801. This distich has practically the same sense as the preceding.

802. i.e., at the opening of Spring, which in Persia commences on the 21st of March. Bahrām likens himself to the light of the sun, and the usurper to a mere lamp.

803. “To eat one’s heart or liver” is “to suffer affliction.”

804. i.e., it is better to combat my enemies than to suffer such affliction.

805. Lit., “sacrifices a life,” fidā kunad jānī; but cf. the use of jān-fishānī, and jān-nisārī, which signify rather “making great sacrifices or endeavours in behalf of a person” than really sacrificing one’s life for him.

806. i.e., although I am really the king of Persia, the Arabs support me.

807. i.e., the Persians grasp and are supported by what belongs to me.

808. “The Kai”; i.e., the King descended from the Kayānian or second dynasty of Persia.

809. i.e., I have substantial value, whilst those others are vain and empty. By others he means pretenders and usurpers, including especially the then occupant of the throne.

810. The Author possibly means that a king should have sufficient authority in himself and in his descent to be able to raise an army. A mere retinue anyone might have; it is only a symbol of greatness like the throne and crown before mentioned.

“What dust” has also the sense, “what advantage.”

811. i.e., the legitimate chief alone should succeed.

812. i.e., I seek to do only what I have a right to do.

813. i.e., without infringing covenants.

814. Lit., “by which the compact that has been tied may be loosened.”

815. i.e., the envoys from the usurper.

816. “By race”; Gauhar, “race,” or “origin”, means also “essence, nature, intellect”.

“By name.” His name was Bahrām; he would be as king Bahrām V.

817. “To smear a sun or the sun with clay” means to try to hide virtues which are manifest.

818. “The lion”; i.e., Bahrām. “The wolf”; i.e., the usurper.

819. Tīgh-u jām, “sword and cup,” are, no doubt, equivalent to bazm-u razm, “feast and fight,” “court and camp.”

820. In contradistinction to Bahrām’s stipulation or condition as to the two lions.

821. i.e., it may turn out that Bahrām will not succeed, or that he will be killed.

822. Lit., “should not pass from a state of repose or settlement.”

823. i.e., should engage with the two lions in question.

824. The “chair of gold” is the “sun”. The “ivory throne” is “the white streak of the dawn”.

825. i.e., let them engage in the business in hand. One might translate, “fly at the target of battle”, since kār, “business,” means also “battle”, but this is not necessary, as “business”, the more ordinary equivalent of kār, gives good sense.

826. i.e., the grave of Bahrām Gūr.

827. The reading of I.O. MS. 1491, (with the substitution of zi-mīgh, “from the cloud,” for va-mīgh, “and the cloud,” which I should suggest), is as follows:

Ān ba-āvāz-i ṭasht rasta zi-mīgh; īn ba-ṭasht-ī tahī na-bud, ki ba-tīgh. I think, however, that (substituting ṭasht for takht), the reading of the I.O. B. ed., from which I translate, is preferable:

Mah ba-āvāz-i ṭasht rast az mīgh; na(h) ba ṭasht-ī tahī, baṭasht-u ba-tīgh:

“The moon escaped from the cloud with the noise of a basin; presenting not a simple basin (only), but a basin and a sword.”

The “moon” refers to the “crown”; the “basin”, as regards the “moon”, to its “disk”, and as regards the “crown” to the “circular main part of it”; the “sword”, as regards the “moon”, means the “rays”, and as regards the “crown” may possibly refer to the crescent within the mural crown worn by Bahrām, if we might suppose that the Author knew of its form. Otherwise we must conjecture that some conical or other rise in the centre is meant. Cf. the term, mīl-i tāj, a pointed ornament applied to a regal crown.

In the reading of I.O. MS. 1491 ān, “the latter,” refers to the “crown” as likened to a “moon”; in the second hemistich īn, “the former,” refers to the “crown” as mentioned in the first hemistich. The “basin” of the crown is the “crown without its crescent, or central conical rise”, the latter representing the “sword”, tīgh, which, as regards the “moon”, means the “rays”.

The “basin and sword” are the common emblems of execution, and the words are introduced here in allusion to the danger of the enterprise.

828. Lit., “Through terror no one went round those two great lions within the range.”

829. “First”; i.e., before his rival.

