with the Compassionate, the Benefactor, in the fulfilment of my need and the completion of the matter I desire. So make easy for me the attainment of what I seek, and humble to me the kings of the earth, all of them together, and all its creation, the speaking and the silent, by the right of the Lord who is God in the past age and God in the enduring age, for ever and ever.

64For I have asked you by your right and entreated you by your bounty. And perfect peace be upon you from the Lord of the worlds, and His blessings, His mercy and His benedictions, to the end of eternity and the age of ages, everlastingly, for ever. Amen, amen. And upon the guardians of your remembrance, sincere toward God and toward you. Amen, amen.

65And they mentioned that the one who performs this intimate prayer (munājāt), when he performs it well, fumigates with its fumigation and speaks this intimate prayer, is clothed by its spiritual power, which fulfils his needs in the world, heals him from illnesses for that year of his until another year, subjects the world to him, makes every difficulty easy for him, and [instils, reading uncertain: tūra'] awe of him in all the world; especially if the one that has mastery over the one who undertakes this invocation is this planet.

66And know that turning in repentance, humility, and rubbing the brow in the earth are among the things that help toward a swift answer.

67As for Mars: if you wish to address him in intimate prayer, put on red garments, with a red band on you, gird on a sword, and put on what weapons you can. Dress in the dress of soldiers, of warriors and of the people of evil, and in the dress of idol-worshippers, for he is the lord of their cycle. Wear a ring of copper, and fumigate in a censer of copper with his fumigation.

68Its description: take of grains of dahmasht, male frankincense, aloes, blossoms of idhkhir, euphorbium and long pepper, of each one part, equally. It is kneaded, after pounding, with human blood, and you make wicks from it, which are put away and used in fumigation when they are needed.

69Then when you wish to address him in intimate prayer, come forward to him with sharpness and boldness, face him with your face while he is in midheaven, as you do for the other planets, and say, while you fumigate with the fumigation:

70"O excellent lord, hot, dry, brave of heart, shedder of blood, stirrer of the multitude, strong, male, overpowering, victorious, rash, sharp, lord of evil and torment, of beating and imprisonment, of lying, slander and foul speech, of little heed, the killer,

71the solitary, the stranger, bearer of weapons, much given to copulation, strong of thought in overpowering and victory, begetter of war, who takes the part of the weak, the strong, who overtakes evil [sense uncertain], the avenger upon the wicked: I ask you by your ways of taking and your courses in your sphere, by your victory and your demands, and by Him who preferred you and made you an avenger severe in might, great in rank, abundant in assault, that you answer and obey and fulfil my need and hear my supplication, for I beseech you to do for me such-and-such. And peace be upon him who has granted protection and warded off harm." And you mention all your needs, all of them; then you repeat the speech, fall down prostrate and sanctify him many times, for he fulfils what you have intended.

72As for his second speech and his fumigation: it is that you take of areca nut, afthīmūn, nutmeg and male frankincense, of each one an equal part; the whole is pounded and kneaded with a good rayḥānī maṭbūkh and made into pellets, and you fumigate with it as we described before, while you say:

73"O Rūbiyā'īl, the angel appointed over Mars, the severe, the harsh, the fiery, the blazing, the excellent lord, the hot, the dry, the brave of heart, the shedder of blood, the stirrer of seditions and of the mob, the strong, the male, the subduer, the overcomer, the rash, the sharp, master of evil and torment and beating and prison and lying and slander and foul speech, the little-caring, the great killer, the solitary, the stranger, the bearer of weapons, the much-copulating:

74I ask you by all your names, all of them: in Arabic, O Mirrīkh; in Persian, O Bahrām; in Rūmī, O Rīs; in Greek, O Āris; in Indian, O Anjārā; and I ask you by the right of the Possessor of the highest structure, that you answer and obey and fulfil my need and hear my supplication, for I beseech you to do for me such-and-such, by the right of Rūbiyā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs."

