Aladdin

by Paulo Lemos Horta

  By the time she entered the house, she had convinced herself that Aladdin had nothing left to dream of. “My son,” she said, “I would abandon all hope of marrying Princess Badr al-Budur. It is true that the sultan received me with kindness, and I believe he was well disposed toward you. But the grand vizier seems to have turned him, as you may judge yourself by what happened. When I reminded His Majesty that the three months had passed, and begged him to remember his promise, I noticed that he only gave me an answer after speaking for some time with his vizier.” Aladdin’s mother carefully related the sultan’s words, and the precise conditions he had imposed on the marriage.

  “He is expecting your answer,” she told her son with a smile, “but I think he will be waiting a long time.”

  “Not so long as you think,” replied Aladdin, “and the sultan is mistaken if he believes that his demands will put me off. I had expected real obstacles, but what he asks is very little.” He retreated to his room and summoned the jinni.

  “The sultan will give me his daughter to marry,” said Aladdin, “but first he wants forty gold vessels, full to the brim with fruit from the garden where I found your master the lamp. These forty gold vessels must be carried by as many black servants, preceded by forty white servants, all young, tall, well made, and richly dressed. Go and bring me such a gift without delay, so I may send it to the sultan before the divan session is out.”

  The jinni returned at once with the eighty servants, each bearing a solid gold vessel on his head, filled with pearls, diamonds, rubies, and emeralds, even larger and more beautiful than those the sultan had seen. Together they filled the small house and its garden. Aladdin opened the door, ushered out the men one after the other, and when his mother had walked out after the last servant, he closed the door behind her and retreated calmly to his room.

  The first servant to leave Aladdin’s house had amazed everyone who saw him, and before all eighty men were out, the street was full of people running from all directions to catch sight of the procession. The polished skin, the elegant form and carriage of these men, their equal size, their solemn pace, married with the gleam of heavy jewels that hung about their waists and framed their temples, stirred the crowd to a wild delight, but the streets were so packed with bodies that none could move. Only their eyes followed the parade until they could see no more.

  Many streets lay between these splendid men and the palace, and half the city saw them pass. When the first of the eighty servants reached the door of the first courtyard, the porters, who took him for a king on account of his clothes, stepped forward to kiss his hem. But the servant, under orders from the jinni, stopped them, and said: “We are but slaves. Our master will appear in time.”

  The first servant, followed by the others, moved on to the vast second courtyard, where the palace guard stood while the divan was in session. The officers in command of each troop were a spectacular sight, but they paled in the presence of the eighty servants who formed part of Aladdin’s gift and bore the rest of it on their heads. Nothing else shone so brightly in the sultan’s palace. The brilliance of his court faded before what had just appeared in its midst.

  When the sultan heard that these men had arrived, he gave orders to admit them, and they entered the divan in stately fashion, some from the left and others from the right. Once they had formed a great half-moon before the sultan’s throne, the black servants laid the vessels they had carried on the carpet, then they all knelt and pressed their foreheads to the floor, and the white servants did likewise. When they rose again, they stood modestly with their arms crossed on their chests, while Aladdin’s mother presented them.

  “Majesty,” she said, “my son Aladdin is well aware that the present he has sent is not worthy of the princess, yet he hopes that you will not be displeased with it, considering that he has tried to conform to the conditions you were good enough to impose.”

  The sultan barely heard her. A glimpse of the forty gold vessels, brimming with the most vivid and precious jewels, and of the eighty servants who seemed as many kings, had left him speechless. He turned to his grand vizier, who knew no more than he did as to the source of such a cornucopia. “Well, vizier,” he said, “what do you make of that man, whoever he is, who sends me such a sumptuous gift, and who is unknown to us both? Do you believe him unworthy of marrying my daughter?”

  The grand vizier did not dare dissemble, and the sultan banished his doubts. He did not even think to discover whether Aladdin’s other qualities might make for a suitable son-in-law. The mere sight of such riches, and the diligence with which Aladdin had met his wild request, apparently without the slightest trouble, persuaded him that Aladdin had every accomplishment one could wish for. “Good woman,” he said to Aladdin’s mother, “go and tell your son that I await him with open arms.”

  The eighty servants were not forgotten. They were brought inside the palace, and the sultan, after praising them to the princess, had them placed outside her room, so that she could look at them through her latticework screen and judge that he had exaggerated nothing, but rather had told her much less than what was there.

  Aladdin’s mother lost no time telling her son the good news. “You have every reason to be happy,” she said. “Your wishes have been granted. I won’t keep you waiting any longer: The sultan has consented to your marrying the princess, and the court applauded his decision. He looks forward to embracing you and concluding your marriage. Now it is up to you to prepare for that encounter, so that the hopes he has placed in you are not disappointed; but after the marvels I have seen you perform, I have no doubt he will be satisfied. Now make haste, my son. The sultan awaits you impatiently.”

  Overjoyed, Aladdin retired to his room and called the jinni. “Give me a bath,” he said, “and when I am clean, find me an outfit more splendid than any monarch has ever worn.”

