 Section 13, Vol. 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 Loge Rolander The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Vol. 2, Section 13 When it was the 47th night, she said, It has reached me, O auspicious king, That when the young lady asks at al-Dabahi, By the truth of the Messiah, Wilk wrestled with me, or dust jest, And she answered, Yeah, I will wrestle with thee in very deed. Sharkan, looking on the while, The damsel cried, Rise up for the fall, And thou have spunk so to do. When the old woman heard this, She raged with exceeding rage, And her body hair stood on end, Like the bristles of a fretful hedgehog. Then she sprang to her feet, Whilst the damsel stood up to her and said, Now, by the truth of the Messiah, I will not wrestle with thee unless I be naked, Mistress Hor. So she loosed her petticoat trousers And putting her hand under her clothes, Tore them off her body, Then twisted up a silken kerchief into cord shape, Gurt it round her middle, And became, as she were, a scald head, If Rita or a spotted snake. With this she inclined towards the damsel and said, Do thou as I have done? All this time Sharcon was casing at the twain, And laughing at the beldam's loathly semblance. So the damsel leisurely rose And, taking a sash of Yamani stuff, Passed it twice round her waist. Then she tucked up her trousers And displayed two calls of alabaster, Carrying a moond of crystal, Smooth and rounded, And a stomach which exhaled musk from its dimples, As it were a bed of new-month's animals, And breasts like double-pongrenates. Then the old woman leaned towards her And the two laid hold, either of each, While Sharcon raised his head heavenwards And prayed Allah that the bell might beat the beldam. Presently the young woman Get beneath the old woman And gripping her waist cloth With the left and circling her neck With the right hand, hoisted her off the ground with both, Whereupon the old woman strode to free herself And in so doing fell on her back Arciversi. With her legs high in air, And her hairy bush between them Showed manifest in the moonshine. Furthermore she let fly two great farts, One of which blew up the dust from the earth's face And the other steamed up to the gate of heaven. Sharcon laughed till he fell back upon the ground. Then he arose and, bearing his brand, Looked right and left. But he saw no one save the old woman Sprawling on her back and said to himself, He lied not, who named thee Lady of Calamities. Verily thou newst her prowess By her performance upon the others. So he drew near them To hear what should pass between them. Then the young lady went up to the old one And, throwing a wrapper of thin silk upon her nakedness, Helped her to don her clothes and made excuses, saying, Oh, my lady, sattal davai, I intended only to throw thee and not all this. But thou tried to twist out of my hands So lord to allow for safety. She returned her no answer, But rose in her shame and walked away till out of sight. Leaving the handmaid's prostrate and pinion With the fair damsel standing amongst them. Quoth Sharcon to himself, Every luck has its cause. Sleep did not fall upon me, Nor the war horse bear me hither, Save for my good fortune. For doubtless this maid And what is with her shall become booty to me. So he made towards his steed And mounted and healed him on. When he sped as the shaft speeds from the bow, And in his hand he still held his brand bear of sheath, Which he brandished shouting the while his war cry. Allah is almighty. When the damsel saw him, She sprang to her feet And taking firm stand on the bank of the stream, Whose breath was six Ls. The normal cubits made one bound And landed clear on the farther side, Where she turned and cried out with a loud voice. Who art thou? O thou fellow that breaks in upon our privacy and pastime, And that to hang her in hand as if charging a host, Whence camest thou and wither art thou going? Speak soothe, for truth will stand the in good steed And lie not, for lies come of villain breed. Doubless thou hast wandered this night from thy way, That thou chancesed upon this place, Whence escape were the greatest of mercies, For thou art now in an open plain, And did we shout but a single shout Would come to our rescue four thousand nights. So tell me what thou wantest, And if thou wouldst only have us set thee on the right road, We will do so. When Sharkan heard her words, he replied, I am a stranger of the Muslims, Who fared forth this night single-handed, Seeking for spoil, Nor could this moonlight show me a fairer booty Than these ten maidens, So I shall cease them and rejoin my comrades with them. Quoth she, I would have thee know That as for the booty thou hast not come at it, And as for the handmates by Allah, They shall never be thy spoil. Have I not told thee That to lie is villain vile? Quoth he, The wise man is he who takes warning by others. Thereupon quoth she, By the truth of the Messiah, Did I not fear that thy death would be on my hands? I would shout a shout Should fill the mead for thee with war-steeds And with men of might. But I tell thee, Men of might. But I take pity upon the stranger. So if thou seek booty, I require thee that thou elight from thy steed And swear to me by thy faith That thou wilt not advance against me Or like arms in hand, And we will wrestle. I and thou. If thou throw me, Set me on thy steed And take all of us to thy booty. But if I throw thee, Come under my command. Swear this to me, For I fear thy treachery. Indeed it has become a commonsaw, Where perfidy is innate, Their trust is a weekly mate. Now and thou wilt swear I will return And draw near to thee And tackle thee. Answered Sharkhan, And indeed he lusty to seize her And said in his soul, Truly she knows not That I am a champion of champions. Swear me by what oath thou wilt And by what thou deems most binding And I will not approach thee with ought Till thou hast made thy preparation And sest draw near that I wrestle with thee. If thou throw me, I have money wherewith all to ransom myself. And if I throw thee, It will be booty and booty enough for me. Rejoined the damsel, I am content herewith, And Sharkhan was astounded at her words and said, And by the truth of the apostle, Whom Allah bless and keep, I too am content on the other part. Then said she, Swear to me by him who spright in body died And dealt laws to rule man, And by the truth of the apostle, And by the truth of the apostle, And by the truth of the apostle, And dealt laws to rule mankind a right That thou wilt not offer me ought of violence, Say by way of wrestling, Else mayst thou die Without the pale of al-Islam. Sharkhan replied, By Allah, Wear a kasi to swear me, Even though he were a kasi of the kasis, He would not impose upon me such an oath as this. Then he swear to her By all she named and tied his steed to a tree, But he was drowned in the sea of thought Saying in himself, Pray speak to him who fashioned her From dirty water. Then he got himself And made ready for wrestling And said to her, Cross the stream to me, But she replied, It is not for me to come over to thee, If thou wilt pass Thou over here to me. I cannot do that, quoth he. And quoth she, Oh boy, I will come across to thee. So she tucked up her skirts And leaping landed On the other side of the stream By his side, Whereupon he drew near to her And bent him forwards And clapped palms. But he was confounded By her beauty and loveliness, For he saw a shape On the ground With the dye leaves of the jam Which had been fostered By the hand of beneficence And fanned by the seafers Of fairs' fortune And whose birth A propitious ascendant Had greeted. Then she called out to him, Oh, Muslim, Come on and let us wrestle Here the break of morning. And tucked up her sleeves From a forearm like fresh curd Was dazzled by it. Then he bent forwards And clapped his palms By way of challenge. She doing the like And quoth hold of her And the two grappled And gripped and interlocked Hands and arms. Presently he shifted his hands To her slender waist When his fingertips sank Into the soft folds of her middle Breeding languishment And pouring gale So she lifted him up And throwing him to the ground Sat upon his breast With hips and hindered cheeks Like moans of sand For his soul had lost mastery Of his senses. Then she asked him, Oh, Muslim, The slaying of Nazarenes Is lawful to your fork. What then has thou to say About being slain thyself? And he answered, His speech as regards slaying me Is not other than unlawful For our Prophet Muhammad Whom Allah bless and preserve Prohibited the slaying Of women and children, Old men and monks. As it was thus revealed To your Prophet, She replied, It behoved us to render The equivalent of his mercy. So rise, I give thee thy life For I am generous. Then she got off his breast And he rose And stood shaking the dust From his head against the owners Of the curved rib. Even women, And she said to him, Be not ashamed, But verily one who enters The land of Rome In quest of booty And comes to assist kings Against kings. How happens it that For lack of strength in me? He answered, Nor did stout throw me By thy force. It was thy loveliness Over through me. So if thou wilt grant me Another bout, It will be of thy courtesy. She laughed and said, I grant thee thy request. But these handmaids Have long been pinioned And their arms and sides are wary. And it were only right I should lose them. For happily this next Wrestling bout will be long. Then she went to the slave girls And unbinding them, Said to them in the tongue of Greece, Get ye to some safe place Till I foil this Muslims lust And longing for you. So they went away While Sharkan kept gazing at them And they kept turning to look at the two. Then each approached the adversary And he set his breast against hers. But when he felt waist touch waist His strength failed him. And she, waxing wear of this, Lifted him with her hand Swiftier than the blinding leaven flash And threw him to the