Osman's Dream

"I dreamt of a dream I saw a goodly tree sprang forth from my bosom And grew in beauty and in strength until the embracing verdure of its branches canopied the horizon Under its shade stood four mountains And from its roots gushed four rivers that gurgled through lush valleys glittering with stately cities With domes, pyramids and towers The Crescent shone on their summits And from their galleries sounded the Muezzin's call Whose echoing prayers swirled around beneath the living roof of the all-overarching tree Suddenly there arose a mighty wind And turned the points of the sword shaped leaves towards the city of Constantinople Placed at the junction of two seas and two continents Like a diamond set between two sapphires and two emeralds To form the most precious stone in a ring of universal empire!"