Zāl (زال in Persian) is a legendary Persian warrior from the old Persian "The Book of Kings/ The king of books" or Shahnameh.[1]
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Background
An albino, Zāl was born with white hair. Because of this, his parents called him Zāl. In the Persian language, "Zaall" refers to those who suffer from albinism. Zāl was the son of Sām and the grandson of Nariman, both heroes of ancient Persia and protectors of "Motherland Iran" or "Iran-zamin." Because of his defect, Zāl was rejected by his father. He was left when only an infant; upon the mountain Damavand, which has the highest geographic peak in Iran. The mythical Simurgh (a very large and wise bird which darkens the sky when flying, said to be related to the phoenix) found the baby and took him to her nest, where Zal lived until being reunited with his family.[2][3][4][5]
Later life
Soon after rejoining his family, Zāl married Rudaba; their child was the great Persian hero, Rostam. The mighty and wise Simurgh gave Zāl three feathers to burn when in trouble. She would appear as soon as the feathers were lit.[4][5]
See also
One of the feathers Simurgh gave Zal, he used when his wife was in a difficult labour and it looked like she would lose her life as well as the unborn baby. The Simurgh appeared and instructed him to run a feather across his wife's belly like a knife. That is how Rustom was born.[5]
References
- ^ Davidson, Olga M. (1994). Poet and hero in the Persian Book of kings (Digitized May 14, 2008 ed.). Page 76: Cornell University Press. pp. 197. ISBN 0801427800. http://books.google.com/books?id=BSFkAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Zal%22,+Book+of+Kings&dq=%22Zal%22,+Book+of+Kings&pgis=1.
- ^ A History of All Nations (Digitized Nov 23, 2005 ed.). Original from the University of Michigan. 1864. http://books.google.com/books?id=0dizX_yVCj0C.
- ^ Rosenberg, Donna (1997). "page 116-118". Folklore, Myths, and Legends: A World Perspective. McGraw-Hill Professional. pp. 536. ISBN 084425780X. http://books.google.com/books?id=-TdKE_Qgl28C&pg=PA116&lpg=PA116&dq=%22Zal%22,+Persian+warrior&source=bl&ots=F4dXApOC8P&sig=861exUo59OoEJzoUlgKF6v12Xhc&hl=en&ei=c6O8SdWxJonYsAOk4-VG&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result.
- ^ a b Reed, Elizabeth Armstrong (1893). "XI". Persian Literature: Ancient and Modern. Original from Harvard University (Digitized Feb 5, 2007 ed.). S. C. Griggs and company. pp. 419. http://books.google.com/books?id=anky4c7mxOYC&pg=PA228&dq=%22Zal%22,+Persian+warrior#PPA232,M1.
- ^ a b c Khayyam, Omar; Edward FitzGerald (1900). "The Sha Nameh, pages 50-67". in Translated by Herman Bicknell, James Ross. Persian Literature.... Original from the University of Michigan. 1. Ḥāfiẓ, Saʻdī (revised ed.). page 50-: The Colonial press. http://books.google.com/books?id=58xGgBvWFcEC&pg=PA50&dq=%22Zal%22,+Persian+warrior#PPA51,M1.
External links
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