Section 10

The famous Garsivaz looked over his troops: a thousand chosen Turkish riders. He gathered his renowned army and set out, joyful, toward the brave Siyavash. When Siyavash heard, he hurried down the road, riding out with his army to welcome him. They embraced one another, and Siyavash asked after the king's health. From there they went to the palace, and Siyavash arranged quarters for the army. Next morning, early, Garsivaz came bringing robes of honor sent by the king. Siyavash looked at the king's gift and bloomed like a rose in spring. He mounted his fast striding steed, and the Iranian riders gathered around. He showed himself through every street and quarter of the city, then turned toward the palace. Just then a rider came to Siyavash, swift as the wind, bringing good news: That from the daughter of the army's commander a child had been born, resembling the king. They named him Farrokh Forud; when Piran heard, he came in the dark of night. He said to me at once, along with another rider: 'Go now, carry the good news to the king.' The mother of that precious child, Jarira, the noblest of highborn ladies, commanded all her servants to dye that little one's hands with saffron. They placed on the letter's back: 'Carry this to the willful Siyavash.' Tell him: though I have grown old, the pure God has made me glad. Siyavash said to him: throughout your years of lordship, may this lineage never run dry. He gave the messenger so much silver that the bearer was worn out carrying it. They went gladly to Farangis's palace; she beheld that greatness of blessed descent. Several attendants in golden crowns, and Farangis with her crown in the hall of honor. She came down from her throne and offered him gifts, and asked after the city and the king. But Garsivaz's heart and mind boiled with envy; his manner and thoughts changed for the worse. He said within himself: if a year passes like this, Siyavash will count no one as anyone at all. He has kingship, crown, and throne; he has treasure, wisdom, and an army too. He did not reveal what lay hidden in his heart; he stayed writhing inside, his face gone pale. He said to him: may you enjoy the fruit of your toil, your heart glad all year with your treasure. In the golden palace they set two thrones, and sat down, glad of heart and fortunate. The harp player and the cupbearer came before the jewel adorned throne. With the lament of harp and lute and song, they gave their hearts over to joy. When the shining sun revealed its secret and showed its face from above over every place, Siyavash left the palace for the field and rode around it, playing at his sport. When Garsivaz came, he threw the ball, and the commander turned to chase it. When he caught the ball with the stroke of his mallet, his opponent was left biting the dust of the field. The ball vanished from his mallet's blow; you would think the sky itself had drawn it up. He ordered golden thrones set out, and javelins placed for the contest on the field. The two lords sat upon the golden thrones to see whose skill would shine the brighter. Garsivaz said to him: O king, so gifted, a living memory of the ancient kings, your skill has surpassed even your noble birth; it would be fitting to show the Turks your art. With the point of the spear, with bow and arrow, darken the ground for a while with your feats. Siyavash set his hand to the task, rose from the throne, and mounted the saddle. They bound five coats of mail together, for even one alone would strain a body. They set them on the line of the field, and the army watched from every side. Siyavash took up a royal spear that he kept as a keepsake from his father, the one he had wielded in the war of Mazandaran, and left the lion behind in the hunt. He rode to the arena, spear in hand, and wheeled his reins like a maddened elephant. He struck with the spear and lifted the armor up; not a link or knot of the mail held together. He raised the spear straight up from the ground and flung the armor to whatever spot he chose. The horsemen of Garsivaz, set as a trap, came forward with their long spears. They circled the armor again and again, yet could not lift a single link off the field. Siyavash called for four Gilan shields, two of wood and two of tempered iron. He asked for a bow with arrows of white poplar, set six in the center and bound three tight. He drew one in the bow and pressed his thigh, while a great host watched his every move. The renowned man's arrowhead pierced clean through those four shields of wood and iron. He shot two more arrows in the same way, and young and old alike cheered his praise. Of those ten, not one failed to pass through, and everyone called out the name of God over him. Garsivaz said to him: O king, in Iran or Turan you have no equal. Come, let you and I go to the field and gallop, the two of us, before the army. Let us both seize the other's belt and grapple like two furious warriors at war. Among the Turks I have no match; you will find no horse among the horses like mine. No one on the field is your equal, no one who could match you in stature or skill. If