The tales from the Thousand and One Arabian Nights are based on ancient oral tradition and are therefore highly allegorical. For instance, the enmity of the Great Bird and the Gigantic Serpent symbolizes the contrast between the solar force and the fluid energy of the terrestrial oceans. Indeed, in many cultures, the sun is symbolized by a bird; in India the name of this solar bird is Garuda, “the slayer of serpents”. Such symbolism and deeper significance is weakened or lost altogether when myths devolve into folktales, as with the Arabian Nights.

There can be no doubt that Sindbad’s sixth voyage was to Serendib, as the island is mentioned by name. This voyage ended in disaster, when monsoon winds drove his ship towards the base of a mountain rising sheer from the sea. The ship was dashed to pieces, but the crew managed to scramble to safety. In some versions of the story, this mountain is described as a lodestone, or magnetic rock. Many ancient writers referred to a magnetic rock in the Indian Ocean and told of how ships with iron fastenings were attracted to it. Palladius, in the fourth century, even advised that vessels sailing for Serendib should be fastened with wooden pegs.