The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 02...

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Chamberlain bade the tent-pitchers set up a pavilion spacious enough to receive the subjects flocking to their Sultan, they planted a splendid Sháhmiyánah[327] befitting Kings. And as they ended their labours behold, a dust cloud spired aloft and the breeze made it lift and beneath it showed a conquering host; and presently it appeared that this was the army of Baghdad and Khorasan preceded by the Wazir Dandan. And in it all rejoiced at the accession of the "Light of the Place." Now Zau al-Makan had donned robes of royal estate and girt himself with the sword of state: so the Chamberlain brought him a steed and he mounted, surrounded by the Mamelukes and all the company from the tents on foot, to do him service, and he rode on until he came to the great pavilion, where he sat down and he laid the royal dagger across his thighs, whilst the Chamberlain stood in attendance on him and his armed slaves stationed themselves under the entrance-awning of the Sháhmiyánah, with drawn swords in their hands. Presently, up came the troops and the host and craved admission; so the Chamberlain went in to Zau al-Makan and asked his leave, whereupon he bade admit them, ten by ten. The Chamberlain acquainted them with the King's commands, to which they replied, "We hear and we obey;" and all drew up before the pavilion-entrance.

Then he took ten of them and carried them through the vestibule into the presence of Sultan Zau al-Makan, whom when they saw, they were awed; but he received them with most gracious kindness and promised them all good. So they gave him joy of his safe return and invoked Allah's blessings upon him, after which they took the oath of fealty never to gainsay him in aught and they kissed ground before him and withdrew. Then other ten entered and he entreated them as he had entreated the others; and they ceased not to enter, ten by ten, till none was left but the Wazir Dandan. Lastly the Minister went in and kissed the ground before Zau al-Makan, who rose to meet him, saying, "Welcome, O Wazir and sire sans peer! Verily, thine acts are those of a counsellor right dear, and judgement and foreseeing clear are in the hands of the Subtle of Lere." Then bade he the Chamberlain forthwith go out and cause the tables to be spread and order all the troops thereto. So they came and ate and drank. Moreover the Sultan commanded his Wazir Dandan call a ten days' halt of the army, that he might be private with him and learn from him how and wherefore his father had been slain. The Wazir obeyed the commands of the Sultan with submission and wished him eternity of glory and said, "This needs must be!" He then repaired to the heart of the encampment and ordered the host to halt ten days. They did as he bade them and, moreover, he gave them leave to divert themselves and ordered that none of the lords in waiting should attend upon the King for service during the space of three days.

Then the Wazir went to the Sultan and reported all to him, and Zau al-Makan waited until nightfall, when he went in to his sister Nuzhat al-Zaman and asked her, "Dost thou know the cause of my father's murder or not?" "I have no knowledge of the cause," she answered, and drew a silken curtain before herself, whilst Zau al-Makan seated himself without the curtain and commanded the Wazir to the presence and, when he came, said to him, "I desire thou relate to me in detail the cause of the killing of my sire, King Omar bin al-Nu'uman!" Know then, O King, replied Dandan, that King Omar bin al-Nu'uman, when he returned to Baghdad from his chasing and hunting and entered the city, enquired for thee and thy sister, but could not find you and knew that you twain had gone on the Pilgrimage; whereat he was greatly grieved and much angered, and his breast was straitened and he abode thus half a year, seeking news of you from all who came and went, but none could give him any tidings. Now while we were in attendance upon him one day, after a whole year had sped since ye were lost to his sight, lo! there came to us an ancient dame with signs of being a devotee, accompanied by five damsels, high-bosomed virgins like moons, endowed with such beauty and loveliness as tongue faileth to describe; and, to crown their perfections of comeliness, they could read the Koran and were versed in various kinds of learning and in the histories of bygone peoples.

