Classics Retold

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that Nur al-Din took out a paper purse containing thirty dinars, which were the remainder of the money the Chamberlain had given him before he fled, and said to the Caliph, "O fisherman, excuse me, for this is all I have.  I would have given you more if I had not spent all my inheritance. I would have done away with the bitterness of poverty. It is there in all of us. Take this as a token of my goodwill."  Then he threw the money to the Caliph, who caught it, and kissing it, put away. The Caliph said, "My lord, you have rewarded me handsomely, but I would like you to do me one more favour, and let the young lady sing for me." Nur al-Din said, "O Anis al Jalis, sing a beautiful song for the sake of this fisherman."  Anis al Jalis took the lute, tuned it and played it accompanied by the following verses: Fair fingers caressed the string Ravished the soul with dulcet lute Her singing cured the very de...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that the fisherman happened to look back and suddenly saw the Caliph.  His when body began to tremble and he said, "O Commander of the Faithful, I did not do this because, I took your commandment lightly, but because of my poverty and need drove me to do it."  The Caliph said, "Do not be afraid, cast the net for me." The fisherman cast the net.  When he pulled it up he found in it various kinds of fish.  The Caliph was pleased, and said, "Pick out the salmon, and clean them."  The fisherman did as he bade.  The Caliph said, "Take off your clothes," and the fisherman took a robe sewen in ninety patches and a turban.  The Caliph took the fisherman's clothes and put them on, saying to him,  "Put on my clothes."  The fisherman did so.  Then the Caliph veiled his face, and said to the the fisherman, "Go on your business."  Then, he took a clean basket and covered the bo...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King that Anis al Jalis replied, "If you had some musical instruments our joy would be complete." The old man said, "I do." And he rose to his feet.  The Caliph asked Ja'far, "what is he going to bring?" Ja'far replied, "O Commander of the Faithful, I do not know." The old man went out and soon returned with a lute.  When the Caliph saw the lute, he recognised it as one belonging to Ishak al Nadim and said to vizier, "Ja'far, this girl is going to play lute.  By the tomb of my father and forefathers, if she sings well, I will pardon them and hang you, but if she sings badly, I will hang you all."  Ja'far replied, " O God, let her sing badly!" The Caliph asked him, "Why so?" Ja'far replied, "Because of you hang us together, we will entertain each other."  The Caliph laughed.  The girl tuned the lute and began to play a melancholy so wel...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that the Caliph said to Ja'far, I will meet the pious men assembled at the function of circumcision of Ibrahim's sons at Palace of statues. Ja'far the vizier said, "It is very late and the gathering may be over now." "I must go," said the Caliph.  Ja'far was perplexed, and did not know what to do. The Caliph, and Ja'far accompanied by Masrur the eunuch left the palace disguised as merchants. They went through the streets of Baghdad and reached the Garden of Delight.  The Caliph went up to the gate and was surprised to find it opened. He said to his vizier, "O Ja'far, Shaikh Ibrahim has left the gate open to this hour. It is unusual for him." They entered and crossed the garden, and stood before the palace.  Caliph said to his vizier, "Ja'far, let us watch them secretly."  Then he looked around and saw a tall tree. Its branches come near up to one of the windows...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that the girl filled the fourth cup and gave it to the old man, and he was about to drink it when Nur al-Din sat up and said, "Shaikh, what is this?" Did I not invite you to drink?  But you refused, saying, 'I have forsworn drinking.' The old man who was embarassed, replied, "It is not my fault."  Nur al-Din laughed and they resumed drinking. Then Anis al Jalis whispered to Nur al-Din, "Drink, but don't entreat him to drink, I will show you what he will do." When the two of them began to drink and sat by themselves, the old man looked at them and asked, "What is this?  Why do you give me nothing to drink?" They burst out laughing, then they drank and gave him to drink, well into the night.  When half of the night was gone, the girl said, "I will go and light one of these candles."  The old man said, "Do, but light only one."  But she went and lighted all ca...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that Shaikh Ibrahim said, "Take out what you need."  Nur al-Din opened all store rooms and cupboards, and took out  whatever he needed and desired, while the old man brought them all fruits and flowers.  Anil al Jalis proceeded to prepare the table, and arranging the cups and beakers and the gold and silver utensils of all shapes, and the nuts and fruits,  and when everything was ready, they sat to carouse and drink.  Nur al-Din filled a cup, and turning to Anis al Jalis said, "Our journey has proved most fortunate by coming to this garden," and recited the following verses: O what a lovely and a perfect day What charm, what joy, what bliss My right hand holds the cup, left  The moon.  Why heed the one who Censures me for doing this? Then he drank with Anis al Jalis until nightfall.  The old man returned to see if they wanted anything else.  He stood at the door and said, "By God, my ...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, when Nur al-Din looked at the beautiful garden it pleased him and delighted.  It reminded him of the days he used to spend with his friends.  He turned to the old man and said, "Shaik, what is your name?" He replied, "My name is Ibrahim." Nur al-Din: "This is a beautiful garden. May the Almighty bless you with it.  Shaik Ibrahim you have been very kind to invite us.  We cannot make any demand to you.  Take this two dinars and get us some bread and meat and the like." Ibrahim was very glad to take the money offered to him.  