 Section 18, Volume 2 of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, translated by Richard Burton. This is the LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Filippo Joachim. The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 2, Section 18. When it was the 52nd night, she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, that Princess Abriza set to the black slave Al-Ghasban. It remained for me only that I yield me to Negro slaves, after having refused kings and braves. And she was wroth with him and cried, Go to thee, what words are these thou sayest? Out on thee, and talk not thus in my presence, And know that I will never consent to what thou sayest. Though I drink the cup of death, wait till I have cast my burden, And am delivered of the afterbirth, And then, if thou be able thereto, do with me as thou wilt. But, and thou leave not lute talk at this time, Assuredly I will slay myself with my own hand, And be at peace from all this. And she began reciting extempore, O spare me, thou Ghasban, indeed enough for me, Are heavy strokes of time, mischief and misery. Ford on my lord forpence to all humanity, Quoth he who breaks my bidding hell for home shall see. And if thou leave not suing me to Hordom's way, Against the almighty choicest gift my chastity, Upon my tribesmen I with might and main will call, And gather all, however far or near they be. And with the Amani blade, where I in peace hewn, Never shall his sight my face, who makes for villainy. The face of freeborn, come of noble folk and brave, What then can be to me the seed of Horsons laid? When Ghasban heard these lines, he was wroth exceedingly. His eyes reddened with blood, and his face became a dusty gray. His nostrils swelled, his lips protruded, And the repulsiveness of his aspect redoubled. And he repeated these couplets, O thou Abrizah mercy, leave me not for I, Of thy love and yamanic glance the victim lie. My heart is cut to pieces by thy cruelty, My body wasted and my patience done to die. From glances ravishing all hearts with witchery, Reason far flies the wild desire to thee draws Hannai. Though at thy call should armies fill the face of earth, Even now I'd win my wish and words in arms defile. When Abrizah heard these words, She wept with sore weeping and said to him, Woe to thee, O Ghasban! How dareth the like of thee to address me such demand, O baysborn and obscene bread! Dost thou deem all folk are alike? When the vile slave heard these from her, He waxed more enraged, and his eyes grew redder, And he came up to her and smiting her with a sword on her neck, Wounded her to her death. Then he drove her horse before him with a treasure, And made off with himself to the mountains. Such was the case with Al-Ghasban. But as regards Abrizah, She gave birth to a son like the moon, And Marjanah took the babe and did him the necessary offices, And laid him by his mother's side, And lo and behold, the child fastened to its mother's breast, And she died. When Marjanah saw this, She cried out with a grievous cry, And ran to her raiment and cast dust on her head, And buffeted her cheeks till flood flowed, Saying, Alas, my mistress, alas the pity of it, Thou art dead by the hand of a worthless black slave, After all thy nightly prowess. And she seized not, weeping, When suddenly a great cloud of dust rose and walled the horizon, But after a while it lifted and discovered a numerous conquering host. Now, this was the army of King Ardub, Princess Abrizah's father, And the cause of his coming was that when he heard of his daughter And her handmaids had been fled to Baghdad, And that they were with King Omar bin Al-Numan, He had come forth, leading those with him, To seek tidings of her from travelers, Who might have seen her with the king. When he had gone a single day's march from his capital, He aspired three horsemen afar off, And made towards them, Intending to ask whence they came, And seek news of his daughter. Now, these three whom he saw at the distance Were his daughter and Marjana, and the slave Al-Ghazban, And he made for them to push inquiry. Seeing this, the villain blackmoor feared for himself, So he killed Abrizah and fled for his life. When they came up, King Ardub saw his daughter lying dead And Marjana weeping over her. And he threw himself off his steed And fell fainting to the ground. All the riders of his company, The Amirs and Waxirs, Took foot and forthright pitched their tents on the mountain, And set up for the king a great pavilion, Tomed and circular, Without which stood the grandees of the realm. When Marjana saw her master, She at once recognized him, And her tears redoubled. And when he came to himself, He questioned her, And she told him all that had passed and said, Of a truth he that had slain thy daughter, Is a black slave belonging to King Omar bin Anuman. And she informed him, How Sharkhan's father had dealt with the princess. When King Ardub heard this, The world grew black in his sight, And he wept with sore weeping. Then he called for a litter, And therein laying his dead daughter, Returned to Caesarea and carried her into the palace, Where he went in to his mother, Zat Adawahi, And said to that lady of calamities, Shall the Muslim deal thus with my girl? Verily, King Omar bin Anuman Dispoiled her of her honor by force, And after this, one of his black slaves slew her. By the truth of the messiah, I will assuredly take blood revenge for my daughter, And clear away from my honor the stain of shame, Else will I kill myself with my own end. And he wept passing sore. Both his mother, none other than Marjana, Killed thy daughter, for she hated her in secret, And she continued to her son, Threat not for taking the blood with of thy daughter, For by the truth of the messiah, I will not turn back from King Omar bin Anuman, Till I have slain him and his sons. And of a very truth, I will do with him a deed, Passing the power of sage and knight, Whereof the chroniclers shall tell chronicles In all countries and in every place. But needs must thou do my bidding, In all I shall direct, For whoso be firmly set on the object of his desire, Shall surely compass his desire. By the virtue of the messiah, replied he, I will not cross thee in ought thy shalt say. Then, quote she, Bring me a number of handmaids, High bosomed virgins, And some on the wise men of the age, And let them teach them philosophy, And the rules of behavior before kings, And the art of conversation, And making verses, And let them talk with them of all manner's science, And a defined knowledge. And the sages must be muslims, That they may teach them the language And traditions of the Arabs, Together with the history of the caliphs, And the ancient annals of the kings of al-Islam. And if we persevere in this for four years space, We shall gain our case. So possess thy soul in patience and wait, For one of the Arabs saith, If we take man boat after years forty, The time were short to ye. When we have taught the girls these things, We shall be able to work our will with our folk. For he dotheth on women, And he hath three hundred and sixty concubines, Where two are now added and hundred of the flowers Of thy handmaidens, Who were with thy daughter, She that hath found mercy. As soon as I have made an end of their education, As described to thee, I will take them and set out with them in person. When King Ardub heard his mother's words, He rejoiced and arose and kissed her head, And at once dispatched messengers and couriers, To land sundry and manifold, To fetch him muslim sages. They obeyed his commands and feared too far countries, And thence brought him the sages And the doctors he sought. When these came into presence, He honoured them with notable honours, And bestowed dresses on them, And appointed to them steepens and allowances, And promised them much money, When as they should have taught the damsels. Then he committed the handmaidens to their hands, And Shirazad perceived the dawn of day, And seized, saying her permitted say, When it was the fifty-third night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That when the sages and the doctors Stood in the presence of King Ardub, He honoured them with notable honours, And committed the handmaidens to their hands, Enjoying that these be instructed In all manner of knowledge, philosophy, And polite accomplishments. And they set themselves to do his bidding. Such was the case with King Ardub, But as for King Omar bin Al-Luman, When he returned from coursing and hunting, And entered his palace, He sought Princess Abriza, But found her not, Nor anyone knew of her, Nor could any give him news of her. This was grievous to him, And he said, How could a lady leave the palace unknown to any? Had my kingdom been at stake in this case, It were in perilous condition, There being none to govern it. I will never again go to sport and hunt, Till I have stationed at the gates Those who shall keep good guard over them. And he was sore waxed, And his breast was straightened For the loss of Princess Abriza. Hereupon, behold, His son Sharkan returned from his journey, And the father told him what had happened, And informed him how the lady had fled, Whilst he was chasing and hunting, Whereat he grieved with exceeding grief. Then King Omar took to visiting his children every day, And making much of them, And brought them learned men and doctors to teach them, Appointing for them steepens. When Sharkan saw this, He raged with exceeding rage, And envied thereupon his brother and sister, Till the signs of Shagran appeared on his face, And he seized not to languish By reason of this matter. So one day his father said to him, Why do I see thee grown weak In body and yellow in face? O my father, replied