I were to lift you from your saddle and suddenly throw you to the ground, know then that I am the braver of us two, better than you in horsemanship and manhood. But if you throw me to the ground, I will not turn to any place seeking revenge. Siyavash said to him: Don't even say such a thing, for you are the greater man, a lion, a fierce fighter. Your very horse, prince, is my own horse; your crown is my blazing fire of glory. Choose someone from the Turks other than yourself, one who will wrestle with me not out of malice. Garsivaz said to him: O seeker of fame, no trace of harm comes from a friendly game. Siyavash said: This is not wise. There is no place for a brother to fight a brother. A contest between two men means war and the battlefield, the heart full of anger though the face may smile. In this world you are a brother to the king; you would trample the very moon beneath your hooves. I will do whatever you say, at your command; I will not break your judgment or your pact. Call one of your warriors, a battle-lion, and mount him on this swift-running steed. If your wish is that I fight, then the heads of the proud will lie beneath my dust. Garsivaz, the fame-seeker, laughed; it seems his words pleased him. He said to his comrades: O proud men, who among you wants to become renowned in the world? Who will bring battle to Siyavash and lay the heads of the proud beneath the dust? They stood listening, lips knotted shut; then Gorui Zereh came forward with his answer. He said: I am the one fit for this task, if there is no one else to fight him. At the words of Gorui Zereh, Siyavash's face wrinkled and knotted with anger. Garsivaz said to him: O famous one, in all the Turkish army this man has no equal. Siyavash said to him: I will let him pass; fighting the brave has become beneath me. Two champions should be readied from among them and sent to me for combat on the field. There was one renowned man named Damur, who had no equal among the Turks in strength. He came, girded for the task, before the world-seeker, the king of the Kayanids. Siyavash turned toward the fight; Damur and Gorui advanced, writhing with eagerness. He drove his fingers into Gorui Zereh's belt and clenched them into a fist. He lifted him from the saddle and flung him onto the field; he had no need of mace or lasso. After that he turned on Damur and seized his chest and neck by force. He lifted him so effortlessly from his saddle that the whole army was left in wonder. He greeted Garsivaz so warmly that you'd think no one could match his cleverness. He dismounted, opened his arms wide, and sat laughing on the golden throne. Garsivaz was disturbed by his manner; his heart filled with grief, his face with color. From that golden throne they went to the hall, as if rising to the very peak of Saturn. For a whole week they sat with flute and harp, with wine, delight, singers, and song. On the eighth day the nobles and proud Garsivaz prepared to leave. Siyavash wrote a letter to the king, full of courtesy, kind wishes, and inquiries. Then he gave Garsivaz many gifts, and they left that flourishing city in good cheer. Along the road they talked with one another about that gifted king and his land. The spiteful Garsivaz said: from Iran nothing but trouble has come our way. The king summoned a single man from Iran who has left us drenched in the sweat of shame. Two raging lions like Damur and Gorui, warriors always ready for battle, have been made this wretched, idle, and humbled by the foul grip of one lone rider. In the end, if this goes on, I see neither head nor tail to his affair. So it went: nothing but dark water flowed in that stream all the way to Afrasiab's court. When they reached the commander of the Turanian army, the king asked about everything. Garsivaz spoke at length and handed over the letter; the king read it, laughed, and was pleased. The vengeful Garsivaz watched the king's face brighten with joy. He left, his heart heavy with malice and pain, at the hour the sun turned to deep blue. All night he writhed until pure dawn, when night tore open its pitch-black robe. The man of grudges lifted his head from sleep and came again to Afrasiab. They cleared the room of strangers, sat down, and weighed every plan. Garsivaz said to him: O king, Siyavash follows a different creed and purpose now. An envoy has come from King Kavus, secretly visiting him time and again. Messages reach him from Rome and China too; over his cup he keeps thinking of Kavus. A great army has gathered around him. For a moment the king's soul recoiled at this. If Tur's heart had not turned bitter, he would never have wronged Iraj in this world. The two realms are like fire and water, each rushing to overtake the other. You want, foolishly, to make them mates; you are trying to trap the wind in secret. If I had hidden this danger from you, my name in the world would be disgraced. The king's heart grew heavy over that matter, filled with grief at the injuries of fate. He said: Out of your deep affection for me, your heart stirred and guided you here. For three days let us think this matter through