How Afrásiyáb sent Bármán and Húmán to Suhráb
Afrásiyáb had news: "Suhráb hath launchedHis ship, a host hath gathered unto him.Although his mouth still savoureth of milkHis mind is set on shaft and scimitar;His sword will purge the earth, and now he seekethTo fight Káús. He feareth none. Why more?His prowess hath shown higher than his birth."
Now when Afrásiyáb had heard these wordsThey pleasured him, he laughed and showed his joy.Then from the valiant captains of the host—Those that were wielders of the massive mace—He chose two chiefs; Húmán was one, the otherBármán; no laggards they when Lions strove.He gave to them twelve thousand valiant troops,And said: "Be this your secret policy:The father must not recognise his sonBy any ties of instinct, love, or race;So, when the twain encounter, in good soothThe matchless Rustam will be put to it.It may be that this lion-man will slay him.Then will we press Káús, seize on Írán,With Rustam gone, and settle with SuhrábSome night by binding him in endless sleep;While should he perish by his father's handThat hero's heart will never cease to burn."
Those two shrewd paladins went to Suhráb,Preceded by a present from the king—Ten steeds caparisoned, ten mules of burden,A turquoise throne with ivory steps, a crownOf amber tipped with pearls—and took a letterOf adulation to the noble youth:—"If thou shalt seize the Íránian throne the ageWill rest from strife. We are not far apart;Írán, Túrán, and Samangán are one.I send thee troops enough, sit on the throneAnd don the crown. Túrán hath no such leadersAnd brave hearts as Húmán and as Bármán,Whom I dispatch to thee as guests, to beAt thy command, to fight, if thou wouldst fight,And make the world strait to thine enemies."
Now when Suhráb was ware of their approachHe girt his loins and with his grandsire wentLike wind to meet Húmán, rejoiced to seeSuch troops. Húmán for his part was amazedTo see the neck and shoulders of Suhráb,Then gave to him the letter of the king,The gifts, the horses, and the mules of burden,And with Bármán delivered the king's message.Now when the atheling had read the letterHe beat the tymbals and led forth the host.Earth was all troops and clamour, neither lionNor crocodile could fight him. Thus he ledThe host toward Írán, burned everywhereThe cultivated parts, and left all bare.
Words in this poem
- scimitar n.
- A saber with a much curved blade having the edge on the convex side, -- in use among Mohammedans, esp., the Arabs and persians. [F. cimeterre, cf. It. scimitarra, Sp. cimitarra; fr. Biscayan cimetarry with a sharp edge; or corrupted from Per. shimshir.]
- prowess n.
- Distinguished bravery; valor; especially, military bravery and skill; gallantry; intrepidity; fearlessness. Chaucer. Sir P. Sidney. [OF. proece, proesce, F. prouesse. See Prow, a.]
- valiant a.
- Vigorous in body; strong; powerful; as, a valiant fencer. [OE. valiant, F. vaillant, OF. vaillant, valant, originally p. pr. of OF. & F. valoir to be worth, L. valere to be strong. See Wield, and cf. Avail, Convalesce, ]
- recognise v. t.
- To know again; to perceive the identity of, with a person or thing previously known; to recover or recall knowledge of. [From Recognizance; see Cognition, and cf. Reconnoiter.]
- twain a.
- Two;- nearly obsolete in common discourse, but used in poetry and burlesque. [OE. twein, tweien, tweyne, AS. twegen, masc. See Two.]
- sooth a.
- True; faithful; trustworthy. [OE. soth, AS. s, for san; akin to OS. s, OHG. sand, Icel. sannr, Sw. sann, Dan. sand, Skr. sat, sant, real, genuine, present, being; properly p. pr. from a root]
- shrewd a.
- Inclining to shrew; disposing to curse or scold; hence, vicious; malicious; evil; wicked; mischievous; vexatious; rough; unfair; shrewish. [Originally the p. p. of shrew, v.t.]
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- shalt
- 2d per. sing. of Shall.
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- girt v. t.
- To gird; to encircle; to invest by means of a girdle; to measure the girth of; as, to girt a tree. [From Girt, n., cf. Girth, v.]
- grandsire n.
- Specifically, a grandfather; more generally, any ancestor. [OF. grantsire. See Grand, and Sire.]
- atheling n.
- An Anglo-Saxon prince or nobleman; esp., the heir apparent or a prince of the royal family. [Written also Adeling and Ætheling.] [AS. æ noble, fr. æ noble, akin to G. adel nobility, edel noble. The word æ, E. ethel, is in many AS. proper names, as Ethelwolf, noble wolf; Ethelbald, noble bo]
- clamour n.