830. “The gold cup” is a symbol of the royal carousing.

831. i.e., the ground where he would lie dead would be his place, not the throne, of which he would have no need.

832. I.O. MSS. 777 and 1491, the I.O. B. ed., and the B. ed. of 1328 for band-i qabā have ‘aṭf-i qabā, “the end of the skirt of (his) tunic.”

833. “The foxes”; i.e., his rival.

834. In this and the following four distichs the horoscope of the king’s throne or sovereignty is described.

It should perhaps rather be taken as the horoscope of the nature of his rule.

For the same reason as that given in Note 533 it is impossible to calculate the aspects.

With regard to the ascendant and the positions of the planets in the signs we may, I think, gather the following:

The ascendant is Leo; hence the king’s rule would be attended by firmness and self-control, perseverance and ambition, faith­fulness, nobility and generosity, and intuition in regard to spiritual matters. The sun in conjunction with Mercury would imply that in his rule he would display nobility, generosity, faithfulness, sincerity, ambition, pride, and will and ability to govern, combined with imagination, reason, sharpness, wit, and persuasive power. These two planets being in Cancer would be modified by reserve, sensitiveness, impressionableness, reflectiveness, sympathy, and kindness.

The moon being in “exaltation” in Taurus will give full effect to the influences of that sign, which are fearlessness, strength of will, constancy, and determination. The moon’s being in conjunction with Venus would imply that much of this energy would be directed towards love, the pursuit of pleasure, art, and all that refines. Venus being in her own house in Taurus will have considerable power to effect this.

Mars being in “exaltation” in Capricorn the natural tendency would be to boldness, impulsiveness, aggression, contention, sensuality, and lavishness; but Saturn being also in “exaltation” in Libra might be supposed to modify this, those subject to Saturn being cautious, reflective, constant, patient, chaste, and economical. The sign Capricorn gives ambition, persistency, steadiness, and political inclination.

Libra gives sensitiveness, compassion, yieldingness, prudence, thoughtfulness, justice, and generosity.

Jupiter is in his own “house” in Sagittarius. Those subject to his influence are noble and sincere, just and generous, courteous and compassionate, faithful and honourable. Sagittarius would confirm all this, and add activity, enterprise, and demonstra­tiveness. (See also Note 533.)

835. An allusion to the offerings of the rich.

836. “Pearls”; i.e., “eloquent words.” “Balas rubies”; i.e., “(his) lips.”

837. i.e., by imitation, or in retaliation.

838. i.e., I can only bless the dead, but I can give security and happiness to the living. See the next distich.

839. “Black and white,” i.e., “all things”; or “night and day”, i.e., “time.”

840. I have taken this heading from I.O. MS. 1491. Other editions differ.

841. A belt worn by the Kayānian kings set with seven jewels having reference to the seven planets. (See Note 717.)

842. The Chīnī would thus be white, and possibly of silk.

A Rūmī (from Rūm, the Eastern Empire) was a species of dress, but not a head-dress, and I have therefore rendered bar sar-ash by “over it”, and not “upon his head”, though one might suspect an antithesis in the use of the words tan, “body,” and sar, “head.”

Since Rūmī means also “red”, this may have been the colour of the upper garment.

Rūmī, however, may mean anything connected with Rūm, and therefore not impossibly a Rūmian or Byzantine crown.

Ṭarāz too, being the name of a town, is introduced rhetorically with Rūmī and the preceding Chīnī.

843. i.e., he excelled in beauty the handsome people of Rūm and Chinese Turkistan.

844. Lit., “he had conveyed the five turns (of music) above the sun.” An allusion to the old practice of playing music five times a day before the palace of a king, prince, or governor.

845. i.e., the justice distributed at his court or gate dissolved grief and trouble.

846. Lit., “to breaths.”

847. “The coining-dies took rest upon the coins”; i.e., presumably, “much money was coined,” an evidence of prosperity.

848. i.e., the people were undivided in their affection for the king; or, they had no desire different from the king’s desire.

849. i.e., entered upon a prosperous life and the observance of perfect integrity.

850. i.e., yielded implicit obedience to the king, whose rescripts were all in favour of justice and integrity.