Sharkan, Every time I see thee fondle my brother and sister, And make much of them, Jealousy seizes me, And I fear lest it grow on me, Till I slay them, And thou slay me in return. And this is the reason of my weakness of body, And change of complexion. But now I crave of thy favor, That thou give me one of thy castles Outline the rest, That I may abide there the remnant of my life, For as the sayer of my words sayeth, Absence from my friend is better unfitted for me. And what so I doth not perceive That gareth not hard to grieve? And he bowed his head towards the ground. When King Omar bin Al-Numan heard his words And knew the cause of his ailment And of his being broken down, He soothed his heart and said to him, O my son, I grant thee this, And I have not in my reign A greater than the castle of Damascus, And the government of it Is dying from this time. Thereupon he forthright Summoned his secretaries of state, And bade them right Charcan's patent of investiture To the vise royalty of Damascus of Syria. And when they had written it, He equipped him and sent with him The Wazir Dundan, And invested him with the rule and government And gave him instructions As to policy and regulations, And took leave of him. And the grandees and officers of state Did likewise, And he set out with his host. When he arrived at Damascus, The townspeople beat the drums And blew the trumpets And decorated the city And came out to meet him in great state, Whilst all the notables and grandees Paced in procession. And those who stood to the right of the throne Walked on his right flank And the others to his left. Thus far concerning Charcan, But as regards his father Omar Bin Al-Numan, Soon after the departure of his son, The children's tutors and governors Presented themselves before him And said to him, O our lord, Thy children have now learned knowledge And they are completely versed In the rules of manners And the etiquette of ceremony. The king rejoiced thereat With exceeding joy And confer bountiful larges Upon the learned men, Seeing Zawal Makhan grown up And flourishing and skilled in horsemanship. The prince had reached the age of 14 And he occupied himself with piety And prayers, loving the poor, The olema and the Quran students. So that all the people of Baghdad loved him, Men and women. One day, the procession of the Mami'l of Iraq Passed round Baghdad before its departure For the pilgrimage to Mecca And visitation of the tomb of the prophet, Whom Allah bless and preserve. When Zawal Makhan, the Mami'l procession, He was seized belonging desire To become a pilgrim. So he went in to his sire and said I come to ask thy leave to make the pilgrimage But his father forbade him, saying Wait till next year and I will go and thou too. When the prince saw that the matter was postponed He betook himself to his sister Nusat al-Zaman Whom he found standing at prayer. As soon as she had handed her devotions To her, I am dying with desire of pilgrimage To the holy house of Allah at Mecca And to visit the tomb of the prophet, Upon whom be peace. I asked my father's leave, but he forbade me that. So I mean to take, privily, somewhat of money And set out on the pilgrimage without his knowledge. Allah upon thee, exclaimed she, Take me with thee and deprive me not Of visitation to the tomb of the prophet, Whom Allah bless and keep. And he answered, As soon as it is dark night Do thou come forth from this place Without telling any. Accordingly, when it was the middle of the night She arose and took somewhat of money And donned a man's habit And she seized not walking to the palace gate Where she found Zawul Makhan With camels ready for marching. So he mounted and mounted her And two faired on till they were in the midst Of the Iraqi pilgrim party And they seized not marching And Allah wrote safety for them Till they entered Mecca, the holy And stood upon Arafat And performed the pilgrimage rites. Then they made a visitation To the tomb of the prophet, whom Allah bless and assain. And thought to return with the pilgrims To their native land. But Zawul Makhan said to his sister, O my sister, it is in my mind To visit the holy house, Jerusalem. And Abraham, the friend of Allah, On whom be peace. I also desired so to do, Replied she. So they agreed upon this And he faired forth and took passage For himself and her And they made ready and set out In the ship with a company Of Jerusalem palmers. That very night the sister fell sick Of an anguished chill And was grievously ill But presently recovered After which the brother also sickened. She tended him during his melody And they seized not wayfaring Till they arrived at Jerusalem. But the fever increased on him And he grew weaker and weaker. They alighted at a Khan And there hired a lodging. But Zawul Makhan's sickness Seized not to increase on him Till he was wasted With leanness and became delirious. At this his sister was greatly afflicted And exclaimed, There is no majesty and there is no might To give in Allah, the glorious, the great. This is the decree of Allah. They sojourned in that place a while His weakness ever increasing And she attending him And buying necessaries for him And for herself. Till all the money she had was expending And she became so poor That she had not so much As a dear hem left. Then she sent a servant of the Khan To the bazaar with some of her clothes And he sold them And she spent the price upon her brother Then sold she something more And she seized not selling all she had Piece by piece Till nothing was left but an old rug Whereupon she wept and exclaimed Verily is Allah the order of the past And the future. Presently her brother said to her O my sister, I feel recovery drawing near And my heart longest for a little roast meat By Allah, O my brother, replied she I have no face to beg But tomorrow I will enter some rich man's house And serve him and earn some what for our living. Then she bethought herself a while And said, Of a truth, it is hard for me to leave thee And thou in this state But I must despide myself He rejoined Allah forbid, thou wilt be put to shame But there is no majesty And there is no might saving Allah And he wept And she wept too And she said, O my brother, we are strangers Who have dwelt here a full year But none hath yet knocked at our door Shall we then die of hunger? I know no resource But that I go out and do service And earn some what to keep us alive Till thou recover from thy sickness When we will travel back to our native land She sat weeping a while And he wept too Propped upon his elbow Then Nusat al-Zaman arose Sailing her head with a bit of camelot Which had been of the camalir's clothes And which the owner had forgotten And left with them She kissed the head of her brother And embraced him and went forth from him Weeping and knowing not Whither she should went And she stinted not going And her brother Zawu al-Mak'an Awaiting her return Till the supper time But she came not And he watched for her till the morning morrowed But still she returned not And this endured till two days went by He was greatly troubled thereat And his heart fluttered for her And hunger was sore upon him At last he left the chamber And calling the servant of the Karabansaray Said I wish thee to bear me to the bazaar So he carried him to the market street And laid him down there And the people of Jerusalem gathered round him And were moved to two ears Seeing his condition He signed to them Begging for some what to eat So they brought him some money From certain of the merchants Who were in the bazaar And bought food and fed him therewith After which they carried him to a shop Where they spread him a mat of palm leaves And set a newer of water at his head When night fell All the folk went away So were concerned for him And in the middle of the night He called to mind his sister And his sickness redoubled on him So that he abstained from eating and drinking And became insensible to the world around him Then the bazaar people arose And took for him from the merchants 37 dirhams In hiring a camel Said to the driver Carry this sick man to Damascus And leave him in the hospital Happily he may be cured And recover health On my head beat Replied the camel man But he said to himself How shall I take this sick man to Damascus And he nigh upon death So he carried him away to a place And hid with him till the night When he threw him down on the ash hip Near the fire hole of Ahamam And went his way When morning dawned The stalker of the bath came to his work And, finding Zawal Makhan Cast on his back, exclaimed Why did they not throw their dead body anywhere But here? So saying, he gave him a kick And he moved Whereupon quothed the fireman Someone of you who had eaten a bit of hashish And had thrown himself down In what so place it be Then he looked at his face And saw his hairless cheeks And his grace and comeliness So he took pity on him And knew that he was sick And a stranger in the land And he cried There is no majesty And there is no might Saving Allah Verily, I have sinned against this youth For indeed the prophet Whom Allah bless and keep Joineth honor to the stranger More especially when the stranger is sick Then he carried him home And went in with him to his wife And bathed her, tanned him So she spread him a sleeping rug And set a cushion under his head Then warmed water for him And washed therewith his hands And feet and face Meanwhile, the stalker went to the market And bought some rose water and sugar And sprinkled Zawal Makhan's face With the water And gave him to drink of the sherbet Then he patched a clean shirt And put it on him With this, Zawal Makhan Sniffed the zafir of health And recovery returned to him And he set up And leaned against the pillow