Posing as a wandering dervish, Burton gained admittance to the holy Kaabah and to the tomb of the prophet at Medina and participated in all the rituals of the Hadj (pilgrimage). A treasury of material on Arab life, beliefs, manners and morals, and much more. Volume One starts with the Preface to the Memorial Edition by his wife, Isabel Burton.

Translated by the noted Victorian Orientalist, Sir Richard F. Burton, from the original Sanskrit, these ancient Indian folk tales influenced such later works as 1001 Arabian Nights and Boccaccio's Decameron. First published in 1870, these stories will entertain and delight modern readers while illuminating the life and customs of classical India--Publisher description.