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THE BOOK OF THE
THOUSAND NIGHTS AND A NIGHT
A Plain and Literal Translation
of the Arabian Nights Entertainments
Translated and Annotated by
Richard F. Burton
VOLUME FIVE
Privately Printed By The Burton Club
To Doctor George Bird.
My Dear Bird, This is not a strictly medical work, although in places treating
of subjects which may modestly be called hygienic. I inscribe it to you
because your knowledge of Egypt will enable you to appreciate its finer
touches; and for another and a yet more cogent reason, namely, that you are one
of my best and oldest friends.
Ever yours sincerely,
Richard F. Burton
Athenæum Club, October 20, 1885.
Contents of the Fifth Volume
59. The Ebony Horse
60. Uns Al-Wujud and the Wazir's Daughter Al-Ward Fi'l-Akmam or Rose-In-Hood
61. Abu Nowas With the Three Boys and the Caliph Harun Al-Rashid
62. Abdallah Bin Ma'amar With the Man of Bassorah and His Slave Girl
63. The Lovers of the Banu Ozrah
64. The Wazir of Al-Yaman and His Younger Brother
65. The Loves of the Boy and Girl at School
66. Al-Mutalammis and His Wife Umaymah
67. The Caliph Marun Al-Rashid and Queen Zubaydah in the Bath
68. Harun Al-Rashid and the Three Poets
69. Mus'ab Bin Al-Zubayr and Ayishah His Wife
70. Abu Al-Aswad and His Slave-Girl
71. Harun Al-Rashid and the Two Slave-Girls
72. The Caliph Harun Al-Rashid and the Three Slave-Girls
73. The Miller and His Wife
74. The Simpleton and the Sharper
75. The Kazi Abu Yusuf With Harum Al-Rashid and Queen Zubaydah
76. The Caliph Al-Hakim and the Merchand
77. King Kisra Anushirwan and the Village Damsel
78. The Water-Carrier and the Goldsmith's Wife
79. Khusrau and Shirin and the Fisherman
80. Yahya Bin Khalid the Barmecide and the Poor Man
81. Mohammed Al-Amin and the Slave-Girl
82. The Sons of Yahya Bin Khalid and Sa'id Bin Salim Al-Bahili
83. The Woman's Trick Against Her Husband
84. The Devout Woman and the Two Wicked Elders
85. Ja'afar the Barmecide and the Old Badawi
86. The Caliph Omar Bin Al-Khattab and the Young Badawi
87. The Caliph Al-Maamum and the Pyramids of Egypt
88. The Thief and the Merchant
89. Masrur the Eunuch and Ibn Al-Karibi
90. The Devotee Prince
91. The Unwise Schoolmaster Who Fell in Love by Report
92. The Foolish Dominie
93. The Illiterate Who Set Up For a Schoolmaster
94. The King and the Virtuous Wife
95. Abd Al-Rahman the Maghribi's Story of the Rukh
96. Adi Bin Zayd and the Princess Hind
97. Di'ibil Al-Khuza'i With the Lady and Muslim Bin Al-Walid
98. Isaac of Mosul and the Merchant
99. The Three Unfortunate Lovers
100. How Abu Hasan Brake Wind
101. The Lovers of the Banu Tayy
102. The Mad Lover
103. The Prior Who Became A Moslem
104. The Loves of Abu Isa and Jurrat Al-Ayn
105. Al-Amin Son of Al-Rashid and His Uncle Ibrahim Bin Al-Mahdi
106. Al-Fath Bin Khakan and Al-Mutawakkil
107. The Man's Dispute With the Learned Woman Concerning the Relative Excellence of Male and Female
108. Abu Suwayd and the Pretty Old Woman
109. The Emir ali Bin Tahir and the Girl Muunis
110. The Woman Who had a Boy and the Other Who had a Man to Lover
111. Ali the Cairene and the Haunted House in Baghdad
112. The Pilgrim Man and the Old Woman
113. Abu Alhusn and His Slave-Girl Tawaddud
114. The Angel of Death With the Proud King and the Devout Man
115. The Angel of Death and the Rich King
116. The Angel of Death and the King of the Children of Israel
117. Iskandar Zu Al-Karnayn and a Certain Tribe of Poor Folk
118. The Righteousness of King Anushirwan
119. The Jewish Kazi and His Pious Wife
120. The Shipwrecked Woman and Her Child
121. The Pious Black Slave
122. The Devout Tray-Maker and His Wife
123. Al-Jajjaj and the Pious Man
124. The Blacksmith Who Could Handle Fire Without Hurt
125. The Devotee To Whom Allah Gave a Cloud for Service and the Devout King
126. The Moslem Champion and the Christian Damsel
127. The Christian King's Daughter and the Moslem
128. The Prophet and the Justice of Providence
129. The Ferryman of the Nile and the Hermit
130. The Island King and the Pious Israelite
131. Abu Al-Hasan and Abu Ja'afar the Leper
132. The Queen of Serpents
a. The Adventures of Bulukiya
b. The Story of Jansha
The Book Of The
THOUSAND NIGHTS AND A NIGHT
THE EBONY HORSE.[FN#1]
There was once in times of yore and ages long gone before, a great and
puissant King, of the Kings of the Persians, Sαbϊr by name, who was the
richest of all the Kings in store of wealth and dominion and surpassed
each and every in wit and wisdom. He was generous, open handed and
beneficent, and he gave to those who sought him and repelled not those
who resorted to him; and he comforted the broken-hearted and honourably
entreated those who fled to him for refuge. Moreover, he loved the poor
and was hospitable to strangers and did the oppressed justice upon the
oppressor. He had three daughters, like full moons of shining light or
flower-gardens blooming bright; and a son as he were the moon; and it
was his wont to keep two festivals in the twelve- month, those of the
Nau-Roz, or New Year, and Mihrgαn the Autumnal Equinox,[FN#2] on which
occasions he threw open his palaces and gave largesse and made
proclamation of safety and security and promoted his chamberlains and
viceroys; and the people of his realm came in to him and saluted him
and gave him joy of the holy day, bringing him gifts and servants and
