She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Bulukiya saw the serpents glorifying God and proclaiming the Unity, he wondered with extreme wonder. When they saw him, they flocked to him and one of them said to him, “Who and whence art thou, and whither goest thou, and what is thy name?” Quoth he, “My name is Bulukiya; I am of the Children of Israel and, being distracted for love of Mohammed (whom Allah bless and keep!), I come in quest of him. But who are ye, O noble creatures?” Answered they, “We are of the dwellers in the Jahannam-hell; and Almighty Allah created us for the punishment of Kafirs.” “And how came ye hither?” asked he, and the Serpents answered, “Know, O Bulukiya, that Hell[[514]] of the greatness of her boiling, breatheth twice a year, expiring in the summer and inspiring in the winter, and hence the summer-heat and winter-cold. When she exhaleth, she casteth us forth of her maw, and we are drawn in again with her inhaled breath.” Quoth Bulukiya, “Say me, are there greater serpents than you in Hell?”; and they said, “Of a truth we are cast out with the expired breath but by reason of our smallness; for in Hell every serpent is so great, that were the biggest of us to pass over its nose it would not feel us.[[515]]” Asked Bulukiya, “Ye sing the praises of Allah and invoke blessings on Mohammed, whom the Almighty assain and save! Whence wot ye of Mohammed?”; and they answered, “O Bulukiya, verily his name is written on the gates of Paradise; and, but for him, Allah had not created the worlds[[516]] nor Paradise, nor heaven nor hell nor earth, for He made all things that be, solely on his account, and hath conjoined his name with His own in every place; wherefore we love Mohammed, whom Allah bless and preserve!” Now hearing the serpents’ converse did but inflame Bulukiya’s love for Mohammed and yearning for his sight; so he took leave of them; and, making his way to the sea-shore, found there a ship made fast to the beach; he embarked therein as a seaman and sailed nor ceased sailing till he came to another island. Here he landed and walking about awhile found serpents great and small, none knoweth their number save Almighty Allah, and amongst them a white Serpent, clearer than crystal, seated in a golden tray borne on the back of another serpent as big as an elephant. Now this, O Hasib, was the Serpent-queen, none other than myself. Quoth Hasib, “And what answer didst thou make him?” Quoth she, “Know, O Hasib, that when I saw Bulukiya, I saluted him with the salam, and he returned my salutation,” and I said to him, “Who and what art thou and what is thine errand and whence comest thou and whither goest thou?” Answered he, “I am of the Children of Israel; my name is Bulukiya, and I am a wanderer for the love of Mohammed, whose description I have read in the revealed scriptures, and of whom I go in search. But what art thou and what are these serpents about thee?” Quoth I, “O Bulukiya, I am the Queen of the Serpents; and when thou shalt foregather with Mohammed (whom Allah assain and save!) bear him my salutation.” Then Bulukiya took leave of me and journeyed till he came to the Holy City which is Jerusalem. Now there was in that stead a man who was deeply versed in all sciences, more especially in geometry and astronomy and mathematics, as well as in white magic[[517]] and Spiritualism; and he had studied the Pentateuch and the Evangel and the Psalms and the Books of Abraham. His name was Affán; and he had found in certain of his books, that whoso should wear the seal-ring of our lord Solomon, men and Jinn and birds and beasts and all created things would be bound to obey him. Moreover, he had discovered that our lord Solomon had been buried in a coffin which was miraculously transported beyond the Seven Seas to the place of burial;——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Four Hundred and Eighty-eighth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Affan had found in certain books that none, mortal or spirit, could pluck the seal-ring from the lord Solomon’s finger; and that no navigator could sail his ship upon the Seven Seas over which the coffin had been carried. Moreover, he had found out by reading that there was a herb of herbs and that if one express its juice and anoint therewith his feet, he should walk upon the surface of any sea that Allah Almighty had created without wetting his soles; but none could obtain this herb, without he had with him the Serpent-queen. When Bulukiya arrived at the Holy City, he at once sat down to do his devotions and worship the Lord; and, whilst he was so doing, Affan came up and saluted him as a True Believer. Then seeing him reading the Pentateuch and adoring the Almighty, he accosted him saying, “What is thy name, O man; and whence comest thou and whither