The Persian Empire by Kia Mehrdad;

The Persian Empire by Kia Mehrdad;

Author:Kia, Mehrdad;
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 4537667
Publisher: ABC-CLIO, LLC
Published: 2017-10-16T04:00:00+00:00


Illustration depicts the legendary king Fereydun receiving the envoy from his two sons, Salm and Tur. Fereydun is best known in Greater Iran’s legendary history as the hero who defeated the tyrant Zahhak (Dahak) and liberated his people from the yoke of injustice and oppression. Fereydun divided his kingdom among his three sons, giving Rum to Salm, Turkestan to Tur, and Iran and India to his youngest son, Iraj. A conflict erupted among the three sons, which resulted in the murder of Iraj by his two brothers. (San Diego Museum of Art/Gift of Edwin Binney III/Bridgeman Images)

Once the three sons and their new brides arrive home, Fereydun bestows a name on each of his sons. The oldest, who reacted with prudence toward the dragon, is named Salm. The second son, who displayed bravery and courage, is called Tur, and the third son, who had demonstrated extraordinary prudence and courage, is named Iraj. After consulting with his astrologers and confidants, King Fereydun divides his vast kingdom among his three sons. Salm receives the lands of the west, principally Rum (Byzantium) or Asia Minor; Tur is allotted the eastern provinces, the lands of the Turks (Turan); and Iraj receives the middle kingdom, which is centered in Greater Iran. This division ignites the jealousy of the two older brothers toward Iraj, for he is believed to have received the best kingdom among the three. Salm writes to his brother Tur and expresses his outrage at the injustice of being the oldest son and yet receiving a faraway land as his royal inheritance. Tur, who shares his older brother’s disappointment, rushes to visit Salm. Once together, the two brothers compose a message to their father and dispatch an ambassador to hand-deliver it to Fereydun. In their message they complain about the injustice of receiving kingdoms at the ends of the earth, while Iraj has been bestowed the best kingdom in the world. They demand that their ailing father remove Iraj from the throne of Iran and banish him to a faraway place. After receiving the message from his sons Fereydun is outraged, but he is even more shocked by the response from his youngest son, Iraj, who suggests that he should step down from the throne as a means of appeasing his two older brothers. After further conversation between Iraj and Fereydun, who has by now recognized the evil nature of his two greedy sons, Iraj travels to the camp of his two brothers to negotiate a peaceful resolution to their dispute. Through a letter, Fereydun informs his two older sons that Iraj has decided to abdicate the throne and that his only expectation is that they treat Iraj with kindness and compassion. Instead of receiving their youngest brother with kindheartedness and magnanimity, however, Salm and Tur, who are outraged by the serene composure of Iraj and his popularity among their troops, murder him despite his pleas for mercy. They then send the decapitated head of Iraj to their father, who is devastated by the criminal behavior of his two sons.



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