Latest / Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09 / 031 - Night 949 - 950

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031 - Night 949 - 950 · Arabian Nights Tales from Volume 09

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  Speaker 1: Section thirty one of the Book of the Thousand Knights
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  Speaker 1: and a Night, Volume nine. This is a LibriVox recording.
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  Speaker 1: All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
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  Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit librivos dot org. The
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  Speaker 1: Book of the Thousand Knights and a Night Volume nine
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  Speaker 1: by Anonymous, translated by Richard Francis Burton. When it was
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  Speaker 1: the nine hundred and forty ninth night, she pursued it,
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  Speaker 1: hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young merchant
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  Speaker 1: cried by Allah this long while I have gone about
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  Speaker 1: in search of something like this. So I went up
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  Speaker 1: to the Sheikh, O commander of the faithful, and saluting him,
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  Speaker 1: said to him, O, my Lord, I need somewhat of
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  Speaker 1: thee He replied, What is thy need? And I reach you?
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  Speaker 1: Tis my desire to be thy guest to night, he said,
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  Speaker 1: with all my heart. But O, my son, with me
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  Speaker 1: are many themselves, some whose knight is ten dinars, some forty,
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  Speaker 1: and others more. Choose which thou wilt have, quoth I
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  Speaker 1: I choose her whose night is ten dinars. And I
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  Speaker 1: weighed out to him three hundred dinars, the price of
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  Speaker 1: a month whereupon he committed me to a page, who
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  Speaker 1: carried me to a hammam within the house, and served
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  Speaker 1: me with goodly service. When I came out of the bath,
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  Speaker 1: he brought me to a chamber and knocked at the door,
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  Speaker 1: whereupon out came a handmaid, to whom said he take
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  Speaker 1: thy guest. She met me with welcome and cordiality, laughing
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  Speaker 1: and rejoicing, and brought me into a mighty fine room
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  Speaker 1: decorated with gold. I considered her and saw her like
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  Speaker 1: the moon on the night of its fullness, having in
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  Speaker 1: attendance on her two damsels as they were consolations. She
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  Speaker 1: made me sit, and, seating herself by my side, sighed
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  Speaker 1: to her slave girls, who sat before us a tray
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  Speaker 1: covered with dishes of various kinds of meats, pullets, and quails,
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  Speaker 1: and sand grouse and pigeons. So we ate our sufficiency,
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  Speaker 1: And never in my life ate I ought more delicious
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  Speaker 1: than this food. When we had eaten, she bade remove
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  Speaker 1: the tray and set on the service of wine and flowers,
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  Speaker 1: sweetmeats and fruits. And I abode with her a month
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  Speaker 1: in such case. At the end of that time, I
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  Speaker 1: repaired to the bath, then going to the old man,
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  Speaker 1: I said to him, O, my lord, I warnt her,
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  Speaker 1: whose night is twenty dinars, weigh down the gold, said he.
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  Speaker 1: So I fetched money and weighed out to him six
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  Speaker 1: hundred dinars for a month higher. Whereupon he called a
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  Speaker 1: page and said to him, take thy lord here. Accordingly
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  Speaker 1: he carried me to the hammam, and thence to the
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  Speaker 1: door of a chamber, whereat he knocked, and there came
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  Speaker 1: out a handmaid, to whom quoth he take thy guest.
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  Speaker 1: She received me with the goodliest reception, and I found
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  Speaker 1: in attendance on her four slave girls, whom she commanded
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  Speaker 1: to bring food. So they feested a tray spread with
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  Speaker 1: all manner meats, and I ate. When I had made
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  Speaker 1: an end of eating, and the tray had been removed,
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  Speaker 1: she took the loot and sang there to these couplets,
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  Speaker 1: O waftings of musk from the wable land bear a
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  Speaker 1: message from me which my longings have planned. My troth
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  Speaker 1: is pledged to the place of yours and to friends there,
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  Speaker 1: biding a noble band, and wherein dwells she whom all
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  Speaker 1: lovers love and would hand, But she cometh to no
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  Speaker 1: man's hand I abode with her a month, after which
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  Speaker 1: I returned to the Shaykh and said to him, I
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  Speaker 1: want the forty dinner. One weigh out the money, said he,
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  Speaker 1: So I weighed out to him twelve hundred dinars. The
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  Speaker 1: men shall hire and aboard with her one month, as
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  Speaker 1: it were, one day, for what I saw of the
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  Speaker 1: comeliness of her semblance and the goodliness of her converse.
