Turkish Literature; Comprising Fables, Belles-lettres, and Sacred Traditions
General
Turkish Literature; Comprising Fables, Belles-lettres, and Sacred Traditions
Turkey -- Literary collections; Turkish literature -- Translations into English
“They were glad, and they drew their boat to the shore and got out of
it, and took fruits from the trees that were there, and ate them. While
standing there they saw a great white vaulted building, the dome whereof
was of crystal. The prince and the girl went up to it, and they saw that
it was a great castle, and that the domed building was within the
castle, and on the door of the castle was written, ‘O thou who wouldst
open this door, O thou who desirest to overcome this talisman, bring a
five-footed animal and kill it before here, that the bolts of this
talisman may be opened thereby,’ The prince marvelled and said, ‘Is
there in the world a five-footed animal?’ and he wondered. And they sat
by the gate of the castle and lice tormented them, and they began to
louse themselves. The prince killed a louse, and straightway the bolts
of the castle fell, and they knew that the said five-footed animal was
the louse. Then they both entered by a door, and they saw a garden, such
that of every tree which is in the world there was therein; and ripe
fruits were hanging there and running streams were flowing.
“And the prince felt a longing for those fruits and he went to pluck one
of them that he might eat it, when he saw that those trees were of gold
and their fruits of silver and jewels, and that precious stones were
lying at the foot of the trees, scattered like pebbles in a brook. They
passed through and came to that dome, it was fashioned of crystal, they
entered by a silver door and saw that within that dome was another dome
all of pure gold. It too they entered and saw yet another dome, all the
walls and the top of which were of ruby, built after the fashion of
paradise. They entered it and saw a throne upon which was a coffin made
of jewels, and at the head of the coffin was a tablet whereon was
written: ‘O son of Adam, who comest hither and seest me, know thou that
I was a king, and that all the world was in my hands, and my wealth was
beyond bounds or computation. Men and demons and fairies and jinn were
my warriors; and I lived in the world for a thousand years, and I never
said, “I shall die;” and I made not any preparation against death. One
day, of a sudden, I fell sick, and I knew of a surety that I was about
to die, and I commanded that this dome was built in three days, and I
made it a sepulchre for myself. And by my head are two fountains; drink,
and pray for me.’
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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