75And you fumigate with the incense and repeat the words while you are fallen down before him. When you have finished your speech, slaughter for him a leopard or a spotted cat, burn it in the manner mentioned, and eat its liver, for your need will be fulfilled.

76As for his invocation: if you have an enemy who has harmed you, and you want to set upon him harm or torment or sickness or injury, put on the garments we described and dress in that attire, bring near the censer and the fumigant, face him with your face, and say while you fumigate:

77"O you whose zeal is fiery, and O averter of calamity, remover of kings from their thrones, kindler of the fury of rancours, humbler of tyrants, who makes lawful the blood of sultans, and the origin of the violation of the inviolable and of the shedding of blood, who undertakes the aid of whoever seeks his aid and seeks his protection, and the strengthening of whoever draws aid from him and asks it of him: O Āris, the strong, the severe, the hot, from whom whoever seeks him is not barred, I ask you by your names and your qualities and your courses in your sphere and your light and the firmness of your dominion, [for] the turning toward me.

78I complain to you of so-and-so's domination over me, and of the evil of his wiles with which he has aimed at me, seeking my harm. O utmost hope of him who is strengthened by him, and farthest goal of the beseecher who takes refuge in him, I ask you by the power which the Creator of all gave you, [for] the sending of one of your assaults upon him, by which you come between me and him, and occupy him from thought of my affair, and tear away his veil with it, and inflict on him evil torment, and take vengeance on him with the most severe and worst vengeance,

79and cut off his hands and his feet, and afflict him in his person with affliction, and bring upon him every harm, and set upon him the unjust, overpowering sultan, and thieves and highway robbers, and great swellings, and injury, and bad wounds; and blind his sight, and efface his hearing, and numb all his senses, and make him blind and deaf and dumb, disabled, fettered; and prolong torment upon him, and deny him food and drink and pleasure and life,

80and set upon him kinds of afflictions, and make vengeance his inheritance in his person and in his property, his family and his children, and afflict him with the injustice of the sultan, the enmity of neighbours and the hatred of relatives, and set upon him thieves and robbers in his homeland and wherever he turns in his travel, by land or sea; and let that be swift and near; and seize him with the seizing of might and power, O perfect in might, O severe in injury, by the right of your strong seizing by which you transfer generation to corruption, and you make for the one devoted to harm and hateful things an occupation with himself. Answer my call and have mercy on my tears, by the right of Rūbiyā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs, and by the right of the spiritual power (rūḥāniyya) by which you gain mastery over whoever disobeys you, and by that of your light which you sent into the seat of the hearts of the people of anger and evil, so that they committed the great sins: that you answer me, and strive in my affair, and grant me of your love that by which I may be certain of your answer. And perfect peace be upon the one who defends the sanctuary, and repels the domination of evils, and stands apart from injustice. Amen, amen.

81And by the right of these names upon you: Daghīdiyūs, Hāghamdīs, Ghīdiyūs, Mi'rās, Ardaghūs, Hīdaghīdīs, Mahīdās, Dahīdmās: that you fulfil my need, and grant my desire, and have mercy on my tears, and pardon my stumbling, and take me by my hand; by the right of the Lord of the highest structure, and the greatest power, and the greatest divinity, and the furthest goal, and the most beautiful names, and the benefits and the blessings, and the Creator of death and life and of permanence and of everlastingness forever, upon you: that you grant me [my request] and fulfil my need this hour, this hour. Amen, amen.

82Then you fall down prostrating and repeat the words in your prostration, for your need will be fulfilled. And if you offer to him a sacrifice from his animals, then excellent, excellent.

