English
Goshtasp and the Dragon
Ahren went off and brought everything Goshtasp had asked for, once the tasks were all in order.
He set his foot from the sea into the saddle, and his companions rode out with him.
When Heshvi caught sight of Mount Saqila, he pointed it out and drew himself back.
He and Ahren turned away from the spot just as the sun raised its spear over the heights.
The hero stood before that mountain, the lair where the stubborn serpent rested.
When the towering dragon saw him, it tried to drag him toward itself with its breath.
As he hung his helmet from the front of the saddle, arrows rained down on the beast like hail.
When he closed in tight on that dragon, the young man kept looking for a way clear of it.
Swiftly he thrust the dagger into its mouth, remembering the good grace of the Creator.
The dragon bit down hard on that dagger, and all its blades sank deep into its throat.
The whole mountain was washed with poison and blood; venom poured out of it until it went limp.
Then the lion of a man reached for his sword and struck the head of the bold dragon.
Its brains spilled out across the hard rock, and the fortunate warrior came down from his horse.
First he pulled two teeth from its jaws, then came and washed his head and body clean.
Crying out, he rolled himself upon the earth before the victorious Lord,
for granting him such great power over that wolf and that monstrous dragon.
He kept saying: Lohrasp and noble Zarir have grown weary of Goshtasp, body and soul.
With clear spirit, heart, strength, and fire, they surely will not even see me in a dream.
I see nothing but pain and hardship from the world, my antidote everywhere scattered as poison.
Perhaps the Creator will grant me life enough to see the face of that king just once.
And the fair face of my brother Zarir, to tell them I have grown tired of the crown.
To tell them what fate has done to me: I sought a throne, and the throne was lost.
With eyes full of tears he mounted his horse, that same tempered dagger in his hand.
When he reached Heshvi and Ahren, he told them all of the wonder he had seen.
He said to Ahren: that dragon was made worthless by this sharp dagger.
You were filled with terror at the great dragon's breath, undone by the deed of the wolf.
But for me, battle is against brave chieftains, proud men wielding heavy maces.
The crocodile comes fierce from the fight, rising up from the depths to do battle.
I have seen many a dragon like this, and never once turned my head from the fight.
Heshvi and Ahren listened to his words, ancient wisdom spoken by this newcomer.
When those two proud warriors heard his voice, they came and bowed low before him.
They said to Goshtasp: O lion of a man, no mother has ever borne a hero as brave as you.
Ahran brought many gifts, precious horses richly adorned.
He took up a sword and a warhorse, a bow and three arrows of white poplar wood.
To Hishvi he gave all the rest there was: the gold and the unworn garments.
Then Goshtasp said to those defiant men: no one here should carry any token of this deed,
nor should I, though I have seen the fierce dragon and heard the roaring of that wolf.
Then, glad and cheerful, he left that place and hurried swiftly toward Katayun.
Ahran set off and hauled the ox-drawn cart, handing the dragon's body over to his servants,
saying: Carry this to the court of Caesar, take it before the great ones of the army.
He himself went ahead of the oxen and the cart and hurried swiftly to Caesar's side.
In Rome they got word of it, and the seasoned men of the world rushed forward.
When the ox-cart came down from the mountain onto the plain, a great uproar rose among the crowd,
over that wound and that grim dragon, whose weight lay so heavily on the ox-cart.
From the heights came a chirping, thin cry, as if the ox no longer had strength in its body.
Everyone who saw that sword-stroke and heard the groaning of the ox-cart
said: This is Ahran's dagger, or else the lion-slaying blow of a demon.
At once Caesar rode out from his palace and summoned the nobles and the wise.
He held a feast over that dragon, from dawn until the world turned deep blue.
When the sun set its crown upon the sky, the face of ivory turned to the color of molten gold.
Caesar's messenger called the bishop, questioned him, and seated him on a golden throne.
Of the patriarchs and the priests of the city, everyone who had a share of noble worth
gathered before the high priest, the worldly-wise, together with Caesar and his counselors.
Then they gave the daughter to Ahran, with the loving consent of her mother.
When the crowd had scattered from the palace, the heart of the famed king was revived by that news.
He said: Today is my day; the high heaven itself lights up my heart,
for no one in the world, neither the humble nor the great, will ever see two sons-in-law like mine.
They wrote letters to every lord who held a throne or wore a crown,
saying that the fierce dragon, along with the proud wolf, had been destroyed by the hands of two mighty men.
