ANONYMOUS;RICHARD FRANCIS BURTON
This story revolves around Haykar the Sage, who is a Philosopher, the Wazir of Sankharib the Sovran, and the son of the wise man's sister Nadan the Fool. This story relates that during the days of Sankháríb the King, Lord of Asúr and Naynawah, there was a Sage, Haykár hight, Grand Wazir of that Sovran, a philosopher, and endowed with lore and rede and experience. Now he had interwedded with threescore wives and had no boy to tend, thus was unhappy. So one day he gathered together the experts, astrologers and wizards, and related to them his case and complained of the condition caused by his barrenness. He did what they bade and set corbans and victims before the images and craved their assistance, humbling himself with prayer and petition; withal they vouchsafed to him never a word of reply. So he fared forth in distress and disappointment and went his ways all disheartened. Then he returned in his humiliation to Almighty Allah and confided his secret unto Him and called for succour in the burning of his heart, and cried with a loud voice saying, "O God of Heaven and Earth, O Creator of all creatures, I beg Thee to vouchsafe unto me a son wherewith I may console my old age and who may become my heir, after being present at my death and closing my eyes and burying my body." Hereat came to a Voice from Heaven which said, "Since at first thou trustedst in graven images and offers to them victims, so shalt thou remains childless, lacking sons and daughters. However, get thee up and take to thee Nádán, thy sister's child; and, after taking this nephew to son, do thou inform him with thy learning and thy good breeding and thy sagesse, and demise to him that he inherits of thee after thy decease." Will the Sage adopt his nephew Nadan?
