 Section 22, Volume 3, of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, translated by Richard Burton. The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3, Section 22. When it was the one hundred and sixty-third night, she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, that the jeweler continued. So I abode with him that night, conversing with him till the morning morrowed, when I prayed the dawn prayers, and going out from him returned to my house. Hardly had I settled down when the damsel came up and saluted me, and I returned her sciatation, and told her what had passed between myself and Ali bin Bakar, and she said, No, that the caliph hath left us, and there is no one in our place, and it is safer for us and better. Replied I, sooth thou sayest, yet it is not like my other house which is both fitter and sureer for us. And the slave girl rejoined, Be it as thou seeest fit, I am now going to my lady, and will tell her what thou sayest, and acquaint her with all thou hast mentioned. So she went away, and sought her mistress, and laid the project before her, and presently returned, and said to me, It is to be as thou sayest, so make us ready the place, and expect us. Then she took out of her breast pocket a purse of dinars, and gave this message. My lady saluted thee, and sayeth to thee, Take this, and provide therewith what the case requireeth. But I swore that I would accept not of it. So she took the purse, and returning to her mistress told her, He would not receive the money, but gave it back to me. No matter, answered Shams Al Nahar, As soon as the slave girl was gone, continued the jeweler, I arose and betook myself to the other house, And transported thither all that was needful, By way of vessels, and furniture, and rich carpets, And I did not forget china vases, and cups of glass and gold and silver, And I made ready meat and drink required for the occasion. When the damsel came and saw what I had done, it pleased her, and she bad me fetch Ali bin Bakar. But I said, None shall bring him save thou. Accordingly, she went to him, and brought him back perfectly dressed, and looking his best. I met him, and greeted him, and then seated him upon a divan, befitting his condition, And set before him sweet-scented flowers in vases of china, and very colored glass. Then I set on a tray of many tinted meats, such as broadened the breast with their sight, And set talking with him and diverting him, whilst the slave girl went away, And was absent till after sundown prayers, When she returned with Shams Al Nahar, Attended by two maids and none else. Now as soon as she saw Ali bin Bakar, and he saw her, He rose and embraced her, and she on her side embraced him, and both fell in a fit to the ground. They lay for a whole hour insensible. Then, coming to themselves, they began mutually to complain of the pains of separation. Thereupon they drew near to each other, and set talking charmingly, softly, tenderly. After which, they somewhat perfumed themselves, and fell to thanking me for what I had done for them. Quote I, Have ye a mind for food? Yes, quote they. So I set before them a small matter of food, and they ate till they were satisfied, And then washed their hands. After which I led them to another sitting-room, and brought them wine. So they drank and drank deep, and inclined to each other, And presently Shams Al Nahar said to me, Oh my master, complete thy kindness by bringing us a lute or other instrument of mirth and music, But the measure of our joy may be fully filled. I replied, On my head and eyes, and rising, brought her a lute which she took and tuned. Then, laying it in her lap, she touched it with a masterly touch, At once exciting to sadness and changing sorrow to gladness. After which she sang these two couplets. My sleeplessness would show I'd love to bide on wake, And would my leanness prove that sickness is my make, And tear-flood's course adorn the cheeks they only scald. What I knew union shall disunion overtake. Then she went on to sing the choicest and most affecting posy to many and various modes, Till our senses were bewitched, And the very room danced with excess of delight and surprise at her sweet singing, And neither thought nor reason was left in us. When we had sat awhile and the cup had gone round amongst us, The damsel took the lute and sang to a lively measure these couplets. My love a meeting promised me and kept it faithfully. One night as many I shall count in number and degree. O night of joyance, fate vouchsafed till faithful lovers tway, Uncaring for the rail or loon at all his company. My lover lay the night with me and clipped me with his right, While I with left embraced him a faint for ecstasy, And hugged him to my breast and sucked the sweet wine of his lips, Full savoring the honey-draft the honey-man sold to me. Whilst we were thus bedrowned in the sea of gladness, continued the jeweler. Behold, there came into us a little maid trembling and said, Oh my lady, look how you may go away, For the folk have found you out And have surrounded the house, and we know not the cause of this. When I heard her words I arose startled and low, In rushed a slave girl who cried, Calamity hath come upon you. At the same moment the door was burst open, And there rushed in upon us ten men masked in kerchiefs With hangers in their hands and swords by their sides, And as many more behind them. When I saw this the world was straightened on me for all its wideness, And I looked to the door but saw no issue, So I sprang from the terrace into the house of one of my neighbors, And there hid myself. Thence I found that folk had entered my lodgings And were making a mighty hubb, And I concluded that the caliph had got wind of us, And had sent his chief of the watch to seize us And bring us before him. So I abode confounded, and cease not remaining in my place Without any possibility of quitting it till midnight. And presently the housemaster arose For he had heard me moving, And he feared with exceeding great fear of me. So he came forth from his rum with drawn brand in hand, And made at me, saying, Who is this in my house? Quoth I, I am thy neighbor, the jeweler, And he knew me, and retired. Then he fetched a light, and coming up to me said, O my brother, indeed that which hath befallen thee this night Is no light matter to me. I replied, O my brother, tell me who was in my house, And entered it breaking in my door, For I fled to thee not knowing what was to do. He answered, Of a truth, the robbers who attacked our neighbors yesterday And slew such a one, and took his goods, And thee on the same day bringing furniture into this house, So they broke in upon thee and stole thy goods, And slew thy guests. Then we arose, pursued the jeweler, I and he, And repaired to my house, which we found empty Without a stick remaining in it. So I was confounded at the case, and said to myself, As for the gear I care not about its loss, Albeit I borrowed part of the stuff from my friends, And doth come to grief. Yet is there no harm in that, For they know my excuse in the plunder of my property, And the pillage of my place. But as for Ali bin Bakar, And the Khalif's favorite concubine, I fear lest their case get brewed to the broad, And this cause the loss of my life. So I turned to my neighbor, and said to him, Thou art my brother and my neighbor, And wilt cover my nakedness. What then dost thou advise me to do? The man answered, What I counsel thee to do is to keep quiet and wait, For they who entered thy house and took thy goods, Have murdered the best men of a party from the palace of the caliphate, And have killed not a few of the watchmen. The government officers and guards are now in quest of them on every road, And happily they will hit upon them. Whereby thy wish will come about without effort of thine. The jeweler, hearing these words, returned to his other house, That wherein he dwelt, and Shaharizad perceived the dawn of the day, And ceased to say her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and sixty-fourth night she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That when the jeweler heard these words he returned to his other house, Wherein he dwelt, and said to himself, Indeed this that hath befallen me is what Abu al-Hassan feared, And from which he fled to Basura, And now I have fallen into it. Presently the pillage of his pleasure-house was Noised abroad among the folk, And they came to him from all sides and places, Some exalting in his misfortune, And others excusing him and condoling with his sorrow. Whilst he bewailed himself to them, And for grief neither ate meat nor drank drink. And as he sat, repenting him of what he had done, Behold, one of his servants came into him and said, There is a person at the door who asketh for thee, And I know him not. The jeweler went forth to him and saluted him who was a stranger, And the man whispered to him, I have somewhat to say between our two selves. Thereupon he brought him in and asked him, What hast thou to tell me? Quoth the man, Come with me to thine other house, And the jeweler inquired, Dost thou then know my other house? Replied the other, I know all about thee, And I know that also whereby Allah will dispel thy dolors. So I said to myself, Continue the jeweler, I will go with him whither he will. And went out and walked on till we came to my second house, And when the man saw it he said to me, It is without door or doorkeeper and we cannot possibly sit in it, So come thou with me to another place. Then the man continued passing from stead to stead, And I with him till night overtook us. Yet I put no question to him of the matter in hand, And we ceased not to walk on till we reached the open country. He kept saying, follow me, And quickened his pace to a trot whilst I trotted after him, Hardening my heart to go on until we reached the river, Where he took boat with me, And the boatman rode us over to the other bank. Then he landed from the boat, and I landed after him, And he took my hand and led me to a street which I had never entered in all my days, Nor do I know in what quarter it was. Presently the man stopped at the door of a house, And opening it entered and made me enter with him, After which he locked the door with an iron padlock, And led me along the vestibule, Till he brought me in the presence of ten men Who were as though they were one and the same man, They being brothers. We saluted them, continued the jeweler, And they returned our greeting and bade us be seated, So we sat down. Now I was like to die for excess of weariness, But they brought me rose water and sprinkled it on my face, After which they gave me a sherbet to drink And set before me food whereof some of them ate with me. Quoth I to myself, Were there ought harmful in the food they would not eat with me. So I ate, and when we had washed our hands Each of us returned to his place. Then they asked me, Does thou know us? And I answered, No, nor in my life have I ever seen you. Nay, I know not even him who brought me hither. Said they, Tell us thy tidings and lie not at all. Replied I, Know then that my case is wondrous and my affair marvellous, But what ye anything about me? They rejoined, Yes, it was we took thy goods yesterday night, And