Here at the fireman rejoiced and exclaimed Praise be to Allah For the welfare of his youth O Allah, I beseech thee by thy knowledge Of hidden things That thou make the salvation of this youth To be at my hands And Sherazad perceived the dawn of day And seized to say her permitted say End of section 18 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Recording by Filippo Joachim Section 19, Volume 2 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Translated by Richard Burton This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer Please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Filippo Joachim The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2, Section 19 When it was the 54th night She said It hath reached me, O auspicious king That the fireman exclaimed O Allah, I beseech thee of thy knowledge Of hidden things That thou make this young man's life The work of my hands And he seized not to nurse him For three days Giving him to drink of sherbet of sugar And will of flour water And rose water And doing him all manner of service and kindness Till health began to return to his body And Zawal Makhan opened his eyes Presently came in the fireman And seeing him sitting up And showing signs of amendment Said to him What is now thy state, O my son? Praise be to Allah, replied Zawal Makhan I am well and like to recover If such be the will of Allah almighty At this time The stalker praised the Lord of all For this and went in fast to the market Both ten chickens Which he carried to his wife and said Kill two of these for him every day One at dawn of day And the other at fall of day So she rose up and killed the fowl And brought it to him boiled And fed him with a flesh And made him drink its broth When he had done eating She fetched hot water And he washed his hands And lay back upon the pillow Whereupon she covered him up With her coverlet And he slept till the time of the mid-afternoon prayer Then she rose and killed another fowl And boiled it After which she cut it up And bringing it to Zawal Makhan said Eat, O my son While he was eating, behold Her husband entered And seeing her feeding him Sat down at his head And said to him How is it with thee now, O my son? Thanks be to Allah for recovery, he replied May the Almighty require thee thy kindness to me At this the fireman rejoiced And going out Both sherbet of violets and rose water And made him drink it Now the stalker used to work at Hama All day for a wage of five dirhams Whereupon he spent every day for Zawal Makhan One dirham upon sugar and sherbet of rose water And willow flower water And another dirham for fowls And he seized knot to entreat him thus kindly During a whole month Till the traces of illness Seized from him And he was once more sound and whole Thereupon the fireman and his wife Rejoiced and asked him O my son, will thou go with me to the bath? Where to he answered, yes So the stalker went to the bazaar And fetched the donkey boy And he mounted the Zawal Makhan on the ass And supported him in the saddle Till they came to the bath Then he made him sit down And seated the donkey boy in the furnace room And went forth to the market And bought ayot leaves and lupin flower With which he returned to the bath And said to Zawal Makhan O my master, in Allah's name Walk in and I will wash thy body So they entered the inner room of the bath And the fireman took to rubbing Zawal Makhan's legs And began to wash his body With the leaves and meal When there came to them a bathman Whom the bathkeeper had sent to Zawal Makhan And he, seeing the stalker washing and rubbing him, said This is doing injury to the keeper's rights Replied the fireman The master overwhelmed us with his favors Then the bathman proceeded to shave Zawal Makhan's head After which he and the stalker washed themselves And returned to the house Where he clad Zawal Makhan in a shirt of fine stuff And a robe of his own And gave him a handsome turban and girdle And a light kerchief which he wound about his neck Meanwhile the fireman's wife Had killed and cooked two chickens So as soon as Zawal Makhan entered and seated himself on the carpet The husband arose And dissolving sugar in willow flower water Made him drink of it Then he brought the food tray And cutting up the chickens Fed him with a flesh and gave him the broth to drink Till he was satisfied When he washed his hands And prayed Allah for recovery And said to the fireman Thou art he whom the Almighty vouchsafed to me And made the cause of my cure Leave this talk, replied the other And tell us the cause of thy coming to this city And whence thou art Thy face showeth signs of gentle breeding Tell me first how thou came as to fall in with me Said Zawal Makhan Later I will tell thee my story Rejoined the fireman As for that I found thee lying on the rubbish heap By the door of the firehouse As I went to my work near the morning And knew not who had thrown thee there So I carried thee home with me And this is all my tale Zawal Makhan Glory to him who quickeneth the bones Though they be rotten Indeed, O my brother Thou hast not done good Saved to one worthy of it And thou shall presently gather its fruitage And he added But where am I now? Thou art in the city of Jerusalem Replied the stalker Whereupon Zawal Makhan Called to mind his strangerhood And remembered his separation From his sister and wept Then he discovered his secret to the fireman And told him his story And began repeating In love they bore me further Than my force would go And for them made me suffer Resurrection through O have compassion cruel On this soul of mine Since he feared is pitted By each envious foe Nor grudge the tender mercy Of one passing glance My case too lighten Easing the excess of woe Quoth I, heart, bear this loss in patience Patience cried Take heed, no patience in such plight I want to show Then he redoubled his weeping And the fireman said to him Whip not, but rather Praise Allah for safety and recovery Asked Zawal Makhan How far it is hence to Damascus Answered the other Six days journey Then quothed Zawal Makhan Will thou send me dither? O my lord, quothed the stalker How can I allow thee to go alone? And thou, a youth and a stranger to boot If thou would journey to Damascus I am one who will go with thee And if my wife will listen to and obey me And accompany me, I will take up my abode there For it is no light matter to part with thee Then said he to his wife Will thou travel with me to Damascus of Syria Or will thou abide here Whilst I lead this my lord dither And return to thee For he is bent upon going to Damascus of Syria And by Allah it is hard to me to part with him And I fear for him from highway men Replied she I will go with you both And he rejoined Praised be Allah for accord And we have said the last word Then he rose And selling all his own goods And his wife's gear And Sharazad perceived the dawn of day And seized Sain for permitted say When it was the fifty-fifth night She said It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the fireman and his wife Agreed with Zawal Makhan To travel with him Damascus wards Then the stalker sold his goods And his wife's gear And bought a camel And hired an ass for Zawal Makhan And they set out And seized Naut wayfaring for six days Till they reached Damascus And they arrived there towards Eventide When the fireman went forth And as was his want Bought some meat and drink They had dwelt but five days in Damascus When his wife sickened After a short illness Was translated to the mercy of Almighty Allah Her death was a heavy matter to Zawal Makhan For he was grown used to her As she had tended him assiduously And the fireman grieved for her With exceeding grief Presently the prince turned to the stalker And finding him mourning Said to him Why not? For at this gate we must all go in Replied he Allah make will thy lot, O my son Surely he will compensate us With his favours And cause our mourning to cease What sayest thou, O my son About our walking abroad To view Damascus and cheer thy spirits Replied Zawal Makhan Thy will is mine So the fireman arose And placed his hand in that of Zawal Makhan And the two walked on Till they came to the stables of the Visroy of Damascus Where they found camels laden with chests And carpets and brocaded stuffs And horses raided saddle And bactrian drometaries While mamalooks and negro slaves And folk of the Habab were running to and fro Quote Zawal Makhan I wonder to whom belong all these chattels And camels and stuffs So he asked one of the eunuchs Wither this dispatching And he answered These are presents sent by the emir of Damascus To King Omar bin al-Numan With the tribute of Syria Now when Zawal Makhan heard his father's name His eyes brimmed over with tears And he began repeating O ye gone for the gaze of this ridded eye He whose sight in my spirit shall ever dwell Your charms are gone But this heart of mine Hath no sweet and no pleasures It's sour this spell If a last grace make us meet again In long-drawn love tale My love, I'll tell And when he had ended his verse He wept in the fireman said to him O my son, we hardly believed That thy health had returned So take heart and do not weep For I fear every lapse for thee And he ceased not comforting and cheering him Whilst Zawal Makhan sighed And moaned over his strangerhood And separation from his sister and his family And tears streamed from his eyes And he recited these couplets Get thee provont in this word Here thou went upon thy way And know how surely death Descends thy life lot to waylay All thy worldly goods are pride And the pain fullest to repine All thy worldly life is vaccine Of thy soul in vain display Say, is not worldly one Like a wondrous place of rest Where at night he knacks