Ramadan Arabian Nights 2025: The Tale of Fatima, Halima and Karima “The Physician” EP.29

Ramadan Karim

Tonight, we will continue our tale, the “Tale of Fatima, Halima and Karima",, and know what Halima will do at King Golan’s court after getting that medicine for that sleeping prince, but first, we will not have our little chitchat as usual because we are near our finale.

And without further delay, here is the 701st episode of our Arabian Nights Egyptian radio show—or the 29th night in this year’s tale, The Tale of Fatima, Halima, and Karima.

Episode 29: The Physician

When it was the seven hundred and first night of the wondrous nights of Shahrazad, and the night that followed, King Shahriyar took his seat as he had done the evening before. Shahrazad came at her appointed hour, greeted him with peace, and sat beside him. Then she resumed her tale, drawing it nearer to its end.

She said:

“It has reached me, O fortunate king, wise in judgment and sound in counsel, that when Halima accompanied the Queen of the Serpents to the Valley of Herbs and Plants—where serpents and vipers dwell—she brought forth the plant known as al-Sardan. 

From its seeds, she extracted a healing ointment, then disguised herself in the form of a physician and went to Sultan Golan to treat Prince Karawan.

The Sultan and his jinn were astonished at the boldness of this young physician, yet he persisted and defied the proclamation. Thus, the Sultan ordered that he be led to the prince. There, the physician applied the ointment prepared from the seeds of al-Sardan. Abu Farrag’s words proved true, the treatment succeeded, and Prince Karawan’s health began to return.

And this is what we now behold.

In the chamber of the sleeping prince, after long years of affliction and restless torment, Karawan stirred. A deep pain ran through his body as though life were returning to limbs long abandoned. He moved slowly, awakening from a sleep that had seemed without end.

Beside him stood Halima in her guise as a young physician.

As the prince struggled to rise, she spoke quickly in a deepened, masculine tone, bidding him to wait and not strain himself. Karawan, wincing yet conscious, murmured that it seemed he had slept for far too long.

“It was the sleep of health and recovery,” the physician replied gently.

The prince looked at him with gratitude and asked whether he had kept vigil at his side.

The disguised Halima answered that she had watched over him with her own eyes.

“You overwhelm me twice,” said the prince faintly, “once with your skill, and once with your compassion.”

“That is but from your own generosity,” she answered modestly.

Karawan sighed with relief and said that for many nights and days, he had been denied true sleep. The physician assured him that, God willing, from this day forward, he would sleep in peace.

When the prince attempted to rise from his bed, the physician quickly forbade it, insisting that it was not yet time for him to leave his couch. Karawan laughed weakly and declared that he already felt restored.

The physician answered wisely, “Patience is itself a healer, and soon enough strength will follow.”

“Patience is a healer…” the prince repeated thoughtfully.

And while joy was beginning to stir in the palace of Sultan Golan, sorrow lingered elsewhere.

In the house of Kaab al-Ghazal, Fatima now sat alone in the land of humans, abandoned by both her sisters. The silence of the house pressed heavily upon her heart. She wept openly, her tears falling without restraint, the door left slightly ajar as though she still expected someone to return.

As she sobbed, a shadow crossed the threshold.

“Fatima…”

She looked up suddenly. “Aunt Reema!”

Reema stepped inside, her eyes sharp, taking in the dim room and the half-open door.

“What are you sitting here crying for?” she demanded. “And why is the door left half open like this?”

“I weep with the tears of my eyes for my two sisters,” Fatima answered brokenly.

Reema’s expression shifted. “And Mishkah? Hasn’t he returned either?”

Fatima lowered her gaze. “Mishkah is gone. He’s gone for good.”

At that, a flicker of suspicion flashed across Reema’s face.

“My fear is that he has done to me what he always does—snatched the jewel and slipped away, laughing at me.” Her voice hardened. “But laugh at whom? At me? We shall see about that.”

She began pacing, agitation rising within her.

“I will find him. I will know where he hides. I will learn what he thinks and what he plots.” She turned back to Fatima. “You take care of yourself. I will search for him—and I will return.”

And with that, she swept out as suddenly as she had entered, leaving the door trembling in her wake and Fatima once more alone in the fading light.

And in the realm of the jinn, a summons was heard for the first time in many long years within the council hall of Sultan Golan — and in the presence of Prince Zahran.

Jaljan entered and proclaimed in a ringing voice:

“Prince Karawan, O my lord the Sultan!”

Golan rose in disbelief. “Karawan?”

A figure stepped forward.

“My father… my brother…”

It was Karawan — standing, restored, alive.

Zahran cried out in joy, “Congratulations!”

The Sultan rushed forward and embraced his son, and Zahran joined them, laughter and tears mingling in the great hall.

“Congratulations, my son!” said Golan, his voice trembling.

“Congratulations, my lord!” added Jaljan.

But Karawan, smiling, turned their attention elsewhere.

“You all congratulate me,” he said gently, “and yet you leave aside the physician who healed me.”

“The physician?” Zahran repeated.

“Yes — come forward, O finest of physicians,” said the Sultan warmly.