eunuchs. Now he loved science and geometry, and one festival-day as he
sat on his kingly throne there came in to him three wise men, cunning
artificers and past masters in all manner of craft and inventions,
skilled in making things curious and rare, such as confound the wit;
and versed in the knowledge of occult truths and perfect in mysteries
and subtleties. And they were of three different tongues and countries,
the first a Hindi or Indian,[FN#3] the second a Roumi or Greek and the
third a Farsi or Persian. The Indian came forwards and, prostrating
himself before the King, wished him joy of the festival and laid before
him a present befitting his dignity; that is to say, a man of gold, set
with precious gems and jewels of price and hending in hand a golden
trumpet. When Sabur[FN#4] saw this, he asked, "O sage, what is the
virtue of this figure?"; and the Indian answered, "O my lord, if this
figure be set at the gate of thy city, it will be a guardian over it;
for, in an enemy enter the place, it will blow this clarion against him
and he will be seized with a palsy and drop down dead." Much the King
marvelled at this and cried, "By Allah, O sage, an this thy word be
true, I will grant thee thy wish and thy desire." Then came forward the
Greek and, prostrating himself before the King, presented him with a
basin of silver, in whose midst was a peacock of gold, surrounded by
four-and-twenty chicks of the same metal. Sabur looked at them and
turning to the Greek, said to him, "O sage, what is the virtue of this
peacock?" "O my lord," answered he, "as often as an hour of the day or
night passeth, it pecketh one of its young and crieth out and flappeth
its wings, till the four-and-twenty hours are accomplished; and when
the month cometh to an end, it will open its mouth and thou shalt see
the crescent therein." And the King said, "An thou speak sooth, I will
bring thee to thy wish and thy desire." Then came forward the Persian
sage and, prostrating himself before the King, presented him with a
horse[FN#5] of the blackest ebony-wood inlaid with gold and jewels, and
ready harnessed with saddle, bridle and stirrups such as befit Kings;
which when Sabur saw, he marvelled with exceeding marvel and was
confounded at the beauty of its form and the ingenuity of its fashion.
So he asked, "What is the use of this horse of wood, and what is its
virtue and what the secret of its movement?"; and the Persian answered,
"O my lord, the virtue of this horse is that, if one mount him, it will
carry him whither he will and fare with its rider through the air and
cover the space of a year in a single day." The King marvelled and was
amazed at these three wonders, following thus hard upon one another on
the same day, and turning to the sage, said to him, "By Allah the
Omnipotent, and our Lord the Beneficent, who created all creatures and
feedeth them with meat and drink, an thy speech be veritable and the
virtue of thy contrivance appear, I will assuredly give thee whatsoever
thou lustest for and will bring thee to thy desire and thy wish!"[FN#6]
Then he entertained the sages three days, that he might make trial of
their gifts; after which they brought the figures before him and each
took the creature he had wroughten and showed him the mystery of its
movement. The trumpeter blew the trump; the peacock pecked its chicks
and the Persian sage mounted the ebony house, whereupon it soared with
him high in air and descended again. When King Sabur saw all this, he
was amazed and perplexed and felt like to fly for joy and said to the
three sages, "Now I am certified of the truth of your words and it
behoveth me to quit me of my promise. Ask ye, therefore, what ye will,
and I will give you that same." Now the report of the King's daughters
had reached the sages, so they answered, "If the King be content with
us and accept of our gifts and allow us to prefer a request to him, we
crave of him that he give us his three daughters in marriage, that we
may be his sons-in-law; for that the stability of Kings may not be
gainsaid." Quoth the King, "I grant you that which you wish and you
desire," and bade summon the Kazi forthright, that he might marry each
of the sages to one of his daughters. Now it fortuned that the
Princesses were behind a curtain, looking on; and when they heard this,
the youngest considered her husband to be and behold, he was an old
man,[FN#7] an hundred years of age, with hair frosted, forehead
drooping, eyebrows mangy, ears slitten, beard and mustachios stained
and dyed; eyes red and goggle; cheeks bleached and hollow; flabby nose
like a brinjall, or egg- plant[FN#8]; face like a cobbler's apron,
teeth overlapping and lips like camel's kidneys, loose and pendulous;
in brief a terror, a horror, a monster, for he was of the folk of his
time the unsightliest and of his age the frightfullest; sundry of his
grinders had been knocked out and his eye-teeth were like the tusks of
the Jinni who frighteneth poultry in hen-houses. Now the girl was the
fairest and most graceful of her time, more elegant than the gazelle
however tender, than the gentlest zephyr blander and brighter than the
moon at her full; for amorous fray right suitable; confounding in
graceful sway the waving bough and outdoing in swimming gait the pacing
roe; in fine she was fairer and sweeter by far than all her sisters.
