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CHAPTER III.

SHOWING HOW THE PRINCE IS HELPED IN HIS QUEST BY A FRIENDLY

DEMONMARRIES MAHMUDA, A BEAUTIFUL GIRL REACHES THE
GARDEN OF BAKAWALI AND PLUCKS THE ROSESEEING THE FAIRY
BAKAWALI ASLEEP, FALLS IN LOVE WITH HERRETURNS WITH
MAHMUDA AND REJOINS DILBAR, WHO LIBERATES HIS BRETHREN,
BEFORE THE THREE SET OUT FOR HIS OWN COUNTRYON THE WAY HE
IS DEPRIVED OF THE ROSE BY HIS BRETHREN, WHO RETURN HOME,
AND BY MEANS OF THE FLOWER RESTORE THEIR FATHERS SIGHT.

IT is related that Tj ul-Mulk assumed the garb of a darvesh, rubbed ashes all
over his body, and, pronouncing the name of God,* set out on his journey. After
some days he entered a forest, so dark on account of the number of trees in it
that night could not be distinguished from day. But the prince was far from
losing courage, thinking it was only a wave of the ocean of troubles which he
had to traverse. I must, said he, draw closer the girdle of resolution, and, like
the salamander, plunge into this furnace.* He then penetrated into the forest, as
dark as ignorance, and swarming with wild beasts of every kind, especially
ravenous dragons with gaping mouths. He wandered for a long time, to the
right and then to the left; his body was torn by the sharp thorns of thickets and
his feet were pierced by those of the babl, to such an extent that he was covered
with blood. The end of the forest was only reached after great diculty, and
prostrating himself before God, he prayed most earnestly. Then continuing his
way he saw a dv si ing, whom he might have taken for a mountain. When the
dv arose, his head touched the sky, and from his voice like thunder the prince
heard the following words: Young man, how comes it that, of your own free
will, you leave the city of life and journey with the feet of your desires in the
path of death? Learn, you who question me, replied Tj ul-Mulk, pale and
trembling, that the life of this eeting world is a misfortune for me. If it were
otherwise I should never throw myself into the jaws of death, and should not
nd myself in the coils of such a sanguinary being as you. Free me, then, with all
speed from the torments which I am suering; for one hour of this existence is
like a hundred years of anguish. The dv was moved to pity. Listen, son of
Adam, said he. Very far from doing you an injury, I wish to take you under
my protection and lend you my aid. Thus reassured, Tj ul-Mulk remained
with the dv, who showed him much friendship, and they were soon as thick as
milk and sugar. One day the dv, being well pleased with a meal which the
shh-zda had prepared for him,* pressed him to disclose his wishes, swearing
by Sulayman* that he would accomplish them for him. Then Tj ul-Mulk told
him that he was most desirous of entering the country of Bakwal, upon which
the dv sighed heavily, smote his own head, and appeared agitated with the
utmost grief. What do you ask, my young man? said he. The country of
which you speak is that of the king of the fairies, and it is guarded day and night
on all sides by ten thousand of his slaves. How could I get you there? And yet I
must keep my oath. He then u ered a loud cry, and presently another dv
appeared, to whom he communicated the shh-zdas desire, adding: Thou

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hast the power to grant it, and I ask the favour of thee, seeing that I am pledged
by a terrible oath to aid him.

Now this second dv had a sister named Hammla,* who was the chief guard
of the country, and eighteen thousand dvs were her subordinates. He wrote at
once recommending the prince to her, and giving the le er to a messenger told
Tj ul-Mulk to be guided by him. This dv took the prince on his left arm and
with his right protected him from the rays of the sun. Thus they proceeded on
their way, and arrived in the presence of Hammla, to whom the dv consigned
both the le er and the prince. She said to the messenger: If my brother had sent
me a whole mine of red sulphur, or even the ring of Sulayman, it could not have
given me more pleasure than I now feel. Then she wrote a reply to her brother,
saying: I once had occasion to travel through the habitations of man, and
thence I brought away a girl matchless in beauty, the daughter of a king. Her I
adopted as my own daughter and called her Mah-mda. * She is now in her
fourteenth year, and bright in beauty as the moon when half-full. For her it is
evident that God has sent this youththanks be to the Lord. She then
dismissed the messenger with this le er, and Mahmda was at once married to
Tj ul-Mulk.

