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👁 :410
Oprah Winfrey
Catagory:Biography
Author:LARRY ANDERSON
Posted Date:05/29/2025
Posted By:utopia online

It may well be that no other person in history has risen so far – from such poverty and despair to such wealth and fame - as Oprah Winfrey. * Born to a single, teenage mother in rural Mississippi, Oprah was raised by her grandmother until the age of six. The family was so poor that Oprah sometimes had to wear dresses made from potato sacks. Things didn’t improve much when Oprah went to live with her mother. They lived in a poor neighborhood and struggled to afford decent food and clothes. It wasn’t only the grinding poverty and the open prejudice against black people that made her childhood so tough; Oprah was beaten and sexually abused by family members. At age thirteen, she ran away from home. By fourteen, she was pregnant (her baby died shortly after it was born), and she got involved with drugs and emotionally abusive men. But Oprah Winfrey had a spirit that would not be destroyed, and a mind that yearned to be free. Out of her troubled past came a young woman determined to learn, grow, and succeed in life. Oprah became a top student in high school, and started winning public-speaking contests. She was so good at speaking that she won a university scholarship, and so beautiful that she won the state beauty pageant. Her big break came when a local radio station offered this bright, well spoken, and determined young woman a part-time job in the newsroom. After that, it wasn’t long before Winfrey’s hard work and talent earned her a spot in television news. She got so involved in her stories, sometimes crying along with guests who were having trouble, that the television station decided to move her to a talk show. Oprah Winfrey never looked back. Winfrey took a struggling TV talk show in Chicago to the number one spot in the city, then to the top-rated spot in the entire United States. Within a few years, Oprah Winfrey had the most viewers of any talk show in history, and was on her way to launching a series of successful TV and radio shows, magazines, websites, charities, and the world’s most influential book club. A millionaire by age thirty, and now a billionaire, Winfrey is often described as one of the most powerful people in the world, and one of the most generous. Never forgetting her roots, Oprah Winfrey helps people around the world and encourages others to appreciate and share their good fortune.


Type:other
👁 :307
Motivational
Catagory:Reading
Author:George Tan
Posted Date:05/29/2025
Posted By:utopia online

Two weeks before I met Arthur, on 13 December, I attended a segment of the Malaysia-Singapore Forum 2004. At the event, the Singapore Minister for Education, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, remarked that there had been many instances where children who did not do well academically were able to unlock their potential later in life and become very successful, especially in business.His words struck me, as the cliché goes, like a bolt of lightning. They seeded my idea that PRAISE can be the key to unlock the potential of so many people thousands of people struggling with finances and with life itself. I was lucky to have PRAISE as the key that unlocked my potential. Initially, I applied some of its principles subconsciously and achieved limited success. Only when I was in my mid-20s, however, did I recognise PRAISE as a complete life skills model that can be consciously applied in a systematic way. That was the breakthrough that turned my rough life into a truly rich one rich in every sense of the word. Being rich does not necessarily mean having lots of money. One can, and should, also be rich in terms of learning, experiences, joy, blessings, happiness....You, too, can turn your life around. First, you must become aware of the SADDLE influences in your life. Then, by learning and applying the PRAISE model, you can overpower that robber and begin the process of transformation. Congratulations for having come thus far. Your PRAISE journey towards success unlimited — has already begun. School was a paradise for kids. Or so I thought. “Mama, when can I go to school?” I must have asked my mother that question a thousand times until the day finally came in 1965. I was seven years old and about to enter Primary 1. Then came a rude shock. In fact, a series of rude shocks . . . My mother took me to school and to a classroom packed with more than 30 other children. Many boys and girls started to cry. Why are they crying? When will we start to play? When class started, the teacher asked each of us to write letters of the alphabet on the blackboard. I could not even write “A”. The rest of the class laughed at me. During recess, I queued to buy noodles with the precious five-cent coin that my father had given me. When I got to the front, I was told that a bowl of noodles cost 10 cents. I was shocked and sad. I would be able to buy a bowl of noodles only every other day. I saw a water tap at one corner of the canteen. As I drank I saw, from the corner of my eye, two kids licking rainbowcoloured ice-cream. I looked up and I saw them all. There was a long queue at the ice-cream stall. I thought ice-cream was a luxury item which only the rich could afford. These kids were taking ice-cream as freely as I took water from the tap. I learnt a great deal at school, not about English or Arithmetic, but about the have’s and have-not’s. I knew my family was poor. I thought the whole neighbourhood was poor. I learnt that even among the poor, some could afford ice-cream while others could not.


