Thousand & One Nights: 57th Night: Tale of 3rd Dervish - 5

This is the story told by the third dervish at Baghdad house in the presence of three beautiful and independent girls. This is an inner story sandwiched in the frame story of Shahrazad, the beautiful and learned daughter of vizier of King Shahriar. Her stories are directed to expose some myths created by kings of city states, a universal phenomenon in the path of civilization. City states were prominent in ancient Greece, Mesopotamia and India. This is the fifth part of the story by third dervish. The structure of the stories accommodates the manoeuvres of the ancient story tellers.

Fifth part of the story:

My lady, for a month after the death of the young man, I lived on the island. My days, I spent in the open and the night in the underground house. The sea on the west was receding slowly. Later dry land appeared. I waded through the shallow water, and reached the dry land.

In the distance I saw smoke rising into the sky. As I advanced, I saw the fire, a sign of life and village. When I drew near, I found that what I thought fire was in fact copper plates of the roof of a palace. The thought of rest took me towards the palace, but I saw ten neatly dressed yong men accompanied by an old man. The young men were blind in their right eye. They greeted me happily. They asked me about myself and I told them my story of misfortunes. They took me to their palace.

A hall, ranged around it ten couches, each with blue bed and blue coverlet, and smaller couch in the middle covered in blue. Each young man took his seat on a couch, and the old man seated himself on the smaller coach in the middle.

"Young man," said the old man to me, "Sit down on the floor and do not enquire about our situation or the loss of our eyes." Then he rose, and set his food before him. Each of the young man rose and set his food before him, and one of them set the food before me, on the floor.

After food there was wine. They sat to carouse and ask me about my extraordinary adventures, and I told them my tale. Then the young men said to the old man, "Old man, will you give us our due, for it is time to go to bed?" 

The old man rose, entered a chamber, and came back, carrying on his head ten trays, each covered with a blue cover. He set a tray before each young man, and lightning ten candles, stuck one on each tray. Then he drew off the covers, and there appeared on each tray nothing but ashes, powdered charcoal and kettle soot. Then rolling up their sleeves, every young man blackened his face and smeared his clothes with soot and ashes, beat his breast and face, and wept and wailed, crying out again and again, "We would be sitting pretty but, for our curiosity." They carried on like this until it was close to sunrise. The old man rose, and heated some some water for them, and the young men ran, washed themselves, and put on clothes.

O my lady, when I saw that, I was filled with bewilderment and curiosity. Unable to remain silent, I asked them, "What is the cause of this strange behaviour, there must be some reason for this mad antics. Please tell me your story."

They turned to me and said, "Young man, let not your youth and our behaviour deceive you. It is better for you not to ask." Then they laid out some food and we began to eat. My heart was still on fire and I burned with curiosity. The strange antics of the young men with ashes, powdered charcoal and kettle soot repeated past midnight. I stayed with them for a full month and the midnight ritual repeated throughout. My curiosity and and anxiety went on increasing that I could not eat and drink. One night I told them, "Young men, let me relieve myself the sight of your routine ritual. Better for me to see you not. The eyes see not, the heart grieves not." 

They said, "Young man, we have kept it a secret out of pity for you, so that you would not suffer what we have suffered." But I persisted. 

They said to me, "Listen to our advice. You will be one-eyed like us."
"I must know the secret," said I.

They fetched a ram, slaughtered it, skinned it, made the skin into a sack. They said, "Take this knife and get into the sack, and we shall sew you up in it. Then we shall go away and leave you alone. Soon a bird called Rukh, the phoenix, will pick you up with his talons. You will feel when he set down on a mountain, and move away from you. When you feel that the bird has put you on the mountain, rip open the sack with the knife, and come out. When the bird sees you, he will fly away. Proceed immediately and walk half a day, and you will see a towering palace, built with sandal and aloewood, and covered with plates of red gold, studded with emaralds and all kinds of precious stones. Enter the palace. That is our secret."

End of the Night











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