83And they also have a standing [prayer] for Banāt Na'sh. That is, when you have an enemy who has harmed you and you want to bring harm or torment down upon him, turn your face towards Banāt Na'sh and fumigate with its fumigation, while you say: "Peace be upon you, O Banāt Na'sh the Greater, O you of lofty rank, O you of beautiful aspect! I ask you, by the power which the Creator of all has given you, that you send upon so-and-so spiritual powers who will blow into his body a blowing from which his body will break out in sores, and his limbs grow numb, and all his senses be stilled,

84so that he neither sees, nor hears, nor feels, nor walks, nor speaks, nor eats, nor drinks, nor takes pleasure in life; and they will cast him into perils, and inflict on him the evil of torment in its various kinds, and set over him the injustice of the ruler and the overpowering of enemies and neighbours, and take a swift vengeance on him, all of which is joined to the whole world; and they will pull down his house upon him, and cast him down from high places, and make his eyes fly out, and loosen his hands and his feet, and occupy him with himself, and hurt him with the severest hurt, and remove the Creator's covering from him, and not have mercy on his tears nor pardon his stumbling, and hasten that upon him.

85For I have fled to you in fear from what has grieved me and harmed me, for he has transgressed against me and harmed me. O utmost end of the hope of the one who desires her, and furthest goal of the one who is strengthened by her, I ask you to send a band of your spiritual powers upon him, who will assail him with their mighty assaults, and penetrate into him, and hasten upon him what I have besought you concerning him: bringing down upon him punishment and torment, and affliction, and disgrace, and humiliation, and hardship, and what is hateful, and hurt, and diseases, and sicknesses, and hurtful, evil banes; and they will turn the circle of evil upon him.

86By the right of your mighty seizing, answer my call, and have mercy on my tears, and grant me of your love that by which I may perceive your answer to me; by the right of the Lord of the highest structure, and the greatest power, and the greatest divinity: that you grant me [my request] and fulfil my need this hour; by God of the gods, Lord of the highest structure: that you answer my prayer and fulfil my need." Then you prostrate yourself and repeat the words many times while you fumigate with the fumigation.

88As for standing before the Sun and conversing with her in prayer: whoever wishes to gain access to a king, or to ask him for something needed, or wishes to win his favour and make for himself acceptance in his heart, or whoever wishes to be invested with governorships and leaderships, needs this. Let him turn towards the Sun at the time of her rising, and that on her day and in her hour. Let him be standing, his right hand on the back of his left hand, looking at the Sun with a furtive glance, like one afraid and trembling. Let him wear the garments of kings and great men, such as yellow brocade and a crown of gold, and let him put on a gold ring, being in the dress of the great men of the Persians, for it is the lord of their cycle.

89Before him is a censer of gold. He has taken a rooster with a fine comb and lit a small candle on its comb, and put a stick of a span's length into the end of the candle, the fire being at the end of the stick. When a small part of the Sun has risen, you release the rooster towards the Sun, and you use the incense,

90while you say: O Cause of causes, which has never ceased to be in hallowed holiness, in eternal lordship, I ask you that you answer me and give me splendour, acceptance and love from So-and-so the king, or from all the kings of the earth, all of them.

91Then you say: Welcome, being of life and light of the world; [I ask] that you answer me and give me splendour and acceptance. And you say in Arabic: O Shams; and in Persian: O Mihr; and in Greek: O Īliyūs; and in Indian: O Ārs, O Barā, O light of the world and its brightness,

92O you who are in the middle of the whole, who give life to the world of generation and corruption, who are bound to its well-being, O you of lofty place, O you of high ranks, I ask you to support me with So-and-so the king, or with all the kings of the earth, with the support of governorship, rank, leadership, splendour and acceptance,

93just as you are the lady of the planets and their king, and through you is their brightness and the shining of their lights. I ask you, O governor of the whole, that you have mercy on me and have mercy on my supplication and my humility. — While you fumigate with this incense, which is known as the great incense of the Ḥunafā', and its effects are wondrous among them.

