The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 5 by Sir Richard Francis Burton (best romance novels of all time txt) 📕

How ‘scape from care and cark and pain and bane?

All terrors join to make me old and hoar *

Of head and heart, ere youth from me is ta’en: Nor find I any aid my passion, nor *

A friend to lighten load of bane and pain.

How great and many troubles I’ve endured! *

Fortune hath turned her back I see unfain.

Ah mercy, mercy on the lover’s heart, *

Doomed cup of parting and desertion drain!

A fire is in his heart, his vitals waste, *

And severance made his reason vainest vain.

How dread the day I came to her abode *

And saw the writ they wrote on doorway lain!

I wept, till gave I earth to drink my grief; *

But still to near and far[FN#49] I did but feign: Then strayed I till in waste a lion sprang *

On me, and but for flattering words had slain: I soothed him: so he spared me and lent me aid, *

He too might haply of love’s taste complain.

O devotee, that idlest in thy cave, *

Meseems eke thou hast learned Love’s might and main; But if, at end of woes, with them I league, *

Straight I’ll forget all suffering and fatigue.”

Hardly had he made an end of these verses when, behold! the door of the cavern opened and he heard one say, “Alas, the pity of it!”[FN#50] So he entered and saluted the devotee, who returned his salam and asked him, “What is thy name?” Answered the young man, “Uns al-Wujud.” “And what caused thee to come hither?” quoth the hermit. So he told him his story in its entirety, omitting naught of his misfortunes; whereat he wept and said, “O Uns al-Wujud, these twenty years have I passed in this place, but never beheld I any man here, until yesterday, when I heard a noise of weeping and lamentation and, looking forth in the direction of the sound, saw many people and tents pitched on the sea-shore; and the party at once proceeded to build a ship, in which certain of them embarked and sailed over the waters. Then some of the crew returned with the ship and breaking it up, went their way; and I suspect that those who embarked in the ship and returned not, are they whom thou seekest. In that case, O Uns al-Wujud, thy grief must needs be great and sore and thou art excusable, though never yet was lover but suffered love-longing.” Then he recited these couplets,

“Uns al-Wujud, dost deem me fancy-free, *

When pine and longing slay and quicken me?

I have known love and yearning from the years *

Since mother-milk I drank, nor e’er was free.

Long struggled I with Love, till learnt his might; *

Ask thou of him, he’ll tell with willing gree.

Love-sick and pining drank I passion-cup, *

And well-nigh perished in mine agony.

Strong was I, but my strength to weakness turned, *

And eye-sword brake through Patience armoury: Hope not to win love-joys, without annoy; *

Contrary ever links with contrary.

But fear not change from lover true; be true *

Unto thy wish, some day thine own ‘twill be.

Love hath forbidden to his votaries *

Relinquishment as deadliest heresy.”

The eremite, having ended his verse, rose and, coming up to Uns al-Wujud, embraced him,—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.

When it was the Three Hundred and Seventy-fifth Night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the eremite having ended his verse, rose and coming up to Uns al-Wujud embraced him, and they wept together, till the hills rang with their cries and they fell down fainting. When they revived, they swore brotherhood[FN#51] in Allah Almighty; after which said Uns al-Wujud, “This very night will I pray to God and seek of Him direction[FN#52] anent what thou shouldst do to attain thy desire.” Thus it was with them; but as regards Rose-in-Hood, when they brought her to the mountain and set her in the castle and she beheld its ordering, she wept and exclaimed, “By Allah, thou art a goodly place, save that thou lackest in thee the presence of the beloved!”[FN#53] Then seeing birds in the island, she bade her people set snares for them and put all they caught in cages within the castle; and they did so. But she sat at a lattice and bethought her of what had passed, and desire and passion and distraction redoubled upon her, till she burst into tears and repeated these couplets,

“O to whom now, of my desire complaining sore, shall I *

Bewail my parting from my fere compell�d thus to fly?

Flames rage within what underlies my ribs, yet hide them I *

In deepest secret dreading aye the jealous hostile spy: I am grown as lean, attenuate as any pick of tooth,[FN#54] *

By sore estrangement, absence, ardour, ceaseless sob and sigh.

Where is the eye of my beloved to see how I’m become *

Like tree stripped bare of leafage left to linger and to die.

They tyrannised over me whom they confined in place *

Whereto the lover of my heart may never draw him nigh: I beg the Sun for me to give greetings a thousandfold, *

At time of rising and again when setting from the sky, To the beloved one who shames a full moon’s loveliness, *

When shows that slender form that doth the willow-branch outvie.

If Rose herself would even with his cheek, I say of her *

‘Thou art not like it if to me my portion thou deny:’[FN#55]

His honey-dew of lips is like the grateful water draught *

Would cool me when a fire in heart upflameth fierce and high:

How shall I give him up who is my heart and soul of me, *

My malady my wasting cause, my love, sole leach of me?”