carried off thy friend and her who was singing to him. Quoth I, Allah let down his veil over you, Where be my friend and she who was singing to him? They pointed with their hands to one side and replied, Yonder, But by Allah, O our brother, The secret of their case is known to none save to thee, For from the time we brought the twain hither. Up to this day we have not looked upon them nor questioned them of their condition, Seeing them to be persons of rank and dignity. Now this and this only it was that hindered our killing them. So tell us the truth of their case, And thou shalt be assured of thy safety and of theirs. When I heard this continued the jeweler, I almost died of fright and horror, And I said to them, No ye, O my brethren, That if generosity were lost it would not be found save with you, And had I a secret which I feared to reveal, But your breasts would conceal it. And I went on, exaggerating their praises in this fashion, Till I saw that frankness and readiness to speak out Would profit me more than concealing facts, So I told them all that had betided me to the very end of the tale. When they heard it they said, And is this young man Ali Bakar's son And this lady's shams Al Nahar? I replied, Yes. Now this was grievous to them, And they rose and made their excuses to the two, And then they said to me, Of what we took from thy house part is spent, But here is what is left of it. So speaking they gave me back most of my goods, And they engaged to return them to their places in my house, And to restore me the rest as soon as they could. My heart was set at ease till they split into two parties, One with me and the other against me, And we fared forth from that house and such was my case. But as regards Ali Bin Bakar and Shams Al Nahar, They were well nigh dying for excessive fear, When I went up to them and saluting them asked, What happened to the damsel and the two maids, And where be they gone? And they answered only, We know nothing of them. Then we walked on and stinted not till we came to the river bank where the bark lay, And we all boarded it, for it was the same which had brought me over on the day before. The boatman rode us to the other side, But hardly had we landed and taken seat on the bank to rest, When a troop of horse swooped down on us like eagles And surrounded us on all sides and places, Whereupon the robbers with us sprang up in haste like vultures, And the boat put back for them and took them in and the boatman pushed off into mid-stream, Leaving us on the river bank, unable to move or to stand still. Then the chief horseman said to us, Once be ye, and we were perplexed for an answer, But I said, continued the jeweler, Those ye saw with us our rogues, we know them not, As for us, we are singers, And they intended taking us to sing for them, Nor could we get free of them, saved by subtlety and soft words, So on this occasion they let us go, Their works being such as you have seen. But they looked at Shams Al Nahar and Ali bin Bakar, And said to me, Thou hast not spoken soothed, But if thy tale be true tell us who ye are and whence ye are, And what be your place and in what quarter ye dwell. I knew not what to answer them, But Shams Al Nahar sprang up, And approaching the captain of the horseman, Spoke with him privily, Whereupon he dismounted from his steed And setting her on horseback, Took the bridle and began to lead his beast. And two of his men did the like with the youth, Ali bin Bakar, and it was the same with myself. The commandant of the troops ceased not faring on with us, Till they reached a certain part of the river bank When he sang out in some barbarous jargon, But there came to us a number of men with two boats. Then the captain embarked us in one of them, And he with us, whilst the rest of his men put off in the other, And rode on with us till we arrived at the palace of the caliphate, Where Shams Al Nahar landed. And all the while we endured the agonies of death For excess of fear, and they ceased not faring, Till they came to a place whence there was a way to our quarter. Here we landed and walked on, Ascorted by some of the horsemen, Till we came to Ali bin Bakar's house, And when we entered it, Our escort took leave of us and went their way. We abode there, unable to stir from the place, And not knowing the difference between morning and evening, And in such case we continued till the dawn of the next day. But when it was again nightfall, I came to myself and saw Ali bin Bakar And the women and men of his household weeping over him, For he was stretched out without sense or motion. Some of them came to me and thoroughly arousing me said, Tell us what hath befallen our son And say how came he in this plight? Replied I. O folk, harken to me! And Shaharizad perceived the dawn of the day And ceased saying her permitted say. End of Section 22 of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3 Section 23, Volume 3 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. The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3, Section 23. When it was the 165th night, she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the jeweler answered them, O folk, harken to my words And give me no trouble and annoyance, But be patient, and he will come To tell you his tale for himself. And I was hard upon them And made them afraid of a scandal between me and them. But as we were thus, behold, Ali bin Bakar moved on his carpet-bed, Whereat his friends rejoiced, And the stranger folk withdrew from him, But his people forbade me to go away. Then they sprinkled rose-water on his face And he presently revived and sensed the air. Whereupon they questioned him of his case, And he is said to answer them, One could not speak forthright, And he signed to them to let me go home. So they let me go, and I went forth Hardly crediting my escape, And returned to my own house supported by two men. When my people saw me thus, They rose up and set to shrieking And slapping their faces, But I signed to them with my hand To be silent, and they were silent. Then the two men went their way, And I threw myself down on my bed, Where I lay the rest of the night For noon, when I found my people Gathered round me and saying, What calamity befell thee, And what evil with its mischief did fell thee? Quote I, bring me somewhat to drink. So they brought me drink, And I drank of it what I would, And said to them, what happened, happened. Thereupon they went away, And I made my excuses to my friends, And asked if any of the goods That had been stolen from my other house Had been returned. Yes, some of them have come back By token that a man entered And threw them down within the doorway, And we saw him not. So I comforted myself, And abode in my place two days, Unable to rise and leave it. And presently I took courage and went to the bath, For I was worn out with fatigue And troubled in mind for Ali bin Makar And Shams al-Nahar, Because I had no news of them all this time And could neither get to Ali's house, Nor out of fear for my life, And rest in my own. And I repented to Almighty Allah Of what I had done, And praised him for my safety. Presently my fancy suggested to me To go to such and such a place And see the folk and solace myself. So I went on foot to the cloth market, And sat awhile with a friend of mine there. When I rose to go I saw a woman standing over against me. So I looked at her, And lo! it was Shams al-Nahar's slave girl. When I saw her the world grew dark In my eyes and I hurried on. She followed me but I was seized With a fright and a fled from her. And whenever I looked at her a trembling Came upon me whilst she pursued me, Saying, Stop! that I may tell thee somewhat. But I heeded her not And never ceased walking till I reached a mosque, And she entered after me. I prayed a two-bow prayer After which I turned to her And sighing said, What cost thou want? She asked me how I did, And I told her all that had befallen myself And Ali bin Bakar, And besought her for news of herself. She answered, Know that when I saw the robbers break open thy door And rush in, I was in sore terror, For I doubted not that they were the caliph's officers, And would seize me and my mistress, And we should perish forthwith. So we fled over the roofs, I and the maids, And casting ourselves down from a high place Came upon some people with whom we took refuge. And they received us and brought us to the palace of the caliphate, Where we arrived in the sorriest of plights. We concealed our case and abode on coals of fire till nightfall, When I opened the river-gate, And calling the boatman who had carried us the night before said to him, I know not what has become of my mistress, So take me in the boat that we may go seek her on the river. Happily I shall chance on some news of her. Accordingly he took me into the boat, And went about with me and ceased not wending till midnight, When I spied a bark making towards the water-gate, With one man rowing and another standing up, And a woman lying prostrate between them twain. And they rowed on till they reached the shore when the woman landed, And I looked at her, and behold, it was Shamzal Nahar. Thereupon I got out and joined her, Dazed for joy to see her after having lost all hopes of finding her alive. And Shaharizad perceived the dawn of the day, And ceased saying her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and sixty-sixth night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the slave girl went on telling the jeweler. I was dazed for joy to see her after having lost all hopes of finding her alive. When I came up to her, She bad me give the man who had brought her thither a thousand gold pieces. And we carried her in, I and the two maids, And laid her on her bed, Where she passed that night in a sorely troubled state. And when morning dawned I forbade the women and eunuchs to go into her, Or even to draw near her for the whole of that day. But on the next she revived, And somewhat recovered, And I found her as if she had come out of her grave. I sprinkled rose water upon her face, And changed her clothes, And washed her hands and feet. Nor did I cease to coax her till I brought her to eat a little and drink some wine, Though she had no mind to any such matter. As soon as she had breathed the fresh air and strength began to return to her, I took to up-braiding her, saying, Oh, my lady, consider and have pity on thyself. Thou seest what hath betided us, Surely enough and more than enough of evil hath befallen thee, For indeed thou hast been nigh upon death. She said, By Allah o good damsel, In sooth death were easier to me than what hath betided me, For it seemed as though I should be slain and no power could save me. When the robbers took us from the jeweler's house they asked me, Who mayest thou be? And hearing my answer, I am a singing girl. They believed me. Then they turned to Ali bin Bakar and made inquiries about him, And who art thou, and what is thy condition? Where too, he replied, I am of the common kind. So they took us and carried us along without our resisting to their abode, And we hurried on with them for excess of fear. But when they had us set down with them in the house they looked hard at me, And seeing the clothes I wore and my necklaces