One Thousand and One Nights

by Richard Burton

  He abode twenty days with the Moor, who clad him in a new dress every day, and all this time they ate from the saddle-bags; for the Moor bought neither meat nor bread nor aught else nor cooked, but brought everything out of the bags, even to various kinds of fruit. On the twenty- first day, he said to Jouder, ‘Come, this is the day appointed for opening the treasure of Shemerdel.’ So he rose and they went afoot without the city, where they found two slaves, each holding a mule. The Moor mounted one mule and Jouder the other, and they rode on till noon, when they came to a stream of running water, on whose banks they alighted and Abdussemed signed with his hand to the slaves and said, ‘To it!’ So they took the mules and going each his own way, were absent awhile, after which they returned, bearing, one a tent, which he pitched, and the other carpets, which he spread in the tent and laid cushions thereabout. Then they brought the saddle-bags and the caskets containing the two fish; whereupon the Moor arose and said, ‘Come, O Jouder!’ So Jouder followed him into the tent and sat down beside him; and he brought out dishes of meat from the saddle-bags and they ate the morning meal.

  Then the Moor took the two caskets and conjured over them, whereupon there came from within voices that said, ‘Here are we, at thy service, O diviner of the world! Have mercy on us!’ But he ceased not to repeat conjurations and they to call for help, till the two caskets flew in sunder and there came forth two men, with their hands bound behind them, saying, ‘Pardon, O diviner of the world! What wilt thou with us?’ Quoth he, ‘I will burn you with fire, except ye make a covenant with me, to open to me the treasure of Es Shemerdel.’* ‘We promise this to thee,’ answered they, ‘and we will open the treasure to thee, so thou produce to us Jouder ben Omar, the fisherman, for it may not be opened but by his means, nor can any enter therein but he.’ ‘He of whom ye speak,’ answered the Moor, ‘I have brought, and he is here, listening to you and looking at you.’ Thereupon they covenanted with him to open the treasure to him, and he released them.

  Then he brought out a hollow wand and tablets of red cornelian and laid the latter on the former; after which he took a chafing-dish and laying charcoal thereon, blew one breath into it and it kindled forthwith. Then said he to Jouder, ‘O Jouder, I am now about to begin the necessary conjurations and fumigations, and when I have once begun, I may not speak, or the conjuration will be naught; so I will tell thee first what thou must do.’ ‘Say on,’ replied Jouder. ‘Know then,’ said the Moor, ‘that, when I have recited the charm and thrown on the perfumes, the water will dry up from the river’s bed and discover to thee a door of gold, the bigness of the city- gate, with two rings of metal thereon; whereupon do thou go down to the door and knock lightly and wait awhile; then knock a second time more loudly than the first and wait another while; after which give three knocks, one after another, and thou wilt hear a voice say, “Who knocks at the door of the treasure, unknowing how to solve the mysteries?” Do thou answer, “I am Jouder ben Omar, the fisherman;” and the door will open and there will come forth one with a sword in his hand and say to thee, “If thou be that man, stretch forth thy neck, that I may strike off thy head.” Then do thou stretch forth thy neck and fear not; for, when he lifts his hand and smites thee, he will fall down before thee, and in a little thou wilt see him a body without a soul; and the blow shall not irk thee nor shall any harm befall thee; but, if thou gainsay him, he will slay thee. When thou hast undone his enchantment by obedience, enter and go on till thou seest another door, at which do thou knock, and there will come forth to thee a horseman with a lance on his shoulder and say to thee, “What brings thee hither, where neither man nor genie may enter?” And he will shake his spear at thee. Bare thy breast to him and he will smite thee and fall down forthright and thou shalt see him a body without a soul; but if thou cross him, he will slay thee.

  Then go on to the third door, whence there will come forth to thee a man with a bow and arrows in his hand and take aim at thee. Bare thy breast to him and he will shoot at thee and fall down before thee, a body without a soul; but if thou cross him, he will kill thee. Then go on to the fourth door and knock, and there will come forth to thee a huge lion, which will rush upon thee, opening his mouth as if he had a mind to devour thee. Have no fear of him, neither flee from him; but, when he cometh to thee, give him thy hand and he will bite at it and fall down straightway, nor shall aught [of hurt] betide thee. Then enter the fifth door, where thou shalt find a black slave, who will say to thee, “Who art thou?” Say, “I am Jouder,” and he will answer, “If thou be that man, open the sixth door.” Then do thou go up to the door and say, “O Jesus, tell Moses to open the door;” whereupon the door will fly open and thou wilt see two dragons, one on the left hand and another on the right, which will open their mouths and fly at thee, both at once. Do thou put forth to them thy hands and they will bite each a hand [and fall down dead;] but if thou resist them, they will kill thee. Then go on to the seventh door and knock, whereupon there will come forth to thee thy mother and say, “Welcome, O my son! Come, that I may greet thee!” But do thou say to her, “Hold off from me and put off thy clothes.” And she will make answer, “O my son, I am thy mother that suckled thee and brought thee up: how then wouldst thou strip me naked?” Then do thou say, “Except thou put off thy clothes, I will kill thee!” and look to thy right, where thou wilt see a sword hanging up. Take it and draw it upon her, saying, “Strip!” whereupon she will wheedle thee and humble herself to thee; but have thou no pity on her nor be beguiled, and as often as she puts off aught, say to her, “Off with the rest!” nor do thou cease to threaten her with death, till she put off all that is upon her and fall down, when the enchantment will be dissolved and the charms undone, and thou wilt be safe.

