Quoth she, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that in times of yore
and in ages long gone before, a peacock abode with his wife on the
seashore. Now the place was infested with lions and all manner wild
beasts, withal it abounded in trees and streams. So cock and hen were
wont to roost by night upon one of the trees, being in fear of the
beasts, and went forth by day questing food. And they ceased not thus
to do till their fear increased on them and they searched for some
place wherein to dwell other than their old dwelling place; and in the
course of their search behold, they happened on an island abounding in
streams and trees. So they alighted there and ate of its fruits and
drank of its waters. But whilst they were thus engaged, lo! up came to
them a duck in a state of extreme terror, and stayed not faring
forwards till she reached the tree whereon were perched the two
peafowl, when she seemed re assured in mind. The peacock doubted not
but that she had some rare story; so he asked her of her case and the
cause of her concern, whereto she answered, "I am sick for sorrow, and
my horror of the son of Adam:[FN#131] so beware, and again I say beware
of the sons of Adam!" Rejoined the peacock, "Fear not now that thou
hast won our protection." Cried the duck, "Alhamdolillah! glory to God,
who hath done away my cark and care by means of you being near! For
indeed I come of friendship fain with you twain." And when she had
ended her speech the peacock's wife came down to her and said, "Well
come and welcome and fair cheer! No harm shall hurt thee: how can son
of Adam come to us and we in this isle which lieth amiddlemost of the
sea? From the land he cannot reach us neither can he come against us
from the water. So be of good cheer and tell us what hath betided thee
from the child of Adam." Answered the duck, "Know, then, O thou peahen,
that of a truth I have dwelt all my life in this island safely and
peacefully, nor have I seen any disquieting thing, till one night, as I
was asleep, I sighted in my dream the semblance of a son of Adam, who
talked with me and I with him. Then I heard a voice say to me, 'O thou
duck, beware of the son of Adam and be not imposed on by his words nor
by that he may suggest to thee; for he aboundeth in wiles and guiles;
so beware with all wariness of his perfidy, for again I say, he is
crafty and right cunning even as singeth of him the poet,
He'll offer sweetmeats with his edgčd tongue, *
And fox thee with the foxy guile of fox.
And know thou that the son of Adam circumventeth the fishes and draweth
them forth of the seas; and he shooteth the birds with a pellet of
clay[FN#132] and trappeth the elephant with his craft. None is safe
from his mischief and neither bird nor beast escapeth him; and on this
wise have I told thee what I have heard concerning the son of Adam.' So
I awoke, fearful and trembling and from that hour to this my heart hath
not known gladness, for dread of the son of Adam, lest he surprise me
unawares by his wile or trap me in his snares. By the time the end of
the day overtook me, my strength was grown weak and my spunk failed me;
so, desiring to eat and drink, I went forth walking, troubled in spirit
and with a heart ill at ease. Now when I reached yonder mountain I saw
a tawny lion whelp at the door of a cave, and sighting me he joyed in
me with great joy, for my colour pleased him and my gracious shape; so
he cried out to me saying, 'Draw nigh unto me.' I went up to him and he
asked me, 'What is thy name, and what is thy nature?' Answered I, 'My
name is Duck, and I am of the bird kind;' and I added, 'But thou, why
tarriest thou in this place till this time?' Answered the whelp, 'My
father the lion hath for many a day warned me against the son of Adam,
and it came to pass this night that I saw in my sleep the semblance of
a son of Adam.' And he went on to tell me the like of that I have told
you. When I heard these words, I said to him, 'O lion, I take asylum
with thee, that thou mayest kill the son of Adam and be steadfast in
resolve to his slaughter; verily I fear him for myself with extreme
fear and to my fright affright is added for that thou also dreadest the
