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How to Teach Your Dog the Down Command
You can use the Down command to get your dog to control his impulses or to stay in one place for a prolonged period of time. A well-trained dog obeys a "Down" from you until you release him (or until he falls asleep!). The Down command is also one of the commands your dog will be tested on as part of the Canine Good Citizen test. Check out this video to see how to teach your dog the Down command.
It's easier to teach your dog the Down command if he already knows how to sit. Here's how to teach Down:
Have your dog sit in front of you and show him a treat.
Lower the treat to the ground and toward you.
Your dog will follow the movement with his body, lowering his head and stretching toward the treat.
When your dog reaches the Down position, say "Down," give him the treat, and praise him.
Practice this exercise a couple of times every day. As your dog understands what you expect him to do, start rewarding him with a treat every other time he lies down. Eventually your dog will lie down on command.


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With major developments taking place in the field of technology, people are now ready and are looking forward to buy driverless cars. Driverless cars will be the next big thing in the world. Here are 4 things you should understand about driverless cars.
- Driverless Cars Use New Technologies: To this date, all of the self driving cars that were on the road for testing used the mature radar, camera and some laser technologies for guiding the vehicle. There has not been a major advancement in technology that is making the driverless cars completely error free; however, GPS, camera and some laser sensors are now being made use of to check the car's surroundings on a constant basis.
- The Best Looking Driverless Car at Present Is Merc-Benz F 105: To this date, Merc F 105 is the coolest looking car with self-driving technology. This car delivers what is expected out of a Mercedes car – that is class as well as comfort. When you are in the F 105, you can either choose to relax or you can take control of the car. The car featuresa flat front widescreen, 4 seats and also lounge chairs that let the front seats to turn around to face rear seats.
- There Could Be Congestion in the Initially Days: The plan of taking off humans from controlling the cars may convey that the traffic will improve. However, testing has gone on to show that when half of the driverless cars at an inter-section are self-driving, the congestion can get really worse. However, this will be the case during the initial days. Once people get used to this kind of a system, they will be benefited.
- Driverless CarsHave Many Benefits Once Adopted: Once these driverless cars are widely adopted, there will be a lot of benefits. Because of the increased reliability and the quick reaction time when compared with the human drivers, the self-driving car will be involved in much lesser car accidents. The parking problem that is faced today will be overcome when the driverless cars become the primary means of transport in the near future. The ride in a self-driving car will also be way too smooth, letting people enjoy the ride.
Driverless cars have many benefits to it.People will surely embrace these cars once they are assured of its safety.

subset: commoncrawl


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One of the main problems with getting absolute accuracy with our CNC drilling machine is overcoming backlash. We've loads of it. Not only between the cogs and the gears on our gantries, but inside the cheap little stepper motors too. Because the motors themselves are geared down inside, there's loads of backlash/slack on the actual motor spindle – and that's before any slack we introduce with our plastic push-fit rack-and-pinion arrangement to drive the axes.
All that said, we're still getting pretty good results, by compensating for backlash whenever we change direction in each axis (for example, whenever the x-axis gantry is travelling left-to-right, and we need to reverse it, to move right-to-left, we add in an extra number of steps to the move command, to take up any slack in the system).
Looking over our software, the "move-to-nearest-point" may make pretty efficient use of time, but because of the number of times we change direction over the course of drilling a board, there are plenty of opportunities for backlash/slack to affect our accuracy.
We've changed our driver software to use calculate different paths now.
Previously, it started at one point and simply picked the nearest undrilled point to the current location:
Now, we're going to move the head to the top-left-most point on the board, and drill them in a strict left-to-right, top-to-bottom sequence:
Although not shown on the screenshot, we're also planning on "overshooting" any point when moving the gantry from right-to-left, before moving to the correct location. The reason?
Doing things this way, we should help reduce (if not eliminate) backlash/slack in the y-axis, since the bed will only ever be travelling in the top-to-bottom direction. By overshooting each point when travelling from right-to-left, we're also ensuring that every hole is approached from the top-left corner so the system should be tight when travelling from top-left to bottom-right.
Hopefully this will help reduce the amount of backlash in the system, and produce a more accurate drilling action.
That's the theory taken care of.
The software is almost ready for testing.
There's only one thing left to do – and that's try it out!


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Searching For Chiropractic Clinics Near You?
If you frequently deal with back pains, neck pains, spine, and sports injuries, you might be searching for the best chiropractic clinics near Amity Arkansas. Chiropractic care is considered a holistic and alternative treatment option that triggers the body's natural healing abilities. It is a non-invasive treatment option where millions of Americans are benefiting at the moment. The approach is shown to treat more than a dozen of different conditions. One of the best things about chiropractic care is that the method is 100% drug-free and helps heal your body naturally. The treatment option is effective in dealing with headaches, back pains, ear infections, neck pains, joint pains, arthritis, bowel irregularities, blood pressure, asthma, improved mental clarity, and a host of other conditions. With hundreds of chiropractic clinics near Amity, one should be cautious when selecting the best practitioner in the area. Here are important tips to consider when choosing the best chiropractic clinics nearby your location.
Despite the popularity of the treatment method, there are many misconceptions about the field of chiropractic care. Many patients are still confused when it comes to how the practice works and how chiropractic professionals are trained. In fact, most of the chiropractic programs incorporate an entire year of Ph.D.-level training in different subjects. Hence, a chiropractic doctor is a highly skilled and trained individual out there. Like with all other professions out there, there are many quacks operating in this industry too. That is why it is important that you perform extensive research before deciding to work with the right chiropractic doctor in your Amity area. Your homework is essential to choosing the best candidate for the job.
How Could My Digestive System Be Causing My Back Pain?
Having to bear lower back pain accompanied with stomach pain is an experience no one should ever have to go through. Scientists and doctors all over the world are groping around, mostly in the dark, trying to put their finger on the cause of lower back pain. So far as women are concerned doctors are sure that lower back pain accompanied with stomach pain is related to their menstrual cycles and this is something that can be dealt with a fair amount of ease.
However, doctors have admitted that it is not an easy thing to pinpoint the cause of lower back pain accompanied with stomach pain. They insist that a patient who can keep a track of the symptoms and report them to the doctor will make the process of diagnosing the cause and arriving at a better and effective treatment an easier task.
Some of the causes of lower back pain accompanied with stomach pain are related to the more common urinary infections and kidney or bladder problems, then again you may have a serious bowel problem. Whatever the cause of your lower back pain and abdominal pain you will soon find that it is very difficult to pinpoint and even more difficult to treat effectively. Most treatments available will prove to be temporary in nature and the condition will recur frequently.
If you happen to have lower a bloated or swollen lower belly, this may be a warning flag for conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome. Notice fresh blood or tarry looking stools? This would need investigating as well.
Your pain may feel like it's coming from the womb or any other of your internal reproductive organs. This would mean you would experience the pain in the middle of the lower belly, just above the line of public hair about as far up as the navel. There might be more pain to one side than the other - usually an indication of an ovary being inflamed etc. If you have pain when you have sex, you would feel that deep in your pelvic area. The possible range of conditions is varied. You could be looking at pelvic inflammatory disease, ovarian cysts, fibroids or maybe even endometriosis. In any event, don't wait call your doctor immediately.
Most of the wellness and health benefits associated with chiropractic care are due to the chiropractic adjustments received by the patients. These adjustments are important to place your body in the proper position so that it can heal itself. In fact, chiropractic adjustments help reduce the stress placed on the patient's immune system. This will release energy that is vital for maintaining homeostasis and preventing diseases. The treatment option addresses the whole body of the individual thereby improving his or her ability to think and act more positively.
A professional Amity Arkansas chiropractor prides him/herself on taking a drug-free, natural approach to helping the patient improve his/her wellness and health in the long run. In fact, the entire principle is built on the basis that the body has an innate ability to heal itself under the right conditions. The chiropractic doctor will help create the right environment for the body to start healing itself. The practice focuses on keeping one's spine properly aligned at all times. The nervous system controls every organ and cell in the body. Hence, if the spine shifts out of its proper place, it should be brought back into alignment without delay to prevent issues in the nervous system which can manifest as various diseases in the body. That is where a professional and experienced chiropractic doctor comes in handy.
Causes of Lower Right Back Pain
You have long muscles that run along the spine called the erector spinae muscles. These are often the guilty muscles when you have back pain and muscle spasms. A spasm is an involuntary contraction of the muscle for a sustained period of time. Usually a spasm occurs when the muscle has been suddenly stressed somehow which can include injury, sprains, tears or bruising. The spasm can actually start in the nerves that lead into the muscle though the feeling is the same no matter where the spasm starts.
Most of the time muscle spasms are painful, but not serious. It should be mentioned though that in some cases, the spasm may be a symptom of a more serious problem. The back is composed of bones, muscles and ligaments, and injury or disease to any component can result in back pain muscle spasms.
Other forms of therapy for back pain [http://releasebackpain.com/back] and muscle spasms include massage or physical therapy. But one of the most important therapies you can do yourself. That's to maintain good posture. Good posture lets your spine work the way it was designed to work. Maintaining good posture is important during any activity too and not just while standing. You should stand, sit, walk and lift while maintaining proper spine position. This will help you avoid muscle injury and sprains that can lead to muscle spasms.
The American Chiropractic Association states that there are more than 70,000 chiropractic professionals operating in the United States alone. With so many to choose from, finding "any" chiropractic doctor is fairly easy. But you don't need "any" chiropractic when it comes to treating your condition. In fact, you want the "best" chiropractor in Amity to treat your specific condition. This is a bit trickier than finding just any chiropractic doctor in the area. There are many things to consider when choosing the right professional to treat your condition.
When provided by a highly skilled and experienced professional, chiropractic care is quite effective in healing a wide variety of conditions. The right professional should have a combination of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experience. A personal referral from someone you trust is a great starting point when searching for any type of professional near Amity Arkansas. Ask your existing health care team, friends, family members or co-workers for recommendations in this regard. You may also hop online and read patient reviews and surveys on professional chiropractors operating in your area. Make sure you do the homework properly before scheduling your first appointment with the potential candidate.
Don't forget to check the credentials and experience of the potential candidate. Chiropractors are also known as doctors of chiropractic (DCs). They are highly trained professionals who have completed nationally accredited graduate-level programs. In addition to their 4-year undergraduate degree, a chiropractor should have a 4-year doctorate degree – similar to doctors of osteopathy (DOs) and medical doctors (MDs). Make sure the candidate you choose is licensed and a graduate of an accredited school of chiropractic. Evaluate his/her experience before you work with them. These are some of the most important things to look for when choosing the best chiropractic clinic in Amity Arkansas.


