At this juncture the Ispahbad Qárin wrote to Ḥasan b. Zayd professing the utmost devotion to him, and promising to send him help. His real object, however, was to weaken Sulaymán al-'Alawí, drive him from the country, and seize both highlands and plains for himself. When Ḥasan b. Zayd received this letter, he summoned the Daylamites and shewed them the letter, and they wrote to the Ispahbad saying, “If thou speakest truly, join thyself to us.” The Ispahbad replied, “It is better that you should join me.” Then Ḥasan b. Zayd began to suspect his motives, and Sulaymán b. 'Abdu`lláh sent his general Asad [b.] Jandán with an army from Sárí to a place called Dúdán on the road to Tarjí. Ḥasan b. Zayd sought counsel from his companions. An old man named Shahriyár the son of Andiyán, one of the chief counsellors of Sharwín, said to Ḥasan b. Zayd, “It is best that you should make it known that you intend to march against Asad, but during the night you should turn aside and go by way of Zarmí­khwást to Nawrúz-ábád, and thence to Sárí, where you will attack Sulaymán, and crush him, after which you will easily defeat Asad and his army. But if you act otherwise, and defeat Asad first, he will escape to Sulaymán, and your affairs will be rendered difficult; and moreover God only knows what the result of your encounter with Asad may be. Besides this, Sulaymán, who is now at Sárí, probably feels quite secure and is taking no precautions, since he will feel sure that you will first encounter his general Asad” (f. 109b).

Ḥasan b. Zayd determined to act on this advice, and to attack Sulaymán first; and Asad received tidings that Ḥasan b. Zayd had fled by night, whereupon he despatched a courier to Sulaymán to inform him that the 'Alawí had fled. But as the latter was sitting rejoicing over this mes­sage, he suddenly heard the cries of “Alláhu akbar!” and saw around him the white standards of the 'Alawís, and heard the shouts of their Daylamite allies. Thereupon he fled bare-foot to Asad, while the Sayyid’s troops slew all whom they could overtake of their foes. When Sulaymán reached Asad, he was already engaged with the Sayyid’s troops, and the latter, like lions eager for their meal, pur­sued them, and slew amongst others Ḥusayn b. 'Alí of Sarakhs, 'Alí b. al-Ḥarb, Isḥaq b. Shaykhí, 'Ali al-Maghribí, Ibn Tha'laba of Syria, and Naṣr b. Wabra of Syria. Then they looted Sulaymán’s palace, sent the spoils to the village of Mihrawán, and then burned the palace to the ground. Ḥasan b. Zayd reached Sárí on the first day of the five Persian gátás (<Arabic>), and the same day news was brought to him that his brother Ḥusayn b. Zayd had reached Shalmiyya near Damáwand, and Pádhúsbán the son of Kurd-zád came to him from Lafür, telling him that he ought to remain forty days at Sárí. His brother Ḥusayn b. Zayd remained 23 days at Damáwand, where the chiefs of Láriján and Qaṣrán came in to him, and he was joined by Muḥammad b. Míkál. Meanwhile Sulaymán fled to Astarábád, and sent messengers to Khurásán to demand help, while the stragglers of his army gradually joined him.

