The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 6 by Sir Richard Francis Burton (best novels for students txt) 📖

I reigned in glory conquering many kings; * And peoples feared my mischief every one.

Yea, tribes and armies in my hand I saw; * The world all dreaded me, both friends and fone.

When I took horse, I viewed my numbered troops, * Bridles on neighing steeds a million.

And I had wealth that none could tell or count, Against misfortune treasuring all I won; Fain had I bought my life with all my wealth, And for a moment’s space my death to shun; But God would naught save what His purpose willed; * So from my brethren cut I ‘bode alone:

And Death, that sunders man, exchanged my lot * To pauper hut from grandeur’s mansion

When found I all mine actions gone and past * Wherefor I’m pledged[FN#120] and by my sin undone.

Then fear, O man, who by a brink dost range, * The turns of Fortune and the chance of Change.”

The Emir Musa was hurt to his heart and loathed his life for what he saw of the slaughtering-places of the folk; and, as they went about the highways and byeways of the palace, viewing its sitting-chambers and pleasaunces, behold they came upon a table of yellow onyx, upborne on four feet of juniper-wood,[FN#121] and thereon these words graven, “At this table have eaten a thousand kings blind of the right eye and a thousand blind of the left and yet other thousand sound of both eyes, all of whom have departed the world and have taken up their sojourn in the tombs and the catacombs.” All this the Emir wrote down and left the palace, carrying off with him naught save the table aforesaid. Then he fared on with his host three days’ space, under the guidance of the Shaykh Abd al-Samad, till they came to a high hill, whereon stood a horseman of brass. In his hand he held a lance with a broad head, in brightness like blinding leven, whereon was graven, “O thou that comest unto me, if thou know not the way to the City of Brass, rub the hand of this rider and he will turn round and presently stop. Then take the direction whereto he faceth and fare fearless, for it will bring thee, without hardship, to the city aforesaid.”—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Five Hundred and Seventieth Night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Emir Musa rubbed the horseman’s hand he revolved like the dazzling lightning, and stopped facing in a direction other than that wherein they were journeying. So they took the road to which he pointed (which was the right way) and, finding it a beaten track, fared on through their days and nights till they had covered a wide tract of country. Then they came upon a pillar of black stone like a furnace chimney wherein was one sunken up to his armpits. He had two great wings and four arms, two of them like the arms of the sons of Adam and other two as they were lion’s paws, with claws of iron, and he was black and tall and frightful of aspect, with hair like horses’ tails and eyes like blazing coals, slit upright in his face. Moreover, he had in the middle of his forehead a third eye, as it were that of a lynx, from which flew sparks of fire, and he cried out saying, “Glory to my Lord, who hath adjudged unto me this grievous torment and sore punishment until the Day of Doom!” When the folk saw him, they lost their reason for affright and turned to flee; so the Emir Musa asked the Shaykh Abd al-Samad, “What is this?”; and he answered, “I know not.” Whereupon quoth Musa, “Draw near and question him of his condition; haply he will discover to thee his case.” “Allah assain thee, Emir! Indeed, I am afraid of him;”

replied the Shaykh; but the Emir rejoined, saying, “Fear not; he is hindered from thee and from all others by that wherein he is.”

So Abd al-Samad drew near to the pillar and said to him which was therein, “O creature, what is thy name and what art thou and how camest thou here in this fashion?” “I am an Ifrit of the Jinn,”

