The Thousand and One Nights, Vol. I. Commonly Called the...

The Khaleefeh, when he heard this, was distressed at the thought of separating them, and, looking towards the young man, he said to him, O my master, art thou in fear on account of any crime, or art thou in debt to any one? Noor-ed-Deen answered, By Allah, O fisherman, a wonderful event, and an extraordinary adventure, happened to me and this damsel: if it were engraved on the understanding, it would be a lesson to him who would be admonished.—Wilt thou not, rejoined the Khaleefeh, relate to us thy story, and acquaint us with thy case? Perhaps thy doing so may be productive of relief; for the relief of God is near.—So Noor-ed-Deen said, Wilt thou hear our story in poetry or in prose?—Prose, answered the Khaleefeh, is mere talk; and verse, words put together like pearls. And Noor-ed-Deen hung down his head towards the ground, and then related his story in a series of verses: but when he had finished, the Khaleefeh begged him to explain his case more fully. He therefore acquainted him with the whole of his circumstances from beginning to end; and when the Khaleefeh understood the affair, he said to him, Whither wouldst thou now repair? He answered, God's earth is wide. The Khaleefeh then said to him, I will write for thee a letter which thou shalt convey to the Sulṭán Moḥammad the son of Suleymán Ez-Zeynee, and when he shall have read it, he will do thee no injury.—Is there in the world, said Noor-ed-Deen, a fisherman who correspondeth with Kings?

Verily this is a thing that can never be.—Thou hast spoken truly, rejoined the Khaleefeh; but I will acquaint thee with the cause. Know that I read in the same school with him, under a master, and I was his monitor; and after that, prosperity was his lot, and he became a Sulṭán, while God made me to be a fisherman: yet I have never sent to request anything of him, but he hath performed my wish; and if I sent to him every day to request a thousand things of him, he would do what I asked. When Noor-ed-Deen, therefore, heard his words, he said to him, Write, that I may see. And he took an inkhorn and a pen, and wrote (after the phrase, In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful).—To proceed.—This letter is from Hároon Er-Rasheed the son of El-Mahdee, to his highness Moḥammad the son of Suleymán Ez-Zeynee, who hath been encompassed by my beneficence, and whom I constituted my viceroy of a portion of my dominions. I acquaint thee that the bearer of this letter is Noor-ed-Deen the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán the Wezeer, and on his arrival in thy presence thou shalt divest thyself of the regal authority, and seat him in thy place; for I have appointed him to the office to which I formerly appointed thee: so disobey not my commands: and peace be on thee.—He then gave the letter to 'Alee Noor-ed-Deen, who took it and kissed it and put it in his turban, and immediately set forth on his journey.

The sheykh Ibráheem now looked towards the Khaleefeh in his fisherman's disguise, and said to him, O most contemptible of fishermen, thou hast brought us two fish worth twenty half-dirhems,35 and received three pieces of gold, and desirest to take the slave also. But when the Khaleefeh heard these words, he cried out at him, and made a sign to Mesroor, who immediately discovered himself, and rushed in upon him. Jaạfar, meanwhile, had sent one of the attendants of the garden to the porter of the palace to demand a suit of clothing of him for the Prince of the Faithful; and the man went, and brought the dress, and kissed the ground before the Khaleefeh, who took off and gave to him that with which he was then clad, and put on this suit. The sheykh Ibráheem was sitting on a chair: the Khaleefeh paused to see the result: and the sheykh was astounded, and began to bite the ends of his fingers through his confusion, saying, Am I asleep or awake? The Khaleefeh then looked at him, and said, O sheykh Ibráheem, what is this predicament in which thou art placed? And upon this, the sheykh recovered from his intoxication, and, throwing himself upon the ground, implored forgiveness: and the Khaleefeh pardoned him; after which he gave orders that the damsel should be conveyed to the palace where he resided; and when she had arrived there, he appropriated to her a separate lodging, and appointed persons to wait upon her, and said to her, Know that I have sent thy master as Sulṭán of El-Baṣrah, and, if God please, I will despatch to him a dress of honour, and send thee also to him with it.

