Thousand & One Nights: 54th Night: The Tale of 3rd Dervish - 2

Frame story is told by Shahrazad. This is the second part of the inner story by 3rd Dervish.

I saw the path on the side of the mountain. I hung against the rock and began to climb little by little. The atmosphere was still, and helped me with the ascent. I reached the summit and entered the dome. I prayed. Then I went that part of the dome overlooking the sea. I sat by the curve and fell asleep. "O Ajib, when you are awake dig under your feet. You will find a brass bow, three lead arrows inscribed with talismans. Take the bow and arrow and shoot at horseman to throw him off the horse and rid mankind of this great calamity. When you shoot at him, he will fall into sea, and the horse will drop at your feet. Take the horse and bury it in the place of the bow. When you do this, the sea will swell until it reaches the level of the dome, and there will come to you a skiff carrying a man of brass (a man other than you will have thrown), holding in his hands a pair of paddles. Ride with him, but do not invoke the name of God. He will row you for ten days until he brings you to the Sea of Safety. Once there, you will find those who will convey you to your native land. All this will be fulfilled, provided that you do not invoke the name of God."

When I woke up, I eagerly sprang up to accomplish the deeds I dreamed. I dug up and took the bows and arrows. I shot at the horseman and he fell from the horse into the sea. The horse dropped at my feet. I buried the horse in the pit I dug up. The sea rose and swelled and rose until it came up to me. Soon, the skiff appeared. It was coming towards me. A man of brass, bearing on his breast a lead tablet with talismans. I got into the skiff, and the boatman rowed with me for ten days. I happily caught sight of islands, hills and other signs of safety. It was the Sea of Safety. I praised and glorified God.

The skiff turned upside down, and sank, throwing me into the sea. I swam all day until my shoulders were numb, and my arms began to fail me because of fatigue. Night fell, and I was in the middle of nowhere. I became resigned to drown. A violent gust of wind, and the sea surged. A great hill of wave swept me ashore. I walked a few steps to find dry land, took off my clothes, wrung them and spread on the dry sand and lay asleep.

In the morning I put on my clothes, and began to roam. As I progressed, I found that I was in a small island. On the distant sea a ship was moving towards the island. I could see people moving on its deck. I climbed on a tree and sat on a branch, covered with thick leaves. 

The ship touched the land, and came out ten black men carrying shovels and baskets. They walked on until they reached the middle of the island. Then they began to dig into the ground, and shoveled the earth out until they uncovered a slab. After this they returned to the ship and began to haul out bags of bread and flour, vessels of cooking butter and honey, preserved meat, utensils, carpets, straw mats, couches, and other pieces of furniture - all one needs for setting up a house. They kept going into and coming out through the trapdoor of the slab, until they had transported everything that was in the ship. When they came out of the ship again, there was an old man in their middle. He was very much old, time had ravaged him, reducing him into bone wrapped in blue rag, through which the wind whistled east and west.

The old man held by the hand of a splendid young man, very handsome and pretty. They walked until they reached the trapdoor, went down and gone for a long time. Later, the old man and the black men came out, closed the trapdoor, shoveled the earth back as it was before. They walked towards the ship. This time they did not carry back the shovels. Then they boarded the ship, set sail, and disappeared. 

I came down from the the tree, walked towards the spot, took a shovel, and began to clear the earth. After clearing the earth, I opened the trapdoor. Beneath it I found a millstone, lifted it up, and saw a winding stone staircase. I descended the steps, and reached its foot. I stood myself in a clean whitewashed hall, spread with various kinds of carpets, beddings and silk stuffs. The young man was sitting on a high couch, leaning back on a round cushion, with a fan in his hand. A banquet was set before him, with fruits, flowers and scented herbs. He was all alone.

He saw me, and turned pale and startled. I greeted him, and said, "My lord, be at ease, there is nothing to fear. I am a human being like you, and the son of a king. God has brought me to you to be a company in your loneliness. But tell me what is your story, and what causes you to dwell underground?

The end of Night.





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