When it was the Six Hundred and Thirty-seventh Night,
Shahrazad continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that
Sa'adan having broken into the palace of King Jamak and pounded
to pieces those therein, the survivors cried out, "Quarter!
Quarter!"; and Sa'adan said to them, "Pinion your King!" So they
bound Jamak and took him up, and Sa'adan drove them before him
like sheep and brought them to Gharib's presence, after the most
part of the citizens had perished by the enemy's swords. When the
King of Babel came to himself, he found himself bound and heard
Sa'adan say, "I will sup to-night off this King Jamak:" whereupon
he turned to Gharib and cried to him, "I throw myself on thy
mercy." Replied Gharib, "Become a Moslem, and thou shalt be safe
from the Ghul and from the vengeance of the Living One who
ceaseth not." So Jamak professed Al-Islam with heart and tongue
and Gharib bade loose his bonds. Then he expounded The Faith to
his people and they all became True Believers; after which Jamak
returned to the city and despatched thence provaunt land henchmen
to Gharib; and wine to the camp before Babel where they passed
the night. On the morrow, Gharib gave the signal for the march
and they fared on till they came to Mayyáfárikín,[FN#1] which
they found empty, for its people had heard what had befallen
Babel and had fled to Cufa-city and told Ajib. When he heard the
news, his Doom-day appeared to him and he assembled his braves
and informing them of the enemy's approach ordered them make
ready to do battle with his brother's host; after which he
numbered them and found them thirty-thousand horse and ten
thousand foot.[FN#2] So, needing more, he levied other fifty-
thousand men, cavalry and infantry, and taking horse amid a
mighty host, rode forwards, till he came upon his brother's army
encamped before Mosul and pitched his tents in face of their
lines. Then Gharib wrote a writ and said to his officers, "Which
of you will carry this letter to Ajib?" Whereupon Sahim sprang to
his feet and cried, "O King of the Age, I will bear thy missive
and bring thee back an answer." So Gharib gave him the epistle
and he repaired to the pavilion of Ajib who, when informed of his
coming, said, "Admit him!" and when he stood in the presence
asked him, "Whence comest thou?" Answered Sahim, "From the King
of the Arabs and the Persians, son-in-law of Chosroë, King of the
world, who sendeth thee a writ; so do thou return him a reply."
Quoth Ajib, "Give me the letter;" accordingly Sahim gave it to
him and he tore it open and found therein, "In the name of Allah
the Compassionating, the Compassionate! Peace on Abraham the
Friend await! But afterwards. As soon as this letter shall come
to thy hand, do thou confess the Unity of the Bountiful King,
Causer of causes and Mover of the clouds;[FN#3] and leave
worshipping idols. An thou do this thing, thou art my brother and
ruler over us and I will pardon thee the deaths of my father and
mother, nor will I reproach thee with what thou hast done. But an
thou obey not my bidding, behold, I will hasten to thee and cut
off thy head and lay waste thy dominions. Verily, I give thee
good counsel, and the Peace be on those who pace the path of
salvation and obey the Most High King!" When Ajib read these
words and knew the threat they contained, his eyes sank into the
crown of his head and he gnashed his teeth and flew into a
furious rage. Then he tore the letter in pieces and threw it
away, which vexed Sahim and he cried out upon Ajib, saying,
"Allah wither thy hand for the deed thou hast done!" With this
Ajib cried out to his men, saying, "Seize yonder hound and hew
him in pieces with your hangers.''[FN#4] So they ran at Sahim;
but he bared blade and fell upon them and slew of them more than
fifty braves; after which he cut his way out, though bathed in
blood, and won back to Gharib, who said, "What is this case, O
Sahim?" And he told him what had passed, whereat he grew livid
for rage and crying "Allaho Akbar God is most great!" bade the
battle-drums beat. So the fighting-men donned their hauberks and
coats of straitwoven mail and baldrick'd themselves with their
swords; the footmen drew out in battle-array, whilst the horsemen
mounted their prancing horses and dancing camels and levelled
their long lances, and the champions rushed into the field. Ajib
and his men also took horse and host charged down upon host. --
And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Thirty-eighth Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
Gharib and his merry men took horse, Ajib and his troops also
mounted and host charged down upon host. Then ruled the Kazi of
Battle, in whose ordinance is no wrong, for a seal is on his lips
and he speaketh not; and the blood railed in rills and purfled
earth with curious embroidery; heads grew gray and hotter waxed
battle and fiercer. Feet slipped and stood firm the valiant and
pushed forwards, whilst turned the faint-heart and fled, nor did
they leave fighting till the day darkened and the night starkened
Then clashed the cymbals of retreat and the two hosts drew apart
each from other, and returned to their tents, where they righted.
Next morning, as soon as it was day, the cymbals beat to battle
and derring-do, and the warriors donned their harness of fight
and baldrick'd[FN#5] their blades the brightest bright and with
the brown lance bedight mounted doughty steed every knight and
cried out, saying, "This day no flight!" And the two hosts drew
out in battle array, like the surging sea. The first to open the
chapter[FN#6] of war was Sahim, who crave his destrier between
the two lines and played with swords and spears and turned over
all the Capitula of combat till men of choicest wits were
confounded. Then he cried out, saying, "Who is for fighting? Who
is for jousting? Let no sluggard come out nor weakling!"
Whereupon there rushed at him a horseman of the Kafirs, as he
were a flame of fire; but Sahim let him not stand long before him
ere he overthrew him with a thrust. Then a second came forth and
he slew him also, and a third and he tare him in twain, and a
fourth and he did him to death; nor did they cease sallying out
to him and he left not slaying them, till it was noon, by which
time he had laid low two hundred braves. Then Ajib cried to his
men, "Charge once more," and sturdy host on sturdy host down bore
and great was the clash of arms and battle-roar. The shining
swords out rang; the blood in streams ran and footman rushed upon
footman; Death showed in van and horse-hoof was shodden with
skull of man; nor did they cease from sore smiting till waned the
day and the night came on in black array, when they drew apart
and, returning to their tents, passed the night there. As soon as
morning morrowed the two hosts mounted and sought the field of
fight; and the Moslems looked for Gharib to back steed and ride
under the standards as was his wont, but he came not. So Sahim
sent to his brother's pavilion a slave who, finding him not,
asked the tent-pitchers,[FN#7] but they answered, "We know naught
of him." Whereat he was greatly concerned and went forth and told
the troops, who refrained from battle, saying, "An Gharib be
absent, his foe will destroy us." Now there was for Gharib's
absence a cause strange but true which we will set out in order
due. And it was thus. When Ajib returned to his camp on the
preceding Night, he called one of his guardsmen by name Sayyar
and said to him, "O Sayyar, I have not treasured thee save for a
day like this; and now I bid thee enter among Gharib s host and,
pushing into the marquee of their lord, bring him hither to me
and prove how wily thy cunning be." And Sayyar said, "I hear and
I obey." So he repaired to the enemy's camp and stealing into
Gharib's pavilion, under the darkness of the Night, when all the
men had gone to their places of rest, stood up as though he were
a slave to serve Gharib, who present! being athirst, called to
him for water. So he brought him a pitcher of water, drugged with
Bhang, and Gharib could not fulfill his need ere he fell down
with head distancing heels, whereupon Sayyar wrapped him in his
cloak and carrying him to Ajib's tent, threw him down at his
feet. Quoth Ajib, "O Sayyar, what is this?" Quoth he, "This be
thy brother Gharib;" whereat Ajib rejoiced and said, "The
blessings of the Idols light upon thee! Loose him and wake him."
So they made him sniff up vinegar and he came to himself and
opened his eyes; then, finding himself bound and in a tent other
than his own, exclaimed, "There is no Majesty and there is no
Might save in Allah, the Glorious the Great!" Thereupon Ajib
cried out at him, saying, "Dost thou draw on me, O dog, and seek
to slay me and take on me thy blood-wreak of thy father and thy
mother? I will send thee this very day to them and rid the world
of thee." Replied Gharib, Kafir hound! soon shalt thou see
against whom the wheels of fate shall revolve and who shall be
overthrown by the wrath of the Almighty King, Who wotteth what is
in hearts and Who shall leave thee in Gehenna tormented and
confounded! Have ruth on thyself and say with me, ‘There is no
god but the God and Abraham is the Friend of God!' " When Ajib
heard Gharib's words, he sparked and snorted and railed at his
god, the stone, and called for the sworder and the leather rug of
blood but his Wazir, who was at heart a Moslem though outwardly a
Miscreant, rose and kissing ground before him, said, "Patience, O
King, deal not hastily, but wait till we know the conquered from
the conqueror. If we prove the victors, we shall have power to
him and, if we be beaten, his being alive in our hands will be a
strength to us." And the Emirs said, "The Minister speaketh
sooth"! --And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Thirty-ninth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
Ajib purposed to slay Gharib, the Wazir rose and said, "Deal not
hastily, for we have always power to kill him!" So Ajib bade lay
his brother Gharib in irons and chain him up in his own tent and
set a thousand stout warriors to guard him. Meanwhile Gharib's
host, when they awoke that morning and found not their King, were
as sheep sans a shepherd; but Sa'adan the Ghul cried out at them,
saying, "O folk, don your war-gear and trust to your Lord to
defend you!" So Arabs and Ajams mounted horse, after clothing
themselves in hauberks of iron and skirting themselves in
straight knit mail, and sallied forth to the field, the Chiefs
and the colours moving in van. Then dashed out the Ghul of the
Mountain, with a club on his shoulder, two hundred pounds in
weight, and wheeled and careered, saying, "Ho, worshippers of
idols, come ye out and renown it this day, for 'tis a day of
onslaught! Whoso knoweth me hath enough of my mischief and whoso
knoweth me not, I will make myself known to him. I am Sa'adan,
servant of King Gharib. Who is for jousting? Who is for fighting?
Let no faintheart come forth to me to-day nor weakling." And
there rushed upon him a Champion of the Infidels, as he were a
flame of fire, and drove at him, but Sa'adan charged home at him
and dealt him with his club a blow which broke his ribs and cast
him lifeless to the earth. Then he called out to his sons and
slaves, saying, "Light the bonfire, and whoso falleth of the
Kafirs do ye dress him and roast him well in the flame, then
bring him to me that I may break my fast on him!" So they kindled
a fire midmost the plain and laid thereon the slain, till he was
cooked, when they brought him to Sa'adan, who gnawed his flesh
and crunched his bones. When the Miscreants saw the Mountain-Ghul
do this deed they were Frighted with sore Wright, but Ajib cried
out to his men, saying, "Out on you! Fall upon the Ogre and hew
him in hunks with your scymitars!" So twenty-thousand men ran at
Sa'adan, whilst the footmen circled round him and rained upon him
darts and shafts so that he was wounded in four-and-twenty
places, and his blood ran down upon the earth, and he was alone.
Then the host of the Moslems crave at the heathenry, calling for
help upon the Lord of the three Worlds, and they ceased not from
fight and fray till the day came to an end, when they drew apart.
But the Infidels had captured Sa'adan, as he vere a drunken man
for loss of blood; and they bound him fast and set him by Gharib
who, seeing the Ghul a prisoner, said, "There is no Majesty and
there is no Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great! O
Sa'adan, what case is this?" "O my lord," replied Sa'adan, "it is
Allah (extolled and exalted be He!) who ordaineth joy and annoy
and there is no help but this and that betide." And Gharib
rejoined, "Thou speakest sooth, O Sa'adan!" But Ajib passed the
night in joy and he said to his men, "Mount ye on the morrow and
fall upon the Moslems so shall not one of them be left alive."