his camels And moves off at dawn of day And he continued to weep and wail Over his separation Whilst the fireman also bewept The loss of his wife Yet seizing not to comfort Zawal Makhan Till morning dawned When the sun rose He said to him We seemeth thou yearnest for thy native land Yes, replied Zawal Makhan And I can no longer tarry here So I will commend thee to a last care And set out with these folk And journey with them little by little Till I come to my motherland Said the stalker, and I with thee For of a truth I cannot bear To party with thee I have done thee kindly service And I mean to complete it By tending thee on thy travel At this Zawal Makhan rejoiced and said Allah abundantly required thee for me And was pleased with the idea Of their travelling together The fireman at once went forth And bought another ass Selling the camel And laid in his provont And said to Zawal Makhan This is for thee to ride, by the way And when thou art weary of riding Thou canst dismount and walk Said Zawal Makhan May Allah bless thee and aid me To requite thee For verily thou has dealt with me More lovingly than one with his brother Then he waited till it was dark night When he laid his provisions and baggage On that ass and set forth upon their journey This much befell Zawal Makhan and the fireman But as regards what happened to his sister Nuthat al-Zaman When she left her brother in the Khan Where they abode and wrapped in the old camelet Went out to seek service with someone That she might earn were withal To buy him the roast meat he longed for She feared on, weeping and knowing not Wither to go, whilst her mind was occupied With thoughts of her brother and of her family And her native land So she implored Allah Almighty To do away with these calamities From them and began versifying Dark falls the night And passion comes sore pains to garmy tree And pine upstairs those ceaseless pangs Which work my tormentry And ceasenoth separation Plames my vital to consume And drives me on destruction way This sorrow's ecstasy And longing breathes me restlessness Desire forever fires And tears to all proclaim What I would keep in secrecy No cunning shift is known to me A meeting to secure That I may quit this sickly state Make cure my malady The love which blazes in my heart Is fed with fancy fuel The lover from its hell of fire Must bear hell's agony O thou who blamest me For all befell me It is enough, patient I bear Whatever wrote the reed of doom for me By love I swear I'll never be consoled No, nevermore I swear the oath of love Some slaves who know no perjury O night, to chroniclers of love The news of me declare That sleep hath fed mine eyelids Of thy knowledge witness bears Then she walked on Weeping and turning right and left As she went, when behold There spied her an old Badawi Who had come into the town from the desert With wild Arabs other five The old man took note of her And saw that she was lovely But she had nothing on her head Save a piece of camelet And marveling at her beauty He said to himself This charmer dazzled men's wits But she is in squalid condition And whether she be of the people Of this city or she be a stranger I needs must of her So he followed her little by little Till he met her face to face And stopped the way before her In an arrow lane And called out to her Asking her case and said Tell me, o my little daughter Are thou a free woman or a slave? When she heard this She said to him By thy life do not add to my sorrows Quote he, Allah hath blessed me With six daughters of whom five died And only one is left me The youngest of all And I come to ask thee If thou be of the folk of this city Or a stranger I might take thee and carry thee to her To bear her company So as to divert her from pining For her sisters If thou have no Keith and King I will make thee as one of them And thou and she shall be as my two children Nusat al-Zaman bowed her head In bashfulness When she heard what he said And communed with herself I may trust myself to this old man Then she said to him O uncle, I am a maiden of the Arabs And a stranger, and I have a sick brother But I will go with thee to thy daughter On one condition Which is That I may spend only the day with her And at night may return to my brother If thou strike this bargain I will fare with thee For I am a stranger And I was high in harm among my tribe And I awoke one morning To find myself vile and abject I came with my brother from the land of Al-Hijaz And I fearless he know not where I am When the Badawi heard this He said to himself By Allah I have got my desire Then he turned to her and replied There shall none be dearer to me than thou I wish thee only to bear my daughter company by day And thou shall go to thy brother at earliest nightfall Or if thou wilt bring him over to dwell with us And the Badawi seized not to console her heart And coax her Till she trusted in him and agreed to serve him Then he walked on before her And when she followed him He winked to his men to go in advance And harness the dromedaries And load them with their packs And place upon them water and provisions Ready for setting out As soon as he should come up with the camels Now this Badawi was a base-born chur A highway thief and a traitor to the friends He held most thief A rogue ingrain Past master of plots And she came He had no daughter and no son And was only passing through the town When by the decree of the decreeer He fell in with this unhappy one And he seized not to hold her in converse On the highway Till they came without the city of Jerusalem And went outside He joined his companions And found they had made raided the dromedaries So the Badawi mounted the camel Having seated Nuzhat al-Zaman behind him And they rode on all night Then she knew that the Badawi's proposal Was near and that he had tricked her And she continued weeping and crying Out the whole night long While they journeyed on Making for the mountains In fear any should see them Now when it was near dawn They dismounted from their dromedaries And the Badawi came up to Nuzhat al-Zaman And said to her O city's trumpet What is this weeping? By Allah And thou hold not thy peace I will beat thee to death O thou town filth When she heard this She loaded life and longed for death So she turned to him and said O accursed old man O gray beard of hell How have I trusted thee And thou hast played me false And now thou wouldest torture me When he heard her reply He cried out O lazy baggage Thus thou dared to bend the words with me And he stood up, took her And beat her with a whip And thou hold not thy peace I will kill thee So she was silent a while Then she called to mind her brother And the happiest state she had beaten him And she shed tears secretly Next day She turned to the Badawi and said to him How could thou play me this trick And lure me into these bold and stony mountains And what is thy design with me When he heard her words He hardened his heart and said to her O lazy baggage of ill omen and insolent Will thou bend the words with me And he took the whip And came down with it on her back Till she felt faint Then she bowed down over his feet And kissed them And he left beating her And began reveling her and said By the rites of my bonnet If I see or hear thee weeping I will cut out thy tongue And stuff it up thy coint O thou city filth So she was silent And made him no reply For the beating pained her But sat down with her arms round her knees And bowing her head upon her collar Began to look into her case And her abasement after her lot of high honor And the beating she had endured And she called to mind her brother And his sickness and forlorn condition And how they were both strangers In a far country Which craved tears down her cheeks And she wept silently And began repeating Time hath for this want To upraise and debase Nor is lasting condition For human race In this world each thing Hath appointed turn Nor may man transgress His determined place How long these perils and woe Ah, woe For a life all woeful In Parlo's case Allah bless not the day Which have laid me low I the world with this grace After so much grace My wish is baffled My hopes cast down And distance forbids me To greet the his face O thou who passeth That dear one's door Say for me These tears shall flow evermore When she had finished Her verses The Badawi came up to her And taking compassion on her We spoke her kindly And wiped away her tears Then he gave her a barley scone And said I love not one who answered At times when I am in wrath So henceforth Give me no more of these impertinent words And I will sell thee To a good man like myself Who will do well with thee Even as I have done Yes, what so thou Dust is right Answered she And when the night was longsome Upon her and hunger burned her She ate very little Of that barley bread In the middle of the night The Badawi gave orders For departure And Sharazad perceived The dawn of day And seized saying Her permitted say End of section 19 Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Recording by Filippo Joachim Section 20 Volume 2 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Translated by Richard Burton This is LibriVox Recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer Please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Filippo Joachim The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Section 20 When it was the 56th night She said It hath reached me, O auspicious king That when the Badawi gave The barley scone to Nusat al-Zaman And promised he would sell her To a good man like himself She replied What so thou dust is right And about midnight When hunger burned her She ate a very little Of that barley bread And the Badawi ordered his party To set out