English
Section 16: Rostam Meets the Demon
When word reached King Kavus
that the demons' army was closing in and pressing hard,
he commanded Rostam, son of Zal,
to be the first to gird himself for this fight.
He ordered Tus and Gudarz, son of Keshvad,
and the noble Giv and Gorgin as well,
to draw the army up in ranks
and set their spearheads and their shields in order.
They pitched the royal tent, the king's and his chiefs',
out on the plain of Mazandaran.
Tus, son of Nozar, stood on the right wing,
and the mountains' heart was filled with the wail of the brass trumpets.
Gudarz, son of Keshvad, held the left wing,
and the whole ground had turned into a mountain of iron.
The commander Kavus stood in the center,
with troops arrayed in rows on every side.
At the front of the army stood the mighty Rostam,
who had never once faltered in battle.
A famous warrior from Mazandaran
came forward, a heavy mace raised on his shoulder,
whose name was Juyan; he was a challenger,
swinging his mace and roaring out his threats.
With the demon king's leave he set out,
rushing straight toward Kavus, the army's commander.
The armor blazed upon his body,
and the heat of his blade scorched the earth.
He came and swept past the Iranian ranks,
and mountain and plain trembled at his shout.
He kept crying: 'Who will fight me,
anyone who can stir dust from water?'
No one went out to face Juyan;
not a vein stirred in them, not a drop of blood.
Then the king called out aloud
to his sharp-witted champions and men of action:
'Why has this demon left your heads reeling?
His shout has darkened your faces with fear.'
The brave men gave the king no answer;
it was as if Juyan had withered the whole army.
Rostam took up his reins and rode
to the king, his spearhead sharpened and gleaming.
'Will the king grant me his leave
to go out against this troublesome demon?'
Kavus said to him: 'This task is yours;
no one else in Iran will seek this fight.'
When the champion heard these words from him,
he came forward like a raging lion.
He spurred brave Rakhsh from his place,
a thrusting spear gripped in his hand.
He rode to the battlefield like a drunken elephant,
an elephant with a serpent in its grip.
He wheeled his reins, and dust rose up;
the field of battle shook at his cry.
He said to Juyan: 'You ill-omened creature,
you have thrown your name away from among the brave.
Now is the time for pity toward you,
not the time for battle and its calm.'
'Let whoever gave you birth weep for you,
the one who raised you though you turned out to wound.'
Juyan replied: 'Do not feel so safe
from Juyan and from the cold edge of his dagger, and go.'
So that now your mother will weep in grief for this armor and helmet of yours.
When the challenger's cry reached Rustam, he let out a roar like an enraged lion.
He came up behind him like a whirlwind and aimed his spearhead straight at his belt.
He drove the spear into the clasps of the mail and coat, and no fastening or link of the mail held.
He tore him from the saddle and lifted him up, turning him like a bird on a roasting spit.
He hurled him from his horse's back to the dust, mouth full of blood, his armor ripped to shreds.
The brave warriors and heroes of Mazandaran stood there stunned and helpless.
The army was broken in spirit and pale of face; from the battlefield rose murmuring and talk.
The commander of Mazandaran gave the order to the whole army, from one end to the other,
that they should all charge together and give battle, and fight fierce as leopards, every way they knew.
From both armies rose the horns and drums; the sky turned indigo, the earth ebony.
Like lightning flashing from a dark cloud, fire blazed from mace and blade.
The air turned red and black and violet from so many spears and so many kinds of banners.
The ground became like a sea of pitch, its waves all daggers, maces, and arrows.
The swift horses raced like ships on water, rushing, it seemed, toward their own drowning.
Maces rained down on helmet and headpiece like an autumn wind shaking leaves from a willow.
For a whole week the two renowned armies stood face to face against each other.
On the eighth day, the world-ruler Kavus lifted the royal crown from his head.
He came before the lord and God of the world, and stood there weeping on his feet.
Then he rubbed his face in the dust and said: O just judge,
against these fearless, brazen demons, you are the creator of water and earth.
Grant me victory and glory; renew for me the throne of the king of kings.
Then he covered his head with the helmet and came back to his famous army.
The blare and wail of the trumpet rose, and the army moved from its place like a mountain.
The commander ordered Giv and Tus to bring the drums up behind the army.
Along with Gudarz and Zangeh of Shavaran, and warriors like Roham and Gorgin,
Gorazeh moved forward like a boar, a banner raised high with seven folds.
And Farhad and Khorrad and Barzin and Giv advanced with the brave champions.
The mighty Rustam plunged first into the center and washed the earth with the blood of warriors.
