Bozorgmehr
Iranian sage and dignitary
Bozorgmehr
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Native name |
Dādburzmihr
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Died | 580s |
Allegiance | Sasanian Empire |
Rank | |
Relations | Sukhra (father) |
Bozorgmehr-e Bokhtagan ( Middle Persian : Wuzurgmihr ī Bōkhtagān ), also known as Burzmihr , Dadmihr and Dadburzmihr , [1] was an Iranian sage and dignitary from the Karen family , who served as minister ( wuzurg framadār ) of the Sasanian king ( shah ) Kavad I ( r. 498–531 ), and the latter's son and successor Khosrow I ( r. 531–579 ). He also served as the military commander ( spahbed ) of Khwarasan under Khosrow I and his successor Hormizd IV ( r. 579–590 ). According to Persian and Arabic sources, Bozorgmehr was a man of "exceptional wisdom and sage counsels" and later became a characterisation of the expression. His name appears in several important works in Persian literature, most notably in the Shahnameh ("The Book of Kings"). [2] The historian Arthur Christensen has suggested that Bozorgmehr was the same person as Borzuya , but historiographical studies of post-Sasanian Persian literature, as well as linguistic analysis shows otherwise. [2] However, the word "Borzuya" can sometimes be considered a shortened form of Bozorgmehr. [3]
Name
The name of the Bozorgmehr (meaning "large sun" or "one of great kindness") is the New Persian variant of Middle Persian Wuzurgmihr ī Bōkhtagān , which was later transformed in Arabic as Abūzarjmehr , Bozorjmehr , or Būzorjmehr . [2] [4] Ferdowsi used the last variant in the Shahnameh ("The Book of Kings"). [2] Etymologically the latter is a corruption of Burzmihr or Dād-Burzmihr , also reported as Zarmihr . [4] Its proper version was Dādburzmihr , with Būrzūmihr being the original variant in ancient engravings. [4] [5] The name is attested as Dadburzmihr ("given by the high Mihr ") in a seal, a theophoric name that emphasizes the Mihr worship of Bozorgmehrs clan, the Karenids . [6] The -i Bōkhtagān suffix is a patronymic name meaning "son of Bokhtagan", a title held by Bozorgmehrs father. [4]
Background
Bozorgmehr is first mentioned in 498, as one of the nine sons of the powerful nobleman Sukhra . [7] He belonged to the House of Karen, one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran , which was descended from the Arsacid prince Karen . [8] The Karen family claimed descent from the legendary Pishdadian shah Manuchehr , and were based in Nihavand in Media . [8] After the defeat and death of the Sasanian shah Peroz I ( r. 459–484 ) at the battle of Herat , Sukhra became the de facto ruler of Iran. [9] [10] He was eventually defeated and executed by Kavad I , which resulted in the Karen family being heavily weakened, with many of its members being exiled to the regions of Tabaristan and Zabulistan , which was away from the Sasanian court in Ctesiphon . [11] [8] In 496, Kavad I was deposed and imprisoned due to his support of the Mazdakite movement, and also for having Sukhra executed. [12] [13]
Career
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Bayasanghori_Shahnameh_5.jpg/250px-Bayasanghori_Shahnameh_5.jpg)
After Kavad I had reclaimed the Sasanian throne from his younger brother Jamasp in 498, he appointed Bozorgmehr as his minister ( wuzurg framadār ). [5] During his tenure, Bozorgmehr persuaded Kavad to stop taxation on fruits and grain from the peasantry. [5] An early reference to Bozorgmehr is found in the Aydāgār ī Wuzurgmihr , in which he is called an argbed —a high-ranking title in the Sasanian and Parthian periods. Among other sources, later mention of him is made in the Shahnameh and in al-Tha'alibi ’s Ghurar and al-Masudi ’s Murūj al-Dhahab . [2] During the reign of Kavad I's son and successor, Khosrow I ( r. 531–579 ), Bozorgmehr continued his tenure as minister of the shah. He further rose to prominence after being appointed as a military commander ( spahbed ) of the kust (frontier region) of Khorasan ( Khwarasan ) by Khosrow I, who reportedly regretted Kavad I's approach to the family. [14] [8]
