raiders[328] awoke from sleep and heard Gharib and his men crying out,
“Ho, sons of Kahtan!”; they imagined that the whole tribe was assailing
them; wherefore they snatched up their arms and fell one upon other with
mighty slaughter. Gharib and his men held aloof, and they fought one
another till daybreak, when Gharib and Mardas and their ninety warriors
came down upon them and killed some of them and put the rest to flight.
Then the Banu Kahtan took the horses of the fugitives and the weapons of
the slain and returned to their tribal camp, whilst Mardas could hardly
credit his deliverance from the foe. When they reached the encampment,
the stay-at-home folk all came forth to meet them and rejoiced in their
safe return. Then they alighted and betook them to their tents; and all
the youths of the tribe flocked to Gharib’s stead and great and small
saluted him and did him honour. But when Mardas saw this and the youths
encircling his stepson he waxed more jealous of Gharib than before and
said to his kinsfolk, “Verily, hatred of Gharib groweth on my heart, and
what irketh me most is that I see these flocking about him! And
to-morrow he will demand Mahdiyah of me.” Quoth his confidant, “O Emir,
ask of him somewhat he cannot avail to do.” This pleased Mardas who
passed a pleasant night and on the morrow, as he sat on his stuffed
carpet, with the Arabs about him, Gharib entered, followed by his men
and surrounded by the youth of the tribe, and kissed the ground before
Mardas who, making a show of joy, rose to do him honour and seated him
beside himself. Then said Gharib, “O uncle, thou madest me a promise; do
thou fulfil it.” Replied the Emir, “O my son, she is thine to all time;
but thou lackest wealth.” Quoth Gharib, “O uncle, ask of me what thou
wilt, and I will fall upon the Emirs of the Arabs in their houses and on
the Kings in their towns and bring thee fee[329] enough to fence the
land from East to West.” “O my son,” quoth Mardas, “I have sworn by all
the Idols that I would not give Mahdiyah save to him who should take my
blood-wite of mine enemy and do away my reproach.” “O uncle,” said
Gharib, “tell me with which of the Kings thou hast a feud, that I may go
to him and break his throne upon his pate.” “O my son,” replied Mardas,
“I once had a son, a champion of champions, and he went forth one day to
chase and hunt with an hundred horse. They fared on from valley to
valley, till they had wandered far away amongst the mountains and came
to the Wady of Blossoms and the Castle of Hám bin Shays bin Shaddád bin
Khalad. Now in this place, O my son, dwelleth a black giant, seventy
cubits high, who fights with trees from their roots uptorn; and when my
son reached his Wady, the tyrant sallied out upon him and his men and
slew them all, save three braves, who escaped and brought me the news.
So I assembled my champions and fared forth to fight the giant, but
could not prevail against him; wherefore I was baulked of my revenge and
swore that I would not give my daughter in marriage save to him who
should avenge me of my son.” Said Gharib, “O uncle, I will go to this
Amalekite and take the wreak of thy son on him with the help of Almighty
Allah.” And Mardas, answered, saying, “O Gharib, if thou get the victory
over him, thou wilt gain of him such booty of wealth and treasures as
fires may not devour.” Cried Gharib, “Swear to me before witnesses thou
wilt give me her to wife, so that with heart at ease I may go forth to
find my fortune.” Accordingly, Mardas swore this to him and took the
elders of the tribe to witness; whereupon Gharib fared forth, rejoicing
in the attainment of his hopes, and went in to his mother, to whom he
related what had passed. “O my son,” said she, “know that Mardas hateth
thee and doth but send thee to this mountain, to bereave me of thee;
then take me with thee and let us depart the tents of this tyrant.” But
he answered, “O my mother, I will not depart hence till I win my wish
and foil my foe.” Thereupon he slept till morning arose with its sheen
and shone, and hardly had he mounted his charger when his friends, the
young men, came up to him; two hundred stalwart knights armed cap-à-pie
