Hašt Bihišt VI, Story XI: A Quotation from Abū Tammām's Ode on Amorium.

Idrīs Bidlīsī displays a certain technical sophistication in the arrangement of the materials which he received from his predecessors and can be said to represent a rather advanced stage in the formation of the Hašt Bihišt literature. By reconstructing, where possible, the sources used by Idrīs, we can reach to both the best readings and understanding of his very difficult and hyperliterate text. Since the transmission of the manuscripts sometimes involved no conscious choices between often conflicting versions, we may, as a result of the reconstruction of the critical edition of Hašt Bihišt, use the best readings, instead of corrupt ones. This short article deals with a classical Arabic quotation used in Idrīs' Book VI, especially as a tool to reach a fixed reading of the text and clarify its semantics and connotations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]