The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 03 (of 10)
General
The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 03 (of 10)
Fairy tales; Tales -- Arab countries
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the name of the
Jinniyah in question was Maymunah, daughter of Al-Dimiryat; a renowned
King of the Jann. And as Kamar al-Zaman continued sleeping till the
first third of the night, Maymunah came up out of the Roman well and
made for the firmament, thinking to listen by stealth to the converse
of the angels; but when she reached the mouth of the well, she saw a
light shining in the tower, contrary to custom; and having dwelt there
many years without seeing the like, she said to herself, "Never have I
witnessed aught like this"; and, marvelling much at the matter,
determined that there must be some cause therefor. So she made for the
light and found the eunuch sleeping within the door; and inside she saw
a couch spread, whereon was a human form with the wax-candle burning at
his head and the lanthorn at his feet, and she wondered to see the
light and stole towards it little by little. Then she folded her wings
and stood by the bed and, drawing back the coverlid, discovered Kamar
al-Zaman's face. She was motionless for a full hour in admiration and
wonderment; for the lustre of his visage outshone that of the candle;
his face beamed like a pearl with light; his eyelids were languorous
like those of the gazelle; the pupils of his eyes were intensely black
and brilliant[FN#241]; his cheeks were rosy red; his eye-brows were
arched like bows and his breath exhaled a scent of musk, even as saith
of him the poet,
"I kissed him: darker grew those pupils,[FN#242] which *
Seduce my soul, and cheeks flushed rosier hue;
O heart, if slanderers dare to deem there be *
His like in chasms, Say 'Bring him hither, you!' "
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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