Like all fables, there is truth in the telling of those
myths. Widely claimed as a fable set in Muslim
China, Aladdin is an intriguing journey into magic, sorcery, and myth. He
features in the acclaimed book The Book of the One Thousand and One Night (The
Arabian Nights). In almost all translations,
there is consistency. Until now.
If one believes the fable was set in the origins of Muslim
Arabs that places the tale after 882AD.
The actual Aladdin was placed pre-Egyptian, so pre-3,000BCE and in
either Persian or Sumerian cultures.
I sense Sumerian, placing Aladdin in the Sumerian period
from 6,000BCE to 3,000BCE (southern Mesopotamia [south-central Iraq]). Magic was a huge part of daily lives, which
ironically ceased when Christianity and Islam became powers.
What many do not know, the Sumerians practised early forms
of Mental Health practices. Because of Aladdin’s
prowess with magic, he was deemed a very special being. He was never deemed to
have a mental health issue, so when he was afflicted and because of his magical
prowess he was never treated. As time
went by, he recovered on his own volition and suddenly changed his life. After a short while he had another
affliction and was deemed cured. Hence
the saying Aladdin Sane (also a name for David Bowies second album, which has
no google info why he chose that name).
As a side note, the fable of Ali Barbar and the 40 Thieves
features in the same book, The Book of the One Thousand and One Night (The
Arabian Nights), as Aladdin was, also of Arabic origin, possibly from the same
time period.
Prove me wrong 😊
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