Aladdin and the Magic Lamp

Folk Tales

Never lose your faith, even in hard times. Good will always win in the end.

A world famous classic tale about a naïve boy named Aladdin. An evil wizard uses him to obtain
a magic lamp. When he gets trapped in the tomb, the powerful genie who lives in the lamp helps 15 min 5+

him.

Far, far away, in a land where the sunbeams are much hotter than here,
there once lived a boy named Aladdin. The boy came from a poor family, and
most of his free time would be spent roaming around the marketplace,
looking at all the beautiful goods and enjoying the hustle and bustle of
ancient city life.

One day during his marketplace wanderings he bumped into a fascinating

man, who looked like a nice and kind person (at first). As they were strolling
through the city together, the man told Aladdin many exciting stories of
adventures he had had. The boy hung onto his every word, and had no idea
that the man was an evil wizard, who was trying to gain his favour. He saw a
friend in him or maybe even the father he had never known. Aladdin lived
alone with his mother in a shack.

When Aladdin returned home that evening, he told his mum about his new
friend straight away. His mother wasn’t happy about his newfound friend,
though, and warned him to be cautious. Not all people were honest and
kind-hearted, she said.

Aladdin, of course, didn't listen to his mother, and the next day he went to
meet the man again, eager to hear more tales of mystery and battles and
glory. This time, as the sun sat, the wizard took the boy for a walk a bit
further out from the centre of town. When they passed the city walls, the
man showed him a snake charmer, who played his flute and made his cobra
dance to the rhythm of the song while Aladdin was watching.

It was already dark by the time they arrived at a mysterious door in the
middle of the desert. Aladdin started to get nervous, and it occurred to him
that his mother might have been right. But the wizard asked the boy for a
favour in the kindest voice. Something valuable had been stolen from him –

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 1/6

a golden lamp – and it was lying hidden in the cave behind this door. The
door was too small for the man to go through, so he was hoping Aladdin
would help him.

“When you hear me saying a spell, you’ll have to open the door and enter”,
the wizard explained. “Be cautious, though! The passage is going to be full of
traps. You must tread carefully and not pick anything up except the golden
lamp. It’ll be at the far end of the tomb… I mean, cave.” He corrected himself
quickly. “Just take the lamp! Don’t touch anything else.”

Aladdin had a few questions. He didn’t entirely understand what he was

about to do and he could have sworn he’d heard the old man saying “a
tomb”. It didn’t sound good. But suddenly the wizard started reciting the
spell. Aladdin hesitated for a while, so the old man grabbed the door, pulled
it open, and nudged the boy in. The boy was scared, but he walked down the
stairs to the very bottom of the tomb, where he saw heaps of gold.
Remember, Aladdin was very poor, so this was indeed a sight to behold. He
had never seen such incredible riches in his life! Everywhere he looked,
there were golden jewels and goblets and vases and statues...

“Don’t stop! Bring me the lamp!” The wizard’s voice echoed angrily around
the chamber, as if he was inside.

Aladdin obeyed and hurried to the far end of the passage, where a golden
lamp stood proudly on a pedestal. He grabbed it and turned to head back, but
his eyes fell on a golden ring inlaid with sapphires and rubies. He picked it
up, slipped it on his finger and made for the door. As soon as he touched the
ring, the ground started to shake and rumble like an earthquake.

“Quickly, boy, throw me the lamp!” The wizard shouted. “The tomb’s about to
close!”

Aladdin rushed to the door, but it was already closing.

“Give me that!” said the wizard, reaching out.

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 2/6

“Help me out and you’ll get the lamp!” said Aladdin. He wasn’t going to be
tricked this time!

The wizard had no choice. He grabbed Aladdin’s arm and pulled him out, but
as soon as Aladdin was outside, the wizard grabbed the lamp from his hand.

“Well, now I don’t need you anymore!” he said cruelly. He grabbed the boy
and tried to push him back into the tomb as the door hadn’t closed yet.
Panicking, Aladdin clutched the wizard’s robes, and only just managed to
snatch the lamp from him before falling back inside. The door slammed
shut. The wizard seethed with anger. He was standing outside, with no lamp
and no way to get it back. Poor Aladdin was trapped inside the tomb.

Desperate and starving, Aladdin tried the whole day to get out of the tomb.
Banging on the door, or trying to pry it open didn’t help. And there was
nothing in the tomb he could use, just the lamp and a pile of jewels. He
picked up the lamp and turned it over. It was pretty plain, he thought.