So, when she saw her suitor, she went to her chamber and strewed dust
on her head and tore her clothes and fell to buffeting her face and
weeping and wailing. Now the Prince, her brother, Kamar al-Akmαr, or
the Moon of Moons hight, was then newly returned from a journey and,
hearing her weeping and crying came in to her (for he loved her with
fond affection, more than his other sisters) and asked her, "What
aileth thee? What hath befallen thee? Tell me and conceal naught from
me." So she smote her breast and answered, "O my brother and my dear
one, I have nothing to hide. If the palace be straitened upon thy
father, I will go out; and if he be resolved upon a foul thing, I will
separate myself from him, though he consent not to make provision for
me; and my Lord will provide." Quoth he, "Tell me what meaneth this
talk and what hath straitened thy breast and troubled thy temper." "O
my brother and my dear one," answered the Princess, "Know that my
father hath promised me in marriage to a wicked magician who brought
him, as a gift, a horse of black wood, and hath bewitched him with his
craft and his egromancy; but, as for me, I will none of him, and would,
because of him, I had never come into this world!" Her brother soothed
her and solaced her, then fared to his sire and said, "What be this
wizard to whom thou hast given my youngest sister in marriage, and what
is this present which he hath brought thee, so that thou hast
killed[FN#9] my sister with chagrin? It is not right that this should
be." Now the Persian was standing by and, when he heard the Prince's
words, he was mortified and filled with fury and the King said, "O my
son, an thou sawest this horse, thy wit would be confounded and thou
wouldst be amated with amazement." Then he bade the slaves bring the
horse before him and they did so; and, when the Prince saw it, it
pleased him. So (being an accomplished cavalier) he mounted it
forthright and struck its sides with the shovel-shaped stirrup-irons;
but it stirred not and the King said to the Sage, "Go show him its
movement, that he also may help thee to win thy wish." Now the Persian
bore the Prince a grudge because he willed not he should have his
sister; so he showed him the pin of ascent on the right side of the
horse and saying to him, "Trill this," left him. Thereupon the Prince
trilled the pin and lo! the horse forthwith soared with him high in
ether, as it were a bird, and gave not overflying till it disappeared
from men's espying, whereat the King was troubled and perplexed about
his case and said to the Persian, "O sage, look how thou mayest make
him descend." But he replied, "O my lord, I can do nothing, and thou
wilt never see him again till Resurrection-day, for he, of his
ignorance and pride, asked me not of the pin of descent and I forgot to
acquaint him therewith." When the King heard this, he was enraged with
sore rage; and bade bastinado the sorcerer and clap him in jail, whilst
he himself cast the crown from his head and beat his face and smote his
breast. Moreover, he shut the doors of his palaces and gave himself up
to weeping and keening, he and his wife and daughters and all the folk
of the city; and thus their joy was turned to annoy and their gladness
changed into sore affliction and sadness. Thus far concerning them; but
as regards the Prince, the horse gave not over soaring with him till he
drew near the sun, whereat he gave himself up for lost and saw death in
the skies, and was confounded at his case, repenting him of having
mounted the horse and saying to himself, "Verily, this was a device of
the Sage to destroy me on account of my youngest sister; but there is
no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the
Great! I am lost without recourse; but I wonder, did not he who made
the ascent-pin make also a descent-pin?" Now he was a man of wit and
knowledge and intelligence; so he fell to feeling all the parts of the
horse, but saw nothing save a screw, like a cock's head, on its right
shoulder and the like on the left, when quoth he to himself, "I see no
sign save these things like buttons." Presently he turned the
right-hand pin, whereupon the horse flew heavenwards with increased
speed. So he left it and looking at the sinister shoulder and finding
another pin, he wound it up and immediately the steed's upwards motion
slowed and ceased and it began to descend, little by little, towards
the face of the earth, while the rider became yet more cautious and
careful of his life.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
to say her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Fifty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Prince
wound up the sinister screw, the steed's upward motion slowed and
ceased, and it began to descend, little by little, towards the earth
while the rider became yet more cautious and careful of his life. And
when he saw this and knew the uses of the horse, his heart was filled
with joy and gladness and he thanked Almighty Allah for that He had
deigned deliver him from destruction. Then he began to turn the horse's
head whithersoever he would, making it rise and fall at pleasure, till
he had gotten complete mastery over its every movement. He ceased not
to descend the whole of that day, for that the steed's ascending flight
had borne him afar from the earth; and, as he descended, he diverted
himself with viewing the various cities and countries over which he
passed and which he knew not, never having seen them in his life.
