When twice eight years had passed over Fereydun, and his tall stature reached full manhood upon the peaks of Mount Alborz, he descended into the plain and came before his mother, Faranak. Ignorant of his own heritage, he implored her to unveil the mysteries of his birth—to tell him who his father was, from what noble gem he was born, and how he might hold his head high in the assemblies of men.
With a heart heavy with painful memories, Faranak disclosed the long-guarded truth. She revealed that his father was Abtin, a wise, gentle, and valiant prince of Kianid blood, descended directly from Tahmuras the Demon-Binder. She recounted how Zahhak the sorcerer king, seeking nourishment for the two serpents sprouting from his shoulders, had seized the noble young Abtin and sacrificed him, feeding his brain to the monstrous serpents. Faranak then spoke of how she had hidden the infant Fereydun in a lush wilderness, where a marvelous, peacock-hued cow named Barmaye nursed him with tender affection. Yet, when Zahhak learned of the sanctuary, Faranak fled with the child to the heights of Alborz, leaving the vengeful villain to slaughter the gentle creature and raze their ancestral halls to dust.
Upon hearing the cruel fate of his father and his beloved nurse, a searing flame of vengeance erupted within Fereydun. His brow furrowed with rage, and he declared that no lion grows truly brave without trial; by the command of Almighty God, he would unsheathe his blade and reduce Zahhak's palace to ash. But Faranak, aware of the boundless armies subject to the tyrant's will, urged her son to stay his hand, counseling him not to view the world through the intoxicating mist of reckless youth, nor to battle a sovereign who could summon hundreds of thousands to his banner.