- A great outcry or vociferation; loud and continued shouting or exclamation. [OF. clamour, clamur, F. clameur, fr. L. clamor, fr. clamare to cry out. See Claim.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
How Afrásiyáb sent Bármán and Húmán to Suhráb is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Shahnama of Firdausi, done into English by Arthur George Warner and Edmond Warner, vol. II (Trübner’s Oriental Series), London, 1906; Part III, Suhráb (sections 1 to 25), Internet Archive, the Arthur George Warner and Edmond Warner translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Ferdowsi, How Afrásiyáb sent Bármán and Húmán to Suhráb, in Rustam and Sohrab (from the Shahnama) (1906), text of Internet Archive, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/ferdowsi-rustam-and-sohrab/7.html, id L29105.
Form and metre
How Afrásiyáb sent Bármán and Húmán to Suhráb is 54 lines in 4 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%).
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 ----A-A launched · him · milk · scimitar · seekethA · more · birthA
- 2 ---A-----A-------- words · joy · host · maceA · other · strove · troops · policy · son · raceA · sooth · it · him · — · suhráb · sleep · hand · burn
- 3 --AA----------- suhráb · king · burdenA · crownA · letter · youth · age · apart · one · throne · leaders · — · be · fight · enemies
- 4 ------------AA approach · went · see · amazed · suhráb · king · burden · message · letter · host · lion · led · everywhereA · bareA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Afrásiyáb had news: "Suhráb hath launched | 10 | ·········· |
| His ship, a host hath gathered unto him. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Although his mouth still savoureth of milk | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| His mind is set on shaft and scimitar; | 10 | ·········· |
| His sword will purge the earth, and now he seeketh | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| To fight Káús. He feareth none. Why more? | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| His prowess hath shown higher than his birth." | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Now when Afrásiyáb had heard these words | 10 | ·········· |
| They pleasured him, he laughed and showed his joy. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Then from the valiant captains of the host— | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Those that were wielders of the massive mace— | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| He chose two chiefs; Húmán was one, the other | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Bármán; no laggards they when Lions strove. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| He gave to them twelve thousand valiant troops, | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| And said: "Be this your secret policy: | 10 | ·····/˘/˘˘ |
| The father must not recognise his son | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| By any ties of instinct, love, or race; | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| So, when the twain encounter, in good sooth | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| The matchless Rustam will be put to it. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| It may be that this lion-man will slay him. | 10 | ·····/···· |
| Then will we press Káús, seize on Írán, | 10 | ·········· |
| With Rustam gone, and settle with Suhráb | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Some night by binding him in endless sleep; | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| While should he perish by his father's hand | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| That hero's heart will never cease to burn." | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Those two shrewd paladins went to Suhráb, | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| Preceded by a present from the king— | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘··· |
| Ten steeds caparisoned, ten mules of burden, | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| A turquoise throne with ivory steps, a crown | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Of amber tipped with pearls—and took a letter | 11 | ·/˘······/˘ |
| Of adulation to the noble youth:— | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘· |
| "If thou shalt seize the Íránian throne the age | 10 | ·········· |
| Will rest from strife. We are not far apart; | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Írán, Túrán, and Samangán are one. | 10 | ·········· |
| I send thee troops enough, sit on the throne | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| And don the crown. Túrán hath no such leaders | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| And brave hearts as Húmán and as Bármán, | 10 | ·········· |
| Whom I dispatch to thee as guests, to be | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| At thy command, to fight, if thou wouldst fight, | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| And make the world strait to thine enemies." | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| Now when Suhráb was ware of their approach | 10 | ········˘/ |
| He girt his loins and with his grandsire went | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Like wind to meet Húmán, rejoiced to see | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| Such troops. Húmán for his part was amazed | 10 | ········˘/ |
| To see the neck and shoulders of Suhráb, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Then gave to him the letter of the king, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The gifts, the horses, and the mules of burden, | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| And with Bármán delivered the king's message. | 11 | ····˘/˘··/˘ |
| Now when the atheling had read the letter | 11 | ···/˘˘···/˘ |
| He beat the tymbals and led forth the host. | 10 | ·········· |
| Earth was all troops and clamour, neither lion | 11 | ·····/˘/˘/˘ |
| Nor crocodile could fight him. Thus he led | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| The host toward Írán, burned everywhere | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| The cultivated parts, and left all bare. | 10 | ·/˘·˘····· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.