Life, 1917-12-06 · page 24 of 92
Life — December 6, 1917 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This piece mocks the contrast between elaborate Eastern philosophical pretension and mundane practicality. A supposed Persian sage ("Mejnoun the Sage") delivers grandiose spiritual advice in flowery, pseudo-Oriental language, comparing life's pursuits to difficult quests (wading through torrents for fleeting water-lilies). The satire's punchline: his actual wisdom reduces to garlic—cheap, unglamorous, and genuinely useful. The illustration shows him addressing his son with exaggerated posturing while holding this humble vegetable. The humor targets Westerners' romanticization of "Eastern wisdom" as mysterious and elevated, when practical advice about basic sustenance is more valuable. The constant exclamations ("Allah il Allah!") and ornate prose parody how such philosophy often obscures rather than clarifies. The credited author is K.L. Roberts.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Christmas Life (From the Persian of the Moolah of Rum) LLAH IL ALLAH! ee String the lyre! Up and down the Avenue race the devil wagons, with a noise as of mighty cataracts; and on the other side of the Avenue walk Peris, fragrant with jasmine and musk, and wearing black - and - white striped hosiery. But here, on this side of the Avenue, am I, Mejnoun the Sage. I have at- tained to years of discretion. The odor of camphor is in my underwear, and rubber foot- holds adorn my feet. Salaam Aleikum! A am I! Within a still pool behind a boulder in the swift waters of the stream Zemzem there floats a purple water-lily. A mighty sage am I! He who would reach it must wade through the rushing torrent, across slippery rocks, wetting his feet and per- chance falling upon his ear. Allah il Allah! Attained, it Jasts but a day, and then fades and is relegated to the ash-can. Salaam Aleikum! Hanging upon mighty sage a, pillar in the market is a string of garlic which may be purchased for two silver shahis. No danger attends upon its pur- chase. For months it will suf- fice to impart a delicious favor to all manner of foods, and to satisfy the inner man. It strengthens the muscles and benefits the brain, fortifying it against the worries which beset the poorly-nourished. Allah il Allah! To am a mighty sage! The Peris, O my son, are amid the foaming torrent of the stream Zemzem. But I, best beloved, am the garlic, hanging ready to thy hand. Seek not the O moon-faced youth! Bask in the fragrance of the garlic, and fill thy soul with strength, What, fool! Thou goest in search of the Peris? Allah il Allah! A mighty sage am I! Unstring the lyre! Salaam Aleikum. KL. Roberts. the — water-lilies water-lily, comicbookSrem