Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Pari-Banou

Long ago, in a kingdom in India, an old sultan sat upon his throne. He had three sons whom he loved dearly. The eldest was called Houssain, the second Ali, and the youngest Ahmed. In the palace there also lived a young princess named Nouronnihar. She was the sultan's niece, and she was as wise as she was beautiful. When the brothers grew up, the sultan noticed something troubling: all three princes had fallen in love with the same girl. He could not give one princess to three princes, so he needed a plan.

The sultan gathered his sons and said: 'My children, you shall travel out into the world, each in his own direction. Whichever of you finds the most extraordinary rarity shall marry your cousin Nouronnihar. You have one year. Then you will meet again at the caravanserai where our roads divide.' The brothers kissed their father's hand and promised to do their best. At dawn they rode out through the same city gate. At the first crossroads they embraced one another, and each chose his own path. Houssain rode toward the kingdom of Bisnagar. Ali rode toward Persia and the city of Sheerauz. Ahmed, the youngest, rode toward Samarkand.

In Bisnagar, Houssain walked through the bazaar and stopped, astonished, before a crier holding a small carpet. 'Whoever sits on this carpet,' said the crier, 'and wishes himself to another place, will be there in that very moment.' Houssain tried it and found himself instantly in his own room. He paid forty purses of gold and was pleased. In Sheerauz, Ali saw a crier with an ivory tube. 'Look through this tube,' said the man, 'and you will see whatever you wish to see.' Ali looked and beheld his father upon the throne. He bought the tube. In Samarkand, Ahmed found something just as marvelous: an artificial apple that cured every illness simply by being breathed in. He paid for it and rode happily toward the meeting place.

When the year was over, the brothers gathered at the caravanserai and proudly showed each other their finds. They wanted to try all three. Ali looked through the tube to see Princess Nouronnihar, and his face froze. 'She is gravely ill,' he whispered. 'Her serving women are weeping at her bedside. She is dying.' All three saw her through the tube, and Ahmed's heart sank. 'Sit on the carpet!' cried Houssain. 'And I have the apple,' said Ahmed. In a single instant all three stood at Nouronnihar's bedside. Ahmed held out the apple, she breathed in its scent, opened her eyes, and was well again.