So they loaded their loads And he mounted a camel Setting Nusat al-Zaman behind him Then they journeyed And seized Nod journeyed For three days Till they entered the city of Damascus And alighted at a sultan's scone Hard by the Biseroy's gate Now she had lost her color By grief and the fatigue Of such traveling And she seized Nod to weep Over her misfortunes So the Badawi came up to her And said O thou city filth By the rite of my bonnet If thou live not the sweeping I will sell thee To none but the Jew Then he arose And took her by the hand And carried her to a chamber And walked off to the bazaar And he went round to the merchants Who dealt in slave girls And began to parlay with them Saying I have brought a slave girl Whose brother fell ill And I sent him to my people About Jerusalem That they might tend him till he is cured As for her I want to sell her But after the dog her brother fell sick The separation from him Was grievous to her And since then She doth nothing but weep And now I wish that Husa is minded to buy her of me Speak softly of her And say Thy brother is with me in Jerusalem Ill And I will be easy with him About the price Then one of the merchants came up to him And asked How old is she? He answered He just came to marriageable age And she is in doubt With sense and breathing And wit and beauty And loveliness But from the day I sent her brother to Jerusalem Her heart has been yearning For him So that her beauty is fallen away And her value lessened Now when the merchant heard this He sat forth with the Badawi And said O Shahiq of the Arabs I will go with thee And buy of thee this girl Whom thou prayest so highly For wit and manners And beauty and loveliness And I will pay thee her price But it must be upon conditions Which if thou accept I will give thee ready money And if thou accept not I will return her to thee Quote the Badawi And thou wilt The Sultan Sharkhan Son of Omar bin Al-Numan Lord of Baghdad And of the land of Qorasan And condition me Any conditions thou likeest For when thou hast brought her Before King Sharkhan Happily she will please him And he will pay thee her price And a good profit For thyself to boot Rejoined the merchant It happens that I have just now Something to ask from him And it is this that he Write me an order upon the office Exempting me from custom dues And also that he Write me a letter of recommendation To his father King Omar bin Al-Numan So if he take the girl I will weigh thee Out her price at once I agree with thee To this condition The Badawi So they returned together To the place where Nusat Al-Zaman Was And the wild Arabs stood at the chamber door And called out Saying Which was the name Wherewith he had named her When she heard him She wept and made no answer Then he turned to the merchant And said to him Go to her and look at her And speak to her kindly As I enjoined thee So the trader went up to her And gorgeous wise And saw that she was wondrous Beautiful and lovable Especially as she knew The Arabic tongue And he said to the Badawi If she be even as thou saddest I shall get Of the Sultan what I will For her When he bespeak her Peace be on thee, my little maid How art thou She turned to him And replied This also was registered In the Book of Destiny Then she looked at him And seen him to be a man Of respectable semblance With a handsome face She said to herself I believe this one cometh To buy me If I hold a loop from him I shall abide with my tyrant And he will do me To death with beating In any case, this person Is handsome of face And maketh me hope For better treatment from him Than from my brute of a Badawi Maybe he cometh Only to hear me talk So I will give him a fair answer All this, while her eyes Were fixed on the ground Then she raised them to him And said in a sweet voice And upon thee be peace O my lord And alas mercy And his benediction This is what is commanded Of a prophet whom Allah Bless and preserve As for thine inquiry How I am, if thou wouldst Know my case It is such as thou wouldst Not wish, but to thy hope And she held her peace When the merchant heard what she said His fancy took wings For the light of in her And turned into the Badawi He asked him What is her price For indeed she is noble Thereupon the Badawi Waxed angry and answered Thou will turn me The girl's head with this talk Why does thou say That she is noble While she is of the scum Of slave girls And of the refuse of folk I will not sell her to thee When the merchant heard this He knew the man to be weak Of wits and said to him Calm thyself For I will buy her of thee With these blemishes Thy mentionnest And how much will thou Give me for her Enquired the Badawi Reply the merchant Name thy price for her None should name the son Save his sire Rejoin the Badawi None shall name it Badawi thyself Quote the merchant to himself This wildling is a rude spy And a maggoty head By Allah I cannot tell her price And she hath borne my heart With her fair speech and good looks And if she can read and write It will be complete Fair la to her And to her poor chaser But this Badawi does not know her worth Then he turned And said to him O Shaikh of the Arabs I will give thee in ready money Clear of the tax And the sultan's dues 200 gold pieces Now, when the Badawi heard this He flew into a violent rage And cried to the merchant Saying Get up and go thy way By Allah Worth thou to offer me 200 dinars For a bit of camlet she weareth I would not sell it to thee And now I will not sell her But will keep her by me To pasture the camels And grind my grist Then he cried out to her Saying Come here thou stinker I will not sell thee Then he turned to the merchant And said to him I used to think thee a man of judgment But by the rite of my bonnet If thou be gone not from me I will let thee hear What shall not please thee Quote the merchant to himself Of a truth This Badawi is mad And knoweth not her value And I will say no more to him About her price at the present time For by Allah Were he a man of sense He would not say By the rite of my bonnet By the Almighty She is worth the kingdom Of the Kostros And I have not her price by me But if he asked even more I will give him what he will Though it be all my goods Then he turned And said to him O Shaiikh of the Arabs Take patience And calm thyself And tell me What clothes she has with thee Cried the Badawi And what hath the baggage To do with clothes By Allah This camelet in which she is wrapped Is ample for her With thy leave Then I will unveil her face And examine her Even as folk examine slave girls Whom they think of buying Reply the other Up and do what thy wilt And Allah keep thy youth Examine her outside And inside And if thou wilt Shrip off her clothes And look at her when she is naked Quote the trader Allah for friend I will look at not save her face Then he went up to her And was put to shame by her beauty And loveliness And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day And seized to say Her permitted say When it was the 57th night She said It hath reached me o auspicious king That the merchant Went up to Nusrat al-Zaman And was put to shame For her beauty and loveliness So he sat by her side And asked her O my mistress, what is thy name? She answered Does thou ask what is my name This day Or what it was before this day? Thereupon The merchant inquired Has thou then two names Two days and yesterdays? Yes, replied she My name in the past Was Nusrat al-Zaman The delight of the age But my name at this present Is Qusat al-Zaman The despite of the age When the merchant heard this His eyes brimmed over with tears And cause he to her Has thou not a sick brother? I by Allah o my lord I have cause she But fortune hath parted me and him And he lieth sick in Jerusalem The merchant's head Was confounded at the sweetness Of her speech And he said to himself Verily, the Badawi Spake the truth of her Then she called to mind Her brother and his sickness And his strangerhood And her separation from him In his hour of weakness And her not knowing What had befallen him And she thought of all that had happened to her With the Badawi And over severance From her mother and father And native land And the tears coursed down Her cheeks And fast as they started They dropped Then she began reciting Allah, whereer thou be His aid in part to thee Who distant dwellest in my heart Allah, be near thee How so far thou fare Word of all shifts of time All dangers thwart My eyes are desolate For thy vanished sight And start my tears Saw me how fast they start Would have an eye kind What quarter or what land Homes thee And in what house and tribe Thou art Count of life, thou drain In greeneth of rose While drink I tears drops For my soul desert And thou joys lumber In those hours When I peel twigs to my side And couch coals Burning smart All things were easy Saved to part from thee For my sad heart this grief Is hard to dream When the merchant heard her verses He wept and put out his hand To wipe away the tears from her cheeks But she let down her veil Over her face saying Heaven forbid, oh my lord Then the Badawi, who was sitting At a little distance watching them Saw her cover her face From the merchant While about to wipe the tears From her cheeks And he concluded That she would have hindered him From handling her So he rose and ran into her Delt her with a camel's halter He had in his hand Such a blow on the shoulders That she fell onto the ground On her face Her eyebrows struck a stone Which cut it open And the blood streamed Down her cheeks Whereupon she screamed a loud scream And felt faint And wept bitterly The merchant was moved To tears for her And saddened himself There is no help for it But that I buy this damsel Though at her weight in gold And free