During the reign of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, there lived in the city of Baghdad a poor man named Sinbad. To feed himself, he carried weights on his head for a fee. But there were many poor porters like him, and therefore Sinbad could not ask for as much as he was entitled to for his work.

He had to be content with meager pennies, so that he almost died of hunger.

One day he was carrying heavy carpets on his head, he could barely move his legs, sweat was pouring off him like a hail, his head was buzzing, and the poor man thought that he was about to lose consciousness. Sinbad passed just past one house, and from the gate a cool breath blew on him, and the smell of delicious food made his head spin. There was a stone bench in the shade in front of the house. Sinbad could not stand it, put the carpets on the ground and sat down on a bench to rest and get some fresh air. Cheerful voices were heard from the house, wonderful singing and the clinking of glasses and dishes were heard.

Who needs such a life?

Just hunger and need.

Others, basking in idleness,

They spend their days in joy,

Not knowing grief and

But they are like me and you,

And although their wealth is countless, -

In the end, all people are mortal.

Well, is that fair?

That only the rich live happy?

When he finished, a young servant in an expensive dress came out of the gate.

My master heard your poems,” said the young man. - He invites you to have dinner with him and spend the evening together.

Sinbad got scared and began to say that he had done nothing wrong. But the young man smiled welcomingly at him, took his hand, and the porter had to accept the invitation. Sinbad had never seen such luxury as was in that house in his life. Servants scurried back and forth with dishes full of rare dishes, wonderful music was heard everywhere, and Sinbad decided that he was dreaming all this. The young man led the porter into a small room. There, at the table, sat an important gentleman, looking more like a scientist than a deceiver. The owner nodded to Sinbad and invited him to the table.

What is your name? - he asked the porter.

“Sinbad the porter,” answered the poor man.

My name is also Sinbad, people called me Sinbad the Sailor, and now you will find out why. I heard your poems and I liked them. So know that you are not the only one who has had to experience need and adversity. I will tell you about everything that I experienced before I achieved the honor and wealth that you see here. But first you must eat.

Sinbad the porter did not force himself to be persuaded and pounced on the food. And when Sinbad the Sailor saw that the guest was enjoying his vacation and was already full, he said:

I have already told you a hundred times what you are about to hear. I have no one to tell about this anymore. And it seems to me that you

you will understand me better than others. Sinbad the porter did not dare to object, he just nodded, and his namesake Sinbad the Sailor began his story.

My father was a rich merchant, and I was his only son. When he died, I inherited all his property. And everything that my father saved during his life, I managed to squander in one year in the company of idle and lazy people like me. All I have left is a vineyard. I sold it, bought various goods with the proceeds and joined a caravan of merchants who were planning to go to distant overseas countries. I hoped that I would sell my goods there at a profit and become rich again.

The merchants and I set off on a voyage across the sea. We sailed for many days and nights, from time to time we landed on the shore, exchanged or sold our goods and bought new ones. I liked the trip, my wallet became fatter, and I no longer regretted my frivolous and carefree life. I carefully watched how people lived in foreign countries, took an interest in their customs, studied their languages ​​and felt great.

And for many more days and nights Sinbad's ship sailed from sea to sea. And then one day a sailor on the mast shouted:

Shore! Shore!

So we sailed to a wonderful island overgrown with dense forest. The trees were covered with fruits, unprecedented flowers were fragrant, and streams with crystal clear water were rustling everywhere. We went down to the shore to take a break from the rocks in this piece of paradise. Some enjoyed the juicy fruits, others lit a fire and began to cook food, others swam in cool streams or walked around the island.

We were enjoying the peace so much when suddenly we heard a loud cry from the captain, who remained on the ship.

He waved his arms and shouted:

Save yourself, who can! Run to the ship! This is not an island, but the back of a huge fish!

And indeed, it was not an island, but the back of a monstrous fish rising above the water. Over the years, sand has accumulated on it, the wind has carried plant seeds there, and trees and flowers have grown there. All this happened only because the fish fell asleep a hundred years ago and did not move until the fire woke it up,

which we lit. The fish felt something burning its back and turned around.

One after another we jumped into the sea and swam to the ship. But not everyone managed to escape. Suddenly the island fish hit the water with its tail and sank into the depths of the sea. Roaring waves closed over the trees and flowers, and I, along with others, found myself under water.

Fortunately, I clung to the wooden trough that we had taken to the island to get fresh water into it. I didn’t let go of the trough, even though my soul sank into my heels. It swirled around with me underwater until I finally surfaced. I sat astride the trough, began to row with my feet, and swam in this strange canoe for one day and one night; All around, wherever you looked, there was water, an endless expanse of sea.

I was exhausted under the scorching rays of the sun, suffering from hunger and thirst. And suddenly, when it seemed to me that my end was approaching, I saw a green strip of land on the horizon. I strained my last strength and, when the sun had already begun to sink into the sea, I sailed in my trough to the island. The singing of birds and the scent of flowers could be heard from the island.

I went ashore. The first thing that caught my eye was a spring gushing out of a rock overgrown with ferns. I fell to him with burning lips and drank until I fell onto the grass as if killed. The sound of the sea and the singing of birds lulled me to sleep, and the wonderful aroma of flowers acted like a dope.

I woke up the next day when the sun was already high. After eating fruit and drinking from the spring, I went into the interior of the island to look around.

I walked under the spreading crowns of trees, made my way through thickets strewn with flowers, but nowhere did I meet a soul. I only scared the timid monkeys a couple of times.

For several days I wandered along the seashore, looking for a sail to appear somewhere. Finally I saw a large ship. The captain of the ship noticed me on the shore of the island and ordered me to stop the ship. Then I went on board and told the captain about the extraordinary adventure on Fish Island.

And my new journey began. The ship sailed on the open sea for many days. Finally, a quaint island appeared in the distance. A huge white dome towered above him.

The ship landed on the shore. Merchants and sailors rushed to the white dome and tried to break through it with crowbars and hooks.

Stop! You will die! - I shouted. - This dome is the egg of the bird of prey Ruhkh. - If the Rukh bird sees that the egg is broken, death will inevitably happen to everyone!

But no one listened to me. The merchants and sailors hit the ball even harder. When the shell cracked, a huge chick emerged from the egg.

And suddenly a loud whistle and a deafening flapping of wings were heard high in the sky. The merchants rushed to the ship in horror. The bird Rukh flew high above their heads. Seeing that the egg was broken, she screamed terribly, made several circles over the island and flew away.

The sailors raised the anchors, spread the sails, and the ship sailed faster and faster, escaping from the terrible bird. Suddenly a terrible noise was heard. The Rukh bird flew straight towards the ship. A male Rukh flew next to her, flapping his wings widely. Bali birds hold huge stones in their claws.

There was a deafening blow, like a shot from a cannon. One of the stones fell on the stern. The ship crackled, tilted and began to sink.

I was very lucky; I happened to have a piece of a ship's plank under my hands, which I grabbed with a death grip. I sailed on the open sea for two days and three nights.

On the third day, the waves washed me to the shores of an unknown land. Having climbed ashore, I saw a city surrounded by high mountains.

I decided to enter this city and wander around its streets a little. There was a market on a large square. Merchants from all countries traded here - Persians, Indians, Franks, Turks, and Chinese. I stood in the middle of the market and looked around. A man in a robe and a large white turban on his head walked past me.

I rushed to him:

- “Oh, venerable merchant, tell me where you come from, maybe from Baghdad?”

- “Greetings, oh fellow countryman!” - Baghdad merchant Mansur answered joyfully.

Mansur took me to his house.

- “Oh, fellow countryman, I want to save your life. You must do everything I tell you!”

In the evening, Mansur and I went to the sea. Men, women and children ran past, stumbling and falling, towards the pier.

“Now the monkeys will enter the city,” said Mansur. “They come here every night, and it will be bad for those who remain in the city.” So we quickly got into the boat and quickly set sail from the shore.

And as soon as it got dark, all the mountains were covered with moving lights. These were monkeys coming down from the mountains. They carried torches in their hands, lighting their way.

The monkeys scattered throughout the market, sat down in the shops and began to trade. Some sold, others bought. The buyer monkeys chose clothes, dishes, materials, quarreled and fought.

At dawn they formed ranks and left the city, and the inhabitants returned to their homes.

Mansur brought me home and said:

- “I’ve been living here for a long time and I’m homesick. Soon you and I will go to Baghdad, but first we need to get more money.”

The next day we took bags filled with stones and went into the forest. In a large palm grove, Mansur and I saw many monkeys. When we got very close, the monkeys climbed to the tops of the trees.

Having untied our bags, we began to throw stones at the monkeys, and the angry ones tore nuts from coconut trees and threw them down, trying to hit us.

Each of us quickly filled our bags with selected nuts and returned to the city. We received a lot of money for coconuts, which were very valuable in these parts.

After that, the merchant Mansur and I went to the sea, chose the largest ship and set off for our homeland. How joyfully my family and friends greeted me. For a long time, Baghdad merchants came to me to listen to stories about the amazing travels of Sinbad the Sailor. Sinbad the Sailor finished his story and waited to hear what Sinbad the Porter would say. But he was silent. Then the rich owner poured wine into his goblet and said:

Apparently you didn’t understand why I told you about my misadventures. I thought this would be instructive for you, I wanted to tell you not to despair, not to curse your fate, even if life seems unbearable. Everything I have I earned through hard work. Don’t hang your head, because I had it harder than you, but look around - now I live like in paradise.

Sinbad the Sailor invited Sidbad the Porter to live in his house until his death. “You will compose poems for me,” he told his guest, “and together we will reflect on life.” But Sinbad the porter politely thanked him for this offer and for his hospitality, said goodbye to Sinbad the Sailor and left the house. It was already cool outside. Sinbad the porter put heavy carpets on his head and went his way. Sinbad the Sailor looked after him from the window and heard him repeating his poems:

Who needs such a life?

Just hunger and need.

basking in idleness,

They spend their days in joy,

Not knowing grief and need,

But they are like me and you,

And may their wealth be countless,

In the end, all people are mortal."

D Once upon a time, there lived in the city of Baghdad a merchant whose name was Sinbad. He had a lot of goods and money, and his ships sailed on all seas. Ship captains, returning from travel, told Sinbad amazing stories about their adventures and about the distant countries they visited.

Sinbad listened to their stories, and he wanted more and more to see with his own eyes the wonders and wonders of foreign countries.

And so he decided to go on a long journey.

He bought a lot of goods, chose the fastest and strongest ship and set off. Other merchants went with him with their goods.

Their ship sailed for a long time from sea to sea and from land to land, and, landing on land, they sold and bartered their goods.

And then one day, when they had not seen land for many days and nights, the sailor on the mast shouted:

Shore! Shore!

The captain steered the ship towards the shore and dropped anchor off a large green island. Wonderful, unprecedented flowers grew there, and colorful birds sang on the branches of shady trees.

The travelers came down to the ground to take a break from the rocking. Some of them lit a fire and began to cook food, others washed clothes in wooden troughs, and some walked around the island. Sinbad also went for a walk and, unnoticed by himself, moved away from the shore. Suddenly the ground began to move under his feet, and he heard the captain’s loud cry:

Save yourself! Run to the ship! This is not an island, but a huge fish!

And in fact, it was a fish. It was covered with sand, trees grew on it, and it became like an island. But when the travelers lit a fire, the fish became hot and began to move.

Hurry! Hurry! - the captain shouted. “Now she will dive to the bottom!”

The merchants abandoned their boilers and troughs and rushed to the ship in horror. But only those who were close to the shore managed to escape. The island fish sank into the depths of the sea, and everyone who was late went to the bottom. Roaring waves closed over them.

Sinbad also did not have time to reach the ship. The waves crashed against him, but he swam well and surfaced to the surface of the sea. A large trough floated past him, in which the merchants had just washed their clothes. Sinbad sat astride the trough and tried to row with his feet. But the waves threw the trough left and right, and Sinbad could not control it.

The captain of the ship ordered the sails to be raised and sailed away from this place, without even looking at the drowning man.

Sinbad looked after the ship for a long time, and when the ship disappeared into the distance, he began to cry with grief and despair. Now he had nowhere to wait for salvation.

The waves beat the trough and threw it from side to side all day and all night. And in the morning, Sinbad suddenly saw that he was washed up on a high bank. Sinbad grabbed the tree branches that hung over the water, and, gathering his last strength, climbed onto the shore. As soon as Sinbad felt himself on solid ground, he fell onto the grass and lay as if dead all day and all night.

In the morning he decided to look for some food. He reached a large green lawn covered with colorful flowers, and suddenly saw in front of him a horse, the most beautiful in the world. The horse's legs were tangled, and he was nibbling the grass on the lawn.

Sinbad stopped, admiring this horse, and after a little time he saw in the distance a man running, waving his arms and shouting something. He ran up to Sinbad and asked him:

Who are you? Where are you from and how did you come to our country?

“Oh sir,” answered Sinbad, “I am a foreigner.” I was sailing on a ship on the sea, and my ship sank, and I managed to grab onto the trough in which they wash clothes. The waves carried me across the sea until they brought me to your shores. Tell me, whose horse is this, so beautiful, and why is he grazing here alone?

Know,” the man answered, “that I am the groom of King al-Mihrjan.” There are many of us, and each of us follows only one horse. In the evening we bring them to graze in this meadow, and in the morning we take them back to the stable. Our king loves foreigners very much. Let's go to him - he will greet you warmly and show you mercy.

“Thank you, sir, for your kindness,” said Sinbad.

The groom put a silver bridle on the horse, removed the fetters and led him into the city. Sinbad followed the groom.

Soon they arrived at the palace, and Sinbad was led into the hall where King al-Mihrjan was sitting on a high throne. The king treated Sinbad kindly and began to question him, and Sinbad told him about everything that had happened to him. Al-Mihrjan showed him mercy and appointed him commander of the harbour.

From morning to evening, Sinbad stood on the pier and recorded the ships that came into the harbor. He lived for a long time in the country of King al-Mihrjan, and every time a ship approached the pier, Sinbad asked the merchants and sailors which way the city of Baghdad was. But none of them had heard anything about Baghdad, and Sinbad almost gave up hope that he would see his hometown.

And King al-Mihrjan fell in love with Sinbad very much and made him his close confidant. He often talked with him about his country and, when he traveled around his possessions, he always took Sinbad with him.

Sinbad had to see many miracles and wonders in the land of King al-Mihrjan, but he did not forget his homeland and only thought about how to return to Baghdad.

One day Sinbad stood, as always, on the seashore, sad and sorrowful. At this time, a large ship approached the pier, on which there were many merchants and sailors. All the residents of the city ran ashore to meet the ship. The sailors began to unload goods, and Sinbad stood and wrote down. In the evening, Sinbad asked the captain:

How many goods are still left on your ship?

There are several more bales in the hold,” the captain answered, “but their owner drowned.” We want to sell these goods and take the money for them to his relatives in Baghdad.

What is the name of the owner of these goods? - asked Sinbad.

“His name is Sinbad,” answered the captain. Hearing this, Sinbad screamed loudly and said:

I'm Sinbad! I got off your ship when it landed on the fish island, and you left and left me when I was drowning in the sea. These products are my products.

You want to deceive me! - cried the captain. “I told you that I have goods on my ship, the owner of which drowned, and you want to take them for yourself!” We saw Sinbad drown and many merchants drowned with him. How can you say that the goods are yours? You have neither honor nor conscience!

Listen to me, and you will know that I am telling the truth,” said Sinbad. “Don’t you remember how I hired your ship in Basra, and a scribe named Suleiman Lop-Ear brought me together with you?”

And he told the captain everything that had happened on his ship since the day they all sailed from Basra. And then the captain and merchants recognized Sinbad and were glad that he was saved. They gave Sinbad his goods, and Sinbad sold them for a large profit. He took leave of King al-Mihrjan, loaded the ship with other goods that were not in Baghdad, and sailed on his ship to Basra.

His ship sailed for many days and nights and finally dropped anchor in the harbor of Basra, and from there Sinbad went to the City of Peace, as the Arabs called Baghdad at that time.

In Baghdad, Sinbad distributed some of his goods to friends and acquaintances, and sold the rest.

He suffered so many troubles and misfortunes on the way that he decided never to leave Baghdad again.

Thus ended the first voyage of Sinbad the Sailor.

The Second Voyage of Sinbad the Sailor

N Soon Sinbad got tired of sitting in one place, and he wanted to swim the seas again. He bought goods again, went to Basra and chose a large, strong ship. For two days the sailors put goods in the hold, and on the third day the captain ordered the anchor to be raised, and the ship set off, driven by a fair wind.

Sinbad saw many islands, cities and countries on this journey, and finally, his ship landed on an unknown beautiful island, where clear streams flowed and thick trees grew, hung with heavy fruits.

Sinbad and his companions, merchants from Baghdad, went ashore for a walk and scattered around the island. Sinbad chose a shady place and sat down to rest under a thick apple tree. Soon he felt hungry. He took a roast chicken from his travel bag and some cakes that he had taken from the ship, and ate it, and then lay down on the grass and immediately fell asleep.