  Then enter the hall of the treasure, where thou wilt see the gold lying in heaps; but pay no heed to aught thereof and go on to the upper end of the hall, where thou wilt find a niche, with a curtain drawn before it. Draw back the curtain and thou wilt see the enchanter Es Shemerdel lying upon a couch of gold, with something at his head, round and shining like the moon, which is the celestial planisphere. He is girt with the sword; on his finger is the ring and about his neck is a chain, to which hangs the kohl-pot. Bring me the four talismans, and look thou forget not aught of that which I have told thee, or thou wilt repent and be put to fear.’ And he repeated his directions to Jouder a second and a third and a fourth time, till he said, ‘I have them by heart: but who may face all these enchantments that thou namest and endure against these mighty terrors?’ ‘O Jouder,’ replied the Moor, ‘fear not, for they are semblances without life;’ and he went on to hearten him, till he said, ‘I put my trust in God.’

  Then Abdussemed threw perfumes on the chafing-dish, and addressed himself to reciting conjurations. Presently the water disappeared and discovered the bed of the river and the door of the treasure, whereupon Jouder went down to the door and knocked. Therewith he heard a voice saying, ‘Who knocks at the door of the treasure, unknowing how to solve the mysteries?’ Quoth he, ‘I am Jouder, son of Omar;’ whereupon the door opened and there came forth one with a drawn sword, who said to him, ‘Stretch forth thy neck.’ So he stretched forth his neck and the figure smote him and fell down, lifeless. Then he went on to the second door and did the like, nor did he cease to do thus, till he had undone the enchantments of the first six doors and came to the seventh door, from which there issued forth to him his mother, saying, ‘Greeting, O my son!’ ‘What art thou?’ said he; and she answered saying, ‘O my son, I am thy mother who bore thee nine months [in my womb] and gave thee suck and reared thee.’ Quoth he, ‘Put off thy clothes.’ ‘Thou art my son,’ said she, ‘how wouldst thou strip me naked?’ But he said, ‘Strip, or I will strike off thy head with this sword;’ and he put out his hand to it and drew it upon her, saying, ‘Except thou strip, I will slay thee.’ Then the strife became long between them and as often as he redoubled on her his menaces, she put off somewhat of her clothes and he said to her, ‘Put off the rest,’ whilst she k
ept saying, ‘O my son, thou hast disappointed my fosterage of thee,’ till she had nothing left but her trousers. Then said she, ‘O my son, is thy heart stone? Wilt thou dishonour me by discovering my nakedness. Indeed, this is unlawful, O my son!’ And he answered, ‘Thou sayst sooth; it behoves not that thou put off thy trousers.’

  No sooner had he uttered these words, than she cried out and said, ‘He hath made default: beat him!’ Whereupon there fell upon him blows like rain and the servants of the treasure flocked to him and dealt him a beating that he forgot not in all his life; after which they thrust him forth and cast him down without the treasure and the doors shut of themselves as before, whilst the waters of the river returned to their bed. When the Moor saw this, he took Jouder up in haste and repeated conjurations over him, till he came to his senses, when he said to him, ‘What hast thou done, O dolt?’ ‘O my brother,’ answered Jouder, ‘I undid all the enchantments, till I came to my mother and there befell between her and myself a long contention. But I made her put off her clothes, till but her trousers remained upon her and she said to me, “Do not dishonour me; for to discover one’s nakedness is forbidden.” So I left her her trousers out of pity, and behold, she cried out and said, “He hath made default: beat him!” Whereupon there came out upon me folk, whence I know not, and beating me till I was nigh upon death, thrust me out; nor do I know what befell me after this.’ Quoth the Moor, ‘Did I not warn thee not to swerve from my directions? Verily, thou hast done ill by me and by thyself: for if thou hadst made her take off her trousers, we had attained our desire; but now thou must abide with me till this day next year.’