son of Adam, albeit thou art Sultan of savage beasts.' Then I ceased
not, O my sister, to bid the young lion beware of the son of Adam and
urge him to slay him, till he rose of a sudden and at once from his
stead and went out and he fared on, and I after him and I noted him
lashing flanks with tail. We advanced in the same order till we came to
a place where the roads forked and saw a cloud of dust arise which,
presently clearing away, discovered below it a runaway naked ass, now
galloping and running at speed and now rolling in the dust. When the
lion saw the ass, he cried out to him, and he came up to him in all
humility. Then said the lion, 'Harkye, crack brain brute! What is thy
kind and what be the cause of thy coming hither?' He replied, 'O son of
the Sultan! I am by kind an ass— Asinus Caballus—and the cause of my
coming to this place is that I am fleeing from the son of Adam.' Asked
the lion whelp, 'Dost thou fear then that he will kill thee?' Answered
the ass, 'Not so, O son of the Sultan, but I dread lest he put a cheat
on me and mount upon me; for he hath a thing called Pack saddle, which
he setteth on my back; also a thing called Girths which he bindeth
about my belly; and a thing called Crupper which he putteth under my
tail, and a thing called Bit which he placeth in my mouth: and he
fashioneth me a goad[FN#133] and goadeth me with it and maketh me run
more than my strength. If I stumble he curseth me, and if I bray, he
revileth me;[FN#134] and at last when I grow old and can no longer run,
he putteth on me a panel[FN#135] of wood and delivereth me to the water
carriers, who load my back with water from the river in skins and other
vessels, such as jars, and I cease not to wone in misery and abasement
and fatigue till I die, when they cast me on the rubbish-heaps to the
dogs. So what grief can surpass this grief and what calamities can be
greater than these calamities?' Now when I heard, O peahen, the ass's
words, my skin shuddered, and became as gooseflesh at the son of Adam;
and I said to the lion whelp, 'O my lord, the ass of a verity hath
excuse and his words add terror to my terror.' Then quoth the young
lion to the ass, 'Whither goest thou?' Quoth he, 'Before sunrise I
espied the son of Adam afar off, and fled from him; and now I am minded
to flee forth and run without ceasing for the greatness of my fear of
him, so haply I may find me a place of shelter from the perfidious son
of Adam.' Whilst the ass was thus discoursing with the lion whelp,
seeking the while to take leave of us and go away, behold, appeared to
us another cloud of dust, whereat the ass brayed and cried out and
looked hard and let fly a loud fart[FN#136]. After a while the dust
lifted and discovered a black steed finely dight with a blaze on the
forehead like a dirham round and bright;[FN#137] handsomely marked
about the hoof with white and with firm strong legs pleasing to sight
and he neighed with affright. This horse ceased not running till he
stood before the whelp, the son of the lion who, when he saw him,
marvelled and made much of him and said, 'What is thy kind, O majestic
wild beast and wherefore freest thou into this desert wide and vast?'
He replied, O lord of wild beasts, I am a steed of the horse kind, and
the cause of my running is that I am fleeing from the son of Adam.' The
lion whelp wondered at the horse's speech and cried to him Speak not
such words for it is shame to thee, seeing that thou art tall and
stout. And how cometh it that thou fearest the son of Adam, thou, with
thy bulk of body and thy swiftness of running when I, for all my
littleness of stature am resolved to encounter the son of Adam and,
rushing on him, eat his flesh, that I may allay the affright of this
poor duck and make her dwell in peace in her own place? But now thou
hast come here and thou hast wrung my heart with thy talk and turned me
back from what I had resolved to do, seeing that, for all thy bulk, the
son of Adam hath mastered thee and hath feared neither thy height nor
thy breadth, albeit, wert thou to kick him with one hoof thou wouldst
kill him, nor could he prevail against thee, but thou wouldst make him