When he woke up, the sun was already low. Sinbad jumped to his feet and ran to the sea, but the ship was no longer there. He sailed away, and everyone who was on it - the captain, the merchants, and the sailors - forgot about Sinbad.

Poor Sinbad was left alone on the island. He cried bitterly and said to himself:

If on my first trip I escaped and met people who brought me back to Baghdad, now no one will find me on this deserted island.

Until nightfall, Sinbad stood on the shore, watching to see if a ship was sailing in the distance, and when it got dark, he lay down on the ground and fell fast asleep.

In the morning, at sunrise, Sinbad woke up and went deep into the island to look for food and fresh water. From time to time he climbed the trees and looked around, but saw nothing but forest, land and water.

He felt sad and scared. Do you really have to live your whole life on this deserted island? But then, trying to cheer himself up, he said:

What's the use of sitting and grieving! No one will save me if I don't save myself. I’ll go further and maybe I’ll get to the place where people live.

Several days passed. And then one day Sinbad climbed a tree and saw in the distance a large white dome that sparkled dazzlingly in the sun. Sinbad was very happy and thought: “This is probably the roof of the palace in which the king of this island lives. I will go to him and he will help me get to Baghdad."

Sinbad quickly descended from the tree and walked forward, not taking his eyes off the white dome. Approaching a close distance, he saw that it was not a palace, but a white ball - so huge that its top was not visible. Sinbad walked around him, but did not see any windows or doors. He tried to climb onto the top of the ball, but the walls were so slippery and smooth that Sinbad had nothing to grab onto.

“What a miracle! - Sinbad thought, “What kind of ball is this?”

Suddenly everything around went dark. Sinbad looked up and saw that a huge bird was flying above him and its wings, like clouds, were blocking the sun. Sinbad was frightened at first, but then he remembered that the captain of his ship said that on the distant islands there lives a roc bird that feeds its chicks with elephants. Sinbad immediately realized that the white ball was the egg of the roc bird. He hid and waited to see what would happen next. The roc bird, circling in the air, landed on the egg, covered it with its wings and fell asleep. She didn't even notice Sinbad.

And Sinbad lay motionless near the egg and thought: “I found a way to get out of here. If only the bird didn’t wake up.”

He waited a little and, seeing that the bird was fast asleep, quickly took off the turban from his head, unwound it and tied it to the leg of the roc bird. She didn’t move - after all, in comparison with her, Sinbad was no more than an ant. Having become attached, Sinbad lay down on the bird's leg and said to himself:

“Tomorrow she will fly away with me and, perhaps, will take me to a country where there are people and cities. But even if I fall and break, it’s still better to die right away than to wait for death on this uninhabited island.”

Early in the morning, just before dawn, the roc bird woke up, noisily spread its wings, screamed loudly and protractedly, and soared into the air. Sinbad closed his eyes in fear and tightly grabbed the bird's leg. She rose to the very clouds and flew for a long time over the waters and lands, and Sinbad hung tied to her leg and was afraid to look down. Finally, the roc bird began to descend and, sitting on the ground, folded its wings. Then Sinbad quickly and carefully untied his turban, trembling for fear that the Rukh would notice him and kill him.

But the bird never saw Sinbad. She suddenly grabbed something long and thick from the ground with her claws and flew away. Sinbad looked after her and saw that Rukh was carrying away in her claws a huge snake, longer and thicker than the largest palm tree.

Sinbad rested a little, looked around and it turned out that the roc bird had brought him to a deep and wide valley. Huge mountains stood around like a wall, so high that their peaks rested on the clouds, and there was no way out of this valley.

“I got rid of one misfortune and found myself in another, even worse one,” said Sinbad, sighing heavily. “On the island there were at least fruits and fresh water, but here there is neither water nor trees.”

Not knowing what to do, he sadly wandered around the valley, head down. Meanwhile, the sun rose over the mountains and illuminated the valley. And suddenly she all sparkled brightly. Every stone on the ground sparkled and shimmered with blue, red, yellow lights. Sinbad picked up one stone and saw that it was a precious diamond, the hardest stone in the world, which is used to drill metals and cut glass. The valley was full of diamonds, and the land in it was diamond.

And suddenly a hiss was heard from everywhere. Huge snakes crawled out from under the stones to bask in the sun. Each of these snakes was larger than the tallest tree, and if an elephant came into the valley, the snakes would probably swallow it whole.

Sinbad trembled with horror and wanted to run, but there was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Sinbad rushed in all directions and suddenly noticed a small cave. He crawled into it and found himself right in front of a huge snake, which curled up into a ball and hissed menacingly. Sinbad became even more frightened. He crawled out of the cave and pressed his back against the rock, trying not to move. He saw that there was no salvation for him.

And suddenly a large piece of meat fell right in front of him. Sinbad raised his head, but there was nothing above him except the sky and rocks. Soon another piece of meat fell from above, followed by a third. Then Sinbad realized where he was and what kind of valley it was.

Long ago, in Baghdad, he heard from a traveler a story about the Valley of Diamonds. “This valley,” said the traveler, “is located in a distant country between the mountains, and no one can get into it, because there is no road there. But the merchants who trade in diamonds came up with a trick to extract the stones. They kill a sheep, cut it into pieces and throw the meat into the valley.

Diamonds stick to the meat, and at noon birds of prey - eagles and hawks - descend into the valley, grab the meat and fly up the mountain with it. Then the merchants, knocking and shouting, drive the birds away from the meat and tear off the stuck diamonds; they leave the meat for the birds and beasts.”

Sinbad remembered this story and was happy. He figured out how to save himself. He quickly collected as many large diamonds as he could carry with him, and then unraveled his turban, lay down on the ground, put a large piece of meat on himself and tied it tightly to himself. Not even a minute had passed before a mountain eagle descended into the valley, grabbed the meat with its claws and rose into the air. Having reached a high mountain, he began to peck at the meat, but suddenly loud screams and knocking were heard from behind him. The alarmed eagle abandoned its prey and flew away, and Sinbad untied his turban and stood up. The knocking and rumble was heard getting closer, and soon an old, fat, bearded man in merchant's clothes ran out from behind the trees. He beat the wooden shield with a stick and shouted at the top of his voice to drive away the eagle. Without even looking at Sinbad, the merchant rushed to the meat and examined it from all sides, but did not find a single diamond. Then he sat down on the ground, grabbed his head with his hands and exclaimed:

What a misfortune this is! I had already thrown a whole bull into the valley, but the eagles took all the pieces of meat to their nests. They left only one piece and, as if on purpose, one to which not a single pebble stuck. Oh woe! O failure!

Then he saw Sinbad, who was standing next to him, covered in blood and dust, barefoot and in torn clothes. The merchant immediately stopped screaming and froze in fear. Then he raised his stick, covered himself with a shield and asked:

Who are you and how did you get here?

Do not be afraid of me, venerable merchant. “I will not harm you,” answered Sinbad. “I, too, was a merchant, like you, but I experienced many troubles and terrible adventures.” Help me get out of here and get to my homeland, and I will give you as many diamonds as you have ever had.

Do you really have diamonds? - asked the merchant. - Show me.

Sinbad showed him his stones and gave him the best ones. The merchant was delighted and thanked Sinbad for a long time, and then he called other merchants who also mined diamonds, and Sinbad told them about all his misfortunes.

The merchants congratulated him on his rescue, gave him good clothes and took him with them.

They walked for a long time through the steppes, deserts, plains and mountains, and Sinbad had to see many miracles and wonders before he reached his homeland.

On one island he saw a beast called karkadann. Karkadann looks like a large cow and has one thick horn in the middle of its head. He is so strong that he can carry a large elephant on his horn. From the sun, the elephant's fat begins to melt and floods the carcass's eyes. Karkadann goes blind and lies down on the ground. Then the roc bird flies to him and carries him in its claws along with the elephant to its nest.

After a long journey, Sinbad finally reached Baghdad. His family greeted him with joy and organized a celebration for his return. They thought that Sinbad was dead and did not hope to see him again. Sinbad sold his diamonds and began trading again as before.

Thus ended the second voyage of Sinbad the Sailor.

The Third Voyage of Sinbad the Sailor

N Sinbad lived for several years in his hometown, without leaving anywhere. His friends and acquaintances, Baghdad merchants, came to him every evening and listened to stories about his wanderings, and every time Sinbad remembered the bird Rukh, the diamond valley of huge snakes, he became so scared, as if he were still wandering in the valley of diamonds .

One evening, as usual, his merchant friends came to Sinbad. When they finished dinner and prepared to listen to the owner’s stories, a servant entered the room and said that a man was standing at the gate selling strange fruits.

Order him to come here,” said Sinbad.

The servant brought the fruit merchant into the room. He was a dark man with a long black beard, dressed in a foreign style. On his head he carried a basket full of magnificent fruits. He placed the basket in front of Sinbad and removed the cover from it.

Sinbad looked into the basket and gasped in surprise. It contained huge round oranges, sour and sweet lemons, oranges, bright as fire, peaches, pears and pomegranates, so large and juicy, which do not exist in Baghdad.

Who are you, stranger, and where did you come from? - Sinbad asked the merchant.

“Oh sir,” he answered, “I was born far from here, on the island of Serendib.” All my life I sailed the seas and visited many countries and everywhere I sold such fruits.

Tell me about the island of Serendib: what is it like and who lives on it? - said Sinbad.

You can’t describe my homeland in words. It must be seen, since there is no island in the world more beautiful and better than Serendib,” answered the merchant. “When a traveler steps ashore, he hears the singing of beautiful birds, whose feathers glow in the sun like precious stones.” Even the flowers on the island of Serendib glow like bright gold. And there are flowers on it that cry and laugh. Every day at sunrise they raise their heads up and shout loudly: “Morning! Morning!" - and laugh, and in the evening, when the sun sets, they lower their heads to the ground and cry. As soon as darkness falls, all kinds of animals come to the seashore - bears, leopards, lions and sea horses - and each one holds in his mouth a precious stone that sparkles like fire and illuminates everything around. And the trees in my homeland are the rarest and most expensive: aloe, which smells so wonderful when lit; strong water that goes to ship masts - not a single insect will gnaw through it, and neither water nor cold will harm it; tall palms and shiny ebony, or ebony. The sea around Serendib is gentle and warm. At the bottom of it lie wonderful pearls - white, pink and black, and fishermen dive into the water and take them out. And sometimes they send little monkeys for pearls...

The fruit merchant talked for a long time about the wonders of the island of Serendib, and when he finished, Sinbad generously rewarded him and released him. The merchant left, bowing low, and Sinbad went to bed, but for a long time he tossed from side to side and could not sleep, remembering the stories about the island of Serendib. He heard the splash of the sea and the creaking of ship masts, he saw in front of him wonderful birds and golden flowers sparkling with bright lights. Finally he fell asleep and dreamed of a monkey with a huge pink pearl in its mouth.

When he woke up, he immediately jumped out of bed and said to himself:

I definitely have to visit Serendib Island! Today I will start getting ready for the journey.

He collected all the money he had, bought goods, said goodbye to his family and again went to the seaside city of Basra. He spent a long time choosing a better ship for himself and finally found a beautiful, strong ship. The captain of this ship was a sailor from Persia named Buzurg - an old fat man with a long beard. He sailed the ocean for many years, and his ship was never wrecked.

Sinbad ordered his goods to be loaded onto Buzurg's ship and set off. His merchant friends went with him, who also wanted to visit the island of Serendib.

The wind was fair and the ship was moving quickly forward. The first days everything went well. But one morning a storm began at sea; A strong wind arose, which kept changing direction. Sinbad's ship was carried across the sea like a piece of wood. Huge waves rolled across the deck one after another. Sinbad and his friends tied themselves to the masts and began to say goodbye to each other, not hoping to escape. Only Captain Buzurg was calm. He himself stood at the helm and gave orders in a loud voice. Seeing that he was not afraid, his companions also calmed down. By noon the storm began to subside. The waves became smaller and the sky cleared. Soon there was complete calm.

And suddenly Captain Buzurg began to hit himself in the face, moan and cry. He tore the turban from his head, threw it on the deck, tore his robe and shouted:

Know that our ship is caught in a strong current and we cannot get out of it! And this current carries us to a country called “The Country of the Furry Ones.” People who look like monkeys live there; no one has ever returned alive from this country. Get ready for death - there is no salvation for us!

Before the captain had time to finish speaking, a terrible blow was heard. The ship shook violently and stopped. The current drove him to the shore, and he ran aground. And now the entire shore was covered with little people. There were more and more of them, they rolled from the shore straight into the water, swam up to the ship and quickly climbed the masts. These little people, covered with thick hair, with yellow eyes, crooked legs and tenacious hands, gnawed through the ship's ropes and tore off the sails, and then rushed at Sinbad and his companions. The leading man crept up to one of the merchants. The merchant pulled out his sword and cut it in half. And immediately ten more furry ones rushed at him, grabbed him by the arms and legs and threw him into the sea, followed by the second and third merchant.

Are we really afraid of these monkeys?! - Sinbad exclaimed and took the sword out of its sheath.

But Captain Buzurg grabbed him by the hand and shouted:

Watch out, Sinbad! Don't you see that if each of us kills ten or even a hundred monkeys, the rest will tear him to pieces or throw him overboard? We run from the ship to the island, and let the monkeys get the ship.

Sinbad listened to the captain and sheathed his sword.

He jumped out onto the shore of the island, and his companions followed him. Captain Buzurg was the last to leave the ship. He was very sorry to leave his ship to these shaggy monkeys.

Sinbad and his friends slowly walked forward, not knowing where to go. They walked and talked quietly among themselves. And suddenly captain Buzurg exclaimed:

Look! Look! Castle!

Sinbad raised his head and saw a tall house with black iron gates.

People may live in this house. “Let’s go and find out who its owner is,” he said.

The travelers walked faster and soon reached the gate of the house. Sinbad was the first to run into the yard and shouted:

There must have been a feast here recently! Look - cauldrons and frying pans are hanging on sticks around the brazier and gnawed bones are scattered everywhere. And the coals in the brazier are still hot. Let's sit on this bench for a while - maybe the owner of the house will come out into the yard and call us.

Sinbad and his companions were so tired that they could hardly stand on their feet. They sat down, some on a bench, some directly on the ground, and soon fell asleep, basking in the sun. Sinbad woke up first. He was awakened by a loud noise and rumble. It seemed that a large herd of elephants was passing somewhere nearby. The ground shook from someone's heavy steps. It was already almost dark. Sinbad stood up from the bench and froze in horror: a man of enormous stature was moving straight towards him - a real giant, looking like a tall palm tree. He was all black, his eyes sparkled like burning brands, his mouth looked like the hole of a well, and his teeth stuck out like the tusks of a boar. His ears fell onto his shoulders, and the nails on his hands were wide and sharp, like a lion's. The giant walked slowly, slightly bent, as if it was difficult for him to bear his head, and sighed heavily. With every breath, the trees rustled and their tops bent to the ground, as if during a storm. In the giant's hands was a huge torch - an entire trunk of a resinous tree.

Sinbad's companions also woke up and lay on the ground half-dead from fear. The giant came up and bent over them. He looked at each of them for a long time and, having chosen one, picked it up like a feather. It was Captain Buzurg - the largest and fattest of Sinbad's companions.

Sinbad pulled out his sword and rushed to the giant. All his fear passed, and he thought of only one thing: how to snatch Buzurg from the hands of the monster. But the giant kicked Sinbad aside with a kick. He lit a fire on the brazier, roasted Captain Buzurg and ate him.

Having finished eating, the giant stretched out on the ground and snored loudly. Sinbad and his comrades sat on a bench, huddled together and holding their breath.

Sinbad was the first to recover and, making sure that the giant was fast asleep, jumped up and exclaimed:

It would be better if we drowned in the sea! Are we really going to let the giant eat us like sheep?

“Let’s leave here and look for a place where we can hide from him,” said one of the merchants.

Where should we go? “He will find us everywhere,” objected Sinbad. “It will be better if we kill him and then sail away by sea.” Maybe some ship will pick us up.

And what will we sail away on, Sinbad? - asked the merchants.

Look at these logs stacked near the brazier. “They are long and thick, and if you tie them together, they will make a good raft,” said Sinbad. “Let’s take them to the seashore while this cruel ogre sleeps, and then we will come back here and figure out a way to kill him.”

“This is a great plan,” the merchants said and began to drag the logs to the seashore and tie them with ropes made of palm bast.

By morning the raft was ready, and Sinbad and his comrades returned to the giant's courtyard. When they arrived, the cannibal was not in the yard. He did not appear until the evening.

When it got dark, the earth shook again and a rumble and stomping was heard. The giant was close. As the day before, he slowly walked up to Sinbad's comrades and bent over them, shining a torch on them. He chose the fattest merchant, pierced him with a skewer, fried him and ate him. And then he stretched out on the ground and fell asleep.

Another of our companions has died! - exclaimed Sinbad. - But this is the last one. This cruel man will not eat any of us again.

What are you up to, Sinbad? - the merchants asked him.

Watch and do as I say! - exclaimed Sinbad.

