From time to time, too, and for the space of two or three paces, an image or an echo would rise up from the recesses of time: in the little streets of the beaters of silver and gold, for instance, there was a clear, unhurried tinkling, as if a djinn with a thousand arms was absent-mindedly practising on a xylophone. Anonymous
About This Quote

In the Arabian Nights, the djinns are an order of beings that live hidden in the sand and sandstone. They are invisible to humans but can be summoned by a specific word or phrase. In this passage, Djinns are a metaphor for the memories of a life. We equate our own memories with a djinn because we cannot see them but they are essential to our continuity as human beings. A xylophone is a musical instrument made from wood bars joined together with metal pegs through holes.

Source: Tristes Tropiques

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