Halima stepped forth in her disguise, her voice deepened. “My lord.”

“I do not know how to thank you,” said Golan. “Never have I seen a physician like you. Your knowledge surpasses your years. Your skill, your wisdom…”

“I am grateful for your grace,” Halima replied steadily.

“And your manner!” Karawan added with a smile.

“That is but a reflection of your own nobility,” she answered.

Then Karawan spoke with disarming honesty.

“To tell the truth, my father… I was not eager to recover.”

Golan blinked. “What do you mean?”

“So that the physician would not leave me.”

Laughter rippled through the hall — the Sultan and Zahran alike amused by the prince’s affection.

“That is simply how I feel,” Karawan insisted softly.

“And why should the physician leave us?” asked Zahran.

“Yes,” said Golan. “Why not remain here? Live among us. Be the royal physician of our kingdom.”

Halima hesitated. “I… my lord…”

“See how your patient clings to you,” the Sultan said kindly.

“May God preserve him for you,” she answered.

“Then how shall we reward you?” asked Golan. “How shall we repay you?”

Halima straightened.

“My lord, I hold you to your promise.”

“And I stand by my word,” said Golan firmly. “Ask, and it shall be granted. I will not refuse you anything.”

Halima paused.

“What did you say, my lord?”

“I said: ask.”

“You said that the one who heals may request whatever he desires.”

“Yes.”

“Then I have but one request,” she declared. “The innocent one in your prison.”

A murmur swept through the court.

“Who?” asked Golan.

“We have innocents in our prisons?” Zahran frowned.

“The human woman you wronged, my lord — the one you called mad.”

Recognition dawned.

“Karima…” Zahran breathed.

Golan stiffened. “Karima is not mad?”

“You believed the words of the accursed one,” Halima said carefully.

Zahran turned to his father. “Did I not tell you?”

“I ask for nothing else,” Halima concluded.

The hall fell silent.

Golan lifted his head. “I gave my word. And I shall honor it.”

He turned sharply.

“Jaljan!”

“At your command, King of the Jinn.”

“Bring to me the human woman imprisoned on the Isle of Forgetfulness.”

“In the blink of an eye, my lord Sultan.”

“Now.”

Jaljan raised his hands and uttered the ancient words:

“Say: O Most Merciful.”

The Sultan echoed him:

“O Most Merciful.”

And so Jaljan departed to the Isle of Forgetfulness and returned — not alone.

He entered the council hall, leading Karima gently forward.

“Come, O human woman. Do not be afraid.”

“Then do not hold me so tightly,” Karima replied nervously.

The court stirred.

“Jaljan?” said Sultan Golan.

“The human woman, O King of the Jinn.”

“Karima!” cried Prince Zahran.

“Come forward, human,” commanded the Sultan.

Karima stepped ahead, trembling.

“My lord…”

Golan gestured toward the unknown physician.

“I believed you truly mad. And were it not for this physician who stood before us…”

“Who?” Karima asked, confused.

And suddenly—

The physician cried out in her true voice:

“Karima! My sister! My sister!”

Karima froze.

“My sister…? My sister!”

Halima tore away restraint and rushed toward her. The two sisters collided in a desperate embrace, weeping, clinging to one another as if rescued from drowning.

“Sister! Sister!”

Their cries echoed through the hall of the jinn.

Stunned silence fell.

Prince Zahran whispered, “Is she… her sister?”

Prince Karawan blinked. “She calls her sister…”

“Your Majesty…” murmured Jaljan uneasily.

Sultan Golan’s voice thundered:

“Are you a physician — or an impostor? Remove the turban from this physician’s head!”

Jaljan stepped forward and lifted the turban.

Gasps rippled across the chamber.

“By the heavens…” breathed Karawan.

“What is this?” said Golan.

Zahran stared in astonishment. “The physician… is a woman.”

Karawan smiled faintly. “Fortune favors us indeed.”

Halima and Karima clung to each other, tears flowing freely.

“Karima…”

“Halima…”

Then the Sultan’s voice rang out like a struck blade:

“Enough!”

The sisters froze.

“Silence your weeping!”

He rose from his throne.

“A human woman disguises herself as a man — enters my realm — deceives the King of the Jinn?”

Halima lifted her head, steady despite her tears.

“The truth, my lord, is that I came to heal Prince Karawan.”

“You did heal him,” Golan replied gravely. “But this matter demands explanation. I wish to know everything. Who you are. How you came here. The story of Rima and Karima. Why you disguised yourself. How all this came to pass.”

The hall waited.

Halima stepped forward.

“I will tell you, O King of the Jinn.”

Golan inclined his head.

“Speak.”

Halima drew a breath and said solemnly:

“Bear witness to the Oneness of God.”

And as if bound by something greater than court or crown, the entire hall answered as one:

“There is no god but God.”

Meanwhile, in the house of Kaab al-Ghazal, in the realm of humans, Rima returned to find Fatimah still weeping.

Rima: “You’re still crying?”

Fatimah: “And what about you? Why are you upset?”

Rima: “And then?”

Fatimah: “I weep with all my eyes for my two sisters.”

Rima: “And still no sign of Mishkah?”

