’s expedition to qannuj and khargah 49

Faramarz’s Expedition to Qannuj and Khargah: Mutual Influences of the Shahnama and the Longer Faramarznama

Marjolijn van Zutphen

In the centuries following the appearance of the Shahnama, a number of epic poems have been written, which collectively form the corpus gener- ally referred to as the Persian Epic Cycle. These poems were composed between the mid-11th and early 14th centuries ad by often anonymous authors with the aim to both complement and emulate the Shahnama. As such, they have the mutaqarib metre, follow the rhyme scheme aa, bb, cc, etcetera and include heroes and kings known from Firdausi. Described by de Blois as epics that “expound on episodes not included in the Šah-nama or touched upon only briefly there”,1 their eponymous heroes belong to or are closely involved with the dynasty of the heroes of , the ancestors and offspring of Rustam. The different poems vary in length from around several hundred to tens of thousands of verses, whilst most titles apply to epics that exist in more than one version. Many of the poems can be found as separate works, but they may also appear as interpolations in Shahnama manuscripts.2 A well-known Persian epic character is Faramarz. A son of Rustam, Faramarz in the first place appears in several episodes of Firdausi’s Shahnama. He further features in a number of poems from the Persian epic cycle, most extensively in the Faramarznama. Rather confusingly, this title applies to two distinctly different poems, one exceeding the other by more than three times in length. Both Faramarznamas were composed by unknown authors and are thought to date from the late 11th or early 12th centuries. Although they are set in different periods and tell completely different stories, both poems deal with Faramarz’s various adventures in . This article deals with the lengthier of the two epics, which is referred to here as the longer Faramarznama.

1 de Blois, “Epics”, 475. 2 For more information on the later epics, see Molé, “L’épopée iranienne après Firdōsi”. Safa, Hamasa-sara’i dar , 283-342, discusses 16 different later epics, but even more poems may be reckoned part of the corpus. 50 marjolijn van zutphen

The first section of the longer Faramarznama may be considered a continuation of a particular Shahnama episode. This episode tells how the newly installed Kay Khusrau sends Faramarz to conquer the region lying between and Qannuj. In a number of Shahnama ver- sions, such as Macan’s edition, this region is indicated more specifically as Khargah. Once Faramarz has departed with his army, however, the Shahnama makes no more mention of this expedition or its outcome. This hiatus is filled by the longer Faramarznama. Three different versions are known to exist of this epic as a separate story. Furthermore, it can be found in abbreviated form in four Shahnama manuscripts as an interpo- lation. The intention of this chapter is to give an impression of the reception of the Shahnama within the context of the Persian epic cycle, as exem­ plified by the longer Faramarznama. By means of a discussion of the Shahnama episode in which Faramarz is sent to India and of the first sec- tion of the longer version, it is shown how the two stories are connected: additions made to later versions of both epics demonstrate how they apparently were subject to mutual influences. At the same time, exam- ples are presented of how these two poems, each in their own way, exist in a number of various forms and can both be regarded as fluid texts.

Faramarz’s Indian Expedition in the Shahnama

The Shahnama text that has been used as the main frame of reference in this chapter is the one edited by Khaleghi-Motlagh.3 This edition has been based upon 15 of the oldest known Shahnama manuscripts, which all date from before 1500 and which the editor considered the most reli- able.4 Free of the additions of later centuries, the text may be considered, as far as possible, as the best representation of Firdausi’s original version. Of course, more than two centuries lie between the supposed date of completion of the Shahnama, in 1010 ad,5 and its oldest known written

3 Shahnama, ed. Dj. Khaleghi-Motlagh (hereafter KM). 4 Khaleghi-Motlagh, “The long road to a critical text of the Shahname”, 57-58, lists these 15 mss, which he selected after examining 45 copies dating from before 1500 that he considered most reliable. 5 Khaleghi-Motlagh, “ i. Life”, 516, gives 25 Esfand 400/8 March 1010 as the date when Firdausi completed the Shahnama.