  At once he was taken to a bathhouse made of the finest marble, where unseen hands undressed him in a spotless hall. He was led into the bath, which was just hot enough, to be scrubbed and sluiced with scented waters. After passing through a series of further rooms, each cooler than the last, he emerged a quite different man, his complexion now white and pink, his body lighter, refreshed. Back in the hall, he saw that in the place of his old clothes lay an exquisite new outfit, which he put on with the jinni’s help, admiring each garment in turn. Then he asked the jinni for a horse more gentle and more graceful than any in the sultan’s stables, twenty servants to attend him, six handmaidens to wait on his mother, each bearing an outfit just as sumptuous as any in the sultana’s wardrobe, and ten thousand gold coins in ten purses.

  The jinni disappeared and returned immediately with the horse, the twenty servants, ten of which carried purses filled with gold, and the six handmaidens, each bearing a different outfit for Aladdin’s mother, wrapped in a silver cloth, and presented it all to Aladdin. Of the ten purses, Aladdin gave four to his mother, and left the remaining six in the hands of his servants, with orders to send the coins flying into the crowd as they passed on their way to the palace. At last he presented the handmaidens to his mother, and said that they were hers, along with the clothes on their heads.

  Then he mounted his horse and set off to the palace. He had never been on a horse before, yet moved with such grace that not even the finest rider would have guessed he was so green. The streets through which he passed rang with cheers, rising to a roar when the six servants sent handfuls of gold coins flying to the left and right. Aladdin went unrecognized, not only by those who remembered his days of mischief on these streets, but even by those who had seen him not long before, so altered were his looks, for it was a property of the lamp, as it enriched its owners, to match their appearance by degrees to their higher standing. As word spread that the sultan had given Aladdin the princess to marry, he appeared so deserving of the honor that no one thought to doubt his importance.

  Aladdin arrived at the palace, where everything was set out to receive him. When he reached the second ga
te and tried to dismount, as was the custom among viziers, generals, and governors of the highest rank, he was stopped by the chief usher, under orders from the sultan, who led him instead to the threshold of the divan and helped him from his horse despite his protests. Taking Aladdin by the arm, he led him past the other ushers, who framed the entrance in two neat lines, and on to the sultan’s throne.

  When the sultan saw Aladdin, he was just as amazed by his splendid outfit, richer than any he had ever worn himself, as by his radiant skin, his impressive size, and a certain air of grandeur quite unlike the modest state in which his mother had appeared before him. He rose from his throne in time to stop Aladdin from throwing himself at his feet, embraced him, and led him into a dazzling hall where a feast was laid, and where they ate together alone. The sultan, eyes fixed on Aladdin in delight, let their talk drift over many subjects, and found that Aladdin could speak with knowledge and wisdom on all of them.

  After the meal, the sultan summoned the highest-ranking judge in the city, and had him draw up the marriage contract on the spot. Meanwhile, the sultan and Aladdin kept up their conversation in the presence of the grand vizier and the gentlemen of the court, who admired the soundness of his mind, his easy eloquence, and the subtle observations with which he peppered their exchange.

  When the judge had finished the contract, the sultan asked if Aladdin wished to conclude the ceremony that day. “First,” replied Aladdin, “I beg your permission to build a palace across from yours, so that I may receive the princess in the style she deserves.” The sultan agreed, and Aladdin took leave in the manner of one who had grown up entirely at the court.

  Aladdin got back on his horse and returned home the way he came, through the same crowds who cheered his passage and wished him every joy. Once home, he took the lamp and said to the jinni: “Build me a palace out of porphyry, jasper, agate, lapis, and marble, and let it stand opposite the sultan’s palace. At the top you shall build a great domed hall with walls of gold and silver, and with six windows in each wall. The screen on each window shall be set with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds—except for one screen, which you shall leave unfinished. There must also be a courtyard, a garden, a treasury filled with gold and silver, and kitchens, larders, laundries, dressing rooms furnished for all seasons, stables full of horses with their squires and grooms, and a team of huntsmen. Go, and return when it is done.”

  A Palace of Wonders

  The sun had just set when Aladdin dismissed the jinni. At first light he appeared again. “Master,” he said, “your palace is complete.” A nod was enough to take them there in an instant, and Aladdin admired every room in the palace, particularly the hall with twenty-four windows, and found there more opulence and beauty than he had dared imagine. “Only one thing remains,” said Aladdin, “and that is to roll out, from the gate of the sultan’s palace to the door of the princess’s quarters in this one, a carpet of the finest velvet.” The jinni disappeared, and Aladdin saw that what he had asked for was done.

  The porters, who were used to a clear view of the land outside the palace, were amazed to find it cut short, and to see a velvet carpet stretching from the sultan’s gate into the distance. Their surprise only grew when they made out Aladdin’s palace, and before long news of that wonder had spread through the court. The grand vizier was no less astonished than the others, but when he told the sultan, he tried to pass it off as the work of magic.

  “But vizier,” said the sultan, “you know as well as I do that Aladdin has built a palace with the permission I gave him in your presence. After the glimpse we have had of his riches, should we be surprised that he has done it so quickly? He has shown us that with enough money, miracles can happen overnight. Your talk of magic is born of some jealousy, is it not?” He was due for a session with the council, and this stopped him from pursuing this thought any further.