and jewelry, Believed not my account of myself and said to me, Of a truth these necklaces belong to no singing girl, So be soothfast and tell us the truth of thy case. I returned them no answer whatever, saying in my mind, Now will they slay me for the sake of my apparel and ornaments. And I spoke not a word. Then the villains turned to Ali bin Bakar asking, And thou, who art thou, and whence art thou? For thy semblance seemeth not as that of the common kind. But he was silent, and we ceased not to keep our counsel and to weep, Till Allah softened the rogue's hearts to pity, And they said to us, Who is the owner of the house wherein we were? We answered, Such a wanton the jeweler. Whereupon, quoth one of them, I know him right well, And I want the other house where he liveth, And I will engage to bring him to you this very hour. Then they agreed to set me in a place by myself, And Ali bin Bakar in a place by himself, And said to us, Be at rest ye twain, And fear not lest your secret be divulged, Ye are safe from us. Meanwhile their comrade went away and returned with the jeweler, Who made known to them our case, And we joined company with him. After which a man of the band fetched a bark, Wherein they embarked us all three, And brought us over the river, Landed us with scant ceremony on the opposite bank, And went their ways. Thereupon up came a horse patrol, And asked us who we were. So I spoke with the captain of the watch, And said to him, I am Shams al-Nahar, The Caliph's favorite. I had drunk in strong wine, And went out to visit certain of my acquaintance Of the wives of the Wazirs, When yonder rogues came upon me, And laid hold of me and brought me to this place. But when they saw you, they fled as fast as they could. I met these men with them, So do thou escort me and them to a place of safety, And I will requite thee as I am well able to do. When the captain of the watch heard my speech, He knew me, and a lighting mounted me on his horse, And in like manner did two of his men with Ali bin Bakar. So I spoke to her, continued the handmaid, And blamed her doings and bad her beware, And said to her, Oh, my lady, Have some care for thy life. But she was angered at my words and cried out at me, Accordingly, I left her and came forth in quest of thee, But found thee not, and dared not to go to the house of Ali bin Bakar. So stood watching for thee, that I might ask thee of him, And what how it goes with him. And I pray thee of thy favour to take of me some money, For thou hast doubtless borrowed from thy friends part of the gear, And as it is lost, it behovet thee to make it good with the folk. I replied, To hear is to obey, go on. And I walked with her till we drew near my house, When she said to me, Wait here till I come back to thee. And Sheharazad perceived the dawn of the day, And ceased to say her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and sixty seventh night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That after the slave girl had addressed the jeweler, Wait here till I come back to thee. She went away and presently returned with money, Which she put, continued the jeweler, into my hand, Saying, O my master, in what place shall we meet? Quote I, I will start and go to my house at once, And suffer hard things for thy sake, And contrive how thou mayest win access to him, For such access is difficult at this present. Said she, Let me know some spot where I shall come to thee, And I answered, In my other house I will go thither forthright, And have the doors mended and the place made safe again, And henceforth we will meet there. Then she took leave of me and went her way, Whilst I carried the money home, and counting it, Found at five thousand dinars. So I gave my people some of it, And to all who had lent me ought I made good their loss, After which I arose and took my servants, And repaired to my other house, Once the things had been stolen. And I brought builders and carpenters and masons, Who restored it to its former state. Moreover I placed my negrous slave there, And forgot the mishaps which had befallen me. Then I fared forth and repaired to Ali bin Bakar's house, And when I reached it his slave servants accosted me, Saying, Our Lord calleth for the night and day, And hath promised to free whichever of us bringeth thee to him, So they have been wandering about in quest of thee everywhere, But knew not in what part to find thee. Our master is by way of recovering strength, But at times he reviveeth and at times he relapseth, And whenever he reviveeth he nameeth thee and sayeth, Needs must ye bring him to me, Though but for the twinkling of an eye. And then he sinketh back into his torpor. Accordingly, continued the jeweler, I accompanied the slave and went in to Ali bin Bakar, And finding him unable to speak, sat down at his head. Whereupon he opened his eyes, And seeing me wept and said, Welcome and welcome. I raised him and making him sit up, Strained him to my bosom, and he said, No, O my brother, that from the hour I took to my bed I have not sat up till now, Praised to Allah that I see thee again. And I ceased not to prop him, and support him, Until I made him stand on his feet and walk a few steps, After which I changed his clothes and he drank some wine, But all this he did for my satisfaction. Then, seeing him somewhat restored, I told him what had befallen me with the slave girl, None else hearing me, and said to him, Take heart, and be of good courage, I know what thou sufferest. He smiled, and I added, Verily, nothing shall betide thee, Save what shall rejoice thee and medicine thee. Thereupon he called for food, Which being brought he signed to his pages, And they withdrew. Then, quoth he to me, O my brother, has thou seen what had befallen me? And he made excuses to me, And asked how I had fared all that while. I told him everything that had befallen me From beginning to end, whereot he wondered, And calling his servants said, Bring me such and such things. They brought in fine carpets and hangings, And besides that, vessels of gold and silver, More than I had lost, and he gave them all to me. So I sent them to my house, and abode with him that night. When the day began to yellow, he said to me, Know thou that as to all things there is an end, So the end of love is either death Or accomplishment or desire. I am nearer unto death, would I had died ere this befell, And had not Allah favoured us, We had been found out and put to shame. And now I know not what shall deliver me from this my straight, And were it not that I fear Allah I would hasten my own death, For know, O my brother, That I am like bird in cage And that my life is of a surety perished, Choked by the distresses which have befallen me. Yet hath at a period established firm And an appointed term. And he wept and groaned, and began repeating, Enough of tears hath shed the lover white, When grief outcast all patience from his sprite. He hid the secrets which united us, But now his eye parts what he did unite. When he had finished his verses, the jeweler said to him, O my lord, I now intend returning to my house. He answered, There be no harm in that. Go and come back to me with news as fast as possible, For thou seest my case. So I took leave of him, continued the jeweler, And went home, and hardly hath I sat down, When up came the damsel, choked with long weeping. I asked, What is the matter? And she answered, O my lord, Know then that what we feared hath befallen us, For when I left thee yesterday and returned to my lady, I found her in a fury with one of the two maids Who were with us the other night, And she ordered her to be beaten. The girl was frightened and ran away, But as she was leaving the house, One of the door-porters and guards of the gate met her And took her up, and would have sent her back to her mistress. However, she let fall some hints which were a disclosure to him, So he cajoled her, and led her on to talk, And she tattled about our case, And let him know of all our doings. This affair came to the ears of the caliph, Who bad removed my mistress, Shams Al Nahar, And all her gear to the palace of the caliphate, And set over her a guard of twenty eunuchs. Since then to the present hour he hath not visited her Nor hath given her to know the reason of his action, But I suspect this to be the cause. Wherefore I am in fear for my life, And have sorely troubled, O my Lord, Knowing not what I shall do, nor with what contrivance I shall order my affair and hers, For she hath none by her more trusted Or more trustworthy than myself. And Shaharizad perceived the dawn of the day And ceased saying her permitted say. End of Section 23 of the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3. Section 24, Volume 3 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. The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 3, Section 24. When it was the one hundred and sixty-eighth night, she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the slave girl thus addressed the jeweler. And in very sooth my lady hath none by her More trusted or more trustworthy In matter of secrecy than myself. So go, thou, O my master, And speed thee without delay To Ali bin Baqar And acquaint him with this, That he may be on his guard and ward, And if the affair be discovered We will cast about for some means Whereby to save our lives. On this, continued the jeweler, I was seized with sore trouble And the world grew dark in my sight For the slave girl's words. And when she was about to wend, I said to her, What wreckest thou, and what is to be done? Quote she, My counsel is that thou hasten to Ali bin Baqar If thou be indeed his friend And desire to save him. Thine be it to carry him this news At once, without ought of stay and delay Or regard for far and near. And mine be it to sniff about for further news. Then she took her leave of me and went away. So I rose and followed her track And betaking myself to Ali bin Baqar, Found him flattering himself With impossible expectations. When he saw me returning to him so soon, He said, I see thou hast come back to me forthwith And only too soon. I answered, Patience, and cut short this foolish connection, And shake off the preoccupation wherein thou art, For there hath befallen that which may bring About the loss of thy life and good. Now when he heard this, He was troubled and strongly moved, And said to me, Oh, my brother, tell me what hath happened. Replied I, Oh, my lord, Know that such and such things have happened And thou art lost without recourse If thou abide in this thy house Till the end of the day. At this he was confounded, And his soul well night departed his body, But he recovered himself and said to me, What shall I do, oh, my brother, And what counsel hath thou to offer? Answered I, My advice is that thou take what thou canst of thy property And whom of thy slaves thou trustest And flee with us to a land other than this. ere this very day come to an end. And he said, I hear and I obey. So he rose, confused in days like one in epilepsy, Now walking and now falling, And took what came under his hand. Then he made an excuse to his household And gave them his last injunctions, After which he loaded three camels And mounted his beast, and I did likewise. We went forth