In one city, two artisans lived nearby: the dyer Abu-Kir and the barber Abu-Sir. Both of them did not get out of need. The dyer was a lazy man and a cheat; he often deceived and robbed customers. If someone brought fabric to his shop, he never saw it again. Abu-Kir sold the fabric, ate the money, and then lied to the customer and told various tales: he either said that the fabric was stolen by thieves, or assured that it had deteriorated during dyeing, in a word, he had no shortage of excuses. And the barber Abu Sir was a diligent and good craftsman, but what was the point: he was poor and could not offer visitors a refreshing bath, as other barbers and barbers did.
And no one looked into the shop of the dyer Abu-Kir either; The whole city knew about his tricks.
In the evenings they sat in front of their shops and complained to each other about their evil fate.
“You know what,” the dyer once said to the barber, “let’s go to foreign countries, otherwise here you and I will die of hunger.” And when Abu Sir agreed to leave, Abu Kir said:
- Oh neighbor, we will put all our earnings into one wallet and divide everything equally, like true friends.
The good-natured barber agreed to this too. The next day at dawn they boarded a ship that was just sailing to distant lands.
There was no barber on the ship, so work was immediately found for Abu Sir.
He shaved merchants and sailors, and they gave him cakes, cheese, figs, dates and money. Abu-Kir lay around all day and ate all the food that Abu-Sir received for his work alone. But Abu Sir did not reproach the dyer and was glad that his friend was full; The barber dreamed of how well they would live in foreign countries when they both earned money.
Three weeks later the voyage ended, and the ship anchored in the harbor of a large city. The dyer Abu-Kir did not want to part with his carefree life on the ship. Finally, Abu Sir persuaded his lazy friend, and they walked through the streets of an unfamiliar city. They walked all day, unable to feel their legs from fatigue, until they finally removed the poor closet.
The dyer Abu-Kir immediately collapsed on the bed and fell asleep. And the next day he slept until noon, and in the meantime Abu Sir was already running around the market and along the pier in search of work. He wasted no time and worked hard. In the evening, Abu Sir returned home with bread and fruit. This was a lot of food for two, but Abu-Kir ate it all alone. He didn't even rise from his bed. And so it went day after day: Abu Sir left to work in the morning and returned in the evening with food; sometimes he brought in some money. And Abu-Kir lay on his bed all day long and also reproached his friend for bringing little food.
Forty days have passed since they settled in a strange city. And on the forty-first day the barber fell seriously ill. He could not get up from his bed and thought that now Abu Kir would take care of food and drink. But AbuKir did not even think of getting up. He begged a sick friend for money and sent one boy who lived in the same house to get food.
On the fourth day, the barber became very ill and lost consciousness. Abu Qir decided that he was dead. And only then, finally, the lazy dyer got up and, without saying a word to anyone, left the house. At the market, Abu-Kir bought himself some beautiful clothes with his friend’s money and began walking around the city in his new outfit.
So he approached the shop of a dyer. Abu-Kir was very surprised when he saw that all the fabrics were painted only blue. He entered the shop, took a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to the dyer.
“Hey, master, take this scarf and paint it green,” said Abu-Kir.
“I won’t be able to do this,” the dyer shook his head.
“Well, then in red,” asked Abu-Kir.
“And I can’t cope with this,” the dyer sighed. “Here we only know how to paint blue.”
This is all Abu Qir needed to know. He left the shop and went straight to the Sultan's palace. The dyer ordered the servants to report themselves as a wonderful master from a distant overseas country. He asked the Sultan to allow him to stay in his city and open a dyeing workshop here. Abu Qir told the Sultan about what wonderful purple paint he could make from sea shells and snails, described to him the beauty of saffron and crimson-red flowers and other wonderful shades.
The Sultan showered Abu Qir with money, gave him a beautiful house full of servants, and ordered the craftsmen to immediately begin building a large dyehouse.
