Persian Tales, Chapter 4
Now don't be a sore loser. You came
so close to winning. What say you to another game, double or nothing?
No call for that! I never cheat and I seldom bluff. But you don't need to pay me now. Just promise me on your honour that you will pay me in full in time, and let us play another hand. A man of honour like you, chief of the informal revenue redistributors, would not be foresworn in the sight of Allah the merciful, I am sure.
Indeed. A man must honour his promises, or he is not a man. A sage thought, and one that reminds me of
The tale of the merchant and the three maidens
Hear my tale!
This is the life of Khalid.
He was born of a woman of the tribes and her husband, a brave warrior, in the year that the man who walked with God strode out of the desert. In his youth, he rode with the faithful of Thamâsp and wrought the fall of Constantinople. He rose to become a leader of men and a great captain. He served loyally for a decade and a half, before mustering out honourably for personal reasons. Having acquired substantial wealth during the wars against the Sunni heretics, he settled down to the life of a merchant, but he took no wife.
However, it must be said that he was possessed of a flaw most unbecoming in a merchant. This was it: He was honest. He gave honest measure and delivered goods of the highest quality. As such, in due time he impoverished himself. Now, it happened that a notorious robber was said to be roaming the countryside, and a great reward was offered by the Wazir for his capture. The honest merchant being in dire straits, he sold his business. Then he took his old sword "Trusted One" and mounted his old warhorse "Word of the Faithful" and left the city behind.
As evening approached, he came upon a maiden beset by bandits. Laying into them with the Trusted One, he soon dispatched the ruffians, for though he was past his prime, there were but a score of them, and his arm was still strong, and he had ridden with the faithful in his youth. The maiden thanked him for her timely rescue, and asked if there were aught she could do for him, for she was the daughter of the overseer of the Prince's pigeons, and her father was thus a man of importance. But he desired no reward. "I gave a vow when I was young," he explained, "and I will not break it now". And on this he was adamant. Despite her youthful countenance and bright spirit, he refused to divulge his vow, and the next morning he bid her good day and continued on his journey.
Now, as evening approached he came upon a slain horse and signs of flight. Spurred he then his old warhorse and galloped onwards at a furious speed. Soon, he came upon a fair maiden running for her life, pursued by a huge following of wolves. He swept her up behind him, and told her to hold fast for her very life, and the Word of the Faithful surged ahead. Faster it ran and faster he rode, and the Earth blurred beneath him, but the wolves followed still. Faster he rode, and the grass caught fire where it was struck by the hooves of his old warhorse, but the wolves followed still. Faster he rode, and the Earth clove at the strike of the hooves, but the wolves followed still, though they were tiring. Then turned he at bay and reered high on the of the Word of the Faithful and drew he then the Trusted One and charged the pack of wolves and slew them all. The maiden thanked him for her timely rescue, and asked if there were aught she could do for him, for she was the daughter of the captain of the guard. But, he explained, he desired no reward. When he was young he had made a vow to Thamâsp himself, he said, and he would not break it, even for her sake. The next morning he bid her good day and continued on his journey.
Now, it came to pass that the bandit chieftain used to be a general in the Mughal armies, before their defeat at the hands of the great Prince Thamâsp, and he was a cunning wight, and had set lookouts and warded his camp well. He was a monster of a man, big, bad, and lecherous, and he took a special joy in the deflowering of maidens. Thus the chieftain was in an excellent mood, that night, since his men had caught a fair maiden earlier in the day and saved her as a special treat for him, when he heard the sound of horse approaching. He had just thrown the maiden to the ground and was fumbling at his leggings, when three loud thumps were heard, and the heads of his sentries rolled past him, eyes staring and blood and gore dripping from them.
He waxed wroth indeed, drew his mighty scimitar, and called out to his men to slay the interlopers, for he thought the entire camp was beset. Then drew Khalid the Trusted One and laid about him mightily. How he strove! How the blood flowed! He was the sword of Allah that day - Insh'Allah! - One-two, one-two, and through, and through, the Trusted One went snicker-snack, he left them dead, and with the maid, he went galumphing back. The maiden thanked him for her timely rescue from a fate worse than death, and asked if there were aught she could do for him, for she was the daughter of the Wazir. But he wanted no reward, he explained, for he had made a vow to Thamâsp himself, and not even for the sake of the friendship of the Wazir would he break it.
And thus he returned to the city and claimed the reward for slaying the bandits and he attempted to start a new business. But that too, failed spectacularly, and he was beset by creditors.
As he sat in despair his house was guested by three prominent visitors. The keeper of the Prince's pigeons, the captain of the guard, and the Wazir himself. They saw a man stricken in spirit and offered him gold and servants for the debt they owed him for their Daughter's honours, but he refused them all, saying that he would abide by his vow to Thamâsp. "What then was this vow?" asked the keeper, the captain, and the Wazir, but he refused them all.
They then went before the King of Kings, the Prince of Persia, the Shield of the Faithful, Thamâsp I, who was in one of his lucid phases between bouts of paranoia, and asked him, "What then was the vow of Khalid? Could it not be circumvented? They were bound by the debt they owed him for the sake of their daughters to help him."
