Topic started by AHURA (@ dial0-363.dialin.uic.edu) on Fri Nov 28 03:37:35 EST 2003.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

ALF KHAN FIGHTS WITH THE HINDU RAJA AND FLIES BEFORE ARDESHIR.
When the first white [streak of] light emerged (lit. showed) from the sable night and the sheen of the stars descended into the bottom of the abyss (lit. cave), Alf Khan and his horsemen put on their armour and approached the field. Embroidered (lit. jewelled, inlaid) saddles were placed on the chargers and banners on the backs of the elephants. The horses were harnessed for fight and the battle-field was crowded by the elephants.-----44 The captains marshalled their troops in battle array and the fighting gear was everywhere held ready. When that great host was drawn up in the plain, the brazen bugles were at once blown. Thus was arrayed a host on either side, one [belonging to] the Moslems and the other to the Hindu Raja. Day and night were astounded at the sight, and even the horses were exhausted by over-much galloping. The leaders on the two sides were as two water-dragons struggling with each other with the fury of tigers. The earth grew dark as pitch with the clouds from which rained swords and spears and darts. So many were slain of both ranks in that strife that there were everywhere heaps of slain. There was no one to hearken to their moans nor any one to help them, for such was the Eternal Judge's doom against them. Not a man could be seen from among that host; all appeared to have fallen without discrimination in the action. Suddenly, there was a rout in the Hindu ranks, so that no one could recognise another in the encampment. Then a devout Layman of the Good Faith said to his comrades: "I do not behold, either in front or rear, so much as one of our Indian allies. The Hindus have fled from the field. No one save ourselves of the Good Faith remains on the battleground. Now is the hour of combat, O my dear friends, now does it behove us to march in line of battle like lions. If we all rush upon them in a body, we shall surely pour out the blood of the foe with sword and arrow." The Layman who was the first to enter the field was one who bore among them the name of Ardeshir. That very moment, the renowned Ardeshir spurred his swift courser into the field. Springing all of a sudden, he came up to the [Moslem] ranks clutching an iron spear. Then he stood up in the arena, javelin in hand, clad in armour and girding a sword. And first, the arrows rained everywhere, the corslets of the warriors were pierced and the world-illuminating sun was so hidden from view that no one could tell (lit. know) if it was day or night. The eyes of the luminary were blinded (lit. covered) by the dust, and everywhere man fell upon man; you might say that the earth had a coat of pitch out of which the arrow heads glistened like diamonds. At last, of the throwers of spears and wielders of maces, but few remained [alive] out of thousands, and though land and sky grew black and gloomy, the soil was, by the blood of the chiefs, dyed red like the tulip. [Indeed], the blood gushed out of their bodies as from fountains and their bucklers were, by the blades, shivered into fragments. Men's armours then became the calamities of their lives. Every minute, men were becoming the guests of Death (lit. Time)-----45 and the [dead] warriors buried from head to foot in iron [mail] were blazing like the shining sun. Shafts kept flying on both sides and blood was flowing along the black soil. Javelins penetrated (lit. dug into) breasts and bosoms and blood oozed out from coats of mail. But no one turned his face away from the blow of an adversary and every weapon was crying for blood.-----46 The soil itself looked as if [it were made] of iron on account of the horseshoes [with which it was bestrewn]. Men were wading in blood upto their knees (lit. calves of the legs). The struggle lasted in this wise for three days and nights until men's hands and feet were aweary. The sabres flashed like lightning on all sides and heads were scattered by the trenchant blades. The [might of] Islam was at last overthrown and destroyed in that engagement with the Hindu prince. Alf Khan ran away in the darksome night, forgetting his baggage and losing also the (right) road. Before Ardeshir, his entire army fled, now stumbling now picking themselves up. Many of the enemy fell into his grasp and he stood triumphant at the close. All the tents, baggage and furniture [also] came at once into the possession of Ardeshir.
44. Or 'The field seemed too narrow on account of the fighting of the elephants.'