He thought: "They will not eat more than two dirhams, and I will keep the rest." Then the old man went out and returned with enough food.  In the meantime, Nur al-Din and his girl went and  walked around enjoying the garden.  They came to the Palace of statues, where Caliph used to come and spend his time when he is depressed.  They enjoyed its beauty and state...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that Nur al-Din saw the Captain standing in the middle of the ship, saying, "O merchants, has anyone of you anything else to do in the city?  Think whether you have forgotten anything." "O captain we have nothing else to do," came the answer. Nur al-Din Ali and Anis al Jalis got on board of the ship, and came to understand that the ship was going to Baghdad. Meanwhile, in the home city of Nur al-Din Ali, the Mamluks came in search of them, and they searched throughly the house of Nur al-Din Ali, then demolished it to rubble.  Then, they returned to the king, and informed of what they had done. The king said, "Search him everywhere, and bring him to me." He bestowed upon the vizier a rob of honour, and sent him home with comforting words.  Then the king issued a proclamation against Nur al-Din Ali, and the criers proclaimed throughout the city, "O you people, it is the will of King Muhammad ibn...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that the vizier al-Mu'in ibn-Sawi said to the king, "Nur al-Din looked at me and said, 'Wretched old man, I will sell her to a Christian or a Jew rather than to you.' I replied, "Is this how you reward our lord, the king for helping your father and myself thriving under his blessing?" When he heard this, he rose, and pulling me off my horse he began to beat me until he left me in this condition.  All this happened to me solely because I strove to be true to you." Then the vizier threw himself on the ground and lay there, weeping, trembling, and pretending to swoon.  When the king saw the vizier's condition and heard his story the veins of his eyes bulged with anger and he turned to the officers of the state, and seeing forty armed guards standing on duty, said to them, "Go to ibn-Khaqan's house and sack it and raze it; then bind him and drag him with the girl on their faces until you...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard O happy King, that Shaikh Ibrahim, the keeper of garden, waited patiently until one day the Caliph came and informed him about the situation.  The Caliph said to him, "Whomever you find at the garden gate, do with him as you wish." Shaikh Ibrahim went out on some business in the city on the very day of Nur al-Din Ali's arrival.  When he returned, he found two people covered with a cloak sleeping on a bench beside the gate.  He said to himself, "By God, this is fine!  Don't these two know that the Caliph has given me permission to kill anyone I catch here?  I will make an example of them, so that none may come near the gate in the future."  He went into the garden, and cutting a palm stick, came out, and raised his arm until his armpit showed, and he was about to fall on them with heavy blows, when he considered and said to himself, "Ibrahim, you are about to beat these two, who may be strangers or travelers, w...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that Nur al-Din Ali slapped Anis al Jalis and said, "Damn you, see how I have brought you down to the market as I had sworn.  Go back home and see to it that you don't repeat your bad habits. Woe to you, do I need the money by selling you? The furniture of my house would fetch many times of your value." The vizier witnessed this scene, and he responded, "Damn you, have you anything left for a single dinar or dirham?" He advanced to hit Nur al-Din Ali. The latter turned to the merchants, brokers, shopkeepers and bystanders all of whom loved him, and said to them, "Were it not for you, I would have killed him."  They all responded with the same signal, meaning, "Do with him what you want.  None of us will step in between you.  Nur al-Din was a stout young man.  He seized the vizier, and pulling him off his saddle, threw him to the ground.  He fell into a mudhole, and his rival fell upon him,...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that the broker cried out, "O merchants, O men of wealth, not every round thing a walnut nor every long thing a banana; not every red thing meat nor every white thing fat.  O merchants I have here this unique pearl.  What will you pay for her and what is your opening bid.  One of them cried out, "Four thousand dinars," and the broker opened the bidding at four thousand dinars, but while he was calling for bids, the vizier al Mu'in ibn-Sawi happened to pass through the market, and seeing Nur al-Din standing in a corner said to himself, "I wonder what ibn-Khaqan is doing here.  Has his good for nothing anything left to buy the girls with?"  Then he looked around and seeing the broker in the middle of the market, surrounded by merchants, said to himself, "If I am not mistaken, I think that Nur al-Din has become penniless and has brought Anis al Jalis down to the market to auction her off.  O how s...

The following night Shahrazad said: I heard, O happy King, that Nur al-Din said to himself, "Though this fellow is a bastard who had turned me away, another may not be so." Then he went to the second door. He knocked the door.  The maid came out.  Nur al-Din repeated what he said to the first girl. She disappeared, then returned saying, "Sir, he ain't here."  Nur al-Din said to himself, "May be I find another who will help me."  So he went to the third door.  But, he too, turned him out.  Now he regretted coming and recited the following verses: When affluent I was a tree, round  Which people collected and picked  Fruits.  When the fruit is gone, and  The leaves are fallen, they turn away  And leave tree to wither and perish. Nur al-Din Ali returned to Anis al Jalis, feeling more depressed than before. "My lord, Do you believe me now?" she said. He replied, "Not one of them take any notice of me." She said, "My lord, sell some ...