When he read this，he withdrew his hand and said to her，'Tell me who thou art！''So be it，'answered she；'know that I am one of the concubines of the Commander of the Faithful，and my name is Kut al-Kulub the Food of Hearts. I was brought up in his palace and，when I grew to woman's estate，he looked on me and，noting what share of beauty and loveliness the Creator had given me，loved me with exceeding love，and assigned me a separate apartment，and gave me ten slave girls to wait on me and all these ornaments thou seest me wearing. On a certain day he set out for one of his provinces，and the Lady Zubaydah came to one of the slave girls in my service and said to her，'I have something to require of thee.''What is it，O my lady？'asked she and the Caliph's wife answered，'When thy mistress Kut al-Kulub is asleep，put this piece of Bhang into her nostrils or drop it into her drink，and thou shalt have of me as much money as will satisfy thee.''With love and gladness；'replied the girl and took the Bhang from her，being a glad woman because of the money and because aforetime she had been one of Zubaydah's slaves. So she put the Bhang in my drink，and when it was night drank，and the drug had no sooner settled in my stomach than I fell to the ground，my head touching my feet，and knew naught of my life but that I was in another world. When her device succeeded，she bade put me in this chest，and secretly brought in the slaves and the doorkeepers and bribed them；and，on the night when thou wast perched upon the date tree，she sent the blacks to do with me as thou sawest. So my delivery was at thy hands，and thou broughtest me to this house and hast entreated me honourably and with thy kindest. This is my story，and I wot not what is become of the Caliph during my absence. Know then my condition and divulge not my case.'When Ghanim heard her words and knew that she was a concubine of the Caliph，he drew back，for awe of the Caliphate beset him，and sat apart from her in one of the corners of the place，blaming himself and brooding over his affair and patiencing his heart bewildered for love of one he could not possess. Then he wept for excess of longing，and plained him of Fortune and her injuries，and the world and its enmities （and praise be to Him who causeth generous hearts to be troubled with love and the beloved，and who endoweth not the minds of the mean and miserly with so much of it as eveneth a grain-weight！）. So he began repeating，'The lover's heart for his beloved must meet Sad pain，and from her charms bear sore defeat：
What is Love's taste？They asked and answered I，Sweet is the taste but ah！ 'tis bitter sweet.'
Thereupon Kut al-Kulub arose and took him to her bosom and kissed him；for the love of him was firm fixed in her heart，so that she disclosed to him her secret and all the affection she felt；and，throwing her arms round Ghanim's neck like a collar of pearls，kissed him again and yet again. But he held off from her in awe of the Caliph. Then they talked together a long while （and indeed both were drowned in the sea of their mutual love）；and，as the day broke，Ghanim rose and donned his clothes and going to the bazar，as was his wont，took what the occasion required and returned home. He found her weeping；but when she saw him she checked herself and，smiling through her tears，said，'Thou hast desolated me，O beloved of my heart. By Allah，this hour of absence hath been to me like a year！[114] I have explained to thee my condition in the excess of my eager love for thee；so come now near me，and forget the past and have thy will of me.'
But he interrupted her crying，'I seek refuge with Allah！ This thing may never be. How shall the dog sit in the lion's stead？
What is the lord's is unlawful to the slave！'So he with-drew from her，and sat down on a corner of the mat. Her passion for him increased with his forbearance；so she seated herself by his side and caroused and played with him，till the two were flushed with wine，and she was mad for her own dishonour. Then she sang these verses，'The lover's heart is like to break in twain： Till when these coy denials ah！ till when？
O thou who fliest me sans fault of mine，Gazelles are wont at times prove tame to men：
Absence，aversion，distance and disdain，How shall young lover all these ills sustain？'
Thereupon Ghanim wept and she wept at his weeping，and they ceased not drinking till nightfall，when he rose and spread two beds，each in its place. 'For whom is this second bed？'asked she，and he answered her，'One is for me and the other is for thee：from this night forth we must not sleep save thus，for that which is the lord's is unlawful to the thrall.''O my master！'
cried she，'let us have done with this，for all things come to pass by Fate and Fortune.'But he refused，and the fire was lighted in her heart and，as her longing waxed fiercer，she clung to him and cried，'By Allah，we will not sleep save side by side！''Allah forefend！'he replied and prevailed against her and lay apart till the morning，when love and longing redoubled on her and distraction and eager thirst of passion. They abode after this fashion three full told months，which were long and longsome indeed，and every time she made advances to him，he would refuse himself and say，'Whatever belongeth to the master is unlawful to the man.'Now when time waxed tiresome and tedious to her and anguish and distress grew on her，she burst out from her oppressed heart with these verses，'How long，rare beauty！ wilt do wrong to me？ Who was it bade thee not belong to me？
With outer charms thou weddest inner grace Comprising every point of piquancy：
Passion thou hast infused in every heart，From eyelids driven sleep by deputy：
Erst was （I wet） the spray made thin of leaf.O Cassia spray！
Unlief thy sin I see：[115]
The hart erst hunted I：how is 't I spy The hunter hunted （fair my hart！） by thee？
Wondrouser still I tell thee aye that I Am trapped while never up to trap thou be！
