al-Rashid commanded, "Bring me the girl at once, for I long for her
exceedingly." So they brought her and the Caliph said to Abu Yusuf, I
have a mind to have her forthright, for I cannot bear to abstain from
her during the prescribed period of purification; now how is this to be
done?" Abu Yusuf replied, "Bring me one of thine own male slaves who
hath never been manumitted." So they brought one and Abu Yusuf said,
"Give me leave to marry her to him; then let him divorce her before
consummation; and thus shall it be lawful for thee to lie with her
before purification." This second expedient pleased the Caliph yet more
than the first; he sent for the Mameluke and, whenas he came, said to
the Kazi "I authorise thee to marry her to him." So the Imam proposed
the marriage to the slave, who accepted it, and performed the ceremony;
after which he said to the slave, "Divorce her, and thou shalt have an
hundred dinars." But he replied, "I won't do this;" and the Imam went
on to increase his offer, and the slave to refuse till he bid him a
thousand dinars. Then the man asked him, "Doth it rest with me to
divorce her, or with thee or with the Commander of the Faithful?" He
answered, "It is in thy hand." "Then by Allah," quoth the slave, "I
will never do it; no, never!" Hearing these words the Caliph was
exceeding wroth and said to the Imam, "What is to be done, O Abu
Yusuf?" Replied he, "Be not concerned, O Commander of the Faithful; the
thing is easy. Make this slave the damsel's chattel." Quoth Al-Rashid,
"I give him to her;" and the Imam said to the girl, "Say: I accept." So
she said, I accept;" whereon quoth Abu Yusuf, "I pronounce separation
from bed and board and divorce between them, for that he hath become
her property, and so the marriage is annulled." With this, Al-Rashid
rose to his feet and exclaimed, "It is the like of thee that shall be
Kazi in my time." Then he called for sundry trays of gold and emptied
them before Abu Yusuf, to whom he said, "Hast thou wherein to put
this?" The Imam bethought him of the mule's nose-bag; so he sent for it
and, filling it with gold, took it and went home. And on the morrow, he
said to his friends, "There is no easier nor shorter road to the goods
of this world and the next, than that of religious learning; for, see,
I have gotten all this money by answering two or three questions." So
consider thou, O polite reader,[FN#217] the pleasantness of this
anecdote, for it compriseth divers goodly features, amongst which are
the complaisance of Ja'afar to Al Rashid, and the wisdom of the Caliph
who chose such a Kazi and the excellent learning of Abu Yusuf, may
Almighty Allah have mercy on their souls one and all! And they also
tell the
TALE OF THE LOVER WHO FEIGNED HIMSELF A THIEF.
When Khбlid bin Abdallah al-Kasri[FN#218] was Emir of Bassorah, there
came to him one day a company of men dragging a youth of exceeding
beauty and lofty bearing and perfumed attire; whose aspect expressed
good breeding, abundant wit and dignity of the gravest. They brought
him before the Governor, who asked what it was and they replied, "This
fellow is a thief, whom we caught last night in our dwelling-house."
Whereupon Khбlid looked at him and was pleased with his
well-favouredness and elegant aspect; so he said to the others, "Loose
him," and going up to the young man, asked what he had to say for
himself. He replied, "Verily the folk have spoken truly and the case is
as they have said." Quoth Khбlid, "And what moved thee to this and thou
so noble of port and comely of mien?" Quoth the other "The lust after
worldly goods, and the ordinance of Allah (extolled exalted be He!)."
