The Fourth Voyage of Es-Sindibad of the Sea

Know, O my brothers, that when I returned to the city
of Baghdad, and met my companions and my family and my
friends, and was enjoying the utmost pleasure and happi-
ness and ease, and had forgotten all that I had experienced,
by reason of the abundance of my gains, and had become
immersed in sport and mirth, and the society of friends and
companions, leading the most delightful life, my wicked soul
suggested to me to travel again to the countries of other
people, and I felt a longing for associating with the different
races of men, and for selling and gains. So I resolved upon
this, and purchased precious goods, suitable to a sea-voyage,
and, having packed up many bales, more than usual, I went
from the city of Baghdad to the city of El-Basrah, where I
embarked my bales in a ship, and joined myself to a party
of the chief men of El-Basrah, and we set forth on our
voyage. The vessel proceeded with us. confiding in the bless^
ing of God (whose name be exalted!), over the roaring sea
agitated with waves, and the voyage was pleasant to us ; and
we ceased not to proceed in this manner for a period of
nights and days, from island to island and from sea to sea,
until a contrary wind rose against us one day. The master
therefore cast the anchors, and stayed the ship in the midst
of the sea, fearing that she would sink in the midst of the
deep. And while we were in this state, supplicating, and
humbling ourselves to God (whose name be exalted!), there
rose against us a great tempest, which rent the sails in strips,
and the people were submerged with all their bales and their
commodities and wealth. I was submerged among the rest,
and I swam in the sea for half a day, after which I abandoned
myself; but God (whose name be exalted!) aided me to lay
hold upon a piece of one of the planks of the ship, and I and
a party of the merchants got upon it. We continued sitting
upon this plank, striking the sea with our feet, and the waves
and the wind helping us ; and we remained in this state a day
and a night. And on the following day, shortly before the
mid-time between sunrise and noon, a wind rose against us,
the sea became boisterous, the waves and the wind were
violent, and the water cast us upon an island; and we were
like dead men, from excess of sleeplessness and fatigue, and
cold and hunger, and fear and thirst.

We walked along the shores of that island, and found upon
it abundant herbs ; so we ate some of them to stay our depart-
ing spirits, and to sustain us ; and passed the next night upon
the shore of the island. And when the morning came, and dif-
fused its light and shone, we rose and walked about the
island to the right and left, and there appeared to us a
building in the distance. We therefore proceeded over the
island in the direction of that building which we had seen
from a distance, and ceased not to proceed until we stood at
its door. And while we were standing there, lo, there came
forth to us from that door a party of naked men, who. with-
out speaking to us. seized us, and took us to their King, and
he commanded us to sit. So we sat ; and they brought to us
some food, such as we knew not, nor in our lives had we
seen the like of it; wherefore my stomach consented not to it,
and I ate none of it in comparison with my companions, and
my eating so little of it was owing to the grace of God
(whose name be exalted!), in consequence of which I have
lived to the present time. For when my companions ate of
that food, their minds became stupefied, and they ate like
madmen, and their states became changed. Then the people
brought to them cocoa-nut-oil, and gave them to drink of it,
and anointed them with it ; and when my companions drank
of that oil, their eyes became turned in their faces, and they
proceeded to eat of that food contrary to their usual manner.
Upon this, therefore, I was confounded respecting their case,
and grieved for them, and became extremely anxious by rea-
son of the violence of my fear for myself with regard to
these naked men. I observed them attentively, and, lo, they
were a Magian people, and the King of their city was a ghul ;
and every one who arrived at their country, or whom they
saw or met in the valley or the roads, they brought to their
King, and they fed him with that food, and anointed him
with that oil, in consequence of which his body became ex-
panded, in order that he might eat largely ; and his mind was
stupefied, his faculty of reflection was destroyed, and he be-
came like an idiot. Then they gave him to eat and drink in
abundance of that food and oil, until he became fat and stout,
when they slaughtered him and roasted him, and served him
as meat to their King. But as to the companions of the King,
they ate the flesh of men without roasting or otherwise cook-
ing it. So when I saw them do thus, I was in the utmost
anguish on my own account and on account of my compan-
ions. The latter, by reason of the excessive stupefaction of
their minds, knew not what was done unto them, and the
people committed them to a person who took them every day
and went forth to pasture them on that island like cattle.

