The Perfumed Garden/Chapter 9
CHAPTER IX
SUNDRY NAMES GIVEN TO THE SEXUAL ORGANS OF WOMEN[1]
El feurdj, the slit.
El keuss, the vulva.
El kelmoune, the voluptuous.
El ass, the primitive.
Ez zerzour, the starling.
Ech cheukk, the chink.
Abou tertour, the one with a crest.[2]
Abou khochime, the one with a little nose.[2]
El guenfond, the hedgehog.
Es sakouti, the silent one.
Ed deukkak, the crusher.
Et tseguil, the importunate.
El fechefache, the watering-can.
El becha, the horror.
El taleb, the yearning one.
El hacene, the beautiful.
En neuffakh, the one that swells.
Abou djebaha, the one with a projection.[2]
Elouasa, the vast one.
El dride, the large one.
Abou beldoum, the glutton.[2]
El mokaour, the bottomless.
Abou cheufrine, the two lipped.[2]
Abou aungra, the humpbacked.[2]
El rorbal, the seive.
El hezzaz, the restless.
El lezzaz, the unionist.
El moudd, the accommodating.
El moudine, the assistant.
El mokeubbeub, the vaulted one.
El meusboul, the long one.
El molki, the duellist.
El mokabeul, the ever ready for the fray.
Ei harrab, the fugitive.
El sabeur, the resigned.
El maoui, the juicy.
El moseuffah, the barred one.
El mezour, the deep one.
El addad, the biter.
El menssass, the sucker.
El zeunbur, the wasp.
El harr, the hot one.
El ladid, the delicious one.
As regards the vulva called el feurdi, the slit, it has got that name because it opens and shuts again when hotly yearning for the coitus, like the one of a mare in heat at the approach of the stallion. This word, however, is applied indiscriminately to the natural parts of men and women, for God the Supreme has used this expression in the Koran, chap, xxxiii., v. 35, "El hafidine feuroudjahoum oul el hafidate."[3] The proper meaning of feurdj is slit, opening, passage; people say, "I have found a feurdj in the mountains, viz., a passage; there is then a soukoune upon the ra and a fatcha upon the djine, and in this sense it means also the natural parts of woman. But if the ra is marked with a fatcha it signifies the deliverance from misfortunes.[4]
The person who dreams of having seen the vulva, feurdj, of a woman will know that "if he is in trouble God will free him of it; if he is in a perplexity he will soon get out of it; and lastly if he is in poverty he will soon become wealthy, because feurdj, by transposing the vowels, will mean the deliverance from evil. By analogy, if he wants a thing he will get it; if he has debts, they will be paid."
It is considered more lucky to dream of the vulva as open. But if the one seen belongs to a young virgin it indicates that the door of consolation will remain closed, and the thing which is desired is not obtainable. It is a proved fact that the man who sees in his dream the vulva of a virgin that has never been touched will certainly be involved in difficulties, and will not be lucky in his affairs. But if the vulva is open so that he can look well into it, or even if it is hidden but he is free to enter it, he will bring the most difficult tasks to a successful end after having first failed in them, and this after a short delay, by the help of a person whom he never thought of.
He who has seen in his dream a man busy upon a young girl, and when the same is getting off her managed to see at that moment her vulva, will bring his business to a happy end, after having first failed to do so, by the help of the man he has seen. If it is himself who did the girl's business, and he has seen her vulva, he will succeed by his own exertions to realize the most difficult problems, and be successful in every respect. Generally speaking, to see the vulva in dreams is a good sign; so it is of good augury to dream of coition, and he who sees himself in the act, and finishing with the ejaculation, will meet success in all his affairs. But it is not the same with the man who merely begins coition and does not finish it. He, on the contrary, will be unlucky in every enterprise.
It is supposed that the man who dreams of being busy with a woman will afterwards obtain from her what he wants.
The man who dreams of cohabiting with women with whom to have sexual intercourse is forbidden by religion, as for instance his mother, sister, etc. (maharime), must consider this as a presage that he will go to sacred places (moharreme); and, perhaps, even journey to the holy house of God, and look upon the grave of the Prophet.[5]
As regards the virile member, it has been previously mentioned that to dream of accident occurring to the organ means the loss of remembrance and extinction of the race.
The sight of a pair of pantaloons (seronal) prognosticates the appointment to a place (aulaia), by reason of the analogy of the letters composing the word seronal with those forming by transposition the two words sir, go, and ouali, named: "go to the post to which you are named." It is related that a man who had dreamed that the Emir had given him a pair of pantaloons became Cadi. Dreaming of pantaloons is also a sign of protection for the natural parts, and foretells success in business.
The almond (louze), a word composed of the same letters as zal, to cease, seen in a dream by a man in trouble means that he will be liberated from it; to a man who is ill, that he will be cured; in short that all misfortunes will give away. Somebody having dreamed that he was eating almonds, asked a wise man the meaning of it; he received the answer, that by reason of the analogy of the letters in louze and zal, the ills that best him would disappear; and the event justified the explanation.
The sight of a molar tooth (deurss) in a dream indicates enmity. The man, therefore, who has seen his tooth drop out may be sure that his enemy is dead. This arises from the word deurss, signifying both an enemy and a molar, and one can say at the same time, "It is my tooth and it is my enemy."[6]
The window (taga)[7] and the shoe (medassa) reminds you of women. The vulva resembles in fact, when invaded by the verge, a window with a man putting his head in to look about, or a shoe that is being put on. Consequently, he who sees himself in dreaming in the act of getting in at a window, or putting on a shoe, has the certainty of getting possession of a young woman or a virgin, if the window is newly built, or the shoe new and in good condition; but that the woman will be old according to the state of the window or shoe.
