A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Z

The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 9

R >> Richard F. Burton >> The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Volume 9




'She cried while played in her side Desire, * And Night o'er hung
her with blackest blee:--
'O Night shall thy murk bring me ne'er a chum * To tumble and
futter this coynte of me?'
And she smote that part with her palm and sighed * Sore sighs and
a-weeping continued she,
'As the toothstick beautifies teeth e'en so * Must prickle to
coynte as a toothstick be.
O Moslems, is never a stand to your tools, * To assist a woman's
necessity?'
Thereat rose upstanding beneath its clothes * My yard, as crying,
'At thee! at thee!'
And I loosed her trouser-string, startling her: * 'Who art thou?'
and I said, 'A reply to thy plea!'
And began to stroke her with wrist-thick yard, * Hurting hinder
cheeks by its potency:
And she cried as I rose after courses three * 'Suit thy gree the
stroke!' and I--'suit thy gree!'

And how excellent is the saying of another![FN#287],

'A fair one, to idolaters if she her face should show, They'd
leave their idols and her face for only Lord would know.
If in the Eastward she appeared unto a monk, for sure, He'd cease
from turning to the West and to the East bend low;
And if into the briny sea one day she chanced to spit, Assuredly
the salt sea's floods straight fresh and sweet would grow.'

And that of another,

'I looked at her one look and that dazed me * Such rarest gifts
of mind and form to see,
When doubt inspired her that I loved her, and * Upon her cheeks
the doubt showed showily.'

I saluted her and she said to me, 'Well come and welcome, and
fair welcome!'; and taking me by the hand, O Prince of True
Believers, made me sit down by her side; whereupon, of the
excess of my desire, I fell a-weeping for fear of severance and
pouring forth the tears of the eye, recited these two couplets,

'I love the nights of parting though I joy not in the same * Time
haply may exchange them for the boons of Union-day:
And the days that bring Union I unlove for single thought, *
Seeing everything in life lacking steadfastness of stay.'

Then she strave to solace me with soft sweet speech, but I was
drowned in the deeps of passion, fearing even in union the pangs
of disunion, for excess of longing and ecstasy of passion; and I
bethought me of the lowe of absence and estrangement and
repeated these two couplets,

'I thought of estrangement in her embrace * And my eyes rained
tears red as 'Andam-wood.
So I wiped the drops on that long white neck; * For
camphor[FN#288] is wont to stay flow of blood.'

Then she bade bring food and there came four damsels,
high-bosomed girls and virginal, who set before us food and
fruits and confections and flowers and wine, such as befit none
save kings. So, O Commander of the Faithful, we ate, and sat
over our wine, compassed about with blooms and herbs of sweet
savour, in a chamber suitable only for kings. Presently, one of
her maids brought her a silken bag, which she opened and taking
thereout a lute, laid it in her lap and smote its strings,
whereat it complained as child complaineth to mother, and she
sang these two couplets,

'Drink not pure wine except from hand of slender youth * Like
wine for daintiness and like him eke the wine:
For wine no joyance brings to him who drains the cup * Save bring
the cup-boy cheek as fair and fain and fine.'

So, I abode with her, O Commander of the Faithful, month after
month in similar guise, till all my money was spent; wherefore I
began to bethink me of separation as I sat with her one day and
my tears railed down upon my cheeks like rills, and I became not
knowing night from light. Quoth she, 'Why dost thou weep?'; and
quoth I, 'O light of mine eyes, I weep because of our parting.'
She asked, 'And what shall part me and thee, O my lord?'; and I
answered, 'By Allah, O my lady, from the day I came to thee, thy
father hath taken of me, for every night, five hundred dinars,
and now I have nothing left. Right soothfast is the saw, 'Penury
maketh strangerhood at home and money maketh a home in
strangerhood'; and indeed the poet speaks truth when he saith,

'Lack of good is exile to man at home; * And money shall house
him where'er he roam.'

