There was once a man who was rich in lands and houses and monies
and goods, eunuchs and slaves, and he died and went to the mercy
of Allah the Most High; leaving a young son, who, when he grew
up, gave himself to feasting and carousing and hearing music and
singing and the loud laughter of parasites; and he wasted his
substance in gifts and prodigality till he had squandered all the
money his father left him, --And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of
day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Eighty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the young
man, when he had squandered all the money his father had left him
and naught thereof remained to him, betook himself to selling his
slaves and handmaids, lands and houses and spent the proceeds on
like wise, till he was reduced to beggary and must needs labour
for his living. He abode thus a year's space, at the end of which
time he was sitting one day under a wall, awaiting who should
hire him when behold, there came up to him an old man of comely
aspect and apparel and saluted him. The young man asked, "O
uncle, hast thou known me aforetime?" and the other answered,
"Not so, O my son, I know thee not at all, at all; but I see the
trace of gentle breeding on thee despite thy present case." "O
uncle, " rejoined the poor man, "needs must Fate and Fortune be
accomplished; but, O uncle, O bright of blee, hast thou any
occasion wherein thou wouldst employ me?" Said the other, "I
wish, O my son, to employ thee in a slight matter." "What is it?"
quoth the young man, and quoth the stranger, "We are eleven old
men in one house, but we have none to serve us; so an thou wilt
stay and take service with us, thou shalt have food and clothing
to thy heart's content, besides what cometh to thee of coin and
other good; and haply Allah will restore thee thy fortune by our
means." Replied the youth, "Hearkening and obedience!" "But I
have a condition to impose on thee." "What is that?" "O my son,
it is that thou keep our secret in what thou seest us do, and if
thou see us weep, that thou question us not of the cause of our
weeping." "It is well, O uncle;" "Come with me, O my son, with
the blessing of Allah Almighty." So he followed him to the bath,
where the old man caused cleanse his body of the crusted dirt,
after which he sent one to fetch a handsome garment of linen and
clad him therein. Then he carried him to his company which was in
his domicile and the youth found a house lofty and spacious and
strongly builded, wherein were sitting-chambers facing one
another; and saloons, in each one a fountain of water, with the
birds warbling over it, and windows on every side, giving upon a
fair garden within the house. The old man brought him into one of
the parlours, which was variegated with many-coloured marbles,
the ceiling thereof being decorated with ultramarine and glowing
gold; and the floor bespread with silken carpets. Here he found
ten Shaykhs in mourning apparel, seated one opposite other,
weeping and wailing. He marvelled at their case and purposed to
ask the reason, when he remembered the condition and held his
peace. Then he who had brought him delivered to him a chest
containing thirty thousand dinars and said to him, "O my son,
spend freely from this chest what is fitting for our
entertainment and thine own; and be thou faithful and remember
that wherewith I charged thee." "I hear and I obey, " answered he
and served them days and nights, till one of them died, whereupon
his fellows washed him and shrouded him and buried him in a
garden behind the house,
[FN#194] nor did death cease to take
them, one after other, till there remained but the Shaykh who had
hired the youth for service. Then the two men, old and young,
dwelt together in that house alone for years and years, nor was
there with them a third save Allah the Most High, till the elder
fell sick; and when the younger despaired of his life, he went up
to him and condoling with him, said, "O nuncle mine, I have
waited upon you twelve years and have not failed of my duties a
single hour, but have been loyal and faithful to you and served
you with my might and main." "Yes, O my son," answered the old
man, "thou hast served us well until all my comrades are gone to
the mercy of Allah (to whom belong honour and glory!) and needs
must I die also." "O my lord," said the other, "thou art in
danger of death and I would fain have thee acquaint me with the
cause of your weeping and wailing and of your unceasing mourning
and lamentation and regrets." "O my son," answered the old man,
"it concerns thee not to know this, so importune me not of what I
may not do: for I have vowed to Almighty Allah that I would
acquaint none of His creatures with this, lest he be afflicted
with what befel me and my comrades. If, then, thou desire to be
delivered from that into which we fell, look thou open not yonder
door, "
[FN#195] and pointed to a certain part of the house; "but,
if thou have a mind to suffer what we have suffered, then open it
and thou shalt learn the cause of that thou hast seen us do; and
whenas thou knowest it, thou shalt repent what time repentance
will avail thee not."--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day
and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Eighty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the
surviving Shaykh of the ten said to the youth, "Beware how thou
open yonder door or thou shalt repent what time repentance will
avail thee not." Then his sickness grew on him and he
accomplished his term and departed life to the presence of his
Lord; and the young man washed him with his own hands and
shrouded him and buried him by the side of his comrades; after
which he abode alone in the place and took possession of
whatsoever was therein. Withal he was uneasy and troubled
concerning the case of the old men, till, one day, as he sat
pondering the words of his dead master and his injunction not to
open the door, he suddenly bethought himself to go and look for
it. So he rose up and repaired to the part whither the dead man
had pointed and sought till, in a dark unfrequented corner, he
found a little door, over which the spider had spun her webs and
which was fastened with four padlocks of steel. Seeing this he
recalled the old man's warning and restrained himself and went
away; and he held aloof from it seven days, whilst all the time
his heart prompted him to open it. On the eighth day his
curiosity got the better of him and he said, "Come what will,
needs must I open the door and see what will happen to me
therefrom. Nothing can avert what is fated and fore-ordained of
Allah the Most High; nor doth aught befal but by His will." So
saying, he rose and broke the padlocks and opening the door saw a
narrow passage, which he followed for some three hours when lo!
