One Thousand and One Nights, page 257
Meanwhile, the old woman went to Num’s bed-chamber and said to her, “Has thy lord come to thee?” “No, by Allah!” answered Num, and the other said, “Belike he hath gone astray and entered some chamber other than thine.” “There is no power and no virtue but in God the Most High, the Supreme!” exclaimed Num. “Our last hour is come and we are all lost.” As they sat, pondering, in came the princess’s maid and saluting Num, said to her, “My lady bids thee to her entertainment.” “I hear and obey,” answered the damsel, and the old woman said, “Belike thy lord is with the Khalif’s sister and the veil has been done away.” So Num rose and betook herself to the princess, who said to her, “Here is thy lord sitting with me; it seems he has gone astray; but, please God, neither thou nor he has any cause for fear.” When Num heard this, she took heart and went up to Nimeh, who rose to meet her, and they embraced and fell down in a swoon. As soon as they came to themselves, the princess said to them, “Sit down and let us take counsel for your deliverance from this your strait.” And they answered, “O our lady, we hear and obey: it is thine to command.” “By Allah,” quoth she, “no harm shall befall you from us!” Then she called for meat and drink, and they sat down and ate till they had enough, after which they sat drinking. The cup went round amongst them and their cares ceased from them; but Nimeh said, “Would I knew how this will end!” “O Nimeh,” quoth the princess, “dost thou love thy slave Num?” “O my lady,” answered he, “it is my passion for her that has brought me thus in peril of my life.” Then she said to the damsel, “O Num, dost thou love thy lord Nimeh?” And she replied, “O my lady, it is the love of him that has wasted my body and brought me to evil case.” “By Allah,” rejoined the princess, “since ye love each other thus, may he not live who would sunder you! Take heart and be of good cheer.” At this they both rejoiced, and Num, calling for a lute, tuned it and preluded enchantingly, then sang the following verses:
Whenas, content with nothing less, the spies our sev’rance
sought, Allbe no debt of blood they had ‘gainst me or thee
in aught,
Whenas they poured upon our ears the hurtling din of war, Whilst
helpers and protectors failed and succour came there nought,
I fought the railers with my tears, my spirit and thine eyes;
Yea, with the torrent, fire and sword, to fend them off I
wrought.
Then she gave the lute to Nimeh, saying, “Sing thou to us.” So he took it and playing a lively measure, sang these verses:
The moon were like thee at its full, were it of freckles free,
And did it never brook eclipse, the sun would favour thee.
Indeed, I marvel, (but in love how many a marvel is! Therein are
passion and desire and cares and ecstasy,)
Short seems the distance, when I fare towards my love’s abode;
But when I journey from her sight, the way is long to me.
When he had made an end of his song, Num filled the cup and gave it to him, and he drank it off; then she filled again and gave the cup to the princess, who took it and emptied it; after which she in her turn took the lute and sang as follows:
Mourning and grief possess my heart and in my breast The ardour
of desire abideth as a guest.
The wasting of my frame, alas! is manifest And all my soul is
sick with passion and unrest.
Then she filled the cup and gave it to Num, who drank it off and taking the lute, sang the following verses:
O thou, upon whom I bestowed my soul and thou rack’dst it to
death And I would have ta’en it again, but could not release
it i’ faith,
Relent to a lover forlorn; vouchsafe him, I pray, ere he die,
What may from perdition redeem, for this is the last of his
breath.
They ceased not to sing and make merry and drink to the sweet sound of the strings, full of mirth and joyance and good cheer, till, behold, in came the Commander of the Faithful. When they saw him, they rose and kissed the ground before him; and he, seeing Num with the lute in her hand, said to her, “O Num, praised be God who hath done away from thee pain and affliction!” Then he looked at Nimeh (who was still disguised as a woman) and said to the princess, “O my sister, what damsel is this by Num’s side?” “O Commander of the Faithful,” answered she, “she is one of thy slave-girls and the bosom friend of Num, who will neither eat nor drink without her.” And she repeated the words of the poet:
Two opposites, dissevered still in charms and straitly knit, And each one’s beauty brightlier shows against its opposite.
“By the Great God,” said the Khalif, “she is as handsome as Num, and to-morrow, I will appoint her a separate chamber beside that of Num and send her furniture and linen and all that befits her, in honour of Num.” Then, the princess called for food and set it before her brother, who ate and filling a cup, signed to Num to sing. So she took the lute, after drinking two cups, and sang the following verses:
Whenas my cup-companion hath poured me out of wine Three foaming
cups, brimmed over with nectar from the vine,
I trail my skirts in glory all night, as if o’er thee, Commander
of the Faithful, the empery were mine.