and find better words for it. When reason has settled this plan, I will tell you what you must seek in it. On the fourth day Garsivaz came to the gate, crown on his head, belt fastened tight. The commander of the Turks called him near and spoke at length about Siyavash's affair. He said: You who carry on the line of Pashang, what do I hold in this world dearer than you? I must open every secret to you; look deeply and see what comes to your mind. Ever since that evil dream saddened my heart, it has gnawed a little at my reason. I never girded myself for war against Siyavash, nor did any harm ever come to us from him. When he abandoned his noble father's throne, my wisdom became the warp and he the weft of my cloth. Not for a moment did he turn from my command, once he had received such kindness from me. I handed over to him my land and my treasure, giving no thought to my own grief and toil. I even bound us by blood and marriage, and cleared my heart of hatred toward Iran. I turned away from war and from my own son, and entrusted him to Siyavash like my own precious eyes. After all these kindnesses and every hardship, sacrificing land, crown, and treasure, if now I plot evil against him, the whole world will raise an outcry. I have no pretext to harm him; if even a small wrong reaches him from me, the great ones will open their tongues against me, and I will become a byword throughout the world. It would please neither the Creator of the world nor the great ones across the earth. Among beasts none has sharper teeth than the lion, whose heart holds no fear of the sword; yet if a cub, grieved by its father, takes refuge in the lion's meadow from harm, would it be right for evil to come to it from that shelter? Would the sun and moon accept such a judge? I see no way but to summon him to my court and from here send him back to his father. Whether he seeks the throne or the ring of kingship, let him take his quarrels away from this land and soil. Garsivaz said to him: O king, do not treat so precious a matter lightly. If he leaves here for Iran, our land and homeland will be utterly ruined. Whenever a stranger has become your intimate and learned all your secrets, great and small, and you then seek to grow distant from him again, it only leads to madness and disaster. You will have raised up an enemy, like scattering salt upon a burned wound. He offered this parable as guidance: the wind that blows out of a house, you cannot block its path, and even if you let it pass, the times themselves will not let it pass. Siyavash knows your every move, from your deeds and from your words alike. From him you will get nothing but pain and grief: the scattering of your family, your name, and your treasure. Don't you know that whoever raises a leopard receives from his own nursling only wounds and claws? When Afrasiyab weighed these words again, he said Garsivaz had it exactly right. He grew sorry for his own judgment and conduct, feeling he had struck a bad bargain. He answered thus: in this matter I see no good beginning to the trouble, and no end. Let us wait and see how the turning heavens will reveal their face in this affair. In every task, patience is better than haste: wait until the sun climbs high. Let me see what the world-ruler's will is, toward whom the bright candle of the turning sky is turning its face. And if I summon him back to my court, I will probe his words to learn what secret he keeps. I myself will surely be his watcher; I will observe what the times bring. When some crookedness shows plainly in him, so that scheming leaves the heart no room for mercy, then no one should be blamed: the only fit reward for evil is evil itself. So spoke the vengeful Garsivaz: O clear-sighted, truth-telling king, Siyavash, with all his gear and glory and might, with that god-given stature, that sword and that mace, will come to your court with an army, and the sun and moon will go dark over you. Siyavash is not the man the king once saw; he now lifts his crown to the very sky. You would not recognize Farangis either; you would think she has grown independent of the whole world. Your whole army will go over to him; you will be the flock if you can raise no breath against him. An army that sees a king like him, with such generosity, such judgment, and that moon-bright face, how can you call to him: be my servant here, live humbled and filled with love for me? No one has ever seen a lion mate with an elephant, nor blazing fire above and water below. If someone wraps a lion cub, still unweaned, in the finest silk, it returns to its true nature once it grows fierce, and does not fear a charge from even a great elephant. So Afrasiyab was caught in these words; he grew sorrowful and his brooding never stopped. He decided patience was better than haste, for the steady, weighty man wins the day. A hollow, windy head deserves no praise; a wise man put it in this parable: if the wind rushed off wildly from its place, no fruit, no forest, no feather, and no foot would remain. A frivolous man is never truly noble, even if he stands tall and handsome in body. They