privily into skies And fared on and ceased not our wayfair The rest of that day and all its night, Till nigh upon morning when we unloaded And hobbling our camels lay down to sleep. But we were warned with fatigue And we neglected to keep watch, So that there fell upon us robbers Who stripped us of all we had and slew our slaves When these would have beaten them off, Leaving us naked and in the sorriest of plights After they had taken our money And lifted our beasts and disappeared. As soon as they were gone we arose And walked on till morning dawned When we came to a village which we entered And finding a mosque took refuge therein For we were naked. So we sat in a corner all that day And we passed the next night without meat or drink And at daybreak we prayed our dawn prayer And sat down again. Presently behold, a man entered And saluting us prayed a two-bow prayer After which he turned to us and said, Oh, folk, are you strangers? We replied, yes, the bandits waylaid us And stripped us naked, and we came to this town But no none here with whom we may shelter. What say ye, will ye come home with me? And pursued the jeweler. I said to Ali bin Bakar, Up, and let us go with him, And we shall escape two evils. The first, our fear, lest someone who knoweth us Enter this mosque and recognize us So that we come to disgrace. And the second, that we are strangers And have no place wherein to lodge. And he answered helplessly, As thou wilt. Then the man said to us again, Oh ye poor folk, give ear unto me And come with me to my place. And I replied, harkening and obedience. Whereupon he pulled off a part of his own clothes And covered us therewith, And made his excuses to us, and spoke kindly to us. Then we arose, and accompanied him to his house And he knocked at the door Whereupon a little slave-boy came out And opened to us. The host entered, and we followed him. When he called for a bundle of clothes For turbans, and gave us each a suit and a piece. So we dressed, and turbund ourselves, And sat us down. Presently in came a damsel with a tray of food And said it before us, saying, eat. We ate some small matter, and she took away the tray, After which we abode with our host till nightfall When Ali bin Bakar sighed and said to me, No, oh my brother, that I am a dying man Past hope of life, and I would charge thee with a charge. It is that when thou ceased me dead, Thou go to my parent and tell her of my decease, And bid her come hither that she may be here To receive the visits of condolence And be present at the washing of my corpse, And do thou exhort her to bear my loss with patience. Then he fell down in a fainting fit, And when he recovered he heard a damsel singing A far off, and making verses as she sang. Thereupon he addressed himself to give ear to her And hearkened to her voice, And now he was insensible, absent from the world, And now he came to himself, And a nod he wept for grief and mourning At the love which had befallen him. Presently he heard the damsel who was singing Repeat these couplets. Parting ran up to part from lover twain, Free converse, perfect concord, friendship fain. The nights with shifting drifted us apart, Would heaven I want if we shall meet again. How bitter after meeting tis depart May lovers' nair endure so bitter pain. Death grip, death choke, lasts for an hour and ends, But parting tortures I in heart remain. Could we but trace where parting's house is placed We would make parting eek of parting taste? When Ali, son of Bakar, heard the damsel's song, He sobbed one sob, and his soul quitted his body. As soon as I saw that he was dead, continued the jeweler, I committed his corpse to the care of the housemaster And said to him, Now I am going to Baghdad to tell his mother and kinsfolk That they may come hither and conduct his burial. So I betook myself to Baghdad, And going to my house changed my clothes, After which I repaired to Ali bin Bakar's lodging. Now when his servants saw me, they came to me And questioned me of him, and I bade them ask permission For me to go into his mother. She gave me leave, so I entered and saluting her said, Verily, Allah ordereth the lives of all creatures To manneth, and when he decreeeth ought, There is no escaping its fulfillment, Nor can any soul depart but by leave of Allah According to the writ which affirmeth the appointed term. She guessed by these words that her son was dead And wept with sore weeping, then she said to me, Allah upon thee, tell me, is my son dead? I could not answer her for tears and excessive grief, And when she saw me thus she was choked with weeping And fell to the ground in a fit. As soon as she came to herself she said to me, Tell me how it was with my son. I replied, may Allah abundantly compensate thee for his loss. And I told her all that had befallen him from beginning to end. She then asked, did he give thee any charge? And I answered yes, and told her what he had said Adding, hasten to perform his funeral. When she heard these words she swummed away again And when she recovered she addressed herself to do as I charged her. Then I returned to my house, And as I went along musing sadly upon the fair gifts of his youth, Behold, a woman caught hold of my hand. And Shaharazad perceived the dawn of the day And ceased to say her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and sixty ninth night she said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the jeweler thus continued, A woman caught hold of my hand, And I looked at her, and lo, It was the slave girl who used to come from Shams al-Nahar And she seemed broken like grief. When we knew each other we both wept And ceased not weeping till we reached my house. And I said to her, Knowest thou the news of the youth, Ali bin Bakar? She replied, No, by Allah. So I told her the manner of his death And all that had passed whilst we both wept. After which, quoth I to her, How is it with thy mistress? Quoth she. The commander of the faithful would not hear a single word against her. But for the great love he bore her Saw all her actions in a favourable light And said to her, O Shams al-Nahar, Thou art dear to me, and I will bear with thee And bring the noses of thy foes to the grindstone. Then he bade them furnish her an apartment Decorated with gold and a handsome sleeping chamber. And she abode with him in all ease of life and high favour. Now it came to pass that one day As he sat at wine according to his custom With his favourite concubines in presents. He bade them be seated in their several ranks And made Shams al-Nahar sit by his side. But her patience had failed And her disorder had redoubled upon her. Then he bade one of the damsels sing. So she took a lute and, tuning it, Struck the cords and began to sing these verses. One craved my love And I gave all he craved of me. And tears on cheek betray Which was I came to yield. Teardrops, Mithimith, are familiar with our case. Revealing what I hide. Hiding what I revealed. How can I hope in secret to conceal my love? Which stress of passion ever showeth unconcealed? Death, since I lost my lover, Is grown sweet to me. Would I knew what there joys When I shall quit the field? Now when Shams al-Nahar Heard these verses sung by the slave girl, She could not keep her seat But fell down in a fainting fit, Whereupon the caliph cast the cup from his hand And drew her to him crying out. And the damsels also cried out, And the prince of true believers Turned her over and shook her, And lo and behold she was dead. The caliph grieved over her death With sore grief and bad break All the vessels and dulcimers And other instruments of mirth and music Which were in the room. Then carrying her body to this closet, He abode with her for the rest of the night. When the day broke, he laid her out And commanded to wash her and shroud her And bury her. And he mourned for her with sore mourning And questioned not of her case, Nor of what caused her condition. And I beg thee in Allah's name, continued the damsel, To let me know the day of the coming Of Ali bin Bakar's funeral procession That I may be present at his burial. Quote I, for myself, Where thou wilt thou canst find me? But thou, where art there to be found, And who can come at thee where there art? She replied, On the day of Sharm al-Nahar's death The commander of the faithful freed all her women, Myself among the rest, And I am one of those now abiding At the tomb in such a place. So I rose and accompanied her to the burial-ground, And piously visited Sharm al-Nahar's tomb. After which I went my way And ceased not to await the coming Of Ali bin Bakar's funeral. When it arrived, the people of Baghdad Went forth to meet it, And I went forth with them. And I saw the damsel among the women And she, the loudest of them, in lamentation, Crying out and wailing with a voice That rent the vitals and made the heart ache. Never was seen in Baghdad A finer funeral than his. And we ceased not to follow in crowds Till we reached the cemetery And buried him to the mercy Of Almighty Allah. Nor from that time to this Have I ceased to visit the tombs Of Ali's son of Bakar And of Sharm al-Nahar. This, then, is their story, And Allah Almighty have mercy upon them. And yet is not their tale Continued Shahrazad, More wonderful than that Of King Shahriman? The king asked her, And what was his tale? And Shahrazad received the dawn of day And ceased saying her permitted say. End of Section 24 Of the Book of a Thousand Nights Section 25 Volume 3 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 Joaquin The Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night Volume 3 Section 25 When it was the 170th night, She said, It hath reached me, O specious king, As regard the Tale of Kamar al-Zaman That there was in times of yore And in ages long gone before A king called Shahriman Who was lord of many troops And guards and officers And who reigned over Certain islands Known as the Kalidun Islands On the borders Of the land of the Persians But he was stricken in years And his bones were wasted Without having been blessed With a son Albeit he had four wives Daughters of kings And three score concubines With each of whom He was wont to lie one night In turn This preyed upon his mind And disquited him So that he complained thereof To one of his wazirs saying Verily, I fear lest my kingdom Be lost when I die For that I have no son To succeed me The minister answered O king, Peradventure Allah Shall yet bring something to pass So rely upon the Almighty And be instant in prayer It is also my counsel That thou spread a banquet And invite to it The poor and needy And let them eat of thy food And supplicate the Lord To vouchsafe thee a son For, perchance, there may be Among thy guests A righteous soul Whose prayers find acceptance And thereby Thou shalt win thy wish So the king rose Made a lesser ablution And prayed a two-bow prayer And he cried upon Allah With pure intentions After which he called his chief wife To bed and lay with her forthright By grace of God She conceived And when her months were accomplished She bore a male child Like the moon on the night Of fullness The king named him Kamar al-Zaman And rejoiced in him With extreme joy He said the city be dressed out In his honor So they decorated the streets