After a forty days’ halt at Sárí, Ḥasan b. Zayd turned back to go to ´Amul. The Daylamites, being laden with booty, dispersed, and went back to their homes. The Ispahbad Pádhúsbán advised Ḥasan b. Zayd not to go beyond Jamanú till it was known what course Sulaymán would adopt. Soon afterwards Sulaymán himself arrived with a fresh army at Sárí and Ḥasan b. Zayd sent to Muḥammad b. Ibráhím (f. 110a) and Muḥammad [b.] Ḥamza bidding them join him with their forces from ´Amul and Mámṭír. Sulaymán had pitched his camp at Lícham, and a battle took place between the two forces at Tamashkí Dasht, in which Ḥasan b. Zayd was routed, and his men were dispersed to the forests. Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Aws pursued them into the forests, but they caught him unawares, and slew him with a blow from a mace. On that day Ḥasan b. Zayd shewed the greatest valour, and held the end of a bridge against the foe until he had seen his fugitive army cross in safety. Thence he marched to Úfar, while Sulaymán went to Tálániyán, and Muḥammad b. Aws pursued the men of Kalár, of whom he slew many in an ambush which he had pre­pared on the road to Úfar. But the Ispahbad Pádhúsbán and the Mas-mughán had prepared another ambush for him, into which he fell with his soldiers, of whom they slew many, while he himself was struck on the head with a stone. When Ḥasan b. Zayd perceived that he could not withstand them, he retreated by way of Bálá`ín with Fana the son of Wandá-ummíd and Khurshíd the son of Gush­nasf, and came that night to ´Amul, whence next morning he came to Jálús, having lost many of his men, while those who remained with him were despoiled of almost all their garments and weapons, so that Já`í the son of Lashkar-sitán, one of his best-known lieutenants, had no clothes on his body. However some 10,000 dirhams were collected and spent on obtaining fresh clothes.

Sulaymán b. 'Abdu`lláh and the nobles of Khurásán, accompanied by the infantry of the king of the mountains, the Ispahbad Qárin the son of Shahriyár, came to ´Amul, while Ḥasan b. Zayd sent for re-inforcements to Gílán and Daylamán. In response to his appeal, several thousand adherents of his propaganda (<Arabic>) joined him, where­upon he prepared his army for ḅattle, and moved on to Khwájak. Sulaymán, learning this, came from ´Amul to Pá-yi-Dasht, where he encamped. Ḥasan b. Zayd advanced to the Lápích River (f. 110b) and took counsel with his allies. The Daylamites said, “This place is good. Give us per­mission first to attack the infantry of the Ispahbad Qárin and dispose of them, for in this place when the infantry are routed, cavalry has no chance.” Ḥasan b. Zayd gave them permission, and when they had routed the infantry, the horsemen were entangled in the bushes and underwood, and were taken prisoners, or else fled, casting away their arms. Amongst those killed were Sulayman’s general Asad b. Jandán, Anúshírwán Hazár-mardí, 'Alí b. al-Faraj, 'Aṭṭáf b. Abi`l-'Aṭṭáf of Syria, the Ispahbad Ja'far b. Shahriyár, Qárin’s general Dázmihr, 'Azíz b. 'Abdu`lláh, and 'Ubayd b. Yazíd al-Kházin.

Ḥasan b. Zayd remained there that day, and on the mor­row came to ´Amul, whence after fifteen days he came to Jamanú, and gave an army to the Ispahbad Padhúsbán to fight the Ispahbad Qárin the son of Shahriyár. Pádhúsbán, having secured the assistance of Kúkbán-i-Bakhmí from Kimnán, burned and ravaged all the highlands of Qárin, who fled from before them, abandoning his kingdom, in which Ḥasan b. Zayd established his governors to collect the revenue. Sulaymán fled to Astarábád, and sent a courier to Muḥammad b. 'Abdu`lláh [b.] Ṭáhir in Khurásán, asking for reinforcements. In response to his appeal, 'Anátúr b. Bakhtánsháh and Gushnasf b. Más were sent to support him, with a considerable army, whereat Sulaymán took heart, for Sayyid Ḥasan b. Zayd was but weakly supported at Sárí, some of his army being in the highlands, while his Daylamite allies had retired to Daylamán. Hearing of Sulaymán’s increased strength, he therefore fell back on Jálús, where he was told that Wih-súdán the king of Daylamán had abandoned his cause; but a few days later Wih-súdán died, and 4000 Daylamites thereupon joined Ḥasan b. Zayd.

