81-5 - Joodar and His Brethren (5 of 7) :
Joodar is Home, and Meets Moor Again

Joodar took the bags from the Moor and came back to Cairo by the gate of Victory where next day morning  he saw his mother asking for alms. Seeing this he lost his mind and threw himself upon her. Then he mounted her upon the mule and came back home. He took her down from the mule and taking the saddle bags, gave the mule to the slave (both slave and the mule were devils). Joodar was very sad to see his mother begging, so he asked his mother - "How are my brothers? Are they well?" She replied - "They both are well." "Why do you beg by the wayside?" She said - "Because I was hungry." "But when I went from here, I gave you 100 Deenaars one day, 100 Deenaars next day and 1,000 Deenaars the third day." "O my son, They cheated me. They took the money from me saying, "We will buy good from it," and then they drove me away from the house and I fell to begging by the wayside."

Joodar said - "Now you don't worry, I have come now. See, These saddle bags are full of gold and gems." "You are blessed, my son. Go and get some food for me for I have not slept the whole night because of excessive hunger." "Sure, What do you want to eat and I will set it before you the same moment. Now I have no need to buy food from the market, nor I need to cook." "How come, I don't see anything like that with you?" Joodar said - "I have these saddle bags." She said - "Whatever is ready will suffice my hunger." "Still you ask for something." "OK, Give me some hot bread and a slice of cheese." "Not this." And then he got some nice brown chicken, peppered rice, sausages, stuffed cucumbers, stuffed lamb, vermicelli with broken almonds, almond cakes etc etc for her from his saddle bags.

His mother asked - "These saddle bags are small, where from came so many things in this bag?" Joodar said - "Mother, These saddle bags, which the Moor gave me, are magical. They have a servant who can bring anything you desire for and ask for?" His mother asked - "Can I put my hand in this bag and ask him?" "Yes. Why not." And she  stretched her hand, asked for stuffed ribs and put her hand inside the bag and found a dish of stuffed ribs. Joodar said - "Mother, when you have finished eating, empty the remaining things in some other dish than these ones and return all empty dishes in this bag carefully." So she kept them in a safe place. Joodar said - "One more thing, you keep this a secret. Whenever you need food, whether I am present or absent, take it out from this one, give alms, or feed my brothers."

Presently his brothers came to him and their mother expressed her happiness at their brother's return - "Your brother has come back riding a mule, with a slave before him and wearing a dress that has no comparison." So they went to their brother who met them softly and fed them to their full, then asked them to take the remaining food and distribute it to poor. They said - "Let us keep it for supper." But he said - "At supper time you will have more than this." So they took out the food and gave it to every poor man who passed by. Then they brought back the dishes and they were kept carefully in the bag.

On the 616th Night

When the supper time came, Joodar went in and got some 40 dishes from the bag; then he went upstairs with his mother and brothers and asked his mother to lay out the supper. She went down and found the food ready, so she brought it up and all ate it heartily." Joodar again distributed the remaining food amongst poor. Next day morning they had the breakfast. Thus they stayed there for 10 days.

So once Saalim asked Saleem - "How come that our bother sets before us a banquet in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening besides the sweets in the night, and all that is left is given to poor? This is Sultaan-like living. And we have never see him buying anything. He has no kitchen or cook, then how does he have so plenty. Don't you think to find out the cause of all this?" Saleem said - "By Allaah, I don't know, but there must be somebody who might be knowing this secret." Saalim said - "None other than our mother can tell this."

So they plotted a plan in the absence of their brother. They went to their mother and said - "We are hungry." She said - "I bring you something to eat." She went in called the servant of bag and brought forth some hot food. They cried - "This food is hot and you have not lighted any fire." The mother said - "This food is from saddle bags." "What kind of saddle bags?" "They are enchanted and they produce it." And she told them about the bags and asked them to keep it secret. They asked her to teach them to get the food from those bags which she did.

But Joodar was unaware of all this. Saalim said to Saleem - "For how long we will be eating like this in his house like a servant. We should take those bags from him and be off with them. I will sell him to galleys" Saleem asked - "How?" Saalim said - "We will go to the Chief Captain of Suez and ask him to an entertainment with two of his company. You just confirm what I say, rest I will see in the evening."

So they went to the Chief and said - "We have come to you to tell you something and you will be happy to hear. We two are brothers. We have one more brother also who is good for nothing. When our father died, he distributed his money amongst us. He lost all his money and asked us to give our money to him. We reported to Magistrate and in this legal process we lost our money too. We are very tired of him and want to sell him to you." The Captain asked - "Can you bring him to me?" They said - "We cannot bring him here, but be our guest tonight with two men, not more than two, and when he is asleep we all five help to take him off. Then you can take him in the night. We will sell him for 40 Deenaars. Come to such and such street near the mosque." "OK."