During the reign of Khosrow I's son Hormizd IV ( r. 579–590 ), Bozorgmehr continued to serve as spahbed of the Khorasan. [5] Two seals of Bozorgmehr have been found; Through both of them Bozorgmehr emphasizes his Parthian ancestry by claiming to be a Parthian aspbed ( aspbed-i pahlaw ). [1] According to Ferdinand Justi , Bozorgmehr was later executed by the order of Hormizd IV. [2] His execution probably lead to the legendary story of the royal resentment reported in various versions by al-Masudi, Ferdowsi, and al-Tha'alibi. [2] The versions of Ferdowsi and al-Tha'alibi, which link Bozorgmehr with the reign of Khosrow I, he was reportedly pardoned by the shah, who was well-known for his fairness. [2] In the version of al-Masudi, Bozorgmehr was linked with the reign of Khosrow II , where no mention of his execution is made. [2]
Bozorgmehrs descendants continued to remain active in Iran, with one of them, Adhar Valash , ruling Tabaristan and Gurgan under the last Sasanian shah, Yazdegerd III ( r. 632–651 ). [15] His grandson, Valash , ruled Tabaristan from 665 to 673. [16] [9]
Works
Several Middle Persian treatises were written by Bozorgmehr. Most famous is the Wizārišn ī čatrang ( "Treatise on Chess" ), also known as the Chatrang Nama ( "Book of Chess" ). As well as; Ayādgār ī Wuzurgmihr ī Bōxtagān , Ketāb al-Zabarj (the original version a commentary on Vettius Valens ’s Astrologica ), Ketāb Mehrāzād Jošnas ( "Book of Mehrāḏar Jošnas" ) and the Ẓafar-nāma ("Book of Victory", a book written in Middle Persian, that was translated into New Persian by Avicenna . [2]
References
- 1 2 Pourshariati 2008 , p. 115.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Khaleghi-Motlagh 1989a , pp. 427–429.
- ↑ Khaleghi-Motlagh 1989b , pp. 381–382.
- 1 2 3 4 Majidi & Negahban .
- 1 2 3 4 Pourshariati 2008 , p. 114.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , pp. 114–115, 379.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , pp. 113–114.
- 1 2 3 4 Pourshariati 2017 .
- 1 2 Chaumont & Schippmann 1988 , pp. 574–580.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , p. 78.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , p. 80.
- ↑ Daryaee 2014 , p. 27.
- ↑ Schindel 2013a , pp. 136–141.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , pp. 114–115.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , p. 303.
- ↑ Pourshariati 2008 , p. 307.
Sources
- Chaumont, M. L.; Schippmann, K. (1988). "Balāš, Sasanian king of kings". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 6 . pp. 574–580.
- Daryaee, Touraj (2014). Sasanian Persia: The Rise and Fall of an Empire . I.B.Tauris. pp. 1–240. ISBN 978-0857716668 .
- Khaleghi-Motlagh, Djalal (1989a). "Bozorgmehr-e Boktagan" . Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. IV, Fasc. 4 . pp. 427–429.
- Khaleghi-Motlagh, Djalal (1989b). "Borzūya" . Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. IV, Fasc. 4 . pp. 381–382.
- Pourshariati, Parvaneh (2017). "Kārin". Encyclopaedia Iranica .
- Pourshariati, Parvaneh (2008). Decline and Fall of the Sasanian Empire: The Sasanian-Parthian Confederacy and the Arab Conquest of Iran . London and New York: I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-645-3 .
- Schindel, Nikolaus (2013a). "Kawād I i. Reign". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. XVI, Fasc. 2 . pp. 136–141.
- Majidi, Maryam; Negahban, Farzin. "Buzurgmihr" . In Madelung, Wilferd ; Daftary, Farhad (eds.). Encyclopaedia Islamica Online . Brill Online. ISSN 1875-9831 .
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