ground. He fell on his back And then she said to him, Rice, I give thy life a second time. I spared thee in the first count Because of thy prophet And made unlawful the slaying of women And I do so on the second count Because of thy weakness And the greenness of thine years And thy strangerhood. But I charge thee If there be in the Muslim army Sent by Omar bin Al-Numan To succour the king of Constantinople A stronger than thou Send him hither and tell him of me. For in wrestling There are shifts and trips Such as the faint or falsing And the snap of first grip The hug, the feet catch The thigh light, the jostle And the leg lock. By Allah, oh my lady Quath Sharkan And indeed he was highly incensed Against her. Had I been Master Alsafdi Master Muhammad Kimal Or Ibn Alsadi As they were in their prime I had kept no note of these shifts Thou mentioned. For oh my mistress By Allah thou hast not grasped me By thy strength But by blandishments Of thy back parts For we men of Mesopotamia So love a full-form thigh That nor sense was left me Nor foresight. But now and thou wish Thou shall try a third fall With me while my wits are about me And this last match is allowed Me by the laws of the game Which says the best of three Moreover I have regained my presence Of mind. When she heard his words She said to him Has thou not had a belly full Of this wrestling? Oh, banquished one However come on And thou wilt But know that this must be the last round. Then she bent forward And challenged him And Sharkan did likewise Setting to it in real earnest And being right cautious about the throw. So the two strove a while And the damsel found in him a strength Such as he had not observed before And said to him Oh, Muslim Thou art now on thy metal Thou art now on thy metal Yes, he replied Thou knows that there remains to me But this one round After which each of us will Wend a different way She laughed And he laughed too Then she overreached At his thigh And caught firm hold of it unawares Which made him greet the ground And fall full on his back She laughed at him and said Are thou an eater of bran? Thou are like a Badavi's bonnet Which falls off with every touch Or else the father of winds That drops before a puff of air Fire upon thee Oh, thou poor thing Adding Get thee back to the Muslim army And send us other than thyself For thou fairest of twos And proclaim for us Among the Arabs and Persians The Turks And Dalemites Whoso has might in him Let him come to us Then she made a spring And landed on the other side Of the stream And said to Sharkham Laughing Parting with thee Is right crevious to me Oh, my lord But get thee to thy mates And lay up on their lance points Thou hast no strength To defend thee against a woman So how couldst thou hold thine own Amongst men of might and knights? Sharkham was confounded And called to her As she turned from him Making towards the convent Oh, my lady Will thou go away And leave the miserable stranger The broken hearted slave of love So she turned to him What is thy want? I will grant thee thy prayer Have I set foot in thy country And taste the sweetness of thy courtesy? Replied he And shall I return Without eating of thy victual And tasting thy hospitality? I who have become one Of thy servitors None balk kindliness Saved the base She rejoined Honor us in a last name I spit Mount thy steed And ride along the brink Of the stream over against me For now thou art my guest At this Sharkham was glad And hastening back to his horse Mounted and walked him abreast of her And she kept faring on Till they came to a drawbridge Built of beams Of the white poplar Hung by pulleys and steel chains And made fast with hooks and padlocks When Sharkham looked He saw awaiting her upon the bridge The same ten handmaids Whom she had thrown in the wrestling boats And as she came up to them She said to one in the Greek tongue Arise and take the reins of his horse And conduct him across into the convent So she went up to Sharkham And led him over Much puzzled and perturbed With what he saw Oh, would that the vassir Dandan were here with me That his eyes might look upon These fairest of favors Then he turned to the young lady And said to her Oh, marvel of loveliness Now I have two claims upon thee First the claim of good fellowship And secondly for that thou has Carried me to thy home And offered me thy hospitality I am now under thy commandance And thy guidance So do me one last favor By accompanying me to the lands Of al-Islam Where thou shalt look upon many A lion-hearted warrior And thou shalt learn who I am When she heard this She was angered and said to him By the truth of the messiah Thou has proved thyself With me a man of keen wit But now I see what mischief Therein in thy heart And how thou canst permit thyself A speech which proves thy traitor's intent How should I do as thou says When I want that if I came To that king of yours Omar bin al-Nu'uman I should never get free from him For truly he has Not the like of me Or behind his city walls Or within his palace halls Lord of Baghdad And of course an though he be Who has built for himself Twelve pavilions in number As the months of the year And in each concubine After the number of the days And if I come to him He would not prove shy of me For your folk believe I am lawful to have and hold As he said in your writ For those women whom your right hand Shall possess as slaves So how canst thou speak thus to me As for thy saying Thou shalt look upon the braves Of the Muslims By the truth of the messiah Thou says that which is not true For I saw your army When it reached our land These two days ago And I did not see that Your ordinance was the ordinance Of kings But I beheld only a rabble Of tribesmen gathered together And as to thy words Thou shalt know who I am I did not do the kindness Because of thy dignity But out of pride in myself And the like of thee Should not talk thus to the like Of me Even worth thou sharkan Umar bin al-Numansan The prowess name in these days Nose thou sharkan Asked thee And she answered Yes, and I know of his coming With an army numbering Ten thousand horsemen Also that he was sent By his sire With his force to gain prevalence For the king of Constantinople Oh my lady Said sharkan I adjure thee by the religion Tell me the course of all this That sooth may appear To me clear of untruth And with whom the fault lies Now, by the virtue of thy faith She replied Did I not fear less The news of me be brooted abroad That I am of the daughters of room I would adventure myself And sally forth single-handed Against the ten thousand horsemen And slay their leader The Vasirdandan And vanquish their champion sharkan Nor would ought of shame A crew to meet thereby For I have read books And studied the rules Of good breeding In the language of the Arabs But I have no need To want my own prowess to thee More by token as thou has proved In thy proper person My skill and strength in wrestling And thou has learnt my superiority Over other women Nor indeed had sharkan himself Been here this night And it were said to him Clear this dream Could he have done it And I only long and lust That the messiah would throw him Into the convent That I might go forth to him In the habit of a man And drag him from his saddle seat And make him my captive And lay him in bilbo's And Charasad perceived the dawn Of day And ceased to say her permitted say End of section 13 Of the book of a thousand nights And a night, volume two Read by Lars Rulander Section 14 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 Rulander The book of a thousand nights And a night, volume two Section 14 When it was the forty-eight nights She said, It has reached me, oh auspicious king That when the Nazarene damsel said to Charcan And he listening impatiently now Verily if Charcan fell into my hands I would go forth to him In the habit of a man And drag him from his saddle seat And make him my captive And lay him in bilbo's Pride and passion And nightly jealousy to possession of him And he decide to discover and declare himself And to lay on load But her loveliness restrained him And he began repeating Unfaulty of one fault the beauty proved Her charms a thousand advocates shall move So she went up And Charcan after her And when he saw the maiden's back And hindered cheeks That clashed against each other Like rollers in the rolling sea He extemporized these couplets For her sins in a pleader that bro And all hearts his fair pleading must bow When I saw it I cried tonight The moon at its fullest doth show Thou bulk his own a fritry about Spite his force she would deal him a throw The two fed on till they reached a gate Over which rose a marble archway This she opened and ushered Charcan Into a long vestibule Walted with ten connected arches From each of which hung a crystal lamp Glistening like a spark of fire The handmaid's met her at the further end Bearing wax candles of goodly perfume And wearing on their heads golden fillets Trusted with all manner vessel gems And went on before her Charcan still following Till they reached the inner convent There the Muslims saw couches And sofas ranged all around One opposite the other And all overhung with curtains flowered in gold The monastery floor was paved with Every kind of very colored marbles And mosaic work And in the midst stood a basin That held four and twenty jetting fountains of gold Whence the water ran like molten silver Whilst at the upper ends stood a throne Spread with silks fit only for kings Then said the damsel A sand, oh my lord, this throne So he went up to it and sat down And she withdrew to remain absent For some time Charcan asked of her From one of the servants who answered him She has gone to her dormitory But we will serve thee even as she ordered So they set before him Beyond so rare varieties And he ate his sufficiency When they brought him A basin of gold And an ewer of silver And he washed his hands Then his thoughts reverted to his army Knowing not what he had befalling