When Janushyar and Mahyar, the two traitorous ministers of Iran, struck their fatal blow against King Dara, they rushed to Sekandar, expecting reward and favor for bringing news of the Iranian monarch's downfall. Yet Sekandar’s heart burned with rage and grief at such cowardice. Demanding to be led to the fallen king, Sekandar rode forth until he beheld Dara lying upon the earth, his face pale as a yellow fenugreek flower and his breast soaked in blood. Dismounting like the wind, Sekandar gently lifted the dying king’s head onto his thigh, unlaced his armor, removed his crown, and bathed Dara's face with his hands, weeping tears of anguish.
Sekandar offered to summon the most learned physicians from India and Rome, vowing to restore the throne of Iran to Dara once he healed and promising to hang the murderous traitors upside down. Reminding Dara that they shared a common royal ancestry, Sekandar offered solace, but Dara opened his eyes and replied with tragic wisdom. The wounded King of Kings declared that death was far closer to him than any earthly throne. He reflected upon the transience of the turning sky—how despite his armies, vast treasures, and imperial pride, he now lay helpless, forsaken by fortune and betrayed by his own servants.
With his fading breath, Dara delivered his sacred testaments to Sekandar. He urged the conqueror to fear Yazdan, the Lord of Heaven and Earth, to remain humble, and to protect the royal house of Iran. Specifically, he asked Sekandar to take his pure daughter, Roshanak, as his lawful queen, treatment her with high honor so that from their union a heroic heir like Esfandiyar might be born—one who would uphold the Sacred Fire of Zardosht, preserve the Zand and Avesta, honor the noble festivals of Sadeh and Nowruz, and renew the ancient Kayanid faith of Goshtasp and Luhrasp. Placing Sekandar's hand upon his lips, Dara commended his soul to God and expired.
Sekandar rent his robes in agonizing grief and cast dust upon his brow. He commanded a magnificent Kayanid burial: Dara’s body was cleansed with rosewater, swaddled in imperial Roman silk, embellished with gems, preserved in camphor, and placed inside a golden coffin beneath a dark jewel-encrusted crown. Sekandar himself walked barefoot before the funeral cortege while the Iranian lords wept. Following the grand burial, Sekandar ordered two towering gallows erected. Janushyar and Mahyar were bound alive to the timbers, and the warrior host stoned them to death as punishment for regicide. Beholding Sekandar's reverence for their slain monarch and his swift justice, the nobles of Iran united in uttering praises and blessings upon the new ruler.