It is related that there was, in tide of yore and in times and years
long gone before, at Damascus of Syria, a Caliph known as Abd al-Malik
bin Marwan, the fifth of the Ommiade house. As this Commander of the
Faithful was seated one day in his palace, conversing with his Sultans
and Kings and the Grandees of his empire, the talk turned upon the
legends of past peoples and the traditions of our lord Solomon, David’s
son (on the twain be peace!), and on that which Allah Almighty had
bestowed on him of lordship and dominion over men and Jinn and birds
and beasts and reptiles and the wind and other created things; and
quoth the Caliph, “Of a truth we hear from those who forewent us that
the Lord (extolled and exalted be He!) vouchsafed unto none the like of
that which He vouchsafed unto our lord Solomon and that he attained
unto that whereto never attained other than he, in that he was wont to
imprison Jinns and Marids and Satans in cucurbites of copper and to
stop them with lead and seal[FN#105] them with his ring.”—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Sixty-seventh Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Caliph
Abd al-Malik bin Marwan sat conversing with his Grandees concerning our
lord Solomon, and these noted what Allah had bestowed upon him of
lordship and dominion, quoth the Commander of the Faithful, “Indeed he
attained unto that whereto never attained other than he, in that he was
wont to imprison Jinns and Marids and Satans in cucurbites of copper
and stop them with lead and seal them with his ring.” Then said Talib
bin Sahl (who was a seeker after treasures and had books that
discovered to him hoards and wealth hidden under the earth), “O
Commander of the Faithful,—Allah make thy dominion to endure and exalt
thy dignity here and hereafter!—my father told me of my grandfather,
that he once took ship with a company, intending for the island of
Sikiliyah or Sicily, and sailed until there arose against them a
contrary wind, which drove them from their course and brought them,
after a month, to a great mountain in one of the lands of Allah the
Most High, but where that land was they wot not. Quoth my
grandfather:—This was in the darkness of the night and as soon as it
was day, there came forth to us, from the caves of the mountain, folk
black of colour and naked of body, as they were wild beasts,
understanding not one word of what was addressed to them; nor was there
any of them who knew Arabic, save their King who was of their own kind.
When he saw the ship, he came down to it with a company of his
followers and saluting us, bade us welcome and questioned us of our
case and our faith. We told him all concerning ourselves and he said,
Be of good cheer for no harm shall befal you. And when we, in turn,
asked them of their faith, we found that each was of one of the many
creeds prevailing before the preaching of Al-Islam and the mission of
Mohammed, whom may Allah bless and keep! So my shipmates remarked, We
wot not what thou sayest. Then quoth the King, No Adam-son hath ever
come to our land before you: but fear not, and rejoice in the assurance
of safety and of return to your own country. Then he entertained us
three days, feeding us on the flesh of birds and wild beasts and
fishes, than which they had no other meat; and, on the fourth day, he
carried us down to the beach, that we might divert ourselves by looking
upon the fisher-folk. There we saw a man casting his net to catch
fish, and presently he pulled them up and behold, in them was a
cucurbite of copper, stopped with lead and sealed with the signet of
Solomon, son of David, on whom be peace! He brought the vessel to land
and broke it open, when there came forth a smoke, which rose a-twisting
blue to the zenith, and we heard a horrible voice, saying, I repent! I
repent! Pardon, O Prophet of Allah! I will never return to that which I
did aforetime. Then the smoke became a terrible Giant frightful of
form, whose head was level with the mountain-tops, and he vanished from
our sight, whilst our hearts were well-nigh torn out for terror; but
the blacks thought nothing of it. Then we returned to the King and
questioned him of the matter; whereupon quoth he, Know that this was
one of the Jinns whom Solomon, son of David, being wroth with them,
shut up in these vessels and cast into the sea, after stopping the
mouths with melted lead. Our fishermen ofttimes, in casting their nets,
bring up such bottles, which being broken open, there come forth of
them Jinnis who, deeming that Solomon is still alive and can pardon
them, make their submission to him and say, I repent, O Prophet of
Allah!” The Caliph marvelled at Talib’s story and said, “Glory be to
God! Verily, to Solomon was given a mighty dominion.” Now al-Nábighah
al-Zubyání[FN#106] was present, and he said, “Talib hath spoken soothly
as is proven by the saying of the All-wise, the Primćval One,
And Solomon, when Allah to him said, * ‘Rise, be thou Caliph,
rule with righteous sway:
Honour obedience for obeying thee; * And who rebels imprison him
for aye’
Wherefore he used to put them in copper-bottles and cast them into the
sea.” The poet’s words seemed good to the Caliph, and he said, “By
Allah, I long to look upon some of these Solomonic vessels, which must
be a warning to whoso will be warned.” “O Commander of the Faithful,”
replied Talib, “it is in thy power to do so, without stirring abroad.
Send to thy brother Abd al-Aziz bin Marwán, so he may write to Músá bin
Nusayr,[FN#107] governor of the Maghrib or Morocco, bidding him take
horse thence to the mountains whereof I spoke and fetch thee therefrom
as many of such cucurbites as thou hast a mind to; for those mountains
adjoin the frontiers of his province.” The Caliph approved his counsel
and said “Thou hast spoken sooth, O Talib, and I desire that, touching
this matter, thou be my messenger to Musa bin Nusayr; wherefore thou
shalt have the White Flag[FN#108] and all thou hast a mind to of monies
and honour and so forth; and I will care for thy family during thine
absence.” “With love and gladness, O Commander of the Faithful!”
answered Talib. “Go, with the blessing of Allah and His aid,” quoth the
Caliph, and bade write a letter to his brother, Abd al-Aziz, his
viceroy in Egypt, and another to Musa bin Nusayr, his viceroy in North
Western Africa, bidding him go himself in quest of the Solomonic
bottles, leaving his son to govern in his stead. Moreover, he charged
him to engage guides and to spare neither men nor money, nor to be
remiss in the matter as he would take no excuse. Then he sealed the two
letters and committed them to Talib bin Sahl, bidding him advance the
royal ensigns before him and make his utmost speed and he gave him
treasure and horsemen and footmen, to further him on his way, and made
provision for the wants of his household during his absence. So Talib
set out and arrived in due course at Cairo.[FN#109]—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Sixty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Talib bin Sahl
set out with his escort and crossed the desert country between Syria
and Egypt, where the Governor came out to meet him and entreated him
and his company with high honour whilst they tarried with him. Then he
gave them a guide to bring them to the Sa’íd or Upper Egypt, where the
Emir Musa had his abiding-place; and when the son of Nusayr heard of
Talib’s coming, he went forth to meet him and rejoiced in him. Talib
gave him the Caliph’s letter, and he took it reverently and, laying it
on his head, cried, “I hear and I obey the Prince of the Faithful.”
Then he deemed it best to assemble his chief officers and when all were
present he acquainted them with the contents of the Caliph’s letter and
sought counsel of them how he should act. “O Emir,” answered they, “if
thou seek one who shall guide thee to the place summon the Shaykh ’Abd
al-Samad, ibn ’Abd al-Kuddús, al-Samúdí;[FN#110] for he is a man of
varied knowledge, who hath travelled much and knoweth by experience all
the seas and wastes and words and countries of the world and the
inhabitants and wonders thereof; wherefore send thou for him and he
will surely guide thee to thy desire.” So Musa sent for him, and
behold, he was a very ancient man shot in years and broken down with
lapse of days. The Emir saluted him and said, “O Shaykh Abd al-Samad,
our lord the Commander of the Faithful, Abd al-Malik bin Marwan’ hath
commanded me thus and thus. I have small knowledge of the land wherein
is that which the Caliph desireth; but it is told me that thou knowest
it well and the ways thither. Wilt thou, therefore, go with me and help
me to accomplish the Caliph’s need? So it please Allah the Most High,
thy trouble and travail shall not go waste.” Replied the Shaykh, “I
hear and obey the bidding of the Commander of the Faithful; but know, O
Emir, that the road thither is long and difficult and the ways few.”
“How far is it?” asked Musa, and the Shaykh answered, “It is a journey
of two years and some months going and the like returning; and the way
is full of hardships and terrors and things wondrous and marvellous.
Now thou art a champion of the Faith[FN#111] and our country is hard by
that of the enemy; and peradventure the Nazarenes may come out upon us
in thine absence; wherefore it behoveth thee to leave one to rule thy
government in thy stead.” “It is well,” answered the Emir and appointed
his son Hárún Governor during his absence, requiring the troops to take
the oath of fealty to him and bidding them obey him in all he should
command. And they heard his words and promised obedience. Now this
Harun was a man of great prowess and a renowned warrior and a doughty
knight, and the Shaykh Abd al-Samad feigned to him that the place they
sought was distant but four months’ journey along the shore of the sea,
with camping-places all the way, adjoining one another, and grass and
springs, adding, “Allah will assuredly make the matter easy to us
through thy blessing, O Lieutenant of the Commander of the Faithful!”
Quoth the Emir Musa, “Knowest thou if any of the Kings have trodden
this land before us?”; and quoth the Shaykh, “Yes, it belonged
aforetime to Darius the Greek, King of Alexandria.” But he said to Musa
privily, “O Emir, take with thee a thousand camels laden with victual
and store of gugglets.”[FN#112] The Emir asked, “And what shall we do
with these?”, and the Shaykh answered. “On our way is the desert of
Kayrwán or Cyrene, the which is a vast wold four days’ journey long,
and lacketh water; nor therein doth sound of voice ever sound nor is
soul at any time to be seen. Moreover, there bloweth the Simoon[FN#113]
and other hot winds called Al-Juwayb, which dry up the water-skins; but
if the water be in gugglets, no harm can come to it.” “Right,” said
Musa and sending to Alexandria, let bring thence great plenty of
gugglets. Then he took with him his Wazir and two thousand cavalry,
clad in mail cap-à-pie and set out, without other to guide them but Abd
al-Samad who forewent them, riding on his hackney. The party fared on
diligently, now passing through inhabited lands, then ruins and anon
traversing frightful wolds and thirsty wastes and then mountains which
spired high in air; nor did they leave journeying a whole year’s space
till, one morning, when the day broke, after they had travelled all
night, behold, the Shaykh found himself in a land he knew not and said,
“There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious,
the Great!” Quoth the Emir, “What is to do, O Shaykh?”; and he
answered, saying, “By the Lord of the Ka’abah, we have wandered from
our road!” “How cometh that?” asked Musa, and Abd al-Samad replied,
“The stars were overclouded and I could not guide myself by them.”