And they replied, "Hearkening and obedience!" This is how it
fared with them but as regards the Moslems, they passed the
Night, dejected and weeping for their King and Sa'adan; but Sahim
said to them, "O folk, be not concerned, for the aidance of
Almighty Allah is nigh." Then he waited till midnight, when he
assumed the garb of a tent-pitcher; and, repairing to Ajib's
camp, made his way between the tents and pavilions till he came
to the King's marquee, where he saw him seated on his throne
surrounded by his Princes. So he entered and going up to the
candles which burnt in the tent snuffed them and sprinkled
levigated henbane on the wicks; after which he withdrew and
waited without the marquee, till the smoke of the burning henbane
reached Ajib and his Princes and they fell to the ground like
dead men. Then he left them and went to the prison tent, where he
found Gharib and Sa'adan, guarded by a thousand braves, who were
overcome with sleep. So he cried out at the guards, saying, "Woe
to you! Sleep not; but watch your prisoners and light the
cressets." Presently he filled a cresses with firewood, on which
he strewed henbane, and lighting it, went round about the tent
with it, till the smoke entered the nostrils of the guards, and
they all fell asleep drowned by the drug; when he entered the
tent and finding Gharib and Sa'adan also insensible he aroused
them by making them smell and sniff at a sponge full of vinegar
he had with him. Thereupon he loosed their bonds and collars, and
when they saw him, they blessed him and rejoiced In him. After
this they went forth and took all the arms of the guards and
Sahim said to them, "Go to your own camp;" while he re entered
Ajib's pavilion and, wrapping him in his cloak, lifted him up and
made for the Moslem encampment. And the Lord, Compassionate
protected him, so that he reached Gharib's tent in safety and
unrolled the cloak before him. Gharib looked at its contents and
seeing his brother Ajib bound, cried out, "Allaho Akbar --God is
Most Great! Aidance! Victory!" And he blessed Sahim and bade him
arouse Ajib. So he made him smell the vinegar mixed with incense,
and he opened his eyes and, finding himself bound and shackled,
hung down his head earth wards. --And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fortieth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that after Sahim
had aroused Ajib, whom he had made insensible with henbane and
had brought to his brother Gharib, the captive opened his eyes
and, feeling himself bound and shackled, hung down his head
earthwards. Thereupon cried Sahim, O Accursed, lift thy head!" So
he raised his eyes and found himself amongst Arabs and Ajamis and
saw his brother seated on the throne of his estate and the place
of his power, wherefore he was silent and spake not. Then Gharib
cried out and said, "Strip me this hound!" So they stripped him
and came down upon him with whips, till they weakened his body
and subdued his pride, after which Gharib set over him a guard of
an hundred knights. And when this fraternal correction had been
administered they heard shouts of, "There is no God but the God!"
and "God is Most Great!" from the camp of the Kafirs. Now the
cause of this was that, ten days after his nephew King Al-Damigh,
Gharib's uncle, had set out from Al-Jazirah, with twenty-thousand
horse, and on nearing the field of battle, had despatched one of
his scouts to get news. The man was absent a whole day, at the
end of which time he returned and told Al-Damigh all that had
happened to Gharib with his brother. So he waited till the Night,
when he fell upon the Infidels, crying out, "Allaho Akbar!" and
put them to the edge of the biting scymitar. When Gharib heard
the Takbir,[FN#8] he said to Sahim, "Go find out the cause of
these shouts and war cries." So Sahim repaired to the field of
battle and questioned the slaves and camp followers, who told him
that King Al-Damigh had come up with twenty-thousand men and had
fallen upon the idolaters by Night, saying, "By the virtue of
Abraham the Friend, I will not forsake my brother's son, but will
play a brave man's part and beat back the host of Miscreants and
please the Omnipotent King!" So Sahim returned and told his
uncle's derring-do to Gharib, who cried out to his men, saying,
"Don your arms and mount your steeds and let us succour my
father's brother!" So they took horse and fell upon the Infidels
and put them to the edge of the sharp sword. By the morning they
had killed nigh fifty-thousand of the Kafirs and made other
thirty-thousand prisoners, and the rest of Ajib's army dispersed
over the length and breadth of earth. Then the Moslems returned
in victory and triumph, and Gharib rode out to meet his uncle,
whom he saluted and thanked for his help Quoth Al-Damigh, "I
wonder if that dog Ajib fell in this day's affair." Quoth Gharib,
"O uncle, be of good cheer and keep thine eyes cool and clear:
know that he is with me in chains." When Al-Damigh heard this he
rejoiced with exceeding joy and the two kings dismounted and
entered the pavilion, but found no Ajib there; whereupon Gharib
exclaimed, "O glory of Abraham, the Friend (with whom be
peace!)," adding, "Alas, what an ill end is this to a glorious
day!" and he cried out to the tent-pitchers, saying, "Woe to you!
Where is my enemy who oweth me so much?" Quoth they, "When thou
mountedst and we went with thee, thou didst not bid us guard
him;" and Gharib exclaimed, "There is no Majesty and there is no
Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!" But Al-Damigh said
to him, "Hasten not nor be concerned, for where can he go, and we
in pursuit of him?" Now the manner of Ajib's escape was in this
wise. His page Sayyar had been ambushed in the camp and when he
saw Gharib mount and ride forth, leaving none to guard his enemy
Ajib, he could hardly credit his eyes. So he waited awhile and
presently crept to the tent and taking Ajib, who was senseless
for the pain of the bastinado, on his back, made off with him
into the open country and fared on at the top of his speed from
early night to the next day, till he came to a spring of water,
under an apple tree. There he set down Ajib from his back and
washed his face, whereupon he opened his eyes and seeing Sayyar,
said to him, "O Sayyar, carry me to Cufa that I may recover there
and levy horsemen and soldiers wherewith to overthrow my foe: and
know, O Sayyar, that I am anhungered." So Sayyar sprang up and
going out to the desert caught an ostrich-poult and brought it to
his lord. Then he gathered fuel and deftly using the fire sticks
kindled a fire,, by which he roasted the bird which he had
hallal'd[FN#9] and fed Ajib with its flesh and gave him to drink
of the water of the spring, till his strength returned to hits,
after which he went to one of the Badawi tribal encampments, and
stealing thence a steed mounted Ajib upon it and journeyed on
with him for many days till they drew near the city of Cufa. The
Viceroy of the capital came out to meet and salute the King, whom
he found weak with the beating his brother had inflicted upon
him; and Ajib entered the city and called his physicians. When
they answered his summons, he bade them heal him in less than ten
days' time: they said, "We hear and we obey," and they tended him
till he became whole of the sickness that was upon him and of the
punishment. Then he commanded his Wazirs to write letters to all
his Nabobs and vassals, and he indited one-and-twenty writs and
despatched them to the governors, who assembled their troops and
set out for Cufa by forced marches. --And Shahrazad perceived the
dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-first Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Ajib
sent orders to assemble the troops, who marched forthright to
Cufa. Meanwhile, Gharib, being troubled for Ajib's escape,
despatched in quest of him a thousand braves, who dispersed on
all sides and sought him a day and a Night, but found no trace of
him; so they returned and told Gharib, who called for his brother
Sahim, but found him not; whereat he was sore concerned, fearing
for him from the shifts of Fortune. And lo! Sahim entered and
kissed ground before Gharib, who rose, when he saw him, and
asked, "Where hast thou been, O Sahim?" He answered, "O King, I
have been to Cufa and there I find that the dog Ajib hath made
his way to his capital and is healed of his hurts: eke, he hath
written letters to his vassals and sent them to his Nabobs who
have brought him troops." When Gharib heard this, he gave the
command to march; so they struck tents and fared for Cufa. When
they came in sight of the city, they found it compassed about
with a host like the surging main, having neither beginning nor
end. So Gharib with his troops encamped in face of the Kafirs and
set up his standards, and darkness fell down upon the two hosts,
whereupon they lighted camp-fires and kept watch till daybreak.
Then King Gharib rose and making the Wuzu-ablution, prayed a two-
bow prayer according to the rite of our father Abraham the Friend
(on whom be the Peace!); after which he commanded the battle
drums to sound the point of war. Accordingly, the kettle-drums
beat to combat and the standards fluttered whilst the fighting-
men armour donned and their horses mounted and themselves
displayed and to plain fared. Now the first to open the gate of
war was King Al-Damigh, who urged his charger between the two
opposing armies and displayed himself and played with the swords
and the spears, till both hosts were confounded and at him
marvelled, after which he cried out, saying, "Who is for
jousting? Let no sluggard come out to me nor weakling; for I am
Al-Damigh, the King, brother of Kundamir the King." Then there
rushed forth a horseman of the Kafirs, as he were a flame of
fire, and crave at Al-Damigh, without word said; but the King
received him with a lance thrust in the breast so dour that the
point issued from between his shoulders and Allah hurried his
soul to the fire, the abiding-place dire. Then came forth a
second he slew, and a third he slew likewise, and they ceased not
to come out to him and he to slay them, till he had made an end
of six-and-seventy fighting-men. Hereupon the Miscreants and men
of might hung back and would not encounter him; but Ajib cried
out to his men and said, "Fie on you, O folk! if ye all go forth
to him, one by one, he will not leave any of you, sitting or
standing. Charge on him all at once and cleanse of them our
earthly wone and strew their heads for your horses' hoofs like a
plain of stone!" So they waved the ewe striking flag and host was
heaped upon host; blood rained in streams upon earth and railed
and the Judge of battle ruled, in whose ordinance is no upright.
The fearless stood firm on feet in the stead of fight, whilst the
faint-heart gave back and took to flight thinking the day would
never come to an end nor the curtains of gloom would be drawn by
the hand of Night; and they ceased not to battle with swords and
to smite till light darkened and murk starkened. Then the kettle-
drums of the Infidels beat the retreat, but Gharib, refusing to
stay his arms, crave at the Paynimry, and the Believers in Unity,
the Moslems, followed him. How many heads and hands they shore,
how many necks and sinews they tore, how many knees and spines
they mashed and how many grown men and youths they to death
bashed! With the first gleam of morning grey the Infidels broke
and fled away, in disorder and disarray; and the Moslems followed
them till middle-day and took over twenty-thousand of them, whom
they brought to their tents in bonds to stay. Then Gharib sat
down before the gate of Cufa and commanded a herald to proclaim
pardon and protection for every wight who should leave the
worship to idols dight and profess the unity of His All-might the
Creator of mankind and of light and night. So was made
proclamation as he bade in the streets of Cufa and all that were
therein embraced the True Faith, great and small; then they
issued forth in a body and renewed their Islam before King
Gharib, who rejoiced in them with exceeding joy and his breast
broadened and he threw off all annoy. Presently he enquired of
Mardas and his daughter Mahdiyah, and, being told that he had
taken up his abode behind the Red Mountain, he called Sahim and
said to him, "Find out for me what is become of thy father."
Sahim mounted steed without stay or delay and set his berry-brown
spear in rest and fared on in quest till he reached the Red
Mountain, where he sought for his father, yet found no trace of
him nor of his tribe; however, he saw in their stead an elder of
the Arabs, a very old man, broken with excess of years, and asked
him of the folk and whither they were gone. Replied he, "O my
son, when Mardas heard of Gharib's descent upon Cufa he feared
with great fear and, taking his daughter and his folk, set out
with his handmaids and negroes into the wild and word, and I wot
not whither he went." So Sahim, hearing the Shaykh's words,
returned to Gharib and told him thereof, whereat he was greatly
concerned. Then he sat down on his father's throne and, opening
his treasuries, distributed largesse to each and every of his
braves. And he took up his abode in Cufa and sent out spies to
get news of Ajib. He also summoned the Grandees of the realm, who
came and did him homage; as also did the citizens and he bestowed
on them sumptuous robes of honour and commended the Ryots to
their care. --And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased
to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-second Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Gharib,
after giving robes of honour to the citizens of Cufa and com
mending the Ryots to their care, went out on a day of the days to
hunt, with an hundred horse, and fared on till he came to a Wady,
abounding in trees and fruits and rich in rills and birds It was
a pasturing-place for roes and gazelles, to the spirit a delight
whose scents reposed from the langour of fight. They encamped in
the valley, for the day was dear and bright, and there passed the
night. On the morrow, Gharib made the Wuzu-ablution and prayed
the two-bow dawn-prayer, offering up praise and thanks to
Almighty Allah; when, lo and behold! there arose a clamour and
confusion in the meadows, and he bade Sahim go see what was to
do. So Sahim mounted forthright and rode till he espied goods
being plundered and horses haltered and women carried off and
children crying out. Whereupon he questioned one of the
shepherds, saying, "What be all this?"; and they replied, "This
is the Harim of Mardas, Chief of the Banu Kahtan, and his good
and that of his clan; for yesterday Jamrkan slew Mardas and made
prize of his women and children and household stuff and all the
belonging of his tribe. It is his wont to go a raiding and to cut
off highways and waylay wayfarers and he is a furious tyrant;
neither Arabs nor Kings can prevail against him and he is the
scourge and curse of the country." Now when Sahim heard these
news of his sire's slaughter and the looting of his Harim and
property, he returned to Gharib and told him the case, wherefore
fire was added to his fire and his spirit chafed to wipe out his
shame and his blood wit to claim: so he rode with his men after
the robbers till he overtook them and fell upon them, crying out
and saying, "Almighty Allah upon the rebel, the traitor, the
infidel!" and he slew in a single charge one-and-twenty fighting-
men. Then he halted in mid-field, with no coward's heart, and
cried out, "Where is Jamrkan? Let him come out to me, that I may
make him quaff the cup of disgrace and rid of him earth's face!"
