Rostam

For other uses, see Rostam (disambiguation).

Rostam mourning Sohrab. Persian miniature.

For the historical general who fought at the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah for the Sassanid Empire, also mentioned in the Shahnameh, see Rostam Farrokhzād.

Rostam or Rustam (Persian: رُستَم‎, pronounced [ɾostæm, ɾʊstæm]) is the epic hero of the story, Rostam and Sohrab, part of the Persian epic of Shahnameh in Persian mythology and son of Zal and Rudaba. In some ways, the position of Rostam in the historical tradition is parallel to that of Surena, the hero of the Carrhae. His figure was endowed with many features of the historical personality of Rostam. The latter was always represented as the mightiest of Iranian paladins, and the atmosphere of the episodes in which he features is strongly reminiscent of the Arsacid period. He was immortalized by the 10th century poet Ferdowsi of Tus in the Shahnameh or Epic of Kings, which contain pre-Islamic folklore and history.

Background

In Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, Rostam is a native of the Zabulistan region. Rostam is the champion of champions and is involved in numerous stories, constituting some of the most popular (and arguably some of most masterfully created) parts of the Shahnameh. As a young child, he slays the maddened white elephant of the king Manuchehr with just one blow of the mace owned by his grandfather Sam, son of Nariman. He then tames his legendary stallion, Rakhsh. The etymology of the name Rostam is from Raodh+Takhma, where Raodh means growth, reaped, developed and Takhma means brave. In the Avesta, the form is *Raosta-takhma and in Pahlavi *Rodastahm.

Mehrdad Bahar regards the etymology of the name to be "Ruta-staxma", i.e. the river that descends, and argues that Rostam could have been an ancient god of the river Helmand. The fact that Rostam's mother is called Rudabeh (i.e. The river of water) and his father is Zal who has white hair, Bahar continues the argument to say that Zal is a metaphor for mountains from which the river forms, whose head is always white with snow.

Birth

In Persian mythology, Rudaba's labor of Rostam was prolonged due to the extraordinary size of her baby. Zal, her lover and husband, was certain that his wife would die in labor. Rudaba was near death when Zal decided to summon the Simurgh. The Simurgh appeared and instructed him upon how to perform a "Rostamzad" (Persian equivalent for Caesarean section), thus saving Rudaba and the child.

Haft Khan

Rostam kills Esfandyar. Medieval Persian miniature

Main article: Rostam's Seven Labours

He passes through a hero's journey to save his sovereign, Kay Kavus who is captured by the demons (Divs) of Mazandaran. This journey is called "Rostam's Seven Quests" (Persian: Haft Khan-e Rostam).

There are some similarities between the legends of Rostam and those pertaining to the great Irish hero Cúchulainn. They both defeat a ferocious beast as a very young man, slay their sons in combat (Rostam and Sohrab, a motif also found in the Lay of Hildebrand), are virtually invincible in combat, and are murdered by treachery while killing their murderer on their last breath.

Two Persian heroes, Rostam and Esfandyar, share Labours stories with Hercules.

Alternate views

It is written by the Royal Central Asian Society in the Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society that the struggle between Rostam and the white demon represents a struggle between Persians and invaders from the north, from the Caspian provinces.

Descent and other relations

With Tahmineh, princess of Samangam, Rostam had a son called Sohrab, who was killed accidentally by his father in the time of Kay Kavus. Rostam later had a daughter called Banu Goshasp, who had a full brother called Faramarz, and both became renowned heroes in Turan and India. Goshasp, through her marriage with Giv had a son, Bijan.

Rostam had also a half brother called Shaghad, who was always jealous of him and provoked his death.

Just as famous as Rostam was his horse Rakhsh, which had an incredibly long life like Rostam, due to divine protection, and died at the same time as Rostam.

Gallery

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  A Mughal Era manuscript illustrating how Rustam drags the Khaqan of China from his Elephant.

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  A Mughal Era manuscript illustrating how Rustam shot Ashkabus.

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  A Mughal Era manuscript illustrating how Rustam kills the White Demon.

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  A Mughal Era manuscript illustrating how Rustam rescues Bizhan from the pit.

See also

• Surena
• List of Shahnameh characters
• Rostam and Sohrab
• Banu Goshasp

External links

• Web Resources
  • Shahnameh, by Hakim Abol-Qasem Ferdowsi Tusi, the complete work (64 Epics), in Persian (ParsTech). This work can be freely downloaded (File size, compiled in the form of an HTML Help File: 1.4 MB).
  • Iraj Bashiri, Characters of Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, Iran Chamber Society, 2003.
  • Shahnameh, English translation by Helen Zimmern.
  • Shahnameh. Helen Zimmern translation.
  • Shahnameh, Arthur and Edmond Warner translation.
  • New Translation of 'Persian Book of Kings' - March, 2006 from NPR, and "The Epic of Iran" - April, 2006, from the New York Times. Also, on 14 May 2006, Washington Post Pulitzer Prize winning book critic Michael Dirda reviewed Dick Davis's translation "Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings" "This marvelous translation of an ancient Persian classic brings these stories alive for a new audience.". The illustrated three-volume slipcase edition of this translation is ISBN 0-934211-97-3

• Persian sources
  • Complete Persian text
  • Shahnameh website