and cried out to him, saying, “Take us with thee; we will help thee and
company thee by the way.” And he rejoiced in them and cried, “Allah
requite you for us with good!” adding, “Come, my friends, let us go.” So
they set out and fared on the first day and the second day till evening,
when they halted at the foot of a towering mount and baited their
horses. As for Gharib, he left the rest and walked on into that
mountain, till he came to a cave whence issued a light. He entered and
found, at the higher facing end of the cave a Shaykh, three hundred and
forty years old, whose eyebrows overhung his eyes and whose moustachios
hid his mouth. Gharib at this sight was filled with awe and veneration,
and the hermit said to him, “Methinks thou art of the idolaters, O my
son, stone-worshipping[330] in the stead of the All-powerful King, the
Creator of Night and Day and of the sphere rolling on her way.” When
Gharib heard his words, his side muscles quivered and he said, “O
Shaykh, where is this Lord of whom thou speakest, that I may worship him
and take my fill of his sight?” Replied the Shaykh, “O my son, this is
the Supreme Lord, upon whom none may look in this world. He seeth and is
not seen. He is the Most High of aspect and is present everywhere in His
works. He it is who maketh all the made and ordereth time to vade and
fade; He is the Creator of men and Jinn and sendeth the Prophets to
guide His creatures into the way of right. Whoso obeyeth Him, He
bringeth into Heaven, and whoso gainsayeth Him, He casteth into Hell.”
Asked Gharib, “And how, O uncle, saith whoso worshippeth this puissant
Lord who over all hath power?” “O my son,” answered the Shaykh, “I am of
the tribe of Ad, which were transgressors in the land and believed not
in Allah. So He sent unto them a Prophet named Húd, but they called him
liar and he destroyed them by means of a deadly wind; but I believed
together with some of my tribe, and we were saved from destruction.[331]
Moreover, I was present with the tribe of Thamúd and saw what befel them
with their Prophet Sálih. After Salih, the Almighty sent a prophet,
called Abraham the Friend,[332] to Nimrod son of Canaan, and there befel
what befel between them. Then my companions died in the Saving Faith and
I continued in this cave to serve Allah the Most High, who provideth my
daily bread without my taking thought.” Quoth Gharib, “O uncle, what
shall I say, that I may become of the troop of this mighty Lord?” “Say,”
replied the old man:—“There is no god but _the_ God and Abraham is the
Friend of God.” So Gharib embraced the Faith of Submission[333] with
heart and tongue and the Shaykh said to him, “May the sweetness of
belief and devotion be stablished in thy heart!” Then he taught him
somewhat of the biblical ordinances and scriptures of Al-Islam and said
to him, “What is thy name?”; and he replied, “My name is Gharib.” Asked
the old man, “Whither art thou bound, O Gharib?” So he told him all his
history, till he came to the mention of the Ghúl of the Mountain whom he
sought,——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
Now when it was the Six Hundred and Twenty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Gharib became
a Moslem and told the Shaykh his past, from first to last, till he came
to the mention of the Mountain-Ghul whom he sought, the old man asked
him, “O Gharib, art thou mad that thou goest forth against the Ghul of
the Mountain single handed?” and he answered, “O my lord, I have with me
two hundred horse.” “O Gharib,” rejoined the hermit, “hadst thou ten
thousand riders yet shouldest thou not prevail against him, for his name
is _The-Ghul-who-eateth-men-we-pray-Allah-for-safety_, and he is of the
children of Ham. His father’s name was Hindi, who peopled Hind and named
it, and he left this son after him, whom he called Sa’adan the Ghul. Now
the same was, O my son, even in his sire’s lifetime, a cruel tyrant and
a rebellious devil and had no other food than flesh of the sons of Adam.
His father when about to die forbade him from this, but he would not be
forbidden and he redoubled in his frowardness, till Hindi banished him
and drove him forth the Land of Hind, after battles and sore travail.
