We have learned from accurate and reliable historians that the brothers Bndoy and Vstam, relatives of the Persian king, arose against King Ormizd, father of Xosrov, and slew him. [Bndoy and Vstam], and one of their kinsmen followed their sister's son Xosrov, son of Ormizd when they fled to Byzantine territory to escape from Vahram, called Ch'obin [Bahram VI Chobin, 590-591]. They came to Maurice, emperor of the Byzantines. [Emperor Maurice], making Xosrov his son-in-law, sent him back with many troops. And he came and took back his kingdom.
Many years later, [Xosrov] avenged the blood of his father Ormizd. [For this, he] destroyed his mother's two brothers Bndoy and Vstam and about sixty men of the same line. [As a consequence of this] Mihran, a kinsman of Xosrov, took flight, united under him certain regions of the land, and passed into Aghuania taking about 30,000 families with him. He arrived in the district of Uti close to the great city of Partaw. Then he wanted to enter Khazar territory and join these enemies [of Persia]. Meanwhile, King Xosrov's [g286] dignitaries were blaming the king and asking: "Why do you not concern yourself about Mihran, who is your own kinsman and who, out of fear of you, has ranged himself with your enemies and stirs up trouble against you?" [Xosrov] immediately wrote a humble letter to Mihran, saying: "My brother, my true brother, do not depart from me in hostility. If you are not satisfied living here with me, then make that country which your feet have reached and where this letter finds you your home."
The message reached [Mihran] in the mountainous district of Gardman. He took it, read it, and was filled with joy. Seeing the goodness of the land, he was content to dwell there. And he built a city there, calling it Mihrawan after his own his name.
When spring had arrived, [Mihran] went to the upper regions of the district of Gardman and treacherously invited twelve of its chief men to visit him. He put them to the sword, and ruled over that land. A long time afterwards, he passed away in peace. He had a son Aramaye'l, who was the father of Vard, who was the father of Vardan the Brave (K'aj). The latter built the fortress of Gardman in three years. With treachery in his heart, [Vardan] affectionately invited the Er'anshahiks—who belonged to the original Armenian (Haykazean) line and whom we mentioned earlier in this history—as if to a banquet [g287]. He prepared for them the bread of perdition, and gave it to them to eat. At that feast of their own blood [Vardan Mihrakan] beheaded sixty men. He spared only Zarmihr Er'anshahik, who was married to one of their own clan members. In this way [the Mihranids] came to rule Aghuania. [Vardan] also subjugated the savage peoples of the Caucasus.
[Vardan Mihrakan] died in peace. He fathered a son Vard, who
fathered Varazman, and the princess Shushik, and Varaz-Grigor,
the first prince of Aghuania, who was baptized by Viroy,
kat'oghikos of Aghuania. Varaz-Grigor had four sons,
namely, Varaz-P'eroz, Juanshir, Yezut-Xosrov, and Varazman. May
this [account] be found pertinent.
Four years after the death of the great Xosrov, king of Persia, his son Yazdgird [g288] ruled as king. Now it happened that at this time the race of Hagar [the Arabs], an alliance of ten clans, had grown powerful. [Their army] crossed the land of Asorestan and swiftly marched against the king of the Persians coming there from a distant clime in a bold and terrifying mass like a whirlwind blowing over the desert. Then those [leaders] who were subject to the Persian kingdom—generals and princes, lords and indigenous nobles of the various regions—massed together to march against the foreign enemy.
At the time of these events, Varaz-Grigor, prince of Aghuania, being himself a noble of the clan of Artashir, observed that his second son Juanshir was proud, dignified, handsome [and young, since] a beard had scarcely begun to grow on his face. [Juanshir] was beloved by his father, skilled in the art of war, swift as an eagle to pounce, and successful in all his endeavors. And he was trusted by his father. [The father] had resolved to assist him in the ways of the world, so that he be on equal terms with grandees, and [be able to] serve before kings. Consequently, [Varaz-Grigor] thought it best to send [Juanshir], of all his sons, in his own stead to the court of the king. Taking a brigade from his father, [Juanshir] arrived at the common meeting-place of thousands [g289] prior to the [arrival of the] prince of Siwnik' and the sparapet of Armenia. When the general R'ostam saw him, he looked upon him as a brother or a son. [Juanshir] was popular with everyone.
