"Volume XV" - читать интересную книгу автора (Burtons Version)

The Six Hundred and Fifty-third Night,

Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Sultan sent one of his Chamberlains to the boy, the apprentice of the barber, whom they sought for and brought into the presence and placed between the royal hands; and he on entering kissed ground and deprecated and prayed for his liege lord with prayers fit for the Caliphs. The Sovran returned his salam and questioned him concerning the Darwaysh who had been with him and he replied, "O King of the Realm, he charged me saying that he was faring for and would be found in such a city." Hereupon the Sultan commanded the lad go forth and bring him, and was answered, "Hearkening and obedience;" so he appointed for him an especial ship and gifted him with various presents and the boy set sail and voyaged for a short while till he reached the port-town in question. Here he landed and made for the city-gate and as he entered it behold, he came face to face with the Darwaysh who was sitting upon a raised bench, and when he beheld him he salam'd to him and told him what had taken place. The Fakir at once arose, and without resisting the lad, went down to the ship and they shook out the sails and the two voyaged together until they reached the city of the Sultan. Here the twain went in to him and kissed ground between his hands and salam'd to him and their greeting was answered. Now as to the lad, the King largessed him largely and raised his degree to Governor and despatched him to one of his provinces therein to rule; [FN#158] but as for the Darwaysh, he remained beside King Dahmar the first day and the second until the seventh; after which quoth the Sovran, "'Tis my desire that thou teach me the art and mystery of making gold;" whereto the other replied, "Hearing and obeying, O our lord the Sultan." Presently the Darwaysh arose; and, bringing a brazier, [FN#159] ranged thereupon the implements of his industry and lighted a fire thereunder; then, fetching a portion of lead and a modicum of tin and a quant. suff. of copper, the whole weighing about a quintal, he fanned the flame that was beneath the crucible until the metal was fluid as water. And while the Sultan was sitting and looking on and considering the operation, the Fakir brought out something from a casket and taking a pinch of it on the ear-picker besprinkled therewith the lead and copper and the tin which presently became virgin gold. He repeated this feat once or twice before the King who after that fell to working as the Religious had wrought and turned out in his presence the purest gold. So the Sultan rejoiced and was wont to sit before the Darwaysh whatever time his heart chose [FN#160] and there and then he gathered together ignoble metals and besprinkled them with the powder [FN#161] which had been given to him by the Fakir and all came out of the noblest gold. Now one night of the nights, as the Sultan was sitting in his Harem and would have worked as he had wrought in the presence of the Darwaysh, nothing went right with him; whereat he was exceedingly sorrowful and said, "I have neither magnified nor minished aught, so how is this case?" [FN#162] As soon as it was morning he forgathered with the Fakir and worked in his presence and produced virgin gold; so in his surprise he said, "Wallбhi, 'tis indeed most marvellous that whatso I work alone cometh not right and when I have wrought in presence of the Darwaysh it succeedeth and turneth to gold." After this the Sultan never transmuted metals save in the presence of the Fakir, until one day of the days when his breast was narrowed and he sought recreation in the gardens. Accordingly he rode forth, he and the Lords of the land, taking also the Darwaysh with him and he went to the riverside, the Monarch preceding and the Mendicant following together with the suite. And as the King rode along with a heavy hand upon the reins he grasped them strongly and his fist closed upon them; but suddenly he relaxed his grip when his seal-ring flew from his little finger and fell into the water, where it sank to the bottom. Seeing this the Sultan drew bridle and halted and said, "We will on no wise remove from this place till such time as my seal-ring shall be restored to me." So the suite dismounted, one and all, and designed plunging into the stream, when behold, the Fakir finding the King standing alone and in woeful plight by cause of his signet asked him saying, "What is to do with thee, O King of the Age, that I find thee here halted?" He replied, "Verily my signet-ring of Kingship [FN#163] hath dropped from me into the river somewhere about this place." Quoth the Darwaysh, "Be not grieved, O our lord;" after which he brought out from his breast pocket a pencase, and having drawn from it a bit of bees' wax, he fashioned it into the form of a man and cast it into the water. Then he stood gazing thereat when, lo and behold! the Figure came forth the river with the seal-ring hanging to its neck and sprang upon the saddle-bow in front of the Sultan. The King would have taken his signet when the Form jumped off and approached the Darwaysh who hent the ring in hand and rubbed it and the Figure at once became wax as it had been. Hereupon the Darwaysh restored it to his pencase and said to the Sovran, "Now do thou ride on!" All this and the Lords of the land sat gazing upon the Darwaysh and what he had done; after which the whole party fared forwards till they reached the gardens, where they dismounted and took seat and fell to conversing together. They enjoyed themselves that day and when evening fell they remounted and sought their homes, and the Darwaysh returned to the apartment which had been set apart for him. But presently the Grandees of the realm forgathered with the Sultan and said to him, "O King of the Age, yon Darwaysh requireth of thee exceeding caution seeing that he, whenso he ever will, availeth to slay everyone in the Palace, and after doing thee die can raise himself to rule in thy stead." "How so?" quoth the King, and quoth they, "In that 'twere easy for him to make Figures of wax and cause them prevail over thee and over us, so that they may kill us and he may succeed thee as Sultan; nor would this be aught of inconvenience to him." Now when the King heard these words he was afeared and cried, "By Allah, sooth ye speak, and this is the right rede and one which may not be blamed indeed!" presently adding, "And how shall we manage with this Darwaysh?" Said they, "Do thou send for him and summon him and slay him forthright; and better 'twere that thou kill him ere he kill thee; [FN#164] and if he say thee 'I will go and return,' suffer him not depart." The Sultan acted after their counsel and sending to fetch the Fakir--And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased saying her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet and tasteful is thy tale, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she, "And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the Sovran suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and that was