Seven days Whilst the drums beat And the messenger bore The glad tidings abroad Then wet and dry nurses Were provided for the boy And he was reared In splendor and delight Until he reached The age of fifteen He grew up of surpassing beauty And simli-head And symmetry And his father loved him so dear That he could not brook To be parted from him Day or night One day he complained To a surgeon of his ministers And earned the excess of his love For his only child, saying O thou the wazir Of a truth I fear For my son, Kamar al-Zaman The shifts on accidents Which befell men And feign would I marry him In my lifetime Answered the wazir O king Know thou that marriage Is one of the most honorable Of moral actions And thou wouldst indeed do well And write to marry thy son In thy lifetime Here thou make him sultan On this quote the king Hither with my son, Kamar al-Zaman So he came And bowed his head To the ground in modesty Before his sire O Kamar al-Zaman Said king Shariman Of a truth I desire to marry thee And rejoice in thee During my lifetime Replied he O my father Know that I have no lust to marry For both my soul Incline to women For that concerning their craft And perfidy I have read many books And heard much talk Even as saved the poet Now And a women-uskey I reply In their affairs I'm versed a doctor rare When man's head Grizzles and his manic dwindles And another said Rebel against women And so shall thou serve Allah no more The youth who gives women The rain must for fate All hope to soar They'll balk him When seeking the strange device Excelsior Though waste he a thousand of years In the study of science and lore And when he had ended his verses He continued O my father Wedlock is a thing where too I will never consent No, not though I drink the cup of death When Sultan Shariman Heard these words From his son Light became darkness in his sight And he grieved there at With great grief And Sharazad perceived the dawn of day And seized To say her permitted say When it was the one hundred And seventy first night She said O auspicious king That when King Shariman heard these words From his son The light became darkness in his sight And he grieved over his son's Lack of obedience To his directions in the matter of marriage Yet For the great love he bore him He was unwilling to repeat his wishes And was not wroth with him But caressed him And spake him fair And showed him all manner of kindness Such as tendeth to induce affection All this And Kamar al-Zaman increased daily In beauty and loveliness And amorous grace And the king bore with him For a whole year Till he became perfect in eloquence And elegant wit All men were ravished With his charms And every breeze that blew Bore the tidings of his gracious favor His fair sight Was a seduction to the loving And the garden of delight To the longing For he was Honey sweet of speech And the sheen of his face Shamed the full moon He was a model of symmetry And blandishment And engaging ways His shape Was as the willow wand Or the retin cane And his cheeks might take The place of rose Or red anemone He was in fine the pink of perfection Even as the poet Has said of him He came and cried They, now be a law Blessed, praise him That clad His soul in so fair vest His king of beauty Where the beauties be All are his riots All obey his haste His lips use sweeter Than the virgin honey His teeth are pearls In double row close press All charms are congregating Him alone And deals his loveliness To men unrest Beauty wrought to those cheeks For words to see I testify there is none good But he When the year came to an end The king called his son to him And said O my son, will thou not Harken to me Whereupon Kamar al-Zaman Fell down for respect And shame before his sire And replied O my father, how should I not harken to thee Seeing that Allah commanded Me to obey thee And not gain see thee Rejoined king Shariman O my son Know that I desire to marry thee And rejoice in thee Whilst yet I live And make thee king Over my realm Before my death When the prince heard his sire Pronounced these words He bowed his head a while Then raised it and said O my father This is a thing which I will never do No Not though I drink the cup of death I know of a surety That the Almighty has made Obedience to thee A duty in religion But Allah upon thee Press me not on this matter of marriage Nor fancy that I will ever marry My life long For that I have read the books Both of the ancients And the moderns And have come to know All the mischiefs and miseries Which have befallen them Through women and their endless Artifices And how excellent is the Saying of the poet He whom the randy moths And trap shall never see Deliverance Though build he forts a thousand fold Whose mighty strength Led plates and hens Their force shall be of no avail These fortresses Have not a chance Women I deal in treachery To far and near Over earth the suspense With fingers dipped In henna blood And locks in braids That met the glance And eyelids painted over With coal They garras drink For mischance And how excellently Saves another Women, for all the chastity They claim, are awful Cast by kites Wherever they list This night their token Secret charms are shined That night another Joyeth, calf and wrist Like inn, whence after Night thou first at dawn And lodges other white Thou hast not whisked Now when Chariman Heard these his sons' words And learned the import Of his averses And poetical quotations He made no answer Of his excessive love for him But redoubled in graciousness And kindness to him He at once Broke up the audience And as soon as the Sense was over He summoned his minister And taken him apart Said to him O thou the wazir Tell me how I shall deal With my son in the matter of marriage And Charazad Perceived the dawn of day And seized saying Her permitted say When it was the one hundred and seventy Second night She said, it hath reached me O auspicious king Summoned his minister And taken him apart Said to him O thou the wazir Tell me what I shall do With my son in the matter of marriage Of a truth I took counsel With thee thereon And thou didst counsel me to marry him Before making him king I have spoken with him Of wedlock time After time and he still Gain said to me So do thou o wazir Forthright advise me what to do Answered the minister O king Wait another year And if after that thou be minded To speak to him on the matter of marriage Speak not to him privately But address him on a day of state When all the emirs And wazirs are present With the whole of the army Standing before thee And when all are in crowd Then send for thy son Kamar al-Zaman And summon him And when he cometh Broach to him the matter of marriage Before the wazirs and grandees And officers of state And captains For he will surely be bashful And daunted by their presence And will not dare to oppose thy will Now when king Shariman Heard his wazirs words He rejoiced with exceeding joy Seeing success in the project And bestowed on him A splendid robe of honor Then he took patience with his son Another year, whilst With every day that passed over him Kamar al-Zaman increased In beauty and loveliness And elegance and perfect grace Till he was nigh Twenty years old Indeed Allah had clad him In the cloak of comeliness And had crowned him With the crown of completion His eye-glance Was more bewitching Than Harut and Marut And the play of his luring looks More misleading Than Tagut And his cheeks Shown like the dawn rosy red And his eyelashes stormed The keen edged blade The whiteness of his brow Resembled the moon shining bright And the blackness of his locks Was as the murky night And his waist was more slender Than the gossamer And his back parts Than two sand-hips bulkier Making a babble of the heart With their softness But his waist complained Of the weight Of his hips and loins And his charms ravished All mankind Even as one of the poets Saved in these couplets By his eyelash tendril curled By his lender waist, I swear By the dart his witchery feathers Fatal hurtling through the air By the just roundness of his shape By his glances bright and keen Heard limping of his locks And his fair forehead shining sheen By his eyebrows Which deny that she Who looks on them should sleep Which now commanding Now forbidding Over me high dominion keep By the roses of his cheek His face as fresh as myrtle breath His tulle plips And those pure pearls That hold the places of his teeth By his noble form Which rises fatally Turned in even swell To wear upon his jotting Chest to young promgranades Seemed to dwell By his supple, moving hips His taper waist The silky skin By all he robbed perfection Of and holds and chained His form within By his tongue of steadfastness His nature true and excellent By the greatness of his rank His noble birth and high descent Mask from my love Her savor steals Who mask exhales From every limb And all the airs, ambergris, breathies Are but the sapphires Blow over him The sun me thinks The broad bright sun As low before my love should quail As would my love himself Trescend the paltry pouring Of his nail So King Chariman, having accepted The council of his wazir Waited for another year And a great festival And Cherazad perceived The dawn of day And seized to say Her permitted say When it was the one hundred and seventy-third Night, she said It hath reached me, O auspicious king That Chariman, having accepted The council of his wazir Waited for another year And a great festival A day of state When the audience hall was filled With the emirs and wazirs And grandees of his reign And officers of state And captains of might and main Thereupon he sent For his son, Kamar al-Zaman Who came And kissed in the ground before him Three times stood in presence Of his sire, with his hands behind his back The right grasping the left And said the king to him No, O my son, that I have not sent For thee on this occasion And summoned thee to appear Before this assembly And all these officers of state Here awaiting our orders Save and accept That I may lay a commandment On thee, wherein do thou Not disobey me And my commandment is that thou marry For I am minded To wed thee to a king's daughter And rejoice in thee Here I die When the prince heard this Much from his royal sire He bowed his head Grandwards a while Then raising it towards his father And being moved there too At that time by youthful folly And boyish ignorance replied But for myself I will never marry No, not though I drink The cup of death As for thee, thou art great in age And small of wit Has thou not twice Here this day And before this occasion Question me of the matter of marriage And I refused my consent Indeed, thou dottest And are not wit To govern a flock of sheep So saying Kamar al-Zaman Unclasped his hands from behind his back And tucked up his leaves Above his elbows Before his father Being in a fit of fury Moreover, he added many words To his sire Knowing not what he said In the trouble of his spirits The king was confounded And ashamed For that this befell In the presence of his grandees Assembled on a high festival And a state occasion But presently The majesty of kingship took him And he cried out at his son And made it tremble Then he called to the guards Standing before him and said Seize him So they