“Who are you?” she asked.
“My lady,” he answered, “I am a messenger sent by the prince who has asked me to bring you to another garden nearer the city, because the queen cannot walk this far and does not want to be robbed of the pleasure of welcoming you.”
“Where’s the prince?”
“He’s in the city with his father,” said the Persian, “and he will soon come to meet you in great state.”
“Tell me, slave,” said the princess, “couldn’t he have found someone more handsome than you to bring this message to me?”
The sage laughed loudly when he heard this and replied, “To tell the truth, he doesn’t even have a mameluke in his service uglier than I am. But don’t let my ugly looks deceive you, my lady. He has benefited greatly from my services. Indeed, he chose me as his messenger to you because he is so jealously in love with you, and my loathsome and ugly looks don’t threaten him. Otherwise, he has an enormous number of handsome mamelukes, Negro slaves, pages, eunuchs, and attendants.”
When the princess heard this, it made sense, and she believed what the sage had told her. So she got up right away.
And Scheherazade noticed that dawn was approaching and stopped telling her story. When the next night arrived, however, she received the king’s permission to continue her tale and said,
As the sage took her hand to help her, she asked, “What have you brought me to ride on?”
“My lady,” he said, “you can ride the horse you came on.”
“I can’t ride it by myself,” she said.
Her reply caused him to smile, for he now knew that he was in complete control of her. So he said, “I’ll ride with you myself.” So he mounted and then lifted her behind him and bound her to him as firmly as he could manage. Of course, she did not know what he was going to do with her. Then he pushed the takeoff button so that the belly of the horse became full of air, and it swayed back and forth like a wave of the sea. Soon the horse rose and soared into the sky until it was out of sight of the city. Now when Shams al-Nahar saw this, she asked him, “Hold on, you! What’s going on? I thought the prince sent you to me!”
“May Allah damn the prince!” answered the Persian. “He is a mean miserly knave!”
“Woe to you!” she cried out. “How dare you disobey my lord’s orders?”
“He’s no lord of mine!” replied the sage. “Do you know who I am?”
“The only thing I know about you is what you’ve told me.”
“What I told you was untrue,” said the Persian. “It was a trick, for I’ve lamented the loss of this horse a long time. It was I who constructed it and learned how to master it. And now that I’ve regained control and have control over you as well, I’ll scorch the prince’s heart just as he’s ravaged mine! I’ll never let him have the horse again. Never! So don’t fret and don’t weep, for I can be of more use to you than he was. I’m just as generous as I am wealthy, and my servants and slaves will obey you as their mistress. I’ll adorn you in the finest raiment and your every wish will be fulfilled.”
When the princess heard this, she slapped her face and cried out, “I might as well die! Not only have I lost my mother and father, but I’ve lost my beloved as well!”
And she wept bitter tears over what had happened to her, while the sage kept the horse flying through the air until he came to the land of the Greeks and landed in a verdant meadow with streams and trees. Now this meadow was located near a city which was ruled by a powerful king, and it so happened that he had gone out hunting that day. As he passed by the meadow, he saw the Persian standing there with the damsel and the horse by his side. Before the Persian was aware of what was happening, the king’s slaves seized him and took him, the lady, and the horse to their master. Since the sage’s atrocious looks were such a striking contrast to the beauty of the girl, he asked, “My lady, what is your relationship to this old man?”
The Persian tried to intervene with a quick reply: “My lord, she’s my wife and the daughter of my father’s brother.”
But the lady was quick to reveal his lie: “By Allah, I don’t know this man, and he’s certainly not my husband! No, he’s a wicked magician who’s abducted me by force and fraud.”
On hearing these words, the king ordered his servants to give the Persian a beating, and they thrashed him until he was almost dead. Then the king commanded them to carry him to the city and throw him into jail. On the other hand, he kept the damsel with him and put her in his seraglio, while the horse was stored in his treasury, even though he did not know its secret and how valuable it was.
In the meantime, Prince Kamar al-Akmar journeyed from city to city and country to country asking the people he encountered whether they had seen the princess and the magic horse. Of course, everyone was amazed by his talk and thought he was somewhat touched in the head. Though he continued doing this for a long time, he did not obtain any news of her. At last he came to her native city of Sana’a, but nobody had any idea where she was, and her father was still mourning her loss. Therefore, he turned back and headed for the land of the Greeks and continued to make inquiries along the way.
And Scheherazade noticed that dawn was approaching and stopped telling her story. When the next night arrived, however, she received the king’s permission to continue her tale and said,
As chance would have it, the prince stopped at a particular khan and saw a group of merchants sitting and talking. So he sat down near them and heard one of them say, “My friends, let me tell you about this marvelous thing that I recently witnessed.”
“What was it?” they asked.
“I was visiting a district in the nearby city, and I heard the people talking about an event that had happened not too long ago. It so happened that their king went out hunting one day with his courtiers, and they came to a meadow where they found an old man with a woman and a wooden horse made out of ebony. The man was atrocious, but the woman was amazingly beautiful, elegant, and graceful. As for the wooden horse, it was miraculous. No one had ever seen anything as perfectly made as this horse was.”
