Arash the Archer

Arash the Archer (Persian:آرش کمانگیر,romanized: Āraš-e Kamāngīr) is aheroicarcher-figure ofIranian mythology andhistorical tradition. According toIranian folklore, the boundary between Iran andTuran was set by an arrow launched by Arash, after he put his own life in the arrow's launch. The arrow was traveling for days before finally landing on the other side of theOxus on the bark of awalnut tree hundreds of miles away from the original launch site atop a mountain.

Although several sources (e.g.al-Biruni) appear to have considered 'Arash' to be the origin of the name 'Arshak' (i.e.Arsaces), the name of theParthian dynasty derives from aParthian orEastern Iranian equivalent of 'Ardashir', i.e. 'Artaxerxes', specificallyArtaxerxes II, from whom the Arsacids claimed descent. (Within the scheme of the mythologically conflated genealogies of Iranian dynasts, the Arsacids also claimed to descend—via the other Arash—fromKai Kobad.)

As is typical for names from oral tradition, there are numerous variations of 'Arash'. In theAvesta the name appears as 'Erekhsha' (Ǝrəxša) "of the swift arrow, having the swiftest arrow among the Iranians" (Yasht 8.6). ThisAvestan-language form continues in ZoroastrianMiddle Persian as 'Erash' (Bundahishn,Shahrastanha-i Eran,Zand-i Vahuman Yasht,Mah i Frawardin), from which the anglicized 'Eruch' derives.New Persian forms include 'Erash' and 'Irash' inal-Tabari and ibn al-Atir; Aarashshebatir in al-Tabari; 'Arash' in al-Talebi; 'Aarash' in Maqdesi, Balami, Mojmal, Marasi,al-Biruni, and in theVis o Ramin of Gorgani. Names with a stock epithet representing the Avestan "swift arrow" include al-Tabari's 'Aarashshebatir' and Mojmal's 'Arash-e Shewatir'. A surname form includes 'Arash/Aarash kaman-gir' "Arash, bow-expert." Also it’s a common name for people that lived there.

The basic story of the bowman runs as follows: In a war between theIranians andTuranians over the "royal glory" (khwarrah), the Turanian generalAfrasiab has surrounded the forces of the righteousManuchehr, and the two sides agree to make peace. Both reach an agreement that whatever land falls within the range of a bow-shot shall be returned to the Manuchehr and the Iranians, and the rest should then fall to Afrasiab and theAniranians. An angel (inal-Biruni it isIsfandaramad, i.e. theAmesha SpentaSpenta Armaiti, inMiddle Persian calledSpendarmad) instructs Manuchehr to construct a special bow and arrow, and Arash is asked to be the archer. Arash then fires the specially-prepared arrow at dawn, which then traveled a great distance (see below) before finally landing and so marking the future border between the Iranians and the Aniranians.

In Talebi andBal'ami, Arash is destroyed by the shot and disappears. Inal-Tabari, he is exalted by the people, is appointed commander of the archers and lives out his life in great honor. The distance the arrow travels varies: in one, it is a thousand leagues (farsakhs), and in another, forty days' walk. In several, the arrow traveled from dawn to noon; in others, from dawn until sunset. A few sources specify a particular date for the event. The Middle PersianMah i Frawardin notes the 6th day of the 1st month (i.e.Khordad ofFrawardin); later sources associate the event with the name-day festivities ofTiregan (13th ofTir) "presumably" provoked by the homonymity with theYazata Tir ortir "arrow." (Tafażżolī 1987, p. 266)

The location from which Arash fired his arrow varies as well. In theAvesta (which does not mention places in Western Iran), it isAiryo.khshaotha, an unidentified location in theMiddle Clime. Islamic-era sources typically place the location of the shot somewhere just south of theCaspian Sea, variously inTabaristan (Tabari, Talebi, Maqdesi,Ibn al-Athir, Marashi) and (al-Biruni,Gardēzī);Amol fortress (Mojmal);Mount Damavand (Balami) orSari (Gorgani). The place the arrow landed is variously identified as 'Mount Khvanvant' in the Avesta (likewise an unknown location); a river inBalkh (Tabari, al-Atir); east of Balkh (Talebi);Bactria/Tokharistan (Maqdesi, Gardizi); the banks of theOxus River (Balami) orMerv (Mojmal). According to al-Biruni, it hit awalnut tree between "Fargana" and Tabaristan "in the furthest reaches of[Greater] Khorasan."

The name Arash remains a popular name among Iranians.

Siavash Kasraie, an Iranian poet, wrote the long poem ofArash the Archer in 1959. This epic narrative, based on the ancient Persian myth, depicts Arash's heroic sacrifice to liberate his country from foreign domination.^[1]Bahram Beyzai wroteĀraš, which opened in 1977, as a response to Āraš-e kamāngīr. Neither a short story nor a play, Beyzai'sĀraš was staged a number of times around the world, most notably at the Annenberg Auditorium atStanford University, in July 2013.^[2]

The unveiling ceremony of Arash Kamangir's golden arrow (peace, romantic defense) was held by the Nowruz World Institute on the occasion of World Peace Day (20 September 2020).^[3][4] Arash Kamangir's symbolic look at an arrow adorned with gold and jewelry is in fact an artistic ideal in the form of depicting myths that are all peaceful.^[5]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toArash Kamangir.

• Iranian male archers
• People from Amol
• Legendary Iranian people
• Iranian folklore

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