it In his absence And calling to mind also How he had forgotten his father's injunctions So he was troubled about his case Repenting of what he had done Till the dawn broke and the day appeared When he lamented and sighed And became drowned in a sea of sadness And repeated I am not lost to prudence But indeed here I am bewildered What shall be my reed Would any aid me In mine ails of love By my own might and slate Would I be freed But ah my heart is lost And passion shent To none save Allah Can I trust my need When he ended his verse Behold they came up to him A rare show And a fair more than twenty maidens Like crescents encompassing The young lady Amidst as the full moon Among the constellations Guarding and guarding her She was clad in brocades Befitting kings Her breasts were like twin pomegranates A woe and sewn set With all kinds of jewels Tightly clasped her waist Which expanded below Into jutting hips And her hinder cheeks stood out As a moaned of crystal Supporting a silven shaft When Sharkan looked at her His wits went nigh To fly away from him with delight And he forgot army and vassir As he gazed on her fair head Dicked and dyed With a network of pearls Set off by diverse sorts of gems Handmaids on her right And handmaids on her left Pour her train As she paced with dainty graceful gait In all the pride of Seemleyhead He sprang to his feet Seeing such beauty and loveliness And cried aloud Beware and beware Of that sewn rarely fair And broke out into these couplets With heavy back parts High breasts delicate And lism form That sways with swimming gait She deftly hides love longing In her breast But I may never hide Its ban and bait While hosts and followers Her steps proceed Like pearls now necklace And now separate She gazed upon him For a long time And considered him till she was assured of him When she came up to him and said In very sooth The place is honored And illumined by thee O Sharkan How sped thy night, O hero After we went away And left thee Lying is a wild thing And a shameful Especially in great kings And thou art crowned Prince Sharkan Son and heir of King Omar bin Al-Numan So henceforth Make no secret of thy rank And condition Nor let me hear all from thee But the truth For leasing bequeatheth Hate and despite And as thou art peered By the shaft of fate Content to wait When he heard her words He saw that Artifice Awailed him not And he acknowledged the truth Saying I am Sharkan bin Omar Al-Numan Whom Fortune has afflicted And cast into this place So what so thou wills'd Do it in my case She hung her head Ground words so long while Then turned to him and said Be of good share And let thine eyes be cool and clear For thou art the guest Of my hospitality And bread and salt Has made a tie between me and thee Wherefore thou art in my ward And under my safeguard Have no fear for By the truth of the Messiah If all on earth So to do thee hurt They should not come at thee Till life had left my body For thy sake Indeed, thou art now under the charge Of the Messiah and of me Hereat she sat her down by his side And fell to playing with him Till his alarm subsided And he knew that had she Decide to slay him She would have done so During the past night Presently she bespoke In the Grecian tongue One of her slave girls She lay and soon came back Bringing a beaker And a tray of food But Sharkan abstained From eating and said to himself Happily she had put somewhat In this meat She knew what was in his thought So she turned to him and said Why the truth of the Messiah The case is not on such wise Nor is there ought in this meat Of what thou suspectest Had my mind been set on slaying thee I had slain thee ere now Then she walked up to the tray And ate of every dish a mouthful Whereupon Sharkan came forward And ate two She was pleased at this And both ate till they were satisfied They washed their hands And after that she rose And ordered a handmaid To bring perfumes and herbs Sweet savor Wines of all colors and kinds And a wine service With vessels of gold Silver and crystal She filled a first goblet And drank it off Before offering it to him Even as she had done with the food Then she crowned a second And handed it to him He drank and she said to him Oh Muslim See how thou art here And delight of life And she ceased not to drink And ply him with drink Till he took leave of his wits And Shara Saad perceived The dawn of day And ceased saying her permitted say End of section 14 Of the book of a thousand nights And a night, volume 2 Read by Lorsch Rolander Section 15 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 Lorsch Rolander The book of a thousand nights And a night Volume 2 Section 15 When it was the 49th night She said It has reached me, oh auspicious king That the damsel ceased not to drink And ply Sharkham with drink Till he took leave of his wits For the wine And the intoxication of love He bore her Presently she said to the slave girl Oh Marjana Bring her some instruments of music To hear is to obey Said the handmaid And going out returned In the twinkling of an eye With a Damascus lute A Persian harp A tartar pipe And an Egyptian dulcimer The young lady took the lute And after tuning each several string Began in gentle under song to sing Softer than seefer's wing And sweeter than Tasmin spring With heart safe and secure From everything the couplets following Allah assain those iron What streams of blood they shed How many an arrow glance Those slits of thine have sped I love all lovers Who to lovers show them cure To wear wrong to rue the love In wrong head born and bred Happily fall hapless eye For thee no sleeping cans Heaven helped the hapless heart By force of thee misled Thou doomed me to death Who art my king and I Ransom with life the deemster Who would doom me dead There upon each and every Of the maidens rose up Making an instrument played And recited couplets in the roomy tongue Then their mistress sang also And seeing sharken in ecstasies Asked him, Oh Muslim, Does thou understand what I say? And he answered, Nay, my ecstasy comes From the beauty of thy fingerships She laughed and continued, If I sing to thee in Arabic What would thou do? I should no longer Quoth thee be master of my senses Then she took an instrument And changing the measure Began singing these verses The smack of parting smirred to me How then bear patience alway I'm girl by ills in trinity Severance distance cruel My freedom stole that fairest she And partaking ergs me bitterly When she ended her verse She looked at sharken And found him lost to existence And he lay for a while stretched At full length and prone among the maidens Then he revived And remembering the songs Again inclined to mirth and merriment And the twain returned to their wine And vassal And continued their playing and toying Their pastime and pleasure till day Seized illuminating And night drooped her wing Then the damsel went off to her dormitory And when sharken asked after They answered, She scorned her sleeping chamber Where to he rejoined Under a last ward And his good card As soon as it was morning A handmaid came to him and said to him, My mistress bideth thee to her So he rose and followed her And as he drew near her lodging The damsel welcomed him With smitten tablets and songs of reading And led him through a great door Of ivory, Studied with pearls and jewels Thence they passed with him Into a tall and spacious hall At the upper end of which Was a wide dais Carpeted with all kinds of silks And rounded open lattices Commanding a view of trees and streams About the saloon were figures Carved in human form And fashioned on such wise That the air passed through them And set in motion musical instruments Within So that the beholder And said they spoke Here sat the young lady Looking at the figures But when she saw Sharkan She sprang to her feet And, taking him by the hand Made him sit down by her side And asked him how he had passed the night He blessed her And the two sat talking a while Till she asked him, Nose thou ought touching lovers And slaves of love He answered, Yes, I was somewhat inverse On that matter. Let me hear it, Quote she, So he began quoting. Pleasure and health Good share, good appetite To Asa Friest with our name and fame By Allah Would I near her off she flies A tangent granting Less the more I claim I dot on Asa When clear I off My rivals clears me too That dearest dame Like wandering white that shoes For shade a cloud Which air she has stood on Thin air became When she heard this she said Verily Al-Qutair Was conspicuous For sweet speech and chaste And he was superlative In his praise of Asa When he sang And she began to recite Did Asa deal behest To son Unun The judge had judged Her beauty's bestest boon And girls who come to me And carpet her God make the rosy cheeks Her sunnil shun And indeed, Quote she, It was said that Asa Boasted exceeding beauty And loveliness Saying, O Prince, cost thou no Aught of Jamil's verses Of Buta'ina If so, repeat to us Somewhat of them. And he answered, Yes, I know them better than any. Whereupon he began Repeating these couplets. Jamil in holy war Go fight To me they say What war save fight Would I ever essay To me their every word And work are mere delight And martyr's crib I all they slay In fight and fray And ask I, O Buta'ina What's this love I pray Which eats my heart Quote she, It will stay forever and a And when I cry A wits return Some small display For daily use, Quote she, Far, far disfled away. Thou seeks'd my death Not else thy will can satisfy While I know goal a spy Save thee and thee all way. Thou has spoken right well, Said she, O King, son. And Jamil also spoke Excellently well. But what would Buta'ina That he says in his hemistish, Thou seeks'd my death Not else thy will can satisfy. O my lady Quothsharkan, She wills'd to do him What thou wills'd to do with me, And even that will not satisfy thee. She laughed at his opportune reply, And they cease not carousing till day Put out her light And night came