I unfolded the scroll, and there fell from it another. I opened
it and found these words written therein: "Know, O my cousin,
that I acquit thee of my blood and I beseech God to make accord
between thee and her whom thou lovest: but if aught befall thee
through the daughter of Delileh the crafty, return thou not to
her neither resort to any other woman and bear thine affliction
patiently, for were not the ordained term of thy life a long one,
thou hadst perished long ago: but praised be God, who hath
appointed my last day before thine! My peace be upon thee;
preserve the cloth with the gazelles figured thereon and let it
not leave thee, for it used to keep me company, whenas thou wert
absent from me; but I conjure thee, by Allah, if thou chance to
fall in with her who wrought these gazelles and it be in thy
power to foregather with her, hold aloof from her and do not let
her approach thee nor marry her; and if thou happen not on her
and find no way to her, look thou company not with any other of
her sex. Know that she who wrought these gazelles is the daughter
of the King of the Camphor Islands and every year she works a
like cloth and despatches it to far countries, that her report
and the beauty of her broidery, which none in the world can
match, may be bruited abroad, As for thy beloved, the daughter of
Delileh, this cloth came to her hand, and she used to ensnare
folk with it, showing it to them and saying, 'I have a sister who
wrought this.' But she lied in this saying, may God bring her to
shame! This, then, is my parting counsel to thee, and I have not
charged thee thus, but because I know that, after my death, the
world will be straitened on thee and belike, by reason of this,
thou wilt leave thy native land and wander in foreign countries,
and hearing of her who wrought these figures, be minded to
foregather with her. Then wilt thou remember me and it shall not
avail thee nor wilt thou know my value till after my death."
When I had read the scroll and understood what was written
therein, I fell again to weeping, and my mother wept because I
did; and I ceased not to gaze upon it and weep till nightfall. I
abode thus a whole year, at the end of which time the merchants,
with whom I am in this caravan, prepared to set out from my
native town, and my mother counselled me to equip myself and
journey with them, so haply I might find forgetfulness and my
sorrow cease from me, saying, "Take comfort and put away from
thee this mourning and travel for a year or two or three, till
the caravan returns, when peradventure thy breast may be dilated
and thy heart lightened." She ceased not to persuade me thus,
till I provided myself with merchandise and set out with the
caravan. But all the time of my journey, my tears have never
ceased flowing; and at every station where we halt, I open this
piece of linen and look on these gazelles and call to mind my
cousin Azizeh and weep for her as thou hast seen, for indeed she
loved me very dearly and died, oppressed and rejected of me; I
did her nought but ill and she did me nought but good. When these
merchants return from their journey, I shall return with them, by
which time I shall have been a whole year absent; yet is my
sorrow greater than ever and my grief and affliction were but
increased by my visit to the Islands of Camphor and the Castle of
Crystal. The islands in question are seven in number and are
ruled by a king, Shehriman by name, who hath a daughter called
Dunya; and I was told that it was she who wrought these gazelles
and that this thou seest was of her broidery. When I knew this,
yearning redoubled on me and I became a prey to consuming languor
and drowned in the sea of melancholy thought; and I wept over
myself, for that I was become even as a woman, without manly gear
like other men, and that there was no recourse for me. From the
day of my departure from the Camphor Islands, I have been
tearful-eyed and sorrowful-hearted, and I know not whether it
will be given me to return to my native land and die by my mother
or not, for I am weary of the world.'
When the young merchant had made an end of telling his story, he
wept and groaned and complained and gazed upon the figures
wrought on the piece of linen, whilst the tears streamed down his
cheeks and he repeated the following verses:
'Needs must thy sorrow have an end,' quoth many an one 'and cease
And I, Needs must your chiding end and let me be at peace.'
'After awhile,' say they; and I, 'Who will ensure me life, O
fools, until the hands of grief their grip of me release?'
And also these:
God knows that, since my severance from thee, full sore I've
wept, So sore that needs my eyes must run for very tears in
debt!
'Have patience,' quoth my censurers, 'and thou shalt win them
yet.' And I, 'O thou that blamest me, whence should I
patience get?'