She replied, 'Know that it is my father's custom, whenever a
merchant abideth with him and hath spent all his capital, to
entertain him three days; then doth he put him out and he may
return to us nevermore. But keep thou thy secret and conceal thy
case and I will so contrive that thou shalt abide with me till
such time as Allah will;[FN#289] for, indeed, there is in my
heart a great love for thee. Thou must know that all my father's
money is under my hand and he wotteth not its full tale; so,
every morning, I will give thee a purse of five hundred dinars
which do thou offer to my sire, saying, 'Henceforth, I will pay
thee only day by day.' He will hand the sum to me, and I will
give it to thee again, and we will abide thus till such time as
may please Allah.' Thereupon I thanked her and kissed her hand;
and on this wise, O Prince of True Believers, I abode with her a
whole year, till it chanced on a certain day that she beat one
of her handmaids grievously and the slave-girl said, 'By Allah,
I will assuredly torture thy heart, even as thou hast tortured
me!' So she went to the girl's father and exposed to him all
that had passed, first and last, which when Tahir ibn Alaa heard
he arose forthright and coming in to me, as I sat with his
daughter, said, 'Ho, such an one!'; and I said, 'At thy
service.' Quoth he, ''Tis our wont, when a merchant grow poor
with us, to give him hospitality three days; but thou hast had a
year with us, eating and drinking and doing what thou wouldst.'
Then he turned to his pages and cried to them, 'Pull off his
clothes.' They did as he bade them and gave me ten dirhams and
an old suit worth five silvers; after which he said to me, 'Go
forth; I will not beat thee nor abuse thee; but wend thy ways
and if thou tarry in this town, thy blood be upon thine own
head.' So I went forth, O Commander of the Faithful, in my own
despite, knowing not whither to hie, for had fallen on my heart
all the trouble in the world and I was occupied with sad thought
and doubt. Then I bethought me of the wealth which I had brought
from Oman and said in myself, 'I came hither with a thousand
thousand dinars, part price of thirty ships, and have made away
with it all in the house of yonder ill-omened man, and now I go
forth from him, bare and broken-hearted! But there is no Majesty
and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!'
Then I abode three days in Baghdad, without tasting meat or
drink, and on the fourth day seeing a ship bound for Bassorah, I
took passage in her of the owner, and when we reached our port,
I landed and went into the bazar, being sore anhungered.
Presently, a man saw me, a grocer, whom I had known aforetime,
and coming up to me, embraced me, for he had been my friend and
my father's friend before me. Then he questioned me of my case,
seeing me clad in those tattered clothes; so I told him all that
had befallen me, and he said, 'By Allah, this is not the act of
a sensible man! But after this that hath befallen thee what dost
thou purpose to do?' Quoth I, 'I know not what I shall do,' and
quoth he, 'Wilt thou abide with me and write my outgo and income
and thou shalt have two dirhams a day, over and above thy food
and drink?' I agreed to this and abode with him, O Prince of
True Believers, selling and buying, till I had gotten an hundred
dinars; when I hired me an upper chamber by the river-side, so
haply a ship should come up with merchandise, that I might buy
goods with the dinars and go back with them to Baghdad. Now it
fortuned that one day, there came ships with merchandise, and
all the merchants resorted to them to buy, and I went with them
on board, when behold, there came two men out of the hold and
setting themselves chairs on the deck, sat down thereon. The
merchants addressed themselves to the twain with intent to buy,
and the man said to one of the crew, 'Bring the carpet.'
Accordingly he brought the carpet and spread it, and another
came with a pair of saddle-bags, whence he took a budget and
emptied it on the carpet; and our sights were dazzled with that
which issued therefrom of pearls and corals and jacinths and
carnelians and other jewels of all sorts and colours."--And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her
permitted say.

