Zeman heard his voice in the night, her heart was solaced and she
rose and called the chief eunuch, who said to her, "What is thy
will?" Quoth she, "Go and fetch me him who recited verses but
now." "I did not hear him," replied he; "the people are all
asleep." And she said, "Whomsoever thou findest awake, he is the
man." So he went out and sought, but found none awake but the
stoker; for Zoulmekan was still insensible, and, Nuzhet ez Zeman,
going up to the former, said to him, "Art thou he who recited
verses but now, and my lady heard him?" The stoker concluded that
the lady was wroth and was afraid and replied, "By Allah, 'twas
not I!" "Who then was it?" rejoined the eunuch. "Point him out to
me. Thou must know who it was, seeing that thou art awake." The
stoker feared for Zoulmekan and said in himself, "Maybe the
eunuch will do him some hurt." So he answered, "I know not who it
was." "By Allah," said the eunuch, "thou liest, for there is none
awake here but thou! So needs must thou know him." "By Allah,"
replied the stoker, "I tell thee the truth! It must have been
some passer-by who recited the verses and disturbed me and
aroused me, may God requite him!" Quoth the eunuch, "If thou
happen upon him, point him out to me and I will lay hands on him
and bring him to the door of my lady's litter; or do thou take
him with thine own hand." "Go back," said the stoker, "and I will
bring him to thee." So the eunuch went back to his mistress and
said to her, "None knows who it was; it must have been some
passer-by." And she was silent. Meanwhile, Zoulmekan came to
himself and saw that the moon had reached the zenith and felt the
breath of the breeze that goes before the dawn; whereupon his
heart was moved to longing and sadness, and he cleared his throat
and was about to recite verses, when the stoker said to him,
"What wilt thou do?" "I have a mind to repeat somewhat of verse,"
answered Zoulmekan, "that I may allay therewith the fire of my
heart." Quoth the other, "Thou knowest not what befell me, whilst
thou wert aswoon, and how I only escaped death by beguiling the
eunuch." "Tell me what happened," said Zoulrnekan. "Whilst thou
wert aswoon," replied the stoker, "there came up to me but now an
eunuch, with a long staff of almond-tree wood in his hand, who
looked in all the people's faces, as they lay asleep, and finding
none awake but myself, asked me who it was recited the verses. I
told him it was some passer-by; so he went away and God delivered
me from him; else had he killed me. But first he said to me, 'If
thou hear him again, bring him to us.'" When Zoulmekan heard
this, he wept and said, "Who is it would forbid me to recite? I
will surely do so, come what may; for I am near my own country
and care for no one." "Dost thou wish to destroy thyself?" asked
the stoker; and Zoulmekan answered, "I cannot help reciting
verses." "Verily," said the stoker, "I see this will bring about
a parting between us here though I had promised myself not to
leave thee, till I had brought thee to thy native city and
re-united thee with thy mother and father. Thou hast now been
with me a year and a half, and I have never baulked thee or
harmed thee in aught. What ails thee then, that thou must needs
recite, seeing that we are exceeding weary with travel and
watching and all the folk are asleep, for they need sleep to rest
them of their fatigue." But Zoulmekan answered, "I will not be
turned from my purpose." Then grief moved him and he threw off
disguise and began to repeat the following verses:
Halt by the camp and hail the ruined steads by the brake, And
call on her name aloud; mayhap she will answer make.
And if for her absence the night of sadness darken on thee, Light
in its gloom a fire with longings for her sake.
Though the snake of the sand-hills hiss, small matter is it to me
If it sting me, so I the fair with the lips of crimson take.
O Paradise, left perforce of the spirit, but that I hope For ease
in the mansions of bliss, my heart would surely break!
And these also:
Time was when fortune was to us even as a servant is, And in the
loveliest of lands our happy lives did kiss.
Ah, who shall give me back the abode of my belov'd, wherein The
Age's Joy[FN#63] and Place's Light[FN#64] erst dwelt in
peace and bliss?