He grabbed two spits on which the giant fried meat, heated them on the fire and put them to the eyes of the cannibal. Then he made a sign to the merchants, and they all piled onto the spits together. The ogre's eyes went deep into his head and he went blind.

The cannibal jumped up with a terrible cry and began to rummage around with his hands, trying to catch his enemies. But Sinbad and his comrades rushed away from him and ran to the sea. The giant followed them, continuing to scream loudly. He caught up with the fugitives and overtook them, but never caught anyone. They ran between his legs, dodged his hands, and finally ran to the seashore, boarded the raft and sailed away, rowing the thin trunk of a young palm tree like an oar.

When the cannibal heard the sound of the oar hitting the water, he realized that his prey had left him. He screamed even louder than before. Two more giants, just as scary as he, came running to his cry. They broke off a huge stone from the rocks and threw it after the fugitives. Blocks of rocks fell into the water with a terrible noise, only slightly touching the raft. But such waves arose from them that the raft capsized. Sinbad's companions could not swim at all. They immediately choked and sank. Only Sinbad himself and two other younger merchants managed to grab the raft and stay on the surface of the sea.

Sinbad barely climbed back onto the raft and helped his comrades out of the water. The waves carried away their oar, and they had to float with the current, guiding the raft slightly with their feet. It was getting lighter. The sun was soon to rise. Sinbad's comrades, wet and shivering, sat on the raft and complained loudly. Sinbad stood on the edge of the raft, looking out to see if the shore or the sails of a ship could be seen in the distance. Suddenly he turned to his companions and shouted:

Take heart, my friends Ahmed and Hassan! The land is not far, and the current carries us straight to the shore. Do you see the birds circling there, in the distance, above the water? Their nests are probably somewhere nearby. After all, birds do not fly far from their chicks.

Ahmed and Hassan cheered and raised their heads. Hasan, whose eyes were as keen as a hawk's, looked forward and said:

Your truth, Sinbad. Over there, in the distance, I see an island. Soon the current will bring our raft towards it, and we will rest on solid ground.

The exhausted travelers rejoiced and began to row harder with their legs to help the flow. If only they knew what awaited them on this island!

Soon the raft washed ashore, and Sinbad, Ahmed and Hassan went onto land. They slowly walked forward, picking up berries and roots from the ground, and saw tall, spreading trees on the bank of the stream. The thick grass beckoned to lie down and rest.

Sinbad threw himself under a tree and immediately fell asleep. He was awakened by a strange sound, as if someone was grinding grain between two huge stones. Sinbad opened his eyes and jumped to his feet. He saw in front of him a huge snake with a wide mouth, like a whale. The snake lay calmly on its belly and moved its jaws lazily, with a loud crunch. This crunch woke up Sinbad. And human feet in sandals protruded from the snake’s mouth. By the sandals, Sinbad recognized that these were Ahmed's feet.

Gradually, Ahmed completely disappeared into the belly of the snake, and the snake slowly crawled into the forest. When he disappeared, Sinbad looked around and saw that he was left alone.

“Where is Hassan? - thought Sinbad. “Did the snake eat him too?”

Hey Hasan, where are you? - he shouted.

Sinbad raised his head and saw Hassan, who was sitting huddled in the thick branches of a tree, neither alive nor dead from fear.

Come here too! - he shouted to Sinbad. Sinbad grabbed several coconuts from the ground and climbed up the tree. He had to sit on the top branch, it was very uncomfortable. And Hassan settled perfectly on a wide lower branch.

Sinbad and Hassan sat on the tree for many hours, waiting every minute for the snake to appear. It began to get dark, night came, but the monster was still not there. Finally, Hasan could not stand it any longer and fell asleep, leaning his back against a tree trunk and dangling his legs. Soon Sinbad also dozed off. When he woke up, it was light and the sun was quite high. Sinbad carefully leaned down and looked down. Hassan was no longer on the branch. On the grass, under a tree, his turban was white and his worn-out shoes were lying - all that was left of poor Hassan.

“He, too, was devoured by this terrible snake,” thought Sinbad. “Apparently, you can’t hide from him in a tree.”

Now Sinbad was alone on the island. For a long time he looked for some place to hide from the snake, but there was not a single rock or cave on the island. Tired of searching, Sinbad sat down on the ground near the sea and began to think about how he could escape.

“If I escaped from the hands of the cannibal, will I really allow myself to be eaten by a snake? - he thought. “I am a man, and I have a mind that will help me outwit this monster.”

Suddenly a huge wave splashed from the sea and threw a thick ship's plank onto the shore. Sinbad saw this board and immediately figured out how to save himself. He grabbed the board, picked up several more smaller boards on the shore and took them into the forest. Having chosen a board of the appropriate size, Sinbad tied it to his feet with a large piece of palm bast. He tied the same board to his head, and two others to his body, right and left, so that he seemed to be in a box. And then he lay down on the ground and waited.

Soon the crackling of brushwood and a loud hiss were heard. The snake smelled the man and sought out its prey. His long head appeared from behind the trees, on which two large eyes shone like torches. He crawled up to Sinbad and opened his mouth wide, sticking out a long forked tongue.

He looked at the box in surprise, from which there was such a delicious human smell, and tried to grab it and chew it with his teeth, but the strong wood did not give in.

The snake walked around Sinbad from all sides, trying to tear off the wooden shield from him. The shield turned out to be too strong, and the snake only broke off its teeth. In a rage, he began to hit the boards with his tail. The boards shook, but held firm. The snake worked for a long time, but never got to Sinbad. Finally, he was exhausted and crawled back into the forest, hissing and scattering dry leaves with his tail.

Sinbad quickly untied the boards and jumped to his feet.

Lying between the boards is very uncomfortable, but if the snake catches me defenseless, it will eat me,” Sinbad said to himself. “We must escape from the island.” It is better that I drown in the sea than perish in the mouth of the serpent, like Ahmed and Hassan.

And Sinbad decided to make himself a raft again. He returned to the sea and began collecting boards. Suddenly he saw a ship's sail nearby. The ship was getting closer and closer, a fair wind was driving it towards the shores of the island. Sinbad tore off his shirt and began to run along the shore, waving it. He waved his arms, shouted and tried in every possible way to attract attention. Finally, the sailors noticed him, and the captain ordered the ship to be stopped. Sinbad rushed into the water and reached the ship in a few strokes. From the sails and clothing of the sailors, he learned that the ship belonged to his fellow countrymen. Indeed, it was an Arab ship. The captain of the ship heard many stories about the island where a terrible snake lives, but he never heard of anyone being saved from it.

The sailors greeted Sinbad kindly, fed and clothed him. The captain ordered the sails to be raised, and the ship rushed on.

He sailed for a long time on the sea and finally swam to some land. The captain stopped the ship at the pier, and all the travelers went ashore to sell and barter their goods. Only Sinbad had nothing. Sad and sorrowful, he remained on the ship. Soon the captain called him over and said:

I want to do a good deed and help you. There was one traveler with us whom we lost, and I do not know whether he is dead or alive. And his goods still lie in the hold. Take them and sell them in the market, and I will give you something for your troubles. And what we cannot sell, we will take to Baghdad and give it to relatives.

“I’ll do it willingly,” said Sinbad.

And the captain ordered the sailors to take the goods out of the hold. When the last bale was unloaded, the ship's scribe asked the captain:

What are these goods and what is the name of their owner? In whose name should they be written?

Write it down in the name of Sinbad the Sailor, who sailed with us on the ship and disappeared,” answered the captain.

Hearing this, Sinbad almost fainted from surprise and joy.

“O sir,” he asked the captain, “do you know the man whose goods you ordered me to sell?”

“It was a man from the city of Baghdad named Sinbad the Sailor,” answered the captain.

It's me Sinbad the Sailor! - Sinbad shouted. “I didn’t disappear, but fell asleep on the shore, and you didn’t wait for me and swam away.” It was on my last journey when the roc bird brought me to the valley of diamonds.

The sailors heard Sinbad's words and surrounded him in a crowd. Some believed him, others called him a liar. And suddenly one merchant, who was also sailing on this ship, approached the captain and said:

Do you remember I told you how I was on the diamond mountain and threw a piece of meat into the valley, and some man clung to the meat, and the eagle brought him up to the mountain along with the meat? You didn't believe me and said I was lying. Here is a man who tied his turban to my piece of meat. He gave me diamonds that couldn’t be better, and said that his name was Sinbad the Sailor.

Then the captain hugged Sinbad and said to him:

Take your goods. Now I believe that you are Sinbad the Sailor. Sell ​​them quickly before the market runs out of trade.

Sinbad sold his goods at a large profit and returned to Baghdad on the same ship. He was very pleased to have returned home and was determined never to travel again. Thus ended Sinbad's third journey.

The Fourth Voyage of Sinbad the Sailor

N But a little time passed, and Sinbad again wanted to visit foreign countries. He bought the most expensive goods, went to Basra, hired a good ship and sailed towards India.

The first days everything went well, but one day a storm arose in the morning. Sinbad's ship began to be tossed across the waves like a piece of wood. The captain ordered to anchor in a shallow place to wait out the storm. But before the ship could stop, the anchor chains broke, and the ship was carried straight to the shore. The sails on the ship tore, the waves flooded the deck and carried all the merchants and sailors out to sea. Unhappy travelers, like stones sank to the bottom. Only Sinbad and a few other merchants grabbed a piece of the board and stayed on the surface of the sea.

All day and all night they rushed across the sea, and in the morning the waves threw them onto the rocky shore.

The travelers lay on the ground barely alive. Only when the day passed, followed by the night, did they come to their senses a little.

Shivering from the cold, Sinbad and his friends walked along the shore, hoping that they would meet people who would shelter and feed them. They walked for a long time and finally saw in the distance a tall building that looked like a palace. Sinbad was very happy and walked faster. But as soon as the travelers approached this building, they were surrounded by a crowd of people. These people grabbed them and took them to their king, and the king ordered them to sit down with a sign. When they sat down, bowls with some strange food were placed in front of them. Neither Sinbad nor his merchant friends had ever eaten this. Sinbad's companions greedily attacked the food and ate everything that was in the bowls. Only Sinbad almost did not touch the food, but only tasted it.

And the king of this city was a cannibal. His entourage caught all the foreigners who entered their country and fed them this food. Anyone who ate it gradually lost their minds and became like an animal. Having fattened the stranger, the king's entourage killed him, fried him and ate him. And the king ate people directly raw.

Sinbad's friends also faced the same fate. Every day they ate a lot of this food, and their whole body became swollen with fat. They no longer understood what was happening to them - they only ate and slept. They were given to the shepherd, like pigs; every day the shepherd drove them out of the city and fed them from large troughs.

Sinbad did not eat this dish, and he was not given anything else. He picked roots and berries in the meadows and somehow ate them. His body became dry, he became weak and could barely stand on his feet. Seeing that Sinbad was so weak and skinny, the king’s entourage decided that there was no need to guard him - he wouldn’t run away anyway - and they soon forgot about him.

And Sinbad only dreamed of how to escape from the cannibals. One morning, when everyone was still sleeping, he left the palace gates and walked wherever his eyes led him. Soon he came to a green meadow and saw a man sitting on a large stone. It was a shepherd. He had just driven the merchants, Sinbad's friends, out of the city and placed a trough of food in front of them. Seeing Sinbad, the shepherd immediately realized that Sinbad was healthy and in control of his mind. He made a sign to him with his hand: “Come here!” and when Sinbad approached, he said to him: “Follow this path, and when you reach the crossroads, turn right and you will go out onto the Sultan’s road.” She will lead you out of the land of our king, and perhaps you will reach your homeland.

Sinbad thanked the shepherd and left. He tried to walk as quickly as possible and soon saw a road to his right. Sinbad walked along this road for seven days and seven nights, eating roots and berries. Finally, on the eighth day in the morning, he saw a crowd of people not far from him and approached them. People surrounded him and began to ask who he was and where he came from. Sinbad told them everything that had happened to him, and he was taken to the king of that country. The king ordered Sinbad to be fed and also asked him where he was from and what happened to him. When Sinbad told the king about his adventures, the king was very surprised and exclaimed:

“I’ve never heard a more amazing story in my life!” Welcome, stranger! Stay live in my city.

Sinbad remained in the city of this king, whose name was Taigamus. The king fell in love with Sinbad very much and soon got so used to him that he did not let him go for a minute. He showed Sinbad all kinds of favors and fulfilled all his wishes.

And then one afternoon, when all the king’s associates, except Sinbad, had gone home, King Taigamus said to Sinbad:

- Oh Sinbad, you have become dearer to me than all my loved ones, and I cannot part with you. I have a big favor to ask of you. Promise me that you will fulfill it.

“Tell me what your request is,” answered Sinbad. “You have been kind to me, and I cannot disobey you.”

“Stay with us forever,” said the king. “I will find you a good wife, and you will be no worse off in my city than in Baghdad.”

Hearing the king's words, Sinbad was very upset. He still hoped to return to Baghdad someday, but now he had to give up hope. After all, Sinbad could not refuse the king!

“Let it be your way, O king,” he said. “I will stay here forever.”

The king immediately ordered that Sinbad be given a room in the palace and married him to the daughter of his vizier.

Sinbad lived for several more years in the city of King Taigamus and gradually began to forget Baghdad. He made friends among the city residents, everyone loved and respected him.

And then one early morning one of his friends named Abu Mansur came to him. His clothes were torn and his turban had slipped to one side; he wrung his hands and sobbed bitterly.

“What’s wrong with you, Abu Mansur?” asked Sinbad.

“My wife died tonight,” his friend answered.

Sinbad began to console him, but Abu Mansur continued to cry bitterly, hitting himself in the chest with his hands.

“Oh Abu Mansur,” said Sinbad, “what is the use of killing yourself like that?” Time will pass and you will be consoled. You are still young and will live a long time.

And suddenly Abu Mansur cried even harder and exclaimed:

- How can you say that I will live long when I have only one day left to live! Tomorrow you will lose me and never see me again.

“Why?” asked Sinbad. “You are healthy, and you are not in danger of death.”

“Tomorrow they will bury my wife, and I will also be lowered into the grave with her,” said Abu Mansur. “In our country there is such a custom: when a woman dies, her husband is buried alive with her, and when a man dies, he is buried with him.” wife. “This is a very bad custom,” thought Sinbad. “It’s good that I’m a foreigner and won’t be buried alive.”

He tried as best he could to console Abu Mansur and promised that he would ask the king to save him from such a terrible death. But when Sinbad came to the king and expressed his request to him, the king shook his head and said:

- Ask for whatever you want, Sinbad, but not this. I cannot break the custom of my ancestors. Tomorrow your friend will be lowered into the grave.

“O king,” asked Sinbad, “and if a foreigner’s wife dies, will her husband also be buried with her?”

“Yes,” answered the king. “But don’t worry about yourself.” Your wife is still too young and will probably not die before you.

When Sinbad heard these words, he was very upset and afraid. Sad, he returned to his place and from then on he always thought about one thing - lest his wife fall ill with a fatal disease. A little time passed, and what he feared happened. His wife became seriously ill and died a few days later.

The king and all the inhabitants of the city came, as usual, to console Sinbad. They put her best jewelry on his wife, placed her body on a stretcher and carried her to a high mountain not far from the city. At the top of the mountain a deep hole was dug, covered with a heavy stone. The stretcher with the body of Sinbad's wife was tied with ropes and, lifting the stone, they lowered it into the grave. And then King Taigamus and Sinbad’s friends approached him and began to say goodbye to him. Poor Sinbad realized that the hour of his death had come. He started running shouting:

“I am a foreigner and should not submit to your customs!” I don't want to die in this pit!

But no matter how Sinbad fought back, he was still led to a terrible pit. They gave him a jug of water and seven loaves of bread, tied him with ropes, and lowered him into a hole. And then the hole was filled with stone, and the king and everyone who was with him went back to the city.

Poor Sinbad found himself in the grave, among the dead. At first he saw nothing, but when his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he noticed that a faint light was coming into the grave from above. The stone that covered the entrance to the grave did not fit tightly to its edges, and a thin ray of sun made its way into the cave.

The whole cave was full of dead men and women. They were wearing their best dresses and jewelry. Despair and grief overwhelmed Sinbad.

“Now I can’t be saved,” he thought. “No one can come out of this grave.”

A few hours later, the sunbeam that illuminated the cave went out, and it became completely dark around Sinbad. Sinbad was very hungry. He ate a cake, drank water and fell asleep right on the ground, among the dead.

Sinbad spent a day, two, and then a third in a terrible cave. He tried to eat as little as possible so that the food would last longer, but on the third day in the evening he swallowed the last piece of flatbread and washed it down with the last sip of water. Now he could only wait for death.

Sinbad spread his cloak on the ground and lay down. He lay awake all night, remembering his native Baghdad, friends and acquaintances. Only in the morning his eyes closed and he fell asleep.

He woke up from a faint rustling: someone was scratching the stone walls of the cave with his claws, grumbling and snorting. Sinbad jumped to his feet and walked in the direction of the noise. Someone ran past him, knocking their paws.

