She appeared in the garden wearing green robes,
With her waist-wrapper undone and her hair unloosed.
‘What is your name?’ I asked her, and she said:
‘I am she who roasts lovers’ hearts over the coals.’
When I complained to her about my love,
She said: ‘You do not know it, but it is a rock to which you have complained.’
I told her: ‘Your heart may be a rock,
But out of rocks God has made water flow.’
The girls burst into laughter when they heard Janshah’s lines, and they then played, sang and enjoyed themselves. He brought them fruit and they ate, drank and then slept with him that night until morning, but when morning came they put on their feathered robes, resumed their shapes as doves and flew away. Janshah watched them fly out of sight; his wits almost took flight with them and after uttering a great cry he fell down in a faint. He remained unconscious for the whole of that day and while he was lying stretched out on the ground, Shaikh Nasr came from his meeting with the birds to look for him so that he could be taken back to his own country. He had told the birds: ‘I have a young son whom fate has brought here from a far land and I want you to carry him home.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ they replied, but when Nasr failed to see Janshah, he realized that he must have entered the forbidden room. When he had searched everywhere else, he came to the door of this room and found it standing open. He went in and discovered Janshah lying unconscious under a tree. He fetched scented water and sprinkled it over Janshah’s face, at which he recovered and began to look round…
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and tenth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that when Shaikh Nasr saw Janshah lying on the ground under a tree, he fetched scented water and sprinkled it over his face, at which he recovered and began to look round from right to left. When he could see nobody but Shaikh Nasr, he sighed deeply and recited the lines:
She appeared like a full moon on a lucky night,
With delicate fingers and a slender figure.
The witchery of her eyes enslaves the mind;
Her mouth is rose red like the ruby.
Her black hair falls down her back,
But beware, beware of the snakes within her curls!
Although her body may be soft; her heart
Is harder than solid rock towards her lover.
From the bow of her eyebrow she shoots the arrow of a glance
That strikes home, never missing, however long the range.
O for the beautiful one, unmatched in loveliness!
She has no equal among all mankind.
When he had listened to these lines, Shaikh Nasr said: ‘My son, did I not tell you not to open the door of this room or to go into it? But tell me what you saw there and let me know what happened to you.’ So Janshah told him of how he had met the three girls while he had been sitting there, and when Shaikh Nasr heard this he said: ‘These were jinn girls, my son. They come here every year to play and enjoy themselves, and they stay until the afternoon and then go back to their own land.’ ‘And where is their own land?’ Janshah asked, but Shaikh Nasr replied: ‘By God, my son, I do not know.’ He then told Janshah: ‘Take heart; come with me so that I may get the birds to take you back to your own country and abandon this love of yours.’ Janshah, however, on hearing this gave a great cry and fell unconscious. When he recovered, he said: ‘Father, until I meet those girls I do not want to return home, even if this means that I must die here, for I no longer have any memory of my family.’ He then wept and said: ‘I would be content to see the face of my beloved even once a year,’ and then, with sighs, he recited:
Would that the beloved’s phantom did not visit me by night,
And would that this love had never been created for mankind.
For if your memory did not burn in my heart,
Then tears would not flood down over my cheeks.
Night and day I try to make my heart endure,
But my body is consumed by the fire of love.
Falling at the feet of Shaikh Nasr, he kissed them and said tearfully: ‘Have pity on me so that God may pity you, and help me in my affliction so that you may receive help from Him.’ ‘By God,’ the shaikh replied, ‘I do not know these girls and I do not know where their country may be, but as you have fallen so passionately in love with one of them, you had better stay with me until this time next year, as they will come back on the same day. When it is nearly time for them to arrive, hide beneath a tree in the garden and then, when they enter the pool and enjoy themselves swimming there, leaving their clothes at a distance, take the clothes of the girl you want. When they see you, they will get out of the water to dress, and the girl whose clothes you have taken will say sweetly, with a lovely smile: “Brother, give me back my clothes so that I may dress and cover myself.” If you do what she says and return her clothes, you will never get what you want from her. She will put them on and go off to her family, and you will never see her again. So when you get them, keep them safely under your arm and don’t give them back until I return from meeting the birds. Then I shall arrange things between the two of you and send you back home with her. This is the only thing that I can do for you, my son.’
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and eleventh night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that Shaikh Nasr told Janshah to keep the clothes of the girl whom he wanted and not to give them back to her until he himself returned from meeting the birds. ‘That is all I can do for you, my son,’ he said.
Janshah calmed down when he heard this. He stayed with the shaikh for the next year, counting the days as they passed until the birds were due to return. When the time had come, the shaikh came to him and said: ‘Do as I told you when you steal the girl’s clothes, for I am going to meet the birds.’ ‘To hear is to obey, my father,’ replied Janshah. When the shaikh had gone off to his meeting, Janshah got up, went to the garden and hid beneath a tree in a place where he could not be seen. He waited for one day and then another and then a third, but the girls did not come. Distressed and sorrowful, he began to weep and wail until he lost consciousness and then, after he had recovered, he started to look around, first at the sky, then at the earth, staring at times at the pool and at times at the dry land, with his heart throbbing because of the strength of his emotion.