The loss of a shoe foretells to a man the loss of his wife.
To dream of something folded together, and which gets open, predicts that a secret will be divulged and made public. The same remaining folded up indicates, on the other hand, that the secret will be kept.
If you dream of reading a letter you will know that you will have news, which will be, according to the nature of the contents of the letter, good or bad.
The man who dreams of passages in the Koran or the Traditions, Hadits, will from the subjects treated therein draw his conclusions. For instance the passage, "He will grant you the help of God and immediate victory," will signify to him victory and triumph. "Certainly he (God) has the decision in has hands." "Heavens will open and offer its numerous portals." And other similar passages indicate success.
A passage treating of punishments prognosticates punishment; from those treating of benefits a lucky event may be concluded. Such is the passage in the Koran, which says: "He who forgives sins is terrible in his inflictions."[8]
Dreams about poetry and songs contain their explanations in the contents of the objects of the dream.
He who dreams of horses, mules, or asses may hope for good, for the Prophet (God's salutation and goodness be with him!) has said, "Men's fortunes are attached to the forelocks of their horses till to the day of resurrection!" and it is written in the Koran, "God the Highest has thus willed it that they serve you for mounts and for state."[9]
The correctness of these prognostications is not subject to any doubt.
He who dreams of seeing himself mounted upon an ass as a courier, and arriving at his destination, will be lucky in all things; but he who tumbles off the ass on his way is advised that he will be subject to accidents and misfortune.
The fall of the turban from the head predicts ignominy, the turban being the Arab's crown.
If you see yourself in a dream with naked feet it means a loss; and the bare head has the same significance.
By transposing the letters other analogies may be arrived at.
These explanations are here not in their place; but I have been induced to give them in this chapter on account of the use to which they may be put. Persons who would wish to know more on this subject have only to consult the treatise of Ben Sirine. I now return to the names given to the sexual parts of women.
El keuss (the vulva).[10]—This word serves as the name of a young woman's vulva in particular. Such a vulva is very plump and round in every direction, with long lips, grand slit, the edges well divided and symmetrical and rounded; it is soft, seductive, perfect throughout. It is the most pleasant and no doubt the best of all the different sorts. May God grant us the possession of such a vulva! Amen. It is warm, tight and dry, so much so that one might expect to see fire burst out of it. Its form is graceful, its odour pleasant; the whiteness of its outside sets off its carmine-red middle. There is no imperfection about it.
El relmoune (the voluptuous).[11]—The name given to the vulva of a young virgin.
Ell ass (the primitive).—This is a name applicable to every kind of vulva.
Ez zerzour (the starting).—The vulva of a very young girl, or, as others pretend, of a brunette. Ech cheukk (the chink).—The vulva of a bony, lean woman. It is like a chink in a wall, with not a vestige of flesh. May God keep us from it!
Abou tertour (the crested one).[12]—Is the name given to a vulva furnished with a red comb, like that of a cock, which rises at the moment of the enjoyment.
Abou khochime (the snubnose).—Is a vulva with thin lips and a small tongue.[13]
El guenfond (the hedgehog).—The vulva of the old, decrepit woman, dried up with age and with bristly hair.
El sakouti (the silent one).—This name has been given to the vulva that is noiseless. The member may enter it a hundred times a day but it will not say a word, and will be content to look on without murmur.
Ed deukkak (the crusher).—So called from its crushing movements upon the member. It generally begins to push the member, directly it enters, to the right and to the left, and to grip it with the matrix, and would, if it could, absorb also the two testicles.
El tseguil (the importunate).—This is the vulva which is never tired of taking in the member. This latter might pass a hundred nights with it, and walk in a hundred times every night, still that vulva would not be sated—nay, it would want still more, and would not allow the member to come out again at all, if it was possible. With such a vulva the parts are exchanged; the vulva is the pursuer, the member the pursued. Luckily it is a rarity, and only found in a small number of women, who are wild with passion, all on fire, and in flame.
El fechefache (the watering can).—A vulva with which certain women are gifted, and which, in passing water, emits from its orifice a sonorously sounding noise.
El becha (the horror) .—A vulva of such horrible and repulsive aspect that its looks alone suffices to soften a member which is in erection. It is found in some women, and God keep us from it!
El taleb (the yearning one).—[14]This vagina is met with in a few women only. With some it is natural; with others it becomes what it is by long abstinence. It is burning for a member, and, having got one in its embrace, it refuses to part with it until its fire is extinguished.
El hacene (the beautiful).—This is the vulva which is white, plump, in form vaulted like a dome, firm and without any deformity. You cannot take your eyes off it, and to look at it changes a feeble erection into a strong one.
El neuffagh (the swelling one).—So called because a torpid member coming near it, and rubbing its head against it a few times, at once swells and stands upright. To the woman who has such a one it procures excessive pleasure, for, at the moment of the crisis it opens and shuts convulsively, like the vulva of a mare.
Abou djbaha (one with a projection).—Some women have this sort of vulva, which is very large, with, a pubis prominent like a projecting, fleshy forehead.