Amongst the rest, he descried a city ordered after the fairest fashion
in the midst of a verdant and riant land, rich in trees and streams,
with gazelles pacing daintily over the plains; whereat he fell a-musing
and said to himself, "Would I knew the name of yon town and in what
land it is!" And he took to circling about it and observing it right
and left. By this time, the day began to decline and the sun drew near
to its downing; and he said in his mind, "Verily I find no goodlier
place to night in than this city; so I will lodge here and early on the
morrow I will return to my kith and kin and my kingdom; and tell my
father and family what hath passed and acquaint him with what mine eyes
have seen." Then he addressed himself to seeking a place wherein he
might safely bestow himself and his horse and where none should descry
him, and presently behold, he espied a-middlemost of the city a palace
rising high in upper air surrounded by a great wall with lofty
crenelles and battlements, guarded by forty black slaves, clad in
complete mail and armed with spears and swords, bows and arrows. Quoth
he, "This is a goodly place," and turned the descent-pin, whereupon the
horse sank down with him like a weary bird, and alighted gently on the
terrace-roof of the palace. So the Prince dismounted and ejaculating
"Alhamdolillah"—praise be to Allah[FN#10]—he began to go round about
the horse and examine it, saying, "By Allah, he who fashioned thee with
these perfections was a cunning craftsman, and if the Almighty extend
the term of my life and restore me to my country and kinsfolk in safety
and reunite me with my father, I will assuredly bestow upon him all
manner bounties and benefit him with the utmost beneficence." By this
time night had overtaken him and he sat on the roof till he was assured
that all in the palace slept; and indeed hunger and thirst were sore
upon him, for that he had not tasted food nor drunk water since he
parted from his sire. So he said within himself, "Surely the like of
this palace will not lack of victual;" and, leaving the horse above,
went down in search of somewhat to eat. Presently, he came to a
staircase and descending it to the bottom, found himself in a court
paved with white marble and alabaster, which shone in the light of the
moon. He marvelled at the place and the goodliness of its fashion, but
sensed no sound of speaker and saw no living soul and stood in
perplexed surprise, looking right and left and knowing not whither he
should wend. Then said he to himself, "I may not do better than return
to where I left my horse and pass the night by it; and as soon as day
shall dawn I will mount and ride away."— And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Fifty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that quoth the king's
son to himself, "I may not do better than pass the night by my horse;
and as soon as day shall dawn I will mount and ride away." However, as
he tarried talking to himself, he espied a light within the palace, and
making towards it, found that it came from a candle that stood before a
door of the Harim, at the head of a sleeping eunuch, as he were one of
the Ifrits of Solomon or a tribesman of the Jinn, longer than lumber
and broader than a bench. He lay before the door, with the pommel of
his sword gleaming in the flame of the candle, and at his head was a
bag of leather[FN#11] hanging from a column of granite. When the Prince
saw this, he was affrighted and said, "I crave help from Allah the
Supreme! O mine Holy One, even as Thou hast already delivered me from
destruction, so vouchsafe me strength to quit myself of the adventure
of this palace!" So saying, he put out his hand to the budget and
taking it, carried it aside and opened it and found in it food of the
best. He ate his fill and refreshed himself and drank water, after
which he hung up the provision-bag in its place and drawing the
eunuch's sword from its sheath, took it, whilst the slave slept on,
knowing not whence destiny should come to him. Then the Prince fared
forwards into the palace and ceased not till he came to a second door,
with a curtain drawn before it; so he raised the curtain and behold, on
entering he saw a couch of the whitest ivory, inlaid with pearls and
jacinths and jewels, and four slave-girls sleeping about it. He went up
to the couch, to see what was thereon, and found a young lady lying
asleep, chemised with her hair[FN#12] as she were the full moon
rising[FN#13] over the Eastern horizon, with flower-white brow and
shining hair-paring and cheeks like blood-red anemones and dainty moles
thereon. He was amazed at her as she lay in her beauty and loveliness,
her symmetry and grace, and he recked no more of death. So he went up
to her, trembling in every nerve and, shuddering with pleasure, kissed
her on the right cheek; whereupon she awoke forthright and opened her
eyes, and seeing the Prince standing at her head, said to him, "Who art
thou and whence comest thou?" Quoth he, "I am thy slave and thy lover."