Meanwhile Fana (f. 111a) had collected an army from Farím and the highlands and come to ´Amul, whence he wrote to Ḥasan b. Zayd asking for his commands. Thereupon he sent Aḥmad b. Ḥasan to him to occupy the country, and to remove Ibráhím [b.] Khalíl. At his commands, Fana marched against Ibráhím and defeated him. Ḥasan b. Zayd on hearing this came to Khwájak, where the people com­plained of Fana’s oppression, further accusing him of having a secret understanding with Sulaymán and of corresponding with him. So he sent Muḥammad b. Abí Manṣúr and 'Isá b. Ḥamíd to him, bidding him come before him, but he came not. Again he sent a message to him, bidding him not be disobedient, but he returned an insolent answer. Then Ḥasan b. Zayd told the people of ´Amul that Fana’s blood was lawful to them, whereupon 10,000 men attacked and burned his house, while he fled to his nephew Khur­shíd the son of Gushnasf; but Khiyán the son of Rustam with a number of his followers pursued him thither, and slew them both, and sent their heads to Ḥasan b. Zayd. Then Fana’s son Layth came in, with all his followers, to made his submission to Ḥasan b. Zayd, having induced the Ispahbad Pádhúsbán to intercede for him, and the Sayyid gave him a robe of honour, and conferred on him his father’s possessions.

After a while Ḥasan b. Zayd moved from ´Amul to Jamanú, where he remained for a month. While there, an encounter took place between his outposts and those of Sulaymán, in which many of Ḥasan’s men were slain, including Muḥammad b. 'Isá b. 'Abdu`l-Ḥamíd. So Ḥasan b. Zayd was again obliged to retreat, accompanied by Muḥammad b. Rustam, the Mas-mughán, and Kúrankíj the son of Rúzbihán, sending the Ispahbad Pádhúsbán and Wí­jan the son of Rustam to the highlands to guard them. Then he returned to ´Amul, while Sulaymán abode at his palace at Sárí, whither he brought his wives and retainers from Astarábád; and the people (f. 111b) again began to hesitate between the two rivals. Then Sulaymán sent Muḥammad b. Isma'íl to ´Amul, but Ḥasan b. Zayd, hearing of it, arrested and imprisoned him for a while, but after­wards released him, and suffered him to return to Sulaymán. Then Ḥasan collected his troops and went to Jamanú, having already warned the Mas-mughán to be on his guard, and sent Ja'far b. Rustam and Layth b. Fana and Wíjan b. Rustam with 700 men to help him. Sulaymán came out from Sárí to meet them in battle, and the Mas-mughán had prepared an ambush for him, but he routed the Mas-mughán, who fled to the forests. A violent thunder-storm came on, so that the archers could not shoot, and Sulaymán and his men surrounded the Mas-mughán, but the men hidden in ambush by the latter rushed out against him, and slew many of his chief followers, including Jalwánán the son of Wandá-ummíd, Muḥammad b. Faḍl of Láriján, Muḥammad b. Khálid, known as Abú Miráh, and others, all of whose heads were sent to Ḥasan b. Zayd. The Ispahbad Qárin the son of Shahriyár had gone with his army to meet the Ispahbad Pádhúsbán to fight with him, and the latter sent his brother Kurdí-zád to Ḥasan b. Zayd to seek for help. In response to his appeal, Muḥammad b. Rustam with the men of Kalár, Wíhán b. Sahl with the Daylamites, and Khiyán b. Rustam with the troops of ´Amul were sent to reinforce him. The Ispahbad Qárin fled, and Ḥasan b. Zayd came to ´Amul on the day of the festival, whence, after the 'Íd-i-aḍḥá, he proceeded to Mámṭír, where he remained for thirteen days. Sulaymán sent two ambassadors with a letter to Khurshíd king of Daylam, urging and encouraging him to help and befriend him, and to abandon Ḥasan b. Zayd, and offering him 7000 golden dínárs and many robes of honour to divide amongst the Daylamites, on condition of their withholding their help from the Sayyid. He also con­structed a boat on the river Mihrawán, placed in it Azbar b. Janáh (f. 112a) and Sa'íd b. Jibrá`íl, and sent them to Ispíd-júy, where a wind arose which carried them in an hour to Jálús. Ḥasan b. Zayd’s governor, being aware of this, seized the boat, and sent the ambassadors, with their papers, money and robes of honour, to the Sayyid, who divided the valuables amongst the Daylamites, and humbled Khurshíd king of Daylam, so that all men perceived that Sulaymán’s luck was on the wane.