The general took many thousands of cavalry and proceeded to Ctesiphon to King Yazdgird. [General R'ostam] brought the young Juanshir into [King Yazdgird's] presence. The king immediately laid his hands on his head, praised him, and named him sparapet (commander-in-chief of the army) of Aghuania. Then the general took all the Persian troops and descended into the Asorestan country. Crossing the Tigris River, he arrived in the district of Veh Kawat. Proudly putting his trust in his immense and innumerable army, [General R'ostam] haughtily expected to trample all the Southerners underfoot. He camped facing them on the other side of the Dead Water. When the [Persian] troops advanced, the sparapet of Aghuania went along [g290], met [the enemy] and demonstrated great bravery. Slaying some [Arabs] at the very start, he became yet more confident, for he knew that the Lord was with him. After a few days, in the month of Mehekan, on Christmas Day, 30,000 cavalry and 10,000 infantry deployed against [the Arabs]. The sons of Hagar, coming from Katshan [? al-Qadisiya] with a multitude of cavalry and 20,000 infantry, sped forward covered with shields and eager to fight against the Persian troops.
[81] Now it came about that the sparapet of Aghuania, who had entered the fray with his powerful men, struck down two of his opponents, but then withdrew with three grievous wounds, while his horse had been wounded in four places. The enemy chased after him with frenzied hostility as far as the river. [There], still fighting back, [Juanshir] jumped in and swam across. His clothes were covered with gore and his weapons with blood. Seeing that all the grandees and soldiers were mowed down like grass, he hastened to the court of the king. Now when the king was told of his feats of bravery and his grave wounds, he ordered that he be given a palace and that he be tended by the court physicians. And [Juanshir] was greatly received in the land.
When he had recovered, he came before the king who placed his hands on his head and spoke well of him for everyone to hear. [King Yazdgird] bestowed on him the insignia of a general, with clarions to announce him and two golden spears and two shields worked in gold which were always carried before him. He honored him above all others. Around his waist he wrapped a belt of gold studded with pearls, and [gave him] a sword of wrought gold. For his arms there were bracelets, and [the king] placed a coveted diadem on his head. He gave him also leggings sewn with pearls, and as many pearls again [on necklace(s)] around his neck. They clothed him [g291] in a dark tunic with four hems, and taffeta and silken Persian coats with fringes of spun gold. They ordered that he be given villages in service to him and rivers full of fish. All these things were seen to be, in the words of the scriptures, "the glorious fruit of righteousness" [Heb. 12. 11]. After receiving such royal honors, he made even greater advances.
It happened that two generals named Imay and Ahmatan were in bitter conflict with each other, and [Juanshir] struck down and prostrated one of them in the presence of all, thereby, like a wise man, inducing them to keep the peace. General Xor'azat received him with great esteem because of this. Now in the eighth year of Yazdgird the enemy rose again and besieged the king in Ctesiphon for six months. General Xor'azat and the sparapet of Aghuania marched with the troops against the enemy. Lifting up his eyes [to Heaven], the brave Juanshir went forth with 3,000 men, and driving them back by his vigorous assaults, he crossed the river. Nor did he permit them to cross the Tigris for six months. Meanwhile the king was taken to the Great Dastakert [for safety]. But in a terrifying mass the enemy swarmed [g292] upon him, and so from there they transferred the king to Bekghagh. However, the children of Hagar [i.e. the Arabs], like the waves of the sea in their tremendous violence, followed along in pursuit. Standing firm for a few days, the sparapet of Aghuania did not cease to march against them and to demonstrate his personal bravery for all to see. Often he brought back and threw before the king the heads of the foreign foe.
After this, while the armies battled one another, the Lord visited the army of the Persians with a cruel defeat at the completion of their allotted time [as rulers]. [The Arabs], following a command from On High, came and destroyed their kingdom. Now the brave Juanshir fought for seven years in those difficult battles until, having received eleven grievous wounds, he took leave of them and retired to the district of Atrpatakan. Now the military commander of the Persians, seeing how glorious [Juanshir's] name had become, pressured him to marry his sister. Juanshir, however, not wanting to take a wife from among the unbelievers, returned to his own country. At this his loving father was overjoyed, like the patriarch Jacob on seeing the first-born of Rachel. Thus did he embrace his son, and the color of his face was enhanced by the silver bloom of his hair [g293].
