English
Rustam's Vengeance in Turan
When the sun lifted its head above the mountains,
it scattered rubies across the streams.
The mighty Rustam gathered all the spoils
and shared them out among his brave men.
The trumpets roared and wailed,
and Rustam raised his army to march.
They set their faces toward Afrasiyab,
every cheek wet with tears for Siyavash's murder.
Then word reached the battle-hungry king
that Rustam had turned toward Turan.
He said to Piran: The Iranians
have all girded themselves for evil.
Now our whole land will be laid waste,
left to the pleasure of Iran's warriors.
Someone will carry the news to Rustam
about this ill-omened, luckless child.
At once they will take him to Iran's army
and set a shameful crown upon his head.
Send a swift rider out this very moment
after that cursed, suspect offspring.
Let him bring both, the boy and his mother, together,
to tell all that has happened, great and small.
A rider came and took them away;
the two helpless souls went as if senseless.
They came before Afrasiyab,
arriving full of grief, sorrow, and anguish.
From there the king of Turan
led his army toward the sea of China.
Rustam sat down upon his throne,
and Afrasiyab's fortune fell into the dust.
First he told a fitting tale:
noble is the one who does not go looking for an enemy.
When your foe stands before you, better he be slain,
or better still, that he flee and turn away.
He searched the palace for all its treasure,
and they told him of every part in full.
Slaves, horses, and attendants,
along with precious, fair-faced servants,
treasuries of gold coin and jeweled crowns,
gems, brocades, and thrones of ivory,
one by one from every side fell into his hands,
and many jewels came to him from the treasure of Gang.
The whole army grew rich from it,
decked with armlets, thrones, and crowns.
He gave Tus one of those ivory thrones,
with an armlet, a torque, and a royal decree of Chach.
He told everyone: whoever resists,
or speaks the name of Afrasiyab,
cut his head from his body at once,
and make of him a feast for the vultures.
Anyone who seeks wisdom and safety
will not reach toward the way of the devil.
You must keep your child in comfort,
safe from hardship and free from want.
Bring no suffering to the poor;
keep to justice, and strive to deal fairly.
For this world is a passing inn, not eternal,
and no glory rises higher than Jamshid's glory.
Yet the lofty heavens brought him down,
and made the world master over him.
A crown set with royal jewels,
two armbands, a torque, and earrings.
He gave Sepijab and Soghd to Gudarz,
with much advice and a charter for that frontier.
He praised him greatly and blessed him:
there is no one like you in all the land of Iran.
Greatness, glory, high standing, and justice,
we learn feasting and warfare alike from you.
You have skill, noble nature, and wisdom;
your own soul carries you toward peace.
It is fitting that you heed my counsel,
for you are the teacher of the great.
From Sepijab to the Golzarion River,
let no one step outside your command.
To Fariborz, son of Kavus, he sent a golden crown,
gold coins, a throne, and a belt.
He told him: you are the commander and the chief,
and you were brother to the noble Siyavush.
Gird yourself to avenge your brother;
do not loosen the coiled lasso from your saddle-strap.
March your army into China and Khotan,
seeking vengeance on our enemies everywhere.
Do not rest from avenging Afrasiab;
keep food, ease, and sleep far from your body.
The news reached Machin and China
that Rostam had taken the imperial throne.
They all prepared gifts and offerings,
of gold coins and royal jewels.
Tahamtan granted their lives mercy,
seeing how alert and clear their souls were.
After that, hunting with cheetah and hawk,
a long stretch of time went by.
It happened that one day Zavareh set out,
riding swiftly to hunt wild asses.
He sent a Turk ahead to be his guide,
and rode on until he reached the place.
In that wide plain he saw a thicket
so dense you would think none could pass through it.
With so much fragrance, color, and running water,
your very soul seemed renewed by the breeze.
Then that reckless Turk opened his tongue
and recalled a memory before Zavareh.
He said: this was Siyavush's hunting ground;
his love for the land of Turan rested on this place.
Here he was happy and content;
every place but this one was full of grief for him.
When Zavareh heard these words from him,
the old days came back fresh upon him.
When that Turk's speech reached his ears,
he fell from his horse and lost his senses.
A hawk was gripped in his hand;
he let it go, and his lashes ran with rivers of blood.
His companions from the army came to him
and found him grieving, his face awash with tears.
