The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights

by vol 02 (tr Malcolm C

  Gharib wrote a letter, and turning to his men he said: ‘Which of you will take this to ‘Ajib?’ Sahim sprang to his feet and promised to do that and to bring back a reply, at which Gharib handed it to him. Sahim went to ‘Ajib’s pavilion, and when the guards told ‘Ajib that he was there, he said: ‘Bring him to me.’ They had brought him into his presence and ‘Ajib asked: ‘Where have you come from?’ ‘I have come to you from the king of the Persians and the Arabs, the son-in-law of Sabur, the ruler of the world,’ Sahim replied. ‘He has sent you a letter and wants a reply.’ ‘Ajib asked for the letter and when it had been passed to him, he opened it and read it. In it was written: ‘In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful; peace be upon Abraham, the Friend of God: to continue, as soon as this letter reaches you, you are to acknowledge the unity of God, the Giver, the Causer of causes, Who drives the clouds, and you are to abandon the worship of idols. If you accept Islam, you will be my brother with authority over me, and I shall not take vengeance on you for what you did to my father and my mother, but if not, I shall move quickly against you, ravage your lands and cut off your head. I have given you good advice. Peace be on those who follow right guidance and obey the Most High God.’

  When ‘Ajib had read the letter and taken note of its threats, his eyes sank into their sockets and he gnashed his teeth in fury before tearing up the letter and throwing it away. Sahim found this hard to bear and so shouted at ‘Ajib: ‘May God wither your hand because of what you have done.’ ‘Seize this dog and cut him to pieces with your swords,’ ‘Ajib called to his men. They attacked Sahim, but he drew his sword and fought so fiercely that he had killed more than fifty of them before breaking free and returning, covered in blood, to Gharib. ‘What is this, Sahim?’ Gharib asked, and when Sahim told him what had happened, in his rage Gharib cried out: ‘God is greater!’ and had his war drums beaten. The paladins mounted; the ranks were drawn up, heroes joined together and horses curvetted on the battlefield, with their riders wearing armour and close-meshed coats of mail, carrying swords, with long lances supported on their thighs. ‘Ajib rode out with his men and each side charged the other.

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

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that both Gharib and ‘Ajib rode out with their men. Each side charged the other. The arbiter of war gave his judgements in which there is no injustice, as his mouth is sealed and he cannot speak. Streams of blood poured out; clearly marked patterns appeared on the ground and men’s hair turned white in the fury and heat of battle. Feet slipped, and while the brave stood firm in defiance, cowards turned back in flight.

  The battle continued until the end of the day when darkness fell and drums were beaten as a signal to disengage. Each side broke away, retiring to spend the night in their own camp. The next morning the signal for battle was given again; both sides armed, with their good swords slung from their shoulders and their brown lances tucked against their thighs. They mounted their short-haired horses, which struck sparks from their hooves, and drew up in ranks like a flooding sea, shouting out that there would be no pause in the day’s fighting. Sahim was the first to open the battle, riding out between the ranks, brandishing two swords and two lances and demonstrating feats that left even skilled fighters bewildered. He then called out: ‘Which of you is not too lazy or too weak to come out to fight?’ An unbeliever like a spark of fire came out against him, but before he had time to resist, Sahim struck him down. A second followed and was killed and the same fate befell the third and the fourth and so on, until by midday Sahim had killed all his challengers, amounting to two hundred men. At this point ‘Ajib ordered his men to charge; heroes met heroes amidst the confused shouts of a furious battle; polished swords clashed; men were killed agonizingly, and as the blood flowed the skulls of corpses served as horseshoes.

  Furious fighting continued until darkness fell at the end of the day, when both sides broke off and retired to spend the night in their tents. They then remounted and came out again to fight. The Muslims were waiting for Gharib to ride in his usual place under the banners, and when he did not come, one of Sahim’s slaves went to his pavilion but failed to find him, and when he asked the servants, they said that they knew nothing about him. In a state of great distress he took the news to the army, who held back, saying: ‘If Gharib is not here, the enemy will destroy us.’