The most glorious and renowned Juanshir returned from the Persian wars and assumed the leadership of the entire House of Aghuania, issuing commands as a king would. Taking his brigade and his father with him, he retreated above the city of Peroz Kawat. The Persian braves marched against our land because of Juanshir's revolt. While the vanguard of the enemy quickly invaded the lower regions of the same district, he hurriedly took up arms. [Juanshir], with his own hand, struck down a certain Giwghmnazgi (? Gilani), leader of the army. And he and his soldiers killed many of the [Iranian army's] men with their bloodthirsty swords. Having taken many prisoners and horses and mules and much booty he retreated. But the Persian army did not stop pursuing him. There was another clash between them in the hills, and on that day also [Juanshir] was favored by the Lord and was triumphant [g294]. However, the bad news reached him that the Persian army had entered [the city of] Peroz Kawat and taken his mother and brothers captive. Truly, I say, he raged like a bear bereft of its young, and he swiftly returned across his patrimonial holdings to the other side of the Kur River, to the district of Kapichan. There he gave battle, not rashly, but with great prudence and planning. Fighting courageously, he received a wound on the head, but with the aid of the mighty right hand of Christ he showed himself so fierce and powerful that not a single one of the enemy remained alive. They were all slain. After this [Juanshir] went and rested on the borders of Iberia/Georgia, having added to his renown. There the most honorable Atrnerseh, the prince of that land, who held three titles of the Byzantine Empire, came and personally bandaged his wounds, holding the victory won by his great valor a cause for celebration. They concluded an inviolable treaty of peace. Then Juanshir, taking the Iberian/Georgian army to help him, advanced swiftly into the district of Uti and wherever he found a Persian soldier, he killed him. He likewise quickly and with concern attacked [g295] the city of his winter residence and freed his [two] brothers who were born from the same womb as he and about his own age.
After this [the Persians] began to pour more troops into Atrpatakan, but [Juanshir] was not perturbed. It was his nature to be bolder in the face of many than in the face of few. In two battles in the district of Shakashen he killed many commanders of a thousand soldiers ("chiliarchs") together with their armies with revengeful blows. It is unnecessary to describe the innumerable victories Juanshir enjoyed over the Persians in one place and another.
When the lords of the lands of Armenia and Iberia/Georgia saw [his triumphs], they wanted to give him a wife from their own lines. However, [Juanshir] chose a wife from the Aruichan clan, the daughter of the prince of the Sisakanian land, which made [the people of] Siwnik' eternally happy.
[83] Now when the Persian general learned about his great defeat at the hands of Juanshir and the destruction of his troops, he became converted to a love of peace. He wrote a letter which he sent through the great prince of Siwnik' swearing a mighty oath to persuade [Juanshir] to be his ally. It was with difficulty, however, that the intermediary persuaded him to be reconciled and make peace with the Persians. He sealed [the agreement] solemnly, however, and returned, while the sparapet of Aghuania came back to his own land [g296] with his mother and brothers.
[Juanshir] now reflected on the decline of the great Persian kingdom, the independence of the first Eastern kings, and his own regal splendor. As a result he decided never again to place the fate of his principality in another's hands. A Persian general, however, boldly sought to rule independently over each region, and Juanshir and his brothers arose and went to their patrimonial district. The Persian general treacherously summoned his father to him on some pretext to make him his vassal, and he sent troops and appointed governors for the state of Aghuania.
What then do the brave Juanshir and his elder brother do? Since these were men undaunted and eager for vengeance, they put on their swords, mounted their swift horses, and taking a short cut, approached the city of Peroz Kawat from behind. They took their first sleep hidden in an ox-stall in a forested area near the city. At sunrise they galloped in like young lion- cubs, and ravaged the city cruelly punishing everyone they found there and in other regions who were under the command of the Persian general. With their troops they inflicted great defeats upon the Persians until the the latter surrendered their father safe and sound [g297].
It was in the twentieth year of Yazdgird that the kingdom of the Persians was completely destroyed, that is, in the thirty-first year of the worldwide wars of the Hagarites and the fifteenth year of my lord, Juanshir.
Thus did the Tachiks (Arabs) attack the lands of the North and East. They compelled the tribal chiefs to surrender the fortresses to them and took their wives and children as hostages to prevent rebellion from them. When Juanshir observed the cruel scourge from the South, he deceived them for a short time. He crossed to the other side of the river, where his fearless heart flamed and burned to do battle with them again and to deliver his father. But his father forbade this and went voluntarily [to submit] to the enemy. The most wise Juanser pledged an oath with the Armenian general and was encouraged to submit to the Byzantine emperor. Entering the brotherly union, he wrote to the Byzantine emperor a letter with the following import [g298].