  Then he cried out to the two slaves, who struck the tent forthright and loaded it [on muleback;] then they were absent awhile and presently returned with the two mules; and they mounted and rode back to the city of Fez, where Jouder abode with the Moor, eating and drinking well and donning a rich dress every day, till the appointed day arrived, when the Moor said to him, ‘Come with me, for this is the appointed day.’ And Jouder said, ‘It is well.’ So the Moor carried him without the city, where they found the two slaves with the mules, and mounting, rode on till they came to the river. Here the slaves pitched the tent and furnished it and the Moor brought forth the tray of food and they ate the morning meal; after which Abdussemed brought out the wand and the tablets as before and kindling the fire in the chafing-dish, made ready the perfumes. Then said he to Jouder, ‘O Jouder, I wish to renew my injunctions to thee.’ ‘O my lord the pilgrim,’ answered he, ‘if I have forgotten the beating, I have forgotten the injunctions.’ ‘Dost thou indeed remember them,’ asked the Moor, and he said, ‘Yes.’ Quoth the Moor, ‘Keep thy wits, and think not that the woman is thy very mother; nay, she is but an enchantment in her semblance, whose purpose is to catch thee tripping. Thou camest off alive the first time, but, if thou make default this time, they will kill thee.’ ‘If I slip this time,’ replied Jouder, ‘I deserve to be burnt of them.’

  Then Abdussemed cast in the perfumes and recited the conjurations, till the river dried up; whereupon Jouder descended and knocked at the door. It opened and he entered and undid the several enchantments, till he came to the seventh door and the semblance of his mother appeared before him, saying, ‘Welcome, O my son!’ But he said to her, ‘How am I thy son, O accursed one? Strip!’ And she began to wheedle him and put off garment after garment, till but her trousers remained; and he said to her, ‘Strip, O accursed one!’ So she put off her trousers and became a body without a soul. Then he entered the hall of the treasure, where he saw gold lying in heaps, but paid no heed to it and passed on to the niche at the upper end, where he saw the enchanter Es Shemerdel lying on a couch of gold, girt with the sword, with the ring on his finger, the kohl-pot on his breast and the celestial planisphere over his head. So he unbuckled the sword and taking the ring, the kohl-pot and the planisphere, went forth, when, behold, music sounded for him and the servants of the treasure cried out, saying, ‘Mayst thou enjoy that which thou hast gained, O Jouder!’ Nor did the music leave sounding, till he came forth of the treasure to the Moor, who gave over his conjurations and rising, embraced him and saluted him. Then Jouder gave him the four talismans, and he took them and cried out to the slaves, who carried away the tent and brought the mules.

  So they mounted and returned to the city of Fez, where the Moor fetched the saddle-bags and brought forth dish after dish of meat, till the tray was full, and said to Jouder, ‘Eat, O Jouder, O my brother!’ So he ate till he was satisfied, when the Moor emptied what remained of the meats into other dishes and returned the empty platters to the saddle-bags. Then he said to Jouder, ‘O Jouder, thou hast left thy native land on our account and hast accomplished our need; wherefore thou hast a right to a reward of us. Seek, therefore, what thou wilt; it is God the Most High that giveth unto thee by our means. Ask thy will and be not ashamed, for thou art deserving.’ ‘O my lord,’ answered Jouder, ‘I ask first of God the Most High and then of thee, that thou give me yonder saddle-bags.’ So the Moor called for them and gave them to him, saying, ‘Take them, for they are thy due, and if thou hadst asked of me aught else, I had given it thee. Eat from them, thou and thy family, and know that the manner of their usance is on this wise; put thy hand therein and say, “O servant of these saddle-bags, I conjure thee by the virtue of the mighty names that have power over thee, bring me such a dish!” And he will bring thee whatsoever thou askest, though thou shouldst call for a thousand different dishes a day. But, O good fellow, these will not profit thee, save by way of victual, and thou hast wearied thyself with us and we promised thee to send thee home, rejoicing; so we will join to these other saddle-bags, full of gold and jewels, and bring thee back to thy native land, where thou shalt become a merchant and clothe thyself and thy family; nor shalt thou want for spending-money.’

