Week 6 Reading: Persian Tales, Part B
Fayiz and the Peri Wife
There once was a married man named Fayiz who was handsome and had a good heart. One day he went to the mountains to play his flute when a maiden woman can to accompany him. They fell in love and she asked to go to her house in the mountains. Fayiz didn't know anything about her, but they went off together and got to her house which was beautiful. She sent for the mulla to wed them.
She said to the mulla that if the man is faithful he will always be happy, but if he isn't faithful, he will constantly be in trouble. They got married and a few years later they had two sons. The wife was always threatening the husband to not share their secret or else he could never see their sons again. The man had a yearning to go home though, and he asked for permission. She cried out and recited something, transporting them to a place where flocks resided.
The peri gave him permission to go home as long as he kept the secret. This made the wife worry where he went and where he got all his possessions from. She begged him she would keep his secret for she would kill herself. When the time came to go back, the man told the wife she could do what she pleases with their home, wealth, and sons. Fayiz acted like an ass and he told his wife the whole story. He had been unfaithful and the wife took the shape of a pigeon and flew away. The man never saw her again and would go to the mountains every day to play his flute.
The Hemp-Smoker's Dream
There was a man who would smoke hemp and went to public baths. One day he went to get his head shaved by a barber and when he looked in the mirror, he believed he was the most handsome man. He believed he could get the daughter of the King of China as his wife. On his journey, he met a man named Tilin Ahmad and then picked up some other men along the way to the city of Chin. They sent word to the king they were coming for his daughter and if he didn't hand her over, they would carry off the soil of his town.
Wazir spoke with the king on the matter and they suggested a wager of seventy pots of ash on the fire. Then they must carry the marriage-deer round from East to the West and ratify it. It took them one hour and they stopped on the way back under a chenar tree. They took shifts sleeping. Tir-kamander Ahmad shot an arrow into the middle of the tree and the leaves fell off, waking Cherkh i Chin. This helped them move along with the marriage contract. They mounted the bride and set off until they began to quarrel about her.
The barber heard the fighting and gave them a smart cuff on the side of the head. Then the dreamer came to his senses He had been intoxicated and was dreaming while he got his hair cut by the barber.
The Story of the Wolf Bride
There was a man who had a son and he went to get his son's horoscope. He was told his son would be torn to pieces by a wolf so the father went home to build an underground chamber for his son. Over the years, the son began to learn to read and write, and soon it came time for him to have a wife. His father's brother had a daughter so they got married. After the seven-day wedding celebration, they brought her down to the underground chamber.
Right when they were left alone, the girl turned into a wolf and tore him into pieces. After she turned back into a girl and didn't know how this had happened. When daylight broke, the woman came to find the bride and the bridegroom's body torn to pieces. This made the woman scared and she took the boy's body to bury.
The Man who went to Wake his Luck
There once were two brothers and one was rich and the other was poor. One day, they went to the mountain to their hers and saw foals had been born and a man in black rounding them up. The poor brother asked who he was and he said he was his brother's luck. He was in search of his luck who was soon to awaken. The poor brother asked where the luck was so he could help him find him. He was told it was asleep in a cave.
The poor brother went off and on the way, he came to a garden. The gardener claimed he had a garden that wouldn't yield fruit and where his luck was at. Then the poor brother retreated to a mountain where the king was a woman who had discovered what the poor brother was looking for. Then he retreated on, falling in with a wolf. Then he came to a thorn-gatherer and then he had finally reached the cave.
He found the brother's luck and woke him up. He told the luck all the requests he had gathered on his journey. The brother then left luck and went on home and to tell all the people what luck had reported to him. When he got to the wolf, the wolf seized him and ate the poor brother up.
Tortoise Bowl-on-The-Back and the Fox
Once upon a time, there was a tortoise who carried a bowl on his back. One day, a fox passed his way while he was sowing seed and granted him strength. After some time, the corn grew and when it came time for reaping, the fox returned and gave him another blessing. He didn't appear again until harvest when the corn needed to be threshed and winnowed. The fox appeared asking for his share and the tortoise refused, resulting in quarreling.
They agreed to end the fight with a race and whoever won, would get the grain. The tortoise went and told his brother the story and asked him to hide there for he couldn't race the fox. The fox wouldn't be able to tell a difference between them. At once the brother went and hid and they tortoise and fox began the race. When the fox arrived, he saw he had lost and he hung his head in shame and confusion. Every greedy soul is put to shame.
