Arabian Nights
Sham S. Misri
Hundreds of years ago professional story tellers in
India and the Middle East made up the stories now known as ‘Arabian nights.’
Later on, groups of these stories were put together. One group was
translated from Arabic to French by Antonie Galland in early 1700’s. His, ‘A
Thousand and One Nights, introduced these Oriental tales to the Western world.
All
the collections have one thing in common. A heroine, Scheherazade, tells
different stories. She recites the tales for a very good reason: She must save
her life.
The
heroine was married to Sultan Shahriyar, who had killed his first wife when she
was unfaithful to him and then all his later wives in revenge against women.
Scheherazade did not want to suffer the same fate. On her wedding night she
began to tell her husband a story and stopped just before she reached the end.
The Sultan allowed her to live another day in order to hear the end of her
tale. The next night she finished the story and began another one even more
fascinating than the first. Again she stopped before the ending, gaining
another day of life.
And
so it went, for a thousand and one nights. Finally the Sultan realized that
Scheherazade was a good and faithful wife, and the couple lived happily ever
after.
One
story from Arabian Nights is :
Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp
(A story for children)
Sham S. Misri
Once a magician poses as a long lost uncle to the
innocent Aladdin. The two leave the city and arrive at a secret place, where
the magician burns a fire, throws powder on it, and says some magic words. The
earth trembles, and opens, revealing a flat stone with a brass ring over it.
With the help of more magic words, the stone is moved and steps appear.
“Go down” said the magician. “At the foot of the steps
you will find an open door leading into three large halls. Fold up your gown
and go through them without touchkng anything, or you would die
instantaneously. The halls lead into a garden of fine fruit trees. Walk on till
you come to a place in a terrace where stands a lighted lamp. Pour out the oil
it contains and bring it to me.”
The magician drew a ring from his finger and gave it
to Aladdin, bidding him prosper.
Aladdin found everything as the magician had said,
gathered some fruits of the trees and, having got the lamp, arrived at the mouth
of the cave.
The magician cried out in great hurry, “Make hurry and
give me the lamp.” This Aladdin refused to do until he was out of the cave. The
magician flew into a terrible passion, and throwing some more powder on the
fire, he said something, and the stone rolled back into the place.
The magician left Persia for ever, which simply showed
that he was no uncle of Aladdin, but a cunning wizard who had read in his magic
books about a wonderful lamp which would make him the most powerful man in the
world.
Though the wizard alone knew where to find it, he
could only receive it from the hand of another. The wizard had picked out the
foolish Aladdin for this purpose, planning to get the lamp and kill him
afterwards.
For two days Aaladdin remained in the dark, crying,
nostalgic and lamenting. Atlast he clapped his hands in prayer, and in so doing
rubbed the ring, which the magician had forgotten to take from him. Instantly
an enormous and frightful genii rose out of the earth, saying, “what do you
want from me? I am the slave of the ring and would obey you in all things.
Aladdin fearlessly replied, “Carry me out from this
place.” There upon the earth opened and he found himself outside. As soon as
his eyes could tolerate the light he went home, but fainted on the treshhold.
When he came home he told his mother what had passed, and showed her the lamp
and the fruits he had gathered in the garden. The fruits that he had gathered
were in reality precious stones.
He then asked his mother for some food.
“Alas,
child,” she said, “I have nothing in the house but I have spun a little cotton,
go and sell it.”
Aladdin was upset. He told his mother to keep her
cotton, for he would sell the lamp instead.
As the lamp was very dirty she began to rub it, so
that it might fetch a good price. As she rubbed the lamp a genie appeared.
Aladdin's mother was afraid, but the genie said, “Order me and I will get
anything for you.”
She fainted away, but Aladdin quickly snatched the
lamp and said boldly, “Fetch me something to eat!”
Immediately the genie returned with a golden bowl, and
six silver plates containing rich yummy and delicious dishes. Aladdin and his
mother relished. There after the genie was their slave. Aladdin then ordered to
make beautiful house and that way they became very rich.