But as for myself, I became, through the violence of fear
and hunger, infirm and wasted in body, and my flesh dried
upon my bones. So when they saw me in this state, they
left me and forgot me. and not one of them remembered me,
nor did I occur to their minds, until I contrived a stratagem
one day, and. going forth from that place, walked along the
island to a distance. And I saw a herdsman sitting upon
something elevated in the midst of the sea; and I certified
myself of him, and, lo, he was the man to whom they had
committed my companions that he might pasture them; and
he had with him many like them. As soon, therefore, as that
man beheld me, he knew that I was in possession of my
reason, and that nought of that which had afflicted my com-
panions had afflicted me. So he made a sign to me from a
distance, and said to me, Turn back, and go along the road
that is on thy right hand ; thou wilt so reach the King's high-
way. Accordingly I turned back, as this man directed me,
and, seeing a road on my right hand, I proceeded along it, and
ceased not to go on, sometimes running by reason of fear, and
sometimes walking at my leisure until I had taken rest. Thus
I continued to do until I was hidden from the eyes of the man
who directed me to the way, and I saw him not nor did he
see me. The sun had disappeared from me, and darkness
approached; wherefore I sat to rest, and desired to sleep; but
sleep came not to me that night on account of the violence of
my fear and hunger and fatigue. And when it was midnight,
I arose and walked on over the island, and I ceased not to
proceed until day arrived, and the morning came and diffused
its light and shone, and the sun rose over the tops of the high
hills and over the low gravelly plains. I was tired and hungry
anl thirsty: so I began to eat of the herbs and vegetables
that were upon the island, and continued to eat of them till
I was satiated, and my departing spirit was stayed; after
which I arose and walked on again over the island ; and thus
I ceased not to do all the day and the next night; whenever
I was hungry, eating of the vegetables.

In this manner I proceeded for the space of seven days
with their nights: and on the morning of the eighth day, 1
cast a glance, and beheld a faint object in the distance. So
I went towards it, and ceased not to proceed until I came
up to it. after sunset; and I looked at it with a scrutinizing
eye, while I was yet distant from it, and with a fearful heart
in consequence of what I had suffered first and after, and,
lo, it was a party of men gathering pepper. And when I
approached them, and they saw me, they hastened to me,
and came to me and surrounded me on every side, saying to
me, Who art thou, and whence hast thou come? I answered
them, Know ye, O people, that I am a poor foreigner. And
I informed them of my whole case, and of the horrors and
distresses that had befallen me, and what I had suffered ,••
whereupon they said. By Allah, this is a wonderful thing !
But how didst thou escape from the blacks, and how didst
thou pass by them in this island, when they are a numerous
people, and eat men, and no one is safe from them, nor can
any pass by them? — So I acquainted them with that which
had befallen me among them, and with the manner in which
they had taken my companions, and fed them with food of
which I did not eat. And they congratulated me on my
safety, and wondered at that which had befallen me. Then
they made me sit among them until they had finished their
work, and they brought me some nice food. I therefore ate
of it, being hungry, and rested with them a while ; after which
they took me and embarked with me in a vessel, and went
to their island and their abodes. They then took me to their
King, and I saluted him, and he welcomed me and treated
me with honour, and inquired of me my story. So I related
to him what I had experienced, and what had befallen me and
happened to me from the day of my going forth from the
city of Baghdad until I had come unto him. And the King
wondered extremely at my story, and at the events that had
happened to me ; he, and all who were present in his as-
sembly. After that, he ordered me to sit with him. There-
fore I sat; and he gave orders to bring the food, which
accordingly they brought, and I ate of it as much as sufficed
me, and washed my hands, and offered up thanks for the
favour of God (whose name be exalted!), praising Him and
glorifying Him. I then rose from the presence of the King,
and diverted myself with a sight of his city; and, lo, it was
a flourishing city, abounding with inhabitants and wealth, and
with food and markets and goods, and sellers and buyers.

