English
Katayun's Warning to Esfandiar
When Katayun heard the news she filled with rage,
and came to her son with eyes full of tears.
She said to noble Esfandiar:
you, the last memory left of the great kings of the world,
I have heard from Bahman that you intend
to leave this garden and march to Zabulistan,
to bind Rostam, son of Zal,
the master of the sword and the mace.
In this world, listen to your mother's advice:
do not rush toward evil, do not push so hard.
That horseman has the strength of an elephant;
from the blood he sheds he could carve a Nile through the earth.
He split open the White Demon's heart;
before his sword even the sun loses its way.
He killed the king of Hamavaran,
and no one dared speak a harsh word to him.
Surely no warrior as brave as Sohrab
ever rode into the field of battle,
yet in the heat of war, in the arena,
he was killed at once by his own father's hand.
To avenge Siyavash upon Afrasiab,
he turned the world into a sea of blood.
A curse on this throne and this crown,
a curse on this killing, this chaos, this plunder.
Do not throw your life away for a crown;
no one is born from a mother already wearing the royal crown.
Your father has grown old, but you are young,
strong in body and mighty in manhood.
The whole army has its eyes on you;
do not, in anger, cast yourself into disaster.
There are other places in the world besides Sistan;
do not act rashly, do not reach out your hand.
Do not shame me in both worlds;
listen to the words of this loving mother.
Esfandiar answered her:
keep these words in mind, dear mother.
Rostam is just as you know him;
you recount his feats as if reciting from the ancient book.
You will find no one in all of Iran more virtuous than he,
no matter how far you search.
Since it is not right to bind him,
such a wrong does not befit a king.
But you must not break my heart;
if you break it, I will tear myself from life.
How can I refuse the king's command?
How can I abandon such a duty?
If my end is to come in Zabul,
then my star, no doubt, will draw me there.
When Rostam comes to obey my command,
he will never hear a cold word from me.
His mother's lashes rained down blood,
and she tore all the hair from her head.
She said to him: you, raging elephant,
you treat your own life as worthless in your strength.
You are no match for Rostam alone;
do not go from here without a company of men.
Do not throw away your wits before that raging elephant,
carrying your fate so recklessly on your shoulders.
If your plan is truly to go this way,
it is nothing but the wish of the evil-natured Ahriman.
Do not lead your children down into hell,
so that the wise may call you clear-minded.
Then the warrior said to his mother:
leaving the children behind is not the way.
When a young man hides behind the veil with women,
his spirit stays low and his soul grows dark.
In every battle he must be watched over,
ready to take the blows of the king's mace.
I have no need of a whole army,
only my kin, my family, and a few horsemen.
The loving mother left her son's side,
full of pain and with a darkened soul.
All night, out of love for her son,
she poured blood from her eyes down onto her breast.