The thief then stretched out his hand and, taking the purse that was in front of the wali and the soldier, he went round behind them, watched by the people who thought that he was showing how he had got it from the saddlebag. Suddenly, however, he took to his heels and dived into a pool. The wali shouted to his retainers to go in after him and catch him, but before they had taken off their clothes and gone down the steps to the pool, the clever thief had gone off on his way. They searched for him but could not find him, for in Alexandria the lanes are interconnected, and so they had to come back empty-handed. The wali told the soldier that he had no claim against the other people from the khan, because, although he had found the culprit and had got the money back, he had failed to keep it. So the soldier got up, having lost his gold, while the others were freed, all this owing thanks to the grace of Almighty God.
A story is told that one day al-Malik al-Nasir summoned his three walis, the wali of Cairo, the wali of Bulaq and the wali of Fustat, and told each of them to tell him of the most remarkable thing that had happened to him during his period in office.
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the three hundred and forty-third night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that al-Malik al-Nasir told each of the three walis to tell him of the most remarkable thing that had happened to him during his period in office. ‘To hear is to obey,’ they said. THE WALI OF CAIRO BEGAN:
My lord the sultan, the most remarkable thing that has happened to me in my time was this. In the city there were two notaries who used to act as witnesses in cases involving bloodshed and wounds. They were passionately addicted to women, drink and debauchery, but I could find no way of calling them to account for this. As I wasn’t able to act, I gave instructions to all wine sellers, grocers, fruiterers, candle sellers and brothel owners to let me know when these two were drinking or indulging in debauchery, whether together or separately. If both or one of them bought anything that could be used for a drinking party, this was not to be kept secret from me. ‘To hear is to obey,’ they said.
It happened that one night a man came to me and told me that the two were in such-and-such a place in such-and-such a street and such-and-such a house, acting dissolutely. I got up and, after disguising myself and my page, I went to find them, with only the page for company. I walked on until I reached the door of the house, and when I knocked, a slave girl came and opened it for me. She asked me who I was, but I went in without answering, and there I saw the two notaries sitting with the owner of the house, together with a number of prostitutes and a great quantity of wine. On seeing me they got up and paid me their respects, seating me at the upper end of the room and exclaiming: ‘Welcome to the honoured guest, the witty companion!’, receiving me with no trace of fear.
After that the owner of the house rose and left us, coming back some time later with three hundred dinars. He, too, showed no fear. Then, addressing me as ‘our master, the wali’, they said: ‘It is in your power to disgrace us or worse, and you can punish us, but this will only bring you inconvenience. You would be advised to take this money and shelter us, for Almighty God is named the Shelterer, and as He loves those of His servants who shelter others, you will receive a divine reward.’ So I told myself to take the money and cover for the two of them on that one occasion, but that if I caught them again I would punish them. The money had stirred my greed and so I took it from them and left them. I left without anyone seeing me, but the next day to my surprise a messenger came to me from the qadi, asking me to come and see him.
I went with the messenger to his master without knowing what this was about, but when I came into his presence I saw sitting with him the two notaries and the brothel owner who had given me the three hundred dinars. This man got up and claimed that I owed him that sum, a point that I could not deny, as he produced a document, witnessed by the notaries, stating that the debt was due. The qadi accepted the claim on the evidence of the notaries and ordered me to pay over the money, which I had to do before I left. I was furious and determined to do them an injury, regretting the fact that I had not made an example of them, but I had to leave full of shame. This is the most remarkable thing that happened to me during my period in office.
The wali of Bulaq then got up and said: ‘As for me, my lord the sultan, the most remarkable thing that happened to me was when I was in difficulties having accumulated a debt of three hundred thousand dinars. I sold every single thing that I could but I was able to collect no more than one hundred thousand…’
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the three hundred and forty-fourth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that THE WALI OF BULAQ SAID:
I sold every single thing that I could but I was able to collect no more than one hundred thousand, and this plunged me into confusion. One night, when I was sitting at home worrying about this, there came a knock on the door and I told one of my servants to see who was there. He went out but when he came back his colour had changed; he was pale-faced and trembling. When I asked what was the matter he told me that at the door there was a man naked apart from some skins, armed with a sword, and with a knife at his waist. With him were a number of others dressed in the same way, and he was asking for me.
Sword in hand, I went out to see who these might be and there they were, just as my servant had described them. I asked them their business and they said: ‘We are robbers and tonight we have come by a great treasure which we have set aside for you in order to settle this problem of debt that is worrying you.’ ‘Where is this treasure?’ I asked them, and they fetched me a large chest filled with vessels of gold and silver. I was delighted to see it, saying to myself that it would allow me to pay off my debt and leave me as much again. So I took the chest and went back into my house, but then I said to myself that it would be dishonourable to let the men go away empty-handed. So I fetched the hundred thousand dinars that I had with me and gave it to them with my thanks. They took the money and went off unnoticed under cover of night. The next morning, I looked at the contents of the chest and found them to consist of copper coated with gold and tin, worth all in all some five hundred dirhams. I found this hard to bear as I had lost my dinars and added to my woes. This is the most remarkable thing that happened to me during my period in office.
