Zubaydah

“ She replied, "Know that the Lady Zubaydah sent a pellet of Bhang by one of the slave women who was bribed to drug her; and when sleep overpowered her she let put her in a chest, and ordered Sawab and Kafur and Bukhayt to throw her amongst the tombs." "What dost thou say, O Kazib al-Ban;" asked Khayzaran, "is not the lady Kut al-Kulub dead?" "Nay, by Allah!" she answered "and long may her youth be saved from death! but I have heard the Lady Zubaydah say that she is in the house of a young merchant named Ghanim bin Ayyub of Damascus, hight the Distraught, the Thrall o' Love ”

“ And the Lady Zubaydah said, "Indeed he hath not been with thee, nor hast thou seen him, and none was with me but now save Nuzhat al-Fuad, and she sorrowful, weeping, with her clothes torn to tatters. I exhorted her to patience and gave her an hundred dinars and a piece of silk; and indeed I was awaiting thy coming, so I might console thee for thy cup-companion Abu al-Hasan al-Khali'a, and was about to send for thee."65 The Caliph laughed and said, "None is dead save Nuzhat al-Fuad;" and she, "No, no, good my lord; none is dead but Abu al-Hasan the Wag." ”

“ As for Zubaydah, she went in to the Caliph and talked with him awhile; then she fell to kissing him between the eyes and on his hand and asked him for that which she had promised to Sitt al-Milah, saying, “O Commander of the Faithful, I doubt me her lord is not found in this world; but, an she go about seeking him and find him not, her hopes will be cut off and her mind will be set at rest and she will sport and laugh; and indeed while she nourisheth hope, she will never take the right direction.” ”

“ When she had made an end of her song, she wept till she garred the bystanders weep and the Lady Zubaydah condoled with her and said to her, "Allah upon thee, O Sitt al-Milah, sing us somewhat, so we may hearken to thee." The damsel replied, "Hearing and obeying," and sang these couplets,
"People of passion, assemble ye! ”

“ Then she wept and with her wept the old woman, who, going up to Abu al-Hasan and uncovering his face, saw his eyes bound and swollen for the swathing. So she covered him up again and said, "Indeed, O Nuzhat al-Fuad, thou art afflicted in Abu al-Hasan!" Then she condoled with her and going out from her, ran along the street until she came in to the Lady Zubaydah and related to her the story; and the Princess said to her, laughing, "Tell it over again to the Caliph, who maketh me out little of wit, and lacking of religion, and who made this ill-omened liar of a slave presume to contradict me." ”

“ When he hears this he will weep and it shall be grievous to him; then will he cause perlections of the Koran to be made for her and he will watch by night at her tomb. Should he say to himself, 'Verily Zubaydah, the daughter of my uncle, hath compassed in her jealousy the death of Kut al-Kulub'; or, if love-longing overcome him and he bid her be taken out of her tomb, fear thou not; for when they dig down and come to the image in human shape he will see it shrouded in costly grave-clothes ”

“ Now when Zubaydah lifted the carpet she found beneath it the hundred dinars and she said to her husband, “Take these hundred dinars which I have found under the prayer-carpet; assuredly the Dervishes when about to leave us laid them there, without our knowledge.” So Ala al-Din took the money and, repairing to the market, bought therewith meat and rice and clarified butter and all they required. And when it was night, he lit the wax-candles and said to his wife, “The mendicants, it is true, have not brought the ten thousand dinars which they promised me; but indeed they are poor men.” ”

“ So I rose at once and followed her into the presence of the Lady Zubaydah and, when I entered her presence she said to me, “O light of the eye, art thou the Lady Dunya’s beloved?” “I am thy Mameluke, thy chattel,” replied I. Quoth she, “Sooth spake he who reported thee possessed of beauty and grace and good breeding and every fine quality; indeed, thou surpassest all praise and all report. But now sing to me, that I may hear thee.” Quoth I, “Hearkening and obedience;” so she brought me a lute, and I sang to it these couplets:—
The hapless lover’s heart is of his wooing weary grown ”

