Princess Sultana's Circle (16 page)

The reality of what I had
done then came to me. My husband was an indulgent man, but what he
was going to say when he saw this fantastically dressed eunuch was
something I could not imagine.

When we arrived at our
palace, Maha ran weeping to her room.

I told Omar to wait for me
in the main living room. He happily complied.

I searched for Amani, and
as I knew I would, I found her in the garden with her birds. I
stood and watched my daughter as she indulged her birds with
special seeds and treats. Well, at least these particular birds
would suffer no more. The garden was filled with their joyous
singing.

I drew a sharp breath as I
considered my victories and my defeats. The songbirds were free,
while the young girls were still captive!

When Kareem arrived home
and found me sitting in the living room chatting with the tiny
black eunuch, Omar, he stared and threw me a look of total
incredulity. Poor man! He had no idea of what had transpired that
day during his absence. Nor did he know that he now had a eunuch as
a part of his household.

Chapter Eight

The Story of a
Eunuch

Many times I have heard
Kareem declare that God moves in
mysterious
ways. Now seeing him reel toward me in a
shocked stupor, I hoped to soften what I knew would be my
husband’s
incensed reaction by reminding
him of his past assertion. “Kareem, I
now
know the true meaning of your wise words. God
does
move in
mysterious ways.” I turned from him and smiled at the eunuch.
“God,
Himself, has brought Omar of Sudan to
live in our home.”

Kareem’s automatic Arab
hospitality momentarily restrained the anger directed toward me. He
looked at the strange little man sitting at my side and greeted him
courteously. “You are most welcome in our home, Omar.”

I tried to bewitch Kareem
with my enthusiasm. “Darling! Omar’s story is a legend from our
past!”

Kareem showed his
skepticism as he inspected Omar’s colorful ensemble.
“Oh?”

I did not want Kareem to
judge Omar harshly, for I understood that this small man had not
chosen the role in life he had been forced to play.

“
Yes! Omar’s lifelong
mission has been that of a protector. A protector of
women!”

Just then Amani walked into
the palace with a row of her new pet birds balanced on her arm.
Miraculously, our daughter had already trained some of the birds
she had saved from Faddel’s garden paradise.

With a broad smile on his
face, Omar jumped to his feet. “Young Mistress, I watched from the
bushes as you carried these poor birds from Master Faddel’s palace
to freedom! For sure, you will be favored by Allah for your
goodness!”

Amani had never been
praised for protecting animals before. Disarmed, she smiled and
looked warmly at Omar.

Kareem’s earlier reluctant
tolerance was beginning to turn into alarm. “Great God, Sultana!
What is this? Have you taken Faddel’s dwarf, too?”

“
Omar is not a dwarf!” I
protested, “Omar is a eunuch!”

Kareem threw his arms into
the air. “Sultana!” His loud voice and gesticulating arm movements
caused Amani’s birds to flutter around the room in
panic.

Amani screamed,
“Father!”

Omar rushed to help Amani
gather the birds and return them to the garden. As soon as the door
closed behind them, I attempted to soothe Kareem by explaining the
morning’s events, and how it came about that an aged and wildly
dressed eunuch was now living in our home.

When Kareem began to
comprehend that, not only had I disobeyed his earlier instructions
by returning to Faddel’s palace, but had created yet another
upheaval at that palace while on a second mission of mercy, his
tolerance for my behavior vanished.

Kareem shouted, “Save me
Allah, from lying lips and deceiving tongues!” The raised veins on
his face and neck were alarming.

I tried to tell Kareem
about the plight of the poor women being held against their will,
but Kareem’s loud cries overwhelmed my words. We quickly became
involved in a senseless shouting match. Our argument ceased only
when our voices grew hoarse.

When he fell silent, I
tried to tell Kareem the tragic story of the young women held in
sexual bondage by Faddel, but even the grim reality of innocent
girls imprisoned in a harem made no impact on his anger.

I added meekly, “I know
that I should have first confided in you, Husband. But, you already
were so burdened with Amani and those birds, that I hesitated.” I
leaned close and placed my hand on Kareem’s leg. “Had I not gone
with Maha, and made an effort to free those young women, she would
never have forgiven me.”

Kareem shook his head
angrily, “What good did you do, Sultana? The women still belong to
Faddel. Nothing can change that fact! You well know that no one in
this country will take up the cause of women in such a situation!”
He gestured toward the spot where Omar sat previously. “So, what
did you accomplish? The addition of an ancient eunuch to a
household that has no need for one!”

Kareem and I were startled
to hear Omar clear his throat behind us. From the heaviness now
reflected on his sagging face, it was clear that he had overheard
Kareem’s callous remarks.

“
I will leave your home at
once, Master.” Omar stuttered in a high, meek tone of voice. “You
are right. A eunuch is a pointless creature. At least these
days.”

Omar’s eyes were
glistening, and I feared that the poor man was going to fall to his
knees and burst into tears.

The sad demeanor of this
little man softened Kareem’s heart, stripping him of his anger.
There are times that Kareem can be a sensitive man, and this was
one of those times. “I am sorry for my careless words, Omar. No man
is pointless in the eyes of Allah. And, if Faddel does not protest
your absence, you are most welcome to live with us.”

Omar’s countenance
brightened immediately. “Oh, Master, my presence will not be missed
in that place! I once left to travel with a visitor from Taif and
was away for four months. Upon my return, it was clear that my
absence had passed unnoticed by Master Faddel and his
wife.”

Omar went on ruefully, “I
was told by other servants that Faddel and Khalidah expressed the
hope that I had crept into the bushes and died. Those two even
begrudged me what little food my small body requires!” He stroked
the fabric of his brocade drawers. “Master Faddel refused funds for
me to purchase more appropriate garments. That is why I wear such
ancient attire from the days of my past, Master.”