came forward And laid hands on him And binding him Brought him before his sire Who bed them pinion On his elbows behind his back And in these guise Make him stand before the presence And the prince bowed down His head for fear and apprehension And his brow and face Were beaded And sprinkled with sweat And shame and confusion Troubled him sorely Thereupon His father abused him And ravilled him and cried Woe to thee Thou son of adultery And nurseline of abomination How dost thou Answer me on this wise Before my captains and soldiers But hither too None hath chastised thee And Charazade perceived the dawn of day And seized Seine her permitted say When it was the one hundred and seventy fourth night She said It hath reached me O auspicious king That king Chariman cried out To his son Kamar al-Zaman How dost thou answer me On this wise Before my captains and soldiers But hither too None hath chastised thee No was thou not That this deed thou hast done Where disgrace to him Had it been done By the meanest of my subjects And the king And commanded his Mamluks To lose his elbow bonds And imprison him in one of the bastions Of the citadel So they took the prince And thrust him into an old tower Wherein there was a dilapidated saloon And in its middle a ruined well After having first swept it And cleansed its floor flags And sat there in a couch On which they laid a mattress A leather rug and a cushion And then they brought a great lantern And a wax candle For that place was dark Even by day And lastly the Mamluks Led Kamar al-Zaman hither And stationed an eunuch at the door And when all this was done The prince threw himself on the couch Sad spirited And heavy hearted Blaming himself And repenting on his injurious conduct To his father When as repentance Availed him not And saying Allah cursed marriage And marriageable and married woman The traitorous is all Who they had Harkened to my father And accepted the wife Had I so done It had been better for me Than this jail This is how it fared with him But as regards King Shariman He remained seated on his throne All throughout the day Until sundown Then he took the minister apart And said to him No thou of Azir That thou and thou only Waste the cause Of all this that hath come To pass between me and my son By the advice thou hast pleased To devise And so what dost thou Counsel me to do now Answered he O king, leave thy son in limbo For a space of fifteen days Then summon him To thy presence And bid him wed And assuredly he shall not Gain say thee again And Sharazad perceived The dawn of day And seized saying Her permitted say End of section 25 Of the book of a thousand nights Volume 3 Recording by Filippo Joachim Section 26 Volume 3 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 Ethan Rampton The book of a thousand nights And a night Volume 3 Section 26 When it was the one hundred and seventy-fifth night She said It hath reached me, O auspicious king That the wazir Said to king Sharaman Leave thy son in limbo for the space of fifteen days Then summon him To thy presence and bid him wed And assuredly he shall not Gain say thee again The king accepted The wazir's opinion And lay down to sleep that night Troubled at heart concerning his son For he loved him with dearest love Because he had no other child but this And it was his want every night Not to sleep, save after placing His arm under his son's neck So he passed that night In trouble and unease on the prince's account Tossing from side to side As he were laid on coals Of Artemisia wood For he was overcome with doubts And visited him not at all that live long night But his eyes ran over with tears And he began repeating While slanderer slumber Longsum is my night Suffice thee a heart so sad In parting plight I say, one night in care Slow moments by What no return for thee fair morning light And the saying of another When saw I play at stars His glance escape And pole-star draft of sleep And the beard-daughters Wend in morning-diet I knew that morning was for him no more Such was the case with King Chariman But as regards Kamar al-Zaman When the night came upon him The eunuch set the land-horn before him And lighting the wax candle Placed it in the candlestick Then brought him somewhat of food The prince ate a little And continually reproached himself For his unseemly treatment of his father Saying to himself, oh my soul Know as thou not that a son of Adam Is the hostage of his tongue And that a man's tongue is what casted Him into deadly perils Then his eyes ran over with tears And he bewailed that which he had done From anguished vitals and aching heart Repenting him with exceeding Repentance of the wrong wherewith He had wronged his father And repeating, fair youth shall die By stumbling of the tongue Stumble of foot works not man's life Such wrong. The slip of lip Shall oft smite off the head While slip of foot shall never harm One long. Now when he had made an end of eating He asked for the wherewithal to wash his hands And when the mamalook had washed them Clean of the remnants of food He arose and made the wazoo ablution And prayed the prayers of sundown And nightfall, conjoining them in one After which he sat down And Charazade perceived the dawn of day And ceased to say her permitted say When it was the hundred-and-seventy-sixth night She said, it hath reached me, o auspicious king That when the prince Kamar Al-Zaman had prayed Conjoining them in one the prayers of sundown And nightfall, he sat down on the well And began reciting the Quran And he repeated the cow And the house of Imran And Y.S., the compassionate Blessed be the king, unity And the two talismans And he ended with the wazoo ablution And the wazoo ablution And the two talismans And he ended with blessing and supplication And was saying, I seek refuge with Allah From Satan the stoned Then he lay down upon his couch Which was covered with a mattress of satin From al-Madin town The same on both sides And stuffed with the raw silk of Iraq And under his head was a pillow Filled with ostrich down And when ready for sleep He daught his outer clothes And drew off his bag trousers As smooth as wax And he dawned a headkerchief Of az-yomarazi cloth And at such time and on this guise Kamar al-Zaman was like the full Orbed moon when it riseth On its fourteenth night Then, drawing over his head A coverlet of silk, he fell asleep With the land horn burning at his feet And the wax candle over his head And he ceased not sleeping Through the first third of the night Not knowing what looked for him The clinician had decreed for him. Now, as fate and fortune would have it, Both Tara and Saloon were old And had been many years deserted. And there was therein a Roman well Inhabited by a genia Of the seed of Iblis, the accursed, By a name Maimouna, Daughter of al-Dimeriat, A renowned king of the Jan, And Charazad perceived the dawn of the day And ceased saying her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and seventy-seventh night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the name of the genia in question Was Maimouna, daughter of al-Dimeriat, A renowned king of the Jan. And as Kamar al-Zermann Continued sleeping till the first third of the night, Maimouna came up out of the Roman well And made for the firmament, Thinking to listen by stealth To the converse of the angels. But when she reached the mouth of the well She saw a light shining in the tower, Contrary to custom. And having dwelt there many years Without seeing the like, She said to herself, Never have I witnessed ought like this. And marveling much at the matter Determined that there must be some cause therefor. So she made for the light And found the eunuch sleeping within the door, And inside she saw a couch spread, Whereon was a human form With the wax candle burning at his head And the land horn at his feet. And she wandered to see the light And stole towards it little by little. Then she folded her wings And stood by the bed, And drawing back the cover lid, Discovered Kamar Elzaman's face. She was motionless For a full hour in admiration and wonderment. For the luster of his visage Outshone that of the candle. His face beamed like a pearl with light. His eyelids were languorous Like those of the gazelle. The pupils of his eyes Were intensely black and brilliant. His cheeks were rosy red. His eyebrows were arched like bows. And his breath exhaled a scent of musk. Even a seth of him the poet. I kissed him. Darker grew those pupils, Which seduced my soul. And cheeks flushed rosier hue. O heart, if slanderers dare To deem there be his like in charms, Say bring him hither you. Now when Maimouna saw him She pronounced the formula of praise And said, Blessed be Allah, The best of creators. For she was of the true believing jinn. And she stood a while gazing on his face, Exclaiming and envying the youth His beauty and loveliness. And she said in herself by Allah, I will do no hurt to him, Nor let any harm him. Nay, from all of evil will I ransom him, For this fair face deserves not But that folk should gaze upon it, And for it praise the Lord. Yet how could his family find it In their hearts to leave him in such desert place Where if one of our marids Came upon him at this hour He would assuredly slay him. Then the ifritah Maimouna bent over him And kissed him between the eyes And presently drew back the sheet over his face Which she covered up, and after this She spread her wings and soaring into the air Flew upwards. And after rising high from the circle of the saloon She ceased not winging her way through air And ascending skywards Till she drew near the heaven of this world The lowest of the heavens. And behold, she heard the noisy Flapping of wings, cleaving the welkin And directing herself by the sound She found when she drew near it That the noise came from an ifrit kaldanash So she swooped down upon him Like a sparrow-hawk. And when he was aware of her And knew her to be Maimouna, The daughter of the king of the jean He feared her, and his side muscles quivered And he implored her for barrens Saying, I conjure thee By the most great and august name And by the most nimble talisman Graven upon the seal ring of Solomon Or me not. When she heard these words her heart inclined To him, and she said, Verily thou conjurist me, O accursed, With a mighty conjuration. Nevertheless, I will not let thee go Till thou tell me whence thou comest At this hour. He replied, O princess, Know that I come from the uttermost end Of China land, and from among the islands And I will tell thee of a wonderful thing I have seen this night. If thou kind my words true And write me a patent unto thy hand And with thy sign manual that I am Thy freedman, so none of the jean hosts, Whether of the upper who fly Or of the lower who walk the earth Or of those who dive beneath the waters, Do me let or hindrance. Rejoined Maimouna, And what is it that thou hast seen This night, O liar, O accursed? Tell me without leasing And think not to escape from my hand With falses, for I swear to thee By the letters waven upon the bezel And David's son, on both of whom Be peace, except thy speech be true I will pluck out thy feathers With my own hand, and strip Off thy skin, and break thy bones. Quote ye for Denash, son Of Shamhurish the