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The Adventures of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il
A Seventeenth-Century Persian Popular Romance
Series:
Author:
The Adventures of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il recounts the dramatic formative years of the Safavid empire (1501â1722), as preserved in Iranian popular memory by coffeehouse storytellers and written down in manuscripts starting in the late seventeenth century. Beginning with the Safavidsâ saintly ancestors in Ardabil, the story goes on to relate the conquests of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il (r. 1501â1524) and his devoted QezelbÄsh followers as they battle TorkmÄns, Uzbeks, Ottomans, and even Georgians and Ethiopians in their quest to establish a Twelver ShiÊ¿i realm. Barry Woodâs translation brings out the verve and popular tone of the Persian text. A heady mixture of history and legend, The Adventures of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il sheds important light on the historical self-awareness of late Safavid Iran.
Barry Wood, Ph.D. (2002, Harvard University) is Assistant Professor of Humanities at Dixie State University. He has published articles on Persian art, manuscripts, and cultural memory in journals including Ars Orientalis and Iranian Studies. This is his first book.
"The translation is masterly executed. Wood must be indeed complimented with this splendid rendering, bringing the Persian original fully to life for his English audience... Woodâs introduction is brief but excellent, full of information and pregnant analysis of the narrative...The book is certainly interesting for historians as there are many allusions to historical events. I certainly recommend the book for students and scholars of Persian and Turkish Studies."
Ali-Asghar Seyed-Gohrab in: BIBLIOTHECA ORIENTALIS, LXXVII N° 1-2, January-April 2020.
Ali-Asghar Seyed-Gohrab in: BIBLIOTHECA ORIENTALIS, LXXVII N° 1-2, January-April 2020.
Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
Notes on Transliteration
1 The story of Solá¹Än FiruzshÄh
2 The story of Ê¿Evaz al-KhavÄṣṣ and his son Moḥammad al-ḤÄfeáº
3 The story of SalÄḥoddin Rashid
4 The story of Seyyed JebrÄʾil
5 The story of Solá¹Än KhwÄjeh Ê¿Ali
6 The battle between Solá¹Än Ê¿Ali MirzÄ and Aybeh Solá¹Än and the death of Solá¹Än Ê¿Ali
7 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il catches sight of His Majesty the Lord of the Age
8 The emergence of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il from GilÄn and LÄhijÄn with seven people, and the conquest of ṬÄrom
9 The story of the sons of Rostam ShÄh, and of how His Majesty the Shadow of God went to Ardabil; the killing of Ê¿Ali KhÄn Solá¹Än
10 Alvand sends Ê¿OthmÄn Solá¹Än to fight the ShÄh, who in turn sends QarÄpari QÄjÄr; the latter is killed, and the TorkmÄns are defeated
11 King Alvand goes to the Anatolian emperor and seeks help; he comes to Iran and is defeated; his qualities
12 The world-conquering ShÄhâs proposal to TÄjlu Begom, the daughter of Ê¿Äbedin Beg ShÄmlu, and the wedding feast of that fortunate prince
13 Birth of the Shadow of God, ShÄh ṬahmÄsp, in the village of RanÄn near Eá¹£fahÄn
14 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il sends an army against Solá¹Än MorÄd, and that failure is captured
15 Solá¹Än MorÄd flees toward ShirÄz; Moḥammad Karahi captures him and sends him to ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il, but he flees again
16 Solá¹Än MorÄd flees toward ShirÄz as ElyÄs Beg pursues him
17 ElyÄs Beg goes to DÄmghÄn to fight Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi and is killed by that manâs duplicity