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In an answer to Artificial Gravity - Spinning Station Questions Vintage wrote:
A theoretical space station of radius 900 meters, doing a complete rotation every 60 seconds (in order to generate about 1g at the outer rim) would have an outer tube tangential velocity of about 90 m/s. The air in the tube would have the same tangential velocity. If you were instantly instantiated in this tube, weightless, with zero tangential velocity, you would experience an air blast somewhat similar to standing on the hood of a Ferrari, screaming down the Autobahn at 324 km/hr.
The original question was from slight_disregard, I'm just expanding on it.
If I'm standing inside the station as Vintage states I'm going 324 km/hr if I jump straight up at 1 m/sec where do I land?
Does the air 10m up from where I'm standing going at the same speed or does the Coriolis effect make it go slower?
If I get in my Ferrari and go 324 km/hr opposite to the spin direction does my car become weightless?


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State of California Auto Dismantlers Association
The State of California Auto Dismantlers Association (SCADA)
is a statewide trade association with 150 members and 6 local chapters and Direct Membership Areas. SCADA was founded in 1959 to serve the members in areas of education, government, business and social activities as they relate to auto dismantling and recycling.
Licensed auto dismantlers provide an essential service that directly addresses society's ever increasing problem of what to do with end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). An estimated 1.3 million vehicles will reach the end of their useful lives this year in California, either by determination of their owners or by being declared a total loss by an insurance company. While those vehicles might otherwise end up on the roadside or abandoned in empty lots, licensed dismantlers acquire them and safely convert them into reusable/recycled commodities.
Component parts are tested and examined to determine which can be reused or recycled. Fluids are extracted and properly recycled. The reusable parts are removed, cleaned, catalogued and stored. They are then sold to repair other cars at a savings of up to 80% over the cost of new parts. Recyclable materials are sent to a processor, and manufactured into new products. There are about 1,100 dismantlers licensed by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
SEPTEMBER 6th-7th, 2019 Hyatt Palm Springs
Click Here for Attendee Registration
Click here for Vendor Sign-Ups and More Information
Please fill out and return registration form, by Mail to:
SCADA 2017 Convention
3550 Watt Avenue, Suite 140
Sacramento, CA 95821
Fax to: (916) 979-7089, or Email to: email@example.com
Read the DMV Campaign here – DMV-Launches-Campaign-to-Combat-Unlicensed-Vehicle-Dismantlers
PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT AND SUPPORT RESPONSIBLE RECYCLING: Use recycled parts when repairing your vehicle and buy them from SCADA members who are Certified through the "Partners" program.
Help us spread the word by placing a SCADA logo on your website! Click here to learn how…
REPORT ILLEGAL DISMANTLING: If you suspect that a business is violating California or federal law by not maintaining the proper licenses and permits, or is damaging the environment while processing end of life vehicles, please submit a report through SCADA to the proper regulatory agency. Click here for "Complaint Form."


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With a July 1 NBA lockout date looming, the president of the NBA Players' Association said Friday he's hopeful that owners and players will have a framework for a new six-year collective bargaining agreement in place by the weekend.
With talks resuming at an undisclosed location in New York, Michael Curry told ESPN The Magazine's Ric Bucher that he is optimistic that the sides might reach a tentative proposal that each side could present to its constituents next week for approval.
Curry did not provide details on what the framework would include, but he described the tenor of the talks as "good."
"Having been through this before, I was optimistic that we could get a deal done in time," said Curry, who was part of the negotiations that resulted in the last collective bargaining deal in 1999, which followed a lockout.
The collective bargaining agreement is set to expire June 30, after which, a lockout would begin.
Curry told Bucher that he knew "it would simply take getting to the 11th hour. We're now at the 11th hour."
According to Curry, the players attending Friday's meeting included himself, Antonio Davis and Pat Garrity. Curry said the team executives at the meeting were Wyc Grousbeck, managing partner of the Boston Celtics; Steve Mills, president and CEO of MSG Sports (representing the New York Knicks); Les Alexander, owner of the Houston Rockets; and Lewis Katz, owner of the New Jersey Nets.
Friday's meeting, which included NBA commissioner David Stern and players' association director Billy Hunter, was the first since June 1, when the sides met for 2½ hours at the union's offices in New York.
"We made significant progress today and tonight," NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik said in a statement. "We will convene again in small groups over the course of the weekend and will reconvene the larger group on Tuesday morning."
The past two weeks have been marked by public posturing from both sides, with the latest salvo coming Wednesday when Hunter traveled to the NBA Finals in Detroit to explain his side of the story as to why talks have been stalled.
Hunter said he would call Stern before the current labor agreement expires, and that call apparently was made Thursday. The sides have engaged in on-and-off talks throughout the late winter and spring.
On Wednesday, Hunter said he surmised from Stern's public comments last Sunday that only three issues remain in dispute -- an age limit for rookies, a tougher drug-testing program and the maximum length of long-term contracts, but deputy commissioner Russ Granik said Hunter's assumption was incorrect.
Owners are known to be seeking several other changes to current rules, including a new luxury tax (dubbed a "supertax") for the highest spending teams, reductions in the size of annual salary increases in long-term contracts, a shortened rookie wage scale and adjustments to the so-called trigger percentages that activate the escrow and luxury taxes designed to curtail spending on player salaries.
Stern did not reference those items when he addressed the media before Game 2 of the Finals, though he did go into detail about where the owners stand on the other items. He said the league wants the minimum age raised to 19, the maximum contract length reduced from seven years to six, and an anti-drug agreement that would call for veterans to be tested year-round. Currently, veterans are tested only once per year, during training camp.
Information from ESPN.com senior writer Marc Stein and The Associated Press was used in this report.


