Káús the fourth day sat upon the throne
Of kings; an ox-head mace was in his hand.
Fierce in his wrath he had Súdába summoned
Before him, told her what had passed, and said:—
“Thou art a shameless woman! Thou hast wrought
Enough of ill and grieved me to the heart.
What part is this that thou hast played throughout
In treacherously seeking my son's life,
In causing him to be exposed to fire,
And practising such witchcraft? No excuses
Will now avail thee; go and get thee ready;
Thou art not fit to live. The punishment
For such a crime as this is to be hanged.”

She said: “O Sháh! forbear to heap up fire
Upon my head. If I perforce must lose it
In vengeance for the wrong which I have … suffered,
Command … I am resigned. Yet put revenge
Away. Let Siyáwush declare the truth,
And quench the fires within thee. He hath used
All Zál's own sorceries herein, and therefore
The fierce flames harmed him not.”

She said withal

To Siyáwush: “Thou usest witchcraft still!
Shall not thy back of impudence be bent?”
The great Sháh asked the Íránians: “For the evil
That she hath done by stealth, what shall I do?
How shall I punish her?”

All did obeisance,

And said: “The punishment for her is death:
She ought to suffer for her evil deeds.”
He bade the deathsman: “Hang her in the street
Upon the gibbet and be pitiless.”*

At her abandonment the women wailed,
And Sháh Káús was sorrowful of heart;
He strove to hide it but his cheeks were pale.
“Let not thy heart,” said Siyáwush, “be troubled,
But pardon for my sake Súdába's fault;
She may be warned and walk advisedly.”
“For if,” he thought, “she perish by his hand
He will be sorry for it in the end,
And see in me the author of his grief.”*

The Sháh, who had been seeking some excuse
For mercy, answered him: “I grant thee this
Because I see that right was on thy side.”

When Siyáwush had kissed his father's throne
He rose upon his feet, went to the door,
Brought back Súdába, and escorted her
Home to the palace by the Sháh's command,
Where all the women ran to her again,
And did obeisance.

Now in time the heart

Of Sháh Káús so warmed to her that he
Could not forbear to eye her face in love,
While, for her part, by secret sorceries
She worked on him to ruin Siyáwush
According to the evil of her nature.
The Sháh became mistrustful through her talk,
But spake not aught thereof to any one.
When such events are happening men require
Faith, knowledge, wisdom, and the sense of right,
For in proportion as they keep in sight
The fear of God they reach their heart's desire.
Expect not foolishly that thou shalt find
Balm in a place that fate hath filled with bane,
And if Creation be not to thy mind,
It is not in thy charge. Thy wrath restrain.
Besides the manner of the turning sky
Is not to show its visage openly.
Here saith our guide: “Of all affections none
Hath greater influence than kindred love,
And he who hath achieved a worthy son
Must from his own heart woman's love remove,
Because with her the heart and tongue ne'er meet:
Look for her head if thou wouldst find her feet.”