"Juanshir, sparapet and prince of Aghuania, together with his vassal land of the East, humbly and reverentially greets you, O all-conquering lord, powerful and merciful emperor of the Byzantines, Constantine Augustus, whom God has appointed to be ruler of land and sea. May it be agreeable to your Christian lordship to accept this new offer of vassalage from a distant people so that God-given benevolence be bestowed from your great dignity and glory on our humble selves who seek a crown [from you]."When this letter was brought to the most pious emperor, he was overcome with joy. He gave a great banquet that day, and immediately ordered treaties to be drawn up providing for mutual peace. He gave [Juanshir] very great gifts: a throne carved in silver with a gilded back, robes woven with gold, and the very sword with pearl-studded scabbard which he himself wore. He made him a first patrician (pr'oton patrik), and ordered the titles of patrician, consul (hipatut'ean) [g299], ex-prefect (aphiwpak'osut'ean), general (stratelatut'ean), and illustris (elistut'ean) sufficient for 12,000 men be taken [to Juanshir] so that he could bestow them on whomever he chose. He also took a fragment of the redeeming Cross of Christ, which he always wore on his bosom, and sent it to him.
"To you, Lord Juanshir, lord of Gardman and prince of Aghuania, ex-consul and first patrician and governor in the East, the grace and the mercy of the redeeming Cross of divine power [is given,] as is a loving greeting from our august kingdom.When [Juanshir] heard the contents of the letter, he rejoiced exceedingly. He gave thanks above all for the arrival of the all-powerful Cross, and prostrating himself before it, he glorified God, the giver of all good things. Then the kat'oghikos of Aghuania came forward with the bishops and a multitude of prominent people bearing flowers, and blessing that precious gift. After this, time was not wasted with improper speech, in drunkenness, or in [performing] comedies (katakergut'iwnk'), rather [they enjoyed] discreet entertainments. When [Juanshir] had secluded himself for the night for sleep, [he did not sleep]; rather, he meditated on the good of his land. When the morning star arose, he put on his royal robes and sat on the throne. The doors [of the court] were opened and the soldiers entered bearing their arms. They ranged themselves around him on either side. The prominent people then entered, in order of rank, awestruck. In his court, righteous judgement and incorruptible justice was meted out to the people, one and all. All day long [Juanshir] occupied himself with national problems, not with licentious pleasures. He wisely brought the wild peoples around Mount Caucasus to their senses. And thus it was that he was absolute sovereign and lord [over territory] from the borders of Iberia/Georgia to the Gate of the Huns and [g301] the Arax River.We have received your letter of greeting, which has shown us your pious love for the worship of God, and we are glad that you and your eastern land have agreed to be our vassal. In return for this we and our sons shall treat you and your descendants with affection and sincere and indestructible love from generation to generation for ever [g300]."
Constantine [Constans II], Heraclius' grandson, in the nineteenth year of his reign, came with a multitude of troops and very select Byzantine [military] leaders to the kingdom of Persia. He planned to wrest from the Arabs parts of this land and he carried with him the radiant light of the world [ i.e., the Cross of Christ]. He sent one of his chiefs to Juanshir so that he would come to meet him. [Juanshir] made haste and arrived in the land of the Medes and into the presence of the great emperor. [The emperor], hearing of [Juanshir's] arrival, came to meet and welcome him in person at the village of K'ungr. [Emperor Constantine] commanded [Juanshir] at the same time to put off the mourning clothes he was wearing because of his wife's death; and they dressed him in royal robes [g302]. Emboldened by this, [Juanshir] asked the emperor for a piece of the Cross of the Eternal King.
[The emperor] took the Sun of Salvation, and cut off a piece in his presence and gave him this cauterizer of sins, saying: "Let this be a tower of strength for yourself and your sons against the Enemy" [cf. Ps. 60. 4 = A.V. 61. 3]. Seeing him receive such heavenly gifts, the Armenian nobles and General Hamazasp were very jealous, but [Juanshir] did not care about this at all. Then he bid his benevolent lord goodbye. [Constans II] dismissed him not as a servant, but as a brother of equal rank [in the war] against the Persians. The Ayraratean (Armenian) nobles accompanied him back to his own land, amazed at God's indulgence towards him. Learning of his approach, the joyous patriarch of Aghuania, Uxtane's, with a large multitude, blessed him in a loud voice, saying: "Behold, the Lord has sent us from Zion a staff of strength, and through him we shall triumph over our enemies!"