Then that old woman sought audience of the King, and he bade admit her; whereupon she entered the presence and kissed the ground between his hands. I was then sitting by his side and he, seeing in her the signs of asceticism and devoutness, made her draw near and take seat hard by him. And when she had sat down she addressed him and said, "Know, O King, that with me are five damsels, whose like no King among the Kings possesseth; for they are endowed with wit and beauty and loveliness and perfection. They read the Koran and the Traditions and are skilled in all manner of learning and in the history of bygone races. They stand here between thy hands to do thee service, O King of the Age, and it is by trial that folk are prized or despised." Thy father, who hath found mercy;[328] looked at the damsels and their favour pleased him; so he said to them, "Let each and every of you make me hear something of what she knoweth anent the history of the folk of yore and of peoples long gone before!"——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan said unto King Zau al-Makan:—Thy father, who hath found mercy, glanced at the damsels and their favour pleased him and he said to them, "Let each and every of you make me hear something of what she knoweth anent the history of the folk of yore and of peoples long gone before!" Thereupon one of them came forward and, kissing the ground before him, spake as follows.[329] "Know, O King, that it behoveth one of good-breeding to eschew impertinence and adorn himself with excellencies, and observe the Divine injunctions and avoid mortal sins; and to this he should apply himself with the assiduity of one who, if he stray therefrom, falleth into perdition; for the foundation of good breeding is virtuous behaviour. And know that the chief cause and reason of man's existence is the endeavour after life everlasting, and the right way thereto is the service of Allah. Wherefore it behoveth thee to deal beneficently with the people: and swerve not from this canon, for the mightier men are in dignity, the more their need of prudence and foresight; and indeed Monarchs need this more than the many, for the general cast themselves into affairs, without taking thought to the issue thereof. Be thou prodigal of thy life and thy good in the way of Allah, and know that, if an enemy dispute with thee, thou mayst dispute with him and refute him with proofs and be proof against him; but as for thy friend, there is none can judge between thee and him save righteousness and fair-dealing.

Choose, therefore, thy friend for thyself, after thou hast proved him. If he be of the brotherhood of futurity,[330] let him be zealous in observing the externals of the Holy Law and versed in its inner meaning, as far as may be; and if he be of the brotherhood of the world, let him be free-born, sincere, neither a fool nor a perverse, for the fool man is such that even his parents might well flee from him, and a liar cannot be a true friend. Indeed the word, Siddík[331] ('friend') deriveth from Sidk ('truth') that welleth up from the bottom of the heart; and how can this be the case, when falsehood is manifest upon the tongue? And know, that the observance of the Law profiteth him who practiseth it: so love thy brother, if he be of this quality and do not cast him off, even if thou see in him that which irketh thee, for a friend is not like a wife, whom one can divorce and re-marry: nay, his heart is like glass: once broken, it may not be mended. And Allah bless him who saith:—

The maiden continued and concluded with pointing out to us what sages say, "The best of brethren is he who is the most constant in good counsel; the best of action is that which is fairest in its consequence, and the best of praise is not that which is in the mouths of men. It is also said:—It behoveth not the servant to neglect thanking Allah especially for two favours, health and reason. Again it is said:—Whoso honoureth himself, his lust is a light matter to him, and he who maketh much of his small troubles, Allah affiicteth him with the greater; he who obeyeth his own inclination neglecteth his duties and he who listeneth to the slanderer loseth the true friend. He who thinketh well of thee, do thou fulfill his thought of thee. He who exceedeth in contention sinneth, and he who against unright standeth not on ward, is not safe from the sword. Now will I tell thee somewhat of the duties of Kazis and judges. Know, O King, that no judgement serveth the cause of justice save it be given after proof positive, and it behoveth the judge to treat all people on the same level, to the intent that the great may not hunger for oppression nor the small despair of justice.

