Chamberlain heard of the death of King Omar bin al-Nu'uman he mourned,
but he rejoiced because of his wife and her brother Zau al-Makan who
would become Sultan of Baghdad in his father's stead. So he turned to
the Wazir Dandan and said to him, "Verily your tale is a wonder of
wonders! Know, O Chief Wazir, that here, where you have encountered me,
Allah hath given you rest from fatigue and bringeth you your desire
after the easiest of fashions, for that His Almighty Will restoreth to
you Zau al-Makan and his sister Nuzhat al-Zaman; whereby we will settle
the matter as we easily can." When the Minister heard these words he
rejoiced with great joy and said, "O Chamberlain, tell me the tale of
the twain and what befel them and the cause of their long absence." So
he repeated to him the whole story and told him that Nuzhat al-Zaman was
his wife and related to him the adventures of Zau al-Makan from first to
last. As soon as he had ended his tale, the Wazir sent for the Emirs and
Wazirs and Chief Officers and acquainted them with the matter; whereat
they rejoiced with great joy and wondered at the happy chance. Then they
gathered in a body and went in to the Chamberlain and did their service
to him, kissing the ground between his hands; and the Wazir Dandan also
rose and went out to meet him and stood before him in honour. After
this, the Chamberlain held on that day a Divan-council; and he and the
Wazir sat upon a throne, whilst all the Emirs and Grandees and Officers
of State took their places before them, according to their several
ranks.[324] Then they melted sugar in rose-water and drank, after which
the Emirs sat down to hold council and permitted the rest of the host to
mount and ride forward leisurely, till they should make an end of their
debate and overtake them. So the officers kissed the ground between
their hands and mounting, rode onwards, preceded by the standards of
war. When the grandees had finished their conference, they took horse
and rejoined the host; and the Chamberlain approached the Wazir Dandan
and said, "I deem it well to ride on before you, and precede you, that I
may get ready a place for the Sultan and notify him of your coming and
of your choosing him as Sultan over the head of his brother Sharrkan."
"Aright thou reckest," answered the Wazir. Then the Chamberlain rose up
in haste and Dandan also stood up to do him honour and brought him
presents, which he conjured him to accept. In similar guise did all the
Emirs and Grandees and Officers of State, bringing him gifts and calling
down blessings on him and saying to him, "Haply thou wilt mention our
case to Sultan Zau al-Makan and speak to him to continue us in our
dignities."[325] The Chamberlain promised all they required and bade his
pages be ready to march, whereupon the Wazir Dandan sent with him tents
and bade the tent-pitchers set them up at a day's journey from the city.
And they did his bidding. Then the Chamberlain mounted and rode forward,
full of joy and saying to himself, "How blessed is this journey!"; and
indeed his wife was exalted in his eyes, she and her brother Zau
al-Makan. They made all haste over their wayfare, till they reached a
place distant a day's journey from Baghdad, where the Chamberlain called
a halt for rest, and bade his men alight and make ready a sitting place
for the Sultan Zau al-Makan, son of King Omar bin al-Nu'uman, while he
rode forward with his Mamelukes and, alighting at a distance from Nuzhat
al-Zaman's litter, commanded the eunuchs to ask leave of admission to
the presence. They did so and she gave permission; whereupon he went in
to her and conversed with her and her brother; and told them of the
death of their father; and of Zau al-Makan, how the heads of the people
had made him King over them in the stead of his sire; and he gave them
joy of the kingdom. They both wept for their father and asked the manner
of his being killed; but the Chamberlain answered, "The news rests with
