Word reached King Darab that Sho'ayb, a renowned chieftain of the lineage of Qotayb, had assembled a hundred thousand battle-tested, spear-wielding Arab horsemen to strike against Iran. In response, Darab mustered an army so vast that men declared its numbers beyond count. When the two mighty hosts converged, the sky darkened beneath the wrath of fiercely determined warriors. So crowded was the field that the earth could barely bear their weight, leaving no path unblocked.
Under a continuous storm of javelins and arrows, the soil turned into a veritable lake of blood. Shouts and battle cries echoed from every flank, and mounds of the fallen rose across the plain. For three days and three nights the carnage raged unabated, as though the wide world had narrowed into a tight ring of fire. But on the fourth night, fortune abandoned the invaders: Sho'ayb was slain in the thick of combat, and the leaderless Arab army fled into the darkness.
Left behind was a trove of prized Arabian warhorses, complete with fine saddles, as well as endless piles of spears, swords, and coat-of-mail armor. Darab generously distributed all the spoils among his victorious soldiers. He then selected a wise border warden who was fluent in the Arabic language, sending him into the desert lands to demand all unpaid tributes for the past years and to establish his royal authority.
#1
چنان بد که از تازیان صدهزار
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نبرده سواران نیزه گزار
“It came to pass that from the Arabs came a hundred thousand battle-tested, spear-wielding horsemen.”
#2
برفتند و سالار ایشان شعیب
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یکی نامدار از نژاد قتیب
“They marched forth under their leader Sho'ayb, a renowned chieftain from the lineage of Qotayb.”
#3
جهاندار ایران سپاهی ببرد
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بگفتند کان را نشاید شمرد
“The ruler of Iran led forth an army so vast that men said it defied all counting.”
#4
فراز آمدند آن دو لشکر بهم
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جهان شد ز پرخاشجویان دژم
“The two hosts met, and the world grew dark and bleak with warriors eager for battle.”
#5
زمین آن سپه را همی برنتافت
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بران بوم کس جای رفتن نیافت
“The earth could scarcely bear the weight of those troops, and none could find space to pass.”
#6
ز باران ژوپین و باران تیر
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زمین شد ز خون چون یکی آبگیر
“From the torrential rain of javelins and arrows, the ground turned into a pool of blood.”
#7
خروشی برآمد ز هر پهلوی
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تلی کشته دیدند بر هر سوی
“Battle cries arose from every side, and mounds of the slain were seen everywhere.”
#8
سه روز و سه شب زین نشان جنگ بود
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تو گفتی بریشان جهان تنگ بود
“For three days and three nights the battle raged thus; you would say the world had turned narrow upon them.”
#9
چهارم عرب روی برگاشتند
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به شب دشت پیکار بگذاشتند
“On the fourth night, the Arabs turned back and abandoned the battlefield in the dark of night.”
#10
شعیب اندران رزمگه کشته شد
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عرب را همه روز برگشته شد
“Sho'ayb was slain upon that field of war, and fortune completely turned against the Arabs.”
#11
بسی اسپ تازی به زین خدنگ
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هم از نیزه و تیغ و خفتان جنگ
“Many Arabian steeds with sturdy saddles, along with spears, swords, and mail coats,”
#12
ازان رفتگان ماند آنجا به جای
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به نزد جهاندار پور همای
“Were left behind by those who fled, gathered before the monarch, the son of Homay.”
#13
ببخشید چیزی که بد بر سپاه
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ز اسپ و ز رمح و ز تیغ و کلاه
“He bestowed upon his host all that was captured—horses, spears, blades, and helmets.”
#14
ز لشکر یکی مرزبان برگزید
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که گفتار ایشان بداند شنید
“From his army he chose a noble warden who knew their tongue and could understand their speech,”
#15
فرستاد تا باژ خواهد ز دشت
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ازان سال و آن سال کاندر گذشت
“And sent him to demand tribute from the desert lands for that year and the years that had passed.”