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  Speaker 1: After this, I went to the Sheikh one evening and
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  Speaker 1: heard a great noise and loud voices. So I asked
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  Speaker 1: him what is to do? And he answered saying, this
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  Speaker 1: is the night of our remarkablest knights, when all souls
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  Speaker 1: embark on the river and divert themselves by gazing one
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  Speaker 1: upon another. Hast thou a mind to go up to
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  Speaker 1: the roof and solace thyself by looking at the folk? Yes,
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  Speaker 1: said I, and went up to the terrace roof, whence
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  Speaker 1: I could see a gathering of people with flambeaux and cressets,
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  Speaker 1: and great mirth and merriment. Then I went up to
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  Speaker 1: the end of the roof and beheld there, behind a
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  Speaker 1: goodly curtain a little chamber, in whose mist stood a
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  Speaker 1: couch of juniper wood, plaited with shimmering gold and covered
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  Speaker 1: with a handsome carpet. On this sat a lovely young lady,
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  Speaker 1: confounding all beholders with her beauty and comeliness and symmetry
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  Speaker 1: and perfect grace. And by her side a youth whose
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  Speaker 1: hand was on her neck, and he was kissing her,
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  Speaker 1: and she kissing him. When I saw them oprins of
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  Speaker 1: true believers, I could not contain myself nor knew where
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  Speaker 1: I was. So dazed and dazzled was I by her beauty.
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  Speaker 1: But when I came down, I questioned the damsel with
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  Speaker 1: whom I was, and described the young lady to her,
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  Speaker 1: what wilt thou with her? Asked she and I she
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  Speaker 1: hath taken my wit, oh Abu al Hassan. Hast thou
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  Speaker 1: a mind to her? Ay? By Allah, for she hath
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  Speaker 1: captivated my heart and soul. This is the daughter of
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  Speaker 1: Theahir ibn all Allah. She is our mistress, and we
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  Speaker 1: are all her handmaids. But knowest thou, o Abu al Hassan,
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  Speaker 1: what be the price of her night and her day? No?
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  Speaker 1: Five hundred dinars, For she is a regret to the
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  Speaker 1: heart of kings. By Allah, I will spend all I
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  Speaker 1: have on this damself, so saying I lay heart sore
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  Speaker 1: for desire through the live long night till the morning,
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  Speaker 1: when I repaired to the Hammam and presently donned a
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  Speaker 1: suit of the richest royal arraignment, and betaking myself to
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  Speaker 1: ibn all Allah, said to him, O, my lord, I
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  Speaker 1: I want her whose night is five hundred dinars? Quoth
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  Speaker 1: he weighed down the money, So I weighed out to
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  Speaker 1: him fifteen thousand dinars for a month higher. And he
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  Speaker 1: took them and said to the page, carry him to
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  Speaker 1: thy mistress such an one. Accordingly he took me and
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  Speaker 1: carried me to an apartment than which my eyes never
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  Speaker 1: saw a good lair on the earth's face. And there
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  Speaker 1: I found the young lady seated. When I saw her, O,
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  Speaker 1: Commander of the Faithful, my reason was confounded with her beauty.
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  Speaker 1: For she was like the full moon on its fourteenth night.
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  Speaker 1: And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to
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  Speaker 1: say her permitted say end of night nine hundred and
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  Speaker 1: forty nine, night nine hundred and fifty, When it was
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  Speaker 1: the nine hundred and fiftieth night, she resumed it. Hath
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  Speaker 1: reached me O auspicious king that the young man continued
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  Speaker 1: to describe before the Prince of true believers the young
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  Speaker 1: lady's characteristics, saying she was like the full moon on
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  Speaker 1: her fourteenth night, a model of grace and symmetry and loveliness.
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  Speaker 1: Her speech shamed the tones of the lute, and it
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  Speaker 1: was as it were she whom the poet meant in
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  Speaker 1: these verses. She cried while played in her side desire
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  Speaker 1: A knight overhung her with blackest blee. O, knight, shall
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  Speaker 1: thy murk bring me nearer a chum to tumble and
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  Speaker 1: futter discointe of me. And she smote that part with
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  Speaker 1: her palm and sighed sore sighs, and her weeping continued. She,
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  Speaker 1: as the toothstick beautifies teeth in', so must prickle to
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  Speaker 1: quinte as a toothstick be, Oh, Muslims, is never a
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  Speaker 1: stand to your tools to assist a woman's necessity. Thereat
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  Speaker 1: rose upstanding beneath its clothes, as crying at thee at
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  Speaker 1: thee and I loosed her trouser string, startling her. Who
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  Speaker 1: art thou? And I said a reply to thy plea,
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  Speaker 1: and began to stroke her with a wrist thick yard,
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  Speaker 1: hurting hinder her cheeks by its potency, and she cried
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  Speaker 1: as I rose after courses three soothed thy gree the stroke,
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  Speaker 1: and I soothed thygree. And how excellent is the saying
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  Speaker 1: of another, a fair one to ido letters. If she
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  Speaker 1: her face should show, they'd leave their idols and her face.