45. This obscure line may also mean 'Time (Death) became the guest of mankind every moment.'

46. Or, 'All the instruments of bloodshed were in requisition.'
ALF KHAN FIGHTS AGAIN WITH ARDASHIR AND IS VICTORIOUS.
When the sun rose from above the hills on another day, and the earth became once more resplendent with light, a great shout arose on either side of the two hosts. Once again the land was in commotion and many were the heads which turned stupid on account of the noise of the bells and the Hindi trumpets. Once more Alf Khan was ready for fight and the drums resounded when the famous Ardeshir beheld that host, he strode up swiftly and said forthwith to the well-advised Hindu Prince, "We are only one to their hundred. What do you think it [lit. see] good for us to do, now that a still larger force has arrived. [As for ourselves] we will either give up our own lives or take theirs, and stand [firm] on the battle field with that determination and the Lord will stand our friend, for He has always been the resolver of our difficulties." All of them were cheered by this speech and many hearts were thus delivered from sorrow. That instant, Ardeshir donned his coat of mail and once more came out to do battle with the Khan. Then Ardeshir the renowned rushed like a lion upon the ranks of the foe, with a lasso hanging by his saddle as on a squire errant's, a sabre of Indian [steel] at his girdle [lit. waist] and a javelin in his grasp. Then he proudly shouted aloud, "O lions! why were you so confounded [the other day] in the [hour of] fighting? Who now is your commander, what may be his name and what does he wish to have?" A champion advanced and said, "Here am I who can pour out the blood of [many] men at a [single] blow." Under him was a spirited (lit. bounding) charger and he came up at a gallop (lit. run) to do battle with Ardeshir, with a javelin in his hand and glaring on all sides like a drunken man. He hailed Ardeshir and said, "Now be on thy guard, O thou of stainless birth, for an adversary is before thee. Show then thy own skill or mastery." Ardeshir called out in reply, "Here is thy antagonist quite ready." Then the two fought like lions in the arena and as if they were weary of their own lives. In the end, Ardeshir vanquished him and hurled him down from the back of his steed. Then flinging the lasso and dragging him towards himself, he dismounted and struck off his head. When Alf Khan saw him slain, his heart was filled with woe. That instant, he gave orders that all the Parsis as well as the Raja should be slaughtered and that not one of them should be left alive. Longing for vengeance, he rushed to support his men-at-arms and the din of battle (lit. the cry of "Give, Give") arose. Swords clashed and blood flowed in rivers on land. When the troops on both sides joined battle, blood gushed from their bodies in torrents. It was as if a wave had rushed in from an ocean of gore. Everywhere men were [lying] exhausted. There was not room enough for even an ant to creep in. But what [avails it] if man proposes, unless God disposes [likewise]. Then Ardeshir dashed into the thick [of the fight] and his days came to an end. An arrow pierced his middle and came out on the other side. His body was enfeebled by wounds, for every one of his limbs was a fountain of blood. Then he tumbled down headlong from the saddle and his troops were thrown into disorder and confusion (lit. without feather or wing). Alas for that courageous chief, whom Time at last gave to the winds. When the Fates are angry, the hard stone becomes [soft] like wax. Though he fought and strove [with all his might], of what avail was it since Fortune had turned its face away from the man? On both sides, many warriors were slain, leaders and men of renown and worth. Then also was the Raja killed and a loud wail arose on the battlefield. Alas for that Hindu prince who fell and whose city became on all sides a desert.


FLIGHT OF THE MEN OF THE GOOD FAITH TO THE HILL OF BAHROT AND THEIR GOING TO BANSDAH.
The People of the Good Faith also were dispersed. There is in Hindustan a hill named Bahrot. Many crept into it to save their lives. Man has no resource against God's decrees. Twelve years thus passed and they had carried the Iranshah along with them. After a time, by the Lord's command, they forgathered again with their relatives and kindred. Taking the Fire of Warharan also with themselves, all of them arrived at Bânsdâh. When the tidings reached that town, every one came out with loving kindness and three hundred horsemen with several persons of note went forward to escort them. They brought the Fire into the town with a hundred [marks] of reverence. It was as if a sick man had secured a panacea.-----47 Thence forward, Bânsdâh flourished as if it was perpetual spring there. Time passed in this wise and persons of Behdin lineage, old men as well as women, came to adore the Iranshah from every district in which there were [People of] that pure Creed. Just as, in earlier times, men used to go on a pilgrimage extraordinary (lit. unparalleled) to the far-famed Sanjan, so the Parsis now came to Bânsdâh from various places with numerous offerings. Afterward, when fourteen years had elapsed,-----48 the spheres [again] revolved [in a manner] favourable to their affairs.
47. Pazahr Padzahr., protecting from poison, an antidote, in which sense it is used habitually by Avicenna. Bezoars are hard concretions formed in the bodies of animals, to which antidotal virtue, were ascribed, and especially to one obtained from the stomach of a wild goat in the Persian province of Lar. Ibn Baithar says that Bezoars were laid upon the bites of venomous creatures and were believed to extract the poison. Yule and Burnell, Hobson Jobson, ed. Crooke, S. V. Bezoar.