Asked she, "And who brought thee hither?" and he answered, "My Lord and
my fortune." Then said Shams al-Nahαr[FN#14] (for such was her name),
"Haply thou art he who demanded me yesterday of my father in marriage
and he rejected thee, pretending that thou wast foul of favour. By
Allah, my sire lied in his throat when he spoke this thing, for thou
art not other than beautiful." Now the son of the King of Hind had
sought her in marriage, but her father had rejected him, for that he
was ugly and uncouth, and she thought the Prince was he. So, when she
saw his beauty and grace (for indeed he was like the radiant moon) the
syntheism[FN#15] of love gat hold of her heart as it were a flaming
fire, and they fell to talk and converse. Suddenly, her waiting-women
awoke and, seeing the Prince with their mistress, said to her, "Oh my
lady, who is this with thee?" Quoth she, "I know not; I found him
sitting by me, when I woke up: haply 'tis he who seeketh me in marriage
of my sire." Quoth they, "O my lady, by Allah the All-Father, this is
not he who seeketh thee in marriage, for he is hideous and this man is
handsome and of high degree. Indeed, the other is not fit to be his
servant."[FN#16] Then the handmaidens went out to the eunuch, and
finding him slumbering awoke him, and he started up in alarm. Said
they, "How happeth it that thou art on guard at the palace and yet men
come in to us, whilst we are asleep?" When the black heard this, he
sprang in haste to his sword, but found it not; and fear took him and
trembling. Then he went in, confounded, to his mistress and seeing the
Prince sitting at talk with her, said to him, "O my lord, art thou man
or Jinni?" Replied the Prince, "Woe to thee, O unluckiest of slaves:
how darest thou even the sons of the royal Chosroes[FN#17] with one of
the unbelieving Satans?" And he was as a raging lion. Then he took the
sword in his hand and said to the slave, "I am the King's son-in-law,
and he hath married me to his daughter and bidden me go in to her." And
when the eunuch heard these words he replied, "O my lord, if thou be
indeed of kind a man as thou avouchest, she is fit for none but for
thee, and thou art worthier of her than any other." Thereupon the
eunuch ran to the King, shrieking loud and rending his raiment and
heaving dust upon his head; and when the King heard his outcry, he said
to him, "What hath befallen thee?: speak quickly and be brief; for thou
hast fluttered my heart." Answered the eunuch, "O King, come to thy
daughter's succour; for a devil of the Jinn, in the likeness of a
King's son, hath got possession of her; so up and at him!" When the
King heard this, he thought to kill him and said, "How camest thou to
be careless of my daughter and let this demon come at her?" Then he
betook himself to the Princess's palace, where he found her slave-women
standing to await him and asked them, "What is come to my daughter?" "O
King," answered they, "slumber overcame us and, when we awoke, we found
a young man sitting upon her couch in talk with her, as he were the
full moon; never saw we aught fairer of favour than he. So we
questioned him of his case and he declared that thou hadst given him
thy daughter in marriage. More than this we know not, nor do we know if
he be a man or a Jinni; but he is modest and well bred, and doth
nothing unseemly or which leadeth to disgrace." Now when the King heard
these words, his wrath cooled and he raised the curtain little by
little and looking in, saw sitting at talk with his daughter a Prince
of the goodliest with a face like the full moon for sheen. At this
sight he could not contain himself, of his jealousy for his daughter's
honour; and, putting aside the curtain, rushed in upon them drawn sword
in hand like a furious Ghul. Now when the Prince saw him he asked the
Princess, "Is this thy sire?"; and she answered, "Yes."—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixtieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Price
saw the King rushing in upon them, drawn sword in hand, like a furious
Ghul he asked the Princess, "Is this thy sire?"; and she answered,
"Yes." Whereupon he sprang to his feet and, seizing his sword, cried
out at the King with so terrible a cry that he was confounded. Then the
youth would have fallen on him with the sword; but the King seeing that
the Prince was doughtier than he, sheathed his scymitar and stood till
the young man came up to him, when he accosted him courteously and said
to him, "O youth, art thou a man or a Jinni?" Quoth the Prince, "Did I
not respect thy right as mine host and thy daughter's honour, I would
spill thy blood! How darest thou fellow me with devils, me that am a
Prince of the sons of the royal Chosroes who, had they wished to take
thy kingdom, could shake thee like an earthquake from thy glory and thy
dominions and spoil thee of all thy possessions?" Now when the King
heard his words, he was confounded with awe and bodily fear of him and
rejoined, "If thou indeed be of the sons of the Kings, as thou
pretendest, how cometh it that thou enterest my palace without my
permission, and smirchest mine honour, making thy way to my daughter
and feigning that thou art her husband and claiming that I have given
her to thee to wife, I that have slain Kings and Kings' sons, who
sought her of me in marriage? And now who shall save thee from my might
and majesty when, if I cried out to my slaves and servants and bade
them put thee to the vilest of deaths they would slay thee forthright?
Who shall deliver thee out of my hand?" When the Prince heard this
speech of the King he answered, "Verily, I wonder at thee and at the
shortness and denseness of thy wit! Say me, canst covet for thy
daughter a mate comelier than myself, and hast ever seen a stouter
hearted man or one better fitted for a Sultan or a more glorious in
rank and dominion than I?" Rejoined the King, "Nay, by Allah! but I
would have had thee, O youth, act after the custom of Kings and demand
her from me to wife before witnesses, that I might have married her to
thee publicly; and now, even were I to marry her to thee privily, yet
hast thou dishonoured me in her person." Rejoined the Prince, "Thou
sayest sooth, O King, but if thou summon thy slaves and thy soldiers
and they fall upon me and slay me, as thou pretendest, thou wouldst but
publish thine own disgrace, and the folk would be divided between
belief in thee and disbelief in thee. Wherefore, O King, thou wilt do
well, meseemeth, to turn from this thought to that which I shall
counsel thee." Quoth the King, "Let me hear what thou hast to advise;"
and quoth the Prince, "What I have to propose to thee is this: either
do thou meet me in combat singular, I and thou; and he who slayeth his
adversary shall be held the worthier and having a better title to the
kingdom; or else, let me be this night and, whenas dawns the morn, draw
out against me thy horsemen and footmen and servants; but first tell me
their number." Said the King, "They are forty thousand horse, beside my
own slaves and their followers,[FN#18] who are the like of them in
number." Thereupon said the Prince, "When the day shall break, do thou
array them against me and say to them"—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn
of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixty-first Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that quoth the
Prince, "When day shall break, do thou array them against me and say to
them: 'This man is a suitor to me for my daughter's hand, on condition
that he shall do battle single-handed against you all; for he
pretendeth that he will overcome you and put you to the rout, and
indeed that ye cannot prevail against him.' After which, leave me to do
battle with them: if they slay me, then is thy secret surer guarded and
thine honour the better warded; and if I overcome them and see their
backs, then is it the like of me a King should covet to his
son-in-law." So the King approved of his opinion and accepted his
proposition, despite his awe at the boldness of his speech and amaze at
the pretensions of the Prince to meet in fight his whole host, such as
he had described to him, being at heart assured that he would perish in
the fray and so he should be quit of him and freed from the fear of
dishonour. Thereupon he called the eunuch and bade him go to his Wazir
without stay and delay and command him to assemble the whole of the
army and cause them don their arms and armour and mount their steeds.