THE WALI OF FUSTAT THEN ROSE AND SAID:
My master the sultan, here is my most remarkable experience during my time in office. I had ten thieves hanged, each on a gibbet of his own, and I told the guards to watch to see that nobody removed any of the corpses. The next day, when I came to look at them, I found two corpses hanging from the same gibbet. ‘Who has done this,’ I asked the guards, ‘and where is the gibbet belonging to this second corpse?’ They disclaimed any knowledge of the affair, but when I was about to have them flogged, they said: ‘We fell asleep last night, emir, and when we woke up we found that one of the corpses, together with its gibbet, had been stolen. We were afraid, and when we saw a passing peasant coming up towards us with his donkey, we seized him, killed him and hanged him on this gibbet in place of the corpse that had been removed.’ I was taken by surprise and asked them what the peasant had had with him. They told me that he had had a saddlebag on his donkey, and when I asked what was in it they said that they didn’t know. ‘Bring it to me,’ I told them, and when they did and I ordered them to open it, there inside it was the body of a murdered man cut into pieces. I was astonished at this sight and said to myself: ‘Glory be to God. The reason that this peasant was hanged was that he was guilty of murder, and God does not treat His servants unjustly.’
A story is told that a money-changer passed some thieves while he was carrying a purse full of gold. One of these rascals boasted that he would be able to steal the purse and when the others asked him how, he told them to wait and see. He then followed the money-changer to his house, and when the mone
y-changer went in, he threw the purse down on a shelf, after which, feeling the need to relieve himself, he went to the lavatory, telling a slave girl to bring him a jug of water. She fetched this and followed him to the lavatory, leaving the door open. The thief then entered and took the purse, after which he went back to his companions and told them what had happened…
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the three hundred and forty-fifth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that the thief took the purse and went to tell his companions what had happened to him with the money-changer and the girl. ‘By God,’ they said, ‘this was a clever trick that not everybody could play, but now when the man comes out of the lavatory and fails to find the purse, he will punish the girl with a painful beating. There is nothing meritorious in what you have done; if you are a really clever thief, then save the girl from her punishment.’ ‘God willing,’ the man replied, ‘I shall save her and take the purse as well.’
He went back to the money-changer’s house, where he found the man beating the girl because of the loss of his purse. He knocked on the door and when he was asked who he was, he said: ‘I am the servant of your neighbour in the covered market.’ At that, the man came out to him and asked him what he wanted. ‘My master sends you his greetings,’ said the thief, ‘and says that you seem to have changed completely. He wants to know how you could come to throw down a purse like this at the door of your shop and then walk away and leave it. Had a stranger found it he would have taken it and gone, and if my master had not seen it and kept it safe, you would have lost it.’ He then brought out the purse and showed it to its owner. ‘This is mine!’ exclaimed the man, and he stretched out his hand to take it, but the thief said: ‘By God, I’m not going to give it to you until you write me a note for my master to confirm that you have received it from me, as otherwise he may not believe me when I tell him that you have got it. So I need a signed and sealed receipt.’ The money-changer went back into his house to write this note for him to acknowledge the delivery of the purse, and at that the thief went off with the money, having saved the girl from a beating.
The story is told that ‘Ala’ al-Din, the wali of Qus, was sitting at home one night when a handsome man of fine appearance came to his door accompanied by a servant who was carrying a chest on his head. This man told one of ‘Ala’ al-Din’s servants to go in and tell his master that he wanted to see him on a secret matter. The servant did this and was told by ‘Ala’ al-Din to show the visitor in. On seeing a dignified and handsome stranger, he sat the man down beside him and treated him with courtesy before asking him what he wanted. The stranger replied: ‘I am a highwayman, but I want you to witness my repentance and my return to the service of Almighty God. Please help me to do this, because I have come to your district and am subject to your supervision. I have with me this chest, whose contents are worth about forty thousand dinars, to which you have a better right than I. If you give me a thousand dinars of money that is legally yours, I can use this as capital and it will help me to repent, since I shall not need to steal again, and Almighty God will reward you.’
The man then opened the chest to show ‘Ala’ al-Din its contents, which comprised jewellery, gems, precious metals, ring stones and pearls. ‘Ala’ al-Din was astonished and delighted; he called for his treasurer and told him to fetch such-and-such a purse, this being one that contained a thousand dinars.
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the three hundred and forty-sixth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that ‘Ala’ al-Din called for his treasurer and told him to fetch such-and-such a purse, this being one that contained a thousand dinars. When this was brought to him he handed it to his visitor, who took it, thanked him and left under cover of night. The next morning, ‘Ala’ al-Din summoned the syndic of the jewellers and, on his arrival, he showed him the chest and its contents, which turned out to be made of tin and brass, while what seemed to be gems, ring stones and pearls were all of glass. ‘Ala’ al-Din found this hard to stomach, but although he sent men out in pursuit of the trickster, no one was able to catch him.
