down at the head of the bed and asked him about his condition and what
had been prescribed for him by the Hakím. Ja’afar said, O my lord, he
wrote for me a paper which is under the pillow. Attaf put out his hand,
took out the paper and read it and found upon it written:—“In the name
of God the Curer—To be taken, with the aid and blessing of God, 3
miskals of pure presence of the beloved unmixed with morsels of absence
and fear of being watched: plus, 3 miskals of a good meeting cleared of
any grain of abandonment and rupture: plus, 2 okes of pure friendship
and discretion deprived of the wood of separation. Then take some
extract of the incense of the kiss, the teeth and the waist, 2 miskals
of each; also take 100 kisses of pomegranate rubbed and rounded, of
which 50 small ones are to be sugared, 30 pigeon-fashion and 20 after
the fashion of little birds. Take of Aleppine twist and sigh of Al-Iráq
2 miskals each; also 2 okes of tongue-sucking, mouth and lip kissing,
all to be pounded and mixed. Then put upon a furnace 3 drams of Egyptian
grain with the addition of the beautiful fold of plumpness, boil it in
love-water and syrup of desire over a fire of wood of pleasure in the
retreat of the ardour. Decant the whole upon a royal díbáqy divan and
add to it 2 okes of saliva syrup and drink it fasting during 3 days.
Next take for dinner the melon of desire mixed with embrace-almond and
juice of the lemon of concord, and lastly 3 rolls of thigh-work and
enter the bath for the benefit of your health. And—The Peace!” When
Attaf had finished the reading of this paper he burst into a laugh at
the prescription and, turning to Ja’afar, he asked him with whom he was
in love and of whom he was enamoured. Ja’afar gave no answer, he spoke
not neither did he commence any discourse, when Attaf said, O my
brother, thou are not my friend, but thou art in my house esteemed as is
the soul in the body. Between me and thee there has been for the last
four months friendship, company, companionship and conversation. Why
then conceal thy situation? For me, I have fear and sorrow on thine
account. Thou art a stranger, thou art not of this capital. I am a son
of the city, I can dispel what thou hast (of trouble) and that of which
thou sufferest. By my life, which belongs to you, by the bread and salt
between us, reveal to me thy secret. And Attaf did not cease to speak
thus until Ja’afar yielded and said to him, It shall no longer be
concealed, and I will not blame those who are in love and are impatient.
Then he told his story from beginning to end, what was said to him by
the young lady and what she did with him and lastly he described the
quarter and the place. Now when Attaf heard the words of Ja’afar he
reflected on the description of the house and of the young lady and
concluded that the house was his house and the young lady was his
cousin-wife, and said to himself, There is no power nor strength but in
Allah the High, the Great. We are from God and to Him we return. Then he
came to his mind again and to the generosity of his soul and said to
himself, O Attaf! God hath favoured me and hath made me worthy of doing
good and hath sent to me I know not whence this stranger who hath become
bound in friendship with me during all this time and he hath acquired
over me the ties of friendship. His heart hath become attached to the
young woman and his love for her hath reached in him an imminent point.
Since that time he is almost on the verge of annihilation, in so
pitiable a condition and behold, he hopeth from me a good issue from his
trouble. He hath made known to me his situation after having concealed
it for so long a time: if I do not befriend him in his misfortune I
should resemble him who would build upon water and thus would aid him to
annihilate his existence. By the magnanimity of my God, I will further
him with my property and with my soul. I will divorce my cousin and will
marry her to him and I will not change my character, my generosity nor
my resolution. The Rawi says, that young woman was his wife and his
cousin, also a second wife as he was previously married to another, and
she occupied the house, his own house containing all that he possessed
of property and so forth, servants, odalisques and slaves. There was
also his other house which was for his guests, for drinking and eating
and to receive his friends and his company. Of this, however, he said
nothing to his cousin-wife when he came to see her at certain times.