set off twisting, their lips full of words, their hearts full of old hatred. Time and again Garsivaz went to the king, that malicious, suspicious schemer. He mixed in every kind of color and lie, stirring up the heart of the king of the Turks. So it went on through those days, until the king's heart filled with pain and spite. One day the commander decided the moment was right, when the place was cleared of strangers. He opened up this whole story to Garsivaz, recalling much about the deeds of Siyavash. He said: you must go there yourself, but do not stay with him too long. You will ask and say: from that festival, I no longer wish to see anyone. My heart stirs with love for you; rise, and come here together with Farangis. We long to see you and that skillful, watchful soul of yours. There is game to hunt on these mountains of ours, and wine from cups of green stone, and milk. Let us spend a while and be happy, until the flourishing city calls you back. Be at ease and walk in joy; why should wine and cup be forbidden with me? Garsivaz set up his snare with care, his heart full of spite, his mind full of secrets. When he drew near the city of Siyavash, he chose an eloquent man from the army. He told him: go and say to Siyavash, O pure-born one, O seeker of glory, By the life and head of the king of the Turkish host, by the splendor and crown of King Kavus, do not rise from your throne for me, nor come out on the road to greet me, for you surpass me in culture and fortune, in glory, in lineage, in crown and throne. one who would empty out the seat of kings must gird himself against every wind. The messenger reached Siyavash, and kissed the ground when he saw him. When he delivered Garsivaz's message, Siyavash grew troubled but kept it hidden. He sat long, awake and lost in thought, saying: there is a secret buried in this. I do not know what Garsivaz, who claims goodwill, has said about me at that court. When Garsivaz came to that new city, Siyavash came out from his palace to the street to greet him. He asked him about the journey and the king's affairs, about the ways of the army, the throne, and the crown. He gave the message of the Turkish commander, and Siyavash was gladdened by his words. He answered thus: while I remember him, I will not turn my face from the steel sword. See, I have girded myself to go; my reins are bound with your reins. Let us stay three days in this bright, gilded garden and pass the time with wine. For the world is only a passing inn, full of pain and sorrow; woe to the one who spends that brief stay in grief. When the wise prince heard these words, the vengeful Garsivaz twisted inside with spite. He said to himself: if Siyavash travels back with me to the king's court, then with all his lion's courage and his great wisdom he will trample my schemes beneath his feet. My words will lose their power, and beside him my plots will be exposed as lies. I must devise some trick now to turn his heart toward the wrong path. For a while he stayed silent, his two eyes fixed on Siyavash's face. Pale tears spilled from his eyes; with those tears he worked his scheme. Siyavash saw his tear-streaked face, like a man wrung with grief and affection. He gently asked him: brother, what is it? If there is a sorrow, one that can be shared, tell me. If you have been made bitter by the king of the Turks, and pain has brought tears to your eyes, then I will set out on the road with you and make war on the king of Turan's army, to learn why he torments you, and why he treats you as beneath himself. And if some enemy has risen against you, one whose trouble and grief you must endure, here I am, your ally in every task; when you go to battle I will be your mainstay. But if it is at Afrasiyab's own court that your standing has been darkened for no reason, and through some liar's words someone has been given a higher place than you, the renowned Garsivaz answered him: this trouble of mine has nothing to do with the king. No enemy has brought me this pain, nor do I lack the courage or wealth to defend myself. It is my lineage that stirred these thoughts in my heart, for I remembered those true old tales. The first evil came from Tur, from whom the divine glory departed. You have heard how, with few words spoken to Iraj, he laid the very roots of hatred. And from that day down to Afrasiyab, the fire between Iran and Turan has flowed like water, unending. They never once mixed in peace; both fled from good counsel and from wisdom. The commander of the Turks is worse than his ancestors: even now the spotted ox hides within a plain hide. You do not yet truly know his wicked nature; wait until the time for his evil arrives. First take the measure of what he did to Aghrirath, who was slain by his hand for no reason at all, his own brother, of the same body and the same line; so wise and innocent, and he killed him. And after that many a noble innocent has been destroyed by his hand. In these words I speak, my worry is only for you; may your heart stay alert and your body sound. Since you came to this land, no one has suffered harm at your hands. You