For some time the shh-zda lived with his protectress and Mahmda, but
without performing his marital duties, and one day when his spouse
complained to him of his indierence, he informed her that an important ma er
occupied his thoughts. I have made a vow, said he, to forego the pleasures of
this world, even lawful ones, until I have a ained my desire. Be of good
cheer, rejoined Mahmda. If it please God, I will untie the knot of the thread
of hope with the nail of prudence; and I will tell you where to nd the town of
Bakwal. On the morrow Hammla took Mahmda on her knee, as usual, and
overwhelmed her with caresses. Mahmda then said to her: My dear mother, I
have a favour to ask of you. Will you grant it? Yes, my child, said Hammla,
kissing her head and eyes. This it is, then: the shh-zda wishes to visit the
kingdom of Bakwal; try to satisfy him. Hammla at rst raised up diculties,
but when she saw that her adopted child would not give up her idea, she called
one of her followers and ordered him to secretly conduct the prince into the
garden of Bakwal, which he did accordingly.

When Tj ul-Mulk entered this wondrous garden, he found that the ground
was of gold, the walls which surrounded it were studded with the rubies of
Badak-shn, * and the carnelians of Yaman. Through parterres of emeralds
owed streams of rosewater in beds of topaz.* Beautiful indeed was that grove.
The owers were so bright that had the sun beheld them he would have been
covered with the perspiration of shame. The clusters of grapes there, vieing in
colour with the emerald, were like the Pleiades in heaven; and the narcissus was
more graceful than the owing ringlets of the most charming damsel. That
garden! If a drop of its dew were to fall in the ocean it would make the shes
exhale the perfume of roses; and if the sky should hear a single note of its birds,
it would cease revolving, and stand still to listen to it.* If Venus heard it, she
would dance with joy, and fall on earth in company with the moon. Redder than
the fairest fruits was the colour of the fruits growing there; and much more
graceful than the tallest form were the cypress-trees that waved therein.*

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The prince gazed on all this with pleasure. Suddenly his eyes fell on an outer
hall, made of ruby and jasper, inlaid with a pond full of the purest rose-water.
Its sides were studded with the most precious stones, and in the middle of it
bloomed a lovely ower, delicate to view, and most pleasing in fragrance. The
prince concluded that this was the Rose of Bakwal. Undressing himself, he
plunged into the pond, and obtained the ower of his fondest wishes. Investing
himself again with his garments, he deposited the ower most carefully in his
pocket, and turned his steps towards the palace of the princess. A magnicent
structure composed of ruby met his eyes. Its doors beamed with the lustre
which once shone on Mount Sinai.* A racted by its beauty the prince entered.
Every hall was made of rubies. The windows were ornamented with screens of
the richest embroidery, the work upon which appeared as stars sprinkled on the
face of the heavens. Tj ul-Mulk advanced; but what was his surprise when he
perceived a magnicent couch on which was reposing a slender beauty, fast
locked in the arms of sleep! Her hair was dishevelled. Slight marks of
lamp-black were observable round her closed eyes,* her bodice was loosened,
her waistband very much removed from its proper place, and her trouser-
sleeves were pulled up, and its bunches of strings hanging loosely. With her fair
hands gracefully laid upon her forehead, she was sleeping the sleep of innocent
youth. The ruddiness of her cheeks brightened the world and cast the sun and
moon into the shade. Those black eyes would have shamed even the narcissus,
and the redness of her lips would make the heart of the tulip to bleed. The arch
of her eyebrows made the crescent hide its face, and the locks of night paled
before the shady blackness of her raven hair.

Tall as the cypress of the lawn was she,

And sweet as honey were her lips so red;
If seen in all her native brilliancy,
The stars would lose the lustre which they shed.
Bright as the pearls her shining teeth were seen;
Radiant her charms as Pleiades on high;
She was a rose, the fairest rose, I ween,
For whom a thousand nightingales would die.

Tj ul-Mulk was staggered at the sight of so much beauty; but, on regaining

some degree of strength, he approached the couch and softly recited these
verses:

If thy charms thou wouldst discover,

Stars would all their light forget,
And the night would grow the darker,
Gazing on those locks of jet.
Glowing in the ush of beauty,
Careless of the world art thou:
What am I?The mightiest princes
Will before thy beauty bow!

In brief, the prince thought within himself that it would be well to leave some
token of his visit. So he gently took a ring o one of her ngers and put his own
in its place, murmuring the following lines:

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Like the tulip, lo! I go, a spot upon my suering heart,

Dust upon my head, and in my heart a sharp and rankling dart.
Like me in this scene of woe, who suers more from Fortunes power?
In this garden I have entered, and I go without a ower.