The Six Hundred and Fifty-fifth Night,

Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the Sultan sent after the Darwaysh and bade him be brought into the presence and set between his hands, when he said to him, "O Darwaysh, do thou know 'tis mine aim and intention to slay thee: say me then, hast thou any charge thou wouldst send to thy family?" Quoth the Religious, "Wherefore shouldst thou kill me, O our lord, and what of ill deeds hath proceeded from me that thou shouldst destroy me therefor, and do thou make me aware of my sin, and then if I merit death kill me or decree to me banishment." Quoth the King, "There is no help but that I slay thee," [FN#165] and the Darwaysh fell to gentling him but it availed him naught; so as soon as he was certified that the Sultan would not release him or dismiss him, he arose and drew a wide ring upon the ground in noose shape and measuring some fifteen ells, within which he described a lesser circle. Then he stood up before the Sovran and said, "O King of the Age, verily this greater circle is the dominion belonging to thee, whilst the lesser round is mine own realm." So saying he moved from his place and stepped forwards and passing into the smaller ring quoth he, "An thy reign, O King of the Age, be not ample for me I will inhabit my own;" and forthright upon entering the lesser circle he vanished from the view of those present. Cried the Sultan to the Lords of the land, "Seize him"; but they availed not to find him, and after going forth in search they returned and reported that they could light upon no one. Then said the Sovran, "He was beside me in this place and passed into the smaller ring; so do ye seek for him again;" and accordingly they went forth once more but could not see a trace of him. Hereupon the Sultan repented and cried, "There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah the Glorious, the Great: verily we have exceeded in the matter of this Darwaysh and we have hearkened to the words of hypocrites who caused us to fall into trouble by obeying them in all they said to me against him. However, whatso they did to me that will I do unto them." And as soon as it was morning-tide and the Lords of the land forgathered in the Divan, the Sultan commanded to slay those who had counselled him to kill the Darwaysh, and some of them were done to death and others of them were banished the country. [FN#166] Now when the Caliph Harun al-Rashid heard this narrative from Manjab, he wondered with extreme wonderment and said to him, "By Allah, O Manjab, thou deservest to be a cup-companion of the Kings:" so he created him from that moment his Equerry in honour to the Grand Wazir Ja'afar the Barmaki, whereof he had become brother-in-law. Now after some time Al-Rashid asked from Manjab a tale concerning the wiles of womankind, and when the youth hung his head groundwards and blushed before him, Harun said to him, "O Manjab, verily the place of the Kings in privacy is also the place for laying aside gravity." Said Manjab, "O Prince of True Believers, to-morrow night (Inshallah!) I will tell thee a tale in brief concerning the freaks of the gender feminine, and what things they do with their mates." Accordingly when night came on, the Caliph sent for and summoned Manjab to the presence, and when he came there he kissed ground and said, "An it be thy will, O Commander of the Faithful, that I relate thee aught concerning the wiles of wives, let it be in a private place lest haply one of the slave-girls hear me and any of them report my tale to the Queen." Quoth Rashid, "This is the right rede which may not be blamed indeed!" So he went with him to a private place concealed from the folk, and took seat, he and the youth, and none beside, when Manjab related to him the following





 Tale of the Simpleton Husband. [FN#167]



It is related that there was a Badawi man who had a wife and he dwelt under a tent of hair [FN#168] in the desert where, as is the fashion of Arabs, he used to shift from site to site for the purpose of pasturing his camels. Now the woman was of exceeding beauty and comeliness and perfection, and she had a friend (also a Badawi man) who at all times would come to her and have his wicked will of her, after which he would wend his ways. But one day of the days her lover visited her and said, "Wallahi, 'tis not possible but that what time we sleep together, I and thou, we make merry with thy husband looking on."--And Shahrazad was surprised by the dawn of day and fell silent and ceased to say her permitted say. Then quoth her sister Dunyazad, "How sweet is thy story, O sister mine, and how enjoyable and delectable!" Quoth she, "And where is this compared with that I would relate to you on the coming night an the King suffer me to survive?" Now when it was the next night and that was