Type:other
👁 :555
INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY
Catagory:Reading
Author:Mel Robbins
Posted Date:05/28/2025
Posted By:utopia online

Productivity can be boiled down to one word FOCUS. There are two types of focus you need to master productivity: First the ability to manage distractions so that you can focus moment-to-moment on the task at hand, and second, the skill of focusing on what’s truly important to you in the big picture, so you don’t waste your day on stupid stuff. We’re going to explore both types of focus, take a look at the latest research on the subject, and learn how to use the #5SecondRule to master the skills of focusing your time on what’s most important and managing distractions when they pop up. Managing distractions is like following through on health goals. You’re never going to feel like it; you just have to make yourself do it. You already know that being addicted to your phone, texting, and answering emails is a distraction…but stopping it feels impossible. Even though you know you should turn off pop-up alerts, silence your phone, and stop checking email every five minutes, this knowledge doesn’t change your behavior. I could bury you with research about how bad this is, but it wouldn’t change your behavior. This is where the #5SecondRule comes into play you don’t have to want to do it, you just have to push yourself to do it. First you must decide that distractions are not good. Interruptions of any sort are the kiss of death for your productivity. Research shows open office spaces are a nightmare for focus. Checking email can become an addiction because of what behavioral researchers call “random rewards.” You have to decide that your goals are more important than push notifications. It’s that simple. Then you just remove them. I’m not claiming this is rocket science. I’m also not going to tell you that it’s easy. But I promise you that if you use the #5SecondRule, you’ll actually do it. When you start to remove distractions and are able to focus on the moment-to-moment things that matter you will have “no idea” how much it will help, as Karen wrote: Re cently, I was talking about this with my high school-aged daughter Kendall. She loves social media, but would spend so much time on her phone that it was seriously distracting her from her schoolwork. Plus, it was making her feel insecure to constantly compare herself to the social media posts of celebrities and supermodels.


Type:other
👁 :357
The Druids
Catagory: History
Author:Brian HaughLon
Posted Date:05/28/2025
Posted By:utopia online