18 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il proceeds from Qom towards Firuzkuh and MÄzandarÄn to defeat Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi
19 Ê¿Ali KiyÄ goes to take the pass of Firuzkuh
20 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il arrives at the fortress of MÄrÄnkuh and does battle with Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi, who is killed
21 ShuÊ¿ayb ÄqÄ is killed by Solá¹Än Aḥmad SÄruʾi; Moḥammad Karahi rebels, Solá¹Än Aḥmad is killed, and Yazd is captured
22 His Majesty arrives at Yazd, and Moḥammad Karahi is killed
23 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il goes from Yazd to Ṭabas; Tardi BÄbÄ is killed, and Amir KamÄloddin Ḥosayn comes to the royal court on behalf of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn BÄyqarÄ
24 Ê¿Abdi Beg is martyred at the hands of Ḥosayn Beg, son of á¹¢Ärem KhÄn the Kurd; ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il arrives, and á¹¢Ärem KhÄn flees
25 The conquest of BaghdÄd by the QezelbÄsh; BÄyrak Solá¹Än flees to Moá¹£ul, and ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il visits Najaf
26 The royal banners leave for Ê¿ErÄq and KhorrÄmÄbÄd, where MalekshÄh Rostam is
27 The ShÄh and his army come to fight MalekshÄh Rostam, who pledges obedience; together they go to Ḥovayzeh to fight Malek FayyÄz
28 His Majesty sends Nur Ê¿Ali Khalifeh to the á¹¢ufis of Rum on his behalf, and he accepts oaths of fealty in Tabriz and DiyÄrbakr
29 The royal banners head for DiyÄrbakr, and ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il does battle with Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr
30 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il sends a letter to Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh, who responds with an offer of peace; His Majesty returns to ÄdharbÄyjÄn
31 SÄru Aá¹£lÄn and SÄru QaplÄn come to the aid of Moḥammadi Solá¹Än and are killed by QarÄkhÄn the brother of Moḥammad KhÄn OstÄjlu, who is victorious
32 On the nature and circumstances of Solá¹Än Salim, son of Solá¹Än BÄyazid of Anatolia
33 QarÄkhÄn attacks ArzenjÄn, and Moḥammad KhÄn sends Solá¹Än BÄyazid of Anatolia an envoy with womenâs clothing
34 Solá¹Än BÄyazid and Solá¹Än QÄná¹£aw, the ruler of Egypt, fight against Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr
35 ShÄhi Beg KhÄn, son of Abulkhayr KhÄn, makes his emergence and seizes TorkestÄn from the descendants of Amir Timur
36 Of the sons of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn BÄyqarÄ and their circumstances, and how their fates were ruined
37 BÄbor PÄdeshÄh goes to KÄbol, while ShÄhi Beg KhÄn goes to Balkh and BadiÊ¿ozzamÄn sets out to fight him
38 ShÄhi Beg KhÄn comes to DÄmghÄn, then returns to Samarqand; Moḥammad Ḥosayn MirzÄ comes to the service of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il; Amir Najm II and the great commanders subdue KhorÄsÄn, entrust it to the sons of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn MirzÄ, and leave
39 The victorious royal banners come to Marv, and the ShÄh plays a trick on ShÄhi Beg KhÄn the ruler of TorkestÄn, who is killed
40 MirzÄ Moḥammad ṬÄlesh returns from MÄzandarÄn and is met by the ShÄh; BÄrsil KhÄn, the king of Urgench, comes to the foot of the royal throne with Ovays MirzÄ and BÄbor PÄdeshÄh; Amir Najm II goes to TorkestÄn
41 Amir Najm II and his commanders head for TorkestÄn, and BÄbor PÄdeshÄh comes to Balkh
42 Amir Najm II arrives at Qarshi; Shaykham MirzÄ mounts a night attack on the QezelbÄsh encampment; Amir Najm executes his nephew Moḥammad KÄáºem; the victory of Amir Najm and the death of Shaykham MirzÄ
