The Book: Shahnameh, the Persian Book of Kings
The Author: Abolqasem Ferdowski, some time in the tenth century.
This text: a 2006 translation by Dick Davis.
Price: This one cost me $29.99 from Dymocks, and it was money well spent. Seems to be pricier on the internet, though.
The Invasion of Mazanderan
Kay Qobad is succeeded by his son, Kay Kavus, and the chapter opens by warning the reader that "...if a sickly branch grows from a good root, you should not curse the root for this."
Kay Kavus is my favourite king ever.
Shortly after Kavus takes the throne, a musician from the demon country of Mazanderan arrives and sings songs of his homeland. He makes it sound so nice that Kavus decides to invade. Zal is not impressed.
"Sire. That's a really stupid idea. Like a really stupid idea. Like, in the history of stupid ideas, this is up there with 'make the demon Eblis your cook'."Kavus will not be dissuaded, and leaves Zal and Rostam to guard the home front. After a brief period of successful pillaging, the entire Persian force is promptly captured by demons. The Persians are imprisoned by the White Demon and his lieutenant Arzhang, and Kavus is blinded.
"But wouldn't it be awesome if we won?"
"Sire. Jamshid, with his magic seal and ring, never invaded Mazanderan. Feraydun, who defeated the Demon-King Zahhak, never invaded Mazanderan. Tahmures, the Binder of Demons, never invaded Mazanderan, and he rode Ahriman like a horse."
"But we would be more awesome than all of those guys!"
Kavus is, however, able to dispatch a messenger to Zal, firstly to apologise for not listening to him and secondly to beg for help. Since Kay Kavus took the whole army, Zal has only one option: he sends Rostam.
Rostam has a choice: he can follow Kavus' army and fight off the entire demon horde, or he can take a shortcut through the mountains. He takes the latter course. He faces seven trials:
- a lion (dispatched by his horse, Raksh)
- thirst (prayer; guided to a spring by a ram)
- a dragon (Rostam and Raksh in tandem)
- a witch (lariat/dagger combo)
- a farmer, Olad (lariat/diplomacy combo)
- Arzhang (barehanded decapitation)
- the White Demon (sword/dagger combo)
The Mythic Persian Space Program
This is a small episode, but one of my favourites: Kay Kavus, after a conversation with a demon, decides that being king of the world just isn't good enough.
"I'm ruler," said Kavus, "of all that I seeKavus has a plan: he has his warriors kidnap baby eagles, which he feeds up to monstrous size. He then ties four giant eagles to his throne and sets off for outer space. He ascends past the clouds and into the realm of the angels. But eventually the eagles tire as eagles must, and the spacethrone falls back to earth. The vessel is destroyed and the king finds himself stuck in a tree, miraculously unhurt, except from his pride. He his rescued by his heroes, who berate him violently, and returns to his palace. After a period of shame and sulking, he leaves his chambers, determined to be a just and wise king.
But I don't see enough. That's the trouble with me."
(with apologies to Mr Geisel.)
Sohrab, son of Rostam
Sohrab has a hard life.
So it comes about that Rostam loses his horse to Turkish horse thieves, near the border with Turan. He heads to the nearest town - Samangan - and is welcomed by the local king, who puts him up and offers to find Raksh. That night, he is seduced by the king's daughter, Tahmineh. Raksh is found the next morning and Rostam rides home, leaving Tahmineh with a clasp that she is to give to her son, should she happen to have one.
Time passes and sure enough, a son is born. Tahmineh names him Sohrab. Sohrab grows up quickly, displaying alarming prowess at combat and warfare. When he asks his mother who his father is, she tells him. Then she points out that it's probably a bad idea for Afrasyab, king of Turan, to find out - and also Rostam, come to that, because he'll probably want him to go to Zavolestan, breaking his mother's heart.
Sohrab thinks for a bit, and then decides that the best way to resolve this dilemma is is to raise an army, defeat Kay Kavus, put Rostam on the throne of Persia, come back and take out Afrasyab, and rule Turan himself.
Afrasyab finds out about the first part of the plan when Sohrab attacks Persia. Not knowing the latter parts, he approves, and sends additional forces. Kavus, on the other hand, hears that his kingdom is being invaded by a new hero, and sends for Rostam. Rostam gets drunk with the messenger and is a bit slow in arriving. Kavus picks a fight with him, Rostam heads home in a huff, and Kavus needs to lead the entire rest of his army to deal with Sohrab. Rostam has a change of heart on the road and heads to the front to investigate this new enemy hero. Kavus and Rostam are reconciled.
Meanwhile, Afrasyab's general, Human, starts to get nervous as he sees the size of the Persian force. Sohrab tells him not to worry, he'll take care of it. Sure enough, Sohrab is able to take on much of the army single-handedly. Eventually he challenges Kavus to single combat. Kavus sends out Rostam as his champion, because what are knights and heroes for?
