Prevod

Among the tales told is that the Commander of the Faithful, al-Ma’mun, once said to Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi, “Tell us the strangest thing you have ever seen.” He replied, “I hear and obey, Commander of the Faithful. Know that one day I went out for pleasure, and my wanderings brought me to a place where I caught the scent of food. My appetite was aroused, and there I stood, Commander of the Faithful, at a loss, unable either to go on my way or to enter the house. Then I raised my eyes and saw a latticed window, with a hand and wrist behind it more beautiful than any I had ever seen. The sight drove me out of my senses, and that hand and wrist made me forget the scent of food. I began to devise a way of gaining entrance. There was a tailor nearby, so I went up and greeted him. He returned my greeting, and I asked, ‘Whose house is this?’ ‘It belongs to a merchant,’ he answered. ‘What is his name?’ I asked. ‘So-and-so, son of so-and-so,’ he said. ‘He admits none but merchants to his drinking parties.’ While we were talking, two distinguished, intelligent-looking men approached. The tailor told me that they were the owner’s closest companions and gave me their names. I urged my mount forward to meet them and said, ‘May I be your ransom! Abu So-and-so has been wondering what has delayed you.’ I rode along beside them until we reached the door, and went in with them. When the master of the house saw me in their company, he had no doubt that I was their friend. He welcomed me and seated me in the place of honor. Then the food was brought, and I said to myself, ‘God has graciously granted my wish for this meal; now there remain the hand and wrist.’ Afterward we moved to another room to drink, and I found it filled with delightful things. The master of the house treated me most graciously and engaged me in conversation, supposing me to be a guest of his guests, while they were equally attentive, supposing me to be a friend of their host. All continued to show me every kindness until we had drunk several cups. Then a slave girl came before us, slender as a willow bough, exquisitely graceful and lovely to behold. She took up the lute, enchanted us with her melodies, and sang these verses:

‘Is it not strange that our house shelters you and me, yet you neither draw near nor speak? Only our eyes reveal the secrets of our souls, while our hearts are torn to pieces, kindled in the fire: a sidelong glance, a lifting of the brows, a flutter of the eyelids, and a hand raised in greeting.’ She stirred all my longing, Commander of the Faithful, and I was transported by her beauty and the tenderness of the verses she sang. Envious of her skill, I said, ‘There is still something you have missed, girl.’ She flung the lute from her hand in anger and said, ‘Since when have you admitted fools to your gatherings?’ I regretted what I had done, and saw that the company disapproved of me. ‘All I hoped for is lost,’ I thought, and could see no way to escape their censure except to ask for a lute. ‘I shall show you what she missed in the manner of her playing,’ I said. ‘By all means,’ they replied. They brought me a lute, and I tuned its strings and sang these verses:

‘Here is your lover, folded round his grief, consumed with longing, his tears streaming down his body. One hand he raises to the Merciful, praying that his hopes may be fulfilled; the other rests upon his aching heart. O you who see a man destroyed and dying of his love, it was his eye and his hand that brought about his death.’ The girl sprang up and fell at my feet, kissing them. ‘Forgive me, my lord,’ she said. ‘By God, I did not know your rank, nor have I ever heard such mastery.’ The others, transported with delight, now began to lavish honor and respect upon me. Each asked me to sing, so I sang them a sequence of enchanting songs, until they grew drunk and lost their senses. They were carried home, leaving only the master of the house and the girl. He drank several cups with me, then said, ‘My lord, my life has been wasted, since I never knew anyone like you until this moment. For God’s sake, my lord, who are you? Let me know the companion whom God has graciously sent me tonight.’ I answered evasively and would not give my name, but he kept entreating me until I told him. When he heard my name, he sprang to his feet.” But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she fell silent, leaving her tale untold.

When it was the three hundred and forty-seventh night,

She said, “It has reached me, O fortunate King, that Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi continued: ‘When the master of the house heard my name, he sprang to his feet and said, “I should have wondered to find such excellence in anyone but a man like you! Time has bestowed upon me a favor for which I can never give sufficient thanks. Perhaps this is a dream; for when could I ever have hoped that the caliph’s own family would visit me in my house and drink with me through the night?” I urged him to sit, and he did so. Then, in the most delicate terms, he began to ask what had brought me to his house. I told him the story from beginning to end, concealing nothing. “As for the food,” I said, “I have had all I wished of it. But as for the hand and wrist, I have yet to attain my desire.” “You shall attain your desire for the hand and wrist as well, God Most High willing,” he replied. Then he called, “Girl, tell So-and-so to come down.” He began summoning his slave girls one after another and showing them all to me, but I did not see the one I sought. At last he said, “By God, my lord, none remain but my mother and my sister. Yet, by God, I shall certainly have them come down and present them to you, so that you may see them.” I marveled at his generosity and openheartedness, and said, “May I be your ransom! Begin with your sister.” “Gladly, and with all honor,” he replied. His sister came down, and he showed me her hand. She was indeed the owner of the hand and wrist I had seen. “May I be your ransom,” I said, “this is the young woman whose hand and wrist I saw.” He ordered his servants to fetch witnesses that very instant. They brought the witnesses, and he had two purses of gold brought in. Then he said to the witnesses, “This is our master, my lord Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi, uncle of the Commander of the Faithful. He has asked for the hand of my sister So-and-so, and I call you to witness that I have given her to him in marriage, with a purse of gold as her dowry.” Then he said to me, “I give you my sister So-and-so in marriage for the dowry named.” “I accept and consent,” I replied. He gave one purse to his sister and the other to the witnesses, then said, “My lord, I wish to prepare a room where you may pass the night with your wife.” His generosity overwhelmed me, and I felt too shy to be alone with her in his house, so I said, “Make her ready and send her to my home.” By your honor, Commander of the Faithful, he sent her to me with such a bridal outfit that our rooms, spacious though they were, could scarcely hold it. In time she bore me this boy who stands before you.’ Al-Ma’mun marveled at the man’s generosity and said, ‘God bless him! I have never heard of his like!’ He ordered Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi to bring the man so that he might see him. Ibrahim brought him before the caliph, who drew him into conversation and was so pleased by his wit and refinement that he made him one of his intimates. And God is the Giver, the Bountiful.”