The Clove Trader | تاجِرُ القَرَنْفُلِ
"An Omani merchant discovers the secret of clove cultivation in Zanzibar"
تاجِرُ القَرَنْفُلِ
The Clove Trader
الفصلُ الأَوَّلُ: التَّوابِلُ الثَّمِينَةُ
Chapter One: The Precious Spices
جاءَ مُحَمَّدُ بنُ عَبْدِاللهِ إِلى زَنْجِبارَ تاجِرًا فَقِيرًا. رَأَى الهُولَنْدِيِّينَ يُسَيْطِرُونَ عَلى تِجارَةِ القَرَنْفُلِ، أَغْلَى تَوابِلِ العالَمِ.
Muhammad bin Abdullah came to Zanzibar as a poor merchant. He saw the Dutch controlling the clove trade, the most expensive spice in the world.
قالَ لِنَفْسِهِ: «لِماذا يَحْتَكِرُونَ هَذِهِ الثَّرْوَةَ؟ يَجِبُ أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ سِرَّ زِراعَةِ القَرَنْفُلِ.»
He said to himself: "Why do they monopolize this wealth? I must learn the secret of clove cultivation."
الفصلُ الثَّانِي: السِّرُّ المَحْرُوسُ
Chapter Two: The Guarded Secret
حَرَسَ الهُولَنْدِيُّونَ أَشْجارَ القَرَنْفُلِ بِالجُنُودِ. مَنْ يُحاوِلُ سَرِقَةَ بُذُورِها يُقْتَلُ!
The Dutch guarded the clove trees with soldiers. Whoever tried to steal their seeds was killed!
لَكِنَّ مُحَمَّدًا كانَ صَبُورًا. صادَقَ عَبْدًا يَعْمَلُ فِي المَزارِعِ، وَأَعْتَقَهُ بِمالِهِ. شَكَرَهُ العَبْدُ وَأَعْطاهُ سِرًّا: «البُذُورُ تَحْتَ الفُضَلاتِ الَّتِي تُلْقَى فِي البَحْرِ!»
But Muhammad was patient. He befriended a slave working in the farms and freed him with his money. The slave thanked him and gave him a secret: "The seeds are under the waste thrown into the sea!"
الفصلُ الثَّالِثُ: ثَوْرَةُ القَرَنْفُلِ
Chapter Three: The Clove Revolution
اسْتَخْرَجَ مُحَمَّدٌ البُذُورَ مِنَ الفُضَلاتِ وَزَرَعَها سِرًّا فِي الجَزِيرَةِ. بَعْدَ سَنَواتٍ، نَمَتْ أَشْجارٌ جَدِيدَةٌ!
Muhammad extracted seeds from the waste and secretly planted them on the island. After years, new trees grew!
وَزَّعَ البُذُورَ عَلى العُمانِيِّينَ وَالأَفارِقَةِ. كَسَرُوا احْتِكارَ الهُولَنْدِيِّينَ!
He distributed seeds to Omanis and Africans. They broke the Dutch monopoly!
أَصْبَحَتْ زَنْجِبارُ عاصِمَةَ القَرَنْفُلِ فِي العالَمِ، وَمُحَمَّدٌ أَغْنَى تاجِرٍ فِيها. لَكِنَّهُ لَمْ يَنْسَ العَبْدَ الَّذِي ساعَدَهُ، فَجَعَلَهُ شَرِيكًا لَهُ.
Zanzibar became the clove capital of the world, and Muhammad its richest merchant. But he never forgot the slave who helped him, so he made him his partner.
تَمَّتِ القِصَّةُ | The End