The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 8 - Sir Richard Francis Burton (best e reader for epub .TXT) 📗

won my wish.” So the skipper sang out to the sailors, saying, “Weigh anchor and set sail!” And the ship put out to sea with a fair wind. So far concerning the Persian; but as regards Hasan’s mother, she awaited him till supper-time but heard neither sound nor news of him; so she went to the house and finding it thrown open, entered and saw none therein and missed the two chests and their valuables; wherefore she knew that her son was lost and that doom had overtaken him; and she buffeted her face and rent her raiment crying out and wailing and saying, “Alas, my son, ah! Alas, the fruit of my vitals, ah!” And she recited these couplets, “My patience fails me and grows anxiety; * And with your absence growth of grief I see.

By Allah, Patience went what time ye went! * Loss of all Hope how suffer patiently?

When lost my loved one how can’ joy I sleep? * Who shall enjoy such life of low degree?

Thou ‘rt gone and, desolating house and home, * Hast fouled the fount erst flowed from foulness free: Thou wast my fame, my grace ‘mid folk, my stay; * Mine aid wast thou in all adversity!

Perish the day, when from mine eyes they bore * My friend, till sight I thy return to me!”

 

And she ceased not to weep and wail till the dawn, when the neighbours came in to her and asked her of her son, and she told them what had befallen him with the Persian, assured that she should never, never see him again. Then she went round about the house, weeping, and wending she espied two lines written upon the wall; so she sent for a scholar, who read them to her; and they were these,

 

“Leyla’s phantom came by night, when drowsiness had overcome me, towards morning while my companions were sleeping in the desert,

But when we awoke to behold the nightly phantom, I saw the air vacant and the place of visitation was distant.”[FN#23]

 

When Hasan’s mother heard these lines, she shrieked and said, “Yes, O my son! Indeed, the house is desolate and the visitation-place is distant!” Then the neighbours took leave of her and after they had prayed that she might be vouchsafed patience and speedy reunion with her son, went away; but she ceased not to weep all watches of the night and tides of the day and she built amiddlemost the house a tomb whereon she let write Hasan’s name and the date of his loss, and thenceforward she quitted it not, but made a habit of incessantly biding thereby night and day. Such was her case; but touching her son Hasan and the Ajami, this Persian was a Magian, who hated Moslems with exceeding hatred and destroyed all who fell into his power. He was a lewd and filthy villain, a hankerer after alchemy, an astrologer and a hunter of hidden hoards, such an one as he of whom quoth the poet,

 

“A dog, dog-fathered, by dog-grandsire bred; * No good in dog from dog race issued:

E’en for a gnat no resting-place gives he * Who is composed of seed by all men shed.”[FN#24]

 

The name of this accursed was Bahr�m the Guebre, and he was wont, every year, to take a Moslem and cut his throat for his own purposes. So, when he had carried out his plot against Hasan the goldsmith, they sailed on from dawn till dark, when the ship made fast to the shore for the night, and at sunrise, when they set sail again, Bahram bade his black slaves and white servants bring him the chest wherein were Hasan. They did so, and he opened it and taking out the young man, made him sniff up vinegar and blew a powder into his nostrils. Hasan sneezed and vomited the Bhang; then, opening his eyes, he looked about him right and left and found himself amiddleward the sea on aboard a ship in full sail, and saw the Persian sitting by him; wherefore he knew that the accursed Magian had put a cheat on him and that he had fallen into the very peril against which his mother had warned him. So he spake the saying which shall never shame the sayer, to wit, “There is no Majesty and there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great! Verity, we are Allah’s and unto Him we are returning! O my God, be Thou gracious to me in Thine appointment and give me patience to endure this Thine affliction, O Lord of the three Worlds!” Then he turned to the Persian and bespoke him softly, saying, “O my father, what fashion is this and where is the covenant of bread and salt and the oath thou swarest to me?”[FN#25] But Bahram stared at him and replied, “O dog, knoweth the like of me bond of bread and salt? I have slain of youths like thee a thousand, save one, and thou shalt make up the thousand.” And he cried out at him and Hasan was silent, knowing that the Fate-shaft had shot him.—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

 

When it was the Seven Hundred and Eighty-second Night, She resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Hasan beheld himself fallen into the hands of the damned Persian he bespoke him softly but gained naught thereby for the Ajami cried out at him in wrath, so he was silent, knowing that the Fate-shaft had shot him. Then the accursed bade loose his pinion-bonds and they gave him a little water to drink, whilst the Magian laughed and said, “By the virtue of the Fire and the Light and the Shade and the Heat, methought not thou wouldst fall into my nets! But the Fire empowered me over thee and helped me to lay hold upon thee, that I might win my wish and return and make thee a sacrifice, to her[FN#26] so she may accept of me.”