Hardly had he made an end of speaking, when forth rushed Jamrkan,
as he were a calamity of calamities or a piece of a mountain,
cased in steel. He was a mighty huge[FN#10] Amalekite; and he
crave at Gharib without speech or salute, like the fierce tyrant
he was. And he was armed with a mace of China steel, so heavy, so
potent, that had he smitten a hill he had smashed it. Now when he
charged, Gharib met him like a hungry lion, and the brigand aimed
a blow at his head with his mace; but he evaded it and it smote
the earth and sank therein half a cubit deep. Then Gharib took
his battle flail and smiting Jamrkan on the wrist, crushed his
fingers and the mace dropped from his grasp; whereupon Gharib
bent down from his seat in selle and snatching it up, swiftlier
than the blinding leven, smote him therewith full on the flat of
the ribs, and he fell to the earth like a long-stemmed palm-tree.
So Sahim took him and pinioning him, haled him off with a rope,
and Gharib's horsemen fell on those of Jamrkan and slew fifty of
them: the rest fled; nor did they cease flying till they reached
their tribal camp and raised their voices in clamour; whereupon
all who were in the Castle came out to meet them and asked the
news. They told the tribe what had passed; and, when they heard
that their chief was a prisoner, they set out for the valley
vying one with other in their haste to deliver him. Now when King
Gharib had captured Jamrkan and had seen his braves take flight,
he dismounted and called for Jamrkan, who humbled himself before
him, saying, "I am under thy protection, O champion of the Age!"
Replied Gharib, "O dog of the Arabs, dost thou cut the road for
the servants of Almighty Allah, and fearest thou not the Lord of
the Worlds?" "O my master," asked Jamrkan, "and who is the Lord
of the Worlds?" "O dog," answered Gharib, "and what calamity dost
thou worship?" He said, "O my lord, I worship a god made of
dates[FN#11] kneaded with butter and honey, and at times I eat
him and make me another." When Gharib heard this, he laughed till
he fell backwards and said, "O miserable, there is none worship-
worth save Almighty Allah, who created thee and created all
things and provideth all creatures with daily bread, from whom
nothing is hid and He over all things is Omnipotent." Quoth
Jamrkan, "And where is this great god, that I may worship him?"
Quoth Gharib, "O fellow, know that this god's name is Allah--the
God--and it is He who fashioned the heavens and the earth and
garred the trees to grow and the waters to flow. He created wild
beasts and birds and Paradise and Hell-fire and veileth Himself
from all eyes seeing and of none being seen. He, and He only, is
the Dweller on high. Extolled be His perfection! There is no god
but He!" When Jamrkan heard these words, the ears of his heart
were opened; his skin shuddered with horripilation and he said,
"O my lord, what shall I say that I may become of you and that
this mighty Lord may accept of me?" Replied Gharib, "Say, ‘There
is no god but the God and Abraham the Friend is the Apostle of
God!'" " So he pronounced the profession of the Faith and was
written of the people of felicity. Then quoth Gharib, " Say me,
hast thou tasted the sweetness of Al-Islam?"; and quoth the
other, "Yes;" whereupon Gharib cried, "Loose his bonds!" So they
unbound him and he kissed ground before Gharib and his feet. Now
whilst this was going on, behold, they espied a great cloud of
dust that towered till it walled the word. --And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-third Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Jamrkan
islamised and kissed the ground between the hands of Gharib, and,
as they were thus, behold, a great cloud of dust towered till it
walled the wold and Gharib said to Sahim, "Go and see for us what
it be." So he went forth, like a bird in full flight, and
presently returned, saying, "O King of the Age, this dust is of
the Banu Amir, the comrades of Jamrkan." Whereupon quoth Gharib
to the new Moslem, "Ride out to thy people and offer to them Al-
Islam: an they profess, they shall be saved; but, an they refuse,
we will put them to the sword." So Jamrkan mounted and driving
steed towards his tribesmen, cried out to them; and they knew him
and dismounting, came up to him on foot and said, "We rejoice in
thy safety, O our lord!" Said he, "O folk, whoso obeyeth me shall
be saved; but whoso gainsayeth me, I will cut him in twain with
this scymitar." And they made answer, saying, "Command us what
thou wilt, for we will not oppose thy commandment." Quoth he,
"Then say with me, ‘There is no god but the God and Abraham is
the Friend of God!' " They asked, "O our lord, whence haddest
thou these words?" And he told them what had befallen him with
Gharib, adding, "O folk, know ye not that I am your chief in
battle-plain and where men of cut and thrust are fain; and yet a
man single-handed me to prisoner hath ta'en and made me the cup
of shame and disgrace to drain?" When they heard his speech, they
spoke the word of Unity and Jamrkan led them to Gharib, at whose
hands they renewed their profession of Al-Islam and wished him
glory and victory, after they had kissed the earth before him.
Gharib rejoiced in them and said to them, "O folk, return to your
people and expound Al-Islam to them;" but all replied, "O our
lord, we will never leave thee, whilst; we live; but we will go
and fetch our families and return to thee." And Gharib said, "Go,
and join me at the city of Cufa." So Jamrkan and his comrades
returned to their tribal camp and offered Al-Islam to their women
and children, who all to a soul embraced the True Faith, after
which they dismantled their abodes and struck their tents and set
out for Cufa, driving before them their steeds, camels and sheep.
During this time Gharib returned to Cufa, where the horsemen met
him in state. He entered his palace and sat down on his sire's
throne with his champions ranged on either hand. Then the spies
came forwards, and informed him that his brother Ajib had made
his escape and had taken refuge with Jaland[FN#12] bin Karkar,
lord of the city of Oman and land of Al-Yaman; whereupon Gharib
cried aloud to his host, "O men, make you ready to march in three
days." Then he expounded Al-Islam to the thirty-thousand men he
had captured in the first affair and exhorted them to profess and
take service with him. Twenty-thousand embraced the Faith, but
the rest refused and he slew them. Then came forward Jamrkan and
his tribe and kissed the ground before Gharib, who bestowed on
him a splendid robe of honour and made him captain of his
vanguard, saying, "O Jamrkan, mount with the Chiefs of thy kith
and kin and twenty-thousand horse and fare on before us to the
land of Jaland bin Karkar." "Hearkening and obedience," answered
Jamrkan and, leaving the women and children of the tribe in Cufa,
he set forward. Then Gharib passed in review the Harim of Mardas
and his eye lit upon Mahdiyah, who was among the women, wherewith
he fell down fainting. They sprinkled rose-water on his face,
till he came to himself, when he embraced Mahdiyah and carried
her into a sitting-chamber, where he sat with her; and they twain
lay together that night without fornication. Next morning he went
out and sitting down on the throne of his kingship, robed his
uncle Al-Damigh with a robe of honour; and appointed him his
viceroy over all Al-Irak, commending Mahdiyah to his care, till
he should return from his expedition against Ajib; and, when the
order was accepted, he set out for the land of Al-Yaman and the
City of Oman with twenty-thousand horse and ten thousand foot.
Now, when Ajib and his defeated army drew in sight of Oman, King
Jaland saw the dust of their approach and sent to find out its
meaning, scouts who returned and said, "Verily this is the dust
of one highs Ajib, lord of Al-Irak." And Jaland wondered at his
coming to his country and, when assured of the tidings, he said
to his officers, "Fare ye forth and meet him." So they went out
and met him and pitched tents for him at the city-gate; and Ajib
entered in to Jaland, weeping eyed and heavy-hearted. Now
Jaland's wife was the daughter of Ajib's paternal uncle and he
had children by her; so, when he saw his kinsman in this plight,
he asked for the truth of what ailed him and Ajib told him all
that had befallen him, first and last, from his brother and said,
"O King, Gharib biddeth the folk worship the Lord of the Heavens
and forbiddeth them from the service of simulacres and other of
the gods." When Jaland heard these words he raged and revolted
and said, "By the virtue of the Sun, Lord of Life and Light, I
will not leave one of thy brother's folk in existence! But where
didst thou quit them and how many men are they?" Answered Ajib,
"I left them in Cufa and they be fifty-thousand horse." Whereupon
Jaland called his Wazir Jawámard,[FN#13] saying, "Take thee
seventy-thousand horse and fare to Cufa and bring me the Moslems
alive, that I may torture them with all manner of tortures." So
Jawamard departed with his host and fared through the first day
and the second till the seventh day, when he came to a Wady
abounding in trees and rills and fruits. Here he called a halt --
And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her
permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-fourth Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
Jaland sent Jawamard with his army to Cufa, they came upon a Wady
abounding in trees and rills where a halt was called and they
rested till the middle of the Night, when the Wazir gave the
signal for departure and mounting, rode on before them till hard
upon dawn, at which time he descended into a well-wooded valley,
whose flowers were fragrant and whose birds warbled on boughs, as
they swayed gracefully to and fro, and Satan blew into his sides
and puffed him up with pride and he improvised these couplets and
cried,
"I plunge with my braves in the seething sea; * Seize the foe in
my strength and my valiancy;
And the doughtiest knights wot me well to be * Friend to friend
and fierce foe to mine enemy.
I will load Ghanb with the captive's chains * Right soon, and
return in all Joy and glee;
For I've donned my mail and my weapons wield * And on all sides
charge at the chivalry."[FN#14]
Hardly had Jawamard made an end of his verses when there came out
upon him from among the trees a horseman of terrible mien covered
and clad in steely sheen, who cried out to him, saying, "Stand, O
riff-raff of the Arabs! Doff thy dress and ground thine arms gear
and dismount thy destrier and be off with thy life!" When
Jawamard heard this, the light in his eyes became darkest night
and he drew his sabre and drove at Jamrkan, for he it was,
saying, "O thief of the Arabs, wilt thou cut the road for me, who
am captain of the host of Jaland bin Karkar and am come to bring
Gharib and his men in bond?" When Jamrkan heard these words, he
said, "How cooling is this to my heart and liver!" And he made at
Jawamard versifying in these couplets,
"I'm the noted knight in the field of fight, * Whose sabre and
spear every foe affright!
Jamrkan am I, to my foes a fear, * With a lance lunge known unto
every knight:
Gharib is my lord, nay my pontiff, my prince, * Where the two
hosts dash very lion of might:
An Imam of the Faith, pious, striking awe * On the plain where
his foes like the fawn take flight;
Whose voice bids folk to the faith of the Friend, * False,
doubling idols and gods despite!"
Now Jamrkan had fared on with his tribesmen ten days' journey
from Cufa city and called a halt on the eleventh day till
midnight, when he ordered a march and rode on devancing them till
he descended into the valley aforesaid and heard Jawamard
reciting his verses. So he crave at him as the driving of a
ravening lion, and smiting him with his sword, clove him in twain
and waited till his captains came up, when he told them what had
passed and said to them. "Take each of you five thousand men and
disperse round about the Wady, whilst I and the Banu Amir fall
upon the enemy's van, shouting, Allaho Akbar God is Most Great!
When ye hear my slogan, do ye charge them, crying like me upon
the Lord, and smite them with the sword." "We hear and we obey,"
answered they and turning back to their braves did his bidding
and spread themselves about the sides of the valley in the
twilight forerunning the dawn. Presently, lo and behold! up came
the army of Al-Yaman, like a flock of sheep, filling plain and
steep, and Jamrkan and the Banu Amir fell upon them, shouting,
"Allaho Akbar!" till all heard it, Moslems and Miscreants.
Whereupon the True Believers ambushed in the valley answered from
every side and the hills and mountains responsive cried and all
things replied, green and dried, saying, "God is Most Great!
,Aidance and Victory to us from on High! Shame to the Miscreants
who His name deny!" And the Kafirs were confounded and smote one
another with sabres keen whilst the True Believers and pious fell
upon them like flames of fiery sheen and naught was seen but
heads flying and blood jetting and faint-hearts hieing. By the
time they could see one another's faces, two-thirds of the
Infidels had perished and Allah hastened their souls to the fire
and abiding-place dire. The rest fled and to the deserts sped
whilst the Moslems pursued them to slay and take captives till
middle-day, when they returned in triumph with seven thousand
prisoners; and but six and twenty-thousand of the Infidels
escaped and the most of them wounded. Then the Moslems collected
the horses and arms, the loads and tents of the enemy and
despatched them to Cufa with an escort of a thousand horse;--And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her
permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-fifth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Jamrkan in
his battle with Jawamard slew him and slew his men; and, after
taking many prisoners and much money and many horses and loads,
sent them with an escort of a thousand riders, to Cufa city. Then
he and the army of Al-Islam dismounted and expounded The saving
Faith to the prisoners, who made profession with heart and
tongue; whereupon they released them from bonds and embraced them
and rejoiced in them. Then Jamrkan made his troops, who had
swelled to a mighty many, rest a day and a night and marched with
the dawn, intending to attack Jaland bin Karkar in the city Of
Oman; whilst the thousand horse fared back to Cufa with the loot.