  The story behind Gharib’s absence is a strange one which we shall relate in its proper sequence. When ‘Ajib had returned from his battle against Gharib, he called for one of his servants, a man named Sayyar, and said: ‘Sayyar, I have kept you in reserve for a day like this, and now my orders are that you should go through Gharib’s camp until you reach his pavilion and then you can demonstrate your cleverness by bringing him to me.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ Sayyar replied. He managed to get to the pavilion in the dark of night when everyone had gone off to bed, and he stood there as though he was in attendance on Gharib. Gharib felt thirsty and asked him for water, but the jug of water that Sayyar brought had been drugged, and no sooner had Gharib drunk it than he fell down head over heels. Sayyar wrapped him in his cloak and carried him off to ‘Ajib’s camp, where he stopped and threw him before his master. ‘What is this, Sayyar?’ ‘Ajib asked him, to which he replied: ‘This is your brother Gharib.’ ‘Ajib was delighted and said: ‘May the idols bless you. Now free him and wake him up.’

  Sayyar made him inhale vinegar, and when he had recovered his senses and opened his eyes he found himself tied up and in a tent that was not his own. ‘There is no might and no power except with God, the Exalted, the Omnipotent!’ he exclaimed, and ‘Ajib shouted at him: ‘Do you dare draw your sword against me, you dog, and seek to kill me in revenge for your father and mother? I shall send you off to meet them today and rid the world of you.’ ‘Infidel hound,’ Gharib answered, ‘you are going to see against whom fortune’s wheel turns and who will be crushed by the Omnipotent King. He knows the secrets of men’s hearts and He will leave you helpless and tormented in the fires of hell. Take pity on yourself and recite with me: “There is no god but the God of Abraham, the Friend of God.” ’ When ‘Ajib heard this he snorted and roared, cursing his own stone idol and calling for his executioner and the execution mat. His vizier, however, who though outwardly an infidel was a secret Muslim, got up, kissed the ground and said: ‘Don’t act in haste, your majesty, until we can tell who will win and who will lose. If we turn out to be the victors, then we can kill this man, but if we lose, then it will help us to have him in our power.’ ‘The vizier is right,’ said the emirs.

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

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that when ‘Ajib was on the point of killing Gharib, his vizier told him not to be in a hurry, for Gharib was in his power, and so ‘Ajib ordered that his brother be fettered and manacled, leaving him in his tent with a thousand strong men to guard him.

  Gharib’s army had looked in vain for their king, and that morning they were like sheep without a shepherd, but Sa‘dan the ghul shouted to them to arm themselves and to rely on the protection of God. So the Arabs and the Persians put on their armour and their close-meshed coats of mail and mounted their horses. When the chiefs and the leaders had ridden out under their banners, Sa‘dan himself advanced, wheeling and turning, with a mace weighing two hundred ratls over his shoulder. ‘Idolaters,’ he shouted, ‘come out, for this is the day of battle. Whoever knows me knows enough of the damage that I can wreak, and to any who don’t know me, I say that I am Sa‘dan, the servant of King Gharib. Which of you is not too lazy or too weak to come out to fight?’ An infidel like a spark of fire rode out and charged at him, but Sa‘dan met him with a stroke from his mace which broke his ribs and laid him out as a lifeless corpse on the ground. ‘Light the fire,’ he s
houted to his sons and his slaves, ‘and roast every infidel who falls, and when they have been properly cooked bring them to me to eat.’ Following his orders, they lit a fire in the middle of the battlefield and threw the corpse on it, after which, when it was cooked, they took it to Sa‘dan, who tore at its flesh and gnawed at its bones.

  The infidels were terrified by what they saw, but ‘Ajib shouted to them: ‘Charge, damn you, and cut the ghul to pieces with your swords.’ Twenty thousand of them charged, encircling Sa‘dan and shooting at him with bolts and arrows, until he had twenty-four wounds, from which blood flowed on to the ground. He had been left isolated, but at that the Muslim champions charged the infidels, calling for help from the Lord of creation, and fighting went on until nightfall. Sa‘dan, who was like a drunk man because of the blood that he had lost, had been captured, bound and put in the tent with Gharib. ‘There is no might and no power except with God, the Exalted, the Omnipotent!’ exclaimed Gharib when he saw him, and when he asked Sa‘dan what had happened, the ghul replied: ‘Master, Almighty God, praise be to Him, decrees both suffering and relief, and both must be experienced.’ ‘That is true,’ agreed Gharib.