So the eunuch carried the King's order to the Minister, who
straightaway summoned the Captains of the host and the Lords of the
realm and bade them don their harness of derring-do and mount horse and
sally forth in battle array. Such was their case; but as regards the
King, he sat a long while conversing with the young Prince, being
pleased with his wise speech and good sense and fine breeding. And when
it was day-break he returned to his palace and, seating himself on his
throne, commanded his merry men to mount and bade them saddle one of
the best of the royal steeds with handsome selle and housings and
trappings and bring it to the Prince. But the youth said, "O King, I
will not mount horse, till I come in view of the troops and review
them." "Be it as thou wilt," replied the King. Then the two repaired to
the parade-ground, where the troops were drawn up, and the young Prince
looked upon them and noted their great number; after which the King
cried out to them, saying, "Ho, all ye men, there is come to me a youth
who seeketh my daughter in marriage; and in very sooth never have I
seen a goodlier than he; no, nor a stouter of heart nor a doughtier of
arm, for he pretendeth that he can overcome you, single-handed, and
force you to flight and that, were ye an hundred thousand in number,
yet for him would ye be but few. Now when he chargeth down on you, do
ye receive him upon point of pike and sharp of sabre; for, indeed, he
hath undertaken a mighty matter." Then quoth the King to the Prince,
"Up, O my son, and do thy devoir on them." Answered he, "O King, thou
dealest not justly and fairly by me: how shall I go forth against them,
seeing that I am afoot and the men be mounted?" The King retorted, "I
bade thee mount, and thou refusedst; but choose thou which of my horses
thou wilt." Then he said, "Not one of thy horses pleaseth me, and I
will ride none but that on which I came." Asked the King, "And where is
thy horse?" "Atop of thy palace." "In what part of my palace?" "On the
roof." Now when the King heard these words, he cried, "Out on thee!
this is the first sign thou hast given of madness. How can the horse be
on the roof? But we shall at once see if thou speak the truth or lies."
Then he turned to one of his chief officers and said to him, "Go to my
palace and bring me what thou findest on the roof." So all the people
marvelled at the young Prince's words, saying one to other, "How can a
horse come down the steps from the roof? Verily this is a thing whose
like we never heard." In the meantime the King's messenger repaired to
the palace and mounting to the roof, found the horse standing there and
never had he looked on a handsomer; but when he drew near and examined
it, he saw that it was made of ebony and ivory. Now the officer was
accompanied by other high officers, who also looked on and they laughed
to one another, saying, "Was it of the like of this horse that the
youth spake? We cannot deem him other than mad; however, we shall soon
see the truth of his case."—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixty-second Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the high
officials looked upon the horse, they laughed one to other and said,
"Was it of the like of his horse that the youth spake? We cannot deem
him other than mad; however, we shall soon see the truth of his case.
Peradventure herein is some mighty matter, and he is a man of high
degree." Then they lifted up the horse bodily and, carrying it to the
King, set it down before him, and all the lieges flocked round to look
at it, marvelling at the beauty of its proportions and the richness of
its saddle and bridle. The King also admired it and wondered at it with
extreme wonder; and he asked the Prince, "O youth, is this thy horse?"
He answered, "Yes, O King, this is my horse, and thou shalt soon see
the marvel it showeth." Rejoined the King, "Then take and mount it,"
and the Prince retorted, "I will not mount till the troops withdraw
afar from it." So the King bade them retire a bowshot from the horse;
whereupon quoth its owner, "O King, see thou; I am about to mount my
horse and charge upon thy host and scatter them right and left and
split their hearts asunder." Said the King, "Do as thou wilt; and spare
not their lives, for they will not spare thine." Then the Prince
mounted, whilst the troops ranged themselves in ranks before him, and
one said to another, "When the youth cometh between the ranks, we will
take him on the points of our pikes and the sharps of our sabres."
