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frc And what he said: I arrived at the heaven of
u the universe; the gates yielded and I entered.
4c There I saw Ismail seated upon a throne, and a
" crowd before him, with their eyes fixed upon his
'* face. I made my salute, looked at him, and went
44 on." By'** heaven," is understood the moon;
by " Ismail," the body of the moon; and by " the
6* crowd," those whose conditions are under the
influence of the moon.

" What Muhammed said: I entered the second
44 heaven;' there I saw an Angel excelling all others;
" by his perfect beauty, he captivated the admira-
44 tion of the whole creation; one half of his body
4 * was of ice and the other half of fire; and yet there
•"' was no counteraction nor enmity between them.
44 He saluted me, and said: 4 Be welcome! All
44 * things and riches are thine/ " This means : it
was the heaven of Mercury; and the import of this
is, that every star has a determined influence, either
auspicious or inauspicious; but Mercury acts in both
ways; with an inauspicious connection inauspici-
ously, with an auspicious one auspiciously; so that
one half is good and the other half bad/' The
44 welcome, "and the gift of "prosperity and riches,"
mean: the power of the mind, and the multiplicity
of sciences which the star bestows/'

1 In the second heaven, Muhammed saw Jesus and St, John at his
side. They returned his salute.