Omar Khayyam: Overheard in the Caravanserai…

Overheard in the caravanserai: a merchant, reflecting on the fleeting nature of life, reciting from Edward Fitzgerald’s version of the Rubaiyat of the great hakim Abu’l Fath Omar ibn Ibrahim Khayyam, otherwise known as Omar Khayyam.

“Oh, come with old Khayyàm, and leave the Wise
To talk; one thing is certain, that Life flies;
One thing is certain, and the Rest is Lies;
The Flower that once has blown forever dies.”