Fatimah: “I told you, Mishkah is gone.”

Rima: “How many days has it been, then? But I will find a way to reach him and take the jewel from his grasp. I am going out to search for him — take care of yourself, I will return to you.”

And in the council hall of the King of the Jinn, in his own realm:

Halima: “O my lord, this is our tale — all that befell us since Rima slew our father.”

Sultan Golan: “Remarkable…”

Halima: “Many nights and many days.”

Sultan Golan: “But you endured greatly, my child.”

Prince Zahran: “See, father?”

Karima: “Rima was the one who killed our father.”

Halima: “And claimed you were mad.”

Karima: “And cast you into the Honey Well.”

Halima: “Had it not been for Abu Faraj, I would never have learned all that transpired.”

Prince Zahran: “Abu Faraj…”

Sultan Golan: “Jaljan!”

Jaljan: “At your command, O King of the Jinn.”

Sultan Golan: “Bring Abu Faraj here at once.”

Suddenly, Abu Faraj appeared and declared: “I am here, O King of the Jinn.”

Everyone: “Abu Faraj!”

Abu Faraj: “The world gives nothing to the needy, O my lord.”

Sultan Golan: “What has happened, Abu Faraj?”

Abu Faraj: “What has happened, O King of the Jinn, is a prophecy from ancient times, now fulfilled. These are three sisters…”

Halima: “Karima…”

Abu Faraj: “…the prophecy spoke: she shall wade through the sea of sorrows, and time shall grant her fortune from behind the walls. And so it was — the spindle fell behind the ancient walls, revealing Rima’s crime. Rima cast her into the Isle of Forgetfulness so that she might reach Prince Zahran.”

Sultan Golan: “Zahran?”

Prince Zahran: “Yes, father, I shall marry none other,” he said, pointing to Karima.

Sultan Golan: “And the second — the middle sister?”

Karima: “Halima.”

Abu Faraj: “Fortune comes whether long or short; she was cast into the well so she might reach the Queen of Serpents, journey through the Valley of Herbs and Plants, obtain the medicine of Sardan, and connect with Prince Karawan.”

Sultan Golan: “Karawan?”

Prince Karawan: “Yes, father, I shall marry none other,” he said, pointing to Halima.

Sultan Golan: “And the third sister?”

Halima and Karima (in unison): “Fatimah.”

Abu Faraj: “Fatimah — as I told her, her fortune shall come through the window. That, O my lord, is the essence of the tale.”

Sultan Golan: “And Rima? The one who committed crimes and took the reward of her deeds?”

Halima: “Abu Faraj will take it from her.”

Halima reached into her bag and drew forth the Crown Jewel.

“Here, O my lord, the Crown Jewel.”

The council erupted: “The Crown Jewel!”

Abu Faraj: “The world gives nothing to the undeserving.”

Sultan Golan: “The jewel that Rima had taken?”

Abu Faraj: “In truth, it belongs to Karima — she who unveiled the crime.”

Sultan Golan: “And I shall present it to her as a gift on the day of her marriage to Prince Zahran.”

Prince Zahran: “Father…”

Karima: “My lord…”

Sultan Golan: “The first union between Jinn and humans.”

Abu Faraj: “Love, O my lord, transcends species.”

Prince Karawan: “And Halima, who healed me…”

Sultan Golan: “Halima — I shall present her the finest gift on her wedding day to Prince Karawan.”

Prince Karawan: “Father…”

Halima: “My lord…”

Prince Zahran: “Congratulations!”

Prince Karawan: “Congratulations!”

Prince Zahran: “Karima.”

Karima: “Zahran.”

Prince Karawan: “Halima.”

Halima: “Karawan.”

Sultan Golan: “And still, the youngest remains — Fatimah.”

Halima and Karima (in unison): “Fatimah.”

Sultan Golan: “Jaljan, go now and build for her a palace on four pillars, before the palace of Sultan Safwan.”

Abu Faraj: “And there her fortune shall be fulfilled — through the window, O my lord.”

Halima and Karima: “How?”

Abu Faraj: “Prince Wardan shall see her from the window and send word to Sultan Safwan, who will hear her story, and for her sisters’ sake, order Rima’s capture so she pays for her crimes.”

Sultan Golan: “We are finished here.”

Abu Faraj: “At your command, O my lord.”

Sultan Golan: “Hasten to Fatimah now, and place her in the palace that Jaljan has built before the Sultan’s palace.”

Halima and Karima (in unison): “At your service, Abu Faraj!”

Abu Faraj: “The world gives nothing to the needy.”

Shahrazad: And so Abu Faraj set forth, crossing valleys and plains, and while Fatimah sat weeping for her sisters, Abu Faraj descended upon her at the command of her lord.

At this moment, Shahrazad realized that the morning had arrived, so she fell silent, leaving the story unfinished.

Here is the 29th episode of our tale, televised

You can check the previous Ramadan Arabian Nights here.

In the spirit of Ramadan, I invite you to support UNICEF’s relief efforts in Gaza and Sudan, as well as elsewhere on the globe. Every pound, dollar, or euro can make a difference.

Till next night inshallah