Sikandar summoned the wise Indian physician to his court, seeking the secrets of perfect health and freedom from physical decline. The physician observed that human ailments spring primarily from overindulgence at the feast and a lack of moderation. He promised the King an extraordinary mountain remedy—a potion brewed from choice herbs gathered from the wild peaks that would keep his body eternally youthful, preserve his dark hair from turning white, clear his mind, and fill his heart with the joy of spring.
Astonished by the sage's insight, Sikandar bestowed high honors upon him, raising his rank above all royal healers. The Indian physician journeyed into the mountains with his attendants. Possessing profound knowledge of toxins and antidotes, he selected only the most potent herbs, discarding the useless ones, and crafted a pure therapeutic elixir. Washing the King's body with this mountain bath, he maintained Sikandar's health and vigor for years.
Yet as time passed, Sikandar yielded to nocturnal pleasures, spending sleepless nights in the arms of moon-faced women. This excessive indulgence subtly drained the monarch's vitality. When the Indian physician next examined the King, he detected subtle signs of decline in the clarity of Sikandar's eyes. He candidly warned the monarch that relentless intimacy prematurely ages a young man's frame, discerning that Sikandar had gone three nights without rest. Though the King insisted his body felt no weakness, the physician remained unconvinced.
That night, the sage prepared a complex potent tonic for physical depletion. Sikandar, reflecting on the physician's counsel, chose to sleep alone, abstaining from intimate company. The following morning, when the physician inspected the King, he saw that his eyes were radiant and free from fatigue. Knowing the monarch had rested fully, the physician joyfully tossed away the potion he had brewed, took up a goblet of wine, and called for music and feasting.
When Sikandar asked why he discarded a remedy fashioned with such painstaking effort, the healer replied that because the King had slept alone and allowed his body to naturally regenerate, no medicine was needed—temperance itself was the ultimate cure. Sikandar laughed in relief, freed from all anxiety. He praised the unmatched wisdom of India and rewarded the physician with a robe of honor, a purse of gold dinars, and a magnificent black horse adorned with golden trappings, praying that true wisdom would ever attend his noble counsel.
#1
بفرمود تا رفت پیشش پزشک
✦
که علت بگفتی چو دیدی سرشک
“He commanded that the physician be brought before him, so that upon observing his tears he might diagnose the affliction.”
#2
سر دردمندی بدو گفت چیست
✦
که بر درد زان پس بباید گریست
“He asked him, 'What is the root of a suffering body, over which one must thereafter weep in pain?'”
#3
بدو گفت هر کس که افزون خورد
✦
چو بر خوان نشیند خورش ننگرد
“The physician replied, 'Whoever eats to excess will turn away in disgust when sitting at the feast table.'”
#4
نباشد فراوان خورش تن درست
✦
بزرگ آنک او تن درستی بجست
“'A body filled with abundant food cannot remain healthy; great is he who seeks true physical health.'”
#5
بیامیزم اکنون ترا دارویی
✦
گیاها فراز آرم از هر سویی
“'I shall now concoct a remedy for you, gathering herbs from every side and mountain peak.'”
#6
که همواره باشی تو زان تن درست
✦
نباید به دارو ترا دست شست
“'So that you may always remain bodily sound, never having to wash your hands of health for lack of cure.'”
#7
همان آرزوها بیفزایدت
✦
چو افزون خوری چیز نگزایدت
“'It will heighten your natural desires, yet no matter how much you feast, nothing shall harm you.'”
#8
همان یاد داری سخنهای نغز
✦
بیفزاید اندر تنت خون و مغز
“'It will keep your memory sharp for eloquent words, and increase the blood and marrow within your body.'”
#9
شوی بر تن خویشتن کامگار
✦
دلت شاد گردد چو خرم بهار
“'You shall become sovereign over your own frame, and your heart will blossom glad as the vibrant spring.'”
#10
همان رنگ چهرت به جای آورد
✦
به هر کار پاکیزه رای آورد
“'It will restore the glowing color of your countenance, and bring pure, clear judgment to your every endeavor.'”
#11
نگردد پراگنده مویت سپید
✦
ز گیتی سپیدی کند ناامید
“'Your dark hair shall not turn scattered white, saving you from the despair of aging in this world.'”
#12
سکندر بدو گفت نشنیده‌ام
✦
نه کس را ز شاهان چنین دیده‌ام
“Sikandar said to him, 'I have never heard of such medicine, nor seen any among the kings possess it.'”
#13
گر آری تو این نغز دارو به جای
✦
تو باشی به گیتی مرا رهنمای
“'If you can bring forth this wondrous cure, you shall be my guiding light in all the world.'”
#14
خریدار گردم ترا من به جان
✦
شوی بی‌گزند از بد بدگمان
“'I shall cherish you with my very soul, and protect you unharmed from the wickedness of evil-thinkers.'”
#15
ورا خلعت و نیکویها بساخت
✦
ز دانا پزشکان سرش برفراخت
“He prepared robes of honor and riches for him, exalting his head above all the wise physicians.”
#16
پزشک سراینده آمد به کوه
✦
بیاورد با خویشتن زان گروه
“The eloquent physician departed for the mountains, taking a company of helpers along with him.”
#17
ز دانایی او را فزون بود بهر
✦
همی زهر بشناخت از پای زهر
“His share of wisdom was vast indeed; he knew every poison and could distinguish its exact antidote.”