94The number of its ingredients is thirty-one, and this is its description: storax (iṣṭarak), bdellium (muql), myrrh, ladanum, elecampane (rāsan) and sāliyūs, of each seven ūqiyyas; Roman spikenard, hematite (shādanaj) and pine seeds, of each three ūqiyyas; cassia (salīkha), iris root, asparagus, cardamom (qardamānā), sweet flag (qaṣab al-ṭīb), frankincense (kundur) and mace (basbāsa), of each five ūqiyyas;

95dry red rose, saffron, Indian spikenard, henna root and fāghira, of each four ūqiyyas; onycha (aẓfār al-ṭīb), balsam seed and dodder (afthīmūn), of each nine ūqiyyas; blossoms of lemon-grass (fuqqāḥ idhkhir), one ūqiyya; gourd seeds, fifty small seeds; amomum (ḥamāmā), terebinth resin, dates cleaned of their stones and raisins cleaned of their pips, of each two raṭls; honey with its foam removed, five raṭls;

96and of good cooked [wine] as much as suffices to knead it, after all of it has been ground and pounded. Then it is made into pellets, and one fumigates with them at the time of the standing. Then you slaughter the rooster and eat its liver, as has gone before, and burn the body.

97As for her lesser incense and her standing: when you wish to do that, do what I have commanded you regarding dress and the rest,

99while you say: Peace be upon you, O Sun, the lady, the fortunate, the hot, the dry, the luminous, the shining, the radiant, the splendid, the understanding, the high, the noble, the chief, who gathers beauty, the pure, the wise, who gathers riches. You have taken possession of the lead-rope of the six planets, and they submitted to you; you became chief over them, and they were humbled to you when they are distant from you, they return to you, and when they come near you they suffer combustion through your rays and perish; and from your light and your power they borrow, and from your radiance they shine. So yours is the excellence over all of them; you are the queen and they are the servants. You are fortunate when you aspect and unfortunate when you conjoin. Knowledge of your excellence will never be encompassed, and the essence of your nobility will never be grasped. Then you fall down prostrate to her, and repeat the words many times, and make an offering of one of her animals; for the thing that you asked of her will come to pass.

100As for the invocation of the Sun also, which is needed by one whose authority has fallen short and whose strength has weakened: let whoever wishes to do this, of those whom a king has treated harshly, or who fears for his rule that it will go, or other than this, such as the loss of a leadership, take care that the ascendant be Scorpio and that the Sun be applying to Mars. Then he takes a censer of gold and puts oak charcoal in it, and let there be with him pieces of ambergris like chickpeas; he places them on the censer one after another, while he says, facing her with his face when she is in the midheaven:

101"O spring of might, foundation of power, splendour of life, pillar of high things and root of good things! I have fled to you for refuge in the shortness of my hand, the obscurity of my standing and the stretching out of hands against me. So by the right of the One who moves you by His stillness and strengthens you by His might, and [by] the covenant that is upon you of good obedience to the one who hands his keys over to you and makes his sincerity toward you good,

102and by what you have been given of the reins of all the planets: [I ask] only that you lift [it] from me, remove my distress, make my standing current [sense uncertain], transfer to me a portion of the desire of this world, and grant me something of your majesty and your beauty, by the decreed good fortune, the hidden subtlety, and the pattern by which guidance is found and along whose course [things] move; and by your being in the middle on the path of generation, your mercy to the small child, your bestowal upon the great, and your inclining toward those who are watchful according to their rank; and by the right of your heavenly books, which nothing on the earth departs from: hear my call and answer my summons. And perfect peace be upon the guardians of your remembrance, who are sincere to God and to you."

103You do this after putting on her garb and all that we have mentioned; you will attain what you hope for.

104As for Venus: if you wish to converse with her in private and to stand before her, she has an arrangement. So direct yourself to her and face her with your face when she is occidental, free of the malefics, direct in her course. And dress in the garb of the great ones of the Arabs: wearing white and winding a splendid white turban; for this is the garb of the Arabs, since she is the lady of their cycle. And put on fine, beautiful, costly clothes, and place on your head a crown in which pearls are strung, and put on a ring of gold set with fine jewels, and on your forearms bracelets of gold,

105and in your right hand a mirror, and in your left hand an apple or a comb, and before you a cup with drink in it. And perfume yourself with some fragrant powders and women's perfume, and let there be with you a censer of silver or gold, and fumigate with her incense, while you say: "Peace be upon you, O Venus, Anāhīd, the fortunate lady, the cold, the moist, the temperate, the clean, the beautiful, the fragrant, the generous, the radiant,