“Where on God’s earth are we now?” asked the Emir, and the Shaykh
answered, “I know not; for I never set eyes on this land till this
moment.” Said Musa, “Guide us back to the place where we went astray”,
but the other, “I know it no more.” Then Musa, “Let us push on; haply
Allah will guide us to it or direct us aright of His power.” So they
fared on till the hour of noon-prayer, when they came to a fair
champaign, and wide and level and smooth as it were the sea when calm,
and presently there appeared to them, on the horizon some great thing,
high and black, in whose midst was as it were smoke rising to the
confines of the sky. They made for this, and stayed not in their course
till they drew near thereto, when, lo! it was a high castle, firm of
foundations and great and gruesome, as it were a towering mountain,
builded all of black stone, with frowning crenelles and a door of
gleaming China steel, that dazzled the eyes and dazed the wits. Round
about it were a thousand steps and that which appeared afar off as it
were smoke was a central dome of lead an hundred cubits high. When the
Emir saw this, he marvelled thereat with exceeding marvel and how this
place was void of inhabitants; and the Shaykh, after he had certified
himself thereof, said, “There is no god but the God and Mohammed is the
Apostle of God!” Quoth Musa, “I hear thee praise the Lord and hallow
Him, and meseemeth thou rejoicest.” “O Emir,” answered Abd al-Samad,
“Rejoice, for Allah (extolled and exalted be He!) hath delivered us
from the frightful wolds and thirsty wastes.” “How knowest thou that?”
said Musa, and the other, “I know it for that my father told me of my
grandfather that he said, We were once journeying in this land and,
straying from the road, we came to this palace and thence to the City
of Brass; between which and the place thou seekest is two full months’
travel; but thou must take to the sea-shore and leave it not, for there
be watering-places and wells and camping-grounds established by King Zú
al-Karnayn Iskandar who, when he went to the conquest of Mauritania,
found by the way thirsty deserts and wastes and wilds and dug therein
water-pits and built cisterns.’” Quoth Musa, “Allah rejoice thee with
good news!” and quoth the Shaykh, “Come, let us go look upon yonder
palace and its marvels, for it is an admonition to whose will be
admonished.” So the Emir went up to the palace, with the Shaykh and his
officers, and coming to the gate, found it open. Now this gate was
builded with lofty columns and porticoes whose walls and ceilings were
inlaid with gold and silver and precious stones; and there led up to it
flights of steps, among which were two wide stairs of coloured marble,
never was seen their like; and over the doorway was a tablet whereon
were graven letters of gold in the old ancient Ionian character. “O
Emir,” asked the Shaykh, “Shall I read?”; and Musa answered, “Read and
God bless thee!; for all that betideth us in this journey dependeth
upon thy blessing.” So the Shaykh, who was a very learned man and
versed in all tongues and characters, went up to the tablet and read
whatso was thereon and it was verse like this,
“The signs that here their mighty works portray * Warn us that
all must tread the self-same way:
O thou who standest in this stead to hear * Tidings of folk,
whose power hath passed for aye,
Enter this palace-gate and ask the news * Of greatness fallen
into dust and clay:
Death has destroyed them and dispersed their might * And in the
dust they lost their rich display;
As had they only set their burdens down * To rest awhile, and
then had rode away.”
When the Emir Musa heard these couplets, he wept till he lost his
senses and said, “There is no god but the God, the Living, the Eternal,
who ceaseth not!” Then he entered the palace and was confounded at its
beauty and the goodliness of its construction. He diverted himself
awhile by viewing the pictures and images therein, till he came to
another door, over which also were written verses, and said to the
Shaykh, “Come read me these!” So he advanced and read as follows,
“Under these domes how many a company * Halted of old and fared
with-outen stay:
See thou what might displays on other wights * Time with his
shifts which could such lords waylay:
They shared together what they gathered * And left their joys and
fared to Death-decay:
What joys they joyed! what food they ate! and now * In dust
they’re eaten, for the worm a prey.”
At this the Emir Musa wept bitter tears; and the world waxed yellow
before his eyes and he said, “Verily, we were created for a mighty
matter!”[FN#114] Then they proceeded to explore the palace and found it
desert and void of living thing, its courts desolate and dwelling
places waste laid. In the midst stood a lofty pavilion with a dome
rising high in air, and about it were four hundred tombs, builded of
yellow marble. The Emir drew near unto these and behold, amongst them
was a great tomb, wide and long; and at its head stood a tablet of
white marble, whereon were graven these couplets,
“How oft have I fought! and how many have slain! * How much have
I witnessed of blessing and bane!
How much have I eaten! how much have I drunk! * How oft have I
hearkened to singing-girl’s strain!
How much have I bidden! how oft have forbid! * How many a castle
and castellain
I have sieged and have searched, and the cloistered maids * In
the depths of its walls for my captives were ta’en!
But of ignorance sinned I to win me the meeds * Which won proved
naught and brought nothing of gain:
Then reckon thy reck’ning, O man, and be wise * Ere the goblet of
death and of doom thou shalt drain;
For yet but a little the dust on thy head * They shall strew, and
thy life shall go down to the dead.”
The Emir and his companions wept; then, drawing near unto the pavilion,
they saw that it had eight doors of sandal-wood, studded with nails of
gold and stars of silver and inlaid with all manner precious stones. On
the first door were written these verses,
“What I left, I left it not for nobility of soul, * But through
sentence and decree that to every man are dight.
What while I lived happy, with a temper haught and high, * My
hoarding-place defending like a lion in the fight,
I took no rest, and greed of gain forbad me give a grain * Of
mustard seed to save from the fires of Hell my sprite,
Until stricken on a day, as with arrow, by decree * Of the Maker,
the Fashioner, the Lord of Might and Right.
When my death was appointed, my life I could not keep * By the
many of my stratagems, my cunning and my sleight:
My troops I had collected availed me not, and none * Of my
friends and of my neighbours had power to mend my plight:
Through my life I was weaned in journeying to death * In stress
or in solace, in joyance or despight:
So when money-bags are bloated, and dinar unto dinar * Thou
addest, all may leave thee with fleeting of the night:
And the driver of a camel and the digger of a grave[FN#115] * Are
what thine heirs shall bring ere the morning dawneth bright:
And on Judgment Day alone shalt thou stand before thy Lord, *
Overladen with thy sins and thy crimes and thine affright:
Let the world not seduce thee with lurings, but behold * What
measure to thy family and neighbours it hath doled.”
When Musa heard these verses, he wept with such weeping that he swooned
away; then, coming to himself, he entered the pavilion and saw therein
a long tomb, awesome to look upon, whereon was a tablet of China steel
and Shaykh Abd al-Samad drew near it and read this inscription: “In the
name of Ever-lasting Allah, the Never-beginning, the Never-ending; in
the name of Allah who begetteth not nor is He begot and unto whom the
like is not; in the name of Allah the Lord of Majesty and Might; in the
name of the Living One who to death is never dight!”—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Sixty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Shaykh Abd
al-Samad, having read the aforesaid, also found the following, “O thou
who comest to this place, take warning by that which thou seest of the
accidents of Time and the vicissitudes of Fortune and be not deluded by
the world and its pomps and vanities and fallacies and falsehoods and
vain allurements, for that it is flattering, deceitful and treacherous,
and the things thereof are but a loan to us which it will borrow back
from all borrowers. It is like unto the dreams of the dreamer and the
sleep-visions of the sleeper or as the mirage of the desert, which the
thirsty take for water;[FN#116] and Satan maketh it fair for men even
unto death. These are the ways of the world; wherefore put not thou thy
trust therein neither incline thereto, for it betrayeth him who leaneth
upon it and who committeth himself thereunto in his affairs. Fall not
thou into its snares neither take hold upon its skirts, but be warned
by my example. I possessed four thousand bay horses and a haughty
palace, and I had to wife a thousand daughters of kings, high-bosomed
maids, as they were moons: I was blessed with a thousand sons as they
were fierce lions, and I abode a thousand years, glad of heart and
mind, and I amassed treasures beyond the competence of all the Kings of
the regions of the earth, deeming that delight would still endure to
me. But there fell on me unawares the Destroyer of delights and the
Sunderer of societies, the Desolator of domiciles and the Spoiler of
inhabited spots, the Murtherer of great and small, babes and children
and mothers, he who hath no ruth on the poor for his poverty, or
feareth the King for all his bidding or forbidding. Verily, we abode
safe and secure in this palace, till there descended upon us the
judgment of the Lord of the Three Worlds, Lord of the Heavens, and Lord
of the Earths, the vengeance of the Manifest Truth[FN#117] overtook us,
when there died of us every day two, till a great company of us had
perished. When I saw that destruction had entered our dwellings and had
homed with us and in the sea of deaths had drowned us, I summoned a
writer and bade him indite these verses and instances and admonitions,
the which I let grave, with rule and compass, on these doors and
tablets and tombs. Now I had an army of a thousand thousand bridles,
men of warrior mien with forearms strong and keen, armed with spears
and mail-coats sheen and swords that gleam; so I bade them don their
long-hanging hauberks and gird on their biting blades and mount their
high-mettled steeds and level their dreadful lances; and whenas there
fell on us the doom of the Lord of heaven and earth, I said to them,
Ho, all ye soldiers and troopers, can ye avail to ward off that which
is fallen on me from the Omnipotent King?’ But troopers and soldiers
availed not unto this and said, How shall we battle with Him to whom no
chamberlain barreth access, the Lord of the door which hath no
doorkeeper?’ Then quoth I to them, Bring me my treasures’ Now I had in
my treasuries a thousand cisterns in each of which were a thousand
quintals[FN#118] of red gold and the like of white silver, besides
pearls and jewels of all kinds and other things of price, beyond the
attainment of the kings of the earth. So they did that and when they
had laid all the treasure in my presence, I said to them, Can ye ransom
me with all this treasure or buy me one day of life therewith?’ But
they could not! So they resigned themselves to fore-ordained Fate and
fortune and I submitted to the judgment of Allah, enduring patiently
that which he decreed unto me of affliction, till He took my soul and
made me to dwell in my grave. And if thou ask of my name, I am Kúsh,
the son of Shaddád son of Ád the Greater.” And upon the tablets were
engraved these lines,
“An thou wouldst know my name, whose day is done * With shifts of
time and chances ’neath the sun,
Know I am Shaddád’s son, who ruled mankind * And o’er all earth
upheld dominion!
All stubborn peoples abject were to me; * And Shám to Cairo and
to Adnanwone;[FN#119]
I reigned in glory conquering many kings; * And peoples feared my
mischief every one.