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  Speaker 1: For only Lord would know. If in the eastward she
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  Speaker 1: appeared on to a monk, for sure he'd cease from
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  Speaker 1: turning to the west, and to the east bend low.
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  Speaker 1: And if into the briny sea one day she chanced
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  Speaker 1: to spit assuredly the salt seased floods, straight fresh and
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  Speaker 1: sweet wood row, and that of another. I looked at
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  Speaker 1: her one look, and that dazed me such rarest gifts
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  Speaker 1: of mine and form to see when doubt inspired her
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  Speaker 1: that I loved her, And upon her cheeks the doubt
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  Speaker 1: showed showly. I saluted her, and she said to be welcome,
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  Speaker 1: and welcome and fair welcome, and taking me by the hand,
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  Speaker 1: O Prince of true believers, made me sit down by
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  Speaker 1: her side, whereupon, of the access of my desires I
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  Speaker 1: fell a weeping for fear of severance, and pouring forth
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  Speaker 1: the tears of the eye recited by these two couplets.
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  Speaker 1: I love the nights of parting, though I joy not
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  Speaker 1: in the same time. Haply may exchange them for the
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  Speaker 1: boons of union day and the days that bring union.
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  Speaker 1: I on love for a single thought, seeing everything in
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  Speaker 1: life lacking steadfastness of stay. Then she strave to solace
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  Speaker 1: me with soft, sweet speech. But I was drowned in
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  Speaker 1: the deeps of passion, fearing even in union, the pangs
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  Speaker 1: of disunion for access of longing and ecstasy of passion.
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  Speaker 1: And I bethought me of the LOWI of absence and estrangement,
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  Speaker 1: and repeated these two couplets. I thought of estrangement in
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  Speaker 1: her embrace, and my eyes rained tears, red as undumb would.
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  Speaker 1: So I wiped the drops on that long white neck,
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  Speaker 1: for camphor is wont to stay flow of blood. Then
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  Speaker 1: she bade bring food. And there came four damsels, high
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  Speaker 1: bosomed girls and virginal who set before us food and fruits,
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  Speaker 1: and confections and flowers and wine such as befit none
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  Speaker 1: save kings. So O, Commander of the faithful, we ate
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  Speaker 1: and sat over our wine, compassed about with blooms and
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  Speaker 1: herbs of sweet savor in a chamber suitable only for kings. Presently,
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  Speaker 1: one of her maids brought a silken bag, which she opened, and,
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  Speaker 1: taking thereout a loot, laid it in her lap and
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  Speaker 1: smote its strings whereat it complained, as child complaineth to mother,
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  Speaker 1: and she sang. These two couplets drink not pure wine
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  Speaker 1: except from hand of slender youth, like wine for daintiness,
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  Speaker 1: and like him ache the wine for wine. No joyance
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  Speaker 1: brings to him who drains the cup, save bring the
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  Speaker 1: cup boy cheek as fair and faint and fine. So
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  Speaker 1: I abode with her, O Commander of the Faithful, month
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  Speaker 1: after month, in similar guise, till all my money was spent.
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  Speaker 1: Wherefore I began to bethink me of separation. As I
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  Speaker 1: sat with her one day, and my tears railed down
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  Speaker 1: upon my cheeks like ryls, and I became not knowing
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  Speaker 1: knight from light, quoth she, why dost thou weep? And
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  Speaker 1: quoth ay o light of mine eyes? I weep because
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  Speaker 1: of her parting, She asked, and what shall part me
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  Speaker 1: and thee, o, my lord? And I answered, by allah, O,
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  Speaker 1: my lady. From the day I came to thee, thy
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  Speaker 1: father hath taken off me for every night five hundred dinars,
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  Speaker 1: and now I have nothing left. Right soothfast is the sore.
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  Speaker 1: Penury maketh strange hood at home, and money maketh a
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  Speaker 1: home in strangehood. And indeed the poet speaks truth when
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  Speaker 1: he saith. Lack of good is exile to man at home,
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  Speaker 1: and money shall house him wherever he roam. She replied,
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  Speaker 1: Know that it is my father's custom. Whenever a merchant
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  Speaker 1: abideth with him, and hath spent all his capital to
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  Speaker 1: entertain him, three days doth he put him out, and
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  Speaker 1: he may return to us never more. But keep thou
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  Speaker 1: thy secret and conceal thy case, and I will so
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  Speaker 1: contrive that thou shalt abide with me till such time
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  Speaker 1: as Allah will. For indeed there is in my heart
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  Speaker 1: a great love for THEE. Thou must know that all
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  Speaker 1: my father's money is under my hand, and he wotteth
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  Speaker 1: not its full tale. So every morning I will give
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  Speaker 1: THEE a purse of five hundred dinars, which do thou
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  Speaker 1: offer to my sire, saying, henceforth I will pay thee
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  Speaker 1: only day by day he will hand the sum to me,
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  Speaker 1: and I will give it to thee again, and we
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  Speaker 1: will abide thus till such time as may please Allah.
