Thousand & One Nights: 58th Night: Tale of the 3rd Dervish - 6

When the young men finished their expectations, they let me into the the skin sack, sewed me up, and returned to the palace. Soon I felt the white bird approach, and snatching me up with his talons, he flew away with me for while, and set me down on the mountain. I ripped the skin open, and came out, and when the bird saw me, he flew away. I proceeded immediately to walk until I reached the palace, and found it to be exactly as they had described it. The door opened and I entered into a spacious open hall as large as a playground. Around the hall were forty chambers, and their doors were made of sandal wood and aloewood. Their handles were made of gold and silver. At the far end of the hall stood forty girls, sumptuously dressed, and lavishly adorned. They were forty little moons.

The little moons waived at me, and greeted me in one voice, "O lord, welcome! Good cheer to you! We have been expecting you for months. Praise be God who has sent us one who is worthy of us. Then they raced towards me, raised me and then put me on a high couch. "You are our lord and master and we are your maids and servants.

I was marvelling at them. Some of them rose and set food for me. Others washed my hands and feet with warm water. They changed my clothes, some of them fixed juice and gave me to drink. They all gathering around me. Then they sat to chat with me till nightfall.

The End of the Night 

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