43 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än goes to Balkh; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn comes, and KhorÄsÄn is seized by an Uzbek army; ShÄh ṬahmÄsp KhÄn MirzÄ leaves HarÄt for Ê¿ErÄq; ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il receives word that Amir Najm II has been killed
44 ShÄh ṬahmÄsp returns to Iran and to His Majesty, who summons an army to conquer KhorÄsÄn and TorkestÄn; the kings of TorkestÄn flee
45 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än reaches QÄsem KhÄn, the PÄdeshÄh of the steppe of BaghlÄn, who sends his son Abulkhayr KhÄn with a great army to fight ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il; Abulkhayr KhÄn is killed, and the Uzbek kings flee
46 The glorious banners turn back to Iran, and His Majesty the Shadow of God learns of the death of SolaymÄn MirzÄ in Tabriz; he sends an emissary to Anatolia to see Solá¹Än BÄyazid, the Qayá¹£ar of Rum
47 Solá¹Än Salim, the PÄdeshÄh of Rum, comes to Iran and arrives at ChÄlderÄn; the victorious banners of the Shadow of God turn toward him, but the QezelbÄsh are defeated
48 Moḥammad ZamÄn MirzÄ, the son of BadiÊ¿ozzamÄn MirzÄ, rebels and goes to AstarÄbÄd; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn arrives at Balkh with all his corruption
49 Solá¹Än Salim learns of the theft and burning of his supplies by Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr and the death of Moá¹£á¹afÄ PÄshÄ at the hands of his men, then goes to fight Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh and kills him
50 Solá¹Än Salim, the ruler of Anatolia, fights Solá¹Än QÄná¹£aw, the king of Egypt, who is killed
51 Solá¹Än MorÄd, the son of YaÊ¿qub PÄdeshÄh son of Ḥasan PÄshÄ the TorkmÄn, comes to conquer DiyÄrbakr and is killed by Aḥmad Solá¹Än QÄjÄr
52 GhazÄli joins forces with Solá¹Än SolaymÄn to fight Nur Ê¿Ali Khalifeh, who is killed by the Anatolians
53 Solá¹Än SolaymÄn comes to Iran a second time, and GhazÄli is captured by His Majesty the Shadow of God
54 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il learns of the death of Solá¹Än Salim and of Solá¹Än SolaymÄnâs accession to the throne and return to Istanbul; His Majesty leaves ChÄlderÄn with the intention of conquering KhorÄsÄn
55 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än the Uzbek comes to Balkh and fights Kopek Solá¹Än, and the Uzbek army is defeated; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn comes to HarÄt and returns without having attained his goal; Amir KhÄn TorkmÄn, the governor of HarÄt, kills Amir Moḥammad and is deposed; His Majesty sends Durmesh KhÄn to fight in HarÄt
56 Durmesh KhÄn comes to HarÄt, seizes Amir KhÄn TorkmÄn, and sends him to the royal court, then settles down to rule the city
Bibliography
Index
Acknowledgments
Preface
Notes on Transliteration
Part 1: The Ancestors of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il
1 The story of Solá¹Än FiruzshÄh
2 The story of Ê¿Evaz al-KhavÄṣṣ and his son Moḥammad al-ḤÄfeáº
3 The story of SalÄḥoddin Rashid
4 The story of Seyyed JebrÄʾil
5 The story of Solá¹Än KhwÄjeh Ê¿Ali
6 The battle between Solá¹Än Ê¿Ali MirzÄ and Aybeh Solá¹Än and the death of Solá¹Än Ê¿Ali
Part 2: ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il vs. the TorkmÄns
7 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il catches sight of His Majesty the Lord of the Age
8 The emergence of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il from GilÄn and LÄhijÄn with seven people, and the conquest of ṬÄrom
9 The story of the sons of Rostam ShÄh, and of how His Majesty the Shadow of God went to Ardabil; the killing of Ê¿Ali KhÄn Solá¹Än
10 Alvand sends Ê¿OthmÄn Solá¹Än to fight the ShÄh, who in turn sends QarÄpari QÄjÄr; the latter is killed, and the TorkmÄns are defeated