So I rejoiced at my arrival at that city, and my heart was
at ease; I became familiar with its inhabitants, and was
magnified and honoured by them and by their King above
the people of his dominions and the great men of his city.
And I saw that all its great men and its small rode excellent
and fine horses without saddles; whereat I wondered; and
I said to the King, Wherefore, O my lord, dost thou not
ride on a saddle; for therein is ease to the rider, and addi-
tional power? He said, What kind of thing is a saddle?
This is a thing that in our lives we have never seen, nor
have we ever ridden upon it. — And I said to him, Wilt thou
permit me to make for thee a saddle to ride upon and to
experience the pleasure of it? He answered me. Do so. I
therefore said to him. Furnish me with some wood. And
he gave orders to bring me all that I required. Then I
asked for a clever carpenter, and sat with him, and taught
him the construction of the saddle, and how he should make
it. Afterwards I took some wool, and teased it, and made
felt of it; and I caused some leather to be brought, and
covered the saddle with it, and polished it. I then attached
its straps, and its girth: after which I brought the black-
smith, and described to him the form of the stirrups, and he
forged an excellent pair of stirrups; and I filed them, and
tinned them. Then I attached fringes of silk. Having done
this, I arose and brought one of the best of the King's
horses, girded upon him that saddle, attached to it the stir-
rups, bridled him, and brought him forward to the King;
and it pleased him, and was agreeable to him. He thanked
me, and seated himself upon it, and was greatly delighted
with that saddle ; and he gave me a large present as a reward
for that which I had done for him. And when his Wezir
saw that I had made that saddle, he desired of me one like
it. So I made for him a saddle like it. The grandees and
dignitaries likewise desired of me saddles, and I made for
them. I taught the carpenter the construction of the saddle;
and the blacksmith, the mode of making stirrups ; and we
employed ourselves in making these things, and sold them
to the great men and masters. Thus I collected abundant
wealth, and became in high estimation with them, and they
loved me exceedingly.

I continued to enjoy a high rank with the King and his
attendants and the great men of the country and the lords
of the state, until I sat one day with the King, in the utmost
happiness and honour; and while I was sitting, the King
said to me, Know, O thou, that thou hast become magnified
and honoured among us, and hast become one of us, and we
cannot part with thee, nor can we suffer thee to depart from
our city; and I desire of thee that thou obey me in an affair,
and reject not that which I shall say. So I said to him,
And what dost thou desire of me, O King? For I will not
reject that which thou shalt say, since thou hast shewn
favour and kindness and beneficence to me, and (praise be
to God!) I have become one of thy servants. — And he an-
swered, I desire to marry thee among us to a beautiful, lovely,
elegant wife, possessed of wealth and loveliness, and thou
shalt become a dweller with us, and I will lodge thee by me
in my palace: therefore oppose me not, nor reject what I
say. And when I heard the words of the King, I was abashed
at him, and was silent, returning him no answer, by reason
of the exceeding bash fulness with which I regarded him.
So he said, Wherefore dost thou not reply to me, O my son?
And I answered him, O my master, it is thine to command,

King of the age ! And upon this he sent immediately and
caused the Kadi and the witnesses to come, and married me
forthwith to a woman of noble rank, of high lineage, possess-
ing abundant wealth and fortune, of great origin, of sur-
prising loveliness and beauty, owner of dwellings and pos-
sessions and buildings. Then he gave me a great, handsome
house, standing alone, and he gave me servants and other
dependents, and assigned me supplies and salaries. Thus I
became in a state of the utmost ease and joy and happiness,
forgetting all the fatigue and affliction and adversity that had
happened to me; and I said within myself, When I set forth
on my voyage to my country, I will take her with me. But
every event that is predestined to happen to man must in-
evitably take place, and no one knoweth what wiirbefall Tiim.

1 loved her and she loved me with a great affection, concord
existed between me and her, and we lived in a most delight-
ful manner, and most comfortable abode, and ceased not to
enjoy this state for a length of time.

