Bahram's Battle Against Saveh Shah

Then Saveh Shah spoke to his army: bring out your sorcery. So that the hearts and eyes of the Iranians reel, and no harm reaches you. All the wizards worked their magic, hurling fire into the air. A wind rose and a black cloud, and it rained arrows down on the army. Bahram cried out: you chieftains, you nobles of Iran and warriors. Pay no heed to these tricks of magic; charge into battle, all of you, with fury. For all of it is deceit and sorcery; over such schemers one should only weep. A roar went up from the Iranians, and they girded themselves to shed blood. Saveh Shah looked out from that battlefield and saw that the magic had gained no foothold. He led his army toward the left flank, coming on like a wolf upon a lamb. When one wing of the army was shattered, he reached his hand toward Bahram's center. Bahram looked out from that center and saw his troops fleeing ahead of the army. He came with his spear and threw three men headlong from their saddles to the ground. He said: this is how war should be; this is the custom, this is the work. Have you no shame before the God of the world, nor before the glorious, renowned lords? Then he came to the right flank, like a raging lion grown hungry. He tore through that army so completely that the commander's banner vanished from sight. From there he moved back to the center, to the side where the leader stood with his troops. He said to him: this talk will come to nothing if this battle drags on and grows old. This army will scatter in the fighting; look now and find which way to go. They set out and searched, but there was no road from which they could climb to higher ground. So he said to his army's marshal: an iron wall stands before us. Whoever knows how to breach it can pass beyond that wall. He will reach safety and carry his life back to Iran, back to the king of the brave. Set all your hearts on shedding blood; raise your shields overhead and wield your daggers. No one should despair of God, even if they see the bright day turned dark. Saveh Shah spoke to his chiefs: bring the elephants to the front of the army. Throw them into the thick of the battle; make the world dark and narrow for them. When Bahram saw the elephants from afar, he grew troubled and drew his sword from its sheath. Then he spoke to his chiefs: you renowned ones, you warriors. String your bows of Chach, and set your helmets on your heads, every one of you. By the life and head of the king of the world, chosen among the great and crown of the mighty, let everyone who carries a bow and arrow string that bow without delay. Let each arrow whose point reaches for blood drive three shafts deep into an elephant's trunk. Take aim, then draw your maces, charge into battle and cut the enemy down. The general strung his bow and set a steel helmet on his head. He rained arrows upon the elephants, drawing his bow like a spring rain cloud. Behind him came the army, and the sky went black with feathers and arrowheads. They pierced the elephants' trunks with arrows, and blood turned field and gate into a lake. Wounded that way, the elephants turned their backs and abandoned the field of battle. When each elephant felt the sting of the arrows, it trampled its own troops underfoot. The army collapsed on itself and many died; that same ill fortune stripped away their triumph. The Iranian army pressed in behind the elephants, and the ground turned into a sea like the Nile. There was a pleasant mound at that place, behind that battered, suffering army. A golden throne was set upon it, and on it sat the war-seeking Saveh. He saw an army moving like a mountain of iron, every head crowned with dust and dark rising smoke. Behind those drunken living elephants, they were pounding that army with their hands. Saveh Shah's eyes filled with tears, wondering why his army had broken and fled. He mounted a bay Arabian horse and rode off, terrified of harm and ruin. Bahram bore down on Saveh like a drunken elephant, a lasso on his arm and a bow in his hand. He said to his army: proud warriors, the mark of ill fortune has fallen upon them. This is no time for secrets or for talk; charge now with your old blades. Rain arrows down on them, fight hard and do the work of true horsemen. He climbed the mound where Saveh Shah was still seated on the golden throne, wearing his crown. He saw Bahram like a lion on his Arabian horse, galloping across the plain like a cloud. Bahram chose a straight arrow with a point like water, fitted with four eagle feathers. He worked the bow of Chach in his hand and set his thumb-ring against the deerskin grip. As he pulled the left back and bent the right straight, a cry rose from the curve of that bow of Chach. As he brought the arrow's neck to his ear, a groan rose as if from a stag's horns. When the arrowhead left his finger, it passed clean through the vertebrae of Saveh's back. Saveh's head dropped into the dust, and beneath his body the earth became a river of blood. So it ended: that famous king and all his army, his golden throne and golden crown. This is how the turning heavens behave: neither their cruelty nor their kindness is ever clear. See that you never boast of a lofty throne; even when you feel safe, keep clear of harm. When warlike Bahram reached him, he dragged him face down over the scorching earth. He cut that kingly head from its body, and no one from the enemy ranks dared face him. When the Turks came near their king, they found a headless corpse lying on the road. All at once they raised a cry; the earth was full of wailing, the air full of turmoil. The son said: this was the work of God, for fortune was wide awake for Bahram. Wherever the road narrowed for the army, many died in that tight pass. Many elephants trampled men underfoot; not one in ten of that army made it home. Some crushed to ruin beneath the elephants' feet, others with heads cut off on the battlefield. When that evil day had passed with time, no