When it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-first Night,

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young
merchant, after recounting to the Caliph the matter of the bag
and its containing jewels of all sorts, continued, "Presently, O
Commander of the Faithful, said one of the men on the chairs, 'O
company of merchants, we will sell but this to-day, by way of
spending-money, for that we are weary.' So the merchants fell to
bidding one against other for the jewels and bid till the price
reached four hundred dinars. Then said to me the owner of the
bag (for he was an old acquaintance of mine, and when he saw me,
he came down to me and saluted me), 'Why dost thou not speak and
bid like the rest of the merchants?' I said, 'O my lord, by
Allah, the shifts of fortune have run against me and I have lost
my wealth and have only an hundred dinars left in the world.'
Quoth he, 'O Omani, after this vast wealth, can only an hundred
dinars remain to thee?' And I was abashed before him and my eyes
filled with tears; whereupon he looked at me and indeed my case
was grievous to him. So he said to the merchants, 'Bear witness
against me that I have sold all that is in this bag of various
gems and precious stones to this man for an hundred gold pieces,
albeit I know them to be worth so many thousand dinars, and this
is a present from me to him.' Then he gave me the saddle-bag and
the carpet, with all the jewels that were thereon, for which I
thanked him, and each and every of the merchants present praised
him. Presently I carried all this to the jewel-market and sat
there to sell and buy. Now among the precious stones was a round
amulet of the handi-work of the masters,[FN#290] weighing half a
pound: it was red of the brightest, a carnelian on both whose
sides were graven characts and characters, like the tracks of
ants; but I knew not its worth. I sold and bought a whole year,
at the end of which I took the amulet[FN#291] and said, 'This
hath been with me some while, and I know not what it is nor what
may be its value.' So I gave it to the broker who took it and
went round with it and returned, saying, 'None of the merchants
will give me more than ten dirhams for it.' Quoth I, 'I will not
sell it at that price;' and he threw it in my face and went
away. Another day I again offered it for sale and its price
reached fifteen dirhams; whereupon I took it from the broker in
anger and threw it back into the tray. But a few days after, as
I sat in my shop, there came up to me a man, who bore the traces
of travel, and saluting me, said, 'By thy leave, I will turn
over what thou hast of wares.' Said I, ''Tis well,' and indeed,
O Commander of the Faithful, I was still wroth by reason of the
lack of demand for the talisman. So the man fell to turning over
my wares, but took nought thereof save the amulet, which when he
saw, he kissed his hand and cried, 'Praised be Allah!' Then said
he to me, 'O my lord, wilt thou sell this?'; and I replied,
'Yes,' being still angry. Quoth he, 'What is its price?' And I
asked, 'How much wilt thou give?' He answered 'Twenty dinars':
so I thought he was making mock of me and exclaimed, 'Wend thy
ways.' But he resumed, 'I will give thee fifty dinars for it.' I
made him no answer, and he continued, 'A thousand dinars.' But I
was silent, declining to reply, whilst he laughed at my silence
and said, 'Why dost thou not return me an answer?' 'Hie thee
home,' repeated I and was like to quarrel with him. But he bid
thousand after thousand, and I still made him no reply, till he
said, 'Wilt thou sell it for twenty thousand dinars?' I still
thought he was mocking me; but the people gathered about me and
all of them said, 'Sell to him, and if he buy not, we will all
up and at him and drub him and thrust him forth the city.' So
quoth I to him, 'Wilt thou buy or dost thou jest?'; and quoth
he, 'Wilt thou sell or dost thou joke?' I said, 'I will sell if
thou wilt buy;' then he said, 'I will buy it for thirty thousand
dinars; take them and make the bargain;' so I cried to the
bystanders, 'Bear witness against him,' adding to him, 'But on
condition that thou acquaint me with the virtues and profit of
this amulet for which thou payest all this money.' He answered,
'Close the bargain, and I will tell thee this;' I rejoined, 'I
sell it to thee;' and he retorted, 'Allah be witness of that
which thou sayst and testimony!' Then he brought out the gold
and giving it to me took the amulet, and set it in his bosom;
after which he turned to me and asked, 'Art thou content?'
Answered I, 'Yes,' and he said to the people, 'Bear witness
against him that he hath closed the bargain and touched the
price, thirty thousand dinars.' Then he turned to me and said,
'Harkye, my poor fellow, hadst thou held back from selling, by
Allah I would have bidden thee up to an hundred thousand dinars,
nay, even to a thousand thousand!' When I heard these words, O
Commander of the Faithful, the blood fled my face, and from that
day there overcame it this pallor thou seest. Then said I to him,
'Tell me the reason of this and what is the use of this amulet.'
And he answered, saying, 'Know that the King of Hind hath a
daughter, never was seen a thing fairer than she, and she is
possessed with a falling sickness.[FN#292] So the King summoned
the Scribes and men of science and Divines, but none of them
could relieve her of this. Now I was present in the assembly; so
I said to him, 'O King, I know a man called Sa'adu'llah the
Babylonian, than whom there is not on the face of the earth one
more masterly in these matters, and if thou see fit to send me
to him, do so.' Said he, 'Go to him;' and quoth I, 'Bring me a
piece of carnelian.' Accordingly he gave me a great piece of
carnelian and an hundred thousand dinars and a present, which I
took, and with which I betook myself to the land of Babel. Then
I sought out the Shaykh and when he was shown to me I delivered
to him the money and the present, which he accepted and sending
for a lapidary, bade him fashion the carnelian into this amulet.
Then he abode seven months in observation of the stars, till he
chose out an auspicious time for engraving it, when he graved
upon it these talismanic characters which thou seest, and I took
it and returned with it to the King.'"--And Shahrazad perceived
the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-second Night,