While she was yet sleeping the prince departed, and returned to the abode of
Hammla, who was waiting for him in the most intense anxiety. When she saw
him she smiled with the sincerest pleasure, and passed the time in merriment
and joy. And when the bride of day had hidden her blushing face in the bed of
midnight, and evening had shown her murky locks to the world,* the prince
retired and that night showed every endearment to his spouse. Thus several
days passed in pleasure.

One night Tj ul-Mulk sat in the chamber of Mahmda and conversed with
her to this eect: O source of all my happiness! although I here enjoy comfort
and everything is ready for my convenience, yet I am longing for my native
land. Rest contented, she replied, and to-morrow I shall ask leave to
depart. Next morning, as usual, Hammla tenderly embraced them, but
perceiving them to look sad, she asked them: What can I do to please you, my
darlings? Fear not a refusal. Mahmda answered: Your tender care anticipates
all our desires; but there is one thing we do not nd here, namely, the company
of beings like ourselves; and so, notwithstanding the violent grief we feel in
separating from you, the re of the love of country reduces to ashes our repose
and necessitates the employment of the water of return. Hammla, greatly
aicted by this sudden declaration, cried out: What! have I brought you up
with so much care, in the hope that you would be my faithful companion, and
now you wish to leave me! Alas, you would never have thought of it, if I had not
married you to the shh-zda. But it is all my own fault. Yet seeing that they
would not willingly remain with her, she summoned a dv, and ordered him to
carry the pair to a place which Tj ul-Mulk would indicate to him, and bring
back a le er intimating their safe arrival. Then Hammla plucked two hairs out
of her head, and giving one to the prince and the other to Mahmda she said:
When you need me, put this hair in the re and I will at once hasten to you
with a thousand dvs,* and having received their adieus, a gigantic dv
appeared, who was swifter in his course than the lightning, and told them he
was at their service. Conduct us then, said the prince, to the city of Firdaus,
and into the garden of the courtesan Dilbar Lakh. The dv took them upon his
shoulders, and quick as thought deposited them in the place indicated. Tj
ul-Mulk then dismissed his guide with a le er to Hammla, announcing their
safe arrival.

When the beautiful Dilbar heard the voice of the shh-zda she ran out to
meet him, and throwing herself at his feet, returned thanks to God for his safe
return. He told all that had occurred to him, and introduced to her Mahmda,
whom Dilbar Lakh tenderly embraced in token of her sincere aection. After a
few days Tj ul-Mulk made preparations to return to his own country. At the
moment of his departure, Dilbar, after having had some conversation with him,
ordered his brothers to be brought, and he, who was supposed not to know
them, begged her to restore them to liberty, as she had already done to the
princes of the east and the west who had fallen into her power; but she

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consented only provided she should be allowed to brand them on the back in
token of the state of slavery to which they had been reduced. The four sons of
Zayn ul-Mulk had no alternative but to submit to be thus branded; but when
they had withdrawn Tj ul-Mulk ordered each of them to be given a dress of
honour and a lakh of rups to defray the expenses of their journey, and then they
set out for their native land. He then sent away Dilbar and Mahmda, directing
them to wait for him in a certain city, and himself secretly followed his brothers
in order to discover their intentions.

Tj ul-Mulk stopped at the same inn as his brothers, and, concealed in a

corner of the room, he heard their boasting and falsehood with reference to the
Rose of Bakwal. He waited patiently for some time, but at last could endure it
no longer, and drawing near them he said to others who were present: What
these men say is false; for I alone possess the Rose of Bakwal, and can show it
to you. Then untying his girdle he drew from it the ower and exhibited it to
the impostors, who in fury snatched it from him saying: Let us see if you speak
the truth; for if you deceive us we shall make you pay dearly for it. They
caused a blind man to be brought in, applied the rose to his eyes, and instantly
his sight was restored. Their astonishment and confusion were unbounded, but
they not only refused to return the ower to Tj ul-Mulk, but showered blows
upon him and chased him from their presence. Then they joyfully continued
their journey, and on reaching the connes of their country they sent a
messenger before them to announce their return. This news lled the good king,
their father, with joy. To do them honour, he made a journey of several days to
meet them.* Zayn ul-Mulk embraced his four sons and kissed them
aectionately. On their part, they gave him the Rose of Bakwal, which when
he placed to his eyes rendered them as bright as the stars. He then oered
thanks to God that he had recovered his sight by means of the ower, and in
celebration of the happy event ordered all his subjects, rich and poor, to keep
open for a whole year the door of joy and pleasure, and to close the door of
sadness and sorrow.

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