48. These lines have been by some taken to mean that twelve years were spent at Bahrot and fourteen others in Bansdah, making in all twenty-six. Others have understood Bahman to say that the fourteen years last spoken of include the preceding twelve, and that fourteen years express the extreme length of the period which intervened between the Sack of Sanjan and the establishment of the Fire temple at Navsari. See ante, p. 8.
DESCRIPTION OF THE CONVEYANCE OF THE FIRE OF WARHARAN TO NAVSARI BY CHANGASHAH.
A layman then appeared who had not his peer at the time. He came forward in those days to preserve the religion and many notab1e things (lit. signs, marks) proceeded from him. He was the Dahyovad;-----49 his name was Changa, son of Asa and he solaced the hearts of the People of the Good Creed. That good-natured man would not suffer the Faith to fall into neglect in those latter days. He gave money (lit. purse) out of his own wealth to those who had no Sudra and Kusti (the sacred shirt and girdle). Many [excellent] provisions that man made for the creed. No afflicted person [ever] went to him for whom, poor man, he did not provide some relief or whose heart he did not cordially set at ease. In those times, several Behdin people came into the Faith under his auspices (lit. by his good fortune.) Indeed, my tongue cannot fully (lit. plainly) praise this layman who managed the affairs of the creed so well. One Year, that man of stainless birth went to the Fire-temple in pursuance of a vow. It was the time of the Jashan-i Sadeh, and the Fire-temple was then at Bansdah. O brother, the Jashan-i Sadeh fell on Roz Adar, Mah Adar.-----50 That devout and enlightened Dawar-----51 carried along with him several laymen and Dasturs. All of them prostrated themselves at the sight of the Fire and offered it worship. Every one then took once more the road [homewards] from the House of Prayer with pleasure and pride. Starting thence, the men returned to their homes; full of gladness and joy. When two or three months of that year-----52 had elapsed, an idea occurred to (lit. he brought the idea into his heart) that benevolent person and he called a meeting of the whole community (anjoman) and led the discourse on to the Fire-Temple. "I desire, O my well-wishers," he said, "to bring that Prince of Princes here. If we behold the face of that Lord every day, our religious merit will be exceeding great. Moreover, we have to endure great hardships every year on the journey, for there is heavy rain during that month,-----53 [Adar], and it is difficult for us to go there then. What can be better, O friends, than that we should proceed to Bansdah with some men of discernment, and bring here the Fire of the glorious Warharan, so that we can view it every day. Our means of livelihood [are sure] by its blessing to grow much more abundant and the hearts also of the People of the Good Faith will be filled with light." All were delighted by this speech because they would be longer dependent (lit. free from, i.e. rid of the trouble of going to) Bansdah. With a hundred marks of reverence they brought the Fire away and gave it a fine house. It had three attendants of the Good Faith, who accompanied it. Night and day, the worship was celebrated by that one associate [of the three] whose appointed [duty] it was. Of one of them the name was Nàgan Râm,-----54 and his desires were always turned towards the observance of [the precepts] of the Religion. The second Dastur's name was Khurshed and his father was Kiâm-ud-din who was in Eternity. The third Dastur, Chàyyàn the son of Sâer, also was always to be seen in its service. They had their families and kindred also with them and all of them accompanied the Iranshah. They were received with great respect and pomp and were treated honourably, The three Dasturs thus reached Navsari with their relatives after a long journey. In those days, that pious Dawar befriended these priests of the Iranshah. May this slave's homage reach him from this world. May he have a place among the Celestial Spirits. 49. Pahl. Dahyopat, Av. Danghu-paiti, chief ruler. Changa Asa's son Manak also is styled Dahyovad (Desai) in the Rivayat of Shapur Asa or Kama Asa of 896 A.Y., (1527 A.C.)