goest thou?” He answered, “My name is Bulukiya; I am from the city of Cairo and am come forth wandering in quest of Mohammed, whom Allah bless and preserve!” Quoth Affan, “Come with me to my lodging that I may entertain thee.” “To hear is to obey,” replied Bulukiya. So the devotee took him by the hand and carried him to his house where he entreated him with the utmost honour and presently said to him, “Tell me thy history, O my brother, and how thou camest by the knowledge of Mohammed (whom Allah assain and save!) that thy heart hath been taken with love of him and compelled thee to fare forth and seek him; and lastly tell me who it was directed thee in this road.” So he related to him his tale in its entirety; whereupon Affan, who well-nigh lost his wits for wonder, said to him, “Make tryst for me with the Queen of the Serpents and I will bring thee in company with Mohammed, albeit the date of his mission is yet far distant. We have only to prevail upon the Queen and carry her in a cage to a certain mountain where the herbs grow; and, as long as she is with us, the plants as we pass them will parley with human speech and discover their virtues by the ordinance of Allah the Most High. For I have found in my books that there is a certain herb and all who express its juice and anoint therewith their feet shall walk upon whatsoever sea Almighty Allah hath made, without wetting sole. When we have found the magical herb, we will let her go her way; and then will we anoint our feet with the juice and cross the Seven Seas, till we come to the burial-place of our lord Solomon. Then we will take the ring off his finger and rule even as he ruled and win all our wishes; we will enter the Main of Murks[[518]] and drink of the Water of Life, and so the Almighty will let us tarry till the End of Time and we shall foregather with Mohammed, whom Allah bless and preserve!” Hearing these words Bulukiya replied, “O Affan, I will make tryst for thee with the Serpent-queen and at once show thee her abiding place.” So Affan made him a cage of iron; and, providing himself with two bowls, one full of wine and the other of milk, took ship with Bulukiya and sailed till they came to the island, where they landed and walked upon it. Then Affan set up the cage, in which he laid a noose and withdrew after placing in it the two bowls; when he and Bulukiya concealed themselves afar off. Presently, up came the Queen of the Serpents (that is, myself) and examined the cage. When she (that is I) smelt the savour of the milk, she came down from the back of the snake which bore her tray and, entering the cage, drank up the milk. Then she went to the bowl of wine and drank of it, whereupon her head became giddy and she slept. When Affan saw this, he ran up and locking the cage upon her, set it on his head and made for the ship, he and Bulukiya. After awhile she awoke and finding herself in a cage of iron on a man’s head and seeing Bulukiya walking beside the bearer, said to him, “This is the reward of those who do no hurt to the sons of Adam.” Answered he, “O Queen, have no fear of us, for we will do thee no hurt at all. We wish thee only to show us the herb which, when pounded and squeezed yieldeth a juice, and this rubbed upon the feet conferreth the power of walking dryshod upon what sea soever Almighty Allah hath created; and when we have found that we will return thee to thy place and let thee wend thy way.” Then Affan and Bulukiya fared on for the hills where grew the herbs; and, as they went about with the Queen, each plant they passed began to speak and avouch its virtues by permission of Allah the Most High. As they were thus doing and the herbs speaking right and left behold, a plant spoke out and said, “I am the herb ye seek, and all who gather and crush me and anoint their feet with my juice, shall fare over what sea soever Allah Almighty hath created and yet ne’er wet sole.” When Affan heard this, he set down the cage from his head and, gathering what might suffice them of the herb, crushed it and filling two vials with the juice kept them for future use; and with what was left they anointed their feet. Then they took up the Serpent-queen’s cage and journeyed days and nights, till they reached the island, where they opened the cage and let out her, that is me. When I found myself at liberty, I asked them what use they would make of the juice; and they answered, “We design to anoint our feet and to cross the Seven Seas to the burial-place of our lord Solomon[[519]] and take the seal-ring from his finger.” Quoth I, “Far, far is it from your power to possess yourselves of the ring!” They enquired, “Wherefore?” and I replied, “Because Almighty Allah vouchsafed unto our lord Solomon the gift of this ring and distinguished him thereby, for that he said to Him:—O Lord, give me a kingdom which may not be obtained after me; for Thou verily art the Giver of kingdoms.