Then he came to this country and fortifying himself herein, established
his home in this place, whence he is wont to sally forth and cut the
road of all that come and go, presently returning to the valley he
haunteth. Moreover, he hath begotten five sons, warlike warlocks, each
one of whom will do battle with a thousand braves, and he hath flocked
the valley with his booty of treasure and goods besides horses and
camels and cattle and sheep. Wherefore I fear for thee from him; so do
thou implore Almighty Allah to further thee against him by the Tahlíl,
the formula of Unity, and when thou drivest at the Infidels, cry:—God is
most Great! for, saying, There is no god but _the_ God confoundeth those
who misbelieve.” Then the Shaykh gave him a steel mace, an hundred
pounds in weight, with ten rings which clashed like thunder whenas the
wielder brandished it, and a sword forged of a thunderbolt,[334] three
ells long and three spans broad, wherewith if one smote a rock, the
stroke would cleave it in sunder. Moreover he gave him a hauberk and
target and a book and said to him, “Return to thy tribe and expound unto
them Al-Islam.” So Gharib left him, rejoicing in his new Faith, and
fared till he found his companions, who met him with salams, saying,
“What made thee tarry thus?” Whereupon he related to them that which had
befallen him and expounded to them Al-Islam, and they all islamised.
Early next morning, Gharib mounted and rode to the hermit to farewell
him, after which he set out to return to his camp when behold, on his
way, there met him a horseman cap-à-pie armed so that only his eyes
appeared, who made at him, saying, “Doff what is on thee, O scum[335] of
the Arabs; or I will do thee die!” Therewith Gharib drave at him and
there befel between them a battle such as would make a new-born child
turn grey and melt the flinty rock with its sore affray; but presently
the Badawi did off his face-veil, and lo! it was Gharib’s half-brother
Sahim al-Layl. Now the cause of his coming thither was that when Gharib
set out in quest of the Mountain-Ghul, Sahim was absent and on his
return, not seeing his brother, he went in to his mother, whom he found
weeping. He asked the reason of her tears and she told him what had
happened of his brother’s journey, whereupon, without allowing himself
aught of rest, he donned his war-gear and mounting rode after Gharib,
till he overtook him and there befel between them what befel. When,
therefore, Sahim discovered his face, Gharib knew him and saluted him,
saying, “What moved thee to do this?” Quoth Sahim, “I had a mind to
measure myself with thee in the field and make trial of my lustihood in
cut and thrust.” Then they rode together and on the way Gharib expounded
Al-Islam to Sahim, who embraced the Faith; nor did they cease riding
till they were hard upon the valley. Meanwhile, the Mountain-Ghul espied
the dust of their horses’ feet and said to his sons, “O my sons, mount
and fetch me yonder loot.” So the five took horse and made for the
party. When Gharib saw the five Amalekites approaching, he plied
shovel-iron upon his steed’s flank and cried out, saying, “Who are ye,
and what is your race and what do ye require?” Whereupon Falhún bin
Sa’adan, the eldest of the five, came out and said, “Dismount ye and
bind one another[336] and we will drive you to our father, that he may
roast various of you and boil various, for it is long since he has
tasted the flesh of Adam-son.” When Gharib heard these words he drove at
Falhun, shaking his mace, so that the rings rang like the roaring
thunder and the giant was confounded. Then he smote him a light blow
with the mace between the shoulders, and he fell to the ground like a
tall-trunked palm-tree; whereupon Sahim and some of his men fell upon
him and pinioned him; then, putting a rope about his neck, they haled
him along like a cow. Now when his brothers saw him a prisoner, they
charged home upon Gharib, who took three[337] of them captive and the
fifth fled back to his sire, who said to him, “What is behind thee and
where are the brothers of thee?” Quoth he, “Verily, a beardless youth,
forty cubits high, hath taken them prisoner.” Quoth Sa’adan, “May the
sun pour no blessing on you!” and, going down from his hold, tore up a
huge tree, with which he went in quest of Gharib and his folk; and he
was on foot, for that no horse might carry him, because of the bigness
of his body. His son followed him and the twain went on till they came
up with Gharib and his company, when the Ghul fell upon them, without
word said, and slew five men with his club. Then he made at Sahim and
struck at him with his tree, but Sahim avoided the blow and it fell
harmless; whereat Sa’adan was wroth and throwing down the weapon, sprang
upon Sahim and caught him in his pounces as the sparrow-hawk catcheth up
the sparrow. Now when Gharib saw his brother in the Ghul’s clutches, he
cried out, saying, “Allaho Akbar—God is most Great! Oh the favour of
Abraham the Friend, the Muhammad,[338] the Blessed One (whom Allah keep
and assain!)”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
her permitted say.
