English
The Reign of Bahram, Son of Shapur
Wise and worthy Bahramshah
mourned his father for a long while.
When he took his place on the royal throne,
he spoke these words as king of kings:
Any king who fills his treasury through justice,
know this: that wealth will never scatter away.
May the pure God be pleased with us,
and may the heart of the ill-wisher fill with smoke.
All knowledge is His; we are only His servants,
we who both diminish and increase.
The ruler of the world, God, is just and true;
nothing in His kingdom grows or shrinks.
One who has the power to give
is wise, alert, and knowing.
He should not lock his wealth away tightly,
especially the master of crown and throne.
And even if you give lavishly from a treasury of words,
keep giving, for knowledge never runs dry.
In good and evil, lean toward God,
if you want your good deeds to endure.
If you learn every fair and foul thing from Him,
you will earn joyful paradise as your reward.
But if you choose the desires of this world,
you will stay in the grip of desire, and go hungry.
Since God holds you, reach out to Him,
so you are spared the fire and the burning.
This is my hope in the pure God:
that when I lay my head down in this dark earth,
the Lord of the world will keep me victorious,
and the one who lights the world will keep me bright.
If I spread justice through the world,
that is better than hoarding wealth by injustice.
For all our toil will be left behind here,
and our treasure will surely fall to the enemy.
The throne of greatness stays with no one;
let God alone be enough as your friend.
Good and evil remain from us as our memorial;
so as far as you can, do not sow the seed of evil.
When that king's years reached fourteen,
that towering cypress lay down to rest in the garden.
For some time he lay long ill,
and the hearts of his subjects filled with grief.
He had no son; he had five daughters,
and one younger brother beside him.
Suddenly he gave his brother the treasury and army,
along with the royal seal, the throne, and the crown.
The young ruler passed from the world,
after fourteen years had gone by over him.
You, old man of sixty-three,
how long will you keep talking to the wind?
That day of yours will pass by suddenly;
choose repentance and the path of wisdom.
May God be pleased with this old man;
may wisdom be his substance and his words a gain.
Even if he splits a hair in his speech,
he still weaves it all in the dark.
If he brings to a close in old age
these verses he began, that would be no wonder.
In the name of the sword-wielding king of kings,
whose stature rises above the whole assembly.
May the age go as the king of kings desires;
may the moon crown the summit of his throne.
From him comes fortune, from him comes renown;
may the royal crown make him glad and content.
May greatness and knowledge be his road,
and may the hand of the ill-wisher be cut short from him.