Sayf—whose teknonym was Abū Murrah—journeyed on until he reached Caesar, the emperor of Byzantium. He laid before him the hardship he was suffering and begged him to drive the Abyssinians from his land, take charge of them, and send against them troops from the rest of the Romans, so that Caesar might gain the kingship of Yemen. Caesar, however, gave him no relief.

Sayf then moved on to al-Nuʿmān ibn al-Mundhir, Khosrow’s governor over al-Ḥīrah and its environs in Iraq, and told him of the Abyssinian oppression. Al-Nuʿmān said, “I have an annual audience with Kisrā; stay with me until that time comes.” Sayf agreed, and when the occasion arrived, al-Nuʿmān brought him into Kisrā’s presence.

Kisrā used to sit in the īwān of his palace where his crown was kept. The crown, they say, was like an enormous helmet studded with rubies, emeralds, and pearls set in gold and silver. It hung from a golden chain fixed to the ceiling of an alcove. Because his neck could not bear its weight, he remained screened by draperies until he had settled on his throne; then he would insert his head into the crown, and when he was properly seated the curtains were drawn aside. No one who had not seen him before failed to drop to his knees in awe. When Sayf ibn Dhī Yazan entered, he too knelt.

Ibn Hishām relates that Abū ʿUbaydah told him: when Sayf came in, he lowered his head. The king remarked, “What a fool—he enters through that lofty doorway and then bows his head!” This was reported to Sayf, who replied, “I did so because my grief makes everything seem narrow to me.”

Ibn Isḥāq continues: Sayf then said, “O King, the ‘crows’ have conquered our land.” Kisrā asked, “Which ‘crows’: the Abyssinians or the Sindis?” He answered, “The Abyssinians. I have come so that you might help me, and the kingship of my country will be yours.”

Kisrā replied, “Your land is distant and offers little profit; I will not embroil a Persian army in the land of the Arabs. I have no need of that.” He then presented him with ten thousand full-weight silver dirhams and a fine robe. When Sayf received them, he went out and scattered the silver among the people. News of this reached the king, who said, “This man must have some purpose.” He summoned him and asked, “You took the king’s gift only to scatter it among the people?” Sayf answered, “And what would I do with it?”