her from this tyrant And he began to revel the Badawi Whilst the Nusat al-Zaman Lay insensible When she came to herself She wiped away the tears And blood from her face And she bound up her head Then, raising her glance To heaven She besought her lord With a sorrowful heart And began repeating And pity one Who earned in honor throw And now is fallen Into sword's grace She weeps and baths Her cheeks with railing tears And asks What cure can meet This fatal case When she had ended her verse She turned to the merchant And said in an undertone By the Almighty Do not leave me with the tyrant Who knows not Allah the Most High If I pass this night In his place I shall kill myself With my own hand Save me from him So Allah save thee From the fire Then quote the merchant To the Badawi O Shaikh of the Arabs This slave is none of thine affair So do thou sell her to me For what thou wilt Take her Quote the Badawi And pay me down her price Or I will carry her back To the camp And they are set her to feed the camels And gather they don't I will give thee 50,000 dinners for her Allah will open Reply the Badawi 70,000 said the merchant Allah will open Reply the Badawi This is not the capital Spent upon her For she hath eaten With me barley bread To the value of 90,000 gold pieces The merchant He rejoined And thine And all thy tribe In the length of your lives Have not eaten a thousand dukets Worth of barley But I will say thee one word Wherewith, if thou be not satisfied I will set the bisroy Of Damascus on thee And he will take her from thee By force The Badawi continued Say on And 100,000 I have sold her to thee At that price I shall be able To buy salt with her The merchant laughed And going to his lodgings Brought the money And put it into the hand of the Badawi Who took it and made off Saying to himself Nits must I go to Jerusalem Where, happily I shall happen on her brother And I will bring him here And sell him also So he mounted And journeyed till he arrived at Jerusalem Where he went To the Khan And asked for Zawal Makhan But could not find him Such was the case with him But for what Regards the merchant and Nusat al-Zaman When he took her He threw some of his clothes Over her And carried her to his lodgings And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day And seized saying Her permitted say End of section 20 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Recording by Filippo Joachim Section 21 Volume 2 of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Translated by Richard Burton This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information Or to volunteer Please visit LibriVox.org Reading by Lars Rolander The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Section 21 When it was the 58th night She said It hath reached me, O auspicious king That when the trader Saved Nusat al-Zaman From the Badavi And bore her to his lodgings And robed her in the richest raiment He went down with her to the bazaar Where he bought her what ornaments She chose And put them in a satin bag Which he set before her saying All is for thee And I ask nothing of thee In return but that When I lead thee to the Sultan Viceroy of Damascus Thou acquaint him With the price I paid for thee Albeit it was little compared With thy value And if seeing thee he buy thee Of me, thou tell him How I have dealt with thee And ask of him for me A royal patent And a written recommendation Wherewith I can repair To his father King Umar bin Al-Nu'uman Lord of Baghdad To the intent that he may Pass on my stuff Or any other goods in which I traffic When she heard his words She wept and sobbed And the merchant said to her Oh, my lady I observe that every time I mention Baghdad Thine eyes are tearful Is there anyone there Whom thou love'st? If it be a trader or the like Tell me, for I know All the merchants and so forth There, and if thou would send Him a message I will bear it for thee Replied she By Allah I have no acquaintance Among merchant folk and the like I know none there But King Umar bin Uman Lord of Baghdad When the merchant heard her words He laughed and rejoiced With exceeding joy And said in himself Ah, I have won my wish Then he said to her Has thou been shown to him In time past? She answered No, but I was brought up With his daughter And he holdeth me dear And I have high honour with him So if thou wouldst Have the King grant thee Thy desire Give me ink, case, and paper And I will write thee a letter And when thou reaches The city of Baghdad Do thou deliver it into the hand Of King Umar bin Uman And say to him Thy handmaid Nusat al-Saman Would have thee to know That the chances and changes Of the nights and days Have struck her as with a hammer And have smitten her So that she hath been Sold from place to place And she sendeth thee her salams And if he ask further of her Say that I am now With the viceroy at Damascus The merchant wondered At her eloquence And his affection for her increased And he said to her I cannot but think That men have played upon Thine understanding And sold thee for money Tell me, does thou know The Quran by heart Yes, answered she And I am also acquainted With the philosophy and medicine And the prolegomena Of science And the commentaries of Galen The physician On the cannons of Hippocrates And I have commented him And I have read the Taskira And have commented The Burhan And I have studied the symbols Of Ibn-Baitar And I have something to say Of the cannon of Mecca By Abid Senna I can re-read those And I can solve ambiguities And discourse upon geometry And am skilled in anatomy I have read the books Of the Shafi'i school And the traditions of the prophet And syntax And I can argue With the olemah And discourse of all manner learning Moreover, I am skilled In logic and rhetoric And arithmetic And the making of talismans And almanacs And I know thoroughly The spiritual sciences And the times appointed for religious duties And I understand All these branches of knowledge Then quoth she to the merchant Bring me ink, Case, and paper That I write thee a letter That will aid thee on thy journey to Baghdad And enable thee to do Without passports Now, when the merchant Heard this, he cried out Brava, brava Then, o happy, In whose palace thou shalt Thereupon he brought her Paper and ink, Case and a pen of brass And boosted the earth Before her face to do her honor She took a sheet And handled the reed And wrote therewith these verses I see all power Of sleep from eyes Of me hath flown Say, did thy parting teach This iron on wake To bone? What makes thy memory light Such burnings in my heart? Hath every lover Strength such memories To own? How sweet the big drop cloud Which rained on summer day Tis gone, and ere I taste Its sweets afar tis flown I pray the wind With windy breath to bring some news From thee to lover White we love so woe Begone Complains to thee A lover of all hope for long For parting pangs Can break not only heart But stone And when she had ended writing These verses she continued These words are from her Who set that melancholy Destroyed her And that watching wasted her In the merc of whose night Is found no light And darkness and day are the same In her sight. She totheth on the couch Of separation, and her eyes Are blackened with the pencils Of sleeplessness. She watcheth the stars arise And into the gloom She strains her eyes Veerily sadness and leanness Have consumed her strength, And the setting forth Of her case would run to length. No helper hath she But tears, and she Recited these verses. No ring dove moans From home on branch in morning Light, but shakes A very frame with sorrows Killing might. No lover sighteth For his love or gladdeth heart To meet his mate, but Breeds in me redoubled Light. I bear my plane to one Who has no roof for me. Ah, me, how love Can part man's mortal frame And sprite. Then her eyes Weld over with tears, And also these two couplets. Love smote my frame so sore On parting day That severance, severed Sleep and eyes for a. I waxed so lean That I'm still a man, But for my speaking Thou would never say. Then she shed tears And wrote at the foot Of the sheep, this cometh From her who is far from her Fork and her native land The sorrowful hearted woman Nusat al-Saman. In fine she folded the sheet And gave it to the merchant Who took it and kissed it And understood its contents And exclaimed, Glory to him who fashioned thee And Charasad perceived The dawn of day And ceased saying Her permitted say. When it was the 59th night She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That Nusat al-Saman Wrote the letter And gave it to the merchant, And he took it and read it And understood the contents And exclaimed, Glory to him who fashioned thee. Then he redoubled His kindness And made himself pleasant To her all that day, And when night came He paid out to the bazaar And bought some food Wherewith he fed her After which she carried her To the hamam And said to the bath-woman, As soon as thou hast made an end Of washing her head Dress her and send And let me know of it. And she replied, Hearing is obeying. Meanwhile he fetched Food and fruit and wax candles To the outer room of the bath. And when the tire-woman Had done washing her, She dressed her and led her Out of the bath and seated her On the bench. Then she sent to tell the merchant And Nusat al-Saman Went forth to the outer room Where she found the tray Spread with food and fruit. So she ate And the tire-woman with her And gave the rest to the people Of the bath. Then she slept till the morning And the merchant lay the night In a place apart from her. When he aroused himself From sleep, he came to her And waking her, presented her With stuff of fine stuff And a headkerchief worth A thousand diners, A