one saw a single doubter left alive. Except for those who had been taken captive, their souls worn down by grief and their bodies pierced by arrows. The whole road was strewn with horse-armor and helmets; for the chiefs, the helmet had brought the day of death. Indian swords, arrows, and bows lay scattered on every side by the beaten foe. With the slain, the ground became a sea of blood; in every corner a saddled horse still stood. Bahram went about among the troops to see which of the Persians lay dead on the road. Then he said to Khorrad Borzin: for one day, share this labor with me. Look and see which of the Persians has been killed, so we may weep for that grief. Khorrad Borzin went everywhere, passing by every screen and tent. One famous man was missing from the army, one whom they called Bahram, that man of skill. From the line of Siyavash, a champion of nobility, a commander, a rider, a valiant chief. The searcher wandered like one who has lost his senses, hoping to find some trace of him somewhere. He dragged aside many wounded and slain, but nowhere found a sign of Bahram. The commander grew heartsick at this and cried out in grief: O poor, wretched hero. After a while he appeared, like a key coming to a locked door. Beside him was a red-faced Turk with cat-like eyes; you would think his heart was wounded and full of rage. When Bahram saw Bahram, he said: may you never lie one with the dust. Then he questioned that ugly Turk: you with a hellish face, far from paradise. What kind of man are you, and what is your lineage, that your own mother should weep for you? He answered: I am a sorcerer, set apart from manliness and from ordinary men. Whoever leads an army into war, I serve him well when his situation grows desperate. At night I conjure things in dreams that make the calm and steady act in reckless haste. It was I who sent you that bad dream last night, so that misfortune would fall upon your head. I should have looked for other means, since I never got my spells to work as planned. An evil star has turned against us this way, and all our effort scattered like wind. If I could win mercy from you and keep my life, you would gain a skilled man ready at your hand. When Bahram heard this and thought it over, his heart filled with pain and his face went pale. One moment he said: on the day of battle he would serve me when my situation grew tight. The next he said: what good did sorcery bring Saveh Shah and his army in the end? All good things come from God alone; only to some does fortune smile. He ordered the man's head cut from his body, and severed the soul from that worthless frame. When they had killed him, Bahram rose to his feet and said: O just and righteous Judge, greatness, victory, and glory, high standing and the strength of kingship, sorrow and joy alike come from you; blessed is the brave man who seeks your path. After that the chief scribe came forward and said: O mighty champion, neither the hero Fereydun nor Khosrow the Just ever saw a champion like you. You have a lion's courage, majesty, and steadfast bond; may your life never suffer harm. All the land of Iran lives because of you; every champion is your servant. Through you the fortune of greatness has risen high; through you the humble gain honor. You are the commander, born of commanders; happy is the mother who bore a son like you. For you are of blessed lineage and blessed mind, the pillar of the whole realm, its lands and borders. The nobles and the army's champions scattered from the battlefield. When the dark night twisted its hair into curls, that same twisting brought sleep to every eye. The curtain of ebony appeared, and the world found rest from the drums' clamor. The wheel of heaven turned in haste, and the dark night stretched slow and long for it. A yellow ship rose from the water, washing away both weariness and sleep. The commander came and sent someone to his companions, calling them to his aid, so that every nobleman who had been killed, every Turkish chief and warrior, might be counted. Cut off the heads of every one of their chiefs, of whoever had led their assembly. Behind each severed head a bright banner, for these had been the crowned commanders of the war. He gathered all the prisoners and the heads, and they carried them away from the field of battle. He called the scribe before him and spoke at length on every subject. Of that vast and famous army, of the turnings and shifting of the age, of the strategy and the fighting, and from every angle, of where such an army had marched, and of the struggle and battle of the Iranians, when not one rider even loosened his belt to rest. When he had written that letter to the king, he chose a good speaker from among the troops. First he set Saveh's head on a spear, and the banner Saveh had carried in the battle, along with the heads of the great chiefs of the land of Turan, and likewise the banner of the Chinese riders. He ordered that on a swift mount these be carried quickly to the king of Iran, while the prisoners and all the plunder he kept safely untouched in Herat, so that whatever the king might command; he sent it along with the heads and many riders, and also so the king's order could come: whether to lead the army on to war with Parmuda. The swift mount set off from its place, with a guide leading the riders. On the other side the Turks, all stripped bare, fled without gear, horse, or baggage. They reached the land of Turan at last, the riders of the Turks and the brave men of China. When word of this reached Parmuda, he cast the crown of kingship from his head. A bitter cry rose up from the Turks; the days turned bitter for those great lords. Every head was full of dust and every eye full of tears; no one could eat, or rest, or sleep. After that he called the warriors to him, scattering the blood of his heart through his lashes. He asked why that countless army had accomplished nothing in seeking battle. The guide gave him this answer: 