“And what did the king do with them?” they asked.
“Well,” said the merchant, “the king questioned the man, who claimed to be the woman’s husband, but she denied this right away and declared that he was a sorcerer and a villain. So the king took her from him and had him beaten and thrown into jail. As for the ebony horse, I don’t know what happened to it.”
When the prince heard the merchant’s story, he drew closer to him and began questioning the merchant discreetly and asked him about the names of the king and the city. Once the prince found out all he wanted to know, he spent the night full of joy. As soon as it was dawn, he set forth until he reached the city, but just as he was about to enter it, the gatekeepers stopped him and intended to bring him before the king so his majesty could question him about the craft he practiced and the reason why he had come to the city. Such was the custom of their ruler. However, it was suppertime when he entered the city, and it was impossible to see the king or to ask for instructions as to what to do with the stranger. So the guards took him to jail, thinking that it would be best if he spent the night there. But when the wardens saw how handsome and dignified he was, they could not find it in their hearts to imprison him. Instead, they made him sit with them outside the walls, and when their food was brought to them, they allowed him to share their meal. As soon as they had finished eating, they turned to the prince and said, “What country do you come from?”
“I come from Persia,” he answered, “the land of the Chosroës.”
When they heard this, they laughed, and one of them said, “Oh Chosroan, I’ve heard men tell stories and have checked to see how much truth there was in them, but never have I seen or heard a bigger liar than the Chosroan who’s in our jail right now.”
“And never have I seen a face and figure as hideous as his,” said another guard.
“What has he been lying about?” asked the prince.
And Scheherazade noticed that dawn was approaching and stopped telling her story. When the next night arrived, however, she received the king’s permission to continue her tale and said,
After listening to what the guards had to say about the Persian prisoner, the prince thought of a way to free the princess. In the meantime, the guards became tired, and since they wanted to sleep, they took the prince inside the jail and locked the door. Once there, the prince overheard the wails and moans of the Persian sage, who said in his own language, “Alas! How I repent my sins, for I’ve sinned against myself and the king’s son. I should never have abducted the damsel! I haven’t gained a single thing from it. Truly, I should know by now not to reach for things that are above my station in life!”
Now when the prince heard this, he approached the Persian and said, “How long will this weeping and wailing last? Tell me, do you think that what’s happened to you has never happened to anyone else?”
Since the Persian did not recognize the prince, he made friends with him and began to tell him all about his misfortunes. And as soon as morning arrived, the guards took the prince to their king and informed him that he had entered the city on the previous night at a time when an audience was impossible.
“Where do you come from?” the king asked the prince. “What is your name and trade, and why have you traveled here?”
“As to my name,” the prince answered, “I’m called Harjah in Persian, and I come from Persia. As to my profession, I practice the art of medicine and heal the sick and those whom the jinn drive mad. In order to learn all there is to know, I travel from country to country and try to learn more by healing new patients.”
Now, when the king heard this, he was extremely glad and said, “Oh excellent sage, you’ve come just at the right time.” Then he told him about the princess and added, “If you cure her and she recovers from her madness, you may have anything you want from me.”
“May Allah give his blessings to the king,” said the prince. “Describe to me all the symptoms of her insanity, and tell me how long it’s been since she had this malady. You must also recount how you found her, the horse, and the sage.”
So the king told him the whole story from first to last, and he added, “Right now, the sage is in jail.”
“And what have you done with the horse?” asked the prince.
“I still have it,” he said. “I’ve put it in my treasury.”
Hearing this, the prince said to himself, “I’d better see the horse first and make sure that it’s in good condition. If it is, all will be well, and all will end well. But if its motor has been destroyed, I must find some other way of rescuing my beloved.” So he turned to the king and said, “I must see the horse in question, for I may need it to help the damsel recover from her madness.”
“With all my heart,” said the king, and he took him by the hand and led him to the place where the horse was being kept. The prince went around it, examining its condition, and found it in perfect condition. Therefore, he was full of joy and said to the king, “May Allah bless you! Now I would like to go and examine the damsel to see what her condition is like, for I hope to heal her through the means of this horse.”
Then he ordered them to take good care of the horse, and the king led him to the princess’s chamber. While the king remained outside, the prince went in and found her wringing her hands, writhing, beating herself against the ground, and tearing her garments to tatters. But there was really no madness of the jinn in her, and she did this only to keep people away from her. When the prince saw her acting like this, he said, “Nobody’s going to harm you, my beauty,” and he went on to soothe her and speak sweetly to her until he could whisper, “I’m Kamar al-Akmar,” whereupon she uttered a loud cry and fainted out of joy. The king thought this was epilepsy brought on by her fear of him. Then the prince put his mouth to her ear and said, “Oh Shams al-Nahar, be careful, for our lives are at stake. Be patient and on your guard. We must plan everything carefully to escape from this tyrannical king. My first move will be now to go out to him and tell him that you are possessed by a jinnee and hence your madness. Nevertheless, I’ll tell him that I can heal you and drive the evil spirit away, but he must untie your bonds right away. Then, when he enters here, speak nicely to him so that he’ll think that I’ve cured you. Then we’ll be able to do whatever we want.”
