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(3) A masnawi in praise of Nawab Asuf-ood-Dowlah, and regarding his way of hunting
	[meter: - = = / - = = / - = = / - = ]
	*old Urdu page 1*; *modern Urdu page 1*; *critical edition page 1*
1) At the top of the page, thus today at break of day, The pen in the hand of Sauda began to say,
2) He who is, at the present time, minister of India, Is a youth in resolution, and an old man in planning;
3) In the world he, whose name is Asuf-ood-dowlah, In dignity is like Solomon, and most magnificent;	== That is to say, he had many attendants and followers.
4) Where he waves* his sword, He regards a lion as a fox.	== The Oordoo word means to balance a sword, or any weapon, ready to give a cut.
5) Suddenly one day, for the purpose of hunting, He turned his steps towards the mountains;
6) He proceeded to the hunting ground in such a way, That he avoided every prey,	== That is to say, he hid himself from their glance.
	*critical edition page 2*
7) And there remained not, except under his sword, To the deer, hogdeer, spotted deer, or ravine deer, any place (of refuge);
	*old Urdu page 2*
8) The quadrupeds could obtain no safety, When he turned his attention to the nilgao;	== Here meaning the nilgao; the poet has used the word "quadruped" to save tautology.
9) When the cow of the earth saw no place of protection, She took refuge under his feet.	== The cow on which the Hindoos suppose the earth to rest, is here referred to.
10) Whether it was a wild buffalo, or a rhinoceros, Their bodies were turned into sieves by the arrows and balls.
11) Then all the carniverous animals in that desert Were caught by the foot in the noose of death;
12) And of all the foxes, wolves, and jackals, The hunting dogs were death to their lives.
13) Wherever he heard that there was a lion, He made no delay in reaching that place;
14) And however powerful a tiger there might be there, He flayed its skin, and filled it with straw.	== This, amongst natives, is the sign of the greatest contempt.
	*modern Urdu page 2*; *critical edition page 3*
15) In the forests, he killed such a number of tigers, That they fell beyond the bounds of computation;
16) When he had cleared the deserts and wilds of tigers, Then, from his killing of tigers, such fear arose,
17) That, from dread of losing his life, his name changed he, Whose name was Sher Khan (the Lord of tigers).
18) When he had cleared the jungles of carniverous animals, Then he returned to his tent.
19) Great and small, beholding. remained astonished, When they saw the tigers, which were worked on the carpets, get up and run away from before him.
20) When this news reached from earth to heaven, Then the constellation Leo began to reflect about his own safety.
21) It was not only to land animals, that the world became difficult to live in, But neither fish nor crocodiles escaped in the sea.
22) What shall I say regarding the state of the venomous animals? And yet how can I remain without relating it?
23) Wherever the water (edge) of his sword flowed, There neither the large serpent nor the dragon escaped;	== The words"ab bahna" are used to imply that there arose a great flood, which made it difficult for these animals to live.
	*critical edition page 4*
24) When he was satisfied with hunting the grazmg animals, He left alive no birds from the pheasant to the quail.
25) In the sight of young and old, no flying creature Appeared in the air, except his arrows.
26) Whether he saw demons or rapacious animals there, Still he let them not off, regarding them as prey;
27) Moreover he brought back all the elephants that had run away from there, And they all came, having become subservient to him.	== Another translation of these two lines might be, "Moreover all the elephants, that he brought from there, all came having become subservient to him."
28) Although all elephants are very lovely, And they are most desirable for riding purposes,
29) Still, amongst those elephants, there is one so beautiful, That my tongue becomes dumb in its praise;
30) Never has such an elephant, by the eyes of the world, Been seen under the nine heavens;
	*old Urdu page 3*
31) It is so tall in stature, That every man of sense, on seeing it, begins to say,
32) "In my opinion this is not an elephant; This has become certain to me from seeing it,
	*critical edition page 5*
33) When, for hundreds of miles around, there remained no sport, Then they* put it in chains, and dragged a mountain;	== Meaning, his attendants. == Meaning, the elephant was so large that it resembled a mountain.
34) There is not the least defect in its beauty; May God keep it removed from the evil eye!
35) May it remain till everlasting under your royal shadow (protection)! May you always be watchful for its care!
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