The Borzu Nama (pronounced as BORZŪ-NĀMA) (Persian: برزو نامه) is an Persian epic poem of ca. 65,000 couplets recounting the exploits and adventures of the legendary hero Borzu, son of Sohrab[1][2] and grand-son of Rostam.
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Abraham Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron identifies the author as 'Ata'i, whom is furthed identified as 'Amid Abu'l 'Ala' 'Ata b. Yaqub Kateb Razi by Blochet. He was a poet of the Ghaznavid court and passed away around 1078-1079. The language of the Borzu-nama is characteristics of texts of the 11th century. The story is versified in the same meter and style of Ferdowsi's Shahnama. The Borzu-nama is possibly the longest of the post Shahnama epic poems and includes material from Iranian national legends not used by Ferdowsi[1].
The story starts with Sohrab the son of Rostam. On his way from Turan to fight the Iranians, he marries a woman named Shahru. Before leaving, he gives her a token to give to their unborn child. The child is named Borzu by Shahru and she rasises him without disclosing the identity of his father. Borzu is recruited in his youth into Afrasiab's (king of Turanians) army. Borzu finally forces his mother to reveal his father's name and after finding out that it was Sohrab, he sets to battle Rostam in order to avenge the death of Sohrab. Afrasiab sends him with an army to Iran, but Borzu is captured by Rostam's son Faramarz and taken to Sistan. Shahru finds about Borzu's capture, and helps him to escape. But he is recaptured by Rostam. Borzu not recognizing his grandfather, battles Rostam, but his life is spared only at the last minute when Shahru reveals that he is Rostam's grand-son. Borzu and Rostam embrace; cosequently Borzu then joins the Iranian forces. Afrasiab lears of this and sends Susan-e Rameshgar, a musician and sorceress to capture Rostam and Borzu. Afrasiab arrives with his army and a long series of battles and adventures beings in the epic. Many battles take place with many famous Iranian and Turanian heroes from the Shahnameh, in addition to Divs, Paris (fairies) and wizards. The tale concludes with the death of Borzu at the hand of a Div.
The Borzu-nama has not yet been published in a critical edition, but versions of the text have been included in the Shah Nama editions of both Turner Macan (pp. 2160-296) and Dabirsiāqi[2].
Friedrich von Suhtschek, in a discussion of the Iranian sources of the Grail legend, claimed, but did not prove, that the Borzu Nama is the direct source of Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Parzifal.
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