When they reached the city, they went in to King Gharib and told
him what had passed, whereat he rejoiced and gave them joy and,
turning to the Ghul of the Mountain, said, "Take horse with
twenty-thousand and follow Jamrkan." So Sa'adan and his sons
mounted and set out, amid twenty-thousand horse for Oman.
Meanwhile, the fugitives of the defeated Kafirs reached Oman and
went in to Jaland, weeping and crying, "Woe!" and "Ruin!" whereat
he was confounded and said to them, "What calamity hath befallen
you?" So they told him what had happened and he said, "Woe to
you! How many men were they?" They replied, "O King, there were
twenty standards, under each a thousand men." When Jaland heard
these words he said, "May the sun pour no blessing on you! Fie
upon you! What, shall twenty-thousand overcome you, and you
seventy-thousand horse and Jawamard able to withstand three
thousand in field of fight?" Then, in the excess of his rage and
mortification, he bared his blade and cried out to those who were
present, saying, "Fall on them!" So the courtiers drew their
swords upon the fugitives and annihilated them to the last man
and cast them to the dogs. Then Jaland cried aloud to his son,
saying, "Take an hundred thousand horse and go to Al-Irak and lay
it waste altogether." Now this son's name was Kúraján and there
was no doughtier knight in all the force; for he could charge
single handed three thousand riders. So he and his host made
haste to equip themselves and marched in battle-array, rank
following rank, with the Prince at their head, glorying in
himself and improvising these couplets,
"I'm Al-Kurajan, and my name is known * To beat all who in wold
or in city wone!
How many a soldier my sword at will * Struck down like a cow on
the ground bestrown?
How many a soldier I've forced to fly * And have rolled their
heads as a ball is thrown?
Now I'll drive and harry the land Irak[FN#15] * And like rain
I'll shower the blood of fone;
And lay hands on Ghanb and his men, whose doom * To the wise a
warning shall soon be shown!"
The host fared on twelve days' journey and, while they were still
marching, behold, a great dust cloud arose before them and walled
the horizon and the whole region. So Kurajan sent out scouts,
saying, "Go forth and bring me tidings of what meaneth this
dust." They went till they passed under the enemy's standards and
presently returning said, "O King, verily this is the dust of the
Moslems." Whereat he was glad and said, "Did ye count them?" And
they answered, "We counted the colours and they numbered twenty."
Quoth he, "By my faith, I will not send one man-at-arms against
them, but will go forth to them alone by myself and strew their
heads under the horses' hooves!" Now this was the army of Jamrkan
who, espying the host of the Kafirs and seeing them as a surging
sea, called a halt; so his troops pitched the tents and set up
the standards, calling upon the name of the All-wise One, the
Creator of light and gloom, Lord of all creatures, Who seeth
while Him none see, the High to infinity, extolled and exalted be
He! There is no God but He! The Miscreants also halted and
pitched their tents, and Kurajan said to them "Keep on your arms,
and in armour sleep, for during the last watch of the night we
will mount and trample yonder handful under feet!" Now one of
Jamrkan's spies was standing nigh and heard what Kurajan had
contrived; so he returned to the host and told his chief who said
to them, "Arm yourselves and as soon as it is Night, bring me all
the mules and camels and hang all the bells and clinkets and
rattles ye have about their necks." Now they had with them more
than twenty-thousand camels and mules. So they waited till the
Infidels fell asleep, when Jamrkan com-mended them to mount, and
they rose to ride and on the Lord of the Worlds they relied. Then
said Jamrkan, "Drive the camels and mules to the Miscreants' camp
and push them with your spears for goads!" They did as he bade
and the beasts rushed upon the enemy's tents, whilst the bells
and clinkets and rattles jangled[FN#16] and the Moslems followed
at their heels, shouting, "God is Most Great!'' till all the
hills and mountains resounded with the name of the Highmost
Deity, to whom belong glory and majesty! The cattle hearing this
terrible din, took fright and rushed upon the tents and trampled
the folk, as they lay asleep.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn
of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-sixth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
Jamrkan fell upon them with his men and steeds and camels, and
the camp lay sleeping, the idolaters started up in confusion and,
snatching up their arms, fell upon one another with smiting, till
the most part was slaughtered. And when the day broke, they
looked and found no Moslem slain, but saw them all on horseback,
armed and armoured; wherefore they knew that this was a sleight
which had been played upon them, and Kurajan cried out to the
remnant of his folk, "O sons of whores, what we had a mind to do
with them, that have they done with us and their craft hath
gotten the better of our cunning." And they were about to charge
when, lo and behold! a cloud of dust rose high and walled the
horizon-sky, when the wind smote it, so that it spired aloft and
spread pavilion-wise in the lift and there it hung; and presently
appeared beneath it the glint of helmet and gleam of hauberk and
splendid warriors, baldrick'd with their tempered swords and
holding in rest their supple spears. When the Kafirs saw this,
they held back from the battle and each army sent out, to know
the meaning of this dust, scouts, who returned with the news that
it was an army of Moslems. Now this was the host of the Mountain-
Ghul whom Gharib had despatched to Jamrkan's aid, and Sa'adan
himself rode in their van. So the two hosts of the True Believers
joined company and rushing upon the Paynimry like a flame of
fire, plied them with keen sword and Rudaynian spear and
quivering lance, what while day was darkened and eyes for the
much dust starkened. The valiant stood fast and the faint-hearted
coward fled and to the wilds and the words swift sped, whilst the
blood over earth was like torrents shed; nor did they cease from
fight till the day took flight and in gloom came the night. Then
the Moslems drew apart from the Miscreants and returned to their
tents, where they ate and slept, till the darkness fled away and
gave place to smiling day; when they prayed the dawn prayer and
mounted to battle. Now Kurajan had said to his men as they drew
off from fight (for indeed two thirds of their number had
perished by sword and spear), "O folk, to-morrow, I will champion
it in the stead of war where cut and thrust jar, and where braves
push and wheel I will take the field." So, as soon as light was
seen and morn appeared with its shine and sheen, took horse the
hosts twain and shouted their slogans amain and bared the brand
and hent lance in hand and in ranks took stand. The first to open
the door of war was Kurajan, who cried out, saying, "Let no
coward come out to me this day nor craven!" Whereupon Jamrkan and
Sa'adan stood by the colours, but there ran at him a captain of
the Banu Amir and the two crave each at other awhile, like two
rams butting. Presently Kurajan seized the Moslem by the jerkin
under his hauberk and, dragging him from his saddle, dashed him
to the ground where he left him; upon which the Kafirs laid hands
on him and bound him and bore him off to their tents; whilst
Kurajan wheeled about and careered and offered battle, till
another captain came out, whom also he took prisoner; nor did he
leave to do thus till he had made prize of seven captains before
mid day. Then Jamrkan cried out with so mighty a cry, that the
whole field made reply and heard it the armies twain, and ran at
Kurajan with a heart in rageful pain, improvising these couplets,
"Jamrkan am I! and a man of might, * Whom the warriors fear with
a sore affright:
I waste the forts and I leave the walls * To wail and weep for
the wights I smite:
Then, O Kurajan, tread the rightful road * And quit the paths of
thy foul upright:
Own the One True God, who dispread the skies * And made founts to
flow and the hills pegged tight:
An the slave embrace the True Faith, he'll ‘scape * Hell pains
and in Heaven be decks and dight!"
When Kurajan heard these words, he sparked and snorted and foully
abused the sun and the moon and crave at Jamrkan, versifying with
these couplets,
"I'm Kurajan, of this age the knight; * And my shade to the
lions of Shara'[FN#17] is blight:
I storm the forts and snare kings of beasts * And warriors fear
me in field of fight;
Then, Harkye Jamrkan, if thou doubt my word, * Come forth to the
combat and try my might!"
When Jamrkan heard these verses, he charged him with a stout
heart d they smote each at other with swords till the two hosts.
lamented for them, and they lunged with lance and great was the
clamour between them: nor did they leave fighting till the time
of mid-afternoon prayer was passed and the day began to wane.
Then Jamrkan crave at Kurajan and smiting him on the breast with
his mace,[FN#18] cast him to the ground, as he were the trunk of
a palm-tree; and the Moslems pinioned him and dragged him off
with ropes like a camel. Now when the Miscreants saw their Prince
captive, a hot fever-fit of ignorance seized on them and they
bore down upon the True Believers thinking to rescue him; but the
Moslem champions met them and left most of them prostrate on the
earth, whilst the rest turned and sought safety in flight,
seeking surer site, while the clanking sabres their back-sides
smite. The Moslems ceased not pursuing them till they had
scattered them over mount and word, when they returned from them
to the spoil; whereof was great store of horses and tents and so
forth: good look to it for a spoil! Then Jamrkan went in to
Kurajan and expounded to him Al-Islam, threatening him with death
unless he embraced the Faith. But he refused; so they cut off his
head and stuck it on a spear, after which they fared on towards
Oman[FN#19] city. But as regards the Kafirs, the survivors
returned to Jaland and made known to him the slaying of his son
and the slaughter of his host, hearing which he cast his crown to
the ground and buffeting his face, till the blood ran from his
nostrils, fell fainting to the floor. They sprinkled rose-water
on his head, till he came to himself and cried to his Wazir,
"Write letters to all my Governors and Nabobs, and bid them leave
not a smiter with the sword nor a lunger with the lance nor a
bender of the bow, but bring them all to me in one body." So he
wrote letters and despatched them by runners to the Governors,
who levied their power and joined the King with a prevailing
host, whose number was one hundred and eighty-thousand men. Then
they made ready tents and camels and noble steeds and were about
to march when, behold, up came Jamrkan and Sa'adan the Ghul, with
seventy-thousand horse, as they were lions fierce-faced, all
steel-encased. When Jaland saw the Moslems trooping on he
rejoiced and said, "By the virtue of the Sun, and her resplendent
light, I will not leave alive one of my foes; no, not one to
carry the news, and I will lay waste the land of Al-Irak, that I
may take my wreak for my son, the havoc making champion bold; nor
shall my fire be quenched or cooled!" Then he turned to Ajib and
said to him, "O dog of Al-Irak, ‘twas thou broughtest this
calamity on us! But by the virtue of that which I worship, except
I avenge me of mine enemy I will do thee die after foulest
fashion!" When Ajib heard these words he was troubled with sore
trouble and blamed himself; but he waited till nightfall, when
the Moslems had pitched their tents for rest. Now he had been
degraded and expelled the royal camp together with those who were
left to him of his suite: so he said to them, "O my kinsmen, know
that Jaland and I are dismayed with exceeding dismay at the
coming of the Moslems, and I know that he will not avail to
protect me from my brother nor from any other; so it is my
counsel that we make our escape, whilst all eyes sleep, and flee
to King Ya'arub bin Kahtán,[FN#20] for that he hath more of men
and is stronger of reign." They, hearing his advice exclaimed
"Right is thy rede," whereupon he bade them kindle fires at their
tent-doors and march under cover of the night. They did his
bidding and set out, so by daybreak they had already fared far
away. As soon as it was morning Jaland mounted with two hundred
and sixty-thousand fighting-men, clad cap-à-pie in hauberks and
cuirasses and strait-knit mail-coats, the kettle-drums beat a
point of war and all drew out for cut and thrust and fight and
fray. Then Jamrkan and Sa'adan rode out with forty-thousand
stalwart fighting-men, under each standard a thousand cavaliers,
doughty champions, foremost in champaign. The two hosts drew out
in battles and bared their blades and levelled their limber
lances, for the drinking of the cup of death. The first to open
the gate of strife was Sa'adan, as he were a mountain of syenite
or a Marid of the Jinn. Then dashed out to him a champion of the
Infidels, and the Ghul slew him and casting him to the earth,
cried out to his sons and slaves, saying, "Light the fire and
roast me this dead one." They did as he bade and brought him the
roast and he ate it and crunched whilst the Kafirs stood looking
on from afar; and they cried out, "Oh for aid from the light-
giving Sun!" and were affrighted at the thought of being slain by
Sa'adan. Then Jaland shouted to his men, saying, "Slay me yonder
loathsome beast!" Whereupon another captain of his host drove at
the Ghul; but he slew him and he ceased not to slay horseman
after horseman, till he had made an end of thirty men. With this
the blamed Kafirs held back and feared to face him, crying, "Who
shall cope with Jinns and Ghuls?" But Jaland raised his voice
saying, "Let an hundred horse charge him and bring him to me,
bound or slain." So an hundred horse set upon Sa'adan with swords
and spears, and he met them with a heart firmer than flint,
proclaiming the unity of the Requiting King, whom no one thing
diverteth from other thing. Then he cried aloud, "Allaho Akbar!"
and, smiting them with his sword, made their heads fly and in one
onset he slew of them four-and-seventy whereupon the rest took to
flight. So Jaland shouted aloud to ten of his captains, each
commanding a thousand men, and said to them, "Shoot his horse
with arrows till it fall under him, and then lay hands on him."