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The easy way to hire artists similar to Apollo Groove
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This service is intended for personal use only and no part of the service may be displayed in public, broadcast or used for any business purpose without the consent of Alive Network. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of our services and web content, we accept no responsibility for any use made of the information provided and we shall not be liable for any loss suffered thereby.
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Windows 7's market share surged nearly 40 percent in the week following its release, according to Web measurement company Net Applications.
Overall, Windows continued to lose share globally, dropping 0.23 of a percentage point during October, while Apple's Mac OS X picked up most of that loss, gaining 0.15 of a point to finish the month near 5.3 percent, its highest ever.
[ Get InfoWorld's 21-page hands-on look at the new version of Windows. | The real-world state of Windows: Check out InfoWorld's live Windows Pulse monitors of users' app preferences and PC configurations. ]
For the week after Microsoft launched Windows 7 on Oct. 22, the new operating system's share averaged 2.66 percent, a jump of more than 39 percent over the 1.91 percent average for the part of October prior to its retail release.
Windows 7's peak of 3.48 percent on Saturday, Oct. 31, represented an even larger 82 percent increase over the average of Oct. 1 through Oct. 22. For the month, Windows 7 finished with a market share of 2.15 percent, up 41 percent over the 1.52 percent for September. The numbers from Net Applications mean that about one in every 44 personal computers was running Windows 7 last month.
But some countries boast a much higher Windows 7 share, Net Applications said. "Upon analysis of global Windows 7 usage share, we noticed a distinct pattern," the company said in a note posted on its site. "Russia and many Eastern European countries already have significant share of Windows 7 usage. We are sure these are all properly licensed users."
The tongue-in-cheek comment was well taken: Of the top 25 countries by Windows 7 usage, 17 are in Eastern Europe or formerly part of the U.S.S.R. Slovenia, where 7.8 percent of the computers ran Windows 7 last month, led the list, followed by Lithuania in the No. 3 spot (6.5 percent), Rumania as No 4 (6 percent) and Latvia at No. 5 (6 percent). In Russia, at No. 21, 4.2 percent of all machines used Windows 7.
Net Applications' implication -- that the Windows 7 share in Eastern Europe is due to counterfeit copies -- is backed up by data from a May 2009 report generated by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), an industry-backed anti-piracy organization, and research firm IDC. In 2008, the piracy rate in Central and Eastern Europe was the highest of all seven regions the BSA and IDC tracked.
Slovenia's piracy rate -- the estimated percentage of all software in use that is not legally licensed -- was 47 percent last year, more than double the rate in the U.S. Lithuania, Rumania, Latvia and Russia, meanwhile, had piracy rates of 54 percent, 66 percent, 56 percent and 68 percent, respectively.
However Windows 7 was acquired -- legally or not -- its increase was outweighed by a steeper-than-usual decline in Windows XP last month. The eight-year-old operating system lost 0.92 percentage point in October, significantly more than the 0.64 point average loss each month during the past year, falling to 70.6 percent.
Vista rebounded from September, when it fell for the first time in more than two years. Vista's October share of 18.77 percent, however, was still off its record of 18.8 percent in August.
Windows' overall share dropped 0.23 of a percentage point to 92.5 percent. Microsoft's OS has lost about two and a half share points in the last year.
As it has repeatedly, Mac OS X was the recipient of most of the users lost to Microsoft: Apple's operating system climbed by 0.15 of a percentage point to end October at 5.27 percent, a new record and only the second time it's finished above 5 percent since Net Applications revised its methodology in June.
Net Applications measures operating system usage by tracking the machines that surf to the 40,000 sites it monitors for clients, which results in a pool of about 160 million unique visitors per month. It weights share by the estimated size of each country's Internet population.
October's operating system data can be found on Net Applications' site.
This story, "Windows 7 share surges 40% in first week of release" was originally published by Computerworld.


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I finished this "I Spy" D9P yesterday, made the top a couple of months ago. Kept the quilting simple using a variegated thread, just stitching around the blocks and loopy FMQ on the solid blocks. I have been commissioned to make a Betty Boop quilt using D9P pattern, but wanted to see what the solid colors would look like. Way to busy for an adult quilt!! So will probably make another one soon working with just two colors. Thanks for looking.
I Spy quilt using Disappearing 9 Patch pattern
Closeup showing the quilting


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The Dubai Festival Waterfront Centre is a popular new mega mall, situated in the heart of Dubai Festival City's 195,000 square metres of retail area, home to 550 shops and almost 100 restaurants and cafés.
A Skywalk Entertainment level features a 12-screen Grand Cinema Complex, Electronics Collection, Bowling City and more. The master concept involved bringing together an extensive array of international fashion boutiques and famous brands with an eclectic variety of shops and services. The Dubai Festival Waterfront Centre is a hugely atmospheric place, with al fresco dining being the order of the day.
The Dubai Festival Waterfront Centre is also a fine location to while away an evening – great access and facilities, superb dining and all the shopping opportunities you could want. Another plus is the two new hotels, the InterContinental, with its Anise buffet restaurant, and the Crowne Plaza, with its much-celebrated Belgian Beer Café. Finally, with its quick and easy access, the Dubai Festival Waterfront Centre is also an excellent concert venue.
Address: Festival City.
Open: Sunday to Wednesday 10:00 to 22:00, Thursday to Saturday 10:00 to 24:00.
Tel: +971 (0)4 232 5444
Web: www.dubaifestivalcity.com
Back to Dubai Shopping