They cursed that guide
and struck him down, each with a blow, off his feet.
Zavareh swore a mighty oath,
while pale tears poured from his eyes.
From now on I seek neither hunt nor sleep;
I will not turn from avenging Afrasiab.
I will not let Rustam rest at all; the vengeance must be prepared.
The moment he reached the mighty Rustam, he cried out when he saw his face.
He said to him: we came here for revenge, though our lips arrived full of blessings.
Since God, the giver of good, gave you strength, and fate gave you the turning of the sun's favor,
why should this land be left standing and prosperous, why let anyone live happy on this soil?
Do not forget the vengeance for that king, whose like the world will never see again.
He stirred that elephant-bodied warrior into action, and Rustam did what he saw was right.
He set to plundering and killing; he laid waste to the whole land, top to bottom.
From the land of Turan to Saqlab and Rum, they left not a single prosperous border standing.
They cut off the heads of young and old; women and small children they took captive.
In this way, for more than a thousand leagues, ruin swept across the whole country.
Whoever was a noble of high birth came forward and bowed his head to the dust,
saying: we have turned away from Afrasiab; we do not wish to see him even in a dream.
Because of the blood he spilled of the innocent, no one had a path to walk on that ground.
Now, though our assembly is scattered, we are all your servants and slaves before you.
Since you have won, do not spill innocent blood; do not sharpen the claws of the turning heavens.
We do not know where that cruel man is, whether he is in the clouds or in the dragon's breath.
When the clear-hearted, elephant-bodied hero heard the words of that assembly, he relented.
He marched toward the border of Qachghar Bashi and summoned all the leaders of the army.
The wise men gathered before him, the great ones and the seasoned, experienced chiefs.
They said: Kavus, without power, without glory, without support, sits on the throne with no guide.
If Afrasiab, from some road, without delay, brings an army against Iran to war,
and gets his hands on that old man Kavus, all our hopes and peace will collapse.
We have paid back the whole debt of vengeance, one by one; we have burned all his prosperous cities.
For six long years now, not a single good day has passed over us.
Now let us go back to that old king; when battle comes again, we will all be renewed.
If you set your heart on this old world, it plays coquette and hides its meaning from you.
The mighty Rustam agreed to what the blessed sage had spoken in this tale.
The glad-hearted guide said this: choose what is good from this fleeting inn of a world.
Drink and delight, dress and eat; this is your only share of this passage through life.
Do not look toward greed, for it is your enemy; its heart is a slave to the demon's soul.
Look and see who lies buried beside you; how long will you weep over these possessions?
When Rostam heard this, shame came over him, and a strong resolve to depart took hold of him.
He looked in every direction at the herds of horses left loose across the Turkish plain.
Ten thousand servants and attendants he brought, fit for a king.
Along with musk pods and sable fur, with white pelts and reddish leather goods.
With color and fragrance, with silk and gold, the backs of the male elephants were adorned.
From furnishings, from more and less, from clothing, treasure, and coin,
from stores of weapons, crowns, and thrones, they hauled it all to Iran and packed their loads.
From Turan he set out toward Zabolestan, heading for the fortunate Dastan.
Toward Pars went Tus, Gudarz, and Giv, an army so renowned and brave.
All the fortunate famous men turned their faces toward the king of the world.
After that, when Afrasiab heard that Rostam had crossed to that side of the water,
he went from the west toward the sea of the Gang, his heart full of vengeance, his head full of war.
He saw the whole land turned upside down, the great men slain and the lesser ones led off captive.
No horse, no treasure, no crown, no throne, and not one fresh leaf left on a tree in the gardens.
A whole world set ablaze, every palace torn down and burned.
The king wept tears of blood from his eyes, and said this to the chiefs of his army:
Whoever forgets this will let his own waking soul fall silent and die.
Every one of you, fill your hearts with vengeance; make the shield your bed and the sword your pillow.
Let us bring battle and vengeance upon Iran, and drive them into the earth with our spears.
If they escaped like wind in one battle, we must not let our resolve grow so weak.
He prepared raids in every direction and found no time for rest or leisure.
The flourishing land and its trees kept burning, and the situation grew hard for the Iranians.
For seven years the sky ran dry of rain; fortune changed, and the times turned against them.
The world was filled with hardship and want, and this went on through a long stretch of days.