In anguish I rose, and went to my home, and, entering the house, found my mother weeping for me, and exclaiming, Would that I knew, O my son, in what land thou art! So I approached her, and threw myself upon her, and when she beheld me, she saw that I was unwell. Yellowness and blackness were mingled upon my face; and I remembered my cousin, and the kindness she had shewn me, and was convinced that she loved me. I wept for her, and my mother also wept, and then said to me, O my son, thy father is dead. And upon this, my rage increased, and I wept until I became insensible; and when I recovered, I looked towards the place where my cousin was accustomed to sit, and wept again till I fainted from the violence of my lamentation. I ceased not to weep and wail until midnight, when my mother said to me, Thy father hath been dead ten days. But I replied, I think of no one but my cousin; for I deserve what hath happened to me, because I neglected her when she loved me. She asked me, therefore, And what hath happened to thee? So I related to her that which had befallen me; to which she replied, Praise be to God that this happened to thee and that she did not slaughter thee! She then applied remedies to my wound until I recovered, and regained my usual strength; and she said to me, O my son, I will now produce to thee the deposite with which thy cousin intrusted me; for it is thine, and she made me swear that I would not produce it to thee until I saw that thou rememberedst her and mournedst for her, and that thine affections for another were severed; and now I hope that I find in thee these dispositions. She therefore arose, and, opening a chest, took forth from it this piece of linen containing the design of the gazelles, which I had originally given to her; and when I took it, I found written upon it some verses complaining of her unrequited love for me, and there fell from it a paper containing some words of consolation and counsel.[49]
As soon as I had read and understood this paper, I wept again, and my mother did the same, and I continued looking at it and weeping until the approach of night; and in this state I remained for the space of a year; after which, some merchants of my city, the same whom I am accompanying in this caravan, prepared for a journey; and my mother suggested to me that I should fit myself out and go with them, saying to me, Perhaps the journey will dispel this sorrow which thou sufferest, and thou wilt be absent a year, or two years, or three, until the caravan returneth, and thy heart may become dilated. Thus she continued to persuade me, so that I prepared some merchandise, and journeyed with them; but my tears have not dried up during my travels; for at every station where we halt I spread this piece of linen before me, and look at this design, and think of my cousin, and weep for her as thou seest, since she loved me excessively, and died through my unkindness; I doing nothing but evil to her, while she did nothing to me but what was good. When the merchants return from their journey, I shall return with them, and the period of my absence will be a complete year; but I still suffer increasing sorrow; and my sorrow hath been only augmented in consequence of my passing by the Islands of Camphor and the Castle of Crystal.[50]
These Islands are seven in number, and the sovereign of them is a King named Sháh-Zemán.[51] He hath a daughter named Dunyà;[52] and it was told me that it was she who worked the designs of the gazelles, and that this design which is in my possession was one of her work; and when I knew this, I became excessively desirous of seeing her: so, when the caravan entered her country, I went forth and wandered about the gardens, which contained a profusion of trees. The superintendent of the gardens was a sheykh advanced in age; and I said to him, O sheykh, to whom doth this garden belong? He answered, To the King's daughter, the lady Dunyà, and we are beneath her palace; and if thou desire to amuse thyself, open the private door, and take a view of the garden and smell the odours of the flowers. So I said to him, Have the kindness to allow me to sit in this garden until she passeth by, that I may enjoy a glance at her. The sheykh replied, There will be no harm in thy doing so. When he said this, therefore, I gave him some money, saying to him, Buy for us something to eat. And he rejoiced at receiving the money, and, opening the door, conducted me within; and we proceeded until we came to a pleasant spot, where he brought me some delicate fruits, and said to me, Sit here while I go and return to thee. And he left me and departed, and, after he had been absent a while, returned bringing a roasted lamb; and we ate until we were satisfied, my heart longing to behold the lady, and while we were sitting, lo, the door opened; whereupon he said to me, Rise, and conceal thyself. So I rose, and hid myself; and a black eunuch put forth his head from the door, and said, O sheykh, is any one with thee? He answered, No.—Then close the door, said the eunuch. The sheykh, therefore, closed the door of the garden; and lo, the lady Dunyà came forth. When I beheld her, I thought that the moon had descended upon the earth; my mind was confounded, and I desired her as the thirsty longeth for water; and after a while, she closed the door and departed. I then went forth from the garden, and repaired to my lodging, knowing that I could not obtain access to her; and when my companions prepared for departure, I also prepared myself, and travelled with them towards thy city; and on our arrival here, we met with thee.—This is my story, and this is what hath happened unto me; and peace be on thee.
