Thousand & One Nights: 72nd Night contd.The Story of Two Viziers

The province of Egypt.

Once, here lived a king. He was kind, generous, trusted, courageous and just. He associated himself with learned. He was sympathetic to poor. He had a wise and experienced vizier. The vizier had two sons. And they were two moons. They were elegant, beautiful and graceful. The elder was Shams al Din Muhammad, and the younger was Nur al Din Ali. The younger was more beautiful than the elder.

When the vizier died the King summoned the sons of vizier and said, "You shall take your father's place and be joint viziers of Egypt."

They kissed the ground before him and withdrew. For a full month they performed the ceremonial mourning of their father.

After the mourning, they assumed their duties; each of them accompanied the king on alternate weeks. When they did not accompanied the king they were in charge of other duties. The two lived in the same house and their word was one.

Both brothers were in their house. It was a night. The elder brother was to set out on a journey tomorrow morning, accompanying the king. The brothers were chatting. The elder, Shams al Din Muhammad said to his brother Nur al Din Ali, "Brother, I wish that you and I would marry two sisters, draw our marriage contract on the same day and go to our wives on the same night."

Nur al Din replied, "Brother, do as you wish, this is an excellent idea, but let us wait till you come back, and with God's blessings we shall seek two girls."

Shams al Din: " Suppose, You and I perform our wedding on the same day and we consummate on the same night, and the wives conceive on the same night, and your wife give birth to a boy and my wife give birth to a girl on the same day, tell me, would you marry your son to my daughter?"

Nur al Din replied, "Yes brother, but what dowry would you require from my son?"

"I will take at least three thousand dinars, three orchards, and three farms in addition to an amount specified in the contract," replied Shams al Din Muhammad.

"Why such an excessive dowry? asked his younger brother. "Are we not brothers? Each of us knows our obligations. It behooves you to offer your daughter to my son without any dowry, for the male is worthier than the female. But you treat me like a man who came to you for help. Very well, I will help you. But wait till tomorrow." This had prompted the other to recite the following verses:

When one postpones the favour for a day, the wise man knows that he has answered "nay."

"Enough of your comments," said Shams al Din Muhammad, "damn you for comparing your son to my daughter, and thinking that he is worthier than she. You say that we are partners in the vizierate, without realising  that I let you share it with me, only in order to spare your feelings. By God, I will never marry my daughter to your son, not even for your weight in gold. Not even if I have to suffer death."

Nur al-Din became very angry when he heard his brother Shams al Din Muhammad. He asked, "Will you not indeed marry your daughter to my son?"

Shams al Din Muhammad: "No, I will never consent to that. He is not worth even a paring of her nail. Were I not on the eve of journey, I would make an example of you, but when I come back, I will show you how I will vindicate my honour."

Anger came to Nur al Din, but he checked it, and kept silent. But his brother sulked, and the two spent the night far apart, each full of wrath against each other.

In the morning, the king went to pyramid, accompanied by Shams al Din Muhammad. When he departed, Nur al Din got up, anger burning within him, opened his treasure chamber, and taking gold only, filled a small saddle bag. His brother's rebuke and insult came to his memory. He thought, "Travel - new friends wil succeed the old, and toil - life's sweets come through it.

Still water turns and sinks

It tastes sweet when flows and runs."

He ordered his page to saddle his Arabian she mule. She was a fine riding animal. With dappled grey skin, sharp reed pen like ears, she stood on her pillar like eggs.

"I am leaving," said Nur al Din to his pages and slaves, "the city on an excursion to Qalyubiya to divert myself a night. Let none of you follow me."

He mounted the she-mule and leaving Cairo entered the desert. At midday he reached the town of Bilbis. Here he dismounted to take rest and food. He had some food and his she mule had some forage. After this he left the town and by nightfall he reached the town of Sa'idiya where he dismounted at a fort station to spend his night. He walked the she mule, seven or eight times, gave her some fodder to eat, had himself some food, spread the carpet he had used as a seat, and placed the saddle bags under his head, lay down to sleep.

In the morning he got the company of a courier, and followed him, stopping wherever the courier stopped. Thus he reached the city of Basra.

At the outskirts of Basra, it happened that the vizier of Basra was also travelling along the same road by which Nur al Din Ali travelled. When the vizier overtook him, he found that the traveller was a young man, handsome and well mannered. He drew near the young man and introduced himself. Then he asked about his situation. Nur al Din introduced himself to the vizier and opened his heart, "I quarreled with my family and pledged myself not to go back until I visit all the countries of the world."

He said: "Oh my son, do not go any further. Most of the regions are waste, and not safe to travel. He took Nur al Din Ali to his home and treated him with kindness and generosity, for he was beginning to feel a great affection towards the young man. "O my son I am a very old man whom God has never blessed with a son. But I have a daughter who is equal in beauty. Wealthy and eminent men have asked for her hand, but I have rejected them all. Since I have affection for you, will you accept my daughter as your wife and maid, and be a husband to her. If you marry her, I will go to the king and tell him that you are like a son to me and I will advance your cause and make you vizier in my place, so that I may be able to stay at home and rest. My son, I am advanced in years, and weary and worn out. You shall be the son to me and shall have control over my possessions and over the vizierate in the province of Basra."

Nur al Din Ali heard the words of vizier, bowed his head a while, and looked up, and said, "I hear and obey."

The vizier was happy, and bade his servants to prepare food and sweets and decorate the large hall used for wedding feasts. He gathered his friends and invited prominent and wealthy men of Basra. When all the guests were assembled, he said, "I have a brother, who is the vizier of Egypt. He has been blessed with a son and I, as you know, has been blessed with a daughter. When his son and my daughter reached the age of marriage, he sent his son to me, and now I would like to draw their marriage contract so that he may consummate his marriage here. After the wedding, I shall prepare him

for the journey and send him back with his wife."

They replied, "This is an excellent idea, and a happy and praiseworthy plan. May God crown your good fortune with happiness and may He keep your course blameless.

The Break of Dawn 

Notes:-

1. The phrase "not worth even a paring of nail is not a well known idiom or phrase. It means that it is of no value. Refer:

For want of nail the shoe was lost 

For want of shoe the horse was lost

For want of horse the rider was lost.

The nail keeps a shoe, the shoe a horse, the horse a man, the man a castle, that can fight.

2. Bilbies is an ancient fortress of Egypt. It is the eastern gate of Egypt.

3. Sa'idiya is not yet identified.