Once upon a time, on the island
of Kaledan, lived a king who was famous all over the East, well-loved by his
subjects and respected even by his enemies. In spite of having a good and
beautiful wife, his life was not always happy. After years of marriage, they
had no children and were afraid they would never know the joy of a family.
However, at long last, one splendid spring
morning, a handsome baby boy was born and his delighted parents called him
Omar. In the language of Kaledan, this means "shining light". The
years went by and Omar grew into a fine-looking youth, brave, intelligent and
kind-hearted. On his eighteenth birthday, the king sent for his son.
"Omar, now that you've come of age, you must find a wife. Choose one of
the many princesses you've met and whose only dream is of marrying you."
"Father," said Omar respectfully,
"I've no intention of getting married. I'm still young and I'd rather wait
till
the time is ripe. I want to think
about it for at least another year." The king agreed and Omar spent the
year studying with the wisest and cleverest teachers in the kingdom. And though
he got to know a number of girls, he did not fall in love.
When twelve months
had passed, the young prince was again summoned to his father. "Well,
son," said the king anxiously, "when am I to announce your
engagement?" "Alas, father, I still haven't met the right girl,"
was Omar's reply. The king lost his temper. "Omar! You must stop wasting
time. You're a grown man now and I want to see your heirs. Think of the future
and make up your mind without delay."
"I'm sorry, father, I can't do that
just yet. I'm not in love and so I can't get married." The king, who could
not bear to be crossed in such an important matter, went into a rage. He
shouted for the guards and ordered them to shut the prince in an old castle in
the forest. In the meanwhile, lovely sweetnatured Princess Sheherazade was a
maiden whose home was in China. When she became sixteen years old, her father
insisted she marry one of the princes that flocked to court her.
But
Sheherazade was waiting to meet a true love. And since nothing the king, her
father, did served to change her mind, he locked the princess up in one of the
palaces.
"I'd rather
be a prisoner," said the princess, than have a husband I didn't
love." Meantime, Omar spent lonely sad days in the castle where he was
held prisoner. However, two invisible genies, Abhu and Dhabi were amusing
themselves, unknown to the prince, by secretly watching his movements.
One day Abhu
said to his friend: "Omar is the most handsome person in the whole
world." "Not so!"
exclaimed Dhabi. "The most
beautiful person in the world is Sheherazade, the King of China's
daughter." The genies started toargue, then decided to ask Lilibeth, the
daughter of the genie king to judge the matter. Lilibeth's advice was this:
"Go to China, cast a sleeping spell over the princess and bring her to
Omar's castle. When you see them together, then you'll soon see which is the most
beautiful." That very night Abhu and Dhabi flew all the way to China. The
two genies sent the princess to sleep and carried her to Omar's castle.
"They're so lovely, they seem made for each other," remarked the
genies, gazing at the two young people together. "If only they could get
to know each other . . ." And in the hope that they might, the genies hid
behind a curtain and waited . . . Not long afterwards, Sheherazade opened her
eyes and, when she saw Omar at her side, her heart began to thump.
This was the man
she would like to marry. So she took off one of her rings and slipped it on to
his finger as a token of love. Then she went back to sleep. On wakening a
little later, Omar set eyes on Sheherazade and was overwhelmed by her beauty.
"If this girl is as kind as she's beautiful, she would make a wonderful
wife," said Omar to himself as he gazed at her in amazement. T hen he took
off a ruby ring and slipped it onto the princess's finger. Drowsy again, he
fell asleep. Abhu and Dhabi crept out from behind the curtain, wide-eyed.
"They've
fallen in love," said Dhabi. "What are we to do now?" "Take
Sheherazde home again. But if they have really fallen in love, they'll move
heaven and earth to meet again." And so, when Omar awoke, Sheherazade had
vanished. Confused and upset, the prince asked his guards and servants if they
had seen her. When the king heard the story, he told Omar: "My lad, you
are losing your head over a girl you dreamed about!" "No, she wasn't
a dream," the prince insisted.
"This is the ring she left me!" Omar
was lovesick. The king called doctors and wise men, but there was nothing they
could do, for Omar w as losing his will to live. And far away, Sheherazade was
pining in sorrow. The king was certain his daughter must have dreamt it all.
How otherwise could she have met the mysterious young man? The only person who
believed the princess was Marzuan, a childhood friend, and he offered to search
for the missing youth.
Sheherazade
handed him Omar's ruby ring. Marzuan set out that same day but, though he
traveled far and wide, no one could give him a clue as to the young man's
identity. In the meantime, Abhu and Dhabi secretly followed in his
tracks.
One day, a
merchant told Marzuan that, on the island of Kaledan, there was a lovesick
prince. Feeling that this might be the very person he was seeking, Marzuan took
a passage on a ship bound for Kaledan. After days of sailing, a terrible storm
broke, driving the ship onto a reef, where it sank. Clinging to a floating
spar, Marzuan held on till the storm died away, then headed for the shore. The
beach was deserted, but in the distance he could see the turrets of a castle.
Then, as he was getting his strength back, he saw a horseman approach.
"Where am I?" Marzuan asked the stranger. "On the island of
Kaledan," replied the horseman.
"Who are you?" Marzuan jumped to his
feet. "I'm a doctor, and famous in my own land. I hear that a prince here
is seriously ill, and I'd like to try and cure him." "Yes,"
replied the horseman, "Prince Omar is indeed seriously ill, but it seems
his illness is fatal."
Disturbed by his
words, Marzuan sold: "Take me to him straight away." When admitted to
Omar's presence, without saying a word~ Marzuan showed him the ruby ring. Omar
uttered a shriek and leapt to his feet. The onlookers stared in surprise.
"This is the ring I gave to the girl I want to marry!" the prince
exclaimed joyfully. "That young lady is Sheherazade. She lives in far off
China and is dying to see you again," Marzuan told him instantly. Omar was
delighted. In finding the girl of his dreams, he would be truly happy.
He presented
Marzuan with a jeweled sword and a splendid horse, as fast as the wind, as a
token of thanks. Then he told him to take him as quickly as could be to the
beautiful princess. Overcoming all the difficulties that it had to face during
the long journey, the cheerful procession led by Omar and Marzuan, many days
later, reached distant China. When they reached Sheherazade's city, Omar
announced his arrival by sending a messenger with a letter for the princess and
a diamond ring.
At long last, the couple had met again. They
exchanged their first, affectionate words and found they really were meant for
each other. Sure of their feelings and anxious to start a new life together,
Omar and Sheherazade quickly asked the king's permission to get married as soon
as possible. The invisible genies, Abhu and Dhabi too, were at the wedding, a
few days later.
"Sheherazade really is lovely!"
Dhabi exclaimed. "Yes, but Omar . . ." said Abhu. "Are you
looking for an argument again?" demanded Dhabi. Just then, Lilibeth, the genie
king's daughter appeared. "We still haven't decided which is the
better-looking," said Abhu and Dhabi. "Well, I'd say they are the best-looking
couple in the world," said Lilibeth. "And I'm certain their children
will be even more handsome." And so the argument finally ended to
everybody's satisfaction, and the two genies hugged each other contentedly.
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