“Bahram Gur Performs a Feat of Archery”
Fol. 207v from a manuscript of the Khamseh of Nizami
Credit: "Rabe'eh Zand playing chang on a BBC Persian programme, "Ancient Iranian Harps" (2019)
The virtue of practice is significant in the story of Bahram Gur and Fitna. Upon hearing Fitna’s
dismissive response, the king orders her killed. Instead, her would-be executioner secretly
imprisons her in a tower. Every day for six years, she practices carrying an ox up some stairs,
building enough strength to eventually ascend an entire flight. She then asks her jailer to invite
Bahram Gur to a feast at the tower. Concealing her face, Fitna performs her feat, then asks the
king’s opinion. When he responds that she demonstrated practice, not strength, Fitna responds, “So
when you shoot a small onager / should no one call your deed ‘practice’?” The king realizes that the
woman is Fitna, and they reconcile.
Practice is as important to Fitna’s self-identity as physical prowess is to Bahram Gur. Described by
Nizami as a talented musician and singer, and frequently depicted playing a chang, or harp, Fitna’s
musical skills required years of practice.
The chang is a harp-like instrument that originated in ancient Iran. In Persian, the word also means “talon” or “claw” and so Persian painters often depicted the instrument’s frame as terminating in the head of bird.
Click above for a video of a chang performance.