Latest / Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09 / 034 - Night 955 - 956

Transcript

034 - Night 955 - 956 · Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Section thirty four of the Book of the Thousand Knights
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: and a Night, Volume nine. This is a LibriVox recording.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: by Andre Levy Andre Levy dot Net, Lisbon, Portugal. The
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: Book of the Thousand Knights and a Night, Volume nine
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: by anonymous, translated by Richard Francis Burton, Night nine hundred
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: and fifty five. When it was the nine hundred and
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: fifty fifth night, she said it hath reached me, O
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: auspicious King. That then they ate and drank and made merry,
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: and Ibrahim wept and repeated the following verses, Oh, my friend,
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: and I rendered my life, my sprite, my wealth, and
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: whatever the world can unite, nay, the eternal garden and paradise,
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: for an hour of union, my heart would buy it.
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: Then he sobbed a great sob and fell down a swoon.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: The porter sighed, and when he came to himself, he
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: said to him, O, my lord, what is it guards
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: thee weep? And who is she to whom thou eludest
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: in these verses? Indeed, she cannot be but as dust
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: to thy feet. But Ivdahim arose and for all reply
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: brought out a parcel of the richest raiment that women wear,
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: and said to him, take this to thy harim. So
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: he carried it to his wife, and she returned with
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: him to the young man's lodging. And behold she found
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: him weeping, quoth the door keeper to him, Verily, thou
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: breakest our hearts. Tell us what fair one thou desirest
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: an she shall be nought save thy handmaid. Quoth he, O, uncle,
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: know that I am the son of al Kasib Wazir
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: of Egypt, and I am enamored of Jimilah, daughter of
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: Abu Alaiz. The governor, exclaimed the porter's wife. Allah allah, O,
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: my brother, leave this talk lest any hear of us,
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: an we perish. Verily, there is not on Earth's face
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: a more masterful than she. Nor may any name to
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: her the word man, for she is of verse from men.
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: Wherefore O my son turn from her to other than her. Now.
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: When Ibrahim heard this, he wept with sore weeping. And
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: the door keeper said to him, I have nothing save
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: my life, but that I will risk for thy love
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: and find thee a means of winning thy will. Then
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: the twain went out from him, and on the morrow
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: he betook himself to the haman and donned a suit
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: of royal raiment, after which he returned to his lodging,
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: when behold the porter and his wife came in to
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: him and said, know o, my lord, that there is
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: a humpbacked tailor here who soweth for the lady Jamilah.
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: Go thou to him and acquaint him with thy case.
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: Haply he will show thee the way of attaining thy name.
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: So the youth Ibrahim arose, and, betaking himself to the
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: shop of the humpbacked tailor, went in to him, and
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: found with him ten mamelukes. As they were moons. He
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: saluted them with the Salaam, and they returned his greeting
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: and bade him welcome and made him sit down. And
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: indeed they rejoiced in him and were amazed at his
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: charms and loveliness, specially the hunchback, who was confounded at
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: his beauty of form and favor. Presently he said to
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: the gobo, I desire that thou sew me up my pocket.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: And the tailor took a needleful of silk and sewed
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: up his pocket, which he had torn purposely. Whereupon Ibrahim
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: gave him five dinars and returned to his lodging. Quoth
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: the tailor, what thing have I done for this youth
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: that he should give me five gold pieces? And he
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: passed the night pondering his beauty and generosity. And when
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: morning morrowed, Ibrahim repaired to the shop and saluted the tailor,
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: who returned his salaam and welcomed him and made much
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: of him. Then he sat down and said to the hunchback,
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: oh uncle, sew up my pocket, for I have rent it. Again,
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: replied the tailor, on my head and eyes, oh my son,
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: and sewed it up. Whereupon Ibrahim got gave him ten ducats,
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: and he took them, amazed at his beauty and generosity.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: Then said he, by allah, o youth, for this conduct
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: of thy needs must be a cause. This is no
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: matter of sewing up a pocket. But tell me the
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: truth of thy case. And thou be in love with
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: one of these boys. By Allah, there is not among
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: them a comelier than thou. For they are each and
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: every as the dust at thy feet. And behold, they
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: are all thy slaves and at thy command, or if
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: it be other than this, tell me, replied Ibrahim, O uncle,
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: this is no place for talk, for my case is wondrous,
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: and my affair marvelous. Rejoined the tailor, and it be so,
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: come with me to a place apart. So saying, he
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: rose up in haste and took the youth by the hand,
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: and carrying him into a chamber behind the shop, said,
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: now tell me thy tale, o youth. Accordingly, Ibrahim related
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: his story first and last to the tailor, who was
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: amazed at his speech, and cried, O, youth, fear Allah
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: for thyself. Indeed, she of whom thou speakest is a
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: virgo and averse from men. Wherefore, O, my brother, do
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: thou guard thy tongue, else thou wilt destroy thyself. When
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: Ibrahim heard the hunchback's words, he wept with sore, weeping
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: and clinging to the tailor's skirts, said help me, o,
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: my uncle, or I am a dead man, for I
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: have left my kingdom and the kingdom of my father
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: and grandfather, and am become a stranger in lands and lonely.