in darkness tight. Then she rose and went to her dormitory And slept, While Sharkhan slept in his place Till morning dawned. As soon as he awoke, The handmaids came to him With tabrets and other instruments Of mirth and merriment, As want, And kissing the ground Between his hands said to him, Bismillah, In our last name be so kind As to come, In our presence. So he rose and accompanied The slave girls who surrounded him, Playing on tabrets And other instruments of music, Till they passed from that saloon Into another, And yet more spacious hall, Decorated with pictured likenesses And figures of birds and bees, Passing all description. Sharkhan marveled at the art And artifice of the place, And began reciting. He plucked fruits of her necklace In rivalry, And her breast pearls That bedded in gold mine lie. Pure water on silver bars Is her brow, And her cheeks show roses With rubies vye. Me seems in her eye That the violet's hue Lies perplexed in the Ithmid's dye. When the lady saw Sharkhan, She stood up to him in honor And, taking his hand, Seated him by her side And asked, O son of King Omar bin Al-Numan, Has thou any cunning in the game of chess? Yes, he answered, But do not thou with me As said the poet, I speak, And longing love upties me And unties me, Till with her honeyed you Of inner lip she plies me. I brought a chessboard And my leafest lover plays me With white and black, But black and white Never satisfies me. T'was as if King for castle, I were famed to place me, Till willful loss of game At wixed to queen's surprise me. And if I seek to read intent In eyes that eye me, O man, That glance askens With hint of wish defies me. Then she brought the chessboard And played with him, But Sharkhan, instead of looking at her, Moose kept gazing at her fair mouth And putting night in place of elephant And elephant instead of night. She laughed and said to him, If thy play be after this fashion, Thou knows naught of the game. This is only our first, replied he, Judge not by this bout. When she beat him, He replaced the pieces in position And played again with her. But she beat him a second time, A third, a fourth, and a fifth. So she turned to him and said, Thou art beaten in everything. And he replied, O my lady, How should one playing with the like Of thee avoid being beaten? Then she bade bring food, And they ate and washed their hands, After which the wine was set before them, And they drank. Presently she took the dulcimer, For her hand was cunning in smiting it, And she began repeating to an accompaniment These couplets. Twix the close tide And open wide no medium, Fortune noth. Now ebb and flow, Then flow and ebb, This wise her likeness shows. Then drink her wine, The sign she's thine, And smiling thou dost find her. And on she'll fall and far away, When all thy good forth goes. They seized not carous till nightfall, And this day was pleasanter ever than the first. When darkness set in, The lady betook her to her dormitory, Leaving him alone with the handmaids. So he threw himself on the ground And slept till dawn, When the damsels came to him With tambourines and other instruments, According to custom. Seeing them he roused him hastily, And sat up, And they carried him to their mistress, Who came to meet him, And taking him by the hand, Seated him by her side. Then she asked him how he had passed his night, Whereet he prayed that her life be prolonged, And she took the loot and sang with these verses, Which she improvised. Never inclined thee to part Which embitteth the heart, Even the sun when he sets Shall in pallor depart. While they were so lasting themselves, After this fashion, Behold, there arose a great and sudden clamour, And a confused crowd of knights and men rushed in, Holding drawn swords that glittered And gleamed in their hands, And cried aloud in the Grecian tongue, Thou hast fallen into our hands so sharkan, So make thee sure of death. When he heard this he said himself, By Allah she has entrapped me And held me in play till her men should come. These are the knights with whom she threatened me, But it is I who have thrown myself into this strait. Then he turned towards the young lady to reproach her, But saw that she had changed colour, And her face was pale, And she sprang to her feet and asked the crowd, Who are ye? O most gracious princess and peerless onion pearl, Answered the leading knight, Does thou wheat who is young man by thy side? Not I, she replied, who may he be? Quas the patrician, This is of towns the highway man. This is he who rides in the horseman's van. This is sharkan, son of King Omar bin Al-Nu'uman. This is he that forces fortalis And penetrates every impregnable place. The news of him reached King Hardoub, Thy father, By report of the ancient dame Saat al-Dabahi, And thy sire, our sovereign, Has made sure that thou hast rendered good service To the army of the Greeks By taking captive this ominous lion. When she heard this she looked at the knight And asked him, What be thy name? And he answered, I am Masura, Son of thy slave Masura bin Qasharda, Knight of knights. And how, quoth she, Dursed thou enter my presence without leap? Quoth he, O my lady, When I came to the gate none forbade me, Neither chamberlain nor porter, But all the doorkeepers rose And forewent us as of want. Although when others come, They leave them standing at the gate While they ask permission to admit them. But this is not a time for long talking When the King is expecting our return With his prince, The scorpion sting of the Islamitics post That he may kill him And drive back his men Wither they came, Without the bane of battling with them. These words be ill words Rejoined the princess And dame sat al-Dabahi lied Aboutching an idle thing and a vain Whereof she wheateth, Not the truth. For by the virtue of the Messiah This man who is with me Is not Sharkan, Nor is he a captive, But a stranger who came to us Reaching our hospitality And I made him my guest. So even were we assured That this be Sharkan And were it proved to us That it is he beyond a doubt. I say it would ill befit my honour That I should deliver into your hands One who has entered under my protection. So make me not a traitor To my guest and a disgrace among men But return to the King, My father, And kiss the ground before him And inform him that the case Is contrary-wise to the report Of the lady sat al-Dabahi. O Abrisah replied Masura, The knight, I cannot return to the King's Majesty Without his deptor and enemy. Quoth she, And indeed she had waxed very wroth. Out on thee, Return to him with my answer And no blame shall be for thee. Quoth Masura, I will not return without him. Thereupon her colour changed And she exclaimed, Exceed not in talk and vain words, For verily this man had not come Into us where he not assured That he could have himself And single-handed make head Against a hundred riders. And if I said to him, Thou art Sharkan, Son of King Umar bin Al-Numan, He would answer yes, But it is not of your competence To let or hinder him. For if you do so, He will not turn back from you Till he has slain all that are in this place. Behold, here he is by my side, And I will bring him before Your sword and targe in his hand. Allbate I will say from thy wrath, Answered Masura the night. I am not safe from that of thy father. And when I see him, I shall sign to thee knights To take him captive, And we will carry him to the king Bound and in object sort. When she heard this, She said, The matter shall not pass thus, For it would be blazing mere folly. This man is but one And ye are a hundred knights. So if you would attack him, Come out against him, One after one, That it may appear to the king Which is the valiant amongst you. And Shah-Rasad perceived the dawn of day And ceased to say her permitted say. End of Section 15 Of the Book of the Thousand Knights And a Knight, Volume 2 Read by Lorsch Rulander. Section 16, Volume 2 Of the Book of the Thousand Knights And a Knight, 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 Joaquin. The Book of the Thousand Knights And a Knight, Volume 2 Section 16 When it was the 50th night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That Princess Abriza said to the Knight, This man is but one, And year and a hundred. So if he would attack him, Come out against him, One after one, That it may appear to the king Which is the valiant. Quoth Musura the Knight. But the truth of the Messiah Thou sayest sooth. And none but I shall sell it out Against him first. Quoth she. Wait till I go to him And acquaint him with a case And hear what answer he will make. If he consent, He as well. But if he refuse, He shall know why come to him. For I and my handmaids And whosoever is in the convent Will be his ransom. So she went to Sharkhan And told him the news Where at he smiled And knew that she had not Imporned any of the emirs. But that tidings of him Had been brooded and blazed abroad Till the report reached the king Against her wish and intent. So he again began Reproaching himself and said, How came I to adventure And play with my life By coming to the country of the Greeks But hearing the young lady's proposal He said to her, Indeed there on set One after one Would be overbordonsome to them. Will they not come out Against me ten by ten? That would be villainy, Said she. Let one have it one. When he heard this He sprang to his feet And made for them With his sword and battle gear Also sprung up And bore down upon him. Sharkhan met him like a lion And delivered a shoulder cut Which clawed him to the middle And the blade came out Glimming and glittering From his back and bowels. When the lady beheld The swashing blow Sharkhan's might was magnified In her sight And she knew That when she overthrew him Sharkhan ran But by her beauty And loveliness. So she turned to the night And said, Take rig for your chief. There upon out Came the slain man's brother A fierce and furious night And rushed upon Sharkhan Who delayed not But smote him also