Furthermore he should extract proof from the complainant and impose an oath upon the defendant; and mediation is admissible between Moslems, except it be a compromise sanctioning the unlawful or forbidding the lawful.[332] If thou shalt have done aught during the day, of which thy reason is doubtful but thy good intention is proved, thou (O Kazi) shouldst revert to the right, for to do justice is a religious obligation and to return to that which is right is better than persistence in wrong. Then (O judge) thou shouldest study precedents and the law of the case and do equal justice between the suitors, withal fixing thine eyes upon the truth and committing thine affair to Allah (be He extolled and exalted!). And require thou proof of the complainant, and if he adduce evidence let him have due benefit of it; and if not, put the defendant to his oath; for this is the ordinance of Allah. Receive thou the testimony of competent Moslem witnesses, one against other, for Almighty Allah hath commanded judges to judge by externals, He Himself taking charge of the inner and secret things. It behoveth the judge also to avoid giving judgement, whilst suffering from stress of pain or hunger,[333] and that in his decisions between folk he seek the face of Allah Almighty, for he whose intent is pure and who is at peace with himself, Allah shall guarantee him against what is between him and the people. Quoth al-Zuhri[334]:—There are three things for which, if they be found in a Kazi, he should be deposed; namely, if he honour the base, if he love praise and if he fear dismissal.

And Omar bin Abd al-Aziz once deposed a Kazi, who asked him, Why hast thou dismissed me? It hath reached me, answered Omar, that thy converse is greater than thy condition. It is said also that Iskandar[335] said to his Kazi:—I have invested thee with this function and committed to thee in it my soul and mine honour and my manliness; so do thou guard it with thy sense and thine understanding. To his Cook he said, Thou art the Sultan of my body; so look thou tender it as thine own self. To his Secretary he said, Thou art the controller of my wit: so do thou watch over me in what thou writest for me and from me." Thereupon the first damsel backed out from the presence and a second damsel came forward.——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan said to Zau al-Makan:—Thereupon the first damsel backed out from the presence and a second damsel came forward and, kissing the ground seven times before the King thy father, spake as follows, "The sage Lukmán[336] said to his son, There be three who are known only in three several cases; the merciful man is unknown save in time of wrath, the brave only in battle, and thy friend in time of need. It is said that the oppressor shall be deprest though by people praised, and that the opprest is at rest though by people blamed. Quoth Allah Almighty,[337] Assuredly deem not that those who rejoice in what they have done, and who love to be praised for what they have not done, shall escape reckoning of punishment: indeed there is reserved for them a grievous penalty. And he said[338] (on whom be salvation and salutation!):—Works are according to intention and to each man is attributed that which he intendeth. He said also:—In the body is a part which being sound the rest is sound, and which being unsound the whole is unsound. And this is the heart. Now this heart is the most marvellous of what is in man, since it is that which ordereth his whole affair: If covetise stir in it, desire destroyeth him; and if affliction master it, anguish slayeth him; if anger rage in it, danger is hard upon him; if it be blest with contentment, he is safe from discontent; if fear surprise it, he is full of mourning; and if calamity overtake it, affliction betideth him.

If a man gain the use of wealth, peradventure he is diverted thereby from the remembrance of his Lord; if poverty choke him, his heart is distracted by woe, or if disquietude waste his heart, weakness causeth him to fall. Thus, in any case, nothing profiteth him but that he be mindful of Allah and occupy himself with gaining his livelihood in this world and securing his place in the next. It was asked of a certain sage, Who is the most ill-conditioned of men?; and he answered, The man whose lusts master his manhood and whose mind soareth over high, so that his knowledge dispreadeth and his excuse diminisheth; and how excellently saith the poet:—

