The mountain of seven
Eight-year-old Saif had a wish—if only he could find some magical power that would instantly fulfill his every desire. But no matter how much he wished, it seemed impossible. He tried various methods, but none worked.
One day, while walking toward the forest, Saif encountered a dwarf. His name was Anreeq.
The dwarf was also walking along a narrow path toward the forest. Saif stopped in surprise when he saw him and stared in amazement. He couldn’t believe his eyes—he was seeing a real, living dwarf! Until now, Saif had only read about dwarfs in books.
Saif called out excitedly, “Sir! Peace be upon you! Do you live in this forest?”
Anreeq replied, “Yes, you’re absolutely right. Do you need my help with something?”
Saif quickly said, “Yes, I do! I want a power that can fulfill all my wishes. Can you help me with that?”
Anreeq replied, “No, I can’t do that, but I can guide you to a place where your problem will be solved. You need to go to the very center of the forest, where there’s a small pond on a rock—it whispers. If you can hear what it says and tell it your heart’s desire, you’ll gain the power you seek.”
Saif eagerly asked, “How does that work? Please tell me quickly.”
Anreeq explained, “You need to do exactly what the pond whispers to you. Finally, you’ll have to drink some water from the pond. After drinking it, every wish you make will come true immediately. I’ve done it several times myself. Look over there; see that path? Follow it straight. You’ll come across three chestnut trees. Turn right from there. Further along, you’ll find a bed of blue roses. When it ends, you’ll reach the Whispering Pond.”
Excited, Saif set off without delay. His legs trembled with anticipation. He passed the chestnut trees and turned right. Soon, he saw the blue roses. He kept walking straight and finally reached the spot—the Whispering Pond.
It was an unusual place, with a small pond perched on a rock. The water in the pond was bubbling and forming little bubbles continuously. Saif thought to himself, “This really seems magical!”
He leaned closer to the pond and gazed into the bubbling water. He saw his reflection trembling on the rippling surface. As he brought his ear closer to the water, he heard whispers amidst the bubbling, as if the water was saying, “Stir me as many times as there are hours in a day and a night. Stir… stir…”
Saif picked up a stick and stirred the water 24 times. The bubbling grew stronger, and the brown water began to emit green smoke. Saif felt it truly was magic, but he wasn’t sure what to do next.
Then, a whisper came from the water, as if giving him an order: “Lean over me and spell out the word ‘lightning.’”
Saif was puzzled at first but then remembered how to spell “lightning.” He blew over the water and traced the word with his finger on its surface. Suddenly, the pond erupted into chaos, and a deafening sound like thunder roared. But then, the water’s surface calmed again, and Saif could see his reflection once more.
He asked the water, “What should I do next? Tell me!”
The pond whispered, “Go to the chestnut tree, pick its fruit, and drop it into me. Stir it until it dissolves completely.”
Saif pondered for a moment, wondering what kind of fruit grows on chestnut trees. He ran to the tree and examined it. It was winter, and there was no fruit on the tree—only button-like objects clinging to the trunk. Saif thought, Are these chestnut fruits?
He plucked one of the button-like objects and rushed back to the pond. Suddenly, he recalled reading somewhere that these button-like objects were not actual fruits but a herb called “Tikka,” which grows on chestnut trees. He ran back to the tree and looked around its base until he found a Tikka herb lying on the ground.
Excited, he took her back to the pool. He put it in the water and shook it with a stick until it was completely rotten. “I never knew vegetables dissolved in water. This is truly a magical pool!” Saif thought about it.
The water turned green and began to shine. Suddenly, a sound like rustling leaves echoed from the pond. “Now multiply seven by seven and circle me that many times!” the pond whispered.
Saif heard the instruction and began running around the pond, but then he stopped to think. Seven times seven… how much is that? He realized he hadn’t learned his multiplication tables properly. “Seven times seven… Oh yes, it must be fifty-two!” he guessed.
Believing he was correct, Saif ran around the pond 52 times, although the correct answer was 49.
As he ran, the pond’s water changed colors. On the seventh lap, it turned blue. On the fourteenth, it became yellow. By the twenty-first, it was red, then purple by the twenty-eighth, and golden by the thirty-fifth. By the forty-second lap, it sparkled like a diamond. However, after the forty-ninth lap, as Saif continued running, the water turned brown again, and its surface grew still.
Finally, Saif scooped some water into his hands and drank it. It tasted terrible, but he immediately made his first wish. Then, he waited. Nothing happened. Disappointed, he made several more wishes, but none came true.
Heartbroken, he started walking home. On the way, he met Anreeq again and told him everything. Anreeq laughed and said, “If an eight-year-old doesn’t even know how to multiply seven by seven, how can his wishes come true? You’ll never reach that pond again.”
Saif replied determinedly, “I’ll keep searching for it, and one day I’ll find it again. By then, I’ll have learned my multiplication tables!”
But Saif never found the pond again. It is said that the Whispering Pond appears only once in a lifetime.
Children, if you ever find yourselves at the Whispering Pond, make sure you know your multiplication tables. So, what’s seven times seven?
سات کا پہاڑا | The mountain of seven
Aath saal ka Saif ye chahta tha ke kaash usay kahin se aisi taqat mil jaye jo uski har khwahish foran poori kar de. Magar uski ye khwahish kisi tarah poori hoti nazar nahi aa rahi thi. Usne bohot tareeqe azmaye, magar phir bhi uski koi bhi khwahish poori nahi hui.
Ek din, jab Saif jungle ki taraf ja raha tha, usay raste mein ek bona mila. Uska naam Anreeq tha.