Ḥasan b. Zayd came from Mámṭír to Jamanú, and made the Daylamites swear to be faithful and loyal to him, and then marched against Sulaymán, who had moved from Sárí to Dú`-´Ab. The Mas-mughán advised that white flags should be fixed to the trees in front of his camp, so that he might suppose that it was the Sayyid’s camp; and that mean­while they should secretly go by way of Banahra to Wíná­bád and attack the enemy in the rear, so that they might suppose they were hemmed in between two bodies of the enemy. By this device they succeeded in defeating Sulay­mán, and marched on Sárí, while the Daylamites looted the bázárs, killing and plundering. Sulaymán, abandoning his wives, children and relatives, fled precipitately, while of his chief supporters 'Anátúr [b.] Bakhtánsháh, Abu`l-A'azz Muḥammad b. Qays, Muḥammad b. Kathír, Gushnasf b. Más, Muḥammad b. al-'Abbás, Muḥammad b. al-Walíd, Músá b. al-Kátib, 'Alí b. Manṣúr, and Muḥammad b. 'Abdu`lláh al-Qáḍí were killed, while the two ambassadors captured in the boat were, by order of the Sayyid, hanged. This victory took place on Thursday, Dhu`l-Ḥijja 8, (A. H. 250 = January 10, A. H. 865). Sulaymán’s wife and children were taken captive, and when he reached Astarábád, he wrote a letter to Muḥammad b. Ḥamza for him to lay before Ḥasan b. Zayd, couched as follows (f. 112b):

<Arabic>

<Arabic>

On reading this letter, the Sayyid Ḥasan b. Zayd sent Sulaymán’s wife and children and kinsmen to him with all honour and protection, and wrote with his own hand the following verse at the top of his letter:

<Arabic>

The Ispahbad Qárin the son of Shahriyár took refuge with the Mas-mughán, whom he induced to intercede for him with Ḥasan b. Zayd, to whom he took the oath of allegiance, and to whose court he sent his two sons Surkháb and Mázyár. And all this happened in the year A. H. 252 (A. D. 866).

Thereafter enmity arose between the Mas-mughán and Faḍl-i-Rafíqí, and the former took to the forests. Ḥasan b. Záyd tried by kind messages to induce him to return, but he refused, alleging that he was afraid of the Daylamites, and became a rebel. Then Ḥasan b. Zayd marched to Lankúr-khán and burned all the corn in the country, and sent Qárin in pur­suit of him, but he fled away. Then Ḥasan b. Zayd came to Sárí, where news was brought (f. 113a) to him that Jálí the son of Lashkar-sitán was tyrannizing over the people of ´Amul, Ẉhen some of them revolted and slew him. He thereupon despatched Muḥammad b. Ibráhím to investigate the matter, and ten days later followed him himself. When he reached Tarícha, his cousin Qásim b. 'Alí b. al-Ḥasan b. Zayd came from 'Iráq, and he bestowed on him robes of honour and costly presents, and sent him to ´Amul, while he himself remained at Tarícha. He arrested Surkháb the son of the Ispahbad Qárin and his brother Mázyár, and put them in bonds, and sent Sayyid Ḥasan b. Ja'far al-'Aqíqí to Sárí, giving him the government of that district and bid­ding him capture the Mas-mughán. Sayyid 'Aqíqí wrote in a conciliatory strain to the Mus-mughán, and induced him to join him and apologize for his flight and rebellion. Rus­tam the son of Qárin, however, revolted at Mihrawán, and rendered the roads unsafe; but he sent Hurmuzd-káma the son of Yazdánkard and 'Abbás b. al-'Aqílí against him. Rustam b. Zabarqán met the supporters of Muḥammad b. Núḥ, slew some and took others captive, captured Muḥammad b. Núḥ, and brought him to Mihrawán. Ḥasan b. Muḥammad 'Aqíqí, being informed of this, sent to Ḥasan b. Zayd informing him that he had gone to Mihrawán to fight the enemy. Sayyid Ḥasan b. Zayd, who was then at Jamanú, at once came to Sárí, and there joined Sayyid Ḥasan 'Aqíqí, who had returned victorious, having slain many, and captured some 400 prisoners, abode for a while at Sárí, until he heard that Ibráhím b. Mu'ádh was sending re-inforcements to the Ispahbad Qárin b. Shahriyár, who was marching against him. So the Sayyid took the initiative, attacked his highland territory, slew all whom he met, and burned down houses and villages. Then he again took up his quarters at Sárí for a while, left Sayyid Ḥasan 'Aqíqí in charge of that district, and returned to ´Amul, whence he issued a proclamation to all the Regions of Ṭabaristán bidding them add the [Shí'ite] clause “ḥayya ila khayri`l-'amal” to the call to prayer, and to say the Bismi`lláh aloud in their prayers (f. 113b), and the like. This proclamation ran as follows:

