walls shut upon him; for that the Maugrabin sorcerer had by his
enchantments locked all the doors and had even shut up the
garden, so he might leave him no door whereby he should come
forth upon the face of the earth and so hasten his death upon
him. Alaeddin's weeping redoubled and his lamentation waxed when
he saw all the doors shut and eke the garden, for that he thought
to solace himself with them [FN#259] a little; but he found them
locked, so he fell to crying out and weeping, as he whose hope is
cut off, and returning, sat down upon the steps of the stair
whereby he had entered the vault, weeping [FN#260] and wailing;
and indeed he had lost hope.

But it is a small matter for God (extolled be His perfection and
exalted be He) whenas He willeth a thing, to say to it "Be," and
it is; for that He createth relief out of the midst of stress; by
token that, when the Maugrabin enchanter sent Alaeddin down into
the vault, he gave him a ring and put it on his finger, saying,
"This ring will deliver thee from all stress, an thou be in
calamities or vicissitudes, and will remove from thee troubles;
yea, it will be thy helper whereassoever thou art;" and this was
by the foreordinance of God the Most High, so it might be the
means of Alaeddin's deliverance. So, as he sat weeping and
bewailing his case and indeed his hope was cut off of life and
despair was heavy upon him, he fell, of the excess of his
anguish, to wringing [FN#261] his hands, after the wont of the
woeful; then, raising them [to heaven], he made supplication to
God, saying, "I testify that there is no God but Thou alone, the
Mighty, the Powerful, the Conquering, the Giver of Life and
Death, [FN#262] Creator and Accomplisher [FN#263] of necessities,
Resolver of difficulties and perplexities and Dispeller