Zgodba prve mladenke Zubejde

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Zgodba prve mladenke Zubejde

She said: It has reached me, O fortunate King, that when the eldest of the young women came forward before the Commander of the Faithful, she said, “I have a strange tale to tell. These two girls are my sisters by the same father, though not by the same mother. Our father died and left five thousand dinars, and I was the youngest of the three. My sisters each made preparations for marriage and took a husband. They lived with their husbands for a time; then each man fitted himself out for a trading journey, took a thousand dinars from his wife, and set off with the other, leaving the two women behind. They were away four years, during which they squandered the money and lost everything. My sisters went to them, but their husbands abandoned them in foreign lands, and they came back to me looking like beggars. When I saw them, I was so astonished by their appearance that I did not recognize them. Once I knew who they were, I asked, ‘What has brought you to this?’ They answered, ‘Sister, words are of no use now. The pen has written what God decreed.’ I sent them to the bathhouse, dressed each of them in a fine suit of clothes, and said, ‘My sisters, you are the elder and I am the younger, and you stand in the place of my father and mother. God has blessed the share of the inheritance that fell to me, so live on what it yields. I am well provided for, and you and I shall be equals.’ I treated them with the utmost kindness, and they stayed with me for a whole year, until they had acquired money of their own from mine. Then they said, ‘Marriage would be better for us. We cannot bear to do without it.’ I told them, ‘My sisters, you have found no happiness in marriage. Good men are scarce in these days, and you have already tried it.’ But they would not listen, and married against my wishes. Still, I paid for their weddings from my own money and provided all they needed to preserve their good name. They went away with their husbands, but after only a short time the men deceived them, took everything they had, and went off, leaving them behind. They came back to me with scarcely a rag to cover them, apologizing and saying, ‘Do not blame us. You are younger than we are, but far wiser. We shall never speak of marriage again.’ I answered, ‘Welcome, my sisters. Nothing I possess is dearer to me than you.’ I kissed them and showed them greater kindness than before.

“We lived in this way for another whole year. Then I decided to fit out a ship for a voyage to Basra. I equipped a large vessel and loaded it with goods and merchandise, together with everything I would need aboard. I said, ‘My sisters, would you rather stay at home until I return, or travel with me?’ They answered, ‘We will travel with you, for we cannot bear to be parted from you.’ So I took them with me and we set sail. I had divided my wealth in half, taking one half with me and hiding the other, for I thought, ‘Something may happen to the ship, and we may yet have years to live. If we return, we shall find something to sustain us.’ We sailed for days and nights, but the ship lost its way. The captain failed to keep to his course, and we entered a sea other than the one we intended, without knowing it for some time. A fair wind carried us along for ten days, until a city appeared in the distance. We asked the captain, ‘What is the name of this city before us?’ He answered, ‘By God, I do not know. I have never seen it, nor have I sailed this sea in all my life. Still, we have come through safely. Now you need only enter the city and unload your merchandise. If you find buyers, sell your goods and conduct your business; if not, we shall rest for two days, take on provisions, and sail again.’ We reached the city, and the captain went ashore. After an hour he returned and said, ‘Go into the city, marvel at what God has done to His creatures, and seek refuge from His wrath.’ We went ashore and found that everyone in the city had been turned to black stone. We were astounded. Walking through the markets, we found the merchandise untouched, with all the gold and silver still in its place. We rejoiced and said, ‘There must be some strange story behind this.’ Then we scattered through the streets, each forgetting the others in his eagerness for the money and rich fabrics to be found there.

“As for me, I climbed to the citadel and found it strongly fortified. I entered the king’s palace, where all the vessels were of gold and silver. Then I saw the king seated among his chamberlains, deputies, and ministers, dressed in garments of unimaginable splendour. Drawing closer, I found him sitting on a throne studded with pearls and precious stones, every pearl shining like a star. He wore a robe embroidered with gold, and around him stood fifty mamluks dressed in silks of every kind, with drawn swords in their hands. The sight left me bewildered. I went on into the women’s quarters, where silk hangings covered the walls. There I found the queen, wearing a robe embroidered with lustrous pearls, a crown set with all manner of jewels upon her head, and necklaces and chains about her neck. All her clothing and ornaments remained unchanged, but she herself had been turned to black stone. Finding an open door, I entered and came to a stairway of seven steps. I climbed it and found a marble-paved chamber spread with gold-woven carpets. In it stood an alabaster couch inlaid with pearls and precious stones. I noticed a brilliant light to one side and went towards it. There, on a little stand, lay a shining jewel the size of an ostrich egg, glowing like a candle and filling the room with radiance. The couch was spread with silks so splendid that they dazzled the eye. I marvelled at all I saw. There were also lighted candles in the chamber, and I said to myself, ‘Someone must have lit these candles.’

