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adorned by a black mole like a grain of ambergris, and he captivated the minds and eyes of all who looked on him, even as says of him the poet in the following verses:
He is become the Khalif of beauty in Joseph’s place; The hearts of all lovers dread him, whenas they see his grace.
Pause thou with me and fasten thy gaze on him! thou’lt see The sign of the Khalifate set in sable[1] on his face.
And as says another:
Thine eyes have never looked upon a fairer sight, Of all the things that are to see beneath the sky,
Than yonder mole of brown, that nestles on his face, Midmost the rosy cheek, beneath the coal-black eye.
And a third:
I marvel at yon mole that serves the fire eternal, Upon his cheek, yet is not burned, all Kafir[2] though it be;
And eke I marvel that he’s sent or God, with every glance To work true miracles; and yet a sorcerer is he!
The many gall-bladders that burst for him it is that make The shining fringes of his cheek so black and bright to see.
And yet a fourth:
I wonder to hear the folk ask of the water of life And question in which of the lands its magical fountain flows
Whenas I see it well from the damask lips of a fawn, Under his tender moustache and his cheek’s perennial rose.
And eke ’tis a wonder of wonders that Moses,[3] finding it there Flowing, yet took no patience nor laid him down to repose.
When he came to man’s estate, his beauty increased and he had many comrades and friends; and every one who drew near to him hoped that he would become Sultan