Yea, tribes and armies in my hand I saw; * The world all dreaded
me, both friends and fone.
When I took horse, I viewed my numbered troops, * Bridles on
neighing steeds a million.
And I had wealth that none could tell or count, * Against
misfortune treasuring all I won;
Fain had I bought my life with all my wealth, * And for a
moment’s space my death to shun;
But God would naught save what His purpose willed; * So from my
brethren cut I ’bode alone:
And Death, that sunders man, exchanged my lot * To pauper hut
from grandeur’s mansion
When found I all mine actions gone and past * Wherefor I’m
pledged[FN#120] and by my sin undone.
Then fear, O man, who by a brink dost range, * The turns of
Fortune and the chance of Change.”
The Emir Musa was hurt to his heart and loathed his life for what he
saw of the slaughtering-places of the folk; and, as they went about the
highways and byeways of the palace, viewing its sitting-chambers and
pleasaunces, behold they came upon a table of yellow onyx, upborne on
four feet of juniper-wood,[FN#121] and there-on these words graven, “At
this table have eaten a thousand kings blind of the right eye and a
thousand blind of the left and yet other thousand sound of both eyes,
all of whom have departed the world and have taken up their sojourn in
the tombs and the catacombs.” All this the Emir wrote down and left the
palace, carrying off with him naught save the table aforesaid. Then he
fared on with his host three days’ space, under the guidance of the
Shaykh Abd al-Samad, till they came to a high hill, whereon stood a
horseman of brass. In his hand he held a lance with a broad head, in
brightness like blinding leven, whereon was graven, “O thou that comest
unto me, if thou know not the way to the City of Brass, rub the hand of
this rider and he will turn round and presently stop. Then take the
direction whereto he faceth and fare fearless, for it will bring thee,
without hardship, to the city aforesaid.”—And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Emir
Musa rubbed the horseman’s hand he revolved like the dazzling
lightning, and stopped facing in a direction other than that wherein
they were journeying. So they took the road to which he pointed (which
was the right way) and, finding it a beaten track, fared on through
their days and nights till they had covered a wide tract of country.
Then they came upon a pillar of black stone like a furnace chimney
wherein was one sunken up to his armpits. He had two great wings and
four arms, two of them like the arms of the sons of Adam and other two
as they were lion’s paws, with claws of iron, and he was black and tall
and frightful of aspect, with hair like horses’ tails and eyes like
blazing coals, slit upright in his face. Moreover, he had in the middle
of his forehead a third eye, as it were that of a lynx, from which flew
sparks of fire, and he cried out saying, “Glory to my Lord, who hath
adjudged unto me this grievous torment and sore punishment until the
Day of Doom!” When the folk saw him, they lost their reason for
affright and turned to flee; so the Emir Musa asked the Shaykh Abd
al-Samad, “What is this?”; and he answered, “I know not.” Whereupon
quoth Musa, “Draw near and question him of his condition; haply he will
discover to thee his case.” “Allah assain thee, Emir! Indeed, I am
afraid of him;” replied the Shaykh; but the Emir rejoined, saying,
“Fear not; he is hindered from thee and from all others by that wherein
he is.” So Abd al-Samad drew near to the pillar and said to him which
was therein, “O creature, what is thy name and what art thou and how
camest thou here in this fashion?” “I am an Ifrit of the Jinn,” replied
he, “by name Dáhish, son of Al-A’amash,[FN#122] and am confined here by
the All-might, prisoned here by the Providence and punished by the
judgement of Allah, till it pleases Him, to whom belong Might and
Majesty, to release me.” Then said Musa, “Ask him why he is in durance
of this column?” So the Shaykh asked him of this, and the Ifrit
replied, saying,—Verily my tale is wondrous and my case marvellous,
and it is this. One of the sons of Iblis had an idol of red carnelian,
whereof I was guardian, and there served it a King of the Kings of the
sea, a Prince of puissant power and prow of prowess, over-ruling a
thousand thousand warriors of the Jann who smote with swords before him
and answered his summons in time of need. All these were under my
commandment and obeyed my behest, being each and every rebels against
Solomon, son of David, on whom be peace! And I used to enter the belly
of the idol and thence bid and forbid them. Now this King’s daughter
loved the idol and was frequent in prostration to it and assiduous in
its service; and she was the fairest woman of her day, accomplished in
beauty and loveliness, elegance and grace. She was described unto
Solomon and he sent to her father, saying, “Give me thy daughter to wife
and break thine idol of carnelian and testify saying, There is no god
but _the_ God and Solomon is the Prophet of Allah! an thou do this, our
due shall be thy due and thy debt shall be our debt, but, if thou
refuse, make ready to answer the summons of the Lord and don thy
grave-gear, for I will come upon thee with an irresistible host, which
shall fill the waste places of earth and make thee as yesterday that is
passed away and hath no return for aye. When this message reached the
King, he waxed insolent and rebellious, pride-full and contumacious and
he cried to his Wazirs, What say ye of this? Know ye that Solomon son
of David hath sent requiring me to give him my daughter to wife, and
break my idol of carnelian and enter his faith!’ And they replied, O
mighty King, how shall Solomon do thus with thee? Even could he come at
thee in the midst of this vast ocean, he could not prevail against
thee, for the Marids of the Jann will fight on thy side and thou wilt
ask succour of thine idol whom thou servest, and he will help thee and
give thee victory over him. So thou wouldst do well to consult on this
matter thy Lord,’ (meaning the idol aforesaid) and hear what he saith.
If he say, Fight him, fight him, and if not, not.’ So the King went in
without stay or delay to his idol and offered up sacrifices and
slaughtered victims; after which he fell down before him, prostrate and
weeping, and repeated these verses,
“O my Lord, well I weet thy puissant hand: * Sulaymán would break
thee and see thee bann’d.
O my Lord, to crave succour here I stand * Command and I bow to
thy high command!”
Then I (continued the Ifrit addressing the Shaykh and those about
him), of my ignorance and want of wit and recklessness of the
commandment of Solomon and lack of knowledge anent his power, entered
the belly of the idol and made answer as follows.
“As for me, of him I feel naught affright, * For my lore and my
wisdom are infinite:
If he wish for warfare I’ll show him fight * And out of his body
I’ll tear his sprite!”
When the King heard my boastful reply, he hardened his heart and
resolved to wage war upon the Prophet and to offer him battle;
wherefore he beat the messenger with a grievous beating and returned a
foul answer to Solomon, threatening him and saying, Of a truth, thy
soul hath suggested to thee a vain thing; dost thou menace me with
mendacious words? But gird thyself for battle; for, an thou come not to
me, I will assuredly come to thee.’ So the messenger returned to
Solomon and told him all that had passed and whatso had befallen him,
which when the Prophet heard, he raged like Doomsday and addressed
himself to the fray and levied armies of men and Jann and birds and
reptiles. He commanded his Wazir Al-Dimiryát, King of the Jann, to
gather together the Marids of the Jinn from all parts, and he collected
for him six hundred thousand thousand of devils.[FN#123] Moreover, by
his order, his Wazir Ásaf bin Barkhiyá levied him an army of men, to
the number of a thousand thousand or more. These all he furnished with
arms and armour and mounting, with his host, upon his carpet, took
flight through air, while the beasts fared under him and the birds flew
overhead, till he lighted down on the island of the refractory King and
encompassed it about, filling earth with his hosts.—And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-first Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Ifrit
continued, “So when Solomon the prophet (with whom be peace!) lighted
down with his host on the island he sent to our King, saying, Behold, I
am come: defend thy life against that which is fallen upon thee, or
else make thy submission to me and confess my apostleship and give me
thy daughter to lawful wife and break thine idol and worship the one
God, the alone Worshipful; and testify, thou and thine, and say, There
is no God but the God, and Solomon is the Apostle of Allah![FN#124]
This if thou do, thou shalt have pardon and peace; but if not, it will
avail thee nothing to fortify thyself in this island, for Allah
(extolled and exalted be He!) hath bidden the wind obey me; so I will
bid it bear me to thee on my carpet and make thee a warning and an
example to deter others.’ But the King made answer to his messenger,
saying, It may not on any wise be as he requireth of me; so tell him I
come forth to him,’ With this reply the messenger returned to Solomon,
who thereupon gathered together all the Jinn that were under his hand,
to the number of a thousand thousand, and added to them other than they
of Marids and Satans from the islands of the sea and the tops of the
mountains and, drawing them up on parade, opened his armouries and
distributed to them arms and armour. Then the Prophet drew out his host
in battle array, dividing the beasts into two bodies, one on the right
wing of the men and the other on the left, and bidding them tear the
enemies’ horses in sunder. Furthermore, he ordered the birds which were
in the island to hover over their heads and, whenas the assault should
be made, that they should swoop down and tear out the foe’s eyes with
their beaks and buffet their faces with their wings; and they answered,
saying, We hear and we obey Allah and thee, O Prophet of Allah!’ Then
Solomon seated himself on a throne of alabaster, studded with precious
stones and plated with red gold; and, commanding the wind to bear him
aloft, set his Wazir Asaf bin Barkhiya[FN#125] and the kings of mankind
on his right and his Wazir Al-Dimiryat and the kings of the Jinn on his
left, arraying the beasts and vipers and serpents in the van. Thereupon
they all set on us together, and we gave them battle two days over a
vast plain; but, on the third day, disaster befel us, and the judgment
of Allah the Most High was executed upon us. Now the first to charge
upon them were I and my troops, and I said to my companions, Abide in
your places, whilst I sally forth to them and provoke Al-Dimiryat to
combat singular.’ And behold, he came forth to the duello as he were a
vast mountain, with his fires flaming and his smoke spireing, and shot
at me a falling star of fire; but I swerved from it and it missed me.
Then I cast at him in my turn, a flame of fire, and smote him; but his
shaft[FN#126] overcame my fire and he cried out at me so terrible a cry
that meseemed the skies were fallen flat upon me, and the mountains
trembled at his voice. Then he commanded his hosts to charge;
accordingly they rushed on us and we rushed on them, each crying out
upon other, and battle reared its crest rising in volumes and smoke
ascending in columns and hearts well nigh cleaving. The birds and the
flying Jinn fought in the air and the beasts and men and the
foot-faring Jann in the dust and I fought with Al-Dimiryat, till I was
aweary and he not less so. At last, I grew weak and turned to flee from
him, whereupon my companions and tribesmen likewise took to flight and
my hosts were put to the rout, and Solomon cried out, saying, Take
yonder furious tyrant, the accursed, the infamous!’ Then man fell upon
man and Jinn upon Jinn and the armies of the Prophet charged down upon
us, with the wild beasts and lions on their right hand and on their
left, rending our horses and tearing our men; whilst the birds hovered
over-head in air pecking out our eyes with their claws and beaks and
beating our faces with their wings, and the serpents struck us with
their fangs, till the most of our folk lay prone upon the face of the
earth, like the trunks of date-trees. Thus defeat befel our King and we
became a spoil unto Solomon. As to me, I fled from before Al-Dimiryat,
but he followed me three months’ journey, till I fell down for
weariness and he overtook me, and pouncing upon me, made me prisoner.