“I went on into another room and began searching through the chambers. So lost was I in wonder at all these marvels that I forgot myself, and night fell while my thoughts were still absorbed in them. I wished to leave, but could not find the door and lost my way. So I returned to the chamber with the lighted candles, sat upon the couch, and, after reciting some verses of the Quran, covered myself with a quilt. I tried to sleep, but could not, for uneasiness had taken hold of me. At midnight I heard the Quran being recited in a sweet, gentle voice. Turning towards an inner chamber, I saw that its door was open. I went through it and found myself in a place of prayer, with lighted lamps hanging overhead and a handsome young man seated on a prayer rug. I wondered how he alone had escaped the fate of the people of the city. I entered and greeted him. He raised his eyes and returned my greeting, and I said, ‘By the holy book of God that you are reciting, I beg you to answer my question.’ He smiled and said, ‘First tell me what brought you to this place, and then I shall answer whatever you ask.’ I told him my story, and he marvelled at it. Then I asked him about the city, and he said, ‘Give me a moment.’ He closed the Quran, put it into a satin bag, and seated me beside him. I looked at him and saw that he was like the full moon: lovely in every feature, graceful in movement, radiant in appearance, slender of figure, smooth-cheeked and glowing, as though these verses had been composed for him:

“The astrologer kept watch by night, and there appeared before his eyes a beauty’s form, swaying within his robes. Saturn bestowed the blackness of his flowing locks, and musk set beauty’s seal upon his cheeks. From Mars his cheeks received their rosy hue; the Archer shot his arrows from his eyelids. Mercury endowed him with surpassing wit, while Suha denied informers any sight of him. Bewildered stood the watcher at the marvel he beheld, and the full moon kissed the earth before his feet. I gave him one look, and it left me with a thousand pangs of longing and kindled every ember in my heart. ‘My lord,’ I said, ‘tell me what I asked you.’ He answered, ‘Gladly and willingly. Know that this city belonged to my father, together with all his household and people. He is the king you saw seated on the throne, turned to stone, and the queen you saw is my mother. They were Magians, worshippers of fire rather than the Almighty King. They swore by fire and light, by shade and burning heat, and by the circling heavens. My father had no child until I was granted to him in his old age, and he brought me up until I grew to boyhood. But happiness had already been ordained for me. In our household was a very old woman, a Muslim who secretly believed in God and His Messenger, though outwardly she conformed to my family’s faith. My father esteemed her for her honesty and chastity, and treated her with ever-increasing honour, believing that she shared his religion. When I was older, he entrusted me to her, saying, “Take him and bring him up. Teach him the ways of our religion, rear him well, and attend to his needs.”

“‘The old woman took me and taught me the religion of Islam: ritual purity, the duties of ablution and prayer, and the Quran, which she made me learn by heart. When I had mastered all this, she said, “My son, keep this secret from your father. Do not let him know, lest he kill you.” So I concealed it from him, and continued to do so until the old woman died a few days later. The people of the city grew ever more unbelieving, rebellious, and astray. While they persisted in their ways, they heard a voice crying aloud like crashing thunder, audible far and near: “People of this city, turn away from the worship of fire and worship the Almighty King!” Terror seized them, and they gathered before my father, the king of the city, saying, “What is this dreadful voice we have heard, whose terrible sound has struck us senseless?” He told them, “Do not let the voice alarm or frighten you, or turn you from your religion.” Their hearts inclined to my father’s words, and they remained devoted to the worship of fire. They persisted in their defiance for a year, until the anniversary of the first warning, when the voice sounded again. They heard it three times in three years, once each year, yet still they clung to their old ways. Then, one morning after dawn, divine wrath and indignation descended upon them from heaven, and they were turned to black stone, together with their beasts of burden and their livestock. Of all the people of this city, I alone was spared. Since that day I have lived as you find me, praying, fasting, and reciting the Quran. But I have grown weary of solitude, with no one to keep me company.’