With a shoulder cut And the sword came out Glittering from his vitals. Oh ye servants of the Messiah Avenge your comrade So they seized not charging down upon him One after one And Sharkhan also Seized not playing upon them With a blade Till he had slain fifty knights The lady looking on the wild And the law cast a panic Into the hearts of the survivors So that they held back And dare not meet him In the duel But fell upon him In a body And he laid on load With heart firmer than a rock And smote them And trod them down Like straw under the threshing's lab Till he had driven sense And soul out of them Then the princess Called aloud to her damsels Saying, Who is left in the convent? They replied, None but the gatekeepers Whereupon she went up to Sharkhan And took him to her bosom He doing the same And they returned to the palace After he had made an end Of the melee Now there remained a few of the knights Hiding from him In the cells of the monastery And when the princess saw this She rose from Sharkhan's side And left him for a while But presently came back clad In closely mashed coat Of ring mail And holding in her hand A fine Indian cemeter And she said, Now by the truth of the messiah I will not be a nigger Of myself for my guest Nor will I abandon him Though for this I abide a reproach And I will by war In the land of the Greeks She took reckoning of the dead And found that he had slain For score of the knights And other twenty Had taken to flight When she saw what work He had made with them She said to him, Allah bless thee, O Sharkhan The cavaliers may well glory In the like of thee Then he rose And wiping his blade clean Of the blood of a slain How often in the melee I've cleft the array And given their bravest To lions a prey Ask of me and of them When I prove me proud Over creation On days of the foray and prey When I left in the onslaught Their lions to lay On the sand of the low lands In pyrus day When he ended his verse The princess came up to him With smiles and kissed his hand And stuffed her hobber And he said to her O lady mine Wherefore did thou don that coat of mail And bear thy brand To guard thee against these catiffs She replied Then she summoned the gatekeepers And asked them How came ye to admit The king's knights into my dwelling Without leave of me And they answered O princess I am custom to ask leave of thee For the king's messengers And especially for the chief of his knights Quoth she I think ye were minded Only to disgrace me And murder my guest And that sharkhan Smite their necks He did so And she cried to the rest of her servants Of a truth That deserved even more than that Then turned into sharkhan She said to him Now that their hat become manifest To thee what was concealed Thou shalt be made acquainted With my history No, then, that I am the daughter Of king Ardub of Rome My name is Havriza And the ancient dame Iklep Zat al-Dawahi Is my grandmother By the sword side She, it certainly is Who told my father of thee And as surely she will compass As light to slay me More by token As thou hast slain my father's chivalry And it is noise the broad That I have separated myself From the Nazareans And have become no better Than I should be with the Muslims Wherefore it were wiser That I leave this dwelling While Zat al-Dawahi Is on my track But I require of thee The likeness and courtesy For enmity will surely befall Between me and my father On thine account So do not thou neglect To do ought That I shall say to thee Remembering all these Detided me, not saved By reason of thee Hearing her words Sharkan joyed greatly His breast broadened And his wits flew from him For delight And he said To thee While life is in my bosom But hast thou patience to bear Parting from thy parents And thy people Even so, she answered And Sharkan swore to her And the two plighted their trough Then said she Now is my heart at ease But there remained one other condition For thee What is it? asked he And she answered And I host to thine own country Quoth he Oh lady mine My father King Omar Bin Al-Numan Sent me to wage war upon thy sire On account of the treasure He plundered from the king Of Constantinople And amongst the rest Three great jewels Noted givers of good fortune Quoth she Cheered thy heart I will tell thee the whole of the tale And the cause of our feud With the king of Constantinople Know that we have a yearly festival Hice the convent feast We're at kings from all quarters And the noblest women Are warned to congregate Thither also some merchants And traders With their wives and families And the visitors abide there seven days I was warned to be one of them But when there befell entity between us My father forbade me to be present At the festival for the space of seven years One year it chance that amongst The daughters of the great Who resorted to the patron As was their custom Came a daughter of the king Of Constantinople A beautiful girl named Sophia They tarried at the monastery Six days and on the seventh The folk went their ways But Sophia said I will not return to Constantinople Saved by water So they equipped for her a ship In which she embarked With her suite And making sail They put out to sea But as they were voyaging Behold A contrary wind caught them And drove the vessel From her course till When fortune would have it She fell it with a Nazarene craft From the Canfor Island Carrying a crew of 500 armed Franks Who had been cruising about a long time When they sighted the sails Of the ship where in Sophia And her women were They gave chase in all haste And in less than an hour They came up with her Then they laid the gropling Irons aboard her Then taking her in tow They made all sail For their own island And were but a little distant From it When the wind veered round And splitting their sails Dropped them onto a shoal Which lies off our coast Thereupon We sailed it forth And looking on them As foil driven to us by fate Bored it and took them And slaying the man Where in we found the treasures And rarities in question And 40 maidens Amongst whom was the king's daughter Sophia After the capture We carried the princess and her women To my father Not knowing her to be a daughter Of King Afridun of Constantinople And he chose out for himself Ten including her And divided the rest Among his dependents Presently He set apart five damsels Amongst whom was the king's daughter And sent them to thy father King Omar Bin Al-Numan Together with other gifts Such as broad cloth And woolen stuffs And grecian silts Thy father accepted them And chose out From amongst the five girls Sophia Nor did we hear more of her Till the beginning of this year When her father Wrote to my father In words unfitting for me to repeat Rebuking him With menaces And saying to him Two years ago You plundered a ship of ours Which had been seized By a band of Frankish pirates In which was my daughter Sophia Attended by her maidens Yet he informed me not Thereof by messenger Or otherwise Nor could I make the matter public Lest reproach befall Me amongst the kings By reason of my daughter's honor So I concealed my case Till this year When I wrote to certain Frankish corsairs Who sought news of my daughter From the kings of the isles By Allah We carried her not Forth of thy realm But we have heard That King Hardoub Rescued her from certain pirates And they told me The whole tale Then he added in the writing Which he read to my father Except you wish to be At feud with me And designed to disgrace me And dishonor my daughter You will The instant my letter reaches you Send my daughter back to me But if you slight my letter And disobey my commandment I will assuredly Make you full return For your foul dealing And the baseness of your practices When my father read this letter And understood the contents It waxed him And he regretted not having known That Sophia, King Afridun's daughter Was among the captured damsels That he might have sent her back To her sire It was perplexed About the case Because after so long a time He could not send to King Omar bin Al-Numan And demand her back from him Especially As he had lately heard That haven't had granted him Boon of Bay by this Sophia So when we pondered that truth We knew then this letter Was none other But grievous calamity And my father found nothing for it To write an answer to King Afridun Making his excuses And swearing to him By strong oath That he knew not His daughter to be among the baby Of damsels in the ship And setting forth how he had sent her To King Omar bin Al-Numan Who had gotten the blessing Of issue by her When my father's reply Reached King Afridun He rose up and sat down And roared and foam at the mouth Crying What Shall he take captive my daughter And even her with slave girls And pass her on From hand to hand Sending her for a gift To kings And they lie with her Without marriage contract By the messiah And the true faith Said he Had taken my blood vengeance For this And have wiped out my shame And indeed I will do a deed Which the chroniclers shut chronicle After me So he bided his time Till he devised a device And laid notable toils and snares When he sent an embassy To thy father King Omar To tell him that Accordingly Thy father kept thee And an army with thee And sent thee to King Afridun Whose object is to seize thee And thine army to boot As for the three jewels were off He told thy father When asking his aid There was not one soothfast ward In that matter For they were with Sophia His daughter And my father took them from her And of bird maidens And gave them to me in free gift And they are now with me So go thou To thy host And turn them back Here they be led deep into And shut in by The land of the baby of damsels In the ship And setting forth the Franks And the country of the Greeks For as soon as you have come far enough Into their interior Stop the roads upon you And there will be no escape for you Till the day of retribution And retaliation I know that thy troops Are still holding Where thou leftest them