One Thousand and One Nights 1/4

The book "One Thousand and One Nights" occupies a prestigious position in world literature with its magnificent everlasting stories that represent folk literature most accurately, and highlight its features and distinctive qualities that have garnered global attention in the East and West. The West has taken interest in it, translating these stories into most languages of the world, and these translations have achieved unparalleled popularity after Europeans made them a source of abundant production. Part One She said: I have heard, O happy king, that there was in the city of Damascus before the caliphate of Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan a king named Omar al-Nu'man, and he was one of the great giants, who conquered kings, emperors, and czars, and he was not set aflame by fire, nor was anyone his equal in the racecourse. When he was angry, flames of fire came out of his nostrils. He had dominion over all regions. His rule extended over all villages and countries. All servants obeyed God for him, and his armies reached the farthest lands, and he ruled the East and West and everything in between, including India, Sindh, China, Yemen, Hejaz, Abyssinia, Sudan, Levant, Rome, Diyarbakır, and the islands of the seas, and among the famous rivers on earth, such as the Tigris and Euphrates, and the Nile and the Furat. Part Two She said: I have heard, O happy king, that Abu al-Hasan took the slave girl to the house of Ali ibn Bakar and stationed her at the door, and he entered the house. When Ali ibn Bakar saw him, he was pleased. Abu al-Hasan said to him: The reason for my coming is that so-and-so sent you the slave girl with a note containing his greetings, and mentioned that his delay was due to a reason that happened to him. The girl was standing at the door, so do you permit her to enter? Ali said: Let her in. Abu al-Hasan signaled to him that she was a sunlit girl, and he understood the gesture. When he saw her move and rejoice, he signaled to her: How is the master, may God heal and grant him well-being? She said: Fine. Then she took out the note, handed it to him, and he took it, kissed it, read it, and handed it to Abu al-Hasan. Part Three She said: I have heard, O happy king, that when the son of the king Azdshir was in hiding in the orchard, and the princess and the old woman were walking among the trees, the prince saw her and fainted from the intensity of his love. When he regained consciousness, he found her gone from his sight and hidden among the trees, and he sighed deeply from his heart. The old woman kept guiding the princess in the orchard until she reached the place where the prince was, and the old woman said: O hidden of kindness, protect us from what we fear. When the prince heard the signal, he came out of his hiding place, was amazed at himself, confused, and wandered among the trees, ashamed of the branches, his forehead beaded with sweat, and his cheeks like the dawn. Glory be to the great God for what He created. Suddenly, the princess glanced and saw him, and when she saw him, she stared at him for a long time, seeing his beauty, grace, stature, and the eyes that flirt with gazelles, and his height that exposes the branches of the trees. Her mind was stunned, her heart captivated, and her eyes shot arrows into her heart. Part Four She said: I have heard, O happy king, that when the second minister finished his speech, he concluded by saying: May your reward be good and your affair be successful. Then the third minister stood up and said: Glad tidings, O just king, of immediate good and delayed reward; because everyone you love on earth, the people of the heavens love them too. By Allah, He has divided love for you and placed it in the hearts of your subjects. To Him belongs thanks and praise from us and from you, so that His blessings may increase upon you and us through you. And know, O king, that a person cannot do anything except by the command of Allah, the Most High, and He is the Giver, and all goodness ends with Him. He distributes blessings to His servants as He wills; some He grants many talents, some He busy with earning sustenance, and some He makes ascetic in the world and desirous of Him, because He is the One who said: I am the harm and the benefit, I heal and I cause sickness, I enrich and I impoverish, I kill and I give life, and everything is in My hand, and to Me is the return. So it is obligatory for all people to thank Him.