drink the cup of death.' The horse laughed when he heard the whelps
words and replied, 'Far, far is it from my power to overcome him, O
Prince. Let not my length and my breadth nor yet my bulk delude thee
with respect to the son of Adam; for that he, of the excess of his
guile and his wiles, fashioneth me a thing called Hobble and applieth
to my four legs a pair of ropes made of palm fibres bound with felt,
and gibbeteth me by the head to a high peg, so that I being tied up
remain standing and can neither sit nor lie down. And when he is minded
to ride me, he bindeth on his feet a thing of iron called
Stirrup[FN#138] and layeth on my back another thing called Saddle,
which he fasteneth by two Girths passed under my armpits. Then he
setteth in my mouth a thing of iron he calleth Bit, to which he tieth a
thing of leather called Rein; and, when he sitteth in the saddle on my
back, he taketh the rein in his hand and guideth me with it, goading my
flanks the while with the shovel stirrups till he maketh them bleed. So
do not ask, O son of our Sultan, the hardships I endure from the son of
Adam. And when I grow old and lean and can no longer run swiftly, he
selleth me to the miller who maketh me turn in the mill, and I cease
not from turning night and day till I grow decrepit. Then he in turn
vendeth me to the knacker who cutteth my throat and flayeth off my hide
and plucketh out my tail, which he selleth to the sieve maker; and he
melteth down my fat for tallow candles.' When the young lion heard the
horse's words, his rage and vexation redoubled and he said, 'When didst
thou leave the son of Adam? Replied the horse, 'At midday and he is
upon my track.' Whilst the whelp was thus conversing with the horse lo!
there rose a cloud of dust and, presently opening out, discovered below
it a furious camel gurgling and pawing the earth with his feet and
never ceasing so to do till he came up with us. Now when the lion whelp
saw how big and buxom he was, he took him to be the son of Adam and was
about to spring upon him when I said to him, 'O Prince, of a truth this
is not the son of Adam, this be a camel, and he seemeth to fleeing from
the son of Adam.' As I was thus conversing, O my sister, with the lion
whelp, the camel came up and saluted him; whereupon he returned the
greeting and said, 'What bringeth thee hither?' Replied he, 'I came
here fleeing from the son of Adam.' Quoth the whelp, 'And thou, with
thy huge frame and length and breadth, how cometh it that thou fearest
the son of Adam, seeing that with one kick of thy foot thou wouldst
kill him?' Quoth the camel, 'O son of the Sultan, know that the son of
Adam hath subtleties and wiles, which none can withstand nor can any
prevail against him, save only Death; for he putteth into my nostrils a
twine of goat's hair he calleth Nose- ring,[FN#139] and over my head a
thing he calleth Halter; then he delivereth me to the least of his
little children, and the youngling draweth me along by the nose ring,
my size and strength notwithstanding. Then they load me with the
heaviest of burdens and go long journeys with me and put me to hard
labour through the hours of the night and the day. When I grow old and
stricken in years and disabled from working, my master keepeth me not
with him, but selleth me to the knacker who cutteth my throat and
vendeth my hide to the tanners and my flesh to the cooks: so do not ask
the hardships I suffer from the son of Adam.' 'When didst thou leave
the son of Adam?' asked the young lion; and he answered, 'At sundown,
and I suppose that coming to my place after my departure and not
finding me there, he is now in search of me: wherefore let me go, O son
of the Sultan, that I may flee into the wolds and the wilds.' Said the
whelp, 'Wait awhile, O camel, till thou see how I will tear him, and
give thee to eat of his flesh, whilst I craunch his bones and drink his
blood.' Replied the camel, 'O King's son, I fear for thee from the
child of Adam, for he is wily and guilefull.' And he began repeating
these verses:—
'When the tyrant enters the lieges' land, *
Naught remains for the lieges but quick remove!'
