Arabian Nights: 256th Night: Jullanar of the Sea - 27
The following night Shahrazad said:
The queen told the King that the bird was king Badr, the king of Persia, that his mother was Jullanar of the sea, his uncle Sayih and his grandmother Farasha, and that he had been cast under spell by princess Jauhara the daughter of King al-Shamandal. Then she told him the story from beginning to end, how he had demanded Jauhara in marriage from her father, how her father had refused, how his uncle Sayih had fought al-Shamandal, defeated him, taken him prisoner.
When the king heard the story, he was amazed and said to his wife, who was the greatest sorceress of the day, said, "For my sake, deliver him from the spell and do not leave him to suffer in this condition. May God cut off the hand of that harlot Jauhara. How little is her mercy, and how great is her perfidy!"
His wife said, "O king, say to him, 'king Badr, enter the room.'" The king did say what the queen said, and the bird entered the room, adjacent to the dining parlour. The queen covered herself with a cloak, veiled her face, and taking in her hands a bowl of water, entered the room. She pronounced over the water some words, that none could understand, sprinkled the water on the bird, saying, "By the power of these mighty names and solemn and holy oaths, and by the Almighty God, creater of heaven and earth, who allocates livelihood, allots the day of life, and resurrects the dead, leave your form as a bird, and return to that in which God created you." Hardly had she finished, the bird shook violently, and became a man, and the king saw before him a handsome young man, the loveliest of the man on earth.
Badr looked at himself, and said, "Glory be to God, the Creator of all creatures and the Master of their destiny!" Then he kissed the king's hands and feet and said to him, "May God reward you for this!" The king kissed his head and said to him, "King Badr, tell me your story from beginning to the end. The young man told him the entire story, and the king was very much amazed.
He asked, "What are you going to do now?"
Badr replied, "O king of the age, "I ask of your bounty a ship with a company of servants and other necessities to convey me and to my home and Kingdom, I have been absent for a long time from my mother and relatives and subjects, and I fear if delay further, I will lose my kingdom. Further, I fear my mother may be in danger because of my absence. She may die of grief, worrying over my absence. She doesn't know whether I am live or dead. My lord the king has......
But morning overtook and Shahrazad lapsed into silence.
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