Storia do Mogor 38: CHAPTER XIV · OF THE CITY OF ISFAHAN, AND OF CERTAIN EVENTS WHICH HAPPENED THERE
Storia do Mogor (Irvine) 38
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CHAPTER XIV · OF THE CITY OF ISFAHAN, AND OF CERTAIN EVENTS WHICH HAPPENED THERE
38.1
THE city of Isfahan is very large, situated in a great plain at the foot of some low hills. It has four canals of water, which flow through the midst of it, and these serve for irrigating the gardens. These canals issue from a river which flows between Julpha (Zulfah) and Isfahan ; its name is Senderuth (Zindah-rud) ; over it are four bridges somewhat distant from each other. Of the four, two are especially handsome— namely, the one on the road from Isfahan to Julpha (Zulfah). You approach it by a long and wide raised way, adorned on both sides with the great and beautiful walled gardens of the king, and with high trees, called in Persian chenar (chandr), and in European languages, planes. In the midst thereof flows one of the aforesaid canals of water, which fills various reservoirs for the use of the said gardens, and goes on its course until it reaches again the river from which it was taken. Horses are ridden on the raised way. There are many seats where the Persians imbibe tobacco from crystal 'guriguris,' called by them 'caliao' (qaliyan), which are long and narrow-necked circular flasks filled with water, having a vessel of tinned copper or of silver in the shape of an open flower of the water-lily stuck into its (the flask's) mouth, and filled with tobacco. With this they sit, telling stories until late, sometimes, without exaggeration, as many as five or six thousand of them.
38.2
The second bridge, which is the finest of them all, is called the bridge of Xiras (Shiraz), thus named because when going from Isfahan to Shiraz you cross over it. This bridge consists of three stories, besides the chief one, which is in the middle. The king goes there sometimes with his harem, and he can descend to the water without being seen. By all these stories you can cross from one side of the river to the other. The water runs over dressed stones, made artificially high or low, so as to produce waves pleasing to behold. I noticed that the houses of Isfahan and those throughout Persia, seen from the front, are not pleasing, being all made of clay ; but they are lovely inside, and highly decorated. They have both large and small gardens, with good fruit-trees — that is to say, pears, apples, peaches, apricots, mulberries, sweet and sour quinces, like the apples of Europe, vines of Boas Vuas, and vineyards of Vuas, grapes without stones, which are called " quiximis " (kishmish), many kinds of plums — and all the varieties of flowers that grow in Europe ; for the Armenians are very fond of growing European flowers, and present them to the Persian nobles. The Persians, as also the Moguls, are fond of flowers and perfumes.
38.3
In front of the royal palace is a large plain, where throughout the year stand fruit-sellers' booths, and a large quantity of exquisite melons. Here they drink coffee and smoke tobacco ; the place is always full of people going and coming. Here are to be seen dancers, wrestlers, and other performers. In one corner of this open square is a palace where musical instruments are played; and there stands the clock found by them in the fortress of Ormuz, which they preserve as a memorial of their victory over the Portuguese. The city was always clean, due to the energy of the gardeners, because with what was removed from the streets they manured their gardens. They collect most industriously the sewage from the houses for the same purpose. This is a great help to keeping the air pure, by not allowing dirt to accumulate in the city. There are also many baths where the body may be washed. The soul also profits (as they believe), for when they wash themselves they imagine themselves to be absolved from their sins. Ablution serves among the Mahomedans—and speaking always with due reverence—like confession and absolution among us Catholics.
38.4
During the time we were at Isfahan rumours were current to the effect that the Great Mogul meant to come against the fortress of Candar (Qandahar), which is held by the King of Persia in defiance of the Mogul. For this reason they began to prepare to march out to encounter him; then the spies brought them the news that this year the Great Mogul would not come. It happened in those days that the son of an officer, being twenty-two [22] years of age, was in attendance on the court. He fell in love with a lady in the palace and sent her several presents. When the king was told of this, he ordered the man to be beheaded. As the young man was actually at court, he got word of the king's order, and returned home with all the haste he could. There, with his own hands, he totally castrated himself, and without delay sent the severed member in a covered golden vessel to the King, with a request that he would chastise that which had committed the offence. The king, with regard to this deliberate act of his, pardoned his life, and gave him the title of the "Valiant Eunuch." In the city are two factories, one of the English, the other of the Dutch. There are also four churches, one of the Portuguese Augustinians, which the present king caused to be entirely gilded at his own expense, and he went there several times to see our ceremonial. Another church belongs to the barefooted Carmelites, another to the Jesuits, another to the Capuchins.
38.5
There are also in the city many mosques, among them a dome with two tombs, which are much venerated. The door of this dome is opened only once a year, on the occasion of a great festival, to which flock people from different provinces on the appointed day. One tomb they assert to be that of 'All, the other they state to be that of his sons Assen (Hasan) and Ossen (Husain), who are revered as martyrs. Others declare they are tombs of the companions of Muhammad, although he had no Court or courtiers. Once during the night, when the king, Shah 'Abbas, was lying asleep, he woke all of a sudden, having dreamt that he had seen a vision. Calling to the captain of his guard, he gave him an order to open at once the door of the dome and both the tombs, and after looking with great care at what was in them, make a detailed report of his inspection. The captain of the guard caused both the tombs to be opened, and found in them two dead Capuchin priests, with their clothes and their bodies equally intact. The captain stood in amazement, and ordered the tombs and the dome to be closed up as before. He reported at once to the king what he had seen. Listening attentively to the story, the king pronounced these words : ' None can know the secrets of God, unless He Himself.' This event remained a secret, and the same veneration was continued as before.
38.6
At the distance of a league or a little less from Isfahan is an inhabited place called Julpha (Zulfah), where great numbers of Armenians live, all merchants, with their churches. These people dwelt long ago in ancient Zulfah, upon the banks of the river Aras, three days' journey before you come to Tabriz. It was there that I saw an eclipse of the sun in the middle of the day [23], beholding the stars as in a dark night. They left that place with the permission of Shah 'Abbas, coming with their families and all their belongings to found this new Zulfah on the farther bank of the river Zindah-rud, and there they dwell in complete liberty, having sufficient facilities in the way of houses, gardens full of fruit, and water with which to irrigate them. This water flows in canals through the middle of the streets, which are adorned on both sides with great trees.