Quoth I, By the virtue of Him who hath exalted thee and abased me,
spare me and bring me into the presence of Solomon, on whom be peace!’
So he carried me before Solomon, who received me after the foulest
fashion and bade bring this pillar and hollow it out. Then he set me
herein and chained me and sealed me with his signet-ring, and
Al-Dimiryat bore me to this place wherein thou seest me. Moreover, he
charged a great angel to guard me, and this pillar is my prison until
Judgment-day.” Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say
her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-second Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Jinni
who was prisoned in the pillar had told them his tale, from first to
last, the folk marvelled at his story and at the frightfulness of his
favour, and the Emir Musa said, “There is no God but the God! Soothly
was Solomon gifted with a mighty dominion.” Then said the Shaykh Abd
al-Samad to the Jinni, “Ho there! I would fain ask thee of a thing,
whereof do thou inform us.” “Ask what thou wilt,” answered the Ifrit
Dahish and the Shaykh said, “Are there hereabouts any of the Ifrits
imprisoned in bottles of brass from the time of Solomon (on whom be
peace!)?” “Yes,” replied the Jinni; “there be such in the sea of
al-Karkar[FN#127] on the shores whereof dwell a people of the lineage
of Noah (on whom be peace!); for their country was not reached by the
Deluge and they are cut off there from the other sons of Adam.” Quoth
Abd al-Samad, “And which is the way to the City of Brass and the place
wherein are the cucurbites of Solomon, and what distance lieth between
us and it?” Quoth the Ifrit, “It is near at hand,” and directed them in
the way thither. So they left him and fared forward till there appeared
to them afar off a great blackness and therein two fires facing each
other, and the Emir Musa asked the Shaykh, “What is yonder vast
blackness and its twin fires?”; and the guide answered, “Rejoice O
Emir, for this is the City of Brass, as it is described in the Book of
Hidden Treasures which I have by me. Its walls are of black stone and
it hath two towers of Andalusian brass,[FN#128] which appear to the
beholder in the distance as they were twin fires, and hence is it named
the City of Brass.” Then they fared on without ceasing till they drew
near the city and behold, it was as it were a piece of a mountain or a
mass of iron cast in a mould and impenetrable for the height of its
walls and bulwarks; while nothing could be more beautiful than its
buildings and its ordinance. So they dismounted down and sought for an
entrance, but saw none neither found any trace of opening in the walls,
albeit there were five-and-twenty portals to the city, but none of them
was visible from without. Then quoth the Emir, “O Shaykh, I see to this
city no sign of any gate;” and quoth he, “O Emir, thus is it described
in my Book of Hidden Treasures; it hath five-and-twenty portals; but
none thereof may be opened save from within the city.” Asked Musa,
“And how shall we do to enter the city and view its wonders?” and Talib
son of Sahl, his Wazir, answered, “Allah assain the Emir! let us rest
here two or three days and, God willing, we will make shift to come
within the walls.” Then said Musa to one of his men, “Mount thy camel
and ride round about the city, so haply thou may light upon a gate or a
place somewhat lower than this fronting us, or Inshallah! a breach
whereby we can enter.” Accordingly he mounted his beast, taking water
and victuals with him, and rode round the city two days and two nights,
without drawing rein to rest, but found the wall thereof as it were one
block, without breach or way of ingress; and on the third day, he came
again in sight of his companions, dazed and amazed at what he had seen
of the extent and loftiness of the place, and said, “O Emir, the
easiest place of access is this where you have alighted.” Then Musa
took Talib and Abd al-Samad and ascended the highest hill which
overlooked the city. When they reached the top, they beheld beneath
them a city, never saw eyes a greater or a goodlier, with
dwelling-places and mansions of towering height, and palaces and
pavilions and domes gleaming gloriously bright and sconces and bulwarks
of strength infinite; and its streams were a-flowing and flowers
a-blowing and fruits a glowing. It was a city with gates impregnable;
but void and still, without a voice or a cheering inhabitant. The owl
hooted in its quarters; the bird skimmed circling over its squares and
the raven croaked in its great thoroughfares weeping and bewailing the
dwellers who erst made it their dwelling.[FN#129] The Emir stood
awhile, marvelling and sorrowing for the desolation of the city and
saying, “Glory to Him whom nor ages nor changes nor times can blight,
Him who created all things of His Might!” Presently, he chanced to look
aside and caught sight of seven tablets of white marble afar off. So he
drew near them and finding inscriptions graven thereon, called the
Shaykh and bade him read these. Accordingly he came forward and,
examining the inscriptions, found that they contained matter of
admonition and warning and instances and restraint to those of
understanding. On the first tablet was inscribed, in the ancient Greek
character: “O son of Adam, how heedless art thou of that which is
before thee! Verily, thy years and months and days have diverted thee
therefrom. Knowest thou not that the cup of death is filled for thy
bane which in a little while to the dregs thou shalt drain? Look to thy
doom ere thou enter thy tomb. Where be the Kings who held dominion over
the lands and abased Allah’s servants and built these palaces and had
armies under their commands? By Allah, the Destroyer of delights and
the Severer of societies and the Devastator of dwelling-places came
down upon them and transported them from the spaciousness of their
palaces to the staitness of their burial-places.” And at the foot of
the tablet were written the following verses,
“Where are the Kings earth-peopling, where are they? * The built
and peopled left they e’er and aye!
They’re tombed yet pledged to actions past away * And after death
upon them came decay.
Where are their troops? They failed to ward and guard! * Where
are the wealth and hoards in treasuries lay?
Th’ Empyrean’s Lord surprised them with one word, * Nor wealth
nor refuge could their doom delay!”
When the Emir heard this, he cried out and the tears ran down his
cheeks and he exclaimed, “By Allah, from the world abstaining is the
wisest course and the sole assaining!” And he called for pen-case and
paper and wrote down what was graven on the first tablet. Then he drew
near the second tablet and found these words graven thereon, “O son of
Adam, what hath seduced thee from the service of the Ancient of Days
and made thee forget that one day thou must defray the debt of death?
Wottest thou not that it is a transient dwelling wherein for none there
is abiding; and yet thou taketh thought unto the world and cleavest
fast thereto? Where be the kings who Irak peopled and the four quarters
of the globe possessed? Where be they who abode in Ispahan and the land
of Khorasan? The voice of the Summoner of Death summoned them and they
answered him, and the Herald of Destruction hailed them and they
replied, Here are we! Verily, that which they builded and fortified
profited them naught; neither did what they had gathered and provided
avail for their defence.” And at the foot of the tablet were graven the
following verses,
Where be the men who built and fortified * High places never man
their like espied?
In fear of Fate they levied troops and hosts, * Availing naught
when came the time and tide,
Where be the Kisrás homed in strongest walls? * As though they
ne’er had been from home they tried!
The Emir Musa wept and exclaimed, “By Allah, we are indeed created for
a grave matter!” Then he copied the inscription and passed on to the
third tablet,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-third Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Emir Musa
passed on to the third tablet, whereon was written, “O son of Adam, the
things of this world thou lovest and prizest and the hest of thy Lord
thou spurnest and despisest. All the days of thy life pass by and thou
art content thus to aby. Make ready thy viaticum against the day
appointed for thee to see and prepare to answer the Lord of every
creature that be!” And at the foot were written these verses,
“Where is the wight who peopled in the past * Hind land and Sind;
and there the tyrant played?
Who Zanj[FN#130] and Habash bound beneath his yoke, * And Nubia
curbed and low its puissance laid.
Look not for news of what is in his grave. * Ah, he is far who
can thy vision aid!
The stroke of death fell on him sharp and sure; * Nor saved him
palace, nor the lands he swayed.”
At this Musa wept with sore weeping and, going on to the fourth tablet,
he read inscribed thereon, “O son of Adam, how long shall thy Lord bear
with thee and thou every day sunken in the sea of thy folly? Hath it
then been stablished unto thee that some day thou shalt not die? O son
of Adam, let not the deceits of thy days and nights and times and hours
delude thee with their delights; but remember that death lieth ready
for thee ambushing, fain on thy shoulders to spring, nor doth a day
pass but he morneth with thee in the morning and nighteth with thee by
night. Beware, then, of his onslaught and make provision there-against.
As was with me, so it is with thee; thou wastest thy whole life and
squanderest the joys in which thy days are rife. Hearken, therefore, to
my words and put thy trust in the Lord of Lords; for in the world there
is no stability; it is but as a spider’s web to thee.” And at the foot
of the tablet were written these couplets,
“Where is the man who did those labours ply * And based and built
and reared these walls on high?
Where be the castles’ lords? Who therein dwelt * Fared forth and
left them in decay to lie.
All are entombed, in pledge against the day * When every sin
shall show to every eye.
None but the Lord Most High endurance hath, * Whose Might and
Majesty shall never die.”
When the Emir read this, he swooned away and presently coming to
himself marvelled exceedingly and wrote it down. Then he drew near the
fifth tablet and behold, thereon was graven, “O son of Adam, what is it
that distracteth thee from obedience of thy Creator and the Author of
thy being, Him who reared thee whenas thou west a little one, and fed
thee whenas thou west full-grown? Thou art ungrateful for His bounty,
albeit He watcheth over thee with His favours, letting down the curtain
of His protection over thee. Needs must there be for thee an hour
bitterer than aloes and hotter than live coals. Provide thee,
therefore, against it; for who shall sweeten its gall or quench its
fires? Bethink thee who forewent thee of peoples and heroes and take
warning by them, ere thou perish.” And at the foot of the tablet were
graven these couplets,
“Where be the Earth-kings who from where they bode, * Sped and
to grave yards with their hoardings yode:
Erst on their mounting-days there hadst beheld * Hosts that
concealed the ground whereon they rode:
How many a king they humbled in their day! * How many a host they
led and laid on load!
But from th’ Empyrean’s Lord in haste there came * One word, and
joy waxed grief ere morning glowed.”