  So saying, he filled him a pair of saddle-bags, half with gold and half with jewels and precious stones, and sending for a slave and a mule, said to him, ‘Mount this mule, and the slave shall go before thee and guide thee in the way, till thou come to the door of thy house, where do thou take the two pairs of saddle-bags and give him the mule, that he may bring it back. But let none into thy secret; and so we commend thee to God.’ ‘May God increase thy good!’ replied Jouder and laying the two pairs of saddle-bags on the mule’s back, mounted and set forth. The slave went on before him and the mule followed him all that day and night, and on the morrow he entered Cairo by the Gate of Victory, where he saw his mother seated, saying, ‘Charity, for the love of God!’ At this sight he well-nigh lost his wits and alighting, threw himself upon her: and when she saw him, she wept. Then he mounted her on the mule and walked by her stirrup, till they came to the house, where he set her down and taking the saddle-bags, left the mule to the slave, who took her and resumed with her to his master, for that both slave and mule were Afrits.

  As for Jouder, it was grievous to him that his mother should beg; so, when they were in the house, he said to her, ‘O my mother, are my brothers well?’ And she replied, ‘They are both well.’ Quoth he, ‘Why dost thou beg by the wayside?’ ‘Because I am hungry, O my son,’ answered she; and he, ‘Before I went away I gave thee a hundred dinars one day, the like the next and a thousand on the day of my departure.’ ‘O my son,’ replied she, ‘they cheated me and took the money from me, saying, “We will buy goods with it.” Then they drove me away, and I fell to begging by the wayside, for stress of hunger.’ ‘O my mother,’ said Jouder, ‘no harm shall befall thee, now I am come; so have no concern, for these saddle-bags are full of gold and jewels and good aboundeth [with me].’ Quoth she, ‘Verily, thou art blessed, O my son! May God accept of thee and increase thee of His bounties! Go, O my son, fetch us some victual, for I slept not last night for stress of hunger, having gone to bed supperless.’

  He laughed and said, ‘Welcome to thee, O my mother! Call for what thou wilt to eat, and I will set it before thee forthright; for I have no occasion to buy from the market, nor need I any to
cook.’ ‘O my son,’ replied she, ‘I see nought with thee.’ And he said, ‘I have with me in these saddle-bags all manner of meats.’ ‘O my son,’ rejoined she, ‘whatever is ready will serve to stay hunger.’ ‘True,’ answered he, ‘when there is no choice, men are content with the least thing; but where there is plenty, they like to eat what is good: and I have plenty; so call for what thou hast a mind to.’ ‘O my son,’ said she, ‘give me some hot bread and a piece of cheese:’ but he answered, saying, ‘O my mother, this befits not thy condition.’ ‘Then give me to eat of that which befits my condition,’ quoth she; ‘for thou knowest it.’ ‘O my mother,’ rejoined he, ‘what befits thy condition is rissoled meat and fricasseed fowls and savoury rice and sausages and stuffed cucumbers and stuffed lamb and stuffed ribs [of mutton] and vermicelli with pounded almonds and nuts and honey and sugar and fritters and almond patties.’ But she thought he was laughing at her and making mock of her; so she said to him, ‘Alas! Alas! what is come to thee? Dost thou dream or art thou mad?’ ‘Why deemest thou that I am mad?’ asked he, and she replied, ‘Because thou namest to me all manner rich meats; who can avail unto their price, and who knows how to dress them?’ Quoth he, ‘As I live, thou shalt eat of all that I have named to thee, and that forthright.’ And she said, ‘I see nothing.’ Then said he, ‘Bring me the saddle-bags.’

  So she fetched them and feeling them, found them empty. However, she laid them before him and he thrust in his hand and pulled out dish after dish, till he had set before her all he had named. Whereupon, ‘O my son,’ said she, ‘the saddle-bags are small and moreover they were empty; yet hast thou taken thereout all these dishes. Where then were they all?’ ‘O my mother,’ answered he, ‘know that these are enchanted saddle-bags, which the Moor gave me, and they have a servant, whom, if one desire aught, he has but to adjure by the names [which have power over him,] saying, “O servant of the saddle-bags, bring me such a dish!” and he will bring it.’ Quoth his mother, ‘And may I put out my hand and ask of him?’ ‘Do so,’ replied he. So she put out her hand and said, ‘O servant of the saddle-bags, [I conjure thee,] by the virtue of the names that have power over thee, bring me stuffed ribs [of mutton].’ Then she thrust in her hand and found a dish containing delicate stuffed ribs of lamb. So she took it out, and called for bread and what else she had a mind to; after which Jouder said to her, ‘O my mother, when thou hast made an end of eating, empty what is left of the food into platters other than these and restore the empty dishes to the saddle-bags, for the charm is upon this condition, and keep the saddle-bags carefully.’ So she arose and laid them up in a safe place. ‘And look that thou keep this secret,’ added he; ‘and whenever thou hast a mind to aught, take it forth of the saddle-bags and give alms and feed my brothers, whether I be absent or present.’