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Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 4, by Edward Gibbon, [1788], at sacred-texts.com
Revolutions On Persia After The Death Of Chosroes On Nushirvan. - His Son Hormouz, A Tyrant, Is Deposed. - Usurpation Of Baharam. - Flight And Restoration Of Chosroes II. - His Gratitude To The Romans. - The Chagan Of The Avars. - Revolt Of The Army Against Maurice. - His Death. - Tyranny Of Phocas. - Elevation Of Heraclius. - The Persian War. - Chosroes Subdues Syria, Egypt, And Asia Minor. - Siege Of Constantinople By The Persians And Avars. - Persian Expeditions. - Victories And Triumph Of Heraclius.
The conflict of Rome and Persia was prolonged from the death of Craesus to the reign of Heraclius. An experience of seven hundred years might convince the rival nations of the impossibility of maintaining their conquests beyond the fatal limits of the Tigris and Euphrates. Yet the emulation of Trajan and Julian was awakened by the trophies of Alexander, and the sovereigns of Persia indulged the ambitious hope of restoring the empire of Cyrus. 1 Such extraordinary efforts of power and courage will always command the attention of posterity; but the events by which the fate of nations is not materially changed, leave a faint impression on the page of history, and the patience of the reader would be exhausted by the repetition of the same hostilities, undertaken without cause, prosecuted without glory, and terminated without effect. The arts of negotiation, unknown to the simple greatness of the senate and the Caesars, were assiduously cultivated by the Byzantine princes; and the memorials of their perpetual embassies 2 repeat, with the same uniform prolixity, the language of falsehood and declamation, the insolence of the Barbarians, and the servile temper of the tributary Greeks. Lamenting the barren superfluity of materials, I have studied to compress the narrative of these uninteresting transactions: but the just Nushirvan is still applauded as the model of Oriental kings, and the ambition of his grandson Chosroes prepared the revolution of the East, which was speedily accomplished by the arms and the religion of the successors of Mahomet.
In the useless altercations, that precede and justify the quarrels of princes, the Greeks and the Barbarians accused each other of violating the peace which had been concluded between the two empires about four years before the death of Justinian. The sovereign of Persia and India aspired to reduce under his obedience the province of Yemen or Arabia 3 Felix; the distant land of myrrh and frankincense, which had escaped, rather than opposed, the conquerors of the East. After the defeat of Abrahah under the walls of Mecca, the discord of his sons and brothers gave an easy entrance to the Persians: they chased the strangers of Abyssinia beyond the Red Sea; and a native prince of the ancient Homerites was restored to the throne as the vassal or viceroy of the great Nushirvan. 4 But the nephew of Justinian declared his resolution to avenge the injuries of his Christian ally the prince of Abyssinia, as they suggested a decent pretence to discontinue the annual tribute, which was poorly disguised by the name of pension. The churches of Persarmenia were oppressed by the intolerant spirit of the Magi; *_0061 they secretly invoked the protector of the Christians, and, after the pious murder of their satraps, the rebels were avowed and supported as the brethren and subjects of the Roman emperor. The complaints of Nushirvan were disregarded by the Byzantine court; Justin yielded to the importunities of the Turks, who offered an alliance against the common enemy; and the Persian monarchy was threatened at the same instant by the united forces of Europe, of Aethiopia, and of Scythia. At the age of fourscore the sovereign of the East would perhaps have chosen the peaceful enjoyment of his glory and greatness; but as soon as war became inevitable, he took the field with the alacrity of youth, whilst the aggressor trembled in the palace of Constantinople. Nushirvan, or Chosroes, conducted in person the siege of Dara; and although that important fortress had been left destitute of troops and magazines, the valor of the inhabitants resisted above five months the archers, the elephants, and the military engines of the Great King. In the mean while his general Adarman advanced from Babylon, traversed the desert, passed the Euphrates, insulted the suburbs of Antioch, reduced to ashes the city of Apamea, and laid the spoils of Syria at the feet of his master, whose perseverance in the midst of winter at length subverted the bulwark of the East. But these losses, which astonished the provinces and the court, produced a salutary effect in the repentance and abdication of the emperor Justin: a new spirit arose in the Byzantine councils; and a truce of three years was obtained by the prudence of Tiberius. That seasonable interval was employed in the preparations of war; and the voice of rumor proclaimed to the world, that from the distant countries of the Alps and the Rhine, from Scythia, Maesia, Pannonia, Illyricum, and Isauria, the strength of the Imperial cavalry was reenforced with one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers. Yet the king of Persia, without fear, or without faith, resolved to prevent the attack of the enemy; again passed the Euphrates, and dismissing the ambassadors of Tiberius, arrogantly commanded them to await his arrival at Caesarea, the metropolis of the Cappadocian provinces. The two armies encountered each other in the battle of Melitene: **_0061 the Barbarians, who darkened the air with a cloud of arrows, prolonged their line, and extended their wings across the plain; while the Romans, in deep and solid bodies, expected to prevail in closer action, by the weight of their swords and lances. A Scythian chief, who commanded their right wing, suddenly turned the flank of the enemy, attacked their rear-guard in the presence of Chosroes, penetrated to the midst of the camp, pillaged the royal tent, profaned the eternal fire, loaded a train of camels with the spoils of Asia, cut his way through the Persian host, and returned with songs of victory to his friends, who had consumed the day in single combats, or ineffectual skirmishes. The darkness of the night, and the separation of the Romans, afforded the Persian monarch an opportunity of revenge; and one of their camps was swept away by a rapid and impetuous assault. But the review of his loss, and the consciousness of his danger, determined Chosroes to a speedy retreat: he burnt, in his passage, the vacant town of Melitene; and, without consulting the safety of his troops, boldly swam the Euphrates on the back of an elephant. After this unsuccessful campaign, the want of magazines, and perhaps some inroad of the Turks, obliged him to disband or divide his forces; the Romans were left masters of the field, and their general Justinian, advancing to the relief of the Persarmenian rebels, erected his standard on the banks of the Araxes. The great Pompey had formerly halted within three days' march of the Caspian: 5 that inland sea was explored, for the first time, by a hostile fleet, 6 and seventy thousand captives were transplanted from Hyrcania to the Isle of Cyprus. On the return of spring, Justinian descended into the fertile plains of Assyria; the flames of war approached the residence of Nushirvan; the indignant monarch sunk into the grave; and his last edict restrained his successors from exposing their person in battle against the Romans. ***_0061 Yet the memory of this transient affront was lost in the glories of a long reign; and his formidable enemies, after indulging their dream of conquest, again solicited a short respite from the calamities of war. 7
The throne of Chosroes Nushirvan was filled by Hormouz, or Hormisdas, the eldest or the most favored of his sons. With the kingdoms of Persia and India, he inherited the reputation and example of his father, the service, in every rank, of his wise and valiant officers, and a general system of administration, harmonized by time and political wisdom to promote the happiness of the prince and people. But the royal youth enjoyed a still more valuable blessing, the friendship of a sage who had presided over his education, and who always preferred the honor to the interest of his pupil, his interest to his inclination. In a dispute with the Greek and Indian philosophers, Buzurg 8 had once maintained, that the most grievous misfortune of life is old age without the remembrance of virtue; and our candor will presume that the same principle compelled him, during three years, to direct the councils of the Persian empire. His zeal was rewarded by the gratitude and docility of Hormouz, who acknowledged himself more indebted to his preceptor than to his parent: but when age and labor had impaired the strength, and perhaps the faculties, of this prudent counsellor, he retired from court, and abandoned the youthful monarch to his own passions and those of his favorites. By the fatal vicissitude of human affairs, the same scenes were renewed at Ctesiphon, which had been exhibited at Rome after the death of Marcus Antoninus. The ministers of flattery and corruption, who had been banished by his father, were recalled and cherished by the son; the disgrace and exile of the friends of Nushirvan established their tyranny; and virtue was driven by degrees from the mind of Hormouz, from his palace, and from the government of the state. The faithful agents, the eyes and ears of the king, informed him of the progress of disorder, that the provincial governors flew to their prey with the fierceness of lions and eagles, and that their rapine and injustice would teach the most loyal of his subjects to abhor the name and authority of their sovereign. The sincerity of this advice was punished with death; the murmurs of the cities were despised, their tumults were quelled by military execution: the intermediate powers between the throne and the people were abolished; and the childish vanity of Hormouz, who affected the daily use of the tiara, was fond of declaring, that he alone would be the judge as well as the master of his kingdom. In every word, and in every action, the son of Nushirvan degenerated from the virtues of his father. His avarice defrauded the troops; his jealous caprice degraded the satraps; the palace, the tribunals, the waters of the Tigris, were stained with the blood of the innocent, and the tyrant exulted in the sufferings and execution of thirteen thousand victims. As the excuse of his cruelty, he sometimes condescended to observe, that the fears of the Persians would be productive of hatred, and that their hatred must terminate in rebellion but he forgot that his own guilt and folly had inspired the sentiments which he deplored, and prepared the event which he so justly apprehended. Exasperated by long and hopeless oppression, the provinces of Babylon, Susa, and Carmania, erected the standard of revolt; and the princes of Arabia, India, and Scythia, refused the customary tribute to the unworthy successor of Nushirvan. The arms of the Romans, in slow sieges and frequent inroads, afflicted the frontiers of Mesopotamia and Assyria: one of their generals professed himself the disciple of Scipio; and the soldiers were animated by a miraculous image of Christ, whose mild aspect should never have been displayed in the front of battle. 9 At the same time, the eastern provinces of Persia were invaded by the great khan, who passed the Oxus at the head of three or four hundred thousand Turks. The imprudent Hormouz accepted their perfidious and formidable aid; the cities of Khorassan or Bactriana were commanded to open their gates the march of the Barbarians towards the mountains of Hyrcania revealed the correspondence of the Turkish and Roman arms; and their union must have subverted the throne of the house of Sassan.
Persia had been lost by a king; it was saved by a hero. After his revolt, Varanes or Bahram is stigmatized by the son of Hormouz as an ungrateful slave; the proud and ambiguous reproach of despotism, since he was truly descended from the ancient princes of Rei, 10 one of the seven families whose splendid, as well as substantial, prerogatives exalted them above the heads of the Persian nobility. 11 At the siege of Dara, the valor of Bahram was signalized under the eyes of Nushirvan, and both the father and son successively promoted him to the command of armies, the government of Media, and the superintendence of the palace. The popular prediction which marked him as the deliverer of Persia, might be inspired by his past victories and extraordinary figure: the epithet Giubin *_0062 is expressive of the quality of dry wood: he had the strength and stature of a giant; and his savage countenance was fancifully compared to that of a wild cat. While the nation trembled, while Hormouz disguised his terror by the name of suspicion, and his servants concealed their disloyalty under the mask of fear, Bahram alone displayed his undaunted courage and apparent fidelity: and as soon as he found that no more than twelve thousand soldiers would follow him against the enemy; he prudently declared, that to this fatal number Heaven had reserved the honors of the triumph. !_0062 The steep and narrow descent of the Pule Rudbar, 12 or Hyrcanian rock, is the only pass through which an army can penetrate into the territory of Rei and the plains of Media. From the commanding heights, a band of resolute men might overwhelm with stones and darts the myriads of the Turkish host: their emperor and his son were transpierced with arrows; and the fugitives were left, without counsel or provisions, to the revenge of an injured people. The patriotism of the Persian general was stimulated by his affection for the city of his forefathers: in the hour of victory, every peasant became a soldier, and every soldier a hero; and their ardor was kindled by the gorgeous spectacle of beds, and thrones, and tables of massy gold, the spoils of Asia, and the luxury of the hostile camp. A prince of a less malignant temper could not easily have forgiven his benefactor; and the secret hatred of Hormouz was envenomed by a malicious report, that Bahram had privately retained the most precious fruits of his Turkish victory. But the approach of a Roman army on the side of the Araxes compelled the implacable tyrant to smile and to applaud; and the toils of Bahram were rewarded with the permission of encountering a new enemy, by their skill and discipline more formidable than a Scythian multitude. Elated by his recent success, he despatched a herald with a bold defiance to the camp of the Romans, requesting them to fix a day of battle, and to choose whether they would pass the river themselves, or allow a free passage to the arms of the great king. The lieutenant of the emperor Maurice preferred the safer alternative; and this local circumstance, which would have enhanced the victory of the Persians, rendered their defeat more bloody and their escape more difficult. But the loss of his subjects, and the danger of his kingdom, were overbalanced in the mind of Hormouz by the disgrace of his personal enemy; and no sooner had Bahram collected and reviewed his forces, than he received from a royal messenger the insulting gift of a distaff, a spinning-wheel, and a complete suit of female apparel. Obedient to the will of his sovereign he showed himself to the soldiers in this unworthy disguise they resented his ignominy and their own; a shout of rebellion ran through the ranks; and the general accepted their oath of fidelity and vows of revenge. A second messenger, who had been commanded to bring the rebel in chains, was trampled under the feet of an elephant, and manifestos were diligently circulated, exhorting the Persians to assert their freedom against an odious and contemptible tyrant. The defection was rapid and universal; his loyal slaves were sacrificed to the public fury; the troops deserted to the standard of Bahram; and the provinces again saluted the deliverer of his country.
As the passes were faithfully guarded, Hormouz could only compute the number of his enemies by the testimony of a guilty conscience, and the daily defection of those who, in the hour of his distress, avenged their wrongs, or forgot their obligations. He proudly displayed the ensigns of royalty; but the city and palace of Modain had already escaped from the hand of the tyrant. Among the victims of his cruelty, Bindoes, a Sassanian prince, had been cast into a dungeon; his fetters were broken by the zeal and courage of a brother; and he stood before the king at the head of those trusty guards, who had been chosen as the ministers of his confinement, and perhaps of his death. Alarmed by the hasty intrusion and bold reproaches of the captive, Hormouz looked round, but in vain, for advice or assistance; discovered that his strength consisted in the obedience of others; and patiently yielded to the single arm of Bindoes, who dragged him from the throne to the same dungeon in which he himself had been so lately confined. At the first tumult, Chosroes, the eldest of the sons of Hormouz, escaped from the city; he was persuaded to return by the pressing and friendly invitation of Bindoes, who promised to seat him on his father's throne, and who expected to reign under the name of an inexperienced youth. In the just assurance, that his accomplices could neither forgive nor hope to be forgiven, and that every Persian might be trusted as the judge and enemy of the tyrant, he instituted a public trial without a precedent and without a copy in the annals of the East. The son of Nushirvan, who had requested to plead in his own defence, was introduced as a criminal into the full assembly of the nobles and satraps. 13 He was heard with decent attention as long as he expatiated on the advantages of order and obedience, the danger of innovation, and the inevitable discord of those who had encouraged each other to trample on their lawful and hereditary sovereign. By a pathetic appeal to their humanity, he extorted that pity which is seldom refused to the fallen fortunes of a king; and while they beheld the abject posture and squalid appearance of the prisoner, his tears, his chains, and the marks of ignominious stripes, it was impossible to forget how recently they had adored the divine splendor of his diadem and purple. But an angry murmur arose in the assembly as soon as he presumed to vindicate his conduct, and to applaud the victories of his reign. He defined the duties of a king, and the Persian nobles listened with a smile of contempt; they were fired with indignation when he dared to vilify the character of Chosroes; and by the indiscreet offer of resigning the sceptre to the second of his sons, he subscribed his own condemnation, and sacrificed the life of his own innocent favorite. The mangled bodies of the boy and his mother were exposed to the people; the eyes of Hormouz were pierced with a hot needle; and the punishment of the father was succeeded by the coronation of his eldest son. Chosroes had ascended the throne without guilt, and his piety strove to alleviate the misery of the abdicated monarch; from the dungeon he removed Hormouz to an apartment of the palace, supplied with liberality the consolations of sensual enjoyment, and patiently endured the furious sallies of his resentment and despair. He might despise the resentment of a blind and unpopular tyrant, but the tiara was trembling on his head, till he could subvert the power, or acquire the friendship, of the great Bahram, who sternly denied the justice of a revolution, in which himself and his soldiers, the true representatives of Persia, had never been consulted. The offer of a general amnesty, and of the second rank in his kingdom, was answered by an epistle from Bahram, friend of the gods, conqueror of men, and enemy of tyrants, the satrap of satraps, general of the Persian armies, and a prince adorned with the title of eleven virtues. 14 He commands Chosroes, the son of Hormouz, to shun the example and fate of his father, to confine the traitors who had been released from their chains, to deposit in some holy place the diadem which he had usurped, and to accept from his gracious benefactor the pardon of his faults and the government of a province. The rebel might not be proud, and the king most assuredly was not humble; but the one was conscious of his strength, the other was sensible of his weakness; and even the modest language of his reply still left room for treaty and reconciliation. Chosroes led into the field the slaves of the palace and the populace of the capital: they beheld with terror the banners of a veteran army; they were encompassed and surprised by the evolutions of the general; and the satraps who had deposed Hormouz, received the punishment of their revolt, or expiated their first treason by a second and more criminal act of disloyalty. The life and liberty of Chosroes were saved, but he was reduced to the necessity of imploring aid or refuge in some foreign land; and the implacable Bindoes, anxious to secure an unquestionable title, hastily returned to the palace, and ended, with a bowstring, the wretched existence of the son of Nushirvan. 15