She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the
young man said to the Commander of the Faithful, "'So after the
Shaykh had spoken, I took this talisman and returned with it to
the King. Now the Princess was bound with four chains, and every
night a slave-girl lay with her and was found in the morning
with her throat cut. The King took the amulet and laid it upon
his daughter who was straightway made whole. At this he rejoiced
with exceeding joy and invested me with a vest of honour and
gave alms of much money; and he caused set the amulet in the
Princess's necklace. It chanced, one day, that she embarked with
her women in a ship and went for a sail on the sea. Presently,
one of her maids put out her hand to her, to sport with her, and
the necklace brake asunder and fell into the waves. From that
hour the possessor[FN#293] of the Princess returned to her,
wherefore great grief betided the King and he gave me much
money, saying, 'Go thou to Shaykh Sa'adu'llah and let him make
her another amulet, in lieu of that which is lost.' I journeyed
to Babel, but found the old man dead; whereupon I returned and
told the King, who sent me and ten others to go round about in
all countries, so haply we might find a remedy for her: and now
Allah hath caused me happen on it with thee.' Saying these
words, he took from me the amulet, O Commander of the Faithful,
and went his ways. Such, then, is the cause of the wanness of my
complexion. As for me, I repaired to Baghdad, carrying all my
wealth with me, and took up my abode in the lodgings where I
lived whilome. On the morrow, as soon as it was light, I donned
my dress and betook myself to the house of Tahir ibn al-Alaa,
that haply I might see her whom I loved, for the love of her had
never ceased to increase upon my heart. But when I came to his
home, I saw the balcony broken down and the lattice builded up;
so I stood awhile, pondering my case and the shifts of Time,
till there came up a serving-man, and I questioned him, saying,
'What hath God done with Tahir ibn al-Alaa?' He answered, 'O my
brother, he hath repented to Almighty Allah.[FN#294]' Quoth I,
'What was the cause of his repentance?'; and quoth he, 'O my
brother, in such a year there came to him a merchant, by name
Abu al-Hasan the Omani, who abode with his daughter awhile, till
his wealth was all spent, when the old man turned him out,
broken-hearted. Now the girl loved him with exceeding love, and
when she was parted from him, she sickened of a sore sickness
and came nigh upon death. As soon as her father knew how it was
with her, he sent after and sought for Abu al-Hasan through the
lands, pledging himself to bestow upon whoso should produce him
an hundred thousand dinars; but none could find him nor come on
any trace of him; and she is now hard upon death.' Quoth I, 'And
how is it with her sire?' and quoth the servant, 'He hath sold
all his girls, for grief of that which hath befallen him, and
hath repented to Almighty Allah.' Then asked I, 'What wouldst
thou say to him who should direct thee to Abu al-Hasan the
Omani?'; and he answered, 'Allah upon thee, O my brother, that
thou do this and quicken my poverty and the poverty of my
parents![FN#295]' I rejoined, 'Go to her father and say to him,
Thou owest me the reward for good news, for that Abu al-Hasan
the Omani standeth at the door.' With this he set off trotting,
as he were a mule loosed from the mill, and presently came back,
accompanied by Shaykh Tahir himself, who no sooner saw me than
he returned to his house and gave the man an hundred thousand
dinars which he took and went away blessing me. Then the old man
came up and embraced me and wept, saying, 'O my lord, where hast
thou been absent all this while? Indeed, my daughter hath been
killed by reason of her separation from thee; but come with me
into the house.' So we entered and he prostrated himself in
gratitude to the Almighty, saying, 'Praised be Allah who hath
reunited us with thee!' Then he went in to his daughter and said
to her, 'The Lord hath healed thee of this sickness;' and said
she, 'O my papa, I shall never be whole of my sickness, save I
look upon the face of Abu al-Hasan.' Quoth he, 'An thou wilt eat
a morsel and go to the Hammam, I will bring thee in company with
him.' Asked she, 'Is it true that thou sayst?'; and he answered,
'By the Great God, 'tis true!' She rejoined, 'By Allah, if I
look upon his face, I shall have no need of eating!' Then said
he to his page, 'Bring in thy lord.' Thereupon I entered, and
when she saw me, O Prince of True Believers, she fell down in a
swoon, and presently coming to herself, recited this couplet,

'Yea, Allah hath joined the parted twain, * When no thought they
thought e'er to meet again.'