“This must be some kind of wild animal,” thought Sinbad. “Sensing a man, he got scared and ran away. But how did he get into the cave?

Sinbad rushed after the beast and soon saw a light in the distance, which became brighter the closer Sinbad came to it. Soon Sinbad found himself in front of a large hole. Sinbad went out through the hole and found himself on the mountainside. The sea waves crashed at its base with a roar.

Sinbad felt joyful in his soul; he again had hope of salvation.

“After all, ships are passing by this place,” he thought. “Maybe some ship will pick me up.” And even if I die here, it will be better than dying in this cave full of dead people.”

Sinbad sat for a while on a stone at the entrance to the cave, enjoying the fresh morning air. He began to think about his return to Baghdad, to his friends and acquaintances, and he became sad that he would return to them ruined, without a single dirham. And suddenly he slapped his hand on his forehead and said loudly:

“I am sad that I will return to Baghdad as a beggar, and not far from me lie such riches that are not in the treasuries of the Persian kings!” The cave is full of dead men and women who have been lowered into it for many hundreds of years. And their best jewelry is lowered into the grave with them. These jewels will disappear in the cave without any use. If I take some of them for myself, no one will suffer from it.

Sinbad immediately returned to the cave and began to collect rings, necklaces, earrings and bracelets scattered on the ground. He tied it all up in his cloak and carried the bundle of jewelry out of the cave. He spent several days on the seashore, eating grass, fruits, roots and berries, which he collected in the forest on the mountainside, and from morning to evening he looked at the sea. Finally, he saw in the distance, on the waves, a ship heading towards him.

Sinbad instantly tore off his shirt, tied it to a thick stick and began to run along the shore, waving it in the air. A lookout sitting on the ship's mast noticed its signs, and the captain ordered the ship to stop not far from the shore. Without waiting for a boat to be sent for him, Sinbad rushed into the water and reached the ship in a few strokes. A minute later he was already standing on the deck, surrounded by sailors, and telling his story. From the sailors he learned that their ship was sailing from India to Basra. The captain willingly agreed to take Sinbad to this city and took from him only one precious stone as payment, albeit the largest.

After a month of travel, the ship safely reached Basra. From there Sinbad the Sailor went to Baghdad. He put the jewelry that he had brought with him into the storeroom, and again lived in his home, happy and joyful.

Thus ended Sinbad's fourth journey.

The Fifth Voyage of Sinbad the Sailor

P A little time passed, and Sinbad again became bored with living in his beautiful house in the City of Peace. Anyone who has ever sailed on the sea, who is used to falling asleep to the howling and whistling of the wind, cannot sit on solid ground.

And then one day he had to go on business to Basra, where he began his travels more than once. He again saw this rich, cheerful city, where the sky is always so blue and the sun shines so brightly, he saw ships with high masts and multi-colored sails, he heard the cries of the sailors unloading strange overseas goods from the holds, and he wanted to travel so much that he did not hesitate decided to get ready to go.

Ten days later, Sinbad was already sailing across the sea on a large, strong ship loaded with goods. There were several other merchants with him, and the ship was led by an old, experienced captain with a large team of sailors.

Sinbad's ship sailed on the open sea for two days and two nights, and on the third day, when the sun was just above the heads of the travelers, a small rocky island appeared in the distance. The captain ordered to head towards this island, and when the ship approached its shores, everyone saw that in the middle of the island there rose a huge dome, white and sparkling, with a sharp top. Sinbad at this time was sleeping on the deck in the shade of the sail.

- Hey, captain! Stop the ship!” Sinbad’s companions shouted.

The captain ordered to drop anchor, and all the merchants and sailors jumped ashore. When the ship anchored, the shock woke Sinbad, and he went out to the middle of the deck to see why the ship had stopped. And suddenly he saw that all the merchants and sailors were standing around a huge white dome and trying to break through it with crowbars and hooks.

- Don't do this! You will die! - Sinbad shouted.

He immediately realized that this dome was the egg of the Rukh bird, the same as the one he saw on his first trip. If the Rukh bird flies in and sees that it has been defeated, all the sailors and merchants will inevitably die.

But Sinbad's comrades did not listen to him and began to hit him in the ball even harder. Finally the shell cracked. Water poured out of the egg. Then a long beak appeared from it, followed by a head and paws: there was a chick in the egg. If the egg had not been broken, it probably would have hatched soon.

The sailors grabbed the chick, fried it and began to eat it. Only Sinbad did not touch his meat. He ran around his comrades and shouted:

- Finish it quickly, otherwise Rukh will fly in and kill you! And suddenly a loud whistle and deafening flapping of wings were heard in the air. The merchants looked up and rushed to the ship. The Ruhkh bird flew right above their heads. Two huge snakes wriggled in her claws. Seeing that her egg was broken, the Rukh bird screamed so loudly that people fell to the ground out of fear and buried their heads in the sand. The bird released its prey from its claws, circled in the air and disappeared from sight. The merchants and sailors rose to their feet and ran towards the sea. They raised the anchor, spread the sails and swam as quickly as possible to escape the terrible bird Ruhkh.

The monstrous bird was not visible, and the travelers began to calm down, but suddenly the flapping of wings was heard again, and the Rukh bird appeared in the distance, but not alone. Another similar bird flew with her, even larger and more terrible than the first. It was a male Ruhkh. Each bird carried a huge stone in its talons - an entire rock.

Sinbad's comrades ran around the deck, not knowing where to hide from the angry birds. Some lay down on the deck, others hid behind the masts, and the captain stood motionless in place, raising his hands to the sky. He was so frightened that he could not move.

Suddenly there was a terrible blow, like a shot from the largest cannon, and waves rolled across the sea. It was one of the birds that threw a stone, but missed. Seeing this, the second Rukh screamed loudly and released his stone from his claws right above the ship. A stone fell on the stern. The ship crackled pitifully, tilted, straightened up again, tossed by a wave, and began to sink. The waves flooded the deck and carried away all the merchants and sailors. Only Sinbad survived. He grabbed the ship's plank with his hand and, when the waves subsided, climbed onto it.

For two days and three nights Sinbad rushed across the sea, and finally, on the third day, the waves washed him to an unknown land. Sinbad climbed ashore and looked around. It seemed to him that he was not on an island in the middle of the sea, but at home, in Baghdad, in his wonderful garden. His feet walked on soft green grass dotted with colorful flowers. The branches of the trees bent from the weight of the fruit. Round sparkling oranges, fragrant lemons, pomegranates, pears, apples seemed to be asking to be put into your mouth. Small colorful birds circled in the air with loud chirping sounds. Near the fast streams, shining like silver, gazelles jumped and played. They were not afraid of Sinbad because they had never seen people and did not know that they should be afraid.

Sinbad was so tired that he could barely stand on his feet. He drank water from the stream, lay down under a tree and picked a large apple from a branch, but did not even have time to bite off a single piece of it, and fell asleep holding the apple in his hand.

When he woke up, the sun was high again and the birds were chirping just as happily in the trees: Sinbad slept all day and all night. Only now did he feel how hungry he was, and greedily attacked the fruits.

Having refreshed himself a little, he got up and walked along the shore. He wanted to explore this wonderful land, and he hoped to meet people who would lead him to some city.

Sinbad walked for a long time along the shore. But I didn’t see a single person. Finally, he decided to rest a little and turned into a small forest, where it was cooler.

And suddenly he sees: under a tree, by the stream, sitting a small man with a long wavy gray beard, dressed in a shirt made of leaves and belted with grass. This old man sat near the water, legs crossed, and looked pitifully at Sinbad.

“Peace be with you, oh old man!” said Sinbad. “Who are you and what is this island?” Why are you sitting alone by this stream?

The old man did not answer Sinbad a single word, but showed him with signs: “Carry me across the stream.”

Sinbad thought: “If I carry him across the stream, nothing bad will come from it, and it never hurts to do a good deed. Maybe the old man will show me how to find people on the island who will help me get to Baghdad.”

And he went up to the old man, put him on his shoulders and carried him across the stream.

On the other side, Sinbad knelt down and said to the old man:

- Get down, we've already arrived.

But the old man only clung to him tighter and wrapped his legs around his neck.

“How long will you sit on my shoulders, you nasty old man?” Sinbad shouted and wanted to throw the old man to the ground.

And suddenly the old man laughed loudly and squeezed Sinbad’s neck with his legs so much that he almost suffocated.

“Woe is me!” exclaimed Sinbad. “I escaped from the ogre, outwitted the snake and forced Rukh to carry me, and now I myself will have to carry this nasty old man!” Just let him fall asleep, I’ll drown him in the sea right now! And it won't be long until evening.

But evening came, and the old man did not even think of getting off Sinbad’s neck. He fell asleep on his shoulders and only unclenched his legs a little. And when Sinbad tried to quietly push him off his back, the old man grumbled in his sleep and hit Sinbad painfully with his heels. His legs were thin and long, like whips.

And the unfortunate Sinbad turned into a pack camel.

All day long he had to run with the old man on his back from one tree to another and from stream to stream. If he walked more quietly, the old man brutally kicked him on the sides with his heels and squeezed his neck with his knees.

So a lot of time passed - a month or more.

And then one day at noon, when the sun was especially hot, the old man fell fast asleep on Sinbad's shoulders, and Sinbad decided to rest somewhere under a tree. He began to look for a shady place and came out into a clearing in which many large pumpkins grew; some of them were dry. Sinbad was very happy when he saw the pumpkins.

“They will probably be useful to me,” he thought. “Maybe they will even help me throw off this cruel old man.”

He immediately selected several larger pumpkins and hollowed them out with a sharp stick. Then he picked the ripest grapes, filled the pumpkins with them and sealed them tightly with leaves. He put the pumpkins in the sun and left the clearing, dragging the old man on him. He did not return to the clearing for three days. On the fourth day, Sinbad again came to his pumpkins (the old man, as before, slept on his shoulders) and took out the plugs with which he plugged the pumpkins. A strong smell hit his nose: the grapes began to ferment, and their juice turned into wine. This was all Sinbad needed. He carefully removed the grapes and squeezed the juice directly into the pumpkins, then resealed them and placed them in the shade. Now we had to wait for the old man to wake up.

Sinbad never wanted so much to wake up quickly. Finally the old man began to fidget on Sinbad's shoulders and kicked him. Then Sinbad took the largest pumpkin, uncorked it and drank a little.

The wine was strong and sweet. Sinbad clicked his tongue with pleasure and began to dance in one place, shaking the old man. And the old man saw that Sinbad had drunk something tasty, and he also wanted to try it. “Give it to me too,” he indicated to Sinbad.

Sinbad handed him a pumpkin, and the old man drank all the juice from it in one breath. He had never tried wine before and really liked it. Soon he began to sing and laugh, clapped his hands and pounded his fist on Sinbad's neck.

But then the old man began to sing quieter and quieter and finally fell fast asleep, hanging his head on his chest. His legs gradually unclenched, and Sinbad easily threw him off his back. How pleasant it seemed to Sinbad to finally straighten his shoulders and straighten up!

Sinbad left the old man and wandered around the island all day. He lived on the island for many more days and kept walking along the seashore, looking for a sail to appear somewhere. And finally he saw in the distance a large ship that was approaching the island. Sinbad screamed with joy and began to run back and forth and wave his arms, and when the ship came closer, Sinbad rushed to the water and swam towards him. The ship's captain noticed Sinbad and ordered his ship to stop. Sinbad, like a cat, climbed on board and at first could not say a single word, he only hugged the captain and sailors and cried with joy. The sailors spoke loudly among themselves, but Sinbad did not understand them. There was not a single Arab among them, and none of them spoke Arabic. They fed and clothed Sinbad and gave him a place in their cabin. And Sinbad rode with them for many days and nights, until the ship landed at some city.

It was a large city with tall white houses and wide streets. It was surrounded on all sides by steep mountains covered with dense forest.

Sinbad went ashore and went to wander around the city.

The streets and squares were full of people; all the people that Sinbad came across were black, with white teeth and red lips. On a large square was the main city market. There were many shops in which merchants from all countries - Persians, Indians, Franks, Turks, Chinese - traded, praising their goods.

Sinbad stood in the middle of the market and looked around. And suddenly a man in a robe walked past him, with a large white turban on his head, and stopped at the coppersmith’s shop. Sinbad looked at him carefully and said to himself:

“This man has exactly the same robe as my friend Hadji Mohammed from Red Street, and his turban is folded our way. I’ll go to him and ask if he’s from Baghdad.”

Meanwhile, the man in the turban chose a large shiny basin and a jug with a long narrow neck, gave the coppersmith two gold dinars for them and went back. When he caught up with Sinbad, he bowed low to him and said:

- Peace be with you, oh venerable merchant! Tell me where you come from - isn't it Baghdad, the City of Peace?

“Hello, fellow countryman!” the merchant answered joyfully. “From the way you speak, I immediately recognized that you are a Baghdadian.” I have been living in this city for ten years now and until now I have never heard Arabic spoken. Let's come to me and talk about Baghdad, about its gardens and squares.

The merchant hugged Sinbad tightly and pressed him to his chest. He took Sinbad to his home, gave him food and drink, and they talked about Baghdad and its wonders until the evening. Sinbad was so pleased to remember his homeland that he did not even ask the Baghdad resident what his name was and the name of the city in which he was now located. And when it began to get dark, the Baghdad man said to Sinbad:

- O fellow countryman, I want to save your life and make you rich. Listen to me carefully and do everything I tell you. Know that this city is called the City of Blacks and all its inhabitants are Zinj (as the Arabs called black Africans). They live in their houses only during the day, and in the evening they get into boats and go out to sea. As soon as night falls, monkeys come into the city from the forest and if they meet people on the street, they kill them. And in the morning the monkeys leave again, and the Zinj return. Soon it will become completely dark and the monkeys will come to the city. Get into the boat with me and let's go, otherwise the monkeys will kill you.

“Thank you, fellow countryman!” exclaimed Sinbad. “Tell me what your name is, so that I know who showed me mercy.”

“My name is Mansur Flat-nosed,” answered the Baghdadi. “Let’s go quickly if you don’t want to fall into the clutches of the monkeys.”

Sinbad and Mansur left the house and went to the sea. All the streets were full of people. Men, women and children ran towards the pier, hurrying, stumbling and falling.

Arriving at the harbor, Mansur untied his boat and jumped into it with Sinbad. They drove a little away from the shore, and Mansur said:

- Now the monkeys will enter the city. Look!

And suddenly the mountains surrounding the City of Blacks were covered with moving lights. The lights rolled from top to bottom and became bigger and bigger. Finally they approached the city completely, and monkeys appeared in a large square, carrying torches in their front paws, illuminating the way.

The monkeys scattered around the market, sat down in the shops and began to trade. Some sold, others bought. In taverns, monkey cooks fried sheep, cooked rice and baked bread. The buyers, also monkeys, tried on clothes, chose dishes, materials, quarreled and fought among themselves. This continued until dawn; when the sky in the east began to brighten, the monkeys formed ranks and left the city, and the inhabitants returned to their homes.

Mansur Flatnose brought Sinbad to his home and told him:

“I’ve been living in the City of Blacks for a long time, and I’m homesick. Soon you and I will go to Baghdad, but first you need to make more money so that you won’t be ashamed to return home. Listen to what I tell you. The mountains around the City of Blacks are covered with forest. This forest contains many palm trees with beautiful coconuts. The Zinj are very fond of these nuts and are ready to give a lot of gold and precious stones for each of them. But the palm trees in the forest are so tall that no one can reach the nuts, and no one knows how to get them. And I will teach you. Tomorrow we will go to the forest, and you will return from there a rich man.

The next morning, as soon as the monkeys left the city, Mansur took two large heavy bags from the storeroom, put one of them on his shoulders, and ordered Sinbad to carry the other and said:

- Follow me and see what I will do. Do the same, and you will have more nuts than anyone else in this city.

Sinbad and Mansur went into the forest and walked for a very long time, an hour or two. Finally they stopped in front of a large palm grove. There were many monkeys here. Seeing the people, they climbed to the tops of the trees, bared their teeth fiercely and growled loudly. Sinbad was at first frightened and wanted to run, but Mansur stopped him and said:

- Untie your bag and see what is there. Sinbad untied the bag and saw that it was full of round, smooth stones - pebbles. Mansur also untied his bag, took out a handful of pebbles and threw them at the monkeys. The monkeys screamed even louder and began jumping from one palm tree to another, trying to hide from the stones. But wherever they ran, Mansur’s stones reached them everywhere. Then the monkeys began to pick nuts from the palm trees and throw them at Sinbad and Mansur. Mansur and Sinbad ran between the palm trees, lay down, squatted, hid behind the trunks, and only one or two nuts thrown by the monkeys hit the target.

Soon the whole earth around them was covered with large, selected nuts. When there were no more stones left in the bags, Mansur and Sinbad filled them with nuts and returned to the city. They sold the nuts at the market and received so much gold and jewelry for them that they could barely bring them home.

The next day they went into the forest again and again picked the same number of nuts. So they walked into the forest for ten days.