As to Noor-ed-Deen, he continued his journey until he entered El-Baṣrah, and went up to the palace of the Sulṭán, when he uttered a loud cry, whereupon the Sulṭán desired him to approach; and when he came into the presence of the King, he kissed the ground before him, and produced the letter, and handed it to him. And as soon as the Sulṭán saw the superscription in the handwriting of the Prince of the Faithful, he rose upon his feet, and, having kissed it three times, said, I hear and pay obedience to God (whose name be exalted!) and to the Prince of the Faithful. He then summoned before him the four Ḳáḍees,36 and the Emeers, and was about to divest himself of the regal office: but, lo, the Wezeer El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee was before him, and the Sulṭán gave him the letter of the Prince of the Faithful, and when he saw it, he rent it in pieces, and put it into his mouth, and chewed it, and threw it down. The Sulṭán, enraged, cried, Wo to thee! What hath induced thee to act thus?—He answered, This man hath had no interview with the Khaleefeh nor with his Wezeer; but is a young wretch, an artful devil, who, having met with a paper containing the handwriting of the Khaleefeh, hath counterfeited it, and written what he desired: wherefore then shouldst thou abdicate the sovereignty, when the Khaleefeh hath not sent to thee an envoy with a royal autographical mandate; for if this affair were true, he had sent with him a Chamberlain or a Wezeer; but he came alone.—What then is to be done? said the Sulṭán.

The Wezeer answered, Send away this young man with me, and I will take charge of him, and despatch him in company with a Chamberlain to the city of Baghdád; and if his words be true, he will bring us a royal autographical mandate and diploma of investiture; and if not true, they will send him back to us with the Chamberlain, and I will take my revenge upon my offender.

When the Sulṭán heard what the Wezeer said, it pleased him; and the Wezeer took him away,37 and cried out to the pages, who threw down Noor-ed-Deen, and beat him until he became insensible. He then ordered to put a chain upon his feet, and called to the jailer; and when he came, he kissed the ground before him. This jailer was named Ḳuṭeyṭ;38 and the Wezeer said to him, O Ḳuṭeyṭ, I desire that thou take this person, and cast him into one of the subterranean cells which are in thy prison, and torture him night and day. The jailer replied, I hear and obey:—and he put Noor-ed-Deen into the prison, and locked the door upon him; but after having done this, he gave orders to sweep a maṣṭabah within the door, and furnished it with a prayer-carpet and a pillow, and seated Noor-ed-Deen upon it, and loosed his chain, and treated him with kindness. The Wezeer every day sent to him, commanding him to beat him; and the jailer pretended that he tortured him, while, on the contrary, he treated him with benignity.

Thus he continued to do for forty days; and on the forty-first day, there came a present from the Khaleefeh, and when the Sulṭán saw it, it pleased him, and he conferred with the Wezeers upon the subject; but one said, Perhaps this present was designed for the new Sulṭán. Upon this, the Wezeer El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee remarked, It were proper to have slain him on his arrival:—and the Sulṭán exclaimed, Now thou hast reminded me of him, go down and bring him, and I will strike off his head. The Wezeer replied, I hear and obey:—and arose, saying, I desire to proclaim throughout the city, He who wisheth to witness the decapitation of Noor-ed-Deen 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán, let him come to the palace:—so that all the people may come to behold it, and I may gratify my heart, and mortify my enviers. The Sulṭán said, Do what thou wilt. So the Wezeer descended, full of joy and happiness, and went to the Wálee, and ordered him to make this proclamation; and when the people heard the crier, they all grieved and wept, even the boys in the schools, and the tradesmen in their shops; and numbers of the people strove together to take for themselves places where they might behold the spectacle, while others repaired to the prison, to accompany him thence. The Wezeer then went forth, attended by ten memlooks, to the prison: and Ḳuṭeyṭ the jailer said to him, What dost thou desire, O our lord the Wezeer?—Bring forth to me, said the Wezeer, this young wretch. The jailer replied, He is in a most miserable state from the excessive beating that I have inflicted upon him.

And the jailer pulled off from him his clean clothes, and, having clad him in two dirty garments, brought him out to the Wezeer. Noor-ed-Deen then looked at him, and saw that he was his enemy who had incessantly desired his destruction; and when he beheld him, he wept, and said to him, Art thou secure from misfortune? Hast thou not heard the saying of the poet?—

O Wezeer, know that God (whose perfection be extolled, and whose name be exalted!) is the doer of whatsover He willeth.—O 'Alee, replied the Wezeer, wouldst thou frighten me by these words? I am now going to strike off thy head, in spite of the people of El-Baṣrah; and I will pay no regard to thy counsel; but I will rather attend to the saying of the poet:—

The Wezeer then ordered his pages to convey him on the back of a mule; whereupon they said to him (being distressed to obey), Suffer us to stone him and cut him in pieces, though our lives should be sacrificed in consequence. But he replied, Never do it. Have ye not heard what the poet hath said:—

So they proceeded to proclaim before Noor-ed-Deen, This is the smallest recompense of him who forgeth a letter from the Khaleefeh to the Sulṭán. And they continued to parade him throughout El-Baṣrah until they stationed him beneath the window of the palace, and in the place of blood,39 when the executioner approached him, and said to him, I am a slave under command; and if thou hast any want, acquaint me with it, that I may perform it for thee; for there remaineth not of thy life any more than the period until the Sulṭán shall put forth his face from the window. And upon this, Noor-ed-Deen looked to the right and left, and recited these verses:—

Is there among you a merciful friend, who will aid me? I conjure you by Allah to answer me!My life hath passed, and my death is at hand! Is there any who will pity me, to obtain my recompense,40And consider my state, and relieve my anguish, by a draught of water that my torment may be lightened?