Then she sat upright and said, 'By Allah, O my lord, I had not
deemed to see thy face ever more, save it were in a dream!' So
she embraced me and wept, and said, 'O Abu al-Hasan, now will I
eat and drink.' The old man her sire rejoiced to hear these
words and they brought her meat and drink and we ate and drank,
O Commander of the Faithful. After this, I abode with them
awhile, till she was restored to her former beauty, when her
father sent for the Kazi and the witnesses and bade write out
the marriage-contract between her and me and made a mighty great
bride-feast; and she is my wife to this day and this is my son by
her." So saying he went away and returned with a boy of rare
beauty and symmetry of form and favour to whom said he, "Kiss
the ground before the Commander of the Faithful." He kissed
ground before the Caliph, who marvelled at his beauty and
glorified his Creator; after which Al-Rashid departed, he and
his company, saying, "O Ja'afar, verily, this is none other than
a marvellous thing, never saw I nor heard I aught more
wondrous." When he was seated in the palace of the Caliphate, he
cried, "O Masrur!" who replied, "Here am I, O my lord!" Then
said he, "Bring the year's tribute of Bassorah and Baghdad and
Khorasan, and set it in this recess.[FN#296]" Accordingly he
laid the three tributes together and they were a vast sum of
money, whose tale none might tell save Allah. Then the Caliph
bade draw a curtain before the recess and said to Ja'afar,
"Fetch me Abu al-Hasan." Replied Ja'afar, "I hear and obey," and
going forth, returned presently with the Omani, who kissed
ground before the Caliph, fearing lest he had sent for him
because of some fault that he had committed when he was with him
in his house. Then said Al-Rashid, "Harkye, O Omani!" and he
replied, "Adsum, O Prince of True Believers! May Allah ever
bestow his favours upon thee!" Quoth the Caliph, "Draw back
yonder curtain." Thereupon Abu al-Hasan drew back the curtain
from the recess and was confounded and perplexed at the mass of
money he saw there. Said Al-Rashid, "O Abu al-Hasan, whether is
the more, this money or that thou didst lose by the
amulet?[FN#297]"; and he answered, "This is many times the
greater, O Commander of the Faithful!" Quoth the Caliph, "Bear
witness, all ye who are present, that I give this money to this
young man." So Abu al-Hasan kissed ground and was abashed and
wept before the Caliph for excess of joy. Now when he wept, the
tears ran down from his eyelids upon his cheeks and the blood
returned to its place and his face became like the moon on the
night of its fulness. Whereupon quoth the Caliph, "There is no
god but the God! Glory be to Him who decreeth change upon change
and is Himself the Everlasting who changeth not!" Saying these
words, he bade fetch a mirror and showed Abu al-Hasan his face
therein, which when he saw, he prostrated himself, in gratitude
to the Most High Lord. Then the Caliph bade transport the money
to Abu al-Hasan's house and charged the young man not to absent
himself from him, so he might enjoy his company as a
cup-companion. Accordingly he paid him frequent visits, till
Al-Rashid departed to the mercy of Almighty Allah; and glory be
to Him who dieth not the Lord of the Seen and the Unseen! And
among tales they tell is one touching




IBRAHIM AND JAMILAH.[FN#298]



Al-Khasib,[FN#299] Wazir of Egypt, had a son named Ibrahim, than
whom there was none goodlier, and of his fear for him, he
suffered him not to go forth, save to the Friday prayers. One
day, as the youth was returning from the mosque, he came upon an
old man, with whom were many books; so he lighted down from his
horse and seating himself beside him, began to turn over the
tomes and examine them. In one of them he espied the semblance of
a woman which all but spoke, never was seen on the earth's face
one more beautiful; and as this captivated his reason and
confounded his wit, he said to the old man, "O Shaykh, sell me
this picture." The bookseller kissed ground between his hands and
said, "O my lord, 'tis thine without price.[FN#300]" Ibrahim gave
him an hundred dinars and taking the book in which was the
picture, fell to gazing upon it and weeping night and day,
abstaining from meat and drink and sleep. Then said he in his
mind, "An I ask the book seller of the painter of this picture,
haply he will tell me; and if the original be living, I will seek
access to her; but, if it be only a picture, I will leave doting
upon it and plague myself no more for a thing which hath no real
existence."--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
saying her permitted say.