The Druids were mysterious Pagan priests in the Celtic society of Western Europe from around the second century B.C. to the first century A.D. (the end of the Iron Age). Variously given the title of Shamans, priests, teachers, and philosophers, so little is known about the Druids-who left no written record of their existence-that they have been both romanticized and demonized in equal measure. Much of what we know about the Druids comes from ancient Greek and Roman writers, and early Irish and Welsh literature. The development of neo-Druidism from the 17th century onwards has also added considerably to the image of the Druid as known today. But how much of the tales of strange secret rites in lonely forest groves or mass human sacrifice in huge wickerwork images is, in fact, based on truth? Arch-Druid in his full Judicial Costume. An etching from Old England: A Pictorial Museum (1845).The word Druid seems to derive from Indo-European roots meaning oak, strong, knowledge, or wisdom. Our most informative source for these Pagan priests is Julius Caesar (100 B.C.- 44 B.C.), who wrote about them from firsthand experience in his Commentaries on the Gallic War, a history of his wars in Gaul (modern France) from 59 to 51 B.C. Unfortunately, as with most of the ancient Roman sources for the Druids, it is often hard to separate Roman propaganda from truth. Caesar mentions the Druids in his discussion of Gaulish religion and says that they were in charge of private and public sacrifice and otherz religious matters. Casaer's need to impress Rome with stories from his military campaign in Gaul probably accounts for the exaggerations in his statements, and nowhere is this more obvious than in his discussion of human sacrifice by these Celtic priests. He describes "huge statues of immense size, whose bodies of woven branches are filled with living men." Obviously he is describing the now famous wicker men. Caesar then goes on to say that criminals were burned alive inside these huge structures to satisfy the gods, but, he adds, if the supply of criminals fails, then the Druids think nothing of sacrificing innocent victims. Caesar's writings indicate the existence of at least two classes among the higher echelon of Gaulic society: the nobles and the Druids. The Druids obviously held an influential and respected position in Celtic society, and Caesar mentions that large numbers of young men went to them for training. The Druids also retained power as lawgivers, acted in disputes between both individuals and tribes, and had the right to pass judgements on criminals. They were also exempt from military service and the payment of taxes. Caesar places the origin of Druidism in Britain, and mentions that serious students of the Druidic arts traveled there to study it. He also reports that a novice could continue his studies for up to 20 years, some of which included memorizing large amounts of poetry. Caesar's information on the religious doctrines of the Druids is interesting, as he states, "a lesson, which they take particular pains to inculcate, is that the soul does not perish, but after death passes from one body to another." Many ancient writers took this to mean that the Druids had been influenced by the teachings of the Greek philosopher Pythagoras on the immortality of the soul, though this seems unlikely. Caesar also mentions the Druids having knowledge of the motion of the stars and the size of the Earth, and being familiar with philosophy. It is difficult to ascertain even roughly when the Druid priesthood originated. The earliest known reference to them is from the early first century B.C. Greek philosopher, astronomer, and geographer, Posidonius. Unfortunately his work only survives in fragments from later writers such as Greek historian and geographer Strabo (c. 63 B.C.-A.D. 24) and Posidonius' pupil, the Roman orator and statesman, Cicero (106 B.C.-3 B.C.). Cicero comments that he actually knew a Druid named Divitiacus, of a Gaulish tribe known as the Aedui, and he describes this Divitiacus as a kind of astrologer or soothsayer who was acquainted with "natural philosophy." Strabo's writings again feature the giant wicker man sacrifices referred to by Caesar, and also another type of human sacrifice supervised by the Druids. He writes: "Some men they would shoot dead with arrows and impale in the temples." While there is practically no evidence that the Celts used bows and arrows at all, intriguingly, the body of a man found in the outer ditch at Stonehenge proved to have been killed at close quarters by three arrows in his back. As the date for this possible human sacrifice at Stonehenge is between 2398 and 2144 B.C., there is obviously no direct connection between his ritual murder and the Late Iron Age Druids, unless of course the Druids practiced rituals that had been part of the traditions of the British Isles for millennia, and had been handed down to them. It is difficult to say what, if anything, of original Druidic belief or ritual survives in some form today. Practically everything in modern Druidery has its roots in 18th and 19th century romanticism. Perhaps echoes of the ancient British Druids are still to be found in folkloric beliefs related to well-worship, and certain practices connected with celebrations, such as Halloween. The wearing of masks at Halloween to scare away evil spirits goes back to Celtic Samhain ceremonies, traditionally celebrated at the beginning of winter, on the 1st of November. Another major Celtic celebration was Beltaine, a festival held on April 30 or May 1 celebrating the coming of summer and the origin of May Day. On May Eve great fires were lit on hilltops and Druids drove cattle through the flames to purify them; people would also leap through the fires to secure a plentiful harvest. Perhaps even the mythical woodland folk, such as the fairies and woodwoses (hairy wildman of the woods) are the last vague survivals of the sacred traditions of the once great Druids.


Type:other
👁 :301
MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS
Catagory:Reading
Author:Robert T. Kiyosaki (RICH DAD POOR DAD)
Posted Date:05/27/2025
Posted By:utopia online