50. Bahman seems to have thought that the Jashn-i Sadah of the ancient Iranians was identical with what is now called Adar Jashn, but Alberuni declares that the former fell, not on the ninth day of Adar, but on the tenth of Vohuman. Athar-ul-Bakyah, Chronology of Ancient Nations, tr. Sachau. 213 and 424. The Burhan-i-Kataa says the same. S. V. Sadah.

51. The Dawar. "Pahl. Datobar, upholder of Justice or Judge was, like the Dastur, a ratu, head or chief in the old Zoroastrian community. He appears to have held a high rank which was probably hereditary, as it is still claimed by a Parsi family at Surat, though not acknowledged by the majority." Haug and Hoshangji, Book of Arda Viraf. 143 note. Sea also Parsi Prakash, 15, 70.

52. Bahman declares here that the Iranshah was brought to Navsari two or three months after the Adar Jashn, that is, the event must have taken place, making allowance for the days passed in negotiations and the journey from Bansdah, in the month of Frawardin. This will be a hard nut to crack for those who pin their faith in Bahman's chronology and at the same time uphold the reliability of the traditional date, Roz Mahrespand, Mah Shahrewar, Samvat 1475. The truth is that the two are absolutely irreconcilable.

53. It has been urged against Bahman that Adar mah must, in Changa Asa's time have fallen in September, and that September is not at all a rainy month in Gujarat, but both these assertions can be easily proved to be of very doubtful accuracy.

54. Bahman himself was a lineal descendant of this Nagan Ram, the pedigree being Bahman, Kaikobad, Hamjiar, Padam, Kaman, Narsang, Nagan, Ram. See ante. p. 87.


CONCLUSION OF THE NARRATIVE.
Thanksgivings infinite and praises boundless, to the Creator of the World and the Cherisher of his slaves, who set my tongue going on this subject and graciously revealed unto me this door out of the Unknown. Lord, make the Dastur who revealed this tale to me happy in both worlds. I am the humble person hight Bahman who has his home and household goods in Navsari. Know further that my father is Kaikobad whose heart is delighted [only] when calling the Iranshah to mind. His sire was the Dastur Hormazdyar. May his place be in the resplendent Abode of the Blest, Know, O friend, that his surname was Sanjana, for by all kinds of wisdom was he fitted (Sanjideh, lit. weighed,) for affairs. This surname of Sanjana was given him on account of the wisdom which he showed [to exist] in our religious practices. They gave him the title of 'Dastur of the Faith' also, and the road of piety was everywhere kept open through him, (i.e. he solved all religious difficulties). He had been settled in Navsari, you may reckon, (i.e. approximately), for two hundred years. A hundred thousand blessings upon him and also upon the souls of all the other Pillars of the Faith.

Thus have I, by the will of the Lord, successfully indited the story of our People, [in the hope] that when a devout person reads it, he may pronounce a blessing on me at the end. Many many thousand blessings from me on that virtuous character and man of those times. May He of the Immortal Soul [Zartosht] send his Spirit to God and secure his pardon from the Supreme. May his Spirit always receive praise and his soul be perpetually at peace (lit. freedom from want). It was in the nine hundred and sixty-ninth year of the Era of Yazdegird that this tale was completed by my pen. On the day Hordad of the month Frawardin, were these verses finished correctly (lit. according to rule). I have written this narrative and brought it to a conclusion, and I expect for it a reward from no one save the Lord, and I desire from my readers nothing but benedictions, for thus will my honour and fame grow. May that soul abide with Him of the Immortal Soul (Zartosht), who reads me with a pleased heart. I have related in this narrative what I have seen and what I have heard from the conversation of the old. My preceptor-----55 has, moreover, corrected it and thus have many flowers sprung up in this pleasance. May the Lord bestow upon him the full period of natural life (i.e. may he live for a hundred years,) and may all the years of that life be like the spring time. In telling this tale, I have ever observed the ways of the truthful. Pronounce then befitting blessings upon me, whenever you peruse (lit. see) this delectable narrative of mine. Laudations infinite and praises countless on the pious Zartosht. May you [reader] have given you the Grace Divine to invoke blessings upon my soul. 55. There is nothing improbable in the supposition that Dastur Hoshang [Asa] from whom Bahman declares he heard the whole story was this teacher as well as the corrector of these verses.

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