على حقيقته كما تقدّم انتهى
The finest beard is middling, with hairs of even length, neither long nor short. If it be said, “Pharaoh’s beard was longer than he was tall, by one or two spans, or so it is reported, and even so he was wise and full of insight,” we respond, “The explanation is that the Almighty gave him three miraculous signs, one of them being the length of his beard, which was also green and the like of which was vouchsafed to no other of his sort. He also had a steed that placed its front foot at the farthest point that it could see and raised its hind legs when it ascended and its front legs when it descended. Or it may be said that, even though he possessed extraordinary knowledge, he was effectively bereft of intelligence because he claimed to be divine and perpetrated heinous acts and so on. Thus what we have said is correct as stated above. End.”
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(وقيل أحذر الناس وأشطنهم الأجاردة) فينبغي لمن صاحبهم أن يكون منهم على حذر لشدّة حذقهم وقوّة معرفتهم وكثرة محاورتهم للأمور (كما اتّفق أنّ بعض الملوك قال لوزيره مَنْ أشطن الناس وأحذرهم قال الأُجْرود) قال أريد أن تطلّعني على حقيقة ذلك فقال تصنع طعامًا وتصنع له ملاعق كلّ ملعقة ثلاثة أذرع وتأمر الناس يحضروا لأكل الطعام فإذا حضروا وجلسوا تأمرهم أن لا يأكلوا إلّا بالملاعق وأنّ الرجل منهم لا يمسك الملعقة إلّا من طرفها ويأكل وتنظر ما يظهر لك قال ففعل الملك ما أمره به الوزير وحضر الناس للطعام فلمّا جلسوا أمرهم أن لا يأكلوا إلّا بالملاعق وأن لا أحد يتجاوز بالمسك طرف الملعقة كما مرّ قال فأرادوا الأكل فلم يقدروا وأرادوا القيام فمنعهم الملك وأمرهم بالجلوس فصار الرجل منهم يملأ الملعقة وأراد أن يدخل ما فيها فمه فتطول عن فمه وتفوت قفاه فتحيّروا في أمره فبينما هم على هذه الحالة إذ دخل عليهم رجل أجرود فقال لهم ما بالكم لا تأكلون من الطعام فأخبروه بالقضيّة فقال هذا أمر سهل أنا أدلّكم على حيلة تأكلون بها ولا تخالفوا أمر الملك كلّ رجل منكم يُطْعِم الّذي قبالة وجهه وكذلك الآخر يمدّ ملعقته يطعم من أطعمه حتّى تكتفوا من الطعام والملاعق على حالها فصار هذا يُلْقِم هذا بملعقته والآخر يفعل مع الآخر مثل ما فعل معه حتّى اكتفوا جميعًا قال فتعجّب الملك من حيلة هذا الأجرود وقوّة شيطنته وشدّة فراسته وأمر له بِصِلَةٍ وأخلع على الوزير
It is said that the most quick-witted and devilishly clever of men are those who have no beard at all. Anyone associating with them must be on guard, because of their great intelligence, breadth of knowledge, and finesse. Thus it happened that a certain king once asked his minister, “Who are the most devilishly clever and quick-witted of men?” and the minister answered, “Those who have no beard.” “I want you,” said the king, “to demonstrate the truth of that for me.” Said the minister, “You must prepare some food and make spoons for the food, each spoon three cubits in length, and order people to come and eat. When the people have come and sat down, order them to eat with nothing but those spoons and tell them that no one may touch the spoon except by the handle and that he may eat in no other way. Then watch what happens.” The king did as the minister instructed him, and the people came for the food. When they sat down, he ordered that they eat only with the spoons and told them that no one should touch any part of the spoon but the handle, as described. They wanted to eat but could not, and they wanted to leave, but the king stopped them and ordered them to sit. One of them would fill the spoon and try to put what was in it in his mouth, but it would miss his mouth and stick out over his shoulder, and no one knew what to do. While they were thus engaged, a man with no beard entered. “How is it that you are not eating the food?” he asked, so they told him the problem. “That’s easy,” he said, “I will show you a stratagem that will allow you to eat without disobeying the king’s command: each one of you will feed the man sitting opposite him, and that man likewise will feed the one who feeds him. That way you will eat your fill with the spoons as they are.” So this man started feeding morsels to that one and likewise that man to this one till all had eaten their fill. The king was amazed at the beardless man’s stratagem and the force of his cunning and his great insight and ordered that he be given a gift and bestowed a robe of honor on the minister.
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(ووقف رجل أجرود بين يدي بعض الملوك) يشكو خصمه فقال له الملك إنّي متعجّب من شكواك يعني إنّك أجرود لا يغلب عليك أحد فقال له العفو يا ملك إن كان في وجهي بعض شعرات فإنّ خصمي أملس لا شعر بوجهه قال فضحك الملك وأنصفه من خصمه وأمر له بصلة
And once a beardless man stood before a certain king and brought a complaint against an opponent. The king said to him, “I am amazed at your complaint. After all, you are beardless, and no one should be able to get the better of you.” “Pardon, O king,” replied the man, “but my face has the odd hair, while my opponent is completely smooth, without a single hair on his face!” The king laughed and gave the man his due against his opponent and ordered that he be given a gift.
The Origins of His Good Fortune in His Early Days and How Fate Came to Turn Against Him
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(وأمّا سبب سعادته في ابتداء أمره وكيف مال عليه الدهر) فعلى أقوال أحدها إنّه لمّا نشأ وصار له من العمر عشر سنين كان في قوّة وشهامة ومعرفة في رعي الغنم والنطّ في الغيط والمشي في الحرّ حافي عريان وكان يشيل الجلّة الخضراء على رأسه من الغيط إلى داره في أسرع زمن حتّى أنّ الرطوبة المتحلّلة منها كانت تسيل على وجهه وربّما عطش فشرب منها وربّما