Halfway through the fight, Sohrab realises who he's fighting, mostly because it's so unexpectedly difficult. He is delighted, and tries to strike up a conversation. Rostam, however, has no idea who he's fighting, and keeps it up. The fight goes on all day, and at dusk they decide to retire to their respective camps, with the intention of taking it up again in the morning.
The next day, Sohrab tries to engage Rostam in a conversation about lineage, but Rostam refuses to be drawn. They fight, and an angered Sohrab knocks Rostam to the ground. Rostam claims that the Persian custom is that it's unsporting to kill an opponent at the first fall. Sohrab, not wanting to kill Rostam anyway, retires to his camp, where he is mocked by his comrades for falling for 'that old trick'.
The next day, the fight begins again, and this time Rostam is victorious. He strikes Sohrab a mortal blow. As he lays dying, Sohrab finally gets a chance to explain his ancestry. He shows Rostam the token that he had left with Tahmineh. Rostam is heartbroken. With his last breath, Sohrab asks Rostam to be merciful to his troops. Said troops, deprived of their hero, sneak off while no-one is looking. Rostam ensures that Sohrab is buried with full honours, and then tries to end his own life. His comrades talk him down, and he heads home to Zavolestan, desolate.
Seyavash
Seyavash has an even harder life.
So one day a group of Kay Kavus' knights find a wandering princess, who has fled from her brutal father. They all fall in love with her, and start bickering over who should have her. In the end they decide to consult the king.
The king falls in love with her, and claims her for himself.
Long story short: there's Seyavash.
Rostam offers to raise him in the ways of the court, which Kavus agrees to. The boy grows up big and strong and wise, the son that Rostam never had (since he killed the son he did have). When Seyavash comes of age, he is presented at his father's court, and everyone is terribly impressed.
Especially Kavus' chief wife, Sudabeh.
Sudabeh tries to seduce Seyavash, and fails, because the boy has been raised by Rostam and is terribly honourable. Also, she's his stepmother. Piqued, Sudabeh tells Kavus that Seyavash had tried to force himself on her. She procures two dead demon babies, fakes labour, and presents them to Kavus as evidence of the wicked crime. Seyavash is forced to prove his innocence through trial by fire, though Sudabeh claims that Zal's magic saved him from the flames, not god. Seyavash suggests, wisely, that the best outcome is probably the one that doesn't involve anyone burning to death at all, and the matter rests.
At this point, Afrasyab decides to send an army to invade. At his request and on Rostam's advice, Kavus appoints Seyavash to defend the borders. Seyavash quickly routs the Turanians, secures the border, brokers a truce, takes hostages and secures an agreement with Afrasyab that he will never invade again. He's just that good.
Kavus tells him that's rubbish, and that Afrasyab really needs to be destroyed: Seyavash is to break the truce, kill the hostages, and march on Turan.
"Isn't that both incredibly stupid and totally dishonorable?"Rostam tries to convince Kavus of his folly, but the king refuses to see reason. Seyavash finds himself trapped. He can't break his word, and he can't disobey his king. Everyone is sympathetic. Especially the enemy.
"You just don't understand kingship like I do."
The generals and princes of Turan, impressed with his honour and his divine kingly radiance, convince him to defect. Afrasyab takes him into his household, despite fears on all sides that Seyavash will usurp his own throne. Afrasyab takes the view that Kavus can't live forever, and it will do him no harm to have the next king of Persia as a friend and trusted ally.
Seyavash marries Afrasyab's daughter Farigis, befriends Afrasyab's advisor Piran, and eventually establishes his own kingdom. Seyavash is the picture of the wise prince, measured, just and honourable, renowned through all the world. He never once loses his divine kingly radiance. His capital, Seyavashgerd, becomes a glorious heaven-on-earth.
But Seyavash is fated to die young: Afrasyab's brother, Garsivaz, becomes jealous of his influence. He starts feeding the king rumours that Seyavash is gathering troops from Iran and China. Stoked by these whispers, Afrasyab's fears become too much for him, and he turns on his son-in-law. Seyavash, unprepared for this betrayal, is defeated in battle, and brutally murdered by Garsivaz. Seyavashgerd is laid waste.
Piran is able to save the pregnant Farigis from her father's and uncle's wrath, and she gives birth to Seyavash's son in secret. The boy is named Kay Khosrow, and is raised as a shepherd, far from Afrasyab's court.
When Rostam hears of Seyavash's death, he murders Sudabeh and lays waste to Turan. Kay Khosrow is brought back into Persia by another hero, Giv. In time Khosrow succeeds his grandfather as king - and all in all does rather better at it.
The Seyavash sequence is deeply moving: a just and wise prince, made cautious through self-doubt, brought down by the short, selfish horizons of lesser men. I cried.
Next: The End of the Heroic Age.
No comments:
Post a Comment