Now they went to Joodar and kissed his hand. Saleem said - "I have a friend who has invited us for food several times in your absence. Today when I met him, he has again invited us, but I said "I cannot leave my brother Joodar." At this he said "Bring him also along." I said, "He will not agree for this, but if you be my guest today with your brothers, it will be fine." I invited them thinking that he would refuse but he agreed and said, "Look for me at the gate of the little mosque. And now I fear that they will come and I will be ashamed before you. So will you entertain them tonight, or if you do not then I will take them to neighbors' houses."

Joodar said - "Why should you take them to neighbors' houses? And shame on you to consult me. Just invite them and offer them whatever you want including sweets. Whenever you come in my absence, ask your mother and she will arrange food for all more than enough." So the Captain came in the evening with his two men, and Joodar welcomed them and offered them good food. The captain thought that this entertainment came from Saalim. After that Joodar brought sweets and Saleem served them. Then Joodar and others lay down to sleep, but they did not sleep. They waited for Joodar to sleep. When he was asleep, they took him from there and packed him off to Suez where they made him serve as a galley-slave. He served them for one full year.

On the 617th Night

The next morning, Joodar's brothers went to their mother and asked her if Joodar was awake. She said - "Go and wake him up." "Where is he lying?" "With the guests." They said - "We think he has gone with the guests. Maybe he has seen hoards and he has gone to bring them, because we heard him talking to the Moors. They said to him, "We will take you there and open the treasure to you." The mother asked - "Is he still in the company of the Moors?" They said - "They were the guests yester night." She blessed her son, but she wept for him.

They said to her - "Do you love him so much that you weep for him and you never show your love and sorrow for us? Are we not your sons?" The mother said - "You are my sons, but you are wicked that is why you do not deserve any favor from me; while Joodar always makes me happy and honors me. It is his kindness towards me and towards you." When they heard this, they abused her and beat her and looked for the saddle bags and found two pairs of saddle bags. They took them away saying, "This is our father's good." The mother said - "No, by Allaah, it is your brother's, he brought it from the west." But they said - "No, You are lying, it is our father's money."

Then they divided the gold and the gems but an argument arose on the enchanted bags. Saalim said, "I will take them." and Saleem said, "I will take them." Their mother said - "You have already divided the gold and the gems, but this bag cannot be divided because it is enchanted and if you divided this, its magic will be over, so leave it with me. I will give you food from it all times. Be contented to take a morsel with you. You are my sons and I am your mother, let us live like that, lest your brother comes and we are disgraced." But they did not listen to her and passed the night wrangling with each other for the bag.

Now it so chanced that a soldier of the King's guards was a guest in the neighbor's house and he heard them through the open window. Next morning he went to the King of Egypt, Shams al-Daulaa ad told what he heard. So he sent for Joodar's brothers and asked them till they confessed. So he took the two pairs of bags from them and put them in prison. He appointed a daily allowance for their mother.
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Joodar stayed in the service of Suez for one year till one day, when he was in a ship a wind arose against them and cast the ship upon a rock. It broke there and all died in this accident except Joodar. He went inside the island and came to Badaavee people who asked him who he was. He told them that he was a sailor. In that community there was a merchant from Jaddaa who pitied on him and asked him if he would serve him. He would give him food and take him to Jaddaa. So Joodar joined him and went to Jaddaa. Then the merchant went to Makkaa and took Joodar with him.

On the 618th Night

There Joodar went to Haram Temple, to circumambulate Kaabaa. As he was circumambulating it, he saw his friend Abd al-Samad the Moor doing the like. The Moor asked his welfare and Joodar wept and told him what has happened with him. The Moor took him to his lodging, gave him good food, put on new clothes and said - "Now this is the end of your bad luck." Then he drew out a geomantic figure which showed what was happening to Saalim and Saleem. They were in the King of Egypt's prison. He said - "But presently you live with me, complete your pilgrimage and all will be well." Joodar said - "No, Let me take the leave from the merchant with whom I have come here and then I come back to you." He asked - "Do you owe him money?" "No." "Then go, ask his leave and come back to me."

So Joodar went to the merchant and bade him farewell saying - "I have met my brother." He said - "Go and bring him here, we all will entertain ourselves." Joodar said - "He does not need that for he is very rich and has many servants." Then the merchant gave him 20 Deenaars and bade him farewell. Just then he saw a poor man, so he gave that 20 Deenaars to him and came back to the Moor.

Contd on 6th Page