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A Philosophical Dictionary, From the Fr. [by J.g. Gurton]. (v. 5)
A Philosophical Dictionary From the Fr - by J.g. Gurton - v. 5 Author:Voltaire Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: I have been very much tempted to write against the English author ; but his memoir not appearing to be exaggerated, I have restrained myself. For the future I ho... more »pe there will be no more such calculations to make. But to whom shall we be indebted for that? MASTER. SECTIOX I. How unfortunate am I to have been born! said Ardassan Ougli, a young icoglan of the grand sultan of the Turks. Yet, if I depended only on the sultan— but I am also subject to the chief of my oda, to the cassigi bachi; and when I receive my pay, I must prostrate myself before a clerk of the teftardar, who keeps back half of it. I was not seven years old, when in spite of myself I was circumcised with great ceremony and was ill for a fortnight after it. The dervise who prays to us is also my master ; an iman is still more my master, and the mullah still more so than the iman. The cadi is another master, the kadeslesker a greater; the mufti a greater than all these together. The kiaia of the grand vizier with one word could cause me to be thrown into the canal; and finally, the grand vizier could have me beheaded, and the skin of my head stripped off, without any person caring about the matter. Great God, how many masters! If I had as many souls and bodies as I have duties to fulfil, I could not bear it. Oh Allah! why hast thou not made me an owl ? I should live free in my hole, and eat mice at my ease, without masters or servants. This is assuredly the true destiny of man ; there were no masters until it was perverted; no man was made to serve another continually. If things were in order, each should charitably help his neighbour. The quick- sighted would conduct the blind; the active would be crutches to the lame. This world would be the paradise of Mahomet, instead of the hell which is formed precis...« less