Rejoined Khбlid, "Be thy mother bereaved of thee![FN#219] Hadst thou
not, in thy fair face and sound sense and good breeding, what should
restrain thee from thieving?" Answered the young man, "O Emir, leave
this talk and proceed to what Almighty Allah hath ordained; this is
what my hands have earned, and, 'God is not unjust towards
mankind.'"[FN#220] So Khбlid was silent awhile considering the matter
then he bade the young man draw near him and said, "Verily, thy
confession before witnesses perplexeth me, for I cannot believe thee to
be a thief: haply thou hast some story that is other than one of theft;
and if so tell it me." Replied the youth "O Emir, imagine naught other
than what I have confessed to in thy presence; for I have no tale to
tell save that verily I entered these folks' house and stole what I
could lay hands on and they caught me and took the stuff from me and
carried me before thee." Then Khalid bade clap him in gaol and
commended a crier to cry throughout Bassorah, "O yes! O yes! Whoso be
minded to look upon the punishment of such an one, the thief, and the
cutting-off of his hand, let him be present to- morrow morning at such
a place!" Now when the young man found himself in prison, with irons on
his feet, he sighed heavily and with tears streaming from his eyes
extemporized these couplets,
"When Khбlid menaced off to strike my hand * If I refuse to tell
him of her case;
Quoth I, 'Far, far fro' me that I should tell * A love, which
ever shall my heart engrace;
Loss of my hand for sin I have confessed * To me were easier than
to shame her face.'"
The warders heard him and went and told Khбlid who, when it was dark
night, sent for the youth and conversed with him. He found him clever
and well-bred, intelligent, lively and a pleasant companion; so he
ordered him food and he ate. Then after an hour's talk said Khбlid, "I
know indeed thou hast a story to tell that is no thief's; so when the
Kazi shall come to-morrow morning and shall question thee about this
robbery, do thou deny the charge of theft and avouch what may avert the
pain and penalty of cutting off thy hand; for the Apostle (whom Allah
bless and keep!) saith, 'In cases of doubt, eschew punishment.'" Then
he sent him back to prison,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Two Hundred and Ninety-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Khбlid, after
conversing with the youth, sent him back to prison, where he passed the
night. And when morning dawned the folk assembled to see his hand cut
off, nor was there a soul in Bassorah, man or woman, but was present to
look upon the punishment of that handsome youth. Then Khбlid mounted in
company of the notables of the city and others; and, summoning all four
Kazis, sent for the young man, who came hobbling and stumbling in his
fetters. There was none saw him but wept over him and the women all
lifted up their voices in lamentation as for the dead. Then the Kazi
bade silence the women and said to the prisoner, "These folk avouch
that thou didst enter their dwelling-house and steal their goods:
belike thou stolest less than a quarter dinar[FN#221]?" Replied he,
"Nay, I stole that and more." "Peradventure," rejoined the Kazi "thou
art partner with the folk in some of the goods?" Quoth the young man;
"Not so: it was all theirs, and I had no right in it." At this the
Khбlid was wroth and rose and smote him on the face with his whip,
applying to his own case this couplet,
"Man wills his wish to him accorded be; * But Allah naught accords save
what He wills."
Then he called for the butcher to do the work, who came and drew forth
his knife and taking the prisoner's hand set the blade to it, when,
behold, a damsel pressed through the crowd of women, clad in tattered
clothes,[FN#222] and cried out and threw herself on the young man. Then
she unveiled and showed a face like the moon whereupon the people
raised a mighty clamour and there was like to have been a riot amongst
them and a violent scene. But she cried out her loudest, saying, "I
conjure thee, by Allah, O Emir, hasten not to cut off this man's hand,
till thou have read what is in this scroll!" So saying, she gave him a
scroll, and Khбlid took it and opened it and read therein these
couplets,
"Ah Khбlid! this one is a slave of love distraught, * And these
bowed eye-lashes sent shaft that caused his grief:
Shot him an arrow sped by eyes of mine, for he, * Wedded to
burning love of ills hath no relief:
He hath avowed a deed he never did, the while * Deeming this
better than disgrace of lover fief:
Bear then, I pray, with this distracted lover mine * Whose noble
nature falsely calls himself a thief!"
When Khбlid had read these lines he withdrew himself from the people
and summoned the girl and questioned her; and she told him that the
young man was her lover and she his mistress; and that thinking to
visit her he came to the dwelling of her people and threw a stone into
the house, to warn her of his coming. Her father and brothers heard the
noise of the stone and sallied out on him; but he, hearing them coming,
caught up all the household stuff and made himself appear a robber to
cover his mistress's honour. "Now when they saw him they seized him
(continued she), crying:—A thief! and brought him before thee,
whereupon he confessed to the robbery and persisted in his confession,
that he might spare me disgrace; and this he did, making himself a
thief, of the exceeding nobility and generosity of his nature." Khбlid
answered, "He is indeed worthy to have his desire;" and, calling the
young man to him, kissed him between the eyes. Then he sent for the
girl's father and bespoke him, saying, "O Shaykh, we thought to carry
out the law of mutilation in the case of this young man; but Allah (to
whom be Honour and Glory!) hath preserved us from this, and I now
adjudge him the sum of ten thousand dirhams, for that he would have
given his hand for the preservation of thine honour and that of thy
daughter and for the sparing of shame to you both. Moreover, I adjudge
other ten thousand dirhams to thy daughter, for that she made known to
me the truth of the case; and I ask thy leave to marry her to him."