While Chosroes despatched the preparations of his retreat, he deliberated with his remaining friends, 16 whether he should lurk in the valleys of Mount Caucasus, or fly to the tents of the Turks, or solicit the protection of the emperor. The long emulation of the successors of Artaxerxes and Constantine increased his reluctance to appear as a suppliant in a rival court; but he weighed the forces of the Romans, and prudently considered that the neighborhood of Syria would render his escape more easy and their succors more effectual. Attended only by his concubines, and a troop of thirty guards, he secretly departed from the capital, followed the banks of the Euphrates, traversed the desert, and halted at the distance of ten miles from Circesium. About the third watch of the night, the Roman praefect was informed of his approach, and he introduced the royal stranger to the fortress at the dawn of day. From thence the king of Persia was conducted to the more honorable residence of Hierapolis; and Maurice dissembled his pride, and displayed his benevolence, at the reception of the letters and ambassadors of the grandson of Nushirvan. They humbly represented the vicissitudes of fortune and the common interest of princes, exaggerated the ingratitude of Bahram, the agent of the evil principle, and urged, with specious argument, that it was for the advantage of the Romans themselves to support the two monarchies which balance the world, the two great luminaries by whose salutary influence it is vivified and adorned. The anxiety of Chosroes was soon relieved by the assurance, that the emperor had espoused the cause of justice and royalty; but Maurice prudently declined the expense and delay of his useless visit to Constantinople. In the name of his generous benefactor, a rich diadem was presented to the fugitive prince, with an inestimable gift of jewels and gold; a powerful army was assembled on the frontiers of Syria and Armenia, under the command of the valiant and faithful Narses, 17 and this general, of his own nation, and his own choice, was directed to pass the Tigris, and never to sheathe his sword till he had restored Chosroes to the throne of his ancestors. *_0063 The enterprise, however splendid, was less arduous than it might appear. Persia had already repented of her fatal rashness, which betrayed the heir of the house of Sassan to the ambition of a rebellious subject: and the bold refusal of the Magi to consecrate his usurpation, compelled Bahram to assume the sceptre, regardless of the laws and prejudices of the nation. The palace was soon distracted with conspiracy, the city with tumult, the provinces with insurrection; and the cruel execution of the guilty and the suspected served to irritate rather than subdue the public discontent. No sooner did the grandson of Nushirvan display his own and the Roman banners beyond the Tigris, than he was joined, each day, by the increasing multitudes of the nobility and people; and as he advanced, he received from every side the grateful offerings of the keys of his cities and the heads of his enemies. As soon as Modain was freed from the presence of the usurper, the loyal inhabitants obeyed the first summons of Mebodes at the head of only two thousand horse, and Chosroes accepted the sacred and precious ornaments of the palace as the pledge of their truth and the presage of his approaching success. After the junction of the Imperial troops, which Bahram vainly struggled to prevent, the contest was decided by two battles on the banks of the Zab, and the confines of Media. The Romans, with the faithful subjects of Persia, amounted to sixty thousand, while the whole force of the usurper did not exceed forty thousand men: the two generals signalized their valor and ability; but the victory was finally determined by the prevalence of numbers and discipline. With the remnant of a broken army, Bahram fled towards the eastern provinces of the Oxus: the enmity of Persia reconciled him to the Turks; but his days were shortened by poison, perhaps the most incurable of poisons; the stings of remorse and despair, and the bitter remembrance of lost glory. Yet the modern Persians still commemorate the exploits of Bahram; and some excellent laws have prolonged the duration of his troubled and transitory reign. **_0063
The restoration of Chosroes was celebrated with feasts and executions; and the music of the royal banquet was often disturbed by the groans of dying or mutilated criminals. A general pardon might have diffused comfort and tranquillity through a country which had been shaken by the late revolutions; yet, before the sanguinary temper of Chosroes is blamed, we should learn whether the Persians had not been accustomed either to dread the rigor, or to despise the weakness, of their sovereign. The revolt of Bahram, and the conspiracy of the satraps, were impartially punished by the revenge or justice of the conqueror; the merits of Bindoes himself could not purify his hand from the guilt of royal blood: and the son of Hormouz was desirous to assert his own innocence, and to vindicate the sanctity of kings. During the vigor of the Roman power, several princes were seated on the throne of Persia by the arms and the authority of the first Caesars. But their new subjects were soon disgusted with the vices or virtues which they had imbibed in a foreign land; the instability of their dominion gave birth to a vulgar observation, that the choice of Rome was solicited and rejected with equal ardor by the capricious levity of Oriental slaves. But the glory of Maurice was conspicuous in the long and fortunate reign of his son and his ally. A band of a thousand Romans, who continued to guard the person of Chosroes, proclaimed his confidence in the fidelity of the strangers; his growing strength enabled him to dismiss this unpopular aid, but he steadily professed the same gratitude and reverence to his adopted father; and till the death of Maurice, the peace and alliance of the two empires were faithfully maintained. Yet the mercenary friendship of the Roman prince had been purchased with costly and important gifts; the strong cities of Martyropolis and Dara 18 *_0064 were restored, and the Persarmenians became the willing subjects of an empire, whose eastern limit was extended, beyond the example of former times, as far as the banks of the Araxes, and the neighborhood of the Caspian. A pious hope was indulged, that the church as well as the state might triumph in this revolution: but if Chosroes had sincerely listened to the Christian bishops, the impression was erased by the zeal and eloquence of the Magi: if he was armed with philosophic indifference, he accommodated his belief, or rather his professions, to the various circumstances of an exile and a sovereign. The imaginary conversion of the king of Persia was reduced to a local and superstitious veneration for Sergius, 19 one of the saints of Antioch, who heard his prayers and appeared to him in dreams; he enriched the shrine with offerings of gold and silver, and ascribed to this invisible patron the success of his arms, and the pregnancy of Sira, a devout Christian and the best beloved of his wives. 20 The beauty of Sira, or Schirin, 21 her wit, her musical talents, are still famous in the history, or rather in the romances, of the East: her own name is expressive, in the Persian tongue, of sweetness and grace; and the epithet of Parviz alludes to the charms of her royal lover. Yet Sira never shared the passions which she inspired, and the bliss of Chosroes was tortured by a jealous doubt, that while he possessed her person, she had bestowed her affections on a meaner favorite. 22
1 Missis qui ... reposcerent ... veteres Persarum ac Macedonum terminos, seque invasurum possessa Cyro et post Alexandro, per vaniloquentiam ac minas jaciebat. Tacit. Annal. vi. 31. Such was the language of the Arsacides. I have repeatedly marked the lofty claims of the Sassanians.
2 See the embassies of Menander, extracted and preserved in the tenth century by the order of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.
3 The general independence of the Arabs, which cannot be admitted without many limitations, is blindly asserted in a separate dissertation of the authors of the Universal History, vol. xx. p. 196 - 250. A perpetual miracle is supposed to have guarded the prophecy in favor of the posterity of Ishmael; and these learned bigots are not afraid to risk the truth of Christianity on this frail and slippery foundation.
Note: It certainly appears difficult to extract a prediction of the perpetual independence of the Arabs from the text in Genesis, which would have received an ample fulfilment during centuries of uninvaded freedom. But the disputants appear to forget the inseparable connection in the prediction between the wild, the Bedoween habits of the Ismaelites, with their national independence. The stationary and civilized descendant of Ismael forfeited, as it were, his birthright, and ceased to be a genuine son of the "wild man" The phrase, "dwelling in the presence of his brethren," is interpreted by Rosenmuller (in loc.) and others, according to the Hebrew geography, "to the East" of his brethren, the legitimate race of Abraham - M.
4 D'Herbelot, Biblioth. Orient. p. 477. Pocock, Specimen Hist. Arabum, p. 64, 65. Father Pagi (Critica, tom. ii. p. 646) has proved that, after ten years' peace, the Persian war, which continued twenty years, was renewed A.D. 571. Mahomet was born A.D. 569, in the year of the elephant, or the defeat of Abrahah, (Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, tom. i. p. 89, 90, 98;) and this account allows two years for the conquest of Yemen.
Note: Abrahah, according to some accounts, was succeeded by his son Taksoum, who reigned seventeen years; his brother Mascouh, who was slain in battle against the Persians, twelve. But this chronology is irreconcilable with the Arabian conquests of Nushirvan the Great. Either Seif, or his son Maadi Karb, was the native prince placed on the throne by the Persians. St. Martin, vol. x. p. 78. See likewise Johannsen, Hist. Yemanae. - M.
*_0061 Persarmenia was long maintained in peace by the tolerant administration of Mejej, prince of the Gnounians. On his death he was succeeded by a persecutor, a Persian, named Ten-Schahpour, who attempted to propagate Zoroastrianism by violence. Nushirvan, on an appeal to the throne by the Armenian clergy, replaced Ten-Schahpour, in 552, by Veschnas-Vahram. The new marzban, or governor, was instructed to repress the bigoted Magi in their persecutions of the Armenians, but the Persian converts to Christianity were still exposed to cruel sufferings. The most distinguished of them, Izdbouzid, was crucified at Dovin in the presence of a vast multitude. The fame of this martyr spread to the West. Menander, the historian, not only, as appears by a fragment published by Mai, related this event in his history, but, according to M. St. Martin, wrote a tragedy on the subject. This, however, is an unwarrantable inference from the phrase which merely means that he related the tragic event in his history. An epigram on the same subject, preserved in the Anthology, Jacob's Anth. Palat. i. 27, belongs to the historian. Yet Armenia remained in peace under the government of Veschnas-Vahram and his successor Varazdat. The tyranny of his successor Surena led to the insurrection under Vartan, the Mamigonian, who revenged the death of his brother on the marzban Surena, surprised Dovin, and put to the sword the governor, the soldiers, and the Magians. From St. Martin, vol x. p. 79 - 89. - M.
**_0061 Malathiah. It was in the lesser Armenia. - M.
5 He had vanquished the Albanians, who brought into the field 12,000 horse and 60,000 foot; but he dreaded the multitude of venomous reptiles, whose existence may admit of some doubt, as well as that of the neighboring Amazons. Plutarch, in Pompeio, tom. ii. p. 1165, 1166.
6 In the history of the world I can only perceive two navies on the Caspian: 1. Of the Macedonians, when Patrocles, the admiral of the kings of Syria, Seleucus and Antiochus, descended most probably the River Oxus, from the confines of India, (Plin. Hist. Natur. vi. 21.) 2. Of the Russians, when Peter the First conducted a fleet and army from the neighborhood of Moscow to the coast of Persia, (Bell's Travels, vol. ii. p. 325 - 352.) He justly observes, that such martial pomp had never been displayed on the Volga.
***_0061 This circumstance rests on the statements of Evagrius and Theophylaci Simocatta. They are not of sufficient authority to establish a fact so improbable. St. Martin, vol. x. p. 140. - M.
7 For these Persian wars and treaties, see Menander, in Excerpt. Legat. p. 113 - 125. Theophanes Byzant. apud Photium, cod. lxiv p. 77, 80, 81. Evagrius, l. v. c. 7 - 15. Theophylact, l. iii. c. 9 - 16 Agathias, l. iv. p. 140.
8 Buzurg Mihir may be considered, in his character and station, as the Seneca of the East; but his virtues, and perhaps his faults, are less known than those of the Roman, who appears to have been much more loquacious. The Persian sage was the person who imported from India the game of chess and the fables of Pilpay. Such has been the fame of his wisdom and virtues, that the Christians claim him as a believer in the gospel; and the Mahometans revere Buzurg as a premature Mussulman. D'Herbelot, Bibliotheque Orientale, p. 218.
9 See the imitation of Scipio in Theophylact, l. i. c. 14; the image of Christ, l. ii. c. 3. Hereafter I shall speak more amply of the Christian images - I had almost said idols. This, if I am not mistaken, is the oldest of divine manufacture; but in the next thousand years, many others issued from the same workshop.
10 Ragae, or Rei, is mentioned in the Apocryphal book of Tobit as already flourishing, 700 years before Christ, under the Assyrian empire. Under the foreign names of Europus and Arsacia, this city, 500 stadia to the south of the Caspian gates, was successively embellished by the Macedonians and Parthians, (Strabo, l. xi. p. 796.) Its grandeur and populousness in the ixth century are exaggerated beyond the bounds of credibility; but Rei has been since ruined by wars and the unwholesomeness of the air. Chardin, Voyage en Perse, tom. i. p. 279, 280. D'Herbelot, Biblioth. Oriental. p. 714.
11 Theophylact. l. iii. c. 18. The story of the seven Persians is told in the third book of Herodotus; and their noble descendants are often mentioned, especially in the fragments of Ctesias. Yet the independence of Otanes (Herodot. l. iii. c. 83, 84) is hostile to the spirit of despotism, and it may not seem probable that the seven families could survive the revolutions of eleven hundred years. They might, however, be represented by the seven ministers, (Brisson, de Regno Persico, l. i. p. 190;) and some Persian nobles, like the kings of Pontus (Polyb l. v. p. 540) and Cappadocia, (Diodor. Sicul. l. xxxi. tom. ii. p. 517,) might claim their descent from the bold companions of Darius.
*_0062 He is generally called Baharam Choubeen, Baharam, the stick- like, probably from his appearance. Malcolm, vol. i. p. 120. - M.
!_0062 The Persian historians say, that Hormouz entreated his general to increase his numbers; but Baharam replied, that experience had taught him that it was the quality, not the number of soldiers, which gave success. * * * No man in his army was under forty years, and none above fifty. Malcolm, vol. i. p. 121 - M.
12 See an accurate description of this mountain by Olearius, (Voyage en Perse, p. 997, 998,) who ascended it with much difficulty and danger in his return from Ispahan to the Caspian Sea.
13 The Orientals suppose that Bahram convened this assembly and proclaimed Chosroes; but Theophylact is, in this instance, more distinct and credible.
Note: Yet Theophylact seems to have seized the opportunity to indulge his propensity for writing orations; and the orations read rather like those of a Grecian sophist than of an Eastern assembly. - M.
14 See the words of Theophylact, l. iv. c. 7., &c. In answer, Chosroes styles himself in genuine Oriental bombast.
15 Theophylact (l. iv. c. 7) imputes the death of Hormouz to his son, by whose command he was beaten to death with clubs. I have followed the milder account of Khondemir and Eutychius, and shall always be content with the slightest evidence to extenuate the crime of parricide. Note: Malcolm concurs in ascribing his death to Bundawee, (Bindoes,) vol. i. p. 123. The Eastern writers generally impute the crime to the uncle St. Martin, vol. x. p. 300. - M.
16 After the battle of Pharsalia, the Pompey of Lucan (l. viii. 256 - 455) holds a similar debate. He was himself desirous of seeking the Parthians: but his companions abhorred the unnatural alliance and the adverse prejudices might operate as forcibly on Chosroes and his companions, who could describe, with the same vehemence, the contrast of laws, religion, and manners, between the East and West.
17 In this age there were three warriors of the name of Narses, who have been often confounded, (Pagi, Critica, tom. ii. p. 640:) 1. A Persarmenian, the brother of Isaac and Armatius, who, after a successful action against Belisarius, deserted from his Persian sovereign, and afterwards served in the Italian war. - 2. The eunuch who conquered Italy. - 3. The restorer of Chosroes, who is celebrated in the poem of Corippus (l. iii. 220 - 327) as excelsus super omnia vertico agmina .... habitu modestus .... morum probitate placens, virtute verendus; fulmineus, cautus, vigilans, &c.
*_0063 The Armenians adhered to Chosroes. St. Martin, vol. x. p. 312. - M.
**_0063 According to Mivkhond and the Oriental writers, Bahram received the daughter of the Khakan in marriage, and commanded a body of Turks in an invasion of Persia. Some say that he was assassinated; Malcolm adopts the opinion that he was poisoned. His sister Gourdieh, the companion of his flight, is celebrated in the Shah Nameh. She was afterwards one of the wives of Chosroes. St. Martin. vol. x. p. 331. - M.
18 Experimentis cognitum est Barbaros malle Roma petere reges quam habere. These experiments are admirably represented in the invitation and expulsion of Vonones, (Annal. ii. 1 - 3,) Tiridates, (Annal. vi. 32-44,) and Meherdates, (Annal. xi. 10, xii. 10-14.) The eye of Tacitus seems to have transpierced the camp of the Parthians and the walls of the harem.
*_0064 Concerning Nisibis, see St. Martin and his Armenian authorities, vol. x p. 332, and Memoires sur l'Armenie, tom. i. p. 25. - M.
19 Sergius and his companion Bacchus, who are said to have suffered in the persecution of Maximian, obtained divine honor in France, Italy, Constantinople, and the East. Their tomb at Rasaphe was famous for miracles, and that Syrian town acquired the more honorable name of Sergiopolis. Tillemont, Mem. Eccles. tom. v. p. 481 - 496. Butler's Saints, vol. x. p. 155.
20 Evagrius (l. vi. c. 21) and Theophylact (l. v. c. 13, 14) have preserved the original letters of Chosroes, written in Greek, signed with his own hand, and afterwards inscribed on crosses and tables of gold, which were deposited in the church of Sergiopolis. They had been sent to the bishop of Antioch, as primate of Syria.
Note: St. Martin thinks that they were first written in Syriac, and then translated into the bad Greek in which they appear, vol. x. p. 334. - M.
21 The Greeks only describe her as a Roman by birth, a Christian by religion: but she is represented as the daughter of the emperor Maurice in the Persian and Turkish romances which celebrate the love of Khosrou for Schirin, of Schirin for Ferhad, the most beautiful youth of the East, D'Herbelot, Biblioth. Orient. p. 789, 997, 998.
Note: Compare M. von Hammer's preface to, and poem of, Schirin in which he gives an account of the various Persian poems, of which he has endeavored to extract the essence in his own work. - M.
22 The whole series of the tyranny of Hormouz, the revolt of Bahram, and the flight and restoration of Chosroes, is related by two contemporary Greeks - more concisely by Evagrius, (l. vi. c. 16, 17, 18, 19,) and most diffusely by Theophylact Simocatta, (l. iii. c. 6 - 18, l. iv. c. 1 - 16, l. v. c. 1 - 15:) succeeding compilers, Zonaras and Cedrenus, can only transcribe and abridge. The Christian Arabs, Eutychius (Annal. tom. ii. p. 200 - 208) and Abulpharagius (Dynast. p. 96 - 98) appear to have consulted some particular memoirs. The great Persian historians of the xvth century, Mirkhond and Khondemir, are only known to me by the imperfect extracts of Schikard, (Tarikh, p. 150 - 155,) Texeira, or rather Stevens, (Hist. of Persia, p. 182 - 186,) a Turkish Ms. translated by the Abbe Fourmount, (Hist. de l'Academie des Inscriptions, tom. vii. p. 325 - 334,) and D'Herbelot, (aux mots Hormouz, p. 457 - 459. Bahram, p. 174. Khosrou Parviz, p. 996.) Were I perfectly satisfied of their authority, I could wish these Oriental materials had been more copious.


