Now thus it came to pass: Afrásiyáb
Roamed to and fro foodless and slumberless,
His soul on thorns, his body but a curse,
Through constant terror of calamity.
He sought for some spot somewhere in the world
Where he might have repose of mind with health,
And found a cavern near Barda', a cavern
Upon a mountain-top concealed from men.
He saw no room for hawks to fly o'erhead,
No lion's trace, or boar's haunt, underneath.
'Twas far from cities and with water near:
Call it the cavern of Afrásiyáb.
The king in his despair took to the mountain
As being such an unfrequented spot,

Conveyed food thither, fearing for his life,
And made the cave his palace and his home,
Wherein he sojourned for a certain time
With full heart and repenting of his deeds.
Whene'er a monarch is athirst for gore
His tenure of the throne is well-nigh o'er,
So when this king, this master of the state,
This lord of earth, well-starred and fortunate,
Shed blood then enemies grew manifest!
The king that never saw kings' blood is blest.
Now in those days there lived a holy man,
One of the seed of Farídún, the teacher,
A devotee of Kaian Grace and mien,
One who was girded with a royal girdle,
And used the mountain as his place of worship
As being far from pleasures and from men.
The name of that illustrious one was Húm,
A man of prayer who shunned society.
A cavern that was on the mountain-height
Far from the throng was very near to him.
It happened that one day he climbed the mountain
That he might worship God, the righteous Judge,
And as he prayed upon the top before
The all-sustaining Ruler of the world,
And worshipped, vestured in his woollen robe,
A wailing from the cavern reached his ears:—
“Alas! O prince! O famous sovereign!
O mighty man exalted o'er the nobles,
Whom Chín, Túrán, and all the world obeyed,
Whose stipulations ran in every place!
Yet now thy portion is a cavern here!
Where are thy mighty men and men of war?
Where are thy treasure and thy manliness,
Thy valour, courage, and sagacity?
Where are thy majesty, thy throne, and crown?
Where are thy country and thy mighty host
Now that thou dwellest in this narrow cavern,
A fugitive within this rocky hold?”
Húm as he listened to the Turkman dirge
Forwent his prayers and, going from the spot,
Said thus: “This lamentation in the night
Must be the utterance of Afrásiyáb!”
Whenas he felt assured thereof at heart
He sought the entrance of the gloomy cave,
Discerned the cavern which Afrásiyáb
Had made his place of slumber and repose,
And then advancing like a savage lion
Put off the woollen garment round his loins,
And with the lasso that he used as girdle,
And which assured him of the Worldlord's aid,
Grasped in his hand, gained entrance to the cave.
The king, as Húm approached, leapt to his feet.
They struggled long and Húm prevailed at last,
Threw down Afrásiyáb and tied his hands,
Then going from the cavern dragged him forth
With frantic efforts such as madmen use.
This is a matter that is wonder-worth;
But let whoever is a king on earth
About his own fair reputation think
Naught else—excepting only meat and drink.
Thus after all his luxury and ease,
His power, his army, and his treasuries,
Afrásiyáb to choose a cave did well;
If 'twas a net of bale how could he tell?