11 King Alvand goes to the Anatolian emperor and seeks help; he comes to Iran and is defeated; his qualities
12 The world-conquering ShÄhâs proposal to TÄjlu Begom, the daughter of Ê¿Äbedin Beg ShÄmlu, and the wedding feast of that fortunate prince
13 Birth of the Shadow of God, ShÄh ṬahmÄsp, in the village of RanÄn near Eá¹£fahÄn
14 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il sends an army against Solá¹Än MorÄd, and that failure is captured
15 Solá¹Än MorÄd flees toward ShirÄz; Moḥammad Karahi captures him and sends him to ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il, but he flees again
16 Solá¹Än MorÄd flees toward ShirÄz as ElyÄs Beg pursues him
17 ElyÄs Beg goes to DÄmghÄn to fight Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi and is killed by that manâs duplicity
18 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il proceeds from Qom towards Firuzkuh and MÄzandarÄn to defeat Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi
19 Ê¿Ali KiyÄ goes to take the pass of Firuzkuh
20 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il arrives at the fortress of MÄrÄnkuh and does battle with Ḥosayn KiyÄ CholÄvi, who is killed
21 ShuÊ¿ayb ÄqÄ is killed by Solá¹Än Aḥmad SÄruʾi; Moḥammad Karahi rebels, Solá¹Än Aḥmad is killed, and Yazd is captured
22 His Majesty arrives at Yazd, and Moḥammad Karahi is killed
23 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il goes from Yazd to Ṭabas; Tardi BÄbÄ is killed, and Amir KamÄloddin Ḥosayn comes to the royal court on behalf of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn BÄyqarÄ
24 Ê¿Abdi Beg is martyred at the hands of Ḥosayn Beg, son of á¹¢Ärem KhÄn the Kurd; ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il arrives, and á¹¢Ärem KhÄn flees
25 The conquest of BaghdÄd by the QezelbÄsh; BÄyrak Solá¹Än flees to Moá¹£ul, and ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il visits Najaf
26 The royal banners leave for Ê¿ErÄq and KhorrÄmÄbÄd, where MalekshÄh Rostam is
27 The ShÄh and his army come to fight MalekshÄh Rostam, who pledges obedience; together they go to Ḥovayzeh to fight Malek FayyÄz
28 His Majesty sends Nur Ê¿Ali Khalifeh to the á¹¢ufis of Rum on his behalf, and he accepts oaths of fealty in Tabriz and DiyÄrbakr
29 The royal banners head for DiyÄrbakr, and ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il does battle with Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr
30 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il sends a letter to Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh, who responds with an offer of peace; His Majesty returns to ÄdharbÄyjÄn
31 SÄru Aá¹£lÄn and SÄru QaplÄn come to the aid of Moḥammadi Solá¹Än and are killed by QarÄkhÄn the brother of Moḥammad KhÄn OstÄjlu, who is victorious
32 On the nature and circumstances of Solá¹Än Salim, son of Solá¹Än BÄyazid of Anatolia
33 QarÄkhÄn attacks ArzenjÄn, and Moḥammad KhÄn sends Solá¹Än BÄyazid of Anatolia an envoy with womenâs clothing
34 Solá¹Än BÄyazid and Solá¹Än QÄná¹£aw, the ruler of Egypt, fight against Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr
Part 3: ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il vs. the Uzbeks
35 ShÄhi Beg KhÄn, son of Abulkhayr KhÄn, makes his emergence and seizes TorkestÄn from the descendants of Amir Timur
36 Of the sons of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn BÄyqarÄ and their circumstances, and how their fates were ruined
37 BÄbor PÄdeshÄh goes to KÄbol, while ShÄhi Beg KhÄn goes to Balkh and BadiÊ¿ozzamÄn sets out to fight him
38 ShÄhi Beg KhÄn comes to DÄmghÄn, then returns to Samarqand; Moḥammad Ḥosayn MirzÄ comes to the service of ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il; Amir Najm II and the great commanders subdue KhorÄsÄn, entrust it to the sons of Solá¹Än Ḥosayn MirzÄ, and leave
