1. Breslau Text, vol. iv. pp. 134-189, Nights cclxxii.-ccxci. This is the story familiar to
readers of the old "Arabian Nights" as "Abon Hassan, or the Sleeper Awakened" and is the only
one of the eleven tales added by Galland to his version of the (incomplete) MS. of the Book of the
Thousand Nights and One Night procured by him from Syria, the Arabic original of which has yet
been discovered. (See my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. IX. pp. 264 et
seq.) The above title is of course intended to mark the contrast between the everyday (or waking)
hours of Aboulhusn and his fantastic life in the Khalif's palace, supposed by him to have passed in
a dream, and may also be rendered "The Sleeper and the Waker."
8. "Platter bread," i.e. bread baked in a platter, instead of, as usual with the Arabs, in an oven
or earthen jar previously heated, to the sides of which the thin cakes of dough are applied, "is
lighter than oven bread, especially if it be made thin and leavened." -- Shecouri, a medical writer
quoted by Dozy.
12. Taam, lit. food, the name given by the inhabitants of Northern Africa to the preparation of
millet-flour (something like semolina) called kouskoussou, which forms the staple food of the
people.
17. This common formula of assent is an abbreviation of "Hearkening and obedience are due
to God and to the Commander of the Faithful" or other the person addressed.
18. Dar es Selam, one of the seven "Gardens" into which the Mohammedan Paradise is
divided.
20. Complimentary form of address to eunuchs, generally used by inferiors only.
21. The morning-prayer consists of four inclinations (rekäat) only. A certain fixed succession
of prayers and acts of adoration is called a rekah (sing, of rekäat) from the inclination of the body
that occurs in it.
22. i.e. the terminal formula of prayer, "Peace be on us and on all the righteous servants of
God!"
23. i.e. said "I purpose to make an end of prayer."
28. The Abbaside Khalifs traced their descent from Abbas, the uncle of Mohammed, and
considered themselves, therefore, as belonging to the family of the Prophet.
29. i.e. May thy dwelling-place never fall into ruin.
30. i.e. the raised recess situate at the upper end of an Oriental saloon, wherein is the place of
honour.
36. i.e. the vein said to have been peculiar to the descendants of Hashim, grandfather of Abbas
and great-grandson of Mohammed, and to have started out between their eyes in moments of
anger.
41. Breslau Text, vol. vl. pp. 182-188, Nights ccccxxxii-ccccxxxiv.
42. The eighth Khalif (A.D. 717-720) of the house of Umeyyeh and the best and most
single-hearted of all the Khalifs, with the exception of the second, Omar ben Khettab, from whom
he was descended.
43. A celebrated statesman of the time, afterwards governor of Cuia* and Bassora under
Omar ben Abdulaziz.
44. The most renowned poet of the first century of the Hegira. He is said to have been equally
skilled in all styles of composition grave and gay.
47. Chief of the tribe of the Benou Suleim. Et Teberi tells this story in a different way.
According to him, Abbas ben Mirdas (who was a well-known poet), being dissatisfied with the
portion of booty allotted to him by the Prophet, refused it and composed a lampoon against
Mohammed, who said to Ali, "Cut off this tongue which attacketh me," i.e. "Silence him by
giving what will satisfy him," whereupon Ali doubled the covetous chief's share.
48. Bilal ibn Rebeh was the Prophet's freedman and crier. The word bilal signifies "moisture"
or (metonymically) "beneficence" and it may well be in this sense (and not as a man's name) that it
is used in the text.
49. Said to have been the best poet ever produced by the tribe of Cureish. His introduction
here is an anachronism, as he died A.D. 712, five years before Omar's accession.
51. A famous poet of the tribe of the Benou Udhreh, renowned for their passionate sincerity in
love-matters. He is celebrated as the lover of Butheineh, as Petrarch of Laura, and died A.D. 701,
sixteen years before Omar's accession.
52. A friend of Jemil and a poet of equal renown. He is celebrated as the lover of Azzeh,
whose name is commonly added to his, and kept a grocer's shop at Medina.
54. A famous satirical poet of the time, afterwards banished by Omar for the virulence of his
lampoons. His name is wrongly given by the text; it should be El Ahwes. He was a descendant of
the Ansar or (Medinan) helpers of Mohammed.
55. A famous poet of the tribe of the Benou Temim and a rival of Jerir, to whom he was by
some preferred. He was a notorious debauchee and Jerir, in one of the satires that were
perpetually exchanged between himself and El Ferezdec, accuses his rival of having "never been a
guest in any house, but he departed with ignominy and left behind him disgrace."
