T h e B l a c k S t o n e 28 (He takes him aside) and says: His name is Hassan Bahram, originally a Persian miller from Jannabah. He was banished from there, and so he crossed the Gulf to Qatif where he became a flour merchant. There he started calling for supporters from among the Arabs to his Qaramatian mazhab. He gained many supporters and became the Chief of the Qaramatians and the main promoter of his mazhab. Caliph al-Mu‘tadid went to war against him, but was defeated. As a result, Basra was sacked, the men were captured, the women and children taken as slaves. I was a soldier in the army of Caliph al-Mu‘tadid but got captured by Hassan Bahram’s men. I am a free man, a free man … turned into a slave. When they plundered Basra, they left nothing; the camels could not even lift the loot. Junior Servant: Where did all the looted money go? Saqlabi: He buried it all in the desert. The only one who knows its whereabouts is his younger son, Sulaiman. Voices coming from the house entrance are heard.
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