The Baz-Nama-Yi Nasiri

CHAPTER I. On the Short-Winged Hawks Used in Falconry

ON THE SHORT-WINGED HAWKS USED IN FALCONRY

The Birds of Prey are divided into two great divisions, the “Yellow-eyed” and the “Black-eyed,” these being again sub-divided into numerous species.

We will first treat of the Yellow-eyed Division.

PERSIAN CARPET DEPICTING HAWKING SCENE]

T̤ug͟hral [CRESTED GOSHAWK?]—The first species worthy of note is the T̤ug͟hral. During my many wanderings I have searched diligently for this species, but in vain, and am, therefore, unable to describe it from personal knowledge. There is a current tradition, that a single specimen was once brought to Persia from China, and presented as a curiosity to King Bahrām-i Gūr, who treasured it greatly and guarded it jealously. One sad day, when the king was out hawking, the t̤ug͟hral suddenly took to “soaring” and was quickly lost to the sight of the disconsolate monarch. His retinue were soon scattered in every direction in search of the missing hawk, and the king was left almost alone, being attended by a few only of the royal favourites. Bahrām-i Gūr and his party also took up the search; and wandering far and wide, at length happened on a large and shady garden, where they alighted. The bewildered owner of the garden advanced exclaiming:—

“The simple peasant on whose ‘kulāhed’ head The Sultan, Phoebus-like, his grandeur shed, Trembles within his soul and well nigh dies, That on him shines the Sultan’s kindly eyes.”

On being questioned about the lost hawk he replied, “What a T̤ug͟hral may be, I know not, but not two hours since a hawk with bells and a jewelled ‘halsband,’ took stand in a tree of this very garden; but taking fright at my attempt to secure it, it flew off and settled in that grove yonder.” Bahrām was overjoyed at this clue, which enabled him to recover his lost favourite.

From this reference to a “halsband” and bells, and to the t̤ug͟hral’s habit of sitting on trees, the author concludes that this unknown species belongs to the yellow-eyed division of the birds of prey.

FOOTNOTES:

T̤ug͟hral; a species frequently mentioned in old Persian MSS. on falconry. It is probably the “Crested Goshawk” (Astur trivirgatus) which is said to have been formerly trained in India. Jerdon, quoting Layard, says it is trained in Ceylon. The T̤ug͟hral is confused by Indian falconers with the Shāh-bāz, or “Royal Goshawk” which, according to Jerdon, is the name given by native falconers of Southern India to the Crested Hawk-Eagle (Limnætus cristatellus). The same author also quotes Major Pearse as his informant that the Rufous-bellied Hawk-Eagle (L. kienierii) is, “Very rarely procured from the N.W. Himalayas and trained for hunting and is known as the Shāh-bāz.”

Chīn; under this name are included Yarkand, Khutan, Mongolia, Manchuria, etc.

Bahrām was surnamed Gūr, from his passion for hunting the gūr or wild ass. He belonged to the Sassanian dynasty of Persian kings and his name frequently occurs in Persian poetry. The Greek Varanes is said to be a corruption of Bahrām.

CHAPTER II. The Goshawks

THE GOSHAWKS

THREE SPECIES.—[The author now describes three races of goshawk, which he distinguishes by the names of Tīqūn; T̤arlān; and Qizil: each of these three he sub-divides into varieties, only distinguishable from each other by slight differences in colouring, in marking, or in size. The first-named species is the white goshawk; the second is that variety or race of the common goshawk that is caught after migration into Persia; while the third is the local race that breeds in the country.

After hazarding a conjecture that the white goshawks are not a true species like the T̤arlān and Qizil, but are either albinos, or else accidental varieties produced by the pairing, for one or more generations, of two exceptionally light specimens of the common goshawk, the author proceeds to describe a pure white variety of the Tīqūn, which, he says, is known to the people of Turkistan by the name of Kāfūrī. He remarks that he has caught albino specimens of the Saker Falcon, and has further observed albinos of the Shāhīn, “piebald crow,” peacock, sparrow, sparrow-hawk, pin-tailed sand-grouse, chukor, hoopoe, English merlin, kākulī lark, and common crane. As regards the Kāfūrī, he states his opinion that it is the offspring of albino T̤arlāns that happen to have paired for two generations. He continues:—]

WHITE GOSHAWK OR Tīqūn-i kāfūrī.—The female of this variety of Tīqūn is noted for its large size, the male on the contrary for being extremely small. The head, neck, back, and breast are totally devoid of markings, the plumage being white as driven snow. In the immature bird the eyes have only a slightly reddish tinge, but after the first moult their hue generally deepens and turns to a ruby-red. The claws and beak, though frequently white, are more often a light grey, while the cere is greenish.