Therewith ten thousand horse drove at Sa'adan who met them with a
stout heart; and Jamrkan, seeing this, bore down upon the
Miscreants with his Moslems, crying out, "God is Most Great!"
Before they could reach the Ghul, the enemy had slain his steed
and taken him prisoner; but they ceased not to charge the
Infidels, till the day grew dark for dust and eyes were blinded,
and the sharp sword clanged while firm stood the valiant cavalier
and destruction overtook the faint-heart in his fear; till the
Moslems were amongst the Paynims like a white patch on a black
bull.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying
her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-seventh Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that battle
raged between the Moslems and the Paynims till the True Believers
were like a white patch on a black bull. Nor did they stint from
the mellay till the darkness fell down, when they drew apart,
after there had been slain of the Infidels men without compt.
Then Jamrkan and his men returned to their tents; but they were
in great grief for Sa'adan, so that neither meat nor sleep was
sweet to them, and they counted their host and found that less
than a thousand had been slain. But Jamrkan said, "O folk, to-
morrow I will go forth into the battle-plain and place where cut
and thrust obtain, and slay their champions and make prize of
their families after taking them captives and I will ransom
Sa'adan therewith' by the leave of the Requiting King, whom no
one thing diverteth from other thing!" Wherefore their hearts
were heartened and they joyed as they separated to their tents.
Meanwhile Jaland entered his pavilion and sitting down on his
sofa of estate, with his folk about him, called for Sa'adan and
forthright on his coming, said to him, "O dog run wood and least
of the Arab brood and carrier of firewood, who was it slew my son
Kurajan, the brave of the age, slayer of heroes and caster down
of warriors?" Quoth the Ghul, "Jamrkan slew him, captain of the
armies of King Gharib, Prince of cavaliers, and I roasted and ate
him, for I was anhungered." When Jaland heard these words, his
eyes sank into his head for rage and he bade his swordbearer
smite Sa'adan's neck. So he came forward in that intent,
whereupon Sa'adan stretched himself mightily and bursting his
bonds, snatched the sword from the headsman and hewed off his
head. Then he made at Jaland who threw himself down from the
throne and fled; whilst Sa'adan fell on the bystanders and killed
twenty of the King's chief officers, and all the rest took to
flight. Therewith loud rose the crying in the camp of the
Infidels and the Ghul sallied forth of the pavilion and falling
upon the troops smote them with the sword, right and left, till
they opened and left a lane for him to pass; nor did he cease to
press forward, cutting at them on either side, till he won free
of the Miscreants' tents and made for the Moslem camp. Now these
had heard the uproar among their enemies and said, "Haply some
calamity hath befallen them." But whilst they were in perplexity,
behold, Sa adan stood amongst them and they rejoiced at his
coming with exceeding joy; more especially Jamrkan, who saluted
him with the salam as did other True Believers and gave him joy
of his escape. Such was the case with the Moslems; but as regards
the Miscreants, when, after the Ghul's departure, they and their
King returned to their tents, Jaland said to them, "Ofolk, by the
virtue of the Sun's light-giving ray and by the darkness of the
Night and the light of the Day and the Stars that stray, I
thought not this day to have escaped death in mellay; for, had I
fallen into yonder fellow's hands, he had eaten me, as I were a
kernel of wheat or a barley corn or any other grain." They re
plied, "O King, never saw we any do the like of this Ghul." And
he said, "O folk, to-morrow do ye all don arms and mount steed
and trample them under your horses' hooves." Meanwhile the
Moslems had ended their rejoicings at Sa'adan's return and
Jamrkan said to them, "To-morrow, I will show you my derring-do
and what behoveth the like of me, for by the virtue of Abraham
the Friend, I will slay them with the foulest of slaughters and
smite them with the bite of the sword, till all who have under
standing confounded at them shall stand. But I mean to attack
both right and left wings; so, when ye see me drive at the King
under the standards, do ye charge behind me with a resolute
charge, and Allah's it is to decree what thing shall be!" Accord
ingly the two sides lay upon their arms till the day broke
through night and the sun appeared to sight. Then they mounted
swiftlier than the twinkling of the eyelid; the raven of the wold
croaked and the two hosts, looking each at other with the eye of
fascina tion, formed in line-array and prepared for fight and
fray. The first to open the chapter of war was Jamrkan who
wheeled and careered and offered fight in field; and Jaland and
his men were about to charge when, behold, a cloud of dust
uprolled till it walled the wold and overlaid the day. Then the
four winds smote it and away it floated, torn to rags, and there
appeared beneath it cavaliers, with helms black and garb white
and many a princely knight and lances that bite and swords that
smite and footmen who lion-like knew no affright Seeing this,
both armies left fighting and sent out scouts to reconnoitre and
report who thus had come in main and might. So they went and
within the dust cloud disappeared from sight, and returned after
awhile with the news aright that the approaching host was one of
Moslems, under the command of King Gharib. When the True
Believers heard from the scouts of the coming of their King, they
rejoiced and driving out to meet him, dismounted and kissed the
earth between his hands--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day
and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-eighth Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the
Moslems saw the presence of their King Gharib, they joyed with
exceeding joy; and, kissing the earth between his hands, saluted
him and get around him whilst he welcomed them and rejoiced in
their safety. Then they escorted him to their camp and pitched
pavilions for him and set up standards; and Gharib sat down on
his couch of estate, with his Grandees about him; and they
related to him all that had befallen, especially to Sa'adan
Meanwhile the Kafirs sought for Ajib and finding him not among
them nor in their tents, told Jaland of his flight, whereat his
Doomsday rose and he bit his fingers, saying, "by the Sun's
light-giving round, he is a perfidious hound and hath fled with
his rascal rout to desert ground. But naught save force of hard
fighting will serve us to repel these foes; so fortify your
resolves and hearten your hearts and beware of the Moslems." And
Gharib also said to the True Believers, "Strengthen your courage
and fortify your hearts and seek aid of your Lord, beseeching him
to vouchsafe you the victory over your enemies." They replied, "O
King, soon thou shalt see what we will do in battle-plain where
men cut and thrust amain." So the two hosts slept till the day
arose with its sheen and shone and the rising sun rained light
upon hill and down, when Gharib prayed the two-bow prayer, after
the rite of Abraham the Friend (on whom be the Peace!) and wrote
a letter, which he despatched by his brother Sahim to the King of
the Kafirs. When Sahim reached the enemies' camp, the guards
asked him what he wanted, and he answered them, "I want your
ruler.''[FN#21] Quoth they, "Wait till we consult him anent
thee;" and he waited, whilst they went in to their Sovran and
told him of the coming of a messenger, and he cried, "Hither with
him to me!" So they brought Sahim before Jaland, who said to him,
"Who hath sent thee?" Quoth he, King Gharib sends me, whom Allah
hath made ruler over Arab and Ajam; receive his letter and return
its reply." Jaland took the writ and opening it, read as follows,
"In the name of Allah, the Compassionating, the Compassionate *
the One, the All-knowing, the supremely Great * the Immemorial,
the Lord of Noah and Sálih and Húd and Abraham and of all things
He made! * The Peace be on him who followeth in the way of
righteousness and who feareth the issues of frowardness * who
obeyeth the Almighty King and followeth the Faith saving and
preferreth the next world to any present thing! * But afterwards:
O Jaland, none is worthy of worship save Allah alone, the
Victorious, the One, Creator of night and day and the sphere
revolving alway * Who sendeth the holy Prophets and garreth the
streams to flow and the trees to grow, who vaulted the heavens
and spread out the earth like a carpet below * Who feedeth the
birds in their nests and the wild beasts in the deserts * for He
is Allah the All-powerful, the Forgiving, the Long-suffering, the
Protector, whom eye comprehendeth on no wise and who maketh night
on day arise * He who sent down the Apostles and their Holy Writ.
Know, O Jaland, that there is no faith but the Faith of Abraham
the Friend; so cleave to the Creed of Salvation and be saved from
the biting glaive and the Fire which followeth the grave * But,
an thou refuse Al-Islam, look for ruin to haste and thy reign to
be waste and thy traces untraced * And, lastly, send me the dog
Ajib hight that I may take from him my father's and mother's
blood-wit." When Jaland had read this letter, he said to Sahim,
"Tell thy lord that Ajib hath fled, he and his folk, and I know
not whither he is gone; but, as for Jaland, he will not forswear
his faith, and to-morrow, there shall be battle between us and
the Sun shall give us the victory." So Sahim returned to his
brother with this reply, and when the morning morrowed, the
Moslems donned their arms and armour and bestrode their stout
steeds, calling aloud on the name of the All-conquering King,
Creator of bodies and souls, and magnifying Him with "Allaho
Akbar." Then the kettle-drums of battle beat until earth
trembled, and sought the field all the lordly warriors and
doughty champions: The first to open the gate of battle was
Jamrkan, who crave his charger into mid-plain and played with
sword and javelin, till the understanding was amazed; after which
he cried out, saying, "Ho! who is for tilting? Ho! who is for
fighting? Let no sluggard come out to me to-day nor weakling! I
am the slayer of Kurajan bin Jaland; who will come forth to
avenge him?" When Jaland heard the name of his son, he cried out
to his men, "O whore-sons, bring me yonder horseman who slew my
son, that I may eat his flesh and drink his blood." So an hundred
fighting-men charged at Jamrkan, but he slew the most part of
them and put their chief to flight; which feat when Jaland saw,
he cried out to his folk, "At him all at once and assault him
with one assault." Accordingly they waved the awe-striking
banners and host was heaped on host; Gharib rushed on with his
men and Jamrkan did the same and the two sides met like two seas
together clashing. The Yamáni sword and spear wrought havoc and
breasts and bellies were rent, whilst both armies saw the Angel
of Death face to face and the dust of the battle rose to the
skirts of the sky. Ears went deaf and tongues went dumb and doom
from every side came on whilst valiant stood fast and faint-heart
fled: and they ceased not from fight and fray till ended the day,
when the drums beat the retreat and the two hosts drew apart and
returned, each to its tents.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of
day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Forty-ninth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when King
Gharib ended the battle and the two hosts drew apart and each had
returned to his own tents, he sat down on the throne of his realm
and the place of his reign, whilst his chief officers ranged
themselves about him, and he said, "I am sore concerned for the
flight of the cur Ajib and I know not whither he has gone. Except
I overtake him and take my wreak of him, I shall die of despite."
Whereupon Sahim came forward and kissing the earth before him,
said, "O King, I will go to the army of the Kafirs and find out
what is come of the perfidious dog Ajib." Quoth Gharib, "Go, and
learn the truth anent the hog." So Sahim disguised himself in the
habit of the Infidels and became as he were of them; then, making
for the enemy's camp, he found them all asleep, drunken with war
and battle, and none were on wake save only the guards. He passed
on and presently came to the King's pavilion where he found King
Jaland asleep unattended; so he crept up and made him smell and
sniff up levigated Bhang and he became as one dead. Then Sahim
went out and took a male mule, and wrapping the King in the
coverlet of his bed, laid him on its back; after which he threw a
mat over him and led the beast to the Moslem camp. Now when he
came to Gharib's pavilion and would have entered, the guards knew
him not and prevented him, saying, "Who art thou?'' He laughed
and uncovered his face, and they knew him and admitted him. When
Gharib saw him he said, "What bearest there, O Sahim?"; and he
replied, "O King, this is Jaland bin Karkar." Then he uncovered
him, and Gharib knew him and said,"Arouse him, O Sahim," So he
made him smell vinegar[FN#22] and frankincense; and he cast the
Bhang from his nostrils and, opening his eyes, found himself
among the Moslems; whereupon quoth he, "What is this foul dream?"
and closing his eyelids again, would have slept; but Sahim dealt
him a kick, saying, "Open thine eyes, O accursed!" So he opened
them and asked, "Where am I?"; and Sahim answered, "Thou art in
the presence of King Gharib bin Kundamir, King of Irak." When
Jaland heard this, he said, "O King, I am under thy protection!