“Then I said to him, ‘Young man, would you come with me to the city of Baghdad? There you could meet scholars and jurists and increase your knowledge and understanding of the faith. I would be your handmaid, though I am the leading woman of my people, with men, servants, and slave-boys under my command. I have a ship laden with merchandise. Fate cast us upon this city so that we might discover these wonders, and it was destined that we should meet.’ I kept urging him to come until he agreed.” But morning overtook Shahrazad, and she fell silent, leaving her tale untold.

When it was the seventeenth night

She said: It has reached me, O fortunate King, that the young woman continued to persuade the young man to accompany her until sleep overcame her, and she spent that night sleeping at his feet, scarcely able to believe her good fortune. Then she continued: “When morning came, we rose and went into the treasuries, where we took whatever was light to carry and precious in value. We descended from the citadel into the city and met the slaves and the captain, who were searching for me. They were delighted to see me and asked why I had been away. I told them what I had seen, related the young man’s story, and explained why the people of the city had been turned to stone and what had befallen them. They marvelled at it all. But when my sisters saw me with the young man, they envied me on his account, and their hearts filled with anger as they secretly plotted against me. We went aboard the ship, and I was overjoyed, above all at having the young man with me. We waited until the wind was favourable, then spread our sails and set off. My sisters sat with us and began to talk. ‘Sister,’ they asked, ‘what do you intend to do with this handsome young man?’ I answered, ‘I mean to take him as my husband.’ Then I turned towards him and said, ‘My lord, I wish to ask something of you. Do not refuse me.’ He answered, ‘Gladly and willingly.’ I turned back to my sisters and said, ‘This young man is enough for me. All these riches may be yours.’ They said, ‘You have chosen well,’ but secretly they meant me harm. We sailed on with a steady wind until we had left the sea of danger and entered the sea of safety. A few days later we drew near Basra, and its buildings came into view as evening fell. When we were asleep, my sisters rose, lifted the young man and me up in our bedding, and threw us into the sea. The young man could not swim, so he drowned, and God numbered him among the martyrs. As for me, I was destined to survive.

“When I fell into the sea, God sent me a piece of wood. I clung to it, and the waves tossed me about until they cast me ashore on an island. I walked about the island for the rest of the night. When morning came, I saw a path marked with human footprints, leading from the island to the mainland. The sun had risen, so I dried my clothes in its warmth and set off along the path. I walked on until I was close to the mainland where the city stood. Suddenly a snake came towards me, pursued by a great serpent that was bent on killing her. Her tongue hung out from exhaustion, and I was moved to pity. I picked up a stone and hurled it at the serpent’s head, killing it on the spot. The snake then spread a pair of wings and flew into the air. I marvelled at the sight. Being weary, I lay down where I was and slept for a while. When I woke, I found a young woman at my feet, massaging them. I sat up, embarrassed, and asked, ‘Who are you, and what brings you here?’ She answered, ‘How quickly you have forgotten me! It was you who did me a kindness and killed my enemy. I am the snake you rescued from the serpent. I am a jinniyah, and that serpent was a jinn, an enemy of mine. No one but you could have saved me from him. When you rescued me, I flew through the air to the ship from which your sisters had thrown you, carried everything aboard it to your house, and sank it. As for your sisters, I changed them by enchantment into two black dogs, for I learned all that had passed between you and them. But the young man was drowned.’

“Then she carried me and the two dogs away and set us down on the roof of my house. Inside I found all the wealth that had been aboard the ship, with nothing missing. Then the snake said to me, ‘By the inscription upon Solomon’s seal, unless you give each of them three hundred lashes every day, I shall come and turn you into a dog like them.’ I answered, ‘I hear and obey.’ And ever since, O Commander of the Faithful, I have beaten them in this way, though my heart aches with pity for them.” The caliph marvelled at her story. Then he turned to the second young woman and asked, “And you—what caused the marks of beating on your body?”