The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights

by vol 02 (tr Malcolm C

  Look, then, O king, at the cunning wiles of men. Your viziers are trying to stop you from avenging me, but a time will come when you and I shall stand before a just Judge, Who will take vengeance for me from you.

  When the king heard what she said, he again ordered his son to be executed, but at that point his fifth vizier came in, kissed the ground before him and said: ‘Great king, take your time and be in no hurry to have your son killed. Many a hasty act is followed by repentance, and I am afraid that you may have to repent like the man who never laughed again for the rest of his life.’ ‘How was that?’ asked the king.

  The vizier said: ‘I have heard a story, O king, that at his death a certain man, one of those who owned houses and cattle, wealth, eunuchs, slaves and properties, left a young son. When the boy grew up, he began to pass his time eating and drinking, listening to music and songs and making generous gifts, until he had spent what his father had bequeathed him and all his wealth was gone.’

  Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and eighty-eighth night, SHE CONTINUED:

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that THE FIFTH VIZIER SAID:

  When the son had lost the money that his father had bequeathed him and it was all gone, he resorted to selling his slaves, male and female, together with his properties, but when he had spent everything that he had, both his father’s money and everything else, he became so poor that he was forced to work as a labourer. Things went on like this for a year until one day, when he was sitting under a wall waiting for someone to hire him, a handsome and well-dressed shaikh came up and greeted him. ‘Uncle,’ said the young man, ‘have you met me before?’ ‘I don’t know you at all, my son,’ the man replied, ‘but although you are reduced to this state, I see that you have been well brought up.’ ‘The decree of fate has been fulfilled,’ the young man said, and he went on to ask whether there was any job that he could do for the man. ‘Yes, my son,’ the shaikh replied, ‘there is a small job on which I should like to employ you,’ and when he was asked what this was, he said: ‘I have ten other shaikhs living with me in the same house, with nobody to run our errands. We can supply you with food and clothes and, if you are prepared to act as our servant, we will give you, in cash and kind, enough to restore you to your former prosperity.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ said the young man, at which the shaikh told him: ‘This is on one condition,’ and he went on to explain: ‘The condition is that, whatever you see us doing, you must keep our secret, and if you see us shedding tears you must not ask us why.’ The young man agreed to this and the shaikh said: ‘Come with me, my boy, with the blessing of Almighty God.’

  The young man then walked behind the shaikh, who took him to the baths, and after his body had been cleansed of dirt the shaikh sent out a man who brought in a fine linen robe. This was given to the young man to wear, and after that the shaikh took him to his house where his companions were assembled. When he entered he found himself in a lofty, spacious and solidly built house with facing rooms and halls, in each of which was a fountain, with twittering birds and windows on all sides, overlooking an attractive garden around which the house was built. The shaikh took him to one of the rooms, which was adorned with coloured marble, its roof ornamented with lapis lazuli and gleaming gold and its floor spread with carpets of silk. Here he found ten shaikhs seated facing each other, dressed in mourning, weeping and wailing. This astonished the newcomer, and he was about to question his guide when he remembered the condition and held his tongue. His guide then handed over to him a chest containing thirty thousand dinars and said: ‘Spend this in an appropriate way on our needs and on your own. You are to be trusted, so look after what I have handed over to you.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ the young man replied.

  For a number of days and nights he spent the money for the shaikhs, and then one of them died. His companions took the body, washed it, dressed it in a shroud and buried it in a garden behind the house. They continued to die one by one, until the young man’s original employer was the only one left and the two of them were alone in the house. Things went on like that for a period of years until the shaikh himself fell ill. The young man despaired of his life and went up to commiserate with him. ‘Uncle,’ he said, ‘I have given you unstinting service for twelve years and I have acted in good faith, serving you to the best of my ability.’ ‘Yes, my son,’ the shaikh replied, ‘you served us until my companions were gathered into the keeping of the Great and Glorious God, and it is now my turn to die.’ ‘You are in danger,’ the young man said, ‘and so I would like you to tell me the reason for your weeping and why you went on lamenting and grieving so sorrowfully.’ ‘My son,’ replied the skaikh, ‘there is no need for you to know this, so don’t press me to do what I cannot. I have prayed to Almighty God not to afflict anyone else with my misfortune, and if you want to escape from what has happened to us, do not open that door.’ He pointed to it, and warned his companion against approaching it, adding: ‘But if you do want to share our fate, open it and you will find the reason for what you have seen of our grief. Then you will repent when repentance will do you no good.’

  Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and eighty-ninth night, SHE CONTINUED:

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that the surviving shaikh warned the young man against opening the door lest he repent when repentance would do him no good. THE FIFTH VIZIER WENT ON:

  The shaikh’s illness worsened and, when he had died, the young man washed him with his own hands, wrapped him in a shroud and buried him beside his companions. He himself continued to live in the house, in possession of all its contents, but he was disturbed and worried about the fate of the others. One day, when he was thinking over what the shaikh had said and how he had told him not to open the door, it crossed his mind to go and look at it. He went towards where the shaikh had pointed and searched until he discovered a small door covered in spiders’ webs with four steel locks. When he looked at it he remembered the warning and turned away, but he kept on being tempted to open it and although he resisted the urge for seven days, on the eighth he yielded, telling himself that he had to do this in order to see what would happen to him. ‘What God has fated and decreed cannot be held back and nothing happens except by His will,’ he told himself. So he got up, broke the locks and opened the door.

  When he had done this, he saw a narrow passage and began to walk along it, coming out after three hours on the bank of a great river. He was looking right and left when a huge eagle swooped down from the sky and carried him off in its talons, flying between earth and heaven, until it had brought him to an island in the middle of the sea, where it let him fall, and left him. He was in a state of bewilderment, not knowing where to go, but, as he was sitting there one day, a ship’s sail appeared at sea like a star in the sky. He pinned his hopes of rescue on this ship and kept his eyes fixed on it as it drew near. When it arrived, he found that it was a skiff of ivory and ebony with oars of sandalwood and aloes wood and plates of gleaming gold. It was crewed by ten virgins, as beautiful as moons, who, when they saw him, came from the boat and kissed his hands, saying: ‘You are the bridegroom king.’ One of them, like the sun shining in a clear sky, approached him holding a silken bag containing royal robes and a golden crown studded with all kinds of precious stones. She dressed him in the robes and put the crown on his head, after which she and the others carried him to the skiff, where he found carpets of coloured silk. Then they set sail and put out to sea.

  The young man said: ‘When I went off with them I was sure that this must be a dream and I had no idea where they were going. Then, when they came near to land, I saw that the shore was crowded with mail-clad troops in such numbers that only the Glorious and Almighty God could count. They brought up five excellent horses for me, with golden saddles set with all kinds of pearls and precious stones. I chose one and rode off on it, accompanied by
the other four, and when I did so, they raised flags and banners above my head, beating drums, large and small, with the troops formed up on my right and left. As we went, I continued to wonder whether I was asleep or awake; I could not believe that I was riding in a procession but thought that this must all be a dream.

  ‘We came to a green plain with palaces, gardens, trees, streams, flowers and birds that were praising God, the One, the Omnipotent, and then troops of men poured out like a rushing stream from between the palaces and the gardens until they had filled the plain. When they got near me they halted, and from them a king came out riding alone, preceded by some of his principal officers on foot.’

  When the king came close to the young man he dismounted, and when the young man saw this, he did so too. They exchanged courteous greetings and remounted, and the king said: ‘Come with me, for you are my guest.’ They rode off together, exchanging conversation as the troops in their formations rode before them to the royal palace, where they all halted before entering.

  Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and ninetieth night, SHE CONTINUED:

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that the king took the young man with him in a procession to the palace. THE FIFTH VIZIER SAID:

  The king entered, holding his guest by the hand, and then seated him on a golden throne, taking his own seat beside him, but when the king’s mouth-veil had been removed, ‘he’ turned out to be a girl like the sun shining in a clear sky, beautiful, graceful and perfect, both proud and bold. The young man, looking at the acme of delight and felicity, was filled with wonder at her loveliness. She told him: ‘Know, O king, that I am the queen of this land and that among all the troops that you have seen, both horse and foot, there are no men but only women, for here the men till the ground, and sow and reap, occupying themselves with agriculture, building and other useful crafts, while women are the judges, administrators and army leaders.’

  While the young man was sitting there filled with astonishment, the vizier came in, who turned out to be a venerable and dignified grey-haired old lady. ‘Bring me the qadi and the notaries,’ the queen told her, and when she had gone to do that, the queen leaned towards the young man, talking with him, amusing him and removing the sense of strangeness that he felt with her courteous words. Finally she went up to him and said: ‘Are you willing to take me as your wife?’ He rose to his feet and was kissing the ground in front of her when she stopped him. ‘I am the least of your servants,’ he protested, but she said: ‘Do you not see all these servants and troops, together with the wealth, stores and treasures?’ ‘Yes,’ he told her, and she went on: ‘All this is at your disposal to grant and bestow,’ but then she pointed to a closed door and added: ‘You can do what you want with everything else except for this door, which is not to be opened, and if you do open it you will regret it when regret will no longer help you.’

  She had hardly finished speaking when the vizier came back with the qadi and the notaries, all of whom were grave and dignified old ladies whose hair flowed over their shoulders. When they took their places before the queen, she ordered them to draw up a marriage contract and they married her to the young man. A feast was held, attended by all her troops, and when they had eaten and drunk, the young man lay with her and, finding her to be a virgin, he took her maidenhead.