Finally, when all the storerooms in Mansur's house were full and there was nowhere to put the gold, Mansur said to Sinbad:

“Now we can hire a ship and go to Baghdad.”

They went to the sea, chose the largest ship, filled its hold with gold and jewelry and sailed away. This time the wind was fair, and no trouble delayed them.

They arrived in Basra, hired a caravan of camels, loaded them with jewelry and set off for Baghdad.

His wife and relatives joyfully greeted Sinbad. Sinbad distributed a lot of gold and precious stones to his friends and acquaintances and lived quietly in his house. Again, as before, merchants began to come to him and listen to stories about what he saw and experienced during his travels.

Thus ended Sinbad's fifth journey.

The Sixth Voyage of Sinbad the Sailor

N A little time passed, and Sinbad again wanted to go to foreign countries. Sinbad quickly got ready and went to Basra. Again he chose a good ship, recruited a crew of sailors and set off.

His ship sailed for twenty days and twenty nights, driven by a fair wind. And on the twenty-first day a storm arose and heavy rain began to fall, which wet the packs of goods stacked on the deck. The ship began to toss from side to side like a feather. Sinbad and his companions were very frightened. They approached the captain and asked him:

- O captain, tell us where we are and how far is the land?

The ship's captain tightened his belt, climbed onto the mast and looked in all directions. And suddenly he quickly descended from the mast, tore off his turban and began to scream and cry loudly.

“Oh, captain, what’s the matter?” Sinbad asked him.

“Know,” answered the captain, “that our last hour has come.” The wind drove our ship away and threw it into an unknown sea. To every ship that reaches this sea, a fish comes out of the water and swallows it with everything that is on it.

Before he had time to finish these words, Sinbad’s ship began to rise and fall on the waves, and the travelers heard a terrible roar. And suddenly a fish swam up to the ship, like a high mountain, and behind it another, even larger than the first, and a third - so huge that the other two seemed tiny in front of it, and Sinbad stopped understanding what was happening and prepared to die.

And the third fish opened its mouth to swallow the ship and everyone who was on it, but suddenly a strong wind arose, the ship was lifted by a wave, and it rushed forward. The ship rushed for a long time, driven by the wind, and finally ran into a rocky shore and crashed. All the sailors and merchants fell into the water and drowned. Only Sinbad managed to cling to a rock sticking out of the water near the shore and get out onto land.

He looked around and saw that he was on an island where there were many trees, birds and flowers. Sinbad wandered around the island for a long time in search of fresh water and finally saw a small stream that flowed through a clearing overgrown with thick grass. Sinbad drank water from the stream and ate roots. Having rested a little, he followed the stream, and the stream led him to a large river, fast and stormy. On the banks of the river grew tall, spreading trees - tek, aloe and sandalwood.

Sinbad lay down under a tree and fell fast asleep. Waking up, he refreshed himself a little with fruits and roots, then went up to the river and stood on the bank, looking at its fast flow.

“This river,” he said to himself, “must have a beginning and an end. If I make a small raft and float on it along the river, the water might take me to some city.”

He collected thick twigs and branches from under the trees and tied them together, and on top he laid several boards - the wreckage of ships that had crashed off the coast. This made an excellent raft. Sinbad pushed the raft into the river, stood on it and swam. The current quickly carried the raft, and soon Sinbad saw a high mountain in front of him, in which the water had made a narrow passage. Sinbad wanted to stop the raft or turn it back, but the water was stronger than him and pulled the raft down the mountain. At first it was still light under the mountain, but the further the current carried the raft, the darker it became. Finally there was deep darkness. Suddenly Sinbad hit his head painfully on a stone. The passage became lower and narrower, and the raft rubbed its sides against the walls of the mountain. Soon Sinbad had to kneel down, then on all fours: the raft barely moved forward.

“What if he stops?” thought Sinbad. “What will I do then under this dark mountain?”

Sinbad did not feel that the current was pushing the raft forward.

He lay face down on the boards and closed his eyes - it seemed to him that the walls of the mountain were about to crush him along with his raft.

He lay there for a long time, expecting death every minute, and finally fell asleep, weakened from excitement and fatigue.

When he woke up, it was light and the raft stood motionless. He was tied to a long stick stuck into the bottom of the river near the bank. And on the shore there was a crowd of people. They pointed their fingers at Sinbad and spoke loudly to each other in some incomprehensible language.

Seeing that Sinbad had woken up, the people on the shore parted, and a tall old man with a long gray beard, dressed in an expensive robe, came out of the crowd. He said something friendly to Sinbad, holding out his hand, but Sinbad shook his head several times as a sign that he did not understand, and said:

— What kind of people are you and what is the name of your country?

Then everyone on the shore shouted: “Arab, Arab!”, and another old man, dressed even more elegantly than the first, approached the water itself and said to Sinbad in pure Arabic:

- Peace be with you, stranger! Who will you be and where do you come from? For what reason did you come to us and how did you find your way?

- Who are you and what kind of land is this?

“Oh my brother,” answered the old man, “we are peaceful farmers.” We came for water to water our crops, and we saw that you were sleeping on the raft, and then we caught your raft and tied it to our shore. Tell me where are you from and why did you come to us?

“Oh, sir,” Sinbad answered, “I ask you, give me something to eat and give me something to drink, and then ask me whatever you want.”

“Come with me to my house,” said the old man.

He took Sinbad to his home, fed him, and Sinbad lived with him for several days. And one morning the old man said to him:

“Oh my brother, would you like to go with me to the river bank and sell your goods?”

“What kind of product do I have?” Sinbad thought, but still decided to go with the old man to the river.

“We will take your goods to the market,” the old man continued, “and if they give you a good price for it, you will sell it, and if not, you will keep it for yourself.”

“Okay,” said Sinbad and followed the old man. Arriving at the river bank, he looked at the place where his raft was tied and saw that there was no raft.

- Where is my raft on which I sailed to you? - he asked the old man.

“Here,” the old man answered and pointed his finger at a pile of sticks dumped on the shore. “This is your product, and there is nothing more expensive than it in our countries.” Know that your raft was knitted from pieces of precious wood.

“How can I return from here to my homeland in Baghdad if I don’t have a raft?” said Sinbad. “No, I won’t sell it.”

“Oh, my friend,” said the old man, “forget about Baghdad and your homeland.” We can't let you go. If you return to your country, you will tell people about our land, and they will come and conquer us. Don't think about leaving. Live with us and be our guest until you die, and we will sell your raft at the market, and for it they will give you enough food to last you a lifetime.

And poor Sinbad found himself a prisoner on the island. He sold the branches from which his raft was knitted in the market, and received many precious goods for them. But this did not please Sinbad. All he could think about was how to return to his homeland.

He lived for many days in the city on an island with an old man; He made many friends among the inhabitants of the island. And then one day Sinbad went out for a walk and saw that the streets of the city were empty. He did not meet a single man - only children and women came across him on the road.

Sinbad stopped one boy and asked him:

—Where have all the men who live in the city gone? Or are you at war?

“No,” the boy answered, “we are not at war.” Don't you know that every year all the big men on our island grow wings and fly away from the island? And after six days they return, and their wings fall off.

Indeed, after six days all the men returned again, and life in the city continued as before.

Sinbad also really wanted to fly through the air. When another eleven months had passed, Sinbad decided to ask one of his friends to take him with them. But no matter how much he asked, no one agreed. Only his best friend, a coppersmith from the main city market, finally decided to fulfill Sinbad’s request and told him:

- At the end of this month, come to the mountain near the city gates. I will wait for you at this mountain and take you with me.

On the appointed day, Sinbad came to the mountain early in the morning. The coppersmith was already waiting for him there. Instead of arms, he had wide wings of shiny white feathers.

He ordered Sinbad to sit on his back and said:

- Now I will fly with you over the lands, mountains and seas. But remember the condition that I will tell you: while we are flying, be silent and do not utter a single word. If you open your mouth, we'll both die.

“Okay,” said Sinbad. “I will be silent.” He climbed onto the coppersmith's shoulders, and he opened his wings and flew high into the air. He flew for a long time, rising higher and higher, and the earth below seemed to Sinbad no larger than a cup thrown into the sea. And Sinbad could not resist and exclaimed:

- What a miracle!

Before he had time to utter these words, the wings of the bird-man hung limply and he began to slowly fall down.

Luckily for Sinbad, at that time they were just flying over some large river. Therefore, Sinbad did not crash, but only hurt himself on the water. But the coppersmith, his friend, had a bad time. The feathers on his wings became wet, and he sank like a stone.

Sinbad managed to swim to the shore and go onto land. He took off his wet clothes, wrung them out and looked around, not knowing where on earth he was. And suddenly, from behind a stone lying on the road, a snake crawled out, holding in its mouth a man with a long gray beard. This man waved his arms and shouted loudly:

- Save me! To the one who saves me, I will give half of my wealth!

Without thinking twice, Sinbad picked up a heavy stone from the ground and threw it at the snake. The stone broke the snake in half, and it released its victim from its mouth. The man ran up to Sinbad and exclaimed, crying with joy:

- Who are you, oh good stranger? Tell me what your name is so that my children will know who saved their father.

“My name is Sinbad the Sailor,” answered Sinbad. “And you?” What is your name and what land are we in?

“My name is Hassan the jeweler,” the man answered. “We are in the land of Egypt, not far from the glorious city of Cairo, and this river is the Nile.” Let's go to my house, I want to reward you for your good deed. I will give you half of my goods and money, and this is a lot, since I have been trading in the main market for fifty years and have long been a foreman of Cairo merchants.

Hassan the jeweler kept his word and gave Sinbad half of his money and goods. Other jewelers also wanted to reward Sinbad for saving their foreman, and Sinbad ended up with more money and jewelry than he had ever had before. He bought the best Egyptian goods, loaded all his wealth onto camels and left Cairo for Baghdad.

After a long journey, he returned to his hometown, where they no longer hoped to see him alive.

Sinbad's wife and friends calculated how many years he had been traveling, and it turned out to be twenty-seven years.

“It’s enough for you to travel to foreign countries,” his wife said to Sinbad. “Stay with us and don’t leave anymore.”

Everyone tried to persuade Sinbad so much that he finally agreed and swore an oath not to travel again. For a long time, Baghdad merchants came to him to listen to stories about his amazing adventures, and he lived happily until death came to him.

This is all that has reached us about the travels of Sinbad the Sailor.

During the reign of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, there lived in the city of Baghdad a poor man named Sinbad. To feed himself, he carried weights on his head for a fee. But there were many poor porters like him, and therefore Sinbad could not ask for as much as he was entitled to for his work. He had to be content with meager pennies, so that he almost died of hunger.

One day he was carrying heavy carpets on his head, he could barely move his legs, sweat was pouring off him like a hail, his head was buzzing, and the poor man thought that he was about to lose consciousness. Sinbad passed just past one house, and from the gate a cool breath blew on him, and the smell of delicious food made his head spin. There was a stone bench in the shade in front of the house. Sinbad could not stand it, put the carpets on the ground and sat down on a bench to rest and get some fresh air. Cheerful voices were heard from the house, wonderful singing and the clinking of glasses and dishes were heard.

Who needs such a life?

Just hunger and need.

Others, basking in idleness,

They spend their days in joy,

Not knowing grief and need.

But they are like me and you,

And although their wealth is countless, -

In the end, all people are mortal.

Well, is that fair?

That only the rich live happy?

When he finished, a young servant in an expensive dress came out of the gate.

My master heard your poems,” said the young man. - He invites you to have dinner with him and spend the evening together.

Sinbad got scared and began to say that he had done nothing wrong. But the young man smiled welcomingly at him, took his hand, and the porter had to accept the invitation.

Sinbad had never seen such luxury as was in that house in his life. Servants scurried back and forth with dishes full of rare dishes, wonderful music was heard everywhere, and Sinbad decided that he was dreaming all this.

The young man led the porter into a small room. There, at the table, sat an important gentleman, looking more like a scientist than a deceiver. The owner nodded to Sinbad and invited him to the table.

What is your name? - he asked the porter.

“Sinbad the porter,” answered the poor man.

My name is also Sinbad, people called me Sinbad the Sailor, and now you will find out why. I heard your poems and I liked them. So know that you are not the only one who has had to experience need and adversity. I will tell you about everything that I experienced before I achieved the honor and wealth that you see here. But first you must eat.

Sinbad the porter did not force himself to be persuaded and pounced on the food. And when Sinbad the Sailor saw that the guest was enjoying his vacation and was already full, he said:

I have already told you a hundred times what you are about to hear. I have no one to tell about this anymore. And it seems to me that you will understand me better than others. Sinbad the Porter did not dare to object, he just nodded, and his namesake Sinbad the Sailor began his story.

My father was a rich merchant, and I was his only son. When he died, I inherited all his property. And everything that my father saved during his life, I managed to squander in one year in the company of idle and lazy people like me. All I have left is a vineyard. I sold it, bought various goods with the proceeds and joined a caravan of merchants who were planning to go to distant overseas countries. I hoped that I would sell my goods there at a profit and become rich again.

The merchants and I set off on a voyage across the sea. We sailed for many days and nights, from time to time we landed on the shore, exchanged or sold our goods and bought new ones. I liked the trip, my wallet became fatter, and I no longer regretted my frivolous and carefree life. I carefully watched how people lived in foreign countries, took an interest in their customs, studied their languages ​​and felt great.

So we sailed to a wonderful island overgrown with dense forest. The trees were covered with fruits, unprecedented flowers were fragrant, and streams with crystal clear water were rustling everywhere. We went down to the shore to take a break from the rocks in this piece of paradise. Some enjoyed the juicy fruits, others lit a fire and began to cook food, others swam in cool streams or walked around the island. So we were enjoying the peace, when suddenly we heard a loud cry from the captain, who remained on the ship. He waved his arms and shouted:

Save yourself, who can! Run to the ship! This is not an island, but the back of a huge fish!

And indeed, it was not an island, but the back of a monstrous fish rising above the water. Over the years, sand has accumulated on it, the wind has carried plant seeds there, and trees and flowers have grown there. All this happened only because the fish fell asleep a hundred years ago and did not move until it was awakened by the fire that we lit. The fish felt something burning its back and turned around.

One after another we jumped into the sea and swam to the ship. But not everyone managed to escape. Suddenly the island fish hit the water with its tail and sank into the depths of the sea. Roaring waves closed over the trees and flowers, and I, along with others, found myself under water.

Fortunately, I clung to the wooden trough that we had taken to the island to get fresh water into it. I didn’t let go of the trough, even though my soul sank into my heels. It swirled around with me underwater until I finally surfaced. I sat astride the trough, began to row with my feet, and swam in this strange canoe for one day and one night; All around, wherever you looked, there was water, an endless expanse of sea.

I was exhausted under the scorching rays of the sun, suffering from hunger and thirst. And suddenly, when it seemed to me that my end was approaching, I saw a green strip of land on the horizon. I strained my last strength and, when the sun had already begun to sink into the sea, I sailed in my trough to the island. The singing of birds and the scent of flowers could be heard from the island. I went ashore. The first thing that caught my eye was a spring gushing out of a rock overgrown with ferns. I fell to him with burning lips and drank until I fell onto the grass as if killed. The sound of the sea and the singing of birds lulled me to sleep, and the wonderful aroma of flowers acted like intoxication. I woke up the next day, when the sun was already high. After eating fruit and drinking from the spring, I went into the interior of the island to look around. I walked under the spreading crowns of trees, made my way through thickets strewn with flowers, but did not meet a soul anywhere. I only scared the timid monkeys a couple of times.

It seemed to me that this forest would never end. I climbed a tall tree and began to look around. “Maybe there is some kind of building here after all,” I thought. I strained my vision as best I could, and finally I saw a huge white dome on a sandbank in the distance. I decided that this was the roof of the palace, quickly climbed down from the tree and headed in that direction.

But I had to walk for a long time through the green forest, among lush flowers that were so fragrant that I almost fell asleep again. Finally I emerged from the forest and stood under a shiny white ball, so huge that its top was not visible. I walked around the ball and thought about how to get into it. But there were no windows or doors anywhere. I tried to climb onto it, but the surface of the dome was so smooth that even a fly could not stay on it.

Tired, I sat down near the dome and began to watch the sun set. Soon it would be evening again, and I was obviously destined to be alone on this island until I died. I missed my hometown, its noisy harbors and ships.

Suddenly everything around became dark, as if someone had thrown a huge black blanket over the sun. I raised my head and saw that the sun was covered by a black cloud. The cloud kept growing and approaching the island. And then I began to discern the outlines of a huge bird. Her wings were like clouds blocking the sun. The bird, circling in the air, headed straight towards the dome under which I was resting. I barely had time to bury myself in the sand, huddled in fear and waited for what would happen next.

The bird landed on the island, covered the ball with its wing and fell asleep. I guessed that it was the Ruhkh bird. Sailors often talked about her. They said that she fed her chicks with elephants, and on one island she laid huge eggs. “This ball,” I thought, “is nothing more than the egg of the Rukh bird.” So I lay buried in the sand, and suddenly I thought that with the help of this huge bird I could get out of the island.