“ And quoth she, "Fie upon thee! An thou knowest me not, I will tell thee who I am. I am Kut al-Kulub, the Caliph's handmaiden, and the Lady Zubaydah was jealous of me; so she drugged me with Bhang and set me in this chest," presently adding, "Alhamdolillah—praised be God—for that the matter hath come to easy issue and no worse! But this befel me not save for thy good luck, for thou wilt certainly get of the Caliph Al-Rashid money galore, that will be the means of thine enrichment." Quoth Khalifah, "Is not Al-Rashid he in whose Palace I was imprisoned?" "Yes," answered she ”

“ He replied, “O my father, may thy head outlive thy daughter Zubaydah! But, O my father, honour to the dead is burying them.” So when the morning dawned, they buried her in the earth and her husband and father condoled with and mutually consoled each other. Thus far concerning her; but as regards Ala al-Din, he donned mourning dress and declined the Divan, abiding tearful-eyed and heavy-hearted at home. After a while, the Caliph said to Ja’afar, “O Wazir, what is the cause of 63Ala al-Din’s absence from the Divan?” ”

“ Then he made his prayer like a good little Mohammedan that he was, for he must do this before eating.
"I never tasted anything nicer than that," said he, as he finished his bowl of milk.
"'Tis good for thee to be hungry, for it means that thou art already better," said little Fatimah, wisely, giving him a piece of the cake which had been baked the night before. She had brought in her bowl to keep him company at his breakfast.
"Where is Hamid?" asked Rashid, looking around for his little friend.
"He has been in and out many times; but I would not let him waken you," said Zubaydah. ”

“ The crime still “sticks fiery off” from the rest of Harun’s career: it stands out in ghastly prominence as one of the most terrible tragedies recorded by history, and its horrible details make men write passionately on the subject to this our day. [278]
As of Harun so of Zubaydah it may be said that she was far superior in most things to contemporary royalties, and she was not worse at her worst than the normal despot-queen of the Morning-land. We must not take seriously the tales of her 143jealousy in The Nights, which mostly end in her selling off or burying alive her rivals ”

“ And now, according to your and your daughter’s pledge, I claim her as my own—my bride—my wife!”
“Fair and just!” admitted the Caliph of Bagdad; but his words as well as Zobeid’s exclamation of horror and consternation were swallowed in the Indian’s angry:
“Why—the pretensions of this Mongol are absolutely preposterous! Saved Zobeid’s life, did he? By Shiva! There is hardly a Brahmin or holy fakir in Hindustan who is not familiar with Sanjivnividya—the science of restoring the dead to life!” ”

“ What?—they demanded—Zobeid did not choose me, the descendant of the gods; nor me, whose riches were uncounted; nor me, whom a million warriors followed into battle? Listen, listen, Heaven-Born ... they surrounded the Caliph, who had left the peacock throne, with noisy clamorings.
But the ruler of Bagdad smiled. He stroked his long, white beard, and declared that the choice was final.
“My friends,” he implored, “do not behave like naughty children. I grant you—for I am a proud father—that there is no woman in all Asia to equal Zobeid in beauty and charm and the many accomplishments. ”

“ Then the lady turned to the caliph, the vizier Giafar, and Mesrour, and said to them, "It is now your turn to relate your adventures; therefore speak."
The grand vizier, who had all along been the spokesman, answered Zobeide: "Madam, in order to obey you, we need only repeat what we have already said to the fair lady who opened for us the door. We are merchants come to Bagdad to sell our merchandise, which lies in the khan [26] where we lodge. We dined to-day with several other persons of our condition, at a merchant's house of this city ”

“ And still he smiled; still he thought of Zobeid, of her words; “I love you! I shall wait for you! I trust you utterly!” until the Caliph, watching, seeing the smile on his face, broke into thin, cruel laughter.
“Ah!” he said. “We shall yet change your impudent smile into a grimace of pain. Let us consider what tortures we may invent for you.” And when the Mongol Prince whispered into his ear, he laughed again. “You are right, Cham Sheng!” he continued. “A splendid, novel, gorgeous idea! Worthy of a Mongol indeed!” He turned to the slaves. “Throw this thief to the gorilla! ”

