Account of Majduddoulah-Abú-Tálib-’bn-Fakhr-Addoulah.

When Hisám-Addoulah-Tásh arrived at Juzján Fakhr-Addoulah wrote to him by the hand of a messenger, and, amongst the contents of that letter, expressed his gladness at the birth of Majd­uddoulah, discharging the duty of thanks to God for that gift. And these words were contained in this letter: “God hath graciously given me the bounty of a son; I have surnamed him Abú-Tálib, as his Mussulmán appellation, but I have named him Rustám, for he is of the sons of that stock and of that origin.” And when Fakhr-Addoulah migrated to the other palace (died) the army inau­gurated him into his father’s lordship. And his mother, Mary (?) was a sister of Asphabad, a lady mainly confident in the greatness of her kindred and in her august tribe. She began to employ towards the army of Dilem, in an authoritative and dictatorial manner, language of binding and loosing, commanding and prohibiting. For this cause bitterness arose between him and his mother, and she sent a person and transferred Badr-Hasan­awyat to herself, and seized upon Rai and weakened the authority of her son’s Nawwábs. For this cause much strife took place, and effusion of blood and tumults universally drew on, and the army of Dilem and people of Rai were hereby reduced to distress, and lost strength, and fresh commotions continually arose, and the bands of peace were cut, so that by the lights and revolu­tions of those confused calamities, whole battalions of the army were destroyed, and through this miserable state of things the hardship of all classes and the ruin of the subjects increased, the country approached desolation, and all men were scattered. And Majduddoulah became wearied with the burning of these times of tumult and with these flames of iniquity. He therefore retired from his office of Amír, and arose to avoid the perverseness of his mother, and conquered the passion of his inclination, so as to obey her, and thus delivered the people from that precipice of undoing, and occupied himself in reading books, and in the society of pen and ink. And his brother, Shams-Addoulah, possessed Hamadan and Karmistán, as far as the frontiers of Bagdád.

And, during their lives, Badr-’bn-Hasanawyat amassed great wealth, and property, and goods, and in various ways of good feeling and humanity, dictated by his warm and great intellect, expended it. And thus, in like manner, Ibn-Fulád, during the days of the family of Boyah, obtained great power, and so high did his authority arrive that the chiefs of Dilem and the principal persons amongst the Kurds, Arabs, and Persians joined his army. And he wrote a letter to Majduddoulah and to his mother, the manager of the kingdom, demanding an increased share of territory, that he might expend the revenues thereof upon the army, and appropriate it to the exigencies of the kingdom, in defending the frontiers of the empire in current necessities, and in repelling enemies. And they returned an answer, alluding to the diminution of the area of the kingdom, and to the decreased glory of the empire, and excused themselves. And he rebelled against them, and turned towards the frontiers of Rai, and plundered them, and seized the lands bordering upon his own region, and took possession of their revenues. Hereby the roads were closed, and the means of abundance and food intercepted. Majaddoulah and his mother therefore wrote to Asphabad, imploring assistance, and he came with a whole division of an army of cavalry, and he frequently gave battle to Ibn-Fulád (i. e., the son of steel) and many perished on both sides. And he wounded Ibn Fulád, and he retreated, and went out towards Damghan. Here he tarried some days, repairing his losses and to be healed of his wounds, and wrote to Falk-Almuálí for aid, requesting him to obtain possession of Rai for him, and surrendering to him the public prayer-distinction, the coinage, and the settled duties, by way of encouragement. And he sent to him two thousand chosen men, who deemed it a noble end to die gloriously, and regarded battle but as wine-drinking and sport. And, in order to gladden Ibn-Fulád and to seal the truth of his good inclination, he sent abundant wealth as a loan. He went then, with this army towards Rai, and began to rob and plunder. The army of Dilem, therefore, suffered great distress and frightful scarcity, so that Majuddoulah and the royal troops were compelled to come. And they conciliated him, and gave Isfahan to him, and he was then appeased, and restrained himself from injury and wrong; and he brought the army to the high road of restraint and the ways of recti­tude, so that the pretext of oppression and desola­tion was cut off; and, in the year 407, he went to Isfahán, and there displayed the insignia of empire, as belonging to Majduddoulah. And Nasrat-Hasan-’bn-Fírúzán, for the reason stated above, proceeded towards Rai, and, from alarm at the ill-will of Kábús and at the complaints respecting his army, came by the way of the wilderness. And, when he arrived at Rai, he passed the space of two years amidst the people of Rai and with the most perfect respect, referred to with confidence in matters of State, and regulating all before and all behind. Then, for some offence, they arrested him and sent him to the fortress of Istonawand. Here he was confined for some time, until they drew the pen of pardon over his offence and brought him to his promised seat in the midst of the kingdom (promised) in those days when he had committed wickedness towards Majdud­doulah. From his bad government rectitude was diminished, and the army of Dilem threw off the bridle of allegiance, and began to oppress and attack. And since they threw off the halter of obedience he could not restrain them, so that every one did as he liked, as to murder, rapine, and plunder, except those who were hindered by com­passion and the fear of God, through piety and the dread of retribution. Nasr (Nasrat?) indeed attempted to punish them, killing several and expelling some. At length all joined hands and made an assault upon Nasr, and took the sur­rounding (outer) defences of his palace; and he, with a select force, repulsed them for awhile, but at length he was put to flight, and all his property and possessions passed to them; and afterwards he remained in deep indignation at this calamity, and distressed until he was deposited in the grave.