56. A Christian and a celebrated poet of the time.
57. The poet apparently meant to insinuate that those who professed to keep the fast of
Ramazan ate flesh in secret. The word rendered "in public," i.e. openly, avowedly, may also
perhaps be translated "in the forenoon," and in this El Akhtel may have meant to contrast his
free-thinking disregard of the ordinances of the fast with the strictness of the orthodox Muslim,
whose only meals in Ramazan-time are made between sunset and dawn-peep. As soon as a white
thread can be distinguished from a black, the fast is begun and a true believer must not even
smoke or swallow his saliva till sunset.
58. Prominent words of the Muezzin's fore-dawn call to prayer.
69. Breslau Text, vol. vi. pp. 188-9, Night ccccxxxiv.
70. El Hejjaj ben Yousuf eth Thekefi, a famous statesman and soldier of the seventh and
eighth centuries. He was governor of Chaldaea (Irak Arabi), under the fifth and sixth Khalifs of
the Ommiade dynasty, and was renowned for his cruelty, but appears to have been a prudent and
capable administrator, who used no more rigour than was necessary to restrain the proverbially
turbulent populations of Bassora and Cufa, Most of the anecdotes of his brutality and tyranny,
which abound in Arab authors, are, in all probability, apocryphal.
83. Adeb, one of the terribly comprehensive words which abound in Arabic literature for the
confusion of translators. It signifies generally all kinds of education and means of mental and
moral discipline and seems here to mean more particularly readiness of wit and speech or presence
of mind.
84. Breslau Text, vol. vi. pp. 189-191, Night ccccxxxiv.
85. Syn. (Koranic) "Thou hast swerved from justice" or "been unjust" (adeita).
93. Name of the Persian ancestor of the Barmecide (properly Bermeki) family.
94. Breslau Text, vol. vi. pp. 191-343, Nights ccccxxv-cccclxxxvii. This is the Arab version of
the well-known story called, in Persian, the Bekhtyar Nameh, i.e. the Book of Bekhtyar, by which
name the prince, whose attempted ruin by the envious viziers is the central incident of the tale, is
distinguished in that language. The Arab redaction of the story is, to my mind, far superior to the
Persian, both in general simplicity and directness of style and in the absence of the irritating
conceits and moral digressions with which Persian (as well as Indian) fiction is so often
overloaded. The Persian origin of the story is apparent, not only in the turn of the incidents and
style and the names of the personages, but in the fact that not a single line of verse occurs in it.
95. Rawi; this is probably a copyist's mistake for raai, a beholder, one who seeth.
96. Lit. what was his affair? It may be here observed that the word keif (how?) is constantly
used in the Breslau Text in the sense of ma (what?).
97. A district of Persia, here probably Persia itself.
102. The Arabs attribute to a man's parentage absolute power in the determination of his good
and evil qualities; eg. the son of a slave, according to them, can possess none of the virtues of the
free-born, whilst good qualities are in like manner considered congenitally inherent in the latter.
106. It is a common practice with Eastern nations to keep a child (especially a son and one of
unusual beauty) concealed until a certain age, for fear of the evil eye. See my "Book of the
Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. III. p. 234; Vol. IX. p. 67, etc., etc.
113. i.e. Let thy secret thoughts and purposes be righteous, even as thine outward profession.
114. See my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. V. p. 264.
115. Afterwards called his "chamberlain," i.e. the keeper of the door of the harem or chief
eunuch. See post, p. III.
116. i.e. the eunuch who had dissuaded Dadbin from putting her to death.
117. Apparently referring to Aboulkhair (see ante p. 107), whom Dabdin would seem to have
put to death upon the vizier's false accusation, although no previous mention of this occurs.
118. The Arabs believe that each man's destiny is charactered, could we decipher it, in the
sutures of his skull.
119. ie. the lex talionis, which is the essence of Muslim jurisprudence.
120. i.e. a soldier of fortune, going about from court to court, in quest of service.
121. This phrase refers to the Arab idiom, "His hand (or arm) is long or short," i.e. he is a man
of great or little puissance.
122. The Arabs consider it a want of respect to allow the hands or feet to remain exposed in the
presence of a superior.
125. It is a common Eastern practice to have the feet kneaded and pressed (shampooed) for the
purpose of inducing sleep, and thus the king would habitually fall asleep with his feet on the knees
of his pages.
128. Of a man's life. The Muslims believe each man's last hour to be written in a book called
"The Preserved Tablet."
129. i.e, the Autumnal Equinox, one of the two great festival days (the other being the New
Year) of the Persians. See my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. IV. p. 144.
131. i.e. The Emperor of the Romans of the Lower Empire, so called by the Arabs. "Caesar" is
their generic term for the Emperors of Constantinople, as is Kisra (Chosroës) for the ancient
Kings of Persia.
138. The hoopoe is fabled by the Muslim chroniclers to have been to Solomon what Odin's
ravens were to the Norse god. It is said to have known all the secrets of the earth and to have
revealed them to him; hence the magical virtues attributed by the Mohammedans to its heart.