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This event takes place on 15th March 2014 from 10:00am to 4:00pm and will take place at Stitchcraft Studio, Litton House, Londonthorpe Road, Grantham, NG31 9SN. It is a Guild event being organised by Diana Wagnall, Email: Tel: 01793 618189.
Traditional Group
members to celebrate International Quilting Day
A reminder that a celebration sit and sew day has been arranged for traditional group members on International Quilting Day. This meeting is open to Traditional Group members in regions 9 and 10 and other Traditional Group members who feel able to travel to Grantham, Lincolnshire.
Date: Saturday March 15th 2014 Time: 10a.m. until 4 p.m.
At: Stitchcraft Studio, Litton House, Londonthorpe Road, Grantham, NG31 9SN. Tel: 01476 512790
Cost: No more than £5 (excluding lunch) for traditional group members.
Free parking, café on site, irons provided. PAT tested machines welcome.
Please contact Diana Wagnall, Regions Liaison Officer (9-17) for more information or to confirm attendance.
Email: email@example.com Tel: 01793 618189


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About Us
Mission Statement and Center staff
A Statement from the Director:
Welcome to our site.
As a core research facility at the UO, our mission is to provide resources to conduct MRI research to members of the UO and the surrounding community. We have an array of services and resources to help facilitate your research and we are very eager to support new research endeavors.
Our site will hopefully provide a wealth of information about our services as well as serve as a dynamic resource for information on MRI research through our wiki-style entries on acquisition, analysis and peripherals. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested in learning more.
Fred and the LCNI team.
LCNI Staff
Jolinda Smith: MR Physicist
Jolinda received a Ph.D. in experimental condensed matter physics from the University of Oregon in 1997, and has worked at the Lewis Center since 2002. Her interests include software development, image analysis, and RF coil design. She is the author of MRIConvert, a program for batch conversion of DICOM image files to volume formats.
Scott Watrous: MR Techologist
Earning an Associate of Science from the Oregon Institute of Technology and a BS and MS from the University of Oregon, Scott has 23 years experience in diagnostic imaging including radiography and Computerized tomography. The last 13 years have focused solely on MRI. His professional interests include functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), MicroMRI, and MRI coil design as well as MRI safety. Off campus, you can find Scott cycling, hiking, cooking/eating, rock/fossil hunting, and gardening.
Diana Alderette: Administrative Coordinator
Diana has worked at the Lewis Center since January 2006. She performs many duties including: Office Manager, Budget Manager, Payroll, receptionist, scheduling and office support to the Lewis Center staff, visitors, faculty, students and research subjects. She has an extensive background in bookkeeping and business administration, with 8 years at UCLA and over 20 years owning a small business in Southern California. Diana spends her free time outdoors with her family in activities such as walking, rafting, camping, and in the kitchen preparing special Mexican recipes.