Rejoined the old man, "O Emir, thou hast my consent." So Khбlid praised
Allah and thanked Him and improved the occasion by preaching a goodly
sermon and a prayerful;—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Two Hundred and Ninety-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Khбlid praised
Allah and thanked Him and improved the occasion by preaching a goodly
sermon and a prayerful; after which he said to the young man, "I give
thee to wife the damsel, such an one here present, with her own
permission and her father's consent; and her wedding settlement shall
be this money, to wit, ten thousand dirhams." "I accept this marriage
at thy hands," replied the youth; and Khбlid bade them carry the money
on brass trays in procession to the young man's house, whilst the
people dispersed, fully satisfied. "And surely (quoth he who tells the
tale[FN#223]) never saw I a rarer day than this, for that it began with
tears and annoy; and it ended with smiles and joy." And in contrast of
this story is this piteous tale of
JA'AFAR THE BARMECIDE AND THE BEAN SELLER.
When Harun al-Rashid crucified Ja'afar the Barmecide[FN#224] he
commended that all who wept or made moan for him should also be
crucified; so the folk abstained from that. Now it chanced that a wild
Arab, who dwelt in a distant word, used every year to bring to the
aforesaid Ja'afar an ode[FN#225] in his honour, for which he rewarded
him with a thousand dinars; and the Badawi took them and, returning to
his own country, lived upon them, he and his family, for the rest of
the year. Accordingly, he came with his ode at the wonted time and,
finding that Ja'afar had been crucified, betook himself to the place
where his body was hanging, and there made his camel kneel down and
wept with sore weeping and mourned with grievous mourning; and he
recited his ode and fell asleep. Presently Ja'afar the Barmecide
appeared to him in a vision and said, "Verily thou hast wearied thyself
to come to us and findest us as thou seest; but go to Bassorah and ask
for a man there whose name is such and such, one of the merchants of
the town, and say to him, 'Ja'afar, the Barmecide, saluteth thee and
biddeth thee give me a thousand dinars, by the token of the bean.'" Now
when the wild Arab awoke, he repaired to Bassorah, where he sought out
the merchant and found him and repeated to him what Ja'afar had said in
the dream; whereupon he wept with weeping so sore that he was like to
depart the world. Then he welcomed the Badawi and seated him by his
side and made his stay pleasant and entertained him three days as an
honoured guest; and when he was minded to depart he gave him a thousand
and five hundred dinars, saying, "The thousand are what is commanded to
thee, and the five hundred are a gift from me to thee; and every year
thou shalt have of me a thousand gold pieces." Now when the Arab was
about to take leave, he said to the merchant, "Allah upon thee, tell me
the story of the bean, that I may know the origin of all this." He
answered: "In the early part of my life I was poor and hawked hot
beans[FN#226] about the streets of Baghdad to keep me alive. So I went
out one raw and rainy day, without clothes enough on my body to protect
me from the weather; now shivering for excess of cold and now stumbling
into the pools of rain-water, and altogether in so piteous a plight as
would make one shudder with goose-skin to look upon. But it chanced
that Ja'afar that day was seated with his officers and his concubines,
in an upper chamber overlooking the street when his eyes fell on me; so
he took pity on my case and, sending one of his dependents to fetch me
to him, said as soon as he saw me, 'Sell thy beans to my people.' So I
began to mete out the beans with a measure I had by me; and each who
took a measure of beans filled the measure with gold pieces till all my
store was gone and my basket was clean empty. Then I gathered together
the gold I had gotten, and Ja'afar said to me, 'Hast thou any beans
left?' 'I know not,' answered I, and then sought in the basket, but
found only one bean. So Ja'afar took from me the single bean and,
splitting it in twain, kept one half himself and gave the other to one
of his concubines, saying, 'For how much wilt thou buy this half bean?'
