He remained some time longer with Chosroe, and then returned to the land of Hirah, having asked permission to revisit his family and native country. And when he reached his capital, he wrote letters to the tribes of Wayil and Bekir and Jelhema, and he said in the letters—Attack Modayin, plunder the people and the inhabitants, lay waste the villages, and put to the sword the merchants of Persia, and plunder the property of Deelem. Be afraid of no man should any oppose you; but slaughter them and seize their property, and plunder them.
When these letters, in which the whole circumstance was described reached the different tribes, they were greatly incensed, and sent Sewid the son of Amil to plunder the inhabitants. And Handala ransacked the stores and granaries, and seized the property of the travellers; and Harith the son of Joshem plundered the lands of Zilah, sparing neither high nor low. After this, confusion and rebellion rose up in the villages, and the whole country dreaded the Arabs. Many of the Persians were beheaded, and the Persian merchants cried out from all quarters against Chosroe. The day of judgment seemed to have come upon him, and he was overwhelmed with shame. He desired his minister Mubidan to write to Monzar an account of all that had passed, and that he should punish the Arab tribes, or he would disperse them among the plains and the deserts.
So the minister wrote to Monzar a letter, in which he said “To him, whom we recognise as King of the Arabs! Truly the heart of the just King is greatly irritated against you, on account of the depredations committed by the Arabs on his subjects. You must slay the rebels and offenders, and chastise those that have oppressed the weak, if you are obedient to the Persian government, and attend to the orders of the imperial monarch; and peace be with you from the protecting fire!” He folded up the letter and sealed it and sent it to Monzar, and when it reached him he opened it and read it, and wrote in answer to it these words:
“To him whom we recognise as the just King! Truly my character is despised amongst the Arabs, my reputation is on the decline, my authority amongst them is weakened, and my honour is considerably discredited, since they heard what you did to me about eating the dates. My power is at an end, because they think I am an object of ridicule with you; so they have therefore renounced their allegiance to me, and have separated themselves from my dominion. Such are the acts they have committed, and they will not obey my commands. You must look after your own country, and mind your own administration.”
When Chosroe received this answer, he read it, and understood its contents. Verily, said he, these vagabond Arabs have a design upon me, and this dog of dogs would trample upon me. But if I do not degrade and humble him, I am not the King of the age.
Who, O King of the age, said the satrap Khosrewan, the original cause of all this trouble, is this Monzar, that you should trouble yourself about him? By your life, I am able to take him prisoner, I will slay his horsemen, and will destroy his allies. I will bring him and his children to you, all bound with cords; and if you order me, I will kill them all, and will bring you his sons and his daughters, and most costly plunder.
Khosrewan, said Chosroe, you are the only person for this expedition, for it is all your doing; so prepare, and march with the troops under your command; and if you conquer the King of the Arabs, kill him not, but bring him to me a prisoner, that I may disgrace him and punish him, and let him feel his own situation; and afterwards I will grant him his life. Khosrewan accordingly made his preparations in three days, and set out with twenty thousand horsemen, armed with gilded shields and cleaving swords; and Khosrewan was at their head, like a lion.
But King Monzar, as soon as he observed Antar’s blow at the lion, and remarked his eloquence and his poetry, felt assured that he was a distinguished hero and warrior, and he thought it wiser to spare his life, and not put him to death: but for the ends of justice he determined to keep him a prisoner. So he detained him in custody; saying, by the faith of an Arab, I will not proceed to extremities with respect to this black warrior, for his equal is not to be found in the whole world. Guard this horseman, said he to his sons, until an answer reach us to our letter from the Persian King; and we will then persuade him that it is this wretch who has plundered the cities and killed his subjects, and who has excited against us the Arab hordes. This will give a strong colour to our excuses in all points, and thus we shall gain our objects upon our enemies. So Antar remained with the King imprisoned and chained; and Monzar entered Hirah and awaited the answer.
It was about the beginning of the day when Monzar mounted his horse and rode out to inhale the news; when lo! a dust from the direction of Persia appeared, and the whole country was blackened and darkened, and from beneath it came forth Persian horsemen, and the armies of Deelem. Take your implements of war, cried Monzar, ply the blow and the thrust, and protect the families and the women, or eternal will be your disgrace; for truly the offences against propriety in conversation, and the blunders of the tongue are the calamities of man. And he sent for all the clans of the tribe of Shiban, and all the Arab hordes; and the Persian troops gave them no rest, but poised their spears, and grasped their swords. The two parties met, and attacked: blood abundantly flowed, eyes were fixed, and were scared. Khosrewan advanced: he assailed the tribes of Arabia and his heart was overjoyed; he dashed towards the standard of Monzar; he overset them, and he destroyed the horsemen, and annihilated them.
Now Monzar had encountered the Persians with only twelve thousand men; and the evening did not close before four thousand of them were slaughtered, and the remainder returned, seeking safety in flight; the Persians pursuing them until the shades of night surrounded them; when the Persians dismounting to repose themselves, Khosrewan also halted and shouted aloud; and when they had pitched their tents and lighted their fires, he ordered his satraps and generals to surround the whole city of Hirah, and to guard the roads and highways.