پری دریایی

Chapter one

The Mermaid

Every evening the fisherman went out fishing. He sometimes sold his fish at the market. Sometimes he did not catch many fish and he could not sell them.

One evening his net was very heavy. He laughed and said, ‘Did I catch all the fish in the sea? Or did I catch some horrible monster? I will give it to the Queen. She will be happy.’

He pulled and pulled the heavy net. Finally, he pulled the net next to the boat.

But there were no fish in it and there was no monster. There was only a little mermaid. She was asleep.

Her hair was yellow like gold; her body was white like ivory; her tail like silver and pearl; and her ears like seashells.

She was very beautiful. The fisherman pulled the net closer to the boat. He embraced her. When he touched her, she screamed.

She could not escape so she began to cry and said, ‘Please let me go. I am the only daughter of a King of the Sea. My father is very old and alone.’

But the fisherman answered her, ‘I will let you go, but you must make me a promise. I will call you and you will come and sing to me. The fish love the songs of the people of the sea. You will sing and my nets will be full.’

‘I promise. Please let me go,’ cried the mermaid.

‘Yes, I will let you go,’ said the fisherman. So she promised him and he let her go. She went back into the sea and trembled. She felt a strange fear.

Every evening the young fisherman went fishing and called the mermaid. She came and sang to him. The dolphins swam round and round her. The seagulls were in the sky above her head.

She sang a marvellous song of the tritons, the men with long green beards.

She sang of the gardens of the sea with their corals. Here the fish swim like silver birds.

She sang of the big whales from the cold north seas, and of the dead sailors in their ships at the bottom of the sea.

She sang of the little children. They ride on the backs of the dolphins and laugh.

When she sang the tuna fish came to listen to her. The young fisherman then caught many of them.

When his boat was full of fish, the mermaid smiled at him and swam away.

But she never came near him. When he tried to catch her, she went into the water like a seal. Each day her voice became sweeter to his ears. Soon he forgot his nets and listened to her song. He listened to her until the moon came.

One evening he called her, and said, ‘Little mermaid, marry me because I love you.’

But the little mermaid said, ‘You have a human soul. Send away your soul, and then I can love you.’

The young fisherman thought, ‘Why do I need my soul? I cannot see it. I cannot touch it. I do not know it. Of course I will send it away and I will be very happy.’

He stood up in his boat and cried, ‘I will send my soul away! You will be my wife, and you will show me all the things you sing about. We will be together forever.’

The little mermaid laughed because she was very happy.

‘But how can I send my soul away’ cried the young fisherman. ‘I do not know,’ said the little mermaid. ‘The people of the sea have no souls.’

Early the next morning the fisherman went to the priest’s house and knocked on his door. The priest looked out of the window and saw the fisherman and said, ‘Come in.’

The young fisherman entered and cried to the priest, ‘Father, I am in love with a mermaid. I cannot marry her because I have a soul. How can I send my soul away? I really do not need it. Why is my soul important? I cannot see it. I cannot touch it. I do not know it.’

The priest answered, ‘Are you mad? God gave you your soul. It is very precious. It is as precious as all the gold in the world. So, my son, do not think about this any more. It is the worst sin. The people of the sea are lost creatures. They are like the beasts of the fields. They do not know what is right and wrong. God didn’t die for them.’

The young fisherman began to cry and said, ‘Father, the fauns live in the forest and are happy. The mermen sit on the rocks with their gold harps. I want to be like them.

‘Why is my soul important? I have a soul, but I cannot have the mermaid, and I love her,’ he cried.

‘It is horrible to love your body’ cried the priest. ‘The fauns of the woods and the mermen are horrible! I hear them at night. They try to distract me from my prayers. They are lost, I tell you, they are lost. There is no heaven or hell for them.’

‘Away! Away’ cried the priest. ‘Your mermaid is lost and you will be lost with her.’

The young fisherman walked sadly to the marketplace.

When the merchants saw him they said, ‘What do you want to sell?’

‘I will sell you my soul,’ he answered. ‘Please buy it from me because I am tired of it. What can I do with a soul? I cannot see it. I cannot touch it. I do not know it.’

But the merchants laughed at him, and said, ‘What can we do with a soul? A false coin is more precious. Sell us your body, and we will give you a lot of gold. But we will not give you any money for your soul.’

The young fisherman thought, ‘How strange this is! The priest said, “Your soul is as precious as all the gold in the world.” But the merchants say, “A false coin is more precious.’”

He went to the beach and began to think.