  When Aladdin came home, he found his mother awake, trying on one of her new outfits. He pressed her to go to the sultan’s palace with her new servants as the sultan’s council session was drawing to a close, and to say that she had come to keep the princess company until evening, when it would be time for her to move to her palace.

  She set out with her women, and though they were dressed as queens, no heads were turned as they passed, for their faces were covered and cloaks hid their sumptuous outfits. Aladdin, for his part, mounted his horse, and, having left his father’s house for the last time, carrying only the wonderful lamp which had been so crucial to his happiness, he made for his palace with the same ceremony as before.

  As soon as the palace guards saw Aladdin’s mother approach, orders were sent to the trumpeters, cymbalists, and fife-players already dotted around the grounds, and in a moment their music sent tidings of joy across the city. Merchants set about decking their shops with carpets, cushions, and foliage, and preparing illuminations for nightfall. Craftsmen abandoned their workshops as everyone scrambled to the main square, which was now wedged between the sultan’s palace and Aladdin’s. The crowd was bewildered to see a gorgeous palace where the day before there had been no sign of bricks or mortar.

  Aladdin’s mother was greeted in grand style, and ushered into the princess’s quarters by the chief eunuch. The princess embraced her, sat her on the sofa, and, as her women finished dressing her in Aladdin’s jewels, had a princely breakfast served. The sultan, who had come to see his daughter before she left his palace for Aladdin’s, also gave her a royal welcome. Aladdin’s mother had addressed the sultan several times in public, but never before had he seen her uncovered, as she was now. Though she was aging, her features held the shape of her former beauty, and the sultan, who had only ever seen her in the simplest garb, was full of wonder to see her dressed as splendidly as the princess herself. He reflected that this too must be the work of Aladdin’s wisdom.

  When night fell, the princess took leave of her father. They parted in tears, and embraced each other tenderly many times, and at last the princess left the palace, with Aladdin’s mother by her side and a hundred handmaidens in their wake. They were followed by the musicians, one hundred messengers, and as many eunuchs. Four hundred young pages walked in single file on either side, each bearing a torch which, combined with the palace illuminations, gave a lovely glow to the evening light.

  The princess walked the carpet from her father’s palace to her husband’s, and Aladdin ran to greet her at the door.

  “Your eyes are to blame for my boldness,” he said, “if I have displeased you.”

  “Prince,” she replied, “now that I have seen you, I submit to my father’s will without resistance.”

  Taking her by the hand, Aladdin led her into a great hall lit by an infinity of candles, where the jinni had laid a sumptuous feast. Gold plates held the finest meats. The vases, bowls, and cups which crowded the table were also made of gold, and exquisitely wrought. The princess said to Aladdin: “I had not thought any place on earth could be more beautiful than my father’s palace, but the sight of this room alone proves I was mistaken.”

  The princess, Aladdin, and his mother took their seats, and a chorus of women began to sing, accompanied by a consort of instruments. The princess, delighted, declared she had never heard anything like it in her father’s palace. She did not know that these musicians were sprites chosen by the jinni.

  After supper, a troupe of dancers replaced the musicians. They performed a series of traditional dances, and were followed by a man and a woman dancing alone with striking agility. It was near midnight when, true to the Chinese custom, Aladdin rose and offered the princess his hand so that they might dance out of their own wedding. Admiring eyes followed their every turn until they disappeared into the nuptial chamber.

  In the morning, Aladdin’s servants came to help him dress, and chose an outfit no less fine than the one he wore to his wedding. Then he was brought one of his horses, which he rode to the sultan’s palace, surrounded by a flock of servants on all sides. The sultan embraced him, and, seating him b
eside him on the throne, he gave the order for lunch to be served. “Majesty,” said Aladdin, “I beg you to relieve me of that honor today, and instead to give me the pleasure of hosting you in the princess’s palace, with your grand vizier and the gentlemen of the court.” The sultan agreed, and set off at once on foot, as the journey was not long, with Aladdin on his right, the grand vizier on his left, and the gentlemen in their wake.

  The beauty of Aladdin’s palace astounded the sultan; inside, he could not keep from exclaiming in every room. When he entered the hall with twenty-four windows, and saw the screens inlaid with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds, and Aladdin remarked that they were just as richly made on the outside, the sultan could do no more than stand there as though stunned. After remaining some time in this state, he said: “This palace is one of the wonders of the world. Where else in the universe are walls built of gold and silver, and windows shielded by screens studded with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds? Never on earth was such a thing ever seen!”

  The sultan wished to study the beauty of the twenty-four windows. Counting them, he found that only twenty-three were of the same caliber, and that the twenty-fourth had remained unfinished.

  “Vizier,” he said, for the vizier had taken it upon himself to remain by his side, “it is strange that such a fine room should have this imperfection.”

  “It seems,” replied the vizier, “that Aladdin was pressed for time, and was unable to match this window to the others.”

  Aladdin, who had slipped away from the sultan to give a few orders, now returned.

  “My son,” said the sultan, “this must be the most admirable room in the world. Only one thing surprises me. Was it by accident or negligence that one window was left unfinished?”