And Gudarz, son of Kashvad, took the right wing with weapons, troops, drums, and baggage.
From the right wing to the left of the field, Giv moved through them like a wolf before a lamb.
From dawn until the sun grew dark, blood ran through the ditches like water.
Shame and the ways of kindness left every face; the sky itself seemed to rain down maces.
Everywhere the dead were piled in mounds, and the grass was stained with brains and gore.
The horns and war drums thundered like roaring thunder, while the sun slipped behind its ebony veil.
Toward the side where the King of Mazandaran stood, the mighty one advanced with a heavy host.
Not for a moment did he yield his ground; he planted his feet firmly on the field of vengeance.
When the battle hungry demons and elephants turned their faces against him,
the world seeker remembered God the sovereign, and entrusted his spear point to the Keeper of all.
He drew his mace and raised a roar; the air was filled with the thunder of his cry.
That noble commander stirred up such a storm that no demon kept its life, no elephant its wits.
The whole plain was littered with the trunks of elephants; for miles all could be seen slain.
Then the mighty one called for a spear and charged straight at the King of Mazandaran.
When the king's eyes fell on Rostam's spear, no courage or fury was left in him.
Rostam struck a spear at his belt, and it drove through into his armored body.
But by his magic his body turned into a chunk of mountain, while the Iranian troops stood watching in a crowd.
The mighty one was left astonished; he lifted the spear, its point over his shoulder.
At that moment King Kavus arrived with elephants, drums, banners, and his army.
He said to Rostam: proud hero, what happened, that you have lingered here so long?
Rostam answered: when the battle grew fierce and fortune shone with victory,
the King of Mazandaran saw me and raised his heavy mace against my neck.
I gave the reins to brave Rakhsh and drove my spear point into the belt of his armor.
I thought he had toppled over and would fall from the arch of his saddle any moment.
Instead, this stone appeared before me; he saw through my intent, no more no less.
In this way he became a lump of granite, freed from war and from the trials of manhood.
Now this stone must be carried to the camp; perhaps he will come out of the granite.
Every strong man among the troops tried his grip and put his hands to the test.
But the heavy stone would not rise from its place, with the King of Mazandaran locked inside it.
The mighty hero opened his claws; he had no need of such a test.
He lifted that stone in such a way that the whole army was left in wonder.
They called down blessings on the Creator,
and showered gold and jewels over him.
He carried the demon before the king's pavilion,
threw him down, and handed him over to the Iranians.
He said to him: if you can find a way
to slip free of me with your tricks and sorcery, do it.
Otherwise, with mace and sword and axe
I will cut every one of these stones through, from end to end.
When the demon heard this, he grew dark as a cloud,
steel on his head and armor on his body.
Then the mighty warrior seized his hand,
laughed, and turned his face toward the king.
He said: I have dragged in this piece of a mountain;
out of fear of the axe he collapsed into my grip.
King Kavus looked at his face
and saw that he was not worthy of throne and crown.
He recalled the old sufferings,
his heart grew wounded, his head full of rage.
He ordered the executioner to take the sharp sword
and cut the demon's body to pieces.
He quickly sent someone to the demon's camp
and commanded that all its wealth be brought,
the treasure, the throne, the pearls and jewels,
the horses, weapons, crowns and belts.
They piled it all up like mountains, heap on heap,
and the whole army set out together.
He gave each man treasure as he deserved,
especially those who had toiled the hardest.
As for every demon who had been treacherous,
those whom the whole company feared,
he ordered their heads cut off
and thrown wherever there was a road to pass.
After that he came to his place of prayer
and spoke his secrets with the pure Judge.
For a whole week before the holy God
he pressed his face to the dust in worship.
On the eighth day he opened the treasuries again
and gave to everyone who was in need.
For another week he continued this way,
giving away goods to whoever required them.
In the third week, when affairs were set in order,
he called for wine, a ruby cup, and the wine-pourer.
For a week, wine in hand with his chosen ones,
he lingered on in Mazandaran.
The mighty warrior said to the king:
all kinds of people prove useful in their turn.
These deeds of mine were made possible by Owlad,
who showed us the true road on every side.
Now he has set his hopes on Mazandaran;
in honesty I gave him this promise.
So first a royal robe of honor is called for,
and a sealed pledge and treaty made firm upon it,
so that as long as he lives in Mazandaran
all the nobles will serve him.
When the God-worshiping king heard these words,
the wise ruler of the world reached out his hand.
He handed the throne of kingship over to Owlad,
and from there set his face toward Pars.