Meanwhile, Abu Qir ordered from distant countries everything he needed for his craft. When the dyehouse was ready, he set to work. Abu Qir hired assistants and taught them his craft. Here he stopped working completely, sat all day long, lounging on a high seat, and gave orders, and slaves brought him various delicacies and wonderful drinks. Orders poured in from all sides: first from the Sultan and his entourage, then from noble people of that country. Everyone admired the art of Abu Qir and praised him. The rest of the dyers in that city soon lost their jobs. They had no choice but to take on the most menial work in Abu Qir’s workshop.
What was the barber Abu Sir doing in the meantime? When the poor fellow regained consciousness, he was very surprised to see that the room was empty. Abu Sir could not move. He moaned and called for help until the gatekeeper of this house heard him. He entered the room, and Abu Sir asked him to bring some food, and most importantly, drink, because the unfortunate barber was dying of thirst.
He told the gatekeeper that he would pay him for everything as soon as his friend returned. The gatekeeper took care of Abu Sir for a week or two, but Abu Kir did not return. Now Abu Sir was sure that his friend had robbed him and left him in trouble. But the gatekeeper consoled him as best he could and said that he should not despair because of this.
“I will take care of you until you get better,” he told the barber.
Abu Sir thanked the gatekeeper and promised to pay for everything. But two whole months passed before he recovered. As soon as Abu Sir felt that he could stand on his feet, he went to the city and began to look for work. The barber came to the market and saw a rich house there. There was a large shop next to it. Abu Sir remembered that these buildings had not been here before. In front of the shop it was noisy, like a beehive, people were noisy, pushing each other, and exclamations of admiration were heard from all sides.
The barber asked one man what kind of house this was. He answered him that a certain Abu-Kir, a friend of the Sultan, a wonderful master who knew how to dye fabrics in unprecedented colors, opened a dyeing shop here.
Abu Sir was delighted when he heard about this; he sincerely wished his friend success and wealth. Out of his kindness, he forgave Abu Qir for stealing money from him and leaving him sick and in need.
The barber entered the shop and saw Abu Kir, dressed in a luxurious outfit. The dyer sat on expensive pillows, surrounded by slaves. He feasted on sweets laid out on precious dishes, shouted at his workers and ordered: “Do this, do that!”
But Abu Sir had no idea what awaited him. As soon as Abu Qir noticed the barber, he shouted:
- Stop the thief!
And he pointed his finger at Abu Sir.
The servants of Abu Qir immediately attacked the poor barber, beat him and threw him out into the street.
The unfortunate Abu Sir could not understand why his friend treated him so cruelly. He rubbed his bruises, his temples were buzzing. Abu Sir wandered around the market, not himself.
Then he thought that it would be nice to wash in the bathhouse, there he could wash his wounds and cool his bruises. The barber asked one of the city residents how to get to the bathhouse. But he did not answer Abu Sir, he just stared at him and went his way.
Abu Sir stopped the second passerby and repeated his question.
- What kind of bathhouse? - the passerby was surprised. - What is this?
“This is the best thing in the world,” answered Abu Sir and began to tell what kinds of baths there are.
“We don’t have anything like that here,” a passerby told him. - But I will give you good advice. Go to the Sultan and tell him everything that I just heard from you. Perhaps happiness will smile on you.
Abu Sir listened to the townsman, went to the Sultan's palace and asked to report on himself. And when the Sultan received him, the barber said:
- O great Sultan, I happened to find out that there is no bathhouse in your city! How can such a beautiful city do without a bathhouse?
And Abu Sir described to the Sultan all the delights of bathing. He told him that a person who has been to the bathhouse becomes younger in soul and body, that bathing heals the sick, gladdens the heart and enlivens the mind.
The Sultan welcomed all innovations. He immediately ordered Abu Sir to be dressed in a luxurious dress, showered him with money and allowed the barber to build baths anywhere in the city.
Abu Sir chose a suitable place and ordered the construction of baths, the likes of which the world had never seen before. The slaves planted cypresses and roses around the building. Among them were hidden fountains with fragrant water and gazebos where luten players were hidden. And when the building was ready and everything around was noisy and fragrant, Abu Sir invited the Sultan to the bathhouse.