flyer, I accept, O my lady, these conditions And Sharazad perceive the dawn Of day, and cease to say Her permitted say. She said, it hath Reached me, O auspicious king, That Denash spoke thus to Maimouna, I accept, O my lady, these conditions. Then he resumed, No, O my mistress, that I come Tonight from the islands of the inland sea In the parts of China, which are The realms of King Gaiour, Lord of the islands and the seas And the seven palaces. There I saw a daughter of his, Then whom Allah hath made None fairer in her time. I cannot picture her to thee, For my tongue would fail to describe her With her dew of praise, Not of her charms, by way of approach. Now her hair is like the nights Of disunion and separation, And her face like the days of union And delectation. And right well hath the poet said When picturing her, she'd spread The locks from her head one night, Showing fourfold nights into one Night run, and she turned her visage Towards the moon, and two moons Showed at moment one. She hath a nose like the edge Of the burnished blade, and cheeks And anemones blubbed red. Her lips as coral and carnelian Shine, and the water of her mouth Is sweeter than old wine. Its taste would quench hell's fiery pain, Her tongue is moved by wit Of high degree, and ready repartee. Her breast is a seduction To all that see it. Glory be to him who fashioned it, And finished it. And joined there too are two Upper arms smooth and rounded. Even a seth of her, the poet Switched it her bangles not contain. She would run from out her sleeves In silver rain. She hath breasts like two globes of ivory From whose brightness the moons borrow light. And a stomach with little waves As it were a figured cloth Of the finest Egyptian linen Made by the cops, with creases Like folded scrolls, ending In a waist slender past all power Of imagination, based upon Back parts like a hillock of blown sand That forced her to sit when She would fief stand and awaken her When she feign would sleep Even a seth of her and describe with her The poet. She hath those hips conjoined By thread of waist, hips that Or me and her too tyrannize My thoughts their days when ere I think of them, and weigh her down When ere she would uprise. And those back parts are up born By thighs smooth and round And by a calf like a column of pearl And all this reposeth upon Two feet, narrow, slender And pointed like spear-blades The handiwork of the protector and requiter I wonder how of their littleness They can sustain what is above them But I cut short my praises of her charms Fearing lest I be tedious. And Charizard perceived the dawn of day And ceased saying her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and seventy ninth night She said it hath reached me, O auspicious king, That the ifrit denash bin shamourish Said to the ifrit amaymuna Of a truth I cut short my praises Fearing lest I be tedious. Now when maymuna heard the description Of that princess and her beauty and loveliness She stood silent in astonishment. Whereupon denash resumed The father of this fair maiden is a mighty king A fierce knight, immersed night and day In fray and fight, for whom death hath no fright And the escape of his foe no dread. For that he is a tyrant masterful And a conqueror irresistible Lord of troops and armies and continents And islands and cities and villages And his name is King Gaiur, Lord of the islands And of the seas and of the seven palaces. Now he loveth his daughter, the young maiden Whom I have described to thee, with dearest love And for affection of her he hath heaped together The treasures of all the kings and built her Therewith seven palaces, each of a different fashion The first of crystal, the second of marble The third of china steel, the fourth Of precious stones and gems of price The fifth of porcelain and many huge onyxes And ring bezels, the sixth of silver And the seventh of gold. And he hath filled the seven palaces With all sorts of sumptuous furniture Rich silken carpets and hangings And vessels of gold and silver And all manner of gear that kings require And hath bitten his daughter to abide In each by turns for a certain season of the year For her name is the Princess Badour. Now when her beauty became known For her name and fame were brooded Among the neighboring countries All the kings sent to her father To demand her of him in marriage And he consulted her on the matter. But she disliked the very word wedlock With a manner of abhorrence and said, Oh my father, I have no mind to marry. No, not at all. For I am a sovereign lady And a queen's suzerain ruling over men And I have no desire for a man Who shall rule over me. And the more suits she refused Increased and all the royalties Of the inner islands of China sent presents And rarities to her father With letters asking her in marriage. So he pressed her again and again With advice on the matter of espousals. But she ever opposed to him refusals Till at last she turned upon him angrily And cried, Oh my father, If thou name matrimony to me once more I will go into my chamber and take a sword And fixing its hilt in the ground Will set its point to my waist. Then will I press upon it Till it come forth from my back And so slay myself. Now when the king heard these her words The light became darkness in his sight And his heart burned for her As with a flame of fire Because he feared less she should kill herself And he was filled with perplexity Concerning her affair and the king's her suitors. So he said to her If thou be determined not to marry And there be no help for it Abstain from going and coming in and out. Then he placed her in a house And shut her up in a chamber Appointing ten old women as duenas To guard her and forbade her To go forth to the seven palaces. Moreover he made it appear That he was incensed against her And sent letters to all the kings Giving them to know that she had been Stricken with madness by the jins And it is now a year since she Had thus been secluded. Then continued the ifrit danash Addressing the ifrit amaymuna And I, Oh my lady, go to her Every night and take my fill Of feeding my sight on her face And I kiss her between the eyes Yet of my love to her I do her no hurt Neither mount her, for that her youth Is fair and her grace surpassing Everyone who seeth her jealous At himself for her. I conjure thee therefore, oh my lady, To go back with me and look on her beauty And loveliness and stature And perfectional proportion. And after if thou wilt Chastise me or enslave me For it is thine to bid and to forbid. So saying the ifrit danash Bowed his head towards the earth And drooped his wings downward But my muna laughed at his words And spat in his face, and answered What is this girl of whom now Pratist but a potterd were with The wipe after making water? Far, far by Allah I cursed I thought thou hadst Some wondrous tale to tell me Or some marvellous news to give me How would it be if thou were to Bearly this night I have seen a young man Whom if thou saw though but in a dream Thou wouldst be palsied with admiration And spittle would flow from my mouth Asked the ifrit And who and what is this youth And she answered, no, o danash That there hath befallen the young man The like of what thou tellest me Befall thy mistress, for his father Presseth him again and again to marry But he refused till at length His sire waxed wroth at being opposed And imprisoned him in the tower Where I dwell, and I came up To night and saw him, said danash O my lady, shoe me this youth That I may see if he be indeed Handsomer than my mistress, the Prince's Badour or not, for I cannot Believe that the like of her liveth In this our age. Rejoined my Mouna thou liest or cursed O most ill omen'd of marids And vilest of satans, sure I am that the like of my beloved Is not in this world, and Charizard perceived the dawn of day And ceased to say her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and eightieth night She said, it hath reached me, o auspicious king, That the ifritam maimuna Spake thus to the ifrit danash Sure am I that the like Of my beloved is not in this world Are thou mad to fellow Thy beloved with my beloved? He said, Allah O my lady, shoe me this youth That I may see if he be indeed Handsomer than my mistress That I may see if he be indeed Handsomer than my mistress He said, Allah upon thee O my lady, go back with me And look upon my mistress And after I will with thee And look upon thy beloved She answered, it must Needs be so, o accursed For thou art a navish devil But I will not go with thee Nor shall thou come with me Save upon condition of a wager Which is this. If the lover Thou lovest, and of whom Thou boastest so bravely Prove handsomer than mine Whom I mentioned, and whom I love, and of whom I boast, the bet shall Be thine against me But if my beloved prove The handsomer, the bet shall Be mine against thee Quoth danash, the ifrit I accept this thine wager And am satisfied thereat So come with me to the islands Quoth maimuna No, for the abode Of my beloved is nearer Than the abode of thine Here it is under us So come down with me to see My beloved, and after We will go look upon thy mistress I hear and I obey Said danash So they descended to earth And alighted in the saloon Which the tower contained Then maimuna station Danash beside the bed And, putting out her hand, drew back The silk and cavalet from Kamar al-Saman's face When it glittered and glistened And shimmered and shone like the Rising sun. She gazed At him for a moment, then Turning sharply round upon danash Said, look overcursed And be not the basest of madmen I am a maid, yet My heart he hath waylaid So danash looked at the prince And long continued gazing Fastly on him, then Shaking his head, said to Maimuna, By Allah O my lady, thou art Excusable But there is yet another thing To be considered, and this Is that the estate Female defrith from the male By Allah's might This thy beloved is the Likeest of all created things To my mistress in beauty And loveliness and grace and Perfection. And it is as though They were both cast alike In the mold of seamly head. Now, when Maimuna Heard these words, the light Became darkness in her sight And she dealt him with her wing So fierce a buffet on the head As well I made an end of him. Then quothed she to him. I conjured thee By the light of his glorious Countenance. Go at once O accursed, and bring Hither thy mistress whom thou Lovest so fondly and foolishly And return in haste That we may lay the twain together And look on them both As they lie asleep side by side So shall it appear to us Which be the goodlier And more beautiful of the two Except thou obey me This very moment, O accursed I will dart my sparks At thee with my fire and consume thee Yeah, in pieces I will rend thee And into the deserts cast thee That to stay at home and wafer An example thou be. Quoth Danish O my lady, I will Do thy behests, for I know For sure that my mistress Is the fairer and the sweeter. So saying the ifrit flew Away, and Maimuna flew With him to guard him. They were absent a while, and Presently returned bearing the young Lady, who's clad in a shift of fine Venetian silk, with a double edging Of gold and purple, with a most Exquisite of embroidery, having These couplets worked upon the ends