One Thousand and One Nights, page 703
When it was the Three Hundred and Sixth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Salih con tinued: “So I acquainted the Commander of the Faithful with all that passed and Al-Rashid marvelled at the generosity and benevolence of Yahya and the vileness and ingratitude of Mansur, and bade restore the jewel to Yahya, saying, ‘Whatso we have given it befitteth us not to take again.’ After that Salih returned to Yahya and acquainted him with the tale of Mansur and his ill-conduct; whereupon replied he, ‘O Salih, when a man is in want, sick at heart and sad of thought, he is not to be blamed for aught that falleth from him; for it cometh not from the heart;’ and on this wise he took to seeking excuse for Mansur. But Salih wept and exclaimed, ‘Never shall the revolving heavens bring forth into being the like of thee, O Yahya! Alas, and well- away, that one of such noble nature and generosity should be laid in the dust!’ And he repeated these two couplets,
‘Haste to do kindness thou cost intend; * Thou canst not always
on boons expend:
How many from bounty themselves withheld, * Till means of bounty
had come to end!’”
And men tell another tale of the
Richard Francis Burton’s translation: detailed table of contents
GENEROUS DEALING OF YAHYA SON OF KHБLID WITH A MAN WHO FORGED A LETTER IN HIS NAME.
There was between Yбhyб bin Khбlid and Abdullah bin Mбlik al- Khuzб’i,248 an enmity which they kept secret; the reason of the hatred being that Harun al-Rashid loved Abdullah with exceeding love, so that Yahya and his sons were wont to say that he had bewitched the Commander of the Faithful. And thus they abode a long while, with rancour in their hearts, till it fell out that the Caliph invested Abdullah with the government of Armenia249 and despatched him thither. Now soon after he had settled himself in his seat of government, there came to him one of the people of Irak, a man of good breeding and excellent parts and abundant cleverness; but he had lost his money and wasted his wealth and his estate was come to ill case; so he forged a letter to Abdullah bin Malik in the name of Yahya bin Khбlid and set out therewith for Armenia. Now when he came to the Governor’s gate, he gave the letter to one of the Chamberlains, who took it and carried it to his master. Abdullah opened it and read it and, considering it attentively, knew it to be forged; so he sent for the man, who presented himself before him and called down blessings upon him and praised him and those of his court. Quoth Abdullah to him, “What moved thee to weary thyself on this wise and bring me a forged letter? But be of good heart; for we will not disappoint thy travail.” Replied the other, “Allah prolong the life of our lord the Wazir! If my coming annoy thee, cast not about for a pretext to repel me, for Allah’s earth is wide and He who giveth daily bread still liveth. Indeed, the letter I bring thee from Yahya bin Khalid is true and no forgery.” Quoth Abdullah, “I will write a letter to my agent250 at Baghdad and command him enquire concerning this same letter. If it be true, as thou sayest, and genuine and not forged by thee, I will bestow on thee the Emirship of one of my cities; or, if thou prefer a present, I will give thee two hundred thousand dirhams, besides horses and camels of price and a robe of honour. But, if the letter prove a forgery, I will order thou be beaten with two hundred blows of a stick and thy beard be shaven.” So Abdullah bade confine him in a chamber and furnish him therein with all he needed, till his case should be made manifest. Then he despatched a letter to his agent at Baghdad, to the following effect: “There is come to me a man with a letter purporting to be from Yahya bin Khбlid. Now I have my suspicions of this letter: therefore delay thou not in the matter, but go thyself and look carefully into the case and let me have an answer with all speed, in order that we may know what is true and what is untrue.” When the letter reached Baghdad, the agent mounted at once, — And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Seventh Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the agent of Abdullah, son of Malik al-Khuza’i, on receipt of the letter at Baghdad, mounted at once and repaired to the house of Yahya bin Khбlid, whom he found sitting with his officers and boon- companions. After the usual salute he gave him the letter and Yahya read it and said to the agent, “Come back to me tomorrow for my written answer.” Now when the agent had gone away, Yahya turned to his companions and said, “What doth he deserve who forgeth a letter in my name and carrieth it to my