Princess Badoura: A tale from the Arabian Nights

by Laurence Housman

So the Vizier, as soon as Camaralzaman had let go of his beard, returned in haste to the King and said to him, 'O my lord, what the slave says is true; the Prince hath been seized with insanity of the most violent kind; yea, he heareth with his eyes, and seeth with his ears, and declareth a lady hath slept with him, whom he will marry and no other.'

Then Shahzaman went himself to see the Prince and to learn the truth of this matter, for he doubted the Vizier's word. And when he came to the prison, his son received him with so much respect, and contrition and devotion, that he turned upon the Vizier with eyes of anger and reproach, crying, 'O wretch, why hast thou afflicted me with lies?' But the Vizier only shook his head sorrowfully, waiting for the truth to reveal itself.

Then said the King, 'O my son, what day of the week is it?' Camaralzaman answered, 'To-day is Saturday, to-morrow is Sunday, the next day is Monday, then comes Tuesday, then Wednesday, then Thursday and then Friday.'

'Praise be to Allah!' cried the King, 'my son is not mad, for he knows the days of the week.' Then he said to Camaralzaman, 'Tell me, my son, who is this lady who, you say, slept with you last night; for truly I know nothing about her.'

'O my lord,' replied the Prince, 'I pray that you cease to mock me, for though I have deserved it through my folly, yet now am I ready and eager to marry this lady whom you have chosen for me, since her beauty delights me, and her manners, even in her sleep, fascinate me.'

On hearing these words the King was as much astonished as the Vizier had been; but the countenance of his son was so full of ingenuousness and truth that he was not as incredulous as the others had been before him. 'I swear to you, my son,' said he, 'that I know nothing of this matter. What my Vizier has told you, he invented to appease your anger. But now tell me everything, just as it happened, for whether it be true or no, this event has given me cause for rejoicing.'

Then the Prince sat down by his father's side and told him everything, and when he had finished he showed him the ring for proof that his tale was true; and the King was so convinced by his son's manner and by all the incidents of the story, that he had not a word to say against it.

Therefore was his heart uplifted, and he said to Camaralzaman, 'Though all these things be mysteries in the hands of Allah, so deep that we may not fathom them, yet now hast thou convinced me that thou art not as was said of thee. Keep, therefore, that precious mind to which Heaven hath given light, and possess thyself in patience till the mystery hath resolved itself.'

But Camaralzaman replied, 'Alas, O my father, to what term of imprisonment dost thou now condemn me? for if thou canst not find for me this maiden who hath ravished my heart, surely I shall die of anguish. So great is my love and my distraction that I cannot wait for her even an hour.'

Upon this the King smote his palms together, and cried, 'Now are we in the hands of Allah, where no mortal power can avail!' Then he took his son gently by the hand and led him back to the palace: and there the Prince threw himself down upon a bed of sickness, too weak to rise or look up: and Shahzaman seated himself at his side, mourning and weeping for his grief, and leaving him neither by day or night.