other · epic

Shahnameh — The Book of Kings

c. 977–1010 CE · Medieval Persia (10th–11th century CE) · Tus, Khorasan (present-day Iran)

The Creation and Kayumars — First King of the World

1In the Name of God, the Lord of soul and sense,

2Who giveth wisdom, power, and eminence!

3O wise man, if thou truly wouldst be great,

4first learn the secret of thine own estate.

5Kayumars first set foot upon the throne,

6the throne of kings—a monarch, just and lone.

7He made his dwelling on a mountain-height;

8his subjects clothed themselves in leopard skins;

9he taught them wisdom first—each art and right.

10Thirty years sat the king upon the throne,

11with glory and with gladness both his own.

Simorgh and the Birth of Zal

12Now in the reign of Minuchihr there lived

13a man renowned, called Sam, of valor famed.

14He had a son, but when the boy was born

15his hair was white as snow—snow-white from birth.

16Sam said: "This cannot be my son—

17no mother's blood like this. What have I done?"

18His nurses hid the child at first in fear;

19but then they told the truth.

20Sam in his fury cast the infant out

21upon the mountain of Alburz—alone.

22There lived the Simorgh in its lofty nest,

23that wondrous bird, the greatest and the best.

24She looked upon the weeping child below

25and swooped and took him, nursed him as her own.

26Years passed. The boy grew tall beneath the bird's great wing.

27Sam dreamed and knew his wrong, came seeking him.

28The Simorgh to the father gave the son:

29"Take this white-haired hero—he shall be

30the glory of Iran for all to see."

31And from her breast she plucked three feathers bright:

32"If ever thou art pressed with pain or plight,

33burn one of these—and I shall come to thee

34before the smoke has cleared above the lea."

Rostam and Sohrab — The Tragic Battle

35From far Turan came Sohrab to the war—

36the son of Rostam, though he knew it not.

37His mother Tahmineh had kept his birth

38from Rostam's knowing, lest the boy be caught

39among his father's enemies.

40In battle was Sohrab, young and fierce and bright,

41seeking his father through the enemy's line.

42But fate had sealed the knowledge from them both—

43they stood, father and son, on opposite sides.

44They grappled, and the young man's strength was great—

45he threw great Rostam to the ground.

46But Rostam played for time: "In our customs

47a man may not be killed the first time he is thrown—"

48and Sohrab loosed him.

49The second time they fought, and Rostam drew his sword

50and drove it through the young man's armor.

51Sohrab fell with a cry: "My father Rostam

52will have vengeance on thee for this."

53Then Rostam saw upon the young man's arm

54the bracelet that he'd sent with Tahmineh—

55the token of his blood.

56"Who art thou?" said old Rostam, and his voice

57was changed and shaking like a winter reed.

58"I am thy son, Sohrab.

59I came to find thee; I have found thee thus."

60Rostam wept aloud. He gathered up his son

61and held him, but the wound was unto death.

62"I tried and tried to find thee," Sohrab said,

63"and all Iran could not point out the way.

64Now all is done. Do not lament for me—

65the brave man meets whatever fate may say."

66He closed his eyes. The hero sat beside him,

67silent, with torn garments and with dust upon his head.

The Lament of Rostam

68"I am old," said Rostam, "and my strength was great,

69yet see what fate has placed before my door—

70my son, my only son, fallen by my hand.

71O Simorgh! O great bird, where is thy grace?

72One feather I have burned—wilt thou not come?

73What word is there that I can send to heaven?

74What god will hear a father who has killed his son?

75No, there is none. Only the ancient dust

76and the turning of the age upon its wheel,

77and heroes made for nothing but the grave."

The Seven Champions of Iran

78Rostam was peerless among all men of war—

79none in Iran or Turan was his peer.

80His name was feared from Hind to Rum,

81from China's border to the Western sea.

82He lived through seven ages of the world,

83and every age had need of him.

84In him was the glory and the grief of Iran both.

notes

The Shahnameh (Shahnama — "Book of Kings") by Abolqasem Ferdowsi (c. 940–1020 CE) is the national epic of Persia, one of the world's longest epic poems at approximately 50,000 couplets. Ferdowsi spent thirty years composing it, drawing on earlier prose compilations of Iranian legendary history. He presented it to Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, who reportedly rewarded him poorly. The epic covers Persian history from the mythological creation of the world through the Arab conquest of Persia in the 7th century CE. It preserves stories from the Avestan tradition and older Iranian mythology unavailable in other sources, including the story of the Simorgh (a divine bird analogous to the phoenix or the Garuda of Indian tradition) and the Seven Labors of Rostam (the parallel of Heracles' Twelve Labors). The most celebrated episode is Rostam and Sohrab (presented above), a tragedy of a father who unknowingly kills his own son in battle. Matthew Arnold made an English version of this episode in 1853 ("Sohrab and Rustum"), through which it became known in Victorian England. Translation: Arthur George Warner and Edmond Warner, "The Shahnama of Firdausi," London: Kegan Paul, 1905–1925, 9 vols. Public domain.

CreationFateWarPersian

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