Quoth another, "By Allah, this a mere misfortune: how shall we slay a
youth so comely of face and shapely of form?" And a third continued,
"Ye will have hard work to get the better of him; for the youth had not
done this, but for what he knew of his own prowess and pre- eminence of
valour." Meanwhile, having settled himself in his saddle, the Prince
turned the pin of ascent; whilst all eyes were strained to see what he
would do, whereupon the horse began to heave and rock and sway to and
fro and make the strangest of movements steed ever made, till its belly
was filled with air and it took flight with its rider and soared high
into the sky. When the King saw this, he cried out to his men, saying,
"Woe to you! catch him, catch him, ere he 'scape you!" But his Wazirs
and Viceroys said to him, "O King, can a man overtake the flying bird?
This is surely none but some mighty magician or Marid of the Jinn or
devil, and Allah save thee from him. So praise thou the Almighty for
deliverance of thee and of all thy host from his hand." Then the King
returned to his palace after seeing the feat of the Prince and, going
in to his daughter, acquainted her with what had befallen them both on
the parade-ground. He found her grievously afflicted for the Prince and
bewailing her separation from him; wherefore she fell sick with violent
sickness and took to her pillow. Now when her father saw her on this
wise, he pressed her to his breast and kissing her between the eyes,
said to her, "O my daughter, praise Allah Almighty and thank Him for
that He hath delivered us from this crafty enchanter, this villain,
this low fellow, this thief who thought only of seducing thee!" And he
repeated to her the story of the Prince and how he had disappeared in
the firmament; and he abused him and cursed him knowing not how dearly
his daughter loved him. But she paid no heed to his words and did but
redouble in her tears and wails, saying to herself, "By Allah, I will
neither eat meat nor drain drink, till Allah reunite me with him!" Her
father was greatly concerned for her case and mourned much over her
plight; but, for all he could do to soother her, love-longing only
increased on her.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixty-third Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King mourned
much over his daughter's plight but, for all he could do to soothe her,
love-longing only increased on her. Thus far concerning the King and
Princess Shams al-Nahαr; but as regards Prince Kamar al-Akmar, when he
had risen high in air, he turned his horse's head towards his native
land, and being alone mused upon the beauty of the Princess and her
loveliness. Now he had enquired of the King's people the name of the
city and of its King and his daughter; and men had told him that it was
the city of Sana'α.[FN#19] So he journeyed with all speed, till he drew
near his father's capital and, making an airy circuit about the city,
alighted on the roof of the King's palace, where he left his horse,
whilst he descended into the palace and seeing its threshold strewn
with ashes, though that one of his family was dead. Then he entered, as
of wont, and found his father and mother and sisters clad in mourning
raiment of black, all pale of faces and lean of frames. When his sire
descried him and was assured that it was indeed his son, he cried out
with a great cry and fell down in a fit, but after a time coming to
himself, threw himself upon him and embraced him, clipping him to his
bosom and rejoicing in him with exceeding joy and extreme gladness. His
mother and sisters heard this; so they came in and seeing the Prince,
fell upon him, kissing him and weeping, and joying with exceeding
joyance. Then they questioned him of his case; so he told them all that
had passed from first to last, and his father said to him, "Praised be
Allah for thy safety, O coolth of my eyes and core of my heart!" Then
the King bade hold high festival, and the glad tidings flew through the
city. So they beat drums and cymbals and, doffing the weed of mourning,
they donned the gay garb of gladness and decorated the streets and
markets; whilst the folk vied with one another who should be the first
to give the King joy, and the King proclaimed a general pardon and
opening the prisons, released those who were therein prisoned.
Moreover, he made banquets for the people, with great abundance of
eating and drinking, for seven days and nights and all creatures were
gladsomest; and he took horse with his son and rode out with him, that
the folk might see him and rejoice. After awhile the Prince asked about
the maker of the horse, saying, "O my father, what hath fortune done
with him?"; and the King answered, "Allah never bless him nor the hour
wherein I set eyes on him! For he was the cause of thy separation from
us, O my son, and he hath lain in gaol since the day of thy
disappearance." Then the King bade release him from prison and, sending
for him, invested him in a dress of satisfaction and entreated him with
the utmost favour and munificence, save that he would not give him his
daughter to wife; whereat the Sage raged with sore rage and repented of
that which he had done, knowing that the Prince had secured the secret
of the steed and the manner of its motion. Moreover, the King said to
his son, "I reck thou wilt do will not to go near the horse henceforth
and more especially not to mount it after this day; for thou knowest
not its properties, and belike thou art in error about it." Not the
Prince had told his father of his adventure with the King of Sana'a and
his daughter and he said, "Had the King intended to kill thee, he had
done so; but thine hour was not yet come." When the rejoicings were at
an end, the people returned to their places and the King and his son to
the palace, where they sat down and fell to eating and drinking and
making merry. Now the King had a handsome handmaiden who was skilled in
playing the lute; so she took it and began to sweep the strings and
sing thereto before the King and his son of separation of lovers, and
she chanted the following verses:—
"Deem not that absence breeds in me aught of forgetfulness; *
What should remember I did you fro' my remembrance wane?