[[520]] So that ring is not for you.” And I added, “Had ye twain taken the herb, whereof all who eat shall not die until the First Blast,[[521]] it had better availed you than this ye have gotten; for ye shall nowise come at your desire thereby.” Now when they heard this, they repented them with exceeding penitence and went their ways.——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Four Hundred and Eighty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Bulukiya and Affan heard these words, they repented them with exceeding penitence and went their ways. Such was their case; but as regards myself (continued the Serpent-queen) I went in quest of my host and found it fallen in piteous case, the stronger of them having grown weak in my absence and the weaker having died. When they saw me, they rejoiced and flocking about me, asked, “What hath befallen thee, and where hast thou been?” So I told them what had passed, after which I gathered my forces together and repaired with them to the mountain Kaf, where I wont to winter, summer-freshing in the place where thou now seest me, O Hasib Karim al-Din. This, then, is my story and what befel me. Thereupon Hasib marvelled at her words and said to her, “I beseech thee, of thy favour, bid one of thy guards bear me forth to the surface of the earth, that I may go to my people.” She replied, “O Hasib, thou shalt not have leave to depart from us till winter come, and needs must thou go with us to the Mountain Kaf and solace thyself with the sight of the hills and sands and trees and birds magnifying the One God, the Victorious; and look upon Marids and Ifrits and Jinn, whose number none knoweth save Almighty Allah.” When Hasib heard this, he was sore chafed and chagrined: then he said to her, “Tell me of Affan and Bulukiya; when they departed from thee and went their way, did they cross the Seven Seas and reach the burial-place of our lord Solomon or not; and if they did had they power to take the ring or not?” Answered she, “Know, that when they left me, they anointed their feet with the juice; and, walking over the water, fared on from sea to sea, diverting themselves with the wonders of the deep, nor ceased they faring till they had traversed the Seven Seas and came in sight of a mountain, soaring high in air, whose stones were emeralds and whose dust was musk; and in it was a stream of running water. When they made it they rejoiced, saying each to other:—Verily we have won our wish; and they entered the passes of the mountain and walked on, till they saw from afar a cavern surmounted by a great dome, shining with light. So they made for the cavern, and entering it beheld therein a throne of gold studded with all manner jewels, and about it stools whose number none knoweth save Allah Almighty. And they saw lying at full length upon the throne our lord Solomon, clad in robes of green silk inwoven with gold and broidered with jewels and precious minerals: his right hand was passed over his breast and on the middle finger was the seal-ring whose lustre outshone that of all other gems in the place. Then Affan taught Bulukiya adjurations and conjurations galore and said to him:—Repeat these conjurations and cease not repeating until I take the ring. Then he went up to the throne; but, as he drew near unto it lo! a mighty serpent came forth from beneath it and cried out at him with so terrible a cry that the whole place trembled and sparks flew from its mouth, saying, Begone, or thou art a dead man! But Affan busied himself with his incantations and suffered himself not to be startled thereby. Then the serpent blew such a fiery blast at him, that the place was like to be set on fire, and said to him, Woe to thee! Except thou turn back, I will consume thee! Hearing these words Bulukiya left the cave, but Affan, who suffered himself not to be troubled, went up to the Prophet: then he put out his hand to the ring and touched it and strove to draw it off the lord Solomon’s finger; and behold, the serpent blew on him once more and he became a heap of ashes. Such was his case; but as regards Bulukiya he fell down in a swoon.”