Darkness hung heavily over the house of Zal. Rudabeh, heartbroken by the death of her heroic son, turned her tear-streaked face to Zal the White-haired and wept, proclaiming that as long as the world had been lit by the sun, never had so dark a day fallen upon mortal eyes. Zal, striving to anchor her in wisdom, counseled her that starving and weeping would not ease the agony or restore the dead. But Rudabeh grew wild with grief and swore a holy oath that her body would never again taste food or know sleep, praying that her soul might depart her flesh to join her elephant-bodied champion in the halls of the beyond.
For a full week she abstained from all sustenance, holding silent, agonizing communion in her heart with Rostam's spirit. Under the ordeal of starvation, her bright eyes grew dim and her delicate body withered to a thread. Concerned for her safety, her maidservants shadowed her every step, until by the week's end, agony drove reason entirely from her mind, transforming her mourning into a terrifying delirium.
At the hour of sleep, she wandered blindly into the garden and spotted a dead snake coiled in the water channel. Delirious with hunger and madness, she reached down, snatched the serpent by its coiled head, and prepared to consume it. Terrified, her handmaids rushed forward, snatched the dead serpent from her grip, and wrapped their arms around her. They carried her away from that unclean spot back to her high hall, laying out a bountiful table of rich food. In her maddened state, she ate ravenously until satisfied, whereupon her servants laid out soft bedding for her rest.
When her senses cleared and true consciousness returned, she turned to Zal and admitted that his words had been born of profound wisdom—for whoever abandons food and sleep loses the light of reason and confounds grief with madness. Accepting the divine decree, she declared that Rostam had departed and they must eventually follow, placing their faith in the justice of the Creator of the World. She unearthed her secret treasures and bestowed them upon the poor, lifting her voice in devout prayer to Yazdan, begging the Supreme Lord of all realms to cleanse Tahamtan's soul of sin, seat him in the eternal gardens of Paradise, and grant him the harvest of the noble seeds he had sown upon the earth.
#1
چنین گفت رودابه روزی به زال
✦
که از داغ و سوگ تهمتن بنال
“Thus spoke Rudabeh to Zal one day: 'Lament and mourn the tragic anguish of Tahamtan!'”
#2
همانا که تا هست گیتی فروز
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ازین تیره‌تر کس ندیدست روز
“'Truly, as long as the world is lit by the sun, no one has ever witnessed a darker day than this.'”
#3
بدو گفت زال ای زن کم خرد
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غم ناچریدن بدین بگذرد
“Zal said to her: 'O woman of little wisdom, will the grief pass by refusing food?'”
#4
برآشفت رودابه سوگند خورد
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که هرگز نیابد تنم خواب و خورد
“Rudabeh grew enraged and swore an oath: 'Never shall my body taste sleep or food again!'”
#5
روانم روان گو پیلتن
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مگر باز بیند بران انجمن
“'May my soul follow the soul of that Elephant-bodied hero, that I might see him once more in that assembly!'”
#6
ز خوردن یکی هفته تن باز داشت
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که با جان رستم به دل راز داشت
“For an entire week she refrained from food, holding secret communion in her heart with Rostam's soul.”
#7
ز ناخوردنش چشم تاریک شد
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تن نازکش نیز باریک شد
“From starvation, her eyes grew dim and dark, and her delicate body became thin as a thread.”
#8
ز هر سو که رفتی پرستنده چند
✦
همی رفت با او ز بیم گزند
“Wherever she walked, several maidservants followed closely behind her for fear of harm.”
#9
سر هفته را زو خرد دور شد
✦
ز بیچارگی ماتمش سور شد
“By the end of the week, reason departed from her; in her helplessness, mourning turned to madness.”
#10
بیامد به بستان به هنگام خواب
✦
یکی مرده ماری بدید اندر آب
“At sleeping hour she entered the garden, and saw a dead serpent lying in the stream.”
#11
بزد دست و بگرفت پیچان سرش
✦
همی خواست کز مار سازد خورش
“She reached out and seized its coiled head, intending to make a meal of the snake.”
#12
پرستنده از دست رودابه مار
✦
ربود و گرفتندش اندر کنار
“The maidservant snatched the snake from Rudabeh's hand, and they gathered her into their arms.”
#13
کشیدند از جای ناپاک دست
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به ایوانش بردند و جای نشست
“They pulled her away from that unclean place and led her back to her hall and resting place.”
#14
به جایی که بودیش بنشاختند
✦
ببردند خوان و خورش ساختند
“They seated her in her rightful place, brought a feast-table, and prepared food for her.”
#15
همی خورد هرچیز تا گشت سیر
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فگندند پس جامهٔ نرم زیر
“She ate everything until she was satiated, and then they laid soft garments and bedding beneath her.”
#16
چو باز آمدش هوش با زال گفت
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که گفتار تو با خرد بود جفت
“When her senses returned, she said to Zal: 'Your advice was truly paired with wisdom.'”
#17
هرانکس که او را خور و خواب نیست
✦
غم مرگ با جشن و سورش یکیست
“'Whoever is deprived of food and sleep confounds the grief of death with feasts and celebrations.'”
#18
برفت او و ما از پس او رویم
✦
به داد جهان‌آفرین بگرویم
“'He has departed, and we too shall follow after him; let us surrender to the justice of the World-Creator.'”
#19
به درویش داد آنچ بودش نهان
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همی گفت با کردگار جهان
“She gave all her hidden treasures to the poor, praying constantly to the Creator of the World:”
#20
که ای برتر از نام وز جایگاه
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روان تهمتن بشوی از گناه
“'O You who are higher than any name or realm! Wash Tahamtan's soul clean of all sin!'”
#21
بدان گیتیش جای ده در بهشت
✦
برش ده ز تخمی که ایدر بکشت
“'Grant him a place in Paradise in that world, and let him reap the fruit of the good seeds he sowed here!'”