Know that I am not at fault, but that who led us forth to fight
thee was thy brother, and the same cast enmity between us and
then fled." Quoth Gharib, "Knowest thou whither he is gone?"; and
quoth Jaland, "No, by the light-giving sun, I know not whither."
Then Gharib bade lay him in bonds and set guards over him, whilst
each captain returned to his own tent, and Jamrkan while wending
said to his men, "O sons of my uncle, I purpose this night to do
a deed wherewith I may whiten my face with King Gharib." Quoth
they, "Do as thou wilt, we hearken to thy commandment and obey
it." Quoth he, "Arm yourselves and, muffling your steps while I
go with you, let us fare softly and disperse about the Infidels'
camp, so that the very ants shall not be ware of you; and, when
you hear me cry ‘Allaho Akbar,' do ye the like and cry out,
saying, ‘God is Most Great!' and hold back and make for the city-
gate; and we seek aid from the Most High." So the folk armed
themselves cap-à-pie and waited till the noon of Night, when they
dispersed about the enemy's camp and tarried awhile when, lo and
behold! Jamrkan smote shield with sword and shouted, "Allaho
Akbar'" Thereupon they all cried out the like, till rang again
valley and mountain, hills, sands and ruins. The Miscreants awoke
in dismay and fell one upon other, and the sword went round
amongst them; the Moslems drew back and made for the city-gates,
where they slew the warders and entering, made themselves masters
of the town with all that was therein of treasure and women. Thus
it befel with Jamrkan; but as regards King Gharib, hearing the
noise and clamour of "God is Most Great," he mounted with his
troops to the last man and sent on in advance Sahim who, when he
came near the field of fight, saw that Jamrkan had fallen upon
the Kafirs with the Banu Amir by night and made them drink the
cup of death. So he returned and told all to his brother, who
called down blessings on Jamrkan. And the Infidels ceased not to
smite one another with the biting sword and expending their
strength till the day rose and lighted up the land, when Gharib
cried out to his men, "Charge, O ye noble, and do a deed to
please the All-knowing King!" So the True Believers fell upon the
idolaters and plied upon every false hypocritical breast the keen
sword and the quivering spear. They sought to take refuge in the
city; but Jamrkan came forth upon them with his kinsmen, who
hemmed them in between two mountain-ranges, and slew an
innumerable host of them, and the rest fled into the wastes and
words.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say
her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fiftieth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
the Moslem host charged upon the Miscreants they hewed them in
pieces with the biting scymitar and the rest fled to the wastes
and words; nor did the Moslems cease pursuing them with the
sword, till they had scattered them abroad in the plains and
stony places. Then they returned to Oman city, and King Gharib
entered the palace of the King and, sitting down on the throne of
his kingship, with his Grandees and Of ficers ranged right and
left, sent for Jaland. They brought him in haste and Gharib ex
pounded to him Al-Islam; but he rejected it; wherefore Gharib
bade crucify him on the gate of the city, and they shot at him
with shafts till he was like unto a porcupine. Then Gharib
honourably robed Jamrkan and said to him, "Thou shalt be lord of
this city arid ruler thereof with power to loose and to bind
therein, for it was thou didst open it with thy sword and thy
folk." And Jamrkan kissed the King's feet, thanked him and wished
him abiding victory and glory and every blessing Morever Gharib
opened Jaland's treasuries and saw what was therein of coin,
whereof he gave largesse to his captains and standard bearers and
fighting-men, yea, even to the girls and children; and thus he
lavished his gifts ten days long. After this, one night he dreamt
a terrible dream and awoke, troubled and trembling. So he aroused
his brother Sahim and said to him, "I saw in my vision that we
were in a wide valley, when there pounced down on us two ravening
birds of prey, never in my life saw I greater than they; their
legs were like lances, and as they swooped we were in sore fear
of them." Replied Sahim, "O King, this be some great enemy; so
stand on thy guard against him." Gharib slept not the rest of the
night and, when the day broke, he called for his courser and
mounted. Quoth Sahim, "Whither goest thou, my brother?" and quoth
Gharib, "I awoke heavy at heart; so I mean to ride abroad ten
days and broaden my breast." Said Sahim, "Take with thee a
thousand braves;" but Gharib replied, "I will not go forth but
with thee and only thee." So the two brothers mounted and,
seeking the dales and leasows, fared on from Wady to Wady and
from meadow to meadow, till they came to a valley abounding in
streams and sweet-smelling flowers and trees laden with all
manner eatable fruits, two of each kind. Birds warbled on the
branches their various strains; the mocking bird trilled out her
sweet notes fain and the turtle filled with her voice the plain.
There sang the nightingale, whose chant arouses the sleeper, and
the merle with his note like the voice of man and the cushat and
the ring-dove, whilst the parrot with its eloquent tongue
answered the twain. The valley pleased them and they ate of its
fruits and drank of its waters, after which they sat under the
shadow of its trees till drowsiness overcame them and they slept,
glory be to Him who sleepeth not! As they lay asleep, lo! two
fierce Marids swooped down on them and, taking each one on his
shoulders, towered with them high in air, till they were above
the clouds. So Gharib and Sahim awoke and found themselves
betwixt heaven and earth; whereupon they looked at those who bore
them and saw that they were two Marids, the head of the one being
as that of a dog and the head of the other as that of an
ape[FN#23] with hair like horses' tails and claws like lions'
claws, and both were big as great palm-trees. When they espied
this case, they exclaimed,, "There is no Majesty and there is no
Might save in Allah, the Glorious, the Great!" Now the cause of
this was that a certain King of the Kings of the Jinn, highs
Mura'ash, had a son called Sá'ik, who loved a damsel of the Jinn,
named Najmah;[FN#24] and the twain used to foregather in that
Wady under the sem blance of two birds. Gharib and Sahim saw them
thus and deeming them birds, shot at them with shafts but
wounding only Sa'ik whose blood flowed. Najmah mourned over him;
then, fearing lest the like calamity befal herself, snatched up
her lover and flew with him to his father's palace, where she
cast him down at the gate. The warders bore him in and laid him
before his sire who, seeing the pile sticking in his rib
exclaimed, "Alas, my son! Who hath done with thee this thing,
that I may lay waste his abiding-place and hurry on his
destruction, though he were the greatest of the Kings of the
Jann?" Thereupon Sa'ik opened his eyes and said, "O my father,
none slew me save a mortal in the Valley of Springs." Hardly had
he made an end of these words, when his soul departed; whereupon
his father buffeted his face, till the blood streamed from his
mouth, and cried out to two Marids, saying, "Hie ye to the Valley
of Springs and bring me all who are therein." So they betook
themselves to the Wady in question, where they found Gharib and
Sahim asleep, and, snatching them up, carried them to King
Mura'ash.[FN#25]--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and
ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-first Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the
two Marids, after snatching up Gharib and Sahim in their sleep,
carried them to Mura'ash, king of the Jann, whom they saw seated
on the throne of his kinship, as he were a huge mountain, with
four heads on his body,[FN#26] the first that of a lion, the
second that of an elephant, the third that of a panther, and the
fourth that of a lynx. The Marids set them down before Mura'ash
and said to him, "O King, these twain be they we found in the
Valley of Springs." Thereupon he looked at them with wrathful
eyes and sparked and snorted and shot sparks from his nostrils,
so that all who stood by feared him. Then said he, "O dogs of
mankind, ye have slain my son and lighted fire in my liver."
Quoth Gharib, "Who is thy son, and who hath seen him?" Quoth
Mura'ash "Were ye not in the Valley of Springs and did ye not see
my son there, in the guise of a bird, and did ye not shoot at him
with wooden bolts that he died?" Replied Gharib, "I know not who
slew him; and, by the virtue of the Great God, the One, the
Immemorial who knoweth things all, and of Abraham the Friend, we
saw no bird, neither slew we bird or beast!" Now when Mura'ash
heard Gharib swear by Allah and His greatness and by Abraham the
Friend, he knew him for a Moslem (he himself being a worshipper
of Fire, not of the All-powerful Sire), so he cried out to his
folk, "Bring me my Goddess.[FN#27]" Accordingly they brought a
brazier of gold and, setting it before him, kindled therein fire
and cast on drugs, whereupon there arose therefrom green and blue
and yellow flames and the King and all who were present
prostrated themselves before the brazier, whilst Gharib and Sahim
ceased not to attest the Unity of Allah Almighty, to cry out "God
is Most Great" and to bear witness to His Omnipotence. Presently,
Mura'ash raised his head and, seeing the two Princes standing in
lieu of falling down to worship, said to them, "O dogs, why do ye
not prostrate yourselves?" Replied Gharib, "Out on you, O ye
accursed! Prostration befitteth not man save to the Worshipful
King, who bringeth forth all creatures into beingness from
nothingness and maketh water to well from the barren rockwell,
Him who inclineth heart of sire unto new-born scion and who may
not be described as sitting or standing; the God of Noah and
Salih and Hud and Abraham the Friend, Who created Heaven and Hell
and trees and fruit as well,[FN#28] for He is Allah, the One, the
All-powerful." When Mura'ash heard this, his eyes sank into his
head[FN#29] and he cried out to his guards, saying, "Pinion me
these two dogs and sacrifice them to my Goddess." So they bound
them and were about to cast them into the fire when, behold, one
of the crenelles of the palace parapet fell down upon the brazier
and brake it and put out the fire, which became ashes flying in
air. Then quoth Gharib, "God is Most Great! He giveth aid and
victory and He forsaketh those who deny Him, worshipping Fire and
not the Almighty King!" Presently quoth Mura'ash, "Thou art a
sorcerer and hast bewitched my Goddess, so that this thing hath
befallen her." Gharib replied, "O madman, an the fire had soul or
sense it would have warded off from self all that hurteth it."
When Mura'ash heard these words, he roared and bellowed and
reviled the Fire, saying, "By my faith, I will not kill you save
by the fire!" Then he bade cast them into gaol; and, calling an
hundred Marids, made them bring much fuel and set fire thereto.
So they brought great plenty of wood and made a huge blaze, which
flamed up mightily till the morning, when Mura'ash mounted an
elephant, bearing on its back a throne of gold dubbed with
jewels, and the tribes of the Jinn gathered about him in their
various kinds. Presently they brought in Gharib and Sahim who,
seeing the flaming of the fire, sought help of the One, the All-
conquering Creator of night and day, Him of All-might, whom no
sight comprehendeth, but who comprehendeth all sights, for He is
the Subtle, the All-knowing. And they ceased not humbly
beseeching Him till, behold, a cloud arose from West to East and,
pouring down showers of rain, like the swollen sea, quenched the
fire. When the King saw this, he was affrighted, he and his
troops, and entered the palace, where he turned to the Wazirs and
Grandees and said to them, "How say ye of these two men?" They
replied, "O King, had they not been in the right, this thing had
not befallen the fire; wherefore we say that they be true men
which speak sooth." Rejoined Mura'ash, "Verily the Truth hath
been displayed to me, ay, and the manifest way, and I am
certified that the worship of the fire is false; for, were it
goddess, it had warded off from itself the rain which quenched it
and the stone which broke its brazier and beat it into ashes.