Because thou didst order A three days rest With all they have missed thee All this time And a what not what to do When Sharkhan heard her words He was absent a while And thought Then he kissed Princess Abriza's hand And said Praise be to Allah Who hath bestowed thee on me And appointed thee to be the cause Of my salvation And the salvation of whoso is with me But is grievous to me To part from thee And I know not what will become Of thee after my departure Go now to thine army She replied And turn them back While ye are yet near Your own country If the envoys be still with them Play hand on them And keep them That the case may be made manifest To you And after three days I will be with you And we will enter Baghdad together As he turned to depart She said Not the compact Which is between me and thee Then she rose To beat him far well And embrace him And quench the fire of desire So she took leave of him And throwing her arms Around his neck Wept with exceeding weeping And repeated these verses I batted you My right hand wiped my tears away The while My left hand held her In a closed embrace Fierce thou not Quothed she a shame I answered Nay, the lover's parting day Is lover's worst disgrace Then Sharkhan left her And walked down from the comb They brought his steed So he mounted And rode downstream To the drawbridge Which he crossed Sentently threaded the woodland paths And passed into the open meadow As soon as he was clear of the trees He was aware of horsemen Which made him stand on the alert And he bared his brand And rode cautiously But as they drew near And exchanged curious looks He recognized them And behold It was the wazir dandan And two of his amirs And knew him That dismounted And saluted him Asked the reason of his absence Whereupon he told them all That had passed between him And Princess Abriza From first to last It was the wazir returned thanks To Amaitia Allah for his safety And said Let us at once leave these lands For the envoys who came with us Are gone to inform the king Of our approach And take us prisoners So Charcan cried to his men To saddle and mount Which they did And setting out at once They stinted not Fading till they reached The soul of the valley Wherein the host lay The ambassadors meanwhile Had reported Charcan's approach To their king Who forthright Kipped a host To lay hold of him And the two amirs Had no sooner sighted the army That he raised the cry March March They took horse on the instant And fared through the first day And second and third day Nor did they cease faring For five days At the end of which time They alighted in a well-wooded valley Where they rested a while Then they again set out And stayed not riding For five and twenty days Which placed them on the frontiers Of their own country Here, deeming themselves safe They halted to rest And the country people Came out to them With guest gifts for the men And provender and forage For their beasts They tarried there Two days after which As all would be making For their homes The steed the host Back to Baghdad But he himself remained behind Within hundred riders Till the rest of the army Had made one day's march Then he called to horse And mounted with his hundred men They rode on to Parasang's face Till they arrived at a gorge Between two mountains And low They arose before them A dark cloud of sand and dust Back their steeds a while Till the dusts opened and lifted Discovering beneath it And hundred cavaliers Lion-faced and in male coat cased As soon as they drew Within earshot of Sharkhan And his many They cried out to them Saying By the virtue of John and Mary We have won to our wish We have been following you By forced marches So dismount And lay down your arms And yield yourselves That we may grant you your lives When Sharkhan heard this His eyes stood out from his head And his cheek flushed red And he said How is it On Azari and dogs He dare enter our country And overmatch our land And doth not this suffice you But you must adventure yourselves And address us In such unseemly speech Do you think to escape out Of our hands And return to your country Then he shouted to his hundred Horsemen Up and at these hounds For they even you in number So saying He bared his sever And bore down on them He and his But the Franks met them With hearts firmer than rocks As white And night dashed upon night And hot waxed the fight And sore was the fright And nor Parley Nor Christ or quarter Helped their plight And they stinted not To charge and to smite Right hand meeting right Nor to hack and hue With blades bright white Till they turned to night And gloom oppressed the sight Then they drew apart And Charcan mustered his men And found none wounded Saved poor only Who showed hurts but not that hurts Said he to them By Allah My life long have I waited In the clashing sea of fight And I have met many a gallant sprite But none so unfrightened Of the sword that smites And the shock of men That affrights like these valiant knights No, oh king, said they That there is among them a Frankish Cavalier Who is their leader And indeed, he is a man of valor And fatal is his spear thrust But by Allah He spares us great and small For whosoever falls into his hands He lets him go And forbears to slay him By Allah Had he willed He had killed us all Charcan was astounded when he heard What the knight had done And such high report of him So he said When the mourn shall morrow We will draw out and defy them For we are an hundred to their hundred And we will seek aid against them From the Lord of the heavens So they rested that night In such intent Whilst the Franks gathered around Their captain and said Verily, this day we did not win Our will of these And he replied At early dawn When the morrow shall mourn We will draw out And challenge them One after one They also rested in that mine And both camps cut guard Until might Allah Send the light of day dawn Thereupon The hundred riders Took horse And rode forth to the plain Where they found the Franks Ranged in line of battle And Charcan said to his followers Our foes Have determined like ourselves To do their devour So up and at them And lay on load Then came forth and hurled Of the Franks And cried out Saying Saved by the duel A champion of yours Against a champion of ours Whereupon One of Charcan's riders Dashed out from the ranks And craved between the two lines Crying Ho, who is for smiting Let no duster engage me this day Nor neitherling Hardly had he made an end Of his vault When their salad Armed Capepie And clad in a surcoat of gold stuff Riding on a gray white steed And he had no hair On his cheeks He urged his charger On to the midst of the battle plane And the two fell To daring dew of cut and thrust But it was not long Before the Frank poined The Muslim with a lance point And toppling him from his steed Took him prisoner And drove him off Crestfallen His folk rejoiced in their comrade And forbidding him To go out again to the field Sent forth another To whom salad out another Muslim Brother to the captive And offered him battle The two fell too Either against the other And fought for a little while Till the Frank bore down upon the Muslim And pulsing him with a faint And tumbled him by a thrust of the lance Heel from his dastry And took him prisoner After this fashion The Muslims seized Knott Dushing forwards One after one And the Franks to unhorse them And take them captive Till they departed And the night with darkness Upstarted Now they had captured Of the Muslims 20 Cavaliers And Charcan saw this It was grievous to him And he mastered his men And said to them What is this thing That hath befallen us Tomorrow I myself will go forth To the field And offer singular combat To their chief And learn what is the cause Of his entry in our land And warn him against Doing battle with our band If he persists And if he proves peaceable We will make peace with him They write it on this wise Till Allah almighty Caused the mourn to dawn When mounting the twain And drew up for battle feign And Charcan was going forth to the plain But behold More than one half of the Franks Dismounted And remained on foot Before one of them who was mounted Till they reached The midst of the battle plain Charcan looked at that horseman And though He was their chief He was clad in a circuit of blue satin And a closed ringed male shirt His face was as the moon When it rises And no hair was upon his cheeks He hand in hand An Indian semitar And he rode a sable steed With a white blaze on brow And he smote the horse with heel Till he stood almost in the midst Of the field When signing to the Muslims He cried out in fluent Arab speech Ho, Charcan Ho, son of a marbinal nooman Ho, thou who possessed Portalis And overthrownest cities and countries Up and out to battle bowed And blade single-handed wield Would one who haves with thee the field Thou art prince of thy people And I am prince of mine And whose overcomeeth the adversary Him let the other's men obey And come under his sway Hardly had he ended his speech When out came Charcan With a heart full of fury And urged his teets Into the midst of the field Closed like a raging lion With a francs who encountered him With weariness and steadfastness And met him with a meeting of warriors Then they fell to foining and hewing And they stinted not Of onset and offset And give and take As they were two mountains Clashing together Or two seas together dashing Nor did they seas fighting Until day darkened Then they drew apart And each returned to his own party But as soon as Charcan Forgathered with his comrades He said Never looked eye on the like Of this cavalier He hath one quality I have not yet seen in any And this it is that When his foemen uncovered A place for a death blow He reverseth his weapon As mighteth with a lance heal In very deed I know not what will be the issue To extend me But is my wish that he had In our host his like And the like of his man Then he went to his rest For the night And when morning dawned