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  Speaker 1: Thereupon I thanked her and kissed her hand. And on
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  Speaker 1: this wise, O, Prince of true believers, I abode with
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  Speaker 1: her a whole year till he chanced on a certain
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  Speaker 1: day that she beat one of her handmaids grievously. And
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  Speaker 1: the slave girl said, by Allah, I will assuredly torture
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  Speaker 1: thy heart, even as thou hast tortured me. So she
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  Speaker 1: went to the girl's father and exposed to him all
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  Speaker 1: that had passed first and last, which when Tahir ibn
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  Speaker 1: Allah heard, he arose forthright, and coming in to me
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  Speaker 1: as I sat with his daughter, said, O, such an one,
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  Speaker 1: And I said, at thy service, quoth he tisar wont
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  Speaker 1: when a merchant grow poor with us to give him
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  Speaker 1: hospitality three days? But thou hast had a year with us,
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  Speaker 1: eating and drinking and doing what thou wouldst Then he
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  Speaker 1: turned to his pages and cried to them pull off
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  Speaker 1: his clothes. They did as he bade them, and gave
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  Speaker 1: me ten dirhams and an old suit worth five silvers,
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  Speaker 1: after which he said to me, go forth, I will
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  Speaker 1: not beat thee nor abuse thee, but went thy ways,
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  Speaker 1: And if thou tarry in this town, thy blood be
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  Speaker 1: upon thy own head. So I went forth to a
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  Speaker 1: commander of the faithful in my own despite knowing not
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  Speaker 1: whither too high, for I had fallen on my heart
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  Speaker 1: with all the trouble in the world, and I was
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  Speaker 1: occupied with sad thought and doubt. Then I bethought me
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  Speaker 1: of the wealth which I had brought from Oman, and
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  Speaker 1: said in myself, I came hither with the thousand thousand dinars,
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  Speaker 1: part price of thirty ships, and have made away with
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  Speaker 1: it all in the house of Yonder ill omened man.
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  Speaker 1: And now I go forth from him, bare and broken hearted.
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  Speaker 1: But there is no majesty, and there is no might
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  Speaker 1: save in Allah the Glorious the Great. Then I abode
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  Speaker 1: three days in Baghdad, without tasting meat or drink, And
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  Speaker 1: on the fourth day, seeing a ship bound for Bassora,
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  Speaker 1: I took passage in her of the owner, And when
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  Speaker 1: we reached our port, I landed and went into the bazaar,
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  Speaker 1: being sore and hungered. Presently a man saw me, a
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  Speaker 1: grocer whom I had known aforetime, and coming up to me,
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  Speaker 1: embraced me, for he had been my friend and my
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  Speaker 1: father's friend before me. Then he questioned me of my case,
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  Speaker 1: seeing me clad in those stattered clothes. So I told
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  Speaker 1: him all that had befallen me, And he said, by Allah,
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  Speaker 1: this is not the act of a sensible man. But
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  Speaker 1: after this that had befallen thee, what doest thou purpose
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  Speaker 1: to do? Quoth I, I know not what I shall do?
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  Speaker 1: And quoth he wilt thou abide with me and write
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  Speaker 1: my outgo and income, and thou shalt have two dirhams
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  Speaker 1: a day over and above thy food and drink. I
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  Speaker 1: agreed to this and abode with him, O Prince of
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  Speaker 1: true believers, selling and buying till I had gotten and
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  Speaker 1: hunt dinars. When I hired me an upper chamber by
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  Speaker 1: the riverside. So happily a ship should come up with merchandise,
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  Speaker 1: that I might buy goods with the dinars and go
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  Speaker 1: back with them to Baghdad. Now it fortuned that one
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  Speaker 1: day there came ships with merchandise, and all the merchants
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  Speaker 1: resorted to them to buy, and I went with them
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  Speaker 1: on board. When behold, there came two men out of
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  Speaker 1: the hold, and setting themselves chairs on the deck, sat
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  Speaker 1: down there on, the merchants addressed themselves to the twain
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  Speaker 1: with intent to buy, and the man said to one
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  Speaker 1: of the crew, bring the carpet. Accordingly, he brought the
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  Speaker 1: carpet and spread it, and another came with a pair
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  Speaker 1: of saddle bags. Whence he took a budget and emptied
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  Speaker 1: it on the carpet. And our sides were dazzled with
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  Speaker 1: that which issued therefrom of pearls and corals, and jacints,
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  Speaker 1: and cards, and other jewels of all sorts and colors.
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  Speaker 1: And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
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  Speaker 1: her permitted say and of night nine hundred and fifty
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  Speaker 1: and of section thirty one