Hidden in the smell of incense, the silky pillows and the golden chandeliers that ornate the imaginary scenario of the One Thousand and One Nights, the universal symbols of love, wisdom, fraternity and justice reveal the fascinating journey of the soul towards ascension.
Much more than just a beautiful story, the tales of Scheherazade teach a great lesson – it is said that in order to reach heaven, one must find the secret of the ninth statue.
The Universal Archetypes Behind the Folktales
Chronicles tell that a very rich king from the Sassanid court was about to die. So, he called his son to pass him on instructions on how to govern. He told him to be brave and courageous, but also, to be generous and promote justice, no matter what.
The son agreed, but after his father died, he became naive and spent all the money of the court. One night, however, he had a dream in which an old man ordered him to go to his father's room.
Desperate for money, he went to the room that used to be his father's to search for some coins. He found a little box with a key that led to a room downstairs. The room was so beautiful, so marvelous and filled with gold, diamonds and other precious gems.
The prince was amazed when he saw eight statues, all made of pure gold. He looked again and noticed that there was a note from his father which said that the most important statue was missing, it was the ninth one and he should go find it. He should look for a certain slave in Cairo, who would tell him what to do in order to find the most precious and fabulous of all statues.
So off he went to Cairo and there he met the slave, who took him to a genie in a beautiful palace. The genie said he would reveal the secret of the ninth statue, but first the prince would need to bring a certain beautiful and pure young lady to him. In order to find the right one, the prince was given a mirror that would only reflect the face of that girl. At last, the genie said that she should remain untouched.
So the prince searched everywhere in the streets of Cairo for the beautiful and pure lady that the mirror would reflect. When he finally found her, he immediately married her in order to be able to take her with him.
The lady was absolutely beautiful but the prince remained faithful to his word and delivered his untouched wife to the genie. The genie then, ordered the prince to go back home, and the ninth statue would be right in his father's room.
The prince went back home in tears for leaving his new wife but certain that he had done the right thing. When he opened the room, he fell on his knees completely amazed. His wife was there where the ninth statue should be. A great thunder was heard and the genie appeared.
He said to the prince that his wife was the missing statue and he had earned the right to finally have her. They lived happily ever after and he ruled the kingdom with fairness and justice.
Meaning and Symbolism of the One Thousand and One Nights
The One Thousand and One Nights have many elements of the Persian and Arabian tradition but they also contain universal archetypes that are present in myths and legends of every culture – the search for justice and the honour to the merit.
The dying king that asks his son to be fair and generous is the human nature that always reminds people of their human obligations. It is said that every person carries the concepts of right and wrong inside (Plato also said so in the western world) but many do not pay attention to intuition. When the prince does not obey his human nature, he falls into disgrace.
As son of the king, the prince has the right to all the gold and diamond found in his father's room, but the human nature (depicted as the king's note to the prince) once again reminds him that there's something more important than all the gold of the world.
When the prince obeys to his father's note and leaves in search of the ninth statue, he is for the first time listening to intuition and searching for what is important. The number nine is very meaningful as in eastern numerology, it refers to the last level of consciousness that leads to God, or Unity.
Arabian Philosophy – Justice, Honour and Merit
In this tale, finding the ninth statue means going through the final tests in order to deserve what has always belonged to him, because there's no merit in receiving a treasure when one does not deserve it.
According to Eastern philosophy, the obstacles of the physical world are tests to allow humans to become conscious of God and reach heaven as a result of their own merit, and not as a result of fear of being punished or wish to be rewarded. This tale corresponds to the story of Yudhisthira in Hindu tradition, which teaches the same lesson.
The Symbolic Meaning of the Mirror
The pure lady that could only be found with the help of a mirror has a symbolic role as one can only find the qualities in other people if they have those qualities themselves. The mirror would reflect only the prince's own qualities, so the lady can be understood as the prince himself.
When he delivered his wife to the genie without ever touching her despite her beauty, he showed he was capable of dominating his instincts and this was the final test to achieve the secret of the ninth statue –deserve the right to everything that was already his and find true happiness. Heaven emerges when one has the power over his own passions.
Articles Related to the Meaning and the Philosophy Behind Myths and Legends
Read The Final Journey of Yudhisthira to know more about the philosophy behind the tales from the Mahabharata along with Egyptian Mythology - Osiris, Isis and Horus to understand the philosophy of the Egyptian civilization.
Sources:
Mathers, E.P and Madrus, J.C. The Book of Thousand Nights and One Night. Routledge, 1990.
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