he came out on the shore of a vast ocean
[FN#196] and fared on
along the beach, marvelling at this main, whereof he had no
knowledge and turning right and left. Presently, a great eagle
swooped down upon him from the lift and seizing him in its
talons, flew away with him betwixt heaven and earth, till it came
to an island in the midst of the sea, where it cast him down and
flew away. The youth was dazed and knew not whither he should
wend, but after a few days as he sat pondering his case, he
caught sight of the sails of a ship in the middlemost of the
main, as it were a star in the sky; and his heart clave to it, so
haply his deliverance might be therein. He continued gazing at
the ship, until it drew nigh, when he saw that it was a foyst
builded all of ivory and ebony, inlaid with glistening gold made
fast by nails of steel, with oars of sandal and lign-aloes. In it
were ten damsels, high-bosomed maids, as they were moons; and
when they saw him, they came ashore to him and kissed his hands,
saying, "Thou art the King, the Bridegroom!" Then there accosted
him a young lady, as she were the sun shining in sky serene
bearing in hand a silken napkin, wherein were a royal robe and a
crown of gold set with all manner rubies and pearls. She threw
the robe over him and set the crown upon his head, after which
the damsels bore him on their arms to the foyst, where he found
all kinds of silken carpets and hangings of various colours. Then
they spread the sails and stretched out into mid-ocean. Quoth the
young man, "Indeed, when they put to sea with me, meseemed it was
a dream and I knew not whither they were wending with me.
Presently, we drew near to land, and I saw the shore full of
troops none knoweth their number save Allah (extolled and exalted
be He!) and all were magnificently arrayed and clad in complete
steel. As soon as the vessel had made fast to the land, they
brought me five marked
[FN#197] horses of noble breeds, housed and
saddled with gold, inlaid with all manner pearls and high-priced
bezel stones. I chose out one of them and mounted it, whilst they
led the four others before me. Then they raised the banners and
the standards over my head, whilst the troops ranged themselves
right and left, and we set out, with drums beating and cymbals
clashing, and rode on; whilst I debated in myself whether I were
in sleep or on wake; and we never ceased faring, I believing not
in that my estate, but taking all this for the imbroglio of a
dream, till we drew near to the green mead, full of palaces and
gardens and trees and streams and blooms and birds chanting the
praises of Allah the One, the Victorious. Hereupon, behold, an
army sallied out from amid the palaces and gardens, as it were
the torrent when it poureth down,
[FN#198] and the host overflowed
the mead. These troops halted at a little distance from me and
presently there rode forth from amongst them a King, preceded by
some of his chief officers on foot." When he came up to the young
man (saith the tale-teller) he dismounted also, and the two
saluted each other after the goodliest fashion. Then said the
King, "Come with us, for thou art my guest." So they took horse
again and rode on stirrup touching stirrup in great and stately
procession, conversing as they went, till they came to the royal
palace, where they alighted together.--And Shahrazad perceived
the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Ninetieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the two
rode together in stately procession till they entered the palace,
when the King taking the young man by the hand, led him into a
domed room followed by his suite, and making him sit down on a
throne of gold, seated himself beside him. Then he unbound the
swathe from his lower face; and behold, the King was a young
lady, like the splendid sun shining in the sheeny sky, perfect in
beauty and loveliness, brilliancy and grace, arrogance
[FN#199]
and all perfection. The youth looked upon this singular blessing
and embodied boon and was lost in wonder at her charms and
comeliness and seemlihead and at the splendour and affluence he
saw about him, when she said "Know, O King, that I am the Queen
of this land and that all the troops thou hast seen, whether
horse or foot, are women, there is no man amongst them; for in
this our state the men delve and sow and ear and occupy
themselves with the tillage of the earth and the building of
towns and other mechanical crafts and useful arts, whilst the
women govern and fill the great offices of state and bear arms."