Quoth Hasan, “Thou hast foully betrayed bread and salt”; whereupon the Magus raised his hand and dealt him such a buffet that he fell and, biting the deck with his fore-teeth, swooned away, whilst the tears trickled down his cheeks. Then the Guebre bade his servants light him a fire and Hasan said, “What wilt thou do with it?” Replied the Magian, “This is the Fire, lady of light and sparkles bright! This it is I worship, and if thou wilt worship her even as I, verily I will give thee half my monies and marry thee to my maiden daughter.” Thereupon Hasan cried angrily at him, “Woe to thee! Thou art a miscreant Magian who to Fire dost pray in lieu of the King of Omnipotent sway, Creator of Night and Day; and this is naught but a calamity among creeds!” At this the Magian was wroth and said to him, “Wilt thou not then conform with me, O dog of the Arabs, and enter my faith?” But Hasan consented not to this: so the accursed Guebre arose and prostrating himself to the fire, bade his pages throw him flat on his face. They did so, and he beat him with a hide whip of plaited thongs[FN#27] till his flanks were laid open, whilst he cried aloud for aid but none aided him, and besought protection, but none protected him. Then he raised his eyes to the All-powerful King and sought of Him succour in the name of the Chosen Prophet. And indeed patience failed him; his tears ran down his cheeks, like rain, and he repeated these couplets twain,

 

“In patience, O my God, Thy doom forecast * I’ll bear, an thereby come Thy grace at last:

They’ve dealt us wrong, transgressed and ordered ill; * Haply Thy Grace shall pardon what is past.”

 

Then the Magian bade his negro-slaves raise him to a sitting posture and bring him somewhat of meat and drink. So they sat food before him; but he consented not to eat or drink; and Bahram ceased not to torment him day and night during the whole voyage, whilst Hasan took patience and humbled himself in supplication before Almighty Allah to whom belong Honour and Glory; whereby the Guebre’s heart was hardened against him. They ceased not to sail the sea three months, during which time Hasan was continually tortured till Allah Almighty sent forth upon them a foul wind and the sea grew black and rose against the ship, by reason of the fierce gale; whereupon quoth the captain and crew,[FN#28] “By Allah, this is all on account of yonder youth, who hath been these three months in torture with this Magian.

Indeed, this is not allowed of God the Most High.” Then they rose against the Magian and slew his servants and all who were with him; which when he saw, he made sure of death and feared for himself. So he loosed Hasan from his bonds and pulling off the ragged clothes the youth had on, clad him in others; and made excuses to him and promised to teach him the craft and restore him to his native land, saying, “O my son, return me not evil for that I have done with thee.” Quoth Hasan, “How can I ever rely upon thee again?”; and quoth Bahram, “O my son, but for sin, there were no pardon. Indeed, I did all these doings with thee, but to try thy patience, and thou knowest that the case is altogether in the hands of Allah.” So the crew and captain rejoiced in Hasan’s release, and he called down blessings on them and praised the Almighty and thanked Him. With this the wind was stilled and the sky cleared and with a fair breeze they continued their voyage. Then said Hasan to Bahram, “O Master,[FN#29]

whither wendest thou?” Replied the Magian, “O, my son, I am bound for the Mountain of Clouds, where is the Elixir which we use in alchemy.” And the Guebre swore to him by the Fire and the Light that he had no longer any cause to fear him. So Hasan’s heart was set at ease and rejoicing at the Persian’s words, he continued to eat and drink and sleep with the Magian, who clad him in his own raiment. They ceased not sailing on other three months, when the ship came to anchor off a long shoreline of many coloured pebbles, white and yellow and sky-blue and black and every other hue, and the Magian sprang up and said, “O Hasan, come, let us go ashore for we have reached the place of our wish and will.” So Hasan rose and landed with Bahram, after the Persian had commended his goods to the captain’s care. They walked on inland, till they were far enough from the ship to be out of sight, when Bahram sat down and taking from his pocket a kettledrum[FN#30] of copper and a silken strap, worked in gold with characts, beat the drum with the strap, until there arose a cloud of dust from the further side of the waste. Hasan marvelled at the Magian’s doings and was afraid of him: he repented of having come ashore with him and his colour changed.

But Bahram looked at him and said, “What aileth thee, O my son?

By the truth of the Fire and the Light, thou hast naught to fear from me; and, were it not that my wish may never be won save by thy means, I had not brought thee ashore. So rejoice in all good; for yonder cloud of dust is the dust of somewhat we will mount and which will aid us to cut across this wold and make easy to us the hardships thereof.”—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her