The story is told that al-Ma’mun, the Commander of the Faithful, once told Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi to tell him the most remarkable thing he had ever seen. ‘To hear is to obey, Commander of the Faithful,’ replied Ibrahim, AND HE WENT ON:
One day I went out to take the air and eventually I came to a place where I could smell food cooking. I was filled with a longing for this and I stood there in a state of perplexity, not being able to move on or to go into the house. Then I looked up and there, behind a window, I caught sight of the most beautiful hand and wrist that I had ever seen. My wits left me at the sight, and the hand and wrist made me forget about the smell of food and I started to think of a way to get into the house. Near it I noticed a tailor. I went up and greeted him and after he had returned my greeting I asked him to whom the house belonged. ‘To a merchant,’ he said, and when I asked for his name the tailor told me, adding that this man only associated with other merchants.
While we were talking, two distinguished and intelligent-looking men rode up and the tailor gave me their names, telling me that these were particular friends of the owner. I rode off to join them, and after greeting them I said: ‘Abu So-and-So has been waiting for you.’ I accompanied them to the door, and when they went in so did I. When the master of the house saw me, he was sure that I was a friend of theirs and so he welcomed me and sat me in the place of honour, after which the servants brought a table of food. I told myself that, as far as the food went, God had granted me my wish, but that there still remained the matter of the hand and the wrist.
We then moved to drink our wine in another room, which I could see was filled with rarities. The owner treated me with particular friendliness, addressing his conversation to me, as he thought that I was a guest of his guests, and so did the other two, as they thought that I was a friend of his. They continued to treat me like this until we had drunk a number of glasses of wine. Then out came a slave girl like the branch of a ban tree, elegant and beautiful. She took a lute, struck up a strain and recited these lines:
Is it not strange that although we are in the same house,
You neither approach nor speak to me?
It is only our eyes that reveal our souls’ secrets,
While love’s fire consumes our broken hearts.
We gesture with our glances, and wink
With drooping eyelids, as our hands exchange greetings.
She stirred my emotions, Commander of the Faithful, and I was moved to delight both by her beauty and by the delicacy of the lines she chanted, the elegance of whose composition I envied. In spite of that, I said to her: ‘There is something that you have left out.’ She threw the lute away angrily and said: ‘Since when did you allow fools into your gatherings?’ I saw that the others disapproved of me, and I regretted what I had done, saying to myself that my hopes were gone. As I could think of no other way in which to avoid blame I asked for a lute and said: ‘I’ll show you what was missing in the air that she played.’ The others agreed to this and fetched me a lute. I tuned its strings and then sang these lines:
Here is your lover, pining in distress,
Moved with passion, his body flooded by tears.
One hand is raised to God in hopeful prayer,
While the other clutches at his heart.
You see a dying lover slaughtered by his love;
It is the beloved’s eye and hand that cause his death.
The girl jumped up and threw herself down at my feet, kissing them and saying: ‘Forgive me, master. I did not know how skilled you were and I have never heard artistry like this.’ The delighted company began to praise and honour me and every one of them asked me to sing. I sang a joyful air, while the visitors became drunk and their wits left them so that they had to be carri
ed to their homes. The host, together with the girl, stayed with me, and after he had drunk a number of glasses he said to me: ‘Sir, I have wasted my life in that until now I have never come across a man like you. I conjure you in God’s Name to tell me who you are so that I may know who is the companion whom God has granted to me tonight.’ I tried to conceal this and would not tell him, but at last at his prompting I gave my name. When he heard it he jumped to his feet…
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the three hundred and forty-seventh night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that IBRAHIM IBN AL-MAHDI SAID:
When the host learned my name, he jumped to his feet and said: ‘I would have been astonished if excellence like this had belonged to any except a man of your distinction and I cannot thank fate sufficiently for the favour it has shown me. It may be that I am dreaming, for otherwise how could I have hoped that a member of the caliph’s family would come to visit me in my house and drink with me tonight?’
I insisted that he sit down again, which he did, and he then started to ask me delicately why it was that I had come to his house. I told him the whole story from start to finish, concealing nothing. ‘As for the food,’ I went on, ‘I had all that I wanted, but the same is not true of the hand and the wrist.’ ‘If God Almighty wills,’ he replied, ‘you will get what you want of these.’ He then told one of his girls to tell one of the others to come down, and he started to summon them one after another and show them all to me, but I couldn’t see the one I was looking for. ‘By God, sir,’ he said to me at last, ‘there only remain my mother and my sister,’ and these he insisted on bringing down and showing to me. I was astonished at his generosity and liberality. ‘May I be your ransom,’ I told him, and I then asked him to start with his sister. ‘Willingly,’ he answered, and when his sister came down, he showed me her hand and I could see that it was she whose hand and wrist had caught my attention.
The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights Page 15