Then said he, 'This, O prince, is my story: hast thou ever heard
a stranger one?' Taj el Mulouk marvelled greatly at the young
merchant's tale and said to him, 'By Allah, thou hast suffered
that which never befell any but thyself, but thou hast life
appointed to thee, which thou must needs fulfil; and now I would
fain have thee tell me how thou sawest the lady who wrought these
gazelles.' 'O my lord,' answered Aziz, 'I got me access to her by
a stratagem, and it was this. When I entered her city with the
caravan, I went forth and wandered about the gardens [till I came
to one walled in and] abounding in trees, whose keeper was a
venerable old man of advanced age. I asked him to whom the garden
belonged, and he replied, "To the lady Dunya, the king's
daughter. We are now beneath her palace," added he; "and when she
is minded to divert herself, she opens the private door and walks
in the garden and breathes the fragrance of the flowers." So I
said to him, "Favour me by allowing me to sit in the garden till
she comes; haply I may be fortunate enough to catch a sight of
her as she passes." "There can be no harm in that," answered he.
So I gave him money and said to him, "Buy us something to eat."
He took the money joyfully and opening the door, admitted me into
the garden and carried me to a pleasant spot, where he bade me
sit down and await his return. Then he brought me fruit and
leaving me, returned after awhile with a roasted lamb, of which
we ate till we had enough, my heart yearning the while for a
sight of the princess. Presently, as we sat, the postern opened
and the keeper said to me, "Rise and hide thyself." I did so; and
behold a black eunuch put out his head through the wicket and
said, "O elder, is there any one with thee?" "No," answered he;
and the eunuch said, "Shut the garden gate." So the keeper shut
the gate, and the lady Dunya came in by the private door. When I
saw her, methought the moon had risen above the horizon and was
shining; so I looked at her a long while and longed for her, as a
man athirst longs for water. After a time she withdrew and shut
the door; whereupon I left the garden and sought my lodging,
knowing that I could not win to her and that I was no mate for
her, more by token that I was become like unto a woman, having no
manly gear, and she was a king's daughter and I but a merchant;
so how could I have access to the like of her or to any other
woman? Accordingly, when my companions made ready for departure,
I too made ready and set out with them, and we journeyed till we
arrived at this place, where we met with thee. This then is my
story, and peace be on thee!'
When Taj el Mulouk heard the young merchant's account of the
princess Dunya and her beauty, fires raged in his bosom and his
heart and thought were occupied with love for her; passion and
longing were sore upon him and he knew not what to do. Then he
mounted his horse and taking Aziz with him, returned to his
father's capital, where he assigned the merchant a house and
supplied him with all that he needed in the way of meat and drink
and clothing. Then he left him and returned to his palace, with
the tears running down his cheeks, for report [whiles] stands in
stead of sight and very knowledge. He abode thus till his father
came in to him and finding him pale-faced, lean of body and
tearful eyed, knew that some chagrin had betided him and said to
him, 'O my son, acquaint me with thy case and tell me what hath
befallen thee, that thy colour is changed and thy body wasted.'
So he told him all that had passed and how he had heard from
Aziz of the princess Dunya and had fallen in love with her on
hearsay, without having set eyes on her. 'O my son,' said the
King, 'she is the daughter of a king whose country is far
distant from ours: so put away this thought from thee and go
into thy mother's palace. There are five hundred damsels like
moons, and whichsoever of them pleaseth thee, take her; or else
we will seek thee in marriage some one of the kings' daughters,
fairer than the lady Dunya.' 'O my father,' answered Taj el
Mulouk, 'I desire none other, for she it is who wrought the
gazelles that I saw, and I must have her; else I will flee into
the deserts and waste places and slay myself for her sake.' Then
said his father, 'O my son, have patience with me, till I send
to her father and demand her hand in marriage, as I did with thy
mother. It may be that God will bring thee to thy desire; and if
her father will not consent, I will shake his kingdom under him
with an army, whose van shall be upon him, whilst the rear is yet
with me.' Then he sent for Aziz and said to him, 'O my son, dost
thou know the way to the Camphor Islands?' 'Yes,' answered he;
and the King said, 'It is my wish that thou accompany my Vizier
thither.' 'I hear and obey, O King of the age,' replied Aziz;
whereupon the King summoned his Vizier and said to him, 'Devise
me some plan, whereby my son's affair may be rightly managed, and
go to the King of the Camphor Islands and demand his daughter in
marriage for Tej el Mulouk.' 'I hear and obey,' answered the
Vizier. Then Taj el Mulouk returned to his dwelling place and his
longing redoubled and impatience and unease were sore upon him;
and when the night darkened upon him, he wept and sighed and
complained and repeated the following verses:
The shadows darken and my tears flow aye without avail, Whilst in
my heart the fires of love rage on and never fail.