El ouasa (the vast one).—A vulva surrounded by a very large pubis. Women of that build are said to be of large vagina, because, although on the approach of the member it appears firm and impenetrable to such a degree that not even a meroud[15] seems likely to be passed in, as soon as it feels the friction of its gland against its centre it opens wide at once.
El aride (the large one).—This is the vulva which is as wide as it is long; that is to say, fully developed all round, from side to side, and from the pubis to the perineum. It is the most beautiful to look upon. As the poet has said:
"It has the splendid whiteness of a forehead,
In its dimensions it is like the moon,
The fire that radiates from it is like the sun's.
And seems to burn the member which approaches;
Unless first moistened with saliva the member cannot enter.
The odour it emits is full of charms."
It is also said that this name applies to the vagina of women who are plump and fat. When such a one crosses her thighs one over the other the vulva stands out like the head of calf. If she lays it bare it resembles a saa[16] for corn placed between her thighs; and, if she walks, it is apparent under her clothes by its wavy movement at each step. May God, in his goodness and generosity, let us enjoy such a vagina! It is of all the most pleasing, the most celebrated, the most wished for.
Abou belaoum (the glutton).—The vulva of a vast capacity of swallowing. If such a vulva has not been able to get to the coitus for some time it fairly engulfs a member that then comes near it, without leaving any trace of it outside, like as a man who is famished flings himself upon viands that are offered to him and would swallow them without mastication.
El mokaour (the bottomless).—This is the vagina of indefinite length, having in consequence, the matrix lying very far back. It requires a member of the largest dimensions; any other could not succeed in rousing its amorous sensibilities.
Abou cheufrine (the two lipped).—This name is given to the amply developed vagina of an excessively stout woman. Also to the vagina the lips of which having become flaccid, owing to weakness, are long and pendulous.
Abou aungra (the humpbacked).—This vulva has the mount of Venus prominent and hard, standing out like the hump on the back of a camel, and reaching down to between the thighs like the head of a calf. May God let us enjoy such a vulva! Amen!
El rorbal (the sieve).—This vulva on receiving a member seems to sift it all over, below, right and left, fore and aft, until the moment of pleasure arrives.
El hezzaz (the restless).—When this vagina has received the member it begins to move violently and without interruption until the member touches the matrix, and then knows no repose till it has hastened on the enjoyment and finished its work.
El lezzaz (the unionist).—The vagina which, having taken in the member, clings to it and pushes itself forward upon it so closely that, if the thing were possible, it would enfold the two testicles.
El moudd (the accommodating).—This name is applied to the vagina of a woman who has felt for a long time an ardent wish for coition. In rapture with the member it sees, it is glad to second its movements of come and go; it offers to the member its matrix by pressing its forward within reach, which is after all, the best gift it can offer. Whatever place inside of it the member wants to explore, this vulva will make him welcome to, gracefully according to its wish; there is no corner it will not help the member to get to.
When the crisis arrives, and the member is ready to ejaculate, it grips its head with matrix and womb, sucking the last drop of sperm into the matrix. And the woman does not feel happy until floods of the spermal fluid pour into the recesses of her matrix.
El mouaine (the assistant).—This vulva is thus named because it assists the member to go in and out, to go up and down, in short, in all its movements, in such a way that if it desires to do a thing, to enter or to retire, to move about, etc., the vulva hastens to give it all facilities, and answers to its appeal. By this aid the ejaculation is facilitated, and the enjoyment heightened; even a member that is tardy in ejaculation arrives rapidly at it, and soon spurts its sperm.
El mokeubbeub (the vaulted one).—This is a vulva of large size, surmounted by a protuberance, brawny, dry, and shaped like a vault, a compact mass of hard flesh and gristle. God preserve us from such a one!
El meusboul (the long one).—This name applies only to some vulvas; everyone knows that the vulvas are far from being all of the same conformation and aspect. This vulva extends from the pubis to the anus. It lengthens out when the woman is lying down or standing, and contracts when she is sitting, differing in this respect from the vulva of a round shape. It looks like a splendid cucumber lying between the thighs.[17] With some women it shows projecting under light clothing, or when they are bending back.
El molki (the duelist).—This is the vulva which, on the introduction of a member, executes the movement of coming and going, pushes itself upon it for fear of its retiring before the pleasure arrives. There is no enjoyment for it but the shock given to its matrix by the member, and it is for this that it projects its matrix to grip and suck the member's gland when the ejaculation takes place. Certain vulvas, wild with desire and lust, be it natural or a consequence of long abstention, throw themselves upon the approaching member, opening the mouth like a famished infant to whom the mother offers the breast. In the same way this vulva advances and retires upon the member to bring it face to face with the matrix as if in fear that, unaided, it could not find the same.
The vulva and the member resemble thus two skilful duelists, each time that one of them rushes upon its antagonist, the latter opposes its shield to parry the blow and repulse the assault. The member represents the sword, and the matrix the shield. The one who first ejaculates the sperm is vanquished; while the one who is slowest is the victor; and, assuredly, it is a fine fight! I should like thus to fight without stopping to the day of my death.
As the poet says:
I have let them see the effect of a subtle shadow.
Spinning like an ever busy spider.
They said to me, "How long will you go on?"
I answered them, "I will work till I am dead."