When he heard that Ja’afar was in love with her he could not keep from
saying to him, Be quiet, I take upon myself to dispel thy chagrin, and
soon I shall have news of her, and if she is the daughter of the Naïb of
Damascus I will take the proper steps for thee even though I should lose
all my property; and if she is a slave-girl I will buy her for thee even
were her price such as to take all I possess. Thus he calmed the anguish
of Ja’afar the best way he could; then he went out from his own house
and entered that of his cousin-wife without making any change in his
habits or saying a single word save to his servants, Go to my uncle’s
and bring him to me. The boy then went for the uncle and brought him to
Attaf, and when the uncle entered the nephew arose to receive him,
embraced him and made him be seated, and, after he had been seated
awhile, Attaf came to him and said, O my uncle! there is naught but
good! Know that when God wills good to his servitor he shows to him the
way and my heart inclines to Meccah, to the house of God, to visit the
tomb of Mohammed (for whom be the most noble of prayers and the most
complete of salutations!) I have decided to visit those places this year
and I cannot leave behind me either attachments or debts or obligations;
nothing in fact that can disturb the mind, for no one can know who will
be the friend of the morrow. Here, then, is the writ of divorce of thy
daughter and of my other wife. Now when his uncle heard that, he was
troubled and exaggerating to himself the matter, he said, O son of my
brother, what is it that impels thee to this? If thou depart and leave
her and be absent as long as thou willest she is yet thy wife and thy
dependent which is sufficient. But Attaf said, O my uncle, what hath
been done is done. As soon as the young wife heard that, the abomination
of desolation overcame her, she became as one in mourning and was upon
the point of killing herself, because she loved her husband by reason of
his relationship and his education. But this was done by Attaf only to
please Ja’afar, and for that he was incited by his duty to do good to
his fellow beings. Then Attaf left the house and said to himself, if I
delay this matter it will be bruited abroad, and will come to the ears
of my friend who will be afflicted and will be ashamed to marry, and
what I have done will come to naught. The divorce of Attaf’s second
spouse was only out of regard to his cousin-wife, and that there might
not be an impediment to the success of his project. Then Attaf proceeded
to his guest-house and went in to Ja’afar, who when he saw him, asked
where he had been. Attaf replied, Make yourself easy, O my brother, I am
now occupied with your affair, I have sought out the young lady and I
know her. She is divorced from her husband and her ’iddah is not yet
expired, so expand your breast and gladden your soul, for when her
obligatory term of waiting shall be accomplished I will marry her to
you. And Attaf ceased not to divert him by eating and drinking,
amusements and shows, song and songstress until he knew that the ’iddah
of his cousin had ended; then he went to Ja’afar and said to him, “Know,
O my lord, that the father of the young woman thou sawest is one of my
friends, and if I betroth her that would not be proper on my part and he
will say: My friend hath not done well in betrothing my daughter to a
man who is a stranger and whom I know not. He will take her and carry
her to his own country and we shall be separated. Now I have an idea
that has occurred to me, and ’tis to send out for you a tent with ten
mamelukes and four servants upon horses and mules, baggage, stuffs,
chests of dresses, and horses and gilded vehicles. Everything I have
mentioned will be placed outside the city that no one shall know of
thee, and I will say that thou art Ja’afar the Barmeky the Caliph’s
Wazir. I will go to the Kady and the Wali and the Naïb and I will inform
them of thee (as Ja’afar); so will they come out to meet and salute
thee. Then thou wilt salute them and tell them that thou hast come on
business of the Caliph. Thou must also say thou hast heard that Damascus
is a very fine city and a hospitable, and add, I will go in to visit it
and if it prove favourable to me I will remain and marry to establish
between myself and its inhabitants relationship and friendship, and I
would like you to seek for me a man of high position and noble origin
who hath a beautiful cousin that I may marry. Attaf then said to
Ja’afar, O my lord, we know one who hath a daughter of noble origin,
that man is such-and-such an one, ask her of him for betrothal and say
to him, Here is her dowry, which is all that thou hast in the chests.
