The Story of the Barber's Six Brothers

In the city of Baghdad, a garrulous barber recounted the misfortunes of his six brothers to the Caliph to prove his own wisdom. The first, Bacbouc, was a hunchback weaver swindled by a grand lady. The second, Bakbarah, was a toothless man led into a humiliating trap by a teasing damsel. The third, Bakbac, was a blind man robbed and beaten by a treacherous trickster. The fourth, Al-Kuz, was a one-eyed butcher who fell victim to a magician’s sorcery and was driven from his home. The fifth, Al-Ashar, famously dreamed of wealth while sitting over a tray of glassware, only to kick his stock into shards in a moment of hubris. Finally, the sixth brother, Shakashik, was a beggar who humored a nobleman by eating a magnificent, yet entirely imaginary, feast. Each brother, though flawed or unfortunate, represented a unique lesson in the unpredictability of fate and the varied ways men are humbled by their own desires or the cruelty of others.