Arash- Persian HeroHero"The Archer"
Also known as: Arash-e Kamangir, Erekhsha, and آرش
Description
When Iran and Turan agreed that a single arrow-shot would set their border, Arash climbed Mount Damavand, poured his life force into his bow, and loosed an arrow that flew from dawn to sunset. It landed by the Oxus River. Only his empty body was left on the peak.
Mythology & Lore
The Arrow-Shot
Iran's war with Turan had gone badly. Iranian forces had lost vast stretches of territory, and to end the conflict, the two sides agreed that an Iranian archer would shoot a single arrow: wherever it landed would mark the border between the kingdoms.
Arash volunteered, knowing the task would require more than mortal strength. On an auspicious morning, he climbed to the peak of Mount Damavand, Iran's highest mountain and the prison of the chained Zahhak. Before the assembled peoples of both nations, he drew his bow and put his entire vital essence into the shot.
The arrow flew from dawn until sunset, from the peak of Damavand to the banks of the Oxus River far to the northeast. The flight recovered all the lands Iran had lost. But when observers returned to the peak, they found only Arash's lifeless body. His soul had traveled with the arrow across the breadth of Iran, and what remained on the mountain was an empty vessel. The Avesta preserves his name as Erekhsha. Al-Tabari records the tale in his History of Prophets and Kings.
The Tirgan Festival
Every summer on the thirteenth of Tir, Iranians celebrate Tirgan by splashing water and tying rainbow-colored bands. Al-Biruni, writing in The Remaining Signs of Past Centuries, connects the festival to Arash's shot: the arrow flew on the longest day of the year, from dawn to sunset, covering the maximum distance the sky would allow.