In 1974, Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald’s, was asked to speak to the MBA class at the University of Texas at Austin. A friend of mine was a student in that MBA class. After a powerful and inspiring talk, the class adjourned and the students asked Ray if he would join them at their favorite hangout to have a few beers. Ray graciously accepted.“What business am I in?” Ray asked, once the group had all their beers in hand. “Everyone laughed,” my friend said. “Most of the MBA students thought Ray was just fooling around.” No one answered, so Ray asked again, “What business do you think I’m in?” The students laughed again, and finally one brave soul yelled out, “Ray, who in the world doesn’t know that you’re in thehamburger business?” Ray chuckled. “That’s what I thought you would say.” He paused and then quickly added, “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m not in the hamburger business. My business is real estate.” As my friend tells the story, Ray spent a good amount of time explaining his viewpoint. In his business plan, Ray knew that the primary business focus was to sell hamburger franchises, but what he never lost sight of was the location of each franchise. He knew that the land and its location were the most significant factors in the success of each franchise. Basically, the person who bought the franchise was also buying the real estate under the franchise for Ray Kroc’s organization. Today, McDonald’s is the largest single owner of real estate in the world, owning even more than the Catholic church. McDonald’s owns some of the most valuable intersections and street corners in America and around the globe.My friend considers this as one of the most important lessons in his life. Today he owns car washes, but his business is the real estate under those car washes. The previous chapter presented diagrams illustrating that most people work for everyone but themselves. They work first for the owners of the company, then for the government through taxes, and finally for the bank that owns their mortgage.When I was a young boy, we did not have a McDonald’s nearby. Yet my rich dad was responsible for teaching Mike and me the same lesson that Ray Kroc talked about at the University of Texas.It is secret number three of the rich. That secret is: Mind your own business. Financial struggle is often directly the result of people working all their lives for someone else. Many people will simply have nothing at the end of their working days to show for their efforts. Our current educational system focuses on preparing today’s youth to get good jobs by developing scholastic skills. Their lives will revolve around their wages or, as described earlier, their income column. Many will study further to become engineers, scientists,cooks, police officers, artists, writers, and so on. These professional skills allow them to enter the workforce and work for money.But there is a big difference between your profession and your business. Often I ask people, “What is your business?” And they will say, “Oh, I’m a banker.” Then I ask them if they own the bank. And they usually respond, “No, I work there.” In that instance, they have confused their profession with their business. Their profession may be a banker, but they still need their own business.A problem with school is that you often become what you study.So if you study cooking, you become a chef. If you study the law, you become an attorney, and a study of auto mechanics makes you a mechanic. The mistake in becoming what you study is that too many people forget to mind their own business. They spend their lives minding someone else’s business and making that person rich. To become financially secure, a person needs to mind their own business. Your business revolves around your asset column, not your income column. As stated earlier, the number-one rule is to know the difference between an asset and a liability, and to buy assets. The rich focus on their asset columns, while everyone else focuses on their income statements. That is why we hear so often: “I need a raise.” “If only I had a promotion.” “I am going back to school to get more training so I can get a better job.” “I am going to work overtime.” “Maybe I can get a second job.” In some circles, these are sensible ideas. But you are still not minding your own business. These ideas all still focus on the income column and will only help a person become more financially secure if the additional money is used to purchase incomegenerating assets.The primary reason the majority of the poor and middle class are fiscally conservative which means, “I can’t afford to take risks” is that they have no financial foundation. They have to cling to their jobs and play it safe.When downsizing became the “in” thing to do, millions of workers found out their largest so-called asset, their home, was eating them alive. Their “asset” was costing them money every month. Their car, another “asset,” was eating them alive. The golf clubs in the garage that cost $1,000 were not worth $1,000 anymore. Without job security, they had nothing to fall back on. What they thought were assets could not help them survive in a time of financial crisis.I assume most of us have filled out a credit application to buy a house or a car. It’s always interesting to look at the “net-worth” section because of what accepted banking and accounting practices allow a person to count as assets. One day when I wanted a loan, my financial position did not look too good. So I added my new golf clubs, my art collection, books, electronics, Armani suits, wristwatches, shoes, and other personal effects to boost the number in the asset column.But I was turned down because I had too much investment real estate. The loan committee didn’t like that I made so much money from rent. They wanted to know why I did not have a normal job with a salary. They did not question the Armani suits, golf clubs, or art collection. Life is sometimes tough when you do not fit the standard profile. I cringe every time I hear someone say to me that their net worth is a million dollars or $100,000 dollars or whatever. One of the main reasons net worth is not accurate is simply because, the moment you begin selling your assets, you are taxed for any gains. So many people have put themselves in deep financial trouble when they run short of income. To raise cash, they sell their assets.But their personal assets can generally be sold for only a fraction of the value that is listed on their personal balance sheet. Or if there is a gain on the sale of the assets, they are taxed on the gain. So again, the government takes its share, thus reducing the amount available to help them out of debt. That is why I say someone’s net worth is often “worth less” than they think.Start minding your own business. Keep your daytime job, but start buying real assets, not liabilities or personal effects that have no real value once you get them home. A new car loses nearly 25 percent of the price you pay for it the moment you drive it off the lot.


