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82-2 - The
Sleeper and the Waker
Aboo
al-Hasan said - "O My Lord, My name is Aboo al-Hasan al-Khaaliyaa.
When my father died, he left me lots of wealth which I divided into two
parts, one I kept, and with the other I enjoyed till I was left with none.
Then I went to my friends so that they could help me, but they did not. So
I wept a lot and went to my mother. My mother told me that friends were
like that, that when one has money they come near and when one does not
have the money,
they chase him away. Then I brought out my other half money and decided
that I will never entertain anyone for more than a single night."
When
the Caliph heard this he laughed loudly and said - "O Brother, You
are excused in this matter, now that I know the cause and the cause has a
tail. I will never leave you alone." Aboo al-Hasan said -
"Didn't I say to you, "Far be it, alas. That what is past should
again come to pass." Because I will never sit again with
anybody." Then the Caliph rose, and Aboo set a dish of roast goose
and started cutting pieces of bread and roast goose and giving them to the
Caliph. After eating Aboo lighted three candles and three lamps and both
started drinking. The Caliph was very pleased with the manners of Aboo, so
he decided that he would definitely return his hospitality.
When
it was midnight, the Caliph said to his host - "Do you have anything
in your mind which you would have accomplished, or regretted?" Aboo
said - "There is no regret in my heart except that I am not empowered
with ordering to do something or not to do something, so I will have to
manage what is in my mind. If I become a Caliph for one day, I will avenge my
neighbors. For there is a mosque in my neighborhood, and there are four Shekh who are unhappy when a guest comes to me and they trouble me
while they talk
that they will complain me to the Caliph about it; and I pray Allaah, that
I should beat each of them, along with the Imaam, with 400 lashes and
parade them round about the city of Bagadaad; and cry - "See this is
the reward for those who turn someone's joy to annoy." This is what I
wish, and no more." The Caliph said - "May Allaah grant your
wish. Let us crack one last cup and then I leave. Tomorrow night I will be
with you again." Aboo said - "Far be it."
Then
the Caliph made a cup, put Cretan Bhaang in it, and gave it to him -
"My life on you, drink this cup from my hand." Aboo said -
"I will." And as he drank that cup, he fell down unconscious.
The Caliph went out and asked his men to bring Aboo to his palace and shut
the door behind them. When Masaroor brought Aboo in the Caliph's palace,
it was morning. He called his Vazeer Zaafar and instructed him - "See
this man, when you see this man seated on the throne tomorrow, treat him
like the Caliph, and obey him as he says." Then the Caliph went to
his palace and asked women - "When this sleeper wakes up in the
morning, treat him as if he is the Caliph. Bathe him nicely and put royal robes
on to him and obey him as you obey me. Say him, "You are the
Caliph." Then he went to his room and slept.
Now
Aboo didn't wake up till the morning was clear. A maid came and bade good
morning to him. Aboo opened his eyes and found himself in a different room
than his own. It was richly decorated and many attendants were roaming
around. He was bewildered to see all this - "Allaah, I am dreaming or
what?" and he shut his eyes again. At the same time an eunuch said -
"O My Lord, This is not your habit." So he opened his eyes again
and the maids helped him to get up from a nice soft high bed. He exclaimed
- "What I am seeing here? Where am I? By Allaah, Am I the
Caliph?" A maid said - "Yes, By Allaah." Then he asked the
chief of the eunuchs - "Who is the Caliph?" He said - "You
are, My Lord."
And
when he had got convinced that he was the Caliph, he finished his prayers.
Then he thought that all that was not a dream. All that could not happen
in dream. Then the servants adorned him like a Caliph. Then the Chief of
Eunuch came and said to him - "The Vazeer asks your permission to
come in." "Let him come in." As he came in, Aboo rose from
his seat. Seeing this people said - "The Caliph do not rise from
their seat for anybody." Then they took him to the room where the
throne of the Caliph was kept. There he saw the curtains, the 40 doors and
many courtiers around. He sat on the throne and kept the dagger in his
lap. Then Zaafar came forward and prayed him.
At
this Aboo cried out - "Go to such and such place and give 1,000 Deenaars to
the mother of Aboo al-Hasan and my salutations. Then go to such a mosque
and take the four Shekh and the Imaam and beat each of them with a 1,000
lashes; and mount them on beasts facing tails and parade them round about
all the city and banish them. Bid the criers to cry, "This is the
reward for those who molest the neighbors and damage their delights."
Zaafar received the commands and did as Aboo asked him to do. Thus all
obeyed Aboo whatever he asked them to do till the end of the day. Then he
ordered all to leave and he himself entered the Haram.
There
he saw many servants and maids standing in his service. Seeing all this he
got convinced that he was the Caliph; or maybe the guest who came
yesterday was a Jinn who ordered his attendants to call me the Caliph. But
when Allaah will deliver me from his mischief?" Then he ate food
and called his handmaids asked their names, one by one, till he learned 10
names. Then he went to the wine room where he found 10 trays of different
types of food - fruits, cakes and sweets etc. He drank and ate and enjoyed
dances of the girls. He played with one, laughed with another, took morsels
yet with another one.
The
Caliph was watching all this from behind the curtain. When night fell, he
asked one of his slave girls to drop a piece of Bhaang in a cup and to give
it to Aboo. She did so and as he drank wine from the cup he fell down
unconscious. The Caliph came out of the curtain and asked his people, who
brought him there, to take him to his home. So Masaroor took him to his
home.