Then he cried out three times and fell down senseless, and the
stoker rose and covered him. When Nuzhet ez Zeman heard the first
verses, she called to mind her mother and father and brother; and
when she heard the second, mentioning the names of herself and
her brother and their sometime home, she wept and calling the
eunuch, said to him, "Out on thee! But now I heard him who
recited the first time do so again, and that hard by. So, by
Allah, an thou fetch him not to me, I will rouse the Chamberlain
on thee, and he shall beat thee and turn thee away. But take
these hundred dinars and give them to him and do him no hurt, but
bring him to me gently. If he refuse, give him this purse of a
thousand dinars and leave him and return to me and tell me, after
thou hast informed thyself of his place and condition and what
countryman he is. Return quickly and do not linger, and beware
lest thou come back and say, 'I could not find him.'" So the
eunuch went out and fell to examining the people and treading
amongst them, but found none awake, for the folk were all asleep
for weariness, till he came to the stoker and saw him sitting up,
with his head uncovered. So he drew near him and seizing him by
the hand, said to him, "It was thou didst recite the verses!" The
stoker was affrighted and replied, "No, by Allah, O chief of the
people, it was not I!" But the eunuch said, "I will not leave
thee till thou show me who it was; for I fear to return to my
lady without him." Thereupon the stoker feared for Zoulmekan and
wept sore and said to the eunuch, "By Allah, it was not I, nor do
I know who it was. I only heard some passer-by recite verses: so
do not thou commit sin on me, for I am a stranger and come from
Jerusalem, and Abraham the Friend of God be with thee!" "Come
thou with me," rejoined the eunuch, "and tell my lady this with
thine own mouth, for I see none awake but thee." Quoth the
stoker, "Hast thou not seen me sitting here and dost thou not
know my station? Thou knowest none can stir from his place,
except the guards seize him. So go thou to thy mistress and if
thou hear any one reciting again, whether it be near or far, it
will be I or some one whom I shall know, and thou shalt not know
of him but by me." Then he kissed the eunuch's head and spoke him
fair, till he went away; but he made a circuit and returning
secretly, came and hid himself behind the stoker, fearing to go
back to his mistress empty-handed. As soon as he was gone, the
stoker aroused Zoulmekan and said to him, "Awake and sit up, that
I may tell thee what has happened." So Zoulmekan sat up, and the
stoker told him what had passed, and he answered, "Let me alone;
I will take no heed of this and I care for none, for I am near my
own country." Quoth the stoker, "Why wilt thou obey thine own
inclinations and the promptings of the devil? If thou fearest no
one, I fear for thee and myself; so God on thee, recite no more
verses, till thou come to thine own country! Indeed, I had not
thought thee so self-willed. Dost thou not know that this lady is
the wife of the Chamberlain and is minded to chide thee for
disturbing her. Belike, she is ill or restless for fatigue, and
this is the second time she hath sent the eunuch to look for
thee." However, Zoulmekan paid no heed to him, but cried out a
third time and repeated the following verses:
The carping tribe I needs must flee; Their railing chafes my
misery.
They blame and chide at me nor know They do but fan the flame in
me.
"She is consoled," they say. And I, "Can one consoled for country
be?"
Quoth they, "How beautiful she is!" And I, "How dear-belov'd is
she!"
"How high her rank!" say they; and I, "How base is my humility!"
Now God forfend I leave to love, Deep though I drink of agony!
Nor will I heed the railing race, Who carp at me for loving thee.
Hardly had he made an end of these verses when the eunuch, who
had heard him from his hiding, came up to him; whereupon the
stoker fled and stood afar off, to see what passed between them.
Then said the eunuch to Zoulmekan, "Peace be on thee, O my lord!"