106lady of ornaments and gold, of joy, dancing, rapture, adornment and amusement, of listening to songs and piping, of stirring the lutes with melody, of play, jesting, companionship and idleness; the receptive, the affectionate, the just, she who loves wines, ease, gladness and coition. Thus you are. I call you by all your names: in Arabic, O Zuhara; in Persian, O Anāhīd; in Rūmī, O Afrūdīṭī; in Greek, O Ṭayāniyā; in Indian, O Surfa;

107and by the right of the master of the highest edifice, [I ask] only that you answer and obey, in obedience to God and His authority, and do for me such-and-such, by the right of Bayṭā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs." Then you fall down prostrate and repeat the words; then you raise your head and repeat the words again; and in the course of this you slaughter a coloured pigeon or a wood-pigeon, eat its liver and burn its body in the censer before you. And this is the description of the making of the fumigation: raw aloeswood, sukk, costus, saffron, ladanum, mastic, poppy husks, willow leaves and iris root, of each one part; it is pounded, kneaded with rose-water, made into pellets and used.

108As for the invocation of Venus for drawing love, affection and fondness: you should put on her attire and fumigate for her with this fumigation: sukk and storax, of each five ūqiyyas; raisins, male frankincense and mastic, of each two ūqiyyas and a half; Indian sādaj, maḥlab seeds, ḥamāmā and iris root, of each one ūqiyya. The whole is kneaded with spring water, made into pellets and used when communing with her.

109And you say: O spirit of love and order of fondness, arouser of the spiritual power (rūḥāniyya) of desire, exciter of the power of pleasure, setter-right of the state among creatures, uniter of the inclinations of mutually estranged spirits, root of marriage and of the establishing of offspring, she who undertakes the inclining of souls and their joining towards whoever has inclined them, and who makes beloved whoever draws love from her; O Venus, beautiful, tender, affectionate, to whom whomever she has drawn submits, and whomever she has inclined does not oppose her,

110I ask you, by your names and the names of the One who brought you into being and makes you run in your sphere, and [by] your light and by the light of your dominion, to turn towards me; for I complain of the wrongs so-and-so lays upon me, and of what befalls me from his shunning and his distance from me, the ill-treatment of his companionship, his haste to break with me and his deliberate opposition to me. O utmost hope of the one who seeks support through her, and furthest goal of the desirous one who takes refuge in her,

111I ask you to send upon him a spirit of your spiritual power and a power of your powers, by which you draw his spiritual power, which dwells in his heart, lies hidden in his nature and circulates in all his limbs, to me with affection and tenderness, and that you move him towards me with a strong motion and a violent, strong excitement, like the motion of fire and its blazing and the force of the wind and its blowing.

112O true in affection, O fair in fondness, by the right of your affectionate spiritual power and your tender powers, which arouse desire in souls, make passion firm in hearts, and give the one averse to desires a preoccupation with them and a longing for them: answer my invocation and accept my petition, by the right of Bayṭā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs, and by the right of the spiritual power by which you draw the inclinations of those who turn aside from your way, and by the light of yours that you have sent into the seat of the hearts of the people of desire until they became infatuated with it, [I adjure you] that you answer me, strive for me in what I hope for, and grant me of your love and your tenderness that by which I may see clearly your answer to me. And perfect peace be upon the one who gathered the scattered hearts together, joined the rope of fondness and affection, and took up the joy of pleasure. Amen.

114As for Mercury: if you wish to commune with him and to carry out his invocation and its conditions, and that is when you have a need of the scribes and the officers of the dīwāns, then turn to Mercury when the Moon is in bodily conjunction with him, and ask him your need, in that you put on the attire of the scribes in all your circumstances and wear a ring of [one of] his metals, the noblest of which is congealed quicksilver, and with it Hermes used to seal [himself].

