Classics Retold

The following night Shahrazad said: King Badr said to his mother, "Mother, nothing remains except that I should marry to unite us all.  Jullanar said, "Son, this is a good idea. But wait, we will see who is a match for you."  His grandmother Farasha, his uncle Sayih and his cousins agreed with mother, and all of them endeavoured to find out a suitable match for king Badr. Then each of them went out to search throughout the world, while Jullanar sent out her waiting women on the backs of demons, saying to them, "Leave not a province, or a city, or a King's palace without noticing every beautiful girl there." When king Badr noted these efforts, he said to his mother, "Mother, stop this, for none will satisfy me."  But morning overtook and Shahrazad lapsed into silence.

The following night Shahrazad said: King Badr dismounted from the she-mule and delivered her to the old woman, who, as soon as she received her, removed the bit from her mouth, took water in her hand, and sprinkled it on the she-mule with some words of incantation, followed by "O my daughter, leave this form and return to your human form."  The queen was at once restored to her original form.  The two women embraced and kissed each other.  King Badr realised that the old woman was queen Lab's mother and that he had been tricked, and he saw the danger lurking behind.  He wanted to escape, but there was not a way.  The old woman gave a loud whistle, and there appeared before her a huge demon. It stood like a huge mountain and its shadow fell over the entire premises.  The old woman mounted on its back, followed by her daughter.  The demon picked king Badr and put him on its shoulder and flew off and landed at the palace of queen Lab. While queen and her ...

The following night Shahrazad said: King Badr said to the queen of Magi, "As long as you love me, nothing will change me towards you, for I love even more than you love me.  Eat of my barley meal." She took a mouthful and ate it. No sooner had it settled down in her stomach than she began to convulse.  King Badr took water in his hand, and threw it in her face, and said, "Leave this form and turn into a dappled mule.  When she saw herself in this condition, tears rolled down her cheeks, and she began to rub her head against his feet. He tried to bridle her; but she would not let him, so he left her and went to the old man and gave an account of the happenings.  The old man took a bridle, saying, "Bridle her with this, for when she sees this, she will submit and let you bridle her.   King Badr took the bridle and returned to the queen.  She came up to him.  He set the bit in her mouth, mounted her, and rode to the old man.  The old man said to...

The following night Shahrazad said: The queen said to Badr, "You love me and I love you, for you are my lot in life." When he heard this, he being drunk, replied, "Yes, this is how I felt." Then she embraced him, kissed him, and pretending to love him, lay down to sleep, and he lay beside her.  In the middle of the night, she rose from bed, while Badr lay awake, pretending to be asleep, and taking care to follow her movement.  She took red sand from a bag and spread it on the floor of the room, and it became a running stream.  Then she took a handful of barley and strewed it in the soil on the bank of the stream and watered it with the water from the stream and turned it into ears of barley. Then, she reaped the barley and ground it into flour. Then she laid the meal aside, and returning to bed, slept beside Badr till the morning.  In the morning Badr went to see the old man. He narrated his experience of previous day to the old man.  The old man laughed and sai...

The following night Shahrazad said: King Badr went to the old favabean seller's shop.  The old man received him happily. The old man asked, how did you fare with that infidel?" King Badr replied, "It was alright till last night.  But today an untoward incident took place.  When I woke up in the morning I did not see her by my side. I waited for a long time, but she did not turn up.  Then I went in search of her to the garden."  Then he told what he had seen in the garden, how queen Lab in the form of a white bird, and a black mamluk as a black bird had been making love.  The old man said, "The cursed woman has started to play games.  You should beware of her. All the birds in the garden are her lovers. She enjoy them and then turn them into birds.  The black bird was one of her Mamluks. She was madly in love with him.  But when he eyed one of her maids, she cast a spell over him and turned him into a bird.  Whenever she lusts for him, sh...

The following night Shahrazad said: Day and night for forty days king Badr and queen Lab lived a life of eating and drinking and pleasure seeking. There was a break on the forty first day.  When Badr woke up, ready for a fun, Lab was not in the bed. Keeping his charge ready, he waited, but she did not come. "Where could she have gone?" He felt lonely, and getting out of bed, put on his clothes and went out into the garden. He came by the bank of a stream. The gurgle of water flowing along the rocky surface caught his attention. He moved close to it. There were two birds, a black one and a white one engaged in courtship rituals.  The black bird fanned his tail, and spread his wings, took off into the air and hoaverd around above the white bird. His serenades, like singing and chirping evoked equal serenades from his beloved, hopping on the boulder in the stream. The black bird flew down and stood on its claws beside the white bird, and it crouched allowing her beloved to mount...

The following night Shahrazad said: The queen gave a cup to Badr who took it and drank it off, and they continued to drink till they began to get drink. Then the girls began to play lutes and harps and they sang songs. Badr thought that the palace and everything in it were dancing to the tune of the girls. Badr forgot his separation from home, and said to himself, "By God, this queen is young and beautiful and I will never leave her. Her kingdom is vaster than mine and she is fairer than Jauhara."  He continued to drink till nightfall, and the palace was lighted with candles, and scent of perfumes and incense spread the entire palace. The girls sang: O what a day we spent under the tree Pleasure and delight, the rivulet  Shining, and the myrtle blue The starry narcissus and roses bright The glittering wine and brimming cup And crackling incense rising in light. They continued to drink while the girls sang.  Then she dismissed the girls, lay on the bed, and drew the young ...