Şahmaran
Şahmaran (also Schahmaran ) is a mythical figure in Anatolia (especially with Tarsus and Mardin ), Iran and Iraq . She is considered the goddess of wisdom and protector of secrets. The name consists of the components of the Persian Şah ("king") and Mar (in Persian "snake") and means king (in) of the snakes . Şahmaran is often depicted as a being, half wise woman, half serpent. When Şahmaran dies, her spirit passes to her daughter. In one of the original versions, Şahmaran falls in love with a man named Tasmsp. In subsequent versions it is called Cemşid or Cihan. Şahmaran tells Tasmsp stories, but when she runs out of ideas, the man leaves her and returns to his home country. In Turkey , Şahmaran is believed to have lived in the city of Tarsus. Many elaborate pictorial representations of Şahmaran come from the area around Tarsus.
Plot of the Cemşid version
Statue of Sahmaran in Tarsus
Cemşid discovers a cave in the forest that is filled with honey. Together with his friends, he pulls out the honey to sell. The friends don't want to share with Cemşid and lock him up in the cave. There he meets Şahmaran, befriends her and spends some time in her underground realm. As a farewell, Şahmaran gives the guest plenty of presents and makes him promise never to speak to anyone about her. In addition, Cemşid is no longer allowed to visit public baths because his back skin has transformed into snake scales due to his long stay in the snake world. Seven years after Cemşid's return home, the Sultan fell ill . The vizier Şahmur learns from a holy book that only a prepared body part of Şahmaran can save the sultan's life. All residents of the country are forced to bathe in public. This is how Cemşid's secret is revealed. Despite the promised reward, he does not reveal his former hostess's hiding place. Only when he faces the death penalty does he lead the sultan's henchmen to the cave. Şahmur succeeds in overpowering Şahmaran with a spell. He kills them and prepares them. Before her death, Şahmaran Cemşid reveals that only the first water from her hand is healing, the second water is fatal. Cemşid unobtrusively fills the first water. Şahmur drinks the second water and dies in agony. Cemşid heals the sultan, who gratefully appoints him as the new vizier. Şahmaran rises in her daughter and continues to rule over the realm of the serpents.
Deviating from the Cemşid version, Şahmaran has two heads in the Tasmsp version, that of a woman and that of a snake. She bites Şahmur with one of her head, who then dies, and with the other head, the Sultan, who is healed by the bite. In the Cihan version, Şahmaran's head, torso and tail are prepared separately. The court doctor eats from the head and then understands all the languages of animals and plants. Cihan eats the trunk without any effect. The sultan eats the tail and dies.