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An excerpt from Laurence Freeman OSB, "Dearest Friends" in Christian Meditation Newsletter, Vol. 35, No. 2, July 2011, P. 5.
We are all looking for something. Some have a clear sense of it, at least a conscious awareness of something missing.
But much of the time and for most of us, it remains a dull ache and a vague longing that endures through good and hard times alike. "My soul is restless, till it rests in you," was St. Augustine's expression of this longing for wholeness, for the resurrection that transcends the birth and death cycle of desire. Seen in this way this longing is a gift, not an affliction because, when seen and recognized, it is the turning of a spiritual corner. Today in a culture conditioned by consumerism from the earliest age, this understanding of desire should be at the heart of all religious education.
Bookshops are full of the latest advice on self-help. The bestsellers use lists like good boundaries, handling self-criticism, expressing your feelings, developing balance, asserting yourself, eating well and doing exercise. The best list I know is found in a book that doesn't top the charts but has not been out of print for 1500 years. In St Benedict's Rule, the fourth chapter is on the Tools of Good Works, seventy-five short statements which he describes as the "tools of the spiritual craft" that, when seriously applied, lead to the transcendent realization of the promises of Christ: "what eye has not seen, nor the ear heard what God has prepared for those who love him."
The Tools begin with the Ten Commandments because the moral life is the foundation of the contemplative path. Next come the corporal works of mercy, the minimum effort we are expected to make for the well-being of others. Then the guarding of the heart against thoughts of anger, revenge or deception. As he lived in community, he understood how important it is to practice love of enemies and how self-control in speech as well as in our ordinary physical habits facilitates this basic Christian practice. Conscious mindfulness is assisted by keeping death always before your eyes and promotes a deeper level of peace and joy. The temptation of spiritual egoism are also recognized and offset in Benedict's injunction always to yearn for the fullness of life.
These tools of good works are also the means of caring for oneself. Every form of caring is an energy of faith: it takes the attention off one's individual wants and feelings and transfers it to a higher good. It is therefore a way of transcendence. It extends over time, which tests its sincerity and authenticity. It is therefore a way of transformation because we are changed by persevering in an act of faith.
All Benedict's tools, and caring itself, are designed to release our capacity for love. Saying the mantra unifies these many forms of caring. . . .It concentrates them in the nexus of the heart where the love of God. . .enters. . . .
After meditation: Robert Morgan, "Great Day in the Morning," from Terroir (Penguin Poets, 2011), cited in The Writer's Almanac, August 29, 2011.
My father, when he was surprised
or suddenly impressed, would blurt
Great Day in the morning," as though
a revelation had struck him.
The figure of his speech would seem
to claim some large event appeared
at hand, if not already here;
a mighty day or luminous age
was flinging wide its doors as world
on world revealed their wonders in
the rapturous morning, always new,
beginning as the now took hold.
Carla Cooper - email@example.com