The franc came forth And rode down to the midfield Where Charcan met him And they fell to fighting Left and right And necks were stretched out To see the sight Nor did they stinged From strife and sword play And lunge of lance With mane and might Till the day turned to night And darkness overwhelmed the light Then the twain drew asunder And returned each to his own camp Were both related to their comrades What hath we fallen them In the duel? And at last The franc said to his men Tomorrow shall decide the matter So they both passed the night Restfully till dawn And as soon as it was day They mounted And each bore down on other And seized not to fight Till half the day was done Then the franc Be thought him of a ruse First urging his steed with heal And then checking him with the rain So that he stumbled And fell with his rider Thereupon Charcan threw himself on the foe And would have smitten him With a sword Fearing lest the strife be prolonged When the franc cried out to him Oh Charcan Champions are not want to do thus This is the act of a man A custom to be beaten by a woman When Charcan heard this He raised his eyes to the franc's face And gazed instead fastly at him Recognized in him Princes Abriza With whom that pleasant adventure Had befallen him in the convent Whereupon He cast brand from hand And kissing the earth before her Asked her What moved thee to a deed like this And she answered I desired to prove thy prowess a field I desired to prove thy prowess a field And test thy dotiness in tilting and jousting These that are with me Are my handmaids And they are all clean maids Yet they have vanquished thy horsemen In fair press and stress of playing And had not my steed stumbled up with me Thou shouldst have seen my might And prowess in combat Charcan smiled at her speech And said Praise be to Allah for safety And for my reunion with thee Of queen of the age Then she cried out to her damsels To lose the twenty captives Of Charcan's troop and dismount They did as she bade And came and kissed the earth Before her and Charcan Who said to them It is the like of you That kings keep in store For the need hour Then he signed to his comrades To salute the princess So all alighted And kissed the earth before her For they knew the story After this The whole two hundred took horse And fared on night and day For six days space Till they drew near to Baghdad When they halted And Charcan Beda Brisa And her handmaids Doth the Frankish garb That was on them Perceived the dawn of day And seized Saying her permitted say End of section sixteen Of the book of a thousand nights And a night Volume two Recording by Filippo Joaquin Section seventeen Volume two Of the book of a thousand nights And a night Translated by Richard Burton This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings This year Please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Filippo Joaquin The book of a thousand nights And a night Volume two Section seventeen When it was the fifty first night She said It had reached me over special skin That Charcan Beda Princess Abriza And her damsels Doth the garb that was on them And donned the garments Of daughters of Greece And dispatched the company Of his companions To Baghdad To acquaint his father Omar Bin Al-Numan With his arrival And report that he was accompanied By Princess Abriza Daughter of King Hardoub Lord of Greece They halted forthright In the place they had reached And Charcan also halted And all righted there And when Almighty Allah Made more than dawn Abriza and her company Took horse And fared on towards the city When low On the way they met the Wazir Dandan Who had come out amongst a thousand horse To honor Abriza and Charcan By a special commandment Of King Omar Son of Al-Numan When the two drew near They turned towards them And kissed ground before them Then they mounted again And escorted them With them to the palace Charcan walked into his father Who rose and embraced him And questioned him of his case So he told him all that Abriza Had told him And what had passed between them And said She had parted from her sire And departed from her reign And had chosen to take part with us And make her abode with us And indeed He said to his father Who had plotted to do as a mischief Because of his daughter Sophia For that the king of Greece Had made known to him her story And the cause of her being given to thee And he, the Grecian king Not knowing her To be daughter of King Afridun Lord of Constantinople And had it known that He would not have bestowed her upon thee But he would have restored her To her parents And of a verity We were saved From these perils Only by the Lady Abriza And never saw we a more valiant than she And he went on to tell his father All that had passed from first to last Of the wrestling And the single fighting When King Omar heard the story of Charcan Abriza was exalted in his eyes And he longed to see her And question her Thereupon Charcan went out to her And said The king called for thee She replied I hear and I obey And he took her And brought her in to his father Who was seated on his throne And who, having dismissed his eye officers Was attended only by his eunuchs The princes entered And kissing the ground between his hands Saluted him in choice terms He was amazed at her appearance With her eloquent speech And thanked her for her dealing With his son Charcan And made her be seated So she sat down And unveiled her face And when the king saw her beauty His reason fled his head And he made her draw near And showed her favor Appointing her in a special palace For herself and her damsels And assigning them Sold and allowances Then began he to ask her Of the three jewels aforesaid And she answered Here be thy with me O king of the age So saying She rose and going to her lodging Unpacked her baggage And from it brought out a box From the box A casket of gold She opened the casket And taking out those three jewels Kissed them Then she went away Bearing his heart with her After her going The king sent for his son Charcan And gave him one jewel of the three And when he inquired Of the other two Replied O my son I mean to give one to thy brother Za'a wal makan And the other to thy sister Nusat al Zaman But when Charcan heard Of the brother For to that time He knew only of his sister He turned to his sire And said to him O king Has da'a a son other than myself He answered Yes And he is now six years old Adding that his name was Za'a wal makan And that he and Nusat al Zaman Were twins Born at the birth Of a secret And said The blessing of Allah Most high be upon them And he cast the jewel from his hand And shook the dust off his clothes What the king How do I see thee change Thy manner When hearing of this Considering that after me Thou becomes Heir of the kingdom Of a truth The troops have sworn to thee And this one of the three jewels Is thine Charcan bowed his head to the ground And was ashamed to bend the words With his parent So he accepted the jewel And went away Knowing not what to do For exceeding wrath And stayed not Walking till he had entered A bizarre palace As he approached She stood up to meet him For what he had done And prayed for blessings On him and his sire Then she sat down And seated him by her side But when he had taken his place She saw rage in his face And questioned him Whereupon he told her That Allah had blessed his father With two children by Sophia A boy and a girl And that he had named The boy Za'a wal makan Adding He hath kept the other two jewels For them And hath given me one of thine So I left it behind I knew not Of Za'a wal makan's birth Till this day And the twain are now six years old So when I learned this Wrath possessed me And I tell thee the reason of my rage And hide nothing from thee But now I fear I take thee to wife For he loveth thee And I saw in him signs of desire For thee So what will thou say If he wished this Was she No, O Sharkan That thy father hath no dominion over me Nor can he have me without my consent And if he prevail over me by force I will take my own life As for the three jewels It was not my intent That he should give any of them To either of his children And I had no thought But that he would lay them up In his treasury With his things of price But now I desire of thy favor That thou make me a present Of the jewel which he gave thee If thou have accepted it Herk'ning and obedience Replied Sharkan And gave it to her Then said she Fear nothing And talked with him a while And continued I fear lest my father hear that I am with you And sit not patiently under my loss But do his endeavour to find me And to that end He may ally himself With King Afridun An account of his daughter Sophia And both come on thee With armies And so there before great turmoil Sharkan heard these words He said to her Oh my lady If it pleased thee To chageur with us Take no thought of them Though they are gathered together Against us all that be on land And on sea She is well rejoined she And if he entreat me fear I will tarry with thee And if he deal evilly by me I will depart from you Then she bade her slave So they set the tables And Sharkan ate a little And went away to his own house Disturbed and perturbed Such was his case But regarding the affairs of his father Omar Bin Al-Luman After dismissing his son Sharkan He rose And taking the other two jewels We took himself to the lady Sophia Who stood up when she saw him And remained standing Till he was seated Presently his two children Zaw Al-Makan And Nusat Al-Zaman Came to him and he kissed them And hung a jewel around each one's neck At which they rejoiced And kissed his hands Then went they to their mother Who joyed in their joy And wished the king long life So he asked her Why hast thou not informed him All this time That thou art the daughter of King Afridun Lord of Constantinople That I might have honoured thee Still more And enlarged thee in dignity And raised thy rank O king! Answered Sophia And what could I desire Greater or