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: Nor can I endure without her. When the tailor saw
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: how it was with him. He pitied him and said, O,
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: my son, I have but my life, and that I
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: will venture for thy love. For thou makest my heart ache.
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: But by tomorrow I will contrive THEE somewhat whereby thy
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: heart shall be solaced. Ibrahim blessed him and returned to
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: the Khan. Told the doorkeeper what the hunchback had said,
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: and he answered, indeed, he hath dealt kindly with thee.
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: Next morning, the youth donned his richest dress, and, taking
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: a purse of gold, repaired to the gobo and saluted him.
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: Then he sat down and said, O, uncle, keep thy
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: word with me. Quoth the hunchback, Arise forthright and take
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: THEE three fat fowls, and three ounces of sugar candy,
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: and two small jugs, which do thou fill with wine?
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: Also a cup? Lay all these in a budget, and tomorrow,
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: after the morning prayers, take boat with them, saying to
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: the boatmen, I would have THEE row me down the
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: river below Bassra. And he say to THEE, I cannot
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: go farther than a parasang. Do thou answer as thou wilt,
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: But when he shall have come so far, lure him
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: on with money to carry thee farther, and the first
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: flower garden thou wilt descry after this will be that
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: of the lady Jimilah. Go up to the gate as
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: soon as thou aspirest it, and there thou wilt see
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: two high steps carpeted with brocad and seated thereon a
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: quasimodo like me. Do thou complain to him of thy
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: case and crave his favor. Belike he will have compassion
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: of thy condition and bring THEE to the sight of her.
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: Though but for a moment from afar, this is all
• 8:57
  Speaker 1: I can do for THEE. And unless he be moved
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: to pity for THEE, we be dead men I and thou.
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: This then is my reed, and the matter rests with
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: THEE Almighty. Quoth Ibrahim, I seek aid of Allah, whatso
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: he willeth becometh And there is no majesty, and there
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: is no might save in Allah. Then he left the
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: hunchback tailor and returned to his lodging, where, taking the
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: things his adviser had named, he laid them in a bag.
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: On the morrow, as soon as it was day, he
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: went down to Tigris Bank, where he found a boatman asleep,
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: so he awoke him, and, giving him ten sequins, bade
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: him row him down the river below Bossrah, quoth the man, O,
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: my lord, it must be on condition that I go
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: no farther than a parasang, for if I pass that
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: distance by a s man, I am a lost man,
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: and thou too, And quoth Ibrahim, be it as thou wilt.
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: Thereupon he took him and dropped down the river with
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: him till he drew near the flower garden, where he
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: said to him, O, my son, I can go no farther,
• 10:09
  Speaker 1: for if I pass this limit, we are both dead men. Hereat.
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: Ibrahim pulled out other ten dinars and gave them to him, saying,
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: take this spending money and better thy cause there withal.
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: The boatman was ashamed to refuse him, and fared on
• 10:27
  Speaker 1: with him, crying, I commit the affair to Allah the Almighty,
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: say her permitted say end of night nine hundred and
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: fifty five night nine hundred and fifty six. When it
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: was the nine hundred and fifty sixth night, she continued it.
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: Hath reached me, O auspicious King that when the youth
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: Ibrahim gave the boatmen other ten dinars, the man took them, saying,
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: I commit the affair to Allah the Almighty, and fared
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: on with him down stream. When they came to the
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: flower garden, the youth sprang out of the boat in
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: his joy a spring of the spears cast from the land,
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: and cast himself down, whilst the boatmen turned and fled.
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: Then Ibrahim fared forward and found all as it had
• 11:26
  Speaker 1: been described by the Gobo. He also saw the garden
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: gate open, and in the porch a couch of ivory,
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: whereon sat a humpbacked man of pleasant presence, clad in
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: gold laced clothes, and handing in hand as silver and
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: mace plaited with gold. So he hastened up to him, and,
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: seizing his hand, kissed it. Whereupon asked the hunchback, who
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: art thou? And whence comest thou? And who brought thee hither?
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: O my son? And indeed, when the man saw Ibrahim
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: kasib son, he was amazed at his beauty. He answered, O, uncle,
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: I am an ignorant lad and a stranger, and he wept.