the Wazir Dandan who will be here to-morrow leading all the host; and it
only remaineth for thee, O King, to do what they counsel, since they
have unanimously chosen thee Sultan; for if thou do not this, they will
choose some one else and thou canst not be sure of thy life with another
Sultan. Haply he will kill thee, or discord may befal between you twain
and the kingdom pass out of the hands of both." Zau al-Makan bowed his
head awhile and then said, "I accept this position;" for indeed there
was no refusing; and he was certified that the Chamberlain had
counselled him well and wisely and set him on the right way. Then he
added, "O my uncle, how shall I do with my brother Sharrkan?" "O my
son," replied the Chamberlain, "thy brother will be Sultan of Damascus
and thou Sultan of Baghdad; so take heart of grace and get ready thy
case." Zau al-Makan accepted this and the Chamberlain presented him with
a suit of royal raiment and a dagger[326] of state, which the Wazir
Dandan had brought with him; then leaving him he bade the tent-pitchers
choose a spot of rising ground and set up thereon a spacious pavilion,
wherein the Sultan might sit to receive the Emirs and Grandees. Moreover
he ordered the kitcheners to cook rich viands and serve them and he
commanded the water-carriers to dispose the water-troughs. They did as
he bade them and presently arose a cloud of dust from the ground and
spread till it walled the horizon round. After awhile, the dust
dispersed and there appeared under it the army of Baghdad and Khorasan,
a conquering host like the full-tide sea.——And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Seventy-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the
Chamberlain bade the tent-pitchers set up a pavilion spacious enough to
receive the subjects flocking to their Sultan, they planted a splendid
Sháhmiyánah[327] befitting Kings. And as they ended their labours
behold, a dust cloud spired aloft and the breeze made it lift and
beneath it showed a conquering host; and presently it appeared that this
was the army of Baghdad and Khorasan preceded by the Wazir Dandan. And
in it all rejoiced at the accession of the "Light of the Place." Now Zau
al-Makan had donned robes of royal estate and girt himself with the
sword of state: so the Chamberlain brought him a steed and he mounted,
surrounded by the Mamelukes and all the company from the tents on foot,
to do him service, and he rode on until he came to the great pavilion,
where he sat down and he laid the royal dagger across his thighs, whilst
the Chamberlain stood in attendance on him and his armed slaves
stationed themselves under the entrance-awning of the Sháhmiyánah, with
drawn swords in their hands. Presently, up came the troops and the host
and craved admission; so the Chamberlain went in to Zau al-Makan and
asked his leave, whereupon he bade admit them, ten by ten. The
Chamberlain acquainted them with the King's commands, to which they
replied, "We hear and we obey;" and all drew up before the
pavilion-entrance. Then he took ten of them and carried them through the
vestibule into the presence of Sultan Zau al-Makan, whom when they saw,
they were awed; but he received them with most gracious kindness and
promised them all good. So they gave him joy of his safe return and
invoked Allah's blessings upon him, after which they took the oath of
fealty never to gainsay him in aught and they kissed ground before him
and withdrew. Then other ten entered and he entreated them as he had
entreated the others; and they ceased not to enter, ten by ten, till
none was left but the Wazir Dandan. Lastly the Minister went in and
kissed the ground before Zau al-Makan, who rose to meet him, saying,
"Welcome, O Wazir and sire sans peer! Verily, thine acts are those of a
counsellor right dear, and judgement and foreseeing clear are in the
hands of the Subtle of Lere." Then bade he the Chamberlain forthwith go
out and cause the tables to be spread and order all the troops thereto.