Wherefore I believe in Him Who created the fire and the light and
the shade and the heat. And ye, what say ye?" They answered, "O
King, we also hear and follow and obey." So the King called for
Gharib and embraced him and kissed him between the eyes and then
summoned Sahim; whereupon the bystanders all crowded to kiss
their hands and heads.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day
and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifth-second Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when
Mura'ash and his men found salvation in the Saving Faith, Al-
Islam, he called for Gharib and Sahim and kissed them between the
eyes and so did all the Grandees who crowded to buss their hands
and heads. Then Mura'ash sat down on the throne of his kingship
and, seating Gharib on his right and Sahim on his left hand, said
to them, "O mortals, what shall we say, that we may become
Moslems?" Replied Gharib, "Say, ‘There is no god but the God, and
Abraham is the Friend of God!'" So the King and his folk
professed Al-Islam with heart and tongue, and Gharib abode with
them awhile, teaching them the ritual of prayer. But presently he
called to mind his people and sighed, whereupon quoth Mura'ash,
"Verily, trouble is gone and joy and gladness are come." Quoth
Gharib, "O King, I have many foes and I fear for my folk from
them." Then he related to him his history with his brother Ajib
from first to last, and the King of the Jinns said, "O King of
men, I will send one who shall bring thee news of thy people, for
I will not let thee go till I have had my fill of thy face." Then
he called two doughty Marids, by name Kaylaján and Kúraján, and
after they had done him homage, he bade them repair to Al-Yaman
and bring him news of Gharib's army. They replied, "To hear is to
obey," and departed. Thus far concerning the brothers; but as
regards the Moslems, they arose in the morning and led by their
captains rode to King Gharib's palace, to do their service to
him; but the eunuchs told them that the King had mounted with his
brother and had ridden forth at peep o' day. So they made for the
valleys and mountains and followed the track of the Princes, till
they came to the Valley of Springs, where they found their arms
cast down and their two gallant steeds grazing and said, "The
King is missing from this place, by the glory of Abraham the
Friend!" Then they mounted and sought in the valley and the
mountains three days, but found no trace of them; whereupon they
began the mourning ceremonies and, send ing for couriers, said to
them, "Do ye disperse yourselves about the cities and sconces and
castles, and seek ye news of our King." "Harkening and
obedience!" cried the couriers, who dispersed hither and thither
each over one of the Seven Climes and sought everywhere for
Gharib, but found no trace of him. Now when the tidings came to
Ajib by his spies that his brother was lost and there was no news
of the missing, he rejoiced and going in to King Ya'arub bin
Kahtan, sought of him aid which he granted and gave him two
hundred thousand Amalekites, wherewith he set out for Al-Yaman
and sat down before the city of Oman. Jamrkan and Sa'adan sallied
forth and offered him battle, and there were slain of the Moslems
much folk, so the True Believers retired into the city and shut
the gates and manned the walls. At this moment came up the two
Marids Kaylajan and Kurajan and, seeing the Moslem beleaguered
waited till nightfall, when they fell upon the miscreants and
plied them with sharp swords of the swords of the Jinn, each
twelve cubits long, if a man smote therewith a rock, verily he
would cleave it in sunder. They charged the Idolaters, shouting,
"Allaho Akbar! God is Most Great! He giveth aid and victory and
forsaketh those who deny the Faith of Abraham the Friend!" and
whilst they raged amongst the foes, fire issued from their mouths
and nostrils, and they made great slaughter amongst them.
Thereupon the Infidels ran out of their tents offering battle
but, seeing these strange things, were confounded and their hair
stood on end and their reason fled. So they snatched up their
arms and fell one upon other, whilst the Marids shore off their
heads, as a reaper eareth grain, crying, "God is Most Great! We
are the lads of King Gharib, the friend of Mura'ash, King of the
Jinn!" The sword ceased not to go round amongst them till the
night was half spent, when the Misbelievers, imagining that the
mountains were all Ifrits, loaded their tents and treasure and
baggage upon camels and made off; and the first to fly was Ajib.-
-And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her
permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-third Night,
She resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that the Misbelievers made off and the first
to fly was Ajib. Thereupon the Moslems gathered together, marvelling at this that had betided
the Infidels and fearing the tribesmen of the Jinn. But the Marids ceased not from pursuit, till
they had driven them far away into the hills and words; and but fifty-thousand Rebels[FN#30] of
two hundred thousand escaped with their lives and made for their own land, wounded and sore
discomforted. Then the two Jinns returned and said to them, "O host of the Moslems, your lord
King Gharib and his brother Sahim salute you; they are the guests of Mura'ash, King of the Jann,
and will be with you anon " When Gharib's men heard that he was safe and well, they joyed with
exceeding joy and said to the Marids, "Allah gladden you twain with good news, O noble
spirits!" So Kurajan and Kaylajan returned to Mura'ash and Gharib; and acquainted them with
that which had happened, whereat Gharib finding the two sitting together felt heart at ease and
said, "Allah abundantly requite you!" Then quoth King Mura'ash, "O my brother, I am minded
to show thee our country and the city of Japhet[FN#31] son of Noah (on whom be peace!)"
Quoth Gharib, "O King, do what seemeth good to thee." So he called for three noble steeds and
mounting, he and Gharib and Sahim, set out with a thousand Marids, as they were a piece of a
mountain cloven lengthwise. They fared on, solacing themselves with the sight of valleys and
mountains, till they came to Jabarsá,[FN#32] the city of Japhet son of Noah (on whom be
peace!) where the townsfolk all, great and small, came forth to meet King Mura'ash and brought
them into the city in great state. Then Mura'ash went up to the palace of Japhet son of Noah and
sat down on the throne of his kingship, which was of alabaster, ten stages high and latticed with
wands of gold wherefrom hung all manner coloured silks. The people of the city stood before
him and he said to them, "O seed of Yafis bin Nuh, what did your fathers and grandfathers
worship?" They replied, "We found them worshipping Fire and followed their example, as thou
well knowest." "O folk," rejoined Mura'ash, "we have been shown that the fire is but one of the
creatures of Almighty Allah, Creator of all things; and when we knew this, we submitted
ourselves to God, the One, the All-powerful, Maker of night and day and the sphere revolving
alway, Whom compre hendeth no sight, but Who comprehendeth all sights, for He is the Subtle,
the All-wise. So seek ye Salvation and ye shall be saved from the wrath of the Almighty One and
from the fiery doom in the world to come." And they embraced Al-Islam with heart and tongue.
Then Mura'ash took Gharib by the hand and showed him the palace and its ordinance and all the
marvels it contained, till they came to the armoury, wherein were the arms .of Japhet son of
Noah. Here Gharib saw a sword hanging to a pin of gold and asked, "O King, whose is that?"
Mura'ash answered, " 'Tis the sword of Yafis bin Nuh, wherewith he was wont to do battle
against men and Jinn. The sage Jardúm forged it and graved on its back names of might.[FN#33]
It is named Al-Máhík the Annihilator for that it never descendeth upon a man, but it annihilateth
him, nor upon a Jinni, but it crusheth him; and if one smote therewith a mountain ‘twould
overthrow it." When Gharib heard tell of the virtues of the sword, he said, "I desire to look on
this blade;" and Mura'ash said, "Do as thou wilt." So Gharib put out his hand, and, hending the
sword, drew it from its sheath; whereupon it flashed and Death crept on its edge and glittered;
and it was twelve spans long and three broad. Now Gharib wished to become owner of it, and
King Mura'ash said, "An thou canst smite with it,take it." " 'Tis well," Gharib replied, and took
it up, and it was in his hand as a staff; wherefore all who were present, men and Jinn, marvelled
and said, "Well done, O Prince of Knights!" Then said Mura'ash "Lay thy hand on this hoard for
which the Kings of the earth sigh in vain, and mount, that I may show thee the city." Then they
took horse and rode forth the palace, with men and Jinns attending them on foot,--And
Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-fourth Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when Gharib and King Mura'ash rode
forth the palace of Japhet, with men and Jinns attending them on foot, they passed through the
streets and thoroughfares of the town, by palaces and deserted mansions and gilded doorways,
till they issued from the gates and entered gardens full of trees fruit-bearing and waters welling
and birds speaking and celebrating the praises of Him to whom belong Majesty and Eternity; nor
did they cease to solace themselves in the land till nightfall, when they returned to the palace of
Japhet son of Noah and they brought them the table of food So they ate and Gharib turned to the
King of the Jann and said to him, "O King, I would fain return to my folk and my force; for I
know not their plight after me." Replied Mura'ash, "By Allah, O my brother, I will not part with
thee for a full month, till I have had my fill of thy sight." Now Gharib could not say nay, so he
abode with him in the city of Japhet, eating and drinking and making merry, till the month
ended, when Mura'ash gave him great store of gems and precious ores, emeralds and balass-
rubies, diamonds and other jewels, ingots of gold and silver and likewise ambergis and musk and
brocaded silks and else of rarities and things of price. Moreover he clad him and Sahim in silken
robes of honour gold inwoven and set on Gharib's head a crown jewelled with pearls and
diamonds of inestimable value. All these treasures he made up into even loads for him and,
calling five hundred Marids, said to them, "Get ye ready to travel on the morrow, that we may
bring King Gharib and Sahim back to their own country." And they answered, "We hear and we
obey." So they passed the night in the city, purposing to depart on the morrow, but, next
morning, as they were about to set forth behold, they espied a great host advancing upon the city,
with horses neighing and kettle-drums beating and trumpets braying and riders filling the earth
for they numbered threescore and ten thousand Marids, flying and diving, under a King called
Barkan. Now this Barkan was lord of the City of Carnelian and the Castle of Gold and under his
rule were five hill-strongholds, in each five hundred thousand Marids; and he and his tribe
worshipped the Fire, not the Omnipotent Sire. He was a cousin of Mura'ash, the son of his
father's brother, and the cause of his coming was that there had been among the subjects of King
Mura'ash a misbelieving Marid, who professed Al-Islam hypocritically, and he stole away from
his people and made for the Valley of Carnelian, where he went in to King Barkan and, kissing
the earth before him, wished him abiding glory and prosperity. Then he told him of Mura'ash
being converted to Al-Islam, and Barkan said, "How came he to tear himself away from his
faith[FN#34]?'' So the rebel told him what had passed and, when Barkan heard it, he snorted and
sparked and railed at Sun and Moon and sparkling Fire, saying, "By the virtue of my faith, I will
surely slay mine uncle's son and his people and this mortal, nor will I leave one of them alive!"
Then he cried out to the legions of the Jinn and choosing of them seventy-thousand Marids, set
out and fared on till he came to Jabarsá[FN#35] the city of Japhet and encamped before its gates.
When Mura'ash saw this, he despatched a Marid, saying, "Go to this host and learn all that it
wanteth and return hither in haste." So the messenger rushed away to Barkan's camp, where the
Marids flocked to meet him and said to him, "Who art thou?" Replied he, "An envoy from King
Mura'ash;" whereupon they carried him in to Barkan, before whom he prostrated himself,
saying, "O my lord, my master hath sent me to thee, to learn tidings of thee." Quoth Barkan,
"Return to thy lord and say to him, ‘This is thy cousin Barkan, who is come to salute thee.'"--
And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased saying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-fifth Night,
She said, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the Marid-envoy of Mura'ash was
borne before Barkan and said to him, "O my lord, my master hath sent me to thee to learn tidings
of thee," Barkan replied, "Return to thy lord and say to him, ‘This is thy cousin Barkan who is
come to salute thee!'" So the messenger went back and told Mura'ash, who said to Gharib, "Sit
thou on thy throne whilst I go and salute my cousin and return to thee." Then he mounted and
rode to the camp of his uncle's son. Now this was a trick[FN#36] of Barkan, to bring Mura'ash
out and seize upon him, and he said to his Marids, whom he had stationed about him, "When ye
see me embrace him,[FN#37] lay hold of him and pinion him." And they replied, "To hear is to
obey." So, when King Mura'ash came up and entered Barkan's pavilion, the owner rose to him
and threw his arms round his neck; whereat the Jann fell upon Mura'ash and pinioned him and
chained him. Mura'ash looked at Barkan and said, "What manner of thing is this?" Quoth
Barkan, "O dog of the Jann, wilt thou leave the faith of thy fathers and grandfathers and enter a
faith thou knowest not?" Rejoined Mura'ash, "O son of my uncle, indeed I have found the faith
of Abraham the Friend to be the True Faith and all other than it vain." Asked Barkan, "And who
told thee of this?"; and Mura'ash answered, "Gharib, King of Irak, whom I hold in the highest
honour." "By the right of the Fire and the Light and the Shade and the Heat," cried Barkan, "I
will assuredly slay both thee and him!" And he cast him into gaol. Now when Mura'ash's
henchman saw what had befallen his lord, he fled back to the city and told the King's legionaries
who cried out and mounted. Quoth Gharib, "What is the matter?" And they told him all that had
passed, whereupon he cried out to Sahim, "Saddle me one of the chargers that King Mura'ash
gave me." Said Sahim, "O my brother, wilt thou do battle with the Jinn?" Gharib replied, "Yes, I
will fight them with the sword of Japhet son of Noah, seeking help of the Lord of Abraham the
Friend (on whom be the Peace!); for He is the Lord of all things and sole Creator!" So Sahim
saddled him a sorrel horse of the horses of the Jinn, as he were a castle strong among castles, and
he armed and mounting, rode out with the legions of the Jinn, hauberk'd cap-à-pie. Then Barkan
and his host mounted also and the two hosts drew out in lines facing each other. The first to open
the gate of war was Gharib, who crave his steed into the mid-field and bared the enchanted
blade, whence issued a glittering light that dazzled the eyes of all the Jinn and struck terror to
their hearts. Then he played[FN#38] with the sword till their wits were wildered, and cried out,
saying, "Allaho Akbar! I am Gharib, King of Irak. There is no Faith save the Faith of Abraham
the Friend!" Now when Barkan heard Gharib's words, he said, "This is he who seduced my
cousin from his religion; so, by the virtue of my faith, I will not sit down on my throne till I have
decapitated this Gharib and suppressed his breath of life and forced my cousin and his people
back to their belief: and whoso baulketh me, him will I destroy." Then he mounted an elephant
paper-white as he were a tower plastered with gypsum, and goaded him with a spike of steel
which ran deep into his flesh, whereupon the elephant trumpeted and made for the battle-plain
where cut and thrust obtain; and, when he drew near Gharib, he cried out to him, saying, "O dog
of mankind, what made thee come into our land, to debauch my cousin and his folk and pervert
them from one faith to other faith. Know that this day is the last of thy worldly days." Gharib
replied, ‘‘Avaunt,[FN#39] O vilest of the Jann!" Therewith Barkan drew a javelin and making it
quiver[FN#40] in his hand, cast it at Gharib; but it missed him. So he hurled a second javelin at
him; but Gharib caught it in mid air and after poising it launched it at the elephant. It smote him
on the flank and came out on the other side, whereupon the beast fell to the earth dead and
Barkan was thrown to the ground, like a great palm-tree. Before he could stir, Gharib smote him
with the flat of Japhet's blade on the nape of the neck, and he fell upon the earth in a fainting fit;
whereupon the Marids swooped down on him and surrounding him pinioned his elbows. When
Barkan's people saw their king a prisoner, they drove at the others, seeking to rescue him, but
Gharib and the Islamised Jinn fell upon them and gloriously done for Gharib! indeed that day he
pleased the Lord who answereth prayer and slaked his vengeance with the talisman-sword!
