and later marched back toward Syria in 360 AH. His forces had now become formidable; he met Jaʿfar ibn Falaḥ, the commander of al-Muʿizz al-ʿUbaydī’s army, routed him, captured Jaʿfar and slaughtered him. (Jaʿfar had previously taken Damascus and delivered it to al-Muʿizz.) Al-Aʿṣam’s ambitions then rose still higher: he marched with his armies toward Egypt and, in 361 AH, besieged the country for several months. He appointed Ẓālim ibn Marhūb al-ʿUqaylī as governor of Damascus, then returned to Syria. He died in Ramla in 366 AH, while outwardly professing obedience to the Abbasid caliph al-Ṭāʾiʿ.

He also composed refined verse.

Ḥusayn ibn ʿUthmān al-Fāriqī relates: “I was in Ramla when Abū ʿAlī the Qarmaṭian arrived—a man of plain dress who admitted me to his service. One night I was with him and candles were brought in. He said to his secretary, Abū Naṣr Kashājim, ‘What description comes to mind for this candle?’

“Kashājim replied, ‘We attend our master’s majlis only to listen to his words.’

“Abū ʿAlī thereupon improvised:

A plaited form, like a spear’s smooth shaft—
stripped outside, yet inwardly clad;
She has an eye that is her living soul,
and a crown shaped like a hooded cloak.
When the morning breeze flirts with her,
it sets in motion a tongue of polished gold;
Thus we enjoy the bliss of light,
while she endures the misfortune of fire.

“Abū Naṣr answered—in approval, kissing the ground first:

This night of ours is a night
that mirrors Euclid’s perfect figures;
So, O mistress of the lute, hasten the song,
and you who bear the cup, do not grow drowsy.” (1)