  He stayed with her for seven years in the happy enjoyment of the most delightful, carefree and pleasant of lives until one day he remembered about the door which he was not to open. He said to himself: ‘She would not have told me to do this unless within it were great treasures, more splendid than any I have seen.’ So he got up and opened it, but there on the other side of it was the bird that had carried him from the shore and left him on the island. When the bird saw him it said: ‘I give no welcome to one who will never see happiness again.’ When he saw and heard the bird he tried to run from it, but it followed him and snatched him up, flying off with him between earth and heaven until, after a time, it put him down in the place from which it had taken him, and then went off and left him.

  He stayed where he was until he had recovered his senses, but then he remembered the prosperity, grandeur and honour that he had enjoyed, with his mounted escorts and his powers of command and prohibition. He began to weep and wail and for two months he sat by the shore where the bird had left him, filled with longing to return to his wife. Then one night, while he was sitting there sleepless, sad and careworn, he heard the sound of a voice although he could see no one. The voice called out: ‘Great though your pleasure was, never, never shall what is past return to you.’ When he heard this, he gave up hope of seeing his queen again and regaining his lost happiness. He went back to the shaikh’s house, realizing that they had suffered the same fate and that this was the reason for their sorrowful tears, for which he now found an excuse. Grief and sorrow took hold of him and he went into the room where they had sat, and he continued to weep and wail, shunning food, drink, pleasant perfumes and laughter until he died and was buried at their side.

  Haste, you must realize, your majesty, is not to be commended, for it leaves a legacy of regret, and this is the advice that I give you.

  When the king heard that, he accepted the warning and advice, and changed his mind about having his son executed.

  Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and ninety-first night, SHE CONTINUED:

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that when the king had heard the vizier’s story, he changed his mind about having his son executed.

  On the sixth day, the girl came to the king with the naked blade of a knife in her hand. ‘My lord,’ she said, ‘it seems that you are not prepared to listen to my complaint and to consult what you owe to your honour in respect of my enemies, your viziers, who maintain that women are guileful and treacherous. They want to ensure that I do not get my rights and to make you disregard what is due to me, but I shall prove to you that men are wilier than women by telling you the story of a certain prince who found himself alone with a merchant’s wife.’ ‘What is the story?’ asked the king, and THE GIRL SAID:

  I have heard that there was once a particularly jealous merchant with a very beautiful wife. So great was his jealous fear that he would never settle with her in any city, but instead he built an isolated villa for her, standing by itself in the countryside. It was tall and strongly built, with reinforced doors and solid locks, and whenever he wanted to visit the city he would lock the doors and take the keys with him hung around his neck.

  One day, while he was staying in the city, the prince rode out on an excursion to enjoy the open spaces. He had looked for a long time, examining the empty country, until he caught sight of the villa, from one of whose windows a noble lady was gazing. Her beauty so astounded him that he wanted to get to her, but found that he could not. On his orders one of his pages brought him an inkwell and paper, on which he wrote a note to say how deeply he was in love. He fixed the note to the head of an arrow and shot it into the grounds of the villa, in whose garden the lady was then walking. She told one of her slave girls to hurry and fetch it for her and, as she could read, she discovered when she looked at it that the prince claimed to be deeply and passionately in love with her. In reply she wrote that her own love for him was greater than his for her, and when she looked from her window and caught sight of him, she threw her note down to him, feeling an even stronger surge of longing. He for his part, on seeing her, came underneath the villa wall and called to her: ‘Lower me a thread to which I can tie this key for you to keep by you.’ She did this, and he tied the key to the thread before going back to his viziers, to whom he complained of his love for the lady, telling them that he could not bear to be without her. One of them asked what it was that he wanted done, and the prince explained: ‘I want you to put me in a chest which you are to deposit with this merchant in his villa, telling him that it is yours. Leave it
there until I have had my way with the lady for some days, and then fetch it back.’

  The vizier willingly agreed to this and, after going to his own palace, the prince entered a chest of his, which the vizier then locked. He took it to the merchant’s villa and when the merchant had come to meet him, kissed his hands and asked whether there was any service or anything else that he could do for him, the vizier said: ‘I want you to put this chest in the most secure place that you have.’ On the merchant’s instructions the porters carried it into the villa and left it there in a closet. He himself then went off on some errand and his wife went to the chest, which she opened with the key that she had with her, letting out the young prince, who was glorious as the moon. When she saw him, she put on her finest clothes and took him to the sitting room, where she sat eating and drinking with him for seven days, shutting him up in the chest and locking it whenever her husband was there.

  Then, one day, the king asked for his son, and the vizier went quickly to the merchant’s villa to ask for his chest.

  Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and ninety-second night, SHE CONTINUED:

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that the vizier came to the merchant’s villa to ask for his chest. THE GIRL WENT ON:

  The merchant hurried home at what was for him an unusual time and knocked at the door. On hearing his knock, his wife took the prince and put him in the chest, but she forgot to lock it, and when her husband came in with the porters and they tried to lift it by the lid, it flew open, revealing the prince. The merchant recognized him when he saw him. He went to the vizier and told him to come in and take the prince as no one else could lay hold of him. The vizier did this and when he and his men had left, the merchant divorced his wife, swearing that he would never marry again.