"Some evil eye has smote the king;--Iblís By wicked wiles has led his soul astray, And withered all life's pleasures. O release Our country from the sorrow, the dismay Which darkens every heart:--his ruin stay. Is it not mournful thus to see him cold And gloomy, casting pomp and joy away? Restore him to himself; let us behold Again the victor-king, the generous, just and bold." Zál and Rustem went to the palace of the king in a melancholy mood, and Khosráu having heard of their approach, enquired of them why they had left Sístán. They replied that the news of his having relinquished all concern in the affairs of the kingdom had induced them to wait upon him. "I am weary of the troubles of this life," said he composedly, "and anxious to prepare for a future state." "But death," observed Zál, "is a great evil. It is dreadful to die!" Upon this the king said:--"I cannot endure any longer the deceptions and the perfidy of mankind. My love of heaven is so great that I cannot exist one moment without devotion and prayer. Last night a mysterious voice whispered in my ear:--The time of thy departure is nigh, prepare the load for thy journey, and neglect not thy warning angel, or the opportunity will be lost." When Zál and Rustem saw that Khosráu was resolved, and solemnly occupied in his devotions, they were for some time silent. But Zál was at length moved, and said:--"I will go into retirement and solitude with the king, and by continual prayer, and through his blessing, I too may be forgiven." "This, indeed," said the king, "is not the place for me. I must seek out a solitary cell, and there resign my soul to heaven." Zál and Rustem wept, and quitted the palace, and all the warriors were in the deepest affliction. The next day Kai-khosráu left his apartment, and called together his great men and warriors, and said to them:-- "That which I sought for, I have now obtained. Nothing remains of worldly wish, or hope, To disappoint or vex me. I resign The pageantry of kings, and turn away From all the pomp of the Kaiánian throne, Sated with human grandeur.--Now, farewell! Such is my destiny. To those brave friends, Who, ever faithful, have my power upheld, I will discharge the duty of a king, Paying the pleasing debt of gratitude."