The brilliant Juanshir now pondered the question of finding a place of rest for the Cross of the Lord. Thus he laid the foundation for a house of God in his native district of Gardman, at the fortress, richly adorning it in joy and to the glory of Christ God.
When spring arrived, the esteemed prince of Aghuania [g303] prepared to meet the emperor once again in the town of Vagharshapat. The emperor ordered the grandees of the palace and the notables to go to meet him, and thus did [Juanshir] enter into the emperor's court like a king. When he saw him, the emperor greeted him with a fond embrace and assigned him a place above all the nobles. That day was a blessed holy day for him, surrounded by all sorts of gold and silver ornaments. Constantine ordered whatever was placed on the royal table to be offered to him, a gesture which amazed his other table companions. Over and above all this, he girt about him the royal belt of his valiant grandfather Heraclius and his grandmother Nicetas, gave him his own robe and two banners, and conferred the rank of patrician on his young sons. All the villages and regions which had belonged to the first kings of Aghuania he gave to him as an inheritance from generation to generation, and he appointed him to govern all the Eastern people as king.
No plan of the emperor was concealed from him. The emperor, listening to his many intelligent suggestions, was amazed and complimented him, saying: "You and I are alike in heart and soul; return in peace." Thus honored [g304], [Juanshir] ecstatically returned to his own land where he commanded everyone to build, sow, prosper, and live in peace. He constructed many palaces, and by the grace of God he did not lack whatever men find fair and beautiful. Even the king of Turkestan sought peace and friendship with him and presented him with choice horses, male and female servants, and various skins of reptiles. From the districts of Asorestan and Atrpatakan, from the Ayrarat areas and the land of Georgia, even from India, people came to see and hear him. [Juanshir's] intelligence and wisdom and his humble love for all those who came to him became a wonderful legend in every land. All this came to him entirely from Wood of Life, which rendered his name famous throughout the entire universe, and the blessing of the provident Father [g305].
"Lord, my Lord, since You have overlooked the many sinful deeds of Your servant and have granted me this [portion of the] Cross from which, fastened by nails, You did hang on earth, send into this temple the grace of Your Holy Spirit, and adorn and beautify it as You did the temple of Solomon, and [envelop it] with the thick cloud of Your spiritual glory. Make it a house for the prayers and supplications for us who dwell on the shores of the Eastern sea. Let it be that whoever worships Your countenance with offerings in this place may be heard by You from On High and his prayers be granted. If this entire land of Aghuania come with one accord to glorify Your name in this house, may You by the divine power of the Cross close the gates of the enemies and stop the bandits in their battles [g308]. Command a sweet breeze to blow through this land so that the vine and the fig-tree and all the plants of the fields may bear fruit in abundant fertility and remain undisturbed in this beloved land.When he had finished this prayer, he offered up the gifts prepared for this marvellous service, and he swore an oath of salvation: "May this be a place where my sons and I lay the first fruits before the Lord and receive Your mercy." Then he descended with his good and holy news into his winter residence, the city of Peroz Kawat, and he rested an entire year in peace [g310].As for me, Juanshir, burdened with sin, as I have willingly placed all my trust in the aid of Your almighty Cross—the way a poor sick man puts his trust in a good physician—O Lord, do not send me away empty-handed and confounded. Make this house which I have built a roof over my head on the day of battle. Humble him who exalts himself above me. Make my sons and daughters free of all fear of evil and strong in all things. And You, Lord, my Lord, who has preserved me since my childhood, saved me from the temptations which surrounded me, who gave me gold and silver and servants and handmaidens in abundance, now permit me to watch over my dominions like a king. Receive me, Your servant, with kindness and pour over my descendants the wisdom of following in Your paths and fearlessly submitting to the emperor of Byzantium whom You have crowned.
And on the day of the general Resurrection, when the invisible replace the visible and the sound of trumpets calls the sleeping from their sleep and the fiery hosts assemble before You, Almighty King, from the ends of the earth, then [g309], through the guidance of Your Cross in which I have placed all my trust, have mercy on me and my wife Xosrovanush, my forefathers, especially my silver-haired father Varaz-Grigor and my mother Goriduxt, my brothers Varaz-P'eroz and Yezut-Xosrov, and my children. Do not harshly punish and severely chastize me, Juanshir, who have shed tears like the renowned David, for what is my blood worth to You if I fall into corruption? O Christ, deliver me from eternal temptations and in return for the temple which I have built in Your name on earth, prepare for me, sinner that I am, a spiritual abode in the mansion of Your Father."
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