Then produce a purse of a thousand dinars and distribute them among
those present, and display the characteristic of the Barmekys, and take
out a piece of silken stuff and order them to draw up the marriage
contract immediately. If they sign it, declare to them that thou wilt
not enter the city because thou art pressed and thy bride will come to
thee. Should thou do thus, thou wilt accomplish what thou desirest, God
willing, then leave instantly and order that the tents be struck, the
camels loaded, and set out for thine own country in peace. Know that all
I shall do for you is little for the rights of friendship and
devotedness.” Ja’afar sprang up to kiss the hand of Attaf, but was
prevented, then he thanked him and praised him and passed the night with
him. The next morning at break of day he arose, made his ablutions, and
having recited his morning prayer, accompanied his host to the outside
of the city. Attaf ordered a great tent to be pitched and that
everything necessary should be carried to it; of horses, camels, mules,
slaves, mamelukes, chests containing all kinds of articles for
distribution, and boxes holding purses of gold and silver. He dressed
his guest in a robe worthy a Wazir, and set up for him a throne and sent
some slaves to the Naïb of Damascus to announce the arrival of Ja’afar
on business of the Caliph. As soon as the Naïb of Damascus was informed
of that, he went out accompanied by the notables of the city and of his
government and met the Wazir Ja’afar, and kissing the ground between his
hands, said to him, O my lord, why didst thou not inform me sooner in
order that we might be prepared for thine arrival. Ja’afar said, That
was not necessary, may God augment thy wealth, I have not come but with
the intention to visit this city; I desire to stay in it for some time
and I would also marry in it. I have learned that the Amír ’Amr has a
daughter of noble descent, I wish thou wouldst cause her to be brought
before thee and that thou betroth her to me. The Naïb of Damascus said,
Hearing is obeying. Her husband hath divorced her and desireth to go to
al-Hejaz on the pilgrimage and after her ’iddah hath expired and there
remaineth not any impediment the betrothal can take place. At the proper
time the Naïb of Damascus caused to be present the father of the lady
and spoke to him of what the Wazir Ja’afar had said and that he should
betroth his daughter, so that there was nothing more for the father to
say than, I hear and I obey. The Rawi says that Ja’afar ordered to be
brought the dress of honour and the gold from the purses to be thrown
out for distribution and commanded the presence of the Kady and
witnesses; and, when they arrived, he bade them write the marriage
contract. Then he brought forward and presented the ten chests and the
ten purses of gold, the dowry of the bride, and all those present, high
and low, and rich and poor gave him their best wishes and
congratulations. After the father of the lady had taken the dowry he
ordered the Kady to draw up the contract and presented to him a piece of
satin; he also called for sugar-water to drink and set before them the
table of viands, and they ate and washed their hands. Afterwards they
served sweet dishes and fruits; and when that was finished and the
contract passed, the Naïb of Damascus said to the Wazir, O my lord, I
will prepare a house for thy residence and for the reception of thy
wife. Ja’afar said, That cannot be; I am here on a commission of the
Commander of the Faithful, and I wish to take my wife with me to Baghdad
and only there can I have the bridal ceremonies. The father of the lady
said, Enter unto thy bride and depart when thou wilt. Ja’afar replied, I
cannot do that, but I wish thee to make up the trousseau of thy daughter
and have it ready so as to depart this very day. We only wait, said the
father of the bride, for the Naïb of Damascus to retire, to do what the
Wazir commands. He answered With love and good will; and the lady’s
father set about getting together the trousseau and making her ready. He
took her out and got her trousseau, mounted her upon a Hodaj, and when
she arrived at Ja’afar’s camp her people made their adieus and departed.
