Arab-land and Ajam o'er?
No flesh it beareth and it hath no blood, * Nor down nor any
feathers e'er it wore.
'Tis eaten cooked and eke 'tis eaten cold; * 'Tis eaten buried
'neath the flames that roar:
It showeth twofold colours, silver white * And yellow brighter
than pure golden ore:
'Tis not seen living or we count it dead: * So ree my riddle rich
in marvel-store!'"
She replied, "Thou makest longsome the questioning anent an egg worth a
mite." Q "And this?,
'I waved to and fro and he waved to and fro, * With a motion so
pleasant, now fast and now slow;
And at last he sunk down on my bosom of snow; * 'Your lover
friend?'"
"No friend, my fan;"[FN#444] said she. Q "How many words did Allah
speak to Moses?" "It is related of the Apostle that he said, 'God spoke
to Moses fifteen hundred and fifteen words.'" Q "Tell me of fourteen
things that speak to the Lord of the Worlds?" "The seven heavens and
the seven earths, when they say, 'We come obedient to Thy
command.'"[FN#445]—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
saying her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Fifty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the damsel
made the answer, the philosopher continued, "Tell me of Adam and how he
was first created?" and she said, "Allah created Adam of clay: the clay
He made of foam and the foam of the sea, the sea of darkness, darkness
of light, light of a fish, the fish of a rock, the rock of a ruby, the
ruby of water, and the water He created by His Omnipotence according to
His saying (exalted be His name!), 'His commandment when He willeth
aught, is but to say, BE,—and IT IS.'"[FN#446] Q "What is meant by the
poet in these verses,
'And eater lacking mouth and even maw; * Yet trees and beasts to
it are daily bread:
Well fed it thrives and shows a lively life, * But give it water
and you do it dead?'"
"This," quoth she, "is Fire." "And in these;" he asked,
"Two lovers barred from every joy and bliss, * Who through the
livelong night embracing lie:
They guard the folk from all calamities, * But with the rising
sun apart they fly?"
She answered, "The leaves of a door." Quoth he, "Tell me of the gates
of Gehenna?" Quoth she, "They are seven in number and their names are
comprised in these two couplets,
'Jahannam, next Lazα, and third Hatνm; * Then count Sa'νr and
Sakar eke, five-fold,
Sixth comes Jahνm and Hαwiyah the seventh; * Here are seven Hells
in four lines briefly told.'"
Quoth he "To what doth the poet refer when he saith,
'She wears a pair of ringlets long let down * Behind her, as she
comes and goes at speed,
And eye that never tastes of sleep nor sheds * A tear, for ne'er
a drop it hath at need;
That never all its life wore stitch of clothes; * Yet robes
mankind in every-mode of weed?'"
Quoth she, "A needle." Q "What is the length and what the breadth of
the bridge Al-Sirαt?" "Its length is three thousand years' journey, a
thousand in descent and a thousand in ascent and a thousand level: it
is sharper than a sword and finer than a hair."—And Shahrazad perceived
the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Sixtieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the damsel
had described to him Al-Sirat, the philosopher said, "Inform me how
many intercessions with Allah hath the Prophet for each soul?"[FN#447]
"Three." Q "Was Abu Bakr the first who embraced Al-Islam?" "Yes." Q
"Yet Ali became a Moslem before him?" "Ali came to the Prophet, when he
was a boy of seven years old, for Allah vouchsafed him knowledge of the
way of salvation in his tender youth, so that he never prostrated
himself to idols." Quoth he, "Tell me which is the more excellent, Ali
or Abbαs?" Now she knew that, in propounding this question, Ibrahim was
laying a trap for her; for if she said, "Ali is more excellent than
Abbas," she would lack excuse with the Caliph for undervaluing his
ancestor; so she bowed her head awhile, now reddening, then paling, and
lastly said, "Thou askest me of two excellent men, each having his own
excellence. Let us return to what we were about." When the Caliph Harun
al-Rashid heard her, he stood up and said, "Thou hast spoken well, by
the Lord of the Ka'abah, O Tawaddud!" Then quoth Ibrahim the
rhetorician, "What meaneth the poet when he saith,
'Slim-wasted one, whose taste is sweetest-sweet, * Likest a lance
whereon no head we scan:
And all the lieges find it work them weal, * Eaten of afternoon
in Ramazan.'"