The Emir marvelled at this and wrote it down; after which he passed on
to the sixth tablet and behold, was inscribed thereon, “O son of Adam,
think not that safety will endure for ever and aye, seeing that death
is sealed to thy head alway. Where be thy fathers, where be thy
brethren, where thy friends and dear ones? They have all gone to the
dust of the tombs and presented themselves before the Glorious, the
Forgiving, as if they had never eaten nor drunken, and they are a
pledge for that which they have earned. So look to thyself, ere thy
tomb come upon thee.” And at the foot of the tablet were these
couplets,
“Where be the Kings who ruled the Franks of old? * Where be the
King who peopled Tingis-wold[FN#131]?
Their works are written in a book which He, * The One, th’
All-father shall as witness hold.”
At this the Emir Musa marvelled and wrote it down, saying, “There is no
god but the God! Indeed, how goodly were these folk!” Then he went up
to the seventh tablet and behold, thereon was written, “Glory to Him
who fore-ordaineth death to all He createth, the Living One, who dieth
not! O son of Adam, let not thy days and their delights delude thee,
neither thine hours and the delices of their time, and know that death
to thee cometh and upon thy shoulder sitteth. Beware, then, of his
assault and make ready for his onslaught. As it was with me, so it is
with thee; thou wastest the sweet of thy life and the joyance of thine
hours. Give ear, then, to my rede and put thy trust in the Lord of
Lords and know that in the world is no stability, but it is as it were
a spider’s web to thee and all that is therein shall die and cease to
be. Where is he who laid the foundation of Amid[FN#132] and builded it
and builded Fárikín[FN#133] and exalted it? Where be the peoples of the
strong places? Whenas them they had inhabited, after their might into
the tombs they descended. They have been carried off by death and we
shall in like manner be afflicted by doom. None abideth save Allah the
Most High, for He is Allah the Forgiving One.” The Emir Musa wept and
copied all this, and indeed the world was belittled in his eyes. Then
he descended the hill and rejoined his host, with whom he passed the
rest of tile day, casting about for a means of access to the city. And
he said to his Wazir Talib bin Sahl and to the chief officers about
him, “How shall we contrive to enter this city and view its marvels?:
haply we shall find therein wherewithal to win the favour of the
Commander of the Faithful.” “Allah prolong the Emir’s fortune!” replied
Talib, “let us make a ladder and mount the wall therewith, so
peradventure we may come at the gate from within.” Quoth the Emir,
“This is what occurred to my thought also, and admirable is the
advice!” Then he called for carpenters and blacksmiths and bade them
fashion wood and build a ladder plated and banded with iron. So they
made a strong ladder and many men wrought at it a whole month. Then all
the company laid hold of it and set it up against the wall, and it
reached the top as truly as if it had been built for it before that
time. The Emir marvelled and said, “The blessing of Allah be upon you.
It seems as though ye had taken the measure of the mure, so excellent
is your work.” Then said he to his men, “Which of you will mount the
ladder and walk along the wall and cast about for a way of descending
into the city, so to see how the case stands and let us know how we may
open the gate?” Whereupon quoth one of them, “I will go up, O Emir, and
descend and open to you”; and Musa answered, saying, “Go and the
blessing of Allah go with thee!” So the man mounted the ladder; but,
when he came to the top of the wall, he stood up and gazed fixedly down
into the city, then clapped his hands and crying out, at the top of his
voice, “By Allah, thou art fair!” cast himself down into the place, and
Musa cried, “By Allah, he is a dead man!” But another came up to him
and said, “O Emir, this was a madman and doubtless his madness got the
better of him and destroyed him. I will go up and open the gate to you,
if it be the will of Allah the Most High.” “Go up,” replied Musa, “and
Allah be with thee! But beware lest thou lose thy head, even as did thy
comrade.” Then the man mounted the ladder, but no sooner had he reached
the top of the wall than he laughed aloud, saying, “Well done! well
done!”; and clapping palms cast himself down into the city and died
forthright. When the Emir saw this, he said, “An such be the action of
a reasonable man, what is that of the madman? If all our men do on this
wise, we shall have none left and shall fail of our errand and that of
the Commander of the Faithful. Get ye ready for the march: verily we
have no concern with this city.” But a third one of the company said,
“Haply another may be steadier than they.” So a third mounted the wall
and a fourth and a fifth and all cried out and cast themselves down,
even as did the first, nor did they leave to do thus, till a dozen had
perished in like fashion. Then the Shaykh Abd al-Samad came forward and
heartened himself and said, “This affair is reserved to none other than
myself; for the experienced is not like the inexperienced.” Quoth the
Emir, “Indeed thou shalt not do that nor will I have thee go up: an
thou perish, we shall all be cut off to the last man since thou art our
guide.” But he answered, saying, “Peradventure, that which we seek may
be accomplished at my hands, by the grace of God Most High!” So the
folk all agreed to let him mount the ladder, and he arose and
heartening himself, said, “In the name of Allah, the Compassionating,
the Compassionate!” and mounted the ladder, calling on the name of the
Lord and reciting the Verses of Safety.[FN#134] When he reached the top
of the wall, he clapped his hands and gazed fixedly down into the city;
whereupon the folk below cried out to him with one accord, saying “O
Shaykh Abd al-Samad, for the Lord’s sake, cast not thyself down!”; and
they added, “Verily we are Allah’s and unto Him we are returning! If
the Shaykh fall, we are dead men one and all.” Then he laughed beyond
all measure and sat a long hour, reciting the names of Allah Almighty
and repeating the Verses of Safety; then he rose and cried out at the
top of his voice, saying, “O Emir, have no fear; no hurt shall betide
you, for Allah (to whom belong Might and Majesty!) hath averted from me
the wiles and malice of Satan, by the blessing of the words, ‘In the
name of Allah the Compassionating the Compassionate!’” Asked Musa,
“What didst thou see, O Shaykh?”; and Abd al-Samad answered, “I saw ten
maidens, as they were Houris of Heaven calling to me with their
hands”—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-fourth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Shaykh Abd
al-Samad answered, “I saw ten maidens like Houris of Heaven,[FN#135]
and they calling and signing,[FN#136] Come hither to us’; and meseemed
there was below me a lake of water. So I thought to throw myself down,
when behold, I espied my twelve companions lying dead; so I restrained
myself and recited somewhat of Allah’s Book, whereupon He dispelled
from me the damsels’ witchlike wiles and malicious guiles and they
disappeared. And doubtless this was an enchantment devised by the
people of the city, to repel any who should seek to gaze upon or to
enter the place. And it hath succeeded in slaying our companions.” Then
he walked on along the wall, till he came to the two towers of brass
aforesaid and saw therein two gates of gold, without pad locks or
visible means of opening. Hereat he paused as long as Allah
pleased[FN#137] and gazed about him awhile, till he espied in the
middle of one of the gates, a horseman of brass with hand outstretched
as if pointing, and in his palm was somewhat written. So he went up to
it and read these words, “O thou who comest to this place, an thou
wouldst enter turn the pin in my navel twelve times and the gate will
open.” Accordingly, he examined the horseman and finding in his navel a
pin of gold, firm-set and fast fixed, he turned it twelve times,
whereupon the horseman revolved like the blinding lightning and the
gate swung open with a noise like thunder. He entered and found himself
in a long passage,[FN#138] which brought him down some steps into a
guard-room furnished with goodly wooden benches, whereon sat men dead,
over whose heads hung fine shields and keen blades and bent bows and
shafts ready notched. Thence, he came to the main gate of the city;
and, finding it secured with iron bars and curiously wrought locks and
bolts and chains and other fastenings of wood and metal, said to
himself, “Belike the keys are with yonder dead folk.” So he turned back
to the guard-room and seeing amongst the dead an old man seated upon a
high wooden bench, who seemed the chiefest of them, said in his mind,
“Who knows but they are with this Shaykh? Doubtless he was the warder
of the city and these others were under his hand.” So he went up to him
and lifting his gown, behold, the keys were hanging to his girdle;
whereat he joyed with exceeding joy and was like to fly for gladness.
Then he took them and going up to the portal, undid the padlocks and
drew back the bolts and bars, whereupon the great leaves flew open with
a crash like the pealing thunder by reason of its greatness and
terribleness. At this he cried out saying, “Allaho Akbar—God is most
great!” And the folk without answered him with the same words,
rejoicing and thanking him for his deed. The Emir Musa also was
delighted at the Shaykh’s safety and the opening of the city-gate, and
the troops all pressed forward to enter; but Musa cried out to them,
saying, “O folk, if we all go in at once we shall not be safe from some
ill-chance which may betide us. Let half enter and other half tarry
without.” So he pushed forwards with half his men, bearing their
weapons of war, and finding their comrades lying dead, they buried
them; and they saw the doorkeepers and eunuchs and chamberlains and
officers reclining on couches of silk and all were corpses. Then they
fared on till they came to the chief market-place, full of lofty
buildings whereof none overpassed the others, and found all its shops
open, with the scales hung out and the brazen vessels ordered and the
caravanserais full of all manner goods; and they beheld the merchants
sitting on the shop-boards dead, with shrivelled skin and rotted bones,
a warning to those who can take warning; and here they saw four
separate markets all replete with wealth. Then they left the great
bazar and went on till they came to the silk market, where they found
silks and brocades, orfrayed with red gold and diapered with white
silver upon all manner of colours, and the owners lying dead upon mats
of scented goats’ leather, and looking as if they would speak; after
which they traversed the market-street of pearls and rubies and other
jewels and came to that of the schroffs and money-changers, whom they
saw sitting dead upon carpets of raw silk and dyed stuffs in shops full
of gold and silver. Thence they passed to the perfumers’ bazar where
they found the shops filled with drugs of all kinds and bladders of
musk and ambergris and Nadd-scent and camphor and other perfumes, in
vessels of ivory and ebony and Khalanj-wood and Andalusian copper, the
which is equal in value to gold; and various kinds of rattan and Indian
cane; but the shopkeepers all lay dead nor was there with them aught of
food. And hard by this drug-market they came upon a palace, imposingly
edified and magnificently decorated; so they entered and found therein
banners displayed and drawn sword blades and strung bows and bucklers
hanging by chains of gold and silver and helmets gilded with red gold.