The Sultan was delighted with this innovation and almost moved with the entire court to the baths. The whole city went to look at them, and anyone who washed himself in the bathhouse at least once came there again and again. So Abu Sir became rich, expanded the baths so that there was enough space for all the inhabitants of the city, decorated and completed the building, and the Sultan visited him every day.
When Abu-Kir learned about this miracle, he thought that it would not be a bad idea to experience for himself all the benefits that baths give to the soul and body. The dyer went to the barber's house. But he stopped as if struck by thunder when he saw his friend Abu Sir on the threshold of the house in a wonderful outfit, surrounded by nobles who sought his favor. Abu Qir immediately came to his senses and exclaimed:
“And you still haven’t remembered your good old friend, Abu Sir?” Why didn't you invite me to your place? I missed you so much that I couldn’t stand it and came without an invitation.
“But you ordered to beat me and throw me out the door just when I was in dire need,” said the surprised Abu Sir.
And then Abu-Kir began to swear that he had never in his life or in his thoughts offended his friend. True, he once ordered a thief to be thrown out the door.
“But now I see,” exclaimed Abu Qir, “that it was a terrible mistake.” After all, this thief was like two peas in a pod, Abu Sir. But how could I think it was you? After all, I decided that you died!
He again made false vows, told how he missed his friend, how he mourned him. Good-natured Abu Sir believed every word of the dyer. The barber invited his friend to his place, gave him preference over the most important nobles, treated Abu Kir and was glad that they were both so lucky: both he and his friend became friends of the Sultan and his advisers. But the insidious Abu-Kir only listened out of the corner of his ear to Abu-Sir, beaming with happiness. He was already thinking about how to deprive his friend of the Sultan’s favor and get rid of him forever.
“You have everything you need here,” he told his friend goodbye. “But there’s still one thing missing from your baths.”
- What? - asked Abu Sir.
“I don’t see your bathhouse with foaming water,” answered Abu-Kir.
“You’re right,” Abu Sir agreed. “I’ll order it to be done right now.” The friends said goodbye and swore eternal friendship to each other. But the dyer Abu Qir did not go to his home, he went straight to the Sultan and told him:
- It’s your happiness, oh great Sultan, that today I went to the bathhouse. The man who built the baths pretends to be your friend, but know that he is going to destroy you.
The angry and envious dyer slandered Abu Sir in front of the Sultan as best he could. He told him that he had met Abu Sir on the ship and that he had entrusted him with his secret.
“He told me,” Abu-Kir lied, “that he was sent by overseas princes, and they ordered him to kill you in order to then seize your state.” O great Sultan, believe that I wanted to hand him over to the guards as soon as we went ashore, but the clever barber immediately got lost in the crowd. And from that time on, I did not know a moment of peace, fearing for your life. Only now has the stone been lifted from my heart, because I have finally found the treacherous AbuSir.
At first the Sultan did not want to believe Abu Qir. But Abu Qir said:
- O Sultan, go to the bathhouse tomorrow. You will see that Abu Sir will call you to a bath of foaming water. But don't be deceived. The water in that bath is poisonous. If you had entered there, there would have been no bones left of you. The next day the Sultan went to the bathhouse. Abu Sir met him with all honors. The Sultan wanted, as usual, to bathe in rose water. But Abu Sir smiled and said:
- O Sultan, today I want to surprise you. I have prepared for you a bath of foaming water that smells of jasmine. Only she is worthy of you. After swimming in this water, you will feel twenty years younger. As soon as the Sultan heard the barber’s words, his eyes sparkled angrily. He immediately ordered his guards to tie up Abu Sir and take him to prison. Then the Sultan called the captain, the chief of the guard, and said to him:
“Tomorrow at dawn, sew this villain into a bag, put him in a boat and go to sea.” As soon as you see me in the window of the palace and hear me shout: “Drown him!”, immediately throw the bag into the water.