She answered, "The sugar-cane;" and he said, "Tell me of many things."
Asked she, "What are they?" and he said, "What is sweeter than honey;
what is sharper than the sword; what is swifter than poison; what is
the delight of a moment and what the contentment of three days; what is
the pleasantest of days; what is the joy of a week; what is that debt
the worst debtor denieth not; what is the prison of the tomb; what is
the joy of the heart; what is the snare of the soul; what is
death-in-life; what is the disease that may not be healed; what is the
shame that may not be wiped off; what is the beast that woneth not in
cultivated fields, but lodgeth in waste places and hateth the sons of
Adam and hath in him somewhat of the make of seven strong and violent
beasts?" Quoth she, "Hear what I shall say in reply; then put off thy
clothes, that I may explain to thee;" and the Caliph said, "Expound,
and he shall doff his clothes." So she said, "Now that, which is
sweeter than honey, is the love of pious children to their two parents;
that, which is sharper than the sword, is the tongue; that, which is
swifter than poison, is the Envier's eye; the delight of a moment is
carnal copulation and the contentment of three days is the depilatory
for women; the pleasantest of days is that of profit on merchandise;
the joy of a week is the bride; the debt, which the worst debtor
denieth not, is death; the prison of the tomb is a bad son; the joy of
the heart is a woman obedient to her husband (and it is said also that,
when fleshmeat descendeth upon the heart, it rejoiceth therein); the
snare of the soul is a disobedient slave; death-in-life is poverty; the
disease that may not be healed is an ill-nature, and the shame that may
not be wiped away is an ill daughter; lastly, the beast that woneth not
in cultivated fields, but lodgeth in waste places and hateth the sons
of Adam and hath in him somewhat of the make of seven strong and
violent beasts, is the locust, whose head is as the head of a horse,
its neck as the neck of the bull, its wings as the wings of the
vulture, its feet as the feet of the camel, its tail as the tail of the
serpent, its belly as the belly of the scorpion and its horns as the
horns of the gazelle." The Caliph was astounded at her quickness and
understanding, and said to the rhetorician, "Doff thy clothes." So he
rose up and cried, "I call all who are present in this assembly to
witness that she is more learned than I and every other learned man."
And he put off his clothes and gave them to her, saying, "Take them and
may Allah not bless them to thee!" So the Caliph ordered him fresh
clothes and said, "O Tawaddud, there is one thing left of that for
which thou didst engage, namely, chess." And he sent for experts of
chess and cards[FN#448] and trictrac. The chess-player sat down before
her, and they set the pieces, and he moved and she moved; but, every
move he made she speedily countered,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn
of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Sixty-first Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the damsel
was playing chess with the expert in presence of the Commander of the
Faithful, Harun al-Rashid, whatever move he made was speedily countered
by her, till she beat him and he found himself checkmated. Quoth he, "I
did but lead thee on, that thou mightest think thyself skilful: but set
up again, and thou shalt see." So they placed the pieces a second time,
when he said in himself, "Open thine eyes or she will beat thee." And
he fell to moving no piece, save after calculation, and ceased not to
play, till she said, "Thy King is dead!—Checkmate." When he saw this he
was confounded at her quickness and understanding; but she laughed and
said, "O professor, I will make a wager with thee on this third game. I
will give thee the queen and the right-hand castle and the left-hand
knight; if thou beat me, take my clothes, and if I beat thee, I will
take thy clothes." Replied he, "I agree to this;" and they replaced the
pieces, she removing queen, castle and knight.[FN#449] Then said she,
"Move, O master." So he moved, saying to himself, "I cannot but beat
her, with such odds," and planned a combination; but, behold, she moved
on, little by little, till she made one of her pawns[FN#450] a queen
and pushing up to him pawns and other pieces, to take off his
attention, set one in his way and tempted him to take it. Accordingly,
he took it and she said to him, "The measure is meted and the loads
equally balanced.[FN#451] Eat till thou are over-full; naught shall be
thy ruin, O son of Adam, save thy greed. Knowest thou not that I did
but tempt thee, that I might finesse thee? See: this is check-mate!"
