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Monks Draw the Shah from the Zark

Monks Draw the Shah from the Zark

From E10.11, The Death of Yazdegard. It illustrates E10.11.35–46 (to E10.11.57):

  • E10.11.35
    As daylight came and people filled the way,Two noble men approached where Yazdegard lay.
  • E10.11.36
    One austere monk approached the riverside,And saw the naked body in the tide.
  • E10.11.37
    He hurried from the bank in wild dismay,And told the monks his news without delay:
  • E10.11.38
    “The Shah lies naked in the waters dark,Within the turning whirlpool here at Zark.”
  • E10.11.39
    Then monks and prelates hastened from each side,To mourn the monarch lying in the tide.
  • E10.11.40
    A monk cried out in grief: “O noble man,O crown-possessor from the royal clan!
  • E10.11.41
    No eye has seen a monarch in this plight;Before Christ, none had heard of such a sight.
  • E10.11.42
    His wicked slave, that misbegotten hound,Has brought this shame upon the royal ground.
  • E10.11.43
    He fawned upon his lord, then brought him low;May Mahwi reap the curses that we sow.
  • E10.11.44
    Woe for the head and crown, the stature tall,For heart and wisdom, counsel; woe for all.
  • E10.11.45
    Woe for the royal line once held so dear,Woe for Ardeshir’s last descendant here.
  • E10.11.46
    Woe for the Sasanian throne, its lost renown,Its farr, its stature, the Kayanian crown.

In the picture

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