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　　SELECTIONS FROM THE SHAH-NAMEH.

　　THE RAJA OF INDIA SENDS A CHESSBOARD TO NUSHIRVAN.

　　"This account of the game of chess, written by Ferdusi more than eight hundred years ago, is curious as showing the antiquity of the game, its resemblance to it as now played, and the tradition that it was invented in India, and came originally from that country."

　　A Mubid related, how one day the king

　　Suspended his crown over the ivory throne,

　　All aloes-wood and ivory, and all ivory and aloes;

　　Every pavilion a court, and every court a royal one;

　　All the Hall of Audience crowned with soldiers;

　　Every pavilion filled with Mubids and Wardens of the Marches,

　　From Balkh, and Bokhara, and from every frontier—

　　For the King of the world had received advices

　　From his vigilant and active emissaries,

　　That an Ambassador had arrived from a King of India,

　　With the parasol, and elephants, and cavalry of Sind,

　　And, accompanied by a thousand laden camels,

　　Was on his way to visit the Great King.

　　When the circumspect Monarch heard this news,

　　Immediately he despatched an escort to receive him.

　　And when the illustrious and dignified Ambassador

　　Came into the presence of the Great King,

　　According to the manner of the great, he pronounced a benediction,

　　And uttered the praise of the Creator of the world.

　　Then he scattered before him abundance of jewels,

　　And presented the parasol, the elephants, and the ear-rings;

　　The Indian parasol embroidered with gold,

　　And inwoven with all kinds of precious stones.

　　Then he opened the packages in the midst of the court,

　　And displayed each one, article by article, before the King.

　　Within the chest was much silver, and gold,

　　And musk, and amber, and fresh wood of aloes,

　　Of rubies, and diamonds, and Indian swords.

　　Each Indian sword was beautifully damascened;

　　Everything which is produced in Kanuj and Mai

　　Hand and foot were busy to put in its place.

　　They placed the whole together in front of the throne,

　　And the Chief, the favored of wakeful Fortune,

　　Surveyed all that the Raja had painstakingly collected,

　　And then commanded that it should be sent to his treasury.

　　Then the Ambassador presented, written on silk,

　　The letter which the Raja had addressed to Nushirvan;

　　And a chessboard, wrought with such exceeding labor,

　　That the pains bestowed upon it might have emptied a treasury.

　　And the Indian delivered a message from the Raja:

　　"So long as the heavens revolve, may thou be established in thy place!

　　All who have taken pains to excel in knowledge,

　　Command to place this chessboard before them,

　　And to exert their utmost ingenuity

　　To discover the secret of this noble game.

　　Let them learn the name of every piece.

　　Its proper position, and what is its movement.

　　Let them make out the foot-soldier of the army,

　　The elephant, the rook, and the horseman,

　　The march of the vizier and the procession of the King.

　　If they discover the science of this noble game,

　　They will have surpassed the most able in science.

　　Then the tribute and taxes which the King hath demanded

　　I will cheerfully send all to his court.

　　But if the congregated sages, men of Iran,

　　Should prove themselves completely at fault in this science,

　　Then, since they are not strong enough to compete with us in knowledge,

　　Neither should they desire taxes or tribute from this land and country:

　　Rather ought we to receive tribute from you,

　　Since knowledge hath a title beyond all else."

　　Khosru gave heart and ear to the speaker,

　　And impressed on his memory the words which he heard.

　　They placed the chessboard before the King,

　　Who gazed attentively at the pieces a considerable time.

　　Half the pieces on the board were of brilliant ivory,

　　The other half of finely imaged teak-wood.

　　The nicely-observant King questioned him much

　　About the figures of the pieces and the beautiful board.

　　The Indian said in answer: "O thou great Monarch,

　　All the modes and customs of war thou wilt see,

　　When thou shalt have found out the way to the game;

　　The plans, the marches, the array of the battle-field."

　　He replied: "I shall require the space of seven days;

　　On the eighth we will encounter thee with a glad mind."

　　They furnished forthwith a pleasant apartment,

　　And assigned it to the Ambassador as his dwelling.

　　Then the Mubid and the skilful to point out the way

　　Repaired with one purpose to the presence of the King.

　　They placed the chessboard before them,

　　And observed it attentively, time without measure.

　　They sought out and tried every method,

　　And played against one another in all possible ways.

　　One spoke and questioned, and another listened,

　　But no one succeeded in making out the game.

　　They departed, each one with wrinkles on his brow;

　　And Buzarchamahar went forthwith to the king.

　　He perceived that he was ruffled and stern about this matter,

　　And in its beginning foresaw an evil ending.