Then God (whose name be exalted!) caused to die the
wife of my neighbour, and he was a companion of mine. So
I went in to him to console him for the loss of his wife, and
beheld him in a most evil state, anxious, weary in soul and
heart ; and upon this I consoled him and comforted him,
saying to him, Mourn not for thy wife. God will happily
compensate thee by giving thee one better than she, and thy
life will be long if it be the will of God, whose name be
exalted ! — But he wept violently, and said to me, O my com-
panion, how can I marry another after her, or how can God
compensate me by giving me a better than she, when but one
day remaineth of my life ? So I replied, O my brother, return
to thy reason, and do not announce thine own death ; for thou
art well, in prosperity and health. But he said to me, O my
companion, by thy life, to-morrow thou wilt lose me, and
never in thy life wilt thou see me again. — And how so? said I.
He answered me. This day they will bury my wife, and they
will bury me with her in the sepulchre ; for it is our custom in
our country, when the wife dieth, to bury with her her hus-
band alive ; and when the husband dieth, they bury with him
his wife alive; that neither of them may enjoy life after the
other. I therefore said to him, By Allah, this custom is ex-
ceedingly vile, and none can endure it ! — And while we were
thus conversing, lo, most of the people of the city came, and
proceeded to console my companion for the loss of his wife
and for himself. They began to prepare her body for burial
according to their custom, brought a bier, and carried the
woman in it, with all her apparel and ornaments and
wealth, taking the husband with them; and they went forth
with them to the outside of the city, and came to a place in
the side of a mountain by the sea. They advanced to a spot
there, and lifted up from it a great stone, and there ap-
peared, beneath the place of this, a margin of stone, like the
margin of a well. Into this they threw down that woman;
and, lo, it was a great pit beneath the mountain. Then they
brought the man, tied him beneath his bosom by a rope of
fibres of the palm-tree, and let him down into the pit. They
also let down to him a great jug of sweet water, and seven
cakes of bread; and when they had let him down, he loosed
himself from the rope, and they drew it up, and covered the
mouth of the pit with that great stone as it was before, and
went their ways, leaving my companion with his wife in
the pit. — So I said within myself. By Allah, this death is
more grievous than the first death ! I then went to their King,
and said to him, O my lord, how is it that ye bury the living
with the dead in your country ? And he answered me. Know
that this is our custom in our country: when the husband
dieth, we bury with him his wife; and when the wife dieth,
we bury with her her husband alive ; that we may not sep-
arate them in life nor in death; and this custom we have re-
ceived from our forefathers. And I said, O King of the
age, and in like manner the foreigner like me, when his wife
dieth among you do ye with him as ye have done with this
man ? He answered me, Yes : we bury him with her, and
do with him as thou hast seen. And when I heard these
words from him, my gall-bladder almost burst by reason of
the violence of my grief and mourning for myself; my mind
was stupefied, and I became fearful lest my wife should die
before me and they should bury me alive with her. After-
wards, however, I comforted myself, and said. Perhaps I
shall die before her: and no one know'eth which will pre-
cede and which will follow. And I proceeded to beguile
myself with occupations.

And but a short time had elapsed after that when my
wife fell sick, and she remained so a few days, and died.
So the greater number of the people assembled to console
me, and to console her family for her death ; and the King
also came to console me for the loss of her, as was their
custom. Then they brought for her a woman to wash her,
and they washed her, and decked her with the richest of her
apparel, and ornaments of gold, and necklaces and jewels.
And when they had attired my wife, and put her in the bier,
and carried her and gone with her to that mountain, and
lifted up the stone from the mouth of the pit, and cast her
into it_, all my companions, and the family of my wife, ad-
vanced to bid me farewell and to console me for the loss
of my life. I was crying out among them, I am a foreigner,
and am unable to endure your custom ! But they would
not hear what I said, nor pay any regard to my words.
They laid hold upon me and bound me by force, tying with
me seven cakes of bread and a jug of sweet water, according
to their custom, and let me down into that pit. And, lo, it
was a great cavern beneath that mountain. They said to
me. Loose thyself from the ropes. But I would not loose
myself. So they threw the ropes down upon me, and covered
the mouth of the pit with the great stone that was upon it,
and went their ways. I beheld in that cavern many dead
bodies, and their smell was putrid and abominable; and I
blamed myself for that which I had done, saying, By Allah,
I deserve all that happeneth to me and befalleth me ! I knew
not night from day; and I sustained myself with little food,
not eating until hunger almost killed me, nor drinking until
my thirst became violent, fearing the exhaustion of the food
and water that I had with me. I said. There is no strength
nor power but in God, the High, the Great ! What tempted
me to marry in this city ? And every time that I say, I have
escaped from a calamity, I fall into a calamity that is more
mighty than the preceding one ! By Allah, my dying this
death is unfortunate ! Would that I had been drowned in
the sea, or had died upon the mountains ! It had been better
for me than this evil death ! — And I continued in this man-
ner, blaming myself. I laid myself down upon the bones
of the dead, begging aid of God (whose name be exalted!),
and wished for death, but I found it not, by reason of the
severity of my sufferings. Thus I remained until hunger
burned my stomach, and thirst inflamed me ; when I sat, and
felt for the bread, and ate a little of it, and I swallowed
after it a little water. Then I rose and stood up, and walked
about the sides of the cavern, and I found that it was spa-
cious sideways, and with vacant cavities ; but upon its bot-
tom were numerous dead bodies, and rotten bones, that had
lain there from old times. And upon this I made for myself
a place in the side of the cavern, remote from the fresh
corpses, and there I slept.