The Shepherd Who Found Treasure
There once were two shepherds with their flocks and one went to sleep and the other saw a green fly come out of the sleeper's nose. He began milking his flock and the milk turned to cheese and he laid a knife across the bowl for the shepherd wanted to attract the fly. The fly suddenly flew off the knife and went to the middle of three stones nearby. The shepherd woke the other and claimed a wild beast was coming to eat their flocks.
The sleeping shepherd wished to go back to sleep, but the other shepherd knew the green fly was the other shepherd's soul. He offered to buy his dream in exchange for all his wages. They agreed and the shepherd told him the dream. In the dream, there was hidden treasure under an iron bridge. Then the shepherd went off to get his flocks. When he pulled up the middle stone, there were four jars full of jewels beneath it and he hid them. He no longer had to be a shepherd anymore.
The Merchant and the Saffron
There was a wealthy merchant named Malik Ahmad and one day he noticed loaded camels with jingling bells. The camels had loads of saffron and they were selling them to anyone who would purchase. Malik asked them to unload the saffron so he could load the camels with jewels in payment. After years had passed, evil luck fell on Malik. His property had been carried off in the wind, his trading agents went bankrupt, and his affairs became destitute. He believed he must leave to avoid his troubles.
He came to a town in which the saffron owner lived. They had Malik as their guest for they remembered he had bought all the saffron in exchange for jewels. He knew Malik had fallen on bad luck for he was poor now, although he treated him with respect. He was offered to stay there until his bad luck passed and then he could travel back home. In the meantime, he would send a hundred tumans every year to his wife and family.
That year, he bought a hundred sheep for Malik but by winter they all died. He continued to buy more sheep, but every winter they died. Finally, the third time, the sheep bore lambs and his luck had awakened. The master gave Malik money and merchandise to bring home to his own country, When he got home, he sold all his goods and little by little, he carried on a prosperous business till he became a wealthy man again.
Shah Abbas and the Poor Mother
One night, Shah Abbas wandered out into some ruins where he heard children crying. They were dying of hunger and the mother was weeping along with them. He had on derwish clothes and he approached the mother with a begging bowl of ash where they ate their fill. Right before he left, he took a ring off his finger and gave it to the woman to take to the baker's shop to get bread for her children till they grew old. The woman did as she was told. When she gave the ring to the baker, he asked her where she got it for it was worth much.
The baker thought she had stolen it and had her arrested and had her ears cut off. The police returned her after to her children who were still very hungry. The next night, Shah Abbas came along and heard them singing The mother told him what had happened and he invited them to his house. He handed them to the eunuch to care for them and he healed their wounds. The next morning, Shah Abbas dressed in crimson robes and went to the baker and police. He pulled out an identical ring and then he crucified the baker and the police. Shah seized all the wealth and property they possessed and gave it to the mother and her children.
The Apparition of the Prophet Khizer
There was a poor man in much debt and a king who desired to see the prophet Khizr. The poor man asked for a thousand tumans in exchange for revealing the prophet Khizr. The king wrote them their agreement and he was given forty days to fulfill his promise. On the last day, he told his wife he was going to be executed. He had taken the money to live in comfort the last days before his death. The Wazir's thought up all these gruesome ways to kill the man. The speaker suddenly vanished and the king made every effort to find the prophet. He had no success. Then he went to the village and gave money to the poor man and the king drove out the three Wazirs and counseled the fourth.
The Story of the Baker and the Grateful Fish
There once was a baker and every day he would throw the spoiled dough into the river for the fish to eat. One day, a traveling merchant offered to pay him a large sum of money to do work for him. The baker took service on his and for forty days he had no work and the Merchant showed him kindness. They celebrated by killing and skinning a cow. When they got to the mountain, the Merchant took the cow skin out and asked the man to get into it.
The Merchant tied the man up and threw him into the fire and a bird came to seize the skin and pecked holes in it till the man could come out. The only way to get back was to throw jewels and the man found some lying strewn on the ground. The Merchant said he must die up there so his flesh could be devoured by vultures and crows. He said he would throw himself in the river for the fish to eat. The fish recognized the baker and formed themselves in a raft to carry him safely across the river. After months, the baker saw the Merchant coming back.
The baker disguised himself and the Merchant offered the same bribe as before. They did the same as before after forty days and killed/skinned a cow. The baker tricked him and asked the Merchant to show him how to climb into the cow skin. The baker tied the Merchant up and carried it to the top of the mountain. The baker revealed himself and the Merchant threw his jewels down to him. The Merchant asked how to escape and the baker said by falling into the river. The Merchant fell into the river and he drowned and the baker left rich with jewels.
Bibliography:
Title: Persian Tales
Author: David and Emily Lorimer
Image: As-nas Cards
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