And the people were excited to tears for him; and the executioner took some water to hand it to him; but the Wezeer arose from his place, and struck the ḳulleh41 of water with his hand, and broke it, and called to the executioner, commanding him to strike off his head; whereupon he bound Noor-ed-Deen's eyes. The people, however, called out against the Wezeer, and raised a tumultuous cry against him, and many words passed between them; and while they were in this state, lo, a dust rose, and filled the sky and the open tracts; and when the Sulṭán beheld it, as he sat in the palace, he said to his attendants, See what is the news. The Wezeer said, After thou shalt first have beheaded this man. But the Sulṭán replied, Wait thou until we see what is the news.

Now this dust was the dust of Jaạfar, the Wezeer of the Khaleefeh, and of his attendants; and the cause of their coming was this:—The Khaleefeh had passed thirty days without remembering the affair of 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán, and no one mentioned it to him, until he came one night to the private apartment of Enees-el-Jelees, and heard her lamenting, as she recited, with a soft voice, the saying of the poet:—

The Khaleefeh said to her, Who art thou? She answered, I am the present given to thee by 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán; and I request the fulfilment of the promise which thou gavest me, that thou wouldst send me to him with the honorary gift; for I have now been here thirty days, and have not tasted sleep. And upon this, the Khaleefeh summoned Jaạfar El-Barmekee, and said to him, For thirty days I have heard no news of 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán, and I imagine nothing less than that the Sulṭán hath killed him: but, by my head! by the tombs of my ancestors! if any evil event hath happened to him, I will destroy him who hath been the cause of it, though he be the dearest of men in my estimation! I desire, therefore, that thou journey immediately to El-Baṣrah, and bring me an account of the conduct of the King Moḥammad the son of Suleymán Ez-Zeynee to 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Kháḳán.

So Jaạfar obeyed his commands, and set forth on his journey, and when he approached, and saw this tumult and crowd, he said, What is the occasion of this crowd? They related to him, therefore, the situation in which they were with regard to Noor-ed-Deen; and when he heard their words, he hastened to go up to the Sulṭán, and, having saluted him, acquainted him with the cause of his coming, and told him, that if any evil event had happened to 'Alee Noor-ed-Deen, the Khaleefeh would destroy him who was the cause of it. He then arrested the Sulṭán, and the Wezeer El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee, and gave orders to liberate 'Alee Noor-ed-Deen, and enthroned him as Sulṭán in the place of the Sulṭán Moḥammad the son of Suleymán Ez-Zeynee; after which he remained in El-Baṣrah three days, the usual period of entertainment; and on the morning of the fourth day, 'Alee Noor-ed-Deen said to Jaạfar, I have a longing desire to see the Prince of the Faithful. So Jaạfar said to the King Moḥammad the son of Suleymán, Prepare thyself for travelling; for we will perform the morning-prayers, and depart to Baghdád. He replied, I hear and obey:—and they performed the morning-prayers, and mounted all together, with the Wezeer El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee, who now repented of what he had done. As to 'Alee Noor-ed-Deen, he rode by the side of Jaạfar: and they continued their journey until they arrived at Baghdád, the Abode of Peace.

They then presented themselves before the Khaleefeh, and related to him the case of Noor-ed-Deen; whereupon the Khaleefeh addressed him, saying, Take this sword, and strike off with it the head of thine enemy. And he took it, and approached El-Mo'een the son of Sáwee; but he looked at him, and said to him, I did according to my nature, and do thou according to thine. And Noor-ed-Deen threw down the sword from his hand, and, looking towards the Khaleefeh, said, O Prince of the Faithful, he hath beguiled me. So the Khaleefeh said, Do thou leave him:—and he said to Mesroor, O Mesroor, advance thou, and strike off his head. Mesroor, therefore, did so: and upon this, the Khaleefeh said to 'Alee the son of El-Faḍl the son of Khákán, Request of me what thou wilt. He replied, O my lord, I have no want of the sovereignty of El-Baṣrah, and desire nothing but to have the honour of serving thee.—Most willingly I assent, said the Khaleefeh:—and he summoned the damsel, and when she had come before him, he bestowed favours upon them both: he gave to them one of the palaces of Baghdád, and assigned to them regular allowances, and made Noor-ed-Deen one of his companions at the table; and he remained with him until death overtook him.