"That," answered the King of Kings, "were none of their business, and it were better they forget the whole matter, or they might live to regret it, much though he loved Khalid. That man were ever stubborn and true to his word. However, if they insisted, he would tell them, help Khalid, and it would be their own bloody fault."
Brave men all, they insisted, despite this dreadful warning.
Quoth the King of Kings:
The tale of the man who died not
Hear my tale!
Khalid's word has always been iron, insh'Allah, which caused me much joy when he was foremost of my captains. However, in one particular instance it brought him nothing but grief. During the siege of Constantinople Khalid took a wound that should have been mortal. Even the intercession of an Imam of high standing was not enough to save his life, and I was resigned to lose him, my greatest captain.
Now, as he lay dying, a shapely veiled woman came to me, saying that she could save him with her arts, for she had studied the medicine of the ancients. As all men know, such aid is fraught with peril, for who can say whether it is of Allah or not? Yet I urged him to accept it, for I had need of his strong arm and his battlewisdom. However, to heal him he would have to see her unveiled, she explained, which would bring her great shame, as they were not of family. That is easily remedied, I said, assuming you are unmarried. As that was the case, an obvious solution presented itself to me, and I decreed that should she save him, Khalid should take her for wife, and should she fail on her promise, she would be put to death as a licentious woman and an herb-witch. She readily, nay even eagerly, agreed, and Khalid, who was near raving at that time, agreed as well, or so I chose to interpret his fevered mumblings.
Her arts were miraculous indeed! Within a week, he, who should have been dead, was walking again, and eager to lead the assault on the city - but that I could not give him, having promised that honour to the Turkish Sultan, who had embraced the true faith but a few years before at the hands of Ismaîl, great be his praise! Rather, I said, he should be married right away, as agreed.
He was not disagreable, having been smitten by the beauty of his healer, and I, thinking to reward his good service, arranged a battlefield wedding right away. How was I to know better?
Thus I, the Wazir of the West, and the Imam presided over an exclusive wedding, and a great feast and great gifts had been prepared. And if the bride was seen to fidget slightly, well, that was only to be expected, and would be remedied by the groom after the wedding when they were alone. Thus is it often. Now, the Imam was a holy man indeed, such men are rare! As the Imam spoke the holy words, the bride began shaking uncontrollably, and distraught, he quickly blessed her in the name of Allah and Mohammed his Prophet. At this most holy of utterances she shrieked in pain and her clothes burst into flames, and she stood revealed for us all, an Infritah, terrible in her pain, yet still beautiful beyond any daughter of Eve. Quickly, the Imam began laying words of binding on her, before she could slay us all, and, praise Allah, the beneficient, the great, the magnificent, the Imam was strong in his faith and she stood entrapped. Yet what could I do? Though I slashed at her with my sword while Khalid, out of his mind, sought to stop me, my blade did not pierce that growing whirlwind of flame.
Fortunately, the Wazir of the West was strong in the arts, and he bade the Imam hold her fast for but a while longer. Then he drew around the Ifritah the seal of Solomon, and began uttering the words of power over her. Meanwhile, I had my guards restrain Khalid, who looked ready to kill us all to defend the evil spirit. Thus does evil ensnare even the most worthy of men.
And when his spell was well nigh completed, the Wazir of the West told me to strike for the heart of the Ifritah, and I did so, though the flames burned by arm. As the blade struck home, the Ifritah gave a mighty shout of rage, and began changing form. Terrible it was to behold, I tell you, yet ultimately the spell was done. The Wazir of the West had bound her within the shape of a black mare and had bound her power within the blade.
Khalid was a shattered man. He took up the blade and he claimed the horse his own, and he vowed that he should never be aided by any woman again, save he marry her, and bade me to witness his words, for he, in his grief, blamed me, first for being the cause of the gift of love, then for taking it away.
A holy madness was upon him, and, sick at heart, I proclaimed that it would be so. Thus does the plans of men oft come to ruin.
From that day he was a changed man. He was a greater general than ever, and riding his black mare, which he named Word of the Faithful, and wielding his mighty blade, which he named "Trusted One", none could stand against him. But he loved nothing more save his horse and his blade, and he was ruthless beyond measure, though honest to a fault, and he took no wife nor accepted he ever the aid of a woman. In the end, the slaughter sickened even him, and he left my service, and I cannot say that I regret it, for he had become a terrible man.
"And that, my functionaries, is the tale of the man who died not, and the tale of Khalid's grief", said the Prince of Persia. "Do you now understand his plight?"
They reassured the King of Kings, that they fully understood what a terrible life Khalid had had, but that that surely would not prevent them from helping now?
"I should think not", said their monarch, "since he will be your son in law"
At this the three men gaped and stammered their confusion.
"Since the aid is coming at the insistence of your daughters, as you made very clear, he will have to marry them all, or I will be foresworn. That I will not be, and thus they are to be married. All four of them, and soon. I will brook no resistance to this. You were warned, after all." concluded the King of Kings.