Now when it was the Six Hundred and Twenty-ninth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Gharib
saw his brother in the clutches of the Ghul, he cried out, saying “Oh
the favour of Ibrahim, the Friend, the Blessed one (whom Allah keep and
assain!)”; and drave his charger at Sa’adan, shaking his mace, till the
rings loud rang. Then he cried out again, “God is most Great!” and smote
the Ghul on the flat of the ribs with his mace, whereupon he fell to the
ground, insensible, and loosed his grip on Sahim; nor did he come to
himself ere he was pinioned and shackled. When his son saw this, he
turned and fled; but Gharib drove steed after him and smiting him with
his mace between the shoulders, threw him from his horse. So they bound
him with his father and brethren and haltering them with ropes, haled
them all six along like baggage-camels, till they reached the Ghul’s
castle, which they found full of goods and treasures and things of
price; and there they also came upon twelve hundred Ajamis, men of
Persia, bound and shackled. Gharib sat down on Sa’adan’s chair, which
had aforetime belonged to Sásá[339] bin Shays bin Shaddad bin Ad causing
Sahim to stand on his right and his companions on his either hand, and
sending for the Ghul of the Mountain, said to him, “How findest thou
thyself, O accursed?” Replied Sa’adan, “O my lord, in the sorriest of
plights for abasement and mortification; my sons and I, we are bound
with ropes like camels.” Quoth Gharib, “It is my will that you enter my
faith, the faith Al-Islam hight, and acknowledge the Unity of the
All-knowing King whose All-might created Light and Night and every
thing,—there is no God but He, the Requiting King!—and confess the
mission and prophethood of Abraham the Friend (on whom be peace!).” So
the Ghul and his sons made the required profession after the goodliest
fashion, and Gharib bade loose their bonds; whereupon Sa’adan wept and
would have kissed his feet, he and his sons: but Gharib forbade them and
they stood with the rest who stood before him. Then said Gharib,
“Harkye, Sa’adan!”; and he replied, “At thy service, O my lord!” Quoth
Gharib, “What are these captives?” “O my lord,” quoth the Ghul, “these
are my game from the land of the Persians and are not the only ones.”
Asked Gharib, “And who is with them?”; and Sa’adan answered, “O my lord,
there is with them the Princess Fakhr Táj, daughter of King Sabúr of
Persia,[340] and an hundred damsels like moons.” When Gharib heard this,
he marvelled and said, “O Emir, how came ye by these?” Replied Sa’adan,
“I went forth one night with my sons and five of my slaves in quest of
booty, but finding no spoil in our way, we dispersed over wilds and
wolds and fared on, hoping we might happen on somewhat of prey and not
return empty-handed, till we found ourselves in the land of the
Persians. Presently, we espied a dust-cloud and sent on to reconnoitre
one of our slaves, who was absent a while and presently returned and
said:—O my lord, this is the Princess Fakhr Taj, daughter of Sabur, King
of the Persians, Turcomans and Medes; and she is on a journey, attended
by two thousand horse. Quoth I, Thou hast gladdened us with good news!
We could have no finer loot than this. Then I and my sons fell upon the
Persians and slew of them three hundred men and took the Princess and
twelve hundred cavaliers prisoners, together with all that was with her
of treasure and riches and brought them to this our castle.” Quoth
Gharib, “Hast thou offered any violence to the Princess Fakhr Taj?”