Whomsoever he smote, he clove him in sunder and before his soul could depart he became a
heap of ashes in the fire; whilst the two hosts of the Jinn shot each other with flamy meteors till
the battle-field was wrapped in smoke. And Gharib tourneyed right and left among the Kafirs
who gave way before him, till he came to King Barkan's pavilion, with Kaylajan and Kurajan on
his either hand, and cried out to them, "Loose your lord!" So they unbound Mura'ash and broke
his fetters and----And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-sixth Night,
She continued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when King Gharib cried out to
Kaylajan and Kurajan, saying, "Loose your lord!", they unbound Mura'ash and broke his fetters,
and he said to them, "Bring me my arms and my winged horse." Now he had two flying steeds,
one of which he had given to Gharib and the other he had kept for himself; and this he mounted
after he had donned his battle harness. Then he and Gharib fell upon the enemy, flying through
the air on their winged horses, and the true believing Jinn followed them, shouting "Allaho
Akbar--God is Most Great!"--till plains and hills, valleys and mountains re-worded the cry. The
Infidels fled before them and they returned, after having slain more than thirty thousand Marids
and Satans, to the city of Japhet, where the two Kings sat down on their couches of estate and
sought Barkan, but found him not; for after capturing him they were diverted from him by stress
of battle, where an Ifrit of his servants made his way to him and loosing him, carried him to his
folk, of whom he found part slain and the rest in full flight. So he flew up with the King high in
air and sat him down in the City of Carnelian and Castle of Gold, where Barkan seated himself
on the throne of his kingship. Presently, those of his people who had survived the affair came in
to him and gave him joy of his safety; and he said, "O folk, where is safety? My army is slain
and they took me prisoner and have rent in pieces mine honour among the tribes of the Jann."
Quoth they, "O King, 'tis ever thus that kings still afflict and are afflicted." Quoth he, "There is
no help but I take my wreak and wipe out my shame, else shall I be for ever disgraced among the
tribes of the Jann." Then he wrote letters to the Governors of his fortresses, who came to him
right loyally and, when he reviewed them, he found three hundred and twenty-thousand fierce
Marids and Satans, who said to him, "What is thy need?" And he replied, "Get ye ready to set
out in three days' time;" whereto they rejoined "Harkening and obedience!" On this wise it befel
King Barkan; but as regards Mura'ash, when he discovered his prisoner's escape, it was grievous
to him and he said, "Had we set an hundred Marids to guard him, he had not fled; but whither
shall he go from us?" Then said he to Gharib, "Know, O my brother, that Barkan is perfidious
and will never rest from wreaking blood-revenge on us, but will assuredly assemble his legions
and return to attack us; wherefore I am minded to forestall him and follow the trail of his defeat,
whilst he is yet weakened thereby." Replied Gharib, "This is the right rede and will best serve
our need;" and Mura'ash, said, "Oh my brother, let the Marids bear thee back to thine own
country and leave me to fight the battles of the Faith against the Infidels, that I may be lightened
of my sin-load." But Gharib rejoined "By the virtue of the Clement, the Bountiful, the Veiler, I
will not go hence till I do to death all the misbelieving Jinn; and Allah hasten their souls to the
fire and dwelling-place dire; and none shall be saved but those who worship Allah the One the
Victorious! But do thou send Sahim back to the city of Oman, so haply he may be healed of his
ailment." For Sahim was sick. So Mura'ash cried to the Marids, saying, "Take ye up Sahim and
these treasures and bear them to Oman city." And after replying, "We hear and we obey," they
took them and made for the land of men. Then Mura'ash wrote letters to all his Governors and
Captains of fortresses and they came to him with an hundred and sixty-thousand warriors. So
they made them ready and departed for the City of Carnelian and the Castle of Gold, covering in
one day a year's journey and halted in a valley, where they encamped and passed the night. Next
morning as they were about to set forth, behold, the vanguard of Barkan's army appeared,
whereupon the Jinn cried out and the two hosts met and fell each upon other in that valley. Then
the engagement was dight and there befel a sore fight as though an earthquake shook the site and
fair plight waxed foul plight. Earnest came and jest took flight, and parley ceased ‘twixt wight
and wight,[FN#41] whilst long lives were cut short in a trice and the Unbelievers fell into
disgrace and despite; for Gharib charged them, proclaiming the Unity of the Worshipful, the All-
might and shore through necks and left heads rolling in the dust; nor did night betide before nigh
seventy thousand of the Miscreants were slain, and of the Moslemised over ten thousand Marids
had fallen Then the kettle-drums beat the retreat, and the two hosts drew apart,--And Shahrazad
perceived the dawn of day and ceased Baying her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-seventh Night,
She resumed, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that when the two hosts drew apart, Gharib
and Mura'ash returned to their tents, after wiping their weapons, and supper being set before
them, they ate and gave each other joy of their safety, and the loss of their Marids being so
small. As for Barkan, he returned to his tent, grieving for the slaughter of his champions, and
said to his officers, "O folk, an we tarry here and do battle with them on this wise in three days'
time we shall be cut off to the last wight." Quoth they, "And how shall we do, O King?" Quoth
Barkan, "We will fall upon them under cover of night whilst they are deep in sleep, and not one
of them shall be left to tell the tale. So take your arms and when I give the word of command,
attack and fall on your enemies as one." Now there was amongst them a Marid named Jandal
whose heart inclined to Al-Islam; so, when he heard the Kafirs' plot, he stole away from them
and going in to King Mura'ash and King Gharib, told the twain what Barkan had devised;
whereupon Mura'ash turned to Gharib and said to him, "O my brother, what shall we do?"
Gharib replied, "To-night we will fall upon the Miscreants and chase them into the wilds and the
words if it be the will of the Omnipotent King." Then he summoned the Captains of the Jann and
said to them, "Arm yourselves, you and yours; and, as soon as 'tis dark, steal out of your tents on
foot, hundreds after hundreds, and lie in ambush among the mountains; and when ye see the
enemy engaged among the tents, do ye fall upon them from all quarters. Hearten your hearts and
rely on your Lord, and ye shall certainly conquer; and behold, I am with you!" So, as soon as it
was dark Night, the Infidels attacked the camp, invoking aid of the fire and light; but when they
came among the tents, the Moslems fell upon them, calling for help on the Lord of the Worlds
and saying, "O Most Merciful of Mercifuls, O Creator of all createds!" till they left them like
mown grass, cut down and dead. Nor did morning dawn before the most part of the unbelievers
were species without souls and the rest made for the wastes and marshes, whilst Gharib and
Mura'ash returned triumphant and victorious; and, making prize of the enemy's baggage, they
rested till the morrow, when they set out for the City of Carnelian and Castle of Gold. As for
Barkan, when the battle had turned against him and most of his lieges were slain, he fled through
the dark with the remnant of his power to his capital where he entered his palace and assembling
his legionaries said to them, "O folk, whoso hath aught of price, let him take it and follow me to
the Mountain Káf, to the Blue King, lord of the Pied Palace; for he it is who shall avenge us." So
they took their women and children and goods and made for the Caucasus mountain. Presently
Mura'ash and Gharib arrived at the City of Carnelian and Castle of Gold to find the gates open
and none left to give them news; whereupon they entered and Mura'ash led Gharib that he might
show him the city, whose walls were builded of emeralds and its gates of red carnelian, with
studs of silver, and the terrace-roofs of its houses and mansions reposed upon beams of lign
aloes and sandle-wood. So they took their pleasure in its streets and alleys, till they came to the
Palace of Gold and entering passed through seven vestibules, when they drew near to a building,
whose walls were of royal balass rubies and its pavement of emerald and jacinth. The two Kings
were astounded at the goodliness of the place and fared on from vestibule to vestibule, till they
had passed through the seventh and happened upon the inner court of the palace wherein they
saw four daises, each different from the others, and in the midst a jetting fount of red gold,
compassed about with golden lions,[FN#42] from whose mouths issued water. These were things
to daze man's wit. The estrade at the upper end was hung and carpeted with brocaded silks of
various colours and thereon stood two thrones of red gold, inlaid with pearls and jewels. So
Mura'ash and Gharib sat down on Barkan's thrones and held high state in the Palace of Gold.--
And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.
When it was the Six Hundred and Fifty-eighth Night,
She pursued, It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that Mura'ash and Gharib took seat on
Barkan's thrones and held high state. Then said Gharib to Mura'ash, "What thinkest thou to do?"
And Mura'ash replied, "O King of mankind, have despatched an hundred horse to learn where
Barkan is, that we may pursue him." Then they abode three days in the palace, the scouting
Marids returned with the news that Barkan had fled to the Mountain Kaf and craved protection
of the Blue King who granted it; whereupon quoth Mura'ash to Gharib, "What sayest thou, O my
brother?" and quoth Gharib, "Except we attack them they will attack us." So they bade the host
make ready for departure and after three days, they were about to set out with their troops, when
the Marids, who had carried Sahim and the presents back to Oman, returned and kissed ground
before Gharib. He questioned them of his people and they replied, "After the last affair, thy
brother Ajib, leaving Ya'arub bin Kahtan, fled to the King of Hind and, submitting his case,
sought his protection. The King granted his prayer and writing letters to all his governors, levied
an army as it were the surging sea, having neither beginning nor end, wherewith he purposeth to
invade Al-Irak and lay it waste." When Gharib heard this, he said, "Perish the Misbelievers!
Verily, Allah Almighty shall give the victory to Al-Islam and I will soon show them hew and
foin." Said Mura'ash, "O King of humans, by the virtue of the Mighty Name, I must needs go
with thee to thy kingdom and destroy thy foes and bring thee to thy wish." Gharib thanked him
and they rested on this resolve till the morrow, when they set out, intending for Mount Caucasus
and marched many days till they reached the City of Alabaster and the Pied Palace. Now this city
was fashioned of alabaster and precious stones by Bárik bin Fáki', father of the Jinn, and he also
founded the Pied Palace, which was so named because edified with one brick of gold alternating
with one of silver, nor was there builded aught like it in all the world. When they came within
half a day's journey of the city, they halted to take their rest, and Mura'ash sent out to
reconnoitre a scout who returned and said, "O King, within the City of Alabaster are legions of
the Jinn, for number as the leaves of the trees or as th