Now whilst the camel was speaking with the lion whelp, behold, there
rose a cloud of dust which, after a time, opened and showed an old man
scanty of stature and lean of limb; and he bore on his shoulder a
basket of carpenter's tools and on his head a branch of a tree and
eight planks. He led little children by the hand and came on at a
trotting pace,[FN#140] never stopping till he drew near the whelp. When
I saw him, O my sister, I fell down for excess of fear; but the young
lion rose and walked forward to meet the carpenter and when he came up
to him, the man smiled in his face and said to him, with a glib tongue
and in courtly terms, 'O King who defendeth from harm and lord of the
long arm, Allah prosper thine evening and thine endeavouring and
increase thy valiancy and strengthen thee! Protect me from that which
hath distressed me and with its mischief hath oppressed me, for I have
found no helper save only thyself.' And the carpenter stood in his
presence weeping and wailing and complaining. When the whelp heard his
sighing and his crying he said, 'I will succour thee from that thou
fearest. Who hath done thee wrong and what art thou, O wild beast,
whose like in my life I never saw, nor ever espied one goodlier of form
or more eloquent of tongue than thou? What is thy case?' Replied the
man, 'O lord of wild beasts, as to myself I am a carpenter; but as to
who hath wronged me, verily he is a son of Adam, and by break of dawn
after this coming night[FN#141] he will be with thee in this place.'
When the lion whelp heard these words of the carpenter, the light was
changed to night before his sight and he snorted and roared with ire
and his eyes cast forth sparks of fire. Then he cried out saying, 'By
Allah, I will assuredly watch through this coming night till dawn, nor
will I return to my father till I have won my will.' Then he turned to
the carpenter and asked, 'Of a truth I see thou art short of step and I
would not hurt thy feelings for that I am generous of heart; yet do I
deem thee unable to keep pace with the wild beasts: tell me then
whither thou goest?' Answered the carpenter, 'Know that I am on my way
to thy father's Wazir, the lynx; for when he heard that the son of Adam
had set foot in this country he feared greatly for himself and sent one
of the wild beasts on a message for me, to make him a house wherein he
should dwell, that it might shelter him and fend off his enemy from
him, so not one of the sons of Adam should come at him. Accordingly I
took up these planks and set forth to find him.' Now when the young
lion heard these words he envied the lynx and said to the carpenter,
'By my life there is no help for it but thou make me a house with these
planks ere thou make one for Sir Lynx! When thou hast done my work, go
to him and make him whatso he wisheth.' The carpenter replied, 'O lord
of wild beasts, I cannot make thee aught till I have made the lynx what
he desireth: then will I return to thy service and build thee a house
as a fort to ward thee from thy foe.' Exclaimed the lion whelp, By
Allah, 'I will not let thee leave this place till thou build me a house
of planks.' So saying he made for the carpenter and sprang upon him,
thinking to jest with him, and cuffed him with his paw knocking the
basket off his shoulder; and threw him down in a fainting fit,
whereupon the young lion laughed at him and said, 'Woe to thee, O
carpenter, of a truth thou art feeble and hast no force; so it is
excusable in thee to fear the son of Adam.' Now when the carpenter fell
on his back, he waxed exceeding wroth; but he dissembled his wrath for
fear of the whelp and sat up and smiled in his face, saying, 'Well, I
will make for thee the house.' With this he took the planks he had
brought and nailed together the house, which he made in the form of a
chest after the measure of the young lion. And he left the door open,
for he had cut in the box a large aperture, to which he made a stout
cover and bored many holes therein. Then he took out some newly wrought
nails and a hammer and said to the young lion, 'Enter the house through
this opening, that I may fit it to thy measure.' Thereat the whelp
rejoiced and went up to the opening, but saw that it was strait; and
the carpenter said to him, 'Enter and crouch down on thy legs and
arms!' So the whelp did thus and entered the chest, but his tail
remained outside. Then he would have drawn back and come . out; but the
carpenter said to him, 'Wait patiently a while till I see if there be
room for thy tail with thee.' The young lion did as he was bid when the
carpenter twisted up his tail and, stuffing it into the chest, whipped
the lid on to the opening and nailed it down; whereat the whelp cried
out and said, 'O carpenter, what is this narrow house thou hast made
me? Let me out, sirrah!' But the carpenter answered, 'Far be it, far be