When it was the Nine Hundred and Fifty-third Night,

She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the
youth Ibrahim said in his mind, "An I ask the bookseller of the
painter of this picture, haply he will tell me; and, if it be
only a picture, I will leave doting upon it and plague myself no
more for a thing which hath no real existence." So on the next
Friday he betook himself to the bookseller, who sprang up to
receive him, and said to him, "Oh uncle, tell me who painted this
picture." He replied, "O my lord, a man of the people of Baghdad
painted it, by name Abu al-Kasim al-Sandalani who dwelleth in a
quarter called Al-Karkh; but I know not of whom it is the
portraiture." So Ibrahim left him without acquainting any of his
household with his case, and returned to the palace, after
praying the Friday prayers. Then he took a bag and filling it
with gold and gems to the value of thirty thousand dinars, waited
till the morning, when he went out, without telling any, and
presently overtook a caravan. Here he saw a Badawi and asked him,
"O uncle, what distance is between me and Baghdad?"; and the
other answered, O my son, where art thou, and where is
Baghdad?[FN#301] Verily, between thee and it is two months'
journey." Quoth Ibrahim, O nuncle, an thou wilt guide me to
Baghdad, I will give thee an hundred dinars and this mare under
me that is worth other thousand gold pieces;" and quoth the
Badawi, "Allah be witness of what we say! Thou shalt not lodge
this night but with me." So Ibrahim agreed to this and passed the
night with him. At break of dawn, the Badawi took him and fared
on with him in haste by a near road, in his greed for the mare
and the promised good; nor did they leave wayfaring till they
came to the walls of Baghdad, when said the wildling, "Praised be
Allah for Safety! O my lord, this is Baghdad." Whereat Ibrahim
rejoiced with exceeding joy and alighting from the mare, gave her
to the Desert man, together with the hundred dinars. Then he took
the bag and entering the city walked on, enquiring for the
quarter al-Karkh and the station of the merchants, till Destiny
drave him to a by-way, wherein were ten houses, five fronting
five, and at the farther end was a two-leaved door with a silver
ring. By the gate stood two benches of marble, spread with the
finest carpets, and on one of them sat a man of handsome aspect
and reverend, clad in sumptuous clothing and attended by five
Mamelukes like moons. When the youth Ibrahim saw the street, he
knew it by the description the bookseller had given him; so he
salaamed to the man, who returned his salutation and bidding him
welcome, made him sit down and asked him of his case. Quoth
Ibrahim, "I am a stranger man and desire of thy favour that thou
look me out a house in this street where I may take up my abode."
With this the other cried out, saying, "Ho, Ghazalah![FN#302]";
and there came forth to him a slave-girl, who said, "At thy
service, O my lord!" Said her master, "Take some servants and
fare ye all and every to such a house and clean it and furnish it
with whatso is needful for this handsome youth." So she went
forth and did his bidding; whilst the old man took the youth and
showed him the house; and he said, "O my lord, how much may be
the rent of this house?" The other answered, "O bright of face, I
will take no rent of thee whilst thou abidest therein." Ibrahim
thanked him for this and the old man called another slave-girl,
whereupon there came forth to him a damsel like the sun, to whom
said he, "Bring chess." So she brought it and one of the servants
set the cloth;[FN#303] where upon said the Shaykh to Ibrahim,
"Wilt thou play with me?"; and he answered, "Yes." So they played
several games and Ibrahim beat him, when his adversary exclaimed,
"Well done, O youth! Thou art indeed perfect in qualities. By
Allah, there is not one in Baghdad can beat me, and yet thou hast
beaten me!" Now when they had made ready the house and furnished
it with all that was needful, the old man delivered the keys to
Ibrahim and said to him, "O my lord, wilt thou not enter my place
and eat of my bread?" He assented and walking in with him, found
it a handsome house and a goodly, decorated with gold and full of
all manner pictures and furniture galore and other things, such
as tongue faileth to set out. The old man welcomed him and called
for food, whereupon they brought a table of the make of Sana'a of
al-Yaman and spread it with all manner rare viands, than which
there was naught costlier nor more delicious. So Ibrahim ate his
sufficiency, after which he washed his hands and proceeded to
inspect the house and furniture. Presently, he turned to look for
the leather bag, but found it not and said in himself, "There is
no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the
Great! I have eaten a morsel worth a dirham or two and have lost
a bag wherein is thirty thousand dinars' worth: but I seek aid of
Allah!" And he was silent and could not speak,--And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

Copyright (c) 2007. famouswriterz.com. All rights reserved.