Quoth Sa’adan, “Not I, as thy head liveth and by the virtue of the Faith
I have but now embraced!” Gharib replied, “It was well done of thee, O
Sa’adan, for her father is King of the world and doubtless he will
despatch troops in quest of her and lay waste the dwellings of those who
took her. And whoso looketh not to issue and end hath not Fate to
friend. But where is the damsel?” Said Sa’adan, “I have set apart a
pavilion for her and her damsels;” and said Gharib, “Show me her
lodging,” whereto Sa’adan rejoined, “Hearkening and obedience!” So he
carried him to the pavilion, and there he found the Princess mournful
and cast down, weeping for her former condition of dignity and delight.
When Gharib saw her, he thought the moon was near him and magnified
Allah, the All-hearing, the All-seeing. The Princess also looked at him
and saw him a princely cavalier, with valour shining from between his
eyes and testifying for him and not against him; so she rose and kissed
his hands, then fell at his feet, saying, “O hero of the age, I am under
thy protection; guard me from this Ghul, for I fear lest he do away my
maidenhead and after devour me. So take me to serve thine handmaidens.”
Quoth Gharib, “Thou art safe and thou shalt be restored to thy father
and the seat of thy worship.” Whereupon she prayed that he might live
long and have advancement in rank and honour. Then he bade unbind the
Persians and, turning to the Princess, said to her, “What brought thee
forth of thy palace to the wilds and wastes, so that the highway-robbers
made prize of thee?” She replied, “O my lord, my father and all the
people of his realm, Turks and Daylamites, are Magians, fire
worshipping, and not the All-powerful King. Now in our country is a
monastery called the Monastery of the Fire, whither every year the
daughters of the Magians and worshippers of the Fire resort at the time
of their festival and abide there a month, after which they return to
their houses. So I and my damsels set out, as of wont, attended by two
thousand horse, whom my father sent with me to guard me; but by the way
this Ghul came out against us and slew some of us and, taking the rest
captive, imprisoned us in this hold. This, then, is what befel me, O
valiant champion, whom Allah guard against the shifts of Time!” And
Gharib said, “Fear not; for I will bring thee to thy palace and the seat
of thy honours.” Wherefore she blessed him and kissed his hands and
feet. Then he went out from her, after having commanded to treat her
with respect, and slept till morning, when he made the Wuzu-ablution and
prayed a two-bow prayer, after the rite of our father Abraham the Friend
(on whom be peace!), whilst the Ghul and his sons and Gharib’s company
all did the like after him. Then he turned to the Ghul and said to him,
“O Sa’adan, wilt thou not show me the Wady of Blossoms?”[341] “I will, O
my lord,” answered he. So Gharib and his company and Princess Fakhr Taj
and her maidens all rose and went forth, whilst Sa’adan commanded his
slaves and slave-girls to slaughter and cook and make ready the
morning-meal and bring it to them among the trees. For the Giant had an
hundred and fifty handmaids and a thousand chattels to pasture his
camels and oxen and sheep. When they came to the valley, they found it
beautiful exceedingly and passing all degree; and birds on tree sang
joyously and the mocking-nightingale trilled out her melody, and the
cushat filled with her moan the mansions made by the Deity,——And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Six Hundred and Thirtieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Gharib and
his merry men and the Giant and his tribe reached the Wady of Blossoms
they found birds flying free; the cushat filling with her moan the
mansions made by the Deity, the bulbul singing as if ‘twere human
harmony and the merle whom to describe tongue faileth utterly; the
turtle, whose plaining maddens men for love-ecstasy and the ringdove
and the popinjay answering her with fluency. There also were trees
laden with all manner of fruitery, of each two kinds,[342] the
pomegranate, sweet and sour upon branches growing luxuriantly, the
almond-apricot,[343] the camphor-apricot[344] and the almond Khorasan
hight; the plum, with whose branches the boughs of the myrobalan were
entwined tight; the orange, as it were a cresset flaming light, the
shaddock weighed down with heavy freight; the lemon, that cures lack
of appetite, the citron against jaundice of sovereign might, and the
date, red and yellow-bright, the especial handiwork of Allah the Most
High. Of the like of this place saith the enamoured poet:—
When its birds in the lake make melody, ✿ The lorn lover yearneth its
sight to see:
‘Tis as Eden breathing a fragrant breeze, ✿ With its shade and fruits
and rills flowing free.