foe?” They answered all and each, saying this and that, and every one proposing some kind of punishment; but Yahya said, “Ye err in that ye say and this your counsel is of the baseness of your spirits and the meanness of your minds. Ye all know the close favour of Abdullah with the Caliph and ye weet of what is between him and us of anger and enmity; and now Almighty Allah hath made this man the means of reconciliation between us; and hath fitted him for such purpose and hath appointed him to quench the fire of ire in our hearts, which hath been growing these twenty years; and by his means our differences shall be adjusted. Wherefore it behoveth me to requite such man by verifying his assertion and amending his estate; so I will write him a letter to Abdullah son of Malik, praying that he may use him with increase of honour and continue to him his liberality.” Now when his companions heard what he said, they called down blessings on him and marvelled at his generosity and the greatness of his magnanimity. Then he called for paper and ink and wrote Abdullah a letter in his own hand, to the following effect: “In the name of Allah, the Compassionating’ the Compassionate! Of a truth thy letter hath reached me (Allah give thee long life!) and I am glad to hear of thy safety and am pleased to be assured of thine immunity and prosperity. It was thy thought that a certain worthy man had forged a letter in my name and that he was not the bearer of any message from the same; but the case is not so, for the letter I myself wrote, and it was no forgery; and I hope, of thy courtesy and consideration and the nobility of thy nature, that thou wilt gratify this generous and excellent man of his hope and wish, and honour him with the honour he deserveth and bring him to his desire and make him the special-object of thy favour and munificence. Whatso thou dost with him, it is to me that thou dost the kindness, and I am thankful to thee accordingly.” Then he superscribed the letter and after sealing it, delivered it to the agent, who despatched it to Abdullah. Now when the Governor read it, he was charmed with its contents, and sending for the man, said to him, “Whichever of the two promised boons is the more acceptable to thee that will I give thee.” The man replied, “The money gift were more acceptable to me than aught else,” whereupon Abdullah ordered him two hundred thousand dirhams and ten Arab horses, five with housings of silk and other five with richly ornamented saddles, used in state processions; besides twenty chests of clothes and ten mounted white slaves and a proportionate quantity of jewels of price. Moreover, he bestowed on him a dress of honour and sent him to Baghdad in great splendour. So when he came thither, he repaired to the door of Yahya’s house, before he went to his own folk, and craved permission to enter and have audience. The Chamberlain went in to Yahya and said to him, “O my lord, there is one at the door who craveth speech of thee; and he is a man of apparent wealth, courteous in manner, comely of aspect and attended by many servants.” Then Yahya bade admit him; and, when he entered and kissed the ground before him, Yahya asked him, “Who art thou?” He answered, “Hear me, O my lord, I am he who was done dead by the tyranny of fortune, but thou didst raise me to life again from the grave of calamities and exalt me to the paradise of my desires. I am the man who forged a letter in thy name and carried it to Abdullah bin Malik al-Khuza’i.” Yahya asked, “How hath he dealt with thee and what did he give thee?”; and the man answered, “He hath given me, thanks to thy hand and thy great liberality and benevolence and to thy comprehensive kindness and lofty magnanimity and thine all-embracing generosity, that which hath made me a wealthy man and he hath distinguished me with his gifts and favours. And now I have brought all that he gave me and here it is at thy door; for it is thine to decide and the command is in thy hand.” Rejoined Yahya, “Thou hast done me better service than I did thee and I owe thee a heavy debt of gratitude and every gift the white hand251 can give, for that thou hast changed into love and amity the hate and enmity that were between me and a man whom I respect and esteem. Wherefore I will give thee the like of what Abdullah bin Malik gave thee.” Then he ordered him money and horses and chests of apparel, such as Abdullah had given him; and thus that man’s fortune was restored to him by the munificence of these two generous ones. And folk also relate the tale of the
Richard Francis Burton’s translation: detailed table of contents
CALIPH AL-MAAMUN AND THE STRANGE SCHOLAR.