El mokabeul (ever ready for the fray).—Thus is called the vagina of the woman that is always hot after the virile member. Far from being afraid of a rigid and hard member, it looks upon it with contempt and asks for one that is still stiffer.
This is the vulva which is not shocked, nor does it blush as the others do, when the vestments are lifted up that cover it; which, on the contrary, makes the member heartily welcome, lets it repose upon its vaulted dome, and introduces it into its core as if to swallow it entirely; so far, indeed, that the testicles are crying out, "Oh, what a misfortune! Our brother has disappeared! We are uneasy about him, for he has boldly thrown himself into that abyss! He must certainly be foolhardy to penetrate like a dragon into such a cavern!" The vulva hearing those lamentations, and desirous to dispel their chagrin, tells them, "Have no fear about this, he is alive, and his ears hear your words." Upon which they reply, "If what you say is true, O master of the beautiful countenance, let him come out, that we may see him." The vulva then says, "I shall not let him come out living; not till death has struck him down." The two testicles implore then, "What sin has he committed, that he should pay for it with his life? Imprisonment and blows should be sufficient punishment." The vagina, "By the existence of him who has created the heavens, there is no way out of me until he is dead!" Then addressing the member, "Do you hear the words of your two brothers? Hasten to show yourself to them, for your absence has plunged them into great affliction!" After the ejaculation, the member returns to them reduced to nothing and like a shadow; but they do not know him, saying, "Who are you, you wonder of leanness?" "I am your brother, and have been ill," says the member; "did you not see in what state I was when I entered? I have knocked at the doors of all the physicians to get advice. But what a prime physician have I found here! He has treated my complaint, and cured it without either auscultation or examination!" The two testicles answer, "O brother of ours, we suffer the same as you, for we are as one with you. Why did not God allot us the same cure?" Forthwith the sperm fills them and augments their volume. They then wish for the same treatment, saying, "Oh, hasten to take us to the same physician, that he may cure our illness, for he knows all maladies!" Here terminates the conversation of the two testicles with the member about its disappearance, which made them fear that he might have fallen into a silo or pit.
El harrab (the fugitive).—The vagina which, being very tight and short, is hurt by the penetration of a very large and stiff member; it tries to escape to the right and left. It is thus, people say, with the vagina of most virgins, which, not yet having made the acquaintance of the member and fearful of its approach, tries to get out of its way, when it glides in between the thighs to be admitted.
Es sabeur (the resigned).—This is the vulva which, having admitted the member, submits patiently to all its whims and movements. This vulva is strong enough to suffer resignedly the most violent and prolonged coition. If it were assaulted a hundred times it would not be vexed or annoyed; and instead of venting reproaches, it would give thanks to God. It will show the same patience if it has to do with several members who visit it successively.
This kind of vagina is found in women of a glowing temperament. If they only knew how to do it, they would not allow the man to dismount, nor his member to retire for a single moment.
El maoui (the juicy).—The vagina thus named has one of the four most abominable defects which can affect a vagina; nay, the most repulsive of all, for the too great abundance of secretions detracts from the pleasures of coition. This imperfection grows still worse when the man by preliminary caresses provokes the issue of the moisture. God preserve us from them! Amen.
El moseuffah (the barrel one).—This kind of vagina is not often met with. The defect which distinguishes it is sometimes natural, sometimes it is the result of an unskilfully executed operation of circumcision upon the woman.[18] It can happen that the operator makes a false move with his instrument and injures the two lips, or even only one of them. In healing there forms a thick scar, which bars the passage, and in order to make the vagina accessible to the member, a surgical operation and the use of the bistouri will have to be resorted to.
El merour (the deep one).—The vagina which has always the mouth open, and the bottom of which is beyond sight. The longest members only can reach it.
El addad {the biter).—The vulva which, when the member has got into it and is burning with passion, opens and shuts again upon the same fiercely. It is chiefly when the ejaculation is coming that the man feels the head of his member bitten by the mouth of the matrix. And certainly there is an attractive power in the same when it clings, yearning for sperm, to the gland, and draws it in as far as it can. If God in his power has decreed that the woman shall become pregnant the sperm gets concentrated in the matrix, where it is gradually vivified; but if, on the contrary, God does not permit the conception, the matrix expels the seed, which then runs over the vagina.
El meusass (the sucker).—This is a vagina which in its amorous heat in consequence of voluptuous toyings, or of long abstinence, begins to suck the member which has entered it so forcibly as to deprive it of all its sperm, dealing with it like a child draws the breast of the mother.
The poets have described it in the following verses:
"She—the woman—shows in turning up her robe
An object—the vulva—developed full and round.
In semblance like a cup turned upside down.
In placing thereupon your hand, you seem to feel
A well formed bosom, springy, firm, and full.
In boring in your lance it gets well bitten.
And drawn in by a suction, as the breast is by a child
And after having finished, if you wish to re-commence,
You'll find it flaming hot as any furnace."
Another poet (may God grant all his wishes in Paradise!) has composed on the same theme the following:
"Like to a man extended on his chest, she—the vulva—fills the hand
which has to be well stretched to cover it.
The place it occupies is standing forth
Like an unopened bud of the blossom of a palm tree.
Assuredly the smoothness of its skin.
Is like the beardless cheek of adolescence;
Its conduit is but narrow.
The entrance to it is not easy,
And he who essays to get in
Feels as though he was butting against a coat of mail.
And at the introduction it emits a sound
Like to the tearing of a woven stuff.