So they came and ate and drank. Moreover the Sultan commanded his Wazir
Dandan call a ten days' halt of the army, that he might be private with
him and learn from him how and wherefore his father had been slain. The
Wazir obeyed the commands of the Sultan with submission and wished him
eternity of glory and said, "This needs must be!" He then repaired to
the heart of the encampment and ordered the host to halt ten days. They
did as he bade them and, moreover, he gave them leave to divert
themselves and ordered that none of the lords in waiting should attend
upon the King for service during the space of three days. Then the Wazir
went to the Sultan and reported all to him, and Zau al-Makan waited
until nightfall, when he went in to his sister Nuzhat al-Zaman and asked
her, "Dost thou know the cause of my father's murder or not?" "I have no
knowledge of the cause," she answered, and drew a silken curtain before
herself, whilst Zau al-Makan seated himself without the curtain and
commanded the Wazir to the presence and, when he came, said to him, "I
desire thou relate to me in detail the cause of the killing of my sire,
King Omar bin al-Nu'uman!" Know then, O King, replied Dandan, that King
Omar bin al-Nu'uman, when he returned to Baghdad from his chasing and
hunting and entered the city, enquired for thee and thy sister, but
could not find you and knew that you twain had gone on the Pilgrimage;
whereat he was greatly grieved and much angered, and his breast was
straitened and he abode thus half a year, seeking news of you from all
who came and went, but none could give him any tidings. Now while we
were in attendance upon him one day, after a whole year had sped since
ye were lost to his sight, lo! there came to us an ancient dame with
signs of being a devotee, accompanied by five damsels, high-bosomed
virgins like moons, endowed with such beauty and loveliness as tongue
faileth to describe; and, to crown their perfections of comeliness, they
could read the Koran and were versed in various kinds of learning and in
the histories of bygone peoples. Then that old woman sought audience of
the King, and he bade admit her; whereupon she entered the presence and
kissed the ground between his hands. I was then sitting by his side and
he, seeing in her the signs of asceticism and devoutness, made her draw
near and take seat hard by him. And when she had sat down she addressed
him and said, "Know, O King, that with me are five damsels, whose like
no King among the Kings possesseth; for they are endowed with wit and
beauty and loveliness and perfection. They read the Koran and the
Traditions and are skilled in all manner of learning and in the history
of bygone races. They stand here between thy hands to do thee service, O
King of the Age, and it is by trial that folk are prized or despised."
Thy father, who hath found mercy;[328] looked at the damsels and their
favour pleased him; so he said to them, "Let each and every of you make
me hear something of what she knoweth anent the history of the folk of
yore and of peoples long gone before!"——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn
of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Seventy-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan
said unto King Zau al-Makan:—Thy father, who hath found mercy, glanced
at the damsels and their favour pleased him and he said to them, "Let
each and every of you make me hear something of what she knoweth anent
the history of the folk of yore and of peoples long gone before!"
Thereupon one of them came forward and, kissing the ground before him,
spake as follows.[329] "Know, O King, that it behoveth one of
good-breeding to eschew impertinence and adorn himself with
excellencies, and observe the Divine injunctions and avoid mortal sins;
and to this he should apply himself with the assiduity of one who, if he
stray therefrom, falleth into perdition; for the foundation of good
breeding is virtuous behaviour. And know that the chief cause and reason
of man's existence is the endeavour after life everlasting, and the
right way thereto is the service of Allah. Wherefore it behoveth thee to
deal beneficently with the people: and swerve not from this canon, for
the mightier men are in dignity, the more their need of prudence and
foresight; and indeed Monarchs need this more than the many, for the
general cast themselves into affairs, without taking thought to the
issue thereof. Be thou prodigal of thy life and thy good in the way of
Allah, and know that, if an enemy dispute with thee, thou mayst dispute
with him and refute him with proofs and be proof against him; but as for
thy friend, there is none can judge between thee and him save
righteousness and fair-dealing. Choose, therefore, thy friend for
thyself, after thou hast proved him. If he be of the brotherhood of
futurity,[330] let him be zealous in observing the externals of the Holy
Law and versed in its inner meaning, as far as may be; and if he be of
the brotherhood of the world, let him be free-born, sincere, neither a
fool nor a perverse, for the fool man is such that even his parents
might well flee from him, and a liar cannot be a true friend. Indeed the
word, Siddík[331] ('friend') deriveth from Sidk ('truth') that welleth
up from the bottom of the heart; and how can this be the case, when
falsehood is manifest upon the tongue? And know, that the observance of
the Law profiteth him who practiseth it: so love thy brother, if he be
of this quality and do not cast him off, even if thou see in him that
which irketh thee, for a friend is not like a wife, whom one can divorce
and re-marry: nay, his heart is like glass: once broken, it may not be
mended. And Allah bless him who saith:—
Ware how thou hurtest man with hurt of heart; ✿ 'Tis hard to win
thee back the heart offended:
For hearts indeed, whence love is alien made, ✿ Like broken-glass
may nevermore be mended."