E’en such the noble thorough-bred Tīqūn; May God in mercy grant us such a boon!

FROM AN OLD PERSIAN PAINTING, INDIAN, PROBABLY OF THE MUG͟HAL PERIOD]

I remember having once seen a “cast” of this variety—male and female—in the possession of Fatḥ ʿAlī Shāh (now a resident of Paradise), both of which were exceptionally fine performers in the field.

The people of Turkistan, who are highly skilled in the art of training goshawks, call this variety lāziqī.

It is commonly believed by falconers and bird-catchers, that in the early spring, when the female goshawk is desirous of the attentions of a male, she utters loud and plaintive cries, which attract to her many species of birds. From these she selects a male of a species different from herself, and the result of this union is a diversiform progeny. However, the kāfūrī or lāziqī variety is the offspring of two white parents.

The following circumstance lends some colouring of truth to this quaint belief:—

Some years ago a hawk of this species was brought from Russia and presented as a curiosity to the late Shāh, who, in turn, bestowed it on Ḥusayn ʿAlī Mīrzā, Governor of the Province of Fārs. The Governor (now in the abode of the Blessed) forwarded it to me—the contemptible. It must have been a bird of four or five moults, when it came into the possession of this slave. After infinite pains I succeeded in taking with it one solitary chukor, and that, too, a bird harried and worn out by another hawk. It had a very villainous and scurvy disposition. The plumage of this hawk, an unusually large female, was peculiar, in that its feathers were alternately snow-white and raven-black; the claws and beak were of the colour of mother-of-pearl, and the eyes were a reddish yellow. I feel confident her albino mother had mated with a raven, and that this spurious half-caste was the result of the union. There is some truth in the statements of the bird-catchers.

The above description is given, as it seems in some measure to support the stories of the bird-catchers. Sure and certain knowledge, however, rests with God.

FROM A PAINTING IN AN ANCIENT PERSIAN MS. WRITTEN IN INDIA]

GOSHAWK (T̤arlān).—There are three varieties of T̤arlān, the dark, the light, and the tawny. The last two are common, but though tractable and easily reclaimed, they are not good at large quarry. The dark variety that has a reddish tinge, is universally acknowledged to be the best, and I have myself taken with it common crane and great bustard. The colouring should be very dark, with a tinge of red in it; though this variety may be sullen and self-willed, it is also hardy and keen, and, once thoroughly reclaimed, will be as docile and obedient as any falconer could desire.

LOCAL RACE OF GOSHAWK (Qizil).—The third species, the Qizil, breeds in Māzenderān, and in many other parts of Persia, and a fair number are captured in nets, each Autumn, together with the T̤arlāns. Like the last-described species, this also contains three varieties, the dark, the light, and the tawny. The dark variety with the cheek-stripe is the best, and the darker this marking—with a tinge of red in it—the better the bird. With a “passage-bird” of this last variety, the author has himself taken common cranes, great bustards, and “ravine-deer” fawns. The difference between the wild caught Qizil and the T̤arlān is in reality very small. The latter has a somewhat finer presence, a more noble disposition, and is rather faster in flight; also from its habit of mounting higher and thus commanding a more extensive view, it is better able to mark down or “put in” its quarry. It is for these reasons only that the T̤arlān has a higher value than the Qizil.

PERSIAN CARPET DEPICTING THE COURT OF A SIKH MAHĀRĀJĀ]

EYESS OF Qizil.—The eyess of the Qizil is more courageous than the “passage hawk,” for it has the courage of inexperience. Reared with fostering care from its nestling days, what recks it of the frowns of Fortune? Untaught by Time, what knows it of the spoiling Eagle’s might? Though the eyess may at first excel the passage-hawk in courage, it is inferior to it in powers of flight. With increased knowledge, comes decreased courage. In a word, the nestling bears the same relation to the passage-hawk that the town-bred man does to the desert tentman.

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