When Ja’afar had ridden to some distance from Damascus and had arrived
at Tiniat el ’Iqáb he looked behind him and perceived in the distance in
the direction of Damascus a horseman galloping towards him; so he
stopped his attendants and when the rider had come near them Ja’afar
looked at him and behold it was Attaf. He had come out after him and
cried, Hasten not, O my brother. And when he came up he embraced him and
said, O my lord, I have found no rest without thee, O my brother Abu
’l-Hasan, it would have been better for me never to have seen thee nor
known thee, for now I cannot support thine absence. Ja’afar thanked him
and said to him, I have not been able to act against what thou hast
prescribed for me and provided, but we pray God to bring near our
reunion and never more separate us. He is Almighty to do what He
willeth. After that Ja’afar dismounted and spread a silken carpet and
they sat down together, and Attaf laid a tablecloth with duck, chicken,
sweets and other delicacies, of which they ate and he brought out dry
fruits and wine. They drank for an hour of the day when they remounted
their horses and Attaf accompanied Ja’afar a way on the journey, when
Ja’afar said to him, Every departer must return, and he pressed him to
his breast and kissed him and said to him, O my brother Abu ’l-Hasan, do
not interrupt the sending of thy letters; but make known to me about
thyself, and thy condition as if I were present with thee. Then they
bade each other adieu and each went on his way. When the young wife
noticed that the camels had stopped on their march as well as their
people, she put out her head from the Hodaj and saw her cousin
dismounting with Ja’afar and they eating and drinking together and then
in company to the end of the road where they bade adieu exchanging a
recitation of poetry. So she said, The one, Wallahy is my cousin Attaf
and the other the man whom I saw seated under the window, and upon whom
I sprinkled the water. Doubtless he is the friend of my cousin. He hath
been seized with love for me, and complaining to my cousin, hath given
him a description of me and of my house; and the devotedness of his
character and the greatness of his soul must have impelled him to
divorce me and to take steps to marry me to that man. The Rawi says that
Attaf in bidding good-bye to Ja’afar left him joyful in the possession
of the young lady for whom he was on the point of ruin by his love, and
in having made the friendship of Attaf whom he intended to reward in
gratitude for what he had done by him. So glad was he to have the young
wife that everything that had taken place with Er-Rashid had passed out
of his mind. In the meanwhile she was crying and lamenting over what had
happened to her, her separation from her cousin and from her parents and
her country, and bemoaning what she did and what she had been; and her
scalding tears flowed while she recited these verses:—
I weep for these places and these beauties; blame not the lover if some
day he’s insane:
For the places the dear ones inhabit. O praise be to God! how sweet is
their dwelling!
God protect the past days while with you, my dear friends, and in the
same house may happiness join us!
On finishing this recitation she wept and lamented and recited again:—
I’m astonished at living without you at the troubles that come upon us:
I wish for you, dear absent ones, my wounded heart is still with you.
Then, still crying and lamenting, she went on:—
O you to whom I gave my soul, return; from you I wish’d to pluck it, but
could not succeed:
Then pity the rest of a life that I’ve sacrificed for thee, before the
hour of death my last look I will take:
If all of thee be lost astonished I’ll not be; my astonishment would be
that his lot will be to another.
Presently the Wazir Ja’afar coming up to the Hodaj said to the young
wife, O mistress of the Hodaj, thou hast killed us. When she heard this
address she called to him with dejection and humility, We ought not to
talk to thee for I am the cousin-wife of thy friend and companion Attaf,
prince of generosity and devotion. If there be in thee any feeling of
the self-denial of a man thou wilt do for him that which, in his
devotion, he hath done for thee. When Ja’afar heard these words he
became troubled and taking in the magnitude of the situation he said to
the young lady, O thou! thou art then his cousin-wife? and said she,
Yes! it is I whom thou sawest on such a day when this and that took
place and thy heart attached itself to me. Thou hast told him all that.
He divorced me, and while waiting for the expiration of my ’iddah
diverted thee that such and such was the cause of all my trouble. Now I
have explained to thee my situation: do thou the action of a man. When
Ja’afar heard these words he uttered a loud cry and said, We are from
God and to Him we return. O thou! thou art now to me an interdiction and
hast become a sacred deposit until thy return to where it may please
thee. Then said Ja’afar to a servant, Take good care of thy mistress.
After which they set forward and travelled on day and night. Now
Er-Rashid, after the departure of Ja’afar, became uneasy and sorrowful
at his absence. He lost patience and was tormented with a great desire
to see him again, while he regretted the conditions he had imposed as
impossible to be complied with and obliging him to the extremity of
tramping about the country like a vagabond, and forcing him to abandon
his native land. He had sent envoys after him to search for him in every
place, but he had never received any news of him, and was cast into
great embarrassment by reason of his absence. He was always waiting to
hear of him, and when Ja’afar had approached Baghdad and he, Er-Rashid,
had received the good tidings of his coming, he went forth to meet him,
and as soon as they came together they embraced each other, and the
Caliph became content and joyful. They entered together into the palace
and the Prince of True Believers seating Ja’afar at his side, said to
him, Relate to me thy story where thou hast been during thine absence
and what thou hast come upon. So Ja’afar told him then all that had
happened from the time he left him until the moment of finding himself
between his hands. Er-Rashid was greatly astonished and said, Wallahy,
thou hast made me sorrowful for thine absence, and hast inspired me with
great desire to see thy friend. My opinion is that thou divorce this
young lady and put her on the road homeward accompanied by someone in
whom thou hast confidence. If thy friend have an enemy he shall be our
enemy, and if he have a friend he also shall be ours; after which we
will make him come to us, and we shall see him and have the pleasure of
hearing him and pass the time with him in joy. Such a man must not be
neglected, we shall learn, by his generosity, bounty and useful things.