In the vestibules stood benches of ivory, plated with glittering gold
and covered with silken stuffs, whereon lay men, whose skin had dried
up on their bones; the fool had deemed them sleeping; but, for lack of
food, they had perished and tasted the cup of death. Now when the Emir
Musa saw this, he stood still, glorifying Allah the Most High and
hallowing Him and contemplating the beauty of the palace and the
massiveness of its masonry and fair perfection of its ordinance, for it
was builded after the goodliest and stablest fashion and the most part
of its adornment was of green[FN#139] lapis-lazuli, and on the inner
door, which stood open, were written in characters of gold and
ultramarine, these couplets,
“Consider thou, O man, what these places to thee showed * And be
upon thy guard ere thou travel the same road:
And prepare thee good provision some day may serve thy turn * For
each dweller in the house needs must yede wi’ those who yode
Consider how this people their palaces adorned * And in dust have
been pledged for the seed of acts they sowed
They built but their building availed them not, and hoards * Nor
saved their lives nor day of Destiny forslowed:
How often did they hope for what things were undecreed. * And
passed unto their tombs before Hope the bounty showed
And from high and awful state all a sudden they were sent * To
the straitness of the grave and oh! base is their abode:
Then came to them a Crier after burial and cried, * What booted
thrones or crowns or the gold to you bestowed:
Where now are gone the faces hid by curtain and by veil, * Whose
charms were told in proverbs, those beauties à-la-mode?
The tombs aloud reply to the questioners and cry, * Death’s
canker and decay those rosy cheeks corrode’
Long time they ate and drank, but their joyaunce had a term, *
And the eater eke was eaten, and was eaten by the worm.”
When the Emir read this, he wept, till he was like to swoon away—And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted
say.
When it was the Five Hundred ante Seventy-fifth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Emir wept
till he was like to swoon away, and bade write down the verses, after
which he passed on into the inner palace and came to a vast hall, at
each of whose four corners stood a pavilion lofty and spacious, washed
with gold and silver and painted in various colours. In the heart of
the hall was a great jetting-fountain of alabaster, surmounted by a
canopy of brocade, and in each pavilion was a sitting-place and each
place had its richly-wrought fountain and tank paved with marble and
streams flowing in channels along the floor and meeting in a great and
grand cistern of many-coloured marbles. Quoth the Emir to the Shaykh
Abd al-Samad, “Come let us visit yonder pavilion!” So they entered the
first and found it full of gold and silver and pearls and jacinths and
other precious stones and metals, besides chests filled with brocades,
red and yellow and white. Then they repaired to the second pavilion,
and, opening a closet there, found it full of arms and armour, such as
gilded helmets and Davidean[FN#140] hauberks and Hindi swords and
Arabian spears and Chorasmian[FN#141] maces and other gear of fight and
fray. Thence they passed to the third pavilion, wherein they saw
closets padlocked and covered with curtains wrought with all manner of
embroidery. They opened one of these and found it full of weapons
curiously adorned with open work and with gold and silver damascene and
jewels. Then they entered the fourth pavilion, and opening one of the
closets there, beheld in it great store of eating and drinking vessels
of gold and silver, with platters of crystal and goblets set with fine
pearls and cups of carnelian and so forth. So they all fell to taking
that which suited their tastes and each of the soldiers carried off
what he could. When they left the pavilions, they saw in the midst of
the palace a door of teak-wood marquetried with ivory and ebony and
plated with glittering gold, over which hung a silken curtain purfled
with all manner of embroideries; and on this door were locks of white
silver, that opened by artifice without a key. The Shaykh Abd al-Samad
went valiantly up thereto and by the aid of his knowledge and skill
opened the locks, whereupon the door admitted them into a corridor
paved with marble and hung with veil-like[FN#142] tapestries
embroidered with figures of all manner beasts and birds, whose bodies
were of red gold and white silver and their eyes of pearls and rubies,
amazing all who looked upon them. Passing onwards they came to a saloon
builded all of polished marble, inlaid with jewels, which seemed to the
beholder as though the floor were flowing water[FN#143] and whoso
walked thereon slipped. The Emir bade the Shaykh strew somewhat upon
it, that they might walk over it; which being done, they made shift to
fare forwards till they came to a great domed pavilion of stone, gilded
with red gold and crowned with a cupola of alabaster, about which were
set lattice-windows carved and jewelled with rods of emerald,[FN#144]
beyond the competence of any King. Under this dome was a canopy of
brocade, reposing upon pillars of red gold and wrought with figures of
birds whose feet were of smaragd, and beneath each bird was a network
of fresh-hued pearls. The canopy was spread above a jetting fountain
of ivory and carnelian, plated with glittering gold and thereby stood a
couch set with pearls and rubies and other jewels and beside the couch
a pillar of gold. On the capital of the column stood a bird fashioned
of red rubies and holding in his bill a pearl which shone like a star;
and on the couch lay a damsel, as she were the lucident sun, eyes never
saw a fairer. She wore a tight-fitting body-robe of fine pearls, with a
crown of red gold on her head, filleted with gems, and on her forehead
were two great jewels, whose light was as the light of the sun. On her
breast she wore a jewelled amulet, filled with musk and ambergris and
worth the empire of the Caesars; and around her neck hung a collar of
rubies and great pearls, hollowed and filled with odoriferous musk And
it seemed as if she gazed on them to the right and to the left.—And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted
say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-sixth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the damsel seemed
to be gazing at the folk to the right and to the left. The Emir Musa
marvelled at her exceeding beauty and was confounded at the blackness
of her hair and the redness of her cheeks, which made the beholder deem
her alive and not dead, and said to her, “Peace be with thee, O
damsel!” But Talib ibn Sahl said to him, “Allah preserve thee, O Emir,
verily this damsel is dead and there is no life in her; so how shall
she return thy salam?” adding, “Indeed, she is but a corpse embalmed
with exceeding art; her eyes were taken out after her death and
quicksilver set under them, after which they were restored to their
sockets. Wherefore they glisten and when the air moveth the lashes, she
seemeth to wink and it appeareth to the beholder as though she looked
at him, for all she is dead.” At this the Emir marvelled beyond measure
and said, “Glory be to God who subjugateth His creatures to the
dominion of Death!” Now the couch on which the damsel lay, had steps,
and thereon stood two statues of Andalusian copper representing slaves,
one white and the other black. The first held a mace of steel[FN#145]
and the second a sword of watered steel which dazzled the eye; and
between them, on one of the steps of the couch, lay a golden tablet,
whereon were written, in characters of white silver, the following
words: “In the name of God, the Compassionating, the Compassionate!
Praise be to Allah, the Creator of mankind; and He is the Lord of
Lords, the Causer of Causes! In the name of Allah, the Never beginning,
the Everlasting, the Ordainer of Fate and Fortune! O son of Adam! what
hath befooled thee in this long esperance? What hath unminded thee of
the Death-day’s mischance? Knowest thou not that Death calleth for thee
and hasteneth to seize upon the soul of thee? Be ready, therefore, for
the way and provide thee for thy departure from the world; for,
assuredly, thou shalt leave it without delay. Where is Adam, first of
humanity? Where is Noah with his progeny? Where be the Kings of Hind
and Irak-plain and they who over earth’s widest regions reign? Where do
the Amalekites abide and the giants and tyrants of olden tide? Indeed,
the dwelling-places are void of them and they have departed from
kindred and home. Where be the Kings of Arab and Ajam? They are dead,
all of them, and gone and are become rotten bones. Where be the lords
so high in stead? They are all done dead. Where are Kora and Haman?
Where is Shaddad son of Ad? Where be Canaan and Zul-Autad,[FN#146] Lord
of the Stakes? By Allah, the Reaper of lives hath reaped them and made
void the lands of them. Did they provide them against the Day of
Resurrection or make ready to answer the Lord of men? O thou, if thou
know me not, I will acquaint thee with my name: I am Tadmurah,[FN#147]
daughter of the Kings of the Amalekites, of those who held dominion
over the lands in equity and brought low the necks of humanity. I
possessed that which never King possessed and was righteous in my rule
and did justice among my lieges; yea, I gave gifts and largesse and
freed bondsmen and bondswomen. Thus lived I many years in all ease and
delight of life, till Death knocked at my door and to me and to my folk
befel calamities galore; and it was on this wise. There betided us
seven successive years of drought, wherein no drop of rain fell on us
from the skies and no green thing sprouted for us on the face of
earth.[FN#148] So we ate what was with us of victual, then we fell upon
the cattle and devoured them, until nothing was left. Thereupon I let
bring my treasures and meted them with measures and sent out trusty men
to buy food. They circuited all the lands in quest thereof and left no
city unsought, but found it not to be bought and returned to us with
the treasure after a long absence; and gave us to know that they could
not succeed in bartering fine pearls for poor wheat, bushel for bushel,
weight for weight. So, when we despaired of succour, we displayed all
our riches and things of price and, shutting the gates of the city and
its strong places, resigned ourselves to the deme of our Lord and
committed our case to our King. Then we all died,[FN#149] as thou seest
us, and left what we had builded and all we had hoarded. This, then, is
our story, and after the substance naught abideth but the trace.” Then
they looked at the foot of the tablet and read these couplets,
“O child of Adam, let not hope make mock and flyte at thee, *
From all thy hands have treasuréd, removéd thou shalt be;
I see thou covetest the world and fleeting worldly charms, * And
races past and gone have done the same as thou I see.
Lawful and lawless wealth they got; but all their hoarded store,
* Their term accomplished, naught delayed of Destiny’s
decree.
Armies they led and puissant men and gained them gold galore; *
Then left their wealth and palaces by Pate compelled to
flee,
To straitness of the grave-yard and humble bed of dust * Whence,
pledged for every word and deed, they never more win free:
As a company of travellers had unloaded in the night * At house
that lacketh food nor is o’erfain of company:
Whose owner saith, O folk, there be no lodging here for you;’ *
So packed they who had erst unpacked and faréd hurriedly:
Misliking much the march, nor the journey nor the halt * Had
aught of pleasant chances or had aught of goodly greet
Then prepare thou good provision for to-morrow’s journey stored,
* Naught but righteous honest life shall avail thee with the
Lord!”
And the Emir Musa wept as he read, “By Allah, the fear of the Lord is
the best of all property, the pillar of certainty and the sole sure
stay. Verily, Death is the truth manifest and the sure behest, and
therein, O thou, is the goal and return place evident. Take warning,
therefore, by those who to the dust did wend and hastened on the way of
the predestined end. Seest thou not that hoary hairs summon thee to the
tomb and that the whiteness of thy locks maketh moan of thy doom?
Wherefore be thou on the wake ready for thy departure and thine account
to make. O son of Adam, what hath hardened thy heart in mode abhorred?
