Vis and Ramin

Vis and Ramin  is an ancient Persian love story
These Omid Shalmani photos are also a romantic collection with the same title
But given painful strains love
Because every love affair has many sad moments
The moments you think your love is in crisis

 

Weiss and Ramin in Old Iran stories
Vis and Rāmin (Persian: ويس و رامين, Vis o Rāmin) is a classical Persian love story. The epic was composed in poetry by Fakhruddin As’ad Gurgani (or “Gorgani”) in the 11th century. Gorgani claimed a Sassanid origin for the story, but it is now regarded as of Parthian dynastic origin, probably from the 1st century AD

The story is about Vis, the daughter of Shāhrū and Kāren, the ruling family of Māh (Media) in western Iran, and Ramin (Rāmīn), the brother to Mobed Manikan, the King of Marv in northeastern Iran. Manikan sees Shāhrū at a royal gala, wonders at her beauty, and asks her to marry him. She answers that she is already married, but she promises to give him her daughter if a girl is born to her.

Shāhrū gives birth to a girl and calls her Vis (or Viseh). She sends the infant to Khuzan to be raised by a wet nurse who also happens to be raising Ramin, who is the same age as Vis. They grow up together. When Vis reaches adolescence, she returns to her mother, who marries Vis to her brother Viru. The marriage remains unconsummated because of Vis’ menstruation, which by Zoroastrian law makes her unapproachable. Mobad Manikan finds out about the marriage celebration and sends his brother Zard to remind Shāhrū of her promise to give him Vis as his wife. Vis rejects Manikan’s request and refuses to go. An aggrieved Manikan leads an army against Māh-abad. Vis’s father, Qārin, is killed in the ensuing conflict, but Manikan also suffers a defeat from Viru. Manikan then takes his army to Gurab, where Vis is waiting for the outcome of the battle. He sends a messenger to her, offering her various privileges in return for marrying him. Vis rejects Manikan’s offer proudly and indignantly. Manikan asks advice from his two brothers Zard and Ramin. Ramin, who is already in love with Vis, attempts to dissuade Manikan from trying to marry her. However, Manikan’s brother Zard suggests bribing Shāhrū as a way of winning over Vis. Manikan sends money and jewels to Shāhrū and bribes her to gain entry to the castle. He then takes Vis away, much to his chagrin of Viru.

On the journey back to Marv, Ramin catches a glimpse of Vis and is consumed with love for her, so much so that he falls off his horse and faints. Vis is given residence in the harem of Manikan and gifts are bestowed upon her. Vis’s nurse also follows her to Marv, and attempts to persuade her to behave pragmatically, accept Manikan, and forget Viru. Vis at first has a hard time accepting her fate, but eventually resigns herself to life in the harem.

Still mourning her father’s death and her kidnapping, Vis refuses to give herself to Manikan for a year. Her nurse makes a talisman that renders Manikan impotent for one month. The spell can be broken only if the talisman is broken, and it is swept away in a flood and lost so that Manikan is never able to sleep with his bride. Meanwhile, after many attempts to contact Vis, Ramin finally meets with her and the two consummate their love while Manikan is away at war.

When Manikan returns, he overhears a conversation between the nurse and Vis and realizes his wife loves Ramin. Manikan demands that Vis prove her chastity by undergoing trial by fire. But Vis and Ramin elope. Manikan’s mother makes peace between Ramin and the king, and they all go back to Marv.

Manikan takes Ramin along on a campaign against the Romans, but Ramin falls sick and is left behind.

Ramin goes back to Vis, who is imprisoned in a castle by Manikan and guarded by the king’s other brother Zard. He scales the wall and spends his time with Vis until Manikan comes back from the war and Ramin escapes.

He thinks that his love for Vis has no future, so he asks Manikan to send him to Maah on a mission

. There, Ramin falls in love with a woman called Gol and marries her. Vis finds out about this and sends her nurse to Ramin to remind him of their love. Ramin sends back a harsh reply. Vis sends an elaborate message pleading with him to come back. At this time, Ramin was bored with his married life and after he receives the second message he goes back to Vis. But when he reaches Marv on his horseback in a snowstorm, Vis goes to the roof of the castle and rejects his love. Ramin goes off desperately. Vis regrets what she has done and sends the nurse after Ramin. They reconcile.

Manikan takes Ramin hunting while Vis and the nurse with some other women attend a fire temple nearby. Ramin leaves the hunt, disguises himself as a woman to enter the temple, and flees with Vis. They go back to the castle and, with help from Ramin’s men, kill the garrison and Zard as well. They then escaped to Dailam, on the coast of the Caspian Sea. Manikan is killed by a boar during the hunt. Vis and Ramin come back to Marv and Ramin sits on the throne as the king and marries Vis. Ramin reigns for 83 years. In the 81st year Vis dies and Ramin hands over the kingdom to his eldest son with Vis and goes and mourns on Vis’ tomb for 2 years, after which he joins her in the afterlife.