58 Preface فَلَنَأتِيَنَّكَ بِسِحرٍ مِثلِهِ فَاجعَل بَينَنا وَبَينَكَ مَوعِدًا لا نُخلِفُهُ نَحنُ وَلا أَنتَ مَكانًا سُوًىYusuf Ali“But we can surely produce magic to match thine! So make a tryst between us and thee, which we shall not fail to keep - neither we nor thou - in a place where both shall have even chances.”1Suwan: literally, 'equal, even.' It has been construed to mean: (1) a place equally distant for both sides, a central place, or (2) equally convenient to both sides, or (3) an open level plain, where the people can collect with ease. All these are possible meanings, but the one I have adopted is more comprehensive, and includes the others, viz.: (4) a place where both sides shall have even chances, “a fair place”, as Palmer laconically translates it.