higher than this My standing with thee Overwhelmed as I am With thy favours And furthermore Allah hath blessed me With two children by thee A son and a daughter Her reply pleased the king And after leaving her He set apart for her And her children A wondrous fine palace Moreover He appointed for them eunuchs And attendants And doctors of law And doctors of philosophy And astrologers And every way he redoubled his favour And entreated them With the best of treatment And presently He returned to the palace of his dominion And to his court Where he distributed justice Among the legis So far concerning him and Sophia And her children But in the matter of Abrizah The king was greatly occupied With love of her And burnt with desire And day And every night He would go in to her And converse with her And pay his court to her But she gave him no answer Only saying O king of the age I have no desire for men At this present When he saw her withdraw from him His passion waxed hotter And his longing and pining Increased until When weary of this And opening his very heart to him Told him of his love for Princess Abrizah Totor of Ardu And informed him How she refused to yield to his wishes And how desire for her Was doing him to die For that he could get no grace of her There was here Hearing these words Said to the king As soon as it is dark night Take thou a piece of band The measure of a miscall About an ounce And go in to her And drink somewhat of wine with her When the hour of ending The carousel shall draw near Fill her a last cup And drop in there in the bank Give it to her to drink And she will not reach her sleeping chamber Hear the drug take effect on her Then do thou go in to her And take thy will of her And such is my device Thy reed is all right Quote the king And seek him his treasury He took thence a piece of concentrated band If an elephant smelted He would sleep from ear to ear This he put in his bosom pocket And waited till some little of the night went by When he betook himself to the palace Of Princess Abrizah Who, seeing him, stood up to receive him But he bade her sit down So she sat down And he sat by her And he began to talk with her Of wine and vessel Whereupon she furnished the carousel And placed it before him Then she sat on the drinking vessels And lighted the candles In order to bring dried fruits And sweet meats And all that pertaineth to drinking So they fell to tiptoe And the king sees not to pledge her Till drunkenness crept into her head And seeing this He took out a bit of bang from his pocket And holdeth it between his fingers Filled the cup with his one hand And drank it off Then, feeling a second He said To thy companionship And dropped the drug into her cup She, knowing not of it She took it and drank it off Then she rose And went to her sleeping chamber He awaited for less than an hour Till he was assured That the dose had taken effect on her And had rubbed her over senses When he went into her And found her thrown on her back And she had doffed her petticoat trousers And the air raised the skirt of her ship And discovered what was between her thighs When the king saw the state of things And found a lighted candle at her head And another at her feet Shining upon water tights And shined He took leave of his five senses For lust And Satan seduced him And he could not master himself But put off his trousers And fell upon her And abated her maiden head Then he rose off her And went to one of her women By name Marjana And said Go in to thy lady And speak with her So she went in to her mistress And found her lying on her back Insensible With the blood running down To the culls of her legs Whereupon she took a kerchief And wiped away the blood And laid by her that night As soon as Almighty Allah Was born The handmaid Marjana Washed her mistress's hands And feet And brought rose water And bathed her face And mouth with it Whereupon she sneezed and yawned And cast up from her inside That bit of ban Like a bodus Then she revived And washed her hands and mouth And said to Marjana Tell me what had befallen me And how she had found her Lying on her back With the blood running down Wherefore she knew That King Omar bin Al-Numan Had lain with her And had undone her And taken his will of her And this she grieved With exceeding grief And retired into privacy Saying to her damsels Deny me To whoso would come in to me And say to him that I am ill Will do with me Presently the news of her sickness Came to the king So he sent her sherbet And sugar electries Some months she thus passed in solitude During which time The king's flame cooled And his desire for her was quenched So that he abstained from her Now she had conceived by him And when three months Of child breeding had gone by Her pregnancy appeared And her belly swelled And the world was straightened upon her So she said to her Handmaid Marjana No, that it is not the pope Who have wronged me But I who sinned against my own self In that I left my father And mother and country Indeed I abhor life For my spirit is broken Neither courage nor strength is left me I used when I mounted my steed To have the mastery of him But now I am unable to ride If I be brought to bed among them I shall be dishonored before my handwomen And everyone in the palace Will know That he has taken my maiden head In the way of shame And if I return to my father With what face shall I meet him Or with what face shall I have recourse to him How well, quote the poet Say, what shall Solas One who has no home nor stable steed Nor cup companion Nor a cup Nor place to house his head Marjana answered her She is dying to command I will obey And Abriza said I desire at once to leave this place secretly So that none shall know of me but thou And return to my father and my mother For when flesh stinketh There is not for it But its own pork And Allah shall do with me even as he will Oh, princess Marjana replied What thou wouldest do is well Then she made matters ready And kept her secret And waited for some days Till the king went out To chase and hunt And his son, Charcan Be took himself to certain Of the fortress to Chajur there awhile Then said she to Marjana I wish to set out this night But how shall I do against my destiny For already I feel the pangs Of labor and childbirth And if I abide either four or five days I shall be brought to bed here And I shall be unable to travel to my country But this is what was written on my forehead Then she considered awhile And said to Marjana Look us out a man Who will go with us And serve us by the way For I have no strength To bear our sins For I have no strength To bear our arms By Allah o my lady Marjana replied I know none but a black slave Called Al-Kasban Who is one of the slaves Of King Omar Bin Al-Numan He is a valiant white And he keepeth guard At our palace gate The king appointed him To attend us And indeed we have overwhelmed him So Luki I will go out and speak with him Of this matter And promise him some money And tell him that If he ever mind to tarry with us I will marry him to whom he will He told me before Today That he had been a highway man So if he consent to us We shall win our wish And reach to our own land She rejoined Call him Whereupon Marjana fared forth And said to the slave Al-Kasban Allah prosper thee So thou falling with what my lady saith to thee Then she took him by the hand And brought him to the princess Whose hands he kissed But as she beheld him Her heart took fright at him However She said to herself Of a truth That might giveeth the law And she approached to speak with him Yet her heart started away from him Presently she said O-Kasban Save me Will thou help me against The perfidies of fortune And conceal my secret If I discover it to thee When the slave saw her His heart was taken by storm And he fell in love with her For fright O my mistress Whatsoever thou bidest me do I will not depart therefrom Quoth she I would have thee take me at this hour And take this my hand made And saddle us two camels And two of the king's horses And sat on each horse A saddle bag of goods And somewhat of provont And go with us to our own country Where, if thou desire to abide with us I will marry thee to her Thou shall choose of my handmaidens Or if thou prefer return to thine own land We will marry thee And give thee what so thou desires After thou has taken of money What shall satisfy thee When Al-Kasban heard this He rejoiced with great joy And replied O my lady I will serve both of you with mine eyes And will go at once And saddle the horses Then he went away gladsome And saying to himself I shall get my will of them And if they will not yield to me I will kill them both And take their riches But he kept this his intent to himself And presently returned with two camels And three head of horses One of which he rode And Princess Abriza Made Marjana mount the second She mount in the third Albeit she was in labor pains And possessed not her soul for anguish And the slave sees not travelling With them night and day Through the passes of the mountains Till they remained But musingly marched between them And their own country When the travail pangs came upon Abriza And she could no longer resist So she said to Al-Kasban Set me down For the pains of labor are upon me And cried to Marjana Do thou a light And sit by me and deliver me Then Marjana dismounted from her horse And Al-Kasban did in like sort And they made fast the bridles And helped the princess to dismount For she was a swan from excess of anguish When Al-Kasban saw her on the ground Satan entered into him And he drew his falcon And brandishing it in her face Said Oh my lady Bout save me thy favours Hearing these words She turned to him and said It remained for me Only that I yield me To her negro slaves After having refused the kings And braves And Sharazad perceived the dawn of day And seized to say her permitted say End of section 17 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 2 Recording by Filippo Joaquin