  ‘Ajib passed a happy night and told his men to ride out and attack the Muslims the next day until not one of them remained. ‘To hear is to obey,’ they replied. As for the defeated Muslims, they spent the night weeping both for their king and for Sa‘dan, but Sahim said: ‘Don’t concern yourselves, for Almighty God will soon send you relief.’ He waited until midnight, and then he went to ‘Ajib’s camp, threading his way through the pavilions and tents until he found ‘Ajib seated on his royal throne, surrounded by his kings. He himself, disguised as a servant, went up to the candles burning there, snuffed them out and relit them using the volatile form of banj. He waited for a time outside the pavilion until the smoke from the drug had affected ‘Ajib and the kings and they had collapsed like dead men. He left them and went to the prison tent, where he discovered Gharib, Sa‘dan and their thousand guards, who had been overcome by sleep. ‘Damn you,’ he shouted to them, ‘don’t sleep but watch over your prisoners and light the cressets.’ He took one of these, kindled it with firewood, filled it with banj and carried it around the tent. When those inside inhaled the drugged smoke they all fell asleep, but Sahim, who had brought a sponge impregnated with vinegar, held this under the nostrils of Gharib and Sa‘dan until they recovered their senses, after which he released them from their bonds. They were delighted to see him and called down blessings on him before leaving with all the guards’ weapons.

  Sahim told them to go back to camp, which they did, while he himself entered ‘Ajib’s pavilion, wrapped him in a mantle and carried him off to the Muslim camp, veiled from the infidels by the Merciful God. When he got to Gharib’s pavilion he unwrapped the mantle so that Gharib could see what was in it, and on discovering that this was his brother ‘Ajib, who had been tied up, he shouted out: ‘God is greater! Victory and triumph!’ After blessing Sahim, he told him to rouse ‘Ajib, and when Sahim had given ‘Ajib vinegar and frankincense, he recovered from the drug and, on finding himself fettered and chained, he hung his head.

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

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that when Sahim seized and drugged ‘Ajib, he brought him to his brother, Gharib, and then roused him. He opened his eyes to find himself fettered and chained, and hung his head. ‘Look up, damn you,’ said Sahim, and when ‘Ajib raised his head he found himself surrounded by Arabs and Persians, with his brother seated on his royal throne. He said nothing, but Gharib shouted: ‘Strip the dog!’ He was stripped and whipped until he was weakened to the point of unconsciousness, when he was left in the charge of a hundred guards.

  When Gharib had finished punishing him, he and his men heard shouts of ‘There is no god but God!’ and ‘God is greater!’ coming from the tents of the infidels. The reason for this was that, when Gharib had left al-Jazira, his uncle, al-Damigh, had stayed behind for ten days before setting out with twenty thousand riders. When he was close to the battlefield, he sent a scout to reconnoitre it. A day later the man came back and told him what had happened to Gharib at the hands of his brother. Al-Damigh waited until nightfall and then raised the battle cry ‘God is greater!’ and attacked the infidels, putting them to the sword. When Gharib and his men heard the cry, Gharib told his brother Sahim to go and discover what was happening. Sahim went close to the fight and asked the camp servants, who told him of the arrival of al-Damigh with twenty thousand men, explaining that he had said: ‘By the truth of Abraham, the Friend of God, I shall not abandon my nephew but play a hero’s part, drive back the unbelievers and win the favour of the Omnipotent King.’ He had then launched a night attack on the infidels.

  Sahim returned, and when he told Gharib what his uncle had done, Gharib ordered his own men to arm and mount and then to go to his uncle’s aid. So they rode out and charged the infidels, putting them to the sword, and by the time morning came, they had killed some fifty thousand of them, captured another thirty thousand and scattered the rest throughout the length and breadth of the land. When the Muslims then drew back, having been granted aid and victory by God, Gharib rode up to meet his uncle and, after greeting him, thanked him for what he had done. ‘Do you suppose that the dog ‘Ajib fell in the fight?’ asked al-Damigh, and Gharib replied: ‘You will be pleased to hear that he is tied up in my tent.’ Al-Damigh was delighted by the news, and when they had got back to the camp the two kings dismounted to enter Gharib’s pavilion, but there was no ‘Ajib to be found. Gharib cried out: ‘By the glory of Abraham, the Friend of God, what a disastrous and ill-omened day this is!’ and then, calling to the servants, he said: ‘Damn you, where is my prisoner?’ They replied: ‘When you rode out we went with you, as you hadn’t told us to guard him.’ ‘There is no might and no power except with God, the Exalted, the Omnipotent!’ exclaimed Gharib, but his uncle told him not to be hasty or to take the matter to heart, adding: ‘Wherever he goes, we shall pursue him.’