Question the nights of me, and they will testify to thee That I
in all their endless hours do nought but weep and wait.
Wakeful for love-longing and grief, I lie and watch the stars All
night, what while upon my cheeks the tears fall down like
hail.
Lowly and helpless I abide, for such as lovers be Have, as it
were, nor kith nor kin to help them in their bale.
Then he swooned away and did not recover his senses till the
morning, when there came to him one of his father's servants and
standing at his head, summoned him to the King's presence. So he
went with him, and his father seeing that his pallor had
increased, exhorted him to patience and promised him union with
her he loved. Then he equipped Aziz and the Vizier for the
journey and gave them presents for the princess's father; and
they set out and fared on night and day, till they drew near the
Camphor Islands, when the Vizier called a halt on the banks of a
stream and despatched a messenger to acquaint the King of his
arrival. The messenger had not long been gone, when they saw,
advancing towards them, the King's chamberlains and amirs, who
met them at a parasang's distance from the city and escorted them
to the royal presence. They laid before the King the gifts with
which they were charged and enjoyed his hospitality three days.
On the fourth day the Vizier rose and going in to the King, stood
before him and acquainted him with the object of his visit;
whereat he was perplexed and knew not what answer to make him,
for that his daughter was averse from men and did not desire to
marry. So he bowed his head awhile, then raised it and calling
one of his eunuchs, said to him, 'Go to thy mistress, the
princess Dunya, and repeat to her what thou hast heard and tell
her this Vizier's errand.' So the eunuch went out and returning
after a while, said to the King, 'O King of the age, when I went
to the lady Dunya and told her what I had heard, she was
exceeding wroth and made at me with a staff, meaning to break my
head; whereupon I fled from her, and she said to me, 'If my
father force me to marry, him whom I wed I will kill.' Then said
the King to the Vizier and Aziz, 'Salute the King your master and
tell him what ye have heard and that my daughter is averse from
men and hath no mind to marry.' So they returned, without having
accomplished the object of their journey, and fared on till they
rejoined the King and told him what had passed; whereupon he
commanded the chief to summon the troops for war. But the Vizier
said to him, 'O King, do not this, for the King is not at fault,
seeing that, when his daughter learnt our business, she sent to
say that, if her father forced her to marry, she would kill her
husband and herself after him: so the refusal comes from her.'
When the King heard this, he feared for Taj el Mulouk and said,
'If I make war on the King of the Camphor Islands and carry off
his daughter, she will kill herself and it will profit me
nothing.' So he told his son how the case stood, and he said, 'O
my father, I cannot live without her; so I will go to her and
cast about to get me access to her, though I die in the attempt.'
'How wilt thou go to her?' asked his father; and he answered, 'In
the disguise of a merchant.' Then said the King, 'If thou must go
and there is no help for it, take with thee Aziz and the Vizier.'
He agreed to this, and the King took money from his treasuries
and made ready for him merchandise, to the value of a hundred
thousand dinars; and when the night came Taj el Mulouk went to
Aziz's lodging and passed the night there, heart-smitten and
taking no delight in food nor sleep; for melancholy was heavy
upon him and he was agitated with longing for his beloved. So he
besought the Creator to unite him with her and wept and groaned
and complained, repeating the following verses:
Shall union after estrangement betide us, perchance, some day?
Shall I ever make moan of my passion to thee, I wonder, and
say,
'How oft have I called thee to mind, whilst the night in its
trances slept! Thou hast made me waken, whilst all but I in
oblivion lay.
