English
Part 2: The Age of the Parthians
Now, old poet, turn your gaze back once more
to the time of the Parthian kings.
What did the book of the truthful say
when the teller recalled the ancient days?
After the era of Alexander, what does it tell
of who held the throne of the great in this world?
The wise landowner of Chach said this:
after him no one held the ivory throne.
The nobles born of Arash's line
were bold, quick to act, and defiant.
Each held a corner of the world,
taking a small piece from every land.
When they were seated happily on their thrones,
they were called the petty kings, the regional lords.
In this way two hundred years slipped by;
you would think the earth had no king at all.
None of them thought about the others,
and for a while the face of the earth rested at peace.
Alexander had planned it this way,
so that Rome would remain standing and prosperous.
First came Ashk, of Qobad's lineage,
then the hero Shapur, of Khosrow's blood.
On one side stood Godarz of the Parthians,
and Bizhan, who came from the royal Kayanid line.
There were Narsi and the great Ormazd,
and Arash, whose name was mighty and famed.
Beyond him, the renowned Ardavan,
wise, sound in judgment, and bright of soul.
When Bahram of the Parthians took the throne,
he gave away a treasure to the worthy.
They called him Ardavan the Great,
for he tore the wolf's claw from the sheep.
From Shiraz to Isfahan was his,
and the wise called it the land of the great.
In Estakhr, Babak served under his hand,
for a roaring dragon rose from his grasp.
When their branch and roots grew short and failed,
the chronicler tells no history of them.
For I have heard nothing of them but their names,
nor seen them in the book of kings.
When Alexander lost all hope of the world,
he cast a plan among the great ones.
So that no one would remember Rome as a threat,
that land would stay prosperous and glad.
Since the king upon the earth was wise,
his wisdom bore fruit in this way.