#18
گیاهان کوهی فراوان درود
✦
بیفگند زو هرچ بیکار بود
“He gathered abundant mountain herbs, discarding whatever was ineffective or useless.”
#19
ازو پاک تریاکها برگزید
✦
بیامیخت دارو چنانچون سزید
“He selected the purest elixirs from them and blended the cure exactly as was fitting.”
#20
تنش را به داروی کوهی بشست
✦
همی داشتش سالیان تن درست
“He bathed the King's body with the mountain remedy, keeping him robust and sound for many years.”
#21
چنان شد که او شب نخفتی بسی
✦
بیامیختی شاد با هر کسی
“Yet it came to pass that the King slept little at night, indulging cheerfully in every pleasure.”
#22
به کار زنان تیز بودی سرش
✦
همی نرم جایی بجستی برش
“His heart burned fiercely for the company of women, ever seeking soft bosoms in secret chambers.”
#23
ازان سوی کاهش گرایید شاه
✦
نکرد اندر آن هیچ تن را نگاه
“Because of this, physical decline began to overtake the King, though he took no heed of his body's plight.”
#24
چنان بد که روزی بیامد پزشک
✦
ز کاهش نشان یافت اندر سرشک
“It so happened that one day the physician arrived, and perceived signs of weakness in the King's eye.”
#25
بدو گفت کز خفت و خیز زنان
✦
جوان پیر گردد به تن بی‌گمان
“He said to him, 'Through excessive intimacy with women, a young man will without doubt grow prematurely old.'”
#26
برآنم که بی‌خواب بودی سه شب
✦
به من بازگوی این و بگشای لب
“'I perceive that you have been without sleep for three nights; speak the truth to me and open your lips.'”
#27
سکندر بدو گفت من روشنم
✦
از آزار سستی ندارد تنم
“Sikandar said to him, 'My spirit is bright, and my frame suffers no weakness or infirmity.'”
#28
پسندیده دانای هندوستان
✦
نبود اندر آن کار همداستان
“Yet the approved sage of Hindustan agreed not with his words, knowing the truth.”
#29
چو شب تیره شد آن نبشته بجست
✦
بیاورد داروی کاهش درست
“When darkness fell, he sought out the prescription and correctly prepared a medicine for physical decline.”
#30
همان نیز تنها سکندر بخفت
✦
نیامیخت با ماه دیدار جفت
“Meanwhile, Sikandar slept alone that night, without engaging with any moon-faced consort.”
#31
به شبگیر هور اندر آمد پزشک
✦
نگه کرد و بی‌بار دیدش سرشک
“At dawn, as the sun ascended, the physician entered, looked upon the King, and saw his eyes clear and unburdened.”
#32
بینداخت دارو به رامش نشست
✦
یکی جام بگرفت شادان به دست
“He cast away the prepared medicine, sat down in ease, and happily took a wine-goblet in hand.”
#33
بفرمود تا خوان بیاراستند
✦
نوازندهٔ رود و می‌خواستند
“He bade them arrange the feast table, calling for musicians to play the lute and for wine to flow.”
#34
بدو گفت شاه آن چرا ریختی
✦
چو با رنج دارو برآمیختی
“The King asked him, 'Why did you pour away the cure, after taking such pains to blend the remedy?'”
#35
ورا گفت شاه جهان دوش جفت
✦
نجست و شب تیره تنها بخفت
“He replied, 'The Lord of the World sought no consort last night, but slept alone through the dark night.'”
#36
چو تنها بخسپی تو ای شهریار
✦
نیاید ترا هیچ دارو به کار
“'When you sleep alone, O Monarch, you have no need of any medicine whatsoever.'”
#37
سکندر بخندید و زو شاد شد
✦
ز تیمار وز درد آزاد شد
“Sikandar laughed, filled with joy by his wisdom, freed completely from anxiety and pain.”
#38
وزان پس ز داننده دل کرد شاد
✦
ورا گفت بی‌هند گیتی مباد
“Thereafter his heart gladdened in the learned sage, and he said, 'May the world never be bereft of India's wisdom!'”
#39
بزرگان و اخترشناسان همه
✦
تو گویی به هندوستان شد رمه
“'All the great men and astrologers seem, as it were, to have gathered their flock in Hindustan.'”
#40
وزانجا بیامد سوی خان خویش
✦
همه شب همی ساخت درمان خویش
“From there the physician returned to his own lodging, spending the night preparing remedies.”
#41
چو برزد سر از کوه روشن چراغ
✦
چو دریا فروزنده شد دشت و راغ
“When the radiant lamp of the sun emerged from the mountain, illuminating the plain and meadow like a shining sea,”
#42
سکندر بیامد بران بارگاه
✦
دو لب پر ز خنده دل از غم تباه
“Sikandar entered the courtly hall, his lips parted in laughter and his heart cleansed of grief.”
#43
فرستاده را دید سالار بار
✦
بپرسید و بردش بر شهریار
“The chamberlain saw the physician messenger, greeted him, and escorted him to the King's presence.”
#44
یکی بدره دینار و اسپی سیاه
✦
بهرای زرین بفرمود شاه
“The King ordered a purse of gold dinars and a sleek black horse outfitted with golden harness,”
#45
پزشک خردمند را داد و گفت
✦
که با پاک رایت خرد باد جفت
“Bestowing them upon the wise physician, saying: 'May wisdom ever be paired with your pure counsel!'”