She replied, 'For the tale of all this gold twice-told;' whereat I was
confounded and said to myself, 'This is impossible.' But, as I stood
wondering, behold, she gave an order to one of her hand-maids and the
girl brought me the sum of the collected monies twice-told. Then said
Ja'afar, 'And I will buy the half I have by me for double the sum of
the whole,' presently adding, 'Now take the price of thy bean.' And he
gave an order to one of his servants, who gathered together the whole
of the money and laid it in my basket; and I took it and went my ways.
Then I betook myself to Bassorah, where I traded with the monies and
Allah prospered me amply, to Him be the praise and the thanks! So, if I
give thee every year a thousand dinars of the bounty of Ja'afar, it
will in no wise injure me. Consider then the munificence of Ja'afar's
nature and how he was praised both alive and dead, the mercy of Allah
Almighty be upon him! And men also recount the tale of
ABU MOHAMMED HIGHT LAZYBONES.
It is told that Harun al-Rashid was sitting one day on the throne of
the Caliphate, when there came in to him a youth of his eunuchry,
bearing a crown of red gold, set with pearls and rubies and all manner
of other gems and jewels, such as money might not buy; and, bussing the
ground between his hands, said, "O Commander of the Faithful, the Lady
Zubaydah kisseth the earth before thee"—And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say. Whereupon quoth her
sister Dunyazad, "How pleasant is thy tale and profitable; and how
sweet is thy speech and how delectable!" "And where is this," replied
Shahrazad, "compared with what I shall tell you next night an I live
and the King grant me leave!" Thereupon quoth the King to himself, "By
Allah, I will not slay her until I hear the end of her tale."
When it was the Three Hundredth Night,
Quoth Dunyazad, "favour us, O my sister, with thy tale," and she
replied, 'With joy and good will, if the King accord me leave;"
whereupon the King said, "Tell thy tale, O Shahrazad." So she pursued:
It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the youth said to the
Caliph, "The Lady Zubaydah kisseth the earth before thee and saith to
thee, Thou knowest she hath bidden make this crown, which lacketh a
great jewel for its dome-top; and she hath made search among her
treasures, but cannot find a jewel of size to suit her mind." Quoth the
Caliph to his Chamberlains and Viceregents, Make search for a great
jewel, such as Zubaydah desireth." So they sought, but found nothing
befitting her and told the Caliph who, vexed and annoyed thereat,
exclaimed, "How am I Caliph and King of the Kings of the earth and
cannot find so small a matter as a jewel? Woe to you! Ask of the
merchants." So they enquired of the traders, who replied, "Our lord the
Caliph will not find a jewel such as he requireth save with a man of
Bassorah, by name Abъ Mohammed highs Lazybones." Thereupon they
acquainted the Caliph with this and he bade his Wazir Ja'afar send a
note to the Emir Mohammed al-Zubaydн, Governor of Bassorah, commanding
him to equip Abu Mohammed Lazybones and bring him into the presence of
the Commander of the Faithful. The Minister accordingly wrote a note to
that effect and despatched it by Masrur, who set out forthright for the
city of Bassorah, and went in to the Emir Mohammed al-Zubaydi, who
rejoiced in him and treated him with the high-most honour. Then Masrur
read him the mandate of the Prince of True Believers, Harun al-Rashid,
to which he replied, "I hear and I obey," and forthwith despatched him,
with a company of his followers, to Abu Mohammed's house. When they
reached it, they knocked at the door, whereupon a page came out and
Masrur said to him, "Tell thy lord, The Commander of the Faithful
summoneth thee." The servant went in and told his master, who came out
and found Masrur, the Caliph's Chamberlain, and a company of the
Governor's men at the door. So he kissed ground before Masrur and said,
"I hear and obey the summons of the Commander of the Faithful; but
first enter ye my house." They replied, "We cannot do that, save in
haste; even as the Prince of True Believers commanded us, for he
awaiteth thy coming." But he said, "Have patience with me a little,
till I set my affairs in order." So after much pressure and abundant
persuasion, they entered the house with him and found the vestibule
hung with curtains of azure brocade, purfled with red gold, and Abu