115And turn your face towards him with quickness, cheerfulness and eloquence, while you are seated on the chair of the sages, for he is the significator of their [reading uncertain: houses / cycle], with a book in your hand as though you were writing, the fumigation before you, and in front of you a censer of one of his metals. Then you fumigate, saying: Peace be upon you, O Mercury, O excellent, truthful, intelligent, rational, understanding lord, the disputant, knower of every art, the reckoner, the scribe, possessor of good character, knower of the tidings of heaven and earth, the noble lord, little in joy, the one who brings benefit in wealth and trade, master of cunning, oath-breaking and shrewdness, the helper, the patient, the skilful, subtle of hand, master of revelation to the prophets and of the indication of lordship, and of assent, intellect, speech and reports, good teaching and the various sciences, sharpness and acumen, letters and philosophy, foreknowledge, the geometry of things above and on earth, surveying, the science of the stars, augury and omens, eloquence, the composing of poetry, the scribes and the government offices, fluency, sweetness of speech, its swiftness and its subtlety, depth [of mind], swiftness in works, much changeability, lying, wit, endurance, helpfulness, compliance, patience, kindness, tenderness, mercy, tranquillity, gravity, refraining from evil, good religion toward God, the observance of rights, and beauty of voice.

116You are hidden, so no nature of yours is known; you are subtle, so you are not bounded by a description. For with the fortunate you are fortunate, with the masculine masculine, with the feminine feminine, with the diurnal diurnal, and with the nocturnal nocturnal; you mix with them in their natures and resemble them in all their states. Thus are you.

117I call upon you by all your names: in Arabic, O 'Uṭārid; in Persian, O Tīr; in Rūmī, O Hārūs; in Greek, O Hermes; in Indian, O Budh. I ask you by the right of the possessor of the highest structure and the mightiest dominion that you answer me and obey me in what I ask of you.

118So send a power from your spiritual power by which you strengthen my arm, guide me and make easy for me the seeking of all the sciences, so that I may thereby be, with kings, high in rank, established with them, listened to, needed in all the sciences and questions, in service and activity, in philosophy, in the service of the government offices, the reins [of administration] and stewardship; and that you bring me, by means of all that, abundant and fine wealth, elevation, standing and a good position with kings and with all mankind.

119By the right of Harqīl, the angel appointed over your affairs, [I ask] that you answer my call, hear my cry, fulfil my desire, support me and bring me near to kings by your governance of me, set me right by your wisdom, strengthen me by your power, make me understand what I do not understand, teach me what I do not know, make me see what I do not see, and repel from me the afflictions that cling [to one], of ignorance, forgetfulness, hardness and weakness, until you join me to the ranks of the first sages, in whose hearts dwelt wisdom, acumen, wakefulness, insight and understanding.

120And settle in my heart, from your noble spiritual power, a power that does not leave me and a light by which I am guided in all my affairs; and grant me the favour of serving kings, viziers and sultans, and of gaining great wealth by that means; and hasten this for me, by the right of the Lord of the highest structure and the mightiest dominion, that you answer me and obey me in all that I have asked you for.

121Then you fall down prostrate before him and repeat the words in your prostration; then you raise your head after you have finished, slaughter a cock with a parted comb, then burn it as was described before, and eat its liver.

122The description of his fumigation: you take ushna, Kirmānī cumin, dried mountain ḥabaq, buds of rayḥān, bādhāward, bitter-almond shell, tamarisk seed, vine shoots, flowers of idhkhir, and myrrh, of each one part in equal measure; it is pounded, kneaded with rayḥānī cooked [wine], made into pellets, and used as a fumigation when needed.

123As for the Moon: when you wish to converse with him in private and to stand before him, dress in the garb of boys and youths; let your clothing be white, use pleasant scents, and wear a ring of silver; let your movement be quick, your speech beautiful and your request fine, and before you a censer of silver.

124Then you stand before him on the night of the fourteenth of the month, when he is in the fullness of his light, applying to the fortunate [planets], and you face him with your face, saying: Peace be upon you, O Moon, O lord, fortunate, blessed, cold, moist, temperate, beautiful, key of the stars and their head, the light, the swift-moving possessor of the radiant light and the gleaming brightness, of joy, praise and laudation, the fortunate king, learned in religion, reflecting upon things, the knowing one, subtle in governance, lover of amusement, jest and play, master of messengers and reports and of little keeping of secrets, the generous, the noble, the forbearing, the mighty.