It is said of Al-Maamun that, among the Caliphs of the house of Abbas, there was none more accomplished in all branches of knowledge than he. Now on two days in each week, he was wont to preside at conferences of the learned, when the lawyers and theologians disputed in his presence, each sitting in his several-rank and room. One day as he sat thus, there came into the assembly a stranger, clad in ragged white clothes, who took seat in an obscure place behind the doctors of the law. Then the assembly began to speak and debate difficult questions, it being the custom that the various propositions should be submitted to each in turn, and that whoso bethought him of some subtle addition or rare conceit, should make mention of it. So the question went round till it came to the strange man, who spake in his turn and made a goodlier answer than any of the doctors’ replies; and the Caliph approved his speech. —— And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Caliph Al-Maamun approved his speech and ordered him to come up from his low place to a high stead. Now when the second question came to him, he made a still more notable answer, and Al-Maamun ordered him to be preferred to a yet higher seat; and when the third question reached him, he made answer more justly and appropriately than on the two previous occasions, and Al-Maamun bade him come up and sit near himself. Presently the discussion ended when water was brought and they washed their hands after which food was set on and they ate; and the doctors arose and withdrew; but Al-Maamun forbade the stranger to depart with them and, calling him to himself, treated him with especial-favour and promised him honour and profit. Thereupon they made ready the sйance of wassail; the fair-faced cup-companions came and the pure wine252 went round amongst them, till the cup came to the stranger, who rose to his feet and spake thus, “If the Commander of the Faithful permit me, I will say one word.” Answered the Caliph, “Say what thou wilt.” Quoth the man “Verily the Exalted Intelligence (whose eminence Allah increase!) knoweth that his slave was this day, in the august assembly, one of the unknown folk and of the meanest of the company; and the Commander of the Faithful raised his rank and brought him near to himself, little as were the wit and wisdom he displayed, preferring him above the rest and advancing him to a station and a degree where to his thought aspired not. But now he is minded to part him from that small portion of intellect which raised him high from his lowness and made him great after his littleness. Heaven forfend and forbid that the Commander of the Faithful should envy his slave what little he hath of understanding and worth and renown! Now, if his slave should drink wine, his reason would depart far from him and ignorance draw near to him and steal-away his good breeding, so would he revert to that low and contemptible degree, whence he sprang, and become ridiculous and despicable in the eyes of the folk. I hope, therefore, that the August Intelligence, of his power and bounty and royal-generosity and magnanimity, will not despoil his slave of this jewel.” When the Caliph Al-Maamun heard his speech, he praised him and thanked him and making him sit down again in his place, showed him high honour and ordered him a present of an hundred thousand silver pieces. Moreover he mounted him upon a horse and gave him rich apparel; and in every assembly he was wont to exalt him and show him favour over all the other doctors of law and religion till he became the highest of them all in rank. And Allah is All knowing.253 Men also tell a tale of
Richard Francis Burton’s translation: detailed table of contents
ALI SHAR254 AND ZUMURRUD.
There lived once in the days of yore and the good old times long gone before, in the land of Khorasan, a merchant called Majd al-Dнn, who had great wealth and many slaves and servants, white and black, young and old; but he had not been blessed with a child until he reached the age of threescore, when Almighty Allah vouchsafed him a son, whom he named Alн Shбr. The boy grew up like the moon on the night of fulness; and when he came to man’s estate and was endowed with all kinds of perfections, his father fell sick of a death-malady and, calling his son to him, said, “O my son, the fated hour of my decease is at hand, and I desire to give thee my last injunctions.” He asked, “And what are they, O my father?”; and he answered, “O my son, I charge thee, be not over-familiar with any255 and eschew what leadeth to evil and mischief. Beware lest thou sit in company with the wicked; for he is like the blacksmith; if his fire burn thee not, his smoke shall bother thee: and how excellent is the saying of the poet,256
‘In thy whole world there is not one,
Whose friendship thou may’st count upon,
Nor plighted faith that will stand true,
When times go hard, and hopes are few.