The Khalif was delighted and filling another cup, gave it to Num and bade her sing again. So she drank off the cup, and sweeping the strings of the lute, sang as follows:
O thou, the noblest man of men that live in this our day, Whose
equal none may boast himself in power and mightiness,
O all unpeered in pride of place, to whom munificence Is as a
birthright, Lord and King, whom all in all confess,
Thou, that dost lord it, sovran-wise, o’er all the kings of earth
And without grudging or reproach, giv’st bountiful largesse,
God have thee ever in His guard, despite thine every foe, And be
thy fortune ever bright with victory and success!
When the Khalif heard this, he exclaimed, “By Allah, it is good! By Allah, it is excellent! Verily, God hath been good to thee, O Num! How sweet is thy voice and how clear thy speech!” They passed the time thus in mirth and good cheer, till midnight, when the Khalif’s sister said to him, “O Commander of the Faithful, give ear to a tale I have read in books of a certain man of rank.” “And what is this tale?” asked he. “Know,” said she, “that there lived once in the city of Cufa, a youth called Nimeh ben er Rebya, and he had a slave-girl whom he loved and who loved him. They had been reared in one bed; but when they grew up and mutual love took possession of them, fate smote them with its calamities and decreed separation unto them. For designing folk enticed her by sleight forth of his house and stealing her away from him, sold her to one of the Kings for ten thousand dinars. Now the girl loved her lord even as he loved her; so he left house and home and fortune and setting out in quest of her, made shift, at the peril of his life, to gain access to her; but they had not been long in company, when in came the King, who had bought her of her ravisher, and hastily bade put them to death, without waiting to enquire into the matter, as was just. What sayest thou, O Commander of the Faithful, of this King’s conduct?” “This was indeed a strange thing,” answered the Khalif; “it behoved the King to use his power with clemency, and he should have considered three things in their favour; first, that they loved one another; secondly, that they were in his house and under his hand; and thirdly, that it behoves a King to be deliberate in judging between the folk, and how much more so when he himself is concerned! Wherefore the King in this did unkingly.” Then said his sister, “O my brother by the Lord of heaven and earth, I conjure thee, bid Num sing and give ear to that she shall sing!” And he said, “O Num, sing to me.” So she played a lively measure and sang the following verses:
Fortune hath played the traitor; indeed, ’twas ever so,
Transpiercing hearts and bosoms and kindling care and woe
And parting friends in sunder, that were in union knit, So down
their cheeks thou seest the tears in torrents flow.
They were, and I was with them, in all delight of life, And
fortune did unite us full straitly whiles ago.
So gouts of blood, commingled with tears, both night and day I’ll
weep, my sore affliction for loss of thee to show.
When he heard this, he was moved to great delight, and his sister said to him, “O my brother, he who decideth in aught against himself, it behoveth him to abide by it and do according to his word; and thou hast by this judgment decided against thyself.” Then said she, “O Nimeh, stand up, and do thou likewise, O Num!” So they stood up and she continued, “O Commander of the Faithful, she who stands before thee is Num, whom El Hejjaj ben Yousuf eth Thekefi stole and sent to thee, falsely pretending in his letter to thee that he had bought her for ten thousand dinars. This other is her lord, Nimeh ben er Rebya; and I beseech thee, by the honour of thy pious forefathers and by Hemzeh and Akil and Abbes, to pardon them and bestow them one on the other, that thou mayst earn the recompense in the next world of thy just dealing with them; for they are under thy hand and have eaten of thy meat and drunken of thy drink; and behold, I make intercession for them and beg of thee the boon of their lives.” “Thou sayst sooth,” replied the Khalif, “I did indeed give judgment as thou sayst, and I use not to go back on my word.” Then said he, “O Num, is this thy lord?” And she answered, “Yes, O Commander of the Faithful.” “No harm shall befall you,” said he; “I give you to one another.” Then he said to the young man, “O Nimeh, who told thee where she was and taught thee how to get at her?” “O Commander of the Faithful,” replied he, “give ear to my story; for by the virtue of thy pious forefathers, I will hide nothing from thee!” And he told him all that had passed between himself and the Persian physician and the old woman and how she had brought him into the palace and he had mistaken one door for another; whereat the Khalif wondered exceedingly and said, “Fetch me the Persian.” So they fetched him and he made him one of his chief officers. Moreover, he bestowed on him robes of honour and ordered him a handsome present, saying, “Him, who has shown such good sense and skill in his ordinance, it behoves us to make one of our chief officers.” He also loaded Nimeh and Num with gifts and honours and rewarded the old woman; and they abode with him in joy and content and all delight of life seven days; at the end of which time Nimeh craved leave to return to Cufa with his slave-girl. The Khalif gave leave and they departed accordingly and arrived in due course at Cufa, where Nimeh foregathered with his father and mother, and they abode in the enjoyment of all the delights and comforts of life, till there came to them the Destroyer of Delights and the Sunderer of Companies.’