Continued the maiden, "As for anecdotes of devotees, quoth Hishám bin Bashar:—I asked Omar bin Ubayd, What is true piety?; and he answered, The Apostle of Allah (to whom be salutation and salvation!) hath explained it when he sayeth, The pious is he who forgetteth not the grave nor calamity and who preferreth that which endureth to that which passeth away; who counteth not the morrow as of his days but reckoneth himself among the dead. And it is related that Abu Zarr[339] used to say, Want is dearer to me than wealth, and unheal is dearer to me than health. Quoth one of the listeners, May Allah have mercy on Abu Zarr! For my part, I say, Whoso putteth his trust in the goodness of the election of Almighty Allah should be content with that condition which Allah hath chosen for him. Quoth one of the Companions of the Prophet, Ibn Abi Aufa[340] once prayed with us the dawn-prayer. When he had done, he recited, O Thou Enwrapped![341] till he came to where Allah saith, When there shall be a trumping on the trumpet, and fell down dead. It is said that Sabit al-Banáni wept till he well-nigh lost his eyes. They brought him a man to medicine him who said to him, I will cure thee, provided thou obey my bidding. Asked Sabit, In what matter? Quoth the leach, In that thou leave weeping! What is the worth of mine eyes?, rejoined Sabit, if they do not weep? Quoth a man to Mohammed bin Abdillah, Exhort thou me!"——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan said to Zau al-Makan:—Thus spake the second handmaid to the King who hath found mercy, Omar bin al-Nu'uman. "Quoth a man to Mohammed bin Abdillah, Exhort thou me! I exhort thee, replied he, to be a self-ruler, an abstainer in this world, and in the next a greedy slave. How so? asked the other and Mohammed answered, The abstinent man in this world conquereth both the world that is and the world to come. And quoth Ghaus bin Abdillah, There were two brothers among the sons of Israel, one of whom said to the other, What be the most perilous[342] thing thou hast done? Replied the brother, I once came upon a nest of young birds; so I took out one and threw it back into the nest; but among the chickens were some which drew apart from it. This is the most perilous thing I ever did; now what be the most perilous thing thou hast ever done? He rejoined, When I arise for prayer I am fearful that it is only for the sake of the reward. Now their father heard these words and exclaimed, O Allah, an say they sooth take them to Thyself! It was declared by one of the wise men, Verily, these were of the most virtuous of children. Quoth Sa'id bin Jubayr,[343] I was once in company with Fuzalah bin 'Ubayd and said to him, Exhort thou me! Replied he, Bear in mind these two necessaries, Shun syntheism[344] and harm not any of Allah's creatures. And he repeated these two couplets:—

Then the third damsel came forward, after the second had withdrawn, and said, "Of a truth, the chapter of piety is exceeding wide; but I will mention what occurreth to me thereof, concerning the pious of old. Quoth a certain holy man, I congratulate myself in death, though I am not assured of rest therein, save that I know death interveneth between a man and his works; so I hope for the doubling of good works and the docking off of ill works. And Itá'a al-Salamí, when he had made an end of an exhortation, was wont to tremble and grieve and weep sore; and as they asked him why he did this he answered, I desire to enter upon a grave matter, and it is the standing up before Almighty Allah to do in accordance with my exhortation. In similar guise Zayn al-Abidín,[345] son of Al-Husayn, was wont to tremble when he rose to pray. Being asked the cause of this, he replied, Know ye not before whom I stand and whom I address? It is said that there lived near Sufyán al-Thauri[346] a blind man who, when the month of Ramazán came, went out with the folk to pray,[347] but remained silent and hung back. Said Sufyan, On the Day of Resurrection he shall come with the people of the Koran and they will be distinguished by increase of honour from their fellows. Quoth Sufyan, Were the soul established in the heart as befitteth, it would fly away for joy and pining for Paradise, and for grief and fear of hell-fire. It is related also of Sufyan al-Thauri that he said, To look upon the face of a tyrant is a sin."

Then the third damsel retired and came forward the fourth, who said, "Here am I to treat of sundry traditions of pious men which suggest themselves to me. It is related that Bishr Barefoot[348] said, I once heard Khálid say, Beware of secret polytheism. I asked, What may secret polytheism be?; and he answered, When one of you in praying prolong his inclinations and prostrations till a cause of impurity[349] come upon him. And one of the sages said, Doing works of weal expiateth what is ill. Quoth Ibrahim,[350] I supplicated Bishr Barefoot to acquaint me with some theological mysteries; but he said, O my son, this knowledge it behoveth us not to teach to every one; of every hundred five, even as the legal alms upon money. Said Ibrahim, I thought his reply excellent and approved of it and while I was praying behold, Bishr was also praying: so I stood behind him[351] making the prayer-bow till the Mu'ezzin called his call. Then rose a man of tattered appearance and said, O folk, beware of a truth which bringeth unweal, for there is no harm in a lie bringing weal,[352] and in time of need no choice we heed: speech booteth not in the absence of good qualities even as silence hurteth not in the presence of good. Presently I saw Bishr drop a danik,[353] so I picked it up and exchanged it for a dirham which I gave him. Quoth he, I will not take it. Quoth I, It is perfectly lawful change; but he rejoined I cannot take in exchange the riches of the present world for those of the future world.