Type:other
👁 :400
Ferdinand Magellan
Catagory:Biography
Author:LARRY ANDERSON
Posted Date:05/27/2025
Posted By:utopia online

A sixteenth-century seaman, trader, fighter, and explorer, Ferdinand Magellan was captain of the fleet that took on the high-risk challenge of circumnavigating the globe. In the 1500s, Spain and Portugal were global powerhouses and bitter rivals. Both nations were experts at exploring and trading by sea, and at fighting over the riches they found. It was an opportune time for a man like Ferdinand Magellan - an expert sailor and even better fighter. He took part in many voyages and battles for his native Portugal, earning a stellar reputation. Magellan came up with a visionary plan to put his nation on top in the ongoing rivalry with Spain: Instead of sailing all the way around Africa to get to the trading lands of Asia, why not go the other way around the world? Magellan thought if he could find a way past the new lands where Christopher Columbus had landed in Central and South America, he could open up fresh trade routes. By doing this, he imagined, he could make his country - and himself - rich! But the king of Portugal had just signed a treaty giving him power over the standard trade route around Africa. He wasn’t interested in a risky expedition into the unknown. Even worse, Magellan’s enemies at court were spreading false stories, and the king stopped trusting him. There was one risky step that Magellan could take to keep his dream alive: he could go to Spain. The Spanish suspected Magellan of being a spy. But the Spanish king was desperate to find a new path to Asia, and he took the chance of backing Magellan’s daring scheme. Now all Ferdinand Magellan had to do was sail across the two biggest oceans on Earth, through uncharted waters, to the other side of the world! Magellan set out with high hopes. But shipwrecks, mutiny, disease, attacks by native tribes, powerful storms, and other disasters plagued him all along the way. Finally, after weeks of hitting dead ends as he attempted to round the tip of South America, Ferdinand Magellan found a way through and sailed his battered fleet to success. Much later, Magellan got caught up in a civil war in the Philippines and was killed in battle. His deputy decided to press on, through Asian waters, around Africa, and back to Spain. The sailors who survived became the first people to sail around the world! Only eighteen sailors and one leaky boat from the fleet of 250 men and five ships made it home. But, they proved Ferdinand Magellan had been right. Today, the route around South America is called the Strait of Magellan after one of the bravest, most determined explorers in history.


Type:other
👁 :350
THE FOUN DATION FOR ALL SUCCESS
Catagory:Reading
Author:Dean Graziosi (Millionaire Success Habits)
Posted Date:05/26/2025
Posted By:utopia online