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The princes wondered mightily at Behram’s story and said, ‘By Allah, this is indeed a rare story!’ They passed the night thus, and next morning, Amjed and Asaad mounted and riding to the palace, sought an audience of the King, who received them with honour. As they sat talking, of a sudden they heard the townsfolk crying aloud and shouting to one another and calling for help, and the chamberlain came in to the King and said to him, ‘Some King hath encamped before the city, he and his army, with arms displayed, and we know not who they are nor what they seek.’ The King took counsel with his Vizier and Asaad, and Amjed said, ‘I will go out to him and learn the cause of his coming.’ So he took horse and riding forth the city, repaired to the stranger’s camp, where he found the King and with him many soldiers and mounted officers. When the guards saw him, they knew him for an ambassador from the King of the city; so they took him and brought him to their King. Amjed kissed the ground before him; but lo, the King was a queen, who wore a chin-band over her face, and she said to Amjed, ‘Know that I have no design on your city and am only come hither in quest of a beardless slave of mine, whom if I find with you, I will do you no hurt; but if I find him not, then shall there befall sore battle between you and me.’ ‘O Queen,’ asked Amjed, ‘what is thy slave’s name and what like is he?’ Said she, ‘His name is Asaad and he is of such and such a favour. My name is Merjaneh, and this slave came to my town in company of Behram, a Magian, who refused to sell him to me; so I took him by force, but the Magian fell upon him by night and took him away by stealth.’ When Amjed heard this he knew that it was his brother Asaad whom she sought and said to her, ‘O Queen of the age, praised be God who hath brought us relief! Know that he whom thou seekest is my brother.’ Then he told her their story and all that had befallen them in the land of exile, and acquainted her with the cause of their departure from the Islands of Ebony, whereat she marvelled and rejoiced to have found Asaad. So she bestowed a dress of honour upon Amjed, and he returned to the King and told him what had passed, at which they all rejoiced and the King and the two princes went forth to meet Queen Merjaneh. They were admitted to her presence and sat down to converse with her, but as they were thus engaged, behold, a cloud of dust arose and grew, till it covered the landscape. Presently, it lifted and discovered an army, in numbers like the swollen sea, armed cap-a-pie, who, making for the city with naked swords, encompassed it as the ring encompasses the little finger. When Amjed and Asaad saw this, they exclaimed, ‘We are God’s and to Him we return. What is this great army? Doubtless, these are enemies; and except we agree with this Queen Merjaneh to resist them, they will take the town from us and slay us. There is nothing for us but to go out to them and see who they are.’ So Amjed mounted and passing through Queen Merjaneh’s camp, came to the approaching army and was admitted to the presence of their King, to whom he delivered his message, after kissing the earth before him. Quoth the King, ‘I am called King Ghaïour, lord of the Islands and the Seas and the Seven Castles, and am come out in quest of my daughter Budour, of whom fortune hath bereft me; for she left me and returned not to me, nor have I heard any news of her or her husband Kemerezzeman. Have ye any tidings of them?’ When Amjed heard this, he knew that this King was none other than his grandfather, his mother’s father, and kissing the earth before him, told him that he was the son of his daughter Budour; whereupon Ghaïour threw himself upon him and they both fell a-weeping. Then said Ghaïour, ‘Praised be God, O my son, for safety, since I have foregathered with thee!’ And Amjed told him that his daughter Budour and her husband Kemerezzeman were well and abode in a city called the City of Ebony. Moreover, he related to him how his father, being wroth with him and his brother, had commanded his treasurer to put them to death, but that the latter had taken pity on them and let them go with their lives. Quoth King Ghaïour, ‘I will go back with thee and thy brother to your father and make your peace with him.’ Amjed kissed the ground before him and the King bestowed a dress of honour upon him, after which he returned, smiling, to the King of the city of the Magians and told him what he had learnt, at which he wondered exceedingly. Then he despatched guest-gifts of sheep and horses and camels and provender and so forth to King Ghaïour and the like to Queen Merjaneh and told her what had chanced, whereupon quoth she, ‘I too will accompany you with my troops and will do my endeavour to make peace [between the princes and their father.]’ At this moment, there arose another cloud of dust and spread, till it covered the prospect and darkened the day; and under it, they heard shouts and cries and neighing of horses and saw the sheen of swords and the glint of lance-points. When this new host drew near the city and saw the two other armies, they beat their drums and the King of the Magians exclaimed, ‘This is indeed a blessed day! Praised be God who hath made us of accord with these two armies! If it be His will, He will give us peace with yon other also.’ Then said he to Amjed and Asaad, ‘Go forth and bring us news of them, for they are a mighty host, never saw I a mightier.’ So they opened the city gates, which the King had shut for fear of the surrounding troops, and Amjed and Asaad went forth and coming to the new host, found that it was the army of the King of the Ebony Islands, led by their father, King Kemerezzeman in person. When they came before him, they kissed the earth and wept; but, when he saw them, he threw himself upon them, weeping sore, and strained them long to his breast. Then he excused himself to them and told them how sore desolation he had suffered for their loss; and they acquainted him with King Ghaïour’s arrival, whereupon he mounted with his chief officers and proceeded to the King of China’s camp, he and his sons. As they drew near, one of the princes rode forward and informed King Ghaïour of Kemerezzeman’s coming, whereupon he came out to meet him and they joined company, marvelling at these things and how Fortune had ordered their encounter in that place. Then the townsfolk made them banquets of all manner of meats and confections and brought them sheep and horses and camels and fodder and other guest-gifts and all that the troops needed. Presently, behold, yet another cloud of dust arose and spread till it covered the landscape, whilst the earth shook with the tramp of horse and the drums sounded like the storm-winds. After awhile, the dust lifted and discovered an army clad in black and armed cap-a-pie, and in their midst rode a very old man clad also in black, whose beard flowed down over his breast. When the King of the city saw this great host, he said to the other Kings, ‘Praised be God the Most High, by whose leave ye are met here, all in one day, and proved all known one to the other! But what vast army is this that covers the country?’ ‘Have no fear of them,’ answered they; ‘we are here three Kings, each with a great army, and if they be enemies, we will join thee in doing battle with them, were three times their number added to them.’ As they were talking, up came an envoy from the approaching host, making for the city. They brought him before the four Kings and he kissed the earth and said, ‘The King my master comes from the land of the Persians; many years ago he lost his son and is seeking him in all countries. If he find him with you, well and good; but if he find him not, there will be war between him and you, and he will lay waste your city.’ ‘That shall he not,’ rejoined Kemerezzeman; ‘but how is thy master called in the land of the Persians?’ ‘He is called King Shehriman, lord of the Khalidan Islands,’ answered the envoy; ‘and he hath levied these troops in the lands traversed by him, whilst seeking his son.’ When Kemerezzeman heard his father’s name, he gave a great cry and fell down in a swoon; then, presently coming to himself, he wept sore and said to Amjed and Asaad, ‘Go, O my sons, with the messenger: salute your grandfather, King Shehriman, and give him glad tidings of me, for he mourns my loss and even now wears black for my sake.’ Then he told the other Kings all that had befallen him in his youth, at which they all wondered and mounting with him, repaired to his father, whom he saluted, and they embraced and fell down in a swoon, for excess of joy. When they revived, Kemerezzeman acquainted his father with all his adventures, and the other Kings saluted Shehriman. Then they married Merjaneh to Asaad and sent her back to her kingdom, charging her not to leave them without news of her. Moreover, Amjed took Bustan, Behram’s daughter, to wife, and they all set out for the City of Ebony. When they arrived there, Kemerezzeman went in to his father-in-law, King Armanous, and told him all that had befallen him and how he had found his sons; whereat Armanous rejoiced and gave him joy of his safe return. Then King Ghaïour went in to his daughter, Queen Budour, and satisfied his longing for her company, and they all abode a month’s space in the City of Ebony; after which the King of China and his daughter returned to their own country with their company, taking prince Amjed with them, whom, as soon as Ghaïour was settled again in his kingdom, he made king in his stead. Moreover, Kemerezzeman made Asaad king in his room over the Ebony Islands, with the consent of his grandfather, King Armanous, and set out himself, with his father, King Shehriman, for the Islands of Khalidan. The people of the capital decorated the city in their honour and they ceased not to beat the drums for glad tidings a whole month; nor did Kemerezzeman leave to govern in his father’s room, till there overtook them the Destroyer of Delights and the Sunderer of Companies.”