I took the turban off my head, unwound it and tied myself to the leg of a sleeping bird. Out of fear, I did not sleep a wink and barely waited for the morning.

When the sun rose, the bird woke up and screamed so loudly and protractedly that it woke up all the birds and monkeys in the forest. Then she noisily spread her huge wings and soared into the air. The roc bird didn't notice that I was tied to its leg. She flew over the endless expanse of the sea, dispersing clouds with her wings, as if they were fluff from flowers. The fast flight made me dizzy, and my heart was pounding wildly with fear. The Rukh bird did not stop until it had flown across the entire sea. Then she sank into a deep and wide valley. I quickly untied my turban and hid behind a large stone. The Rukh bird rose into the air and began to circle over the valley, suddenly it sank and immediately soared into the heights again. I saw that in the mines she was holding a huge snake, longer and thicker than the largest cedar. Before I had time to come to my senses, the Rukh bird was already flying in the distance over the sea.

I decided to look around and walked along the valley. My legs were still shaking after the terrible flight. The valley was surrounded on all sides by high mountains, their peaks touching the clouds. There was no water or vegetation here, the ground under my feet was strewn with stones. I felt uneasy. I already regretted leaving the island. “At least there I could eat fruit and drink fresh water,” I reproached myself. - And there are no springs or grass here. Surely starvation awaits me here.” So I grieved and wandered around the valley, head down, and suddenly noticed that under my feet there were no ordinary stones: the entire valley was strewn with precious diamonds. And among the stones black snakes basked in the sun. Each of them was larger than the tallest palm tree. “This is where you've come, Sinbad,” I thought. “That’s why you threw your inheritance into the wind so quickly, so that you could die here as quickly as possible among huge monsters and precious stones, which are of no use to you.” Lost in thought, I walked further until I reached the foot of a high mountain. I sat down there on a stone and began to wait for night. “Apparently, this will be my last night,” I thought. “If I don’t die from hunger and thirst, then the snakes will escort me to the next world.”

Suddenly I saw something falling to the ground. It was a freshly slaughtered sheep. She turned over twice in the air and finally fell into the dust right on the diamonds. Several gems stuck to the carcass. And then I remembered how one merchant told me about the valley of diamonds. “This valley,” he said, “is located in a distant mountainous country, where no one has ever reached alive. It is full of terrible snakes. But people came up with a trick to mine diamonds. They slaughter a sheep or other animal and throw the meat into the valley. Diamonds stick to the bloody carcass. At noon, eagles and vultures descend into the valley, and people wait for them. The birds grab the carcasses and fly up the mountain with them. People attack them with sticks and clubs, the bird releases its prey, and then all that remains is to collect the diamonds stuck to the meat.”

“I will finally be saved,” I exclaimed joyfully. I quickly collected as many large diamonds as I could carry with me, filled all my pockets with them, and then again unraveled my turban, lay down on the ground and tied myself to the mutton carcass. I didn't have to wait long. A minute later, wings rustled above me, a huge eagle grabbed a sheep with its talons and rose into the air. He sank to the top of the mountain, released us from his claws and began pecking at the meat. But suddenly a crowd of people attacked him. They screamed and pounded the rocks with sticks. The eagle got scared, abandoned its prey and flew away. How surprised people were when they saw that I, Sinbad, had crawled out from under the sheep! I told them about how I ended up in the valley of diamonds and thanked them for saving me. People believed me. They were also merchants and traded in diamonds. The merchants invited me to their ship. Without hesitation, I agreed, because I also now had a bunch of diamonds, a fortune! With new friends I went to the open sea. I was rich again, alive and well, and looking forward to the future.

We sailed from pier to pier, I met new people, black, white, yellow, who spoke different languages, sold and bought goods. Finally, I was able to load my own ship with expensive cargo and send it to my native shores.

But suddenly one night a terrible storm arose, the wind broke the masts, and the rudder failed. When the storm subsided in the morning, we saw that our ship had washed up on the shores of a foreign land. As soon as the captain saw this shore, he began to tear out his hair, moan and cry.

Oh woe to us, woe! Prepare to die! There is no salvation for us,” he shouted. - We are in the land of the “furry”!

From his words we understood that this is an island where people live who look like monkeys, yellow-eyed, covered with black fur. Before we had time to come to our senses, these monsters attacked our ship, surrounded us, began to tear our clothes, scratch and bite. Finally, the enemies took us to the island. Then they raised the sails and sailed away on our ship to an unknown destination.

Unhappy we wandered around the island until we finally came to a huge stone palace. The ebony gates were wide open. We entered them and found ourselves in a large courtyard. The yard was empty. We could barely stand on our feet from fatigue. Everyone lay down in the shadow of the huge pillars and fell asleep.

We were awakened by a terrible noise; it seemed as if a thousand winds had conspired and blew all at once. We jumped to our feet and saw a giant in front of us. His skin was dark blue, and his eyes sparkled like fire; his teeth stuck out like the tusks of a boar, and his fingernails were wide and sharp, like those of a lion. The giant slowly descended the huge staircase straight towards us. We huddled together like frightened chickens; we didn’t utter a sound out of horror. The monster bent down, moved its fingers over a group of frightened people and grabbed me. The giant looked at me with his sparkling eyes, probed me from all sides, then let go and grabbed another, then a third, until he had examined us all. Finally he chose the captain, the biggest and fattest of us.

Yep, you'll make a good roast! - said the giant in a thunderous voice. He lit a fire in the yard on a brazier. Then we recovered from our fright and ran away. And the giant burst into terrible laughter. He knew that we could not escape anywhere. All the same, he will gather us all, like a dove to a pea.

We hid in hollows and climbed into animal holes, but this did not save us. Every evening the giant came out of the palace and caught one of us. Then he lit a fire in the yard, and in the morning we heard terrible sounds, it seemed like someone was shaking the rocks. This giant was snoring after a hearty dinner.

Are we really going to let him hunt us down like rabbits? - I said one evening to the surviving merchants. And I told them what I was planning to do. We ran to the shore and began pulling thick tree trunks into a pile and tying them with ropes made from palm bast. Soon the raft was ready. When the giant's snoring was heard, we went to the palace. The giant stretched out on a stone bench and slept like the dead. We took two spits on which he fried meat, heated them on the fire and put them to the eyes of the cannibal, and immediately, with all our strength, we ran to the sea, where our raft stood.

The cannibal screamed in a terrible voice, it seemed that the island would fall into the sea from his scream. With his arms outstretched and stomping like a herd of elephants, he set off in pursuit of us. The enraged giant uprooted trees, scattered them in all directions like twigs, and broke huge rocks into pieces, but we were already on the shore and lowered the raft into the water. “Now the blind giant will never catch up with us,” we rejoiced.

But before we had time to sail from the shore, we saw next to the giant his wife, who was even more terrible than him. Our hair stood on end with horror; after all, we didn’t even realize that there was someone else on the island. Then she noticed us, grabbed the giant by the hand and dragged him to the sea. On the shore, they began to break off huge boulders from the rocks, the size of a camel, and threw them after us. One of the boulders fell onto the raft. The raft shattered and we all found ourselves in the sea. Stone blocks rained down on us as if there was an earthquake. It seemed that we were all destined to die. But still, one of us was saved, and it was me. I climbed onto the logs that remained from the raft. They easily kept one person afloat. Fortunately, a high wave came and carried me and the raft into the open sea. And the stones kept falling into the sea, but now they did not reach me. The waves carried me further and further, but for a long time I heard the roar of the blinded giant. Again I was left alone in the vast expanse of the sea, ragged, like a beggar, without food and without fresh water.

And why did I need all this, I scolded myself. - Why didn’t I stay at home? What drew me to foreign countries? Now I would only need one date and the shade of the trees along the road just to be at home. Why do I need wealth, because the homeland is the most precious thing a person has.

These thoughts never left me, but I should have thought about it sooner. And now I was alone in the sea, the sun was mercilessly scorching overhead, and there was not a cloud in the sky.

I wrapped the remnants of my clothes around my head so that the sun would not deprive me of my mind, covered my face and eyes and relied on fate. Finally I fell asleep. When I woke up, I heard wonderful music and birds singing. Under the rags with which my head was shrouded, the scent of flowers penetrated, and somewhere nearby, streams sang like silver bells. I was scared and thought that my end was near. “It’s obvious that this is all nonsense,” I decided and tore the rags off my head. I didn’t want to believe either my eyes or my ears; my raft washed up on the sandy shore of a wonderful bay. Tree branches bent over me, thousands of vines hung over the water, and luxurious orchids and other rare flowers sparkled in the sun. Transparent mountain streams fell from the rocks into the valley. I got up and with difficulty reached one of these streams. My legs were shaking and my head was spinning. I washed my face with cold water, wet my hands and back and drank greedily. Refreshing with water and refreshed with fruits, I began to sing and jumped for joy like a kid. What a blessing that I am alive and well! But I was even more delighted when I got to the green lawn and saw there an old man with a long gray beard. He seemed very kind to me.

Finally I see a person again! - I exclaimed and ran up to the old man. I spoke to him and told him about all my misadventures, and the old man began to praise the beauty of this island, extolling to the skies the huge pier where ships from all over the world come.

“Take me there,” I asked him, “and I will remember you with gratitude until death.”

“I would be happy to take you there,” said the old man. - But I can’t walk, my legs have stopped obeying me. I'm waiting for my grandson to come for me. But you know what, put me on your back and I will show you the way. We'll get there in an hour.

I put the old man on my shoulders, and he showed me which way to go. We headed to the pier. But as soon as I took a few steps, I was surprised to feel that the old man was very heavy. He wrapped his legs tightly around my neck, pressed his knees into my chest and began to laugh.

Gotcha, you simpleton,” he shouted, “now you’ll drag me to death like a donkey!”

He pushed me in the back and forced me to run faster in one direction or the other, or simply spin around in place. I tried my best to throw off the evil old man, but nothing worked. So I became his slave. The old man didn’t even get off my back at night. I slept sitting up, and he woke me up every minute and tormented me. We wandered for many days and nights back and forth through beautiful forests full of birds and flowers, through shady groves, through fragrant meadows, and I did not notice anything around me. I was tormented by terrible pain in my back and lower back, I felt that I was getting weaker every day , and the old man became more and more unbearable and heavier, as if he was squeezing all the juice out of me.

One day we stopped on a hillock overgrown with vines. Then I noticed a dried pumpkin on the ground. I picked it up and filled it with grain and grapes. Since then, I carried the pumpkin with me and from time to time exposed it to the scorching rays of the sun. After a few days, the grapes fermented, and its juice turned into strong wine.

Now at least I have something to eat, I thought.

But when I brought the pumpkin to my mouth, the old man snatched it from my hands and drank all the wine in one breath. Then he began to sing, laugh, clapped his hands, pounded my neck with his fists, hit my sides with his heels, pushed me, demanded that I dance with him. The wine affected him so much that he stopped thinking. But he soon calmed down. I suddenly felt that his legs were gradually unclenching, he was no longer squeezing me as tightly as usual! I straightened my shoulders and threw the old man to the ground like a pear.

I suddenly felt so light, as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders, I sighed with relief and looked at the old man. He lay in the grass completely helpless and slept like a marmot.

“You’ll jump when you wake up,” I laughed. - Now wait for the second fool like me to pass by!

Then I left the old man and cheerfully headed in the direction where flocks of pigeons often flew. I walked for two days and finally came to a big city with a harbor. I walked the streets, stopped at markets, but everywhere I heard someone else talking. And only in the evening, while relaxing by the well in the market square, I heard someone speaking my native language.

I jumped up and ran up to the smartly dressed people, spoke to them and saw that they understood me. But these people looked at me like I was crazy. And if I could look at myself from the outside, I would not condemn them for this. Instead of clothes, I had only a bandage around my hips, my face was wrinkled, my cheeks and chin were overgrown with thick stubble, and the scorching rays of the sun turned the skin on my body pitch black. This is how I changed over the years of my wanderings. I had to talk about myself for a long time, and finally they believed that I was not lying. And when I remembered about the island that was on the back of a monstrous fish, the merchants looked at me in surprise, whispered among themselves, and then suddenly one of them asked:

Listen, are you by any chance Sinbad, the merchant from Baghdad?

How did you recognize me?! - I exclaimed joyfully.

Then the merchants began to hug and congratulate me, I recognized them as my friends from the first ship, those who managed to escape and swam away before the monstrous fish plunged into the sea. Their ship was anchored in the local harbor. The next day they took me onto the ship, showed me my goods, which were still lying in the hold, gave me expensive clothes, and I became a merchant again.

And since my comrades had already sold and bought everything they wanted, our ship headed straight to our native shores. We arrived safely in Baghdad. There I sold my goods and bought myself a house with a garden and a vineyard. I was a good merchant and after a few years became one of the richest men in the city. It also helped me that over the years of wandering I had studied life so well. But I no longer dared to travel by sea. “It’s good everywhere, but it’s better at home,” I say. When I need to sell or exchange goods, I send one of my assistants in my place to foreign countries. I have three large ships and they plow the sea all the time, but not a drop of salt water gets on me. Sinbad the Sailor finished his story and waited for what Sinbad the Porter would say. But he was silent. Then the rich owner poured wine into his goblet and said:

Apparently you didn’t understand why I told you about my misadventures. I thought this would be instructive for you, I wanted to tell you not to despair, not to curse your fate, even if life seems unbearable. Everything I have I earned through hard work. Don’t hang your head, because I had it harder than you, but look around - now I live like in paradise.

And then Sinbad the porter asked Sinbad the Sailor:

O lord, how long have you carried this old man on your back?

“Many, many days, no less than four weeks,” answered Sinbad the Sailor.

Do you think you could wear it for a year or even your whole life?

At most I could stand it for six months,” answered Sinbad the Sailor. - Maybe I would have died earlier than in six months. Then Sinbad the porter said:

You see, my lord, I’ve been carrying such an old man for thirty years. Every day it becomes heavier and heavier, it drives me here and there, tears a piece out of my mouth, at night I feel it on my back, but I can’t get it off.

Sinbad the Sailor understood his namesake and invited him to live in his house until his death. “You will compose poems for me,” he told his guest, “and together we will reflect on life.”

But Sinbad the porter politely thanked him for this offer and for his hospitality, said goodbye to Sinbad the Sailor and left the house. It was already cool outside. Sinbad the porter put heavy carpets on his head and went his way. Sinbad the Sailor looked after him from the window and heard him repeating his poems:

Who needs such a life?

Just hunger and need.

basking in idleness,

They spend their days in joy,

Not knowing grief and need,

But they are like me and you,

And may their wealth be countless,

In the end, all people are mortal."