The maiden continued and concluded with pointing out to us what sages
say, "The best of brethren is he who is the most constant in good
counsel; the best of action is that which is fairest in its consequence,
and the best of praise is not that which is in the mouths of men. It is
also said:—It behoveth not the servant to neglect thanking Allah
especially for two favours, health and reason. Again it is said:—Whoso
honoureth himself, his lust is a light matter to him, and he who maketh
much of his small troubles, Allah affiicteth him with the greater; he
who obeyeth his own inclination neglecteth his duties and he who
listeneth to the slanderer loseth the true friend. He who thinketh well
of thee, do thou fulfill his thought of thee. He who exceedeth in
contention sinneth, and he who against unright standeth not on ward, is
not safe from the sword. Now will I tell thee somewhat of the duties of
Kazis and judges. Know, O King, that no judgement serveth the cause of
justice save it be given after proof positive, and it behoveth the judge
to treat all people on the same level, to the intent that the great may
not hunger for oppression nor the small despair of justice. Furthermore
he should extract proof from the complainant and impose an oath upon the
defendant; and mediation is admissible between Moslems, except it be a
compromise sanctioning the unlawful or forbidding the lawful.[332] If
thou shalt have done aught during the day, of which thy reason is
doubtful but thy good intention is proved, thou (O Kazi) shouldst revert
to the right, for to do justice is a religious obligation and to return
to that which is right is better than persistence in wrong. Then (O
judge) thou shouldest study precedents and the law of the case and do
equal justice between the suitors, withal fixing thine eyes upon the
truth and committing thine affair to Allah (be He extolled and
exalted!). And require thou proof of the complainant, and if he adduce
evidence let him have due benefit of it; and if not, put the defendant
to his oath; for this is the ordinance of Allah. Receive thou the
testimony of competent Moslem witnesses, one against other, for Almighty
Allah hath commanded judges to judge by externals, He Himself taking
charge of the inner and secret things. It behoveth the judge also to
avoid giving judgement, whilst suffering from stress of pain or
hunger,[333] and that in his decisions between folk he seek the face of
Allah Almighty, for he whose intent is pure and who is at peace with
himself, Allah shall guarantee him against what is between him and the
people. Quoth al-Zuhri[334]:—There are three things for which, if they
be found in a Kazi, he should be deposed; namely, if he honour the base,
if he love praise and if he fear dismissal. And Omar bin Abd al-Aziz
once deposed a Kazi, who asked him, Why hast thou dismissed me? It hath
reached me, answered Omar, that thy converse is greater than thy
condition. It is said also that Iskandar[335] said to his Kazi:—I have
invested thee with this function and committed to thee in it my soul and
mine honour and my manliness; so do thou guard it with thy sense and
thine understanding. To his Cook he said, Thou art the Sultan of my
body; so look thou tender it as thine own self. To his Secretary he
said, Thou art the controller of my wit: so do thou watch over me in
what thou writest for me and from me." Thereupon the first damsel backed
out from the presence and a second damsel came forward.——And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the full Eightieth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir
Dandan said to Zau al-Makan:—Thereupon the first damsel backed out from
the presence and a second damsel came forward and, kissing the ground
seven times before the King thy father, spake as follows, "The sage
Lukmán[336] said to his son, There be three who are known only in three
several cases; the merciful man is unknown save in time of wrath, the
brave only in battle, and thy friend in time of need. It is said that
the oppressor shall be deprest though by people praised, and that the
opprest is at rest though by people blamed. Quoth Allah Almighty,[337]
Assuredly deem not that those who rejoice in what they have done, and
who love to be praised for what they have not done, shall escape
reckoning of punishment: indeed there is reserved for them a grievous
penalty. And he said[338] (on whom be salvation and salutation!):—Works
are according to intention and to each man is attributed that which he
intendeth. He said also:—In the body is a part which being sound the
rest is sound, and which being unsound the whole is unsound. And this is
the heart. Now this heart is the most marvellous of what is in man,
since it is that which ordereth his whole affair: If covetise stir in
it, desire destroyeth him; and if affliction master it, anguish slayeth
him; if anger rage in it, danger is hard upon him; if it be blest with
contentment, he is safe from discontent; if fear surprise it, he is full
of mourning; and if calamity overtake it, affliction betideth him. If a
man gain the use of wealth, peradventure he is diverted thereby from the
remembrance of his Lord; if poverty choke him, his heart is distracted
by woe, or if disquietude waste his heart, weakness causeth him to fall.