The member having filled its cavity,
Receives the lively welcome of a bite.
Such as the nipple of the nurse receives
When placed between the nursling's lips for suction.
Its lips are burning,
Like a fire that is lighted.
And how sweet it is, this fire!
How delicious for me."
El zenubour (the wasp).—This kind of vulva is known by the strength and roughness of its fur. When the member approaches and tries to enter it gets stung by the hairs as if by a wasp.
El harr (the hot one) —This is one of the most praiseworthy vulvas. Warmth is in fact very much esteemed in a vulva, and it may be said that the intensity of the enjoyment afforded by it is in proportion to the heat it develops. Poets have praised it in the following verses:
The vulva possesses an intrinsic heat;
Shut in a solid heart (interior) and pent up breast (matrix).—
Its fire communicates itself to him that enters it;
It equals in intensity the fire of love.
She is as tight as a well-fitting shoe,[19]
Smaller than the circle of the apple of the eye."
El ladid (the delicious).—It has the reputation of procuring an unexampled pleasure, comparable only to the one felt by the beasts and birds of prey, and for which they fight sanguinary combats. And if such effects are produced upon animals, what must they be for man. And so it is that all the wars spring from the search of the voluptuous pleasure which the vagina procures, and which is the highest fortune of this world; it is a part of the delights of paradise awarded to us by God as a fore-taste of what is waiting for us, namely, delights a thousand times superior, and above which only the sight of the Benevolent (God) is to be placed.
More names might certainly be found applicable to the sexual organs of woman, but the number of those mentioned above appears to me ample. The principal object of this work is to collect together all the remarkable and attractive matters concerning the coitus, so that he who is in trouble may find a conclusion in it, and the man to whom erection offers difficulties may be able to look into it for a remedy against his weakness. Wise physicians have written that people whose members have lost their strength, and are afflicted with impotence, should assiduously read books treating of coition, and study carefully the different kind of lovemaking, in order to recover their former vigour. A certain means of provoking erection is to look at animals in the act of coition. As it is not always everywhere possible to see animals whilst in the act of copulation, books on the subject of generation are indispensable. In every country, large or small, both the rich and poor have a taste for this sort of books, which may be compared to the stone of philosophy transforming common metals into gold.
It is related (and God penetrates the most obscure matters, and he is the most wise!) that once upon a time, before the reign of the great Kalif Haroun er Rachid, there lived a buffoon, who was the amusement of women, old people and children. His name was Djoaidi.[20] Many women granted him their favours freely, and he was much liked and well received by all. By princes, vizirs and caids he was likewise very well treated; in general all the world pampered him; at that time, indeed, any man that was a buffoon enjoyed the greatest consideration, for which reason the poet has said:
"Oh, Time! Of all the dwellers here below
You only elevate buffoons or fools,
Or him whose mother was a prostitute,
Or him whose anus as an inkstand serves,[21]
Or him who from his youth has been a pander;
Who has no other work but to bring the two sexes together."
Djoaidi related the following story:
THE HISTORY OF DJOAIDI AND FADEHAT EL DJEMAL
As to her vulva, it was white, prominent, round as an arch; the centre of it was red, and breathed fire, and without a trace of humidity; for, sweet to the touch, it was quite dry. When she walked it showed in relief like a dome or an inverted cup. In reclining it was visible between her thighs, looking like a kid couched on a hillock. This woman was my neighbour.
All the others played and laughed with me, jested with me, and met my suggestions with great pleasure. I revelled in their kisses, their close embraces and nibblings, and in sucking their lips, breasts, and necks. I had coition with all of them, except my neighbour, and it was exactly her I wanted to possess in preference to all the rest; but instead of being kind to me, she avoided me rather. When I contrived to take her aside to trifle with her and try to rouse her gaiety, and spoke to her of my desires, she recited to me the following verses, the sense of which was a mystery to me:
"Among the mountain tops I saw a tent placed firmly.
Apparent to all eyes high up in mid-air.
But, oh, the pole that held it up was gone.
And like a vase without a handle it remained,
With all its cords undone, its centre sinking in,
Forming a hollow like that of a kettle."
Every time I told her of my passion she answered me with these verses, which to me were void of meaning, and to which I could make no reply, which, however, only excited my love all the more. I therefore inquired of all those I knew—amongst wise men, philosophers, and savants—the meaning, but not one of them could solve the riddle for me, so as to satisfy my heat and appease my passion.
Nevertheless I continued my investigations, when at last I heard of a savant named Abou Nouass[22] who lived in a far-off country, and who, I was told, was the only man capable of solving the enigma. I betook myself to him, apprised him of the discourses I had with the woman, and recited to him the above-mentioned verses.