Ja’afar answered, To hear is obedience. Then Ja’afar apportioned to the
young lady a spacious house and servants and a handsome enclosure; and
he treated with generosity those who had come with her as suite and
followers. He also sent to her sets of furniture, mattresses and every
thing else she might need, while he never intruded upon her and never
saw her. He sent her his salutation and reassuring words that she should
be returned to her cousin; and he made her a monthly allowance of a
thousand dinars, besides the cost of her living. So far as to Ja’afar;
but as to Attaf, when he had bidden adieu to Ja’afar and had returned to
his country, those who were jealous of him took steps to ruin him with
the Naïb of Damascus to whom they said, O our lord, what is it that hath
made thee neglect Attaf? Dost thou not know that the Wazir was his
friend and that he went out after him to bid him adieu after our people
had returned, and accompanied him as far as Katifa, when Ja’afar said to
him, Hast thou need of anything O Attaf? he said _Yes_. Of what? asked
the Wazir, and he answered, That thou send me an imperial rescript
removing the Naïb of Damascus. Now this was promised to him, and the
most prudent thing is that thou invite him to breakfast before he takes
you to supper; success is in the opportunity and the assaulted profiteth
by the assaulter. The Naïb of Damascus replied, Thou hast spoken well,
bring him to me immediately. The Rawi says that Attaf was in his own
house, ignorant that anyone owed him grudge when suddenly in the night
he was surrounded and seized by the people of the Naïb of Damascus armed
with swords and clubs. They beat him until he was covered with blood,
and they dragged him along until they set him in presence of the Pasha
of Damascus who ordered the pillage of his house and of his slaves and
his servants and all his property and they took everything, his family
and his domestics and his goods. Attaf asked, What is my crime? and he
was answered, O scoundrel, thou art an ignorant fellow of the rabble,
dost dispute with the Naïb of Damascus? Then the Swordman was ordered to
strike his neck, and the man came forward and, cutting off a piece of
his robe, with it blindfolded his eyes, and was about to strike his neck
when one of the Emírs arose and said, Be not hasty, O my lord, but wait,
for haste is the whisper of Satan, and the proverb saith: Man gaineth
his ends by patience, and error accompanieth the hasty man. Then he
continued, Do not press the matter of this man; perhaps he who hath
spoken of him lieth and there is nobody without jealousy; so have
patience, for thou mayest have to regret the taking of his life
unjustly. Do not rest easy upon what may come to thee on the part of the
Wazir Ja’afar, and if he learn what thou hast done by this man be not
sure of thy life on his part. He will admit of no excuse for he was his
friend and companion. When the Naïb of Damascus heard that he awoke from
his slumber and conformed to the words of the Emir. He ordered that
Attaf should be put in prison, enchained and with a padlock upon his
neck, and bade them, after severely tightening the bonds, illtreat him.
They dragged him out, listening neither to his prayers nor his
supplications; and he cried every night, doing penance to God and
praying to Him for deliverance from his affliction and his misfortune.
In that condition he remained for three months. But one night as he woke
up he humiliated himself before God and walked about his prison, where
he saw no one; then, looking before him, he espied an opening leading
from the prison to the outside of the city. He tried himself against his
chain and succeeded in opening it; then, taking it from his neck, he
went out from the gaol running at full speed. He concealed himself in a
place, and darkness protected him until the opening of the city gate,
when he went out with the people and hastening his march he arrived at
Aleppo and entered the great mosk. There he saw a crowd of strangers on
the point of departure and Attaf asked them whither they were going, and
they answered to Baghdad. Whereupon he cried, And I with you. They said,
Upon the earth is our weight, but upon Allah is our nourishment. Then
they went on their march until they arrived at Koufa after a travel of
twenty days, and then continued journeying till they came to Baghdad.
