him as a warning and declared, “Whoever, though corrupt, is dazzled by a lofty name will end up with no provision, and whoever betrays his provision will be left without life.” He then ordered the vizier to be crucified. This story is recorded in the book Bādrakār-nāmah, wherein the poet says:

I was never deluded by the splendour of your name;
I adopted it only to contrive a means of living.
Whoever turns titles into a snare for his livelihood
Is deemed a lifeless corpse, stretched upon the trunk.

Story: It is related that ʿAmr ibn Layth had a kinsman called Abū Jaʿfar ibn Zaydawayh, for whom he felt great affection. Among the tokens of his love was that every year he sent him from Herat one hundred red-haired, shaggy camels, each bearing a load of supplies. From every item ʿAmr dispatched one load to Abū Jaʿfar’s house and ordered that his kitchen be supplied generously.

Someone informed ʿAmr ibn Layth that Abū Jaʿfar had thrown one of his attendants to the ground and beaten him with twenty strokes of a stick. ʿAmr had Abū Jaʿfar brought before him and commanded that every sword in his armoury be produced. “Abū Jaʿfar,” he said, “choose the finest of these swords and set it apart.” Abū Jaʿfar kept selecting until he had separated one hundred swords. ʿAmr then said, “Now choose two swords from among these.” Abū Jaʿfar selected the two best. ʿAmr said, “Order that they both be placed in a single scabbard.” Abū Jaʿfar objected, “My lord, how can two swords fit in one scabbard?” ʿAmr ibn Layth replied, “Then how can two emirs dwell in one land?” Realising his error, Abū Jaʿfar kissed the ground and begged for pardon and release. ʿAmr ibn Layth said, “Had it not been for the bond of kinship, I would not have spared your house. Cease from this affair and leave it to us; we pardon you this time.”

Maxim: Azdashir said, “If the king is too weak to reform his close associates and restrain them from injustice, how can he restore the common folk to righteousness?” Allah, exalted is He, says: “And warn your close relatives” (Q 26:214). The Arabs say: nothing ruins a kingdom and corrupts the subjects more than the difficulty of gaining an audience, the multitude of doorkeepers, and restrictive barriers. When the king is easy of access, the officials dare not oppress the subjects, the subjects fear to wrong one another, and through that ease of access the king