125You are the nearest of them to us in sphere, and the greatest of them in harm and benefit. You are the one who joins the planets together, the conveyor of their lights, and the one who sets right what bodes ill for us [reading uncertain]. By your soundness everything is sound, and by your corruption everything is corrupted. You are the first of every thing and its last, and yours is honour and nobility over all the planets together. Thus are you.

126I ask you by the right of Silyā'īl, the angel appointed over your affairs, that you have mercy on my submission and my supplication to you, and obey, by the obedience of God and His authority, and answer me in what I call upon you for and beseech you for. For I call upon you by all your names: in Arabic, O Qamar; in Persian, O Māh; in Greek, O Sam'ā'īl; in Rūmī, O Sālīnī; and in Indian, O Sūm: answer me.

127And mention your need; then you fall down to it prostrate and repeat the words in your prostration, while you fumigate throughout all of that with its incense, which is the lesser incense of the Ḥunafā'.

128And this is its description, and its ingredients are twenty-eight: qardamānā, asparagus, storax, mastic and aṣṭarak, of each one five ūqiyya; elecampane, myrrh, camel grass, dār shīsha'ān, spikenard, costus, frankincense and saffron, of each one two ūqiyya; gourd seeds, fifty seeds; henna roots, four ūqiyya; iris root, Roman spikenard, Indian sādhaj and cleaned pine kernels, of each one three ūqiyya; Persian ladanum, arāk fruit, dried apple leaves and rose blossom, of each one six ūqiyya; syrup of rubb, two raṭl; raisins with the seeds removed, two raṭl; dates, five raṭl; honey, five raṭl; rayḥānī cooked wine, as much as suffices to knead it after the grinding and pounding. Then after that it is made into pellets, put away, and fumigated with when needed.

129And its offering which is offered to it is a small calf. You kindle a fire until its smoke rises to the heights of the air, as was set out before; then you burn the calf in it. And if it is a ewe, slaughter it and burn it in that form, and eat its liver after you have finished; for your need will be fulfilled.

130This is the doctrine of the Sabians concerning the standings for the planets and the offerings to them when they are in need in their weighty affairs. For every planet, according to them, gives what is in its nature to give: if it is fortunate, then fortune, and the contrary. And with them, in petitioning, one should take care that the lord of the ascendant is applying to the planet, and the dominant planet is oriental and in a praiseworthy quarter of its epicycle, being oriental, and you ask it your need.

131And by night the operations are more effective and the powers more continuous in connection. And do not ask a planet what is not fitting to ask, for that is of evil outcome, detestable.

132And the Sabians, down to this our time, use these standings, and they have abominable opinions in the religions of the planets, among them the slaughter of the child: whenever the sphere rose with the world eight degrees and sank the like of that, they slaughtered a child. And they relate that Hermes commanded them to do that; and he is the one called among them Iṭris Maghīsṭus, that is, the threefold in wisdom, because he was a king, a prophet and a sage.

133And they do not slaughter, in their sacrifices at prayer in their temples, of the rams the piebald nor the black nor broken of bone, nor broken of horn, nor blind in one eye. And when they slaughter it, they take out the liver and look into it; and if a scratch from the knife has struck it, they say that the owner of the sacrifice will be struck by a misfortune. Then the liver is boiled and divided in pieces among those who attend the prayer in the temple.

134And they call Mars Mārā Samyā, and its meaning is 'the blind god'. He became blind in their view only because of the severity of his violence: when he intends evil he does not see. And his image among them is the likeness of a man in whose right hand is a sword and in whose left hand is a flame of fire; so at one time he annihilates the world by the sword and at another he burns them by fire. Therefore he is mighty among them, and they slaughter sacrifices to him out of fear of his might; and their sacrifices to him are at the entry of the Sun into Aries, because it is his sign; and when it reaches Scorpio they sacrifice to him also.