suit of Turkish embroidery And walking boots Purpled with red gold And set with pearls and gems. Moreover He hung in each of her ears A circlet of gold With a fine pearl therein Worth a thousand diners And threw round her neck A collar of gold With bosses of garnet And a chain of amber beads That hung down between her breasts Over her navel. Now, to this chain Were attached ten balls And nine crescents Each crescent had in its midst A beasel of ruby And each ball a beasel Of ballas. The value of the chain was Three thousand diners And each of the balls were Priced at twenty thousand dirhams So that the dress she wore Was worth in all a great sum Of money. When she had put this on The merchant paid her a dawn Herself, and she adorned Left to the outmost beauty. Then she let fall Her fillet over her eyes And she fed forth with the merchant Preceding her. But when folk saw her All wondered at her beauty And exclaimed Blessed be Allah, the most Excellent creator O lucky the man in whose House the hall be. And the trader ceased Not walking, and she behind Till they entered the palace Of Sultan Sharkan. When he sought an audience And kissing the earth between his Hands said, O auspicious king I have brought thee a rare gift Unmatched in this time And richly gifted With beauty and with good Qualities. Quoth the king. Let me see it. So the merchant went out And brought her, she following And made her stand before king Sharkan. When he beheld her, blood Joined to blood, though She had been parted from him in Childhood, and though he had never Seen her, having only heard A long time after her birth That he had a sister called Nusat al-Saman And a brother, Sao al-Makam He having been jealous of them Because of the succession. And such was the course Of his knowing little About them. Then having placed her before The presence the merchant said O king of the age Besides being peerless In her time and beauty And loveliness. She is also versed in all learning Sacred and profane Including the art of government And the abstract sciences. Quoth the king To the trader. Take her price according As thou bout to stir And go thy ways. I hear and I obey Replied the merchant But first write me a patent Exempting me forever From paying tith on my Merchandise. Said the king, I will do This, but first tell me What price thou paidest for her. Said the merchant, I bought her for One hundred thousand dinners And her clothes cost me another Hundred thousand. When the sultan heard these words He declared, I will give The a higher price than this For her. And calling his treasurer said to him Pay this merchant Three hundred and twenty thousand Of cuts, so will he have One hundred and twenty thousand Dinners profit. Thereupon the sultan summoned And paid him the money in their presence And then he said, I call you to witness That I free this my slave girl And purpose to marry her. So the kasis Wrote out the deed of emancipation And the contract of marriage When the sultan Scattered much gold on the head Of those present. And the pages and the eunuchs Picked up this lagesse. Then after paying him his monies Sharkan paid them right for the merchant A perpetual patent Exempting him from toll, Tax or tith upon his merchandise And forbidding each and every In all his government To molest him. And lastly Bestowed on him a splendid Dress of honor. And Charasad perceived the dawn Of day and ceased saying Her permitted say. End of section twenty-one Of the book of a thousand nights And a night, volume two Read by Losch Rolander Section twenty-two Volume two of the book A Thousand Nights and a Night Translated by Richard Burton This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings Are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer Please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Werte Spike Fogarty The book of a thousand nights And a night, volume two Section twenty-two When it was the sixtieth night She said, it hath reached me O auspicious king that king Sharkan paid them right For the merchant a mandate After paying him his moneys And they wrote a perpetual patent Exempting him from the tithe Upon his merchandise And forbidding any in his Government to molest him. And lastly bestowed upon him Then all about him retired And none remained, save the Kazis and the merchant. Whereupon said he to the judges I wish you to hear such discourse From this damsel as may prove Her knowledge and accomplishments In all aimed for her by this trader That we ascertain the truth Of this assertations. They answered, there is no evil in that. And he commanded the curtain to be Let down between him and those with him And the maiden and those with her At the damsel behind the curtains began To wish her joy and kiss her hands and feet When they learned that she was become The king's wife. Then they came Around her and took off her dresses Easing her of the weight of her clothes And began to look upon her beauty And loveliness. Presently the wives Of the emirs and the wasiers Heard that king Sharkan had bought A handmaiden unmatched For her beauty and learning and philosophy And account keeping, and versed In all branches of knowledge He had paid for her three hundred And twenty thousand dinars And that he had set her free And had written a marriage contract with her And had summoned the four Kazis To make trial of her and how She would answer all their questions And hold disputations with them. So they asked leave Of their husbands and repaired To the palace whereupon was Nazhat al-Zaman. When they came into her they found The eunuch standing before her And as soon as she saw the wives Of the emirs and the wasiers And the grandees of the realm Coming to call upon her she rose To them on her feet and met them With courtesy. Her handmaiden standing Behind her and she received them Saying ye be welcome. The while She smiled in their faces so as To win their hearts and she promised Them all manner of good and seated Them in their proper stations as if She had been brought up with them. So all wondered at her beauty For another, this damsel is none other Than a queen, the daughter of a king. Then they sat down magnifying her worth And said to her, O our lady, this our city Is illuminated by thee, and our Country and abode and birth, place And reign are honored by thy presence. The kingdom indeed is thy palace And we all are thy handmaids. So by Allah do not Shut us out from thy favors And thy sight of thy beauty. And she's thanked them for this. All this while the curtains were let Down between Nizet Al-Zaman And the woman with her on the one Side and the king Sharacan and the Four causies and the merchant Seated by him on the other. Presently king Sharacan called To her and said, O queen, the Glory of thine age, this merchant Hath described thee as being Learned and accomplished, and he Claimeth that thou art skilled In all branches of knowledge, even To astrology. So let us hear Something of all this he hath Mentioned, and father us with the Short discourse on such subjects. She replied, saying, O king, to Hear is to obey. The first subject, whereof I will treat are the art of Government and the duties of the Kings, and what behoove the Governors of commanding meets According to religious law, and What is incumbent on them in Respects of satisfactory Speech and manners. The work tends either to religious Or to laical life, though none Attaineth to religion save Through this world, because it is The best road to futurity. Now the works of this world are Not ordered, saved by the doings Of its people, and the men's Doings are divided into four Divisions, Government, commerce, Husbandry, and craftsmanship. Now Government requires perfect Administration with just and true Judgment, for Government is the Of the world, which world is the Road to futurity. Since Allah Almighty hath made for the world His servants as viaticum to the Traveler for the attainment of his Goal, and it befiteth each man That he receive of it such Measure as shall bring him to Allah And that he follow not Herein his own mind and His individual lust. If the Folk would take of worldly goods With justice and equity, all cause Of contention would be cut off, They take thereof with violence, And after their own desires And their persistence therein Gives rise to contentions. So they have need of the Sultan, That he do justice between them And order their affairs, and if The King restrain not his Folk From one another, they strong Will drive the weak to the wall. Hence Adiashir said, Religion and kingship, the Twins' religion, is a Hidden treasure to the King. The keeper, in the divine ordinances And men's intelligence, puts it out That it behooveeth the people To adopt a Sultan who Shall withhold oppressor from the Oppressed, and do the weak Justice against the strong, and Restrain the violence of the proud And the rebels against rule. For know, O King, that according To the measures of the Sultan's good Morals, even so will be the time As sayeth the Apostles of Allah Who, on whom the peace And salvation, there be two classes Who, if they be good The people will be good And if they be bad, the people Will be bad. Even the Olemah And the Amirs, and it is said By a certain sage, there be Three kinds of kings, the king Of the faith, the king who Protecteth things to which Reverence is due, and the king Of his own lusts. The king Of the faith, obligeth his subjects To follow their faith, and it Be the most faithful, for it is By him that they take pattern In the things of the faith, and It becomeeth the folk to obey Him in whatsoever Commandeth according to Define ordinance. But he shall Hold the discontented in the Same esteem as the contented Because of submission to the Decrees of destiny. As