Bona bhi ek tang rasta chal kar jungle ki taraf ja raha tha. Saif ne usay dekha toh hairan ho kar ruk gaya aur ghuroor se usay dekhne laga. Usay yakeen nahi ho raha tha ke wo ek zinda bona dekh raha hai! Usne is se pehle sirf kitaabon mein bonay dekhe the.
Saif ne cheekh kar usay pukara, “Janab! Assalam-o-Alaikum! Shayed aap isi jungle mein kahin rehte hain?”
Anreeq ne jawab diya, “Bilkul sahi keh rahe ho. Kya main tumhari koi madad kar sakta hoon?”
Saif foran bola, “Jee zarur! Mujhe aisi taqat chahiye jo meri har khwahish poori kar de. Kya aap is maamle mein meri madad kar sakte hain?”
Anreeq bola, “Nahi, main aisa nahi kar sakta. Lekin main tumhe ek jagah bata sakta hoon jahan tumhara ye masla hal ho jaye ga. Tumhe uske liye jungle ke bilkul darmiyan jaana hoga, jahan ek chattan par chhota sa talaab hai jo sarghoshiyan karta hai. Agar tum sun sako ke wo kya keh raha hai aur apni dil ki baat usay batao, toh tumhe wo taqat mil jaye gi.”
Saif ne jaldi se poocha, “Ye kaise hoga? Meherbani karke mujhe jaldi bata dein.”
Anreeq ne samjhaya, “Tumhe wahi karna hoga jo talaab tumse sarghoshi mein kahe. Aakhir mein, tumhe talaab se paani ka ek ghunt peena hoga. Paani peene ke baad tum jo bhi khwahish karoge, foran poori ho jaye gi. Maine khud bohot dafa yahan se apni khwahish puri karwai hai. Dekho, wo raha rasta. Seedha chaley jao. Aage ja kar Shah Baloot ke teen darakht aayenge, wahan se daayein haath mur jana. Aur aage jao toh neele gulabon ki baari milegi. Jab wo khatam hogi, toh tum Sarghoshi karne wale talaab tak pohanch jaoge.”
Saif foran joosh mein aa gaya aur jaldi se rawana ho gaya. Joosh ke maare uski taange kaanp rahi thi. Wo Shah Baloot ke darakhton ke paas se daayein mura aur aage jaa kar neele gulabon ki baari nazar aayi. Wo seedha chalta raha aur aakhir us jagah pohanch gaya jahan sarghoshi karne wala talaab tha.
Wo jagah ajeeb si thi. Chhota sa talaab ek chattan par tha. Talaab ka paani lagataar ubal raha tha aur usmein bulbule bante ja rahe the. Saif ne socha, “Ye sach mein jaadu lag raha hai!”
Usne talaab ke kareeb jakar paani mein jhaanka aur gaur se dekha. Usay apna chehra nazar aya jo hiltay paani ke saath thar thar kar raha tha. Jab usne apna kaan paani ke paas le ja kar sunne ki koshish ki, toh paani ke bulbuley mein se ek sarghoshi sunai di, jaise koi keh raha ho:
“Mujhe itni dafa hilaao jitne ek din aur ek raat mein ghante hote hain… hilaao… hilaao…”
Saif ne ek lakri uthai aur usse talaab ke paani ko 24 dafa hilaaya. Paani aur ziada ubalnay laga aur bhure rang ka dhuwan paani ki satah par cha gaya. Saif ne socha, “Ye waqai jaadu hai!” Magar usay samajh nahi aa raha tha ke ab aage kya kare.
Tabhi paani mein ek sarghoshi hui, jaise koi hukam de raha ho:
“Mujh par jhuko aur ‘kadakti bijli’ ke hije karo.”
Saif hairan ho gaya lekin phir socha ke ‘kadakti bijli’ ke hije kaise karein. Usay yaad aaya aur usne paani par phoonk mari aur apni ungli se ‘kadakti bijli’ likha. Achanak talaab ka paani hile laga aur kadakti bijli ki awaz ayi. Magar phir paani ke satah pur sukoon ho gayi aur Saif ne phir apna chehra usmein dekha.
Usne paani se kaha, “Ab main kya karoon? Batao!”
Talaab ne sarghoshi mein kaha, “Ab Shah Baloot ke darakht ke paas jao aur uspe ugne wala phal uthao. Usay mere upar daal kar hilaao, yahan tak ke wo mujhmein ghul jaye.”
Saif sochne laga ke Shah Baloot ka phal kaisa hota hai. Jab wo darakht ke paas gaya, toh usay tande ke saath sirf button jaisi cheezein lagi hui nazar aayi. Usne ek button toda aur talaab ke paas le gaya. Magar phir yaad aya ke Shah Baloot ke asal phal kehta hai ‘Tikka’. Usne neeche giray hue ek Tikka ko uthaya aur talaab mein daal diya. Paani mein daal kar hilaane par wo ghul gaya.
Paani ka rang sabz ho gaya aur wo chamakne laga. Tab talaab ne kaha, “Ab 7 ko 7 se zarb do aur jo jawab aye utni dafa mere gird chakkar lagao.”
Saif chakkar lagane laga magar sochne laga, “7 ka 7 se zarb kya hoga? Shayed 52 hoga!” Is ghalat jawab ke sath wo 52 dafa chakkar laga gaya jabke asal jawab 49 tha. Jab 49 dafa chakkar lag gaya, toh paani chamakne laga, magar ziada chakkar lagane par bhura ho gaya aur talaab se kuch nahi mila.
Saif ne paani piya aur khwahish ki, magar kuch nahi hua. Wo udaas ghar chala gaya. Rastay mein Anreeq mila aur bola, “Agar tumhe 7 ka 7 se zarb yaad nahi, toh koi bhi khwahish puri nahi hogi.”