replied he, “by name D�hish, son of Al-A’amash,[FN#122] and am confined here by the All-might, prisoned here by the Providence and punished by the judgement of Allah, till it pleases Him, to whom belong Might and Majesty, to release me.” Then said Musa, “Ask him why he is in durance of this column?” So the Shaykh asked him of this, and the Ifrit replied, saying, “Verily my tale is wondrous and my case marvellous, and it is this. One of the sons of Iblis had an idol of red carnelian, whereof I was guardian, and there served it a King of the Kings of the sea, a Prince of puissant power and prow of prowess, over-ruling a thousand thousand warriors of the Jann who smote with swords before him and answered his summons in time of need. All these were under my commandment and obeyed my behest, being each and every rebels against Solomon, son of David, on whom be peace! And I used to enter the belly of the idol and thence bid and forbid them. Now this King’s daughter loved the idol and was frequent in prostration to it and assiduous in its service; and she was the fairest woman of her day, accomplished in beauty and loveliness, elegance and grace. She was described unto Solomon and he sent to her father, saying, �Give me thy daughter to wife and break shine idol of carnelian and testify saying, There is no god but the God and Solomon is the Prophet of Allah!’ an thou do this, our due shall be thy due and thy debt shall be our debt, but, if thou refuse, make ready to answer the summons of the Lord and don thy grave-gear, for I will come upon thee with an irresistible host, which shall fill the waste places of earth and make thee as yesterday that is passed away and hath no return for aye.’ When this message reached the King, he waxed insolent and rebellious, pride-full and contumacious and he cried to his Wazirs, �What say ye of this? Know ye that Solomon son of David hath sent requiring me to give him my daughter to wife, and break my idol of carnelian and enter his faith!’ And they replied, �O mighty King, how shall Solomon do thus with thee? Even could he come at thee in the midst of this vast ocean, he could not prevail against thee, for the Marids of the Jann will fight on thy side and thou wilt ask succour of shine idol whom thou servest, and he will help thee and give thee victory over him. So thou wouldst do well to consult on this matter thy Lord,’ (meaning the idol aforesaid) �and hear what he saith. If he say, Fight him, fight him, and if not, not.’ So the King went in without stay or delay to his idol and offered up sacrifices and slaughtered victims; after which he fell down before him, prostrate and weeping, and repeated these verses,

�O my Lord, well I weet thy puissant hand: * Sulaym�n would break thee and see thee bann’d.

O my Lord, to crave succour here I stand * Command and I bow to thy high command!’

Then I” (continued the Ifrit addressing the Shaykh and those about him), “of my ignorance and want of wit and recklessness of the commandment of Solomon and lack of knowledge anent his power, entered the belly of the idol and made answer as follows.

�As for me, of him I feel naught affright, * For my lore and my wisdom are infinite:

If he wish for warfare I’ll show him fight * And out of his body I’ll tear his sprite!’

When the King heard my boastful reply, he hardened his heart and resolved to wage war upon the Prophet and to offer him battle; wherefore he beat the messenger with a grievous beating and returned a foul answer to Solomon, threatening him and saying, �Of a truth, thy soul hath suggested to thee a vain thing; dost thou menace me with mendacious words? But gird thyself for battle; for, an thou come not to me, I will assuredly come to thee.’ So the messenger returned to Solomon and told him all that had passed and whatso had befallen him, which when the Prophet heard, he raged like Doomsday and addressed himself to the fray and levied armies of men and Jann and birds and reptiles. He commanded his Wazir Al-Dimiry�t, King of the Jann, to gather together the Marids of the Jinn from all parts, and he collected for him six hundred thousand thousand of devils.[FN#123]

Moreover, by his order, his Wazir �saf bin Barkhiy� levied him an army of men, to the number of a thousand thousand or more. These all he furnished with arms and armour and mounting, with his host, upon his carpet, took flight through air, while the beasts fared under him and the birds flew overhead, till he lighted down on the island of the refractory King and encompassed it about, filling earth with his hosts.”—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.

When it was the Five Hundred and Seventy-first Night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Ifrit continued, “So when Solomon the prophet (with whom be peace!) lighted down with his host on the island he sent to our King, saying, �Behold, I am come: defend thy life against that which is fallen upon thee, or else make thy submission to me and confess my apostleship and give me thy daughter to lawful wife and break thine idol and worship the one God, the alone Worshipful; and testify, thou and shine, and say, �There is no God but the God, and Solomon is the Apostle of Allah![FN#124] This if thou do, thou shalt have pardon and peace; but if not, it will avail thee nothing to fortify thyself in this island, for Allah (extolled and exalted be He!) hath bidden the wind obey me; so I will bid it bear me to thee on my carpet and make thee a warning and an example to deter others.’ But the King made answer to his messenger, saying, �It may not on any wise be as he requireth of me; so tell him I come forth to him,’ With this reply the messenger returned to Solomon, who thereupon gathered together all the Jinn that were under his hand, to the number of a thousand thousand, and added to them other than they of Marids and Satans from the islands of the sea and the tops of the mountains and, drawing them up on parade, opened his armouries and distributed to them arms and armour. Then the Prophet drew out his host in battle array, dividing the beasts into two bodies, one on the right wing of the men and the other on the left, and bidding them tear the enemies’ horses in sunder.

Furthermore, he ordered the birds which were in the island to hover over their heads and, whenas the assault should be made, that they should swoop down and tear out the foe’s eyes with their beaks and buffet their faces with their wings; and they answered, saying, �We hear and we obey Allah and thee, O Prophet of Allah!’ Then Solomon seated himself on a throne of alabaster, studded with precious stones and plated with red gold; and, commanding the wind to bear him