He was in this state when three birds like doves came towards him through the air, each of them the size of an eagle. They alighted beside the pool and, after looking right and left and seeing no one, human or jinn, they took off their clothes and went into the water, where they started to play, laughing and enjoying themselves, their naked bodies gleaming like silver ingots. Then the eldest exclaimed: ‘Sisters! I’m afraid that there is someone hidden in this pavilion.’ The next in age said: ‘Since the time of Solomon no one, human or jinn, has entered it,’ while the youngest laughed and said: ‘By God, sisters, if there is someone hiding here, I am the one whom he will take.’
The girls continued with their games and laughter, and Janshah’s heart throbbed with passion as he watched them from his hiding place under the tree, where they could not see him. They then swam off to the middle of the pool, leaving their clothes at a distance. Janshah got to his feet and, moving like a lightning flash, he snatched the clothes of the youngest girl, with whom he was in love, her name being Shamsa. She turned and saw him, and in their alarm she and her companions concealed themselves in the water before approaching the bank. They looked at Janshah’s face, which was as radiant as a full moon, and asked him: ‘Who are you and how did you come here to steal Lady Shamsa’s clothes?’ ‘Come here to me,’ he replied, ‘so that I may tell you what happened to me.’ ‘What is your story?’ Shamsa asked. ‘Why did you steal my clothes and how did you distinguish me from my sisters?�
� ‘Light of my eyes,’ Janshah answered, ‘come out of the water so that I may tell you my story with an account of my experiences, and let you know how it was that I recognized you.’ She said: ‘My lord, the refreshment of my eyes and the fruit of my heart, let me have my clothes back so that I may put them on and cover myself, and then I shall come to you.’ ‘Mistress of the beautiful ones,’ he replied, ‘I cannot give you your clothes lest I die of love, and I shall only do this when Shaikh Nasr, king of the birds, comes back.’ ‘If you are not going to give them to me, then stand back a little way from us so that my sisters can come out, dress themselves and give me something with which to cover myself,’ said Shamsa. ‘To hear is to obey,’ replied Janshah, and he then left them and went to the pavilion.
Shamsa and her sisters came out on to the bank and dressed, with the eldest giving Shamsa something of her own to wear, although she could not use it to fly. She then got up like a rising moon or a pasturing gazelle, and walked to Janshah, whom she found sitting on the throne. She greeted him and sat down near him, after which she said: ‘Handsome man, it is you who have killed me and killed yourself, but tell me what has happened to you so that we may learn your story.’ On hearing this, Janshah wept until his clothes were sodden with tears. Realizing that he was deeply in love with her, she got up, took him by the hand and made him sit beside her. She wiped away his tears with her sleeve and urged him to stop weeping and to tell her his story. So Janshah gave her an account of his adventures and of what he had seen.
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and twelfth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that the Lady Shamsa asked Janshah to tell her all that had happened to him, which he did. When she had listened to this, she heaved a sigh and said: ‘Master, if you love me, give me back my clothes so that I may put them on and return with my sisters to my family. I shall tell them what has happened to you because of your love for me and then I shall come back and carry you to your own land.’ Janshah listened to this, but then burst into tears and said: ‘Is it lawful in God’s eyes for you to kill me unjustly?’ ‘How am I killing you unjustly, master?’ she asked. ‘Because when you put on your clothes and leave me, I shall instantly die,’ he told her. When Shamsa heard this, she and her sisters burst out laughing and Shamsa said: ‘Take heart and console yourself for I shall have to marry you.’ Then she leaned towards him, clasped him to her breast and kissed him between the eyes and on the cheek. For a time the two of them embraced before breaking off and taking their seats on the throne. Shamsa’s eldest sister then got up to walk from the pavilion to the garden, where she picked some fruits and scented herbs and brought them to the couple. They all ate, drank and enjoyed themselves delightedly, laughing and playing. Janshah was an extremely handsome man, slender and well built, and Shamsa told him: ‘My darling, by God I love you very much indeed and I shall never part from you.’ Janshah was delighted to hear this and smiled broadly, and they continued to laugh and play until, as they were enjoying themselves, Shaikh Nasr returned from his meeting with the birds.
They all stood up to greet him, kissing his hands, and after welcoming them, he told them to sit, which they did. Then he said to the Lady Shamsa: ‘This young man is deeply in love with you and I conjure you in God’s Name to treat him kindly. He comes from a great family, the descendants of kings, and his father, who rules over the lands of Kabul, has a vast kingdom.’ ‘To hear is to obey your orders,’ she replied, and, having kissed his hand, she stood there in front of him. ‘If you are sincere in what you say,’ the shaikh told her, ‘then swear to me by God that you will not play him false as long as you live.’ Shamsa swore a great oath to this effect and added that she would most certainly marry him and would never leave him. When she had taken this oath to the shaikh, he believed her and, turning to Janshah, he said: ‘Praise be to God, Who has brought the two of you to this agreement.’