Time dies but never dies the fondest love for you we bear; *
And in your love I'll die and in your love I'll arise
again."[FN#20]
When the Prince heard these verses, the fires of longing flamed up in
his heart and pine and passion redoubled upon him. Grief and regret
were sore upon him and his bowels yearned in him for love of the King's
daughter of Sana'a; so he rose forthright and, escaping his father's
notice, went forth the palace to the horse and mounting it, turned the
pin of ascent, whereupon bird-like it flew with him high in air and
soared towards the upper regions of the sky. In early morning his
father missed him and, going up to the pinnacle of the palace, in great
concern, saw his son rising into the firmament; whereat he was sore
afflicted and repented in all penitence that he had not taken the horse
and hidden it; and he said to himself, "By Allah, if but my son return
to me, I will destroy the horse, that my heart may be at rest
concerning my son." And he fell again to weeping and bewailing
himself.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixty-fourth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the King again
fell to weeping and bewailing himself for his son. Such was his case;
but as regards the Prince, he ceased not flying on through air till he
came to the city of Sana'a and alighted on the roof as before. Then he
crept down stealthily and, finding the eunuch asleep, as of wont,
raised the curtain and went on little by little, till he came to the
door of the Princess's alcove-[FN#21]chamber and stopped to listen;
when lo! he heard her shedding plenteous tears and reciting verses,
whilst her women slept round her. Presently, overhearing her weeping
and wailing quoth they, "O our mistress, why wilt thou mourn for one
who mourneth not for thee?" Quoth she, "O ye little of wit, is he for
whom I mourn of those who forget or who are forgotten?" And she fell
again to wailing and weeping, till sleep overcame her. Hereat the
Prince's heart melted for her and his gall-bladder was like to burst,
so he entered and, seeing her lying asleep without covering,[FN#22]
touched her with his hand; whereupon she opened her eyes and espied him
standing by her. Said he, "Why all this crying and mourning?" And when
she knew him, she threw herself upon him, and took him around the neck
and kissed him and answered, "For thy sake and because of my separation
from thee." Said he, "O my lady, I have been made desolate by thee all
this long time!" But she replied, "'Tis thou who hast desolated me; and
hadst thou tarried longer, I had surely died!" Rejoined he, "O my lady,
what thinkest thou of my case with thy father and how he dealt with me?
Were it not for my love of thee, O temptation and seduction of the
Three Worlds, I had certainly slain him and made him a warning to all
beholders; but, even as I love thee, so I love him for thy sake." Quoth
she, "How couldst thou leave me: can my life be sweet to me after
thee?" Quoth he, "Let what hath happened suffice: I am now hungry, and
thirsty." So she bade her maidens make ready meat and drink, and they
sat eating and drinking and conversing till night was well nigh ended;
and when day broke he rose to take leave of her and depart, ere the
eunuch should awake. Shams al-Nahar asked him, "Whither goest thou?";
and he answered, "To my father's house, and I plight thee my troth that
I will come to thee once in every week." But she wept and said, "I
conjure thee, by Allah the Almighty, take me with thee whereso thou
wendest and make me not taste anew the bittergourd[FN#23] of separation
from thee." Quoth he, "Wilt thou indeed go with me?" and quoth she,
"Yes." "Then," said he, "arise that we depart." So she rose forthright
and going to a chest, arrayed herself in what was richest and dearest
to her of her trinkets of gold and jewels of price, and she fared
forth, her handmaids recking naught. So he carried her up to the roof
of the palace and, mounting the ebony horse, took her up behind him and
made her fast to himself, binding her with strong bonds; after which he
turned the shoulder-pin of ascent, and the horse rose with him high in
air. When her slave-women saw this, they shrieked aloud and told her
father and mother, who in hot haste ran to the palace-roof and looking
up, saw the magical horse flying away with the Prince and Princess. At
this the King was troubled with ever-increasing trouble and cried out,
saying, "O King's son, I conjure thee, by Allah, have ruth on me and my
wife and bereave us not of our daughter!" The Prince made him no reply;
but, thinking in himself that the maiden repented of leaving father and
mother, asked her, "O ravishment of the age, say me, wilt thou that I
restore thee to thy mother and father?": whereupon she answered, "By
Allah, O my lord, that is not my desire: my only wish is to be with
thee, wherever thou art; for I am distracted by the love of thee from
all else, even from my father and mother." Hearing these words the
Prince joyed with great joy, and made the horse fly and fare softly
with them, so as not to disquiet her; nor did they stay their flight
till they came in sight of a green meadow, wherein was a spring of
running water. Here they alighted and ate and drank; after which the
Prince took horse again and set her behind him, binding her in his fear
for her safety; after which they fared on till they came in sight of
his father's capital. At this, the Prince was filled with joy and
bethought himself to show his beloved the seat of his dominion and his
father's power and dignity and give her to know that it was greater
than that of her sire. So he set her down in one of his father's
gardens without the city where his parent was wont to take his
pleasure; and, carrying her into a domed summer-house prepared there
for the King, left the ebony horse at the door and charged the damsel
keep watch over it, saying, "Sit here, till my messenger come to thee;
for I go now to my father, to make ready a palace for thee and show
thee my royal estate." She was delighted when she heard these words and
said to him, "Do as thou wilt;"—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day
and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixty-fifth Night,