The Passage Under Rood Khan
“What you seek is seeking you.” - Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī
Once upon a time beneath a forest, there was a passage underneath a great, ancient castle called Rood Khan. This ruin was a mystery to all, a place of fear and dread, which prevented people from exploring its deepest tunnels and its farthest reaches, and thus most of it remained mysterious.
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| Photo from Must See Iran's Facebook page |
One day, a child by the name Shadi lost her way in the upper chambers of Rood Khan, taking a wrong turn that led her inexorably downward, far from her friends, so that she could not find her way out. Before long, silence engulfed her. Nobody could hear her cries for help.
With deepening panic, Shadi screamed, but her cries fell like wings among centuries of dust. The pervading sense of darkness, gloom, neglect and obscurity was terrifying. Becoming disappointed of getting any help, she continued her way through darkness, hands edging along the wall, while she was hoping to find a light. Yet now she was certain she heard a tiny, distant voice calling to her from the shadows. It sounded as if it came from a girl of about her age. Was it a ghost? Taking courage, Shadi ventured toward the call. The stranger in the darkness seemed too frail or too frightened to approach, so Shadi hesitantly reached forth until her hand brushed another hand. In the same instant, a small, beautiful, innocent pale face gazed up at her. Realising the little one was hungry, Shadi instinctively pulled a date from her pocket and handed it to the stranger, who gladly ate the date, whereupon the waif began heading toward the end of the tunnel, holding Shadi’s hand.
At length they emerged into the light of a village that Shadi had never seen before. All around were poor children whose clothes and belongings seemed shabby, torn and dirty. Some were clearly starving, perhaps thirsty too, for the water they drew from wells in wooden pails, was brown. Shadi wondered if all this might be because these villagers were remote, perhaps forgotten, or even entirely unknown to her own people, who had not been brave enough to explore the world beyond their own.
Soon a little boy joined the girl at Shadi’s side. Together, the children led her to their only school: a windblown hovel with no glass for windows, no heating or cooling device, nor proper seating, only mats and a teacher’s desk, where Shadi’s gaze fell upon a book that seemed to shine in a shaft of dust. It was full of stories, with marvelous illumination around its borders. The children were excited to open it, turning its pages proudly. Yet with a sickening feeling, Shadi realised that neither child had any idea how to read. Both were illiterate. In the hours that followed, Shadi learned that there were hardly any other books in that schoolroom or surrounding buildings. These villagers were in desperate need of resources, not only to participate in the world’s communication, but even to remember their own history.
This is how the ruins of Rood Khan opened a great challenge for Shadi, whose name means happiness. For only now did she understand her life’s purpose. How could she ever be truly happy playing in forests and monuments, if such villagers could not taste the fruits of knowledge?
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| Zeinab Yazdanfar in a field of forget-me-nots, Olinda |
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| Louisa John-Krol in Olinda, The Dandenongs |
Unfolding: The Elderbrook Chronicles
...with a soundtrack.
Note from Louisa: "Zeinab & I met at a university where I happened to have Shahnameh, The Persian Book of Kings, by Abolqasem Ferdowsi, on my shelf. Our discussion of it sparked a friendship. Thanks for reading our story."