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan continued to bespeak Zau al-Makan on this wise:—And quoth the maiden to thy father, "Bishr Barefoot's sister once went to Ahmad bin Hanbal and said to him, O Imam of the Faith, we are a family that spin thread by night and work for our living by day; and oftentimes the cressets of the watch of Baghdad pass by and we on the roof spinning by their light. Is this forbidden to us? Asked Ahmad:—Who art thou? I am the sister of Bishr Barefoot, answered she. Rejoined the Imam, O household of Bishr, I shall never cease to drink full draughts of piety from your hearts. Quoth one of the sages, When Allah willeth well to His servant He openeth upon him the gate of action. Malik bin Dinár,[355] when he passed through the bazar and saw aught he desired, was wont to say:—O soul, take patience, for I will not accord to thee what thou desirest. He said also (Allah accept him!), The salvation of the soul lies in resistance to it and its damnation in submission to it. Quoth Mansúr bin Ammár,[356] I made a pilgrimage and was faring Meccahwards by way of Cufa, and the night was overcast, when I heard a voice crying out from the deeps of the darkness saying, O Allah, I swear by Thy Greatness and Thy Glory, I meant not through my disobedience to transgress against Thee; for indeed I am not ignorant of Thee; but my fault is one Thou didst foreordain to me from eternity without beginning;[357] so do Thou pardon my transgression, for indeed I disobeyed Thee of my ignorance!

When he had made an end of his prayer he recited aloud the verse, O true believers, save your souls and those of your families from the fire whose fuel is men and stones.[358] Then I heard a fall, but not knowing what it was I passed on. When the morning morrowed, as we went our way, behold, we fell in with a funeral-train, followed by an old woman whose strength had left her. I asked her of the dead, and she answered:—This is the funeral of a man who passed by us yesterday whilst my son was standing at prayer and after his prayers he recited a verse from the Book of Allah Almighty when the man's gall-bladder burst and he fell dead." Therewith the fourth damsel retired and the fifth came forward and said, "I here will also repeat what occurreth to me regarding the acts of devotees in olden time. Maslamah bin Dinár used to say:—By making sound the secret thoughts, sins great and small are covered; and, when the servant of Allah is resolved to leave sinning, victory cometh to him. Also quoth he, Every worldly good which doth not draw one nearer to Allah is a calamity, for a little of this world distracteth from a mickle of the world to come and a mickle of the present maketh thee forget the whole of the future. It was asked of Abú Házim,[359] Who is the most prosperous of men?; and he answered, Whoso spendeth his life in submission to Allah. The other enquired, And who is the most foolish of mankind? Whoso selleth his future for the worldly goods of others, replied Abu Házim.

