The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, vol 4 | Page 7

her like. Now when Naomi caught sight of him she
veiled her face from him; but he left her not till he had called his
Chamberlain, whom he commanded to take fifty horsemen; and he
bade him mount the damsel on a swift dromedary, and bear her to
Damascus and there deliver her to the Commander of the Faithful, Abd
al-Malik bin Marwan. Moreover, he gave him a letter for the Caliph,
saying, "Bear him this letter and bring me his answer and hasten thy
return to me." So the Chamberlain, without losing time, took the
damsel (and she tearful for separation from her lord) and, setting out
with her on a dromedary, gave not over journeying till he reached
Damascus. There he sought audience of the Commander of the Faithful
and, when it was granted, the Chamberlain delivered the damsel and
reported the circumstance. The Caliph appointed her a separate
apartment and going into his Harim, said to his wife, "Al Hajjaj hath
bought me a slave-girl of the daughters of the Kings of Cufa[FN#10]
for ten thousand dinars, and hath sent me this letter."-- And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Two Hundred and Fortieth Night,

She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Caliph
acquainted his wife with the story of the slave-girl, she said to him,
"Allah increase to thee His favour!" Then the Caliph's sister went in to
the supposed slave-girl and, when she saw her, she said, "By Allah, not
unlucky is the man who hath thee in his house, were thy cost an
hundred thousand dinars!" And Naomi replied, "O fair of face, what
King's palace is this, and what is the city?" She answered, "This is the
city of Damascus, and this is the palace of my brother, the Commander
of the Faithful, Abd al-Malik bin Marwan.[FN#11]" Then she resumed,
"Didst thou not know all this?" Naomi said, "By Allah, O my lady, I
had no knowledge of it!"; when the other asked, "And he who sold thee
and took thy price did he not tell thee that the Caliph had bought thee?"
Now when Naomi heard these words, she shed tears and said to herself,
"Verily, I have been tricked and the trick hath succeeded," adding to
herself, "If I speak, none will credit me; so I will hold my peace and
take patience, for I know that the relief of Allah is near." Then she bent
her head for shame, and indeed her cheeks were tanned by the journey
and the sun. So the Caliph's sister left her that day and returned to her
on the morrow with clothes and necklaces of jewels, and dressed her;
after which the Caliph came in to her and sat down by her side, and his
sister said to him, "Look on this handmaid in whom Allah hath
conjoined every perfection of beauty and loveliness." So he said to
Naomi, "Draw back the veil from thy face;" but she would not unveil,
and he beheld not her face. However, he saw her wrists and love of her
entered his heart; and he said to his sister, "I will not go in unto her for
three days, till she be cheered by thy converse." Then he arose and left
her, but Naomi ceased not to brood over her case and sigh for her
separation from her master, Ni'amah, till she fell sick of a fever during
the night and ate not nor drank; and her favour faded and her charms
were changed. They told the Caliph of this and her condition grieved
him; so he visited her with physicians and men of skill, but none could
come at a cure for her. This is how it fared with her; but as regards
Ni'amah, when he returned home he sat down on his bed and cried, "Ho,
Naomi!" But she answered not; so he rose in haste and called out, yet
none came to him, as all the women in the house had hidden
themselves for fear of him. Then he went out to his mother, whom he
found sitting with her cheek on her hand, and said to her, "O my mother,

where is Naomi?" She answered, "O my son, she is with one who is
worthier than I to be trusted with her, namely, the devout old woman;
she went forth with her to visit devotionally the Fakirs and return."
Quoth Ni'amah, "Since when hath this been her habit and at what hour
went she forth?" Quoth his mother, "She went out early in the
morning." He asked, "And how camest thou to give her leave for this?";
and she answered, "O my son, 'twas she persuaded me." "There is no