Then he wept sore and Aziz wept with him, for that he remembered
his cousin; and they both ceased not to do thus till the morning,
when Taj el Mulouk rose and went in to his mother in his
travelling dress. She asked him of his case, and he told her what
was to do; so she gave him fifty thousand dinars and bade him
farewell, offering up prayers for his safety and for his union
with his beloved. Then he left her and betaking himself to his
father, asked his leave to depart. The King granted him leave and
presenting him with other fifty thousand dinars, let pitch a tent
for him without the city, in which they abode two days, then set
out on their journey. And Taj el Mulouk delighted in Aziz's
company and said to him, 'O my brother, I can never bear to be
parted from thee.' 'Nor I from thee,' replied Aziz; 'and fain
would I die at thy feet: but, O my brother, my heart is concerned
for my mother.' 'When we have attained our wish,' said the
prince, 'all will be well.' As for the Vizier, he exhorted Taj el
Mulouk to patience, whilst Aziz entertained him with talk and
recited verses to him and diverted him with stories and
anecdotes; and so they fared on day and night for two whole
months, till the way became tedious to the prince and the fires
of passion redoubled on him. So he repeated the following verses:
Long is the road and restlessness and grief redouble aye, Whilst
in my breast the fires of love rage ever night and day
O thou, the goal of all my hopes, sole object of my wish, I swear
by Him, the Most High God, who moulded man from clay,
For love of thee I bear a load of longing and desire, Such as the
mountains of Es Shumm might ne'er withal away!
Indeed, O lady of my world,[FN#140] love slayeth me outright; No
breath of life in me is left, my fainting spright to stay
But for the hope of union with thee, that lures me on, My weary
body had no strength to furnish forth the way.
When he had finished, he wept and Aziz wept with him, from a
lacerated heart, till the Vizier was moved to pity by their
weeping and said to the prince, 'O my lord, take courage and be
of good cheer; all will yet be well.' 'O Vizier,' said Taj el
Mulouk, 'indeed I am weary of the length of the way. Tell me how
far we are distant yet from the city.' 'But a little way,'
replied Aziz. Then they continued their journey, traversing
valleys and plains and hills and stony wastes, till one night, as
Taj el Mulouk was asleep, he dreamt that his beloved was with him
and that he embraced her and pressed her to his bosom; and he
awoke, trembling and delirious with emotion, and repeated the
following verses:
My heart is maddened for love and my tears for ever flow, And
longing is ever upon me and unrelenting woe.
My plaint is, for tears, as the mourning of women bereft of
young, And I moan, when the darkness gathers, as the
turtles, sad and low.
Yet, if the breezes flutter from the land where thou dost dwell,
Their wafts o'er the earth, sun-weaned, a grateful coolness
throw.
Peace be on thee, my beloved, as long as the cushat flies, As
long as the turtles warble, as long as the zephyrs blow!
When he had finished, the Vizier came to him and said, 'Rejoice;
this is a good sign: so comfort thyself and be of good cheer, for
thou shalt surely compass thy desire.' And Aziz also came to him
and exhorted him to patience and applied himself to divert him,
talking with him and telling him stories. So they pressed on,
night and day, other two months, till, one day, at sunrise, there
appeared to them some white thing in the distance and Taj el
Mulouk said to Aziz, 'What is yonder whiteness?' 'O my lord,'
answered he, 'that is the Fortress of Crystal and the city that
thou seekest.' At this the prince rejoiced, and they fared
forward till they drew near the city, to the exceeding joy of Taj
el Mulouk, whose grief and anxiety ceased from him. They entered,
in the guise of merchants, the King's son being habited as a
merchant of importance, and repaired to a great khan, known as
the Merchants' Lodging. Quoth Taj el Mulouk to Aziz, 'Is this the
resort of the merchants?' 'Yes,' replied he; 'it is the khan in
which I lodged when I was here before.' So they alighted there
and making their beasts kneel down, unloaded them and laid up
their goods in the warehouses. They abode four days, resting; at
the end of which time, the Vizier proposed that they should hire
a large house. To this they assented and hired a spacious house,
fitted up for festivities, where they took up their abode, and
the Vizier and Aziz studied to devise some plan of conduct
for Taj el Mulouk, whilst the latter remained in a state of
perplexity, knowing not what to do. The Vizier could think
of nothing but that he should set up as a merchant in the
stuff-market; so he turned to the prince and Aziz and said to
them, 'If we tarry thus, we shall not compass our desire nor
attain our aim; but I have bethought me of somewhat, in which, if
it please God, we shall find our advantage.' 'Do what seemeth
good to thee,' replied Taj el Mulouk; 'indeed there is a blessing
on the aged, more by token that thou art versed in the conduct
of affairs: so tell me what is in thy mind.' 'It is my counsel,'
rejoined the Vizier, 'that we hire thee a shop in the stuff-bazaar,