“ The caliph, who thought that he was perfectly well informed of the death of the slave, and had just reason to believe so, because he had both seen and heard Abou Hassan, laughed, and shrugged up his shoulders, to hear Zobeide talk in this manner. "Mesrour," said he, to the eunuch, "what do you think of the princess's discourse? Do not women sometimes lose their senses; for you have heard and seen all as well as myself?" Then turning to Zobeide, "Madam," said he, "shed no more tears for Abou Hassan, for I can assure you he is well; but rather bewail the death of your dear slave. ”

“ Her beauty grew with the years as grew his love. Often when he looked at her, he thought, half ironically, half pityingly, of Fathma, daughter of Daood, standing there amongst the ruddy glebes of the wheat field on the day of his going to the west. She had kissed him. What of it? She was a girl of the nomads' black tents where springtime and summer were short between the slender virgin and the withered, unlovely matron of middle age. Daughter of the clay she was, mute as the clay, while Zobeid was a flower, a perfume, a lissom, sensuous thought. ”

“ Zobeid resisted. But she was helpless. They lifted her on the rug. They held her there. Already the Prince had spoken to the rug: “O magic flying carpet, carry us to ...” when suddenly his words were cut off in midair.
For there came a shrill, high, triumphant war cry:
“Allah akbar! Allah akbar!” and, the next moment, invisible hands came out of the nowhere; invisible hands sent the Mongol soldiers spinning in all directions; invisible hands struck Cham Sheng square between the eyes; invisible hands picked up the Princess Zobeid and carried her away, out of the room, up the staircase ”

“ The caliph, his grand vizier, and the chief of the eunuchs, being introduced by the fair Safie, very courteously saluted the ladies and the calenders. The ladies returned their salutations, supposing them to be merchants. Zobeide, as the chief, addressed them with a grave and serious countenance, which was natural to her, and said, "You are welcome. But before I proceed farther, I hope you will not take it ill if we desire one favour of you." "Alas!" said the vizier, "what favour? We can refuse nothing to such fair ladies." ”

“ The Khalifeh, still laughing, readily consented; and Zubeydeh summoned an old woman and bade her run with all speed to this house of the quick and the dead and learn for a certainty which was prepared for the grave. And the old woman set forth running as fast as her legs would carry her.
Now, when Nuzhat-el-Fuad, seated at the window, saw her drawing near, she said to Abu-I-Hasan, "Methinks the Lady Zubeydeh hath found fault with Mesrur's report of thy death, and hath sent her messenger to learn the truth. ”

“ The pilgrims make a roundabout, and take this road, if they suffer from want of water. The pass of Sufayna, by which they have to descend, is very difficult.� The ridges over which the road leads are called al-Sitar, and are described by Yacut, vol. iii. p. 38, as a range of red hills, flanking Sufayna, with defiles which serve as passes. Burton, vol. ii. p. 128, describes them as low hills of red sandstone and bright porphyry. Zobayda, whose name the partly improved, partly newly opened Hajj-Road from Baghdad to Meccah bore, was the wife of Caliph Harun, and it appears from Burton, pp. ”

“ When she had succeeded to the full extent of her wishes, she commenced teaching him to play chess, and spent several hours a day in this manner, until he finally played with a skill equal to her own. By this time, the palace was completed, and after having purchased horses and slaves, and every thing necessary to the maintenance of a princely household, Zubeydeh and the wood-cutter took possession of it during the night, in order that they might not be observed by the Caliph. Zubeydeh bade the wood-cutter remember the promise he had made her. ”

“ Huddled close against Zemzem, she whispered to her the reason for her serene fortitude of soul.
“Ahmed is coming!” she said. “Aye! He is coming! I saw it in the magic crystal!”
“But he is alone, Heaven-Born! What can one man do against the Mongol horde?”
“Have you ever been in love, Zemzem?” smiled Zobeid. ”

“ It was for this reason that he whispered to his vizier, who was near him, instantly to declare who he was. But this wise and prudent minister, wishing to preserve the honour of his master, and being unwilling to make public the great affront he had brought upon himself, answered, “We suffer only what we deserve.” When, however, in obedience to the caliph, he wished to speak, Zobeidè would not give them time. She immediately addressed herself to the three calenders, and observing that they were all three blind with one eye, she asked if they were brothers. ”