adding, "So doff off thy clothes." Quoth he, "Leave me my bag-trousers,
so Allah repay thee;" and he swore by Allah that he would contend with
none, so long as Tawaddud abode in the realm of Baghdad. Then he
stripped off his clothes and gave them to her and went away. Thereupon
came the backgammon-player, and she said to him, "If I beat thee, this
day, what wilt thou give me?" Quoth he, "I will give thee ten suits of
brocade of Constantinople, figured with gold, and ten suits of velvet
and a thousand gold pieces; and if I beat thee, I ask nothing but that
thou write me an acknowledgment of my victory." Quoth she, "To it,
then, and do thy best." So they played, and he lost and went away,
chattering in Frankish jargon and saying, "By the bounty of the
Commander of the Faithful, there is not her like in all the regions of
the world!" Then the Caliph summoned players on instruments of music
and asked her, "Dost thou know aught of music?"; when she answered,
"Even so!" He bade bring a worn lute, polished by use, whose owner
forlorn and lone was by parting trodden down; and of which quoth one,
describing it
"Allah watered a land, and upsprang a tree * Struck root deep
down, and raised head a-sky:
The birds o'ersang it when green its wood; * And the Fair
o'ersing now the wood is dry."
So they brought the lute in a bag of red satin, with tassels of
saffron-coloured silk: and she opened the bag, and took it out and
behold on it was graven,
"Oft hath a tender bough made lute for maid, * whose swift sweet
lays at feast men's hearts invade:
She sings; it follows on her song, as though * The
Bulbuls[FN#452] taught her all the modes she played."
She laid her lute in her lap and with bosom inclining over it, bent to
it with the bending of a mother who suckleth her child; then she
preluded in twelve different modes, till the whole assembly was
agitated with delight, like a waving sea, and she sang the following,
"Cut short this strangeness, leave unruth of you; * My heart
shall love you aye, by youth of you!
Have ruth on one who sighs and weeps and moans, * Pining and
yearning for the troth of you."
The Caliph was ravished and exclaimed, "Allah bless thee and be
merciful to him who taught thee!": whereupon she rose and kissed the
ground before him. Then he sent for money and paid her master Abu
al-Husn an hundred thousand gold pieces to her price; after which he
said to her, "O Tawaddud, ask a boon of me!" Replied she, "I ask of
thee that thou restore me to my lord who sold me." "'Tis well,"
answered the Caliph and restored her to her master and gave her five
thousand dinars for herself. Moreover, he appointed Abu al-Husn one of
his cup-companions for a permanence,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn
of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Sixty-second Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Caliph gave
the damsel five thousand dinars for herself and restored her to her
master whom he appointed one of his cup-companions for a permanence and
assigned him a monthly stipend of a thousand dinars so long as he
should live; and he abode with the damsel Tawaddud in all solace and
delight of life. Marvel then, O King, at the eloquence of this damsel
and the hugeness of her learning and understanding and her perfect
excellence in all branches of art and science; and consider the
generosity of the Commander of the Faithful, Harun al-Rashid, in that
he gave her master this money and said to her, "Ask a boon of me;" and
she besought him to restore her to her lord. So he restored her to him
and gave her five thousand dinars for herself and made him one of his
boon-companions. Where is such generosity to be found after the
Abbaside Caliphs?—May Allah Almighty have mercy upon them, one and all!
And they tell a tale of
THE ANGEL OF DEATH WITH THE PROUD KING AND THE DEVOUT MAN.
It is related, O auspicious King, that one of the olden monarchs was
once minded to ride out in state with the Officers of his realm and the
Grandees of his retinue and display to the folk the marvels of his
magnificence. So he ordered his Lords and Emirs equip them therefor and
commanded his keeper of the wardrobe to bring him of the richest of
raiment, such as befitted the King in his state; and he bade them bring
his steeds[FN#453] of the finest breeds and pedigrees every man heeds;
which being done, he chose out of the raiment what rejoiced him most
and of the horses that which he deemed best; and, donning the clothes,
together with a collar set with margarites and rubies and all manner
jewels, mounted and set forth in state, making his destrier prance and
curvet among his troops and glorying in his pride and despotic power.