The delighted Janshah together with the Lady Shamsa stayed for three months with Shaikh Nasr, eating, drinking, playing and laughing…
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and thirteenth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that Janshah and the Lady Shamsa stayed for three months with Shaikh Nasr, eating, drinking, playing and enjoying the greatest good fortune. At the end of this period Shamsa told Janshah: ‘I want to go to your own country so that you may marry me and we can stay there.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ said Janshah, and he let the shaikh know that he wanted to go home, telling him what Shamsa had said. ‘Go back, then,’ said the shaikh, ‘and take good care of her.’ ‘To hear is to obey,’ said Janshah. Shamsa then looked for her feather dress and asked the shaikh to tell Janshah to give it to her so that she could put it on. The shaikh did this and Janshah, with ready obedience, got up quickly, went to the pavilion and fetched the dress. When he had given it to her she took it, put it on and then said: ‘Mount on my back, close your eyes and block your ears lest you hear the sound of the celestial sphere as it revolves. When you are on my back, use your hands to hold on to my feather dress and take care not to fall.’
When Janshah heard this, he mounted on Shamsa’s back but, as she was about to fly off, Shaikh Nasr said: ‘Stop; let me describe the lands of Kabul for you, as I’m afraid that the two of you may mistake the way.’ Shamsa waited until he had done this, and he then told her to look after Janshah and said goodbye to the two of them. For her part, Shamsa said goodbye to her sisters, telling them to go home to their families and explain to them what had happened to her when she met Janshah. She then took to the air, flying through it like the wind’s breath or like a lightning flash, and her sisters went home and told all this to their people.
Shamsa flew on from before noon until the time of the afternoon prayer, carrying Janshah on her back. She then saw a valley with trees and streams in the distance, and she told Janshah that she was going to land in it so that they might enjoy inspecting the trees and the plants and might spend the night there. ‘Do what you want,’ he told her, and so she flew down and alighted in the valley. Janshah dismounted and kissed her between the eyes, and then, after they had sat for a time by the bank of a stream, they got to their feet and began to roam through the valley, looking at what was there and eating its fruits. They went on like this until evening, when they came to a tree beside which they slept until morning.
Shamsa now got up and told Janshah to mount on her back. ‘To hear is to obey,’ he said, and as soon as he had mounted she flew off with him, continuing her flight from early morning until noon. On their way they saw the landmarks that Shaikh Nasr had described for them, and on sighting these, Shamsa flew down from the upper air to a broad stretch of meadow land where there were fine crops, pasturing gazelles, gushing springs, ripe fruits and broad streams. When she had landed, Janshah dismounted and kissed her between the eyes. ‘My darling and the comfort of my eyes,’ she said, ‘do you know how far we have come?’ When he said no, she told him that they had covered the distance of a thirty-month journey. ‘Praise be to God that we have arrived safely!’ exclaimed Janshah, and the two of them sat side by side eating, drinking, playing and laughing. While they were doing this two mamluks came up, one of whom being the man who had been left with the horses when Janshah had boarded the fishing boat, while the other had been with him on the hunt. When they saw him, they recognized him and asked his permission to go to give his father the good news of his return. ‘Go and tell him,’ said Janshah, ‘and then fetch tents, as we are going to stay resting here for seven days until a ceremonial procession comes to fetch us so that we may enter in great state.’
Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what she had been allowed to say. Then, when it was the five hundred and fourteenth night, SHE CONTINUED:
I have heard, O fortunate king, that Janshah told the two mamluks to take the news to hi
s father, adding: ‘And then fetch tents, as we are going to stay resting here for seven days until a ceremonial procession comes to fetch us so that we may enter in great state.’
The two mamluks mounted and went off to Janshah’s father, calling out to him: ‘Good news, king of the age!’ ‘What is the news?’ asked King Tighmus when he heard them. ‘Has my son Janshah come back?’ ‘Yes,’ they told him, ‘he is back from his travels and is nearby in the Karani meadow.’ The king was so delighted by what they said that he fell to the ground in a faint. When he had recovered, he told his vizier to give each of the mamluks a splendid robe of honour and a quantity of money. ‘To hear is to obey,’ said the vizier, who then immediately got up and gave them these gifts, saying: ‘Take the money in exchange for your good news, whether it is true or false.’ ‘We are no liars,’ they told him, ‘and only just now we were sitting with him, greeting him and kissing his hands. He told us to fetch tents as he was going to stay in the Karani meadow for seven days until the viziers, emirs and state officials go out to meet him.’ The king then asked them how he was and they said: ‘He has a lady with him who looks like a houri of Paradise.’
On hearing this, the king ordered the drums to be beaten and the trumpets to sound in order to spread the good news, and he sent messengers to all parts of the city to relay it to Janshah’s mother as well as to the wives of the viziers, emirs and state officials. These messengers scattered throughout the city, telling the people that Janshah had returned. King Tighmus then formed up his guards and his troops and set out for the Karani meadow. Janshah was sitting with the Lady Shamsa by his side when he saw them advancing. He got to his feet and walked up to them, and when they saw him and recognized who he was, they dismounted and approached him on foot, greeting him and kissing his hands.
The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights: Volume 2 Page 52