"And on thee be peace," replied Zoulmekan, "and the mercy of God
and His blessing!" "O my lord," continued the eunuch, "this is
the third time I have sought thee this night, for my mistress
bids thee to her." Quoth Zoulmekan, "Whence comes this bitch that
seeks for me? May God curse her and her husband too!" And he
began to revile the eunuch, who could make him no answer, because
his mistress had charged him to do Zoulmekan no violence nor
bring him, save of his free will, and if he would not come, to
give him the thousand dinars. So he began to speak him fair and
say to him, "O my lord, take this (purse) and go with me. We will
do thee no unright nor wrong thee in aught; but we would have
thee bend thy gracious steps with me to my mistress, to speak
with her and return in peace and safety; and thou shalt have a
handsome present." When Zoulmekan heard this, he arose and went
with the eunuch, stepping over the sleeping folk, whilst the
stoker followed them at a distance, saying to himself, "Alas, the
pity of his youth! To-morrow they will hang him. How base it will
be of him, if he say it was I who bade him recite the verses!"
And he drew near to them and stood, watching them, without their
knowledge, till they came to Nuzhet ez Zeman's tent, when the
eunuch went in to her and said, "O my lady, I have brought thee
him whom thou soughtest, and he is a youth, fair of face and
bearing the marks of gentle breeding." When she heard this, her
heart fluttered and she said, "Let him recite some verses, that I
may hear him near at hand, and after ask him his name and
extraction." So the eunuch went out to Zoulmekan and said to him,
"Recite what verses thou knowest, for my lady is here hard by,
listening to thee, and after I will ask thee of thy name and
extraction and condition." "Willingly," replied he; "but as for
my name, it is blotted out and my trace among men is passed away
and my body wasted. I have a story, the beginning of which is not
known nor can the end of it be described, and behold, I am even
as one who hath exceeded in drinking wine, till he hath lost the
mastery of himself and is afflicted with distempers and wanders
from his right mind, being perplexed about his case and drowned
in the sea of melancholy." When Nuzhet ez Zeman heard this, she
broke out into loud weeping and sobbing and said to the eunuch,
"Ask him if he have lost a beloved one, such as his father or
mother." The eunuch did as she bade him, and Zoulmekan replied,
"Yes, I have lost all whom I loved: but the dearest of all to me
was my sister, from whom Fate hath parted me." When Nuzhet ez
Zeman heard this, she exclaimed, "May God the Most High reunite
him with those he loves!" Then said she to the eunuch, "Tell him
to let me hear somewhat on the subject of his separation from his
people and his country." The eunuch did so, and Zoulmekan sighed
heavily and repeated the following verses:
Ah, would that I knew they were ware Of the worth of the heart
they have won!
Would I knew through what passes they fare, From what quarter
they look on the sun! Are they living, I wonder, or dead?
Can it be that their life's race is run?
Ah, the lover is ever distraught And his life for misgivings
undone!
And also these:
I vow, if e'er the place shall bless my longing sight, Wherein my
sister dwells, the age's dear delight,[FN#65]
I'll take my fill of life and all the sweets of peace, Midst
trees and flowing streams: and maidens fair and bright
The lute's enchanting tones shall soothe me to repose, What while
I quaff full cups of wine like living light
And honeyed dews of love suck from the deep-red lips Of lovelings
sleepy-eyed, with tresses black as night.
When he had finished, Nuzhet ez Zeman lifted up a corner of the
curtain of the litter and looked at him. As soon as her eyes fell
on him, she knew him for certain and cried out, "O my brother! O
Zoulmekan!" He looked at her and knew her and cried out, "O my
sister! O Nuzhet ez Zeman!" Then she threw herself upon him, and
he received her in his arms, and they both fell down in a swoon.
When the eunuch saw this, he wondered and throwing over them
somewhat to cover them, waited till they should recover. After
awhile, they came to themselves, and Nuzhet ez Zeman rejoiced
exceedingly. Grief and anxiety left her and joys flocked upon her
and she repeated the following verses:
Fate swore 'twould never cease to plague my life and make me rue.
Thou hast not kept thine oath, O Fate; so look thou penance
do.
Gladness is come and my belov'd is here to succour me; So rise
unto the summoner of joys, and quickly too.
I had no faith in Paradise of olden time, until I won the nectar
of its streams from lips of damask hue.