When
Aboo woke up in the morning he called out all the girls whose names he
remembered yesterday. He did not stop calling all his servants till his
mother heard him calling strange names. She came and said to Aboo - "Allaah
be with you, Wake up O Aboo." He opened his eyes and asked -
"Who are you?" His mother said - "Aboo, I am your
mother." Aboo said - "You are lying. I am the Caliph." His
mother said - "May God bless you. Do not waste your money and lose
our lives. If somebody will hear you he might tell the Caliph." Then
he related his story and said - "This is what I saw, Mother, and I am
sure it was not a dream. I gave gifts, bestowed honor robes."
His
mother said - "You are sporting with your reason, you will go to the
mad house. Was there anyone with you last night?" "Yes, There
was one and I told him my story. And now I am thinking that he must have
been a devil. And you are right, I am Aboo al-Hasan al-Khaaliyaa."
Then she said - "Be happy that yesterday the Vazeer Zaafar came here and
beat the Shaikh and the Imaam, each a 1,000 lashes; gave them a round of
the city and banished them. Moreover the Caliph sent me a 1,000 Deenaars
and a salute."
Hearing
this Aboo again cried - "Do you still not believe that I am the
Caliph, because it was I who ordered for all this." And he beat his
mother. The mother cried and called the people - "This is a madman
afflicted by Jinn." And Aboo cried - "By Allaah, I am not a
madman, but the Caliph." The Superintendent tied him with chains and
bound him with a lattice and ordered to beat him two times a day and two
times a night. His mother got very sad to hear this order, so she asked
her son to be reasonable and he agreed. Then his mother got him released
and took him home.
He
took rest for a month and then he again started his routine - to go
to bridge, seeking a stranger, entertaining with him and forgetting
him after that. As he sat there, the Caliph came there again with his
Masaroor, but this time Aboo did not greet him and said - "No welcome
to you, O King of the Jinn." Al-Rasheed asked - "What have I
done to you?" "What more could you have what you have already
done to me? I have been beaten, was arrested, thrown into madhouse where I
was called mad. I brought you to my house, and fed you my best and you
empowered me with Satan. So you may go your ways."
The
Caliph said - "Didn't I tell you, that I would return to you."
"I don't need you. Indeed the night you came to my house, the Devil
came to me and troubled me that night." Asked the Caliph - "And
who is that Devil?" "Who else can he be, except you." The
Caliph laughed and said - "In fact when I went out of your house, I
forgot the door open, perhaps Satan came from there." "Why did
you leave the door open so that the Satan could come and trouble me?"
Then he told his whole story and said - "I will never take you to my
home."
But
the Caliph coaxed him - "But I helped you to fulfill your wish."
"Yes, You have. Now what do you want from me?" "I am your
guest and do not reject your guest." Aboo said - "Then on one
condition. That you will not ask your Ifrits to trouble me?" The
Caliph said - "To hear is to obey." So Aboo took him to his
house and treated him with friendly speech and told him again the whole
thing that happened to him. The Caliph was like to die of laughter. Aboo
removed the tray of food and brought the drinks. He gave a cup to the
Caliph saying - "O my Boon-companion, I am your slave and do not be
offended by what I am going to say to you. For some time I thought that I
was the Caliph, I ruled, I gave gifts; and in fact it was not a
dream." The Caliph said - "Maybe it was the effect of
sleep." He again mixed some Bhaang in his cup and giving to him said
- "By my life, Drink this cup from my hand." "Sure, I will drink it from
your hand." and
he drank that cup off.
As he
drank that cup, he fell down unconscious. His manners had so much pleased
the Caliph, that this time he thought to make him his cup-companion
and sitting-comrade. So like before, he ordered Masaroor to take him to his
palace. Masaroor took him to the Caliph's palace. The Caliph handed him
over to maids and he himself hid in some other room. The maids sang songs
till Aboo woke up. Again he found himself in the palace. He thought that
this time it should be more unlucky than the former one. The Devil had come
again to trouble him. He shut and opened his eyes but found himself in the
same place.
The
maids and eunuchs made him sit, he said to them - "Is it the truth
that I am the Caliph, and you are not lying? Yesterday I did not rule, but
drank and slept only, and now this eunuch is awakening me." Then he
asked a maid - "Who am I?" The maid said - "You are the
Caliph." "Then bite me." and she bit his finger with all
her might, then only he was satisfied. Thus he tried to satisfy himself by
asking several people. The Caliph lost his senses for laughter. Aboo then cried -
"All this does not satisfy me. But this is not your fault, it is the
fault of your Chief who has transformed you from Jinn shape to mortal
shape. I refuse to be here with you this night." And saying thus he
took off his all clothes and danced naked with the slave girls. They bound
his hands and died of laughing at him. The Caliph also swooned away for
laughing so much.
Then
he came out of the room and said to Aboo al-Hasan - "O Aboo, You are
killing me with laughter." Aboo looked at him and recognized him, he
said to him - "So it is you who is slaying me and my mother, and
slain the Shekh and the Imaam of the mosque." Then he kissed the
ground before him and prayed for him the permanence of his prosperity and
life. The Caliph at once presented him with a rich robe and gave him a
1,000 Deenaars. He married him and lodged him with himself in the palace
and made him the Chief of his cup-companions. Now they were 10 in number,
and all had their own story (which is told in other book). He sat with the
Caliph and Lady Zubaidaa bin al-Kaasim's treasurer Nuzhat al-Fuaad
was married to him.
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