MYTH 996: Week Six Reading Notes Part A

Source Story: "The Voyages of Sindbad" from Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898).

Sindbad tells of how he was on board a merchant ship and, with others, stopped to explore an island. The island turned out to be the back of a sleeping whale, and when the whale dove under he was left behind accidentally by his fleeing shipmates, only to float to another island, where he finds some men caring for the horses of that island's king.

The king takes him in and takes care of him, then his old ship shows up and aims to sell his possessions and give the money to his family, thinking he is dead. After he convinces the captain that he is Sindbad, the captain gives him back his things. He gives gifts to the king and receives some in return, then trades out his stuff and continues to trade successfully all the way home, where he sees his family.

Sindbad sails with another merchant ship but finds himself forgotten on a deserted island, where he finds the nest of a gigantic bird. He ties himself to the bird's foot and it flies him to an island, where he disembarks, that turns out to be filled with huge diamonds and huge snakes.

Sindbad realizes that there are merchants throwing down chunks of meat in hopes that diamonds will stick to them and be carried up by eagles, so he collects a bunch of huge diamonds and ties a chunk of meat to his back. An eagle carries him up, and he is saved from the eagle's nest by the merchants. The merchant who owns that nest takes only one of his diamonds for helping him. Then he goes to an island with giant camphor trees, and sees an elephant and rhino fight each other only to be carried off by a roc. He returns to Bagdad and gives money to the poor.

Sailing again, Sindbad and his crew are attacked by hairy dwarves, who steal their ship and drive them onto an island. There they find a cyclops, who roasts and eats their captain, then goes to sleep.

Sindbad and several others stab the cyclops in the eye, blinding him, after making rafts for escape if need be. Instead of dying, the cyclops returns with a horde of other cyclopes, who sink all the rafts except the one on which Sindbad and two other men are riding. They end up on another island, where a giant snake eats both of Sindbad's companions.

Sindbad builds a shelter to keep the snake away, then gets the attention of a passing ship, which rescues him. He discovers that the captain of the ship from his second voyage is there, along with Sindbad's own merchandise, because they believed him to be dead. His stuff is returned to him and he trades successfully, then goes home and gives money to the poor.

Sindbad and his crew are shipwrecked onto an island full of cannibals, who capture them. Sindbad sees that they are feeding his crewmates to fatten them up and eat them, so he refuses food and becomes too lean to eat, then escapes. He finds some men and returns with them to the city where their king lives, and teaches them how to make and use saddles and bridles, so he becomes rich and important in their city.

The king asks Sindbad to marry a beautiful woman he has picked out and to stay in that country forever. Sindbad marries her but still plans to escape, when he discovers that a law in this country dictates that, if one spouse dies, the living spouse must be buried with them. Soon, Sindbad's wife gets sick and dies, and he is buried in a massive tomb with her and a little food and water.

Sindbad survives off his food and water until someone else is buried alive, who he kills so he can have their food and they will have a faster death. He does this several times before he notices a small animal in the cavern and follows it through a narrow passageway onto the beach. He goes back in and collects the riches from the floor of the cavern, then hails down a passing ship and goes home to Bagdad.

Illustration of Sindbad's encounter with the giant by H. J. Ford

MYTH 996