700 – I came across a manuscript by Dāwūd ibn Rushayd, written in his own hand: Ibn al-Sammāk once entered the presence of Hārūn al-Rashīd. The caliph said, “Admonish me, but be brief.” Ibn al-Sammāk replied, “Commander of the Believers, how astonishing is the condition we are in—how has it come to dominate us? Even more astonishing is the realm to which we are heading—how can we be so heedless of it? Marvellous indeed: something small and insignificant, fated to perish, has gained the upper hand over something vast, enduring, everlasting, never to disappear.”