Here Attaf saw a city of strong buildings, and very rich in elegant
palaces reaching to the clouds, a city containing the learned and the
ignorant, and the poor and the rich, and the virtuous and the evil doer.
He entered the city in a miserable dress, rags upon his shoulders, and
upon his head a dirty conical cap, and his hair had become long and
hanging over his eyes and his entire condition was most wretched. He
entered one of the mosks. For two days he had not eaten. He sat down,
when a vagabond entered the mosk and seating himself in front of Attaf
threw off from his shoulder a bag from which he took out bread and a
chicken, and bread again and sweets and an orange, and olive and
date-cake and cucumbers. Attaf looked at the man and at his eating,
which was as the table of ’Isa son of Miriam (upon whom be peace!). For
four months he had not had a sufficient meal and he said to himself, I
would like to have a mouthful of this good cheer and a piece of this
bread, and then cried for very hunger. The fellow looked at him and
said, Bravo! why dost thou squint and do what strangers do? By the
protection of God, if you weep tears enough to fill the Jaxartes and the
Bactrus and the Dajlah and the Euphrates and the river of Basrah and the
stream of Antioch and the Orontes and the Nile of Egypt and the Salt Sea
and the ebb and the flow of the Ocean, I will not let thee taste a
morsel. But, said the buffoon, if thou wish to eat of chicken and white
bread and lamb and sweets and mutton patties, go thou to the house of
Ja’afar son of Yahya the Barmeky, who hath received hospitality from a
Damascus man named Attaf. He bestoweth charity in honour of him in this
manner, and he neither getteth up nor sitteth down without speaking of
him. Now when Attaf heard these words from the buffoon he looked up to
heaven and said, O Thou whose attributes are inscrutable, bestow thy
benefits upon thy servant Attaf. Then he recited this couplet:—
Confide thy affairs to thy Creator; set aside thy pains and dismiss thy
thoughts.
Then Attaf went to a paper-seller and got from him a piece of paper and
borrowed an inkstand and wrote as follows:—From thy brother Attaf whom
God knoweth. Let him who hath possessed the world not flatter himself,
he will some day be cast down and will lose it in his bitter fate. If
thou see me thou wilt not recognise me for my poverty and my misery;
and, because of the change in situation and the reverses of the times,
my soul and body are reduced by hunger, by the long journey I have made,
until at last I have come to thee. And peace be with thee. Then he
folded the paper and returning the pen-case to its owner asked for the
house of Ja’afar, and when it was shown to him he went there and stood
at a distance before it. The doorkeepers saw him standing, neither
commencing nor repeating a word, and nobody spoke to him, but as he was
thus standing embarrassed, an eunuch dressed in a striped robe and
golden belt passed by him. Attaf remained motionless before him, then
went up to him, kissed his hands and said to him, O my lord, the Apostle
of Allah (upon whom be peace and salutation) hath said, The medium of a
good deed is like him who did it, and he who did it belongeth to the
dwellers in heaven. The man said to him, What is thy need? and said he,
I desire of thy goodness to send in this paper to thy lord and say to
him, Thy brother Attaf is standing at the door. When the servant heard
his words he got into a great and excessive rage so that his eyes
swelled in his head and he asked, O cursed one, thou art then the
brother of the Wazir Ja’afar! and as he had in his hand a rod with a
golden end, he struck Attaf with it in the face and his blood flowed and
he fell full length to the ground in his weakness from weeping and from
receiving the blow. The Rawi says that God hath placed the instinct of
good in the heart of some domestics, even as he hath placed that of evil
in the heart of others. Another of the domestics was raised up against
his companion by good will to Attaf and reproved him for striking the
stranger and was answered, Didst thou not hear, O brother, that he
pretended to be the brother of the Wazir Ja’afar? and the second one
said, O man of evil, son of evil, slave of evil, O cursed one, O hog! is
Ja’afar one of the prophets? is he not a dog of the earth like
ourselves? Men are all brethren, of one father and one mother, of Adam
and of Eve; and the poet hath said:—
Men by comparison all are brethren, their father is Adam their mother is
Eve;