where thou mayst sit to sell and buy. Every one, great
and small, hath need of silken and other stuffs; so if thou be
patient and abide in thy shop, thine affairs will prosper, if
it please God, especially as thou art comely of aspect. Moreover,
I would have thee make Aziz thy factor and set him within the
shop, to hand thee the pieces of stuffs and silks.' When Taj el
Mulouk heard this, he said, 'This is a good counsel.' So he took
out a handsome suit of merchant's clothes, and putting it on, set
out for the bazaar, followed by his servants, to one of whom he
had given a thousand dinars, wherewith to fit up the shop. When
they came to the stuff-market and the merchants saw Taj el
Mulouk's beauty and grace, they were confounded and some said,
'Sure Rizwan hath opened the gates of Paradise and left them
unguarded, so that this passing lovely youth hath come out.' And
others, 'Belike this is one of the angels.' They asked for the
shop of the overseer of the market, and the merchants directed
them to it. So they repaired thither and saluted him, and he and
those who were with him rose to them and seated them and made
much of them because of the Vizier, whom they saw to be a man of
age and reverend aspect; and seeing Aziz and Taj el Mulouk in his
company, they said to one another, 'Doubtless this old man is
the father of these two youths.' Then said the Vizier, 'Which of
you is the overseer of the market?' 'This is he,' answered they;
whereupon he came forward and the Vizier, observing him, saw him
to be an old man of grave and dignified carriage, with slaves and
servants, white and black. He greeted them in the friendliest
manner and was lavish in his attentions to them: then he made
them sit by his side and said to them, 'Have you any business
which we may have the pleasure of transacting?' 'Yes,' answered
the Vizier. 'I am an old man, stricken in years, and have with
me these two youths, with whom I have travelled through many
towns and countries, tarrying a whole year in every city (of
importance) on our way, that they might take their pleasure in
viewing it and come to know its people. Now I have chosen to make
a stay in this your town; so I would fain have thee allot me a
handsome shop in the best situation, wherein I may establish
them, that they may traffic and learn to buy and sell and give
and take, whilst they divert themselves with the sight of the
place and acquire the uses of its people.' 'Good,' said the
overseer, and looking at the two youths, rejoiced in them and
conceived a great affection for them. Now he was a great lover of
bewitching glances, preferring the commerce of boys to that of
girls and inclining to their love. So he said in himself, 'These
be fine purchase; glory to Him who created and fashioned them out
of vile water!'[FN#141] and rising, stood before them like a
servant, to do them honour. Then he went out and made ready for
them a shop in the midst of the market, than which there was no
larger nor better in the bazaar, for it was spacious and
handsomely decorated and fitted with shelves of ebony and ivory;
after which he delivered the keys to the Vizier, who was dressed
as an old merchant, saying, 'Take them, O my lord, and may God
make it a blessed abiding-place to thy sons!' The Vizier took the
keys, and they returned to the khan and caused their servants to
transport to the shop all their goods and stuffs and valuables,
of which they had great plenty, worth treasures of money. Next
morning, the Vizier carried the two young men to the bath, where
they washed and put on rich clothes and perfumed themselves to
the utmost therein. Now each of them was passing fair to look
upon, and the bath enhanced their charms to the utmost, even as
says the poet:
Good luck to him who in the bath doth serve him as his squire,
Handling a body 'gotten sure 'twixt water and the fire!
With skilful hands he showeth forth the marvels of his craft, In
that he gathers very musk[FN#142] from what is like
camphire.
When the overseer heard that they had gone to the bath, he sat
down to await them, and presently they came up to him, like two
gazelles, with red cheeks and black eyes and shining faces, as
they were two lustrous moons or two fruit-laden saplings. When he
saw them, he rose and said to them, 'May your bath profit you
ever!' Whereupon Taj el Mulouk replied, with the sweetest of
speech, 'May God be bountiful to thee, O my father! Why didst
thou not come with us and bathe in our company?' Then they both
bent over his hands and kissing them, walked before him to the
shop, to do him honour and show their respect for him, for that
he was chief of the merchants and the market, as well as their
sense of his kindness in giving them the shop. When he saw their
hips quivering, emotion and longing redoubled on him and he could
not contain himself, but puffed and snorted and devoured them
with his eyes, repeating the following verses:
The heart in them studies the chapter of worship unshared sheer
No proofs of more gods to worship than one it readeth here.
No wonder it is they tremble by reason of their weight; How much
is there not of motion in that revolving sphere!
And also these:
Two fair ones walking on the earth mine eyes did late espy; Two
that I needs must love although they walked upon mine eye.