139. This phrase may be read either literally or in its idiomatic sense, i.e., "Folk convicted or
suspected of murder or complicity in murder."
142. Khilaah, lit. that which one takes off from one's own person, to bestow upon a messenger
of good tidings or any other whom it is desired especially to honour. The literal meaning of the
phrase, here rendered "he bestowed on him a dress of honour," is "he put off on him [that which
was upon himself." A Khilaah commonly includes a horse, a sword, a girdle or waist-cloth and
other articles, according to the rank of the recipient, and might more precisely be termed "a
complete equipment of honour."
143. An economical mode of rewarding merit, much in favour with Eastern monarchs.
144. Breslau Text, vol. vii. pp. 251-4, Night dlxv.
146. Ibn Khelbkan, who tells this story in a somewhat different style, on the authority of Er
Reshid's brother Ibrahim ben El Mehdi, calls the person whom Jaafer expected "Abdulmelik ben
Behran, the intendant of his demesnes."
147. The wearing of silk and bright colours is forbidden to the strict Muslim and it is generally
considered proper, in a man of position, to wear them only on festive occasions or in private, as in
the text.
148. The Abbasides or descendants of El Abbas, the Prophet's uncle, were noted for their
excessive pride and pretensions to strict orthodoxy in all outward observances. Abdulmelik ben
Salih, who was a well-known general and statesman of the time, was especially renowned for
pietism and austerity of manners.
150. As a member of the reigning family, he of course wore black clothes, that being the
especial colour of the house of Abbas, adopted by them in opposition to the rival (and fallen)
dynasty of the Benou Umeyyeh, whose family colour was white, that of the house of Ali being
green.
151. About £25,000. Ibn Khellikan makes the debt four millions of dirhems or about £100,000
152. Breslau text, vol vii, pp.258-60, Night dlxvii.
153. Fourth Khalif of the house of Abbas, A.D. 785-786.
154. Third Khalif of the house of Abbas, A.D. 775-785.
155. The following is Et Teberi's version of this anecdote. El Mehdi had presented his son
Haroun with a ruby ring, worth a hundred thousand dinars, and the latter being one day with his
brother [the then reigning Khalif], El Hadi saw the ring on his finger and desired it. So, when
Haroun went out from him, he sent after him, to seek the ring of him. The Khalif's messenger
overtook Er Reshid on the bridge over the Tigris and acquainted him with his errand; whereupon
the prince enraged at the demand, pulled off the ring and threw it into the river. When El Hadi
died and Er Reshid succeeded to the throne, he went with his suite to the bridge in question and
bade his Vizier Yehya ben Khalid send for divers and cause them make search for the ring. It had
then been five months in the water and no one believed it would be found. However, the divers
plunged into the river and found the ring in the very place where he had thrown it in, whereat
Haroun rejoiced with an exceeding joy, regarding it as a presage of fair fortune.
156. This is an error. Jaafer's father Yehya was appointed by Haroun his vizier and practically
continued to exercise that office till the fall of the Barmecides (A.D. 803), his sons Fezl and Jaafer
acting only as his assistants or lieutenants. See my Essay on the History and Character of the
Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night.
157. Another mistake. It was Fezl, the Khalif's foster-brother, to whom he used to give this
title.
158. A third mistake. The whole period during which the empire was governed by Yehya and
his sons was only seventeen years, i.e. A.D 786-803, but see my Essay.
159. The apparent meaning of this somewhat obscure saying is, "Since fortune is uncertain,
conciliate the favour of those with whom thou hast to do by kind offices, so thou mayst find
refuge with them in time of need."
160. For a detailed account of the Barmecides and of their fall, see my Essay.
161. Breslau Text, vol. vii. pp. 260-1, Night dlxviii.
162. Aboulabbas Mohammed Ibn Sabih, surnamed Ibn es Semmak (son of the fishmonger), a
well-known Cufan jurisconsult and ascetic of the time. He passed the latter part of his life at
Baghdad and enjoyed high favour with Er Reshid, as the only theological authority whom the
latter could induce to promise him admission to Paradise.
163. Breslau Text, vol. vii. pp. 261-2, Night dlxviii.
164. Seventh Khalif of the house of Abbas, A.D. 813-33.
165. Sixth Khalif of the house of Abbas, A.D. 809-13, a sanguinary and incapable prince,
whose contemplated treachery against his brother El Mamoun, (whom, by the advice of his vizier,
the worthless intriguer Fezl ben Rebya, the same who was one of the prime movers in the ruin of
the illustrious Barmecide family and who succeeded Yehya and his sons in the vizierate (see my
Essay), he contemplated depriving of his right of succession and murdering,) was deservedly
requited with the loss of his own kingdom and life. He was, by the way, put to death by El
Mamoun's general, in contravention of the express orders of that generous and humane prince,
who wished his brother to be sent prisoner to him, on the capture of Baghdad.