Where the heck are you going? In your life, that is. Many people struggle with this seemingly obvious question. Want to see the evidence of this struggle? During the week, ask five random people what they don’t want out of life. I can all but guarantee they have a sizeable list. It will be as if they metaphorically lick their fingers, clear their throats as if about to make some life-altering announcement, grab their figurative list, and begin to enumerate the items on it:I don’t want to keep the same income and job I have now.I don’t want my spouse to nag me about money and time spent at home.I don’t want to keep driving this same crappy car for another year.The “I don’t wants” always flow out easily. So easily, that sometimes they seem like they have been rehearsed! It’s as if people are constantly thinking about them. And why is that? Because, they are. So after you ask these people what they don’t want out of life, and they’re ticking off their fifth or sixth item, stop them abruptly,pause for a second, and say, “Okay, I understand what you don’t want out of life. Now let me ask you this, what do you want out of life?” This is where things get interesting. After you ask this question, you’ll see puzzlement, followed by a creased brow. They’re starting to think about what you asked. Their reactions will be the polar opposite of the reactions they had when you asked what they don’t want out of life. Many people will respond, “Well, that’s a good question” or “I’ll have to think about that one.” It’s like they’re saying, “I’m in a fast car, I’m driving 100 mph and I know for sure I don’t want to go to Florida, Texas, or Arizona. But I’m not sure where I actually do want to go.” What happens then? You end up nowhere! You end up out of gas and unable to reach your destination because you only know where you don’t want to go. Sounds pretty simple right? Maybe you’re saying, “Oh boy, Dean, is that the grand wisdom you have for me?” Actually, it’s a huge part of it. But you have to wrap your head around what the wisdom really is. Once you understand it, you’ll see why this may be the biggest reason you are holding yourself back from breaking through to the next level. So, let me ask you a question: Do you know anyone who fits this description? Someone who has an easier time expressing what they don’t want out of life than expressing what they do want? Maybe a friend, a relative, or a spouse who goes through life this way? Maybe, even someone a little closer to you, that someone you see when you look in the mirror after rolling out of bed each morning? You see, what’s crazy about today’s society is that everybody is racing around with “Ferrari brains” but no one has her GPS on! And here’s the unfortunate truth for a society like this: It doesn’t matter how fast you can go, it doesn’t matter how much passion you have, and it doesn’t matter how much energy you put into something. If you don’t have a vision and clarity on the destination you want to reach, you’ll simply never get there. The reason I call it a Ferrari brain is because you can buy the most expensive Ferrari in the world and drive as fast as you possibly can, but if don’t know where you’re going, you’ll get nowhere quickly. Would you rather drive a Ferrari off a cliff at 200 miles per hour or drive a Prius to the promised land? In a moment, I’m going to share one of the most important millionaire success habits of them all. It’s a habit that I have shared with my students for the past 20-plus years and a habit I will share until I can’t share anymore! Look, I hope you read this entire book from cover to cover. Getting through this chapter alone will put you ahead of 98% of the world; the same 98% that is out there running on a treadmill wondering why they aren’t getting where they want to go, or driving in a Ferrari with no GPS and wondering why they just drove into a lake. Here are things I hear far too often: “I need more hours in a day, Dean. I wish I could clone myself or find good help. I never have enough time to do my own business or take my business to the next level, or get a promotion, or make more money.” Most people think they need 36 hours in a day, when in reality they are just lacking a crystal clear vision of what they want out of their own personal lives.Did Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg have 36 hours in a day on their path to success? If you feel overwhelmed daily because of a lack of time, distractions, or your own procrastination, I would bet you a shiny nickel that you don’t accurately know where you want to go in life. Believe me, it’s the first question I ask all my students, and most scratch their heads as they consider where they want to go. When you have no idea about your direction, you tend to spend your time doing things that are preventing you from making more money, receiving promotions, seeing your family more, or even just enjoying life at an optimal level. And while you’re doing these things that are in no way serving your future, you’re forced to say no to doing the things that could further your business, your income, and your happiness. On the flip side, when you have a clear vision for your life, you’ll stop wasting time on the things not serving your dreams, your goals, or your aspirations. Your actions will have purpose and your hours will be spent achieving those goals. Your procrastination will cease because you’ll know with 100% certainty what you cannot put off until tomorrow. So let’s get your vision dialed in using the habits I’ve learned over time—habits I acquired through my own trial and error, as well as those that I’ve borrowed from other super- successful people. Once you develop a vision for yourself, things will become so clear, it will be as if you got a new pair of glasses and didn’t realize your old prescription was outdated.We all know that setting goals is an extremely important part of success. I believe that Benjamin Franklin was one of the first people ever who documented his goals and knew where he wanted to go in life. But what we are about to go through together in this chapter transcends the typical “goal-setting” process. Sometimes setting goals is hard when so much around you is noisy, busy, and even scary. But together we are first going to get honest about where you are in life right now. Then I am going to give you a secret tool that will allow you to look into the future to discover your path. Then, we will anchor where you want to go with your true “why”. Then the only thing left is learning how to do it. Fortunately, this entire book is designed to give you the tools, techniques, and, of course, the habits to accomplish the “how”.


Type:other
👁 :472
The Story of Aladdin, or The Magic Lamp Part 4
Catagory:Fiction
Author:Translated BY MALCOLM C. LYONS( THE ARABIAN NIGHTS TALES OF 1001 NIGHTS)
Posted Date:05/26/2025
Posted By:utopia online