At length my provision became greatly diminished, little
remaining with me. During each day, or in more than a
day, I had eaten but once, and drunk one draught, fearing
the exhaustion of the water and food that was with me
before my death; and I ceased not to do this until I was
sitting one day, and while I sat, meditating upon my case,
thinking what I should do when my food and water were
exhausted, lo. the mass of rock was removed from its place,
and the light beamed down upon me. So I said. What can
be the matter? And, behold, the people were standing at
the top of the pit, and they let down a dead man with his
wife with him alive, and she was weeping and crying out for
herself; and they let down with her a large quantity of
food and water. I saw the woman; but she saw not me;
and they covered the mouth of the pit with the stone, and
went their ways. Then I arose, and, taking in my hand a
long bone of a dead man, I went to the woman, and struck
her upon the middle of the head; whereupon she fell down
senseless; and I struck her a second and a third time, and
she died. So I took her bread and what else she had, and
I found upon her abundance of ornaments and apparel, neck-
laces and jewels and minerals. And having taken the water
and food that was with her, I sat in a place that I had pre-
pared in a side of the cavern, wherein to sleep, and pro-
ceeded to eat a little of that food, as much only as would
sustain me, lest it should be exhausted quickly, and I should
die of hunger and thirst.

I remained in that cavern a length of time; and when-
ever they buried a corpse, I killed the person who was
buried with it alive, and took that person's food and drink,
to subsist upon it, until I was sleeping one day, and I awoke
from my sleep, and heard something make a noise in a side
of the cavern. So I said, What can this be? I then arose
and walked towards it, taking with me a long bone of a dead
man ; and when it was sensible of my presence, it ran away,
and fled from me ; and, lo, it was a wild beast. But I fol-
lowed it to the upper part of the cavern, and thereupon a
light appeared to me from a small spot, like a star. Some-
times it appeared to me, and sometimes it was concealed
from me. Therefore when I saw it, I advanced towards it;
and the nearer I approached to it, the larger did the light
from it appear to me. So upon this I was convinced that
it was a hole in that cavern, communicating with the open
country; and I said within myself, There must be some
cause for this: either it is a second mouth, like that from
which they let me down, or it is a fissure in tliis place. I
meditated in my mind a while, and advanced towards the
light ; and, lo, it was a perforation in the back of that
mountain, which the wild beasts had made, and through
which they entered this place ; and they ate of the dead
Lodies until they were satiated, and went forth through this
perforation. When I saw it, therefore, my mind was quieted,
my soul was tranquillized, and my heart was at ease; I
made sure of life after death, and became as in a dream.
Then I managed to force my way through that perforation,
and found myself on the shore of the sea, upon a great
mountain, which formed a barrier between the sea on the
one side, and the island and city on the other, and to which
no one could gain access. So I praised God (whose name
be exalted!), and thanked Him, and rejoiced exceedingly,
and my heart was strengthened. I then returned through
that perforation into the cavern, and removed all the food
and water that was in it, that I had spared. I also took
the clothes of the dead, and clad myself in some of them,
in addition to those I had on me ; and I took abundance of
the things that were on the dead, consisting of varieties of
necklaces and jewels, long necklaces of pearls, ornaments
of silver ancl gold set with various minerals, and rarities;
and, having tied up some clothes of the dead in apparel of
my own, I went forth from the perforation to the back of
the mountain, and stood upon the shore of the sea. Every
day I entered the cavern, and explored it ; and whenever
they buried a person alive, I took the food and water, and
killed that person, whether male or female ; after which I
went forth from the perforation, and sat upon the shore of
the sea, to wait for relief from God (whose name be ex-
alted !), by means of a ship passing by me. And I removed
from that cavern all the ornaments that I found, and tied
them up in the clothes of the dead.