Then live apart and dwell alone,
Nor make a prop of any one,
I’ve given a gift in that I’ve said,
Will stand thy friend in every stead:’
And what another saith,
‘Men are a hidden malady; * Rely not on the sham in them:
For perfidy and treachery * Thou’lt find, if thou examine them.’
And yet a third saith,
‘Converse with men hath scanty weal, except * To while away the
time in chat and prate:
Then shun their intimacy, save it be * To win thee lore, or
better thine estate.’
And a fourth saith,
‘If a sharp-witted wight e’er tried mankind, * I’ve eaten that
which only tasted he:257
Their amity proved naught but wile and guile, * Their faith I
found was but hypocrisy.’”
Quoth Ali, “O my father, I have heard thee and I will obey thee what more shall I do?” Quoth he, “Do good whereas thou art able; be ever kind and courteous to men and regard as riches every occasion of doing a good turn; for a design is not always easily carried out; and how well saith the poet,
“Tis not at every time and tide unstable, * We can do kindly acts
and charitable:
When thou art able hasten thee to act, * Lest thine endeavour
prove anon unable!’”
Said Ali, “I have heard thee and I will obey thee.” — And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Three Hundred and Ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the youth replied, “I have heard thee and I will obey thee; what more?” And his sire continued, “Be thou, O my son, mindful of Allah, so shall He be mindful of thee. Ward thy wealth and waste it not; for an thou do, thou wilt come to want the least of mankind. Know that the measure of a man’s worth is according to that which his right hand hendeth: and how well saith the poet,258
‘When fails my wealth no friend will deign befriend, * And when
it waxeth all men friendship show:
How many a foe for wealth became my friend, * Wealth lost, how
many a friend became a foe!’”
Asked Ali, “What more?” And Majd al-Din answered, “O my son, take counsel of those who are older than thou and hasten not to do thy heart’s desire. Have compassion on those who are below thee, so shall those who are above thee have compassion on thee; and oppress none, lest Allah empower one who shall oppress thee. How well saith the poet,
‘Add other wit to thy wit, counsel craving, * For man’s true
course hides not from minds of two
Man is a mirror which but shows his face, * And by two mirrors he
his back shall view.’
And as saith another,259
‘Act on sure grounds, nor hurry fast,
To gain the purpose that thou hast
And be thou kindly to all men
So kindly thou’lt be called again;
For not a deed the hand can try,
Save ‘neath the hand of God on high,
Nor tyrant harsh work tyranny,
Uncrushed by tyrant harsh as he.’
And as saith yet another,260
‘Tyrannize not, if thou hast the power to do so; for the
tyrannical-is in danger of revenges.
Thine eye will sleep while the oppressed, wakeful, will call down
curses on thee, and God’s eye sleepeth not.’
Beware of wine-bibbing, for drink is the root of all evil: it doeth away the reason and bringeth to contempt whoso useth it; and how well saith the poet,
‘By Allah, wine shall not disturb me, while my soul * Join body,
nor while speech the words of me explain:
No day will I be thralled to wine-skin cooled by breeze261 *
Nor choose a friend save those who are of cups unfair.’
This, then, is my charge to thee; bear it before thine eyes, and Allah stand to thee in my stead.” Then he swooned away and kept silent awhile; and, when he came to himself, he besought pardon of Allah and pronounced the profession of the Faith, and was admitted to the mercy of the Almighty. So his son wept and lamented for him and presently made proper preparation for his burial; great and small walked in his funeral-procession and Koran readers recited Holy Writ about his bier; nor did Ali Shar omit aught of what was due to the dead. Then they prayed over him and committed him to the dust and wrote these two couplets upon his tomb,