At this the youth marvelled with exceeding marvel and, as they
were in discourse, behold, in came the Wazir who was a tall
gray-haired old woman of venerable semblance and majestic aspect,
and it was told him that this was the Minister. Quoth the Queen
to her, "Bring us the Kazi and witnesses." So she went out to do
this, and the Queen, turning to him, conversed with him in
friendly fashion, and enforced herself to reassure his awe of her
and do away his shame with speech blander than the zephyr,
saying, "Art thou content to be to me baron and I to thee feme?"
Thereupon he arose and would have kissed ground between her
hands, but she forbade him and he replied, saying, "O my lady, I
am the least of thy slaves who serve thee." "Seest thou all these
servants and soldiers and riches and hoards and treasures?" asked
she, and he answered, "Yes!" Quoth she, "All these are at thy
commandment to dispose of them and give and bestow as seemeth
good to thee." Then she pointed to a closed door and said, "All
these things are at thy disposal, save yonder door; that shalt
thou not open, and if thou open it thou shalt repent when
repentance will avail thee naught. So beware! and again I say,
beware!" Hardly had she made an end of speaking when the Waziress
entered followed by the Kazii and witnesses, all old women, with
their hair streaming over their shoulders and of reverend and
majestic presence; and the Queen bade them draw up the contract
of marriage between herself and the young man. Accordingly, they
performed the marriage-ceremony and the Queen made a great
bride-feast, to which she bade all the troops; and after they had
eaten and drunken, he went in unto his bride and found her a maid
virginal. So he did away her hymen and abode with her seven years
in all joyance and solace and delight of life, till, one day of
the days, he bethought himself of the forbidden door and said in
himself, "Except there were therein treasures greater and grander
than any I have seen, she had not forbidden me therefrom." So he
rose and opened the door, when, lo! behind it was the very bird
which had brought him from the sea-shore to the island, and it
said to him, "No welcome to a face that shall never prosper!"
When he saw it and heard what it said, he fled from it; but it
followed him and seizing him in its talons, flew with him an
hour's journey betwixt heaven and earth, till it set him down in
the place whence it had first carried him off and flew away. When
he came to his senses, he remembered his late estate, great,
grand and glorious, and the troops which rode before him and his
lordly rule and all the honour and fair fortune he had lost and
fell to weeping and wailing.
[FN#200] He abode two months on the
sea-shore, where the bird had set him down, hoping yet to return
to his wife, till, as he sat one night wakeful, mourning and
musing, behold, he heard one speaking, albeit he saw no one, and
saying, "How great were the delights! Alas, far from thee is the
return of that which is past!" When he heard this, he redoubled
in his regrets and despaired of recovering his wife and his fair
estate that was; so he returned, weary and broken-hearted, to the
house where he had dwelt with the old men and knew that they had
fared even as he and that this was the cause of their shedding
tears and lamenting their lot; wherefore he ever after held them
excused. Then, being overcome with chagrin and concern, he took
to his chamber and gave himself up to mourning and lamentation;
and he ceased not crying and complaining and left eating and
drinking and pleasant scents and merriment; nor did he laugh once
till the day of his death, when they buried him beside the
Shaykhs. "See, then, O King," continued the Wazir "what cometh of
precipitance; verily, it is unpraiseworthy and bequeatheth
repentance; and in this I give thee true advice and loyal
counsel." When the King heard this story, he turned from slaying
his son;--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
saying her permitted say.
When it was the Five Hundred and Ninety-first Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the
King heard this story he turned from slaying his son; but, on the
sixth day, the favourite came in to him hending a naked knife in
hand, and said to him, "Know, O my lord, that except thou hearken
to my complaint and protect thy right and thine honour against
these thy Ministers, who are banded together against me, to do me
wrong, I will kill myself with this knife, and my blood will
testify against thee on the Day of Doom. Indeed, they pretend
that women are full of tricks and malice and perfidy; and they
design thereby to defeat me of my due and hinder the King from
doing me justice; but, behold, I will prove to thee that men are
more perfidious than women by the story of a King among the Kings
and how he gained access to the wife of a certain merchant." "And
what passed between them?" asked the King, and she answered, "I
have heard tell, O august King, a tale of
The King's Son and the Merchant's Wife.