What hath seduced thee from the service of thy Lord? Where be the
peoples of old time? They are a warning to whoso will be warned! Where
be the Kings of al-Sín and the lords of majestic mien? Where is Shaddad
bin Ad and whatso he built and he stablished? Where is Nimrod who
revolted against Allah and defied Him? Where is Pharaoh who rebelled
against God and denied Him? Death followed hard upon the trail of them
all, and laid them low sparing neither great nor small, male nor
female; and the Reaper of Mankind cut them off, yea, by Him who maketh
night to return upon day! Know, O thou who comest to this place, that
she whom thou seest here was not deluded by the world and its frail
delights, for it is faithless, perfidious, a house of ruin, vain and
treacherous; and salutary to the creature is the remembrance of his
sins; wherefore she feared her Lord and made fair her dealings and
provided herself with provaunt against the appointed marching day.
Whoso cometh to our city and Allah vouchsafeth him competence to enter
it, let him take of the treasure all he can, but touch not aught that
is on my body, for it is the covering of my shame[FN#150] and the
outfit for the last journey; wherefore let him fear Allah and despoil
naught thereof; else will he destroy his own self. This have I set
forth to him for a warning from me and a solemn trust to be; wherewith,
peace be with ye and I pray Allah to keep you from sickness and
calamity.” And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-seventh Night,
She said, it hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Emir
Musa read this, he wept with exceeding weeping till he swooned away and
presently coming to himself, wrote down all he had seen and was
admonished by all he had witnessed. Then he said to his men, “Fetch the
camels and load them with these treasures and vases and jewels.” “O
Emir,” asked Talib, “shall we leave our damsel with what is upon her,
things which have no equal and whose like is not to be found and more
perfect than aught else thou takest; nor couldst thou find a goodlier
offering wherewithal to propitiate the favour of the Commander of the
Faithful?” But Musa answered, “O man, heardest thou not what the Lady
saith on this tablet? More by token that she giveth it in trust to us
who are no traitors.” “And shall we,” rejoined the Wazir Talib,
“because of these words, leave all these riches and jewels, seeing that
she is dead? What should she do with these that are the adornments of
the world and the ornament of the worldling, seeing that one garment of
cotton would suffice for her covering? We have more right to them than
she.” So saying he mounted the steps of the couch between the pillars,
but when he came within reach of the two slaves, lo! the mace-bearer
smote him on the back and the other struck him with the sword he held
in his hand and lopped off his head, and he dropped down dead. Quoth
the Emir, “Allah have no mercy on thy resting-place! Indeed there was
enough in these treasures, and greed of gain assuredly degradeth a
man.” Then he bade admit the troops; so they entered and loaded the
camels with those treasures and precious ores; after which they went
forth and the Emir commanded them to shut the gate as before. They
fared on along the sea-shore a whole month, till they came in sight of
a high mountain overlooking the sea and full of caves, wherein dwelt a
tribe of blacks, clad in hides, with burnooses also of hide and
speaking an unknown tongue. When they saw the troops they were startled
like shying steeds and fled into the caverns, whilst their women and
children stood at the cave doors, looking on the strangers. “O Shaykh
Abd al-Samad,” asked the Emir, “what are these folk?” and he answered,
“They are those whom we seek for the Commander of the Faithful.” So
they dismounted and setting down their loads, pitched their tents;
whereupon, almost before they had done, down came the King of the
blacks from the mountain and drew near the camp. Now he understood the
Arabic tongue; so, when he came to the Emir he saluted him with the
salam and Musa returned his greeting and entreated him with honour.
Then quoth he to the Emir, “Are ye men or Jinn?” “Well, we are men,”
quoth Musa; “but doubtless ye are Jinn, to judge by your dwelling apart
in this mountain which is cut off from mankind, and by your inordinate
bulk.” “Nay,” rejoined the black; “we also are children of Adam, of the
lineage of Ham, son of Noah (with whom be peace!), and this sea is
known as Al-Karkar.” Asked Musa, “O King, what is your religion and
what worship ye?”; and he answered, saying, “We worship the God of the
heavens and our religion is that of Mohammed, whom Allah bless and
preserve!” “And how came ye by the knowledge of this,” questioned the
Emir, “seeing that no prophet was inspired to visit this country?”
“Know, Emir,” replied the King, “that there appeared to us whilere from
out the sea a man, from whom issued a light that illumined the horizons
and he cried out, in a voice which was heard of men far and near,
saying, O children of Ham, reverence to Him who seeth and is not seen
and say ye, There is no god but the God, and Mohammed is the messenger
of God!’ And he added, I am Abu al-Abbás al-Khizr.’ Before this we were
wont to worship one another, but he summoned us to the service of the
Lord of all creatures; and he taught us to repeat these words, There is
no god save the God alone, who hath for partner none, and His is the
kingdom and His is the praise. He giveth life and death and He over all
things is Almighty.’ Nor do we draw near unto Allah (be He exalted and
extolled!) except with these words, for we know none other; but every
eve before Friday[FN#151] we see a light upon the face of earth and we
hear a voice saying, Holy and glorious, Lord of the Angels and the
Spirit! What He willeth is, and what He willeth not, is not. Every boon
is of His grace and there is neither Majesty nor is there Might save in
Allah, the Glorious, the Great!’ But ye,” quoth the King, “who and what
are ye and what bringeth you to this land?” Quoth Musa, “We are
officers of the Sovereign of Al-Islam, the Commander of the Faithful,
Abd al-Malik bin Marwan, who hath heard tell of the lord Solomon, son
of David (on whom be peace!) and of that which the Most High bestowed
upon him of supreme dominion; how he held sway over Jinn and beast and
bird and was wont when he was wroth with one of the Marids, to shut him
in a cucurbite of brass and, stopping its mouth on him with lead,
whereon he impressed his seal ring, to cast him into the sea of
Al-Karkar. Now we have heard tell that this sea is nigh your land; so
the Commander of the Faithful hath sent us hither, to bring him some of
these cucurbites, that he may look thereon and solace himself with
their sight. Such, then, is our case and what we seek of thee, O King,
and we desire that thou further us in the accomplishment of our errand
commanded by the Commander of the Faithful.” “With love and gladness,”
replied the black King, and carrying them to the guest house, entreated
them with the utmost honour and furnished them with all they needed,
feeding them upon fish. They abode thus three days, when he bade his
divers fetch from out the sea some of the vessels of Solomon. So they
dived and brought up twelve cucurbites, whereat the Emir and the Shaykh
and all the company rejoiced in the accomplishment of the Caliph’s
need. Then Musa gave the King of the blacks many and great gifts; and
he, in turn, made him a present Of the wonders of the deep, being
fishes in human form,[FN#152] saying “Your entertainment these three
days hath been of the meat of these fish.” Quoth the Emir, “Needs must
we carry some of these to the Caliph, for the sight of them will please
him more than the cucurbites of Solomon.” Then they took leave of the
black King and, setting out on their homeward journey, travelled till
they came to Damascus, where Musa went in to the Commander of the
Faithful and told him all that he had sighted and heard of verses and
legends and instances, together with the manner of the death of Talib
bin Sahl; and the Caliph said, “Would I had been with you, that I might
have seen what you saw!” Then he took the brazen vessels and opened
them, cucurbite after cucurbite, whereupon the devils came forth of
them, saying, “We repent, O Prophet of Allah! Never again will we
return to the like of this thing; no never!” And the Caliph marvelled
at this. As for the daughters of the deep presented to them by the
black King, they made them cisterns of planks, full of water, and laid
them therein; but they died of the great heat. Then the Caliph sent for
the spoils of the Brazen City and divided them among the Faithful,—And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted
say,
When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Caliph
marvelled much at the cucurbites and their contents; then he sent for
the spoils and divided them among the Faithful, saying, “Never gave
Allah unto any the like of that which he bestowed upon Solomon
David-son!” Thereupon the Emir Musa sought leave of him to appoint his
son Governor of the Province in his stead, that he might be take
himself to the Holy City of Jerusalem, there to worship Allah. So the
Commander of the Faithful invested his son Harun with the government
and Musa repaired to the Glorious and Holy City, where he died. This,
then, is all that hath come down to us of the story of the City of
Brass, and God is All-knowing! Now (continued Shahrazad) I have another
tale to tell anent the
CRAFT AND MALICE OF WOMEN,[FN#153] OR THE TALE OF THE KING, HIS SON,
HIS CONCUBINE AND THE SEVEN WAZIRS.