Of the sleeves. Three matters hinder her From visiting us in fear Of hateful slandering Envier and his hired Spies, the shining Light of brow, the trinket's Tinkling voice, and scent Of essences that tell Whenever she tries, Given that she hide her Brow with edge of sleeve And leave. At home her trinketry, how shall Her scent disguise? And Danish and Maimuna Stinted not bearing that young Lady till they had carried her Into the saloon, and had laid Her beside the youth, Kamar al-Saman. And Charasad perceived the dawn Of day, and ceased Saying her permitted say. When it was the 181st Night, she said, It hath reached me, auspicious king, That the Ifritanash And the Ifrata Maimuna Stinted not bearing Princess Boodur till they descended, And laid her on the couch Beside Kamar al-Saman. Then they uncovered both Their faces, and they were The likeest of all folk, Each to other, as they Were twins, or an only Brother and sister, and indeed They were a seduction to the Pious, even a set Of them the poet al-Mubin. O heart, be not Thy love confined to one, Lest thou by doting Or disdain be undone. Love all the fair And thou shalt find with them If this be lost to thee That shall be one. And quoth another. Mine eyes beheld Laying on the ground, both had I loved, if on these Ion they lay. So Dhanash and Maimuna Gaste on them a while, and He said, By Allah O my lady, it is Good. My mistress Is assuredly the fairer. She replied, Not so. My beloved is the fairer. Woe to thee, O Dhanash! Art blind of eye and heart That lean from fat, thou Not depart? Will thou hide the truth? Does thou not see his beauty And loveliness and fine Stature and symmetry? Out on thee hear what I propose To say in praise of my beloved, And if thou be a lover true To her, thou dost love. Do thou the like for her, Thou lovest? Then she kissed Kamar al-Saman Again and again between the eyes And improvised this old. How is this? Why should the blamer abuse Thee in his pride? What shall console my heart For thee that art but slender bow? A nature-cold eye Thou hast that which shith Far and wide, from pure Platonic love of it Deliverance non-itral. Those glances fell as Plundering turp to heart Such havoc deal, as never Havocked skimitar And made keenest at the curl. On me thou layest Load of love, the heaviest While I feel So feeble grown that under Weight of chemiset I swerve. My love for thee as what is Wellest habit and my loa Is nature to all others Falses all the love I tender. Now where my heart But like to shine, I never Would say no. Only my wasted form is like Thy wastes of gracious slender. Out on him Who in beauty's robe for moon Like charms hath fame And who is claimed by mouth Of men as marvel Of his tribe. Of man what manner may he be Ask they who flight And blame, for whom Thy heart is so distressed I only cry describe. O stone and tempered Heart of him Learn of his yielding grace And bending form to show Me grace and yielding To consent. O my prince beautiful Thou hast an overseer in Place, who ergith Me and eek a groom Whose wrong cloth near Relent. Indeed he life who hath Said that all of loveliness Was pent in Joseph In thy charms there's many And many a joe. The genie'd read me When I stand and face to face Address, but meeting thee My fluttering heart Its shame and terror show. I take a version semblance And I turn from thee in fright But more a version I assume more love From me dost claim. That hair of jetty black That brow ever-raying radiant light Those iron were in white Jossels black That dearly dainty frame. When Danish heard the posy Which Maimuna spake In praise of her beloved He joy'd with exceeding joy And marvel'd with excessive wonderment And Charasad perceived the dawn of day And ceased to say her permitted say. When it was the One hundred and eighty-second night She said, it hath reached me O auspicious king, that when the Ifritanash heard the posy Which Maimuna spake In praise of her beloved He shook for exceeding joy and said, Thou hast celebrated thy beloved in song And thou hast indeed unwell In praise of him whom thou lovest. And there is no help for it But that I also in my turn Do my best to inflame my mistress And recite somewhat in her honour. Then the Ifrit went up to the Lady Buddha And kissing her between the eyes Looked at Maimuna and at his beloved princess And recited the following verses Albeit he had no skill in posy. Love for my fair They chide in angry way Unjust for ignorance Yea, unjustest they Ah, lavish favours on the love mad whom Taste of thy wrath and parting woe shall slay. In sooth for love I'm wet with railing tears That rail mine eyelids Blood thou mightest say. No marvel what I bear For love dismarvel That any know my me While thou art away Unlawful were our union did I doubt Thy love or heart inclined To other me. And eat these words I feed eyes on their stead By the valley side And I'm slain and my slaver aside hath tried. Grief wine have I drunken And down my cheeks Downstairs to the song of the camel guide. For union blessing I strive though sure In Buddha and Swad all my bliss shall bide. What I not which of three Gave me most to plain So hear them numbered ere thou decide. Though swatters her eye That lances her figure Or ring-mailed locks Which her forehead hide. Quoth she, and I ask of her What so waits? Or abide in towns Or in desert ride? To me in thy heart I dwell Look there. Quoth I, where's my heart Aware, aware? When Maimuna heard these lines From the ifrit she said, Thou hast done well, O Danish, But say thou which of the two Is the handsomer. And he answered, My Mr. Spudder is handsomer Than thy beloved. Cried Maimuna, Thou lyest, O accursed, Nay, my beloved is more beautiful Than thine. But Danish persisted, Mine is the fairer. And they cease not to wrangle And challenge each other's words Till Maimuna cried out at Danish And would have laid violent Hands on him. But he humbled himself to her And, softening his speech, Said, Let not the truth Be a grief to thee, And cease with this talk. For all we say is to Testify in favor of our lovers. Rather, let each of us Withdraw the claim and seek One who shall judge fairly between us, Which of the two be fairer, And by his sentence we will abide. I agree to this, answered she, And smote the earth with her foot, Whereupon there came out of it An ifrit blind of an eye, Hum-packed and scurvy skin, With eye-orbit slit up And down his face. On his head were seven horns And four locks of hair fell to his heels. His hands were pitchfork-like And his legs mast-like And he had nails as the claws of a lion And feet as the hoofs of the wild ass. When that ifrit rose out of the earth And sighted Maimuna, He kissed the ground before her And, standing with his hands clasped Behind him, said, What is thy will, o my mistress, O daughter of my king? She replied, O Cascash, I would have thee judge between me What is a cursed Danish? And she made known to him The matter from first to last Whereupon the ifrit Cascash Looked at the face of the youth And then at the face of the girl And saw them lying asleep, Embraced, each with an arm Under the other's neck, Alike in beauty and loveliness And equaling grace and goodliness. The marigh gazed long upon them, Marvelling at their seemly head, After carefully observing the twain, He turned to Maimuna and Danish And receded these couplets. Go visit her thou lovest And regard not the words Detractors utter envious chals Can never favour love or shore The merciful, Never made a thing more fair To look upon than two fond lovers In each other's arms. Speaking their passion In a mute embrace When heart has turned to heart The fools would part them Strike idly on cold steel So when thou'st found One purely folly shine Except her true heart And live for her alone O thou that blamest The love struck for their love Give over thy talk How canst thou minister To a mind deceased? Then He turned again to Maimuna And Danish and said to them, By Allah, if you will have the truth, I tell you fairly the twain be Equal in beauty and loveliness And perfect grace and goodliness, Nor can I make any difference Between them on account Of their being man and woman. But I have another thought, Which is that we wake each Of them in turn, Without the knowledge of the other, And whichever is the more enamured Shall be held inferior in seemly-head And comeliness. Quoth Maimuna, right is this wrecking And quoth Danish, I consent to this. Then Danish changed himself To the form of a flea And bit Kamar al-Saman, Whereupon he started from sleep In a fright. And Sharassad perceived the dawn Of day and ceased to say Her permitted say. When it was the one hundred and eighty-third night, She said, It has reached me, o auspicious king, That Danish changed himself To the form of a flea And bit Kamar al-Saman, Who started from sleep in a fright, And rubbed the bitten part, His neck, and scratched it hard Because of the smart. Then, turning sideways, He found lying by him something Whose breath was sweeter than musk, And whose skin was softer than cream. Here at marveled he with great marvel, And he sat up and looked at what lay beside him, When he saw it to be a young lady Like a junior pearl, Or a shining sun, Or a dome seen from afar On a well-built wall, For she was five feet tall With a shape like the letter Alif, Boosomed high in rosy cheek, Even as sith of her the poet. Four things which never conjoined unless it be, To store my vitals and to shed my blood, Brow white as day and tresses black as night, Cheeks rosy red and lips, Which smiles over flood, And also quoth another, A moon she rises, willow one she waves, Breathe this amber-greed and gazes a gaselle, Me seems that sorrow woes my heart and wings, And when she wendeth haste therein to dwell. And when Kamar al-Saman saw the Lady Buddha, Daughter of King Gyar, And her beauty and comeliness, She was sleeping clad in a shift of Venetian silk, Without her petticoat trousers, And wore on her head a kerchief embroidered with gold And set with stones of prize. Her ears were hung with twin earrings, Which shone like constellations, And round her neck was a collar of union pearls, Of size unique past the competence of any king. When he saw this, his reason was confounded, And natural heat began to stir in him. Allah awoke in him the desire of question, And he said to himself, What so Allah willeth that shall be, And what he willeth not shall never be. So, saying he put out his hand, And turning her over, Loosed the collar of her chimise, Then arose before his sight her bosom, With its breasts like double globes of ivory, Where it is inclination for her redoubled, And he decide her with exceeding hot desire. He would have awakened her, But she would not awake, For Danish had made her sleep heavy. So he shook her and moved her, Saying, Oh my beloved, Awake and look on me, I am Kamar al-Saman. But she awoke not, Neither moved her head, Whereupon he considered her case For a long hour and said to himself, If I guess right, This is the damsel to whom my father Would have married me, And these three years past I have refused her. But in salah, God-willing, as soon as it is dawn, I will say to him, Marry me to her that I may enjoy her, And shall Assad proceed the dawn of day, And cease to say her permitted say.