sought only kindness and truth, and adorned a whole world with wisdom. Now some reckless, heart splitting devil has turned him bitter against you. His heart is full of pain and hatred for you; I do not know what the Creator of the world intends. You know that I love you, and stand by you through every good and ill. Tomorrow you must not suspect that I knew of this judgment against you. Siyavash answered him: do not fret over this, for the Creator of the world is with me. The lord gave me a different hope: that he would turn my dark nights into bright days. If he held any grudge against me in his heart, he would not have raised my head above the assembly. He would not have given me a realm, a crown and throne, land and home, a child, treasure and an army. Now I will come with you to his court and make his dimmed moon shine bright. Wherever truth shines clear, the glow of a lie falls into ruin. I will show my heart to Afrasiab, brighter than the sun across the sky. Keep your own heart only glad; do not let your soul dwell on evil. Even one who steps on a dragon's tail cannot escape the will of the Creator of the world. Garsivaz said to him: dear friend, do not think him the man you once saw. And moreover, when the turning heavens grow fierce and draw a frown across their face, no wise and learned man knows a spell to lift his head free from that noose. With this knowledge, this clear mind, this cypress stature and lofty judgment, you still cannot find a way out of his affection; ill fortune is bound to come upon you. He has sold you chains and trickery, and blinded the eye of your reason with his throne. First he trapped you by making you his son in law, and you were foolishly delighted by that talk. Then he sent you away from himself and threw a feast before the nobles, so that you would grow too bold with him, and the talk of the world would fall silent. Your kinship, bond, and ties to him are no closer than those of the honored Aghriras. Yet he cut Aghriras in two at the waist with a dagger and struck fear into his army by that deed. Look now at his hidden self as if it were plain to see; know this and never feel safe from his bloodshed. Whatever thought was in my heart was born of wisdom and skilled in every craft. The times themselves bore witness to this, and to this vengeful, sharp hearted king. I laid it all out before you, point by point, and read it clear like the shining sun. You abandoned your father in Iran and built yourself a city in Turan. You gave your heart so fully to his words, and busied yourself caring for him. This was a tree you planted with your own hand, but its fruit is poison and its root is bitter. So he spoke, his lashes wet with sallow tears, his heart full of trickery, his lips breathing cold sighs. Siyavash stared at him, bewildered, two streams pouring from his eyes down his face. For he recalled a time of harm to come, when the high wheel of heaven would tear its love from him, that not much time would be left to him, and his life would end in the days of his youth. His heart filled with pain, his cheeks turned pale, his heart heavy with grief, his lips breathing cold sighs. He said to him: however I look at it, I have done nothing to deserve such punishment. In word and deed, first and last, no one ever heard anything ugly from me. When my hand reached freely into his treasury, surely he did not writhe under the burden of me. Even if trouble comes down upon my head, I will not step outside his will and command. I will go to him right now, without an army, and see just why the king is angry. Garsivaz said to him: O seeker of fame, going before him is not the right course for you. One should not walk barefoot into fire, nor feel safe upon the waves of the sea. You rush blindly toward disaster; you lull your smiling fortune off to sleep. I am surely enough as your ally; I will splash cold water on that fire. A reply to the letter must be written, laying bare all the good and the bad. If I find his mind emptied of malice, your bright days will shine again. I will send a rider to your side and light up your darkened outlook. I hope, from the Creator of the world, the One who knows the seen and the hidden, that he will return to honesty, and that crookedness and flaw will fall away from him. But if I see any twist still in his mind, I will send a camel-courier in all haste. You, as you must, get ready quickly; do not drag things out against yourself. Ride out from here to every land, to every renowned man and every chief. It is a hundred and twenty leagues from here to China, and three hundred and thirty to the land of Iran. On this side they are all your well-wishers, your devoted servants, your comforters. And on that side your father longs for you; the world is your servant and your kin. Write a long letter to each of them; be prepared and lose no time. Siyavash believed his words, and his watchful soul was lulled into trusting sleep. He told him: Whatever you propose, I will never turn from my pledge or my judgment. You be the go between; plead my case with him. Seek only what is right, and show me the way.