And thus it were. The man who had been a great general was married to the three maidens and was brought to great estate. And though his wives lived in a loveless marriage, Khalid did beget a son and a daughter on each of the three, and all six children embraced the path of the warrior, even the girls, and they were, if possible, even more cruel than the sons. And when those seven in later years went to war for their king, and Khalid lived to fight till he turned four-score and three, the enemies of Persia trembled, for none could stand against them. And when at long last Khalid died, he was laid to rest in a tomb beneath the mountains, and the Trusted One was laid on his breast and the Word of the Faithful lay down at his feet, and the children, mighty warriors all, slew the builders that none but they might know the tomb's location, and went their separate ways, carving their ways across the world. But the tale of the deeds of the Siblings of Swords, terrible though it may be, is not mine to tell.
Indeed, a man must honour his word, or he is not a man, be he king or pauper. And thus I am certain that you will pay me in due time.
Why are your men acting up?
Oh, you lost another man? Careless of you.
No, no, I meant that in the most polite way possible. He was probably snatched by one of the harpies that lair nearby or eaten by something nastier than he was.
Yes, didn't you know that? The great Abbas II, long may he live in the memory of man, proclaimed them a protected species to ensure their survival. If they are the ones that got your man, he will probably be used for breeding purposes before they tear him apart and eat him alive.
Well, there are worse fates. At least they are more civilized than they were of old. They do not eat with both hands, and they heed the Quran. What more could any man desire? Is not this creation, this work of Allah, magnificent?
Ah, well, some people do not share the true pleasures of life. At any rate, your boorish man probably just ran away or spontaneously combusted. A much more likely explanation. These things happen all the time, after all. One moment a healthy brigand, the next a heap of ash, stirred by the breeze.
You doubt my words? I have seen it happen too many times to count. But hearken! What do I hear?
Wonder of wonders, what a splendid horse she is, that has wandered into your camp by chance. I hope you don't mind me claiming her to replace my old horse, which you shot the other day? She is even the same colour. Surely, this is a sign from the all-highest, that she was meant for me?
Insh'Allah. Come to me, my beautiful, together we shall ride the whirlwind.
Code:
[font=courier new][color=white][color=yellow]Memorable Events[/color]
[color=skyblue]1524 [/color]Fanaticism in Kirkuk spreads the Persian culture (SSREM: Kirkuk converted and become Persian)
[color=skyblue]1524 [/color]Clergy argues against Thamâsp but are ignored
[color=skyblue]1527 [/color]More freedoms are granted the artisans
[color=skyblue]1531 [/color]The Ottoman allies aided by Thamâsp have annexed the Duchy of Athens, Morea, and Dulkadir
[color=skyblue]1533 [/color]The nobles are reigned in and the realm centralised (SSREM: cen+1, ari-1, stab-1)
[color=skyblue]1536 [/color]Obscuratism sweeps the land
[color=skyblue]1538 [/color]The peasants are unhappy (-2 stab)
[color=skyblue]1541 [/color]The peasants are even more unhappy (-3 stab)
[color=skyblue]1542 [/color]Widespread corruption is crushed (-1 stab)
[color=skyblue]1543 [/color]An uncooperative philosopher is imprisoned
[color=skyblue]1544 [/color]The peasants are still unhappy. So what else is new (-2 stab)
[color=skyblue]1545 [/color]An unprovoked revolt is swiftly dealt with
[color=skyblue]1552 [/color]Thamâsp suffers from occasional paranoia
[color=skyblue]1554 [/color]The Mughal Empire takes Delhi, the fall of the Sultanate of Delhi.
[color=skyblue]1559 [/color]Poor government policies create unrest
[color=skyblue]1567 [/color]An excellent court painter is hired
[color=skyblue]1569 [/color]Thamâsp I suffers from Paranoia again
[color=skyblue]1575 [/color]And imprisons yet another famous uncooperativer philospher. Will they never learn?
[color=skyblue]1576 [/color]And the Clergy protests, and this time Thamâsp listens
[color=skyblue]1576 [/color]Which causes the peasants to revolt. Again.
[color=skyblue]1576 [/color]Thamâsp I, King of Kings, Prince of Persia, beloved, dies.
(Whew. 1538-44 saw a total of -8 stab from events. Not nice)
[color=yellow]Diplomacy of note[/color]
[color=skyblue]1547 [/color]Baluchistan is diplomatically annexed
[color=skyblue]1555 [/color]Oman is diplomatically annexed
[color=yellow]Wars Opponents Outcome[/color]
[color=skyblue]1524-1525, Roman Empire [/color]Help the Ottomans take Constantinople
[color=skyblue]1535-1536, Mughal Empire [/color]The Mughals are converted to the true faith
[color=skyblue]1536-1538, Kazakh [/color]The Kazakhs convert
[color=skyblue] -1539, Chagatai [/color]The Chagatai are converted
[color=skyblue] -1540, Uzbehks [/color]The Uzbehks are converted
[color=skyblue]1540-1542, Aden [/color]Aden is vassalised
[color=skyblue] -1545, Oman [/color]Oman is vassalised and hands over Mekran
[/color][/font]
...To be continued...
I along with the others will be reading with pleasure and antisipation the stories of love and war in that far off country Ak Koyunlu. 
