Two of history’s greatest collections of legends are those of the Shahnameh and the Legends of King Arthur. Although separated by hundreds of years and transcribed by two different cultures; Persian and Western, both these legends offer fascinating stories of heroes, villains and monsters. While both these collections of legends are by no means historically accurate, they give us pictures of two separate cultures and help us understand the continuity of these particular cultures through the present day. Two of the characters from these legends are particularly interesting and through close examination, demonstrate various facets of these cultures. They are Rustam, the legendary Iranian warrior blessed with the strength of a lion and King Arthur who has inspired countless tales and stories in Western Culture. By examining and comparing these two characters, we can learn an appreciation for these two different cultures.
The first character to examine is that of Rustam also called “Rostam”. Rustam is a character from the Shahnameh, the famous Persian “Book of Kings”, a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi during the late 10th and early 11th century A.D. The Shahnameh is a story full of mystical characters but also contains some stories that have some basis in fact. Although the legend of Rustam is mainly fictional, some believe this legend is based off of Surena, the Persian hero at the Battle of Carrhae against the Romans. According to legend, Rustam was born through the divine aid of a god-like bird creature who instructed his parents how to perform what we now know as a Caesarian Section. Rustam established a name for himself as a young man through many heroic actions. He killed a maddened white elephant as a child by using a mace belonging to his grandfather, thus establishing himself as a warrior at an early age. As a young warrior he embarked on what is called “Rustam’s Seven Quests” to save his king named Kay Kavus who had been captured by demons. This early stage of his career establishes Rustam as a feared warrior and noble man.
(Rustam Killing a demon (All pictures from Wikipedia)
Unfortunately, the later part of his life is full of adversity and sorrow. Rustam falls in love with a princess of an enemy nation with whom he unknowingly has a son. Years later, he fights and kills his son in battle, only finding out the identity of his opponent as he lays mortally wounded. Rustam eventually dies at the hand of one he considers to be a friend, yet before his death, slays the traitorous companion. In a sense, Rustam is a tragic hero, but also an inspirational one who defeats the wicked and attempts to do right.
The second legendary figure we will examine is King Arthur, perhaps Western cultures most famous hero. Although the legend of King Arthur and his round table is mostly fictional, there are a great number of historians who believe the legend was inspired by a historical figure who most likely battled the Saxons after the withdraw of Rome from Britain in the 5th and 6th century. The legend of King Arthur begins with his birth to a royal family who hide him with a noble family on the advice of Merlin, the famous magician. Merlin had predicted the birth of Arthur and the death of his parents and would continue to play a major role in Arthur’s development as a hero. After is parent’s death, Arthur grows up the son of noble until a young man. Arthur’s famous action of pulling a sword out of a stone identifies him as the next king of Britain. Arthurian legend tells many tales of chivalry and bravery against enemies and monsters, with Arthur leading his Knights of the Round Table on a quest to find the Holy Grail. According to historians, Arthur fought in twelve different battles and held off the invading Saxons. Unfortunately, legends describe the downfall of Arthur as a consequence of the breakup of his round table and the disloyalty of his queen. Arthur is betrayed by his nephew who mortally wounds Arthur, yet Arthur is able to slay his disloyal subject. The legends of King Arthur and his knights were important throughout the middle ages, as they portrayed chivalry and honor as important traits, and reinforced the picture of a Christian knight.
Although these two legends come from vastly different cultures and were written many years apart, both contain similar elements. Both heroes’ births were aided by magical or divine powers and both distinguished themselves as young men. Both had major quests, such as Rustam’s Seven Quests or Arthurs attempt to find the Holy Grail and his twelve battles. Arthur and Rustam fought monsters and were brave warriors who had many followers. They also both fell mortally wounded at the hands of those whom they once considered friends, yet both Arthur and Rustam were able to punish these traitors before their deaths. Finally, Arthur and Rustam are the quintessential heroes of their particular cultures, exemplifying chivalry and honor.
There are a few differences between the two men however, the largest I believe to be the focus of the legends surrounding these two men. Although Rustam did lead men, he was an individual warrior with the stories of his men not playing much of a role in the overall poem. Arthur’s legend meanwhile much to my chagrin as a child who craved to read about the tales of chivalry performed by the king, concentrates almost as much on his knights as on the Arthur. I believe this demonstrates a difference in culture between the East and West. The West, even in a period of absolute monarchy, is perhaps more focused on the individual and thus democracy, while the east is more concentrated on the leader and excludes the individual. This is the most important cultural difference I discovered between the two legends and perhaps foreshadows the two different political paths followed by the two cultures. Nevertheless, both legends are fascinating stories that probably developed from actual historical figures and offer important lessons on honor, chivalry and morality.
Works Cited
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rostam
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur
http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/shahnameh/heros.htm
FIRDAWSĪ, & DAVIS, D. (2006). Shahnameh: the Persian book of kings. New York, Viking.
GEOFFREY, & FALETRA, M. A. (2008). The history of the kings of Britain.