166. i.e. forfeits. It is a favourite custom among the Arabs to impose on the loser of a game, in
lieu of stakes, the obligation of doing whatsoever the winner may command him. For an
illustration of this practice, see my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. V. pp.
336-41, Story of the Sandalwood Merchant and the Sharpers.
167. El Mamoun was of a very swarthy complexion and is said to have been the son of a black
slave-girl. Zubeideh was Er Reshid's cousin, and El Amin was, therefore, a member of the house
of Abbas, both on the father's and mother's side. Of this purity of descent from the Prophet's
family (in which he is said to have stood alone among the Khalifs of the Abbaside dynasty) both
himself and his mother were exceedingly proud, and it was doubtless this circumstance which led
Er Reshid to prefer El Amin and to assign him the precedence in the succession over the more
capable and worthier El Mamoun.
168. Breslau Text, vol. viii. pp. 226-9, Nights dclx-i.
169. A pre-Mohammedan King of the Arab kingdom of Hireh (a town near Cufa on the
Euphrates), under the suzerainty of the Chosroes of Persia, and a cruel and fantastic tyrant.
170. The tribe to which belonged the renowned pre-Mohammedan chieftain and poet, Hatim
Tal, so celebrated in the East for his extravagant generosity and hospitality.
171. i.e. I will make a solemn covenant with him before God.
174. A similar anecdote is told of Omar ben el Khettab, second successor of Mohammed, and
will be found in my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night," Vol. IV. p. 239.
175. Breslau Text, vol. viii. pp. 273-8, Nights dclxxv--vi.
176. A similar story will be found in my "Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night", Vol.
V. p. 263.
177. Breslau Text, vol xi. pp. 84-318, Nights dccclxxv-dccccxxx.
178. i.e. A pilgrimage. Pilgrimage is one of a Muslim's urgent duties.
179. By a rhetorical figure, Mecca is sometimes called El Hejj (the Pilgrimage) and this appears
to be the case here. It is one of the dearest towns in the East and the chief occupation of its
inhabitants a the housing and fleecing of pilgrims. An Arab proverb says, "There is no place in
which money goes [so fast] as it goes in Mecca."
181. It is not clear what is here meant by El Hejj; perhaps Medina, though this is a "visitation"
and not an obligatory part of the pilgrimage. The passage is probably corrupt.
182. It is not clear what is here meant by El Hejj; perhaps Medina, though this is a "visitation"
and not an obligatory part of the pilgrimage. The passage is probably corrupt.
185. i.e. I desire a privy place, where I may make the preliminary ablution and pray.
186. It is customary in the East to give old men and women the complimentary title of
"pilgrim," assuming, as a matter of course, that they have performed the obligatory rite of
pilgrimage.
194. Lit. the place of battle, i.e. that where they had lain.
195. A common Eastern fashion of securing a shop, when left for a short time. The word
shebekeh (net) may also be tendered a grating or network of iron or other metal.
202. Apparently changing places. The text is here fearfully corrupt and (as in many other parts
of the Breslau Edition) so incoherent as to be almost unintelligible.
227. Students of our old popular poetry will recognize, in the principal incident of this story,
the subject of the well-known ballad, "The Heir of Linne."
230. i.e. the extraordinary resemblance of the supposed sister to his wife.
231. The foregoing passage is evidently very corrupt and the meaning is by no means plain, but,
in the absence of a parallel version, it is impossible to clear up the obscurity of the text.
232. This appears to be the sense of the text; but the whole passage is to obscure and corrupt
that it is impossible to make sure of its exact meaning.
233. Meaning apparently, "thou puttest my devices to nought" or (perhaps) "thou art so skilful
that I fear lest thou undermine my favour with the king and oust me from my post of vizier."
234. Lit. "land;" but the meaning is evidently as in the text.
235. The reader will recognize the well-known story used by Chaucer, Boccaccio and La
Fontaine.
243. The whole of the tither's account of himself is terribly obscure and so corrupt that it is
hardly possible to make sense of it. The same remark applies to much of the rest of the story.
245. Lit. a better theologian. The Muslim law being entirely based on the Koran and the
Traditions of the Prophet, the terms "lawyer" and "theologian" are necessarily synonymous
among Mohammedan peoples.
246. A danic is the sixth of a dirhem, i.e. about one penny.
247. i.e. say, "May I be [triply] divorced from my wife, if etc.!" By the Muslim law, a divorce
three times pronounced is irrevocable, and in case of its appearing that the user of such an oath as
the above had sworn falsely, his wife would become divorced by operation of law, without further
ceremony. Hence the frequency and binding nature of the oath in question.