Sinbad the Sailor – Arabian Tale

First trip

A long time ago, there lived in the city of Baghdad a merchant whose name was Sinbad. He had a lot of goods and money, and his ships sailed on all seas. Ship captains, returning from travel, told Sinbad amazing stories about their adventures and about the distant countries they visited.
Sinbad listened to their stories, and he wanted more and more to see with his own eyes the wonders and wonders of foreign countries.
And so he decided to go on a long journey.
He bought a lot of goods, chose the fastest and strongest ship and set off. Other merchants went with him with their goods.
Their ship sailed for a long time from sea to sea and from land to land, and, landing on land, they sold and bartered their goods.
And then one day, when they had not seen land for many days and nights, the sailor on the mast shouted:
- Shore! Shore!
The captain steered the ship towards the shore and dropped anchor off a large green island. Wonderful, unprecedented flowers grew there, and colorful birds sang on the branches of shady trees.
The travelers came down to the ground to take a break from the rocking. Some of them lit a fire and began to cook food, others washed clothes in wooden troughs, and some walked around the island. Sinbad also went for a walk and, unnoticed by himself, moved away from the shore. Suddenly the ground began to move under his feet, and he heard the captain’s loud cry:
- Save yourself! Run to the ship! This is not an island, but a huge fish!
And in fact, it was a fish. It was covered with sand, trees grew on it, and it became like an island. But when the travelers lit a fire, the fish became hot and began to move.
- Hurry! Hurry! - the captain shouted. “Now she will dive to the bottom!”
The merchants abandoned their boilers and troughs and rushed to the ship in horror. But only those who were close to the shore managed to escape. The island fish sank into the depths of the sea, and everyone who was late went to the bottom. Roaring waves closed over them.
Sinbad also did not have time to reach the ship. The waves crashed against him, but he swam well and surfaced to the surface of the sea. A large trough floated past him, in which the merchants had just washed their clothes. Sinbad sat astride the trough and tried to row with his feet. But the waves threw the trough left and right, and Sinbad could not control it.
The captain of the ship ordered the sails to be raised and sailed away from this place, without even looking at the drowning man.
Sinbad looked after the ship for a long time, and when the ship disappeared into the distance, he began to cry with grief and despair. Now he had nowhere to wait for salvation.
The waves beat the trough and threw it from side to side all day and all night. And in the morning, Sinbad suddenly saw that he was washed up on a high bank. Sinbad grabbed the tree branches that hung over the water, and, gathering his last strength, climbed onto the shore. As soon as Sinbad felt himself on solid ground, he fell onto the grass and lay as if dead all day and all night.
In the morning he decided to look for some food. He reached a large green lawn covered with colorful flowers, and suddenly saw in front of him a horse, the most beautiful in the world. The horse's legs were tangled, and he was nibbling the grass on the lawn.
Sinbad stopped, admiring this horse, and after a little time he saw in the distance a man running, waving his arms and shouting something. He ran up to Sinbad and asked him:
- Who are you? Where are you from and how did you come to our country?
“Oh, sir,” answered Sinbad, “I am a foreigner.” I was sailing on a ship on the sea, and my ship sank, and I managed to grab onto the trough in which they wash clothes. The waves carried me across the sea until they brought me to your shores. Tell me, whose horse is this, so beautiful, and why is he grazing here alone?
“Know,” the man answered, “that I am the groom of King al-Mihr-jan.” There are many of us, and each of us follows only one horse. In the evening we bring them to graze in this meadow, and in the morning we take them back to the stable. Our king loves foreigners very much. Let's go to him - he will greet you warmly and show you mercy.
“Thank you, sir, for your kindness,” said Sinbad.
The groom put a silver bridle on the horse, removed the fetters and led him into the city. Sinbad followed the groom.
Soon they arrived at the palace, and Sinbad was led into the hall where King al-Mihrjan was sitting on a high throne. The king treated Sinbad kindly and began to question him, and Sinbad told him about everything that had happened to him. Al-Mihrjan showed him mercy and appointed him commander of the harbour.
From morning to evening, Sinbad stood on the pier and recorded the ships that came into the harbor. He lived for a long time in the country of King al-Mihrjan, and every time a ship approached the pier, Sinbad asked the merchants and sailors which way the city of Baghdad was. But none of them had heard anything about Baghdad, and Sinbad almost gave up hope that he would see his hometown.
And King al-Mihrjan fell in love with Sinbad very much and made him his close confidant. He often talked with him about his country and, when he traveled around his possessions, he always took Sinbad with him.
Sinbad had to see many miracles and wonders in the land of King al-Mihrjan, but he did not forget his homeland and only thought about how to return to Baghdad.
One day Sinbad stood, as always, on the seashore, sad and sorrowful. At this time, a large ship approached the pier, on which there were many merchants and sailors. All the residents of the city ran ashore to meet the ship. The sailors began to unload goods, and Sinbad stood and wrote down. In the evening, Sinbad asked the captain:
- How many goods are still left on your ship?
“There are several more bales in the hold,” answered the captain, “but their owner drowned.” We want to sell these goods and take the money for them to his relatives in Baghdad.
- What is the name of the owner of these goods? - asked Sinbad.
“His name is Sinbad,” answered the captain. Hearing this, Sinbad screamed loudly and said:
- I'm Sinbad! I got off your ship when it landed on the fish island, and you left and left me when I was drowning in the sea. These products are my products.
- You want to deceive me! - cried the captain. “I told you that I have goods on my ship, the owner of which drowned, and you want to take them for yourself!” We saw Sinbad drown and many merchants drowned with him. How can you say that the goods are yours? You have neither honor nor conscience!
“Listen to me, and you will know that I am telling the truth,” said Sinbad. “Don’t you remember how I hired your ship in Basra, and a scribe named Suleiman Lop-Ear brought me together with you?”
And he told the captain everything that had happened on his ship since the day they all sailed from Basra. And then the captain and merchants recognized Sinbad and were glad that he was saved. They gave Sinbad his goods, and Sinbad sold them for a large profit. He took leave of King al-Mihrjan, loaded the ship with other goods that were not in Baghdad, and sailed on his ship to Basra.
His ship sailed for many days and nights and finally dropped anchor in the harbor of Basra, and from there Sinbad went to the City of Peace, as the Arabs called Baghdad at that time.
In Baghdad, Sinbad distributed some of his goods to friends and acquaintances, and sold the rest.
He suffered so many troubles and misfortunes on the way that he decided never to leave Baghdad again.
Thus ended the first voyage of Sinbad the Sailor.

Second trip

But soon Sinbad got tired of sitting in one place, and he wanted to swim the seas again. He bought goods again, went to Basra and chose a large, strong ship. For two days the sailors put goods in the hold, and on the third day the captain ordered the anchor to be raised, and the ship set off, driven by a fair wind.
Sinbad saw many islands, cities and countries on this journey, and finally his ship landed on an unknown beautiful island, where clear streams flowed and thick trees grew, hung with heavy fruits.
Sinbad and his companions, merchants from Baghdad, went ashore for a walk and scattered around the island. Sinbad chose a shady place and sat down to rest under a thick apple tree. Soon he felt hungry. He took a roast chicken from his travel bag and some cakes that he had taken from the ship, and ate it, and then lay down on the grass and immediately fell asleep.
When he woke up, the sun was already low. Sinbad jumped to his feet and ran to the sea, but the ship was no longer there. He sailed away, and everyone who was on it - the captain, the merchants, and the sailors - forgot about Sinbad.
Poor Sinbad was left alone on the island. He cried bitterly and said to himself:
- If on my first trip I escaped and met people who brought me back to Baghdad, now no one will find me on this deserted island.
Until nightfall, Sinbad stood on the shore, watching to see if a ship was sailing in the distance, and when it got dark, he lay down on the ground and fell fast asleep.
In the morning, at sunrise, Sinbad woke up and went deep into the island to look for food and fresh water. From time to time he climbed the trees and looked around, but saw nothing but forest, earth, etc. water.
He felt sad and scared. Do you really have to live your whole life on this deserted island? But then, trying to cheer himself up, he said:
- What's the use of sitting and grieving! No one will save me if I don't save myself. I’ll go further and maybe I’ll get to the place where people live.
Several days passed. And then one day Sinbad climbed a tree and saw in the distance a large white dome that sparkled dazzlingly in the sun. Sinbad was very happy and thought: “This is probably the roof of the palace in which the king of this island lives. I will go to him and he will help me get to Baghdad."
Sinbad quickly descended from the tree and walked forward, not taking his eyes off the white dome. Approaching a close distance, he saw that it was not a palace, but a white ball - so huge that its top was not visible. Sinbad walked around him, but did not see any windows or doors. He tried to climb onto the top of the ball, but the walls were so slippery and smooth that Sinbad had nothing to grab onto.
“What a miracle! - thought Sinbad. “What kind of ball is this?”
Suddenly everything around went dark. Sinbad looked up and saw that a huge bird was flying above him and its wings, like clouds, were blocking the sun. Sinbad was frightened at first, but then he remembered that the captain of his ship said that on the distant islands there lives a bird called Ruhkh, which feeds its chicks with elephants. Sinbad immediately realized that the white ball was the egg of the Rukh bird. He hid and waited to see what would happen next. The Rukh bird, circling in the air, landed on the egg, covered it with its wings and fell asleep. She didn't even notice Sinbad.
And Sinbad lay motionless near the egg and thought: “I found a way to get out of here. If only the bird didn’t wake up.”
He waited a little and, seeing that the bird was fast asleep, quickly took off the turban from his head, unwound it and tied it to the leg of the Rukh bird. She didn’t move - after all, in comparison with her, Sinbad was no more than an ant. Having become attached, Sinbad lay down on the bird's leg and said to himself:
“Tomorrow she will fly away with me and, perhaps, will take me to a country where there are people and cities. But even if I fall and break, it’s still better to die right away than to wait for death on this uninhabited island.”
Early in the morning, just before dawn, the Ruhkh bird woke up, noisily spread its wings, screamed loudly and protractedly, and soared into the air. Sinbad closed his eyes in fear and tightly grabbed the bird's leg. She rose to the very clouds and flew for a long time over the waters and lands, and Sinbad hung tied to her leg and was afraid to look down. Finally, the Rukh bird began to descend and, sitting on the ground, folded its wings. Then Sinbad quickly and carefully untied his turban, trembling for fear that Rukh would notice him and kill him.
But the bird never saw Sinbad. She suddenly grabbed something long and thick from the ground with her claws and flew away. Sinbad looked after her and saw that Rukh was carrying away in his claws a huge snake, longer and thicker than the largest palm tree.
Sinbad rested a little and looked around -*- and it turned out that the bird Rukh had brought him to a deep and wide valley. Huge mountains stood around like a wall, so high that their peaks rested on the clouds, and there was no way out of this valley.
“I got rid of one misfortune and found myself in another, even worse one,” said Sinbad, sighing heavily. “On the island there were at least fruits and fresh water, but here there is neither water nor trees.”
Not knowing what to do, he sadly wandered around the valley, head down. Meanwhile, the sun rose over the mountains and illuminated the valley. And suddenly she all sparkled brightly. Every stone on the ground sparkled and shimmered with blue, red, yellow lights. Sinbad picked up one stone and saw that it was a precious diamond, the hardest stone in the world, which is used to drill metals and cut glass. The valley was full of diamonds, and the land in it was diamond.
And suddenly a hiss was heard from everywhere. Huge snakes crawled out from under the stones to bask in the sun. Each of these snakes was larger than the tallest tree, and if an elephant came into the valley, the snakes would probably swallow it whole.
Sinbad trembled with horror and wanted to run, but there was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Sinbad rushed in all directions and suddenly noticed a small cave. He crawled into it and found himself right in front of a huge snake, which curled up into a ball and hissed menacingly. Sinbad became even more frightened. He crawled out of the cave and pressed his back against the rock, trying not to move. He saw that there was no salvation for him.
And suddenly a large piece of meat fell right in front of him. Sinbad raised his head, but there was nothing above him except the sky and rocks. Soon another piece of meat fell from above, followed by a third. Then Sinbad realized where he was and what kind of valley it was.
Long ago, in Baghdad, he heard from a traveler a story about the Valley of Diamonds. “This valley,” said the traveler, “is located in a distant country between the mountains, and no one can get into it, because there is no road there. But the merchants who trade in diamonds came up with a trick to extract the stones. They kill a sheep, cut it into pieces and throw the meat into the valley.
Diamonds stick to the meat, and at noon birds of prey - eagles and hawks - descend into the valley, grab the meat and fly up the mountain with it. Then the merchants, knocking and shouting, drive the birds away from the meat and tear off the stuck diamonds; they leave the meat for the birds and beasts.”
Sinbad remembered this story and was happy. He figured out how to save himself. He quickly collected as many large diamonds as he could carry with him, and then unraveled his turban, lay down on the ground, put a large piece of meat on himself and tied it tightly to himself. Not even a minute had passed before a mountain eagle descended into the valley, grabbed the meat with its claws and rose into the air. Having reached a high mountain, he began to peck at the meat, but suddenly loud screams and knocking were heard from behind him. The alarmed eagle abandoned its prey and flew away, and Sinbad untied his turban and stood up. The knocking and rumble was heard getting closer, and soon an old, fat, bearded man in merchant's clothes ran out from behind the trees. He beat the wooden shield with a stick and shouted at the top of his voice to drive away the eagle. Without even looking at Sinbad, the merchant rushed to the meat and examined it from all sides, but did not find a single diamond. Then he sat down on the ground, grabbed his head with his hands and exclaimed:
- What kind of misfortune is this! I had already thrown a whole bull into the valley, but the eagles took all the pieces of meat to their nests. They left only one piece and, as if on purpose, one to which not a single pebble stuck. Oh woe! O failure!
Then he saw Sinbad, who was standing next to him, covered in blood and dust, barefoot and in torn clothes. The merchant immediately stopped screaming and froze in fear. Then he raised his stick, covered himself with a shield and asked:
- Who are you and how did you get here?
-* Do not be afraid of me, venerable merchant. “I will not harm you,” answered Sinbad. “I, too, was a merchant, like you, but I experienced many troubles and terrible adventures.” Help me get out of here and get to my homeland, and I will give you as many diamonds as you have ever had.
“Do you really have diamonds?” asked the merchant. “Show me.”
Sinbad showed him his stones and gave him the best ones. The merchant was delighted and thanked Sinbad for a long time, and then he called other merchants who also mined diamonds, and Sinbad told them about all his misfortunes.
The merchants congratulated him on his rescue, gave him good clothes and took him with them.
They walked for a long time through the steppes, deserts, plains and mountains, and Sinbad had to see many miracles and wonders before he reached his homeland.
On one island he saw a beast called karkadann. Karkadann looks like a large cow and has one thick horn in the middle of its head. He is so strong that he can carry a large elephant on his horn. From the sun, the elephant's fat begins to melt and floods the carcass's eyes. Karkadann goes blind and lies down on the ground. Then the bird Rukh flies to him and carries him in its claws along with the elephant to its nest.
After a long journey, Sinbad finally reached Baghdad. His family greeted him with joy and organized a celebration for his return. They thought that Sinbad was dead and did not hope to see him again. Sinbad sold his diamonds and began trading again as before.
Thus ended the second voyage of Sinbad the Sailor.

Third journey

Sinbad lived in his hometown for several years, without leaving anywhere. His friends and acquaintances, Baghdad merchants, came to him every evening and listened to stories about his wanderings, and every time Sinbad remembered the bird Rukh, the diamond valley of huge snakes, he became so scared, as if he were still wandering in the valley of diamonds .
One evening, as usual, his merchant friends came to Sinbad. When they finished dinner and prepared to listen to the owner’s stories, a servant entered the room and said that a man was standing at the gate selling strange fruits.
“Order him to come here,” said Sinbad.
The servant brought the fruit merchant into the room. He was a dark man with a long black beard, dressed in a foreign style. On his head he carried a basket full of magnificent fruits. He placed the basket in front of Sinbad and removed the cover from it.
Sinbad looked into the basket and gasped in surprise. It contained huge round oranges, sour and sweet lemons, oranges, bright as fire, peaches, pears and pomegranates, so large and juicy, which do not exist in Baghdad.
-Who are you, stranger, and where did you come from? - Sinbad asked the merchant.
“Oh sir,” he answered, “I was born far from here, on the island of Serendib.” All my life I sailed the seas and visited many countries and everywhere I sold such fruits.
- Tell me about the island of Serendib: what is it like and who lives on it? - said Sinbad.
- You can’t tell about my homeland in words. It must be seen, since there is no island in the world more beautiful and better than Seren-dib,” answered the merchant. “When the traveler steps ashore, he hears the singing of beautiful birds, whose feathers glow in the sun like precious stones. Even the flowers on the island of Serendib glow like bright gold. And there are flowers on it that cry and laugh. Every day at sunrise they raise their heads up and shout loudly: “Morning! Morning!" - and laugh, and in the evening, when the sun sets, they lower their heads to the ground and cry. As soon as darkness falls, all kinds of animals come to the seashore - bears, leopards, lions and sea horses - and each one holds in his mouth a precious stone that sparkles like fire and illuminates everything around. And the trees in my homeland are the rarest and most expensive: aloe, which smells so wonderful when lit; strong water that goes to ship masts - not a single insect will gnaw through it, and neither water nor cold will harm it; tall palms and shiny ebony, or ebony. The sea around Serendib is gentle and warm. At the bottom of it lie wonderful pearls - white, pink and black, and fishermen dive into the water and take them out. And sometimes they send little monkeys for pearls...
The fruit merchant talked for a long time about the wonders of the island of Serendib, and when he finished, Sinbad generously rewarded him and released him. The merchant left, bowing low, and Sinbad went to bed, but for a long time he tossed from side to side and could not sleep, remembering the stories about the island of Serendib. He heard the splash of the sea and the creaking of ship masts, he saw in front of him wonderful birds and golden flowers sparkling with bright lights. Finally he fell asleep and dreamed of a monkey with a huge pink pearl in its mouth.
When he woke up, he immediately jumped out of bed and said to himself:
- I definitely have to visit the island of Serendib! Today I will start getting ready for the journey.
He collected all the money he had, bought goods, said goodbye to his family and again went to the seaside city of Basra. He spent a long time choosing a better ship for himself and finally found a beautiful, strong ship. The captain of this ship was a sailor from Persia named Buzurg - an old fat man with a long beard. He sailed the ocean for many years, and his ship was never wrecked.
Sinbad ordered his goods to be loaded onto Buzurg's ship and set off. His merchant friends went with him, who also wanted to visit the island of Serendib.
The wind was fair and the ship was moving quickly forward. The first days everything went well. But one morning a storm began at sea; A strong wind arose, which kept changing direction. Sinbad's ship was carried across the sea like a piece of wood. Huge waves rolled across the deck one after another. Sinbad and his friends tied themselves to the masts and began to say goodbye to each other, not hoping to escape. Only Captain Buzurg was calm. He himself stood at the helm and gave orders in a loud voice. Seeing that he was not afraid, his companions also calmed down. By noon the storm began to subside. The waves became smaller and the sky cleared. Soon there was complete calm.
And suddenly Captain Buzurg began to hit himself in the face, moan and cry. He tore the turban from his head, threw it on the deck, tore his robe and shouted:
- Know that our ship is caught in a strong current and we cannot get out of it! And this current carries us to a country called “The Country of the Furry Ones.” People who look like monkeys live there; no one has ever returned alive from this country. Get ready for death - there is no salvation for us!
Before the captain had time to finish speaking, a terrible blow was heard. The ship shook violently and stopped. The current drove him to the shore, and he ran aground. And now the entire shore was covered with little people. There were more and more of them, they rolled from the shore straight into the water, swam up to the ship and quickly climbed the masts. These little people, covered with thick hair, with yellow eyes, crooked legs and tenacious hands, gnawed through the ship's ropes and tore off the sails, and then rushed at Sinbad and his companions. The leading man crept up to one of the merchants. The merchant pulled out his sword and cut it in half. And immediately ten more furry ones rushed at him, grabbed him by the arms and legs and threw him into the sea, followed by the second and third merchant.
- Are we really afraid of these monkeys?! - Sinbad exclaimed and took the sword out of its sheath.
But Captain Buzurg grabbed him by the hand and shouted:
- Watch out, Sinbad! Don't you see that if each of us kills ten or even a hundred monkeys, the rest will tear him to pieces or throw him overboard? We run from the ship to the island, and let the monkeys get the ship.
Sinbad listened to the captain and sheathed his sword.
He jumped out onto the shore of the island, and his companions followed him. Captain Buzurg was the last to leave the ship. He was very sorry to leave his ship to these shaggy monkeys.
Sinbad and his friends slowly walked forward, not knowing where to go. They walked and talked quietly among themselves. And suddenly captain Buzurg exclaimed:
- Look! Look! Castle!
Sinbad raised his head and saw a tall house with black iron gates.
- People may live in this house. “Let’s go and find out who its owner is,” he said.
The travelers walked faster and soon reached the gate of the house. Sinbad was the first to run into the yard and shouted:
- There was probably a feast here recently! Look - cauldrons and frying pans are hanging on sticks around the brazier and gnawed bones are scattered everywhere. And the coals in the brazier are still hot. Let's sit on this bench for a while - maybe the owner of the house will come out into the yard and call us.
Sinbad and his companions were so tired that they could hardly stand on their feet. They sat down, some on a bench, some directly on the ground, and soon fell asleep, basking in the sun. Sinbad woke up first. He was awakened by a loud noise and rumble. It seemed that a large herd of elephants was passing somewhere nearby. The ground shook from someone's heavy steps. It was already almost dark. Sinbad stood up from the bench and froze in horror: a man of enormous stature was moving straight towards him - a real giant, looking like a tall palm tree. He was all black, his eyes sparkled like burning brands, his mouth looked like the hole of a well, and his teeth stuck out like the tusks of a boar. His ears fell onto his shoulders, and the nails on his hands were wide and sharp, like a lion's. The giant walked slowly, slightly bent, as if it was difficult for him to bear his head, and sighed heavily. With every breath, the trees rustled and their tops bent to the ground, as if during a storm. In the giant's hands was a huge torch - an entire trunk of a resinous tree.
Sinbad's companions also woke up and lay on the ground half-dead from fear. The giant came up and bent over them. He looked at each of them for a long time and, having chosen one, picked it up like a feather. It was Captain Buzurg - the largest and fattest of Sinbad's companions.
Sinbad pulled out his sword and rushed to the giant. All his fear passed, and he thought of only one thing: how to snatch Buzurg from the hands of the monster. But the giant kicked Sinbad aside with a kick. He lit a fire on the brazier, roasted Captain Buzurg and ate him.
Having finished eating, the giant stretched out on the ground and snored loudly. Sinbad and his comrades sat on a bench, huddled together and holding their breath.
Sinbad was the first to recover and, making sure that the giant was fast asleep, jumped up and exclaimed:
- It would be better if we drowned in the sea! Are we really going to let the giant eat us like sheep?
“Let’s leave here and look for a place where we can hide from him,” said one of the merchants.
-Where should we go? “He will find us everywhere,” objected Sinbad. “It will be better if we kill him and then sail away by sea.” Maybe some ship will pick us up.
- What will we sail away on, Sinbad? - asked the merchants.