When Aladdin saw himself so magnificently clothed from top to toe, he thanked his uncle profusely with all the thanks imaginable, and the magician repeated his promise never to abandon him and to keep him always with him. Indeed, he then took him to the most frequented parts of the city and in particular to those where the shops of the rich merchants were to be found. When he reached the street which had the shops with the richest cloths and finest fabrics, he said to Aladdin: ‘As you will soon be a merchant like these, it is a good idea for you to seek out their company so that they get to know you.’ The magician also showed him the largest and most beautiful mosques and took him to the khans where the foreign merchants lodged and to all the places in the sultan’s palace which he was free to enter. Finally, after they had wandered together through all the fairest places in the city, they came to the khan where the magician had taken lodgings. There they found several merchants whom the magician had got to know since his arrival and whom he had gathered together for the express purpose of entertaining them and at the same time introducing them to his so-called nephew. The party did not finish until towards evening. Aladdin wanted to take leave of his uncle to return home, but the magician would not let him go back alone and himself accompanied him back to his mother. When his mother saw Aladdin in his fine new clothes, she was carried away in her delight and kept pouring a thousand blessings on the magician who had spent so much money on her child. ‘My dear relative,’ she exclaimed, ‘I don’t know how to thank you for your generosity. I know my son does not deserve all you have done for him and he would be quite unworthy of it if he was not grateful to you or failed to respond to your kind intention of giving him such a fine establishment. As for myself, once again I thank you with all my heart; I hope that you will live long enough to witness his gratitude, which he can best show by conducting himself in accordance with your good advice.’ ‘Aladdin is a good boy,’ the magician replied. ‘He listens to me well enough and I believe he will turn out well. But one thing worries me – that I can’t carry out what I promised him tomorrow. Tomorrow is Friday, when the shops are closed, and there is no way we can think of renting one and stocking it at a time when the merchants are only thinking of entertaining themselves. So we will have to postpone our business until Saturday, but I will come and fetch him tomorrow and I will take him for a walk in the gardens where all the best people are usually to be found. Perhaps he has never seen the amusements that are to be had there. Up until now he has only been with children, but now he must see men.’ The magician took his leave of mother and son and departed. Aladdin, however, was so delighted at being so smartly turned out that he already began to anticipate the pleasure of walking in the gardens that lay around the city. In fact, he had never been outside the city gates and had never seen the surroundings of the city, which he knew to be pleasant and beautiful. The next day, Aladdin got up and dressed himself very early so as to be ready to leave when his uncle came to fetch him. After waiting for what seemed to him a very long time, in his impatience he opened the door and stood on the doorstep to see if he could see the magician. As soon as he spotted him, Aladdin told his mother and said goodbye to her, before shutting the door and running to meet him. The magician embraced Aladdin warmly when he saw him. ‘Come, my child,’ he said to him, smiling, ‘today I want to show you some child,’ he said to him, smiling, ‘today I want to show you some wonderful things.’ He took him through a gate which led to some fine, large houses, or rather, magnificent palaces, which all had very beautiful gardens that people were free to enter. At each palace that they came to, he asked Aladdin whether he thought it beautiful, but Aladdin would forestall him as soon as another palace presented itself, saying: ‘Uncle, here’s another even more beautiful than those we have just seen.’ All the while, they were advancing ever deeper into the countryside and the wily magician, who wanted to go further still in order to carry out the plan he had in mind, took the opportunity of entering one of these gardens. Seating himself near a large pool into which a beautiful jet of water poured from the nostrils of a bronze lion, he pretended to be tired in order to get Aladdin to take a rest. ‘Dear nephew,’ he said to him, ‘you, too, must be tired. Let’s sit here and recover ourselves. We shall then have more strength to continue our walk.’ When they had sat down, the magician took out from a cloth attached to his belt some cakes and several kinds of fruit which he had brought with him as provisions, and spread them out on the edge of the pool. He shared a cake with Aladdin but let him choose for himself what fruits he fancied. As they partook of this light meal, he talked to his so-called nephew, giving him numerous pieces of advice, the gist of which was to exhort Aladdin to give up associating with children, telling him rather to approach men of prudence and wisdom, to listen to them and to profit from their conversation. ‘Soon you will be a man like them,’ he said, ‘and you can’t get into the habit too soon of following their example and speaking with good sense.’ When they had finished eating, they got up and resumed their walk through the gardens, which were separated from each other only by small ditches which defined their limits without impeding access – such was the mutual trust the inhabitants of the city enjoyed that there was no need for any other boundaries to guard against them harming each other’s interests. Gradually and without Aladdin being aware of it, the magician led him far beyond the gardens, making him pass through open country which took them very close to the mountains. Aladdin had never before travelled so far and felt very weary from such a long walk. ‘Uncle,’ he asked the magician, ‘where are we going? We have left the gardens far behind and I can see nothing but mountains. If we go any further, I don’t know if I’ll have enough strength to return to the city.’ ‘Take heart, my nephew,’ replied the bogus uncle. ‘I want to show you another garden which beats all those you have just seen. It’s not far from here, just a step away, and when we get there you yourself will tell me how cross you would have been not to have seen it after having got so close to it.’ Aladdin let himself be persuaded and the magician led him even further on, all the while entertaining him with many amusing stories in order to make the journey less tedious for him and his fatigue more bearable. At last they came to two mountains of a moderate height and size, separated by a narrow valley. This was the very spot to which the magician had wanted to take Aladdin so that he could carry out the grand plan which had brought him all the way from the furthest part of Africa to China. ‘We are not going any further,’ he told Aladdin. ‘I want to show you some extraordinary things, unknown to any other man, and when you have seen them, you will thank me for having witnessed so many marvels that no one else in all the world will have seen but you ……cont


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