<Arabic>

On this same day Abú Muqátil aḍ-Ḍarír the poet recited to the Sayyid a qaṣída which began “God is peerless and the son of Zayd is peerless” —

Ḥasan b. Zayd the Dá'í cried out at him in anger, and at once prostrated himself on the ground and repeated again and again, “God is peerless and the son of Zayd is a slave” —

Then he ordered the poet to be driven from his presence. A few days later he returned with these verses:

<Arabic>

Yet still the Sayyid was displeased with him, until on the festival of Mihraján he composed and recited another qaṣída beginning:

<Arabic> (f. 114a) <Arabic>

Then he turned to the poet and said that he ought to have transposed these two hemistichs, so as to avoid the evil omen of beginning the poem with the negation lá; but the poet replied, “O Sayyid, the most noble formula is ‘Lá iláha illa `lláh’ (‘There is no god but God’), yet that begins with lá.” “Well said! well said,” cried the Sayyid; “thou art right in this verse!”

It is related that one day the Sayyid was passing through the streets and markets of ´Amul when he saw written on a wall the words “the Qur`án is the Uncreated Word of God, and whosoever calls it Created is an infidel.” He reined in his horse and paused for a while to look at it, and then rode on. As a rule it was his custom not to return by the way he had come, but on this occasion he departed from his custom, and came back by that same spot. On arriving there, he perceived that the inhabitants of the quarter had effaced the writing, whereupon he smiled to himself and said, “By Alláh, they have saved themselves from slaughter!”

The Sayyid remained at ´Amul all the months of Sha'bán, Ramaḍán and Shawwál, while Ḥasan-i-'Aqíqí continued at Sárí, until Muḥammad b. Núḥ joined the Ispahbad Qárin the son of Shahriyár, and the Mas-mughán became their ally, and they marched on Sárí conjointly. 'Aqíqí retired before them to Tarícha, and Ḥasan b. Zayd sent Ja'far b. Muḥammad and Layth b. Fana with a thousand men to help him. Setting out from Tarícha, they first fell in with the Mas-mughán, defeated him, and slew his brother 'Abbás. Then they turned, advanced on Sárí, attacked Muḥammad b. Núḥ at a place called Girda-zamín, four parasangs from the city, and defeated him. Layth b. Fana shewed the greatest courage; and it was chiefly by his efforts that the victory was won. Next night Ḥasan b. Muḥammad b. al-'Aqíqí made a sudden attack and slew many of them, and carried off much spoil, and Muḥammad b. Núḥ joined Sulaymán b. 'Abdu`lláh [b.] Ṭáhír at Astarábád, and both retired together to Gurgán. Sulaymán is reported to have said: “One day I passed over to Gurgán with four comrades (khayl-tásh) to a place called Sulaymán-ábád. I heard a voice saying:

<Arabic>

When I looked back, I saw no one, and knew not who had spoken.” After this Sulaymán abandoned all idea of conquering Ṭabaristán, and retired into Khurásán.