Look at these logs stacked near the brazier. “They are long and thick, and if you tie them together, they will make a good raft,” said Sinbad. “Let’s take them to the seashore while this cruel ogre sleeps, and then we will come back here and figure out a way to kill him.”
“This is a great plan,” said the merchants and began to drag the logs to the seashore and tie them with ropes made of palm bast.
By morning the raft was ready, and Sinbad and his comrades returned to the giant's courtyard. When they arrived, the cannibal was not in the yard. He did not appear until the evening.
When it got dark, the earth shook again and a rumble and stomping was heard. The giant was close. As the day before, he slowly walked up to Sinbad's comrades and bent over them, shining a torch on them. He chose the fattest merchant, pierced him with a skewer, fried him and ate him. And then he stretched out on the ground and fell asleep.
- Another of our companions has died! - exclaimed Sinbad. - But this is the last one. This cruel man will not eat any of us again.
- What are you planning, Sinbad? - the merchants asked him.
- Watch and do as I say! - exclaimed Sinbad.
He grabbed two spits on which the giant fried meat, heated them on the fire and put them to the eyes of the cannibal. Then he made a sign to the merchants, and they all piled onto the spits together. The ogre's eyes went deep into his head and he went blind.
The cannibal jumped up with a terrible cry and began to rummage around with his hands, trying to catch his enemies. But Sinbad and his comrades rushed away from him and ran to the sea. The giant followed them, continuing to scream loudly. He caught up with the fugitives and overtook them, but never caught anyone. They ran between his legs, dodged his hands, and finally ran to the seashore, boarded the raft and sailed away, rowing the thin trunk of a young palm tree like an oar.
When the cannibal heard the sound of the oar hitting the water, he realized that his prey had left him. He screamed even louder than before. Two more giants, just as scary as he, came running to his cry. They broke off a huge stone from the rocks and threw it after the fugitives. Blocks of rocks fell into the water with a terrible noise, only slightly touching the raft. But such waves arose from them that the raft capsized. Sinbad's companions could not swim at all. They immediately choked and sank. Only Sinbad himself and two other younger merchants managed to grab the raft and stay on the surface of the sea.
Sinbad barely climbed back onto the raft and helped his comrades out of the water. The waves carried away their oar, and they had to float with the current, guiding the raft slightly with their feet. It was getting lighter. The sun was soon to rise. Sinbad's comrades, wet and shivering, sat on the raft and complained loudly. Sinbad stood on the edge of the raft, looking out to see if the shore or the sails of a ship could be seen in the distance. Suddenly he turned to his companions and shouted:
- Take courage, my friends Ahmed and Hassan! The land is not far, and the current carries us straight to the shore. Do you see the birds circling there, in the distance, above the water? Their nests are probably somewhere nearby. After all, birds do not fly far from their chicks.
Ahmed and Hassan cheered and raised their heads. Hasan, whose eyes were as keen as a hawk's, looked forward and said:
-Your truth, Sinbad. Over there, in the distance, I see an island. Soon the current will bring our raft towards it, and we will rest on solid ground.
The exhausted travelers rejoiced and began to row harder with their legs to help the flow. If only they knew what awaited them on this island!
Soon the raft washed ashore, and Sinbad, Ahmed and Hassan went onto land. They slowly walked forward, picking up berries and roots from the ground, and saw tall, spreading trees on the bank of the stream. The thick grass beckoned to lie down and rest.
Sinbad threw himself under a tree and immediately fell asleep. He was awakened by a strange sound, as if someone was grinding grain between two huge stones. Sinbad opened his eyes and jumped to his feet. He saw in front of him a huge snake with a wide mouth, like a whale. The snake lay calmly on its belly and moved its jaws lazily, with a loud crunch. This crunch woke up Sinbad. And human feet in sandals protruded from the snake’s mouth. By the sandals, Sinbad recognized that these were Ahmed's feet.
Gradually, Ahmed completely disappeared into the belly of the snake, and the snake slowly crawled into the forest. When he disappeared, Sinbad looked around and saw that he was left alone.
“Where is Hassan? - thought Sinbad. “Did the snake eat him too?”
- Hey, Hassan, where are you? - he shouted.
- Here! - a voice came from somewhere above.
Sinbad raised his head and saw Hassan, who was sitting huddled in the thick branches of a tree, neither alive nor dead from fear.
- Get in here too! - he shouted to Sinbad. Sinbad grabbed several coconuts from the ground and
climbed up a tree. He had to sit on the top branch, it was very uncomfortable. And Hassan settled perfectly on a wide lower branch.
Sinbad and Hassan sat on the tree for many hours, waiting every minute for the snake to appear. It began to get dark, night came, but the monster was still not there. Finally, Hasan could not stand it any longer and fell asleep, leaning his back against a tree trunk and dangling his legs. Soon Sinbad also dozed off. When he woke up, it was light and the sun was quite high. Sinbad carefully leaned down and looked down. Hassan was no longer on the branch. On the grass, under a tree, his turban was white and his worn-out shoes were lying - all that was left of poor Hassan.
“He, too, was devoured by this terrible snake,” thought Sinbad. “Apparently, you can’t hide from him in a tree.”
Now Sinbad was alone on the island. For a long time he looked for some place to hide from the snake, but there was not a single rock or cave on the island. Tired of searching, Sinbad sat down on the ground near the sea and began to think about how he could escape.
“If I escaped from the hands of the cannibal, will I really allow myself to be eaten by a snake? - he thought. “I am a man, and I have a mind that will help me outwit this monster.”
Suddenly a huge wave splashed from the sea and threw a thick ship's plank onto the shore. Sinbad saw this board and immediately figured out how to save himself. He grabbed the board, picked up several more smaller boards on the shore and took them into the forest. Having chosen a board of the appropriate size, Sinbad tied it to his feet with a large piece of palm bast. He tied the same board to his head, and two others to his body, right and left, so that he seemed to be in a box. And then he lay down on the ground and waited.
Soon the crackling of brushwood and a loud hiss were heard. The snake smelled the man and sought out its prey. His long head appeared from behind the trees, on which two large eyes shone like torches. He crawled up to Sinbad and opened his mouth wide, sticking out a long forked tongue.
He looked at the box in surprise, from which there was such a delicious human smell, and tried to grab it and chew it with his teeth, but the strong wood did not give in.
The snake walked around Sinbad from all sides, trying to tear off the wooden shield from him. The shield turned out to be too strong, and the snake only broke off its teeth. In a rage, he began to hit the boards with his tail. The boards shook, but held firm. The snake worked for a long time, but never got to Sinbad. Finally, he was exhausted and crawled back into the forest, hissing and scattering dry leaves with his tail.
Sinbad quickly untied the boards and jumped to his feet.
“Lying between the boards is very uncomfortable, but if the snake catches me defenseless, it will eat me,” Sinbad said to himself. “We must escape from the island.” It is better that I drown in the sea than perish in the mouth of the serpent, like Ahmed and Hassan.
And Sinbad decided to make himself a raft again. He returned to the sea and began collecting boards. Suddenly he saw a ship's sail nearby. The ship was getting closer and closer, a fair wind was driving it towards the shores of the island. Sinbad tore off his shirt and began to run along the shore, waving it. He waved his arms, shouted and tried in every possible way to attract attention. Finally, the sailors noticed him, and the captain ordered the ship to be stopped. Sinbad rushed into the water and reached the ship in a few strokes. From the sails and clothing of the sailors, he learned that the ship belonged to his fellow countrymen. Indeed, it was an Arab ship. The captain of the ship heard many stories about the island where a terrible snake lives, but he never heard of anyone being saved from it.
The sailors greeted Sinbad kindly, fed and clothed him. The captain ordered the sails to be raised, and the ship rushed on.
He sailed for a long time on the sea and finally swam to some land. The captain stopped the ship at the pier, and all the travelers went ashore to sell and barter their goods. Only Sinbad had nothing. Sad and sorrowful, he remained on the ship. Soon the captain called him over and said:
- I want to do a good deed and help you. There was one traveler with us whom we lost, and I do not know whether he is dead or alive. And his goods still lie in the hold. Take them and sell them in the market, and I will give you something for your troubles. And what we cannot sell, we will take to Baghdad and give it to relatives.
“I’ll do it willingly,” said Sinbad.
And the captain ordered the sailors to take the goods out of the hold. When the last bale was unloaded, the ship's scribe asked the captain:
- What kind of goods are these and what is the name of their owner? In whose name should they be written?
“Write it in the name of Sinbad the Sailor, who sailed with us on the ship and disappeared,” answered the captain.
Hearing this, Sinbad almost fainted from surprise and joy.
“Oh, sir,” he asked the captain, “do you know the man whose goods you ordered me to sell?”
“It was a man from the city of Baghdad named Sinbad the Sailor,” answered the captain.
- It's me Sinbad the Sailor! - Sinbad shouted. “I didn’t disappear, but fell asleep on the shore, and you didn’t wait for me and swam away.” It was on my last journey when the bird Rukh brought me to the valley of diamonds.
The sailors heard Sinbad's words and surrounded him in a crowd. Some believed him, others called him a liar. And suddenly one merchant, who was also sailing on this ship, approached the captain and said:
- Do you remember I told you how I was on the diamond mountain and threw a piece of meat into the valley, and some man clung to the meat, and the eagle brought it to the mountain along with the meat? You didn't believe me and said I was lying. Here is a man who tied his turban to my piece of meat. He gave me diamonds that couldn’t be better, and said that his name was Sinbad the Sailor.
Then the captain hugged Sinbad and said to him:
- Take your goods. Now I believe that you are Sinbad the Sailor. Sell ​​them quickly before the market runs out

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Sinbad the Sailor (Arabian tale)

During the reign of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, there lived in the city of Baghdad a poor man named Sinbad. To feed himself, he carried weights on his head for a fee. But there were many poor porters like him, and therefore Sinbad could not ask for as much as he was entitled to for his work.
He had to be content with meager pennies, so that he almost died of hunger.
One day he was carrying heavy carpets on his head, he could barely move his legs, the sweat was rolling
it was pouring out of him, his head was buzzing, and the poor fellow felt like he was about to lose consciousness. Sinbad passed just past one house, and from the gate a cool breath blew on him, and the smell of delicious food made his head spin. There was a stone bench in the shade in front of the house. Sinbad could not stand it, put the carpets on the ground and sat down on a bench to rest and get some fresh air. Cheerful voices were heard from the house, wonderful singing and the clinking of glasses and dishes were heard.
Sinbad sighed and began to read aloud the poems that had just come to him.
head:

Who needs such a life?
Just hunger and need.
Others, basking in idleness,
They spend their days in joy,
Not knowing grief and
needs.
But they are like me and you,
And although their wealth is countless, -
In the end, all people are mortal.
Well, is that fair?
That only the rich live happy?

When he finished, a young servant in an expensive dress came out of the gate.
“My master heard your poems,” said the young man. - He invites you to have dinner with him and spend the evening together.
Sinbad got scared and began to say that he had done nothing wrong. But the young man smiled welcomingly at him, took his hand, and the porter had to accept the invitation. Sinbad had never seen such luxury as was in that house in his life. Servants scurried back and forth with dishes full of rare dishes, wonderful music was heard everywhere, and Sinbad decided that he was dreaming all this. The young man led the porter into a small room. There, at the table, sat an important gentleman, looking more like a scientist than a deceiver. The owner nodded to Sinbad and invited him to the table.
- What is your name? - he asked the porter.
“Sinbad the porter,” answered the poor man.
- My name is also Sinbad, people called me Sinbad the Sailor, and now you will find out why. I heard your poems and I liked them. So know that you are not the only one who has had to experience need and adversity. I will tell you about everything that I experienced before I achieved the honor and wealth that you see here. But first you must eat.

Sinbad the porter did not force himself to be persuaded and pounced on the food. And when Sinbad the Sailor saw that the guest was enjoying his vacation and was already full, he said:
“I’ve already told you a hundred times what you’re about to hear.” I have no one to tell about this anymore. And it seems to me that you
you will understand me better than others. Sinbad the porter did not dare to object, he just nodded, and his namesake Sinbad the Sailor began his story.

My father was a rich merchant, and I was his only son. When he died, I inherited all his property. And everything that my father saved during his life, I managed to squander in one year in the company of idle and lazy people like me. All I have left is a vineyard. I sold it, bought various goods with the proceeds and joined a caravan of merchants who were planning to go to distant overseas countries. I hoped that I would sell my goods there at a profit and become rich again.

The merchants and I set off on a voyage across the sea. We sailed for many days and nights, from time to time we landed on the shore, exchanged or sold our goods and bought new ones. I liked the trip, my wallet became fatter, and I no longer regretted my frivolous and carefree life. I carefully watched how people lived in foreign countries, took an interest in their customs, studied their languages ​​and felt great.

And for many more days and nights Sinbad's ship sailed from sea to sea. And then one day a sailor on the mast shouted:
- Shore! Shore!

So we sailed to a wonderful island overgrown with dense forest. The trees were covered with fruits, unprecedented flowers were fragrant, and streams with crystal clear water were rustling everywhere. We went down to the shore to take a break from the rocks in this piece of paradise. Some enjoyed the juicy fruits, others lit a fire and began to cook food, others swam in cool streams or walked around the island.

We were enjoying the peace so much when suddenly we heard a loud cry from the captain, who remained on the ship.