It is reported of Moses[360] (on whom be peace!) that when he came to the waters of Midian he exclaimed:—O Lord, verily I stand in need of the good which thou shalt send down to me.[361] And he asked of his Lord and not of his folk. There came two damsels and he drew water for them both and allowed not the shepherds to draw first. When the twain returned, they informed their father Shu'ayb (on whom be peace!) who said, Haply, he is hungry, adding to one of them, Go back to him and bid him hither. Now when she came to Moses, she veiled her face and said, My father biddeth thee to him that he may pay thee thy wage for having drawn water for us. Moses was averse to this and was not willing to follow her. Now she was a woman large in the back parts, and the wind blowing upon her garment[362] discovered the hinder cheeks to Moses; which when Moses saw, he lowered his eyes and said to her, Get thee behind while I walk in front. So she followed him till he entered the house of Shu'ayb where supper was ready,"——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Wazir Dandan continued to Zau al-Makan:—Now, quoth the fifth damsel to thy sire, "When Moses (on whom be peace!) entered the home of Shu'ayb where supper was ready, Shu'ayb said to him, O Moses, I desire to pay thee thy wage for having drawn water for these two. But Moses answered, I am of a household which selleth nothing of the fashion of the next world[363] for what is on earth of gold and silver." Then quoth Shu'ayb, O youth! nevertheless thou art my guest, and it is my wont and that of my forbears to honour the guest by setting food before him. So Moses sat down and ate. Then Shu'ayb hired Moses for eight pilgrimages, that is to say, eight years, and made his wage marriage with one of his two daughters, and Moses' service to him was to stand for her dowry. As saith the Holy Writ of him:—Verily I will give thee one of these my two daughters in marriage, on condition that thou serve me for hire eight pilgrimages: and if thou fulfil ten years, it is in thine own breast; for I seek not to impose a hardship on thee.[364] A certain man once said to one of his friends whom he had not met for many days:—Thou hast made me desolate, for that I have not seen thee this long while. Quoth the other, I have been distracted from thee by Ibn Shiháb: dost thou know him? Quoth his friend, Yes, he hath been my neighbour these thirty years, but I have never spoken to him. He replied, Verily thou forgettest Allah in forgetting thy neighbour! If thou lovedst Allah thou wouldst love thy neighbour.

Knowest thou not that a neighbour hath a claim upon his neighbour,[365] even as the right of kith and kin? Said Huzayfah, "We entered Meccah with Ibráhím bin Adham, and Shakik al-Balkhí was also making a pilgrimage that year. Now we met whilst circumambulating the Ka'abah and Ibrahim said to Shakik, What is your fashion in your country? Replied Shakik, When we are blest with our daily bread we eat, and when we hunger we take patience. This wise, said Ibrahim, do the dogs of Balkh; but we, when blest with plenty, do honour to Allah and when an-hungered we thank Him. And Shakik seated himself before Ibrahim and said to him, Thou art my master. Also said Mohammed bin Imrán, A man once asked of Hátim the Deaf[366] What maketh thee to trust in Allah? Two things, answered he, I know that none save myself shall eat my daily bread, so my heart is at rest as to that; and I know that I was not created without the knowledge of Allah, and am abashed before Him." Then the fifth damsel retired and the ancient dame came forward and, kissing the ground before thy father nine times, said, "Thou hast heard, O King, what these all have spoken on the subject of piety; and I will follow their example in relating what hath reached me of the famous men of past times. It is said that the Imam al-Sháfi'í departed the night into three portions, the first for study, the second for sleep and the third for prayer. The Imam Abú Hanífah[367] was wont also to pass half the night in prayer. One day a man pointed him out to another, as he walked by and remarked, Yonder man watcheth the whole night.

Al-Rabí a relates that Al-Shafi'i used to recite the whole Koran seventy times during the month of Ramazán, and that in his daily prayers. Quoth Al-Shafi'i (Allah accept him!), During ten years I never ate my fill of barley-bread, for fullness hardeneth the heart and deadeneth the wit and induceth sleep and enfeebleth one from standing up to pray.[368] It is reported of Abdullah bin Mohammed al-Sakrá that he said, I was once talking with Omar and he observed to me, Never saw I a more God-fearing or eloquent man than Mohammed bin Idris al-Sháfi'í. It so happened I went out one day with Al-Háris bin Labíb al-Saffár, who was a disciple of Al-Muzani[369] and had a fine voice and he read the saying of the Almighty:—This shall be a day whereon they shall not speak to any purpose, nor shall they be permitted to excuse themselves.[370] I saw Al-Shafi'i's colour change; his skin shuddered with horripilation, he was violently moved and he fell down in a fainting fit. When he revived he said, I take refuge with Allah from the stead of the liars and the lot of the negligent! O Allah, before whom the hearts of the wise abase themselves, O Allah, of Thy beneficence accord to me the remission of my sins, adorn me with the curtain of Thy protection and pardon me my shortcomings, by the magnanimity of Thy Being! Then I rose and went away. Quoth one of the pious, When I entered Baghdad, Al-Shafi'i was there.