　　Then he said to Khosru: "O Sovereign,

　　Master of the world, vigilant, and worthy to command,

　　I will reduce to practice this noble game;

　　All my intelligence will I exert to point out the way."

　　Then the king said: "This affair is thine affair;

　　Go thou about it with a clear mind and a sound body,

　　Otherwise the Raja of Kanuj would say,

　　'He hath not one man who can search out the road,'

　　And this would bring foul disgrace on my Mubids,

　　On my court, on my throne, and on all my wise men."

　　Then Buzarchmahar made them place the chessboard before him,

　　And seated himself, full of thought, and expanded his countenance.

　　He sought out various ways, and moved the pieces to the right hand and

　　to the left,

　　In order that he might discover the position of every piece.

　　When after a whole day and a whole night, he had found out the game,

　　He hurried from his own pavilion to that of the King,

　　And exclaimed: "O King, whom Fortune crowneth with victory,

　　At last I have made out these figures and this chessboard,

　　By a happy chance, and by the favor of the Ruler of the world,

　　The mystery of this game hath found its solution.

　　Call before thee the Ambassador and all who care about it;

　　But the King of kings ought to be the first to behold it.

　　You would say at once without hesitation,

　　It is the exact image of a battle-field."

　　The King was right glad to hear the news;

　　He pronounced him the Fortunate, and the bearer of good tidings.

　　He commanded that the Mubids, and other counsellors,

　　And all who were renowned for their wisdom should be assembled;

　　And ordered that the Ambassador should be summoned to the Presence,

　　And that he should be placed on a splendid throne.

　　Then Buzarchamahar, addressing him, said:

　　"O Mubid, bright in council as the sun,

　　Tell us, what said the King about these pieces,

　　So may intelligence be coupled with thee forever!"

　　And this was his answer: "My Master, prosperous in his undertakings,

　　When I was summoned and appeared before him,

　　Said to me: 'These pieces of teak and ivory

　　Place before the throne of him who weareth the crown,

　　And say to him: Assemble thy Mubids and counsellors,

　　And seat them, and place the pieces before them.

　　If they succeed in making out the noble game,

　　They will win applause and augment enjoyment:

　　Then slaves and money and tribute and taxes,

　　I will send to him as far as I have the means;

　　For a monarch is to be esteemed for his wisdom,

　　Not for his treasure, or his men, or his lofty throne.

　　But if the King and his counsellors are not able to do all this

　　And their minds are not bright enough to comprehend it,

　　He ought not to desire from us tribute or treasure,

　　And his wise soul, alas! must come to grief;

　　And when he seeth our minds and genius to be subtler than theirs.

　　Rather will he send them to us in greater abundance.'"

　　Then Buzarchamahar brought the chess-men and board,

　　And placed them before the throne of the watchful King,

　　And said to the Mubids and counsellors:

　　"O ye illustrious and pure-hearted sages,

　　Give ear all of you to the words he hath uttered,

　　And to the observations of his prudent chief."

　　Then the knowing-man arranged a battle-field,

　　Giving to the King the place in the centre;

　　Right and left he drew up the army,

　　Placing the foot-soldiers in front of the battle.

　　A prudent vizier he stationed beside the King,

　　To give him advice on the plan of the engagement;

　　On each side he set the elephants of war {our bishops},

　　To support one another in the midst of the combat.

　　Further on he assigned their position to the war-steeds {our knights},

　　Placing upon each a horseman eager for battle.

　　Lastly, right and left, at the extremities of the field,

　　He stationed the heroes {the rooks} as rivals to each other.

　　When Buzarchamahar had thus drawn up the army,

　　The whole assembly was lost in astonishment;

　　But the Indian Ambassador was exceedingly grieved,

　　And stood motionless at the sagacity of that Fortune-favored man;

　　Stupefied with amazement, he looked upon him as a magician,

　　And his whole soul was absorbed in his reflections.

　　"For never hath he seen," he said, "a chessboard before,

　　Nor ever hath he heard about it from the experienced men of India.

　　I have told him nothing of the action of these pieces,

　　Not a word have I said about this arrangement and purpose.

　　How then hath the revelation come down upon him?

　　No one in the world will ever take his place!"

　　And Khosru was so proud of Buzarchamahar,

　　Thou mightest say that he was looking Fortune in the face.

　　He was gladdened at his heart, and loaded him with caresses,

　　And ordered him a more than ordinary dress of honor,

　　And commanded him to be given a royal cup

　　Filled to the brim with princely jewels,

　　And a quantity of money, and a charger and a saddle,

　　And dismissed him from the Presence overwhelmed with praises.

　　Robinson's Translation. National Epics