Gharib marvelled at the beauty of that Wady and bade them set up there
the pavilion of Fakhr Taj the Chosroite; so they pitched it among the
trees and spread it with rich tapestries. Then he sat down and the
slaves brought food and they ate their sufficiency; after which quoth
Gharib, “Harkye, Sa’adan!”: and quoth he, “At thy service, O my lord.”
“Hast thou aught of wine?” asked Gharib, and Sa’adan answered, “Yes, I
have a cistern full of old wine.” Said Gharib, “Bring us some of it.” So
Sa’adan sent ten slaves, who returned with great plenty of wine, and
they ate and drank and were mirthful and merry. And Gharib bethought him
of Mahdiyah and improvised these couplets:—
I mind our union days when ye were nigh, ✿ And flames my heart with
love’s consuming lowe.
By Allah, ne’er of will I quitted you: ✿ But shifts of Time from you
compelled me go:
Peace and fair luck and greetings thousand-fold ✿ To you, from exiled
lover’s pining woe.
They abode eating and drinking and taking their pleasure in the valley
for three days, after which they returned to the castle. Then Gharib
called Sahim and said to him, “Take an hundred horse and go to thy
father and mother and thy tribe, the Banu Kahtan, and bring them all to
this place, here to pass the rest of their days, whilst I carry the
Princess of Persia back to her father. As for thee, O Sa’adan, tarry
thou here with thy sons, till I return to thee.” Asked Sa’adan, “And why
wilt thou not carry me with thee to the land of the Persians?”; and
Gharib answered, “Because thou stolest away King Sabur’s daughter and if
his eye fall on thee, he will eat thy flesh and drink thy blood.” When
the Ghul heard this, he laughed a loud laugh, as it were the pealing
thunder, and said, “O my lord, by the life of thy head, if the Persians
and Medes united against me, I would make them quaff the cup of
annihilation.” Quoth Gharib, “‘Tis as thou sayest;[345] but tarry thou
here in fort till I return to thee;” and quoth the Ghul, “I hear and I
obey.” Then Sahim departed with his comrades of the Banu Kahtan for the
dwelling-places of their tribe, and Gharib set out with Princess Fakhr
Taj and her company, intending for the cities of Sabur, King of the
Persians. Thus far concerning them; but as regards King Sabur, he abode
awaiting his daughter’s return from the Monastery of the Fire, and when
the appointed time passed by and she came not, flames raged in his
heart. Now he had forty Wazirs, whereof the oldest, wisest and chiefest
was hight Daydán: so he said to him, “O Minister, verily my daughter
delayeth her return and I have no news of her though the appointed time
is past; so do thou send a courier to the Monastery of the Fire to learn
what is come of her.” “Hearkening and obedience,” replied Daydan; and,
summoning the chief of the couriers, said to him, “Wend thou forthright
to the Monastery.” So he lost no time and when he reached it, he asked
the monks of the King’s daughter, but they said, “We have not seen her
this year.” So the courier returned to the city of Isbánír[346] and told
the Wazir, who went in to the King and acquainted him with the message.
Now when Sabur heard this, he cast his crown on the ground, tore his
beard and fell down in a trance. They sprinkled water upon him, and
presently he came to himself, tearful-eyed and heavy-hearted, and
repeated the words of the poet:—
When I far-parted patience call and tears, ✿ Tears came to call but
Patience never hears:
What, then, if Fortune parted us so far? ✿ Fortune and Perfidy are peers
and feres!
Then he called ten of his captains and bade them mount with a thousand
horse and ride in different directions, in quest of his daughter. So
they mounted forthright and departed each with his thousand; whilst
Fakhr Taj’s mother clad herself and her women in black and strewed ashes
on her head and sat weeping and lamenting. Such was their case;——And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Six Hundred and Thirty-first Night,