But the captain was a kind man, and Abu Sir always washed him for free in the best baths, and soon they became friends. So he decided to thank Abu Sir for everything. When night fell, the captain took Abu Sir out of prison, put him in a boat and took him to an island that stood in the sea opposite the Sultan's palace. There Abu Sir had to wait a week until a ship arrived on the island. The captain wanted to put Abu Sir on this ship and send him to a distant country, where he would no longer be threatened by the Sultan’s revenge.
Abu Sir did not know how to thank the captain. The barber sat down in an empty hut on the shore and began to think about how he had angered the Sultan so much that he almost took his life.
At dawn, the captain sewed a large stone into a bag, loaded it into the boat and sailed across the sea to the palace. After a while he saw that the Sultan looked out of the window, raised his hand and shouted:
- Drown him!
The captain threw a heavy bag into the water, and the Sultan began rubbing his hands with joy. He thought that he had gotten rid of the criminal who wanted to take his life forever.
Then the captain noticed something sparkle and fall into the water. If he had known what it was, he would have behaved completely differently. He would not have gone, after mooring to the shore, to the palace to the Sultan with his head down, he would not have waited with trembling for the Sultan’s new orders, he would not have been afraid that he would reveal his cunning and find Abu Sir alive and unharmed.
And the Sultan felt uneasy. Just at that moment, when he was rubbing his hands contentedly, something terrible happened. He walked away from the window and trembled all over. He dropped his gold ring into the sea. That ring was not simple, but enchanted, and so great was its power that without it the Sultan could no longer be a formidable ruler. When he pointed at someone with a finger wearing a ring, the unfortunate man’s head immediately fell from his shoulders. And the troops, and the guards, and all the people in the state obeyed the Sultan only thanks to this ring. Everyone feared him and obeyed him unquestioningly.
The Sultan did not say a word to anyone and trembled with fear. He was afraid that someone would realize that he no longer had the ring: the Sultan knew that then his subjects would probably kill him and choose a new ruler.
Meanwhile, Abu Sir sat on the shore. He threw the net that the captain had left him into the sea and caught fish. The first time he was lucky: he pulled out a full net. Abu Sir chose the largest fish and began to gut it. Suddenly the knife came across something hard in the gills of the fish. The barber saw that it was a gold ring. The astonished Abu Sir examined the ring carefully, then put it on his little finger and began to fish again. But he kept thinking about how this ring got into the fish’s gills. “Wouldn’t it be better to throw it away so that it doesn’t bring me new trouble,” thought Abu Sir.
Just then two old women were passing by. Seeing a bunch of beautiful fish, they were very surprised. Abu Sir waved his hand at them and wanted to tell them that they could take the fish if they liked it. But the words got stuck in his throat: for no apparent reason, the old women’s heads fell off their shoulders. There was not a soul around, only an invisible sword could do this. Abu Sir's fear made him lose his teeth; he no longer wanted fried fish. He hid in his hut and was afraid to even stick his head out: what if an invisible sword punished him too?
The barber sat for a long time in his hut, huddled in a corner, and suddenly he heard someone calling him. Abu Sir recognized the captain's voice. He came to tell his friend that a ship would soon pass by and take AbuSir away. The barber overcame his fear and crawled out of the hut. Then he saw that the captain was standing over the corpses of the headless women and looking at them in amazement. Abu Sir was already stretching out his hands to greet the captain. He was glad that he would finally leave this enchanted place. But then the captain noticed the ring on his finger and shouted:
- Oh my brother! Don't move, put your hands down, otherwise you'll kill me! And then he asked the surprised Abu Sir where he got the ring from. The captain immediately recognized the Sultan's ring.
“I found it in the gills of fish,” said Abu Sir.
“I saw him fall into the sea,” the good captain recalled, “just at that moment when the Sultan leaned out of the window.”
The captain told Abu Sir about the magical properties of this ring and explained to him that he, without meaning to, cut off the heads of two women.
-What are you going to do, Abu Sir? - the captain asked his friend. “After all, now you are the most powerful man in the whole country.”