it from thy thought! Repentance for past avails naught, and indeed of
this place thou shalt not come out.' He then laughed and resumed,
'Verily thou art fallen into the trap and from thy duress there is no
escape, O vilest of wild beasts!' Rejoined the whelp, 'O my brother,
what manner of words are these thou addresses" to me?' The carpenter
replied 'know, O dog of the desert! that thou hast fa]len into that
which thou fearedst: Fate hath upset thee, nor shall caution set thee
up. ' When the whelp heard these words, O my sister, he knew that this
was indeed the very son of Adam, against whom he had been warned by his
sire in waking state and by the mysterious Voice in sleeping while; and
I also was certified that this was indeed he without doubt; wherefore
great fear of him for myself seized me and I withdrew a little apart
from him and waited to see what he would do with the young lion. Then I
saw, O my sister, the son of Adam dig a pit in that place hard by the
chest which held the whelp and, throwing the box into the hole, heap
dry wood upon it and burn the young lion with fire. At this sight, O
sister mine, my fear of the son of Adam redoubled and in my affright I
have been these two days fleeing from him." But when the peahen heard
from the duck this story,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the One Hundred and Forty-seventh Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the peahen
heard from the duck this story, she wondered with exceeding wonder and
said to her, "O my sister, here thou art safe from the son of Adam, for
we are in one of the islands of the sea whither there is no way for the
son of Adam; so do thou take up thine abode with us till Allah make
easy thy case and our case. Quoth the duck, "I fear lest some calamity
come upon me by night, for no runaway can rid him of fate by flight."
Rejoined the peahen, "Abide with us, and be like unto, us;" and ceased
not to persuade her, till she yielded, saying, "O my sister, thou
knowest how weak is my resistance; but verily had I not seen thee here,
I had not remained." Said the peahen, "That which is on our
foreheads[FN#142] we must indeed fulfil, and when our doomed day
draweth near, who shall deliver us? But not a soul departeth except it
have accomplished its predestined livelihood and term. Now the while
they talked thus, a cloud of dust appeared and approached them, at
sight of which the duck shrieked aloud and ran down into the sea,
crying out, "Beware! beware! though flight there is not from Fate and
Lot!"[FN#143] After awhile the dust opened out and discovered under it
an antelope; whereat the duck and the peahen were reassured and the
peacock's wife said to her companion, "O my sister, this thou seest and
wouldst have me beware of is an antelope, and here he is, making for
us. He will do us no hurt, for the antelope feedeth upon the herbs of
the earth and, even as thou art of the bird kind, so is he of the beast
kind. Be there fore of good cheer and cease care taking; for care
taking wasteth the body." Hardly had the peahen done speaking, when the
antelope came up to them, thinking to shelter him under the shade of
the tree; and, sighting the peahen and the duck, saluted them and said,
'I came to this island to-day and I have seen none richer in herbage
nor pleasanter for habitation." Then he besought them for company and
amity and, when they saw his friendly behaviour to them, they welcomed
him and gladly accepted his offer. So they struck up a sincere
friendship and sware thereto; and they slept in one place and they ate
and drank together; nor did they cease dwelling in safety, eating and
drinking their fill, till one day there came thither a ship which had
strayed from her course in the sea. She cast anchor near them and the
crew came forth and dispersed about the island. They soon caught sight
of the three friends, antelope, peahen and duck, and made for them;
whereupon the peahen flew up into the tree and thence winged her way
through air; and the antelope fled into the desert, but the duck abode
paralyzed by fear. So they chased her till they caught her and she
cried out and said, "Caution availed me naught against Fate and Lot!';
and they bore her off to the ship. Now when the peahen saw what had
betided the duck, she removed from the island, saying, "I see that
misfortunes lie in ambush for all. But for yonder ship, parting had not
befallen between me and this duck, because she was one of the truest of
friends." Then she flew off and rejoined the antelope, who saluted her
and gave her joy of her safety and asked for the duck, to which she
replied, "The enemy hath taken her, and I loathe the sojourn of this
island after her." Then she wept for the loss of the duck and began
repeating,
"The day of parting cut my heart in twain:*
In twain may Allah cut the parting-day!
And she spake also this couplet,
"I pray some day that we reunion gain, *
So may I tell him Parting's ugly way."
The antelope sorrowed with great sorrow, but dissuaded the peahen from
her resolve to remove from the island. So they abode there together
with him, eating and drinking, in peace and safety, except that they
ceased not to mourn for the loss of the duck; and the antelope said to
the peahen, "O my sister, thou seest how the folk who came forth of the
ship were the cause of our severance from the duck and of her
destruction; so do thou beware of them and guard thyself from them and
from the wile of the son of Adam and his guile." But the peahen
replied, I am assured that nought caused her death save her neglecting
to say Subhan' Allah, glory to God; indeed I often said to her,
'Exclaim thou, 'Praised be Allah, and verily I fear for thee, because
thou neglectest to laud the Almighty; for all things created by Allah
glorify Him on this wise, and whoso neglecteth the formula of
praise[FN#144] him destruction waylays.'" When the antelope heard the
peahen's words he exclaimed, "Allah make fair thy face!" and betook
himself to repeating the formula of praise, and ceased not there from a
single hour. And it is said that his form of adoration was as follows,
"Praise be to the Requiter of every good and evil thing, the Lord of
Majesty and of Kings the King!" And a tale is also told on this wise of
The Hermits.
A certain hermit worshipped on a certain mountain, whither resorted a
pair of pigeons; and the worshipper was wont to make two parts of his
daily bread,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
her permitted say.
When it was the One Hundred and Forty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the worshipper
was wont to make two parts of his daily bread, eating one half himself
and giving the other to the pigeon pair. He also prayed for them both
that they might be blest with issue so they increased and multiplied
greatly. Now they resorted only to that mountain where the hermit was,
and the reason of their fore- gathering with the holy man was their
assiduity in repeating "Praised be Allah!" for it is recounted that the
pigeon[FN#145] in praise, "Praised be the Creator of all Creatures, the
Distributor of daily bread, the Builder of the heavens and Dispreader
of the earths!" And that couple ceased not to dwell together in the
happiest of life, they and their brood till the holy man died, when the
company of the pigeons was broken up and they dispersed among the towns
and villages and mountains. Now it is told that on a certain other
mountain there dwelt a shepherd, a man of piety and good sense and
chastity; and he had flocks of sheep which he tended, and he made his
living by their milk and wool. The mountain which gave him a home
abounded in trees and pasturage and also in wild beasts, but these had
no power over his flocks; so he ceased not to dwell upon that highland
in full security, taking no thought to the things of the world, by
reason of his beatitude and his assiduity in prayer and devotion, till
Allah ordained that he should fall sick with exceeding sickness.
Thereupon he betook himself to a cavern in the mountain and his sheep
used to go out in the morning to the pasturage and take refuge at night
in the cave. But Allah Almighty, being minded to try him and prove his
patience and his obedience, sent him one of His angels, who came in to
him in the semblance of a fair woman and sat down before him. When the
shepherd saw that woman seated before him, his flesh shuddered at her
with horripilation[FN#146] and he said to her, 'O thou woman, what was
it invited thee to this my retreat? I have no need of thee, nor is
there aught betwixt me and thee which calleth for thy coming in to me."