Thus, in any case, nothing profiteth him but that he be mindful of Allah
and occupy himself with gaining his livelihood in this world and
securing his place in the next. It was asked of a certain sage, Who is
the most ill-conditioned of men?; and he answered, The man whose lusts
master his manhood and whose mind soareth over high, so that his
knowledge dispreadeth and his excuse diminisheth; and how excellently
saith the poet:—
Freest am I of all mankind fro' meddling wight ✿ Who, seeing
others err, self-error ne'er can sight:
Riches and talents are but loans to creature lent; ✿ Each wears
the cloak of that he bears in breast and sprite:
If by mistaken door attempt on aught thou make, ✿ Thou shalt go
wrong; and if the door be right, go right!"
Continued the maiden, "As for anecdotes of devotees, quoth Hishám bin
Bashar:—I asked Omar bin Ubayd, What is true piety?; and he answered,
The Apostle of Allah (to whom be salutation and salvation!) hath
explained it when he sayeth, The pious is he who forgetteth not the
grave nor calamity and who preferreth that which endureth to that which
passeth away; who counteth not the morrow as of his days but reckoneth
himself among the dead. And it is related that Abu Zarr[339] used to
say, Want is dearer to me than wealth, and unheal is dearer to me than
health. Quoth one of the listeners, May Allah have mercy on Abu Zarr!
For my part, I say, Whoso putteth his trust in the goodness of the
election of Almighty Allah should be content with that condition which
Allah hath chosen for him. Quoth one of the Companions of the Prophet,
Ibn Abi Aufa[340] once prayed with us the dawn-prayer. When he had done,
he recited, O Thou Enwrapped![341] till he came to where Allah saith,
When there shall be a trumping on the trumpet, and fell down dead. It is
said that Sabit al-Banáni wept till he well-nigh lost his eyes. They
brought him a man to medicine him who said to him, I will cure thee,
provided thou obey my bidding. Asked Sabit, In what matter? Quoth the
leach, In that thou leave weeping! What is the worth of mine eyes?,
rejoined Sabit, if they do not weep? Quoth a man to Mohammed bin
Abdillah, Exhort thou me!"——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eighty-first Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir
Dandan said to Zau al-Makan:—Thus spake the second handmaid to the King
who hath found mercy, Omar bin al-Nu'uman. "Quoth a man to Mohammed bin
Abdillah, Exhort thou me! I exhort thee, replied he, to be a self-ruler,
an abstainer in this world, and in the next a greedy slave. How so?
asked the other and Mohammed answered, The abstinent man in this world
conquereth both the world that is and the world to come. And quoth Ghaus
bin Abdillah, There were two brothers among the sons of Israel, one of
whom said to the other, What be the most perilous[342] thing thou hast
done? Replied the brother, I once came upon a nest of young birds; so I
took out one and threw it back into the nest; but among the chickens
were some which drew apart from it. This is the most perilous thing I
ever did; now what be the most perilous thing thou hast ever done? He
rejoined, When I arise for prayer I am fearful that it is only for the
sake of the reward. Now their father heard these words and exclaimed, O
Allah, an say they sooth take them to Thyself! It was declared by one of
the wise men, Verily, these were of the most virtuous of children. Quoth
Sa'id bin Jubayr,[343] I was once in company with Fuzalah bin 'Ubayd and
said to him, Exhort thou me! Replied he, Bear in mind these two
necessaries, Shun syntheism[344] and harm not any of Allah's creatures.