“Take me to the Sultan,” said Abu Sir. The captain said:
- Well, have it your way. I will take you to the Sultan, even though he will know that I did not carry out his orders.
Now the captain was no longer afraid of the Sultan; without the ring he was not afraid of anyone.
The barber and the captain drove up to the palace, climbed out of the boat onto the shore and went straight to the Sultan. The Sultan sat pale, surrounded by his advisers and guards, and hid his hand all the time so that no one would guess that the ring was missing
He waited in horror for what would happen when those close to him found out about this. When the Sultan saw the captain and Abu Sir, he did not show that his power had come to an end.
- How dare you? - he shouted menacingly at the captain. “Not only did you not drown this villain, but you also brought him to me!” Both of you will pay dearly for this!
He was about to order the guards to seize the captain and the barber, but then Abu Sir took a step forward and, carefully, so that others would not notice anything, showed the Sultan the ring on his finger. The Sultan almost fainted and staggered. But the carpets and the pile of pillows that were behind him held him up and he didn't fall. Having come to his senses, he ordered the guards to leave. Then Abu Sir handed him the ring and said:
- O Sultan, this is the surest proof that I never wished you harm. Has anyone else had as many opportunities to become a sultan as I have? But know that I am your faithful friend, and therefore I am returning the ring to you.
The Sultan immediately put the ring on his finger, and immediately it was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He hugged Abu Sir and exclaimed:
“Oh brother, I thank you with all my heart, you saved my life.” Abu Sir asked the Sultan why he was so angry with him. Then the happy Sultan told him how the dyer had warned him about the bath with foaming water, in which, according to Abu Qir, certain death awaited the Sultan.
“Forgive me, oh friend, that I so easily believed this lie,” the Sultan asked with tears in his eyes.
Abu Sir finally realized that his friend Abu Kir was not only the most lazy man the world had ever seen, but also an evil and worthless person. In his heart he reproached himself for not immediately guessing about this: after all, laziness and meanness are sisters. Where one is doing a dirty deed, the other is looking over her shoulder, and both betray each other.
Meanwhile, Abu Kir sat in his luxurious house and gave orders. He supported his head with one hand, and extended the other to a golden dish full of various sweets, and ate all the time. He didn’t even remember his unfortunate friend Abu Sir, who suffered an evil fate through his fault; Now his envious soul has calmed down.
Suddenly a noise was heard from the street, armed soldiers entered the shop, pulled Abu-Kir off the pillows, tied him up, put him backwards on a donkey and, in front of all the townspeople, took him to the Sultan.
Abu Qir had everything mixed up in his head; he didn’t know why the Sultan was suddenly angry with him. But when the dyer saw Abu Sir alive next to the Sultan, he realized that his hours were numbered.
The good-natured Abu Sir stood up for the dyer in vain; the Sultan did not listen to him. And the reprisal that awaited Abu Sir befell Abu Kir. The Sultan ordered him to be thrown into the sea.
Then the Sultan said to the barber:
- O Abu Sir, ask me whatever you want. I will fulfill your every wish.
“Your baths are so good that you couldn’t wish for anything better,” answered Abu Sir.
- I did everything I could for you. Let me return home to my hometown. Since I have lost my only fellow countryman, nothing here will please me anymore.
The Sultan persuaded Abu Sir to stay. He promised him mountains of gold, honors, offered to marry his daughter, but Abu Sir stood his ground and kept insisting that he wanted to return to his homeland. He did not say out loud what he was thinking: anyway, nothing good awaits him here, since the Sultan so easily believes slander, and all his power is contained in a piece of shiny metal that can drag away even a magpie.
The Sultan ordered a ship to be equipped for Abu Sir and presented it to the barber with everything that was there: sailors, grain, expensive fabrics and rare animals.
Abu Sir sailed across the sea for forty days and finally reached his hometown.
There he built huge luxurious baths, got married and until his death lived happily among flowering gardens, where cypress trees grew, roses and jasmine bloomed, fountains with fragrant water flowed; there was everything a person could wish for, and everything around was fragrant, noisy and pleasing to the eye.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru