The Shipbuilder of Sur | صانِعُ السُّفُنِ فِي صُور
"A master shipbuilder crafts his final masterpiece while passing his legacy to an unlikely apprentice"
صانِعُ السُّفُنِ فِي صُور
The Shipbuilder of Sur
الفصلُ الأَوَّلُ: المُعَلِّمُ الأَخِيرُ
Chapter One: The Last Master
فِي مَدِينَةِ صُورَ العَرِيقَةِ، حَيْثُ تُبْنَى أَعْظَمُ السُّفُنِ فِي بِلادِ العَرَبِ، عاشَ مُعَلِّمٌ يُدْعَى سُلَيْمانُ بنُ ناصِرٍ. كانَ أَمْهَرَ صُنَّاعِ السُّفُنِ، وَآخِرَ مَنْ يَحْمِلُ أَسْرارَ الصِّناعَةِ القَدِيمَةِ.
In the ancient city of Sur, where the greatest ships in all Arabia were built, there lived a master named Sulayman bin Nasir. He was the most skilled of shipbuilders, and the last to carry the secrets of the ancient craft.
كانَ قَدْ بَلَغَ السَّبْعِينَ مِنْ عُمُرِهِ، وَيَداهُ ما زالَتَا قَوِيَّتَيْنِ كَخَشَبِ السَّاجِ. لَكِنَّ قَلْبَهُ كانَ مُثْقَلاً بِالهَمِّ، إِذْ لَمْ يَجِدْ تِلْمِيذًا يَسْتَحِقُّ أَنْ يَرِثَ عِلْمَهُ.
He had reached seventy years of age, yet his hands remained strong as teak wood. But his heart was heavy with worry, for he had not found an apprentice worthy of inheriting his knowledge.
الفصلُ الثَّانِي: الفَتاةُ الجَرِيئَةُ
Chapter Two: The Bold Girl
ذاتَ صَباحٍ، جاءَتْ إِلى وَرْشَتِهِ فَتاةٌ سَمْراءُ تُدْعَى مَرْيَمَ. قالَتْ لَهُ بِصَوْتٍ ثابِتٍ: «يا مُعَلِّمُ، عَلِّمْنِي صِناعَةَ السُّفُنِ!»
One morning, a dark-skinned girl named Maryam came to his workshop. She said to him in a steady voice: "O Master, teach me the craft of shipbuilding!"
ضَحِكَ الرِّجالُ الحاضِرُونَ وَقالُوا: «هَذِهِ صِناعَةُ الرِّجالِ، لا النِّساءِ!»
The men present laughed and said: "This is the craft of men, not women!"
لَكِنَّ سُلَيْمانَ نَظَرَ فِي عَيْنَيْها، فَرَأَى فِيهِما شُعْلَةً لَمْ يَرَها فِي عُيُونِ الرِّجالِ. قالَ: «دَعُوها! فَإِنَّ البَحْرَ لا يُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ رَجُلٍ وَامْرَأَةٍ.»
But Sulayman looked into her eyes and saw in them a flame he had not seen in the eyes of men. He said: "Leave her be! For the sea does not distinguish between man and woman."
الفصلُ الثَّالِثُ: السَّفِينَةُ الأَخِيرَةُ
Chapter Three: The Final Ship
مَرَّتِ السَّنَواتُ، وَتَعَلَّمَتْ مَرْيَمُ كُلَّ أَسْرارِ الصِّناعَةِ. وَحِينَ شَعَرَ سُلَيْمانُ أَنَّ أَجَلَهُ يَقْتَرِبُ، قَرَّرَ أَنْ يَبْنِيَ مَعَها سَفِينَتَهُ الأَخِيرَةَ.
Years passed, and Maryam learned all the secrets of the craft. When Sulayman felt his end approaching, he decided to build with her his final ship.
عَمِلا مَعًا أَشْهُرًا طَوِيلَةً، وَالشَّيْخُ يَنْقُلُ إِلَيْها آخِرَ ما يَعْرِفُهُ. وَحِينَ اكْتَمَلَتِ السَّفِينَةُ، سَمَّاها «مَرْيَمُ البَحْرِ».
They worked together for many months, and the old man transferred to her the last of what he knew. When the ship was complete, he named it "Maryam of the Sea."
قالَ لَها وَهُوَ عَلى فِراشِ المَوْتِ: «هَذِهِ سَفِينَتُكِ، وَهَذَا عِلْمِي. فَاحْفَظِيهِ وَانْقُلِيهِ لِمَنْ بَعْدَكِ.»
He said to her on his deathbed: "This is your ship, and this is my knowledge. Preserve it and pass it to those who come after you."
وَهَكَذا صارَتْ مَرْيَمُ أَوَّلَ امْرَأَةٍ تُبْنى بِيَدَيْها سُفُنُ صُورَ العَظِيمَةُ.
And thus Maryam became the first woman by whose hands the great ships of Sur were built.
تَمَّتِ القِصَّةُ | The End