Mohammed Lazybones bade one of his servants carry Masrur to the private
Hammam. Now this bath was in the house and Masrur found its walls and
floors of rare and precious marbles, wrought with gold and silver, and
its waters mingled with rose-water. Then the servants served Masrur and
his company with the perfection of service; and, on their going forth
of the Hammam, clad them in robes of honour, brocade-work interwoven
with gold. And after leaving the bath Masrur and his men went in to Abu
Mohammed Lazybones and found him seated in his upper chamber; and over
his head hung curtains of gold-brocade, wrought with pearls and jewels,
and the pavilion was spread with cushions, embroidered in red gold. Now
the owner was sitting softly upon a quilted cloth covering a settee
inlaid with stones of price; and, when he saw Masrur, he went forward
to meet him and bidding him welcome, seated him by his side. Then he
called for the food-trays; so they brought them, and when Masrur saw
the tables, he exclaimed, "By Allah, never did I behold the like of
these appointments in the palace of the Commander of the Faithful!" For
indeed the trays contained every manner of meat all served in dishes of
gilded porcelain.[FN#227] "So we ate and drank and made merry till the
end of the day (quoth Masrur) when the host gave to each and every of
us five thousand dinars, and on the morrow he clad us in dresses of
honour of green and gold and entreated us with the utmost worship."
Then said Masrur to him, "We can tarry no longer for fear of the
Caliph's displeasure." Answered Abu Mohammed Lazybones, "O my lord,
have patience with us till the morrow, that we may equip ourselves, and
we will then depart with you." So they tarried with him that day and
slept the night; and next morning Abu Mohammed's servants saddled him a
she mule with selle and trappings of gold, set with all manner of
pearls and stones of price; whereupon quoth Masrur to himself, "I
wonder, when Abu Mohammed shall present himself in such equipage, if
the Caliph will ask him how he came by all this wealth." Thereupon they
took leave of Al-Zubaydi and, setting out from Bassorah, fared on,
without ceasing to fare till they reached Baghdad-city and presented
themselves before the Caliph, who bade Abu Mohammed be seated. He sat
down and addressed the Caliph in courtly phrase, saying, "O Commander
of the Faithful, I have brought with me an humble offering by way of
homage: have I thy gracious permission to produce it?" Al-Rashid
replied, "There is no harm in that,"[FN#228] whereupon Abu Mohammed
bade his men bring in a chest, from which he took a number of rarities,
and amongst the rest, trees of gold with leaves of white
emeraid,[FN#229] and fruits of pigeon blood rubies and topazes and new
pearls and bright. And as the Caliph was struck with admiration he
fetched a second chest and brought out of it a tent of brocade, crowned
with pearls and jacinths and emeralds and jaspers and other precious
stones; its poles were of freshly cut Hindi aloes-wood, and its skirts
were set with the greenest smaragds. Thereon were depicted all manner
of animals such as beasts and birds, spangled with precious stones,
rubies, emeralds, chrysolites and balasses and every kind of precious
metal. Now when Al-Rashid saw these things, he rejoiced with exceeding
joy and Abu Mohammed Lazybones said to him, "O Commander of the
Faithful, deem not that I have brought these to thee, fearing aught or
coveting anything; but I knew myself to be but a man of the people and
that such things befitted none save the Commander of the Faithful. And
now, with thy leave, I will show thee, for thy diversion, something of
what I can do." Al-Rashid replied, "Do what thou wilt, that we may
see." "To hear is to obey," said Abu Mohammed and, moving his lips,
beckoned the palace battlements,[FN#230] whereupon they inclined to
him; then he made another sign to them, and they returned to their
place. Presently he made a sign with his eye, and there appeared before
him closets with closed doors, to which he spoke, and lo! the voices of
birds answered him from within. The Caliph marvelled with passing
marvel at this and said to him, "How camest thou by all this, seeing
that thou art known only as Abu Mohammed Lazybones, and they tell me
that thy father was a cupper serving in a public Hammam, who left thee
nothing?" Whereupon he answered, "Listen to my story" And Shahrazed
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and First Night,