The Six Hundred and Fifty-sixth Night,

Dunyazad said to her, "Allah upon thee, O my sister, an thou be other than sleepy, finish for us thy tale that we may cut short the watching of this our latter night!" She replied, "With love and good will!" It hath reached me, O auspicious King, the director, the right-guiding, lord of the rede which is benefiting and of deeds fair-seeming and worthy celebrating, that the man which was the friend of the Badawi's wife said to her, "Wallбhi, 'tis not possible but that when we make merry, I and thou, thy husband shall look upon us." Quoth she, "Why should we suffer at such time of our enjoyment either my husband or any wight to be present?" and quoth he, "This must needs be, and unless thou consent I will take to me a mistress other than thyself." Then said she, "How shall we enjoy ourselves with my husband looking on? This is a matter which may not be managed." Hereupon the woman sat down and took thought of her affair and how she should do for an hour or so, and presently she arose and dug her amiddlemost the tent a hole [FN#169] which would contain a man, wherein she concealed her lover. Now, hard by the tent was a tall sycamore tree, [FN#170] and as the noodle her husband was returning from the wild the woman said to him, "Ho thou, Such-an-one! climb up this tree and bring me therefrom a somewhat of figs that we may eat them." Said he, "'Tis well;" and arising he swarmed up the tree-trunk, when she signed to her lover who came out and mounted and fell to riding upon her. But her mate considered her and cried aloud, "What is this, O whore: doth a man cavalcade thee before me and the while I am looking at thee?" Then he came down from the tree in haste, but he saw no one, for as soon as the lover had finished his business the good-wife thrust him into the hole amiddlemost the tent and covered him with a mat. When the husband went inside to the booth and met his wife he found no stranger with her so said she to him, "O man, thou hast sinned against me, saying, 'Verily, some one is riding thee'; and thou hast slandered me by falsely charging me with folly." Quoth he, "By Allah I saw thee with my own eyes;" but quoth she, "Do thou sit here the while I have a look." Hereupon she arose and swarmed up the trunk and sat upon one of the branches, and as she peered at her spouse she shrieked aloud crying, "O man, do thou have some regard for thine honour. Why do on this wise and lie down and allow a man to ride thee, and at this moment he worketh his will on thee." Said her husband, "Beside me there is neither man nor boy." And said she, "Here I am [FN#171] looking at thee from the top of this tree." Quoth he, "O woman, this place must be haunted, [FN#172] so let us remove hence;" and quoth she, "Why change our place? rather let us remain therein." Hereupon the Caliph said to Manjab, "By Allah, verily, this woman was an adulteress;" and the youth replied, "Amongst womankind indeed are many more whorish than this. But of that anon; and now do thou hear from me and learn of me this marvellous tale anent







 NOTE CONCERNING THE "TIRREA BEDE," NIGHT 655.



Scott refers to a tale in the "Bahar-Danush" (Bahбr-i-Dбnish); or, "Garden of Knowledge," translated by himself, story viii. lesson 4; chapter xii. vol. iii. pp. 64-68. Cadell & Co., Strand, London, 1799. Five women come from a town to draw water at a well; and, finding there a young Brahmin, become his teachers and undertake to instruct him in the "Tirrea" or fifth "Veda"--there being only four of these Hindu Scriptures. Each lesson consists of an adventure showing how to cornute a husband, and the fourth runs as follows. I leave them in Scott's language:--

The fourth lady through dread of the arrow of whose cunning the warrior of the fifth heaven [FN#173] trembled in the sky, like the reed, having bestowed her attention on the pilgrim bramin (Brahman), despatched him to an orchard; and having gone home, said to her husband, "I have heard that in the orchard of a certain husbandman there is a date tree, the fruit of which is of remarkably fine flavour; but what is yet stranger, whoever ascends it, sees many wonderful objects. If to-day, going to visit this orchard, we gather dates from this tree, and also see the wonders of it, it will not be unproductive of amusement." In short, she so worked upon her husband with flattering speeches and caresses, that nolens volens he went to the orchard, and at the instigation of his wife, ascended the tree. At this instant she beckoned to the bramin, who was previously seated, expectantly, in a corner of the garden.

The husband, from the top of the tree, beholding what was not fit to be seen, exclaimed in extreme rage, "Ah! thou shameless Russian-born [FN#174] wretch, what abominable action is this?" The wife making not the least answer, the flames of anger seized the mind of the man, and he began to descend from the tree; when the bramin with activity and speed having hurried over the fourth section of the Tirrea Bede, [FN#175] went his way.


VERSE.

The road to repose is that of activity and quickness.

The wife during her husband's descent from the tree having arranged her plan, said, "Surely, man, frenzy must have deprived thy brain of the fumes of sense, that having foolishly set up such a cry, and not reflecting upon thine own disgrace (for here, excepting thyself, what male is present?), thou wouldst fix upon me the charge of infidelity?" The husband, when he saw no person near, was astonished, and said to himself, "Certainly, this vision must have been miraculous."

The completely artful wife, from the hesitation of her husband, guessed the cause, and impudently began to abuse him. Then instantly tying her vest round her waist she ascended the tree. When she had reached the topmost branch, she suddenly cried out, "O thou shameless man, what abominable action is this! If thy evil star hath led thee from the path of virtue, surely thou mightest have in secret ventured upon it. Doubtless to pull down the curtain of modesty from thy eyes, and with such impudence to commit such a wicked deed, is the very extreme of debauchery."