Abou Nouass said to me, "This woman loves you to the exclusion of every other man. She is very corpulent and plump." I answered, "It is exactly as you say. You have given her likeness as if she were before you, excepting what you say in respect of her love for me, for, until now, she has never given me any proof of it." "She has no husband." "This is so," I said. Then added, "I have reason to believe that your member is of small dimensions, and such a member cannot give her pleasure nor quench her fire; for what she wants is a lover with a member like that of an ass. Perhaps it may not be so. Tell me the truth about this!" When I had reassured him on that point, affirming that my member, which began to rise at the expression of his doubtings, was full-sized, he told me that in that case all difficulties would disappear, and explained to me the sense of the verses as follows:
The tent, firmly planted, represents the vulva of grand dimension and placed well forward, the mountains, between which it rises, are the thighs. The stake which supported its centre and has been torn up, means that she has no husband, comparing the stake or pole that supports the tent to the virile member holding up the lips of the vulva. She is like a vase without handle; this means if the pail is without a handle to hang it up by it is good for nothing, the pail representing the vulva, and the handle the verge. The cords are undone and its centre is sinking in; that is to say, as the tent without a supporting pole caves in at the center, inferior in this respect to the vault which remains upright without support, so can the woman who has no husband not enjoy complete happiness. From the words. It forms a hollow like that of a kettle, you may judge how lascivious God has made that woman in her comparisons; she likens her vulva to a kettle, which serves to prepare the tserid.[23] Listen; if the tserid is placed in the kettle, to turn out well it must be stirred by means of a medeleuk[24] long and solid, whilst the kettle is steadied by the feet and hands. Only in that way can it be prepared properly. It cannot be done with a small spoon; the cook would burn her hands, owing to the shortness of the handle, and the dish would not be well prepared. This is the symbol of this woman's nature, O Djoaidi. If your member has not the dimensions of a respectable medeleuk, serviceable for the good preparation of the tserid, it will not give her satisfaction, and, moreover, if you do not hold her close to your chest, enlacing her with your hands and feet, it is useless to solicit her favours; finally if you let her consume herself by her own fire, like the bottom of the kettle which gets burnt if the medeleuk is not stirred upon it, you will not gratify her desire by the result.
You see now what prevented her from acceeding to your wishes; she was afraid that you would not be able to quench her flame after having fanned it.
But what is the name of this woman, O Djoaidi?
"Fadehat el Djemal (the sunrise of beauty)," I replied.
"Return to her," said the sage, "and take her these verses and your affair will come to a happy issue, please God! You will then come back to me, and inform me of what will have come to pass between you two."
I gave my promise, and Abou Nouass recited to me the following lines:
"Have patience now, O Fadehat el Djemal,
I understand your words, and all shall see how I obey them.
O you! beloved and cherished by whoever
Can revel in your charms and glory in them!
O apple of my eye! You thought I was embarrassed
About the answer which I had to give you.
Yes, certainly! It was the love I bore you
Made me look foolish in the eyes of all you know.
They thought I was possessed of a demon;
Called me a Merry Andrew and buffoon.
For God! What of buffoonery I've got,
Should it be, that
No other member is like mine? Here! see it, measure it!
What woman tastes it falls in love with me,
In violent love. It is a well known fact
That you from far may see it like a column.
If it erects itself it lifts my robe and shames me.
Now take it kindly, put it in your tent,
Which is between the well-known mountains placed.
It will be quite at home there, you will find it
Not softening while inside, but sticking like a nail;
Take it to form a handle to your vase.
Come and examine it, and notice well
How vigorous it is and long in its erection!
If you but want a proper medeleuk,
A medeleuk to use between your thighs.
Take this to stir the centre of your kettle.
It will do good to you, O mistress mine!
Your kettle be it plated will be satisfied![25]
Having learnt these verses by heart, I took my leave of Abou Nouass and returned to Fadehat el Djemal. She was, as usual, alone. I gave a slight knock at her door; she came out at once, beautiful as the rising sun, and coming up to me, she said, "Oh! enemy of God, what business has brought you here to me at this time?"
I answered her, "O my mistress! a business of great importance."
"Explain yourself, and I will see whether I can help you," she said.
"I shall not speak to you about it until the door is locked," I answered.
"Your boldness to-day is very great," she said.
And I, "True, O my mistress! boldness is one of my qualities."
She then addressed me thus, "O enemy of yourself! O you most miserable of your race! If I were to lock the door, and you having nothing wherewith to satisfy my desires, what should I do with you? face of a Jew!"
"You will let me share your couch, and grant me your favours."
She began to laugh; and after we had entered |the house, she told a slave to lock the house door. As usual, I asked her to respond to my proposals; she then recited to me again the above mentioned verses. When she had finished I recited to her those which Abou Nouass had taught me.
As I proceeded I saw her move and more moved, I observed her giving way, to yawn, to stretch herself, to sigh. I knew now I should arrive at the desired result. When I had finished my member was in such a state of erection that it became like a pillar, still lengthening. When Fadehat el Djemal saw it in that condition she precipitated herself upon it, took it into her hands, and drew it towards her thighs. I then said, "O apple of my eyes! this may not be done here, let us go into your chamber."
She replied, "Leave me alone, O son of a debauched woman! Before God! I am losing my sense in seeing your member getting longer and longer, and lifting your robe. Oh, what a member! I never saw a finer one! Let it penetrate into this delicious, plump vulva, which maddens all who heard it described; for the sake of which so many died of love; and of which your superiors and masters themselves could not get possession."
I repeated, "I shall not do it anywhere else than in your chamber." She answered,
She answered, "If you do not enter this minute this tender vulva I shall die."
As I still insisted upon repairing to her room, she cried, "No, it is quite impossible; I cannot wait so long!"
I saw in fact her lips tremble, her eyes filling with tears. A general tremour ran over her, she changed colour, and laid herself down upon her back, baring her thighs, the whiteness of which made her flesh appear like crystal tinged with carmine.
Then I examined her vulva—a white cupola with a purple centre, soft and charming. It opened like that of a mare on the approach of a stallion.