for the King who protected things to Be reverenced, he upholdeth The things of the faith and of The world compeleth his folk to follow The divine law to preserve the Rights of humanity, and it Fiteth him to unite pen and Sword, for whoso Declineth from that pen hath Written his feet slip, and the King shall rectify his error With the sharp sword and disbread His justice over all mankind. As for the king of his own lusts He hath no religion, but the Following his desire and has he Feareth not the wrath of his lord That hath him on the throne. So his Kingdom inclineth to disposition, and At the end his pride is in The house of perdition, and sages Say, the king hath need of Many people, but the king hath Need of but one king. Wherefore Beceimeth that he be well Acquainted with their natures, that He reduce their discord to Concord, that with his justice He encompasses them all, and With his bounties overwhelm them All. Know, O king, that Arashir styled Jamer Shadid, or the live Coal, third of the kings Of Persia, conquered the whole world And divided it into four divisions And for this purpose Get for himself four seal rings One for each division. The First seal was that of sea, and The police of prohibition And on it was written, Alterna Lives. The second was the seal Of tribute, and of the receipt Of monies, and on it was written Building up. The third was The seal of the provisioning department And on it was written plenty. The fourth seal was the seal of The oppressed, and on it was written Justice. And these Usages remained valid in Persia Until the revelation of Al Islam. Krosros also Wrote his son, who was With the army, be not Thou too open-handed with the troops Or they will be too rich to need Thee. And Shrafarzad perceived the dawn Of day, and ceased to say Her permitted say, when it Was the sixty-first night. She Said, it hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Krosros Wrote his son, be not Thou too open-handed with thy troops Or they will be too rich to need thee Nor be thou niggardly with them Or they will murmur against thee Give thy giving deliberately, and Confer thy favours advisantly Open thy hand to them in time Of success, and stint them Not in time of distress. There is a legend that the desert Arab Came once to the Caliph Al-Mansur, and said, Star Thy dog, and he shall follow thee. When the Caliph heard his words He was enraged with the Arab, But Abu Abbas Avthus said to him, I fear that if some other Than thou should show him a scone The dog would follow him, and leave Thee alone. Thereupon The Caliph Al-Mansur's wrath Subsided, and when he knew That the wild Arab had intended no Offence, and ordered him a present And know, O King, that Abd Al-Malik Bin Moran wrote to his brother Abd Al-Aziz When he dispatched him to Egypt. As follows, pay heed to thy Secretaries, and thy Chamberlains, For the Secretaries will acquaint thee With the estate of finished matters And the Chamberlains with matters Of money, whilst thy expenditure Will make thy troops known to thee. Omar bin Al-Katab, whom Allah Accept, when engaging a servant Was in the habit of conditioning Him with four conditions. The first that he should not ride The baggage beast. The second That he should not wear fine clothes. The third that he should not eat The spoil, and the fourth that he Should not put off praying until After the proper period. It is said That there is no wealth more profitable Than understanding, and there is No understanding like common sense And prudence, and there is no prudence Like piety, that there is no means Of drawing near to God like Good morals, no measure like Good breeding, no traffic like Good works, and no profit like Earning the divine favor, that there Is no temperance like standing Within the limits of the law, no Science like that of meditation, No worship like obeying the divine Commands, no faith like modesty, No calculation like self-abasement, And no honor like knowledge. So guard the head and what It containeth, the belly And what it comprises, and think Of death and doom ere it arises. Sayeth Ali, whose face Allah honor, beware of the wickedness Of women, and be on thy guard Against them, consult them Not in ought, but grudge Not complacence to them, least They agreed for intrigue, and eat Quoth he, who so Leaveth the path of moderation His wits become perplexed, and there Be rules for this, which we will Mention, if it be Allah's will And Omar, who Allah accept. Sayeth, there are three kinds Of women, firstly the true Believing, heaven-fearing, Loveful and fruitful, who help With her mate against fate, not Helping fate against her mate. Secondly, she who loveth Her children, but no more, and Lastly, she who is Shackle Allah seteth On the neck of whom he will. Men, be also three. The wise when he exerceth His own judgment. The wiser who, when befalleth Somewhat, whereof, he knoweth Not the issue. Seeketh the folk Of good counsel, and acteth By their advice. And the wise Irresolute ignoring the right Way, nor heeding those Who would guide him straight. Justice is indispensable in all things. Even slave girls have need Of justice. And men, quote, as An instance highway robbers who Live by violent mankind, for Did not deal equitably Among themselves, and observe Justice in dividing their booty, Their order would fall to pieces. In short, for the rest, the Prince of noble qualities is Beneficence, come benevolence, And how excellent is the saying Of the poet, by open hand And Ruth, the youth rose To his tribe's command. Go and do likewise for the same Were easy task to thee. And, quote another, in Ruth And mildness surety lies And mercy wins respect. And truth is best asylum For the man of soothfast soul, Whoso, for wealth of gold Would win and wear the world's Good word. On glory's course must ever be The first to gain the goal. And Nazhat al-Zaman Discovered upon the policy Of the kings till the bystander Said, never have we seen One reason of rule And government like this damsel. Happily she will let us hear Some discourse upon subject Other than this. When she heard their Words and understood them, she said, As for the chapter of good breeding, It is wide of comprehension Being a compend of things Perfect. Now it so happened That one day there came Caliph Mu Ayuiah, One of his companions who mentioned The rank of Iraq and the goodness Of their wit, and the Caliph's wife May soon, mother of Yezid, Heard his words, so when he was Gone she said to the Caliph, O prince of the faithful, I would thou let some of the People of Iraq come in And talk to thee, that I may Hear their discourse. Therewith Mu Ayuiah said to his attendants See who is at the door, and they Answered, the Banu Tamim Let them come in, said he. So they came in, and with Them, al-anafaf, son of K's, then quoth Mu Ayuiah, enter O Abu Bar, and drew A curtain between himself and Maysum, that she might hear What they said without being seen Herself. Then he said to al-anaf, O son of sea, draw near And tell me what counsel thou May be. Quoth al-anaf, Part thy hair, and trim thy Mastachio, and pair thy nails And pluck thine armpits, and shave Thy pubes, and ever use the Toothpick, because therein be Two and seventy virtues, and Make the Gusul, or complete Absolution on Friday, as an Expiation for all between the Fridays, and Shahr-Ezid Perceive the dawn of day, and See saying her permitted say. When it was the sixty-second She said, it hath reached me, O Auspicious king, that anaf bin K's replied to al-Mu Ayuiah's, question, and Ever use the Toothpick, because Therein be two and seventy Virtues, and make the complete Friday Absolution as an Expiation for all between the Two Fridays, quoth Mu Ayuiah. What is thy counsel to Thyself? To set my feet firmly On the ground, to move them Deliberately, and watch over How dost thou order thyself, when Thou goest into one knot Of thy nobles, and of thy Tribe? I lower mine eyes Modestly, and I salute first. I avoid what concerneth me not, And I spare my words, and how When thou goest into thine Equals, I give ear to them When they speak, and I do Not assail them when they air. When thou goest into thy chiefs, I salute them without making Any sign, and await the reply. If they bid me draw near, I draw near, And if they draw off, from me I withdraw. How dost thou With thy wife, quoth enough Excuse me from answering this O commander of the faithful, but Mu Ayuiah cried, I Conjure thee inform me, he said. I entreat her kindly, and show Her familiarity, and I am Large in expenditure, for Woman was created of a crooked Rib, and how dost thou When thou hast a mind to Lie with her? I bid her Perfume herself, and kiss her Till she is moved to desire. Then, should it be, as thou Knowest, I throw her on her Back. If the seed abide In her womb I say, O Allah Make it blessed, and let it Not be wasteful, but fashion It into the best of fashions. Then I rise from her to Absolution, and first I pour Water over my hands, and then Over my body, and lastly The joy he hath given me, said Mu Ayuiah. Thou hast answered Right well, and now tell me What thy requirements? said Anaf. I would have the Rule thine subjects in the fear Of Allah, and do even hand Justice between them. Thereupon Anaf rose to his feet, and Left the Caliph's presence. And when he had gone, Me Soon said, Where there, but This man in Iraq, he would Suffice it. Then continued At the end of section of the Chapter of Good Breeding, and Know, O King, that Muayah Keeb was Intendant of the Public Treasury. During the Caliphate of Omar bin Al-Katab, And Shahzad perceived the dawn Of day, and ceased to her Permitted to say. End of section 22 of the Book of a Thousand Nights and A Night, volume 2. Recorded by Huerta Spike Fogarty, Ria, Kentucky.