39 The victorious royal banners come to Marv, and the ShÄh plays a trick on ShÄhi Beg KhÄn the ruler of TorkestÄn, who is killed
40 MirzÄ Moḥammad ṬÄlesh returns from MÄzandarÄn and is met by the ShÄh; BÄrsil KhÄn, the king of Urgench, comes to the foot of the royal throne with Ovays MirzÄ and BÄbor PÄdeshÄh; Amir Najm II goes to TorkestÄn
41 Amir Najm II and his commanders head for TorkestÄn, and BÄbor PÄdeshÄh comes to Balkh
42 Amir Najm II arrives at Qarshi; Shaykham MirzÄ mounts a night attack on the QezelbÄsh encampment; Amir Najm executes his nephew Moḥammad KÄáºem; the victory of Amir Najm and the death of Shaykham MirzÄ
43 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än goes to Balkh; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn comes, and KhorÄsÄn is seized by an Uzbek army; ShÄh ṬahmÄsp KhÄn MirzÄ leaves HarÄt for Ê¿ErÄq; ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il receives word that Amir Najm II has been killed
44 ShÄh ṬahmÄsp returns to Iran and to His Majesty, who summons an army to conquer KhorÄsÄn and TorkestÄn; the kings of TorkestÄn flee
45 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än reaches QÄsem KhÄn, the PÄdeshÄh of the steppe of BaghlÄn, who sends his son Abulkhayr KhÄn with a great army to fight ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il; Abulkhayr KhÄn is killed, and the Uzbek kings flee
Part 4: ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il vs. Solá¹Än Salim
46 The glorious banners turn back to Iran, and His Majesty the Shadow of God learns of the death of SolaymÄn MirzÄ in Tabriz; he sends an emissary to Anatolia to see Solá¹Än BÄyazid, the Qayá¹£ar of Rum
47 Solá¹Än Salim, the PÄdeshÄh of Rum, comes to Iran and arrives at ChÄlderÄn; the victorious banners of the Shadow of God turn toward him, but the QezelbÄsh are defeated
48 Moḥammad ZamÄn MirzÄ, the son of BadiÊ¿ozzamÄn MirzÄ, rebels and goes to AstarÄbÄd; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn arrives at Balkh with all his corruption
49 Solá¹Än Salim learns of the theft and burning of his supplies by Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh Dhulqadr and the death of Moá¹£á¹afÄ PÄshÄ at the hands of his men, then goes to fight Ê¿AlÄʾoddawleh and kills him
50 Solá¹Än Salim, the ruler of Anatolia, fights Solá¹Än QÄná¹£aw, the king of Egypt, who is killed
51 Solá¹Än MorÄd, the son of YaÊ¿qub PÄdeshÄh son of Ḥasan PÄshÄ the TorkmÄn, comes to conquer DiyÄrbakr and is killed by Aḥmad Solá¹Än QÄjÄr
52 GhazÄli joins forces with Solá¹Än SolaymÄn to fight Nur Ê¿Ali Khalifeh, who is killed by the Anatolians
53 Solá¹Än SolaymÄn comes to Iran a second time, and GhazÄli is captured by His Majesty the Shadow of God
Part 5: The Later Years
54 ShÄh EsmÄÊ¿il learns of the death of Solá¹Än Salim and of Solá¹Än SolaymÄnâs accession to the throne and return to Istanbul; His Majesty leaves ChÄlderÄn with the intention of conquering KhorÄsÄn
55 JÄni Beg Solá¹Än the Uzbek comes to Balkh and fights Kopek Solá¹Än, and the Uzbek army is defeated; Ê¿Obayd KhÄn comes to HarÄt and returns without having attained his goal; Amir KhÄn TorkmÄn, the governor of HarÄt, kills Amir Moḥammad and is deposed; His Majesty sends Durmesh KhÄn to fight in HarÄt
56 Durmesh KhÄn comes to HarÄt, seizes Amir KhÄn TorkmÄn, and sends him to the royal court, then settles down to rule the city
Bibliography
Index
All interested in Iranian history and popular literature, particularly that of the Safavid period, as well as both specialists and non-specialists interested in the popular preservation of cultural memory.