Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 3 (of 6) Part 1
General
Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 3 (of 6) Part 1
Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries
was his wont, to the Jewellers’ Bazar; and, as he passed along it he
heard the crier crying as follows: “By command of our magnificent
master, the King of the Time and the Lord of the Age and the Tide, let
all the folk lock up their shops and stores and retire within their
houses, for that the Lady Badr al-Budúr[127], daughter of the Sultan,
designeth to visit the Hammám; and whoso gainsayeth the order shall be
punished with death-penalty and be his blood upon his own neck!” But
when Alaeddin heard the proclamation, he longed to look upon the King’s
daughter and said in his mind, “Indeed all the lieges talk of her beauty
and loveliness and the end of my desires is to see her.”——And Shahrazad
was surprised by the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
Now when it was the Five Hundred and Fortieth Night,
Quoth Dunyazad, “O sister mine, an thou be other than sleepy, do tell us
some of thy pleasant tales,” whereupon Shahrazad replied “With love and
good will.”——It hath reached me, O King of the Age, that Alaeddin fell
to contriving some means whereby he might look upon the Princess Badr
al-Budúr and at last judged best to take his station behind the
Hammam-door whence he might see her face as she entered.[128]
Accordingly, without stay or delay he repaired to the Baths before she
was expected and stood a-rear of the entrance, a place whereat none of
the folk happened to be looking. Now when the Sultan’s daughter had gone
the rounds of the city and its main streets and had solaced herself by
sight-seeing, she finally reached the Hammam and whilst entering she
raised her veil, when her face rose before sight as it were a pearl of
price or a sheeny sun, and she was as one of whom the describer sang:—
Magic Kohl enchanteth the glances so bright of her: ✿ We pluck roses in
posies from cheeks rosy bright of her:
Of night’s gloomiest hue is the gloom of the hair of her ✿ And her
bright brow uplighteth the murks of the night of her.[129]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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