At that moment she seized my member and kissed it, saying, "by the religion of my father it must penetrate into my vulva!" and drawing nearer to me she pulled it towards her vagina.
I now hesitated no longer to assist her with my member, and placed it against the entrance to her vulva. As soon as the head of my member touched the lips, the whole body of Fedehat el Djemal trembled with excitement. Sighing and sobbing, she held me pressed to her bosom.
Again I profited by this moment to admire the beauties of her vulva. It was magnificent, its purple centre setting off its whiteness all the more. It was round, and without any imperfection; projecting like a splendidly curved dome over her belly. In one word, it was a masterpiece of creation as fine as could be seen. The blessing of God, the best creator, upon it.
And the woman who possessed this wonder had in her time no superior.
Seeing her then in such transports, trembling like a bird, the throat of which is being cut, I pushed my dart into her. But thinking she might not be able to take in the whole of my member, I had gone about cautiously, but she moved her buttocks furiously, saying to me, "This is not enough for my contentment." Making a strong push, I lodged my member completely in her, which made her utter a painful cry, but the moment after she moved with greater fury than before. She cried, "Do not miss the corners, neither high nor low, but above all things do not neglect the centre! The centre!" she repeated. "If you feel it coming, let it go into my matrix so as to extinguish my fire." Then we moved alternately in and out, which was delicious. Our legs were interlaced, our muscles unbent, and so we went on with kisses and claspings until the crisis came upon us simultaneously. We then rested and took breath after this mutual conflict.
I wanted to withdraw my member, but she would not consent to this and begged of me not to take it out. I acceded to her wish, but a moment later she took it out herself, dried it, and replaced it in her vulva. We renewed our game, kissing, pressing, and moving in rhythm. After a short time, we rose and entered her chamber, without having this time accomplished the enjoyment. She gave me now a piece of an aromatic root,[26] which she recommended me to keep in my mouth, assuring me that as long as I had it there my member would remain on the alert. Then she asked me to lie down, which I did. She mounted upon me, and taking my member into her hands, she made it enter entirely into her vagina. I was astonished at the vigour of her vulva and at the heat emitted from it. The opening of her matrix in particular excited my admiration. I never had any experience like it; it closely clasped my member and pinched the gland.
With the exception of Fadehat el Djemal no woman had until then taken in my member in its full length. She was able to do so, I believe, owing to her being very plump and corpulent, and her vulva being large and deep.
Fadehat el Djemal, astride upon me, began to rise and descend; she kept crying out, wept, went slower, then accelerated her movements again, ceased to move altogether; when part of my member became visible she looked at it, then took it out altogether to examine it closely, then plunged it in again until it had disappeared completely. So she continued until the enjoyment overcame her again. At last, having dismounted from me, she now laid herself down, and asked me to get on her. I did so, and she introduced my member entirely into her vulva.
We thus continued our caresses, changing our position in turns, until night came on. I thought it proper to show a wish to go now, but she would not agree to this, and I had to give her my word that I would remain. I said to myself, "this woman will not let me go at any price, but when daylight comes God will advise me." I remained with her, and all night long we kept caressing each other, and took but scanty rest.
I counted during that day and night, I accomplished twenty-seven times the act of coition, and I became afraid that I should never be able to leave the woman's house.
Having at last made good my escape, I went to visit Abou Nouass again, and informed him of all that had happened. He was surprised and stupefied, and the first words were, "O Djoaidi, you can have neither authority nor power over such a woman, and she would make you do penance for all the pleasure you have had with other women!"
However, Fadehat el Djemal proposed to me to become her legitimate husband, in order to put a stop to the vexatious rumours that were circulating about her conduct. I, on the other hand, was only on the look out for adultery. Asking the advice of Abou Nouass about it, he told me, "If you marry Fadehat el Djemal you will ruin your health, and God will withdraw his protection[27] from you, and the worst of all will be that she will cuckold you, for she is insatiable with respect to the coitus, and would cover you with shame." And I answered him, "Such is the nature of women; they are insatiable as far as their vulvas are concerned, and so that their lust gets satisfied they do not care whether it be with a buffoon, a negro, a valet, or even with a man that is despised and reprobated by society."
On this occasion Abou Nouass depicted the character of women in the following verses:
"Women are demons, and were born as such;
No one can trust them, as is known to all;
If they love a man, it is only out of caprice;
And he to whom they are most cruel loves them most.
Beings full of treachery and trickery, I aver
The man that loves you truly is a lost man;
He who believes me not can prove my word
By letting woman's love get hold of him for years!
If in your own generous mood you have given them
Your all and everything for years and years,
They will say afterwards, 'I swear by God! my eyes
Have never seen a thing he gave me!'
After you impoverished yourself for their sake.
Their cry from day to day will be for ever 'Give!
Give man, Get up and buy and borrow.[28]
If they cannot profit by you they'll turn against you;
They will tell lies of you and calumniate you.
They do not recoil to use the slave in the master's absence,
If once their passions are aroused, and they play tricks;
Assuredly, if once their vulva is in rut.
They only think of getting in some member in erection.
Preserve us God! from woman's trickery;
And of old women in particular. So be it."