Quoth she, "O man, cost thou not behold my beauty and loveliness and
the fragrance of my breath; and knowest thou not the need women have of
men and men of women? So who shall forbid thee from me when I have
chosen to be near thee and desire to enjoy thy company? Indeed, I come
to thee willingly and do not withhold myself from thee, and near us
there is none whom we need fear; and I wish to abide with thee as long
as thou sojournest in this mountain, and be thy companion and thy true
friend. I offer myself to thee, for thou needest the service of woman:
and if thou have carnal connection with me and know me, thy sickness
shall be turned from thee and health return to thee; and thou wilt
repent thee of the past for having foresworn the company of women
during the days that are now no more. In very sooth, I give thee good
advice: so incline to my counsel and approach me." Quoth the shepherd,
"Go out from me, O woman deceitful and perfidious! I will not incline
to thee nor approach thee. I want not thy company nor wish for union
with thee; he who coveteth the coming life renounceth thee, for thou
seducest mankind, those of past time and those of present time. Allah
the Most High lieth in wait for His servants and woe unto him who is
cursed with thy company!" Answered she, "O thou that errest from the
truth and wanderest from the way of reason, turn thy face to me and
look upon my charms and take thy full of my nearness, as did the wise
who have gone before thee. Indeed, they were richer than thou in
experience and sharper of wit; withal they rejected not, as thou
rejectest, the enjoyment of women; nay, they took their pleasure of
them and their company even as thou renouncest them, and it did them no
hurt in things temporal or things spiritual. Wherefore do thou recede
from thy resolve and thou shalt praise the issue of thy case." Rejoined
the shepherd, "All thou sayest I deny and abhor, and all thou offerest
I reject: for thou art cunning and perfidious and there is no honesty
in thee nor is there honour. How much of foulness hidest thou under thy
beauty, and how many a pious man hast thou seduced from his duty and
made his end penitence and perdition? Avaunt from me, O thou who
devotest thyself to corrupt others!" Thereupon, he threw his goat's
hair cloak over his head that he might not see her face, and betook
himself to calling upon the name of his Lord. And when the angel saw
the excellence of his submission to the Divine Will, he went out from
him and ascended to heaven. Now hard by the hermit's hill was a village
wherein dwelt a pious man, who knew not the other's station, till one
night he heard in a dream a Voice saying to him, "In such a place near
to thee is a devout man: go thou to him and be at his command!" So when
morning dawned he set out to wend thither, and what time the heat was
grievous upon him, he came to a tree which grew beside a spring of
running water. So he sat down to rest in the shadow of that tree and
behold, he saw beasts and birds coming to that fount to drink, but when
they caught sight of the devotee sitting there, they took fright and
fled from before his face. Then said he, "There is no Majesty and there
is no Might save in Allah! I rest not here but to the hurt of these
beasts and fowls." So he arose, blaming him self and saying, "Verily my
tarrying here this day hath wronged these animals, and what excuse have
I towards my Creator and the Creator of these birds and beasts for that
I was the cause of their flight from their drink and their daily food
and their place of pasturage? Alas for my shame before my Lord on the
day when He shall avenge the hornless sheep on the sheep with
horns!''[FN#147] And he wept and began repeating these couplets,
"Now an, by Allah, unto man were fully known *
Why he is made, in careless sleep he ne'er would wone:
First Death, then cometh Wake and dreadful Day of Doom, *
Reproof with threats sore terror, frightful malison.
Bid we or else forbid we, all of us are like *
The Cave companions[FN#148] when at length their sleep was
done."
Then he again wept for that he had driven the birds and beasts from the
spring by sitting down under the tree, and he fared on till he came to
the shepherd's dwelling and going in, saluted him. The shepherd
returned his salutation and embraced him, weeping and saying, "What
hath brought thee to this place where no man hath ever yet come to me."
Quoth the other devotee, "I saw in my sleep one who described to me
this thy stead and bade me repair to thee and salute thee: so I came,
in obedience to the commandment." The shepherd welcomed him, rejoicing
in his company and the twain abode upon that mountain, worshipping
Allah with the best of worship; and they ceased not serving their Lord
in the cavern and living upon the flesh and milk of their sheep, having
clean put away from them riches and children and what not, till the
Certain, the Inevitable became their lot. And this is the end of their
story. Then said King Shahyrar, "O Shahrazad, thou wouldst cause me to
renounce my kingdom and thou makest me repent of having slain so many
women and maidens. Hast thou any bird stories?" "Yes," replied she, and
began to tell the