[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
marriage for Tej el Mulouk. I hear and obey, answered the
Vizier. Then Taj el Mulouk returned to his dwelling place and his
longing redoubled and impatience and unease were sore upon him;
170
and when the night darkened upon him, he wept and sighed and
complained and repeated the following verses:
The shadows darken and my tears flow aye without avail, Whilst in
my heart the fires of love rage on and never fail.
Question the nights of me, and they will testify to thee That I
in all their endless hours do nought but weep and wait.
Wakeful for love-longing and grief, I lie and watch the stars All
night, what while upon my cheeks the tears fall down like
hail.
Lowly and helpless I abide, for such as lovers be Have, as it
were, nor kith nor kin to help them in their bale.
Then he swooned away and did not recover his senses till the
morning, when there came to him one of his father s servants and
standing at his head, summoned him to the King s presence. So he
went with him, and his father seeing that his pallor had
increased, exhorted him to patience and promised him union with
her he loved. Then he equipped Aziz and the Vizier for the
journey and gave them presents for the princess s father; and
they set out and fared on night and day, till they drew near the
Camphor Islands, when the Vizier called a halt on the banks of a
stream and despatched a messenger to acquaint the King of his
arrival. The messenger had not long been gone, when they saw,
advancing towards them, the King s chamberlains and amirs, who
met them at a parasang s distance from the city and escorted them
to the royal presence. They laid before the King the gifts with
which they were charged and enjoyed his hospitality three days.
On the fourth day the Vizier rose and going in to the King, stood
before him and acquainted him with the object of his visit;
whereat he was perplexed and knew not what answer to make him,
for that his daughter was averse from men and did not desire to
marry. So he bowed his head awhile, then raised it and calling
one of his eunuchs, said to him, Go to thy mistress, the
princess Dunya, and repeat to her what thou hast heard and tell
her this Vizier s errand. So the eunuch went out and returning
after a while, said to the King, O King of the age, when I went
to the lady Dunya and told her what I had heard, she was
exceeding wroth and made at me with a staff, meaning to break my
head; whereupon I fled from her, and she said to me, If my
father force me to marry, him whom I wed I will kill. Then said
the King to the Vizier and Aziz, Salute the King your master and
tell him what ye have heard and that my daughter is averse from
men and hath no mind to marry. So they returned, without having
accomplished the object of their journey, and fared on till they
rejoined the King and told him what had passed; whereupon he
commanded the chief to summon the troops for war. But the Vizier
said to him, O King, do not this, for the King is not at fault,
seeing that, when his daughter learnt our business, she sent to
say that, if her father forced her to marry, she would kill her
171
husband and herself after him: so the refusal comes from her.
When the King heard this, he feared for Taj el Mulouk and said,
If I make war on the King of the Camphor Islands and carry off
his daughter, she will kill herself and it will profit me
nothing. So he told his son how the case stood, and he said, O
my father, I cannot live without her; so I will go to her and
cast about to get me access to her, though I die in the attempt.
How wilt thou go to her? asked his father; and he answered, In
the disguise of a merchant. Then said the King, If thou must go
and there is no help for it, take with thee Aziz and the Vizier.
He agreed to this, and the King took money from his treasuries
and made ready for him merchandise, to the value of a hundred
thousand dinars; and when the night came Taj el Mulouk went to
Aziz s lodging and passed the night there, heart-smitten and
taking no delight in food nor sleep; for melancholy was heavy
upon him and he was agitated with longing for his beloved. So he
besought the Creator to unite him with her and wept and groaned
and complained, repeating the following verses:
Shall union after estrangement betide us, perchance, some day?
Shall I ever make moan of my passion to thee, I wonder, and
say,
How oft have I called thee to mind, whilst the night in its
trances slept! Thou hast made me waken, whilst all but I in
oblivion lay.
Then he wept sore and Aziz wept with him, for that he remembered
his cousin; and they both ceased not to do thus till the morning,
when Taj el Mulouk rose and went in to his mother in his
travelling dress. She asked him of his case, and he told her what
was to do; so she gave him fifty thousand dinars and bade him
farewell, offering up prayers for his safety and for his union
with his beloved. Then he left her and betaking himself to his
father, asked his leave to depart. The King granted him leave and
presenting him with other fifty thousand dinars, let pitch a tent
for him without the city, in which they abode two days, then set
out on their journey. And Taj el Mulouk delighted in Aziz s
company and said to him, O my brother, I can never bear to be
parted from thee. Nor I from thee, replied Aziz; and fain
would I die at thy feet: but, O my brother, my heart is concerned
for my mother. When we have attained our wish, said the
prince, all will be well. As for the Vizier, he exhorted Taj el
Mulouk to patience, whilst Aziz entertained him with talk and
recited verses to him and diverted him with stories and
anecdotes; and so they fared on day and night for two whole
months, till the way became tedious to the prince and the fires
of passion redoubled on him. So he repeated the following verses:
Long is the road and restlessness and grief redouble aye, Whilst
in my breast the fires of love rage ever night and day
172
O thou, the goal of all my hopes, sole object of my wish, I swear
by Him, the Most High God, who moulded man from clay,
For love of thee I bear a load of longing and desire, Such as the
mountains of Es Shumm might ne er withal away!
Indeed, O lady of my world,[FN140] love slayeth me outright; No
breath of life in me is left, my fainting spright to stay
But for the hope of union with thee, that lures me on, My weary
body had no strength to furnish forth the way.
When he had finished, he wept and Aziz wept with him, from a
lacerated heart, till the Vizier was moved to pity by their
weeping and said to the prince, O my lord, take courage and be
of good cheer; all will yet be well. O Vizier, said Taj el
Mulouk, indeed I am weary of the length of the way. Tell me how
far we are distant yet from the city. But a little way,
replied Aziz. Then they continued their journey, traversing
valleys and plains and hills and stony wastes, till one night, as
Taj el Mulouk was asleep, he dreamt that his beloved was with him
and that he embraced her and pressed her to his bosom; and he
awoke, trembling and delirious with emotion, and repeated the
following verses:
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]