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The Animal Bezoar
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Hajar al-'l'ays (animal bezoar) is a Persian theriac. It is like acorn or
unripe date, elongated and having peels like the onion, with something like green grass in the centre, something like a stone in the kernels of fruits. This is the central point of the peels and argues for the fact that these peels are arranged over each other. Its hue is blackish to green. Pure grains of this stone, in conjunction with milk, are liable to become red. Impure grains which the gilders make, remain green. It is taken out of the stomachs of the mountain goats, but is of a
very rare occurrence. It is called hajar al-tays for this reason, tays meaning the he-goat. Some through apocopation and orthographic error called it hajar al-bish. But this orthographic error is very true, correct and noble, since it is a theriac for aconite poisoning. Occasionally it is also called badzhr kibosh, since the word, tays, seems to be rather vulgar and kabsh (ram) good. It is better to designate it by the name, tiryaq-i-Farisi (the Persian
theriac), since it is brought from the neighbouring areas of Dara Bijarad. It is said that stags eat snakes and the mountain-goat also eats them. It then grazes upon the herbs of mountains and the snake it has fed upon, then rolls up into a spherical body. Thus, it is tiry'aq-i-f'aruq (the best kind of theriac). It is natural, and not artificially made from snake pills. Its poultice is applied together with the aqua of anise upon the site of the bite. The pain immediately disappears and the colour of the skin returns to its original form. Abu al-Hasan Turunji says that a soldier was bitten by a very poisonous snake during a battle. The commander-in-chief of the army had nothing except badzahr kibosh. He administered less than a qayrat of it in
wine to the soldier, followed by garlic. The whole body of the soldier was covered by dots, he passed bloody urine, and became cured. It is collected in the treasuries of kings. Its price is very high and
people are excessively covetous of it. I swear upon my life that it is the most precious of treasures as the soul enjoys it and benefits from it, more than from other jewels. Tiryaq-i-lahazah resembles it, and is picked out of the eyes of the stag. It accumulates in the corner of the stag's eye as an exudate. The Razi brothers say that the price of one to thirty dirhams of hajar al-kibash ranges from one hundred dinars to 200 dinars. Some persons claim that the Persian theriac is found in the spleen of mountain goats in the manner of gawizan which is found in the gallbladder of bulls. Hamzah says gawizan is the Arabic version of the Persian word, gawizan, which is a palish object like the yolk of the egg. It is found from one daniq up to four dirhams. When freshly taken out from the gall-bladder, it is soft and roundish, but, when kept in the |
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