And Iblis came to him and, laying his hand upon his nose, blew into his
nostrils the breath of hauteur and conceit, so that he magnified and
glorified himself and said in his heart, "Who among men is like unto
me?" And he became so puffed up with arrogance and self-sufficiency,
and so taken up with the thought of his own splendour and magnificence,
that he would not vouchsafe a glance to any man. Presently, there stood
before him one clad in tattered clothes and saluted him, but he
returned not his salam; whereupon the stranger laid hold of his horse's
bridle. "Lift thy hand," cried the King, "thou knowest not whose
bridle-rein it is whereof thou takest hold." Quoth the other, I have a
need of thee." Quoth the King, "Wait till I alight and then name thy
need." Rejoined the stranger, "It is a secret and I will not tell it
but in thine ear." So the King bowed his head to him and he said, "I am
the Angel of Death and I purpose to take thy soul." Replied the King,
"Have patience with me a little, whilst I return to my house and take
leave of my people and children and neighbours and wife." "By no means
so," answered the Angel; "thou shalt never return nor look on them
again, for the fated term of thy life is past." So saying, he took the
soul of the King (who fell off his horse's back dead) and departed
thence. Presently the Death Angel met a devout man, of whom Almighty
Allah had accepted, and saluted him. He returned the salute, and the
Angel said to him, "O pious man, I have a need of thee which must be
kept secret." "Tell it in my ear," quoth the devotee; and quoth the
other, "I am the Angel of Death." Replied the man, "Welcome to thee!
and praised be Allah for thy coming! I am aweary of awaiting thine
arrival; for indeed long hath been thine absence from the lover which
longeth for thee." Said the Angel, "If thou have any business, make an
end of it;" but the other answered, saying, "There is nothing so urgent
to me as the meeting with my Lord, to whom be honour and glory!" And
the Angel said "How wouldst thou fain have me take thy soul? I am
bidden to take it as thou willest and choosest." He replied, "Tarry
till I make the Wuzu-ablution and pray; and, when I prostrate myself,
then take my soul while my body is on the ground."[FN#454] Quoth the
Angel, "Verily, my Lord (be He extolled and exalted!) commanded me not
to take thy soul but with thy consent and as thou shouldst wish; so I
will do thy will." Then the devout man made the minor ablution[FN#455]
and prayed: and the Angel of Death took his soul in the act of
prostration and Almighty Allah transported it to the place of mercy and
acceptance and forgiveness. And they tell another tale of
THE ANGEL OF DEATH AND THE RICH KING.
A certain King had heaped up coin beyond count and gathered store of
all precious things, which Allah the Most Highest hath created. So, in
order that he might take his pleasure whenas he should find leisure to
enjoy all this abounding wealth he had collected, he built him a palace
wide and lofty such as befitteth and beseemeth Kings; and set thereto
strong doors and appointed, for its service and its guard, servants and
soldiers and doorkeepers to watch and ward. One day, he bade the cooks
dress him somewhat of the goodliest of food and assembled his household
and retainers and boon-companions and servants to eat with him, and
partake of his bounty. Then he sat down upon the sofa of his kingship
and dominion; and, propping his elbow upon the cushion, addressed
himself, saying, "O soul, thou hast gathered together all the wealth of
the world; so now take thy leisure therein and eat of this good at
thine ease, in long life and prosperity ever rife!"—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Sixty-third Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that hardly had the
King made an end of saying to himself, "Eat of this weal at thine ease,
in long life and prosperity ever rife!" when a man clad in tattered
raiment, with an asker's wallet hanging at his neck, as he were one who
came to beg food, knocked with the door-ring a knock so loud and
terrible that the whole palace shook as with quake of earth and the
King's throne trembled. The servants were affrighted and rushed to the
door, and when they saw the man who had knocked they cried out at him,
saying, "Woe to thee! what manner of unmannerly fashion be this? Wait
till the King eateth and we will then give thee of what is left." Quoth
he, "Tell your lord to come out and speak with me, for I have of him a
pressing need and a matter to heed." They cried, "Away, fool! who art
thou that we should bid our lord come forth to thee?" But he said,
"Tell him of this." So they went in and told the King, who said, "Did
ye not rebuke him and draw upon him and threaten him!" Now as he spoke,
behold, there came another knock at the gate, louder than the first
knock, whereupon the servants sprang at the stranger with staves and
weapons, to fall upon him and slay him; but he shouted at them, saying,
"Bide in your steads, for I am the Angel of Death." Hereat their hearts
quaked and their wits forsook them; their understandings were in
confusion, their side-muscles quivered in perturbation and their limbs
lost the power of motion. Then said the King to them, "Tell him to take
a substitute[FN#456] in my place and one to relieve me in this case."