——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Four Hundred and Ninetieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Queen continued:—When Bulukiya saw Affan burnt up by the fire and become a heap of ashes, he fell down in a swoon. Thereupon the Lord (magnified be His Majesty!) bade Gabriel descend earthwards and save him ere the serpent should blow on him. So Gabriel descended without delay and, finding Affan reduced to ashes and Bulukiya in a fit, aroused him from his trance and saluting him, asked, “How camest thou hither?” Bulukiya related to him his history from first to last, adding, “Know that I came not hither but for the love of Mohammed (whom Allah assain and save!), of whom Affan informed me that his mission would take place at the End of Time; moreover that none should foregather with him but those who endured to the latter days by drinking of the Water of Life through means of Solomon’s seal. So I companied him hither and there befel him what befel; but I escaped the fire and now it is my desire that thou inform me where Mohammed is to be found.” Quoth Gabriel, “O Bulukiya, go thy ways, for the time of Mohammed’s coming is yet far distant.” Then he ascended up to heaven forthright, and Bulukiya wept with sore weeping and repented of that which he had done, calling to mind my words, whenas I said to them, “Far is it from man’s power to possess himself of the ring.” Then he descended from the mountain and returned in exceeding confusion to the sea-shore and passed the night there, marvelling at the mountains and seas and islands around him. When morning dawned, he anointed his feet with the herb-juice and descending to the water, set out and fared on over the surface of the seas days and nights, astonied at the terrors of the main and the marvels and wonders of the deep, till he came to an island as it were the Garden of Eden. So he landed and, finding himself in a great and pleasant island, paced about it and saw with admiration that its dust was saffron and its gravel carnelian and precious minerals; its hedges were of jessamine, its vegetation was of the goodliest of trees and of the brightest of odoriferous shrubs; its brushwood was of Comorin and Sumatran aloes-wood and its reeds were sugar-canes. Round about it were roses and narcissus and amaranths and gilly-flowers and chamomiles and white lilies and violets, and other flowers of all kinds and colours. Of a truth the island was the goodliest place, abounding in space, rich in grace, a compendium of beauty material and spiritual. The birds warbled on the boughs with tones far sweeter than chaunt of Koran and their notes would console a lover whom longings unman. And therein the gazelle frisked free and fain and wild cattle roamed about the plain. Its trees were of tallest height; its streams flowed bright; its springs welled with waters sweet and light; and all therein was a delight to sight and sprite. Bulukiya marvelled at the charms of the island but knew that he had strayed from the way he had first taken in company with Affan. He wandered about the place and solaced him with various spectacles until nightfall, when he climbed into a tree to sleep; but as he sat there, musing over the beauty of the site, behold, the sea became troubled and there rose up to the surface a great beast, which cried out with a cry so terrible that every living thing upon the isle trembled. As Bulukiya gazed upon him from the tree and marvelled at the bigness of his bulk, he was presently followed unexpectedly by a multitude of other sea-beasts in kind manifold, each holding in his fore-paw a jewel which shone like a lamp, so that the whole island became as light as day for the lustre of the gems. After awhile, there appeared, from the heart of the island, wild beasts of the land, none knoweth their number save Allah the Most High; amongst which Bulukiya noted lions and panthers and lynxes and other ferals; and these land-beasts flocked down to the shore; and, foregathering with the sea-beasts, conversed with them till daybreak, when they separated and each went his own way. Thereupon Bulukiya, terrified by what he had seen, came down from the tree and, making the sea-shore, anointed his feet with the magical juice, and set out once more upon the surface of the water. He fared on days and nights over the Second Sea, till he came to a great mountain skirting which ran a Wady without end, the stones whereof were magnetic iron and its beasts lions and hares and panthers. He landed on the mountain-foot and wandered from place to place till nightfall, when he sat down sheltered by one of the base-hills on the sea-side, to eat of the dried fish thrown up by the sea. Presently, he turned from his meal and behold, a huge panther was creeping up to rend and ravin him; so he anointed his feet in haste with the juice and, descending to the surface of the water, fled walking over the Third Sea, in the darkness; for the night was black and the wind blew stark. Nor did he stay his course till he reached another island, whereon he landed and found there trees bearing fruits both fresh and dry.[[522]] So he took of these fruits and ate and praised Allah Almighty; after which he walked for solace about the island till eventide.——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