Then, as the glooms of night closed around her, her yearning increased and she called to mind the past and recited also these couplets,

“‘Tis dark: my transport and unease now gather might and main, And love-desire provoketh me to wake my wonted pain: The pang of parting takes for ever place within my breast,

And pining makes me desolate in destitution lain.

Ecstasy sore maltreats my soul and yearning burns my sprite, *

And tears betray love’s secresy which I would lief contain: I weet no way, I know no case that can make light my load, *

Or heal my wasting body or cast out from me this bane.

A hell of fire is in my heart upflames with lambent tongue *

And Laza’s furnace-fires within my liver place have ta’en.

O thou, exaggerating blame for what befel, enough *

I bear with patience whatsoe’er hath writ for me the Pen!

I swear, by Allah, ne’er to find aught comfort for their loss; * “Tis oath of passion’s children and their oaths are ne’er in vain.

O Night! Salams of me to friends and let to them be known *

Of thee true knowledge how I wake and waking ever wone.”

Meanwhile, the hermit said to Uns al-Wujud, “Go down to the palm-grove in the valley and fetch some fibre.”[FN#56] So he went and returned with the palm-fibre, which the hermit took and, twisting into ropes, make therewith a net,[FN#57] such as is used for carrying straw; after which he said, “O Uns al-Wujud, in the heart of the valley groweth a gourd, which springeth up and drieth upon its roots. Go down there and fill this sack therewith; then tie it together and, casting it into the water, embark thereon and make for the midst of the sea, so haply thou shalt win thy wish; for whoso never ventureth shall not have what he seeketh.” “I hear and obey,” answered Uns al-Wujud. Then he bade the hermit farewell after the holy man had prayed for him; and, betaking himself to the sole of the valley, did as his adviser had counselled him; made the sack, launched it upon the water, and pushed from shore. Then there arose a wind, which drave him out to sea, till he was lost to the eremite’s view; and he ceased not to float over the abysses of the ocean, one billow tossing him up and another bearing him down (and he beholding the while the dangers and marvels of the deep), for the space of three days. At the end of that time Fate cast him upon the Mount of the Bereft Mother, where he landed, giddy and tottering like a chick unfledged, and at the last of his strength for hunger and thirst; but, finding there streams flowing and birds on the branches cooing and fruit-laden trees in clusters and singly growing, he ate of the fruits and drank of the rills. Then he walked on till he saw some white thing afar off, and making for it, found that it was a strongly fortified castle. So he went up to the gate and seeing it locked, sat down by it; and there he sat for three days when behold, the gate opened and an eunuch came out, who finding Uns al-Wujud there seated, said to him, “Whence camest thou and who brought thee hither?” Quoth he, “From Ispahan and I was voyaging with merchandise when my ship was wrecked and the waves cast me upon the farther side of this island.” Whereupon the eunuch wept and embraced him, saying, “Allah preserve thee, O thou friendly face! Ispahan is mine own country and I have there a cousin, the daughter of my father’s brother, whom I loved from my childhood and cherished with fond affection; but a people stronger than we fell upon us in foray and taking me among other booty, cut off my yard[FN#58] and sold me for a castrato, whilst I was yet a lad; and this is how I came to be in such case.”—And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Three Hundred and Seventy-sixth Night, She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the eunuch who came forth from the castle, where Rose-in-Hood was confined, told Uns al-Wujud all his tale and said:—“The raiders who captured me cut off my yard and sold me for a castrato; and this is how I came to be in such case.”[FN#59] And after saluting him and wishing him long life, the eunuch carried him into the courtyard of the castle, where he saw a great tank of water, surrounded by trees, on whose branches hung cages of silver, with doors of gold, and therein birds were warbling and singing the praises of the Requiting King. And when he came to the first cage he looked in and lo! a turtle dove, on seeing him, raised her voice and cried out, saying, “O Thou Bounty-fraught!” Whereat he fell down fainting and after coming to himself, he sighed heavily and recited these couplets,

“O turtle dove, like me art thou distraught? *

Then pray the Lord and sing ‘O Bounty-fraught!’

Would I knew an thy moan were sign of joy, *

Or cry of love-desire in heart inwrought,—

An moan thou pining for a lover gone *

Who left thee woe begone to pine in thought,—

Or if like me hast lost thy fondest friend, *

And severance long desire to memory brought?

O Allah, guard a faithful lover’s lot *

I will not leave her though my bones go rot!”

Then, after ending his verses, he fainted again; and, presently reviving he went on to the second cage, wherein he found a ringdove. When it saw him, it sang out, “O Eternal, I thank thee!” and he groaned and recited