'We had held that army as beneath us, but when Bahram the warrior comes to the hour of action, no one in the world sees a rider like him. In the moment of war he is greater than Rostam; the brave do not dare to pause before him. His army was not a hundredth of ours, yet the least of his brave men outmatched the first of ours. The Lord who rules the world raised him high; there is no need to hear more than this from me.' When Parmuda heard his words, his heart grew heavy with worry over the matter. He seethed, his cheeks turned pale, and with a grieving heart he set his mind on marching out. He had an army of a hundred thousand fighters, all famed men fit for the field of battle. He led the army from the tents onto the open plain, drawing near to the banks of the Oxus. After that, the commander's letter came to the king of bright soul. The ruler of the world sat with his priests and said: 'You renowned and wise men, for two weeks at this great court no word has come from Bahram. What do you say may happen next? We must weigh all the possibilities.' The very moment the king spoke these words, the chief usher came in from the gate. He gave the king this good news: 'May the ruler of the world live forever, glad. Bahram has triumphed over Saveh; in battle he has become the light of the world.' The king quickly called the messenger forward and seated him above the other nobles. The messenger said: 'O exalted king, the outcome of that battlefield turned out as you wished. May you live happy and at ease, for the fortune of your ill-wisher has grown old and feeble. The head of Saveh Shah and his younger son, whose father called him Faghfur, are set upon spears, truly; the whole city gathers to gaze at that head.' When the king heard this, he rose to his feet and at once bowed himself down in worship. He stood before God and said: 'O guiding Judge, You destroyed the one who wished us ill; You are the creator of the sun and moon. I was so wretched and hopeless of fortune, until the enemy was cast down from his throne. It was not the general nor the fighting army that won this; God Himself favored this battle.' Then he brought out a hundred and thirty thousand from the treasure left by his father. A third of it he first gave to the poor, and gave the servants generous coin. Another third for the fire temple, and for the festivals of Nowruz and Sadeh, he sent so it be given to the high priest to be laid before the fire temple. The third portion for places that lay ruined, and for the inn out in the desert: so a working man might rebuild it all, and no fear or hardship remain along the road. Then he forgave four years of taxes for the poor and for those of the ivory throne. After that they wrote letters from the king to every land and every noble, that Bahram had triumphed over the army and cut off the head of the fruitless Saveh Shah. The king worshipped for seven days; on the eighth, when the world-lighting sun blazed forth, he called the commander's messenger and seated him with honor among the nobles. He wrote a fine reply to that letter, planting a tree in the garden of greatness. He also sent a silver throne, a pair of golden slippers, and gifts of every kind. From Hital all the way to the river Barak, he granted the land to Bahram and wrote out the deed. He commanded: Share this wealth among the troops, all that you brought back from the battlefield. All except the private treasure of Saveh Shah, which must be delivered to this court. After that, prepare yourself for war against Parmoodeh; do not let the enemy raise his head in pride. He sent gifts to the Iranians too, and had a decree written for every city. They dressed the messenger in robes of honor, then called for the horse of the world's champion. When the messenger reached Bahram, the commander grew glad and cheerful at the news. Then he shared the spoils among the army, all but the treasure of the foul-hearted Saveh Shah. He sent his trusted men, the worldly wise and famous among his ranks. They carried it all to the king's court, while the commander marched to war with his army. When word came of Parmoodeh, that he was seeking the imperial throne for himself, Parmoodeh held a fortress called Afraz, from which he felt safe and content. He stored there all the coin he had, gold and jewels, in every amount. Bahram crossed the Oxus with his army and came striding toward the battlefield. The two armies pressed close for battle, halting nowhere along the way. Two stages from Balkh, both armies chose two fitting places for the fight. Between the two forces lay two leagues, the width of the plain fit for battle. The next day Bahram the warrior rode out, hurrying to survey Parmoodeh's champions. He looked and saw Parmoodeh; from the flatland he chose a steep rise. He mounted his whole army upon it, until no space was left on the plain. Parmoodeh saw the army filling the plain, and was dumbfounded at the sight of them. He saw Bahram before his host, his warlike head raised to the heavens. He grew troubled and said to his men: this leader is a match for a lion. There is no counting his army; no one would take up this fight willingly. The commander is proud and wrathful; beneath him the dark earth turns to blood. When the dark night falls, we will launch a night raid, and cast fear and worry out of our hearts. When Parmoodeh returned to his tent, he weighed every kind of battle plan. He said: a night raid is one of the skills of war, even if their army now seems small. Their riders and champions are men of worth, of the highest rank among the proud warriors. The army is armed, and Bahram leads them on; before him a spearpoint is no more than a thorn or a blade of grass. Basking in his triumph, Saveh Shah grew bold and drunk on bloodshed. If the Creator of the world stands with me, I will take revenge from that mountain of malice for my father's blood. When Bahram set out to seek battle, he turned his face from Iran toward the land of the Turks.