hey expected he would die of starvation. This
undoubtedly would have occurred if he had not plucked up courage to
taste some strange berries which he found growing on a shrub. While
they seemed to be edible, they were very bitter; and he tried to
improve the taste by roasting them. He found, however, that they
had become very hard, so he attempted to soften them with water.
The berries seemed to remain as hard as before, but the liquid
turned brown, and Omar drank it on the chance that it contained
some of the nourishment from the berries. He was amazed at how it
refreshed him, enlivened his sluggishness, and raised his drooping
spirits. Later, when he returned to Mocha, his salvation was
considered a miracle. The beverage to which it was due sprang into
high favor, and Omar himself was made a saint.

A popular and much-quoted version of Omar's discovery of coffee, also
based upon the Abd-al-Kadir manuscript, is the following:

In the year of the Hegira 656, the mollah Schadheli went on a
pilgrimage to Mecca. Arriving at the mountain of the Emeralds
(Ousab), he turned to his disciple Omar and said: "I shall die in
this place. When my soul has gone forth, a veiled person will
appear to you. Do not fail to execute the command which he will
give you."

The venerable Schadheli being dead, Omar saw in the middle of the
night a gigantic specter covered by a white veil.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The phantom drew back his veil, and Omar saw with surprise
Schadheli himself, grown ten cubits since his death. The mollah dug
in the ground, and water miraculously appeared. The spirit of his
teacher bade Omar fill a bowl with the water and to proceed on his
way and not to stop till he reached the spot where the water would
stop moving.

"It is there," he added, "that a great destiny awaits you."

Omar started his journey. Arriving at Mocha in Yemen, he noticed
that the water was immovable. It was here that he must stop.

The beautiful village of Mocha was then ravaged by the plague. Omar
began to pray for the sick and, as the saintly man was close to
Mahomet, many found themselves cured by his prayers.

The plague meanwhile progressing, the daughter of the King of Mocha
fell ill and her father had her carried to the home of the dervish
who cured