I ceased not to remain in this state for a length of time ;
and afterwards, as I was sitting one day, upon the shore of
the sea, meditating upon my case, lo, a vessel passed along
in the midst of the roaring sea agitated with waves. So I
took in my hand a white garment, of the clothes of the
dead, and tied it to a staff, and ran with it along the sea-
shore, making a sign to the people with that garment, until
they happened to look, and saw me upon the summit of
the mountain. They therefore approached me, and heard
my voice, and sent to me a boat in which was a party of
men from the ship ; and when they drew near to me they
said to me, Who art thou, and what is the reason of thy
sitting in this place, and how didst thou arrive at this moun-
tain ; for in our lives we have never seen any one who hath
come unto it? So I answered them, I am a merchant. The
vessel that I was in was wrecked, and I got upon a plank,
together with my things, and God facilitated my landing at
this place, with my things, by means of my exertion and my
skill, after severe toil. They therefore took me with them
in the boat, and embarked all that I had taken from the
cavern, tied up in the garments and grave-clothes, and they
proceeded with me until they took me up into the ship, to
the master, and all my things with me. And the master
said to me, O man, how didst thou arrive at this place,
which is a great mountain, with a great city behind it? All
my life I have been accustomed to navigate this sea, and to
pass by this mountain ; but have never seen any thing there
except the wild beasts and the birds. — I answered him, I
am a merchant. I was in a great ship, and it was wrecked,
and all my merchandise, consisting of these stuffs and clothes
which thou seest, was submerged; but I placed it upon a
great plank, one of the planks of the ship, and destiny and
fortune aided me, so that I landed upon this mountain,
where I waited for some one to pass by and take me
with him.

And I acquainted them not with the events that had
befallen me in the city, or in the cavern; fearing that there
might be with them in the ship some one from that city.
Then I took forth and presented to the owner of the ship
a considerable portion of my property, saying to him, O my
master, thou hast been the means of my escape from this
mountain : therefore receive from me this as a recompense
for the favour which thou hast done to me. But he would
not accept it from me ; and he said to me, We take nothing
from any one ; and when we behold a shipwrecked person
on the shore of the sea or on an island, we take him with
us, and feed him and give him to drink; and if he be naked,
we clothe him ; and when we arrive at the port of safety,
we give him something of our property as a present, and
act towards him with kindness and favour for the sake of
God, whose name be exalted ! — So upon this I offered up
prayers for the prolongation of his life.

We ceased not to proceed on our voyage from island to
island and from sea to sea. I hoped to escape, and was
rejoiced at my safety; but every time that I reflected upon
my abode in the cavern with my wife, my reason left me.
We pursued our course until we arrived at the Island of
the Bell, when we proceeded to the island of Kela in six
days. Then we came to the kingdom of Kela, which is
adjacent to India, and in it are a mine of lead, and places
where the Indian cane groweth, and excellent camphor;
and its King is a King of great dignity, whose dominion
extendcth over the Island of the Bell. In it is a city called
the City of the Bell, which is two days' journey in extent.
— At length, by the providence of God, we arrived in safety
at the city of El-Basrah, where I landed, and remained a
few days ; after which I came to the city of Baghdad, and
to my quarter, and entered my house, met my family and my
companions, and made inquiries respecting them; and they
rejoiced at my safety, and congratulated me. I stored all
the commodities that I had brought with me in my maga-
zines, gave alms and presents, and clad the orphans and the
widows; and I became in a state of the utmost joy and
happiness, and returned to my former habit of associating
with familiars and companions and brothers, and indulging
in sport and merriment. — Such were the most wonderful of
the events that happened to me in the course of the fourth
voyage. But, O my brother, [O Sindibad of the Land.]
sup thou with me, and observe thy custom by coming to
me to-morrow, when I will inform thee what happened
to me and what befell me during the fifth voyage; for it
was more wonderful and extraordinary than the preceding
voyages.