135And among them there is the examination of boys. That is, a boy among them, when he was born outside Ḥarrān and then came to Ḥarrān, they take him and bring him into their house of the mystery, and they bring a portion of tamarisk wood in a censer, and speak over it, and put it under his shirt. If it stings him from behind, they know that there is a disease in him, and they do not let him enter the place of prayer; and if the fire stings him from the front, he does not enter the place of prayer either. And this is from fear that he may be a catamite from behind or a fornicator from his front. When he has been examined and is free of defects, he is brought into another, dark temple,

136and they bind his eyes, and the priest stands before him and places on his head a band of red gharab [word uncertain], and he has clothed him in a baṭīṭ [word uncertain] of the skin of the sacrificial animal that was sacrificed on his behalf; and there has been placed on the side next to his right foot a basin in which is fire, and on the side of the left foot a basin in which is water. And his mother comes, and with her a cock, and sits at the door of the temple; and the priest has taken in his hand a copper vessel in which is a flame of fire, frightening him [with it].

137Then, when he has made him swear and secured [his pledge] from him by the prayer of the mystery, which belongs to the Sun specially, the safeguarding over all [sense uncertain], he releases him from his bonds, and his mother ransoms him with that cock, and he slaughters it on his behalf and unties his eyes; and he looks towards the likeness of the bird snatching at his sight, and falls, and trembling takes hold of him. Then his mother takes him and throws a garment over him.

138Therefore none of those who leave the religion of the Sabians for another religion is able to reveal their mystery, because the priest charges him that whoever uncovers the mystery of the Sabians or points to it dies within the hour. And at the boy's going out from the temple he is sealed between his index finger and his thumb with a seal on which is the image of an ape and a hoopoe.

139And they say that the most fitting of the offerings to Saturn is the bull, and it is the fitting, fine [one] [reading uncertain: al-khaliq], and they revere the crown of horns that is on its head, and they say that it is the comeliest of the beasts and the most fitting of them for offerings. So they offer it to him specially, after they have fed it grasses which virgins gather at the rising of the Sun, and they return by different roads, for the completion of a mystery that has been confided to them.

140And the calf is without a white hair; and they put upon its eyes a chain of gold up to the meeting-place between its horns. And they relate this too from Hermes. And when they wish to slaughter it, it does not resist them, and there is no need for them to bind it with the fiḥār, that is, the rope. Then they begin before it with incense and a prayer from the prayer of the Greeks,

141and it comes near to the place of slaughter and places its horn on the edge of the mashkan, which is a small round hollow; and the slaughterer slaughters it with a slaughtering in which he does not go back over it in drawing the knife. And they cut off the head and place it on the 'alāthā [word uncertain], and what moves of its tongue, its ears, its lips and its eyes is interpreted. Then they look at the blood that is in the mashkan, at its saffron colour and its froth and the foam that collects in a ring upon it and by that they infer what is in their dominion, because dominion among them is Saturnian, and whatever of the cycles Saturn began, to him it returns. This sacrifice takes place among them at the passage of the Sun into Taurus. The mention of this calf in the Torah is in [the account of] the calf that fled from slaughter from the farm of the Banū Anūn.

143They have the Treasury of the Garden, which is a temple that the common people do not enter and into which no one looks; in it is an engineered well whose apparatus has been completed. When the Sun enters Leo they bring a boy from the region of Cyprus, fair-haired, of the description we gave in [the account of] the image of the head.

145Then they took him out by night to a ruined road, severed his head from his body, buried the body, and carried the head to Dayr Kādī, where they set it up on the back of an idol, and it howls a harsh howl. By its howling they infer whether the number of the Sabians will increase or decrease, and whether dominion will come to them or not come to them.

146The one who instituted this for them is a sage known as Barthīm the Brahman, who died in the land of India; and for that reason a people of India were named the Brahmans. They have very many matters which, were we to bring them in, the book would grow long and we would depart from the purpose.