English
Bandavi in Bahram's Prison
Bandavi lay chained like a hunting cat, seventy days in Bahram's prison.
Bahram himself was Bandavi's keeper, and that chain gave Bahram no satisfaction.
Yet even in chains Bandavi kept deceiving him, never running short of clever schemes.
He said: do not lose hope in the king of Iran; if the day has darkened, it will grow bright again.
Though his fortune may drag its feet for a while, victory will come to Khosrow in the end.
The Creator of the world granted power to Kay Qobad's line and gave the world back to them.
Neither crown nor throne will stay with Bahram; what can this fortunate man be thinking?
May no man of noble farmer stock ever throw himself so recklessly to the wind.
Count on your fingers now, just two months, and you will see an army come to Iran from the West.
They will set fire to this crown and throne, and in their assault they will crush his head.
Bahram said to him: if the king will grant me my life and spare me,
I will shape my soul by your counsel; whatever you say, I will obey.
I will swear a mighty oath by the moon, by the sacred fire, by throne and crown,
that if Khosrow comes to this land, leading an army out of the West from Caesar,
you will ask him to spare my life for me, and you will not take that hard task lightly.
No harm will come to me from him; he will not be turned against me by the Iranians' words.
He said this, then called for the book of Zand, wanting Bandavi bound fast by an oath.
When Bandavi took hold of the sacred texts, he swore this by the exalted Creator:
may Bandavi know nothing but pain and grief, may he find no safety in this fleeting house,
if, on the day Khosrow returns to power, I sit idle when I have seen him again,
unless he sends you the royal signet ring and the crown of lordship as well.
When Bahram heard his oath and saw his pure heart and loyalty,
he said to him: now I will tell you all my secrets and speak my mind aloud.
I will set a trap for Chubineh and by cunning bring my vengeance to a head.
With a poisoned blade at the feast, with effort I can bring him to ruin.
There will be no drop left in the ocean, meaning: soon they must hail Bahram as king.
Bandavi said to him: you clever man, wise, alert, and knowing much,
very soon the world ruling king will come and take his place upon this throne.
You know that whatever I say to him, this servant's words he will not refuse.
I will beg pardon for the wrongs you did before; at my word he will grant you his own crown.
If you truly mean what you are saying and harbor no crooked purpose in your heart,
free my two feet from these chains; first swear this in Khosrow's name.
Then your secret will be revealed through my speech, and your clear voice will reach his ear.
When Bahram heard this his face brightened, and there and then he took off Bandavi's chains.
When the musk colored veil of night grew light, dawn reached in and gripped the darkness with its claws.
He said to Bandavi: if my heart does not break when Chubineh swings his polo mallet today,
last night I plotted with five companions to wipe him out, to blot him from the earth.
When day came, Bahram Chubineh set out for the field, for the game of polo, mallet and ball.
A messenger came quickly from Bahram to the son of Siyavosh, running like smoke.
He called for armor and put it on beneath his robe, then from the court he mounted his horse.
The hero Bahram had a wife who was not faithful, who wished to see Bahram buried in the ground.
In her heart she loved Bahram Chubineh, for her soul was full of hatred for her husband.
She sent someone to Bahram Chubineh: guard yourself and come to your own aid,
for Bahram has secretly put on armor and knotted its fastenings tight.
I do not know what evil he holds in his heart; it would be wise for you to keep away from him.
When Chubineh heard the woman's words, telling him: do not swing the polo mallet with him,
whoever came out onto his playing field, when they drew near with mallet and ball,
he would lay his hand gently on their back, with kind words and a warm voice.
So it went until he reached the son of Siyavosh, and plainly saw the armor on his chest.
He said to him: you, worse than a desert thorn, who wears armor under silk to a polo game?
He said this and drew his sword of vengeance and tore him utterly to pieces.
When Bandavi learned of that killing, the daylight seemed to shrink around him.
He put on his mail and mounted, and buckled the hero's belt with trembling hands.
With a few men he set off, shaking on the road, fleeing in fear of Bahramshah.
He took the road of escape from that city, so they would not witness his downfall.
They reached a way station and the band grew larger, then rode hard toward Ardabil.
When Bahram pulled back from the field, he dragged the hem of his rage through blood.
After that he ordered Mahruy to be the one to keep watch over Bandavi.
They told Bahram: my king, do not trouble your heart over Bandavi,
for when he learned of this killing, he seems to have flown off with the wind.
He grew sorry for the killing of his own friend, and knew that his fortunes had turned dark.
He said: whoever cannot tell an enemy from a friend, may he have neither brain nor skin.
One sleeps on the elephant's tusk of a blade, another feels safe amid the waves of the Nile,
another grows bold against the king, and a fourth grabs the lion by the arm.
Have pity on the lives of all these four, for the wheel of time will twist their necks.
And likewise anyone who tries to move a mountain and wants a crowd to help him at that task:
he wore his own body out with the labor and from that toil held only wind in his fist.
To cross the water in a broken boat, and worse, to rush headlong at the work,
or if you want to see a spring with your own eyes, you turn dazzled and angry away from it.
Whoever takes a blind man for his guide is left stranded on the long, long road.
Whoever grabs a dragon with his hand ends up dead, while the dragon slips free of him.
And if someone drinks poison just to test it, all that drinking brings him is pain and death.
We did not kill Bandavi at the start; he slipped from my hands and went looking for a way out.
One must weep over what I have done; let us wait and see what God's will is.
Meanwhile Bandavi and his small band took to the road like a raging wind.
Everyone carried off whatever was worth taking, on the road where Musil the Armenian lived.
In the trackless desert, a lair of wild beasts, he saw a royal tent pitched in one place.
He looked, and it was Musil the Armenian; he found running water there and food as well.
The world seeking Bandavi went alone, turning eagerly toward the tents.
When he saw Musil he bowed low before him, and they spoke together for a long while.
Musil said to him: do not leave from here, for fresh news keeps coming to you,
about what Khosrow has done in the prosperous West, whether he makes a new peace or wages war.
When Bandavi heard this he stayed there, and summoned his companions in from the plain.