• 12:10
  Speaker 1: The hunchback had pity on him, and taking him up
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: on the couch, wiped away his tears, and said to him,
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: no harms shall come to THEE. And thou be in debt,
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: may Allah settle thy debt. And if thou be in fear,
• 12:27
  Speaker 1: may Allah appease thy fear. Replied Ibrahim, O, uncle, I
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: am neither in fear, nor am I in debt, but
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: have money in plenting. Thanks to Allah, rejoined the other. Then, know,
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: my son, what is thy need that thou venturest thyself
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: and thy loveliness to a place wherein is destruction. So
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: he told him his story and disclosed to him his case,
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: whereupon the man bowed his head earthwards a while, then
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: said to him, was he who directed thee to me
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: the humpbacked tailor? Yes, answered Ibrahim. And the keeper said
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: this is my brother, and he is a blessed man,
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: presently adding but my son had not affection for THEE
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: sunk into my heart, and had I not taken compassion
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: on thee, verily thou wert lost thou and my brother
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: and the door keeper of the Khan and his wife,
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: for know that this flower garden hath not its like
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: on the face of the earth, and that it is
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: called the garden of the wild heifer, nor hath any
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: enter'd in it in all my life long, save the
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: Sultan and myself and its mistress Jemilah. And I have
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: dwelt here twenty years, and never yet saw any else
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: attain to this stead. Every four days the lady Jamilah
• 14:02
  Speaker 1: cometh hither in a bark, and landeth in the midst
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: of her women, under a canopy of satin, whose skirts
• 14:10
  Speaker 1: ten damsels hold up with hooks of gold, whilst she entereth.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: And I see nothing of her, none the less I
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: have but my life, and I will risk it for
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: the sake of thee. Herewith Ibrahim kissed his hand, and
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: the keeper said to him, sit by me till I
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: devise somewhat for thee. Then he took him by the
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: hand and carried him into the flower garden, which when
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: he saw he deemed it eden, for therein were trees intertwining,
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: and palms high towering, and waters welling, and birds with
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: various voices caroling. Presently, the keeper brought him to a
• 14:55
  Speaker 1: domed pavilion and said to him, this is where the
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: lady Jimiala sitteth. So he examined it and found it
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: of the rarest of pleasances, full of all manner, paintings
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: in gold and lapis lazuli. It had four doors, where
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: two men mounted by five steps, and in its center
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: was a cistern of water, to which led down steps
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: of gold, all set with precious stones. The middlewards the
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: basin was a fountain of gold, with figures large and small,
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: and water jetting in jerbs from their mouths, And when
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: by reason of the issuing forth of the water, they
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: attuned themselves to various tones, it seemed to the hearer
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: as though he were in Eden. Round the pavilion ran
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: a channel of water turning a Persian wheel, whose buckets
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: were silver and covered with brocade. To the left of
• 15:53
  Speaker 1: the pavilion was a lattice of silver giving upon a
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: green park, wherein were all manner, wild cattle and gazelles
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: and hair. And on the right hand was another lattice,
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: overlooking a meadow full of birds of all sorts, warbling
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: in various voices and bewildering the hearer's wits. Seeing all this,
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: the youth was delighted and sat down in the doorway
• 16:17
  Speaker 1: by the gardener, who said to him, how seemeth to
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: thee my garden, quoth Ibrahim, tis the paradise of the world.
• 16:27
  Speaker 1: Whereat the gardener laughed. Then he rose and was absent awhile,
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: and presently returned with a tray full of fowls and
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: quails and other dainties, including sweetmeats of sugar, which he
• 16:40
  Speaker 1: set before Ibrahim, saying, eat thy sufficiency. So he ate
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: his fill whereat. The keeper rejoiced and cried, by Allah,
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: this is the fashion of kings and son of kings.
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: Then said he, o, Ibrahim, what hast thou in yonder bag?
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: Accordingly he opened it before him, and the keeper said,
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: carry it with THEE. Twill serve THEE when the lady
• 17:07
  Speaker 1: Jamilah cometh, for when once she is come, I shall
• 17:11
  Speaker 1: not be able to bring THEE food. Then he rose, and,
• 17:15
  Speaker 1: taking the youth by the hand, brought him to a
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: place fronting the pavilion, where he made him an arbor
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: among the trees, and said to him, get THEE up there,
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: and when she cometh, thou wilt see her, and she
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: will not see THEE. This is the best I can
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: do for THEE. And on Allah be our dependence. Whenes
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: she singeth, drink thou to her singing, and whenes she departeth,
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: thou shalt return in safety. Whence thou camest in shallah.
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: Ivrahim thanked him and would have kissed his hand, but
• 17:53
  Speaker 1: he forbade him. Then the youth laid the bag in
• 17:57
  Speaker 1: the arbor, and the keeper said to him, O, ivree
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: him walk about, and take thy pleasure in the garth,
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: and eat of its fruits, for thy mistress's coming is
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: appointed to be tomorrow. So he solaced himself in the
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: garden and ate of its fruits. After which she knighted
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: with the keeper. And when morning morrowed and showed its
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: sheen and shone, he prayed the dawn prayer. And presently
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: the keeper came to him with a pale face, and
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: said to him, rise, o, my son, and go up
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: into the arbor, for the slave girls are come to
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: order the place, and she cometh after them. And Shahrazad
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: perceived the dawn of day and ceased, saying her permitted
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: say end of night. Nine hundred and fifty six. Recording
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: by Andre Levy andre Levi dot Net, Lisbon, Portugal,