And he repeated these two couplets:—
Be as thou wilt, for Allah still is bounteous Lord, ✿
And care-dispeller; dread not therefore bane and ban
To two things only never draw thee nigh, nor give ✿ Partner to
Allah, trouble to thy brother-man."
And how well saith the poet:—
An thou of pious works a store neglect ✿ And after death meet one
who _did_ collect,
Thou shalt repent thou diddest not as he, ✿ Nor madest ready as he
did elect."
Then the third damsel came forward, after the second had withdrawn, and
said, "Of a truth, the chapter of piety is exceeding wide; but I will
mention what occurreth to me thereof, concerning the pious of old. Quoth
a certain holy man, I congratulate myself in death, though I am not
assured of rest therein, save that I know death interveneth between a
man and his works; so I hope for the doubling of good works and the
docking off of ill works. And Itá'a al-Salamí, when he had made an end
of an exhortation, was wont to tremble and grieve and weep sore; and as
they asked him why he did this he answered, I desire to enter upon a
grave matter, and it is the standing up before Almighty Allah to do in
accordance with my exhortation. In similar guise Zayn al-Abidín,[345]
son of Al-Husayn, was wont to tremble when he rose to pray. Being asked
the cause of this, he replied, Know ye not before whom I stand and whom
I address? It is said that there lived near Sufyán al-Thauri[346] a
blind man who, when the month of Ramazán came, went out with the folk to
pray,[347] but remained silent and hung back. Said Sufyan, On the Day of
Resurrection he shall come with the people of the Koran and they will be
distinguished by increase of honour from their fellows. Quoth Sufyan,
Were the soul established in the heart as befitteth, it would fly away
for joy and pining for Paradise, and for grief and fear of hell-fire. It
is related also of Sufyan al-Thauri that he said, To look upon the face
of a tyrant is a sin." Then the third damsel retired and came forward
the fourth, who said, "Here am I to treat of sundry traditions of pious
men which suggest themselves to me. It is related that Bishr
Barefoot[348] said, I once heard Khálid say, Beware of secret
polytheism. I asked, What may secret polytheism be?; and he answered,
When one of you in praying prolong his inclinations and prostrations
till a cause of impurity[349] come upon him. And one of the sages said,
Doing works of weal expiateth what is ill. Quoth Ibrahim,[350] I
supplicated Bishr Barefoot to acquaint me with some theological
mysteries; but he said, O my son, this knowledge it behoveth us not to
teach to every one; of every hundred five, even as the legal alms upon
money. Said Ibrahim, I thought his reply excellent and approved of it
and while I was praying behold, Bishr was also praying: so I stood
behind him[351] making the prayer-bow till the Mu'ezzin called his call.
Then rose a man of tattered appearance and said, O folk, beware of a
truth which bringeth unweal, for there is no harm in a lie bringing
weal,[352] and in time of need no choice we heed: speech booteth not in
the absence of good qualities even as silence hurteth not in the
presence of good. Presently I saw Bishr drop a danik,[353] so I picked
it up and exchanged it for a dirham which I gave him. Quoth he, I will
not take it. Quoth I, It is perfectly lawful change; but he rejoined I
cannot take in exchange the riches of the present world for those of the
future world. It is related also that Bishr Barefoot's sister once went
to Ahmad bin Hanbal"[354]——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Eighty-second Night,