- ↑ Here are some of the names given by Rabelais to the natural parts of women; le serrecropiere, le calibistris, le pertuys, le boursavitz.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 The word abou signifies father, and abou aine literally translated means "father of the eye,," but in reality the word used in this way indicates the possession, and means, "who has."—See the "Chrestomathie Arabe" of Bresnier, page 67, second edition, note 2 of No. xv. There are a great many similar combinations of words forming surnames or nicknames. Frequent recurrences in this sense will appear in this work.
- ↑ The literal translation is, "men and women who are sparing with their sexual organs," feurdj being rendered by sexual organ. This quotation really proves that the word feurdj applies to both sexes. The passage may be translated, "the persons of both sexes who are chaste," and is thus given in the Koran translation of Kazimirski.
- ↑ In Arabic, words composed of the same letters may bear different meaning according to the marks, which affect their vowels.
- ↑ The word harame signifies at the same time illicit, forbidden action, and a holy thing. Moharreme indicates the holy soil of Mecca, the place of pilgrimage for Mussulmans. Maharime designates the persons whom to enjoy in coition is prohibited by religion.
- ↑ Deurss signifies a molar tooth and a man difficult to live with, hence enemy.
- ↑ The Arabs use sometimes in joke the word taga (window) for designating the sexual organ of woman.
- ↑ "Who effaces sins, welcomes repentance, and who is terrible in punishments." Koran, chap, xi., v. 2.
- ↑ "Il" (God has given you horses, mules, and asses to serve you as mounts and for pomp. He has created what you do not doubt." Koran, chap, xvi., v. 8.
- ↑ The word keuss, signifying the natural parts of woman, is not an original Arabic word; it is taken from the Greek.
- ↑ Note of the autograph edition.—All the qualifications given in the Arab text to the sexual organs of woman are referring to the word "feurdj," which is used as masculine, and is translated with vulva and vagina. In order to avoid a fatiguing repetition of one word and the same word, the translator has used now one, now the other of these expressions, which has occasioned the following anomaly: the Arab word "feurdj" is always masculine, while of the French words for vulva and vagina the first, vulve, is feminine, and the other, vagina, is masculine. We must observe here that neither vulva nor vagina give exactly the sense of the Arab "feurdj," which designates the whole of the organ for copulation of the woman, whilst vulva means the outside parts up to the membrane, and vagina is the conduit destined for the reception of the virile member up to the matrix. Neither of these words, therefore, corresponds exactly to "feurdj"; that as it was not feasible to use in the descriptions a long paraphrase, as "the organ for copulation in woman," and still less the vulgar latin word cunnus, it has seemed more convenient to apply the rhetorical figure called synecdoche, viz., to designate the whole by a part, and to use in turns the two above mentioned words, but vulva in preference with respect to the outer parts, and vagina when the interior parts are spoken of,
- ↑ There is no doubt that the author wanted to designate by comb that part of the sexual organs of woman which is called clitoris, from the Greek word to tickle. The clitoris is the seat of voluptuousness; it lengthens out and hardens when tickled.
- ↑ The small lips, ornymphs, are spoken of here, which, in young girls, are hidden by the larger ones.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—The author used two expressions belonging to the law, "el mentloub" and "el taleb," signifying the defendant and the plaintiff.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—The meroud is a little stick or tsylus which the Ahabian women use for blackening their eyelids, or for introducing an eye salve.
- ↑ Note in autograph edition.—The "saa" is a measure for cereals, and which will contain, according to the localities in which it is used, different quantities, from three to eight decaltries. It is certain that the author in making this comparison had in view the round form of the sack containing the grain, and not the volume of a "saa."
- ↑ Note, in the autograph edition.—This comparison of the vulva to a cucumber cannot seem otherwise than ridiculous to us, nevertheless it is often used by the Arabs. It serves to designate a vulva gifted with desirable qualities.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—In certain countries in Africa an operation is made upon girls, analogous to the circumcision, consisting in the partial excision of the lesser lips of the vulva, which attain in that climate sometimes a disproportional development.—(Dictionnaire de Dedecine, Littre et Robin, page 306.
- ↑ Note of the autograph edition.—This comparison is somewhat vulgar for poetry, and may even appear incomprehensible; nevertheless it finds its explanation in the fact that the shoes of the Arabs are kept fast to the foot by their upper borders being narrower than the foot itself, which has to be forced in.
- ↑ "Djoaidi" signifies a man of the people. The root djaa points to crisp, naturally curling hair.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—Paraphrase for a designing minion, a giton. It takes its origin from the comparison, very common with Arabs, of the pen and the inkstand and the verge and the vulva.
- ↑ The real name of Abou Nouass was Abou Hali Hacene. He also had the surname d'el Hakemi. He was born of obscure parents towards 135 or 136 of the Hegira, and acquired a great reputation as a poet and a philosopher.
- ↑ The tserid, or more commonly tserida, is an Arabian dish.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—Medeleuk, from deleuk, to pound, mash. This is a large wooden spoon, corresponding in shape and size to a pouch. This latter expression, however, being vulgar, has not been employed.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—The Arabs have a vulgar saying of a man who is not easily satisfied that he is mokeus deur, plated. Doubtless it refers in a similar sense to the vulva.
- ↑ Probably cinnamon or the root of the cubeb-plant.
- ↑ The Arab word seteur signifies veil, window-blind, and by extension, protection or even shield, buckler. It was in this latter sense that the author has used the word here.
- ↑ Note in the autograph edition.—Literally: "Seized by your bounty," a form of speech used to express the attentions which men show to women.