“What kind of a lamp are you?” he said aloud. “Why did the old man want it
so badly?” He rubbed the lamp with his sleeve to wipe off the dust, but the
moment his fingers slid on it, it began to shake. Startled, Aladdin dropped
the lamp on the ground and backed up. The last thing he needed was
another earthquake!

The lamp started glowing, and it began to smoke. Then, suddenly, a ghost
appeared right in front of the boy. It was hovering in front of him, huge but
oddly not scary at all. In fact, it had a very friendly face.

“I have spent hundreds of years trapped in this lamp. My purpose is to serve

the one who frees me. From now on, I will be your servant,” the spirit said.

“Um, I’m sorry, but what are you?” Aladdin asked. “And how did I free you?”

“I’m a genie, of course!” the spirit said. “And I would imagine you rubbed my
lamp to free me. That’s how it usually works.”

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 3/6

Aladdin thought he must be dreaming. He’d been in the tomb for a long time
with no food or water, after all. But the genie was real.

“What would you like to do first?” the genie asked.

“Well, can you get me out of here? And can I take all the treasure with me?”
asked Aladdin.

Before he knew it, he was back home in his mother’s tiny kitchen, heaps of
jewels and golden coins right next to him. He couldn’t believe how
miraculously powerful the genie was. He ran to hug his mother, the house
clattering as he waded through all the jewels.

“We’re never going to be poor again, mum!” he promised.

From that day on, Aladdin could afford anything he liked at the market. He
bought beautiful clothes for his mom and himself, and every day he enjoyed
delicious food. Meanwhile, the genie lived with Aladdin and his mother,
occasionally doing tasks for them but, for the most part, sleeping in his
lamp.

After a while, Aladdin started to feel like he was lacking something. His life
was perfect, but he’d fallen in love with the sultan’s daughter. The princess
was incredibly beautiful and kind, and since Aladdin had first laid eyes on
her he’d been able to think of no one else.

“I’m going to try my luck,” Aladdin told his mum one day. “I’m going to ask
the sultan for her hand. After all, we’re rich now, and there’s no way the
sultan could ever know that we used to be poor.

He got up his courage and went to see the sultan. He wore his nicest clothes
and brought a chest of gold as a gift. The Sultan immediately took a liking to
Aladdin and introduced him formally to the princess. The young woman also
liked Aladdin, and her father gave them his blessing.

Aladdin was overcome with joy. To prove his love to his bride-to-be, he
decided to build her the most beautiful palace in the realm. He went home

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 4/6

and told the genie the good news, and together they found the perfect place
for the genie to magically make a marvelous palace.

The evil wizard had not forgotten Aladdin, however. He had used the time to
come up with a masterful plan to get the magical lamp back. And so one day
he disguised himself as a merchant and headed to the palace where Aladdin
lived with his new wife.

When he arrived, Aladdin was not at home. Instead, he spoke to the princess.

“New lamps for old! New lamps for old! Good morning, beautiful lady! I’m
offering this beautiful new lamp decorated with rubies and sapphires in
exchange for any old one covered with dust you have at home,” said the
wizard. “How about that one over there?” He pointed at the genie’s lamp.

Of course, the princess had no idea that it was a magic lamp, and it seemed
perfectly reasonable to trade it for a nicer lamp. The moment the old wizard
held it, he cackled maliciously, polished the lamp to wake the genie up, and
ordered him to take him, the princess and the palace to the country where
he had come from.

You can imagine Aladdin’s shock at returning home to find no home! As

soon as he found out what had happened, he leapt on his horse and galloped
away in search of his beautiful wife. He rode and he rode, but he had no idea
where the wizard had taken her. He got off his horse, feeling as though he
had failed, but suddenly he remembered that he was still wearing the ring he
had found in the tomb.

“If the lamp was magical, maybe this ring is as well,” muttered Aladdin.

He polished the ring and firmly said: “Bring me back my beloved wife and
our palace.”

Suddenly the dust started rapidly swirling around him. More and more
whirls formed until it became a sandstorm and, just like that, his palace
materialized around him and his wife fell right into his arms.

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 5/6

Aladdin and his wife rejoiced. Aladdin called his guards and together they
captured the wizard and threw him into the dungeon forever.

From that day on, nothing but happiness filled the palace walls. Aladdin
never forgot that once he had only been a poor street urchin, and he and the
princess made sure to rule kindly and responsibly and always take good care
of their people.

You'll find this and more fairy tales at www.readmio.com 6/6