Rostam - WikiHQ

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| death_place = Kabulistan (present-day Kabul, Afghanistan)

| death_cause = With the conspiracy of his half-brother Shaghad, he fell into a well full of poisoned spears and was killed in Kabulistan.

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| other_names = Rustam Rustem

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| known_for = Seven Labours Battle with Sohrab Battle with Esfandiyārkilling Demon Albino

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| spouse = Tahmina

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| children = Sohrab Faramarz Siyâvash (adopted son) Banu Goshasp (In Banu Goshasp Nama)

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| mother = Rudaba

| father = Zal

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| family = Sām (grandfather) Zavara (brother) Shaghad (half brother)

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thumb|upright|Sohrab and Rostam fighting: from "[[Shahnama|The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp" ( 1522)]]

Rostam or Rustam ( ) is an Iranian legendary hero in Iranian mythology and historical tradition. Being the son of Zāl and Rudaba, his life and work was immortalized by the 10th-century Persian poet Ferdowsi in the Shahnameh, or Epic of Kings, which contains pre-Islamic Iranian folklore and history. However, the roots of the narrative date much earlier.

In the Shahnameh, Rostam and his predecessors are Marzbans of Sistan (present-day Iran and Afghanistan). Rostam is best known for his tragic fight with Esfandiyār, the other legendary Iranian hero; for his expedition to Mazandaran (not to be confused with the modern Mazandaran Province). He is also known for the story of his Seven Labours.

Rostam was always represented as the mightiest of Iranian paladins (holy warriors), and the atmosphere of the episodes in which he features is strongly reminiscent of the Parthian Empire.

He rides the legendary stallion Rakhsh and wears a special suit named Babr-e Bayan in battles.

Origins

While the narrative of the Shahname is the definitive work on Rostam, Ferdowsi did not invent the character; Rostam stories were popular as far back as the seventh century in Pars and originated much earlier, likely in Eastern Iranian-speaking territories.

He famously wears the zīn-i palang or "panther-skin garment":

Background

thumb|upright|Rostam in the murals of [[Panjikent, 7-8th century CE. He is represented with an elongated skull, in the fashion of the Alchon Huns.]]

In the Shahnameh, Rostam is a native of Zabulistan, a historical region roughly corresponding to today's Zabul Province, southern Afghanistan. His mother Rudaba was a princess of Kabul. 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. In Shahnameh, Rostam—like his grandfather Sam—works as both a faithful military general as well as king-maker for the Kayanian dynasty of Persia.

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 Rostam's name is from Common Iranian "*rautas-taxma-, "'river-strong', i.e. 'as strong as a river', Rostam's mother is Rūdāba "(she) of the River Water",

Two Persian heroes, Rostam and Esfandiyār, share stories with the Labours of 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 Div-e Sepid "White Demon" represents a struggle between Persians and invaders from the northern Caspian provinces.

Death

In Shahnameh, the life spans of the heroes who are from the generation of Sām (Rostam's grandfather) are described as being very long, and that of Rostam fits this pattern: he has reached the age of six hundred at the time of his violent demise (dying at the hand of his envious half-brother Shaghad, who kills him by throwing him into a well full of poisoned spears). In this incident, Rostam's faithful steed Rakhsh and the hero's brother, Zavareh are also killed.

Descent and other relations

thumb|Rostam and [[Kay Kavus in castle]]

With Tahmineh, princess of Samangan, Rostam had a son called Sohrab, who was killed accidentally by his father in the time of Kay Kavus. In Banu Goshasp Nama 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.

Historical basis

Ernst Herzfeld maintained that the dynasty of Gondophares represented the House of Suren, highest of the five premier families of Parthian Empire, invested with the hereditary right of commanding the royal armies, and placing the crown on the king's head at the coronation. Probably when around 129 BC, nomad peoples, especially the Indo-Scythians (Sacaraucae, Old Persian Sakaravaka "nomadic Saka” or Saraucae) and the Tocharians attacked the eastern frontier of Parthia, defense was entrusted by the Parthian emperors to the Surens; and the latter eventually not only repelled the Indo-Scythians, but pursued them into Arachosia and the Punjab, this event probably representing interitus Saraucarum ( the perishing of the Sacaraucae) of Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus (Prologue 42).

Echoes of these events are preserved in the legends of the Sistān cycle, partly incorporated in the Shahnameh, but once also surviving as independent epics, such as the Garšāspnāma mentioned in the Tārikh-e Sistān, and the Ketāb al-Sakisarān cited by al-Masudi. These related the deeds of the hero Garshasp and his descendants, Narimān, Sām, Zāl or Dastān, and above all of the latter's son Rostam. It is difficult to relate the Indo-Parthian names known from coins and history to those of the epic, which are possibly honorific titles, since a recently reported silver coin describes Gondophares (spelt in Greek script Hyndopharres) as surnamed Sām. A single ruler may of course have received more than one such title, and the historical names may be repeated in succeeding generations.

Scholars note Rostam was not Ferdowsi's invention. By the end of the Sasanian period, legends of Rostam were well known across all Iranian lands. Ferdowsi was chiefly responsible for glorifying his fame. A substantial collection of Pahlavi texts spoke of the legend of Rostam. The orientalist Josef Markwart traced the background of Rostam, showing his Parthian (Arsacid) origins. The home of Rostam in the Shahnameh was Sakastan, the ancestral seat of the House of Suren, one of the seven Great Parthian Families of Iran (the Seven Parthian Clans). This indicates that the House of Rostam, in the epic, is directly parallel to a Parthian noble house. Rostam's dragon banner was also directly influenced by the Parthians.

Historian Dariush Zolfaghari has argued that the Shahnameh presents warfare not merely as a struggle over territory, but also as a struggle over the survival of Iranian cultural identity and heritage. He emphasizes Rostam as being a key character who is depicted as a military champion and as a protector of Iranian cultural continuity. His character is partially responsible for symbolically safeguarding Persian identity, customs, and political legitimacy. The epic is seen as both a literary work and a cultural model for preserving national heritage during and after a war, with Rostam playing a key part in this analysis.

Family tree

Gallery

Mughal era manuscripts depicting Rostam's seven labours and other feats:

File:Firdawsi - Rustam Kills a Dragon (the Third Feat) - Walters W60276B (cropped).jpg|The third feat of Rostam's seven labours: Rostam kills a dragon.

File:Firdawsi - Rustam Drags the Khaqan of China from his Elephant - Walters W601245B - Full Page.jpg|Rustam drags the Khaqan of China from his elephant.

File:Firdawsi - Rustam Shoots Ashkabus - Walters W601234A - Full Page.jpg|Rustam shoots Ashkabus.

File:Firdawsi - Rustam Kills the White Div (the Seventh Feat) - Walters W601131B - Full Page.jpg|The final feat of Rostam's seven labours: Rostam kills the White Demon.

File:Firdawsi - Rustam Rescues Bizhan from the Pit - Walters W601308B - Full Page.jpg|Rustam rescues Bizhan from the pit.

</gallery>

In popular and traditional culture

The word 'Rustam' is synonymous with physical prowess, especially for wrestlers in Persian, Urdu, Hindi and Persianate cultures generally. For example, The Great Gama was popularly referred to as Rustam-e-Hind, or "Rustam of India".

Rustam remains a popular name in Persianate cultures from Turkey to India.

In Afghanistan, there is a Dari proverb, "“Rostam’s name is better than Rostam.” Edward Zellem explained, “This proverb is used when a person’s name or reputation is better than his actual abilities”.

Notes

References

Sources

External links

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 .

; Persian sources

Complete Persian text
Shahnameh website