Vis and Ramin

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108 VISKAMIANI
As their ill-luck would have it, Mo&bad was awake ; he
heard all this their discourse, and listened to the words of
the nurse. Moabad leaped up infuriated, his face became
like ashes ; he could no longer, from excess of wrath,
understand what to do. He sat like an intoxicated war-
elephant. He began to abuse the nurse and curse her ; he
said :
" Oh filthy, disgusting, denier of God, source of all
whoring and devilry, more shameful and dirty even than a
dog !"
He
commanded his servants :
"
Take away this hateful one, that I may slay her like a
miserable hound, and that I may thus repay 1 her for her
wenching. On Khuzistan, whence came forth such a
whore and pander, 2 stones should shower instead of rain !
They deceive their betters and behave treacherously to
their sovereigns. From Khuzistan no pure one comes
forth, all are (ill) examples and heathens. Woe to him
who trusts one of that land, or who gives his child to
be reared there ! For that Shahro brought a nurse from
there, she thereby filled her court with shame. A nurse
from Khuzistan and a blind (man as) sentinel 3 are equal.
He who takes a raven as his guide, his lodging will be the
graveyard." 4
Thus he vented his wrath on the nurse, and then spoke
to Vis as follows :
" Yis, thou denier of God and partner of the devil !
Thou hast neither conscience nor modesty nor righteous-
ness nor desire for honour. Thy kindred are disgraced
by thy shame; thou hast forsaken modesty and become
weary of it ; thou hast despised the faith. Thou art degraded
in the eyes of all thy folk and before me. What thou hast
done will not please Shahro, nor Viro, nor any of thy
kindred. All of them have been shamed by thee. So long
as thy nurse has served thee, of a truth the devil was thy
1
Mukap'ha, 111, 153.
3
Gushagi, 142. E., 1367.
2 Madchacali, 95.
4 ? A Georgian proverb. Note the rhyme.