Afrasiab


Afrasiab is the name of the mythical king and hero of Turan. He is the main antagonist of the Persian epic Shahnameh, written by Ferdowsi.

The mythical king and hero

According to the Shahnameh, by the Persian epic poet Ferdowsi, Afrasiab was the king and hero of Turan and an archenemy of Iran. In Iranian mythology, Afrasiab is considered by far the most prominent of all Turanian kings; he is a formidable warrior, a skilful general, and an agent of Ahriman, who is endowed with magical powers of deception to destroy Iranian civilization.
According to Islamic sources, Afrasiab was a descendant of Tūr, one of the three sons of the Iranian mythical King Fereydun. In Bundahishn, he is named as the seventh grandson of Tūr. In Avestan traditions, his common epithet mairya- can be interpreted as meaning 'an evil man'. He lived in a subterranean fortress made of metal, called Hanakana.
According to Avestan sources, Afrasiab was killed by Haoma near the Čīčhast, and according to Shahnameh he met his death in a cave known as the Hang-e Afrasiab, or the dying place of Afrasiab, on a mountaintop in Azerbaijan. The fugitive Afrasiab, having been repeatedly defeated by the armies of his adversary, the mythical King of Iran Kay Khosrow, wandered wretchedly and fearfully around, and eventually took refuge in this cave and died.