But the Angel answered, saying, "I will take no substitute, and I come
not but on thine account, to cause separation between thee and the
goods thou hast gathered together and the riches thou hast heaped up
and entreasured." When the King heard this, he wept and groaned,
saying, "Allah curse the treasure which hath deluded and undone me and
diverted me from the service of my Lord! I deemed it would profit me,
but to-day it is a regret for me and a calamity to me, and behold, I go
forth, empty-handed of it, and leave it to my foes." Thereupon Allah
caused the Treasure to speak out and it said, "Wherefore cursest thou
me?[FN#457] Curse thyself, for Allah created both me and eke thyself of
the dust and appointed me to be in thine hand, that thou mightest
provide thee with me a viaticum for the next world and give alms with
me to the poor and the needy and the sick; and build mosques and
hospices and bridges and aqueducts, so might I be an aidance unto thee
in the world to come. But thou didst garner me and hoard me up and on
thine own vanities bestowedst me, neither gavest thou thanks for me, as
was due, but wast ungrateful to me; and now thou must leave me to thy
foes and thou hast naught save thy regretting and thy repenting. But
what is my sin, that thou shouldest revile me?" Then the Angel of Death
took the King's soul as he sat on his throne before he ate of the food,
and he fell down dead. Quoth Allah Almighty, "While they were rejoicing
for that which had been given them, we suddenly laid hold on them; and,
behold, they were seized with despair."[FN#458] And they tell another
tale of
THE ANGEL OF DEATH AND THE KING OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL.
There was a puissant despot among the Kings of the Banϊ Isrανl, who sat
one day upon the throne of his kingship, when he saw come in to him, by
the gate of the hall, a man of forbidding aspect and horrible presence.
The King was affrighted at his sudden intrusion and his look terrified
him; so he sprang up before him and said, "Who art thou, O man? Who
gave thee leave to come in to me and who invited thee to enter my
house?" Quoth the stranger, "Verily the Lord of the House sent me to
thee, nor can any doorkeeper exclude me, nor need I leave to come in to
Kings; for I reck not of a Sultan's majesty neither of the multitude of
his guards. I am he from whom no tyrant is at rest, nor can any man
escape from my grasp: I am the Destroyer of delights and the Sunderer
of societies." Now when the King heard this a palsy crept over
him[FN#459] and he fell on his face in a swoon; but presently coming to
himself, he asked, "Art thou then the Angel of Death?"; and the
stranger answered, "Yes." "I conjure thee, by Allah," quoth the King,
"grant me one single day's respite, that I may pray pardon of my sins
and ask absolution of my Lord and restore to their rightful owners the
monies which are in my treasures, so I may not be burdened with the woe
of a reckoning nor with the misery of punishment therefor." Replied the
Angel, "Well-away! well-away! this may be in no way."—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Four Hundred and Sixty-fourth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that quoth the
Death-messenger to the King, "Well-away, well-away! this may be in no
way. How can I grant thee a reprieve when the days of thy life are
counted and thy breaths numbered and thy moments fixed and written?"
"Grant me an hour," asked the King; but the Angel answered saying, "The
hour was in the account and hath sped, and thou unheeding aught; and
hath fled, and thou taking no thought: and now thy breathings are
accomplished, and there remaineth to thee but one breath." Quoth the
King, "Who will be with me when I am transported to my tomb?" Quoth the
Angel, "Naught will be with thee but thy works good or evil." "I have
no works," said the King; and the Angel, "Doubtless thy long home will
be in hell-fire and thy doom the wrath of the Almighty." Then he seized
the soul of the King, and he fell off his throne and dropped on the
earth dead. And there arose a mighty weeping and wailing and clamour of
keening for him among the people of his court, and had they known that
to which he went of the wrath of his Lord, their weeping for him had
been sorer and their wailing louder and more abounding. And a story is
told of
ISKANDAR ZU AL-KARNAYN[FN#460] AND A CERTAIN TRIBE OF POOR FOLK.