（Quoth Aboulabbas el Muberred ）I set out one day with a company to El Berid on an occasionand coming to the monastery of Heracliuswe alighted in its shade.
Presently a man came out to us and said'There are madmen in the monasteryand amongst them one who speaketh wisdom；if ye saw himye would marvel at his speech.'So we arose all and went into the monasterywhere we saw a man seated on a leather mat in one of the cellswith bare head and eyes fixed upon the wall. We saluted himand he returned our greetingwithout looking at us；and one said to us'Repeat some verses to him；forwhen he hears verseshe speaks.'So I repeated the following verses：
O best of all the race whom Eve gave birth untoExcept for thee the world were neither sweet nor bright：
Thou'rt hewhose face if God unveil to any manEternity is his；his head shall ne'er grow white.
When he heard thishe turned towards us and repeated these lines：
God indeed knows that I am sore afflicted： I suffer soI cannot tell the whole.
I have two souls；one in this place is dwelling；Another country holds my second soul.
Meseems the absent one is like the present And wearies under the same weight of dole.
Quoth he'Have I said well or ill？'Thou hast said well and excellent well，'replied we. Then he put out his hand and took a stonethat was by him；whereupon we fled from himthinking he would throw it at us；but he fell to beating his breast therewith violently and said to us'Fear notbut draw near and hear somewhat from me and receive it from me.'So we came backand he repeated the following verses：