Now when it was the Four Hundred and Ninety-first Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Bulukiya (continued the Queen) walked for solace about the island till eventide, when he lay down to sleep. As soon as day brake, he began to explore the place and ceased not for ten days, after which he again made the shore and anointed his feet and, setting out over the Fourth Sea, walked upon it many nights and days, till he came to a third island of fine white sand without sign of trees or grass. He walked about it awhile but, finding its only inhabitants sakers which nested in the sand, he again anointed his feet and trudged over the Fifth Sea, walking night and day till he came to a little island, whose soil and hills were like crystal. Therein were the veins wherefrom gold is worked; and therein also were marvellous trees whose like he had never seen in his wanderings, for their blossoms were in hue as gold. He landed and walked about for diversion till it was nightfall, when the flowers began to shine through the gloom like stars. Seeing this sight, he marvelled and said, “Assuredly, the flowers of this island are of those which wither under the sun and fall to the earth, where the winds smite them and they gather under the rocks and become the Elixir,[[523]] which the folk collect and thereof make gold.” He slept there all that night and at sunrise he again anointed his feet and, descending to the shore, fared on over the Sixth Sea nights and days, till he came to a fifth island. Here he landed and found, after walking an hour or so, two mountains covered with a multitude of trees, whose fruits were as men’s heads hanging by the hair, and others whose fruits were green birds hanging by the feet; also a third kind, whose fruits were like aloes, if a drop of the juice fell on a man it burnt like fire; and others, whose fruits wept and laughed, besides many other marvels which he saw there. Then he returned to the sea-shore and, finding there a tall tree, sat down beneath it till supper-time when he climbed up into the branches to sleep. As he sat considering the wonderful works of Allah behold, the waters became troubled, and there rose therefrom the daughters of the sea, each mermaid holding in her hand a jewel which shone like the morning. They came ashore and, foregathering under the trees, sat down and danced and sported and made merry whilst Bulukiya amused himself with watching and wondering at their gambols, which were prolonged till the morning, when they returned to the sea and disappeared. Then he came down and, anointing his feet, set out on the surface of the Seventh Sea, over which he journeyed two whole months, without getting sight of highland or island or broadland or lowland or shoreland, till he came to the end thereof. And so doing he suffered exceeding hunger, so that he was forced to snatch up fishes from the surface of the sea and devour them raw, for stress of famine. In such case he pushed on till in early forenoon he came to the sixth island, with trees a-growing and rills a-flowing, where he landed and walked about, looking right and left, till he came to an apple-tree and put forth his hand to pluck of the fruit, when lo! one cried out to him from the tree, saying, “An thou draw near to this tree and cut of it aught, I will cut thee in twain.” So he looked and saw a giant forty cubits high, being the cubit of the people of that day; whereat he feared with sore fear and refrained from that tree. Then said he to the giant, “Why dost thou forbid me to eat of this tree?” Replied the other, “Because thou art a son of Adam and thy father Adam forgot the covenant of Allah and sinned against Him and ate of the tree.” Quoth Bulukiya, “What thing art thou and to whom belongeth this island, with its trees, and how art thou named?” Quoth the tall one, “My name is Sharáhiyá and trees and island belong to King Sakhr;[[524]] I am one of his guards and in charge of his dominion,” presently adding, “But who art thou and whence comest thou hither?” Bulukiya told him his story from beginning to end and Sharahiya said, “Be of good cheer,” and brought him to eat. So he ate his fill and, taking leave of the giant, set out again and ceased not faring on over the mountains and sandy deserts for ten days; at the end of which time he saw, in the distance, a dust-cloud hanging like a canopy in air; and, making towards it, he heard a mighty clamour, cries and blows and sounds of mellay. Presently he reached a great Wady, two months’ journey long; and, looking whence the shouts came, he saw a multitude of horsemen engaged in fierce fight and the blood running from them till it railed like a river. Their voices were thunderous and they were armed with lance and sword and iron mace and bow and arrow, and all fought with the utmost fury. At this sight he felt sore affright——And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.