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To help ensure that your flight with Emirates is as safe and comfortable as possible, please review the information below for passengers and medical practitioners.
Although most travellers have already had vaccinations as children, they may still require boosters or new immunisations. Consult your doctor 4-6 weeks prior to travel (or shorter, if you are travelling on short notice) to see if you will need any vaccinations, or use our vaccination requirements finder for your itinerary. Remember to bring a copy of your vaccination records on your trip.
You should also check if your destination is a risk area for Malaria and consider medications for malaria prevention which can be obtained from your doctor if required.
See the US Center for Disease Control's world-wide searchable map(Opens an external website in a new tab) to check destinations for malaria risk.
If you are pregnant and plan to travel once you have entered your 29th week of pregnancy, a medical certificate or letter signed by an appropriately qualified doctor or midwife is required, stating:
Please note that if you choose not to carry a valid medical certificate, you may not be accepted for travel if there is any doubt about your ability to complete the journey safely.
Travel after the 36th week of gestation for single, uncomplicated pregnancies, and after the 32nd week of gestation for multiple, uncomplicated pregnancies will be permitted only after prior clearance from Emirates Medical Services. A medical information form (MEDIF) will need to be submitted for clearance purposes.
Thought should be given to whether the medical facilities at your destination country are adequate to cope with any problems which may arise. Sufficient travel insurance is strongly recommended in case of preterm labour abroad. It is wise to avoid travelling to remote locations whilst pregnant.
Some countries restrict or limit entry of non-national pregnant women. We recommend that you consult with the local consulate or embassy if in any doubt.
Heavy lifting during pregnancy should be avoided, so take care with your baggage.
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Air travel within the first seven days of birth is not permitted except when travelling for emergency medical treatment with an approved Medical Information for Fitness to Travel or Special Assistance (MEDIF) form.
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For information for passengers with special needs, including those travelling with a wheelchair or requiring the use of medical equipment, please see our special needs section.
If you have a pre-existing medical condition such as diabetes, asthma, heart disease, epilepsy, or any other chronic disease, here are some steps you can take to remain healthy on your travels.
The following is a list of handy medical items to consider carrying with you on your travels. You can individualise this list based on your itinerary, your planned activities, and your medical history. Ready-made kits are also available from pharmacies and travel clinics.