“Don’t worry,” she whispered, “I’ll do just as you say.”
So the prince went out to the king in a joyful mood and said, “Majesty, I’ve been fortunate to locate the root of her disease, and I’ve also managed to cure her for you. In fact, you may now go in to see her, but speak to her gently and treat her kindly. Make sure you promise her whatever she wants, and you will receive your just rewards.”
And Scheherazade noticed that dawn was approaching and stopped telling her story. When the next night arrived, however, she received the king’s permission to continue her tale and said,
So the king entered the chamber, and when she saw him, she rose and kissed the ground before him. Then she welcomed him by saying, “I’m grateful that you’ve come to visit your servant today.”
The king was ecstatic and ordered the waiting women and eunuchs to attend her and take her to the Hammam and get various rich garments ready for her. So they, too, entered the chamber and saluted her, and she returned their salaams with the most polite language and pleasant comportment. Thereupon they clad her in royal apparel, and after putting a necklace of jewels around her neck, they took her to the bath and attended to her every need there. Then they brought her out, glistening like the radiant moon itself, and when she came into the king’s presence, she saluted him and kissed the ground before him, whereupon he rejoiced and said to the prince, “Doctor, all this is due to your great gifts. May Allah enable us to profit even more from your healing spirit!”
“My king,” the prince replied, “in order to complete the cure, it is necessary for you and your troops to return to the place where you found her, and you must bring the black wooden horse with her, for there is a devil in it, and unless I exorcise the satanic creature, he’ll torment her at the beginning of every month.”
“I’m only too happy to comply with your advice,” said the king, “for you are the prince of all philosophers and the most learned of all who see the light of day.”
Then the king ordered the ebony horse to be brought to the meadow and rode there with all his troops and the princess, nor did he have the slightest inkling about the prince’s plans. Now, when they came to the appointed place, the prince, still dressed as a physician, ordered them to set the princess and the steed together and as far away from the king and his troops as possible. Once this was done, he turned to the king and said, “With your permission I’ll now proceed to fumigate the enemy of mankind so that he’ll never return to her again. After this I’ll mount this wooden horse, which seems to be made of ebony, and set the damsel behind me. The horse will shake and sway back and will eventually head directly for you. At that point the affair will be at an end, and you’ll be able to do with the damsel whatever you like.”
When the king heard these words, he was ecstatic. So the prince left him and went to the horse. After mounting it and lifting the princess behind him, he tied her to him tightly, while the ki
ng and his troops observed. Then he pushed the takeoff button, and the horse sprang into the air and soared with them on high until they disappeared from sight. After this, the king stayed put for half the day expecting them to return, but they did not reappear. Eventually he gave up hope and regretted everything he had done and grieved over the loss of the damsel. Since there was nothing he could do, he went back to the city with his troops and sent for the Persian, who was in the prison, and said to him, “You traitor! You villain! Why did you hide the secret of the ebony horse from me? Now a swindler has come and stolen it from me along with your lady, whose ornaments are worth a mint, and I’ll never see anything of them again!”
So the Persian related to the king everything that had happened to him in the past from the first to the last, and the king became so terribly furious that he almost died. He locked himself up in his palace for a while and kept mourning until his viziers came to him and comforted him. “Your majesty,” they said, “truly, the man who took the damsel is an enchanter, and praise be to Allah, for He has rescued you from his sorcery!” And they did not stop talking to him in this way until he became reconciled to the fact that he had lost the princess forever.
In the meantime, the prince continued flying toward his father’s capital in great joy until he landed on the terrace of the palace. After setting down the princess in safety, he went to his father and mother, saluted them, and told them that he had brought the princess back to the palace. Of course, they were extremely happy, and great banquets were prepared for the people of the city.
And Scheherazade noticed that dawn was approaching and stopped telling her tale. When the next night arrived, however, she received the king’s permission to continue her tale and said,
The celebration of the prince’s return lasted an entire month, and at the end of this time he married the princess, and they enjoyed each other with great delight on the wedding night. However, the king broke the ebony horse in pieces and destroyed the mechanism that enabled it to fly. Moreover, the prince wrote a letter to the princess’s father telling him about everything that had happened to his daughter and informing him that she was now married to him and was safe and happy. This letter was sent by a messenger who carried valuable presents and rare articles for the king. When he arrived at the city of Sana’a and delivered the letter and presents, the king rejoiced and bestowed honors on the messenger. In addition, he sent rich gifts to his son-in-law via the same messenger, who returned to his master and reported everything that had happened, and the prince was glad. After this he wrote a letter every year to his father-in-law and sent him presents until, in the course of time, his own father, King Sabur, died, and he succeeded him to the throne. The new King Kamar al-Akmar was a just ruler, and he treated his lieges fairly and wisely so that his subjects became exceedingly loyal to him. Indeed, Kamar al-Akmar and his wife, Shams al-Nahar, led a life of joy and solace until they were finally visited by the Destroyer of delights and the Sunderer of societies.
Arabian Nights Page 11