When Zoulmekan heard this, he pressed his sister to his breast,
whilst, for the excess of his joy, the tears streamed from his
eyes and he repeated the following verses:
Long time have I bewailed the severance of our loves, With tears
that from my lids streamed down like burning rain,
And vowed that, if the days should reunite us two, My lips should
never speak of severance again.
Joy hath o'erwhelmed me so, that, for the very stress Of that
which gladdens me, to weeping I am fain.
Tears are become to you a habit, O my eyes, So that ye weep alike
for gladness and for pain.
They sat awhile at the door of the litter, conversing, till she
said to him, "Come with me into the litter and tell me all that
has befallen thee, and I will do the like." So they entered and
Zoulmekan said, "Do thou begin." Accordingly, she told him all
that had happened to her since their separation and said,
"Praised be God who hath vouchsafed thee to me and ordained that,
even as we left our father together, so we shall return to him
together! Now tell me how it has fared with thee since I left
thee." So he told her all that had befallen him and how God had
sent the stoker to him, and how he had journeyed with him and
spent his money on him and tended him night and day. She praised
the stoker for this, and Zoulmekan added, "Indeed, O my sister,
the man hath dealt with me in such benevolent wise as would not a
lover with his mistress or a father with his son, for that he
fasted and gave me to eat, and went afoot, whilst he made me
ride; and I owe my life to him." "God willing," said she, "we
will requite him for all this, according to our power." Then she
called the eunuch, who came and kissed Zoulmekan's hand, and she
said, "Take thy reward for glad tidings, O face of good omen! It
was thy hand reunited me with my brother; so the purse I gave
thee and its contents are thine. But now go to thy master and
bring him quickly to me." The eunuch rejoiced and going to the
Chamberlain, summoned him to his mistress. Accordingly, he came
in to his wife and finding Zoulmekan with her, asked who he was.
So she told him all that had befallen them, first and last, and
added, "Know, O Chamberlain, that thou hast gotten no slave-girl
to wife: but the daughter of King Omar ben Ennuman: for I am
Nuzhet ez Zeman, and this is my brother Zoulmekan." When the
Chamberlain heard her story, he knew it for the manifest truth
and was certified that he was become King Omar ben Ennuman's
son-in-law and said to himself, "I shall surely be made governor
of some province." Then he went up to Zoulmekan and gave him joy
of his safety and re-union with his sister, and bade his servants
forthwith make him ready a tent and one of the best of his own
horses to ride. Then said Nuzhet ez Zeman, "We are now near my
country and I would fain be alone with my brother, that we may
enjoy one another's company and take our fill of each other,
before we reach Baghdad; for we have been long parted." "Be it as
thou wilt," replied the Chamberlain and going forth, sent them
wax candles and various kinds of sweetmeats, together with three
costly suits of clothes for Zoulmekan. Then he returned to the
litter, and Nuzhet ez Zeman said to him, "Bid the eunuch find the
stoker and give him a horse to ride and provide him a tray of
food morning and evening, and let him be forbidden to leave us."
The Chamberlain called the eunuch and charged him accordingly; so
he took his pages with him and went out in search of the stoker,
whom he found at the tail of the caravan, saddling his ass and
preparing for flight. The tears were running down his cheeks, out
of fear for himself and grief for his separation from Zoulmekan,
and he was saying to himself, "Indeed, I warned him for the love
of God, but he would not listen to me. O that I knew what is
become of him!" Before he had done speaking, the eunuch came up
and stood behind him, whilst the pages surrounded him. The stoker
turned and seeing the eunuch and the pages round him, changed
colour and trembled in every nerve for affright, exclaiming,
"Verily, he knows not the value of the good offices I have done
him! I believe he has denounced me to the eunuch and made me an
accomplice in his offence." Then the eunuch cried out at him,
saying, "Who was it recited the verses? Liar that thou art, why
didst thou tell me that thou knewest not who it was, when it was
thy companion? But now I will not leave thee till we come to
Baghdad, and what betides thy comrade shall betide thee." Quoth
the stoker, "Verily, what I feared has fallen on me." And he
repeated the following verse:
'Tis e'en as I feared it would be: We are God's and to Him return
we.