Kareem smiled kindly. “Here
you are welcome to all the food you can eat, Omar. And, I will tell
Mohammed to assist you with new clothing. If you are to live with
us, then you will dress appropriately.”

Omar looked at me with
bright shining eyes before turning back to Kareem. “Master, God has
answered my prayers! I knew that a good woman such as your wife
would be paired with a kindly man!”

I glanced at Kareem,
thinking that he might join in Omar’s praise, but he did not.
Instead, he patted Omar on the back. “Friend, one thing only, do
not refer to me as ‘Master.’ No man is the master of another.
Please call me Prince Kareem.”

Omar nodded. “It is a long
habit that will be hard to break, but I shall try, Prince
Kareem.”

With a smile on his face,
Kareem then leaned back in the sofa and called out for the servants
to bring us tea.

I was astonished to see
that my husband’s tremendous wrath had been so quickly appeased by
this little man! As I thought back, I remembered how Omar had
comforted me only a few hours before, and I realized that this
eunuch possessed an enormously calming influence. I looked at Omar
with a new thought in mind. Would this little man prove to be an
unexpected gift to my overwrought, highly emotional
family?

Kareem looked at Omar with
kindness. “Omar, tell us something of your past. I was certain that
the last eunuch in Saudi Arabia had died some years
ago.”

Omar became animated. “It
would be my great pleasure to tell you anything you ask,” he said
with great excitement.

I smiled. I had already
noticed that Omar loved to tell stories at the slightest
provocation.

With a genial ease of
manners, Omar then pulled himself upright, and carefully arranging
his full-cut drawers, sat cross-legged on the sofa. When he lifted
his head to look at Kareem, his eyes took on a faraway look as he
began to relate details of the life he had lived.

“
I remember little of bilad
as-Sudan, known as the ‘land of the black peoples,’ but I do know
that my family’s tribe, the Humr, were nomadic cattlemen. We
followed the rains and the tall grasses.

“
Those were dangerous days.
Many African Chiefs worked closely with Muslim slave traders,
capturing and selling their own people. Every Humr mother was
burdened with the worry that her children would be stolen from her.
Even now, I remember the soft brown eyes of my mother as she looked
at me, and her stern warning that I was not to stray far from
members of the tribe.” Omar’s sad eyes mirrored his own pain, “I
was young and foolish, and failed to obey my mother. It was the aim
of every young Humr male to be praised as a hunter. Small boys were
always gathering stones to toss at birds or small animals. I was no
different, and one day while gathering smooth stones, I foolishly
wandered some distance from the tribe. Just as I was about to toss
a stone at a bustard, I was suddenly grabbed from behind and taken
away from that place. I never saw my mother again.”

Even after all these years,
Omar brushed away tears at the thought of his mother. “But, that
was a long, long time ago.”

Stillness hung in the air.
I felt unbelievably sad for the young boy that had been taken from
his mother, and for the man who had no chance to experience the
life he had been born to live.

Omar began to talk in a low
voice, not looking at Kareem or me. “I was not alone in my misery.
Many men, women, and children had been taken from their villages or
tribes. We were tied together and led across the land toward the
Red Sea. We spent many days and nights traveling. When we finally
arrived at the Red Sea, an Egyptian Christian met with our leader.
There was low talk concerning the young male captives. Panic ran
down the line of captured slaves when the man was overheard saying
that a certain number of the youngest boys were to be relieved of
their three precious gifts. Unsure of what these precious gifts
were, I did not protest too loudly when I was pulled from the line
and taken a short distance away from the other captured
slaves.”

Plainly uncomfortable,
Kareem interrupted Omar. “One moment, Omar.” He turned to me,
“Sultana, please go to the kitchen and ask the cook to prepare some
refreshments.”

I knew Kareem’s intention.
He did not want me in the room when Omar detailed the graphic tale
of his castration. In our conservative Saudi society, my presence
would be improper. This, even though Omar was not really considered
a man. Poor Omar lived a sad and uncertain fate. He was neither man
nor woman, although his status was slightly lower than a man’s, but
higher than a woman’s.

I did not object to
Kareem’s suggestion, although I had already braced myself to hear
the lurid details of Omar’s castration. I knew that once we were
alone, Kareem would willingly tell me everything. But I was too
impatient to wait. I decided to listen to the rest of Omar’s story
from the other side of the door.

“
Yes, of course,” I
replied, standing up and leaving the room. I hurried to the kitchen
and requested the cook to prepare a selection of refreshments
consisting of cheeses, fruits, and choice sweets.

Once I left the kitchen, I
stepped quietly and stopped behind the door leading into the
sitting room.

Omar was still speaking,
and I soon realized that I had not missed the main part of his
story. “…man was well-prepared for his duty. His razor was sharp,
and without knowing what was about to happen, I was suddenly
relieved of my three manly items.”

Kareem gasped loudly,
“Surely, Allah’s word was mocked by those men and their cruel
actions!”

“
Allah was nowhere to be
found on that day,” Omar said wistfully, “although His name was
invoked more than once by every boy subjected to this cruel
treatment.”

I heard Kareem take a deep
breath.

Omar remembered every
detail of his ordeal. “A tube was inserted into the opening that
was left in the place of my penis so that the hole would not close.
I was bleeding badly, but the bleeding stopped when that man’s
assistant poured boiling oil on my wounds.” Omar chuckled. “He
presented me with my genitals in a jar, even as I lay writhing in
pain! I kept that jar and its contents for many years, until
fifteen years ago it was stolen by a cruel prankster.”

“
It is a wonder that you
did not perish in the midst of all this cruelty,” Kareem managed to
say.