There was, in days of yore and in ages and times long gone before, a
puissant King among the Kings of China, the crown of crowned heads, who
ruled over many men of war and vassals with wisdom and justice, might
and majesty; equitable to his Ryots, liberal to his lieges and dearly
beloved by the hearts of his subjects. He was wealthy as he was
powerful, but he had grown old without being blessed with a son, and
this caused him sore affliction. He could only brood over the cutting
off of his seed and the oblivion that would bury his name and the
passing of his realm into the stranger’s hands. So he secluded himself
in his palace, never going in and out or rising and taking rest till
the lieges lost all tidings of him and were sore perplexed and began to
talk about their King. Some said, “He’s dead”; others said, “No, he’s
not”; but all resolved to find a ruler who could reign over them and
carry out the customs of government. At last, utterly despairing of
male issue, he sought the intercession of the Prophet (whom Allah bless
and keep!) with the Most High and implored Him, by the glory of His
Prophets and Saints and Martyrs and others of the Faithful who were
acceptable to Heaven that he would grant him a son, to be the coolth of
his eyes and heir to the kingdom after him. Then he rose forthright
and, withdrawing to his sitting-saloon, sent for his wife who was the
daughter of his uncle. Now this Queen was of surpassing beauty and
loveliness, the fairest of all his wives and the dearest to him as she
was the nearest: and to boot a woman of excellent wit and passing
judgement. She found the King dejected and sorrowful, tearful-eyed and
heavy-hearted; so she kissed ground between his hands and said, “O
King, may my life ransom thy life! may Time never prove thy foe, nor
the shifts of Fortune prevail over thee; may Allah grant thee every joy
and ward off from thee all annoy! How is it I see thee brooding over
thy case and tormented by the displeasures of memory?” He replied,
“Thou wottest well that I am a man now shotten in years, who hath never
been blessed with a son, a sight to cool his eyes; so I know that my
kingdom shall pass away to the stranger in blood and my name and memory
will be blotted out amongst men. ’Tis this causeth me to grieve with
excessive grief.” “Allah do away with thy sorrows,” quoth she: “long
ere this day a thought struck me; and yearning for issue arose in my
heart even as in thine. One night I dreamed a dream and a voice said to
me, ‘The King thy husband pineth for progeny: if a daughter be
vouchsafed to him, she will be the ruin of his realm; if a son, the
youth will undergo much trouble and annoy but he will pass through it
without loss of life. Such a son can be conceived by thee and thee only
and the time of thy conception is when the moon conjoineth with
Gemini!’ I woke from my dream, but after what I heard that voice
declare I refrained from breeding and would not consent to bear
children.” “There is no help for it but that I have a son, Inshallah,
—God willing!” cried the King. Thereupon she soothed and consoled him
till he forgot his sorrows and went forth amongst the lieges and sat,
as of wont, upon his throne of estate. All rejoiced to see him once
more and especially the Lords of his realm. Now when the conjunction of
the moon and Gemini took place, the King knew his wife carnally and, by
order of Allah Almighty she became pregnant. Presently she anounced the
glad tidings to her husband and led her usual life until her nine
months of pregnancy were completed and she bare a male child whose face
was as the rondure of the moon on its fourteenth night. The lieges of
the realm congratulated one another thereanent and the King commanded
an assembly of his Olema and philosophers, astrologers and
horoscopists, whom he thus addressed, “I desire you to forecast the
fortune of my son and to determine his ascendant[FN#154] and whatever
is shown by his nativity.” They replied “’Tis well, in Allah’s name,
let us do so!” and cast his nativity with all diligence. After
ascertaining his ascendant, they pronounced judgement in these words,
“We see his lot favourable and his life viable and durable; save that a
danger awaiteth his youth.” The father was sorely concerned at this
saying, when they added “But, O King, he shall escape from it nor shall
aught of injury accrue to him!” Hereupon the King cast aside all cark
and care and robed the wizards and dismissed them with splendid
honoraria; and he resigned himself to the will of Heaven and
acknowledged that the decrees of destiny may not be countervailed. He
committed his boy to wet nurses and dry nurses, handmaids and eunuchs,
leaving him to grow and fill out in the Harim till he reached the age
of seven. Then he addressed letters to his Viceroys and Governors in
every clime and by their means gathered together Olema and philosophers
and doctors of law and religion, from all countries, to a number of
three hundred and three score. He held an especial assembly for them
and, when all were in presence, he bade them draw near him and be at
their ease while he sent for the food-trays and all ate their
sufficiency. And when the banquet ended and the wizards had taken seats
in their several degrees, the King asked them, “Wot ye wherefore I have
gathered ye together?”; whereto all answered, “We wot not, O King!” He
continued, “It is my wish that you select from amongst you fifty men,
and from these fifty ten, and from these ten one, that he may teach my
son omnem rem scibilem; for whenas I see the youth perfect in all
science, I will share my dignity with the Prince and make him partner
with me in my possessions.” “Know, O King,” they replied, “that among
us none is more learned or more excellent than Al-Sindibad,[FN#155]
hight the Sage, who woneth in thy capital under thy protection. If such
be thy design, summon him and bid him do thy will.” The King acted upon
their advice and the Sage, standing in the presence, expressed his
loyal sentiments with his salutation, whereupon his Sovereign bade him
draw nigh and thus raised his rank, saying, “I would have thee to know,
O Sage, that I summoned this assembly of the learned and bade them
choose me out a man to teach my son all knowledge; when they selected
thee without dissenting thought or voice. If, then, thou feel capable
of what they claimed for thee, come thou to the task and understand
that a man’s son and heir is the very fruit of his vitals and core of
his heart and liver. My desire of thee is thine instruction of him; and
to happy issue Allah guideth!” The King then sent for his son and
committed him to Al-Sindibad conditioning the Sage to finish his
education in three years. He did accordingly but, at the end of that
time, the young Prince had learned nothing, his mind being wholly
occupied with play and disport; and when summoned and examined by his
sire, behold, his knowledge was as nil. Thereupon the King turned his
attention to the learned once more and bade them elect a tutor for his
youth; so they asked, “And what hath his governor, Al-Sindibad, been
doing?” and when the King answered, “He hath taught my son naught;” the
Olema and philosophers and high officers summoned the instructor and
said to him, “O Sage, what prevented thee from teaching the King’s son
during this length of days?” “O wise men,” he replied, “the Prince’s
mind is wholly occupied with disport and play; yet, an the King will
make with me three conditions and keep to them, I will teach him in
seven months what he would not learn (nor indeed could any other lesson
him) within seven years.” “I hearken to thee,” quoth the King, “and I
submit myself to thy conditions;” and quoth Al-Sindibad, “Hear from me,
Sire, and bear in mind these three sayings, whereof the first is, ‘Do
not to others what thou wouldst not they do unto thee’;[FN#156] and
second, ‘Do naught hastily without consulting the experienced’; and
thirdly, ‘Where thou hast power show pity.’[FN#157] In teaching this
lad I require no more of thee but to accept these three dictes and
adhere thereto.” Cried the King, “Bear ye witness against me, O all ye
here assembled, that I stand firm by these conditions!”; and caused a
proces verbal to be drawn up with his personal security and the
testimony of his courtiers. Thereupon the Sage, taking the Prince’s
hand, led him to his place, and the King sent them all requisites of
provaunt and kitchen-batteries, carpets and other furniture. Moreover
the tutor bade build a house whose walls he lined with the whitest
stucco painted over with ceruse,[FN#158] and, lastly, he delineated
thereon all the objects concerning which he proposed to lecture his
pupil. When the place was duly furnished, he took the lad’s hand and
installed him in the apartment which was amply furnished with
belly-timber; and, after stablishing him therein, went forth and
fastened the door with seven padlocks. Nor did he visit the Prince save
every third day when he lessoned him on the knowledge to be extracted
from the wall-pictures and renewed his provision of meat and drink,
after which he left him again to solitude. So whenever the youth was
straitened in breast by the tedium and ennui of loneliness, he applied
himself diligently to his object-lessons and mastered all the
deductions therefrom. His governor seeing this turned his mind into
other channel and taught him the inner meanings of the external
objects; and in a little time the pupil mastered every requisite. Then
the Sage took him from the house and taught him cavalarice and Jerid
play and archery. When the pupil had thoroughly mastered these arts,
the tutor sent to the King informing him that the Prince was perfect
and complete in all things required to figure favourably amongst his
peers. Hereat the King rejoiced; and, summoning his Wazirs and Lords of
estate to be present at the examination, commanded the Sage to send his
son into the presence. Thereupon Al-Sindibad consulted his pupil’s
horoscope and found it barred by an inauspicious conjunction which
would last seven days; so, in sore affright for the youth’s life, he
said, “Look into thy nativity-scheme.” The Prince did so and,
recognising the portent, feared for himself and presently asked the
Sage, saying, “What dost thou bid me do?” “I bid thee,” he answered,
“remain silent and speak not a word during this se’nnight; even though
thy sire slay thee with scourging. An thou pass safely through this
period, thou shalt win to high rank and succeed to thy sire’s reign;
but an things go otherwise then the behest is with Allah from the
beginning to the end thereof.” Quoth the pupil, “Thou art in fault, O
preceptor, and thou hast shown undue haste in sending that message to
the King before looking into my horoscope. Hadst thou delayed till the
week had passed all had been well.” Quoth the tutor, “O my son, what
was to be was; and the sole defaulter therein was my delight in thy
scholarship. But now be firm in thy resolve; rely upon Allah Almighty
and determine not to utter a single word.” Thereupon the Prince fared
for the presence and was met by the Wazirs who led him to his father.
The King accosted him and addressed him but he answered not; and sought
speech of him but he spake not. Whereupon the courtiers were astounded
and the monarch, sore concerned for his son, summoned Al-Sindibad. But
the tutor so hid himself that none could hit upon his trace nor gain
tidings of him; and folk said, “He was ashamed to appear before the
King’s majesty and the courtiers.” Under these conditions the Sovereign
heard some of those present saying, “Send the lad to the Serraglio
where he will talk with the women and soon set aside this bashfulness;”
and, approving their counsel, gave orders accordingly. So the Prince
was led into the palace, which was compassed about by a running stream
whose banks were planted with all manner of fruit-trees and
sweet-smelling flowers. Moreover, in this palace were forty chambers
and in every chamber ten slave-girls, each skilled in some instrument
of music, so that whenever one of them played, the palace danced to her
melodious strains. Here the Prince passed one night; but, on the
following morning, the King’s favourite concubine happened to cast eyes
upon his beauty and loveliness, his symmetrical stature, his brilliancy
and his perfect grace, and love gat hold of her heart and she was
ravished with his charms.[FN#159] So she went up to him and threw
herself upon him, but he made her no response; whereupon, being dazed
by his beauty, she cried out to him and required him of himself and
importuned him; then she again threw herself upon him and clasped him
to her bosom kissing him and saying, “O King’s son, grant me thy
favours and I will set thee in thy father’s stead; I will give him to
drink of poison, so he may die and thou shalt enjoy his realm and
wealth.” When the Prince heard these words, he was sore enraged against
her and said to her by signs, “O accursed one, so it please Almighty
Allah, I will assuredly requite thee this thy deed, whenas I can speak;
for I will go forth to my father and will tell him, and he shall kill
thee.” So signing, he arose in rage, and went out from her chamber;
whereat she feared for herself. Thereupon she buffeted her face and
rent her raiment and tare her hair and bared her head, then went in to
the King and cast herself at his feet, weeping and wailing. When he saw
her in this plight, he was sore concerned and asked her, “What aileth
thee, O damsel? How is it with thy lord, my son? Is he not well?”; and
she answered, “O King, this thy son, whom thy courtiers avouch to be
dumb, required me of myself and I repelled him, whereupon he did with
me as thou seest and would have slain me; so I fled from him, nor will
I ever return to him, nor to the palace again, no, never again!” When
the King heard this, he was wroth with exceeding wrath and, calling his
seven Wazirs, bade them put the Prince to death. However, they said one
to other, “If we do the King’s commandment, he will surely repent of
having ordered his son’s death, for he is passing dear to him and this
child came not to him save after despair; and he will round upon us and
blame us, saying, ‘Why did ye not contrive to dissuade me from slaying
him?’” So they took counsel together, to turn him from his purpose, and
the chief Wazir said, “I will warrant you from the King’s mischief this
day.” Then he went in to the presence and prostrating himself craved
leave to speak. The King gave him permission, and he said, “O King,
though thou hadst a thousand sons, yet were it no light matter to thee
to put one of them to death, on the report of a woman, be she true or
be she false; and belike this is a lie and a trick of her against thy
son; for indeed, O King, I have heard tell great plenty of stories of
the malice, the craft and perfidy of women.” Quoth the King, “Tell me
somewhat of that which hath come to thy knowledge thereof.” And the
Wazir answered, saying, ‘Yes, there hath reached me, O King, a tale
entitled