Section 21

Once the Caesar had cleared the place of strangers, he sat down deep in thought with his counselor. He said to the priest: You who seek justice, this man has taken refuge with us against the whole world. Let us arrange things so that he grows strong, and the lesser evil is cleansed of its flaws. Then the counselor said to the Caesar: From among the philosophers of pure judgment, we need a few men of wakeful heart who will commit themselves to us in this task. The renowned Caesar sent for them, and four of those philosophers set out. Young men and elders of Roman blood, they recalled the words of old times. They said: Ever since Alexander left this world, we have carried a hidden wound from the Iranians, from all the plunder, war, and clashing, and the pointless spilling of innocent blood. Now the pure God, for their evil deeds, has brought misfortune upon them. Choose silence in this matter, now that the fortune of the Sasanians has grown slow. If Khosrow lays hold of that royal crown, he will lift his head to the moon, and at once he will demand tribute from Rome, and trample all our land and soil underfoot. If this seems fitting to your wisdom, remember it; and hold the words of the Iranians as mere wind. When the Caesar heard their words, he laid the foundation of yet another plan. He sent a rider to the king; he wrote a letter and showed him the road, full of the sayings of the wakeful sages, those who recite the words of old. When the rider came to Khosrow, he told the renowned king what he had heard, and handed him the Caesar's letter, reciting to him the Caesar's words. When Khosrow read it, his heart grew heavy, and his face went pale with worry. He answered thus: If, because of these words about what happened in ancient days, we must keep this memory in our hearts and count all our sufferings as nothing, we conquered and then withdrew from this land; may you never have any need for Iran. Look now upon our ancestors, our chosen and pure world rulers. If they waged war unjustly rather than justly, see which of the elders still remembers it. It is fitting to ask the sages of Rome whether this evil came from the crow or the owl. For everyone who rose to glory in battle became heedless of the Creator. Our ancestors were men of renown; they held their desires fulfilled in this world. They endured from no one arrogance, haughtiness, fury, or ignorance. Now these words have no worth, for one's head is in the dragon's jaws. Carry my greeting to the Caesar, and tell him: words without warp or weft, the great do not bring before wisdom; in the end both good and bad shall pass. From now on I will seek neither rest nor sleep until I pull my skirt free of the dark water. If we find no rescuer among the Romans, we will send someone to the Khaqan. Every word I spoke has come to nothing, for the running water has grown murky at its source. When my envoys return, I will not linger long in this city. He said to the Iranians: Obey my command, and do not let this news break your hearts, for the victorious God is our ally, and chivalry and humanity are our work. He treated this matter as trifling in his heart, and sent off a letter by the hand of Tokhvar. He wrote a letter in this fashion, containing within it every kind of thing, fair and foul. The rider set out from Khosrow's presence and rode on to the court of the renowned Caesar.