  The reason for ‘Ajib’s escape was that his servant Sayyar had concealed himself among the Muslims, waiting until he was sure that Gharib had ridden out leaving no one to guard his prisoner. He had then taken ‘Ajib and set off into the countryside, carrying him on his back, overwhelmed as ‘Ajib was by the pain of his beating. Sayyar hurried on from the start of the night until the next day, when he came to a spring of water by an apple tree. There he put ‘Ajib down and washed his face. ‘Ajib opened his eyes and, recognizing Sayyar, he said: ‘Sayyar, take me to Kufa so that I may recover, collect my troops and crush my enemy.’ He added that he was hungry, and Sayyar then went to a wood where he caught a young ostrich which he killed and cut up before bringing it back to his master. When he had collected firewood, he struck a light, kindled a fire and roasted it before feeding it to ‘Ajib and bringing him water from the spring, so revivifying him. He then went to a Bedouin camp and stole a horse, and after mounting ‘Ajib on this, he set off with him towards Kufa. The two of them travelled for some days until, as they approached the city, its governor came out to meet and greet his king, whom he found still weak from the beating given to him by his brother. After ‘Ajib had entered the city, he summoned the doctors and, when they had come, he told them to cure him within ten days. ‘To hear is to obey,’ they said, and they started to apply soothing treatments until he had fully recovered from the effects of his injuries. He now ordered his vizier to send letters to all his twenty-one governors, who collected their troops and hurried to meet him in Kufa.

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

  I have heard, O fortunate king, that ‘Ajib sent to summon his troops, who then came to Kufa.

  As for Gharib, chagrined by ‘Ajib’s escape, he sent a thousand men in pursuit but, altho
ugh they spread out in all directions, travelling for a day and a night, they found no news of him and had to go back and tell this to Gharib. Gharib then sent for his brother Sahim, and was distressed that he was not to be found, as he feared that some disaster might have happened. At that moment, however, Sahim himself came in and kissed the ground before him. On seeing him, Gharib got up and asked where he had been. ‘Your majesty,’ Sahim told him, ‘I went to Kufa and found that the dog ‘Ajib had returned to his palace where on his instructions doctors had successfully treated him for his injuries, after which he wrote to his governors, who have brought him troops.’ Gharib ordered his own men to march and they struck camp and set off for Kufa, which they found surrounded by armies like an endless flooding sea. He and his force camped in front of them, pitched their tents and raised their banners. Then, as night fell, they lit fires and both sides stood on guard until daybreak.

  Gharib got up and, after having performed his ablution, he prayed with two rak‘as, following the practice of our father Abraham, the Friend of God, upon whom be peace. He then ordered the drums to be beaten; standards fluttered and riders put on their coats of mail and mounted their horses, calling out their own names by way of challenge and making for the battlefield. The first to start the fight was Gharib’s uncle, al-Damigh, who rode between the ranks so that all could see him, brandishing two swords and two lances and demonstrating feats that left the riders bewildered, astonishing both sides, while calling out: ‘Which of you is not too lazy or too weak to come out to fight? I am al-Damigh the king, the brother of King Kundamir.’ An infidel like a spark of fire rode out and charged him without a word, but al-Damigh met him and thrust at his chest with his lance, whose point came out on the other side of his shoulder, as God hurried his soul to hellfire, an evil resting place. A second challenger came out and was killed, as was the third, and things went on like that until seventy-six infidel champions had fallen. At that point they were no longer prepared to risk single combat, and so ‘Ajib shouted to them: ‘Damn you, if you all go out against him one after the other, he will leave no single one of you alive. Make a concerted charge against the enemy so as to wipe them from the face of the earth, their skulls trampled by your horses’ hooves.’