He built a pavilion before his palace, raised up as radiant as his own throne.
His two sons-in-law would ride into the field, delighting his happy heart.
With arrow and polo mallet and the thrust of the spear, they gathered their reins in pursuit of skill.
They galloped left and right so well you would say horsemanship itself suited them best.
Time passed like this until Katayun came, ready to teach and advise.
She said to Gushtasp: You sit here so gloomy, why do you fill your heart with sorrow and worry?
In Rome there were two great nobles, men with crowns, treasure, and glory.
One of them killed a fierce dragon; he faced great danger and never turned his back.
The other tore the hide off a wolf; all of Rome rings with his fame.
On the emperor's field, in honor and combat, they raise the dust up to the sky.
Go and watch there, where the emperor is; perhaps your heart's pain will lighten.
Gushtasp said to her: My lovely one, when has the emperor ever shown me justice or kindness?
He drove you out of the city with me; when he sees me, what humanity could he possibly show?
But if this is what you want, I will not turn from your counsel, my guide.
He came to the field and reached the emperor, and waited there until he saw the polo strokes.
He asked one of them for a ball and mallet and drove it straight into the midst of the riders.
He spurred his mount forward, and the champions all felt their hands and feet go numb.
No one on the field could even find the ball; it vanished from the world at his stroke.
Wherever the riders found his ball, they did not rush to strike it with their mallets.
The Romans turned pale then, all of them, murmuring and talking among themselves.
They took up bows and arrows of white poplar, and several war-riders set out.
When Gushtasp saw this, he rose and said: Now is no time to hide one's skills.
He threw down the mallet and took up a bow, and with string and bark he mastered them all.
The emperor looked upon that proud man, at his grip, his shoulders, and his long stride in the stirrups.
He asked: Where is this horseman from, who wheels so skillfully to the left and the right?
I have seen many proud champions, but I have never heard of a rider like this.
Call him so I may ask who he is; is he an angel, or a man like us?
They summoned Gushtasp before him, and his ill-wisher's spirit twisted with unease.
He said to Gushtasp: O battle-riding warrior, chief of the proud, crown of the battlefield,
tell me your name, your city, and your lineage. But Gushtasp gave him no answer to this.
He said only: I am that despised stranger whom the emperor drove far from his city.
When I became his son in law, he drove me from his city; no one would speak my name from his records again.
The emperor's cruelty fell on Katayun, because she chose a poor stranger for herself.
She did nothing but follow the custom of the land, yet for her honesty she was met with scorn.
There was the deadly wolf in the thicket, and on the great mountain the mighty dragon.
Their heads were brought low by my blows; in that deed Hishvi was my good guide.
Their fangs are in my house even now, and the mark of my dagger is the proof.
Let the emperor ask Hishvi about it; this tale is fresh, it has not grown old.
When Hishvi came, he brought the fangs and recounted all the past events before him.
The emperor set his tongue to apologize and said to him, 'An injustice was done, young man.'
'Where is my beloved Katayun now? If she calls me a tyrant, she is right.'
He grew furious with Mirin and Ahran and said that a secret can never stay hidden forever.
At once he mounted his swift horse and came, seeking pardon, to that pure minded one.
He showered blessings on his daughter, that chaste and wise woman.
The emperor said to her, 'O moon faced one, you chose a husband truly worthy of you.'
'You have raised the whole family's head high with this good fortune you have made.'
Then he asked her about her husband, hoping she might reveal his secret to her.
'Where is his home, his city, his lineage? Perhaps he has told you the truth.'
She answered, 'I have asked him, but I have not found him on the path of plain truth.'
'He does not tell me his secret; he keeps his identity hidden from everyone.'
'I suspect he is of noble stock, for he is a fighter, valiant and mighty.'
'Whatever I ask, he never tells me fully; he only says his name is Farrokhzad.'
From there the emperor returned to his palace, and the heavens too turned on for a while.
When Gushtasp rose in the morning, that wise man set out toward the emperor.
When the emperor saw him, he fell silent and seated him at the place of honor before that famous court.
He called for a belt from the treasury, and a ring, and a renowned crown of lordship.
He kissed him and then placed the crown on his head, recalling much of what had passed.
He said to all who could remember: 'Be watchful, young and old alike.'
'Obey Farrokhzad in everything; do not stray from his words or his deeds.'
News of this spread to every land, to every king and every noble.