CONTINUATION OF THE STORY OF TÁJ-EL-MULOOK AND THE LADY DUNYÀ.
When Táj-el-Mulook heard this story, his heart became troubled with love for the lady Dunyà. He then mounted his horse, and, taking with him 'Azeez, returned to his father's city, where he assigned to him a house, and furnished it with everything that he required; after which he left him, and repaired to his palace. His tears ran down upon his cheeks (for hearing affecteth as sight and union), and in this state he remained until his father came in to him, and, finding that his colour was changed, knew that he was oppressed by anxiety and grief: so he said to him, O my son, acquaint me with thy case, and tell me what hath happened to thee to change thy colour. He therefore related to him all that he had heard of the story of Dunyà, and how he had fallen in love with her from hearsay, without having seen her; whereupon his father said to him, O my son, her father is a King, and his country is distant from us: abandon, therefore, this idea, and enter the palace of thy mother; for in it are five hundred female slaves like so many moons, and whoever of them pleaseth thee do thou take her; or, if none of them please thee, we will demand in marriage for thee one of the daughters of the Kings, more beautiful than the lady Dunyà. But he replied, O my father, I desire not any but her: it was she who worked the design of the gazelles that I saw, and I must have her, or I will flee into the deserts, and kill myself on her account.
So his father said, Have patience with me, O my son, that I may send to her father and demand her of him in marriage, and accomplish for thee thy wish, like as I did for myself in the case of thy mother; and if he consent not, I will convulse his kingdom around him, and send against him an army of which the rear shall be with me when the van is with him. He then called for the young man 'Azeez, and said to him, O my son, knowest thou the way? He answered, Yes.—Then I desire of thee, said the King, that thou journey with my Wezeer. And 'Azeez replied, I hear and obey, O King of the age. The King, therefore, summoned his Wezeer, and said to him, Manage for me the affair of my son according to thy knowledge, and repair to the Islands of Camphor, and demand in marriage the daughter of their King. He replied, I hear and obey. And Táj-el-Mulook returned to his apartments, and his malady and impatience increased: he fell down in a swoon, and recovered not until the morning; and when the morning arrived, his father came to him, and saw his complexion more changed, and his sallowness increased; and he exhorted him to patience, and promised him the accomplishment of his union.
The King then equipped 'Azeez, with his Wezeer, and supplied them with the presents; and they journeyed days and nights until they beheld the Islands of Camphor, when they halted on the bank of a river, and the Wezeer sent forward a messenger from his party to the King, to acquaint him with their approach; and half a day after the departure of the messenger, suddenly they saw that the chamberlains of the King, and his emeers, had advanced to meet them from the distance of a league; and they met him, and attended them until they went in with them to the King. They placed before the King the presents, and remained in his palace four days; and on the fifth day the Wezeer arose and went in to the King, and, standing before him, delivered to him his message, and acquainted him with the cause of his coming; but the King was perplexed how to answer, for his daughter liked not marriage; and he hung down his head for a while towards the floor; and after this he raised it, and, looking towards one of the eunuchs, said to him, Go to thy mistress Dunyà, and acquaint her with what thou hast heard, and with the purpose of the visit of this Wezeer. So the eunuch went, and, after a short absence, returned to the King, and said to him, O King of the age, when I went in to the lady Dunyà, and acquainted her with what I had heard, she was violently enraged, and rose against me with a stick, and would have broken my head; wherefore I fled from her; and she said to me, If my father force me to marry, him whom I marry I will kill. Her father, therefore, said to the Wezeer and 'Azeez, Salute ye the King, and inform him of this, and that my daughter liketh not marriage. Accordingly the Wezeer returned with his attendants unsuccessful, and they continued their journey until they went in unto the King, and acquainted him with what had happened; and upon this he ordered the chiefs to call together the troops that they might march to war; but the Wezeer said to him, Do not this; for the King is not in fault: the refusal is on the part of his daughter, who, when she knew of this proposal, sent to say, If my father force me to marry, I will kill him whom I marry, and kill myself after him.